Vera ; Thomas Shelby

04 ; Does no one listen?

When I arrived, I was met with quite a few obstacles, number one being that I wasn't actually related to Tommy in any way and if I tried to describe that I didn't know where the hell his actual family was, I would probably be turned away instantly.

I may have told a tiny lie in order to get into to the hospital room and by tiny I mean I told them I was his wife. Only minor fraud.

I'd been lucky in which I joined the Shelby Company as soon as it began to rocket to the top, having missed out on all the difficult things. I had heard of small snippets, mainly from Ada and Esme, of what had happened with the likes of Billy Kimber and of course, the infamous Grace Burgess. I'd always associated my struggle of getting Tommy to trust me to her betrayal, even if I had never actually met her.

So you could imagine how foreign seeing the invincible Tommy Shelby lying there beaten and unconscious was for me. All I knew was that as soon as he woke up, I would badger him until he told me whatever the hell was going on.

As the light filtered in the next morning, I stood up from my awkward position on an uncomfortable chair right next to Tommy, in order to freshen up a bit.

After searching for almost ten minutes, I almost gave up until a helpful nurse finally pointed me in the right direction. When I finished, I hurried back to Tommy anxiously. Surely nothing could have happened in the little time I was gone?

Boy, was I wrong.

As soon as I saw the old man towering over Tommy, I barged in. Hadn't I told the nurse not to let anyone but family inside the room? Does no one listen?

"Who are you?" I asked curtly, waiting for an answer from the stranger.

He ignored me, looking me up and down and turning back to Tommy.

"She's a pretty one. Probably prettier than Grace, eh?" I heard him tell Tommy in a strong Irish accent and slowly hobbling out of the room with his walking stick.

As soon as he left, I strode to the door and called for the nurse in charge of Tommy.

"Nurse Rogers!" I practically shouted, until I saw her slight figure come towards me.

"Yes, Mrs Shelby?" This shocked me for a second, completely forgetting the lie I had told to get in.

"Did I not tell you to not let anyone in, unless they're family?"

"Yes-"

"Then why on earth did you let that man in?"

"He said he was Major Campbell-"

"Right, well I don't care if the bloody king wants to see Thomas Shelby, if I tell you not to let anyone in then you do it! Do you understand?"

"Yes, Mrs Shelby. I'm sorry." I suddenly felt extremely bad for berating the woman, especially since she was so timid.

"It's okay, just please don't let it happen again." I finished with a small smile and watched her walk away, probably to go complain to a friend about her horrible patient. I felt terrible, until I turned around and saw Tommy struggling to sit up.

"What the hell are you doing?" I questioned, rushing to his side and pushing him back down into the pillows.

"I've got work to do, Vera." Tommy grunted, getting right back up. "You either help me, or you leave."

"Jesus Christ, Tommy." I sighed, contemplating if there was anything I could do to stop him from whatever he had planned.

Realising it was hopeless to argue, I picked up Tommy's shirt and slowly eased him into it. As I buttoned it up, I couldn't help but notice the proximity between us.

"Pass me my cigarettes." He demanded in a tone I was completely sick of at that moment.

"Can't you go two bloody minutes without smoking?" I responded. When I saw his unamused face, I decided to change my tactics and simply ignore his requests. "Let's get you trousers on, now."

I certainly didn't imagine starting my Saturday morning awkwardly helping Tommy Shelby slip into his clothes, my face probably permanently blushing at that point.

After struggling for quite a while, we were finally ready to leave and I placed a cigarette in Tommy's waiting hands. Nurse Rogers was certainly glad enough to see us, or more particularly me, leave. Tommy waited impatiently at the door whilst I signed all the release forms.

I insisted on driving to Charlie's yard, yet didn't receive any protest from Tommy, much to my surprise. It was a running joke (mainly on my part) that I asked to drive, ever since Arthur spent multiple gruelling hours teaching me all the rules of the road.

When we arrived, I helped Tommy limp out of the car and he rested a portion of his weight on me with his arm slung over my shoulder. I guess being incredibly short did come in handy every once in a while.

I listened to Charlie and Tommy talk about taking a boat to London but when they mentioned the four day trip, I couldn't help but think of the fact that I was still in last night's outfit.

As Curly set off to prepare for the trip, I turned to Tommy.

"You can't seriously expect to heal on a boat!" I told him incredulously.

"Vera, make sure everything is fine while I'm gone." Tommy said, completely disregarding my outburst.

"What are you talking about? I'm coming with you," I responded immediately.

"No, you're not."

"Who will take care of you?"

"Curly-"

"Tommy, I love Curly, but unless you're a horse, he can't look after you. I'm coming."