"I gotta admit... I didn't think you'd actually do it..."
Autumn couldn’t hear him over the pounding of her heart beat that thundered in her ears and the piercing ringing that stunned her mind and body. Even if she tried to concentrate hard enough to let the situation seep into her mind, the Southern was completely numb to the environment around her. Tears blurred her vision as her entire body shook with fright, adrenaline mixed with fear and anger suffocated and permeated every pore, every vein in her body.
For the first time in her life, Autumn’s hands were shaking as it held the pistol that which was smoking, the bullet aimed right at the gold and red armor that stood in front of her, only to have ricocheted to the right and into the wall beside them.
He didn’t mean it… he didn’t mean it… she kept repeating to herself, each repetition becoming less and less certain as the realization set in.
Tony Stark, the man whom she considered a platonic soul mate in every aspect of which defined their friendship, stood in front of her with his palm raised at her menacingly. The growling of his voice amplified by the vocal resonators in his suit was no longer reassuring, cocky, or even the slightest bit sentimental. Tony Stark had THREATENED to hurt her.
He advanced towards her without a second thought. The bruises and cuts along the side of her face and her arms showed the altercation that happened between the both of them. Yet the moment the suit had been engaged, that was when Autumn immediately became desperate.
She didn’t want to pull her weapon on him. Every ounce of reason screamed and pleaded with her mind to try and calm him down or to subdue him with physical force but NEVER to raise her gun at him, even as a threat to make him stop. When had he become this hostile, this willing to turn on her while mocking and threatening her before suddenly revealing his true intentions.
‘Tony what are you doing?! No! No don’t do this! Please don’t do this, I’m begging you!’
She never had to worry about whether or not he would ever turn on her, nor did she ever anticipate that he would go to such disastrous lengths that he was treading now. Iron Man was going to kill her. The realization of this terrified her; for she never thought that he would ever have the nerve, the audacity to commit such a crime. ‘Don’t make me do this! Please just stop! Stop!’ But as she looked at him through the slits of his mask (which only served to distract her from the evil nature in his eyes), every fear that she had kept away, every impossible outcome had suddenly come to light. He approached her again, ready to fire.
That was when she pulled her gun on him and pulled the trigger.
What have I done? What have I done?!!
A loud rattling sounded between them as the pistol clattered to the floor with Autumn falling immediately to her knees, her hands bracing against the floor as she hung her head, tears now freely spilling. She didn’t want to shoot him, nor did she want to kill him. She tried not to, she didn’t shoot anywhere that would have fatally injured him but Autumn was terrified for her life. Because for one second, one fucking second in her life, she believed, truly, that Tony’s true intention was to kill her right where she stood.
What made it worse, was that he would not have hesitated.
“I–” her voice cracked as she tried to speak but her throat was tight with emotion, fear, and pain. “Tony–I…” Autumn coughed as her voice became strained with regret and horror. Her arms began to shake almost uncontrollably, the shock of the events that just occurred now affecting her entire mind and body. In her mind, all she could think about was what she had done, and Tony advancing on her with a rage that terrified her immensely. The young woman coughed, sniffing grossly in attempt to speak. “Oh my God, what have I done?!” She nearly screamed the last word, horrified at the conclusion of her mindless action. “I’m sorry! Tony, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”
The brunette kept repeating her words over and over, each time it became quieter and quieter as she sobbed. Her fingers curled into a fist only to hit the floor below her in agitation and regret. Lifting her head to face him, Autumn locked her gaze with those blinding lights that shone from the Iron Man mask, tears stained both of her bloodied cheeks as they drained from bloodshot eyes. Her dark brown hair was tangled and grossly messed as it lay against her shoulders. A small, whimpering hiccup escaped her lips, hissing as she inhaled another breath.
“F-forgive me… Tony… please…”