( CALM BEFORE THE STORM )

CHERRY AWOKE TO SCOTTIE SITTING ON HER CHEST, MEOWING LOUDLY IN HER FACE. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence, as the cat was probably hungry and was bugging her for some food. She didn't recognize the soft sheets she was laying in nor the super comfy pillow, but Cherry did know that she had spent the night wrapped up in Tony's arms, sharing their warmth. 

Looking over to the bed beside her, it had obviously been long abandoned, the pillow not even having a crease from where Tony had laid his head. With a sigh, Cherry slowly sat up, letting Scottie jump off her chest so he wouldn't fall to the floor. After that, she got up, frowning at the cold floor. Upon her getting out of bed, JARVIS told her the time, weather, humidity, et cetera as she made her way out of the bedroom (after brushing her teeth), Scottie weaving through her legs as she walked.

Cherry was quick to feed the cat with the stuff she had packed, before moving through the house to get to Tony's workshop. She paused at the top of the stairs, remembering the fight that had come from the last time she had been down there. Cautiously, she made her way down the stairs, trying to shrug off the fight. Sharing breakfast with Tony sounded like a dream come true. 

When she got to the door, she bit her lip as she looked at the access pad. Cherry didn't know if she had one, couldn't honestly remember if Tony or Pepper had told her, so she didn't bother to touch it. Instead, she looked up at the ceiling, "JARVIS, can you tell Tony I'm outside the door." 

"Certainly, Miss Armstrong," JARVIS answered, and Cherry stood there for a second, shifting her weight from foot to foot, before the door clicked and she let herself in. This time, the music wasn't blasting, and Tony was wiping his hands with a rag. His hair was fluffy and wild, he was wearing a tank top, the arc reactor glowing through it, and Cherry had the insane urge to kiss him. Which, now that she knew what it was like, it was even harder to quell the urge. 

Tony needed to figure stuff out before being in a relationship with her. However, it couldn't hurt to ask, right? "So, your bed is the comfiest thing I have ever slept in," Cherry announced, walking forward, smiling at the man. He was grinning back as she approached, stopping right in front of him and staring into those deep, blue eyes. Cherry cocked her head to the side, "Can I kiss you good morning, or is that off the table for now?"

Tony took the time to think, though there was a mischievous glint in his eyes. He sighed dramatically, "I guess I can let it happen just this once." 

Cherry rolled her eyes but stood on her tiptoes to press a peck to his lips. When that wasn't enough, because this was Tony Stark she was kissing, someone she had been in love with for awhile, she leaned in for another one, and another one, until they were wrapped up in each other again and JARVIS was the one to separate them with a, "Miss Potts is here with breakfast, sir." 

Tony grumbled something about picking moments to JARVIS under his breath, making Cherry laugh as she pulled away. She hooked her hand with his and tugged gently, leading Tony up the stairs and around to where Pepper (and Happy) were with breakfast. Pepper was setting it up and didn't look up when they entered the room. "Rhodey should be on his way. I can't get a hold of Cherry," she looked up then and her eyes widened a fraction before she smiled widely, "or she's already here. Great!" 

Cherry detached from Tony, making her way to his high tech coffee maker. Along the way, she hugged and kissed Pepper on the cheek, then hugged Happy, before coming to a rest by the counter. She made sure to make the coffee how she knew Tony liked it, grabbing mugs from the cupboard, and waiting patiently. Tony greeted both Pepper and Happy before he was making his way to Cherry and draping himself over her back. She bore the weight with a grunt, trying to catch a glimpse of him over her shoulder. 

"Is this really necessary?" Cherry asked, meeting eyes with Pepper. She looked amused and happy, a small smile on her face as she stared at them. Cherry wondered what her reaction was gonna be when she told her that Tony and herself decided not to date yet. Probably announce, but what was one to do in the face of everything? Tony needed time to heal and Cherry was going to give him that. And if she still got to steal kisses and moments like this with Tony's permission, then it was a win-win scenario in her books. 

"Coffee is always a necessity in the morning," Tony responded. The coffee maker beeped, but Cherry made no move to pour herself and Tony their mugs. She didn't want Tony's weight hindering her ability to pour and making a mess on the kitchen counters. When the waiting got too much for Tony, he groaned and pushed off of Cherry, sulking back to his island and plopping down on one of the bar stools. 

Cherry happily poured their mugs, added the bit of cream to her coffee, before walking over to Tony and holding the mug out for him. He looked at it for a second and gulped. Cherry blinked, then gently set the coffee mug on the counter in front of him to grab. He did so with a smile, one of relief and happiness. Cherry gave him one back as she placed herself in the seat next to him, sipping her own coffee. 

When Rhodey arrived, he smiled as he greeted everyone, then all of them dug into breakfast. Of course, because it was on Tony's budget, it was extravagant. There was fruits of every kind, crepes, eggs cooked in several ways, four different kinds of toast with a seemingly endless supply of spreads, waffles, pancakes, french toast, bacon, sausage. If you could consider it breakfast food, it was there. Cherry picked her way through some of the fruit, smiling to herself, as well as having a waffle with whipped cream and berries on top of it. 

Cherry felt a hand reach for hers in her lap and blinked when she say that it was attached to Tony. That's when she noticed that he was holding his fork with his left hand and felt herself blinking. Maybe it was just the elitism of being a right handed person, but she always assumed that people were just right handed. But, it was a pleasant surprise when Tony intertwined their hands and didn't say anything, just continued to eat, squeezing her hand from time to time. Cherry smiled into her waffle and squeezed back, each and every time. 

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this is really short but i wanted to get something fluffy out for tony's birthday! happy 50th birthday, tony!

me: tony and cherry aren't going to get together because tony needs time to heal and become iron man
also me: let's have them act like a married couple!

scottie was under the table, brushing against everyone while they ate. i forgot to add that.

Also, can you guys scroll down my message board and find the link to the twitter thread that has to do with petitions and such about George Floyd. We can't let what happened stand. We need justice. For him and every other black person who has lost their lives due to racism, police brutality, etc. (In most cases, its just straight up murder). Black Lives Matter.