April 22, 1999 - Kamari, Santorini, Greece
6:20 AM, EST

The alarm clock went off, jolting Shelby out of bed. It was the last day of her and Tony's honeymoon, and she wanted to see the sunrise from the beach.

Beside her, Tony groaned and pulled his pillow over his face. "Make it stop," he whined.

She nudged him before hopping out of bed. "Come on, Tony. You promised me that one morning you would come with me to the beach to watch the sunrise. It's our last morning in Greece, so get your ass out of bed."

Tony groaned again before reluctantly sitting up, his tufts of dark hair sticking up in multiple directions. "Fine."

They got dressed and left the house, which was a little bungalow Pepper had found for them a mere five minute walk from the beach. It was dark still, but Shelby could tell that the sun was threatening to spill from the eastern sky. She smiled, practically hopping along the path as she led Tony to the beach.

Their two weeks in Greece, and two weeks married, had been some of the best days of Shelby's life.

They'd traversed the country, stopping first in Athens, then making their way to Thessaloniki, Thebes, and even Sparta, before reaching their final destination of Santorini. Shelby was in heaven. She wasn't a huge history fan in school, but Greece's rich cultural history was something she could pour over for weeks. Plus, the Mediterranean was absolutely beautiful, and she enjoyed the time relaxing with Tony at the beach.

"This better be worth it," Tony joked, mumbling as he followed his wife.

"Please, you'll catch up on all your sleep as soon as we're on the plane," Shelby said, rolling her eyes.

They had a fifty minute flight later than afternoon back to Athens, and then another eleven hours from Athens to New York. It was a long time to be cooped up on a plane, but after spending three days in a very small capsule in space with four men, Shelby figured it wasn't really that bad.

They reached the beach, which was empty, except for a few birds. Shelby laid out the towel she'd brought along, close enough to the water that she could dip her toes in the warm waves.

"I wonder what the press is saying," Shelby said. "I wonder how mad they are that we got married without them," she laughed.

"The 'wedding of the new millennium,'" Tony chuckled.

"Eh, screw 'em," Shelby said with a frown. "They should be more concerned with the things we're doing at Stark Industries, not what color my bridesmaid dresses were going to be."

"Exactly my thoughts, Girl Genius," Tony said, setting his hand on top of Shelby's. "Although, if you don't mind me asking, what color were they going to be?"

Shelby laughed. "To be honest, Tony, I never decided. I was thinking red, maybe."

"Well, you know I like red," Tony joked.

Shelby rolled her eyes, a smile on her face as she focused on the eastern horizon. "Look, I think it's starting!"

April 23, 1999 - New York, NY
3:56 PM, EST

"Tony, Shelby! Let us see those rings!"

"Mrs. Stark, is it true your father isn't allowed to leave the state of New Hampshire? Is that why you didn't hold a big wedding?"

"Why did you elope? Is Shelby pregnant?"

Shelby gripped Tony's hand as the couple made their way through JFK International Airport. Happy walked in front of them, warding off the encroaching paparazzi that lurked in every corner of the building.

"Oh my god, Tony," Shelby muttered, her heart racing in fear as they made their way through the crowd. "This is worse than space."

"I haven't been, but I'll have to take your word for it," Tony muttered as they followed Happy.

It was nice to be back home, but the paparazzi were worse than they'd ever been. Shelby wasn't even sure how they knew she and Tony would be arriving.

"Mr. Stark and Dr. Colewell will not be answering questions at this time," Happy announced in his booming voice. Shelby was immensely grateful for him. "Now back off, you seething vultures!"

They followed Happy outside, where he had a car waiting for them, and they headed back to Tony and Shelby's penthouse.

"Well, this is a weird feeling," Tony said, scratching his chin.

"What is?" Shelby asked, turning to look at him.

"You're my wife now. And, we're headed back to our home." He chuckled. "I don't know, Shelbster. It's just strange. It's finally here. I guess I finally have everything I've ever wanted."

"Everything?" Shelby teased, nudging him with her elbow.

"Well, almost everything. I could go for a cheeseburger actually, now that you mention it..."

"Burgers, boss?" Happy interrupted from the front. "Would you like me to stop somewhere?"

"Private moment, Happy," Tony said, reaching forward to press a button that would provide a screen between the front and back seats. "So, what do we do now, Girl Genius?"

Shelby smiled. "Whatever we want, I suppose." 

--------------------author's note--------------------------

again with an author's note, my apologies for those of you that hate them. super sorry for the very short chapter, but i didn't want to add words to it just for the sake of meeting an imaginary word count. i thought it was perfect the way it is.

also, i've been slowly redoing some of my covers, and i wanted to see if there's anyone out there that would be interested in making me a cover for GIRL GENIUS. if you're interested, tag me in your graphics portfolio, DM me, comment, or do something to get my attention and i'll totally reach out to you! i just have no inspiration when it comes to making a cover for this book, otherwise i'd do it myself.

anyways, thank you SO MUCH for reading. i love you all.

xx,

madi

ps - if you don't already follow me on pinterest, feel free to do so (spacecadetwp). that's where i have boards for all of my ocs, so go check out shelby's board if you'd like! 

https://www.pinterest.com/spacecadetwp/shelby/