Title: Secrets Behind the Lies
Author: Stress
First written: June 27, 2002- March 19, 2004
Edited and replaced: May 16, 2006
Summary: Part II of the Soul Mates Series; After living in Manhattan for two years, Stress thought she knew everything about Jack Kelly or, should we say Francis Sullivan? Well, guess not.
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Mrs. Cook shook her head. "When am I going to learn to just use that?" she murmured as she left the task of waking Martini to her friends. Bookie stood on her tippy-toes so that she could move Martini's long blonde hair away from one of her ears to whisper a message. "Psst, Martini. Blink's here..."
At the mention of her boyfriend's name Martini's blue eyes sprung open. "What? Where?" she cried as she gathered her blanket up to her chin and looked around the room hurriedly. She scowled when she spied Gip and Bookie by the side of her bunk laughing up a storm. "Man, I hate it when you girls do that," she muttered as she slowly got out of bed and made her way to the water pump.
"Morning Martini. How'd you sleep?" Stress asked, the mischevious glint in her eye throwing off the innocent look she was going for.
Martini splashed some water on her face before facing Stress. "Just for once can you make sure that Gip and Bookie don't use the ol' standby to wake me up? I thought we're was pals Stress," she pouted, not even trying to hide her smile.
Stress reached over and patted Martini on her head. "Sure, Martini, we're pals. For, what, two whole years now, right?"
As Bookie and Gip walked over to join the two at the water pump, giving each other hi-fives at another successful Martini-wake-up, Martini rolled her eyes. "Two years already? Damn, and we still let you live here?"
"What are you talking about, Martini?" Bookie asked, straightening her newsie hat over her short brown hair.
"I was just saying that it's so hard to believe that it's been two years already since Jack found our li'l Stressie here in that alley," Martini smirked.
Stress laughed with Gip and Bookie before responding. "You know that Jack is the only one that can call me Stressie and live."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, Stressie," Gip added in a sarcastic tone. Gip ducked Stress's playful slap at her statement. Gip was about to retaliate when Mocking Boid stepped in between the two girls.
"I hate to break up this li'l stroll down memory lane and all but there are papes to sell, eh girls?" Mocking Boid intervened, reminding all the newsgirls that their day's work hadn't even begun yet.
Quirky groaned as she walked right next to her friend. "Awww, MB, why do you have to always remind us when we're having fun?"
"It's just me nature," Mocking Boid replied smugly. The other girls rolled their eyes and got ready to leave. As they exited the lodging house and made their way to the distribution center, the girls discussed who their selling partners would be for the day.
"Hey Bookie. Are you going to spend the day with Race down at Sheepshead Bay?" called Spin. Bookie had hitched a trolley with Race everyday since they had officially started dating only a few months before. They had an interesting relationship; After knowing, and liking, each other for close to two years the two of them, after much prodding from Martini and Stripes (the Bottle Alley Lodging House's resident match-makers), the two confessed their feelings and started dating.
"Of course. How about you, Martini? Gonna spend the day with Blink?" Bookie added with a wink. Martini and Blink were another of the cutesy-wutesy couples in the newsie profession. The two of them had known each other for as long as Bookie and Race, and it took them about the same amount of time to tell each other how much they cared for each other. But, just like Bookie and Race, they were extremely happy now that they had gotten together.
"Yup, over in Central Park, I believe. Any of you girls going off together?" Martini asked, addressing the other girls.
"I'm going to go down to the Harbor today. Any of you want to come?" Stripes threw out to the crowd.
"I'll go," answered Mocking Boid as Spin nodded her agreement.
Moth looked up at the sky thoughtfully. "I think I'm just going to walk around today and go where me feet take me. Anyone up for that?"
"Sounds like fun. Count me in," Quirky said, cheerfully. "Hey Stress, Gip, want to come?"
Stress appeared to blush for a second before she answered Quirky. "No thanks. I'm going to sell with Jack today."
As the other girls laughed and poked fun at Stress, Quirky rolled her eyes. "I should have known. Who else would Stressie sell with?"
"That ain't funny, Quirky. And why ain't you selling with Jake today?" Stress asked, changing the subject. She didn't like to think about it much but whenever she did think of Jack, her best friend of the past two years, she got butterflies in her stomach. Dismissing it as nothing more than gratitude at his saving of her life from some one from her past - someone whose name is never mentioned, not even in her thoughts - Stress always changed the subject.
"I'm going to drag Jake along with me, Stress. And don't think that I didn't notice that you changed the subject, Mrs. Cowboy," Quirky said as she ducked behind Gip to avoid Stress's annoyed glare. If there was one thing you didn't want to do it was tease Stress about her relationship with Jack. When she was satisfied that Stress wouldn't hit her, Quirky looked up at Gip. "Well, since Stress is going with Jacky-Boy, how about you, Gip?"
Gip stopped in her tracks, which caused Quirky to run right into her. "No, I think I'm just going to sell by meself, today," she whispered, most un-Gip-like, as she blushed.
Stress noticed the change in Gip's behavior and cocked her head to the side. "Are you sure, Gip? You can always sell with me and Jack."
Gip nodded slowly, her dark braids resting on her shoulders. "I'm sure."
Spin, not looking convinced, tried to get Gip to sell with her, Stripes and Mocking Boid. "C'mon, Gip. It ain't no fun to sell alone. Why not come with me, Stripes and MB? It'll be fun."
Before Gip could speak up, Moth opened her mouth. "No, Spin. If Gip wants to sell by herself, we should let her." If there was anyone who understood what it meant to need to be alone at some times, it was Moth.
"Thanks Stress, thanks Spin, but Moth is right. I just need to be alone today," Gip replied, her faint Southern accent slipping in and out of her New York accent.
"If you say so," Stress said as she approached the line outside the distribution center. Dropping the entire subject of Gip's sudden need of solitude, she turned to face Martini as she gestured at the long line of newsies in front of them. "See what happens when you need to get a few more Blink dreams in?"