Author's Note: Ahhhhhhh! Okay, I'm sorry it's been so long, but I saw Newsies about two weeks ago and it was so so so incredible, and I've just been trying to process it all and ahhhh! So, it took me a while to write a story while trying to wrap my head around the fact that it actually happened and trying to take it all in, but I'm here! I'm not 100% satisfied with how this turned out, but I'm here! I hope you like it, and if you do, reviews are very much appreciated! Enjoy!

Note: Davey's supposed to have gone back to school by the time this takes place, but I have this little headcanon that he still sells papers after school sometimes.

Another Note: If anyone wants to discuss Joey Barriero's Jack Kelly with me or what a great person Andy Richardson is, please do.

Jack took a deep breath and looked around, an empty living room staring back at him. Change had certainly come, and fast. He had officially turned 18 a few months before, which meant he was an adult.

Which meant he couldn't live in the Lodging House any longer.

Technically, the place he'd had in the Lodging House ever since the strike ended wasn't a place he was supposed to have, since at that point, he was no longer a Newsie; he was an illustrator for The World. "But, hey, Newsies forever, right?" He'd say if anyone questioned it.

Then, his birthday came.

"You do know you're an adult, now, right?" Katherine had asked a few days later, as they both sat on his penthouse. "Well, legally, sure," Jack shrugged and swung his arm around Katherine's shoulder. "But, I mean, do I seem like an adult to you? Truly?"

"Are you asking me if I think Jack Kelly is mature? Of course not," Katherine laughed, giving him a playful shove. "But, it's the legal part that matters. You can get your own place now."

"With what?" Jack asked with a chuckle that he hoped wasn't as nervous that statement made him feel. He'd known it was coming, any day now. He knew Kloppman was going to tell him to scram now that he was 18, and it looked like he'd chosen to break the news with his girlfriend's help. He'd be out on the streets again, of course. With another uneasy chuckle, he added, "I mean, your dad pays me pretty well, don't get me wrong, but I ain't exactly got the money to buy an apartment or nothin'."

Katherine raised an eyebrow and sarcastically responded, "Gee, I wonder where you'll get the money."

Jack raised an eyebrow back. "Gee, I do. You know somethin' I don't?"

Katherine laughed again. "Did you really think your 'aris' girlfriend wouldn't chip in for you to get a nice place to live?"

"Well, sure- wait." Jack's eyes widened as he realized what she'd said. "You're- you're gonna help me get a- a home?" Katherine smiled. "Of course!"

Jack let out an incredulous laugh. "Ace! Ace, I...oh my gosh!"

Katherine couldn't help but giggle once more as Jack pulled her into a hug. "I've been looking at places for a while," She explained, still hugging him. "I found an apartment that I think would work for both of us, though, since my dad has just barely warmed up to the idea of us dating, it'll take a while to convince him to let us live together. But, if you moved in now, it's got an office that you could make your art studio-"

Jack jumped back, a wide smile spread across his face. "My own studio?" He beamed, then hugged her again, even tighter this time. "My own studio!"

Katherine grinned at his almost childlike excitement. "Gee, Jack, I can't tell if you're happy or not."

"Oh, Kath," Jack breathed, still smiling ear to ear. "I..." He pulled back slightly, just enough so that he could look at Katherine while still holding her. "Ace, I...I ain't had a-a...home since...since I was a little kid. At least, a home that I didn't have to worry about losin' if I didn't sell enough papes to stay there. A home I could actually call mine." He chuckled again. "This is incredible."

Katherine took in the gleam in his eyes, one that she saw rarely, so whenever she did, she made sure to appreciate it. "You deserve a home, Jack, and I'd do anything to make sure get one." Pulling him back into their hug, she added in a whisper, "And you're getting one, for sure."

Which brought him to now, standing in an empty living room at dawn. He hadn't slept the night before, and had struggled with sleep all week, even though Katherine had gotten him a nice bed along with other furniture. He couldn't shake the pit that had made his way into his stomach when he'd come to the realization that he was alone.

Alone.

Most 18 year olds who'd just moved into their first apartment hadn't lived alone before, but he had. But, then, he hadn't been living; he'd been surviving.

But, that had been on the lonely streets of Manhattan, trying to suck the life out of him with the scraps of stale food it offered and the bitter winds it held. Now, he was in a warm apartment with food, and clothing, and everything he needed to do more than survive.

So, why wouldn't the pit go away?

Jack shook his head and went to his art studio. His own studio. There was no holding back a smile at that, albeit a little one. He sat down at his desk and began sketching, all the while thinking about this new set-up.

It was a nice place. Homey. Much like the apartment he'd lived in as a kid. Of course, that one had rarely been empty. There was always at least one parent home with him, and Jack himself always made sure the place was blossoming with art. Shaky pencil drawings of the family, cowboys, sunsets, and palominos lined the walls, even in the worst times. In fact, it seemed that there'd be even more art in the worst times. Jack couldn't help but wonder what happened to his last drawings there, the ones that were pinned to the wall when he and his dad scrambled out of the apartment, lugging all they could in knapsacks while his dad muttered curses about how high the rent was, and how, with just a few more days, he could have paid it off.

Jack shook the memory out of his head. "That ain't gonna happen to me. I got my Ace." He muttered, trying to refocus on his art.

It seemed that just when he'd finally been able to concentrate on the political comic for the next issue of The World, a knock on the door took him out of it. With a sigh, Jack trudged to the door and swung it open. "Who's the..." He trailed off, the presence of the Irish woman with now-graying hair tied up neatly in front of him taking the words right out of his mouth.

She, however, gasped and smiled, her eyebrows raising as she did so. "Unbelievable. Are you Jack Kelly?"

Jack smirked back. "That'd be me. Ms. McNair?"

Ms. McNair's smile widened. "Oh my word. I just came by to welcome the new neighbor...I'd heard the name 'Jack Kelly' when you were moving in, but I had no clue it'd be you! How have you been?"

"In the last ten years?" Jack chuckled. "A lot has happened. Sold some papers, met some people, went on strike...You still got the bookstore, do ya?"

"Of course!" She shook her head and remarked in her lilting accent, "It's a small world. You used to come and buy dime novels from my shop every week when you were just a lad. Now you're...all grown."

"Meanwhile, you haven't aged a day, have ya, Miss?" Jack replied, grinning.

"Well, now you're just trying to flatter me, Mr. Kelly," She rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "Just like your father would with everyone." She shook her head. "God, you remind me so much of him now."

Jack faltered, but so slightly that only someone like Crutchie or Katherine would have noticed. He looked at his shoes for a split-second, then back up at her. "Never thought of myself to be much like 'im." He chuckled.

"Oh, the resemblance is undeniable," She said fondly. "I hope he's well?"

Jack decided it'd be best to pretend that he didn't notice the way she'd phrased the last part as a question. "I, uh, should probably go, Miss. I got work to do. Would ya believe me if I told ya I'se been workin' for The World for nine years now? I got a bit of a promotion, though." With a grin, he added, "And would ya believe me if I told ya I'se datin' Pulitzer's own daughter?"

Ms. McNair laughed. "Oh, Jack, you used to tell such tall tales when you were little, I'm not sure if I can. Well, I'll let you work. Good day!"

With that, she walked off, leaving Jack to close the door and sigh. Memories seemed to have a funny way of catching up to him.

"She don't know me," Jack muttered as he sat back down at his desk. "I ain't like my father."

As he sketched, he couldn't shake the words that he'd so often told Crutchie from his head. Them streets down there, they sucked the life right outta my old man. Years of rotten jobs and gettin' stomped on by bosses...and when they finally broke him, they tossed him to the curb, like yesterday's pape. They ain't doin' that to me.

And they didn't, Jack reminded himself. The streets had given him all that, now hadn't they? All of that, on top of his stints in The Refuge. And, he wasn't broken.

Of course, he wasn't.

And he could live alone. Sure, his first week alone was restless, but weren't first weeks always restless? It had nothing to do with what the streets and The Refuge had done, because last night there weren't memories that tempted to haunt him as soon as he closed his eyes, and they hadn't been there all week.

Jack Kelly was not broken, and he could live alone.

Snap.

Jack's pencil broke from the pressure he was unknowingly putting on it. "Dammit." He grunted, tossing the pencil across the room.

Jack stood up roughly, shaking his head. Of course, the memories had followed him here. Of course, they haunted and taunted him from every corner. In the living room, he saw his old home. Out his window, he saw the street that tried to crush that nine year old kid with a cowboy hat. In Ms. McNair's eyes, he saw his dad, both the charming man he'd been and the lifeless man he'd become. And, in every dark, empty room, he saw The Refuge, the damn Refuge. The rooms may be polished, taken care of and clean unlike that prison, but being stuck in a room to sleep alone was just the "solitary confinement" Snyder had tossed him in during what had to be his fourth or fifth visit; a suffocatingly dusty storage cupboard with no light, not one bit. The room may be nice when his eyes were open, but when they were closed, that's all the room was-a harsh city street or "solitary confinement."

Knock, knock, knock.

"I'm busy!" Jack shouted immediately, his voice having a slight shake.

"So am I," Came the response from none other than Davey from behind the door.

Jack relaxed slightly and walked over to the door, where he was greeted by his friend, who held stacks of books in his hands. "What's with the library, Mouth?" Jack joked, despite himself.

"I need a quiet place to study," Davey replied. "Plus, I haven't gotten a proper look at your new place yet, so..."

"Oh, inviting yourself in, I see how it is," Jack smirked.

"Jack, you climb in my window to let yourself into my house 90% of the time," Davey replied, crossing his arms.

Jack gave Davey a shove. "Ah, come in. I'll show ya around."

So, he pulled Davey inside, more than relieved to have the company. Eventually, after Jack had given him an impromptu tour, they both settled back in the studio, where Jack had pulled in a coffee table for Davey to do his homework on while Jack finished up his comic.

"So, how was the first week here?" Davey asked after they'd been working for a while.

Jack shrugged, biting his lip. "Stuffy. It ain't like the roof or nothin'. But, I mean, it's fine here."

Davey looked up at Jack. "You had a rough night?"

"I didn't say that," Jack, not looking back at Davey, responded quietly.

Davey examined Jack. "You implied it."

Jack sighed, dropping his pencil and leaning back in his chair to glare at Davey. "Alright, maybe I didn't sleep last night."

"At all?" Davey questioned, raising his eyebrows. When Jack shook his head, he frowned. "That's not good, Jack."

"Geez, Dave, good to know," Jack rolled his eyes. "I'll have to try sleepin' next time."

There was a silence as Jack turned back to his desk with another sigh. After a moment passed, Davey ran his hands through his hair and admitted, "Look, I came here 'cause I was getting worried, Jack. I would have thought you'd have come and visited me sometime this week, told me how you're doing...you only avoid that when there's something you don't want to tell me."

"Well, maybe I didn't have nothin' to say, huh," Jack grumbled. "I'm doin' just fine on my own, Dave."

Davey ignored him. "Then, Crutchie came over and told me that you came to see him the other day and you didn't seem like you were doing too well, but you wouldn't admit it to him either." Another tension hung in the air as Jack dared to make eye contact with Davey before the latter continued, "You can talk to us, Jack."

"Fine!" Jack threw up his hands. "Maybe-maybe I ain't doin' so good. I ain't been sleepin', I can't sleep without thinkin' about the past, and then havin' nightmares, then not wantin' to close my eyes again, 'cause I'm an eighteen year-old who apparently can't handle bein' alone. Is that what ya wanted to hear?"

Davey sighed and gave Jack a moment to breathe as he took in what Jack had said. Then, he carefully replied, "Jack, that's not unusual. Moving out is hard. I've heard it's scary. Heck, when I graduate, I have to move out, and I'm terrified. But, Jack, you're not alone. Just because you're living somewhere else doesn't mean you don't have me or Katherine or Crutchie or any of the other Newsies. We're all here."

Jack slumped his shoulders and put his head in his hands. "It's just...everywhere I look in this place, there's always...somethin'..."

Davey stood up and walked over to Jack, setting his hand on Jack's shoulder gently. "Look, why don't we go to my house. You can say hi to Sarah, Les, and we could stop by the Lodging House. Get some fresh air."

Jack scoffed. "Fresh air. In New York."

"Well, as fresh as it can get," Davey smirked. "You just need to get out of here."

Jack glanced up at Davey defeatedly. "Fine."

Jack wasn't about to completely admit it, but getting out with Davey really did help. The somewhat-fresh air seemed to make him lose his tension, and visiting with the Jacobs cleared his mind. After staying for dinner, Jack headed back to his apartment, Davey walking with him.

When they got back to the apartment, Jack turned to Davey and grinned. "Well, Dave, I guess you were right. I enjoyed getting outta here."

"This is why you shouldn't underestimate me," Davey joked. "For your own peace of mind." He laughed before adding, "Though, seriously, Jack, I'm glad."

"Well, of course you're glad, you were right," Jack chuckled as he pushed open the door, cutting Davey off before he could get any more serious.

"Boo!"

Jack turned around to see Crutchie and Katherine standing in the center of the room, holding a plate of cookies. "Ta-da!" Crutchie beamed.

Jack laughed, glancing at Davey then back at them. "What's this?"

"A housewarming party!" Crutchie answered. "A small one, at least. We could tell you was havin' a bit of trouble adjusting, so me, Davey, Kath and the other fellas pooled our savings to get you a few gifts, and throw together...this!"

Jack's face lit up in a smile, much to other three's delight. They knew his smiles, and this wasn't a "I'm smiling to cover up my problems" sort-of grin; this was one of those rare but true Jack Kelly smiles, complete with the gleam in his eye Katherine loved so much. "You guys...this totally wasn't-"

"Shut up, it was very necessary," Katherine cut him off. "Your happiness is important to us, Jack. You were distant and it didn't feel right."

"And we don't expect you to be all smiles from now on," Davey chimed in. "We know it doesn't work that way, it's not that easy."

"But, we thought we'd give you a reason to be happy," Crutchie finished.

Jack looked down at his feet, uncharacteristically meek. He glanced back up when he said, "Thank you. All of ya. I mean it."

"Well, you're family," Crutchie smirked. "It's what ya do for family. Now, sit down, eat the cookies, open the gifts!"

"How'd ya guys even get in here?" Jack questioned as the four made their way to the couch.

"You gave your brothers and your girlfriend the location of the spare key, Jack," Katherine grinned.

"'Course I did," Jack rolled his eyes lovingly.

"You know," A grin appeared on Crutchie's face. "When we was sneakin' in here, after you and Dave left, I could sworn I saw a sign in the front of the building that said this place has roof access. You wanna see if I'se right?"

So, they spent the rest of the evening crammed on the roof of the apartment building, eating the burnt gingerbread cookies (which were only burnt because an indignant Katherine and Crutchie insisted that they didn't need Sarah's advice when they really would have benefitted from it) and swapping stories. And, as Jack listened to Crutchie proudly tell him the headline he'd thought up all by himself, and Davey say that the headline they were given could have sold just fine, which prompted Katherine to ask them for help on what to title her next article to ensure it'd make the front page, Jack closed his eyes and realized that he was right, in a way. That apartment wasn't his home, but neither was the Lodging House, or his old place with his parents, or even Santa Fe. His home was found right here, with his family, which he knew he wouldn't lose anytime soon. Like Davey said, they were inevitable.

And Jack couldn't have been more relieved.