But We Could Get By

Chapter 37

"I can't believe that actually worked!" Toby exclaimed. "I know!" Johanna replied, giggling. "Maybe soon, he'll finally tell her how he feels!" "I'm really glad they seem to be doing well again." Anthony said with a smile. "Me too. It was rough seeing them so upset." Johanna responded. "Tell me about it." Toby said. "It made me sad, seeing mum so broken up over the whole thing. I'm glad they're happier now. At least they seem to be." "Well, they finally talked things through. It can only get better from there, I believe." Johanna said. She noticed that Toby seemed like he was trying not to laugh. "What is it?" "You and Anthony are under the mistletoe now!" He responded.
   Johanna looked up, and noticed the mistletoe hanging above her. "Oh." She muttered with a smile. Anthony smiled, and appeared to be red in the face. "Well, shall we?" "I don't see why not." Johanna replied. She leaned in and kissed him, and he kissed back. She could hear Toby laughing in the background, but it soon seemed to fade away. How lovely it felt to be there with Anthony, how lovely it always felt to be with him. She couldn't wait for the day where they could move away from London. They'd no longer have anything to worry about. They'd have a nice garden, just like she had always dreamed.
   She pulled away and smiled once again. "I love you, Anthony." "I love you too, Johanna." Anthony replied. "Oh, you two." Toby said, still laughing. "It's somehow both funny and weird, being around you two as well as mum and Mr. Todd all the time." "I can imagine." Johanna said, giggling. "I hope this wasn't too weird for you." Toby shrugged. "It's alright. It's December, I figured there'd be mistletoe shenanigans sooner or later." Anthony laughed a little. "Mistletoe shenanigans is a funny way to say it." "Am I wrong though?" Toby asked. "Not at all." Anthony said. "Well, I should get going. I know Mrs. Lovett's gonna be opening her shop soon, and you two usually help her out." "Alrighty!" Johanna replied, waving. "Goodbye, Anthony!" "We'll see you later!" Toby said. Anthony smiled, then headed out. "Well, I suppose we should go see if mum needs any help getting the shop ready." Toby said. Johanna nodded. "I suppose we should."

"There he is again!" Toby exclaimed, gesturing towards a table in which Charles Thompson sat. Johanna smiled. "I'm glad he and mum are still friends!" She said. "I was quite worried when he was showing signs of having feelings for her." "Me too." Toby replied. Charles waved at them. "Hello there, you two!" "Hello, Mr. Thompson!" Johanna said, walking over to his table, followed by Toby. "How's it going?" "It's going well today." Charles replied. "Is Mrs. Lovett doing okay?" He then asked. "I remember she seemed quite sad last time I visited. She and Mr. Todd had some kind of falling out or something." "She's doing much better today!" Johanna said. "She and Mr. Todd have worked things out!" Toby added. "That's great! Glad to hear that!" Charles replied. "It was quite sad seeing her so hurt."
   "Here's your ale, sir!" Nellie said as she headed towards the table. She set the cup down at the table. "I'll be right back with your pie!" "Thank you!" Charles replied. "Johanna!" She heard a voice say. She looked around, and saw Anthony sit down at one of the tables. "Anthony!" She called out. She rushed over to his table. "What are you doing here?" "Just thought I'd visit you during work." Anthony responded. "Mrs. Lovett won't mind if I sit here without buying anything, right?" "I'm sure she won't mind." Johanna said. "Just in case though, I can get you a drink." "I don't have any money." Anthony replied. "I won't tell." Johanna said. Anthony raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that illegal?" "Maybe." Johanna replied. "I suppose crime runs in the family." "What?" Anthony asked. Johanna's eyes widened, realizing what she had said. "Nothing!" She quickly exclaimed. "I mean, it was just a joke about how dad was in prison! He didn't do anything, he was there on false charges! I shouldn't have joked about it, it was real traumatizing for him!" "It's alright, Johanna." Anthony replied, laughing a little. Johanna sighed with relief. "Good save." She thought to herself. "Well, maybe. Was that a good save?"
   She really hoped that her explanation was good enough, and that Anthony wasn't wondering what she had really meant. She couldn't let anybody know about her father's revenge plans, not even her own partner. Maybe he'd be understanding, but she still couldn't risk it. She couldn't help but wonder what Sweeney had planned to do after killing the Judge? How would he hide the body? Where nearby could he possibly bury him? What was the plan? "Johanna?" She heard Anthony say, bringing her back to reality. "Is everything alright?" "Yeah." Johanna replied. "I'm fine. Thanks for your concern though, it really does mean a lot." "Of course." Anthony said with a smile. "I love you, dear." Johanna smiled back at him. "I love you too."

"Mr. Todd!" Nellie said excitedly as she saw him walk down the stairs. "Been a while since you've visited me after work!" "It's only been a week." Sweeney replied. "I know, but usually you visit every day." Nellie said. "Will you be visiting every day again?" "I will be." Sweeney responded. Nellie smiled. "I missed you." She said. "You're not still mad at me, are you?" "I'm a lot more calm than I was." Sweeney responded. "I tried to hold onto that anger, I thought I had to for Lucy, but in all honesty, I missed you too." Nellie's face fell. "I'm really sorry about everything." She said. "I should've told you the truth." "I would've liked to know the truth." Sweeney replied. "But now I think I understand why you hesitated. Knowing what's become of her, it really does hurt a lot worse. Knowing she suffered so much more, knowing she's still suffering, and now it's like I have to try moving on all over again." "I'm really sorry, my dear." Nellie said. "I'm sorry about everything that's happened to you. You didn't deserve any of it. I wish I could just take all of the pain away."
   Sweeney held her hand, but didn't say anything in response. Nellie sighed. "So, I suppose you know the truth about my feelings now." She said. "I mean, I never really hid them, I just never outright said it until recently." Sweeney nodded. "How long have you felt that way?" "A long time." Nellie replied, laughing a little. "You know that moment I brought up, back when we were younger, when our families were visiting each other?" She asked. "We were sitting on the sofa together, just chatting away, but then everything got silent, and we just stayed there, holding each other, and I almost fell asleep." "I remember you telling me about that." Sweeney replied. "That was when I fell in love with you, and I've loved you ever since." Nellie said. "Oh." Sweeney mumbled. "That really is a long time." "It is." Nellie replied, giggling. "You know, I remember before I was sent away, you had told me you were in love with someone who was married." Sweeney said. "You were talking about me?" "I was." Nellie replied. "I've wanted to tell you for so long, but I never could." "I remember you mentioning that too." Sweeney said.
   Nellie nodded. "You know, Johanna and I would write you letters while you were away. Of course, they never made it to you, a lot of them were sent back, but I never lost hope that maybe at least one of them would reach you." "I wish I could've received those letters." Sweeney said. "All the ones I still have, I put in a box. I believe I put it somewhere in your shop along with your razors, just in case you really did come home." Nellie responded. "I never gave up on you, you know. I always had hope that one day, you'd come home again. I was always willing to wait for you. I still am." "If I find those letters, I'll be sure to read them." Sweeney said. "Well, I should go. I'm rather tired, and you should get some rest too. Goodnight, Mrs. Lovett. I'll see you tomorrow." "Goodnight, Mr. Todd." Nellie replied. "I love you."
   Sweeney didn't say anything in response, though he did give her a kiss on the forehead before heading upstairs. Nellie wasn't sure whether she wanted to smile or cry. She was so happy that they were on good terms again, and that he was being so wonderful and affectionate like he was before their argument, but she couldn't help but once again feel so tired of waiting. She knew that just earlier, she had been thinking about how she didn't mind it all that much, for she was just glad to have him back. She usually was quite patient, but sometimes she could feel that patience slip, even several times within the same day. She wished she could finally hear him say that he loved her too. She wished he would finally ask if things could be official, if they could really be together. She wished that someday, he could be hers forever, the way she always had and always would be his. She wished that someday could just come already.