Did Tony really have to… Be physically present to snap his fingers? Like couldnt’ve he remotely controlled his suit like he did in Iron Man 3 and make it snap its fingers? His mind would’ve be connected to it anyway.
Imagine the scene. Tony’s Iron Man mask is on, so we don’t know he’s not inside it. We assume he’s inside it. We believe it, we have no doubt about it because we’re fools. When he installs the stones on his own gauntlet, the suit starts very slowly breaking down. “I am Iron Man”, Tony says, snaps the fingers, and the suit finally gives up, falling on the floor.
Thanos and his army are vanished. Everyone gathers around Tony, Pepper and Peter fall on the floor, start crying. Rhodey puts his hand on the mask, removes it and -
So they’re all confused, we’re all confused and panicked because what, has Tony vanished too now? We didn’t even have a goodbye? And then -
“Ugh, right here? Behind you. The man on the floor with his hand in the air? Hi. I’m pretty knocked out, if someone could give me a hand-”
They all turn and spot Tony. When they all reach him, Pepper kneels next to him. “Oh my god, I thought you were dead.”
Tony supports himself on his elbows with difficulty. “Yeah, I thought this through. If there was really one” - he holds a finger up in the air and looks up to Strange, who smiles - “chance, and that one chance was me doing it, then I wasn’t gonna die doing it.”
Thor laughs, both softly and nervously at first, then it’s a big, open laugh. “Ha. Ha ha ha. Shall we all go eat shawarma now?”
Tony drops his head back on the floor, too exhausted. But he smiles. “I think I have a better idea.”
And the next scene, instead of being a funeral, is a wedding.
(Don’t judge me, I don’t care if this would’ve worked or not, I’m still trying to cope. Gotta work on getting Natasha back too though.)