Never Stop . . . Never Stop Fighting (A Tom Hiddleston Fanfiction)

Chapter Twenty Two

After the holiday was over, Ann and Tom packed up their belongings and headed back to Ann's home. Tom had argued to let him drive on the trip back, to which Ann had finally relented and let him do so.

Tom pulled into Ann's driveway, parked, and turned off the car with a soft sigh before he looked over at Ann. She'd fallen asleep halfway through the ride back home, and he'd decided to let her sleep. "Ann? Darling we're home."

Ann turned at the sound of Tom's voice and opened her eyes. "Did we make good time?" she asked, then held back a yawn.

"Yes, pretty good time," Tom answered. "I just drove straight through and got gas when we got back into town before coming home."

"That sounds good." Ann sat up and stretched before she climbed out of the car. She turned and watched Tom do the same before he spun her keys around his finger as he walked up the pathway to the front door.

Tom walked up to the front door only to furrow his brows in concern. The wood around the door knob was broken. He reached forward and tested the door to find it locked, but it had clearly been tampered with. "Ann? If I asked you to stay by the car, would you?" he called.

"Why would I stay by the car?" Ann questioned. She'd moved to the trunk and was getting out their luggage. "Is something wrong?"

"Just... please stay there," Tom said, turning to look at her. He waited until Ann nodded before he turned and unlocked the door, then stepped inside.

Tom's jaw dropped. The entire home had been demolished. The couch was torn, papers littered the floor, the TV had been pushed to the floor and was broken, and Ann's bookshelf was on the floor. "Oh my god."

He continued to walk through the house, trying his best not to move anything as he surveyed the damage. Dishes were shattered in the kitchen, clothing was strewn all over the bedroom and laundry room, and the bathroom was also a disaster. With a shake of his head, Tom pulled out his phone and dialed the police.

When they answered, Tom had just stepped back out onto the front porch. "Yes, I'd like to report a break in. I'm not sure if anything has been stolen."

"Break in?" Ann asked, now walking up to Tom with their bags in both of her hands. "Tom what's going on?"

Tom quickly gave the address and put his phone away. "Ann, baby, I don't know how else to tell you, but the house is... everything inside is destroyed."

Ann's eyes widened as tears welled in her eyes, quickly spilling over as she climbed the few steps and walked around Tom to look inside. A broken sob left her lips as she dropped to her knees, but Tom was there to catch her, turning her into his embrace.

"Shhh, baby I'm here," Tom soothed as he felt her cling to the fabric of his shirt as tightly as she could. "You're safe sweetheart."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nothing had been stolen from the house, but the damage was extensive enough that nothing could be done about it for a few days. Ann, despite being exhausted and emotionally drained, managed to pull herself together long enough to salvage a few of her favorite things.

Tom watched Ann struggle over what to do with her books and pictures as he stood silently. After a while, however, he couldn't watch Ann struggle any longer, so he walked over to Ann and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as she turned and buried her face against him. "Why don't you take a break?" he suggested softly. "I can get us a room if you're not comfortable here."

"I can't ask you to do that," she whispered. "I need to clean this up."

"Darling... I want you to be comfortable, and you're not comfortable here," he whispered.