// A little moment between Polly and Mary.
xxxxx
Polly lit a cigarette. She wasn't feeling comfortable in front of Mary and didn't know how to start the conversation. She was the one who went to visit the Grace Shelby institute, in hopes of sharing a moment with the young woman but upon walking into Mary's office, strength suddenly left her legs. She was worried about her son's obsession with Mary and wanted to discuss the infamous rivalry between Tommy and Michael. It wasn't too late to look forward to a truce between the two men. it wasn't late, was it? The Gypsy princess took a deep breath and walked towards the window of Mary's office. Polly was waiting for her to return from a meeting with the head nurse of the Institute and had been smoking cigarette after cigarette until the young woman came back. She closed both eyes and leaned her head against the window when the noise of a door being opened forced her to turn around and look at Mary.
"You're finally here!"
"I apologize for my lateness. We had to review adoption papers for a couple of our children. I'm here now, Polly." -Her green eyes set upon the woman who fully turned around and pinched the bridge of her nose- "Polls... Have a seat, you look pale."
"I'm alright. I'm alright, Mary." -Polly said, her blue eyes set upon the young woman. She was pale indeed. Pale and stressed out but she still wanted to keep a cool demeanor and pretend that she had everything under control. She inhaled some smoke and puffed it out. The endearing nickname the young woman gave her a faint smile "Mary, I'm going to ask you something, I need you to be honest with me."
Mary didn't really believe Polly. She knew the woman enough to realize that something was up. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but since the business was going well, the only reason that could put Polly in such a panicked mood was her son. Did something happen to Michael? Did someone kill the man? Was he in danger? Questions started to fill her mind as Mary walked closer to Mary and gently wrapped her arms around the older woman to give her a hug. Polly closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around the chubby young woman.
"I will. Ask me anything you want." -She said, tucking some hair behind her ear-
Polly pinched her lips together and averted her blue eyes from Mary's face to her soft smile. She sat on the chair and slowly fidgeted with her cigarette. The nurse had never seen the woman be so nervous. She could see that Polly was trying to find the right words to say but she couldn't, so Mary put her hand on the older woman's knee and gave her an encouraging smile. Polly nodded and took a deep breath before she finally asked.
"Michael....Do you still hear from him?"
"I haven't heard from him for months now, Polls. Why are you asking? Did something happen?"
"No... No... Michael is alive." -She pinched her lips together and inhaled some smoke.- "I just wanted to be sure that he wasn't writing to you. He tends to be.... stubborn." -She chose her words carefully, not willing to start an argument with Mary. The young woman remained silent for a minute. She looked at Polly and furrowed her brows at the mention of Michael's letters.-
"Stubborn...Yes." -She crossed her legs and slowly started to tap onto her knee.- "He hasn't written to me for months. Besides, if he really did, Tommy would know, wouldn't he?"
Polly nodded, Tommy would have known. He knew everything from the conversations people had in Birmingham to the content of letters people sent or received. He knew everything. He even knew that Mary had not written back to Michael. Polly knew that her son was still writing to Mary, but she also knew that Tommy being silent about it wasn't exactly good news. The Gypsy princess wanted her son to survive, but she also didn't want Tommy to die. She was put in a very tight spot, which led her to shake uncontrollably.
"I just want-- I just need Michael to move on, you know? I've talked to him already, and I've advised him to stop writing to you."
"And did he listen? uh? He didn't. He never does, Polls." -Mary's tongue was harsh, she furrowed her brows and closed her legs. -" Let's not beat around the bush shall we? You and I both know Michael used to be infatuated with me, years ago."
"Mary... there's..." -But Mary shook her forefinger and tilted her head to the side. Her face had lost its warmth and she was tense. Mary's face was closed off, cold, and focused. She had been avoiding the topic for far too long now.-
"No, we have to talk about it Polls! I... I used to be something he wanted to have. He came at me and tried to win me over but it didn't work. I expected the letters to stop coming once he met Gina but they didn't. He kept writing to me and I didn't know why. I thought he was obsessed with me, but soon enough, I realized that he didn't... I realized that it wasn't me he was obsessed with, it was Tommy." -She furrowed her brows and set her bright green gaze upon the older woman- "He is obsessed with Tommy. This is the truth, the only truth."
"He.... oh my god! Mary, I can't sleep. I was afraid that Michael would eventually try to reach out to you in order to get back at Tommy." -She sighed and took another puff of her cigarette.- "I didn't know how you'd feel about it. Tommy and Michael are at.... odds with each other." -She chose her words carefully, unwilling to talk about what she saw in her dreams and in the cards. Mary wasn't aware of her vision, but she knew that the two men weren't on good terms.-
"Polls... listen...I only wrote to Michael once, right after he settled in America. I wished him well, and good luck with his endeavors there. Since then, I didn't write to Michael because I knew what that could become. He knows I'm living with Tommy. He's warned me more than once about Tom's unavailability. He told me that I would be unhappy around Tommy because he would never let me in. Still, I didn't write back to him." -She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.- "He's not right, though. Tommy isn't....He won't let me in. No matter what I do, he won't let me in."
Polly sighed and as she blew her smoke away, the brunette felt her body relax a little bit. Mary, even now as they were discussing her relationship with Tommy, still believed that he had no feelings for her. Polly had already tried to convince the young woman of Tommy's affection, but it didn't go through her thick skull. Could she blame the girl? Could she really blame Mary for doubting her? Tommy loved Mary, Polly could tell, but there was something stopping each other from making the first move and confessing their feelings to the other. Perhaps, given the particular situation they were in, Polly was relieved that Tommy wasn't open about his feelings. She stared at the young woman, fidgeting with her cigarette as wild thoughts crossed her mind.
She'd need to talk to her son, to make sure that he would definitely move on from Mary. She'd advise him to stop writing to her, for his own protection but also for hers. She'd try to make sure that Tommy and Mary, since they're stubbobrn and unwilling to give into the other, would not become an item. It hurt her because she wanted Mary to be happy and to finally embrace her new life with Tommy but she needed her son to be alive, so.... so....she simply looked at her and put her fingers on her chin and lips. Polly decided not to reply to her, mostly because the conversation would become moot, instead, she resumed smoking.
-TBC-
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