H a r d l y , [Tom Hardy Fanfiction]

Chapter 4

"Hell yeah, we're gonna have the time of our lives!"

Amanda yelled out, her head sticking out the window as we drove towards the restaurant. I wasn't quite sure what she was talking about, we were on our way to an uptight Italian restaurant- not a club or even a bar, for that matter.

I was sat in the middle with Amanda to my left and Tom on my right, grinning at the crazed blonde. "Just how much did she have to drink?" he questioned, his elbow leaning down on the sill of the open window.

I shook my head, sighing before leaning to rest my head on Tom's shoulder, "I haven't the slightest clue, but I can only hope that she hasn't drunken through my entire stash."

I stared out into the front window, watching the driver stop at a red light.

Tom's shoulder was warm, or perhaps it was just him that was warm, but for a moment my eyes shut, and I almost didn't want to open them again. I was undoubtedly tired, not even from a long day, but simply from the day's events. If Amanda knew, she'd probably laugh, and find it absolutely ridiculous. It had only been a year or so since my last relationship ended, and since then I hadn't even stepped foot near the dating scene, so you could say I'd been 'out of practice' for quite a while. That being said, suddenly having a man thrust into my life isn't and wasn't exactly going to knock me off my feet, nor would it warrant me becoming drained from it. No, it was rather the feeling this particular man brought with him. The feeling of warmth and comfort, perhaps even the very feeling of him being near....

I looked up at Tom, meeting his eyes as I did. He'd been staring, but only smiled down at me warmly when caught. "What?" I asked, furrowing my brows.

"Your head's on my shoulder"

I shuffled in my seat, removing my head from his shoulder and adjusting to lean onto Amanda instead, who was now seemingly out cold and snoring quietly with her head leaning by the window sill.

Before I could lean to the other side, an arm wrapped around my shoulder, pulling me back. "No, no, lean on me."

The warmth of his chest filled me with a sense of total comfort... I couldn't possibly explain it right but... he felt like home. He had his arms wrapped around me, his head now resting atop of mine as he began to brush down my hair. "I thought you minded."

A light chuckle escaped him as he smiled down at me, "Ahh... no, I was just surprised."

"Is it surprising?"

"That you rested your head on my shoulder? It's forward, for how it's been so far..." Lowering his voice he continued, "It's been me acting on my own impulses."

Smiling, I brought a hand up and patted his cheek, "you know it's not so bad. You read situations - it's not just you that wants."

I looked up at him, finding him wide eyed with a big grin on his face. "Oh... what now?"

He shook his head, "You didn't seem confident 3 hours ago"

I huffed, "It's not that I'm not confident, Tom. I'm not... I'm not good with people-"I shook my head, casting my eyes towards the floor, "No... You can't believe that, I work in an industry of people." I sighed.

His hands found their way down into mine, and I felt him wrapping his hand around mine, his thumb brushing it comfortingly. "I'm not so shy. Rather, I'm more wary than anything. How am I supposed to react?" I closed my eyes, feeling ever so comfortable, I repeated, "I'm not so shy."

"You have been wary of me." He moved his head down, resting it down on my shoulder and whispering into my ear.

"I work for you"