Just one

Chapter one: The dance

By: Ambrlupin

Rating: T

Summary: "Aw come on, man! Its just one drink. What's the worst that could happen?" Not a oneshot. Blink/Mush & Spot/Race

Disclaimer: I don't own newsies. Red (Collin) however, is mine.

A/N: this was basically written for the prom season, and on a dare. A few friends of mine told me I wouldn't have the guts or whatnot, to write a newsies story about a drunk driving accident. So I did, using it to also put a point across. I hope someone reads this and thinks twice, maybe, about drinking and driving, even with peer pressure. There's always another choice. Remember that.

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"What's the worst that could happen?"

I remember those words. They're clear as a bell in my mind, echoing over and over like some heralding of doom, a deepest of omens, even so many years after I had uttered them.

They're nothing but innocent words, or thats what I told myself, innocent in their asking, innocent in truth. But there was nothing, nothing innocent about the outcome, nothing innocent in what I caused, which just those few words.

The end of my senior year. It was a time for Prom, a time for celebration and hopeful new starts. A time to live the life of a kid one last time before joining the real world. Being the driver of our little group, I thought it was my job to show off the town, after the dance.

Having already called the parents or guardians of all parties concerned, and getting permission from each and every one- after all, I was a responsible young man- I picked up all the glowing couples and started off for the dance, which was being held in the lobby of a huge hotel in the ritzy northern part of town.

"Oi, Jacky!" Blink reached over while we were stopped, twisting at the dials on my radio, an intense look of concentration on his face. "How bout some tunes before we get there!"

I laughed, swatting at his hand lightly. "Dude, im driving! Quit it!"

"You're stopped." Mush pointed out from the back, but he did attempt to pull his date back into his seat. "Come on, Blink, we're almost there anyway."

If you wanted Ryan "Kid Blink" Ballat to do something, you went to Mush. In no time at all, the blonde was not only back in his correct seat, but buckled in and chatting to his lover in a normal tone.

"God, Nick, I could kiss you." Race- who was sitting in the very back of my mini van, in the arms of his date- called out.

"Don't do that!" Sarah teased from where she sat in the passenger seat, looking nice and lovely in her floor length gown. She was my date, by the way, "Spot will get mad at you."

"Darn straight." The last of our group smirked as he laid a light kiss to the Italian boy's forehead, "This here is my sexy man, and he knows better than that."

"Sexy?" Blink snickered. "The midget of all midgets? Sexy?"

Spot sent him a glare that would make any other fall down and quiver in fear. Being only a few inches taller than his date, the Irish kid had learned intimidation early in life, and he was using it all to defend his boyfriend. "Yes, he is." He growled.

"Okay." Blink raised his hands, "Okay, whatever you say."

"My hero." Race snickered as he curled an arm around the other's waist and laid his head on the tuxedo-clad shoulder. He stuck his tongue out at the blonde, though, as soon as he wasn't looking.

"Anthony." Mush wagged his finger back at him, "Don't antagonize my boyfriend."

"Nicholas, don't tell mine what to do." There was Spot again.

"Eeeee!" Race clung to him, a wide grin on his face, which faded as Blink made a phony retching noise behind his hand. He then just turned around and flicked him off, before returning to cuddle up with his cute little 'Spottie.'

"Children, behave yourselves." I laughed as I pulled into a parking spot. "We're here anyway. Lets try and keep ourselves out of trouble, okay Spot?"

"F-you, Jack." Spot said cheerfully as he opened the door.

Rolling my eyes I shut the engine off and hopped out of the car, running around it to open the door for Sarah. I shrugged into my jacket and held my arm out for her, which she took with a shy smile.

"Aw, aren't you two just so cute?" Blink laughed, done with his teasing of Race and Spot in favor of other prey. "Gonna get a lil girlie action tonight, Jacky? Gonna get...laid?"

Sarah's face flushed a little, and she averted her eyes as I merely sent a look to Mush. A second later Blink cried out in shocked surprise as his date reached up and smacked him in the head. I gave a nod to the other and Sarah laughed as I swept her into the lobby.

The hotel of course, had been nice before tonight, but for prom, the place was stunning. Banners hung from the balconies, the lights were just dim enough to be called dim, but still light enough to be adequately lit. The floor had been polished till it shone, a light opaque marble in color.

Half of the prom goers were already here, already dancing on the floor in packs, swinging to the music that was being provided by the DJ in the corner, his headphones half on and half-off his head as he played with dials. He looked familiar, and when I saw Spot and Race making their way over to his side, I realized why.

"Look, its Collin." I had to lean down to Sarah's ear in order for her to hear me. I pointed with one hand and she grinned, raising up on her tiptoes- although how she managed that with high heels is beyond me- and gave the tall redhead a wave, to which he returned, before he turned his attention to the two tuxedo clad men that had come to visit him.

"Think they'll even dance?" She asked me with a smile.

"Who? Race and Spot?" I snorted, "Hardly. They only came because Mr. Brodsky made it clear he..disliked having such...questionable young men in his school."

"What did I hear bout me?" Blink asked as he swung by, one of his hand's clasped with Mush's. Always one to be outgoing, Blink's hair matched his suit. It was bright gold, and rather stunning to look at. He wore it well, though.

"He thinks everyone is talking about him." Mush explained as he spun by, wearing, like Spot and Race, the traditional black tuxedo. "Just ignore us, please."

"His ego is astounding." I nodded, slipping my arm around Sarah's waist, leading her to a nearby table, which was, conveniently, empty. I opted, instead of the black, to wear white. The only downside to that, however, was that I had to completely watch what I was doing.

The upside? I looked darn good in it, and I matched my girlfriend. With her dark hair done up in a sporty puff at the top of her head, -curled so that it fell down her neck- she had worn a low cut, off the shoulder white gown, complete with diamond earrings and necklace.

The dance went well, quite well in fact. After the first few mishaps of the evening- including but not limited to; Spot stealing the DJ-ing job from Collin and throwing in a few songs of his own...interesting tastes, and Blink's complete seduction of Mush on the dance floor during a slow song...it was pretty much the greatest night of my life.

I danced with Sarah, of course, danced until my feet were killing me and I had to take off my outer jacket just so I didn't die of the heat, and she was forced to kick off her high heels, to the joy of Blink- who hadn't yet stopped teasing her, but was bound to do so soon, if the way he was eyeing his date was any indication- and dance barefoot.

Somewhere around eleven, I half-collapsed and half-fell into my seat, among chuckling from my impromptu prom party, and threw down the cup of punch Sarah handed to me with a laugh. "I think you've become the lady, Jack."

"I do think you are correct, lovely Sarah." Skittery grinned as he spun her around, "And so, may I, the lonely man, entice you to dance?"

She laughed, pushing him away with one hand, "Alas, dear sir, I have my own man to attend to, and who already has asked for my hand in this dance." And she promptly slid her arm around Spot's shoulders, leaning down to kiss his cheek.

"Argh!" He yelped, startled as he scooted away and rubbed his face irritably. "Jack, get your girl away from me!"

Race, with a knowing grin, held Spot to him. "Poor Matt is afraid of girls, or have we all forgotten such important knowledge?"

"I am not afraid of girls!" Spot half-shouted -to the delight of all- with a flushed face.

"Yes, dear, we know."

"Im not!"

"Okay! We believe you, Spot." Skittery held up his hands, a wide grin on his face, as he sat backwards in a chair, his black vest halfway unbuttoned. There was a light lip-stick mark on his neck, probably from his date, whom was floating around at the moment. "So, where are you guys gonna head off to after this thing?"

I shrugged, "A club or something." It was getting late, but I had promised to show everyone a night on the town before I started to drop them off at their respective homes. "Why?"

"Ah, im having a party at my house. Thought you all would like to come on over."

"Free booze?"

"Of course."

"Im in!" Spot immediately vocalized, already reaching for his discarded ebony jacket.

There was a surprise. Matthew Conlon, jumping at the chance for free booze, be still my beating heart! It was no secret that if you looked in the dictionary, Spot's name was next to alcoholic. Not that he was one, per se, but he did do a lot of social drinking, and was quite good at it too.

Suppressing the urge to roll my eyes, I frowned a little. The guys, I was quite positive, could take care of themselves at said party, but... "Are you all right with this, Sarah?"

She grinned back at me, laying her hands lightly on my arm. "Im fine with it, Jack."

I didn't need to look behind me to know the other four were beaming at Sarah and sending her little thumbs-up. After all, this was my group, I knew them all inside and out. Relenting, I nodded. "We'll be there, Skits."

I should have said no, I should have just opted to take them to a club, or some other place where I knew there would be supervision. Don't tell me why, but I knew it, in the farthest back of my mind. A teenager's party on prom night? That was the breeding ground for all sorts of trouble, drugs included. That was not a place to take a girl. But she said she didn't care.

And there was the first mistake I made that night.

But not the last.

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Whoo-yay! This is the first part of the three or so part story.

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Next Update: Sunday (tomorrow) at 5.