We all know Crutchie went to the Refuge during the two-week long newsboy strike of 1899. What we don't know, however, is the person who helped him survive in there, the person who gave him paper to write to Jack, and the person who tended his wounds that he got from his brutal beating. The person who threw their own body in front of him in that hellhole in an effort to protect this poor, partially crippled kid.

This person was a natural born protector, no doubt - especially after taking their little sister and running away when their parents were coming around to be too much for them to handle. This person was brave, but also very scared.

This person was named (Y/N).

(Y/N) was a pretty girl, despite the constant layers of grime and sweat on her face. She was a newsie, too, but only became one after the strike was long over. She and Crutchie made fast friends in the refuge, and it was him who invited her to be a newsie after the historical protest that stopped the world.

(Y/N) was a natural born newsie, no doubt about it. She had clever headlines, somewhat of an education like Davey, and best of all, she had cut her hair short - making it easier to pretend to be a boy on the streets. (Though, it really didn't matter to her what her gender was. She wore pants and everything though, since Jack said it was the best idea.)

She also had a younger sister named Lila. Lila was a very cute girl, and thus a very good newsie. She was close friends with Les Jacobs, who used her to practice his flirting (he needed to learn from someone other than Race.) Lila had strawberry blonde hair accompanied by brown eyes, and a thin stature that all the newsies shared. She, too, wore pants and such, but didn't bother hide that she was a girl - after all, her hair went down to her lower back. How would she cover that?

On the topic of her, Lila was not (Y/N)'ś biological sister. She was adopted by her mother as an infant, back when her parents were more stable.

So, they were the girlsies of Manhattan. Girlsies were not entirely uncommon - the Bronx had many, and such newsies were friends with (Y/N). They could relate to each other more, so they clicked faster.

Many referred to (Y/N) as 'femme' considering the fact she looked meager and harmless to the naked eye. Get on her bad side, though, she could soak you real good. She had picked up some tricks over the years, and they helped her in a fight.

Speaking of fights..

Meet Spot Conlon, king of Brooklyn. Or, as the Manhattan newsies refer to him, 'a five foot four pillar of sour grapes.' Of course, they never called him this to his face. He'd probably kill them. His height was a sensitive subject for him.

He worked as a newsie along with his boys, no questions asked. On the topic of work, however, lets shift back to (Y/N). She worked as a newsie during days, yes, but she also took up a job at a small bar during evening hours to bring in more money. She had a dream to get out of the lodging house, educate her sister, and live happily ever after.

The twoś worlds had never met. Sure, (Y/N) had heard of Spot, and she knew that he was a huge flirt as well as very short, but that was about it. She had no idea that he was sensitive, but put on a facade to hide it.

Something similar goes on with Spot. He had never met this particular newsie, nor did he know her name - he had seen her before. To him, she was nothing special and he moved on with his life as she did with hers.

She followed her boundaries as he did his. She kept out of Brooklyn, he kept out of Manhattan. It seemed simple enough, but when (Y/N) got her job in Brooklyn she realized she may have to break a few rules.

Either way, it's not like Spot would even care if she was there. She wasn't selling, and she isn't interacting with him.

Besides, its not like that could ever change.

Right?