![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
Lavinia Littleton had 3 jobs. She worked in two different food service positions, but the best job she had was a position as a nurse's assistant at a hospital in Bristol. It was an hour trip to and from her home, but it paid better than her other jobs, and she could take night shifts. She had three teenage boys, who here getting bigger every day. Her youngest daughter, Eleanor, had continuing health problems, and they cost money. Everything cost money. She was grateful for the positions.
After an eight-hour-shift that had seen her filling orders and cleaning bedpans and washing soiled sheets, Lavinia walked to her car in the frozen carpark. It was just after six in the morning, and her breath curled away from her lips in visible clouds. She shivered into her coat and quickly bundled into her car, which refused to start. "You piece of fucking shit!" Lavinia hissed loudly. "I am too old for this!!" She was forty-seven, anyway. And though she didn't look like it, nor act like it, she hoped the car would somehow hear and take it into account.
No dice.
"I am going to have you turned into scrap metal!" Lavinia turned the key in the ignition and she was answered back with a resounding, sick groan of the motor, and nothingness. "You piece of fucking, cock-sucking, monkey-"
A knock sounded on the window, and Lavinia shrieked and turned to the side to find one of the night doctors standing there, looking worried. Lavinia quickly rolled down her window and she gave him an apologetic look. "Heh...hello, Chet."
"Having some trouble?" He asked, glancing at her car's bonnet.
"Why? Do you know how to fix cars?"
"Oh, not a thing, no. But I can call you a tow from inside."
"Oh, goddammit." Lavinia sighed and she leaned forward, resting her head against the steering wheel. "Sorry. I'm just...my kids are home and they'll be wanting breakfast." Her oldest, Joseph, was seventeen and certainly capable of making breakfast for all of them. That wasn't the point. Not only did she want to be there with them, but they usually waited for her before eating. Her children showed her too much respect sometimes...though she knew part of it is that they wanted to make sure that there was enough to go around, and that meant ensuring she ate too. She was worried that if she wasn't at home, they would head off to school with empty bellies. Again. And today, it could be avoided, if she could only get to them. "And I have work again at noon."
"I don't know how you do it." Chet shook his head and he smiled at her. "It's freezing out here. Come inside and we'll call for a tow truck. I'll drive you home myself."
"I live in Bradford!" Lavinia protested, looking at him as if he had grown another head.
"I know where you live, Lavinia. It's alright. I don't have anywhere else I need to be. And my car has a heater. Come on." He helped her out of the car, and back across the frosty carpark. They called for a truck together, and he stood with her as she watched her car dragged away by a mechanic who promised that he would have the car pulled back to Bradford and he have her running again in a week's time. For quite a lot of money. The figure made Lavinia's stomach clench, but she had to have a car. So she nodded and tried not to think about it on the drive home.
Chet and Lavinia hadn't had a great deal to do with each other at work, but they had always been friendly enough. Chet knew Lavinia to be incredibly intelligent and he mentioned several times that she should become a nurse, though she always said she didn't have the time or money to study to do so. When they arrived at her house, she climbed from his car and thanked him profusely. "If there's anything I can do for you-?"
"Actually, do you have coffee? I could go for a cup. Just to make sure I don't fall asleep on the drive home."
Lavinia smiled and she nodded. He had worked from ten at night until six in the morning just like she had. She knew how he felt, though he got to go to sleep and she still had quite a while to go before she could. "Of course. I make it fairly strong, beware."
"That sounds perfect." Chet grinned and he stepped out of his car himself, walking beside her to the door. "Your house is lovely."
"It's small." Lavinia let them inside and she turned on the heater in the hallway before stepping into the kitchen. "But it's warm." Even when they couldn't afford the heater, there was a fireplace. A fireplace and the most amazing family she could have been gifted with. "Here, take a seat." Lavinia gestured to a chair and then she went to the kettle. She filled it with warm water and then set it on the stove. She had had the same kettle since her wedding day, and it showed it's age, but she loved it. When she turned around to hang her coat on the chair, she found Chet standing right behind her. "Oh..." That was a surprise.
"You're a beautiful woman, Lavinia." Chet smiled at her, and he placed an arm against the kitchen bench. It looked like he was casually leaning against it, but Lavinia was not a stupid woman. She could see he was trying to block her escape. Behind her, there was only more kitchen bench coming to a corner. She was blocked in. She hadn't expected this from him. He had always seemed so polite...
"I could be your mother." Lavinia growled, her eyebrows raised. "Go sit down, Chet."
"I'm thirty-five, Lavinia. Come on. I know your husband isn't in the picture anymore and you have five kids. Don't you ever want to do something nice for yourself?" He lifted a hand to stroke her cheek, but she slapped it away.
"Don't touch me. I don't have time for myself." Lavinia couldn't remember the last time she had sex, though she was fairly sure Eleanor had still been running around in diapers. Considering her daughter was now nine, that had been a fair while ago. "But when I decide I do want something for myself, it will be with someone I choose. Now sit down, or get out."
"Lavinia..." Chet came closer, his grip on the kitchen bench hardening. "I gave you a ride. The least you can do is give me one."
"Oh for fuck's sake!" Lavinia hissed, tying not to wake up her children. She was now terrified that this man might get his hands on her daughters. If he knocked her out and then went after them, she wouldn't be able to stop him. The very thought that he could made her want to rip his heart out. And she had invited him in... Idiot. "Get out of my house!"
"Don't scream," he said, as if reading her mind. "You wouldn't want your kids to wake up. You have two little girls, don't you?"
"You unbelievable cunt." Lavinia's hand shot out to grab a knife from the chopping block, but it was too far away. While she was still reaching for it, Chet grabbed a pan that was hanging from above the stove and he swung it at her. The pan caught the side of her head and pain flashed through her body, white hot and blinding. Lavinia stumbled sideways, her hand catching the kettle which had just started whistling with abandon. The kettle flew across the kitchen and crashed to the floor. It shattered inside, spreading boiling hot water across the floor in a cascade, though it missed Lavinia. Chet hit her again, sending droplets of blood flying into the pool of spreading water on the floor. Then he pulled a woozy Lavinia to her feet and he pushed her forward, draping her stomach down over the table. She tried to struggle weakly, but she could tell that she had been positioned for him to fuck her and the blows he had given to her head had made it too hard to move. Fruitlessly, she tried to grab for the salt and pepper shakers, but she knocked them out of reach. And they wouldn't have helped much anyway.
And then she heard footsteps in the hall. Eleanor and Abby appeared in the doorway. Lavinia's face was smashed against the table, but her head was turned so she could see them. See the terrified looks on their faces. And that was enough to help her find her strength. "Go! Run to your room and lock the door!" Lavinia screamed, even as she felt Chet's hands leave the hem of her work dress he had been working to pull up. Chet had started towards the girls, who both screamed as well and darted back to their room before shouting, "JOE! ADAM, HELP!"
Lavinia heard the door slam and then she hefted herself off the table with an animalistic scream. No one was touching her babies. No one. "I WILL KILL YOU!" She growled, but Chet had given up on his pursuit of the girls after they had locked their door. He turned back towards Lavinia and he slammed her up against the wall.
"I am going to take what I want from you, and I'm going to leave you bleeding." He slammed her head back against the wall, and Lavinia's vision blurred dangerously. Black spots danced in front of her eyes, but she still heard his voice through her delirium.
"MUMS!"
Joseph. It was her Joseph. "Ru...J..ru.." She was trying to get him to run as well, but Joe would have none of it.
"What are you doing?!" He screamed. He was joined by his sixteen-year-old brother, Adam. And then Lavinia was dropped to the floor. She could barely keep conscious, but she could hear screaming and bellowing and blows landing. She tried to pull herself up, but she couldn't. Her children were fighting for her and for all she knew, they were suffering for it and she couldn't do a thing. My babies.
The morning threatened to fade from her vision entirely, and then she felt gentle hands on her arms. "Mums. Mums, come on. Thomas, go get me some clean washcloths." Lavinia opened her eyes and her vision cleared somewhat, and she saw Joe in front of her, looking quite terrified. "Mums, are you okay?"
"Urgh." Lavinia managed to reply. The world was becoming more focused, however, and an instant later she felt something cold against the side of her head, which did a lot to wake her up. Her fourteen-year-old son, Thomas was by her side, holding ice against the place she had been hit with a pan. "Where...where did he-"
"Joe kicked his arse and threw him out the door." Adam said proudly. They hadn't called the police. They all knew that would amount to shite all. "Who was that guy?"
Lavinia sighed and she looked at her oldest son without answering the question. "Joseph, your lip..." His lip was cut and bleeding, and she frowned at him.
"I'm fine, Mums. I don't think he realised your sons were so big." Joe smiled at her, and then he winced a moment later because it hurt. "Come on, we should get you off the floor." Lavinia let them help her into the kitchen, where she immediately went for the mop to clean the floor.
"Oh, no you don't." Thomas grabbed it from her hands and he went about mopping the water and blood himself. "Sit down."
Lavinia sank gratefully into a chair and she rested her throbbing head in her hands. She wanted to cry, but her children were surrounding her, so she kept her composure.
"Mums, what was that guy doing?" Thomas asked as he busied himself with the mop.
"He was..." Lavinia shook her head and she saw Joe pat Thomas shoulder. She could see Joe knew exactly what had been happening.
"It doesn't matter, he's gone now," Joe remarked softly. Sadly. Lavinia gave Joe a grateful smile. "The kettle's broken..."
"So's the car." Lavinia groaned and she leaned forward to rest her head against the table. If her sons hadn't intervened, she wouldn't be sitting here. She would have been violated beyond words in her own hallway by a man she had invited in the front door. "You shouldn't have done that, Joseph."
"No one touches our Mums." Joe growled. Abby and Eleanor appeared in the doorway again and Joe immediately went to comfort them. Lavinia watched him, her heart threatening to beat right out of her chest for love. Joe took such care of them. All of them.
"Are you okay, Mummy?" Eleanor asked, looking fearful.
"She'll be fine." Joe kissed Eleanor's hair. "Adam, will you make some breakfast? Mums, sit up and I'll clean you up."
Lavinia lifted her head and she reached out for Joe's wrist as he brought a wet washcloth to her bleeding face. "I can make you breakfast."
"No." Joe shook his head. Adam was already heading for the oatmeal. "Adam can do it." Thomas had completed cleaning the floor and without having to be asked, he went to keep his sisters company so they wouldn't be afraid. "Look left?" Lavinia complied and she felt Joe start to wash the blood off her face.
"No...no." Lavinia gently took the washcloth from his hands and she leaned forward to kiss him. "I'll do it. Just...give me a moment."
"Mums, you could have a concussion, and-" Abby was only twelve, but already the girl was like a physician's desk reference. Which she liked to carry around with her... "You need to be careful!"
"I know, Sweetie. I'm not going to sleep. Just to clean up." Lavinia ruffled Abby's hair and she made her way, slowly, into her bedroom. She stood in front of her mirror and she looked at her reflection. She looked terrible. That would keep her from work for a few days, most likely. And it would keep her from interviewing for more jobs. She knew she couldn't return to the hospital now, and that had been her best earner. Her car was in the shop. She wouldn't be able to afford going to see a doctor herself.
Slowly, her hands began to shake. In a matter of moments, they were shaking so violently, she couldn't clean her face anymore. The cloth dropped to her vanity and she closed her eyes and cried, tears streaming down her face leaving pale tracks in the drying blood. Her children had saved her from something terrible this morning. But she couldn't save them from the consequences. They were going to be short of money again. Things had been going okay for a while, but with this...because of the actions of a pathetic creep...they wouldn't be again. They never had nothing, but sometimes they didn't have enough and soon her children weren't going to get enough to eat. They were going to go to bed hungry until she could get another job.
Lavinia wrapped her arms around her stomach and she let her knees give way so she could sink to the floor. When would the actions of men stop hurting her family? Her dear, sweet children? It was for them that Lavinia cried. She had been spared, and she was tough. They had not. And they were just kids. It wasn't fair.
None of this was fair.
By the time Lavinia returned to the kitchen, composed and cleaned up, her children were eating and chattering around the breakfast table. "Come on, Mums, we saved you some." Joe pointed to the pot the oatmeal was sitting in.
Lavinia shook her head, and though her stomach felt empty and hollow, she didn't sit with them to eat. "You lot go ahead and have more. I'll eat at the cafe."
"You're still going to work?" Adam asked her, talking around his toast.
"If they'll have me." Lavinia nodded. They probably wouldn't. She would likely be sent home. But she had to try. "Come on, eat. You'll be late for school."
"Was that man trying to steal from you?" Abby asked, one brown eyebrow arched up.
"He was." Lavinia sighed. "He didn't take anything though." Which wasn't necessarily true. He hadn't gotten what he wanted, but he had taken enough...
"Does it hurt?" Ellie asked, kicking her legs under the table.
"I'll be alright." Lavinia responded.
"Come on, hurry up." Joe stepped forward and he pulled Ellie's chair back from the table, because she was clearly finished eating. "Go brush your hair, you look like a waif."
"YOU look like a waif!" Ellie yelled, but she complied anyway, darting away so she could use the bathroom before having to fight with anyone else for it.
Joe moved to his mother's side and he gave her a gentle hug. "No one hurts our Mums," he whispered again, just to her.
"Thank you." She whispered back to him. She gave his hand a squeeze and she kissed his hair. "Eat some more oatmeal, Joe."
"Mums-"
"You're a growing boy, don't argue." Lavinia pointed at it, and at once she saw Joe comply. They didn't often argue with her, for which she was grateful.
"Will that man to go Hell?" Thomas asked, watching his mother intently. Her darling Thomas, always looking at things from a spiritual perspective.
"I don't think that's how it works, Kiddo." Lavinia gave him a tired smile.
"He needs someone to teach him not to steal and hit people." Thomas nodded sagely and then he finished off his oatmeal. Beside him, Abby noted he was finished and before he could, she jumped up and raced off into the bathroom, leaving Thomas standing there with his mouth open. "Hey! Abby!" He chased after her and Lavinia heard their giggling from the other room. "It was my turn!"
At least, even when things were looking grim, she could count on her children to bring her joy. At that, they very much did. She only hoped that the coming weeks wouldn't be too terrible. It was winter and cold, and she couldn't stand the thought of failing them again.
After an eight-hour-shift that had seen her filling orders and cleaning bedpans and washing soiled sheets, Lavinia walked to her car in the frozen carpark. It was just after six in the morning, and her breath curled away from her lips in visible clouds. She shivered into her coat and quickly bundled into her car, which refused to start. "You piece of fucking shit!" Lavinia hissed loudly. "I am too old for this!!" She was forty-seven, anyway. And though she didn't look like it, nor act like it, she hoped the car would somehow hear and take it into account.
No dice.
"I am going to have you turned into scrap metal!" Lavinia turned the key in the ignition and she was answered back with a resounding, sick groan of the motor, and nothingness. "You piece of fucking, cock-sucking, monkey-"
A knock sounded on the window, and Lavinia shrieked and turned to the side to find one of the night doctors standing there, looking worried. Lavinia quickly rolled down her window and she gave him an apologetic look. "Heh...hello, Chet."
"Having some trouble?" He asked, glancing at her car's bonnet.
"Why? Do you know how to fix cars?"
"Oh, not a thing, no. But I can call you a tow from inside."
"Oh, goddammit." Lavinia sighed and she leaned forward, resting her head against the steering wheel. "Sorry. I'm just...my kids are home and they'll be wanting breakfast." Her oldest, Joseph, was seventeen and certainly capable of making breakfast for all of them. That wasn't the point. Not only did she want to be there with them, but they usually waited for her before eating. Her children showed her too much respect sometimes...though she knew part of it is that they wanted to make sure that there was enough to go around, and that meant ensuring she ate too. She was worried that if she wasn't at home, they would head off to school with empty bellies. Again. And today, it could be avoided, if she could only get to them. "And I have work again at noon."
"I don't know how you do it." Chet shook his head and he smiled at her. "It's freezing out here. Come inside and we'll call for a tow truck. I'll drive you home myself."
"I live in Bradford!" Lavinia protested, looking at him as if he had grown another head.
"I know where you live, Lavinia. It's alright. I don't have anywhere else I need to be. And my car has a heater. Come on." He helped her out of the car, and back across the frosty carpark. They called for a truck together, and he stood with her as she watched her car dragged away by a mechanic who promised that he would have the car pulled back to Bradford and he have her running again in a week's time. For quite a lot of money. The figure made Lavinia's stomach clench, but she had to have a car. So she nodded and tried not to think about it on the drive home.
Chet and Lavinia hadn't had a great deal to do with each other at work, but they had always been friendly enough. Chet knew Lavinia to be incredibly intelligent and he mentioned several times that she should become a nurse, though she always said she didn't have the time or money to study to do so. When they arrived at her house, she climbed from his car and thanked him profusely. "If there's anything I can do for you-?"
"Actually, do you have coffee? I could go for a cup. Just to make sure I don't fall asleep on the drive home."
Lavinia smiled and she nodded. He had worked from ten at night until six in the morning just like she had. She knew how he felt, though he got to go to sleep and she still had quite a while to go before she could. "Of course. I make it fairly strong, beware."
"That sounds perfect." Chet grinned and he stepped out of his car himself, walking beside her to the door. "Your house is lovely."
"It's small." Lavinia let them inside and she turned on the heater in the hallway before stepping into the kitchen. "But it's warm." Even when they couldn't afford the heater, there was a fireplace. A fireplace and the most amazing family she could have been gifted with. "Here, take a seat." Lavinia gestured to a chair and then she went to the kettle. She filled it with warm water and then set it on the stove. She had had the same kettle since her wedding day, and it showed it's age, but she loved it. When she turned around to hang her coat on the chair, she found Chet standing right behind her. "Oh..." That was a surprise.
"You're a beautiful woman, Lavinia." Chet smiled at her, and he placed an arm against the kitchen bench. It looked like he was casually leaning against it, but Lavinia was not a stupid woman. She could see he was trying to block her escape. Behind her, there was only more kitchen bench coming to a corner. She was blocked in. She hadn't expected this from him. He had always seemed so polite...
"I could be your mother." Lavinia growled, her eyebrows raised. "Go sit down, Chet."
"I'm thirty-five, Lavinia. Come on. I know your husband isn't in the picture anymore and you have five kids. Don't you ever want to do something nice for yourself?" He lifted a hand to stroke her cheek, but she slapped it away.
"Don't touch me. I don't have time for myself." Lavinia couldn't remember the last time she had sex, though she was fairly sure Eleanor had still been running around in diapers. Considering her daughter was now nine, that had been a fair while ago. "But when I decide I do want something for myself, it will be with someone I choose. Now sit down, or get out."
"Lavinia..." Chet came closer, his grip on the kitchen bench hardening. "I gave you a ride. The least you can do is give me one."
"Oh for fuck's sake!" Lavinia hissed, tying not to wake up her children. She was now terrified that this man might get his hands on her daughters. If he knocked her out and then went after them, she wouldn't be able to stop him. The very thought that he could made her want to rip his heart out. And she had invited him in... Idiot. "Get out of my house!"
"Don't scream," he said, as if reading her mind. "You wouldn't want your kids to wake up. You have two little girls, don't you?"
"You unbelievable cunt." Lavinia's hand shot out to grab a knife from the chopping block, but it was too far away. While she was still reaching for it, Chet grabbed a pan that was hanging from above the stove and he swung it at her. The pan caught the side of her head and pain flashed through her body, white hot and blinding. Lavinia stumbled sideways, her hand catching the kettle which had just started whistling with abandon. The kettle flew across the kitchen and crashed to the floor. It shattered inside, spreading boiling hot water across the floor in a cascade, though it missed Lavinia. Chet hit her again, sending droplets of blood flying into the pool of spreading water on the floor. Then he pulled a woozy Lavinia to her feet and he pushed her forward, draping her stomach down over the table. She tried to struggle weakly, but she could tell that she had been positioned for him to fuck her and the blows he had given to her head had made it too hard to move. Fruitlessly, she tried to grab for the salt and pepper shakers, but she knocked them out of reach. And they wouldn't have helped much anyway.
And then she heard footsteps in the hall. Eleanor and Abby appeared in the doorway. Lavinia's face was smashed against the table, but her head was turned so she could see them. See the terrified looks on their faces. And that was enough to help her find her strength. "Go! Run to your room and lock the door!" Lavinia screamed, even as she felt Chet's hands leave the hem of her work dress he had been working to pull up. Chet had started towards the girls, who both screamed as well and darted back to their room before shouting, "JOE! ADAM, HELP!"
Lavinia heard the door slam and then she hefted herself off the table with an animalistic scream. No one was touching her babies. No one. "I WILL KILL YOU!" She growled, but Chet had given up on his pursuit of the girls after they had locked their door. He turned back towards Lavinia and he slammed her up against the wall.
"I am going to take what I want from you, and I'm going to leave you bleeding." He slammed her head back against the wall, and Lavinia's vision blurred dangerously. Black spots danced in front of her eyes, but she still heard his voice through her delirium.
"MUMS!"
Joseph. It was her Joseph. "Ru...J..ru.." She was trying to get him to run as well, but Joe would have none of it.
"What are you doing?!" He screamed. He was joined by his sixteen-year-old brother, Adam. And then Lavinia was dropped to the floor. She could barely keep conscious, but she could hear screaming and bellowing and blows landing. She tried to pull herself up, but she couldn't. Her children were fighting for her and for all she knew, they were suffering for it and she couldn't do a thing. My babies.
The morning threatened to fade from her vision entirely, and then she felt gentle hands on her arms. "Mums. Mums, come on. Thomas, go get me some clean washcloths." Lavinia opened her eyes and her vision cleared somewhat, and she saw Joe in front of her, looking quite terrified. "Mums, are you okay?"
"Urgh." Lavinia managed to reply. The world was becoming more focused, however, and an instant later she felt something cold against the side of her head, which did a lot to wake her up. Her fourteen-year-old son, Thomas was by her side, holding ice against the place she had been hit with a pan. "Where...where did he-"
"Joe kicked his arse and threw him out the door." Adam said proudly. They hadn't called the police. They all knew that would amount to shite all. "Who was that guy?"
Lavinia sighed and she looked at her oldest son without answering the question. "Joseph, your lip..." His lip was cut and bleeding, and she frowned at him.
"I'm fine, Mums. I don't think he realised your sons were so big." Joe smiled at her, and then he winced a moment later because it hurt. "Come on, we should get you off the floor." Lavinia let them help her into the kitchen, where she immediately went for the mop to clean the floor.
"Oh, no you don't." Thomas grabbed it from her hands and he went about mopping the water and blood himself. "Sit down."
Lavinia sank gratefully into a chair and she rested her throbbing head in her hands. She wanted to cry, but her children were surrounding her, so she kept her composure.
"Mums, what was that guy doing?" Thomas asked as he busied himself with the mop.
"He was..." Lavinia shook her head and she saw Joe pat Thomas shoulder. She could see Joe knew exactly what had been happening.
"It doesn't matter, he's gone now," Joe remarked softly. Sadly. Lavinia gave Joe a grateful smile. "The kettle's broken..."
"So's the car." Lavinia groaned and she leaned forward to rest her head against the table. If her sons hadn't intervened, she wouldn't be sitting here. She would have been violated beyond words in her own hallway by a man she had invited in the front door. "You shouldn't have done that, Joseph."
"No one touches our Mums." Joe growled. Abby and Eleanor appeared in the doorway again and Joe immediately went to comfort them. Lavinia watched him, her heart threatening to beat right out of her chest for love. Joe took such care of them. All of them.
"Are you okay, Mummy?" Eleanor asked, looking fearful.
"She'll be fine." Joe kissed Eleanor's hair. "Adam, will you make some breakfast? Mums, sit up and I'll clean you up."
Lavinia lifted her head and she reached out for Joe's wrist as he brought a wet washcloth to her bleeding face. "I can make you breakfast."
"No." Joe shook his head. Adam was already heading for the oatmeal. "Adam can do it." Thomas had completed cleaning the floor and without having to be asked, he went to keep his sisters company so they wouldn't be afraid. "Look left?" Lavinia complied and she felt Joe start to wash the blood off her face.
"No...no." Lavinia gently took the washcloth from his hands and she leaned forward to kiss him. "I'll do it. Just...give me a moment."
"Mums, you could have a concussion, and-" Abby was only twelve, but already the girl was like a physician's desk reference. Which she liked to carry around with her... "You need to be careful!"
"I know, Sweetie. I'm not going to sleep. Just to clean up." Lavinia ruffled Abby's hair and she made her way, slowly, into her bedroom. She stood in front of her mirror and she looked at her reflection. She looked terrible. That would keep her from work for a few days, most likely. And it would keep her from interviewing for more jobs. She knew she couldn't return to the hospital now, and that had been her best earner. Her car was in the shop. She wouldn't be able to afford going to see a doctor herself.
Slowly, her hands began to shake. In a matter of moments, they were shaking so violently, she couldn't clean her face anymore. The cloth dropped to her vanity and she closed her eyes and cried, tears streaming down her face leaving pale tracks in the drying blood. Her children had saved her from something terrible this morning. But she couldn't save them from the consequences. They were going to be short of money again. Things had been going okay for a while, but with this...because of the actions of a pathetic creep...they wouldn't be again. They never had nothing, but sometimes they didn't have enough and soon her children weren't going to get enough to eat. They were going to go to bed hungry until she could get another job.
Lavinia wrapped her arms around her stomach and she let her knees give way so she could sink to the floor. When would the actions of men stop hurting her family? Her dear, sweet children? It was for them that Lavinia cried. She had been spared, and she was tough. They had not. And they were just kids. It wasn't fair.
None of this was fair.
By the time Lavinia returned to the kitchen, composed and cleaned up, her children were eating and chattering around the breakfast table. "Come on, Mums, we saved you some." Joe pointed to the pot the oatmeal was sitting in.
Lavinia shook her head, and though her stomach felt empty and hollow, she didn't sit with them to eat. "You lot go ahead and have more. I'll eat at the cafe."
"You're still going to work?" Adam asked her, talking around his toast.
"If they'll have me." Lavinia nodded. They probably wouldn't. She would likely be sent home. But she had to try. "Come on, eat. You'll be late for school."
"Was that man trying to steal from you?" Abby asked, one brown eyebrow arched up.
"He was." Lavinia sighed. "He didn't take anything though." Which wasn't necessarily true. He hadn't gotten what he wanted, but he had taken enough...
"Does it hurt?" Ellie asked, kicking her legs under the table.
"I'll be alright." Lavinia responded.
"Come on, hurry up." Joe stepped forward and he pulled Ellie's chair back from the table, because she was clearly finished eating. "Go brush your hair, you look like a waif."
"YOU look like a waif!" Ellie yelled, but she complied anyway, darting away so she could use the bathroom before having to fight with anyone else for it.
Joe moved to his mother's side and he gave her a gentle hug. "No one hurts our Mums," he whispered again, just to her.
"Thank you." She whispered back to him. She gave his hand a squeeze and she kissed his hair. "Eat some more oatmeal, Joe."
"Mums-"
"You're a growing boy, don't argue." Lavinia pointed at it, and at once she saw Joe comply. They didn't often argue with her, for which she was grateful.
"Will that man to go Hell?" Thomas asked, watching his mother intently. Her darling Thomas, always looking at things from a spiritual perspective.
"I don't think that's how it works, Kiddo." Lavinia gave him a tired smile.
"He needs someone to teach him not to steal and hit people." Thomas nodded sagely and then he finished off his oatmeal. Beside him, Abby noted he was finished and before he could, she jumped up and raced off into the bathroom, leaving Thomas standing there with his mouth open. "Hey! Abby!" He chased after her and Lavinia heard their giggling from the other room. "It was my turn!"
At least, even when things were looking grim, she could count on her children to bring her joy. At that, they very much did. She only hoped that the coming weeks wouldn't be too terrible. It was winter and cold, and she couldn't stand the thought of failing them again.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}