#josh franceschi x y/n

[your-averagewriter]

"Smile for me, darlin'"

Summary: After a relationship announcement, (y/n) receives endless hate from fans for no reason. She locks herself up in an empty dressing room before Josh goes to find her and help her.

Word count: 1.2K

Warnings: kissing, bullying, mention of death threats and suicide baiting but actual threats etc are not mentioned, panic attacks.

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Here I am. Sat on the floor, my knees to my chest and head in hands. I've pushed myself up against the wall in the corner of this plain room. It's a spare dressing room because one of the support acts had to pull out but we had already booked it. It's similar to the other ones, it's four brick walls painted white without any windows and a lone table stands weak at the side of the room. 

I feel the tears keep flowing as I scroll through the comments sections. The relationship announcement posts made by Josh on his various different social media: Twitter, Instagram and Tiktok. We made the posts and he didn't post anything until I was 100% happy with the posts. I was happy with them, I thought the posts were sweet and we were happy to announce it to the fans after our hidden relationship of over a year. The announcement had been a long time coming but I still had that little voice in the back of my head. What if the fans don't like me? What if they hate me? I was so concerned about the possible backlash but I kept pushing it aside. I wanted people to know, I didn't want to have to keep sneaking around and I wanted the fans to be happy for us but that didn't happen.

I scroll through the comments to see fans making fun of my appearance, my voice, and anything they could really. I open my Instagram DMs and Twitter messages to see endless streams of hate and bullying. It's overwhelming and I can't bear to look at it anymore but I torture myself anyway.

"Why does he even like her? What does he see in her?"

"He's too good for her."

"She's so ugly though-"

"She needs to leave Josh alone!"

"Why does she sound like that lmao."

They're seemingly endless and just keep coming, I refresh and there's more and more and more.

Eventually, I muster up the strength to throw my phone away from me. I look at the discarded technology with a sour face as another wave of emotion bombards me. A whole new train of thought.

What if Josh breaks up with me because the fans hate me? What if he finally sees that he's too good for me? What if he thinks I'm ugly and breaks up with me? These thoughts become more upsetting than the original comments. I wipe my eyes with the palm of my hand and I can feel the trails of mascara left behind on my tear-stained face. I run a stressed hand through my hair, moving it away from my face and over my head.

I push myself up against the wall as I feel myself slipping and tuck my knees into my chest and bury my face in them. My breathing is erratic and I feel my heart beating out of my chest. It was just a picture of me reading a book with my cat with a sweet caption from Josh. Why do I deserve to be hated? My mind spirals whilst my heart races until I hear a soft knock at the door.

I attempt silence, holding my breath and biting my lip to prevent any sounds from leaving my lips.

"(y/n)?" I hear Josh's voice from the other side accompanied by another knock. There's a pause before he speaks again. "Darling, I know you're in there…" I stay silent hoping he gives up and leaves. I love him but I can't face him right now. "(y/n), I'm coming in okay?" He pauses again waiting for resistance. "I’m coming in." He opens the door slowly and I finally blink, releasing my tears from the prison they call my eyes. "(y/n)?" He asks softly, my figure now being revealed.

He quickly moves to sit down next to me, against the wall.

"(y/n), what's wrong?" He asks worriedly and I look up to face him. My face shows the paths the trails of tears took to flee from my eyes and the shakiness of my hands portrays my nervousness. I try to explain, but all that comes out of my mouth is rushed breathing and bad attempts at words. "(y/n), breathe. Breathe, love." He says, holding my hands and simulating breathing, urging me to imitate his breathing pattern. I try and blink away the tears as I steady my breathing. "Okay, let's try again." He suggests and I nod, biting my lip to stop the tears.

"Can you…" I clear my throat. "Pass me my phone?" I ask quietly worried that if I speak louder, the tears will start again. He nods, passing me my discarded phone.

I unlock it and open Instagram first. I open the comments section on the post and pass him my phone so that he can see some of the comments. He looks at them in horror and my eyes assure him that that's not even the full extent. I take the phone back and open my DMs to reveal a whole new layer of hate. I missed them the first time but mixed in we're a few death threats and suicide-baiting messages. I look upwards, blinking away the tears as I watch his eyes start to water too.

"Are you gonna break up with me?" I ask timidly and he just looks at me shocked.

"No! Why would you think that?" He asks, desperately grabbing onto my hands. 

"Your fans hate me." I point out, voice wavering. "They've made that obvious." I sneer.

"Why would I base my opinion of you, my girlfriend of over a year, on some messages from people who I have never met?" He asks like it's obvious.

"Do you think I'm ugly?" I ask miserably looking into his eyes for the first time.

"Don't listen to those fucking idiots!" He exclaims and the volume of his voice shocks me. "Sorry, but seriously. Do not listen to their bullshit! You are the most beautiful person I have ever met and you are the most beautiful person I will ever meet." He assures me, placing kisses on my hands to punctuate his sentences.

"You don't hate me?"

"Darling, I love you more than I have loved anything in my entire life. I'm sorry but you're stuck with me. It's gonna take more than those dickheads to break us up." He says, making me chuckle quietly.

"Come here." He beckons me and pulls me closer to him, into his lap.  He sits on the floor cross-legged and sits me on top of him, straddling him. "Don't listen to them, they're a bunch of dicks." He reassures wrapping his arms around my waist as I snake mine around his neck.  "I'll make a post afterwards addressing the situation making sure that they know that what happened is entirely inappropriate and disgusting. I'm so sorry." He says as I rest my head on his chest as he places a soft kiss on top of it.

"It's not your fault," I say still sniffling as he presses a kiss to my lips before wiping the remnants of tears from my eyes.

“Come on, smile.” He says and flashes his handsome smile making it a lot harder not to smile. “Smile for me, darlin’.” He smirks and I give in, showing him a small smile. “There’s that beautiful smile I love so much.”

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AN: Why are there no Josh Franceschi fics on here?

I saw You Me At Six the other day so I've returned to my Josh Franceschi phase haha.

[midnightswithdearkatytspb]

In This Heart: Prologue (Tommy Shelby)

Pairing: Tommy Shelby x OFC!Estella Holland

Warning: Nothing

Summary: Two souls, forever bound in the multiverse. 

Info: I know a new story? Well, I've been gone for almost 2 years, and my taste has changed. I've matured like fine wine. Please let me have this. Dividers made by @firefly-graphics as always.

I long ago knew my heart belonged to someone, as the old gypsy queen from the north swore to me as she read my palm and cards in exchange for a lock of long hair. I watched in fascination as she babbled on in tongues I could not understand, as my Uncle dragged me from her vardo by my upper arm, screaming at her. But, I would learn it was a spell she had put upon me and my soulmate. My poor soulmate, the lives we would lead, the horrors he would see, the loved ones we would lose, the number of times he would lose me, to not know we would see each other again. I, Estella Holland, am Thomas Michael Shelby's soulmate, and I am forever intertwined with him; I shall never know another soul nor love another, and I wish never to love another.

Estella Holland 

June 1896

“The only thing I know for sure is my heart beats for him.”

Thomas “Tommy” Shelby 

1890

“Bui, I wouldn’t be asking if I didn’t know for sure.”

Bostán Holland 

January 19, 1903

“I can drop out, get a job, so you don’t have to work so much, so you don’t have to worry.”

Fleur Holland

February 11, 1905

“It not my fault John Shelby taught me to throw a good punch.”

Bohemia “Uncle Bui” Gray

1880

“Your mum would kill me if she saw the likes where we were all at now.”

Keavy O’Holland-Shelby

April 20, 1896

“Tommy, all I’m sayin’ is the man is takin’ over half her wages. She’s got more mouths to feed than we do. It’s not fair; before you say it, I know life's not fair.”

Josh Franceschi 

August 1896

“Listen here, mate, you mess with the ladies again, you’re messing with the Peaky Fookin’ Blinders, and as the saying goes, you don’t mess with the Peaky Fookin’ Blinders! Fook off!” 

Jane “Janey” Doyle

May 13, 1897

“I don’t suppose you ever thought that I’m just fine? Just me and the flowers, that’s all that I need.”

Private Detective Henry Daniels 

May 5, 1890

“Not as beautiful as you, but it tries.”

[midnightswithdearkatytspb]

In This Heart Masterlist (Tommy Shelby x OFC! Estella Holland)

There’s more to the universe than just us. What if I told you you were living in another universe, taking your first breath, perhaps your last breath? How about the other you is living in a universe with flying cars and world peace? At least, it was til a dictator took power. Now here’s a doozy for a universe. There’s one where you are walking around with a number counting down to the minute you will be in the presence of your soulmate. It might even be someone you know. Your best friend, your professor, the kid you pushed off the slide ten years ago. They call this the Multiverse. The very place where the two souls of Thomas Micheal Shelby and Estella Phoebe Holland are bound to each other for eternity, forever traveling the Multiverse, finding one another life after life.

Prologue - 01/02/23

Playlist

Banner is made by @teds-mustache-wrangler, whom I'm very thankful for.