Time • [T.S x reader]

Chapter 13;

Walking to Tony's lab was rather like the walk of shame after a night out drinking. The heaviness that lay on your shoulders and the rather, impending doom feeling that you had ghosted around your entire presence. You wanted to see him, but you also didn't want to face him.

As you came closer you heard his voice – he was shouting, and someone was shouting back at him. You recognised it as Zak's. Why the hell were Tony and Zak arguing with one another? You knew that Tony wasn't fond of Zak but ever since Tony had told you not to go near him, he had been avoiding him, albeit subconsciously, but still.

"I don't know what your games are, but I will always outsmart you." You heard Tony say. You were hanging by the door, ducking your head out of view so they wouldn't see you.

Zak laughed, "With all due respect, Mr Stark, I am not playing any games."

Tony walked up to Zak, slow and steadily, "I have been around a lot longer than you and I know when I can sniff out a rat."

Zak's voice became low, he was trying to intimidate Tony, "Be careful who you accuse, Mr Stark. You may be thinking you are doing the right thing by doing this, but I can promise you – it will not end how you think it will."

Before Tony could say anything, Zak grabbed his backpack and with that you got up and hid behind the corner. That was when Zak came out with a huff and slammed the door behind him, "Fucking idiot." He mumbled.

You watched him walk away. You were truly flabbergasted. What did Tony mean by Zak being a 'rat'? This was of course a conversation for another time. You weren't not about to bring up the fact you had been eavesdropping on a conversation that wasn't meant for your ears.

Knocking on the door you heard Tony sigh and say, "Yes?"

You walked in and kept silent, only looking down at your shoes. You weren't sure if you could even look at him at this very moment. The hurt was still intense in your bloodstream and the sadness was swimming in your eyes.

"What is it? What do you want- "Tony stopped? You assumed that he must have looked up, "Y/N, I wasn't expecting to see you."

You were keeping silent in fears that your emotions would take over. It wasn't making sense to you why your emotions should come up like this, it was one kiss. He had kissed loads of people, to him it was nothing more than that but to you. To you, it was everything. You could've sworn that the planets had aligned when the two of you connected but to him, it was just a kiss.

"I can go." Your voice was small.

"No – no, come here." Tony's voice was soft and earnest.

You looked up at him and saw him for the first time in two days, walking over to him as his arms were stretched out for you to fall into and that you did, "I'm sorry," He whispered.

You shook your head, again not wanting to talk in fears that your feelings would get in the way.

"I said I would protect you against the press and I didn't, and for that I am sorry."

Closing your eyes in just utter shock. He thought that's why you came here to see him, because of the press invading your privacy. He really was dumb, "We should never have – they should never have taken those photos." Again, he whispers into your hair.

You scoff, pulling away from, "This isn't about the photos Tony!" the disbelief that courses through you is unmatched, "I don't care about the stupid photos!"

You were mad, an underestimate maybe, but still.

Tony had never seen you so distressed. Had he caused this? He thought it would've been best to leave you to your own devices. He knew that the kiss was a mistake, he should never have taken advantage of you like that. You were nothing more than his intern. However, the past two days had been torture for him. Tony couldn't get the thought of you out of his head, the way your smile lit a whole room up or the way your hips swayed as you walked. And the way your lips felt on his, and of course his imagination went into overdrive about that.

"I've had a pretty long day, Sweetheart, I don't need another argument." Tony brushed you off, he had to. It was the only way for this thing to stop before it had even started.

"No! You do not get to do that to me!" You stormed up to him and got right into his face, "You don't get to deflect, not when I am hurting, it isn't fair."

Tony grabbed both of your arms with his two hands and stunned you into silence, "I'm going to say this once – this – us – can not be a thing."

Shaking your head, you could feel the tears begin to form in your eyes, "I'm not on about us being a thing – I am on about you leaving me and not even coming to check up on me."

"I've been busy." Tony said through gritted teeth.

"Who with? Zak?" Your attitude had hit peek bitch.

Tony let go of your wrists moving his hands up to his hair. Of course, she had heard the argument beforehand. She was probably waiting outside listening to the whole thing.

"Well?" You folded your arms over your chest and waited for Tony to explain.

Tony sighs, "Sit down, would you?"

Doing as you were told. You started to calm down, you realised that Tony was about to be truthful with you about this. What would be the point of him not being after he'd understood you had heard everything. The only thing was you didn't know what he was about to say.

"Before I tell you, I can't prove anything – not yet anyway." Tony looked up at you, his voice full of seriousness.

"Okay."

"I believe Zak has ulterior motives with you," he moved to turn the hologram up of your time travel device, "I believe he's after this."

"Why would Zak want that?" Your eyebrows squinting together, as you looked at him messing about with the hologram.

"Bruce and I have been keeping a close eye on him and he's been acting strangely," Tony then pulls up surveillance of Zak around the tower, sometimes with you and sometimes with other people, and then on his own (he was more often on his own than with other people), "He tried to get into my lab after closing hours. As you know I'm almost always here, so I caught him, and that's why he was in my lab today. I told him he had 8 hours to explain himself."

You were stunned, "And did he?" You move to stand next to Tony who's looking at the surveillance.

"Said he was drunk, and he didn't realise this was my lab," he turned to you and whispered, "I call bullshit."

"Everyone knows this is your floor, it's impossible not to know when you work here." You mumbled to yourself. This revelation or whatever it was about Zak didn't hit you because you hadn't known him long, but you were still confused why he would want something of yours, "He has his own idea of cyber technology, doesn't he? That's what he had said to me in passing once."

"In his interview he stated that he had an idea for it but nothing more than that. I offered him a place in my labs to work closer with him – I saw his work ethic I knew he would be good but – "Tony paused, you waited for him to continue as he gathered the right words in his head, "now he knows about you, potentially creating time travel, he's interested in just that."

"So, what you are saying is, he is jealous of me?" If that was the case, it was easily sorted. You would go and see him and talk to him about it. Surely, he would open up to you about how he may be feeling. He seemed that sort of guy.

Tony held your hand in his and sighed, "I believe there is more to it than that. When he was in here earlier the device – your device – started to react."

"How can it? It's not finished yet."

He nodded, "Yes but," Tony shook his head, "this is too much – I'm sorry."

"Tony..." You shot him a warning glance to carry on.

Tony swallowed, "I believe Zak is from the future."