#vtbd.

The minute she had put the dress on she should have known it was a mistake. But this wasn’t exactly a business night. No, Pepper had been intent on enjoying herself just one night.  Constantly under the watchful eyes of higher ranked witches, Pepper knew she couldn’t always please them. They already detested her for working in a company dominated by vampires. Few other witches had found employment within the company and the redhead knew exactly why none of them had chosen another employment. Working with vampires was forbidden so they’d either been abandoned by the circle already or they had been crazy enough to risk abandonment. and Pepper seemed to be the later kind of witch.

Against all expectations, Tony had decided to make an appearance at the gala which had been enough for her to regret her choice of clothing even more. How ridiculous she felt ( not to mention how ridiculous she looked like ) the very moment he had chosen to appear right behind her. Let alone when he dragged her to dance with him.  They had never been this close before, Pepper knew more than well he could hear her heart racing. Not because of fear but because of nervousness. The witch could feel the other witches watching her, eyes never leaving the unlikely pair.   ❝ They already didn’t like me working for a vampire, what makes you think dancing with one like that would make it any better? ❞  Eyes darted around, cheeks flushing a little. This was far from being an ideal situation.  ❝ You know as well as I do we shouldn’t be doing this. It’s bad enough that I see you every day for work. ❞  

top  tier  of  teeth  tug  on  his  bottom  lip  ,  fingers  clasped  together  in  an  obvious  plea  before  he  looks  past  the  girl  now  standing  in  the  doorway  .  eyes  flicker  to  the  hall  behind  her  ,  looking  for  any  sign  of  her  older  brother  ,  dewey  ,  who  would  be  all  -  too  -  happy  to  make  tatum’s  decision  for  her  and  send  stu  on  his  way  .  but  the  truth  was  ,  he  didn’t  want  to  be  alone  tonight  ,  at  least  not  the  entire  thing  anyway  .  his  parents  were  nowhere  to  be  found  when  he  came  home  from  school  that  day  .  the  usual  note  left  on the  whiteboard  telling  their  son  how  much  they  loved  him  and  they’d  be  back  from  their  trip  soon  .  it  was  all  horseshit  if  you  asked  him  ,  but  the  absence  made  him  bored  and  the  empty  roads  had  somehow  lead  him  straight  to  tatum’s  house  where  he  was  now  silently  asking  to  be  snuck  inside  .  the  hesitance  only  causes  the  boy  to  take  more  serious  action  ,  pushing  that  bottom  lip  into  a  pout  as  he  puts  on  his  best  puppy  -  dog  expression  .  a  pause  before  he  silently  mouths  the  word  ,   ‘  ------ please  .  .  .  ?  ’

It was almost 1pm when Pepper arrived for work, much later than she usually would. She hadn’t called to mention she’d be late, in fact, Pepper wasn’t even sure if Tony had noticed at all. For quite some time, she had considered calling in sick, not wanting to cross path with Stane. Not after what happened the previous night when she had just been on her way home. A shiver ran down her spine as she remembered. When she eventually arrived, the redhead began working as if nothing had happened, as if she hadn’t been hours too late. 

The door to her room opened, one eager bridesmaid already trying to close it again, fearing it might be the groom himself. Instead, Pepper caught sight of their best friend, called him in. Beatuiful, she knew Rhodey said but she couldn’t concentrate on his words as she wondered why he was with her instead of Tony.  ❝ He hasn’t disappeared again, has he? Please tell me he is still waiting for me. ❞  Of course he was, and the redhead knew it. But a tiny part inside of her was worried that he might be gone if she waited another second.  ❝ This is it. No turning back. ❞ Never again. Taking both his hands, radiant smile playing about her lips, the bride gave him a light hug, careful not to ruin her appearance.  ❝ Go. Tell him, I’ll meet him at the end of the aisle. ❞  

Marrying Tony hadn’t always been one of her deepest desires, but right now, there was nothing she wanted more in her life. Watching Rhodey go, Pepper only waited for the music to start to finally be walked down the aisle.

Her daughter was playing in her room, unaware of the stranger in their living room. Pepper didn’t want her to worry about it, didn’t want to confuse the girl when she herself was still skeptical as to what to think of this situation. If had been a short time since her husband had passed, since the funeral had been held. Pepper and Morgan had been alone for most of the time ever since, though occasionally some of their friends would drop by and spend time with them so they wouldn’t be completely alone. For that she was grateful because most days, she didn’t handle it well yet. So any day someone would be around, ready to watch Morgan for a while so she could openly grief was a relieving day.