Disclaimer: I don't own Newsies, sadly, they belong to Disney. Mac, however, is my own creation. Please read and review!
Hello! My name is Mac, I'm 15 years old, and I'm a Manhattan Newsie. I have lived among the boys at the Lodging House since I was 8, which isn't unusual for a young, homeless boy. But you see, I am not a boy. I am a girl who has been posing as a boy ever since I was 'rescued' from the streets by a 9-year-old boy called Racetrack Higgins. It wasn't my intention to deceive the people who took me in, but Racetrack mistook me for a boy (I had – and still have – very short hair and a rather boyish figure) and I played along, terrified that I'd be thrown out if they discovered the truth, especially when I found out about Kloppman's "No Girls" rule.
It was easy for me to keep up my act, even as I grew up – I am slim, strong, I have quite a low voice, and I have no chest to speak of whatsoever – and I proved myself a valuable asset to the team in two particular ways. Firstly, I am very good at selling my papes, if I may say so myself, and secondly, my late father was a doctor and taught me a lot about medicine in the first 8 years of my life, and so when the boys get ill, I can usually get them through it and back on their feet very quickly.
My best friend is Racetrack, now 16, and he was the one thing that made me want to reveal my secret much sooner than I did. You see, I've loved Race ever since I was old enough to truly understand what love is, but I couldn't tell him so while he believed I was a boy. When, at Medda's suggestion, I did finally spill the beans, just before the end of the strike, I was astounded to discover that Race was relieved that I was a girl because he'd had the same feelings for me. So now he is my boyfriend, and we love each other very much. (And though I still dress – and look – like a boy (it's more comfortable), I don't have to hide anymore.) Thankfully, because I've lived with the boys for so long, they apparently think of me as family and have let me stay with them.
I'm not sure why I didn't acquire a Newsie name; I suppose Mac (short for Mackinna, by the way) was catchy enough. But then again, Jake doesn't have a Newsie name either. I wonder why?
Anyway, I can hear Kloppman calling us to bed, so I'd better go. Besides, I'm selling with Tumbler tomorrow, and he can be quite boisterous! (He's a fairly new addition to the family and needs a little guidance.) Thankfully, I've long since learnt to sleep through Kid Blink's snoring!
Carry da bannah!
A/N: I know this story doesn't quite fit the style of my other stories, and that it doesn't really feature any of the Newsies, but it was a story that needed to be told to help explain apparent discrepancies that will appear in future stories, as Mac is quite an important character in my Newsies world.
And I would just like to point out that when I said that Race had feelings for Mac even when he thought she was a boy, I didn't mean that he was gay; he just didn't understand what he felt for her, and thought he was simply very fond of 'him' as a friend.
Thank you.