Title: Cuts Like A Knife
Author: Stress
First written: May 12, 2002
Edited and replaced: January 21, 2005
Summary: Part I of the Soul Mates Series; She thought that life couldn't get any better. She had friends and a family that loved her – she was taken care of and had no complaints. But that was before he came into her life. And, no matter how hard she tries to escape his grasp, he'll never let her go.
At the Boys' Lodging House
Spindle held her head high as she stalked towards the boys' lodging house. Now that she had heard from one of her girls that Rip was with someone new, all Spindle wanted to do was confront Rip and find out who it was. As she arrived at the lodging house, she ignored the catcalls from some of the newsies that were hanging around the porch and marched straight inside, heading towards the bunkroom.
When she entered the bunkroom, Spindle found it empty save one person. As she strolled inside, she laughed in spite of herself when the tall guy in the bunkroom shrank away from her. "What a perfect opportunity for me. I'm sure that he probably knows something and I think I can get him to tell me."
Turning her eyes on him and giving him a "come hither" smile, Spindle approached the hulking figure. "Danger, me friend. How've you been? Long time, no talk, eh?"
Danger nodded quickly as his eyes remained on the pocket where he knew Spindle kept her knife. "Hiya Spindle. I'm good, you?"
"I'm good too, Danger. But right now I got to talk to you. It's kind of important. So, what do you know about Rip and his 'friend'?' she added with another of her seductive smiles. She walked over to Danger, where he was leaning against his bunk. Though he backed away when she had first started to walk towards him, he looked at her eagerly when she threw her chest out and pouted her lips. Raising her arm she brought it to his face and slowly stroked his cheek. "Is there anything you want to tell me, Danger? Hmmm?" she whispered in his ear as she blew on his neck.
Once Spindle decided to charm a man, they never stood a chance. Danger was no exception. Getting incredibly turned on by her closeness, he began to grow nervous and lose his train of thought. "I'll tell you anything you want to know, me dear," he said, a hungry look in his hazel eyes as he stared down at Spindle.
"That's exactly what I wanted to hear, Danger," she purred as she ran her fingers lightly up and down his arms, enjoying getting him to do what she wanted him to do, "Now, could you tell me about this girl that Rip is seeing? I'm sure he's told you all about her. I mean, you're so big and brave and strong and handsome..." she said in a husky voice, laughing inwardly as Danger began to glow with pride at her flattering words. "People are so easily manipulated...," she sighed to herself as she waited for Danger to answer her.
Danger may have been big and brave and strong and handsome, but he sure wasn't smart. Unaware that Spindle was only using him to find out who Rip was seeing now, he told her all he knew. "Well, Spindle, Rip don't really talk to us guys about that kind of stuff. Whenever we ask, he says that it's his business and only his business. But he's always talking about you when he's around and no one is bugging him so he's free to talk," he said as he began to play with her long red hair.
Moving her hair out of reach of Danger's large, clumsy fingers, Spindle looked up at Danger with a genuine smile on her face. "He talks about me? What does he say, if I can ask?"
Danger, mildly surprised when she moved out of his reach, shook his head slightly and answered her question. "Oh, he just talks about you all the time. He's always saying how much he loves and can't live with out his 'li'l Miss'."
Spindles tensed and her eyes flashed. "What does he say?" she hissed.
Danger broke out of his trance when Spindle hissed at him. A frightened look came over his face when he realized that he may have said something to upset her. "Ummm... he just says how much he loves and can't live with out his 'li'l Miss'. That is you ain't it?" he said a lot more quietly as his eyes kept flickering towards her shirt pocket.
Spindle saw red as something she heard weeks ago came flooding back into her head. "Well, hello Miss Jess. I'm very glad to meet you." "No, Danger, I don't think he's referring to me," she said, without emotion, as she walked over to sit on Rip's bunk. "I'm just going to sit here 'til he gets back tonight. Do you think you can keep the rest of the guys outta here 'til I talk to him?" she asked as she reached into her shirt pocket and took out her pocketknife to examine it.
"Sure, no problem. I'll keep them all outside," Danger squeaked out upon seeing Spindle taking her knife out. He never wanted to see that knife again. He swiftly left the room, shutting the bunkroom door behind him.
Spindle threw herself down on Rip's bunk, waiting for him to come back to the lodging house. She couldn't wait to confront him and find out if he really was seeing Jess behind her back.
As it turned out she didn't have long to wait. About ten minutes after Danger left her alone in the bunkroom, Spindle heard someone storming up the stairs. Upon hearing the clamoring footsteps on the stairs, Spindle stood up and compulsively straightened her shirt, prepared to face Rip.
Rip, whose mood was quite pleasant after spending the evening with Jess, was furious after listening to most of the newsies complain about being thrown out of the bunkroom. Almost knocking Danger over, he opened the bunkroom door and slammed it upon entering. Shooting daggers with his eyes, he turned to face Spindle. "What the heck do you want?"
Spindle was not going to back down until she knew what was going on. "You know why I'm here, Rip. You're cheating on me, ain't you?"
Rip looked her straight in the eye and laughed. He wasn't going to tell her anything; that was just between him and Jess. "Now, where did you get an idea like that? Of course not, doll. I told you, you're the only girl for me."
Spindle glared at him as her eyes flashed when she heard the word "doll" but overlooked it for something more important. "You're a liar, Rip. I know for a fact that you're cheating on me, and I even know who you're spending your evenings with, especially since I know it ain't me."
Rip, though he wasn't much of a card player, would be an excellent poker player because he had one of the best poker faces around. "Well, why don't you tell me who this lucky girl is, considering I, myself, sure don't know?"
It was Spindle's turn to laugh haughtily. "You think that you're so smart, but you ain't. Let me just ask you, is Jess really that better than me? Because I sure know that she ain't got any of the experience that I got. How can you prefer her over me? I just don't understand."
Rip became incredibly furious though he still kept his true emotions masked. "Sorry Spindle, but I don't know what you're talking about. Me and your li'l friend, Jess? Why would I go for her when I got someone like you here with me?" he said quietly as he looped his arms around her and drew her in for a long kiss.
Spindle sighed with relief when she and Rip pulled apart. Laying her head on his shoulder she whispered,"I'm sorry for doubting you Rip, I love you."
"Uh-- yeah, me too, Spindle. Me too," he told her. He just couldn't bring himself to tell her that he loved her when he honestly didn't, but Spindle didn't seem to mind that he didn't reciprocate the l-word back to him.
As Spindle held tight to Rip, just glad that he was there with her now, Rip stood there as angered coursed throughout his body. "I can't believe she told Spindle. I warned her what would happen if she opened her mouth to anyone and she went and told Spindle. I'm going to have to teach her another lesson. She knows what happens when I get mad yet she always insists on testing me. If it wasn't for the fact that I love me li'l Miss with all me heart, I would really have to hurt her..."