AUTHOR'S NOTE...

Hey everyone! Ok so not much is new...except for this chapter, but hey! I got another reviewer!!! Woo Hoo!!! So now here's my shoutouts to all my lovely reviewers!

Chocolates: Yeah! Thanks for reviewing my story! I know this story is soooo sad. Trust me sometimes I have a hard time writing it because Jacky-boy is me FAVORITE and I hate to kill him off in a story! :( But as to your request I'm going to do all that I can to see that him and Hope are reunited. I don't know how at the moment...but I'm sure I'll think of something!

Sparks Kelly: Goil...you rock!!!! Thanks for being a great and continual reviewer!!! I agree with you though. I think Race, Blink, and Mush should all find out about what and $$ Ice is and SOAK HIM! But then that might not leave much more for me to write in later chapters, so maybe that will come up in a later chapter. THANKS AGAIN!!!!! :)

So yes...now that I'm done giving praise and glory to my reviewers I think it's time for all of you to read Chapter #6!!! (Something tells me I'm gonna have a lot of chapters in this story...oh well!) So please ENJOY and continue REVIEWING!

Luv to ya all & Carryin da Banner!
Alyssa/Lissie/Hope/Jacky-boy/RG/readallaboutitgoil/whatever!!!! (hehe)

DISCLAIMER...

Sadly enough I do not own Jack (someday I will...) or Mush, Blink, or Race. I do however own Hope and Ice. I also don't own the story outline of "Ghost" or the small snippet of the song "On My Own" fromt the musical "Les Miserables". ENJOY!!!!

Previously...

"Listen little bitch…"Ice said with his firm grip still tight on her other arm. "According to Jacky-boy's will, since I was his right hand man, I'm officially da new leada of da Manhattan newsies." Ice grabbed Hope's other arm again and pressed his face mere inches away from hers. "If you do anything to ruin dat, I'll make sure you are in dat hole with Jack. So be a good little girl and do as you'se told. Got it?"

Hope's tear streaked face nodded slowly. Ice gave her a small smirk before throwing her into the snow. "See ya back at da lodging house…sweetie" he called over his shoulder.

Hope lay there in the snow for a few moments before picking herself back up. She continued to sob as she softly whispered to herself "Jack…please help me Jack!"

"Hope!" Jack cried. "Hope baby I'm here! Why can't you feel me? Why can't you see me?"

No matter how many times Jack attempted to hold her hands or wrap his arms around her, he could in no way feel Hope, and she couldn't feel him.

Jack watched as Hope wearily walked towards the cold metal gate of the cemetery. With one final look at Jack's grave she simply said "I'll be back to see you Jack." The tears began to fall faster down her cold cheeks. "I…I lo…love you…"

Jack looked down into the dark hole in the ground that now contained his body. His thoughts were completely broken at the sound of Ice's voice.

"Well…time for a little heart-to-heart chat, eh Jack? But this time you're just gonna shut up and listen to what I got's to say!"

"Why are you doing this, Ice?!" Jack yelled at the top of his lungs. It made no difference. Ice couldn't hear him. "Why did you ruin my life?! Why did you ruin Hope's life?!"

Ice slowly walked in circles around Jack's grave. "So…what to do, what to do? Hope's pretty crushed about all dis, Jack, and I'm thinking of taking back everything that is rightfully mine. Hope always belonged to me whether you liked it or not." He paused for a moment and stopped right in front of the grave and stared off into the distance. "You know, Jacky-boy, she lost her voigenity to me. Ha…maybe not the way she would have wanted to…"

Jack's whole mind was filling with anger and rage as he lunged himself towards Ice, forgetting he was still a ghost, but he was surprised to feel himself hit Ice's stomach and knock him to the ground. Ice picked himself quickly off the ground in a panic. Fear overflowed in his eyes. He looked all around the cemetery but saw no one.

"Jack!" Ice yelled. "I swear ta God I'll kill her, Jack! I'll have me boy Bruno kill her like I had him kill you if this haunting shit keeps up!" He slowly walked backwards towards the gate stumbling along the way. His eyes never left Jack's grave until he was all the way on the outside of the gate.

Jack sat there in the snow in shock. Why had he been able to attack Ice, but he couldn't hold or feel Hope. He let his head hand low as more tears ran down his cheeks. "Hope…"he cried. "I'm so sorry…but how can I help you…when I can't even help myself?"

Hope walked down the snowy streets of Manhattan alone. She didn't want anyone with her except Jack. She saw no one else on the streets. Everything was empty and cold…the way her heart felt. Every other minute she thought she would see Jack in an alley or standing right beside her, but whenever she went to look at him he was never there. He would never be there again.

"I'm on my own just pretending he's beside. I'll always walk alone from now on. Even though you're not here Jack, I still feel your arms tightly wrapped around me, and whenever I feel like I've lost my way in life, I close my eyes and you always finds me. I'm never lost with you around Jack."

Hope reached the lodging house a little while later. When she opened the door she was surprised to see every single guest who had attended Jack's funeral. The whole room had gone dead silent as Hope walked into the room. She didn't look up at anyone. She simply walked up the stairs to Jack's room, and locked herself in there.

Hope looked around the warm room that belonged to Jack.She would never get rid of any ofhis possessions. They were apart of what kept her holding on to him.

She took off her shawl and let it drop to the floor. She didn't care. She walked over to the bed and gently sat upon it, and she held herself tightly as she slowly laid herself down on top of the bed. Her face became buried in a pillow, and the memories flooded in. The pillow…it smelled like him. She could still feel his weight on top of the mattress. He was still completely there to her.

Hope examined her ring. She still had it on, and she would never take it off. It was the most precious gift Jack had given to her. She slowly turned her hand to watch it sparkle, but it's light and sparkle had somehow faded away. It now just appeared to be a cloudy stone. As she continually turned her hand to look at the ring she noticed something she hadn't before. On the back of the ring engraved were the words "Until My Dying Day." Hope looked at it in shock. She had never seen this writing until now. At that moment everything shut down. Hope's whole world had collapsed and there was nothing to rebuild it. Jack had promised her that he would be with her, and that his dying day wouldn't be for a long time. Jack had broken that promise to her. She hated Jack for leaving her. She hated Ice for raping her. She hated him for killing Jack. She hated everyone even if she didn't have a reason. She felt like she didn't need a reason.

Hope yet again buried her face into the pillow and sobbed as she screamed "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Meanwhile...

Ice appeared about two hours later at the lodging house. All of the mourners had departed with the exception of Mush, Blink, and Racetrack.

"Finally here ta show ya respects ya Bum!" Racetrack yelled at Ice.

"Yeah Ice. I mean…you'se was Jack's right hand man. Why weren't ya at the funeral" Mush asked calmly.

Ice pasted a look of sorrow on his face as he buried his face in his hands. "I'se so sorry fellas, but you know how close me and Jack were? I…I just couldn't handle seeing him be put in the ground. He was me best friend."

Blink and Mush looked up at Ice with sympathy, but Racetrack sat in his chair with his arms folded in front of him. He had a look of disgust on his face. "Whatever…" he mumbled.

"Do ya wanna here what Jack left ya in his will?" Blink asked. "We already read it to everyone else who was here before."

"Yeah" Ice stammered. "Although…I don't feel right taking anything from Jack. His friendship was the best thing he could have given me. God I wish he was still here!"

Blink stared at the paper that contained the information about Jack's will. His mouth dropped before he started to read. "Ice…you…you got Manhattan. As Jack's right hand man you now have the reign over Manhattan."

"Who woulda ever thought?" Race said smugly.

"Woah…"Ice said acting like it was too much to take in. "I…I would be honored to be the leader of Manhattan boys, but me minds gotta empty right now. I just gotta think about stuff." With that he turned and walked up the stairs to his room.

Racetrack looked over his shoulder to make sure Ice was clearly out of sight. He started to laugh. "Too bad his minds already empty the dumbass."

Later on in Jack's room...

Hope had fallen fast asleep. She didn't even bother changing out of her mourning dress. She didn't care.

Jack was sitting in his favorite chair in his room simply watching her sleep. He had somehow teleported over to the Lodging House that night. He thought it was perhaps because Hope needed him.

"If only there was some way…" Jack said to himself. "Some way I could talk to Hope so she could hear me." Jack had heard about some of the local fortune tellers and gypsies who lived in New York who could apparently communicate with the dead. Jack had never believed in such things until now. "What have I got to lose…"

"Jack!"

Jack's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Hope moaning out Jack's name. He smiled to himself. How he missed it. His smile faded away at the thought of never having those simple pleasures with the love of his life ever again.

He walked over to the side of the bed that Hope was laying on and knelt down beside her. Oh…how he wanted to touch her. To feel her soft skin against his fingertips. Hope had a small strand of hair covering her face. Not thinking…Jack went to move the strand of hair, and miraculously he was able to move the strand off her face. He couldn't feel it, but he saw his hand move the strand of hair. Jack sighed and sat down on the floor and leaned against the wall. "Hope…I know you can't here me now, but I'm so sorry baby! I'm so sorry for what I've done. I promise you though I will do whatever I can to see you again. I ain't breakin this promise this time. I told you I'd love you until my dying day and after, and I meant it. Goodnight Hope…I love you."

And with that he let his tears fall and he watched Hope sleep peacefully.