Iron Man fic: Handover
Title: Handover
Fandom: Iron Man (Movie)
Pairing: PepperXTony
Summary: High school AU. She wondered when exactly he had matured into the man standing before all of them.
Warning: None
Parts of this one-shot are based on real-life, mixed in Iron Man. I figured both situations are similar enough (doesn't help that I've been reading lots of IM fics recently), so yeah. Enjoy!
Handover ceremonies had always been times where people reflected on the memories made in the past. Some reminisced about club activities, others about the times they goofed off with their friends in the club. For Pepper, the Cybernetics Club held few lasting memories of club sessions which didn’t include their president, usually of him blowing something up. As said president stepped up onto the podium to deliver the opening address (tossing away the cards prepared for him), she wondered when exactly he had matured into the man standing before all of them.
It’s been 5 years since they first met all the way back in ninth grade, when they were in the same class. She still remembers how he introduced himself to the class:
“The name’s Anthony Stark. No wait, don’t call me that, I hate formalities. Call me Tony. “
The accompanying wink and grin had the female classmates swooning in their seats, but she knew better than to fall prey to such an egotistic man. Sure, he did look pretty decent, handsome even, but Virginia Potts was no shallower than the Mariana Trench, good looks meant little to her. (But it was a bonus.)
Through the next 4 years, it was obvious Tony had few friends. In fact, she could easily count the number of people who stuck with him on 1 hand: three. Much of his social interaction included flirting with other girls and bringing them out, only to dump them after the first date. Ladies were naturally attracted to his brains (he topped the class in nearly every subject) and looks, but he displayed little interest in having a lasting relationship with them, earning himself the title of ‘School Heartbreaker’. Though his behaviour had improved and he had gradually stopped going on random dates ever since that incident which landed him in hospital, the fact that he even had friends considering his arrogance was a miracle in itself.
Harold ‘Happy’ Hogan was in the school’s boxing team, but behind his gruff-looking exterior he was really a sweet man, kind of like a gentle giant of sorts. He stuck around Tony like a bodyguard, repelling bullies who usually went after geeks like him (especially ones as rich as him).
James Rhodes was probably as close to a best friend as Tony could have. The fellow geek would probably be in the same club if not for the fact that his aspiration of becoming an Air Force pilot drove him towards the Youth Flying Club instead. In a way she was thankful for that, one engineer who wants blow things up and had the ability to make that happen was more than enough for an entire school.
Then there was her. Virginia ‘Pepper’ Potts, elected Secretary of the Cybernetics Club which Tony headed. Throughout the 5 years she had known Tony, she had been the target of countless attempts to seduce her, but she shot them all down effortlessly through years of experience dealing with his insufferable charm. That never stopped him before though, but she has noticed that his advances towards her had declined and eventually became regular banters. It might seem like Tony Stark was being put in his place by the only woman who could control him, but they felt more like reminders of the close bond of friendship they shared, knowing they could push each other’s buttons without compromising their relationship. Many have noted they balanced each other; one was a loud, egotistical man with a short attention span, the other was a composed, calm lady who worked behind the scenes and kept her boss focused. She professionally denied every rumour about the supposed ‘Pepperony’ couple (a term coined by the school newsletter) and even Tony declared that there was nothing happening between the two of them, possibly out of respect for her. Nonetheless, the gossips never stopped, she just learnt to ignore them.
Still, she couldn’t help but feel a sort of attraction to him. In a way she felt happier whenever she was with him, be it during club sessions as fellow executive committee members or outside as friends. Even if the way he never answered or checked his phone infuriated her, or if the way he always ‘conveniently’ forgot about an ex-co meeting he himself had scheduled, she could never seem to stay mad at him. She often wondered if this was what people called ‘love’. She kept telling herself they were simply very close friends, but occasionally she’ll doubt her own words. Curse her inexperience with romance.
“Pepper?”
The red-headed assistant snapped out of her thoughts, turning around to face the source of the familiar voice. In an instant, she had switched from an emotionally confused young lady pondering her feelings to being the ever competent secretary of the Cybernetics Club.
“Yes, Mr Stark?” Despite his hate for formalities, he didn’t seem to mind her calling him by his last name every so often.
“Look sharp, you’re next,” he whispered into her ear as the Vice President of the club wrapped up his speech, glancing briefly in their direction to cue her. She nodded and gathered her things, before standing up, adjusting her attire and stepping up to the vacated podium. She cleared her throat and delivered her speech, a rather lengthy one she had spent days drafting. She noted the way Tony straightened up a little more and put his phone away, how he was at least paying some attention to what she had to say, which was more than you could expect him to give during the other members’ speeches. The audience looked positively bored out of their minds, having gone through at least 3 speeches by now, including Tony’s inspiring opening address. Nevertheless she wrapped up her speech and passed her farewell gift - a clipboard- to her successor, taking her seat next to Tony once again.
“That was a good speech, Miss Potts. Nothing noteworthy, but decent. Could have been shorter though.”
Pepper tried to ignore Tony as he smirked, no doubt thinking ‘My speech is better than yours HA!’. Once the last speech had finally concluded, the handover ceremony ended, marking the start of the party. Frankly she never saw the purpose of such a party, she wasn’t particularly close to any of her juniors and the catered food wasn’t exactly to her taste. The presence of strawberries in the fruit salad added to her distaste of the buffet spread. Before she could leave though, a hand tapped her shoulder.
“You don’t seem to be enjoying this party, Pepper. Thinking of your boyfriend?” Tony asked teasingly.
“Having Skype meetings until 2am in the morning doesn’t leave much time to socialise, Tony,” she mumbled, rolling her eyes.
“Ouch. I’m not that demanding, am I?”
“Perhaps you are, Mr Stark.”
“Then maybe it’s time I repaid you for your troubles. What do you want?”
She paused to think. “Coffee.”
“There are a million different types of coffee out there, Miss Potts. Perhaps it would benefit both of us if you point out exactly what you want.”
An invitation to leave the party with him. She smiled. “Sure.”
A/N: I don’t know if there’s an equivalent for the Youth Flying Club in USA, so let’s pretend there is. It’s a co-curricular activity hosted by a few schools in Singapore where the Air Force would train students undergoing secondary and tertiary education in aviation.
Btw I need suggestions for a better title. Help?
Fandom: Iron Man (Movie)
Pairing: PepperXTony
Summary: High school AU. She wondered when exactly he had matured into the man standing before all of them.
Warning: None
Parts of this one-shot are based on real-life, mixed in Iron Man. I figured both situations are similar enough (doesn't help that I've been reading lots of IM fics recently), so yeah. Enjoy!
Handover ceremonies had always been times where people reflected on the memories made in the past. Some reminisced about club activities, others about the times they goofed off with their friends in the club. For Pepper, the Cybernetics Club held few lasting memories of club sessions which didn’t include their president, usually of him blowing something up. As said president stepped up onto the podium to deliver the opening address (tossing away the cards prepared for him), she wondered when exactly he had matured into the man standing before all of them.
It’s been 5 years since they first met all the way back in ninth grade, when they were in the same class. She still remembers how he introduced himself to the class:
“The name’s Anthony Stark. No wait, don’t call me that, I hate formalities. Call me Tony. “
The accompanying wink and grin had the female classmates swooning in their seats, but she knew better than to fall prey to such an egotistic man. Sure, he did look pretty decent, handsome even, but Virginia Potts was no shallower than the Mariana Trench, good looks meant little to her. (But it was a bonus.)
Through the next 4 years, it was obvious Tony had few friends. In fact, she could easily count the number of people who stuck with him on 1 hand: three. Much of his social interaction included flirting with other girls and bringing them out, only to dump them after the first date. Ladies were naturally attracted to his brains (he topped the class in nearly every subject) and looks, but he displayed little interest in having a lasting relationship with them, earning himself the title of ‘School Heartbreaker’. Though his behaviour had improved and he had gradually stopped going on random dates ever since that incident which landed him in hospital, the fact that he even had friends considering his arrogance was a miracle in itself.
Harold ‘Happy’ Hogan was in the school’s boxing team, but behind his gruff-looking exterior he was really a sweet man, kind of like a gentle giant of sorts. He stuck around Tony like a bodyguard, repelling bullies who usually went after geeks like him (especially ones as rich as him).
James Rhodes was probably as close to a best friend as Tony could have. The fellow geek would probably be in the same club if not for the fact that his aspiration of becoming an Air Force pilot drove him towards the Youth Flying Club instead. In a way she was thankful for that, one engineer who wants blow things up and had the ability to make that happen was more than enough for an entire school.
Then there was her. Virginia ‘Pepper’ Potts, elected Secretary of the Cybernetics Club which Tony headed. Throughout the 5 years she had known Tony, she had been the target of countless attempts to seduce her, but she shot them all down effortlessly through years of experience dealing with his insufferable charm. That never stopped him before though, but she has noticed that his advances towards her had declined and eventually became regular banters. It might seem like Tony Stark was being put in his place by the only woman who could control him, but they felt more like reminders of the close bond of friendship they shared, knowing they could push each other’s buttons without compromising their relationship. Many have noted they balanced each other; one was a loud, egotistical man with a short attention span, the other was a composed, calm lady who worked behind the scenes and kept her boss focused. She professionally denied every rumour about the supposed ‘Pepperony’ couple (a term coined by the school newsletter) and even Tony declared that there was nothing happening between the two of them, possibly out of respect for her. Nonetheless, the gossips never stopped, she just learnt to ignore them.
Still, she couldn’t help but feel a sort of attraction to him. In a way she felt happier whenever she was with him, be it during club sessions as fellow executive committee members or outside as friends. Even if the way he never answered or checked his phone infuriated her, or if the way he always ‘conveniently’ forgot about an ex-co meeting he himself had scheduled, she could never seem to stay mad at him. She often wondered if this was what people called ‘love’. She kept telling herself they were simply very close friends, but occasionally she’ll doubt her own words. Curse her inexperience with romance.
“Pepper?”
The red-headed assistant snapped out of her thoughts, turning around to face the source of the familiar voice. In an instant, she had switched from an emotionally confused young lady pondering her feelings to being the ever competent secretary of the Cybernetics Club.
“Yes, Mr Stark?” Despite his hate for formalities, he didn’t seem to mind her calling him by his last name every so often.
“Look sharp, you’re next,” he whispered into her ear as the Vice President of the club wrapped up his speech, glancing briefly in their direction to cue her. She nodded and gathered her things, before standing up, adjusting her attire and stepping up to the vacated podium. She cleared her throat and delivered her speech, a rather lengthy one she had spent days drafting. She noted the way Tony straightened up a little more and put his phone away, how he was at least paying some attention to what she had to say, which was more than you could expect him to give during the other members’ speeches. The audience looked positively bored out of their minds, having gone through at least 3 speeches by now, including Tony’s inspiring opening address. Nevertheless she wrapped up her speech and passed her farewell gift - a clipboard- to her successor, taking her seat next to Tony once again.
“That was a good speech, Miss Potts. Nothing noteworthy, but decent. Could have been shorter though.”
Pepper tried to ignore Tony as he smirked, no doubt thinking ‘My speech is better than yours HA!’. Once the last speech had finally concluded, the handover ceremony ended, marking the start of the party. Frankly she never saw the purpose of such a party, she wasn’t particularly close to any of her juniors and the catered food wasn’t exactly to her taste. The presence of strawberries in the fruit salad added to her distaste of the buffet spread. Before she could leave though, a hand tapped her shoulder.
“You don’t seem to be enjoying this party, Pepper. Thinking of your boyfriend?” Tony asked teasingly.
“Having Skype meetings until 2am in the morning doesn’t leave much time to socialise, Tony,” she mumbled, rolling her eyes.
“Ouch. I’m not that demanding, am I?”
“Perhaps you are, Mr Stark.”
“Then maybe it’s time I repaid you for your troubles. What do you want?”
She paused to think. “Coffee.”
“There are a million different types of coffee out there, Miss Potts. Perhaps it would benefit both of us if you point out exactly what you want.”
An invitation to leave the party with him. She smiled. “Sure.”
A/N: I don’t know if there’s an equivalent for the Youth Flying Club in USA, so let’s pretend there is. It’s a co-curricular activity hosted by a few schools in Singapore where the Air Force would train students undergoing secondary and tertiary education in aviation.
Btw I need suggestions for a better title. Help?