cruel summer, TONY STARK

02. REUNION

╰─➛ REUNION !

° Some people choose to leave
with the promise of returning
tomorrow. Others make the
promise but don't make the
choice. & that is a cruel truth. 〞

CRUEL SUMMER ( t.s )

⸻

TONY

hated the press. He hated the endless interviews, the flash of the cameras, the never ending questions. He hated it all. He often wished he were anywhere else in the world other than a board room.

Being CEO of a company left him with little freedom, little time. And now that he was "Iron Man" - he had even less of that time. Sure, he loved the attention. He liked the parties, the alcohol, the girls. But what was it all leading to? Iron Man seemed to be the fix to all his problems. It would leave him with a legacy. Without that suit, he would have died and what? People would pity a playboy who lef too soon?

He often found himself having these small existential crises. Especially now that he was a 'superhero'. Sometimes, when he was left alone long enough, his mind would wander. He would reminisce those endless nights of beaches. Of being tangled up in the sheets and being too lazy to get up, so instead he ordered room service. He would remember Monique and all the promises they shared. The promise of a tomorrow.

But then tomorrow came and the promise fell short. She wasn't there but Tony was. Except, he was only half there. Wandering, his heart was searching for her, yearning. And though they were worlds apart, sometimes, when he was out with friends in a bar, sometimes he would look for her. She felt so close, but at the same time she was like a distant memory.

The sort of memory from a childhood, that, in your heart, you know is real but every time you recall it you find yourself questioning its credibility.

Caught up in his own thoughts once again, he didn't even notice Pepper open the door to his garage.

"Mr Stark, there are some forms you need to sign." Her voice was firm, but it had longing behind it. Maybe she yearned like he did, but for something different. Maybe she wanted something more than to be Tony Stark's assistant. Or maybe she just spoke like that and for no reason at all.

"Mr Stark.." Still not fully listening, Tony hummed a little, turning his head. His eyes fell down to the documents in her hand.

"Ah, right. Sure, of course." He said quickly, turning in his chair as he looked for a pen. His workspace was a mess, only reflecting the inner workings of his mind. Pepper Potts stood there patiently as her boss finally found a pen and signed the papers. She often found it amusing at how trusting he was, lately he had become far too tired to even so much as skim the documents that were handed to him before marking them with his signature.

She felt bad for him, in a way. She had been working for him for almost 3 years now, and hadn't seen the man take a vacation since 2007. Then again, after that vacation nothing was the same.

After Tony's hand had finished gliding over the pages, he placed the pen down and sighed a little. Noticing that Pepper was still standing there, he turned to her once again.

"Is there something else?"

"Actually, yes. You have a request for a meeting, with a Ms Campbell I believe." Tony listened carefully to her words, his eyes squinting the second the name left her mouth. Campbell. Why did that name sound so familiar? His mind ticked and ticked, the gears churning and not coming to a halt. He couldn't put his finger on it. Shrugging off the familiarity of the name, he waved his hand lightly.

"Yes, sure. That is fine." His voice strained with lack of sleep and too much caffeine. Possibly too much alcohol as well. He was known to be plagued with many self-destructive habits, but lately he has found himself reaching for a glass of whiskey more and more often. What surprised him though is that he never turned to the likeliness of smoking. His father and mother smoked, and from what he remembers of Monique she wasn't one to shy from the occasional cigarette.

It was dreadfully annoying and sickly sweet that he always found himself thinking of her again. Whether it be her blue eyes that remind him of the ocean, an ocean he could see himself drowning in if it held any of the comfort her embrace did. Or maybe he would re-imagine her silhouette against the morning sun, a whisp dancing in the curtains.

Monique Campbell. That was her full name. And now, finally, the familiarity of the 'Ms Campbell' from earlier was placed. But surely, it couldn't be THE Ms Campbell, not the one he knows at least.

Although, it was the very same Ms Campbell he knew of, she was nothing like how he remembered. Mainly because Monique was nothing like how she was in the Summer of 2007, and neither was Tony. And so with just a few hours having passed, Tony Stark found himself standing in awe as Monique Campbell strided across the room towards him.

Pepper stood closely behind, Happy Hogan standing next to her. Monique was accompanied by her cousin and assistant, Jamie and Louise. She outstretched her hand and offered a warm smile. The smile alone threw him off guard, and then touching her hand? He was weak in the knees. But that was all nothing compared to the next words that tumbled out of her mouth.

"Mr Stark, big fan. I'm Monique Campbell, it's great to finally meet you."