Lamborghini | Tony Stark

ONE - SUNSET

It was sunset when Tony Stark parked his car outside the cemetery. He stayed sat in the drivers seat for a moment, taking a few steady breaths to prepare himself before he eventually felt ready to step out of the car with nothing but flowers in his hand and a head full of things he wished he'd been able to say.

He'd been toying with the idea of dropping by the cemetery on his way home all day, changing his decision at least once an hour, debating with himself while he worked. He hated visiting those places, feeling suffocated by loss and sadness at having to step foot in such a deafeningly quiet place.

It had rained every time he'd visited a cemetery but on that particular evening, the sky was a mirage of pink and red, the sun seemingly staining the sky with its rays as it disappeared over the hills in the distance, a handful of pale stars were just beginning to shine as he looked up.

The air was mild for early evening but Tony felt his body tense up when he started walking along the gravel pathway, sweat collecting on the back of his neck when he read the names on worn out headstones as he passed them.

The silence was worse than he'd remembered and he felt anxious at the sound of his shoes crunching on the stones beneath his feet, guilt-ridden at his presence breaking what felt like should have been an eternally peaceful silence.

Tony had swerved off the freeway and grabbed a bunch of red roses from a gas station before driving through the town to the cemetery. As he walked along the pathway, his cheeks flushed crimson when he saw not a single other red rose resting against the headstones, embarrassed at his offering.

He walked a little further, narrowing his eyes at a figure in the distance. He hadn't visited the grave before but had hoped he'd be alone that evening, never knowing what the right thing to say to someone in a situation like that was.

As he drew closer, Tony cursed under his breath when he realised that the only other living soul in the cemetery that day was sat on the grass beneath the same headstone he was walking towards.

In a state of panic, Tony contemplated turning on his heels and leaving, feeling like a quick escape would be easier than an awkward conversation with someone he didn't know in such a sensitive environment.

And he almost did exactly that, had the woman not turned over her shoulder and locked eyes on him as he lingered a few steps away. She tilted her head, trying to work out whether it was actually Tony Stark approaching her beneath the dawn of night time, or if the warm sun that she'd been sat basking in all afternoon was getting to her mind.

He cleared his throat as he walked towards her shyly, giving her a small smile as he held the bunch of red roses in his hand, his heart settling when he saw that there were six white roses already sitting neatly against the headstone.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to lay these down."

"It's alright," she replied, rising to her feet and brushing her legs clean of any grass, "I should be heading off now anyway, really. I've been here hours."

Tony nodded, bending down and placing the roses amongst the others that covered the ground in front of him. He felt an overwhelming rush of pain in his chest when he read the name Phillip J Coulson in thick gold lettering against a pale grey stone, sighing loudly in regret.

"How did you know him?" Tony asked, standing up and folding his arms as he looked down at the rainbow of flowers that dressed up such a dark place.

The woman let out a small laugh, making Tony raise a brow as he turned his head to look at her.

"Phil really didn't tell you much about his personal life, did he?" Her eyes were a pale blue that made Tony begin to question his memory, "Phil was my brother, I'm actually quite offended he never told you about me."