"Stark, are you sure that you don't want to come with us?" Nat asked. The other Avengers surrounded her, gathered in front of the door to the Avengers Tower, anxious to get going.
It was a few weeks after the attack on New York, and the Avengers were going out to dinner in place of movie night, because none of them really wanted to sit still. They hadn't received a mission since that fateful day, and they all still showed the physical and emotional tolls of that battle. The bruises on Tony's body had faded to a light-green shade, and Clint's cuts were starting to scar. Natasha had a bullet-hole wound that had left a noticeable scar on her upper-left shoulder. Everyone else seemed okay though, seeing as Tony, Clint, and Nat were the only 'full' humans on the team.
"Yeah, I think I'll stay here. 'Hold down the fort', if you will," he responded in a sarcastic tone. Really, there was a much more serious reason for his staying put. He'd been having problems. They felt like heart attacks, but J.A.R.V.I.S. said otherwise. He couldn't tell when they were coming and he couldn't stop them when they did. A chorus of reluctant goodbyes from Bruce, Thor, and Cap filled the silent spaces as they walked out of the building. 'Tasha and Clint stayed. For a brief seconds, Tony thought about Peter and Wanda. God, he loved those kids. Wanda was having dinner with Peter and Aunt May that night. He hoped everything was going well (because, quite obviously, Peter had a HUGE crush on Wanda).
"Tony, are you ok?" Clint asked, distress displayed in his eyes like a gem in a museum and brows furrowed with worry. Natasha shared a like expression. Tony didn't respond for a few seconds. His mind was entangled with thoughts of loved ones, new ideas for his suit and ways to improve his fighting techniques. He hadn't even noticed that the team's assassins had stayed behind.
"Tony?" Natasha questioned. Her voice was harsh, a hint of desperation in it. She needed to be sure that all her team was one-hundred percent.
"Yeah? Oh.. yeah I'm good. You two should.." he kept loosing his train of thought, "you two should get going. I don't want a Hulk to barge through these doors and drag you two to the restaurant. Bird boy would have a freak."
"Tony. I'm right here."
"Oh yeah.. totally forgot about that," Tony mocked.
"Alright.. just.. call us. If you need anything, okay?" Natasha's request sounded more like and order than a plea. He didn't even know what the big deal was. Was he really showing that much of his pain?
The second the doors shut behind Clint and Nat, he fell to his knees. A splitting pain in Tony's chest was forcing him to the ground, tightening his lungs and closing his throat. Tony lay there, on the ground sputtering and gasping for breath. They aren't that far, he thought, I could still call them. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind. He was Iron Man. He didn't need saving. He slowed his breathing until there was a steady flow of air circulating through his lungs. The awful knotting pain in his chest didn't go away, it got worse. He thought he might black out. No, he thought, no way. I've never blacked out cause of this. I won't let today be the first time. Tony felt the darkness trying to pull him under. He reached to pull himself up into his desk chair, but failed, bringing half of what was resting on top of the smooth surface down with him. He hit his head sharply against the concrete floor, making it harder to stay conscious. In one last desperate attempt, Tony picked up a pen that had fallen off the desk with him. Adrenaline. Adrenaline will keep me awake. He stabbed it through his hand, screaming with pain as he did so. Blood poured out of his new injury. He had no idea what was wrong. He was alert now, though, instead of blacked out on the floor. His chest had been cramping for weeks on end now, and whenever it happened, the Arc Reactor in his chest flared brightly, then dulled to a faint glow. He tried multiple times to fix it, whatever it was, and wouldn't allow himself to go to the others for help. He was ashamed.
With the aching pain in his hand and the pounding in his head, the attempt to flood himself with adrenaline had backfired. He was even closer the fainting than before.
"Uh-Oh," Tony whispered to himself.
He couldn't hold onto consciousness anymore as it slipped through his throbbing fingertips.