2019

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"Tony, do you think it's time to — "

"Call the doctor?"

"Yeah."

Tony was about to reach for the house phone on the coffee table, ready to dial the phone number before a thought came to his head. "Wait! Maybe he might've already left for vacation."

"Where?" (Y/N) asked with offense, trying not to focus on the pain. "At a time like this?"

"Well, in all fairness, honey, the baby is approximately nine months early."

"And what are we gonna do?"

A short minute of silence passed where Tony tried to think of a solution. Calling an ambulance would take time, and he could not risk the paramedics getting here on time or not for the sake of the baby's health.

"Banner!" he snapped his fingers as he exclaimed. "You think he might be able to help? He is a doctor after all."

"I don't think he — " Another contraction made (Y/N) inhale a sharp breath. "Yeah, go get him."

Tony nodded, satisfied he got her approval. He checked the time on the clock glued to the wall and noted that the sun was going to set in a few hours. Now that he had the nanotechnology, he wasn't going to waste time in waiting for a suit to fully charge before leaving.

"I'll take a suit," he pressed a kiss to her cheek. "Will you be okay here?"

(Y/N) could only let out a sigh under her breath as she watched Tony press the arc reactor in his chest when he made it out the door. He left in such a rush that he caused a gust of wind as he shut the door behind him.

Now that she was all alone, (Y/N) was able to not hold back on the loud groans of pain that the contractions brought her, still trying the breathing exercises. She was only able to breathe rhythmically for a short period of time before the pain overwhelmed her senses.

(Y/N) was just about to move back to the couch and wait for Tony, but the doorbell rang unexpectedly. She frowned, not expecting anyone to visit her today, but just as she was about to open the door, she remembered her pregnant state and how she didn't want anyone to know about it yet. She quickly reached for one of Tony's jackets in the coat closet before making her way to the door, hoping it was just a lost person who needed quick directions or a girl scout troop that she could easily distract.

But when (Y/N) opened the door, she was welcomed with Natasha's familiar, green eyes. Her hair was longer than the last time she's seen her, the redhead roots popping through the blonde.

"(Y/N), hey," she greeted in her usual voice. "Long time, no see."

Her eyes trailed to the jacket she was wearing over her body. "It's 75 degrees out. Are you sick?"

"Hi, Nat," (Y/N) greeted, mostly out of breath due to the contractions. "What are you doing here? Now is not a really good time — "

"Did you forget? It's our monthly catching up date," Natasha reminded her, leaning on the doorframe.  "We have it scheduled for today."

"Uh," (Y/N) made a sound from the back of her throat, finally remembering the date. She mentally cursed herself. "I must've forgot."

"I see," Natasha eyed her up and down, taking a step inside the house. "You're all distracted with metal man that you don't have time for your best friend anymore."

"Oh, it's not that," she desperately shook her head, gritting her teeth to stop the groan from leaving her lips. "Come in. Just stay right there."

(Y/N) tightened the jacket over her body, pushing past Natasha to run toward the kitchen, careful not to make her movements too harsh.

"I'm gonna go fix us some tea in the kitchen."

"Okay, then," Natasha eyed her suspiciously before nodding. "See, that wasn't so hard."

Natasha sat on the couch in the living room as (Y/N) headed toward the kitchen. She hoped Natasha wouldn't turn to the side at any moment, since the jacket wasn't going to cover her pregnant stomach for much longer. She reached for two cups in a cabinet and set them down before filling them with water.

"So, how's the married life going?" Natasha asked from the living room, grabbing the remote to turn on the TV.

(Y/N) grabbed the tea bags from another cabinet. "Oh, you know. Just — " Another contraction hit her hard. " — FINE!"

The strain caused (Y/N)'s entire body to ignite in her classic, blinding glow. Since the material wasn't strong enough to sustain the intense body heat, it caught on fire and (Y/N) let out a yell before shrugging it off her shoulders and placing it in the sink. Smoke escaped from the rinsed jacket and this made her panic since now she didn't have anything to cover her state and because the burnt out smell might distract Natasha.

She gasped and searched for the closest thing she could find, which was a 'Kiss the Chef' apron. She sighed and placed it over her head, tightening the straps behind her back as she tried to find a believable excuse for when Natasha questioned her change of outfits.

"Are you all right?"

"Yes, just making two cups of tea!"

"I'll come help," Natasha stood up from the couch and started to make her way to the kitchen.

"No!" (Y/N) immediately panicked. "I mean, no, thank you!"

Natasha marched over to the kitchen and her eyebrows furrowed when she saw the apron over her friend's form. (Y/N) realized that the apron didn't fully hide the belly so she quickly reached over to grab a bowl of fruit that sat on the kitchen counter before Natasha could fully take in her appearance.

Natasha's eyes skimmed through her form. "Whatcha got there?"

(Y/N) stared down at herself. "Uh, fruit."

"Huh," Natasha muttered, dragging the syllable. "What's with the apron?"

"Oh, you know, I love feeling all professional whenever I make tea."

"Really?"

"Yep," (Y/N) nodded toward the two hot cups of tea sat on the counter. "See? I've been told the apron adds a touch of flavor."

Natasha didn't say anything else but her eyes showed a lot more emotions. She silently reached for her cup of tea and blew on it before taking a sip, savoring the drink through. (Y/N) let out a breath of relief once she saw the suspicion disappear from her features and gestured for Natasha to follow her back to the living room.

"So, huh," (Y/N) spoke as Natasha sat back down on the couch and she took a seat inches away from her in order to hide her difficulty in sitting back down. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Oh, you know, the usual."

"Huh-uh," (Y/N) mumbled under her breath, breathing in and out to calm the pain.

"You know how I always keep the channel open for everyone to report by?"

"Sure."

Natasha slumped back into the couch with sagged shoulders. "Nobody uses it as much anymore."

This perked (Y/N)'s interest. She was still holding the bowl of fruit in front of her belly, and her hands were growing tired from holding it up. "Oh, what do you mean?"

"Well, everyone either fixes their problems without reporting them or they hide them from me. Rhodey even says that I 'worry too much'," she scoffed in deep offense. "I call bull."

(Y/N)'s expression softened. "Oh, Nat."

" — you know, all I wanted was to keep tabs on the last people I trust in this planet, and that's the thanks I get?"

"Natasha — "

"Everyone has their own lives now or has a family. I don't have any of that. I just wanted to make sure mine was still safe and sound."

"Nat, I'm so sorry if I ever made you feel that way," (Y/N) said in full honesty, shoving away her discomfort to reassure her friend. "You know you're always welcome here. I don't want to make you feel like you're left out because you're not. You are my family too."

Natasha's tense, hardened expression softened for a short period. A smile popped on her features. "I appreciate it, (Y/N)."

(Y/N) copied her gesture with the same amount of genuineness. She noticed that Natasha's cup was halfway empty, so she stood up from her spot with the bowl of fruit still in her hands with the intention to refill it.

"Want some more tea?" she questioned. Natasha nodded, but also got up from the couch.

"Need some help?"

"No, no. It's fine," she tried to stop her from getting to her full height. "I just need to — "

Another contraction hit her again, this one being 10 times worse than the others. The sharp pain on her stomach made her drop the cup and the bowl of fruit, causing them to break once they collapsed against the ground. She let out a grunt and tried to greedily catch her breath, but the pain was too intense to make her concentrate at all.

"It's coming," she panted. "The baby's coming."

Natasha's eyes widened intensively. "You're pregnant?"

(Y/N) was only strong enough to nod as she placed a hand over her aching, pregnant belly.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"It all happened so fast, Nat," she tried to defend, and it wasn't a complete lie. "Trust me."

Natasha seemed to be having an internal conflict since she didn't know how to help (Y/N), but also not wanting to leave her in pain until the real help came. She placed an arm around her friend's shoulders and guided her back into the couch, but (Y/N) kept trying to catch her breath and muffling her sounds of pain from being too loud.

"Now, let's get you comfortable," Natasha rushed to move the cushions from the couch to make a comfortable space for her to lay in. "Okay?"

(Y/N) grunted and took slow steps toward the couch, but her legs gave up before she could make it even further. "I think I'm gonna lay down right here."

Natasha huffed. "Okay, then."

The redhead grabbed the cushions from the couch and placed them right where (Y/N) was about to lay her head on the floor.

"Tony flew to get Bruce," (Y/N) explained with a strained voice. "He'll be back soon."

"Why Bruce?"

"The doctor said he's going on vacation."

"On a time like this?"

"That's what I said!"

(Y/N) fully laid down on the hardwood floor of her house, doing her best to breathe in and out rhythmically. Natasha brushed the beads of sweat on (Y/N)'s forehead with a towel and adjusted her clothes so nothing made her uncomfortable.

"No, there's not enough time to wait," Natasha muttered out of frustration.

She got up from beside (Y/N) and ran throughout the entire ground floor in search for towels and a bucket of water. Natasha made a mental note to slap Tony once he made it back for leaving (Y/N) alone at a time like this. She was lucky that she stumbled into their residence at the right time.

"You know your breathing, right?" Natasha yelled out for (Y/N) as she still searched for the towels.

(Y/N) breathed heavily, her rhythm being a lot faster than the one she was supposed to follow.

"(Y/N), I can't hear you!"

(Y/N) let out a groan and her eyes glowed like before, but this time with a much blinding glow. Natasha internally panicked when she saw her state, but brushed it off and kneeled in front of (Y/N)'s bended legs with the bucket and the towels on either sides of her.

"Hey, you're doing great," Natasha reassured, spreading out the towels. "Hey, look at me. You're doing great. Look at me. Look at me."

She did the breathing and motioned for (Y/N) to copy her, which she did but with her eyes turning glossy and fearful.

"I can't do this," (Y/N) whispered under her breath, loud enough for Natasha to hear.

"Yes, you can."

"I can't," she whimpered. I can't."

"You can do this," Natasha argued firmly, seeing how (Y/N) hopelessly shook her head. "Yes, you can. You can do this."

Natasha leaned downward to check, eyes widening when she realized what was going to happen next. "It's time to start pushing."

"You ready?" (Y/N) shook her head again. "You're ready. You're ready."

"Push. Push, (Y/N). Push!"

(Y/N)'s groans increased in volume so loud that they transformed into screams of pure pain. She closed her eyes to avoid them glowing again and scaring Natasha and even the baby off, but the pain was too intense that it made her open her eyes once again. She could feel the tingling feeling she always felt when her eyes glowed with her powers as she kept pushing like Natasha had instructed.

The front door swung open with a thud and this alerted both women, making them look back at Tony's suited form carrying a terrified Bruce Banner in his arms. (Y/N)'s screams didn't stop then, and she pushed for just a few more seconds before all pain came to a halt and the room felt silent for a millisecond. Followed by Natasha's gasp, a baby's cry echoed throughout the entire house as she cleaned every drop of blood on its tiny body with one of the towels.

"I almost missed it," Tony muttered under his breath with a sense of disappointment, pressing the arc reactor to remove his armor. Bruce jumped off his arms and brushed himself off as if nothing had happened.

Natasha held the baby up for both parents to see. "It's a girl."

A shaking sigh left (Y/N)'s lips at that very moment. She watched the newborn coo in Natasha's arms, and a relieved laugh escaped her throat at the sight of its healthy form. Tony took this as an opportunity to approach the scene and kneel down beside (Y/N), his own eyes tearful.

Natasha carefully handed the baby to (Y/N), who took the baby girl in her arms with as much gentleness as possible. An enormous grin covered her features, too engrained on staring at her newborn to notice the pure look of adoration Tony gave both of them.

"Hi," (Y/N) muttered down at the baby. "Oh, she's perfect."

Natasha saw the fond look the couple exchanged and she got up from the floor. She noticed Bruce's presence and decided it might be a good idea to drag him with her and let the couple alone for a few minutes, even though she had to push her personal feelings aside for a moment.

"Hey, Doc, why don't you help me in the kitchen?" Natasha called Bruce's attention.

"Let me throw up my lunch first, please," Bruce placed a hand over his mouth before bolting over to the nearest bathroom he could find.

Natasha, despite her best wishes, followed after him and disappeared into the house's first floor, not before flashing one last look at the couple.

Tony brushed the freshly formed beads of sweat on (Y/N)'s forehead, leaning down to press a kiss there. "You're amazing."

"Well, don't you wanna hold your daughter for the first time?" (Y/N) looked up at him.

Tony nodded with tearful eyes, accepting the baby with open arms as (Y/N) carefully handed her to him. She noticed the tight grip the baby had on her finger as she handed her off to her father, and she muttered a quiet, "She's strong," under her breath.

Once Tony fully carried her in his arms, (Y/N) decided to speak again, placing a hand on top of his. "Say hello to little Morgan."

Tony's head instantly snapped to look at her, the tears finally spilling down his cheeks.

"Morgan?" he asked in such a tiny voice.

"Yes, Morgan," (Y/N) nodded to confirm that what he heard was right.

Tony flickered his eyes to stare down at a sleeping baby Morgan, already being soothed by the soft rocking of his arms. His chest warmed at the sight, thankful to anybody up there that was kind enough to give him a family. He, still holding onto the baby, leaned down to press a chaste kiss on (Y/N)'s lips.

"Thank you," he told her in a hushed voice.

"Whatever for?"

"Her, this family, you," Tony confessed. "You're my second chance at happiness."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Mr. Stark."

"Oh, really?"

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"Ten fingers and ten toes."

Bruce wore his glasses to carefully inspect the newborn baby girl in his arms. He held a small flashlight to check her eyes and listened to her heartbeat to make sure she was healthy.

"You got a healthy baby girl on your hands," Bruce announced before carefully passing Morgan over to (Y/N)'s awaiting arms, eager to have her back against her chest.

Tony placed his hands on her shoulders to watch baby Morgan slowly drift into a peaceful sleep in her mother's arms.

"I see the Medicine PhD finally came in handy," Natasha muttered under her breath from her place on the couch.

"Thank you, Banner," (Y/N) told her old friend with a grateful look. "Although I feel like someone dragged you here in vain."

Tony scoffed at the accusation. Bruce smiled in his usual, awkward way and shrugged her words off. "Don't worry. It gives me a chance to see you all again."

"Who I also need to thank is you, Nat," (Y/N)'s eyes moved to her redhead friend laying comfortably on the couch, eating her newly made peanut butter sandwich. "I don't know what would've happened without you."

"Part of me wants to say 'die and perish', like always, but I don't like it in this scenario," she replied, biting on her sandwich. "So I'll just stick with a 'you're welcome'."

(Y/N) shook her head in disbelief at her friend's words. She rocked her daughter to a soft rhythm to assure she stayed asleep, seeing the way her eyelashes brushed against her small cheeks. She had the same eyelashes as Tony, but the same nose shape as (Y/N). She was the perfect combination of the two of them.

"So," Natasha dragged the 'o' out, drawing the couple's attention. "Who gets the godchild privileges?"

(Y/N) and Tony exchanged a nervous glance. "Oh, dear."