"Sell da papes!! Sell da papes!" I awoke to Kloppman's calls. I sat up and looked around; Jack was stretching and scratching himself. I couldn't help but laugh; he always looked so quire in the morning.
"C'mon Bounce! Off ya's bum! Ya selling paps taday orse ya gonna starve?"
"Yea, yea Kloppy, I'm moving." After he passed my bunk I sighed knowing I had to get up.
"I hate the morning. If God wanted us to be wake up in da mornin' he wouldna made it so early." I mumbled thinking no on e had heard me but Specs and Kid Blink laughed.
"Very true Bounce, very true." Specs said. As I reached over for my clothes, the thought hit me; it had been a whole week since I had become Jack's goil. That was an oddly nice feeling-went against everything I stood for-but oddly nice. I put on a short skirt and suspenders but I couldn't find my shirt any where. It was probably in the wash room. My missing clothes often were found in there. None of the guys really cared any more when I would walk around in my underclothes, they had gotten used to it-besides, it ain't nothing they didn't do. Ok never mind, I lied. Jack cared, but he doesn't really count. He had an exceptionally big smile on his face while I was washing up. I couldn't help but smile back at him. I looked over to the corner, and sure enough, there it was. I threw it on as Jack came up behind me and wrapped an arm around my hips.
"Now why'd yas go and do dat? Youse looked really good witout it."
"And Ise don't now?"
"No, youse just looked betta."
"Thanks Jack."
"Hey, no problem. Now let's go get our papes." He said before leaning over and giving me a quick kiss, and we headed for the distribution center. Jack had never let me sell alone, not after I got arrested and especially with all the black eyes I had given Oscar over the years. I was never worried, I knew I could handle myself, but he feared for my safety. It was fine with me, I enjoyed having a selling partner, it was someone to talk to. Any way, today me and Jack were selling I n Central Park. We were about half way through when we saw Rocket. She was lying by a tree crying her eyes out. I ran over and rolled her on her back and saw that she was clutching a knife to her chest and there was a line of blood dripping from her forearm. I pried the knife from her hand, and looked at it. It was Rubber's knife. He was a Brooklyn newsie who had shown it to me in hopes of impressing me, but when I asked if he could through it and hit a target and he said "no" , that was the end a that. I gave the knife to the astounded Jack now leaning over beside me. I ripped off a sock and tied it tight around Rocket's arm, and tried to calm her down. She reached up and slapped me hard. I had taken blows before, but never from a girl- I suppose now I understood why it had shocked Jack two years ago. After she hit me, a look crossed her face that made her look like she had just killed a small animal, and she started sobbing again into my chest. I sat there rubbing her back for a good ten minutes. Jack was sitting down next to me looking a tad envious that Rocket got to lay her head against my chest and he couldn't. When she had calmed down, she mumbled out the words,
"Ise sorry Bounce, I had ta. I couldn't stay wit Spot no more!" Me and Jack got her on her feet and helped her back to the lodging house. There was an empty bunk next to Race so we let her settle there. Jack went to Tibby's then to find out what he could and I stayed to help Rocket. I asked her what her story was and she replied,
"EXTRY! EXTRY! Read all about it! Spot betrays new goil's trust and makes out wit Faithe!"
"Faithe?" I asked. I had never heard of a newsie named Faithe before.
"Yes, Faithe" she said and continued to pour out her story of how Spot had won her trust and she had let him into her life, but that at the drop of a new girls handkerchief, he had betrayed her. It was something I never liked about Spot, how he would drop girls' hearts like dead flies. I at least tried to be tactful, whereas Spot did this at a whim. It appeared from her story a girl who evidently was very pretty showed up at the lodging house, and Spot had acted just as everyone would have known he would. I felt really bad for Rocket, she would have never foreseen this. I excused my self from her presence and went to the neighbor's flower bed to pick some marigold. I mushed it up and added some water, making a sort of paste. I rubbed it on her arm and explained it would help to heal it. I had learned lots of alternative remedies from an old woman on 21st street. She had always been a friend of mine and looked out for me. She had taught me everything to know about everything I wasn't concerned with, but at the same time-it was good to know. I spent the day with Rocket, just giving her a shoulder to lean on. She admitted to liking Race a little and I figured it would be good to maybe get them together, help get her back on her feet.
"I'm so confused, I think I really like Race, but Spot, Spot told me he really liked me and never felt this way before. But now with Faithe there, I really don't know what to do?" Typical Conlon luring phrases-and you wonder why I never got involved with his personal life.
"A'right," I said, "Why don't youse go selling with Race tomorra at Sheep's head? I'se sure he won't mind at all and you'll get ta know him more. Den I'llse take ya back ta Brooklyn and sort tings out wit Spot da day afta dat." Rocket agreed.
"Sheep's head? Da races? Ise love going dere! Me dad always took me dere when Ise was lil." Seems they might make a good couple after all.
"C'mon Bounce! Off ya's bum! Ya selling paps taday orse ya gonna starve?"
"Yea, yea Kloppy, I'm moving." After he passed my bunk I sighed knowing I had to get up.
"I hate the morning. If God wanted us to be wake up in da mornin' he wouldna made it so early." I mumbled thinking no on e had heard me but Specs and Kid Blink laughed.
"Very true Bounce, very true." Specs said. As I reached over for my clothes, the thought hit me; it had been a whole week since I had become Jack's goil. That was an oddly nice feeling-went against everything I stood for-but oddly nice. I put on a short skirt and suspenders but I couldn't find my shirt any where. It was probably in the wash room. My missing clothes often were found in there. None of the guys really cared any more when I would walk around in my underclothes, they had gotten used to it-besides, it ain't nothing they didn't do. Ok never mind, I lied. Jack cared, but he doesn't really count. He had an exceptionally big smile on his face while I was washing up. I couldn't help but smile back at him. I looked over to the corner, and sure enough, there it was. I threw it on as Jack came up behind me and wrapped an arm around my hips.
"Now why'd yas go and do dat? Youse looked really good witout it."
"And Ise don't now?"
"No, youse just looked betta."
"Thanks Jack."
"Hey, no problem. Now let's go get our papes." He said before leaning over and giving me a quick kiss, and we headed for the distribution center. Jack had never let me sell alone, not after I got arrested and especially with all the black eyes I had given Oscar over the years. I was never worried, I knew I could handle myself, but he feared for my safety. It was fine with me, I enjoyed having a selling partner, it was someone to talk to. Any way, today me and Jack were selling I n Central Park. We were about half way through when we saw Rocket. She was lying by a tree crying her eyes out. I ran over and rolled her on her back and saw that she was clutching a knife to her chest and there was a line of blood dripping from her forearm. I pried the knife from her hand, and looked at it. It was Rubber's knife. He was a Brooklyn newsie who had shown it to me in hopes of impressing me, but when I asked if he could through it and hit a target and he said "no" , that was the end a that. I gave the knife to the astounded Jack now leaning over beside me. I ripped off a sock and tied it tight around Rocket's arm, and tried to calm her down. She reached up and slapped me hard. I had taken blows before, but never from a girl- I suppose now I understood why it had shocked Jack two years ago. After she hit me, a look crossed her face that made her look like she had just killed a small animal, and she started sobbing again into my chest. I sat there rubbing her back for a good ten minutes. Jack was sitting down next to me looking a tad envious that Rocket got to lay her head against my chest and he couldn't. When she had calmed down, she mumbled out the words,
"Ise sorry Bounce, I had ta. I couldn't stay wit Spot no more!" Me and Jack got her on her feet and helped her back to the lodging house. There was an empty bunk next to Race so we let her settle there. Jack went to Tibby's then to find out what he could and I stayed to help Rocket. I asked her what her story was and she replied,
"EXTRY! EXTRY! Read all about it! Spot betrays new goil's trust and makes out wit Faithe!"
"Faithe?" I asked. I had never heard of a newsie named Faithe before.
"Yes, Faithe" she said and continued to pour out her story of how Spot had won her trust and she had let him into her life, but that at the drop of a new girls handkerchief, he had betrayed her. It was something I never liked about Spot, how he would drop girls' hearts like dead flies. I at least tried to be tactful, whereas Spot did this at a whim. It appeared from her story a girl who evidently was very pretty showed up at the lodging house, and Spot had acted just as everyone would have known he would. I felt really bad for Rocket, she would have never foreseen this. I excused my self from her presence and went to the neighbor's flower bed to pick some marigold. I mushed it up and added some water, making a sort of paste. I rubbed it on her arm and explained it would help to heal it. I had learned lots of alternative remedies from an old woman on 21st street. She had always been a friend of mine and looked out for me. She had taught me everything to know about everything I wasn't concerned with, but at the same time-it was good to know. I spent the day with Rocket, just giving her a shoulder to lean on. She admitted to liking Race a little and I figured it would be good to maybe get them together, help get her back on her feet.
"I'm so confused, I think I really like Race, but Spot, Spot told me he really liked me and never felt this way before. But now with Faithe there, I really don't know what to do?" Typical Conlon luring phrases-and you wonder why I never got involved with his personal life.
"A'right," I said, "Why don't youse go selling with Race tomorra at Sheep's head? I'se sure he won't mind at all and you'll get ta know him more. Den I'llse take ya back ta Brooklyn and sort tings out wit Spot da day afta dat." Rocket agreed.
"Sheep's head? Da races? Ise love going dere! Me dad always took me dere when Ise was lil." Seems they might make a good couple after all.