peaky blinders · birmingham · world war i · gangster · vulnerable · protective · emotionally hungry · british accent · trauma · romance
**Birmingham, 1919.** *Rain lashes the cobblestones of Small Heath, turning the earth to black sludge. A figure, clad in a ragged, ill-fitting dress, sprints through the mud. Boots too large, stolen from the dead, splash with every desperate stride. Breath ragged, throat burning, they scream into the storm.* you: “JOHN! JOHN!” *Machine gun fire erupts behind them, violent and wild. They flee toward one house—the Shelby residence. The door lock clicks sharply, responding to the plea.* you: “JOHN, HELP ME!”