The feeling of a wet cloth being placed on Iris's forehead woke her from her sleep with a start. In front of her sat Ada Shelby, who looked about as startled as Iris felt.
"Bloody hell, you gave me a fright." Ada said with a skittish edge to her voice.
Iris's right eye could hardly open due to its vicious swelling, and the events of last night suddenly hit her like a train. "How's Tommy?"
Ada hesitated. "He's not too good, Iris. Cracked ribs by the look of it, and his face is all busted up. Your mother wants him to stay in yours, says he's too fragile to move next door just yet. He's in your sister's old room"
Iris let out a sigh of relief. "So he'll live?"
Ada nodded enthusiastically.
Iris tried to sit up but Ada ushered her back down. "You're on bed rest, I'm afraid. Your mother's orders."
Iris groaned in frustration. "Bloody why? I only got hit in the face!"
Ada shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe she doesn't want you to see Thomas. But I'm not going to get on the wrong side of Fleur Salt, so please stay in bed, Iris."
Iris smiled and nodded. She loved Ada as though she was her own sister. Iris beckoned Ada closer with a twitch of her neck. "How's you and Freddie, then?"
Ada's face blushed a deep red. "What?"
"Come off it, Ada. Tell me!"
Ada kicked the door shut and sat back down, her face grinning already. "We kissed at the wedding."
Iris squealed. "I'm so pleased!"
Ada hugged Iris. "I really love him, Iy. I just wish the boys wouldn't be so protective. They almost beat up a boy they saw me walking home with the other week."
"You're just 15, Ada. They will become more lenient as you get older." She paused. "Hopefully."
Ada rolled her eyes. "Yeah, hopefully."
She stood up and began playing with Iris' blonde hair in fascination.
"I bet it's a fucking mess," Iris muttered as she ushered Ada away self-consciously. She was still filthy from the altercation last night, even though someone had changed her from the dress she had worn.
Ada shrugged. "No, not really. You can get up at 4 if ya want, your mother's going out then."
Iris looked at the clock. It was 3 in the afternoon. "I've slept the whole bloody day away."
"You were exhausted. From what we were told, it sounded very eventful."
Iris froze then. One thing she had failed to remember was the gunshot she fired last night. Perhaps her mind had blocked it out. "What were you told, exactly?"
Ada hesitated. "Everything, I think. That you got jumped and then, well, yo-"
Iris cut her off then, not wanting Ada to say the words. "Right... You heard anything from the Diggy boys?"
"Nope."
Iris shifted uncomfortably. A tremendous wave of guilt was pressing itself onto her chest and she felt as though she may scream. "Ade, you wouldn't mind leaving me, would ya? My head feels like it's just split in half, I'm going to have a little kip."
Ada immediately obliged. "See you later, Iris."
——
As soon as Ada walked out, Iris immediately began sobbing. The image of Robert Ewing crumpling to the floor was spinning around her mind and her eyes. She felt sick. Iris ran to the sink that was opposite her bed and retched and retched, but she hadn't eaten in hours so her stomach was utterly barren.
After 5 minutes of empty vomiting, Iris dropped onto the bed, her head screaming.
All she wanted was for it to stop so she frantically fished through her cabinet, looking for some of the sleeping pills she had nabbed from her mother's medicine cabinet.
She found 2, popped them and flung herself into bed.
——
When Iris awoke, it was daylight still, meaning she must have slept through the night. Every inch of her wanted to remain in bed, away from responsibilities and wars, but she knew she would go even crazier if she remained in her room.
With a heavy sigh, Iris pulled herself out of bed and padded out of her room and down the stairs. The house was silent, which was weird for this time. There was always the buzzing of money-talking Blinders by this time of day; whether they were in her house or through the paper thin walls between hers and Thomas's home. Nevermind, the gang was probably still recouping after last night.
As she neared the hallway, though, Iris immediately felt something was wrong. She slowed her pace and tiptoed to the kitchen door.
After a deep breath, she swung it open to see Robert Ewing, his neck haemorrhaging with blood from the gaping wound she put there. His head snapped towards her and he immediately threw himself at her.
——
Iris was screaming. A blood curdling and shrill scream. She knew the dream wasn't real, but it had been so vivid. She managed to terminate her screech, but her heart was still racing and she was sweating like a whore in church.
Her mouth was almost painfully dry, so she pulled on a nightgown and trudged from her bed to the sink. By the time her glass was filled, Iris knew there was no way she could get back to sleep tonight. She was too disturbed.
Iris lit a candle and shone it below her clock. 03:12. Grand, it would be another 5 hours until anyone would be up.
Sighing, she opened her door and entered her parent's, but unsurprisingly, there was no one in. Her parents had done their duty now by keeping up appearances at the wedding, it was unlikely they would interact for a further few months.
Iris paused outside Martha's old bedroom. Thomas was in there. Her hand hovered over the handle as she decided if she should go in. Why not? Just to check on him. She pushed the flimsy door open and saw him: sleeping uneasily. He was thrashing around his sheets and Iris saw that he was glistening in sweat as the light of her candle danced along his shirtless body.
She perched on the side of the bed and stroked his brow gently in an effort to soothe him, but he only snapped his piercing blue eyes open and stared at her. "What are you doing?"
"I just came to check on you," Iris muttered as she placed the candle in a holder, feeling incredibly stupid for not thinking he might wake up. She felt his body relax next to hers and he nodded. "Alright. What are you doing up?"
"I took a pill to make me sleep and it must have worn off."
He nodded again and examined Iris's bruised face carefully. "Are you alright?"
Iris smiled. "I'm fine."
"I mean about Ewing. I heard you killed him. Freddie told Arthur when they thought I was asleep."
Tears immediately sprang to Iris's eyes. "I didn't mean to do it, Thomas. I thought they were going to kill ya, it was the only thing I could do to stop it and I only meant to get him off y-"
Thomas held a finger up to her lips to quiet her. "I know. It's alright. You protected me."
Iris felt some of the crushing weight on her chest lift slightly. She had thought that Thomas may be repulsed and angry that she had killed someone from another gang, it was sure to start more trouble after all. "Yeah, I did. But... but they've declared war."
Thomas's eyes closed as he processed the information. "If it's a war they want, it's a war they'll get."
Iris shook her head. "It's my fault, Thomas. I antagonised Robert, then I pushed him to jump us, then I killed him. I caused all this."
Thomas grabbed her face and forcefully pulled her towards him. "No, Iris. That boy was always looking to prove himself, and you were the one who finally put him down. So if his mates want to prove something as well, we'll put them down ten times harder."
Iris swallowed as Thomas's sombre gaze bore into her own. She had seen him serious before (she often wondered if it was his permanent state), but this was on another level. There was a degree of danger in his eyes and a tension in his jaw that told her this was a whole other dimension of feud they would be dealing with.
A tear slipped from her eyes and Thomas wiped it with his thumb before pulling her towards him slowly. She let herself be lured in and closed her eyes seconds before their lips touched...
And then they were kissing. It wasn't like any kiss Iris had shared before, drunk and sloppy and full of clashing teeth. It was passionate, slow but tense, and it felt perfect.
Thomas eventually pulled away and rested his eyes on her battered face. "Get in." He lifted his duvet up and Iris climbed in.
He pulled Iris' body close to his and brushed her blonde hair from her watery green eyes. "It's alright, Iris. We will sort this mess out."
She nodded and nestled closer to him, letting sleep take over her body.