Ironwatts?

Honestly the way Watts spoke during the fight felt like very real hurt. I truly believe it HAS to be more than a funding-feud, or even just hurt pride.

And I very much like exploring the idea of one-sided pining.

The fact that Arthur said “You chose [him] over me!” felt personal. Looking back at Arthurs character allusion, he’s meant to be based on Dr. Watson from the Sherlock Holmes novels but if Watson went evil and joined Moriarty (Salem). But that implies he once had a Sherlock who he must have been very close to and worked alongside.

I initially thought this was Pietro, as they had previously worked together, and Pietro is a genius. But the way Arthur spoke about him, makes it sound as though he’s always hated Pietro. What he focuses on in that one emotional line, is insulting Pietro and not even using his name: “that fat imbecile!” and also seemingly caring more about who James “chose”. It felt personal, like Arthur had felt rejected by James.

Maybe, Ironwood was his Sherlock, and he felt discarded by him.

Perhaps there was a growing rift between the two that Arthur couldn’t stand, and this was the tipping point. Ironwood also stating “I gave you everything you could’ve wanted!” can imply a LOT. Funding? Support? Attention? Love? It also implies a little bit more about their relationship. Ironwood wasn’t just some guy who chose what projects to fund, they seemed to be very important in each others lives. Lines like “You NEVER appreciated my genius!” imply a long term relationship with a lot of issues.

The way they fought each other so viciously also implies there was a massive falling out prior to Watts faking his death. There was a lot of emotional baggage in that fight.

Watts spoke as though he felt rejected/discarded by Ironwood, while Ironwood spoke as though he was tired of Arthur, and didn’t understand his hurt.

“You always were a pain in the ass” is a line from Ironwood that implies having known him for a considerable amount of time, yet admitting that throughout that time he wasn’t fond of him.

In contrast, Watts speaks as though he felt rejected by Ironwood which implies a desire to be acknowledged/accepted by him, therefore admiring/respecting him. Seemingly more so than Ironwood felt for him.

Something along the lines of one-sided and unrequited pining could be a possibility with this in mind, or at the very least, really interesting angst to think about for fanfic-fodder.