Randy leaned against the railing of the fire escape and let the winter winds blow her long blonde hair around her face. She found it funny how on the days where nothing special happens, where time seems to stand still, that's exactly how you want to be remembered. The realization that you can't be a child forever is something very few people look forward to coming to terms with, and the one placating bit you can hold onto is the hope that if nothing else, you will be a memory. Her blue eyes stared blankly out into the streets and she had to wind her gaze up and around buildings to meet it with the never ending sky. White puffy clouds that seemed so out of place in such a city hid behind the smoggy gray ones and made her cock her head to the side. They were an innocence in a city of pain; a suggestion of life in a city of death.
She shook herself out of the trance when she felt icy fingers lay themselves on her arm and she curved her dry lips into a smile, moving her glossy orbs to stare into a pair of cobalt blue ones. Spot smiled back at her, more with his eyes than with his mouth, and moved next to her on the railing. He moved his hands to gently hang over the freezing black metal rod, neither of them commenting on the stinging pain that numbed the skin that rested on the rail until finally a warm heat rested there instead. The silence filled the air like an overhanging fog and the only sound of communication was the occasional sniff in recognition to the cold. So many unanswered questions were there, they knew; so many things that needed to be cleared up. But right then the feeling of standing next to each other on that fire escape, the feeling of being alone on a cold winter's morning, the feeling of silence...was more fulfilling than ever before.
They stood like that for what seemed like hours and yet when the silence was finally broken it felt as though it had only been minutes. "We were...together, I guess you could say." was all she said, at first. Randy's lips met together again and Spot didn't dare say anything in question, knowing the mindset of tension was enough to make her keep going. "Ripper and I, that is." she added finally with a small nod, still looking out into the sky, her words a long awaited explanation of not just that day, but of her life, of her secrets.
"I used ta live in Queens. Dat's how we met, if you was wonderin'." she said slowly, knowing with each word questions were being answered, only to have rise another one in its place. She opened her mouth a bit and took a breath, closing it and letting out the breath as she did so. She racked her brain for what to say next, trying to have it come out as organized as possible, as answering questions wasn't exactly her forte. "We was in a gang. Yeah...I guess dat's what ya would call it. Anyway they'd killed a lot of people, ya know? Only I had never really taken part of it...the killin', dat is. And den....there was dis kid. He was a real sweetie, only about seven or eight, I'd say. I guess he had a way o' tickin' Ripper of or something cuz' Ripper gave da word dat he wanted 'im dead."
She sighed softly and bit the inside of her cheek in thought. Recalling her past wasn't one of her favorite things to do, either. And this was the light part of it. No one would ever know what dark, cruel things they had done...she had done. "I tried ta talk him out of it and all...didn't feel it was right ta kill a kid, ya know? Well, he wouldn't hear of it, seemed ta think I was some kinda traitor for tryin' ta get him ta go back on it. So he...he put me up ta dis test or somethin'." she said, her fingers moving together slowly and her gaze almost faltered from where it was transfixed on the horizon.
Spot nodded even though he knew she wasn't looking at him, still silent. Her past was different, that was for sure. But this was New York. Everybody had a past. And knowing her like he did, he was fairly sure hers wasn't going to be all together shocking in its complexity. He shifted his weight to the other foot and rested it on one hip, his own view traveling from the sky down to the ground. He watched as the icy wind picked up scattered litter that seemed to blend in with the New York streets, making a barely audible sound as the material scratched along before hiding in a mass of clumsily stacked crates. His eyes watched all this as his ears stayed attentive to the task of listening for more words; for more answers.
"He told me I had ta kill da little boy meself, to prove me loyalty or somethin'." she continued, locking her index fingers together in a small link as she stopped to find her train of thought, swallowing before the story picked up once again. "I knew better den ta argue wit 'im, but I wasn't gunna kill da kid. I knew dat much, too." Her words sounded as defiant now as they had when they first formed and stuck in her head. It wasn't a confusing decision or even a choice. It was a matter of who she was...and who she wasn't. "I decided I'd jus' run away or whatevah...go some place else, do somethin' else. Only it's kinda hard ta leave a gang wittout givin' em a thank you card or somethin'." The words were joking but only a breath of laughter came from her lips.
Her tongue skimmed over her lips in hopes to provide them with some lasting moisture, only she was sure in a matter of moment the temporary relief would give way to the dry air once again. "Da night I ran, Ripper was killed. I suspect it was by his own boys, meself. But I was blamed, seein' as how I chose just about da perfect time ta run away and all." she stated sarcastically, glancing over at his questioning face that still reacted to her words even with his eyes hidden in a downward view the mass of foggy clouds once again and knew that the need to elaborate was there. "Ya see...gangs aren't too happy if they find out yer tryin' ta get away from 'em. Second of all, they really aren't too happy if they think ya killed their leadah, ya know?" She paused, trying to find the right words. They found me in 'Hattan. I was tryin ta hop a train there. I knew it wouldn't be safe ta go from Queens, too many witnesses dat would crack under one glare from Ripper." she said, a small smirk playing on her lips as she recalled the undeserved power Ripper had been allowed. The undeserved power he had been awarded.
The night was wandering back into her memory like an unwanted visitor, not even bothering to knock before it thrust itself upon her thoughts and visions. "They waited until night, I guess. It don' make for a good rep ta do yer dirty work in daylight." she said with a nod as though explaining the rules of the streets to a young and innocent boy. "Ripper didn't even come...da coward. Didn't even have enough decency ta make it a fair fight, not dat I expected he would." Her shoulders gave a small shrug of annoyance. "I can take on four or five guys, maybe six if it's a good night. But there must o' been eight or nine of 'em, all big. Queen's boys are always big, ya know?" she stated with a small nod, not waiting for him to agree before continuing.
"Beat da hell out o' me. Even I can admit dat I didn't stand a chance against 'em. I shoulda been watchin' me back more carefully, I guess. Played dead after I knew I was a goner. Dat's another thing about Queen's boys. They're dumb." she said, giving a short, bitter laugh. "Figured I had 'passed on' and left all jokin an' laughin'. I waited til I was sure they were gone...I knew I prolly wouldn't make it jus' waitin til morning. I was tryin ta reach da nearest hospital but pretty much blacked out as soon as I got to da lodging house."
She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment, her fingers still linked together and she opened her lids once again. Spot could feel the story about to come to a close and he put away all of his unanswered questions, knowing that sooner or later, if not know, they would be answered. "Guess I kinda forgot about Venom. Funny thing about brothers; they share a lot of the same qualities." she said with a small snort of laughter, shaking her head. "I suppose he was looking for me for a while... When he found out we were together...decided ta use you as bait...and...you know da rest." she said, shrugging. It wasn't a sense of relief that passed over them, nor a sense of awkwardness. It was the air of closure that rested on that fire escape. A closure to the confusion, to that day, to her past.
Spot nodded slowly and time passed in silence between them; letting it all sink in; letting it be understood. Finally, the silence was broken, but by the other of the two this time. He lifted his gaze and his gaze traveled over only to find that it was met straight on with hers. He gave a small smile and moved his hand over to hers, their own to fingers linking together. They looked at the odd contrast and yet comfort in their connected skin, the space between their shoulders soon becoming non existent. "Thanks for telling' me." was all he said, looking out at the sky this time, not bothering to brush away the hairs that fell in his eyes as in a matter of moments the wind picked them up and moved them elsewhere on his face.
Randy chuckled and gave a small shrug, turning her head to face him and watching as his moved to look slightly down at her. "Eh...I figured you could handle it. You are Brooklyn after all." she said with a grin, punching him lightly in the arm, one hand still resting on the rail with it's fingers intertwined in his.
Spot smirked at her and leaned forward so their faces were mere inches apart that an invisible shield seemed to trap the heat between them. "And you," he said pointedly, his eyes giving off a devilish glow, "are Brooklyn's key."
Randy's grin grew and she shook her head at him. "No, Spot." she said calmly, her eyes dancing. "That's another story." And with that the gap between their faces closed and a kiss as shared on that fire escape. It wasn't particularly passionate. It wasn't particularly gentle. But it was a kiss that held more than any story book could ever describe.
Time passes. People grow. Seasons change. Lives move on. Only in New York it seems as though that little piece of history will be preserved forever more in the busy and crowded streets. There will always be a little girl ducking in and out of the alley ways. There will always be a lonely boy sitting on the steps with his face in his palms. There will always be a special air in New York that makes you want to fall in love. Something in the name, something in the words, something in the heart of New York no amount of technology could ever overthrow. Statues crumble, buildings collapse, streets erode with time, we all know this. But if it's one thing the world has got to realize...is that the heart of a city never stops beating, never stops loving, never stops thrumming with the lives of all those who live within it's walls. Where the story of two lovers end, another begins. Maybe this one wasn't amazing, wasn't worth remembering, wasn't anything you'll think of after this very day. But the point is, my dear friend, that it was a tale of places, of people, of love...like no other.
El Fin
Thank you, readers. I'll never be able to express how much it meant to have such positive, and even negative, feedback for my work. I know it wasn't the best plot, best grammar, or simply the best story ever written, but I do thank you also for letting me grow with you as a person and as a writer. As I promised, there will be a chapter written simply to give each and every one of you a personal expression of my gratitude. The book has closed. The pages folded. The latch locked. But if ever you wish to revisit this tale, it will always be open to those who seek it.
Swing Heil
Randy