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The elevator shuddered, a metal groan echoing up the shaft, and then lurched to a stop. The lights flickered once before settling into a dim, emergency glow.
Ororo stiffened immediately. She’d been leaning against the back wall, eyes closed, conserving what little energy she had left after the fight, but now her whole body went taut. Her breath caught, shallow and quick, as the silence pressed in on them.
Tony noticed. Of course he did. He’d spent enough time in his own head to recognize the sight of someone getting lost in theirs.
"Relax," he said lightly, trying for casual. "Worst case scenario, I cut us a neat little skylight with the Unibeam. We'll look like a pair of human champagne corks popping out the roof. Very classy."
Ororo didn't answer. Her eyes were fixed on the seam where the doors me, her hands curling into fists.
The air felt too thick, too stale. Like it did when she was under the rubble—
"Hey," Tony stepped closer, careful not to crowd her. "Look at me. Me, not the door."
It took a second, but she turned her head toward him.
"Good. Match me. In," he said, inhaling slow and delibrate. "Out. No rush. Just us. Elevator zen time."
Her first attempt stuttered—too fast in, too jagged out. She pressed her back harder against the wall, shaking her head, but Tony didn’t budge. He just started again. “In… out. Like you’re controlling the weather. Which you literally do. And you're great at it. I’ve seen it. You’ve got this.”
That earned him a flicker of something—maybe annoyance, maybe the barest ghost of a laugh—but she tried again. In. Out. The rhythm caught, ragged.
After a while, her shoulders started to ease, though her eyes stayed wet. It seemed to be good enough for Tony, as he took a step back.
"Sorry about that," she said, voice wobbling.
"Don't be. We all get it." Tony grinned. "Last week I cried over dropping my grilled cheese, so you're definitely not the most pathetic one here."
The elevator jolted back to life, humming as it rose. Neither of them moved until the doors opened and clean air spilled in.
Ororo straightened, smoothing invisible wrinkles from her clothes, her composure sliding back into place like a cloak. “Do not tell anyone you saw me like this.”
Tony stepped out beside her, smirk crooked but voice gentle. “Only if you don’t tell anyone I actually know how to be decent. Would ruin my rep.”
She arched a brow, regal again despite the lingering tremor in her hands. “Your secret is safe.”
"Then so is yours."