Who: Pepper, Bruce, Tony What: a baby is born! When: Today Rating: Green, non-graphic, narrative
One hour blurred into the next. Bruce stepped in entirely when the doctor couldn't make it to the hospital at all, due to a car accident resulting in a trip to the emergency room. Not a big deal in the long run? Tony was way too anxious to care that Bruce was staring at Pepper's ever expanding vajayjay.
As the labor went on and on, he was considering nicknaming Pep 'Iron Grip' and that one box of Just For Men wasn't going to cover all of the new gray hairs he sprouted overnight.
Then everything was a blur after a tiny sputtering wail and Bruce saying words that didn't register at first. Tony did a brain rebooting double-take. A double-take that came across as a big blink and a full body twitch.
For the past eight months, he proclaimed to Pepper that he was a dream prophet (Even in another universe! Including eccentric uncles!). They didn't need any gender reveal testing. There was a betting pool going on with the accounting department, where Steve the Pirate worked. It was fun. Everyone likes a surprise! Go him!
Only maybe not so much with the dream prophet-ing?
To make sure he was seeing what he thought he saw, Tony leaned closer to Bruce and asked in a stage whisper, "Are you sure a little pee-pee isn't going to pop out, like one of those red button thingies stuck in a Thanksgiving turkey? Because I was a lil' tipsy one year. I bought a Butterball just for kicks, and some waiting was involved...."
After a blank stare, Bruce told him, "It's a girl, Tony."
"Ok, ok. I'm making sure." And in a small voice like he just found a hidden door in a secret base, Tony gleefully added, "Yay! It's a girl!"
Regardless of how wrong his dream was, he was happy. Pepper was given a tender kiss on the forehead and he looked down in amazement at their child. He suddenly knew how his dad felt. Like this was the absolute pinnacle of what he was capable of creating, and he was lucky to have this with the woman he loved more than anything.