Stray on Strike

You have got to be kidding me!

I open the door to the Lounging House. Mr. Koppleman is asleep at his desk. I don't blame him it is probably around 11:20 pm.  This has been quite possibly the most chaotic night of my life. I haven't even gotten a moment to breathe.

I quickly creep up the steps so that I don't wake Koppleman from his slumber. I make it to the floor were we all sleep. I don't see the guys.

But just then Race pops out of nowhere. "Stray!" He yells. That scares me so much that's I trip and fall into Kid Blink's arm. "Oh my god!" I panted. It's almost like that they planned that. Kid Blink helps me back up and I mutter a thanks to him. I wasn't in the mood for that, let's just say. "Ya hair looks like a mess." Kid Blink tells me.

I playfully nudge him. "I have had long night, okay."

Buttons then appears along with all of the newsies excluding Jack and Crutchie but including Davey ad Les. I point to Davey and Les. "Aren't you guys supposed to be home? Like your home?" I ask them. No one says anything. Nothing at all comes out of their mouths. Not even a little peep. "What's going on?" I say nervously.

Again no one says anything. They are making me to believe that Mr. Koppleman isn't sleeping down there. They are making me believe the worst has happened. "YOU AND DA DELANCEY KISSED!" Ike yells rapidly. They all smack the back of his head and shout his name at him. "I'm sorry Ise couldn't keep in anymore."

"How did you find ou-" I mumble and then cut myself off. I get angry and I look directly at Davey. "DAVID JACOBS! You promised you wouldn't tell anyone!"

I stomp over to him and I grab his vest and I pull him towards me. "I tried Denise. I really did." I'm starting to get used to Davey calling me by my real name.

Specs pipes up, "Wait! Who's Denise?"

I groan and let go of Davey and look over at him. "I'm Denise."

Boots then starts to talk. "But you're Stray."

I sigh and look over to them. "That's my newsies name. I had a real name before."

Race takes the cigar out of his mouth and looks over at me. "How come dat Davey gets ta call you Denise and we call ya Stray?"

I cheekily say. "You never asked for my real name. Davey did."

Elmer yells at the top of his lungs. "CAN WES GET BACK TA DA OSCAR AND STRAY SMOOCH?!?!"

I forgot that what we were talking about. I groan and face plan my face. "It wasn't a smooch!" I yell at them. Everyone looks at me weird.

"Now that you all have finally shut up. Let me tell you what really happened. I ran into Oscar and Morris on the street. They started bad mouthing Crutchie. So I told them off." I take a pause from me to breathe. "I tried to leave, but Oscar had a grip on my arm. Morris pushed me into Oscar and he grabbed me so I couldn't moved. Then it happened.... I didn't know what to do. I was in shock. When I finally came to I smacked him with a crutch and ran off."

"Out of all da things dat da Delancey Brudders dun. That's gotta be da meanest." Mike says sympathetically taking off his hat and crossing his arms.

"I didn't know dat. I just thought you were questioning ya taste in men. Geez! Oscar really is a crook." Bumlets says quietly and timidly.

"Stop pitying me would ya. I don't need charity from you guys." I say turning away and trying to walk over to my bunk. Race steps in front of me and blocks by path way. "Whatca sayin' that you're too good to have us worry." He snaps at me. "Yous like our sister. We have a right to worry about our sister."

I sigh and put my hand in his shoulder. "That's not what I meant.......I'm saying that I do not want people freaking out about this because, well. Oscar already kissed me. It's in the past. And we can't go back and change that. So just move on." Race pull me into a hug and pats my back. I nod and he lets go of me.

Davey steps forward out from the crowd of newsies. "Well I don't want to move on."

"What?" I raise my eyebrow and look at him. He speaks up again. "The Delancey  Brothers have walked all over you and us all the time. Sure, you talk them off and punch them. But they don't stop."

I walk over to him. "So we all will win the strike and show them who they really are up against. They won't even think twice about soakin us no more. Cause we are the people that made Joseph Pulitzer pee in his pantys." Davey merely looks at me. Then Les, who hasn't gotten a word in at all, yells at the top of his lungs. "YEAH!"

Specs takes his glasses off and chuckles. "Aye I'll like ta see da Delancey Brudders scared of us."

Race pops and lights his cigar. He talks though it. "Ya can't without your specs, Specs."

Les runs in between the two men. "The Delanceys are already scared." He looks at his brother and smiles. That in return makes me spread a light smile across my face. The kid has a point.

"You bet your butt the Delanceys are scared!" I hear a voice say. I turn to look at who it is and there on the staircase stand Jack with Katherine standing not that far behind him. I notice a slight difference. They are holding each other's hands. I guess Katherine finally fessed up her feelings to him.

Jack keeps on talking once he has everyone's attention. "Weasel, Synder, Pulitzer...All of them is goin' to be scared. Cuz, Katherine's gotta plan that's going to leave them speechless. They won't put us in the paper. We'll have our own paper and we make the headline. Katherine is going to write what's really going on. The prices, the refuge everything. So don't ever doubt that she is not on our side. And us, we are going to give everyone in this town that can read, our newspaper. The Newsies Banner."

Everyone stands still. I swear it's so quiet you could hear someone blink. He is nervous that they don't care anymore, but let me assure you they are one-hundred percent into this strike. So I shout at the top of my lungs and I throw my fist up into the air. "STRIKE!"

Then Mike,Ike, and Buttons start to chant with me. "STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE!" Then Elmer, Les, Race, Boots and Mush join in with us. "STRIKE STRIKE STRIKE STRIKE STRIKE." Then Davey and everyone one else starts to chant. "STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE! STRIKE!"

Then everyone starts cheering and laughing. I push my way through the crowd and run up to Jack. He hugs me and I hug him back. We both pull away and look at each other. "It's good to have you back Mr. President."

"Katherine told me you saw her pop." He says putting his hand on my shoulder. She nods confirming what he just said was correct. I look down at the ground for a moment and then I look back up at him. "He offered me a job, tryin' buy me out."

Jack signs and takes he's arm off of my shoulder and puts both of his hands on his hips. "He pulled that same thing on m-"

"-Jack I know. He gave you enough of his pocket change for ticket straight to New Mexico." I say. I didn't mean for it to come out so sad, but it did. I guess I can not hide my emotions as easily as I used to be able to.

Jack looks at me and puts both of his hands on my shoulders. "Stray, you know I wouldn't go to Santa Fe and leave you behind." We both look into each other's eyes and he pulls me into a hug. I look over his shoulder while we are hugging. Katherine is giving me a cheesy thumbs up and huge grin plastered on her face.

We let go of each other when we hug. Katherine them runs to me and gives me a hug. It catches me off guard, but I give in and hug her back.

Jack looks at the two most important girls in his life. The girl he has fallen for and his best friend. He sparks up. "I do believe there is a printing press calling our names."