philophobia; (n.) fear of being in love or falling in love
"Are you insane? I can't go outside. I'm like Rapunzel. I'm not allowed to leave. Ever. Unless I'm with one of my parents."
"Then let me be your Flynn Rider."
"Shut up."
"You can't bench me...
Watching the morning sun glisten through her curtains, Emma stayed under her bedsheets, a numb look in her eye. It was five hours ahead where the Avengers were in Nigeria compared to New York. But everything stayed the same. She knew she had to get up, get ready for the day — but it still was difficult for her.
She hadn't seen Pepper since she moved out and it'd been almost a month. She missed her more than words could ever be described.
Since moving out, leaving just the two of them, Tony had made an effort to be around Emma more. A lot more. Even so, taking her to events he needed to be at.
Emma was slowly finding it irritating, knowing he was only dragging her to all these things because he felt guilty. Guilty that they were all in this tense and awkward situation. A couple on a break with a teenager in the middle.
On this particular day, Tony was taking Emma to the college he hoped she'd attend one day. He stood outside her door, dressed, patiently waiting for her to answer the door without having to intervene. But after several minutes of silence, Tony had no choice but to burst in. And when he did, he found his 14-year-old daughter still in bed, and still in her pajamas.
"Emma..." he muttered, closing the door behind him, "Why aren't you dressed yet?"
Emma heavily sighed, clutching onto her bed sheets as Tony sat next to her, "What time do we need to be there?" she asked.
"Uh..." he murmured, looking down at his watch. His eyes slightly widened, frowning, "Right now."
Emma quickly sat up from her bed, "Sorry," she muttered, hastily walking towards her closet, sorting out what to wear.
"It's okay...tardiness is genetic," he jokingly told her, in which she shot him an annoyed look. And by the sparkle of annoyance in her dark blue eyes, he saw that bit of Pepper in her, "Alright, I got it. Get dressed. I need you to meet the new guy before leaving."
As he got up, heading for her door, he heard her scoff, "Another bodyguard?" she asked, "Seriously?"
"Chill, okay...he's brand new," Tony told her, "Harrington's recruit. They're the only ones assigned to you, everyone else is for me and Stark Industries."
"Whatever," Emma murmured, continuing to look through her clothes as Tony chuckled under his breath while leaving the room, closing the door behind.
———
When Emma stepped off the elevator, wearing a beige turtleneck, plaid skirt and black boots, expecting to be greeted by the usual 'Good morning, Miss Potts' from Brandon Harrington, her father instead was there.
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He huffed, looking up from his phone and at his daughter, smiling, "Ready?" he asked and she nodded.
She then began to follow him through the tower, heading for the landing pad to get on the jet. But right before they entered the tunnel, Brandon Harrington was there waiting, along with his new recruit. He looked like he was 18 or 19-years-old, dark ruffled hair, green piercing eyes, fair skin. And was as well wearing a black formal suit like Brandon.
