Shoutouts!
Kid Blink's Dreamer: Indeed she is! You can't have a story without The Snitch! Say hi to the boyfriend for me, huh?
Scamley Elliot: YAY! New homes are great, eh?
Nosilla: Ooh, you're good, aren't ya?
Unknown-Dreams: Happy...like...? Well, aren't we eloquent...
Slightly: You screwed it up.
...What?
Slightly: You ended every shoutout with a question mark until you got to Unknown-Dreams! Gosh...
...You've been watching WAY too much Nappy D!
"All righty, then," Jack said, stepping into the bunkroom of the Manhattan Lodging House. "Goily, dis is—"
"My name is Two-Bits," she interrupted, glaring at him. Jack shook off her comment, but he looked annoyed at being corrected. He was, after all, the leader, and this new girl had no right to talk to him that way.
"Yeah, shoah thing. Anyway, guys, dis is Two-Bits. She's from da Bronx. She's a friend o' Crutchy's, and she'll be stayin' wid us for a liddle while." In a mutter to Spot he added, "But not for long if she don't learn respect." Spot made a mental note to take her aside and talk to her later.
"Bits, these are the guys. I'd introduce you myself, but there's too many of them," he said, with a prideful gleam in his eyes. Two-Bits tried not to roll her eyes at his obvious attempt at proving his superiority by way of his newsies. But, of course, she failed.
"She just rolled her eyes atcha', Jack!" a newsie exclaimed. He was short and skinny with brown hair that had obviously been cut either by himself or by one of the other newsies. His bangs were uneven and too short. He gave her a grin, revealing a missing front tooth. "I'se Pie Eater."
"Two-Bits," she said, as if he didn't already know.
"So…Who's she going to sell with?" another asked. He was stocky and broad-shouldered, with curly black hair and a sweet face. "I'm Mush," he added.
"I dunno. Whoever can take her, I suppose," Jack said, thoughtfully. She scowled at him, but he conveniently looked the other way. "How 'bout Snitch? You were the first of us to meet her, if I recall correctly," Jack said with a teasing grin. Snitch made a face.
"Yeah, I remember. She can sell with me, but I'm not paying for her papers! I can barely get by on my own!" Snitch sighed.
"Who's this?" asked a new voice. A brilliantly female voice. Two-Bits almost collapsed with relief. She turned around, suppressing a smile.
"Boomerang, dis is Two-Bits. She's from Da Bronx," Spot introduced. Boomerang was a few inches taller than Two-Bits, with brown hair that had been messily cut off at the shoulders and gray eyes. She noticed the badly-suppressed grin on Two-Bits's face and said, "Cowboy's been bothering you?"
"Yeah." She leaned over a whispered, "He's in arrogant-mode." Boomer chuckled.
"Goily, he's always in arrogant-mode. But don't worry. A couple o' goils like us could probably whip him into shape."
"Hey!" Jack protested. The girls laughed, and Two-Bits knew that when she counted her blessings, having Boomerang around would be at the top of her list.
