Disclaimer: I do not own Eastenders or anything else that is Publicly known in this fic. The only thing I own is Carly.
Authors Note: Yeah, I know this is like my 100th Eastenders fanfic and 1000th fanfic all together, but I just thought may as well start and see where it goes. I will be updating my other fanfics soon, as summers almost over and i want to post at least one more chapter per story to celebrate the end of summer (even though it's been S-H-I-T)
Character Profile
Name: Carly Jackson
Date of Birth: 11th February 1993
Occupation: Student (1997-)
Family: Beale, Branning
Father: David Wicks
Mother: Carol Jackson
Step-Father: Alan Jackson (1996-99)
Sister: Bianca Butcher
Half-Brothers: Robbie Jackson, Billie Jackson, Joe Wicks
Half-Sisters: Sonia Fowler, Karen Wicks
Grandfathers: Pete Beale, Jim Branning
Grandmothers: Pat Evans, Reenie Branning, Dot Branning (Step)
Uncles: Ian Beale, Simon Wicks, Derek Branning, Max Branning, Jack Branning
Aunts: April Branning, Suzy Branning
Cousins: Steven Beale, Peter Beale, Lucy Beale, Bobby Beale, Joey Branning, Alice Branning, Rebecca, Kevin, Bradley Branning, Lauren Branning, Abi Branning, Oscar Branning, Penny Branning, Amy Mitchell.
Nephews: Liam Butcher, Morgan Jackson-King
Nieces: Natasha Butcher, Tiffany Dean, Rebecca Miller, Whitney Dean (adoptive)
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Carly Jackson was born in February 1993 after a one-night-stand occurred between Carol Jackson and David Wicks, while Carol and her partner Alan Jackson were briefly broken up and before David knew that Carol's eldest daughter Bianca was really his own. At 9 months old, Carly moved to Walford with Carol, her partner, Alan, his grandmother Blossom, and older siblings Bianca (a. 16), Robbie (a. 15), Sonia (a. 8) and Billie (a. 5). Carly was usually seen toddling about while the rest of her family got up to all sorts of nonsense. At 4 years old, when playing with brother Robbie's dog, Wellard, Carly suffered an allergic reaction. Initially thought to be caused by the dog, Carol order Robbie to get rid of him. It wasn't until later that it was found out that it was in fact a delayed reaction to the nuts that were in chocolate she was given earlier that day.
When brother Billie was the only witness to an armed robbery and was due to testify in court, he was kidnapped. For the family's safety they were placed in Witness Protection and housed away from Albert Square until after the court case was ended. Carly was noticeably a lot more timid than the rest of her brothers and sisters growing up. She wasn't roaring the house down at any point. During this time Carol had separated from Alan and was now engaged to Dan Sullivan. Shortly after returning from a family holiday to Southend, Carly walks in on Dan and Bianca kissing in the kitchen. Bianca convinced the 6-year-old not to say anything. After Dan and Bianca's affair is revealed Carol moves away from the Square with Billie and Carly. Since then they have moved to a housing estate in Balham.
Chapter One
It was a freezing cold February morning. Carly wrapped her black leather jacket tighter around her body to hold in the heat. She was dressed modestly, like always. In a pair of skinny jeans, a red fitted sweater with a white tank top underneath, grey knee-high boots and a cream knit scarf around her neck, Carly walked the familiar route from her flat to the nearest bus stop. Carly was a sixth form student at a school about 10 minutes away by bus, where she is taking 7 A-Level course in Drama, Business Studies, History, English Literature, Politics, French and Media Studies. She let Maroon 5 - She Will Be Loved fill her ears loudly as she waited for the bus to pull up. Sitting down on the sheltered bench, she pulled her red Walkman out of her pocket and searched through for a new song. As to act hard and all.
There was an old woman sitting beside her, who kept looking over at Carly wearily. She wouldn't blame her. Some of the kids around here wouldn't think twice before nicking her handbag or something. Mostly ones that are no older than 14. This part of Balham wasn't too bad. There was your odd burglary or stolen car every two or three months, but it was mainly quiet. Carly was too induced to the music she didn't see or hear a motor scooter pull up in front of her. The old woman froze when the young man driving rested his foot on the end of the pavement for support. He beeped the horn getting Carly's attention. Looking up, Carly smiled and shook her head when she saw the man on the motor scooter. She pulled the earphones out and walked over towards him, as he took off his helmet.
"I thought Mum took the keys off you?" Carly asked her older brother Billie, as he turned off the engine and resting his arms on the handle bars.
"Yeah, but she didn't catch me stealing them back" Billie said cheekily. Carly shook her head, giggling at him "Guess where I've just been?" Carly shoved her hands into her pockets for warmth and shrugged her shoulders "Walford"
"What were you doing back there?" Carly asked, knowing why he went back.
"Went to see B, didn't I?" Billie spoke in an 'obviously' tone "Went there early and all. But, I knew you should be coming too. I know she'd want her baby sister at her wedding as well"
"It don't matter. Mum said we weren't allowed to go" Carly said. She was a good girl. Always did what she was told, was well mannered, never disrespected anyone. She always obeyed her Mums wishes, or rather orders, unlike her other brothers and sisters who must have gone against her more times than she can count.
"Since when did I do what Mum told me to do, anyway?" Billie asked, smirking "Besides it's going to be mad. Robbie and Sonia are coming later on. Please, You've got to come"
"I can't, I've got school" Carly gave as an excuse. She did really want to go to her sisters second wedding to Ricky, but Carol had said no.
"Pull a sicky" Billie said, plainly. Carly groaned internally. Billie was practically begging her to go with him. But, she didn't want to go off when her Mum told her not to "Come on. Mum's already headed out to work, so I can take you back and get some of your things"
"Alright then" Carly gave in "But, I better walk. You only have one helmet"
"Here" Billie said handing her his.
"No, then you don't have one" Carly said pushing it away.
"The flat is just around the corner" Billie said "I'll be fine, then I can get the spare one from there and we're off"
"You better not go running into any cars now" Carly said taking the helmet and putting it on over her straight blonde hair, that was cascading down over her shoulders and stopping just below her chest. She sat on the back and Billie drove off.
Billie stopped the motor scooter outside the house on the opposite side of row they used to live on. Carly swung her leg over the seat and hopped off, pulling the helmet off and smoothing out her hair.
"Mum is definitely going to kill you now bringing me here" Carly said as he pulled down his scarf, she looked down at the motor scooter at the corner of her eye "on that"
"She's not going to know" Billie said "Just say you took the tube or something"
"That will go down just as well, won't it?" Carly said shaking her head before looking over at the house with lovely shrubs and little trees in the front garden "So, this is it?"
"Yep" Billie replied following his young sister up to the green door. The first thing they heard was The Saturday's blaring out. Carly looked at him weirdly before he wraps hardly on the door, to make sure whoever was inside heard him. Suddenly the music stopped and the place went silent "I know you're in there. The music's loud enough. Come on open up"
"Bill, what are you doing?" Carly asked as he crouched down peering through the letterbox.
"Tryin' to see if I could see anyone" Billie said before standing up straight "Nothing"
"It was probably one of her kids, and now, you've gone and scared them" Carly said. Billie made a face at his younger sister, and she replied with one back
"I'll try the windows" Billie said, his feet crunching on the gravel as he tried to see through the front room window. He came back straight away though when he heard the front door open. A little girl with dark hair, split into two plaid down over both shoulder, appeared behind it "Oh. I was looking for Bianca" The little girl looked between the pair quietly.
"Bianca Jackson, don't she live here?" Carly asked in a soft voice, trying not to scare the little girl.
"Never heard of her" The girl said before closing the door in their faces. They looked between each other confused.
"I thought you said she lived here?" Carly asked.
"This was the address I was given" Billie said "Maybe she moved recently"
"Maybe" Carly said walking back to the scooter with her hands in her pockets "Alright, let's get back now"
"What? Why?" Billie asked, stopping at the gate.
"Because I got school. I've already missed English Lit" Carly explained "I've got double Politics after lunch. I've got Stern, he doesn't take to kindly to one coming late, or not coming at all. And Bianca's not around here anyway"
"How do you know that?" Billie asked
"The little girl just said-" Carly began but Billie cut her off.
"No, she said she don't know her" Billie said "Doesn't mean she doesn't live around here"
"Fine. I'll stay another hour, alright?" Carly said turning and looking around. The place hadn't changed much in the 10 or 11 years since she's been here. The Queen Vic still stood proudly on the corner of Bridge Street and the Square. The Launderette where Mrs Cotton and Mrs Fowler worked. The Minute Mart and The Caf. People with their stalls all the way up the market
"Right, I'll put this somewhere" Billie said sitting back onto the scooter "You go up to the shop and get us something"
"I'll need money" Carly said
"Don't you have lunch money?" He asked fastening on his helmet.
"I only brought enough for myself" Carly said holding out her hand. He dug into his pocket and gave her a few pounds "Thank you" She walked on up to the Minute Mart and grabbed a few things. She had to wait in line for what felt like forever because the woman in front of her was having a friendly chat with the shopkeeper. After paying, Carly walked back over towards the square, hoping to find Billie. He came walking through the gardens, and was almost knocked over by the girl from before followed by a little red-headed girl in wellies and wild make-up. The almost knocked over Carly too, but she backed away just in time to not get slammed into "Ain't that the girl from earlier?"
"Yeah, think so" Billie answered "Alright, come on. I'm starved"
"Don't you think we should go after them or something? They're only like 7" Carly said following Billie over to the bench.
"They're be fine" Billie said. Billie and Carly began eating away at the food she bought. And when she say's 'food' she means junk food, like crisps, bars, sweets. What? She's a teenager. She's got good metabolism. May as well use it while it's still there. After a while, Billie had already blasted through almost all of what she had bought.
"You've actually ate that much?" Carly asked as he finished off a bag of crisps.
"So?" Billie asked, shrugging his shoulders.
"Did you inhale it or something?" Carly asked, making him chuckled a bit. The little girl from earlier walked suspiciously back across the square and into a house two doors down from where Bianca was supposed to live. Carly watched her go inside "Where did the other girl go?"
"I don't know" Billie shrugged as Carly got up "Where you going?"
"To find her" Carly said as Billie took off after her in the direction of the park.
"Why?" Billie questioned
"Look, you looked out for me when I was that age, when we were living on that really rough estate" Carly said "I'm just doing the same thing"
"Yeah, but I'm your brother" Billie said as Carly searched down the Alley. She bent down and picked up the pink scarf the red-headed girl was wearing when she ran past them.
"Ain't there usually a bin here?" Carly asked pointing at the empty space with black plastic bags on either side. Billie and Carly both knew something must have happened so they took of running, back in the direction of the square. When they got over, one of the bin men were wheeling the large metal bin over towards the lorry.
"Oi" Billy said going over and halting them for a second "You can't there's someone in there"
"No there ain't, mate" The bin man said hooking the bin up to the machine
"Look, we found this next to where it was" Carly said holding up the pink fluffy scarf
"Mate, We're not going to argue with you" Billie tried to reason with him.
"Billie! Carly! What are you doing here?" A familiar, and very loud, voice of Bianca asked as she walked over, happy to see them.
"B" Billie said as they both turning around to see her.
"What are you doing with Tiffany's scarf?" Bianca asked seeing her daughters scarf in her sisters hands.
"I'm trying to tell them, there's someone in that bin" Billie said as the bin rose up, it's contents spilling into the back of the lorry.
"It's not Tiffany?" Bianca asked worried "Tiff?" Billie rushed over and pressed the emergency stop button before the thing could crush the rubbish. Bianca continued to call out for Tiffany but was getting no reply. The black bin bags moved in the lorry and the little red-headed girls head popped out.
"Look what I found" She said holding up a very damp cheque. Carly breathed a sigh of relief nowing the little girl, who she assumed must be Bianca's daughter, her niece, was alright.