C11 - The Truth Behind Us

When I was fifteen years old, I fell in love with a young man by the name of Thomas Michael Shelby. How did I know it? Well, the same day I realized I was madly in love with him, I also had to fall out of love with him.

It was a calm, dark autumn evening...

He walked me home, such handsy young teenagers we were. I almost want to laugh now.

We were inseparable. Tommy held my books, had my backpack hunched over his shoulder. He looked darling, his hair falling over his face as he sent me a crooked smile. And he managed to still throw his arm around my small frame, cuddling me up despite us spending so much time cuddling in his bed less than an hour ago.

"You look at the stars a lot." He comments, a low whisper in my ear. One that brings a tickle to my skin.

I get caught in the web of stars easily. Seeing horses galloping, children playing in the beautiful night sky. He doesn't see what I see. No, rather that, Tommy sees what the ordinary human views when they look up at the stars. Twinkling lights in a rather dark sky. 'That's your magic,' mother had informed me, I still remember her words, 'you, you're special, Bria. Don't you forget it. Strange things will begin to happen. This is just the beginning. You'll need to keep this a secret. The world, the people, they don't understand it.'

He doesn't understand it, I tell myself, wishing that I could somehow make him see the beautiful stars tat I see.

I dart my eyes up to his and poke at his side. "And you look at me quite a lot."

"Hah!" He pulls me into his chest. Thomas smells like sex. "You're the only thing I've got me sights on."

Tommy gives the top of my head a kiss as I intertwine my fingers with his. My heart jumps with so much excitement. He's lights me up, it's as easy as that. Somehow, he carried the light to my life.

"Love you, Bria." Thomas smiles.

I grin helplessly, cuddling into his chest. "Say it louder, so that the stars can hear you."

He looks up at the sky and hollers. "I love you, Bria!"

We always had a lot of time to be together. Sure, we were stupid kids, doing stupid things, but we always had that time together. Time for me to get to know Tommy, and time for him to get to know me. I fell madly in love with the interwoven traits he has, the heart and soul that came with the man I loved.

I knew he hated his dad, but he carries so many good memories to allow the bad to get in the way. Tommy was gentle, no matter how much his older brother wasn't. No matter how much he looked up to Arthur, unlike his brother, Tommy couldn't hurt a fly. But he said for his mum, he'd really contemplate hurting a lad if he ought to.

In the night sky, my eyes widen as all I can see is a pitch black evening. There are no more stars, I grow curious and look around feeling a certain emptiness. The wind picks up, leaves pooling around my feet. I'm bare foot, in a white nightgown. I shiver, wrapping my arms around myself.

"Tommy?" I ask, spinning around with caution. Where did he go?

I look at my bare arms wondering where the hell my coat was. And where was Thomas. I freeze once my eyes land on a tall man who stands directly across from me. I cannot see a face, but I see a figure of a man.

Before my eyes, a man stands to the end of the street. A man who looks exactly like Tommy, and yet so different. I freeze, paralyzed as he stands in the dark street. He stands under single lamppost, it flickers on and off, wearing a long coat, hat, he's skinny like Tommy. Is that Tommy?

As if he's trying to taunt me, he turns around and begins to walk away.

"Thomas?" I take a step towards him.

To my dismay, I cannot control my steps and find myself racing down the street to get to him. It's like I'm compelled to move, and nothing is more scary than the unwillingness in my heart, yet the motivation behind it.

Somehow, the closer I get, the further he goes. Turning around and cutting corners. Finally, he ends up at my family home which looks incredibly dull. The street lights aren't even on, and wonder about mum and dad. They should be home by now.

At this point, the stranger allows himself into my home, keeping the front door open for me. I follow him, and finally, when I do enter my house, I notice the boxes and emptiness of it.

I follow him into my kitchen, where he sits by the island on a stool. I look around wondering where mum and dad are. I need them right now, I need them. Damn it.

My eyes fix on his still body. My skin crawls with goosebumps, my hands trembling. I only realize then  that I am in fact looking at the older version of my Tommy.

"Thomas?" I whisper, I sound frail. Weak, and a heaviness carries me. Guilt.

"Bria?" He calls, looking at me with a questionable glare. The grown up version of Tommy says. It is Tommy, my shoulders drop. But my eyes remain wide, he looks so.... different. Tears roll down his precious face, he reads of so much pain. All I want to do is cure him of any kind of pain, and yet, I stand there paralyzed.

"She's-shes gone. She's dead," He mumbles this time, his head drops and my eyes follow. That's when I see the silver pistol that sits right in front of him on the island. "Bria," He slowly raises the gun from the countertop and pulls back the safety. "She's dead."

"Who?" My eyes well up instantly as he points a gun right at me. It's fully loaded. Ready to use. "Who is dead?"

"You fuckin' selfish-" I watch as Thomas, who is clearly completely fucking gone, drops the gun that was once in his hand. He rubs his face harshly, irrational. "Did you fucking-" he picks up the gun again, this time getting off the stool. He points the gun at me, as he stumbles off of his stool and can barely even walk. "Did you know?!"

"Thomas?" I whisper.

"Did you know?!" He screams, snot runs down his nose. His face damp with tears. "Did you know she was going to die?!"

"Tommy, I don't know what you're talking about!" I scream back, incredibly small. I step back, my hands shaking. I muster up the strength to raise my hands up at him defensively. "P-Please, don't point that at me!"

He reads of poison, like his min is so set. Even though I have no idea what he's talking about. "You fucking knew, didn't you?! You knew she was going to die, you, you, you-"

Bam! I'm thrown off balance and hit the floor with an intense burn trickling up my shoulder. I was shot, but thankfully it was only in the shoulder.

I watch as my white dress stains with blood. So much blood I instantly feel faint. But as if I was to be punished some more, the man of my dreams towers of me. The smoking gun still pointed at me, he wipes his tears with the back of his free hand, sniffling.

"You knew she was going to die and you didn't prevent it." He mumbles. Numb.

I raise my unwounded hand, shielding my face. Tears fill my eyes, I begin to weep helplessly. My palm is up to the barrel of the gun, but it's too late, Tommy fires twice.

I'm jolted awake in a gasp, back in the middle of Small Heath, with present day Tommy. It's a calm, dark autumn evening, Tommy has dropped my books and knapsack. His attention is on me, as he holds my shoulders, holding me as I sit up. I sob helplessly, hysterically. My entire body shakes, I've never had such a vivid dream before, but mother's voice comes back to me. You, you're special, Bria. Don't you forget it. Strange things will begin to happen. This is just the beginning. You'll need to keep this a secret. This world, the people, they don't understand it.

He grabs my arms, "Bria!" He sounds so relieved, engulfing me in a hug so tight, "Jesus, Bria! You fell, you fell and you wouldn't wake up! I was terrified!"

"Tommy!" I scream, I wail, I do everything I can to assure myself that what I have seen in my head is fake and not as real as it seemed to be. "Don't fucking touch me!" I scream, thrashing my arms out as if he were the enemy. "You-You tried to. You were going to. You-You!" I gasp, choking on my breaths because of how panicked I am.

"Stop!" He yells, concern races across his face. "What the fuck are you talking about, Bri'?"

"Don't fucking touch me!" I scream and get up. "Don't," I gasp, "Don't come near me, ever again!"

Gathering my books, I manage to leave some of my things on the ground. Unsure of what else to do, I run with all of my might back home. I run until I am home, I run straight into mothers arms and tell her everything.

She asks me if the incident felt real. I said yes, and she told me that I didn't hallucinate or dream. I saw into the future, and I need to leave England as soon as possible. Thomas was going murder me someday, and I needed to prevent that from happening. Not by expressing the truth and exposing him, mother said he'd never understand. Mother said I needed to leave England as soon as possible. So, two days from the incident, I was on a ship to Romania where I was to spend the rest of my life.

Well, the rest of my life until I got a letter that Tommy Shelby was going to marry a woman named Grace soon.