A/N: If you haven't already read Eternally Yours, please do so before reading this. The plot is dependent on the events from the first story. Thanks! :)
ADD. NOTE: Once again, the face claims are as follows... Tommy = young-Jason Barry (obviously), Shannon = Saoirse Ronan, Joseph = young-Hugh Jackman, Rory = young-Charlie Stewart, Carrick = Domhnall Gleeson, and Mary = Isabelle Allen :)
Rolling Clouds
June 12th 1913.
It had been over a year since the RMS Titanic had tragically sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic, and a lot had changed for the O'Neal-Ryan clan since then.
On this particular summer night, a storm was starting up over the city of Chicago. The sky was dark gray with dark, puffy clouds and large raindrops began to beat heavily against the glass of the kitchen window of their dingy, little flat.
19-year-old Shannon O'Neal-Ryan was inside cooking a nice supper of potato stew and beer bread while she waited for the men to arrive home from work. She bounced her infant son, Seamus Nolan Ryan, on her hip as she stirred the soupy liquid around in a large pot.
"Can I be of any help, Mrs. Ryan?" 11-year-old Mary Fitzgerald offered, walking into the kitchen with a pile of dirty clothes in her hands.
"If ye wouldn't mind, Mary, I'd be very appreciative if ye could slice the bread," Shannon replied, nodding towards the loaf of bread she'd just made.
"Of course, Ma'am." Mary smiled happily as she grabbed a small knife and went over to help slice the bread. She greatly enjoyed helping out in the kitchen. Before she'd lost her mother, she used to help her in the kitchen all the time.
"Thank ye, sweetheart." Shannon smiled back as she tapped the spoon against the side of the pot. She was so glad to have some help around the house, especially with the cooking and the cleaning.
She brushed a loose strand of her long strawberry blonde hair out of her face and wiped her hands on her apron, then looked out the window. Her bright blue eyes were wide as she watched the violent winds whipping the rain around in different directions. She sighed heavily as anxiety began to overcome her. All she wanted was for the men to come home. She was so worried about her little brother, husband, and brother-in-law being out in such weather as the storm continued to worsen. Please, God, after everything we went through last year during that horrible shipwreck, the last thing I need is for my loved ones to be hurt in some stupid, bloody storm, She thought.
Suddenly, there was a loud clap of thunder that seemed to shake the entire flat, and a huge streak of lightening could be seen out the window. Baby Seamus' little eyes widened in fear and he began to wail loudly in his mother's arms.
Shannon planted a soft kiss on her son's little face. "It's all right, baby, Mammy's right here," she cooed, rubbing his back in a soothing circular motion.
She was grateful to be holding her sweet, little infant, as he had such a calming effect on her. She knew that she couldn't break down in front of him, that she had to keep herself together as not to frighten him even more.
"Don't worry, Mrs. Ryan, I'm sure they will be here any minute now," Mary piped up, carrying the beer bread over and placing it on the kitchen table.
"I hope so, Mary, I really do," Shannon responded, stirring the stew again and grabbing a few bowls to pour it in.
Mary just smiled, her soft blue eyes twinkling in the dim lighting of the room. She tucked a loose strand of her long golden blonde hair behind her ear and went back over to grab some butter to put on the bread. She knew that everything would be all right.
Shannon started pouring the stew into separate bowls and placed a spoon in each of them. She looked out the window once more and shook her head. She just wanted the men to come home so that she could stop worrying.
Suddenly, the front door burst open, and she turned sharply on her heels to see who it was. It was her little brother, 13-year-old Rory O'Neal, with a huge grin spread across his face despite the fact that he was soaking wet. His bright red hair clung to his forehead and his clothes were almost see through, so she wondered what in the world he was so happy about.
He pulled his first paycheck out from behind his back and waved it around in the air with excitement. "Look what I've got! Mister Kendrick said I've been such a huge help selling the newspapers and the bread so he gave me some extra money too!" he yelled, his bright blue eyes absolutely twinkling with delight.
"That's wonderful!" Shannon smiled warmly. "I'm glad yer enjoying yer new job, I know how much ye wanted to go to work like the big boys," she said, relieved to see that her little brother was home safe and unharmed.
"Eye, I love it so much!" Rory grinned widely. "I'm officially a man now, I pay the bills too," he said, happy to see his sister after a long day at work.
He sat down at the kitchen table beside Mary and helped himself to a slice of beer bread. He buttered it and shoved it in his mouth and then opened up the latest copy of the newspaper to read the comics section.
Hearing another click, Shannon immediately turned her gaze towards the door again. Sure enough, it opened, to reveal her brother-in-law. 26-year-old Joseph Ryan stood in the doorway, looking reminiscent to a sewer rat with his dark brown hair that clung to his forehead and his warm yet alert amber eyes that eyed their supper greedily. His clothes, too, were soaked to the point of being nearly see-through.
"Eye, I'm starving, it was a hell of a long day!" he exclaimed, plopping himself down at the table across from Rory.
"Where's Tommy?" Shannon asked abruptly, her heart dropping to her stomach. The two brothers always arrived home together and she immediately thought of the worst possible scenario as to why her beloved husband was not there.
"He's helping a friend of his move into his flat." Joseph shrugged casually, he didn't seem terribly concerned. He didn't understand why his sister-in-law looked so upset.
At this, Shannon crossed her arms and scowled. It would be the third time that week that her husband was late for supper. The third time that week that he had scared her out of her wits. But she held her composure.
"Well the stew is ready, help yerself to the beer," she said, sitting down at the table as well and putting the baby in his high chair beside her.
"We're not waiting for Tommy?" Rory looked confused as he poured himself a glass of warm milk. It wasn't like his sister to start eating until everyone was sitting around the table together.
"No. The stew will get cold if we wait that long." Shannon looked upset as she helped herself to the beer bread. She didn't understand why her husband was so inconsiderate these days. After all, she had cooked the stew special for him, as she knew it was his favorite.
The family ate their supper in an awkward silence, as they all sensed that there would be a fight later when Tommy finally arrived home. It had been three days since the couple had even kissed. Sure enough, when the door opened half an hour later, the atmosphere in the tiny flat was as heavy as a rock.
22-year-old Tommy Ryan stood in the doorway, his soaked, light brown curls clinging to his forehead and his warm hazel eyes tired. His khaki colored trousers were so wet that they looked almost brown, and his white shirt was see-through.
Shannon stood up from the table and put her hands on her hips. "I hope ye like yer supper cold, because fer the third bloody time this week, that's how yer getting it!" she snapped at her husband.
Tommy sighed miserably and crossed his arms. "Well excuse the hell outta me fer working me arse off to pay the bills around here! And tonight I was trying to help a good friend o' mine move into his new place, is that so terribly wrong?" he snapped back at his wife.
"Eye, it actually is when ye scared me to me wits end twice this week thinking something had happened to ye because ye didn't come home and then being inconsiderate enough to just miss supper again so ye can help someone else's family but not be with yer own!" Shannon screamed at him, warm tears forming in her eyes.
"I'm sorry fer scaring ye but sometimes a man's got to do what a man's got to do! Perhaps I was working overtime those two nights to make a bit o' extra cash around here, and tonight I was just trying to help a friend, can we drop this please?" Tommy roared back at her, his face reddening with fury.
"No, we can't drop this! I've been feeling completely under-appreciated by you these days and I am fed up, Thomas Ryan!" Shannon yelled as she picked up their tiny son out of his high chair. "I'm feeding the baby then I'm going to bed, leave me the hell alone," she huffed, storming off into their bedroom and slamming the door behind her.
"Fer God's sake, Shannon, yer overreacting!" Tommy shouted as he sat down at the kitchen table and slammed his spoon into his bowl of stew. He took an angry bite and then glared at the rest of the family, daring them to say a word.
In the bedroom, Shannon was crying while she fed the baby. She was starting to feel homesick for Ireland because of how inconsiderate her husband was being towards her these days. I come with him to America and this is how we end up? She wept miserably.
She planted a soft kiss on the baby's forehead as his little blue eyes began to close sleepily. "At least you still love yer mammy, sweet boy," she whispered, cradling him gently in her arms.
Even though her husband wasn't treating her very well lately, at least she still had their tiny son to hold and love. Seeing his little face staring back up at her almost made her even sadder. She and Tommy had originally planned to have six children, and she so hoped that their relationship wasn't ending already so that they could continue to make their family grow.
"Do ye want Mammy to sing to ye, baby?" she cooed, to which the baby just blinked his wee eyes again. She managed a weak smile and started to sing to him. "Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, too-ra-loo-ra-li. Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, hush now don't ye cry. Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, too-ra-loo-ra-li. Too-ra-loo-ra-loo-ral, it's an Irish lullaby."
The infant cooed loudly and nestled his little face into her chest as his eyelids fluttered closed. "Goodnight, precious baby," Shannon whispered, kissing his forehead again as she climbed out of bed and placed him gently in his crib to go to sleep.
Suddenly, the bedroom door creaked open, and her husband entered the room. Tommy looked a bit calmer than before, but his eyes still held a glimmer of fury. Crossing his arms, he whispered, "Oh sure, make me look like the bad guy why don't ye?"
"Our son is asleep and I have nothing else to say to you," Shannon hissed in reply. She re-buttoned her nightdress and sat down on the edge of the bed with a frown.
"Ye must have something to say, considering all yer bitchin'," Tommy grumbled back. He started to un-button his trousers and leaned against the wall with a scowl.
"Well if ye must know, I cooked tonight's supper special fer you, and then ye didn't even have the decency to come home and eat with us," Shannon snapped under her breath. "I can appreciate ye being hospitable and helping out a friend, but not at the expense of causing problems in yer own family... ye knew how upset I was that ye'd already missed supper twice this week and ye went ahead and missed it a third time," she ranted furiously, standing up and stalking across the room.
"I work me arse off all day on the harbor to bring home me pay and support this family, I don't deserve to be made out as the bad guy here. I'm sorry I didn't come home earlier tonight, but yer so damn stubborn ye won't just bloody drop the subject," Tommy explained angrily, blocking the doorway.
"Well guess what, I work me arse off all day cooking and cleaning and caring fer our son, and I deserve a bit more respect than I get too!" Shannon wept, holding a hand to her forehead. "Jaysus, we used to be so happy just a year ago, now everything is completely falling to pieces!"
"I'm sorry if things didn't end up the way ye'd thought, sweetheart, but real life isn't full of fairy tale endings," Tommy snapped, clenching his fist. "I've got obligations that I need to uphold, I can't just sit around and kiss ye all day, I'm sorry!"
Shannon shook her head at his lack of understanding. "All I'm asking for is a bit of recognition fer all that I do around this bloody place! I respect you fer working hard at yer job all day, so why can't ye show me the same gratitude fer all that I do around the house and to take care of our baby?"
Tommy slapped his forehead as he realized that he wouldn't win this battle. He knew that his wife had a point and that he'd been seriously neglecting her as of late. His heart dropped to the pit of his stomach, as he'd never meant to upset her, he loved her more than anything in the world.
"Yer right, sweet, I'm sorry." He hung his head in shame.
"Eye, love, ye should be." She crossed her arms with frustration.
The young couple stared at each other in silence for a few moments, before Shannon spoke again. "I'm going out, don't ye dare follow me," she huffed, storming out of their bedroom and slamming the door behind her.
"But it's raining! And there's thunder and lightening! Are ye mad, woman?" Tommy roared, throwing open the door and charging out into the kitchen.
They were met with curious eyes from their family members, but no one dared to speak a word. Everyone knew better than to get involved in one of their heated arguments. Not only was there a storm outside, but there was now one inside as well.
"I'll be back in the morning to feed the baby, goodnight," Shannon hissed, grabbing her shawl off the hook and rushing out into the stormy summer night.
"Wait a second, fer God's sake!" Tommy shouted, not bothering to grab his coat as he charged out the door after her and slammed it behind him.
The sky was pitch black and every few seconds, a streak of lightening would cut across the sky above the various skyscrapers. The rain poured down heavily against the ground and loud thunderclaps could be heard frequently from far away.
Shannon ran through the crowded city streets, in nothing but her shawl and nightdress. She didn't care how soaking wet she was getting, or that people were probably watching her with their judgmental eyes, all she cared about was finding a place where she could sit alone and completely let her feelings out in private.
She could hear Tommy screaming her name along with profuse apologies, but she didn't care at that point, she was far too hurt. She wanted to get as far away from him as possible.
Tommy charged down several blocks in the storm, desperately trying to catch up with the love of his life. He'd nearly slipped a few times on the wet ground but he had to keep going. He refused to give up on their relationship, as he knew he was nothing without his better half, so he continued to apologize and scream her name.
Finally, he could see Shannon slowing down, and he mustered up everything he had to catch up with her. He just wanted to be close to her again. Just as she was about to collapse onto the ground, weeping, he caught her in his arms.
"Look at me," he ordered gently, tilting her chin so that they were staring into each other's eyes.
"Why?" she asked weakly, pushing his hand away so that she could avert her gaze.
"Because I'm only going to say this one time," Tommy answered. "I'm sorry fer being the biggest bloody eejit in the whole wide world, and I promise ye now that I'm going to treat ye right again. Ye mean everything to me, absolutely everything, my world would be cold and empty if it weren't fer you in it," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"I... I don't even know what to say right now, ye hurt me so bad," Shannon wept, burying her face in his soaking wet shirt.
"Then don't say a damn thing," Tommy said, engaging her in a soft yet passionate kiss. "Just know that I love ye, and that no matter what happens, we're invincible together," he whispered in a single breath, before his lips crashed against hers again.
As the happy young couple kissed in the rain, they had no idea that a stranger in a hat was watching them from behind one of the buildings.
Please let me know what you think! Your feedback means the world to me! :)
