Imagine If You Assembled The Avengers: Volume 2

Mother's Day (Stark x reader)

It was easily the favorite part of your day; waking up each morning and reaching out to feel the warmth of Tony next to you, waiting for him to wake with you and pull you in closer so that you could spend your last few moments of peacefulness together before the hectic day could begin. Some mornings he would wake first, not allowing you the same gentle awakening that you would; his strong arms would wrap around your waist almost desperately, pulling you in so tightly against him that you would open your eyes at the sensation of your breath being squeezed from your lungs. These were the mornings when a nightmare would be his welcome into the day, happening the most often after a particularly terrible mission or if he had come to bed too late in his exhaustion. But thankfully, more often than not, his first moments of daylight were gentle ones, and the two of you would take the time to just be. Any given day could absorb him in the lab, or Steve would have planned a particularly evil workout session for you, or the worst times being when a mission was called. The two of you agreed to never leave without a proper goodbye, because there was never a guarantee to return home, so when you rolled over this morning to find nothing more than cold sheets against your hand, you panicked in your half-awakened state.

"Tony?"

Nothing. You pushed up to sit, hastily rubbing the sleep from your eyes despite the slivers of blinding sunlight coming in through the windows to leave you squinting and struggling. With a quick scan your room in every direction, you felt even less at ease when there was no sign that Tony had even been there. Everything was neatly in place, and it looked as if he had made his side of the bed before leaving to go wherever he felt that he couldn't share with you.

"FRIDAY, where is he?"

"Mr. Stark is in his office. Should I call him for you?"

"No," you sighed, a heavy relief blanketing your body, "no, it's okay. I'll make my way there. Do you think it's okay if I do that?"

"He did not say specifically that he wanted to be left uninterrupted, so I can't answer that for you. However, I should advise that he appears to be particularly...solemn."

"Great. Okay, thanks, FRIDAY."

"Of course."

With an almost reluctant swing of your legs over the edge of the bed, you sat that way for so long that you had no idea how much time had passed when you finally decided to test your resolve to go to him. A few scenarios ran through your mind, and it slowly came to be that you wondered if maybe leaving him alone really was for the best; if he wanted you there, he would've woken you, right? But he was also the master of torturing himself for things that weren't even his fault; you worried that this was one of those things and that you could save him from so much anguish if you knew what was going on. No matter what situation ran through your mind, it always came back to the idea that if he wanted you there, you would already be at his side at his request. Wouldn't he?

"Okay, I'm gonna go," you decided with barely true certainty. "Yep, here I go...I'm getting up..." you stalled, yet to move.

"Miss, if it helps you in any way, I could tell you that Boss' heart rate is elevated from his norm by twenty beats per minute, and his respirations are quickening as we speak."

"How is that helpful...oh! Right, thanks, FRIDAY, that does help." You now had the confidence that it was the right decision to go, hearing that he was distressed somehow, so if he argued at all as to why you were there, you could ultimately blame it on FRIDAY. You were energized now, stumbling slightly on still fatigued legs to find your shoes, only to decide that they didn't matter when you could only find one. It took the quick swing of your door and your rushing gait through it to get Clint's attention from just down the hall, taking in his look of shock and ensuing laughter to realize that shoes weren't your problem; you had completely forgotten your pants.