A vintage's touch: Busted

A vintage's touch:  Busted. 

// Just a little moment between John and Mary. She misses him a lot and I wanted to show their past interactions.

xxxx

"You're in love with my brother." -John's voice tore the silence that had settled in the Garrison Pub. He stayed even after the bar had closed. Mary looked at him, her jaw clenched, her gaze avoiding his.-

She didn't answer him, instead, the barmaid chose to finish cleaning the counter. He watched as her curls fell on her face as she frantically cleaned the same spot. John grinned. He knew he had struck up a nerve and was actually right. It had been a while now, perhaps since he had first noticed her beautiful green eyes staring at his older brother when she thought nobody was watching her. She was quiet, she was discreet and her face was hard to read because Mary kept her emotions close to her heart. However, John had a sharp eye and he knew, way before Mary realized, way before Grace's death, He knew she had fallen in love with his brother. Grace died, and Tommy had gone deep into the rabbit hole but she managed to help him find some sort of balance. She managed to help his brother come back to life.  John walked behind the counter and grabbed a bottle of whisky. This prompted Mary to turn around, her chest heaving up and down at an erratic pace, betraying the chaos in her mind. 

"I'm not stealing. I'll pay it forward." -He said, fixing himself a glass of whisky.- "Mary. I'm not trying to trick you. I know you love him..."

"I love the family." -She dryly replied. It was true, she became part of the family over the years. She was loyal, she was kind, and she had her own way to love each and every member of the family. He couldn't deny that. He couldn't pretend she was lying to him. However, she wasn't saying the whole truth.-

"I know you do. I also know that you're madly in love with Tommy." -She put both hands on her waist, trying to assume a defensive pose.- 

Where was John going with it? It wasn't the first time he mentioned her potential feelings for Tommy fucking Shelby. He already noticed that she was attached to him and to Charlie. He already pointed out to her that she was far more transparent than she wanted to be. He could see that she was genuine and true to his brother. So why couldn't she admit to herself that he was saying the truth? Perhaps, she was scared of losing control. She felt exposed and she felt that if the truth came out of her lips, then she would lose everything. That made her freeze and look down, at the floor.

"I care about Tommy.  You're right about it. I worry about him. I worry he self-destructs. I worry... I worry he would miss all of Charlie's milestones. I worry he would not live." -She sighed and put the towel she was using to clean the counter back on it-

"You're the first one to care about it." -John pointed out, quickly emptying his first glass of Whisky.- "Aside from Aunt Polly... Aside from the family... Very few actually care about Tommy. What does he feel? what does he think? what does he want? Very few think about it. Most want something from him. Most need something from him. Protection. Fame. Money. You name it." -He fixed himself another glass-

"You offered me protection after I have been assaulted. I am grateful for this. I tried to leave, to go back to my old flat but Tommy refused. He asked me to stay, so I did. I don't regret living with him if that's your question. I don't regret staying with Charlie and him." -She swallowed a lump and ran her hand over her gracile neck. John's intense blue eyes were staring at the young woman. The beautiful curls on her head, the beauty spots that enhanced her beauty, the green eyes... She was quite something. A beauty he had not seen very often and yet, she still was humble. Even now.-

"I know. You don't have to justify living with Tommy. I claimed that you were in love with him because I can see it. Look. Mary, I am not trying to make you confess or something. However, I just want to talk about Tommy and have you promise me something." -He took a sip of his glass, and she rubbed her neck again- 

"What is it, John?" -She walked closer to him and gently tapped her fingers against the counter. 

He remained silent for a while. His eyes still stared at the young woman. She was young, about a decade younger than Tommy. She had seen a lot of things, she'd been through a lot of hardship but unlike most women he knew, she was still bright and soft. John suspected that it was her true nature, as someone who cared for others, that allowed Mary to survive those hardships. Tommy had requested an investigation on her, and while they were still looking into the orphanage she grew up in -looking for her parents-, they knew that she'd been married far too young, had known pregnancy and the death of her son way too early. She'd married a liar, a conman, a violent person who was a gangbanger. Yet, despite everything, she was still singing, and she was still taking care of them. 

John's been patched up a couple of times by the nurse and Aunt Polly and Ada also benefited from her knowledge and nursing skills.  Mary was devoted and loyal, but he wasn't sure that she belonged in this life. He wanted her to have better, something that wouldn't bring her back to the life she once knew. It tore him apart and had him hesitate to discuss the matter with Arthur, Aunt Polly, and the rest of the family but he ended up sharing with them that he believed she was in love with Tommy. He could tell by the warmth she gave his brother. He could tell that she had a positive influence on him. He could tell she wasn't asking for any of them to change who they were to suit her needs. She had welcomed their lives. She had welcomed their business. She had embraced them for who they were and that was fucking rare. 

"Tommy's not an easy man. He does the thinking while Arthur and I are the muscles. It's a blessing and a curse, you know? To be the one who knows. To be the one who plans ahead. We owe Tommy everything we have. I owe him to be alive today. I owe him the fact I can enjoy this extra life, eh?... I can." -He shrugged and took another sip of his glass.

"You want him to be happy. I know..." -She whispered, her hand gently stroking John's while she looked him in the eye. "I want the same thing for him. Tommy's always looking after the family. He's always giving everything he can to ensure your safety and prosperity. I want...to be the shoulder he can lay on. I want to be his home, wherever we are, so he could anchor himself into this life. Tom... sometimes gets lost in his own mind and he can miss a lot of things." 

She was speaking the language of love, and while she wasn't ready to see it, it was easy for John to spot it. Mary was in love with Tommy and she wanted to take care of him. John relaxed near the young woman. He heard what he wanted to hear. Mary paid attention to Tommy. Mary wanted the best for his brother and he knew she was doing all she could in order to make it happen. He still wanted to know more about her and wanted to make sure that she was right for his brother. His intuition told him that she was but he wanted to hear it from her.  Mary realized his intention and ran her hand over her hair. She yanked her head back and closed her eyes.

"He sure does. Mary, listen...I loved Grace. Despite questionable choices she made, she truly loved my brother and he truly loved her. Grace brought a side of Tommy I haven't seen for a long long time since the war." He noticed her breathing became more labored and he could see her eyes quickly becoming watery. She chewed on her bottom lip and slowly tapped the skin of her neck.- "Mary... Hey.. listen." -He held her free hand so she wouldn't escape him and held her green gaze with his blue one. "If  Tommy wants to start a new life, I want it to be with you."

"You...Do you think so?" -Her voice broke because she couldn't believe her ears. He nodded and she put her other hand over his.- "John...I just..." -He shook his head and scratched the top of his nose.- "I just want to take care of Tommy. However, he feels about me, whatever our relationship would become. I just want to take care of Tom. I can promise you that I will always look after him."

"Thank you." -He nodded and removed his hand from hers.-

She ran her hand over the back of her neck and looked at him with a slight blush on her cheeks. He could tell that she meant her words and would indeed watch after Tommy. John didn't know that he would die a couple months later. He didn't know how much of an impact his death would have on both Tommy and Mary (and the rest of the family). He wouldn't know that their relationship would change over the months following his death and perhaps he would have had something to say about it. Perhaps, he would have tried to talk to his brother and encourage him to embrace his feelings for Mary. Mary sometimes wondered how things would have been if John had been alive still. Would the two of them talk about Tommy? would he help soothe her when she wouldn't know where Tommy was or when he went on a job? John didn't want her to be involved in the business. He refused because she would be in danger or could jeopardize their own plans. Mary wasn't meant to be part of this world. She was better as someone who kept her hands clean. 

In a way, Tommy was keeping her at bay and that was still frustrating for the woman who wanted to know and wanted to be there for him. The truth was, she was missing John, even now. Mary wished he was there, that he had followed Michael and both exited the house. She wished she could see him, and spend time with Esmee and the kids. She wished he was here and she could be with him and watch the brothers talk about the good life they had managed to build for themselves. John was gone. Arthur went off the rails. Tommy got colder. The family was in shambles but Tommy kept them together. Aunt Polly, brought them together, like glue, but the issue between Tommy and Michael was tearing the family apart. The loss Tommy suffered wrecked his heart and convinced him that he was a cursed man. And Mary? Mary was in the middle of everything. Mary was confused and mentally exhausted. She had to deal with a very secretive Tommy, the reveal of her own feelings for him, and the fact Charlie was slowly starting to see her as his mother. Mary was confused but she was hopeful.

-TBC-