Love Will Tear Us Apart - Tommy Shelby x Reader

Chapter 18:

I looked up at Tommy to see if he was ok, but he had already turned away to talk to his brothers.

'John, Arthur, I want you to contact all our allies and get as many reinforcements in as you can. Double the protection at the house and at Ada's place. If the situation is as dangerous as I think it is then I want us to be prepared'

John and Arthur both nodded before quickly making their way out of the pub doors, leaving me and Tommy amidst a suffocating silence.

He walked over to the table he'd previously been sitting at and downed the remainder of his whiskey.

'Tommy I-'

I began, but was interrupted by Tommy lifting his arm and throwing his whiskey glass against the wall. I winced as the tumbler smashed into hundreds of pieces, shards of glass scattering the wood-paneled floor.

Tommy pinched the bridge of his nose and began to pace up and down the Garrison. He sighed exasperatedly, his eyes finally meeting mine.

'Are you working for them?'

I shook my head.

'Not since 3 years ago'

He pulled out a pack of cigarettes and placed one between his lips.

'So you expect me to believe that you coming to Birmingham at the exact moment the Peaky Blinder's started taking territory from the Kings was merely a coincidence?' His eyes cut through me like a knife, his ice cold orbs like 2 rigid glaciers.

'I've been on the run from the Kings for 3 years and thought it was time I settled down. Birmingham seemed like the right place to do this'

'How stupid do you think I am?' He said coldly, causing me to furrow my eyebrows as he continued. 'So you just happened to open a bookmaker's down the road from Shelby Company Lmtd? You want me to believe that that was all serendipity?'

I crossed my arms and bit my lip.

'I prefer the term fate'

'Fate?' He chuckled cynically pouring himself another glass of whiskey. 'There ain't no such thing'

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Did he really think everything I had ever told him was a lie?

'Look' I said stepping closer to him, getting more and more frustrated at the situation. 'I moved to Birmingham because an old friend told me it was a nice area to build a home. I opened a bookmakers because I'm good at handling numbers and have 8 years of experience under my belt thanks to my time with the Kings. My life here in Small Heath has nothing to do with the Kings and never has'

'Then why didn't you tell anybody?' Tommy asked, his voice raised higher than before.

'Who could I have told?' I snapped. 'Birmingham isn't exactly the best place to trust people'

'You could of told me' Tommy said slamming his glass down onto the table next to him.

'You're joking right?' I chuckled sarcastically. 'When I first came to Birmingham we hated each other, so much so that you made it your mission to run me out of Small Heath. Do you really think I wanted to share my past with someone like that?'

I could see the anger building in Tommy's face as his eyes grew darker.

I stepped forward, trying to dissolve a bit of the tension.

'I wanted to tell people I really did, but if I told the truth then there would have been questions, and with questions came answers. The Kings were still looking for me and if I gave away too much about my real identity they would have found me in no time'

Tommy's expression turned softer, but he still had the fire of anger and confusion behind his eyes.

'Why are you so afraid of them?'

I could feel my breathing becoming uneven as my heart began to beat rapidly.

'About 4 years ago, after the war and after dad died in battle, the question of the Kings company and who would take charge came to light. Dad originally was going to leave me the company, but as George was the oldest he took it upon himself to be the leader. I didn't mind though because from an early age I knew the gang life wasn't for me. As soon as George took control things took a turn for the worst. Killings became more ruthless, rules became stricter and money became the number one priority. One day, my other brother Lenny was playing in the stock room and accidentally set alight half of the King's savings. George went ballistic. You see, the war affected Lenny in a really bad way, mentally he wasn't all there anymore, but George didn't have any sympathy towards this. He and Lenny got into a really big argument and George ended up shooting Lenny in the head. He said it was a mercy killing, like putting a deranged horse out of its misery' I sighed feeling tears brim the edges of my eyes. 'That's when I left, and I haven't looked back since'

Tommy stayed silent, his vision on me empty.

I continued.

'Nothing I've said' I looked into his eyes. 'Nothing I've felt, has been a lie'

Tommy's silence continued, his face an expressionless form.

I raised an eyebrow.

'You still don't believe me?'

He squinted his eyes, gulping down the last of his whiskey.

'How can I believe someone who's been playing a facade the whole time I've known them'

I shook my head feeling the tears stream down my face, enraged that he had the audacity to say something like that after I'd just spilled my heart out to him.

'Fuck you' I spat, my voice croaking as I did.

I could see the anger burning in the pits of his eyes as he moved closer to me, so close that I could feel his warm breath on my skin.

'You think I should believe you?' He asked almost in a mocking tone.

I gritted my teeth as my face turned to stone.

'Look me in the eyes, and tell me I'm lying'

His eyes stared intently into mine as if he was seeing me clearly for the first time. I felt both comfortable and uncomfortable under the heaviness of his gaze. I always believed that the eyes were the gateway to the soul, and right now I was exposed openly to Tommy. If he couldn't see the truth in me after this then I guess he never really knew me at all.

I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding when Tommy finally broke his eye contact with me.

He stared at the floor contemplatively while his fingers occupied themselves with an unlit cigarette. That was the one thing that infuriated me about Tommy, he was really hard to read, as opposed to me whose emotions were on display 24/7 like an open book.

He placed the cigarette between his lips and lit it.

His eyes met mine one last time before he moved past me and out the Garrison doors.

I sighed infuriatedly. I was angry at myself, angry at Tommy and angry at the Kings. I wanted nothing more than to go back in time and start again, to change the course of events that had passed.

I rubbed my temples, knowing that I had made my bed and now i had to lye in it.

Now that the wound was open it was time to let everyone else know.

Time for everyone to know the real me.