My Bet

Carryin' the Banner!

Song used in this chapter is Carryin' the Banner! From the Newsies musical so if you want to listen to it while reading feel free.

On an early morning in July 1899 a fifteen year old Bet opened her eyes when she heard singing coming from the opened window by her bed. She knew it was her brother. Jack Kelly. Dreaming once again about Santa Fe. Bet rolled her eyes, which were burning from the lack of sleep. She went to bed late last night, playing cards with the boys in the main room till after midnight. 

Racer had to drag her to bed or else she would spend the whole night there. And rob all the boys playing off their money. Surprisingly he wasn't playing with them yesterday, said that he was being the observer. Which was weird since Racer loved playing cards, especially if they played for money. Bet brushed it as an excuse because he surely spent all his money on the races. 

She didn't have much money either yesterday. That's why she decided to play so she would at least have some for the hoard of papes that she intended to buy in the morning. Unfortunately, Race stopped her before her winnings got too close to her being able to buy food as well. 

Bet turned around in her bed, expecting to see Race sleeping in the bed opposite her, but he was not there. The blanket was tossed over to the far end of the bed. But no sight of Racer. In the bunk under she could see Albert silently sleeping, still too deep in the land of dreams. And she was sure that Elmer was sleeping in the bunk under her. She could hear him snoring. 

Elmer moved to their room not too long ago after his old room with Henry, Specs, Jojo, Romeo, and Mush was getting too crowded when Buttons moved there after his bed broke. It's better not to ask about the details of the broken bed. 

Even if her thoughts were wondering where Race was, she desperately wanted more sleep. She closed her eyes for a little while, thinking about sinking back to sleep when the voice of Jack Kelly reached her through the open window. 

"Hey! Specs, Racer, Bet, Henry, Albert, Elmer. Get a move on, boys. Them papes don't sell themselves!" Bet groaned, throwing the blanket over her head. She could hear Elmer in the bed underneath her tossing around, not showing any intention of getting up. Albert yawned in his bed but stayed still as well. 

"Hey, Bet, Albert, Elmer, Specs! You heard Jack. Get a move on." Racer's voice came from the other room. Bet cursed under her breath. She knew Race liked to get up early, he also liked to drag them all out of bed. She was not going to give him the pleasure of dumping cold water on her again. But really, getting up at five in the morning was getting too exhausting for her. 

With a huff, she pulled the covers off of her and sat up in bed. Noticing Albert doing the same. She stretched a bit, hands grabbing her blue flannel as she jumped down the ladder. She tossed it on and started buttoning it while walking to where Racer was. 

"Took ya long enough princess." Race commented with a grin when he saw her enter the room. 

"Don't dare." She warned finishing with the buttons on her shirt.

Bet didn't notice the grin on Race's face when she walked past him. His eyes followed her around like a lost puppy. She grabbed the vest that was on the chair in the kitchen and quickly walked to the bathroom to at least wash up only to be met with the sight of Henry shaving there with a towel loosely around his waist.

"Yeah is too early for that." She commented, grabbing her toothbrush and walking back into the kitchen to brush her teeth there. 

Race watched her the whole time, shaking his head. When she was done she came back over to him, only for Albert to finally join them as well, half asleep, but at least dressed.