Who: Jemma Simmons and Tony Stark What: Jemma is exploring the lab and runs into Tony When: 2 March 2015, afternoon around lunch time Where: Lab at Stark Industries Warnings: None Status: Log | Complete
“Well, aren’t you a beauty....” The words were murmured to herself as Jemma looked around the lab she was to be working in now that she had officially been hired at Stark Industries. Most would think it insane to move to a new country when the job wasn’t official but Jemma knew her worth and skills and knew that the job would be hers and so she had taken a leap of faith and moved.
And look at her now. Most of the equipment was familiar, but there were some newer models that she had only read about. To be able to work with them? Well. Colour her excited. It was as if it were Christmas.
“Oh!” Noticing a piece of equipment, Jemma moved over to inspect it, quite excited.
“Careful,” a voice rang out across the room. Tony Stark had been so involved with his reading (a tablet held in his hand with a glowing screen) that he’d been standing completely still. Blending in with the background. The grey shirt he wore with the glowing chest piece underneath almost made him look like part of the background. Or a piece of machinery himself.
“That’s a temperamental one.” He finally tore his eyes away from the words on the screen to give the woman in the lab a better inspection. She must’ve been new. He didn’t remember her face.
And cue a voice causing her to jump because Jemma so hadn’t realised there was someone there.
“So sorry, I’m not disturbing you am I?”
Because she wouldn’t want to do that. But there was just something about labs that got her all excited and she tended to forget herself. Then again, she was the person who thought starting a new job involving more ways to work with bioenergy was like the first day of school… for someone who liked school.
“Is it now? How so?” Jemma did heed the warning, but she hadn’t moved away quite yet. If anything, she was more intrigued because she wanted to know what about this particular instrument was temperamental as well as see if maybe she had a solution.
“Not at all.” Tony clicked the screen off and set the tablet aside. He moved forward to greet the newcomer, slipping his hands into his pockets. It wasn’t a surprise that Tony didn’t know the woman in the lab by sight alone. He didn’t know everyone who worked in his company--though he tried to know as many of them as possible. And since he hadn’t seen her wandering around the building or on any of the security cameras, she must be new. Find deductions there, Sherlock.
“You’ll find out soon enough. I take it you’re new around here?” He asked, moving a little closer.
Well that was a relief, Jemma would have hated to be interrupting with something. And then it was she realised she was talking with Tony Stark. Given she had interviewed with Pepper and had really only looked up the information on the company, it didn’t surprise her that she didn’t make the connection right away. There was still a lot to get used to here, and she didn’t know exactly how many people were involved in the research and development department. Even so, she held her hand out in greeting as she introduced herself.
“I am, Jemma Simmons, sir. I was just hired to work in Research and Development.”
Tony loved that look of recognition when they realized who he was. Especially when he wasn’t wearing a suit or a Suit (see what he did there?) and it took people a moment to realize who he was. He was a bit of a glutton for admiration and attention. He turned to lean against a table and folded his arms across his chest while they talked, making mental notes about this girl.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jemma. Glad you’re on board. Tell me, what are you looking forward to most working for Stark Industries?” He asked, raising a friendly eyebrow.
Had she not done her research, there was a good chance Jemma might not have recognised him at all. As it was, she did feel a bit foolish in the fact it took a minute for her to make the connection. However, she would let it pass. There were going to be a lot of new people for her to get used to and get to know.
“Well, I think the work I have seen so far has been fascinating. When I was with the BBSRC, we were working on bioenergy and to know that is becoming a focus here is quite thrilling and I hope that I can bring what I have already worked on in that area to the table for here.”
Which really was just the tip of the iceberg. She easily had the qualifications, but there was just so much.
“But the innovations in science are what really caught my attention when I was contacted about an interview. There’s so much we can learn from science, as well as work towards finding ways to help others. With all I have read, this is the place to be for exploring these new options.”
She sounded confident, capable, and was charming. Tony loved it when people praised his company in front of him. He was just that vain about it all. Not to say what she was saying wasn’t true, because it was. Stark Industries was the place to be when it came to cutting edge tech, breakthroughs in clean energy, and innovative thinking involving same.
“It sounds like my head hunters knew what they were doing when they brought you on,” Tony said, nodding once. “Now the most important question,” he leaned in a bit, face completely serious and stoic.
“What are your thoughts on food trucks?”
Jemma was confident in her abilities, if there was one thing she was sure about, it was science. It was her greatest passion, and it always came across when she really got to talking about it. She knew it had come across in her conversation with Pepper, and as Tony was the more science related one from what she had so far observed, she had a feeling he could understand that passion and drive.
But food trucks. That.. was not a question she had anticipated and it took her a moment.
“I think that they’re convenient. I’ve only seen them in London so I haven’t had much exposure to them, but from the few I have stopped at when the opportunity arose, they’ve been very good.”
“Good.” Tony said, brightening a bit. He drew up his arm and glanced at the watch he wore. Yes, Tony Stark wore a watch. Not a whole lot of people still did, and with his tech stuff he could very easily have made himself something more fancy, but this one was sentimental.
“It’s just about lunch time. You like noodles? There’s a Noodle truck downstairs.” Tony offered, motioning toward the hall where the elevator was.
And apparently Tony Stark had a fondness for food trucks. That was definitely not something she would have expected. Then again, Jemma did try to keep an open mind about these sorts of things. She saw wonder in the world and what it could reveal and that was because she tried to keep herself from forming too solid of a judgement.
“Is it?” As she’d been in an interview and then exploring, she hadn’t even noticed the time. She had arrived early as usual, but go figure. “That sounds lovely, thank you.”