Requested by @Hufflepuff_Girl_13

Summary: You're the only girl newsie. You're new... and they're about to go on strike.

QOTP: Do you have a video of Mike Faist's foot going through one of the chairs during a performance? Because I need it.

Word Count: 1822

Jack and the other newsies are getting ready for another day of selling papes when one of the other boys notices someone new nervously waiting in line.

"Hey, Jack," Race says, "there's a new guy... I think."

Jack walks over, ready to greet this "new guy" and see what's he's all about.

Except he's not a he.

"Who are you?" Jack asks, a little too harshly.

You jump at the sound of his voice, turning to look at him. "I'm, uh, I-I'm Y/N Y/L/N. I-I'm gonna sell papers..."

Jack calms a little after the initial shock.

I mean, a girl newsie isn't forbidden... it's just unheard of.

"Right. Well, uh, I'm Jack Kelly. And these is the boys."

He gestures to each newsie respectively as he lists off their names.

"Crutchie, Albert, Buttons, Elmer, Finch, Henry, Mush, Mike, Race, Romeo, Sniper, and Specs."

Your eyes widen, seeing how many there are. And how they look like they haven't had a decent meal in weeks. Or a bath.

You don't know what to say, so you shyly wave at them, and Jack does the talking. He leans up against a cart of newspapers. "So, miss, what brings ya here?"

"Um, my... my father passed away and my mom doesn't have a job and she's... she's not takin' it well, so I have to support her somehow... Rather do this than shinin' shoes, I guess."

Jack's face softens and he gently pats you on the back. "Hey, tell ya what - you sell with me today. We split the profit 50/50. Deal?"

You give him a small smile and nod.

He gets in front of you in line, looks back at you, his face radiating the phrase: "I'll show you how it's done."

"Hello, Weasel. Fifty papes, please," he says with a smirk, putting his money down.

The man behind the cart of papers rolls his eyes. "It's Wiesel."

Jack reaches over, takes the man's hat off, and ruffles his hair. "Aw, I's just playin' with ya."

You stifle a laugh as the man grabs his hat back and glares harshly at Jack. Jack moves on and he turns to you.

You quietly stutter out a "Fifty papes, please," and put your money down.

The man laughs. "At this rate, it's looking like you're gonna be losin' your money; speak up, girl."

You look down and go to get your papes. The man handing them out smirks at you. "A girl? Well, there's plenty of other things you could be doing to make money."

You're about to let the horrible comment go and take your papers when Jack shouts, "Delancey, you's best not've said what I thinks you's just said."

"Let it go," you quietly whisper, but Jack hears you. He gives Delancey one final glare, then walks away with you to go sell papes.

////

"Papers! Getcha papers here!" Jack shouts, brandishing a newspaper. A man walks up to him and buys one.

He turns back to you and grins. "Alright, Y/L/N, now you try."

"Jack, I-"

"Listen," he says, looking down at you. "All ya gotta do is shout; I'm bettin' that you bein' a girl's gonna help you in this job. People buy out of guilt. Crutchie? First day he moves to a new spot, the papes seem to just disappear."

You swallow and nod, walk towards the edge of the sidewalk, then give a weak yell. "Papers! Newspapers!"

Some people look at you with confused expressions, then one woman sees the scared and sad look on your face and buys a paper out of pity.

You turn back to Jack wearing an expression of hesitant hope. He smiles at you. "And you's,
my lady, just sold ya first pape. Now, for lesson number two.

"Brutal murder on 4th street! You heard it here! Brutal murder, get the details!"

A man and a women rush up and buy two papers. Jack shows you a paper from his bag. The headline is about a trolley strike.

"You lied," you say quietly.

He shakes his head, "I told 'em they heard it here, and they did. No lying, just bending the truth. You try."

"I-I mean, do I really need to? If people'll buy papes out of pity-"

"For now they will, but at some point, they'll stop caring."

"When?"

"Sooner than you'd like."

You sigh and step out on the sidewalk again, then stop.

You don't know what to say. I mean, you gotta make up something good, but what?

And, then, your current situation inspires you. "Financial crisis! You heard it here! A financial crisis!"

Five people run up to you to buy a paper. Then, another. And another.

Jack walks up and pats you on the shoulder, astonished. "Good work, Y/L/N. You'll be sellin' papes left and right before ya know it."

////

The next morning, you show up with deep bags under your eyes. Jack comes behind you and slings an arm around your shoulder. "Well, Y/L/N, ready for day two? We can sell together again if ya want."

Yes, you want.

But supporting your mother and getting through this is something you gotta do on your own.

////

Two weeks later, and you're not doing half bad.

Just a little less than half bad.

At first, you being a girl really helped your sales, but, like Jack said, people stopped caring. And they also realized that you lie. A lot.

Then, to make matters worse, you go on strike.

"Jack, is this a good idea?" you quietly ask him as the other boys discuss their ideas for the strike. Jack looks at you incredulously. "Of course it is, Y/L/N. Are you kiddin' me?"

"No, it's just... if I'm not making money, then... What about my mom? What's she gonna do?"

His expression softens and he pulls you in a hug. "(Y/N), I'm gonna be honest with ya here - I gots no idea what I'm doin', but this is somethin' we gotta do. So just trust me. Please."

It takes you a second, but you nod.

////

You wish you hadn't've done this.

You were all protesting, then the police and some strikebreakers showed up. Everyone's fighting, getting beat up. And they're not against hitting girls.

You're running, weaving through everyone, trying to find Jack; you're lost, but he'll know what to do. He always does.

You see him fighting a Delancey, but having trouble getting the upper hand. You run over to help, and step directly in between them. Delancey punches you in the face, expecting to hit Jack.

You hit the ground as Jack grabs the confused Delancey by the collar and knocks him out cold. Jack's about to get you out of the way when you see Crutchie getting beat up by the man that runs the Refuge.

"Crutchie!" you shout, running to help him. A police officer grabs you, kicking and screaming, as the man drags Crutchie away. Then, Jack punches the officer, who didn't notice him. He drops you.

Jack grabs you, carrying you out of the fray and up to his "penthouse" as fast as he can.

You wish you hadn't've done this.

////

You're sitting with Jack in silence, just thinking.

You were supposed to support your mom, and you're not making any money. And you miss your dad. So much.

And it all hits you so suddenly.

Since the day he died, you knew something had to be done, and that you were the one who had to do it. Getting your mom back on her feet was your responsibility, and you took it on without a second thought. Yeah, you were scared, but you did it anyway.

And now you don't think you can do it anymore.

All at once, you just break down crying and you can't stop. You try to hide it - Jack's sitting a few feet away from you with his own problems - but a sob breaks out and he hears it.

"Y/L/N? You okay?"

"Y-Yeah, I-I'm... I'm fine."

He sees right through it and scoots closer to you, wrapping an arm around you and quickly kissing your forehead. He starts to rub your shoulder. "Hey, it'll be alright, Y/L/N. One day, you'll have this all figured out, I swear..."

He looks down at you, still crying into his chest. He gently pushes you back. "Look at me, Y/L/N. You're smart. And you're strong - probably the strongest person I's ever met. It's gonna be okay. I promise."

Tears in your eyes, you give him a small smile. He smiles back at you. "And, hey, once this is all over, you, me, and Crutchie'll go off to Santa Fe. So far away from here, you'll forget New York even exists. Yeah?"

"Yeah."

////

Katherine, the reporter for The Sun, gets the newsies a headline, getting the strike awareness. Crutchie writes from the Refuge. Jack and you confront Pulitzer, then he reveals Katherine is his daughter. Then, Pulitzer puts you and Jack in the basement to think over his offer - call off the strike, and he won't raise the paper prices again for two years.

You have no choice. You tell the newsies to take the offer, and they turn their backs on you. Katherine comes to you and you hear her out. She genuinely wants to help you. Jack's still unsure, but you trust her, and he trusts you.

You print your own paper using the printing press from the basement, and the governor sees it. And he takes care of it. He gets Pulitzer to lower the prices. He gets Crutchie back and shuts down the Refuge.

You won.

And the moment it's over - the moment when all the newsies are celebrating and cheering - you're so overcome with happiness. You turn to Jack, who has never looked happier.

He picks you up and spins you around. "We won, Y/L/N! We won!"

You laugh, smiling down at him.

////

A few months later, and life's... okay.

You and Jack are dating now - it happened after a long, long night in his "penthouse" of you two just goofing off and being dumb and calling it a date.

He accepted the job to draw cartoons for the paper while also remaining a newsie, so he has some more money than before.

And he's saving for when you get older. When you get married - because he already knows that, unless you say no, you will be.

And he's gonna take you to Santa Fe like he promised. Maybe not to live there, but one day, you'll go.

One day.