Growing Up

Chapter Three

"Mummy! Look, look!" Dark brown hair fluttered behind the girl as she ran around the flat.

"What is it Dani?" Her mother laughed from the kitchen, pulling out a pan of heart shaped cookies.

"I got an A on my test!" The girl shoved the paper in her face. (Y/n) looked at the math test, a fake scrutinizing look on her face, like her professor used to do. "Am I as smart as daddy?" Her grip on the paper tightened just the slightest, unnoticeable to the eight year old currently standing at the counter.

"I think you might be smarter than him!" (Y/n) laughed. She put the paper on the fridge. "Now everyone can see what a brainiac you are. Now are you going to help me ice these for your valentine exchange tomorrow or am I just going to have to eat them all?" Her daughter's brown eyes widened.

"No! I need to give them out, you can't eat them!"

"Then grab a spoon and ice, silly girl."

They worked on the cookies and bagged them up for her classmates. An icing war broke out resulting in pink sticky goop all over the two and the kitchen. (Y/n) sent Dani off to get a bath while she worked on cleaning up the counters and floor. Once everyone was clean and in fresh pajamas, they made spaghetti and watched a little tv before it was time for Dani's bedtime.

"Can I see the photo book?" Dani asked, pulling up her covers.

"Of course, sweetheart." (Y/n) grabbed the album from the bookshelf and sat on the bed, handing it to her. Dani would want to look through it every now and then, asking to hear stories about her mother and father and their friends.

"That's grandma and grandpa, great aunt Peggy, Jarvis, uncle Rhodey, aunt Danielle who I'm named after," She always went through and named them, making sure to memorize everything about the pictures of the family she'd never met. "And these ones are you and daddy." She always spent the longest on those. The first was from (Y/n)'s high school graduation. Tony had attended wearing his best suit, the look on his face full of pride at his best friend's accomplishments. The next picture was taken at Christmas time in 1992, the year Dani was conceived. That was her favourite because the expression on her parents face was one of love and compassion. She knew it was hard for her mom to leave, even from a young age she could tell how much she had gone through moving to a whole new country. (Y/n) noticed the tears running down her daughter's face.

"What is it, baby?" She pulled her into her arms, hugging her tight.

"It's my fault you had to leave daddy." Dani cried. (Y/n)'s heart shattered, tears filling her eyes as well.

"Don't you ever think that. I left because your father wasn't ready to have such an amazing gift like you."

"Will I ever meet him?"

"Of course you will. When he is ready, and when you are ready." She kissed her forehead and wiped away her tears. "You'll get to meet everybody."