𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊 𝐓𝐎 𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐊 ʲᵒʰⁿ ˢʰᵉˡᵇʸ

- 𝟎𝟎𝟗

𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐓𝐨 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤
-𝟎𝟎𝟗-
𝐒𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝟏𝟗𝟏𝟗

The lead up to Tommy and Valerie's wedding went oh so quickly. Valerie had tried her best to avoid John in the lead up to it all as she didn't want to hurt herself or him any further.

Maria was sat behind Valerie trying to pin back her long, dark hair. She could feel her friends anxiousness and couldn't help but feel bad for her. "You'll be okay. I know you will." Maria reassured her.

Valerie shifted uncomfortably in her chair and placed a hand on her growing baby bump. "I know.." She said doubtfully. Maria twisted two pieces of Valerie's hair back that had small braids intertwined in them. She looked beautiful as always.

Maria tutted and leaned down to kiss her cheek. "If Tommy Shelby won't love you, I'll have you instead." She joked.

The dark haired girl let out a breathy laugh and shook her head. "I'd rather you had me." She said seriously. Maria wrapped an arm around the front of Valerie and sighed. "If I could take all of this worry out of you, I would. I'd take it and put it inside of myself."

Valerie shook her head. "Don't be silly. I'm fine."

Maria raised her eyebrows slightly and just smiled lightly. "Right come on. We wouldn't want to make his highness wait now would we?" She said in mocking tone to which Valerie rolled her eyes.

To say she was nervous wouldn't be a complete lie. She was more nervous to see John than to marry Thomas. Thomas didn't seem as bad as they all made him out to be. Well - if he was willing to marry the woman that was carrying his brother's baby surely he wasn't evil.

-

The drive down to the church seemed to drag on massively and the nerves in Valerie's stomach just seemed to grow as the minutes passed. Maria helped her out of the car and Polly met them outside. "He's already at the alter." Polly said. "I thought he'd be late." She added on.

Valerie swallowed hard and the three of them walked inside. "You'll be fine. Just look forward and smile." Polly whispered to her before slipping back inside the room.

Maria fixed a small piece of Valerie's hair and examined her once more. "Let's go," she linked her best friends once the piano music began. Her heart was beating rapidly. She kept her eyes forward and tried not to look at anyone.

But she didn't need to. She could feel John's upset eyes on her as she walked. Once they got to the middle, Maria left her side and Valerie walked the rest alone.

Tommy turned to face her and smiled slightly. He nodded reassuringly at her and they took one another's hands in their own.

"Do you, Thomas Micheal Shelby take the Valerie Helen Black to be yours to cherish and to hold until death do you apart?" The priest asked. Tommy took a breath and tried to keep his eyes on her. "I do." He grumbled. The priest shifted his gaze to Valerie who had a slight gloss over her eyes. "Do you, Valerie Helen Black take the Thomas Micheal Shelby to be yours to love and hold till death do you apart?"

She hesitated for a moment but knew she had to proceed. "I do."

Tommy carefully slid a ring onto her finger and she did the same to him. "You may now kiss the bride." The priest said. Tommy cupped the side of her face and they both leaned in, closing their eyes and kissing for a mere moment.

Majority of the crowd burst into claps and cheers. John slowly clapped but felt a heavy weight on his chest as he did so. He didn't want to get upset. He couldn't. Now he knew how Valerie felt having to watch him marry Esme.