Always and Forever... Maybe *Spot Conlon*

Selling is back to normal, and the day was pretty ordinary. Jack and I sold together near the boxing rings, and then we went back to the lodging house with the guys to play cards and talk.

"You goin' to Brooklyn?" Mush asks as we're getting ready for bed.

I shrug. "I might, I don't know. That a problem?"

Mush shakes his head. "Nah, it ain't. I just want to know if you leavin'. You'll tell me?"

"Yeah, I will."

Mush nods and walks towards his bunk. I finish brushing my hair and Jack walks over to me. "Hey Danny."

"Hey Jack."

"So, how's things with you and Spot?" He asks, leaning against the counter.

"Fine. We talked a lot last night. 'Bout ourselves. You know, I didn't know much 'bout him durin' the strike. All we eva talked 'bout was him showin' up," I say, braiding my hair.

Jack nods, looking at the floor. "Oh."

I glance over at him. "Whatcha thinkin' 'bout?"

Jack looks up at me. "Did ya say anythin' 'bout us?"

I sigh. "Yeah, I told him everythin'. I know that we said we would keep it between us, but he told me a lot 'bout his past, and I dunno know, just felt like I owed it to him. Plus, it don't matta 'cause now you got Sarah, right? I don't care if you tell her 'bout it if that makes you feel betta."

Jack shakes his head, turning around to face the mirror. "Nah, it's cool. I just wanted to know if I was gonna have a jealous Spot watchin' me." He smirks, looking at me in the mirror.

I give him a look that he laughs at. "Spot ain't gonna be jealous of you."

"Please, of course he's gonna be jealous that I was your first crush and not him. He's gonna want a list of all the guys you's even looked at before him."

I laugh. "Well, it's gonna be a long one. 'Cause we got all the Bowery newsies, all the 'Hattan newsies, all the random guys on the streets, some of the Brooklyn newsies that I's met, and obviously him. Oh, and Weasel and the Delancy bruddas."

Jack laughs. "Yeah, he's gonna have a heck of a time tryin' to beat up all of 'em."

"Well, he ain't gonna have to."

"'Cause you only have eyes for him?" Jack mocks in a romantic voice.

I roll my eyes. "Yeah, like you ain't the same way with Sarah."

"Hey either go to bed or go somewhere else, the rest of us are tryin' sleep!" Race yells from the bunks.

I sigh and look out the window at the dark sky. "I's headin' ova to Brooklyn. Mind tellin' Mush for me?"

"You want me to cova for you again?"

"Nah, Mush is cool with me goin' ova there. I just need you to tell him I'm leavin'."

"Ok. Be safe."

I grab my hat off the counter and put it on over my braided hair. "Always am."

Jack smiles and I smile back before running out of the lodging house towards Brooklyn. Spot's sitting on his crates, as usual.

"Figured you would be back," Spot says with a smirk, standing up. He grabs my hand. "You wanna go back to the roof, I's assumin'?"

I nod, grinning. Spot leads the way off the docks, and we break into a run as soon as we hit the streets. Once we're up on the roof, we lay down next to each other. I move closer to Spot, leaning my head against his shoulder, and he puts his arm around my shoulders. We stare at the stars in silence.

"Ya know, when I first came to Brooklyn, I was expectin' you to be as bad as all the newsies warned me you'd be," I say.

Spot turns his head towards me. "Yeah?"

"Yeah. They said that you'd try to take advantage of me. But you neva did. They said you'd be arrogant... which I guess you kinda were at first."

"Thanks a lot."

I hit him in the chest. "Shut up, I's talkin'. But I wanna know why everyone thought you would take advantage of me."

Spot sighs. "Well, a few months before the strike, I got really caught up in, well, sleepin' with a lot of girls. I had a different one basically every night. If I met a girl on the street, and she was willin', I would sleep with her. And then the next day I would ignore them and find a different one. I was heartless, and I used every girl to my advantage."

"And then I came into your life and changed ya mind?" I ask, teasing.

Spot lets out a short laugh. "Not really. I just, uh, got bored. And Tie convinced me that what I was doin' wasn't helpin' me lead. So, I just started ignorin' every girl on the streets unless they asked for a pape. Then I would just hand them a pape, get my money, and walk away. That was less than a week before you arrived in Brooklyn, so the news hadn't spread yet."

"Oh."

"Yeah, oh." Spot pauses and takes a deep breath before continuing. "So that's why everyone told you to be careful 'round me. I don't got a good reputation with girls. I ain't eva had anythin' last longa than two days."

"Are we a thing that's gonna last longa than two days?" I ask quietly. I feel weird asking him a question like that.

"Well, I was gonna wait anotha day or two before I asked, but since ya askin' right now..."

"What?"

Spot turns his head and looks at me. "Danny, will you be my girl?"

I smile. "Always and foreva."

Spot sighs and turns back towards the stars. I blink, confused. That's not the reaction I was expecting.

"Always and foreva don't exist," Spot says quietly after a few minutes.

"Why do you say that?"

"My mudda used to tell me at night that she'd love me always and foreva. And then she left. So always and foreva don't last always and foreva. It ain't real."

I move my head so it's laying more on his chest and intertwine his pinky with mine. "Ask me your question again."

Spot pauses. "Ok. Danny, will you be my girl?"

"Always and foreva... maybe."

"Maybe."

"I'm yours, Sean Patrick Conlon. For as long as our always and foreva lasts."

*A/N: eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee I'm sorry I'm like dyinggggg right now. Why does that sound so cute to me? I'm probably overreacting lol*