- Chapter 54 - Meet Knobs and Dice -
Warnings: Slight insults, mainly fluff and Brooklyn is still flirty
Canon Era
Third Person POV

A/N, the wonderful Yo_This_Is_Bogus has informed me that there is a Newsie called Knobs and he's a bean. Look at him!
Yeah, so I'm writing about him and his love interest, Dice (They/Them.)
Enjoy!

Knobs groans softly.

Race shakes him awake. "Knobs!" He exclaims. "You're usually the easiest to get up!" He complains.

Knobs opens his eyes slightly, staring up at Race.

"He was in Brooklyn last night." Finch states with a smirk. "Pretty late, I'd say."

"How'd you know?" Knobs mutters, his French accent poking through his obvious Manhattan accent as he spoke while he rubbed his eyes.

"You didn't come home till around Midnight." Jack points out, standing in the doorway, his arms crossed.

Knobs sits up in his bunk, rubbing his eyes. "'Course Jacky'd know." He mumbles tiredly. "He knows everything."

Jack chuckles. "And guess who brought you home last night." He tells the younger boy.

Knobs looks down at himself, now noticing that he was wearing a red undershirt that was definitely too big for him.

Knobs turns bright red, hiding his face in his shirt. "They did not." He mutters, his hazel brown eyes squeezed shut.

The other boys in the room chuckle.

"They did." Race responds, staring at Knobs, his arms crossed. "And I will drag you to the Distribution Center if you don't get up."

Knobs' eyes widen as he quickly gets up.

"Let's not scare the innocent bean." Buttons tells Race softly, his hands on Race's shoulders.

Race rolls his eyes, walking out of the room.

"Someone's in a bad mood." Henry mutters, slipping his shirt over his head.

"Albert," Mike starts, switching his and Ike's vests. "Go see your boyfriend."

Albert shrugs, making his bed.

Knobs noticed a note fall off of his bed when he started making it.

He picks it up, opening it to read it.

Mon Trésor,

You're awfully cute when you're sleeping.

Come visit in Brooklyn again tomorrow, I'll be waiting.

- Dicer
(P.S. My shirt looks better on you than it does on me ;)

Knobs turns bright red, but smiled a bit.

Dice's handwriting was horrible, but it was improvement from where he had started and Knobs loved it nonetheless.

"Race..." the slightly smaller, but slightly older physically boy starts. "Can I sell with you today?" He asks, still bright red and staring at the note in his hand.

Race appears in the doorway of the room, where Jack had been earlier. "Why?" He asks. "Is it because of Dice?" He asks.

Knobs doesn't respond, he just holds up the note, looking away as his face grew redder and redder.

Some of the boys in the room share smirks.

Race smirks. "Sure." He shrugs a bit. "It's always nice to have a buddy."

Knobs smiles.

"Now," Race starts. "Get ready!" He exclaims.

Knobs' eyes widen and he nods quickly, fumbling to get his clothes.

Some of the boys in the room chuckle.

Getting papers

Knobs steps up to the window, gently placing 24 cents on Weasel's box.

Weasel looks from the money to the small boy. "The usual, kid?" He asks with a grunt as he takes the lit cigar out of his mouth.

"Don't be like that, Mr. Wiesel." Knobs tells him. "I am not the worst Newsie you've ever met." He points out. "The anger is just a reflection on how you feel about yourself personally."

Weasel scoffs. "You're all Newsies, you're all the same." He states. "Terrible."

Knobs looks up at him, the start of a smile on his face. "Saying bad things about us will resort in consequences. You wouldn't like it if I stole your doorknobs and let some rats in your house." He states.

"He already has rats in his house." Ike snickers, pointing to the Delanceys.

The two brothers glare at him, making motions as they try to look threatening.

"Be a doll, Mr. Wiesel, and get my papes please." Knobs tells gum, clicking his tongue. "Or you might be stuck listening to a lesson about consequences and the definition, since your nephews don't seem to know what the definition is and what they are." He comments.

The three men/boys stare at him, eyes wide and jaws dropped as he innocently takes his forty-eight papers.

When Jack saw Knobs' face after he got his papers, he noticed the smirk on his face.

Innocent, but also sneaky and smart.

Jack smirks to himself. I pick the best boys as my brothers.

In Brooklyn

After selling, Race and Knobs made their way to Brooklyn.

As they walked down the Brooklyn dock, they came up upon Race's oldest boyfriend, who stood with his Fourth and Fifth.

Race said goodbye to Knobs for a bit, and went over to that group.

Knobs looks around.

He found Dice with Ace and Spade.

Dice had noticed him too, so Knobs started walking over to them.

He had a set plan of what he was going to say to his lover.

"I see you found my shirt." Dice states with a smirk as they stared him up and down.

And there went that plan out of Knobs' mind and the universe.

Knobs felt his face heat up, even if he didn't want it to.

It did that sometimes.

"I don't remember you bringing me home..." the younger boy mumbles, scratching his head. "I remember going home on my own."

Dice chuckles, leaning their back against the wall. "You were half asleep, you don't usually remember anything when you're half asleep." They respond. "And your tired rambling is very cute." They wink.

Knobs felt his face heat up again. "You're a flirt..." he mutters.

Dice winks at him. "You know it."

Knobs' face turns even redder as he turns his head to face away from Dice, subconsciously pulling his flannel so that is was covering Dice's undershirt.

Dice chuckles, pulling their boyfriend so he was against them, their arms around him.

Knobs felt heat spread through his cheeks, neck, and ears.

Ace and Spades chuckle as the three older boys start talking again.

After a few minutes, Knobs was clueless.

"I have no clue what you're talking about..." Knobs mutters, his eyes squinted in confusion, and probably still embarrassment.

Dice chuckles. "Poker."

Knobs would've facepalmed, had his lover not had their arms wrapped around his upper body and arms. "I got that part." He mutters.

Dice chuckles again.

"Would you let go of me now?" Knobs mutters, trying only slightly to push out of Dice's arms.

Dice just holds him closer. "Why?" They ask with a smirk.

"So I can jump in the water, freeze my face so it isn't hotter than you, and hopefully gain some of my confidence that I always lose around you back." Knobs answers.

His face turns bright red when he realizes what he said. "Oh my God..." he mutters.

Dice chuckles, sitting themself on the floor, Knobs still in their arms.

They adjust themselves so Knobs was laying in their arms and they were playing Poker.

A few other boys had joined the game as well.

Knobs was mentally kicking his mind for not going over what it said before it said it.

You'd think it wouldn't be that hard.

Don't insult Snyder the Spider, don't anger Spot, and don't boost or say something that will embarrass you in front of Dice.

Knobs attention was pulled off of his problems and to the game of Poker the Newsies with him had started.

Dice's eyes travel down to Knobs' that were fixated on the game.

They chuckle.

(Knobs' laid in their lap.)

After a good amount of time of watching the game and not understanding anything, which was always the case when Knobs watched a Poker game, he decided he could try to look at his lover.

He was not subtle.

Dice caught him quickly, shooting him a wink.

Knobs very much liked his blue eyes, when they weren't winking at him and causing him to turn bright red.

The older Newsie had blonde hair, blue eyes that could either be icy and cold or a welcoming blue, and tan skin.

A few hours later

Knobs still laid in his lover's lap, now half asleep.

Dice had finished their games, and was resting their eyes for a few minutes.

They were sitting up, the younger boy still in their lap, and they leaned against a wall, their hat over their eyes.

"Hate to disrupt this," Race starts softly, drawing Dice's attention to him. "But we have to get back to Manhattan."

Dice pulls the hat off of their eyes, nodding softly.

They look down at the boy in their arms, smiling softly.

They press a soft kiss to his forehead. "I'll carry him." They tell Race softly, their lips lingering on their boyfriend's forehead.

Race nods.

They pull away, placing their hat on their boyfriend's head.

Dice gets up, Knobs, who was still mostly asleep or at least too out of it to do anything, in their arms.

They walk to Manhattan.

The walk was quiet.

Race and Dice talked a tiny bit, but they were both tired.

Some of the talking was just incoherent mumbles from Knobs who was probably dreaming.

They climbed in through the window when they got back to the Manhattan Lodge, Jack sitting on his bunk, awake, when they got in there.

Race hugged the older boy, before heading to his bed and literally collapsing on it, falling asleep as soon as he hit it.

Dice places their boyfriend in his bunk, taking off his flannel, shoes, suspenders, and hat.

They left their undershirt on him and left their hat on his head, it brushing his soft, brown curls into his face slightly.

Dice takes one last look at their boyfriend, chuckling softly, before they left a note in his pocket.

Jack looks at the slightly younger Newsie. "You can stay if you'd like," he suggests softly. "Stay with him. I'm sure he'd love it and you don't even have to sleep in his bunk, but you could sleep in the one above him."

Dice chuckles, turning to face the Manhattan leader. "Thanks for the offer, but I belong in Brooklyn." They respond. "I'll be back soon though."

Jack smiles. "I'm sure you will be." He responds.

Dice shoots him something between a smirk and a genuine smile, before jumping out of the window.

Jack chuckles at the Brooklynite, before looking back over at their boyfriend.

Knobs slept peacefully, his hand playing with the fabric unconsciously.

Jack chuckles, getting himself ready for bed.

1804 Words
What does everyone think?
I think Knobs is a bean, but a smart and sometimes snarky bean. Dice is pretty cool to me too.