Chapter 125: Thinking Too Deeply

[Third Person's PoV] 

Melissa stood with her hands on her hips, her expression a mix of exasperation and concern. "Come on, Tony, was that really necessary?" she asked.

"Yes, yes it was," Tony replied, his tone still sharp, biting into his apple with a small scoff.

Melissa sighed, shaking her head. "I think you're misplacing your anger. What Star did was wrong, sure, but she had good intentions."

"Does it look like I care what her intentions were?" Tony shot back, his eyes meeting hers with a hard expression.

"Now you're just being childish," Melissa muttered, frustration creeping into her voice. "Look, I know you're mad at Star, but being angry isn't going to fix anything. You know that. We just have to keep doing what we've always done—prepare for the worst, adapt, and move forward."

Tony exhaled sharply, his body relaxing slightly as the weight of her words sank in. "I hate when you're right..."

Melissa raised an eyebrow, hands on her hips. "What's that supposed to mean? And why do you hate it?"

"Because it means I was wrong, and I'm never wrong," Tony replied with a smirk, tossing the rest of the apple into the trash. He clicked his tongue as he started unwrapping the bandages from his forehead and carelessly threw them aside.

"Where are you going now?" Melissa asked, concern flickering across her face as she watched him walk away.

"To take a nice, long, warm bath. Maybe drown myself so I don't have to deal with this anymore..." Tony mumbled over his shoulder.

"Okay, now you're exaggerating," she replied, rolling her eyes.

"Uh-huh."

"Tony?"

"..."

"Oh, for god's sake..." Melissa muttered, shaking her head before following him toward the bathroom.

She stood by as Tony began to undo the bandages around his hand, his face serious and distant as he absentmindedly twirled his fingers. Melissa sighed, concern deepening, and started unwrapping her own bandages.

Tony noticed the sound of the bandages coming off and turned to her, confused. "What are you doing?"

Melissa glanced at him with a playful smile. "What does it look like? I'm joining you so you don't drown."

Tony let out a small chuckle. "I was joking about that."

"Can't take any chances," Melissa teased. "Now, arms up."

"Hm?"

"Lift them up," she repeated, her tone patient.

Tony complied, raising his arms, and Melissa carefully began to unwind the bandages from his torso. Once she finished, Tony did the same for her, though she shyly covered herself as best she could with her hands.

Tony rolled his eyes. "Really? What are you hiding? It's not like I haven't seen everything."

"It's still embarrassing..." Melissa muttered, blushing lightly.

Tony just shook his head, amused, as he turned toward the tub, which was already filled with warm water. He let out a contented sigh as he slid into the bath, the heat instantly soothing him. "Ahhh... this might be better than sex..." he mumbled to himself.

"Oh, really?" Melissa teased, arching an eyebrow as she tied her hair into a messy bun and slipped into the tub, her back toward Tony. "You might just be right."

Tony chuckled as she leaned against him. "It's one thing for me to agree, but it's another for you to agree as well."

Melissa giggled, resting her head on his chest. "Right, I forgot how fragile the male ego is." She tilted her head back and kissed his cheek softly. "Nothing is better than sex with you. There, happy?"

Tony smirked, his eyes closed as he stretched his arms across the tub. "It would've been better if you didn't add that last part. Was that really necessary?"

Melissa smiled, her own eyes closing as she relaxed against him. "Maybe. But you know I mean it."

Together, they soaked in the silence, both finding comfort in the warmth of the bath and each other's presence, their earlier frustrations melting away.

The bath might have been soothing their bodies, but the weight of their unresolved problem still lingered in the air, refusing to be fully washed away. Melissa had her face half-submerged in the water, lazily blowing bubbles before speaking through them. "Sohhb wbah agh se gyongb to ado?" Her words came out garbled and incoherent.

Tony tilted his head, raising an eyebrow. "Hm?"

Lifting her head from the water, Melissa repeated, "I said, so what are we going to do?"

Tony sighed, his mind still whirling with the possibilities. "That's a very good question. Honestly, I'm still thinking. Maybe we'll find them, and then... I'll have Friday send an orbital laser strike from space, obliterate everything so there are no leads that trace back to us. That's the option I'm leaning toward right now."

"Tony, I'm being serious here," Melissa groaned.

Tony turned his head to her, the faintest trace of a smirk playing on his lips. "Who says I'm not? With both of our blood, they could clone us. That's something I really hope doesn't happen, so before it does, I'll destroy everything."

Melissa sank lower into the water, blowing a raspberry in frustration. "Ugh, I didn't even think about clones... That would be a whole other problem."

"Tell me about it..." Tony muttered, rubbing his temples.

Suddenly, Melissa perked up and turned to face him, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Say, if they made a clone using both of our blood, would that technically be considered our child?"

Tony groaned. "Melissa… please, don't even go there. That's another headache waiting to happen. I don't even want to think about it."

Melissa wasn't deterred. "I mean, would we just abandon it because it's a clone made in a lab? It'd still be made from our DNA, a completely different genetic makeup, so it wouldn't even be just a clone—it'd be our child, right?"

Tony, without opening his eyes, reached out and covered her mouth to stop the train of thought. He had enough on his plate already, and this was the last thing he needed to consider.

When he peeked to see if she'd stopped, he regretted it. Melissa was looking up at him with sad, wide eyes, and it hit him like a punch to the gut. He sighed heavily, his resolve weakening. He slowly moved his hand away.

"Would... would you really abandon it if it came to be?" she asked softly, her voice barely a whisper.

Tony leaned in and kissed the side of her head, his lips lingering there for a moment. "You're thinking too deeply into this," he murmured. "Nothing's happened yet. There's no clone, there's no decoded serum, and it'll take them a long time to isolate anything from our blood. You're only hurting yourself by worrying about something that doesn't exist."

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close, resting his chin on the top of her messy bun. Melissa melted into the embrace, she turned around and vegan holding onto him tightly, her concerns still lingering in the back of her mind but soothed for now.

But Tony's eyes grew cold as he held her. A steely, emotionless look crossed his face, a silent promise flickering behind his gaze. 'Just for making her feel this way, I won't hesitate to obliterate them all. Whoever is responsible… they can all burn. For all I care, they can go to hell, and I would personally escort them there' 

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