A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for all the wonderful reviews and words. I know I don't do it often, but I just wanted to say that I'm very thankful for each and every one of your reviews. I write tons of drabbles and ficlets on my Tumblr, tripnskip, in case anyone was interested in those! Again, thank you!
Tony Stark never let anyone in his workshop. His workshop was about himself—his toys, his cars, and his own thoughts. The only person who was ever allowed to enter his workshop, beside himself and JARVIS, was James Rhodes. Why? Because he trusted him. Trust was a hard thing to come by, especially for Tony, because trust meant being close to someone, and Tony was rarely close to anyone. Personal feelings weren't his strong suit. Not even Obediah was allowed in his workshop.
Tony would bring all sorts of women home, and he never let a single one of them enter his workshop. They were always escorted out, either by his personal assistant, JARVIS, or his body guard, Happy Hogan.
It was a stormy night when the list increased by one.
"No, there are fifteen different things that I need to do by tomorrow, and it's already ten at night." Pepper said hastily into her phone, as she entered Tony's mansion. She had a manila folder of papers in one hand, and an umbrella in the other. She did her best to shake out the water from her umbrella before entering any further. She hung up the umbrella on a nearby rack and walked into the living room.
"Yes," Pepper smiled. "I'll be sure to call him tomorrow. Please tell dad I'm sorry I couldn't make it to his birthday dinner." She told her mom, whom was on the other side of the phone. "Yes, I already sent him his present." She looked at her watch and nearly panicked. "Oh, I have to go mom. I'll call again tomorrow. Good night." She said her good-byes to her mother and walked into the kitchen.
There was no food out, nor were there any remnants, which meant one of two things, either Tony didn't eat, as usual, or ate out, both figuratively and physically. She rolled her eyes at the thought.
"JARVIS," Pepper called out, sitting down on a nearby couch in the living room, and opening the manila folder on her lap. Several papers needed to be signed, but she had to sort them first. She usually left a stack for Tony to sign by the next morning. "Is Mr. Stark in his workshop?"
"Yes, Miss Potts." The AI replied.
"Can you please connect me to the intercom?" She asked, sifting through the papers.
A few seconds of silence passed. "I'm afraid Mr. Stark refuses to speak with anyone at the moment."
Pepper stopped what she was doing and straightened her back. "That's… odd." She pressed her lips together. "Well, can you please tell Mr. Stark that he needs to sign these papers by Thursday?" She asked JARVIS, while she stood up from the couch. She was about to place the appropriate papers on top of the kitchen counter until JARVIS said something he's never said before.
"Of course, although, you might be able to notify him yourself. Mr. Stark wishes to see you in his workshop."
Pepper froze. She had never been to his workshop. From the moment she started working for him, she was always told that his workshop was off limits. Employees from Stark Industries always spread rumors about his workshop—what it contained, what he did in there, why no one saw it.
"Um…" Pepper hummed. "Okay." She didn't know what to do. It felt like she was being called to her supervisor's office for something wrong she did, but she couldn't think as to why he'd want to see her in his workshop.
Pepper followed JARVIS' directions and found a spiraling staircase, right next to a wondrous and calming part piece. Her heels clicked down the stairs, and soon she stopped in front of a glass door. She saw machines, gadgets, gizmos, and anything you could imagine in an engineer's workshop. Off to the left, in the back of the workshop, she saw his expensive cars and a hot rod.
"1-8-9-4"
JARVIS' words confused her. "Huh?" Pepper asked, looking at the door in front of her.
"The passcode, Miss Potts."
Pepper furrowed her eyebrows and touched the door. The door revealed a keypad that was directly above the door handle. She nervously, and curiously, pressed in the combination, and with a pop, the door opened. She entered cautiously, all while observing and admiring the different objects and machinery around her.
"Wow…" Pepper gasped, as she saw plans for different kinds of warheads, bombs, and missiles.
"Pretty cool, huh?" A voice behind her said.
Pepper's heart nearly jumped out of her chest. She spun around and saw Tony standing there with a dirty cloth between his hands. His hair was tousled, his shirt had grease stains, he had a pair of old jeans on, and he smelled like metal and motor oil. He looked absolutely gorgeous.
"Uh-uh, yeah." Pepper fumbled with her words. "It's amazing down here." She said, looking around them.
Tony grinned to himself. He always admired Pepper's reactions; she is a new personal assistant, after all.
"I'm actually surprised you're letting me in here." Pepper said, finally locking eye contact with him.
Tony smirked and threw the dirty cloth onto his desk. "How long have you been my personal assistant?" He asked.
"A little over three months."
Tony nodded. "You've dealt with drunk Tony, correct?" He asked with furrowed eyebrows.
Pepper pressed her lips together and nodded back. "Yes, more times than I can count." She replied with a more than pleasant tone.
"And do you remember what you said to me a few days ago when you shoved my drunk ass into your car?" He raised his eyebrow at her and smiled politely.
She had to think about it. She dealt with his drunkenness countless times, so many times that they've all started to mold together. Of course, she yelled at him every single time.
"Not entirely, but it must've been pretty memorable, since you remember it."
Tony leaned against his desk and folded his arms across his chest. "You told me how pathetic I was, how stupid I was to live such a pointless life. You sounded fed up with me, and I'm pretty sure you were. You told me I made weapons of mass destruction, got drunk every other night, had sex with random women every week, and gave you the most stress you've had in all your life."
Pepper stared at him and started to remember the entire one-sided conversation they had in her car. She was furious at him, especially since he refused to go to a Board of Directors meeting the very same day. The Board was not happy with her and they didn't let her get off so easily, so yes, she wasn't exactly a happy camper when Tony called her in the middle of the night, drunk and unable to get home.
"So, why, Miss Potts?" Tony asked, staring at her with the most gorgeous brown eyes she's ever seen.
She took a moment to keep her hormones in check. "Why, what, Mr. Stark?"
"Why stay as my personal assistant?" His smile left his face. He held a much more serious expression, one that she had never seen before. "If I infuriate you, cause you more stress than you can possibly handle, and piss you off, why do you keep coming back to work? Why aren't you quitting like all the other personal assistants I've had?"
Pepper pressed her lips together. She couldn't explain why, because she didn't know the answer herself. She hated picking up his mess. Her job was more along the lines of personal nanny than personal assistant. She's had to rant to numerous friends about her job, just to relieve some of the stress, and even then, she didn't know why she always came back.
She tightened her grip on the manila folder in her hands. "To be honest with you, Mr. Stark…" She started out. He tilted his head to the side, willing, and waiting, to hear her answer. "…Even I don't know the exact reason. You're the most exasperating man I've ever had to deal with. Your ego is off the charts, you refuse to have a decent conversation with a woman because all you think about is having sex with them, and you refuse to go to your own meetings because you think they have no meaning, you're present at more parties than meetings, and you flirt with every woman you lay eyes on."
Tony widened his eyes, looked away, and nodded. He was shocked, not because of the things she listed, but because she said it to his face. Not many people would say that to him without wanting to be fired on the spot. "Wow. That was—"
"But, you're also a kind and sensible man." Pepper cut him off. He looked back at her with a longing expression. He couldn't remember when anyone called him 'kind' or 'sensible'. "Many people don't see it, but I do." She told him with a small, heartwarming smile. "I know about the foster home you've been giving money to, and I know you visit your parent's graves every year. I know you don't celebrate Christmas because your parents died around that time, and I know you don't like having personal relationships with anyone."
Tony continued to stare at her. How did she know this much? Happy told her… or Rhodey. One of the two. His eyes were a soft shade of brown, and it made him look vulnerable and full of sorrow.
"I'm proud of you, Tony Stark." Her smile widened. Tony's mouth started gaping; no one had told him that before, not even his own father. "I'm proud of who you're trying to become, even if it does require my stress levels to go overboard."
Tony's lips slowly formed a pleasing smile. Those were possibly the most kind and pleasant words anyone has ever said to him. She was definitely a keeper. Even if he wanted to, he didn't think he could ever bring himself to fire her. He pointed at her. "Remember the passcode."
Pepper shook her head and furrowed her eyebrows at him. "What?" She thought she was going to get a thank you, a hug, or something remotely close to a praise.
"The passcode you used to get inside here." Tony responded, grabbing a wrench off his desk. "It's yours now, so don't forget it."
Pepper turned her head to the door and then to him, confused and a little disappointed. Tony started walking off deeper into his workshop.
"Um—uh, wait, wait, wait, I thought you didn't let anyone down here. I've only been your personal assistant for three months—"
He turned around and gave her a small smile. "Guess it's a good a time as any to let you in then, huh? Think of it as a gift, Miss Potts." He trusted her. He didn't want to say it, but he did, in his own way. He smiled to himself as he heard the clicks of her heels leave his workshop.
It was a sound he could love to get used to.
