"Alright, ready or not! Here I come!" A boy stomped down the stairs dramatically. "You can't hide from me!"
Giggles echoed around the room. The youngest inhabitants of the Newsboys Lodging House were highly involved in a suspenseful game of hide-and-seek. Chloe and a few early-returning older newsboys were helping out, glad for the relaxation. The seeker slunk around the room, purposefully overlooking the children hiding in oh-so-obvious spots. Poppy galloped over the floorboards, yipping happily.
A small girl with black waves poked her head out from behind an open door. Across the room, Chloe spotted the head and caught the seeker's attention. She pointed towards the door. The seeker turned the girls' way, and she let out a high-pitched giggle, quickly covering her hand with her mouth. The boy ran towards her, throwing open the door. "Found you!"
Another giggle sent the girl running with the seeker in hot pursuit. "Boots don't! Don't!" the girl shrieked. The seeker, Boots, plucked the girl from the floor, lifting her onto his shoulders. He spun her around playfully, than dropped her onto a fluffy couch towards the back of the room. Chloe chuckled to herself softly, and climbed the stairs to the bunkroom, eager for an afternoon nap. She called to Poppy, who followed her faithfully.
In a crevice beneath the stairs where Chloe walked, another little girl sat perfectly still. Dora watched the end of the chase from her hiding spot, slinking further in to the crevice as Boots searched for the remaining contenders.
Racetrack slapped Freddie on the back, "So, aftah all's said and done, it wadn't too bad, was it?"
Freddie sifted through the day's earnings, "Nah, I guess not." He looked around at his friends, "I could get used to it, I guess."
The boys, along with Snoddy and Specs, were walking back to the lodging house. They had met for a quick lunch, and were now heading to take a rest before leaving again to sell the evening edition.
"How's yer arm?" Snody asked, nodding in Freddie's direction.
Freddie glanced down at his arm, rotating it gently. "It's alright. Sore, but alright."
"What happened to ya anyways?" Race inquired, kicked at a stone on the dusty street.
"I just burned it in a little accident- nothing too bad."
"Ain't dat ironic," Snoddy piped up, "Jist like page t'ree."
"Yeah, yeah," Specs added, "Dere was a story in da pape 'bout a kid who boined 'is arm in some house fire."
Freddie held his breath for a moment, turning to face the Specs. "House fire?"
"Yeah, yeah, dis kid. Guess he ended up savin' two liddle goils from some boinin' house, got boined 'imself, den disappeared from da hospital. Real strange."
Freddie's mind drifted back to the events surrounding the fire, and remembered his mission to find the girls, "Yeah. Real strange."
"Alright! Game's ovah! Olly olly oxen free!" Boots called.
He had managed to find all but one of the little tykes, Dora. The not-so-successful hiders were squished together on the couch, giggling as the played.
From her crevice, Dora pouted. She had really wanted to win, but Boots called again and she reluctantly dragged herself out from under the stairs.
"Ah, dere she 'is. Good goin' kid." said the older boy, smiling down at her.
She pouted at him, jutting her lower lip out.
"What's dat for?" he asked, pointing to her protruding lip.
Dora looked down at her feet, nudging a knothole in the floor with her toe. "Well, it's just that…I wanted to spunned around like Mollie."
Boots laughed, "Oh, is dat all." He leaned down and lifted Dora on to his shoulders. "I can take care a dat." With that, he gave her a victory spin around the lobby.
Four boys climbed the few steps to the lodging house door. "I. Am. Beat." Specs yawned.
"Well da day ain't ovah yet, buddy boy." said Race, opening the door for his friends.
Giggles from the center of the room caught their attention. Boots was spinning madly in the middle of the floor, a small girl on his shoulders. A line, consisting of the youngest among them, was forming behind the tiring boy. Snoddy laughed, "Looks like 'e could use some help."
He headed for Boots, scooping up a kid of his own. Racetrack and Specs soon followed. Freddie headed around the mass and towards the couch. Race turned, "Ain't ya comin?"
Freddie lifted his injured arm, "Nah I'll sit this one out."
Race lifted his head in understanding, and turned to the excited mass of children. Freddie smiled, turning his attention to the little blonde on Boots' shoulders as he took his seat on the couch. He narrowed his eyes. Something about that girl is awfully familiar, he thought, watching as Boots set her down. The little girl swooned, stumbled, and fell in his direction. She fell to her knees just in front of the couch. Freddie reached out and grabbed the girls arm, helping her to her feet. "There you go, kid."
Still a little woozy, the girl looked in to Freddie's eyes. "Thanks." She cooed. Freddie gasped, releasing the girls' arms. He suddenly realized where she recognized the girl from. His mind soared as he recognized the girl in front of him as the younger girl from the fire.