Hey guys, so a little while back I was re-reading this story and I had a couple of other short Newsies stories, so I decided to mush them all together into one big one! This still follows the main storyline of 'Jack', just with some more story to it. Someone made the comment earlier too that the ending was a bit abrupt so I hope this fixes that a little bit. I don't have time to go through and answer all the reviews again, but here ya go, a big story now. It's a lot longer, and hopefully a lot better. I'll be posting this in bits, so you'll have to wait for a little more!
Enjoy, and leave a review if you like it! I'll be back with more soon!
"It's not Jack Kelly," Jack bit back harshly, harsher than he intended. He wasn't actually mad - he could never be mad at Crutchie - but he couldn't hold back the outburst. As soon as the anger came it faded away as he stared at the shocked face of Crutchie, and his voice softened. Crutchie was just trying to introduce him to the new kids on the block, but no one saw the slight twitch Jack held back as Crutchie called out his name. No one knew any better.
"Sorry, Crutch. It's… been a long day." Jack ran a hand over his face, trying to ignore how bad he must've looked. It wasn't a lie, but he wasn't exactly being truthful either. It hadn't just been a long day, it had been a long couple of weeks. It was in the heat of the summer, which wasn't like what he imagined Santa Fe summers were like, but it got decently hot. Normally, it wouldn't have been so bad. Jacobi's always had cool water and ice in the back for particularly hot days, and the high ceilings and makeshift fans of the lodging house made sleeping generally cool and comfortable.
That would usually be the case. But this month had brought an onslaught of heat waves over New York, and it had made the newsies miserable. The pressure of Wiesel and increasing temperatures made it hard for Jack and the rest of the newsies. Jack did his best to provide for his boys, always had and always will. He would never leave them. Even when the time was rough, there wasn't anything he wouldn't do for his boys. The heat had been draining the energy out of the boys, leaving low morale and high tension between everyone. Everyone was on high alert, snapping at each other whenever someone gave something as simple as a wrong look. Jack had stopped three fights in the last week alone.
The last time tensions had been so high was last winter and his most recent stay in the Refuge. Right at the beginning, the lodging house radiator had gone out, leaving the newsboys to provide for themselves. Sooner than later, the lodging house dropped to freezing temperatures at night making it nearly impossible to sleep. Jack had given everything he could, extra clothes and blankets to anyone who didn't have enough. Jack would've given them the clothes off his own back if Crutchie hadn't stopped him. So he was left with his one ratty jacket and a holey blanket. Did he complain? Not once. As long as his boys were doing ok, Jack was doing ok
Then supplies ran out. Blankets were worn through until they were mere threads, and the food all but ran out. So when the temperature dropped even further, Jack didn't hesitate to steal some food and blankets to keep warm and fed. All he needed to do was get the stolen goods to the hands of one of his newsies. If his newsies got it, they could bring it to the lodging house for everyone else. That's all that mattered.
It didn't even matter that he got arrested and sent to the Refuge right after he passed off the merchandise. It didn't even matter that he was told he'd never see the light of day again, much less his newsies. It didn't even matter that he was sentenced to six months in that rat-infested hole in the ground, the same hole that haunted his days before and would cause even more nightmares to come. It didn't matter that the three months he spent there was the worst he had ever seen. All that mattered was that they would have some food and clothes, at least while he was gone. And the instant he saw his chance for escape, he broke out on Roosevelt's carriage and got back to his boys.
When finally he got back, things were different. Nothing noticeable at first. But it was the little things. All the boys seemed a little taller, a little stronger, a little more tired. Race was tired. Jack saw that first. The bags under his eyes showed the weariness that Jack normally would normally bare. When Jack had stepped back into the lodging house in the dead of night he found Race sitting at one of the tables, head in his hands. He had jumped up at the sound of someone walking up and was surprised to see Jack standing in front of him. Race froze, stuck like a deer in headlights. Jack smiled gently, hoping the boy ignored his beaten and nearly broken appearance. As soon as Race found the power to move he jumped at Jack, grabbing him in a tight hug and not letting go. Jack let him, and he lost track of how long they stood there. As Jack gently ran a hand through Race's hair he could almost feel the stress fade away. Race closed his eyes and melted into the simple relief that was Jack. Race had done his best, but he wasn't Jack. He wasn't used to all of the responsibility, taking care of everyone. Once Jack was there, everything was better.
It didn't take long for the newsies to notice something different as well. Nothing noticeable at first. But it was the little things. Jack was a little more tired, a little more paranoid, a little jumpier. Crutchie saw that first. He wasn't as warm as the Jack Crutchie knew. He was more closed off, angered easily, even at the small things. Crutchie could walk up behind him, but as soon as he could touch their leader's shoulder, Jack would flinch and jump back. He'd laugh it off, but Crutchie knew it was different. Crutchie was determined to figure out what was going on, and he wasn't opposed to doing it the hard way.
One of those days not long after he had made it back from the Refuge, Jack had stayed back in the lodging house while the other newsies went out to sell. He didn't head up to his penthouse in the sky but stayed in one of the bunk beds. Jack thought he had been alone, but Buttons had been sick so he stayed back to rest and also ran a mission for Crutchie. When Buttons was certain Jack didn't know he was there, he faked being asleep and watched carefully as Jack sat down heavily on his bunk. Slowly and agonizingly Jack had started to pull his shirt off, pausing halfway through to catch his breath. Buttons could barely hold back his gasp when Jack finally got his shirt off completely. Left was his white undershirt and suspender straps hanging at his sides, but that's all Buttons needed to see. Bruises littered Jack's shoulders and upper arms, conveniently covered by his everyday shirt. There had been distinct bruising on Jack's face when he had shown back up, but it had started to fade away. This… was different. Buttons couldn't believe his own eyes when Jack lifted up his undershirt to see a slightly red-stained gauze pad just off to the side of Jack's right shoulder, plus even more bruising. Eventually, Buttons must've made a noise because Jack suddenly looked in his direction and Buttons ducked under the covers just in time. The next time Buttons saw Crutchie and Race, he told them what he saw, watching their faces twist in concern and even anger.
Jack had taken off guard when Crutchie and Race confronted him not long after, demanding to see what happened. He had brushed it off at first, but when Race had grabbed his arm to keep him from turning away, Jack had flinched instinctively, pulling away as fast as he could. Only then did Jack finally realize that he couldn't keep hiding and told them everything. It was obvious they were shocked at the torture Snyder was willing to do, but they listened to every detail. After that, Jack had gotten better. Slowly, one step at a time. But still, since then there was just one thing he couldn't get over.
"Jack? You alright?" Crutchie asked, his sweet and innocent snapping Jack out of his daze. Jack shook his head, glancing to see almost every newsie staring at him in wonder. For a breath, Jack couldn't remember where he was. He unconsciously shivered, remembering the cold that chilled him to the core. But he felt the sun on his face and sweat drip from his forehead. He wasn't with Snyder, he was outside with his newsies.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Whaddya staring at, fellas?" Jack called out, spurring the frozen newsies into motion. Everyone moved, except for Crutchie. He continued to stand in front of Jack, a concerned smile on his face as he studied Jack.
"What? I said I'm fine," Jack protested, and Crutchie just chuckled.
"Sure ya are, Jack." Jack opened his mouth to protest, but Crutchie had already turned away. As he limped away, he glanced over his shoulder. "Tomorrow'll be a better day." Crutchie, ever the optimist, could see the sun peek through on the cloudiest day.
"Of course it will," Jack lied through his teeth, sending a smile to Crutchie, a bad feeling growing in the pit of his stomach. He didn't want to lie to the kid but rarely was it a better day. Just one struggle after another. But they would get through it. They always did.