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In the lobby, Vix was leaning against the wall near the door. She was looking up the stairs, she was waiting for the strangers to come down. Around a small table playing cards were Angel, Abby, Homes, Ruby, and Spice. Jack was sitting on the other side of the room staring at Abby.
"Hey ya, Spot," Jack said as he saw them coming down the stairs.
"Aftanoon, Jackyboy. I'se see dat yer not quite awake yet," Spot said looking sideways at Birdie.
"Um, yeah I am," Jack said, not sure what Spot meant.
"Well, where shall we eat dis evenin'?" Spot asked Birdie.
"How's bout we all go ta Tibby's. Deys got nice food and we gotta bring me friends anyway," Birdie said to Spot. Everyone else in the room was, of course, listening.
"Hey, Boidie, I kin come too, right?" Angel asked.
"Of coise ya kin, Angel," she said as she picked Angel up. "I wouldn't dream a goin' dere wit'out cha. Yer me favrite outta da whole lot a dem," Birdie said; Angel smiled.
The group from Santa Fe came down the stairs. Vix got up and watched them very closely; she still didn't trust them. None of them looked like all they came to New York was to visit their friend. She knew they had an ulterior motive.
"Kathryn, what do you do all day? I mean, New York looks pretty boring," Patrick said.
Everyone looked up from what they were doing. Birdie raised an eyebrow; she hadn't expected such a question. "Anythin' we want," she said motioning everyone to follow her.
"Kathryn, where are we going?" Lilly asked.
"We're goin ta dinna," Birdie replied.
The group looked at each other and followed Birdie with no more questions. Birdie and Spot were walking side by side, with Angel close behind. Behind them was Homes, Vix, and Spice; they were joking about Abby and Jack. The two of them were lagging behind everyone. They were walking really slowly (I suppose you could say they were savoring the walk to Manhattan). Patrick, Lilly, Stephen, and Anna were walking in front of Jack and Abby, but they were still walking slowly. They had to tell Birdie soon, otherwise it would be too late.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They all stopped in Newsies Square across from Tibby's.
"Well, here we'se are. Tibby's, da best food in alla New Yawk," Jack said as he caught up to the rest of the group.
"Um, Kathryn, can we talk to you for a minute?" Lilly asked discreetly.
"Yeah, shoa. You'se guys go on in, I'll be dere in a minute," Birdie said.
Everyone went inside the restaurant. Spot and Vix sat next to the window, neither of them trusted the group from Santa Fe at the moment. The two watched intently out the window to try to figure out what Birdie and her friends were talking about. Everyone else was immersed in their own lives, not caring what happened outside.
Outside, Birdie and her fiends were talking with each other. "Kathryn, we have to tell you something. We didn't come here only to visit you. Your parents asked us to tell you something," Lilly started.
"Well, actually give you something," Patrick interrupted.
"Okay, give you something. Anyway, they asked us to give you this," Lilly pulled a locket out of her pocket. It was exquisitely designed and was almost pure gold. She handed it to Birdie.
Birdie looked at the locket in awe. She hadn't seen that locket for many years. She knew that her mother never would have sent it out with her four friends unless something had happened to her. She looked back at her friends.
"Your mom wanted us to tell you that they were both dying. She told us that we had to come tell you, she wants to apologize for driving you away. Both she and your father are very sorry for what they did. Your parents want you to visit them before they die," Anna explained.
Birdie laughed. "Parents, what parents?" she said coldly. She handed back the locket and walked into the Newsboys Lodging House. Her friends didn't follow her. She had always been very stubborn. They had learned the hard way that once she had made up her mind, there was no changing it. They just walked back to Queens, got their stuff, and left. Birdie never saw them again.
Spot and Vix had seen what had happened in the square. They walked out of the restaurant quickly and discreetly to the Lodging House. They ran up the stairs into the bunk room where they found Birdie. She was pacing the room in a huff.
"Boidie, what'd dey say to ya?" Vix asked.
"Nothin a consequence," Birdie replied, still annoyed at her so-called friends.
"If dey hoit ya, I'll soak em," Spot said, in his usual tough manner.
"Dat's not necessry Spot. We won't be seein dem again. I just need some time ta cool off," Birdie said.
"Awright Boidie, I'se gonna go back ta Tibby's," Vix said as she walked out the door. She knew that Spot was the only one who could help Birdie now.
"Boidie, what's is wrong? You'se can tell me, I'se yer boy," Spot said as he sat on one of the bunks.
"Spot, ya can't understand. It's.. it's.. it's, I don't know, but I can't tell you'se about it. Not dat I don't trust you er nottin', I jist can't find da words fer it," Birdie tried to explain.
"Awright, Boidie. I'se gotta respect dat. Will you'se jist come eat wit' us dis evenin'? Please," Spot said.
"Shoa. I could neva say no ta ya, ya know dat," Birdie smiled a little.
Spot stood up and gave Birdie a hug. "Come on, let's go eat," he said with smirk. They both walked out the door and into the street.
In the restaurant the boys were all eating and talking. Most of them were rather rowdy. Jack had noticed her walking in. He walked over and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Hey sis, where'd ya go?" Jack asked, somewhat concerned.
"Amazin' ya noticed. You've been ova dere droolin' ova Abby all night. I'm saprised ya noticed I was even gone," Birdie joked, still a little depressed, but hiding it well.
"Ya noticed dat! Hmmm. But, can I tawk wit'cha fer a minute, alone?" Jack said.
"Shoa, Jack. I'll be right dere, Spot, get me a nice sandwich would'ja," Birdie kissed Spot on the cheek and he went to a table.
"Kathryn, can ya tell me what's buggin' ya? I know it's got somthin' ta do wit'cher friends, but I don't know what. And I'd like ta know. Ya didn't tell Spot, but yer gonna tell me," Jack said.
Birdie looked at her brother square in the eyes. She glanced around the restaurant and turned her back to everyone in the room. She kept her voice low and spoke. "Jack, yer right bout dat. Lilly brought me dis locket, it was me modda's. Dey say dat she and my fadda're dyin. I know it's true, but I can't go back ta dem. Not afta what dey did. I ain't da same person, but I know dey are," Birdie said.
"Kathryn, ya gotta forgive 'em sometime," Jack consoled.
"Jack, ya don't know what dey did ta me. Dey ignored me, cause they thought I was plain. Do I look plain now?" She gestured to herself. "I know dat Spot don't think so, but I was a little kid. I didn't know nothin'. But, dey hoit me when I was at dat age. I neva knew 'em. Dey neva let me know 'em. Why should dey start dis now? Why should dey think dat dey can jist give me dat locket an all'll be betta? Why Jack?" Birdie said, close to tears.
"Kathryn, it'll be awright. Dey's wrong fer dat. It'll be awright," he moved closer to his sister and hugged her, by this time she was crying.
Everyone had looked up, they'd never seen Birdie cry. They knew her as this tough get-up-in-your-face kind of girl, not a girl who cries. No one knew what to expect. Spot got up and walked over to Jack and Birdie. Jack let Spot take her and they walked outside.
"Ya take care a her, Spot," Jack said as Spot led Birdie to Queens.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spot and Birdie walked to Queens slowly. Birdie leaned heavily on Spot. They were outside the girls' building now. Birdie had finally stopped crying, but Spot was still holding her.
"Yer gonna be awright, Boidie, yer gonna be awright," Spot said as they walked up the steps and walked inside.
Spot and Birdie walked up to her room and Spot opened the door for her. They walked into a dark room; Birdie lit the closest lamp. The room was instantly illuminated. Birdie walked across the room, wiping her tears, to a table. She had seen something sparkle when she lit the lamp. She picked it up. It was the locket. Her eyes narrowed and she threw it across the room.
"No!" she screamed at the top of her lungs. "NO!" she screamed again. She began crying again. She fell to her knees and mumbled angry words at the four from Santa Fe. Spot ran to her to try to calm her down. He put his arms around her and she buried her face in his shirt.
She was so angry that her friends, her FRIENDS, had done that to her. They had left the locket there in the hope that she would go see her parents. She would never do that. Never.
Afterward
Birdie finally calmed down. She never did see her parents, but she did keep the locket. The day after all this happened, she found the locket against the wall. She picked it up and slipped it over her head. She wore it every day after that. But she never saw her friends from Santa Fe again, or her parents. She didn't resent it either, she hated her parents. She was glad that they were dead. She wished they had died years earlier. But, to her, they had died the day she was born. She had a good family in New York. She loved them, and they loved her.
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