Flowers In America | T.Stark

⎊ CHAPTER FIVE ⎊

"You left me out in the pouring rain, but the water only heals me faster."
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Chapter 5: told you.
Lilly and Tony had been sitting (or in Tony's case...standing?) for a while now, and the burning in Lilly's cheek had subsided into a dull throb, barely detectable as her attention was more on the numbness of her hands, and the pins and needles in her legs.

She rested her head back on the table, unable to see Tony through the mess of her hair. Not that she wanted to see him, for she felt embarrassed and a huge burden at everything that had happened a bit back.

One of their guards sat a bit to her right, on the same chair the creep had, ankle crossed over one knee as he watched the two. Another guard stood with his arms crossed next to where Tony was, watching him like a painting in a gallery.

Tony, on the other hand, was biding his time, his grip on the bar tightening as every second passed, but he kept up his seemingly defeated façade, as to not draw any suspicion.

If he wanted to, he could break his bands, hit both the guards over the head with the pole and grab Lilly, ready to run for it, but he had been in a similar situation before.

He knew that the moment they stepped out of the door not in bands or escorts, they would be shot.

Sure, he could've gotten away once before, maybe even still escape with a bullet wound or two, but this time he'd have a child to look after, his daughter to think of and protect from the guns.

He couldn't risk that, couldn't risk her more than he had already done so.

So he brooded in silence, biding him time, readying for the right time to attack.

His watch beeped, the plastic thing the only thing that seemed to still be together in his life, and  he realised that it was time.

The beeping didn't stop, and eventually Lilly turned her head, facing him for the first time to peer up at it. Tony caught her eye, and he gave her a small smile, his way of telling her everything was going to be okay. She started back, no emotion on her face, no confirmation or rejection he could read.

The beeping, seemed to start to annoy the guards, and the one that was sitting closest to it, the guard with the ponytail, picked it up, peering at it.

"Careful there," Tony said to him, the guard gazing at him for a second before fiddling with it, trying to stop the beeping, "It's limited edition."

Lilly didn't understand how he could still joke in a time like this where they were probably counting down the minutes to the bullet through their brains.

The guard with the ponytail passed it to the guard sitting next to Lilly, and that guard began shaking it.

"Yeah," Lilly snorted, shaking her head at the sour-faced man, "Because shaking it is going to some-how turn it off. Ever heard of a button?"

"Useful things they are." Tony finished, and the guard glared at Lilly, who shrugged cheekily, all previously lost spirit seeming to slowly come back in the form of mockery.

"Hey, uh, Ponytail Express?" Tony called over to the guard with the ponytail, who sighed before nodding for him to continue, "What's the mileage count between Tennessee and Miami?"

Lilly stilled as she heard the careful question, the information her Dad was seeking.

"832 miles." The ponytail guard answered, and quite quickly too.