@trackstahr
she hates this. she really does. he shouldn't be having to deal with this. he has a great relationship with his family. she shouldn't be dragging him into her drama. but maybe it's nice that he's willing to- that he wants to. well- he doesn't want the drama at all- he's made it clear he hates how she's been treated throughout her childhood but... he wants to be a part of her life. for real. all of it- even the messy parts... that means a lot to someone whose been told people would only ever like the attractive parts of her. he'd practically dragged her away from the table after the comment her mother had dared make not only to her face but in front of him, in front of her father and step-mom... and the latter two had stayed silent but anthony had refused. she appreciated it. she rarely had the nerve to say what she felt. even now that she got out of that house... it still feels like she's that young girl sometimes when she's back in salt lake. and they wonder why she never wants to visit...
❝ i'm sorry. ❞ she tells him as she settles into his lap in the backseat of the rented car. ❝ you shouldn't have to defend me at my own mother's house. it's ridiculous. ❞ tonight was supposed to be about him meeting her parents. it turned into just another night in a lot of ways she feels. her mother saying she'd missed having her home when they arrived felt like a slap in the face now, after everything the last few hours. what do you miss, having your daughter to berate? ❝ i guess at least you missed the uh- boyfriend talk. the what are your intentions with my daughter thing and trying to intimidate you- all that stuff. ❞ not that her dad's particularly intimidating... though she supposes perhaps he could be in his own sort of way. there's a reason her mother's the overbearing one though. a few moments pass, and she seems so much smaller than she usually is as she looks at him properly again. ❝ do you wish we hadn't come? ❞ it's obvious tonight's taken its toll.
anthony was so protective of lily. she was so good, such a sweet girl, and he loved her more than he had ever loved anyone in his entire life. when her mother had started in on her, he'd been graced with a tunnel vision so strong that after just one comment, he was snapping at the woman and dragging his girlfriend out of the house. he was almost certain that nobody had ever stood up to lily's mother, and he wasn't going to stand for the way she treated lily. his lily. his precious girl. he'd led her to the car, but he wasn't in any condition to be driving right now when there was so much anger and adrenaline rushing through his veins, so he'd asked her to get in the backseat with him, and now she was resting on his lap where she belonged.
❝ i think i'd much rather have had the boyfriend talk than having to see you treated like that, my love. ❞ he tells her, a hand in her hair gently combing through blonde tresses, being as comforting as he could be. he would take being comfortable while they interrogated him about his intentions if it meant she wasn't being berated for no reason. ❝ no, baby, of course not. you want to make an effort to have a relationship with your family, i get that. i'm going to support you in the endeavor however i can. i'd still come where with you a hundred more times. as long as i can be here to make you feel at ease. you're what's important to me, lily. ❞













