I'm Iron Man, And I'm Agent Coulson

Chapter 102 How you Feeling?

"Well you've certainly made a mess of things, haven't you, again?" Natasha sneered, as Tony jumped out of his car, almost as soon as he drove into the facility garage.
"Oh, so this is my fault?" He argued, and ran his fingers through his hair. He loosened the tie around his neck, and tossed his suit jacket into the hood.
"If the shoe fits, so maybe you should just give her tonight with us here, and go do whatever it is you need to," she demanded, and crossed her arms over her chest.

He was actually already late for his early dinner, with a few foundation members, but watching (y/n)'s normal features change so quickly, at the shoot, demanded his attention. He'd seen her lose her temper before, but never in a room full of civilians, and her eyes hold something more than rage.
The interviewer, whatever her name was, lost her job, but only after insulting (y/n), and for the life of him, if he did sleep with her, like (y/n) stated, he couldn't remember.
Then last night, after he asked FRIDAY if (y/n) was home, he was surprised she told him (y/n) decided to take a drive at two in the morning. Vision had already made him privy to what happened during training, but he was already in Massachusetts, and couldn't deal with it at the moment. So he checked her GPS and nearly lost himself to guilt, jealousy, and rage once he discovered her truck parked outside of Woodlawn Cemetery. Jealousy was usually easy for him to hide, cause it wasn't something he had a lot of experience with, but knowing she was there to visit Phil's grave sent his mind tumbling.
It shouldn't of bothered him, Phil was important to her, but he was with her now. He considered Phil a part of the team, and he never forgot the aftermath of seeing him laying dead in her arms. Hell, Tony still thought about him too, from time to time, and what he stood for, but he couldn't help but wonder...
He didn't call her, or fly back, even though his suit was with him, but seeing her this afternoon, without her smile, and the constant sheen over her eyes, he asked himself what the hell happened in the past twenty-four hours, besides his and Pep's statements being released, and training?
Natasha made him aware she found (y/n) in his lab, passed out with documents of her ancestry all over his pop up screens, and running a fever of 104, but he said nothing, still confused, and caught up in what was happening.
They just came back from the Catskills, and while he knew how much he meant to her, cause she told him, and more importantly she showed him, he was at a loss at what to do. Things were piling up, and his worry about what happened at training plagued his mind with questions, and he was scared for her.

"What the hell happened, and do you know why she went to the cemetery last night?" He asked, and leaned against his car, quickly feeling his age. He was tired, and wanted to just go home, but with (y/n) with him.
"No, I don't think she really knows. In her delirium she told me she was scared, but I didn't know about the cemetery till this morning," Nat answered, and changed the subject, "are you sure you wanna do this?"
"Do what?" He muttered, and frowned up at her.
"Do this, with her, because she needed you last night after training. I mean it looks kinda shitty when your boyfriend and his ex release a statement about your relationship, causing more questions. Then her strange ability to hold off Wanda, which, it was a little scary Tony..she came home and you weren't there," she stated curtly, "she needed someone to catch her last night, and we all failed."
"So what, I need to stay home every night because she's still unsure about this?" He blurted out, and began pacing by his car, "I'm not a fucken mind reader.."
"No you're not, but you're the only thing she's ever been sure of, shellhead, but after the news and training yesterday? Tony, it's only been a few months, I'm sure doubt still sits heavily on her shoulders, things aren't just gonna magically go where you want them to, not after spending so much time invested in Pepper, and the tabloids have been relentless," she shrugged, and leaned against his car, "even I don't really understand what she's going through, whether it really is fear or doubt, which she's always had, but we keep piling it up on her, and she's drowning under it, and now with training? Did you watch the video? Did you see the change? I told you guys something was up before we hit Sokovia."
"Yes," he sighed, and looked down at his phone. He wasn't expecting to see her roar with rage, or her eyes shine, like a goddamn cat's. Vision was right, no one should be able to stand against Wanda's powers, but (y/n) had been standing against the stone since Loki tried to add her to his ranks. This situation was getting bigger by the minute, and he cautiously agreed with Vision, about doing research and figuring this whole thing out.
"Rhodes, and Vision sent it to me, and I understand the worry, I do, and I'll do whatever I can, to figure it out," he promised.
To think fourteen hours ago he was sneaking into a jewelry shop in Boston, the same one his mom liked to shop in, when she needed something. Only to wonder if she wanted what he did, and contemplate what Natasha said about Pepper.
"Then you should of been here, so I'm gonna ask you again, are you sure you wanna still do this?" Nat reiterated, and grabbed his arm, "you know just as well as I do, how different she is, from Pep, me, from anyone I've ever met, and.."
"You don't have to tell me that, I already know," he answered curtly, "but this is how much I want this, regardless if she's falling apart, or has doubts."
He handed Nat his phone, and she nearly dropped it once she saw the photos of engagement rings he linked together. He liked the intricate designs of all of them, some vintage, some modern, but the dark color of the bands reminded him of her, so he gave his ideas to the high end shop, and hoped for the best.
"You're joking, you, Anthony Stark, with rings. Oh my gosh, holy shit. These are all beautiful! Are you crazy, you've been dating for like what, three weeks!?" She shrieked, and zoomed in on the screen, "I think she'd like the black one, but you aren't going to ask her now are you, she's got enough on her plate?"
"No, and I can't believe I just showed you these," he murmured, and cleared his throat, hoping it would alleviate the rush of vulnerability, "but..really, I'm not scared of her, and I've never wanted something more..and why am I telling you this.."
"Pff, because you're starting to like me, and I already knew about the rings, Rhodes isn't exactly a spy," she shrugged, but the smile on her lips forced one onto his own face, "you probably would of been better off if you let me do it."
"Yah, I figured that out," he grinned, and released a small sigh, "so if I leave, am I gonna look like more of an asshole, even though you're telling me to go?"
"Probably, but I'll tell her you stopped by, and I forced you to leave," she replied, and began walking towards the doors, "I just overloaded her system with antibiotics, but I'll make sure her phone's on, now get out of here, let her sleep, you can come rescue her tomorrow. Oh and try to remember that she actually likes having you around, and needs you."
"Fine," he growled, and watched her go through the doors. He really didn't want to leave, because he already missed (y/n) presence, but the constant phone calls blowing up his phone reiterated just how late he was.
So he begrudgingly got into his car, and headed back to Manhattan.