“You don’t have to come by and visit me every day ya know. I’m sure you’ll see me buying papers tomorrow morning.”

“Oh your going to sell still?”

“Well obviously I’m not that great at pick pocketing so I’m stuck selling papers for a while.” Holly smiled as she gave Laura a hug. When she was giving Holly her hug Laura could see Blue coming from a mile away. “Think she wants to kill me?” Laura asked nodding towards Blue walking there way.

“Not to sound self center but she’s probably looking for me.”

“That sounded self centered...”

“Yeah I know.” She said smiling.

When Blue reached the two girls everyone stood there not knowing what to say or do. No one could make eye contact and no one didn’t want to say the wrong thing to get someone upset. “We should stick together.” Blue said finally.

Laura looked up shock to hear that coming from Blue’s mouth. “What?”

“Holly made this big deal about everyone being mad at you earlier today. She was right. I’m sorry I overreacted earlier. You’ve have become one of my best friends and I don’t think it’s a good idea to be mad at you.”

“Hear that. I’m right.” Holly said feeling proud of herself.

Laura laughed a little and gave Blue a hug. “I’m sorry that happen to you.” She said pointing to the black eye.

“Yeah well it’s not everyday I get soaked. Have any idea who did this?” Laura looked at Holly then back at Blue. “I think it was Matt. He’s the only one who knows who you are. I just don’t know why. I’ll figure it out though. I think we should keep this between the three of us. Not tell the guys we’ve kissed and made up.” Laura said.

“Why not?” Both girls said surprise.

“I have my reasons. I want to figure this thing on my own. I don’t want any help from the guys. Obviously it didn’t take long for them to turn there backs on me so if they don’t want to help I can do it myself.”

“Laura there just protective over us...”

“No Blue. I need to handle this by myself. I don’t want to depend on them.”

Both girls reluctantly shook there heads promising not to say anything to the guys. “The least we can do is find a new place for you. You can not stay here!”

Laura rolled her eyes. “I’ll be fine. The guys probably get drunk every night don’t come back till late.”

“What happened if they rape you?”

“I’ll kill them.” Laura said not cracking a smile. “It looks like its going to rain. I’m don’t want to be poured on again so I’m going to get inside. You two be careful!”

“Oh yes. With Holly with me I’m sure I won’t get soaked again.”

“Are you sure about that?” Laura said laughing.

“No...”

****

By the time Holly and Blue got home everyone was asleep except for Jack, Mush, and Spot. “Hey what are you guys doing up?” Holly said putting her arms around Mush and resting her chin on his shoulder.

“We were worried about you two. You just up and left and no one knew where you went.” He whispered.

“I just went to Medda’s.” Holly said trying to come up with a lie but not working.

“We checked there. She hasn’t seen you.” Jack said sternly. “Where were you guys.”

Blue gave Jack a dirty look. “We can go anywhere we damn well please. It gets annoying with all these questions. We can take care of ourselves! If you must know, Holly went and saw Laura,” Holly shot Blue a shocking glare, “Laura is now staying with the Delancey’s! They’ve already corrupted her mind and she doesn’t want anything to do with us. I was walking back from the park and saw them arguing. She’s two faced.”

Jack’s expression on his face turned from concern to hate. “I think you two shouldn’t see her anymore.”

“Why don’t you come to Brooklyn tonight?” Spot asked wrapping his arms around Blue.

“Oh I would love to but I’m exhausted and need my sleep.” She kissed Spot good night and headed towards her bed.

“Don’t worry Jack. We don’t want anything to do with her anymore.” Holly said kissing Mush good night and going towards her bed.

“Do you believe them?” Spot asked curiously.

“I don’t know. Come on lets go to bed.”

****

The next morning Laura was exhausted. The building had very thin walls and you could hear anywhere from people screaming at each other to people have sex in the next place. Many times she banged on the wall yelling them to go to bed but what seemed like for hours she heard way to many things she shouldn’t have heard. When she finally got up at dawn, happy to know that she wasn’t going to get soaked with cold water, she saw Oscar and Morris sprawled out across the floor. “Disgusting.” She muttered to herself.

She slowly walked to the Distribution Center not wanting to see any of the Manhattan newsies but knew it was to far to go to Queens or Brooklyn just to sell papers. Once she got there she was surprise to see Blue and Holly in the front of the line. “Tell me I’m seeing things.” Laura said walking up noticing that no one else was there.

“We know how much you like to get up early and figured you would be here early so you wouldn’t see any of the guys.”

“Holly are you ok?” Laura asked seeing Holly’s dark eyes.

“Huh? Oh yeah great. Peachy keen.” She said leaning against the wall almost about to fall asleep.

“So what’s up?”

“The guys were concern about us last night. I told them that I saw you yelling at Holly and how the Delancey’s have already corrupted your mind. I hate lying to them. Especially Jack! He was very smitten with you.”

Laura shook her head. “I know this is hard for you two but I need your help. Your the only two...Holly wake up.”

“Huh? Oh I’m up.”

“Anyways, your the only two people that I can trust! I’ll figure this thing out sooner or later.”

“What are you going to do?”

Before Laura could answer she saw Jack and Skittery walking up the platform. “So what I’m sleeping with Oscar. You should worry about your own damn life and not mine.” Laura said yelling at Blue and Holly and walking pass them. Jack looked up at Laura heading to the front of the line and cut her off.

“I don’t think you should sell here anymore.”

“I think you should mind your own damn business. You Manhattan newsies are so nosey!” Jack stood there not knowing what to do. “What are you going to do Jacky boy? Soak me?”

“Come on Jack she’s not worth it.” Mush said walking up with Spot.

He looked back at the crowd and then back at Laura. “Don’t expect us to help you if you are getting soaked in an alley.”

“I never did.” Laura turned around once she heard Weasel opening his window. Jack turned back around and saw Holly and Blue staring at him.

“Is she going to be a problem for you two?”

Holly laughed. “Please we can sell so much more papes now that she won’t be distracting us. She won’t bother us. Let her stay its a free country.”

Laura was relieved that Holly didn’t say anything about how she should sell somewhere else. “Morning sunshine.” Oscar said smiling at Laura.

“Did you like sleeping on the floor this morning?” She asked smirking and grabbing her papers. Laura walked down the ramp looking through the headlines when she bumped into Matt. “Oh...umm..hi Matt!” She said shock to see him. Holly nudged Blue getting her attention and nodding towards Matt and Laura.

Matt looked up at Blue and Holly and pulled Laura away from everyone. “I think Cards, Spice, and Cody know that your here.”

“Naw really?” She said sarcastically.

“What’s with the attitude?”

“Sorry. I just think they would catch on since you’ve visited me three times. You keep disappearing.”

“Well I’m trying my best to convince them that your not here. How’s your friend. Heard she got soaked real bad.”

“Oh you did? How did you find out?” Laura said getting suspicious.

“Well... I heard Cards talking about it. She ok?”

“I don’t know we’re not on talking terms. So how does Cards know Blue?” Matt shrugged getting nervous. “I need to get back to the fellas. I’ll see ya later.”

Laura watched as Matt left the Distribution Center. “That bastard soaked Blue. Oh he’s going down!”

Laura sold most of the day at the boxing matches that were occurring that day. She hated selling over there. Everyone was pushing and shoving each other and it didn’t help that everyone was drunk and smelled like rotten eggs in 100 degree weather. After an hour only selling half her papers she gave up and threw them in the trash. She was broke, hot, lonely, hungry, and the last thing she shouldn’t have gone was throw away her only way of making money. For a millisecond she thought about pick pocketing but remembered her track record wasn’t that great. All around the city she saw her fellow friends selling like crazy. Maybe she wasn’t in the mood. She had way to much on her mind concerning Matt and everyone else. ‘Speaking of Matt’ she thought to herself has she saw him walking down the street nonchalantly. She thought there was no time like the present to confront him with her thoughts.

“Umm I need to talk to you.” She said pulling him down an alley so no one would see them.

“Laura we shouldn’t-”

“Did you soak Blue?” She asked cutting him off out of nowhere.

“What? Why would you think that?”

“Answer me. Did you soak Blue?” Matt stood there not saying anything. He didn’t have to tell Laura anything because when she looked into his eyes it told everything she needed to know. “WHY?” She said yelling.

“I wanted to hurt you!”

“Hurt me? What the hell did I do to you? I thought we were friends?”

“Damn it Laura!” He yelled making Laura a little scared. “I thought when you saw me with that other girl we cleared the air! Why did you leave me?”

Laura rolled her eyes. “You hurt me Matt! I left because practically every newsie found out I was stealing from them and they were going to kill me. I thought after I saw you with that girl there was no better time than that day to leave!” Laura said finally getting the whole story out. Her boyfriend at the time was Matt, the leader of the North Jersey newsies. She had been stealing from them for quiet a while because she was in pretty bad debt and one day she saw Matt cheating on her and was then she heard everyone found out about her stealing. She thought it would be best to leave.

Matt grabbed a tight hold on Laura and pulled her towards him kissing her. “You should come back. No one is going to kill you!”

Laura looked at him shockingly. “Never! Jersey was hell for me! I rather die than go back there.” She said trying to get out of his grip but was impossible. Matt had always been the one person that she could never ever come close to soaking him. He was to strong for her.

Matt’s eyes grew dark and he threw her on the ground. “If that’s what you want.” He said calmly. He picked her up again by the hair and threw her against the wall. “Have you had enough?” Laura weakly shook her head still trying to fight him but was pretty much impossible. She was not going down without a fight though. Many times she tried to scream but Matt had covered her mouth to make it impossible for her to do so. For about 5 minutes he threw her around, ripped her clothes, and for a minute Laura thought that he was going to rape her until she suddenly realized that he had stopped. She was to afraid to move to know what was happening. After minute she felt someone touch her bare shoulder and she started to plead for her life.

“Hey....shh it’s just me.” A calmer voice said.

Laura looked up and saw through her tear stained eyes Jack was standing over her. “Oh Jack!” She said putting her arms around her.

“What happened?” He said looking at Matt was now passed out over a bunch of crates.

“He tried...to kill...me!” She said through her sobs. “I thought I was going to die.”

Jack wrapped his arms tighter around her trying to comfort her even more. “Lets go back to the lodging house.”

“No! I can’t go back there. What will people think of me?”

“Laura, you got the shit beaten out of you. No one cares if your the toughest girl in New York.”

Laura shook her head still not wanting to go. “I can’t Jack.”

Jack sighed not knowing what to do. “You need to get cleaned up. Come on.”

Laura at first didn’t move but decided that he was right and leaned on him for support as they walked back to the lodging house. Once they got there everyone was huddled around a card game that quickly stopped when they saw Jack’s arm around Laura.

“Oh my god what happened?” Blue said jumping up from her seat and going towards Laura.

“Matt was soaking her really bad.” Jack said quietly. “Help me get her up the stairs.” Holly by this time had also seen Laura was helping her up the stairs.

****

Two hours had past and there was no word from the doctor. He finally came out looking very sad. “How is she doctor?” Holly said standing up. It was obvious she had been crying. Jack was behind her with a worried look in his eyes. He hadn’t said anything to anyone since he put Laura in her bunk. “She’s a strong girl. If it was anyone else I don’t think she would make it. She has a few broken rips, bruises, a concussion, and some cuts but I think she’ll be fine.” He went over to Kloppman telling him what he would have to do to help heal Laura. The doctor told everyone that it would be a good idea to stay out of the room but once he left everyone piled in there around Laura.

It was about midnight when she finally woke up. She for a minute she didn’t know where she was or what had happen to her. Everything was a big blur. She tried to get up but soon realize that that was pretty much impossible. “Shit.” She muttered to herself. She fell back in the bed knowing that she wasn’t going anywhere soon. She sighed to herself not knowing what to do. She had to pee and it was impossible to get the washroom. She tried getting up again this time holding onto the bed post for dear life. She shuffled her way over to washroom pulling the string to turn the light on. When she was done doing her business she walked out and was startled to see Jack standing there. “Hi.”

Jack smiled and walked closer to her to help support her. “How did you get here?”

“It wasn’t an easy task I tell ya. I had to go.”

Jack laughed a little. “You should go back to bed and get your rest.”

“You have to do something for me though.” Jack had a questioning look on his face. “You have to kiss my boo boos.” She said smiling pointing to a scratch that was on her lip. Jack smiled and slowly moved closer to her kissing her lightly on the lips. “Oh come on this is Jack Kelly that’s all I get?”

“Disappointed?”

She hesitated for a minute and smiled. “Never.” She pulled Jack in for another kiss, this time more passionate and longer. They suddenly heard a noise and they looked at who was at the door. “You guys are perverts you know that?”

Blue and Holly came around the corner laughing. “She’s the one that wanted to see some action.” Holly said pointing to Blue.

“You officially just ruin the moment. I guess I can go back to bed now. Help me people I can’t shuffle all the way back to my bed.”

“Damn she’s even more bitchier then ever!” Blue said going over to her and helping her to her bed. “You know it would be funny if I accidentally tripped and fall.”

“No, no it wouldn’t.” Laura said glaring at Blue. They all helped her over to her bed being extra careful to make sure Blue wouldn’t ‘accidentally’ trip and fall. After Blue and Holly left Jack bent down to be eye to eye with Laura.

“Did you really sleep with Oscar?”

“Eww.” She said smiling. “I was trying to make you jealous. Did it work?”

“Oh yes.” He said kissing her one more time before going to bed.

Laura fell on top of Jack has they ran through the park laughing. “Fine fine you win!” Jack yelled as she pulled his arm behind his back.

“You need to say it!”

“UNCLE! UNCLE!” He said through his laughs.

“See told ya I could take care of you.” She got up enough to roll Jack over and he was now on his back looking up at Laura who was sitting on him.

“GET A ROOM!” Blue yelled from a distance holding Spot’s hand.

Laura ‘helped’ Jack up as they saw Blue and Spot walking towards them. A couple of months after Laura had gotten soaked Blue decided to move to Brooklyn, then a week later she moved back to Manhattan stating the obvious, she couldn’t stand Brooklyn newsies. Spot and Blue had been going out successfully for two months without a fight.

“Your just jealous.”

“Of what?”

“That I actually have a guy whose taller than 10 year old.” She said smiling.

“I take offense to that!” Spot said with a smirk.

“That was the point.” She wrapped her arm around Jack. What Laura thought was going to be the end of her life that one nightmare of a day actually was the beginning of it. She and Jack officially started going out the next day and was by her side until she was able to walk on her own again. They still got on each other nerves and got into fights (not as much as Blue and Spot though) but the best part, of course, was making up

“Have you seen Holly?” Blue asked.

“No. I saw her this morning with Mush but you know they could be anywhere.

“BORA! BLUE!”

They both turned around and saw Holly running towards them. “Look what Mush gave me.”

“Is it a frog?” Blue asked getting a closer look at it.

“Yep I named it Jeremiah!”

Laura started to crack up laughing. “Oh that Mush is a romantic!”

Holly pulled her frog closer to her. “Hey I like frogs.”

Laura shook her head and looked up at Jack. “What’s wrong? You’ve been quiet.”

“You got something on your lip.”

“Oh I do?”

“Yeah let me get it.” He bent down and kissed her on her lip softly. Blue rolled her eyes. “God that’s all you guys do! Now come on.”

“Where we going?” Holly asked.

“To Tibby’s. David said something about a surprise.”

All five of them headed over to Tibby’s to see a camera set up. “What’s this all about?” Jack asked seeing Denton there.

“It’s been two years since your strike! It’s an anniversary picture.” Laura stepped to the side thinking that it wouldn’t be appropriate to be in the picture knowing that she wasn’t involved in the strike. “Oh no you don’t. Your part of the Manhattan newsies now. You need to be in the picture.” Jack said pulling her into the picture.

“Everyone say Pulitzer.” Denton yelled from behind the camera.

“PULITZER.”

****

The dad looked down at the picture. All these memories came flooding back from when his grandfather told him the same story every time he went and visited him in New York when he was younger. The picture explained perfectly how everyone felt towards each other. Jack’s arm around Laura, Spot’s arm across his chest acting tough with Blue next to him rolling her eyes, Holly leaning on Mush, and everyone else gathered around them leaning, hugging, or just plain smiling at each other.

He looked down to see his son wasn’t awake anymore. “Poor kid.”

“Jack? Jack?” The dad turned his head to her his wife coming through the door.

“I’m in here honey.” He whispered. She walked through the room and saw the boy asleep in his dad’s lap and the picture in the dad’s hands.

“I’m sure your grandfather would be so happy that your carrying on the stories he has told you.”

“I only told him about Laura. There are many more.”

“Still. It’s your family history. You should be proud of it.” She said wrapping her arms around her husband. “Let’s go to bed.”