Kez is sweet, Kez is cool, Kez is neat, and and... not a fool! And Misprint
rocks my socks off.
"What the hell?! Alright, who took it?!" Luna yelled, pounding her boots against the floor as she woke up the other girls in the bunkroom. "One of you has it, and I wanna know who!"
"Luna?" Slinks muttered, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Luna what is it?"
Luna hopped onto Slinks bed and frowned. "Someone stole Spot's slingshot," she replied, "and I want to know who did it right dis instant."
With that Slinks was up with a jolt. "Who would take that of all things?" she asked. Whoever took it hadn't realized the full effects of their actions. Spot was not one to be toyed with, and certainly not one to have things stolen from.
"I don't know who took it, but they better reveal themselves right now or else they're in for a lot more trouble then they could ever imagine," Luna threatened, eyeing the entire room suspiciously.
Slowly the girls sat up, each looking around to see who in the world could have been stupid enough to steal such a thing. Luna paced back and forth, still a suspicious gleam in her eye.
One by one, Luna interrogated each and every newsgirl. Someone had it, and she wasn't about to give up until she found his slingshot. Her eyes settled on Slick, a resident troublemaker. But would she go this far?
"Slick, anythin' ya wanna tell me?" she asked sternly.
Rolling her eyes, Slick shook her head. "Luna, come on now. I may like a good prank once in awhile, but I ain't one ta plant a death wish on me own head."
"Well I certainly hope you're tellin' the truth," Luna muttered and found her next victim, or rather victims. Hush, BC, and Laces were all sitting together, whispering back and forth. Perhaps they were the culprits.
"Girls," Luna stated, sitting down on the bunk across from them. "Spill."
Laces rolled her eyes. "Luna, we had nothin' to do wit it. For once it wasn't any of us three."
"Den what were ya just whisperin' about?" Luna asked persistently.
The three were rather reluctant to ignite Luna's fury any further. They had been discussing how well a new prank in the boys' room had gone. "Well," BC spoke up, clearing her throat. "We was just talkin' about how…"
"Where are they?!" Race screamed. "I know it was them!"
Luna frowned at the three girls. "Lemme guess, Race has sumptin' to do wit it?" she asked.
Pushing his way through the sleepy girls whom had just woken up, Race stormed over to the three pranksters, intent on not letting this prank go another minute. "Hand it over," he insisted.
Luna rolled her eyes and watched the spectacle in front of her. Of all the times two different thieves had to be lurking, it had to be this morning.
"Hand what over?" Hush asked. "We don't got nothin' of yours," she stated.
"Den where is me watch?" Race asked impatiently.
"Ya lost that again?" Laces asked, doing her best to hide a smirk. "Geez Race, when ya gonna loin ta stop lettin' Mayhem borrow it?" she asked.
"Ooh, that's it!" Race said through clenched teeth. "Give it to me now, or else suffer the consequences."
BC laughed, and positioned herself behind the two other girls, since she was the one with the watch. "Consequences? What? Ya gonna make us watch you shuffle your cards, or bet on a horse? C'mon Race, ya ain't got the guts," BC spat at him.
"Ha, why would I fight a girl? That's beneath me character," he huffed. "But there are other ways to get me watch back."
Luna stood a few feet away, watching in amusement. She had stayed at the Manhattan Lodging House to get away from being a leader for a night, and here she was, about to moderate a quarrel.
Smirking widely, BC continued. "Right, below yer character. I forgot. It's alright ta blow a week's worth of earnings on a horse named Torpedo, which, I might add, did just as it was supposed to, and bombed into last place, but it's not alright ta stand up for a silly piece of metal on a fake chain?"
"That was the last straw! No one calls me watch fake!" Race yelled and lunged at the three sitting on the bed.
"Enough!" Luna bellowed and grabbed race's arm just as he was about to dive for BC.
The three girls sat smirking on the bed, knowing Luna was quite capable of keeping them from any harm, though they weren't so convinced that Luna herself wouldn't do some reprimanding, even if this wasn't her lodging house.
"Dey need ta be taught a lesson, Luna," Race growled. "And I would love that privilege."
"Alright, BC, hand it over," Luna commanded, and reluctantly BC retrieved the watch from her pocket.
Snatching it up, Race glared at the girls before heading back to the boys' room, perturbed and still upset. "I can't believe dose three!"
Gabi had slept peacefully in Bumlets' arms the entire night. As morning approached, she was still sound asleep, until Racetrack burst into the room, still yelling about the three pranksters and his watch. Opening her eyes quickly, Gabi rolled over slightly, right onto the slingshot that was still in her back pocket. Oh no. The slingshot. How am I going to get it back into the girls' room without Luna noticing?
Gabi tried unsuccessfully to slide out from beneath Bumlets' arms. Each time she moved, he would move with her, until finally he was pulled out of his deep sleep.
"Gabi?" he mumbled. Bumlets stretched his arms out, reaching for her and the warmth he once felt beside him. He was too used to the boys' outbursts in the morning, and unlike Gabi, was able to sleep right through Race's words.
Sighing, Gabrielle leaned towards him and kissed his cheek. "I'm right here. Going to the washroom," she whispered, stroking a few stray strands of hair from his face.
Bumlets smiled sleepily, and nodded his head. "Hurry back," he muttered before his eyes were tightly shut again.
Now was her chance. If Luna was still asleep, she could just set the slingshot on the nightstand and be done with it. Sliding out of the warm bed, Gabi cursed herself for not taking care of this the prior evening. She hurried out of the room and crept towards the girls' quarters.
"Who took if for the last time!" Luna shouted. "I've been more than patient, and now I wanna know who stole Spot's slingshot." Her arms were crossed, and she was about ready to pull out her own slingshot and completely terrify the girls. She wouldn't have been so upset if Spot hadn't put so much trust in her. She was responsible for keeping it safe, and now it was missing.
Most of the girls hadn't even dared to get out of bed. All eyes were fixated on Luna and her rage. No one wanted to spark her anger further, and they'd rather sit still in their beds quietly than risk walking to the washroom to get ready, and get accosted by Luna personally.
Gabi entered the room and her eyes widened. Luna was up alright, and she was certain Luna had been demanding to know where the slingshot was.
"Gawd, its just a slingshot, Luna," Dublina finally remarked. She was tired of other lodging house leaders terrorizing her in the early morning hours.
"It's not just a slingshot," Luna snapped, her temper rising.
Known for being cranky in the morning, Dublina snapped right back at the leader. "Pfff, it is just a slingshot, and Spot's for Christ sakes. Who gives a damn? He ain't even here!"
"Take that back," Luna managed to say as calmly as possible. Her knuckles were turning white from the tight fists she was making.
While all this was going on, Gabi snuck into the bunkroom. She could see Luna near the far corner, giving another lodger hell for talking about Spot's beloved slingshot. Luckily for her, Luna's bunk had been quite close to the door.
"Alright, alright! Shit Luna! Forget I said anythin'," Dublina growled and took off for the washroom.
While Luna was busy making sure the last few members knew exactly how bad it would be to keep the slingshot from her possession any longer, Gabi quietly set it down on the floor near Luna's nightstand. This way, maybe she'll think it was just dropped or fell by accident.
Unfortunately her actions didn't go unnoticed. A bunk's length away Laces was watching every move Gabi made. Since Laces was a born troublemaker, she figured she could use this information to her own benefit the next time she was faced with an angry Luna. Smiling, Laces turned to watch Luna continue her unsuccessful rampage.
Gabi started to creep towards the exit. This was the last place she wanted to be right now, and was beginning to miss Bumlets' arms terribly.
"Wait right there," Luna called out, stopping Gabi in her tracks. "Where were you all night?"
Gulping, Gabi turned back towards the leader. "Boys' room," she answered, receiving a few looks from the girls.
"Boys' room?" Brooky interjected. "With who?"
Forgetting that no one really knew about taking up a romantic interest in Bumlets, Gabi was reluctant to reveal anything, but being under the girls' eyes made her want to get out of that room fast, and answering seemed the only way. "I was with Bumlets."
"Told ya," Raven grinned.
The chatter in the girls' room reached new heights as Raven disclosed how she knew it would happen all along. In the midst of this, Gabi slid out the door and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Luna, the slingshot's right here! Did ya even bother to look on the ground before yellin' at all of us?" Laces asked and picked up the slingshot.
"I looked on the ground! I wouldn't be that dumb, Laces!" Luna shot back. "Who placed it there?" she asked, but the girls' in the room all shook their heads. Sighing, Luna was too tired to continue this interrogation. Hopefully by now they all knew not to mess with that slingshot. She had a duty to protect it, and that's what she was going to do.
Luna snatched it out of Laces' hands and walked towards the washroom. Didn't she dream this would happen? I have ta find out why I dream such crazy things. Maybe I'm goin' insane. I wish I knew what dey all meant.
Once out of the girls' room, Gabi dasshed into the boys' bunkroom before anyone could stop her. She walked over to Bumlets' bed and smiled, seeing him fast asleep. Sliding back into his arms, Gabi rested her head on his chest.
Bumlets pulled her closer in his sleep, his body relaxing more now that she was beside him. While he made the most of the last few minutes before Kloppman came to wake up them all up, Gabi lay wide awake. Her mind traveled from thoughts of Luna terrorizing the girls to Bumlets warm body close to her, to her family that knew nothing of where she was. Could she continue to live like this? If she went home, her father would have her marry Christopher, and if she stayed here, she would be with the man she cared about, but never be able to see her family again. Her parents would never approve of her dating a Newsie. How could she choose? Instinctively curling up closer to Bumlets, Gabi tried to push these unwanted thoughts from her mind.
****
"Get up Skits! Specs! Aw, come on Dutchy! The papes aren't gonna wait for ya!" Kloppman called, his voice booming throughout the bunkroom.
"It's that time already?" Mush asked, wiping the sleep from his eyes.
"It's been that time for ten minutes already, now get up!" Kloppman insisted.
"Yeah, Mush, don't keep True waitin'," Jake teased. "We already know what happens when she's gotta wait in that lobby for ya."
"And what about Pixie, huh Jake?" Mush retorted. "She gave you a talkin' to the other day fer bein' late!"
"Enough already!" Skittery cried. "Yer already givin' me a headache and we just woke up!"
"Yeah guys. Let's not get Skits into a bad mood any sooner den he will by himself, huh?" Jack smirked and nudged Skittery in the arm.
"Hey! Would ya look at dis. Bumlets got himself a girl!" Blink laughed.
The boys turned to look at Bumlets' bunk near the window. Sure enough, he was holding Gabi in his arms.
"Raven told me dis would happen between those two," Dutchy muttered, shaking his head. "I gotta learn to start believin' her right off the bat 'bout relationships."
Gabi woke up once the tittering in the bunkroom had seemed to come closer and closer to her. Opening her eyes, Gabi saw the boys staring at her, and gasped.
Specs laughed. "Ya do know this is the boys' room, and yer sleepin' next ta Bumlets, right girl?" he asked.
Gabi frowned at him. What did he care? "Actually, I could have sworn this was the girls' room, what with all the high-pitched squealing you all do in the morning."
Bumlets was stirring out of his comfortable and deep sleep. He heard Gabi's voice and the laughs of the boys as well. What was going on? "Gabrielle?" he mumbled, opening his eyes slowly.
"Look, he's finally awake," Pie Eater grinned. "What took ya so long Bumlets? Dreamin' 'a ya goil here?"
Specs nudged Pie in the side. "And it's a good thing he got himself a girl. Now he won't be checkin' out Slinks when he thinks I ain't lookin'," Specs teased.
If it were not for Bumlets sleepy mind, he would have been standing up to Specs right now, but with Gabi besides him, his was in a rather lazy state, content just to enjoy the warmth of her body next to his.
"Guys, leave 'er be alright? Go get ready for work," Bumlets stated sleepily. He hadn't thought of the consequences her sleeping beside him would have in the morning. What would Gabi think of the boys' idiotic teasing?
Chuckling, the others slowly wandered towards their bunks or the washroom, though Bumlets could make out what they were talking about, and he and Gabi were the hot topic that morning.
"I'm sorry sweetie," Bumlets whispered in her ear.
"Don't be. It's alright. I'm going to go wash up," Gabi mumbled and broke away from his hold.
"I'll meet ya downstairs," Bumlets called after her, which only produced catcalls from the boys in hearing range. He saw Gabi nod her head before exiting quickly.
Sighing, Bumlets staggered out of bed, ignoring the nudges and winks of his fellow lodgers.
While he was enduring the teasing in the boys' bunkroom, Gabi was dealing with her own amount of torture in the girls'. Most just glanced at her oddly and some were whispering softly. Gabi hurried to finish in the washroom, and with her head down, rushed downstairs, feeling uneasy under their gaze.
Bumlets smiled as he saw her descend the stairs, but her appearance irked him. Why did she seem so upset? He pulled her into his arms quickly. "Gabi, what's wrong?"
"Let's go, okay?" Gabi took his hand and pulled him outside.
Bumlets thought he had a good idea of what was wrong. It would take awhile for the others to get used to her and for Gabi to get used to her surroundings, that is, if she even contemplated staying here. "Dey'll get used to ya, and you'll have a ton of friends in no time. Just give it time," he offered, hoping to make her feel better.
"Yeah…hope so," Gabi mumbled. "So are you going to show me how to really sell papers? Or do I get to make a fool out of myself again?" she asked, opting to change the subject quickly.
"I'se gonna teach ya how to be the best newsie in all of New York," he grinned and led her to the distribution center.
****
"What the hell?! Alright, who took it?!" Luna yelled, pounding her boots against the floor as she woke up the other girls in the bunkroom. "One of you has it, and I wanna know who!"
"Luna?" Slinks muttered, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. "Luna what is it?"
Luna hopped onto Slinks bed and frowned. "Someone stole Spot's slingshot," she replied, "and I want to know who did it right dis instant."
With that Slinks was up with a jolt. "Who would take that of all things?" she asked. Whoever took it hadn't realized the full effects of their actions. Spot was not one to be toyed with, and certainly not one to have things stolen from.
"I don't know who took it, but they better reveal themselves right now or else they're in for a lot more trouble then they could ever imagine," Luna threatened, eyeing the entire room suspiciously.
Slowly the girls sat up, each looking around to see who in the world could have been stupid enough to steal such a thing. Luna paced back and forth, still a suspicious gleam in her eye.
One by one, Luna interrogated each and every newsgirl. Someone had it, and she wasn't about to give up until she found his slingshot. Her eyes settled on Slick, a resident troublemaker. But would she go this far?
"Slick, anythin' ya wanna tell me?" she asked sternly.
Rolling her eyes, Slick shook her head. "Luna, come on now. I may like a good prank once in awhile, but I ain't one ta plant a death wish on me own head."
"Well I certainly hope you're tellin' the truth," Luna muttered and found her next victim, or rather victims. Hush, BC, and Laces were all sitting together, whispering back and forth. Perhaps they were the culprits.
"Girls," Luna stated, sitting down on the bunk across from them. "Spill."
Laces rolled her eyes. "Luna, we had nothin' to do wit it. For once it wasn't any of us three."
"Den what were ya just whisperin' about?" Luna asked persistently.
The three were rather reluctant to ignite Luna's fury any further. They had been discussing how well a new prank in the boys' room had gone. "Well," BC spoke up, clearing her throat. "We was just talkin' about how…"
"Where are they?!" Race screamed. "I know it was them!"
Luna frowned at the three girls. "Lemme guess, Race has sumptin' to do wit it?" she asked.
Pushing his way through the sleepy girls whom had just woken up, Race stormed over to the three pranksters, intent on not letting this prank go another minute. "Hand it over," he insisted.
Luna rolled her eyes and watched the spectacle in front of her. Of all the times two different thieves had to be lurking, it had to be this morning.
"Hand what over?" Hush asked. "We don't got nothin' of yours," she stated.
"Den where is me watch?" Race asked impatiently.
"Ya lost that again?" Laces asked, doing her best to hide a smirk. "Geez Race, when ya gonna loin ta stop lettin' Mayhem borrow it?" she asked.
"Ooh, that's it!" Race said through clenched teeth. "Give it to me now, or else suffer the consequences."
BC laughed, and positioned herself behind the two other girls, since she was the one with the watch. "Consequences? What? Ya gonna make us watch you shuffle your cards, or bet on a horse? C'mon Race, ya ain't got the guts," BC spat at him.
"Ha, why would I fight a girl? That's beneath me character," he huffed. "But there are other ways to get me watch back."
Luna stood a few feet away, watching in amusement. She had stayed at the Manhattan Lodging House to get away from being a leader for a night, and here she was, about to moderate a quarrel.
Smirking widely, BC continued. "Right, below yer character. I forgot. It's alright ta blow a week's worth of earnings on a horse named Torpedo, which, I might add, did just as it was supposed to, and bombed into last place, but it's not alright ta stand up for a silly piece of metal on a fake chain?"
"That was the last straw! No one calls me watch fake!" Race yelled and lunged at the three sitting on the bed.
"Enough!" Luna bellowed and grabbed race's arm just as he was about to dive for BC.
The three girls sat smirking on the bed, knowing Luna was quite capable of keeping them from any harm, though they weren't so convinced that Luna herself wouldn't do some reprimanding, even if this wasn't her lodging house.
"Dey need ta be taught a lesson, Luna," Race growled. "And I would love that privilege."
"Alright, BC, hand it over," Luna commanded, and reluctantly BC retrieved the watch from her pocket.
Snatching it up, Race glared at the girls before heading back to the boys' room, perturbed and still upset. "I can't believe dose three!"
Gabi had slept peacefully in Bumlets' arms the entire night. As morning approached, she was still sound asleep, until Racetrack burst into the room, still yelling about the three pranksters and his watch. Opening her eyes quickly, Gabi rolled over slightly, right onto the slingshot that was still in her back pocket. Oh no. The slingshot. How am I going to get it back into the girls' room without Luna noticing?
Gabi tried unsuccessfully to slide out from beneath Bumlets' arms. Each time she moved, he would move with her, until finally he was pulled out of his deep sleep.
"Gabi?" he mumbled. Bumlets stretched his arms out, reaching for her and the warmth he once felt beside him. He was too used to the boys' outbursts in the morning, and unlike Gabi, was able to sleep right through Race's words.
Sighing, Gabrielle leaned towards him and kissed his cheek. "I'm right here. Going to the washroom," she whispered, stroking a few stray strands of hair from his face.
Bumlets smiled sleepily, and nodded his head. "Hurry back," he muttered before his eyes were tightly shut again.
Now was her chance. If Luna was still asleep, she could just set the slingshot on the nightstand and be done with it. Sliding out of the warm bed, Gabi cursed herself for not taking care of this the prior evening. She hurried out of the room and crept towards the girls' quarters.
"Who took if for the last time!" Luna shouted. "I've been more than patient, and now I wanna know who stole Spot's slingshot." Her arms were crossed, and she was about ready to pull out her own slingshot and completely terrify the girls. She wouldn't have been so upset if Spot hadn't put so much trust in her. She was responsible for keeping it safe, and now it was missing.
Most of the girls hadn't even dared to get out of bed. All eyes were fixated on Luna and her rage. No one wanted to spark her anger further, and they'd rather sit still in their beds quietly than risk walking to the washroom to get ready, and get accosted by Luna personally.
Gabi entered the room and her eyes widened. Luna was up alright, and she was certain Luna had been demanding to know where the slingshot was.
"Gawd, its just a slingshot, Luna," Dublina finally remarked. She was tired of other lodging house leaders terrorizing her in the early morning hours.
"It's not just a slingshot," Luna snapped, her temper rising.
Known for being cranky in the morning, Dublina snapped right back at the leader. "Pfff, it is just a slingshot, and Spot's for Christ sakes. Who gives a damn? He ain't even here!"
"Take that back," Luna managed to say as calmly as possible. Her knuckles were turning white from the tight fists she was making.
While all this was going on, Gabi snuck into the bunkroom. She could see Luna near the far corner, giving another lodger hell for talking about Spot's beloved slingshot. Luckily for her, Luna's bunk had been quite close to the door.
"Alright, alright! Shit Luna! Forget I said anythin'," Dublina growled and took off for the washroom.
While Luna was busy making sure the last few members knew exactly how bad it would be to keep the slingshot from her possession any longer, Gabi quietly set it down on the floor near Luna's nightstand. This way, maybe she'll think it was just dropped or fell by accident.
Unfortunately her actions didn't go unnoticed. A bunk's length away Laces was watching every move Gabi made. Since Laces was a born troublemaker, she figured she could use this information to her own benefit the next time she was faced with an angry Luna. Smiling, Laces turned to watch Luna continue her unsuccessful rampage.
Gabi started to creep towards the exit. This was the last place she wanted to be right now, and was beginning to miss Bumlets' arms terribly.
"Wait right there," Luna called out, stopping Gabi in her tracks. "Where were you all night?"
Gulping, Gabi turned back towards the leader. "Boys' room," she answered, receiving a few looks from the girls.
"Boys' room?" Brooky interjected. "With who?"
Forgetting that no one really knew about taking up a romantic interest in Bumlets, Gabi was reluctant to reveal anything, but being under the girls' eyes made her want to get out of that room fast, and answering seemed the only way. "I was with Bumlets."
"Told ya," Raven grinned.
The chatter in the girls' room reached new heights as Raven disclosed how she knew it would happen all along. In the midst of this, Gabi slid out the door and heaved a sigh of relief.
"Luna, the slingshot's right here! Did ya even bother to look on the ground before yellin' at all of us?" Laces asked and picked up the slingshot.
"I looked on the ground! I wouldn't be that dumb, Laces!" Luna shot back. "Who placed it there?" she asked, but the girls' in the room all shook their heads. Sighing, Luna was too tired to continue this interrogation. Hopefully by now they all knew not to mess with that slingshot. She had a duty to protect it, and that's what she was going to do.
Luna snatched it out of Laces' hands and walked towards the washroom. Didn't she dream this would happen? I have ta find out why I dream such crazy things. Maybe I'm goin' insane. I wish I knew what dey all meant.
Once out of the girls' room, Gabi dasshed into the boys' bunkroom before anyone could stop her. She walked over to Bumlets' bed and smiled, seeing him fast asleep. Sliding back into his arms, Gabi rested her head on his chest.
Bumlets pulled her closer in his sleep, his body relaxing more now that she was beside him. While he made the most of the last few minutes before Kloppman came to wake up them all up, Gabi lay wide awake. Her mind traveled from thoughts of Luna terrorizing the girls to Bumlets warm body close to her, to her family that knew nothing of where she was. Could she continue to live like this? If she went home, her father would have her marry Christopher, and if she stayed here, she would be with the man she cared about, but never be able to see her family again. Her parents would never approve of her dating a Newsie. How could she choose? Instinctively curling up closer to Bumlets, Gabi tried to push these unwanted thoughts from her mind.
"Get up Skits! Specs! Aw, come on Dutchy! The papes aren't gonna wait for ya!" Kloppman called, his voice booming throughout the bunkroom.
"It's that time already?" Mush asked, wiping the sleep from his eyes.
"It's been that time for ten minutes already, now get up!" Kloppman insisted.
"Yeah, Mush, don't keep True waitin'," Jake teased. "We already know what happens when she's gotta wait in that lobby for ya."
"And what about Pixie, huh Jake?" Mush retorted. "She gave you a talkin' to the other day fer bein' late!"
"Enough already!" Skittery cried. "Yer already givin' me a headache and we just woke up!"
"Yeah guys. Let's not get Skits into a bad mood any sooner den he will by himself, huh?" Jack smirked and nudged Skittery in the arm.
"Hey! Would ya look at dis. Bumlets got himself a girl!" Blink laughed.
The boys turned to look at Bumlets' bunk near the window. Sure enough, he was holding Gabi in his arms.
"Raven told me dis would happen between those two," Dutchy muttered, shaking his head. "I gotta learn to start believin' her right off the bat 'bout relationships."
Gabi woke up once the tittering in the bunkroom had seemed to come closer and closer to her. Opening her eyes, Gabi saw the boys staring at her, and gasped.
Specs laughed. "Ya do know this is the boys' room, and yer sleepin' next ta Bumlets, right girl?" he asked.
Gabi frowned at him. What did he care? "Actually, I could have sworn this was the girls' room, what with all the high-pitched squealing you all do in the morning."
Bumlets was stirring out of his comfortable and deep sleep. He heard Gabi's voice and the laughs of the boys as well. What was going on? "Gabrielle?" he mumbled, opening his eyes slowly.
"Look, he's finally awake," Pie Eater grinned. "What took ya so long Bumlets? Dreamin' 'a ya goil here?"
Specs nudged Pie in the side. "And it's a good thing he got himself a girl. Now he won't be checkin' out Slinks when he thinks I ain't lookin'," Specs teased.
If it were not for Bumlets sleepy mind, he would have been standing up to Specs right now, but with Gabi besides him, his was in a rather lazy state, content just to enjoy the warmth of her body next to his.
"Guys, leave 'er be alright? Go get ready for work," Bumlets stated sleepily. He hadn't thought of the consequences her sleeping beside him would have in the morning. What would Gabi think of the boys' idiotic teasing?
Chuckling, the others slowly wandered towards their bunks or the washroom, though Bumlets could make out what they were talking about, and he and Gabi were the hot topic that morning.
"I'm sorry sweetie," Bumlets whispered in her ear.
"Don't be. It's alright. I'm going to go wash up," Gabi mumbled and broke away from his hold.
"I'll meet ya downstairs," Bumlets called after her, which only produced catcalls from the boys in hearing range. He saw Gabi nod her head before exiting quickly.
Sighing, Bumlets staggered out of bed, ignoring the nudges and winks of his fellow lodgers.
While he was enduring the teasing in the boys' bunkroom, Gabi was dealing with her own amount of torture in the girls'. Most just glanced at her oddly and some were whispering softly. Gabi hurried to finish in the washroom, and with her head down, rushed downstairs, feeling uneasy under their gaze.
Bumlets smiled as he saw her descend the stairs, but her appearance irked him. Why did she seem so upset? He pulled her into his arms quickly. "Gabi, what's wrong?"
"Let's go, okay?" Gabi took his hand and pulled him outside.
Bumlets thought he had a good idea of what was wrong. It would take awhile for the others to get used to her and for Gabi to get used to her surroundings, that is, if she even contemplated staying here. "Dey'll get used to ya, and you'll have a ton of friends in no time. Just give it time," he offered, hoping to make her feel better.
"Yeah…hope so," Gabi mumbled. "So are you going to show me how to really sell papers? Or do I get to make a fool out of myself again?" she asked, opting to change the subject quickly.
"I'se gonna teach ya how to be the best newsie in all of New York," he grinned and led her to the distribution center.
Word of mouth had spread
quickly. By the time lunch rolled around, everyone knew that Spot's slingshot
had been borrowed, including Spot himself. Choosing to spend some time in
Manhattan, Spot cut short his slingshot lesson with Blue that day. Even though
Spot lacked his slingshot, he would still tutor others willing to learn, and
Blue was one of his best students.
"We'll continue some other time," Spot explained.
Nodding, Blue stuffed his slingshot in his back pocket. "Spades will
be glad ta hear I got off early," he assured Spot, and headed off towards the
lodging house, eager to find his girl.
Spot jogged into Manhattan. He knew he shouldn't be so concerned
about an item he had given up, but he faintly missed his slingshot and the news
of it being borrowed gave him a chance to see Luna as well. How he wished just
to be honest and open about his feelings towards her, but he dreaded the thought
of her still thinking about Pan and Spot's words just confusing or even hurting
her further.
Once in Manhattan, Spot glanced at his watch. It was nearly time for
the newsies to depart from Tibby's and he only hoped to make it there in time.
Calmly he walked into the small restaurant, seeing most of the Manhattan newsies
still enjoying their break before anther round of selling.
"Spot," Luna called, a bit uneasy to see him here. "What brings ya
to Manhattan?" she asked, although quite aware that it had to be the news of his
slingshot.
"Just came to check up on things," he answered and sat down at her
table. He realized that most of the newsies were looking at him and he scanned
the room with a glare, watching as they all returned to their food, before
turning his full attention to Luna.
"Well, things in Manhattan are fine, Spot," Luna answered.
"Any news on who had some fun last night?" he asked, referring to
the borrower of his slingshot.
Luna shook her head. "No, not right now, but
I'm workin' on that,"
she replied. "Don't worry. Whoever did it will fess up soon."
"Good to hear," Spot smiled. He glanced at his slingshot on the
table and had to hold himself back from taking it. He decided food would be a
better option than handling the weapon again, and motioned for the waiter.
At the next table, Laces, Hush, and BC Tate were having a heated
conversation about their next prank, but Laces had her ears set on listening in
on Luna and Spot instead.
"Right Laces?" Hush asked. "Laces…Hey, Laces!" She tapped Laces'
shoulder incessantly until Laces finally snapped out of her current state.
"What? What is it Hush?" Laces asked, perturbed.
"Are ya in
this conversation or not?" Hush asked.
"Yeah,
whatever. What are we talkin' bout again?"
"Spot's slingshot," BC answered. "Whoevah stole it needs to be
taught a lesson. We are the pranksters around here, and personally I don't wanna
be shown up by nobody."
That gave Laces an idea. "Goils, I think I know of a way ta keep our
reputation in tact, and have a little fun wit someone else's," she grinned.
Leaning in to whisper, Laces revealed who had stolen Spot's slingshot and her
plan to have some fun.