Archive of Our Own

 “I don’t know, Thor. Maybe I should have gotten one in red.”

Thor chuckles, watching with intrigue as his friend scrutinises the dress in his hands. Carefully he reaches out to rub his thumb across the blue material, tracing along the intricate patterns woven into the silk. It’s of a high quality, as far as Thor can garner. Fit for a noble on Asgard.

“I wouldn’t worry, Tony. This is a fine make. I’m sure that Pepper will appreciate it.”

“I hope so.” The hint of worry is still clear in Tony’s voice but his shoulders relax a little and he gives Thor a grateful smile. Thor returns it warmly, wondering at the uncharacteristic nervousness that has led to Tony asking Thor of all people for advice. Not that he isn’t glad to be of assistance to someone who has become one of his closest friends, but Thor is under no delusion that he would be the first pick for relationship advice in a world where so many of the customs are still foreign to him. At least this is an opportunity to learn. 

“What’s the occasion?” he asks as Tony carefully begins to fold the dress back into its decorative box.

“Uh, Valentine’s Day. This Friday. I’m taking her out to dinner.” When he glances up Tony sees the confusion on Thor’s face and elaborates, “It’s kind of a special holiday here. You’re supposed to do something nice for the person you care about. And I care about Pepper…a lot, so…” He gestures grandly to the now packed up box on the table.

“I see.”

At that moment the elevator pings. Four more Avengers enter the common room. 

“Ooh, is that a present for me?” Clint’s eyes twinkle with mischief as he reaches for the box in Tony’s hands. With a surprising amount of dexterity, Tony switches places with him and skitters out of the way, walking backwards towards the elevator.

“I already grace you with my presence, Barton. That should be enough. But then, I also pay for your rent, your arrows, your -”

“- Point taken!” Clint throws his hands up in surrender, still grinning from ear to ear. “Say hi to Pepper for me.”

“And ruin the mood?” Tony snarks back just as the elevator doors close on him.

It is in a light-hearted manner that the remaining Avengers settle around the room. The two SHIELD agents immediately bag the couch, legs casually tangling together as they scroll through a list of movies. Bruce and Steve make their way over to the kitchen area.

As he passes, Bruce bumps his hip playfully into Thor’s, silently prompting him to follow.

“How’s your day going?” Bruce asks as they walk.

“A lot better now that you’re here.”

Thor smirks triumphantly when he sees the reluctant smile and tinge of pink spread across Bruce’s face.

“You picked that line up from Tony, didn’t you?”

“Maybe.”

“I knew leaving you two alone was a bad idea.”

While Steve settles himself down on a stool, Thor begins dutifully rummaging through the cupboards and handing ingredients to Bruce. Bruce himself is cutting up some strange black pods (‘vanilla’ he calls it when Thor asks), adding them to the simmering saucepan of milk beside him. Occasionally he glances up to look at Thor and each time his demeanour becomes more relaxed.

“Pass the chocolate would you please?”

Chocolate is a substance that Thor has become happily familiar with in his time on earth and he passes it over gladly, knowing from experience that Bruce has a way when it comes to making the delicious taste incredible. Then he takes the stool next to Steve and together they watch Bruce work his magic. (Or ‘chemistry’ as he’s once called it.)

“So what were you and Tony doing up here?” Steve begins conversationally. A second later his face morphs into a slightly panicked expression and he backtracks, much to Thor’s amusement. “Not that there’s anything weird about you two hanging out but -”

“It’s alright. Tony just wanted my opinion on his gift for Miss Potts. Apparently he’s taking part in something called a Valentine’s Day?”

He’s surprised when Steve chuckles at this. “Ah. Makes sense why he didn’t come to me then.”

“Or me.” Bruce says as he brings two steaming mugs over to them. “Hot chocolate?” He offers one to each of them before turning back to prepare three more.

Thor frowns confused. “Neither of you have participated in this celebration before?”

“I tried once, back when I was a teenager.” Steve looks wistful. “Gave Helen-Marie Smith a paper rose and asked her to the spring dance.”

“A rose?”

“You give it to someone you’re sweet on. Shows that you like them.”

“And then you take them dancing?”

At this Steve’s smile becomes bashful. “Well that’s what we used to do. Can’t say I ever got that far. I was too small for most girls to want to dance with.”

Thor nods once. “And you, Bruce?” He turns to the other man curiously. At this point Thor has an insatiable interest in this new tradition and he intends to find out if he can utilise it.

Bruce puts down the three mugs he’d been balancing and contemplates the question. “You know I only ever had one girlfriend. My high-school sweetheart and I, we weren’t really into the Valentine thing. It was always just another day for us.” Suddenly his lip quirks and he stares into his mug looking nostalgic. “Actually, there was one day. It was the last year before we graduated. Betty’s idea…”

Thor becomes completely captivated by the expression on Bruce’s face as he listens to him describe a late-night date at a lake, privileged to be privy to this side of Bruce. He drinks up every word with rapt interest.

“…and when we’d emptied the bottle between us we just sat by the lake and talked until dawn. I remember thinking how beautiful it was, watching the sunrise with her. Peaceful…like, for the first time, everything was okay.”  

“Sounds like you were lucky to have her.” Thor says gently.

“I was.” By Odin, those eyes are intense. Filled with emotion; fondness, regret, nostalgia. This is the deep part of Bruce that comes forward from time to time in moments of confidence and relaxation. The part he’d kept hidden for so long even after joining the Avengers. The part Thor treasures to be trusted with and will hold onto beyond the gates of Valhalla.

Its then that Steve coughs awkwardly and the two of them blink as if coming out of a trance. Realising that he’s been leaning across the counter - far enough that his hands are almost touching Bruce’s - Thor pulls himself backwards and takes a long sip from his now lukewarm drink.  Above the rim of his mug he sees that Bruce’s ears have gone pink.

“Anyway…” Bruce clears his throat and clicks his tongue. “Another lifetime.” Steve makes a noise of agreement.

“Hey,” Natasha calls to them from the couch. “If you boys are gonna spend all night having heart-to-hearts, can we just start the movie without you?”

“It’s fine we’re coming.”

Steve collects the mugs from where Bruce had put them down and heaves himself up, wandering off towards the sitting area. Thor lingers a moment more, eyes fixed on Bruce, mind spinning with the new information he’s been given.

Bruce looks slightly nervous when he speaks again. “Betty was special to me.” He steps forward at the same time Thor comes around the counter so they’re almost standing toe to toe. “But I’m glad I’ve got you.” He leans up to plant a small kiss on Thor’s chin before he gently takes his hand and pulls him along to join the others. The heat that spreads within Thor lasts throughout the night while they sit huddled together, watching the movie Clint and Natasha had chosen.

…

When Thor wakes early the next morning it’s with a heavy weight on his chest. Literally: Bruce’s hair is almost in his mouth. They must have fallen asleep together on the couch at some point during the night. Not an uncommon occurrence for the two of them.

Very gently Thor lifts Bruce away from his body and slips out from beneath him. As he does this a thick, multi-coloured afghan falls to the ground. No doubt Steve’s doing. Thor picks the afghan back up and spreads it back across Bruce’s shoulders, being careful not to wake him. If there’s one thing that Thor has learned over the years, it’s that Bruce never gets enough sleep.

Intending to prepare a pot of Bruce’s favourite tea for when he wakes, Thor makes his way over to the kitchen and nearly collides with Natasha coming from the opposite end.

“Sorry. After you.” He spreads a hand towards the door, allowing her to enter first. She flashes him a sweet smile and heads straight for the coffeemaker.

Thor sifts through the many boxes until he finds what he needs and settles down to wait for the water to boil. As he watches it begin to bubble, his mind drifts back to last night.

He’s surprised that he hasn’t heard of Valentine’s Day before now, what with it seeming to be such a big deal here. Even for Steve who was born in a different completely generation of humans to the rest. But then Thor had been going back and forth between Earth and Asgard a lot in the past years. At least in the time before he realised his feelings for Bruce. He must have missed it.

Now that he knows about this special day, does this mean he should participate? In the past he’s always taken part in any and all festivities he discovers (he has a special fondness for what humans call ‘Christmas’). Tony had said it’s a time to show your affections for someone. Thor knows that for him that means Bruce. There is no one he’d rather celebrate with.

And there lies the issue.

Will Bruce want to celebrate with him?

Suddenly Natasha appears besides him, breaking him out of his musing. “Penny for your thoughts?”

Thor blinks, unsure of how to answer correctly.

“It’s a figure of speech.” Natasha clarifies coolly. “I’m asking what you’re thinking of that’s got you so quiet.”

Thor adds it to his mental list of phrases and shoots back defensively, “You’re being quiet.”

“I’m always quiet.”

He considers for a moment. He and Natasha have never been as close as with the others – what with being near opposite ends of the spectrum in personality - but he has a profound respect and admiration for her. Plus she spends a fair amount of time with Bruce. He can trust her with this.

“Where do you stand on Valentine’s Day? Have you ever celebrated it?”

She tilts he head thoughtfully and sips on her coffee. A moment later she answers, “No. Romance…is for people who can afford to get attached. I was never given the luxury. ”

“Not even with Barton?”

Natasha narrows her eyes and the corner of her mouth quirks upwards.

“Maybe in another lifetime…”

It strikes Thor how similar it is to what Bruce had said after he’d told them about Betty.

Something must have registered on his face because Natasha sees right through him. “This is about Bruce, isn’t it?”

There’s no point in hiding it. “I am…conflicted on the matter. It sounds like an agreeable opportunity for me to prove my affections for him but…” When he pauses she raises her eyebrows, indicating for him to continue. “…there’s still much I do not know. I don’t wish to cause him any aggravation with a misinformed attempt.”

To his surprise Natasha lets out a soft snort. “If I’ve been reading Bruce right – and that’s likely, even without the obvious heart eyes he gives you when you’re not looking– he’s too far-gone with you for something like that to cause any kind of rift between you.”

Thor feels his cheeks heat a little but the worry does not dissipate. “Even so…”

“Hey,” Natasha gives his shoulder a light tap with her fist. “You love Bruce right?”

“Yes.” The answer is immediate.

“The he’s just as lucky to have you as you are to have him. And if he’s smart he’ll remember that.”

Thor’s reply is interrupted by the water coming to a boil. He moves to take it off the heat, pouring it into the ornate pot he’d set aside. He sighs when he finishes, adding the leaves and running a hand across his face. He turns back to Natasha. “Even if I was going to do something for him… I wouldn’t know how. Steve says you’re supposed to present a rose and go dancing, but I have only ever learned the Asgardian way of dance. And Tony says to treat him to dinner but I’m not a cook!”

Natasha worries at her bottom lip thoughtfully as she listens to his lament. A moment later her face lights up. “I might be able to help.” It surprises him when she turns on her heel and makes to leave the room. “We’ll talk later,” is the last statement she gives before disappearing into the hall.

For a moment Thor just stands there, thrown off by the blunt ending to their conversation. But he doesn’t have time to dwell on it as a moment later Bruce shuffles in.

The afghan, still draped loosely around his shoulders, nearly dislodges as he stretches and pops his back.

“Remind me again why I slept on the couch when I have a perfectly comfortable bed upstairs” He says tiredly, rubbing at his eyes. Thor is pleased to see that the dark rings around them have lessened somewhat.

“Well you never do seem to use the bed for sleeping in.” The sharp glare that Bruce sends his way is mollified by both his exhaustion and his fondness for Thor. Even so, Thor quickly changes the subject. “Tea? It’s your favourite.”

Bruce slumps down at the counter as Thor pours out a steaming cup and hands it to him. He makes a pleased noise when he takes his first sip. “You’re right. This is my favourite.”

“Are you surprised?”

As Bruce’s smile grows the last remnants of early-morning lethargy fade from his face. “No.” He sounds content.

Thor feels content. Perhaps Natasha has a point about them.

…

Later in the day, Thor has just finished a gym session with a few of the other Avengers and is about to leave when Natasha catches his arm.

“You got time to talk?”

“I’m supposed to be meeting Bruce.” Thor protests as she pulls him back into the room.

“Don’t worry about that. Tony is keeping him occupied. I’d say we have a couple of hours before they fix the problem he’s created in the labs.”

Thor narrows his eyes at this. A moment later an apologetic message from Bruce on the tiny screen he keeps in his pocket (‘phone’ he reminds himself) confirms Natasha’s guess. He sighs and hands it to her. “Tell him it’s alright. He’ll be worried if he thinks he’s let me down.” The accusatory tone doesn’t faze her as she follows through with his request, typing with one hand as the other remains firmly on his arm, dragging him along.

“Believe me you’ll more than make up for it this weekend.” They reach the centre of the room. The wide sparring mat they step onto is lined with benches, one of which is occupied by Steve and Clint. They two wave at him as Natasha speaks, “You’re still up for Valentine’s Day, right?”

“I- ” Thor is unsure of what to say. He hasn’t even confirmed to himself whether or not he’s actually going through with Valentine’s Day, let alone Natasha.

“Well, we are going to help you. Come on. First lesson is dancing.”

Carefully she guides his hands to her waist and shoulder. He considers, for a moment, backing out. It would be easier. Bruce would be none the wiser to his almost-attempt at wooing him. Why risk ruining what he already has?

No. He knows how he feels about Bruce. But he wants something more. And he’s not such a coward as to back down from a challenge.

“Watch my feet…”

…

An hour later, Thor’s feet have begun to ache. Even with his enhanced endurance, the energy it had taken to keep up with Natasha – combined with the gym session he’d taken before hand - has taken its toll. It’s almost a relief when the music cuts off and Natasha finally let’s go of him. She turns to Steve and Clint.

“What do you boys think?”

Clint purses his lips and makes a considering ‘meh’ face. “He’s obviously not on your level…but not bad. I doubt Bruce will be able to tell he’s never done this before.” He turns to Thor. “Who knows, you may be able to show him a few moves by the end of the night.” He waggles his eyebrows suggestively.

Steve, on the other hand, gives a look of complete bafflement. “Don’t ask me. As far as I could tell you’re pretty good…but then I’m not really any kind of expert on dancing.”

“You’ll get your chance.” It’s not obviously apparent to an outsider but Thor can feel the buzzing of energy radiating from Natasha as she speaks. (When he discreetly questions Clint about it later he’ll simply be given the word ‘dancing’ and left to ponder by himself).

Thor’s phone pings again. Another message from Bruce, asking if he still wants to meet. With a quick goodbye and a promise to Natasha to keep his day free tomorrow, he hastens out of the room. Bruce meets him in the elevator, looking flustered.

“Thor! I’m so sorry about today. There was a leak in one of the containment -”

Thor cuts him off, placing both hands on his shoulders and pulling him in for a hug. His arms ache from holding them up for so long but the body heat leaching out from Bruce is soothing. It almost loosens his knotted muscles. Sometimes – times like these - he just needs to hold onto Bruce. Remind himself that he’s here, that he won’t lose him like he loses everyone else.

(Don’t think about Mother. Don’t think about Loki.) 

Bruce wraps his own arms around Thor, sighing happily. “I really am sorry.”

“I understand. It’s not your fault.”

“I was thinking of going for a walk today -” Thor is glad Bruce can’t see the way his face cringes at the idea. He’s not sure he’s up for anything remotely active after today – “But I’m too tired now. Want to head to my floor and snuggle?”

The tension eases from Thor and he sighs in relief. Hopefully Bruce takes it for contentment. “Just snuggle?”

“Maybe read a bit too.”

Thor chuckles warmly and presses the button to take them to Bruce’s floor.

…

The next morning Thor heads down to the common room, as per Natasha’s instructions. She and Clint are squashed together on one of the plush, leather chairs when he arrives, Natasha balancing coffee in one hand and a book in the other. Clint leans against her shoulder, occasionally prying the mug from her hands to take a sip before handing it back and continuing to twiddle with the device in his hands (“it’s called a hearing aid, does what it says on the tin”).

When he sees Thor he quickly places it back in his ear, chirping out a happy, “Morning, Thor!” and nudging Natasha hard enough to almost knock the drink out of her hands. In retaliation, Natasha pushes Clint away, causing him to roll off the chair, onto the floor and back onto his feet in one swift springing motion.

Natasha herself stretches her arms high above her head and pulls herself up to greet Thor on a more equal level. General pleasantries out the way, she cuts straight to the plan for the day.

“Clint’s going to spend the morning teaching you how to cook. And later Steve and Tony will help you with gifts and clothes and all that stuff.”

“And you?”

“I’m on distracting Bruce today.” At his dubious expression she holds up a hand. “Nothing as stressful as yesterday, I promise. I’ll probably ask him to teach me some yoga or something.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Thor nods.

Clint pumps his fist triumphantly. “Finally, my turn! This is going to be great.”

…

“Nonononono, turn the heat down!”

“You said to turn it up!”

“Yeah, I meant like a quarter turn not a full - Turn it off!”

“I’m trying!” Thor pokes at the dial on the hob, while Clint fetches a towel to snatch up the blackened pot. When the smoke finally clears Thor hears a strangled laugh. Turning his head he sees Clint holding up what was once a piece of beef, now blackened, balancing on the tip of a fork.

“How,” Clint says, incredulity evident in his tone, “Are you so bad at this?”

“I’ve never cooked on Asgard! That’s what servant are for.”

“Still.” Clint scoffs again. He takes a tentative nibble of the charcoal in front of him and immediately scrunches up his face. “Ugh.”

“Stop, it’s not that bad.”

“Oh, do you want to try it?”

Thor jumps back, out of reach from the fork being jabbed towards his mouth. In any other circumstance he probably would have laughed at Clint’s antics. As it is he’s been trying to learn how to cook for a couple of hours now. With every mistake he makes his ire grows. He bangs the counter behind him with a fist (still being mindful of his own strength of course – he has learnt something in his time on Earth).

“Hey,” The amusement dies from Clint face, replaced with a soft concern. “We’ll find something for you. We’ve got until tomorrow night.”

Sighing in agreement, Thor pulls out a fresh pan and readies himself for another round.

…

“Stop tugging, Thor.” Tony swats at his fingers with one hand while using the other to continue fastening the golden bowtie around his neck. Huffing, Thor relaxes his arms and lets Tony work. From behind Tony, Steve grimaces sympathetically.

Finally done, Tony steps back to admire his handiwork. Again; this is the third suit he’s tried tonight, each complete with a colour coordinated tie, waistcoat, belt and shoes. But so far none of them have been ‘right’. At least according to Tony’s taste.

“I think this might be a winner. Gold really is your colour. A little flashy – maybe I could get a subtler shade…” He moves to puck the tie back out of the collar but Thor puts a hand on his wrist to stop him. 

“No more ties.”

Tony frowns at him but removes the tie, stepping back again. He tilts his head and crosses his arms as he considers.

“Well I guess it shows a bit of skin. Bit of collar. Yeah…this could work.”

Rolling his shoulders experimentally, Thor finds that he doesn’t nearly have as much room to move as in his usual attire. It’s constricting. “It still doesn’t feel right.”

“Thor, no offense buddy, but you have absolutely no sense of fashion and I have pictures to prove it.”

“Tony.” Despite his half-hearted reprimand, Steve looks thoughtful and he too tilts his head to scrutinise Thor. Finally, he speaks again. “I think Thor is right. It’s too much. He should be comfortable.”

Throwing up his hands dramatically, Tony snatches up the next suit he’d laid out and storms back over to the wardrobe. When he reaches it he throws open the doors so that the two can see inside. “Fine. You pick something, Cap. Since you’re such an expert on this.” Then he plops down onto the floor, folding his arms in the manner that reminded Thor of a petulant child.

“Tony…” Steve rolls his eyes fondly. Tony only gestures grandly to the open wardrobe.

“Go on.”

As he passes, Steve ruffles Tony’s hair affectionately before moving on to dig through the sea of clothes hung in a line. A small, begrudging smile sprouts on Tony’s face.

In the meantime, Thor begins stripping himself of his waistcoat, belt and shoes until all that’s left is his shirt and trousers.

Steve takes a lot longer to decide than Tony but eventually he comes out with a simple, v-neck, grey shirt and a pair of dark jeans.

“Ugh.” This time it’s Tony rolling his eyes. “Boring.” But there’s no conviction in it. He looks more curious than miffed.

Thor takes the clothes from Steve and goes to change. He rolls the sleeves up on the shirt, feeling better to have some of his arms exposed. Freer. Unrestricted.

When he gets back Steve has pulled out a pair of boots and a dark red jacket to match. Now fully dressed, Thor turns back to Tony, thinking it only fair to include him in the verdict.

Lucky for him Tony actually looks impressed. “Subtle…I like it. It seems a lot more Bruce’s speed anyway.” He hold out a hand to Steve, who shakes it. “Nice job, Cap.”

Thor smiles at them gratefully. “Thank you, my friends, for your help. I know you didn’t have to -”

“Sure we did,” Tony cuts him off. “You’re our friend. You and Bruce.” His face becomes more serious. “I want Bruce to be happy. Just so happens you might be the one to make that happen.” Now he comes closer to Thor, jabbing a finger in his face. “But I’m sure I don’t need to give you the talk about what will happen if you mess this up…”

For a man so small, Tony Stark can be quite fierce when he wants to be.

“Don’t, Tony. You’re making him nervous,” Steve admonishes.

“Believe me,” Thor says sincerely, “I don’t want that to happen any more than you do. I…” he takes a deep breath. “I love Bruce.”

“I should hope so.” The straight face Tony has been trying to keep breaks and he claps his hands together with enthusiasm. “Right! Present. What are we thinking? New watch, theatre tickets, chocolates?”

This is something Thor has been pondering for a while. Ever since he learned that gifts were a part of this celebration.

“I was thinking that Steve could help me with this one.” He turns to said man beseechingly. In the corner of his vision he sees Tony blink in a stupefied manner, before throwing up his hands.

“All right. I’m still here for shovel talk and moral support. Go team.”

Thor smiles awkwardly. “Thank you, Tony. Your assistance has been invaluable to me.”

Tony nods. “I’ll leave you to it then.” He hurries out the door.

Steve looks at him inquisitively. “What can I do for you?”

“Well…” It feels like an odd request. Is it an odd request? “I was wondering…if you could teach me how to make a rose?”

There’s a beat of silence.

“Uhhh.” Steve’s jaw hangs open slightly.

“You. Don’t have to!” Thor rushes in before he can respond. “I mean. I know it might be wrong to ask – that you might not want to, which is fine -”

“No no, it’s not that.” Steve interrupts. “It’s just that I didn’t actually give her like an actual rose. It was a drawing. In charcoal.”

“Oh.” Thor’s heart sinks. Well at least it hadn’t weirded Steve out. “I suppose I should think of something else then…”

A familiar determined expression forms on Steve’s face. “Not quite. I have an idea, come on.”

…

Half an hour later, Thor and Steve are in one of the labs. Scraps of red paper litter the bench they’re sat at, some of them crumpled and tossed aside, others folded into abstract shapes. The screen in front of them displays an instructional video on how to make a paper rose.

Origami. That’s what Steve had called it. Apparently it’s a hobby he’s been developing. And although he’s yet to have ever succeeded in making a rose in particular, a quick request to JARVIS allows them to learn together.

Thor makes the last fold on his rose and holds it out in front of him. It looks nothing like a rose. Sighing, he screws it up and picks up another piece of paper from the pile.

“This isn’t going to work.”

“Sure it will,” Steve says. His tongue sticks out of the corner of his mouth slightly as he tries to concentrate. “That’s just one of the things about art. It takes practice. And time. But you’ll get there.”

Thor drops the paper, groaning and putting his head in his hands, “This may all be for nothing anyway.”

Steve stops in his work, looking confused. “What do you mean?”

“It’s still possible that Bruce will not take well to being surprised in such a manner. How can I be sure that he won’t hate me?”

“Thor, Bruce could never hate you.” He sounds so sure. An echo of Natasha’s reassurances. Two people saying the same thing should be enough to put Thor’s mind at ease. But it isn’t.

Before he can speak again Steve continues, “If you’re worried, you can always just ask him.”

Thor frowns. “Am I not already asking him?”

“No, I mean…before the date. Tonight, even. Ask him if he’d be okay with you surprising him tomorrow.”

“But then it wouldn’t be a surprise.”

Steve shrugs. “You don’t have to tell him everything. Just give him a fair warning. Put you mind at ease.”

Thor considers. The others had been insistent that Bruce remain in the dark while they aided him in his preparations. That was a choice he had gone along with. But at the end of the day it was his idea to do this. If he were to change his mind they’d have no reason to begrudge him. And even if they did, Bruce’s happiness comes first.

Always.

Thor goes back to folding his paper, turning the idea over in his mind. A few minutes later he finishes and holds up his prize.

It’s a little crooked but there can be no doubt.

Steve notices and beams. “Now that’s a damn fine rose.”

…

Bruce is hard at work when Thor bursts in.

“Bruce.”

“Thor?” Bruce looks up at Thor from the bench he’s currently hunched over. After the catastrophe in the lab the other day, he’s been putting extra care into how he handles his experiments. “I thought we were meeting after dinner today?” He frowns and makes to pull back his sleeve to check his watch. “I’m not late again am I?”

“No!” Thor’s shout makes him jump a little. To his credit, Thor looks apologetic and lowers his voice. “You aren’t late. I just needed to ask you something.”

Bruce furrows his brow. This sounds serious. In fact it must be; Thor had been unable to wait until they saw each other again later in the day. He pushes away from the bench, straightening up to give Thor his full attention. There’s a slight tremor in Thor’s hands. He’s also breathing deeply, as if preparing himself for what he’s about to say. That’s definitely not good.

Bruce’s mind whirls. Has he done something wrong? Is Thor going to stop seeing him? Sure, they weren’t officially together as far as anyone outside knew. But with their closeness, Bruce had thought it to be a given…

“I was wondering…if – if it would not be, um, amiss…for me to ask …”

Despite his own nervousness, Bruce reaches out a tentative hand to Thor’s wrist and squeezes gently. To his relief Thor doesn’t pull away. Perhaps it is something else. “What is it?” he prompts gently.

Taking a deep breath, Thor begins again, speaking slower. “Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. And…while I’ve only been aware of it for a brief period of time, I wanted to ask you…if I could surprise you for it.”

Well. That was unexpected. There’s a beat of silence where Bruce tries to get over that it is not, in fact, the end of the world for him. He must have paused for too long because Thor nearly pulls away again. Desperately, Bruce latches his other hand onto Thor’s arm, stepping closer as he does so.

“Are you asking me to be your Valentine?” he asks softly.

Thor audibly gulps. “I am.”

Its then that Bruce laughs. A warm, euphoric chuckle that pushes the corners of his mouth high and leaves a buzzing in his breast. Swiftly stepping forward, once again toe to toe - chest to chest - he leans up and captures Thor’s mouth in a searing kiss. Thor’s arms wrap around him instinctively, melting into him as they lock into a heated embrace.

When they break apart Thor wears that goofy grin that Bruce loves so much on his now slightly pink face. “Is that a yes?”

“What do you think?” Bruce mutters as he pulls himself upwards for a second kiss.

…

As Bruce makes his way to the elevator the next evening, he’s stopped by the familiar tingling in the back of his neck. He’s being watched.

 As someone who’s been developing his instincts for the majority of his life, he supposes he’d better investigate. He still has time.

It’s not much of a mystery. The moment he rounds the corner to the kitchen he’s met with all four of the remaining Avengers, each in varying states of suspicious stances (Natasha would seem perfectly in place making tea, if not for the fact that Bruce knows that she hates that particular brand. Tony, on the other hand, is straight up reading a recipe book upside down.)

“Hey Bruce.” Clint greets from his position atop the hob. If Bruce had to guess, Clint had panicked and sat himself on the nearest thing to him. “Whatcha up to?”

“I was on my way to meet Thor.”

“He said yes.” Tony mumbles in a singsong voice, eyes never leaving the book in his hands. Steve punches his leg, which he can do from his position crouching under the counter.

“Yeah, well, we all knew he would.” Clint must have decided to give up any pretences that they hadn’t been spying on him.

“O-kay.” Now he’s thoroughly weirded out. Deciding that he’d really rather not know he rushes out back down the hall.

“Have a nice night!” He thinks he hears Natasha call just as he reaches the elevator.

…

When he enters Thor’s floor (now dressed up in his favourite purple shirt) he immediately spies the table laid out in the main room. It’s decorated simply enough; a pot of smoking incense on one side and a candle on the other. The lights had been dimmed from their usual glare to a soft, golden ambience that immediately made Bruce feel welcome. Thor had really thought this through.

Oddly enough, the god in question is nowhere to be seen.

“Thor?” He calls, wondering at the absence. Was this a part of the surprise?

Bruce’s cheeks immediately flush as his imagination flourishes and he shakes his head to clear it.

From the bedroom of to the side he hears a soft curse. Then: “Bruce!”

Curious, Bruce rounds the corner and peeks through the door…

Thor stands in front of the mirror, hair in one hand, comb in the other. Seeing Bruce in the mirror he whips around, looking mortified. “Sorry…I misread the time.”

Bruce chuckles softly and steps into the room. Carefully prying the comb out of Thor’s hands he begin running it through the golden strands, smoothing them down until they come together into a neat bundle.

“Hair tie?”

Thor passes it over. When he is done Bruce stands up on his tiptoes and kisses the top of his head. The he steps back, admiring his handiwork.

He has to say, Thor looks good in a bun.

Flustered as ever, Thor thanks him and leads him back into the main room with the table. Then he disappears into his private kitchen, coming back a moment later with two steaming bowls of stew in hand.

As he tucks in, Bruce recognises it as a Hungarian goulash. “Did you make this?” he asks.

“Yes. Although I did get some assistance from Clint,” Thor admits.

“Huh,” Bruce hums. “I didn’t know you could cook. Actually, I didn’t know Clint could cook.”

“Yes, well…apparently you pick up some skills when you’re undercover in Budapest. Or so he tells me.” Just then his eyes widen, as if a sudden realisation had dawned. “Wait here.”

Bruce is perplexed when Thor races back out the room. He looks down at his bowl. Would it be rude to carry on eating alone?

Luckily, Thor isn’t gone too long.

When he re-enters it’s with his hands behind his back. Rather than return to his own seat, Thor stops in front of Bruce.

“I have a gift for you. Bruce,” He pulls out some kind of flower made of brightly coloured paper from behind his back and proffers it. “It’s a rose. Because I like you. Love…you.” He corrects at the end.

All at once Bruce’s eyes grow hot and his heart does a summersault in his chest. He takes the rose gently between his thumb and finger, bringing it up to his face in a mockery of smelling it.

“You know,” he says, “Even though I’ve never been able to catch so much as a cold since the Hulk, hay fever has always stayed with me for some reason.” This is perfect.

He knows he’s beaming. It’s reflected in Thor’s own glimmering eyes, just as he grins back.

“I don’t have a rose for you but you should know that I like – love – you too.” Oh god, what, are they teenagers?

It sure feels like it when Thor takes his hand, pulling him up and into the middle of the room. The lights dim to almost black and soft music begins to play in the background.

“Now I get to show you my moves.” Thor lifts his eyebrows at him suggestively. A familiar gesture. Just not on Thor’s face.

“I swear, I’m going to murder Clint.”