Rhodey And The Mystery Boy

Chapter 3: Morning Conversations - two Cups of Awkward and a Crisis, Please

Author's Note:

The next two chapters are dedicated to my niece, Mandy. I wish I had the option to get to know you. Even though it has been eight years, it feels like you are there all the time. Rest in peace, darling, I hope you have a chance to grow up in heaven. Maybe you are looking down on me right now. I wish I could have held you in my arms even once. I love you. And I always will.

And to my brother, Max: thank you for giving me the chance to love her! You gave me a lot in my life to love, the MCU included, but she was the biggest yet. And I can not be more grateful for that. 

Rhodey observed as Tony and May sat down at the table, their morning routine seeming seamless and practiced. Tony was cooking breakfast with ease, while May sat across from Rhodey, her attention on Tony as they discussed their plans for the day. Rhodey couldn't help but feel a twinge of envy at their shared intimacy, as they seemed to know each other so well. Rhodey did not even know the name of the mother of Tony's child before now... What type of friend was he?

Rhodey's head was spinning trying to understand this woman in Tony's life. He just split up with Pepper, and it was not even an official split, they were on a break. Having a new woman like this, this close to Tony? It was confusing. How would they have come to this? Sure, as Peter's mother, there might have been a lot of contact between Tony and May, especially if Rhodey is wrong and Tony knew about Peter longer, maybe from birth... But May would have been a hook-up or maybe a casual date. Tony never had anyone serious before he got together with Pepper... Or maybe he did? Tony hid a son and a girlfriend, who says that was the first time Tony hid something like this? If Rhodey was being honest, he knew it was not the first time. It was a pattern in Tony's life: he always hid anything important from anyone. He hid that he was dying, hid that he planned on Rhodey being Tony's successor as Iron Man, he hid his plans to make Pepper CEO, hid his first development of the suit in general, hid his existential fears, his PTSD, ... Maybe Rhodey was just kidding himself thinking he was Tony's best friend, kidding himself that the man trusts him anyhow ... It is not like Rhodey would blame him; he was not always behaving perfectly trustworthy... Just think about how he gave Tony's suit to the military after stealing it at the first chance he got... No, Rhodey knew that he had not been the friend he should have been... Did he not trust him enough to share personal details? Or was he simply not deemed important enough to be let in on the secret?

Struggling with his thoughts, Rhodey sat at the table, sipping his coffee, as Tony bustled about the kitchen, preparing breakfast for May. It looked like he was preparing the same waffles he prepared for Peter, with a lot of fruit and berries at the side. He tried to keep his eyes averted from the couple, not wanting to intrude on their privacy. But at the same time, Rhodey did not want to miss a single second of the two interacting. He wanted to find out what was going on. And Rhodey couldn't help but feel a little hurt that Tony had kept May's existence a secret from him. Just like he hid his son. He had always thought that he and Tony were close friends, but now he wasn't so sure. Maybe Rhodey was not good enough for Tony...

As the conversation continued, Rhodey sat there with his own thoughts. He was experiencing a minor existential crisis, wondering if he knew anything about Tony at all, the crisis taking over him, as he tried to reconcile his image of Tony as someone pretending to be but a self-centred genius towards almost everyone with the man who was clearly invested in the well-being and future of a teenage son and his son's mother. The man he thought he knew and loved seemed like a stranger to him now, and he couldn't shake the feeling of disappointment. The feeling that he failed his friend... Was it possible that he had been so blinded by his own judgment and preconceptions that he had missed this side of Tony and his relationships? Could Tony really be such a devoted father? Rhodey didn't know what to believe anymore, but he did know one thing: he had to keep his eyes and mind open until he had all the facts. Maybe then he could find a way to reconcile his image of Tony with the reality in front of him. Maybe then he could start to see his friend in a new light, and not be so quick to judge.