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They had been sitting drinking peppermint cocktails for about an hour when Steve noticed a familiar spine of a book on the bookshelf against the wall. Tony didn't keep many books around, most of them were either technical journals or old classics and things that must have held sentimental value by how ratty they were. The new orange spine stood out like a sore thumb and it was a surprise Steve hadn't noticed it earlier.
Tony had been resting mostly on Steve, reading something on the tablet on his lap while occasionally sipping his mostly-vodka cocktail. He had his feet up on the arm of the couch and his back pressed against Steve's elbow. He looked perfectly relaxed, but Steve was curious so he had to get up.
He muttered an apology and wedged a pillow in the spot where he'd been so Tony would only sink down a little as he rounded the couch to go inspect the shelves. As expected there were old books with tattered edges, new books with uncracked spines, and books that fell in between, and that orange one. It was exactly what he'd first thought, wedged into a gap between Hedge's Mechatronics and A Christmas Carol was Steve's copy of To Kill A Mockingbird. He knew it was his by the way the price sticker wrapped around the side.
He pulled it off the shelf, to prove that he wasn't imagining it. It was definitely his copy. He hadn't had a chance to read it, and he didn't think he'd get there as he'd purposefully left it at his apartment to prove to Tony he wasn't moving in.
It had seemed important at the time. Tony had clearly been upset by the prospect of them slipping into living together even though the penthouse had been Steve's home for months. He had left that book unpacked to make a point, so what was it doing here?
"Tony?" He turned back towards the couch to see Tony peering nervously over the edge, eyes a little wider than usual and mouth tight.
"Well it just looked so lonely sitting there on its own, you know? And you said you were leaving it for when we next fight at New Year and I thought, well that's just a daft idea, leaving behind one book for after an argument and then I thought… Well what if we don't fight? Or if we do for once we handling it without someone fleeing."
Steve counted the number of breaths Tony paused for, thinking he was three under the regular rate. His smile grew the further Tony got into his rant, reading between the lines. With his book still in hand he started to approach the couch.
"Tony… Do you not want me to have a place to run to?" He asked, getting the slightest of nods in response and he knew Tony had to be nervous to have gone from not shutting up to total silence.
"You want me to stay here? Even when things, when you are difficult?" Steve took the tablet from Tony when he reached the couch, setting it and the book down next to their cocktails. He leant over the couch, waiting for Tony to give another nod before he kissed him.
"So, does that mean you want me to actually be living here? Full time?" Their noses brushed together and Steve could feel Tony's breath on his cheek as he spoke. He was completely hunched over to be able to reach him, but he didn't mind, this was too important to worry about posture.
"You taste like peppermint," Tony whispered, licking his lips as he kept his eyes trained to Steve's. Steve huffed out a laugh, leaning in for another kiss.
"I'll take that as a yes, then."