i was a heavy heart to carry {BLACKJACK}

[Babydoll]

Kelly Michaels' feet felt as if they were made of lead as she walked toward the Manhattan lodging house. It was raining, only dampening her mood further. She had felt empty lately, as if something was lacking. She'd felt so for weeks, almost a month, it was effecting her negatively. She'd never been so quiet for so long; maybe it was because she spent so much time with Silence…maybe it was another part of the lacking portion in her that was turning slowly into emotional pain.

No matter what Silence did, though, it never dealt with what she was feeling. She didn't belong in Staten Island. Missy made her feel off-balance in a bad way, she didn't talk to anyone but Jumper and the Entertainer. She was out of place there. She was sane, she didn't have any problems. But she was almost scared to return to Manhattan. What if she didn't belong there either? What if she had ruined her chances with them by leaving in the first place?

She looked up from the ground as she reached the front of the lodging house, looking like a drowned rat. Her hand stretched out and wrapped around the knob before she turned it. It wasn't locked, thank God. She slipped off her boots soon after entering the familiar building and dropped them on the floor by the door while she shut it.

Baby walked quietly to the living room and sat down on the couch, wondering if she should've wrung out her hair before coming in, or asking if anyone was there or awake…if anything Kloppman would find her. Maybe she could talk to him. Then again, she didn't really want to talk to Kloppman. She wanted to talk to Mush or Jack…or BlackJack.

[Blackjack]

Walking down the stairs of the lodge, shuffling a deck of cards, BlackJack muttered the count as moved, not taking his eyes off the deck. The one girl he considered a sister had left for Staten. It didn't help that his mom was gone now. Sighing, he continued to count and shuffle, his mind a whirl of numbers. Surprisingly that many numbers never confused him, it actually brought comfort to him most of the time. Being surrounded by numbers in his mind was wonderful to him. It brought him to a state of bliss that couldn't be described.

While walking though, it seemed he had other plans, accidently bumping into someone. "Sorry!" he said, before looking at who he had bumped into, "I was just... Babydoll? What the hell are you doin' here I thought you were in Staten? What happened?" BlackJack got into protective brother mode now, "Did they hurt you? Because I swear to god if they did I'm gonna hurt them. Cause no one hurts my little sister. God what am I saying? Come here and give me a hug sis!" BlackJack pulled her into a giant, brotherly hug. God he missed this kid.

[Babydoll]

Babydoll was dragged out of her thoughts by someone bumping into her legs and causing her to stand up, suddenly nervous. It was when the person apologized and she looked up from the floor that she realized it'd been BlackJack. Her eyes lit up slightly as he looked at her, happy to see him again. He'd been like a brother to her and definitely one of her closest friends. She opened her mouth to speak about why she was in Manhattan, but shut it when BlackJack started to speak again.

Hurt her? She gave a flickering smile at that. The only risk of that happening was if Jumper was involved based on what she'd been told. But she'd been kept safe from physical damage. She hadn't ever really felt secure in Staten, so maybe that could count as hurting…but she wouldn't want the Stateners to get hurt. Before she could speak again, she was being wrapped up in a hug by BlackJack. She smiled weakly and returned the hug before finally speaking.

"I…I was homesick?" she started, sounding unsure. "I missed you a bunch, BlackJack." she hugged him tighter.

[Blackjack]

"Well kiddo, I missed you to," he pulled away from the hug, ruffling her hair, "Spook and I were gettin' bored without you, no one there to help us taunt Weasel. So how is living in Staten? They certainly are a... er, different bunch?" BlackJack said, an eyebrow raised. He wasn't quite sure how to word what he thought of Staten Island. Well, they had stolen his baby sister, so that was a big no no, but oh well, at least she was back in Manhattan, if not for a little while, unless she was back for good, that'd be awesome.

"So, your homesick? You should stay here more, I dont like having to take a boat just to say hi to ya. I bet Jack dont like to either. You should stay here more," BlackJack nodded his head, "Yea, stay here more, your bunk hasn't been taken yet. I bet Kloppman would be happy to see a familiar name in the book, eh?" He punched her shoulder playfully, becoming more like his old self, less moody. It was better to be less moody than anything. Cause a grumpy BlackJack just made his counting better and your money gone.

[Babydoll]

"Haven't been letting him off easy, I hope?" she asked, thinking of Weasel and the times she'd aided in his humiliation and taunting. Her eyes began to spark again, thinking of ways she could once again assist Spook and BlackJack. But…all these involved living in Manhattan again. And she couldn't do that. She'd left, wouldn't it be odd to return? The spark quickly died, leaving her eyes dull once again.

"Staten…is definitely different from Manhattan. They're more, um 'spirited'. Peep's pretty nice, though," she said, then nodded when he asked in repetition if she was homesick. She was. So much that one almost wouldn't believe it. She didn't like having to take the ferry to see her friends either, but she couldn't admit it out loud. But to stay here more, wouldn't that be great! But she couldn't, at least, not right then. She didn't have anything with her, she was still wet from the rain, too. Well, at least her old bunk wasn't taken.

Her thoughts were interrupted by BlackJack playfully punching her on the shoulder. She looked at him and put on a small smile. "I'd love to stay her more. But I'm wet and I don't got anything to change into tomorrow if I stayed." she shrugged, looking down at her feet.