I do not own any characters or places unless stated otherwise.
Don't forget to leave a favourite, follow and review!
Chapter Eleven.
The last time Allie could remember ever being on a date had been two years prior but even then, she could barely classify it as a date; the two had been so awkward and unsure of what to say, the meal had passed in relative silence, with there being only remarks about the weather and about how hard work was. He had been cute but beyond that, there was not much else that interested Allie and she doubted that he was more interested in her than she was in him. So, the two had parted ways after a long and uncomfortable dinner and she had never heard from him again. In fact, if she tried to put some thought to it, Allie couldn't even remember his name.
When she had returned home later that night after the rather boring meal, Lisa didn't bother keeping the disappointment off her face to see her friend return so early and still sober with all her clothes and lipstick intact. Lisa made it known that she was rather unhappy with Allie's dating life – or, the lack of it – and had tried to set Allie up with men she didn't know, and even girls at times, but it all ended up with Allie returning before eleven at night without a partner on her arm.
Truth be told, it didn't bother Allie half as much as it did Lisa because it didn't bother Allie at all.
There was nothing sad about being single and she didn't feel like the bitter, mid-twenties woman often portrayed in various forms of media for not having anyone to hold her at night. Dating had just never been on Allie's mind, or her agenda (save for when the cold weather had seeped in); of course, there was that one time when she was twenty that she briefly dated a boy in her year at college, who later went on to drop out making attending school that bit more bearable when eyes weren't following her at all times, but that relationship barely managed to soldier on through two months before Allie ended it.
There had been lots of crying on his part and lots of it's not you, it's me on Allie's.
Of course she felt bad for stringing the guy along for two months when she doubted the existence of any such romantic feelings for him – though, part of her hoped she might be able to will them into existence so she wouldn't have to feel so bad for dating someone she never liked.
Allie didn't think there was anything wrong with her, there's was just… a lack of wanting to actively date and have sex with people. Part of her pegged it up to the fact she spent most of her life being too preoccupied with her own affairs and her home life, and then she wondered maybe it was because she didn't like men – but, then again, she didn't like girls either. So, Allie decided that maybe she just didn't like anyone. Lisa had tried to console her by saying that her soul mate was out there and she'd meet the right person one day but Allie didn't find herself all that bothered to go out looking for someone; if the right person was out there, they'd just have to come to her instead.
Though, it'd be hard for anyone to find her what with the amount of time she was now spending at the Avengers' Compound working for Tony Stark.
Autumn had long since seeped in, the fringes of Winter lingering on the edges of October and the trees were bleeding oranges and reds, browns and yellows, heavy coats and scarves becoming part of every day wear for Allie as she tried to keep the chill in the air away from nipping and gnawing at her exposed skin, staining it pink. It was only few weeks into October and Allie was already missing the muggy wetness that had been that passing Summer, her nose becoming runny and harder to breathe through as she tried to gulp in the sharp, fresh air of Autumn, burning her throat with how cold it was. Gloves were a nuisance, especially if she should need to use her phone but the two cups she ordered every day – tea for her, coffee for Stark – warmed her hands significantly and she found that the cold did not bother as much as it used to.
Her thoughts of romance came to the forefront of her mind, as they usually did, during the cold weather when all she had to warm her hands were two hot drinks rather than another person. It was a silly notion and thought that would flip back and forth in her mind as she tried not to stare at cuddly couples in public spaces – it wasn't done out of envy, but rather curiosity, mainly as to wondering whether she would ever be able to find a person to be unabashedly in love with as she often witnessed so early in the mornings. Even Lisa had managed to find someone, telling Allie that it had been someone at work and that they had gone for lunch a few times but had still yet to plan a proper date; there were times she would fall in love with strangers and imagine a whole slew of scenarios before her mind snapped her from them, dragging her back the reality that the heat in her hand was Stark's coffee and not another person's hand.
Allie wasn't so against romance as she was not on the lookout for it; there were always more important things in her life than dating but that didn't mean she didn't at least think about it every once in a while, and there were times that she did admit to herself that it would have been nice to hold someone rather than cuddling her pillow as she was prone to do.
But Allie knew dating was a whole area that she wasn't quite ready to accept into her life; friends were one thing, but a partner… it made Allie uncomfortable at the thought of being so vulnerable with someone and still having the possibility that they might leave; the only way to save herself from heartbreak was to just never open it up to the likelihood of being hurt. Lisa was her friend and Allie loved Lisa, knew she could trust her with her life and they were friends, yet… despite Lisa knowing everything about Allie, there was still this staleness in the air whenever Allie's life was brought up; Lisa may know about, may even accept, every side to Allie, but Allie knew it made Lisa uneasy and unnerved and, thus, it was an elephant that had been ignored for the past two years since Allie opened up to the other woman.
And, so, romance was off the table; Allie just didn't have the energy to deal with love and other such emotions, never quite frankly found herself to be able to become so overwrought with feelings in the first place, anyways; she mainly blamed all these thoughts on the cold weather. She was twenty-five years of age and she had only been with one boy who hadn't exactly been the best in bed, or in any other area of their brief relationship. But Allie didn't find her life lacking, didn't find it worthless without someone by her side. Allie was always so grateful for the small things; a bed, food in the morning, the ability to keep the bathroom door unlocked without fear, being able to sleep in her room without worry. The quality of her life was not dependant on another person, only herself and she wasn't going to let that change just for anyone.
They'd have to look like Idris Elba or Halle Berry, for starters.
Still, that didn't mean she didn't wonder. Maybe if she had gone into that café she passed, the love of her life might have walked in. If she had taken a certain route, she might have bumped into them. If she had done this or done that, maybe she would have met them; it was a persistent niggling thought that could easily be forgotten or ignored if Allie didn't want to spend any more time dwelling on such unimportant thoughts. But with a city as big as New York, Allie doubted she'd be able to meet the person she would spend the rest of her life with in a Papa John's.
Allie blamed all these thoughts of romance mainly on the cold weather and also the sad realisation of being, yet again, alone at Christmas; she didn't really want to think about December yet but found it inevitable and hard to escape despite the fact Hallowe'en hadn't even begun. To keep her mind on the straight and narrow and not delve off into the rabbit hole that was her sore lack of love, Allie began finding herself becoming less reluctant to go into work – dare she say, she was even looking forward to it. One of the main reasons for that was it was Allie's first year out of working in customer service and she hadn't had anyone yell at her in weeks; she never knew working could be so stress free – as stress free as working for Tony Stark could be. Of course, there were times he made her want to tear her hair out by the handfuls, but those were becoming few and far in between. One might say Allie was genuinely liking him – not that Allie would admit that despite her attempts to remain aloof being a disaster.
Fact of the matter was that Allie really did find Stark to be a really rather friendly, albeit stand-offish at times, man who was not at all the arrogant and egocentric man she had thought him to based on whatever she had manage to find online or elsewhere; and, quite honestly, Allie was quite happy to be proven wrong on her prejudice as she much preferred working for someone whose company she actually enjoyed over a person she loathed to be around. No longer did he dismiss her efforts to try and at least get him outside for whatever she thought was important enough, but neither did Allie force him into situations that she feared might make him prone to becoming unravelled – Allie could see the shaking of his hands, hear the raggedness of his breathing, the tell-tale signs of things Allie knew, things that she could still remember lingering on the edges of her repressed memories. She would never think to ask him about it but the question lingered, the curiosity surrounding the thought that… maybe, just maybe… they weren't so different in all aspects.
But, Allie kept her mouth shut and never thought to presume anything about Tony Stark ever again.
As it got colder outside, if it wasn't just the thoughts of romance that made her life unbearable, it also became more intolerable for Allie to withstand leaving any place with decent heating, no matter the reason, and, as such, she decided to stay within the confinements of the Compound during her lunch rather than leave and have to be subject to the teeth of winter sinking its fangs into her; it was such a practical thought that Allie wondered why she had never thought about it before – it would give her more time to eat, save money and she wouldn't have to worry about rushing back. Plus, now that she liked being around Stark's company even more, it just made more sense to stay.
Though, the sensibility of it didn't seem to hit Stark as he walked in on her with half her face stuffed into sandwich, blinking and confused as to why she was there and not elsewhere.
"You're… here," he said, a lilt in his voice peaking and making it sound more like a question than a statement as he probably intended. Allie paused for a moment, mouth still firmly clutching her food before she tore off a bite, quickly chewing and swallowed before putting it down, screwing her face up.
"Uh… yeah. I kind of… work here," Allie replied pointedly, brushing her hands together to get rid of the excess crumbs that clung to her fingertips as she cocked an eyebrow towards the older man who was still trying to assess the fact that Allie was still present. "For you. Have been for nearly two months."
Stark shook the confusion from his face, clicking his tongue and becoming less tense as he gave a sniffle; Allie scrunched her nose up at the prospect that either of them might have given the other a cold given how much time they were spending around each other in such close proximity. There was a high likelihood of it being possible and Allie made a mental note to start stacking up the antibiotics and cough drops should her immune system decide to fail her and make her victim to a blocked nose for the next few months.
Allie shifted in her chair to cross her legs over one another as Stark shoved his hands in his pockets, sidling up to where she was sitting at the island of his makeshift kitchen, standing on the other side so that they were directly opposite to one another. From here, Allie could faintly smell the scent of his cologne and didn't realise the deep breath she was taking until it flooded out through her nose again; his hair was a mess too, as if he had been continuously running his hands through it as Allie knew he had a habit of doing and she noticed how the smears of indigo were lesser today, indicating that he had managed to grab a few more hours of sleep than usual. "No, I meant you're here during lunch. I thought you usually went… somewhere else."
A soft smile curved onto Allie's mouth, placing her elbows atop of the counter and leaning into it, voice taking a teasing tone as her eyes adopted a mischievous light lingering in the hues of blue. "Trying to get rid of me, Mr. Stark?"
He caught on to the playfulness lingering in her words and Stark tossed Allie a wink, adopting his own gleeful grin that made Allie quash the feeling of her own growing wider, a warmth beneath her skin as he copied her stance, leaning against the counter and peering at her from across the marble counter top; Allie unconsciously leaned back to gain some breathing space, trying to not look directly into his eyes, trying not to be aware of how close he was and how she was surrounded by the smell of him. Just because it was all done in playful banter, words with no meaning or underlining hints, and just because Allie thought of herself as someone who wasn't easily prone to the romantic thoughts plaguing her mind of late, it didn't mean she was wholly immune to feeling flustered whenever Stark would do such things – it was Tony Stark of all people; she liked to think of herself as being dumb, not blind. "Would never dream of it."
"Well, if you must know, I would but it's just easier to stay here, and it's a really money saver as well," Allie explained, taking her food once more in her hands to take a small bite out of it, ignoring how dry her mouth felt before her gestured over her shoulder, as she gulped her food down. "Plus, I brought food anyway and it's in the fridge."
Stark raised an eyebrow at her words and stood back, giving Allie the space she craved as she settled back into her seat again. His hands were placed flat on the counter top, splayed and drumming on the speckled, gleaming marble in a rhythm Allie thought was eerily familiar, feeling almost hypnotised by the action before his voice brought her back to reality once more, unaware of her zoning out while staring at his hands, much to her discomfiture. "In the fridge?"
"Yeah. Seriously, that thing's been empty for as long as I've been here," Allie replied, watching the older man as he made his way around to open it, peaking his head inside as Allie twirled on her seat, the lip of the island counter pressed against her back and cool, the frigidness of it seeping into her elbows as she let her arms hang loosely from the edge. "How do you even survive?"
Stark pulled his head free, retracting his hand with a Greek yoghurt being grasped in his hand, brow cocked. "I have a balanced diet."
"Of what?" Allie asked, copying the look on his face.
"Of…" He began before trailing off, lifting his shoulders and giving his hand a vague wave and closing the fridge behind him, unpeeling the lid and taking a spoon to sit himself down where Allie was, the latter watching his movement and moving back into her original position. "Whatever a balanced diet consists of."
"Well," Allie sighed, brushing her palms together yet again before cupping her cheek with her hand, arm propped up, watching Stark as he blanched somewhat at the taste of the yoghurt but continued to eat it nonetheless. "There's a range of balance diet foods in the fridge for you to choose from."
At that, he paused and quirked a brow at her. "Are you telling me I need to eat more?"
"What? No," Allie all but scoffed in return, shaking her head at the mere thought for show without wanting to give away that that was exactly what she was trying to get at; in the time she had been there, from what Allie had witnessed was that the man ate as much as he slept – which was to say, almost not at all. She couldn't help but wonder and worry if it was genuine forgetfulness or that he didn't care much for self-care. The question hung from the tip of her tongue, clinging on for dear life as she grasped her lip between her teeth, gnawing and chewing on it and forgetting about her lunch as she tried to find out what she could say without giving her thoughts away wholly. "But you do know people need food to survive?"
He paused in his eating and sat up right. "Actually – "
"No, there's no room for debate on this," Allie quickly snapped, glowering at him. Of course he would try to have a debate with her on this. Maybe he really did get a kick out of seeing Allie getting frustrated, the man in questioned watching amused as Allie huffed, eyes narrowing and wagging a finger towards him. "Don't you even dare to try and convince me people can survive without food."
"You could," he explained, a smile curving around the spoon pressed to his lips. "But you'd die."
Allie rolled her eyes at his words, unsurprised by them. "Point taken."
"Well, it's true," he sang, shovelling another spoonful of the yoghurt in his mouth but seeming displeased with the taste, face pinching ever so slightly but not yet deciding to throw it away – maybe he didn't want to be perceived as rude at doing so since Allie had taken the time to actually buy groceries for the place under the pretence of using what she had brought for lunch. Not that he ever needed to know, and neither would she be deigned to tell him to save her ego.
There was a moment's pause where neither spoke as Allie pondered on her thoughts, peaking at him from beneath her eyelashes as she tried to stop her curiosity from getting the better of her, but found herself unable to keep it in check as she coughed, clearing way for her voice to speak. "Hey… so… I've been meaning to ask you – "
"No, I can't go out with you, Allison – just imagine how people will talk," Stark commented without a heartbeat's pause, not letting Allie finish and making her choke on the food in her mouth, feeling it catch in her throat at hearing him say those words; Allie's fist went to her chest, slamming down on it as she coughed to clear herself of the chance of choking and dying on a sandwich on front of Tony Stark, heaving breaths and swallowing as best as she could, eyes almost popping out of her head as he gave a snort of laughter. Bastard, Allie hissed, gulping in another wave of air as she placed her food back down, glaring at him momentarily with a sharpened gaze, pinprick eyes while her chest heaved; the two stared in silence before Stark gave a cackle of laughter at her reaction, breaking the tension down and almost unaware of how flustered Allie felt.
"Oh, haha, very funny," Allie snorted, trying to brush past his words and ignoring the rising heat in her cheeks; she worried about it showing, the blotchy patches glowing in her skin and giving away her attempt at trying to appear indifferent to his words, even annoyed at most so as to not appear as affected as she felt.
"That isn't what you were going to ask?" he questioned, voice light and teasing and Allie adopted an appalled look on her face.
"No!" Allie exclaimed. "Why would I ask you out?"
"Because I'm handsome and charming and all you've ever dreamed of?" he sighed, sounding far too natural at this – this? Echoed in Allie's mind, giving a sniff and resisting the urge to blow a raspberry his way, feeling far too childish. Allie cursed him in her mind, the annoying flush crawling up from beneath her collar all too familiar by now.
Allie rolled her eyes, arm crossing over her chest and letting a smirk carve its way onto her mouth, as sharp as her words. "I have better things to be doing than dreaming of you, Mr. Stark."
Her words did little to deter him, if anything they spurred him on as that Cheshire like grin on his face grew wider, crinkles along his eyes forming and deepening. He really did have such a nice smile. "That's not a no on the 'handsome and charming' part."
"If I wanted to ask you out, I would do it in a more romantic way and not while I'm shovelling food into my mouth."
"I wouldn't have it any other way," he sighed dramatically.
"What I wanted to ask was," Allie continued from beforehand, wanting to push past this topic of conversation that left her floundering. She knew it wasn't serious, had to tell herself that a few times, but that didn't mean that there were times – Allie reigned in those whispers and brought her train of thought back on track yet again, clearing her throat and shifting in her seat. Part of her was hesitant to ask, lest he might take offence to it, but she wondered if there was really any trouble in trying to at least get to know him better; hadn't he asked her questions before? If he was able to do that, shouldn't she do the same? Though her answers hadn't really been the ones she wanted to say, it appeared – at least to her – that he was trying to make an effort in knowing her better; Allie just wondered if it were alright to extend the same courtesy to him without causing offence. "Do you ever leave this place?"
The question seemed to throw him off for a second, blinking slowly as he digested her inquiry before he paused in his eating, placing the spoon down in the pot and reaching up to scratch at the ruffle of curls that lay in a mop on his head; Allie watched as they caught on the light, strands of brown, of grey glinting and wrapping around each other and unable to break free. "Well, I have to sleep in a proper bed sometimes."
"Not what I mean. I meant leave leave," Allie explained, the man sitting across from her giving her an expectant look to delve further into her statement. With a sigh bleeding past her lips, Allie reached up to brush away the strands that tickled her cheeks and hook them behind her ear, gesturing wildly to the very few windows this place had. "As in go outside, where grass is and where you can see the sky."
"I've left a few times," he defended, looking as if he was ready to pout. If he had, Allie wouldn't have been able to stop the snigger that was building up in the back of throat at how utterly offended he appeared to be at Allie's suggestion that he didn't have a life – she hadn't meant it in that way, per say, but it was an underlining notion in her words. "We've been out, haven't we?"
"Not in that way," she said. "Do you ever just… leave to hang out with other people?"
"I'm forty-five years old. I don't think I can 'hang out' with people anymore," Stark scoffed, hands going up to make air quotes on his stressed words, almost mocking them – or maybe mocking her, though Allie didn't know.
"There's no age limit on having fun," she tried to tell him, though he gave her a look that begged to differ.
"You don't see elderly people going to raves."
"I don't go to raves," Allie told Stark without thought, not realising that how sad she appeared to be when she didn't seem to do anything outside of work despite how young she was. Her nose scrunched up as her mind tried to comfort her that she didn't need to be going out every weekend and getting drunk to have fun; she had just as much enjoyment watching a rerun of Friends as she would have getting blindingly drunk and passing out in a bush somewhere.
"Are raves even a thing with the youth nowadays?" Stark wondered aloud and Allie stared deadpan at him.
"I can't believe you just used the words 'the youth.'"
"The next generation?" he continued, not caring to acknowledge her words. "Young'uns?"
"I'm going to stop you before I'm going to worry about having to get you a cane."
"At least that'll help me to stand steady when I'm shaking my fist at the kids to get off my lawn," he shrugged and Allie snorted at the imagine of him doing so.
"I wouldn't be surprised if that's what you do in your spare time," Allie laughed, before reigning it in once more, glad that he was allowed her to probe more into who he was and not who appeared to be. She preferred finding out this way, by asking him and hearing it straight from him, rather than looking it all up online as she might have done weeks ago when she first started working for him, forming her own prejudice ideas on his character based on the assumptions of other people. "Do you just never meet with people for fun? What about the Avengers?"
"I think I'm too old for those young ones," Stark sighed, sounding as tired as he appeared and Allie's head moved back and forth in disagreement, the strands of her pony tail tickling her neck.
"Oh, come on," Allie said instantly. "You're not that old."
It was the truth, he was only forty-five, barely twice Allie's age. She was only five years shy of her thirties and, once, she might have considered that to be ancient but as she crept closer to that milestone, she found herself caring little about it. In all honestly, Allie didn't feel as if she had wasted her life, or that she was running out of time; Allie, in fact, couldn't wait for the day she would be able to retire in peace, to be able to have her own place and space. As much as she enjoyed sharing a place with Lisa, part of her still yearned for the independence she thought would come with adulthood, to be able to be her own self and adult.
Allie looked to Stark, taking in his somewhat haggard and ragged appearance; the messy hair, the rumpled and oil stained clothes. He looked older than he was, from the weighed down bags beneath his eyes to the deep set creases Allie knew would form between his eyebrows whenever he became too concentrated on something or when he was without his glasses and needed to squint in order to see better. Allie had been around to see him stripped of all that made him the face of the cover of Time magazine and she had been there to see him dressed to the tens, facial hair clean cut on his jaw, speckled with grey here and there and, all in all, it made no difference on the fact Allie did indeed find him handsome – not in a he's good looking for his age, but just wow he's really good looking. Embarrassed at the sudden turn in her thoughts, Allie chewed on the inside of her cheek, peaking down at the marble counter top and trying to make constellations out of the warped specks trapped beneath the surface in order to distract herself from falling prey to such lurking thoughts.
Still, Stark remained unaware of her thoughts, of what was lingering on the corner of her mind as he gave a huff, making her smile gently. "But I am, in a sense, old."
Allie gave a breathy laugh, once more meeting his eyes. "Captain America is, like, a hundred years old. And isn't Thor a god, meaning he could be well over a thousand years old?"
There was a pause as Stark reached up to scratch his jaw, a pondering look carving its way onto his features. "I should ask what skin care he's using to keep himself looking so young."
"Maybe it's all magic," Allie offered.
At that, he scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest. "I wouldn't say it's magic."
Allie stared in silence for a moment before opening her mouth to reply. "Mr. Stark, he can fly."
"So can I!" Stark defended, appearing almost offended that she had forgotten that he had that ability too – even if it wasn't one he was born with as the subject of their conversation was.
"Yeah, but not like he can," Allie shrugged, becoming slightly cross-eyed as she took a loose curl that had escaped from its confinements, becoming caught in her eyelashes and sweeping it back behind the curve of her ear along with the rest of the niggling and annoying wisps that had sprung free from her low pony tail. Pleased that it was not locked in place, Allie turned back to the silent man sitting close to her as he shifted in his seat, clearing his throat as if he had been deep in thought about something.
Despite the dark tan he had managed to acquire over the years, Allie's eyes flashed over what she thought to be a rush of red in his cheeks but thought better of it; for one, she was without her glasses and could barely see past her hand if she stretched it out and he had seen her become red in the face enough times without commenting on it. She blinked and it disappeared, making her doubt her sight and curse her mind and eyes for being both useless and blind. He spoke once more, tearing Allie away from all thoughts of a blushing Tony Stark; the mere suggestion would have made her keel over with laughter. "It still the same thing."
"Not really," Allie refuted and he looked positively disrespected at her saying so.
"Yes really," he replied.
"So, would me flying in an airplane be the same as you flying in your suit?" Allie inquired and was met with a breathy laugh.
"No, because you're not actually flying the plane and you aren't in a suit."
"Isn't it even a little scary?" she questioned so suddenly, her interest of his suits rearing its ugly head once more; not that he seemed to mind, though. He quite seemed to like the fact she was curious, asking him all she could about the mechanics of his suits. "You're in such a small piece of metal – "
"I wouldn't say it's just a 'small piece of metal'," he interrupted.
Allie screwed up her face. "But it's still metal."
"Titanium alloy," he corrected, stressing the words.
"Then why do they call you Iron Man?" she teased, eyes glued to him as she watched as he pinched the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb, eyes squeezing shut and muttering beneath his breath.
"I'm going to end up going into cardiac arrest," he mumbled, positively agitated by her incessant joking and Allie suppressed the urge to continue with her playful mocking of him, opting instead to continue her original course of action by asking him questions that were both serious and genuine in hopes of answers that were the same in both respects.
"How are you able to manage it, the flying?"
"Why?" he countered, raising his head and dropped the hold on the bridge of his nose once more and meeting her eyes, that same curious look on his face that Allie had on her own. It made that familiar gut wrenching feeling appear in the depths of her stomach once more, mouth dry and tongue tying knots around itself. "You want to?"
"Dear God, no. I hate flying. I hate being on airplanes," Allie replied breezily, hoping he wouldn't pick up on the awkwardness of her tone, wishing that he wouldn't delve further because she could sense the unease at the back of her mind creeping further, feeling it worsen as the curious look in his face deepened, a spark in his eyes. Shit.
"You ever been on one?" he prodded, not noticing – or maybe not caring – the tightness on Allie's face, lips pursed as her jaw became tight, clenched before giving an acute nod in response, doing little to divert him on his course. "Where to?"
Her hands felt clammy as she tried to remember to use her voice, to say the words that needed to be said. It was harmless probing on his side – it wasn't his fault, wasn't anyone's fault, but Allie had never been great at speaking. "Just… Ireland. Over the summer to visit family."
"Your parents were from there – what part?"
"The West. Countryside," she barrelled on, rushing through her words and wiping her hands on her jeans, tossing him a tight smile as she watched him open his mouth to inquire further but cutting him off before he could do so. It's just curiosity – he has as much right to ask as you do, whispered the voice in her head, too loud for her mind and pressing against her skull. "You wouldn't know it."
"Oh, come on, I'm not some idiotic American who doesn't bother learning the geography of other countries," Stark all but whined, sitting back in his chair and amusing Allie, lessening her unease due to the subject at hand. He splayed his hands towards her, a boyish grin on his face. "Try me."
For once, Allie decided to indulge him and the words didn't leave a bad taste in her mouth, not like the other ones did because they were here own words. "A county called Mayo."
"Okay, you're right, I don't know it," he replied after a moment's thought, seemingly embarrassed at being proven right by his own previous statement before a joking look took over his face, eyebrow cocked in disbelief. Oh, Allie just knew what he was going to say next, she had no doubt of that in mind. "And, really, Mayo?"
"Don't," she cut him off curtly, shaking her head, raising a hand towards him to strengthen her warning. "I've heard all the jokes."
He held his own palms outwards in defence, ceasing whatever he was going to say before dropping his arms once more, draping them across his chest and chewing on his words for a moment; Allie's eyes remained distracted at the sight of his arms for a moment, peering at the tanned skin that peaked out from the sleeves that were rolled up to his elbow, quite fascinated by the golden glow that greeted her before she was pulled back from her daze. "Would you ever go back?"
Ah.
There was a string around her heart, tightening as her voice died in the bottom of her throat, already in its grave as the tip of her tongue ran over her bottom lip, racking her brain on whether she should respond as she wanted to or not as it had been so many years and she doubted the place she remembered was the place it was today; Allie gave a half hearted shrug, dropping her gaze once more. Memories of homesickness, of those early days yet when she had been stranded here, wondering for when she would be able to go back home for God knows how long before she pushed the notion from her mind, knowing it could never happen. A shaky breath left her, hands clenched around each other as she dug her voice up from its grave to speak.
"Maybe," Allie told him truthfully, knowing that it could never happen. "Someday."
"Well, I, for one, am quite glad that you were able to go," he divulged to Allie, as if sensing the wistfulness in her tone and moving on from talk of home and Ireland. For that, Allie had never felt more grateful towards him than she did now, clearing her throat and hoping to banish the crack the was threatening to expose her. "Now I get to hear the most delightful Irish accent every day."
"I can tell you have a fondness for them," Allie said. "You're lucky I'm not from somewhere with a thick accent, like Limerick or Donegal."
"I… don't know what those words mean."
"I wouldn't expect you too," she said before straightening her spine, eyes sharpening into a mock glare towards him. "But now I'm suspicious that maybe you only hired me because of my accent."
"You got me," Stark confessed, shaking his head and throwing his hands up in surrender. "I've been caught red handed."
"I don't disagree with you, there are some accents that just make me sigh all dreamily,"
"American ones?" he asked, perking up as if in a hopeful fashion.
Instantly, Allie blanched without thinking. "Ew, no."
"Wow," he whistled, placing a hand over his heart in faux hurt.
"No offence, but it took so long to get used to the American accent. It's so…" Allie trailed off, trying to find the right thing to say without actually saying what she wanted to explain or that fit best with what she was trying to say, hand waving in the air as her face screwed up in fake, deep thought.
"Loud and obnoxious?" he offered, looking rather unamused at her charade.
"You said it, not me," Allie responded, deciding not to delve further on the subject as he gave a huff, unimpressed with her agreement to his statement. Allie swung back and forth on her stool, biting her lip before she spoke once more, not wanting to really meet his eyes. "They're not all bad, I suppose. I guess it just depends on the person and not how they're saying it that makes me want to faint."
"Oh? Like who?"
Allie stared for a moment, her mind conveniently forgetting every single famous actor and actress she could possible think of as she stared at him, a moment's pause as he awaited her answer that seemed to never come before her voice threw out the first, generic name that she could think of, rather than what was really on her mind.
"George Clooney."
That seemed to make him even more unimpressed and displeased, rolling his eyes as Allie felt her phone begin to buzz in her back pocket, nearly making her jump as she was pulled from their little world. "Oh, please."
"What? He's honestly one of the most handsome men in the world," Allie declared, scooting back slightly shifting her weight to dig into her back pocket to grab her phone. He was eyeing her, uninterested in and disapproving in her defence of her choice. "Don't be jealous."
The words seemed to offend him, as if she had said something far worse than that, slumping where he sat as Allie took her phone, glancing at the screen and seeing an unknown number flash up. "I'm not jealous."
"Would it help if I said that he's got nothing on you?" she suggested, not looking up from her phone for a moment as she tried to rack her brain for any memory of seeing such a number, but falling short and coming up with nothing. Stark didn't reply for a second and Allie tossed him a peak from her eyes lashes to see him sitting somewhat at a loss for words before he recollected himself in an apathetic manner.
"Only if it's the truth," he shrugged and Allie grinned, leaning slightly across the island counter, eyelashes fluttering.
"He's got nothing on you, Mr. Stark," she said in a sweet, soft tone, pleased at seeing him drop his indifferent appearance to glance at her before she turned away and back to her phone. "At least you can fly. Now, if you excuse me, duty calls."
"Or some unpleasant individual," he commented, voice loose and he took to fidgeting with his empty yoghurt pot as Allie's thumb hovered over the answer button, half hoping that whoever was persistent in still trying to call her would give up.
"Aren't they the same thing?"
"Touché," he winked, tapping the side of his nose before pointing towards her, Allie shaking her head at his actions and clearing her throat as she normally did to put on her best, sickly sweet voice that she had perfected throughout the years, far too fake for her own liking.
"Hello, Tony Stark's – "
"This is Patrick Heidman."
"Oh," Allie blinked, wavering slightly at his abruptness as she turned away from Stark as he mouthed to know who it was, which Allie promptly ignored. "Hello, this is Allison – "
"I was calling about the refusal to the invitation to the charity dinner that was extended to Mr. Stark to raise funds for the families of the first response units during The Incident," continued the man on the phone – Heidman, was it? Allie could feel the sweetness in her voice dripping away as she heard the very critical and cold tone in the mans voice, trying to remain focused as Stark, unimpressed with Allie ignoring him, moved around to sit close beside her, trying to eavesdrop in on the conversation and causing Allie's heart to still in her chest for a moment, staring wide-eyed at the man beside her as the words of the one on the phone became impatient and harsh. Oh, it was going to be one of those people, the ones that she had dealt with too much over the years. "The donation given to us is much appreciated, but I am inquiring as to why Mr. Stark would refuse an appearance."
Allie tossed a glance to Stark, unsure of how to reply with the man in question sitting so close beside her and leaning, unaware of what his close proximity was doing as she tried to breathe, tried to not drown in the smell of him. She stammered for a brief second before finding her footing once more, desperately trying to ignore the heat burning into her side. "Mr. Stark, unfortunately, does not have time to be able to – "
"And what, exactly, makes him unable to attend? Clearly, he has nothing better to do these days."
His words made Allie have to smother a curse that was forcing itself up her throat, hands clenched on her lap as jaw set itself in place before she took a deep breath to cool the fire in her chest, a fake grin on her face to help her with the act of appearing nicer than she wanted to be at that moment towards this man. Stark was staring at the crazy look on her face and tried to listen in further, not caring for when Allie leaned away as he did so. "Mr. Heidman, I'd really prefer if you didn't – "
"Does he think that he's better than all of us, or too good to show face around after the damage he's done?" he snapped and Allie desperately hoped that Stark couldn't hear despite the fact the man's voice was getting louder, climbing and climbing to the peak of yelling no matter how polite Allie was trying to make herself appear to be. A glance from the corner of her eyes showed that her hopes hadn't been answered and Stark's face dropped for all but a moment, Adam's apple bobbing in his throat but quickly gathering himself without knowing that Allie already saw. The fire in her chest grew.
Taking a deep breath without caring if the man on the phone had heard, Allie continued to failing attempts to be civil, trying to remember Francis' teachings of 'the customer is always right' even when the customer was a total ass. "The donation has already been put through and I can't – "
"Ah, yes, the donation. I guess he just can't be bothered to do it himself."
"Mr. Heidman, I really – " Allie began, becoming even more irritated at being cut off, fuelling the fire that was getting out of hand as she tightened her grip on the phone. All these months away from interacting with customers apparently had lessened her tolerance for bullshit.
"I can't believe that he won't even explain this for himself. I guess it's expected of a Stark."
"Sir – " Allie sighed, exasperated and forgetting how much her head hurt having to deal with people like this. And she was having such a good day too. Her hand went up to the bridge of her nose, pinching it between her forefinger and thumb while trying to ignore the pain in the ass that was talking – no, practically yelling at her into to her ear. Allie squeezed her eyes shut, taking a deep breath to calm herself and to stop her temper from getting out hand, especially with Stark looking at her with expectant eyes, waiting for an explanation as to who was speaking that would not come; Allie kept her voice low and sweet through clenched teeth, remembering all that had been drilled into her during her years as working in customer service. She could do this, she knew she could and, taking a deep breath, Allie went to try and appease the man who was shouting into her ear at that moment – until she felt a hand cover hers and rip the phone away from her ear.
Turning quickly, her eyes found Stark as he stood and stepped away from Allie, pressing her phone to his ear as Allie got to her feet, none too pleased to see a sneer on his face as he cleared his throat before speaking. Oh no.
"Tony Stark speaking."
Allie made a wild grab for the phone but, before she could, he was out of her reach and Allie's fingers brushed nothing but air. Oh, fuck no, she was definitely not liking the look on his face. Allie's voice was hushed and hoarse, eyes pleading with him as she made another swipe for the device but failed. "Mr. Stark!"
"Oh, Patrick. It's you," Stark sighed, unbothered by Allie's attempts as he adopted a displeased tone in his voice, bored and sharp at the edges as Allie became tongue tied. Oh, she could not believe him! Allie gave a huff, glaring at Stark as he nodded along to whatever was being said from the other side of the line, though seeming very uninterested at what he was being told.
"I see your side, but I'm afraid that I just don't want – no, sorry, I just am not able to, and yelling at my assistant won't do you any favours," he spat back, and Allie resisted the urge to bury her hands into her face, waist deep in disbelief at his words as she tried to make a grab for the phone but it remained out of her grasp as Stark continued to keep the distance between them, grinning goofily at Allie's pathetic attempts to seize control of her phone yet again and nodding along to the voice on the other line on the phone.
Stark took a sharp breath through his clenched teeth, humming along to whatever the other person on the line was saying, loud enough for Allie to hear but still being indiscernible for her ears. Allie made another reach for the phone but Stark turned the other way, making it impossible for Allie to take hold of it as he continued to step away from her each time she made an advantage towards him, hand held out but not bothering to wipe the smirk off his face, listening as he no longer bothered to keep up the civility Allie was desperate in keeping. "You see, I could, but I don't want to. Why? Well, I'd have to deal with you for starters, which is something I wouldn't even wish on my biggest enemy."
A strangled gasp left Allie's mouth as his words, legs no longer strong enough to keep Allie upright as she plopped back down into her seat, far too unable to wrap her mind around his behaviour towards the other man on the phone but remaining too shocked to try and snag the phone back from his hand, a hand briefly clapping on her lips to quell the sound that left her, dropping only to give a hushed and scandalised cry, which was met with a finger being held up in her direction to indicate he needed a moment's silence. "Mr. Stark!"
"Sorry, I have to go. I'm being called away. Okay, bye-bye, don't call back!" Stark sang, not waiting a moment longer before pulling Allie's phone away from his ear and pressing the hang up button, much to Allie's chagrin, staring at him with her jaw dropped open as he held the phone out for her to take back into her hand but Allie was too shell-shocked by his behaviour; she could not believe that he had said that, done that! He continued waiting with his hand outstretched, staring all too amused at Allie's wide eyes and open mouth. Maybe it had been the years of having to always act as if the customer was right being drilled into her, but the very fact that he had acted in such a way without a worry made every word in Allie's mouth turn to dust on her tongue.
Realising that Allie was rendered almost catatonic from his startling behaviour and was unable to retrieve her phone once more, Stark gave a tsk of his tongue before reaching down to take a hold of Allie's wrist, splaying her hand flat with her palm upwards to place the phone down into her hand, fingers instinctively going to wrap around the device, just in the event that she should forget that phones break when they drop. Recollecting her thoughts, his hand burning into her skin, Allie snapped her eyes to his as he let go, hand still in the same position as he had placed with before she managed to find her voice once more, croaking as she spoke. Stark still seemed totally and utterly unbothered with the whole ordeal, making it all that more surreal for Allie. "Oh my God."
"See?" Stark began, taking the seat beside Allie and appearing blasé about it all, turning with his back against the island and resting his elbows atop of it, arms dangling from the edge. It's just as easy as that to deal with people."
"I can't believe you did that."
"As soon as I heard the name, I knew it wasn't going to be pleasant," he said, pulling a face as if to prove his words; Allie wanted to shoot back that the guy will probably be even more unpleasant are Stark's behaviour towards him on the phone – meaning that he's going be twice as unlikeable towards Allie. "He's just some asshole who's always trying to get places and leech off of other people."
Truth be told, Allie didn't actually know the guy from anything or anywhere so had nothing to base Stark's statement off, chewing her bottom lip as she fiddled with her phone in her hand, glaring at it as if it were a venomous snake ready to sink its fangs into her palm at any given moment. "What do I say if he calls back?"
"In the likelihood that he does, just hang up."
The very suggestion, the very thought made Allie recoil as she furiously shook her head. "I can't do that!"
"Why not?"
Allie floundered, trying to find the right words to say but found her worries baseless. "Because… because it's rude!"
"Wasn't he the one yelling at you?" Stark questioned and Allie's voice dropped, seeing his point.
"Yes, but…" Allie agreed, knowing that what he had said made sense but that didn't mean it was right. Allie had always been proud of the fact that she (normally) behaved like a a mannerly and polite human being - with her last job, and even every job before that, she had to be under risk of being fired or yelled at. Allie was more than used to people yelling at her and she had become somewhat immune to it, and, with a sharp exhale, Allie gave an exasperated shake of her head as she clicked her tongue in disapproval. "It's just rude to hang up on people. I'm used to people yelling at me, anyway."
Stark gave a tight grin. "You shouldn't be."
"Well, I am. I don't want to be seen as a rude person and then have people talk about me behind my back."
Without a moment's hesitation, Stark replied to Allie's surprise. "Then I'll do it."
At his words, Allie found herself lost, voice suddenly gone in a single breath as she gawked at him, mouth parted in surprise as she became tongue tied, unsure of what she could even say to reply to such a statement. He couldn't be serious… could he? Her mouth felt dry as she stared at him, Stark returning the gaze in the moment's pause and making Allie realise that, oh no, he's too close. The hand around her phone tightened as her thoughts echoed in her mind – don't get too caught up in words that are wind. What was even going on with her? It was just a stupid suggestion and there she was, getting all strung up on four words like some lovestruck teenager with her first ever crush; Allie tore her eyes away, breaking the gaze as she gave a small, awkward laugh to hide what was bouncing around in her mind.
"You can't do that. I'm the one supposed to be answering calls."
"Well," he said, smiling all so sweetly, grin large and causing crinkles to appear around his eyes. Oh, damn him, echoed in Allie's mind. "Then I'll be the one unanswering them."
"You don't worry about being perceived as rude?" Allie asked, voice almost hushed as if she was afraid that someone might overhear – though knew the worry was nonsensical since, other than Colonel Rhodes, she hadn't seen another person down here since moment she started working for him. At her words, Stark paused in his movements and gave Allie that look – the one she knew to say are you serious? And she might have returned it with her own, warning glance but, before she could, he gave a small sigh.
"If they don't have the decency to act like a good and polite person, then I won't extend the same courtesy," Stark told Allie simply with a nonchalant wave of his hand, placing the spoon back in his mouth to clean it of what remained of his rather lacklustre lunch as Allie's mind soaked in his words that were, truth be told, sensible. The hand that held Allie's phone dropped as she pondered on his words for a moment, zoning out briefly as he began swinging back and forth on his stool yet again.
"That…" Allie paused for a moment, quite caught off by his words as she had never actually thought of it in that way before, giving a small nod in agreement, feeling more surprised than anything else. "Makes sense."
Stark gave a shrug as Allie pocketed her phone yet again, standing up once more from his seat to throw the unwashed spoon in the sink, Allie watching him unimpressed as he did so. "I've always abided by that to people who yell and nag at me."
Allie frowned at him, narrowing her eyes at the older man, crossing her arms over her chest. "I yell and nag at you."
"Yes, but it's your job to do it," Stark said, giving her a wink that made Allie roll her eyes, unable to suppress a smile quirking on her lips. There was a heat in her cheeks that seemed to burn but Allie tried to push it down, tried to banish it so as to not be caught out. "And you'll get tired of it eventually."
Allie stared, unsure of how to reply properly, not wanting to lie but feeling too embarrassed to tell him the truth that she doubted she ever could get tired of it, of him; instead, all Allie could do was give a tight smile. "Not if you pay me enough."
When he gave a laugh in response, that knotting in her chest worsened.
Allie really hated the cold weather that seemed to plague her with thoughts such as these.
Hello, hello! Just before I get into my A/N i'd like to answer a few of your reviews!
intata: thank you so much! sometimes i do find myself writing large chunks of paragraphs mainly because i absolutely love breaking characters down so much and im glad you didn't find it tiresome! i enjoyed writing tony's pov SO MUCH that i've moved up his next pov significantly without having to change much of the story. thank you so much, and im so glad to know you enjoyed reading my interpretation of the character!
Guest: thank you! i feel so bad now for missing last week's update after hearing how much you love and enjoy this story, but i promise that i will try to keep such things happening not as much! i'm actually proud that i've been rather consistent with this story in comparison to my other one (it's been literally two months since i last updated it yikes). thank you so much for reading and leaving such a supportive comment!
Lucky Strike's alter ego: ok im going to need a moment before i get into this review because when i read it, i honestly burst into tears. i was going through a rough patch last week (hence no update) and when i saw your review i has so overwhelmed because i never in a million years thought that someone could ever leave such a beautiful and lovely and kind comment on my story that they genuinely enjoy. i really felt like we needed a peak into tony's head rather than allie's interpretation's of his actions so that the next time he does something we can be like "oh! this is what it really means!" i love tony and i love the fact he's so human and can hurt and suffer like normal people do - he's not some almighty being or this legend put on a pedestal, he chooses to be a hero. even despite his anxiety and PTSD, he continues to choose to be the hero we all know he is. i really dislike how his mental illnesses are retconned a lot or just ignored, and quite honestly his struggles are going to be a large part of this story and i hope i can do them justice. tony is such a sweetheart and romantic at heart! no one can convince me that he's this ~suave~ cool dude playboy because! it's canon that he went for a jog with his fianceé and asked her can they have a baby! god dang i love tony "please can we have a baby please please" stark. and you dont know how shocked i was to see that you said i inspired you to publish a tony fic! i really need some good tony romance fics because they are my Life Blood and the world is sorely lacking in them and now that i'm over my small rough patch from last week, i'm going to go check it out! and i could never EVER be bothered by you recommending this fic! if anything, i'm so honoured! this is such a long reply and i'm kind of embarrassed by how much i've rambled but i just can't help it, especially when you've left such a lovely and supportive comment! i do hope you enjoy this chapter and future chapters of this story as you have so far!
Guest: thank you so much! i was a bit nervous about my interpretation of tony as i see him but im so relieved that people really like him, and i feel way more confident in writing from his pov now so much so that i'm going to do it more often than i initially planned to do! thank you so much for the review and i hope you continue to support this story!
spacevoyage: ahhh thank you so much! you don't know how relieved i am to hear that not only did you enjoy tony's pov, but that you also enjoy allie as a character because she's not meant to be this all good and all pure person. she makes mistakes, she can be mean and be moody and i was worried people would be turned off by her and her initial prejudice beliefs towards tony that were corrected some chapters before hand. i hope you enjoy this chapter as you did the last one!
PrincessMagic: thank you! i really love tony and i love him even more for his struggles, and i really wanted to do them justice because they are going to be a very important part in this story - especially his anxiety and PTSD. poor allie just can't catch a break - it'll be another while before rhodey can use "tony stank" on tony so tony better make as many jokes as he can before that happens. honestly, i mostly created allie because tony really just needs some love and support and if it takes 50 odd chapters or so, then i'll do it. if marvel won't give him love and support, then i'll just have to create someone to do it myself!
Am-fan097: thank you! im so relieved to know that while i may present my own interpretations, that i am able to stay true to the characters to some degree so that they still retain bits of themselves rather than having a dramatic retelling or being ooc. i hope you enjoy this chapter as you have the past few!
myharlequinnromance321: thank you! i really wanted to build a strong foundation for these two and though it may have been rocky at first, they're not going to know what hit them in a few chapters! i just want these two to be best buds but they're so stubborn.
JustCallMeWhatever: thank you so much! im so happy to see so much support for tony's pov and i've decided to write from it again very soon (much sooner than i anticipated). thank you so much once again and i hope you continue to support this story!
readeratheart8128: thank you so much and i'm so happy that you gave this fic a chance! tony's struggles are important to me as both a person and a writer and i want to be able to do them justice rather than retconning them like SOME PEOPLE (im looking at you joss whedon). and i feel like i can't keep ignoring this question or dodging it for much longer because i've already set the basis for it so, to answer everyone's question: YES! this is in fact a slow burn! i really wanted to remain vague about for as long as i could but i don't think i can do so any more. though it's going to be a VERY long time before ANYTHING happens! thank you so much for reading and leaving such a lovely review! i hope to hear more of your thoughts in the future!
pinkeye: first off, thank you so much for leaving a review! and without giving much away, tony is going to struggle a lot with his thoughts of pepper and allie (like a lot. so much struggling. please get this man a blanket and some cuddles please). i love pepper, i really do, and im glad she exists to give him the love he deserves as well as being such a badass and strong character but im3 kind of put me off her for a bit because of her attitude towards tony's struggles. her somewhat dismissive attitude kind of irked me and while it isn't a partner's job to act as a therapist for their loved one, support can go a long way. and im really trying not to give everything away because there's SO MUCH to allie's background that explains a lot to her character and to her reactions and skills. the very very basic priorities to this story are: tony + allies relationship allie's past + tony's struggles allie's skills (that will have its own storyline later.) im going to stop myself from revealing more because when i do finally bring everything to light i dont want people to be like "you told us that forty chapters ago". thank you once more for leaving your review and i really enjoy hearing your thoughts on this story and its characters!
PotatoWriter54: thank you so much! i felt awkward writing from tony's pov because it was my first time ever doing so (every fic i've written that features him has been from a different pov) but i'm so glad that it worked out and people are enjoying it! im not going to lie, i had my bias goggles on when listening to answer so i spent the first few days listening to 'epiphany' and as a hyungline enthusiast, i absolutely adore all the songs from the hyung line (if i play 'seesaw' one more time i feel like my sister is going to explode at me to change the song). i adore jk's solo song and when i heard the full length version of serendipity i was blown away. i have to say my favourite group song is definitely 'love myself.' i just love these boys so much i stan legends
eden: thank you! truth be told, i was really pleased with the ending result of the chapter however unsure i was about it. i love writing from tony's pov and i was worried that people might not like how i write him but im so glad that you enjoyed it! i always had such a hard time writing dialogue for AGGEESSS but this fic has really helped me to become better at it and now i'm much more confident in creating friendships and maintaining the chemistry between characters. allie will be her own person with her own storyline but she will have run-ins with the avengers (but that's far in the future but i already have her first meeting with them in mind and all i can say is: poor allie, she really can't catch a break.) Truth be told, i've never really put much thought into a faceclaim for allie until you mentioned it. i kind of wanted people to imagine her as they please and any interpretation is correct if that's how you see her! thank you so much for reading and for leaving your thoughts! i do love reading the feedback and thoughts of my readers!
LordSkyjacker: thank you! i'm glad to know that you enjoy my story and the way i write! i've always been a bit insecure with my writing but seeing people enjoy it so much gives me so much confidence! i always love breaking characters down, from their thoughts to how they act around certain characters. thank you so much for reading and supporting the fic!
glagla60800: thank you so much and you shouldn't worry about speaking english because your english is amazing! i'm so glad that you decided to give this fic a chance and im so happy that i didn't disappoint! for me, the foundations of friendship is really important for ANY relationship to be developed on and i'm so glad i was able to do it in a realistic way! thank you so much for leaving such a supportive review and i hope you enjoy this chapter just as much as you did previous ones!
coffeeandcake: thank you so much! thank you so much as well for giving my small fic a chance! you don't know how happy i am to hear i am able to do tony's character justice while also giving my own interpretation on certain aspects of his life (such as pepper and his relationships with the other avengers.) i hope that you enjoy this chapter just as you have past ones and i always look forward to hear feedback and thoughts!
i feel so bad for missing last week's update and i had the first 3-4k written before i went through a small rough patch and had to distance myself from writing and my laptop. but i'm back and though it's like 10 past 11 here, i'm finally finished even if im not happy with the end result of this chapter. me missing updates is mostly due to work or some life problems and if i don't update on a tuesday/wednesday then i will update the following tuesday to keep things consistant!
[me gazing longingly out the window] when will my editing of chapters before publishing them return from the war?
if you guys have anymore questions, dont be afraid to hit me up on my new tumblr starktohny!
Thanks for reading!
