#hes so funny I miss tony pepperoni already

[keepin-it-on-the-d-l]

When Tony Pepperoni said “I JUST WANT SOMEONE TO FIX ME OR KILL ME” I felt that. /j

[lovelyirony]

162. “They told me you died. And I screamed. I screamed until my lungs hurt too much to continue.” Pepperony? ty!!

When Pepper was twelve, her aunt introduced her into the world of romance books, movies, and television shows. Pepper generally liked them, although some of the historical-fiction-romance books were a bit too corny for her taste. 

Throughout all of these, there is one message that has been repeated: You Will Do Anything for Love. 

She thinks it’s...well. It’s not something that necessarily makes sense to her. Like sure, she would go to the grocery store at eleven at night to get ice cream for her partner, or she would help them with a project. 

But dying, sacrificing yourself? She can’t imagine that. She can’t imagine doing whatever you have to for love. 

Until Tony. 

A lot of people are under the impression that Pepper is “dealing” with Tony. That she has these long-suffering sighs, that Tony is a man-child who can only handle so much and she handles the majority. 

That is far from the truth, although he still doesn’t know his own social security number and forgets dates of things. 

But Tony is fun and he surprises her, and he’s so soft when he wants to be. He knows when she needs to have some sort of snappy commentary, when she just needs him to sign things and pour some nice wine for a night in. 

Iron Man is something that she’s afraid about. Because maybe she’s being selfish, but she hates how much Tony goes out and fights the good fights. She wants him to come home and not wince when she kisses the bridge of his nose, not grimace as he puts weight on a leg that got hit pretty badly. 

And being inside of a suit of armor doesn’t mean he’s safe. He doesn’t have super healing, he doesn’t have any of the advantage of the others. He’s human, and that’s all he is sometimes. It terrifies the shit out of her. 

-

It was supposed to be a routine mission. One he’s flown a thousand times, one that he always complains about as a “waste of time, honey, honestly. I would much rather be sleeping in with you-” 

- 

He’s lost, they say. Pepper wants to deny it, because how could you lose someone like him? 

But people have been asking that question for centuries about those they love. And she knows that you can lose anyone to anything, and you have to deal with it. 

It’s not quiet, at least not in the house. 

She screams and cries and barely eats anything until Jarvis has to remind her to eat anything, just something that will her up even halfway. 

Her voice is hoarse. She can barely use it and she hates the world for still turning, but it does. 

That’s a comfort to some people. That life still continues on, that people have continued on. But it is not a comfort to her, it is bitter. To see people find new love all the time, to have friends over, to still be living. 

It’s a curse, she thinks. 

She doesn’t come into the office for two months. She doesn’t have to, and most everyone is too scared of her to tell her to do anything. 

No one’s sure exactly how Stark Industries will do without Tony. God knows they’ve planned for it. Pepper had, ever since she discovered the suit of armor and Tony’s been planning since before that. 

He had told her once when they were both getting drunk on a patio on a late summer evening, and he told her that he wasn’t sure that he should have kids. 

“I’m the world’s biggest fuck-up,” he had said, laughing at himself. “Why would I subject anyone to another generation of that?” 

That was before they were together, and it was when Pepper was dating someone else who was very...safe. 

Pepper’s learned since then that she’ll never like safe. She tried to convince herself of that, but she can’t. Not since she loves Tony as much as she does, not since she can’t look away from the news. 

- 

Three months in. 

Three months in, and Pepper gets an ad. 

This isn’t necessarily suspicious. 

But the thing is, it’s one of Tony’s funny little things that he does; he makes little ads for her throughout the day so that her day doesn’t suck as bad. Usually it’s for outlandish tourist traps that they’ve never visited. 

This time, it’s for the largest ball of twine, somewhere in Kansas. 

Come unravel the truth for yourself! the ad blinks, flashing furiously fast for something that was made so recent. 

She would expect that ad in the early days of the internet, when everything was flashy and people thought that was the only way to grab your attention. 

The phrasing is...odd. Why would you go there to “verify” it for yourself if it was already something they thought? 

And why for somewhere so far away? 

She doesn’t want to be one of those desperate, sobbing partners who refuse to admit the truth, search frantically for something that might not be there, is literally almost guaranteed to not be there. 

But fuck it. What else does she have to lose? Her sanity? That’s not exactly something she’d miss. 

- 

She starts by having Jarvis look through her entire computer. 

He finds one anomaly. An anomaly that shouldn’t be there, because Tony is the one who everything-proofed her computer, and he’s the only one who should be able to send the questionably-sourced advertisements. 

Jarvis picks up a very faint signal. 

- 

Pepper finds out that she gets her own suit. 

She scolds herself inside her own head as she feels a thrill race up her spine. 

She’s bringing him back, her heart sings. 

The problem is that she hasn’t told anyone. She doesn’t want anyone to know, doesn’t want anyone to see him if he’s...gone. 

So she touches down at an abandoned warehouse and her heart thrums, and then she’s surrounded. 

“You know, I was told that he had new tech,” the man says, sneering. “I just wasn’t aware it came with such a pretty woman attached.” 

“It also comes with three different bullet varieties to test out,” Pepper says sweetly, the darts coming out of the shoulders. “Would you like to test out how well they cut through you?” 

“Oh, we’re about to have fun.” 

It’s not as much fun as this guy predicts. He’s an old colleague of SI, as it turns out. Got fired about five years before Pepper got hired for some “misconduct” that was quickly swept under about a million other press releases. 

He’s very good at underestimation. 

Pepper is blasting through any attack he might have had, and the system in place for the armor--Friday--is adapting quite well, considering the circumstances. 

Fighting still takes a considerably long time, however. She’s starting to get frustrating, and then she gets asked a question: 

“You currently have lasers at your disposal, Miss Potts. It would help the situation, although it can be a mess. Would you like to use it?” 

“...how bad of a mess?” 

“I can aim for nonlethal areas.” 

“Shoot for the stars, Fry.” 

“As you wish, Madam.” 

There is lots of screaming. She wishes there wasn’t. She wishes she could be a better person, but she can’t. Not when Tony is so, so close and not when she loves him as hard as she does. 

- 

He’s tied up, thin, and more bruised than he’s been since...since he came back from the desert. 

But he looks at her, and she knows that they’ll make it out. 

“Did you...you got the ad, right?” 

“I got the ad.” 

“Good. I wasn’t sure...” 

“Sh,” she says, putting her hand to his face. “We got it. We got it. Did they take your armor?” 

He thinks for a moment, and she feels terrible. But she knows how much it would help him, how much he cares for his creations. 

“In the briefcase. It needs a secondary DNA signature if I hit distress.” 

“Is Rhodey the secondary?” Pepper asks, panic rising in her voice, because she wants to get out of here, get to a safe place, fall together again. 

“No. You.” 

She visibly sighs in relief, and smiles. 

“I love you.” 

“The only piece of knowledge that got me through,” Tony says. “That, and the promise of pizza when we get back.” 

Pepper rolls her eyes affectionately. 

“We’ll debate when we reach home. Where’s the briefcase?” 

“Two rooms over, on the left. I think.” 

- 

The other people who are left in the building don’t put up a fight. They’re all untrained in combat, and one comment from Tony leaves them well-aware: 

“This is my partner. She’s pissed. Do with that information what you will.” 

-

His suit goes on, and Pepper can see stress bleed away from his body. 

“Go home,” she whispers, pressing a kiss to his helmet. “I’ll meet you there.” 

“I’m sorry if you didn’t want the suit,” Tony says. “I’m really, really sorry. But I figured it could make you safe, I didn’t want...I didn’t want you to ever have to use it.” 

“You know me better than that,” Pepper says. “And I...I don’t mind this, honestly.” 

“You don’t?” Tony asks, confused. “But the whole getting-rid-of-the-suits-on-Christmas?” 

“...I’ll make it up to you.” 

Tony smiles, and she’s missed that. 

- 

The flight home is much better. She can enjoy some of it, and Friday even puts on a bit of music for the trip home. 

Tony is already lying down, and people know the news. She lets the team run through, getting confirmation. So long as Tony allows it, so does she, although she does take a bit of liberty and cut off public visiting hours at nine p.m. 

He’s exhausted, already asleep. 

Pepper still sits, still looks at him with all the stars and promises that can be held by one earth in her eyes. 

"I’m happy you’re here,” she says. “Because I would’ve ended the earth to get you back again.” 

[littlemissagrafina]

Comfortember Day 20. Movie Night

Wrong Leavers and Pizza Boxes

@comfortember

I had the opportunity to use a really fun roleplay that I did with my best friend for this one! Thank you my darling @iambambistark for letting me use our work! I love you 3000🥺💛🌻

Read On AO3

Peter practically bounced into the common room of the compound, looking for his mentor. The older man had  promised that today would finally be their movie night and Peter was going to make him stick to it whether Tony wanted to or not.

Peter couldn’t help the smirk at his thoughts as he finally found Mr Stark, his body practically vibrating in excitement.

“Mr Stark! Are you ready for movie night?!”

Tony watched in amusement as Peter basically vibrated in place from his excitement. I wish I knew where he got the energy from because Thor knows I need some of it, Tony thought.

"Hey kid!" He smiled at Peter as he got up from his place on the couch to give him a hello hug. "I'm definitely ready. Are we doing Disney tonight again?" He asked with a soft smile.

Peter beamed when Tonh didn’t say that he couldn’t do movie night, yet again. He has way too many meetings, I veto meetings. Peter thought to himself.

“Of course! Would it really be movie night if we didn’t watch Disney! I want something funny though, too many Disney movies are sad.” There’s nothing better than laughing with Mr. Stark at a Disney movie.

Tony felt a laugh bubbling up in his chest. This kid always seemed to be able to make him smile and laugh. "Of course! How could I make the mistake of insinuating a movie night without Disney. It would be criminal!" Tony smirked at the teen.

The billionaire was glad that he had the chance to joke with him like this. He'd been swamped with meetings and conferences that couldn't be put off as much as he wanted to. It had led to a few lab days being cut short and cancelled movie nights, which Tony made sure to complain about to Pepper and Rhodey.

"Do you want to order take out or just grab some snacks from the kitchen?"

“Hmm, well, if we only do one movie then snacks are good, but if we do multiple movies then I think take out would be good. How many movies will we doooo?” Peter drew out the last word. He hoped Tony would say that they could watch multiple movies, but he was just thankful Tony was available to spend time with him at all.

"What are May's shifts like this weekend?" Tony asked Peter, a plan already being thought out in his head. "Because if she is busy at the hospital and fine with you staying the weekend again then we can binge a few movies and get take out." Tony tried to keep the eagerness at spending more time with Peter from his expression. He knew it probably didn't matter at this point but he still had a slight reputation to uphold.

Can't let the world know that Iron Man goes soft because of a spider kid who is literally a puppy in human form. Oh who am I kidding. It's too late I might as well roll with it at this point.

Peter somehow smiled even bigger upon seeing her smile, “Mays gonna be out, she’s been picking up a lot of extra shifts lately.” He said, his smile drooping a bit. No I can’t make this sad I can’t ruin our night being sad , Peter changed subjects, “I can text her real quick to double check I can spend the night! I’m sure I can though,” The smile came back to his face. He pulled out his phone, and asked May if he could stay the night, surprisingly she responded pretty quickly.

She must be on break. She already expected my question though, and allowed me to stay, but warned me not to make Mr. Stark lose even more sleep than normal. Looking back up at his mentor, Peter was pretty much bouncing again in excitement. “She said I could stay! If you still want me, I mean, like if you still want me to spend the night. Anyway, what are we gonna get for take out?”

Tony huffed out a laugh at the rapid action and conversation shifts that Peter was prone to. The man could tell that Peter had been a little sad about May being more busy with work but trying to hide it. Tony pulled the teen into another hug and rested his chin on his head.

"I'm sorry she's been working more shifts, kid." He muttered knowing he would hear it clearly because of his enhanced hearing.

Tony shifted away gently and smiled at Peter before dropping the subject. "Since we had Thai last week, what about pizza or Chinese?" He asked as he turned back towards the couch, making a slight detour to grab the big blanket they liked to use for movie nights before dropping down to sit on the couch. "You can choose whatever." He continued as he shifted into the corner slightly so Peter could squeeze in snuggly next to him the way they both knew he liked to.

Though part of Peter was disappointed when Tony pulled away from the hug, the comfort still meant the world to him. It still amazes Peter sometimes how Tony can always tell his emotions even when he tried to hide them.

The teen followed the older man to the couch like a puppy, “Pizza sounds good. Is that okay with you?” He asked, sitting down, snuggling into Tony. At this point Peter knew Tony didn't actually mind his craving for physical affection.

Peter moved the blanket so it covered them both nice and cozily. God what did I do to deserve such an amazing dad- I mean mentor. An amazing mentor. He could feel the blush start to rise to his cheeks before he could stop it. Dammit, he didn’t even say it out loud! Peter hid the blush by snuggling into Mr Stark more.

"Pizza is perfect, kid." Tony grinned at him when he snuggled into his side and shifted a hand to run it through his curls. How he always has such soft hair I'll never know.  

"What movie do you wanna watch? You said a happier one right? What about Brave, Moana, Tangled, Emperor's New Groove?" Tony was slightly surprised that he could actually list the movies. It seemed that he would always remember something as long as it related to Peter Parker

“Mm” Peter hummed in comfort as Tony held him close, running his fingers through his hair. How a guy who always works with his hands can be so gentle and comfortable beats me but I will always relish in it .

Peter smiled when he heard how many movies Tony knew. A few months ago the man wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between Moana and Brave and now he actually knew different movies. It made Peter feel warm inside. “Why don’t we start with Emperors New Groove, it’s the funniest I think. Then after that you pick.”

I wish it could be like this all the time, if May and I could move here and be with Mr Stark and Miss Potts and all the avengers, I would be the happiest person in the world. But no use wishing for things that’ll never happen, I need to just relish in this moment. This happiness.  

“What kinda pizza do you want?” Peter asked, trying to move away from his thoughts.

"Good choice." Tony smiled. Emperor's New Groove was one of his favourites.

He gently combed his fingers through when they snagged on a knot in Peter's hair as he contemplated on what pizza he wanted. "I think I want plain cheese pizza. Maybe get a pepperoni for later on so Pep can grab something when she gets home. What do you want?" Tony asked the teen back.

Unknowingly, he echoed Peter's own thoughts from moments before. Je wished that it could be like this all the time, just them together and doing what they enjoy. That Peter and May lived with him and Pepper.

He could picture evenings like this, waiting for Pepper and May to get back from work and them joining in on their movie nights would be amazing. Rhodey, Happy and the rest of the team joining from time to time too.

Peter winced when Tony tried to get a particularly stubborn knot out of his curls, but Tony gently rubbed over the sensitive part, making it all better.

“Pepperoni for Pepper,” The teen giggled, "Pep for Pep.”

Tony laughed at the name pun. "Yeah, it's her favourite pizza type. I find it hilarious."

It would be so nice if Pepper could join us too, she’s like my second mom, well second to Aunt May who pretty much is my mom.

“Cheese sounds good to me. But we might not be able to share with my metabolism.” Peter felt bad to hinder the man, not wanting to waste his money. "But it’s okay! I’m happy to share if you wanna.”

I can’t be a bother to him, I should be grateful enough he’s letting me spend the night.

Tony frowned  slightly at Peter's comment about sharing the pizza. Luckily Peter didn't see it because of the position of his head. "Don't worry about it at all, Roo." Tony reassured him. "I asked FRIDAY to always add to your orders so that you have enough to fill you and have leftovers."

Before Peter could speak, Tony carried on. "And you don't have to worry about it being an inconvenience either since I did the same for Steve and Bucky because they have similar enhanced metabolisms to you."

Tony had a sudden idea. A stroke of genius on his part if he did say so himself. "We should make our own pizza sometime again. Maybe don't tell Pepper though. She still has me banned from the kitchen." Tony smirked. "Buuuut she didn't ban me from the communal one!"

He always manages to make me smile when he calls me Roo, always reminds me of Winnie the Pooh with his friends Kanga and Roo. How does he always know what I’m thinking? He knew I felt like an inconvenience even without me saying it, and they call Wanda the mind reader.  

“That would be SO fun to make our own pizza! But I can’t promise I can keep us from being banned from the communal kitchen,” Peter laughed. How could one even be banned from one's own kitchen? The thought made him giggle harder.

Tony laughed as well when he saw the amused curiosity on Peter's face. "I may or may not have accidentally blown up the toaster while I was making Pepper an omelette. And no I don't know how because I wasn't even making toast!" He explained knowing that the kid was curious about it.

"But, in my defence, I hadn't slept for a few days so the file not found error was bouncing around in my brain a lot. It was a disaster at the time but now it's just plain funny."

Yeah yeah, Tony thought to himself, I was a walking disaster but it has gotten a lot better since I've been trying to be a good role model and influence for the spider baby. Take that, toaster.

Peter couldn't stifle his laughter at the ridiculous story, he wanted to ask how Tony could manage to do that but knew that he was prone to even more ridiculous disasters himself.

“It’s definitely funny,” He laughed. “For tonight we should probably stick to ordering out though,” He kept giggling. How does he always manage to make me so happy?  

"That would definitely be for the best, kid." Tony smirked "No messed up appliances or kitchens tonight." This kid was amazing. How he always amuses me and makes me smile is something I'll never know. I just know I like it. Pep and Rhodey can laugh all they want but I'm so here for this super dad/mentor thing I have going.

“When are we gonna order?” Said kid asked.

"We can order now if you want? If you get hungry later we can just heat up some of the extras."

He knows me too well, it still surprises me sometimes that he’s so accepting of my stupidly ridiculous metabolism. I never told him I don’t eat enough at home, the amount of food I need is just too much money to ask May to buy, yet somehow he just knows to make sure I always have more than enough food. He really is better than I could ever ask for...

“Sounds good! Wanna start the movie now or once the pizza gets here?” Realising just how many questions he seemed to be asking, Peter cringed inwardly. I hope he doesn’t get annoyed by my endless questions.

"I'm about ready to eat anyway so I'm sure you are more than ready for some cheesy goodness considering that metabolism of yours." Tony answered him. "Now, what pizza do you want?"

“I’ll eat anything, get whatever,” Peter smiled. Even though he ate before he came over, his stomach was already getting that hollow feeling.

I just need to eat something, I don’t care what. Is this annoying? Me needing so much? I ask so much of him, I text way too much, always want to come over, and practically invited myself over for a sleepover. What if he gets sick of me? Should I ask?

Tony was about to ask if the plain cheese with a few other flavours for the others would be okay when he practically felt Peter's mood shift.

“Mr Stark,” Peter began but changed his mind. It would be stupid to ask, if he wasn’t thinking about me being a nuisance before then I’ll just put the thought in his head and neither of us need that .

"Yeah kid?"

“Nevermind.” Peter mumbled, shifting to bury his head in the man's shoulder. Why am I so stupid?

Tony nudged him, trying to encourage Peter to talk but the life just shrugged his it away and burrowed into the man's shoulder and side.

"You okay?" Tony asked in concern, bringing a hand back up to his head and smoothed some stray curls away. Tony lifted his chin so I could look at him properly. "You can ask and say whatever you want, kiddo."

If I let myself, I could just break open. I could just spill out every bit of emotion I’ve been suppressing my whole life. But I can’t, I shouldn’t, it’s crazy to think he’s sick of me, right? He wouldn’t have invited me to spend the night if he was sick of me, and he wouldn’t be holding me like this if he couldn’t stand me. Peter thought.

Peter pulled away from Tony's hand on his chin. Pressing his face back into his shoulder, he mumbled, “S nothing.” It was a feeble attempt and even Peter knew that it wouldn't suffice. “Just dumb thoughts.” He finished.

I get a lot of dumb thoughts for someone Mr Stark says is so smart.

Tony seeing that Peter was at war with himself for saying anything. Sadly, he knew what it felt to second guess yourself like that all too well. He hated that Peter had to feel it too.

Tony let Peter press his face back against him, knowing it was so much easier than the vulnerability that eye contact brought.

"It might be nothing or something you think dumb, but wouldn't it be nice to say it anyway? What's going on up here, Bambino?" He murmured gently to his kid, tracing a finger over his temple.

Despite feeling that his mind was being all dumb, the silly and sweet nickname still gave Peter the slightest smile. Though I know he has a point and I trust he knows what he’s talking about, it’s not so easy just to be honest and open. Maybe if I just say part of it then it would satisfy him, but not maybe me too vulnerable .

“Do you ever get sick of me?” Peter whispered. Since he was still cuddling close to him, Peter wasn’t sure if Tony could even hear him, but he didn’t dare repeat the stupid question. Why do I always have to ruin the mood? I picked a funny movie so we could be happy and I ruined it before we even had a chance to start.

When Peter asked him if he ever got sick of him, Tony felt like his whole body froze. Like he was a tv in the middle of a show that had been unplugged suddenly. "Oh, Tesoro. No! I don't get sick of you." Tony decided to let himself be fully open with his kid. It was hard but he made it easier, brought out a trust in Tony that he didn't know he had. "I couldn't get sick of you if I tried. I always miss you when you aren't around and talking my ear off about Star Wars and Ned, or a puppy you saw on patrol, or the latest food that May attempted only to burn."

He pressed a kiss on the top of his head. "Everything is too quiet when you aren't around. The silence used to be normal but now it bores me and makes me lonely sometimes. I always look forward to the time we spend together and the messages we send to each other. I don't get sick of you, I get the opposite. Unsick? I dunno what the word would be but that's what I'm trying to say here." Tony finished. He wrapped both of arms around Peter and pulled him close. They both always needed these easy hugs from each other

While Tony spoke, Peter found himself blinking back the tears from his eyes. God, he hoped everything he was saying was true.

Peter wrapped his arms around his neck, holding as close as he could to his dad. He didn’t try to correct himself to mentor instead of dad. “‘M unsick of you too.” Peter said into his chest as he hugged him.

Tony couldn't stop the sudden burst of laughter when Peter said he was unsick of hom too. The laugh may have slightly stuck his throat from the rush of affection but that was neither here nor there.

"I love you, bud. So so much. You're my spidey kid." Tony mumbled, resting his cheek on his head, never letting him slip from his place in his arms. Peter hugs are the best

Peter thought his cheeks would catch on fire from how red they were when he said it. “I love you too Da- Mr Stark.” Hopefully he missed that little slip up, I don’t need any more vulnerability today. Peter thought.

Trying to distract him, Peter joked, “And I’m not a kid, I’m a spider man! ” He insisted with a nervous smile.

Tony smiled also at his slip up but didn't comment on it. He could see that Peter was at his limit, especially after he used a joke to deflect. "Nah, you're a spider baby. Ask anyone, May, Pepper, Rhodey. Heck, even FRIDAY."

Just don't ask Karen, Tony thought to himself. That AI was endearingly loyal to Peter.

"Since FRI ordered for us, the pizzas should be here soon. Do you want to start the movie now or wait for it to arrive?"

Peter stayed cuddled up with him, soaking in the comfort. “If ‘m a spider baby then you’re an old iron man.” Even though he knew it was a lame come back, Peter was suddenly too tired to care. Opening up had exhausted him and he couldn't be bothered to think anymore. “Can we start the movie now?” He asked, wanting to focus on something more light hearted, “That okay?”

Tony gasped in faux shock. "How could you betray me like this!?" He dramatically put a hand over his forehead. "I am not old! I am the very picture and essence of youth! I am appalled that you would ever suggest otherwise!" He exaggerated as he poked Peter in the side.

"But, moving on from your treachery, we can start the movie. Do you want a pillow or anything or are you comfortable where you are?" Tony arched a brow at him in amusement at how cuddled Peter was into his side.

Peter smiled at Tony's antics. The fact that he wants to get Peter to laugh makes him smile even bigger. I could never deserve someone so wonderful and kind and caring and loving as him as my mentor.  

“Mm” Peter thought, but just the idea of moving from his comfort made his chest tighten uncomfortably, “No you’re comfyyyy” He drew out the word, stating right where he was. Though he did shift a bit so he could see the tv better.

"Well I'm so glad I make such a good pillow then." Tony chuckled and fixed the blanket that had fallen slightly when Peter shifted. "I can add personal pillow to my various monikers now. Genius, billionaire, philanthropist, and personal pillow. Oh, and irondad as Rhodey so affectionately dubbed me." He smiled softly down at Peter and rested his cheek on his fluffy curls.

Peter giggled at that, “if you're my iron dad, then am I your spider-son?”

“Cuz then I know what to put on the Father’s Day card this year,” Peter hoped Tony could feel his smirk even if he couldn’t see it as he faced the tv.

"It works. We can coin it. It'll drive Rhodey insane that he can't use it to annoy us." Tony smirked back.

"FRI, play Emperor's New Groove please?" The only response was the lights being dimmed and the beginning of the movie playing on the tv screen.

Once the movie started Peter asked, “oh! Who’s your favorite character?”

"Kronk. He's a lovable oaf and kinda reminds me of Thor. And you, piccolo ragno?" 

“I love kronk too,” The teen said in approval. Not stopping the smile at Tony's nickname for him. The world would end if he ever ran out of nicknames for me.  

Only a few minutes into the film, Friday announced that the pizza was here. When Peter I felt Tony shift to get up to get it, he started whining not caring how childish he sounded. “Noo stayyyyy.” He grabbed onto his shirt so that his ‘pillow’ wouldn’t leave.

"Nooo, sustenance." Tony whined back as he chuckled. How Peter simultaneously brings out my dad side as well as my childish side I'll never know.

Tony didn't bother letting Peter go as he got up from the couch. He just hefted him over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes and walked to the elevator to grab the pizza.

It still surprised Peter at times that Tony could carry him around like he was just a little kid. I mean I can’t weigh that little right? Maybe it has something to do with my powers.

Inside the elevator there was a compartment that had been added so that the various take out delivery people placed the food in so that they didn't have to deal with the stammering and gawking. It got old after the first six times that it resulted in cold food.

Tony dropped Peter gently to the ground and gave him some of the pizza boxes to carry. Eight pizzas were a little difficult to carry alone.

Peter easily took the pizzas, relishing in the delicious smell as they brought the boxes back over to the couch and placed them on the coffee table in front of it. No use bringing it to the kitchen when they both know they'll just be eating on the couch anyway.

The teen put them down, checking the labels for Tony's pizza before handing him the box. He sat down next to him, once again putting the large blanket over their laps. “Is there a specific one for me or any?” Peter asked, not remembering if he had asked for a specific  order or not.

"Nah there isn't really. Although I did get you at least one or two that are plain cheese because I know you like that. Otherwise I just had FRIDAY order the kinds we both like so grab whatever." Tony answered as opened his box and passed Peter a napkin when he grabbed one for himself.

“Okie dokie,” Peter grabbed a box at random, opening it up to discover pineapple pizza, “yum,”He smiled and leaned back into the couch, not sure whether it would be weird to cuddle so close to Tony again after being so openly clingy.

Tony pouted dramatically when he saw the pineapple. "I forgot that you and Rhodey have the ability to eat fruit on pizza. It's not right. I can feel  disturbance in the force." He bumped Peter with his shoulder and shifted so that they were sitting close, knees bumping as well as their elbows occasionally when they took a bite from their pizzas.

Peter smiled when he shifted closer. Somehow he just knows I want to be close even without me having to say it. It still astounds me sometimes how close we’ve gotten. He really is like a dad to me... my iron dad. That thought made him smile more as he went onto the next piece of pizza.

After a few moments of silence Tony saw Peter smirk at him, taking a dramatically large bite of the (in his opinion) delicious pizza. “It’s criminal that you don’t like pineapple pizza, it’s clearly the best.”

"What's criminal is that you think pineapple pizza is the best. I shall never accept it. It's a felony." Tony gestured at him with the slice in his hand. He wiped the grease from his fingers with a napkin before nudging the kid. "I'm gonna grab something to drink, do you want anything? There's coke, juice, milk, lemonade, and probably a few other things."

“Mm," Peter thought over the options, "Can I have juice por favor? Do you have orange juice?” He asked, watching Tony throw the part of the blanket that was on him onto Peter's, suffocating him in warmth. I could follow him, so we can keep talking. No no that’s weird, I should stay here.

"Yup sure do. One coke for me and orange for you coming up." Tony darted into the kitchen hoping his hurry to get back to the couch wasn't too obvious. He grabbed their drinks, and darted back, plopping down heavily next to Peter, careful not to spill anything, and passed him his juice.

Tony wriggled around to get comfortable before grabbing the last slice of his pizza. He finished it and wiped his hands again before relaxing back into the couch, coke in hand.

Peter mumbled a thank you with a smile when he was handed the glass. He had to refrain from chugging down the whole glass of orange juice. It wasn't like he would get sick from drinking too quickly but he didn't want to make Tony have to get up again.

He easily went through one entire pizza but stopped himself from grabbing a second pizza, he didn't want to be rude and eat too much of the food.

Tony finished his coke and put the glass on the coffee table. AsIhe did, he noticed Peter's half full glass and empty pizza box. "Have more pizza if you want, kid. I know that one isn't nearly enough for your metabolism." The man grinned reassuringly. "And you can have as much juice as you want as well." He leant forward and grabbed another random pizza and passed Peter the box in hope that he would take the invitation and eat and drink his full.

Peter, after only a moment of hesitation, happily took the pizza box and practically inhaled the first slice. God this pizza is so good.  

Between pieces of pizza he laughed at the movie. “This movie is so underrated,” Peter said offhandedly as he finished the second box of pizza. Before grabbing a third, he looked over at his mentor for approval before being greedy.

"Agreed. The 'wrong lever' part is brilliant and I hate it but the cat Yzma turns into is adorable." Tony said in agreement. He turned his head when he felt Peter's eyes on him.

The kid was holding another pizza and his head was tilted in question. He looked like a puppy. "Go ahead, bud. Eat as much as you want." Tony reassured him again as he got up to grab the juice box from the fridge for when Peter's glass finished.

Peter nodded in thanks when Tony let him continue eating even though he himself was far done with his own dinner. Once Tony settled back in, Peter commented, “They really should make a roller coaster for the wrong lever part, would be so great,” He chuckled at his own statement and Tony laughed too.

"They should make it look like it's going up, only to suddenly have Yzma's voice saying 'Pull the lever, Kronk. Wrong lever!' as the ride suddenly drops out of nowhere." The man snickered at the idea and turned back to watching the movie as Peter continued eating. He would occasionally poke Peter at a funny part or they would laugh at something but they mostly sat in content silence.

Peter giggled when Tony continued onto his dumb idea, “Aw that’s the kinda thing you’d see on tumblr,” He snickered and picked up the last slice in his box. By the time he actually felt full he had eaten almost all the pizza that Tony had bought. But thankfully he didn’t seem to mind.  

As the movie continued Peter began leaning more and more onto Tony until they were cuddling like before again. Like a dad and his son.

Days like these were Peter's favorite, when they can just be together and have deeper conversations and but also talk lightheartedly about funny movies.

Tony felt him get heavier on his side as the movie went along. He was probably getting sleepy from the food which Tony was happy that Peter had eaten and seemed to enjoy the pizzas. He liked that he could do small things like that for him.

Feeling the kid shift slightly again, Tony shifted as well to lay with his head on the arm of the couch and let Peter snuggle back into his side. He absent-mindedly started running his fingers through his curls again as they watched the movie.

Full from the food and relaxing more from the hand in his hair had Peter finding it harder and harder to keep his eyes open. Every time he blinked his eyes stayed closed longer and longer until they just didn’t open again. Peter didn't let himself fall asleep right away, though. Maybe if I just rest my eyes for a few minutes then I can focus back on the movie after.  

Before long he couldn’t focus on the movie anymore, only thinking of the gentle fingers combing through his hair, and how peaceful and comfortable he was. The call of sleep was strong however. He felt like he could sleep forever like this if he let himself.

When Tony noticed that Peter was falling asleep, he started humming slightly, knowing the vibrations soothed him because of his senses. He was more than happy that he would fall asleep, the kid needed the rest.

With the soft glow from the tv and Peter's rhythmic breaths slowing to a gentle snore, Tony soon found himself falling asleep too. Just before he let himself drift off, he tightened his arms around Peter and pressed a kiss to his head.

He let himself all asleep, content to lay there with his Piccolo Ragno.

[tonyspepper]

Pepperony Week 2020:

↳ day 1: highschool au · MESSAGES OF LOVE

Their story began the day he left his number on the stall wall of the unisex bathroom—not imagining anyone would even pay much attention to it—and a text message from an unknown number arrived only half an hour later during math class. He remembered asking her how she was doing, and her telling him that it was the worst week ever and she just needed someone to talk to.

Rated M.

Read below the cut or on AO3

He thought it was a one-time thing, a few messages back and forth and that was it, but she texted him about her day and her frustrations for over six months, before he had mustered the courage to ask her to send a photo of herself so he knew what she looked like. When he saw her blue eyes, the tiny red freckles on her skin and the strawberry blond hair, his smile broadened in appreciation. How come he had just walked passed her in the hallway for all these years, never noticing her beauty?

She was an angel in tight fitting jeans, armed with a sharp tongue and a sassy attitude—her text messages spoke of that. She was his angel. His heart knew it from the moment he saw her. But, his mind just wouldn't allow the thought to enter for another six months of exchanging text messages until he finally asked her out on a date. When she said yes, it was one of the happiest days of his life. But of course he messed it up with her first chance he got. He always messed up the few good things he had in his life. Thank God she forgave him for being a complete asshole.

Their first time had been marked by a certain amount of reserve—insecurity—on the part of both of them, because contrary to what she believed, it was the first time for him too. After pretending to know everything about the mechanics of sex, so much so that he actually started to believe it himself, it felt good to have found someone with whom he didn’t have to pretend anymore. He could be vulnerable. He could be weak. He could be hurt, angry or sad. She made him feel like he could be anything. All he really wanted, though, was to just be himself, and she let him. Better yet, she loved him.

Two years had passed since he wrote that damn number on the stall wall, and she was still there, right by his side. They were camping out in the bed of his truck, alternating between making out and watching the stars, while listening to sounds of the night—crickets chirping and a mild breeze brushing through the sparse shoreline grass as the ocean waves rippled onto the sand. His back huddled against the driver’s cabin. She sat between his legs, leaning backwards into his chest, and he had his arms wrapped around her tightly.

He would have to leave her tomorrow, because his father didn’t want to waste any time to ship him, like a package, out to the East coast where he was going to study. And while he knew he should be proud to have been given the opportunity to attend his dream college at the age of 16, he was consumed by unrelenting sadness. He‘d give up everything to be with her forever. Everything. But they didn’t have forever. They only had a few more hours. They had this night. One last night before they had to say goodbye for God knew how long.

“You’re awfully quiet,” Pepper said, stroking a hand down his forearm. She heard him breathe deeply, felt his chest move behind her back, and she closed her lids against everything but the feel of his weight against her. Her fingers curled around his arm as she rested her hands on his that were clasped against her stomach. The silky strands of her hair brushed lightly against his face as he nuzzled her neck. “What’s wrong?”

“You’re gonna forget about me,” he mumbled after a short pause, sighing heavily again. “I know how this works, Pep... You’re gonna tell me not to worry, because nothing will change between us. That we will talk every day. But days will turn into weeks, then months... and then it’ll be like I never existed, because you’ll find someone else.“

“I found you,” she said quietly. “And I don’t want anyone else.”

Tony pulled her even closer, kissing her hair over and over again. He was so desperate to hold on to her, to never let her go.

“Where is this coming from?” Pepper wondered, thinking. “It’s your dad, isn’t it?” Howard had always thought of her as nothing but a distraction, keeping Tony from going after what he wanted. He never really cared about his son, and about what Tony wanted. “He said something about me that upset you.”

Tony managed a forced chuckle. It broke the spell of the tension that was threatening to cripple his brain. She knew him so well. She knew him in ways no one else did. No one else could.

“You know when we had that pregnancy scare last year and I freaked out at the thought of becoming a dad at sixteen?” He felt her nod. “He said you did it on purpose... Not taking the pill.”

She quickly turned around, almost head-butting him in the process, and stared at him, eyes wide in shock. A laugh tore from his dry throat. He cupped a hand around her cheek, feathered his thumb across her skin, and smiled apologetically.

“I know it wasn’t true. You’re not like that.”

“What did I ever do to him to make him hate me?”

“My dad?” He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know,” he said. “But he doesn’t hate you, Pepper, he just thinks—“

“His son should be with someone who doesn’t have an opinion, says yes and amen to everything, and, all the other times, keeps her damn mouth shut.”

“Yeah, it really didn’t help when you called him an asshole,” Tony said, laughing.

“So what’s he saying now?”

“That a girl like you has guys lining up for her, and once I’m out of the picture, there will be someone else, so I better focus on my future instead of girls... you in particular.”

Pepper had to laugh at how stupid that sounded. Then she smirked, as she dipped her head toward his, brushing her lips lightly across Tony’s mouth, touching the corner of his mouth with her tongue. “So your dad thinks I’m hot?”

“Don’t say it like that’s turning you on,” he said, giggling.

She chuckled, gazing into his eyes. There was a moment of silence, before she spoke. “Do you worry about that, though? Like, for real?”

Again, he shrugged his shoulders. “If there’s one thing my father and I agree on it’s that there are a lot of guys out there who’d love to be in my place.”

“But they’re not,” she softly reminded him, smiling.

“Yeah, they’re not...”

Pepper thought his laugh to be a bit nervous. It was funny how sure of himself he always seemed to be, except when they were alone. It was cute. It was goddamn adorable.

“I love you,” she whispered.

“Sometimes I wonder how you can be so sure of that at sixteen,” he muttered. Worried that she may take his comment the wrong way, he kissed her. “But I love you too.”

“Give me your hand.”

“Why?” he asked, confused.

“Just give me your damn hand, Tony,” she challenged him, smirking. He held his hand out to her and she took it, placing it on her chest so it covered her heart. “Now kiss me.”

He pulled her in for a kiss, and not just any kiss, but the mother of all kisses. Tony knew how to kiss, treated it like an art form, and she was lost. Her heart pounded against her chest, as if it were the only drum in a dance of death. Pepper’s fingers splayed across his abs, generating enough heat to brand his skin through his shirt. She sighed, a sexy moan that curled into his groin. Then she pushed him away gently, making sure that he kept his hand where her heart was.

“You feel that?” she asked, smiling softly now, and he nodded, with a warm smile on his lips. “That’s how I can be sure.” He could see her happiness, so much of it that it overwhelmed her and drove her to tears instead. Long-fingered hands slid against his temples and cupped his face. “And I’m gonna miss you so much.” Pepper’s voice cracked on the last word and she dragged in an uneven breath.

Tony looked into her eyes, seeing as always into her soul, so open and giving and filled with love for him, as his was for her. She would always be all he ever needed, and he knew he’d never be able to find another somebody as perfect for him as she was. Pepper was the one thing he couldn’t live without, and he was sure of that beyond the shadow of a doubt. He needed her completely. And there were times when he was maddened by how much she meant to him. She was the one thing he couldn’t imagine losing. And she was saying the one thing he couldn’t bare hearing.

They looked lovingly, longingly into one another’s eyes and there was no question about what would happen next. In slow motion, she watched his face descend toward hers. Neither of them closed their eyes. Even when Tony was so close she could feel his breath on her skin she couldn’t draw her eyes away. Their lips gently touched and she finally lowered her lashes, hanging on to his shirt. He pressed harder against her lips, his right hand already moving downward across the small of her back. She moaned. He groaned. She released his shirt and lifted her hands to the back of his head, pulling his mouth tighter.

The soft and sweet taste of her lips rocked Tony to his core. He felt the want, the need to taste every bit of her, without hurrying, yet the idea of waiting even another moment to make love to her seemed almost beyond his ability. But Pepper wanted to set the pace. He could live with that. He knew control was a hot button for her, especially in bed. So when she took his hands and guided them to the hem of her shirt, she didn't need to ask him twice to pull it over her head.

“Is that lingerie?” Tony smirked, seeing what was underneath. The lacy bra covering Pepper’s breasts had to be one of the sexiest pieces of clothes he had ever laid eyes on. “I’m getting the special treatment tonight,” he sneered, licking his lips, as he trailed along the fabric with one finger, looking at her. “Can't believe I had to leave first before you put one of these on...”

“Hey!” Pepper protested loud, almost laughing. “One more word and you ain't getting nothing.”

“Mhm... No talking.” He trailed kisses down her neck to the valley between her breasts. “Got it,” he whispered, feeling her heart race beneath his lips. Tony lingered in tasting her, feeling her, and Pepper couldn't deny that what he was doing felt incredibly good. He smoothed his palms down her sides and his big hands enclosed her waist. He tried lifting her up, so she was free to shimmy her denim skirt past her hips—they both chuckled against each other's lips at Pepper’s struggle to undress.

When he pulled his mouth away for a second, Pepper quickly grabbed his shirt to get it off of him. The pulse beating between her legs made her restless and edgy, but she could feel in just about the same spot that she certainly wasn't the only one who was itching for more physical contact. She loved the feeling of Tony’s hardness nudging between her thighs, and she pressed herself against him as if to meld into his body, wanting to feel him more.

Pushing her onto her back, Tony tasted her lips again. He couldn't bear his mouth to be far from hers. The kiss deepened as passion grew between them. His hands were cupping her face, Pepper’s fingers skimmed up his back. He lifted one strap of her bra off her shoulder, tugged it down her arm and broke the kiss, but only to slid his lips over her neck, kissing from the front to the sides to the back. He nipped on her earlobe, making her moan with pleasure—and then he stopped.

“Tony?“ Staring at him with confusion and worry written on her face, Pepper reached up and ran her fingers through his curls. His hair had gotten so long that it dangled in a dark brown hank over his left eye. She loved it. It made him look both cute and sexy. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he mumbled. Then he paused, and finally, as he admitted to himself that having to let her go, if only for a while, was the hardest thing he ever had to do, shook his head. “No.” His voice was barely above a whisper. “I’m not okay.” He reached over to tuck her hair behind her ear. “It just hit me that this is the last time you and I—“ Gazing into her eyes, Tony sighed deeply. “God, you are so beautiful!” It was hard finding words with feelings like that of first love dancing around wildly inside of him. “I wish I could—“

Pepper put her finger to his mouth. “Shhh. Don’t do that,” she whispered.

“Do what?”

“You’re saying goodbye,” she said. “But we’re not gonna do this tonight.” Panic rose in Pepper’s breast, and she swallowed hard, forcing her tears away. “I don’t wanna say goodbye... not tonight.” Not ever, she thought.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, flashing her one of those beautiful smiles that could melt her heart, and feathered his thumb across her temple.

As Pepper felt the warmth of his fingers against her scalp and saw the deep affection in his eyes, her body trembled with emotion. Her heart started to beat faster, almost bursting with love, and she slung an arm around his neck, bringing her face closer to his.

“Don’t be sorry.” Brushing her lips across Tony’s, she whispered to him, “Just love me,” and slid down the straps of her bra.

He slowly explored the curves of her lips. Slipping his tongue into the depths of the sweetness of her mouth. Pepper trembled at the gentle exploration. He took her bra off, exposing her breasts to his gaze and his hands. She gasped softly in the night when her breasts were touched by his lips, his tongue sliding over her taut nipples. He quickly stripped away his clothes, and she watched him, biting down hard on her bottom lip when Tony faced her in his full naked glory. She was bewitched by his charms, seduced by his muscular, virile body, and was crazy in love.

Tony fumbled for the condoms in his rear pocket, hastily taking them out, before throwing his pants to the side. He hated these things, but he knew protection went both ways. Besides, after thinking he had gotten her pregnant last year he’d rather be safe than sorry. His hands weren’t entirely steady as he tore open the condom packet, his eyes focusing on her, and how she was slowly tugging her panties down her legs. He almost dropped it, chuckled nervously when he saw her grin. A moan came out of his mouth as he started to roll the condom on. Pepper’s hand joined his, her small palm working the latex over his dick.

Pepper saw the look on his face, as she slowly slid the condom on, and smirked. “Don’t come,” she said, giggling. “We haven’t even started yet.”

He chuckled deep in his throat, remembering the one time that had actually happened, and captured her head and brought his mouth down on hers in a crushing kiss. “You are so sexy,” he murmured as his lips drifted to the curve of her throat.

She tugged him forward, her grip firm on his erection. Pepper wanted him so much she could hardly think straight. Every cell in her body was on fire. She licked her lips that still tasted of him and spread her legs wide, lifted her hips, desperate to have him inside her. He moaned as she brought him to her. Their eyes met as he thrust in with one long stroke, making her take him all.

“Oh God, yes,” she moaned and shifted around, wrapping her legs around his hips. “That feels so good.” She gave a soft command, “More.”

Tony pushed himself deeper into her body, not stopping until his pelvis collided with hers, and then he withdrew until the head was at the peak. When he plunged in again, her eyes remained locked on him, and he let his focus laser in on the sight as he stretched her pussy in every direction. Her breath hitched in her throat and then her lungs cleared in a precipitated slam.

“Tony...”

Her eyes were dark and wet and so hauntingly beautiful, he was sure he’d see this in his dreams—dreams were all he would have left in Massachusetts. He fell into another passionate kissing spell as he increased his rhythm, smothering her face and her forehead, breasts and shoulders. Then he moved to her neck and began marking her where everyone would be able to see it. Purposely choosing a place where his mark couldn't be hidden, he sucked Pepper’s skin into his mouth, branding her as his. Her fingernails cut into his back, prompting a deep groan from him.

“Fuck,” he grunted.

Pepper stretched her arms over her head guiding him to pin her down, and he did it, intertwining his fingers with hers and holding her in place while he made love to her. She cried out in pain and pleasure. His breathing became a pleasure pant of his own. He pumped into her, his cock nudging her deepest spot, his width spreading her. His mouth hovered over hers but he didn’t kiss her. Instead, he went further down to her breasts, his lips leaving a hot trail on her skin. When his tongue shot out and rolled roughly over the sensitive peak of her nipple, she gasped.

”Don’t stop... Don’t you dare stop!“

A delicious tightness gripped her flesh, the burn of her release so close she ached. She wanted to free her arms but he wouldn’t let her. He groaned loud and continued his pace until a primal sound pressed into his ears and her body sunk deep into the inflatable air mattress lining the truck bed. Their fingers were still laced but the muscles in Pepper’s hand, along with the rest in her body had lost all tension. Tony, with a muffled shout, surged deeply within her and his entire body shook and spasmed against her.

He waited until his breathing had steadied, then he cupped his cock and, holding on to the base of the condom, slipped it off. He reached over for one of the paper napkins they had used for dinner and wiped himself off with it, then placed the condom inside and put both away.

Pulling himself up to lay his head on her belly, he closed his eyes and listened to her breathing, felt his head bob with each of her shallow breaths. As he traced a random pattern along the length of her forearm he was unaware of time. They could lay there for a minute or a year and he wouldn't know the difference. There was only the cocoon they had built around themselves, shutting out the rest of the world, a world that wanted them apart.

He felt her start to laugh before he heard it and he picked his head up to look at her. She looked back at him, smirking.

“What’s so funny?” he wondered.

Pepper reached out to stroke his hair and Tony burrowed against her and closed his eyes, wishing he would never have to open them again. He wanted to stay in her arms forever and just smell, feel and breathe her.

“The way you inspected that condom like it‘s an antique vase,” she answered.

He chuckled. “You saw that?”

“You know I’m still on the pill, Tony, so even if it broke...”

“Just don’t want it to be like the last time we were...”

With a small sigh, he shifted in her arms and then ran his hand across her belly and into the triangle of reddish hair below. She gave a soft gasp and he smiled at the way she reacted to his touch.

“Have you...” She swallowed, feeling her cheeks flush. “Have you ever thought about what our life would be like if—”

“You actually had been pregnant?” he finished her sentence and slowly raised himself on an elbow to look her in the eyes. He lowered his voice to a whisper, “Every single day,” and let his words linger for a moment. Grazing her cheek with his fingers, he smiled softly. “Even now.”

Touched by his honesty, she took his face into her hands and kissed him, their naked bodies melting into one. “We would make beautiful babies,” she whispered, as they broke apart, smirking at him.

His smile grew until his lips couldn't stretch any more and the white of his teeth sparkled like a neon sign. ”A little practice can’t hurt, right?”

“You mean even if we won’t have a baby anytime soon?” She grinned. He nodded. “Well, how many condoms do you have left, Mr. Stark?”

Pepper put an innocent look on her face, but her big blue eyes held a determined glint, one that only served to add weight to the desire already settled in Tony’s gut.

“Enough to get us through the night, Ms. Potts,” he replied, and his smirk widened. “But first...”

“What?” she asked.

“I’m gonna taste you.”

He leaned his face down and kissed her mound of pubic curls, spreading open the lips of her sex and running his fingertips gently up and down her slit. She gasped, then moaned and leaned further into him, as he suckled on her wetness, his tongue probing deep inside her, licking her like an ice cream cone, savoring each long stroke.

“Oh, my... Fuck, babe... Yes,” she moaned, pushing his head deeper, letting him know what she truly wanted. She opened herself for him, hooking her legs around his shoulders and capturing his head between her thighs.

“Better,” he growled and suckled her nub, licking hard and fast.

They woke up the next morning from the bliss of an entire night of love-making. Their muscles were sore, their skin covered in mosquito bites and their backs hurt from sleeping on a mattress that had no air left in it, thanks to their last round of rough sex a few hours ago. But they had never been happier as in that moment when the sun rose above the ocean, almost making it seem like it was going to be the most beautiful day of their lives. Reality hit them soon, and hard, when they arrived at the airport. It was just the two of them, like last night, like they wished it would always be.

Tony forced a smile as he came back from the check-in desk. They could stand around and talk, go and get a coffee or simply make out and extend the goodbye but it was all just too painful. At the end of the day, he was still going away.

Pepper gasped at the feel of Tony reaching out and touching her cheek, and she tilted her head into his hand. The smile on his beautiful lips was so sad. She found herself wishing to see his goofy happy smile again. The one he’d worn all night.

“I think I’ll go through customs now,” he said softly, and she quickly shook her head. “Pep, I have to—“

“Please just a few more minutes,” she pleaded.

Grabbing him by the shirt that was half-unbuttoned, she pulled him closer to her, and then moved her hand slowly inside the opening and grazed the scar on his chest. Tracing the outline of it with her index finger, Pepper stared at the mark on his skin like she was drawn to it by a spell.

It was only a few months ago that Tony lay in a hospital bed, recovering from open-heart surgery to replace an abnormal aortic valve that had become further diseased by a staph infection. The six-hour surgery to repair his heart had gone smoothly. He was fine, technically, not even needed any blood thinners, but the vertical incision in his chest along the sternum would always be a reminder to them to cherish every moment they had together. Life could be over in the blink of an eye. They needed to make it count.

“I have something for you,” she told him, looking back up. “It’s in your bag, but you can’t open it until you’re...” She swallowed. “Until you’re on the plane.”

Her breath caught in her throat as she watched his eyes memorize every detail of her face. He was stunningly beautiful. She memorized his face from the curve of his lips to his shining almond eyes, eyes that were now starting to well up with tears. She couldn’t remember a time she had ever seen him cry.

“I love you so much,” she murmured but then her voice cracked as they both realized that this was it.

Pepper reached up gently and wiped away the tears with her thumb as one of her hands cupped his face, and then she drew close and kissed him. Tears were pouring down her cheek, but she knew she had to be strong. For his sake. She didn’t want to make this harder on him than it already was. So she kept telling herself that maybe it was good for him. Maybe his abused soul was finally going to be able to heal when he was miles away from a father that treated him so badly. Tony was so fragile underneath his bold exterior, so soft. Maybe this was what he had to do.

With a heart aching to hold on to the man she loved, she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him for all she was worth, as if she might never let him go. Pepper told him that he was making the right choice, that it would be okay and they would get through this. God, she hoped they would. They were so young, so full of life and adventure, and the constant drive to experience new things. The questions that fed her doubts scared her, making her hug him tighter. She tried pushing aside her own hurts and fears not to cry again. He didn’t need to see any more of her tears.

Tony closed his eyes, running his hands up and down her back, and then he held still, just hugging her, as he breathed in her scent. She still smelled like the ocean. He tried to memorize the feel of her body against his: all soft and warm and curves. For all he knew, this was the last time in months, maybe even a year, that he’d be able to touch her. He squeezed his eyes against the moistness in them, then pulled back and took her face into both hands. Her beauty was enough to enslave the soul of any man, but for Tony her true beauty was within her soul. He admired her as a person more so than anyone he had ever met.

“I’ll dream about you.” He brushed his thumbs over her wet cheeks, while a smile crept over his face, but his eyes were oceans of sadness. “Because it’s always you,” he whispered.

He leaned over, gently kissing her. The kiss was tender, and filled with love. Pepper was not sure she had ever felt this amount of love flooding her being before. As he kissed her, Tony grasped her hand and pressed her palm against his heart.

“This is how much I love you, Pepper Potts.” His words were a breath against her lips. They looked deep into each other's eyes, only inches apart, and time seemed to stand still for a moment. “Don’t ever forget that.”

They had another hug, and then Pepper stood and watched as her boyfriend headed towards customs and showed his passport and boarding pass. Just as he went past the point of no return, Tony paused and turned around briefly. He showed her a smile—one last smile, and he made sure that it was the happiest smile he could muster in this moment. He didn’t want her to remember him with a face full of sadness. He wanted her to remember him the way he was when he was with her. She smiled back at him and he turned around, feeling like with every step, the hole inside him kept opening, wider and wider like a huge black mouth.

Only when Tony had gone did Pepper’s smile disappear and Pepper felt the dam breaking then. As she walked back to the car she could hardly see where she was going because her eyes were swimming in tears. She climbed in and just sat there and cried like she never had in her life. This was not how she had imagined first love to be. She was supposed to be happy, but her heart was hurting so much that she just wanted to scream.

She knew nothing really lasted forever, and that the chances of them staying together after high school had been really slim from the start, because life never turned out like that—definitely not hers—but they should’ve at least had until graduation. She should’ve had two more years to prepare for the worst, but now Tony was gone, and it had happened so fast that she hadn’t even had enough time to process it. She realized that now, realized how deep in denial she had lived, not wanting to face the reality of having to say goodbye to him. If this was real love, she didn’t want it.

Remember when you told me you don’t have a heart?

It was when she had texted him about losing her mother. Tony remembered it so clearly, because it was the first thing he had found out about Pepper. Her mother was the very reason she had started talking to him. She had felt so lost without her, and he had been there for Pepper through all of it, helping her to find herself again.

I found it, honey!

Tony was confused for a moment, as she hadn’t written anything else on the little note he had found, but then he frantically tossed items out of his backpack until he saw what appeared to be a book, decoratively wrapped up.

He opened the gift, turned it around and looked at it. The book’s cover was a muted maroon, with golden letters on the front, reading Proof that Tony Stark has a heart. Frowning, he flipped to the first page. The second he saw the screenshot of an iMessage conversation, he started grinning foolishly.

Hi stranger! Is this number legit? Ugh tell me you’re not a creep pls

Depends on who you ask

I just need someone to talk to

You got me How are you?

Having the worst week ever!

Why?

Cause my mom died

Oh God I'm really sorry for your loss

Have you ever had your heart broken?

I don't have one

Wow that's convenient

Ikr!! Think so too

Tony skipped forward a few pages.

How was the funeral? You okay?

I just wanna cry

What about a hug? You want a hug? I give good hugs

Hug me

*hugs you*

Is that all?

*hugs you tight*

That's better thank you

Told you I give good hugs

It hurts so much

I know but I'm here for you So if you wanna talk about your mom... I'm listening

And a few more.

What should I call you? I’m so tired of calling you stranger

Handsome stranger

Idk if you’re handsome tho

Very

God you’re an idiot but you always make me laugh

Hours later, Tony was still browsing through the book full of screenshots. He didn’t even know Pepper had saved all of their conversations. Everything was right there in that book. Their whole history, printed out and arranged over more than a hundred pages, like a journal.

Will you send me a photo of you if I ask nicely?

You haven’t asked me yet

I’d love to see your face

That's not a question

You’re a damn hard nut to crack I just can’t stop picturing your face So can I see it? I imagine you look beautiful

Cheesy but cute :’) That's me and my mom...

Tony smiled at all the memories that came flooding back to him. No one had ever given him anything that special. It was a work of art, so full of love, he couldn’t stop reading.

I'd like to take you out on a date

A date? I don’t even know what you look like

That's because you never asked All the more reason to meet me

I'm scared tbh I don't wanna ruin what we have :( What if we don't like each other?

That would really suck I don't have anyone but you

You're all I have too you know

If I show you my face will you promise not just to go out with me bc I look so sexy?

As he felt himself slowly drifting off to sleep, his eyelids becoming heavy, Tony rested his head against the airplane’s headrest and hugged the book to his chest. He closed his eyes, thinking of her, until eventually he was dreaming of being back in her arms again. Forever this time.

_______________________________________________

Reaching the auditorium, Pepper paused before going inside the building. She couldn’t believe that the day had finally come and she was graduating high school. She had so many memories of her time there—some were good, some were bad. To know that it was all over now felt kind of strange. Unreal. A lot had happened in her senior year, some things she’d rather forget about, but she was grateful for the lows, too, as they made her appreciate all the good things she had even more. College would be a totally different experience for her. A new one. The time to really start focusing on her future and what she wanted in life, and what she didn’t want.

But something was missing. Or rather someone. It just didn’t feel right to take her walk to the center of the stage and pick up her diploma cover without Tony being there. He had been such a huge part of high school for her, and had shaped her life in ways he probably didn’t even understand that she really wished he could be there. So much had happened between them, she sometimes wondered how her life had turned out if she hadn’t texted his number that day. Would she still be the same person that she was now?

Pepper closed her eyes at the memory of Tony’s scent, of the drowning depths of his brown eyes. She missed him. She had always missed him. But today... Today she missed him the most.

“I am so infinitely proud of you, Pepper Potts,” a low voice sounded.

Startled, she turned on her heel. And there he stood right behind her, just as she remembered him from the last time she saw him, except he had cut his long locks so they were now a halo of curls. He looked so handsome with the bright sun shining on him; so beautiful with that wide, charming smile softening his mouth.

“Tony?” she said, not believing her own eyes.

He walked over to her and, after all those long hours on the plane of yearning for her touch, finally took her hands into his. “Hi, stranger,” he rasped.

“You came,” Pepper whispered, tears collecting in her eyes. “You really came.”

“Of course I came,” he whispered back. “You think I’d miss this?” He smiled, as his fingers ran over the back of her hands, stroking her skin. “I already missed prom. I wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

Her surprise rendered her speechless.

“I love you,” he said quietly. “And I’m sorry for ever making you doubt that.” Tony bent forward, leaning into her, his eyes focused on her mouth. He kissed her, long and deeply, until they both ran out of air and came up gasping. He had never forgotten the feel of her lips on his, the sweet taste that was hers alone. It would be easier to forget to breathe. “3000,” he whispered.

“W-What?”

“That’s how much I love you.”

“You can’t love me 3000. That doesn’t make any sense,” she mumbled, still completely taken aback by the fact he was standing right in front of her.

Slowly, Tony grabbed her hand and put it over his racing heart, like that one time at the airport. “You feel that?” he asked, half smiling, half smirking. “That’s gotta be 3000 beats per minute.”

She laughed softly, and her smile was radiant, as if he’d given her the most precious gift in the world. And perhaps he had. Pepper gazed at him with such shining love, it took his breath away. Whatever had happened in the past, it didn’t matter. The future didn’t matter. All that mattered was that they always found their way back to each other, however hampered by doubts and fears.

Tony enveloped her in his arms and fervently kissed the top of her head, breathing in the sweet, familiar aroma of her hair. How good it felt to hold her. There was nothing more real than this.

“I’ve missed you so much,” he whispered, stroking her silky red tresses soothingly.

The intensity of the emotion in his voice had a powerful effect upon Pepper. Her eyes watered to near overflowing and she closed them, hugging him tighter, wishing he would never leave her again.

“I’ve missed you too,” she breathed.

[the-iron-kettle]

one of my favourite parts of any pepperony au is all the different ways fic creators come up for tony to give pepper her nickname! so, how did it go down in this au? did she find it annoying or charming at first?

Pepper's first visit to the Iron Kettle was probably a year ago, now.

She'd barely given it a thought for a most of it—nice coffee, never packed, and she guesses the barista is kinda cute, if a little scruffy—but before she knew it, this tiny corner shop just out of her way home (but not totally inconveniently) had become her favourite spot to relax after a long day at work. She wasn't here every day, of course, but she also can't quite remember the last time she'd been inside a Starbucks. What can she say? She likes her corner booth with the armrest that just perfectly supports her elbow while she holds up her book; and she likes the mochas here; and she's never really been one for kids, but the owner's son has a particular way of wrapping every customer around his little fingers.

She didn't get her corner booth today, but a perfectly decent seat closest to the counter where the owner is trading quips with a server who is most definitely not his son.

Pepper's been a regular long enough to recognize the man the owner is talking to—handsome, confident, and has a brilliant smile. He and the owner are close. She's only seen him around the shop two or three times, that she can remember, but when he is, he's laughing with the owner, playing with the kid, teasing the grumpy big guy. Sometimes, like today, he works, bringing out coffee with perfect tableside manner. He has a funny name, but Pepper can't quite recall it, and the owner isn't exactly dropping any useful hints.

"Order up, Honeybear," he calls, sliding two hot mugs across the counter with a grin.

"Thanks," Honeybear replies, taking them and practically gliding to the table the owner points him to. They do this again and again, working in perfect harmony. Like clockwork. "Another one for ya, sourpatch." Pepper kind of admires their perfect, practised rhythm. "I'm getting old, here, platypus."

At the last one, Pepper can't contain her giggle. Her heart skips a beat when the owner's big, brown eyes flash over to her, sparkling way more than they had any right to. Pepper recovers quickly and smiles back in what she hopes is a cool, friendly way.

It should be noted that Pepper knows the owner's name. His name is Tony. It's what the grumpy guy calls him, it's written on his name tag. There is just an irrational part of her that refuses to use it because she's never actually spoken to him outside of ordering and making small talk as he makes his rounds to the tables, and referring to him personally just seems so—personal. Even in her head.

Her father would joke, 'the lady doth protest too much'. This is ridiculous.

"Something funny?"

The voice startles her. The owner is standing before her table, now, coffee pot in hand. He waves it slightly, asking a silent question, and Pepper thinks and makes the gesture for okay, just a bit. He begins to fill it, waiting for her signal to stop.

"'Platypus'," she repeats, waving her hand gently when the mug is half-full. "It's an interesting name. Difficult to find at gift shops, I imagine."

Tony smirks at her joke and Pepper enjoys it a little too much. "It's a nickname, Miss Smarty-Pants, Reads-a-Lot." Pepper gets a flash of excitement from the implication that he recognizes her, and she feels like she's fifteen again. Calm down, Potts.

"No," Pepper breathes. "A nickname? So, 'sourpatch' and 'honeybear'...?"

"Same fate. That's Rhodey," he informs her mock-somberly. Rhodey, she thought, that was it. "Actually, that's a nickname, too." He laughs, and Pepper melts a little bit, because his eyes crinkle so free sawcharmingly when he smiles. "We went to college together, been best friends since. Old habits die hard."

Pepper sips her fresh coffee and hums sympathetically. "Childhood nicknames. Oh, don't I know it." Tony raises his eyebrows, and Pepper might say anything right now to hold his attention for longer. "My family and friends still call me 'Pepper'."

Tony's eyes light up and immediately, Pepper knows she's made a grave mistake.

"Pepper. Pepper," he repeats, rolling it around his mouth, tasting it, scrutinizing her carefully. "It fits."

"Oh no," Pepper sighs, her face falling into her hands.

"I like it."

"Please, just call me V—"

"I gotta know. Is it the hair? A fiery spirit? Was there a pepper spray incident?"

"I've already said too much," Pepper sniffs, barely containing her smile.

"I don't think you've said nearly enough," he responds, and Pepper can barely contain herself at the implications. "I'll get it out of you yet, Miss Pepper/Smarty-Pants. I'm Tony, by the way."

I know, Pepper thinks. "Nice to meet you, Tony."

[yesmooshoe]

Pepperony Smut-Mas, day 3

Welcome to day 3! Thank you to everyone who has been reading and commenting and sharing and liking and leaving kudos! If anyone has any requests, please feel free to send em my way!

Day 3 - Phone Sex

Rating: Explicit

Words: 1570

Summary:  Even when separated by an ocean, Tony and Pepper can't get enough of each other. There’s always time for a quckie.

Read it on AO3! And check out previous chapters if you haven’t!

Or read it here!

Pepper’s phone rang as soon as she sat down on the bed, which was either a coincidence or meant that he was watching her, which she honestly wouldn’t put past him. It was just after 7PM in Tokyo, which meant it was 2AM in LA, where Tony was. She reached over and accepted the call and put it on speaker.

“Hey honey.” She said as she slipped her first shoe off.

“What are you wearing?” Tony answered with a small lilt in his voice.

“Miss you too.” She replied, teasing him. She’d been in Tokyo for 2 weeks, so they’d done this a few times already. She glanced at the time on the phone and figured they had more than enough time before her 8:30 dinner meeting. She’d probably even still have time for a shower. She just missed Tony like crazy and wished that she could spend the rest of the night rolling around in bed with him, but this would have to do for now.

“Oh come on, indulge me. What are you wearing?” He whined back playfully.

“A business suit.”

“Ooh, yeah. I love you in a suit. What color?”

“Grey.”

“Yes. Grey. Perfect . Pants or skirt?” He asked, his breathing getting more intense.

“Are you already jerking off?” She asked, rolling her eyes and laying back on the bed. She'd be lying if the thought wasn't turning her on though.

“Maybe. Are you?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m still wearing pants. And I don't have a penis.”

“Pants! You’re wearing pants. Great. Your ass looks amazing in those. Come on, get undressed. Tell me everything you’re wearing and then I’ll tell you what I’d do to you if I was there. And you have many penises. Huge ones. They're in a drawer 10 feet from me. I miss you so much.”

She smiled as she stood up and walked over to her dresser to grab the vibrator hidden within. “Fine, but I want control of the vibrator, ok? No transpacific funny business. Not tonight.” She asked as she sat back down. They had some high tech sex toys that the other could control remotely, but she wasn’t in the mood for all that right now.

“Oh god, you’re getting the vibrator? The blue one? Perfect. It’s all you baby, all you. Take your clothes off.”

Pepper just shook her head as she sat back down and set the vibrator aside before starting to get undressed, explaining what she was doing to Tony along the way.

“All right. I’m taking my suit jacket off. I’m wearing a light blue, sleeveless top underneath.”

“Oh yeah. Nice. I love your shoulders.”

“I’ve already taken my shoes off, but they were the black Jimmy Choos you bought me last month. I’m sliding my pants off now, kicking them aside. Slowly unbuttoning my shirt. Just picture me, standing over you, undoing each button one at a time, teasing you with glimpses of my bra before I finally shrug it off, letting it drop to the floor. I’m wearing lacy, dark blue underwear and a matching bra, and I’m already so wet for you, Tony. So ready for you. I was thinking about you all day. How much I missed you, how much I just wanted to touch you. Feel you. Fuck you.” She purred, finally laying down and getting comfortable, leaning against the pillows with the phone resting next to her. As he started to talk she trailed her hand down over her stomach and slipped it under the waistband of her underwear. She was very wet and couldn’t help dipping a finger between her folds to lazily tease her clit.

“I’m so ready for you too. I’m rock hard and I wish that I could be inside of you. Close your eyes and pretend that I’m there. Picture me crawling on top of you, looming over you as I continue to stroke my cock. Think about me teasing you, running my cock up and down your cunt, slicking myself up but never pushing in. Just working you up, slowly. I'm just waiting for you to beg. I know how bad you want it, but I just want to hear it first.”

Pepper let out a bit of a moan as she pictured this, applying a bit more pressure to her clit as the images flooded her brain. With her free hand she undid the front clasp of her bra, finally freeing her tits and granting herself access. She dipped two fingers into her mouth, slicked them with spit, and then brought them down to start teasing her already hard nipple.

“I love when you tease me, baby.” She said, her eyes closed while she did her best to picture him here. “I’m teasing my nipple now, but I wish it was you. I wish it was your tongue and your lips around it.”

She could hear him let out a short, quiet moan at this.

“What else are you doing?” He asked, and she could tell that he was starting to get very worked up.

“I’m fingering myself. I’m so wet for you. I’m sliding my fingers in and out of my cunt and then dragging them up to tease my clit.”

“Ohh...your fingers are nice and wet, huh?”

“Yes.”

“Bring them up to your lips, suck them clean. Taste yourself for me.”

A shudder of pleasure tore through her when she heard his instructions, and she complied almost immediately. “Ok, baby.” She replied, giving herself one last thrust to make sure that her fingers were thoroughly coated before bringing them up to her lips. She made a point of moaning and making loud sucking noises for Tony to hear over the phone, but fuck it was pretty hot.

“How does it taste?”

“Good.” She said, pulling her fingers away from her mouth, the salty, sticky substance leaving a trail across her lips.

“Good.”

“Yeah.”

“Grab the vibrator.”

“Mmhmm, yes. I’m ready. I’m so ready.” She answered as she reached over to grab it. She took a moment to finally slip her panties off so that she could spread her legs wide open.

“I’m so close, Pep. But I gotta hear you cum first.”

Pepper bit her bottom lip as she flipped the vibrator on, and moaned out as she finally pressed it against her clit. After a moment of getting used to the sensation, she upped the speed and started moving it up and down, applying various amounts of pressure as she tried to picture Tony, laying out naked on their bed, jerking himself off. As much as she wished he was here, this whole thing was also pretty hot. Just talking to each other, telling each other what they were doing.

“Fuck, Tony…” She moaned out, trailing off as she hit a particularly sensitive spot.

“Come on. Cum for me. Picture me there, eating you out. Lapping up your cum while I fuck you with my tongue. Maybe teasing your ass, slipping a finger inside, just pushing you over the edge. Let me hear you.”

Pepper turned the vibrator all the way up and jammed it against her clit. She could feel the pressure mounting and her body went rigid and her toes curled as she got closer and closer.

“Oh, Tony…” She squeaked out, before the orgasm finally hit her, the pleasure starting from her core and radiating out through every inch of her body. She pulled the vibrator away and stopped teasing her nipple, just wanting to relax as the aftershocks hit her as she listened to Tony. “Your turn.” She panted out. “Cum, Tony. Cum all over yourself. Make a mess. Picture my lips around your cock, picture my finger in your ass, and think about how hard I’m going to fuck you when I finally see you next week. Let go, Tony. Just let go.”

She grabbed her phone and switched it off speaker so she could bring it to her ear. She just wanted to hear Tony like this and say goodnight to him. It felt so much more intimate than being on speaker. She could hear him pumping furiously now, and could hear the familiar little noises he made with each stroke. After a few more moments he let out a high-pitched yelp, signifying that he was finally cumming too. She could hear him panting, hear him slow down, and then hear him fumble around with the phone. It seemed like he didn’t want to be on speaker anymore either.

“Fuck.” Tony said simply.

“I love you too, babe.” She snickered.

“Sorry. I love you too. I really do miss you.”

“I know. Go get cleaned up and go to sleep honey, it’s late there.”

“Yeah. What are you doing for the rest of the night?”

“Got a dinner at 8:30.”

“Oh.”

“Don’t be jealous.” She said, sitting up and running her hands through her hair.

“Can’t help it.”

“Go to sleep.”

“Call me when you get home? I don’t care if you wake me up.”

She sighed. She wanted him to sleep, but she also liked saying good night to him. “Only if you go to sleep in the next 10 minutes. I’ll know if you don’t.”

“Fine.” He said through a yawn, which just made Pepper smile. He did get pretty sleepy sometimes after getting off.

“Good night, Tony. I’ll speak to you in a few hours.”

“Kay. Love you. No more business trips for you.”

“Good night.” She said firmly with a huge smile on her face before hanging up. Once off the phone she glanced around the room, not really wanting to clean up the small mess she’d made. She stood up and headed to the bathroom, deciding that it could wait til later. She also left the vibrator on her bed so that she was good and ready to call Tony back in a few hours.

[beckzorz]

Pizza Night (one-shot)

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader Words: 1967 Summary: What makes this pizza night different from all other pizza nights? A/N: Happy holidays ;-) Something of a companion piece to Snowed In (thematically, anyway). Hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think.

The third Sunday of every month is pizza night at the compound. Tony gets pizza delivered straight from the city, usually from a different place every month, for absolutely everyone—janitors, Avengers, programmers, medics, doctors, physical therapists…

And you.

Pizza night is one of your favorite traditions here. It’s less classy than the cocktail party-type get-togethers that Tony likes to throw; no mixed drinks, just water, soda, and beer for those inclined. And yes, you do like getting dressed up once in a while, but there’s effort involved, and your job is enough work, thank you very much.

Unwinding without expectations is nice.

Also, pizza.

—

“Hi Paul!” You slide into the passenger seat of your neighbor’s car and tuck your shopping bag between your feet. “Thanks so much for the ride.”

“No problem,” Paul says. He pulls away from the curb and drives towards the compound. “It’s literally five houses out of my way.”

“Yes, but still.” It’s cloudy but warm, so you open the window and let your hand dangle, catching the wind between your fingers. “How’s it feel to have tax season over?”

Paul groans in relief. “Oh my god, like freedom herself came and blessed me with those lottery days off last week.”

You laugh. Most accountants are dull as the grave, but Paul’s pretty funny, all things considered.

“What’s in the bag?” he asks.

“Oh…” You shift a little in your seat. “Just some stuff for tonight.”

“Fun,” he says.

“Mm.”

Your noncommittal answer doesn’t lead to a reply, and Paul turns on NPR. All Things Considered is good as far as radio shows go, but tonight your mind is wandering.

Pizza night’s going to be a little different this time around, and the thought of standing out makes your heart squeeze painfully. You’ve only been at this job long enough to take part in five, maybe six pizza nights, and you’re just starting to feel comfortable enough to make some waves. A suggestion for implementing a new project, a few more personal effects by your desk… It’s all gone well, but tonight?

You’re not sure.

It’s another fifteen minutes before you and Paul flash your security badges to the gate guard. There’s already a bunch of cars in the front lot—no surprise; the compound runs 24/7. Paul squeezes into a spot between two SUVs, and you suck in your breath to slip out of the car with your bag.

The second you walk into the right building, your mouth starts to water. You can smell it all—the bakery smell of the crust, the gooey cheese, the garlic. Even the tang of pepperoni, which you don’t eat.

It smells like a greasy pizzeria, replete with checkered tables and silvery napkin holders and rotating countertop displays with slices waiting to be shucked onto paper plates. It smells like a hole-in-the-wall with a gruff chef whose mouth would give Gordon Ramsay a run for his money. It smells like the kind of place you don’t wear white to.

It smells like heaven.

“Fuck,” you mutter, and Paul chuckles beside you.

“Eager, huh?”

“Not exactly.” You shift your bag to your other hand and try to keep your breathing steady.

Paul gives you a funny look, but he doesn’t push as you both climb up the lobby stairs to the lounge. He nods at you and makes a beeline straight for the buffet table. You don’t follow quite yet.

You pause by the top of the stairs as you take it all in. Maybe it’s a little cliché, but you still can’t quite believe your luck. How many people can say they work with superheros? Eat pizza with superheros? Sure, some of them are away right now—it’s Easter today, after all—but there are still plenty here tonight. Steve Rogers, of course, and his cute friend Bucky Barnes. Natasha Romanoff, Vision, Wanda Maximoff. Plenty of people.

Someone bumps into you, and you tighten your grip on your bag and make your way to the kitchen. It’s commercial-sized, with an oven the size of a closet full of oozing pizzas waiting to replace the ones on the buffet. You pause in front of it, gazing longingly at the rotating rack of pies, before one of the outside waitstaff ushers you aside.

You snag a plate from a cabinet and a spoon from a drawer. With a heavy heart, you open your shopping bag. Out comes a box, a bag of shredded mozzarella, a glass jar of marinara sauce. You carefully spread the sauce and sprinkle the cheese. Sixty-six seconds in the microwave, and you sigh as you pull the warm plate out.

“What’s that?”

You jump out of your skin. Natasha Romanoff is at your elbow, eyeing your plate curiously.

“Oh, uh, hi, Natasha.” You shift your weight, cheeks hot. “It’s matzah pizza.”

“Oh right,” Natasha says. “It’s Passover, isn’t it?”

“Yep.” You force a smile and squeeze by her to get back to the lounge, but she sticks to you.

“Isn’t all this—” she gestures to the pizza buffet as you pass by— “awfully tempting?”

You snort. “Of course! And it’s only day two.”

“Eight days?”

“Outside of Israel, yup.”

“And no bread?”

“No bread, no cake, no pasta—well, no normal pasta, anyway—no cereal, no oatmeal, no beer, no cookies,” you rattle off. “And I’m sure I’m missing something.”

Natasha puts a hand on your arm and leads to the couch she usually shares with some of the other Avengers. You sit down, head swimming with surprise. You usually hang out with coworkers from your department, not… the department.

Still, you do your best to smile at Steve, who’s next to you.

“How are—oh,” he says. He blinks at your pizza, then looks back at you with a sympathetic wince. “You’re brave.”

“I would go with masochistic before brave,” you reply. You take a deep breath, eyes fluttering shut for the briefest moment before you pull yourself together. A bite of matzah pizza does nothing to resolve the craving for real pizza. “This is hell.”

Steve chuckles. “So why’d you come?”

“Yeah, seriously,” Natasha chimes in. She’s perched on the arm of the couch beside you, a half-eaten slice of pizza folded in her hand.

“Eh, pizza night’s my favorite thing we have here,” you say. “It’s nice to hang out without having to think about work, you know?”

“Fair enough.”

“Bucky,” Natasha says suddenly, amusement dripping from her tone, “you look like a fish.”

You turn to look up at Bucky. His eyes are glued to your plate. To your pizza. He snaps his mouth shut and swallows, glancing down at his own plate. He’s got two big pieces of pepperoni pizza, one piled on top of the other.

“Something wrong, Buck?” Steve asks.

“No,” Bucky says, but you don’t buy it for a second.

Based on their raised eyebrows, neither do Natasha and Steve. Bucky nudges Steve’s leg with his boot, and Steve shifts over as much as he can.

Bucky sits down next to you, his thigh pressed against yours. He discards his pizza on the coffee table and sits back, still looking at your plate. Your mouth suddenly goes dry, pizza smell be damned. So close to Bucky, you’ve caught whiff of something a million times more intoxicating. He smells intoxicating, all heady and exhilarating and distinctively unique.

Greasy pizzeria as heaven?

No, heaven is sitting next to Bucky Barnes, his solid thigh against yours and his hand brushing your arm from where it’s slung on the back of the couch.

“You know,” he says, voice small and almost faraway, “the missions used to come to the front for Passover.”

You blink. Bucky is still looking at the matzah pizza on your plate.

“The front? You mean, during World War II?” you ask.

“Yeah.” His eyes flit to yours, his lips quirking up just enough to set your heart beating a little faster. “Those seders were the best part of the year.”

You gape. It can’t be attractive, but—Bucky Barnes is Jewish? Like you? It’s impossible.

“I don’t remember any,” Steve says. “What about ‘44?”

“Eh, by the time you came along, we had other things to do,” Bucky tells Steve, but he’s still facing you. He lowers his voice, ducks his head a little as his gaze tightens on yours. “Can I—did you bring that?”

You nod, thoroughly speechless.

“Can I have one?”

“Just one?” Natasha teases. You huff a little, half amused, half offended on Bucky’s behalf, but he’s rolling his eyes fondly.

“Of course,” you tell him. You force yourself up from the couch, left thigh cold from the loss of his leg pressed against yours. Is your face as warm as it feels? Can they all see? “Be right back.”

But Bucky jumps to his feet before you can make your escape. “You gotta show me how,” he says. He puts a hand on the small of your back and guides you through the crowd to the kitchen, greeting some of the waitstaff by name.

You’re not just speechless now; you’re breathless. His hand on your back, with just a thin shirt between his metal hand and your skin. His rich baritone, the gentle smile you can see out of the corner of your eye if you turn your head just a little.

Out comes the matzah, the sauce, the cheese. Bucky grabs a fresh plate and watches with careful focus as you assemble a matzah pizza for him.

“Can I do more cheese?” he asks.

“Eh, you could, but if you do too much it gets soggy.”

“Fair.”

You stand side-by-side in front of the microwave as you punch in sixty-six seconds. The microwave comes on with a whoosh.

“So,” Bucky says. “I didn’t know you were Jewish.”

Your lips twitch. “Bucky, I don’t think we’ve exchanged more than half a dozen words before tonight.” You raise an eyebrow at him, and he purses his lips in reluctant agreement. “But I didn’t know you were. And we learned about you all in school!”

“Well, my mom was. We didn’t practice or anything.” He tucks his hair behind his ear. “Not like you.”

“Everyone does it differently,” you say. “It’s all about what works for you.”

The microwave beeps, and Bucky pulls the plate out. “I haven’t really thought about it in ages,” he says. “But…” He smiles at you, eyes crinkling. “Maybe it’s time to see what works for me now that things have changed.”

“Hear hear!” You grin back. Never mind the heat in your cheeks—Bucky is smiling. At you. Who cares if you’re blushing? “No time like the present.”

“Amen,” he says. He lifts the plate close to his face and tries a bite of matzah pizza. His expression is thoughtful by the time he swallows. “I mean, it’s not as good as the stuff out there usually is, but it’s not bad.”

“I’ll be honest, I’m going to eat a whole pizza next month,” you tell him.

“Next month?” Bucky asks through another bite.

“Next pizza night,” you clarify.

He swallows, Adam’s apple bobbing on his pale neck. “How long is Passover? Eight days, right?”

“Yeah…?” You tilt your head, confused.

“Forget next month. We can go for some proper pizza next Sunday. I mean—if you want?”

Bucky’s blue eyes are wide, hopeful as he looks at you. You can’t help smiling. Pizza to end Passover is an old family tradition, one you thought you’d miss out on now that you’re living so far from home. But it’s like Bucky said.

Time to see what works, now that things have changed.

“I want,” you say, and he grins back, smile as bright as the moon.

“To pizza night,” he says, lifting his matzah pizza in a toast.

You bump elbows with him, heart soaring. “To pizza night.”

[ninzied]

north/south

she doesn’t cry.

a pepperony/stark family fic. spoilers for endgame.

She doesn’t cry.

Pepper knows it’s to be expected. That she doesn’t understand; that she can’t understand, that she doesn’t know how. But there’s no comfort to be found in the things that are expected, when there’s nothing expected about any of this.

She doesn’t cry. She eats the food, or she at least picks at the food, poking the grapes around on her plate, and pouting at the “weird stuff” she doesn’t like, arugula in the salad, and “the hard bread” that she ends up licking all the toppings off of.

She is her father’s daughter, through and through.

There are sliders, but they didn’t come with any cheese, so Happy swipes some cheddar off the charcuterie board, stabs a toothpick back through each one and heats them up in the microwave for her.

She asks for ketchup, and Happy looks lost for a moment until Butterfingers unearths some packets from underneath papers at Tony’s work station.

“We have no idea how long those have been there,” Pepper starts to scold them both, but the anticipation on Morgan’s face – and Happy’s, too, really, even the robot is tilting its little makeshift head at her – suffice it to say she doesn’t go anywhere with the rest of that sentence.

It wedges a small crack in her heart, but only a small one, when Morgan takes her plate of small cheeseburgers and plops herself down on the couch by the fire. Only the smallest of cracks. There isn’t much left that hasn’t already been broken.

Morgan sits and looks around her, expectant. She’s waiting for something, and Happy’s trying his best to figure out what, when Pepper gestures at the table. The mask isn’t there anymore – it’s been replaced by the food, and a very somber Nick Fury who’s deep in discussion with Miss Danvers – but this is the last place Morgan had seen her father.

And it would certainly stand to a four-year-old’s reasoning that this is the first place he’ll come looking for her again. She just has to wait long enough.

Morgan turns to Happy with her untouched plate and says, “I thought you said Daddy liked cheeseburgers too.”

Happy’s face falls, and he’s rushing forward to do damage control while Pepper – Pepper’s just trying to breathe, because it’s hard suddenly, when her chest feels like it’s turned to ice. It was ridiculous to think that she was done breaking after all.

She remembers, at least, how to take one step, then two. In fact, she makes it all the way to the bookcase before completely falling apart.

…

Their life together is on those shelves. Pictures of Morgan, mostly. First breath. First coo. First sneeze, because that was not a battle that Pepper found worth fighting with Tony. First steps, first bite of cake at each of their birthdays. Chocolate for Morgan. Red velvet for Pepper. Anything topped with a disgusting amount of sprinkles for Tony.

Then there were the drawings of them with matching shrapnel hearts that glowed, Pepper’s on a necklace, Morgan with her little bracelets. Multiplication tables that Tony had proudly framed even though all of the 3’s were written insistently backwards. Crayon portraits of dogs that Pepper always said no to.

She should have let them have a dog.

But it’s not any of these things that shatters that last piece of her left still standing.

She’s always aimed for cleanliness, but living with a child – make that two, on most days – was not exactly conducive to keeping a place tidy for long.

There are toys scattered here and there, stuffed animals and small handheld robots that were ostensibly made to help with the chores but more often than not got caught up in turf wars with the lions, not to mention one very nefarious hedgehog.

The hedgehog had been borne of a so-called math project of theirs. They’d repurposed a coconut plushy, and then proceeded to cover every inch of it with Pepper’s hot glue gun, bits of fabric, and hair – hair from Morgan’s toy trolls, her Raggedy Ann dolls, and the My Little Ponys that Bruce had sent her one year for Christmas.

They’d completed the look by jamming in colored paper clips for paws, and adding on black button eyes as an after-thought.

It looks – well, it looks like a little monster, quite frankly, but Morgan adores it, and so had Tony. He’d been beside himself with delight when she christened it “Hairy Ball” – Harry for short, at Pepper’s insistence.

…

(“I…don’t understand this, but I suppose I will have to accept it.”

“Potts, it’s the hairy ball theorem,” said Tony, with Morgan giggling away in his ear as he hoisted her higher and higher. “Simple topology. Take an even-dimensional sphere, and any continuous tangent vector field must have at least one point on the sphere where the vector equals zero.”

“I’m sure it does, Tony.”

“In essence, if you try to comb a hairy ball flat, there’s always going to be that one stubborn tuft that sticks out.”

“I see,” said Pepper, entirely humoring them. “And this is useful because…?”

“Because it’s funny,” said Morgan, kissing her hedgehog in the middle of its lumpy forehead.

“Because it’s funny,” Tony had echoed, like no other explanation mattered more than this one, and they shook their heads at each other with perfectly matching affronted expressions.)

…

Harry the hedgehog is squashed beneath a teetering bookstack, its felt-tipped nose poking out from behind a textbook on origami.

Pepper bends down as if on autopilot, straightening things and dusting down the edge of the shelf. There’s a rectangular clearing where PROOF THAT TONY STARK HAS A HEART had so recently occupied space.

She sinks onto her knees for a moment, the hedgehog’s paws pressing into her fingers. One of the seams has ripped in the body of the fabric, spilling out stray wisps of cotton, and when she runs her palm over its patchwork of hair, smoothing out some of the tangles, its nose perks up as though trying to sniff at her hand.

…

(“Look, Mommy,” Morgan demonstrated for her, vigorously brushing back as much hedgehog hair as she could. “It’s sticking up here – and see, here – also here—”

“I have an idea where you can try that theory out next,” Pepper winked, much to Morgan’s slyly growing delight.

“Like…Daddy’s head?”

“No, sweetheart,” and their little girl giggled again as Tony looked at them both in mock betrayal, “not like Daddy’s head.”)

…

One of the paper clips comes loose, dangling uselessly before slipping between Pepper’s fingers. She watches it fall, blurring together with the rug at her feet.

Her shoulders shake, and then they’re only shaking harder as she folds herself up, as small and still as she can make her body so that Morgan doesn’t see her cry.

Grief surges up from every corner, so cold it burns everywhere that it touches, and just when she thinks she has nothing left it comes crashing out of all that nowhere again, drowning, drowning, if only it would just let her fucking drown.

…

(“That little guy can help predict the weather too, you know.”

“Oh, not that hedgehog theory again.”

“Theorem, Potts. Theorem. And hear me out – you’re looking particularly ravishing today, by the way—”

She rolled her eyes good-naturedly, but he kissed her neck and it made her feel so very warm all the same.

“—so Earth’s atmosphere, right? A spherical surface.” He took her face into his hands. “Let’s say there’s a storm brewing, blowing its wind east to west. There are – guaranteed – at least two spots where everything stands perfectly still. There is no wind.” Tony leaned in to kiss her forehead. “Here.” He tipped his head down to hover his mouth over hers as she smiled. “And here, too.”)

…

Pepper’s lost him so many times, but he always found his way back to her in the end. This time shouldn’t have been any different.

This time shouldn’t have been any different.

Everything’s quiet. The music has stopped, even the clinking of silverware, plates, all the small talk. Maybe she’s imagined it, but she can’t hear anything else beyond the soft raggedness of each breath as it shakes its way in and out of her body.

“Mrs. Stark?” A voice, sounding more distant than it probably is, and then a light awkward tapping on her shoulder. “I mean, Miss Potts. Mi—umm.” Peter Parker clears his throat, and she blinks, blinks, blinks until the hand he’s held out to her comes into focus. “I think you dropped this.”

She takes the paper clip, and manages a watery chuckle when Peter moves his other arm around, into her line of sight, and Morgan’s at the other end of it, holding on to his wrist. There’s a smear of ketchup on her chin, and Happy close behind her, a crumpled up napkin in hand.

“Oh, my darling girl.”

Pepper opens her arms, and Morgan climbs onto her lap, tiny hands already hard at work to wipe away the wetness on her cheeks. Her fingers dance over the smile that Pepper musters for her, and then Harry’s face pops back into view, Morgan carefully lifting him up to give Pepper a fuzzy little kiss on the nose.

“I miss Daddy.” Morgan’s voice is so small – the smallest, most powerful sound that Pepper has ever heard, but now’s not the time for her to break anymore.

“I know.” Pepper tucks her hair back, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Morgan burrows closer, the weight of her settling like a permanent warmth into Pepper’s chest. “I miss him too.”

“He’s really not coming back?” She’s cradling Harry, touching the open seamful of cotton with unsteady fingers.

“No, sweetie. But he loved you so, so much.”

Peter’s furiously rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand, and Pepper beckons him over, patting the spot of rug next to them. He looks uncertain, but it doesn’t last long before he’s collapsing himself down, shoulders quaking as she puts her arm around him too.

Morgan sniffles into her neck, her whole body tightening as though trying to resist all this sadness she still doesn’t know what to do with, how to make it go away. Pepper murmurs soothing things in her hair, and then she closes her eyes, if only for a few blessed seconds, so that the world can stop spinning and just give her daughter a moment to cry.

It almost hurts, not to let herself cry with her.

“Hey, Miss Pepper?” says Peter, after a while. He’s dabbing his nose with a clean handkerchief that his Aunt May has just brought him. He points at the hedgehog, its missing paw still clutched in her hand. “What is…that?”

Morgan pipes up, before Pepper has a chance to say otherwise, “This is Hairy Ball.” The words come out a bit gargly and hoarse, but she straightens a little, looking pleased that someone is asking.

Happy coughs out a laugh into his hand. At the edge of Pepper’s vision, she sees Nick still over by the food, his one good eyebrow nearly shooting right off of his forehead.

Peter, meanwhile, looks simply floored. “As in the theorem? Cool.”

“See, Mommy?” Morgan wipes at her eyes, and graciously passes the hedgehog over for Peter’s perusal. “Daddy and I told you.”

“You most certainly did.” Pepper leans back as Morgan points out all of Harry’s features, Peter following raptly along and nodding his head at all the right moments. That crack in her chest opens just a bit wider, leaving a hitch in her breath that aches, and aches, and aches.

Her eyes are burning again.

But it’s okay, Pepper thinks, because there’s no other option. She’d made a promise to Tony that they were going to be okay. She has to believe it will look different from this, someday, but for now—

For now, they can take turns standing still.

[ao3.]

[tisfan]

okay, inbox asking (I hope) lol. For your smut requests, Pepperony and #14? maybe specifically the reconciliation after the 'break' in CACW (which I am still not convinced was as break-up-y as Tony seemed to think) Thanks hon! you rock. :)

Tell me You Understand

Pairing: Pepper Potts/Tony StarkWarning: some psychology, a tiny bit of anti-cap salt, post CA:CW

“We’re going to practice,” Pepper said, firmly.

“Honey--”

“Just say it,”Pepper said.

“I understand thatwe’re going to practice the communication technique recommended by yourtherapist,” Tony said.

“Our therapist,”Pepper corrected.

“Our therapist,”Tony said. “This is ridiculous, honey.”

“It’s obviouslynot, since I said ‘I need to take a vacation, by myself,’ and you heard ‘we’rebreaking up, I never want to see you, let me go impale myself on CaptainAmerica’s shield.’”

“I understand,”Tony said, “that you think this is funny.”

“No, Tony, I don’tthink it’s funny,” Pepper said. “But if I don’t laugh about it, I might cry. Orthrow something at you.”

“Throwingsomething at me is probably more fun.”

“You think so, doyou?” She made an imperious gesture and marched into their bedroom. Tony didn’treally have a choice but to follow her.

“I can’t believeyou can make jokes about Rogers,” Tony muttered. Normally, that was the sort ofthing that Pepper got hysterical about, shrieking at him about how hisoverinflated… something… ego, sense of responsibility, recklessness, whatever…was going to get him killed.

(more below the cut)

It very nearlyhad. He was, in fact, still wearing the hospital bracelet, and he was prettysure that he still had bruises. And maybe stitches. He wasn’t sure. Helen’sreconstructive surgery techniques were pretty awesome. He felt bruised, though.Bruised and battered and beaten. A whole lot of B words, really.

“Rogers is ajoke,” Pepper said.

“I understandRogers is a joke,” Tony repeated. That may or may not have been true. Or evenfair, but at the moment, Rogers was a wanted war criminal and Tony was beingtarred with the same brush. Ross didn’t believe for a hot minute that Tonydidn’t know where they were.

Finally, Pepperand a whole battery of lawyers had landed on Ross’s head, and while Tony wasnever going to be on Ross’s most trusted list, he was at least also not goingto jail.

“So, we’re goingto practice better communication skills, so you don’t feel the need to take ontwo supersoldiers in order to impress me,” Pepper said. “And next time we breakup, you’ll be sure.”

“Next time?”

“Tony, it’s us,”Pepper said. “Now, we’re trying, and I do love you, which makes this wholething worth trying. I want things to work out. You want things to work out. Butwe come at the world from fundamentally different points of view. We need tomeet somewhere in the middle, because I’m never going to be a superhero.”

Well, shows whatshe knew. “You already are my hero, Pep,” Tony said.

She softenedtoward him suddenly, and Tony felt that whisper thin breath of relief that saidmaybe, just maybe, the apology part of the whole thing was over, and he coulddo back to trying to do better. Even if he never really understood what thatwas, or what she wanted from him, or how he could be better, when he was,fundamentally, a broken person.

Maybe that waswhat the better communication was supposed to be about; figuring out what she wantedand needed so that he could be that, instead of discovering the ten thousandways it didn’t work.

“So, we’re goingto start with positive reinforcement,” Pepper said. “You tell me if youunderstand.”

“I understand,”Tony said. He was a smart guy, he could figure it out, right? It wasn’t that hedidn’t understand women, he wasn’t one of those guys. He knew women were eachdifferent and autonomous creatures, maybe even more so than men, each withtheir own wants and desires. It wasn’t that he didn’t understand women; it wasthat he didn’t really understand… people.

“Tony, I wouldlike you to come over here and kiss me,” Pepper said.

That was easyenough, Tony’d been wanting to kiss her since she showed up with the lawyercadre.

She got a hand onhis face before his lips made contact. “Pep, what the hell?”

“Say it.”

Oh.

“I understand thatyou would like me to kiss you,” Tony said.

“Very good,”Pepper said, and she kissed him. Which was close enough for government work.Her mouth was waxy with her lipstick, lips warm, teeth hard little squaresunder her lip. She didn’t open her mouth to him, just let her lips mold againsthis, her hands coming up to play with the ends of his hair.

Pepper pulledback, absently brushing a strand of her strawberry blonde hair out of her face.“You’re allowed to want things, too, Tony,” she said.

“I understand thatI’m--” Tony trailed off, looking at her.

“You don’tunderstand that, do you?”

Tony took a deepbreath. Theoretically, yes. He knew he was allowed to want things, andsometimes he even got them. They just… tended to come with a lot of baggage andconsequences.

“Were youlistening to Doctor Zabur at all?”

“Uh, no, notreally,” Tony admitted. “I remember the bit about the puzzle pieces.” That heand Pepper were like pieces of a puzzle, but that they only needed to fittogether on one side. Pepper couldn’t be everything to him, and it wasunreasonable for him to expect that. But that it was also unreasonable for himto think he could make all his flaws and foibles match up to hers. They onlyneeded to match on one side, and they were multidimensional people.

“Well, that’sgood, that’s important,” Pepper said. “But the rest of it was important, too.Tony, baby, I… I think the part of this that you missed, the really, reallyimportant part? You deserve good things, too.”

“Yeah, no, I mean,I know that,” Tony said. Didn’t he have more than his share of good things?Everything else seemed too much. He had money, fame, power, tolerable goodlooks-- asking for more just seemed… wrong.

“Tony--”

Tony heaved abreath. “Why do I have to say it?”

“Because saying athing makes it true,” Pepper said.

Tony snorted.

“No, no, don’tlaugh,” Pepper said. “It… it does. I mean, there’s all sorts of psychologicalscience behind it, and it’s not perfect, or even perfectly understood, but partof being able to move past a thing is being able to give it a name, and part ofsomething becoming true is saying it. Belief comes later. But first, you haveto say it. Give it a name. You, Tony Stark, you deserve good things. Notbecause you earned them, or because you give back, even if both of those thingsare also true. But because you are a human being, just like the rest of us, andhuman beings deserve good things.”

She poked him inthe chest a few times as she said those things. “You deserve good things.”

“I understand thatI deserve good things,” Tony said. That did not make it true. He could jump upand down and declare himself Captain Kangaroo, and that didn’t make that true,either.

“Great,” Peppersaid, and she was smiling with that same, wistful fondness that she frequentlyseemed to have, and Tony was thinking, maybe, just maybe, things were going tobe all right. “I want you to kiss me again.”

“I understand youwant me to kiss you,” Tony said, and this time he paused, not because he wasuncertain, but, “and I want you to do it properly.”

“Properly?” Hereyebrow went up.

“Tongue andeverything,” Tony teased.

“I understand youwant…” and she was blushing, how the hell? Pepper was so very seldom anythingbut cool and in control.

“Go on, then, MissSmartypants,” Tony said. “Say it.”

“I understand youwant me to kiss you,” she said. “Tongue and everything.”

And so he kissedher, letting his tongue slide in to taste her mouth, feeling the way her bodypressed against his, curvy and soft where he was harsh muscle and callousedskin. The way her breathing sped up, and the way his heart rate revved to matchit.

“Take me to bed,Tony,” she said.

“I understand takeyou to bed,” Tony said. He didn’t think he’d understood anything quite so well.

***

A/n this turnedout to be more couples therapy than smutty, but I hope you’ll like it anyway. 

[parkernotes]

sick day

also available on ao3

post-endgame / sickfic / domestic fluff

featuring worried parents pepperony & big brother peter

word count: 4646

The shrill sound of the bell indicating the end of the last period of the day is definitely the best thing Peter has ever heard. Mrs. Warren starts reminding them about the next week's quiz, but her voice gets muffled by the sound of Peter's classmates packing their bags and dragging their chairs across the floor noisily as they stand up. Peter is able to hear it due to his super hearing, so he messily writes down a reminder on his planner before throwing everything inside his bag and hurrying up to catch up with Ned who is already waiting by the door.

"So, MJ and Betty told me during lunch they want to go grab some pizza tonight, are you in? I think Zach and Tyler are coming too, but I'm not sure," Ned says as they step out of the classroom into the hallway, already packed with students. He pauses for a moment before continuing, "You know, it's enough time for you to… hang out. In Queens. For a while. If you know what I mean. We were planning to meet up at 8."

Peter chuckles, but shakes his head. "I'm gonna spend the weekend at the lakehouse. I'll only have time to pack a bag when I get home, so no hanging out in Queens today, I guess," he explains, tugging the hem of Ned's jacket, silently indicating he needs to stop by his locker.

Ned hums as Peter inputs his passcode on the lock. "I thought you were going to be around again this time. It's been a while since you went there, yeah?"

"Not that long," Peter says, pulling out his Chemistry and Calculus textbooks. His Physics one is already inside his bag, and with three different exams scheduled for the following week, he will have no choice but get some revision done during the weekend. "It's because Pepper went on a business trip, and Tony had to tag along, for some reason. Guess it was pretty important."

Tony mentioned something about going with Pepper to California to deal with some issues of the company - Peter didn't really understand what those entailed, only that the couple would be gone for two weeks. They left Morgan in Mrs. Rhodes' care, who is by all means Morgan's honorary grandmother. She invited Peter over multiple times the past few days to hang out with them, but due to the pile of homework he had to complete, the countless of tests his teachers were scheduling plus patrols, he had no time to barely breathe, let alone visit them. It didn't stop him from feeling bad, though.

Peter doesn't think he has sleep for more than four hours during the past week while trying to balance all aspects of his life, and it's getting to him. Despite the stamina that came with the spider bite, he can still only push himself so far. He feels quite lethargic due to the exhaustion, and just can'twait to fall asleep in his room at the lakehouse tonight.

"Well, we'll miss you, man," Ned says as they start walking towards the exit again.

"I'll come back Sunday afternoon, though," Peter says as they head down the steps. "Maybe there'll be some time to hang out."

"Alright, you let me know," Ned says.

They hurriedly do their handshake when Ned spots his bus parking in front of the school, and Peter watches him run towards it in order to grab a seat, pushing some people by accident in the process. He smiles a bit to himself, but as soon as his friend is out of sight, he can feel the exhaustion creep on him again.

He feels bad for not patrolling after school as usual, but at the same time he knows he wouldn't be able to do much. At best, he would stop some muggings before falling asleep on a random rooftop out of pure fatigue. He doesn't really want to be woken up by a desperate call from Tony asking if he's alright - not again - so Peter decides it's probably for the better.

xx

Happy knocks on their door at 5 p.m. sharp, only a few minutes after Peter is done packing his bag. From his room, he hears May opening the front door and greeting Happy excitingly, as if they hadn't seen each other just yesterday.

Peter cringes to himself. He still refuses to stop and think about that .

He pauses when he hears a third voice in the living room, loud and familiar.

"So, where's the kid? Please don't tell me he forgot we were coming."

At that, Peter stands up right away, heading to his door as May laughs, answering he's just getting ready. He walks through the short hallway and into the living room, pausing as the three adults turn around to face him.

"Tony," he breathes, a big smile on his face as he closes the distance between them. Tony catches him in a warm hug, chuckling against Peter's hair and patting him on the back.

"Missed me much?"

"I didn't know you were coming!" he smiles as he steps back, glancing up at the other man. "Hey, Happy!"

"Hi, kiddo," Happy says. "How have you been?"

"Good, good," Peter says, despite everything.

"You look a bit tired," Mr. Stark points out, not unkindly. "School's been tough?"

"He's been working hard," May answers for him, her tone proud but somewhat concerned at the same time. She pats him on the back softly while looking at Tony. "This weekend will be good to him, so make sure he rests a lot."

"Don't you worry, there will be no studying done under my watch," Tony reassures her, winking at Peter. "So, you ready?"

Peter nods, already turning towards his room. "I'll just get my bag!"

Turns out Tony was already in town to meet with someone and decided to wait for Peter so that they could head to the lakehouse together. However, he also finds out Happy will actually be staying behind with May, which is fine, but also totally weird. After hugging May goodbye, he tries to glare at Happy but only ends up receiving an amused - but also suspiciously nervous - chuckle and a hair ruffle from the man.

Once finally on their way to the lake house, Peter can't help but nod along sleepily as Tony talks away about his time with Pepper in California, sat comfortably on the passenger seat of one of Tony's many fancy cars. They're not even out of town when he finally dozes off, head resting on top of his hoodie crumpled up against the window.

He doesn't know how much time has passed once he wakes up, but they're on the road. The sun is setting on their left, and the sky is all shades of purple and orange. Music is playing softly from the speakers, and Tony glances at him once Peter raises his head.

"Hey, sleeping beauty, thanks for conking out on me," he says.

Peter smiles, stretching his arms in front of him with a groan. "Sorry, it's been a long day."

"I'm just kidding," Tony says, but Peter already knows. "Sleep more if you want. We have around half an hour left before we get there."

Peter nods, raising his hands to rub up and down his arms. Even though the AC is off, he feels colder than usual.

He catches Tony looking at him again through his peripheral vision, and soon he's supplying helpfully, "There's a blanket in the glove department."

"Oh, thanks," Peter says around a yawn.

He opens the glove department and pulls out a carefully folded Paw Patrol blanket, certainly Morgan's. It's thick enough though, so Peter doesn't hesitate before covering his upper body with it, resting his head on the same place as before. He's out again a few minutes later.

xx

The next time he wakes up is by Tony shaking him gently, a hand on his shoulder. Once Peter's eyes flutter open and focus, he realizes they've arrived at the lake house, and night has fallen.

"We're here, bud," Tony announces, opening the door on his side to step out.

Soon enough, the dark landscape is illuminated by the warm light coming from the inside of the house as the front door opens and a tiny figure steps out. Morgan comes running directly towards Peter as he steps out of the car, and despite all the fatigue, he picks her up easily.

"Pete! I've missed you," she says, loosening the grip her short arms have around his neck only to kiss him on the cheek with a loud smack .

He giggles despite himself, twirling them both around. "Me too," he says. "Sorry for not visiting you at Mrs. Rhodes house."

"It's okay," she says.

Peter puts her down and she runs to greet Tony just as Pepper steps out of the house, heading towards the car. Peter meets her halfway in a gentle embrace, sighing softly against her shoulder.

"How have you been, sweetheart?" she asks, pulling Peter back to look at him properly. She brushes a curl away from his forehead, studying his face attentively. "May told me you've been so busy with school."

"Yeah, it's been hard, but I'm almost done with most tests," he shrugs, smiling softly.

He's sure Pepper knows how tired he feels when she says, "After dinner you'll go to bed right away, yeah? We can do whatever you kids want to do tomorrow."

"Yeah," he breathes, smiling gratefully. He turns around to face the car, "I just have to get my-"

"Tony will bring your bag inside for you," Pepper interrupts, raising her voice so that said man can hear. She wraps an arm around Peter's shoulders, leading him to the front door. "Right, honey?"

"Yeah," Tony grunts, and Peter looks behind his shoulder only too see him balancing Peter's bag on his right shoulder and Morgan on the left one.

xx

Peter feels weirdly dizzy when he steps out of his room after showering and changing into some comfy clothes. He suspects it might be because he hasn't eaten in a while, or because he hasn't slept for a long time the previous night despite his nap on their way from the city, but, either way, he feels like crap.

He plops down on the couch next to Morgan, who's attentively watching My Little Pony on Netflix. He can hear Tony and Pepper cooking in the kitchen, and the smell of homemade tomato sauce drifting from there.

Peter closes his eyes, resting the back of his head against the soft cushion of the couch. He hears Morgan giggling at a particular funny line and Pepper complaining about something Tony's done in the kitchen, but soon these sounds become muted and he starts to fall asleep.

He almost dozes off when he startles himself with a violent sneeze.

Morgan jumps from where she's sat next to him, looking at him with wide eyes before saying, "Bless you."

"Thanks, Mo," he says, the sound coming off a bit nasal.

He makes a quick trip to the bathroom to blow his nose, and settles on the same spot next to Morgan when he comes back. This time, he falls asleep without any interruptions.

"Bud, dinner is ready," Tony's voice drags him back to reality. "You're really worn out, hm?"

Peter groans in response, feeling the man's brushing through his hair. A moment passes, then the hand pauses.

"You're a bit warm," Tony observes. His hand travels down to press against Peter's forehead, then his cheek. "How're you feeling?"

After a moment of consideration, Peter opens his eyes tentatively. "Head hurts a bit. I'm feeling kinda weak, too," he admits after a few moments of hesitation, not feeling like hiding it.

"Well, you might be coming down with a fever," Tony sighs, a worried crease between his brows. "Pep, can you get me the thermometer?"

Pepper, who had just entered the room with the plates to set the table, frowns at them. "What happened?"

"Kiddo's a bit warm. He's not feeling very good, either," Tony replies, hand gently landing back on Peter's hair.

"Oh no, sweetheart," she sighs, placing the plates down on the table. "I'll be right back."

Morgan makes her way from the dining table, where she was excitingly waiting for her spaghetti plate, to the armchair near Peter and Tony. She looks down at Peter with a frown, so similar to her dad's - Peter softly smiles up at her, reassuringly.

Pepper comes back only a few moments later with the thermometer. She turns it in and hands it to Peter, who closes his lips around it with a sigh.

"Come help me put the table, baby," she calls Morgan. "Peter's just fine, hm?"

Morgan follows after her mom silently, not before throwing one last fearful glance behind her shoulder.

Once the thermometer beeps, Peter pulls it off and Tony takes it to check the reading.

"105.3," he pronounces. "Well, you do run a little hotter than us, but that's a little bit high for you."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Tony sighs, looking down at him empathetically. "I would only really start worrying if it goes above 106, though. I think with some proper food in your system and a long night of sleep you'll be just fine."

"God, I hope so," Peter groans, rubbing his hands across his face. "That would suck."

He hears Tony chuckle, and in the next moment the man is standing up. "C'mon, before Morguna eats all the food."

xx

Peter usually helps to wash the dishes after dinner when he's over at the lake house, but this time Tony brushes him off.

"I can handle a few dishes on my own," he says, patting Peter on the shoulder and turning him towards the staircase. "Go on, I'll check on you after I'm done."

Peter can only nod sleepily in response, slowly starting to climb the steps behind Morgan and Pepper. The little girl is already proclaiming which bedtime story she wants to read this time, and once they reach upstairs she turns around to look up at Peter.

"Do you wanna read, too?" she asks, reaching out to take Peter's hand in her own tiny one.

Peter's heart breaks a little. Throughout dinner, he tried to speak up and join the conversation not to frighten Morgan with his condition, but it wasn't much. Looking down at her, he can easily understand she doesn't want to let him out of her sight just yet.

Pepper puts a hand on top of Morgan's head, gently brushing her hair back while giving Peter a reassuring look. "Peter needs to rest, sweetheart," she then says, looking down at Morgan. "You can play with him tomorrow, alright? Say goodnight."

Morgan pouts, reluctantly letting go of Peter's hand. "Goodnight," she says.

Peter smiles tiredly, reaching out to pat her in the head. He'd usually give her a hug and a kiss, but he doesn't want to risk spreading any germs. "Goodnight, Mo."

After turning around and heading to his room, Peter doesn't even bother to turn on the lights. He makes a beeline for his bed and crashes into it, then tiredly arranges the covers on top of his body.

He wakes up to someone touching his hand. He startles, eyes shooting open, but once his vision focuses he sees Tony sitting on the edge of his bed in the semi-darkness, holding Peter's wrist against his chest. The lights from the hallway are entering his bedroom through the narrow opening of the door, and thanks to that Peter is able to see the watch Tony is slipping on his wrist.

"What…?" he begins, trying to sit down.

"Hey, it's alright," Tony reassures him, easing him back against his pillow with a hand on his shoulder. "Didn't mean to wake you up. This is to track your vitals during the night, okay? FRIDAY will let me know if your temperature rises."

"Oh," Peter replies, bringing his wrist closer to his face to inspect it.

"How do you feel?"

"About the same," Peter replies, eyelids already starting to feel unbearably heavy again.

Tony sighs, tucking the covers up to Peter's chin before standing up. "Even though you have the watch, let me know in case you need anything, yeah?"

Peter hums in response, eyes fluttering close. The last thing he hears is Tony softly wishing him a goodnight and the door behind closed with a muted click after he steps out of the room.

xx

The next time he wakes from sleep, is to quiet voices talking in his room.

Before even opening his eyes, the next thing Peter feels is a pounding headache and how... damp his clothes feel. He whimpers softly at the pain, and suddenly he hears someone shushing him and a hand brushing through his hair.

"Pete, come on, I need to give you some medicine," Tony's voice says. "Can you sit up?"

Peter tries, but there slightest movement he makes with his head makes the headache pound at his skull. "Hurts," he manages to groan softly.

"I know, kiddo," Tony replies. "The medicine will help."

He blinks his eyes open, and he spots Tony sitting on the exact spot to when he was slipping the watch on Peter's wrist. Behind him, Pepper is standing up with her arms crossed over her chest, looking over them with a frown.

"I'll get him another shirt," she says once as Tony helps him up.

Looking down, Peter realizes his shirt is almost soaked in cold sweat.

"Come on, arms up," Tony tells him quietly, minding his headache, tugging at the hem of his shirt.

Peter weakly lifts his arms in front of him, and Tony drags the fabric up his chest, through his head and then through his arms until he's shirtless. He whimpers, feeling colder than ever, but soon enough there's another shirt - completely dry this time, thank God - going over his head.

The movements make Peter feel a bit dizzy, so he closes his eyes as he leans back against the pillows Pepper arranged against the headboard of the bed.

"Don't fall asleep, Pete," Tony urges. When Peter's eyes flutter open, he sees Tony opening a small pill bottle. "Give me your hand."

He drops two pills on the palm of Peter's hand and gives him a glass of water.

"This should work for your metabolism. Superhero Ibuprofen, if you will," he says conversationally as Peter swallows the pills. "Courtesy of Bruce. Your Aunt should have some back in Queens, too."

Peter feels a wave of warmth wash over him. Knowing that there are people thinking ahead for him, taking care of this kind of stuff even though he thought he would never get this sick ever again, makes him feel a little bit better despite the pain.

Peter didn't even noticed Pepper was gone, but suddenly she steps out of the adjoined bathroom of his room with a wet cloth and a hand towel.

"Come here, sweetheart," she guides him forwards gently so that Peter is sitting on the bed but not leaning back against the pillows. She uses the towel to wipe off some of the sweat from his collarbones, neck and his face.

While she does it, Tony hurries to change his pillowcase, so that when Peter's eased back to lay down on his back again, he's not grossly covered in cold sweat anymore. The slightly cold wet cloth is placed against his burning forehead, and as Tony adjusts it against his skin Peter can already feel himself drifting off.

"Th'nks," he manages to murmur before falling asleep.

xx

Peter's temperature doesn't rise again throughout the night, but he doesn't sleep very well. He turns around a lot and the movements only serve to make him even more dizzy. When morning comes, instead of waking up to FRIDAY or Pepper announcing that breakfast is ready as usual, the door opens slowly and Tony steps into the room with a bowl on one of his hands. Peter wasn't deeply asleep to begin with, so his eyes flutter open at the noise.

Peter only blinks up at Tony as he sits down on the edge of the mattress and places the bowl on the nightstand. Through his mostly clogged nose, Peter can smell oatmeal, banana and honey.

"Your temperature dropped," Tony observes, voice almost a whisper. He raises a hand to brush Peter's messy curls away from his forehead, and he notices that the wet cloth placed there during the night is gone. "Feeling any better?"

"Head doesn't hurt anymore," Peter replies. "It feels kinda heavy though. Feeling kinda weak."

"That's because you haven't eaten anything since dinner," Tony observes promptly. "Try eating this and then going back to sleep, alright? You gotta sleep it off, rest as much as you can."

"Kay," Peter agrees, only because he just wants to get over this sickness as soon as possible.

"Good kid," Tony praises. "You should get sick more often. You're never this compliant."

Peter scoffs. "Ha ha," he says, slowly getting up. "You know I-"

He interrupts himself when the door creaks as it's slowly pushed open. Both he and Tony turn around to look, and sure enough Morgan is peeking through the narrow opening, wide eyes fixed on Peter.

"Mo, weren't you eating breakfast?" Tony asks.

"I finished already," she replies, unusually quiet.

Tony sighs fondly, reaching his hand towards her. "C'mere."

Morgan hesitantly steps inside the room as Peter reaches for the oatmeal bowl on his nightstand.

"Your brother's fine," Tony reassures her, pulling her up to sit on his lap once she's close enough. "He's improved a lot already, yeah? It happens. He'll be up soon enough, climbing up walls and giving us all heart attacks."

Peter smiles. "Yeah, don't worry," he agrees, holding back a wince at how hoarse his voice sounds. "We'll get to play before I leave."

"Today?"

"I'm afraid not yet today, baby," Tony answers for him. "Maybe tomorrow. Petey needs to sleep as much as he can to be strong again."

Morgan huffs, but nods. "Okay."

She only stays for a few more minutes, still looking terribly sulky as she goes away to find her mom. Peter sighs after swallowing a spoonful of food, feeling terrible about the whole ordeal. He was supposed to be perfectly fine , playing on the edge of the lake with Morgan during the morning and then coming back inside to revise for his exams during the afternoon, only to spend the evening before and a little bit after dinner with Tony in the garage. He missed them all so much, but now he's making them spend their time looking after his sorry self.

Being sick really fucking sucks.

"Stop sighing, you're depressing me," Tony pipes up a while afterwards, looking up from the phone he pulled out of his pocket. "Don't blame yourself for this, alright? Pep and I were expecting this. She spent a long time away from everything familiar to her, but even now that we're back her routine is still not back to normal. It would be kinda weird if she wasn't acting up a little bit."

Peter thinks a little about it. Before Tony and Pepper had to leave for California, Peter saw them practically every weekend and therefore was able to spend a lot of time with Morgan. She's still probably facing the same separation anxiety as he is, but worse. Not surprising for a five year-old.

"Still sucks," he concludes grumpily. "I hate being sick. I didn't think I would fall sick again after the bite."

"Me neither," Tony sighs. "But it's alright. The good news is that you're improving really quickly, so you should be fine by dinner."

"Yeah," Peter nods, putting the bowl back on the nightstand. He rubs his hands over his face. "Gosh, I feel so tired."

"As expected," Tony sighs, patting his ankle above the covers before standing up. "Go back to sleep. I'll wake you up for lunch."

xx

Peter naps during the day as advised, but again, it's a weird kind of sleep. He can't get comfortable no matter what, and his head starts to hurt again. He dutifully eats the soup Pepper brings him a few hours later, but he's quite dizzy and doesn't even manage to finish it. Tony gives him another dose of medicine and tells him to go back to sleep, looking down at him with a worried frown Peter thought he wouldn't see again this weekend because he's supposed to be feeling better already.

Well, his condition does improve a little bit, but he still feels like utter crap. Tony thought he would be as good as new by dinner, but he doesn't make it to the dining table. They bring him more soup, and afterwards Tony convinces him to take a shower. Peter manages to shower on his own, leaving the door unlocked in case he crashes, but thankfully that doesn't happen while he's under the showerhead. However, it's once he's weakly pulling a pair of clean sweatpants over his boxers that he loses his balance, colliding painfully against the sink before descending to the ground.

"Fuck," he hears Tony say, and in the next second the man is dressing Peter's trembling frame in a shirt and hoodie. Peter didn't even notice he had entered the bathroom. "Are you okay? Did you hit your head?"

Peter shakes his head softly, but his vision suddenly becomes blurry as his eyes well up with tears.

"Kiddo, what's wrong? What hurts?"

"Everything," he whimpers, quite pathetically. But it's true - everything hurts. His head feels heavy and fuzzy, his nose is clogged all the time, he feels like he's fucking freezing , and while he was supposed to rest during the day, his fucked up brain decided to give him disturbing nightmares instead.

He starts crying out of pure exhaustion, mental and physical. This weekend was supposed to help him relax and recharge, but so far it only made him more miserable and turned him into a huge bother to Tony and Pepper.

"Hey, hey, hey," Tony says, sounding quite startled. He wraps a hand around Peter's shoulders, crouching besides him on the bathroom floor. "Don't cry, buddy. It's alright, I'm here. Tell me what's wrong."

"I'm so fucking tired," Peter whines, choking on a sob. "I just wanna rest but I can't."

"Oh, Pete," Tony sighs, pulling into into a warm embrace. Peter rests his cheek on his chest, hiccuping softly as tears run down his cheeks. "It's okay. You're getting better. I know it sucks, but it'll be over soon."

He runs a hand up and down Peter's trembling back, squeezing him against his chest for a moment before pulling back. He wipes Peter's tears away with his thumbs, even if they keep on coming.

"Come on, let's put you in bed," he says, standing up and pulling Peter up with him.

Tony tucks Peter in, but follows suit and lies down next to him on the bed once he's settled and covered in blankets like a human burrito. He wraps his arms around his covered frame, tucking Peter's head under his chin.

"Try to rest now, yeah? I'll be right here with you," he reassures Peter. "If it doesn't work, I'll still be here."

Peter sniffles. "Okay," he whispers back. "'’M sorry."

Tony clicks his tongue, pressing a kiss against the top of his head. "You have nothing to apologize for," he says. "It's not your fault you got sick. It probably had to do with some weak self care skills, but it wasn't your intention. We'll work around that, yeah? Don't you worry."

"Okay," Peter says again, sleepier by the second. "Th'nk you, Tony. Love you," he adds as an afterthought.

He both hears and feels Tony chuckle lightly. "Love you too, kiddo."

[aceofstars16]

*wants to ask aaaall the characters for the ask* What about Peter, Neal, and Mozzie from White Collar? (Also, free pass to talk about Tony Stark too here because I love him)

MY BOYS! (I legit almost watched White Collar tonight, but my sister wanted to watch Hawaii 5-0)

Peter Burke

First impression

Okay so…it’s been a loooong time since I started it, but I’m pretty sure I thought he was a little…strict maybe, I can’t really remember. It was kind of like, “Oh who is this FBI guy?” and then “Oh he’s giving Neal a chance awwww”

Impression now

Peter Burke is a gift to this world, the best dad, the best husband, the best FBI agent. Such a good boy, pure heart, able to put up with Neal despite all Neal puts him through. I love Peter Burke so much guys…

Favorite moment

Oh goodness…that’s hard…so freaking harddd hnnggggg, the one that keeps coming back to me is when he freaking flew out to an island using his vacation time to find Neal and make sure he didn’t like get killed by that jerk agent. 

Idea for a story

I just want one shots of him raising little Neal and occasionally thinking of big Neal…but also just fluff things. Though…him going on a trip to Europe to look for Neal is also…a good story (I legit have lots of ideas for how their story could continue/how Peter and Neal meet again…*flops*)

Unpopular opinion

I don’t know??? I mean I guess I’m both touched and a little like “would he though” when it came to naming his kid Neal because…it’s PRECIOUS but wouldn’t that freaking hurt him every time he said his son’s name??? Cause it would remind him of his pretty much other son???

Favorite relationship

DON’T MAKE ME CHOOSE BETWEEN PETER AND NEAL AND PETER AND ELIZABETH I LOVE THEM BOTH SO MUCH! How about just Peter, El, and Neal???

Favorite headcanon

I don’t know if I really have one but…I just had a cute thought of little Neal drawing pictures and Peter is like, “It’s like all of those…modern art things” so he hangs it up but then Mozzie sees it and is just like, “…no you can tell that was done by a two year old” and Peter is just like “how????”

Neal Caffrey

First impression

Who is this prison boi? Oh dang he is so smart?!? Oh gosh I really like him already…

Impression now

Neal…I love Neal, I don’t always agree with him but I love him. He has such a big heart and he cares so much about his found family like he legit PRETENDED TO DIE TO KEEP THEM SAFE HELP. He’s also gone through so much crap but he’s gotten through it (with his found family’s help) and he’s also like an amazing artist like Neal just make your own art you will be amazing at it???

Favorite moment

Oh gosh…I mean there are so many funny ones but…I just think of the sad ones…(I’m paraphrasing cause…I don’t remember exact quotes super well…)

“You’re the only one who saw good in me”

“Peter’s more of a father to me than you ever were!”

“You’re my best friend…my best friend”

Idea for a story

Okay, so Neal 100% puts together an all expense paid trip for the Burkes to come to Europe, because he misses his fam and by now Peter knows he faked everything sooo, he just kind of like shows up at their hotel room and then they catch up and everyone is happy. I also had an idea that Neal like joined a similar FBI thing and now he has his own like protege that he’s kind of training because yes

Unpopular opinion

I’m not happy with how they kind of seemed to instigate that “cons never change” and how Neal continually went back to crime. Like, it’s not terrible during the show, but the end made it seem like Neal was going to steal again and…no…like…come on, he’s learned, he had a fresh start. Let him start over plz

Favorite relationship

Neal and Peter are the best, but some other great ones are Neal and Mozzie and Neal and Elizabeth, honestly all of the platonic relationships are so goooood

Favorite headcanon

One day, Neal really tries to get into baseball for Peter, like do all the research and everything, and he actually kind of gets into it…but he legit just falls asleep on the couch while they are watching a game and Peter just sighs and smiles as he tucks a blanket around him 

Mozzie

First impression

Huh, this guy is…interesting…useful, but kind of eccentric, he’s kind of fun though?

Impression now

Mozzie is just too fun, and he cares so much about Neal, and in a way he gets his own kind of found family too which is just precious and good and yes

Favorite moment

Probably when he came out of hiding and brought his treasure with him to save El…but also him and Peter kind of helping each other cope after Neal faked his death…

Idea for a story

How about when he’s just chilling with Neal and Kate when they were smol and then Neal just casually goes “You know Moz, you really don’t need that toupee” and Mozzie just laughs until Neal says he’s serious and Kate agrees and from then on out Mozzie stops wearing it

Unpopular opinion

…I don’t think I really have one???

Favorite relationship

I couldn’t find a good gif *cries* but Mozzie and El are the best brotp, so pure

Favorite headcanon

He still thinks about his birth family from time to time, but then he looks around and realizes he does have a family and that helps him smile

Tony Stark

First impression

I honestly don’t remember I was like twelve…but I remember loving Iron Man so much more than I thought I would and I think I really did like Tony…

Impression now

I love him. Tony is the best. He is so smart, but also so kind. He has been through so freaking much and yet he keeps going, even when he has so many excuses to give up, or stop fighting, or heck even to look at the bad and pay people back for what they have done. But NO, he freaking keeps going, he helps other, he encourages the younger generation, he is broken but he hasn’t let that stop him. Tony is a gift to the MCU, end of story.

Favorite moment

Dude…only one??? I…I don’t know if I can pick just one??? I just keep coming back to the end of Homecoming - how Tony wraps his arm around Peter and says he did a good job, how happy he looks showing Peter the Iron Spider suit, his shock when Peter says no to being an Avenger and then that little shrug and smile when Happy says Peter is a good kid…there are so many other moments but that one just makes me happyyyy

Idea for a story

I really want Tony to get therapy…and like come to terms with his parents, both their death and his dad’s mistreatment of him. I feel like not a lot of people know that, so just Tony being able to tell someone at least, and get that off his chest. Heck give me Peter finding out and then finding out Tony is scared of being like his dad and Peter quickly reassures him that “No, you are a great dad! Or…you will be..I mean you’re a great mentor which is kind of like a dad, I’ll just stop talking now…” Tony is touched.

Unpopular opinion

Ummm, nothing? He’s an amazing awesome characters and all the haters don’t know what they are talking about???

Favorite relationship

I love Pepperony and so many others but….

Favorite headcanon

That Peter totally keeps Tony in the loop with all the things kids are doing, so Tony knows a lot of memes and vines (not all of them though he is still confused from time to time) and he watches lots of TV shows with Peter (hence why he knew who Squidward was) and they make references and quote things during battles and other people are just like ???

[imjustthemechanic]

The French Mistake

Part 1/? - A Visitor Part 2/? - The Kulturhistorisk Museum Heist Part 3/? - Cutscene Part 4/? - The Marvel Cinematic Universe Part 5/? - Breathless Part 6/? - Escape at Last Part 7/? - Fox in Socks Part 8/? - Things Go Wrong Part 9/? - Downey and Out Part 10/? - Road Trip Part 11/? - Temptation Part 12/? - An Awful Reunion Part 13/? - Unreality Intrudes Part 14/? - A Call for Help Part 15/? - Loki’s Guests Part 16/? - Stan Lee Cameo Part 17/? - Reassessment

This chapter is mostly things I just thought were funny.

With Bettany and Connelly gone, that left Natasha looking at Downey, still in handcuffs.

“Are you gonna make me promise to stay before you untie me?” he asked plaintively.

Nat thought about it for a moment – or at least pretended to, in order to make him squirm.  “No,” she decided finally, and got to work on his bonds with the cheese knife.

Meanwhile, Loki and Thor were still arguing.  “Why must you ruin everything?” Loki demanded. “Every time something is within my grasp, here comes Thor with his ridiculously costumed friends to take it away from me!”

“Maybe you should stop grasping at things that make you look like a villain!” Thor retorted.  “And I don’t need my friends, costumed or no, to thwart your silly schemes. Jane Foster could do it with no weapon but her Wellington boots!”

“Hey!” the girl in the bandanna barged in between the two men.  “That’s mean!”

“Yeah, why do you have to be like that?” asked the one in the costume.  “Haven’t you figured out yet that he just wants you to love him?”

“It’s not his fault your father lied to him his whole life!” bandanna girl agreed.

“You’re nothing but a big bully with a hammer!” said the one in the raglan.

Loki smiled proudly, arms folded across his chest. “You see?  These mortals understand!  Why should you have a throne, while I do not?”

“If you were worthy of a throne, you would not need to seek validation from teenage girls,” said Thor.

Steve gently steered the three women out from between the arguing brothers.  “You ladies…” he began.

“Chloe,” said the one in the costume, assuming he was asking their names.

“Christine,” said the one in the raglan.

“Wendy,” said the one in the bandanna.

“Your name isn’t really Wendy,” Chloe said.

“Yes, it is,” said Wendy.  “I had it changed.”

“Ladies,” Steve repeated.  “I think you’d better go – this may take a while.”

“But it’s Loki,” Christine protested.  “All this time we thought he was just having fun in character but it’s actually Loki!”

Loki was shaking a finger under Thor’s nose.  “I remind you,” he was saying, “had you not broken the rune stone before I finished programming it, we would be in a proper universe right now, instead of this magic-less nowhere!”

“I remind you,” Thor said, “that if you hadn’t stolen the tesseract and run off, not only would we not have had to come after you, Thanos wouldn’t be looking for you!”

“You still broke it!  You break everything!” Loki said.  “Remember when Mother gave me a toy flying ship big enough to ride?  You said you would play with it for five minutes, and you crashed it into a wall!”

“We were six!” said Thor.  “Are you going to hold that against me the rest of our lives?”

Hayley took Christine’s arm.  “Chris is right,” she said.  “Let’s go.”

Together they escorted the young women to the door and gently but firmly showed them to the elevator, then returned to the hotel room to make sure the door was closed and locked behind them.  Meanwhile, Natasha finished getting Downey out of his cuffs – he thanked her, then sprinted for the exit.  Steve and Hayley moved aside to let him through, but instead of leaving the suite he dashed into the bathroom and didn’t even bother to close the door.  Steve closed it for him, and then he and Hayley stood awkwardly in the little hallway while Thor and Loki argued.

“So, ah…” Hayley looked sideways at Steve.  “You really are Steve Rogers, then?”

“Yes,” said Steve.  “Yes, I am.”

“Did you really come to our Q&A panel just to ask me that question?” she wanted to know.

“Yes,” Steve repeated, then realized that wasn’t true. “No.  I wasn’t going to say anything at first, I just… I wanted to see what you looked like.”

“Surely you knew what I looked like,” said Hayley.

“Yeah,” said Steve.

“Well… I probably ought to apologize,” Hayley said. “I’m sure you were hoping the answer would be a bit more romantic than a scolding.”

Steve shook his head.  “No, don’t apologize.  The scolding was… you’re right, that’s exactly what she would have said.”  She would have cried while she said it, too, but they would have been happy tears.  The future he could have had with Peggy would have been full of happy moments – but he’d denied himself that, because it didn’t feel right that he ought to go home and live happily ever after when Bucky was dead.  Bucky himself would have been the first person to tell Steve that was stupid.

“She never stopped thinking about you,” Hayley added.  “She always thought of you as the love of her life – everything she did, she always tried to live up to your legacy.  I know it probably doesn’t help to hear that, but the fans do love the tragedy.”

Steve wanted to think of something to say in reply, but before he could, there was the sound of a flush.  Water ran, and then Downey came out of the bathroom, zipping up his jeans.

“Okay, that’s done,” he announced.  “Let’s see what’s left of Loki’s dinner.”  Downey went to the dining table and grabbed a leftover roll, taking a bite out of it as if it were an apple.  Then he started picking bits of crab meat out of the remains of a shell.  “Mmm… he likes good food, anyway.”

Natasha came to join Steve and Hayley.  “So much for your romantic moment,” she observed.  “We have to figure out what we’re doing next. If this Stan Lee guy is right and magic can’t help us…” she frowned.  “Hey, Bob?  Who is Stan Lee and why does he know everything?”

Downey made some muffled noises, his mouth full of food.  “Stan Lee? He’s the guy who wrote all the comic books they based your movies on.  Kind of the creator god of your universe.  Whatever he has to say about this mess, my money’s on it being true.”  He stuffed the rest of the roll in his mouth and shook his head.  “Listen to what I’m saying!  It’s finally happened!  I’ve snapped! Just plain lost my mind.  Somebody ask me.”  He pointed at Natasha, Steve, and Hayley.  “Any of you, I don’t care.  Ask me if I’m Tony Stark.”

Steve looked at the women.  They seemed worried.  “Are you Tony Stark?” he tried.

“No!” said Downey, and then sighed with relief. “Okay, good, I’m not that far gone yet.  Susan might still take me back.  I should write this stuff down.  The Russos… no, no,” he shook his head.  “This meta shit is more Joss’ speed.  We can get around to it when we’re done with Avengers: the Musical.  Oh, or better yet!  Wes Craven!” He grinned.

Thor and Loki’s argument was winding down, but it was not quite over yet.  “If we can find a way to return home, I will go with you,” Loki said, “but if we are trapped, it is because of you.”

“We are not trapped,” said Thor.  “The universe is infinite, and all things are possible.”

“Indeed,” said Loki.  “Some things are merely very, very difficult.”

“If we cannot pass between worlds by magic, then we must seek another way,” Thor said reasonably.  “Downey, what do people in this reality know of other universes?”

Downey was stuffing more food in his mouth, including the lettuce leaves the crab claws had been sitting on.  He had to pause to chew and swallow.  “Not much,” he said.  “There are a lot of smart people who say they exist but nobody tries to get there.  NASA’s probably playing with some stuff but I doubt any of it works.”

“NASA?”  Steve perked up.  “Romanov – remember when we had lunch on the film set?  Maddy told one of our co-stars that he had a call from his friend at ‘Actual NASA’.”

“That’s right,” she remembered.  “That’s an ‘in’ we could use.  Have you got his phone number?”

“I don’t know,” said Steve.  “I might.”  He took a look.  Chris and Donny were evidently at least casual friends, since Donny had invited Steve to go bowling with him.  When he flipped through his contacts, however, he couldn’t find a ‘Don’ or ‘Donny’, and he couldn’t remember the man’s last name.  Several of the contacts were identified only by nicknames, but he didn’t want to call them all one by one and ask.

“It’s getting late anyway,” Hayley said.  “Maybe you should stay the night and figure it out in the morning.  You look like you could use a good night’s sleep.”

“That’s a good idea,” said Downey.  “We could have dinner, too.”

Natasha frowned at him.  “You’re already eating,” he pointed out.

“This is scraps,” Downey said.  “I missed lunch!”

“We can’t just stop, not when there might be an alien invasion at any moment!” Steve protested.  He hadn’t stopped when he was in boot camp, he couldn’t do it now no matter how tired he might be.  If his body were failing him he’d just have to push it harder…

He looked at Thor and Loki, and found Thor yawning.  That was right, wasn’t it?  In this universe, they were all just ordinary human beings – no powers, no enhancements. Captain America could go a couple of days without sleep, Thor probably longer, but these actors had no such abilities. If they were planning to return to their own bodies, which they were, they had a responsibility to keep their borrowed ones in good repair.

So they did stay for dinner.  Downey went through the room service menu and ordered them a great big pepperoni pizza and pasta carbonara, and then demonstrated how to make sandwiches out of it by layering the pasta in between the pizza slices. It was the sort of thing Steve would ordinarily devoured, because his body demanded so many calories.  At the moment, it looked kind of disgusting.  He tried it anyway, as did Thor, while Hayley, Natasha, and Loki all stuck to the pasta and vegetables, which they ate with forks.

“Barbarians,” muttered Loki.

“I’ll give you all a ride back to Los Angeles,” Downey said, “since there’s room in the van and I’ll be going there anyway. I’ll also warn you, if we run into Mark or Tom – the other Tom – don’t tell them anything.  Bruce Banner and Peter Parker can keep secrets, Mark Ruffalo and Tom Holland cannot.”

“Who is Peter Parker?” asked Steve.

Downey paused in his chewing and a moment of terror crossed his face.  “Never mind. I’ve already said too much.”

“It’s the kid in the spider costume,” said Natasha.

“See, now you’ve ruined it,” said Downey.  “What if in a future movie it’s a big plot point that Captain America finds out Spider-Man’s secret identity?  But now he already knows!”

“Then it cannot be a plot point,” Thor said reasonably.  “I’m sure these things allow for themselves.”

“I wouldn’t count on it,” said Downey.  “This isn’t the kind of thing where anybody knows how it works.  They put a lot of effort into those scripts, they don’t just write down whatever occurs to them in a dream.  They’re already writing Thor 3 and Avengers 3, and what if the stuff you guys know when you go back changes that?  I mean, would it change the movies, or does your universe diverge from the movies there, or what?”

“Does it matter?” asked Steve, who didn’t want to think about it.  It was one of those things, like time travel, that made his brain feel weird.

“Not really,” said Downey, “but I’m curious. Come on, don’t you have any questions about this mess?”

Steve had one, and it popped out before he could stop himself.  “Did Stark really think the apology letter was douchey?”  It wasn’t something he could ask Stark himself, after all.

“Right now?” Downey asked, shoveling neopolitan ice cream into his mouth.  “I’m pretty sure Tony Stark thinks you’re the douchiest douche ever to not actually be sorry. Like Prince Geoffrey levels of douche.”

“I told you so,” said Natasha.

[capsicletho]

I Can’t Make You Love Me

…if you don’t. You can’t make your heart feel something that it won’t.

a Tony Stark series; author: @stvrktony​ | chapter 08

trigger: none.

word count: 3.4k

summary: Reader and Tony found comfort in each other while they were trying to mend their own broken hearts.

a/n: To make up for taking sooo long to update the last chapter. Here’s chapter 8! There’s a huge time jump here because I need the plot to move further, but I hope you still find things easy enough to follow! I’ve already planned something or the next chapter, and it’s so exciting so stay tuned for that!

masterlist | ICMYLM masterlist | previous chapter

You woke up the next morning with a mild headache and a sense of gratitude to yourself for not drinking too much until you were drunk last night. You were never really much of a drinker, but every time you hung out with Tony for more than an hour, it would almost definitely involve liquor. You gulped an entire glass of water and headed to the shower to start the day. You got ready in just under an hour and then you were out of your bedroom door, opting for a breakfast at Starbucks instead of cooking; that’s when you spotted a leather wallet resting next to the bottle of bourbon.

Sighing, you pulled out your phone and scrolled through your contacts and pressed dial after you found Tony’s name on your screen. The dial tone rung twice before he picked up.

“Hey you,” he greeted just as you fetched the wallet from your coffee table.

“Hey. You know, you left your wallet here,” you told him, opening the wallet. He didn’t carry around that much cash–only a couple hundred–and there were only a few cards, which included his ID, driver’s license, and the sterling Black Card. You raised your eyebrow and slid the black card out of its slot in the wallet to peek at it.

“Yeah?” Tony asked, seeming distracted.

“Mhm,” you hummed in confirmation. “What would happen if I go on a shopping spree with it?” You asked playfully, ending your sentence with a light chuckle.

“I would…lose a couple thousand bucks and gain in back in a minute,” he said, which caused you to laugh. “Why don’t you come over? Drop it off,” Tony said again.

“I can’t, I have work. And besides, I can’t hangout with you anymore; you’re a bad influence,” you said while you placed the wallet on the sofa and pinched phone between your shoulder and your ear so you can put on your heels.

“How so?” He asked; you can hear a metal clanging, and you knew he was in his lab.

“We finished half a bottle of bourbon last night!” You gestured towards the bottle that was sitting on the table.

“That was mostly me!” He retaliated.

“Still, I’ve never drank more than the occasional glass of wine on a work night,” you defended yourself.

“In my defence, you could’ve just said no,” he returned and you could feel that he was smiling over the phone.

“Alright, well. I gotta go to work, maybe I’ll have someone deliver it over to you from there, because I think I might be working late anyway,” you said.

“Alright. Don’t have fun without me,” Tony chuckled.

“There’s no such thing as fun without you,” you chuckled too, slipping the wallet into your handbag.

Your day went on normally. A meeting with your newest pro bono case client, a preliminary hearing for your another new case, lunch, a meeting with your boss, and the rest of the day spent glossing over evidences and your newest case that just had a preliminary hearing this morning. The New York sky was growing darker; you could feel your stomach growling and when you looked at the time, the clock showed that it was almost nine. You debated over getting sushi at the office or something else, but then decided that you should just go home and cook something up.

Packing up your things, that was when you realised you had forgotten to ask the mail room clerk to send Tony’s wallet to him, so you decided to drop it off yourself. You were a bit nervous; you haven’t been back to the Avengers Tower since your break up with Steve and also Ultron. You were somehow afraid to bump into Steve there. But you mentally punched yourself in the face for it and finally braved yourself to go there.

Pulling up at the entrance of the tower, you exited whilst looking up at the majestic tower. Your heart was beating twice faster; even so, you walked up to the automatic doors. You expected it to run a body scan of you since you have already moved out, or you had to ring a doorbell or something–which is not something you used to do because you once had clearance. But instead, FRIDAY greeted you, which meant your clearance was not yet terminated. You were a bit taken aback, because you were so used to JARVIS’ voice, you forgot that ever since Ultron, Tony replaced JARVIS with FRIDAY.

“Hello, Miss (Y/L/N). It’s good to see you again, ” the AI greeted you.

“Hello, FRIDAY. Good to see you too,” you smiled, finding your reply funny because you can’t actually physically see him. “Tony here?” You asked as you made your way into the elevator.

“He’s in his lab,” she replied. “Although, you might want to be careful. He’s not exactly…in the right mood.”

“I just want to drop his wallet off,” you said. You were also slightly curious and worried, because FRIDAY–like JARVIS–is an incredibly intelligent AI; they actually seem almost like a human who sits in a hidden room somewhere with CCTV monitors and a microphone instead of just a software programmed throughout the facility.

You walked across the foyer and heard a loud banging and crashing from Tony’s lab before you even arrived. Knowing that you don’t have clearance to it, even before, you requested FRIDAY to open the doors for you because you didn’t see Tony anywhere through the glass walls.

“Tony?” You called out, hoping he’d say hi or poke his head out from somewhere. He didn’t, so you tried again while still walking in deeper into the lab.

That’s when you saw his shoe behind a table. You approached him with a smile, but your expression was completely upside down the moment you realise the state he was in.

“Oh my God, Tony, what happened to you?” You asked, squatting down next to him. He was sweating–or maybe crying, because his eyes were glistening. You saw a bottle of liquor (surprise, surprise) next to him and his work scattered on the floor as he looked to you.

“Thought you were just gonna mail my wallet to me,” he said quietly.

“I forgot. Jesus Christ, are you okay?” You asked, extremely worried about him. You’ve never seen him like this.

“Yep,” he grunted, trying to get up while you helped, but failing to find his balance, so he had to hold on to you.

“Come on,” you said, putting his arm around your shoulder and yours around his waist and helped him exit the lab. “Where can we sit?” You asked.

“Upstairs, Miss,” FRIDAY answered for you.

You led the him into the elevator and when it closed, FRIDAY immediately sent the elevator a floor above where you both were and the door opened up to a spacious living room. Again, a different layout to what you once knew. Were they renovating all this much? You knew that there were damages after Ultron and when Vision broke out of the lab, but you didn’t think they’d renovate this much.

You plopped Tony down on the sofa and placed your bag next to him, walking over to the kitchen to grab a glass of water for the billionaire. You sat next to him and handed him the glass, which he took, sipped from it a little bit and placed on the coffee table across the two of you.

“What happened?” You asked him. He just looked at you–meaningfully, but still refusing to answer.

You sighed. “FRIDAY, when did he last eat?” You asked.

“Last night, Miss,” the AI replied.

“Can you please order us a pepperoni pizza with extra cheese?” You asked the AI.

“Right away, Miss,” she said.

“I’m not hungry,” he said to you.

“Well, I am,” you shrugged. “So, where’s everyone?” You asked, thinking that if you change the subject, maybe he’d want to answer you.

“They moved,” Tony simply said. “To the new facility,” he added.

You felt yourself relaxing a little bit, knowing that you won’t bump into Steve here, but you were also a bit disappointed of that fact.  “And why didn’t you?” You asked, while bending over to take off your heels and splayed your knees out to your side, wanting to sit comfortably but still minding the way you sit because you’re wearing a pencil skirt.

“You wouldn’t be able to find me if I had.” If Tony was in a better mood, that would’ve sounded like the joke he usually plays with you, but his tone was flat and it made it seem as though he wasn’t in the mood to answer the question.

Pizza arrived quickly and the two of you ate, leaving only one slice out of the eight slices, Tony eating a slice more than you.

“That’s your slice,” he said.

“I know. I’m saving it for later,” you said, feeling a bit full since FRIDAY ordered a thick one for you two. “Or you can just have it,” you shrugged.

“Alright,” he said lightly and grabbed the last piece to eat, making you smile. He was much in a better state than before, and you were relieved–although still slightly curious as to what happened to him. You glanced at your watch for a little bit for a little bit and then back at Tony who was munching on the pizza contently and just stared at him.

“Stop staring,” he commented with a mouthful of pizza, glancing at you and you laughed a little.

After he was done with the pizza, he stood up, grabbed the empty box and shuffled towards the trash can, putting the box there and grabbed a bottle of wine. It continued to amaze you how many bottles are hidden around the compound.

“No. I need to stop drinking every time we hangout,” you said when he offered you a glass.

“Suit yourself,” he shrugged and took a sip of the beverage. The two of you were quiet for a bit.

“Tony, tell me what’s going on,” you persuaded him. You know that he wasn’t the type to open up to people. Tony had a huge ego, and it’s time he put that aside instead of always hurting yourself because he was afraid to admit his feelings to anyone.

He sighed, looking ahead into nothing as he pondered on what to say. “Everybody leaves,” Tony said. He slumped in his seat and rested his head on the sofa’s head rest. “They just keep on leaving, and I-” he just sighed. He couldn’t bear to finish his sentence, but you had a good guess on what he was going to say.

You were quiet for a bit, biting your lower lip. You didn’t know what to say to help make him feel better. You knew he must have heard a lot of people tell him that they’d stay but end up leaving.

“You can’t do that, Tony,” you said. “You can’t depend your happiness on someone else, it’s only going to hurt because eventually, everybody disappoints you. You should feel happy being by yourself first, then you can find someone who would actually stick with you through thick and thin and they won’t leave just because you’re being difficult; but even if they do, you’d be okay. Because you’re content with yourself. There are so many people who wished they could be like you, but why aren’t you happy with yourself?” you said. It was a piece of advice you had from your grandmother.

Tony smiled a little bit. He knew that’s what he had to do, but it’s easier said than done.

You just smiled a little bit and said, “But for what it’s worth, I’m right here. I’m not leaving any time soon.”

He smiled back at you, but you could see just a glint of doubt in his eyes. Like he’s heard that before. Well, you just have to prove him wrong. You actually grew fond of hanging out with Tony, and you knew there was a great friendship in the making–more than what the two of you thought possible.

“On that note, I have to go. It’s late,” you broke the silence between the two of you with a lighthearted joke. But you truly had to leave. The clock showed that it’s almost eleven o’clock, and you still have almost half-an-hour’s worth of journey back to your apartment. 

“Stay. There’s a guest bedroom, you know,” he suggested.

“I can’t. I don’t have my clothes, my toothbrush, and everything else here,” you said. You were never a fan of staying over without your essentials with you, because you still had to brush your teeth, wash your face, and you’re not a fan of reusing yesterday’s outfit if you can help it.

“You know I can get Happy to buy those for you in the morning. I can’t let you drive this late,” Tony negotiated. “Besides, it’s Saturday tomorrow. You don’t have work on Saturday, right?”

“I don’t, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be working from home,” you said.

“You literally just said you wouldn’t leave,” Tony exclaimed.

“Well not in this context!” You exclaimed in return, laughing at the end.

You finally caved and decided to stay the night in the bedroom next to Tony’s. You walked into the room, knowing it once belonged to Bruce. But it has turned into a plain guest bedroom, looking more like a hotel than what used to belong to a scientist. You went to freshen up and wash your face, changing out of your work clothes into Tony’s long-sleeved shirt that ends just in the middle of your bare thighs. Since you wanted to go back to the living room to hang with him, you took the white robe folded on the bed and wore it so that you wouldn’t go out half-dressed.

The two of you talked the entire night again. If any of the Avengers could see the two of you now, no one would’ve believed that (Y/N) and Tony could ever have late night conversations about so many things.

The staying over and late night conversations had become a regular thing between the two of you. It had become so frequent that you kept some of your clothes at the tower just in case you stayed over. Tony never kept anything in your apartment because even if he stayed over, he had no problem exiting the apartment with yesterday’s clothes rumpled in every place and his hair dishevelled.

“Where are you?” Tony asked over the phone.

“In my apartment, wrapping gifts,” you said.

It was the twenty-third of December, and Christmas is right around the corner. Your parents lived in Washington D.C. and you had FedEx-ed your gifts over to their house because you were planning to celebrate Christmas there. The ones you’re wrapping were just the last minute ones.

“Open the door,” He said. You stood up from where you sat on the floor in the middle of the living room and unlocked the door to find him there. A black trench coat over his clothes and his red-tinted sunglasses resting on the bridge of his nose. You walked back inside, leaving him to close the door behind him.

“That’s all you’re buying for your family?” He asked, seeing the small pile of gifts on the floor next to where you sat back down. He expected a huge pile considering how extra you can be sometimes.

“No, these are just for those cousins I don’t really talk to. They’re coming over because my grandparents moved into my parents’ house. The rest I’ve shipped to D.C. because there’s no way I can carry them all tonight,” you said.

“You’re going to D.C. tonight?” Tony asked, a tinge of disappointment in his voice. But in reality, he was actually very disappointed, but even he didn’t know why. Maybe now that you’ve started to spend so much time together, you leaving for a few days was turning into a strange thing for him.

“Yeah, it’s a last minute change of plans. I planned on arriving tomorrow on Christmas Eve instead of tonight, but my mother insisted. But I’m flying back here on the 26th, maybe in the morning or in the afternoon,” you explained to him, putting tape over the decorative paper you use to wrap the tie you bought for your cousin, Daniel, who had just landed his first job and is starting in January.

“Huh,” he said, and sat down on the floor next to you after he took off his coat and his sunglasses.

“Don’t sound so disappointed, I’ll be back before you know it,” you chuckled at him.

“I’m not disappointed,” he defended himself. “I just thought your family’s here in New York,” Tony said.

“Nope. My dad is the United States Ambassador for the United Nations. His work is in D.C., so he has to live there,” you said.

“What?” He emphasised the word with a look of disbelief.

You looked at him with a look of innocence on your face. “I thought you knew! You had a background check on me. Remember when I said I know someone from the government?” You asked.

“I didn’t think that person would mean your dad!” He said. He did remember JARVIS mentioning your parents’ name but he didn’t really listen.

“Yeah, well, he’s been asking me to move into politics instead of law,” you said. “But, I don’t know,” you shrugged. You tied a bow to the twine string and stuck the wishing card on the last gift and finally, you were done. You piled the five gifts and saw that they would easily fit into an extra carry-on bag.

“I’m sorry I didn’t have the chance to call you to let you know. I guess you’ll have to order pizza with DUM-E instead of me,” you pouted apologetically.

“I’ll be fine. Come on, I’ll drop you off to the airport,” he offered.

“Okay. Let me get changed,” you said.

After landing in Washington D.C., you sent Tony a quick text to let him know you’ve arrived safely and is on the way to your parents house. Your mother had already been waiting for you at the door and the minute you exited the car, she practically ran towards you and squeezed the living hell out of you.

“Oh, baby girl, I’ve missed you!” She exclaimed.

“I miss you too, Mom,” you said whilst still being squished by your mother.

“Is that my little girl?” a booming voice came from the hall and your dad, still strapping and healthy immediately enveloped you in his arms.

“Hi, Daddy,” you hugged him back. No matter how old you get, you would always be a little girl to them, and over the past few years, you’ve just learned to roll with it because if there’s one thing your parents will never do, is stop calling you ‘baby girl’ or ‘little girl’.

You were welcomed with even more warmth when you saw your paternal grandparents inside and your siblings and your nephews and nieces. It was not even Christmas yet, but the big house already felt like it. Christmas lights were everywhere and all the decorations have been put up; it felt as though your worries and stress over work had vanished into thin air.

Meanwhile, in New York, Tony stood in his floor with his hands stuck into his pocket. He stood there overlooking Manhattan’s skyline. He had never felt so lonely in the middle of one of the most crowded city ever. But there was one person in mind who brought him comfort, and with that person in mind, he smiled a little bit and padded back to his lab.

He grabbed the small, red, Santa-decorated party hat and stuck it on top of DUM-E’s so-called head.

“Looks like it’s just gonna be you and me,” he said, and DUM-E whirred in response, putting a small yet sad smile on his face. He walked over to his bench and started working again.

TAG LIST

@thevanishedillusion @welcometomyworldwithoutrules  @plan3tmadison

[ragefear]

Marvel High School

Inspired by @skeletorific and her UnderTheatre AU. Every fandom needs a High School Theatre AU.

Director Nick Fury: Unsurprisingly, he is the director and head of the Theatre department, and he is very, very done with your shit. Principal Pierce keeps denying him funding, but he finds it anyways.

Phil Coulson: Director's assistant. Had a heart attack several years ago, and someone spread the rumour that he died. That someone may or may not have been Director Fury. Coulson has done nothing to counteract this rumour, leading the theatre kids to believe that his spirit haunts the theatre, which isn't exactly wrong.

Maria Hill: Stage manager. She doesn't have to say a word, everyone listens to her. And when she's gone it only takes five minutes for things to absolutely fall apart.

Natasha Romanoff: The actress who makes everyone else feel inadequate. She's the most skilled at playing literally any character ever. She's going to be the female lead. Don't even bother competing. There's a rumour that Clint Barton was the one who got her to audition for the first time but nobody actually believes that (it's true).

Clint Barton: He's been Tree #3, and Bush #2, and Rock #5... one time, he had a line, but someone jumped his cue so nobody heard it. He's somehow best friends with the infinitely skilled Natasha, so nobody messes with him. He's also got a reputation for adopting strays recruiting people to the department.

Tony Stark: Everyone outside the theatre circles assumes Tony's a bigshot actor, but while he's been on the improv stage a few times (his existential self-destruction schtick really hits it with the older kids) he's actually the lighting director. While everyone agrees that he's a genius, Director Fury has to constantly tell him to chill. This is a subtle scene, Tony. Tony. Stop. We don't need five spotlights. Tony. Please.

Bruce Banner: Technical director. He seems really chill, gets along great with Tony, is generally very encouraging to everyone... but he's an absolute monster on Tech Week. May Heaven help you if you miss your cue or fail to show up for your crew calls.

Stephen Strange: Sound director. He will find the sound effects you need, even if that means staying up all night filing through endless pages of shitty horse sound bites he will find the right one and it will be perfect.

James “Rhodey” Rhodes: Started as a theatre kid with Tony but he's moved on to focus on his studies. He'll still be back for crew calls occasionally, and he somehow knows just when to show up when Tony Needs To Chill.

Pepper Potts: Has done a bit of acting but her true skills are in the Box Office. She runs advertising and she's brilliant with it. Even if the postering budget is two dried-out sharpies, a thumbtack, and Steve Rogers' pocket change, she will. Make. It. Work. As Tony's girlfriend she's another person who will conveniently show up when Tony Needs To Chill. (I will die for Pepperony. Fight me.)

Steve Rogers: That one jock that is attached to the theatre... for some reason... The current theory is that his emo best friend Bucky dragged him into it, except everyone's pretty sure that Steve showed up first. He's great for reaching tall things, carrying around large pieces of set, and being relied on to show up for every crew call. Nobody's sure how he does it, since he's involved in pretty much every other activity the school has to offer, and he's also a straight-A student, but Steve Rogers is there to help and nobody (except sometimes Tony) is complaining. A little-known fact, even within the department: Natasha discovered him secretly touching up the paint on the sets, and ever since then he's been painting them all himself.

James “Bucky” Barnes: The Angst Teen Theatre Stereotype. He's actually a pretty good writer; they've done a few of his short skits onstage. Bucky also plays a bit of music. He's fiercely dedicated to the department, although he tries really hard to pretend he doesn't care. Alongside Steve, he also shows up for every crew call. He's one of the few people to know for a fact that Coulson is alive, but he'll never admit it, because admitting it means he has to admit to occasionally staying late to clean Green Hall and replenish the snack supply.

Sam Wilson: One of Steve's jock friends who is in constant competition with Bucky for title of Best Friend. Quoted multiple times as saying, “Steve, you're too cool for this!” He and Bucky are constantly bickering; the personification of the sports and arts departments. And yet, Sam still shows up for every single crew call...

Sharon Carter: The Everything Woman. Need someone to help with lighting? Someone to run the sound booth for rehearsal? To disassemble and/or reassemble the entire set? Sharon's the one you want. She's also  a great actress, the only one who can compete with Natasha for leading roles and occasionally win. Everyone expects them to be totally cutthroat towards each other, but in reality they're great friends. They've been known to dress up as each other for Halloween and get away with it. Sharon's the niece of the previous director, although nobody except Nick knows.

Thor: The Stereotypical Extroverted Theatre Kid. Boisterous, loud, fun, he thinks he's a better actor than he actually is but it works out in the end. He makes a great comic relief or side-kick, and pretty much never needs a microphone. Has a habit of transitioning into character without warning. While he can come off as arrogant at first it's hard to dislike him because he's just so darn sunshiney all the time. His girlfriend Jane has been known to help out in the technical department on occasion.

Loki: The Stereotypical Introverted Theatre Kid. He can quote Shakespeare at length on the spot with little to no provocation. Yes, he can be a little bit overdramatic, especially when his brother's involved, but when you get down to it he has a witty sense of humour. He's great with impressions, and when he actually bothers to try he's one of the greatest actors on the team. You just need to figure out how to get him invested, because once he's invested there's no force on earth or in heaven that can stop him.

Wanda Maximoff: A freshman who was recruited by Clint and has now been adopted by Natasha. Everyone knows she's destined to be the next Leading Lady Of Everything. She's already got the aesthetic going.

Pietro Maximoff: Where Wanda goes, Pietro must follow. He's really more of a sports guy himself, but he loves seeing his little sister find a family here, since it's been hard moving to a new country and all. For the next production he's actually going to be Foliage #2, beside Clint.

T'Challa: A transfer student who joined the theatre fam by accident. Someone brought him along to watch a rehearsal, and since the male lead was out sick T'Challa read his lines. Everyone was blown away. T'Challa was confused by their reaction, but he's fitting in surprisingly well. It's not uncommon to find him running lines in Green Hall with Natasha.

Peter Parker: Clint isn't the only one with a history of adoption. Tony picked up this freshman within the first two weeks of school, and Peter is now his protege. He's got no problem with heights, and is capable of fixing literally anything with duct tape. He's just what this department needs, or so Tony says.

Vision: The second of Tony's adopted children, Vision was kidnapped from the Computers club when Tony decided he needed an extra set of hands. Vision doesn't really understand what's going on, but he's great with programming, and has the magic touch when it comes to glitching lights or microphones. He will occasionally bake goodies for Green Hall, especially if he knows Wanda's there.

Scott Lang: Clint brought this guy along, too. He's just happy to be here. If that means he's doing set build, or running maintenance on the microphones, or getting Maria her next coffee, that's fine. He's chill. He'll do what needs to be done.

BONUS: THE GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY IMPROV CLUB

Gamora: The organizer of the club. Much like Nick Fury, she's 100000% done with everyone's (Peter Quill's) shit. She doesn't appear in shows much anymore, but once in a while she'll show up just to add some dark humour to the mix.

Peter Quill: He can take whatever he's given and run with it. He's known to escalate the level of absurdity pretty quick, leaving everyone else running to catch up, but he is genuinely funny.

Groot: At his first show, the scene changed, and he panicked. The only thing that he could think of to say was “I am Groot.” It stuck.

Drax: His literal humour isn't really a schtick. He legitimately does not understand why everyone is pretending they are in a spaceship. It is not a spaceship. Why is everyone laughing?

Rocket: He likes improv and Peter's absurdity because it gives him an excuse to yell at Peter all he wants with no consequences. He and Gamora can run good dark humour banter.

[infinityknight25]

A Deadpool Halloween

Linus and Charlie Brown sat in the cold lonely pumpkin patch waiting for the great pumpkin. Suddenly a shadow began rising in the distance. "Great pumpkin?" They asked in stereo. "Nah it's me Deadpool!" the man in the red and black mask said in a growling scary voice grabbing them in a satchel. "Welcome all to my Halloween extravaganza! I am you host Deadpool." The livinng room of Deadpool's cruddy apartment was decorated with cheesy Halloween decorations. There were several people tied up all around the room.....and a few that weren't. "First before we get things started let's meet our guests. Over there strapped to my ottoman give it up for Bart Simpson!" "Hey man I'm not sure who you are but can you please let me go? I'm just a kid." "Ha ha always so funny. There padlocked to the floor, the always loveable Mike wazowzki and Sully from monster's Inc." "Hey let us go. We will forget this ever happened!" Exclaimed Mike. "Ha ha that Wazowzki is oh so clever. Our next guests are fresh from the pumpkin patch. Give it up for Charlie Brown and Linus!" "Wade!" Shouted a voice from the kitchen. Deadpool looked back to the kitchen. It was Doctor Strange. Strange was standing in the kitchen with Tyron Owens, Vision, Rocket Racoon, Groot and Howard the duck. "You can't keep them all like this! This is not how you treat guests." He said. "Pfffftttt. I wasn't gonna keep em like that. I just wanted to make sure they weren't gonna run away. I Got this great drink recipe from a guy. He said you can get anyone to do anything with it!" "Um bro then I recommend NOT using it." Chimed in Owens. "You guys are lame. It sounds like a great idea hey 'pool can I get some? It would help when we catch people for bounties." Said Rocket. "I am Groot." "Yeah well our job ain't really ethical anyway is it?" "Guys!!!! Your stealing my story here. Except for like three sentences I haven't been mentioned since the first paragraph. Said Deadpool. Yeah that's right I'm so jealous I'm gonna narrate this bad boy too. So guy I don't need yah anymore!........Okay I need you to scribe for me."........"Alright you know what I think narrating would take too much effort too so do that too but it's my extravaganza darn it!" " Will you guys promise not to run away?" Asked Strange. They all shook they're heads yes and Deadpool began to unlock them all when in the corner of the room a ball of electricity appeared. Bursting from It was Cable. He looked around the room a second then focused on Deadpool. Cable was reasonably tall. Well built and was half metal from a disease he has been fighting for a long time. Cable can travel from the future where he is from. He is a mutant who has telepathic powers but has to focus them on his disease to keep them from spreading. "Wade you have to stop this! If you continue on... " Cable was still talking but Deadpool had tuned him out. "Blah blah blahblah blah blah blah blah. Man I'm bored I feel like my party is missing something or someone. Hey I know! Spiffy needs to be here!" Then poof. Deadpool teleported out of the apartment. Spiderman was swinging above New York city when a black cloud poofed to his right. "Spidey!!!" Deadpool yelled as he grabbed Spiderman. Spiderman screamed "Aggghhhh!" They teleported as if they had never been there. Well except for the string of web still hanging. Poof! Spiderman and Deadpool were back in the apartment. "Wade! Listen to me!" Cable was yelling now. "Your right something is missing! I'll be right back." Poof he was gone again in a black cloud of smoke. But within a blink of an eye he was back with Jack Skellington and Sally from the Nightmare Before Christmas. "This party needs some girls. Oh I know I'll go get Harley Quinn!" Deadpool said as he went teleport. A black cloud began to appear. He went to jump in but Cable grabbed his arm. "That's where things would go wrong. Sorry but I can't let you do that."Cable said. "Fine!" Deadpool said in an irked tone. "Soooo what are we going to do? You brought us all here for a reason yeah?" asked Tyron Owens." Yes my hot headed friend. Please help yourself to the taco, chmichanga, and the pepperoni jalapeno pineapple pizza Buffett. Then we will begin our festivities by doing some trick or treating and closing the night out with some "mischief"." Deadpool said. "Sully.... What's up with this weird guy?" Mike Wazowzki said to his giant blue, purple poka dotted friend. Sully shrugged. "Master 'pool is a very peculiar fellow. He usually means well as long as meaning well is the best price."  Vision said. " Um sir. Where's your skin?" Linus asked Vision clinging to his blanket. "Actually. He's a robot. His skin is a type of synthetic sciencey junk I have no clue what I'm talking about anymore." Deadpool said as he was on Linus' level, putting his head next to Linus'. "Okay!!!!!! Now that everyone has eaten I do believe it's time to go trick or treating!!! Everyone to the spashtruck!!!"Deadpool exclaimed. " The what?" Said Sully in a curious time. Spiderman sighed "Its a right side drive trash truck that he has turned into a spaceship." "But! It can be used as a plane!" Deadpool jumped into the conversation. Everyone was buckled in and Deadpool was at the steering wheel. " So are we going to drive on the road in this thing?" asked Bart. "Where were goin.... We don't need roads." Deadpool said in a Doc Brown impression voice. The back of the cab was cut out and the floor stretched across the top of the motor into the back of the trash body. The spaceship/air plane jet motors were attached to the back of the trash body on the outside. The trash truck took off of the New York street outside of Deadpool's apartment into the air. The doorbell rang on a fancy mansion on the coast of California. Tony Stark answered the door holding a bowl of candy. "Trick or treat!!!" most of the group said in unison. "Hey here you go." Stark said in a mono tone tossing candy into the bags of Linus and Charlie Brown. "What? Snack size bars?! Where's the full bars? The golden rolexes? The large pizzas? The golden chimichangas? The keys to a fancy new car?" Deadpool asked. "Wellllll. My house is secluded sooooo..... I don't get many visitors maybe a total of you guys and one or two random families. Andddddd is that Linus and Charlie Brown from the Peanuts cartoon?" Stark said. "Um yeah." Replied Deadpool. "Hmmm. How do you do the things you do and get away with it?" Questioned Stark. "I just do.Hey Stark! We are gonna go to Latveria and prank Dr. Doom you wanna go?!" questioned Deadpool. Stark licking his teeth behind his lips "I call shotgun. What are we taking? Your trash truck?" "Its a spashtruck! But yes. Oh man this is gonna be a great night!!!" Outside of Doctor Doom's castle in Latveria, Deadpool and his group stood outside the castle while Deadpool and Tony Stark egged the castle. Laughing and carrying on. "Hey Sulls you mind if I use these?" Deadpool asked Sully who was standing there awe struck like the majority of the group. Sully looked down at the eggs he was holding. "Uhhhh sure." He said but Deadpool had already grabbed two cartons from the pile in Sully's arm. Tony Stark was flying in his Iron Man suit throwing eggs at one of the upper levels of the castle. "What an odd Haloween tradition. I didn't even know it existed." Jack Skellington said to Sally. "Do you want to join?" she asked him. "Mmmmm no I will observe this time and take the knowledge back to Halloweentown and discuss it at a meeting tomorrow." Jack replied. "Hey skeleton dude! Toss me a couple rolls of toilet paper." Iron Man said while still  flying above the castle. The lights came on in the castle. "Oh no everyone run!" Deadpool yelled in a whisper. They hightailed it back to the flying trash truck. "You mean spashtruck!" Deadpool yelled. "Yo dude who you talking to? We all know you want us to call it that." Tyron said.  They all made it to the spashtruck and were in the air safely before Dr. Doom could get to them. The villain was dressed in metal gauntlets, a metal mask and a green cape. "Mark my words you will pay for this." Dr. Doom said aloud to himself. Not knowing Tryon Owens could sense him below "Don't worry you will pay for your sins soon enough." Owens thought to himself. "Alright time for the last stop. " Deadpool said bringing the truck down next to a pumpkin patch. We are all gonna hang out here together for the great pumpkin!" Deadpool exclaimed. Jack began to reply."Great pumpkin? I'm the Pumpkin King and I have to say there is.." "A 100% chance we will see the great pumpkin tonight on Halloween!" Deadpool interrupted. "Ummmm while yes our world is full of many wild and crazy things Wade." Tony Stark began to say. "I really..." "Can't wait to see the Great Pumpkin? Me too!! " Deadpool said once again cutting someone off. "Yeah you guys may as well just give up. Wade isn't gonna let this one go." Spiderman said. The whole group sat in the cold lonely pumpkin patch. Most looked bored while Deadpool and Linus and Charlie Brown leaned forward with excitement and anticipation. Then a shadow began rising slowly. "Oh wow....... There it is!" Deadpool said in an excited whisper. Iron Man kicked on lights from his suit. It was..."Snoopy!?" Exclaimed Deadpool. "And he's wearing the infinity gauntlet!?" continued Deadpool. "How did you get that? The writer hasn't even concluded the gauntlet war yet!" continued Deadpool. Suddenly Thanos appeared behind Snoopy "Filthy little mutt I will feast on your roasted carcass!" Thanos said. Snoopy turned around and vaporized Thanos. Then turned around and started uttering gibberish at Deadpool. "Okay okay. Jeez I just wanted to have some fun. Guys your rides here." Deadpool said to Linus and Charlie Brown. They walked over to Snoopy. Snoopy did the I'm watching you gesture to Deadpool and they disappeared. "Alright guys I guess the shows over......till Christmas." Deadpool said. "And I'm gonna be the best there is at bringing cheer to everyone." He said mimicing Wolverine's voice. "See was that not the best random pile of phooey you will read all week?"Deadpool said climbing in and closing the door on the trash truck and starting it. "Actually it's a spashtruck and happy Halloween everybody. We'll see yah later." He said taking of into the sky.

[blackbirdprince]

Finally watch Infinity War, I know I know I am like super late but I was busy so...and I loved it I mean it was painful but I already know who will die also half the character who died have movies lined up already so yeah anyway I have so much toughts so more under the line

I doesn’t even know where to start honestly. LIke I said there were stuff I already knew about and there stuff I didn’t but all of them together was great.

I loved Loki and how much he loves his brother, it was pretty visible in ragnarok too but in this one so so obvious and he was a good guy so I hope he will be back.

I love canon pepperony and their scene was sweet, their engagement and Tony wanna be a father. And I know there was more because there was picture from shooting that scene and even Happy was there so give me those deleted scene please.

But I had so much Stoy feel like omg the whole Bruce-Tony conversation Tony first tought is Steve when they don’t know how to find vision and he is like well we had a little diagreement and kind of we don’t talk anymore but he carrying the phone with him fully charged ready to use all the time (!!) and Steve still call the compound home and calling tony eart’s best defenders and Rhodey reaction, who is Tony’s best friend and stick up for the rules (iron man 2) he was bitching at Ross for ruining the avengers and he was like yeah yeah sure I will arrest them Hello Captain long time to see we missed you. He wouldn’t have done that if Tony would been mad angry or something like that to the avengers.

speaking of Steve his first entrance was just hot hot hot hot like hollyshit hot

Bruce being confused about what the hell happened why he was away was so funny ‘like the beatles?’ iconic, also his internal battle with Hulk who decided to sing off for the day was epic

Peter aww sweet Peter always the jokes and the innocence and impressing Mr. Stark who totally went full dad mood on him in the entire movie even Stange was like he is your kid or what, loved every second of it

Wanda and Vision romace was a little weird for me like its in every fanfiction so I should be okey with it but it’s still a romantic relationship between a human and an android like nobody read asimov or what

to be honest storyline wasn’t very rich like everybody get involved then fights basically but I know its Part 1 kind of movie and there was so many character so, yeah no surprise why it made that much money already