Me, The Only Girl Newsie

The Wonderful Life Of Me

A/N for all who don't know I am a huge musical theater nerd another thing to keep in mind is that all of the people who talk may seem like they are just speacking spelling errors, but New York accents are like that the musical. This fanfiction is off of the Broadway musical Newsies, so I suggest you go and see it. But as most of you are, you don't have the musical in town. So if you can, watch the movie before reading this and it will make way more sense, also I combined some of the musical and movie plots to get this. Enjoy!

Snyder took him. Snyder took my brother to the refuge. All he wanted to do was save me! I shouldn't have stolen the bread. Even if it meant adding today to the list of four days I haven't eaten. I was starving, and I took some unsuspecting man's bread. Why did that man have be Snyder? He turned around in time to see me running away, and my brother came up from behind me and we ran. Snyder caught up to us and grabbed my hand. I felt a searing pain in my eye and screamed. My brother hit Snyder in the jaw and yelled at me to run. "Jacob! I won't leave you!" I yelled at him. He yelled that he had it under control and hit Snyder again. I ran far away, back to Jacob and my "home" well, alleyway and waited for him. But he never came.

I spent the night curled in a ball having nightmares about what my brother is doing at the refuge. When I woke up my first thought was about the swearing pain in my eye. I felt it with my hand and realized that my eye was swelling up. My second thought was about my growling stomach. I need food. I really need food. I pondered the best way to get it when I heard a newsie yelling today's headline. That's when it hit me. A NEWSIE! I can dress like a boy and become a newsie! I put on my brother's spare pair of dirty clothes and grabbed my brother's old newsie cap he found a year ago and used when he tried to steal food so people wouldn't know who he was. My brother. Snap out of it Audria! He is gone. I stuffed my hair into the cap and walked out of the alley and to the newsie.

"Who is you?" Asked the newsie with the crutch. Crutch!?
He was obviously looking at my black eye. "That dosnt matter. Cans you tell me who I's need to see ter become some newsie?" I said in my terrible accent. "Fine. I's gonna show you, but you needs ter tell me yer name." He said. I thought for a second and said the first thing on my mind. "Fransis." I said back. "Follow me Fransis." He said and we walked off. "Sos hows ya get ta well, ya know." He said gesturing to his eye. "Snyder." I said. The boy looked impressed. "I is Crutchie. I tink ya know whys they call me dat." He said and looked down at his crutch. "Sos, hows many newsies are 'dere here in Manhattan?" I asked. He laughed. "Youse gonna haves some fun findin' out!" He said.

As we arrived at The World Headquarters, well the newspaper I was going to work for, Crutchie hobbled up to someone who looked about two years older than him. They talked for a moment and they came over to me. "Sos, you wanna be a newsie?" He said. "Do you thinks I woulds be here if I didn't?" I said back. Crutchie laughed. The older boy gave me a glare. "If youse can buy papers, ya can be a newsie. I's gonna guess ya needs a place ter stay. It costs five pennies a week fors ta boardin' house " He said and looked at my clothes. "I's only got a penny." I said to him. "Hows bout this, I's gonna pay fer ya till ya can pay on youse own, if ya sell with me and we cuts 20-80" he said. "Do youse thinks I's dumb as Crutchie's crutch? 50-50" I said. "30-70" he said "60-40" I said again. "I's gonna see how well ya do at 30-70 and the wese cans decide. Keep in mind, I is paying fer ya fees." He said. I tipped my hat and said "Nice doin' business with ya." They both laughed.

"Whats ya name?" Asked the boy. "Fransis." I said back. The boy looked at me questioninly  "I's Jack. King o the Manhattan newsies. Ands now thats youse a newsie, youse needs a newsie name. I nominate Cap." Jack said. "Nos Jack, I think Ruffian woulds be better. That black eyes from Snyder." Crutchie said. "Ruffian it is! But with Ruff fer short." Jack said. "HEYS NEWSIES!" Crutchie yelled. "COME MEET THE NEWBIE RUFF!!"

All the boys crowded around me. I's this how mass groups of boys great each other? I wouldn't know. Crutchie yelled "Give the poor boy some space!" And they backed away. "I's Romeo, the biggest ladies lover alives!" Said a boy about a year older than me. No need to wonder how he got his name. "I's Race, and likes us all, I is a proud newsie." Said another boy. "Proud dosnt begins ter describes a newsie. I is Mush." Said a boy my age. At that remark all the newsies laughed. "Comes on Ruffie. Wes gotta go sees Klopperman bouts getting ya into ta the house."

The next morning

Get up Audria! You have to get out if here before the boys! Well, the boys bath time. I thought to myself and jump out of bed. As I got up I banged my head on the bunk above me and held in a scream. Don't wake them up! I walked outside and saw Jack sitting on the front steps. I have always been sneaky so why not scare him? This is gonna be fun. I snuck up behind him and quickly put my hands on his shoulders and yelled "JACK!!!" He turned around and punched me in the arm. "Hey, whats that fer?" I said rubbing my arm. "Sorry Ruff. Reflexes. Let's go get in line fer papes." He said. "Fine." I said and punched him in the arm.

"Morning Weasel. Ill take a hundred." Said Jack to the man behind the counter as he slammed down some coins to pay for the papes. "For the last time, it is Wisel! Delanceys, a hundred papes ter the wise guy and the newbie!" Weasel said. Jack took the papes from one of the Delanceys and sat down to read it through. I took a pape from Jack and skimmed it through. How was I going to sell this garbage!?