It was that time of month again. The time when the bills were due, and Mrs. Lovett had to collect the rent from Mister Sweeney Todd, who resided in the room above hers. This was always a nervewracking time for her, because he had a subtle way of scaring her out of her wits. And although it was his job to keep up with the rent bills, she couldn't help but feel almost rude, asking for the money. It would have been much easier, of course, if he even went up to her with an envelope full of money, but because he never remembered, it was always up to her to constantly remind him when the rent was due.
Mrs. Lovett fidgeted, playing with her fingers as she stood at the bottom of the stairs that led up to the barber's dark, mysterious room. It was just her being too polite; this was in no way rude to ask him, was it? She had even let him slide a few times too many, and although they had quite a lot of money coming in nowadays, the rent was still too large for her to pay for herself. She took a deep breath and began walking up the stairs, her heart pounding quicker and harder with each step. She stopped outside the door and raised her hand to knock on the door, then paused to smooth out her skirts. She ran her tongue along the bottom of her lip, which had become strangely dry, and knocked on the door again, crossing her arms over her chest.
After a few moments of waiting, she peeked in through the window and saw Sweeney sitting in his chair, a picture of his darling Lucy and Johanna in his hands. She knocked again, a little louder, but still no movement, or any sign of acknowledgement. She sighed and opened the door with the key she had brought up with her, letting herself in.
"Mornin' Mista' Todd," she greeted him cheerfully, giving him a smile. Nothing in return, of course, as always expected. She pressed her lips together and looked down at the floor, twisting her fingers together awkwardly.
"Yes, Mrs. Lovett?" He slowly dropped the picture and looked up at her, already impatient.
Mrs. Lovett cleared her throat, finding that when she tried to speak, her voice became rather high in pitch. "Well, it's jus' that, uhm..." She cleared her throat again, and tried to force a small smile. "Well it's the first of the month, ye see, an'...well... well, the rent is due." She nodded, as if agreeing with herself.
He looked up, rather amused at her stuttering, and for the first time, a small smirk spread over his dark lips. Mrs. Lovett had never seen such a sight, and became almost startled. "You alright, love?"
He stood up and walked towards her, gripping her upper arms in his hands tightly, and smiling again when all color, if any, fled from her skin. He walked her backwards until she was pinned up against the wall, and her body hit it with a loud thud. "The rent, is that what you want, Mrs. Lovett?"
Mrs. Lovett opened her mouth to say something, but was too afraid. She nodded instead, licking her lips. "Yes Mista' T, but take ye time gettin' that money t' me. No rush at all."
Sweeney smiled that sick, twisted grin at her, and she wondered if that was the same look that his unfortunate customers got right before the blade was swung at them. Mrs. Lovett tried to walk towards the door, but his hands held her in place. She was almost positive he was going to whip out his razors and threaten to kill her with them, as he did almost everyday, but much to her surprise, he did something most unexpected. His large hands traveled down to her small waist and he pulled her towards him in a forceful jerk, and smashed his lips against hers in a painful, yet pleasurable kiss. Her dark eyes widened but she soon relaxed, and they slowly started to close as she returned the kiss.
Using his own lips to seperate hers, Sweeney slipped his tongue into her mouth and she moaned at the taste of him. She clung onto him desperately, almost afraid to let him go, and his hands went down her waist where he began to pull her skirt up, much to her surprise. She didn't disobey, of course, and even held up the skirts for him as he pulled her undergarments out of the way. He looked down and began to unbuckle his belt, and she felt a heated wetness between her legs. He undid his pants and set himself free, lifting her up and against the wall, as she wrapped her legs around him.
Sweeney plunged into her without even looking at her to see if she was ready, and she let out a yelp of surprise, and then a moan of delight. There was no hesitation in his movements at all, that was for sure, and he didn't hold himself back. Mrs. Lovett obviously didn't mind this and she thrusted her hips out, trying to keep up with his quick, vigorous movements. This went on for quite some time, and just as Sweeney felt like she was hitting her climax, he thrusted her hard once more, and allowed her to release herself. She arched her back and let out a final moan, her chest heaving as she struggled to catch her breath.
He held her tightly and she rested her forehead against him, her hand gently caressing his cheek. For a second, maybe even a minute, she could have fooled herself into thinking that he had finally gotten over Lucy and was beginning to move on, but then the sick, twisted grin from before returned. She looked into his eyes, a bit taken aback, and he gently brought her feet down onto the ground. She swayed a bit, still a little unsteady.
"That should cover it," he said, as he opened the door for her. She watched him, too stunned to say anything, before he gave her a shove out the door and slammed it in her face. Her lips were parted slightly and she didn't know what to say or do. She should have been hurt, but strangely enough, she felt somewhat satisfied. Yes, it was just a scheme to get her to pay the rent for him, but he enjoyed himself, she knew it. Those loud moans and the way he kept going until they both reached their climax were not faked at all. A simple kiss would have done it anyway, he didn't have to go as far as to make love to her.
Although it wasn't the way she had wanted it, Mrs. Lovett always looked on the bright side, and perhaps this was just the start. Making love first, then actually falling in love. She picked her skirts up off the ground and began to walk down the stairs, before the sound of the door opening made her turn around.
"Mrs. Lovett." Sweeney said to her. She nodded in response. "If you could be so kind-"
"Yes, dear?" She asked, walking over towards the doorway where he stood. He turned around and bent over, picking something up off the ground. When he returned to her, he was holding a basket of laundry.
"I'd be very grateful, my pet," he told her as he pushed it into her arms, and then closed the door. She stood there, motionless for a second, and once again, picked up her skirts with one hand and held the basket with the other, as she made her way down the stairs. Yes, the bright side of life was always the better side. Sweeney Todd wouldn't trust anyone with his laundry except the one that he secretly loved, right? She held her head up high, because she hadn't lost all her dignity, or her hope, just quite yet.