Cassidy Scott-Stark

Dinner

There is a silence for almost a minute, so you break it.

"Well, I'm going to go. Thank you, both of you, for having me and your hospitality. It was nice to meet you." With that, you walk back to the couch to grab your bags and phone. 

Without looking back, you open the door to the hallway and press the button for the elevator. You take a deep breath, leaning against the wall, closing your eyes.

Back inside the compound, Pepper looks at Tony. "Tony...."

Tony sighs. "I know...." He walks over to the door.

You hear the door click open, look up and see Mr. Stark in the doorway, and Pepper not far behind him.

Mr. Stark begins to speak, "Ok, two things. One, call me Tony at least. And two, stay for dinner."

"Mr. Sta....Tony, I do not want to be a bother; it's late, and...." You begin.

"You would never be a bother, Cassidy. You will always be welcome here." Pepper interjects.

"Plus, we know this really great spot for pizza...." Tony adds in.

You can't help but let a small smile slip. "Deal." And you follow them back inside of the compound.

The pizza arrives shortly after, and the three of you are sitting at the island eating. 

"So what are your two Masters degrees in?" Pepper asks, taking a sip of her water.

"One in Mechanical Engineering, and the other in Chemical Engineering." You reply.

Pepper looks at Tony, eyebrows up and a smirk on her face.

"Any job prospects?" Tony asks.

"I've been looking into internships and such, but until I have those degrees...." You shrug.

"If you would like, come back tomorrow, and I can show you around the lab." Tony asks, but you see the look of uncertainty in his eyes. 

"Yes, absolutely!" Upon saying that, you notice Tony's eyes light-up, and a big smile comes across his face, which makes you smile as well.

The sun has now set and the pizza box is empty. You help Pepper clean-up a bit, and thank both of them again. As the elevator descends, you feel at ease, which you haven't since your mom before your mom got sick. You cannot quite place the feeling or emotion, but in just these short hours, you feel "found".

*The next day*

You arrive at Stark Tower, greeted by the same lady as the day before. 

"Ms. Scott, Mr. Stark had a badge made for you this morning. You have access to most of the building, and if you have any questions, feel free to ask. Him and Ms. Potts are awaiting your arrival upstairs."

"Oh, thank you!" You attach the badge and scan into the elevator pressing the top floor button. 

Tony and Pepper are having breakfast when you knock. You notice that Tony's face lights-up the second you enter. You don't realize it, but your face does the same.

"Breakfast?" Pepper asks, holding up a plate of waffles.

"Sure." You smile, accepting her offer.

"Ready to see the lab?" Tony asks, scarfing down another bite of waffle.

"Absolutely!" You genuinely are excited to see the lab. Since you haven't had a proper internship yet, you're eager to see some equipment that is constantly used and changing your field.

Tony kisses Pepper before heading down to the lab with you. Their constant banter is music to your ears, and you can truly see how much they care for one another.

You follow behind Tony into this incredible lab, filled with machines, suits, and digital screens. 

"What's with the suits?" You ask, pointing at the wall.

"Right, about that. This is also Avenger's Headquarters." Tony says.

"So you're their caretaker and builder?" You question.

"That, and the suits are mine,  I am Iron Man." Tony replies.

A voice comes from somewhere in the room, "I like caretaker more, but we are co-builders." A man walks towards you. "I'm Bruce Banner." 

You shake his hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Cassidy....." You look at Tony, who has gotten lost in some machine. "Here for a tour."

"Tony, I need to borrow you for something really quick, if you don't mind." Bruce says.

"Sure. Cassidy, feel free to look around." Tony says before joining Bruce.

You start to walk around the lab, taking in all of the equipment you haven't even seen in school. Most companies you have been researching only have 1 or 2 of what's in here. 

As you're walking, you notice some papers by a machine where Bruce was standing before greeting you. You sit at the lab table and begin reading over his work and see the machine saying "offline". 

A spare piece of paper is next to you, so you grab a pencil. As you're working through the same work Bruce was doing, you notice a hiccup in the process. After you finish solving the math, you notice that the digital screen is still open. You look back at Tony and Bruce who are still deep in conversation. 

With that, you start typing into the digital screen, using your new formula and numbers. You take one more look before hitting enter. When you do, the screen beeps and a light goes on.

"Systems now online," an electronic voice echoes through the lab, which captures Bruce and Tony's attention. 

"What did you just do?" Bruce asks walking over with Tony.

"Oh, uhm, I was just looking over this work here, rewrote some of the formula, and typed in the changes." You explain holding up your paper with the new math.

Bruce takes the paper from your hand, eyebrows in a frown, "Changes?"

Tony is trying to hide a laugh, "Looks like you've been replaced, Bruce."

"What? Oh, no, no. That was not my intention. I was just......" You try to explain.

"Relax, kid. I'm only messing with Banner." Tony replies.

Bruce is comparing your paper to his, and then with the machine formula. "Damn, who are you?" He looks at you wide-eyed.

"Our new lab engineer." Tony says, without thinking, but then looks at you in realization, "That is, if you would like to be." 

You take another look around the lab. "Yes, 100%." 

You see Bruce nod and smile in your direction, "Welcome to the team, Cassidy!"

It almost looks like Tony is coming in to hug you, but you both catch yourself at the last second, remembering Bruce is still a few feet away.

"You start tomorrow." Tony says with a rather big smile on his face.