The Queen Of Birmingham

12.

12. ghost of you
'dancing through our house with the ghost of you.'
~

Thomas was smug as he and Ivy walked back to his home. Before she had gone back to her side, he was worried that she didn't reciprocate the feelings he had for her. However, now she had come to visit him the first excuse she got, he was confident the feeling was mutual.

Entering his house, Tommy removed his own coat before helping Ivy out of hers without even thinking about it. As he went to hang them both on the hook, he heard a clatter from his room upstairs.

"Wait here." He whispered to Ivy, holding his hand out while the other reached into his halster for his gun.

Ivy obeyed, staying in the hall but holding her own gun so that she was ready to leap into action should Tommy need help. She observed the plain walls which hadn't changed colour since she lived here. It looked as though the house hadn't been lived in since she left all those years ago. A thick layer of dust covered every surface, the furniture looking as though it was about to fall apart.

A fair few minutes passed and Ivy hadn't heard any commotion and so she assumed it was safe to follow Tommy up the stairs. As she rounded the corner, facing what used to be her bedroom, she saw John sat alongside Tommy on the bed.

"Ivy?" John asked, confused. "What are you doing here?"

"She's here for the business we have tomorrow." Tommy answered. This was news to Ivy but she played along, noticing that John was upset.

Tommy wasn't lying completely, he was planning on asking her to stay for the business tomorrow. Although, that certainly wasn't the reason he'd asked her to stay the night. "Tomorrow." Tommy continued. "We finish the war with the Lees for once and for all."

"Since when?" Ivy asked.

"Since just now." Tommy glanced over to her, his eyes saying that there was more to this than what he was telling John. Placing his cap on his head, John began to walk out the room. Passing Ivy on the way, he lazily hugged her with one arm, whispering a 'goodnight' in her ear.

Tommy and Ivy stood in silence until they heard the front door slam shut. Ivy was still awkwardly leant against the banister of the stairs as if this hadn't once been her own home. Tommy was stood by the door to his room, silently beckoning her to join him.

"What's really happening tomorrow?"

"John boy is getting himself a wife."

"Serious?"

"Serious. He's marrying a Lee girl." Ivy smirked, impressed by Tommy's plan. Pushing herself off the banister, she walked into the room and began looking around. Just like the rest of the house, it remained unchanged.

"Never thought I'd see you in this room again." Tommy almost whispered as if he was speaking to himself.

"Nothing's changed."

"Well I didn't want to redecorate without your permission." Ivy smiled, looking over to the man who was now sat on the bed while she stood over him.

Looking up at her, his heart melted at the sight. Her hard exterior had disappeared once she entered the place she once called her home. She resembled the girl he loved, a girl he couldn't resist.

Gently, he pulled her down by her hips so that she was leaning on him in a way that made their faces level. Reaching up, he gently placed his lips over hers, reaching one hand up to tangle in her hair while the other firmly gripped her hip. They stayed tangled in eachother for some time before Tommy took it too far.

After deepening the kiss slightly, he encouraged her to lay on the bed. Ivy suddenly felt the reason she left drag her back from him until they were completely separated. Tommy didn't question her actions, knowing she would tell him if she wanted to.

Without saying a word, Ivy moved over to the chest of draws which housed Tommy's clothing. She pulled out one of his undershirts which would be huge on her. Quickly removing her dress, she put on the top. Tommy had looked away, not wanting to push any more boundaries. Getting into bed, he pushed himself against the wall to leave enough room for Ivy to fit in comfortably next to him.

He stared at the ceiling which turned black once Ivy had turned off the light. She placed herself carefully beneath the sheets so that they were only just touching, not enough to be suggestive.

"I didn't cry during the war." Tommy spoke, keeping his gaze fixed on the ceiling. "But I cried after." Ivy couldn't think of anything to say in response, she simply joined Tommy in looking up at the ceiling. "In this bed I laid and cried for nights on end because you weren't here. The whole war I told people about you, my shining light guiding me home. I kept a picture of us in my pocket the whole four years, it was in pieces by the end because I looked at it so often. And yet when I returned, you had gone and I didn't even know why. So I laid and cried not about the friends I watched die but about you. Because at least I knew why all those men had left my side."

By the end of his rant, the pair were both silently crying to themselves. A wave of guilt flooded Ivy as she knew it was killing him not knowing why she left him. She wanted desperately to tell him but now just wasn't the time.

Instead, she rolled over so that her front was pressed against his side. Placing an arm over his stomach, she buried her head into his chest. He let his arm fall down her back, securing her position next to him. With his face nestled in her hair and tears still staining his cheeks, he slept more peacefully than he had since the day before the war started, since the last time he had shared a bed with Ivy.