Hello, all. Hell or high water, I'm finishing this! (For the record, I haven't been able to update NEARLY as often as I'd like in the last few months! LIFE, am I right?!) ANYWAY- I hope you enjoy this chapter. And I appreciate ALL of your love and support, in the meantime. You guys mean so much! :D :D :D

The next morning arrived with bright, mid-summer sunshine streaming through the windows of Pepper's room, awakening her to the realization it was finally the day she and Tony had been anxiously awaiting- for her to take her first steps since the accident. She, of course, welcomed the chance to regain her mobility. But, if she was being honest, she was also very apprehensive about it. She'd been through rigorous physical therapy for several weeks, and had every reason to believe that she could do this. But the thought of having to reteach herself to walk was still very daunting, all the same.

Tony had left late that night before to get a few hours of solid sleep back at their condo in preparation for the next day. But he left with the promise of returning bright and early in the morning, so as to be there for every moment with her. So when he strolled through the door promptly at 8 am carrying two steaming coffees and a brow paper bag containing their breakfast, Pepper beamed at her husband, grateful he was there as promised.

"Well, good day, my beautiful bride. And how are you this fine July morning?" he cooed playfully, setting the food down on her bedside table.

Pepper breathed a sigh in appreciation for his positivity, and grinned back at him. "Wonderful now that you're here," she cooed back, reaching for him.

He purred in approval and took a seat on the bed as she pulled him into her arms. He pecked her lips before she hugged him tightly. Then he turned his face to kiss the side of her head, and he gave her a loving squeeze before he broke her embrace to pull back and look at her.

"How was the rest of your night?" he asked. "Get some sleep?"

She'd been restless all night long. But she didn't want to worry him. So she answered simply, "Enough, yes." Tony's brows knitted together slightly at this response.

"Everything alright?" he asked.

Pepper just gave him a loving smile. "Everything is fine," she tried to assure him, looking intently into his eyes. Tony gave her a slightly skeptical look, but chose to say nothing. Instead, he just nodded in acknowledgement, got back up off the bed, and went to open the bag he'd brought.

"For you, a double-shot, half-caf, non-fat, mocha-chino," he informed her, as he handed her the coffee. Pepper purred a thanks, and took a sip from it. Then she hummed in approval.

"And an egg white, ham and spinach bagel," he finished, handing her that as well. Pepper smiled appreciatively, and took it from him, though she really didn't have much of an appetite this morning, on account of her anxiousness. But she took an obligatory bite, and chewed it slowly, just so she wouldn't let on that she was feeling this way. She knew Tony was excited for the day, and she would feel bad if her own personal doubt was to ruin his enthusiasm.

She watched as he then got his food out of the bag, and returned to sit beside her once more.

"And you?" she asked, nodding at the wrapped cylindrical bundle he held.

"A loaded breakfast burrito. And the standard high-octane, black coffee with a quadruple shot of espresso," he reported, lifting the cup in his hand.

"Of course," Pepper replied, with a wry smirk. Then she made a face in distaste. "I don't know how you drink that stuff," she replied. "If they suddenly outlawed espresso, I'm afraid to think what you'd do."

"Easy. I'd start brewing my own personal supply on the down-low," he responded, as he took a big bite out of his breakfast, and chewed it for a moment before speaking again. "You don't think I'd give up my daily jolt that easily, do you?"

Pepper chuckled. "No, of course not," she teased. "Incidentally, it's a wonder you get any sleep at all."

"Well, I'll tell you one thing," Tony said, taking a sip from his cup. "I had a little trouble getting to sleep last night."

Pepper cocked an eyebrow at him in curiosity. "Oh?" she asked.

Tony nodded, and smirked. "Oh yeah," he assured. "I still can't get over the fact that we were simultaneously getting our rocks off to each other that night in Venice! I couldn't get my mind off of it! Still can't."

This made Pepper splutter in a giggle, and she brought a hand to her mouth as she laughed, her cheeks blushing at his candidness. Tony grinned widely, and continued. "Honestly, Potts," he went on to say. "I think the 'what if' on that is forever going to haunt me."

Pepper gave him a wry look. "What 'what if'? It never would have happened, Tony. It just..." she paused and took a deep breath, letting out a wistful sigh. "Wasn't the right time."

Tony gave her a thoughtful look, and then clucked his tongue. "Yeeeahhhh, I know," he reluctantly agreed. "I guess I just can't help but regret not getting with you sooner. We missed out on so much time we could've been together, you know?"

"Well," Pepper purred, while reaching to pull him closer to her. Tony obliged and leaned in, gazing intently at her. "Here's to making up for lost time," she said. "And for the bright future we have ahead of us, now."

Tony's lips slowly spread into a grin. "Hear, hear," he purred back, before leaning in to kiss his wife. Pepper deepened the kiss and Tony moaned in approval as he set down his breakfast to slide his hands up her body, and wrapped his arms around her. After a moment, the kiss broke, but not before he ended it with a sweet, lingering peck. Pepper smiled softly at the added affection, and pulled back to look at him.

He slid his hands back down her sides, and then grasped her hands in his. "All I know is that I'm going to make good on my promise to you ASAP," he said.

"Promise? What promise?" Pepper asked, not recalling what he was talking about.

"The promise that we are jetting off to Venice as soon as you are up to it, and having a proper honeymoon," he explained. "With the best sex of your life. Believe me."

Pepper chuckled at his tenacity. "Oh, thaaaat promise. Right. I...must've forgotten," she joked, giving him an amused grin.

"Right. That promise," Tony replied with a smirk, nodding. "It has to be done. That's all there is to it. It's all in the name of tying up loose ends, after all," he teased.

Pepper laughed again, and Tony grinned. Then he leaned forward, and planted a lingering kiss to her forehead before he took another bite of his burrito. Pepper smiled to herself at his tenderness toward her. Then he set his food on the table beside them, and moved to stand up off the bed, turning around to face her feet.

"Ok, Mrs. Stark," he said, brushing off his hands. "As for the next item of business," he said, stepping closer to the end of the bed. He pulled back the blankets, and then playfully pulled one of her socks off with a dramatic flourish. "I'm dying to see how my paint job held up," he informed her.

Pepper chuckled at him, and then she wiggled her toes for him, making the freshly painted, hot-rod red, toenails sparkle in the light. "They're spec-tacular," she gushed. "You did a marvelous job, I must say."

Tony shrugged and gave her a sheepish smirk. "Yeah, well. Couldn't have you take your first steps in months with naked toes," he joked.

But the reminder of this made Pepper only smile weakly in reply, and then bite her lip, her brow furrowing nervously.

Tony frowned with concern at the fact that this was the second time she'd done this. "Hey," he said, turning to sit back down next to her. "You still worried?"

Pepper bit her lips together for a moment, and then shrugged. "I can't help it. I just keeping thinking- What if I can't do it?" she admitted.

"But you will," Tony urged.

"But what if I can't?" Pepper argued. "What if I'm doomed to be in this bed forever? What if, after all of this, I'm not strong enough to do it? What if..."

"Pepper, it'll be fine. You're psyching yourself out. I promise. You'll do great," Tony assured, reaching for her hand to hold in both of his.

Pepper still looked uneasy. "What makes you so sure?" she asked meekly.

Tony just smiled lovingly into his wife's eyes. "Because I know you. You've never backed down from a challenge, and you always come out on top. No matter what," he explained. He shrugged. "And besides," he said. "I'll be there, too. For moral support or...literal," he said, winking.

Pepper smiled. "Believe me, I'm grateful," she said. She pursed her lips in thought for a moment before speaking again. "We've been through a lot, haven't we," she commented.

Tony scoffed, and smiled. "Honey, you don't know the half of it," he teased. "But you will. I have faith," he said, referencing her ongoing effort to regain her memory.

Pepper smiled, and nodded hopefully. "Right. Any day now," she replied. "But I'm talking about just in the time since I woke up. Through all of this, we've...become close. Or...closer than I can remember us being, anyway. I just hope you know how much I appreciate it. Our...relationship, I mean. I don't know what I would've done without it, honestly."

Tony smiled at her words, and leaned in to be able to look at her squarely. "Well, I can only speak for myself. But that's what happens when you're with the love of your life. You..." he said, pausing to teeter-totter his head from side to side. "Tend to become close to one another," he joked.

Pepper giggled bashfully, and Tony chuckled at making her laugh. Then, as their laughter faded, they remained gazing lovingly into each other's eyes.

She then motioned to him to come closer. "Come here," she said. "I could use some more of that closeness right now."

Tony purred in approval, and then leaned in to kiss her again. But suddenly, they were interrupted by a soft rapping at the door. "Knock knock?" they heard her physical therapist, Jeff, say as he cracked the door open before entering. He poked his head in and smiled. "Ready to get this show on the road?" he asked jovially, as he brought a walker he was carrying inside.

Tony looked at Pepper, and gave her an encouraging nod, followed by a wink and a smile. She just smiled weakly back, as the butterflies that she'd had in her stomach suddenly reached a fevered pitch.

Tony collected the rest of their food and set in on the table next to the bed. Then he reached for her hand, lifting it to his lips to kiss. "You'll do great. I know you will," he murmured, trying to reassure her. "And I'll be right here the whole time, if you need me."

Pepper bit her bottom lip, and nodded in understanding. "Okay," she replied, trying once again to smile bravely.

Jeff had walked to her bedside, and was unfolding the walker. She watched as he extended the sides out. As he was doing this, Dr. Cho and a couple of the nurses that had been attending to Pepper since she got there stepped in the room, and she gasped, her nervousness quickly morphing into anxiety. Her eyes flicked tentatively to Tony's, and he gave her another soft smile.

"I hope you don't mind a small audience," Dr. Cho said. "We've all been looking forward to this day."

Pepper gave them a polite smile, but said nothing.

Once Jeff had arranged the walker, he noticed she was wearing only one sock. "Well, you're half-way there already. We'll need both feet bare for this," he informed her, and he moved to slip off the other sock. "Great color by the way," he commented, noticing her freshly painted toenails.

Pepper chuckled. "Well, I was lucky enough to get a pedicure last night from my husband for just this occasion," she said with a proud smile.

Jeff raised his eyes in curiosity to Tony. "You painted them?" he asked.

Tony just grinned proudly, and nodded. "I did," he replied. Then he raised his hands up in front of him. "Very steady hands," he said.

Jeff smiled and nodded in understanding, and the nurses cooed and murmured amongst each other in admiration of Tony's care for his wife, saying things like- "He's so sweet." "They're so in love." "She's a lucky woman." "They're the greatest." Tony and Pepper just shifted their eyes back toward each other, and smiled. Tony made a small kissing motion with his lips, and then winked and smiled at her. Pepper grinned and blushed at the gesture.

Once he felt everything was set, Jeff took a step back, and gestured for Pepper to begin. "Ok. You ready?" he asked.

Pepper nodded, and bit her lip again nervously. Then she took her eyes off of him, and looked down toward her feet, trying to focus on shifting herself to where she could dangle her legs over the side of the bed, and get behind the walker. Tony and Jeff both went to assist her by grasping her hand on each side, and supporting her by the elbow. "That's it. Nice and easy, Baby. Take your time," Tony murmured.

Pepper's chest began to heave as she labored to get turned. Once she did it, however, she let out a heavy exhale. "Phew. That, by itself, took a lot of work," she remarked.

"Then take a break. There's no need to rush," Jeff told her. "Just tell us when you're ready to go again."

Pepper nodded, and Tony took the opportunity to reach into his back pocket for his phone. "Hey, doc? You mind capturing the moment? I have a certain mother-in-law, not to mention a group of board members, that would be very interested in watching this," he said.

Dr. Cho nodded in agreement, and Tony stepped to hand it to her. But Pepper frowned. Gee, thanks, Tony. No pressure, she thought.

Tony noticed her disapproval, and gave her a questioning look. "What? They would," he argued.

"But does it have to be my first steps? I understand showing my mother, but..." Pepper countered.

Tony held up a hand in surrender. "Okay, fair enough. This one can be for posterity's sake, then. And for Mama Potts," he replied cordially. "The Board can wait until you get really good on your feet. Then you'll wow them even more."

Pepper gave him a grateful smile. "Thank you," she said. "That's all I ask."

Tony smiled and nodded in reply.

Then, Pepper turned her focus back to the task at hand, and took a deep breath. "Ok. No time like the present, then, hmmm?" she asked.

Each man resumed their supportive positions, and they all heard the beep of the camera on Tony's phone from Dr. Cho hitting the record button. But Pepper didn't move. However, her chest began to heave.

"Pep?" Tony asked after a moment. "You okay?"

Pepper just nodded, but she squeezed her eyes shut.

"You're doing great," Jeff murmured to her.

"I'm not doing anything," Pepper responded. "I...I can't..."

"You can, Pep. You got this," Tony replied.

"No," Pepper said, emphatically shaking her head back and forth. "I can't. I can't move. I'm stuck. My legs just won't..."

"Ok, let me help," Jeff said. He let go of the arm he was supporting, and Tony, in turn, let go as well. Jeff then moved in front of the walker, and reached out his arms. "Grab my forearms, and I'll help to pull you forward," he said. Pepper did so, and leaned forward to try, but almost instantly she let go and sat straight up again with a wince, and yelped, as if in pain.

"Oh! Ow. Ow, ow, ow!" she said, her voice timid and panicked. Jeff release his grasp, and stepped back holding his hands up to his sides in alarm. Pepper's chin began to quiver. Tears welled in her eyes, and two rolled down her cheeks. She shook her head in defeat. "I can't. I can't do this," she said. "I'm not ready."

Tony quickly stepped in to move the walker to the side, and then he crouched down in front of her so he could look upwards into her eyes, his hands on each side of her hips. "Don't cry, Pep. You're doing just fine. Just be patient with yourself," he encouraged.

She sniffed, and swiped at a few more tears. "I'm trying. It's just so hard," she replied.

Tony nodded in understanding. "I know it's hard. But you can do this. I know you can. You've worked so hard to get here, and I'm not going to let you give up," he said. "So let's figure out what you need, huh? What hurt just now? What do we need to change to make this work?"

Pepper took a deep breath to try to steady herself, and after a moment, she answered him. "My hips. I can't lean forward like that. I can't..." she tried to explain.

"Okay, then. Let's try something else, huh? Is that okay? Can we try?" he asked hopefully.

Pepper swallowed hard, and then nodded.

Tony stood up so he was standing directly in front of her. Pepper raised her eyes up to look at him, and he smiled. "Come 'ere," he said, offering her his hand, as if he was asking her to dance.

Pepper flicked her eyes from his to his hand and back again. Then, cautiously, she grasped it, and Tony raised her hand in his, as he bent down to put her arm over his shoulder. Simultaneously, he wrapped his arms around her waist, and pulled her to him, lifting her gently so the very tips of her toes touched the floor. A couple of soft "Ohs!" could be heard from the nurses as they admired the loving effort he was making. But Pepper was almost oblivious to the fact that she was half-way to a standing position. All she knew was that she was gazing intently into her husband's loving eyes, and he was gazing just as intently back.

"How're we doing? This okay?" he murmured to her after a moment.

Pepper suddenly realized for the first time what had happened. The tension faded instantly from her expression, and she gave him a big smile. "Yes," she replied emphatically.

Tony smiled in approval. "Okay, then. How about the other arm, now?" he asked. Pepper did as instructed, and wrapped her other arm around his neck, allowing Tony to effectively set both of her feet down on the floor to an official standing position. The nurses cooed and squealed in delight at this momentous event, and one even clapped giddily.

Pepper grinned, and Tony turned to place a kiss to the side of her head, keeping her held tightly to him. "Still doing okay?" he murmured her.

She didn't dare budge from his secure embrace, so she just nodded. "Yes. I'm great," she replied.

"Then, while we're here, shall we dance a little? To mark the occasion?" he teased. Pepper giggled.

"I think just taking a step will be a good enough marker," she said.

"Fair enough," Tony responded. "You ready?"

Pepper closed her eyes, and nodded.

"Then follow my lead, baby. And don't worry. I've got you," he murmured. And with that, he eased his left foot back, and shifted his weight for Pepper to follow, still holding her to him firmly. She hesitated, but did as he'd instructed, and eased her right foot slightly up off the ground, then kicked it forward before gingerly setting it back down again, a few inches in front of its original place. She slid the other foot on the ground right beside it, thus completing her first step. Utterances of encouragement came from the onlookers, and Pepper exhaled in deep satisfaction of her accomplishment.

"There you go, Potts! You're doing it! One small step for man," Tony teased, and Pepper let out a soft, but elated, giggle. "Wanna do another?"

"I do," she answered.

"Alright. Here we go! One giant leap for mankind! Just follow me, Pep," Tony instructed. This time he eased his right foot back, and Pepper raised her left foot a bit off the floor before leaning into him to set it back down just ahead of where she began. Then, this time, she slid her right foot along side to join her left, thus completing her second step. The nurses cooed and squealed in delight again.

Tony pulled back to look at her, while still keeping his arms wrapped securely around her middle. He beamed. "Look at you. You're a natural," he purred. "You'll get this down, yet."

Pepper smiled bashfully back at him, her cheeks blushing from him fawning over her. "Well," she said sheepishly. "I wouldn't be here without you. I can't thank you enough."

"No need, baby. We're a team. We're in this together. And you're being alive and well, and in my arms again, is all the thanks I'll ever need," Tony replied.

Pepper's chin began to quiver again as new tears welled in her eyes in response to his sweet words. She was about to reply, but, just then, Tony's phone began to ring. Dr. Cho clicked off the recording she was making, and briskly walked to hand the device to him. Tony frowned at the interruption, and at the annoyance of having to be handed anything at a time like this, but he gave her a nod of thanks anyway. Once he got it righted in his hand, both he and Pepper looked at the screen to see who was calling, and Tony immediately huffed in dismay.

"Shit," he grunted. "No. No, no, no. Not right now. This is the worst time for this. Are you kidding me?" he muttered to himself.

Pepper turned to look at Tony questioningly, and then she turned her eyes back to the screen to try to understand what was so upsetting to him. "Why? What's wrong?" she asked him, looking at him once more. "Who's Nick Fury?"