Tony sat on the balcony of the beach house he and Pepper were staying in. He held a small camcorder, in one hand, a glass of water in the other. He knew he was dying - and, too soon, at that - so, he decided to make a... video diary of sorts, of his last few days, weeks... Whichever. He hadn't decided whether he wanted to create multiple entries, but he knew he needed to do this, at least once.
Taking a seat at the small glass table on the balcony, he propped the camcorder up on the table, and flipped the screen toward him. He took several deep breaths to calm his nerves, before he began.
At first, he started off a little shaky... It felt unusual. "Hey, Pep. It's me, your, uh... Tinker Boy." He chuckled softly, "As you know, I'm dying, and... I thought I'd leave a video - maybe even a few, I haven't decided yet..." He paused a moment, clearing his throat. He bit his lip, trying to keep his composure, but he couldn't bring himself to look at the camera. "All I've ever wanted was to marry you. Ever since I laid eyes on you, for the first time, I just knew you'd be the one." Forcing a weak smile, he continued, "Marrying you... Made me the happiest man alive, no doubt about it. You're smart, beautiful, loving... And, probably the only person who's ever been able to put up with me, for this long." He chuckled slightly, just beginning to break, "You have... no idea how much I love you, Pepper, and..." His voice finally broke, and he swallowed hard, his eyes filling with tears, "I don't want to say goodbye. I don't want to leave you, ever, I don't want to die... And, I'll admit, I'm afraid of dying, but... I'm more afraid of what you'll do, once I'm gone." Taking a deep breath, a few stray tears trailed down his cheeks, unable to hold it back, any longer. His voice quivered as he continued, "I've done everything, I can, I've gone over every equation, every possibility, absolutely everything, and I can't find a loophole - or any way around this. I'm... so sorry." He sighed, rubbing his face, quietly. He was tired, and it showed on his features, but that wasn't going to stop him.
He clasped his hands in his lap, trying to change the topic. "Natasha once told me that the Extremis changed me, it made me stronger, and a better man... It wasn't the Extremis. It was you. You've changed me for the better, and... I've gotta thank you, for that."
His eyes were still red, and, he was afraid he'd break down, again, so he decided to end the video. "There's still so much more I wanna say, I still wanna talk about everything we've done together; laughing, and crying together... Promise I'll make another one. It'll make you smile, whenever you watch it, after I... I die." He nodded, forcing a very small, weak smile. "I love you."
With that, he cheekily blew a kiss to the camera, with tears in his eyes, before ending the recording, and shutting off the camera. It was only then, that he broke down...