little piece of heaven (tony stark's daughter)

2

rosie's p.o.v

i have a nightmare, there are gunshots and shouts and a really big guy. dust clouds the area, blinding the majority of my vision as angry men storm around me. i can't seem to focus on anything, noise overwhelming every one of my senses. i feel as though i'm about to faint, can that happen in nightmares? then, right there in the middle of all of the chaos i spot a familiar face. it doesn't comfort me like it usually would, instead my heart sinks to the pit of my stomach. right there in the dried dirt is my daddy. there's blood on his face and his shirt, the dust sticking to his skin. he shouts my name as arms close in around me, lifting me off of the ground and dragging me away from him. without any better ideas, i just scream at the top of my lungs.

i wake up suddenly as a hand shakes me awake.

"hey hey cub you're okay, you're okay, what are you screaming for?" daddy kneels on the side of my bed, one hand on my shoulder. there's no blood or dirt or men with guns, so everything is okay. i don't respond to his question straight away, trying to catch my breath and find my bearings. i notice that i'm shaking though my dad is holding my arm and he frowns at me, concerned. "hey, it was just a dream" he soothes as i sit up, taking a shaky breath. as soon as i try to breathe out again i start to cry. "oh rosie" dad places a hand on my head and and arm round my back, pulling me into his chest as small sobs escape my mouth.

"i don't want you to go" i whimper into his top "something bad will happen i can feel it".

"nothing bad is going to happen tiny, i'll only be gone for a few days" he runs his fingers through my hair "we'll have military people with us that will make sure everything is safe".

i don't argue, i just cry onto him until i fall asleep.

i feel icky when i wake up.

not sick, just wrong. something is not right and i don't know how i know but i do. something is going to go wrong today and i really don't like this feeling.

i get changed into a yellow top with a daisy on it and jeans, slipping on grey socks because i get cold feet. my curls fall around me, i don't bother to do anything with them, it's a waste of valuable time that i have with my dad.

in a search for my dad, i end up finding pepper and a blonde lady who gives me immediate bad vibes, as if i needed more.

i slow my footsteps as i approach my red-headed substitute mom and the blonde locks eyes with me. pepper turns her head, a cold expression on her face which warms when she sees me.

"good morning rosie, are you feeling better?" she asks, walking further from blonde and closer to me.

"daddy told you?" i query, unsure as to what she's referring to. she'll know that i won't be happy about him going away, but i don't know how much she knows.

"he did" pepper places a hand on my back "he wanted me to make sure you were feeling okay when you woke up, he said you were really distressed last night, i think you scared him a bit".

i nod and my eyes wander to the woman, who's intently staring at me. feeling uncomfortable, i shift nervously. pepper wraps a protective arm around my shoulders, pulling me a little closer to her side. "is he downstairs?" i inquire, lowering my voice.

"he is, go see him before he goes" pepper gives my back a little pat, as i head in the direction of the workshop. i stop at the top of the stairs, turning around as i suddenly remember what day it is.

"oh! pepper?" i put my hand into my pocket and bring out a folded piece of paper, dashing back over and passing it to her "happy birthday".

she smiles fondly as she unfolds it and i give her a quick hug "thank you rosalie".

i run down the steps to the workshop, pressing the pin into the door and walking in to the familiar sound of acdc. when i see my dad though, i feel sick. nothing's particularly different, he's painting his car, covered in grime, his hair a mess. but he's glowing. he's glowing red.

i sound insane, i sound completely insane, but i swear to you, my dad had some kind of crimson aura surrounding him. i can't bring myself to move, i just stand there staring at him. "hey rosa" he calls out without turning away from the car, signalling to jarvis to turn the music down. when i don't respond he turns to look at me, raising an eyebrow. "are you ignoring me?" he frowns, pausing "earth to rosalie.. what's wrong cub? you look like you've seen a ghost".

"dead man walking" the words almost tumble out of my mouth, i don't even remember thinking them "you're a dead man walking". i'm not sure if it's even me speaking but my mouth seems to move and it sounds like my voice.

dad looks shocked, baffled even. confusion overrides his features as he puts the paintbrush down and stares back at me "what are you on about rose? did you have another nightmare?". he stands up slowly, approaching me at the same pace, as if i'm about to explode.

i shake my head slowly "you're glowing" i almost whisper "you're glowing red and i don't like it make it stop" my voice wobbles towards the end of my sentence and i realise i'm having a bit of difficulty breathing.

"breathe rosalie, what do you mean i'm glowing?" he walks over to me, crouching down in front of where i'm stood, worry painted in his eyes, but all i see is red.

"you can't go, you can't, dead man walking, jericho, peace, innocent, dead man walking" i lose control of my breaths all together, seemingly spiralling out of control.

"rosie calm down i don't understand" dad seems to panic too now, his eyes searching me for answers which i don't have.

"i don't either" tears start to pool in my eyes "i don't like it, i want it to stop". my face crumples and i feel the tears start to roll as he pulls me close to his chest.

"it's okay baby, it's okay. nothing's going to happen to me, everything is fine".

yeah well that worked out didn't it.