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fangirlings-things · 3 years

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First Costumer

Fandom: Peaky Blinders

Pairing: Arthur Shelby x female reader

Summary: you just got hired to do the job you always wanted and your first costumer, is no other but a Peaky Blinder

Word count: 2.1K

This is based on the moodboard below, made by my friend. You can find the original post here

A/N: I wrote this for @flowers-in-your-hayr 650 followers celebration. congratulations, love!! you're amazing, thank you for understanding my brazilian jokes lol and I hope you like this 💖

TAG LIST: @sophieshelby ; @charmingvalkyrie ; @inglourious-imagines ; @fairyofvoid ; @locke-writes ; @regalbanshee ; @captainshazamerica ; @lotsoffandomrecs ; @flowers-in-your-hayr ; @too-spoopy-to-be-frukd

You heard the doorbell ring and the sound filled the bookshop. Finally, a costumer. Your very first costumer. How exciting!

You got down of the ladder you had previously climbed to fix some of the higher shelves and passed your hands through your brown simple dress, making sure it was proper and in order. Mr. Cuthbert had taken a long time to finally accept you as an employee in his establishment and now, you had to make him proud.

You had always loved books. Since you were just a little girl, you mother had given you novels to read and you grew up living in many different ones from the reality you actually found yourself in. Books were your passion, your refugee, your ideal spot. To be able to work around them and make people happy by buying books, well, it sounded like perfection!

The costumer took his time to walk through the shop, eyeing the shelves like they were unusual strangers in the street and then, he got to you at the back of the bookshop. Your first costumer was a man.

He was tall. Not too tall, but just enoguh to make him able to look at some of the upward shelves without having to raise his head too much. His skin was white, giving a nice contrast with the black coat he wore. He had a moustache and you could only see a few strings of his brown hair, due to the cap he wore.

Then, you realized. After taking notice of the cap, the fine clothing made sense. No ordinary man in Birmingham had such fine clothes to wear, especially not in the middle of the week, during the lunch break time of the factories. Oh no, that man absolutely did not work in a factory. That man was a Peaky Blinder. His only bosses were the Shelbys and the Shelbys only.

"May I help you, sir?" you asked him with a polite smile, pushing to the back of your mind the realization you had just come to. It didn't matter who he was outside Mr. Cuthbert's bookshop. He was a costumer. Who clearly, for the way his eyes were going from one shelf to the other, intended to buy a book.

He focused his eyes on you and you saw that his stare wasn't harsh or the one of a demon, as many people said the Peaky Blinders were. His eyes were kind, even though there was an agitation in them that you couldn't quite comprehend. Maybe not even he could. "Yes" he said simply and as you kept staring at him, waiting for further information, the man looked even a bit disconcerted, like he wasn't used to having such attention upon him. "It is my sister's birthday this week and Ada, well, she really likes books, has a great shelf of them at her house. So I thought it would be a good idea to you know, give her a new book as a gift"

You couldn't help but smile. That man, whomever he was, seemed so genuine in everything. You could see the care in his expression when he spoke of his sister. It was a nice thing to see. The stories you had heard about the Peaky Blinders seemed to be all wrong. He was a normal person. Not some crazy, openly violent man.

"Do you have any specific book in mind?" you asked him, hands joined in front of your body and excitement filling your body because that was apparently going to be a successful sell. The man just squeezed his lips on a thin line, eyes going to the floor as if he was embarrassed. It got to you. "Don't worry, I am sure we can work something out. What kind of books does she like?"

He watched as you moved around the place graciously. Clearly you knew every corner of that place, every shelf, every single book and where it was. You looked at a particular spot, frowned then moved on like there wasn't anything interesting for whatever you wanted him to take to Ada. "Well, she's a communist, so she does like politics"

"Very well" you walked towards the politics shelf, searched the titles, but nothing particularly got your attention or seemed fitting. You turned back to the man. "Does she like classics that have to do with politics?"

"I think so, what do you have?" he asked, seeming kinda excited for what you would come up with. He accompanied you as you went to shelf on the other side of the corridor and pulled out a book. "Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo. It's centered around the French Revolution"

The man looked down at the floor again as a quite nervous laugh escaped his mouth. "I don't think that is a good idea. France does not give my family the best memories, you see"

"You fought the war?" you asked, smile fading a bit because of the seriousness in his tone. Maybe that's where his agitation was from. Maybe, he never did get back from France at all. He only nodded in agreement, still not looking at you. "Thank you, for your service"

He gave out a little smile, but you knew by the way the corner of his lips didn't rise too much that he was anxious to change the subject. Honestly, see the obvious hurt in him made you want to change it either. "Alright, no France. What about Bram Stoker's Dracula?"

"Dracula?" he frowned, eyes meeting yours in utter confusion at such a strange name.

The fact that he didn't knew about it made you smile as you began to describe que novel's story to him with a mysterious tone in your voice to cause suspense. "It's about an old man, Count Dracula, who lives in a castle and feeds on the blood of young women to survive. Sometimes he kills them so they can join him in the after life and also drink blood from innocent people"

The man laughed due to your clearly forced misteirous tone and the way you raised your eyebrows at him while speaking, seeming to forget the previous sadness that had overwhelmed him with the memories of the war. You were glad for it. "That sounds bloody awful, love"

You could not help but also laugh, trying to ignore the heat that took a hold of your face when he apparently without thinking, called you love. "It is, actually" then you shrugged, passing your hand through the said novel's cover at the shelf. "But is a fine horror book" you crossed your arms over your chest and squeezed your eyes in his direction. "Be honest with me now, will your sister like this one?"

He squeezed his lips again, this time his features assumed a expression that clearly said 'sorry'. "I don't think so. Ada is a feminist. I think she would not like a story where a monster man kills women and faces no consequences"

"That is a very good point" you said with a sight and then turned around, biting your lower lip as you thought and thought about more options. The challenge on your very first sell was being quite exciting and you could say, interesting. Much of it of course, was because of that man. Suddenly, an idea popped into your head and you turned back to the Peaky Blinder with a smile. "What about On the Origin of Species? It's a book about pure knowledge, scientific one, about evolution. No France, no monster that slaughters women"

The man gave it a minute of thought and then returned your smile. "Knowledge and evolution. It does sounds like Ada" you both felt silent for a moment and then, he cleaned his throat and nodded towards the book you had just gotten into your hands. "I'll take it"

"Very well" you motioned for him to follow you and then made your way towards the back of the shop again, placing it in the cashier. "You want it wrapped up as a gift?" he quickly agreed and you raised two options of gift wrap in the air. A green and a blue one. He chose the green one. "You can also add a small card if you want"

"That is nice, thank you" he said and again, as you looked at him, the kindness in his eyes seemed to shine out from everything else.

You grabbed a gift card from the inside of a box where they were kept and placed a black pen upon it. "You can write it or if you want, I can write it for you"

"You should write it, I bet your handwriting is better than mine" he said and you chuckled, nodding as you agreed to his request.

"What do you want it to say?" you waited as he clearly thought about the question, looking unsure. With one of his hands, he took off his cap and then passed the other one through his hair. When he claned his throat, you were ready to start writing.

"Dear Ada, happy birthday" he looked at you as if that was it but then, seeing the expression on your face that clearly indicated you wished him to talk more, he thought for a second and then continued. " Since you like books so much, I hope you will like this one, that a very nice girl helped me pick" as you wrote with a smile on your face, you did your best not to raise your eyes to meet his. "I know I am not always a very good brother, but I love you. Happy birthday, Arthur"

"That was beautiful" you told him, letting go of the pen and starting to wrap up the gift carefully, slowly, in no rush to let the Peaky Blinder go away. Arthur. His name was Arthur. It was a beautiful name. Suited him just fine.

"Alright, then" his eyes went to the floor again, seeming now embarrassed because of your words.

You finished to wrap the gift in silence, then when it was done, you sighted and looked at the man. "If you want us to deliver the gift at your sister's house, in case you're busy, we have a delivery boy for such"

"That sounds good, I appreciate that" he replied.

You nodded in agreement and got a piece of paper, to then grab the pen again. "Can you tell me her adress, please?" he did so, and you wrote it down so the boy Mr. Cuthbert had hired a little while before you could do his part of the job later. "He is supposed to look for Ada...?" you left the question in the air, waiting for him to answer, eyes still on the paper.

"Ada Shelby"

Your eyes snapped up on the very same instant.

Shelby.

His sister was Ada Shelby.

He was Arthur Shelby.

"Something wrong, love?" he asked, and he didn't seem harsh like you expected him to, for the way you not in the slightly hid just how astonished you were to know his identity. His eyes were still kind, but a part of the previous sadness had come back.

"I'm sorry, that was rude of me" you wrote down Ada Shelby and then left the paper upon the gift, at the corner of the cashier.

"I'm used to that kind of reaction by now" he said with a nervous laugh, that carried absolutely no humor at all in it. Even if he was indeed used to the said kind of reaction, he clearly did not like it. You felt guilt consume you. "How much do I owe you?"

You told him the price, still lost in your thoughts and cursing yourself for being so stupid and rude. So rude. He gave you the money, you placed it in the due place. "Have a nice day" he told you and then turned around to leave, placing his cap back in his head and then his hands went to the pockets of his clothes.

You watched him leaving with a intense feeling of exasperation, tried to think fastly enough to say something and then before you could even really process what you were actually going to do, the words left your mouth. "Mr. Shelby?" he turned back around as he heard you calling, a bit of gentleness in his features. "If you ever need to buy another book, I am sure I can help you find something good"

His lips curled up in a smile, a pure one. A bit of the guilt you felt left your body like he had just taken it completely away, just by smiling again. "I'll remember that, love"

And then, Arthur Shelby left the bookshop.

#imagine #x reader #fanfic #imagines #peaky blinders #peaky blinders imagine #peaky blinders fanfic #arthur shelby #arthur shelby x reader #arthur x reader #arthur shelby imagine #arthur shelby fanfic #650followers

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that-fandom-tho · 7 years

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She’s Worth It - Hayes Grier

His hand gripped my waist while the other cupped my neck. Somehow my ability to breathe had left me, the only air I knew was his. With every touch of our lips we got closer, though are bodies had been touching from the start. I felt an unquenchable fire every time he shifted. Soon enoguh, he was on top of me instead of sitting next to me, moving down my neck. The movie was only static in the background. He pulled away and it felt as if I was drenched in rain, all heat from him gone and functioning lungs back.

“Be my girlfriend,” he said, breathlessly.

“You wish,” I quickly replied, just as I did every other time.

“Why not?” he asked, returning himself to siting position and leaning back on the couch. It was like a scene from a movie, played over and over again.

“The same thing I say every time you ask.” I retort.

“You mean ‘I just don’t do relationships’?” He mocks my voice, “That’s not an excuse.”

“Never said it was, it’s just the way I am.”

He turns to me and grabs my hand, “You know, this is really starting to feel personal now. Y/N, I really like you. Like, a lot. And I know you like me too. We’ve been at this for months now. What’s the real reason?”

I ignore him and watch the movie. I can feel his eyes on me but I choose to ignore it. He pulls me closer until I’m practically on his lap and softly kisses the back of my neck.

“Y/N, I feel more for you than I ever have for anyone else. I’m gonna ask you one more time, and that’s it, I’ll just leave it be. Will you be my girlfriend?”  I don’t want to lose him. He’s the best thing in my life right now. I haven’t seen my father in months and my mother seems to think I’m the reason for their split and I only have 2 friends who I question whether or not they actually like me half the time. But Hayes. He’s always there for me when I’m down, and he’s never let anyone say a word about me, and he stayed even though I rejected him who knows how many times. And there’s no part of me that even questions it. I keep saying no because I’m scared I’ll lose him. Just like mom lost dad, and like I lost every other human in my life because I don’t know how to make a fucking friend.

I watched his eyes dim as he moved me back over to my seat. “It’s okay,” he says. “You don’t have to like me like that.”

“I don’t know how,” I blurt out. “And I don’t want to lose you,” he looks over at me quietly, waiting for me to finish. “Every time you say that— ask me that, I feel like the happiest girl in the world. Because it’s you, because I want nothing more,” my eyes start to burn, “And then I see us, down the road. And it’s my parents reincarnated. And we’re yelling and crying and everything fucking sucks because we fell apart.”

“Y/N, we’re not them,” he says.

“Maybe you’re not but I am,” my voice cracks as a tear gathers at the corner of my eye. “I’m them. I don’t have anything or anyone better to go off of. I’m problematic and flaky just like my father was and I’m uptight and selfish just like my mother.” He brings me closer and wipes the tears from my cheeks.

He starts to speak but I interrupt him.

“And you deserve better than that, better than me. I mean for fuck’s sake you stayed with me all this time even though I pushed you away every time you got close. You listened to me every night for weeks when I realized my father wasn’t coming back. You stayed through everything and you deserve someone just as good as you.”

He holds me to him tightly and I wipe my tears on his shirt. “Y/N, I stay with you because of who you are. Someone who’s not flaky or uptight or selfish or anything else like that. I stay with you because you deserve it. Your parents raised you to think that you weren’t enough but you’re so much more than I could ever want. I’ve watched you move mountains to become the strongest girl I know. And all I ever hear people say about you is ‘she’s pretty’. But you’re so much more. You’re intelligent and unbreakable and willing to go through hell just to get to love on the other side. If anything I don’t deserve you and that just makes me want you more.”

“I wish all that was true. Even if it was, I still don’t know how to be what you want me to be.”

“Everything I said is true and don’t you dare deny it. And besides, we’re 16. You don’t have to know how to do anything. Just be with me. Let me show you off. Even if there was someone better, which there isn’t, and I somehow deserved them, which I don’t, I want you and only you.”

If anything, the boy deserves what he wants. I kiss him hard, gripping his face between my hands.

“Let’s try this one more time. Y/N, will you do me the honor of being my girlfriend?”

“I’d love to.”

Masterlist

Prompt List

—— A/N: Thanks for reading, hope you liked it. Ya girl is back, finally. Between moving, and this ACT class, and volleyball starting back up and everything else, it’s been awhile since I wrote something. And I missed it, forgot how much fun it is. I’ve been writing a few things of my own, just in a journal, and it really helped me, but I miss this interaction with you guys. So here I am. SO so sorry to the requester, you probably wanted this back in like November, thanks for being patient and I hope you like it! I think I have one or two more imagines to put out and then I’ll be putting up the next part to Send My Love, which was highly requested. Also during my little hiatus I hit 1k followers! Thank you guys so much, this blog wouldn’t be what it is without you guys and I find it crazy that there’s that many of you. See y’all soon!

Peace, that-fandom-tho

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