I was just going back over some old fic I wrote when I realized that I still have not finished it, and that I have left more than a few people hanging here. I apologize, I just have not been inspired to write.

This is the last official chapter, but I may do an epilogue. Keep your eyes out.

In case the epilogue does not get posted, I would like to thank everyone who stuck with this fic. It is still my first, favorite, and longest piece I've written, and I hope you have gotten as much out of it from reading it as I have from writing it.

Chapter 13

Pepper can't shake the odd feeling of déjà vu, sitting here in the very same seat she had been in only months ago. She sighs shakily, running her hands through her hair in an attempt to smooth her elegant bun back into place.

The past few hours have been spent staring at the door to the operating room, waiting for anything, anyone to let her know that Tony is going to be all right. She rubs her swollen eyes tiredly and glances at the ring on her left hand, thinking about what it stands for. It's Tony's love, his commitment to her, to their future. But when this is all said and done, will there be a future left?

She tries not to think about it, but it's hard not to when it's staring her in the face. The despair she feels is enough to force her to her knees on the rough carpet, and she stifles a sob. Her life is so intertwined with Tony's that it would be impossible to live without him.

She sinks into the cold plastic chair of the waiting room and rests her head in her hands, trying to calm herself. After a few minutes of breathing deeply and trying to slow her racing heartbeat, Pepper feels her eyelids beginning to droop, and she allows herself to fall under the calm and oblivious blanket of sleep.

She wakes to the feeling of a warm hand on her shoulder. "Ms. Potts? Ms. Potts, Mr. Stark is out of surgery now." Pepper looks up to see one of the older nurses standing in front of her.

"Did it work? Is he okay?" Pepper sits up and pulls her shoulders back, her mind immediately clearing.

"He says he's feeling better, no headaches or extensive brain damage, so I would say it did work. He just woke up. He's still a little groggy, but he was awake enough to try and hit on the anesthesiologist." Pepper chuckles and the nurse smiles kindly at her. "He was asking for you."

When Pepper enters the recovery room, Tony is lying in his hospital bed, bald-headed, but looking otherwise undamaged. His eyes are barely open, a look of pure exhaustion in them, but he becomes alert when he sees Pepper cross the room to his bedside.

"Pepper?" Tony says, voice low and gravelly.
"Yes, Tony, I'm here." She sits at his side and gently takes his hand.

"They had to shave my head." He says, and Pepper laughs.

"It'll grow back. And besides, you still look as handsome as ever."

Tony smiles. "I know," he says, "I'm rocking the Professor X look, aren't I?"

Pepper grins back and squeezes his hand lightly. "Yes. Yes, you are."

Tony sighs contentedly and closes his eyes, a look of pure exultation on his face. When he speaks, his voice is so soft that Pepper must lean in in order to hear him. "My god, Pepper," he says. "I wish you could see it. It's all so beautiful, all of it. And I can really feel it now, all the connections and colors of the information and machines. I wish I could show it to you."

Pepper reaches over and rests her hand on his cheek, rubbing her thumb back and forth soothingly. "And it doesn't hurt anymore?" she asks.

"No, not at all. The electrodes are doing their job, and my healing factor seems to have accepted them completely." He sighs again and opens his eyes slowly, looking at her as if he is seeing her for the first time. His hand finds the engagement ring on her petite finger. "I meant it, you know," he says, "when I asked you to marry me."

"I know you did."

"So it's still a yes, then?" Tony asks quietly, a look of panic flashing behind his eyes, afraid she might take back her answer.

Pepper laughs. "Of course it's still a yes, Tony. It's you."