Chapter 15

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I gasp as he pulls me to my feet gently. I fall into him since my legs are weak and one of my feet won't work at all. He holds me gently letting me sob against his muscled chest. I shouldn't cry infront of him but at this point I can't hold them in any longer.

"Shhh,"He says running his fingers through my hair,"The guy is gone and he ain't comin back."

Morris sits down, pulling me down with him so that I am sitting on his lap. I sob,"B-but the guy he he said that he wasn't d-done wit me." I'm shaking with fear. This has to be the man that everyone always talks about.

"He won't hurt you'se eva again. I'm gonna make sure he doesn't. I failed with Christie and I ain't wit you,"He says kissing the top of my head.

A single spark.

That's all it takes to turn into something more.

In that moment a single spark ignited when Morris kissed my head. A single spark that I prayed hadn't happened.

But it had happened.

* * *

My left shin is swollen and I can't put any weight on it at the moment. Morris examines it gently as the tears finally stop rolling down my cheeks and dry up.

"Morris,"I ask gently touching his shoulder.

He looks up at me slightly concerned,"You might have a splintered bone heah. It might just be chipped or it may have even broke clean through. You'se need a doctor."

"I can't afford a doctor,"I say looking away ashamed of how little I have.

His eyes lock on mine,"I do. I'm goin ta carry you'se. Is dat alright?"

I shake my head,"I can't take money from you."

"Think of it as dat creep takin money from me. He's the one who did this," Morris says his eyes glinting with just a hint of humor and also revenge.

"Now is it alright if I carry you'se," he asks gently back to how he has been with me this whole time.

I smile just a little and he relaxes slightly,"Of course you can carry me. I don't think I can walk at all at this moment."

I expect him to just sling me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes but he cradles me in his arms like I am a child. We walk slowly. After awhile of silence I look up at his face. It's an interesting face.

Morris's jaw is clenched determined and a single bead of sweat roles down his forehead. His lips are soft but seem to be bitten quite a bit. A scar runs along the right side of his neck from his ear to below his collar bone. The most interesting thing are his eyes. A dark blue color that almost matches the night sky. They gleam now with so many emotions that it shouldn't be right.

Determination.

Sadness.

Love.

Fear.

Those are the four main emotions that thrive there. Under all of those emotions is something that hides in the shadows. He used to be happy. Something hurt him so that his happiness can never really thrive again. This hurt made him seem cruel.

"Who is Christie,"I ask gently.

Morris's jaw clenches even tighter before I feel his whole body loosen. Then the story just flows out of him,"She was me sister."

I breath out a little sigh of relief. He catches it grinning,"She was me sister and she was a newsie. I used ta be a newsie meself. Oscar too. One day we is walkin home. We got home like normal and when we walked inside it was awful. Blood everywhere and me Ma an Da dead.

"The man just looked at us. A young man then wit da voice a the devil himself. He laughed seeing us all look so sad. It hadn't even really hit us yet. I was young then, just hit my 6 birthday. Oscar was only 8. Christine was 15 though an she thought she could attack him. She lunged at him yellin things I hadn't even heard my parents say befoah. She knocked him down foah a second but he got her anyhow. Oscar tried ta help her but I was frozen in shock. He killed her easy.

"Once she was gone I was able ta get out a my shock and help Oscar. We left a few pretty good shiners on da guy too. He jumped out the window landing on da fire escape and he yelled that he was determined ta kill everyone we eva hold deah."

"Wiesel is my uncle. He got da job as pape distributah days afta the death. He promoted us to help him keep the newsies in line since the fat ole man doesn't have any muscle on his own."

"We neva heard from the guy foah years. We thought he might neva come back at all. Afta the strike we noticed the goil newsies start disappearin. We knew immediately who had done it. He can't catch the guys an he don't wanna risk being taken down so he goes afta all the newsie goils."

I put my arms around his neck as I feel something fall on my face. It is either rain or a tear. It actually turns out to be rain and Morris sprints me to a little hospital. We get inside completely soaked.

A pretty little nurse dressed in all white smiles at Morris,"I thought we heard the last of you last month. Are you hurt again? You must stop doing dangerous things!"

The nurse flirts with him easily. Morris isn't so amused though and I grin against his chest. He looks at the nurse as if she doesn't have a brain,"Um I'm kinda holdin a goil heah with a bright purple swollen ankle! She needs help."

The nurse glares at me and storms off to tell the doctor with her little heels clicking madly. I look at my pretty dress and see that it is badly torn. Morris sees it too,"Im real sorry about that dress."

I smile up at him,"Oh it's fine. I'm just glad it's not me that is all ripped up."

"I'm glad I was theah when I was or you'se woulda been,"He says darkly looking away.

We are silent until a man that looks like a doctor comes to take me to a little room. It's an all white room with strange objects scattered on a little table beside me. The doctor looks at my ankle and frowns,"It's broken alright. All you have to do Miss is try to stay off it as much as you can. I'll give you a crutch and I'll wrap your ankle so that no more of the bones will move."

After that fiasco my ankle is wrapped up tight and I'm holding a crutch as Morris caries me home.

"Ya know I could of walked myself since I have the crutch now,"I say ginning at him.

He smiles down at me,"No way in hell would I let you'se limp home. Besides this is good excersize foah me."

The door to the apartment is open when we get there with a nervous Race and Davey standing in it. Once they see me they immediately take me and our me on the sofa. Race turns on Morris faster than should be possible.

"How did dis happen Delancey,"Race ask sticking his nose right in Morris's face.

Morris explains everything to them while we sit in the living room. He stands up to leave after saying the story. Race stays planted next to me looking shocked at how close a call it was. Davey follows Morris to the door thanking him quietly.

"It was no problem,"Morris says looking at me. The eye contact is short and broken quickly but again a spark ignites deep in my heart.

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