With the help of Smyth (a/n: new and improved spelling as according
to certain friends of mine) and Fingers I spent most of my time outside for
the next week and a half. The routine stayed essentially the same: we
waited until everyone left and then we snuck out the front and met Smyth at
the Bridge and sold until five when we snuck back in.
Then one day, the routine changed. We met up with Smyth as always, but the jovial greetings were dampened that day. "Ya need ta leave. It ain't safe heah anymoah. We'se movin' ya ta Medda's."
"Wait, why isn't it safe?" I asked, concerned at the distress I detected in his voice.
"Chant's movin' in on us again. Ya didn' really t'ink he'd jus' gonna retreat?"
Fingers looked up worried. "I did," she proclaimed. "I mean, we've got twice as many troops as dey do, why don' dey jus' drop it."
"Ta quote ya hero, Jack Kelly, 'If he gives in ta streetrats like us it means we've got da powah. An' he jus' can' do dat, no mattah what it costs,'" Smyth told her. He turned to face me, a look of fear barely visible on his nearly perfectly chiseled face. It probably wasn't the best time to be thinking about it, but Fingers had definitely picked well; he definitely had something going on. "Now le's get ya ta Irvin' Hall before da guys check out da lodgin' house an' move on ta da Hall. Den I'l tell 'em we took ya earliah an' ya won' get in trouble."
"Works for me," I told him, following him as he walked towards the vaudeville theatre.
"Heah we are," Smyth announced as we reached the building. "I'se gonna go find Jack an' let 'im know dat you'se heah. Fingahs, ya come wit' me, Shade an' Shark is already heah ta watch aftah her."
I leaned in and kissed his cheek in a friendly manner. "Thanks, I owe you one," I told him before striding purposefully into the building and finding Medda. "Medda? You in here? It's Spark."
"Alexandra, darling, I'm glad you're all right. Don't worry, Smyth already let me know the story and we'll cover you just fine. Come on in here, we've got a room set up for you."
"Thank you," I said kindly and walked behind her into a small room with a single bed and a vanity. One girl was sitting on the bed and another was on the stool at the vanity. "Shade!" I shouted to the girl on the bed. "Shark!" I grinned as I looked at the one sitting at the counter.
"Took you'se long enough. Jack's supposedly only two minutes away!" Shark exclaimed and we instantly set it up to look like I'd been there for at least an hour, as the story went.
In the end I was lying under the covers on the bed in a plain off- white nightgown courtesy of Medda with my hair let down around me. "Thank you," I said happily to the two as Jack knocked on the door.
"She in heah?" he asked. He spotted me lying on the bed and smiled. "Jus' makin' shore ya hadn't been sneakin' out lately. It's dangerous again ya know."
"Yeah, I kn--" I started, but at that instant I keeled over in pain. "Get Medda!" I shouted to Jack, knowing that the baby was on the way.
"All righ', all righ'," he shouted back as he raced out of the room in search of the redheaded woman.
By the time Medda walked into the room Shade and Shark already had me situated. Medda immediately took control, ordering Shade to run for hot water and Shark to aid her. She talked me through the entire process and I swear that's what kept me sane. Jack had been sent as a runner to go get Racetrack and he was brought into the room as soon as I was decent.
"What is it? Goil? Boy? Are ya all righ'?" he said frantically.
I grinned as Shade held up a small baby girl. "You'se a faddah of a nice healthy little goil," she said. He looked estatic.
Then Shark pulled her move. "You'se also da faddah of a good little boy," she informed him, holding up my son.
At this point Racetrack looked overwhelmed and confused. His next statement proved this to be true. "Whoa," he said.
"Yeah," was my equally creative reply.
Medda looked at the two of us with a sparkle in her eyes. "I think these two need some time alone. Shade, Shark, let's get outta their way."
"Thank you," I told her as she walked out of the room. She simply winked. I turned to Race. "What do you think?"
"Dey's goigeous, jus' like deir muddah," he said, positively glowing with happiness. "We can't keep callin' 'em dey though, we gonna need ta name 'em."
"Yeah, let me think for a minute," I said, pondering how we were going to manage this.
"I'se been thinkin' 'bout it, an' I got some ideas. I was thinkin' each of us would pick a name dat is from our backgrounds an' see if we can get a good meanin' of 'em for a bonus. Either way, the child gets some of each of our culture."
"You were thinking about that?" I said. As he nodded I realized I shouldn't have been surprised. After all, Racetrack was the hopeless romantic of the newsies. "What do you have so far?" I asked, my curiosity getting the better of me.
"Well, for a goil I was thinkin' Arianna." He paused for a second as if it was hard to say. "Arianna was me sistah an' she passed away when I was little. It means 'Most Holy' if ya want ta make da name's mean somethin'."
"Of course I do," I said smiling. I thought back towards my Jewish heritage, wondering what name would fit the description and sound good. After a few minutes reflection it came to me. "Chaya," I stated. "It means life."
"Arianna Chaya," Racetrack repeated. "Most holy life." He looked thoughtfully towards the ceiling for a moment. "I like it."
"Now, you have any ideas for a boy?" I asked him.
"Truthfully, I was hopin' for a little goil ta grow up like 'er muddah, so I don' really got any ideas."
I smiled, blushing. "I'm sure you don't want that child to grow up like me. I'm not anything special," I said, bouncing the little girl in my lap.
"Yes, ya are," he said.
I desperately tried to turn the conversation back to names. "But what you said gives me an idea. You see, I think the second baby is a gift, because most people only get one. Therefore, how about we name him Shai - a Hebrew word for gift."
"I'se got da poifect name ta go aftah dat," Race said, smiling excitedly. "Domincio. It means 'of G-d'."
Now it was my turn to repeat the name over and over and decide the fate of it. "Shai Domincio," I said, liking the sound of it. "Gift of G-d." I smiled. "It's perfect!"
He looked at me happily. "Should I call the others in?" he asked.
"Not quite yet," I said. With that I leaned over and kissed him passionately, the two children lying in our laps.
I pulled back and stared out at the setting sun, Racetrack watching me.
At that moment I forgot all about the problems around me. I forgot completely about the oncoming battles with Chant and his men, I forgot about Oscar Delancy's anger. I forgot that I was seventeen and already dealing with two children. I forgot that I was completely and totally poor and my children would probably grow up in a slum or a tenement.
I'd finally found what I had been searching for all along..
Someone I belong.
*~*~*~*
I looked to the two children beside me, a young curly haired boy and a girl with long black hair. Both the children were distinctly Italian, proving exactly who their father was. I guess I'd always suspected they were his, but I never could truly know. I smiled down at them, they were three years old exactly today. I'd taken them out of the house so that Racetrack could prepare for their party.
"Tell us moah, Mommy!" the little boy shouted. I smiled, thinking he looked exactly like his father.
"Yeah, Mama!" Arianna said in agreement.
I ruffled Shai's curly mop of dark brown hair. "Ask your father."
"But mom--" the little boy protest.
His sister screeching, "I wanna know what happens" quickly interrupted him!
"You'll find out tomorrow. I'll let your father tell his part next," I said. I stood quickly and brushed the grass off my dress. "Let's get home now, he's expecting us."
"Not until you tell us the rest of the story," Arianna protest. I bit my lip to hold in my laughs. She was already turning into a spitting image of me, and even Spot said so.
"All right. I'm leaving," I shouted over my shoulder as I walked slowly away, threatening jokingly to leave them.
"We'se comin'!" Shai shouted happily. He grabbed his sister's arm and the two trotted up to meet me. We promenaded towards the apartments arm in arm happily.
I walked in the door where Race had been hiding behind the couch. He shouted surprise to the twins and six-year-old Apple and a few other children from around the building came out. The group quickly got to playing, leaving me and Racetrack a second alone.
"I love you, Alex," he said, kissing my cheek.
I turned and beamed at the children. I owed him for every one of the gifts in my life, from finding my brother to finding the man I loved to having two beautiful children. I owed him for this house and for the food we ate at the table. Darnit, I owed him for the table! But I knew there was one way to pay him back for all that he had given me.
"I love you, Anthony," I told him. He smiled before he felt a tugging at his pant leg.
"Wanna tell us da rest of da story?" Apple, who had apparently heard whatever mangled memories of mine the children had been able to conjure up, begged him. He turned and sat down in the easy chair he sat in every night, turning to the children.
A/N: All right, this is a very final chapter, so I'm going to go ahead and make it THE final chapter. However, I am almost assuredly going to do a sequel (too much was left untouched) through Racetrack's eyes. Yes? No? Maybe so? Lemme know!
Shoutouts:
Mouth: Tubbo!! I love Tubbo!! Haha. I spelled it Smyth, be proud. Yeah. Umm, seeya.
Sweets: Well here's the baby. Or should I say babies. : ) Glad you liked it. Lemme know if you want a sequel!!
Soaker: You quoted my movie! Sgt. Bilko is kickass (Max Casella in drag!! Great scene XD) Yeah, well, it was meant to make you think that about Spot, so I'm glad you did.
Plaid Pajamas: Glad you liked it so much! I love getting new reviewers and you only started a few days ago. : )
Drama-Queen: Yeah, Spot's off his pedestal. He wasn't in this chapter though.. I just realized that. Oh well, maybe Spottie will come up again soon in the sequal.. if there is one.
Reffy: Yes, happy chapters are good. I hope this qualifies as a happy chapter too.
AJ: Haha. Let's hope you weren't reading my story for the sex scenes or else someone randomly added one in there since there wasn't really a scene. It was a between the scenes thing. Haha. Yes, pregnant-women flirting is cool.
Sprite: Yeah. Less drama in this chapter as much as I really was in the mood to write a happy ending (I met this guy and I really like him so I'm all happy now). Hope you liked it! Sequel? Yes? No?
Fire: Is candy-coated Race supposed to be a threat?? If it is you have screwed priorities LOL. Yeah, I updated. Now you can update too. * hands Fire a flying desk set * Happy? LOL.
A Side Note To Slider: You are a slut!! You're my friend and I'm a slut too but man, you were a slut at that party. LOL. People were talking about you at my temple. : )
THAT'S IT!! ENDING!! WHOA!! SOOO HAPPY!! * DOES THE 'WHOA I'VE FINISHED MY SECOND STORY EVER TO FINISH' DANCE * YAHOOOO!!
Of course.. there can be a sequel..
I think its evident enough that I want to write one, but only if there's enough public demand. Lemme know soon!!
Much love to all reviewers!!
CTB, Spark
Then one day, the routine changed. We met up with Smyth as always, but the jovial greetings were dampened that day. "Ya need ta leave. It ain't safe heah anymoah. We'se movin' ya ta Medda's."
"Wait, why isn't it safe?" I asked, concerned at the distress I detected in his voice.
"Chant's movin' in on us again. Ya didn' really t'ink he'd jus' gonna retreat?"
Fingers looked up worried. "I did," she proclaimed. "I mean, we've got twice as many troops as dey do, why don' dey jus' drop it."
"Ta quote ya hero, Jack Kelly, 'If he gives in ta streetrats like us it means we've got da powah. An' he jus' can' do dat, no mattah what it costs,'" Smyth told her. He turned to face me, a look of fear barely visible on his nearly perfectly chiseled face. It probably wasn't the best time to be thinking about it, but Fingers had definitely picked well; he definitely had something going on. "Now le's get ya ta Irvin' Hall before da guys check out da lodgin' house an' move on ta da Hall. Den I'l tell 'em we took ya earliah an' ya won' get in trouble."
"Works for me," I told him, following him as he walked towards the vaudeville theatre.
"Heah we are," Smyth announced as we reached the building. "I'se gonna go find Jack an' let 'im know dat you'se heah. Fingahs, ya come wit' me, Shade an' Shark is already heah ta watch aftah her."
I leaned in and kissed his cheek in a friendly manner. "Thanks, I owe you one," I told him before striding purposefully into the building and finding Medda. "Medda? You in here? It's Spark."
"Alexandra, darling, I'm glad you're all right. Don't worry, Smyth already let me know the story and we'll cover you just fine. Come on in here, we've got a room set up for you."
"Thank you," I said kindly and walked behind her into a small room with a single bed and a vanity. One girl was sitting on the bed and another was on the stool at the vanity. "Shade!" I shouted to the girl on the bed. "Shark!" I grinned as I looked at the one sitting at the counter.
"Took you'se long enough. Jack's supposedly only two minutes away!" Shark exclaimed and we instantly set it up to look like I'd been there for at least an hour, as the story went.
In the end I was lying under the covers on the bed in a plain off- white nightgown courtesy of Medda with my hair let down around me. "Thank you," I said happily to the two as Jack knocked on the door.
"She in heah?" he asked. He spotted me lying on the bed and smiled. "Jus' makin' shore ya hadn't been sneakin' out lately. It's dangerous again ya know."
"Yeah, I kn--" I started, but at that instant I keeled over in pain. "Get Medda!" I shouted to Jack, knowing that the baby was on the way.
"All righ', all righ'," he shouted back as he raced out of the room in search of the redheaded woman.
By the time Medda walked into the room Shade and Shark already had me situated. Medda immediately took control, ordering Shade to run for hot water and Shark to aid her. She talked me through the entire process and I swear that's what kept me sane. Jack had been sent as a runner to go get Racetrack and he was brought into the room as soon as I was decent.
"What is it? Goil? Boy? Are ya all righ'?" he said frantically.
I grinned as Shade held up a small baby girl. "You'se a faddah of a nice healthy little goil," she said. He looked estatic.
Then Shark pulled her move. "You'se also da faddah of a good little boy," she informed him, holding up my son.
At this point Racetrack looked overwhelmed and confused. His next statement proved this to be true. "Whoa," he said.
"Yeah," was my equally creative reply.
Medda looked at the two of us with a sparkle in her eyes. "I think these two need some time alone. Shade, Shark, let's get outta their way."
"Thank you," I told her as she walked out of the room. She simply winked. I turned to Race. "What do you think?"
"Dey's goigeous, jus' like deir muddah," he said, positively glowing with happiness. "We can't keep callin' 'em dey though, we gonna need ta name 'em."
"Yeah, let me think for a minute," I said, pondering how we were going to manage this.
"I'se been thinkin' 'bout it, an' I got some ideas. I was thinkin' each of us would pick a name dat is from our backgrounds an' see if we can get a good meanin' of 'em for a bonus. Either way, the child gets some of each of our culture."
"You were thinking about that?" I said. As he nodded I realized I shouldn't have been surprised. After all, Racetrack was the hopeless romantic of the newsies. "What do you have so far?" I asked, my curiosity getting the better of me.
"Well, for a goil I was thinkin' Arianna." He paused for a second as if it was hard to say. "Arianna was me sistah an' she passed away when I was little. It means 'Most Holy' if ya want ta make da name's mean somethin'."
"Of course I do," I said smiling. I thought back towards my Jewish heritage, wondering what name would fit the description and sound good. After a few minutes reflection it came to me. "Chaya," I stated. "It means life."
"Arianna Chaya," Racetrack repeated. "Most holy life." He looked thoughtfully towards the ceiling for a moment. "I like it."
"Now, you have any ideas for a boy?" I asked him.
"Truthfully, I was hopin' for a little goil ta grow up like 'er muddah, so I don' really got any ideas."
I smiled, blushing. "I'm sure you don't want that child to grow up like me. I'm not anything special," I said, bouncing the little girl in my lap.
"Yes, ya are," he said.
I desperately tried to turn the conversation back to names. "But what you said gives me an idea. You see, I think the second baby is a gift, because most people only get one. Therefore, how about we name him Shai - a Hebrew word for gift."
"I'se got da poifect name ta go aftah dat," Race said, smiling excitedly. "Domincio. It means 'of G-d'."
Now it was my turn to repeat the name over and over and decide the fate of it. "Shai Domincio," I said, liking the sound of it. "Gift of G-d." I smiled. "It's perfect!"
He looked at me happily. "Should I call the others in?" he asked.
"Not quite yet," I said. With that I leaned over and kissed him passionately, the two children lying in our laps.
I pulled back and stared out at the setting sun, Racetrack watching me.
At that moment I forgot all about the problems around me. I forgot completely about the oncoming battles with Chant and his men, I forgot about Oscar Delancy's anger. I forgot that I was seventeen and already dealing with two children. I forgot that I was completely and totally poor and my children would probably grow up in a slum or a tenement.
I'd finally found what I had been searching for all along..
Someone I belong.
*~*~*~*
I looked to the two children beside me, a young curly haired boy and a girl with long black hair. Both the children were distinctly Italian, proving exactly who their father was. I guess I'd always suspected they were his, but I never could truly know. I smiled down at them, they were three years old exactly today. I'd taken them out of the house so that Racetrack could prepare for their party.
"Tell us moah, Mommy!" the little boy shouted. I smiled, thinking he looked exactly like his father.
"Yeah, Mama!" Arianna said in agreement.
I ruffled Shai's curly mop of dark brown hair. "Ask your father."
"But mom--" the little boy protest.
His sister screeching, "I wanna know what happens" quickly interrupted him!
"You'll find out tomorrow. I'll let your father tell his part next," I said. I stood quickly and brushed the grass off my dress. "Let's get home now, he's expecting us."
"Not until you tell us the rest of the story," Arianna protest. I bit my lip to hold in my laughs. She was already turning into a spitting image of me, and even Spot said so.
"All right. I'm leaving," I shouted over my shoulder as I walked slowly away, threatening jokingly to leave them.
"We'se comin'!" Shai shouted happily. He grabbed his sister's arm and the two trotted up to meet me. We promenaded towards the apartments arm in arm happily.
I walked in the door where Race had been hiding behind the couch. He shouted surprise to the twins and six-year-old Apple and a few other children from around the building came out. The group quickly got to playing, leaving me and Racetrack a second alone.
"I love you, Alex," he said, kissing my cheek.
I turned and beamed at the children. I owed him for every one of the gifts in my life, from finding my brother to finding the man I loved to having two beautiful children. I owed him for this house and for the food we ate at the table. Darnit, I owed him for the table! But I knew there was one way to pay him back for all that he had given me.
"I love you, Anthony," I told him. He smiled before he felt a tugging at his pant leg.
"Wanna tell us da rest of da story?" Apple, who had apparently heard whatever mangled memories of mine the children had been able to conjure up, begged him. He turned and sat down in the easy chair he sat in every night, turning to the children.
A/N: All right, this is a very final chapter, so I'm going to go ahead and make it THE final chapter. However, I am almost assuredly going to do a sequel (too much was left untouched) through Racetrack's eyes. Yes? No? Maybe so? Lemme know!
Shoutouts:
Mouth: Tubbo!! I love Tubbo!! Haha. I spelled it Smyth, be proud. Yeah. Umm, seeya.
Sweets: Well here's the baby. Or should I say babies. : ) Glad you liked it. Lemme know if you want a sequel!!
Soaker: You quoted my movie! Sgt. Bilko is kickass (Max Casella in drag!! Great scene XD) Yeah, well, it was meant to make you think that about Spot, so I'm glad you did.
Plaid Pajamas: Glad you liked it so much! I love getting new reviewers and you only started a few days ago. : )
Drama-Queen: Yeah, Spot's off his pedestal. He wasn't in this chapter though.. I just realized that. Oh well, maybe Spottie will come up again soon in the sequal.. if there is one.
Reffy: Yes, happy chapters are good. I hope this qualifies as a happy chapter too.
AJ: Haha. Let's hope you weren't reading my story for the sex scenes or else someone randomly added one in there since there wasn't really a scene. It was a between the scenes thing. Haha. Yes, pregnant-women flirting is cool.
Sprite: Yeah. Less drama in this chapter as much as I really was in the mood to write a happy ending (I met this guy and I really like him so I'm all happy now). Hope you liked it! Sequel? Yes? No?
Fire: Is candy-coated Race supposed to be a threat?? If it is you have screwed priorities LOL. Yeah, I updated. Now you can update too. * hands Fire a flying desk set * Happy? LOL.
A Side Note To Slider: You are a slut!! You're my friend and I'm a slut too but man, you were a slut at that party. LOL. People were talking about you at my temple. : )
THAT'S IT!! ENDING!! WHOA!! SOOO HAPPY!! * DOES THE 'WHOA I'VE FINISHED MY SECOND STORY EVER TO FINISH' DANCE * YAHOOOO!!
Of course.. there can be a sequel..
I think its evident enough that I want to write one, but only if there's enough public demand. Lemme know soon!!
Much love to all reviewers!!
CTB, Spark