Challenger, A Spot Conlon Love Story

Chapter 1

Jo's POV
Me being me, I thought I could just swipe a few strawberries without the grocer noticing. But what I didn't account for was the abundance of cops around due to the carriage accident. A few days ago, I would be asking the bulls if they had seen my drunken father anywhere. I wasn't sure why I cared so much for the father that was supposed to be loving, for the father that was supposed to provide for his only daughter, for the father that would never dare to lay hands on a sweet innocent girl. That night, he came back. He had a nice shiner on his left cheek and a cut on his brow.
"Josephleen Milther!" he slurred
I cowered in the back corner of our rundown cheap apartment. There was no doubt that the neighbors could hear what he did every night, and did nothing about it. They were all too high and mighty to take in the 'dirty who re'. With each pounding drunken step, he got closer and closer, finally reaching his journey's end looking down at me, roughly reaching around my waist pulling me closer. He started to run chaotic kisses up my neck, until his head encountered the baseball bat from behind my back.
"I'm sorry father," was all I could muster as I ran to my room to grab the bag I packed with a few essentials. Running towards the fire escape I took one last look at my childhood home before sprinting into the night.

Running into someone brought me out of my thoughts and back into the real world, where I was stealing some strawberry's. When my eyes focused, I was lifted off the ground and brought into an alley. Just as I was about to scream a hand was place over my mouth.

"Look I ain't gonna hoit ya, but it looks like ya runnin from da bulls and if ya wanna get away don't make any noise." a boy about my age, maybe a year or two older with brown hair, a red bandana, and a cowboy hat said in a whisper. I slowly nodded as he moved his hand away from my mouth. Suddenly I heard the bulls searching and asking people if they had seen a girl in a white dress with long brown hair pass through here?

Thankfully everyone was to wound up in their own business to notice a street rat like me.

Finally, the young man spoke again. With an outstretched hand he said,

"Me names Jack Kelly who are youse?"

"I'm Jo, its nice to meet ya" I said great fully.

"Well Jo what appened? Why was da bulls chasin ya?" He looks at me with a raised eyebrow, filled with curiosity.

"Well, I stole me some strawberry's and I was gonna get away with it but some dumbass got into a carriage accident so theys had a lot more bulls around." I stated with a blank expression. I wasn't sure if I could trust him yet, after all I just met him.

"What's a pretty goil like youse doin stealin on da streets, it aint no place for a lady." He flirted

God this guy was ridiculous, I could handle my own. And what about the fact that he just met me and he was already flirting with me.
"Looky here Jackie Ise done fine by me self and Ise certainly don't need ya help. In the 3 days Ise been on the streets, Ise slept in alley's, stole 3 loafs of bread and escaped my father. If I needed help, Ise would've gone to da orphanage." I said all in one breath.
The look on his face told me he was impressed but he quickly composed himself. After staring at me in awe he said,

" Youse eva hoid of a newsie?"
I just stared at him like what the hell does that have to do with this situation.

Jacks POV
She's feisty, she would be a good newsie. She obviously aint gonna let me or any other boy flirt with her so she could live at the lodging house. Right? She could be like me little sista.
I started to walk away motioning for her to follow. She did... reluctantly. She followed me in silence for the first few minutes, but her curiosity soon got the best of her when she asked.

"Where are ya takin me?"

"To tha Hatten lodgin house for da newsies."

"Ummm why?"

"Cause I'm gonna teach ya how's ta be a newsie."

Has she not been paying attention? I mean I even I woulda been able to put 2 and 2 together?