finnomalley

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌:

It was like lightning– a flash of movement and then she was being grabbed and tossed like a rag doll as she struggled against the man. She’d thought she would be prepared for something like this happening but the fact was, when a truck hit you, it wasn’t because you saw it coming. She thrashed and attempted to scream when the door burst open and Finn was there. Charlotte was tossed to the ground like an afterthought. She could barely make sense of Finn’s words but scrambled up anyway, adrenaline pushing her forward as she grabbed the gun with shaking hands.

She stumbled out of the bathroom, wiping at the blood trickling down her temple and ran towards the exit sign without a glance over her shoulder. There was no time to think. She burst through the door and ran down the alleyway, somehow making it down the dimly lit space. She heard her name called after her but didn’t turn, panic settled in her chest too solidly think about stopping for even a minute. She heard her name again and footsteps behind and kept running, chest beating like it wanted to escape her chest when a hand grabbed her and screamed.

from the corner of his eye, finn spotted charlotte stumbling to follow his instructions. he couldn’t focus on her for very long, however, as he had to focus on not killing this bastard in a pub, in front of a crowd. the irishman had advantage still, being on top of the other, he punched him on the throat as hard as his remaining energy would allow him to, combined with the desperate arms trying to break the men apart. the latter gave him a solid segue to leave, leave him to the prying patrons to take the attention off of him, regardless of his bloody nose and bruised lip. he followed the path he’d seen the brunette running off into, as fast as he could, to catch up with her and get her head checked out, fast.

“charlotte!” he called as he spotted her running into an alleyway, without even flinching at her name. fucking hell, charlotte. he called it a couple more times, but instead of making more noise, he instead picked up the pace and reached the panicked woman, completely out of breath by that point. she screamed when he grabbed her wrist, and understandably so. “shhh,” finn urged her, forcing her to a momentary halt to assure her of this equally momentary safety. “it’s me, it’s finn.” he pulled her along then, towards the other end of the block where he’d park a different vehicle from the one from a couple nights ago. “we’ve got to go, charlotte.” he was about to tell her to hurry it up, to fucking move it, something. but he couldn’t, especially not as he was reminded of the stream of blood on her face. “fuck,” he mumbled to himself, stopping for a second to place a hand on her back, and the other one behind her knees, and swooping her off the floor. he then rushed to the vehicle. “whatever you do now, do not fall asleep, you hear me?”

[finnomalley]

Jamie for Elle 2015

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌:

A few minutes had passed to the point that Charlotte felt calm enough to not lose her shit in public so she made a sound of flushing the toilet lest someone thought she was just hanging out (not that she really cared). She exited the stall and wiped her face with the back of her hand, going to the sinks to make sure her make up wasn’t disturbed by tell-tale signs of crying. She’d just turn the faucet and dabbed at her slightly smudged mascara with a damp tissue when the door to the bathroom open. She glanced up after a beat and froze, seeing a man in the reflection of the mirror. Their gazes met and it was like a rush of wind in her ears. Charlotte reached for her bag, for the goddamn pepper spray her father made her promise to keep on her person at all times but she wasn’t fast enough. 

The man lunged at her and Charlotte barely had time to react before he was grabbing her. She tried to remember everything her father had insisted she learn and practice when she was a girl, what she’d told him she’d have no use for whatsoever later on in life. Elbows. Nails. Eyes. She clawed at him and was about to scream when a hand went over her mouth and she practically gagged against it, trying to bite meaty fingers as they clamped over. Stay calm. Stay calm. She threw an elbow back, connecting with something hard enough to hear the man swear before he slammed into the side of the stall, her head connecting with it hard. 

Her ears were ringing now and her heart was clawing out of her chest as vision blurred slightly. No, no, no. She pawed at his hands around her, trying to scratch him but everything was swimming and something cold was on her face. It wasn’t blood. It wasn’t blood. She wasn’t bleeding because she wasn’t hurt. Because this wasn’t happening. She was fine. She’d be fine. Charlotte managed to bite down then, teeth digging into his finger and he yelled “Bitch” snatching his hand away and in a horse voice, she said the first thing that came to her mind, somehow willing him to hear her. Willing him to still be there. “Finn.” 

before he did anything, finn observed the man he was dealing with. he had seen him before, and he knew him by name. he studied him, as quickly as he could, dominant hand still resting on his back, holding on to his belt. he didn’t look armed, but he definitely had rope on him. of course. finn had been lucky enough to be in what he’d consider his civilian clothes, as his appearance would’ve kept suspicions away as to who he really was, so he wouldn’t see him coming. at the same time, if they were able to tell, they wouldn’t have even attempted to get close to charlotte dayton. 

the man entered the women’s room. but before he could take a step forward, he was tapped on the shoulder by a server, basically asking what the hell they were doing standing there, like a creep. hurriedly, the man tried coming up with an excuse, something along the lines of ‘waiting for his sister to come out of the bathroom, she’s hammered and her friends called me to get her home.’ thankfully, that was convincing enough, and finn was left alone, for the time being. he still had to wait until the server was far enough from where he stood to not arise any more suspicion, and he cursed under his breath, the echo of struggle making his fingers twitch.

as soon as he was in the clear, finn sprinted towards the women’s room, taking his weapon from its hiding place and kept it to his side, trying to not go under the radar to both the bar staff and the man inside, he slid into the room and pointed his gun at the perpetrator. “what the fuck do you think you’re doing, you prick? let her go.” he stated, firmly, to no avail. then he saw the blood running from charlotte’s head. and then he realised death was an easy way out for fuckers like these, trying to get back at a stronger man by hurting his kin, all because of their failures. he was raging. with a stride, he spun the firearm in his hand and bashed the grip into the side of his head the force of his hit forcing the gun out of his hand. however, he gave himself a moment to pull the man’s stunned body away from charlotte, but only for that. “take the gun, get out!” he turned to her and yelled, but in those seconds, the other man recovered and threw finn a punch in the cheek. dazed, finn saw the other attempt to reach for charlotte again. completely out of it, as he had gotten him pretty good, he used the rest of his force to ram into the other man, effectively barging out of the bathroom and into the hallway, making a tonne of noise in the process. finding himself with advantage, finn grabbed the man by the hair, and slammed his face onto the floor. “charlotte!” he called out. where the fuck was she?

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌:

Charlotte arched a brow, frowning now, “I don’t feel like it’s both.” She admitted, without really meaning to but she didn’t care all that much right then, not really concerned with what the right thing to say was. “You think of me like a job. And not a person.” She bit her lip, wondering what might’ve happened had she not been her father’s daughter. Had she not had Dayton attached to her name. If she was free of the shadow her father’s business cast on her life. She studied Finn for a moment, eyes raking over his face intensely. She couldn’t remember if there was ever a time she’d been this close to him. She saw that his eyes weren’t exactly blue but held some green and thought he’d look better if he smiled. 

“It did bruise,” she said, sliding off the tall chair, the space between the chair and him already limited and now she barely an inch short of leaning against him fully, scanning his features for a beat. “But you were just doing your job, right?” She felt a surge of annoyance rise up in her. Of frustration for the position her father’s squabbles put her in. His beef with other organizations. His beef with the law. And Finn was part of that. Part of the machine. And she was just a cog in it too, a part that thought it was separate only to find out she’d been tied to it the entire time. She ignored the bartender serving her another drink, ignored the hum and drum of people speaking around her and leaned in, bitterness accenting her voice as her lips brushed his ears and her words left in a harsh whisper. “You can tell William,” her father’s name,  “that your job is  safely at home, in the box he wants to keep me in. Make up a lie. I don’t care. But the next time I see you outside my building I will call the police.” 

Damn her father’s work. Damn Finn O’Malley. And she pulled away, anger and hurt mixing in her eyes as she spun away towards the lavatory. As long as her father continued this way, she’d be stuck. She’d be trapped in this facade of a world he’d allowed her to build for herself. Allowed. The word was bitter in her thoughts and seemed to catch in her throat as she turned the corner for the bathroom and shoved the door open as several women streamed out. All the better. No one to hear her cry in her stall before finding her friends, wherever they’d gotten off to. 

it wasn’t until she said it out loud that it felt real. he knew he did, charlotte was part of his job — but he never thought she’d even give it that much thought. and he couldn’t imagine what it’d feel like... no, he did. he had never been a person to his employer, as long as he was concerned. he had always been a pawn. was he simply going off that sentiment with his treatment towards charlotte? he had no idea what to tell her. and truthfully, he didn’t have to say anything — so he didn’t. but he still felt like he owed her something. he looked away for a moment.

“right.” the word came out in a low voice, as he had inadvertently held his breath the moment charlotte stood from the chair, as if scared that if he moved an inch, his chest would end up on hers. no need for that boundary crossing. “charlotte,” he began, but to no avail. he sighed in frustration, knowing there was no point in going after here, nor was it his obligation. but... it was. he pulled out a fifty pound note, giving it to the bartender to pay for charlotte’s drinks, then adding a twenty to both tip him and charm him into not asking questions. “what a drama queen,” he mumbled to himself as he pulled away from the bar, eyeing the direction the woman had ran off in. while doing so, he caught a glimpse of a familiar face, and not a good one at that. calmly, yet hastily, he headed in the direction the odd man had gone into, finding it off-putting to see them heading into the women’s room. “fuck,” the irishman mumbled under his breath, as his hand slid behind his back, under his jacket, just to make sure his silenced pistol was ready in case it needed to be used.

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌:

Charlotte’s week had been shit. She’d been trying to collect enough evidence for a retrial on the case she lost but had come up with nothing more than what she’d already done. And it frustrated her to no end. It took several friends convincing her to go out on Friday for her to even consider it and a mistrial that afternoon to seal the deal. So there she was at some bar in central London, on her third drink of the night when someone approached and she rolled her eyes. Plenty of people had approached her and her companions, men and woman and her friends had just meandered off to join in the company of another group but Charlotte had contented herself to stay at the bar, drawing away a terrible week. 

Still, when she turned to tell the new person off, she was surprised to see it was Finn. Finn O’Malley. Her father’s watchdog. Her prison warden. And, objectively speaking, the most attractive man in the entire bar. She’d had enough to drink and was still mad at him for several nights ago that she didn’t say anything for a moment, slinging down the rest of her drink before fixing him with pointed look, “to respect that I’m your bosses daughter or to respect me because I’m actually worth a damn shred of respect?” She arched a brow, waving at the bartender for another drink, holding up another finger for Finn as well. “I’m not made of glass, Finn O’Malley.” She ghosted a hand on his shoulder, studying his face curiously, as though she might see what was actually going on behind those eyes that always seemed just a bit too intense. “I won’t break” Charlotte tipped her head to the side, leaning in so her breath was on his cheek, “I won’t shatter if you touch me.” Sober she would’ve denied ever having thoughts like this but with several drinks in her? She was only human.

had he not been watching close enough? charlotte’s demeanor seemed different — at least from what he would act like after a few drinks. he had never actually interacted with her while she drank, so he simply wasn’t used to this... behaviour, to call it something. he arched an eyebrow at her comment. “both.” the man nodded once, solemnly. finn did his best to respect the woman, for as long as he’s known her. but after the incident they had a few nights ago, he wondered how that might’ve affected her. he hadn’t even considered an apology, but as there had never been a reprimand from the boss, he figured everything was fine. 

“i’m aware, charlotte.” he tried to mimick her attitude, as to not give away just how confused he was at her demeanor. where had her friends gone? he wasn’t supposed to stay there for that long — it was only supposed to be a notice, before he left. but now he was here, intrigued by her state. so much so, he hadn’t even noticed when she signaled for a drink for him. and to say he froze when she spoke into his skin was an understatement. how was he supposed to react? he had to be responsible, whatever her behaviour and whatever his reaction were. “again, i’m aware. as you should be, too. i thought after the other night it’d been clear. your arm didn’t bruise, right?” still no apology, but a slight hint of concern painted his tone.

[finnomalley]

in their line of work, business would often go wrong. and if anybody knew that, it would be finn. his parents were exhibit a, and the array of ‘co-workers’ he’d seen come and go would be exhibit b. finn’s mindset was pretty straight-forward, though. he had a job to do, and that was it.

and as much as he hated to admit it, finn knew he was nothing but a pawn in the boss’ big scheme. if he got killed, the man would just find a replacement. it was different with his daughter, and understandably so. finn had seen the aftermath of his wife’s death, and he suspected the measures he’d take to keep his daughter from meeting the same fate would be strict — he just couldn’t imagine how much so. 

but after their last meeting, finn re-worked his strategy. kept a smarter distance, he was less boisterous, but the friday night festivities made it more difficult than usual to keep track, especially when he was the only one on watching. it was then that he realized just how... weird it must be for charlotte to always have eyes on her. he almost felt bad. with their last encounter in mind, the man made a bold move and approached the woman, something he wasn’t supposed to do. he stood next to where she sat on the bar, giving her a stern look. “no babysitting tonight. you can give me a call if you need anything, but... if space is what you want, it’s my job to respect that, too.” 

@charlotte-dayton​

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌:

Charlotte couldn’t get that woman’s tearful face out of her mind. Being told she couldn’t have sole custody. Being told that he wouldn’t be seeing jail time. Being told that her restraining order would be honored for just 180 fucking days. Charlotte could only see red. “I don’t bloody care, okay?” She looked at him, jaw clenching as she took a breath, “I won’t tell my father you weren’t around. He won’t bloody well know the difference. It doesn’t matter.” Why did she matter more that someone she was trying to help? If she could’ve given the woman the protection she so wanted to be rid of, she would in the blink of an eye. “Get out of my face, O’Malley.” She shot him a hateful look as he pulled her towards her flat, wind blowing her hair every which way as she swore at him again, “and how do you know I won’t just leave out a window? Hmm? You can’t have eyes everywhere. My dad can’t have eyes everywhere.” But she imagined he was close to it. Once at the flat door, she grabbed the keys from her coat pocket and violently yanked her wrist from his grip, unlocking and shoulder the door open. “You’re a piece of work, you know that? A bloody fucking piece of work.” 

for once, finn decided to use his better judgement and just stay quiet. as much as his boss’ daughter infuriated him, it was better for everyone if he didn’t keep riling her up. and himself, in the process. however, his planned silence didn’t last too long — the man spoke before he could even think about stopping himself. “you won’t do that, because you’re not stupid.” well, fuck. he opened his mouth. and now that he started his thought, he might as well finish it, right? “you’re too smart to run away from things. now calm the fuck down, please.” he followed her into her building, all the way to her front door. at the insult, the man simply nodded once. “likewise, miss dayton. likewise.” he leaned against the wall, waiting for the brunette to open the goddamn door and get inside, so he could continue doing his job where he was supposed to. he sighed. “charlotte —” he began. “it’s okay. whatever happened to you today, it’s okay. life’s unfair sometimes. learn from it and move on.” his eyes followed her arm all the way down to the knob. “and don’t forget to lock that from the inside.”

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌:

She struggled out of his grip, digging in her heels to no avail as he pulled her along and she couldn’t help herself. Charlotte felt like a powder keg about to explode. It was just Finn’s misfortune of being there, it wasn’t his fault but that didn’t stop her. “Help!” She shouted, “let go of me!” she shoved at his arm, his grip infinitely stronger than her own pull, “Let go of me!!” She glared at him, brown eyes blazing as he shoved her into the car and she swore at him, “bastard.” Her safety was a joke. She was afforded luxury and protection and that poor woman– no. She couldn’t think about it right then or everything inside her would boil, more than it already was. “I am. I don’t need a fucking babysitter Finn O’Malley. His name was a curse on her lips, one she spewed like she was spitting out venom. “Let go,” she shifted, making to get off the seat and move past him despite Finn still having an iron grip on her arm “I don’t need you.” 

“jesus fucking christ, charlotte.” finn sighed, rolling his eyes at her words. just how immature can one person be? what part of her father’s orders did she not understand? still, before her screaming could get any unnecessary attention, he let go of her arm. he sighed deeply, still blocking her exit route back to her flat, back to her home. simply because he couldn’t trust her with herself in that moment, due to the temper tantrum she was throwing. “that’s not my choice to make, and it’s not yours either. as much as it might displease you, that’s just how things are. so get over yourself, charlotte. i’m just doing my job.” okay, perhaps he was being a bit too... much. he was taking it to heart too much. but he also noticed something especially off about her behaviour that evening. it, however, did not concern him in the slightest. even if it did, a little. it was odd, even for someone as infuriating as charlotte. “i’ll escort you to your flat. no questions asked.”

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌

Charlotte was being petulant. She knew that. She didn’t care. She was tired of her father treating her like a child, for making her feel like she wasn’t safe by putting people there to protect her. Because what said target on your back than people trying to block whatever was going to be aimed at you. She’d rather live in sweet oblivion than feel paranoid whenever she spotted one of her father’s guys around. It was tiresome and she was beyond tired. The day had already taken a terrible turn, which was why she gave him a sweet smile with scathing eyes. “Fine.” She set her jaw and backed up from the window, looking for all intents and purposes like she was going to go back to her home when she took a deep breath and opened her mouth. “Is anyone there???” She practically yelled into the night, “you can come out now, you’re out of luck, I’ve got security!” She was pissed. At herself. How did I lose that case. She swallowed the bitterness in her throat. Her chest hurt with the defeat as it settled in even more. “Anyone?? I’m right here!” She spun in a circle in the middle of her otherwise typically quiet street, arms out as though inviting anyone to come at her. Anger at herself spilling out into this riotous behavior without thought. 

the man nodded solemnly, assuming that was the end of their little unwanted interaction. finn began to slowly roll up his window, while his eyes remained glued to the brunette, making sure she was indeed going to her door, and doing so safely. the window was up, and he was back to patrolling. he took a sip of the coffee in his cupholder, when he heard the brunette screaming. the man almost dropped the cup, and fumbled to open the driver’s door and get out of the vehicle. “what the fuck?” he mumbled to himself. “oi!” he yelled now. “are you insane?” he asked aggressively, grabbing the woman’s arm firmly and pulling her back towards the car, into the seat that was meant to be his. he knelt next to her, still holding onto her arm tightly. “this isn’t a joke.” finn stated, anger spewing out. “my job isn’t a joke, and your safety isn’t a joke either.” his breaths were short. “i know you’re not happy about it. but if you’re not a child, then act like it, charlotte. fucking act your age.”

[finnomalley]

[finnomalley]

charlotte-dayton‌:

This was it. The final straw. Charlotte had just lost a case, she’d just watched a woman have to go back to a horrible situation and had failed to help her. And she just wanted to go home and sleep away the frustration and failure that seemed to wash over her. She might’ve too, had she not gotten to her townhouse and caught a familiar glimpse of a familiar car. Her father was paranoid. She’d known that from a young age. When her mother had died been killed,  Charlotte saw that paranoia grow and his protectiveness take on a new form. Once she moved back to London, he’d insisted on sicking his guys on her at all times. “It’s just security”, he said, always with a wave of his hands, “you won’t even know they’re there.” And yet. Charlotte knew who was there and before she even took her keys out of her pocket, she’d turned on her heels and walked down the steps of her home, walking down the block and up to his car. She rapped her knuckles on his window until he lowered it. “I don’t need a tail, O’Malley. I’m thirty-three, not three. I know it’s hard to remember but please do try. I’m tired of feeling like I have a stalker.”

– @finnomalley​

finn had nanny duty that night, alongside a few other men placed by mr. dayton, to be managed by him. it might’ve been because the irishman had worked for him the longest out of everyone currently involved in his business, but the man trusted him. and finn owed it to him, which was why he was there — sitting in the black vehicle with tinted windows, making sure charlotte got home safely. and to be honest, he also owed it to his daughter. sure, the car would’ve passed unnoticed by anyone else in london, but charlotte dayton herself. he sighed in exasperation as he lowered the window, giving her an annoyed look. “good evening, charlotte,” he uttered, sarcastically. “i only follow the rules i’m given.” he would gratefully be doing anything else at the moment. “i suppose i shouldn’t tell you anderson has been patrolling too, should i? i’m begging you to understand — it’s only for your safety.” while he was supposed to be kind to his boss’ daughter, he was still not happy with the situation. he wanted to snap back at her so bad, but he knew doing such a thing could cost him more than his job. 

[finnomalley]

JAMIE DORNAN

as Paul Spector in The Fall (2013-2016)

[finnomalley]