A/N: Here's another chappie! More reviews! I love reviews!

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own it….keep makin' me repeat it why doncha? Ergh…wish I could buy it out…that'd be cool. I say all the Newsie fans in the world get together and buy it out! Oh, well…enjoy!

Chapter 9:

Little Secrets

Spot's POV:

I couldn't believe what had just happened. Rachel…something happened to her that part of me wanted to know, and the other part didn't. I was scared for her. Her eyes were what got me…there was absolute fear in them. She slide away from me like she was frightened of me, and that hurt. I don't know why it did, I wasn't one to have something like that mean something to me. But she…was different. I don't know how, she just was.

Jack had picked her up and put her in the bed, while Me, Catherine, Whisper, and Race went downstairs and the rest of the Newsies went back to bed. It was scary, I've never experienced anything like what happened today. Kid Blink had come too, he was worried about Rachel obviously. But I knew that he wanted to see Catherine too. We all sat down at the large round table in the middle of the room and I lit some lamps. Kid sat next to Catherine and next her Whisper sat with Jack, who had just come back from putting Rachel into the bed. Race sat next to Jack, and I took my seat next to Race.

"She's asleep," Jack said, and smiled at Whisper as she patted his hand gently. "What happened?"

"She was talking…actually more of yelling, about Sarah." I said quietly. Jack's eyes grew dark as I went on with what happened. "Then her eyes kinda rolled back inta her head and she started screaming for help and just overall screaming. When she came back, she just started screaming for us ta get away from her. That's when Catherine and Whisper came and you know the rest." I said, looking down when I ended.

Jack sighed deeply and rubbed his face. Race just stared at the middle of the table without blinking and with a blank stare on his face. Whisper's eyes had started to tear and Jack took her hand in his and squeezed it. Kid had put an arm around Catherine and had just brushed a tear away from her eye when Rachel walked in.

"Rach," Race said, then bolted out of the chair and to her side. "What happened? Are ya okay? Ya should be sleepin'!" Race said, obviously worried about her. I looked at her, then back to the table. She had dark circles under her eyes and she seemed to be even more fragile than before. Gently, Race took her hand and escorted her to the table.

"Rachel, you should be sleepin'," Whisper said, reaching for Rachel's hand as she sat down and gently squeezed it.

"Yeah, Rachel. You…well, to be truthful you look horrible." Catherine said with a small smile, of which Rachel meekly returned.

"Thanks, but I need…" Rachel sighed deeply. "I need to get something out…I need to tell you all…what happened."

"It's okay, you scared us a bit, but it's okay." Blink said.

Rachel shook her head. "No, it's not that." She exchanged a silent glance with Catherine and Whisper and they both nodded. Now, I was wondering what the hell was going on.

Rachel took another deep sigh and Race gently took her hand in his and rubbed it with his thumb. "Remember, that night six months ago when I was brought back to the lodging house by the bulls." She asked Jack, Kid, and Race. They all nodded. "Well, it wasn't because I got lost or anything that they told you…it happened because of…because of Oscar…" she took a ragged breath as we all stayed silent. "Oscar…had followed me and he, he pinned me to the ground and he…" Race stopped rubbing her hand as his eyes blazed with hate. Jack had already put his head in his hands and Kid was looking disbelievingly at her, while I just stared at her, my hands fisted at my side. "Oscar…raped me."

There was silence at the table as everyone took in what had happened. Then, suddenly Jack stood up and pounded the table with his fist. "Fuck him!" He yelled angrily and I could see everyone be shocked by into reality. "I'll kill him!"

Everyone, of course, was reacting differently. Whisper and Catherine had resorted to tears as Jack calmed down enough to comfort Whisper and Kid comforted Catherine. Race got out of his chair quietly and had gone to the window and looked out, which angered me because I figured he'd want to comfort Rachel. I, myself looked at her and saw her own tears gathering in her eyes. She looked up at me. "I'm sorry Spot."

I shook my head and looked at her caringly. "Rachel. Don't ever be sorry for something that you couldn't control." I said. "We'll kill him, I promise ya dat."

She started to say something but then Race turned around and went to her. "Rach, can we talk?" He asked, taking her hand in his. "In private?"

Rachel nodded and they both left. Spell and Jack also had gone outside. I hadn't realized how light it was out until I looked up. Catherine and Kid were in a corner of the room and Kid held her in his arms. I shook my head and walked outside, with my hands in my pockets. The sun was bright today, and it bore down on me with all it's intensity. I sighed and started walking down the street, towards the docks.

Catherine's POV:

"I can't believe it," Blink said. "I've known her for three yeahs and now….I don't know what ta do."

I intertwined my fingers through his. "Blink?" I asked softly.

"Yeah hun?" Blink asked, twirling a strand of my hair with his finger.

"What are we gonna do?" I asked, thinking of how hard it must have been for Rachel to keep that secret hidden in her. "I mean, she's been through so much…we should do sometin."

"Doncha worry," He said, kissing me on the head. "We guys will do sometin'. Da goils gotta stay outta it."

I sat up and looked back at him. "No. I ain't gonna sit round waitin' for ya ta do sometin. We're part of it now, wedda ya like it or not." I said. "We'll take care of Sarah."

Kid shook his head. "No, don't do tat. Spot'll have ya neck."

I shook my own head. "Spot won't do dat. He's worried bout Rachel. Didja see his face when she…" I looked down, unable to go on.

Kid lifted my face with his hand and kissed me quickly on my lips, warming me from the inside out. "No, I didn't see his face."

"He got so sad…like it was someone dat he loved." I said, remembering his face before my own tears had come to my eyes thinking that someone who I had spent so many laughs with the night before had to live with this horrible truth for such a long time.

"Catherine," Kid said. "Whatcha thinkin'?"

I shrugged, unsure of it myself. "Don't know myself." I looked out the window to the streets, lost in my thoughts. "Just…maybe he cares bout her, dats all."

Kid gently turned my face to his. "Hey, Catherine? Guess what?"

"What?" I asked, smiling.

"Love ya." He said then kissed me gently again and pulled me into his arms.

Spell's POV:

Me and Jack had left the lodging house and now were walking the streets back to Manhattan. Jack felt it necessary to go back to Manhattan and tell everyone what had happened. We walked for a bit holding hands, until Jack spoke up about the whole thing. "I can't believe dis happened ta her." He said, looking down.

I looked at him and my heart ached to see him hurt like this. "Jack," I shook my head. "Honestly, I don't know what ta say." I replied truthfully. Personally, I couldn't believe that Oscar could do something so vile. But he did, I could see the truth in Rachel's eyes. Just last night she was sharing stories of the Manhattan Newsies and the strike, and today she was sharing the story of how she got raped by Oscar.

Jack sighed deeply. "Spell, I'm scared for her. I don't know what ta do anymore."

I squeezed Jack's hand tightly. "Jack, we just gotta take care of her. And we gotta take care of Oscar too," I said. I swore to myself that I wouldn't let her out of my sight, for Jack's sake.

"No," Jack said, looking sideways at me. "Ya ain't gettin' caught up in dis mess." He said, as we stopped at the end of the Brooklyn bridge. "I don't want ya ta get in trouble."

I shook my head. "Someway or anuther Jack, I'll get involved. We all will. We gots ta take care of Sarah. I ain't lettin' her tell Oscar anything."

Jack kissed me gently on the lips. "Hun, I love ya. But don't get yaself in trouble ya can't get out of."

I smiled at him, and it was time for me to leave. This was the spot where me and Jack separated. He gave my hand a final squeeze and then turned and started walking back towards Manhattan. I watched him until I couldn't see him anymore, and then turned to walk back to the lodging house and hopefully find everyone in a better mood than they had been before. But I knew in my heart that it would never be the same in the Brooklyn Newsie Lodging house ever again. There was now a certain terrible secret which it held, and seemed to cradle in it's arms until it was ready for it to be released and hopefully, the pain mended.

I sighed deeply as the lodging house came into view. I could see Rachel sitting on the front stoop, with her head in her hands. I ran over to her and sat down next to her. Catherine came out just as I sat down and sat down on the left of her.

"Rachel?" I said, putting my arm around her. "Are ya okay?"

Rachel lifted up a tear-stained face. "Race broke up with me."

A/N: OH! THE DRAMA! THE SUSPENSE! THE HATEFULNESS I FEEL FOR RACE! Heehee…more ta come if ya review! And if Spell updates!