Disclaimer: I do not own Marvel or any of its characters and lines from the movie used in this story. What is written here is for entertainment purposes only. I do not make any profits from it.
Pepper stirs abruptly awake at the sound of the car pulling up the driveway. She rises from the armchair groggily and checks her wristwatch to see that it's 3 in the morning.
From her spot in the living room, she can see her husband walk in the front door, his shoulders hunched like he's carrying some invisible weight on his back. It's been like that for about a year now. Ever since Obadiah brought in new clients, cranked up production, pressured Tony for more ingenious, more deadly weapons, and running him ragged as a result.
Pepper calls him and he stops midway towards the workshop.
"Tony."
His head is angled slightly towards her and she can see him straining to hear her.
She walks to him, touches his arm, and says again, "Tony."
A blank and weary face looks back at her. She hardly recognizes him anymore.
Pepper frowns, bringing a hand up to his cheek. As she does so, she notices the lipstick smear on his jaw.
She knows what it means, even if she has no idea who it belongs to. She resists the urge to study the rest of his person, to see if his suit is rumpled or if other parts of his body have lipstick stains.
She wipes the smear away with her thumb and Tony shakes his head.
"Nothing happened," he says tiredly and she barely catches it.
"Something could have."
"Are you gonna leave me?" he asks her, resigned, like he's given up. She finds the sight so foreign and strange.
Pepper folds her arms across her chest and shakes her head, not as a response but more as a lack of one. She has no idea what to say. She can't summon enough energy to be angry at him.
She can only manage disappointment.
Her folded arms spread to hug herself and she thinks back as to how she and Tony had ever gotten here. They used to be happy.
…
"Not to be rude and all but… you're in my spot."
The redhead kneeling over Howard and Maria Stark's grave looked up at him.
Tony thought she was cute even with the tears trickling down her freckled face and the hiccups coming out of her.
She frowned. "What?"
Tony pointed at the headstones, annoyed. "Those are my parents." Then, he pointed at her. "You're in my spot. Crying. And mourning. Literally doing the things I should be doing." He failed to mention that the sight of her made him want to do something to make her happy and, well, talking to her seemed like the way to go.
She turned to read the headstones, then looked back at Tony. Then she cried again.
Maybe he should have shut up.
"I'm sorry," she said to him, wiping her eyes with the back of her palm.
Tony shrugged. "It's fine. I guess you can cry over their graves seeing as I don't anymore."
"So stupid." The redhead looked left and right, and then finding what she was looking for, scooted over to the headstones beside the Starks'.
Tony looked and read the names on them. James Potts and Mary Potts. Died just a month ago.
"Those your parents?"
She nodded amidst a hiccup.
"What happened?" he asked.
"They died," she answered bitterly.
Tony shrugged again. "Fair enough." He plopped down beside her. He showed her the bottle of scotch that he had in his hand. "Wanna get drunk? More fun than crying."
The woman stared at the bottle then up at him. She nodded.
…
They're both seated in the living room, Pepper with her elbows on her knees and Tony with his head in his hands.
She had sat down after he asked her if she wanted to leave him. He followed shortly after.
Pepper's the first to break the silence. "I don't think you should go to Afghanistan tomorrow."
Tony raises his head, his eyes wide, the first time it has shown any sign of emotion since he arrived.
"What? I have to go. If this is because of the other woman I—"
Pepper sighs. "This marriage is falling apart, Tony." She raises her palms up. "Even before the other woman whom you did nothing with. I don't know if you've noticed but we haven't been a married couple for a year now. You're always down in the workshop. You brush me off when I schedule dates or if I want to help you work. I barely see you. We don't even sleep in the same bed! If you go to Afghanistan, we'll just be pushing our problems back until we lose sight of it and we won't get to fix any of this."
"Pep, I have to go."
Pepper pushes herself off the couch with a snort, interrupting Tony. She folds her arms. "We are going through a crisis right now! You almost cheated on me! Is that even registering in your brain? Anybody can do the demo, Tony! Anybody can push a button to fire a missile. But this marriage is—"
Tony jumps to his feet. "Nobody can do it like I can! Obie says I—"
"Obie!" cries Pepper, hands waving in frustration. "That man is an interloper in our marriage."
"Pep, don't be like that. He entrusted this to me is all."
Pepper's hands fall limp at her side. "And I entrusted myself to you. Do you remember that? When we both promised to put each other first before anything, before work? Do you remember when you promised me I'd be happy? I haven't been happy for a long time, Tony. You haven't been happy for a long time and it all began when Obie pressured you into making bigger projects."
Tony shakes his head, refusing to listen. Pepper doesn't understand, he tells himself.
Pepper sighs. "Do you want to save this marriage?"
Tony doesn't look at her.
He doesn't answer.
…
Tony slowed his motorcycle at the sight of the redhead walking the street beside him.
"Hey!"
She glanced at him and then continued walking.
He kept at it. "Hey! You need a ride?"
She didn't acknowledge him.
Tony finally got off his bike and ran after her.
He caught her by the arm and she swiftly turned around, spraying something at him.
Fortunately for Tony, his helmet took most of the hit.
"What the hell!" He moved away. "It's me! The guy from the cemetery!"
Through the small droplets of liquid on his face shield, Tony saw the woman drop her hand which was holding a small bottle of pepper spray and eye him suspiciously.
Tony took off his helmet, but not before studying the damage done to it.
"Scotch guy!" she exclaimed.
Tony looked at her. "Yeah. That's me… pepper girl."
The redhead frowned at him. "I'm not apologizing for that. You could've introduced yourself instead of grabbing me and giving me a heart attack."
Tony's lips twitched in amusement. He held up his hand. "My name's Tony. And I'm sorry I scared you."
The woman repressed a smile as she took his hand. "Virginia. Sorry I pepper sprayed you."
Tony laughed. "Meh. Helmet got most of it." He cocked his head at the nearest eating establishment. "Come on, Pepper. I'll let you buy me a drink to make up for it."
"I think you should buy me a drink for what just happened. Also, don't call me Pepper."
"You'll get used to it."
…
Rhodey eyes his best friend from across the table.
Not only did he arrive to the airport on time, which in itself is a troubling feat, but he's been on his best behavior. Not one naughty comment or leer at the attractive flight attendants or at Rhodey.
"What's wrong with you?" Rhodes asks him. "You're acting weird. And uncharacteristically quiet."
Tony plays with his hot towel and then downs his sake. That part, at least, is not unlike him.
"My marriage is over."
Rhodey gives him an exasperated look. "What did you do?"
"Why is it always something I di—" At Rhodey's pointed look, Tony gives up and pours himself another round of sake. "Okay. She says I'm inattentive. Absent. A workaholic." He drinks it. "She's not wrong. But you know, it's temporary. As soon as I finish all of Obie's orders, everything's gonna go back to normal."
Rhodey presses his lips together to stop himself from saying something he might regret. The thing is, he very much doubts that Tony's gonna stop after this batch. The man grew up with a father who didn't give him a second glance nor ever said he was proud of him. Then, Obadiah came in full of praise and a boatload of moral support. Of course, Tony's going to want to please the man that's like a father—a better one—to him.
"I'm sorry, man… What are you gonna do?"
"What I can do. Work. I… I'm gonna work."
…
"Is this weird?" Tony asked, his nose scrunched up.
"Us having a date? Or us having a date in the cemetery where we just introduced each other to our dead parents?"
"No," he replied, holding a block of cheese up Pepper's nose. "Is this cheese supposed to smell like this?"
Pepper took a whiff then drew back, nose similarly wrinkled as Tony's. "Yeah. That's funky."
Tony put the cheese back in the picnic basket just as someone said, "Well, I think this is definitely weird."
The couple turned to see James Rhodes standing awkwardly behind them.
"Jim!" Pepper greeted, smiling widely. "Come join us!"
Tony immediately stood up to stop his friend. "Actually he's not invited. I just asked him to bring the dessert I forgot."
He held out an open palm for the package.
Rhodes had a teasing grin on his face as he handed the cupcake box, then pushed past Tony to go to Pepper. "Yeah, well, you ask me to be delivery boy, I get to stay."
Tony narrowed his eyes and then joined them, sitting on the empty space beside Pepper' He prevented her from eating a sandwich and then proceeded to loudly kiss her.
Rhodes groaned taking the hint. "Okay. I'm leaving."
Tony laughed while Pepper berated him.
"Why do you always have to tease him like that?"
"Because! I don't want him around when we eat dessert." Tony started fiddling with the ribbons around the cupcake box.
"Is that a euphemism for sex? Because I'm not having sex with you in front of our dead parents."
"No. I really mean dessert." He successfully untied the ribbons and began to open the box. "I had it specially made. You'll love it."
The box is opened and he took out a cupcake. Well, one made of plastic that said 'Don't Eat Me' on the wrapper and right on top was a diamond ring.
Pepper looked up at Tony, mouth slightly agape, a question in her eyes.
"So, um… Could I take you out, and uh, maybe get married?" he asked a bit nervously.
Pepper snorted a laugh. Of course, he would ask her to get married like he'd ask her out on a date.
"Why me?" she asked, "there are so many other—"
"There's no one else," Tony replied softly. He glanced at his parents' graves. "I have no one else but you… And Rhodey," he added as an afterthought. "But I don't really swing that way, so…"
"We've only been dating for like two months."
"Well, you've made me so happy in those two months. And I haven't been that happy. Not since… the accident. And ever since I saw you crying in this very spot, I've always wanted to make you happy." He abandoned the cupcake on the picnic blanket and took Pepper's hands. "Feeling like that… that doesn't happen to me. So I figured, if you're the one who makes me feel—no, not feel because feelings change—makes me want to be selfless, to be better, I figured… I'd ask you to be my wife before you become the one that got away."
Pepper smiled and then cupped his cheek to kiss him.
"Is that a yes?" he said against her mouth.
She nodded.
…
They are ambushed.
Everyone is killed.
But not him.
He hears the voice the first time when he is waterboarded. They have a hand on the back of his head, submerging it forcefully under the water and he hears it: Tony!
The second time is when they manhandle him and a wire is tugged from the electromagnet on his chest. The sudden spark he feels triggers the voice in his head.
Tony!
This time he recognizes it. Pepper. Pepper's voice.
His eyes fall close, barely feeling the punch to his gut.
Tony!
He feels oddly comforted by it, shielding him from the pain. It makes him feel safe despite the fact that his captors are doing a number on him.
It makes him reckless.
He starts doing things wrong on purpose in order to get punished, to talk back and keep refusing the Ten Rings what they want so they can torture him and torture him and torture him.
It's all worth it because he hears her every single time.
He's determined her voice will be the last thing he hears.
…
"Loss connected us. Heartache and sadness. We bonded over it. And I remember when I met you crying over your parents that I thought: I want to make this girl happy. Even just for a while. One of us has to be… But it didn't turn out the way I planned. Because you made me happy."
Pepper smiled at Tony.
"Pepper, I promise to love you and make you happy all the days of your life. Even if I'm dead, I'm gonna haunt you and send you dead roses until you're sick of me. There's no 'till death do us part' for you and me, Potts. You're stuck."
The wedding guests laughed.
…
Pepper can barely feel the floor beneath her feet. She only vaguely remembers that she has to hold on to the phone if only to hear what Rhodey has to say next.
"We're gonna find him, Pepper."
"I… I told him not to go," she half-stammers, half-whispers.
"What?"
"Before he left. We had an argument. I told him not to go to Afghanistan and he went and he said… He said I could leave him if it makes me any happier." She closes her eyes and tears trickle down her cheeks. She isn't any happier.
"Is he going to—is he—" she sobs and gasps in between words. 'Is he gonna leave me?' gets lost in between.
…
"You need to stop goading congress," Pepper said over the phone.
"But it's so fun!"
"Well, not for me! Tony, Obadiah made me head of PR because he knew I could somehow make you act properly and if I couldn't, at least spin it to make it appear that way." Pepper waved at her assistant to come back later. "Are you listening to me?"
"What? Yeah, yeah. I just, I have to finish this. Obie's presenting it to the brass tomorrow. Can't let him down."
"Are we still on for date night?"
"Yep, yep. I'll pick you up."
He doesn't.
…
"Are you trying to kill yourself, Stark?" Yinsen asks as he finishes resetting Tony's shoulder. When Tony doesn't answer, he says, "You are."
Yinsen paces around the cave and finally stops.
"Stop this! If you think they're going to kill you, they won't. They need you."
Tony grimaces. "Then, I'll just try harder, won't I?"
Yinsen sighs, runs a hand over his face. "Do you have a family, Stark?"
A Tony echoes faintly in the billionaire's head. The first time he's heard it while he's not being hurt.
It makes him nod even though he's not sure if Pepper still wants to be his wife. He ignores the pang of guilt; he doesn't have the right to feel guilty.
"A wife," he croaks, suddenly feeling like he can't breathe at the thought of not having Pepper for a wife, at the thought of him dying and leaving her all alone, grieving all over again, sobbing over his grave. Unhappy. Just like before.
And all because he put his freaking job first.
"If they can't kill you to make weapons, Stark, they'll kill all those you love to do it."
Tony's jaw tightens.
He's not going to let that happen.
…
"Great news!" exclaimed Tony as he burst into their bedroom. "Okay, maybe not great news for us but Obie managed to get SI in the expo in Bern! So, we'll just have to move the skiing to another date because I'm gonna need you to work your super powers for the event."
Pepper put her laptop aside and frowned at Tony. "Tony, it's our anniversary trip. You're going to make us work?"
Tony deflated slightly. "It's just one day, Pep. It's not… it's not gonna take the whole vacation."
"The idea was to get away from work."
Tony climbed up the bed and sat on his knees beside her. "I know, I know! But maybe we could pause that for one day. Just an exception. We haven't really made a presence in Switzerland yet. This is our way in!"
Pepper sighed, mentally cursing Obadiah for putting this in Tony's head. He knew very well that they were going to be on leave. But then again, it was a good PR move.
"Alright. Anything else I need to know?"
Tony suddenly looked guilty. "Yeah… um… Don't be mad. He's not gonna be a third wheel but… Obie's coming with us."
…
"Tony! Tony!"
She's running towards him and he has her in his arms. She's sobbing in his ear.
Tony! Tony!
It crumbles all of Tony's resolve and he crushes her closer to him, his body shuddering with hers. Every emotion he's tried to hold back, every feeling he's delayed for the year all comes rushing in.
It hurts. It's overwhelming him. But it's better than feeling nothing.
The sound of her sobs makes him want to throw up. He's never wanted this for her. Never wanted what happened to have happened to any of them, to him, to the soldiers who died, to Yinsen.
"I'm sorry," he gasps in her ear. "I'm sorry. I'll do better. I promise." He says it to her, says it to the Americans who died, to Yinsen.
He hopes he won't break it.
She pulls away and kisses him. Her face is wet. So is his.
"Thank you for not leaving me," he says.
She shakes her head. "You're all I have too, you know."
A/N: This idea wouldn't leave my head.