Never Stop . . . Never Stop Fighting (A Tom Hiddleston Fanfiction)

Chapter Eight

AN: I know that this chapter is short... but I wanted to give you guys something for waiting so patiently.  Please give me your thoughts on the chapter and if you have any ideas for the story please send them my way.

Ann sat in front of her laptop in her home Friday afternoon, a mug of tea in one hand. She had agreed to the video call but had told him that it would more than likely be late for him by the time she would get home from work. Tom had agreed to the call anyway, saying that he wanted to see her face.

It dawned on her then, that maybe Tom wanted to see her without the bruising that had covered her face before. They were barely noticeable now and she was very happy about that fact.

She looked at her phone, seeing that it was almost five, which made it ten at night in London. Ann scrolled through her texts until she found Tom's username info and proceeded to pull up Skype on her laptop and searching for him to send him a friend request. He approved it almost instantly, much to Ann's amazement.

What now? Ann thought, just before her laptop started chiming with a tune as a chat request window popped up on her screen.

She panicked and quickly ran her hands through her hair with her free hand before she accepted the chat, being instantly greeted with the hundred watt smile and bright blue eyes of Tom Hiddleston.

"Ann!" he greeted cheerfully, "It's so nice to see you!"

"It's good to see you too," Ann replied, a happy smile on her face. "I'm sorry that this chat is so late for you."

Tom shook his head, "Don't worry about it darling, it's not all that late really. I don't mind."

Ann nodded and took a sip of her tea before she placed it out of Tom's view on her table. "So, what's new?" she asked, "How is filming going?"

"Filming is going well, plus being able to film near home has been quite nice," he answered. "Other than the movie, not much has happened. You look a lot better," he added softly.

"Thank you," Ann replied, "I feel better."

"That's good to hear. How was your first day back at work?"

"Good, even if it was a bit stressful. Seeing my friend Sage was quite nice though."

Tom smiled, happy that she was happy. "Friends always help, I think. If we didn't have them, the world would be a much darker place."

"That's very true," Ann agreed, "Friends and family make the world go around."

Ann and Tom talked until she noticed that he kept yawning, causing her to scan her mouse down on her screen to see the clock. When she did, her eyes grew wide. "Tom, it's almost eight here. That means it's one am for you... you need to go to bed."

Tom yawned wide, only remembering to cover his mouth from Ann's view when his open mouth filled her screen, causing her to giggle at him. "I'm sorry," he said groggily, "Would it be okay if I contacted you tomorrow?" he asked.

Ann smiled. "Of course you can," she replied sweetly, smiling at Tom's sleepy grin at her reply. "You log off and get some rest. It's only eight here, but I'm not far after you."

He nodded and covered his mouth as he yawned again. "I will, you do the same. Goodnight Ann."

"Goodnight Tom." She watched as he signed off, before she did so herself and then shutdown her laptop. She rinsed her cup out in the kitchen sink before she decided to take a shower then go ahead and head to bed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ann sat on the bed in the hotel room watching tv, when the door opened and John walked in. "Hey!" she said with a smile, but when she looked over at John, no smile on his face. "What's wrong?" she asked.

John didn't say a word, but advanced on Ann without a word before he hovered over her, a animalized look in his eyes before he reached out and grabbed her around the neck, restricting her airway.

She clawed at John's hands, trying to pry him off, to no avail, his grip only getting tighter. Black spots began to crowd into her vision before ---

Ann shot out up in her bed, a scream on her lips. Her shaking hands reached for her throat as she gasped for air and realized that it had all been a dream. "Oh, christ," she sighed, putting her head in her hands. When Ann looked up and checked the time, she saw that it read just after two in the morning.

It's seven in London... I wonder if he would answer if I called, she thought, reaching for her cell phone that sat on her nightstand.

After a few moments thought, Ann decided to make the call and pressed on Tom's name. It was three rings before he answered.

"Ann? It's two in the morning for you are you alright?" Tom asked.

"N-not really."

"What is it? Is John back? Tom asked, concern in his voice.

Ann sighed. "No... I-I had a nightmare. A bad one."

Tom stopped from putting on his tennis shoes and sat down at his kitchen table. "Do you want to tell me about it?"

"I was back at the hotel and John walked in... I was excited to see him and told him hello. He walked up to me without a word a-and... he h-he started to choke me."

Tom covered his mouth with his hand and let out a long sigh. "It's alright darling. It wasn't real."

Ann nodded, sniffling. "I know... it felt that way though, like it was actually happening. I couldn't get any air, I felt like I was going to die."

Tom stood and began to pace. "Ann, love, listen to me. It was a dream and you are alright. You're alive and you're safe. Repeat that for me."

"I'm alive and I'm safe."

Tom smiled. "Good. If I was with you, I'd help you fall back asleep darling, but I'm fixing to leave on a run."

Ann couldn't stop a small smile from making its way onto her face. "The gesture is nice," she replied quietly. "You're not going to go are you?"

"Do you want me to stay on the line?" he asked. "It may sound a bit weird while I run."

"There's no way that I can go back to sleep right now... everything is still too real," Ann answered, laying back in the bed.

"Alright love, I'll stay on the line with you." Tom sat back in his chair and put on his shoes, before quickly tying them.

~~~~~~~~~~

Tom went out on his run and talked to Ann the entire time. It took him awhile but he finally got her to laugh at one of his jokes and it felt good to get her to relax. He got back to his home and walked up his front steps, a smile on his face. "Are you feeling better Ann?" he asked as he unlocked the door.

"I am... thank you for staying on the phone with me," she replied tiredly.

Tom chuckled, "It's no problem darling... but you really ought to try and get some sleep. It's almost four in the morning for you now."

Ann yawned and turned to curl up on her side. "I know... but I like talking to you."

"I like talking to you too Ann... I promise that I will video call you later today."

"Alright..."

"Sleep well sweet Ann."

"Goodnight Tom."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tom hung up his phone and smiled to himself as he walked upstairs to his bedroom to prepare for a shower. Poor woman.. She's been through so much. I wish that I could go to her. Maybe I should schedule a visit? Go and see her for a few days? He thought as he stripped and got into the shower, letting the steaming water pelt against his bare back. Maybe I will visit her... I just have to ask her first.