Disclaimer: If I owned "Newsies", I would've kept the Jack/Sarah duet (from the original script). Come on! Disney love songs RULE!!!
Matchmaker: Chapter Four
Headbanging Against Hard Surfaces
That night was great. Beyond memorable. While we were out for the day, the guys had been planning a surprise party for Race. Dinner at Tibby's and all out madness at the lodging house after. Yeah, sounds boring, but when you got the best poker-playing newsies from New York involved, it's something else entirely.
It was a lot better, too, now that Race was out of his gloom. Everyone could tell that there was an extra bounce in his step and, of course, being the humble people that they are, patted themselves on the back for it.
Boy, were they off.
The credit is all mine, my friends. Mine.
And Spot's.
But mostly mine.
And I had the added bonus of knowing something they didn't.
Life was good.
Anyway, nobody asked when Spot came over 'cause they all assumed that he was there to celebrate Race's birthday. And once again, they were wrong. Well, not entirely, but I don't think they were thinking of quite the same kind of "celebrating" that would no doubt occur... Later... In the night...
I'm going to stop thinking about that now...
Anyway, it definitely made me feel better, too, now that Race was back on track - I crack myself up! - and seeing him attack all conversations and stupid comments with cynical vigor again was priceless. I asked him, you know, what they'd been doing earlier today, and he turned that adorable shade of red that makes him look more like a tomato than anything else and managed to stutter out a shaky "W-W-Well". I decided to back off and not be a bitch. The day was just too good for that.
The absolute pinnacle of the night came when somebody - who I will love 'til the world ends - started a game of strip poker, and of course, everyone who knew what an ace was had to join. I declined, though. It had been a long while since I'd been able to just sit back and watch my favorite boys, and I decided to enjoy it with as little harm to my ego as possible.
Life could not be any better.
No mad Brooklyn leaders to worry about, no broken hearts, no fear that someone would come and kill me in my sleep, no couples...
Just me, a drink, and...
"Hey, uh... Sneaks? Could I talk to you for a minute?"
Which incredibly dumb person dared to ruin my moment?
But there he was, Mush, looking all bashful and embarrassed and everything. And I couldn't be mad. I really couldn't. I mean, this is Mush we're talking about here. The kid who can't lie to save his life. That's why he doesn't bother with poker anymore... Horrible poker face. Shame, really... Beautiful physique, that kid. Like a Greek god or something.
The lack of his usual grin didn't worry me much. I love him and everything, but he does tend to get over melodramatic about little things. But I love him. Quite a lot, actually. So I obliged him, as any normal person would and scooted my chair over for him.
"Sure t'ing, Mushy-boy," I said. "'Samatta?"
"Well, see... um..." A very flattering pink tinge spread over his face like wild fire. "There's this... person... I really, really like 'em..."
I almost screamed. Not again! I will not do this again! Not for a million bucks! Not for the last guy on the great Mother Earth!
Then again...
I had managed to convince Spot Conlon, leader of Brooklyn, to give Racetrack Higgins, a fellow guy, a chance...
I can do anything.
So, stupidly, I nodded and asked, "Yeah? So who is it?"
He leaned in and said something real quietly, but I lost it. It wasn't my fault! Honestly! This real well built guy had just lost his shirt! I yelled along with the rest of the girls, who were no doubt having at least as much fun as I was.
"ABOUT TIME, DECK!!!! Uh... Can you say that again? I didn't quite catch that..."
He turned even redder for a moment before leaning even closer. I could feel his breath on my ear.
Life could not get any better.
"Kid, all right? Kid!"
But life sure as hell could get a lot worse.
I turned to him slowly and narrowed my eyes. "Are you serious?"
He backed away a little, looking real nervous and almost scared. Mush scared of little old me... Ha, that's funny... I must be drunk... What've I been drinking? I swear it was just beer but apparently not...
Honestly, though, have you seen the guy? He ain't so tall, but man, has he got muscles... Bet he could give some of Brooklyn's best a run for their money. Almost twice my size, he is... Too softhearted to ever really hurt anyone, though, even if they'd hurt him. Naive as anything. Lives to believe in the best of people. You won't believe how many girls have used him before... He's a good-looking guy, you know? And intimidating, if you just look at him. But on the inside, heart of gold. Never met a sweeter person in my life.
But anyway, so he looks at me, all scared-like for a moment, and then he laughs this real fake laugh and says, "Nah... I-I was jus'... Jus'... Jokin'! You know... Tryin' ta see how drunk you were..."
Bull! What is he on about? Sure, he laughs at some stupid stuff... All right, he laughs at some really stupid stuff, but that was just an all time low, even for him.
"You're not... Not mad at me... Are you?" he asked, suddenly serious and looking worried. Ah, good old Mush... Worries about everything, that kid... And suddenly it struck me just why he was so worried.
"Oh, that. No. No, no, no, no... I ain't mad at you 'cause you like another guy... What kinda closed-minded, hoity-toity scab do ya take me for, huh?"
"I-I don't... I don't take you for a scab at all," he replied, surprised and shocked and probably a lot more worried than he had been before.
I waved my drink around vaguely, splashing it a bit. "I know you don't, Mushy... It's jus'... I been through a hard time lately, you know? I don't think I can handle another one o' these kinda problems right about now."
"Oh, yeah... I talked ta Race... Figured, you know, since I've known him for a long time and everythin', and he tol' me all about it. Said you were the person to talk to."
Okay. So I lied. Apparently I didn't know something they didn't know. I mean, if Race is that open about it to Mush... I mean, Mush is a great guy and all, but he ain't the best person to tell secrets to, you know what I'm saying? You know what I'm saying.
"When'd you go talk ta him?" I asked sharply. Suddenly my head felt a lot clearer.
"A few weeks back. Right after you guys came back from Brooklyn, in fact. Said you really stuck by him through it all... Said you faced down Spot Conlon for him." He started looking real excited, and his whole face just brightened up like the sun. I swear, he could be the sun, with that smile of his... It's just that you can never feel bad when you're around him. Unless you're Racetrack, but he's seldom in a bad mood.
"How'd he know about that?" I asked. I mean, Race hadn't been there... Or had he?
Mush's eyes almost popped out of his skull. "You mean you really did that? I thought he was jus' makin' stuff up... Well, when you came stormin' in about an hour after him, he guessed... You were awful scary that day, Sneaks," he added earnestly.
I almost laughed. Almost.
Then the realization hit me.
"Look, Mush... Does anybody else know about this?" This was serious. If he had been talking about it at all, some people could get seriously hurt. Mostly Race.
"No! No, of course not!" He looked shocked and slightly miffed at the suggestion that he stupid enough to do such a thing. "Or if they do, they didn't hear it from me."
That was kind of reassuring. I mean, there's always the chance that someone could've overheard them, but nobody's said anything yet... I'm also guessing that Race wasn't dumb enough to spill out in the open. Yeah... Yeah, that'll work.
But what if...
"Hey, Sneaks?" Mush was staring at me but not really, you know? More like at my ear or something. "Look, I was jus' wonderin'... Will you help me with this? 'Cause I mean, Kid, you know... He gets pretty worked up over little things, and I just..." He paused for a minute, fidgeting. "Do you think I should do this? 'Cause we're best friends and all, but... It's just... You know?"
He looked at me helplessly.
And my heart went out to him.
Of course.
"Yeah, Mush... Yeah. I'll help you."
God, I'm a sucker for pitiful faces.
This took me awhile, as you can tell... Damn transitional chapters, you know... And a lot of people were clamoring for Blink/Mush, so I hope this appeases you.
Anyway, it has come to my attention that "Matchmaker" is an epic piece of fluff, so I probably won't update as much, or it'll get a little darker, which is more likely. Then again, I like my fluff... They're so fun to write.
Ah, well... I'll decide when the time comes.
Gothic Author
P.S. I'll be in the Bahamas for a while, so you won't see me... Hope the Newsies!Slash Withdrawal doesn't hit too hard, huh?
Replies:
Sinhe:
YOU HAVE BEEN CONVERTED!!!!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! [throws confetti and blows on noisemaker]
hilaRy the Heifer:
Hmmm... I don't know... I mean, Elijah Wood has gorgeous eyes, but I don't think they're daunting enough for Spot... [shrugs] Oh, well...
Yes, EwanMcGregor!Denton would equal more fangirls, wouldn't it? Especially since he can actually sing...
Luffles you, too, darling... And as long as the screwing appears soon between the "Vaudeville!" couples, it's all good. [wink]
geometrygal:
Awwww... Thanks...
Race/Snipes isn't too bad, but it's not Race/Spot, you know? It's just not quite the same... [smirk]
Please don't damn me!! See? Blink/Mush. Right here.
kellyanne:
Oh, don't worry... We all have strange senses of humor... After all, that IS part of why we're here, isn't it?
Fallen Seraphim:
[smirk] For the sake of our friendship, I won't answer that...
By the way, I used your line, if you hadn't noticed... It was simply too good to waste.
Thanks go to: Thistle, sugarNspice, Artemis-chan, and Omni for reviewing and making me feel all floaty with fuzziness. Couldn't do it without you!!! [blows kisses]
