Mush and Maggie still stayed in the lodging house, but didn’t sell papers with the rest of their friends. The restaurant, while small, earned enough for Isabella and Guido to pay them a small salary in addition to the meals they had.

Alex and Blink had started joining them for lunch every day, but had dinner with the rest of the newsies. They spent the next five months this way, then one day after Blink and Alex had left to sell the afternoon edition, Guido stopped Mush as he stood up and said, "Mush, I need to speak with you before you leave this evening."

"Alright," Mush agreed, concerned. Guido hadn’t been getting better, and Mush was worried about his "adopted" parents. He fretted the rest of the afternoon, so much that he started getting orders wrong and mixing up tables.

Maggie noticed that something was wrong when Mush came into the kitchen to rest for a moment. She checked her half of the stove to make sure nothing would burn, and went to sit next to Mush. "What’s wrong?"

"Aw, nothing’," Mush replied. Maggie gave him a look clearly saying ‘I know you’re not telling the truth,’ and he smiled. "Oh alright. I’m worried about Guido."

"I’m worried too," Maggie said, "but worrying isn’t going to change anything. All it’s going to do is make the customers mad."

"Yeah, ain’t that the truth," Mush laughed. "Thanks, Princess." He stood up and kissed her cheek before heading back out to brave the wrath of his angry customers.

After that, the rest of the day passed like usual, and they finally closed the restaurant. Maggie saw that Guido was waiting for Mush, so she started to head upstairs, but Guido stopped her.

"No, Maggie, come back. I would like you to be here as well."

She sat down across from him, and Mush and Isabella came out of the kitchen, both taking seats as well.

Guido reached next to him across the table and clasped Isabella’s hand in his. They smiled briefly at each other, and then Guido spoke.

"You two have noticed that I am not doing as well as I used to. We are both getting old." Mush started to shake his head in disagreement, but Guido stopped him. "No, Mush, I am right and we all know this. It is getting difficult for Isabella and I to keep this restaurant open, even with your help."

"Oh, you’re not closing the restaurant, are you," Maggie asked. "You can’t. We’ll find more help, we can make this work."

"I know you can," Guido replied. "That is why we are giving the restaurant to you two."

Mush and Maggie both sat there, jaws dropped, now knowing what to say. Mush managed to get a few noises out, nothing more than intelligible sounds, then finally insisted, "you two can’t do this. It’s yours. We wouldn’t know what ta do."

"Mush," Isabella said, "you know exactly what to do. Do not worry, we will still live in Manhattan. There is already a place we have found just a few blocks from here, and you two can move in upstairs if you like."

"But you… but we…"

"What if we give you two awhile to think it over," Guido conceded. "You two can discuss it on your own and then give us your answer."

"We can do that," Maggie answered for both of them.

When Mush and Maggie got back to the lodging house that evening, they went directly to their room instead of spending time with the other newsies in the main bunkroom. No one noticed them enter the lodging house, so they knew they wouldn’t be bothered while they talked.

"I just don’t feel right about it," Mush said after pacing across the room a few times. "The restaurant is theirs, they shouldn’t just give it to us."

"Who else would they give it to," Maggie asked rationally. "You’re the only family they have."

"Yeah, but why now," Mush asked. "I know they’re gettin’ old an’ all, but maybe they should just wait awhile."

"Nobody lives forever, even if you want them to," Maggie began, "and what if something unexpected happens. They want to make sure that everything will still be okay for us if anything happens."

Mush stopped pacing and looked at Maggie. "You want to do this?"

"Yes," she confirmed. "It’s what they want, and to be honest, I wouldn’t mind taking over. It’ll take some getting used to, but they said they’ll help out for awhile."

Mush nodded to himself a few times, then shrugged and said, "well what the hell. We can tell ‘em tomorrow, I guess."

"Good," Maggie said, "then everything’s worked out."

She stood up and started towards the door, intending to head into the bunkroom to see Alex, but Mush stopped her. "Hey Maggie?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, while we’re in here talkin’, can I ask you somethin’?"

"Sure, what is it," she asked, walking back towards him.

Mush took a few deep breaths, wringing his hands. "Um… will you marry me?" Maggie’s eyes widened, and he added, "I mean, not now, cause we’re still kinda young, but… when we’re ready?"

Maggie bit her lower lip, and a tiny grin tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Well, that’s a silly question. You already know the answer to that."

"I do?"

"Yes, you do, and yes I will," she replied. "Just as long as we don’t tell anyone yet. Let’s wait a few days."

"I think I can wait a little longer," Mush said, wrapping his arms around her and leaning down to kiss her.

They didn’t notice Blink walk in midway through the kiss, until he finally cleared his throat and said, "you two oughta put a sign on the door when ya’ doing that."

Mush and Maggie pulled away from each other, still keeping eye contact, and started laughing.

Blink shook his head and added, "you gonna come into that bunkroom?"

"Yeah," Mush answered. "Let’s go." He took Maggie’s hand in his and they walked out to see their friends.

"We’ve talked about it, and decided to take you up on your offer," Mush told Guido and Isabella the next morning.

"That’s good, because we are very determined, and you know how that can be," Guido responded. He and Isabella smiled, thinking fondly of when their stubbornness had butted heads with Mush’s, a frequent occurrence when he was living with them.

Guido and Isabella spent the next two weeks going over things with Mush and Maggie, and then they left the two to do it on their own. "Of course, you can always come to us if you find you need help," Guido added on the last day, "but I think you will find yourself pleasantly surprised at your own abilities."

That evening, Mush and Maggie went to stay at the lodging house one last time. The mood was somber for awhile, until Maggie suddenly said, "well it’s not like you’ll never see us again. You can come visit anytime."

Things got lighter then, and Maggie even found herself joining the poker game with Race, Jack, Blink and Alex, though she lost almost all that she had with her.

"Never been good at poker, huh Maggie," Race said as she got up to leave. "You couldn’t lie ta save your life."

"Aw, you’re glad to take my money Race," Maggie retorted happily. "You know how much I’ll miss that." She stood up and walked over to sit with Mush, then gestured for Alex and Blink to come over.

"Yeah, gimmie a minute," Blink said, "I wanna finish this last hand."

He and Alex came over to sit with them when the hand was over, and Mush spoke quietly, though it was hardly necessary from the noise of the room. "We gotta tell you two something’."

"Oh, wait, one thing first," Maggie interrupted. "Are you interested in helping us out with the restaurant? It’ll be rather difficult with just the two of us."

Alex looked at Blink and shrugged. "Well, sure. As long as I make more than I do as a newsie."

"Oh, you’ll be surprised," Mush laughed. "We were when Guido told us how much money they brought in."

"Sounds good," Blink said. "I always figured I was gettin’ too old ta be a newsie."

"Okay, so now we gotta tell you something’," Mush said, lowering his voice. "We’re um… well, we’re kinda engaged."

"Kinda? How can you be kinda engaged," Alex whispered angrily. "And how long has it been?"

"Two weeks," Maggie admitted. "We wanted to wait for a bit, ‘cause of all the restaurant stuff. But you two are the first to know," she continued hurriedly. "Even Guido and Isabella don’t know yet."

"You’re gonna be in so much trouble the next time you keep a secret from me," Alex said, but she pulled Maggie into a hug, showing one of her rare moments of affection.

"Wow," was all that Blink could say, shaking his head.

When Guido and Isabella came in the next day to check on them, Mush and Maggie told them the news. Guido was surprised, but Isabella responded with, "it took you long enough, mio caro. I worried you’d never ask her."

"Your heart knows better than your head what you need," Mush replied, repeating her words from all those months ago.

"What, your head didn’t want to marry me," Maggie teased, shoving him softly.

Mush wrapped his arms around her and kissed her nose. "No. Every part of me wants to marry you."

"Hey Maggie, there’s something I never understood," Alex asked from across the kitchen. "You and Spot… I mean, how come you let everything happen so fast. It’s not really like you."

"Yeah, I wondered the same thing," Mush said, walking into the kitchen.

"I dunno," Maggie responded. "I guess part of it is that I was finally free from my dad, and didn’t have anyone telling me what to do all the time. And I’d never really had someone give me so much attention before, even if it was fake."

"You know, he never came to see if you were okay," Alex said out of the blue. "I mean, you told him you were pregnant, and then he never comes to see you again. Ugh, he just makes me so mad!"

"I never woulda guessed," Mush replied, shaking his head. "Just don’t go tryin’ ta beat Spot up again, that didn’t go too well last time."

"Don’t I remember," Blink said, as he also walked into the kitchen. "Hey Maggie, I need two more plates of lasagna when you got a chance."

"Alright. I guess I better put more in the oven then."

Mush and Maggie lay together in bed that night after they closed the restaurant and Alex and Blink went back to the lodging house. Mush was on his side, his head propped up by his right arm, the left playing with Maggie’s long hair.

"When did you know you loved me," he asked suddenly.

Maggie thought for a moment, then answered, "when you held me. It was like how my mom used to. I didn’t realize it except when I was dreaming."

"Is that what all those nightmares were about?"

"Not really. She was in them, but those were always the good parts of the dream. Obviously," she added, smiling.

"You really loved her, didn’t you," Mush said.

"She was my everything," Maggie responded, then looked up at Mush and held his eyes for what seemed an eternity. "But now, it’s you. You’re my everything."