Disclaimer: I do not own anything Peaky Blinder related, that belongs to the series creator Steven Knight.
Chapter Seven: Give Them Time.
Clutching at the cup of tea that Polly had handed her, Rosemary tried to wrap her head around how badly the meeting with her parents had gone; she had no idea how things had spiralled so badly. Of course, Rosemary had held no illusion that her parents would be upset about her marriage to Thomas but she had hoped even if it was silly that they would accept that she had married Thomas.
There was a war on and so many around them were making the same decisions, it made sense to marry Thomas when she had no idea what else the future might hold for them. The kitchen was silent and Rosemary wasn't sure what was worse right now; she knew that Thomas had left her at Polly's and she doubted he would be back anytime soon. Polly was sat across the table from her and neither of them had said anything since she had sat down; they both were lost deep in their thoughts about what the future held for them now.
"Have you thought much about what you will do now?" Polly asked, there were only a few days left before Thomas would leave for war and she knew that would leave Rosemary nearly alone. It wasn't going to be easy especially since they had barely been married for more than a day and Thomas would be leaving her for God knows how long. They kept saying the war would be over by Christmas but Polly didn't believe that for a moment; the newspapers were filled with lies as far as she was concerned about what was happening over there.
"Not really… I still have my job at the store and we planned to just stay living at Tommy's," Rosemary said looking at Polly, she couldn't imagine how things would work with Thomas gone but she was going to have to work that out quickly. Thomas would be leaving in three days and nothing would stop that, Rosemary would pray for his safe return and that of everyone else that went away.
Nodding her head, Polly sat back in her seat and hoped that would be enough especially with everything that would happen with the boys going away; they would be left behind to run things while they fought in the war. The sound of someone knocking on the front door confusing them both since they weren't expecting anyone; it was quiet outside and Polly knew if it was one of the family, they'd just come on in.
Getting to her feet, Polly headed for the front door to see who it was; she paused at the sight of one of Rosemary's younger sisters and the bags that sat at her feet. Pausing for a moment, Polly was unsure what to do especially after what she had heard about the argument had taken place; she looked back at Rosemary before signalling for her to come to the door.
"Yvette?" Rosemary asked surprised to see her younger sister, she hadn't expected to see anyone after what had happened that morning and she wondered what was going on here. Yvette offered her a small smile, she had volunteered to bring Rosemary her things now that she wasn't going to be living in the family home and living with Thomas instead.
It hadn't been easy especially with Colleen being her over helpful self, she had been trying to throw Rosemary's stuff out so that she and Peter could have her bedroom. Yvette had been the one to offer to take Rosemary's stuff, no matter what her sister had done; she didn't deserve to have her things thrown away like they meant nothing.
"I wanted to bring you your things," Yvette mumbled feeling awkward under the gaze of Polly Shelby, her mother had nothing to say about the woman and she knew that it wouldn't help now that Rosemary had married Thomas. A lump formed in Rosemary's throat as she looked down at the bags that contained her personal belongs, she was relieved to see that they hadn't been thrown out like she had expected them to be. There wasn't much and Rosemary could only imagine what would have happened to her things if Yvette hadn't brought them to her; she was sure that she wouldn't have seen them again.
"Congratulations on getting married," Yvette said wanting Rosemary to know that someone was happy for her even if their parents weren't happy right now. Yvette and Ellen had been upset to hear that their eldest sister had gotten married, not because of who she had married but the fact that they hadn't been there to watch it happen. They would have happily supported her decision to marry Thomas even against their parents' wishes; they would have loved to have seen her get married just like they had Colleen.
"Thank you," Rosemary said offering her a small smile, she wasn't sure what to expect from her family from now on; she would have to deal with the fall out sooner or later. There were bound to be whispers about what had happened and Rosemary wasn't sure what people would be saying; she wasn't going to change her mind about Thomas and her decision to marry him.
"Give them time… they're in shock right now," Yvette encouraged softly, they would need each other during the war and she doubted that their mother would stay mad when she would have to deal with managing the house alone. Colleen was far too wrapped up in her own world and she would have to deal with the fallout of the fact that Peter wouldn't be fighting in the war as was expected of men right now. Turning and heading down the street, Yvette hoped that things would work themselves out soon; she had a feeling that this war was going to change things for them in many ways.
Stepping into the house, Thomas pulled off his cap and hung it at the door before shrugging off his coat; it was nice to be home and he had been surprised to hear from Polly that Rosemary had come home. It had been a long day and things weren't easy especially with time running out before he left for war; he would be followed by John who was also being deployed for the war.
The small house smelled amazing and Thomas was surprised, this wasn't what he had been expecting when he returned home; his stomach grumbled at the smell. Heading towards the kitchen, Thomas paused at the sight of the meal that had been set out for them; it made him think about what life would be like if he didn't have to leave for war.
It allowed him to dream of the future that they would have and he couldn't help but smile at that; the idea of them having a couple of children that would run to the door to greet him when he returned home while Rosemary finished dinner. Thomas knew that, that thought would be the one to get him through the war that he was going to fight; he was determined to come home and see that happen.
"I made dinner," Rosemary said smiling, she didn't want to sit around and mope when their time was running out; Thomas wasn't going to be here for much longer and she didn't want to waste any time that they had left together. God only knew when they would be reunited and Rosemary would pray nightly for his safe return; she couldn't imagine what lay across the channel waiting for him.
"I'll just wash up," Thomas replied looking forward to the meal, he was starving and the idea of spending the evening with his wife thrilled him. Soon he would have to leave for war but right now he wanted to focus on his time with Rosemary.
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