I had some trouble with this chapter, due to some can't-be'named distraction XD This chapter is a little boring and humorless but kind of vital to the storyline.

Enjoy your read.

Disclaimer; I own none of the Avengers, only my wild imagination

Chapter 4- Worries

Pepper paced back and forth on her bare feet. Her hands were stained with blood that wasn't hers. They were in waiting lounge in the emergency floor of the hospital. Steve's leather jacket was draped around her, while its owner was sitting on the chair after sending Elizabeth and Peggy home. Bruce sat next to him, his fingers rubbing his eyes tiredly. It was 2.15 in the morning, but no one seems to be even slightly sleepy.

Natasha sat next to Clint, her head on his shoulder. Clint's and her eyes were wide with shock. She was sobbed a little, while Clint was rigid on his seat. Thor had Jane's head on his lap. She was curled on the seat, his hands patting her hair quietly. Jane was crying; unable to get rid the image of bloody and unconscious Tony from her head. Darcy and Rhodey were talking to the cops at the corner of the waiting lounge. Darcy spoke with unusually quiet and shaken voice while Rhodey trying his hardest to keep calm.

They were all shocked, panic. The sound of the explosion, Tony's screaming painfully, his broken form on the top of building was burned to their brains. Nobody expect to see Tony like that, despite his particular talent of pissing them off. But he is their close friend. He might be repulsive at times and seems to have no moral conscience, but he has a good heart.

I thought I can take care of myself, his words rang in Pepper's ear. She took a deep breath and pulled the leather jacket closer to her thin figure. When she exhaled, it came out as a sob. Of course you can't take care of yourself, Pepper thought bitterly, I am the one who take care of you since we were kids. She leaned against the wall. Seeing Tony like that, vulnerable and hurt, it made her heart break.

A nurse walked in the waiting lounge. "Miss Potts?"

Pepper sauntered over to the nurse. "That would be me. How's Tony?"

"Mr. Stark's condition is critical. Our specialists are trying their best to save him."

"What about his injury?"

"His injury is peculiar; it is common in the warzone. There is a cluster of shrapnel, from the explosion, in his system that we can't get rid of. Our specialists have very limited time before the shrapnel reach and pierce his heart."

Pepper's eyes widened. "Oh my God. How much time does Tony have?"

"Roughly, a week," the nurse pursed her lips. "Do his parents know about his accident?"

"I try calling his dad earlier, but he is currently out of country, he is unreachable," Pepper explained. "If you need permission for surgery, you could ask Happy- I mean Mr. Hogan. He is Tony's legal temporary guardian."

The nurse looked at people in the waiting lounge. At the worried faces of Tony's friends. "His father might want to see him. I am afraid, given his critical condition, he will not make it."

A small gasp escaped Pepper's mouth. "But he has a chance right?"

"He has," the nurse gave her a tiny reassuring smile. "Our specialists are doing their best. Right now, I need you and your friends to go home and rest. You can come back later in the morning."

"Thank you."

The nurse smiled and went out the waiting lounge. Natasha raised an eyebrow at Pepper, wondering what the nurse had told her. But Pepper couldn't speak. She leaned against the wall for support. Her legs weakened and she slides down to the floor. Tony might not make it, a little voice in her mind said. He might not make it.

"Pepper, are you okay?" Steve ran toward her. "What did the nurse told you?"

Pepper held his arm and cried on his shoulder, unable to stop herself. "She said Tony might not make it," she sobbed. "There's a cluster of shrapnel from the explosion that got into his system."

"Oh Lord," Steve patted Pepper's hair.

"I have heard about that kind of injury," Natasha said, eyes wide in horror. "There's no survivor. There is this, town. Gulmira. They have the most victims from the injury. They usually have about a week before those shrapnel gets to their heart."

"That's what the nurse said," Pepper said, still sobbing on Steve's shoulder. "They only have a week."

"Tony will survive this," Clint spoke up after being silent the whole time. "That smartass will survive. He'd better."

Bruce sighed. "Shrapnel…"

"We shall go home and rest," Thor said, looking at his friend with eyes full of affection. "We shall rest and come back later in the morning."

Jane sniffled on his lap. "Yeah, we should. You guys are tired. Thor, we should be going. Your dad already called a couple of times."

"True. Darcy," Thor called Darcy who just finished talking to the cops. "Jane and I are about to leave. You want to join us or do you have other transport?"

"It's okay, T. I'm going home with Rhodey," Darcy nodded solemnly.

Pepper looked at them. "You guys go. I can wait here."

"Pepper," Natasha went to her, putting a comforting arm around her shoulder. "You need to rest. You look very tired and pale like you could pass out any second. Clint, can you drive us home? I don't think I can drive right now."

"Sure," Clint took the car keys from Natasha. He looked at Steve, "You can take my car. Bring it over tomorrow morning."

Pepper sighed. "I'm staying. If Tony wakes up or something happens, I want to be here."

"I know that, Pepper. But you are tired, you need some rest. We'll be here first thing in the morning, okay?" Steve persuaded.

Eventually Pepper got up and followed Natasha and Clint out of the waiting lounge with Steve and Bruce behind them. As they walked toward the elevator to the parking lot, Bruce saw Pepper put her head on Clint's shoulder, her thin body trembling. Bruce only could imagine how sad Pepper was. She'd known Tony the longest, knows him better than anyone else.

And she grieved for him more than anyone else.

After dropping Pepper off to her house, Clint drove Natasha's Prius to her house. The ride was quiet except for the 30 Seconds to Mars' Kings and Queens that flowed in a low volume from the stereo. Natasha was staring out of the window, her mind miles away.

"It's a lot to take in," Natasha said finally. "I can't believe that Tony Stark, lying down on a bed in a hospital, on the verge of death."

Clint looked at her, taking in her long tangled red curls and her crinkled black dress. Worry and shock written all over her face. Even her eyes were a little red. Clint knows Natasha better than anybody, and likewise. Natasha never showed her emotions too much. It's dangerous, she'd said once, for anyone to read your emotion. Natasha and Clint are like Pepper and Tony. They know each other the longest and understand each other like the back of their hands. Looking at how vulnerable Pepper was, Clint couldn't imagine his feelings if Natasha was in Tony's shoes.

"That smartass will survive Tasha," Clint coaxed though he know how small the chances are. "He always got out of trouble."

"Trouble, not disaster. This is a disaster! One minute he was like himself, all cocky an obnoxious but the next minute, he was lying on the edge at the top of his building," Natasha said angrily. "And the worst part is, it's by his own firework launcher."

Clint pulled the car to a stop. Natasha realized they were already at her house. "I don't think it was Tony. Tony might be reckless but when it comes to his creations, he's much worse than Steve."

"But it's his firework launcher," Natasha wrung her hands exasperatedly. She sighed. "Can you just stay at my house tonight? I don't want to be alone. I'll set up the guest room."

"Sure, but I'll give Barney a call first."

They got out of the car and went into the house. Mr. and Mrs. Romanoff were probably asleep. The family German Shepherd, Hansel came out his bunk at the corner of the living room and brushed Natasha's legs with his head.

"Hey, boy," Natasha patted Hansel's furry head. "You're not asleep yet, huh?" Hansel barked once. "Guess not," Natasha chuckled half-heartedly.

Hansel led them toward the living room. He flopped on a sofa and wagged his tail, signaling Natasha to join him. Natasha smiled and sat down next to Hansel. Clint sat on the other side of Hansel and he made an unpleasant noise at the back of his throat at Clint.

Clint raised an eyebrow. "What? Dude you're jealous of me and Natasha? That's way too cute, man."

"I guess we just sleep here then," Natasha yawned. "Sorry."

"Nah, it's okay. I don't think I can walk upstairs either."

Natasha took off her heels, persuaded Hansel to scoot further and Clint to move to another sofa opposite to hers. She was so petite that her feet didn't even dangle from the sofa as she lay down. "You know Clint, I thought we were going to have an awesome after party and sleepover at Tony's tonight, like usual."

"Guess it didn't happen," Clint shrugged.

Natasha sighed. "I guess not. This is not how I imagine our night to end."

"Neither do I."

She murmured 'Good morning' at Clint before dozing off a few seconds later. Clint sighed. He listened to Natasha's breathing, but found himself awake. His eyes won't close to sleep. He watched Natasha snoring softly on her couch, her head rested on Hansel's fluffy stomach. A strange feeling coated his stomach. How would he feel if what happened to Tony, befall to Natasha. Would he feel as vulnerable as Pepper? Helpless, useless?

Natasha shivered and Clint noticed she only had her black dress on. He dragged his tired legs to her couch and took off his jacket, only to be used as her blanket. Grabbing a cushion pillow, he set it to the floor next to Natasha's couch and lay down. Amidst Hansel's growl-snores and Natasha's soft snores, he fell asleep.

Pepper opened her eyes. She was on her bed, still wearing her red V-neck wrap dress and her face was dry with tears. Her legs feel sore. Her whole being feel sore. She turned, flat on her back and breathes calmly. Pepperony, her British shorthair cat jumped onto her bed, curled on Pepper's arm. Pepper stared at her cat brown eyes, brown eyes that remind her of Tony.

Tony.

Pepperony was Tony's present when they started freshmen year. He knows she loved cats. Tony told her to name the cat Pepper, for its fur that has her hair color. But her parents can't afford to have two living things with the same name in one house. Pepper wanted to name the cat Tony, and Tony being Tony obviously didn't mind having anything named after him. But Tony wanted to call the cat Pepper. So they brainstormed and came with the name Pepperony. As in, Pepper and Tony.

"Hey Ronnie," Pepper raked her fingers through her cat. "I miss you, but I've got to go early this morning. You remember Tony?" When the cat meowed, she said, "He got into an accident, I am going to visit him."

The cat huffed. "I wish I could take you to him," Pepper said softly. "He would like that. But I can't."

She gave Pepperony one last pat before stepped into her bathroom and took a quick bath. When she stepped out, fresh and clean, she put on khaki shorts and her white button up. Grabbing her handbag and checkered sweater, she stalked downstairs and found her dad in the kitchen, preparing a coffee. Which was pretty early for him, considering it was seven something in the morning on a Saturday.

"Hey, dad," Pepper greeted, pouring orange juice into a tall glass, "why are you up so early on Saturday?"

Mr. Potts smiled. "I got some business to errand. Your mom and I might visit Tony later in the afternoon. You want me to send you to the hospital? Can you drive?"

Of course she can drive. But she knew he was asking a different question. Will she be able to drive, with her mind somewhere else? "It's okay, dad. Steve's picking me up."

"Be careful."

Pepper nodded at her dad and waited for Steve. Her heart beats so quickly, wondering what news she would hear about Tony today.

Whatever the news is, she wants it to be a good one.

They were not allowed to visit Tony.

Which send Pepper to a serious breakdown. She was frustrated and that made her cry on Steve's shoulder. And Steve, forever the gentleman, patted her hair soothingly. Tony's doctor, Dr. Yinsen told them that even though Tony was critical, he was doing okay. The doctors just need to keep the shrapnel away from his heart, and for now, they hadn't found a way to keep it away permanently. On top of that, Tony had a serious concussion and still unconscious. He had lost a lot of blood and internal injuries.

Which, given the earlier information about Tony doing okay, still didn't make them feel any better.

"Come on," Steve said. "Let's go my apartment, it's the nearest to the hospital. If anything happens, we can get here quick. There's no use to wait here if they don't let us see him."

Bruce nodded. "Steve's right."

"Yeah. I could use some coffee, though," Clint croaked. He had a serious headache from the lack of sleep.

So, they made way to Steve's apartment. His mom was home and she let them conquer the living room. Steve's apartment is not as lavish as Stark Tower, but it is comfortable and has the look if the house that have been live in forever. Mrs. Rogers made them a few cups of hot chocolate with marshmallows. It tasted good and calming to their hazed minds. Jane put on The Breakfast Club out of boredom, since they were sitting around Steve's living room in awkward silence. A couple of minutes later, everyone fell asleep, due to lack of sleep from last night and tiredness, especially Pepper.

They were only awake a couple of hours later, only because someone's cellphone was ringing on the coffee table. Bruce grabbed the cellphone blindly.

"This is Bruce," he answered the cellphone. The person on the other line said something and Bruce looked to his friends in bewilderment. "Who's Virginia? Is there any Virginia in here?" When nobody answered, Bruce said, "I'm sorry. I guess you got the wrong num-"

"That would be me," Pepper raised her hand groggily. "It must be my dad."

Bruce handed the cellphone to Pepper. The rest looked at Pepper as she talked to her dad. They caught little bits like, 'We are not allowed to visit Tony' and 'We are at Steve's and I will be late'. As Pepper ended the call, she raised an eyebrow at her friends, who were staring confusingly at her.

"What did I do?" She asked.

Thor who was the one to spoke up. "Virginia?"

Pepper laughed humorlessly. "I forgot that you guys never really know my name. Yep, my name is Virginia Potts. I guess being called Ms. Potts at school and Pepper the rest of the time tends to hide my real name."

"How come it's Pepper?" Thor asked. "Isn't it is a kind of spice?"

"Tony gave me the name," Pepper smiled. "When we were first met."

So Chapter 4 is a little short :( I'll try to update ASAP. Keep there reviews coming! I would love to know what you guys think and how I can get the story going :)

Have a nice day :D