I'm BACK! Phew! This one was hard to write… ANYWAY, here it is!

Disclaimer: I don't own Iron Man.

Tony was a billionaire. He could afford to lose everything, because he could just buy a replacement. But there was just one thing he couldn't afford to lose. He stood up and looked at the clock. It read 1:30 am. He walked into the bathroom and said to himself,

"It's too early for ANYTHING to be awake, let alone me." He splashed some water in his face and crept out the room, careful not to wake his sleeping beauty, Pepper. He walked downstairs to grab a drink in hopes that he would fall back asleep soon. As he sat down, he told Jarvas to put on some quiet music. He remembered her birthday the other year, when he silently cursed himself for not remembering to get her a present, and then when he saw her in that dress, he just about fainted. He remembered when she gave him that present of his chest reactor that saved his life. Not even realizing it, they had shared so many moments together that were priceless. And why was he so worried about her when she was about to be blown up? Because she was his assistant? No, he loved her. He loved her from the beginning. They were opposites, but hey, opposites attract, right? Then, his mind flashed back to when he was holding that missile into the portal, when he thought he would never see her again, all he could remember thinking was, If I never see you again, remember that I love you. I always have and I always will. Don't forget me. I love you. Somehow, he knew in his heart that she knew that too.

"Hey, what are you doing up so early?" Tony turned to see Pepper standing there groggily. He laughed quietly.

"I guess I could ask the same question to you, Pep." She giggled.

"I heard you get up, you forget I'm a light sleeper." Tony smacked himself on the head.

"I tried not to wake you up, baby. I'm sorry." He said and she shrugged.

"Listen, I know we're a weird and spontaneous couple, so I'm going to do this now, because this is the perfect moment." He said shakily, as she gave him a confused look.

"Pepper, we've known each other for a long time, and we've always been really close. When I realized I had feelings for you, I knew that you would be the one, and now that's been confirmed for me." He got down on one knee and Pepper gasped with tears starting to form in her eyes. "Pepper Potts, I love you more than I love money, more than I love seeing Bruce turn into Hulk, more than I love Jarvas, more than I love cars, more than I love messing with Cap and more than I love being Iron Man. So, will you marry me?" He opened a tiny velvet box to reveal a small platinum ring with a medium sized diamond and two small diamonds on each side of the bigger one. On the inside, engraved was what he was thinking earlier: If I never see you again, remember that I love you. I always have and I always will. Don't forget me. I love you. TS+PP. She nodded frantically.

"Yes, yes of course I'll marry you!" She said as he put the ring on her finger and she jumped up and he caught her and pressed his lips to hers.

"I love you, Tony Stark."

"As I love you, Pepper Potts." They smiled and shared another kiss before falling asleep in each other's arms, right where they should be.

Tony was a billionaire. He could afford to lose everything, because he could just buy a replacement. But there was just one thing he couldn't afford to lose. He couldn't lose her.

Okay, I've had a couple reviews saying to continue, so I decided to do a follow-up piece. It should be posted soon called: The One Day He Couldn't Afford to Die. It's a little depressing but has a happy ending :D.