Chapter 6

Sorry for not updating sooner. I am back in school now, so I will be most likely updating on the weekends. Anyways, hope you enjoy the chapter!

EARLIER THAT DAY: 3RD PERSON P.O.V.

It was just after the majority of the newsies had left the circulation desk, when a man, filled with vengeance and who gave off a cold disposition, approached the Delancey brothers.

"I'm looking for a girl by the name of Kate Astaire. Ever heard of her?" The gentleman queried.

"Neva' heard of a Kate before," Morris said bluntly, "I see a lot of goils around. What makes ya think I know this one?"

"She hangs out with the newsboys," he added, a lightbulb went off in both of the Delancey's heads as they realized they knew the girl. In fact, they had just seen her this morning, but they kept a pokerface on to if there was anything else they could get out of the man.

"We'll keep an eye out. But, don't ya think ya should give us a little something special for our extra labor. Unless, that is, ya don't want her as much as you say ya do," Oscar implied, a smirk forming on his face.

"I'm offering a reward for anyone who finds her. Maybe the sound of five dollars in your pocket will help spark your memory. Dead or alive, it doesn't matter. I'll just need the proof," he informed them.

"Oh, and if you need to contact me my name is Mr. James Dunnigan. I am a foreman for the textile factory a few blocks down," And with that the man departed, leaving the boys to start their scheming.

PRESENT DAY: KATE'S P.O.V.

I was sleeping that night when I started to have another nightmare. The difference between this one and the one that happened previously was that instead of the boss evaluating my work, it was my parent's ghostly figures hovering over me. They screamed obscenities at me while they condemned my stitching.

"You fail at everything, just like you failed at keeping us alive!" My mother screamed at me.

"I'm sorry! I did everything I could but the doctor said there was nothing he could do to stop the disease. I was only four at the time!" I pleaded. Then, they vanished.

"No! No! Come back! I said I was sorry!" I screamed into the air, and soon the ground started to shake.

"Hey, girl wake up!" I shot up from my dream when I heard the unfamiliar voice rouse me from my sleeping state. My eyes wandered to find the boy my age, whose name I still did not know, hunching over my sweaty figure.

"You okay? You don't look so good," he stated, revealing a small hint of concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It happens all the time. Nearly every night, so I'm used to it," I explained.

"Well since we're up anyways, why don't ya tell me that long story you'se was talking about earlier," he suggested, "We've got all night."

"Oh, so now you want to talk. What happened to Mr. Grouchy from earlier? And don't tell me you're bipolar or something," I accused him.

"No, not bipolar. Just a little uncomfortable in a new place and all," he justified, "Whatever. It's not like I care." He said, suddenly not interested in hearing the story anymore.

"Well, could you at least tell me your name?" I asked him, annoyed with his attitude.

"Daze," he said, an impassive look on his face and climbed into his bunk. I thought it was a fairly fitting name since he continually left me bewildered at his hateful feelings towards me.

I woke up early the next morning when I heard one of the boys hacking up a lung. Figuratively, of course. I groaned at the thought of one of my boys coming down with the inevitable colds they caught during the harsh winter months. I scanned the room looking for who was the source of the coughing, and my eyes settled on Crutchy. Deciding I should get him a glass of water, I mentally added making sure to stop by the store today to pick him up some medicine. Kloppman would take care of him, so as to reduce the amount of people that were exposed to anything contagious. I would only stay home for the day if he started to come down with something really bad.

"Here," I said, handing him the glass of room temperature water, "Try and get some sleep. There is no way the boys are gonna let you sell today."

"Thanks," he replied, his voice breaking at the end from all the congestion in his lungs.

Already awake, I decided I would treat the boys with a nice breakfast this morning, which meant eggs and French toast,and prepared a batch of chicken noodle soup for Crutchy. The walls and ceilings were thin, so I could hear the creaking from the added weight of everyone wake up and the muffled noises from different conversations. I could hear excited shouts when the boys noticed the delectable aroma coming from the kitchen. I just finished setting out plates

"You're the best!" Mush said, hugging me tightly from behind.

Daze was the last come down. Instead of grabbing a bite to eat, he just walked out the door. The boys looked confusedly at the door but just shrugged them off. I heard through the ceiling this morning that Daze was one of the newsiest that lived on the streets, so they probably thought he was just heading to the gates early.

"We can clean up, Kate," Specs told me, standing up and kissing my temple.

"Thanks," I replied and bounded up the steps to get dressed and ready for the day.

Around lunchtime, I told Jack that I was going to go to the pharmacy to pick up Crutchy's medicine. The family who owned the pharmacy adopted a child from the orphanage I used to live in. So since they knew me, they would so usually just gave me whatever medicine I needed for free.

I was leaving the pharmacy when I was cornered by the Delancey brothers.

"Hey toots," Oscar called, closing in on me.

"Or should we say Ms. Astaire? It's not very smart for an attractive girl like you to be walking alone in the city. You should be glad we caught you instead of someone else," Morris informed me.

"Like someone who actually has a brain?" I retorted. Oscar grabbed my wrist tightly, dragging me further into the alley. "Let me go," I said, my teeth clenched tightly while struggling to get away.

"HEY! Get off of her!" A distant voice yelled from the front of the alley. I turned and saw it was Daze. He ran up to us, and before I could react he had knocked both of the Delanceys out cold. I was too shocked to realize it earlier, but I had never told them my last name. So, how did they know it?

Daze and I decided we would walk to Tibby's together since we were both headed that way.

"So, how about you'se tell me that 'long story' you mentioned earlier," he suggested.

"Not before you tell me why you dislike me so much," I negotiated.

"Fine," he agreed.

Thanks for reading! Sorry it's so short. I will try to update as much as I can over the weekend. Any suggestions or comments are welcomed!