The monstrous sectional takes up half of Mick's living room. It is something that he'd first acquired when one of his bachelor friends had gotten married and his wife had refused to live with it. Pepper understands the sentiment completely. It's the ugliest couch she has ever seen. It's an odd, dried-mustard yellow and, as stated, monstrous.
But it's also incredibly comfortable...in an insidious sort of way. For now she's content as she leans back against Tony and he leans against it while they watch old movies and eat popcorn as a way to pass their 'wedding night.'
It's not terribly late – not even eight yet – but the day has been tiring for her in all ways, and her back is cramped even after a massage from Tony. Moving in any fashion is not something she plans to do, if she can possibly help it. In fact, the only motion she's willingly engaged in at present is the involuntary rise and fall of her chest as she breathes and the back and forth motion of her fingers over the gold band around Tony's finger.
She's still a little shocked to realize she's actually married to him.
Not that it should surprise her. Not after the last several days. Her world has been a sort of bizarre twilight zone lately that started on the first morning they first met up on the beach. She'd forgotten while they were apart how things sometimes worked with Tony...
So meeting him again had perhaps had been fate, and earning his forgiveness had probably been inevitable.
Ending up his wife? Well that barely made a dent on her 'weird-shit-o'meter' anymore. So she contents herself to sit and rest, and let the world choose it's own course. She's trying not to fight the currents anymore, instead she is content to let herself simply ride them. At the moment, she is also allowing herself an equal amount of pride and fascination every time she touches his wedding ring.
It's gold and titanium alloy, and almost as eclectic as hers. It isn't a piece of jewelry that he would pick for himself, but now afterwards he has to admit that it fits him.
She'd gotten to pick his wedding ring because he'd forgotten to. He'd remembered to get a license, and he'd remembered her ring. He had even managed to arrange for a limo to take them home after Amelia got them clearance to leave the base – but he'd completely forgotten to buy a ring for himself.
It was an ironic, deeply telling kind of mistake that she didn't plan to let him live down anytime soon even if she already cherished the memory of getting the opportunity to find a ring that made her happy to give him.
She'd seen to correcting his oversight before they even went home. Even if it had meant dragging Mick and Amelia along with them, she'd made Larry stop at a jewelry store on their way through Savannah so that she could choose a ring for him, since he'd told her there was no chance of them getting a matched pair. Tony had been a little tight lipped about it, though given the way that he and Mick had avoided looking at each other, she had a pretty good suspicion that her brother knew more than he was telling her.
Tony had tried to tell her it could wait when she'd given Larry the address of her favorite jewelers, but she had told him that there was no way in hell he was going back to the beach – or anywhere else for that matter – until she had him properly "leashed."
That had momentarily struck him speechless. It had also led to some interesting commentary from Mick and Amelia about…personal preferences. Something about Amelia not wanting to picture Tony with a collar and Mick threatening to bring up a trunk of some kind that she kept in her car if she didn't stop picking on the bridegroom.
By the end of that banter Tony had sufficiently recovered enough to throw in his own smart remark, though the look he shot her during one moment while her brother and presumptive sister were arguing was a pretty good warning she'd pay for her own little dig in interesting ways when he finally got her home to L.A.
'Gets me home...or drags me off on a proper honeymoon.' She's not totally blind to the mounting heat building between them. Granted she still thinks he's crazy... Because sex is currently the last item on a very long list in her mind. Still, Tony is Tony, and she supposes that sooner or later that subject is going to come up again and warrant a proper discussion. Just because her libido is totally inactive at present, doesn't mean she's against offering a little...well...doctor approved, baby safe relief to him.
She'd like to have a better picture in her head of that part of her life, anyway. Something to cover the bitter taste of Delaney.
But that's another topic, for another time. Today she's exhausted, and so is the man next to her. Tony hasn't complained of course, but she's still aware that whether he's vocal about it or not, his own health is pretty patchy at the moment. Point in case was the pizza box in front of them. Normally he inhaled large pizzas whole; tonight he'd had a slice and a half. Granted he had shown a far larger interest in the salad that came with it. She needed to remember to start shopping for and cooking what amounted to 'light eaters' fare. But he's eaten enough for now, so she revels in just teasing him, because it's been so long since they've been able to do this: to relax and tease and torment and be carefree.
"I can't believe you forgot to buy yourself a ring," she says again as she reaches for some of the air popped popcorn Mick had made. It'd been a way for him to stall going anywhere alone with Amelia, but since it hadn't worked Pepper wasn't going to complain.
"Yeah, well I can't believe you forgot to mention that you were on a first name basis with the President." Tony's voice interrupts her thoughts. His tone also makes it clear that he's a little disgruntled by this topic. Though, that might have been because the call from the White House had come in the middle of the ceremony – right as the Chaplin asked if there were any objections to the marriage, in fact. "When you said that your choices after leaving the CIA had been either working for me or helping to run a small country, Potts, I didn't know that you considered the United States small."
"Campaign manager. He wanted to hire me as his campaign manager, and you can't keep calling me that anymore you know, it's not my name." Well not her whole name, she self corrects. She'd chosen instead to hyphenate.
She'd half expected Tony to protest that, but for some reason he hadn't really. Perhaps he understood far better than she did the need to face up to the past.
Tony meanwhile is still pouting. "Just tell me how he knew that not only were we in the process of getting married, but why he wants us to fly up and have dinner with him sometime next month?"
Tony looks either suspicious or paranoid. Maybe both if she admits to how well she knows him. It's a little amusing really, when she considers the fact that he usually crows and preens for weeks when he gets to visit the White House not to talk policy, but just to whip the Leader of the Free world's ass at golf. She sighs and reaches over to poke him in the ribs. "I hate politics, Tony. You have no idea how much I totally hate politics. So stop your pouting."
She is reasonably certain that this meeting is nothing more than the president's form of offering personal congratulations. And if it wasn't? Well she would be going on maternity leave soon, and she already had what amounted to a more than full time job.
She shifts, trying to take some of the pressure off the small of her back, ends up twisting so more of her weight is on her side, groaning a little as she does so. There's something a little odd about her today. She supposes the added weight is once again playing havoc with her center of gravity. "Stop obsessing okay, Stark? I have no regrets with the choice I made." Then she stiffens and looks up at him in accusation.
"You let us get married without a signed prenup," she growls in disbelief. Tony just stares at her in disbelief for a moment. Obviously, out of everything that's happened today that Pepper could justifiably get upset about, this hadn't even occurred to Tony.
Still, he collects himself quickly, becoming the picture of an aggrieved male. "You bet your ass I did. You were in jail. There's a clause somewhere that states you being imprisoned negates any other previously agreed upon preconditions we'd shook hands on."
He sighs then and rubs a hand down her spine, trying to get her to calm down. "I understand that you worry about how it looks. I'm even trying to care." He shrugs, "I suppose if we're really cagey we could bribe my lawyer into backdating something. Hell, by that token, if you really like we can tell everyone that we have been married for six months now and everybody can assume you went into hiding because after we figured out how we felt about each other, there were concerns about the safety of you and the baby."
Yeah, nothing about that will come back to bite them in the ass. Pepper thinks about the situation for a moment. "We'll need to talk to Gary...Larson," she adds in case he's forgotten his lawyer's name again. "But we can probably file a post-nuptial agreement, which will satisfy your board at least. And it has less chance of coming back to haunt us." The board was still going to freak, she knew, but at least she had some clue how to deal with that.
The ironic thing is she thinks most of the board will probably be relieved once they calm down and process. After all, they have always counted on her to keep Tony Stark afloat. And once they realize that this marriage means they don't have to worry about her quitting ever again, she suspects most of them will start sending incredibly garish and overly expensive gifts as a sign of their complete relief.
'Wedding presents. Dinner invitations.' There'd be a veritable cornucopia of well wishes, along with a thousand and one vicious news stories. Though the fact that she's currently pregnant might actually cause as much of a stir as the wedding, if she doesn't miss her guess. The speculation will be rife, and the paparazzi will be ruthless. And as much as she hates it, she's going to have to go pay another visit to a man named Mark Delaney.
Considering how their last meeting went, she's not sure how that's going to go. Yes, the man had demanded she give him a promise in writing that she wouldn't reveal the lineage of her baby in exchange for his 500,000 in silver, but that was before she'd actually married to his boss. Like it or not that changed the situation.
She's afraid to know if those changes will hinder the man who showed no interest in parenthood, or present him with what most immoral men would call a 'business opportunity.' The thought is enough to make her stomach knot. Enough to make her want to ask if it's possible for them to just relocate to Copacabana.
She loathes herself for the cowardice that thought implies, but she can't seem to shut of the part of her that feels that way, no matter how much she tells herself that she's not reacting logically. It is funny, how hard she's tried to avoid the thought of that night. But even with a good two drinks under her belt to dim her recollections, there are certain things she can't really wipe from her memory. She remembers the taste of that first kiss, when she'd known something wasn't quite right. And she looks back in regret at the way that he'd laughed and sworn and roughhoused just playfully enough that she had been confused about whether he actually liked it violent, or just wanted it dirty.
She remembers waking up alone and being relieved. And she remembers more than adequately the sheer number of bruises she'd had on her body not just one day but for the rest of the week.
Either way this is not a subject she ever wants to discuss with Tony.
"So we're agreed then. We'll go ahead and get a post-nuptial..." She's glad that Tony can only partially see her face, because he's gone on talking, apparently totally unaware of her darker thoughts. "When we get back I'll be playing extra nice with the board, and I'm thinking that if we get extra help so you don't get overwhelmed, we should throw a set of at house barbeques for the people working in R&D." Tony pauses a moment, then draws a deep breath. "That leaves us with one issue Pepper, and that's how to deal with Mark Delaney."
Pepper stiffens a little in his arms. "Tony, I suggest you leave that matter to me. I am guessing one sit down conversation will make him a complete non-issue."
The look Tony gives her in return is a perfect blend of amusement and exasperation. "I'm serious," she insists. "If we try and do it with all three of us you're just going to end up hitting him or something when your macho 'you just insulted my woman' side gets riled. And you can't get yourself arrested for at least three or four years or you're not going to have to worry about playing nice with the board of directors because they're all going to have heart attacks."
"Pepper, if you think for a moment I am letting you handle that guy alone, you're psychotic. The fact that he's not even tried to be in contact despite the baby's existence only proves he's a creep. I can hold my temper if I have to, and if I start steaming at the ears, well you can just make me hold the baby so my hands aren't free to hit him."
She pictures that, imagines Tony cradling an infant in his arms. Or working at a computer with one hand while holding their child against his shoulder with the other. And she...she likes it. A lot.
"Eventually someone in these baby stores we're going to have to shop at is going to recognize you," she murmurs as she relaxes again. "We're not on the West Coast, so it might take longer, but I don't know how much longer we're going to be able to stay incognito. Unless you let Mick and I tackle it. Then we'll probably have a chance at maintaining our cover."
He shakes his head and reaches out a hand. "Pepper, like it or not, I am now officially a family man. The press may roll over in the graves, but they will have to learn to cope. And they will also learn to treat us all with a modicum of respect, because if they don't they are going to be rapidly made to understand that I'm a friend to the press because I choose to be."
She smiles and nestles her head against his shoulder. "You know...it makes sense. You being a family man. Not the white picket fence part, but having kids and being hands on with them." The only part that doesn't quite click into place in this scenario is her part in it. Somehow her self-image of a woman dressed in a business suit with a bluetooth headset in one ear and coffee in her hand doesn't mesh with the family scene she imagines him in.
"I like kids. Or I used to, when I was a little younger. Their attitude is very refreshing, compared to a lot of the people I've met. Besides," he smirks, "name me one adult who'll spend eight and a half hours beating super-frogger with me." He shrugs. "You and I will be a good tag team I think...with the whole parenting thing, I mean. Because you've got tons of patience, and you know when it's time to push and when it's time to back off and let people just be who they are." He shrugs. "Of course it will change the dynamic, but we'll figure it out, and Jarvis will help." Tony actually laughs. "Do you know that he's already started downloading child-psychology textbooks? You need to seriously fear that this kid's best friend is going to end up a self-assessing computer."
'Just like its father,' she ruefully thinks. "At least we're not going to have to worry about a baby monitor," she teases, though she's still thinking about how her life is going to change.
"I really am going to have to train a replacement, you realize that?" she asks him. In one way she's about to become his twenty-four hour assistant, but she's also not going to be able to fill the position she's held for the past decade.
She's never going to be just his P.A again, and though she is slowly coming to grips with it, it doesn't mean the thought doesn't make her occasionally melancholy, and just a little weary.
He nods a little. "You'll need assistants to help you, both when you're at home and in the office. But Pepper, being a mom doesn't mean you have to give up your whole life...just that you'll have to open up a few new doors in it. You love math and you love helping people, and this kid will benefit from watching both of his or her parents do the things that they love."
He reaches out then and cups her chin gently. "Pepper, I know you're afraid of repeating the past...or that your mom made you unprepared for this role, but the truth is you've always been a natural nurturer...and unlike your mother, you're not enchained to drugs, or trying to make it alone." He kisses the side of her head gently, and slips his arms around her waist. "You'll do just fine and we'll be happy, if you just remember to talk to those who love you and stay in balance."
Pepper still flinches at the mention of her mother, but instead of withdrawing she presses closer. His arms tighten comfortingly around her and she tries to accept that Tony is going to keep doing this, keep referencing her past at odd moments. Not with the intention of hurting her, but he's always been like that, has always accepted and admitted to the past and then moved on accordingly.
Silence falls between them until the movie ends. Then Pepper stirs and pushes herself up because if she doesn't she's going to fall asleep.
"Tired?" He reaches out to catch her hand. "Because we really should feed you one more time before you sleep." The comment is rote - almost from memory - and though his hand is unconsciously caressing hers, his eyes are still halfway fixed on the TV. She wants to chuckle there in that moment, because she realizes that now Tony, like Mick, is feeding her not out of conscious decision, but preprogrammed instinct.
"I'm not going to have to eat this regularly in another couple months," she reminds him softly. "What in heck are you going to do to fill up these empty moments when that happens?"
He turns both eyes toward her with what is clearly undisguised amusement, and she finds herself blushing to the roots of her hair. "Never mind," she murmurs to herself. "I don't think either of us need to answer that statement." This is already turning out to be a distressingly ordinary night, despite the privacy they have and their newlywed status. Technically, there's no medical reasons stopping them from having sex, but she's just wiped out. A bed figures prominently in her future plans, but only as a place to curl up and sleep.
She shakes her head at them, then replies to his earlier comment. "I'm really not particularly hungry. I actually have a bit of a funny stomach." She rubs the lower slope of her belly. "I think I ate something earlier that didn't agree with me."
Tony frowns at that. "I knew we should have stayed away from seafood. The lobster bisque was awfully rich, even if it was tasty." He stands and comes to wait behind her, circling his hands around her queasy belly. A moment later he frowns down at his hands. "Pepper, that wasn't a belly quiver, that was a cramp."
She shakes her head. "I was probably just on my feet too much. I don't think I sat down once between arriving at the fort and your phone call. And then after your call I didn't manage much better until Rhodey got there. He finally bullied me into sitting. Told me I'd been spending too much time around you because I was usually sensible."
"What did the doctor say about this? Or were you not having these specific symptoms when he was actually there..."
"She," Pepper corrects him, "visited before it really started, and she said I was fine...though she did say that my blood pressure was borderline and that I needed to watch out if I started getting dizzy or spotting. And I'm not dizzy. Just tired." She glances up at him over her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I know it's probably not the wedding night you were imagining..."
"Pepper, I don't give a shit about..." Her belly tightens under his hands again, and this time he frowns at the movement more then a little suspiciously. "Pepper, that felt less like a cramp than it did a contraction...how long have you...if you're in pain, why didn't you tell me?"
"I'm not!" she protests, "I just have a little backache. Nothing like what it should be if what you're insinuating is actually true." He doesn't look the least bit convinced. She sighs. "I'm uncomfortable," she stresses. "But I'm not in pain. And I am seven months pregnant, so being uncomfortable isn't anything new."
"Have you had any spotting?" he asks her bluntly. And she winces a little in embarrassment, but he remains undeterred. "This is serious, Pepper. Since the doctor asked you start looking for signs have you been paying attention?"
"Yes, I've been looking." She rubs her forehead. "Just because I've been... bewildered...doesn't mean I don't care. But there hasn't been anything."
She sees him wince, and his eyes fill with apology. "I didn't mean to imply otherwise...it doesn't change the fact I worry." She can see the struggle on his face. "Pepper...I just...I really, really think you should give your obstetrician a ring and see if he makes house calls."
Pepper sighs and concedes, because if she looks at this objectively, it's a silly argument to have. Tony is just concerned for her and the baby, and fighting with him about it might actually hurt him. He's supposed to be avoiding stressful situations as much as she is, which neither of them has managed so far today. So therefore the risks of not calling outweigh the benefits.
"Alright. I'll call Dr. Whitman." She knows she's chosen wisely when she sees the relief on his face, and for some reason that makes her chest squeeze a little tightly. He takes such pleasure in protecting those he cares for, and despite of this he calls her the mother hen.
"Can I at least go use the restroom first? Because I need to." Tony just smiles and kisses her forehead. "I've got Dr. Whitman's business card in my wallet. Will you find it for me?" she asks as she heads for the first floor bathroom.
He nods. "You can tease me for being paranoid later. I just don't want to take any chances at all after a day like today." And then he leaves her in doorway before the heading down to the counter in the kitchen where she last laid her wallet.
Tony is able to wait about thirty seconds before he gets impatient and just calls Whitman himself. He's on the phone with the doctor, trying to explain the day they've had without actually saying anything about it, when Pepper comes to stand beside him.
"Tony?" He looks a little sheepish as he hands over the phone. Once she takes the receiver she hears Whitman chuckling on the other end.
"I understand congratulations are in order...did you two really get married, or is he just trying to weasel privileged information out of me?"
"No, I actually married him. I love him and the legal rights it gives both of us were attractive." Pepper's throat is tight and she's doing everything she can to keep Tony from seeing her face because she's pretty sure he's about to panic. "Listen...if Tony hasn't already explained the situation, today's been really stressful. Really stressful. So can you meet us at the hospital? Because I think I might be going into labor."
Whitman nods. "I'm all for that option - it never hurts to be careful. My night has been slow and if nothing else it will allow me to make my congratulations in person. I can be at the hospital in about fifteen minutes. Is that a reasonable timeframe for when you can meet me?"
All Pepper can think is that she's grateful that he sounds calm. It helps her stay in control. "When I say I might be going into labor...I think I'm having contractions and I know I'm spotting. I just checked and the amount has increased considerably."
Whitman's breathing quickens slightly, but it's the only sign that he's nervous. "Has your water broken? If not we probably have a decent chance to slow it down yet."
"No. It hasn't." Pepper still can't bear to face Tony, but when she holds out her hand he takes it in a grip that is merely firm, not the tight grip she'd expect from panic. "So I guess we'll see you in a few minutes." She hangs up the phone and turns to the man beside her. Tony's eyes are a little wider than normal, but he's doing a remarkable job holding any visible emotion but determination back.
"Which hospital do we need to head for?" he asks after he exhales deliberately, and digs into his back pocket in search of his car keys. He picks up his lightweight coat and begins guiding her toward the door.
"Memorial University." Pepper grabs her purse and her cell phone. "I'll call Mick on the way. If he just comes back and we're not here... Well, I'm sure you can imagine."
Tony laughs, though it's a little forced. Mick and Amelia had ceded the house in favor of a room at the Hampton. Or rather Amelia had decided they needed privacy and had dragged Mick along. Judging by how shell-shocked Pepper's little brother had been, he'd been pretty pliable - for the moment at least.
"Amelia might actually kill me for interrupting them," Pepper agrees. "Because she was either planning on getting laid or she planned to personally extract one of his kidneys." She has to concentrate to still her trembling hands. "Okay...we need to get into the car now." They close and lock the front door.
Just before they reach the passenger door, Pepper feels a rush of fluid, and Tony curses as her water breaks.
"Jaguar or ambulance?" he asks her after a moment, holding her up almost completely, since her knees have nearly given out.
"Depends on how fast the ambulance can get here." Pepper tries to smile but she's really starting to panic now. "God," she moans. "This can't be happening. It's too soon."
"Too much stress...that or Junior just got antsy." Tony tries to keep his voice light as he frees one arm and uses it to flip open his cell phone. "Hello...emergency...? I've got a woman in premature labor. Her water's broken and she's having contractions..." He rattles off their address. "What's the wait on an ambulance?"
"Can you hold on for three minutes?" he asks her after a moment.
"I think so." She flinches as she feels another contraction. But it's the first since she's gone to use the restroom, so she tries not to worry more. "Though I won't complain if they get here sooner."
"Stay upright or lay down?" She supposes they are fighting gravity. The knot in her stomach is getting tighter and tighter and she realizes she feels ready to puke. 'Shouldn't have eaten' some part of her analytical mind says. 'Women in labor are supposed to stick with ice chips and sucrose saline drip during labor, even if they are hungry.'
"I would have done so if I'd known I was in labor." She must say the latter words aloud because they've earn her a very funny look.
"Down," she says. Besides, there's less chance she'll puke on his shoes that way. He stoops and catches her under her knees and around her shoulders and she's surprised by the easy way he seems to take her weight. "Tony, it's to soon...I'm not ready for this. If something happens…you have to promise...take care of the baby."
He shakes his head as he carries her to the house. "You and the baby will both be fine. You made it into the last trimester."
"Barely, Tony. Thirty weeks is considered premature." She holds onto him as he sets her down on the couch. "Actually, anything less than thirty-seven weeks is considered premature. And we're a long way from thirty-seven weeks." This is her fault. If she'd taken better care of herself... If she'd been able reduce her stress... If she just hadn't run in the first place...
"You'll both be fine," he says after a moment, and she has a hard time telling if it's stubbornness that drives him, or just well directed fear.
He gets her inside and sets her down on the couch. "Go upstairs and get me a change of clothes?" she requests when he steps away and runs a hand through his hair. He looks so helpless then, but she's relieved to give him something she knows will be useful to do.
She can hear the sirens before she hears Tony's feet on the stairs. Apparently three minutes was a pretty good estimate. Then she can see the paramedics through the open front door and as she waves weakly she says, "My husband's upstairs..."
The EMT is just checking her over when Tony comes down the stairs. The woman whistles. "My gosh...this little one is in a hurry to join the world."
"Too much of a hurry." Pepper's eyes go straight to Tony and she tries to relax enough to take a deep breath.
"We'll get you to the hospital in two shakes of a leg ma'am," says the woman's partner, a tall, grey haired man with a ponytail down his back.
Tony rattles off all the important details, "She needs to go to Memorial. Her obstetrician's already been contacted. Her brother and sister-in-law to be are going to meet us there." He presents her with a neutral colored jumper that the technicians can easily help her slip over her head, as they remove her sopping stretch pants.
'My, don't we have the growing family,' Pepper thinks as she's transferred onto a gurney. What she says is, "You called Mick?"
"Upstairs. They're on their way. Knowing Amelia she'll clear out the entire first floor in preparation for our arrival. Oh, and I also called and left a message for Rhodey."
His smile is tense but genuine as they roll her out to the waiting van. "What did Mick say?" she asks. "Because if it was anything like 'I told you so,' I am going to have to hurt him."
Tony doesn't tell her the truth, which is that Mick is so near to panicked that Amelia had finally had to forcibly extract the phone from his grip and get directions to the hospital herself. "He's bitching about baby names...said he told you that you should have picked them out. He says Michael will not be an acceptable substitute just because you got lazy..."
Pepper laughs and breathes through another contraction, if that's really what it is. There's not much pain, just...discomfort. "He wishes. If he's lucky the baby might get Michael as a middle name if I can't come up with better." She holds onto Tony's hand as the ambulance eases into motion before rapidly picking up speed. "You know, out of the times I've thought I might be in an ambulance, it was usually because I thought you were going to need one."
"Yeah well that will teach you to get overconfident," Tony teases gently.
She just keeps her eyes on his upside down face. The siren on top of the ambulance is loud, louder than she thought it would be. "What do you want? Boy or girl?"
"Girl," he admits a little impulsively. "Though I can't quite tell you why. I mean, I'm a guy. She's going to make me want to move us all to Antarctica when she finally hits puberty."
Pepper laughs breathlessly. "I believe that's known as karmic justice, Stark," she whispers up at him.
"Yeah, laugh it up. How about you: boy or girl?"
"I don't know. Just the concept of 'baby' has been enough of a struggle for me. And right now I'll settle for healthy."
Tony nods, looking over at the EMT, who is feeling Pepper's blood pressure with a steady hand despite the movement of the vehicle they're in.
"So...I take it this is you two's first baby? How long did you wait to start trying after you got married?" It's an innocent question...and probably meant as just small talk; so the poor woman has absolutely no idea why they both start to laugh hysterically.
"Tony proposed this afternoon," Pepper finally manages to spit out. "We didn't see a reason to wait on starting our family."
The woman just looks at them like they've taken leave of their senses. And they laugh even harder. "We've been dating for twelve years," Tony finally adds. Of course, Pepper pinches his thigh hard for that, because they've never actually dated at all by anyone's standards but his.
The grey haired man beside her shakes his head, snickering softly. "Why do I have a feeling you two could tell one hell of a story."
"Since when is employment a synonym for dating?" Pepper asks Tony under her breath as the ambulance starts to slow.
Up ahead she can see the doors of the ER. "I bought you lunch three times a week, scared off all the other interested men and let you drag me around by my ear on at least one occasion. Oh and I lived with your PMS without complaining on a regular basis, If that isn't dating, Pepper, I would really like somebody to tell me what is."
"It usually involves the knowledge of the other person for one thing." Before she can say anything about his 'scaring off' prospective men the ambulance doors open and they're moving and Pepper's relieved because hospitals are good and she's starting to move past discomfort into something that might be pain and she doesn't want her baby's health damaged any more than she's already managed...
She's scared. Above everything else she's scared because she hasn't prepared for this at all, for any of it, and now she's having her baby and there's no more time to get accustomed to the idea or prepare herself or any of those things she'd kept telling herself she'd do 'soon.' And she wonders if it were the same for her mother, if the woman had been anywhere this scared. Anywhere this unprepared for the reality that was coming.
"Ginny!" And then she hears her brother's voice, and like a blink that moment vanishes. Because unlike her mother, she has a man holding each of her hands, now. And she still feels free. No matter what happens, she is not, and will not ever, ever face what is coming alone.
"For your information," she tells her brother, "even if I had been considering names, I wouldn't have considered yours because the world does not need two Michael Potts in it."
And Mick smiles, back, a grin that lights up the room. "It's Michael Andrews, sis...we would have been different. But if you want to pass on greatness, well who am I to stop you?"
"Actually, I believe the last name would be Stark," Tony interjects. "And I agree that one Michael per family is enough. Nice to see you again, Amelia. Sorry for the interruption, but it's been that kind of day."
Amelia rolls her eyes. "Is it always this kind of circus? Because I have to tell you, you make my family look tame." They follow the gurney as it's moved through the ER and down a long narrow hallway.
"Like hell," Mick shoots back as he releases his sister's hand. "Your clan is a bunch or argumentative Irish Catholics."
"Yes, you'll all fit right in," Amelia tells him smartly, before turning to Pepper. "So girl to girl...anything I can help with?"
"Keep him calm," she says pointing at Mick. "I don't know how many people they'll let in the room -"
"Pepper!" As if the conversation weren't crowded enough, they manage to pick up Dr. Whitman on the way to wherever they're going. For a brief moment Pepper feels like she's actually back at the office, trying to solve the chaos created by something Tony's done. Except this time she's flat on her back and Tony isn't technically 'responsible.'
"Hi," Pepper says to the doctor. "As you can see, pretty much everyone came as fast as they could. Sorry."
The nurse pushing the cart starts giving out information. "According to a preliminary check, she's at nine centimeters and near to crowning. We're all headed straight to delivery."
Whitman whistles. "Well I suppose that tells us everything we need to know about whether this kid wants out by c-section today."
"I'm only at thirty weeks," Pepper disagrees. "I can't be giving birth. I haven't even taken Lamaze classes yet."
"I hate to disagree, Pepper, but this baby is coming now. Also, Lamaze is for women who intend to stroll through their labor. I told you this baby would be an athlete." They reach the doors of an elevator and there's not enough room for the whole group. In fact, for a moment both Tony and Mick pause, as if there's going to be a discussion about who gets to go up with her.
"You're got to be kidding me," Pepper moans. "Stark, ass in here now. Mick, I'll see you upstairs."
Amelia reaches out and slaps Mick upside the head. She points at Tony and says, "Husband." Than she whacks him again and points at Michael. "Annoying little brother."
Then she hauls Mick backwards, calling out that they'll meet them upstairs shortly.
The elevator closes as Pepper braces against an even stronger wave of pain. "Oh!" She slips her hand out of Tony's and squeezes the railings of the gurney as she manages a few sharp, shallow breaths. And then it's over and she relaxes into the thin mattress. "Okay…that was a contraction." She feels Tony's hand on her face and she tries to smile up at him but it's hard because the apprehension is growing because no matter how calm everyone is, this is bad. Babies aren't supposed be born early, and it's happening too fast for her to even really process, and all she knows is that this is wrong. She doesn't want this because…
Because right now she's completely ruled by her instincts of what is safe and what is right for her baby, and this not it. This is not it and she can't help but feel guilty. This is just another repercussion of what had led to this pregnancy in the first place and it's her fault. Her baby is in danger and it's because of her.
"Pepper, I know you never took Lamaze, but we need to give you a crash course. The best thing you can do for you and your baby right now is learn how to control your breathing. Hyperventilation will lead to poor oxygen circulation, and if you're crowning now then doing this naturally is actually better than a c-section." Her obstetrician's voice is calm. A port in the storm of fast growing panic. She wants this all to stop. She wants to be home and on the couch and eating popcorn. She wants more time to process.
"Is it to late to do an injection of...surfactant?" She thinks that's the name of the drug she was reading about earlier during one of her many weekly screenings.
"Surfactant?" Tony asks quietly. He's obvious not familiar with the word, but he's trying.
Whitman explains. "Premature babies often have immature lungs. Surfactant is a protein that gives they lung tissue more elasticity. It makes it easier for them to breathe." Tony nods a little, and the doctor looks to Pepper. "Under normal circumstances I'd have put you on steroids when you first showed signs of labor, but there simply wasn't time. Yes, we do use surfactant on a certain number of preemies, but to know if this one needs it, we need to start by getting him or her out and into the world."
"Right. Right." She lets Tony peel her fingers off the railing as the elevator doors slide open again and they're once more on the move. "Don't leave me," she whispers for him only, because she is scared but she knows, just as she knew that morning on the beach, that Tony will be here for her if she only asks. And so she finally asks.
"I'm not going anywhere." He tightens his grip on her hand.
The next few minutes are hazy, more than Pepper can really process. She's aware of the gurney moving again, and of a wide set of double hung doors. Inside the room they take her to the lighters are dimmer, and the inclined bed they take her to is a welcome relief. She's aware of a changing chorus of voices, and of soft playing music as someone puts a tube with oxygen under her nose, and an IV in her hand. She flinches a little at that, but all she's really aware of his Tony. He's still gripping her other hand and talking to her soothingly, a low babble of useless information...
"I don't have a name," she finally whispers in panic. "What kind of mother am I going to be if I don't even have a name?"
"Pepper..." Tony smoothes her hair back out of her face and fastens it with a hair band with a dexterity she's surprised by. "You're not the first parent to not know what to name their child. Just try to relax, Potts. We're going to figure it out together."
"I've always liked Aaron for a boy, myself," one of the nurses says conversationally. "It means 'strong mountain.' Not a bad beginning for what this one will need to be."
"Aaron." Pepper tries the word on for size. Then quirks an eyebrow up at Tony.
"Aaron Anthony Stark? Kind of long winded if you ask me."
"Anthony?" she asks, almost amused. "I was thinking Michael. After all, you are getting Stark." They're both oblivious to the looks the nurses are exchanging, the not-so subtle smiles.
Tony laughs. "I was thinking Aaron James, actually. And we can make the next one Savannah Michelle. I mean come on admit it, your brother is cool, but sometimes he's just too fucking girly."
"James?" Pepper asks before she tenses with another contraction. She tries not to squeeze his hand too tightly, but she can't squeeze the other one much at all because of the IV so she ends up using more pressure than she'd intended. She ignores the comment about Mick because she knows it's probably true.
"Sorry, sorry..." Her hand goes limp in his after a few seconds. "You were telling me about James." There's still all sorts of bustling going on in the room that she's mostly trying to ignore until someone tells her exactly what to do.
"Well for one it would guarantee us a free babysitter - namely Rhodey - and for another..." He shrugs. "That was the name my mother liked the best for a boy...before the test results came back and proved it was a girl."
"You play dirty," Pepper tells him. "You win. Though I think that it's going to take more than a middle name to get Rhodey to babysit. The man is a bachelor."
"Rhodey's a sap. Have you seen him with dogs? Way I figure he'll be pretty much the same with kids."
"Okay, Pepper." Whitman interjects before Pepper can lay into Tony for comparing their child to a dog. "At the next contraction I want you to push. And time is of the essence so don't hold anything back, give everything you've got to this one."
Pepper's eyes immediately snap to the doctor and she nods. Her breathing becomes shallow as she waits and tenses up from the apprehension that washes over her again. Tony has to actually instruct her to breathe in and out until the contraction comes and she pushes down, leaning back hard into the hands that push her up.
And she really can't imagine a more undignified position to be in, but it doesn't matter because she knows there's no going back and no holding back and what's best for her baby now is to be born.
Tony's still telling her out to breathe, though he's only echoing someone else in the room, but it's his voice she hears the clearest and so she listens. Then the contraction passes and the rest of the room comes back into focus as she gulps down deep lungfuls of air.
And Aaron James Stark comes wailing and wet into a welcoming world.