love knows no bounds | thomas shelby

arms of comfort

at night, thomas and eveline slept in separate rooms, a silent testament to the changes that had taken hold since the war ended. the boys returned as different men as their once vibrant spirits were dimmed by the horrors they had witnessed. thomas shelby, in particular, retreated into himself, a mere shadow of the man he once was.

locked in his room, tommy grappled with the demons that haunted him. the thought of hurting eveline, the one person he loved more than anything, filled him with a profound sense of dread. so, he chose to sleep apart from her, seeing himself as an animal that needed to be kept at bay.

eveline understood tommy's struggles all to well. she knew that he was prone to intense nightmares as a result of his ptsd, and she tried her best to be there for him during those moments of darkness. yet, despite her efforts, thomas always pushed her away, unable to bear the thought of causing her harm.

as eveline lay in bed, unable to find solace in sleep, her mind raced with worries and fears. tossing and turning, she listened to the sounds of the night, aware of the silence that enveloped the house. it was then that she heard it - the faint whimpering and groans coming from thomas's room.

without hesitation, eveline sprung from her bed. as she reached thomas's door, she found it unlocked, a silent invitation to enter. pushing it open, she was met with the sight of thomas, who was tangled in his bedsheets, with his face contorted in anguish as he thrashed in the grip of a nightmare.

gently, eveline approached him. her heart was aching at the sight of his distress. 

she rested a hand on his shoulder. her touch was light and reassuring as she whispered his name, hoping to rouse him from his torment.

"tommy," she murmured with her voice soft and soothing as she shook his shoulder gently.

thomas jolted awake, his breathing ragged as if he had been running for miles. eveline decided to move closer, and her hands cupped his face with tender care.

"it's okay, tom. you're not in france anymore. you're home."

thomas's hands found their way to eveline's wrists. his touch grounded him in the present moment. closing his eyes, he focused on her voice, and allowed the sound to wash over him. eveline continued to stroke his cheekbones with gentle motions, offering him the comfort he so desperately needed.

finding his voice, thomas whispered, "stay with me tonight."

his words carried a weight of not only vulnerability, but also a need that took eveline by suprise. it was unlike the after-war thomas shelby to express such a desire, especially when it came to wanting eveline near him as he slept.

but the brunette understood. she knew that thomas needed her presence, perhaps more than ever before. he needed something to hold onto, to anchor him amidst the storm of his nightmares. and if that meant being there for him, eveline was more than willing to fulfill that role.

as tommy pulled eveline into his bed, the warmth of his sheets covered them both like a comforting embrace. they faced each other, their eyes locking in a silent exchange of understanding and reassurance. eveline studied his face, tracing every freckle, every eyelash, every line, committing each detail to memory.

thomas reached up, his hand cupping her cheekbone with gentle strokes, mirroring the affection eveline had shown him moments before. his thumb moved to her lips, tracing their contours.

in that moment, eveline realized that tommy was doing the same thing she was doing to him - taking in every detail of each other's face. it had been a long time since thomas had been this affectionate. the intimacy between them felt both familiar and foreign, a reminder of the bond they shared and the distance they had traveled since their last kiss at the train station before the boys left.

for the first time in a long while, tommy and eveline drifted off to sleep together, with their bodies intertwined in a tender embrace. eveline nestled herself against thomas's chest, finding solace in the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. thomas, in turn, rested his head atop hers, his arms encircling her in a protective embrace.

as they surrendered to slumber, a sense of comfort washed over them both. in each other's arms, they found a sanctuary from the turmoil of their past and the uncertainty of the future. together, they shared a moment of tranquility.