Request: I'm here to make a request based on a list you just posted. Would you please do a piece with 7 from fluff and 10 from the list just after that, with Tommy Shelby? Something like this below? (Tommy laying his head in her lap?🥺🥺)
7. “Your hair is so soft.”
10. “It’s funny, in that dark terrible way I mean.” “You wouldn’t believe me if I said I was fine, would you?”
Summary: After one dirty and dark night, Tommy comes home to his wife and can’t find sleep. Maybe his wife can help him.
Author’s note:
The story is with a reader, but not written with the you form, because the story focus on Tommy. Also... I have problems writing fluff for him, so this is bittersweet.
English is not my native language and this is not proof read.
Enjoy reading! Tagging: @bonniesgoldengirl @justalonelyslytherin @retromafia (because we already talked about this fic) @theshelbyclan
Words: 1,4k
Warnings: canon typical violence
It was business as usual for Tommy, but this day felt so much longer than just twenty-four hours. Somehow it was more tiring and more exhausting than his usual work day.
After he had left the office, he couldn’t even go straight home. No, instead he had more work to do, but not of the legal kind. The shady side of his business needed his undivided attention and this time he couldn’t outsource it. Tommy had to do it himself. It was the ugly part of his activities.
But he was used to it, as far as anybody could get used to that kind of work. He had done it many times before on his way to the top and now he had something like a routine with it. After all murder was just a business, a very cold and lonely one, but it was part of the reason why he became so successful.
His driveway to his mansion, symbol of his new status, was paved with blood and bones of enemies and friends. Sometimes the death was a collateral damage, like it was with Danny, but today it was the calculated outcome of his plans.
He already ruled half of England, but nevertheless he had to demonstrate his powers once again. Nobody could forget about it or question his position on the throne.
It was a bloody type of work and Tommy hated every minute of it. Besides the psychological damage, murdering someone was also very draining, as well as digging the shallow grave for that poor fella, who had crossed paths with the almighty Tommy Shelby.
A sign of relief left his lips, when he was finally done. He put the shovel in his car and cleaned up his face with his handkerchief. Somewhere along the process the pale skin of his sunken cheeks got stained with blood and dirt. He didn’t care about it anymore. The smell was omnipresent in his life and he couldn’t escape it. However, he was concerned about his wife, who was probably still waiting for him. The last thing Tommy wanted was to upset her. On top of that, he couldn’t stand when she asked him which blood it was. It was rarely his, but of course she would be worried about him anyway.
All on his own he drove through the dark, making his way home. His body was tired, when he climbed the stairs to the Arrow House, but his mind was still wide awake from all the things he did that day. Most present in his thoughts was the murder. The scene kept playing in his head over and over again.
Tommy forced a small smile on his lips, when he entered his bedroom and found his wife. “Why are you still awake?”, he asked: “You know, you don’t have to wait for me.” It was platitude, yes, but he said it anyway. Usually he wasn’t the type of person, who would say such a thing. Still he said it every time after he came home late at night, after a certain kind of work… It was part of his ritual.
“And hello to you too, Thomas”, she scolded him: “Also… you know very well, I can only sleep when you’re right by my side. Safe and sound.” She turned out of bed and walked the few steps to greet him with a kiss. Nevertheless she was still very caring, even though he didn’t deserve it most of the time.
Of course, he tried to be a good husband for her. He started to undress himself and when he was just in his boxer shorts, he presented her his woundless body. “See? Safe and sound”, he grunted: “Now let’s go to bed again.”
She took his hand and pulled him to their marital bed. Her voice was as soft as her silken nightdress when she whispered: “Only if you come with me, love.”
Her husband sighed, but followed her lead and got between the blanks.
Just like usual he was the big spoon and she was the little spoon. He kissed the back of her head and inhaled the scent of her hair.
But even though he stuck to his routine, he couldn’t find sleep. Most of these days, he was so tired, the sleep caught him, before his thought of guilt did. And after all this time and all the bad things he did, there was still plenty of guilt left. Actually it was piling up, like a mountain of his sins.
Today the demons in his head were stronger than the desperate desire of sleep from his body. He laid there for a while, before he realized, he was still too mentally involved with all his scandalous deed.
What Tommy now needed, was distraction. So he approached his wife. “Y/N?” Maybe she was still awake like him. His voice was throaty, but also incredibly needy. In the daylight and most of the time the Shelby acted like he didn’t need anyone, but in the comfort of his bed he was ready to show his vulnerable side.
A little sleepy and so quiet, he almost didn’t hear it, she said under her breath: “Yes, dear?”
“I can’t sleep”, he confessed and gave her hand a squeeze.
She turned around to look him in his ocean eyes. The wheels in her head were turning, he could sense it and after a while she suggested: “Okay, how about you put your head on my lap and tell me about your day.”
The worried were visible in his face. There was no point in lying about it, “You wouldn’t believe me if I said I was fine, would you?”, Tommy asked and she shook her head silently. She was the only person who understood him even without words. Sometimes he didn’t need to say anything, she just sensed, when something was wrong.
But today he needed to make that clear. “I don’t want to talk about my day”, he objected and put his hand on her cheek. His thumb caressed her soft skin oh so gentle. The shire thought about his day made him grumpy. Plus, it was also the cause of his current problem.
With an intense gaze in her eyes she stared at him and then poked his nose with her index finger. “I’ll tell you about mine.”
Then she sat upright and leaned against the headboard. Demanding she patted her lap as a sign he should come over and rest his head on her warm thighs.
Again he did just like she ordered. Tommy had left his dominance at the doorstep. Now he wasn’t the dangerous and evil gangster boss, but just a simple, yet tired man.
There was something spiritual about the way she ran her fingers through his hair. She had just started, but Tommy already felt way calmer, than before.
“The kids were hilarious today. You should have seen them. Charlie asked if horses could smoke like humans did”, she explained: “And Rosa ate her first biscuit today. She had wet crumbs all over her face. It was so adorable.”
He laughed a little, but he was sad at the same time, because he had missed these moments with his children. Tommy really wished he had been there. But what did he do instead? Making business, getting more money, threat and eventually kill people.
Tommy was completely caught up in his thoughts, when his wife mumbled: “Your hair is so soft.” She sounded almost surprised, as if she wanted to know the secret behind his silken smooth hair.
“What?” was all he said in his confusion about the sudden change of subject.
Now she was giggling and shook her head. “I said you’re incredibly soft for a tough gangster boss.”
The Shelby rolled his eyes and grumbled: “Don’t say that” which caused his wife to laugh even harder.
She had to calm down, before throwing in a question: “Why?”
“Because that’s a secret! What would the people think?”, he explained to her and tried to look up, to see her face.
Again she laughed and vowed: “I will keep your secret then… but it’s funny, in that dark terrible way I mean… right here you’re my Tommy, my husband and my everything, but everybody else think you are a horrible person.”
“But you don’t think that, eh?”
His wife clucked her tongue and answered: “I could never.”
Requested: Yes, kinda by @caelys for the fic exchange
Request: A one shot centered around Arthur's wedding. It could be his wedding with Linda that we weren't graced with seeing, or it could be with an OC.
Summary: The Shelby are a chaotic family and even when their oldest brother gets married, not everything goes as planned. Arthur might freak out about it, but his wife sure helps him to calm down again and enjoy their wedding.
Like a candle in the wind, Arthur stood at the altar, shaking and sweating. His betrothed hadn’t arrived yet and he got some last-minute cold feet. Not because he had second thoughts, he loved you, all of you and the positive traits and your flaws, but poor Arthur started to panic, because he wasn’t sure, you still want to marry him.
He was a mess, in literally every possible way. You couldn’t count the times he came home bruised from a fight at the pub or at the boxing club. Somehow Arthur managed to get himself hurt almost every time he went out. At first you were constantly worried about him, but the fear didn’t vanish, you just got used to this feeling and it faded into the background. But apart from all his day to day trouble, his mind was also chaotic, broken and lost.
Every once in a while, you had to calm him down, when he got a panic attack. Shaking, crying and with red eyes he sat in the corner. Arthur felt guilty, because he didn’t want to drag you into this mess. You shouldn’t see him like this, he whined all the time, but he didn’t seem to understand, that you cared for him and you just wanted to help and protect him from all these dark thoughts in his mind.
You had told him for like thousand times and maybe you needed to tell him another thousand times until he understood. You loved him and you agreed to become his wife.
And yet he still panicked, because you might have gotten to the realization, that he was an old crybaby or a lunatic and you just walked away… like this was a possible option in the dress and the shows and with the veil. It was neither physical possible nor on an emotional level. Even if you didn’t want to get married, you couldn’t just break his heart by running away.
Poor Arthur just couldn’t wait any longer and he was in a very uncomfortable position. Everybody got his eyes either on him or on the entrée, which you were supposed to walk through twenty minutes ago.
“What if she doesn’t want to get married anymore?”, he asked and looked other to his brothers.
Both Tommy and John turned to him around and raising their eyebrows. John retorted with a counterquestion: “Why should she?”
“I don’t know. Maybe she isn’t ready for this or… she started to hate me”, Arthur explained with a lower voice. They were still on the show, right here at the altar.
John smirked and shook his head. “Yeah, and maybe, she fell in the river. Get a grip!” With every word he seemed to mock his older brother.
Usually, Arthur was almost as confident as John, but not today. There were still so many things which could go wrong and as he knew his family, many of those things would go down in pieces.
“No need to be worried, Arthur”, grunted Tommy in his usual dull voice and fumbled in his jacket for the rings. He pulled them out and presented them. “See? She chose already the ring she wants to wear the rest of her life, so I make a guess and say, she still will show up.”
His younger brother nodded agreeing and added: “Yeah, it’s the ladies we are talking about. Polly and Lizzie got her talking and they lost time or it’s something with the dress… what the fuck do I know. Could be anything, probably something stupid.”
“But I am something stupid!”, Arthur complained.
And he was ready to say what he though all along: “This is a mistake and I’m going to ruin her life. She should have someone better.”
Tommy turned around and hissed: “Stop talking shit about my brother, eh! You’re a good man and you’re going to make her happy.”
Arthur on the other hand wasn’t out of worries. “But what if-“, he began to talk, but got interrupted by John.
“Shut up, Arthur! If there was a woman willing to marry me, then there is a woman willing to marry you”, John replied.
All three of them were even more stressed than usual. Part of the problem was the occasion and the next part was, they hadn’t had a single cigarette for two hours… and Polly said it was bad behavior to smoke in a church, so they didn’t. But tension was in the air.
“Then I should look for her. Maybe she needs my help”, Arthur suggested.
His answer was a sharp “NO!” from both of his brothers.
John leaned in, so he could say his warning as quiet as possible: “Polly will rip your head off, if you go in there. It means bad luck.” The way his brother phrased it, it sounded more like a threat, however it had the right outcome.
Arthur didn’t move an inch, even though he was still worried, what was taking so long. He kept staring at the door like this piece of wood had belied him.
“We should get him something to drink”, John whispered to Tommy, but Arthur could still hear it.
Tommy pulled a flask out of his pockets of wonder and muttered: “I came prepared.” With quite the persistence Tommy was known to be, he pushed the metal hip flask in Arthur’s hands. “Drink some. It’ll calm your nerves.”
“No, I can’t do it to her. She will be mad at me, if I drink now”, he whined.
John slapped him and explained: “If you’re not going to drink this, then I’m going to!”
The groom frowned in his perfect suit, rubbed his cheek, which was still burning and took a sip. Then he handed over the flask to his bother and told him: “You can have the rest.”
“Could we stop fighting for once?”, sneered Tommy and stomped his feet on the ground.
A little laugh came from John and then Arthur had to join in. It was still funny to them, when Tommy tried to push them around. Usually, they would do what he says, but when he did the stupid with his foot, it was just hilarious.
And to put the cherry on top, John asked with a big smile on his face: “I don’t know. Can we?”
“Stay here”, Tommy said to both and explained: “I’m going to send Finn, to see what’s taking them so long.” He walked to the seating row and approached the youngest Shelby sibling.
Arthur couldn’t hear, what they would talk, but he trusted Tommy. That’s the reason why Tommy was best man.
However, the second Finn got up to leave the room, the music started again and the first bridesmaid came through the door. It was Esme, followed by Ada. Yet another proof, how much you loved him and his family. You wanted to marry him, so you could be a part of this. In fact, it was your deepest wish.
Finally, you could walk down the aisle, prepared for the perfect day with your perfect husband. His past mistakes didn’t matter, nor did yours. It was just you and him now. And one hundred invited guests!
It felt magical. Step by step you came closer to your future and your new family. A smile was on your lips, but it was hidden by the veil. You came to the altar and waited for your man to lift it off, so he could see how pretty you were on this special day.
He was nervous and his hands were shaking again, when he unveiled you to the eyes of God and those around him. Gosh, he couldn’t believe, he got so lucky. There was the woman of his dreams right in front of him. His heart beat so fast, it was aching and right in this moment you saw a little tear in the corner of his eyes. Maybe you would have been tempted to cry too… but the make-up took already long enough and you didn’t want to ruin it.
You pressed your lips together, because you were so in love with this man right in front of you. It took all your strength to stay in your place and not give him a last pre- marital kiss.
Jimmy started with his preach and you didn’t even listen. Arthur was the only thing on your mind and you had to wait patiently to say yes. When you did, it felt amazing. Like the best thing you ever did.
It was the right thing to do. Nothing could part the two of you now. The bond should only end with death, but this was very far away right now. This moment was perfect and true, like your first kiss as man and wife.
Together, hand in hand, you walked out of the church. Arthur kissed you again and fumbled for his cigarettes, while the others slowly joined you outside for the picture.
He lit his cigarette and took a step back, because he knew, you didn’t like the smell of it.
“No, it’s fine, love”, you babbled: “I might need one too.”
His eyes widened and he looked at you a little worried. “What happened?”
You were reluctant to tell him, because it was indeed silly. “My veil got lost in all those things and all five of us had to search it. It was under a heavy box and we couldn’t get it off, but then Scudboat came to our help.”
Arthur laughed a bit. It seems like John was right and his panic was unreasoned. “But you could have asked for help, could you?”
Now you had to laugh too. “Next time, I just ask my strong husband, when I need help.”
“Yeah, like the time with the pickle jar”, he added and took one drag from his cigarette. A part of him was still worried, he might ruin your life, but when he saw you smiling like this, it just felt right to him.
Tommy has a one night stand with a local girl before he leaves for France and gets her pregnant, when he comes home the local girl has had a baby girl but her and her husband are bringing the baby up. Tommy watches her grow up on his street but never tells her the truth.
On her eighteenth birthday she goes to the garrison to celebrate and after some trouble happens, Tommy finally tells her the truth that he’s her father.
Summary: He knew he had a daughter from the time before war, but he doesn’t tell her about it, until she is celebrating her 18th birthday in the Garrison. To his surprise she is more like him, than he would have thought.
A/N:
It’s a sad, sad fic and I really felt sorry for Tommy in this one.
He is not married and he doesn’t have charlie or ruby as a child in this story.
I don’t know when it takes place, probably the later seasons 4 and 5, but John is alive
I’m not so satisfied with the beginning to be honest, because it’s taking so long to get to the point, but whatever, the ending is good.
To him you would always be his daughter, even though he didn’t raise you, even though he didn’t talk to you and even though you had no idea who he was. You only knew him as the head of the Peaky Blinders, a gangster boss and the devil of Small Heath, because he made sure, you had no connection to him.
It hurt him, more than you would think. He was in deep pain over the years. Not just because of the war, but also because he couldn’t be part of your life. Tommy Shelby was a stranger to you. You had never talked to him, you had avoided crossing paths with him, just like your mother told you to and you never even heard a kind word about him.
And yet you saw him, when you walked out of the church this Sunday morning. Just like every Sunday, you would spend your day with your parents, because you were a good girl. You were raised like this, it was normal to you. Not even once you had in touch with something illegal.
You noticed him, because of the intimidating look in his cold eyes. He stared at you, which caused you to shiver. It was making you uncomfortable. Did you do something to upset him or was it just a coincidence?
All you could do now, was to take a deep breath and start walking home with your mother. But even though you were out of his sight, his appearance would still haunt you, when you were back in your room again.
Yet you hadn’t knew, he did have his reason to be there, leaning against the wall in a dark alley, when you walked out of the church. Usually you wouldn’t notice him. It was is favorite part of the week, because he couldn’t schedule most of his chaotic life, but he made room for this appointment.
Then he had ten minutes, sometimes half an hour, where he could see you. Happy and alive. Tommy said to everyone, he was on a cigarette break, whenever he left the office at this time over and over again… and a bit of a truth was there. He was smoking a cigarette, but everything else was a lie.
Nobody knew about you being his daughter. The only people in this well-informed circle were your mother, your father, Thomas Shelby and Elisabeth Gray. You didn’t know her as well. She was just a stranger to you. Tommy made sure nobody would find out about you and even Polly had to vow not to tell anyone.
It was for your safety. Not even John or Arthur knew about this. They weren’t at the Garrison that night, when Tommy met your mom and talked to her and later slept with her. John was with his wife and Arthur drank so much, he fell asleep and Freddie had to bring him home.
Tommy was all alone back then and he was vulnerable. The train which led him to the glory of war and scarifies was about to take off soon and he was getting second thoughts, but he couldn’t back out of it. They collectively signed up for this and he couldn’t be the only one not going. He was still proud of his country and he would fight for it. However, he did regret that later. It changed him beyond compare and his wounds would never heal.
When he got back home- after the war was won- he cried a lot. They all did, but never collectively. All of them had been in the fields together. They had the same pain. It was the same horrible feeling uniting them, but also drifting them apart. Everyone, who was in France, suffered on their own.
At first he didn’t notice, when he saw your parents walking with you around town. You were still a baby and Tommy had other problems on his mind. But then he did find out, like he always did. He almost stumbled into your mother near the canal. They had a quick talk and she told him, when she met your father and got married. Tommy did the math in his head and confronted her about this. Then she couldn’t deny it anymore. She got pregnant after one night with Tommy and married another man, so she wouldn’t have to regret this decision all her life.
Sometime afterwards and after Tommy bribed her constantly, he was allowed to see you. The conversation with her husband wasn’t an easy one, but Tommy had been so persistent, she just couldn’t take it anymore.
And Tommy was so happy, when he got to hold you for the first time, he cried tears of joy, when he saw your little face, but it broke his heart to give you back to your mother and then leave. All he wanted to do was to spend time with you. Just looking at you, made him forget all problems for a while. But he wasn’t allowed in your life, not according to your mom and certainly not to your dad. Both of them were afraid, somebody find out, what your mom did and that your dad was not your father. They were both terrified and ashamed of this secret.
While you were an infant, Tommy could come over once a week to see you and he was very grateful for that, but of course you were too young to remember this time. You had no memory how he had put you into bed and read you stories. Sometimes, when your mother wasn’t in the room and the both of you were alone, he spoke Romani with you and petted your hair. She was strictly against with Tommy being in your life and she was on guard the whole time he was there.
To her he was a criminal, a no good and an asshole for leaving her after this one night and she told herself, she only slept with him, because she was so drunk that night, but the truth was, she always had a thing for Tommy and when he was at his lowest point right before the war, she couldn’t help but try to cheer him up again. Back then it was a weird thing to see the happy boy, who worked with horses, so sad.
Now it felt like a different life to him. He was a gangster boss for a long time now. The Peaky Blinders ruled half of Britannia and Tommy was usually busy with everything. The only time, when he could calm down, was when he standing near the church and watched you from a safe distance.
Then after you went out of his sight, he walked back to his office to finish his work. Tommy tired not to think of you, but he couldn’t stop it. He knew it was your birthday and just to proof his mind, he looked up in his calendar once again. A little star marked it. His hands hovered over the page, while he had a sentimental look in his eyes.
In his eyes you would always be his little star. The way you smiled made him smile. You had the most beautiful and innocent expression in your eyes and you didn’t know what was lurking in the shadows. It should stay that way. Tommy made sure nobody could ever harm you. He even threatened your boss to give you the job you wanted, when you were too afraid to ask, but all of this went above your head.
When it was getting dark, he left his office again, but instead of going to a cold and empty home, he chose to join his brothers at the Garrison. Both of them had families of their own and even Finn was dating some girl now. Just Tommy was all on his own. For the same reasons, he couldn’t be with you.
If he had a wife and kids, he had to be concerned for their safety all the time and he couldn’t bear that. Tommy was already worried about you and his anxiety thoughts ate him alive. And they wouldn’t leave his head, even when he sat with his brothers at the table, playing cards.
You were on his mind again and he lost some money to John because he couldn’t pay attention to the game anymore. Maybe it was because another anniversary was on the same date. On this day fifteen years ago was the last time, he was able to hold you in his arms.
He froze dead in his tracks, when you entered the Garrison. It was your birthday and it was only natural you came with some of your friends to celebrate it.
“Tommy!”, John yelled and punched his brother on the shoulder. “C’mon, we are playing a game here.”
Arthur shook his head. “Ah, he is somewhere else again. Business again.”
“No, I think, he is watching this group of girls over there”, Ada noted just joining their conversation again, after coming back from a talk with Esme.
His older brother grunted: “Aren’t you a little too old for those girls?” There was amusement in his voice and Tommy knew it was only a stupid joke, but he was disgusted by the sheer thought of some man touching you.
Tommy’s face went from surprised to bitter. With cold eyes he looked over to his siblings. “I would never”, was everything he said to this topic. Then he revealed his hand of cards and collected his win, like nothing happened.
But on the inside, he wasn’t nearly as calm. He felt like he was drawn to you. There was this urge to just walk up to you and tell you the truth. Everything, the whole story and all the details… but he couldn’t. It would risk your safety and also, he had no right to do it after all those years. So, he tried to push it away. It became harder and harder with every sip of whiskey, which still had an effect on him, even after years of usage.
Suddenly he couldn’t resist his desire. A dark power was leading him. The alcohol took over. He wasn’t thinking straight, when he stood up and made his path towards you.
Without a plan he was standing in front of you. You hadn’t even turned around and your friends tried to tell you, who was behind your back.
You shivered and startled, when you noticed him. He was so tall and intimidating and like this wasn’t enough to scare the shit out of you, he was fucking drunk.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to say, what he was about to say. Well, he thought about telling you the truth eventually someday, but this game of make-believe never worked out well, not even in his head.
Tommy wasn’t his calm and clever self, when he bawled: “You’re 18 now.”
That wasn’t the thing, you expected him to know. There was no answer to this, so you nodded shyly and avoided any eye contact.
“And your name is Y/N, right? The daughter of Helen Parr, eh?”
Why did he have all those information about you? Did you anything to attracted his attention?” You felt like you couldn’t breathe properly, when he watched your like that. The fear of what he might do to you was right there. Your friends told you, that the man known as Thomas Shelby would always get what he wanted and you were afraid, he wanted you.
All you could do was keep staring at the wooden floor of the Garrison and nodding. It felt like you were a bad child and was standing in front of the teacher, waiting to get scolded. “That’s right, sir.”
“No need to call me sir”, he answered: “I have a present for you, come with me.”
This suggestion and the possibilities what this gift could be terrified you. Nevertheless, you followed him without talking back. You were so scared to pick a fight with the almighty king of Small Heath, that you went completely silent.
All eyes were on both of you, when you walked with Tommy Shelby into the back of the Garrison. Your heart was racing and you got the strange feeling of going to your own execution. Nobody dared to say anything.
He opened the door of the box room for you and let you enter first. The whole situation made you shiver. Panic wasn’t even the right word for the emotion you were experiencing.
The door shut with a bang and the sound made you flinch.
“Now we’re alone”, he pointed out.
You were unable to move or to say something.
Your eyes followed him closely, when he fumbled for something in his pocket.
Tommy pulled it out and presented it to you. It was a small wooden horse, which was painted in a dark color, but it worn out. “This is for you”, he explained: “Do you remember what this is?”
The longer you stared at it the more you got confused. You had no idea, why he was showing you this little toy. While pressing your teeth together, you shook your head.
“I thought so”, he said with a sad voice and sighed: “I made this for you, when you were three years old. I was about to give it to you, but your parents were against it.”
This information was completely new for you and it went straight to your bones. Your stomach turned upside down and now you regretted to take your first drink here. But you still didn’t know what it meant.
And after a whole minute of dead silence Thomas Shelby confessed: “I’m your father.”
He said it in such a dry tone, you knew he wasn’t joking, but you still refused to believe it. Somehow it went over your head.
You just stood there and tried to understand what he just told you and how it made sense in an awful way. But a part of you thought it was impossible, because your dad was your dad and not this creepy guy in front of you.
Your father was a man of integrity. He was honest and loyal and had a simple life, which he was completely satisfied with. Robert Parr went to church with his family on Sundays. He drank only beer, never whiskey, nor did he smoke. Every morning he read the newspaper and, in the evening, he read the bible. Despite everything going on, he never complained about his job in the factories and never even considered joining a political party.
A ton of question came rushing through your head and it was pure torture, because you couldn’t bring yourself to just pick one. You wanted answered to all of them.
“It was right before the war when I meet your mother. Well, I didn’t actually meet her, but it was just the night we had-”
Suddenly you had the urge to interrupt him and you did. “No, I don’t want to hear about that.”
Tommy nodded understandingly. “It’s not easy to hear, but I need to tell you the truth.”
“No, just no. I have no intention to hear your truth, nor your description on how you ruined my mom”, you hissed, crossing the arms before your chest.
And Tommy did the worst he could possibly do in that situation and added: “She wasn’t married to your father back then.”
You opened your mouth just to close it again. After you took a deep breath, you retorted: “That’s not making anything better. If she hadn’t slept with you, her life would be so different now. She always told me, she had the dream to go away, but then she had married my father and had me. I always blamed me for destroying her life, but it was all your fault.”
“I didn’t know, she was pregnant, when I left for war” Tommy tried to defend himself, but actually he wasn’t ready for your hostile reaction. His drunk brain thought you would be happy to know.
You were not.
“And I only learned she had married Robert, after I came back home. I tried to stay in your life as long as possible, but your parents were against it, because your father thought I had a bad influence on you.”
Maybe your father was right, you thought. Thomas Shelby wasn’t a pleasant company to be around with. You had talked to him for only a couple of minutes now and yet you were raging.
“Could it be… because you are a gangster and you harm, threaten and kill people?”, you sneered at him: “Is this a possible reason for you, why my father, my real father tried to protect me from you.”
Your harsh words hit him right in the guts. Yeah, you really twisted the knife around here.
He gulped and stared at you. How could he have thought this was a good idea? Suddenly he was sober again, but now he had to went through it. After all, you needed to know. That wasn’t true, he just needed to say it once to stop himself from acting crazy.
“No”, he said calm, but hurt: “It was because of my heritage. Your father called me a gypsy scum and he thought if I spend more time with you, you would embrace your heritage.”
“It was your mum who thought my business plans might put you at risk. If it was just your dad, I would have kept coming to see you, because you are my daughter, my little star, but because your mother begged me to distance myself from you, I left without a fight. I was so scared, that some of my action could hurt you.”
To hear all this from a stranger’s mouth was too much for you. You tried to take a few steps back and gain distance, but you stumbled and felt.
Of course, Tommy tried to help you up, but you shook your head so intensely, that he backed off.
Through out the conversation, he kept the little wooden horse in his hand, now he was clinging to it.
You needed a minute to get back up on your feet. While dusking down your dress, you asked: “Then why… why the fuck did you had to tell it to me now? Why did you thought it was a good idea to ruin my birthday? I was fine with my life and I didn’t need you in it.”
Tommy was surprised by your choice of words. He thought swear words weren’t in your vocabulary. “Who taught you to talk like that?”
“I don’t know… as far as I’m concerned it could be anyone. Maybe even you. Maybe that’s where I got my potty mouth from.”
Yeah, you did have some Shelby resembled. Just like everyone else in the family, you had a pretty quick temper and a low tolerance for bullshit.
Maybe Tommy was just so baffled by your behavior because you were so scared, before he told you his secret.
And you were demanding, just like him and John and Ada. Gosh, how you reminded him of himself that age. “You didn’t answer my question yet. I’m waiting.”
“Well, actually, it wasn’t one of my best ideas. It wasn’t even a good idea”, Tommy mumbled: “I just… I just needed to tell you. Just this once.”
Strong and fierce like Polly, you decided to talk back to the almighty king. “No, now that I think of it… I can tell the real reason… You were fucking drunk and in your squiffy head you thought you needed to tell me.” Normally, you didn’t raise your voice like that, but now you were so furious about the whole situation, something inside of you just popped.
“Watch your mouth”
“Or what? You’re going to kill me? I doubt that.”
“You do?”, he asked with a raised eyebrow and a skeptical glare in his ocean eyes.
“Yeah, I do. How could you kill your own daughter?”
You had a point and Tommy knew it.
“Touché”
For a while everything was quiet. Nobody moved or said anything.
Then the next question popped up in your mind. “What now?”, you sighed: “What do you think should happen now?”
Tommy was all out of answers. He thought he never get this far. The realization hit him and it hurt. “I don’t know” His voice was nothing but a whisper. It sounded dull and sad and nothing like him.
“Do you want to… spend time with me?”, you purposed, but you were full of doubt and insecurity. You knew he didn’t walk up to you, if he wasn’t 100% sure, he was your father, but after all this time, you had no idea, what should happen now? Now you were 18 years old, an adult so to speak, but you felt like a child again, even though you didn’t know who your parents were.
The gangster boss was tempted to say a lot of things now. Sure, he had ideas. He always wanted to teach you about horses or just have a talk with you, so he would get to know you, the woman you had become, but now he realized it was selfish. This whole situation was indeed his fault and he shouldn’t interrupt your little party with your friends.
“Actually”, he began, but paused to take a deep breath: “No, I don’t think, we should do this and you shouldn’t tell anybody about our conversation.”
“Why?”
“Nothing has changed. I stayed out of your life, so you could be happy and free and safe, but because I was selfish and stupid like you said, I did all this, but I don’t want to mess things up.”
You knew he was right, when you heard the tone of his voice. How unbelievably sad and soft it sounded. If somebody told you before, Thomas Shelby had a soft side, you would have laughed it off, but right here you had the proof.
Of course, he didn’t cry, but he breathed so heavily as if he was on the verge of his tears.
“Alright”, you uttered, slowly starting to remember all the little things like the bouquet of flowers you received every year on your birthday with no letter. Back then you thought it was a gift from your father… and somehow you were right about it. You just had the wrong person in mind.
Tommy tried to calm himself down. Then he turned to you and explained: “I just wanted to give you this… since it’s your birthday.” Once again, he presented you the little toy. “It’s a tradition in my family. The father gives his child a wood carved toy. I did this meself years ago and I know you have no use to it, but I can’t keep it anymore.”
You came closer and looked at the wooden horse in his hands. “That’s a lovely tradition”, you gushed and noticed the red marks on his hand. He clung to it to the point where it became painful, so you took it away from him.
With a sad smile on your lips, you whispered: “thanks, it’s adorable. What is name?”
“Little star”, he revealed with sorrowful eyes. However, he chuckled and added: “Now I noticed, I kept calling you my little Star, because I can admire you only from afar.”
All the anger and rage towards him left and you were sorry for him now, but somehow a new feeling got into the mix. You felt loved by stranger, by the devil and by your father. He had to force himself to gather distance and now you couldn’t help yourself from crying.
Tommy was reluctant to come close to you again, after you brushed him off earlier, he didn’t want to thrust himself upon you.
A strange urge came over you and you rushed to him to give him a hug. For a second, he was surprised, but then he wrapped his arms around you and gave you a squeeze.
Gosh, how much he had missed you.
Maybe a minute, maybe an hour, the two of you just stood there, but after a while you knew you had to let go of him. Your friends were worried sick about you and you didn’t want to get the rumors started.
“I need to go back to the party”, you mumbled and then you broke away from him.
He nodded and sighed. “You’re right.” Somehow, he was proud of his smart girl.
You were about to walk out of the door again, when he stopped you: “Wait a second.”
Once again, you turned around to him, this time you weren’t frightened anymore. “Yes?”
“I’m giving you a bottle of me gin. It’s the recipe of my father, your grandfather… but drink responsible, eh?”
Now a big smile appeared on your face. You promised him to be careful and went back to your friends.
Tommy, on the other hand, walked back to his family. Without a word, he had sat back down and poured himself a glass of whiskey.
“What did you do to that poor girl?”, his sister asked.
“Nothing”, he said in his usual calm tone: “I just gave a her a bottle of me gin as a birthday gift.”
Ada rolled her eyes and nagged: “Oh, you and your business. Now you even make young girls drink.”
“That’s her decision. She is an adult now and she can do whatever she wants.”
“Yeah, but 18 doesn’t mean she is good at making choices. Age is just a number”, Ada objected and looked at her brother with a mean glare, but Tommy didn’t bother anymore.
In the end, Tommy was relieved he said it and even if you wouldn’t be a part of his life, he would always hold his protective hand over your head and admire your growth from the far.
Warning: smoking, pre smut, over usage of the word gentle
Summary: After a date with Michael, he walks you home, but he is not allowed to follow you upstairs. Unfortunately, Michael Grey isn’t a very patient man. Maybe he will wait for the right girl.
Word count: 1,8k (I tried to keep it short, okay? XD )
Author’s note:
This is going to be a quick thing, so I can work on the other fic with the same reader.
Like always you don’t have to read the other fics to understand this. I always write it in a understandable way, so you don’t need any kind of background information, but I would sure love it, if you would take a look at my other stuff. Yes, tiny bit of self promo here.
This is what I would call a pre smut, because the next thing I’m going to write about Michael and this reader (Angel) will be a smut and I’m already too eager to write it. Ahhh, it’s going to be self-indulging.
Angel isn’t her real name, that’s just his secret nickname for her, because she saved him, when he felt lost and but the reader’s name is still Y/N Y/L/N, okay?
I still need to make the collection list in chronological order, but here it is: Junior Peaky Boys collection
It was one of those lovely nights in Birmingham. Not because of the weather. It was in the middle of January and it was fucking freezing. The cold winds blew through the city, but you had a warm hand to hold and you were wrapped up in your sweater and since it was the most amazing date you have ever been on and your cheeks were still hot and gleaming from smiling at the man of your dreams.
That was the perfect description for him. Michael Gray and he was so sweet and gentle towards you, you couldn’t help, but fall in love with him. Most people would call him something else, gangster or scoundrel, but gladly you didn’t know these people. You wouldn’t have believed them anyway.
The way, you had meet him, had convinced you, he was a good person. Not like everything, he did was morally right or even well-meant, but you knew he had his heart in the right place.
Tonight was your first official date with him, but he had been at the pub, where you worked, many times more. Sometimes he just popped in to say hello and sometimes he just sat there waiting for you to talk to him, when there wasn’t much work to do.
“Michael?”, you asked him and gave his hand a little squeeze.
He glared over to you and started smiling. “Yes?”
“We are almost near my house”
The Gray nodded in agreement. “Yes, I know, I’ve been there before.”
You bid your lip and thought about that. That was the day, you had your first kiss with him and the memory was still fresh.
The fingers of your free hand hovered over your lips. You had to chuckle. “I remember”, you whispered.
In silence, you turned around the corner and there it was. Your home… or well, the building where you lived with your brother, since your parents had died.
“See? It’s already here!”, you told him and glared over to him. He didn’t seem surprised. Sometimes he was so calm, it scared you. You were full of emotions and you were happy one minute and sad the next minute, but he was neutral all the time. Even his smile felt cold from time to time.
You walked over to the door and peaked over your shoulder for a goodbye. Preferably with a kiss. “Well, I’m here now and I should go upstairs soon… or my brother will be worried about me.”
Instead of answering, Michael just pressed his lips on yours. Your eyes widened. It was not like, you didn’t expect the kiss, but it was rougher than you would have imagined.
His tongue slipped inside of your mouth and you shivered. He didn’t notice and kept going. The kiss was not bad at all, you were more surprised by the fact how demanding he was. It was like a completely different side of him, which you hadn’t met yet and you wondered if you liked it.
But while you had time to think and enjoy, what was happening there, another desire was rising. It was more of an urge. You needed to break, so you shoved him away gently and smiled at him, still panting.
“What’s wrong?”, he demanded to know.
You were reluctant to tell him. It was a little too fast for you. “I just needed to breathe”
Then he nodded, like he just gained important knowledge, which confused you, because your words were simple and true.
He pushed you against the wall and groaned next to your ear. “That’s part of the game, right?”
This left you baffled and shocked. You opened your mouth, like you were planning on saying something, but there was no right answer for this kind of joke he just pulled up. Then you started frowning and shook your head. “No, actually, I have no idea, what you mean, Michael” The way you pronounce name was different, it sounded like you were about to scold him.
“Don’t act like that”, he moaned and put his hand under your coat on your waist. His grip was tight. Too tight for your taste. “Women always play those games. They tell you, they are not floosies, but in the end I always-”
“Fuck them?”, you interrupted him with disgust in your voice: “I can assure you, that’s not what’s happening here.” You tried to push him away, but he was stronger than you.
Michael scoffed and shook his head in amusement. “I wasn’t about to put it that way, but yes… most of the times it’s ending with sex. I’m very good at it. Would you like to try?”
Now you couldn’t take him seriously anymore. Nobody could say that and mean it… But Michael did and you laughed about him. “Is that how you treat a lady?”
It was Michael’s turn to be confused now. He said nothing, but his eyes were full of questions.
“Is that how you treat woman?”, you repeated and demanding an answer.
There was a smug on his lips, when he explained: “Most women like it that way.”
You nodded. “Okay, then- apparently- I’m not most woman. Don’t talk to me ever like that or you can leave now.”
He blinked once, twice and stared at you. You could see how he grinded his teeth together and he was indeed thinking about what you said. Or maybe he was just deciding, if you were worth the trouble.
“Okay”
You said nothing. Just okay was not enough.
“I’m sorry about that”, he added after a moment of silence and cupped your face in his hands. “Won’t happen again.”
There was his sweet side again. Even if he was just pretending, it was nice. Other guys would have just walked away or started yelling, but he chose to do neither. What a gentle surprise.
Then you leaned over to kiss him. This time it wasn’t full of loathing passion, it was sweet and breezy. Like your lips just brushed against his.
You had your eyes closed, but just from the movements of his mouth, you could feel, he was smiling.
Michael was into it and his hand played with your hair, while the other was wandering under the jacket again, but instead of resting at your waist like he did before, he chose to move his fingers even further down.
You were caught by surprise and it felt too good for another interruption. It was exciting in way. Your heart was beating so fast, while you felt the path of his fingers down your hip.
A moan escaped your lips, right into the kiss, when you realized, where he was heading. His hand was under your skirt and he kneaded your ass.
He pulled away and admired you. The way you were soft just for him and he smiled when he saw the desire in your eyes. Michael really loved to win them over. He was quite the player, when it came to women and he treated them like a sport and right now he knew his changing of the game strategy was working just fine.
“So”, he moaned: “Should we go upstairs?” He shoved his hip even closer to you.
Then you felt it. He had an erection and your legs were intertwined with his so tightly, that even through the layers of fabric you could feel his hard cock twitching against your thigh. It aroused you, yes, but you weren’t so easy to get. And even with a temptation like this and his sweet smile and everything, you wouldn’t just say yes.
Once again, you tried to push him away. “No, I can’t”, you said, but immediately corrected yourself: “I mean, we shouldn’t.”
He took it easy, but kept digging: “Why? What’s the matter? I’m gentle how you wanted me too.”
“That’s not the problem. I just don’t want to have sex with you yet”, you confessed and looked away. It was embarrassing enough to talk about this, after knowing him for such a short time.
Now he laughed: “Yeah, I get that, but why? It’s not a big deal anymore. It’s the 20’s and we are young and we should have fun, right? Everybody does that.”
“I’m not everybody!”, you insisted: “And it’s a big deal, okay? I’m waiting for my wedding night. Nothing more and nothing less.” You got a little louder than you expected and even Michael seemed surprised by your temper.
A sign left his lips, while he took a step back. “Alright then”, he mumbled and searched his pockets for a cigarette.
You couldn’t watch him acting like that, so you opened your purse and gave him one of yours. First, he refused to take it, but then you added: “Take it” in such a strict voice, that he did, what you told him to do.
The situation was frustrating. The whole evening had been so nice and you just destroyed everything in the glimpse of the moment, even if it wasn’t all your fault. You sighed and leaned your head against the wall for you to look up the sky. There were no stairs in sight tonight.
“Marriage is important to me”, you explained: “I don’t want to fuck around and I don’t want to end up pregnant with some child I have to raise on my own. And I don’t play those games, Michael, if that’s the thing you are looking for, go walk up to the next. I’m sure there are plenty of other women, who would be more than happy to have a meaning less night of fun with you. I’m just not that type of person.”
Michael took another drag from his cigarette. You watched him.
There was nothing left to be said.
After he was done smoking, he threw the end at the ground and stepped on it. “I think”, he began and inhaled deeply, before confessing: “You’re right. It would have been another meaningless night and I already had plenty of that. Maybe I should do things different this time.”
And this time he meant it. It wasn’t just a strategy to get you laid, it was honest and true.
Just like that, he made you smile again. “So, you can wait as well?”, you asked him.
He nodded: “I think… I can… for the right girl.” Once again, he placed his hand on your cheek and his thumb caressed your soft skin. “But it also means goodnight” He leaned over to kiss you, but instead of aiming for your lips like several times before, he kissed your forehead.
“Sweet dreams”, he whispered.
Somehow Michael managed it to leave you breathless again.
He was taking a few steps back and you fumbled for your keys. “See ya”, you purred and turned to the door to open it, but you had to take one last look at him, before he disappeared.
Which of the Shelby brothers would be the most into causing his s/o pain for his own pleasure? 😈
I miss read the question first and was close to write a whole thing just about Michael, but he is their cousin and not a Shelby, but a Grey XD
Now I will include just Arthur, Tommy, John and Finn in this ranking. Dom scale goes up to 5.
Arthur hates violence so much and he hates himself for being the person to hurt others... So I doubt he would cause his s/o pain fo his own pleasure. He would feel so ashamed and guilty just for hurting his soulmate on accident. I give him a 0 on the dom scale.
Tommy doesn't seem like the person to actually hit his s/o, because there are many scenes were others, mostly women, hit him and punch him and slap him and he barely slaps back.... Because he knows he is an asshole and he thinks he deserves it. It he would be at least a little sadistic, he would use the opportunity. He might be in for spanking or something but for me... he is more on the sub kind of the bdsm spectrum.... which doesn't mean he is a twink. He just doesn't enjoy violence (not like Michael does) I give him a 2 on the dom scale.
Finn is insecure, but we all started somewhere, eh? I think he could enjoy choking or slapping his soulmate for his own pleasure, but he would have to get used to it. After a while, he would be much more comfortable with that. Also he pretty much loses his cinnamon bun vibe in season 5 and seems more bratty, more cocky over all. And sometimes the meanst doms are the person you would expect the least. With the right partner, he could develope a passion for the devine pain! 3 on the dom scale.
Now... I might have picked John to "win" this thing, because I have way too many headcanons about him being a good dom and switcher. Outside of the bedroom, he is a total softie. His soulmate is his best friend and he loves to spend time with the person and they would discuss everything and anything. Even if it's just who is bathing the baby. But when it comes to sex, John loves games and he loves somebody to play with. Just being dom would be to boring for him, but when he is the one in charge... oh my god, he shows... no mercy, that cocky bastard. Deep, deep in his mind he loves to see his soulmate bruised, crying, with hair and make-up undone and to know he is the reason why... is just the cherry on top. Of course, he would hate to see his soulmate being fucked up by somebody else. It's his play toy and he doesn't share and is protective and possessive as fuck. At first he was scared, he would go too far one day, but being so good at communication with his partner makes it easy for him to say within a safe realm. However, the sounds S/o make, when he is stricking with a cane... that's heaven. 4 on the dom scale, because he is a switcher and still has a soft part and safe words are important to him.
The only person in pb even more fucked up than him, has got to be dear Michael. He is the 5 on dom scale, but like I said right at the beginning, he is not a shelby brother.
Soooo. John, he is the shelby brother who would enjoy his s/o pain for his own pleasure the most.
If somebody wants me to elaborate on Michael being a dom, send in another ask 🌹
