Gold Rush ✸ Peaky Blinders

OO3'

OO3'

Cersei Calloway, or perhaps she was now Cersei Shelby often found herself without much to do in Small Heath, sure she had her books and her father would take her to see the horses twice a week whenever he could but the past month or so had been bland. She had asked Ada what to do and Ada suggested she go to two streets over, at the end there was a small bit of land where kids usually sat around. Ada had probably suggested that to throw her niece of her tracks when she'd seen her and Freddie and promised not to snitch if Ada did the same, Ada very quickly agreed and now the two had a mutual understanding on their out-of-house activities were private. 

Cersei did just that, instead of going home she walked to the street and walked all the way to the end when she noticed a boy surrounded by girls. The boy was strikingly beautiful to Cersei, she'd never had this feeling about a boy before, it made her feel so bizarre. Next to the boy was a girl that looked a lot like him, and two more girls.

Cersei hadn't even noticed she was approaching them until the girl that wasn't facing her turned to see her. "You're Cersei? Right?" She asked. Cersei was still for a moment before the fact that the girl was talking to her hit her, almost immediately she nodded. "I'm Anaïs, but everyone calls me Ana, it's nice to meet you, properly. We're in school together but Ms Windham never lets us speak so we haven't had a chance to talk to you yet." Anaïs spoke quickly.

"It's nice to meet you all too." Cersei replied, she desperately wanted friends, after being forced to leave Hattie she needed some that weren't Finn. As nice as he was, he was two years younger than her.

"I'm Reggie." The boy introduced himself, offering out a hand which Cersei shook. "Reg, is Ronnie's twin, and that's Florence, she's not related but she may as well be." Anaïs told Cersei who nodded at the information. She'd never been an awkward person, the entire situation was so new to her, in East London she knew everyone and everyone knew her.

"Ms Windham told us your from London." Veronica began "I am, well my mother was born here but left when she found out she was having me and my great aunt sent me to my dad." Cersei replied she was unsure of how they'd react to it considering she'd been called quite a few names before, she didn't care about that entirely, it just stung sometimes or at least that's what she told herself.

"You're parents are seperated?" Anaïs asked, Cersei quickly turned her head to look at her and shook her head "My uh, my mum died a few months ago and my dad didn't know about me. I only met him a week before I started school." Cersei told her, anxious about what she'd say back, mentioning her mother made her feel awkward aswell "I like you, you're very interesting." Florence smiled "Thanks." Cersei chuckled her worries about their reactions had began easing away.

"Do you want to come with us to the tuck shop?" Reggie asked her. "I don't have any money on me." Cersei groaned. "It's okay, it's my uncles shop." Florence told her. Cersei nodded and began following them.

"The girls are quite full on, but they mean well." Reggie told her, Cersei nodded, all the other boys she knew save Finn and her uncles were absolute fucking wankers. "I had a friend back home she was also really full on, but we'd been friends since we were little, her dad employed my mother before she got sick." Cersei told him she didn't know why she'd just let that out, she regretted it seconds later as someone yelled "Are you two coming or what?"

Cersei came home at half past six, her once neatly done braids were undone, her curled hair bouncing behind her as she entered the Shelby house. "Where have you been madam?" Polly asked her as she got something out of the oven. "I made friends." Cersei smiled widely. "I told you, you would didn't I." Polly nodded. Cersei mirrored Polly before taking her coat off and putting it on the tall brass coat holder.

"Where's dad?"  Cersei asked her great-aunt, while she hadn't called him it to his face yet she'd call him that to Polly "He's at the Garrison." Polly lied, the girl was thirteen and didn't need to know of what was going on "Should I go get him?" Cersei questioned, she'd only been to the garrison once, and she hadn't even gone inside but she was sure she could find her way "No, leave him." Polly told the girl who simply nodded though she let her frustrated thoughts rumble about in her head. "You can set the table though, It's only three tonight." Polly told her.

"What about Arthur and John?" Cersei added to her line of questions "No, it's just you me and Finn, my girl." Polly told her "What about Ada?" Cersei asked "Gone to the pictures." Polly replied with certainty "With Freddie then." Cersei muttered to herself as she laid the table . After a well-cooked dinner and half an hour to read her book Cersei was sent up to bed, half seven was no time to go to bed for her so she just read for a while.