𝐔𝐏𝐓𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋. ᵗʰᵒᵐᵃˢ ˢʰᵉˡᵇʸ

❥ ⁰¹the meeting.. ꩜

"YOUR BEST THROWING THAT INTO THE FIRE, Finny." Maggie pointed at the cigarette the ten year old was smoking in front of the fire. Finn ignored her. Maggie rolled her eyes before snatching the cigarette out of the young boys mouth and putting it in her own.

"Wait till you're fourteen." She winked at him before leaving the room in the direction of the betting den. Completely oblivious to the fact Finn had a whole pack of them.

Around ten minutes later, Tommy came in through the front door, finding Finn in the kitchen with another cigarette in his hands.

Finn was quick to hide it from his view. "Arthur's mad as hell," Finn told Tommy while trying to sneak a drag of the cigarette, "What does a ten year old know about hell, eh?" Tommy responded half smiling, "I'm eleven Sunday!" Finn insisted.

"John, could ya get me another pencil?" Maggie asked while looking up at John who was writing down bets on a chalkboard, "Get it ya self." He grinned cheekily down at her.

"Such a gentleman," Maggie said sarcastically, standing up from her chair and walking to the other side of John where the pencils were. Just then Tommy entered the betting den, waltzing through it towards where John and Maggie were.

Tommy looked up at the blackboard, seeming unfazed by the twenty bets on Monaghan Boy. "Tommy, look at the board, will you just look." John turned to Tommy with a big grin on his face. "Twenty bets on Monaghan Boy, Tommy." Maggie grinned with John.

A door being opened quite aggressively sounded throughout the den, the two Shelby's and Maggie turn to see Arthur fuming. "Tommy, get in here!" Arthur yelled, slamming the door after.

Maggie jumped slightly from the noise but was quick to recover with a giggle. "Someone's in trouble," Maggie giggled to John as he flashed her a grin. Arthur's yells could be heard from his office while John and Maggie were still giggling with one another.

Maggie and John fell silent when Tommy came back out of Arthur's office while Arthur hovered in the doorway, "I'm calling a family meeting at 8 o'clock, Tommy! This time be there!" Arthur called to Tommy but he showed no sign of recognition. "There's trouble coming!" Arthur continued but Tommy was already out the door and gone.

"Don't let him get to you Arth," Maggie spoke softly, rubbing his shoulder lightly as she passed. "Easy for you to say Maggie, you're the one that shagging him," John chuckled, only to be met with a cushion thrown at his head that Maggie had plucked from the couch beside her. She was not about to tell John she was waiting till marriage.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ -

Maggie and Ada were sitting beside each other and gossiping quietly as they waited for the meeting to start.

"I called this meeting because I got news from Ireland," Arthur was saying but all Maggie could notice was Tommy on the other side of the room, waiting for Arthur to make a mistake, yet looking so gorgeous and handsome while doing it.

"A few men got back from Belfast last night, they were...." Arthur continued on, but Maggie was drowning out his words. She already knew all this and she didn't want to hear about it a second time.

"There was a copper handing out these," That caught her attention. She didn't know about the pages. She was quick to grab one of the pages Arthur put down on the table. Sharing it with Ada.

"If you're over five feet and can fight, come to Birmingham," John read aloud to the family, "John stop trying to act smart," Maggie grinned over at him as she watched him roll his eyes. "They're recruiting Protestant Irishmen, to come over as specials." Arthur continued on, ignoring the two.