Rosalie Bucket is the eldest child of the Bucket family. She works hard, serving as a waitress at a small restaurant, to help support her poor family. When things don't seem to be looking well, she considers marrying a suitor to give a better life t...
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It was a normal day for Rosalie Bucket. She worked at Mrs. Mason's Magical Pies as a waitress. Rose loved working for Mrs. Mason. She was such a kind woman, whom often treated Rose like her own daughter, and even treated Charlie like her own son whenever he came in to wait for his sister. And she was always willing to let a pie go home to the Bucket family.
Rose always felt guilty for the fact that she never paid for one, but Mrs. Mason assured her that it was fine.
The Buckets weren't the wealthiest family in the world; they barely even got by. But, they had each other, and that was the most important thing.
A bell above the door rang, indicating that a customer walked through the door. Rose, who was in the middle of sleeping the floor, looked up to see that her brother had entered the small cafe.
"Afternoon, Charlie!" Rose greeted him. Charlie always stopped by after school to wait for Rose to finish her shift. They always walked home together.
Charlie smiled at his beloved sister. "Afternoon, Rosie" He took a seat at a table close to the big window.
Mrs. Mason emerged from the kitchen. "Is that my dear boy?" She said, her face covered in flour. Mrs. Mason grinned when she saw Charlie. She walked over to him and ruffled his hair. "Hello, dear Charlie! How are you today?"
"I'm fine, Mrs. Mason" Charlie smiled at the woman. "How are you?"
"Couldn't be better, Charlie! How about a piece of pie?" Mrs. Mason always offered Charlie a piece. "I've got a nice piece of blueberry with your name on it!"
"Thank you" He said politely.
Rose smiled at her brother. "Make sure not to spoil dinner"
"I won't. I promise" Charlie said to her. Mrs. Mason brought the pie over to the table and set it in front of him. She even gave him a cup of hot chocolate.
"It's a bit cold out today. Thought you might like some" Mrs. Mason winked. Charlie thanked her yet again, and began eating the pie. He took slow bites out of it, savouring the warmth from the pastry.
Rose has finished sweeping, and was ready to move onto cleaning the dishes. It would be her last task for the day. She started scrubbing away at the dishes when Mrs. Mason approached her. "Rose dear, that boy is back and he's asking for you"
Rose wiped her hands on her apron and peered into the dining room. She saw a blonde haired man, around her age, sitting at the table with Charlie. That man was Harry Roberts. "Oh, Mrs. Mason, please get rid of him!"
"My dear, just tell the boy the truth" Mrs. Mason told the girl. "You don't love the boy, you barely even think of him as a friend. Why marry someone you're barely even friends with?"
Harry was quite smitten with Rose from the first day he walked into the cafe and laid eyes on her. However, the same couldn't be said for Rose. It wasn't that Harry was a terrible person, (although sometimes it felt like he was following her on occasion) it's just that Rose didn't feel the same way as he did. She merely saw Harry as an acquaintance, and besides, she was too busy with working and trying to provide for her family. She was lucky if she was able to buy a bread roll to eat with their cabbage soup.
And that's what brings us to Harry's many attempted marriage proposals. He knew very well of the Bucket's situation. Harry was always proposing the idea of marriage to Rose, on the basis that it would save her family. He also added the promise that her family could live with them.
But, Rose always refused. She didn't love the boy. Even though it would be good for her family, she didn't want to be stuck in a one-sided marriage. She didn't want to live with that guilt.
Mr and Mrs Bucket were aware of Harry's proposals. Rose would always tell them, "Maybe I should marry him. We could have a better house and we wouldn't have to live off of cabbage soup"
But her parents always assured her, "Darling, we don't want you getting married until it's with someone you truly do love"
Rose took a big sigh and stepped out of the kitchen. With a forced smile, she approached the table occupied by her brother and her suitor. "Harry"
Harry smiles up at the young woman. "Rose" He spoke her name softly. He grabbed her hand and brought it up to his lips. "I still can't get over how beautiful you look, even in your uniform"
Rose glanced down at what she was wearing: a blue dress, a white apron and her Mary Jane shoes.
By now, Charlie had finished his piece of pie. He watched the two people in front of him, but kept his eye mostly on his sister. He knew the smile on her face wasn't a genuine one.
"How can I help you, Harry?" Rose asked, just wanting this conversation over with.
"You know why I'm here, Rose" Harry's tone seemed to grow darker. The girl scoffed and turned around to go back into the kitchen. But Harry had grabbed her wrist with a tight grip.
"Harry, you're hurting me!" Rose yelped. He gripped her wrist with such force that she was sure a bruise or some kind of mark would be left. "Let me go!" Harry didn't.
That is until Charlie spoke up. "She asked you to let go" His voice was soft, but it made Harry let go. Truth be told, he just didn't want to seem like a monster in front of the boy.
Charlie looked up at his sister. He saw a tear run down her face. He reached up to wipe it away from her. Rose gave him a soft smile.
At this point, Mrs. Mason came out of the kitchen, waving a rolling pin around. "The girl told you to leave, so I think it's best that you go!"
"Y-yes, ma'am" Harry sputtered. He wasn't going to lie, Mrs. Mason scared him a little.
"And if I see you lay one more hand on this girl, I'll use this rolling pin to flatten you like dough. Do I make myself clear?"
Harry nodded once more before running out of the shop. Once he was gone, Rose broke out into tears. "Oh, sweetheart" Mrs. Mason cooed. She rubbed Rose's back. "I'll make sure he never comes back in here to bother you again" She looked at the young Bucket boy. "Would you grab your sister's coat from the kitchen? I'm sending her home early"
Charlie went into the kitchen. Mrs. Mason still attempted to comfort Rose. "And I'll send you home with another pie for your family"
"Oh, please, Mrs. Mason! I can't let you do that!" Rose pleaded with her. "I know business hasn't been what it used to be these days and I—"
"It's alright, dear" Mrs. Mason assured her. She made her way into the kitchen just as Charlie came out with Rose's coat.
"Are you going to be alright, Rosie?" Charlie asked as he helped his sister put on her jacket.
"I will be, Charlie. Thank you" Rose smiled at him, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. "Mrs. Mason is letting us bring a pie home for dessert tonight"
As if on cue, Mrs. Mason came out with the pie. This one was cherry. "One cherry pie for the Bucket family" She gave the pie to Charlie. She then reached into her pocket and pulled out some money. "And buy yourself a loaf of bread. Something to go with that cabbage soup"
"Mrs. Mason, I couldn't—"
"It's alright, my dear"
Charlie gave an appreciative smile to the woman. "Thank you, Mrs. Mason"
"It's my pleasure, Charlie! Please say hello to your parents and grandparents for me, yes?"
"We will Mrs. Mason" Rose said. "Thank you" She grabbed Charlie's hand and the two of them left the cafe.
Mrs. Mason watched them walk away with a sad smile on her face. Her shop wasn't going to last much longer, and she knew Rose needed the money. Mrs. Mason didn't know what she was going to tell the poor girl.
And that Harry boy was getting more aggressive with each passing day. It wasn't going be long before he forces Rose into a marriage by physical measures. But the fact that he loomed Rose's poverty over her head, and tried to use that against her was bad enough.
But little did anyone know, that the Bucket's luck was about to change.
