Broken Lullaby ▷ Tony Stark | ✓

6 - A GOOD KID

IT WAS COMMON KNOWLEDGE THAT REMY WALSH GOT HIS STUBBORN STREAK FROM HIS MOTHER. His mother who had, in just eight years, quit being a nurse—for reasons she never disclosed to anyone but close friends and family—and, with her ex-husband's help, got herself through law school in record time, already gaining three years of practice by the present date. She is as stubborn as she is driven, ignoring all who told her she couldn't do it, never giving up when people told her no.

It surprised no one to see her son do the same.

"Remy is grounded," Birdie declared when Jayne stepped into her office with takeout lunch. She took the box gratefully, opening it as the woman sat in the chair opposite her. "I didn't take away any privileges except being allowed outside, so he should have plenty to do."

"Your son doesn't do much," Jayne pointed out. While the boy was good at planning, fiddling with gadgets or reading were not common practices of his like they were for boys like him who also didn't find any interest in sports.

"He still has that adult coloring book he insisted I buy for him, maybe he'll actually get started on it," Birdie hummed, spearing one of her pieces of chicken with a fork, "I think this will give him the opportunity to think over what he has done and grow as a person."

"Or he might get onto HBO and binge watch Game of Thrones, that's all available for him On Demand," Jayne countered, taking a bite of her food, "It's going to ruin his little child mind and, suddenly, you're left with a soon-to-be felon."

Birdie rolled her eyes. "He's too smart for that, Jay, he's a good boy."

"Yeah," Jayne agreed, "The good boy who set out water and Advil for you when you came home smelling like cheap beer in the middle of the night." While being the more outgoing of the pair, Jayne still spoke with a good deal of disapproval that Birdie couldn't help but agree with.

"You know I don't usually drink," she said, looking up at her from where she was paying close attention to her food, "It was just one time."

"Birdie, I don't care if you drink, you were always the one who didn't want to, I never stopped you," Jayne sighed, "But you scared him, you scared me. You didn't answer your phone, we were up the whole night. Now, I know what happened scared you and I don't blame you for what you did, but..."

"I'm sorry," Birdie mumbled, glancing towards the work on her desktop. It was the work that prevented her from thinking much about that night.

"Don't apologize, just remember next time, okay?" Jayne asked, reaching out to squeeze her hand, "Your son needs you, Birdie. You're here, not his dad."

The woman groaned at the mention of the unknown man, running her hands through her hair and shaking her head. "Do you know who he is? Did Remy tell you?" She searched the woman's features for any indication, but came up empty.

"I'm sorry. He didn't tell me anything," Jayne whispered, so genuine in her regret that Birdie had no choice but to believe her.

"Okay," Birdie sighed, and that was the end of it. The women just ate their food in a comfortable silence, edging into other topics as they tried to ignore the hum of guilt in the back of their hearts.

º º º

"Okay, BUDDY, look up 'how to remove window and screen from room.'"

Remy had spent most of the morning sneaking around his babysitter, scrounging enough money for a subway. He'd have to move fast and there wasn't enough time for him to wait until the man made his walk into Midtown—if he even chose to do that again, it was a Saturday. Which meant he'd have to go to Brooklyn.