Blade of Madness
Chapter Ten: Guilt
Summary: The storyline is dramatically altered one night when Mrs. Lovett's Meat Pie Emporium is broken into and Sweeney Todd's true opinion of his neighbor is revealed.
Disclaimer: If I owned Sweeney Todd, neither Sweeney nor Mrs. Lovett would have died. So needless to say, I don't own it.
Pairings: AnthonyJohanna implied, Sweenett
Author's Notes: Sweeney grows a conscience.
What had seemed like a good idea under the cover of darkness seemed more like a way to make Nellie insufferably happy again after the sun rose, and when he woke he found himself almost embarrassed to have responded so positively—albeit mentally—to Nellie's comment that she wanted to be with him for the rest of her life. He scolded himself, thinking that the idea he'd come up with in response to what Nellie had said was just a way to make her insufferably happy again. But a part of him knew that she would have to somehow return to her old self to be jovial to the point of obnoxiousness, and that was slightly less likely than Sweeney becoming Benjamin Barker again. So he tried to ignore his new idea, but it stuck in the back of his mind and, over the course of the day, irritated him the way a pebble in one's shoe can worry one's foot. It really did make quite a bit of sense; they already shared most everything, so it made sense if legally all their property belonged to them as a unit. Also, Sweeney wasn't planning on leaving Nellie any time soon, and truthfully, he had no intention of doing so at any point in time. Not to mention Sweeney was fairly sure Nellie wanted to marry him, or at least had wanted that at some point, despite the fact that she'd never voiced it. She loved him, certainly, and he…well, he was becoming increasingly fond of holding Nellie while she slept, and he had begun frequently talking himself out of kissing her; the excuses were getting weaker and the impulse was getting stronger. He had also started avoiding watching her clean up the pie shop at night, because that was when she put the least effort into appearing her jaunty, vigorous "self" and it upset him to see the damage he'd caused her. He liked her well enough, he supposed…
Approximately twenty-four hours after Nellie had mentioned that she wanted to sleep in his arms every night, she was in that exact place again, pretending to be asleep so she could feel him stroking her back. (He was fairly sure they both had been trying to stay awake later in order to enjoy one another's company for a longer period of time). They were going to sleep like that every night; was there really any reason why he couldn't promise her that? She needed as much reassurance as possible after the efforts he'd made to convince her he hated her. And she was doing a damn good job taking care of him; he might as well let her know he noticed that. Granted, he hadn't been noticing it for very long, but that revelation had also caused him to realize that she'd been taking care of him ever since he'd gotten back from Australia.
She stirred a little as his thumb traced a circle in the small of her back. That was usually a good indicator of whether or not she was awake; she loved it when he touched her lower back, so much so that she couldn't keep still even if she were pretending to be asleep. "Nellie."
Nellie looked up at him, almost guiltily. "You can't really expect me to sleep while you're doin' that, love."
"And you can't really expect me to believe you're asleep."
"You got me," she smiled.
Sweeney realized he hadn't exactly planned what to say once he "woke" Nellie, so he simply uttered the first thing that came to mind. "What was it that you said last night?"
"What, when I said you'd got the Beadle?"
Her tone was far too innocent for her to actually think he was referring to that.
"No, the last thing you said before you fell asleep."
"Oh, that. Just…well, I thought it'd be nice if I could spend every night sleepin' close to you like this…you know, for…the rest of me life." She looked at him warily. "Which…ain't gon'na be that long if I keep sayin' things like that, I'd wager."
Month ago, she had so candidly admitted that he loved him, and now she couldn't say that she wanted an existing circumstance between them to continue without being afraid for her life. He supposed he couldn't blame her, but…
"I mean, it does 'elp keep the nightmares away, and you don't really seem to mind, but if you ever wan'na go back to sleepin' upstairs…" she was babbling, taking his silence as a bad sign.
"Nellie, would you calm yourself?"
She was quiet.
"Do you think I'd be doin' this if I didn't like havin' you here?" His hand trailed along her spine—awkwardly, since Sweeney Todd was hopelessly unskilled in the art of comforting—and her eyes lit up.
"Do you mean that? You…like me sleepin' 'ere with you?"
He nearly said "of course," but then he remembered what she thought of that phrase. "Yes. Didn't I tell you that before, on that day when I almost…?" He couldn't finish the sentence.
"Killed me? Yeah, now that you mention it, I think you did, but I ain't sure I completely believed you."
"So you want me to stay with you every night, indefinitely."
"I'd like that," she whispered. Her tone betrayed just how happy that would make her. "'Cause I just…wan'na be near you. As much as possible. For as long as possible." She averted her eyes, as if embarrassed or afraid of his reaction.
"I know." He began running his hand down her back again, and she laid her head back down with a contented sigh. "I thought this helped you sleep."
"Yeah, it's right soothing, but it also feels good, so I try to stay awake and enjoy it."
"Should I stop?"
"No. Please don't."
Nellie did sleep after a short time; Sweeney was now fairly competent at telling when she was feigning sleep and when she was actually sleeping.
It would mean the world to her if she knew he wanted the two of them to be together. That much was apparent. If she was so pleased with the idea that Sweeney would be sleeping in her bed—platonically, no less—each night for the rest of her life, he could only imagine how happy he could make her if he promised her more.
Now if only he could get up the courage…
The following day, Sweeney tried not to think too much about what he was getting into. He kept telling himself that all he needed to consider was the fact that he was both reassuring Nellie that he would stay with her and rewarding her for her unshakable devotion. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision if one had ever been made, but then again, he was making up for the time he'd spent oblivious to Nellie's feelings for him.
She looked at him oddly when he said he had something he needed to buy, since she always ran his errands for him, but she made no inconvenient queries that would have been difficult to answer. His errand apparently took longer than she expected, because when he returned, she asked him: "Where the bloomin' 'ell you been?"
"Out."
"I know that! What took you so long? You been cavortin' with them dirty whores down by the docks or somethin'?"
Sweeney started at the suggestion. "Dear God, no—I thought you knew me better than that."
"I didn't really think that's what you were up to, I'm just a bit cross you been gone for hours durin' the supper rush—and on a day you usually 'elp me!" she snapped.
"It was important. I had trouble…findin' the right one."
"Findin' the right what?"
He cleared his throat. "Er…you'll see."
She rolled her eyes. "I better, what with you bein' gone so long. Give me a 'and with these dishes, will you?"
Sweeney's heart pounded madly for the rest of the evening, and he had the odd feeling it was trying to climb into his throat. He'd practiced what he was going to say to her, but he knew he was terrible with words when it came to kindness or sincerity, so he still felt nervous as a mouse creeping past a sleeping cat. It didn't help that Nellie kept glaring at him every time a dish nearly slipped out of his sweat-damp hands.
He was placing utensils in their drawers when Nellie switched the "open" sign on the pie shop's door over to the "closed" side. "Are you gon'na tell me what you were up to this afternoon?" There was still a bit of an edge to her voice.
Sweeney swallowed past the lump in his throat and came out from behind the counter. "Come here."
She did, standing before him with her arms crossed, looking mildly confrontational.
"Could you…not be angry?"
She snorted. "I think you seen me angry, dear, and this ain't angry."
"This would go so much more smoothly if you were in a better mood…" he mumbled, half to himself.
"Sweeney, what's got into you? You look like you're about to be sick." Judging from her voice, she'd gone from being annoyed with him to being concerned. She reached up to brush some of his hair back from his face. Just then he wondered if his mane needed a trim.
He reached for her, pulling her into a half-embrace, his forehead touching hers.
"I've been hearin' you say you want us to be…together…for the rest of your life."
"I notice you know you're gon'na outlive me," she laughed lightly. "But…yeah, I suppose I been sayin' things like that."
"Well…I was thinkin'…" He took his hand from her waist and reached into his pocket, removing the small object he'd purchased that day. "…that's not a bad idea." He flipped the top of the small velvet-lined box open with his thumb, showing her the ring inside. "What do you say, pet?"
She gasped, both hands flying to her mouth as she staggered a few surprised paces backward. "Oh, God in heaven…Sweeney…oh, do you mean it? You're askin' what I think you're askin', right? Are you…are you really askin' me to marry you?"
"That would be why I bought you a ring, yes."
Later, Sweeney would try to puzzle out exactly what happened. He never quite figured out how Nellie had managed to step close to him again so quickly, or how she had managed to overcome the hindrance of her heavy skirts to get both her arms and her legs wrapped tightly around him in the blink of an eye. But there she was, clinging to him with all her strength, crying with sheer happiness.
"I'm glad you're so happy, Nellie, but you won't get to wear it if you don't get down."
She got back on her feet, blushing and wiping away tears.
"Here." He steadied her trembling hand and slipped the silver ring onto her finger.
"It's so beautiful," she breathed, spreading her fingers. "What kind of stone is it?"
"Amethyst, I think. It…reminded me of that purple dress you have." The violet gown was really the only dress of Nellie's he could remember, and only because he remembered that incident when he'd tried to give it to Lucy, but he did recall that Nellie liked that dress. "I think it suits you."
"It's lovely." When she looked away from the ring and up at him, there were still tears streaming down her face. "Sorry, dear…it's just…I'd given up 'ope…" She tried to brush the moisture away from her face, but gave up and flung her arms around him. "Thank you," she whimpered, starting to cry again.
"You're welcome, pet." He returned her tight embrace. He found himself looking up at the ceiling, wondering if he'd done the right thing. Nellie would be taking care of him for the rest of their lives. And she was happy. He'd done a magnificent job of making her miserable, so…he had massive potential to make her happy simply by caring about her, so he might as well make use of it. Not to mention he could kiss her again…
The door swung open and Toby walked in from wiping down the tables in the ale garden. "Mum?"
Nellie let go of Sweeney and faced her son. "Toby, Mr. T. and I are gon'na be married!"
The boy dropped the cloth he was holding. "What!?"
Nellie held up her ring hand, grinning fit to burst. "Look. Ain't it lovely?"
A completely stunned look remained on the boy's face.
Sweeney wrapped his arms around Nellie's waist from behind. She leaned back against him. Already she was acting a little less reserved. "Close your mouth, boy, or you'll catch flies."
"Mum…are you…sure?"
"Sure? I'm wearin' the ring, love!"
Sweeney took Nellie by the shoulders and turned her around to face him. She was still beaming, at least with the half of her mouth that could fully smile. She had probably had quite a pretty smile before he'd gone and ruined it. He slipped an arm around her again and said over her shoulder, "You could congratulate your mother. Maybe you haven't noticed, but she's quite happy about this."
Still looking a bit wary, Toby walked over, and Nellie extricated herself from Sweeney's embrace to accept Toby's. "I'm 'appy for you, Mum," he mumbled and kissed her cheek.
"All this excitement!" Nellie gasped as she stepped back, twisting the new ring on her finger. "Well, we'll 'ave to make plans, then. It'll just be a quick trip to St. Swithin's, nothin' too elaborate, I'm sure, and there ain't nobody in particular I wan'na invite. And I know I can't afford a dress, so…just a nice, small ceremony, eh? Not too painful, right, dear?" She looked up at Sweeney. He took her hand and squeezed it instead of replying verbally. "Well, I say this calls for a bit of a celebration." Nellie practically waltzed over to the cupboard to take out the bottle of gin. "You men sit down. It won't kill me to pour a few more drinks tonight."
Sweeney and Toby obeyed her, Toby giving Sweeney a look that was somewhere between the Evil Eye and intense suspicion. Sweeney almost sighed aloud; he'd thought he had won the boy's trust, at least to some extent. How could proposing to Nellie be construed as suspicious behavior?
Humming contentedly, Nellie poured them all tots of gin and sat beside Sweeney. She kissed him (on the cheek—damn) over her glass. "Toby, why so glum, dear?"
Toby said nothing.
"Out with it, lad," said Sweeney in a voice that was a bit more commanding than he'd meant it to be.
"Why did you ask 'er to marry you so soon?" the boy demanded.
"What're you on about?" That was Nellie. "Mr. Todd's been with us for a while."
"Ain't been that long that you've been treatin' Mum nice-like," Toby replied, still addressing Sweeney. "So why are you askin' 'er to marry you all of a sudden?"
"Did you consider that I might be tryin' to make up for the time when I wasn't treatin' her well?" the barber snapped.
Toby brought his glass back up to his mouth. "Ain't nothin' you could do to make up for what you did," he muttered over the rim.
"Both of you—don't get in such a tiff!" Nellie cried. "I know this is usually too much to ask, but you we all just be 'appy? Just for tonight, for my sake? Toby, there ain't no cause to worry. Mr. T. ain't gon'na 'urt me."
The boy looked abashed. "Sorry, Mum. Er…'m sorry, Mr. Todd."
"Just think a bit more before you jump to conclusions," Sweeney admonished. Nellie elbowed him lightly in the side.
They finished their drinks in silence. Nellie gulped hers down quickly so she could rest her head on Sweeney's shoulder while he drank. Toby stopped glaring at Sweeney.
As Sweeney finished off his last swallow of gin, Nellie excused herself so she could change into her nightgown. As soon as she was gone, Sweeney turned to Toby and said, "Did I hear her say that she doesn't think she'll be able to have a dress?"
"Yeah." Toby looked sadly into his glass of gin. "And she wants to get married in white, too. She told me."
"Well." Mr. Todd thought for a moment. "You think Nellie should have a white wedding gown."
"'Course I do—that's what she wants," said Toby indignantly, as if it were preposterous that he could think anything else.
"So what do you say we get her one?"
Toby scowled, both with confusion and at the implication that he and Mr. Todd might actually collaborate. "I thought we didn't 'ave enough money."
Sweeney began wishing he had Nellie's tendency to come up with clever ideas exactly when needed. "You think I'd let her get married without a proper gown? We could…raise the money."
"'ow?"
Now Sweeney was flying by the seat of his pants. Think like Nellie. Think like Nellie. "I…could ask my customers to pay a bit extra and tell them it's for Nellie's wedding gown."
Toby tilted his head to one side. "All right. And maybe I could sing in the street, with me cap out. 'cept I couldn't tell people what the money's for, doin' that."
"Make a sign. 'Help buy my mother a wedding dress,' or some such."
"Yeah…maybe I could, now that Mum's taught me to read and write."
"Good," said Sweeney curtly. "Just make sure she doesn't find out."
"You make sure she doesn't find out," Toby shot back.
The two men were still glaring at each other a bit, but it was a glare of agreement, if such a thing is possible.
Nellie came out of her bedroom not a second too late. "Toby, dear, do you need me to read to you 'fore you sleep, or will the gin put you out?"
"I'll be all right with just the gin, Mum."
"All right, then. Sweet dreams, love." Nellie kissed her son goodnight. "You sleepy yet, Sweeney?"
"Enough." He took her hand and they walked to Nellie's room while Toby sauntered off to bed, already weaving a little from gin-induced sleepiness.
Nellie closed the door once they were inside. I could kiss her now, Sweeney found himself thinking, but she beat him to it. She slipped her arms around him and pressed her lips to his cheek, a soft, lingering touch, quite different from the chaste little pecks she'd been giving him. "Sweeney, am I dreamin'?"
"No."
"Then…am I…imaginin' this? Am I goin' mad?"
"What do you mean?"
"Did you really propose to me today?"
"Yes, pet, I did."
"I've dreamed of this day. But…"
"But what?"
"It feels like a dream. I mean…why did you ask me to marry you? I sure weren't expectin' it. Toby's right; you may 'ave been stayin' 'ere for months now, but you spent a lot of those months either not noticin' I was alive or doin' your best to make me miserable. It's been…not quite three months, I think, since you took Lucy to Bedlam. But 'ow long 'as it been since…well, you really seemed to start likin' me the night you kissed me, and that weren't much more than a month ago. So after a month of us lyin' close to each other while we sleep, you suddenly want us to be married? You ain't never even kissed me, not since that night."
"I thought…" Sweeney was beginning to wonder if his inability to vocally express his feelings was a Sweeney Todd thing or a general male thing. Benjamin Barker had never had any trouble telling his dear Lucy how much he loved her, and had done so daily… "I thought you wanted this."
Nellie let out a sound that he once would have only labeled as a laugh, but with today's Nellie it might have been a sob. She was still holding him, and he felt the harsh vibrations in her throat. "Oh, Mr. T…you've no idea 'ow much I want to marry you. I ain't never said it, but obviously you figured it out."
"You might as well have said it. If you were tryin' to keep that from me, you failed spectacularly."
"I thought you'd get angry with me if I said it straight out. I thought you might be startin' to care about me, maybe a little, and I didn't wan'na ruin it." Between the fact that she was speaking into his neck and the fact that those sentences were said very quietly, he barely understood her.
"Nellie, if you wanted to be married so badly, why have you been alone for nearly eighteen years?"
"'Cause…well, who'd marry me? After Albert died…well, I was young enough when 'is 'eart gave out, but still, widows ain't exactly desirable, especially barren ones. And I ain't rich or all that pretty. Besides…I was waitin' for you. Funny that I never realized it, but I never found anyone that could measure up to Benjamin Barker."
"What?" He stepped back from her and held her at arm's length. "Did you just say you never found anyone who could measure up to…Benjamin Barker?"
Nellie blushed. "I suppose you wasn't listenin' when I said it, but I told you right when you got back that I'd always 'ad a fondness for Benjamin."
Sweeney's brow furrowed. "In case you haven't noticed, Nellie, I'm not Benjamin."
"I know, dear." She laughed and shook her head, as if in embarrassment. "But when you came back…oh, you'll laugh. Or get angry at me."
"Why would I get angry at you?"
Nellie sighed. "Sorry, love…I just 'ave this memory of me sayin' I love you and you slicin' me face up…"
"Nellie…" His hands moved to her face. He ran the pads of his thumbs over her cheekbones, but couldn't think of the right thing to say.
"Promise you won't get angry?"
"Yes."
She looked up at him. "When you came back, it was bloody obvious you weren't the same. You was just so different from Benjamin Barker I couldn't 'elp but wonder what they did to you. I used to watch Benjamin with Lucy and think I wanted somebody to take care of me like that, but…just seemed to me like Sweeney Todd needed somebody to take care of 'im. And, well, I thought that could be me. I just wanted to take care of you. I know it sounds foolish." She decided to not push her luck and left off the fact that she could take better care of him than Lucy could, a fact which admittedly was important to her.
Sweeney had never felt so lost for words. What the hell was he supposed to say to that? "That's nice to know; I used to think you just wanted a man on your arm so you could look respectable?" He racked his brain for something to say. "I don't think it sounds foolish", perhaps? Or maybe "I think I do need you to take care of me." He'd have hated admitting it at one point, even to himself, but it was very true; he'd be nowhere without her. For heaven's sake, she killed Turpin for him! He suddenly remembered that she had kept his razors waiting for him during his long absence. How had he forgotten that?
Nellie rested her hand on his cheek. "You know I try, don't you?"
That, at least, was easy to answer. "Yes."
Apparently she'd known he wouldn't be able to think of anything to say after her explanation of why she loved him, because she didn't ask for a response; instead she said, "You never answered me."
"What didn't I answer?"
"Why did you ask me to marry you only a month after you started thinkin' I was worth more'n a second glance?"
Sweeney hesitated. Because I like you well enough, but mostly because I felt like I had to after everything I put you through. "Do you remember what I said to the…to Toby when he asked that?"
"Yeah…I think so…you said you were tryin' to make up for what you done to 'urt me. Was that true?"
"More or less."
Nellie looked unsatisfied, but she nodded. He wondered if she shared the boy's suspicion that his marriage proposal was part of an elaborate plot to hurt her again. "Do you wan'na go to sleep now?"
"Do you?"
She grinned. "Sleep, no. Cuddle up to you, yeah."
"See? Did I get upset with you for that?"
"No," she said, still beaming. "Oh…Sweeney, you never changed into your nightclothes."
He shrugged lightly. "I'll be right back." With that, he left the room, and when he returned dressed in more appropriate attire, Nellie was already lying in bed. She opened her arms to him when he came over to her; he climbed into bed, gathered her up, held her. He was fairly sure that his inability to tell Nellie how he felt about her was the result of his lacking ability to be sincere, not a lack of feelings for her; he certainly didn't love her, but he knew he would rather spend the rest of his life with her than anyone else. So he would have to prove to Nellie that he appreciated her by showing rather than telling, at least for now.
"Sweeney, I know you like to wait 'til I'm asleep, but could you touch me back now? Please?"
He hesitated. He had usually waited until she was asleep because he didn't want her to think of it as a sign of affection or…or that he cared about her. Except…he did care about her, at least a little. He cared enough. So he answered by sliding his hand down her spine, earning a small sigh from her.
"Thanks, love."
Say something. You're going to marry her; you should be able to talk to her. "You're welcome."
Garnering money for Nellie's wedding gown was easier for Sweeney than it was for Toby. The boy ended up having to beg off of work, saying he had friends he wanted to play with, and Nellie was so overjoyed that Toby had found friends his age that she let him leave the pie shop. Of course, Sweeney would occasionally have to answer the half-frantic shout of "Sweeney, Toby ain't 'ere, could you please 'elp me out for a few minutes?" When he wasn't helping Nellie during one of Toby's absences, he politely requested that his customers pay ten percent extra to help him pay for his fiancé's wedding dress. One of his most interesting responses to that question came from a regular, a London tailor who Sweeney had been unable to kill due to his connections to the community and had been returning to the tonsorial parlor ever since. The man had asked as if he were only half paying attention, "If I may ask, Mr. Todd, who is your intended?"
"Mrs. Lovett; perhaps you've been to her establishment downstairs?"
The man had sat bolt upright in the chair and turned to Sweeney with an enormous smile. "Really? Well, it's about bloody time!" And he'd given Sweeney twice what had been requested.
Between the two of them, Sweeney and Toby raised what they thought was enough to buy Nellie a wedding gown (with the addition of whatever money either of the two adults in the building could spare; Sweeney had done the calculations) by the end of the week. Toby wanted to be the one to present it to her and Sweeney didn't object. On Friday after both the pie shop and the barbershop had closed, Toby slipped off to retrieve the money from the loose floorboard under which Nellie had kept Sweeney's razors during his absence. Nellie had just noticed that Toby was gone and had started calling him when he scampered down the stairs. "Got somefin' for you, Mum."
"What is it, dear?"
He'd been holding it behind his back, and when he heard the question, he showed her the glass jar that was stuffed full of the money he and Mr. Todd had collected. "Mum, you told me you wanted to get married in white, so I thought you should 'ave a dress, and me and…Mr. Todd…got enough for you to buy a wedding dress."
"Oh, Toby, you sweet, sweet, wonderful child…" Nellie threw her arms around her son. "You thought this up yourself?"
"Well…" replied Toby grudgingly, "actually…it was Mr. Todd's idea."
"Really?" Nellie's eyebrows shot up. "Mr. Todd came up with this?"
"Oh, the two of us worked together," said Toby, trying not to lose any credit for the kind deed that had been done for Mrs. Lovett. "But I guess 'e thought of it."
"The boy's tellin' the truth, pet," said Sweeney from the doorway.
Nellie kissed Toby and walked to Sweeney, a tentative smile on her face. "Sweeney, this…this was really your idea?"
"Toby said you wanted a white dress. I thought it would be easy enough to ask the customers for a bit of extra money for your dress, and it was."
"But…proposin' to me, and now this? Why?"
"Because you wanted it."
"I didn't…I didn't think you cared that much…" She looked overjoyed, but sounded afraid. "Is this all for real?"
"Why wouldn't it be?"
"'Cause it would be very much like you to try to bring me 'opes up and then…" she paused, remembering that Toby was behind her. "…betray me."
"Nellie, I punish. I don't torture. And I certainly have hurt you enough and was hopin' to make you happy after all that."
She laughed through a sigh. "You and Toby raised money so I could 'ave a wedding dress. For cripes' sake, love, we should use money like that for food!"
He took her by the waist. "Do you want a wedding dress?"
"It ain't practical…"
"I didn't ask you if it was practical. I asked you if you wanted it."
She closed her eyes and bit her lower lip. She nodded. "Yes. I wan'na marry you in a white wedding dress."
"Then it's settled."
Nellie's head snapped up as if she'd just realized something. "Toby…" she turned her head to face her son. "Is this where you've been when you said you was runnin' off to play with friends? Gettin' money for me dress?"
"Yeah," answered Toby with a sheepish grin.
"Oh!" cried Nellie, almost disappointed. "And 'ere I was thinkin' you'd finally found some friends your age 'stead of you 'elpin' me out all the time."
"Well, I did meet a new friend," Toby protested. "I was singin' in the street with me cap out for people to toss money in, and I got to talkin' to a boy about me age, and we ended up playin' tag and such a few times."
"That's lovely, dear. What's 'is name?"
"Aaron. And e's got a lil' sister, Micaiah."
"At least you've actually got friends now! I expect to see you missin' work occasionally to spend time with them, but not too much, all right?"
"All right, Mum."
"Now come 'ere, you." Nellie held out her arms to Toby and he walked over to accept another quick thankful squeeze. "Thank you." She turned to Sweeney and smiled. "Thank you both."
"You hugged the boy twice. What about me?" said Sweeney with mock anger. Nellie grinned and wrapped her arms around him. He clutched her tightly and whispered in her ear, "You see, pet? I'm not a complete bastard."
"No, you ain't," she whispered back.
She was so happy. Sweeney tried to think of something to say to her, something that focused on him treating her well as opposed to not treating her badly. But the only thing he could think of was how he hoped that after their wedding he would be able to look at her scars or see her not acting like her old self and not feel so guilty.
Author's Notes: Okay, so, Sweeney's being nice because he feels guilty. But he really has every reason to feel guilty, and he likes her a little bit, so it's a start.
Oh, and I know there was a pretty long wait between this chapter and the last considering I'm on summer break, but what I just finished was a really long chapter that I broke up, and what you've just read is the first half.