The Weight of the Universe | Avengers

17. No Trust

The bright force lands the ship carefully on the airfield and the light dies slowly out. To their surprise, it emerges to a young woman who shoots them a meaningful look. She doesn't appear like a threat, but this is not what Eve is actually focused on. No, what she pays attention to is when the gate of the spaceship opens, no one other than Tony Stark walks down the stairs. Her heart almost skips a beat and the walls she has built up around her throughout the last weeks crumble instantly. This can't be true. It feels like a dream to her.

"Tony..." Eve mumbles in disbelief and runs towards him, her feet carry her faster than she could think. Tony looks tired and pale, he has lost a lot of weight and trauma edges his face. Though, his expression softens when he spots her and he signals Nebula that her help isn't necessary anymore.

Eve immediately helps him to finish the last steps of the stairs, sending the blue woman next to him a grateful look. When they are finally on the ground, she doesn't hesitate to pull him into a hug and tears gather in her eyes. She doesn't care that they haven't sorted everything out yet, she's just relieved that he's alive and so is he. Tony was scared that he lost her, too.

"I thought you were dead." Eve whispers and pulls back to take another look at him to make sure that he's real, barely noticing how Steve has followed her.

"I couldn't stop him." Tony blurts out and guilt and disappointment weight heavy in his voice. Eve presses her lips together, aware how this probably increased his burden. She wants to ask him about Spider-Man and Strange, but she's scared to worsen the whole situation.

"Neither could we." Steve helps Tony to keep walking until the billionaire suddenly pauses to look at Eve since she met Peter. He can tell how badly she wants to know what happened.

"I lost the kid." The words hit her harshly and she gazes at him in pain. Just when it couldn't get any worse, it actually did. The heartbreak in Tony's eyes reveals how much Peter meant to him and it hurts Eve to see him like that.

"I lost him. Again." She refers to Bucky with tears in her eyes and a pang of pain hits Tony's chest, his face falters. He was hoping so badly that Bucky would still be around, but the odds weren't with any of them.

"Tony, we lost." Steve says, hinting that Tony's not alone with his burden and pain while Tony just stares at the blond, barely catching his breath. He has the urge to ask after the woman he loves.

"Is uhm..." The conversation is interrupted when Pepper finally arrives, crying in relief and joy to see her fiancé again. She really thought Thanos had killed him or he had died with the snap.

"Oh, my God..." She pulls him into a tight hug and tears stream down her face. "Oh, my God."

Tony closes his eyes for a moment, finally feeling that he's returned home and he's relieved that Pepper is still alive. It's been a long few weeks. Pulling back, he presses a kiss on her cheek and tries to calm down her sobbing. "It's okay."

The four begin to head back while Rocket and Aurora reunite with the only other Guardian. The auburn-haired smiles at Nebula's presence and pulls her into a hug. Thanos' daughter is not used to that kind of affection and the two don't really have a close relationship, yet she doesn't push Aurora away. When Ego's daughter lets go, she glances at Nebula.

"I'm so glad you're okay. Where are the others? What about Peter?" There's so much hope in Aurora's voice that Nebula hates how she's the one who delivers the bad news. Rocket isn't blinded by optimism and has already realized that the others are gone as well.

Silently, Nebula shakes her head and Aurora feels how her heart shatters into pieces. None of the others made it. Her last hope that her brother and her friends have somehow survived cracks and tears start running down her face. As Nebula sits down on the stairs, Rocket takes a seat next to her and holds her hand. Sobbing quietly, Aurora drops down next to Nebula and leans slightly against her.