So, you wanna know what Tony's finding next? Let's go and see...

Chapter 8 - Part 3

It seemed to have worked, as suddenly all sounds around him fell silent. Tony lost his balance and tilted backwards when the desk behind him vanished as well. He climbed to his feet and looked around. This was Pepper's previous apartment, before she had moved in with him. He hadn't been here very often, as Pepper's second home had always been either the company or his mansion. But he had helped her transport her belongings; therefore he recognized the place immediately.

Interestingly enough, it was already dark outside, even though it had been broad daylight just a second ago. That meant, Pepper ought to be here soon, if she didn't work overtime. So he should look around before she arrived, otherwise he would be distracted again. Alright, somewhere there had to be some pictures of her and a guy, a second tooth brush in the bathroom, maybe some male clothing in the wardrobe. But after quickly looking around, he didn't find anything. Suddenly, he heard a slumping sound behind himself and something frizzy was rubbing against his leg. He looked down and saw… a cat! The cat looked at him and … meowed.

Wait! Why is this furry monster staring at me? Tony thought confused. He bent down and approached the little guy with both hands. And indeed, he could lift him. This gets more and more weird… He held the small bundle of fluff with extended arms in front of himself, and the longhaired Maine Coon curiously stared back with green-brown eyes. The pet wore a collar with a small heart shaped pendant, a name engraved on it: Jarvis!

Tony laughed and shook his head, while he placed Jarvis 2 on his arm and began fondling the cat's smooth, dark-brown fur. It responded with a loud purr.

"Jarvis? How is it possible that your namesake can see me, and I can even touch him?"

"Well, Sir," the invisible voice of his artificial assistant began to speak. "There is the theory that children and animals have a more open perception of supernatural phenomena than adult humans. It is likely that you read this at some point in your life; therefore, your subconscious has considered this as fact."

"Of course, what else. My subconscious sucks! It's showing me things but in a way I'd want them to be, and not how they really could be."

Before Jarvis could voice a response, the sound of the apartment door opening was heard. Jarvis, the cat, jumped off Tony's arm, landed on its white paws that looked like short ankle socks, and ran meowing to the front door.

"Hey J," Tony heard Pepper saying. He went slowly from the bedroom to the corridor and stood still in the doorframe. He still felt like a burglar, as he stood there and eyed Pepper secretly. Then he watched her hang her jacket on the coat rack, slip off her pumps and walk barefooted into the living room with a plastic bag in her hand. Apparently, she had brought food from her favorite Chinese restaurant with her. Tony followed her into the living room. There, she undressed her skirt and put on a pair sweatpants instead, which had been lying on an armchair. She then seated herself on the sofa and unwrapped her dinner. Jarvis had been following her, too, and jumped on the sofa near Pepper, where he started clamoring.

"Excuse me, Jarvis," Pepper took note of her tomcat's loud mew with a smile. "Of course, you're hungry, too." So she got up again and went into the kitchen, where she served her tomcat a can of cat food. She patted his head one more time and returned to her own meal on the sofa.

Great, Stark. You really seem to think that without you Pepper would end up as a lonely single with a cat! Tony began slowly getting angry with himself, and most likely he would end this farce immediately. But how did you wake up from a dream on purpose? Especially, when it was so real that it scared you to death? While these thoughts crossed his mind, Pepper's telephone was ringing. But Pepper didn't let herself to be disturbed and let the answering machine do the job.

"Hi, this is Virginia, after the beep you can leave a message."

"Hey, Ginny, this is Kathy. I know you're at home, so will you kindly answer the phone?"

Pepper rolled her eyes, but then reached with a free hand for the cordless phone.

"Yeah, I'm here. What's up?"

Tony walked around the coffee table and took a seat at the other end of the sofa, about three feet away from Pepper, to be able to understand their conversation better. And while he was already there…

"Yes, I'm happy to hear you, too, Virginia. Is that the way to greet your best friend?"

"I'm sorry, it was an exhausting day; I only just came home."

"All right, I'll forgive you." Tony heard a cheerful laugh at the other end of the phone line. "Let me guess… Battle-axe Taylor covered you with piles of work, right?"

"You've got it, Kat. Sometimes I believe I'm managing the work of half of the company…"

"I don't understand anyway why you still go through all this trouble and keep up working for Stark Industries. I mean, since your boss is missing and the old man assumed the leadership, your career is in a tailspin, isn't it?"

"I simply like working there…," Pepper said, hemming and hawing.

"If you say so… by the way, I met Ben recently," Kathy told casually.

"Really? How is he doing?"

"Oh, given the fact that you broke off your engagement a few weeks ago, surprisingly well." Tony started to listen attentively. "He sends his kind regards, incidentally. And he said, if you'd come to your senses again, he may be content to take you back."

"He didn't really say that, did he?"

"No, he didn't… but he could have. For some strange reason, he still seems to hope you could change your mind. Until now, I don't understand how you could leave him overnight."

"I explained that to you already…."

"Then explain it again, maybe I'll grasp it this time."

Pepper sighed, and Tony listened with fascination. So she had been engaged, but what had happened?

"Ben was… nice… and kind… a great guy, no doubt. But… it didn't feel right. I simply couldn't imagine spending the rest of my life with him. Something was just missing…"

"For example?"

"The feeling of having butterflies in my stomach when he touched me. Or weak knees when he looked at me." Pepper's eyes started to shine while telling this.

"To hear you talk like that, I would suppose your heart already belongs to someb…" Kathy stopped in the middle of her sentence. "Oh no… don't tell me you're still attached… to your missing boss? Ginny, please tell me I'm wrong!"

"I don't know what you're talking about, Kat."

"Oh please, don't take me for a fool! You had a crush on Tony before. Then he disappears, and you cry your eyes out. And instead of looking for a new job, where your skills are appreciated, you waste yourself away in his company! And now this subject regarding Ben. Wake up, Virginia! Tony is dead! You can't mourn after him for the rest of your life!"

"As long as they didn't find his body, he is not dead!" Pepper spat into the phone.

"Oh really? Okay, assuming he is still alive, and he reappears, all of a sudden. Then what, huh? Do you think you'd be his assistant as if nothing had happened? Or better still; he finally realizes that he has always loved you too, marries you and you'll live happily ever after! Is that what you really believe?"

"That's mean, Kat…," Pepper said quietly. Her eyes were filled with tears of anger.

Tony would have loved nothing better than to put his arms around her to comfort her, but this was impossible. Was this Kathy right? Bullshit, that's just your subconscious…

"I'm sorry, sweetie, but I'm really worried about you…. don't waste your life waiting for a guy you'll never have. That's not worth it."

"Well, maybe I'll call Ben, eventually…," Pepper answered, obviously depressed.

"Yeah, do it. He'll surely be happy."

"Listen, I still have some work to do, clean up and stuff. Let's talk again in a couple of days, okay?"

Tony had to smirk. Pepper could indeed lie without turning red!

"Sure. So long!"

"Bye." Pepper hung up and let the phone fall on the table in front of her. She leaned back and closed her eyes.

Tony got up from the sofa and walked up and across the room.

"Jarvis?"

"I'm here, Sir."

"Okay, buddy. That's it. How do I get out of here?"

"Have all of your questions been answered?"

"You're not seriously asking me that, are you? Of course not. My awesome subconscious only showed me what I wanted to see! This must have been the most unnecessary dream of all time."

"I must correct you on that, Sir. In fact, your subconscious has only processed data you already knew, but either forgot or simply ignored. So it seems probable that Miss Potts harbored romantic feelings for you for a longer time than you had been aware of."

"That would mean… if Pepper has always been in love with me…then I would break her heart instead of improving her situation. Because without me… she'd be miserable nonetheless. How could I've be so blind; I'm an idiot!"

Tony went back to the sofa. Halfhearted, Pepper was picking at her now cold food, until she finally pushed it away. Tony knelt down in front of her and laid his hand on hers, knowing well that he couldn't touch her.

"Maybe I can't promise that we'll be living happily ever after. But I'll do anything to make you as happy as possible. I promise you…"

Suddenly, Tony felt he could hardly keep his eyes open from fatigue. And he heard a voice… Tony… Tony, wake up… He opened his eyes wide abruptly and raised his head. He was sitting in his workshop at Stark Tower again. And his neck was aching as he had fallen asleep twisted on the table. Perplexed, he glanced around.

"Tony, is everything OK?" Pepper stood near him, her hand on his shoulder.

He jumped off the chair and yanked the surprised Pepper into his arms. He squeezed her so tightly, she could hardly breathe. But she let it happen and hugged him back.

"Did you have a nightmare again?" She then asked carefully.

"Something like that," he murmured, pressing his face to her warm neck. "I'm just happy you're here."

And in this moment a thought was developing in Tony's mind. Now he knew what had to be done.