Silver Linings

Silent Night

It was silent that night. No cars were honking, no people yelling at the tv, no dogs barking, no birds chirping, no baby's crying. Nothing, just silence. People always say they wish they could have at least a few minutes of silence, but if the world stopped talking, those few minutes would be the scariest minutes of your life. Not being able to hear a single soul in the world, I imagine, is scary. Silence is almost as frightening as the dark is. 

That's how I imagine that night, silent and deadly, the darkness seeping of the rooftops of houses ready to strike at any given moment. Yet a sense of calm to it and if I dare say, a spark of hope for the future to come, of the generation to come, a generation that carries so many problems with not enough answers, but enough hope to get through each day.

A car drove quietly through the night, into a little neighborhood with little houses littered around the place. The car parked in the driveway of one of those little houses. And the shadows of people emptied the silhouette of the car. Swiftly moving towards the door, and unlocking it, ushering everyone in. The bigger shadows went into the kitchen and a short one moved to the living area, while the smallest of them all went to the window looking out upon the blanket full of stars and a shiny moon staring back at them. 

If one had good eyesight they'd be able to make out the face peering out of the window. The face of a little girl with hope and dreams written across her brow, wishing upon a star for her wishes to come true. Soon the short one joined her, his face appearing in the window as well, wishing for something. A little boy with a big heart, one who also had hope and dreams but his imaginations more realistic, more reachable than the little girls. 

Moment later, the bigger shadows, that you can just assume are the parents, called out to them the hour getting late and the time way past their usual bedtimes. A good night was said as well as 'I love you' and kisses were given as they went to bed. Heavy with exhaustion and stress they all collapsed on their beds without a single thought, light snores drifting through the house.

Tony ran his finger across the table feeling the smooth wood beneath his fingers, grounding him. He took a deep breath closing his eyes, letting his tense muscles relax, and just focused on his breathing, blocking out any other sounds. It was these moments that were so precious to him, for he had very few, a moment to just sit and unwind letting all the stress fall from his shoulders.

The moment was broken when he heard the door open, he sighed wanting just a moment alone for once. He relaxed again when he saw it was just Pepper. She walked over to him, a concerned expression on her face. She sat down on the couch next to him. "Are you alright?". She whispered, putting a hand on his back, rubbing it up and down. He leaned into her touch, feeling drowsy.

 He still hasn't told her about the nightmares. "I'm fine just had a long day." He said tiredly, leaning his head on her shoulder.  She nodded and leaned her head against his, both of them tired from the day. A few moments went by until Pepper had enough and stood up. "I'm ready for bed how bout you?" she said stretching. 

Tonys breath caught at going to bed and facing the nightmares again. Luckily he was saved by a beeping noise coming from one of the computers. He quickly jumped from the couch and headed over to the device. Tony squinted at the screen wishing he had his glasses with him. The computer had picked up on a fire spreading through a neighborhood. Normally Tony would leave the fire up to the fire department or spiderman, but the thought of sleep scared him too much, so he decided to suit up. 

He turned around to see Pepper already glaring at him. He gave her the puppy dog eyes and after a few minutes she gave in. "Fine, but if I see one single burn on you when you get back you'll be sleeping on the couch," She said with a huff, turning around and leaving the room. Tony took her words to heart not wanting to sleep on the couch again. 

He quickly suited up, feeling the cool metal wrap around him. He quickly flew out of the building. 

Oh, how he loved it up here, the feeling of being free, of being so high up no one could touch you. Flying was such a magical thing, Tony was thankful he was able to experience it whenever he wanted to. 

He tried not to take it for granted, knowing that millions of people would look up the sky each day wishing for wings, so they to could defy gravity for even just a few minutes. Up here the air was clear and the wind lost its control over you and the sun and the moon watched in delight as you fulfilled your dreams.

 All the problems in the world seemed to disappear, with every gust of wind, with every breath of fresh air, with every glance into the darkening sky.

This was what real freedom felt like, what it felt like to feel like anything was possible like you were on top of the world. That nothing could bring you down, not even the worst of your fears could dampen that feeling, the feeling of pure delight and amazement of the world up here. You could get lost up there, the feeling guiding you to new places, places you've never been before. 

Unfortunately, fear was what brought him back to earth. He could practically feel the emotion running through the air, loss evident through the thickness of it. He knew he was getting close when smoke filled the air, along with screams of terror and death changing the mood quickly with every piercing cry. The sight that was laid before him made his heart clench with anger and frustration. He, himself wanted to break down into a sobbing mess like the others, but he had a job to do. 

He quickly flew down into the wreckage, searching for any signs of life. Once he found no trace, he unleashed his ice onto the wreckage trying to slow the fire down. A few minutes passed of him spraying the house, but he immediately stopped when he heard gasps and shouts of anguish. He turned around to face the house next to him, only to see it was also on fire. He almost gasped as well when he saw one of the windows open and a family trying to get out.

Tony could tell the house was not steady at all, and was on the verge of collapsing, a rush of urgency overcame him and took control of his body making a rush towards the family. He quickly grabbed the little girl climbing out of the window and flew her down to a waiting neighbor. He rushed back up and grabbed the little boy next and put him next to the girl. Right when he turned around to grab the parents, the house caved in and collapsed. Everyone went still, the only sound that could be heard where the alarms of the coming fire trucks.