Innocent Bystander | T. Stark ✔️

twenty four ▼ a restless night

Tony had never been good at waiting. It had annoyed his mother, Pepper and now Bruce. He paced in the hall outside the lab, not sure what else to do.

As of twelve hours ago, Juliet had extremis running through her bloodstream. The idea in itself did nothing to comfort him, though his real worry was that she hadn't woken up. Her vitals were steady, nothing had worsened and the anesthesia had worn off long ago. It wasn't the sedative holding her under, so it had to be the virus.

Fifteen hours after Juliet was injected with extremis, Tony wished he could turn back time.

It started slowly. At first, he thought he was seeing things or that what he saw was only a delusion of his sleep deprived mind. He was even desperate enough to hope that it was a trick of the lights illuminating the room.

The first red dot formed on her temple. A tsunami of crimson stone rolled from it across her skin, forming a chrysalis. The surface was ragged and seemed to radiate a dull light. Juliet was still visible beneath it, looking just as she had for hours.

Every instinct in Tony's body had screamed to stop it as he watched the crystal form around her yet he knew he couldn't. It was part of the process.

"If anything it's a good sign. It means the virus is binding to her DNA," Bruce assured him before casting him a concerned look. "You should get some fresh air, grab a coffee or something." 

"A shot of whisky sounds a lot better than a cup of coffee right now, Bruce."

"You haven't had a drink in a long time. Don't let this push you over."

Tony sighed. "Coffee it is."

The engineer wove through the streets of New York, taking the less populated streets as he looked for a coffee shop. It was four in the morning so neither was hard to do.

The sound of honking horns and sirens wove together with his tortured thoughts. His anxiety had threatened to overwhelm him all night and he couldn't seem to shake it. It had become his habit to talk to Juliet whenever his guilt and fear crept from the corners of his mind to the forefront, but he couldn't. Because she was sick and that was because of him. There was a chance that she wouldn't make it through the night and that was his fault too.

He shook his head as he walked into a quiet little shop and ordered his coffee. The bitter dark, bitter drink sent a buzz through him.

He found himself walking faster as the Tower came into view again. Being outside of it in the massive city made the world feel too big.

When he got inside and upstairs, Tony sat in the floor outside the lab, his back sagging heavily against the wall as he tried in vain to keep his eyes open. He hadn't slept in over forth eight hours and his lack of rest was coming to haunt him tenfold.

He only wished that he hadn't been woken by the sound of screaming.

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The first thing that registered in Juliet's  clouded mind was pain that lit every nerve in her body. Her skin burned as if she were waxing through a wildfire and she couldn't seem to get enough air into her lungs. Cracking sounds burst in her ears as red crystal- pieces of a crumbling chrysalis- fell away from her.

A scream ripped from her mouth as a fresh wave of pain washed over her. Star bursts dotted her vision.

She jolted upright just as she felt a hand close over her arms. Tony appeared in front of her, eyes wide with panic. His mouth moved frantically but his voice was distant and muffled. Every point of contact between them hurt unbearably.

"Please..." the words fell from her lips along with the tears from her eyes. She just wanted the pain bolting through her like lightning to stop, if only for a moment. Time seemed to slow down, turning a second into an eternity.

Then it all faded away. Blood pounded in her ears, slowing with the rate of her heartbeat. Her vision brought the room and Tony into focus as she tried to slow her breathing.

Her movements felt stronger, steadier. Even her mind was clearer. Everything around her seemed more vibrant and in focus than before.

Juliet's eyes met Tony's and a smile broke across his face. He pulled her into his arms and they held each other with the desperation of two people who hadn't imagined they would see each other again.

Bruce had stayed in the doorway and let them have their moment before insisting on a quick examination of Juliet's vitals. Her heart rate was slightly above average, but he dismissed that as stress. He drew a small blood sample and after a quick test, found that Juliet's results were the better than healthy.

Banner wrapped her into a hug. "I'm glad you're okay, Jules," he said before pulling away.

"Thank you, Bruce. Thank you so much," she felt Tony squeeze her hand as she spoke.

"It's my pleasure as long as the next time we meet it's to play checkers or something less stressful."

Juliet laughed. "Deal."