Chapter 1: IHFU

I'm back! And I am so dreadfully sorry. You have no idea how sorry I am. It has been 6 MONTHS since I updated anything or written to be honest. I haven't done anything, but go to college and study my butt off for every class. It kind of paid off, and well I have been busy this summer doing a lot of transfer paperwork, so I've been just SO busy.

I apologize sincerely; I just didn't have the time at all. But I did get an idea last night that I wanted to write. Please note that this was quickly written, so forgive me for any errors. I have two that will possibly be put out today as well. But for now, it will be this new story along with another update.

Thanks for being patient with me, and I thank those who read my old stories and reviewed them. I miss this IMAA FanFic and the community so I hope I can come back! And I will make NO promises; I've broken far too many.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but this story.

This particular Sunday morning left nothing but anger and frustration as Tony rolled out of his bed. He had woken up to an email from Stark Solutions telling him that his deal with the Singaporean weapons dealer had been denied, much to his dismay.

Tony needed the deal to work for two reasons: one, the profit would allow him to give every one of his staff a well deserved raise after the hell of a year that he put them through. Two, the deal was a solid contract that gave Tony control over the Singaporean weapons manufacturer, which meant he had the power to stop their nuclear weapons development.

Which in his opinion was very very important.

"Good morning, sir." A female voice echoed through his mansion. The A.I. machine automatically opened his blinds, sending unfiltered sunlight through his room. Tony groaned, squinting against the light, and rolled in his bed. He threw his phone on the opposite side of the bed, deciding to not let the email throw off his mojo.

Tony's eyes never closed again, so he just slowly got up, deliberately dragging his body off his warm silky bed. His rubbed his bare chest, absentmindedly scratching the tingling skin.

Slugging the bathroom, he said, "Computer, what were my plans for today?" A needle like pain shot through his skull, making Tony double over and moan. "Damn that extra vodka shot." He hissed under his breath. After coming home last night he had drunk a little too much just for the sake of it.

The motion censored lights dimly flickered on the moment Tony's foot entered through the bathroom's door. "Errands, sir." The computer casually responded.

Tony swiped his hand across his face, momentarily touching the stubble growing on his chin. "Right… those errands please?"

"Grocery shopping, sir. That is all that is scheduled for today. Would you like to hear tomorrow's agenda?"

"No." Tony said quickly. He knew that with the deal failure there was going to be a huge fuss at work tomorrow. Not everyone was going to be happy with neither him nor the Singaporean weapon dealer.

Another groan escaped his lips, slightly louder than before. And as though a fuse blew, Tony's vision clouded with red, and all he saw were his arms sweeping across the tile bathroom counter. His products flew across the room, some falling to the ground, and some shattering against the opposite wall. Tony took a moment to calm down, knowing that he didn't snap often, but that this was a really major setback in his plans.

"Call in the maid service today." Tony mumbled loud enough for the computer to hear. "Have them clean the entire mansion. I'll leave the money out in the mailbox." Tony hadn't called the maids in months, and it was starting to show around the place.

Empty alcohol bottles lay around the living room, kitchen, and stairwell that led Tony down to his armory. His armory was surprisingly clean, which was a relief, but the rest of his house needed some serious cleaning up.

…

After throwing on his running jacket and lacing up his tennis shoes, Tony grabbed the first keys off his key hooks and bounded down his staircase to his car garage.

Holding the key above his head, Tony pushed a button and waited for a car to signal back to him. He was pleased to see it was his red Audi R8. It was going to be a casual morning, and after his run to the supermarket, he was going to head home and both finish and start on his armors.

The morning was a great wake up call. The sun was just starting to warm up, but the breeze was cool. The combination excited Tony's body, making him feel alive and killing his hangover early this morning. He lazily cast his arm on the steering wheel and let his other armrest on the driver side window's ledge.

With nobody on the road, Tony quickly sped through the lanes pulling up to his favorite supermarket. He parked his car, locking it as he ran up to the entrance. His computer had reminded him of his checklist that was on his refrigerator, so as Tony looked at the long list, he pulled on a cart and set to gather his supplies.

"Pickles? Why the heck do I need pickles…?" Tony thought out loud, scratching his head. Then he vaguely remembered Rhodey's abrupt visit after a hard War Machine mission. While others' comfort food is something sugary and sweet, Rhodey's stress led him to eat a jar of pickles.

Not wanting to question it, Tony let his best friend eat his entire jar, even opening the spare jar in his pantry.

Tony laughed to himself as he walked down the canned food aisle, and threw three large jars of pickles into his cart. He continued down the checklist, and just as he was turning to the next aisle for his last item, his cart hit another cart.

Tony, startled, yanked on the handle, throwing some larger items out of his cart. "Damn." He cursed, bending over to pick up his fallen items. He heard a set of bangles jingle as a female ran to his side bending over to help him.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't see you! I was just turning, and you came out of nowhere! It's my fault, I'm so sorry! Oh god, I can pay for anything broken!" The woman mumbled hysterically.

Tony uttered a quick, "It's fine," before stopping, his heart pounding. He knew that voice, though it's been years he knew that voice. His eyes drifted up and he caught side of pale skin and striking red hair. His eyes couldn't believe what they saw, nor could his brain.

"P-P-Pepper?"

The woman raised her hazel eyes up in alarm, staring back into his blue orbs. Her eyes were first skeptical, but were instantly replaced with recognition. She gasped, her small hand covering her mouth. "Tony…? Tony is that you?"

Her voice sent his heart fluttering in a billion directions, much like it had when he first met her in high school. "Yeah! Oh my god! Pepper! How have you been? I haven't seen you since…"

"… The start of college." Pepper finished, astonishment still on her face. Tony stood up, eager to continue talking to her, he offered her his hand, and felt electrified by her touch.

But the excitement died, and his heart almost stopped at the sight of her fully standing in front of him. His eyes drifted across her features, noting the worn and tired eyes, the dark circles, and ghostly pale skin. But as his eyes drifted lower, his heart shattered.

"You're…. you're-" He stammered, not believing his own eyes.

Pepper blushed, breaking her eye contact. She bit her lower lip, and tugged the shirt covering her stomach. "Pregnant. Yes. Five-months, if you can't believe it." Her hand protectively covered the growing bump on her stomach, the tank top tightly hugging her maternal curves.

Tony really couldn't believe it. He hadn't heard from Pepper for over ten years, but who knew those ten years led Pepper to be pregnant? "Who's the lucky man?" He asked, slightly bitterly.

Pepper ignored the tone and smiled softly. "He's a doctor. I met him after I got injured during a F.B.I. investigation in Kentucky. Got married to him two years later." There was joy and sadness on her face; two emotions that Tony didn't understand why were there.

"Is he here?" Tony asked, actually wanting to meet the man that married his best friend. He was also hurt that he didn't get an invitation to the wedding, because he for sure would have attended no matter how jealous he would have been.

Pepper turned away. "He—no. He's, um, he's not here. He, uh, he, um…" She was stammering. Tony cocked his head to the side, astonished that Pepper was attempting to lie to him.

"You know you can't lie to me, you should know that by now." He said softly, a small chuckle escaping his lips. The chuckle died when he saw Pepper look up at him, tears flowing down her face. Her eyes were bloodshot, as though it was accustomed to her frequent tears. "Pepper, god, what's wrong?" Tony became alarmed, and held her shoulders, drawing her towards his chest.

She didn't resist, but instead dug her fists into his shirt, and burying her face into his chest to muffle her sobs. "I'm sorry." She said, hiccupping. "I'm sorry, I didn't invite you to my wedding. It was like you disappeared from the radar. I had no contacts, no anything to get in touch with you, or Rhodey. I'm so sorry." She cried. Tony looked around the store, relieved that there were no other early shoppers this morning. He gently stroked Pepper's hair, which had gotten longer dipping past her shoulders.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm sure you had a great time without me and Rhodey there anyway." He reassured. But Pepper shook her head, over and over again, and Tony finally understood. "You're not crying about the wedding are you?"

She pulled away, her arms both supporting her stomach. She took a couple of deep breaths, letting few remaining tears to fall down her cheeks. "Daniel, my husband, died five months ago."

…

Tony instructed Pepper to follow him, and wheeled his cart to the refreshment area towards the front of the store. There were a lot of empty tables, so he led Pepper to one of them, towards the far corner, where no one could hear them, and told her he would get them coffee.

As his order was being made, Tony looked back at his best friend, realizing how much she had changed. She got her dream job, a husband, and an unborn kid, but with her husband dead, she was alone. She wouldn't be able to do her job because of the kid, and well the kid was still growing in there.

Tony recalled her apology about her wedding, and how she actually seemed distraught that he and Rhodey hadn't attended. As an FBI agent, he would've thought that she could've found some way to contact him, but couldn't blame her since weddings were a huge deal.

"Your black coffee, and vanilla latte, sir." The barista said. She smiled warmly at him as he handed her a twenty-dollar tip, since he had no other change in his wallet.

Tony walked back to Pepper, looking at her from behind. Her shoulders were slumped, and her back curved, most likely from the stress of her child. She was completely spent, and judging from her pale skin, she hadn't been getting much sleep either.

"Here's your favorite." Tony said, placing the warm vanilla latte in front of her. Pepper was dabbing at the tear under her eye, but managed to put a smile on her face.

"Thank you, Tony." She said, gingerly touching the cup. She wasn't meeting his eyes, and for her own stubborn reason. Being weak was Pepper's biggest personal pet peeve. Her weakness being shown was the equivalent of someone being shot in the chest, but still alive clinging to their life.

It was her biggest fear.

Tony only nodded, cupping both his hands around the warm drink. He sat across from her, his face emotionless, ready to hear her story. He saw her soft pink lips close around the edge as she carefully sipped the warm drink. It gave her some energy, it seemed like, because she sat up a little and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry about breaking down like that." She started, but raised her head seeing that Tony was going to quickly shoot down the apology. "You know me, I don't like crying in public like that." She was pleased with his small nod.

"And you know that you'll have to tell me everything." Tony responded back.

Pepper ran a hand through her hair, sighing. "I know, and I will." She closed her eyes. "My husband died five months ago in a car accident. I tested positive that day, and was confirmed a couple weeks pregnant. Daniel got excited and got out early from work so we could celebrate.

"On his way back, he saw that there was another car accident on the road. He, being a doctor, got out and went to go see if everyone was all right. But—but just as he was getting out, a car wasn't able to stop in time." Pepper squeezed her closed lids, struggling to keep the tears from falling. Her voice quavered however, not letting her hide the pain. "He was alive just until he got to the hospital. Extreme blood loss from internal broken bones." Pepper said flatly.

Tony hadn't uttered a word, but just kept his eyes on her. "After they told me, I was obviously devastated. And well the next two months was just me trying to pay off bills and loans that were piled up from both Daniel and I. I had to spend my savings on Daniel's funeral, and since I was on maternal leave, I had no income."

Tony's hand shot up, stopping her. "Hold on… you're broke?" It was a brutal way to put it, but he wasn't here to be soft.

"Yes. I have been for three months now."

"Where do you live?"

Pepper's eyes casted downward, her face flushing red. "I had to sell our house, because I couldn't afford it. I live with a friend at her apartment, not to far from here."

Tony's face fell in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me. Pepper—Pepper, Jesus." He had nothing to say, nothing but his shocked expression. "What about Virgil? Did he help you any way?"

Pepper's face was getting redder, and more tears welled up. "Tony, he died three years ago. A month after Daniel and I's first anniversary. I'm-" She choked on her words. "I'm so alone."

His best friend, Tony's most trusted best friend was torn apart into pieces. Her life was wrecked after Daniel's death. Her dream and life were just a shambled mess.

And none of it was fair.

Pepper didn't do anything to deserve this. But then again, life had a liking to screw up happy people's lives, just to prove that not even the happiest person in life would escape its fate.

Tony had already made up his mind; long before Pepper sat down at the table and slowly drank her vanilla latte. He wasn't sure she would be as welcoming to the idea, but he was going to do it for her.

"Pepper, you're coming home with me." Because after all, he promised her ten years ago that he'll always be there for her.

One of my sadder stories, I know. But I really couldn't help the idea. And yeah, please disregard the author's note above, I don't have time to write an update, but maybe tomorrow! My summer classes start Monday, and I'll be heading to Memphis Thursday, so we'll see if I can squeeze in an update!

As always, thanks for being so patient with me and reading my stories. Please review and let me know what story you want updated next. It can be this one, or another one of my older stories. Whatever you want!

Loves and Kisses to you guys. – PercyJacksonLover14