"A Stark Does Have a Heart"
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A twenty year old man with tanned skin, chocolate brown eyes with golden flecks and dark brown hair parked his car out in front of an apartment building.
He scanned the area around him and pulled his hood up around his head, wanting to hide his features from the people around him.
If his father found out he had traveled all the way to Japan to visit a woman, then he would be livid.
Walking into the lobby, the man then jogged over to the elevator and rode it up onto the thirteenth floor.
Once he was on his designated floor, the American man stepped out of the elevator and started searching for the room that belonged to the woman he was there for.
Locating the room, he knocked on the door, glancing around him to make sure he wasn't disturbing anyone else who lived on the floor.
Hearing footsteps on the other side of the door, the man stepped back and watched as the door was unlocked and opened up by a woman who was 25 years of age and had light brown hair, olive skin and light brown eyes.
"Hey, Tatia, I got your call. What's wrong? You said this was something you couldn't tell me over the phone." The man, Anthony Edward Stark, said.
Looking the younger man over with an upset expression on her face, Tatiana Motomiya stepped aside and allowed her friend inside of the apartment, not wanting to tell him anything where they could be overheard.
Stepping inside of the apartment, Tony took off his coat and turned to look at his old friend from college, wondering why she had called him all the way down to Japan.
"Okay, what is it? What happened? Is something wrong with Jun?" Tony asked about her daughter.
"No, no, Tony, Jun is fine. She's at her grandmother's right now." Tatia said.
"Well, then, what is it? I haven't heard from you since your husband's funeral. Wait, you're not in debt or anything are you?" Tony asked.
"Tony, please do me a favor and shut up so I can speak." Tatia snapped.
Snapping his jaw shut, Tony silently waited for the woman to speak.
It had been a month since her husband had been killed in a bank robbery and he knew that it was something she was still sore about.
Taking in a deep breath, Tatia then led Tony over to the couch and they sat down on it.
"This is going to be difficult for you to accept, but...I'm pregnant." Tatia revealed.
"Pregnant? With-With Seiji's kid?" Tony asked feeling sympathy for the unborn child.
Seiji was a strict, yet kind man who adored his daughter Jun and it was bad enough that the 5 year old had lost her father, but now his second child would never have the chance to know him.
"No, Tony, this isn't Seiji's baby. It's yours." Tatia stated.
Tony's face remained blank, but shock was clearly seen in his eyes.
Trying to figure out how it was possible that this child was his, Tony then remembered how Tatia had taken comfort in him after the funeral and that led to them spending the night together.
It was wrong to sleep with a woman had had recently become widowed, especially after the man's funeral, but they were both drunk at the time.
"Are-Are you sure? Are you sure you're pregnant?" Tony stuttered.
He honestly wasn't sure how he felt about becoming a father.
Growing up, his own father, Howard Anthony Walter Stark, had been cold and calculating, someone who didn't share any type of affection for his son and almost acted like he hated him with how he shoved him aside for his work.
"I think after having one child, I can tell the signs by now. I also went to the doctor and they confirmed it. I'm pregnant. With your baby." Tatia said.
Sighing at that, Tony placed a hand on her face, feeling a bit sick from hearing he was going to be a father at his young age.
If his father ever heard about this, then he would be furious.
"So, what do we do now?" Tony asked.
"I don't know." Tatia shook her head.
(Later on...)
Returning home, Tony began to search for his mother, knowing that she would be more understanding than his father would ever be.
Thankfully, he managed to find her alone in the kitchen, preparing a cup of tea.
"Hey, Mom." Tony greeted.
Turning around, Maria Collins Carbonell Stark smiled at her son in greeting.
Howard always had a stare that would make Tony feel weak and fearful, but Maria made him feel warm and safe.
"Tony, welcome back. How was Tatia? Is she coping well with everything?' Maria asked as she sipped her tea.
"Yeah, yeah, she-she's fine. Um, where's Dad?" Tony asked as he walked into the room.
"Oh, he went to the office with Obadiah." Maria said.
The old woman's nose wrinkled in distaste as she spoke of her husband's business partner.
She had never liked Obadiah Stone, but simply tolerated him since he was friends with her husband.
"Great, uh, I-I have something important I need to tell you." Tony said.
"What is it?" Maria asked.
Walking over to his mother, Tony leaned against the counter beside her and prayed that the woman wouldn't be angered at him for his act of stupidity.
"Um, you see, a month ago, during the funeral, Tatia and I both got drunk and... One thing led to another and then... She's pregnant, Mom. With my baby. And I am completely terrified." Tony revealed.
Stunned by this news, Maria was unsure of how to act.
A part of her felt joyful and excited that she was going to be a grandmother soon with a beautiful grandchild to spoil, but a different part of her wanted to scold her son for being so irresponsible.
Snapping out of her own thoughts and seeing the confliction on her son's face, Maria set her tea cup down and pulled Tony into a hug.
"Oh, dear, why are you scared?" Maria asked.
"Because I have no idea what to do. I'm not going to just abandon my chi-child, but I have no idea how to be a father. I'm scared that I'm going to be a failure and they're going to hate me. I don't think I can take proper care of this baby and be what they need." Tony said as he tried not to cry.
Humming softly in his ear, Maria rubbed soothing circles on Tony's back, wanting to calm his nerves and settle him.
She knew that what Tony really meant was he didn't want to become anything like Howard, a man who cared more about himself than he did his own child.
"Anthony, you listen to me." Maria said sternly.
Pulling out of the hug, Maria then placed her hands on either side of her son's face and her thumbs wiped away the tears that were falling.
"All parents fear that they will make mistakes and that their child will hate them. That they won't be able to care for them properly. It's perfectly normal. I felt that same way when I was pregnant with you." Maria said.
"You did?" Tony sniffled.
"I did. I was so scared that I wouldn't be able to be what you needed and thought it was a mistake becoming a parent, but the second I first held you, I knew, I loved you right away. You were my precious baby and I was never going to let anyone or anything take you away from me. I would protect you no matter what. Even to this day, I still feel that way." Maria smiled.
Hearing the story, Tony smiled in awe and admiration at his mother, feeling the love he had for her grown even more.
"Thanks, Mom. I love you." Tony said as he pulled her into a hug, breathing in her scent of lavender and rosemary.
Laughing, Maria held her little boy who had grown up into a handsome young man who would soon become a father.
"I love you too, baby. And I'm going to love my grandchild, too. I hope it's a girl. I always wanted to have a daughter to spoil and dress up in pretty outfits." Maria cooed.
That made Tony chuckle, feeling a bit more excited with the concept of having a child of his own to take care of.
Eight months seemed to fly by and Howard had been kept in the dark about the existence of his grandchild.
Tony feared that his father would be enraged at him for getting a woman who was five years older than him pregnant and worried that Howard would disown him and reject the baby.
Tatia discovered that the baby would be a girl and this excited Maria who had gone out to shop for dresses and adorable onesies for her granddaughter to wear.
Although Howard was unaware of his secret granddaughter, the butler Edwin Jarvis knew and had been sworn to secrecy by Tony, the boy he had looked after for twenty years, and had even helped with supplying names for the girl.
Then, two days before Howard's seventy-fourth birthday, Tatia had gone into labor and Tony had rushed down to Japan to be there for the birth of his daughter.
Maria had gone with him, telling Edwin to inform Howard they were simply having a mother-son trip together.
Watching over her step-granddaughter in the waiting room, Maria allowed her son to rush into the delivery room where he held Tatia's hand.
Three hours later, it was clear the baby wanted to be born as soon as possible, Davia Maria Katia Stark-Motomiya had entered the world.
"Hey, you feeling okay?" Tony asked as he stared down at an exhausted Tatia.
"I'm fine, just...tired. Jun took ten hours to come out. This was easier." Tatia sighed as she lay against her pillows.
A nurse then returned to the parents, carrying a freshly cleaned babe who was wrapped up snuggly in a pink blanket.
"Here we are. She's going to need to be fed very soon." The nurse said.
Regaining her energy, Tatia sat up and held her arms out, eager to have her child handed over to her.
The nurse grinned and handed the child over, watching as the mother gazed down at her with a fond expression.
"She looks more like you than she does me." Tatia pouted.
That made Tony snort and shake his head in amusement, knowing that Tatia was a bit vain in the fact that she wanted both of her daughters to look like her.
"Well, guess that means she's going to grow up to be the most gorgeous woman around." Tony joked.
Rolling her eyes at her friend's arrogance, Tatia then held the newly born Davia out towards her father.
"Here, I think it's time for you to hold her." She said.
Freezing and internally panicking, Tony stared down at the baby and was unsure of what to do.
He had never held a baby before and was scared that he may accidentally hurt her or cause some form of discomfort for little Davia.
After being shown how to properly hold a baby, Tony gazed down at the newborn and noticed that her skin was a similar shade as his own.
Whining, the baby opened her eyes and Tony froze, praying she wouldn't start crying at the sight of him.
If his daughter started crying because of him, Tony was unsure of how he would be able to handle it.
Raspberry colored eyelashes fluttered and Tony found himself being met with two beautiful chocolate brown orbs that had tiny flecks of gold in them, just like his own eyes.
Instead of crying like he had feared, the baby cooed and her tiny hands curled into fists as she seemed to be reaching out for him.
Mesmerized, Tony sat down in the chair beside the bed and positioned his daughter so that one of his hands could hold onto her tiny one, amazed with how small and soft it was.
Cooing softly, the baby stared up at her father, and Tony wondered if she could actually see him.
He heard that babies were born with poor eyesight that only improved during the first month and had their full vision at 3 or 4 months, but he also knew that they were able to detect light and motion.
Was it possible that his daughter was able to sense him and was comforted by his presence?
As Tony continued to observe his daughter, he couldn't help but notice how beautiful she was and how she vaguely smelt of strawberries and sugar.
"Hi, princess. My name's Tony and I'm-I'm your Daddy." Tony choked as he felt tears spring to his eyes.
Leaning down, he kissed her head that was covered in a fine layer of raspberry hair.
She was so tiny and fragile; he would have to keep her safe from the dangers and horrors of the world around them.
No one would ever hurt her and no one was going to take his sweet little princess away from him, ever.
Unaware that he was being watched by a smiling Tatia, Tony continued to fuss over his daughter, amazed with the feeling of love and joy he felt as he stared down at the beauty in his arms.
"Tony," Tatia called gaining his attention.
"What?" He asked as he finally tore his eyes away from his child.
"Why don't you go get Maria and Jun? I'm sure they'd like to meet Davia now." She said.
"Ah, right. Right, um...I kinda don't want to let her go." Tony confessed.
This made Tatia laugh, pleased that her friend was acting so well to becoming a father.
Honestly, she had feared Tony would want nothing to do with his daughter and would run away from his responsibility, but he already seemed to be eager with taking on the role of being a father.
And with the way Davia seemed to be reacting to her father's presence, it looked like she was going to be a daddy's girl.
"Well, you need to hand her over so I can feed her. Unless you suddenly grew breasts." Tatia smirked at him.
"Right. Okay, princess, I'm gonna hand you over to Mommy for a few minutes so I can go get your Grandma and sister, okay? But I promise I will be right back as fast as my legs can take me." Tony spoke to his daughter before reluctantly placing her in Tatia's arms.
Giving his daughter one last smile, Tony then rushed out of the delivery room to fetch his mother while Tatia pulled her top down so she could feed Davia.
Head picking up, Maria found Tony jogging over to her with a wide grin on his face and knew that he had been successful in bonding emotionally with his daughter.
Standing up, Maria lightly jostled a sleeping Jun awake.
"What's going on?" The magenta haired 6 year old asked.
"Mom, Mom, Mom! You were right. I don't know why I was so scared before, but it was amazing. I mean, I held her in my arms and she looked up at me with these big brown eyes of hers and she was so tiny and sweet and the most precious thing I have ever seen..." Tony rambled.
"Sweetheart, calm down." Maria laughed.
Taking a deep breath, Tony tried to shake off the high he felt from holding his daughter for the first time.
He wondered if this was how other parents felt and if his own father had ever felt this way when he first held him.
"Sorry. Um, Tatia wants you in there now." Tony said.
"We seeing Mommy now?" Jun perked up.
"Not just Mommy, but your new sister, too." Tony informed the pinkette.
Making their way into the delivery room, they found Tatia resting in bed and Maria set Jun down as the little girl squirmed in her hold, wanting to rush to her mother's side.
Stopping beside the bed, Jun stared up at the baby in confusion, wondering who the baby was and where she had come from.
"Mommy, who that?" Jun asked.
"This is Davia, your new sister." Tatia smiled down at her first born.
"Sister? Where she come from?" Jun tilted her head to the side in confusion.
That question made Tony freeze, unsure of how to explain something like that to a little girl and Maria was smirking in great amusement.
"I'll explain it to you when you get older." Tatia promised and made Tony relax.
Walking up to the bed, Maria peered down at her granddaughter and felt tears blur her vision at the sight of the beautiful child.
She looked so much like Tony when he was first born.
"She's beautiful." Maria whispered in awe.
"Do you want to hold her?" Tatia asked.
"Of course." Maria sniffled.
Reaching out, Maria picked up her granddaughter and held her gently in her arms, smiling lovingly down at her.
She felt bad for not telling Howard about Davia, but was unsure of how he would feel about becoming a grandfather.
Deep down, she wondered if Howard would feel pleased that he had gained an early birthday present in the form of a granddaughter.
"Hello, my dear. Welcome to the world. Now, it may seem scary at first, but I promise you, you are well loved and protected, so you have nothing to fear." Maria said.
After placing a kiss on her granddaughter's head, Maria then turned to her son and smiled proudly at him before she handed Davia over to the man who was eagerly waiting to hold her once again.
Four months later, on December 16th 1991, Howard and Maria both died in a car crash and left Tony to become the new CEO of the company.
Because of this and realizing how many enemies his family truly had, Tony had convinced Tatia to simply call their daughter Davey Motomiya so no one would know she was a Stark, protecting her from the legacy of becoming a warmonger and being thrust into the media who would exploit her for their own desires.
He wanted her to be safe and grow up with as much of a normal life that he could provide her with.
Even though Tony kept Davey out of the media, he still made time to visit his daughter and he spoiled her, showering her with the love and affection he had never received from his father.
The end.