The Past Comes Back

Thinking Things Through

It was a very rainy day in Lower Manhattan, which meant that the newsies weren't able to sell as many papers as they usually would, which meant they only bought half their usual and then it was back to the Lodge.

While that was going on Will was wondering what he was going to do with Claire. Though he wanted her back so they could be a family again, even though she made it very clear that she didn't want nothing to do with him anymore, but he's her brother. So, that should count for something, right?

But things had changed in the ten years he's been gone. Claire wasn't the shy, and quiet girl he knew anymore, she was a tough, and loud news girl who's named "Feister". Will rolled his eyes at the stupid name.

What kind of idiot comes up with a name like that!? But that's beside the point. The point was that Claire had moved on with her life. She had a "new family" and "new brothers", and, on top of all of that there was a small chance that she had a crush on one of them.

In the little time he's been spying on Claire he noticed more and more that the one they called "Mush" seemed way too close to Claire for his liking. And Claire seemed to like..Mush as well, and Will didn't like the thought of his little sister liking a boy, even if she doesn't want anything to do with him he's still her brother.

It had been a few weeks since Will last saw Claire, which meant that the black and blue she gave him was gone. Which made him wonder to what happened to the shy, quiet and innocent girl he knew way back when?

Over at the Lodge the newsies were having the usual night in, which was the same old same old. But the good thing was that the next day Mush would be able to go selling again, and Feister was beyond excited. It had been four days since she had went back out on the streets.

But that was all going to change. Anyways, it was the same old same old, the boys were doing who knows what and Feister was playing a game of war with Mush, who had been acting a bit weirder than usual, but she shook it off thinking it was the after affect of the Refuge.

While Feister was shuffling the deck she was telling Mush about how the headlines still stink, the Delanceys stink even more, how she was excited for tomorrow, and a few things from before she became a newsie. Mush was listening with a smile since he loves hearing Feister's voice. While she was talking

Mush started to notice the little things about Feister that he's never really noticed before, like when she's trying to remember something she'll put her thumb in between her pinky and her ring finger and move her thumb up in a snapping motion. He didn't know how she was able to somehow snap all her fingers, she just did. That was the thing he noticed most about her.

"How do ya do that?" Mush asked without thinking very much.

Feister looked up with a very confused face. "Do what?" she asked. Mush then realized that he said something he didn't mean to say. His cheeks then started to turn pink when he saw she was waiting for him to answer.

"That snappin' thing," he managed to get out.

"Ya mean this?" Feister then started to snap all her fingers a few times. Mush nodded his head slightly. She smiled, then put the deck of cards on the nightstand and said, "Lemme see yer hand." Mush gulped but did so and tried hard not to blush as Feister was showing him how to snap all his fingers.

But he wasn't paying attention because her voice went in one ear and out the other. Her hand felt soft and smooth. It was also smaller than his and he guessed that if they were to hold hands it would feel like a tiny, little, fragile thing. Sure, they've held hands before. But that was before he realized he likes her.

While that was going on a million thoughts were running through Feister's head. She was trying hard not to blush since well...She accepted the fact that she likes Mush a long time ago and whenever she was around him she'd either feel awkward, or like she's on cloud 9.