Disclaimer: This is a non-commercial work of fanfiction. Anything recognizable from Newsies belongs to Disney and not to me.
Chapter 73: Good-Natured Collusion
"There he is, Elmer; go on and ask him!"
"I ain't askin' him; it was your idea!"
"Well you was the last one to call it, so by rights you's the one who's gotta do it!"
"Hah! Last time I checked, you ain't the boss of me!"
Davey looked up from his nearly-empty bag of papers to see the boys from The Jungle Book reading group bickering amongst themselves as they made their way over to him. Well, Elmer and Jojo were bickering; Tucker seemed to be as laconic as ever, but there was an amused almost-smile on his face as he trotted after the two older boys, and Davey was glad to see that the taciturn newsie seemed to have found some friends thanks to their bi-weekly reading ritual.
"Hey, Davey," Elmer said cheerfully, pasting on a smile as though he hadn't just been frowning darkly in Jojo's direction. "This bummer here's got somethin' to ask ya!" He jabbed Jojo in the ribs.
"Ah, what are you, Elmer, two?" Jojo groused, swatting the other newsie's hand away.
"Not two, but maybe too quick for you!" Elmer quipped, poking Jojo again before dancing lithely out of the way.
"Ya coot," Jojo muttered irritably, clearly deciding that trying to corral Elmer was fighting a losing battle. He turned to Tucker on his left, giving him a questioning look, but the younger boy maintained his silence, so finally Jojo spoke.
"We got an idea we wanna run by you, Davey. Somethin' the three of us came up with yesterday."
"Jojo's idea," Elmer coughed into his hand.
"The two of you said you was on board!" Jojo exclaimed, turning over his shoulder and managing to catch the other newsie with a swift cuff to the ear.
"Ow," Elmer whined.
"You had it comin'," Jojo muttered. He shook his head, turning back to Davey.
"We's wantin' to know if you'd help us plan somethin' for the lodging house shindig comin' up."
Right. He'd forgotten about that.
"What did you have in mind?" Davey asked cautiously, intrigued but also a little concerned.
"Well, I dunno if Jack's told you or not, but each of us has to come up with somethin' to entertain the rest of the fellas - an act, or a song, or somethin' like that."
Davey nodded. He remembered Jack mentioning as much.
"The other day, the three of us was hangin' out near Irving Hall after we'd sold our papes," Jojo continued. "Miss Medda invited us in to see the show for free since it was already startin' and the house wasn't full, so we did, and there was a bunch of fellas there doin' somethin' new - kinda like a play, except there weren't no costumes or props, and the fellas was mostly usin' their voices to tell the story."
"You mean a dramatic reading?" Davey supplied. He'd been to a few performances of such things when he was younger and his family had happened to live close to a theater that occasionally gave free admission to the public.
"Sounds about right," Jojo acknowledged. He gave Davey a hopeful look. "Think you could help us pull off somethin' like that? Maybe usin' the book we've been readin' lately?"
Davey hesitated. He wasn't keen on the idea of participating in what sounded like a rather raucous night of entertainment (despite the fact that he knew Jack expected him to be there), but something in him - the responsive older brother, most likely - was having a hard time even considering the thought of saying no to the three eager boys in front of him.
"I guess I could try to figure something out," he said finally.
The younger newsies whooped (well, Elmer and Jojo whooped; Tucker rewarded Davey with a small but genuine smile).
"We keep tellin' the fellas they's missin' out by not joinin' in on our readin' times," Elmer said, grinning from ear to ear, "but since they's bein' stubborn, we's gonna bring the readin' to them instead!"
"Think a bunch of city boys can pull off The Jungle Book, Davey?" Jojo asked.
"Definitely," Davey smiled, getting caught up in their enthusiasm. "I think it will make the reading even more interesting." His mind was already beginning to strategize, and he suddenly found himself thankful that it was a Sunday, which meant that as soon as he finished selling the last few copies of the morning edition, he could head home. Normally, he'd stop by his family's apartment to have a bite to eat before leaving again to tackle a project for Mr. Becker, but he figured that he could take a few extra minutes after lunch to scribble down some ideas for the dramatic reading before he began the second part of his workday.
"Thanks, Davey!" Elmer beamed. "We's gonna have the best surprise of the night, I know it!"
"Sure am glad some genius around here came up with the idea" Jojo interjected wryly, giving the younger newsie a good-natured shove. "Maybe you oughta be thankin' that fella too, huh? Ever think of that?"
Elmer only grinned in reply. "When can we get started, Davey?" he asked impatiently. "The shindig's only a few weeks away!"
"I'll start working on an adaptation soon," Davey promised. "We can practice during our usual reading times; that way no one will suspect what we've got planned." Clearly, surprising the rest of the newsies was important to the other boys, and it was fun to encourage the good-natured collusion a little bit - it made Davey almost feel like a kid again himself.
After another enthusiastic exclamation (and another reticent smile or two), Elmer and Tucker eventually made their way down the street, shouting (or waving) goodbye as they turned back the way they'd come. Jojo, however, lingered behind, and Davey was about to ask him if something was wrong when the other newsie spoke up.
"I actually had somethin' else I was wantin' your help with, Davey."
"Sure, Jojo." Davey smiled, the older brother in him once again secretly pleased at being able to offer assistance. "What did you have in mind?"
"Well, it's kinda askin' a lot, I know...but I was wonderin' if you'd be willin' to meet up with me an extra day a week."
"You mean besides the days we meet for reading?" Davey asked.
Jojo nodded. "If you wouldn't mind sharin' some of your book-learnin' - you know, the kind of things they teach you in school - I'd sure like to study with you, if it wouldn't be too much trouble."
The request caught Davey off guard; he'd never expected that any of the boys would be interested in more than simple entertainment when he'd begun reading to them, but he realized that Jojo's forward-thinking appeal actually made a lot of sense. Most of the newsies couldn't afford to take time off work to attend school, so the only chance they'd have to receive an education would have to come through whatever they were able to pick up from those who had been given that opportunity.
Even though most of the boys seemed indifferent or downright disdainful of "book-learning," that didn't mean that all of them were opposed to the idea. Perhaps some, like Jojo, would have even liked to be in the classroom if their life circumstances had allowed for it.
Privilege is relative, Davey thought to himself. His family had never been wealthy, but he and Les had been able to attend school, and he was being reminded again of just how much of an advantage that was.
It was an advantage he wanted to share.
And besides, he was the last person who could, in good conscience, turn down a request for tutoring - he'd certainly been on the receiving end of that very same service for the past several months, and it wouldn't be right of him not to give in turn when called upon.
"It's okay if you don't want to…" Jojo said, cutting into Davey's thoughts.
"No! No, I do!" Davey clarified hastily. "Sorry, I just - I was trying to figure a few things out." He gave Jojo a reassuring smile. "I'm not sure if I'll be a great teacher, but I'd be happy to share what I can. I think I've still got a few of my school books from past years at home somewhere, so I'll take a look at them and maybe we can go over some things together. Once I have a better idea of what you want to focus on, I'll try to tailor our sessions towards those topics."
"I'll be happy for anything you's willin' to give me," Jojo said, sounding pleased at the prospect.
"We can start on Tuesday," Davey promised. "Newsie Square, the usual time?"
Jojo nodded. "Thanks, Davey," he said, extending the customary spit-shake. "Lookin' forward to it." He grinned, then turned and hurried off in the direction that Elmer and Tucker had gone.
Davey watched him go, then pulled a copy of The World out of his bag, instinctively raising it in the air and beginning to shout the headlines with more enthusiasm than usual in his impatience to move the remaining newspapers in his bag. His mind was already far from the stories that he was selling.
It was immensely gratifying to have found yet another bit of purpose amongst the newsies. He'd enjoyed reading to the boys, getting to impart his love of books to others who were just as eager to listen as he was to share, and the opportunity to help them with a project they had conceived of on their own (and were clearly enthusiastic about) was even more exciting. The chance to tutor Jojo was yet another significant - if small - step towards making a difference, and Davey found himself once again pleased at the prospect of an endeavor that he knew would be meaningful to both of them, albeit for vastly different reasons.
Another area of his life was finally beginning to settle.
The last few editions of The World sold quickly enough, and in less than half an hour, Davey was walking off in search of Les (who had elected to sell with Jack that morning), his newsboy bag empty at his side.
He found the two newsies selling near one of Jack's favorite spots several blocks away from City Hall. Les looked like he was almost finished selling; Jack's bag was already empty, but he, like most of the other newsies, would soon be heading back to the circulation gate to wait for the afternoon edition.
"Hey Davey!" Jack raised a hand in greeting. "I was just about to tell Les here that we oughta start headin' back to look for ya. Great timin.'"
"Just sold my last pape!" Les declared, bounding over to join them. Jack clapped him on the back, and Davey gave his brother an approving grin.
"You ready to head home?" he asked.
Les nodded. "Thanks for letting me sell with you today, Jack!" he said, beaming up at the older boy.
"Anytime, kid," Jack gave him a little salute. "You bummers have a nice afternoon, all right? I'll see ya tomorrow."
Davey watched as Jack turned and began walking off in the direction of the distribution center, a noticeable spring in his step. Something was different - Davey had noticed it that morning too when he'd given Les into Jack's care. The newsie leader seemed happier, more lighthearted...less burdened. Davey wasn't sure what had caused the improvement (though he certainly could make several educated guesses, most of them involving Katherine), but he was glad to see Jack looking a little more like himself.
"How was selling today, Les?" he asked as he and his brother turned their steps in the direction of their tenement.
"Swell!" Les declared, immediately launching into a detailed rundown of the events of the morning. He chattered the entirety of the walk home, only wrapping up his story as they arrived at the door of their family's apartment on the second floor, and Davey barely got in a word edgewise, but he didn't mind.
Their mother was at work but had left two plates of food in the icebox for them, so they washed up and quickly set about the business of devouring their lunches, Les with the gusto of a boy who was still growing, and Davey with the deliberation of a boy who knew he had several hours of manual labor ahead of him. He would be washing windows and attending to some other projects for Mr. Becker that afternoon, and would need all of his energy to get everything done in a timely fashion.
"Has Jack mentioned anything to you about the lodging house shindig coming up?" Davey asked his brother between bites of potato.
Les nodded. "He said we could come if we want, but that we've gotta plan something to entertain the fellas if we do."
"If you don't have anything in mind, a few of the boys and I are going to do a dramatic reading," Davey offered. "You're welcome to join us."
"Sounds boring," was Les' predictably blunt answer. "How'd you talk them into doing that?"
"I didn't." Davey speared the last piece of potato with his fork. "It was their idea."
Les gave him an open-mouthed look of disbelief (which wasn't very polite, given the fact that he was in the middle of chewing, but Davey didn't bother to scold him. It was nice to be the one doing the flummoxing for a change).
"You mean they actually wanted to do that reading-drama-whatever-nonsense with you?" the younger boy sputtered.
Davey finished chewing before he answered. "Les, not everyone hates reading as much as you do." He got up and set his dishes in the sink. "Some of the boys actually enjoy it; I've told you about the reading group before, haven't I?"
Les didn't answer, still floored at the thought that people besides his boring older brother might actually like to read for fun.
"Anyway, like I said, you're welcome to join us if you don't have another act planned for the shindig," Davey said mildly. "Who knows, you might surprise yourself and actually enjoy it."
Les snorted, but he didn't refuse outright, so Davey decided to let the matter lie. "I'm going to check in on Dad while you finish eating," he said, going over to the icebox to retrieve the plate of food that had been set aside for Mayer. "If you finish before I'm done, get started on your schoolwork, all right?"
Les looked disgruntled, but he nodded his assent.
Davey made his way over to the only other room of the apartment - the small bedroom his parents shared - and knocked softly on the door.
"Come in," came his father's voice.
Davey opened the door, careful not to upset the plate of food he was carrying. "Hi Dad," he said, setting the food down on the small end table by his father's bed. "Are you hungry?"
"I wouldn't mind a little something." Mayer got up from where he'd been sitting and gingerly made his way over to the bed, easing himself down on the mattress. "How was selling this morning?"
"It went well," Davey answered. His father wasn't the kind to chit-chat, so he didn't mention the dramatic reading or the request he'd received for tutoring. "I sold a few more papers than usual, and I'll be working on a couple of projects for Mr. Becker this afternoon."
Mayer nodded approvingly. "The rent's due next week, so we'll need the money." He shook his head, looking down at his injured leg. "I'm not sure what's worse," he muttered, "the pain in my leg, or the fact that I'm cooped up inside until the cursed thing gets better!"
"It might get worse if you try to use it too soon," Davey said quickly, trying to soothe his father's irritation. "It needs time to heal properly." His mother had confided that she suspected the injured leg had taken longer to mend than normal because Mayer from the beginning had stubbornly refused to sit still. He was compliant enough when the rest of the family was home, but apparently had been caught in the act of attempting slightly strenuous activities several times by Esther when she'd arrived home early from work.
"I'm well aware of the condition of my own leg, David," Mayer answered bitterly. "And I get enough lecturing from your mother about resting and staying off my feet. I don't need it from you too."
Davey ducked his head. "Yes, sir." He wanted to say more - namely, that he wouldn't have felt compelled to speak his mind if his mother's words of admonition had been heeded - but he refrained. He knew that the forced immobility and isolation of the past several months had worn on his father, and a part of him understood that - he probably would have felt the same way if he'd been laid up and unable to work. His father had taken great pride in being the breadwinner of the family, so the accident and subsequent layoff had been a blow to his dignity, and the fact that his disability had dragged on for months was no doubt making things worse.
"Don't look so cowed," Mayer muttered gruffly, casting a slightly-abashed look in Davey's direction. "I didn't mean to speak so sharply." He sighed. "I'm tired, David. Tired of this idleness. I want to be out there working again, not sitting passively by while my wife and children work to support themselves and me."
"Dad, we've only been doing this for a few months," Davey protested. "You've always provided for our family. This is just a temporary setback. We're just...we're just filling in briefly. Until you're back."
"Your mother is wearing herself thin, Les is discontent in school, and you're wasting your potential hawking headlines and patching window screens when you could be finishing out your last year of classes and preparing for your future," his father said shortly. "The repercussions of this 'temporary setback' are far from negligible, David. You're too intelligent to pretend you don't see that."
Davey didn't say anything for a moment, weighing whether or not it would be construed as disrespectful if he contested the statement. His father was right - to a certain degree. The effects of the accident and the layoff had affected all of them. But it didn't necessarily follow that all of those effects had been detrimental.
"What about the newsboy strike?" he asked quietly.
His father looked surprised, but thankfully not affronted, and Davey waited in silence while the man formulated his reply.
"The newsboy strike was an...unexpected opportunity," Mayer said, clearly weighing his words with care. "It was an opportunity for you to take a stand and to put your convictions into action. You and your brother did well, and your mother and I are proud of both of you." He paused, then continued slowly. "But that does not negate the fact that your studies have been interrupted and that having to repeat a year of schooling will affect your future both financially and vocationally."
"I'm still planning to finish in time with the rest of my class," Davey asserted, feeling his heart begin to beat a little faster as the words left his mouth. He hadn't told either of his parents about his plan, a little afraid that he wouldn't be able to make good on it, but that was and had always been his intention, though it remained to be seen whether or not he'd be able to bring it about.
"I've been trying to keep up with the reading," he continued, hoping that he sounded more sure than he felt, "and Sadie's helped me with the class assignments, so with some extra studying, I'm hoping to be able to still qualify for advancement."
His father was clearly surprised. "That's…" he cleared his throat. "That's admirable of you, David. I commend you for your industry. And I commend Miss Becker for having the benevolence of heart to be willing to spend her time assisting you in your studies."
"She's like that," Davey interjected needlessly. "Benevolent, I mean."
His father gave him a scrutinizing look. "So it seems..." His tone was slightly wary, but before Davey could discern its meaning (or figure out why he himself had felt it necessary to redundantly affirm Sadie's charitable nature), his father quickly added, "Well, it seems that we're quite indebted to our landlord and his family. I wish we could do something to repay their generosity, but for now, we'll have to simply make sure we stay within their family's good graces. It would be a great misfortune to fall out of favor with them." He gave Davey another appraising look. "On that note...didn't you say you had a tenement job to complete?"
Davey nodded.
"Better get to it, then," his father suggested. "It's always advisable to show up early for work, and time's wasting."
"I'm going to get Les started on his schoolwork before I leave," Davey said, making his way to the door, "but I'll head out after that."
"Good." His father gave him a little nod, then turned his attention to his lunch, and Davey quietly made his way out of the room, shutting the door behind him.
Les had gotten as far as procuring his slate and schoolbook but had accomplished no more than that, and he was sitting idly at the table, kicking his legs and picking at the fraying binding on his book when Davey returned.
"Did you have any questions about the assignment, Les?" Davey asked, coming over to the table to glance at the blank slate and unopened schoolbook.
"No questions," Les said. "But…" He hesitated. "I do have something to tell you."
That didn't sound promising.
"Okay…" Davey took a seat at the table, reminding himself as he generally did whenever Les came to him with a confession of some sort not to overreact. "What did you want to tell me?"
"It actually has to do with books," Les hedged.
Even more suspicious.
"Okay…" Davey repeated.
"A certain book, in particular," came his brother's convoluted elaboration. "One of your books, to be exact."
"You haven't been reading it, have you?" Davey joked, attempting to lessen his brother's obvious unease with the mild jab.
"I haven't," Les said, still sober. "But...Abby has."
"What do you mean?" Davey gave his brother a confused look. He didn't mind Abby reading his books in the slightest, but he couldn't figure out what his brother had to do with it, or why he was looking so guilty. "If you let her borrow one of my books, that's not a problem, Les. Just ask next time so that I know where it is. Otherwise I might have another incident like what happened when I was trying to find my copy of Huck Finn for Abby's…" he trailed off. "Wait - wait a minute. Les, did you let Abby borrow my copy of Huck Finn? Is that why she already had it?"
"Well…" Les squirmed uncomfortably, "I didn't exactly let her borrow it. I actually let her have it. Not for free. As a bribe. In return for her going with me to the newsboy rally." He glanced up guiltily. "I'm sorry, David…"
Davey wasn't sure whether he wanted more to scold or to laugh. Of course his brother would do something of the sort, and Abby's unusual behavior (and disdain towards Les) at the party now finally made sense, as did the whereabouts of the missing book.
"I should have known that something was up," he chuckled, deciding to let his humorous side win out. "I remember thinking that it didn't seem likely Abby would go on a date with you without there being some kind of extraordinary persuasion involved."
"She didn't know the book was yours," Les clarified.
"I figured as much from the glare she was giving you at her birthday party!" Davey exclaimed. He reached over to playfully ruffle his brother's hair. "You'd better take back all of those snide remarks you made about having a date for the rally and me going without one. At least I didn't bribe a girl to go out with me."
"No amount of bribery would get a girl to go with you anywhere," Les shot back, swatting Davey's hand away.
"You ought to be a bit nicer, Les," Davey chided. "I could be mad at you for stealing my book and lying about it. And I hope you apologized to Abby, too."
Les deflated a bit.
"You did apologize to her, right?" Davey asked.
Les nodded.
"Okay. Well I hope you learned your lesson." Davey got up from the table. "I've got to get changed now and go to work, so I'm not going to scold you, but next time you need help persuading a girl to go somewhere with you, you're on your own. No more stealing books - or anything, for that matter. Got it?"
Les nodded again, and Davey clapped him lightly on the back as he passed by. He really wasn't upset (though he certainly had cause to be); thanks to Abby putting two and two together, he'd be getting his copy of Huckleberry Finn back anyhow, and now he knew that he wasn't losing his mind - the book had been on the bookshelf, exactly where he'd looked for it. He simply hadn't known at the time that Les had filched it for his own purposes.
At least Les had apologized to Abby on his own accord; it was one thing to trespass against a member of your own family, but another thing entirely to offend the landlord's daughter. The former was still wrong, but more easily forgiven; the latter could lead to far more drastic consequences. Davey wasn't sure if it was the conversation he'd just had with his father that had brought the sentiment to mind or if he would have come to the thought on his own, but in either case, the concern still stood: maintaining good rapport with the Beckers was of the utmost importance.
They were a rather unusual family, though, Davey thought to himself as he changed into his work clothes. His family had never lived in a housing situation with such modest rates where the landlord actually lived among the tenants - some landlords kept residences on the property, but these were often detached and clearly more well cared-for than the tenement itself. The unit the Beckers lived in on the third floor was one of the larger ones in the complex, but it didn't seem to be much different than the rest of the apartments, and the upkeep of the grounds in general was much better than that of other tenements in the area.
And that's why you have a job, Davey thought to himself as he bid Les goodbye and headed out the door. He would be just a minute or two early for his arranged meeting with Mr. Becker where they would be going over the projects slated for the afternoon.
The Beckers didn't seem to be the kind of family to put on airs - Davey had interacted with them enough to feel certain of this - but he found himself regularly forgetting that they were likely more well-off than they appeared. He'd seen what Sadie and Abby brought to school for their lunches, and had overheard snatches of conversation where they'd been chatting with friends about some diversion or another that they'd be attending - a play or a concert or a dinner out. The girls' birthday party the week before had been simple, but they'd invited quite a few guests, and as Davey found himself pondering the cost of feeding such a crowd - even if it was only pastries and lemonade and sandwiches - he realized that the Beckers' resources must be comparatively substantial indeed if they could afford to finance something like that.
He reached the third floor and found himself trying to tidy up his slightly-disheveled appearance a little, though it was an absurd thing to do, seeing as he was only a few minutes away from getting his clothes dirty anyway, and there wasn't much he could do to improve his patched up pants or paint-stained shirt.
At least his employer would know where the latter came from.
Raising his hand, Davey knocked on the door and was answered by the landlord's jovial voice inviting him to come in.
"Ah, David, perfect timing!" the man exclaimed upon catching sight of Davey at the door. He glanced at the paint-stained shirt, smiling a little in recognition. "You look like you're ready to get to work."
A/N: Les finally comes clean after forty-four chapters of keeping his secret. Whew! Thanks as always for following along with this story. If you're enjoying it (or even if you're not), I'd love to hear from you - your reviews are much-appreciated motivators to keep plugging away on this beast of a fanfiction ;)
