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Tony flopped down on the couch and spread his limbs out, left arm and leg hanging off the edge. Steve took Tony by the shoulder and turned him over, laying his head to rest in Steve’s lap and Natasha lifted Tony’s feet and put them in her lap.
Stark turned into Steve’s stomach and huffed, “No more missions. I’m done. We’ve had one a day this whole week. I want a break.”
Steve smiled and ruffled his hair, “Don’t worry, that was two of Reed’s mistakes, one actual invasion, and two mad scientists. I think all the bad guys are taking breaks now Tony-Ony.”
Tony turned away from his stomach and glared, “I told you not to call me that anymore. Especially in front of She Who Will Not Be Named.”
Natasha snorted and pinched his Achilles heel, “I can hear you, Stark and I can still kill you.”
At a glare from Steve she rolled her eyes, “Or at least maim you.”
Bruce walked into the room from the kitchen, face red and hands slightly shaking as he put the popcorn down on the table and sat himself down between Natasha’s thighs.
She smiled and ran her free hand through his hair, a stifled moan coming from the kitchen.
Tony sat up quickly and pointed an accusing finger, “Not in my kitchen guys! That’s a communal kitchen! You can’t fuck in there!”
Steve slapped a hand out over Tony’s mouth and pulled him back down to his lap, eyes fierce, “Tony. A Lady is present. No. Also, let them have it, we’ve all been busy, and Coulson had that thing Fury made him go off and do, they’ve barely seen each other.”
Tony whined and tried to speak behind the hand over his mouth. Natasha released his foot and pinched his nose for a few seconds, letting Stark flail and glare accusingly at Steve before she and Steve let go and Tony gasped.
“She tried to kill me! You all saw it!”
Bruce shrugged and leaned his head into Natasha’s hand, “I didn’t.”
Tony glared, “Science Buddy, how dare you betray me to try and protect your assassin girlfriend. Bros before Hoes man.”
Bruce tilted his head back and Natasha’s hand slid to play her fingers along his Adam’s Apple and the hair peeking out from the top of his shirt. He paused, eyes sliding closed in pleasure before Tony snapped his fingers in front of his face. Bruce’s eyes opened again and his face slid into a pleased grin, “I’m not even sorry.”
Tony huffed indignantly as Bruce went to face front again and Natasha went back to rubbing his scalp.
Steve smiled down at Tony and patted his forehead, “Oh calm down.”
He turned to Natasha, “How long until Pepper gets back. I hate how cranky he gets when she’s gone.”
Natasha smiled as Tony’s face grew red, “When we talked today, she said a few more days.” She smiled apologetically.
“You talked to Pepper today? She wouldn’t pick up any of my calls!”
Natasha took a hand away from Bruce’s hair and pinched his cheek, “That’s because she said you called five times. Quit being so clingy Starky.”
He batted the hand away and turned his head to face the TV, “Quit it with the nicknames. You guys all suck at it anyway.”
A loud moan drifted from the kitchen and Tony shot up again, “Seriously guys, come on. We’re right here, it’s movie night. Stop traumatizing my kitchen appliances and get in here.”
There was a few second delay before Clint appeared, a pleased smirk on his face shirt slightly rumpled, “We’re here. And we wouldn’t be able to traumatize them if you’d stop putting AIs in everything. An oven doesn’t need an AI Tony. Neither does a toaster.”
Tony laid back, Steve’s hand slipping into his hair, “Sleep deprived inventing is the best inventing, now get in here Coulson, it’s your turn to pick the movie.”
Coulson appeared from the kitchen, clothes immaculate, face impassive and sat in an armchair, Clint flopping himself at his feet, laying his head on Coulson’s knee. Coulson smiled down at Clint for a second before flicking his eyes to Tony, a blank expression on his face, “Jarvis, Pretty In Pink please.”
Tony groaned and Bruce clapped his hands, “Good choice Phil!”
Phil gave Banner a small controlled smiled and Tony gasped, pointing at Coulson, “You all saw it! He smiled! The Mandroid smiled!”
Clint whipped his head around to glare at Tony as the intro music started. Tony glared right back at Clint until Steve grasped Tony’s face and squished his lips out into a duck faced pout, “No more Tony. I want to see this movie, ok? So no more criticisms, or screeching about mandroids or being mean to Phil or antagonizing Clint. No more, ok? For me?”
Stark rolled his eyes and nodded as best he could.
“Promise me. Make a squishy faced promise.” Steve looked at Stark seriously, making the moment stretch into a much more serious endeavour than needed.
Tony sighed and rolled his eyes, crossing his arms in front of his chest, “I pwomise.”
Steve let go of his face and smiled down at him, patting his forehead, “Good boy. You get head scratches.” He proceeded to card his hand through Tony’s hair, scratching occasionally as the man settled down to watch the movie.
Natasha snickered and flipped her phone screen to face Stark, “Aaaand sent to Pepper.”
Tony kicked his legs out at her before she grabbed his ankles and subdued him.
Steve glared down at him and Tony calmed, scowling at the movie.
The movie went on with few interruptions from Tony,but many disappointed huffs from Clint and Bruce, who bickered back and forth about characters in the movie and proper plot development while Natasha smiled to Phil conspiratorially.
As the movie ended, Clint was almost asleep against Phil’s leg, and Natasha had relaxed in fatigue from the day’s events, Bruce almost asleep too. Only Tony and Steve stayed mostly, if not all awake.
Clint and Coulson retired to their room, and Bruce followed Natasha to hers shortly after, leaving the two men alone in the communal living room.
Steve propped his feet up on the coffee table in front of the couch and looked down to Tony, “Another?”
Tony nodded and turned onto his side, not taking his head out of Steve’s lap. Steve’s hand remained in the inventor’s hair, and Tony remained quiet and content.
“Jarvis, why don’t you pick us a movie please?”
“As you wish, Captain.”
Tony smiled and turned back onto his back to smile up at Steve, “You told him to say that, didn’t you. I knew I never should have showed you The Princess Bride.”
Steve smiled and ruffled Tony’s hair, “He doesn’t seem to have a problem with it.”
“I told you Steve, he’s an AI, he doesn’t have a problem with anything. He’s very accommodating.”
“Thank you for making me oh so tolerant Sir.”
“Anytime Jarvy, had to make sure you’d put up with my shit.”
“For you Sir, always.”
As the music started up, Tony turned back onto his side just in time to see the opening credits of Brokeback Mountain and his eyebrows rose, “Jarvis.”
“Yes Sir.”
“You picked this?”
“As per Mr. Roger’s request, yes I did.”
“Is there something you’d like to tell Daddy?”
Steve looked down at Tony in confusion, “Tony, what are you-”
“No Sir. When I need to report things to you, you are aware that I always speak directly and plainly.”
Tony glared at the camera in the corner of the room where he knew the A.I. could ‘see’ from before going back to watching the TV, “You’ll see Rogers. Just keep up the head scratches.”
Steve turned back to the movie and kept his hand moving idly in Tony’s hair.
As the true relationship between the two men unfolded and Steve understood the movie better his hands faltered in Tony’s hair before he pulled away entirely, moving his body away from the other man’s.
“What the hell, Jarvis.” Steve stood up, staring at the ceiling and pointing a finger at the ceiling in anger, “Do not ever pull this with me again, do you hear me?”
“Yes Captain Rogers.”
Steve stormed off, his steps heavy as he marched to his room letting his door slam.
Tony was left on the couch, staring after Steve, confusion written on his face, “Jarvis, what just-”
Natasha appeared at the corner of the couch in mere seconds, “Stark, what happened? Jarvis said you needed someone.”
Tony looked to her and noticed Bruce’s shirt hanging off her petite shoulders, “Nice shirt.”
She smiled back to him and took a seat on the couch, “Not the point of this conversation. What happened?” She looked around with a slight tilt to her eyebrows before her face smoothed out to her normal blank look, “Where’s Steve?”
“Captain Rogers was upset by my movie choice and chose to retire to his room.”
Bruce padded into the room in pajama pants his hair ruffled, he looked down to Tony on the couch, a question forming on his lips as Jarvis answered, “Which movie Jarvis?”
Tony stood and placed himself facing Natasha a few paces away from her, “Brokeback Mountain.”
Natasha looked to Tony, realization dawning on her before looking back up at the ceiling, “Jarvis, that wasn’t nice.”
“It wasn’t meant to be mean Ma’am.”
“I realize, but you should have known better than to spring that on him.” Bruce nodded beside her, “Please try to be more careful next time Jarvis. You might want to apologize.” Bruce finished for her.
Natasha tucked an arm around Bruce’s waist as he seated himself on the couch next to her and looked to Tony, who was still as confused as ever, “Just go on to bed Stark, don’t worry about it, Steve’ll be fine by morning once Jarvis has apologized.”
He looked back and forth between Natasha and Bruce, “Is anyone going to explain what just happened to me?”
Natasha gave him a smile small, Bruce gave an exasperated one, “No Tony. You’re a smart kid you’ll figure it out.”
She smiled and pulled Bruce further against her and leaned the two of them back against the couch, her legs curling up under her. The two cuddled up on the couch and Bruce smiled to Tony, “I’m going to force some NOVA on Nat. You’re welcome to join us.”
Natasha stared at Tony as she kept her expression cold, a small smile playing at the corner of her lips.
Tony smiled at the couple on the couch, “No, no. Have fun learning lovebirds, I have some inventing to do.”
He walked to the elevator, smiling softly as the doors closed on the domestic scene on the couch, “My lab please Jarvis.”
“Of course Sir.”
“Oh, and Jarvis?”
The elevator began its descent as Jarvis answered, “Yes Sir?”
“Let’s not throw anymore surprises at the Captain, alright?”
“Of course Sir.”
---
“Sir, it is eight in the morning, and Mr. Rogers has asked me to tell you to come to breakfast, everyone is waiting. And Mr. Barton seems impatient.”
Tony set down the board he was working on and stood up, stretching, “Can do Jarvis. Tell them I’m comin’ up.” And walked to the elevator.
Moments later as he walked into the kitchen Clint glared at him and turned to face Steve, “See, he’s here, can we eat now?”
Steve smiled and nodded to Clint, “Go ahead.”
Clint began to eat like he hadn’t been fed in weeks, Coulson smiling slightly before flicking Barton’s arm. The archer turned to him before smiling softly and continuing to eat at a more socially acceptable pace. Natasha and Bruce began to eat too, Steve only starting when Tony sat down.
“So, how’d everyone sleep?”
Natasha got a wicked smirk on her face and Bruce ducked his head down, keeping his expression away from Tony. One of Natasha’s hands slipped under the table and Bruce smiled, slipping one hand under the table briefly as well, “Just fine. You?”
Tony pulled a face and turned to Clint, who had a smirk on his face, Coulson remained deadpan and continued to eat his food, “Just fine. How about you Starky?”
“Didn’t. I’m working on something. You’ll love it Bird-Brain.” Clint perked up at that and smiled to Coulson, “Hear that Phil! I get new toys!”
Phil turned his gaze to Stark, face still impassive, “Test it first. I like his eyebrows even and un-singed.”
Steve glared at Tony and Tony glared at Phil, “One time. Just once. It wasn’t mean to explode that close to the shooter, ok? We all get timing a little off sometimes.”
“Just eat Tony” Steve said a small smile on his lips before Tony trained his gaze on the Super Soldier.
“What about you Capsicle, how did you sleep? Did Jarvis apologize for rubbing your vulnerable forties sensibilities the wrong way?”
Steve’s shoulders tensed and he kept his face down towards his food, “I wasn’t offended about that Tony-”
“It’s fine. You don’t have to explain, I get it, different time, differe-”
“Tony, its not that. Just, please let it go ok? I really don’t want to have this conversation here.”
Tony quirked an eyebrow, “Steve no one here isn’t aware that things were different then-”
“Tony. Not here. Not now. Leave it alone.” Steve finally turned his face up to Tony’s, his eyes and expression stern.
Tony nodded, his body tensing as well, “Alright Steve. Sorry. I didn’t mean to make you so upset.”
Steve sighed, his expression falling, looking down to his plate, “I’m not-I didn’t mean to-” He sighed and stood before picking his plate up, “I’m not too hungry. I’m just gonna retire to my room.”
He nodded to the rest of the table and left his plate in the sink before heading to the elevators.
The second Steve had disappeared into the elevator the table turned on Tony.
“Tony, what the hell man?” Clint glared, his fork clutched in his hand.
Natasha laid a hand on Clint’s arm, Bruce keeping his gaze averted, “Stark, not cool.”
Tony looked alarmed, “I wasn’t trying to make him mad!”
“We all know what you were trying to do Stark. Steve’s not a homophobe.” Coulson explain to him, tone soft as if he was dealing with an impatient and obstinate child.
Clint snorted and speared some eggs, “Yeah, he totally-” a small bang resounded from under the table and Clint jumped, grabbing at his knee, “Fuck ‘Tasha, I need my knee caps you know!”
“You also need to know when to be quiet Little Bird.” Natasha levelled a glare at the blond archer.
Phil pinched Clint’s arm and he sunk down into his seat, “Ok, I get it. Barton’s done bad. Shutting up now.”
Tony looked between all the people at the table, “No, keep talking. What’s going on here.”
Bruce sighed and went back to eating, “Seriously Tony, if you don’t know, then we can’t tell you. Its not our life, not our place.”
Tony looked aghast at Bruce, “Really, it’s one of these games? You guys suck.” They all went back to eating their food, finishing breakfast, Tony sulking the whole time as conversation picked up again.
---
Two days later, Pepper Potts stepped onto the main floor of Stark Tower for the first time in a two weeks, and she was greeted by all the Avengers, minus Thor. Tony ran forward and hugged her close to him and pushing himself onto his tiptoes to kiss her, “Oh Pep, I missed you.”
She smiled and kissed and hugged him back, “I’m glad to see you too Tony, it’s good to be home.”
As he let go of her Natasha came forward and hugged her, the rest of the Avengers falling into line, asking her questions about her trip.
Clint pulled Pepper into a hug and locked his arms around her, “Now Miss Pepper, when you left for Paris you made certain promises to this team.”
She smiled to the archer and wrapped her arms around him in return, “Yes Clint, you are correct I did, and I promise you I have kept true to that promise.”
Clint beamed at her before kissing her cheek and turning his head to look at Phil, “Phil we get rich people snacks!”
Everyone laughed and Phil reached a hand out, “We sure do. Now come here and let Pepper go.”
Clint smiled at Pepper again and squeezed her briefly, “You’re my favorite Pepper, never forget.”
She laughed and squeezed back before letting the archer go and twining an arm over Tony’s shoulders as she leaned down slightly to take her shoes off.
Tony’s eyes drifted to Steve as he watched the display finding happiness and an emotion that was brief and troubling before he smoothed his features out and caught Tony’s eye, smiling slightly. Tony smiled back before Steve approached them and held out an arm, “Miss Potts.”
Pepper smiled, “Hello Steve.”
He pulled the smaller woman close and kissed her cheek, “You look amazing, as always.”
She pulled back, her hands on his shoulder as a lazy smile graced her features, “It’s good to see you Steve.” She pulled a hand away and cradled his jaw, her thumb rubbing a streak across his cheek before pulling him back into a tight hug, her arms around his neck, his face buried in her hair.
Tony felt a pang in his chest as he watched his girlfriend and best friend hug. He couldn’t figure out what it was a pang of though. Not envy, he could touch Pepper all he wanted, and not jealousy towards Steve, Pep was still his.
And definitely not jealousy towards Pepper, that’d be-
He froze up, face going a bit slack.
Natasha nudged Bruce and pointed to Tony. They both looked at his face as emotions slowly slid from disbelief to consternation before sliding into a dazzling smile as he realized he was being watched. He winked at the couple before turning his body away.
Steve released Pepper and she turned to look at Tony. She took Tony’s hand and smiled at everyone, “Tony, grab my bag will you, let’s go chat.” Tony’s face fell into a more relaxed smile as he grabbed Pepper’s bag and followed her to the bedroom.
Natasha turned to Bruce, “This is going to be bad. Coulson, hide the liquor. Jarvis, force him out of the workshop at twelve hour intervals. Clint, DO NOT fuck with him. And Steve, this isn’t your fault.”
Steve looked confusedly over at Natasha, “What do you mean not my fault?”
She smiled sadly and patted his arm, “Don’t worry about it.”
Coulson disappeared from the room and Clint sat down on the sofa, turning on the TV, the rest of the team sitting with him, except Steve, who wandered away down to the gym to work out.
---
Tony sat on the bed and kicked off his shoes before laying down on his side and facing Pepper, “So how was the trip?”
Pepper went to the bureau and began to take her clothes out of it.
Tony sat up and watcher her hands, “Pep, what’s up? You’re supposed to be putting clothes back, not taking them out. Do you have another trip?”
She turned to face him and Tony’s face fell.
“Tony-”
Tony stood, shoulders tensed, “Did you meet someone on the trip?”
She walked forward and put a hand on his shoulder, squeezing once, “No Tony. Not on the trip. But there is someone, for me, and for you. I can tell.”
Tony jerked away from Pepper and sat down on the bed. When she took a step forward, he pushed himself against the backboard, away from her. She sighed and folded her hands in her lap, “Not for me Pepper. You’re it.”
She sighed, “Tony, this has been a long time coming. I love you, I do. And, I want us to be ok after this. I still want to be your best friend, and your CEO. I won’t step down, you can’t function without me and neither can Stark Industries, so we’ll have to make this work.”
Tony wouldn’t look at her for a bit, staring straight ahead until she took his shoulders and faced him to her, his expression pained, “What did I do. Just tell me. I’ll fix it Pepper. I won’t do it anymore. No matter what it is, please just don’t-”
Pepper sighed and sat closer to him, kicking off her shoes and sitting cross legged on the bed and pulled his hands into her lap, “It wasn’t anything you did Tony. I love who you are. And I love who you’ve become even more. But I’m not what you need, and you’re not what I need. I can’t be Iron Man’s girlfriend. I can’t worry endlessly about you, I can’t do that. And you can’t give up Iron Man. I won’t let you. You need him more than you need me. The world needs Iron Man more. When the right time comes, you’ll understand. Never doubt that I love you too, but Tony, sometimes, it’s just not enough.”
Tony looked down despondently before taking Pepper’s hands into his own.
“I’m so sorry Pepper. You’re right and I hate it and I’m so sorry.” She sighed and moved forward, pulling him into a hug, the two of them wrapping their arms around eachother.
“You have no reason to be. This isn’t a ‘saying sorry’ situation. It just is what it is Tony. Neither of us needs to be sorry, we just need to be ok and accept this.”
“I’m leaving Tony. But I’m leaving you in the hands of people who love you, and who want to help you and be there for you. If you need me, I will always be here, just not, ‘here here’.”
She pulled back and cradled the back of Tony’s head in her hand kepping his eyes trained on hers “He can do this better than I can Tony. He can understand and help you. You just need to let him.”
Tony looked confused before his eyes widened and her shook his head, “No, Pepper, I don’t- We aren’t- Steve and I-”
She smiled at him and patted his cheek.
“Think on it Tony. I’ll come back for the rest of my stuff later. You and I both need some time right now.” She leaned close and kissed him once, softly on the lips before pulling away and grabbing up her suitcase, walking to the door.
“Bye Tony. I’ll see you later.”
---
Pepper nodded to everyone on her way out, face stoic and hard, eyes wet.
Natasha let Bruce wrap an arm around her shoulders and she looked over to Coulson, “And now we wait.”
She sighed and turned back to the TV, raising one hand and entwining her fingers with Bruce’s, “Now, we wait.”
---
Tony came out of his room an hour later and passed through the main living room, not acknowledging anyone before entering the elevator Pepper had left in an hour before and disappeared.
Steve came back four hours later, body sweaty and face haggard, “Did you guys know that there’s a great coffee shop about an hour away? It’s really quite nice.”
Clint has his head in Bruce’s lap, feet in Coulson’s, and Natasha’s legs were curled up under her, her body leaned into Bruce’s side, “Thank you for the heads up Steve. You want to shower and we’ll all sit down and watch a movie?”
Steve nodded to the screen and looked to Natasha, “As long as Jarvis doesn’t pick.” A smile curled the side of his lips.
“I apologize again Sir.”
Steve turned his smile up to the ceiling, “Its fine Jarvis. I’m just messing with you.”
“Good joke Sir.”
“Thanks.” Steve looked around then, eyes scrunching up before his face relaxed into an awkward shift, “Tony and Pepper still in his room then?”
Clint coughed and Bruce shifted, keeping his eyes away from Steve’s, “What? What did I miss?”
Natasha caught his gaze and made sure to hold it, “Tony and Pepper broke up.”
Steve’s face slipped into shock for a second before a small smile ticked up the corners of his mouth, before quickly looking horrified and keeping his head down, “That’s terrible. Poor Tony, is he ok?” He fidgeted in front of the group, knowing that they had all seen his expression.
“Pepper’s not mad, Steve. And Tony’s hurt, but clueless. Don’t worry. Pepper knew that it wouldn’t pan out. We talked about this, me and her and Coulson.” At that Clint turned to look at his boyfriend, shoulders tense.
“Hey, wait; what? You talked to Natasha and Pepper about us? Phil what the-” Phil’s hand descended on Clint’s mouth and he turned his attention back to Steve.
“Steve, no one blames you. Pepper really doesn’t. This has been a long time coming, she just wanted to make sure someone would be there for him.” Steve blushed and kept his face down, hands knotting in front of him.
“Shoot. I better go talk to Tony.” He lifted his chin, face determined. He turned around without even thinking about a shower and headed into the elevator, taking himself down to Tony’s workshop.
Natasha turned to look at Bruce and Phil, his hand still covering Clint’s mouth, “Well guys, it looks like we might finally see the fruit of our plans come true.” Clint let out a small noise of happiness and everyone turned to look at him, Phil taking his now wet hand away so Clint could speak.
He looked around at all of them from his prone position and shrugged, “What, I want Steve and Tony happy too. So sue me.”
---
Steve knocked on the opaque glass of Tony’s workshop, the music playing too loud to be heard.
“Jarvis?”
“Yes Captain?”
“Can you please tell Tony that I’m here? And that I would really like to talk to him?”
“Of course Sir.”
The music inside of the workshop lowered to a tolerable level and the main door became clear glass, and after a few seconds Tony looked over his shoulder at Steve.
His eyes were rimmed with red, face tired and worn, a mug set beside him.
He nodded once and the door to the workshop clicked open, and Steve stepped in, “Tony, hey. How are you doing?”
The engineer leaned against the countertop, snatching up the mug and taking a long drink from it, draining the glass, “What can I do for you Capsicle?” His face was slightly lax, the corners of his mouth and eyes tired looking with dark circles under his eyes.
Steve awkwardly stood halfway between the door and the workbench, hands clenching and unclenching at his sides, “I heard about Pepper,” Tony reached for a coffee pot he had on the lower shelf of the workbench, pouring more of the black liquid into his cup, “and I wanted to say that I’m sorry, and that I’m here if you need someone to talk to, about anything.”
Tony stared at Steve for a few seconds, taking a long sip and setting the mug down onto the countertop and went back to staring at him, “Well, you could suck my dick. You know, I could always use a good blowjob.” Tony didn’t even laugh at his own joke, his face still stoic and cold.
Steve flinched and Tony laughed then, cold and cruel, “Oh right, sorry. I forgot, Captain Homophobia here-”
“I’m not homophobic Tony. We already talked about this.” Steve kept his voice calm and cool, trying not to let Tony rile him up too much.
“Ok. Fine then. Not homophobic Steve. You just hate scenes where two men kiss, and you get mad when I hit on you, even jokingly-”
“There are times when you’re not joking?”
“and you just come down here all nice guy look at me, perfect-friend-Steve. Well good for you, Ice Cube, but I honestly don’t need your Captain America, Boy Scout of the year shit right now. I’m fine on my own. I’ve spent years on my own-”
“But you don’t have to be alone now.”
Tony stopped, and brought his hands away from where they had been resting behind him on the countertop and he folded them over his chest, eyes seeming to get colder, “Good. I’m glad. I’m so fucking glad that I don’t have to be alone. I love being surrounded by people. Especially ones who I basically pay to live in my fucking house. Nothing feels better than buying friends Steve, let me fucking tell you. Great that the people I pay actually stick around half the time, unlike the ones I pay who just leave me-” Tony’s breath hitched and he threw his hands up before turning away, Steve’s hand reaching out and catching the engineer’s shoulder.
“We don’t just live here because you pay us Tony. We’d live here even if we had to pay rent. We’re a team, a family. We work together and live together and watch movies together and cook and eat together.” Steve tried to keep himself calm, posture open and non-offensive.
Tony laughed, harsh and biting and Steve tense up, “Just what I always fucking wanted. A family. Awesome. I wasn’t trying to fucking-build one with Pepper or anything, so this is a great second best. I’ll buy you all rings. Here, I already have one, all fit. Should suit Natasha nicely.”
Tony jammed a hand into his jean pocket and fished out a small box, smooth black leather, and threw it to the ground.
The clatter of the small hollowed box the only sound in the lab.
Steve’s eyes stayed on the box, feeling a terrible selfishness curl up in his chest and he stepped away from Tony to crouch down and pick up the box, “Tony. I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”
Tony turned away and moved himself to the other side of the bench, keeping distance between himself and Steve, “It doesn’t really matter now.”
Steve picked up the small box and stood, placing it gently on the table, guilt eating at his expression.
He had done this.
Natasha had weaseled it out of him and told Pepper, and now there was this.
And it was all his fault.
Pepper had taken it upon herself to do Steve a favor while doing what she thought was right and she and Natasha and he had all made this together.
And now Tony was suffering for it
This Tony, this hollow angry man who couldn’t accept help, or love.
Who would never accept his own team unless it was on his rules.
Who would surely never accept Steve.
Steve moved forward quickly and wrapped his arms around Tony. Tony didn’t even fight it, just collapsed, knees going out from under him, and all that held him up was Steve and his grip on Tony’s body. Steve lifted the smaller man and turned him slightly, setting him on the clean counter top.
Steve readjusted his arms and slid them around Tony’s waist before moving in close and pulling him into a hug.
“Tony, I’m sorry. I know this is hard, and it’ll keep being hard, and I’m sorry, but I want you to know that I’m here, as your best friend, and Captain, and anything you need me to be.”
Tony snorted a disbelieving laugh into Steve’s chest where his face had laid to rest, “I’m sorry too Steve. I don’t want to-I just-She was perfect. She was Pepper. Well, she is Pepper. But she was MY Pepper. My perfect Pepper. And I fucked up.”
Steve stiffened and tightened his arm slightly around Tony’s shoulder, “You didn’t do anything wrong, Tony. I did.”
Tony scoffed again, “You Steve? You can’t do anything wrong. You’ve never done a wrong thing in your entire life. Ever. Besides, this was my relationship. I ruined it.”
Steve took a step back and used his hand to tilt Tony’s face up so he could look into his eyes, “Look Tony. You didn’t do anything wrong. I talked to Pepper. Me and Natasha, weeks ago. We had a chat, and it’s all my fault.”
Tony leaned back slightly, “What do you mean all your fault?”
Steve sighed and turned his face away and took a deep breath before turning to face Tony again, “Natasha and Pepper and I were all sitting down to a lunch together outside of the tower, and Natasha told Pepper something she shouldn’t have, and Pepper made it her mission to see it happen.”
Tony stiffened suddenly and his eyes slid away from Steve’s before looking back to his with a piercing glance, “Are you telling me that you told Natasha something and she told Pepper, and Pepper broke up with me?”
Steve’s shoulders fell, his entire body going lax for a second before he pulled himself away from Tony, taking a few steps back before looking up into Tony’s gaze,“Yes.”
Tony stood up, “Look at me right now Steve,and tell me what happened. All of it.”
Steve looked up at Tony, before flinching away from his expression and looking back down, “Tony-”
“No. Steve, look me in the eye. You owe me that much.”
Steve followed Tony’s directions pulling his eyes up to meet Tony’s, “Natasha told Pepper I was in love with you.”
“Pepper broke up with me because she wants me to be with you? Is that what I’m hearing from you?” Tony hopped down from the tabletop and stood facing Steve, his hands folded in front of his chest.
Steve’s face heated and he looked away from Tony’s gaze, “I wasn’t trying to do that. I didn’t even want to tell Natasha. I didn’t, she guessed. I didn’t mean for this to happen Tony. I didn’t want to. It just happened. One day you were my good friend, and then I couldn’t stop thinking about you, or looking at you, watching you in battle and even when we were just relaxing or sparring or anything. Natasha just, saw it. You know how she is, she can read the body language off a... a statue. I didn’t mean to. I wanted her to stay quiet, I didn’t want to ruin anything.”
Tony let Steve babble, his face turned to the side away from Steve before he cut the Super Soldier off, “Steve, I’m going to need you to leave.”
Steve started, his body standing straight when Tony said his name, and falling again when he was asked to leave, “Of course. I’ll just-Okay. Bye, Tony.”
He hurried to the door, leaving Tony standing where he was.
As Steve ascended in the elevator, Tony stood still before walking back over to his workbench, picking up the project he had been working on before Steve walked down to the workshop.
He worked in silence for a bit before he slid off his goggles and called out to Jarvis.
“Yes Sir, how may I assist you?”
“Jarvis, call Pepper.”
---
Pepper was at her desk at the office building owned by Stark Industries. She was sitting at her desk, doodling on a piece of paper, her expression troubled.
She started and reached for the cell phone that was sitting beside a stack of paperwork she had to read over.
She checked the caller ID and picked up, “Jarvis, is everything-”
“Pepper.”
Tony’s voice jolted through her for a second before she looked at her clock, seven o’clock at night, “Tony, why’re you-”
“Steve.”
Pepper faltered, her eyebrows creasing, “What-”
“You broke up with me so Steve could have me, like I’m a doll to be handed down.”
She leaned back in the chair, staying silent for a second, “No Tony. That’s not why. I broke up with you because I can’t date Iron Man, I can’t sit and worry and wonder. I can’t watch you be hurt anymore. Not as your girlfriend, not as your lover. This has been a long time coming. I just felt more comfortable doing this and then being able to leave you in the hands of someone else. When I knew that there would be someone for you, someone who could handle Tony Stark as well as I can, and who could also love Iron Man the way I’m too afraid to, I knew I could do this.”
Tony let out a shaky breath, and it broke Pepper even more, but she refused to apologize.
No one was at fault here.
Not her, not Tony, not Steve or Natasha.
No one.
It was a thing that had to happen.
“Pepper, I never meant to push you away, or make it seem like I didn’t love you, I do-”
“I know you do Tony.”
“and Steve was just, something I never even thought about, it was just there, even I didn’t see it-”
“But I did. In both of you. Tony, I know you better than you know yourself. I love you, and I know you love me but he can be everything to you. I can only be everything to Tony Stark, not Iron Man. I can’t split you up that way. I won’t. It’s not right.”
The line went silent.
“I love you Pepper.”
She gave a watery smile and swallowed past the lump that had appeared in her throat “I love you too, Tony. And we can do this. We can be ok. We will. Maybe not immediately, but we will.”
“I know.”
“Goodbye Tony.”
“‘Night Pepper.”
She hung up and set the phone down and choked in a breath, her chest hurting and bubbling until she was crying, quiet gasps and wet cheeks and heaving shoulders.
And then she was picking herself up and calling Happy to give her a ride, and walking down the hall to the elevator, the rest of the company quiet and empty, and she was down in the garage, Happy waiting there for her.
He saw her and quickly walked over, and pulled her into a hug, “Miss Potts-”
She let out a shaky laugh and hugged him back, keeping her head on his shoulder, eyes closed, “Happy, for once, just call me Pepper.”
Happy’s head rested on her shoulder as he hugged her close, “Sure thing Pepper.”
---
Steve quickly walked through the living room, shoulders hunched, rushing to his room, the door closing with a soft snick.
Natasha turned away from the movie and looked at the boy’s expressions around her before sighing, “Well. That must have gone well then.”
She stood and wandered over to where the Captain’s room was, shooting Bruce a look.
Bruce stood and made his way over to the elevator.
Natasha knocked on Steve’s door, a courtesy knock more than anything, because she walked in anyway to find Steve in the shower. She took a seat down on his bed and stretched out and waited for the soldier to come out.
When Steve was finished with his shower, he walked into his room, towel around his waist, eyes focused on his feet and when he looked up, Towel no longer on his hips and pooled on the ground, Natasha smiled at him from his bed.
“Hey Steve. Steve’s penis.” She gave a little wave and sat up on the bed, legs crossed under herself.
Steve snatched up his towel from the ground and held it in front of himself, “Natasha, what the hell, you can’t just come and hang out in other people’s room without knocking!”
Natasha snorted and leaned back on her hands, “Like I’ve never seen a penis before. Although, I will say, you are packing heat there, soldier,” Steve’s face flushed and he wrapped the towel around his waist more firmly, “but I came in here to talk about everything. You seemed pretty rattled after you came back from the workshop. You told Tony, huh?”
Steve leaned over his dresser, opening the drawers for his underwear and pulling out black boxers, then grabbing a pair of jeans and a bright red shirt.
He glanced at Natasha over his shoulder and coughed.
She sighed and covered her eyes with her hand, and Steve dropped the towel.
She grinned as she said, “Nice ass too. Damn Super Soldier, you got the whole package.”
Steve whipped around, fixing his underwear into its proper place, “You’re not even looking! You’re just messing with me. That’s not nice, Natasha! Underwear’s on, so you can look now anyway.”
Natasha lowered her hand and whistled, causing Steve to flush even more than before.
“You know, if I didn’t have my own green beast to love, I’d be quite inclined, Mr. America.”
Steve glared at Natasha as he pulled up his pants, “Cute Natasha, real cute.” He snatched up his shirt and slipped it on, flopping himself face down onto the bed next to Natasha.
She sighed and reached out, running a hand through his hair and scratching at the back of his neck, “Come on Steve, turn over, put your head in my lap, and tell ‘Tasha all about it.”
Steve sighed and did just that, laying on his back and folding his hands across his chest, “Yes. I told Tony his break-up with Pepper was all my fault-”
“No Steve, it wasn’t. You know Pepper-”
“and he didn’t appreciate me ruining what was supposed to be an important day.”
Natasha stalled and looked down at Steve, her face going blank, mouth tight, “He’s more of an idiot than I thought if he was really going to propose. Pepper’s been slowly moving away from him for a few months now.”
Steve sighed and Natasha scratched his head, his shoulders relaxing slightly, “They were happy ‘Tash. They could have worked if I hadn’t opened my stupid mouth.”
Natasha pulled on his hair, glaring down at him, “No, you were there at that table too. She didn’t want to be with him anymore, Steve. She was tired of being helpless and worrying all the time. Besides, have you seen the way Happy stares at her? She won’t be alone for much longer.”
Steve grunted and covered his face with his hands, “That’s not the point. She broke up with Tony, broke Tony’s heart; for me. So that I could be with him. What kind of a person does that make me? A Homewrecker. I’m a Homewrecker, Natasha. He was going to build a home with her, and I swung in on a stupid crush, and wrecked it.”
Natasha gripped his wrists and pulled his hands away from his face, placing his large hands on her waist and holding onto his wrists still, “Now you know that’s not true. Quit being a little drama queen. Tony will come to understand everything soon, he’s a smart boy, and you two will be living the Ken doll Dream House story soon enough.”
Steve laughed weakly and gave Natasha’s waist a squeeze and she laughed and moved her legs to rest on either side of his head, under his shoulders. His head rested on her lap still.
“Everything will be fine Steve, just give it time. He needs time.”
---
Bruce stood inside Tony’ lab, quiet, letting the man work as he waited patiently.
Jarvis had already alerted Tony to the other scientists presence, but Tony had kept working, clearly choosing to ignore the AI and the man behind him.
Bruce moved over to the couch in the corner of the room and sat down to wait out Tony’s silent treatment.
It lasted thirty minutes almost exactly before Tony put his tools down and turned to look at Bruce, “What can I do for you Green Stuff?”
Bruce leaned back on the couch, keeping his hands in his lap, “How’re you holding up Tony?”
Tony looked down at the watch on his wrist and looked back to Bruce, “Well, seeing as I just got broken up with and confessed to all in about seven hours, I seem to be holding up well. I’d be holding up better if PHIL HADN’T HIDDEN ALL MY DRINKS,” At this Tony pointed a finger up at the ceiling in anger, his face contorted into a scream, before it flattened back to his calm demeanor, “but I’m doing okay.”
Bruce had a slight smile on his face, “You know why we hid the alcohol Tony, and don’t act like we’re doing this to be mean. It’s for your own good. Or, your liver’s own good.”
Tony huffed and came to sit on the couch next to him, “Look, I am ok. I’ll be worse later, it’s just a lot to take in.”
Bruce nods, a fond smile on his face, “I know how you feel. Especially on the someone amazing loving you front. I’m well aware of how that feels. But I also know the shitty feeling of not being with someone who you love, you loves you.” Bruce’s eyes go wistful, “Tony, it’s not easy to let someone go, but we all have to do it at some point. You can’t dwell.”
Tony looked to Bruce finally, taking in his far away stare, “I will. I’ll have to. I can’t spend the rest of my life pining about Pepper. Especially when I have Steve to think of too. It’s just a really muddled situation. I’m not used to having to trust people and their intentions. I am pretty used to people thinking they know what’s best for me. That’s what really grinds me here the most. Pepper and Steve can just make all these decisions without actually consulting me. It’s my life, my love life, I deserve to have a say.” Bruce nodded and reached a hand out, grabbing Tony’s shoulder lightly.
“I’m sorry Tony. I know it's frustrating, but they honestly do have your happiness at heart.”
Tony nodded and draped his hand over Bruce’s on his shoulder, “I know. it’s just rough. Also, gross.”
Bruce looked questioningly at Tony before he continued, “ Natasha has threatened to castrate me. She’s one of many women who has, yes, but she actually could. With a pen. She’s terrifying. How can you sleep next to her and not be scared to wake up with her claws digging into your neck?”
Bruce smiled and pulled his hand away leaning back against one of the many metal tables scattered around the room, “Be nice when you’re talking about Natasha. She’s not just mine, remember that. The Hulk likes her an awful lot. And he hates it when people say mean things about people he deems his.”
Tony levelled a cold glare at Bruce before pointing a finger at the man, “Threats aren’t nice to level against your friends Brucey, keep that in mind next time you ask for help.”
Bruce laughed, “Oh please, if we had to stop working together every time one of us threatened the other we’d never get any real science done. Speaking of, Mr. Stark, if you’d lead the way?”
Tony smiled and turned around and J.A.R.V.I.S. projected a hologram in front of the men, “Check this out.”
---
Clint set the last fork down on the table and looked to Phil, who was still in the kitchen standing by the stove, “You want me to ask Jarvis to call everyone down?”
Phil nodded, and Clint turned his face up to the ceiling, “Jarvis-”
“Already done Mr. Barton.”
“Thanks, man.” He walked over to the fridge and grabbed the Sunny D for Steve and a bottle of water for Phil, setting the jug of juice on the table and going to grab the Ice Tea for himself when Natasha walked into the kitchen and leaned against Phil, looking over his shoulder at the pan on the stove, “Smells perfect, Phil.”
Clint set the tea on the table and sat down, “You know his pasta sauce is unrivaled, ‘Tasha.”
She smiled and sat down to his right, Steve moving over one from Natasha to leave a space for Bruce.
As Clint set down the huge container of cooked pasta on the table, Bruce and Tony entered the room and sat, Bruce next to Natasha, Tony next to Steve, his posture stiff.
As Phil seated himself a few seconds later with the bowl of sauce, Clint began to serve himself, Natasha turning to Bruce.
“You see that article in People about the Hulk?”
Bruce’s face flushed and he looked over to Tony with a glare, “What did you do Tony?”
Tony smiled and sipped his glass of water, “Nothing Bruce. Nothing at all.”
Natasha served herself pasta, a small smile on her mouth, “It really wasn’t so bad. And I’ve already taken care of it.”
Tony’s face paled and he swallowed the water in his mouth harshly, a cough rocking his shoulders, “Wait, what?”
Natasha ate her food and spared a quick, innocent smile for Tony, “Don’t worry about it. It’s non-lethal.”
Steve gave Natasha a disapproving glare, “Nat, I asked you not to leave booby-traps in other people’s stuff. It causes distrust amongst the team.”
Barton let out a small laugh and Phil glared at him.
“Well, he said booby…”
Everyone stared at Clint, who saw all the glares from his teammates and went back to eating.
And the dinner continued on. No one storming out, or yelling, just quiet jokes and small smiles between couples and friends.
---
“Thor!” Steve gave the huge man a hug, Thor happily returning the gesture, a smile plastered on his face.
As he pulled away from Steve, he saw Tony, standing more towards the back of the room, and waved him over, pulling the man into a suffocating hug the second he was within reach, “Tony! It is good to see you again! Jane sends her hellos, and says that she would love to talk to you again soon!”
Tony nodded, letting Thor hug him and hugging back with less enthusiasm, “Good to have you back, Hammer Time.” He patted Thor on the back and stepped away, letting Natasha be enveloped by the huge body of the Demi-God.
Steve glanced at Tony, his eyebrows knit together before he noticed Tony’s glance his way, and let his face fall neutral, a small placid smile in place.
Tony slipped away from the group and went down to the workshop, asking Jarvis to turn on the music, loud, and not to let anyone disturb him for at least five hours.
Jarvis then proceeded to haggle him down to three and a half.
He huffed as he got to work on the Iron Man gauntlets, trying to pack more punch for a smaller amount of battery power.
This is what he did after all, sat alone and worked by himself.
---
“Can you open the door for me please, Jarvis?”
“I’m sorry Captain Rogers. But Mr. Stark has asked me not to let anyone disturb him.”
Steve sighed and held up the sketchbook he had in his hand, “What if I promise to stay really quiet and only draw?”
The AI didn’t respond for a few seconds, seeming to consider the offer before the door to the workshop slid open and Steve walked in. He settled himself over onto the couch in the corner, staying quiet as he had promised Jarvis.
As Tony worked, Steve drew, the music still loud, but Jarvis had been adjusting it minutely since Steve had asked entry.
Two hours later, Jarvis dimmed the music to almost unidentifiable levels, “Mr. Stark, it’s been three and a half hours. A break is now required.”
Tony huffed and turned to the side to crack his back, spotting a body lying out on his couch.
Feeling a gaze on him Steve looked up from his book, a pencil grasped between his fingers, a smudge of graphite on the bridge of his nose. A smile broke out on the Super Soldier’s face and he closed the sketchbook, “Hey Tony. Are you done for now?”
Stark stared at the man for a bit, trying to gauge how he felt towards the other man right then, “Yeah, Jarvis is making me, says I need a break.”
Steve nodded and patted the couch cushion next to him, “Want to come sit with me, we can watch a movie for your break. I mean, if you’re ok with me being here. I can leave if you want.”
Tony was hesitant for a second before looking to Steve’s semi-pleading expression. He sighed and nodded. He made sure all his tools were off and cooling properly, nowhere near the new battery cell he was working on, and walked over to the couch and sat on the opposite side of the couch from Steve.
Steve pretended not to notice as he asked Jarvis to project a list of movies that were available onto the screen that rolled down from the ceiling for just this purpose.
Jarvis obliged, and Tony spaced out as Steve rolled through movies, finally settling on Wall-E.
“A movie all about science, so I think you’ll like it Tony.”
Tony came back to realization in time to see the opening of the movie Steve had picked and laughed at his choice, “Cute Cap. Real cute.”
And they settled down to watch it.
---
Tony looked over at Steve at the end of the movie to find that the Super Soldier had fallen asleep, head leaned back against the back of the couch.
Tony smiled and stood up to grab a blanket from one of the shelves around his workshop, returning to lay it around Cap’s body.
Cap snuggled down into the blanket and released a quiet sigh causing Tony to smile even more and grab his phone to snap a quick picture of the Captain asleep and cuddled into the couch.
Tony then went back to his workbench and asked Jarvis to bring his projections up and he continued to work on the battery, no music, just the quiet breathing of Steve in the background.
A half hour later a quiet mumble had Tony pausing in his work.
He set his work down and turned to look over at Cap in his corner on his couch.
Steve had curled slightly, shifting to kick off his shoes and lay himself out on the couch, his feet no longer covered by the blanket, but it was still tucked up under his chin.
And then Tony heard it again.
A very quiet, noise, almost totally hidden, would have been if anything loud had been going on as it usually was in Tony’s lab.
Instead, Tony heard his name fall from those lips.
Quiet and happy and his name.
Steve Rogers was saying his name in his sleep.
Tony let that stew in his head for a while and enjoying the feeling of someone wanting him, even in sleep.
Pepper had never said his name in her sleep.
Pepper also wouldn’t cuddle in her sleep.
She pushed him away and curled onto her side as soon as she was drowsy, and they’d always wake up with Tony trying to cuddle to her and her body scrunched at the edge of the bed.
Tony turned to look at Steve, laid out on his couch, asleep and saying his name.
Tony didn’t doubt that if he gave up and lay himself down next to him Steve would curl close and cuddle him.
Tony turned away from the couch and bent his head low to his project again, thoughts weighing heavy.
---
And weeks passed.
Bruce and Natasha read books on the main couch.
Clint and Coulson spent a lot of time in Clint’s room, Clint still too unsure about Coulson’s permanence in the world to not try and spend all his time with him.
Steve would draw, and read, and hang out with everyone, and every once in a while he’d lay himself down on Tony’s couch in his workshop, and draw, and sleep, and talk to Tony.
Thor spent most of his time in New Mexico, seeing Jane, and flew back occasionally to live with his Shield Brethren.
And Tony spent most of his time down in the workshop.
Barely talking, and not drinking any alcohol, thanks to Coulson.
One day Doom Bots descended.
And Captain America went down.
---
Natasha used the Hulk’s shoulder as a springboard, launching herself onto the back of a Doom Bot and prying a piece of its carapace off and reaching into the machine and pulling out a fistful of wires.
When they began to spark and falter she’d whistle, and the Hulk would come from where ever he was smashing things lift her back onto his shoulder, and they’d start anew.
Clint was at the top of a squat apartment building, using EMP arrows to disrupt them.
Thor was above sending down lightning to fry the bots.
Tony was above, shooting them down.
Steve was on the ground, bashing them with his shields.
Surprisingly, Doom had learned from their last few fights, and had finally made his robots sturdier against Steve and his shield, so The Captain was more off to the side, working containment with Thor.
Everything seemed to be going well, the usual, everyone doing their jobs, just trying to cut through the bots, Doom long gone by now.
And then the com exploded in Tony’s helmet, Thor yelling, and then Natasha and Clint were, the Hulk roaring before Jarvis cut the chatter to a manageable level and Tony finally made sense of all the yelling and caught sight of his comrades.
He shot two more blasts and took down two more bots before he was shooting his way over to where his small group of comrades had formed a tight circle.
In the middle, there was Steve, laid out flat and a large gash adorned his head, blood pouring from the wound staining the neck and chest of his costume, his hair a deep crimson, Natasha was beside him with her hands on his chest, Clint had his back to the group, firing arrows at the bots who were now a much smaller group.
Thor turned and roared, the Hulk following his example, and then Tony and Clint were too, and the last of the bots were taken down by very angered men and they were all back at Steve’s side, Tony down on his knees next to the prone man, his faceplate up.
Natasha was still bent over him, whispering to him and keeping one hand on the other side of his head as Clint called in for SHIELD support.
Tony kept a hand on Steve’s arm, refusing to be dislodged even by the SHIELD employees that tried to pull him away from the Captain.
He jumped in their ambulance and stayed with them until Fury threatened to bench him unless he stepped out of Roger’s room and let the doctors do their job.
That was how the rest of the team found Tony Stark, still in his suit with the faceplate up sitting outside of Steve Roger’s room looking despondent and worried.
Natasha stood on the other side of the hallway leaning on the wall.
Thor pacing, Barton pacing opposite him, Coulson taking up a seat a few seats away from Stark.
Bruce sat down next to Tony, slipping a hand into Tony’s, grasping the metal fingers between his.
Tony looked up from the floor and stared at Bruce’s haggard and tired face, “We’re all worried Tony. And we’re all here. And we’re not going anywhere.”
Tony gave a light squeeze, conscious of the suit, to Bruce’s hand and let his gaze drift back to the floor.
Bruce squeezed his hand again and the genius looked up, “You might wanna take the suit off. We could be here for a bit.”
Tony nodded and untangled himself from Bruce before starting the sequence for the plates to pull off of him until he stepped out and the suit became a compact briefcase that Tony pushed under his seat and resumed his spot next to Bruce.
The longer the team was forced to wait the more Tony seemed to fold in upon himself until finally he got up and left to the bathroom.
Returning a few minutes later with reddened eyes that the team never mentioned.
---
“Tony Stark?”
Tony stood up, his calves like liquid under him from being bent for so long, and he struggled his way to the nurse, shaking his legs out as he went, “Yes?”
She looked up at him, holding the door to Steve’s room open slightly, “He’s asking for you.”
Tony pushed past the woman rudely, hardly hearing anything around him as he entered the room, doctor’s filing out around Tony.
Steve sat up in the bed, face pale but cleaned of the blood from his head wound.
The blanket was pulled up to his shoulders his chest bare beneath it.
Steve was staring out the window, one eye a deep blue from the hit he had taken, his lip split, and when he turned to look at Tony, Stark froze a few paces from the bed.
Steve face split into a smile and he lifted his arms up and out to the billionaire, the blanket falling down to pool in his lap.
Tony kept his eyes on Steve’s good eye and fell into his arms, pulling close to the blonde man.
Steve let out a small noise of protest before hugging back, “Hey there Tony. Glad to see you’re ok.”
Tony pulled back and kept his hands locked onto Steve’s shoulders, “You were worried about me? You had a head wound so bad they said you cracked your skull in like, five places. How can you sit here and worry about me?”
Steve kept smiling, his hands lightly gripping Tony’s forearms, “Easy. You were in danger too, and I’m fine now. All super soldier healed and everything. No more worrying.”
Tony gawked at the man in the bed, “You have brain damage. That’s the only reason you’re worried about me, you got hit so hard-”
“I love you.”
Tony was silenced and his fingers gripped Steve’s shoulders, his jaw slack.
“What?”
“I said I love you. Definitely. One hundred percent sure that I love you. I still do. I know I screwed up everything for you with Pepper, but Tony she’s right, there is someone here for you. I will always be here for you. I love you.”
Tony’s eyes widened and he started to pull away, but Steve tightened his grip, keeping the other man close.
“Sorry to freak you out but Tony, I need to know. I know it’s only been a few weeks, but I almost got really hurt, and I just need to know. I need to stop wasting my time.”
Tony stumbled back, pulling his arms out of Steve’s grip harshly.
“I-”
Steve face fell a bit, his smile no longer bright but now uncertain, “Tony, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to, I just, I didn’t mean to just spring that on you again-”
“I need to go.”
Tony Stark turned tail, and ran.
---
He had grabbed the suitcase off the floor outside and suited up at the entrance of the hospital, and now he was at home, locked in his workshop, suit put away and the under armor rolled down around his waist.
He was working, a welding mask on, ignoring the slight burning sensation on his chest from the open flame near him.
“Sir, Miss Romanova is-”
“Tony, we really need to talk about this.”
The engineer put the welder out and took off the mask before turning to Natasha, “Hi Nat, nice to see you too. How can I help you after you overrode my A.I. and broke into my lab?”
She smiled at him before wandering over to the couch and taking a seat, patting the spot next to her, “Tony, look. Steve feels really, really bad for springing that on you.”
Tony sighed before he took a seat next to Natasha and let her wind an arm around his shoulders, “Tony-”
“I know, ok? I know.” He looked away from her and hunched his shoulders a bit, trying to dislodge the woman’s arm. Natasha didn’t budge, “I know that he loves me. It was just really startling to hear it, ok? I’m not used to people who just, love me like that.”
Natasha gave a sad smile, “But Tony, what are you gonna do about it?”
Tony sighed and leaned back, curling himself slightly towards Nat, “I don’t know Nat. I don’t know.”
---
Steve was finally at home after being kept over night, but the rest of his team had sent him to bed as soon as he got home, so here he was, in bed.
He picked his book back up and continued reading when his door banged open,and there stood Tony Stark in flannel pajama pants, low on his hips, and a black tank top covering his torso.
He walked over to Steve and leaned over shoving his face into the Super Soldiers before placing his lips against Steve’s.
Steve startled back and Tony followed him, leaning in to kiss him.
Steve’s eyes were wide, his finesse gone until Tony’s fingers reached up tangled in the hair on the back of his head and pulled him close.
Steve’s eyes slid closed and he dropped the book in his hands, his arms sliding up to wrap around Tony’s shoulders and tug the man into his lap.
Tony fell into Steve’s lap, his legs hanging over the side of the bed and deepened the kiss.
Steve smiled and pulled back for air, gasping the necessity into his lungs before Tony’s mouth was back on his.
One of Steve’s hands slid down between Tony’s shoulder blades and the other stayed tight around his shoulders, keeping him close.
Tony pulled away finally, and Steve stared into the other man’s eyes dazedly before a smile broke across his face, “Hey Tony.”
Stark looked away from Steve’s face, his hands staying tight on Steve’s shoulders, “Natasha talked to me and I just couldn’t stop thinking and you had said all that stuff and I loved Pepper, I did but even then I thought about you and I just brushed it off and now you’re all I can think about, you and that lame tight, tight suit that just clings to all these places, and then you got hit and I-”
Steve kissed him again, Tony’s mouth still moving against his and then Stark was pulling back and he was still babbling,
“and I had no clue how to tell you that I think I might definitely want this and want you and you’re what I want and I need you so yes Steve you win.”
Steve took his hands away from Tony’s back and shoulders and placed his palms on Tony’s cheeks, “The short version Stark.”
His nails dug into Steve’s shoulder slightly and he finally looked him in his ice blue eyes, “Will you try this out with me?”
Steve’s face cracked wide with a smile and he leaned in and kissed Tony, quick and sweet, before pulling back and looking him in the eye again, “That’s a lame way of asking me out Stark. I expected better. You can try again later, but for now, you’re mine.”
The Super Soldier flipped the Man of Iron onto his back on his bed and kissed him again to stifle Tony’s protests, weak as they were.