Just Fly Away

She jumped out of the helicopter before it had even finished landing, the noise from the propellers doing nothing to drown out the blood rushing in her ears as she crouched down to let her legs absorb most of the impact.

She made her way into the bunker, calling his name in loud whispers even though she wasn’t sure what else she’d find.

A million mental pictures had been swirling through her mind and her fears on the ride over, but nothing could’ve prepared her for what she found.

He was lying on the ground, his face bloodied and broken pieces of his armor scattered everywhere. His eyes were closed and he was groaning in pain, a broken sound that she knew would haunt both her days and her nights moving forward.

She rushed to him, reaching into her back jacket pocket for the first aid kit she’d had the sense to grab from the helicopter. “Tony,” she cried, kneeling down beside him.

He opened his eyes when he saw her and struggled to sit up.

She shook her head. “No, don’t move yet,” she said gently. Upon closer inspection, she found that there was damage to his chest piece and her heart dropped to her stomach. “F.R.I.D.A.Y…. what kind of damage is there to the arc reactor?”

“The arc reactor technology is still fully functioning, although the core is non-operational. Emergency systems have failed, and auxiliary power is at point nine percent.”

She breathed a sigh of relief. “Can you scan for signs of internal bleeding?”

“No indication of internal injuries, Lady Boss,” F.R.I.D.A.Y. assured her.

She nodded, dabbing at his face with cotton and alcohol and he hissed.

“What the hell happened here?” She asked as she cleaned the blood and tears from his face. “Where are Steve and Barnes?”

“Gone,” he said. He coughed loudly, wincing in pain. “There’s no one here but us.”

“Good,” she replied. “That gives me a little more time to get you cleaned up before we get out of here. Honestly, the suit’s a little more messed up than I expected.”

“Yeah, well. A vibranium shield to the chest will do that to you, I suppose.”

She froze, dropping the cotton on the ground. “Steve did this?” she whispered shakily.

He nodded, trying to prop himself up against the pile of rubble. “Nat,” he said, finally looking at her, his brown eyes wounded. “He killed my parents,” he whispered.

“What? Who?”

Tears stung at his eyes as he looked at her. “Barnes. He killed my parents.”

She gasped, covering her face with both hands as her own tears started to fall. “No…”

“I watched it on video.”

“Tony,” she breathed, reaching out her hand to touch his face.

“After everything my father did for Captain America, everything he did for this country, it was Bucky Barnes who killed both my parents. That’s irony, right?” A sob escaped his throat.

“I’m so, so sorry, Tony,” she cried, smoothing his hair back.

“Did you know?” He asked, his eyes locked on hers.

She shook her head. “No. No, I wouldn’t have ever thought…”

“Rogers knew.”

“Oh, God….”

“It’s over,” he whispered.

“We’ll figure it out,” she told him.

“I want to go home.”

She nodded. “Happy is in your helicopter. I asked him to wait. I wasn’t sure what went down…”

He started to move and she placed a hand over his chest. “Wait,” she commanded. “We have to make sure you don’t have broken bones or anything before you get up. Can you power down? I need to look at you.”

He leaned his head back. “I’m naked under the suit,” he said lightly.

She half-smiled at his efforts. “I’m okay with that,” she replied.

“Are you flirting with me, Agent Romanoff?” He asked, propping himself up on his elbows as the broken pieces of his armor detached themselves from his body.

“You flirted with me first, Mr. Stark,” she said, her half-smile turning into a smirk. She ran her hands over his arms, squeezing briefly at his joints. “Is anything broken?”

He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

She lifted up his shirt, grateful to find only a few bruises to his torso and she placed her hands over his ribs, holding his sides. “Are you able to breathe comfortably?”

He inhaled deeply, holding it for a few seconds before letting the breath out through his lungs.

“It doesn’t look like you have any broken ribs either. How about your legs? Do you think you can stand?”

“Only one way to find out,” he said, holding out both hands, and she used most of her strength to pull him up.

He stood with more effort than he was willing to let her see, but his legs held and she wrapped an arm around his waist, throwing his arm over her shoulder so she could support his weight if he needed her to.

She nodded to the shield laying on the ground. “What do you want me to do with that?”

He shrugged. “I don’t care.”

She hesitated before bending down slightly to pick it up, not letting go of him as she walked him steadily out to the helicopter.

“Oh, my God, Tony!” Happy exclaimed in horror when he saw them approach and he rushed to help her get him inside and into a seat.

“I got him,” she said softly. “You just worry about getting us out of here.”

He nodded reluctantly as she threw the shield on the floor.

Once Happy started to get the helicopter in the air and she was confident that he wouldn’t fall over, she took the seat next to him.

He leaned against her, slowly letting himself slide down until his head was in her lap.

She tapped lightly on his shoulder. “Tony, baby, we’ve gotta get you strapped in,” she said gently, nudging him to sit up straight.

He rolled over onto his side, curled his legs up across the other seats, his face resting on her thighs and he mumbled something that she couldn’t quite make out, although it was clear that he didn’t plan on moving.

“Okay,” she said softly, reaching out and wrapping her arm firmly around his waist to hold him in place while her other hand gently stroked his hair. “It’s okay. I got you.”

She could feel when his breathing started to even out and she watched him sleep, her fingers moving soothingly through his disheveled hair until they landed outside his mansion.

XXXXX

“Thank you,” he said, his voice soft and sincere once they were in his room. “I honestly don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t come get me.”

She held onto his arm. “I will always come get you,” she whispered.

He nodded. “I will always come for you too. Even when I’m being a brat.”

“I know that,” she said quietly.

He let out a breath. “Listen… Happy’s gone and I’m not exactly in the best shape to drive you home right now. Why don’t you just stay here tonight?”

Her eyes widened slightly.

“You don’t have to sleep in here with me, or anything. You could stay in a separate room, of course,” he added quickly. “Actually, your old room is exactly as you left it, if you want.”

She watched him closely, swallowing thickly over the lump that was starting to form in her throat. “Okay,” she said softly.

“Great. F.R.I.D.A.Y. will know to listen for what you need. And I’ll drive you home in the morning. You can even pick which car,” He said with a small smile.

She smiled back, leaning her head up to kiss his cheek. “Goodnight, Tony.”

“Goodnight, darling,” he said, squeezing her hand briefly before she turned to head for the elevator.