Peaky Blinders One Shot Collection

Alfie Solomons x Reader - Stubborn

I'm terrible at uploading. I'm just gonna have to accept that as part of who I am. And apologise to everyone for my lack of stories.

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Since taking on the job at the bakery, you'd worked non stop. Putting in extra time and making sure you always had something to do, your face was well known by all the employees and you were beginning to gain more respect from each man who worked there alongside you. You were determined to make this job work for you and not mess up. Hence the extra care to put your all in.

You knew there were things you weren't allowed to know about the real side of the bakery. And despite your ever growing curiosity, you were also aware of the damage that could be done if you tried to pry. So you stayed away. During your time at the bakery, coming up to a whole two years, you had met and become familiar with the character that was Alfie Solomon's. The big boss. The guy in charge. But, even after seeing him lash out in a temper, and hearing him swearing and cursing from the floor above his office, you'd never looked at him as anything less than a friend. He checked in with you, made sure you took your dinner break and even sent you home on a Friday when it was close to dark and you were still holed up at your desk surrounded by orders and paperwork. He usually escorted you or sent someone with you to make sure you got home safe, knowing how dangerous the streets could be for a women alone after dark. He didn't talk much. Mostly grunted and sighed at you. But you appreciated him looking out for you, and tried not to cause him too much grief with your back chat or excuses for staying later than anyone else.

One particular Friday, you'd been expecting a busy day. You had not however expected that three large orders would be delayed due to batches being messed up and had spent nearly three hours of your afternoon running around, trying desperately to make sure the batches were going to be fixed. You'd spent another two hours after that on the phone to some very unhappy customers and it was safe to say you hadn't even noticed how dark it had gotten outside until there was a gentle tap on the office door and the broad and full figure of Alfie appeared, walking over to your desk and taking a seat in the chair across from you.

'I vaguely remember a conversation we had last week, right, about you staying this late after work....and the same conversation being had, the week before that too' he mumbles, voice seeming louder due to the silence that filled the empty office. You sighed and leaned back, rubbing your hand over your face.
'I would apologise, i didn't mean to stay this late, but I'm not sorry because we could have lost three of our biggest customers today' you retort and give him a pointed look to which he just raises an eyebrow, an unimpressed expression resting on his face. You shrug.
'If you hired real bakers, the batches would have been done to perfection. But they weren't.' You quip and it's his turn to sigh this time.
'I don't remember hiring you so you could back chat all the fucking time' he mutters and leans his head back to stare at the ceiling.
'I don't remember you hiring me so I could slack at my job either. In fact, I specifically remember you telling me that if I was shit, you'd personally come in here and tell me so. And as of yet, I have given you no reason to do that' you say, reaching for a stack of paper that rested on the other side of the desk where Alfie sat. His hand landed on it before you could pick it up and the sudden movement makes you jump.
'Alfie...' you sigh. He lifts his head to look at you, a thoughtful touch to his eyes.
'You're not shit. You do however, right, need to learn when to go the fuck home' he says and you scowl at him.
'I just need to finish th-....' he holds his hand up to cut you off and you close your mouth to stop yourself from swearing at him, choosing instead to scowl harder.
'Home. Time' he defines his words and you roll your eyes.
'I'm the boss, I'm not gonna sit here, right, and argue with you. Come on, grab your coat, do as your told and I'll meet you by the door' he finishes, standing to leave and you stare hard at the paperwork that he picks up and takes with him.
'This can wait' he calls over his shoulder as he leaves, shaking the paper so you hear it.
You sigh, mumbling curses under your breath as you stand, stretching your hands above your head and giving your legs a moment to remember what it feels like to stand. You grab your coat from your chair and make your way to the door, flicking the light switch off and closing the door, locking it and making your way to the front door where you stand and wait as instructed.
You play with the bunch of daffodils sat in their vase in the window, rearranging them so the newer flowers sit at the front. As you lean down to breathe in their scent, Alfie walks through the corridor and raises his brow.
'What? They smell gorgeous!' You exclaim, trying to explain what he must have seen as a weird action.
'Course darling, course' he mutters, holding the door open for you and following you as you step out into the night air. You hug your coat tighter to you as you hear the lock click behind you and Alfie rattles the handle for good measure.
As you begin walking, a comfortable silence falls for a moment. Before you had always spoken about work, but now, you didn't have anything to talk about, until a question popped into your head.
'Hey Alfie?' He hums in response.
'How come you were working so late? You usually send someone to get me if you know it's getting dark, you never leave it that late' you ask and he slows down his pace to walk beside you as opposed to in front of you.
'Had a meeting so I didn't realise how dark it was' he replies simply and you nod, understanding this is one of those times where you shouldn't pry and push for answers.
'You didn't have to walk me home' you say, subtly trying to change the subject.
'Don't be daft, it's dangerous for a woman on the streets, right' his voice is gentle and quiet.
'Well thank you, I do appreciate the small things you of for me' you quickly whisper out, almost sure that Alfie hadn't heard.
'What do you mean? It's the decent thing to do, walk you home'. He had heard.
'I think you'd like to believe that I don't notice the other stuff you do too. Like making sure that the biscuit tin in my office always has biscuits in it, even though I never fill it up. And when I'm having trouble and preparing for the most likely and worst scenario and all of a sudden, there are extra men working on the order to make sure it meets the deadline, even though I never asked for them. Or even when there's lemonade in the fridge every day, but nobody else in the office drinks it besides me, and I don't put it there.' You finish with a smile, looking over to Alfie and luckily seeing the blush on his cheeks, lit up by the streetlights. He clears his throat.
'You're a good worker Y/N, right, and I do, contrary to popular belief, like to look after my workers. Especially the ones that stop the shop from sinking' he explains, and you think that may be the longest he has gone without swearing.
'Well, I wanted to say thank you either way. I do appreciate it. And I do notice it' you whisper and he just nods his head in response.
You turn the corner and begin walking along the street towards your house. Alfie hums quietly for the last part of your journey.
'This is me' you say, ironically, and give him a grin to show the humour in your sentence. He gives you a small smile in return and tips his hat. You turn toward the door before hearing him say your name and turn back to him.
'You're important to me, right' he says, before nodding and walking off, leaving you stood there, mouth ajar and baffled.

MONDAY MORNING:

Making your way through the back and into the office, you throw your coat over the back of your chair and take in the mess of the desk which you had left the previous Friday. You sigh before something yellow catches the corner of your eye and you lift your head to stare at the side board. Say neatly in a vase full of water, are 6 fresh daffodils. A brown, folded piece of paper rests in front of the vase and you walk over to inspect it closer.
Unfolding the piece of paper, a smile graces your face as you read the note, scrawled messily onto the paper:

'Because they smell gorgeous...and they remind me of you.

A x'

What an intriguing man Alfie was.