Meeting the missus
Howard had left Stark Tower earlier than needed for him to reach Maria's apartment, wanting to walk a little, stretch his legs and look around. Since he'd arrived he'd spent all his time in the lab, looking at the equipment, learning it, taking in just how far science had advanced since his days. It had been many hours but seemed like only minutes, and JARVIS was a constant companion, filling him in on a lot of things that had happened, and his mind was still reeling from some of it.
Space travel! Aliens! Nano-technology! The one thing he's not been prepared for, nor had it sunk in yet, was about Tony.
His son was a superhero?
He smiled to himself and shook his head as he walked past a small stone church, the grassy area next to it dotted with some pretty flowers, which drew him over. By the time he left the park he had a small posy in his hand, and was whistling happily.
JARVIS had given him very precise instructions on what to expect with the surrounds, and he'd of course been spot on. The one thing Howard did notice that stood out, apart from the lack of people in a city of this size, was the books. Bundles of them appeared in the most odd of places and he made a mental note to ask JARVIS about that later.
Meanwhile he found he had reached the apartment building, entered and saw the lift was working. "Excellent!" he murmured as he stepped inside and pressed the button for the floor he wanted.
As the lift started to rise he found he had butterflies in his stomach. He'd never had that before, but then he'd never been on his way to meet a woman who would become his wife and carry his child! As the lift doors opened he cleared his throat, checked his breath and ran his fingers through his hair, making sure it was in place.
He walked out of the lift and headed directly to the door JARVIS had said would be the one, seeing the letter on the door and nodding to himself. Again he cleared his throat and lifted his hand, pausing just for a second before knocking firmly. His fingers fiddled quickly with his tie and tugged lightly on his vest before finally falling to his side as he heard the lock on the door being opened.