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Toni Stark stumbled forward on the bridge of the spacecraft she commandeered back on Titan, bracing her arms against the front window. Her chocolate eyes fixated on the beauty of space before her. Shades of yellows, oranges, pinks and purples splashed the surrounding area like a watercolor painting. As a scientist, observing the expanses of the universe should have been breathtaking.Breathtaking. The thought made her eyes flick over to a monitor flashing the current oxygen level. By the next morning, she wouldn’t have any breath left to take.Her chest heaved in a heavy sigh as she relished what oxygen intake she could, rotating on her heel before sinking down to the floor. She had acted on impulse back on Titan, commandeering Peter Quill’s ship and charting a course for Earth. She didn’t really think about fuel until she was left with a dead engine and a ship coasting through the cosmos. A distress signal was activated about a week prior, but there was no pingback and no rescue craft. Part of her wondered if the signal was still broadcasting.Very little oxygen, no food, no water, no fuel, and no hope of rescue. She was screwed twenty ways from Monday.The billionaire’s eyes landed on the Iron Woman mask in front of her, battle scarred and ripped apart practically from the battle with Thanos. She had installed a video function in case she ever needed to get out a message quickly...or in case of a situation like the one she was in. She thought about the other Avengers, Rhodey, and Pepper. Especially Pepper. She had access to the labs and Toni’s suits. She deserved an explanation as to what happened to her, and maybe even a reason to rally and suit up with whoever was left.Hopefully, she survived the culling.“It’s worth a shot,” Toni mumbled, leaning forward and digging under the chin of the mask to flick a switch. Her nail tapped the left cheek of the mask. “Is this thing on?”A stream of cerulean and violet light cascaded over her facial features, recording her. She sighed and sat back a little to give a better view of herself, pulling her long chestnut hair to one side.“Hi, Miss Potts. If you find this recording, don’t feel bad about this,” she said, sucking in a large breath. “Part of the journey is the end. Just for the record, being adrift in space with zero promise of rescue is more fun than it sounds.” A soft laugh escaped her throat as she nodded toward the window. “If you could see what was out here, you would be astounded.“Food and water ran out...four days ago,” she continued, “Oxygen will run out tomorrow morning.” A lump formed in her throat, and she swallowed thickly. “That’d be...that’d be it.”There was a small silence as she contemplated what else to tell one of her best friends. Thinking back, she couldn’t help but allow a small smile to grace her chapped pink lips. “We had some good times, Pep. You’ve stuck by me through thick and thin, through all my asinine tendencies. Not many people do that, and I want you to know that I’ve always considered myself lucky to have you. By the way, you were right; I probably should’ve come back home. Mark it on your calendar because you won’t hear that from my mouth again.”Realizing what she said, the genius choked out a morbid combination between a chuckle and a soft sob. Tears pricked her eyes, threatening to spill over as she sucked in another breath to continue.“Rhodey too. I’m lucky to have him. I hope you’ll do me a favor and let him know that hum-drum-vees are the way to go. At least they don’t lead to cruising through the cosmos towards your demise.”The stream of light flickered for a millisecond, and Toni realized she was running out of time on the recording. There was still so much she wanted to say, and the video was most likely the last chance she would ever get to say it. Instantly, one more person she wanted to address popped into her mind. When she thought of them, her heart fluttered and sank in the same fluid motion. There were things she needed to tell them, to get off her chest that she never took the chance to even though she had so many opportunities. This damn helmet better stay on for this part.“I need you to do me one last favor, Pep, and then you’re off the hook from your demanding boss forever,” she drawled, still formulating everything before she spoke. “If Captain Rogers is alive, I need you to get this message to him, okay?”She paused for a brief moment, eyes fluttering shut as she remembered the super soldier. Her mind danced to his blond hair, those piercing baby blue hues that cut to her core. She thought about the tension there, both sexual and otherwise. If that whole Accords situation and issue with Bucky never happened, she probably would have done something about their relationship sooner.“Steve,” she cooed, in a voice barely above a whisper. She offered the camera a bit of a bigger smile now. “Stevie...shoulda, coulda, woulda. You like to say you’re the authority in waiting too long. I’m sure I could give you a run for your money.”Her tongue darted out in an attempt to wet her lip. “I wanted to tell you my feelings so many times, but I didn’t know how you’d react. Then that whole Accords situation happened and the thing with Bucky. I want you to know I’m sorry...about both those issues.”Another flicker of the light. She had to hurry and wrap this up. “When I drift off, I’ll dream about you. It was you during New York, Sokovia, even after. It’s always you. I should have called you sooner, should’ve reached out. You mean the world to me, Steve. If there’s one thing you must know above all else...it’s that I lo-”The lights instantly disappeared in the next second, the helmet whirring down. When the video was found - if it was found - it would just end right where it cut off.Toni’s chest heaved again, this time with the weight of heartbreak. All that was left for her was to hope.Hope that Pepper or Rhodey got the video.Hope that Steve was alive and he would understand the message.Hope that if he didn’t, her last whisper to the heavens would carry the rest of the message to him.
“I love you.”