The characters in this fanfiction do not belong to me, aside from Nora Baker who is a character of my own creation. I make no profit from this work; it is purely for entertainment purposes.
In an attempt to find my muse, I started writing this when it popped into my head whilst watching the film 'The Last Drop'. Its about Tommy Flanagan s character, Dennis Baker the crazy bomb disposal expert. I hope Tommy fans enjoy this and that it brings back my muse for my SOA fic!
The Last Goodbye (Part 1 of 2) – A Last Drop fanfiction
Nora Baker had been alone for months, trapped in the Scottish countryside in her husbands childhood home where she'd been sent by him in an effort to keep her safe from the horrific bombings that were devastating London.
Her husband, Dennis, had been gone for almost a year and although he wrote to her regularly she still missed her terribly, prayed daily for the war to soon be over so that she could have him at her side once again.
Their only child, Thomas, had joined the war effort almost as soon as Chamberlain had declared war against Germany in 1939 with dreams of becoming a war hero, remembered for all time for his heroic deeds.
He'd died in October 1942, aged just 19, during the Battle of Madagascar. He'd died a slow, brutally painful death after catching a strange disease and it was all for nothing. Nora knew her son would never be the war hero he'd dreamed of being... His name would never even be remembered.
The arrival of his military issue dog-tags, brought to the family home by one of his superior officers, informed his devastated parents that their son had meet an untimely demise.
Nora struggled to cope with her only child's death for a long time and eventually found some solace in the nursing position she'd taken up a London hospital, a position she'd been forced to give up after her husband had sent her to his countryside childhood home for her own safety.
Now the only solace she had were in the infrequent letters she received from her husband of over twenty years.
Dennis too, struggled with the grief he felt after losing his only son and started drinking heavily to dull the never-ending pain.
A former bomb-disposal expert from the Great War, he'd rejoined the army in late 1943 as a way to distract himself from his anguish.
Nora had been against it from the start, fearful that she'd lose Dennis like she'd lost their son, but knew she'd never be able to persuade her defiant husband not to go. She could hope that serving his country would give Dennis a constructive outlet for his grief and stop him from surrendering to the perils of alcoholism.
And that he'd return to her alive...
###
November 1944 and Nora had not received a letter from Dennis in over two months. She hadn't worried at first, knowing that Dennis was often unable to send her letters and that said letters frequently took weeks to arrive. As time went on however, and weeks turned to months, Nora realised just how much time had passed since she'd last heard from Dennis and began to agonise over the idea that her husband had suffered the same fate as their son.
Nora waited two agonising months before daring to voice her concerns to her neighbour and childhood friend of Dennis, Betty Spencer who was in much the same boat as her. Her husband Frank had been at war since early 1942 and she too only heard from her husband through the occasional letter.
"Don't fret Nora, I've not heard from my Frank for about a month either." Betty assured Nora as they returned from the butchers together one fine and clear winter morning.
Nora smiled politely, nodded her head, but inside she was screaming, inside she was almost certain that something awful had happened to her beloved husband.
"I guess I can't help but fret after losing Thomas..." Nora sighed, her eyes brimming with tears at the mere mention of her late son. "But I know that something's wrong, I can feel it Betty." she insisted, placing her hand on Betty's shoulder, forcing her friend to stop in her tracks and turn to face Nora.
She could see that her friend was serious, that she truly believed that something had happened to Dennis. Nora was pale and looked as though she'd not had a good night's sleep in weeks, dark circles ringed her eyes and her usually bright orbs were dull with fear.
"Nora, don't worry so, you'll only make yourself ill." she whispered, offering her friend what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "Dennis wouldn't want that..."
Dennis after all, had sent Nora to Scotland for her own safety, to protect her from the bombs that fell on London almost every night. It had been easier for him to go away to war and leave his darling wife all alone knowing that she was safe in Scotland. Had Nora been in London whilst he was away, Dennis would have most certainly gotten himself killed simply for fretting over whether Nora had survived the latest night of bombs dropped on the nation's capital.
"No." Nora agreed.
"There's no point in worrying until you know something is wrong Nora. Letters get lost, men don't often get a chance to write or send them... Mark my words, you'll have a letter before the week is out." Betty said cheerily, in such a positive manner that Nora could almost believe her. Almost.
Easy for you to say!She thought bitterly. I'm sure if you went so long without hearing from Frank, you'd be anxious too.For of course, Nora had been twice as long without hearing from her husband as Betty had.
"Aye, I'm sure you're right Betty." Nora nodded, despite feeling otherwise, desperate now to get away from the conversation she'd started. Betty smiled triumphantly and the women went on their way.
"They say the war will most likely be over by Christmas." Betty said as they approached the lane down which both she and Nora lived. "I hope so, I'm so sick of this war!"
Nora murmured an agreement, but otherwise said nothing. She was far too fixated on the figure that stood outside her front door. Even at such a distance away, she could see that it was a man in military attire but she was too far away to see just who that figure was.
Her heart skipped a beat as she wondered if it was Dennis, injured yet returned to her alive. It almost stopped dead when she wondered if it was one of his superior officers, come to return his dog tags and inform Nora that he'd passed away...
The closer she got to the figure at her front door, the more Nora was convinced that it wasn't Dennis. Dennis would have been looking out for her, would have come to her as soon as he'd seen her... And besides, the closer she got, the less the figure looked like her husband.
She soon dropped her basket, started hyperventilating, grasping desperately at her chest as she tried to keep control of her erratic breathing. Her efforts were in vain however, for it soon became apparent that the figure at her front door was not Dennis but a sombre looking solider holding the same sort of box that had contained Thomas' dog tags.
"Nora!" Betty cried as her companion dropped to the floor, as she started to sob and howl, her anguish pouring from her in a devastating manner.
"I knew it!" wept Nora, tears streaming down her cheeks, entire form quaking with the sheer intensity of her sobs, her eyes never once leaving the sombre figure at her front door, who was now approaching her an even grimmer look about his face. "He'd dead... Dennis is dead!" she wailed as she slumped against the hardened dirt below.
Betty's eyes followed Nora's and came across the sombre looking solider that was now approaching them and new Nora's words to be true. Dennis Baker was dead.
All too soon the solider was upon them, he saluted them both before turning to Nora.
"Mrs Baker?" he asked, although he could see for himself that she was the woman he'd been sent to see, the woman whose husband had died in battle, the husband whose dog tags he held in his hand.
Nora simply shook her head, refused to say a word, convinced that if she did not confirm that she was indeed Mrs Baker then she would not have to hear the man in front of her tell her that Dennis was dead and therefore, it would not be true... The solider however, upon receiving a nod of confirmation from Betty, spoke on anyway.
"I'm so sorry Mrs Baker..."
Nora heard no more; she didn't need to, she'd already known in her heart for some time that Dennis was dead but had denied it to herself until this very moment, when a confirmation of his dead, the arrival of his dog tags meant she couldn't deny it any longer.
Dennis was dead. Her beloved husband, who'd she'd been with now over twenty years for gone forever and she'd never see him again, would never curl up in his arms or feel his lips on hers ever again.
Nora at once became lost to her grief, to her despair. Nothing was clear, not visits from friends offering their condolences, not eating or sleeping, not even day and night. Everything was a blur to Nora, nothing clear in her grief stricken world.
She drifted listlessly from day to day, the ache in her heart and the very pit of her stomach never once letting up, her eyes were constantly awash with tears, her throat raw from the sobs that were often brought on by so little, or even nothing at all.
She often wanted to die, feeling now as if she had nothing to live for; her son, her only child was dead and now so too was her husband. She was all alone in the world...Nora however, did not go as far as to try and take her own life, as much as she wanted too, for she knew full well that neither Dennis nor Thomas would have wanted such a fate for her. Both of them would have wanted her to live and find happiness once again, but Nora knew that without them, happiness was now an impossibility. She was contented to live until her dying day mourning the loss of her son and her husband...
###
January 1945 gave Nora at long last, an outlet for her grief. Dennis was to be honoured for the part he had played in the war; a part that had saved a vast treasure from falling into Nazi hands. A memorial had been built for him and the other men that had died on the mission; a memorial that would be the closest thing that Nora would have to a grave to visit...
She couldn't help but smile just a little at the knowledge that Dennis had become the war hero that he'd never wanted to be; the war hero however that Thomas had very much wanted to be but had never quite been.
As the morning of the memorial wore on and Nora waited for the car that would take her there, she wandered aimlessly around her living room, eyeing the many pictures of her family that adorned the walls. Picture's of her and Dennis together, on their wedding day, with a young Thomas...She was soon flooded with memories of their life together; the whirlwind courtship, the ups and downs of their marriage...
###
January 1918 – 17 year old Nora was in London with her mother and father, who had been relocated to the capital after being promoted at work.
The young woman found herself at Kings Cross train station early one morning where she'd meet her Aunt who was visiting for the New Year.
While searching frantically for the platform, Nora stumbled across a train that was full of solders on their way to fight the war in France. Most of the few that remained on the platform were saying sad farewells to their wives and children, but one was all alone and he was staring straight at her, a soft grin on his lips.
He was an attractive young man of little more than 20 with a shock of black hair and thick scars on both of his cheeks.
Nora blushed at the attention, ducked her head, but did not walk away and kept her eyes fixated on the man who, it seemed, took her actions as some sort of encouragement and approached her.
"Hey there beautiful." he drawled in a thick Scottish accent. "You waitin' for someone?"
Nora blushed even more so, finding that the man's accent made him even more attractive, and shook her head.
"I-I'm lost..." she stammered out, before giving the details of her Aunts train journey, including the platform it was arriving on. Not once as she spoke, did Nora dare to look up at the man before her.
"That's the next platform over love." said the Scotsman, pointing to his left as he spoke. Nora gave a nod of thanks, risked a glance at the man who she was pleased to see was still staring at her, a smile on his lips, his cheeks the faintest pink. "Mettin' your fiancée aye?" he asked, a trace of nervousness in his voice.
The blush on Nora's cheeks deepened as she shook her head frantically. She couldn't believe the attractive man thought she had a fiancée!
"No, my aunt." she whispered, just as the final whistle for the Scottish soldiers train blew.
"Got a name beautiful?" asked the solider eagerly.
A rush of excitement swept through Nora, she couldn't help but giggle softly as finally, she allowed herself to look up at the man. He was still smiling at her, looking at her and the blush on his cheeks had deepened just a little.
"Nora..." she whispered, voice trembling. "Nora Sims."
"Dennis Baker." said the Scot with a nod of his head.
Then without so much as a warning, Dennis took Nora's hand and pressed a chaste kiss to it before winking and running for his train, managing to jump on just as it began to leave the platform. He stood in the door-well of his carriage as the train pulled away, a smile on his lips his eyes never once leaving Nora, his hand raised in a farewell gesture.
Nora, back on the platform all in a flutter, managed to smile back and give Dennis a small wave just as he pulled out of sight.
Nora was at once very much smitten with Dennis, but truly believed she'd never be so lucky as to see him again...
###
January 1919 and Nora was once again at Kings Cross Train Station, this time to see her Aunt off after her annual visit.
Her Aunts train left from the same platform on which she'd arrived a year previously, allowing the 18 year old to pause at the platform to its side on her way out to the car with a smile on her lips, her head full of the fond memory of Dennis Baker.
She wondered if he'd survived the war; if he was home safely and if he thought about her as much as she thought about him.
Even after a year, Nora was still smitten with the Scottish solider who had kissed her hand before going off to fight the war... She knew however that she'd never see the man again, that he'd most likely died in France. How wrong she was...
"Nora!" someone cried as the young woman made her way to the exit. Recognising the voice Nora gasped and turned around, not quite believing it was Dennis until she saw him; dressed more casually than before, in trousers and a shirt he was walking towards her with a broad grin on his lips, a cigarette between his lips.
Nora beamed at Dennis, blushed as before, lost in a state of disbelief and joy. Disbelief that Dennis here, in front of her, alive and well. Joy that he was, that he'd spotted her and approached her.
"Dennis." Nora nodded timidly, overcome with nervousness. She wondered what Dennis wanted. Surely he'd not come over just to say hello?
The Scot nodded in return and took a long drag of his cigarette. To Nora, he looked very much like a man that was trying to work up the courage to say something.
"I've been hangin' about here for days." He admitted, scratching at the back of his head nervously, his eyes focussed on the ground below. "I was hopin' to run into you again." He added, a touch of pink tainting his scarred cheeks.
Nora giggled softly in a mixture of surprise and delight; almost unable to believe that Dennis had hung around the train station in hope of seeing her again.
"You have the most beautiful laugh; did anyone ever tell you that?" Dennis asked, which only made Nora giggle even more so as she shook her head and went a violent red.
Dennis then took Nora's hand in his, kissed it softly like he had done a year previously. Nora hoped that he wouldn't notice how violently she was shaking.
"In fact, you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen in my life." Dennis informed her affectionately as he rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. "I haven't stopped thinkin' about you since we meet last year." He admitted bashfully, the faint pink on his scarred cheeks darkening.
Nora, thrilled by Dennis's admission, full of complete and utter joy, admitted the same in a timid and bashful tone that was all but inaudible.
"I'm glad to hear it." Dennis chuckled jubilantly. "Does that mean you'll agree to marry me then?" he asked, so boldly and full of confidence Nora almost said yes without thinking!
"What?" she cried in disbelief.
"Will you marry me Nora?" Dennis asked, confidence wavering ever so slightly.
"You're mad, you don't even know me." Nora insisted with a shake of her head, although she wasn't refusing the proposal, not at all. She knew already that she wanted to say yes, she just wanted first to know why Dennis had asked her.
"Aye I do, you're Nora Sims." Dennis grinned, running his thumb over Nora's knuckles once again. "You have a beautiful laugh and the most wonderful blue eyes I've ever seen." In that moment Nora and Dennis's eyes connected, Dennis's chocolate brown ones warm and full of sincerity; love.
"That hardly means that you know me." A blushing Nora insisted, despite how touched she was over what Dennis had said about her. Dennis however was adamant.
"Maybe, but I can get to know you, once we're married." He said with a simple shrug of his shoulders causing Nora to laugh.
"I haven't agreed to marry you yet!" she said, noticing a moment too late that she'd implied heavily that she would agree to marry Dennis.
"Yet..." Dennis said, letting the word roll of his tongue like it was the most delicious thing in the world. "I knew you were the girl I'd marry the moment I saw you Nora." He said frankly, kissing the back of Nora's hand tenderly once again, a warm smile on his lips that lit up his entire being.
"Is that so?" Nora asked, to which Dennis gave a swift nod. Nora shuddered as she tried to reign in her delight and keep calm; although she could do little for the broad grin that insisted on remaining fixed to her lips. "Ask me again..." she requested, to which Dennis gave no hesitation.
"Will you marry me Nora?" he asked, sounding if possible, even more confident than before.
"Yes." Nora grinned, nodding her head.
Before Nora had a chance to even contemplate what she'd just done, Dennis had stepped forward and pressed a sweet kiss to her lips...
###
Nora's parents had been shocked as anything when their daughter emerged from Kings Cross engaged to a man she'd only meet once before but were soon as enchanted by the Scot as Nora herself was and started planning their daughters union with glee.
Nora and Dennis married that spring in a small ceremony attended only by their closest relatives before settling in a small, two bedroom home in central London.
Their marriage was a happy one from the very start, the two of them as suited for one another as two people could possibly get. Nora was the rock that kept a slightly volatile and manic Dennis grounded; he likewise, allowed Nora to open up and find the confidence and poise within herself that she would never have hoped to find on her own.
Because of his history as a bomb disposal expert, Dennis was able to find a good job at a local factory re-wiring faulty products allowing the pair of them to live rather comfortably.
They soon started putting money aside for the baby they hoped soon to have and believed would no doubt arrive in not much time at all, for after all they were in very loving marriage and the lust between them was strong.
That baby however, didn't seem to want to come and it soon put strain on the couples happy marriage. Nora devastatingly believed she was unable to have children and as much as Dennis tried to console her, she remained heartbroken at the notion.
Dennis, who wanted a child as much as his wife, turned to alcohol to cope with the horrid notion that he and Nora might just remain childless. Something that put even more strain on their marriage... Whereabouts they'd used to spend their evenings curled up together on the sofa, reading the paper together, going out to dinner or too see a film, after Dennis's drinking got heavier, more frequent, they spent the evenings increasingly apart and the lust between them quickly started to die out.
###
September 1922.
Nora returned home from visiting a neighbour to find her husband near enough passed out on the sofa, a near empty bottle of whiskey on the table in front of him. It was Sunday and only 1pm, but the early hour didn't seem to have put Dennis off his drinking much at all.
Unable to nor wanting to hide her frustrations Nora sighed heavily as she eyed her husband before slamming the front door shut behind her as hard as she could, startling Dennis awake at once.
"Wh-what?" he mumbled drunkenly as he sat up with a start, his eyes wide and blinking as they adjusted to the bright afternoon light that was streaming in through the windows.
"Drunk again Dennis?" Nora asked curtly as she unpinned her hair, allowing it to tumble free onto her shoulders.
Dennis shook his head to rouse himself a little more and grabbed the bottle of whiskey from the table in front of him, took a long swig before answering his wife.
"So what if I am?" he shrugged. "It's Sunday Nora, leave off, it's not like I've got anythin' to do today." He added with a roll of his eyes, to which Nora tutted.
"No, nothing at all." She said sarcastically. "For it seems spending time with your wife no longer seems to be something you want to do." Tears filled Nora's eyes at her last comment; she just wanted her marriage back the way it had once been when all Dennis had wanted to do with his spare time was be with her doing anything from making love to her to merely just sitting with her and talking. As long as he was with her, that was all that mattered...
"Maybe if my wife didn't complain about me drinkin' so much, I'd want to spend a little time with her!" Dennis spat back, his volatile temper getting the better of him far quicker than usual.
"Dennis you come home late to me almost every night, stinking of whiskey and cheap beer!" Nora cried, tears spilling down her cheeks, which were red with frustration. "Do you really think I'd just sit back and accept that?" she asked, folding her arms tight across her chest in an effort to stop herself giving into her anguish and frustration completely.
"Christ, will you give it a rest f-" but Dennis was cut off mid-rant when Nora suddenly came over all faint; so suddenly she didn't have time to do much more than gasp in shock as her body crumbled to the floor. "Nora!" Dennis cried, anger gone in an instant as he rushed to his wife's side, panicked and scared for her welfare. "Nora, love, are you okay?" he asked as he dropped to his knees beside her and took both of her hands in his own, kissed her knuckles tenderly again and again as he waited for her to find it in herself to answer.
"I think so..." Nora nodded uncertainly. "I just came over all faint and then before I knew it, I was on the floor." She explained, confused as her husband was over the fact that she had fainted.
Dennis put a hand to Nora's forehead and scowled in confusion when he realised it was cool. Nevertheless he scooped Nora up in his arms before laying her down on the sofa and pressing his lips to hers.
For once, Nora didn't mind the taste of cheap whiskey on his lips; she was merely glad to have her loving and affectionate husband back, if only for a moment.
"There now Nora, you just lie back and close your eyes while I make you a cup of tea." Dennis insisted before kissing Nora again and going into the kitchen.
Nora nodded and did as Dennis said, for she was still feeling a little lightheaded, however as soon as she'd taken her first sip of the strong, sweet tea she was overcome with the urge to vomit and rushed to the sink, making it just in time before she emptied the contents of her stomach.
Dennis watched on worriedly, rubbed his wife's back and tucked her hair out of the way as she continued to vomit, tears streaming from her eyes the entire time.
Eventually, the vomiting let up and Nora sunk back into Dennis, limp, pale and shaking.
"You're really not well are you Nora?" Dennis asked, to which Nora simply shook her head. She felt awful; beyond awful, and she didn't want to dare open her mouth for fear that she'd start vomiting again. Dennis pressed his lips before leading Nora to the bedroom. "Best you try and sleep it off aye?" he said as he lowered her onto their bed before tucking the covers around her.
"Yeah..." Nora nodded before closing her eyes and trying to sleep.
Dennis stayed by her side all afternoon, occasionally tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear or kissing her cheek, worrying for her the whole while, convinced something was really wrong with her.
Dennis worried even more so as Nora's illness continued into the next day and the next, and the next until the point where Dennis had no choice but to beg Nora to go and see a doctor. Dennis could no longer stay off work to look after her and his concern for Nora was so strong that Nora agreed to go and see Dr. Matthews; but more for her husband's sake than her own.
"Nora?" Dennis called out as soon as he was in the front door the evening after Nora had visited her doctor. He was desperate to know why his beloved wife had fallen so ill and hoped that finally, they'd have some answers.
"You're home early." Nora grinned as she sauntered out of the kitchen, more colour in her cheeks than had been there for days. She looked happy, healthy... in fact she was practically glowing.
"Aye." Dennis nodded. He'd not been to the pub for the first day in weeks; even while home caring for Nora he'd slipped out to his local in the evenings whilst she'd napped. "I'm worried about you love, I want to know what's wrong." He explained.
Nora chuckled at that, which confused the hell out of Dennis and went to him, put her arms around his neck.
"Nothing's wrong with me." She said, the smile on her face increasing in size. "In fact, there's something very right with me!" she added which only served to confuse her husband even more so.
"Nora?" he said, eyebrow arched in confusion.
Nora chuckled again, took one of Dennis's hands and placed it on her stomach.
"I'm having your baby Dennis." She explained, tears of joy springing to her eyes.
"Are you serious?" Dennis asked, not quite believing his wife despite how much he wanted too. After all they'd been trying for so long now, with no success.
"I'm serious." Nora nodded. "We're going to be parents Dennis!"
At that Dennis cried out jubilantly, pulled Nora closer to him and kissed her deeply, with more passion than he had done in weeks. The news of her pregnancy had made Dennis happier than he had been in a long time. At last, they were going to have the child they'd always wanted...
"I love you so much Nora." Dennis grinned as he rested his forehead against Nora's. "You are going to be a wonderful mother." He informed her before kissing her again.
"Dennis, you are going to be an amazing father, I know it." Nora said before hesitating, chewing her lip as she contemplated how best to word what she had to say. She didn't want to start another argument. "But the drinking..." she began, stopping as Dennis began to nod his head.
"I know Nora, I know." He said, which surprised Nora greatly. Dennis had always insisted that his drinking wasn't a problem at all. "I'll stop I promise." He insisted, so fervently Nora believed him. "I don't want to miss our child growing up because I'm off at the pub every night..." he added.
Dennis, true to his word, stopped the drinking and kept away from the pub. For the first few days it made him ill, he shook and sweated, could barely hold down food but still, he kept away from the pub. Soon the illness passed and he and Nora were able to go back to the couple they had once been...
The further into her pregnancy Nora got, the harder it became for her, she was ill for increasing amounts of time and found herself unable to do much at all before she had to sit down to catch her breath, to still her swaying head. For the last three months of her pregnancy, she was confined to her bed on doctors orders who were concerned not only for her welfare, but for the welfare of her unborn child too.
###
April 1923.
Dennis came home from work one fine spring evening to find that his home was empty. He wandered from room to room calling out his wife's name, but to no avail. She wasn't in.
Before Dennis could panic too much however, he found a note pinned to the kitchen cupboard from Nora, simply saying – 'I've gone into labour, James next door is taken me to the hospital xx'.
Dennis rushed straight to the hospital and found his wife propped up in bed in the maternity ward, their child in her arms wrapped in a blanket, kicking and gurgling up at her. Dennis had never seen Nora look so happy, she may have just spent the last few hours in labour but she was grinning for all the world to see, her eyes sparkled and she just glowed! Dennis believed she'd never looked so beautiful...
"It's a boy!" Nora informed Dennis as she caught sight of him, standing nervously in the doorway, a proud smile curving his lips.
"I have a son?" he asked, unable to contain his excitement as he sauntered into the room and perched on the bed next to Nora. He kissed her on the forehead tenderly before casting his eyes down to the tiny bundle in her arms. His son, his beautiful son, who had the most dazzling little eyes, eyes that were identical to Nora's and a tuft of black hair already atop of his head.
"Yes." Nora nodded, beaming happily as Dennis stroked his sons cheek with his finger, an affectionate glint in his eye. "I want to name him Thomas." Nora added, for Thomas had been her father's name before he'd passed away.
"Thomas." Dennis nodded, agreeing with Nora. "I like it." Suddenly, in that moment, baby Thomas reached out and grabbed his father's finger with his whole tiny fist, squeezed it tightly. "My boy!" grinned Dennis, heart racing with pride and happiness.
"He loves his father already!" Nora stated, sounding pleased.
"Aye he does." Dennis nodded, kissing Nora's forehead again. "But I'm sure he loves his mother more." Nora said nothing, just nodded her head and sighed tiredly, leaned against Dennis as sleep started to consume her. "Rest Nora love, you need it." Dennis insisted. "I'm so proud of you..." he added, casting his eyes down to Thomas once again, knowing that his darling wife had gone through so much just to bring him into the world.
"I love you Dennis." Nora murmured before drifting off.
"I love you too Nora. You and Thomas."
###
Thomas was the first and indeed, the only child the couple ever had. After struggling for so long to have a baby and after such an awful pregnancy, the couple knew it was unlikely that they would ever be blessed with another child. They just allowed themselves to be grateful for the child that they did have. Both longed for more children, for a daughter at least, to round out their family nicely, but no more bundles of joy came along.
Thomas grew to be a happy and well loved child. He was a total mummy's boy but adored his father just as much and wanted to be just like him when he grew up. He was a smart boy that excelled in school, but struggled at first as he didn't like being away from his beloved parents.
The years were good to the small family, a steady income meant they lived comfortably and rather well, even throughout the troubled times in the 1930's. Dennis's job was a highly skilled one that not too many people could do, meaning he was pretty safe in his job.
The couple had to dip into their savings a few times during the 1930's, which caused more than a few arguments, but overall they remained rather happy and contented.
Dennis continued to drink the entire time, but it never became the problem it had been before. He was able to stop off at the pub for a pint on his way home from work before returning home to his wife and son, a little tipsy but for the most part, sober and clear-headed.
Their content and happy family lasted until 1939, when Chamberlain announced that England had declared war on Germany, when a 16 year old Thomas decided to fight for his King and country, just like his father had during the Great War...
###
January 1940.
Nora and Dennis Baker had just waved goodbye to their only child as he left to fight for his country in the Second World War. Thomas had chosen to spend one last Christmas with his family before joining the army and had signed up first thing on December 27th.
Nora had kept it together as she watched her son leave, but inside she was falling apart and as soon as Thomas's train pulled out of sight, she broke down and started crying.
"He'll be fine love." Dennis assured Nora as he placed a hand on the small of his wife's back, tried to pull her close so that he could comfort her. Nora shrugged him off at once and rather violently at that.
"No! No, don't you touch me!" she cried, spinning on her heel before waving an accusing finger at her husband. She looked livid, her glassy eyes were blazing, wide and she was shaking. "He is going to die and it's all your fault!" Nora screamed at her husband, her voice on the brink of utter hysteria. She was going to lose her baby boy and she just knew it...
"My fault?" cried Dennis, his initial confusion and hurt at the fact that Nora had pushed him away soon making way for his volatile temper. He didn't want Thomas to go away either, but if the boy wanted to fight for his country who was he to stop him? "How is any of this my fault?" he demanded, glaring down at his wife.
"Come on Dennis, you've spent his entire life feeding Thomas stories about how you fought in the Great War!" Nora said, arms folding tight across her chest. "You filled his head with stories of how you heroically defused bombs and saved the life's of your comrades'! He wants that, to be just like you!" For it was true, Dennis had always told their son epic war stories, tales of how he'd bravely defused a ticking bomb or how he'd rescued a fellow soldier from danger. Thomas had grown up wanting to be the war hero his father was...
"Did I tell him to join the army Nora? Huh?" Dennis asked, to which his wife said nothing. "No I fuckin' didn't! I didn't want him to go either but I wasn't going to try and stop him! The boy wanted to fight, let him fight!" Dennis would have begged his son not to go if he'd believed for a moment it would stop him, but once Thomas set his mind on something he did it, no matter what. There was no way either he or Nora could have stopped Thomas from going to war.
"But he's going to die Dennis!" Nora insisted, gripped by the idea that her son would die at war. She knew it was too happen and nothing could convince her otherwise. "My baby boy..." Nora added, dropping to her knee's as her anguish got the better of her.
"Our baby boy!" Dennis spat angrily. "He is mine too after all Nora." But Nora said nothing to her husband's comments; she just slumped to the floor and wept. And Dennis didn't do a thing to comfort her... he didn't want to.
###
August 1941.
Thomas had been from home for over 18 months and his parents rarely heard from him. He wrote to them whenever he could be a combination of being posted all over Europe, the thrill of being in the army and the many 'benefits'' that brought him meant he didn't get much of a chance to write home at all.
Nora and Dennis's marriage was falling apart and as much as they tried to make it work, tried to push past their problems the absence of their son in the still raging war drove a huge wedge between them.
Some days they could be fine, they could talk, laugh and make love like there was nothing wrong, but for the most part they barely said a word to one another, the most they communicated when they argued about their son.
Nora listened in horror to a report on the radio that detailed a battle in which even more British soldiers were killed. She had no idea where her son was in the world and she couldn't help but fear that her son was one of the brave men that had perished.
"Turn that off Nora, you'll only upset yourself." Dennis said, walking over to the radio and switching it off on his wife's behalf, not willing to sit back and endure another night of her panic and hysteria.
"I'll be worse if I don't listen Dennis; I need to know what it going on out there!" Nora spat back, switching the radio back on. Dennis marched back towards Nora and switched the radio off once again, glaring down at his wife threateningly as he did so. He looked so menacing, so scary, that Nora didn't dare switch the radio back on. Of late she was beginning to get more and more afraid of him and sometimes, she was convinced that he was about to hit her.
"They won't give out names on the radio Nora, so it's pointless to listen." Dennis informed her for what felt like the hundredth time. "There's no need to worry yourself, if something happens to him, they'll let us know." Dennis couldn't even say his son's name, it brought him too much grief. He missed his boy terribly, as much as Nora did.
"Something will happen to him Dennis!" Nora cried, lashing out at her husband. "If you hadn-"
"Not this again Nora! I don't want to hear it!" Dennis raged, cutting his wife off before she could once again, lay the blame of Thomas joining the army on his shoulders. "Don't you tell me this is all my fault, because it damn well isn't!" He then proceeded to grab a bottle of scotch of the side but when he was unable to open it, he hurled it angrily against the wall above Nora's head. It shattered and hundreds of pieces of glass and the contents of the bottle rained down on Nora, who was screaming and trying to protect her head.
"You're insane!" Nora wept, wiping away the tears in her eyes as she leapt to her feet and fled into the bedroom.
"You knew that when you married me Nora!" Dennis called after her, but his only response to that was the bedroom door slamming shut.
Dennis, more enraged than ever before, took his anger out on whatever he could get a hold of. He ripped pictures from the wall, kicked over the table, punched at the wall so hard his knuckles split... and all the while Nora cowered in the corner of their bedroom, weeping and rocking back and forth.
When his rage was gone, Dennis looked around the living room ashamed and embarrassed of himself. He'd let his temper get the better of him yet again and had scared poor Nora out of her wits, destroying much of the living room in the process. He was a terrible man...
"Nora?" he whispered, knocking on the bedroom door before walking in. Nora was in the corner, pressed up against the wall and tried to back into it more when Dennis walked in, covered her red and tear stained face with her hands. "Oh Nora... I'm so sorry love." He said, not daring to go near his wife for fear that she would lash out at him. "I'm just so worried about our boy and I can't fuckin' stand it!" he said, as if that justified his actions. He knew full well that it didn't.
"You're bleeding..." was all Nora said, gesturing at his knuckles which were steadily dripping with blood.
"Aye." Dennis nodded, not bothering to look down. "I needed to let some shit out..." Nora nodded at that, wiped her eyes and got to her feet. She pulled a first aid kit from the dresser and sat herself on their bed before patting the space next to her. Dennis reluctantly joined her.
"You shouldn't bottle all that rage up." Nora said simply as she began to clean up the wounds on Dennis's knuckles. "You should let it out once in a while, talk to me about it..."
Dennis just nodded at his wife's words, knowing she was right, and let her continue to clean and bandage his knuckles. He endured it without so much as a hiss of pain.
"I'm not one for talkin' about things..." he said once Nora was done. He didn't like to talk about his feelings, his hopes and his fears, not even to his wife.
"Try." Nora said before putting the first aid kit away and heading into the living room to tidy up. Not once did she look and Dennis, leaving him alone in the bedroom overcome with a sense of shame and self-loathing.
"Leave it Nora, I'll do it..." Dennis said a moment later after wandering into the living room, referring of course to the cleaning. He had been the one to make the mess after all.
"No I... I like to keep busy, it keeps my mind off..." she trailed off, unable to mention her son's name nor the fact that he was fighting in the war. Dennis nodded but nevertheless started to help Nora.
After a few minutes, five maybe ten, Nora stopped what she was doing and dropped the broom before bursting into tears and rushing at Dennis. He pulled her into his arms at once and held her tight, whispered words of reassurance and comfort in her ear, rubbed her back, kissed her tenderly before eventually leading her back into their bedroom and making love to her, driving all thoughts of their son out of their minds, at least for a little while...
And so their marriage continued, they fought; they made up, loved one another and hated one another.
Then the news they had both been dreading, fearing arrived...
I really hope you've enjoyed this story so far! The second part/end of this story will be up as soon as I've finished it.
Reviews would be really loved right now as my muse seems to have fucked off to another goddamn planet... hopefully it will return soon though!