Vogue | Tony Stark

TEN - THE DEBRIEF

"Eight, seven, six, five..."

It was rare for the Starks to host any kind of occasion at their house, but that New Years Eve they had taken on the challenge themselves, giving George and Leonie Goldwyn a welcomed break of being the usual hosts for the most sparkling night of the year.

Although the family's friends ran in mostly different circles, it was hard to come across somebody that at least wasn't familiar with the name of another guest, even if they hadn't met before. New York was an enormous place, though had the ability to feel like a small town on nights like that.

The theme was glitter and gold and of course, a fifteen year old Esté revelled at the chance to pull out her new favourite dress. She'd seen it on a mannequin in Saks while shopping with her mother just before Christmas and practically begged on her knees to have it as an early gift. Once Leonie saw just how bright her daughter shined in the piece, she simply couldn't say no.

Tony was noticeably less glittery and gold than his best friend that New Years Eve, the only thing shimmering on him being the rather expensive watch he'd unwrapped six days earlier. That didn't matter though, since the way he smiled and the sound of his laugh seemed to shine brighter than anything else could, even Este's dress.

The two of them had spent the evening together like usual, trying to avoid being strung into boring conversations with their parents' friends and colleagues. They'd been tucked away upstairs for most of the night, sharing a bottle of champagne sat by the huge window of Tony's bedroom that overlooked the city. Together they talked about their resolutions and watched civilians dance down the streets singing, an excitement clear in the atmosphere that they felt too.

It was three minutes to midnight when they finished the last of their champagne and Tony decided that he'd sneak downstairs to try and steal another bottle, hoping everyone would be far too distracted by that time to notice.

"You'll be back before midnight, right? We can watch the fireworks together, make sure you hurry."

Tony pulled himself to his feet with a nod, "Course I will."

"Promise?" Esté said, looking up at him with a smile.

Tony smiled back, placing a hand flat on his chest, "Hand on heart."

And so he left Esté sitting on his bedroom floor with her legs stretched out in front of her and her palms flat against the carpet behind her, smiling through tipsy eyes at the stars outside.

Having drank slightly too much already, Esté didn't realise that Tony had been gone a little while longer than she thought it should've taken until she began to hear the countdown to midnight coming from downstairs, immediately worrying that they'd miss seeing the new year in together but also worrying that he'd been caught by his father.

She left the bedroom in search of him, heading down the spiral staircase only to pause halfway, hands on the banister to steady herself as she saw what felt like a train hitting her, stealing the breath from her lungs and snatching any happiness away from her heart.

"Four, three, two, one...happy new year!"

Estélla watched as Tony, new bottle of champagne in hand, held the face of a brunette girl while he kissed her. She didn't recognise her from school and had never seen her at any of her or Tony's parent's parties before, but none of that mattered.

Celebrations erupted around her but Esté couldn't hear them. In fact, she couldn't see them either, being unable to tear her eyes away from watching the girl push up onto her tiptoes and kiss her best friend.