Chapter 5: SOS

I have RISEN! Yes, I am not dead, and I have not been kidnapped by ninja monkeys. Let me just say… the first semester of college was KILLER. Sure I had fun (lots of fun actually), but… WHAT THE HECK, those classes were just… never mind.

It has been way too long since my last update, which was like in AUGUST, so why not write another chapter on New Years? I'm not gonna make a resolution and say "I will update EVERY WEEK!" Because I already know that's not going to happen. So I'll just say, I'll do my best to put out a chapter AT LEAST every month, if not every 2.

Thank you for all those who have stayed with me through this story and my absence!

SHOUT OUTS:

SilverPedals1402: Yes my cliffhangers! My bad my bad… Haha! Thank you for that wonderful welcome back! XD I appreciate it! And yeah, sometimes even I forget that I'm a college student! You have a FABULOUS day too!

Twitchyness: Thank you very much! Here's another chapter (after so long… My sincere apologizes)

Shamrock: GASP! RICK RIORDAN! What a compliment! Thank you so much! Yes, indeed they wait ETERNITIES, my poor readers… Watch out for David… He can be a tricky one… Thank you so much! xD Whoops not really an "early" update I guess.

Pepper210: Gracias! Gracias! Si ... Me he tomado mi tiempo, pero ahora estoy pensando que tomó demasiado tiempo! xD Apreciar la opinion agradable!

Miss Starfire: May I just say I nearly died when you said you were reading my story on the toilet! XD Yes, I live for the same, I'm just that kinda person who just needs to have some heart wrenching before the happy ending! ;) Thank you so much!

Thank you again! Onto the story…

Disclaimer: Not this again….

…

Tony shot up in his bed, looking at the direction of the scream. He didn't hesitate a moment as he jumped out of the bed, reaching for his robe that lay neatly on the couch. He heard a shuffle next to him, and didn't need to look to know that it was Pepper who was also getting ready.

"Please tell me you didn't hear that." Pepper wished, her eyes heavy with sleep. She managed to pull on a jacket, and slip her feet into the flip-flops that were by the nightstand.

Tony slipped on his night slippers, and grabbed his room key before running to the door. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't hear that." The two of them entered the hallway, along with the other passengers who have woken to the scream.

There were mumbles from the older passengers, as they spoke in hushed tones about what it could've been. "Hey, have any ideas what's going on?" A man to the right of Tony asked.

"Haven't got the slightest idea. Just woke up." Tony quickly responded. Pepper was behind him, clinging to his arm. "Pep, do you have an idea which direction that scream came from?"

Just before she spoke, a steward walked into the hallway, his arms out, warding the passengers from exiting their rooms. "Please! Please, guests, stay in your rooms. We will announce when you can come out." His eyes were red, probably because he was woken up as well. His white uniform was wrinkly and poorly put together, also indicating the speed at which the man got out of his room.

"We need to see what's going on." Tony whispered to Pepper. He felt her squeeze his arm in agreement, and as one the two of them quickly took off in the opposite direction of the steward.

"Hey! Wait! Go back to your room!" Came the fading man's voice. Tony and Pepper took a quick right into the hallway that directly led them to the elevators. They knew that the steward wouldn't follow, because his main priority was the keep the other passengers in their rooms. Two escapees wasn't as big of a problem as one hundred.

Tony stopped, thinking really quickly about the situation at hand. A scream in the middle of the first night was definitely something to investigate. Sure, the scream could mean a lot of things. It could've been a child playing, or maybe the child fell and got hurt. There were also… other reasons a woman would've screamed, if that were a woman.

"Do you really want to get into this, Tony?" Pepper asked, her hands on her hips. Her eyebrows were drawn upward, worried and anxious. She wanted answers too, but not at the risk of her losing her vacation time with Tony. "We could leave this with the security on board, you know."

A soft sigh escaped from his lips. His hand flew through her hair, confusion also taking root in his head. "Pepper, you know how much I want to spend time with you. But you also know who I am… I don't think I can stand not helping. Plus we're in international waters, all the security can do is keep everyone from panicking until the next stop."

"God, and the next stop is in two days, isn't it?" Tony nodded, stroking the back of his neck and chin alternatively.

Suddenly, a man walked into the corridor and stared at Tony with wide eyes. "Please, please help me! PLEASE!"

His heart pounding, Tony quickly walked up to the man. He noted the red eyes and sweat pouring from his forehead. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"

"My wife! Please help!" Without another word, the man grasped Tony's wrist and dragged him the way he came. Tony followed, his heart catching in his throat. He quickly prepped himself for what he was about to see; because there was no way it was going to be a simple injury.

The man was still running, his hand tightening around Tony's wrist. He was running in the direction of the portside of the cruise ship. And it was the dark patch on the carpet that gave away which room the passenger resided in.

Tony felt Pepper put her hands reassuringly on his back, as though to comfort him, though he knew she was just hoping to hide from whatever was inside. "Pepper stay out here, okay? I'll let you know when to come in."

The man was already inside, tears streaming down his face. "Please…" He pleaded, falling to the floor. "She—oh god… please." It was as though the world moved in slow motion. As Tony entered the room, he took notice of the busted keycard lock that was at the front of the door. From the sight of it, that meant that it was opened by force, brute force.

The body was on the bed, the covers removed. She was wearing her silky nightgown, and the color was green before it was stained with her blood. Her stomach was littered with stab wounds. Tony rushed to her side, looking for a pulse, and when his forefinger felt a weak one, he quickly pulled the woman to the ground and began chest compressions.

"She's alive?" The man crawled over, grabbing his wife's hand in his own. "Gina, please, please come back to me. I love you, Gina, I love you so much." Tony didn't stop; continuing the compressions until the man physically stopped him. "It's okay… just let her go." Tony sat back, stunned.

He allowed the husband to grieve, and watched silently as the man kissed his wife's head and lips, drawing her hand to his chest. "I don't know what happened…" He said at last.

"What do you remember?" Tony asked, standing to look at the room. It was smaller than his, put it was another suite room. The bathroom was to the right, the moment he entered, and the bed was to the side of the room, pushed against the far right wall.

The man sat back, letting his wife's hand fall to the ground. "This was our honeymoon trip, we got married last month." Tony's heart fell at the thought of Pepper dying during this trip. He loved her, and if he lost her like this man did, he didn't know what he would do.

"I'm sorry." Tony managed.

"We were getting ready for bed. I was in the bathroom, and Gina was in bed, reading a book. I was washing my face, and I heard a loud smash. I thought it came from the hallway outside, maybe a steward dropping something, but when Gina yelled out my name, I realized that someone was in the room.

"I ran to the door, and when I tried opening it, I realized that it was locked from the outside. I didn't think it was possible, but it wasn't budging. I tried slamming against it, hoping to bust it open, but after Gina screamed, the door just—opened." Tears welled in his eyes, as he chocked for air.

Tony gulped, afraid to know the rest of the story. "Did you see who or what killed her?"

"No, I walked out and just saw blood on the floor. Gina was alive until then, and one look on her face told me it was someone she recognized. She was whispered something, and all I heard was the letter 'D'. I don't know who it was, and before I could ask… she—she—" He starting crying again. Tony lightly patted his shoulder, consoling him in some way.

"Don't worry we'll catch the man. I'm a—a 'detective' from New York. I'll pay for another room, all right? Come on. What's your name?"

"Mathew, sir."

Tony led Mathew outside, where Pepper leaned against the wall, checking her nails. She pushed off once she noticed the blood on both of the men. Instead of questioning, she put on a soft smile. "My name's Pepper."

"This is Mathew. We're taking him to the infirmary." Tony instructed.

…

"His wife…" Pepper whispered, sitting on the bed. Tony and Pepper were back in their room after dropping Mathew back in the infirmary. He gave the staff working, the room number where the man lived, and softly explained that there was a woman that died in the room.

Tony paced the room, his mind racing. There was only one name he kept thinking of after Mathew had said his wife uttered the letter, 'D.' He left that detail to himself, especially knowing that Pepper wouldn't appreciate it if he bashed on David any longer.

"Did he say anything else about his wife, any clues maybe?"

Tony frowned. "No." He lied. "He just said his wife was whispering something, but couldn't hear it. All he knew was that his wife knew the man that entered the room."

"You're gonna look into this aren't you?" Pepper laid back on the bed, her voice letting out the disappointment.

Tony sighed, looking at his girlfriend. He already changed his clothes, tossing the bloody ones in the trash. "Pepper, I got involved in it. I'm not just gonna let this go. What if something happened to you?"

She sat up. "What if something happened to you, Tony? Don't make this about me. I love you just the same. Same goes for when we were home. You know how scared I am every time you are out? I don't want anything to happen to you."

Tony went to her, and took her face in his hands. He fingered her soft cheeks, looking into her hazel eyes. "Pepper, I love you too. Trust me, I'll be okay. I promised Mathew I would solve this. She died on their honeymoon, it isn't right." He kissed her, softly at first then with hunger, drawing in her every breath.

He loved her he really did. But unfortunately, he felt something was wrong, and not only because Gina was murdered, but because he felt that it was going to affect him.

Affect Pepper.

…

The next morning, it seemed like everything was back to normal. The room Gina was murdered in was cleaned up during the night, after the nurses told the staff about what happened. Mathew was given a new room, all expenses paid for.

And no one knew what happened.

"Heard about what happened?" Tony's neighbor asked. Tony shook his head, acting oblivious to the situation.

"Heard that a snake entered the room, and woman freaked out. She got bit too. Or something like that... Heard it from the man across the hall."

"Wow, intense. Did they catch the snake?"

The man laughed, shrugging. "Don't know, but I know for sure that these doors will be closed all the time now." He said rapping his knuckles against his room's door.

Pepper walked out behind Tony, dressed in her shorts and tank top. Her aviators rested on her head. "Haha looks like you'll need to do the same, Tony." She teased, smiling lightly at the man.

"Yes ma'am, you two have a lovely day."

The two walked to breakfast, silently. The matter from last night still hadn't left their minds. They went to sleep shortly after, but not peacefully. Pepper was restless, and eventually decided to doze out on the balcony. Tony didn't sleep the entire night. He was turned away from Pepper, crying. He hadn't expected to see a man losing his wife, and that only made him fear for Pepper more. The thought of losing her scared him more than anything.

At breakfast, they ate a small meal. Pepper stuck to having a bagel and coffee, and Tony decided on a chocolate muffin. "Well what do you want to do today?" Pepper asked, sipping on her coffee.

Tony glanced up, having come out of a trance. "Well today we're out at sea, so it's whatever you want really. What do you have in mind?"

A loud crash sounded from the kitchen, as a steward dropping dirty plates on the floor. Tony flinched and sighed. "We can relax at the pool?" Pepper suggested.

"Sure, let's go change." He got up without another word, and took Pepper's hand. The weather was superb outside, with the ocean blowing a soft warm breeze over the open food deck. The sun was shining brightly, letting warm rays wash over the deck and the passengers onboard.

As they waited for the elevator, someone cleared their throat. Tony squeezed his eyes shut, recognizing the voice. "David." He said turning around. "Didn't expect to see you here."

"Getting breakfast just like the rest of you." He responded with a smile. Tony's anger flared, and his grip tightened around Pepper. "Good morning, Pepper."

"Morning, David. Excuse, Tony, he didn't get a lot of sleep last night."

David nodded, his smile disappearing. "The scream? Yeah, news travels fast on a boat. Heard a woman died last night." Tony looked at him surprised. He remembered one of the security details reassuring him that no one would be told about the murder.

"Died?" Tony and Pepper exchanged glances. "Uh… how?"

David shrugged. "Rumors say a snake."

Pepper nodded in false agreement. "I heard the same. Keep your doors closed tonight." She giggled, but stopped after seeing Tony's side-glance at her. "So, uh, what are your plans for today?"

The elevator dinged, and Tony stepped inside, drawing Pepper with him. She, however, pushed against him, standing outside with David. "I plan on walking the deck. See what the cruise has to offer me. And maybe catch a show or two onboard. What about you, Pepper, any plans?"

"Yeah, Tony and I were going to go to the pool for the morning. Not sure about the afternoon and evening, but maybe if there's a show later, we can all go together?" Pepper smiled. Tony held the elevator with a hand, his face going red. She made a plan with him, and that only meant that Tony would have to see that moron again tonight.

David looked at Tony with a smirk as he said, "Sounds like a date."

…

"Really?" Tony asked once the two got back into their room.

"What?"

"You made a plan with him? Was that very necessary?"

Pepper shot him an annoyed look, "Why do you hate him so much, Tony? David is polite, and has done nothing wrong. What the heck is wrong with you?"

Tony drove his hand into his back, pulling out his swimming trunk and the white shirt he would wear until he got to the pool. "What's wrong with me? How can you fall for all that sweet talk? He's trouble, Pepper, I know it." He turned to her, and watched as she pulled out her own suit. She tucked it into her cover up and snorted.

"Please don't tell me you're jealous right now."

Tony felt his face get red with embarrassment. Was that the reason he bashed on David so much? He seemed to get a lot of attention from Pepper, and he certainly talked to her a lot more than he talked to him. "No! That's not true. I'm just saying he's trouble."

Pepper shook her head, heading to the bathroom. "Whatever. Okay, just change, we can cool off at the pool." She shut the door behind her, her face dropping in shame and disappointment.

Most likely because of Tony's immature behavior.

Tony looked down at his clothes, ashamed at his own behavior. He spent more time bickering with Pepper than he really did enjoy anything. He was distracted and seemed to be interested more with other situations than his own girlfriend. And any moment he spent with her, he kissed her and teased her, and that was it.

He was definitely not being the ideal boyfriend at the moment.

Tony shimmied out of his shorts and pulled on his trunks, adjusting himself before removing his shirt for his white one. By the time he slipped on his flip-flops, Pepper was out, her arms protectively covering her chest. "Hey, I'm sorry for—uh—accusing you." She said softly.

Tony stood, shaking his head. "No it's me. I'm just overreacting, when I should really just enjoy the time I have with you. Alone." He smiled and let Pepper walk into his embrace. Kissing the top of her head softly, he sighed. "I'll be better, I promise. I—I was just going with my gut instinct."

"Sometimes it's better to listen to that gut instinct, than your whiny girlfriend." She laughed.

"Sometimes that girlfriend is right. Come on, let's go."

…

The pool was fairly empty, with only a sprinkle of families dotting the bigger pool. There was a smaller pool on top of the bigger one, with a slide connecting the two of them.

Since the bigger one was closer to the poolside deck, parents and kids were crawling around there, screaming and shouting as the water sloshed around. Tony and Pepper found the smaller pool to be empty, so decided to stick around there for the majority of the morning before having to shower and get ready for the rest of the day.

Tony chose a lawn chair and carelessly threw his towel on the chair. He kicked off his shoes and pulled out his phone from his trunk's pocket. He grabbed the hem of his shirt and whipped it over his head, and took a moment to pride in his workout sessions. Thankfully, his Iron Man job kept him fit, but he decided to hit the gym to further improve both his health and look.

And boy did it pay off.

He slid his Ray Ban aviators into place, and hopped into the pool. The sun warmed up the pool, so it didn't take too long for him to adjust to the temperature.

When he turned to call for Pepper, he saw her also stripping from her cover- up. And his jaw dropped at the surprise of what she was wearing underneath.

It was a sleek pink one-piece halter, with the sides cut off at the sides, exposing her lean stomach. There were a couple of criss-crossing strings that pulled at the back of her suit, giving it some kind of support.

But she looked absolutely stunning in that modern swim- suit. Pepper saw him staring and did a quick model pose, pushing out her hips. "Well what do you think?" She teased.

Tony grinned, and he opened his mouth to say something, but got interrupted with, "You look stunning."

Pepper blushed, and brought her arms to cover her midsection. She slowly stepped into the water, and sunk beneath the water, so that only her upper chest and head were out of the water. She stared at Tony with careful eyes, letting him know exactly who it was.

Tony breathed in slowly, not wanting to lose it. "Once again, David, nice to see you." He turned in the water and pushed his sunglasses on his head. David was standing over him, buff toned arms against his chest. He was in his own swimming trunk, without a shirt, and Tony had to admit the dude looked a lot better than he did. Abs dotted his abdomen, and his body was one to kill for.

All of a sudden those gym sessions didn't seem all that awesome. David laughed. "Always in the strangest circumstances, Mr. Stark. And before you ask, I was already for a while. I stepped out to get a bite to eat, and when I came back, imagine my surprise to see Pepper and you by the pool."

Tony gritted his teeth and let a smile slip. "Yeah… one could imagine."

Pepper stride next to Tony and put a hand on his stomach. She pushed up close to him, letting him know her loyalty and love were to him and no one else. That gave him some courage and love back at her.

"I was planning on getting some pool-side drinks, want anything? It'd be on me." David popped into the pool, spraying Tony in the face. He blinked slowly, and ran a hand through his face, pushing the droplets back into the water.

"I think we'll be okay." Pepper piped up. She saw the annoyance on Tony's face, and didn't want to risk him bursting out on David. "We just had breakfast, so we're okay, thanks."

David leaned back against the pool's wall, and put his arms up against the floor. His arms were huge compared to Tony's, and that was enough to make him jealous. David seemed to have noticed, because a smirk played across his lips. "Love the trunks." He said gesturing to Tony's swimsuit.

Tony slipped on his sunglasses and muttered thanks under his breath. Every time he hopped for some privacy with Pepper it was constantly interrupted with this idiot. It seemed that the only way to escape him was in their room.

A shiver travelled down Tony's back as he thought of David being in their room when he wasn't. What if Pepper was in their at the same time too?

"So, I got a catalogue for the ship's week activities. There are tons to do on board. Did you guys happen to find anything to do?" asked David, breaking the awkward silence.

Pepper shook her head. "We planned on just walking the deck, and getting familiar with the boat." That was a lie, a very smooth lie. "It's huge, so we decided on doing that before hitting up any activities."

A nod. "That's a good idea. Is this your first cruise?"

"Yes, it's her first time. We're celebrating our first year anniversary, so I thought it was a great idea to take her out on something she never did before." Tony responded. He kissed Pepper's cheek.

He was probably overdoing it, but ever since they met David, he's been nothing but trouble. At least to Tony.

David smiled. "That's wonderful. What better way to celebrate the first anniversary than an expensive 9- day cruise trip across the ocean to different countries, huh?"

Tony narrowed his eyes, thankful that the sunglasses covered his accusing glare. "Yeah…"

And suddenly, another shrill scream.

…

I'm back with a full force of douchery! What a long chapter! I think this is my longest yet for a chapter, so WHIPPY! Hope you guys liked it.

Okay, so I'm going to admit even with myself that I really HATE DAVID. He's my own character, but dang, if he really existed… Yeah no.

Hope all of you had a safe and happy New Years and Christmas (or any other holiday). Sorry for such a long wait! I really hope to get better with all my updating stuff. I really don't like taking forever to update, but sometimes I just can't help it (blame college… okay not really… just blame me xP)

HOPE YOU GUYS HAVE A FANTASTIC DAY!