"I'm back," Jack called as he made his way up the stairs of the lodge.

"Where were you?" Crutchie asked.

"It ain't important," Jack shrugged, then lowered his voice. "I'll tell youse later, after these busybodies have gone to bed. I don't need no eavesdroppin'."

Crutchie nodded and hobbled back over to the bunk he shared with Jack, sitting down to wait.

Jack made his way over to Mike, who was once again sitting alone. The boy quickly sat up when he heard the footsteps, gazing questioningly at him.

"I got somethin' for you," Jack said, holding the hat out. When he'd first gotten to the lodge he'd made sure to scrub the blood out of the hat. There was no way he'd even let Mike see it until the blood was gone.

Mike hesitantly reached forward, holding the cap carefully as he observed it. His brown eyes darted up to meet Jack's. "Is this... Ike's?"

Jack nodded. "Yeah, Ise got it back for ya. I hope it don't upset youse, I can take it back if you don't want it-"

Jack was cut off as Ike leaned forward and threw his arms around the older boy.

"Thank you," Mike choked out.

"No problem," Jack replied, a small smile growing on his face.

Mike loosened his hold on Jack and leaned back, allowing the boy to return to the rest of the newsies.

Mike sat alone, just holding the cap. He could feel some of the others watching him as they started getting around for bed, but he ignored him. He was sick of people walking on eggshells around him.

The bed dipped as someone sat down next to him and Mike fought the urge to roll his eyes. He just wanted people to leave him alone.

"Hey there Mike! How're youse doin' today?"

"I'm fine Romeo."

"You sure? It's been a long day. It's been rough for everyone."

"I really am fine. You guys don't need to be so worried about me all the time!" Mike exclaimed softly.

"We're just tryin' to look out for ya," Romeo's face fell and Mike immediately felt guilty, though he pushed it back.

"That ain't gonna work on me."

"What are you talkin' about?" Romeo sounded puzzled, but Mike knew better.

"Wese all caught on to that trick by now. You ain't foolin' me."

Romeo gave up, shrugging with a smile. "It was worth a try."

Mike didn't seem amused and Romeo quickly turned serious. "I was bein' honest. We're just lookin' out for you."

Mike sighed. "I know, I just feel like you guys are always expectin' me to bawl like a baby any time you even mention Ike."

His point was proven as Romeo watched for the flinch that sometimes came when Mike heard his brother mentioned.

"See? You did it right there."

"I'm sorry! We just don't wanna upset youse!"

"If you really wanna help, start treatin' me like normal. The sooner I move on, the better I'll feel. I'm so tired of cryin' all the time."

"It's okay to cry, we don't think nothin' less of you for it!" Romeo insisted.

"I know," Mike replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "I just don't like it. I'm sick of cryin' when someone brings him up, I ain't a kid. I want to be strong, I don't want to cry all the time. Ike wouldn't have liked it either. After tonight, I'm done actin' like a baby."

"I'll hold you to that," Romeo joked.

"Youse better."

More boys crawled into bed and Mike yawned, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

"You look tired. Didn't you sleep last night?"

Mike shook his head. "It was too soon."

"Then I'd better be movin' along so you can get some sleep."

Romeo moved to stand up, but Mike stopped him. "I can't sleep."

"How do youse know? You ain't even tried yet."

Mike looked at Romeo sheepishly, his cheeks burning. "I'm scared," he whispered.

"Of what?"

"It's stupid," Mike said, rubbing his face.

"If it's got you scared, it ain't stupid."

"Yes it is," Mike stated.

"Tell me anyway."

Mike's face reddened even more, but he reluctantly began his story. "When Ike and I first came here we was young. Maybe nine or ten."

Romeo nodded for him to continue, and after another breath, he did.

"One of the older boys told us a story our first night. It was about this monster that ate kids in the lodgin' house. He said that it would grab you in your sleep, drag you under the bed, and eat you."

Romeo tried to hide his amusement, but the sparkle in his eye gave him away. "Go on."

"He said that it would always go after whoever was on the bottom bed."

"So that's why Ike always slept on the bottom," Romeo grinned. "Why don't you just sleep on your bed? You should be fine since you've got the top bed.

"The kid told us that if the bottom bunk was empty, that the monster would take the kid on the top because there wasn't anything else for him to eat."

"So you can't sleep 'cause it'll eat you no matter where you sleep?" Romeo asked, holding back a laugh.

"Go ahead. Laugh," Mike said.

"I wasn't gonna laugh!" Romeo denied it, but after a raised brow from Mike, he allowed himself to laugh. Romeo clutched his stomach as Mike'sp blush grew more visible.

"Youse sixteen Mike! You don't still believe that do you?"

"No," Mike said uneasily. "It's just habit, but I'll be fine." Mike looked nervous, but began to climb onto the top of the bunk bed.

"Mush! Can you toss my pillow over here?" The pillow was soon in Romeo's hands and he placed it on the bottom bed, drawing back the blanket.

"What're youse doin'?" Ike asked, watching curiously as Romeo climbed into Ike's old bed.

"What's it look like? I'm makin' sure none of the monsters try to eat you," Romeo responded.

Mike could hear Romeo chuckle as Crutchie turned down the lights. A chorus of 'good nights' filled the room, the boys all wishing each other pleasant dreams and good sleep until Albert ended it with an annoyed, "Shut it! Ise tryin' to get to sleep!"

"Goodnight Rome," Mike mumbled under his breath as he drifted off, Ike's cap right beside him.

***

Jack waited anxiously in the parlor of the Pulitzer mansion. His last trip here hadn't ended well, but he planned on this visit going much differently.

"Jack?" Katherine looked at him confusedly. "Why are you here?"

"I just wanted to talk to you. Can I come in?"

Katherine thought for a second, then shook her head. "No, I'm busy. You should leave."

Katherine tried to close the door, but Jack blocked it with his arm. "C'mon Katherine! Ise only need a minute! That's all I'm askin' for!"

"Jack, no! You need to go back to your boys."

"I ain't leavin' 'til we figure this out Ace!"

Katherine looked out at the street where the other well-to-dos had begun watching the interaction with interest. "Jack, you're making a scene!"

Jack still didn't leave. "Katherine, this is important. Ise wouldn't be here if I wasn't." Jack waited for a minute, then sighed. "Please."

Katherine slowly opened the door and let Jack into the house. "Fine. Why are you here?"

Jack scratched the back of his head. "I came to apologize about the other night. I didn't mean to throw you out like that."

"Yes you did," Katherine responded.

"I did what I thought was best for the boys Katherine. You bein' there wasn't gonna help none of them."

Katherine pressed her lips together tightly as Jack talked. "I could've helped Jack. You just didn't want help. You never do."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You're always trying to prove yourself. You never accept help from anyone! You think that you have all the answers!"

"I do not!" Jack defended, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Yes you do!" Katherine was slowly releasing all of her pent-up emotions from the past few weeks onto Jack. She knew the outcome wouldn't be good, but she couldn't stop herself. "Just like how you left a few weeks ago without even waiting to hear what I thought! You thought you knew what was best for us!"

"You had already decided!" Jack groaned. "You wasn't stoppin' by anymore and it wasn't gonna change. You were going to end it but didn't know how, so I helped you out!"

"I wasn't going to do anything like that!" Katherine argued, raising her voice even more.

"Don't deny it Katherine. I ain't stupid. You was avoidin' me!"

"I was doing my job Jack. I told you that I was busy."

"And I ain't? If I don't work, I might not be eatin'. Have you ever had to say that?"

Katherine stopped talking and Jack chuckled. "You don't understand what hard work is Katherine. You don't know what it's like to spend all day workin' just to avoid sleepin' on the streets. But I still made time for you 'cause I cared about youse."

"I cared about you too! I wasn't going to end anything, I just needed time!"

"You was too scared to talk to me, youse were hopin' if you stayed away long enough that it would all go away. You didn't want to talk to me 'cause you pity me Plumber! You feels sorry for me."

"I don't feel bad for you Jack, I just want to help you!"

"Why? 'Cause I can't do things on my own 'cause I'm poor?"

"No!" Katherine shouted. "Because that's what you do when you love someone Jack!"

The room was quiet and Katherine looked away. Her eyes were watering from frustration, but she wasn't going to cry in front of Jack. Jack reached out for her hand but she drew it back.

"Kath, I-"

"When you love someone you want to help them. Wouldn't you want to help Crutchie if you thought there was something wrong with him?"

"Of course," Jack said without hesitation.

"I don't care about the other night, I wasn't angry about that Jack. I was upset because you didn't tell me what was going on," Katherine admitted. "I want you to talk to me, why can't you do that?"

"I don't know," Jack whispered.

Katherine nodded, she'd been expecting that answer. "I love you Jack,  but maybe you were right. If you don't trust me, maybe we weren't supposed to be together."

Jack's eyes widened and he shook his head quickly. "I didn't mean that! I was just sayin' that! I was just," Jack paused, the word not wanting to leave his mouth. "Scared."

"Scared," Katherine asked skeptically. "Scared of what?"

Jack dragged his hand through his hair, eyes darting carefully to meet Katherine's. "I already told ya, girls like you don't like guys like me. Youse could do so much better Ace!"

Katherine started to talk, but Jack held up his hand, cutting her off. "Don't argue with me about that, you could and you know it. When you stopped seein' me I thought that you'd found someone Katherine, someone better."

Katherine was shocked at his admission. "Jack, I would never! I love you."

"I thought I was losin' you Kath, so I left."

"That's kind of silly, don't you think? You're afraid that I'll find someone else, so you break up with me?" Katherine asked quietly, moving to stand closer to Jack.

Jack leaned against the wall, his clothes  staining the ugly floral wallpaper. "I had too. I can't get left behind, not again."

Katherine slowly wrapped her arms around Jack's neck, burying her face in his shoulder. Jack's hands dropped to her waist and the two of them stood there holding each other.

"You'll always have me Kelly."

"We're gonna make this work, right?" Jack whispered in an odd moment of vulnerability.

"Of course. We love each other, we'll make it work."

"Good," Jack sighed, pulling her closer.

----

Romeo grinned as he made his way down the street, arms swinging at his sides. He'd manage to avoid getting in a fight today and the ladies had been very generous in allowing him to keep change.

A stand to the right caught his eye. Fruits were piled up in baskets and Romeo's mouth watered at the sight of the shiny red apples that lay ten feet from him.

Romeo slid over to the table, eyes simultaneously watching the stand owner and searching for the best apple. He skillfully grabbed an apple off of the table, dropping it into his paper bag. Romeo froze as he saw another apple tumble off the pile towards the ground just as the owner turned around.

His hand shot out, grabbing the apple, and he stood up. He rubbed the edge of his fraying shirt against the apple, polishing it before he set it on the top of the pile.

"Sorry about that, sir," Romeo said, throwing the man a charming grin that never failed to dissolve suspicion.

"That's alright son, no harm done," the man said amiably.

Romeo nodded at the man and headed on his way. When he was far enough away he pulled the apple out of his bag, laughing as he took a bite out of it.

Romeo strolled through Greenwich Village, enjoying his apple. He didn't want to go back to the lodge, it was a nice day. The sun was out and there was a cool breeze that carried the promise of fall.

"Good afternoon ladies," Romeo winked as three girls walked past him. They giggled, faces turning pink as they continued on their way. Romeo sighed, watching them leave. After a few more unsuccessful attempts at talking to the young women in the area, Romeo gave up and headed to the lodge.

Romeo was on the outskirts of the Village, nearly halfway home, when he spotted a familiar face. He squinted and realized that there were two familiar faces.

"Tommy Boy! What are youse doin' up here?" Romeo asked, jogging to meet them.

Tommy Boy's head snapped towards Romeo, then he glanced at Sniper who was at his side. "Wese just walkin'."

"Youse walkin' away from the lodge at this time?"

Sniper gave a quick nod. "We was lookin' for a change of scenery."

"Scenery?" Romeo laughed. "It's all buildings, there ain't no change unless you leave the city."

"Well why are you here?" Sniper challenged.

"I was sellin' around here. Plus, Greenwich has got some beautiful features."

"I thought you said it was all buildings."

"Youse so young," Romeo groaned. "I ain't talkin' 'bout the buildings, I'm talkin' about the girls!"

"We ain't young," Tommy Boy complained.

"Yes you is! You're eleven!"

"I'm thirteen!" Tommy Boy said indignantly.

"Really? You don't look it."

"You shouldn't be talkin'," Sniper scoffed. "He's taller than you!"

"You don't have to remind me!" Romeo sighed. "Now why don't you two tell me what you was really doin' down here."

"We did," Sniper insisted.

"I wasn't born yesterday, Snipes."

"We really were just walkin'."

"Where were you headed?"

"Nowhere."

"Tommy Boy, Ise truly disappointed. Didn't your mother ever teach you not to lie?"

"Probably," the boy shrugged.

Romeo looked Tommy Boy in the eyes, waiting for the boy to give in and tell the truth. It was a trick Romeo had witnessed Jack use several times and had even had the misfortune of having it used on him. It had never failed Jack, but Romeo was disappointed to realize that he wasn't as good at the look as Jack was. Tommy Boy only raised an eyebrow.

Romeo turned his attention to Sniper, the weaker link. The boy was more likely to give in to Romeo. Romeo loved Sniper, but had to admit that he was a bit of a snitch sometimes. All you had to do was make him feel guilty. It was only a matter of seconds before Sniper spilled the secret.

"We was out here 'cause we was mad that all of you kept pickin' on us about bein' young. We decided to come out here and do adult stuff."

"And what was you plannin' on doin'?"

"Goin' to see a show," Sniper said.

"You've done that before," Romeo said, not buying the excuse.

"We were also gonna look for some cigars, maybe smoke a little."

"Finch talks. I know that youse both tried smokin'. I also know that you guys ain't too fond of it."

"We were gonna meet up with a couple guys from Chelsea and maybe drink a little, then go play craps," Tommy Boy blurted, fingers crossed behind his back.

Romeo bought the lie and he gave the two a stern glare.

"We know we ain't s'posed to drink, but-" Tommy's worried apology was cut off by the older boy.

"I don't care if you two drink, long as I don't have to carry you back to the lodge or wash youse up when you're gettin' sick. That's fine, but I don't want you two playin' craps no more!"

"But you guys do!" Sniper whined, trying to be believable.

"We ain't always good role models! And when we play, we do it in the lodge! If you guys were going to play inside, that's fine. Was it gonna be inside?"

The young boys shook there heads as though ashamed.

"You twose are so stupid! What, are you tryin' to get yourselves thrown in jail?"

"Of course not," Sniper said softly.

Romeo shook his head and grabbed the boys by their shoulders. Tommy Boy glared at Sniper as Romeo dragged them back to the lodge. When they got back, the two were sent up to bed immediately by the older boys as a punishment.

"Nice goin'," Tommy Boy hissed as they changed into their nightclothes.

"I didn't mean to tell him!"

"Well you did, and look where it got us! Now how are we supposed to help?"

"We could climb out the window," Sniper suggested.

"And fall and break our necks?" Tommy Boy exclaimed. "Sounds thrillin'! Why didn't Ise think of that?"

"You don't gotta be that way."

"Then how do you want me to be?" Tommy demanded.

"Look, maybe it's for the best. Those Bronx boys are dangerous. Pickin' a fight with 'em is bad news, 'specially at night."

"I thought you wanted to prove yourself to the boys."

"I do!" Sniper insisted.

"Winning a fight is the only way to do that. Trust me, I'm older than you, I knows what I'm talkin' about."

"You sure that it's the only way?"

"Yeah. So, what do you say? You still in?"

Sniper shifted nervously, but gently nodded. "Of course."

"Good. Now we just gotta wait for the right moment."

***

It had been almost six days since the boys had last seen the Jacobs brothers and Jack was starting to get worried.

"What if they got in a fight and got hurt? What if theyse dead Crutch?"

"I'm sure that they're fine Jack."

"Then where have they been?" Jack challenged.

"Jack, they stopped by the last time you went to see Hook. When they heard about Ike, Davey got scared and they left."

"So?"

"Jack, I don't think Davey is plannin' on comin' back."

"What are you talkin' about? Of course he is!"

Crutchie shook his head sadly. "Davey was always nervous about this whole thing. I think it got to be too much for him."

"That ain't possible. His father ain't better, they ain't got any choice but to sell papes."

"They have been sellin' papes."

"No they haven't! I haven't seen 'em all week."

"Specs saw 'em at the Journal."

"What?" Jack asked in surprise.

"They switched to the Journal, Davey wouldn't even talk to Specs. They walked right past him."

"No... No! That ain't right! I'm gonna talk to him Crutch. This has got to be a misunderstanding!"

Crutchie watched as Jack left the lodge, determination printed on his face. "I wish you was right."

***

Davey opened the door to his bedroom and immediately let out a yell.

"David? Are you alright?" His mother called from the table.

"I'm fine, I just... dropped a book on my foot. I'm going to bed!" Davey stepped into his room and quickly shut the door.

"How did you get in here?" Davey asked, his voice hushed.

Jack nodded to Davey's window, which was open, the curtains fluttering in the evening breeze. "You didn't close it all the way."

"You know this is illegal, right?"

Jack shrugged. "I ain't worried. You ain't gonna call the bulls."

"How do you know?"

Jack raised an eyebrow at Davey and laughed.

"Why are you here?"

"I came to see ya! Ain't pals allowed to visit each other?" Jack asked, watching as Davey grew uncomfortable.

"Of course," he mumbled.

"I was just checkin' up on ya. I wanted to make sure that you were okay. We haven't seen you and Les in a while."

"We've been busy."

"Specs said he saw you at the Journal. That true?"

Davey slowly nodded. "That's right."

"Better headlines?" Davey nodded again. "So, Spot Conlon might be comin' over in a couple days. I heard that there's gonna be a turf war. You and I are gonna help him figure it out."

"Me?" Davey asked, mouth dropping open.

"Yeah, you are the brains!"

"I don't know Jack," Davey said, folding his fingers.

"Come on! You're the perfect person Dave! Youse a part of this just as much as we is." Jack's eyes scanned Davey, taking in every hesitation. He was searching for something to say that would force Davey to admit that he had abandoned the cause. "You'll be there, right?"

That was it. Davey had to respond honestly. He didn't want to, but he had no other option other than telling Jack the truth. "I-I won't. Be there, I mean."

"Why not?" Jack asked innocently, though his eyes flashed with anger.

"I can't do this anymore! It's too serious! I need to get out while Les and I are still okay!"

"So you're just leavin' us? What happened to the Dave that was in the strike? The one who found me and convinced me to keep fighting? Where is he now?"

"This is different Jack! This is so much worse! No one died in the strike!"

"If we don't fight back, even more people will die!" Jack argued.

"I'm not going to be one of those people, and neither will Les," Davey said firmly.

"You can't just quit! We need you to help us Dave!"

"Look, I'm trying to protect my family."

"Ain't we family?"

Davey sighed. "Of course, but I've got my real folks here to think about too. You understand that, don't you Jack?"

"No, actually I don't. The guys mean just as much to me as my real folks do. That's how it is when youse a newsie!"

Davey closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then looked Jack in the eye. "Then I guess I'm not a real newsie."

***

First of all, I apologize for the Jack/Katherine scene. I did get very good ideas and tips from pandafangirl2 and yourbrothercrutchie which were very helpful(the two of them write very adorable stories with Jack and Katherine), but I do need practice.

Secondly, I am SO sorry about the long wait! I've been studying for an exam I have on the 15th. I'm trying to test out of US History(which includes strikes, who said Newsies wasn't helpful?) so that I have extra room for even more dual enrollment next year. That will help me get some college credits out of the way and will hopefully help me on my way to a bright and successful future.

Now on to something that actually matters, something that is EXTREMELY important. Chaz Wolcott. OH MY GOODNESS!!! You guys!!! I finally saw the clip of his audition for So You Think You Can Dance and it was THE BEST THING I HAVE EVER SEEN!!! I watched it a million times and was so excited that I almost cried! He is so funny and I absolutely love him!!! And when the judges let him pass, or whatever they do, he was so happy and I almost cried again! PEOPLE! It was GREAT!

Anyways, thanks for reading! I love you all!!!

-Anna

P.S. To those who don't know why craps is and were confused, at the time it was a very popular gambling game, especially for boys, and it involved dice. At the time there was no legal age for drinking, so that's why Romeo didn't care about that. He got mad about craps because gambling, especially in children, held severe repercussions.

Boys who were caught gambling in lodging houses could be kicked out. If a police officer caught boys playing craps in the streets they would give them a lecture and a warning. If the boys were caught again they could be forced to spend a night in jail or pay a fine. Just in case anyone wondered.