"I can't believe you did that!" Pepper squeaks, burying her face against his chest as though he can't see the smile she wears, maybe the biggest he's ever seen.

"I told you I was going to someday," Tony says teasingly. "The ring, the sappy speech; the whole nine yards."

"But you actually did it!"

"Damn right, I did." He presses a kiss to the top of her head. "Something I really should have done a long time ago."

She squeals into his chest, and Tony just beams. He'd known she'd be excited, but he hadn't expected this. He's not sure he's ever seen her this happy before, which is a big feat given he's known her almost half her life.

Tony rests his head on top of hers, a soft smile on his lips. "Have I mentioned lately that I love you?"

"You know, I think you've made it pretty clear."

"Okay, good," Tony says with a playful smirk. "Because I love you – just in case you hadn't realized that yet."

Pepper responds by simply draping her arms around his neck and kissing him. Needless to say, he doesn't hesitate to reciprocate. He will gladly take any excuse to make out with his partner – his fiancée – at any moment, now included.

Their lips have just separated when another voice cuts in with, "Well, this is a surprise."

Tony looks over to see Rhodey standing before them, a smile on his face that doesn't even begin to rival the one that Tony wears. This is perfect, really. He proposed to the love of his life, and his best friend was here to see it. What more could he want right now?

"Now, before I congratulate you guys, I gotta ask," Rhodey says teasingly. "Pepper, you didn't just say 'yes' so you didn't embarrass him in front of the whole world, right?"

Pepper huffs a laugh. "No, I didn't just say 'yes' so I didn't embarrass him in front of the whole world."

"So this is really happening," Rhodey says. "You guys are really going to get married."

"Sure looks like it," Tony says with a grin. And he cannot wait for that day.

Rhodey shakes his head to himself. "Pepper, I don't know why you would throw your life away like that, but I'm happy for you guys."

Tony scoffs playfully, putting his hands on his hips. "I don't know whether to say 'thank you' or 'fuck you.'"

Pepper takes it in stride, though. "Thank you, Rhodey."

"Now, you know I gotta ask to see the ring," Rhodey says.

Pepper holds her hand out toward him so he can see it, but Tony finds his own gaze glued to her face. She really does look so, so happy. It means more to him than he could ever possibly say. She's been picking up the pieces of the shitshow that is his life for almost twenty years now. She's earned this happiness, and if he could give it to her every second of every day, he would.

Rhodey takes Pepper's hand, gently holding it out in front of him. "That is a lot of diamonds."

"Twenty-one carats total," Tony says, a well-earned humble brag, "including the band."

"Oh my god," Pepper breathes. "Is it really?"

"You bet it is," Tony says proudly. "Custom-made just for you. You'll never find another one like it."

Pepper scoffs, looking at him in awe. "How long have you been planning this?"

"How long have I been planning to propose today? Probably, like, four days."

"And how long ago did you order the ring?" Rhodey asks, a smirk on his lips like he already knows it's going to be an embarrassing answer.

Tony sucks in a breath through his teeth. "If I say last November, are you going to laugh at me?"

Pepper gapes at him. "You bought the ring last year?"

Tony shrugs sheepishly. "I think it was Thanksgiving when I realized I should probably lock you down before you got fed up and left me for some hot Italian model."

Pepper chuckles. "I'm not going to leave you for some hot Italian model."

"Well, not anymore," Tony says teasingly. "That's what the ring's for."

Pepper rolls her eyes and swats him on the shoulder playfully.

"I really am happy for you guys," Rhodey tells them, with a touching amount of sincerity in his voice. "Congrats, guys."

"Thanks, buddy," Tony says, clapping him on the back once. "I hope you're not planning on putting that tux away after tonight. You're gonna need it as my best man."

Rhodey huffs, grinning. "You really mean that?"

"'Course I do," Tony says. Even on the team's best day, he never would have considered for a moment any of the Avengers taking Rhodey's rightful spot. "You're my best friend. You know that."

"Thanks, man," Rhodey says. "I'll try not to embarass you too much with my speech."

"You're gonna fill it with embarrassing stories, aren't you?"

"Oh, I absolutely am."

Tony chuckles and claps him on the shoulder. He wouldn't expect anything less.

"Well, hey, I'll stop holding you up," Rhodey says. "I'm sure you're going to get a lot of congratulations today. Might as well get it out of the way now."

Tony shudders. "Oh, it's gonna be a long party," he jokes. Even if just half of the guests try to talk to him, it's going to take a very, very long time. Maybe he should go get a drink...

"We'll see you later," Pepper says to Rhodey.

And then they're off to enjoy the party.

He realizes pretty quickly that Rhodey's correct: everybody does want to congratulate him on his proposal. He doesn't even remember where he knows most of these people from – FRIDAY has a list of contacts to invite to parties; he doesn't keep up with it – and they're all coming over to gush to the happy couple.

Pepper takes Tony's hand, and he can't tell if it's because she's still giddy that he proposed to her, or if she just doesn't want to lose him in the crowd. It's always somewhat chaotic at these parties, but it feels exceptionally so today.

He's not sure how long they spend making the rounds and talking to people he hardly recognizes, but it sure feels like forever. They're almost on autopilot by now, faking smiles and forced conversation. He hardly even processes until they've started speaking that he's finally being faced with people he really does know: Clint and Bruce.

"Hey, congrats, man!" Clint says with a grin. He holds out a hand, and Tony has to drop Pepper's to take it, giving his friend a brief friendly man hug before he takes his fiancée's hand once more. "I'm so happy for you guys."

"Thanks, guys," Pepper says. With a playful smile, she adds, "It's really nice to hear this from somebody I actually know this time."

"Hey, we're your guys," Clint says with a shrug. "Maybe we can get you two minutes of peace before the next horde of people get to you."

"Oh, god, please," Tony says. He needs a break. He does not have the social battery for this.

"You know," Bruce says, "we've been worried about you all week. I don't think any of us would've guessed you were acting so weird because of this."

Tony chuckles awkwardly. Yep. That's why he was acting weird. That's why he was indulging himself with those late-night binge drinking sessions. That's why he disappeared in the middle of the day without saying goodbye to anyone. It was definitely because he was planning to propose, and not because his life fucking sucks and Pepper is the only good thing that's ever happened to him.

"I'm glad you're okay, Tony," Bruce says. "I'm glad that you're both more than okay."

"It took you long enough, though," Clint adds teasingly.

"Didn't it?" Pepper agrees, nudging Tony playfully. "We've only been dating for, like, five years."

"Hey, at least I finally did it," Tony says, jokingly defensive with his answer. "I could've kept stringing you along without a ring for the next thirty years if I wanted to."

"At that point, I think I would've had to propose first," Pepper says. "I mean, I do do everything around here."

Tony snickers. "You said 'doo doo.'"

Pepper rolls her eyes lightheartedly. "You're such a child."

"Yeah, but you're marrying a child, so, really, who's the bad guy here?" Tony quips.

"You know, I gotta say," Clint says teasingly, "I'm not an expert on marriage, but I don't think I ever called Laura a pedophile while we were engaged."

"Well, that sounds like a problem with you and Laura, then," Tony jokes. "You guys should get on that next time you see her. I hear it does great things for your relationship."

Pepper bumps her shoulder against her fiancé's. "Tony, you're ridiculous."

"And yet, you still agreed to marry me," he reminds her. "So which one of us is really the ridiculous one?"