Life as Maya Stark • Iron Man's Daughter [ 1 ]

13

The morning of the flight finally came and Maya was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. That's why as soon as the doorbell went off to signal Pepper's arrival, Maya was sprinting down the stairs. Tony watched her in amusement and a little bit of hurt before she tripped on something and came tumbling down the rest of the stairs.

Tony's face fell and he quickly stood up from his spot on the couch, but Maya had already stood back up and flashed him a big grin. "I'm okay!" she exclaimed before she was once again running off towards the door. Tony chuckled and sat down just as Pepper and Maya walked back in.

Maya laughed at something Pepper said before noticing her father's gaze. She looked over at him and smiled. "Pepper's here, so I've got to go," Maya said as she bounced on her feet slightly.

Tony stared at her for a second before looking down at his hands and fiddling with one of his tools that he had brought up. "You have everything, right? Clothes? Toothbrush and toothpaste? Hairbrush? Your stuffed animal that you swore you weren't using anymore but we all know that you use it anyways because it reminds you of your mom? Your lucky socks? Your-"

"Tony, I think she's good," Pepper said. Tony clamped his mouth shut and frowned deeply. "What about your-" "Tony," Pepper warned and Tony sighed before looking up at Maya who was currently looking at him in an unrecognizable expression. He could've sworn he saw a hint of sadness, but he didn't think anything of it.

"Sorry," Tony muttered, but Maya just gave him a small smile. The three stood there awkwardly before Pepper cleared her throat and said, "Maya, why don't you go grab your things and bring them outside to Happy?" Maya's grin grew as she looked at Pepper and she nodded her head before running upstairs.

Tony sighed and watched as she left while Pepper stared at him. "Watch after her, Pepper," Tony muttered as he stared at the now empty staircase. "I will," Pepper assured him and Tony looked over at her with a forced smile.

Maya came bounding down the stairs not even a second later and almost tripped again, but Tony quickly moved out and caught her. "Slow down, kid. You're gonna break something if you keep running down the stairs like that," Tony said with a small chuckle.

Maya laughed slightly and brushed some of her hair out of her face. "You're right," Maya told him and he smiled at her and ruffled her hair. "You be good for Pepper, you hear? I may be on the other side of the country, but I will fly down there and bust through the wall in my Iron Man suit if I have to, okay?" Tony told her. Maya chuckled and nudged her father slightly, "I don't doubt that."

Tony gave her a look and Maya smiled softly, "I'll be good. I promise." Tony smiled proudly before taking the suitcase from Maya's hand and setting it off to the side so he could bend down and give her a hug. Maya was shocked for a second, but quickly hugged him back.

"I'll miss you, kid. The house is going to be pretty quiet," Tony whispered into her hair. "I bet," Maya laughed making Tony chuckle. Maya then got serious and hugged her father a little tighter. "I'll miss you too. And please don't die before I get back," Maya whispered low enough so that only he could hear, her voice shaky as she whispered the last sentence. Tony froze at that and he went to question her, but Happy chose that moment to walk in.

"Okay, who's ready for New York?" Happy asked as he clapped his hands together. His eyes flickered over to Tony and Maya who had both pulled away from their hug to look at him. "Am I interrupting something?"