𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐄 ᵖᵉᵃᵏʸ ᵇˡⁱⁿᵈᵉʳˢ

𝟐𝟓, returning

    XXV. 1921

Vivian lay on a bed, listening to the music that played downstairs. It was three in the morning and was at a house party. She heard Gigi and some others she had met before from the club.

She lay on her stomach, reading the paper from today. Beside Vivian lay Katie, who had woken up minutes prior.

Katie had been the reason she had to attend as Andy had thought it a brilliant idea for the girl to have some girl friends and some fun for once. But Katie had the same idea as Vivian. Hide away.

"Cassandra?" The girl's head hung over the end of the bed.

Vivian flipped to the next page, "yes Katie?"

"How long until your birthday?" The girl asked.

"I don't know actually." She answered shortly. She tried to catch up on the news, she had missed today but she knew the girl had to fill the silence with random questions.

Katie sighed softly, "Well that's no good. When is it?"

"Twenty-fifth of June. 1897." Making Cassandra twenty four. She had to lie, especially to get her job.

"That's... soon," she hummed to herself, "mine's November nineteenth."

Vivian nodded at the girl, "the- must have been a lovely Valentine's that year," Katie ignored her, "why can't you go downstairs?"

Katie answered, "Because I don't want to go down there." And Vivian went back to her newspaper, reading about a fire in the East End.

"Why? It's not like you'd be hanging out with strangers, it's Gi down there. And that other girl from the club. Anna?"

"Close, Anne."

The girl face planted onto the mattress beside the Shelby woman, who continued reading. "Have you ever snorted cocaine?" She mumbled into the bed.

"Yeah." Maybe it's just better to lie sometimes, but she wasn't arsed to now.

"It fun?" The fourteen year old asked, her voice muffled by the soft mattress.

"Sure," she said simply, checking the clock on the night stand, "I suggest you don't do it under my roof. Now bring over the phone, gotta call someone." She gestured to the telephone on the nightstand.

She leaned over, pulling the telephone on the bed, "It can't go any further." Vivian scooted around, her and Katie switching spots.

She picked it up and spoke to the phone operator, and she put her through. She waited for the person to speak and she did."Hello? Hello? Who's this?" The woman on the other line answered tiredly. Vivian hung up before speaking to the operator again.

"Who was that?" Katie asked, curiously.

"My boss." She replied, before hearing that there was no answer on the other line which was not a surprise given the time. Since when does Pol get to the phone before Thomas? Since when was she up at this time?

Vivian rolled back down, getting comfortable again, "why don't you want to go downstairs?"

"Why would I? Not really my crowd. No offence."