On the deck of the Argo.
The survivors were lined up, leaning against the elevated helipad. The morning sun was warm, but the memory of the night's darkness was still fresh.
Cindy stared up at the sky. "I've made a decision."
Gwen, resting her head on Locke's shoulder, looked over. "A decision about what?"
Cindy snapped out of her daze. "My dream wedding was always supposed to be on a yacht. I've changed my mind. In the future, if my fiancé even suggests a boat, I'm going to break his head."
This was supposed to be a dream vacation, and it turned into a nightmare. Go back to sea? Only if she lost her damn mind.
"What about you, Gwen?"
"Me?" Gwen blinked, her gaze lingering on Locke for a heartbeat. She smiled softly. "I'm not afraid of the ocean. In fact, it's that kind of fear that keeps us wanting to explore, isn't it?"
Cindy shook her head. "No, I mean... any big takeaways?"
Gwen leaned back against Locke and thought for a moment. She straightened up and looked him in the eye. "Takeaways? Yeah. Locke proved to me that he can protect me. Really protect me."
She looked at Cindy, who was wrapped in Kahn's discarded jacket. "And Kahn proved he's reliable, didn't he?"
Kahn, now in just a t-shirt, gave a humble smile. Cindy glanced at him, then suddenly leaned over and pecked him on the cheek. She turned to Jennifer. "Jennifer, what about you?"
"Me?"
"Yeah."
Jennifer looked at Christian standing next to her and smiled. "Actually, back in the ballroom, right before everything went crazy... Christian proposed to me. I said yes. So, I guess my takeaway is that I'm getting married. Does that count?"
The group froze for a second.
"Holy shit!"
"For real?"
"Oh, God, congrats!"
The women, including Pepper, immediately swarmed Jennifer with congratulations. Locke and Dylan weren't surprised; they had been right there when Jennifer told her father, Robert, during the "swinging" portion of their escape. They just hadn't told anyone else during the scramble for survival.
Cindy and Gwen looked at each other. "We're your bridesmaids," they said in unison.
Jennifer laughed. "Deal. It's a promise."
Christian, meanwhile, was practically shivering. He could feel the two sharp, piercing rays of light coming from his future father-in-law. Robert Ramsey, the former Mayor of New York, was staring him down.
However, as Robert watched the young man, his gaze gradually softened. During the escape from the Poseidon, Christian had stepped up. He had shown the mettle of a man.
With a happy topic on the table, the atmosphere on the deck finally began to lighten. Cindy turned her curious gaze toward Pepper Potts. "Ms. Potts..."
"Just Pepper," she interrupted gently. "We spent the night in a sinking ship together. I think we're past titles."
Cindy smiled. "Okay, Pepper. What about you?"
Pepper sighed, a weary but peaceful look on her face. "A promotion, a massive raise, and a very long vacation. I need to find some time that belongs just to me."
She had started at Stark Industries at nineteen, interviewed by Howard Stark himself. She had transitioned to being Tony's secretary when he took over, and in all those years, she'd had almost no life of her own. Seeing the ship flip had made her realize her memories were 90% work and 10% managing Tony's rotating door of "guests."
Cindy nodded, then looked at Maggie.
Maggie gave a graceful smile, stroking the hair of little Connor, who was finally fast asleep in her lap. "Raising Connor. And if I'm lucky... maybe finding someone to settle down with."
Beside her, Dylan shifted slightly. Locke caught the movement out of the corner of his eye and suppressed a groan. Maggie was beautiful—a perfect "girl next door" type—but Locke personally would hesitate to jump into a ready-made family. Dylan, however, looked energized.
Back in Vegas, Dylan always preferred "big sisters" over girls his own age. He'd once tried to set a fourteen-year-old Locke up with an older woman after a big win. Locke had nearly clocked him. Thank God he wasn't that kind of guy.
The ladies were done. Now for the men.
Kahn, feeling Cindy's eyes on him, blurted out the "correct" answer instantly: "Whether it's the proposal or the wedding, it's happening on solid ground. No water allowed."
The group burst into laughter. Locke shook his head; it was clear Cindy wore the pants in that relationship. He just hoped Kahn wouldn't end up in court filing for domestic abuse later.
Cindy rolled her eyes at Kahn, giving him a "pass" for the answer, and looked at Locke. "Locke, your turn."
Locke chuckled. "Me?"
"Yeah."
Locke thought about Gwen's answer and smiled. "Good good study, day day up!"
Cindy blinked, confused. Gwen, however, pulled away from Locke's shoulder and looked at him with a spark of amusement in her eyes. "Study hard? Improve every day?"
Locke raised an eyebrow. "Exactly."
Gwen laughed. "I should have guessed."
She was a true "Learning God"—she picked up everything instantly. Locke was a "Fake Learning God"—he relied on his system; Gwen relied on raw talent.
Cindy didn't get the reference but accepted it as an answer. She moved to Christian.
Christian rubbed the back of his neck, looking at his fiancée and then at Robert. "When we get back, I'm going to keep proving to Mr. Ramsey that I can protect Jennifer."
The group glanced at Robert, who was pretending to be asleep, and gave Christian a "thumbs up." Then, all eyes fell on Dylan, who looked remarkably eager to share.
Dylan glanced at Maggie. "I've been drifting in Vegas for too long. I think... I'm going to see if I can stabilize my life."
'Then you're going to starve,' Locke thought, knowing his friend's primary motivation wasn't career stability.
Cindy and Gwen shared a look. They had seen Dylan carrying Connor almost the entire time during the escape. And they might have caught a glimpse of a very passionate kiss between Dylan and Maggie on the life raft when it was dark.
Finally, they looked at Robert. He was still "sleeping."
Dylan nudged him. "Hey. Your turn, buddy."
Robert opened his eyes and glared at Dylan. Seeing the expectant faces of his fellow survivors, he sighed. "I'm calculating how much is in Jennifer's wedding fund. I think I need to put in a few more shifts when we get back."
Jennifer froze. "Dad... does that mean you approve of Christian?"
Christian looked like he was about to faint from joy. Another round of cheers erupted.
Meanwhile, the corner where Tony and Happy sat was much quieter.
Happy watched the camaraderie with envy. "Dammit, why didn't they ask us?"
Tony glanced at him. "They're celebrating surviving a disaster. What are you celebrating?"
Happy sighed. "I wish I'd been on the Poseidon with you guys."
Tony felt a headache coming on. 'Happy should be grateful he wasn't.'
Actually, they should both be grateful. Tony had left the Poseidon early to wait for Pepper. Then, because of Pepper, they had narrowly escaped the "Deep Rising" event on the Argo by staying on the deck.
Tony looked at Pepper Potts, who was laughing with the others. His usually cynical expression softened into a small, rare, but genuine smile.
"You have your own Goddess of Luck."
Tony recalled Locke's words from the poker table: "Have you found your Goddess of Luck, Mr. Stark?" He looked at Pepper again. 'Yes, I think I have.'
Because of Pepper's reminder, they left the Poseidon before it flipped. Because of Pepper, they stayed out of the Argo's interior where the monster lurked.
Compared to this group of "survivors" planning their futures, Tony and Happy were the real winners. Locke's group had played a game of "Escape the Room" with death. Tony and Happy had just performed a masterclass in side-stepping the Reaper entirely.
Locke felt Tony's gaze and caught the meaning behind it. He looked back at Tony and gave a slight nod, his lips moving silently: Congratulations. You found her.
Just then—
*Vroooom!*
The sound of rotors cutting through the air shattered the moment
***
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