Heroes Never Die

Five Years Later

~Chapter 27~

Tony sighed as he walked out the front door and sat on the porch

He let out a breath, settling into a chair as he looked out on the lake

The quaint lake house stood strong on the bank of the lake. It had everything she'd wanted, plenty of rooms, a nursery for the child they never had, his own lab, and even a roof top balcony... Set up so she could watch the stars every night.

He sighed as his eyes gazed upon the small memorial he'd made just for her, standing alone in the yard, covered with freshly placed flowers... Orchids and lillies, her favorite

He did it all for her. Everything they planned.

He only wished she was there to see it.

He sighed "Hey.." he mumbled, his eyes focused on the memorial, "I stayed out late last night... Watched the meteor shower... You could see it perfectly from the balcony... Just like I planned... It was amazing... I'm sorry you missed it..."

"It's been five years... To the day..." He rubbed his face, "I can't say I've missed you more than I do right now.." he said softly, "I built this place from the ground... Just for you... I just.."

He took a deep breath and clenched his hands tightly, his nails going straight into the indents on his palm, scarred from doing this far too many times. He needed her... He didn't have the strength...

"I just wish you were here... Wish this was our home and not just my... Fortress of solitude.." he sighed and looked at his hand

He stared at it for a moment before standing and dusting himself off

"I love you.." he mumbled before going to the door

He stopped when he heard the sounds of a car pull up

He furrowed his brows and looked over at the black car, walking slowly to the steps

His face fell when Steve, Nat, and Scott Lang got out of the car

Tony frowned

"Hey Tony.." Steve spoke softly

Tony sighed and walked back up the steps

~

"Now we know what it sounds like.." Scott said softly, watching as Tony poured drinks into glasses

"But Tony after everything you've seen... Is anything really impossible?" Steve asked

"Quantum fluctuation messes with the Planck Scale, which then triggers the Deutsch Proposition. Can we agree on that?" Tony asked, settling into a chair

Steve, Nat and Scott all looked at each other in confusion

Tony handed out the drinks

"Thank you.." Steve said

"In Laymen's terms it means you're not coming home" Tony explained

"I did." Scott said

Tony shook his head "No, you accidentally survived." He corrected, "it's a billion to one cosmic fluke. And now you wanna pull off a... What do you call it?

Scott struggled to his his pride as he said "A time heist?"

Tony scoffed "Yeah, a time heist." He said, "Of course, why didn't we think of this before? Oh, because it's laughable? Because it's a pipedream?"

"The Stones are in the past." Scott said, "We can go back and get them."

Nat nodded, "We can snap our own fingers. We can bring everyone back."

"Or screw it up worse than he already has, right?" Tony said

Steve shook his head "I don't believe we would."

Tony sighed and stood, looking around "Gotta say, sometimes I miss that giddy optimism." He said, sticking his hands in his pockets, "However, high hopes won't help if there's no logical, tangible way for me to safely execute said time heist.... I believe the most likely outcome would be our collective demise."

Scott shook his head, "Not if we strictly follow the rules of time travel. That means no talking to our past selves, no betting on sporting events-"

Tony interrupted "I'm gonna stop you right there, Scott. Are you seriously telling me that your plan to save the universe is based on Back To The Future?"

Scott glanced at the others "...No."

Tony nodded "Good. You had me worried there." He stated "'Cause that'd be horse shit. That's not how quantum physics works."

Nat sighed "Tony... We have to take a stand."

Tony scoffed "We did stand. And yet, here we are."

Steve sighed "Tony we know you're hurting.." he said slowly

"Hurting? No I'm not hurting. I just haven't had sex in five years I'm a little on edge because in case you don't remember, the love of my life died in my arms" Tony spat, "and now you're coming to me, asking me if I will help you potentially kill more people, good people"

"But now we have a chance to bring everyone back. And you're saying that you won't even-"

"That's right. I won't even" Tony spat, standing, "there's too much that could go wrong."

"Tony.." Nat said

"I wish you'd come here to ask me something else. Anything else. Honestly, I... I missed you guys, it was... I'm making lunch... If you don't talk shop you can stay" he said, dusting his hands off

"Tony.." Steve said

"I'm not doing it. You can forget it. Not after everything I've lost. I'm not losing more." Tony said before going inside, closing the door behind him definitively

"He's scared" Scott said with a sigh

"We all are.." Steve said

Tony watched through the blinds as they returned to their car and drove off

He sighed, rubbing his head. He looked down at the ground then out the window at the memorial

"You told me not to give up..." Tony said softly, "But what they're asking it's... Next to impossible... I could hurt more people... Make more people suffer your fate... I couldn't live with myself if that happened... Thanos is gone... There's nothing else... Even if this... time travel thing did work... What are the chances we could actually pull it off? Who says we can even use the Stones..?"

He sighed and turned, looking around his house

He never felt more alone