Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Janella’s POV

The stars, I knew he could see them too. Wherever he was he could see them. I missed him. Lying up on the roof was almost like home, but at the same time was not. Boston was so different Brooklyn. Brooklyn was where Spot was. Spot Conlon, my brother, the king of Brooklyn. Then there was Skippy, my best friend who was always in charge of keeping me out of trouble. Let’s just say the keeping out of trouble part never seemed to really work.

Then there were the idiots across the river, the Manhattan newsies. Now those boys had some character. Jack their headstrong leader. Crutchie the big brother to everyone. Race, who would do anything on a dare.

“Jane!” Eloise yelled from the window, “Come down here we’re having supper.”

“Will be in a minute,” I stood up and climbed down the fire escape and through a window into one of the halls. I slowly made my way down to the main hall. I walked into the room to find all of the girls in dresses while I still wore pants, regular shirts, suspenders, and vests. I sat in between Eloise and Alina. The food was passed around the table.

“Jane? I don’t understand you. Why do you like to wear pants and not dresses?” Alina asked. No one called me Ella here to them it was Jane.

“With dresses, you can’t do anything. You can't climb. You can’t run. Being in a dress is being someone I’m not.”

Spot’s POV

“Spot!” Skippy yelled at me, “We have to go to Manhattan tonight.”

“What's the point?” I grumbled.

“Spot. We have to go,” He yelled at me, “Would she want you to sit around and be a bump on a log for the rest of your life.”

“Don’t bring Ella into this,” I furiously yelled at Skipp.

“Would she?” He yelled at me again.

“No! She wouldn’t, but she’s not here. So leave her out of it,” I yelled climbing down the pile of crates on the pier. I walked all the way to Manhattan with Skippy and Loops following me, they talked among themselves but never brought me into the conversation.

I walked into the Manhattan newsie lodge and up the stairs to find Jack and all of the other newsies sitting around.

Chapter Text

Janella’s POV

I was finishing up my plate of spaghetti when Ms. Will walked into the dining hall. Ms. Will ran the orphanage. “Girls,” She started sitting down in her chair at the head of the table, that just so happened to be to the right of Eloise, “tomorrow we are all taking a trip.”

“Where are we taking a to?” Alina asked as I piled up my dishes.

“New York City,” She responded while scoping some spaghetti onto her plate. As she said this my head sprung up in surprise.

I leaned over to Eloise, “Did she say New York City, as in Brooklyn and Manhattan?”

“Hang on,” Eloise said to me before changing her attention to Ms. Will, “Will we get to visit Brooklyn and Manhattan?”

“Actually Eloise we will be staying in a hotel right beside the famous Brooklyn Bridge,” Ms. Will answered in between bites. The Brooklyn Bridge was beside the Brooklyn newsie’s pier where my brother and Skippy spent most of their days. “The train will leave tomorrow at nine with or without you so I suggest that you all pack tonight. We will be staying for five days, then returning here.

I was the first one out of the dining hall that night. I ran up the stairs to my room. Throwing open the door I scared the living daylights out of my roommate Danni. Danni didn’t eat supper; she had never eaten supper since I had got here four years ago. Sure, she ate breakfast and lunch, also the occasional snack during the day, but she never ate supper or dessert. She told me it was because her body just couldn’t sleep with food in her stomach.

“Why are you so excited?” She asked closing her book and setting on the nightstand.

“Tomorrow, we are going to Brooklyn!” I yelled. Danni knew my whole past; she was the only person who did. Not even Ms. Will knew.

“Doesn’t your brother live in Brooklyn?” she asked.

“Yes, he does, and once we get there I’m never coming back,” I said excitedly jumping around in circles, “You can stay with us, Spot, Skippy, Loops, you, and me. Danni, you can become part of our family.”

Chapter Text

Janella’s POV

“Would you sit still?” Danni asked as we sat on the train, “you are so energetic.” Danni and I were sitting together on the train this morning and personally I think I was driving her nuts.

“Jane for peeps sakes sit still. It is very hard to read when the book keeps moving from you bouncing,” she complained.

“It's just we're so close,” I said as I could see the familiar train station that I reluctantly boarded four years ago. As the train pulled into the station, Ms. Will stood up at the front of the train car.

“Now girls we are going to get our luggage and then go to the hotel,” I grabbed my bag for the overhead compartment it was in as Danni grabbed hers as well.

We followed the group of girls down the street even though I already knew the way. Danni and I were sharing a room, once again.

Alina stuck her head in the door, “Ms. Will wants everyone to meet in the lobby.” After she said that she closed the door and left.

Danni and I walked down to the lobby and sat on one of the couches as the rest of the girls made their way down the stairs. Once all the girls were in the room Ms. Will stood at the front.

“Girls, I'm giving you the rest of the day to explore the city,” Ms. Will announced, “But you all need to be back here for supper. You are free to go.”

I grabbed Danni’s hand and drug her outside of the hotel, and down the street towards the place where I knew my brother would be.

Chapter Text

Janella’s POV

Oh, how I missed this city. I did a cartwheel on the sidewalk. We got me even more weird looks from the mothers and their children. I was already getting them because of my outfit, though. “Is this how your childhood was?” Danni asked.

“Was my childhood what?” I responded.

“Was your childhood like this,” She said jesting behind us meaning the cartwheels, “did your childhood involve cartwheels in the middle of the streets?”

“A lot of it, ya. When you’re a newsie you don’t really have a home so everywhere is a place to be who you are, therefore cartwheels in the street from a young female newsie were a very normal thing during my childhood,” I said laughing.

As we turned the corner, I spotted by my best friend sitting on a crate at the entrance of the pier. “Skippy!” I yelled running at him leaving Danni behind me.

“Ella?” He said unsure looking down the road, “Ella!” he took off running towards me. He engulfed me in a hug.

“Where have you been?” He asked placing his hands on my cheeks to inspect my face.

“Boston, Massachusetts,” I answered hugging him again. He was still a whole head taller than I. He placed his chin on top of my head pulling me closer to him.

“Your brother will be so happy your home. Oh Ella, since the day you left he hasn’t been the same. Sure, he is still Spot, but he doesn’t act like Spot. He’s shut most of the newsies out, the only way we can get him to pay attention is to bring you into the conversation and ask him if you would want him to be moping around all day,” Skippy explained.

“My brother doesn’t just sit around. My brother needs to get off this pier and have some fun. Does he even go swimming with you guys anymore?” I asked.

“Nope,” Skipp answered.

“Oh, by the way. Skippy this is my friend Danni. Danni this is my best friend Skippy. Now let's go find this mope brother of mine.”

Chapter Text

Janella’s POV

Skippy lead us down the pier until we came along the oh so familiar pile of crates. There was a back facing me.

“Spot?” I called. The head of the person shot up.

“Ella?” He asked not turning around. Skippy came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist as I leaned back into his chest. “Ella?” he said inquisitively, this time turning his head to see me at the bottom of the pile.

“Ella!” He yelled. Followed by him jumping down the pile to bottom. Pulling me out of Skipp’s arms he pulled me into his own. He laid his head on my shoulder. “You're ok,” he said relieved. I could hear him slightly crying.

“I'm ok,” I replied, “I'm ok.” He pulled his head out of the crook of my neck and you could see the tears in his eyes.

“You've grown so much,” he laughed, “what happened to my little sister. You're grown up now. Not the little Janella Elizabeth I knew.”

“Say that to yourself. Spot, you're practically a grown man now,” I say looking at my brother who was now nineteen years old, “but according to Skippy all you have done for the past four years in be a bump on a log. Spot, life has big plans and you can't just sit around and wait for them. Four years! Spot, four years! You will never get those years back.”

“Ella,” he said trying to calm me down.

“No, Spot! You only have so much time on this earth. I've learned that now it's your turn to learn this lesson,” I yelled at him, “I'm not mad at you I'm just disappointed in you.”

Chapter Text

Janella’s POV

Somedays I swear Spot was the biggest idiot on the face of this earth. Danni had decided to head back to the hotel, therefore I was on my own. Freedom something I had been missing for a very long time.

I walked across the great bridge of Brooklyn about halfway across I stopped and stood next to the railing looking over it to the water below.

“Ella?” a voice questioned behind me. I turned around to see a head of red hair that I would never forget.

“Flynn!” I yelled running at him followed by embracing him in a hug.

“Long time no see princessa,” he laughed, “last time I saw you were in the refuge the day before you disappeared. Where did you go?”

“Boston,” I answered bluntly.

“Boston… ew,” Flynn said with a sour expression.

“Wait how did you get out of the refuge?” I questioned

“When Jack came to break Crutchie out he broke Knotts, Pea and myself out as well. Now we're all Manhattan Newsies,” he said while doing some really unneeded jazz hands.

“Wait, Jack? Can we go see Jack?” I pleaded.

“I see no reason why not to,” Flynn smirked.

We shared stories all the way to the Manhattan Newsie lodge. The building was the exact same I had last saw it. We went inside and up the stairs to the main room where the newsies all hung out after a day of selling.

I walked into the room to find that all of the boys were facing away from me watching Jack who was stood on a table in front of them facing me. As Jack's eyes meet mine you could see them light up.

As Jacks focused was off the newsies and now on me it practically forced them all to become curious and turn around to find me just inside the doorway with Flynn behind me.

“It can't be,” Race muttered to himself.

“No way,” Crutchie giggled.

“Janella Elizabeth Conlon, were in tarnation have you been for four years?” Jack asked still standing on the table.

“Boston,” Flynn said from behind me. I laughed as all the boys make gagging and puking noise at the thought of Boston.

Chapter Text

Ella’s POV

“Ella,” Race yelled running over to me and wrapping his arms around me. I swear everyone had grown a foot and it wasn’t fair because I hadn’t grown at all.

“Hi, Race,” I laughed hugging him back. God, did I miss these losers.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and I turned around to see Jack smiling at me. “Hi princessa,” He laughed, “Can I talk to you on the roof?”

“Ya sure but what is with everyone calling me ‘princessa’?” I asked confused.

“Well your brother is the King of Brooklyn so that makes you the princess,” Jack laughed while leading me up onto the roof.

“What did you want to talk about,” I ask sitting on the ledge as Jack sat beside me.

“I’m concerned about your brother,” Jack explained.

“I am too, along with Skippy,” I said, “Skip told me he has done nothing these years I was gone. Is that true?”

“Unfortunately yes. When we found out you were with Crutchie at the refuge Spot was so happy he found you, but then when we went to break you out you weren’t there. That was really the breaking point for Spot, I don’t think he ever really recovered from that. Skippy has taken most of the control of Brooklyn for the time being,” Jack explained.

“Skippy has been in charge, is he good at leading?” I asked.

“Well no one has died yet so I’m going to say, yes he is doing ok,” Jack laughed, “Ella?” for some reason Jack automatically got nervous.

“Ya, Jack,” I said turning to face him.

“Would you mind if I tried something?” Jack asked messing with his hands. What was he planning?

“No, go right ahead,” I assured him. What happened next caught me off guard, Jack Kelly kissed me.