Meant to Be

“What the hell is that?”

“This is called a cellular telephone, or cell phone for short.”

“Asshole,” Chick started, continuing to gape at Tony. “My leg. What the hell is that?”

She reached out to grab the phone from Tony but he moved it. Her hand swiped through the 3D image. The image spun and the specifics of the blueprint enlarged.

“What is that?” she whispered with fearful confusion.

She suddenly saw his piercing blue eyes staring coldly at her. She felt the cooling blood that pooled around her body. The fear of death.

The pain in her leg intensified, strangling a breath from her and catching in her throat.

“I happened to notice you’re lacking in the appendage department. Want a fully-functioning spare?” Chick moved a shaky hand to her right thigh, massaging the pain that stabbed through her.

“A metal leg? I can’t-” Her breath caught again and she had to close her eyes and lean back, feeling dizzy. She heard a couple of clicks and in a moment she felt the tingle of the morphine again. “How?”

“You remember the Winter Soldier,” he stated, more than asked. Chick’s eyes opened quickly to look at Tony. She saw the Soldier throw the shrapnel from her leg, tie off her wound, and leave her to die. His eyes, her pain. It played on repeat suddenly. She couldn’t speak.

The morphine did its work and she was able to calm down. She felt whole again. She let go of her leg and gripped with both hands onto the blanket. She felt hot and started to push the blanket down, exposing her thighs under the hospital gown they’d given her, but her hand brushed against the ugly scars along her skin. Her embarrassment was more overwhelming than the heat and she lifted the blanket back up to hide herself.

“Yeah, I did some research,” Tony began again, not breaking his gaze to take a peek at her leg. “I found your police report for the day you lost your leg, and you seemed to mention Barnes an awful lot.” She let out a breath that she had been holding in. “It sucks, what happened,” he said genuinely. He paused for a beat before speaking again. “And, I don’t care how you feel about him. Trust me, he’s no friend of mine. But, I got a hold of the technology that powered his arm and I’ve been able to replicate it. Almost exactly.” He said it all nonchalantly, but Chick was still in disbelief.

“Why would you give it to me?” She asked cautiously.

“I’m a giver, really,” he retorted. She stared blankly, waiting for him to continue. He didn’t.

“I don’t want to be extraordinary, Mr. Stark. That’s not me. I’m not like him. I’m not the Winter Soldier. I’m nothing- no one.”

“Hey, it’s a fun club. We’ve got T-shirts.” He didn’t say anything for a moment, noting her serious face. This was too real for her to make jokes about now. “You know, I’ve never lost a limb. I’ve fractured, shattered, and broken bones. Cut open my body more times than I can count. But I’ve never lost a body part. Thankfully.” Chick closed her eyes, remembering the day she woke up in the hospital after they cut it off. How she screamed, and cried, and mourned until she lost her voice.

“I’m sure it’s unimaginable. I’ve heard of phantom pains. I hear it’s mind-bendingly painful. Any truth there?” She didn’t answer him. She couldn’t describe it for him and she didn’t want to try. But, she opened her eyes, nodding shortly. “What if I could take away that pain?” She swallowed again, feeling a lump in her throat, squinting at him skeptically.

Would he lie about that?

“I’m serious, Charlotte.” She finally opened her mouth again to speak, but wasn’t sure what to say.

“I’m… I’m not sure.” Tony took out his phone again, pulling up her image with the added leg. He grabbed her hand, placing the phone in it. He stood up, buttoning his suit and checking his watch.

“I’ve got a meeting now.” He pulled out a pair of sunglasses from his inner-jacket pocket, but didn’t put them on right away. “Take some time. Think it over. I could always buy you another plastic prosthetic, if that’s what you want.” He raised his eyebrows at her quickly, pressing his lips, and put on the glasses. “I don’t imagine it is, though. Just think about it.” He left in a hurry and the doors closed behind him softly.

Chick placed the phone in her lap, staring at the 3D image. She played with the image, spinning it, making it bigger and smaller, reading the specs he had written next to each detail. She reached out beside her, feeling for the button and clicked it three times without looking.

“No pain?” she asked herself. “No pain,” she repeated, feeling the tingle reach her bones and numb her. She let her eyes go lazy and unfocused as she gazed at the image of herself, whole and complete.

That was all she had wanted for four years.

---------------

Tony felt his other phone vibrate in his pocket- this phone he used for communication. He pulled it out as he got into the back of a large, black SUV.

“Happy, we’re heading back to Manhattan for a bit. I’ve gotta see a guy about a patent.” Tony tapped around the phone to open his text messages.

“Oh, another, huh? Anything special this time, or just another boring, old technological miracle?”

'We’re in. ETA 12 hours.'

Tony took in a breath, clicking his teeth.

“Oh, you know, making the blind see, the lame walk. The usual.” Happy let out a breathy laugh as he headed down the driveway of the bunker.

“If anyone deserves to have a God complex,” he mused dryly. Tony put his phone away, putting his feet up on the other side of the back seat.

“I’m just a man, my friend.” He pulled his sunglasses off, cracking his neck as he placed them back into his jacket pocket. “FRIDAY, play my ‘Chosen One’ playlist, please and thanks.” Happy snorted a fake laugh.

“Got it,” she said quickly, her voice ringing through the speakers, before an ACDC song began playing.

“Hey, what did people eat in the 40’s anyway? Spam? I think Spam. FRIDAY, add Spam to the grocery list. I’ve got some elderly visitors coming tonight.”

“Done,” she answered over the music.

“Old people like Spam, right? Sarsaparilla? Egg cream?” Tony continued, asking his questions openly.

“I think they ate a lot of beans,” Happy chimed in.

“Great, add all that to the list, too, FRIDAY.”

“Would you like me to run a quick search, Boss?”

“Oh! Meatloaf. Add that, too.” Tony waved his hand absentmindedly. “Nah, I imagine they’ll eat whatever we give them and they’ll be thankful for it. That’s what my father used to say to me.”

“Yeah, sounds like my old man, too,” Happy said dimly.

“God, what a dark time in our nation’s history. Miserable, old geezers.”

“Should I even ask about our visitors, Tony?” Tony shrugged at Happy’s loaded question. His phone vibrated again in his pocket and he retrieved it as he spoke.

“Just some guys from my old squash team catching up over a couple of cold ones. You won’t have any fun, feel free to take the night off. I’ll fill you in on the juicy details tomorrow.”

“Yeah, okay, Tony, got it. Just don’t blow anything up, please.”

“Please, Hap-” Tony found the new text that had been sent to him.

'Make that 8 hours.'

He closed the phone and put it back in his pocket. He closed his eyes as he leaned his head against his arms, which were crossed behind his head against the window.

“I’m a healer, not a destroyer.”