Don't You Worry Child

Can't Pretend

Chapter Summary: Things don't quite go to plan when Tony tries to propose to Pepper; Samantha's trip to a nightclub with Natasha and Steve goes slightly awry.

Soundtrack: Can't Pretend by Tom Odell

Samantha decided to retreat away from the living room to one of the two R&D floors where she found her father working on another of his gadgets. It had been a small while since Christmas and, still, she was happy and yet concerned. She and Steve had already fallen apart once due to her mother's actions and the new blonde knew that, with the newly discovered information, they could be wrecked beyond repair. She needed to confide in someone – other than Natasha – and her father seemed the obvious choice. "What are we working on today?" she asked gleefully as she approached the workbench.

"You seem... oddly perky, what happened?" he asked suspiciously, his eyes narrowed as he posed the question.

"It's December, snowing outside and I'm in New York. Call this... New York Samantha," she half-lied.

"Okay, well can New York Samantha take a break so normal Samantha can come back for a minute or two?"

"Yeah, sure okay," she replied, now it was her turn to be suspicious. What on earth was going on and why did it have Tony Stark acting serious? Maybe confiding in Tony wasn't a good idea after all, at least not at this point in time.

"What would you say if I proposed to Pepper?" he asked carefully and quietly, almost as though she were a deer and he was attempting not to scare her. He looked tense and worried.

"I'd say it took you long enough. When? Where? How?" she bombarded him with questions. There had never been any doubt in her mind that, one day, her father would get married and she was incredibly glad that he had thought of the idea of proposing to Pepper before she got fed up with him and left. Given the amount that Tony and Pepper had been through together, and it had been a lot, it seemed like there would be something that would tip Pepper over the edge eventually.

"So, you're okay with this?" he asked uncertainly.

"Put it this way, if you're looking for a way out then I'm definitely not going to be it," she answered and saw her father visibly breathe out and sigh in relief.

"Oh thank god," he exclaimed with a look of relief on his face.

"Did you really think I was going to veto such a match? Honestly, Pepper has been through too much with you for me to even think of vetoing it," she jested before turning into a sort of gossip "So, how're you going to do it ? Where and when?" she asked, sounding slightly over-excited.

"New Year's Eve, maybe, I haven't thought that far ahead okay?" he admitted and she couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"You mean to say that you don't have the ring?" she asked him, adding another eye roll for emphasis. He shook his head and she looked down at her watch (a simple silver Cartier with a pink face and platinum numbers) swiftly before announcing "Right, it's still morning. You, me, coffee, pastries, Tiffany's. Now,"

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Samantha took a bite out of her Berry Custard Danish and then a sip of her Flat White. She stared into the window as people hustled and bustled around the store. Tourists milled round on the street doing exactly as she was doing. Sales assistants inside the store showed people jewellery and key rings as others rang up purchasing. Sitting in a display case within the store was the legendary Tiffany Canary diamond. Only two women had ever worn it. One, a senator's wife named Mrs Sheldon Whitehouse, had worn it when she chaired the Tiffany Ball in 1957. The other was Audrey Hepburn for some photo ops for Breakfast at Tiffany's. People wandered through the store; loved up couples picked from selections of rings. One man in a suit was examining diamond necklaces with huge diamonds and rubies, probably in some attempt at an apology present for his wife. A smile played across Samantha's lips as she watched. She understood, now, why Truman Capote had the immortal Holly Golightly visit this store when she was depressed. It was like heaven, or nirvana, or some representation of life in one store. "So... why do we do this?" her father asked thus removing her from her thoughts so she could deal with his confusion.