→ CHAPTER SIXTEEN; A SECOND GUNSHOT.
Waking up naked, wrapped in Michael's arms was a welcoming feeling that Hannah was already starting to get addicted to. One of his hands was lazily pressed against her stomach, the other resting besides her naked form, possibly uncomfortable but Michael was blissfully aware as he slept - at least that's what she thought.
Knowing that Hannah was awake, Michael sneaked his hand down to Hannah's core - earning a moan from Hannah in response. His finger lazily trailed along her slit as Hannah opened her leg involuntary, desperate for the feeling of his digits against her clit like they had been last night. Soft moans and whimpers left Hannah's lips as she shut her legs around Michael's hand, trapping him in between her thighs. Hannah began to roll her hips backwards and forwards as she let the pleasure run through her body, not caring at all about how loud she was getting.
"That's it, darling," Michael cooed in her ear before pressing a few kisses against Hannah's head. "You know what you want, don't you?"
Hannah nodded, unable to form words as she let herself become more and more desperate with every roll of her hips. Michael was finding it hard to keep calm as he felt Hannah's wetness soak his hands but the sight of Hannah using his hands and fingers to get herself off was heavenly.
"Oh, Michael," she softly whispered as she leaned forward a little, the pleasure becoming too much.
With his free hand, Michael pulled Hannah's thighs apart. "Let me take care of my girl." Gulping, Hannah rolled over, so she was on her back and allowed the sheets to fall, revealing every inch of her upper body to Michael. "What a bloody angel."
Hannah blushed at his words and looked up at Michael with nothing but love; how did she get so lucky? The loving thoughts soon vanished and turned to lust as Michael inserted two fingers into Hannah, her arousal making it easy for him to gain access. Loud moans blessed the air of the luxurious bedroom as Michael continued with his movements and with each thrust of his fingers, Hannah could feel her orgasm growing closer.
Michael moved his mouth to Hannah's shoulders where he left open-mouth kisses along the skin, taking his time to admire a bruise along her neck that would soon become more. It would be hard to keep away from the Sister's, but Michael knew that Hannah would be successful in doing so.
"Are you going to come for me?" he asked.
"Yes - " Hannah's own voice failed her as she arched her back and clung onto Michael's arm. The sight of the woman that he loved with every inch of his body coming undone because of him was remarkable. After sleeping around during his time at Small Heath and thinking that there was something electric about a one-night stand, Michael came to the conclusion that he never wanted to go back to that life. He was over the moon with Hannah and he did not want to be with any other woman.
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Around a month later, after the wedding celebrations had fizzled out and Hannah had returned to her midwife responsibilities, an invitation was popped through the letterbox at the convent. It was addressed to Hannah and she recognised the handwriting as Grace's due to the friendly card she received a few days after the wedding, thanking her for being present.
"This is for you," Sister Maria said during mealtime, placing the decorative invitation down beside Hannah's toasted bread.
Hannah thanked Sister Maria before undoing the envelope and reading the invitation. It was for a charity foundation dinner that was going to be held at Tommy and Grace's stunning house in the countryside. Michael had not mentioned it to her, but he had been distant in the recent weeks, short one-word answers and getting out of Hannah's way as quickly as possible. It was insulting, considering the fact that she had gave him her everything, shown her love and accepted his but Hannah didn't want to question it and simply thought that his bleak mood would pass with time. There were times when he was still the same Michael that she had fell in love with - joyful, full of jokes and brightening Hannah's day up.
"What's it for?" Betty asked as she took a sip of her hot tea.
Hannah had thought about lying to the midwives and Sister's and not telling them about the event, but she had nothing to hide. "Tommy and Grace have invited me to a dinner over at their house. If I remember correctly, I did hear Esme briefly mention that they are setting up an orphanage which is lovely."
"That is nice of them," Sister Margaret agreed with a compassionate smile. "Will you be attending with Michael?"
Hannah shrugged. "I think so."
"Think so?" Sister Maria scoffed. "It's either a yes or no answer, there's no in-between."
Even though she kept her mouth shut most of the time, there was still bitterness with Hannah and Sister Maria who had once got on rather well. Sister Maria had learnt over the recent weeks that no matter what she said or did, Hannah would still go running to Michael in her time of need. So, she continued to make little digs about their relationship just, so she could feel better about herself.
"He has been busy with work," Hannah responded as she slipped the invitation inside of her pinafore until she went upstairs. "I have to go now."
Sister Maria rolled her eyes as she watched Hannah storm out of the room. There were wounds to be cleaned, babies to be delivered and people to see; she didn't have time for Sister Maria's remarks that only upset Hannah.
+++
On her break, Hannah made her way over to the house where Michael stayed with his mother. The two of them had spent many nights since the wedding wrapped up in the bed sheets, learning things about each other's bodies and what pleased them the most. It was in the dead of the night when everything was silent, Polly was fast-asleep in the other room or down at the pub with the boys, that Hannah and Michael would discuss the private things. Throughout her time at Small Heath, she had heard rumours about the blinders and Shelby's, Michael would either confirm them or tell Hannah the truth. He would explain why the boys did what they did, and Hannah found herself becoming more comfortable around the Shelby's as she learnt that they weren't as horrid as everyone had made them out to be.
"Michael Gray," Hannah called throughout the house as she stepped inside. Michael had given her permission to enter whenever she wanted, and Hannah usually didn't, fearing that Polly would be sat in the dining room with a cigarette, completely unimpressed with Hannah's entrance but Hannah had seen Polly running down the street, chasing after one of John and Esme's kids who were refusing to go to school.
"I'm in here," Michael shouted, his voice coming from the make-shift office that was in the living room. Hannah strolled over and leaned against the doorway with her arms crossed. "What brings you here today, Hannah Anderson?"
Hannah shrugged before pulling out the invitation. "You didn't tell me about this."
Michael finally looked up and squinted his eyes until he recognised what Hannah was holding. "I didn't want you to come Hannah, I'm not going to lie to you. There's been some trouble with the Italians and - "
Michael stopped when Hannah began to stroll over towards his desk, her palms pressed flat against the wood when she had reached it. "I want to come."
"I don't want you to get hurt."
Hannah tilted her head to the side, understanding his concerns but also frustrated that he wasn't allowing her to go. "I won't get hurt if I have you by my side."
Michael raised one eyebrow before shaking his head. "No, there's a higher chance that you will get hurt if you are on my arm because they will use you against me. Just like they will use Esme against John or Grace - "
"Exactly," Hannah interrupted. "Esme, Ada, Polly and whoever else can go but I bloody can't. Look." Hannah leaned over the desk and grabbed hold of Michael's tie before continuing. "If things do start to get dangerous, and I doubt they will, we could always sneak off to a separate room like we did at the wedding."
Hannah knew how to press buttons; she could work him like a machine. What were the chances of something happening at the dinner? After the episode at the wedding, with the gunshot and arguments, Tommy would have increased the security at the dinner to make sure that no one got hurt like last time.
Michael bit his bottom lip before hesitantly nodding. "This time, I will be buying your dress."
+++
The dress that Michael had brought for Hannah was amazing and it looked odd on her body but so did every dress that she wore as Hannah was so used to seeing herself in the uniform that whenever she dressed up, it was strange to her and took a few minutes for her to feel comfortable within her body. Alexandra had kindly sorted Hannah's hair out for her, letting the hair fall in bouncy curls. A hint of make-up was on her face but not a lot as Hannah was due to start working the minute that she arrived home which would be around midnight. Around ten babies were due on the day of the celebration dinner and Hannah had only just managed to get the daytime shift off, sadly being left with the night-time and early morning shift that would leave her cranky.
"Are you ready?" Michael asked as he threw his cigarette on the ground outside of the convent - sticking to the rule that he wasn't allowed to go inside.
"As ready as I will ever be," she replied with a quick kiss on his cheek. "You look beautiful by the way."
Michael smiled as he got into the seat besides Hannah, quickly grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze. "And you have amazing fashion sense. What a lovely dress."
Hannah scoffed jokingly before rolling her eyes. "Oh, please, we all know that you got your mother to pick out this dress."
"Bloody Esme ruins everything," he muttered light-heartedly. "But really, you look wonderful." Hannah accepted the comment with a soft smile, always finding herself blushing whenever Michael complimented her. "Shall we go?"
+++
It all happened to quickly.
One minute, Hannah was chatting with Grace about plans for institute, the next she was being dragged into a corner by Michael who looked terrified. The sound of Tommy screaming from an ambulance was something that would taint Hannah's mind forever: how could she ever forget the sound of a broken man, crying out for his wife who was on the verge of death? The sight of the two other Shelby brothers beating a man to the ground with their bare hands and whatever other objects they could find was another thing that Hannah could never forget - these were the Shelby's.
However, the sound of the gunshot running through the air and silencing everything was what would keep Hannah awake a night when she was finding it hard to sleep. Constantly replaying the moment that she saw Grace fall to the ground, wrapped in Tommy's arms and clinging on for dear life.
"I can help," Hannah shouted as she removed herself from Michael's grip. Michael tried his best to drag Hannah back to safety but eventually, he allowed her to go and do whatever she could to make sure that Grace survived. He didn't want Hannah to be involved, he wanted to keep her away from the distressing sight which was blood and damage. Hannah deserved better than this.
Unsuccessful.
Tommy watched as Hannah did her best to stop the bleeding with the equipment that she had. All she could really do was help Grace through her final moments and calm her with comforting words. Tommy was broken, and nothing could be done to fix him.
"I tried," Hannah sobbed into Michael's chest - her once beautiful dress now stained with blood that would most likely never come out. "What kind of Nurse am I if I can't save someone?"
Michael shook his head as he pressed the palm of his hand against Hannah's hair, trapping her sobs in his chest as he soothed her in the bedroom that once held happy memories for the two of them.
"You can't save everyone, Hannah," Michael responded, doing his best to keep his own emotions at bay until he was alone. Although he wasn't massively close with Grace, he was still impacted by her death and he knew that it would take the family along time to get over the loss.
"I tried."
"I know."
"I didn't try - "
"Hannah," Michael interrupted as he leaned down slightly so he was directly looking at Hannah in the eyes. "Don't blame yourself, please love. You did everything that you could, and we will always be grateful for that but sometimes, these things happen, and nothing can be done about it."
Hannah nodded, somewhat accepting the comments that Michael was making. "I need to go home. I have a shift at midnight and - "
"No," he interrupted again before pressing his hand against Hannah's wet cheek. "I'll ring the convent and explain what's happened and then you can come and stay at mine. You are in no fit state to work."
Another nod was all that Hannah could manage as she looked down at the ground. "I love you."
"I know."
authors note; this is wank, i am sorry. feedback is appreciated - not that this chapter deserves any but still, it's always nice. in the next chapter, i introduce a character that none of you will like but sadly, it needs to be done. lots of drama coming up i'm afraid, the honeymoon period is pretty much over. thank you x