Shields- A Tom Hiddleston Fanfiction

Chapter 43

Lol. A case of double naming characters. Mrs. Elizabeth Alexander, and three-year-old Elizabeth, daughter of Emma and Jack. Whoops.

Mr. Alexander and Elizabeth—because Elizabeth would not let me refer to her as anything else—are already waiting for us at the table when Tom and I arrive. Tom gives me a smile that looks a bit nervous, so I take his hand in my gloved one. We walk through the tables and waiters to the corner where our tablemates have chosen to sit down. Tom pulls out my chair for me and I sit down, taking my gloves off as I do. Mr. Alexander stands to shake Tom's hand, which suddenly makes this feel a lot more like my parents meeting my boyfriend for the first time. When Tom sits back down, he immediately takes my hand under the table. I think it's a calming mechanism for him; to play with my hands, or even just hold them.

"Thank you for inviting us, Mr. Alexander," Tom says.

"Please, just call me Phillip." He gives Tom a smile. "There's no need to be so formal." He flashes me a grin. "I couldn't ever get this one to shake the habit, though."

"It's a term of respect!" I exclaim. "If I ever dared to call you 'Phillip' or call Mrs. Alexander 'Elizabeth'—without her direct request to be referred to as such— my mother would rise from her grave and smack me over the head with a wooden spoon." The two laugh, Tom and I joining easily. I roll my eyes a bit, feeling my face redden. "She would!"

With the tension cracked, the conversation seems to flow a little easier. Tom is so easy to get warmed up too with that charisma of his, that Mr. Alexander is immediately engaged by him. Elizabeth and I talk about a variety of things, everywhere from wedding dresses to tea.

"Alice speaks highly of both of you," Tom says. "You haven't come up as a topic of conversation much, but from what I can tell, you've been there for her for quite a bunch of things."

Mr. Alexander nods. "Yes. I remember when she came to my store, say, almost a year ago, asking for a job. She looked like hell itself, and I had an open shift. She was a hard worker, but I could never figure out what seemed to be weighing her down. I didn't remember her from the first time both of you came into the store until one day I asked her if she was alright. She broke down right there in the back room!

"I'd had no idea how much she was hurting. She told me a lot of things. She had a lot of different emotions and issues she had been shouldering for some time. Particularly on the subject of John, and her recent break-up." Tom shifts a little, sipping on his tea. I take the time to pour myself another cup from the teapot.

"I leant her an ear, and a shoulder to cry on. Then, she seemed to pick herself back up, even if just a little. She is mainly responsible for... us." The older man gestures between him and his wife who chuckles quietly.

"She became like a daughter to us," Elizabeth says. "Despite me not knowing her for very long, she was one of the closest things I had ever had to a child. When her friend died, and she ended up in that hospital, we were just as broken as I figure you were, Tom." She reaches over and pats Tom's hand lightly. "So, I hope over whatever time we have left that we can become closer, more like family, as she seems to think of us."

My heart clenches at the thought of ever losing either one of these people at this table. Each of them so close to me in so many different ways.

"So..." Tom drums his fingers on the table. "You will be the one handing Alice off?" He addresses Mr. Alexander.

"She asked me if I would, and I said yes." I grin, running a finger over the rim of my cup. "It's a great honor." He continues, making me blush. He reaches over and takes my hand gently. "You've got a beautiful girl with a heart that is even more so, if possible. Don't lose her or hurt her, Tom. Otherwise, my son might steal her."