Til You Wake In the Morning (Tommy Shelby x reader)
This was yet another one shot for @hazelnmae. The poor woman is gonna be fed up of them soon hahaha!
Tommy’s eyes opened the second he heard the baby mewling in its crib. For the last three days, since you brought his beautiful baby girl into the world, he had been on edge. He’s had an irrational fear that if the baby is out of his sight for more than a few minutes that something might happen to her. Something as in one of his many enemies.
The baby let out a squeaky cry and Tommy expected you to wake up and groan, knowing that the baby needed feeding yet again. But you didn’t even stir. You were in such a deep sleep that he was only certain you were even breathing when he placed his hand in front of your nose to feel the gentle exhalation of air there.
Standing up, he edged towards the crib and a lump appeared in his throat as watched your daughter’s tiny fists waving angrily. Tommy remembered John, Ada and Finn all being born; as well as all of John’s children. But not one of them had seemed as precious and delicate as the creature before him. Perhaps that was why he had yet to hold her. He was terrified of hurting her. And not just physically. His hands- no matter how hard he scrubbed them- were filthy. They were engrained with all kinds of horrors; the blood of his enemies, the thick, cold mud of the trenches, the bites from the black dog that he tried to keep at bay daily. No matter how much he cleaned, those were the things that he could always see. And the thought of tainting one of the pure and innocent thing in his life ate him up.
“Y/N,” he called out quietly. “The baby’s awake.”
You murmured sleepily and flopped over onto your stomach before letting out the gentlest of snores. Tommy looked around helplessly. You were exhausted. He knew this. Less than an hour ago, he had listened to you crying as you fed your child; your nipples raw from feeding her so often. He thought that perhaps he should go and wake one of the maids but he knew that would only upset you. You had made such a point about not wanting them to help you with the baby.
Reluctantly, Tommy reached a hand into the crib and stroked the baby’s soft skin. He murmured to her as he would one of his beloved horses and swallowed a lump in his throat when she wrapped her tiny hand around his finger. He didn’t know why the gesture almost brought him to tears. No, he did know. It was the innocence. It was the complete trust that this tiny baby had of her father. She didn’t know all of the bad things he had done. Or maybe she did? Maybe she could feel them radiating off of him like he could feel himself. Yet she trusted him.
Her silence was short lived though, and when she began to whimper again, Tommy found himself scooping her up before he could even think about it. It was almost like he was hypnotised by this moment; by her. She was so tiny and he breathed in her sweet baby scent as he cradled her against his chest; marvelling at the softness of her skin and her silky tufts of hair.
“Hello,” he murmured, smiling down at her and sitting down on the rocking chair by the window. “I’m your Daddy.”
The baby opened her eyes and looked at him. Tommy swore it was like she was looking into his soul. He traced his finger along her adorable button nose and her full pouty lips; letting out a surprised laugh when she latched onto his finger and began sucking.
“I’m afraid you won’t find what you’re looking for there,” he smirked, expecting her to cry at any moment.
But when she closed her eyes and nuzzled against him contentedly; her tongue vibrating against his finger, he smiled peacefully.
“Were you lonely, little one?” he mumbled, stroking her soft, chubby cheeks. “I get lonely too sometimes. Well, I did until I met your mother. Things became less lonely then. And now I have both of you, so I can never be lonely again, can I? And here’s a promise I shall make to you, little one. Whenever you’re lonely, I’ll be right here. Right with you. And if for some reason, I’m not here in person, then I shall still be here. Do you know why? Because no matter where I go, there’s one place that I never leave. That’s your mother. I’m stuck; I’m buried in her heart forever. And now I’m buried in yours. So when you miss me, you listen to your mother’s heart and you’ll feel me there.”
And in the quiet peace of darkness, Tommy Shelby held his child and did something his own mother had done with him. He sang to her a song. A song of love.
Suantraí sí, a linbhín
Luasc go mall sa chliabhán
Lú lá luí, a linbhín
Dún do shúil, a naíonáin
Seoithín seoithín seoithín seó
Seoithín seoithín seoithín seó
Seoithín seoithín seoithín seó
Suantraí sí, a linbhín,
A thaiscidh, a stór
Luí go socair, luí go ciúin
Codladh sámh, a ghrághil
Fan id’ shuan, a thaiscidh buan
Go n-éirí tú ar maidin
(Fairy lullaby, my little child
Swing slowly in the cradle
Lu la lee, my little child
Close your eyes, little infant
Lulla lulla lullaby
Lulla lulla lullaby
Lulla lulla lullaby
Fairy lullaby, my little child
My darling, my love
Lie quietly, lie calmly
Sleep well, little fair one
Stay asleep forever, my love
‘Til you wake in the morning)
turnnoffyourmind
dededos
theartofmadeline
titsay
2087
