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Tony, in the past, never cared much for dates. He was a bit of a player in his day. And him and Pepper? Well, that was just a toxic mess.
But something about May was different.
She made him want to be better. To change. To do romantic stuff. To actually leave his lab every once in a while.
Finding alone time with May, however, was easier said than done. She worked long shifts at the hospital, and he spent long hours being Iron-Man. That, and there was the whole co-parenting situation that had somehow come to exist when it came to her super-powered nephew, Peter.
Not that loving Peter was a chore.
Was it hard sometimes? Yes. Absolutely. But Peter made Tony want to be a good dad.
Not that he was a dad.
Or ever planned on being a dad.
And it wasn’t like his own father had exactly given him a great example to work from anyway.
But May trusted Peter with him.
And that meant something.
It meant a lot, actually.
So here he was, at the butterfly museum in New York. Holding May’s hand. Two tickets clutched in his other hand. He couldn’t believe he had actually pulled this off. Tony Stark. Planning a date.
Okay, yeah, so he’d had some help from Happy. Sue him. He was trying.
It was a hot and humid August morning in New York. May wore a pretty summer dress that flowed around her legs as she walked.
He exchanged the tickets at the front entrance for a small brochure with a map of the building.
Tony could already see the monarchs flapping around inside the enclosed room. To be honest, he felt a little nervous. He’d never been a huge fan of little flying things that could attack you. Sure, butterflies were supposedly harmless, but so were a lot of things until they weren’t.
But the way May’s face lit up made it worth it.
The place was beautiful. Like an indoor garden tucked away from the rest of New York. Lush trees stretched toward the glass ceiling, their leaves dripping with condensation. Flowers bloomed along the winding pathways, and fountains trickled with running water beneath the soft flutter of hundreds of wings.
May squeezed his hand. Tony looked at her instead of the butterflies.
Yeah.
Definitely worth it.
He’d read online that you could hold your hand out and a butterfly might land on you. He was not planning on participating, but he would enjoy watching May.
That seemed like a perfectly good compromise.
Of course, the monarchs seemed to have other plans. How rude.
May still held his hand as they walked near a particular section of the garden. Coming to a stop, she raised her hand out toward the butterflies. He watched her with an unknowing smile, letting his other hand rest against a tree next to him.
Suddenly, May’s expression grew. Her eyes widened.
“Oh! Don’t move!”
“What?”
May laughed, and that’s when he realized. There was a butterfly on his hand. He wanted to panic. To brush it off and flee.
“May.”
She chuckled. “Don’t scare it!”
“Scare it!? It’s scaring me!”
This only seemed to make her laugh harder as she squeezed the hand she was still holding.
“Here, let me—” She held her hand out, steady. Steady in a way only a nurse could be.
The butterfly slowly crawled onto her hand. He only looked at it for half a second.
May was smiling wildly, cooing at the little creature in her hands. She seemed absolutely delighted. Had he succeeded?
“You’re enjoying this way too much.” He chuffed.
May giggled and shook her head at his antics. “Thank you for taking me here.”
“Of course.”
May looked at him, the butterfly on her hand momentarily forgotten. She leaned over and kissed his cheek. He felt his whole face heat up. Like a giddy school girl. What was this woman doing to him?
“I’m in love with you.” He hadn’t meant to say it out loud. He froze and May froze. Yet the butterfly remained happily content on her hand.
“I think I love you too.”
“You think?”
May giggled. The anxiety in his chest was lowering. God, was she so beautiful. Stunning. Gorgeous. How could he ever be worthy enough for this wonderful woman?
“I love you, Tony.”
His artificial heart pounded. There was that giddy school girl feeling again. He would never hear the end if any of the other Avengers saw how he was acting. But, right now? All he could see was May. Beautiful. Gorgeous. Kind. Hardworking. Tough. May. His May.
And she loved him too.