Broken Lullaby ▷ Tony Stark | ✓

9 - COUNT ON ME

"HE BOUGHT HIM AN ENTIRE GAMING SYSTEM, JAYNE! Just because the game wasn't available on the one my parents bought for him. And-and-and—He got Remy to take his medicine! Can you believe that, I have to fight with him every time he gets sick, but just one word and he's drank half the bottle!"

Jayne smiled from where she was toying with her salad, looking at Birdie from over her desk. "Honey, I think you're jealous."

Birdie scoffed, running a hand through her hair. She had been swamped with files and appointments, having hit a crossroads with one of her clients that she had taken, and had been narrowly saved from accidentally neglecting herself by Jayne who had shoved away all of her work, shoving a fast food bag into her hands, forcing her to eat.

"I'm not jealous," she snapped, taking a harsh bite of her burger, "I'm just...confused, is all. Surprised. When he said that he wouldn't leave Remy, I didn't think he'd show up two days later to buy him a game console and take care of him when he's sick."

"How is the little guy, by the way?" Jayne asked, her almost mocking expression turning to one of pity, "When he gets sick, he's out for a while, poor baby. You should take some time off, take care of him."

Birdie sighed, rubbing her eyes. "Okay, even you know that that's not how this works. Also, I have to provide for him."

Jayne pursed her lips, nodding. "Yeah, of course." 'Though you don't always have to work so late,' she added silently to herself.

The older woman sighed and rubbed her temples, taking a deep breath. "I'm just...I don't know how to feel about any of this. It's not as if I'm upset he's trying to insert himself into our lives, but he is and it's strange."

"Well, of course it's going to be strange, he might be the father of your child," Jayne said, taking a bite of her salad, "And you haven't seen him since New Year's 2006, it's going to be weird having him in your home and interacting with your kid, but you asked him to stay."

"I just don't want Remy to run away from me too," she confessed, slumping forward, "He doesn't even call Mark his dad anymore, doesn't acknowledge any of the things they used to do together. If I let him just keep searching, he's gonna end up running away from me too."

Jayne tried not to let her thoughts show on her face. She loved Birdie, she really did, but her friend, in an effort to take care of her son, often forgot that she was often away from him most times of the day. If anything, he didn't need to run away to be away from her.

"Well, you should just go see a movie with him. Just the two of you, so he doesn't think you're abandoning him too while he's off with Tony Stark. It's still so weird to say, he just goes into your house. He's a celebrity, a world hero," Jayne gushed, her serious tone melting away into one of awe and delight.

Birdie rolled her eyes fondly as she fell back into her seat, tilting her head towards the ceiling, letting the back of her chair dig into her neck. "There's so much to do and I'm just paralyzed, I can't work on anything because I want to work on everything."

"You were always able to handle it, Birdie, this time's no different," Jayne said, reaching out to squeeze her hand, "You just need to relax."

"How do I do that?" Birdie asked, and while her tone was exasperated, it was clear that she honestly didn't have a clue.

Jayne pursed her lips in thought as she looked at her best friend, wishing she could help her, ease some of the tension, but Birdie had to do all of this by herself, there was no one else who could do it.

"I was gonna say you should call Wilma and you and the kids could have a picnic, invite your parents and everyone, but Remy's sick, so you're gonna just have to raincheck on that for now," the blonde said, taking another bite of her salad, "But here. How about I come over and I'll cook some spaghetti, we can just relax, I'll paint your nails, it'll be fun."