IT ALL STARTED ON AUGUST 10TH, 2001. Well, really it started a year before that. At a frat party, booming music, loud young men and women, and as always underage drinking with the freshman.

Tony had met his girl... ex, Mary Fitzpatrick, at said party. To say he wasn't immediately infatuated with her would be an understatement.

Out of all the girls that flung themselves at him (who he wasn't the least bit interested in), she was the first to catch his attention, and be a challenge.

He loved a good challenge, which made this whole campus life a little more enjoyable. One thing led to another, and the two began dating. The list of things Tony liked about Mary was a mile long.

She was wickedly smart, they were at MIT after all, but she was someone who could have a debate on quantum physics. Rhodey would fall asleep as soon as he uttered a single word on the matter.

She was also incredibly kind, the girl would literally give a random stranger the clothes off her back if they were shivering in the cold. They got along well together, and Tony was totally falling in love with her.

On the eve of their one year anniversary, they'd gone to a movie, had a fancy dinner, Tony booked a hotel and they had a night of fun. A couple weeks later, Tony was studying in his dorm.

Jamming out to AC/DC on Rhodey's boombox, when he heard a knock on the door, he wore a puzzled look, turning the volume down. And walking over to the door.

He opened it and was greeted by his girlfriend, he smiled at Mary. "We need to talk." She stated.

"Okay, c'mon in." He stepped aside, letting her in, the girl sat down on his bed, something seemed off, he sat down next to her. After a beat of silence, Mary turned to Tony.

"I'm pregnant." She whispered,

Tony's eyes widened, stammering. "W.. What?"

She cleared her throat, "I'm pregnant, Tony." Both stayed quiet, with the young man dragging his hands down his face.

He swallowed the lump in his throat, "Um.. okay. When did you find out?"

Mary fiddled with her hands, "A few days ago. I can't remember the actual date, it's all been a blur."

"Well, what do you want to do?" He asked.

Mary sniffled, tears pooling in her eyes, "I don't know, but I wanted to talk to you about it first."

Tony placed his hand on hers, "Whatever you decide, I'll support you, I love you Mary."

She began crying, "Really, you're not mad?"

He shook his head furiously, "No, no. I'm not mad. Am I scared? Yes. Was this the plan for either of us? No. Am I excited to be a dad? Hell yeah."

To which Mary let out a short laugh, "Can I think about it? What to do, I mean. Just to collect my thoughts."

"Of course, like I said, I'll support your decision." Tony replied, planting a kiss on her forehead.

"I've gotta get going, I have to study, but I'll call you in a day or two, okay?" She said as he walked her out.

Tony held the door open, "Yeah, and Mary, I love you."

The brunette smiled, stepping out, "I love you too, Tony." With that she left, and Tony closed the door, leaning his back against it.

Letting out a breathy exhale, "Holy shit." He really hoped Rhodey was on his way, cause at the rate his mind was racing, he'd start blowing up his phone.

He walked back over to his bed, sitting on the edge of it, doing every fidgety thing he could to calm him down. It wasn't working too well.

A few minutes later he hears keys jingling in the fob, he waits, his leg bouncing, his hands shaking. Rhodey comes through the door mumbling under his breath.

The only words he caught were, 'stupid presentation', 'incompetent partner', and 'son of a bitch'. So Rhodey was pissed, maybe it was a bad idea to talk about the elephant in the room.

His friend looked at him, "Tones, did you take something? You're sweating bullets dude."

"Mary's pregnant." He said.

He didn't look up to see his reaction, but judging by the overwhelming silence, he was preparing for the worse.

"Oh shit. When did she find out?" He questioned.

Tony sighed, "A few days ago."

Rhodey crossed his arms, "How are you feeling about it?"

Tony finally met his friend's eyes, "I'm freaking out, how the hell am I supposed to take care of a kid when I run on coffee and ramen noodles?!"

Rhodey stayed silent as his boy continued, "But I'm excited, and I want them, as long as Mary does. I'm just scared of turning out like my dad. You know what he's like."

Now it was his turn, "Tony, you're not gonna be like your dad. You're gonna love your kid with everything you have. Your feelings are valid, but cut yourself some slack."

"If Mary decides to keep the baby, then you'll both man up and be a team. Meanwhile I'll be the best uncle ever, and they'll be spoiled rotten."

Tony chuckled, "Uncle Rhodey, it's got a nice ring to it honey-bear." The two continued laughing, before ordering Chinese take-out and watching Top Gun.
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A couple days later, Mary called Tony, telling him she scheduled an appointment with an OBGYN. He could hear the uncertainty in her voice, but knew whatever route she took, he'd respect it.

That was the right thing to do after all, even if he wanted the child, her body, her choice. And so he waited for the date of the appointment to arrive. They were going together, driving in his car.

They arrived at the clinic, getting out of the vehicle, and walking through the double doors. While she headed towards the receptionist desk, he sat in a chair, looking around.

Multiple posters hanging behind bright blue walls, depicting expecting women, families, and doctors. He noticed other women waiting, along with some men. Mary came and sat next to him, a forum in her hands.

She filled it out, tension filled the air, as other couples went back for their appointments, Tony and Mary stayed silent. Neither wanted to tempt with a single bit of conversation.

Soon a nurse came out and called her name and the two went back with her. Mary sat on the lounge chair, while Tony was sitting in the corner. The nurse began asking her the basics.

"Alright, the doctor will be here to see you shortly." Then she left the room, Tony glanced at Mary, she was wringing her hands together.

He walked over to her, taking her hands into his, making her meet his eyes. "Don't worry, Mary."

"It's hard not to Tony. We're not ready to be parents." She replied.

He argued, "No one ever is, no matter how old they are."

Mary sniffled, "I'm scared about telling my parents."

"So am I, but we can't hide this. We'll have to tell them eventually, no matter the decision." He said, kissing her forehead.

Before they could talk further, there was a knock on the door, and in came the doctor. She smiled, "Miss Fitzpatrick, I'm Doctor Yang, it's nice to meet you, and I assume you're dad, yes?"

Tony nodded his head, "Yeah, I am."

She hummed, gloves on and grabbed the sonogram machine, pulling it over to Mary. "The results seem to be correct. You are in fact pregnant. But I'm gonna use this machine to check the state of the fetus."

She turned it on, "Okay, so this gel is gonna feel a bit cold. That's normal, are you ready?" She asked the teens.

Mary was ready, so was Tony. Doctor Yang proceeded to do her thing, and soon enough, coming on the screen was a little blurb. Tony was in awe, he was staring at his kid.

His future displayed on the screen, he couldn't help but let tears overwhelm him. "Th.. that's our kid Mar. It's incredible." The boy looked at his girlfriend.

She was smiling, "It's amazing, I'm sorry I don't mean to cry."

Doctor Yang waved her off, "That's normal too, all new parents cry when they get their first sonogram. Would you like a photo? You too dad?"

Both of them agreed, and she went off to print them, Mary cleaned herself up, looking at Tony. "I want to have the baby." She stated.

"Really?" Tony asked.

"Seeing them on that computer solidified it for me. I want this, Tones. I'll understand if you don't."

Tony stared incredulously at her, "You're seriously asking me after I agreed to have a picture of that little bean?"

Mary chuckled, "Sorry, hormones. But really, Tony, if you wanna back out, this is your last chance."

Tony shook his head, laying a gentle kiss upon her lips, "Good thing I'm not backing out then." Mary smiled up at him.

Another knock at the door, Doctor Yang coming back and handing each of them the photo. "Mary, luckily the baby is doing well, you're about six weeks along. You can call and set up your next appointment, I'll prescribe some prenatal meds."

"If you have any questions I'd be happy to answer them, other than that, I'll see you next month. Have a good rest of your day."

Tony and Mary gave their farewells, leaving the clinic and back to their respected dorms. Rhodey was gonna absolutely flip his lid when he saw the sonogram.

He entered the dorm, seeing his friend on his Walkman, he saw his buddy, flinging his headphones off. "So, how'd it go?"

Tony laughed at his excitement, "It went well, want to see the sonogram?"

Rhodey's eyes widened, "Hell yeah I do!" The father-to-be gave him the picture, almost reluctant, as if to guard it for safety reasons.

"Dude, it's official, holy shit." Rhodey said.

Tony sighed, "I know, and I'm really happy. Though the next hurdle is telling our families. Who will not be happy. But I've already prepared myself mentally for Howard to go ballistic."

"Screw Howard, he's a hypocrite. With the amount of screw ups he's had, I'm surprised your mom hasn't divorced his ass yet."

"You and me both, buddy." Once Rhodey gave the sonogram back, Tony placed it in his bedside drawer. Today was overwhelmingly good, but man, he was tired.
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The End of Chapter 1