“I…I think I should head upstairs.” Lily said quietly, breaking the piercing silence. Tony immediately turned to her, wanting to reach out to her and hold her in his arms.
“Wait!” Rachael called out before Lily stood up and grabbed her hand calmly. “You know I have nothing but love for you in my heart, right?” She asked, her eyes filled with a mix of sadness and frustration.
Lily moved her lips to give a reply but no words came out.
“I care about you just as much as Tony does,” Rachael said and shook her head, deciding to rephrase her sentence.
“Okay, maybe not as much as Tony but I do care for you. I want you to be safe and I want you to be happy but, not at the expense of my brother’s life.” Rachael said with tears in her eyes.
She wasn’t going to let her brother make a decision that could end his life as long as she was alive, even if it meant taking Lily out of his life. All she wanted was her brother’s safety.
She had only known Lily for a few weeks after all. She wasn’t going to allow her brother to sacrifice himself for a woman he met a few weeks ago.
“You have to understand, Lily. He is my only family.” Rachael cried, holding Lily’s hands like her life depended on it.
Lily, who had been holding her tears in since the conversation began suddenly found herself sobbing once again. She hated how she had come into their lives to just ruin their peace.
Even though Tony was never going to admit that all she brought was trouble, Lily knew that was the case. It was evident in Rachael’s eyes that she wished they had never met her.
“Go upstairs, Lily.” Tony’s voice boomed across the room as his jaw tightened in annoyance. He noticed Lily struggling to get her hands out of Rachael’s hold and her body shaking with fear and without thinking he walked to Rachael and yanked her hand off Lily’s hand.
“Go upstairs right now.” He ordered and without wasting another second, Lily hurried up the stairs, her feet moving quickly.
Once she was no longer in sight, Tony turned to his sister with annoyance written all over his face.
“Do not take out your frustration on her. Whatever is happening right now isn’t her fault.” He warned as calmly as he could but Rachael shook her head in disagreement.
“No, Tony. All of this is her fault.” She said and held her hand up, stopping him from interjecting.
“Lily is a nice girl and I love her too but, none of this would have happened if you didn’t meet her. You wouldn’t have had any involvement with a dangerous gang and contemplated sacrificing yourself. None of this would be happening if you didn’t meet her!” Rachael raised her voice and pointed in the direction of Lily’s room.
“Why the fuck did you have to meet someone who has a psychotic ex who belongs to a dangerous gang? This is fucking messed up, Tony. She is fucking messed up!”
“Rachael!” Tony thundered, his veins popping and his eyes turning red. “That’s enough. I have tried to understand you because I know that you are frustrated but do not cross the line. If you are going to talk bad about Lily then you might as well just shut up.” He snapped.
Taken aback by his sudden outburst, Rachael fell to the ground and began to weep.
As Tony watched his sister weep, his heart clenched and he felt tears brim in his eyes. He crouched down to her level and wrapped his arms around her, hugging her calmly.
“I’m sorry, Rachael but, I have to do this. I…I can’t let her fall back into his arms. I can’t. It would kill me to see that happen.” Tony whispered as he patted her head slowly.
“I am in love with her, Rachael.” He blurted and shut his eyes, breathing out in relief as though he had been carrying a weight in his heart.
“I am in love with Lily.”
*
*
Upstairs, Lily sat at the edge of her bed, staring blankly at the wall. Her mind was filled with various thoughts and uncertainties. If she could, she would pack her things and return to Louis just so she could protect Tony and his family.
Just like Rachael said, she was a stranger after all.
Her heart broke as she recalled the harsh words from Rachael. It made her wish she had just gone into her room instead of eavesdropping.
But, could she blame Rachael?
She was right in every way. Lily was nothing but a stranger who brought nothing but trouble to them.
A soft knock on the door broke through her thoughts and she looked up to see Tony standing in the doorway.
“Hey.” He said in a gentle voice. “Is it okay if I come in?”
Lily sniffled, using the back of her hand to clean her tears before nodding. Tony stepped inside and shut the door before waking up to her.
“How are you feeling now?” He asked as he took a seat beside her.
“Good.” Her small voice cracked as she replied and Tony didn’t need anyone to tell him that she was lying. It was more than obvious from the look on her face that she was far from being okay.
“You heard Rachael, didn’t you?” He asked calmly and Lily raised her head slowly.
“I didn’t. I’m just worried about you.” She said, telling a half-truth.
Tony reached out and gently cupped her cheek. “Everything will be fine. Let’s be positive. I have a feeling things will work out well.” He assured and Lily nodded.
She wasn’t going to bring up the matter again. What she was going to do was make her plans to protect Tony and those plans might involve her having to leave him.
Lily closed her eyes, letting her thoughts wash over her. When she opened her eyes, his face was a few inches away from her, his eyes searching her soul.
For a moment, it felt like the world had stopped, and there was nothing but the two of them, holding onto each other in the darkness.
“Stay with me tonight.” She whispered, breaking the peaceful silence.
“I want to be with you tonight.”