The Me You Can See [1] (T. Shelby/OC) BWWM✅

Chapter 4 - Beautiful Friendships

When Tommy awoke on the following morning he was surprised to find that he'd slept less fitfully than he had in years. As he sits up he notices that his lamp was on the stand beside him and didn't show signs of being touched.

Had he dreamt of talking with Anna-Maria?

Had everything been nothing but an entire dream?

He sits on the edge of his bed as he tried to recall the dream but he could only remember bits and pieces of it. He does recall that Anna called him by his nickname as opposed to Mr. Shelby.

He sighs as he tries to remember as much of the dream as he could but luck wasn't on his side.

"Might as well start the fookin' day then" he grumbles out as he climbs off his bed to head downstairs where Polly would probably already be started with breakfast.

Tommy freezes in his steps when he hears Anna's laughter as she spoke with Polly. He's obviously caught the tail end of their conversation as Polly spoke next.

"You're making me feel bad, now sweetheart, your pancakes look better than mine" she says as Anna continues to laugh at this.

Tommy can't help noting how melodic the sound is. He's never really heard her laughing as much as she usually had a strict air about her when at work.

This was clearly Anna when she's truly free and is her true self.

"I've had some experience making them, Pol" Anna replies, "I always used to help the cook out when I was working for the Hartleys" she adds.

"Still haven't told me what you were doing serving those rich toffs as a maid when you're such a gifted accountant" Polly says, sounding a little annoyed by this.

Tommy's informants had told him that Anna used to be a maid before she came to Small Heath but she never usually spoke about it. Or maybe it was just around him or even with him that she didn't.

"Nobody wanted a black woman as an accountant" Anna replies simply but Tommy can hear the sadness in her voice.

"Well they're fookin' fools the lot of them because you're the damn best accountant we've had at the shop" Polly adds, "even Tommy knows this" she adds as his brow arches at the mention of his name.

Anna doesn't respond for a while before finally saying something that makes his freeze just as he had been about to make his presence known.

"You were right about him" she informs Polly as Tommy thinks about last night.

She said the same thing then too.

Did that mean that it wasn't a dream?

"About what?" Polly asks her but Tommy knows his aunt well enough to know that she knows exactly what Anna was talking about. She just wanted Anna to say the words out loud.

"What you said about Tommy" Anna replies, "he's...complicated but he isn't as much of an arsehole as I thought" she adds as Polly laughs at this while Tommy smirks at her blunt language. It seems even with his aunt she was much the same.

Anna-Maria Williams has to be one of the bluntest people that Tommy has ever known.

"Well I'm glad you think so" Polly says after having a hearty chuckle at Anna's words. "We should finish before everyone wakes up" she adds.

"Of course Pol" Anna replies in a chirpy manner. She's quite clearly fond of the Shelby family elder.

Tommy heads back upstairs, glad to have heard what his aunt and Anna spoke about, even at the expense of eavesdropping.