Daughter of Stark #Wattys2017

Chapter 19: All's Well That Ends Well?

I'M BACK GUYS!!!!! NEW CHAPTER FOR THE FIRST TIME IN FOREVER!!!!!!! I'm so sorry it has taken me so long to put this up, I've been working hard to make this book what I want it to be, and is still isn't, but that's okay. But the people have asked for more chapters, and I'm here to deliver (finally) Please please please please please let me know what you think, I want to hear what you like about it as well as what you hate about it, so I can make it better.  Okay, without farther adieu, here's the next chapter.  

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Kennedy's POV

Sure enough, the next morning brings a phone call from my mom during breakfast, asking us to come to the funeral. Tony glances toward me for approval and when I nod he immediately accepts the invitation. I feel sick at the thought of going, but I wouldn't miss my brothers funeral, even when it's planned by my terrible mother. That evening, after an early a Thanksgiving dinner, we are all dressed in black, including Peter and many of the Avengers, who, when they found out about the funeral, asked to be allowed to come. We pack into Tony's limo and drive in silence to the cemetery. All the pitying eyes in the car are focused on me, I keep my gaze on the ground, not wanting to meet their eyes. When we arrive I'm not surprised to find that everything is bare minimum, the room, the decorations, the minister. My mother comes to greet us, wearing a sad face, but clearly not grieving. There are very few other guests, Miss Rose is here by my invitation, and she comes over to me, hugging me tightly and offering her condolences. There are a few other people around that I don't recognize, who I assume are nurses from the hospital, that got to know him during his six year stay there. It's not long before I am at the front of a line of people, and walking up to my brother's coffin, my heart is pounding and my eyes sting with tears as I approach and look down into the wooden bed. Hot lines streak down my face as I stare at his pale, lifeless face for the first time in five years. He has grown up so much, His face is no longer the chubby face of the kid I used to know, but now his features are sharper, reminding me of the face of our father. Around him the coffin is completely empty, void of any cherished items that you would expect to see packed around a departed person. The emptiness is a reminder to me of how little time the boy had in his life to really live, to have adventures and make attachments. The downpour of salty tears increases as I think about the inadequacy of this funeral compared to that my brother deserves. I reach in my pocket and pull out the photograph of Jason, my dad, and me. A tear drops from my cheek and lands in the middle of the photo, blurring it slightly. I carefully place the soiled paper on his chest, Natasha hands me a tissue which I gratefully take and move aside for the next person. I watch as each of the Avengers places a different kind of flower around him. Next the nurses pass by, placing in the coffin a few small trinkets collected from around his hospital room. My mother is the last in the line of people to pass by, she pauses momentarily, shedding no tears, showing no emotion, as she looks at the face of her son. She places nothing in the coffin before walking away. The rest of the funeral is a blur. A badly written speech is made describing his short life, and the coffin is lowered into the ground. I stand for a long time staring at the freshly turned up mound of dirt, the other guests leave one by one, even my mother, without a word. Tony and Pepper stand watching me, the others have gone to wait in the limo. No one presses me, they just stand, silently sympathetic. I look up at the sky, full of sunshine with a few wispy clouds floating around. The weather seems odd to me, as if it should be raining or something to reflect the sad occasion. Then again, I suppose heaven might be rejoicing to receive him into eternity. My mouth turns up slightly at the thought, I can't cry any longer, my tears are dried up. All I can do now is keep living. I turn around and slowly walk across the lawn to where Tony and Pepper are standing. Pepper offers a sad smile as I approach,

"Ready?" She asks, running a hand over my hair. I nod, and the three of us turn toward the parking lot. Tony puts an arm around me, rubbing my shoulder affectionately as we walk, I lean my head on his shoulder. This is what family feels like, and though my mother might be my mother, today only proves that she is not my family.

Back at the tower all the Avengers disperse, and I ride with Pepper and Tony to their floor. Tony goes to the kitchen and pours himself a drink, while I unfold a stack of sheets and blankets, laying them out on the couch. Out of the corner of my eye I notice Pepper give Tony a pointed look, Tony looks over to me as I'm finishing my task. I sit down and pick up my laptop from the coffee table, but just before I open it, Tony sits down next to me. I look him over curiously.

"Okay, so you were right." He admits

"Thank you." I say with satisfaction.

"And we won't talk about it again, She's probably long gone with all that money I gave her by now." I nod with an, I told you so, look. "I'm sorry, no girl should have to go through what you have." He looks at sincerely at me. "And I'm sorry I called her, I care about you, and I just thought that it would make you happy. But she did steal my money so are we square?" He finishes lightheartedly. I smile at his ever witty self.

"Yeah, we're square." I agree, leaning over and hugging him.

"Good." He says, wrapping an arm around me before I release him and let him stand up. "Eat something before you go to bed okay?" He requests, I nod as he walks away, placing his glass back on the counter and heading into his bedroom. Pepper comes and leans over, kissing my forehead.

"Promise?" She asks.

"Promise," I assure her, "Look I'll go right now." I get up and walk over to the fridge. Satisfied, she follows Tony out of the room. I grab an apple of of the fridge and take a bite as I walk back to the couch. I open my computer and browse social media while I eat. I see a picture that Tony posted the day I came back to the tower, Its a picture of the two of us with the caption So glad to have this girl back at the tower.  And as i sit here on Tony Stark's couch, and think about Pepper making sure I'm taken care of, Tony trying to make me laugh, the Avengers, supporting me on such a hard day, and Peter always being there to listen to my sob stories. It suddenly hits me that, I have a family, a family that cares about me, and I couldn't possibly be more thankful. When I finish eating I get ready for bed and make myself comfortable on the makeshift bed. I start to drift to sleep with thoughts of the day filling my head. As exhausted as I am, I'm still painfully aware of how little sleep I'm gonna get tonight. 

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Well there you go! Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks Blawesomes for being so patent with me. And as I'm posting the next chapters, please let me know about any continuity problems, or plot holes that you notice.