After getting a message on her cell phone during the night from Tony via Jarvis that went along the lines of 'fishing isn't so good…need to stay a few more days,' Pepper decided to head into the office early to see how much more of the box she could get through. This box and Mary were like a book she just couldn't put down when it came to Tony.
Most of the building was still empty when Pepper went back into Tony's office and started with the baby book first before everyone got there. Just by looking at the layout and styling, she could tell how meticulous Maria Stark had to have been. The book started with his first baby picture, the one they take in the hospital and a copy of his birth certificate underneath. Mary was right; Tony was a cute baby with his messy dark hair and dark knowing eyes. As she turned the pages, she found all the typical things that most baby books had – the footprints, his hospital bracelet, first hair cut. Then there were the pictures. Howard and Maria Stark in front of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree with an eight month old Tony in Maria's arms. The family playing on the beaches of California with a huge sand castle. What Pepper was surprised about though was no birthday party pictures. There were many pictures of Tony as a baby up through at least ten but no birthday parties. Pepper assumed that Tony would have had huge parties from his parents since he was the only child of Howard Stark.
"Mary? Feel like walking down memory lane again?" Pepper asked with a smile. "I'll provide the snacks."
'You don't have to bribe me to reminisce. I love this stuff." Mary explained as she stepped away from her desk and ducked into Tony's office. "What can I help you with, dear?"
"I was going through the box and his baby book and I didn't see any photos from any birthday parties, except for his first. Where are all of them?" Pepper asked.
"There actually won't be many of them," Mary said a bit sadly. "I only remember one…his eighth birthday and it was not a happy one," she added as she pulled out an invitation.
It was two weeks before Tony's eighth birthday and his parents were throwing him a huge birthday party and letting him invite as many kids from school as he wanted mostly because he would not be seeing many of them next year when he starts high school. Genius always has a price and for Tony, it's friends his own age.
The party was Maria's idea. She had often watched as Tony tried to play with the other children on playgrounds and a few would until Tony's genius would slip out in what he said. The children would then look at him in confusion and walk away from him, leaving him alone. What made matters worse was that Tony was not going to play dumb just to fit in. He wasn't raised to deny his gifts but to embrace them and be grateful for what he had, remembering that many were not as fortunate as he was. Maria never brought this up to Howard because Tony just lit up when he got to spend time with his father and she believed that letting her husband know how lonely their son really was would hurt them both.
As the party approached, so many positive responses came in it had actually surprised Maria. Maybe she should have suggested this a while ago. Tony would actually have other children to play with.
As the day got closer, Tony's excitement built exponentially. Not even Howard could contain him with letting him help with things in the garage. Usually getting Tony covered in motor oil and engine grease kept him in one spot for a while. He would spend a few minutes with his father until his birthday was brought up and then he started bouncing with joy and caused a few unwanted stains on his mother's expensive Persian rug, which Maria made him scrub out as a reminder not to do it again. She didn't blame Tony though; she blamed Howard for getting their son up to his neck in oil.
On Tony's birthday, there were actually two parties going on at once. One was for the adults to socialize at, mostly employees and family friends. The other was the one for the children. As the adults started arriving, Tony parked himself on the window seat so he could see the driveway. He was watching all the people arrive and he was anxiously waiting for his friends. Tony recognized some of his father's guests as they entered the house and wished him a happy birthday – Mary, his father's secretary and Obadiah Stane, his father's business partner – but no children.
Tony's party was supposed to start at two in the afternoon and by half past three, not one child had shown up that he had invited. His happy smile had faded and sadness was quickly descending on him as most of the adults forgot that Tony was even sitting there.
Maria was furious about being lied to but her heart was breaking as she watched Tony sit at the window, hoping his friends would show up. It killed her when she saw tears rolling down his face as the minutes ticked by. She set her glass down on a side table and quickly crossed the room, taking the spot across from Tony on the window seat, opening her arms as an invitation to her son.
Tony looked up and nearly fell into his mother's embrace, sobbing silently as his mother stroked his hair. "No one likes me," he whispered. "Why don't they like me?" Tony sobbed.
"They don't know what they are missing, sweetie," Maria whispered as tears filled her eyes. She looked over to Howard, her eyes pleading to get rid of everyone as their son's heart broke.
Howard saw the look from his wife and his crying son and made some believable excuses to end things a bit earlier than expected. Once the last person had left, Howard took a seat behind Tony and lifted him up into his lap.
Tony responded by curling into his father just as he did with his mother, tears silently falling as he rested his head against his father's chest.
"He thinks that no one likes him," Maria repeated since Tony wasn't talking.
Howard sighed deeply. "It's nothing like that, Tony. They don't understand you. You're different than most of them. You're very special and very smart. Kids are hesitant when it comes to things they don't understand."
"I don't have to be smart. I can play with them." Tony said quietly through sniffs.
"You should not have to change just because of them. If they don't get how special you are as you are then they are not worth it. They will realize it one day and when that day comes, all of them will want to be around you and you'll be able to decide which ones you want to give your time to." Howard said gently.
"When will that be?" Tony asked as he looked up at his father.
"I can't tell you," Howard answered honestly as he hugged his son. "I'm still waiting on some of the people who did the same thing to me." He said as he felt his son relax against him and there was a hint of a smile.
Maria saw Tony smile and that warmed her heart. "I promised you a birthday party and that's what you're going to get. It's your birthday; you tell me what you want to do."
"Do I have any presents?" Tony asked since he hadn't seen any of them.
"Do you have presents? Of course you do. Did you forget who your parents are here?" Howard said with a laugh as he called Edwin to open the dining room doors where Tony's birthday party had been set up. In the corner of the room past all the balloons and streamers was a pile of presents that could have been taller than Tony was. "Are those enough or do I need to go get more?" Howard joked as he let Tony tear into them.
After going through the board games, remote controlled cars, action figures and water guns, Tony got to the last two gifts, the ones with the cards. He went for the big one first, his father's. Tony opened the card and smiled. He never read the cards aloud and neither parent ever knew what the other wrote. He tore off the paper to reveal a brand new bike since he was quickly outgrowing his old one.
"I don't want to trying to upgrade this one without me, understood?" Howard told him.
"Yes Dad." Tony deadpanned as he moved to the smaller of the two. He opened his mother's card and felt a great deal better. Tony tore into the box and pulled out a stuffed Mickey Mouse. He was a little confused until he saw the envelope in Mickey's hands. "Disney World? We're going to Disney World?" Tony screamed as he hugged both of his parents.
"Yes baby. I figured you and your dad would love EPCOT." Maria said with a smile as she hugged Tony. "The real question is if I'll ever get the two of you out."
"Well that explains the mouse ears I found in the bottom." Pepper exclaimed as she closed the baby book.
"Those may have been Howard's." Mary said with a laugh. "Unfortunately, I don't think Tony has been back since."
"I may have to take him again." Pepper laughed. "I am sure Rhodey would love it."
"Be prepared to have to drag him out of Epcot."