The moment Tony Stark held his baby girl in his arms for the first time was the best moment of his life. He sat at the bedside of his long-term girlfriend, Sofia, looking down at the beautiful little girl. Wide eyes gazed up at him, silently and all he could do was smile.

The twenty-year-old genius had never thought he was going to be a father so early in his life. He was young and still reckless and now he had the responsibility of taking care of a tiny human being. Tony had been terrified at the thought of being a father, especially since his relationship with his own father was so strained. He was scared.

All the worried thoughts about being a new parent faded away though as he held his daughter in his arms. Glancing up at Sofia, he saw a tired, yet happy, smile grace her features.

"She's going to look like you," Tony said. Sofia laughed.

"I don't think so Tony. If anything she'll be the perfect mix of each of us." Tony started to laugh as well, shaking his head.

"What? Beautiful and kind like her mother, and a smart ass like her father?" Sofia laughed harder before sobering up some.

"No," she stated simply, "And watch your language, we have a kid now."

Sofia was always the more mature out of the two of them. She was a little older than Tony was, but only by a year or so. The couple had met while Tony was attending his last year at MIT. Sofia attended the university as well though she was just a freshman when they met. Tony was intriguing to her. Someone only a year younger than herself was getting ready to graduate the prestigious school while she was only beginning her time there.

Sofia had wandered into one of the labs to work on her midterm project when they had first met. Tony was well… himself, but Sofia did not back down. She was a formidable opponent when it came to battles of wit. That was what made her intriguing to Tony.

Sofia continued her previous thought, "Our daughter will be beautiful and kind and courageous and ridiculously smart like her parents. She will be everything we ever dreamed of and she'll have two parents who love her very much." She smiled at her daughter who had drifted off to sleep in Tony's arms.

Tony met his girlfriend's eyes and leaned in to give her a chaste kiss. "Well what are we going to name our perfect daughter then?" he asked looking back down at the bundle in his arms. Sofia chuckled.

"I was thinking that we should name her after our mothers. Annabel Maria Stark." Tony's gaze shot up to hers again. His eyes glistened slightly, tears beginning to well up. Less than three months prior, Tony's parents, Howards and Maria Stark perished in a car accident. While his relationship with his father had not been the best, he loved his mother very much. Sofia's mother, Annabel, had passed on as well around two years before their daughter's birth and Sofia never knew her father.

"It's perfect," he said with a smile. After everything that Tony had been through the past few months, it was nice for things to start improving. At least for the time being.

Over the next few months, the couple and their daughter were faced with more and more challenges. On his twenty-first birthday, a couple months after the birth of their daughter, Tony officially inherited Stark Industries. Now being a father was not the only big responsibility he had. With Tony busy solidifying his position with the company, Sofia took care of Anna. The birth had taken more of a toll on her than she let on. It seemed as though she never fully recovered. By December of 1992, around the anniversary of Howard and Maria Stark's accident, it became clear that something was seriously wrong with Sofia.

She was not able to keep any food down, which caused her to lose weight and become malnourished, and was always fatigued. After only a week or so, she was admitted into the hospital for observation. Tony flew the best doctors in, hoping that they could figure out what was wrong with Sofia. However, the doctors were all baffled and could not come up with a definitive answer.

Tony was put in an uncomfortable position. He was distraught due to Sofia's deteriorating condition. He was stressed from running his company. He was struggling to find balance in this chaos so he could care for Anna.

A month later, on January 20, 1993, Tony went to visit Sofia in the hospital. Her eyes were barely cracked open and her breathing was shallow.

"Tony," she spoke softly, the corners of her lips tilting up in a smile. He tried to smile back but it was a sad smile. He sat down at her bedside and could not help but think about that the last time he was in this position he was holding their newborn daughter. Her smile started to fade as she noticed his forlorn expression. "I'm so sorry Tony. I'm sorry that I won't be there for you. I'm sorry I won't be there for our daughter."

"Stop apologizing. There's nothing for you to be sorry for. And stop acting like you're going to die. You're not going anywhere!" His sadness turned into a desperate sort of frustration at the thought of losing Sofia.

"Okay," she said to calm him down. The last thing she wanted to do was fight with him. The two spoke about anything but her condition for the rest of the night. Tony told her how Anna was already an overachiever and that she had begun to pull herself into a standing position and try to walk. Sofia laughed at that. Figures that Anna would take after her father and start to learn things quickly. She was not even eleven months old yet. Finally, the couple fell asleep, Sofia in her hospital bed and Tony in the chair beside it since Anna was at home with the nanny.

It was about three in the morning when Tony was woken up by and annoying and long beep. He opened his eyes groggily before jumping out of his chair and looking at the heart monitor.
"Help! Someone help!" he shouted running to the door to grab a doctor to help them. What was only a few seconds felt like hours before doctors flooded into the room.

A nurse ushered him into the hallway so that the doctors could try to revive Sofia. Again time seemed to go slower than reality. A doctor came out a few minutes later.

The doctor stood in front of Tony who was sitting on a bench in the hallway. "Mr. Stark, I'm sorry but—," Tony did not have to hear anymore. He knew what the doctor was going to say. Tony stood up and walked down the hall in a daze.

Sofia was gone. He was now a single father with no one to help raise Anna. Anna was going to grow up without the one person a young girl should have in her life, her mother. Tony did not know what he was going to do. He was lost now.

I know I shouldn't be posting another new story but bear with me. I've seen Civil War twice already and it pushed me to finally publish this. I've had the idea since the first Avengers came out. Eventually Steve will come into the story but I wanted to develop Anna first which is why I'm starting in Iron Man and not just doing flashbacks. Once Steve is introduced, it will be a slow burn but I hope you all enjoy!