A.N. How do you guys feel about Jack having a daughter yah,nay, and how would you guys feel about me fleshing out the inner workings of the newsies I can do one chapter about it and see how you guys like it and maybe if you want a more specific event or interaction between characters pm me or comment and I know those who like Jackerine are probably disappointed but I will get into more of that later. This is pre-strike because it's easier to write sad stuff that way it's the fall/winter right before the strike.
Jack heads up to his 'penthouse', it's one in the morning and he is ready to sleep. He's been in the living room all night waiting for Race, though it wasn't the first time he'd spent a late night in the living room. He's stayed up till almost dawn waiting for a boy to get back from a date or an adventure. He shivers against the cool fall air. He should head back inside, but he needs time to think.
He sits and runs a hand through his hair. Today had been a day that made him long for Santa Fe; those days led to these kind of nights. Nights where Jack realized there's only so much he can handle, that he's not the great figure the boys think him to be.
He tries to collect his thoughts and prioritize the upcoming week, but it was made hard by his rumbling stomach. That was nowhere near as distracting as the thoughts of the whimpers Jack knew were happening right below his feet.
This week had been horrible for stories, which was bad news for the boys who didn't know how to improve the truth. Heck it's even been bad for Jack, who hasn't been getting back till nightfall. Now was the most important time to sell all his papers though. Winter was coming, which many sickness, Mike and Ike were already comming down with something, and sickness ment medicine. Jack had a stash of medicine from years prior, but it was running low and medicine didn't come cheap. Winter also ment less people walking the streets, which wasn't going to help sales.
Jack rubbed his face and got a reminder of what happened today. The Delanceys were antsier than usual and had ganged up on Romeo. Jack stepped in and had the shinner to prove it. Things then because worse at lunch when some of the boys hadn't sold much so Jack covered their lunch leaving him with no money to pay for his own lunch.
Another gust of wind came and blew through the holes in his jacket. He closed his eyes and began to fantasize about Santa Fe, where it was warm all the time with no worry of boys crying out in hunger. It was a good thing Jack's eyes were closed though, because if they weren't he would have seen Specs on the ladder, watching his leader be overwhelmed by the harsh reality he tried to shield most of the boys from. The thing Specs couldn't see though were the tears that leaked out of Jack's closed eyes as he muttered a silent prayer for him and the boys.
A.N. Sorry for it being so short but I wanted to write one with a lot more human Jack, than what is normally written.
