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It was moving day at Stark Towers. It had been a few weeks since the Avengers had defeated Loki, and Fury had ordered that all the avengers live together (with the exception of Thor who'd travelled back to Asgard). He said it was team building, Tony said it was bull crap. But, he begrudgingly agreed because he had plenty of vacant floors in his tower. The moving was a lot less tedious or slow than any moving day Tony had previously experienced seeing as two of the five people moving had super strength, so he had to admit it really wasn't going that bad. After all the boxes had been brought in, the Avengers had dispersed, and gone off to explore their private floors. Tony was very much enjoying the down time, but it was Bruce who ruined his what would have been relaxing night by recommending dinner and a movie night on the communal floor. He thought a movie might not be that bad, but he did tell his science buddy,
"Brucie Bear," Bruce winced at the new nickname, "the only way you will convince me to join in your family bonding time is if I pick the movie." Moments later, Jarvis informed the team that there was to be a screening of "Die Hard" that night on the communal floor.
Clint heard the announcement on Natasha's floor. After very briefly venturing to his own floor to drop his stuff, he had found himself wandering down one floor and settling on Natasha's couch. He was going on and on unrelentingly about different types of European bows. His fellow spy wasn't interested, but she could never tell the kid that, 'cause he got so defensive about his bows. She finished setting up some knick knacks on the mantle, and elegantly sprawled out on the ottoman in front of the couch, nudging Clint's feet off as she did. He huffed at this, thinking to himself that for someone who's career it was to be conspicuous she was a freaking opera sometimes. As she was seated directly in front of him, he popped out his hearing aids, which were new, and still causing him a little grief. It wasn't a big deal, it was to be expected really, but Natasha frowned with worry.
"Bothering you?" she asked him. He shook his head, and sloppily signed,
"Not bad. Just new." It'd been too long since he'd last signed, and the movements felt unfamiliar. Her frown disappeared and was quickly replaced with a look Natasha reserved for when she wanted to scold Clint, or just generally rub in that she was older, so she could scold him. It was a look he new too well.
"You tell Avengers today?" She used the sign he'd created for the team a while back. He pouted and shook his head. God, he could be such a teen sometimes. "Please?"
"No!" He shook his head to accentuate his point. He also breathed the word "no" subconsciously as he signed it, which was a habit of his.
"Why?"
"You know why!" She dropped her hands in defeat, knowing she wasn't gonna' win this one. "Go eat now." He was still pouting, and obviously trying to change the subject. She shrugged off her frustration, and the pair made their way down to the communal floor. She knew the rest of the team would find out, she just didn't know it would be so soon.
The two spies had just made it on to the communal floor when Clint realized he'd left his hearing aids in Nat's room. He was a pretty proficient lip reader, as it was a skill all SHIELD agents were trained in, and it appeared as though the other Avengers were waiting on them. So, Clint decided to take the risk and leave his hearing aids where they were on Nat's couch. Steve was in the kitchen when they ventured into the floor, and by the smell of it, he was cooking something delicious. Tony was setting up the movie, and from what Clint could see, Bruce was shooting rapid fire questions at Tony about the finer points of designing JARVIS. Clint really would have liked to stick around and learn a little bit more about the AI, but Nat was moving towards the kitchen to help prepare dinner, so Clint instinctually followed her.
"Barton," Steve nodded towards Clint, "how are you liking your floor?" Clint shrugged,
"Haven't seen much of it. I've been on Nat's floor." Natasha took that as her cue to go set the table. Steve looked at the archer quizzically.
"I hadn't realized you two were friends."
"Yeah we're partners at SHIELD. I was the one who recruited her. I was actually supposed to kill her, but I didn't follow orders." Clint was talking mindlessly as he made himself busy chopping herbs for tomato sauce.
"Oh?" The captain raised his eyebrows at Natasha. She expertly held in a blush, as she continued laying out plates for dinner. Sometimes the kid didn't know how to keep his mouth shut. Thankfully the conversation was cut off early by Tony waltzing into the kitchen.
"Come along kiddies! We're gonna start the movie now, eat later!" Steve undid the apron he was wearing, and threw it over a chair.
"The sauce needs to simmer anyways."
All the Avengers where settled on the couch about to watch the movie, when Clint realized something.
"Hey, um... can we turn on closed captions?" Tony smirked,
"Why princess Merida?" Clint shook his head,
"No reason, I just like them."
"Well I'm not going to turn them on for no reason." Tony retorted, "They get in the way." Clint couldn't agree more, but that didn't change the fact he needed them to enjoy the movie. Still, he leaned back feeling defeated and tried to hide his annoyance at the fact he wouldn't be able to follow the plot. He must of been pouting, because Tony gave a fake look of pity and said, "What's wrong your majesty?" He must of liked his new name for the archer, because he was sticking with it, "It's not like you're deaf." Clint straightened, unsure what to say next, which was unusual because he always new what to say. He felt his head pounding, and aware of how tense his body must have looked. He didn't mind being deaf, and he wasn't ashamed, but only members of SHIELD with a certain level of clearance new about his disability, because if the general public found out, enemies could use it against him. He had been told he was allowed to tell the Avengers about it, but being the paranoid spy he was, he felt the need to keep as on the low down as he could. He wasn't ashamed, he just didn't feel the need to share it with these people he barely knew. Besides, what if they decided he was a liability and kicked him off the team?
He must of been mulling over these concerns longer than he thought because he was pulled back by the far-off hum of Bruce clearing his throat before speaking softly.
"Are you deaf Clint?" all the archer could do was stare at the man. He was startled suddenly by the feeling of Natasha's hand finding its way onto his knee.
"Want me explain?" she signed at him, knowing he was probably too overwhelmed to lip read any more. He nodded, and she turned to face everyone. He looked down at his lap feeling his face go hot. After a few minutes, Natasha reached her hand into his eye line and waved it gently getting his attention. "Tony want know when you become deaf." Clint paused a moment, stuck between signing in front of his team mates, or possibly speaking with a slur. He decided to go with the latter.
"I lost my hearing when I was a kid. In the crash that killed my parents." He bit his tongue. He hadn't meant to say that last part. Now, his whole team was looking at him with pity. He ducked his head again. This time he thought it was Nat getting his attention again, but it was Tony tapping his shoulder.
"You can read my lips right?" he asked fractionally slower than normal. Clint nodded. "So, from what your file says, that crash was when you were seven, but Natasha said you lost your hearing twelve years ago..." Clint tensed again, he knew where this was going,
"I may not have been completely honest about my age-"
"Completely? Yeah I'd say so! Merida, you're a kid!" He was about to defend himself, and say that 19 wasn't that young, but then Bruce and Steve stepped in with their own comments about how young he was, and Natasha started defending him and the conversation became too hard to follow all of it, so he focused on arguing Tony.
"I'm not that young!"
"Wrong again Legolas. Nineteen is so young, nineteen is basically infantile!
"Tony, leave the kid alone."
"Oh my God!"
"What is it Tony?"
"HE'S NOT EVEN ALLOWED TO DRINK YET!" But, when Tony started shouting to a point that lip reading became difficult, he gave up on that too. He tried to take deep breaths instead, and watch Nat's lips moving more calmly than the others as she explained the reasons he hadn't told the others his age, or about his disability, and why he still should be on the team.
"You weren't concerned about his place on the team literally a few seconds ago. Why should it matter now?" He felt her eyes dart towards her as it got harder to breath, and finally he exhaled when he saw her snap, "GUYS! YOU'RE ALL SHOUTING, AND CLINT CAN'T UNDERSTAND YOU!" Everyone then stopped, and turned to look at the shaking archer. "From now on, one at a time, and Clint," she directed the next part at him, "If lip reading is getting to be a lot, just let me translate ok?" Heat rushed towards his cheeks again, but this time the feeling was accompanied by relief.
After a few moments of silence, Bruce was the first to speak,
"Is there anything you need? You know that could help you on missions?"
"No. My comms hook up to my hearing aids, so I think I'm good."
"Care to disagree Legolas. You may need a pacifier because you're so young!" Tony added in like the asshole he was. Clint smirked when Natasha calmly dug her elbow into his stomach, making him keel over and whine something along the lines of losing his lunch right before dinner. Whatever he said made Steve jump up from where he was sitting in a love chair, and shout,
"My sauce!" Steve running off to the kitchen inspired the rest of the Avengers to make their way to the table for dinner. Dinner was surprisingly quiet in contrast to the scene before in the living room. Tony had the decency to look at least a little repentant of his earlier actions, and when the meal was nearly over, he looked to Clint and said,
"Closed captions aren't really that bad. And, if you need 'em kid I can live with it." Clint smiled a little at that,
"It's all good, I can go up to Natasha's room real quick and grab my aids. Also, you don't get to call me kid now."
"Sure thing squirt. Ooh, I don't like that! Sounds too much like something Steve would say. Need something more creative like... Oh! Sharp shooting shorty!"
"Tony, I'm taller than you."
"Hmph. Well, now I'm definitely not turning on subtitles. And, for not respecting your elders, your new bed time's seven thirty!" Yeah, Tony was never going to let him live down their age difference. But at least he could take satisfaction in the fact Tony just called himself an elder.