Chapter 19
I wake before Stephen the next morning, looking over at him as he sleeps peacefully.
My thumb traces over the ring on my finger as I consider all he said the night before.
Suddenly, I have an idea.
I quietly get out of bed, creeping across the floor to the elevator and getting in.
I don’t talk until I step foot in the lab, calling on FRIDAY to wake up.
“Good morning, Mr. Stark.” She replies, the screens in the room flickering to life. “What can I do for you?”
I tell her my plan, and images and webpages flood the screens as we piece it together.
Together, we formulate a perfect plan, and I thank her as I step back into the elevator.
“You are welcome.” She replies. “I have cleared your calendar for the week.”
I smile to myself as the elevator takes me back to the room, and I’m relieved to find Stephen still asleep in the bed as I walk across the floor towards him.
“Wake up sleepy-head.” I whisper, climbing into the bed and wrapping my body around his.
He turns to face me, smiling sleepily as he rubs his face with his hand.
“Hi.” He murmurs, looking up at me. “Why’re you so chipper?”
I laugh, brushing his messy hair away from his forehead.
“We’re going somewhere.” I tell him. “Pack your bags, Strange.”
His eyes widen as he looks at me.
“Where exactly are we going?” He asks, sitting up slightly.
I laugh, hugging him closely.
“I can’t tell you.” I answer. “It’s a surprise, just go pack for a week, somewhere warm.”
He looks at me, somewhat bewildered as he processes all I’ve told him so early in the morning.
“Alright.” He answers finally, laughing. “I’ll pack and be back in a few minutes.”
I take his face between my hands, pulling him to me and kissing him deeply before we both get out of the bed.
He opens a portal, leaving the room with an orange glow.
I pack in a hurry as he disappears, throwing my clothes for the week into my suitcase and zipping it quickly.
I get dressed, fixing my hair in the mirror before taking my suitcase and walking back out into the room, waiting for Stephen to come back.
He finally does, reappearing through his portal with a bag of his own.
“Ready?” He asks, extending his arm to me as he walks beside me.
I grin, looping my arm through his as I nod.
I lead him down to the garage, opening his door for him before taking his bag and placing it beside mine in the trunk.
He studies me as I pull the car out of the driveway, driving to the main freeway.
I drive us to the airport, slipping my parking pass onto the rearview mirror as I park my car in my parking spot in the underground parking garage.
“We’re flying?” He asks as I turn the car off.
I nod, getting out and walking around to the back of the car to get the bags from the trunk.
“You do realize that I could just transport us there for free, right?” He asks, taking his bag as he smiles at me.
I nod again, taking his free hand in mine.
“That’s your way.” I tell him, looking up at him out of the corner of my eye. “We’re doing it my way.”
He squeezes my hand gently, smiling as we step into the airport.
We bypass all of the regular gates, walking to one in the very back.
“Mr. Stark.” A man in a suit says as we walk up to the gate. “Welcome, are you and your guest ready to board?”
I nod, and the man leads us down the hallway onto the plane.
“My commercial airliner is too big to store at the compound, so when I need it I have to get it flown into an airport.” I explain to Stephen as we sit in the luxury seats.
A flight attendant comes behind us, taking our bags and storing them above us in the compartments.
“Your flight will begin soon.” She says with a smile before walking away.
I look over at Stephen as he takes in the plane, taking his hand in mine.
“You’re a ridiculous person, do you know that?” He says after a minute, laughing under his breath.
I laugh too, shrugging as the light flashes on for us to buckle our seatbelts.
“Only a ridiculous person would marry a character from Harry Potter.” I mumble, and he rolls his eyes, laughing again.
He waves his hand, and our seatbelts buckle.
“I guess you’ve got me there.” He says lowly, running his thumb gently along the back of my hand.
The plane moves down the runway, taking off after a few moments.
“Are you going to tell me where we’re going now?” Stephen asks, looking out of the window as we fly above New York.
I shake my head, looking at the clouds as they reflect in his clear, blue eyes.
“Nope.” I answer. “Not until we get there.”
He groans, leaning back against the chair.
The flight is relatively quick, and I find myself resting my head against Stephen’s chest, his fingers running through my hair gently as the seatbelt lights flash back on.
“We must be landing.” I say with a yawn, sitting up and refastening my seatbelt.
Stephen moves to look out of the window, and takes a sharp breath in.
“Tony—are you serious?” He breathes, looking back and forth between my face and the window. “Italy?”
I nod, reaching for his hand again.
He grabs my hand, laughing incredulously as he watches the city beneath us grow nearer.
The plane touches down, and slows to a stop on the runway.
A new flight attendant comes up and takes down our luggage setting it beside our seats as we stand up.
“Are you ready?” I ask him, looking up at him.
He nods, smiling down at me, and we walk down the hall, stepping out of the plane.