I do not own Newsies or any of the Newsies characters. To the best of my knowledge they are owned by Disney.

I am making no money from this story.

SLASH. Jack/Oscar Jack/David
A/N: This story was written for Lady of Tir Na Nog in honor of her birthday.

This story has not been beta'd. I hope that any rough patches will not be too distracting.

Chapter 8 – Together Again

Jack was lying comfortably with his head on Oscar's lap. He hesitated for a moment and then ran his fingers over the scar that shown through Oscar's open shirt.

"Does it hurt?"

"Sometimes," Oscar shrugged. "Like if I try and lift something heavy or bend the wrong way. It doesn't slow me down much."

"That's why you were holdin' your ribs that day we had the fight, isn't it?"

Oscar shrugged without looking at Jack.

"I don't know how you could fight with a cut like that. It must've hurt like hell."

"I was so angry that I didn't even feel it until they pulled us apart."

"And here I thought that it was my exceptional fighting skills that took you down," Jack smirked.

"Not even on your best day, Cowboy," Oscar smiled.

"Damn, I'm sorry."

"I'm just glad that your pal Mush had the guts to stand up to you and help me. If he didn't, I'd still be kneeling there."

"Yeah, I didn't think Mush had it in 'em. He's got more balls than I gave him credit for."

"And he's good-lookin' too," Oscar grinned.

"Hey!" Jack said, sitting up defensively. "Since when do you go noticing if a guy is good-lookin' or not?"

"Since always, you moron. I ain't blind you know."

"There's a lot more to you than I ever knew about," Jack huffed.

"Yea, there is," Oscar replied coldly.

Jack shifted positions and pulled Oscar to lie against his chest. "Everything will be good again, Chief. You and me are gonna make up for all the time we've missed since Grandpa died. We're gonna do and see all the things that we talked about."

"It's a little late for that, Cowboy. Things have changed. We ain't the same people as we were back then. We can't go back to being kids again."

"It ain't too late. This is what we were waitin' all these years for. There's nothin' to stop us from being together now."

"Nothing but a thousand newsies and tomorrow's headlines. You're a hero now. You're Jack freakin' Kelly. You're famous like you've always wanted."

"You're what I always wanted. Sellin' newspapers is a job. And it's a lousy job too. I want more outa life than just scratchin' out a livin'."

"And what about David, Jack? Have you forgotten about him and his family?"

"No, I haven't forgotten about Dave. He's a good guy, and I do care about him, but it ain't the same. You and me have been together since we were kids. I like Dave. I like him a lot, but I love you."

Oscar stared at Jack. He didn't realize it, but his jaw was hanging slightly open.

"What?" Jack grumbled looking a bit indignant. "You didn't know I love you?"

"I guess I knew, but I never expected you to say it."

"Are you sayin' that you don't love me?"

"Of course I love you, Jack. I've loved you since before you kissed me that first time. I realized it one afternoon when we were sittin' at the kitchen table with Ma. We were drinking milk and eatin' her special applesauce cake. I was doin' my homework and Ma was helping you with your reading. I remember that you were arguing with her about the words rough, bough, and through. You insisted that she had to be wrong about the way they were spelled because they couldn't possibly all end in o-u-g-h. You said that the words all sounded different, so they had to be spelled different. You told Ma that she was a nice lady and that she was pretty too, but you didn't think she was very smart. You insisted that the word rough had to end with two f's. You were so damn sure of yourself that Ma had to fight to keep from laughing. That's when I realized that I loved you."

"Well, whether I ever told you or not, I do love you . . . . And your ma was pretty, and whoever invented spelling did a lousy job because rough should be spelled with two f's!"

"I love you too, Cowboy," Oscar said brushing the hair from Jack's eyes and placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

"Things are gonna be different for you and me, Chief. You wait and see. We can take off for someplace better, and let the wind blow the stink of this town off us. Maybe we can go to Santa Fe like we talked about. Grandpa said that it was the most beautiful place he'd ever seen."

"If I remember correctly, Grandpa said that the Bronx was the most beautiful place he'd ever seen. When he told us about Santa Fe, you said that it sounded like the most beautiful place you'd ever heard of."

"Whatever. The point is that now we can go there like we always wanted."

"Santa Fe was your dream, Jack. I'm a city boy, born and bred, and that's where I belong. I can't see myself livin' among the cactus and tumbleweeds."

"I guess we are a little old for playin' Cowboys and Indians, ha Chief? Well, maybe we can visit there sometime. Ya know, just to see what it's like. Livin' in the city is fine by me. There are a lot of places we could go to start over. We could go to Boston or Chicago or St. Louis. Just so long as you and me are together, I don't much care where we are."

"You're still forgetting about David. Where does he fit in?"

"Will you quit talking about Dave? That was only for a couple of months. You and me have been together since we were kids. I'll have a talk with him and explain everything. Dave is a good guy. He'll understand."

"Will he, Jack?"

"Yeah, he will. Dave and me are friends mostly. We sell together, and pal around together and - -"

"And is that all you do together?"

"No, Oscar it ain't. Now quit soundin' like a jealous girl."

"I ain't jealous, and stop comparing me to girls. I hate it when you do that."

"I know," Jack smirked. "That's why I do it."

"I'm tryin' to show you that Dave may think you and him are more than friends. I think that maybe you thought so too until tonight."

"I don't love Dave, and I never told him that I did."

"You never said that you loved me until just now."

"Quit worryin'. I told you that it ain't like that between Dave and me. I'll talk to him, and everything will be okay. I'm tellin' you that he'll understand."

"Will you tell him first thing tomorrow?"

"Yeah. I'll tell him as soon as I see him in the morning. Then tomorrow night you and me are goin' out to celebrate. We'll go to China Town and have some supper and then maybe take in a show."

"Aren't you afraid that someone will see us together? Havin' supper with a Delancey could be real bad for your image. Your friends might think that you're traitor."

"I don't care what they think. You and me are gonna paint this town red, and the hell with everybody else. It's not like I'm gonna be livin' with those guys forever. We're only gonna be around here long enough to save some money and then take off, right?"

"Is that what you want, Cowboy?"

"A'corse that's what I want. That's what I've always wanted. It's what we've always wanted. You ain't changed your mind, have ya."

"No, Cowboy. I ain't changed my mind."

"Good. Then tomorrow you and me are gonna celebrate. And in a few months we can kiss this town goodbye. We'll get as far away from Pulitzer's stinkin' newspaper and your lousy brother as we can. We've waited a long time for this, and nothin' is gonna stop us from--"

There was a sudden noise and thunderous voices coming from outside the window. Oscar scrambled across the room to blow out the lantern.

"What the hell was that?" Jack whispered.

"That's the crew getting the delivery wagons ready. They'll be hitchin' up the horses soon. Then they'll line up on the other side of the building to get their wagons loaded."

"Damn. I'm almost sorry there here. I don't wanna leave."

"Me either."

"Well, we'll meet at the gate same time tomorrow night, and I'll show you what a good time really is."

"Cowboy?"

"Yeah, Chief?"

"I do love you."

"Yeah, I know. And I love you too, Dave."

"What?"

"I said that I love you too, Da - - Uh, Chief."

Oscar sat up and leaned against the wall next to Jack.

"C'mon, Oscar. You know I didn't mean to call you Dave. It's just that we were talkin' about him, and--"

"I know," Oscar said. He avoided looking at Jack and reached into his pocket for a cigarette.

"Really, Chief. You know I didn't mean it. It was just a lousy slip of the tongue."

"I know, Jack. I ain't mad, so just drop it, okay?"

After a few moments, Oscar struck a match to light his cigarette. Jack watched as the flame lit his face. Oscar drew in a breath until the end of the cigarette glowed then he blew out the match without looking over at Jack.

"You do know that I love you, Don't ya, Oscar?"

"Yeah, Cowboy. I know."

Jack waited for Oscar to return the sentiment, but he didn't."

"Look, Oscar. I--"

"Do you think that you'll have any trouble sneakin' into the lodging house when we get outa here?" Oscar asked, trying to change the subject.

"I ain't gonna try. I'm gonna go over to the park and curl up on a bench till it's time to go to work. You know I can sleep anywhere. I'm dead to the world as soon as I lay down my head."

"Yeah, I remember. And you snore louder than anybody I've ever known. You used to keep me awake when we were sleepin' at Grandpa's. I'd shake you, poke at you, and one time I even rolled you off the bed and you still didn't wake up. You just curled up on the floor and kept on snorin'."

"Well, I am a good sleeper."

Again the two fell back into an uncomfortable silence. Finally Jack couldn't take it any longer. "Are we okay, Chief? You know that I didn't mean to call you Dave, right? You know that it didn't mean anything."

"It's okay, Jack. I'm okay. It just took me by surprise is all."

"Then you still - - ya know . . . ."

"Honestly, Jack. If I didn't stop loving you after you punched me in the face, beat the crap outa me, and then dumped me, I sure wouldn't stop loving you over something like that."

"There you go soundin' like a girl again."

"Quit sayin' that. I hate when you do that."

"I know," Jack grinned. "That's why I do it . . . . And I do love you, Chief. I'm always gonna love you."

"I'll always love you too, Cowboy."

End - Chapter 8

Thanks for reading. Your reviews will be greatly appreciated.

A/N: There is only one more chapter to go. I hope that you will stick around for the end.