Christina

Jack and I ran all the way back to the orphanage.

"That was farther than I expected." I panted. I bent over and put my hands on my knees as I tried to catch my breath. Beads of sweat rolled down my flushed face despite the freezing air.

"Yeah." Jack was fighting for breath too.

"Slow down, guys!"

I could make out Mush, Bumlets, Race, Blink, and another boy I didn't know jogging up to us.

"You sure are a fast runner, Jack!" The unknown newsie huffed and puffed for breath. He obviously didn't do this as often as Jack and I did. I frowned at the way he talked.

"Who's this?" I asked Jack.

"Chris, meet Davey. He's the brains of the group." Jack slapped his hand on Davey's shoulder.

"Ow." He muttered and rubbed his shoulder.

Mush chuckled.

"Davey, this is Chris. If you can't tell already, she's a girl." Jack motioned to me.

"How come I didn't see you the night I joined the group?" I stepped closer to Davey and he took a step back.

"I have a strict bed time."

I almost laughed out loud at that one.

I turned away and yawned widely. "I'm tired. I think I better go ta bed."

"I'll go with you." Jack said as he lead me into the building.

"Why do ya wanna come with me?" I stopped and asked. What happened to being so nervous about the inspector seeing us?

"I dunno. I wanna see your room." He shrugged.

"But don't all the rooms look da same?" I pointed out.

Jack ignored the question and turned back to the boys. "See you guys in the morning."

The newsies murmured goodbyes to me and Jack.

***

"You said you wanted to see my room, well here it is." My voice tone was full of sarcasm.

Jack placed his hand over his heart. "Ouch. That really hurts, Chris."

I rolled my eyes.

"I'm just kidding you, Chris. Don't be so dramatic." He dragged his hands through his medium-length hair.

"Jack?" I faced him head on.

"What?" he raised his eyebrows at me.

"Shaddup." I smiled, once again, sarcastically at him.

He stuck his tongue out at me like a little kid and I returned it.

"Christina? What's going on?" a sudden voice came from the door. A small girl stepped out from behind the beat up wooden door.

Mary!

"Oh, Mary!" I awkwardly scratched the back of my head. "I...Er..."

"I'm Jack, a friend." Jack offered his hand to Mary but she didn't return it. He let his arm drop to his side. Mary gave me a look mixed between confusion and shock.

Mary finally broke the silence. "I'll leave you two to it." She gave me a wink, stepped back out of the room and closed the door behind her.

"That was...weird," Jack said. "I really tired, but I better get going." He fake-yawned to prove his point as he walked to the door. He grabbed the handle and open the door, one foot outside. "I mean I'll only go if you want me to."

I crossed my arms over my chest. "Jack, do you want to stay?"

"Yes!" he slipped off his work boots and sat on my bed.

I swear this boy has no maturity, I thought.

"Okay, just let me go change into my nightgown." I went into the bathroom and changed as quickly as I could. By the time I was done, I found something that I didn't expect.

Jack took off his shirt and was exposing his toned stomach and chest.

I caught myself staring. I shook my head and slipped into bed. The cool sheets overtook my body. Once again, I realized how tired I was.

"I sure am beat." Jack slipped in bed next to me and shifted to find a comfortable position. He ended up facing me.

"Me too." I looked deeply into his brown surprisingly memorizing irises.

"See you in the morning." I whispered.

There was no response from Jack. His eyes were closed and he was breathing steadily. He was asleep.

And before I knew it, I was too.

***

"Wake up!"

I was being violently shaken awake. The first thing I saw was Jack standing over me. He had his shirt on, so he must of woken up a little bit ago.

The second thing I saw was the bright sunlight. It shown in the into the room through the window like a thick yellow blanket.

"What time is it?" I sat up and rubbed my eyes tiredly.

Jack was finishing up lacing his boots. "I dunno. 7:00 am, maybe."

I stretched and yawned.

"Go get changed, kid. We got work to do." Jack threw my clothes that he lent me in my lap.

"Damn, can't a girl get a minute to wake up?" I pulled back the sheets off of me. The sudden coldness made me shiver. Goosebumps spread all throughout my body. I grabbed the pile of clothes and headed into the bathroom. "I'll only be a second."

"Let's hope." Jack muttered under his breath.

"I heard that." I said before closing the door behind me.

I got changed pretty fast. I buttoned up the long-sleeve shirt and laced up my boots with care. Jack and I gathered our things together before heading out of the room. We snuck around the corner when suddenly we saw the inspector standing a few feet down the hallway. Of course it had to be the hallway Jack and I needed to go down.

"Shit," I whispered as I peaked my head around the corner. I looked back at Jack, who was in the same position I was.

Jack wiped his brow. He looked like he was thinking of a good plan.

The inspector was a large--a better term would be 'wide'--man. He always carries a baton to scare orphans into doing what he wants them to. He wears a bull-hat regularly along with a dark clothing. I have to say that I do get a little nervous around him. I don't know his name. I don't think anybody in the orphanage does. We all just address him as 'Inspector'.

Jack's voice interrupted my trail of thought. "Follow me." He walked out from behind the corner. He seemed like he was trying to act casual, and he wasn't doing too good of a job.

We walk past the inspector. He didn't seem to notice us at first...

"Hey, kids! What are you two doing?" he grabbed the back of Jack's shirt and twisted him around.

Then Jack's instincts kicked in.

He punched the inspector square in the jaw. Before he could recover, Jack kicked his legs out from under him. The inspector hit the floor with a big thud. It almost felt like the whole building shook.

Jack started to walk away from the limp body, but he turned raised one finger in the air and smirked.

Yes, man!

"Let's go." He lightly put his hand on my shoulder and lead me down the stairs at the end of the hallway.

Still shocked at the scene that just played out, I let my mouth hang open until we got outside of the orphanage.

The wind slapped me in the face as Jack opened the door.

"Jack, that was...amazing!" I clapped for him sarcastically and slow.

He smiled back at me and said, "Thanks. Damn, it feels really good to finally put that inspector in his place."

As I took my eyes off of Jack, I laid eyes on somebody else.

No! Not him!

"Jack. Look who's coming." I made and effort to try and stay calm, but it's hard when the boy who beat you up is headed straight towards you.

"What is Spot Conlon doing in this part of town?" he took out a cigarette, lit it, and sucked in a deep breath. "Spot!"

"No don't-"

Before I could say anything else, Spot twisted his head around and stared at us for a second.

Jack and I both waited silently for him to get to us.

He didn't look too happy.

"Hey, Jack. How ya doing?" judging by his voice tone, he didn't seem as mad as I thought. He spit into his hand, and so did Jack. They both shook friendly.

That is one thick Brooklyn accent, I thought.

I slowly started to make my way behind Jack as the two boys visited. I didn't want Spot to see me.

Jack cleared his throat. "So, what are you doing here?"

Spot let out a huge sigh. "Don't even get me started," he re-adjusted his hat before continuing. "Those damn Delancey bruddahs are getting into my territory. I swear they are a real pair of muttonheads."

I felt a sudden itchy tingling in my nose.

No! Don't sneeze!

"ACHOO!" I couldn't hold it in any longer.

Dammit.

Spot tilted his head around Jack and made eye contact with me.

"Who are you?" he squinted his eyes at me like he was trying hard to remember.

Jack side-stepped out of the way so Spot could see me fully.

When I refused to say anything, Jack spoke up for me.

"This is Chris." He said.

Spot rested his chin atop his balled-up fist and said, "Chris...hm...that does ring a bell."

"It should ring a goddamn bell because I'm the girl you beat up." I spat.

"Man, Jack. You got yaself one pretty feisty goil." He smiled at me. (A/N: 'goil' is 'girl' in a Brooklyn accent.)

"I know." Jack agreed, nodding his head.

I shot him an icy glare, but he didn't seem to notice.

"Oh, yeah. Sweetheart, I hope ya forgive me for little fight we had." Spot's voice was sincere, but his face made him look even more like a jerk.

"Whatever." I crossed my arms over my chest and looked away.

"Anyways! What do ya think I should do about those Delanceys, huh?" Spot changed the subject back. He shifted his weight to the other leg, and his cane bumped against his hip.

"Soak 'em," Jack said. "If they come into your territory again, round your gang up and soak him." He punched his palm as if he was trying to prove his point more.

Good idea.

"I see," Spot smirked. "Well, I better get back before my boys worry about me. See ya, Jackie-boy." Spot began to walk away, but Jack stopped him.

"Wait, Spot! Can I talk to you for a minute?" he looked desperate, which was unusual for Jack.

Jack lead Spot a good distance away from me.

Must be a private.

I watched their mouths move as I tried to guess what they were saying. Spot nodded, and in a couple seconds, Jack was standing in front of me and Spot was already walking down the street back to Brooklyn.

Jack bared his teeth at me. "Good news. I've got a surprise for you."

Ooh! I can't wait to write the next chapter. I'm about to be on Christmas break, so hopefully I'll have some extra time. I don't want to keep you guys on a cliff-hanger for a long time.

ugh, it's finals week for my school and it's been soooo stressful. I've had to study a ton!😒

I changed the cover of my book a little bit :)

thanks everybody for reading! If you enjoyed it, let me know by leaving me a comment or a vote! :)

Thanks!!!!