Ink or Blood

Chapter Two

Tommy Boy leaned against the edge of his bed, watching Specs lecture Mush as the six-year-old teetered precariously close to the edge of the top bunk. "Ya shouldn't be up dere, remember what happened last time?"

"I's bein' more careful," Mush reassured while Tommy Boy shot a sideways glance at Socks, who was dead to the world. How he managed to fall asleep amidst the chaos of the lodging house was beyond Tommy.

"Mush!" Specs' voice drew everyone's attention to the bed the boy had previously occupied; it was empty. A loud groan came from the floor below, where Mush laid in a heap, a growing circle of red pooled around his face.

At the sight of blood, Tommy Boy sprung into action. "Where's Wren?"

"On a walk with Albert and Race," Elmer offered.

"Good." Specs gave a sharp nod as he helped Mush off the floor and carefully inspected his nose. "Should someone wake Socks?"

Tommy Boy raised his eyebrow. "Do ya want ta deal with the grizzly bear?"

"Fair point. Fox shoulda left someone else in charge."

"Like who?" Mush piped up, creating a well for the dripping blood with his hands. "Socks is da oldest, by a long shot."

Specs shrugged, standing up to grab a rag. "Not da most attentive, though."

"What's dat mean?" Mush asked, using the cloth to wipe his nose.

"Not awake," Specs rephrased as the door to the lodging house creaked open. Exchanging looks with Tommy Boy, Specs hurried down the stairs, hoping Fox had returned.

A small thud sounded as Specs slipped, words tumbling out of his mouth. "Where were ya? Mush nearly killed himself jumping off one of da bunks."

"I did not." The younger boy pushed past the other boys to amend Specs' statement and reassure Fox he was alright.

"Wren?" The unfamiliar voice caught Tommy Boy's attention, the weight of the words hitting him. He groaned, running his hand across his face, Mush. No doubt Wren had reacted to the sight of the blood that had still been trailing down Mush's chin. Shaking his head, Tommy glanced around the room, trying to find something to wipe the blood left behind on the wooden floorboards.

"Jack's back." Specs called as he ushered Mush back into the bunk room, urging him to sit down. Resorting to one of Socks' shirts, Tommy Boy cleaned up the floor before joining Specs and Mush.

Mush silently sat on the edge of the table while Specs gingerly touched his nose. "I think it's broken."

"Why does Wren freak out at the sight of blood?" Mush asked, ignoring the older boy's assessment.

Tommy Boy shrugged. "I think it has somethin' ta do with whatever happened before 'er and Jack came ta the lodging house."

Mush nodded, wincing briefly at the movement as more blood trickled down his chin. Tommy held out the shirt still in his hand. "Here, use this."

"Thanks."

After a couple of minutes, Specs leaned back. "The bleeding at least slowed down."

"Dat's good," Mush stated with a yawn, his eyes drifting closed. "No more bunk beds for a while."

"I agree," Fox's voice echoed from behind them. "Dis is Tommy Boy, Specs, and Mush."

Spinning around to face the older boy, Tommy raised his eyebrows in surprise at the young girl standing beside Albert. She offered him a tired smile, "Avery DaSilva."

"Albert's sister," Specs noted, momentarily forgetting his manners. "Ya becomin' a newsie too?"

"I think so." She glanced over at Mush. "How's your nose?"

"It's a little sore. Specs says I broke it."

She walked over to him and gently picking up another cloth, and wiped the blood from his hands, sympathy in her eyes. "I get it. Broken noses hurt."

"Have ya broke yer nose before?" Mush asked curiously.

Avery's hands fell, and she blinked before responding. "Once."

"What didja do?"

Avery bit her lip, casting a sideways glance at Albert. "Ran into a wall."

As Mush yawned again, Fox picked up the little newsboy and urged the others into bed. Passing Socks' bunk, he paused, staring at his second in command for a moment before letting out a sigh. Sock was a great Newsie but definitely not a leader.

"Avery seems nice," Mush murmured while Fox slipped him into his bunk. "Kinda like an angel."

"Is that so?" The Manhattan leader asked with a smile, Mush's light snoring his only answer. Across the room, Tommy boy stared at the ceiling, willing himself to sleep. However, his body seemed to ignore his wishes because the later it got, the more awake he felt. After a couple of hours, he gave up tossing aside the covers and climbing onto the fire escape.

The cool evening air settled his racing thoughts as a wave of contentment washed over him. Leaning against the railing, Tommy Boy looked up into the black sky glittering with stars and whispered into the darkness, "Hey Essie, I miss ya."

A noise from the bunkroom startled him, and he looked back through the window to see Avery stumble over someone's shoe. Realizing she had an audience, her cheeks turned pink.

"Ya okay?" He mouthed, gesturing for her to join him. She hesitated for a second before moving in his direction.

"Alby left his shoes on the floor."

"We all tend ta do dat."

"Good to know." A laugh bubbled from her lips, her eyes glued to the sky. "It's beautiful out here."

"It is. Ya can see da whole sky on da roof, but Jack went ta sleep up there," Tommy Boy noted, shifting to look at her.

She shuddered. "Does he normally sleep up there?"

"Not normally." Pausing for a moment, Tommy studied her. "Avery, are ya scared of heights?"

She turned to face him, startled. "How'd you know?"

"Yer not lookin' down."

"A little." Her face paled as she admitted the truth.

"Don't worry, I won't tease ya about it. After all, I's afraid of cats."

Her eyes widened. "Cats?"

"Yes, cats. When I was younger, I found dis cat in an alley and decided ta try and take it home, 'cept the cat wasn't on board with da plan." Tommy Boy flipped his wrist over to reveal three white scars climbing his forearm. "He had sharp claws, dat's for sure."

Avery's dark eyes glistened with laughter. "I can see why ya don't like them."

"Yer laughing," He whined playfully.

"Never," She teased. "I have a new nickname for ya."

"Oh?"

"Tom Cat."

"Hey." He stuck out his tongue at her before gesturing to the sky. "Do ya ever wonder what da stars are?"

Adjusting to the sudden change of topics, Avery smiled. "I once made the mistake of askin' Alby. He told me that they were fireflies that flew too high and got stuck."

"Of course he did."

She cocked her head at him. "What do you think?"

He shrugged. "My mudda use to tell me da they were openings ta heaven and da angels would watch over us through them. Every time a star falls, it means someone no longer needs an angel ta watch over them."

Avery looked back at the sky. "I like that better than fireflies."

"Me too."