The Pursuit of Happiness

[Mike D. Greaser]

"Then don't go to talk to him."

Mike inhaled deeply and then let it out slowly. Rubbing his hands over his faces, Mike contemplated the gravity of their situation. It was hard for him to do without getting frustrated. It was as if all of his control was being ripped from his hands, and he could do nothing about it. All he could do was stand there and watch as it was being torn apart and stomped on. He felt utterly hopeless. Of course, Mike could talk to Ian, but he wasn't sure how much control he would have if he saw him. But that might be their only way out of this situation. Maybe he could threaten Ian. "What else can I do?" Mike thought out loud. Then, "What if you came with me? I could control myself if you were with me!" Seemed like a good idea... at the moment.

"I know you want to do something, Mike, and so do I. But we're dealing with something beyond our power."

Mike turned and punched the wall, letting all of his frustration. "We can't let them win!" Mike growled. He turned to Alice, looked at her more calm this time. "You can't let your father win. All of these years of beating him and staying ahead of the game... and now you are going to give up?" Come on, Alice, take the bait.

"Thanks. And you're not a rotten scoundrel. Just a lovable one."

Mike chuckled. "Thank you, love."

"And I love you. It breaks all convention, but I love you."

Mike smiled, then leaned down and stole one more kiss. "So," he began as he pulled away. "What do you want to do?" He didn't have a lot of money, but he could probably figure something out. Although he was saving for a really nice dinner. For their anniversary. "How long have we been dating?" Mike asked, wanting to make sure his days were good as well.

"You know them...? Yeah, we know 'im."

Before Mike could answer, Jack replied. "Unfortunately..." Mike added, while glaring at the boys in front of him. They had incredible timing. Mike always knew he wasn't going to be able to hide his second life from Alice. There was no way.

"What're you doin' here Mike? This is our territory. You got your own..."

Mike flinched, for once actually showing emotion. He didn't even bother hiding it.

"Territory? Are you in a gang?"

"Sort of. Don't worry about it. I will tell you later," Mike said quickly as he kissed her on her hairline. "Let's go," Mike added with a glare at the boys. He would deal with this later, when Alice wasn't with him.

"Aren't you...Miss Roosevelt? Bravo, you have eyeballs. Now keep them off of me."

Mike chuckled. He didn't need to defend Alice, she did a fine job of doing it herself. But Mike tightened his hold on her waist, just because.

[aliceroosevelt]

((Okay, since I can no longer remember if she's at the window or on the street during what conversations, I'm making her on the street for everything...easier that way.))

"What else can I do? What if you came with me? I could control myself if you were with me!"

Alice glanced down at the ground for a moment, considering. Then she slowly shook her head and raised her eyes again to meet Mike's gaze. "No," she said. "Ian Johnson is a child. He'll go to his parents, who will go to mine...and then everything will really be over. Why, if my stepmother knew about you, she'd have me married within the hour." Edith was far more understanding about the situation that Alice's father was, but Governor Roosevelt had deliberately not mentioned the true reason for such a hasty engagement and the quick, imminent wedding: Mike. If Edith knew, Alice was sure that she would be on the same track of mind as her husband. It was times like this Alice wished her real mother was still alive. Would she understand...?

"We can't let them win! You can't let your father win. All of these years of beating him and staying ahead of the game... and now you are going to give up?"

Her eyes hardened suddenly, blazing with a kind of cold fire, and her voice rang with deliberation. "No," she said. "I don't give a damn for the thunder of fathers. Come hell or high water...how could I live in a world without you?" She fastened her arms around him, eyes still blazing with the fire-ice, but glowing with passion. She would never give up anything to her father, nothing. The only thing stopping her from moving against him was a total loss of what would move him. She didn't know what to do, and that was something new for her.

"So, What do you want to do?"

"Anything," she said immediately. "I don't care." She grasped his hands in hers, and said, her voice suddenly lower, "Let's get out of this area, though. All I need is one of my brothers hearing me..." She didn't worry about Ethel, who would probably be in her bedroom already, the vain little thing, but any one of her brothers would probably tell either Edith or their father what they'd heard. All except for perhaps Quinten, who was too young to register things like that. Teddie, Kermit and Archie were too much of Father's Favorites to keep quiet. She stole a glance at the curtained first floor windows, just to be sure...

"How long have we been dating?"

Alice looked at him, counting back in her head. "Two, three weeks? You know I'm not all too sure. The polo match was the first of September..." She actually wasn't all too sure of the date today. For her the last few days had been painfully the same. But what did it matter how long she and Mike had been together? All that mattered was for the moment she never wanted to be with anyone else...

"Unfortunately..."

Racetrack snickered. "Back at'cha, Greaser..." he said condescendingly.

"Sort of. Don't worry about it. I will tell you later. Let's go,"

Alice was glad to leave, however, Jack didn't take Mike's presence half as lightly as Racetrack. As Jack spoke, she stopped walking to listen. "You got three seconds to clear outta here, Mike. We ain't gonna fight yet; we agreed on that." His gaze flashed momentarily to Alice, and whether or not he recognized her face wasn't evident. It was as if he was considering whether or not to say what he was about to, but then apparently decided he didn't care. He kept his expression stony as he continued, "We don't need no more murders around here from you, Greaser..."

Alice gasped, but remained silent. Her mouth pressed into a thin line, and she was suddenly extremely aware of Mike's arm around her waist. Her form stiffened suddenly. All this in the matter of half a second. She told herself to calm down, but the news, however true or false, was unnerving. Her reaction didn't go unnoticed. Jack looked at her again, and his hostility heightened as he looked back to Mike. "What's the matter, Greaser, didn't you tell your girlfriend you killed a boy two years ago?"

Bumlets chimed in, his arrogant voice slightly hoarse with shock. "That ain't just a girl, Jack...that's Governor Roosevelt's daughter."

Jack's eyes flashed to Alice again, and stayed on her. Apparently he didn't recognize her in the dim light with her hair hanging around her face, but she could see his eyes widen in realization. It was clear he didn't know how to proceed. He exchanged quick glances with Racetrack, and it was clear they were thinking the same thing: What if Mike was kidnapping her?

[Mike D. Greaser]

"No, Ian Johnson is a child. He'll go to his parents, who will go to mine...and then everything will really be over. Why, if my stepmother knew about you, she'd have me married within the hour."

Resisting the urge to role his eyes, Mike instead replied, "What exactly do you purpose to do then, Alice?" He was losing his patience. It wasn't Alice's fault, it was that fool Ian. And Alice's parents. Mike wanted to put each of their little pretty faces until they left Alice alone. It seemed like everyone was out to get her, and that is what frustrated him the most. It was times like these when he wished he was rich.

"No, I don't give a damn for the thunder of fathers. Come hell or high water...how could I live in a world without you?"

Mike smiled. "Thats my girl. Don't give up hope." He pulled her into a tight hug. Never would he let her go, never. Mike had to chuckle at this picture. Never would he imagine himself in love with a girl, let alone this girl. In the past few weeks that the two of them had been dating, Mike had thought about this many times before. It was such a strange thing, but very welcomed.

"Anything, I don't care. Let's get out of this area, though. All I need is one of my brothers hearing me..."

Mike rolled his eyes, not even trying to hide his annoyance. "I am glad I don't have any siblings. I don't know if I could keep my temper," Mike joked. Truthfully though, Mike wasn't joking. If he had siblings he would have a hard time killing them. It would take a lot of self control and that was one thing Mike did not have.

"Two, three weeks? You know I'm not all too sure. The polo match was the first of September..."

Mike thought for a moment. How could he forget when they had started to date. Really, he had been so busy lately that he had just simply forgotten. "So... our anniversary would be...?" Hopefully she didn't know either. Then, Mike wouldn't feel so guilty.

"Back at'cha, Greaser..."

Mike had always hated Racetrack. He got on his nerves. And that cigar that was always hanging from his mouth didn't help things either. Mike just wanted to smash that bloody thing in his face. Mike chose to ignore him.

"You got three seconds to clear outta here, Mike. We ain't gonna fight yet; we agreed on that. We don't need no more murders around here from you, Greaser..."

Mike fought the urge to jump on Jack right then. He was definitely pushing it. And if Alice wasn't right next to him, maybe Mike would have. He could take then. There really wasn't that many of them. Pulling his expressionless mask on, Mike replied, "Just passing through, Jack." Again, Mike decided to ignore the comment about him being a murderer.

What he couldn't ignore was Alice. She gasped and tensed. Mike growled, frustrated. He could feel her trust pulling away from him every second they stood there. How as he going to explain this?

"What's the matter, Greaser, didn't you tell your girlfriend you killed a boy two years ago?"

"Shut up," Mike replied finally, no longer controlling his temper. "What about your girlfriend? Does she know anything about what you did?" Mike asked slowly. He would turn the tables, Jack wasn't going to ruin this for him.

"That ain't just a girl, Jack...that's Governor Roosevelt's daughter."

Mike rolled his eyes. "Good job, idiot." He glared at Bumlets. Then to Jack, "We will be leaving now." He glared at Jack, letting him know that this was not over. Hopefully, he would let him pass.

[aliceroosevelt]

"What exactly do you propose to do then, Alice?"

Alice matched Mike's tone of irritation. "I don't know, Mike. Don't act like I'm supposed to have all the answers." She hated when people acted like she should know everything. What, she said sharply, because her father was the Governor that somehow made her all-knowing? Her father never told her anything about matters of state, and she didn't care to know. There was a reason Theodore told her she would never be a governor's wife: she never listened enough. Good, she quipped, I'll leave that to Edith. Alice looked at Mike, and forlornly shook her head. "I've hardly had a conversation with Ian before. And now my father wants me to marry him..." She was stating the obvious, but she was hoping it would sound ridiculous when stated aloud. If it was ridiculous, maybe she could prove it, and she wouldn't have to marry Ian Johnson...

"Thats my girl. Don't give up hope."

"Never," she swore. "Not until I guarantee myself I'll never wear any ring but yours." She didn't want anyone else but Mike, and would never marry anyone who wasn't like him. He was simple, yet dignified, and he signified a free life that she had wanted for so long. She knew she could be free to be who she wanted. And dammit, she would never wear a corset again. She would wear the landlady's clothes every day, no matter it was a social gaffe, if only she could guarantee her life would turn out just as she's always imagined it.

"So... our anniversary would be...?"

Alice wasn't a hundred percent sure, so she made up something that was accurate, and also sounded good to her: "Midnight on the first of September. That's our anniversary," she said decidedly with a smile.

"Just passing through, Jack."

Alice was still shaken. She didn't know what was going on, who Jack was or anyone else, and why they were calling Mike a murderer. He couldn't have killed anyone, could he? Impossible. But why would Jack, whoever he was, lie about something like that? Maybe we was just a jerk, which from what she had seen, she wouldn't put past him. Still, she remained silent and allowed them to exchange words.

"Shut up. What about your girlfriend? Does she know anything about what you did?"

Jack paled slightly. "My girlfriend knows what I done, and she don't care none. Cause I don't go around killin' boys and stabbing my best friends in the back."

"What in the world is going on here?" Alice exclaimed, unable to restrain herself any more. "What is all this? Explain." She wasn't asking. She was commanding. It was the same voice she used to order around Ted and Kermit, the same voice she used to get her way with her father, the same her father used in those closed meetings in his office.

Jack, however, seemed unphased. "Go 'head, Mike. Tell her."

"Good job, idiot. We will be leaving now."

Quickly, Racetrack stopped them. "What're you doin' with Miss Alice, Mike?"

"What you've never done with a girl in your sorry life, cretin, now shove off." Alice didn't like this boy who thought it was wise to smoke as much as he talked. "I hope you eat that damned cigar, too..."