little piece of heaven (tony stark's daughter)

7

rosie's p.o.v

as we leave, dad grabs the car keys from the man's pocket. i have to say, it does aid the relief that washes over me. now we can get out of this place. don't get me wrong, i'm sure rose hill is a lovely place... except it isn't it's actually really horrible and i don't want to be here any longer than i have to be. time to go, to leave and never ever come back. i don't even want to talk about it after we're out. it's grim. besides, when you almost die in a place multiple times the connotations become rather sinister. before we enter the main road i make sure to tuck my wings away, we really don't need too much more attention drawn to us right now. the last thing we need is to become a beacon for more nightlight people to come and find us.

"you're welcome" harley walks across the road towards us as we reach the car that used to belong to that guy. now it's ours. a cowboy hat sits atop his head and i can't help but think that it's comically suited to this odd town. it's almost as if the whole place is stuck in the last century. dad is flipping through the file that both of the glowy people were so desperate to get. so desperate, that they murdered. i've never understood how people can just take life, without a second thought. desperation is such a powerful emotion and i want to know what made them so pathetically desperate that they became monsters. i don't think anything could make me as desperate as that, never.

dad looks from me to harley, then raises his eyebrows "for what? did i miss something". tucking the file under his arm, he walks around the car to the drivers door. i'm not getting in yet, i want to hear what the kid has to say. after all, he's quite amusing. despite us being the same age, he acts a lot younger, either that or i act older. it's hard to keep being a kid when everyone has either assumed you're dead or wants you dead, sometimes both. yeah, it's probably me acting older.

"me saving your life" he jabs the billionaire in the arm with a satisfied grin. i love how excited and proud he is, how he doesn't even seem traumatised in the slightest. i miss that, when every fight was just another thrill and i didn't have recurring nightmares of being locked in dark rooms and loki's voicing reminding me over and over that i'm a freak, i shouldn't exist, there's a reason my true heritage is a secret. i lean against the car and run my hand through my hair, pulling it over into a side-parting. 

"yeah" dad stifles a smile when i give him a pointed look, i feel bad for harley and i want him to keep his innocence "a, i saved you first. b, thanks. sort of. And c if you do someone a solid don't be a yutz, all right? just play it cool otherwise you come off grandiose" he half-lectures, unlocking the car and opening the door. i note to myself that now i'm back with dad i've warmed up a little, my toes and fingers no longer feeling like popsicles. maybe my powers work better when i'm with people i'm close to? i'll have to experiment with it when all of this is over.

"unlike you?" harley asks, his sarcasm causing dad to pause as i burst out laughing. he glares at me but i just hit him gently on the arm. "admit it" the boy continues "you need me". i have to give it to him, the kid has determination. the kind that makes you kind of pity him, sure, but he doesn't give up. if he wasn't ten i'm sure he'd be kind of useful, he'll be great when he's older, i think he'll do amazing things. but he had to ruin it, didn't he, with two words "we're connected". 

unable to contain myself any longer, i resolve to walking around to the back of the car and laughing silently there by myself. i really don't want to hurt his feelings but it's just- 'connected'. connected. "what i need is for you to go home, be with your mom, keep your trap shut, guard the suit, and stay connected to the telephone because if i call, you better pick up. okay?" dad takes the boys hat and looks up to the air "can you feel that? we're done here. move out the way or i'm gonna run you over. rooster get in" he lowers himself into the drivers seat with a simple "bye kid" and i do as i'm told, not without grumbles about how i'm not a chicken and my hair would never do that comb thing which go without a verbal response but receive a fond smile.

harley doesn't move though, he just stands there as dad starts the car and the headlights illuminate the tarmac. a mixture of guilt and irritation finds it's way onto dad's face and i stare at him expectantly. with a short sigh, he rolls the window down "i'm sorry, kid. you did good". harley takes a step forwards, looking dejected and hurt. it registers in my mind that he doesn't know his dad, that my dad is probably the closest he's been to having one in a while.

"so now you're just gonna leave me here, like my dad?" he says the words with such a steady voice, so calmly, that it was as if he'd just greeted someone he barely knew in the street. but they carry so much weight. those kinds of things are so heavy, and i wasn't expecting it. i'm immediately inclined to think about what it was like when dad left me for those months, although he didn't have a choice, i so desperately wanted him to come home. 

dad's silent for a moment and i can't help but wonder if he's thinking about what it would be like to leave me. he obviously never would, but harley's words have gotten to both of us, though neither of us will show it. "yeah" he says finally. he seems calm, but i think he'll reflect on this later and feel bad. as heartless as he may come across to many, he's my dad and i know him better than anyone. i know that he's going to beat himself up over upsetting this random kid in this random creepy town. then it dawns on him "wait you're guilt tripping me aren't you?".

i almost laugh out loud as the kid's face melts into an innocent pout and he seems to fold in on himself. "i'm cold" he whimpers, this time the tactic painfully obvious and fruitless. if he thinks he can trick my so called genius dad, he has another thing coming. he probably should have figured out by now that this guy isn't easily fooled.. well, not unless you're the right person. 

"i can tell" dad adopts a mocking tone and mimics harley's pout "you know how i can tell?" the boy nods to prompt his answer and i bite my lip in anticipation. i know, i just know that he's about to be a smart-ass. i've been around him my entire life, i can predict quite accurately when he's going to do it. "because we're connected".

i burst out laughing once again as he drives away, leaving harley and rose hill behind. "let's never, ever, come back here" i say as i watch it disappear in the mirror. 

"agreed".