Hey guys! I'm sorry to inform y'all that I'll be gone for three days while I'm at Florida.
Okay, you caught me, I'm not sorry at all. THE BEACHHHH. Woot-woot! Lulz. (;
So the next chapter will be up either late on Tuesday or Wednesday!
A huge thanks to everyone who reviewed/followed/favorited! I never expected to get this big of a response for my story, not at least until longgg after I had finished the story! But I'm only about halfway through and I've already got 20 reviews! Y'all are the best! (:
●Chapter Ten●
Annie © Me
Everything Else © Marvel
I had dropped the criminals off at the police station (I didn't go in, obviously. I didn't want to be arrested for being a vigilante). I waited until I got back in the car before doing my happy dance.
"I did it!" I sang excitedly, giving Tony a high-five.
He chuckled, rolling his eyes at me before pulling away from the curb.
"I mean, did you see the looks in their eyes when they saw my hands?" I asked, laughing to myself.
"You should've seen Tony's face," Nat added from the backseat, smirking. "He looked like he had just seen a monkey kissing a baby walrus with wings."
"Ha, you really should've seen Agent Romanoff's face," Tony chirped, doing his best attempt of a serious face, his mouth turning into a grim, straight line.
I laughed, and Tony chimed in. "Gee, Nat, happy to see you were impressed." I winked at her, and she scoffed.
"I told you your powers were impressive!" she defended.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were talking about my personality," I threw back, smirking.
"Oh my God, one Stark was enough," she muttered.
Tony and I laughed, fist-bumping.
By the time we got home, we had officially irritated the mess out of Nat. She pretty much launched herself out of the car, striding quickly out of the garage.
I chuckled, staring after her. "Seems like we successfully scared her off," I chimed.
"Huh. Guess we did." He winked at me before climbing out of the car. I followed suit, waving at Lily, who was buzzing from across the room.
I followed Tony, frowning in the uncomfortable silence. "This suit is so uncomfy," I stated, pulling down the pants a little. "I don't know how you handle wearing metal."
He shrugged. "You get used to it after a while," he said simply. "So was that all you can do?"
"Was what?"
"The fire thing. Catch your hands on fire, throw fireballs...?" Tony trailed off, waiting for me to fill in the blanks.
"Yeah. From what I know, anyway," I added, muttering the last part.
"What? So you mean... You're not sure yet? You haven't... tested other things?" Tony asked.
I shook my head. "I didn't really have much time or reason to."
"Well now you do," Tony prodded me in the side with his elbow, and I smiled a little.
We made it to the kitchen, finding Pepper and Nat sitting close together, whispering. This automatically made my stomach turn a little- it was beyond weird that they would talk like that. From what I've seen of the two together, it was the very definition of awkward. And now they were talking it up like they were best friends.
They caught sight of us and instantly stopped. Natasha leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest with an impassive look on her face while Pepper coughed nervously and blushed.
"Congratulations!" Pepper chirped, giving me a hug that I uncomfortably returned. "Your first villian." She held me out at arm's-length, holding onto my shoulders.
I glanced over at Tony, silently willing him to help me. He raised an eyebrow and just smirked, amused by my awkwardness. I glared back, and he winked.
"Nat told me everything. Good job," she praised before going to stand next to the counter.
"Thanks." I gave her a small smile.
"So, if you ladies don't mind, I think I'll take the three of you to a victory dinner tonight. It'll be strictly formal, so dresses, please." Tony said with a smirk.
"I can't," Nat stated, standing and crossing her arms. Tony raised his eyebrows in question. "I have to meet with a S.H.I.E.L.D. representative."
"Yeah, me either," Pepper added. "I have to go to a meeting with MIT."
Tony sighed, turning to me. "Guess it's just you and me, then. Be ready in two hours. Wear something pretty." He winked and left.
An hour and fifteen minutes later found me stomping my foot in frustration, standing in my closet with only a towel on.
"AnnaMarie? You okay?"
I looked over my shoulder to see Nat curiously peering around my door. She raised her eyebrows at my attire, easing herself into the room.
I huffed, pouting. "I don't have anything to wear."
She smiled a little. "I think I can help with that. As long as you let me fix your hair."
"What's wrong with my hair?" I asked, frowning as I self-consciously patted my wild, brown curls.
She gave me a sheepish grin before stepping forward and grabbing my hand. "We have to hurry."
"Are you two ready yet?" Tony demanded for the tenth time, knocking on the door.
"Stark, I will hurt you if you touch that door again," Natasha threatened, pulling the top half of my hair back into a half-up ponytail.
"Are you sure this isn't too dressy?" I questioned, biting my recently-glossed lips.
"Stop that," she snapped, swatting at my shoulder. I let go of my lip, giving her an apologetic smile in the mirror. "Absolutely not. If anything, you're under-dressed."
"Annie, I swear if you come out in jeans and a t-shirt-" Tony exclaimed before Nat cut him off with a swift, "Shut up, Stark!"
"There. Done." Nat stepped back, and I stood up, admiring myself in the mirror.
The dress I had borrowed from Nat was gorgeous; it was a black tanktop with white buttons all down the front. The bottom went down to my mid-thighs and flared a little at the ends, and the back was lace down to my waist. My hair was curled into tight waves, the top half pulled back while the rest fell just past my shoulders.
"Thanks, Nat," I said, smiling at my reflection in the mirror. I looked healthy, and I had gained back some of my muscle mass, so I was no longer thin and sickly-looking.
Nat smiled and nodded, walking over and opening the door, revealing a very frustrated Tony Stark.
"It's about damn time-" Tony cut off, his eyes snapping over to me. He raised an eyebrow, and I felt an uncharacteristic blush creep on my cheeks. "You clean up good for an invalid."
"I'm not an invalid," I mumbled in protest. I smoothed down the sides of my dress, feeling strangely nervous. "Are you sure this is okay? I'm not too dressed up?" I looked up at Tony, who was wearing a slick, dark gray suit and yellow and blue striped tie, and figured I was probably okay.
"No, you're fine, you look great. Come on," he waved me over, where he put his hand on the small of my back, steering me to one of the über expensive cars.
We made small talk on the twenty minute ride to the restaraunt, which looked huge. Tony put his hand on my back again as he led me into the dimly lit building. Immediatly, I noticed the thick smell of pasta, the Christmas lights shining, and the live violins and various soothing instruments.
Tony moved away from me, stepping over to talk to a man standing behind a podium. "Reservations for two," Tony stated, rapping on the wooden stand.
The man looked disgruntled, scowling while picking up two menus. "This way sir. Madam." He held out his arm, gesturing out to the main seating area.
Feeling a little uneasy, I sat down at the table the man directed us to, Tony sitting across from me.
"Enjoy the meal," the man stated, walking away.
Tony picked up the menu, opening it. I looked around me, marveling at the deep, red carpet and mahogany wood walls. There was an elevated platform hosting a piano, a couple violins, a cello and a few other instruments that I didn't recognize. There were other couples in the room, mostly older people.
I opened the menu, observing the lists of food. My eyes scanned over to the prices, and I accidentally let out a loud squawk, causing me to receive several rather hostile glares.
"Um, Annie, the menu won't hurt you," Tony stated.
"I know it won't, but the prices might..." I muttered the last part, trailing off.
"The prices? Oh, don't worry about it." Tony waved it off.
"Tony, the soup is almost thirty dollars!" I protested in a harsh whisper, wary to raise my voice again. Those looks had freaked me out a bit.
"So? Your point?" Tony asked.
"My point, is that I'm not eating here," I hissed, standing up and walking around the table.
Tony grabbed my wrist. "Hang on a second- what do you mean you aren't eating here?"
"This place is way too expensive. I don't have enough money to pay you back for this," I said, my stomach churning. Letting me stay with him for a week or so, sure, I could clear that out. But it would take a while. This was just too much.
"Pay me back?" Tony questioned, brow furrowed. "You don't have to do that. I've got money to spare."
"Well I don't," I snapped.
His hand slid a little farther down, wrapping around my fingers and giving them a comforting squeeze. I looked down at our hands in surprise.
"Annie, honestly. This is my treat. You don't have to pay me back. For anything," he promised earnestly.
I sighed in exasperation, staring into his brown eyes for something else. I never understood those people who said eyes are the windows to the soul. When I looked into someone's eyes, I didn't see anything other than the color.
"Fine," I grumbled, easing myself back down into the chair.
God, this would be a hard debt to pay out.
Yay, date night! Hahah. Almost. (;
Annie gets a little freaked out by the prices. Uh-oh. Silly Annie, don't you know Tony's a billioniare who loves to throw his money away?
Hahaha! See y'all in a few days! Don't miss me too much(;