come home || tommy shelby || indefinite hiatus

theres a sign that it will all be fine

Arthur patted the bed beside him as she stepped into the room, a small smile on her lips. "'Ey dear." He welcomed, and the corners of her mouth tugged even higher as she took a seat beside him on the bed.
"'i Arthur." She kissed his cheek, a more routine than anything romantic. It was a habit she'd picked up at the start of their marriage, when they were still clouded with delusion and a will to make it work.
"'Ow are you feeling?" She moved her head to rest almost delicately atop his shoulder and on instinct his hand reached out to grasp hers, thumb rubbing across the back in a soothing motion. She stayed silent, but that was a good enough answer, causing him to pull her into his side warmly. "I'm sorry, eh Kitty dear." His voice was sorrowful and dripping with regret, there was pity hidden there too, pity that  made her stomach twist into knots.
"No need to apologise Arthur." She sighed, her words ghosting past her lips, full of old dead promises.

There was little to be said after that, after all, what else could they say? Everything had already been spoken and what couldn't be said was communicated by the lingering eye contact and heavy atmosphere.

"Do you want to come see the 'ouse?" This question surprised Arthur, and his chest tightened momentarily, turning to her.
"Are you sure?" He asked, remembering the conversation they'd shared as he bought it. This is your space, not mine. I won't come uninvited, not even at all if you don't want. He'd set boundaries for himself, too afraid to hurt the poor girl further.
"Of course." She slid up and out of bed, Arthur holding her hand for a lingering moment before it fell out of his grasp and he moved to get up as well.

Though he stood for a moment, watching her as she positioned herself in front of the vanity, carefully using a brush to detangle her hair, the reddish tint showing as the sun casted rays across her form. She was almost ethereal in that moment, and he silently cursed himself and his heart, how could he not love her? He'd asked himself that every day since he came to the conclusion that their relationship needed to come to an end. He felt awful about it, truly, she was so perfect in every way and he hated himself for his inability to give her the love she needed.

"Stop staring, Arthur. I can feel your eyes." She giggled, looking over her shoulder to smile at him and he just chuckled, shook his head and moved towards where his jacket was draped over a chair. Only then, as he shrugged it on, did he remember the item nestled in the inside pocket.
"Kitty." She spun on her heel, her dress flowing around her calves as she raised an inquisitive eyebrow at him. "C'mere." He smiled at her, a soft smile, a rare moment of gentleness. She giggled airily and walked over to him, looking up at him with big doe eyes. "'Ere." He dug his hand into his pocket and retrieved the small pouch, handing it to her with a smirk. She carefully untied the red ribbon and turned the bag upside down, tipping its contents into the palm of her hand.

A gasp slipped past her lips as the cold metal hit her skin, and she knew what it was instantly. "That was the one you pulled out of me." There was a hint of pain in his voice as he laughed, watching her wide eyes as she inspected it, twirling it around in her fingers. It was a bullet, looped through a chain, and her heart swelled when she saw that it was almost definitely done by Arthur, a messy drilled hole straight through.
"It's beautiful." She smiled up at him and flung her arms around his body, and for a moment, she imagined them as a happy couple.
"I'm glad you like it." She could hear the relief in his voice as he rubbed her back and let out a deep exhale of a breath he had definitely been holding. "'Ere." He took it carefully from her hands and clipped it around her neck, letting it hang down. "Look." He picked it up in a way so delicate in a stark contrast to himself.

înger

The carved word made her heart practically stop. "Get it? Cause you were my guardian angel that day." His voice was just above a whisper, afraid that if he spoke to loud she'd break in his hands. Instead of responding, she simply buried her head in his chest, arms moving to once again wrap around his torso, his own settling on her back. It was then, regretfully, he looked up to make eye contact with Thomas who was walking past the door. He watched the couple for a moment, simply raising an eyebrow at Arthur before nodding and continuing to walk. The interaction caused his blood to run cold.

He knew how his brother felt. He knew Thomas resented him for not being able to love her. He'd seen the aftermath of those nights when the couple would argue, it would always end up in her crying, sobbing, begging him to tell her why she was unloveable. He knew he was hurting her.

-

Not long later they were walking into her house, the barn delightfully warm as she walked along and lit the lights. "It's lovely." Arthur said, hovering in the doorway, feeling out of place considering it was supposed to be her safe space. She called him over, gesturing for him to take a seat before moving into the kitchen out of sight to heat up some water for tea.

Once he'd sat down on the sofa he took a look around, though one thing caught his eye. The cigarettes in the heath. Kit had never been one to smoke, not that he was aware anyway, he'd always tried to steer her away from them, despite their prevalence in his own life. A regretful thought passed through his mind, had his actions taken such a toll that she'd begun smoking to cope? His chest tightened a little at the prospect of that being true, and with a painful, smokey irony, he lit up a cigarette to try and calm his nerves.

"Tea!" She said in a sing-song voice, smiling warmly at him as she placed the teapot and two cups down on the wooden table in front of him. Her hair bounced delicately on her shoulders as she moved to pour both of them a cup, humming a song to herself. It was this part of her, her gentle hands, angelic voice and beaming smile that ripped him apart, she was so perfect, and he couldn't understand why he didn't love her. She was everything a man could want, she was caring, understanding and even cleaned him up after a night out got a little too rowdy. She'd wipe the blood from his knuckles and kiss the clean skin, tender touches that brought out a rare blush on his cheeks, muttering about how he's got to stop getting into fights.

He wondered if Linda would be that caring.

"So you like it?" She sat on the sofa beside him, tucking her knees underneath herself so she could face him.
"I love it, almost makes me jealous." She giggled, leaning back as she sipped her tea.
"You're welcome here any time Arthur." He felt her pick up the hand that wasn't holding the cigarette, her thumb brushing across his knuckles.

He wondered if Linda's hands would be as soft as hers.

"You came 'ere last night eh?" Her thumb stilled it's movements at that, a barely noticeable movement that she hoped he didn't pick up on.
"Yeah, just felt like getting out the 'ouse." She mumbled softly, feeling his fingers squeeze her own.
"Kit one day you'll find someone 'o gives you the love you deserve." He blew smoke out of his mouth, watching it billow up into the air above him. Kit always found it fascinating, all the family had their own way of smoking. Arthur's was more aggressive and his movements were more desperate, whereas Thomas and Polly radiated elegance, the cigarettes balanced delicately on their fingers as the smoke was blown in slow twirls out of their lips.

The pair fell into a comfortable silence then, a situation not uncommon over their several years of marriage. But she didn't mind, she enjoyed observing him, watching the way his brows creased and he'd roll his lips together as he thought. She just wished she knew what he was thinking, she wished she knew why he didn't love her.

Arthur couldn't help the way his eyes drifted back to the cigarettes, worry pooling in his stomach at the thought of her being so torn up. He knew he'd caused her pain, but just seeing it made his chest tighten. He'd do anything to reverse time, change the past, love her the way she needed.