#Mama Medda Larkin <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[newsie-collective]

Lorenzo "Itey" Mancini

Quickfire Favorites

Food: “Ma’s pasta. Anythin’ she would make wit’ it.”

Color: “Green! Blue! Uh… Buttons us’ly call it sea green.”

Season: “Uhh… I like the time ‘tween winter an’ spring.”

Weather: “I like when it’s rainin’ bu’ not stormin’.”

Hobby: “Sewin’ with Buttons an’ Ike an’ Snitch!”

Animal: “Penguins! I seen penguins when i’s sellin’ at the zoo once! ‘N me ‘n Mush sit in the library sometimes an’ read ‘bout ‘em.”

Memory: “Me favorite mem’ry? Movin’ Gio into the Lodge. Him was real excited to fin’lly get to stay with the rest o’ us. Medda ain’t trusted us ‘nough to watch ‘im through the night ‘fore him turned six.”

Comfort Item: “Me suspenders! Madre got ‘em for me when I firs’ got here!”

Big They/He vibes

A first-generation immigrant, Lorenzo is from a small town in Italy called Bussana Vecchia. 

There was an earthquake and tsunami in 1887, just after their birth, that caused the entire town to flee.

Itey's parents set sail for America, hoping to find safety and freedom there. 

They found nothing but prejudice and judgment. 

Even their son wasn't saved from the names thrown their way, being called Itey for most of their life outside of home.

Their parents were victims of hate. And, Lorenzo brought his toddler brother out of the house when they disappeared, knowing the rest of their family was too far away to be of any help.

The two of them snuck into Medda Larkin's Theatre, hoping to find a warm place to sleep.

Instead, they ran into Francis and Jack, who were heading out for the night, followed closely by Albert and Racetrack. The four older boys talked to the two scared kids, and decided to introduce them to Medda, and ask what to do.

Medda said she would help watch Giovanni during selling hours, but she had her own job to do, and that Itey would have to come and get him between morning and evening selling. 

And they did. 

Until Gio was old enough to hawk himself. Then, Gio moved in with the other newsies.

And, since the two of them had been in and out of the Lodge over the years, he was easily accepted into the group.

Now, the newsies had no idea that 'Itey' was meant as an insult when people threw it their way.

Couldn't imagine why anyone would need to insult this kid anyway, they were literally harmless. 

So, the nickname caught on, not even knowing that Itey wasn't their real name.

There weren't enough bunks for all of them, obviously, and so Gio shared with the younger newsies. 

Itey started bunking with Snitch.

And, at first it wasn't pretty. Arguing over space and blankets and clothes and who knows what else, but even if Snitch threatened to soak Itey if they so much as looked at him again, they never rose to the bait. 

Itey was being the best influence he could be to his baby brother.

And, soon enough, the arguing and fighting began to simmer. 

That simmer sparked a new heat between them.

They soon shared stolen kisses and whispered secrets during selling, or late into the night.

Itey calmed the angry fire that seemed to stay lit in Snitch. Until one day, there wasn't any anger left. It melted away like winter snow, and left Itey feeling proud of himself.

They have the biggest smile, and they love love, just like Mush.

Jeez, I love this lil enby. They're so fking adorable, and they just have the biggest smile, and they deserve the World.

They also deserve to smack Pulitzer at least once

This is 1/2 posts for today! We'll eventually get Romeo's all put together 😅

👻

[we-are-inevitable]

i would love ALL the thoughts about jack and his kid omg

OKAY I'M GONNA RAMBLE A BIT BUT

okay i'm just. thinking of how terrified he would be coming home from the hospital.

he has everything he needs, because Mama Medda is a saint who helps him so much those first few months; she basically teaches him how to be a parent, because he's. he's not that young, he's 24, but because he lost so many years to addiction he's still playing catch-up on the whole "being an adult" thing, and adding a child into the mix? it's a rough transition.

that first week or so, jack barely gets any sleep- not because his daughter is particularly fussy, but because he's stressed out and he's worrying about everything and he's craving something to calm him down. there's even a time when jack considers the possibility that maybe, just maybe, he made a mistake, and she'd be better off with a different family.

it gets better, obviously; he has everyone else to thank for that. Medda helps him so much, and even watches the baby once Jack goes back to work (i imagine he'd take the first two weeks off; he probably worked a second job up until she was born so he could ensure he had a safety net for those few weeks when he wouldn't be working).

speaking of work, idk if i've mentioned it but like. even with everything going on, jack and davey managed to graduate college! obviously they weren't honors students or anything, but they graduated. jack has a degree in graphic design and is hired on as an in-house designer for an up-and-coming business near his apartment building, but eventually he switches over and starts working at a design agency (he prefers being able to work with a bunch of brands at once, instead of being stuck producing content for a singular brand. this man does Not like doing the same thing every day, let me tell ya)

he also does commissions on the side, both digital and traditional paintings, but that's aside the point

ANYWAY yeah he works as hard as he can to provide for himself and his daughter, and thankfully he does well for himself; they still struggle a bit, and money is tight more often than not, but they have necessities and jack knows how to navigate low funds.

as his daughter gets older, though, finances get better, and jack is able to move into a better apartment closer to work and he's able to pay for daycare instead of relying on Medda (which he felt extremely guilty about; he never wanted to be a burden to her).

but yeah !! it's just him and his little girl against the world

also, some little details that aren't really important:

he teaches her spanish alongside english bc that is one of my FAVORITE things

this was a throwaway thought that kinda took a turn but: his daughter is mixed- mexican on his side, black on her mother's side- and i'm just imagining Jack, Medda, and his three year old, all gathered in Medda's kitchen while she teaches him how to style her hair

"can't i just put her hair in a ponytail" "jack francisco kelly-larkin, sit down and watch me braid her hair"

just. jack being clueless on how to raise a kid is one of my fave things

oh my GOD okay so. all of jack's friends spoil she shit out of her. she has so many toys and really cute clothes and pretty much all of them come from jack's friends (her 'aunts' and 'uncles', as he calls them)

when christmas comes around, everyone goes WILD bc they have an excuse to get her a bunch of stuff

she's very much universally loved by basically everyone in jack's life

(especially davey, once they reunite and davey gets used to the idea of jack Having A Whole Entire Real Kid)

overall, raising her isn't easy, and jack still has days where he struggles even getting out of bed, but his little girl makes things easier. even when his mental health takes a nosedive, she helps him get back on track by just Being There, and his friends and family are all there to help with whatever he needs when things get bad again, bc they don't want to lose him again <3