A Novel New Year's Eve
A/N: This short story takes place in New York at the end of 1915, several years after the events of Something Worth Winning. It features original characters from that universe and can be read as a stand-alone without any prior knowledge of SWW or of Newsies (though a few canon characters from the latter are mentioned so that this still marginally qualifies as fanfiction).
"A Novel New Year's Eve" is also my entry for vksievers_rightwaytowriteit's Short Story Competition, which challenged us to write our own version of a Hallmark movie plot with all of the cliches and conventions contained therein. Thank you, Ronnie, for hosting this challenge! I don't know how Hallmark-esque this will turn out to be, but I hope you enjoy it. :)
Chapter 1: Cherin Cove
People always say "Don't judge a book by its cover," but sometimes you just can't help it.
Abigail Becker ran her fingers along the shelves of The Book Nook, holding back a contented sigh. She had never seen such beautiful covers before. Here, a scroll-bedecked volume sat next to a tome in a pretty plum-colored hue, and further down a set of gorgeously-bound novels stood shoulder to shoulder, promising adventure within their pages. The shelves were brimming with color and Abby could feel her spirit thrilling at the veritable spread before her.
This was what she loved about used bookstores: you could never predict what delicacies you might come across, but you could always find a feast of some kind.
Dropping her hand, she continued strolling down the aisle, pulling out books and sampling their words like a guest enjoying appetizers before an elaborate meal. First, she indulged in a few paragraphs of an adventure tale, all dash and tang, and then a collection of sonnets, lush and layered like a trifle of chantilly cream. A piquant, spicy sip of satire followed, and then a comedy excerpt so airy and light that reading it was like biting into a perfectly-crafted puff pastry.
The array of literary delights was endless, and Abby partook of as many as she could, the minutes slipping by as she cracked open book after book.
Before she could decide on what novel she wanted to commit to first, the bell at the front of the store chimed, and the front desk clerk called out to The Book Nook's remaining patrons, informing them that the shop would be closing for the night and requesting them to bring any intended purchases to the front of the store.
Abby reluctantly set the book that she'd been reading back on the shelf.
"You didn't find anything interesting?" the clerk asked as she passed by empty-handed on the way to the door.
She smiled. "The opposite, actually. I ran out of time, but I'll be back tomorrow morning."
Bidding him goodnight, she exited the shop, feeling the cold wind seep through her coat the moment she stepped onto the darkened street. It would be a chilly walk back to Lottie's Lookout, the bed and breakfast where she was staying, and she pulled her scarf around her, shivering a little as she set off down the street.
She'd arrived in the little town of Cherin Cove only a few hours prior, and her attention at the time had been fully occupied with the particulars of checking into the bed and breakfast and meeting its matronly proprietor (one Lottie Jenkins, for whom the establishment was aptly named). A quick meal of chicken soup and a half hour of unpacking had commenced, and then Abby had eagerly bundled up for the six-block downhill jaunt to The Book Nook.
The return trip was turning out to be noticeably less enjoyable; a cold wind was blowing in from Long Island Sound, and the six blocks back to Lottie's felt more like twelve when trudging uphill, but the cheerful glow of the street lights made the dark feel less dismal, and Abby felt safer under their gleam than she normally did walking the streets of New York after after nightfall.
I wonder what this place looks like in full daylight, she thought, pushing her glasses up her nose and peering into the shadows. I suppose I'll find out tomorrow.
Foul or far, it wasn't as though the aesthetics of the neighborhood really mattered. She was here to do one thing and one thing only: to immerse herself in as many books as possible, and forget everything else. The charming and sizable Book Nook had proved to be everything that she'd hoped for, and she was satisfied with that, regardless of whatever else the town might or might not hold.
Quickening her pace, Abby hurried the last few blocks of her journey, breathing a sigh of relief as Lottie's Lookout came into sight. It was a spacious inn with a double-door entrance and a large bay window looking out towards Long Island Sound, and Abby had already determined that said window would be the perfect place to enjoy a warm drink and some breakfast the next morning. Of course, the effect would be slightly spoiled without a book to read, but there was nothing to be done about that now, and the deficiency would be remedied in time for later breakfasts.
For now, it was time to settle in, get some sleep and to dream of the adventures awaiting her on the morrow.
Despite being in an unfamiliar room, Abby slept well, and was pulled from a drowsy, pleasant slumber by the smell of cinnamon wafting in from the hallway.
Rolling out of bed, she got dressed and brushed her hair, setting her hat on her head and her glasses on her nose before heading out the door. An investigation of the enticing scent that had awakened her revealed a plate of hot, fresh cinnamon rolls on the communal dining room table, and she set one of the sticky buns on a plate and poured herself some coffee before going to sit in the bay window of the lobby. The vantage point afforded a good view of the harbor and the boats going to and fro, and even the lack of a book to read couldn't completely spoil her enjoyment.
After finishing breakfast, she donned her coat and set off for The Book Nook, her hands burrowed deep into her pockets. The day was clear but cold, and the chill only increased her impatience to arrive at her destination and immerse herself in an adventure.
She seemed to be the only person who minded the biting air. Everywhere she looked, the inhabitants of Cherin Cove were out and about, greeting each other with what Abby considered to be a rather confounding cheerfulness for the early morning. Children of all ages played in their yards and kicked balls through the streets, free to amuse themselves with school on break for the holidays, and several cats slept lazily in the sunshine. A rotund chocolate-colored tabby sauntered across Abby's path and regarded her for a moment with its blue-gray eyes before trotting down the hill to the butcher's shop where it planted itself by the door and mewed until the butcher appeared, greeting the feline by name and tossing it a fish carcass with a grin.
Everyone in town, including the cats, seemed to know each other, and given the size of the place, it made sense, but the familiarity was still something to behold. Abby had grown up knowing her immediate neighbors but no one beyond a block or so of her home, and the busy, crowded streets of Manhattan had never felt as neighborly as this town full of complete strangers.
The topography of Cherin Cove - with its singular inn at the top of the hill, its dockyard below, and its residential and commercial sectors in between - seemed to heighten this sense of coziness. There was no endless sprawl of streets that spread out in every direction, no cacophonous cloud of voices upon voices, no neighborhoods that butted up against each other like angry squatters shouldering for space. Here everything sloped gently in one direction, every house had at least a patch of grass or shrubbery around it, and there was space to breathe and to look and to think…
…maybe a little too much space, now that Abby thought about it.
Quickening her pace, she continued towards her destination, pushing aside the melancholy gray that threatened to seep in and traversing the next few blocks to the corner where The Book Nook stood.
As she drew near, she saw a young man standing in front of the entrance. He was wearing a faded red Shetland sweater and a newsboy cap, and was bending down to read a sign posted on the door.
"...for family emergency. Be back tomorrow," she heard him mutter as she drew near.
"They didn't close, did they?" Abby felt her spirits sink.
"I'm afraid so, Miss." The young man straightened up, and Abby got a better look at his face, her attention drawn to both the brightness in his eyes and the thin but conspicuous scar that ran the length of his left eyebrow. "It's disappointin' news, to be sure, but it sounds like they've got good reason for shutterin' the store today."
"I'm surprised that they don't have enough employees to cover this sort of situation," Abby said, dropping her gaze to the sign on the door. "It would be better business practice."
"Well, Cherin Cove is full of family-owned shops, so when somethin' like this happens, the stores just close down for the day. The pace of life's a lot slower here than in the city."
The slightly-contrary part of Abby wanted to challenge this stranger's implied assumption that she was a city girl, but there was nothing to be gained by being disagreeable (for she was a city girl, after all), so she silently conceded the point.
"What were you planning to buy?" she asked instead, gesturing to the closed door of The Book Nook.
"I was hopin' to snag a story called The Locket and the Bridge. Thad - he's the owner - told me he had a few copies in stock."
"Isn't that a romance novel?" Abby raised an eyebrow.
The young man grinned, seemingly delighted by her incredulity. "It sure is. You don't figure I'm the kind of fella who would read that sort of thing?"
"Not at all," Abby admitted.
His laugh was bright like his eyes. "Well, you ain't completely wrong! I've never read a love story in my life, but there's a first time for everything, I suppose."
"Why the sudden interest?" she couldn't help asking.
His smile didn't disappear, but it faded just a bit. "My older sister loved romance novels. The Locket and the Bridge was her favorite book, and I've been missin' her terribly and I thought maybe havin' somethin' she liked to read might bring a bit of her back to life - at least in my memory."
"'Back to life?'" Abby spoke before thinking. "You mean she's…?"
"Yep." The young man stuck his hands in his pockets. "Passed away shortly after last Christmas."
His tone was matter-of-fact, but the last of his smile was gone, and Abby found herself saying quietly, "I'm sorry to hear that. I can imagine this time of year must be difficult." She wanted to say that she'd lost someone, too, but it seemed wrong to draw attention to her own sorrow, so instead she settled for lapsing into silence.
"Grievin' is such a funny thing," the young man said quietly, looking out towards the harbor. "The sadness comes in and out like the tide. Sometimes it feels like it's retreatin' and the pain is easin' up a little. You start to see the ground again and think you've finally got somethin' solid to stand on…and just like that, the hurt comes rushin' back, and you're flounderin' to find your footin' all over again."
Abby had never thought of it that way before.
"Anyway, seein' as The Book Nook is closed, I'd better head to work." The young man smiled, pulling one hand from his pocket and extending it to Abby. "Nice meetin' you, Miss…?"
"Abigail - or Abby."
"Nice meetin' you, Miss Abby," he touched his cap. "I'm sure we'll run into each other again sometime soon."
And with a little nod, he turned and headed off down the street.
A/N: There will be several more installments of this coming in short order (Hello, quick posting schedule! I haven't seen you since…early 2020?), so please stick around if you'd like, and watch what happens as I try to turn out a Hallmarkesque short story in a little over a week. ;)
If you feel like leaving a review with encouragement, concerns or reactions, I would very much appreciate your feedback!
Chapter notes for Something Worth Winning Readers (if you're interested in reading this as part of the SWW universe rather than as a standalone):
Cherin Cove is a fictional town on Long Island, New York. While stories in the SWW universe generally take place in historic real-world settings, I made an exception this time as a nod to Hallmark genre conventions. Other specifics, like The Locket and the Bridge and the other books that Abby later reads are also products of my imagination, deviating from my usual practice of writing historically-accurate titles into SWW.