Spot grinned, and kissed her.

"Dat's da best t'ing I'se evah hoid." Then he frowned. "Raindrop, it's late. Ya should be goin' back ta Manhattan." Raindrop yawned.

"Aw, Spot·I'se so tired·kain't I jist stay wit you'se? Sucha long walk back·" Spot grinned.

"Coise. Still late dough. Let's go." He put his arm around her and they walked slowly back to the Brooklyn Lodging House. Tricks looked up when they came in.

"Hey·you'se been gone an awful long time." Then he saw Spot and the look on their faces. "Find yerself a new goil, Spot?" he asked and grinned. Spot grinned and kissed Raindrop lightly.

"You bet," he said. The newsies laughed and whistled. Raindrop blushed. Tricks laughed.

"Get used ta it. Ya t'ink 'e was bad b'fore now, jist wait! 'e'll take ev'ry chance 'e can ta let da rest o' New Yawk know yer 'is goil." Raindrop grinned.

"Well, I guess I kin 'andle dat. 'speci'lly if it involves 'im kissin' me." Tricks nodded and grinned.

"Got yerself a good goil, Spot." Spot smirked.

"Da greatest." They played poker for a few hours until nearly everyone was exhuasted. Raindrop changed back into her now dry pants and shirt. She and Spot climbed up to his bunk and stayed up for several hours more talking, until they grew tired and finally went to bed.

By ten o'clock Raindrop still wasn't back.

"If she comes back latah, will Kloppman still let 'er in?" Snipeshooter asked curiously. Jack nodded.

"Yeah. I awready made shoah of dat." Race put out his cigar.

"I'se telling ya, she's fine. Pro'ly stayin'at Brooklyn fer da night." Jack looked at him.

"She told me she didn' want ta see anyone from Brooklyn, 'r go der."

"Did she tell ya why?" Race asked. Jack frowned.

"Well, no." Race nodded.

"Well she told me. I'se tellin' ya, she's stayin' in Brooklyn fer day night. She knows da curfew rule jist as well as da rest o' us." He climbed into bed. "G'night. An' don' worry 'bout 'er. She's fine." Mush and Blink nodded in agreement.

"Jist fine," they echoed.

Raindrop woke up and climbed up to see Spot. He had been awake for some time, thinking.

I still kain't believe it. I got a new goil. An' she's Raindrop. She actually loves me back. But now·now she's gonna go back ta Manhattan an' I won't see 'er so much. Won' be able ta fall alseep tawkin' ta her. Jiminy, I'se gonna miss 'er. Raindrop sleepily sat down. Spot grinned.

"Mornin' sweetie." He leaned over and kissed her. Raindrop leaned her head on his shoulder, and she smiled. Then she climbed down and put on her shoes.

"Mind if I sell heah taday?" Spot grinned.

"Not 't all." They left the Lodging House earlier than usual, and bought some papes. At lunch they met each other at the docks and ate lunch.

"What's wrong?" Spot asked when he noticed her frowning. Raindrop sighed.

"I jist can't decide what to do. I ought ta go back ta Manhattan, but I jist can't t'ink of leavin' ya heah. Plus der's da whole pro'lem of tellin' da boys 'bout me bein' yer goil." Spot frowned.

"Dis time I ain't gonna tell ya ta go. It was hard 'nough da foist time, an' I didn' even 'ave a real reason ta keep ya heah. I guess maybe what yer gonna have ta do is eiddah pick one flat out an' stay der, 'r jist sorta which back 'n' forth a lot. Dat's twice as much walkin', but in da end, dat may be da best way ta do it. As fer tellin' dem·I ain't to shoah how ta do dat eiddah, 'cept to tell 'em I'se bringin' you'se home, well, back anyhow, an' I'se bringin' me new goil too." Raindrop nodded.

"Dat part sounds good. I guess I'll jist have to switch a lot. I kain't jist ferget about me friends, but I kain't jist not see ya. Guess missin' ya half da time is bettah dan all da time." Spot smiled and signaled Deer.

"What'cha need Spot?" Deer asked.

"Go ta Manhattan an' tell all deir newsies dat I'se bringin' Raindrop back 'round dinnah, an' ta all be at Tibby's 'cause I want dem ta met me new goil. Don' tell dem it's Raindrop," Spot commanded. Deer nodded and took off running to Manhattan. Raindrop sighed and leaned on Spot. He put his arms around her.

"I know."

Four hours later Raindrop and Spot walked back to Manhattan. Raindrop took Spot's hand and laced her fingers between his. They looked at each other and smiled.

"When will I see ya again?" Raindrop asked. Spot smiled.

"As soon as ya like. How 'bout Thursday? We kin go ta Pierre's·give 'im da news, an' give Maria dat dress back." Raindrop smiled.

"Dat sounds jist great." They walked up to Tibby's and Spot opened the door. Raindop walked in and Mush, Race, Blink jumped up and hugged her. She grinned.

"Heya fellahs!" Jack looked at Spot curiously.

"So wheah's dis new goil of yers?" The sick feeling in Race's stomach grew. He shot a look at Raindrop. It had to be killing her inside, Spot having a new girl. He looked over at Spot, but there was no one else standing by him. Maybe this girl didn't come. Spot's grinned widened. He walked over to Raindrop and began kissing her. The newsies stared at them in shock. When Spot was finished he grinned even more.

"I b'ieve you'se all know me goil, Raindrop," he said cockily. Race looked at Raindrop in surprise. She was bright red, but was smiling. Jack was laughing.

"Who woulda t'aught?" The newsies pushed several tables together to eat and talk to each other. Raindrop sat next to Spot, until Race grabbed her and led her over to a booth at the other end of the restauraunt. Spot looked at Race suspiciously, but Race was smiling.

"Guess it all woiked out, eh?" Raindrop grinned.

"Yeah. You'se·you'se ain't upset 'bout me bein' 'is goil, are ya?" Race laughed.

"I don' care so long as you'se is happy. I may not like Spot, but I kin deal wit it." She grinned.

"T'anks Race," she said. "I am." Someone tapped on her shoulder. Raindrop turned and looked up into Spot's crystal eyes.

"I'se gotta be goin'," he said. She nodded, and stood up. They walked to a corner in the restaraunt. Spot pulled her close. "Thursday," he said almost unintelligibly. Then he kissed her quickly, and walked out the door. Raindrop watched him leave for a moment, and then turned to her friends. She grinned cockily.

"An' who woulda t'ought when I came heah dat I'se gonna land Spot Conlon?" She smiled thoughtfully for a moment, and then joined the rest of the newsies at a table. She chatted with them for a few minutes, and then noticed Spot had forgotton his cap. She picked it up and looked at it, turning it around. Then Raindrop stood up.

"Spot forgot 'his hat. I'll be back right away, awright?" They nodded, and she hurried out of Tibby's. She turned a corner, and went down an alley she'd taken with Spot once before. Suddenly Raindrop was grabbed from behind. One hand covered her mouth, and the other gripped around her waist, pinning her arms down. The assaulter dragged her farther down the alley, into the grimy, terrifing dark.

"Hope you said goodbye to your precious little friends," laughed the boy. Raindrop froze, recognizing the voice of her brother. "You recognise me? Maybe you're not quite as dumb as I thought you were. Can you guess what I'm going to do next?" Raindrop swallowed hard and shook her head, too afraid to admit what she already knew. Jonathon chuckled wickedly. "I'm going to kill you," he said softly in her ear. In one quick motion, he turned her around, grabbed her shoulders, and slammed her head against the wall. Raindrop slumped against the alley wall, and lost conciousness.

At first she couldn't see anything. She was acutely aware of a sharp pain in the back of her head. She could also hear sounds, faintly. They were jumbled up and faraway sounding. Once Raindrop had listened for a few minutes she managed to identify the thumps as someone beating someone else up. The dizziness was just being to subside when the fighting stopped with someone falling to the ground. She opened her eyes, and winced when she shook her head to clear her vision. Three figures were standing over her.

"Check on the guy," said the shortest one. He knelt down and Raindrop smiled weakly.

"Spot·" she whispered. Spot frowned.

"What 'appened? What're ya doin' in an alley?" Then he shook his head. "Don't answah, you'se kin tell me latah. Ya awright?" Raindrop closed her eyes for a moment, trying to think of the words to sum up how she felt. Then one of the other newsies came back.

"He's dead," Tricks said with a touch of hatred. Raindrop opened her eyes and looked beyond the two newsies. A few yards away knelt another newsie, by a body lying on the ground. Raindrop crawled slowly over to the body. She leaned over Jonathon, tears slipping down her cheeks. Spot walked over to her and helped her up. He put his arms around her and Raindrop buried her face in his shoulder. Spot signaled to Tricks.

"Go tell Manhattan Raindrop's stayin' wit me tanight. I'll have 'er back tamarrah." Tricks and the other Brooklyn newsie ran off to Tibby's, and Spot, and Raindrop walked slowly to Brooklyn.