A/N
In the next season there'll be the 5th wedding anniversary of the Turners. As a huge Turnadette Shipper I'd love to see it to be mentioned. But I'm somehow afraid that it won't. So after years of only reading fanfiction and haven't written a single one in almost a decade I decided it's time to get back in the saddle again.
So here it comes: My version of what I'd like Shelagh's and Patrick's anniversary to be.
The idea was in my head for some time and while I started to write the story I was listening to "The greatest showman" soundtrack. It made me realise how perfectly the song "a million dreams" fit to the story of Shelagh and Patrick, so it became a part of this fanfic.
I hope you enjoy. It'll be a three chapter story. Feedback would be lovely.
All characters belong to Heidi Thomas and Neal Street productions, just borrowing them for some fun.
Thanks to bbcshipper for being my beta and encouraging me to publish this story.
A million dreams
"A million dreams" The greatest showman soundtrack
I close my eyes and I can see
The world that's waiting up for me
That I call my own
Through the dark, through the door
Through where no one's been before
But it feels like home
They can say, they can say it all sounds crazy
They can say, they can say I've lost my mind
I don't care, I don't care, so call me crazy
We can live in a world that we design
'Cause every night I lie in bed
The brightest colors fill my head
A million dreams are keeping me awake
I think of what the world could be
A vision of the one I see
A million dreams is all it's gonna take
A million dreams for the world we're gonna make
Early spring 1964
Morning at the Turners
She's always been an early riser, always awoken by the slightest dawn. But since she's been with him, she liked to just crawl a little closer to him and doze a little longer until the kids were awake and longed for her attention.
On this day Shelagh woke up with a smile and the warm feeling of being loved in her belly. She was on her side and opened her eyes. He was there, right next to her. The love of her life. Patrick. Today it's been five years since they became husband and wife. A happy end that took it's time. A happy end she longed for for so long, a happy end that she never hoped to dream of.
Shelagh wrapped herself around her sleeping husband and closed her eyes again. Right then the thoughts came back, almost like the dreams that hunted her for so long. The petite blonde was remembering the months where she couldn't actually name her feelings for the smart doctor, him kissing her hand in the community hall kitchen, the never ending swarm of butterflies that followed, her fear of dying without having been able to tell him how she felt, the lonely time in the sanatorium, his letters and the realization that she was not in the wrong place but living the wrong life.
Sleepless nights, so many thoughts, daydreams of a life so unknown to her, so adventurous, it almost drove her insane... it eventually stopped, when he was there years ago on that misty road, when he had found her after she got lost. Patrick, he loved her, and she loved him. They would build a life together. The sleepless nights were followed by dreams, dreams over dreams about how their future could be together.
Shelagh opened her eyes, the sun was creeping through the night skies. She looked once again at her husband. Her dreams might not all have come true in the way she expected them. But after all they built a life, a family together. It might not have been the traditional way, but it was their way. There were some downs and dark times, but there were also so many beautiful moments. Mrs. and Doctor Turner always found their way. And there was one thing Shelagh was very certain and proud of, her family was full of love.
With a smile on her lips she dozed off and was only awoken by the light touches of her husband, his fingers trailing up and down her arm. Patrick looked at her and reacted with the same loving smile she was still wearing. "Good morning my love, happy anniversary!" He leaned over and gave her a chaste kiss.
"Happy anniversary to you too, Patrick..." she paused for a brief moment, "Sometimes I can't quite believe this is all true. Sometimes I think I'm dreaming."
"You're not," Patrick poked her and she squeaked, "Psst, not too loud, I'd rather like to enjoy a little bit of my quality time with you."
Shelagh smiled and kissed her husband's cheek. Just now the blonde was wondering why they were still alone. The sun was out, the birds were singing, sure it was already late enough for their kids to be up. She listened and to her surprise Shelagh could hear her daughter talking. "Seems like Angela is telling Teddy stories." A feeling of sheer happiness filled her stomach. Her dream of carring a baby and giving birth took a long time, but in the end they were blessed with a precious baby boy that made their family complete.
Patrick smiled he took his wife closer into his embrace. "Let's hope they are entertaining themselves a little while longer."
The doctor felt blessed. All the nights he lay awake because he dreamed of her. A nun, the forbidden apple, a woman he couldn't have. He wouldn't have thought that five years later everything turned out just the way he dreamed it and he couldn't be more happy. "You know," he looked at the sleepy form next to him, "if that would be a dream indeed, I'd never wanted to wake up again. Because this is the best dream ever. This is our dream. I love you Shelagh."
Looking up at him, she said "I love you, too Patrick Turner." They were closing the gap between them, Shelagh smiled one of those cute smiles, Patrick got lost in her eyes, their lips just a mere millimeter apart.
"Muuuuuuuuummmmmmy!" A cry from the room next door interrupted them. Patrick groaned and rolled his eyes in best Turner style, Shelagh started laughing so hard, that tears were running down her cheeks. He looked quizzically at her, "Why are you laughing? This is serious, I had quite a few other things in mind," his voice dropped a few octaves. But even when she knew what he had in mind and she'd loved to to join him in his activities, Shelagh couldn't stop laughing.
She rolled away from him and looked at the ceiling. "You remember our camping trip? This reminded me of it... you know the time, when things got quite mushy between us, as Timothy would say, and then the kids tent broke down."
"Not funny, not funny at all Mrs. Turner," he pouted, but seeing his wife this way, laughing, happy, glistening in the early morning sunlight, he couldn't but love her. Patrick just managed to give her another peck on the lips, before their daughter once again, tried to catch her mothers attention.
"Mummy, is coming, darling." Shelagh got out of bed and into her dressing gown. Before she left the room, she leaned down to Patrick and kissed him. "I'll make it up to you tonight," The blonde whispered, before she was gone with a giggle.
Patrick laid back in bed. He was wondering what he had done right in the past that he was so lucky, to call this amazing woman his wife. With a look at the door, he made sure she wasn't coming back and leaned over to the drawer of his nightstand and opened it. He got the nicely wrapped box with his present for Shelagh. Usually he was very lame when it came to presents and more so often he forgot to get something prior and his last minute presents were probably never the best choice. But his wonderful wife never complained. Of course she never did. She was the best, too good for him, but she choose him anyways. This year was special, five years, he couldn't quite believe it. So this year he was not going to ruin the day and the surprise by just buying some flowers and chocolates. He was quite proud of himself.
From the hallway Patrick could hear his two younger kids excitingly talking to their mother. With a smile he got up. Yes indeed he was blessed, all his dreams came true. Before the doctor went down to join his family for breakfast, he put the present back in the drawer. He still had to figure out when he was going to give it to her. Patrick would have loved an evening with Shelagh, just the two of them. Or even just a quiet night, after the kids went to bed. He even made sure that he wasn't on call tonight.
But there was no alone time for the two of them. Their family, the nuns and nurses of Nonnatus had insisted of throwing them a little anniversary party. Neither of them could deny them the joy of it. So Shelagh and Patrick agreed on a night at Nonnatus, a family fete. Because other than themselves and their kids, they both had no other family left. Shelagh always considered the members of Nonnatus house her family ever since she joined the order over a decade ago. Patrick somehow was always a part of Nonnatus house as well, but after the wedding he became a real member of the family. And if he had learned something in his life, it would have been, that family and love were the things that mattered the most. So even when he'd loved a quiet night with his wife alone, he was looking forward to the party. And who'd know what the night would hold for them.
Even when it was the day of their fifth wedding anniversary, it was just like any other day. When Patrick came down the stairs into the living area, the scene was just the same as every other morning. Teddy was pushing his porridge around in the bowl, Angela was munching her cornflakes and chatting away and Timothy was sitting at the table more sleeping than awake. Shelagh was trying to get everything in place and everyone ready in time. It was just like any morning when your family contained a grumpy sleepily teenage boy, a happy talkative four year old and a toddler. Patrick was amazed how easy it seemed for Shelagh to get everything organized. He'd never understand, but he didn't have too, he had his wonderful wife. An overly proud smile played around his lips.
Eventually the morning and day would go on, their wedding anniversary or not, they had patients to attend and work to do. They would have wait till tonight for a little celebration. So over his first cup of tea they discussed their plans for the day. From the outside the scene might have seemed chaotic. But thanks to his wonderful wife it was their usual chaotic organized morning routine, that succeeded in everyone being ready in time. Patrick kissed Shelagh goodbye and earned a dramatic eye roll from Timothy before he made his way to the surgery.