As You Lay Dying - Alfie Solomons

7

//Sorry for the delay! I was traveling but now I'm back to business!

            Teresa let Alfie pity himself for a few days. She had returned from her holiday to find the man in a foul mood. When Teresa asked about his weekend, he just gave a dissatisfied grunt in response.

A few days of him skulking around the house went by without Teresa saying a word. But enough was enough by Thursday. At breakfast, Teresa broached the subject. "Will Lily be around this weekend?" It had been long enough to know that the young woman had a special place in Alfie's heart. The fact that he was grumpy was a big tell that something had happened between the two friends.

"No," Alfie answered curtly.

"That's a shame." In all honesty, Teresa was hoping to touch a nerve with her employer. She knew the man could be so emotionally stunted that he would brood over Lily for the rest of his life before he did anything to salvage the relationship. He just needed some prodding to get his act together.

Alfie held the newspaper up in front of his face but it was obvious he wasn't reading, merely using it as a wall to hide behind. "Guess so."

"Did something happen with her family? Is she alright?"

Alfie's teeth could've broken from how tight his jaw was clenched. "Me past came to haunt me." He muttered, offering his maid a few breadcrumbs as to why he was in such a state. "Affected her."

"Oh." Teresa knew that Alfie's past could mean anything. "Do you have to apologize for something?"

"Didn't fucking..." He cursed and folded up the newspaper haphazardly before tossing it onto the table. "Weren't my fault. Tommy Fucking Shelby once again has really done a number on me, hasn't he?"

Teresa gave him a sympathetic look. "Not everyone understands the life you lived, Mr. Solomons." She reminded him in a gentle, motherly tone.

Alfie rubbed his cheek absent-mindedly. "I know." He thought about the change in Lily's eyes. From expressing her love to seeing him as a monster who was complicit in her brother's death. He would fight tooth and nail to see her love him again. Realistically, he didn't see her ever coming back. But he had to try. If she rejected him, he could move on. Well, he would have to. But he knew he'd see her face every time he drifted off to sleep. "There's a florist in town, right?"

"Yes, Mr. Solomons."

~~~~

"Lily!" Jane had come in from getting the mail when she called out to her daughter.

Lily was coming downstairs, on her way to work, when she saw her mother come back inside. "Yes?"

"These were left on the fence for you." She held up a beautiful bouquet of blue hyacinth flowers, bound in twine. A small card was wedged between the twine and stems.

"Oh." Lily wasn't sure what to think, but she had a firm idea of who they were from.

Jane handed her the bouquet. "Darling, I didn't know you had an admirer!" She exclaimed with a coy look. "No wonder why you were asking about love the other day."

Lily managed a weak smile. "I think they're just from a friend, mum." She replied. "I'm going to put them upstairs; I've got to leave in a minute." She went back up the stairs and found a suitable vase. She carefully untied the twine and pulled out the small note.