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Tony never expected to walk into the kitchen at two in the morning and find it already occupied.
And yet, there was Steve Rogers, sweaty from his run and looking every bit the part, drinking a cup of coffee made with a Stark machine; which is to say, the latest model on the market, plus a few extra bells and whistles.
“You know,” Tony said, his tone casual even though he was confused about what was going on, “I was under the impression that you weren't exactly tech-savvy. Your file said so, I’m sure of it.”
“I’m starting to think Romanoff is a pretty lousy spy,” Rogers replied calmly. “The USO girls did a much better job, and they hadn't even been trained as spies.”
“The USO girls were spies?” Tony asked, blinking slowly. “How?”
“They were my team,” Steve shrugged, “and I was leaving them without a job with my decision to fight at the front.”
“So, they became spies,” Tony concluded, vaguely amused. “Were they good?”
“Better than Romanoff,” Steve answered. “And JARVIS is very helpful when it comes to explaining how to use the appliances in this house.”
Tony blinked, wondering how he’d missed the fact that Steve Rogers was such a smart guy.
“I see.” Tony nodded. “Well, I’ll leave you to enjoy…” the peace, Tony thought, away from all our expectations and preconceptions, “…your coffee.”
“Don't be silly,” Steve said, shaking his head. “Stay.”
Tony paused, staring at Steve. “Are you sure?”
“It’s your kitchen, first of all, and I have no intention of kicking you out of it.” Steve shook his head. “Besides, I made extra coffee and I couldn’t drink it all even if I wanted to.”
“Okay.” Tony nodded, reaching out to take the offered cup. Then, after taking a sip and frowning slightly, he remarked, “This is just how I like it.”
“Really?” Steve asked, an innocent look on his face. Too innocent. Feigned innocence. “Amazing.”
“Did you hear me coming?” Tony asked. “Am I that loud?”
Because if he was, if exhaustion was making him that sloppy, that would be a major problem given their line of work.
“Heightened senses.” Steve shrugged. “Romanoff is sharpening knives in her room, Banner is writing a letter by hand, probably to Calcutta, Thor is hitting something in his room, and Barton is in the air ducts, for some reason.”
“Oh.” Tony blinked. “Well, that’s pretty loud, if I’m honest.” After a moment of hesitation, Tony sat down, looking at Steve expectantly. “Tell me more.”
With a laugh, Steve did.