1899, Spring

Crutchie's POV

I gaze into the darkness of the night. I'm sitting up straight, staring at the dark sky and at Jack. Jack still asleep. He always looks so cute when he sleeps. His dark brown hair, his good bone structure and his-, ya know, attractiveness and dat sort a stuff. Pff, forget it. Were just bruddas, a I don't no if he even likes me. I've also got this strange feeling that something happend today. But what was it? I scratch the back of my head thinking what it could be. Oh yah, todays da day Star came.

Its been ten years since we found Stephanie. Stephanie is her real name, but we call her Starfire, but Star for short . And since she ever came, I was not the only limped Newsie around. According to her he hit her with a wooden stick he used to beat her up. He hit her leg leg a lot, and possibly broke it. 

Her father was once a rich man, but due to the death of her mother, he got lost and started drinking gambling. He would casually beat her up, saying that it was her fault her mother died. Her mom died in a fire while she was at work. She never talks about it. But even though she is a girl, she is tough. And she hates walking up in the morning, like the most of us. But still, ten years later after the incident, she is still traumatized. 

In a floor below Crutchie's, right before the church bells ring, you can hear a scream. One I have been hearing for the last ten years.

Star's POV

I awake from my nightmare, sweating and full of tears. Even though ten years have past, my dad still haunts me in my dreams. Especially around this time. The only good dreams I ever had have six people in it. My mom, my older niece who's name I've forgot, Jonathan my lost brother, Mint my fellow Girlsie, Jack and Crutchie. I've spent so much time with Crutchie that if he ever was in my dreams, they would always be good. Same counts with Jack, because he took me under his wing. 

I sit up my bed, remembering that I was just a dream, and what just happend happend a very long time ago. I try to calm myself down, and let reality set in. Mint also awoke from my scream, and sat beside me, hugging me. 

"Shhhh, its alright, It was just another bad dream Stef. Everything is fine.", she said on a soft tone, rubbing me on my back. She is the only one who can calm me down after a bad dream. She basically helps me with everything, from helping me down the stairs to getting myself changed for the day. She is my best friend, although I started to get other feelings for her too. 

I've never felt this feeling before, well not really, because I also felt it by Jack and Crutchie. Is it weird or am I just insane?

In the distance you can here the church bells ring. Mint looked me in the eyes. 

"Well, we better start heading to da 'washing room', ya now, before da boys."

She helps me tuck my hair into my newsboy cap and we both go down stairs. We can hear Mr. Kloppman waking up the other boys and I hear a couple in the washing room. We go in and see Mush, Romeo, Elmer, Buttons and Ike and Mike. 

"Morn'in fellas!" I say to them.

Mush waves at me, Romeo send a air kiss(probably to Mint since he has a crush on her since forever), Elmer and the other just reply with a morning.

I quickly wash my face and dry it with a towel. If mom was still around, I would probably take a warm bath in a bath tub. But yeah, things change. Sometimes there good and sometimes there bad.

I got out of my little trance when Mint was waving her hand in front of my eyes.

 "Helluuu, ya doi'n dat creepy thing again."

"Huh?"

Mint starts giggling again.

"Ya, know, staring into da distance."she says.

"Na move along cuz I wanna wash up to!"

She literally shoves me aside to make room for her. I go down the stairs, carefully holding the railing, trying not to fall while the boys come scrambling down the stairs . Then suddenly a hand appears and catches my hand. I look up to see Romeo. Everyone knows that he has a crush on both me and Mint.

"You'se bettah watch ou' little missy, or else yeh mi' fall down"he says with a voice of a gentelmen(which he clearly is not)

I look at him with a look of confusion, but then I switched on my sassy mode. 

"If you call me missy one more time, I swear to God that I'll make no goil love yah, oh wait, they already do."

The boys were laughing and where saying stuff like "ouch " or "Ooooo". Poor Romeo, he looked like a red tomato. All the boys were giving me high five's while I was on the way down stairs. When I was down I looked at Romeo, who was still standing on the place I've left him.

"By the way, if you ever play with fire, always know that you'll be burned."

"OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHH"

All the boys were either laughing or were shouting "OOOHHH". I went out of the building and started walking down the road to the distribution center together with Mint, Smalls, Elmer, Jack and Crutchie. 

At the distribution center await Race and the other boys until the gates open. Things start to get fun, as I see both the Delancey brothers coming to open the gate. I went to the gates, too see what was going on. 

"Mor'n, how are you doing?"I ask them with a polite voice.

They look at me with a grin on their faces.

"Well, well, if it isn't miss Big Mouth, who are you going to go after today, huh? Oscar says, rolling his eyes.

"Oh, my, what that unpleasant aroma?" Race comes up.

"Probably the sewers backed up last night."Mush said with a grin.

"Nah"I reply,"Too rotten to be the sewers, so its must be-"

"THE DELANCEYS BRUDDAS!" We all say in sync.

We all laughed, but then Morris took my crutch adn push me down. The boys immediately stand in front of me, creating a barrier between me and the Delanceys brothers. Race helped me up while the other boys were standing in front of me.

" Hey, mess with ya own kind, ye ugly skanks!" Jack said.

"Maybe you need some, Payback!"

Before he even finished his sentence he took Oscars hat and started sprinting for his life, while Oscar and Morris chased him. I see Jack going over stocks of crates, slamming the Delanceys brothers into each other. When he passes by the statue, I see two boys, standing there, very confused of what was going on. It looked like they were brother. So I went up to them.

"Hello, you'se guys new?"I try to say it as manly as possible, not wanting to reveal her true gender yet.

"Um, yeah, we are.", the older one says, holding out his hand.

"I'm Davey"

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(A/N)Thanks for reading the chapter! I hope you guys liked it. I will try to post the next chapter on Friday, again.

PS. CAN WE JUST FANGIRL ABOUT THE MEAN GIRLS ALBUM?!

PSS. please give any tips about my writing, THANKS

Stay Cool, Fetch and FANTASTIC! 

- Kathy