Stray on Strike

Strike!

Jack holds up a rolled up paper. "You heard the boys of the membership. The newsies of lower Manhattan are officially on strike!"

Crutchie pulls down on my sleeve and I squat on the  wagon. "If we're strikin', doesn't someone in charge gotta know about it?" Other cheer at his statement my boy had a point.

I stand up and puff out my chest. "Oh, it would be a pleasure to tell that Weisel myself." Race and Specs shout at me agreeing that they hate Weasel too.

Jack puts his arm on my shoulder and looks at the guys, "Yeah, and who tells Pulitzer, huh? Davey..." All heads turn towards Davey. He looks at us worried and stinks down. "I don't know." He looks at me and I raise my eyebrows at him, "I guess you do, Mr. President."

"Yeah, that's right, we do. But... what do we tell him?" Jack shouts confidently to us and then looks over to Davey and says the rest.

Davey climbs up on the Wagon with me and Jack. "Well, the newspaper owners need to respect your rights as employees." He says this to me and Jack.

Jack translate this to newsies words. "Pulitzer and Hearst gotta respect the rights of the kids in this city."

Davey with a sudden confidence bursts out. "They can't just change the rules whenever they feel like it." I cross over Jack and stand in the middle of the two boys. I put my arm around the tall guy and he bends down so that I can reach his shoulders. I shout so the newsies can hear me and he flinched away because I was too loud. I said, "That's right, we do they work, so we get a say!"

All of the newsies shout, "Yeah." Davey over flushed with emotion says , "We've got a union."

Jack yells and walks back and forth on the wagon."Pulitzer and Hearst, they think we're nothin'. Are we nothin'?"

"No."

I push myself to the front and make a point to the news boys. "Even though we ain't got hats or badges we're a union just by saying so."

Race puts his fist up into the air and shouts, "THE WORLD WILL KNOW!"

Buttons pushes himself to the front of the crowd and puts his weight on the tip of wagon. "AND THE JOURNAL TOO!"

Davey and Jack step on the edge of the wagon and look out past the crowd and towards the Pulitzer Building. "MR. HEARST AND PULITZER, HAVE WE GOT NEWS FOR YOU!"

"The ranks will grow....and WE'LL KICK THEIR REAR." Crutchie says.

We all chant, "And the World will know that we've been here."

All of us run towards the gates and the Delanceys don't take anytime to wait for us. They kick us out and lock the gates. Specs was in such a daze that he forgot his shoe.

When leaving and heading towards the Deli. I see a familiar face. The boys are so excited about a strike I am sure they wouldn't  notice if I just slip out. Plus Jack and Davey got this thing covered. Mr. President and The Brains not a bad pair if you ask me.

I slowly make my way away from the crowd towards my new friend. She could actually help us out here. She sees me and waves. I wave back at her and smile. "Hey Katherine."

"Hello Stray... What are doing here isn't it working hours?" Katherine says opening up to me. We walk down the side walk a shorter route than the newsies were talking but it will get us there.

"You know how I said I would give you story?" I say patting her shoulder. She turns to me and says, "How could I forget? And let me tell you the show was amazing, but.."

Oh no! "But? But what?" I get so worried. She did hate it. Calm Stray calm down. Maybe the floors were sticky.

"Nothing, just some other newsie was flirting the whole time. He drew me this." She said and handed me the newspaper with a drawing of her face. I could recognize that penmanship anywhere  I didn't even need to know that he was a newsie. "Jack. Jack Kelly?" I don't ask it much as I laugh it out.

"That's him." She says taking the newspaper back. Katherine puts in under her notebooks and then continues the conversation we were having. "So about the story?" She says making a motion with her hands.

"Oh yeah! Well I got something better. We the newsies of Manhatten are....wait for it....going on strike." I say with pure excitement. Strike it just sounds thrilling.

"Newsies on Strike?" She says. "Newsies on Strike... That's it! David against Goliath. The perfect story. Stray this is amazing. No extraordinary! It's going to be on every paper I just know it." She is very into this all of a sudden. "Tell me everything."

I keep walking on the side walk a little faster and Katherine catches up. "Well they change the prince from 50 cent per hundred to 60. We would have to work like mad men. So we rioted."

She scribbles down on her notepad she looks at me to keep talking. But I don't know what to say. "Whose your leaders?"

"Well me and Davey Jacobs are a big part in it. And... The President of the Newsboy union is.....Jack Kelly." She looks at me with raised eyebrows. "Listen he's a good guy. He's like my brother..... A bit of a flirt but a good guy."

We reach the doors of Jacob's Deli. "Katherine you wait out here. The guys are welcoming just not at first. If you want a story you gotta work for it. Just come in whenever you hear it get quiet."

She smiles, "I'm gonna get a front page story."

I do the same as her and say, "And you're gonna put us on the front page." I turn on my heel and walk into the restaurant.