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Tony had been thrown a good few feet, rolling over asphalt and grass and gaining scrapes on his arms and thighs. His head was fine thanks to the helmet and while it wasn’t broken, his nose was definitely bleeding. He was still faring better than the bike which was a write-off. It hadn’t won against the pole.
Tony took a moment to simply admire the destruction before someone was kneeling in front of him, but well, not just someone; it was the cutie that caused the whole accident.
See, Rhodey had decided to get him out of the lab and into shape. The bicycle was a present. Tony could count on one hand the amount of presents he’d ever received from someone. He was still new to this ‘friends’ thing, but he was beyond touched. He also couldn’t say no or ignore the gift.
It was his third morning bicycling. He took his car to a park, even a suburban neighbourhood; anywhere new and potentially interesting. He wanted to keep the scenery fresh if he was going to stay engaged. And scenery there had been, specifically; a gorgeous guy in jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. He was standing in his front yard, watering plants. He didn’t have on shoes and was flicking his wrist to spray the water over the flowers.
It was so distracting that Tony didn’t concentrate on where he was steering and ran into a pole. It wasn’t one of his finer moments.
“Are you alright?” The cutie asked, kneeling down beside him. There was water sprayed over his jeans, and Tony wondered if he dropped the hose to race to Tony’s aid.
“Erm.”
“How many fingers am I holding up?”
A very pale hand was shoved in front of Tony’s face. There was a hint of black and green on his inner wrist, hidden by his sleeve. It looked like a dagger. Tony was desperate to know if he had other tattoos.
But, he should probably answer the man first. He was growing even more concerned the longer Tony was silent. “Three.”
He dropped his hand, frowning. “What year is it?”
“2018.”
“What city are we in?”
“New York,” Tony hurriedly interrupted before another question could be fired. “But seriously, I’m fine.”
The man looked him over, still frowning pensively and Tony took the moment to wiggle his feet and hands. He pushed himself into more of a sitting position. The man helped with a gentle touch to his back and side. Tony wished he had longer sleeves and could wipe the blood from his nose. Would it be going too far to pull up his shirt? Well, he had decent abs. Why not?
Tony carefully rolled up his shirt and gently dabbed at his face. He sneakily glanced at the other man, seeing green eyes flicker over and linger on Tony’s stomach and the hint of his treasure trail before his shorts got in the way. Tony tried not to grin as he dropped his shirt.
“Can you stand?” The man asked, back to looking at Tony’s face. “I have some first aid supplies in my house.”
“Yeah, and that would be great, uh...?”
“Loki.”
Tony smiled. “I’m Tony.”
Loki gave a faint smile back and assisted Tony to stand with a hand on the small of his back and his arm. Tony wobbled a little, but it wore off quickly. Loki picked up his bike for him and Tony grimaced. It was well and truly busted. Rhodey was going to be so disappointed.
“I think you’ll need to call someone for a lift,” Loki told him.
“I’m parked a few streets away. I can walk.” Tony answered. Loki raised his eyebrows, and Tony shifted uncomfortably. “What? I live in the city. I prefer the suburbs for bicycling.”
Tony didn’t mention that it was because he was less likely to be recognised the further outside of New York he went. Time enough later to mention that he was millionaire Howard Stark’s elusive and reclusive son; he’d rather someone want him for his looks and charm, rather than his money.
“Well, considering you were taken out by a pole, it’s probably wise you weren’t near heavy traffic,” Loki remarked, leading them up his driveway and towards the front door.
“It’s the scenery, I get too distracted by pretty things,” Tony quipped, letting his eyes travel over Loki.
The other man seemed oblivious as he paused to turn off the hose and lean the crumpled bike against the porch. “You should keep your eyes on the road.”
“That doesn’t sound like any fun.”
Loki looked like he was fighting down amusement. “Broken bones and a concussion aren’t fun, Tony. You’re lucky you just have some abrasions.” Tony shrugged. He was going to say something else, maybe comment on not minding so much if he met Loki, but he was directed to take a seat on one of the porch’s chairs. “Sit here. I’m going to get some bandages.”
Tony didn’t get a chance to protest before Loki was disappearing inside. Tony tried not to pout. He focused instead on the table beside him. Loki was reading ‘War & Peace’ and looked about halfway through it. It was unfortunate Tony had never read it.
He was in the process of looking up the plot when Loki returned. He closed his phone quickly and smiled at the other man. Loki placed a glass, a bowl of water, a cloth, a handheld mirror and the first aid supplies on the table. He sat down on the other seat and watched Tony as he picked up the mirror to get a good look at his face.
Tony grimaced; dried blood and a swollen nose. At least he hadn’t chipped any teeth. He picked up the cloth and began to clean his face, wincing a little when he nudged his sore nose.
“What was it that distracted you?” Loki questioned. “There’s not a lot happening at this time of day.”
“Spying on your neighbours are you, Loki?”
The other man chuckled and shook his head. “I pick the times that are most peaceful to tend to my garden and read.”
“And what do you do the rest of the time?”
“Teach self-defence and fencing.”
Tony blinked, not having expected that. “Wow. Really? Wait, so it’s not a dagger on your wrist?”
Loki looked startled and then amused. “It is.” He pulled down the sleeve of his shirt, revealing the tattoo Tony had glimpsed earlier. “I also compete professionally as a knife thrower. It was my first passion, the rest followed.”
“That is really...” hot. Really fucking hot, “impressive.” He glanced down at the larger than normal first aid supplies. “No wonder you have so much stuff here.”
“Force of habit,” Loki agreed. He eyed Tony curiously. “What do you do, Tony?”
“I’m an engineer. I invent a bit as well.” He nodded towards the mangled bike. “This was my friend’s attempt to get me out of the house and away from my lab.”
Loki’s smirked. “Which now brings you to my doorstep.”
“As I said,” Tony held Loki’s gaze before pointedly looking the man over, “easily distracted by pretty things.”
Loki blinked and then he laughed. “Well, that’s the first time someone has collided with a pole to gain my attention.”
“Always best to be original.”
Loki’s chuckle was softer, as was his smirk. He also hadn’t tensed, run away screaming or tried to punch Tony. They were all good signs that leant towards a reception to Tony’s overture. Tony’s face was clean of blood now as well. He was still a bit scuffed around the edges, but Tony was certain he could pull it off.
“So,” Tony said casually, “no concussion and no broken bones. Do you think my luck will hold out and the cute guy will not only be single, but interested in getting a coffee with me?”
Loki let out a huff of laughter, but his green eyes were sparkling. “Luck does seem to be on your side, Tony.” He smiled. “When would you like to have coffee?”
Tony felt the thrill of excitement and victory. “Tomorrow? I need to get the bike home and clean up.” He winked. “Best to be presentable for such a handsome date.”
The other man shook his head, but he was still grinning. “Don’t layer your flattery on too thick. I might change my mind.”
“I’ll add a selection of insults then, shall I?”
“Please do. I’d hate for you to turn out to be boring.”
Tony grinned and pointed at Loki. “You. I like you.”
“I would hope so, since you invited me to coffee.”
They were both still smirking at each other, and Tony could sense they weren’t anywhere near through, except, the sound of a slowing car made them both turn to look at the street. A red convertible was parking and a muscled blond man was climbing out.
“Wonderful,” Loki muttered under his breath. Tony sent the other man an uncertain look, but Loki was already pitching his voice to be heard. “Must you always drop in unannounced, brother?”
The man was eyeing Tony’s bike with confusion as he walked up to the porch. Tony gained an even more interested appraisal then the bike. “Of course. How else will I be able to surprise you?” Loki rolled his eyes while the blond continued, “Who is this?”
“Tony. A hapless bike owner. Tony, this is Thor.”
Thor frowned, looking him over with more concern, lingering on his injuries. Tony just flashed him a smile. “Loki’s been helping me out.” He glanced between the two brothers. “But I’m as fixed as I’m going to be, so I better start the walk back.” He stood. “Thanks, Loki.”
He hesitated, unsure what to say and exactly how much the muscled blond knew about his brother’s private life. You never could tell and Tony didn’t want to cause a problem.
Loki solved the dilemma for him by saying, “The Gardens of Idunn.” Tony’s confusion made Loki smirk. “It’s a cafe. I will meet you there at eleven tomorrow.”
“Garden of Idunn. I’ll see you there.” Tony would have to Google that when he got back to his car and hope to all hell Loki showed up. If he didn’t well, at least Tony knew where he lived.
“A pleasure to meet you, Tony.”
“You too,” Tony replied. They shared another smile before Tony turned and walked past a bemused Thor, grabbing his bike and kicking the front tire until it was straight enough to push back to his car. It was a pretty sad and wobbly movement but at least he wasn’t carrying it.
He glanced back at Loki once he’d passed the pole that had sent him to the pavement. He found green eyes watching him and completely ignoring his brother. Tony sent him one more wink before focusing on the road.
The last thing he needed to do was trip over his feet and fall flat on the pavement, again. He'd have to make a better second impression on their date.
Still, Tony was excited. He'd always been attracted to pretty and complex things. Tony already had a feeling that this knife-throwing cutie would turn out to be both.