𝒩𝑜𝓌 𝐼 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝓈𝒽𝑒'𝓁𝓁 𝓃𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝓂𝑒 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓃 𝒶𝓈 𝓈𝒽𝑒 𝓇𝓊𝓃𝓈 𝒶𝓌𝒶𝓎
Audelia Motter and Tony Stark had each other's backs through thick and thin. But after the abduction of the billionaire in Afghanistan by the Ten Rings...
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Rhodey was making progress, taking baby steps using the contraption that Tony had built for his legs to help him walk again. Tony was right by his side, one arm still in a sling and multiple cuts and bruises along his face, but he was right by Rhodey's side every step.
Audelia stood off to the side of the room, leaning on the door frame as she looked between Rhodey and Nathan and Aurora just outside the window in the courtyard. She got off lucky, just a few stitches on the back of her head with a full head of hair to cover it. Nathan said she was lucky, considering the amount of blood she had lost. They say if Tony hadn't acted as fast as he did, she might have bled out right there in Siberia.
Tony. He was a whole different topic. Her eyes trailed to him every few seconds of every single day, wanting to say something, but knowing there was nothing she could say. There was nothing to make up for what had happened, and she knew that with ever fiber in her being. So instead, she just watched him from afar, and knew it was his choice to make the first move when he felt the time was right.
Rhodey fell to the floor, cursing under his breath. He ignored Tony's outstretched hand as he let out a sigh.
"138. 138 combat missions. That's how many I've flown, Tony. Every one of them could've been my last, but I flew 'em. Because the fight needed to be fought. It's the same with these Accords. I signed because it was the right thing to do. And, yeah, this sucks. This is . . . this is a bad beat. But it hasn't change my mind. I don't think,"
He took Tony's hand with a small smile, allowing him to bring him back up to his feet. There was a knock at the door, a FedEx driver with a delivery.
"Are you Tony "Stank"?"
Yes, this is--this is Tony "Stank". You're in the right place. Thank you for that! I'm never dropping that, by the way," Audelia let out a laugh under her breath, Tony doing the same from across the room as Rhodey got the mail, shutting the door behind him. "Table for one, Mr. "Stank". Please, by the bathroom. Oh, Deli, there's something here for you."
"Thanks, Rhodes,"
Deli stepped forward and took the envelope from his hands. She looked up, meeting Tony's eyes for just a second, before she left the room without a word.
She found herself in front of the large window where she last saw Natasha, staring out at the trees around the compound. She took a deep breath, leaning on the railing before her as she took the letter out of the envelope.
Audelia,
I'm glad you're home, and I'm glad you're okay. You belong there, in the comforts of the compound you helped bring to life with the daughter who I think knows more about the world than this 100 year old man.
I know that I'm never going to be able to express how thankful I am to you.
The choices you made are the reason Bucky is alive. I know those choices weren't easy, and I know they brought you a lot of pain in the end. You may not show it, but I know looking at Bucky still hurts, still brings up memories, even if you've forgiven him and moved past it. What you did was more selfless than anything I will ever do.
What I understand even more is I will never be able to show you how sorry I am.
I shouldn't have told you, it wasn't something you needed to know or wanted to know. I thought I was doing the right thing by telling you, but all I did was cause you more harm. What I've done to you by forcing you into that situation, what I've done to you and Tony...I will never forgive myself for it.
You might not admit it to yourself right away, but I know you're mad at me. I know you may hate me right now, and soon you'll come to realize that. And that's okay, because I betrayed you and your trust. We're a family, a team, and a team trusts one another and has each other's backs. I turned my back on you all for Bucky, and you have every right to be mad.
I hurt you, I know I did, and I don't know if we'll ever be able to move past that. But know that you are one of the closest people in my life, one of the only people I completely trust, and I do love you. So, no matter what. I promise you, if you need us, if you need me, I'll be there.
Steve x
"I shouldn't be shocked that you got a letter too, makes sense,"
Audelia wiped a tear from her cheek, swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat as she gripped the letter. Tony appeared at her side, standing to her left as he leaned on the railing, facing back tot eh hallway behind them as Deli looked out into the trees.
"He was saying sorry. Not that it fixes things but...it's appreciated,"
"Yeah, I understand that..." Tony trailed off, desperately trying to find something to say, but coming up short. His eyes moved down to her hand, still seeing his mother's ring sitting on her ring finger, shining in the sunlight. "You're still wearing it."
Deli's eyes went wide as she saw it, stumbling over her words as she felt a new round of tears coming on. She grabbed onto the ring, starting to shimmy it off her finger.
"I- I'm sorry I just, I got so used to wearing it that I didn't realize that-"
She was cut off by Tony taking her hands in his. Her breath caught, this being the first time Tony had truly touched her, showed any affection toward her, and she was in shock.
His fingers danced over her hands, running along her skin as she held her hand in his own. His fingers took hold of the ring, moving it back down her finger and back into it's rightful spot.
"She only ever meant for you to wear this ring, and so did I," Tony held onto her hand for just a second longer before he let it slip out of his own hands. "It's right where it belongs."
The sound of Tony's footsteps retreating echoed through the hallway as Audelia cradled her hand to her chest, a new round of tears slipping down her cheeks as she looked out to the trees before her.
She didn't know where they stood right now, all she knew was that things weren't entirely okay at the moment between the pair. But Tony Stark and Audelia Motter always found their ways back to one another. The ring on her finger meant she had a chance.
A chance was all she needed.
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After lord know's how much procrastination, I did it. I finished Civil War.
