#thomas x veronica

[littlcfreaks-archive]

@midnightsaboteur

he shrugged, a soft chuckle leaving his lips, "i wouldn't call myself a lech, but i am only a man." he was joking back with her - mostly. they were friends, but she was good looking, and more importantly (to thomas at least), he genuinely enjoyed her company. But, if she was going to broadcast her assets and put them on display, he would certainly take advantage of that.

He kept her close to him, his hands on her lower back, pulling her into him, "ah, good. hope they all know to leave you alone now." he chuckled, his breath hitting her skin, "wouldn't want them trying to take you away from me. how would i ever get through the work day?" he couldn't help but laugh at her observation, "they wouldn't be wrong. i happen to be enjoying myself very much." as if to prove his point and to the others around him, he pressed a soft kiss to her jaw, "you think that'll help keep 'em away?"

[sasakisniko]

Veronica Mars could have started with Veronica vowing never to get married and ended with her marrying Logan Echolls. That is, if Rob understood the beauty of the story we were watching and weren't so desperate to force it to become the grimdark story he couldn't tell on the UPN.

[raisedbythetv89]

Listen the angst of seasons 1 and HALF of 2 is MORE THAN ENOUGH. By season 3 I’m beyond ready to see them happy and at peace within their relationship with the only conflicts coming from outside their relationship that they deal with together and NOT from Veronica’s friends or family because Logan is still so young he deserves a fucking chance when he’s getting the love and support he needs and is free of his abusers. And I don’t care if that’s unrealistic, the whole show is unrealistic lol if they can experience more trauma in a season of television than some people do in their entire lives they can also magically have their love for each other be enough to make them feel secure and trusting at least with each other. So Skipping the entire cassidy plot twist and therefore V isn't doubly sa’d and skips all the trauma of that night of thinking Keith died, no kendal there in the morning after alternaprom and so LoVe comes back together because Veronica is able to be brave and Logan is ok being alone and give Veronica a little time to process. Not because trauma forces their hand. No piz, no parker, no madison, no mercer, no break ups, Keith isn't psychotically overly involved and mistrustful of logan, they move in together, no 9 years of radio silence, NO NAVY, no corporate law and no tragic ending. LET THEM BE HAPPY THEY’VE BEEN THROUGH ENOUGH.

[kyleetryme]

that one scene from dgw....

[hellisanhonourstudent]

I wish Landry was the Big Bad of S3,instead of having to endure those poorly written sexual assault plots(those rape storylines are repetitive,people can be bad and even predatory without a sex component). He could take talented students under his wing with the intentions of using them as props for his own career,create and/or worsen rivalries in order to manipulate said students with more ease.

The culmination of Landry's villainy could've been The Murder Mystery Of The Season,even. Maybe the victim is someone who knows how bad he's and has actual power to take him down(they even had Dean O'Dell killed - someone who obviously could put Landry in hot water). Plus,there's the obvious fact that he took an interest in Veronica's intelligence and wanted to mentor such a powerhouse. Now,imagine Veronica investigating the death and eventually finding out she's under the murderer's metaphorical wings. Landry could even be able to low-key control the investigation by manipulating Veronica. To top it all,he also said that he's involved with a program that works with at-risk kids in Neptune - there's a chance Landry could get rid of people while keeping his hands clean. And if we keep him as the lover of O'Dell's wife,there's another motivation for the murder - they want to be together with the guy's money and make the whole plot.

Not only that,but we could see more of Logan,Weevil, and Wallace,even. Whereas Weevil is in touch with the vulnerable youth mentioned before(former PCHer,lives in the hood,is in probation,respected figure),Logan is familiar with charming but morally bankrupt people(not only he lived under Aaron Echolls' thumb, he's also a Hollywood Brat). Besides,they're both intelligent guys,so they quickly mistrust Landry's intentions and try to warn Veronica. Maybe Logan even enlists Weevil's help to catch evidence. Wallace might be involved in some sort of project to help troubled youth(he's doing it for two reasons:enriching his resume and out of the goodness of his heart). While Veronica is smarter than her friends and boyfriend,she's also blinded by her fondness of Landry - a callback to an S1 episode.

On a less serious note,Landry is hot, and we could use the eyecandy,lol.

[veronicamarsconfessions]

The Unfortunate Pattern Of TV Shows Lying To Fans

Showrunner Dick Wolf is in hot water this week with fans of Law & Order: SVU on Twitter. Digging into the complaints, the current outcry isn’t really a surprise. Take a ship that’s been working on a slow burn for almost a quarter of a century, add in some bait-and-switch advertising, and you have a perfect storm.

While it’s true that showrunners have the right to run their shows how they see fit – and while fandom teasing is pretty much a staple of the medium – no fan appreciates being lied to. And there is very much a difference between teasing fans and lying to them.

Shippers of Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) and Olivia Benson (Mariska Hargitay) have been hanging in through thick and thin for almost 25 years. Their dedication seemed like it was about to pay off, as promos for the most recent episode teased that this couple might finally – finally – kiss. Ultimately, not only did a kiss not happen but the shot featured in the promo – with Benson caressing Stabler’s face – was cut from the episode entirely.

Things happen in editing shows, and sometimes things get cut. So is this a case of “teasing fans” or lying to them? After almost a quarter of a century, it’s hard not to feel like this isn’t the latter.

Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist showrunner Austin Winsberg earned the fandom’s ire in the show’s second season when he promised the end of the dreaded love triangle. Only to very much keep the love triangle alive. Now, in this case, this was a case of the showrunner genuinely misunderstanding what “love triangles” mean in fandom spaces. He seems to have interpreted “fans hate love triangles” as “fans hate arcs in which a character can’t or won’t decide between two romantic prospects.”

Failing to realize that “making one choice and then later making another choice, and then later going back to the first choice” is, indeed, being unable to decide. Still, the promise of “no more love triangle” was followed pretty quickly by the return of the love triangle leaving fans feeling intentionally misled.

The case of Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist is a good argument for shows to have fandom consultants for showrunners who have probably not engaged in fandom spaces the way fans do and thus may mistake how things will be perceived. Winsberg professed the entire problem to have been a massive misunderstanding on his end. Perhaps that’s why fans of the series were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and successfully fought to save the show from premature cancellation.

Veronica Mars showrunner Rob Thomas got into similar trouble for handling the show’s last season. The Logan/Veronica ship (LoVe) had been a major focus of the series and subsequent movie. It was no wonder, then, that they were outraged when the fourth season ended with Logan’s death. Adding insult to injury, Rob Thomas explained the decision by basically saying that Veronica is “boring” when she’s happy in love and not traumatized and that he wanted to completely change the concept of the show moving forward.

Veronica Mars was a particularly special case of showrunners lying to the fan base because of the unusual nature of his salvation. Fans – a large number of them LoVe shippers – had directly been responsible for funding the Kickstarter that got the film sequel to the prematurely canceled series green-lit. Which led to the show’s subsequent pickup on Hulu. And Thomas knew how invested these fans – fans he directly called upon to resurrect his series – were heavily invested in LoVe. There was even an entire series of promos featuring Kristen Bell and Jason Dohring reading LoVe fanfiction leading up to the fourth season.

Teasing fans is a natural thing for shows to do. It keeps fans engaged. It creates buzz. But, as evidenced by Veronica Mars, when fans feel like teasing has become lying, they may not stick around to give the show another chance.

[littlcfreaks-archive]

"these are at least better than the weekend retreats." he should have known better than to try to surprise veronica - she was basically superhuman. as he walked around to face her, his eyes inspected her outfit, his eyebrows raising slightly, a soft whistle coming from his lips. "well - veronica... i can see why." he motioned to her exposed chest, his own eyes having trouble dragging away from her cleavage. he wasn't passionate about his current job, but it had paid more than his last job. veronica was the bright spot in his workdays - sometimes extending to ensuring his happiness at home as well.

thomas was a hopeless romantic at heart, but was usually alone, leaving him feeling empty sometimes. his eyebrows raised at her suggestion, mulling it over in his head quickly. on one hand, it would give him an excuse to be close to her and it would help her, on the other - he wasn't sure if it was generally a good idea. after a moment, his desire to help won out and he wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her into him. nuzzling his nose into her hair, he whispered in her ear, "are they still looking?"

@sakurapizza

“These corporate events bore me so… if it wasn’t a requirement for me to be here, I’d be at home instead,” Veronica mused, her words coming as soon as she felt Thomas’ presence behind her. She had an instinctive knack for being able to tell when someone was close, and even to the extent of identifying them without so much as a glance, as she could do with someone she cared for like Thomas. The financial analyst was perhaps her only friend in the company, whom she served as Chief of Security. Veronica had never seen herself in the corporate life, but the paycheque had been too good to turn down and the job had also been a way of escaping consequences for some of her more risque actions in her past as a private investigator. 

“I don’t care if the wine here is good. There’s so much here that pisses me off, not least those old assholes trying to get a glance at my tits every few seconds,” Veronica added, briefly looking down at her chest before returning her gaze to Thomas. True, Veronica had worn a dress that deliberately accentuated her cleavage, but equally, she thought that she could dress in a way that made her feel good without being slobbered over constantly. “Do me a favour, doll, and pretend like we’re sleeping together, so they hopefully look away,” Veronica finally mused, a slight smirk gracing her features at the suggestion.

[thegayagendaismyfootupyourass]

💞ONLINE FRIEND APPLICATION💞

if you like 3 or more of these things PLEASE dm your discord @ i’ll love you forever

- dan and phil

- harry potter

- boy meets world

- she loves me (the musical)

- sander sides

- supernatural

- sherlock

- adventure time

- pippin (the musical)

- red white and royal blue

- All The Young Dudes and/or Casting Moonshadows

Bonus

- Shrek The Musical

[mrs-jamesbbarnes]

I can’t believe season 4 episode 8 of Veronica Mars is only 43 minutes and 12 seconds long that’s crazy.

[sociguess]

“our love is god”

[homemade-ghosts]

the worst writers are the ones who never learn when to say goodbye

[fandom-aleatoire]

Pretty sure it ended after season two

are there any veronica mars fans still out there??? also for the record, as far as i’m aware season 4 doesn’t exist😃

[hellisanhonourstudent]

Logan and veronica for the ship meme!

The ship is my: OTP at the VMverse

I consider this ship’s feelings: Mutual | Mixed | Strange | Awkward | Platonic | Sibling-like | One-sided | They don’t really like each other |

I’d consider the relationship: Healthy(they seem to challenge each other a fair bit) | Awkward | Abusive | Doesn’t work properly(for the same reason it's healthy,lol - Logan and Veronica have to sort themselves as individuals before) | They’d never get together |

Children: No | Yes | They’d think about it

General Opinion: While I generally love this pairing,I prefer the fanfics over canon when it comes to them as adults. They were amazing in the movie,but I find that work vastly overrated(the mystery is stupid,for starters - why not have Cobb killed? I'd rather if Logan was a night club owner who defended one(or more) of his female underlings from a creep in a humiliating way,said creep was rich and powerful,got angry at Logan and decided to ruin his reputation. Besides,"night-club-owner" seems way more prone to bad reputation and "never live it down" than "military lieutenant"),even if I love Veronica's development in it. In the books,Veronica almost doesn't interact with Logan and his personality is way too bland for me to like it. The less we talk about S4,the better. That's why I go for fanfics when I want LoVe material(preferably non-movie compliant). At the end of the day,the VM Movie was more gifset material than anything,IMO.

[lily-radiance]

Random fic headcanons and ideas:

TWD season two Daryl Dixon with an S/O who's in trouble

Both loners

MC is not from Georgia

Early 20s MC dating mid-30s Daryl

She knows how to shoot archery bows but not crossbows

Touch-starved

Andrea considers MC like another younger sibling

Everyone advises Daryl not to go for you and vice versa

When Rick, Hershel, and Glenn go to the bar, MC accompanies them. Daryl only goes when Lori tells him that you are in danger.

Carol gives him advice

Andrea and Lori warn him if he breaks your heart, he's a dead man.

RE4 Leon with a high school best friend who became an Umbrella Scientist.

MC was initially training for the force with Leon but dropped out to find another passion

She wants to help people but gets pulled into Umbrella’s dark research

Leon caught a glimpse of her at the end of RE2 but couldn't be sure if it was her.

Ashley doesn't trust MC, but Leon ignores it

Both have combat experience and have undergone physical conditioning

MC does not have Las Plagas

Krauser spars with MC, causing Leon to jump in.

Krauser asks Leon to choose between you and Ashley.

IDK if Leon would be sweet here or a Yandere.

Arkham Movie Trilogy Jonathan Crane, Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivy x Psychiatrist reader

This story is currently in progress!!!

Reader works at Arkham Asylum

Friends with Bruce Wayne

Knows about his alter ego and occasionally helps him solve cases

Reader believes Bruce should do more with his money to benefit Gotham

Combines Heath Ledger’s Joker with Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn

The reader was in the same major as Harley in college, and the two dated briefly

Harley constantly teases the reader when she catches wind of a new crush

You try to ignore her, but eventually can't as she warns you that the doctor is deadlier than he lets on

You brush it off, too fond of your coworker to accept the notion that he can hurt you

Bruce doesn't like your new counterpart, picking up a destructive energy that screams guilty

In defiance, you decide to bring your beaux to one of many parties and get on your friend’s last nerve.

A kiss is shared in front of the crowd, some murmuring complaints while others smile. You wish to stay in Jonathan’s arms, but the moment is interrupted as Bruce pulls you aside

Naturally, two upper-class socialites fighting in front of an audience calls for bad publicity, but not on your part

“If you keep this up, you'll become a sewer rat criminal just like the rest!”

Luckily, you decided to wear a few rings to accentuate your outfit. Not only do you look stunning, but you reel back and land a brutal slap on his cheek. Yet that doesn't hurt as much as your following words.

“How dare you, Bruce. How dare you scrutinize what you can never understand. Thomas and Martha would be ashamed of you, and you, of all people, know they were difficult to rattle. Next time you need anything, ask someone who gives a shit.”

Your friend has to watch in shock as you exit the home, arm linked with a man he despises. Even in disagreeable situations, you manage to exhibit grace and elegance. It's the beginning of a new era and the opportunity to forget the complex life of the wealthy.

“Is your hand alright, (Y/N)? Better yet, are you okay?”

Never underestimate a psychiatrist to get into your head. He walks you to the car, watching your lips tremble in the darkness. You meet his stare, and one thought crosses your mind: kissing him sounds lovely. The doctor is efficient at picking up social cues, leaning down to meet your lips, and extinguishing the frigid temperature.

“As long as I'm with you, Jonathan. I can do anything with you by my side, no matter the risks.”

I want to make the reader an anti-hero vigilante with the “Grim Reaper” theme. Supernatural powers in Batman don't really occur so I will brainstorm. Most villains are the work of genetic experiments gone wrong so maybe I'll work with that?

JD(Heathers 1989) dating the reader

You are friends with Veronica and the despicable Heathers

Instead of going along with their charades, you often argue and challenge Heather Chandler

She constantly threatens your social standing but knows that the campus would easily choose you over her.

Purple color coded

JD can't help but admire your tenacity as you begrudgingly follow Veronica to the table, attempting to stop the girl from doing Heather’s bidding.

When you walk over, he seems uninterested in the girl speaking to him, instead transfixed on your disinterested attitude. Unknowingly, you lick your lips, tasting lip gloss and wiping some glitter away. When you lock eyes, you swear your heart stops beating, drawn to his carefree attitude.

Veronica says a few words to you, trying to convince you to let her administer the lunch poll

As she talks, you playfully roll your eyes, causing the delinquent to smirk in your direction. He hides a chuckle from breaking out, finding your careless joking funny given the circumstances. When Veronica walks off, it allows you to sit across from the newcomer, albeit a little too eagerly.

“Mind if I ask for a smoke? I'm dying from boredom.”

“Sure, I could never say no to a girl like you. I’m guessing you’ve been trying to break from those devils all day.”

He lights your cigarette as you take it between your teeth, enjoying the visual more than he lets on.

“It's all thanks to you, my knight in obsidian armor.”

[iamnotathornbird]

"a long time ago, we used to be friends, but i haven't thought of you lately at all..."

No hardcore fandom has ever died so quickly and so completely as Veronica Mars. This is the story of its murder.

They should study Veronica Mars in Hollywood. I’m serious. It’s an incredible story of how to go from “loud, passionate fanbase with its own fandom name that campaigns and advocates constantly for it” to “absolutely zero fucking interest” damn near OVERNIGHT with just ONE epically terri-bad decision.

If you weren’t there, you don’t understand: From 2007 to 2014, the fandom — the “Marshmallows,” as they called themselves — were everywhere in the Internet’s geek spaces, my friends. They routinely beat the drum about the series’ three seasons and its excellence, lamented its cancellation, pushed others to give the show a try, and always - ALWAYS - proudly and loudly called for the series to be revived.

FULL DISCLOSURE/CONFESSION: I’ve not even watched that much Veronica Mars, frankly… ? Yeah, I’m sorry! it does seem pretty good from like the four-or-five hours I’ve experienced firsthand. I just never took the time to sit down with it. Regardless, I find fandoms and their dynamics — both how they operate internally and how they display to others externally — deeply fascinating. And I honestly find them easier to study from the outside than the inside. Like, if I’m IN a fandom, I’m more likely to stay in my corner and ignore places that seem negative. But being on the outside lets me just… absorb what’s out there, looking into every forum without judgment. It’s like studying pop-culture sociology or something? And it helps that I’m very close to some serious(-ly burnt) Marshmallows. It makes it so much easier to find and absorb the gamut of the fandom.

Besides: There is NO fandom story I’ve ever seen that’s anything like what happened to Veronica Mars and the Marshmallows.

(Time to insert a brief explainer for the uninitiated: Veronica Mars was a TV series that aired from 2004-2007 on the now-deceased UPN network wherein Kristen Bell played the titular character, a high school girl whose single dad was a private detective in the fictional community of Neptune, California. She grew up working “unofficially” as his assistant, which meant that she herself was effectively a teenage private detective.

The three core elements of the series were: 1) Veronica investigating each week’s big mystery with plenty of quips and snark, 2) Watching Veronica’s various relationships develop and shift, with most of the focus given to a) her relationship to her father and b) Her romantic pursuits (which began as the Veronica/Duncan/Logan triangle before eventually becoming focused on the slow-burn, off-on Veronica/Logan love story), and 3) The gradual development of that season’s “mytharc” — the overarching BIG MYSTERY that doesn’t get resolved or wrapped until the season finale. So it went over the course of two seasons that took place in high school and the third, shorter season that was at the start of Veronica’s collegiate career.)

Just how big and how passionate were the Marshmallows? WELL! When series creator Rob Thomas (not the Matchbox 20 guy) and star Kristen Bell announced the Kickstarter campaign for the Veronica Mars movie in March 2013, it achieved its heretofore-unprecedented goal of TWO MILLION GODDAMN DOLLARS within less than 12 hours. At that time, it was the biggest Kickstarter goal to ever succeed — and certainly the fastest to reach that kind of height. Fans fell OVER themselves to pay out for it. Hell, my own significant other was DEEP in the tank for VM at the time and invested enough to get multiple t-shirts as backer rewards as well as a disk copy of the movie when it eventually came home.

And AFTER the movie hit in 2014? It was thankfully beloved and embraced! The once-teenage characters were adults who were actually out living on their own and working for a living, but the fandom had grown up with them, so it wasn’t like they were begging for them to stay young students. They embraced Adult Veronica and her new adventure. The fandom rejoiced loudly and continued to be all over the geek side of the Internet… where they, of course, still wanted more. Sure, there were new novels in the aftermath (which were written by the creator of the series), but most of the Marshmallows were calling for more movies or a streaming revival.

And then, at long last… season four was actually announced. And there was much (premature) rejoicing yet again.

Yes, Veronica Mars returned for a fourth season on Hulu in 2019. It was just eight episodes, and it was heavily centered on one season-long mystery instead of sprinkling that amongst a bunch of smaller ones, but it would still feature the same ol’ Veronica. They promised a new, more “adult” mystery/investigation plus a strong focus on Veronica and Logan’s love story.

New Hulu purchased the rights to the first three seasons and hyped up its presence on the platform while marketing the return for the new run. The marketing team played up the most popular quips from the show’s history plus put out TONS of stuff centered on the Logan/Veronica ship to pump up the fans.

The season was dropped all at once using the classic Netflix “binge” model in July 2019. And then… afterwards?

There was a brief explosion of LOUD RAGE from the Marshmallows at what series creator Rob Thomas had to done to burn and spite the fandom and ruin his own goodwill.

SPOILERS FOR SEASON 4: See, at the end of the movie, Veronica and Logan finally entered into a long-term relationship. In season four, they’ve been dating for years, and Logan proposes marriage. But of course there has to be drama/obstacles: In this case, Veronica isn’t sure she’s ready to marry… or capable of being in a marriage. Ah, but of course she eventually realizes how much Logan means to her. The two are married, and, in the season finale… Logan is killed by a car bomb in the penultimate scene. The final scene is a flashfoward to a year later, where Veronica leaves Neptune alone.

For most fandoms, that’d be a memorable point of pain. A big ol’ speed bump that ultimately throws some people off the bus, leaving only the die-hards. But the fact that fans had been invested in this relationship for literally 15 years and that Hulu (and creator Rob Thomas) had heavily marketed the new season as being a big romantic event for the ship… it was too much. Unlike the aftermath of the Star Wars sequels, there was no lingering group of die-hard fans who were open to whatever was next — at least no significant one. I did some Googling and could only find TWO people who still wanted another season.

Funnily enough? Critics LOVED this. Vanity Fair infamously penned an editorial about how Veronica Mars had “finally grown up” with the finale. (The same editorial also featured the author openly hating on Veronica ever being in a relationship because it causes “arrested development” and declaring that the movie – which was acclaimed by both critics AND fans alike, I remind you – was a lame dud. So. The writer must be a reeeaaaal fun person.)

But a series doesn’t live based on critical acclaim, as it turns out. The fandom was murdered overnight. “Marshmallows” stopped appearing in geek spaces online entirely. No one expressed interest in seeing the next season or the next movie. The constant flow of fan AMVs on YouTube and fanfics on AO3 dried up to nothing.

Since 2019 ? Nothing. Chirping crickets. An intensely dedicated fandom of 12 years was just… vaporized.

I’ve never seen anything like it before OR since.

That’s why it’s so fucking fascinating.

So what went wrong?

Creator Rob Thomas was adamant about two things: ONE, the series was intended to be a noir show, which meant there couldn’t be any happiness for its protagonist. And TWO, the death of Logan was necessary to evolve and grow the series.

Thomas thought that having Veronica in a relationship would be holding her back, and that a marriage would absolutely kill the series and leave her stagnant. It never even occurred to him that marriage isn’t the end of a character’s life and growth. It never occurred to him that plenty of drama can be had AFTER someone is married, or that development/growth could be that the characters mature enough to be capable of maintaining a committed relationship. Thomas’ view of his own universe was so myopic that he couldn’t conceive of any possible way that Veronica could still be a private detective involved in life-threatening investigations AND be married at the same time. Futhermore, he felt that fans just wanted Veronica to become a pregnant housewife, which is about as far from what Marshmallows were after as you can get without straight-up killing Veronica and/or Logan. He managed to do the only thing wronger than what he wrongly thought was their insistence.

On top of the above, Rob Thomas only viewed “noir” as a vehicle for total fatalism… despite the fact that many of the most famous noir stories are cynical and full of moral ambiguity, but they still feature a positive outcome. The Big Sleep still has the protagonist get the girl. The Set-Up arguably ends with the happiest possible ending in spite of the beating the hero receives.

Perhaps most importantly? Despite Thomas own insistence that Veronica Mars was always “noir,” the majority of both TV critics and fans did not think that designation ever truly applied. I suspect that’s the reason why Thomas decided to go as dark and fatalistic as possible: He wanted to be noir, and he was being told that he wasn’t. So he went so far into noir that he killed his own most popular property.

He was adamant that it was the only way for the series to grow. But as it turns out, it was instead the only way for the series to permanently end. Without that season four finale, a passionate group of fans would still be begging for more. With it? It’s over. Nobody fucking cares now.

That’s kind of amazing.

[hotdilfs11]

Mafia Boss-Thomas Shelby x Reader pt 1

Rest of the parts

✩summary: The Shelby knew this girl when she was very little. However, when her mother passed away (at 16) everything changed and everyone drifted away from each other. Now after seven years Veronica is a mafia boss in her fathers business. Her father. sent her to Birmingham on business, will this play off well?

✩pairings:girl named Veronica(POC) x Thomas Shelby

✩warnings:mention of death

—————————————————————————

I’m a mafia boss, or soon to be. My father is the boss of The Hawthorns Estate, along with my brothers, who are my father's right hand. A little backstory: I grew up in Birmingham with my mother. I was always around the Shelby boys, especially Thomas ever. since I was a little girl. They were all older than me. John was 17, Thomas was 18, and Arthur was 21. Anyway, Tommy and I were so close that anytime I had a complaint about anyone, he'd be the one to back me up and protect me. However, that changed drastically when my mother got ill when I turned fifteen years old. She never got better and died a year later, after my sixteenth birthday. It was devastating to watch my mother die slowly. The Shelbys were there for me when she passed away, and they were also willing to take me in since I didn't know who my father was.

DAY OF FUNERAL IN THE CEMETERY

As the Shelbys and I started walking through the cemetery to put my mother to rest, Four black cars pulled up in a straight line before my mother's funeral. Two Jeeps, one BMW, and one big Land Rover Polly was behind me, reassuring me. She had her right hand on my shoulder and her pocketbook in her free hand. Tommy was beside me on the left, close to me, making sure no one could hurt me, then John and Arthur on the left and right behind me. All four of them were ferociously protecting me.

"Who the fuck is that?" Polly said with a mean British accent. She didn’t want anyone to bother me at all, especially at my mother's funeral. Poll and Thomas looked at each other in concern as the cars started parking one by one in the line at the cemetery. “Tommy, sit here with her”, Poll said as she started walking up to these mysterious black cars. Tommy nodded and stood closer to me. He put one of his rough hands around my waist. I felt the warmth radiating off of his hands as he squeezed my waist letting me sink into him.

"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?" Poll screamed at the parked cars. As Poll was walking up to the cars, two men started getting out. Big, bulky, and scary, in black suits with sunglasses. The men began to open the doors of the BMW and the Jeep. Four other men climbed out of the cars with suits on. One had curly hair, was dark-skinned, slightly built, and tall; he kind of looked like me. The other two had olive-colored skin, jet-black hair; they were also tall; however, one was a little bit shorter with a strong build, and the other was tall with a medium build. Then the last guy He was old, maybe fifty years old, pale, big-boned, and also tall; he had to be about “6’7”.

Tommy pulled me a little bit closer to his warm, muscular body; he was practically hovering over me. John and Arthur also inched closer to me, also standing behind Tommy.

"Who the fuck are you?” Poll says she is concerned about realizing how tall all of these men are, but she doesn't let that stop her one bit.

"Who the fuck are you, I may ask?” the older one said in a heavy Italian, New York.

"I asked you first," Polly said, walking up to him.

"That girl over there, I’m her father, and these are her brothers now; what are your relations with my daughter along with those three boys over there?" He says

Poll looked back at us, concerned, and then looked back at the guy she was talking to with a brave look painted on her face. "What’s your name, I might ask?" she says, looking up at the older gentleman.

"My name is Hamilton Hawthorn; these are my sons," he says as he starts pointing at each of them.

"My oldest Ambrose," he said, pointing to the one with the curly hair. "My second oldest Cyrus," he pointed to the tall one with the jet black hair, and finally, my youngest Alexander," he pointed to the shorter one with the slightly bigger build.

"Now my daughter over there is the second oldest out of all of them. I’ve come to get her; she’s coming to New York with me.” Hamilton demands

“Fuck," Polly whispers to herself, looking at her feet.

She turns away from Hamilton to look back at all of us. "Veronica dear, come please!" she yells in a sorrowful voice.

I hesitantly started walking to Polly; however, I got stopped by Tommy. He grabbed my hand, tightening his grip, and gave me an unsure expression along with the other Shelby boys. Polly sees what’s happening and yells, "It’s okay, boys." Tommy slowly lets go of my hand as I start to walk over to the strange man. I was feeling apprehensive as I got closer and closer to Polly, unsure about what was about to happen.

When I got to Polly, she grabbed my shoulder and gave me a weary smile as she said, "This is your father, Hamilton, and these are your brothers. Ambrose, Cyrus, and Alexander"

I frowned at Polly in confusion. "So that means..."

"It means you're not staying in Birmingham, dear. After this, we’ll have to say our goodbyes," she says as tears start to form in her eyes, but she still keeps a brave face.

"But I,I, no Polly,” my voice started to crack, scared for what was going to happen. I look back to see the Shelby boys standing there for one last time, and then I look at Polly with sadness painted on my face. Polly stands in front of me with a fearless look on her face. She grabbed both of my shoulders tight and said, “You are the bravest girl I’ve ever met. Braver than me when I was your age, and braver than those boys up there. I’m so bloody proud of you and what you've become." We both start to tear up, and we gracefully hug each other for a long time, not wanting to let go of each other.

When the funeral ended, I said my heartfelt goodbyes to each of the Shelbys and went off to New York.