Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies, nor do I own any of the characters featured in this. The only ones I take responsibility for are Maggie & Beth.

an: My first Newsies, fanfic, I hope you enjoy!

Chapter One: A Lot To Learn

It started out as a normal day at Miss Dobbson's School For The Education of Ladies. If you want to get technical with names, that is. If not, the girls just called it Dobbson's. It was said that she had been quite an independent and educated lady. Not only was she taught in the ways of ladies, but she was educated in the ways of the world including the higher subjects. She had been quite fond of politics, or so the girls we were told. Not that I was in any way opinionated in politics or anything to do with the matter. I knew Teddy Roosevelt was our mayor, and...that just about sums it up. I knew some other prominent names like Pulitzer and Hearst, but other than that, I was painfully not interested in things along those lines.

My friends and I were more interested in things closer to us, like our hearts, love, and the things that made everyday tick like a clock: boys. Being sixteen, I wasn't quite old enough to be ready to be married, even though I thought about it all the time. In my head it was just a fantasy. Of course I wouldn't be doing any cleaning or cooking, that was what we would have housekeepers for.

But right, back to my normal day. Or as normal as the morning could be. Early on, we took French, then some algebra. After that, it was literature. Then, we had our social classes. Social meaning we were taught how to be a perfect hostess, or host a perfect night of entertainment. We had been taught how to sit and think and act from day one, when we arrived at the school at age eleven. But on this particular day, it was different. Not from all the rest, because we had quite a few afternoons to ourselves, but because this day we dared to do something we'd never done before.

"I suggest we catch a ride out to Sheepshead Bay and see a race." That would be Elizabeth Bennet, or Beth, my best friend in the entire world. From the first day at Dobbson's, Beth and I were fast friends, clinging to one another and giggling when we did something wrong unintentionally. When I had been in the third year and had gotten in trouble for dipping Christy's braids into a pot of ink, Beth had been sitting outside the classroom as I was getting scolded. She hugged me and reassured me that I would never get caught out again. And I didn't. Since then, Beth and I had done many a disastrous thing. We were the trouble makers of our bunch, both of us being leaders, but she with the most wild of ideas.

"Really, Beth, how are we going to get there?" Anna questioned, adjusting her bonnet in the sunlight.

"I know someone who would be willing to give us a ride out there and back, and he's sitting right around the corner," Beth smiled slyly, winking my way. John would be sitting there. John was her father's store helper, the one who would be inheriting his store from him when he was ready to retire. Beth's father owned many stores in and around the area, but out of all the helpers, John was her favorite. It was pretty much already arranged for them to marry as soon as she was done with her schooling.

It was a hot and sunny day, sticky, and with the lack of chaperones, the five of us took the opportunity to let our bonnets hang and let ourselves go a little to have a bit of fun. Upon arrival, we decided we were all only betting on one race, to save ourselves our allowance in case we lost.

I put five on a horse called Dreamer, who ran the fourth race. She was gorgeous, all shiny black with white from just above her hooves down. She should have been called Magic, I suppose, but Dreamer fit her just fine.

Anne bet on the second race, which was when our fun began. Her horse was called Chance, and he took out the rest of them so quick there wasn't a challenge in the bet at all. Our whole group was whooping and hollering, very un-lady-like, but there was no one around to tell us otherwise. A boy off to the side of us was hollering and throwing his navy cap in the air. He must have bet Chance as well, we figured. Anne went to collect her winnings, and we all settled in for Caitlyn's bet.

"Maggie, don't look now, don't turn...I said don't turn, but that boy over there is looking your way," Beth whispered in my ear. What was I supposed to do but turn and make sure her observation wasn't wrong?

She was right. But there were five of us over this way, which I pointed out. "Yes, but he keeps looking at i you /I ."

I didn't pay attention to her ramblings, and was quite shocked when Caitlyn's horse didn't pull through, but fell five behind.

My race was up next, with Dreamer. Inside, I was trembling. If I lost this, I'd wasted half my allowance for the week. But at the same time, I was calm. This was my race. I had it in the bag. I could feel the win as Dreamer sprinted easily toward the finish line. It was a perfect bet for my first race. It was the best thrill I'd had since swiping cookies from the kitchen, which the cook knew about but didn't tell, so that didn't really count.

I stood up and went to the booky's box to collect my winnings. I noticed the boy throwing his cap to the dusty ground. He'd obviously lost on his horse. "Never bettin' on Lucky again," I heard him mutter to himself before sticking a cigar in his mouth.

I returned to the group with a roll of my eyes as Beth pointed out that the boy had been watching me since I'd passed him. Somehow, I was pressured into betting on another race, as I had enough for allowance for two weeks still.

When I got to the box, the boy was leaning against the wall, studying his cigar. "I'd put my money on Fletch if I was you," he said pointedly to me.

"And what makes me think I should listen to you?" I wondered. I wasn't in the habit of taking blind advice.

"Well, see, I'm pretty good at this kinda stuff." Right. If he wasn't full of himself.

"It didn't look like you were very good with the fourth," I replied. "That hat must have taken quite a beating."

"So I had a bad tip on the fourth. What's it to ya?"

"Why should I bet on Fletch?" I asked.

"I've never lost with Fletch," he said with a grin and walked away.

"We'll see," I muttered to myself, placing my bet then taking my seat.

I sure hoped he was right. If he wasn't, I'm sure I could have squashed him with my bare hands even though I'd had no formal lessons. I looked over at the boy; he didn't look too confident. Maybe it was just the way he looked all the time. He had thick brown hair when it wasn't hidden under his cap, and expressive brown eyes that matched. It must have been hard for him to play poker or shoot craps, I decided. Boys were devious, so there was no reason I should have trusted him. But then there were others you could trust, like your father, mine whom I hadn't seen in months. So maybe that wasn't the best comparison.

"So what did the boy say?" Beth wondered as the horses were getting ready. Fletch was a flighty looking stallion; I never would have chosen him on my own.

"He told me to put my money on Fletch," I said, a little more than addicted to my race. My heart was beating bullets inside my chest. A permanent tattoo that would probably last me a high of the next week if the boy was right.

"Tell me you didn't!" Elizabeth screeched.

"So what if I did? It's my money, my race." The boy cracked his knuckles and wrung his cap in his hands. If he was confident inside, he didn't show it.

The shot went off and the horses careened down the fairway, Fletch not quite in the lead, but close. He was coming second. "Come on baby, come on! Move your legs!" I heard the boy shout. I was shouting right along with him at this point. In the last second, Fletch moved forward and passed the horse in the lead by a nose. "A friggin' nose," I heard him say to himself in triumph.

I turned and grabbed Beth to me, hugging her tightly and jumping up and down. We were the happiest people at the track that day, even if for no reason.

So he was right. He wasn't a dirty rotten liar after all.

"I see you bet well. Looks like ya took my advice and bet on my horse." I turned from the collection box and faced the boy with the cigar again.

"I don't normally take advice from strangers, but for you, I made an exception." I hoped it was a breezy voice, one that was indifferent, but flirty at the same time. I think it worked.

"Good thing or you'd'a been outta a lotta money."

I stepped aside to let him get his earnings. "There's enough where it comes from," was my reply as I tucked the money envelope into my purse. The boy turned and put his cigar back in his mouth and shut up, finally stepping to the box. "No, I didn't mean it like that, I meant...I don't know what I meant..."

"What you meant is that this game is just fun to the likesa you, but for someone like me, I shouldn't be wastin' my hard earned money."

"No, that's not it."

"Really? Because if it isn't, then what is it?"

"It was supposed to be sarcastic?" I offered. It was all I had.

We had stepped aside to let other people speak to the booky, which was probably a good thing, because I could feel his fuse starting to light. "Nothing about money is sarcastic. Not when you're out there peddlin' a penny a pape and buyin' a hundred of 'em for your hard earned sixty cents."

It seems that unlike Miss Dobbson, I had a lot to learn about the world. I don't remember quite how long I rambled on. About what I don't remember either, but I know I wasn't making a whole lot of sense, to myself even, when he interrupted me and stuck out his hand. "My name's Racetrack. Racetrack Higgins."

I don't think there had ever been a look on my face as shocked as the one I gave the boy. His name was i what /I ? "Your name is Racetrack?" I shrieked.

"No, not really. It's Anthony, but everyone calls me Racetrack or Race...It's a nickname...ya got a problem with that?"

"No. No! Race is a...good...name. I mean, especially because you're...here. Uhm, My name is Maggie. Maggie Harper." I finally stuck my hand out to shake the one he'd extended earlier.

"Nice to meet ya, Maggie. You stickin' around for a while? I have a buddy who has a great box. You can see the whole track and beyond from there. You and your friends could come and check it out..."

And this is where I chickened out. "Uhm, actually, we have to be getting back home. See, the headmistress gets a tad angry when we don't get back on time, and we probably are going to want to wash up before we go for dinner anyway..." And then I saved it. "...But I would love to check out that box sometime, maybe tomorrow? Or...whenever?"

Racetrack smiled. "Tomorrow works for me. I'll see ya around two. Right here in this same spot."

I smiled and returned to the box where Emma had just won the last race of the day. Soon after, we were on our way back to the bricks and bars of the boarding school that was supposed to teach us about the ways of the world. Funny enough, I'd learned more on that one day out that I'd learned in my nearly five years at that school.