Newsies One Shots

Prompt 13 - Jack x Crutchie

Today had been such a good day. Jack and Crutchie had planned to sell close by so they could gaze at each other without anyone noticing. The spring weather was warm, there was a light breeze and the sun shined in the bright blue sky.

Selling had been normal, nothing too out of the ordinary. That was until a man approached Crutchie, looking to buy a paper. The transaction was as normal as ever, small talk being made, until the man refused to hand over money. Crutchie has insisted he couldn't just give the man the paper, that would be bad for business and he needed to eat after all. The man wasn't having any of it, pulling a silencer gun out, shooting the young boy in the abdomen.

The man took off soon after, paper in hand. Crutchie stumbled back, surprised by the weird feeling he felt in his stomach. It felt like someone had punched him in the gut, but it didn't hurt at all. Blood slowly began to pool in the wound, a stain growing around the hole in the shirt.

Jack Kelly walked over to his boyfriend, oblivious as ever. Crutchie had his back to him, the blood currently not visible. "That was weird, you okay?" Jack asked, chuckling to himself to lighten the situation. All he saw was someone run away swiftly, almost scared of the boy with the crutch.

Now leaning against the brick wall, Crutchie turned a little bit to face Jack, his old shoes scraping on the ground. His face was stuck on surprise, his mouth agape, his eyes wide but strained. "So... I just realized I've been shot..." Crutchie whispered, to his boyfriend and his best friend, Jack. Jack looked over to see blood seeping through his shirt, a small rip on the fabric.

His face fell, his skin paling, sweat breaking out on his forehead. "C-Crutchie?.." He mumbled, his voice barely able to pass his lips. Crutchie opened his mouth to say anything, but only blood sputtered out.

Everything that came next seemed to happen in slow motion. Crutchie sunk to the ground, laying on his back, staring at the bright blue sky. His vision swam between bright and dark, on hand loosely on his bleeding abdomen. Jack fell to his knees beside his younger boyfriend, running a trembling hand through his sandy colored hair. His other hand pressed onto Crutchie's wound, still shaking.

Some other boys noticed and ran over, their shoes sliding on the loose rocks. They couldn't believe their eyes, this was all too much for them.

Crutchie's eyes were open, how they would remain until someone closed them. The life had left his body already, making the cheerful, young boy no more.

This was something Jack Kelly would never recover from, losing his boyfriend was the worst thing that could ever happen to it.

Crutchie was gone from life, never to return again.