PARTY CITY

The sky turned a dark shade of blue as the day slowly came to an end with the sun disappearing behind the tall buildings that lined the city. The light from the city shown in through the massive windows that went all the way up to the ceiling of Abel's room was a half circle with modern decorations. One wall was pained a dark blue and the other side was nothing but glass windows with the curtains open. The bed had gray sheets but was person-less. The TV was on too but only gave off a subtle sound so the room wouldn't be so quiet. Beside the bed was a desk with Abel sitting down in front of with a single lamp on.

Abel's computer was open and she typed at the keys in an E-mail page to a person called 'CBamlett1'. Her fingers then stopped moving as she stared at the message she was about to send. It was a rather polite and well-written message talking about what she's been doing and how she's been working with Tony for a while now. A grim look came over her face before she totally backspaced the whole message away. Abel gave off a sigh and leaned her back against the chair and stared at the empty, wordless page. She sighed in defeat and slowly closed her laptop.

Her phone began to buzz and she jumped from the shock. Abel reached over and saw that it was Tony calling her.

"Tony?" She held the phone to her ear. "Is something wrong. I looked over the ice problem and came up with a solution. Was I wrong?" She could think of a way that she could have been but was still worried.

"What?" Tony called back and was confused for a moment. "No. no, no. You were spot on with that, but I have a request for you."

Abel looked perplexed. "Request?"

"Tonight. Like now. Right now." Tony said which puzzled Abel even more. "You're not doing anything tonight, are you? I need a date at the Disney Concert Hall."

Abel then realized why that sounded so familiar. She turned around and saw that the news talking about that very occasion. "I don't remember you getting an invite for that," Abel said.

"Why do I need an invite to my own party?" Tony countered. "You're not busy, right? Meet me there. Wear something flashy." He hung up without giving her much of another explanation.

Abel's mouth dropped open when he hung up. She looked at the TV as they talked about not seeing Tony since the bizarre press conference and him possibly having post-traumatic stress. They figured they won't be seeing him tonight. It was possible that that sparked this request.

The lady was a bit panicked and debated in her head if it was even a good idea to go, but her rational way of thinking wasn't even present at the moment. Abel sprung to her feet in an instant and ran to her closet to look for the perfect dress. She ripped many off the hooks one after another till her hands finally draped across smooth slink that felt good to the touch.

Her mind was in a total panic more even when she was putting on makeup and slipping on her dress. She wasn't thinking at all and finally came out of her wild and panicked state of mind when she looks in the mirror at what she was wearing. She had dramatic makeup on with a brown smokey eye with a golden, shimmery and metallic lid. Her dress was even more dramatic that was long enough to touch the floor. It was an open back, off the shoulder white dress that was hugged and wrapped together with a large bow in the back. Her hair was simply put together with gentle curls.

Beautiful or breathtaking, it was one of those two that described her. She had a classical and graceful look to her that would put any model to shame and have men desire her. Abel had no rival when it comes to beauty for it was only natural with her.

Abel took one long and a good look at herself before she let out a scream. She held her hands over her face and leaned back far in her chair. "Oh dear God in heaven! What am I doing?"

Tony drove up right in front of the concert hall where the red carpet was laid out and packed with people already late at night. He stepped out and handed his keys over. Tony was already dressed in a nice suit and was just now waiting for his date that he's praying will show up.

Gasps and pictures flashes were immediately turned to him as he rushed up the red carpet where one girl whispered alluring words to him.

"Hey, Tony, remember me?"

"Sure don't." He walked right up to Obadiah who was talking with an interviewer. "What's the world coming to when a guy's got to crash his own party?"

Obadiah grinned and chuckled when he saw him. "Look at you. Hey, what a surprise."

"I'll see you inside."

"Hey, take it slow, all right? I think I got the board right where we want them." Obadiah warned him.

Tony nodded. "You got it. Just cabin fever. I'll just be a minute." Tony turned to walk away when the sound of even more screaming and camera flashes went off. He turned around to see what the fuss was about and his breath got stuck away.

Abel got out of her car and handed her keys over to a blushing young man. She walking with so much grace that the whole concert hall fell silent and stared at her in shock, wondering who this beautiful woman was.

Tony stood absolutely stunned as Abel walked right up to him and gave an awkward smile. "Hi." She said shyly.

Tony let out a weak. "Hi." In response before coming out of his shock. "You actually came..."

Abel laughed slightly. "I'm still shocked about that myself." She gestured behind him. "Shall we go in?"

Tony nodded very slowly and was just taking it the sound of her soft voice and her beautiful eyes staring right into his. "Yeah. Yes." He held his arm out and she linked it with him as they walked into the party.

The inside has crowed with people dressed in their best clothes with soft elegant music playing in the background. Abel could feel eyes all over her and mumbles under their breath. Men talked about her body and girls talked about whether Tony was taking her home tonight to have some 'fun'. She was still wondering why she came tonight and actually wore one of the most flashes looks she can pull off. She felt her hands shake as she clung to Tony's arms and just prayed that this night will be over soon.

Abel then glanced over and saw someone whom she wished she didn't have to see for a while. Agent Phil Coulson. He was looking her across the room over at the bar like he was giving her a message through eye contact. Abel frowned and glanced back at the cameras that were thankfully not on her.

"You alright?" Tony suddenly asked, noticing her sudden paleness and worried expression. "I didn't force you to come over did I. I mean— I didn't have a date and-"

"You didn't have an invitation either." Abel gave a weak smile but was still very pale.

Tony bit down on his lips and glanced around the room for an icebreaker. Anything to save him and her from this awkwardness that was sticking to them like a plague. "You wanna dance?" He asked right off the top of his head.

Abel's face only went paler then before, if that was even possible. "What?"

He could see all colors definitely evaporated from her face and it only made Tony believe that was the worse choice he could have picked out. "Please tell me you know how to dance?"

"I know how to dance just as much as the next guy," Abel said.

"Great. Let's go." Tony literally dragged Abel to the dance floor.

Abel was locked in place in a panicked state of mind and it certainly didn't help to be this close to him. She was so nervous about coming to this party and now all that was heightened just by dancing to him. All her nerves were shot and Abel couldn't look him in the eyes, feeling she just might crumble way if she did.

"Come on, Sweetheart. You're killing me here." Tony practically begged her.

Abel took every ounce of courage she had left inside her and finally looked up to see his brown eyes staring right into hers. Just seeing him this close took her breath away and while all the color returned to her face, but for it to be bright red.

Tony was quiet while he held her waist and swayed gently with her. He took it all in. Her movements, her breathing, her eyes, and the sharp gasp she did when she finally looked up. It was all a new experience to him, and how many girls has he been with until now? She was different though. Abel was different. He didn't know exactly what it was about her though that made him so drawn to her. Was it her intellect, her beauty or her gentleness. He didn't know what it was.

All was quiet between the two of them and not a single word was spoken but eye contact was never broken. Tony wanted to stare at her forever and Abel couldn't bear to look away.

Abel spoke first and finally broke the silence with her weak voice. "I can't breathe." She whispered.

Tony blinked before shaking his head. "Yeah. Okay. How about we go get some air, huh?" He suggested. Thinking about it now was probably the best thing to do right now.

After they were outside, Abel could finally feel like she could breathe again. She leaned against the railing and took a deep breath while Tony stood beside her, patting her shoulder to calm her.

Tony shook his head. "If you didn't want to come you could have just said so," he said.

Abel slowly turned her head towards him. "You were the one who said wear something flashy and hang up before I could even get a word out." She reminded him. "You back me up into a corner for this one, Tony."

Tony didn't touch anymore on that topic because she had a very, very good point. "What's wrong with you tonight. You're acting kinda strange, you know."

Abel took a breath and strengthen her back up to face him. "I just don't like cameras, that's all."

Tony scoffed and waved her concern off. "Oh, please. No one was looking at you." That was the biggest lie of the night. She was the prettiest one in the room, and EVERYONE was looking at her. Filming her, taking pictures, eyeing her up and down.

Abel clearly didn't believe him, judging by the look she was giving. But suddenly, she let out a small laugh with a smile on her face. The first one of the night which was genuine. It made him feel at ease when he heard her.

"Abel, I'm sorry I dragged you here tonight, but thanks for coming anyway." Tony gave a weak smile to her.

"Well...whatever you need, I'm here to help. I'm your partner, am I?" Abel's smile warmed the night.

Ah, there it was again. It felt like a magnetic pull right towards her. Tony reached up and held her arms firmly and began to lean in slowly. Abel was taken back by his actions but it was like her body wasn't working with her as she leaned in to. She wanted this. She wanted to know what it felt like. She wanted to listen to this feeling in her chest that went off every time she looked at him. She wanted this so bad her hands were shaking. And he wanted it just as bad as she did. He wanted to know what she tasted like and all her small habits. He wanted nothing more than to be as close to her as possible.

Abel closed her eyes and all she saw was black when vivid memories flashed beneath her eyelid. She gasped from shock and pushed him back. Tony stumbled a bit from her rejection and looked at her in shock.

She still had her arms out on his chest from the push. Her voice quivered as she spoke. "I can't...I'm sorry." She looked up with glassy eyes. "But I can't."

The rejection hit him harder than anything he had ever felt. It cut deep in his heart as he stared into her glassy eyes, now filled with much more mystery than before.

Tony took in a sharp breath and looked down, gesturing his hand backward. "Why...Why don't I go get us a drink, okay?"

Abel said nothing and wrapped her arms around herself. She shook her head and watched Tony quickly make for the door inside. Once he was gone she let out a struggled breath with tears filling her eyes. Abel leaned against the bar and began to mumble in an unrecognizable language like she was speaking in tongues.

Tony half ran up to the bartender and placed a dollar in a wine glass. "A vodka martini, extra dry, extra fast, extra strong." He was kinda wanting to drink his way out of the night. He was over it, just plan over it. It was bad when he got here and it only got worse from there.

Just then a woman walked up to him and laugh. "Wow. Tony Stark."

Tony looked at her. "Oh, hey."

"Fancy seeing you here."

Tony knew this woman and was jolting all the names in his head to remember her. "Carrie."

"Christine," she corrected. Close enough. "You have a lot of nerve showing up here tonight." Tony was stone-faced. "Can I at least get a reaction from you?"

"Panic. I would say panic Is my reaction."

"'Cause I was referring to your company's involvement in this latest atrocity." She said harshly.

"Yeah. They just put my names on the invitation. I don't know what to tell you."

Christine scoffed. "I actually almost bought it, hook, line, and sinker."

"I was out of town for a couple of months, in case you didn't hear."

"Is this what you call accountability?" Christine suddenly brought out some pictures. "Its a town called Gulmira. Heard of it?"

Tony eyed her before flipping through the pictures and saw a town in shambles with terrorists carrying Stark weapons. Some of them had familiar faces that he and Abel met back in the cave. "When were these taken?"

"Yesterday."

Tony shook his head. "I didn't approve any shipment."

"Well, your company did."

"Well, I'm not my company," Tony stated firmly and went off to find Obadiah.

Just then Abel came downstairs with a pale face and spotted Tony and walking out of the party with Christine. Curious, she tilted her head and was about to walk over when an arm suddenly caught her.

"Excuse me, ma'am?" A man who grabbed her arm said. "But weren't you the one who came with Tony Stark?" he asked.

Abel eyed him suspiciously and looked around the room. "Yes. Yes, I am. May I ask who you might be?" She spoke as polity as she could and kept her grace.

He was dressed up as well with messy brown hair and a shaven face. His clothes didn't look the part for a party like this and judging by his fingers, he wrote a lot. Abel could pick up on who this man was immediate. A journalist.

The man gave a fake laugh. "Sorry, I am Garry Jenner, from IM Journalism." He said. "Wow. I have to say. You are absolutely stunning. Tony Stark must be a lucky man to have you as his date tonight. Can I get a few words from you?"

A journalist is the last thing that Abel needed and she shook her head. "My apologies, but I am quite busy." She quickly shut the man down and yanked her hand free from his grip. "Now, if you would excuse me..." She made her way towards the door to find Tony but was still followed by Garry Jenner. Once she was outside she saw him talking to Obadiah.

"Have you seen these pictures?" Tony asked and showed him them. "Huh? What's going on in Gulmira?"

Obadiah tried to drag him away from the public eye. "Tony, Tony. You can't afford to be this naive."

"You know what? I was naive before, when they said, 'Here's the line. We don't cross it. This is how we do business.' If we're double-dealing under the table...are we?"

Obadiah was quite. He glanced over to Abel who was still trying to get rid of Garry's unwanted meddling. He smiled. "Let's take a picture. Come on. Picture time!" The posed for the pictures as Obadiah whispered into his ear. "Tony. Who do you think locked you out? I was the one who filed the injunction against you. It was the only way I could protect you."

Obadiah patted him on the back and walked down the stairs with everyone taking pictures of him as Tony stood there, absolutely stunned and motionless.

Abel's eyes widen in shock. She clenched fist tightly and looked to the ground. She didn't think that it was this big. The problem with his weapons...and Tony had no idea, but Obadiah did?

At the time, Garry's words finally stuck her. "How does it feel to go to a party with a man known to be a playboy? I have to know. Are you really just a simple date?"

Abel slowly turned her head. "You have to know?" She scoffed. "I know what you're doing. No words I say will do justice for Tony. You will only twist and turn those words around for your own luxury." She spoke in such a low tone that made Garry stop in his ranting tracks. "You don't know anything about the man himself and just go off unreliable sources. Don't you DARE assume anything about a human being that you haven't even met before."

Garry looked taken back. He tried to size her up but Abel wasn't having any of this. Her night was ruined and she just wanted to go home and deal with the Gulmira situation later.

Garry then suddenly yanked Abel back into place. "Ow! What in the world are you doing?" She shouted loud enough to caught Tony's attention.

Tony turned around and saw Abel struggling with an unknown man. "Abel?" He called to her.

Garry hissed at her "I'm starting to think that you're nothing but a candle that will only last one night with him, are you?"

Every time this man opened his mouth anger started to boil up. Abel tried to remain graceful and polite but it's like something snapped inside her head and her body began to move before she realized what she had done. It was all in a quick motion and would have been hard to see if you weren't looking closely. Abel grabbed the man's arms and twisted it until she felt his bones popping under her grip. She then brought her leg up and slammed it against his elbow and finally heard that satisfying snapping noise that it made. It was all short-lived though as the adrenaline rush of anger settled back down and she found herself staring down at Garry who was hunched over in pain and on the floor, holding his clearly broken elbow.

Abel looked up and saw to her horror, camera flashes, and video being recorded. She let out a small gasp of shock when her vision turned dark when something was placed over her head.

Tony whispered in her ear. "All right. Let's get you out of here, sweetheart." He wrapped his suit coat over her head and lead her away from the public eye. All the while Obadiah grinning and watching Abel's figure as she and Tony rushed away.

Coulson watched as Abel disappeared with Tony. He sighed in frustration and walked back inside and began to dial on his phone. "It's me. I need a little favor."

Author's Note:

Ohhh~ Things are getting tense! Can anyone guess who Abel is? Yes? No? Honestly, I've noticed while editing that it's kinda obvious, what guess what...it's gonna get so much worse, HaHa~

I'm excited to reveal who she is pretty soon. I got the Gulmira chapter to edit and after that...we finally figure out who she is! God, I'm so excited because there is just so much more that needs to be reviled and I can't even say it...in this story at least.