Midnight Racer-Tony Stark's Daughter

forty-one

Griffin just nods frantically, feeling like throwing up and choking on his own spit. He hiccups and feels like he can not control his cries. His legs go weak, but Jay catches, and goes down to the grass with him.

They sit there, Jay holds onto Griffin doing his best to comfort him, and Griffin holds onto Jays arms like a lifeline.

Maybe twenty minutes pass, maybe it is an hour, but Griffin finally collects himself. He sits there, ruining his clothes on the grass, being held by Jay, feeling his raw eyes every-time he blinks.

"I got him," A voice that certainly can not belong to who it sounds like, says.

A voice that Griffin had put in the back of his head for so long that it hurt if he ever imagined it. One that had him in a situation similar to this when he died. No, he can not be here now. Griffin must be so out of it that he is hearing things. It is probably just Happy.

"Who are you?" Jay asks them, and that is the hint to Griffin that it is not someone from the Tower, but an outsider.

"He knows who I am." The man says.

Griffin opens his eyes and looks up, a new gloss of tears brim his eyes as he sees Cooper.

"Come here, kid," Cooper goes to help Griffin up, but Jay holds tighter.

"Back off!" Jay says defensively.

Griffin pats his arms, his eyes never leaving the face of his apparently not dead father-figure.

"No, it's...fine." Griffin says, and unravels himself from Jays arms, and extends his arm for Cooper to grab.

When the man does, and brings him into his chest to hold him, the shock leaves Griffin and he bear hugs back.

Griffin peels away, "How?"

Cooper looks off into the distance, he squares his jaw, "I've got'ta lot of explainin' to do. Come with me."

And then Jay watches them both just...walk off to a bench at the park. He sits there in the grass wanting answers. He knows and trusts Griffin very well, and he does not want to leave him here with that stranger. But, that man isn't really a stranger at all to Griffin.

So, he goes back to the Tower, and to find Mr. Stark in the one place he knows that he will be. Just to check up on things.

When Jay finds the man, he is staring wide-eyed in the doorway to the Medical room, his chest not really moving up and down at all.

"Mr. Stark?" Jay says, and gets closer, he puts his arm on the mans arm, "Everything okay?"

Mr. Stark tilts his head in confusion, still looking inside the room, his face frowning and his jaw locked, as he takes a big gulp.

Then Jay looks inside the room.

The empty room. The empty hospital bed. The empty bathroom.

"Where is she?" Jay asks aloud, and not directed at the man.

Mr. Stark blinks, "She's gone." He says.