Midnight Racer-Tony Stark's Daughter

fifteen

Maybe she'd go back in a few hours to the building, try her luck again. Who knows? She'd just be sitting in a room waiting again, or better yet there could be a different security guard who'd just kick her out on the spot.

Dallas probably isn't even on Tony Stark's radar, let alone even concerning him in the slightest at all. He's probably moved on from this whole mess, and can't be bothered with it now.

Mr. Hogan probably didn't even do anything, he just didn't want to call the cops on her so he left her in random rooms promising her that he'd be back and then when hope gathered up he'd be back again and without anyone, just to take her to another room until she'd leave on her own.

He got what he wanted then, whatever.

People usually like her wherever she goes. In supermarkets they enjoy her jokes, even laugh sometimes at them. In clothing stores or malls, Dallas always leaves them having met at least five people. Not many she sees again, it's the thought that's always rattling her brain that allows her to be open with random people.

There's just so many people in this world, and it's crazy that you won't get to meet anywhere close to all of them. So why not try your best to meet as many as you possibly can, and if they tell you to bug off so be it, at-least you tried.

"Did you find your Dad?" Jay breaks the silence.

"Hm, what?" Dallas snaps back into reality.

"Your Dad, you ever find him?" He slows down.

She'd forgotten that she'd told Jay about her Dad, or at least that she was looking. It had all blurred into the past.

"Yes and no?" She replies.

"How's that?" He asks.

Dallas takes her time to reply.

"I mean, I know where he works and all—"

"—Did you go see him?"

"—so I tried to go see him." She finishes.

"Okay continue." Jay urges.

"So I got there right? And then...everything just spiraled I guess. I tried to go see him, but they told me I needed an appointment. The receptionist was rude and then I got into a fuss with security. Long story short instead of meeting my Dad I met Hawkeye." Dallas says, a little breathy.

Jays eyes visibly widen. "H-Hawkeye. Like Hawkeye, Avengers Hawkeye?"

"Ding ding, that's the one."

"Does your Dad work for Stark Industries then? Because that's so cool." Jay says in a hurry.

"Technically. Can you keep a secret?"

Jay nods way too fast to be humanly possible.

"My Dad isn't just a worker for Stark Industries, he well...he is Tony Stark." It's finally out.

She's said it aloud, it feels like weight has lifted from her chest allowing her to breathe comfortably again. Dallas can't tell if Jay is okay or not, he's frowning like he's thinking but he's still looking at her.

"Wait wait wait..." He says, "You're kidding right?"

"Dead ass serious." Dallas says.

"So y-you're Dallas, like the famous missing baby of Iron Man? I've read about you."

"I've read about me too, it's weird to hear about something that happened to you such a longtime ago." She admits.

Jay rubs his face, "That's so cool."

"What?"

"I mean like, you're cool. Dude, I've met Tony Stark's daughter and didn't even know it!" He fanboys, oddly enough.

It's always hard to get back to a certain topic once's it's been tainted with fascination over something else.

"You're overly excited for being up at," She checks the clock on her phone, "one in the morning."

"Okay, sorry continue on." He says.

Dallas appreciates him stopping even though he clearly has a million thoughts rushing around in his brain right now and he's holding back from saying any of them. He's breathing heavier and tries to keep the excitement out of his face, it doesn't work it just makes him look cute.

Cute? No he's just a good looking dude that's all.

"I'm gonna use tomorrow to fix things up between Griffin and I, and then I think we're going to be leaving town." Dallas says.

Maybe Griffin had been right from the start.

"So you're just going to leave? After coming this far?" Jay asks.

"I guess, I still have to talk to Griffin about it."

"Right right."

A beat.

Dallas stands up, remembering the snacks in the back of her car that sound really good right now. It's a perfect excuse to not talk about this any further.

"Where you going?" Jay tilts his head to look at her through upside down eyes.

"My car. I have snacks that I want, I might have extra chips you interested?" She asks. 

"Chips sound nice, thanks. Just meet me back in the apartment I'm going in now."

Dallas nods and heads down the stairs in silence again. The baby isn't whining anymore from where ever it was in this place. The stairs are more creaky on the way down than they are going up. She makes it outside and to her car fairly quick.

She hops inside and locks the doors. Better safe than sorry. She leans over the seats to the snack stash and grabs a water bottle and two chip bags, no three, Griffin's gonna want some when he wakes up too.

She's trying to decide if Cool Ranch Doritos or Fritos are what she wants to eat right now when there's a tapping on her car window.

It startles her that someone would be lurking around the cars and looking inside hers right now, she's glad that the doors are locked right now. See, being smart always works out in the end. Dallas peers through the glass, it looks like another Iron Legion robot, probably to harass her with its safety cues.

She grabs up the snacks and unlocks her door stepping outside, there's no one else around the shadowed robot.

"Dallas Knight?" It asks softly, through a computerized voice that's not quite as cool as the one she'd heard in Jarvis.

"Mister Robot?" She mocks. Her foot kicks the door closed.

"Actually I'd prefer Tin Man, but Mister Robot has a nice ring to it." It takes a step back and into the moonlight, revealing red and gold coloring.

The pieces of the suit undid themselves in a fashionable manner, and a person steps out of it.

Dallas steps back appalled.

It's Tony Stark in the flesh.

"Hey Kid, it's nice to finally meet you face to face."