University, a broken down car, and nothing else to do can be thanked for how this fic came into existence. I hope you like it, and if you do, please leave a review!
Missing Home
It was a windy night. The large tree outside Tom and Sybil's bedroom window was dancing dappled shadows on the walls through the thin net curtains. When Sybil and Tom had moved to Ireland from England six months ago, they had begun decorating and furnishing all of the rooms, little by little. The house was mostly done now, but the spare bedroom and their own bedroom still needed work. Things had ground to a halt somewhat, as they decided that the final two rooms weren't urgent. They rarely had people to stay overnight, and they didn't care hugely what their own bedroom looked like, as long as they had each other and a functional bed. If their bedroom faced the road, they would have made sure to get proper curtains, but their bedroom only looked onto their enclosed back garden, so the net curtains, though practically see-through, didn't impede on their privacy.
Tom had been in a light sleep for some time, in that stage when you aren't really awake, but you aren't really asleep either; that odd liminal space where you're aware of what's happening, but only in a hazy, not quite certain kind of way.
A gust of wind thrust a tree branch into the window with a bang, jolting Tom awake. Now that Tom wasn't in a half-way house between the land of the living and the land of dreams, he realised that his wife was no longer lying beside him. He checked the time. 2:09am. Why was Sybil out of bed at 2:09am? He hauled himself out of the comfort of his bed to search for her. He ventured downstairs and found Sybil sitting on the wide ledge of the window in the living room, watching the world go by with a mug of tea in her hands and Pablo, her favourite childhood cuddly toy in her arms. Pablo was a now rather battered, but much loved, tawny owl. Mostly, he sat on a shelf in their bedroom, but when Sybil needed a bit of extra comforting that she couldn't get from elsewhere, she always knew that she could get it from Pablo.
"Hey, love," Tom said softly as he approached her, padding across the carpeted floor.
Sybil looked around, startled. She wasn't expecting to hear Tom's voice. She smiled when she saw him.
"Why are you down here?" Tom asked, before he kissed her temple.
"Couldn't sleep," Sybil said, leaning into Tom, as he rubbed his hand across her back.
Tom knew that there was something more. Sybil was holding Pablo. When Sybil was holding Pablo, Tom knew there was something deeper going on. He knew that if he stayed quiet long enough, Sybil would open up about why she and Pablo were up at 2am.
Sybil carried on staring out the window, but leaned into Tom's body. After a long moment of silence and peace, Sybil said,
"I miss home."
Tom didn't say anything. He continued to wait, knowing that Sybil would say more, given enough time.
"I miss the familiarity. I love my life here with you, but the last week or so I've just been yearning for home. I think I just need a few days back at home with family. I feel a bit deficient of Crawley life at the moment."
"Oh, love," Tom said, bringing her into his arms further, careful not to spill her tea or to squish Pablo. "In the morning why don't you ring your mam and see if we can spend the weekend at Downton. You've not got a shift between Friday and Monday, and I can work from home for a few days. Why don't we make it a long weekend?"
Sybil smiled at Tom.
"That sounds perfect," Sybil said, a weak smile on her lips.
Tom tilted his head to the side slightly.
"What's up?" he asked. "There's something else."
"My family drive me up the wall, but I love them, and I miss having them around all the time," Sybil said. "What if our children don't feel the same."
"What do you mean?"
"What if this baby," Sybil pulled her hands to her stomach, "grows up and can't wait to leave their family home? What if they don't miss us if they leave for university or move to England?"
"Sybil," Tom said, settling next to Sybil on the ledge. "Don't you think you're being a bit premature about this? You're barely three months pregnant. This baby isn't going to be moving out of the family home any time soon. We've got a lot of more important stages to get through first."
Sybil smiled at Tom weakly. She knew she was being irrational. She knew there were more pressing things to worry about than whether their unborn child would love their life enough to not want to move away from her and Tom. But still, it didn't stop her from worrying.
"Come to bed," Tom said. "Give it six months and you'll wish you stocked up on as much sleep as you could whilst you still had the chance."
"That's not how sleep works," Sybil said with a small laugh, knowing her husband was only joking.
"Tell me that again when you're nine months pregnant," Tom said. He stood up and stretched a hand out to Sybil to guide her up next to him. "Come to bed, let's go back to sleep, and then tomorrow morning we'll ring your parents and see if they can squeeze in a visit from their youngest and most beautiful daughter this weekend."
Sybil smiled. Even when she was being an irrational mess, Tom knew how to keep her spirits up. That was just one of the many reasons why she loved him.
Tom followed Sybil back up the stairs and they settled in bed. Sybil didn't really feel like sleeping, but she knew that if she had Tom's arms around her, she'd be lulled back into sleep soon enough.
A family didn't have to be perfect for it to be full of love. Now that Sybil was becoming a mother, she was beginning to understand that fact more and more. Family is about more than can be put into words. Family was her and Tom and their unborn baby, loving each other beyond words. This is what Sybil had always wanted, always dreamed of. Only now was the really understanding that she could have all of that without giving up the family of her childhood. She could have both. And it was beautiful.