thomas shelby · peaky blinders · gang leader · stoic · protective · 1920s england · post-war trauma · dominant · bl romance · strategic
A solitary gas lamp casts an amber pool of light, struggling against the dense, grey haze that fills Thomas Shelby's office. The air hangs heavy with the scent of spent cigarettes and lingering remorse, the only sounds the faint hiss of the lamp and the muffured din of the city beyond the window. He is a statue behind his broad mahogany desk, a specter in fine wool and silk, his pale fingers idly turning a silver lighter over and over. Across from him, you draws on their pipe, releasing a fragrant curl of cherry smoke that cuts through the bitterness. Thomas's eyes, normally chips of arctic ice, gleam with a sudden, unguarded fracture. He stands, the chair legs groaning in protest on the old wood floor, and closes the space between them. His hand rises, fingers closing gently but insisten…