Dean wobbled on his feet as he waited anxiously for the door to open. His hands were sweating and turning green from the flowers he had picked on the way here. Oh, he was so nervous. Why wouldn�t anyone answer the door? They were always home on a Sunday afternoon!
The doorknob was turning, and Dean went white. As the door opened, he looked up to see a tall man with thin glasses staring down at him. Dean gulped.
�Afternoon, mister Henderson.� He stammered. �Is Camilla here?�
Mr. Henderson grinned humorously. �Yes, she is. Would you like to come in or wait outside?�
�I�ll wait here.�
�Very well. I�ll go get Camilla.�
The door was left open as Mr. Henderson when to find Camilla. With the first hurdle out of the way, Dean relaxed somewhat. But he couldn�t fully relax until Camilla came outside.
When she finally did appear, everything Dean had planned on saying had vanished from his mind. He had seen Camilla earlier today, but he had not known that she had changed from her Sunday clothes.
She was wearing a frilly pink and white frock with white stockings and black shoes. Her wavy red hair with pulled back with a large pink bow, and her pretty purple eyes were sparkling in shyness. A pink flush filled her cheeks as the door closed behind her.
�Hi, Dean.� She said softly.
�H-hi Camilla.� He stuttered as he thrust the wilted daffodils to her. �I p-picked these for ya.�
�Oh, daffodils!� she squealed as she took them. �They�re my favorite flowers.�
�I know. That�s why I picked �em.� He exhaled to relieve tension. �Wanna go for a walk?�
�I�d love to.�
Imitating the gesture he had seen older boys do with girls, he offered her his arm. When she accepted it, he led her from her porch and down the road toward the lily pond. Neither said a word along the way.
When she finally reached the pond, Dean led Camilla to the bench that was supported between two strong oaks. They seated themselves and continued their silence. Camilla finally broke the silence in boredom.
�You look very nice today.� She said.
�Th-thanks.� He murmured. �So do you.�
�Thank you.�
Dean could feel heat pouring into his cheeks as he knew what he wanted to say but couldn�t put past his lips. How was one to tell a girl something like this? He felt like a fool, swooning over a girl he had known for years and not being able to tell her the truth.
�Dean, why did you want to take me for this walk?� Camilla wondered.
The pink in his face turned red. �I, uh�I mean, I just�I just wanted to�to�Camilla, I��
She grinned softly at his timidity. To boost his self-esteem, she kissed his cheek. And if he could have burst into flame right then and there, he would have.
�Camilla, I want ya to be my girl.�
Her grin grew wider as she slipped her hand into his. �I�d love to.�
His face jerked upward. �Really?�
�Really really!�
This time, he grinned, but then froze. He had done what he had set out to do, and now, he was clueless as to what to do next. He shrugged.
�Well�now I don�t know what to do.� He confessed.
�Aren�t we supposed to�kiss or something?� she wondered.
�I dunno.�
�And if we are?�
�I dunno.�
�It�s not like we haven�t kissed before.�
�That was different. We was just doing it to see what it was like.�
�Then why don�t we try it to see what it�s like now?�
�I dunno.�
Sighing, Camilla rested her head against Dean�s shoulder. He, in turn, had no idea what to do, so he rested his head against hers. She squeezed his hand, and he squeezed back.
All at once, Dean�s confidence was renewed. Straightening, he raised his shoulder so Camilla could sit upward. Turning, his head toward hers, he puckered his lips and closed his eyes. She did the same and the two leaned toward each other. Then they leaned to kiss and missed each other.
Camilla giggled at their error. �I�ve always wondered why people kiss with their eyes closed. When we try it, we miss!�
�Then maybe we should keep our eyes open. Just to make sure we don�t go the wrong way again.�
�I�m fine with that.�
So they tried again. With their eyes open, they leaned forward with puckered lips to kiss. Once they were close enough to know that they would not miss each other this time, their eyes closed, and their lips met. Almost instantly, the two broke apart.
�That wasn�t so bad, was it?� Camilla wondered.
�I�I guess not.� Dean muttered.
�Do you wanna try it again?�
He didn�t answer, for he was all ready leaning toward her again. His heart raced and scalp tingled as he kissed her again. Though most people would have called this puppy love, Dean knew that it was not.
Camilla was his one true love.
* * *
1901
�Looks like Pie Eater was right.� Snitch thought to himself. �With him getting married, a bunch of newsies have followed suit.�
Indeed it had. Only yesterday had Specs and Twilight held their wedding, and in two weeks, Bumlets and Seven were having theirs. Soon to be wed were Mush and Psyche, both using this time to search for new and better-paying jobs. Snitch wondered which couple would become engaged next.
He began to reminisce of his days with Camilla. He hadn�t seen her since his uncle had died and he was relocated here to stay with his ailing grandma. Uncle Paul had been Snitch�s replacement parent after his birth parents had died. When Paul died, the only person Snitch had left was grandma. And she hadn�t even lasted a year till she died. Snitch had found the newsies when her estate went to the government to pay off debts her husband had left years ago.
Camilla had been so distraught the day Snitch had left. He had been upset too, but told her that they would meet again someday. He knew they would, and told her that when there�s true love, two people will find each other again. It had been seven years, but Snitch was still hopeful in their reunion.
�Say Snitch, wanna take a dive in with this bet?� Itey wondered.
�What�s th� bet for?� he asked.
�Seein� how soon Bumlets �n� Seven �r� gonna have kids.�
Snitch laughed loudly. �Whatever gave ya this idea?�
�Pie Eater �n� Kay.�
�Alright, alright. Sure, I�ll place a bet.� He pulled two silver coins from his pocket. �Twenty cents says five months.�
��Ey Race, put Snitch down f� twenty cents on five months.�
�Gotcha.� Race confirmed.
�So where�re all th� bets goin�?� Snitch inquired.
�Jus� on when ya think th� kids �r� gonna start comin�.� Itey explained. �Like Blink betted on a year. I say three months, Race thinks-�
�Whoa, hold it there! Didja say three months?�
�Sure, why not?�
�All I gotta say is dream on. Ain�t no way they�re gonna have a baby that soon.�
�Hey, it cin happen! C�mon, look at it this way. Since they got engaged a month ago, Bumlets�s gone from th� ranks. �E only sees Seven when �e doesn�t hafta work, �n� that�s two days a week. Usually stays about three �r� four hours b�fore �e goes home again.� He grinned mischievously. �You do th� math.�
Snitch shook his head. �I say clean up those dirty thoughts �f yours. Whaddaya think Goosey�d say if she knew ya was thinkin� �bout that?�
�She knows! She�s th� one who started th� bet!�
�What�s she down for?�
�Four months.�
He rolled his eyes. �Good grief, she thinks like you.�
�Yeah, ain�t it great?� he threw a glance over his shoulder. ��Ey Cowboy! Wanna piece �f the action?�
Jack strode over. �Huh?�
�Placin� bets on when Bumlets�s gonna be a daddy.�
�You�re bettin� on �is�manhood?�
Itey frowned. �Well�yeah, I guess so.�
�That�s sick!� he grabbed a handful of coins out of his pocket. �Put me down for seven months.�
Snitch crossed his arms and hid his face in them, laughing hysterically. �If the guys do this when I get married, I�ll bust their heads.� He thought. �But hey, when it�s done to other guys, it�s great!�
�So Itey,� he spoke up, slightly wheezy from his laughter. �When ya gonna follow suit with Goosey?�
�Soon.� He grinned. �Soon �nough. So when�re you gonna find a girl �f your own?�
�I toldja �bout Camilla plenty �f times. Soon as I get th� money, I�m takin� th� train back t� Pennsylvania.�
�Must be pretty special if yer gonna do all that for �er.�
�Believe me, she is. She�s worth everything.�
* * *
Camilla leaned back against her father, seeking comfort in knowing she was far from her home where she could finally leave her past. But not all of her past could she leave behind. Part of it would stay with her.
She felt her father�s arm slide protectively around her, and she clutched it with all of her strength. He kissed the top of her head.
�Oh papa.� Tears streamed down her face.
�It�ll be all right, sweetheart.� He assured. �We�re far away from anyone we know. In another two months, you can stay in the house and not leave at all. Everything will work out for the best.�
�No, it won�t.� she shook her head. �Everything is ruined now. Just because we�re relocating doesn�t mean that my life will change.�
�Camilla, listen to me. It�s time we look past this. It�ll be all over soon enough. And it is, we�ll put it behind us like it never happened.�
�But it did happen, papa. It will happen. I wish I was dead.�
�Don�t talk like that. You know you�re all I have left. What would I do without you?�
�I wouldn�t have gotten you into this mess!�
�I don�t care about that. You�re my daughter. And I love you. I don�t care about what�s going on right now. It�ll be all over.�
�I wish you�d stop saying that. It won�t be over. Not for me.�
�Darling, don�t think about this anymore. Just a few more months, that�s all. Then it�ll be over.�
�It�ll be over, but we�ll never be able to go home.�
Harry sighed. �This will be our home now. I know it won�t be like the last, but I�ll be paid better here. We�ll afford a bigger home that you won�t have to leave. I�ll hire several maids to tend to you.�
The train screeched to a halt, and Camilla raised her eyes to the window. So this was Manhattan. She peeked outside to see what this world was like. The first thing she noticed was the smog that covered the sky. Only patches of blue were seen, not a completely blue sky. Camilla could tell already that she wouldn�t like it here.
�Camilla.�
She heeded her father�s voice and gripped the seat in front of her to aid her to her feet. Staggering from nausea, she was unable to find her balance immediately and Harry had to catch her before she fell. He held her hand tightly as she moved from her seat to the aisle.
Grasping her father�s hand, she huddled closely to his side for protection. Some passengers watched, wondering why an almost grown woman was acting like a timid child. Camilla did her best to ignore them but could feel their eyes piercing into her skin like hundreds of tiny needles.
They stepped off of the car and claimed their baggage. Then Harry led Camilla to the street and hailed a cab to take them to their new home.
* * *
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