Sunshine | Pietro Maximoff

CHAPTER 16

The auditorium erupted in happy cheers as they rose to their feet to applaud.

"No strings, no taxes, just reframe the future! Starting now."

Tony turned his head to look at me and ushered me forward with a wave of his arm. I smiled and shook my head. Ignoring my rejection, Tony spoke once again.

"Please welcome my partner, Ophelia Madden!"

He shot me a sly smile as I had no choice but to join him on the stage. The crowd began to applaud once more, but with significantly less enthusiasm. Now standing beside Tony, he clapped a hand on my shoulder.

"Credit where credit's due, we wouldn't be where we are today without Ophelia's hard work and dedication to Stark Industries."

Tony turned his eyes back to the holographic teleprompter and his face fell.

'Now I would like to introduce the head of the foundation: Pepper Potts.'

Tony was at a loss for words; something that didn't happen very often.

"Go break some eggs!" I said, covering for Tony's speechlessness.

As the crowd rose and began to applaud, Tony and I walked off the stage.

"Thanks." He mumbled to me.

I nodded in response, not mentioning the subject any further. I knew he wouldn't want to talk about it.

"Wow, wow! That took my breath away!" An excited M.I.T teacher said, approaching me and Tony.

The teacher rambled on awkwardly, whilst Tony remained silent and avoided all eye contact. I gave the man a kind smile as he continued to speak.

"Out of curiosity, will any portion of that grant be made available to faculty? I know, 'ooh, gross' but hear me out; I have got this killer idea for a self-cooking hotdog..."

"Restroom's this way, yeah?" Tony asked, clearly not hearing a word that was said.

"Yeah." The man answered, before going right back in to the topic of his strange invention.

One of Tony's assistants came hurrying over and apologised profusely for the confusion with Pepper.

"It's fine. I'll be right back." Tony said, before hurrying off.

I followed him out of the stage door and into the hallway.

"Tony, wait up." I said, my heels clicking against the polished floor as I caught up to him.

He stopped outside the restroom door before turning and walking away to the elevator. He joined a sombrely dressed woman, both of them standing in silence. Reaching Tony's side, I opened my mouth to speak. However, the sombre woman beat me to it.

"That was nice, what you did for those young people." She said.

"Ah, they deserve it." Tony answered, not meeting her eyes. It was clear he was not in the mood for conversation. "Plus, it helps ease my conscience."

"They say there's a correlation between generosity and guilt. But, if you've got the money..." The woman turned her head and looked at me and Tony. "Break as many eggs as you like. Right?"

The two of us stood in silence, processing what the woman's intentions could be. Tony moved to stand beside the woman and pressed the elevator button.

"Are you going up?" He asked.

"I'm right where I want to be." The woman responded, looking sternly at the billionaire.

My eyebrows furrowed slightly at the woman's words. Did she have a problem with Tony? She hastily reached into her bag. I stepped forward, my palm beginning to glow slightly.

"Okay, okay, hey..." Tony said, grabbing the woman's hand.

"Let's just all calm down." I added cautiously.

The woman stared first at me, then at Tony. It was clear she didn't have any violent intentions. Tony removed his hand.

"Sorry, it's an occupational hazard." He apologized.

The light in my hand went out, yet I kept a careful eye on the woman.

"I work for the State Department." She told Tony. "Human Resources. I know it's boring... but it enabled me to raise a son. I'm very proud of what he grew up to be."

I noticed how the woman spoke with a hint of sadness in her voice, like she was grieving. I felt my heart sink within me. The woman shoved a flyer into Tony's chest.

"His name was Charlie Spencer." She said. "You murdered him. In Sokovia."

Her eyes never left Tony for a moment. Even though we never spoke about it, I knew he harboured the same regret that I did over what happened last year; knew the same nightmares of the pain we caused kept him awake at night as it did me.

"Not that that matters in the least to you." The woman continued. "You think you fight for us? You just fight for yourself." Her voice oozed with hatred.

Tony slowly shook his head, unable to say a word.

"Who's going to avenge my son, Stark? He's dead... and I blame you."

Without another word, the woman turned and walked down the hall. Slowly, I stepped forward and placed a hand on Tony's shoulder. We stood in silence, the weight of what the woman said still hanging in the air.