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Part 1
Kay brushed her hair thoroughly, then reached back and French-braided it tightly. She was prepared to leave, but deep in her heart, she knew she was not ready to leave. The past seven days, she and her husband had spent their second honeymoon here with only their month-old son to accompany them. She wished they could stay longer.
Being with Pie Eater and little David warmed her heart to the fullest. She had discovered a side of her husband she hadn�t known existed when she became pregnant, and now she was content. If only they could be alone forever.
Sighing, she left the washroom to see if Pie Eater was ready to leave. She found him resting on the bed, only halfway dressed, and Little David resting on his chest. A smile tugged at the edges of her mouth.
�David.� She voiced.
Pie Eater turned his head to see her and grinned. �Hey honey.�
�I thought we were getting ready to leave.�
�I was. Then lil� David got all fussy an� I calmed �im down. �E fell asleep.�
�Good thing he wasn�t hungry.� She seated herself on the bed. �I�ll put him in the crib.�
�Naw, I ain�t through yet.� He stroked his fingers gently against the baby�s back. �Don�t think I�ll ever be through holdin� �im.�
Giggling softly, she stretched onto her side next to them. She reached over and touched Little David�s tiny hand and a smile spread across her face.
�He�s so precious.� She whispered.
�Sure is. I still can�t believe �e�s actually my son.�
She inched closer to Pie Eater, then wrapped her arm around both him and the baby. Her heart was pounding with pride.
�I wish we could stay like this forever.�
�Me too.� He exhaled heavily. �One week jus� wasn�t enough. Maybe someday we�ll be able t� go somewhere real exotic an� stay there even longer.�
�That sounds like fun. What exotic places do you have in mind?�
�How �bout some tropical islands, like Bermuda or Cuba?�
�Bermuda?�
�Why not? Hear it�s great this time �f year.�
�Maybe someday.� She sat upright. �We�d better get ready to go. Our train leaves in an hour and a half.�
�I know you�re right.� He shifted the baby carefully and passed him off to her. �I�ll jus� take a minute. Th� bags are all packed.�
She nodded and cradled Little David in her arms. As Pie Eater readied to leave, she wrapped Little David tightly in a blanket and kissed his forehead. Then she began to rock back and forth and hum softly so that he would stay asleep.
A minute after she began humming, Little David�s mouth opened and he began to whine. Shrugging, she called to Pie Eater.
�When did you think we need to leave?� she wondered.
�In a couple minutes. Why?�
�Little David�s hungry.�
�Alright. You take care �f �im an� we�ll leave after that.�
�Thanks.�
Quickly, she allowed Little David to nurse and hummed again to keep him quiet. When he was finished, she shouldered him and rose to her feet. Pie Eater was standing in the doorway.
�Got a cab waitin�.� He said. �You ready?�
She nodded. �I�m ready.�
He grinned at her and escorted her and the baby to the cab. He drove them to the train yards where they seated themselves at a bench to wait for their train to arrive.
�I wonder what went on back at home.� Kay muttered, almost to herself.
�I hope pa landed that deal with th� national store chain.�
�No, I wasn�t talking about that. I was talking about the newsies.�
�I was thinkin� that too. B�fore we left, Jack said somethin� �bout some new girls joinin� th� ranks.�
�I hope Fantasia and Blink are doing good.�
�I hope Bumlets is doin� okay.�
She turned to him. �Doing okay? Is something wrong with him or between him and Seven?�
He shrugged. �I dunno. Jus� that he�s wild �bout Seven, but I noticed that �e�s kinda withdrawn from �er a bit. I don�t know why.�
�You were a little bit like that before you proposed to me.� she smiled faintly. �Do you think he might be proposing to her?�
�Maybe. But if �e were smart, �e�d get �imself a new job first. I shoulda done that b�fore we got married so we�d have extra money for Little David.�
�Oh, don�t have any regrets. You�ve got an excellent job now.�
�I know. But still, there was a couple things I shoulda done b�fore we got married. But I ain�t gonna think of those right now.� He slipped an arm around her waist. �I�m jus� glad that I got you �n� th� baby. I couldn�t ask for anythin� more.�
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His ears began to burn. What had happened just a moment before he had been waiting for ever since he met her�and had been dreading even before then. His throat tightened.
He was reminded of the first time he had met her. It was almost a year and a half ago, perhaps only two months before Pie Eater and Kay eloped. Bumlets had had odd feelings inside of him, telling him to go out for a jog. And before he could wonder why, he was outside, jogging along the sidewalk.
It wasn�t long before the sun began to sink and cooler air filled the sky. Bumlets had decided then to head home when he suddenly plowed into another person. They had both been in quick paces, and the force of their collision sent both reeling backward. Bumlets had landed flat on his back and narrowly missed hitting his head on a large stone.
Dazed, he couldn�t bring himself to his feet. He grew curious of who he had collided with and lifted his head, but her voice had drifted to his ears before he could muffle any words.
�Are you all right?�
Standing over him was a girl he had never seen before. To say she was attractive, he wouldn�t argue. Her face was red from the flush of embarrassment in bumping into him as she had, and her hazel eyes were concerned for his well being.
�Sir? Are you all right?� she questioned again.
His heart began to pound. He had never felt like this before, like he was floating on air and ready to lose his head completely. Something about this girl made his temperature rise. Could he have found his soul mate?
�Ohhhh.� He moaned, unable to speak.
�Are you hurt? Do you need some help?�
�I�can�t get up.� He forced huskily, still partially overwhelmed from the fall.
�Here,� she extended a hand to him, �I�ll help you up.�
He took her hand, but tugged her downward so she lost her balance and fell on top of him. His pulse felt even hotter now that she handed landed on him. He had the urge to touch her face, kiss her lips, melt her heart�until a dark memory swarmed the back of his head. Mary.
The magic of this affair was instantly broken. The smile faded from Bumlets� mouth as he staggered onto his elbows for support.
�Sorry �bout that.� He mumbled. �I guess I�m stronger than I thought.�
�It�s all right.� She rose and helped him with her.
When on his feet and completely balanced, he could feel the sensations arousing deep inside of him, and with them, the feelings of regret, humiliation, and grief of remembering Mary. Would Mary plague him forever, even now as he met the woman he loved?
�Are you okay?� she wondered again. �I was running pretty fast there, and you looked like you took quite a fall.�
�Ah, I�m all right.� He rubbed the back of his head. �Why were ya runnin� so fast?�
�I�ve been all over this city looking for my aunt�s house, and I was looking for a place to stay before it got completely dark. Oh, by the way, my name�s Rachel.�
A dreamy smile spread across his face. �Rachel. I�m Bumlets.�
�Bum�lets? Bumlets?� her eyebrows arched confusedly.
�It�s a nickname.�
�Why would you go by your nickname?�
�Cuz it�s kind �f a way �f forgettin� the past.� �But why can�t I forget Mary?�
�Why would you want to forget your past?�
�Too many mistakes here �n� there. Plus, all th� newsies got nicknames.�
�You�re a newsie?�
�Yep.�
�Oh.� She nodded. �It�s getting dark out. Could you tell me where I can find a place to lodge for the night?�
�My lodgin� house�s got room. You could sleep there for th� night.�
She withdrew a bit. �I dunno about that.�
�Hey, there�s nothin� t� worry about. The girls sleep upstairs, an� guys ain�t allowed up there.�
�Girls? I thought only boys sold newspapers.�
�Ya�d be surprised at all this town�s got t� offer. So whaddaya say? First night�s free.�
She pondered a minute, then accepted. Bumlets was overjoyed at her acceptance and led her to the lodging house, where she decided the next day to take up permanent residence and become a newsie herself. She became known as Seven of Nine, or Seven for short.
A month had passed and Bumlets had kept his eye on her, knowing that he wanted to ask her to be his girl. There was one night when she left Tibby�s to go for a stroll by herself and Bumlets followed after her. She was rather surprised to see that he had followed her.
�What�re you doing here?� she wondered.
�Ya shouldn�t be out by yerself this time �f night.� He warned. �There�s prowlers �n� thieves out here. An� it might rain.�
�I didn�t know about prowlers. I was on the streets for five days before I met you.�
�Maybe you jus� got lucky. I�ve known a couple ladies who weren�t so lucky, an� I�d hate t� see ya as one of �em.�
Once he finished talking, more memories of Mary resurfaced. He felt like a hypocrite telling Seven these things when the situation with Mary haunted him as it did. Should he tell her about Mary?
It began to rain. It did not begin softly, but rather with a small clap of thunder and a sudden downpour of drops. The two were soaked through within seconds.
�Well, looks like you were right about the rain.� Seven voiced.
Bumlets remembered his coat and shrugged it off. Then he threw it around Seven�s shoulders to prevent her from catching cold. She hugged it around herself and gaped at Bumlets.
�Why�d you do that?� she wondered.
�Don�t want ya t� catch cold.� He replied.
�But what about you?�
�I�ll be fine.�
�We�d better head back indoors so we both don�t get sick.�
When he refused to move, neither did she. He was staring at her in such a way that deeply intrigued her and kept her rooted to her spot.
�You�re not moving.� He observed.
�You aren�t either. I was waiting for you to go.�
�I was waitin� too. I thought you�d be headin� back first.�
�No, I wasn�t.� she paused. �We�re both going to catch pneumonia if we stay out here any longer.�
�You won�t.�
�But you will. Come on, let�s go.�
He couldn�t help himself any longer. Impulsively, he grasped her by the arms, yanked her up to him and kissed her thoroughly. He released her a second later, leaving her bewildered by his action.
�W-what was t-that for?� she stammered.
He replied only by kissing her again. This kiss was longer than the last, and more passionate. She now looked ready to pass out due to intoxication. Perhaps this kiss had done its work in enchanting her.
�That was for you.� He said softly.
Slowly, he reached over and brushed his fingertips along her face. Then he traced the outline of her jaw with his finger and brought it to her chin. He tilted her head softly and drew closer. She touched his hair, then moved her hand to the back of his head and invited him to kiss her again.
When their lips touched, she involved herself in his kiss and returned the pleasure. It began as simple, and increased to amorous. Never in either of their lives had they felt so different or wonderful. This was the only time Bumlets had managed not to think of Mary while he was indulging himself with Seven.
Now, only Mary was on his mind. Two seconds ago, Seven had said three little words to him that resurfaced the feelings he had with Mary. Three words that he wanted to say back to her, but was unable to due to his guilt of Mary.
�I love you.�
His heart was filled with both overwhelming joy and regret. The same words were on his tongue, but were choked by his throat. �I love you too, Seven!� his mind screamed, but his lips would not release.
Accepting defeat, he leaned forward and kissed her forehead tenderly. Though he could not say the exact words, he knew he could agree with her and she would know.
�You too.� He whispered.
She was satisfied, but he knew her well enough to know that she was disappointed. Someday he would need to tell her about Mary. But today was not the day.
He wondered if Mary was thinking of him in the same way he thought of her. She was engaged now; what if she told her fianc� about him?
�Oh Mary,� he wondered, �will we ever be able to forgive each other and ourselves for what happened?�
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