Tony sat at the bar at the highest floor of Avengers tower and swirled the whiskey around his glass until he downed it in one gulp. Pepper tentatively approached him, her eyes drooping in sadness. He had been up here all day... Ever since Bruce had left. She had heard yelling and doors slamming and then Bruce was gone.

She could smell the alcohol the moment she stepped into the room and she shook her head. He hadn't drank like this in months. She came up behind him and before she could say a word he broke the silence.

"I know what you're thinking..." He mumbled, pouring himself another drink.

Pepper sat down beside him.

"You think I'm a fucking idiot." Tony said.

Pepper laughed loudly and put her hand on his thigh. "I do. I think you're stupid for being here, doing this, when you could be out there getting him back. If you really loved him you'd be out there."

"I do really love him!" Tony exclaimed, his face falling. "I just don't know how to convince him."

"You just have to go out there and take a chance. He knows he loves you... But I don't he's too certain of your feelings."

"How? I tell him all the time-"

"But do you show it?" Pepper asked.

"Yes. Of course I show it." Tony snapped.

"But maybe you don't show it enough." Pepper sighed. "Bruce is afraid, you should be able to see that. He's afraid to get hurt and he's very sensitive. He let his paranoia and anxiety get the best of him with this whole situation. You just need to talk to him. To really show him how much you love him. To make him forget his doubts."

Tony sat speechless for a moment and nodded, putting down his glass and sliding it away from him.

"If you aren't willing to fight for him then maybe you should move on." Pepper snapped, her frustration level rising.

"I can't!" Tony said, slamming his fist onto the counter, he groans. "Moving on from him is impossible when I can't get him out of my head."

"Tell me how much you love him..." Pepper whispered.

Tony eyebrows furrowed together. "What? Why? That's weird..."

Pepper gave him and look and Tony sighed, a tiny smile twisting up his lips.

"Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead end street... faster than the wind, passionate as sin, but it ended so suddenly..." Tony swallows and looks down at his fingers, picking at his fingernails. "Loving him is like trying to change your mind once you're already flying through the free fall, like the colors in autumn so bright just before they lose it all. Touching him is like realizing all you ever wanted was right there in front of you. Memorizing him was as easy as knowing all the words to your old favorite song. Loving him is... red."

Pepper looked and him and smiled, never had she heard Tony talk with such love, utter devotion, and compassion. Not even when he talked to her when they were together, not even when he was talking about Steve. He sounded poetic, she almost laughed as the thought entered her mind. Tony Stark? Poetic? Until that moment she never would've believed it, and even know with him sitting right in front of her, she found it hard. But she couldn't help but smile at his words because he spoke them with a serious truth. One she never thought he'd ever use... with anyone.

Tony shook his head solemnly and sighed. "But now that I've lost him... I don't feel that way..."

Pepper's eyebrows furrowed together. "How do you feel?

"Losing him is blue like I'd never known, missing him is dark grey all alone. Forgetting him is like trying to know somebody you've never met..."

Pepper looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "You aren't losing him... And you definitely shouldn't be trying to forget him. You got into your first fight, so what? Couples get into fights all the time... It's natural. Happy and I fight a lot but it makes us stronger. Fighting brings couples closer together."

Tony's face snapped to hers. "That's bullshit and you know it."

Pepper looked taken aback and before she could say a word he looked down and said, "You and I fought all the time... But you still left me."

Pepper felt as though she'd been slapped. "Tony..."

Tony just shook his head, looking away from her. "Don't."

Pepper took a deep breath and sighed. "Okay, it doesn't matter... What matters is that the man that you love just walked out of your life and you have to go and get him back, because you love him and you need him and you need to tell him that. You can't let him walk away without telling him just how you feel and what really happened. You just keep going over it again and again. I see it in your eyes... You care more deeply for him than you have ever cared about anyone... Even Steve... and even me, and that's something you should hold on to..."

Tony smiles bashfully and nods, "You know what, you're probably right."

Pepper chuckles, "I am right... I'm always right."

Tony chuckles and leans in to kiss her cheek. "I'm going to find him..."

Pepper smiled. "Good."

Suddenly Pepper's phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and looked down at it.

"Oh, it seems that he's already on his way here." Pepper said, a hint of surprise in her voice.

"Oh?" Tony said, cocking his head.

Pepper held up her phone. "Natasha was just with him. He just left and he's on his way here."

Pepper stands up and starts to walk to the door.

"You're leaving?" Tony asked her.

Pepper smiled. "You don't need me... Besides I'm going to join Natasha, nobody likes drinking alone." She smirked slightly and then sighed. "You can do this. Just tell him how you feel... Don't hold back."

Tony nodded. "I won't this time... I can't."

Pepper grinned. "Good."

Pepper left then and Tony sat at the bar waiting for Bruce to come. He took even breaths and a smile grew on his face. He was going to fix this and he was going to make it right.

Even if it was the last thing that he ever did.