A double update today you lucky people, you! The next update will be in 2/3 days, as it's my 16th birthday tomorrow and we're off to see Slumdog Millionaire!! As always, leave me a review and makeme happy!

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The Dragon and the Rose

Chapter Two

Old habits die hard

Libby smiled as she leant against the doorway to the kitchen, watching as Swill cradled Jenny in his arms. Libs had only been home a couple of days and the only thing she had to complain about was Jenny's sleeping pattern.

'Turn it off,' Swill had groaned that night, pulling a pillow over his head as Jenny's crying broke their sleep. It had just gone .

But, it was okay now. Jenny wasn't crying. There was a knock on the door. Moving away from the doorway, Libby pulled open the front door with a smile. 'Hey,' she said, stepping aside to let Bovver and Lucy in. The year old Charlie gave a wave, beaming.

'We bring gifts,' Lucy said, setting the big gift bag on the sofa, before going over to see Jenny. The newborn opened her big blue eyes and gazed upwards, unfocussed. 'She's beautiful,' Lucy breathed, as Bovver hovered beside her, holding Charlie.

Libby was elbow deep in the gift bag. 'Ooh, chocolate.' She straightened up, holding a box of chocolates in one hand and a soft teddy in the other. 'You didn't need to buy all this stuff,' she said, looking guilty.

'It was nothing,' Lucy smiled, coming to give Libby a hug. Swill moved towards the small Moses basket on the coffee table, placing the small girl in it. Libby chucked the teddy at him, and Swill tucked it by Jenny's head as the baby shut her eyes. He straightened up and looked at Bov.

'Beer?'

'Yup.' The two men left for the kitchen, as Lucy and Libs sunk onto the sofa.

'How's she sleeping?' Luce asked.

'She doesn't.' Libby gave a weary laugh, resting her head back against the sofa. 'A couple of hours a night, I guess. The rest is just feeding time for her.'

'It'll settle,' Lucy promised.

'I hope.'

'How's Swill,' the blonde asked.

'Amazing, except when it comes to changing nappies.' The two women dissolved into laughter, before Libby rested her head against Lucy's shoulder. 'I'm going to invite Don and the guys over,' she said, yawning.

'You should. It's been a while since you've seen them.'

'I can't wait for him to come and see Jenny.' Lucy smiled, as Charlie played with the toys at their feet, chewing on the head of a rag doll, before chucking a building block at the sofa.

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Lucy nervously looked at her reflection in the lift mirror, before brushing her skirt down. The lift pinged as the doors open and she strode out. Heading down the corridor, she thought briefly about Bovver who was looking after Charlie at home. Had she told him the baby food was in the cupboard? She stopped in front of an office door, taking a moment to slow her breathing, before knocking.

'Come in,' a man called. Pushing open the door, Lucy stepped in and smiled.

'Hello.'

'Good afternoon. It's Mrs. Bovverington, isn't it?'

'Yeah,' she said, shutting the door behind her.

'Please, take a seat.' Lucy sat down in front of the desk, a man with grey, wiry eyebrows and a small smile staring back at her. 'So, you've come for a job interview.'

'Yeah,' she replied, trying to remember all the things Libby had taught her about interviews. Sit up straight… don't sit on your hands… keep eye contact….smile…don't swear, slur, spit, spew…speak clearly…be pronounced… 'Miss?' Shit, he'd asked her a question.

'Sorry?' Don't ignore them…

'I asked; why do you want the job?'

'I have a little boy back home and I have bills to pay, so I thought a job is a good way to get money.'

'Do you know much about stacking books….?'

Lucy beamed as she traveled back down in the lift. Okay, so a librarian wasn't a dream job, but it was a start. At least she had a job now. Mr Burns, the man who'd interviewed her, said she could start on Monday. She just needed to find someone to look after Charlie while she went to work.

When she arrived back home, she frowned as she saw the door was partly open. 'Hello?' she called, stepping into the hallway.

'In here!' Bov called, much too loudly. Frowning, she stepped into the front room. Beer cans and alcohol bottles littered the floor and coffee table as Bov, Keith, Ike and Ned sat slumped on the sofa. The football was on loudly.

Great. They were pissed.

Suddenly, her stomach twisted as she looked around. 'Where's Charlie?'

'Huh?' Bov frowned at her. Grabbing the remote, she turned the TV off.

'Where the fuck is Charlie? Your son.' He stared at her, as if struggling to process anything she was saying. With a growl, she chucked the remote at him and stormed into the kitchen.

The back door was wide open and she saw the little boy splashing his hands in the small pond. Lucy hurried out into the garden and scooped him up, heart pounding in her chest. If he'd fallen in…

Storming back inside, she kicked a few bottles aside. 'Get out,' she snarled at the three other men. They got to their feet, flashing Bov sympathetic looks. 'Now!' she demanded. When they'd gone, she turned to stare hard at Bovver. 'What the fuck is this?' she asked, gesturing to the mess.

'It was just a little drink,' he grumbled, getting to his feet. 'C'mon babe, don't be like this.'

'Don't be like this?' she repeated, incredulously. 'I ask you one simple thing; to look after our son and I come home to find him playing in the pond while you get pissed with your mates?' Bov reached out for her, but she stepped back. 'You make me sick.'

'Oh, I'm sorry for wanting to chill out while you go off to your poncy interview,' he spat, angrily.

'Don't put this on me! I need the job to get money for us!' she snarled. 'I'm sorry if it isn't good enough for you. You know what? Fuck this.' Lucy turned away, but Bov stepped forward, standing in front of the door before she could open it. 'Get out the way.'

'No. You can't just walk out,' he said in annoyance. Lucy shook her head.

'Get. Out. My. Way.' He paused, before she pushed him aside. Storming out the house, Lucy ignored Bov's yells of protest behind her.

She was in tears by the time she got to Libby's. 'Come here, sit down,' the small woman soothed, sitting Lucy on the sofa. Pete and Dave stood with Swill, but her brother was instantly at her side.

'What 'appened?' he asked as Dave picked up Charlie. Pete grabbed her hands. 'Hey, Luce, come on.'

'Bov… Bov…' she sobbed, trying to catch her breath. 'I went to a job interview and asked him to look after Charlie,' Lucy said. 'I got home and he was pissed with the rest of the lads… Charlie was in the garden by the pond.' She gave another shudder and broke into fresh tears. 'He could have fallen in!'

'Look, I'll 'ave a word with him, yeah?' Pete said, but his eyes were dark with anger. There was a knock on the door before Bov barged in, looking from one angry face to another.

'What the fuck, Bov?' demanded Pete, getting to his feet. Bov stood his ground as Pete stopped inches from him. 'He's your son!'

'Look, I only 'ad a few drinks, alright? Most of them was Keith's… Lucy, I want you to come 'ome.'

'What if Charlie had fallen in?' she demanded, getting to her feet and turning to him. 'I need to be able to trust you to look after our son.' Bov moved past Pete, taking her hands.

'Look, I'm sorry, alright. What else can I say?' Lucy shook her head, pulling her hands away.

'I can't believe you would do that. Have you ever heard of saying no?' Bovver sighed, rubbing his eyes.

'I'm sorry, okay. I'm sorry.' He glanced at Dave, Swill and then behind him at Pete. 'Bruv…'

Pete shook his head. 'It's up to Lucy.' The Dunham sister sighed, before looking at Bov.

'Fine, but I swear to God, Bov, if you ever do anything like that again…' she trailed off as Bovver nodded.

'I won't, I swear.'

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