Chapter Text
Rhodey has known Tony since MIT, he will never forget the moment the drunk boy had taken a few stumbling steps into a leering man’s arms before Rhodey had left his spot at the bar trying to have a quiet Thursday night.
“Whoa, you’re tall.” The drunken boy slurs, looking at Rhodey as he approaches.
“And you’re short.” Rhodey replies, keeping his eyes on the man the drunken boy is clinging to.
The other man stares at him, something hard and angry reflected in his flinty eyes, not that Rhodey gave a shit, he wasn’t a part of the military just for show.
“Why don’t you back off my friend, Anthony and I were just about to leave.” The man says, silken voice reflecting his sobriety.
“I think your ‘friend’ has had enough, and if you can’t look after him then I will.” Rhodey retorts.
‘Anthony’ looks like he’s starting to sober up, hazel eyes sharpening into focus. Suddenly he stumbles onto Rhodey’s chest, leans over and vomits all over the bar’s floor.
“Tony.” The other man says, voice hard and persistent.
“Hmm, I think I’ll go home with mama bear tonight, thanks for the drinks though!” In a spectacular display, Anthony loops an arm around Rhodey’s neck and gives him a strong hug.
The other man looks at them for a few moments, calculating eyes like a cat weary of losing its’ most recent prey. “See you around Tones.” He finally says, taking his queue to leave.
“Alright, Tony, I’m Rhodes, let’s get you home, where exactly do you live?”
“Hmmm.” His head lolls a little, Rhodey waits patiently. “Can’t remember.” He finally mumbles out.
Rhodey lets out a long, heart felt sigh, “Okay, here’s what’s going to happen, I’ll take you back to my house, I’ve got two roommates but they’re pretty chill, you can take my bed, and in the morning, I’ll make sure you get home, okay?”
“Mmm, that sounds good.” Tony slurs pressing his face into Rhodey’s neck.
Rhodey sighs again and calls them a taxi, making sure that Tony doesn’t pass out on the way back. Thankfully, the boy is somewhat of an octopus and has yet to unlatch. “Your mate good there?”
“Yeah, he just needs sleep and water.” Rhodey says to their taxi driver.
As soon as they pull up, Rhodey heaves Tony out of the cab, “Have you taken anything else tonight?”
He had forgotten to ask at the club, but he didn’t want this kid to overdosing on something Rhodey hadn’t known about. “Hmm, some coke, but only a pinch.” Tony assures him, pinching Rhodey’s shoulder.
“Okay, you feel fine?”
“Would be better when I’m laying down.” Tony murmurs, Rhodey huffs a laugh out.
“Alright, let’s get you to bed.”
Thankfully, he’s pretty sure his roommates are out partying, because he can’t hear anyone inside, the most difficult part of the night is getting Tony up the stairs to his room, “Come on man, you gotta help me out.”
“Sorryyyy. You should just pick me up.”
“Maybe I will.”
He does, he grasps the boy in bridal style, depositing him on his bed, he brings a glass of water in, “Before you go to sleep, have some water.”
“Why are you being so nice to me? Do you even know who I am?” Tony asks, sculling the water down.
“Am I supposed to?” He arches an eyebrow.
“Hmm, sure, makes sense.” And with that Tony falls to sleep, light snores emanating from Rhodey’s own bed, he heaves another sigh and picks up one of the spare blankets and pillows before making himself home on the lounge.
At approximately five, he awakens, blearily rubbing his eyes against the persisting tiredness, he assumes his house guest is still asleep which is why he begins making coffee for only himself, he’ll cook breakfast a little later on.
In no time at all, he can hear the stumbling noise of his unexpected night guest finally waking up, he begins to scramble the eggs like he had originally planned and fries some bacon.
“Wow, so he’s a mama bear in the kitchen too.” Tony stands on the staircase, one of Rhodey’s hoodies on his smaller frame.
“I’m living on my own, what else am I supposed to do?”
“Make someone else do it.”
Rhodey shrugs, “Doesn’t taste the same.” He eyes the boy more clearly in the morning. “How do you feel this morning?”
“Like I got hit by a train then a big flying eagle or something dropped me back onto the sidewalk.” Rhodey barks out a laugh. “Anyway, what’s the story? We fuck and then you cook me breakfast?”
Rhodey raises his patented eyebrow, “And what makes you think we fucked?”
“Well, why else would I be asleep in your bed moron.” Tony crosses his arms and raises an equally unimpressed eyebrow back.
“Because I didn’t want you to sleep on the couch, it’s way better to sleep on a bed when you’re drunk.”
“Why wouldn’t you fuck me?”
“Because I don’t like men, I took you home because you were clearly too drunk to go home with that creepy dude, and I didn’t want you to wake up regretting something that happened in the heat of the moment.”
“Aww, cute.” Tony’s lip curls in derision, there’s a chance he’s being made fun of.
“So you’re telling me you’d prefer it if we had fucked last night?”
“Of course, after all, who wouldn’t want to fuck Tony Stark right?”
Rhodey pauses, spatula comically hanging in his hand, “Did you just say…. Stark?”
“Yeah, you need to get your hearing checked or something?”
“As in the Tony Stark. Huh.” And he goes back to his scrambled eggs, can’t let them burn.
“That’s it? You don’t care about who I am?” Tony asks, surprise colouring his tone.
Rhodey shrugs, Mama Rhodes had instilled the importance of not judging someone just by what they look like or who they were related to. “Why should I?”
“Because I’m a rich kid who could get you anything you want in the world.”
“I don’t need it.”
Rhodey serves up the eggs, “Breakfast, your highness.”
Tony rolls his eyes, “I think this could the start of a tragic, epic friendship.”
Rhodey snorts, “Don’t get too ahead of yourself, we gotta at least do some ice-breakers first."
"Seriously? I'm wearing your hoodie and you're worried about some ice-breakers?"
"Okay whatever, forget I asked."
"Anyways I love old cars and working on them."
"I like to cook in my spare time, my mum cooked me."
Tony slings an arm around him, "See, now we're besties."
"Maybe we are." He concedes, a small grin tugging at his features.