*~*~*
The Newsie Princess Of Brooklyn
*~*~*
"Okay, Spot, I'm ready. Button me up."
I pulled back the sheet that we had strung up so I could change. There was no one in the lodging house, but somebody could have walked in at any moment. And the idea of someone seeing me in a dress was just about as humiliating as someone seeing me in nothing at all.
Spot sidled in and, without a word, began to fasten the back. I could tell by the look on his face that he was having more than a little trouble keeping his mouth shut.
Originally I had planed to wear my normal clothes. But just as I was beginning to get ready to leave that morning Spot burst in, a blue dress held awkwardly in his arms. I kept asking myself why I had even tried it on, and the answer, invariably, was that I was just being polite-but I knew that wasn't the truth. If I was going to try to get somebody to fall in love with me, they had to first be aware of the fact that I was female. Besides, if Spot hadn't given it to me I probably would have just bought one myself, and I didn't want to dip into my savings. All the money I had was in a cigar box under my mattress, where I had been saving my pennies, on and off, since I was fourteen years old. When I had enough I was going to buy two tickets to Santa Fe.
"Well, how do I look?" I said tentatively, fidgeting unconsciously with my hair.
A mile-wide grin cracked across Spot's face. "Like a porcelain doll," he said.
"Do I want to look like a porcelain doll?"
"Sam, you're pretty as a picture," Spot said. "Trust me. I got this dress from very reliable sources."
"Yeh, and what would that be? A clothes line?"
"Only the best for my sister."
I looked in the mirror, still unsure. I couldn't remember the last time I had worn a dress. It was a plain one, a simple sky-blue with a high neck and long leg-o'-mutton sleeves. I didn't want to move in it, afraid I would trip on the skirt. But I had done my best. I had washed my hair and brushed it out straight, scrubbed my face and hands and pinched my cheeks to make them red. From here on out, I would just have to hope for the best.
"I feel naked in so many clothes," I remarked, turning around to leave. "Well...wish me luck."
"Wait a minute," Spot said suddenly
"What is it?"
"Just-close your eyes fer a second. And turn around."
Obediently, I moved to face the wall, and, not trusting me, Spot clamped his hand over my eyes. I could hear him rummaging for something in his pocket and, taking his hand from my face, fastened it around my neck.
I didn't have to open my eyes to see that it was a necklace. I didn't have to open my eyes, either, to see that it was an opal pendant on a silver chain, the stone slightly chipped in one corner, and the chain slightly tarnished with age. I didn't have to open my eyes to recognize it as the necklace that had belonged to our mother, the only piece of jewelry that I had ever owned. But I opened them anyway.
"I had no idea you'd kept this for so long," I said quietly.
"Sure I did. Hey, ya never when your sister's got some man stealin' to do." I turned around, startled. He winked at me. I couldn't help but smile.
I started out the door. I had two bits, a stolen dress, my mother's necklace, and something like hope. What more could a girl want?
*~*~*
TBC...
The Newsie Princess Of Brooklyn
*~*~*
"Okay, Spot, I'm ready. Button me up."
I pulled back the sheet that we had strung up so I could change. There was no one in the lodging house, but somebody could have walked in at any moment. And the idea of someone seeing me in a dress was just about as humiliating as someone seeing me in nothing at all.
Spot sidled in and, without a word, began to fasten the back. I could tell by the look on his face that he was having more than a little trouble keeping his mouth shut.
Originally I had planed to wear my normal clothes. But just as I was beginning to get ready to leave that morning Spot burst in, a blue dress held awkwardly in his arms. I kept asking myself why I had even tried it on, and the answer, invariably, was that I was just being polite-but I knew that wasn't the truth. If I was going to try to get somebody to fall in love with me, they had to first be aware of the fact that I was female. Besides, if Spot hadn't given it to me I probably would have just bought one myself, and I didn't want to dip into my savings. All the money I had was in a cigar box under my mattress, where I had been saving my pennies, on and off, since I was fourteen years old. When I had enough I was going to buy two tickets to Santa Fe.
"Well, how do I look?" I said tentatively, fidgeting unconsciously with my hair.
A mile-wide grin cracked across Spot's face. "Like a porcelain doll," he said.
"Do I want to look like a porcelain doll?"
"Sam, you're pretty as a picture," Spot said. "Trust me. I got this dress from very reliable sources."
"Yeh, and what would that be? A clothes line?"
"Only the best for my sister."
I looked in the mirror, still unsure. I couldn't remember the last time I had worn a dress. It was a plain one, a simple sky-blue with a high neck and long leg-o'-mutton sleeves. I didn't want to move in it, afraid I would trip on the skirt. But I had done my best. I had washed my hair and brushed it out straight, scrubbed my face and hands and pinched my cheeks to make them red. From here on out, I would just have to hope for the best.
"I feel naked in so many clothes," I remarked, turning around to leave. "Well...wish me luck."
"Wait a minute," Spot said suddenly
"What is it?"
"Just-close your eyes fer a second. And turn around."
Obediently, I moved to face the wall, and, not trusting me, Spot clamped his hand over my eyes. I could hear him rummaging for something in his pocket and, taking his hand from my face, fastened it around my neck.
I didn't have to open my eyes to see that it was a necklace. I didn't have to open my eyes, either, to see that it was an opal pendant on a silver chain, the stone slightly chipped in one corner, and the chain slightly tarnished with age. I didn't have to open my eyes to recognize it as the necklace that had belonged to our mother, the only piece of jewelry that I had ever owned. But I opened them anyway.
"I had no idea you'd kept this for so long," I said quietly.
"Sure I did. Hey, ya never when your sister's got some man stealin' to do." I turned around, startled. He winked at me. I couldn't help but smile.
I started out the door. I had two bits, a stolen dress, my mother's necklace, and something like hope. What more could a girl want?
*~*~*
TBC...