Chapter Text
Obadiah was sat in his office, sorting through paperwork his assistant had left on his desk for him to sign, when his attention was brought to the news on the TV across from him.
"Tony Stark, former CEO of Stark Industries arrested outside apartment complex in New York. Details on his arrest are unknown, but locals say he, along with COO of AIM, Aldrich Killian, were involved in the stabbing on a young woman, who was seen rushed into an ambulance not two minutes before."
"Tony what the hell have you got yourself dragged into?" Obadiah says to himself as he calls a lawyer, making sure this was controlled.
Tony was sat in a interrogation room, hands tapping on the table as they waited for someone to come in. His whole body was tensed with worry for Pepper. He didn't even know if she was okay. He needed for her to be okay. He needed to get out of here.
It must have been over an hour in there when two officers came in, and sat in front of him.
"Mr Stark." One of them said as they pulled out a notepad. "We will just be asking you questions about the event that occurred in apartment 4A in the apartment complex in Central Park south." The officer told him, and Tony sat up.
"Is she okay?" Tony asked, and the two officers didn't react.
"We are not in liberty to talk about that, I'm afraid." The officer on the left told him, and Tony sighed. "You didn't take up your right for a lawyer, correct?"
"I don't need one. I didn't do it."
"When you arrived at the apartment, what did you see?"
"The place was a mess, a chair was flipped, items were all over the place, and then P-, Virginia, was laying on the floor." Tony told them.
"And when-"
"My client will not be answering anymore questions." A man said as he entered the room, and sat next to Tony.
"What the hell are you doing here, Fury?" Tony asked.
"Saving your ass. Again." Fury said, and Tony shook his head.
"Can I have a few minuets with my client?"
"Of course." And the officers left the room.
"What the fuck have you gotten yourself into?" Fury asked him, banging his hand on the table.
"I didn't do it, Nick." Tony told him, and Fury sighed.
"What happened? Talk me through it."
"It's a whole thing, its complicated. But, I walked in today and found her, and then him with the knife in his hand."
"How do you know them?"
"They live above me."
"Are you close with them?"
"I-" Tony began, "It's.. complicated, like I said." He told the lawyer, and Fury sighed, before signalling the officers back in.
"I got this." Fury tells him, and Tony shakes his head.
"Mr Stark, Mr Fury." The officer says as he walks back in and takes a seat.
"These are pictures of the scene." He says, and places photos on the table. "Is this the state it was in when you walked in?"
"Yeah." Tony nods, "And that patch of blood there is where she was lay."
"What made you go into the apartment?"
"I heard some suspicious noises, the walls are quite thin."
"Okay," The officer nods, "And have you known the couple long?"
"I've gotten closer to them, over the last month." Tony tells her.
"Both of them, or just Virginia?" The officer asks, "Because, Mr Killian is telling us that you and Virginia have been having an affair for the last month, and when she ended it with you to stay with him, you flipped out, and stabbed her.
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
"Is that not true?"
"No!" Tony shouts.
"Which part? The affair or the stabbing?"
"Both!" Tony defends.
"If I may.." Fury says, and the officers nod.
"Was my clients DNA found anywhere in the apartment?" Fury asked, "Or on the knife used to stab the young woman? Because, the state of these pictures show that many objects were thrown, flipped, and damaged. That would leave DNA all over the place, would it not?"
"The scene is still being investigated, we will have DNA samples shortly."
"And the knife? Have you found my clients DNA on that? Because if he was to stab her, his DNA would be on that, would it not?"
"Mr Fury-"
"My client and I will be leaving, until you have enough evidence to keep him here. All you have are the words of the man who, does indeed have blood on the tips of his fingertips, did you notice that? I did."
Fury and Tony stood up, and Fury led him out of the room.
"Thank you," Tony says, "For that."
"It's not over yet. If they find your DNA on anything damaged in that apartment it wont look good for you."
"I've never even been in there before today."
"Okay." Fury says, "Go, call me if they call you back in."
Tony nods, before getting into a cab, and heading to the hospital.
Tony ran into the hospital entrance, and was about to head to reception, when he saw Natasha yelling at a nurse.
"If you don't tell me what's going on right now I will storm in there myself!" Natasha shouted, "I'll shove the IV so far up your a-"
"Nat!" Tony shouted, and her sentence was cut short, and she turned to him.
"What the fuck happened?!" Natasha shouted as the nurse hurried off. "They won't tell me anything!"
"Can we talk somewhere?" Tony asked her.
"No. You are going to tell me what the hell happened to her right now! I get a call saying that she was stabbed by Aldrich?" Natasha questioned, her tone confused, and tears glassed over her eyes. "Why would he do that?"
"Just, come with me okay? I'll explain everything, or at least everything I know." Tony said to her, and Natasha nodded, following him into the room across from them, where he explained everything he knew. About,
The first time he thought something may be wrong.
The noises, the shouts.
The long sleeves.
The kiss.
The second kiss.
The sunglasses.
And then what he walked into in the apartment.
Tony expected a large variety of reactions.
A slap across his cheek was not one of them.
"What the hell?" He asks.
"Don't you dare, what the hell me," Natasha snapped. "You're telling me you know.. or you thought he may be hurting her, and you sat back and you what? You did nothing!" Natasha shouted.
"There's nothing I could have done, Nat." Tony tells her, "I tired to get her to open up to me, but.. until she was ready there was nothing I could do. Not without making it worse."
"You should have told me."
"What would you have done if I did?" Tony asks her, and Natasha says nothing.
"You would have freaked out, and gone straight to her, where she would have lied and said nothing was going on, and then she would distance herself from you due to your suspicions. I've seen it all before, Natasha."
"Your parents?" She asks, "Sorry."
"Right now, she needs your support. Not your questions."
"Okay." She says softly, "Where is he?"
"In jail, I hope."
"They kept him in but let you go?"
Tony remained silent, before they both hurried out of the room, and ran into him in the hallway of the hospital.
"I'll fucking kill you, you son of a bitch!" Nat screams, and runs for him, but Tony grabs her and pulls her back.
"Let me go!" She shouts, fighting his hold.
"Natasha, stop it. Stop!" Tony shouts, and she does, she stills, and he loosens his hold on her, but his arms remained wrapped around her for safe measure.
"Wasn't enough to sleep with my girlfriend you had to sleep with her friend as well?" Aldrich says as he looks at them, and Natasha runs for him, and Tony isn't fast enough. Natasha grabs him and pins him to the wall.
"How does it feel?" Natasha says, "To be pinned up like this?"
"Let me go." He says to her calmly. "I don't know what Tony has told you but none of it is true."
"Bullshit." She spits at him, and he attempts to push her off him, but she's strong, and doesn't move even the slightest bit.
"You killed her." Natasha says, and Tony feels his world collapse. Natasha didn't tell him that bit. Tony found himself hoping that she was bluffing.
"No I didn't." Aldrich says, his eyes wide.
"Yes you did." Natasha tells him, "She died on the way here, you stabbed a vital organ."
Tony feels sick.
No. No. No.
"No I didn't. He did!" Aldrich shouts, staring at Tony.
"You did." Natasha says, and lets go, and he falls to the floor.
The police walk in then.
"Aldrich Killian." The officer says, and he looks up from the floor. "You are under arrested for the attempted murder of Virginia Potts, you don't have to say anything but whatever you do say can and will be used against you in court," He says and he pulls the man from the ground, "You are allowed the rights to a lawyer, if you can't afford one the state will opponent you one."
"His DNA was found all over the knife, and on the wounds around her neck, chest and cheekbone. His skin was also underneath her nail bed." Another officer tells both Natasha and Tony. With that, the officer walks away.
"What you said-" Tony starts, and Natasha sits on the seat in the waiting area.
"I don't know if I was lying or not, I don't know anything, I'm not her emergency contact."
"Who is?"
"Aldrich." Natasha says with a bitter laugh.
"Who is it when he's unavailable?"
"Me. So, now that he's been arrested I should be told everything." Natasha says, and just then, as if on cue, a doctor comes walking towards them.
"Natasha Romanoff?"
"Yeah. Is Virginia okay?"
"She suffered many injury's, lack of oxygen to the brain due to strangulation, a loss of a large amount of blood due to the stab wound. She had two cracked ribs, and a mild concussion."
Oh.. my god." Nat says, taking a deep breath and taking Tony's hand, who squeezes it gently in response.
"Can we see her?" Tony asks.
"Not right now. She is still in critical condition, and unconscious, giving her body the time it needs to heal is very important. It will most likely be a few days before you're able to see her, and another few days on top of that before she wakes."
"But she'll be okay?" Natasha asks.
"We're hopeful."
Natasha releases a deep breath as Tony thanks the doctor before she walks away.
Tony looks at Natasha, who has turned her back to him, wrapped in her arms, hugging herself, and Tony stands behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"She's going to be fine."
"I know." Natasha says softly, and turns to face him, "I just hate that she was going through this and I didn't even notice."
"It's hard to catch."
"You caught it from one look at her."
"I knew what I was looking for." Tony tells her, and Natasha nods. Tony pulls the young woman into his arms, and she laughs slightly, wrapping her arms around his waist. They allow the comfort.
A few days pass, and Tony and Natasha are walking into the hospital after getting a call from the doctor.
"Can we see her?" Natasha asks, and the doctor nods her head, and leads them to her room.
Virginia is asleep, or unconscious, as the doctor said.
The bruise on her eye had faded, and the bruises round her neck were fading away.
She was attached to a few wires, but both Tony and Natasha were assured that she was breathing on her own, and could wake up at any moment, that they should just give her time.
The doctor left the two alone, and they sat either side of her.
"I can't believe this is happening." Natasha says, taking her friends hand. "She was supposed to be happy, you know? She deserved that, after everything she'd been through."
"She's going to be okay." Tony tells her.
"Physically, maybe." Natasha says, "But shit like this doesn't just go away the minute your out of the situation." Natasha says, "She's gonna be closed off, and quiet for ages." Natasha says, and shakes her head, "I just wanted her to be happy."
"Me too." He says, and Natasha looks at him.
"Don't expect much from her, after this." Natasha tells him, "After her parents died, she completely shut down, I didn't see her for months. I took ages for her to become herself again. So, who knows what's going to happen after this. "
"She's got you, I'm sure she'll be fine sooner than you think."
"I hope so." Natasha says, and looks back at her best friend, pushing some hair out of her face. "She's too young to have gone through everything she has." Natasha says softly, and Tony looks at the red head he fell fast and hard for, and prays for her to be okay, and that she can be happy once again.
Two days after that, Tony and Natasha are sat in the hospital room with a still unconscious Virginia.
"So she Pepper sprayed him, and so now, I call her Pepper." Tony laughed.
"God I bet she hates it."
"She'll grow to love it!" Tony laughed again.
A knock at the door caught their attention.
"Mr Banner. Hi." Tony said, "Everything okay?"
"I was going to be by earlier than this, but with everything going on regarding the push back date of the SI deal and Virginia's absence, things have been a bit hectic." Bruce explained, "How is she?"
"She's getting there." Natasha told him, and Bruce smiled.
"I don't think we've met," Bruce said, and Natasha smirked, "Bruce."
"Natasha." She said, and shook his hand.
Tony looked down, piercing his lips as the other two looked at each other.
"I was just about to get myself some coffee.. so i'll just..." Tony says, but Natasha stands.
"I got it. You stay here." She says, "Care to join me, Mr Banner?" Natasha says, and Bruce just stares at her, before nodding.
"Sure."
The two leave the room, and Tony laughs slightly, and looks back at Pepper, taking her hand in his.
"You're missing out here, Pepper. Come back to us." He whispers, before placing a gentle kiss on her hand.
A few hours later, Tony was sat on a chair on the right side of Pepper, his hand resting on hers while he read through the new paper work Banner had left him, before he and Nat took their leave, something about getting dinner, he wasn't sure.
The flinch in the hand rested under his brought him from his reading, and he looked at her, sitting up and placing his other hand on her arm. Her eyes opened slightly, before closing once again.
"Come on." Tony said softly, "Come back." He squeezes her hand.
Her eyes flutter once again, and she squeezes his hand back in response. Her eyes meet his, and she smiles slightly, earing a smile from him.
"Hey." She says roughly, her voice dry from lack moisture in her throat.
"Hey." He smiles at her, "I missed you." He tells her, and her lips curl into a small smile. Her smile drops almost as soon as it comes, and she turns away from him. Tony feels his heart break for her.
"You're okay," He tells her, "Do you want to talk about it?" He asks her gently, she shakes her head in response.
"Okay." He says, and she slowly turns to face him, "Then we don't talk about it." He says, and she smiles sadly. "I'm going to get the doctor, okay?"
"Okay." She says, and her voice is so quiet and sad, her young age hits him once again, and he finds himself hit in the face with the fact that she is only twenty two, and has been through more than most go through in a life time.
Tony smiles at her, and heads out of the room, taking breaths as he walks towards the nurses section. He bumps into the doctor he'd seen numerous times checking on her over the last five days.
"Excuse me," Tony said, and the doctor turned to him, "Virginia Potts.. she woke up."
The doctor's eyes widened, and nodded. "I'm glad." He said, and heading towards the room.
"Miss Potts." The doctor said, "It's good to see you awake," He smiled, she smiled back, but not really. "Do you mind if I run a few tests just to make sure everything is okay?" He asks, her, and she nods, placing her water on the side.
"I'll just be outside." Tony says, and meets her eyes with a nod. The door closed behind him, and he grabbed his phone.
"Natasha, she's awake."
Natasha ran through the hallways of the hospital and towards Tony.
"Is she okay?" She asked him as she reached him.
"The doctor is just with her now, but she seemed it." Tony nods, and Natasha smiled, a giddy laugh leaving her.
"How was lunch?" Tony smirked, and Natasha swatted his chest, the both of them were laughing as the doctor came out of the room.
"How is she?" Natasha said as she turned to face him.
"Everything seems fine.. physically." The doctor said, "I've recommended seeing the on site therapist, for a few hours for the next three days we keep her, and then another meeting a week after she is discharged." The doctor said. "What she's been through over the last year, and then recently, it takes a huge toll on someone emotionally. Don't expect for her to bounce back properly for at least a year."
"A year?" Natasha asks.
"In most cases, but, everyone is different, and has had different experiences. I cant tell you if it will be less, or maybe more."
"Thank you." Tony said, and the doctor nodded.
"You can see her, if you like. But be patient, and do what you can to make her feel comfortable."
"Okay." They said, and the two entered the room.
The door opened, and Virginia looked up and smiled at her best friend, and her... Tony. She didn't exactly know what they were. Not now. Or ever, for that matter.
"Hey," Natasha said, "Centre of attention once again I see." She winked, and Virginia shrugged.
"What can I say.." She laughed.
"You had me worried for a second there." Natasha said, "Thought I'd have to cope with all this on my own then, my abandonment issues can't handle that."
The women laughed, and Tony stayed back, letting them have their moment.
"How is everything?" Virginia asks her, "How's Steve?" Virginia smirked.
"Didn't you get the memo?" Tony spoke, and the women looked at him, "She's dating your boss now."
"What?!" Virginia said, eyes wide, and Natasha rolls her eyes as Tony chuckles.
"I'm not.. dating your boss." Natasha says, "I'm just..." Natasha says, "We had lunch." She shrugs.
"You had.. lunch, with my boss?" Virginia questions.
"It was a nice lunch." Natasha says, "He wore green." Natasha says like she is making a point, "You know how much I love green."
"So you slept with my boss because he.. wore green?"
"Basically." Natasha said.
"I thought you just had lunch?" Tony asks.
"We did." Natasha says, "I slept with him afterwards."
Tony just nods, deciding to stay clear of that one.
"I can't leave you alone without you causing a mess." Virginia laughs.
"That's why you're not allowed to leave." Natasha says, tilting her head to the side, "I'm sorry that you went through this and I didn't know."
"It's okay." Virginia says.
"No it isn't." Natasha replies to her, grabbing her hand, and Virginia squeezes it, and looks at Tony, and he knows his cue, and he takes his leave.
"Hey." Virginia says, moving over on the bed and Natasha sat next to her, "You didn't know because I didn't want you to."
"I should have seen that something was wrong."
"I didn't want you to."
"Why? Why didn't you come to me?"
"It's.. complicated." Virginia tells her,
"I'm just.. I'm sorry." Natasha says, "You deserved a lot better than this."
Virginia smiles at her, and Natasha wipes a tear that falls from her face.
"Oh my god." Virginia laughs, "Is the rock solid Miss Romanoff crying?" Virginia jokes.
"No." Natasha smirks, "I had something in my eye."
"Sure."
"Whatever."
The women share a laugh, and Natasha looks at her friend, and silently thanks whoever was listening for brining her best friend back, and makes a vow to herself to hurt anyone who ever hurts her.
Virginia see's the on site therapist the next day, but she doesn't share much. She can't.
"I just want to go home." Virginia says to the therapist.
"And where would that be? The apartment you shared with your abuser?"
Virginia remained silent, because she made a good point. Natasha was going away for eleven days for work, and so staying with her wasn't possible, and she really didn't want to go back there. To that apartment.
"I don't know." Virginia says quietly.
"You've been through a huge trauma, and I know the last thing you want to do is re live it, and talk about it. But in order to recover, it will help to talk about how you feel, what you went through."
"I went through a lot, have been my whole life.
"Okay." The therapist nods, "We can start wherever you want to, with your parents, your experiences at a young age, and your abuse." The therapist says, "But, it's at your pace, and when your ready. I'm here for you, for when you're ready."
"I don't think ill ever want to talk about it."
"It will get easier, you've been holding onto this for so long, don't you think it will feel good to let it out? To talk about how you feel, not anyone else. You."
Virginia looked up at the therapist, and nodded.
"Whenever your ready, Virginia. Ill be here."
Tony was sat by her side when she awoke later that day, a smile on his face.
"Hey." He says to her, and she smiles.
"You're still here." She smiles back.
"Where else would I be?" He smirked, and she laughed. "You feelin' any better?"
"A little." Virginia said with a sigh, "I hate hospitals."
"I can imagine." He said to her, and she felt her heart soften at the way he didn't question, or pry, he just let her statement be, and let her be ready when she's ready.
"Have you thought about where you going when you get discharged tomorrow?" Tony asks her, and she shakes her head.
"I thought I'd be okay going back.. there, you know?" She says, and Tony nods, "But the thought of it," She just shakes her head.
"Well," He says, "I have a spare room in my apartment, and you're more than welcome to use it." He says to her, and she smiles at him.
"Really?" She asks gently, and he nods.
"Yeah." He says, "I'd just worry about you anyway so you may as well just keep me out of my misery." He jokes, and she laughs.
"Well, thank you," She says, and meets his eyes, "For everything."
"Always." He smiles, and she grabs his hand. "I'm here for you, you know that."
"I know." She looks at him then, and her eyes shift, "Is.. did he.." She stuttered, unable to form the sentence she wanted to.
"He's in jail." Tony says to her, and she meets his eyes, "And they reckon they have enough evidence to charge him without your statement, even if he does plead not guilty."
"Do you think he will?"
"I honestly don't know." Tony says.
"It shouldn't have gotten to this." Virginia says, "It's my fault I should have-"
"Hey." Tony interrupts, "This is not your fault, none of it was."
"I should have left him sooner-"
"You don't know what would have happened if you had done that. Look at what he did to you, Pepper. You were staying with him, and he did this." He tells her.
"I betrayed him."
"He abused you." He said to her, "And none of that, or this, is your fault. Okay?" He says, and she nods, looking away from him. "This isn't your fault."
"Okay." She says, and he kisses her hand gently.
Virginia was discharged the next day after speaking with the therapist, reminding her that the recovery for this, both emotionally as well as physically, was a process, and that letting people in did not make her weak, but strong, that she had survived this.
Virginia followed Tony out of the hospital, and were lead into the car by Happy, the apartment security, and friend, who was driving them, as paparazzi and press horded them, shouting questions ta the both of them.
Once they were in the car, they both let out a breath.
"Sorry about that." He says, and Virginia nods.
"That was intense." She says.
"Yeah, ever since I was pictured getting arrested last week they've been all over me."
"You were arrested?" Virginia says.
"Not really, a few questions, and then by lawyer got me out." Tony says, and Virginia looks at him, "I wasn't even there for long, it's fine, it was just because I was there."
"Oh." Virginia says, and looks out of the car window.
"The complex is swarming with people, so I will take you through the back entrance." Happy says, "Oh and Tony, Obadiah is in your apartment."
"What? Why?"
"Something about damage control. I'm not sure."
"Fuck sake," Tony mutters to himself.
"Is that a bad thing, that he's here"?
"No, it just means he's nosy and wont leave me alone." Tony jokes.
"Everything's okay?" She asks him, and he smiles.
"Everything's fine." He tells her.
I hope. He thinks to himself.