Gun metal and Daisies (Thomas Shelby)

"Nostalgia is a dirty liar."

There must be those among whom we can sit down and weep and still be counted as warriors.

Thomas slid down the side of the counter to sit next to her. He was hesitant to do so, but he slid his arms around her shoulders and pulled her right to his chest. He was relieved when all he got as a response was a deep, wavering sigh.

They must have sat there for hours. There were no words exchanged nor many movements. Dorothy had let tears fall in short intervals in the time that they sat together, but luckily Thomas was there to wipe them away each time they fell. He wondered what was going on in her mind.

Later in the evening, Dorothy swallowed deeply and rubbed her eyes. She groaned as she lifted herself off the floor and out of Thomas' warm embrace.

"Go' to make the sweets for the week" her voice was meek and small. It reminded Thomas of the first time he met her.

Thomas rolled his head back for a second before joining Dorothy next to the ovens.
As he waited for them to warm up, he took off his cap and coat, and folded up his sleeves. He ambled over to the gramophone and picked up something more upbeat that had a jazzy undertone that he knew she liked.

Without many more words exchanged they got to work in silence. Dorothy swayed her hips as she danced with the beat. Thomas was entranced by her movements, but tried not to seem it.
Not before long, the sweets were in the oven and Thomas changed over the record to a slower piece.

He turned back round to face Dorothy who already was stood in the middle of the room with a grin on her face.
Without another word, Thomas took her hand and waist and lead her through the dance. It was slow, it allowed her to rest her head on his chest. She hummed as they swayed from side to side which completely melted Thomas' brain.
He was desperately in love with her voice.

"I'm so sorry..." Thomas whispered from where he rested his head on top of hers. "I'm so sorry." His voice cracked as he pulled her impossibly closer.

Dorothy kept her head where it was, "there's nothing left to do but move on now. He'll be with me forever, Thomas. So for that reason, I have no conflictions with you. Only that you don't promise things you aren't sure you can keep."

Thomas nodded his head and leant in closer to her small frame. For now he closed his eyes and breathed in her scent.

"Tomorrow's my day off." Dorothy commented.

Thomas hummed, unsure of where the conversation was going, "that it is."

"And I was planning on going back to the woodlands. Take my camera with me and all that... do you want to join me?"

Thomas stopped swaying for a moment which made Dorothy cringe in anticipation.

"I'd love to. How're you on horses?" Thomas mumbled.

Dorothy gasped, "I've been on them a few times. Magnificent beasts they are!"

"How about if you take me into the deepest part of the woods, I'll take you riding?" The music had now stopped and the two were just swaying to the silence.

"You have horses?"

Thomas nodded his head, "the best."

Dorothy giggled into his chest, "can't wait."

Soon it was time to take the sweets and baked goods out of the furnaces. While Dorothy was fanning the bunny moulds, she drifted off into her own world.

"It's sad." She said.

"What is?" He asked.

"I mean, you ask someone about love and they tell you about heartbreak."

Thomas knew this to be true. Before Dorothy he had Greta, poor girl. All he remembered was the heartbreak from her.

He thought for a moment, "sometimes, Bonny, I wish I could go back to when we were kids, and life was easy." Thomas always felt like he was off in a dream on these nights. The warmth from the furnaces. The sweet smells in the air. A woman that he loved standing near. All too good to be true.

"What? When we were cold and on the streets?" Dorothy was feeling cynical tonight, understandably.

"I suppose. But compared to now, it all seems like it was so easy. I'm feeling nostalgic tonight." He shrugged and took a seat in his usual spot.

"Nostalia, Bubs, is a dirty liar who always makes things seem better than they actually were." Dorothy wagged a finger at him.

Thomas chuckled and shook his head.

"Instead of dreaming about the past. I want to dream of the future. I want to dream of lazy Sunday's and crappy art shows. I want to dream of libraries so high, it hits the heavens; I want a bastion of language and poetry. To be the Guardian of her linguistic majesty. I want to make deals with the devil, only for him to find out that he was making the deal with ME." She giggled menacingly, that put Thomas on edge, even though she was only joking. "I want a full monopoly on the wonders of the world. I want to live a life so intellectualised that the only way I can speak is in prose and sonnets!" Her arms were spread proudly like an eagles, before she dropped them back to her side.

Dorothy shrugged her shoulders and sighed, "but Small Heath is where I'm at. So the future will have to wait for me to catch up."

Thomas was stunned to silence. For the first time, he saw ambition that matched his, but it came in the form of someone who bakes cookies and picked up stray puppies off the streets. In a way he envied her peaceful ambition. She had a need for something more. An inarticulate desire for something further than the daily life.
If he could, he would give her the world, but he knew she wouldn't want it. He might just have to settle for a rather large library.

Much to the twos dismay, the night had to finish eventually and Dorothy was closing up shop, far too early for Thomas' liking.

She turned around to him and pulled him into a tight hug. This time she rested her chin on his chest and stared up into his eyes. Thomas raised a brow which made her giggle quietly. Thomas responded, of course, by wrapping his arms securely around her frame; and swallowing his nervousness, he leaned down planted a kiss on her forehead.

He couldn't see it in the small glow of the Birmingham factory lanterns, but a rosy glow settled on her cheeks.

Things were better now. They weren't okay, and Thomas didn't think they would be for a while. But they were better. And as long as she had him, nothing could ever go too far down the drain.

——

Oooooohhh...

I'd like to say a quick thanks to you all for 4K reads that's INSANE! The support I've gotten is immense and I can't thank you guys enough for it! And to think I only started this book mid-April and it'll come to a close soon is crazy!

So thank you so so SO much for all this, I wouldn't have come this far if it wasn't for the support!

Just to note, when this book draws further to a close, I'll have a big announcement regarding the Gun Metal and Daisies characters! So stay tuned for that!

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