Reunited (A Newsie Fanfiction)

Chapter 6

Isabella realized soon after that running away from Katherine might've been a mistake. She ran until she was far enough from Tibby's and her aunt's. She made sure nobody was following her before taking in her surroundings. 

There were old beat up buildings all around her. Few people walked through the streets in that dark. The place was by no means friendly nor welcoming in appearance. Through the darkness she saw a figure moving in her direction. Slowly, Isabella backed up, trying subtly to get away. 

She backed up until her back bumped into something, causing her to jump and yell in surprise. The person she bumped into did the same. The small girl turned to see two tall muscular boys glaring down at her. 

"I- I'm sorry..."

"Watch where ya goin next time." The boy she'd bumped into said through puffs of cigarette smoke.

Isabella coughed and took a few steps back from the boys. She heard footsteps behind her and tensed up, knowing running from three people wouldn't end well for her. She stood still, frozen in fear.

"What ah you boys doin? She's just a little goil." A girl's voice sounded.

 Isabella turned to see a girl about her height but older. Her hair was cut short and she wore dirty clothes and a Newsie hat. She carried a paper bag too. The girl smiled at her, and she smiled back.

"I'm Smalls, and these two are Smokey and Jumps. Don't mind them, they're just not very friendly." She smirked at the boys, causing their glares to be aimed at her rather than Isabella. 

"Um, I'm Isabella..." She stuttered nervously. "Where are we..?" 

Smalls grinned. "The Bronx. And where are you supposed to be?"

"I- um- I've got nowhere to go. I was in Mahattan, but I don't have a place to stay or anything." The girl realized her helplessness as the words came out of her mouth.

Smalls' smile faded as Isabella spoke. Her eyes filled with pity.

"I- okay. Here. You can come with us."

"Where are you going?"

"The Bronx Newsies lodging house. It's where the newsies that can afford to sleep." She explained to Isabella, extending her hand to her.

Isabella timidly took Smalls' hand, having nowhere else to go. The four walked to the Bronx lodging house and got Isabella a place to sleep. Jumps grudgingly agreed to bring Isabella back to Manhattan tomorrow morning at Smalls' request. Isabella wasn't sure how to feel of having to go with the boy, but she didn't complain. With all that she'd been through that day, she went to sleep very quickly. 

In the morning, the newsies all got ready to go sell their papers before waking up Isabella. She woke quickly, looking around nervously at all the boys looking at her. Smalls introduced her to everyone before showing her to Jumps. 

"I'll see ya 'round." Smalls smiled.

"Yeah. Thanks for everything Smalls."  Isabella replied with a smile before giving Smalls a hug.

Then her and Jumps began to walk back to Manhattan. She knew she needed to decide where to go- quickly.