I'm a hernst blog now, actually

They all worked in tandem though, to make Jack’s life easier. Up on the rooftops, no one could see him, and down below, amongst the newsies, no one would tell. But to be fair, he had only told a few people. He was surprised at how long Race was able to keep his mouth shut about this though. He deserved more credit. And Crutchie, well Crutchie was Jack’s best friend, and in the same way Jack would never let anything happen to Crutchie, Crutchie made sure nothing bad would ever happen to Jack. 

That was, until there were some new faces among the crowd. Two boys, one older and one significantly younger. Jack was making his way to introduce himself, but Crutchie had gotten to them first. He managed to hear the tail end of their conversation. 

“...wese a pretty tight knit group here, we’ll watch out for you, ‘s long as you watch out for us.” 

“We’ll see about that.” The older boy said, clearly one to keep to himself. Boy was he going to have a hard time here. 

“Hey Jack!” Crutchie greeted him once he finally made his way over. “This is David and Les.” 

“Pleasure to meetcha Davey.” Jack said, sticking his hand out. He knew David’s type, all work and no play. Jack could work with that. 

“It’s Dav-.” He started, before finally looking at Jack. He all but froze when he looked at him. Their eyes met for a moment, and Jack saw three things, one, some sort of recognition, cogs moving into the place, and for a moment Jack was afraid that he knew. And if David knew, then things could turn disastrous. But he also saw something else. Not only was there recognition, but there was this fear of his own, a fear of himself. But behind all that, he saw curiosity, hope maybe. Yeah, he definitely could work with that. 

Their moment didn’t last though, interrupted by Les. 

“Crutchie was telling us that you’re the best at selling! Do you think you could help us out? Since it’s our first day and all.” 

This kid knew how to play people like a fiddle, and while Jack was typically not one to be played, this was certainly an exception. 

“Sure thing, kid.” Jack smiled, before tapping his hat down in front of his eyes. “Let’s getcha some papes and I’ll show youse the ropes.”

They were walking to Jack’s selling spot, right on the corner of a bakery. He knew the baker and was always able to get the week old bread and bring it back to the newsies. That gave him an idea for later. 

“Alright, so here’s how you start. You take your pape,” he says, taking a paper out of his bag, putting it in Davey’s hand, “an’ you hold it up, like so.” He raises Davey’s hand, waving it around a bit, encouraging him to do so. 

He saw the way Davey’s eyebrows raised at the blatant touching of hands, and the way his face had started to flush. Quickly, Davey pulled his hand out of Jack’s and took a step back. While Jack was admittedly joking, he still felt hurt at his reaction, but he knew how to hide it. 

He did the same with Les, who looked up at his brother with knowing eyes, and whether or not it was accidental, hit his brother in the face with his paper, shouting, “Paper! Morning’s paper! Get it right here!” 

“Well I’ll be, kid’s already got it.” Jack said, grinning. 

“Mornin’ paper! Ships sinking in the middle of the Atlantic!” He yelled. Soon enough, someone had come to buy his paper and Les’.

“Thank you young man.” It was just a passing comment, but it was enough to make Jack’s day. 

“That was lie.” Davey spat out after they had left, making Jack frown. 

“Hey,” Jack said, his tone authoritative, “we all gotta lie sometimes to save our own asses.” His statement was just so that it set the mood for the rest of the day. They sold in silence, except for the shouting of headlines. While they didn’t make eye contact, there seemed to be some unspoken sympathy and respect that Davey now had for Jack. And to make matters worse, after Jack had finished selling his own papers, he took some of Davey’s to sell, putting the money right into his hand. Jack was making it very hard for Davey not to like him. 

With their papers sold, Davey bid Jack a goodnight, intending to get away from him as soon as possible, before Jack called out after him. 

“Hey Davey! Uh, if youse ever, if youse and Les ever wanna, uh, come back to the lodging house and hang out with me and that gang, you’re welcome to it.” He said, sheepishly. 

Davey looks up at him and Jack smiles, he can see that he’s genuinely considering it, but he shakes his head. “Another time.” He says, before turning away. 

Another time. Jack was going to make sure there was in fact another time. 

They continued on like that for a week. They would meet up in the morning, buy their papers, go sell them on the corner of the bakery, and then Jack would invite them back to the lodging house and Davey would decline, despite his brother’s pleading. 

Jack continued finding ways to fluster Davey, whether it be brushing shoulders with him on benches, slapping his thigh to get him up, and touching his face when he made a joke. He managed to get Davey to smile a lot more that week, and really, that was enough for Jack. Just seeing the guy come out of his shell and get more comfortable around him. 

It was a day, just like any other Jack and Davey and Les had spent together selling, but it was also the day that Jack picked up the bread and pastries and such. 

“Alright fellas, I’m gonna have to say goodnight early today. It’s been a pleasure.” He said, tipping his hat before going around to the back of the bakery. When he came back though, Davey and Les were still there.

“Don’t you guys gotta get home?” He asked. 

“Actually, um…” Davey started, face and neck flushing. 

“We were hoping to come back with you to the lodging house!” Les finished for him. Jack smiled, oh how quickly tides could turn. 

“Yeah, for sure.” He says, nodding his head for them to follow him. “You guys chose a good night to come over, we’ve got some treats.” He said, holding up the bag. 

They make their way back to the lodging house, Les filling in the silence that fell between Davey and Jack. They walked next to each other, and Jack couldn’t help the smile that graced his face as their hands brushed occasionally. Every once in a while when that happened, he would glance over at Davey. He wasn't as shaken up about it as he had the past week, and if Jack looked hard enough, he would see just the quirk of a smile on the corners on his lips. 

When they reached the lodging house, a cheer went up as they saw Jack with his bag of treats. They all came rushing forward, asking about what he brought, before they looked over to Davey and Les, and cheered again. Davey saw some exchanges of money in hands, as if they had bet on him. It was interesting to see so many people interested in him. 

As soon as the door to the lodging house closed, with all the newsies inside, Davey both saw and felt a shift in mood. It was like a weight was lifted off of all their shoulders now that they didn’t have to face the prying eyes of New York City. As the energy changed, he saw newsies sitting together, playing cards and eating pastries, sharing jokes and pillows and blankets, it was something that he had never seen before up close, and he felt a weight begin to lift off his own shoulders. He saw Les make his way over to a group of younger kids playing jacks, and they welcomed him with open arms. Something Davey had never experienced. 

Lost in his thoughts, Jack manages to bring Davey back to the present by tapping on his shoulder. His hand slides down his arm, lingering on his hand, pulling it gently as he stepped back, silently asking him to follow. 

Davey did, and was soon led up to the top of the lodging house. He could see the stars up here, and feel the wind. He could practically see all of Manhattan, and it felt wonderful. 

“What is this?” Davey asked, quietly. 

“This is my penthouse.” Jack said, taking a seat. He took a piece of bread out of his bag and ripped it in two. He handed a piece to Davey before speaking again. 

“Do you ever feel like, there’s a part of you youse gotta hide in order for the world to see you as you want them to see you?” 

Davey is speechless for a moment, the question surprising him. He responds instantly though once he processed it. “Yes. All the time.” 

“And ya think that if you put in all this effort, all this work, to look normal, and some people still don’t see it?”

“Of course.” He says, moving towards Jack.

“You try so hard sometimes and it just isn’t enough. And it hurts, real bad, and you think, what’s the point?” 

Davey is silent again, as he sits next to Jack, collecting his thoughts. 

“Them.” He says, simply.

“What?”

“Them, the other newsies. You try for them, to make their world a better place.” 

“Yeah, but I’ve got no idea if it’s workin’.” Jack admits. 

“It is. I assure you.” Davey says, taking the bread out of Jack’s hand and setting it aside. 

“Not so sure I can take your word for it.” Jack says, smiling at Davey, his face coming closer. 

Davey hesitates for a moment, before finally meeting him the rest of the way. Their lips collide and Jack’s hand immediately comes up to cup Davey’s face, it feels like it belongs there. Davey can feel his mouth part slightly, and his teeth hitting Jack’s. He’s never kissed anyone, certainly not another boy, but Jack didn’t pull away. He just smiled into the kiss and helped correct it. Davey felt his head get turned slightly, and it made kissing Jack all the easier. He wanted more so desperately, his hands had turned into fists, balled with Jack’s shirt, pulling him closer. His hands catch on something underneath and Jack pulls away. In a retelling of this event, Davey would leave out the part where his mouth followed Jack’s to the point of him falling into the other boy, as well as the fear on Jack’s face. 

“Jack… are you okay?” Davey asks, eyes scanning Jack’s face.

“Yeah. I’m alright.” He says, turning away from him. In doing so, he doesn’t see the pain that paints Davey’s face. 

When Jack turns back, part of his shirt is undone, and Davey can see the binding on his chest. 

“Guess we’ve both got our secrets, huh?” Jack says, sheepishly, trying his best to make himself smaller. 

“We do.” Davey says, pulling Jack closer again. He pulls him into his arms and holds him for a moment, before Jack pulls away yet again. 

“You’re not upset?” He asks, voice small.