( THEY WEREN'T GOING ANYWHERE )

CHERRY HAD REALIZED AFTER TWO WEEKS THAT THE PERSON WHO WAS BRINGING HER MORNING COFFEE WASN'T TONY, WHO WAS BUYING THEM, BUT INSTEAD PEPPER. Due to the simple fact that, for one, it was a rare occasion that Tony actually showed up to Stark Industries before ten at the earliest, but the one time her coffee was set on a gossip magazine. Te front page had a very... pornographic picture of Tony at some club with a girl against a wall. You couldn't see a lot, not anything inappropriate, but Tony was pressed in close between the woman's thighs and her head was thrown back against the wall, caught in mid-moan. 

Renee gave her a sad look, pointed over her shoulder, where a couple of her colleague were standing there and giggling. So, Cherry just smiled, waved her fingers at them, sitting down, and tossing both the magazine and the coffee. She really didn't want to deal with any of their petty bullshit, so she immediately got to work, ignoring their stares. 

Still, the picture made her heart hurt a little in her chest and that made her angry because Tony wasn't hers. So, now she was in an even more terrible mood and didn't have coffee -- which she was addicted to, she knows. This day was just not going how she had hoped.

To say she was more than ready for her lunch break was an understatement. Her and Pepper had plans to go to some new cafe that had opened just down the block that both of them had shown interest in. From the time she had walked with Renee to the sandwich shop nearby, it looked like the cafe was very open, had a brick wall behind the cashier and barista station, and had loads upon loads of pastries and sandwiches and , the best thing, coffees. A row of chalkboards posted to said brick wall filled with orders and calligraphy and drawings. Cherry had felt her mouth water and the caffeine buzz just from looking into the place. 

But, today was one of those days, so of course Obadiah needed to see her in his office before her lunch break. To add on to whatever mojo was making this day so bad, her phone started to vibrate in the pocket of her blazer just as she was about to walk into his office, with only enough time to check that it was Tony calling. Who, she could honestly say, she did not want to talk to right now. And maybe that was being petty like her co-workers, but Cherry really didn't care at the moment.

"Cheryl!" Obadiah called, smiling widely as he stood up from his desk. Behind him was a wall of ceiling to floor windows and she could see a spectacular view of Malibu. There were two sofas to her left with a coffee table between them, one of those drink cart/tables sitting nearby, a crystal bottle of some amber liquor sitting atop. If anything, Cherry would guess it was scotch. And the expensive kind, not the one her dad used to drink and pretend he was superior with. She was knocked out of her thoughts by Obadiah's hand on her shoulder, not even realizing that he had made her way over to her. The phone in her pocket stopped vibrating, only to start up again a second later. "What are you doing for lunch?"

Cherry blinked at him, "Pepper and I were going to a cafe. I'm sorry, Mr. Stane, but it's too late for me to cancel on Pepper to work through lunch." 

Obadiah waved her off. The smile that was on his face was all teeth, something that made Cherry's skin crawl and she tried to shift away from the man. "It's not matter. But, when a Tiberius Stone calls for me, can you just transfer the call straight to my office, please? It's a very important business call." 

Cherry stopped, "Stone as in Viastone? Aren't they one of S.I.'s competitors?" She didn't want to tell him that he could have told this all to her on the phone. That Pepper was going to be waiting for her now, because she had told her that she would be at her desk by her break. Cherry was actually a little annoyed that the older man didn't call her, as much as she hated that as well because he held up her phone. "Does Tony know?"

"Don't worry about it, Cheryl. You know us business men, we always have something up our sleeves," Obadiah told her, before he was showing her back to the door of his office. Cherry was sure her phone had went through two other vibrating sessions and was going on a third by the time Obadiah gave her that shark-like grin of his, hand on the small of her back as he lead her through the door. It made her shiver, not in the same way Tony's hand would have. 

The elevator ride down was awkward. At least, Obadiah had took his hand away from Cherry's back. She shifted her weight from foot to foot, glad for the height that her heels gave her. Obadiah looming over her was not something she wanted to think about. Especially when he already gave her the chills. To say she was relieved when they got out of the elevator and Cherry spotted Pepper's red hair was an understatement. She sped her walk up, though not enough to seem that she was trying to get away from Obadiah. 

Obadiah gave them both a smile as he walked past while Cherry stayed by Pepper's side. When his back disappeared, Cherry let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding in. Pepper gave her a confused look, which Cherry just shook her head about because she really didn't want to talk about how weird Obadiah could be with her. 

"Let's go, shall we?" Cherry said, taking out her phone as it started vibrating again. She pulled it out, looked that it was Tony again and declined the call finally. When it started to vibrating again, she decided that turning it off was the best option. Cherry knew she was probably being unreasonable, but she really didn't want to talk to Tony. So, she grabbed her purse, slipped her phone into it, and then followed Pepper outside, hooking her arm with the taller girl's. They walked towards the cafe, chatting idly as they walked. 

Pepper's phone started ringing, the woman taking it out and looking at it. She sighed, before giving Cherry an apologetic look, "Sorry, this is Tony. I have to take it." Cherry nodded, stopping on the sidewalk and moving over to let other foot traffic through. She watched Pepper talk into the phone, not really listening. The red head cast a look over at her, before she was saying something into the phone. 

Pepper returned to her side a moment later, giving her one of those infamous looks. Cherry tried to ignore it, tried to start walking to the cafe, but Pepper hooked her hand in the crook of Cherry's arm to stop her. The look never left, which made Cherry sigh and slump forward, leaning her head on Pepper's shoulder. "Pepper, I'm in too deep," she whined into her shoulder, grinding her forehead lightly into her fabric of Pepper's dress. 

Pepper let out a hum, her hand rubbing up and down her back in a soothing motion, "I could have told you that. Is this about the picture?" Cherry nodded. Then exhaled a breath and closed her eyes, seeing the picture behind her eyelids. The woman's -- model's -- head thrown back in ecstasy, her skirt bunched up at her waist, Tony close, his head dipped as he was clearly mouthing at her exposed flesh. Her heart ached at the thought, which was such an awful feeling that Cherry just wanted it to go away. "Cherry, honey, I hate to be the one to give you tough love, but it's Tony."

Cherry lifted her head off of her shoulder, looking her in the eye and sighing. "I know. I shouldn't be surprised but it still hurts. God, I'm such an idiot to be pining after him!" 

"Hey, no," Pepper shook her head, cupping Cherry's face and rubbing her thumb along the girl's cheekbone. "I can't blame you. If I hadn't seen him throw up all over himself and then passed out in the shower in his clothes, I would probably be as smitten too." Cherry let out a laugh, shaking her head and pulling Pepper into a hug. Pepper pushed her away gently, holding her at arms length to look at her, "But you can't ignore him, because then he's going to keep calling me until you call him."

"He's really not used to not getting what he wants, huh?" Cherry asked rhetorically, hooking her arm with Pepper's and dragging her towards the cafe. The rest of lunch went off without a hitch, Cherry getting a good hit of caffeine from the shop. The sandwich was good too, but Cherry was able to get the delicious coffee to go and she was pretty sure it was orgasmic it was so good. 

And when she got back to her desk, none other than Tony Stark was leaning over it, smirk on his face as he obviously flirted with Renee. Cherry rolled her eyes, saying goodbye to Pepper quickly, her heels click-clacking on the floor as she made her way behind the desk. She sat there, ignoring him even as he looked at her, his smile faltering only a little bit.

To make it even better, serendipity made someone call on the phone. She answered it with the standard greeting, knowing that Tony was still chatting with Renee. It happened to be Tiberius Stone, who she quickly transferred to Obadiah's office as soon as the name slipped through the speaker. Then, she signed into her computer, going to go do some work, when Tony cleared his throat. She raised an eyebrow at him, "I'm sorry, Sir, I thought Miss Montgomery was helping you today." 

Tony gave her a confused look, before he was smiling to Renee, then turned back to Cherry, "I'm picking you up when you're done work." 

"I'm busy," Cherry said immediately. Tony smirked, shaking his head. He turned away, walking back out of the building, looking once over his shoulder to say,

"No, you aren't."

She watched Tony leaving, then groaned and let her head fall into the keyboard. Renee, who was typing away at her own keyboard, didn't turn away from her screen as she said, "You're gonna imprint the keys into your face." Cherry just groaned in reply. 

Work somehow dragged but went by quickly. She collaborated with Pepper to get Tony's schedule and made sure to talk to Obadiah about his. Tried not to ask about Viastone. And when it was time to clock out, Tony was there, waiting, dressed in some slacks and a blazer. She rolled her eyes as she grabbed her purse and finally turned her phone back on, seeing thirteen missed calls from Tony. 

"You know," she tells him, smiling at him, amused, "You're annoying." 

Tony only smiled widely at her, pulling her to his side and pressing a wet kiss to her cheek before leading her outside. Cherry greeted Happy with a smile, climbing into the car before Tony, shuffling down the seat. Tony was on his phone for the whole ride while Cherry stared out the window. Surprisingly, they didn't go to some fancy restaurant, but instead to a small, family owned diner. Cherry raised her eyebrows as she stepped out of the car, but Tony said nothing, just put his hand on the small of her back to lead her inside. This touch felt nice, unlike the feeling of Obadiah's earlier. 

The bell chimed above them when they entered, the server that was nearest to them smiling and greeting Tony by name. Cherry blinked in surprise, before taking in the room. The hardwood floor was well kept, the walls a cream paneling with pictures upon pictures hung upon it. Some depicted raving reviews about the diner, others were just pieces of art that were collected. There was a row that looked dedicated to showing the past of the diner and how far it had come. The tables were lined with comfy looking chairs, all red leather, but a few mismatched colours like brown thrown in here and there. A bar wrapped around the back wall and stopped at the door for the kitchen. Cherry could see some liquor sitting on a shelf, but also a blender for milkshakes and she almost wanted to groan because she could really use one right now.

There was also a row of booths that Cherry hadn't noticed, most of them filled but the one at the end. Cherry passed by full tables on the way over, smiling at some of the people who looked at her and got one back, before Tony was turning and sitting at the booth. Cherry sat herself opposite of him, looking at the floor and how busy it actually was. The atmosphere was nice, the chatter giving the place a more home-y feeling as Cherry was presented with a menu. 

She hadn't even noticed that waitress come to their table. 

Cherry was able to order a strawberry milkshake before Tony snatched the menu away from her and turned to the waitress and told her they'd be getting two of the usual. Tony looked smug when he leaned back in the booth, staring at Cherry. He looked even more smug when the glass of bourbon he ordered was in his hand. Cherry shook her head at him, thanking the waitress when she brought her milkshake, "You have a usual?"

She grabbed the maraschino cherry that was sitting atop the almost commercial like swirl of whipped cream. Cherry judged the stem after she ate the cherry, noticing that Tony was watching her. So, she thought fuck it, popped the stem in her mouth and took a moment to tie it into a knot with her tongue. 

"Uh--" Tony seemed distracted, before he shook his head and was brought back to the present, though his eyes darted to the knotted cherry stem now sitting on the napkin and them Cherry's mouth, before meeting her eyes again. "This place has some of the best cheeseburgers I've ever had, so, yes, I have a usual."

"I didn't think you could come to someplace like this," Cherry said, looking at the rest of the room. She wondered if Rhodey had been the one to show him this, or maybe Happy. Pepper liked the more healthy places, even if she could love some bad food sometimes when she was in a mood. Cherry and her could eat a whole pizza between themselves when they put their mind to it (and it was girl's night). 

"Happy took me here when Pepper wanted to sober me up after a weekend away. I had started drinking when the plane had taken off and hadn't really stopped till it landed," Tony said, Cherry trying hard not to shift uncomfortably in her seat. She really couldn't judge other people's alcohol habits. Nobody was like her dad, if she was going to be completely honest. Still, she found herself tracing the scar on her hip and thigh absentmindedly over her clothes, having long memorized where it was. "Sometimes greasy foods are the best things for being drunk. And hangovers."

"I wouldn't know," Cherry admitted, not ashamed that she hadn't touched a drop of alcohol. It had caused too much pain in her life to ever have a thought of grabbing a bottle or a glass or anything like that. Still, the look that Tony gave her, wide eyed and surprised was one she was not used to getting. Generally, it was either understanding or the side-eye because she wasn't drinking while everyone around her was at least sipping. 

"Not even when you finally turned twenty-one and could have the taste of freedom?" Tony asked. Cherry felt sad, in that moment. She had heard that Howard was the one who got Tony into his alcohol addiction in the first place. Pepper had ranted to her whenever she had found Tony passed out because of the amount of liquor he had in his system. Something about forcing him to drink it when he was younger. 

"No, my boyfriend at the time took me out to the fancy dinner and then we went to a movie," Cherry told him, glad that their conversation was interrupted by the burgers coming. And to say that Cherry shoved the burger in her mouth as fast as she could so she didn't have to talk about this anymore was nothing but the truth. She held back the moan of delight because holy shit Tony had been right that these were some good cheeseburgers. 

They ate in silence, enjoying their burgers. Tony got a refill on his drink, Cherry sipped her milkshake. When they were just picking at their fries, Tony looked up from where he was dipping his food into ketchup, narrowing his eyes at her, "So, why'd you ignore my calls?"

She wasn't going to tell him it was because of the fact that she was jealous of a model getting fucked against the wall by him. Cherry wasn't going to tell him how she wished she was the one that got to kiss him, even if it was just for a moment, and had him between her thighs. So, instead, she answered with, "Obadiah wanted to talk to me and then Pepper and I were going for lunch."

Because Tony didn't want her in that way. Tony wanted a friend, something like Rhodey and Pepper and Happy. He needed a lasting connection, and everyone who had seemed to love him had left him. Even if the four of them that made up the take care of Tony group were trying to prove that they were here and they weren't going anywhere.

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howard stark is a piece of shit and an abusive father and if you disagree then i'm sorry but this fic is going to be trashing him. he may have been good at one point in his life, but alcoholism was not kind to him (and that made him not kind to tony). 

i reference a few comic points in this chapter. tiberius stone is a childhood friend of tony. they were super competitive with each other. viastone is his family's company and howard helped them on the way to bankruptcy. ty was in europe and vowed to come back to america when he was richer than tony. he's probably going to be mentioned in passing but not make an actual appearance (maybe at a gala?)

another one was the fact that howard forced tony to drink some alcohol when he was younger, claiming that it would put some hair on his chest. so, yeah. howard was a terrible father, fight me.

next chapter is going to be so much fun! tony is going to help cherry with scottie, our cute little three-legged bean!

also, i'm so glad you guys are enjoying this story! i hope i'm writing tony good and doing his character justice!