On the morning of Christmas Eve, the first thought that crossed Virginia Potts' mind when she woke up was Anthony Stark. Not that she hadn't been thinking about him frequently over the past few days, especially considering the R-rated dream from the previous night, but this time it was different. Everything would change from that moment. She knew it, and it was terrifying. The redhead felt a chill run through her body, not due to the frigid temperatures in Toronto at the end of December, but because of the anxiety. Pepper lay in bed for long minutes, trying to stay calm, trying to shake off that uncomfortable sensation. But seeing that she couldn't, she took a deep breath and got up. She went to the bathroom, washed her face with cold water, and stripped off her clothes before stepping into the shower. Until that moment, she had been certain about the day's plans, but doubts quickly began to surface. Was she doing the right thing? Were things moving too fast? Was it a good idea for Tony and the twins to meet this way? There were so many questions, and she felt like she might vomit at any moment.
"You're overthinking this, Virginia," she said to herself. And she indeed was, so she focused on finishing her shower and getting ready for what lay ahead.
After a little over thirty minutes, Pepper left her room all dressed and went to her daughters' room to wake them up and get them ready as well. Fortunately, the task didn't take long, and soon they were heading downstairs for breakfast. As they entered the kitchen, they were greeted by the welcoming aroma of freshly toasted bread and fresh fruit. Sasha, already in full swing, had prepared everything carefully, as she always did. As soon as the redhead came into her mother's view, she handed her a cup of hot tea, a silent gesture of support. To be honest, Virginia had been expecting the older woman to make some sarcastic or double-edged comment about the outing she would have with Tony, but to her surprise, Sasha left the subject alone. Unlike the twins, who were clearly curious and excited.
"Mommy, are we leaving yet?" Erin asked, gently pushing her empty cereal bowl across the table.
"Almost," Pepper replied, trying to maintain her composure.
"Why can't we go now?" Iris wanted to know, with the same impatient curiosity as her sister.
"Because mommy already explained that we're waiting for someone," the redhead replied, smiling at her daughters.
"Who is someone?" Erin frowned, clearly confused.
The woman hesitated for a moment, searching for the right words. "A friend of mommy's."
"I don't know any friend of yours named 'Someone.'" The child said, even more confused.
"Well, you haven't met him yet," she laughed, trying to ease the tension. "And his name isn't Someone. It's Tony."
"Is he handsome?" Iris asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. The girl was in the phase of first "crushes," enchanted by the princes in movies.
"Do you like him?" Erin asked right after her sister, giving Pepper a mini heart attack and making Sasha burst out laughing at her granddaughters' audacity.
"I-I…," the redhead began, unsure of what to say. She hadn't expected that kind of question from the twins. Fortunately, the intercom buzzed, and she sighed with relief, quickly getting up to answer the door. Saved by the bell. Or maybe not.
"Hi…" Tony said as soon as he saw her. "Are you okay?" he asked, somewhat concerned. She looked pale, as if she'd seen a ghost.
"Hi, I'm f-fine. Come in," she said, stepping aside to let him in.
"I'm not too early or too late, am I? I just realized we didn't set an exact time when I was already on my way here."
"You're right on time," Virginia replied, closing the door behind him. "I'll go get the girls so we can head out." But as she took a few steps, she realized it wasn't necessary. The twins were standing a few meters away from Tony, with Sasha right behind them.
"Tony, hello!" the elder Potts greeted him.
"Hello, Sasha. Good to see you again."
"So… you're Tony?" Erin asked, crossing her arms and scrutinizing the man before her.
"I-I am," the dark-haired man replied, a bit apprehensive. He glanced at Sasha and Pepper for help, unsure of how to interact with his daughters. He was too nervous to say the wrong thing.
The great Tony Stark intimidated by two four-year-old girls. This was new.
"You took soooooo long," the little girl said, pretending to be angry.
"I'm sorry," Stark couldn't help but smile. She was indeed a copy of her mother.
"It's okay. But you'll have to take me ice skating," she said, showing her negotiating skills right away.
"Erin!" Virginia scolded her. She couldn't believe that in their first interaction with Tony, her daughter was already asking him to do something she had previously denied.
"If you take Erin skating, you'll have to take me too because we do everything together," Iris declared, joining her sister.
"Then we have a date," he replied. Maybe interacting with the girls wouldn't be so complicated after all.
"Tony, I was thinking… are you Mommy's boyfriend?" the child asked after a few moments of silence, her big, curious eyes fixed on him.
"I-I, n-no…" the dark-haired man stammered, visibly surprised and shaken.
"Iris!" Pepper reprimanded her other daughter, feeling a bit exasperated. What was happening here?
"What? I saw you kissing your boyfriend and thought it was him," Iris said naturally.
"First of all, he wasn't my boyfriend. Neither of them was!" Pepper replied, trying to keep her calm.
"But don't we only kiss people we're dating? I saw you kissing him too," Erin added right after her sister, with the innocence and curiosity typical of their age.
"Yes, but... When did you see this, and why are we talking about it?" Pepper asked, feeling nervous. Discussing this sort of thing with two four-year-olds was surreal. Especially with an audience!
"And you, Tony, do you have a girlfriend?" Iris asked, looking at him with curious eyes, showing no interest in letting the topic die.
Tony was at a loss for words. While he couldn't believe they were only four years old, he also couldn't help but think that the twins truly were his daughters, with all the intelligence and sharpness he might expect from someone with his DNA. Sasha, observing the situation, just laughed. She had always known that when the four of them went out together, it would be more relaxed and fun than they imagined, but she never thought she would witness a conversation like that. At least, not right away.
"Alright, you two, enough for today," Pepper said quickly. She was already starting to regret their plans. "Go get your coats before we decide to stay home."
The girls, hearing their mother's last sentence, hurried to comply with her request, while Tony helped his ex-girlfriend get the twins' backpacks as she grabbed her own bag. Then, they said goodbye to Sasha and left the house. As usual, Pepper was heading to the garage, but she noticed the dark-haired man was ready to cross the street.
"I think we should take my car. The girls' car seats are already installed," she explained.
"Actually, I put two in mine," Tony said, somewhat awkwardly. "I knew we'd need them."
Pepper looked at him, a little surprised. She never thought she'd see such accessories in one of his cars. She could imagine anything but two child car seats.
"Okay. We'll take yours then," she finally said, giving a slight smile. The truth was, she was surprised but also pleased to see how thoughtful and attentive he was being.
So, they crossed the street and helped the kids settle into their seats. Then, they each got into their own places. Tony started the car, and Pepper was already preparing for the twins to make some of their peculiar comments, but luckily, they were engaged in their own conversation, too distracted to pay attention to them.
The two adults remained silent for long minutes. They hadn't been this close in a long time. It was strange to be in the same car with their two daughters after so many years. At some point, Pepper noticed that Tony manually turned on the radio, which she found odd. After all, his car, like his life, was usually marked by Jarvis.
Tony, noticing the curiosity in his ex-girlfriend's eyes, smiled slightly.
"I thought it would be more... personal," he said, referring to the radio.
"I'm surprised you managed to do that," she commented with a little laugh. "I thought you and technology were inseparable."
"Sometimes it's good to do things the old-fashioned way, it gives a sense of control," The dark-haired man replied. "Besides, I didn't want to scare them," he added, glancing quickly at the back seat, where the girls were still in their own worlds. "So, what's the plan for the day?"
"The girls want to go to the aquarium and, of course, play in the snow at some park. Since we have the whole day for this, I thought we could start by heading downtown this morning for the Icefest, then go to the aquarium and have lunch. In the afternoon, we could visit a park in the city center, and when the temperature starts to drop even more, we can head to the Path. That way, we don't have to worry about the cold, and we can have dinner there," Pepper explained, trying to mentally organize the day.
"You forgot one thing," Tony said with a smile.
"What?" She raised an eyebrow, curious.
"Ice skating."
"Tony, you don't have to do that..." the redhead started to say, concerned.
"I know I don't, but I want to. Unless it's a problem for you," he replied calmly.
"No... I mean, I just wanted to wait a little longer. They're so small," Potts justified, looking at the kids in the rearview mirror.
"They're at the perfect age to learn. They live in Canada, after all. Besides, it's not like they'll be skating alone; we'll be with them," The dark-haired man argued.
"You will be. You're the one who said you'd take them," Pepper retorted, a bit reluctant.
"What? Are you afraid of skating now? We used to have so much fun," Stark said, tilting his head to the side to observe her. He always liked how she seemed relaxed looking at the scenery outside the car.
"Afraid? I'm the one who taught you how to skate. As far as I remember, you were the one who was terrified of those skates. Which was crazy, considering you're literally a superhero," she replied, smiling at the fun memories of the past.
"I might have been scared, but not as much as you on our first date on the Ferris wheel. I never imagined you'd be afraid of heights," Tony said, laughing.
"Live and learn, Stark. Live and learn," she laughed along with him.
"Pepper, you dated a guy who could fly. Literally."
"And you dated a girl who grew up in Canada," she countered, laughing.
They hadn't realized that in the past few minutes, they had been interacting without any issues. There was no pressure, no effort, just naturalness. They were talking about the past with fondness, without pain, without resentment. All unconsciously.
"What?" Tony asked when they fell silent, noticing her watching him.
"Nothing," Pepper said, looking away. "There's parking for the festival on the next street to the left. You can stop there." She changed the subject, and Tony nodded.
The truth was, Potts was observing him because she still couldn't believe how much he had changed in just a few days. Not that she wasn't happy to see how her ex-boyfriend had drastically slowed down his driving because the girls were in the car, or how he was trying to learn as much as he could about what was needed to take care of them. It was just a bit surprising. Pepper never thought she'd see this other side of Tony that he was beginning to show, and now she could only think about how he was even more charming this way. How she was letting her guard down, and that was totally scary.
Sure, there was a lot to resolve, many conversations to be had, but at that moment, everything seemed to be in the right place. They were together, and that was the most important thing.