Family Don't Break

CHAPTER 21

JACK'S POV:

Sketching is always a way for me to relieve stress. The movement of the pencil, the focus. Everything else if forgotten for a moment. It's peaceful. The weight of the pencil grounds me, the crinkle of the paper a familiar sound. Each line makes sense, it has order. I watch something I love and capture the image on paper, all so I can hold on to it for longer.

"Hey Davey, what's a word for happy, six letters, starts with an E?" Alex asks. Her pencil hovers over the newspaper as she waits for an answer. "Elated. E-l-a-t-e-d." Davey replies. "Thanks." she quickly scribbles it down in the boxes. "I don't know how you do those things, it's so boring." Race says. "It's fun! You just don't have the brains to enjoy it," she jokes. Race dramatically puts a hand to his chest, pretending to be offended. "You wound me!"

"Hey, Race, you'll know this one. Brand of cigars, ends with an A." Race pulls the cigar out of his mouth and looks at the brand label. "Corona!" he says proudly. Alex jots down the word, telling him it fits.

"Synonym for idiot, four letters."

"Race!" Albert shouts out. "Hey!" Race yells. "It does fit..." Alex chuckles. "I don't get no respect around here!" Race sticks his cigar in his mouth and flops down onto a bed. "You know, when I run the biggest business in this whole city, you'll all be sorry." he states. "If that ever happens, I'll bite off my own elbows." Albert says. "Just you wait, I'll have my own car and a house big enough for all of you guys. It'll have a pool and everything."

"If I had money, I would buy a huge ranch out in the country. Lots of horses and sheep, maybe some chickens." Albert explains. "I would buy a house with a giant library full of classic books. And I would pay for university, and a good school for Les." Davey says.

"I would get one of those big houses, and a new gramophone to listen to music. If I wanted, I could go to the symphony whenever I wanted, get front row seats." I nod at Spec's dream. That sounds nice. "I could get tickets to the movies every weekend, and I could buy a nice winter jacket. One without holes." Jojo continues.

"What about you Alex?" I ask. She thinks for a moment before answering. "I would get a nice house, with enough room for all of you. It would have a garden, with flowers and everything. I'd get a dog and a cat, maybe a bird. I'd set up a whole art studio for Jack, and a library for Davey. Everyone would have their own room with their own bed, and nice clothes. We would eat like kings with three meals a day. And we'd have a heater so we wouldn't be cold during winter. It would be luxurious."

I watch Alex as she shares her fantasy. Her eyes glow with a far away look. She has a smile as she talks, painting a picture with her words. Everyone is silent as they listen to her, as enraptured as I am. I imagine all of us living in a nice house, like the one she described. I could get a nice job, maybe buy a ring for Alex one day. We could all have a normal life.

I don't even notice that I'm sketching Alex at first. I look down and see the outline that I've started, and I continue. I capture each beautiful line of her. I draw her smile, the one that's like pure sunshine. I draw her eyes, the ones that sparkle with joy. I draw her hair, falling gracefully down her back. I can't fully capture what makes her so beautiful on paper, but I can try. Every stroke brings the drawing closer and closer to life.

"Jack, that's amazing." I startle out of my trance to see Alex sitting next to me. The room is empty, everyone gone to grab dinner. She's peeking over at my drawing, her lips curved into a smile. "It's like looking in a mirror." she murmurs. "It's just a rough sketch. I can make it better-" she interrupts me. "It's perfect, Jack." she places a hand on my arm and leans forward to kiss my cheek. No matter how many times she does it, it always makes me blush.

"Do you mind if I hang it with my other drawings?" I ask. "Of course not." I get up and walk to my wall. It's covered with drawings. Some are done on newspaper, some on plain white. I have pictures of each newsie, of Medda and her shows. The wall is almost filled, but there's still room for one more. I grab a tack and pin the drawing to the wall, right in the middle.

I try to capture the moment in every pencil line. I feel like it sinks into the lead and paper, captures it in some way. I can remember each memory that goes along with each drawing. The one I have of Jojo is when he got his tooth knocked out in a fight. Spec's is when he got his first pair of real glasses. Katharine's is when she got her promotion.

And then there's Alex's. This drawing isn't like the others. It's not just one memory. It holds a year's worth of time, from our first meeting to moments ago. When I look at it, I see our story. It reminds me of how lucky I am to have her. I truly am the luckiest man in the world.

A/N: Crossword puzzles weren't invented until 1913, but we're just going to ignore that.