This is a violent storm, it is. When I hear him coming up the dock, it surprises me because I can't believe his mother would let him out in such weather. He probably snuck out. This thought makes me smile, although it's not unlikely. Not now. Not since he befriended the newsboys.

He sits down beside me on the dock, silent as the wind caresses his curls with a sinister air.

I love him, although he'll never hear those words from my mouth.

He doesn't have to hear them; he already knows.

When I sit next to him, he tosses the cigarette into the water, which now has waves high enough to lick at our boots. The rain starts to tumble down as he looks at me, the color of the waves the color of his eyes, and a smile curves his lips.

"Whattaya doin' out heah, Mout'?" he asks.

I blink at him. "I came to get you, Spot. I can't let you stay out here in the storm."

"And why cantcha?" I respond, lying back onto the dock. The wind rustles my shirt, and his sky-blue eyes, glazed with desire, are on my now bare stomach. "I's got da Lodgin' 'Ouse."

He blinks, and those gorgeous eyes clear. "But you aren't going to the Lodging House. Heels told me you only sleep there once a week. Come home with me." A flash of lightning lets me see the flush on his face. "Nobody's home but me."

'Mama & Papa,

I've gone to Brooklyn to find Spot. Heels says he doesn't stay at the Brooklyn Lodging House too much anymore, so I thought he might want to stay here during the storm.

Don't worry about me. I'll be back soon.

I love you.

-David.'

A half-hour after the note was found, Jack Kelly arrived at the door of the Jacobs's apartment, soaking wet from the storm. When he told Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs that their son had been on the dock when it collapsed, the once-mother-of-three let out a shriek that rang to the heavens, and fainted into a chair, while her husband could only stare at Jack, his eyes harboring a crazy disbelief.

The dock starts to crack beneath us and neither of us notices because we are too intent on each other. Spot is the best lover I could have chosen; he works so fast and so perfectly.

But he will make love anytime and anyplace if the need arises.

And the love is so passionate that we don't see the dock collapsing until it's too late.

We finish and my blue-eyed boy is getting dressed as I smoke another cigarette, content to sit in the rain in just my knickers. He looks up at me as he kneels to tie his boots and a smile is on his face. Suddenly, I'm glad I brought him happiness, even though, in that last second, I'm not quite sure why.

That's when the waves crash roughly against the dock, and the sound of splintering wood is so loud is rivals the thunder. I jump up and start to run off the dock, yelling for my lover to hurry, but there is another apocalyptic crash, and I turn, horrified, wondering what happened, is he all right?

But the area where he had been kneeling is gone. It's all gone. Swallowed by the sea.

'Heels, my sister-friend

Maybe you'll be the only one to understand this, but I loved Davey. It saddens me that I never let him hear me admit this, but it's true. Everything about him was beautiful. And without him the world is meaningless to me. So everything is yours now, every title of mine belongs to you, because now, I only belong to Davey as he only belongs to me.

I love you like a sister, Heels. Good luck with Mandy, and don't cry for me.

Heels blatantly ignored Spot's last request, and sat sobbing on her bunk as he lay on the floor, blood no longer flowing from his open wrists. Heels cursed him, yelled at him, even though she knew he couldn't hear. When she finished her bout of anger, she ran down the stairs and out of the Lodging House, into streets still wet from a deadly storm. She searched for her lover, Mandy, and arms to comfort her in the death of her brother-friend.

I scream and blindly run down the dock, horrified that my blue eyed, burly-haired Walking Mouth could be gone, just like that. Reaching what was once the center of the dock and is now the edge, I look into the thrashing waves, searching for what I know I won't find: Davey Jacobs, my lover, my love.

When I finally realize that I can look into the stormy sea forever and never find him, I jump up and start the run to Manhattan, where I'll tell Jack what happened, then, I will go to the Brooklyn Lodging House and join Davey, behind a locked bunkroom door.

I was there when Jack read Spot's note to the Manhattan newsboys, and even though I'd already read it a million times, I had to fight to keep tears away. I could see those that had known Davey mourning his loss. I had barely known him, but Spot was my brother-friend, and I loved him, even though I also loved my Italian girl, Mandy, who was squeezing my hand and comforting me.

Jack looked at me, his eyes filled with sorrow. "We's all lost somethin' in da storm." he said. "Youse an' yer fellow Brooklyn newsies lost Spot." He gestured to the large group of newsies behind him; Specs stroking Dutchy's hair; Snitch sobbing onto Skittery's shoulder; Pie Eater clenching and unclenching his fists in an attempt to keep from bursting into tears.

"We lost Davey." Jack said simply. "Bot' a dem will live in our hearts forevah."

I nodded, and Jack put a hand on my shoulder, a sad smile on his face. "We's heah fer ya, Heels." he said.

"Like youse was dere fer Davey or Spot?" I questioned. His hand released me, and I smiled at him. "Youse c'n say whatcha like ta comfort yerself, Jacky-boy, but Davey an' Spot's bot' gone. We can't do nuthin' 'bout it." I felt tears brimming at me eyes. "We can't do nuthin' but be 'appy dey's togedda, right?"

Mandy put her arm around my shoulders.

"Dey's togedda." I repeated, hugging Mandy. "An' dey's 'appy. So I's 'appy. Whaddabout youse guys?"

The Manhattan boys exchanged glances, then Jack looked at me, his smile now reaching his eyes.

"Yeh. We's 'appy for 'em."

Davey Jacobs's body was never found. His parents bought a casket and buried that, pretending their precious eldest son was inside the safe mahogany, and not lying in the ocean's belly, swallowed so callously by an angry sea.

All the Manhattan Newsies came to the funeral, to pay their respects and say their good-byes.

The morning after the funeral, there were many damp pillows in the Manhattan Newsboy's Lodging House.

Spot's friends didn't have the money for a proper funeral, but they buried their leader anyway, and Heels, the new Brooklyn leader, planted a tree by his grave.

They buried him in a vacant sand lot near the Brooklyn Lodging House, and newsies from all over New York came to the little sapling, putting flowers by it then walking away, pretending that the flowers had appeared out of nowhere.

Jack and Heels went to both graves daily, sometimes just to visit, and other times bearing flowers. At one time, Heels dug into Spot's grave partially, and dropped his slingshot into the hole, burying the weapon with it's master. Another time, Jack brought Davey's cap to Davey's grave, and left it by the grave marker, held down by a stone.

Jack doesn't know this, but the cap stayed there, and rotted to fine, ancient threads without moving an inch.

But time moves on and people forget, people change. It eventually became true that Jack and Heels started to forget, and the visits became less frequent. Finally, Jack stole Crutchy's heart, and the pair stole away to Santa Fe, and Heels ran off with Mandy one night two years after the storm, and no one ever heard from them again.

'To Whom It May Concern:

I am Lester Jacobs, and I write to you concerning your plans to build on the vacant lot down in Brooklyn.

That lot is special to a lot of people. The view is as beautiful as Central Park, and families picnic there, in the shade of the tree. Kids use the lot to play stickball and football, and it keeps them out of the street. Couples carve their initials on the tree, which is only too right.

My biggest concern, however, is the secret no one knows; the reason the tree was planted: To remember Spot Conlon's death.

Spot Conlon was a newsie, the leader of the Brooklyn newsies in 1899, and my brother's lover. My brother was swallowed by the sea in the big storm of 1900, and Spot killed himself not too long after. The Brooklyn Newsies planted that tree to remember him.

The tree is important to a lot of people, myself in particular. To me, it stands for the love Spot and my brother had together. Please, sir or madam, do not build over that vacant lot. There are several other areas that would be just as good for your new building.

Sincerely,

Les Jacobs.'

When the letter arrived at the company, it was read, considered, debated. Finally, it was ignored, and the vacant lot was no longer vacant, and Spot's tree was leveled. Les wept, but what he didn't understand was that love like that between Davey and Spot needs no symbol. It just is, and it remains forever, even when enveloped by depressed blood, or swallowed by a stormy sea.

Love remains.

***AUTHOR'S NOTE***

Eh. ^^

I dunno.

Just don't kill me. I wanted to write a strange pairing. ^^ I'm gonna lose my title otherwise, since others have taken to writing strange pairings.

THE STRANGE PAIRING WHORE STRIKES AGAIN!

And now, she must depart. So long! ^^