The same day that I had told my father everything about my situation with Steve and Bucky, I went down the street to the automat that Steve, Bucky, and I had frequented to ask for a job. When I entered the establishment, Barbara Davis, the owner of the automat, was standing behind the counter. I walked over to her and greeted her.

"Hello, Ms. Davis." I said as I walked over to her. She smiled when she saw me and help out her hand for me to shake it. I did, and she pulled me into a hug.

"Hello, Louisa. How are you doing? I hear that you were quite the heartbreaker last night." She grinned at me as I pulled out of the hug. I gave her a surprised look. She laughed before she explained. "Bucky and Steve were in this morning. Bucky was distraught. Seems like you sayin' no did a number on him." Tears threatened to fall from the corners of my eyes, but I held them back.

"I came down here because I wanted to know if you are looking for any help here. I decided last night that I need to have a job if I ever want to get out of the family apartment." She nodded.

"You sound like I did when I was young. I came out here all alone at the age of 19 because I didn't want to be married to a random Yayhoo from Kansas." I tried to speak up, but she ignored me. "I think I could use your help, if you are serious about wanting a job. One of my girls has to resign because she is getting married, but since you have no worries about that happening soon, I think you would be a good fit." That was it. Right before I exploded, she raised her hand and looked at me calmly. "I'm just kidding with you. Believe me, Louisa, I am on your side.  I have seen you with those boys enough to know what your intentions were towards them."

"There were no intentions." I finally said, getting a word in finally.

"Exactly, and I think that it was pretty unfair of Bucky to make such sudden advances towards you when you didn't realize what he was doing. You did the right thing. It's better for you to be lonely now then to later be in a marriage with no love. I completely understand your situation, and that's why, besides just offering you a job, I'm also offering you the room above the automat. There's a room above us that is more than enough space for a young woman who wants to be independent without being too far away from her family." I was speechless.

"You would give me the room?" She laughed and shook her head.

"I wouldn't give it to you. You'd have to pay rent, but it wouldn't be too much. Paying rent is just another thing that will help you be independent." I nodded.

"Would you mind giving me some time to think it over? It is a big decision." She smiled and nodded.

"I don't mind." I nodded and left the diner.

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{1926}

Back when I was 8, Steve was 7, and Bucky was 9, it was very common to see boys riding on the backs of cars as an attempt to hitch rides around town. Sometimes it went ok, but other times, it ended horribly. There was a boy in Steve and I's class whose pelvis was chipped when he fell off a car. He had problems walking his whole life. It just proves that what you do as a child affect your life as an adult. It can be anything that can later affect your life. For instance, when I was young, Bucky told me that strawberry ice cream was pink because there was human blood in it. To this day, I cannot eat strawberry ice cream. In the same way, I always have to jump like I am playing hopscotch every time I walk on the sidewalk next to Prospect Park since I always used to play hopscotch there.

Anyway, back to hitching rides on the backs of cars. I never personally attempted it since I knew my mother would throw a fit if she saw me acting in such a way. However, that didn't stop Bucky and Steve from trying it. Bucky got to be pretty good at it, but Steve was another story. We all know that young Steve was as athletic as a turtle. So, imagine a turtle trying to catch a ride on the back of a car without being seen or without falling off. The odds weren't in Steve's favor. He tried countless times, but he never succeeded-until one time.

It was a hot day, and Steve was adamant that he was going to succeed that day. Bucky and I sat on the dusty corner waiting for him to succeed when he finally did.

"Bucky! Look!" I yelled as I watched Steve successfully latch onto the back of a taxi. Bucky and I stood up and cheered on the enthusiastic Steve.

"I did it!" Steve yelled as the car drove away. Then, without warning, the car stopped. Steve turned even more pale than normal. The driver, who wasn't having a very good day, started to exit the vehicle. Steve tried to climb off, but his shoe got stuck between the bumper and the back of the car.

"Steve, RUN!" yelled Bucky and I, but it was too late. The driver came up behind Steve and grabbed his shirt collar. He picked him up and tossed him onto the street before lumbering back to the driver's seat of his car. Steve was really shaken up when we got to him.

"Steve, are you ok?" Bucky and I both yelled as we ran towards the spot where Steve laid on the ground. Bucky started to run after the taxi yelling things that a 9 year old shouldn't have had in their vocabulary. I kneeled down next to Steve to make sure he was ok.

"Steve, speak to me." I said, his eyelids fluttering open. He groaned and coughed before speaking.

"That hurt." he said quietly. I laughed.

"That is the first time that I have ever heard you complain about being hurt. You usually never say anything. It must be pretty bad." He nodded and looked at Bucky who was still standing in the middle of the road yelling at the taxi driver.

"He is so stubborn." Said Steve. I nodded and rolled my eyes.

"He thinks that it makes him seem powerful, but I think it makes him look stupid." Steve laughed and then grimaced in pain. I helped him up, and he limped over to the sidewalk. Bucky walked over to us red in the face.

Before he could start yelling about the man, I started talking.

"We need to get Steve to his mom. She'll know what to do." Bucky calmed down a little bit and nodded. We helped Steve up and led him down the street.

Thankfully, his mother had just gotten off of work for her lunch break, so she would be home. He helped him inside the apartment and into his room where we laid him down on his bed. Mrs. Rogers came into the room with a bowl of water and some towels soon after. She smoothed back the hair on Steve's forehead and smiled.

"My little Rembrandt, what have you done this time?" She said. Bucky and I stood up and scooted towards the door.

"I fell off of the back of a taxi." She just chuckled softly and shook her head.

"When will you learn, Steven? She smiled at him and washed off his cuts. When she finished with that, she kissed Steve's forehead and told him to rest. She then led Bucky and I out of the room.

"Is he gonna be ok?" Asked Bucky while Mrs. Rogers set out a plate of cookies for us. She smiled over at him and nodded.

"He just has a couple of cuts and bruses. He'll be fine in a few days." She then handed both of us glasses of milk.

"Why does he try so hard to do things that Bucky does?" I asked her. She smiled.

"He never has truly accepted the fact that he isn't as strong as other boys. It's all because of a sickness he had when he was a baby. While he did survive it, it did effect his muscles and how he grows and heals. He doesn't want to believe it, so he acts tough and does things that boys like Bucky do, no matter what the consequence may be for his health." I took a bite of a cookie.

"Why don't you just tell him that he needs to stop?" Asked Bucky, who had just finished his third cookie. She smiled once more.

"You think me telling him would stop him? No, my son is a stubborn thing. You tell him that something is dangerous, he'll do it anyway to prove that he can do it. He's always been that way and always will be that way, and I love him for it. He's not only my little Rembrandt. He's also my little soldier."