Pepper Potts-Stark (gotyoukid) wrote in chances_rpg, @ 2022-01-19 13:24:00 |
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Entry tags: | mcu: pepper potts-stark, mcu: steve rogers |
Thread: Pepper & Steve
WHO: Pepper Potts-Stark & Steve Rogers
WHAT: Catching up
WHERE: Local restaurant
WHEN: Tuesday, 1/19
RATING: PG
STATUS: Completed via gdoc
Pepper knew Tony and Steve buried the hatchet, even if their relationship might always be complicated. However, Pepper still had some hard feelings about the Accords and Siberia. She did her best not to show them in the name of a second chance for all involved, but she couldn’t help her feelings. Still, she thought she and Steve should have a chance to talk and get to know each other better so she invited him to a local restaurant for an early dinner after work.
She arrived early so she could get them a good spot outside so they could enjoy the fresh air. She ordered herself water and waited.
Any visible signs of his injuries were gone, but Steve still had some lingering effects. He got tired more easily, and, although he'd managed a few workouts and personal training appointments, he felt them for a long time after. His jobs had been understanding, however, which further convinced him they were the right choice for him. And speaking of choices (and their repercussions), he'd been a little surprised to get Pepper's invitation, but gladly accepted it.
Part of him wondered if there was a purpose to it, beyond catching up, which they really hadn't done beyond a few exchanges on the boards. He did his best to set this aside as he spotted her at the patio table and wove through the others to get to her. It was a little chilly, but nothing like Brooklyn winters, which was yet another adjustment. He slipped into the chair opposite and smiled. "Hey, there. Having a good new year so far?"
Pepper returned his smile with one of her own and nodded. “Wonderful, so far. Nothing trying to harm us so that is a plus.” She pulled out a piece of paper from her purse and slid it across the table. “Morgan wanted to give you something,” she explained. It was a drawing of Captain America under the sun. “How are you feeling?” She asked then, concern evident on her face.
He chuckled dryly, because wasn't that the truth. "From your lips, to whoever might be listening's ear." And then he lit up after seeing the picture. Rather than focus on the brightly colored shield, he traced the line of the sun with his finger. Things were still just a bit fraught between him and the Starks, so this gesture meant the world to him. "I love it. I can't wait to get a frame for it. Maybe one of those fridge ones. Please tell her thank you for me. She's really got an eye for this."
As Steve tucked it carefully away in his pocket, he resolved that Miss Morgan would be receiving her very own piece of mail with a colored sketch he'd been working on of one of the flowerbeds at The Station. Their server came over with Pepper's water before he could answer her question, but he knew he would anyway after asking for a water as well. Once that was done, he gave her a tired smile and a small shrug. "I put the serum to work, that's for sure. I ain't been that banged up since I brought a helicarrier down on my head. But I'd say I'm back to about 90 percent. The ten might just be my age catching up to me. And Tony? He all right?"
Pepper chuckled at his comment about his age, but a hint of worry tinted her expression. She didn’t know much about serums and healing, but she knew Steve had been in bad shape. “Try not to push it,” she said. “Tony’s…he is good.” She smiled as she thought of her husband. “He is getting a business with the other Tony ready to go. A technology repair shop where they can tinker with things. He's been great at adapting to life without Stark Industries, but I worry about him anyway. He must miss it.” She was afraid Tony was protecting her from any worries he might have, but she knew her husband was still thrilled to be in San Francisco with his family.
The curve of Steve's smile went rueful and knowing. "Tony without a project is… not Tony." He laughed, but there was nothing mean about it. "That man's like the shark of ideas and tinkering. If he's not doing either, he's hardly existing. And now with two of them? I'll bet they have the world's energy crisis and climate change wrapped up in no time, even without the benefit of all that corporate money. When they're not spending time with family, of course."
It sounded teasing, but it wasn't. Steve had every faith in Tony's abilities. Sometimes, however, he worried about the direction those ideas might take things. The thought of Ultron crossed his mind in a flash, but he dismissed it. No one had the time or energy to rehash old, old wounds, especially if there was no point in reopening them again. "But what about you? What've you been up to lately, besides doing a bang up job in that Rescue armor?"
Pepper laughed too. Tony had grand ideas, but his money didn’t make the man. His brain did. Sure, some of those ideas could lead to trouble, but his heart was always in the right place. “Double trouble too,” she said before blushing at his compliment. “Oh, me running around in a suit. It is almost comical.” She sipped her water and glanced over the menu quickly. “I’m CEO of AppDynamics. It is not the same as home, but…” She shrugged. “It pays the bills and passes time.” She made a face then. “Oh, listen to me. I sound ungrateful. I like my job, really, it's just I spent my life helping Stark Industries.”
If anyone could understand an abrupt change in their perceived destinies, it was Steve. He knew he should probably glance at the menu as well, but he couldn't keep himself from giving Pepper an understanding look—or at least a commiserating one. "No, I think I get it. You pour your heart and soul into something, and then another something comes along to derail it all. I don't think gratitude has a thing to do with it. It's okay to mourn the life you thought you'd get to have. Or at least parts of it."
He sighed quietly and leaned back in his chair, one arm wrapping loosely over his stomach. I'm not sure I ever pictured a life without the shield when I woke up from the ice. Seemed kinda, I dunno, disrespectful to think of anything but giving back to so many people who'd helped me. You included, Pepper. I'm sure you sacrificed more than most, way more than you've ever let on." His cheeks lit up, then, bright and pink, and he shook his head and waved a hand dismissively. "Or I'm talkin' a buncha nonsense I got no business talkin' about."
Oh, hello, Brooklyn roots.
Pepper reached across the table and gently patted Steve’s shoulder. “I knew what I was getting into with Tony’s hero life,” she admitted. “Tried for years to get him to retire, but deep down, I knew I had to accept it. It is who he is. He helps people.” She wiped at the tears that welled in her eyes. “I’m fine,” she added quickly before he could ask. “But, you, you should think about a life beyond the shield too. You deserve a family, whatever that looks like for you.” It didn’t have to be a spouse and kids. Family took many forms. “You have James here, hmmm?”
For a split second, Steve thought she was talking about Bucky, but then got right in his head. He wanted to try with the kid, but he had no idea where to even start other than a handful of exchanges on the boards. It's not like he was being rebuffed, but he didn't like the idea that anyone might think he was attempting to replace James' Tony: the father figure he'd been for so much longer than either Steve had been in his life.
Right now, however, didn't seem like a great time to unpack all of that, so he nodded shortly and gave a small hum of assent to at least indicate he had or would considered it. "Did Tony tell you he visited me in the hospital? I was part way out of my mind on painkillers, but it was just what the doctor ordered."
Pepper nodded. “I’m glad he went,” she told him. “I know things haven’t always been…well, good between you two.” She wasn’t trying to rub it in, but it was a fact. “I know he cares about you, and I venture it goes both ways…” She left it off as a question, however. It wasn’t her place to get between Steve and Tony, no matter her own feelings on the matter.
"You venture correctly." Steve nodded at their server when they returned with his water and quickly put in his order, and then waited for Pepper to do the same before he smiled back at her. "We're going to try being better friends to each other," he said, picking up the thread of their conversation again with an easy smile. "It probably helps not to have the official weight of being on the team together on our shoulders anymore, even though this world really seems hell-bent on throwing us into the fire—excuse my language. I get that the Avengers can't be everywhere at once, but don't you think it's weird they haven't sent anyone out here to investigate? Not even the local authorities seem to be willing to touch any of this."
Pepper chuckled when he excused his language. She said worse on any given day. “They are scared of it,” she said. “That’s the only explanation. They’re just lucky they have people with powers and special skills here. People could be in danger.” She hated thinking about the danger, but it was true. “I’ll do anything to keep my family safe here. I’m not losing it again.” Her voice hardened as she spoke. She sacrificed a lot back home and now that she had it back…well, she was holding on with everything she had, which included Rescue.
Fear, he could understand. Inaction was infuriating. Steve couldn't just stand by and do nothing. It just wasn't how he was wired. He'd been well on the way to nodding when her last statement brought him up short, making her look at her head on. "Losing it? What do you mean?"
“You don’t feel like this all is tenuous?” she asked. “Like it can be taken away at any moment?” Maybe her fear was unfounded, but she couldn’t help the suspicion.
They were momentarily interrupted when the waiter brought their food. Pepper thanked him and put a napkin over her lap. “They aren’t talking to us,” she added. “They put us up here like some sort of zoo. I don’t trust it.”
His mouth flattened into a thoughtful line. Steve had never thought of it that way, but now that it was out there, it was a genuine concern. At the same time, he felt a sense of relief that he hadn't missed out on something else in Pepper and Tony's lives. It was bad enough that he never really got to know Morgan, and she was already five. He shifted in his seat and shrugged a little helplessly, but waited for their food to arrive before he finally put it into words.
"I don't know. There's a selfish part of me that hopes not. I like what I'm doing here, the freedom from not having to be Captain America 24/7. Would I have liked to see the aftermath of Bruce's snap? Of course I would. Everything we went through, everything, everyone we lost—it had to be worth something. Had to. Otherwise what was the point." Steve sighed and then ate a bite to shut himself up. It was tough to get down around the lump in his throat, however.
When he felt the next words bubbling up, he didn't try to stop them. "I apologized to Tony, but I haven't apologized to you. I have no idea how all of that must have affected you, but my actions back then couldn't have made things easier for you. And for that, I'm sorry."
The apology took Pepper by surprise. She put her fork down and reached her hand out to Steve. “I think several of us can relate about having a new lease on life here,” she said gently. “And, I appreciate it, Steve, I do. I can’t pretend to understand everything that happened and I really wish things played out differently about Tony’s parents, but I want to go forward. If you and Tony can move on, I can too.” She had to believe Steve wouldn’t hurt Tony going forward. She didn’t want Tony hurt again, emotionally or physically. “I want you to be part of our lives,” she continued. “You and Tony have been through a lot together. All the Avengers have and you are like a family, dysfunction and all.”
She smiled and picked up her water glass. “We’re okay,” she promised him. “You and I, I mean.” She added, “You should spend some time with us. Come over for dinner. Get to know Morgan better.”
The light touch of her hand on his arm warmed him almost as much as her acceptance. After months of uncertainty, of being bounced from city to city, landing here, among his friends—new and old—was more of a second chance than he'd ever dare to dream. Steve swallowed around the lump in his throat all over again, but managed a slightly misty smile in return. "We are that." He laughed. "I'd really like that. Thanks, Pepper. Maybe Morgan and I can swap drawing tips. She has a terrific grasp on color."
Pepper chuckled before going back to her food. Maybe her fears about the place were unfounded. It certainly gave her more good than bad. “I’ll tell her to get her paints ready.”