Nellie Lovett

Chapter 13

"Sweeney."

"Eleanor." Nellie couldn't quite remember how she'd gotten in this position, why she was lying in a bed next to Sweeney Todd, though she supposed she didn't want to know.

~*~ the day before ~*~

"You've been taking care of Alice and Thomas all weekend, Jane and Ed'll be back tonight, we should go out." Josephine urged. "Just to a restaurant or something, please?"

"No." Nellie shook her head she took bedsheets from the drying rack that was tied between two trees in the garden. "We are not going out, Josie. You might be 17 an' all excitable, but I'm too old to be going out all spur of the moment."

"Oh, come on!" Josephine jumped up and down, her auburn hair bouncing along with her. "Henry told me about this great little restaurant that opened right by the sea, you know, the seafood type. And if you don't like it, I promise I'll never force you to come out with me again, but I bet you will like it."

Nellie sighed. "Fine. But for future reference, I wouldn't trust Henry's recommendations on everything. Wasn't he the one who told you to shave your head?"

"No, that was Nathan." Josephine sighed. "Nathan really was strange....but Henry is amazing, he isn't strange in the slightest."

"Nathan, Henry, Joe, Matthew...how many boyfriends have you had now?"

"You're forgetting about Harry and Oliver, and little William that I kissed when I was thirteen."

"William doesn't count as a boyfriend."

"I think he does."

"Each to their own, I suppose." Nellie sighed. She thought back to her wardrobe, she only owned three dresses and two were really old...the other one was the one that Sweeney had bought for her. She hadn't worn it since they split up. It wouldn't hurt to wear it tonight. It would be rude if I showed up at this restaurant wearing one of these haggard dresses. Josephine was constantly telling her how much she needed new things, and how much better her own dress sense was, but in truth Nellie had never been overly fussed with dresses and jewellery and hairstyles.

"Okay, so we'll go as soon as Jane and Ed come back. Be ready, big sister, I'll make sure you do end up coming." Josephine winked and ran upstairs. Nellie went outside and started taking washing down from the clothes line.

~*~

It was nice to see Edward and Jane back, but it also meant that Nellie was no longer  singlehandedly responsible for three children and a Josephine. Whether Nellie's younger sister was adult or not was really debatable, but by law she was still underage, so by law she had been responsible for four children.

"They're back. We both know what that means." Josephine smirked.

Nellie sighed. "I'll go as long as we don't stay too late. I'm not seventeen like you, Josie, I really don't have the stomach for a night out anymore."

"Thanks Nell!" Josephine hugged her tightly and then ran upstairs to find something to wear. Nellie followed her up the stairs and thought about what she'd where. She certainly couldn't where the truly haggard one she'd worn for cooking, everyone at the restaurant would think her a right spinster. She didn't really want to wear the one Sweeney had given her, she hadn't been able to where it for months since it still brought back nasty memories. Still...

She took out the dress and held it over herself as she looked into the mirror. It was certainly flattering (thought everything Sweeney had gotten her looked beautiful on her), and it wasn't like she'd see him. Josephine, despite often being painfully annoying, had her youthful wisdoms about her. I'll wear it. A sign of moving on, a sign of leaving the pain behind.