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“What you’re saying, Steve… everything you’re offering… it’s what we could have been,” Tony said quietly.
“We still can!” Steve protested somehow managing to look hurt at Tony’s words.
Tony laughed. It was dry and humorless. Tony didn’t know how Steve could be so goddamn clueless. He still thought he did nothing wrong. That he was in the right- that he had always been in the right.
Fuck him.
“No,” Tony said.
His fists clenched. He couldn’t make Steve understand. Steve never listened to him. Why would he do that now? Tony had fucked up one too many times. Steve had fucked up one too many times. There was too much between them. Too much. They didn’t get along when they first met. They barely got along in the time after it.
“No? Won’t you even listen?”
Like you listened to me?
“I said no, Rogers,”
Why won’t he just listen? Does he care about anything I have to say?
“Oh come on Tony, things weren’t so bad between us,” Steve egged.
He took a step closer to Tony. Tony took a step back, his heart slammed against his chest. Don’t let him get to close. If he gets too close, you know what he can do. You know what he did.
His chest still hurt.
Steve took another step forward. Tony took another step back. His back hit a wall. Don’t think about the last time you had nowhere to go. Don’t think about Steve above you. The shield raised above his head. The shield. Slamming down on his-
“Tony!”
Steve was only a few steps in front of him now. A look of irritation on his face.
“Could you pay attention?”
“I said no! How many more times do I have to say it? I’m not doing it!”
God his chest hurt.
“Why not?” Steve sounded amazed at Tony’s rejection.
“Why not?” Tony repeated, disbelief clear in voice.
“Do you know what you did to me? Do you even care? You slammed your god forsaken shield into my chest and left me in that fucking bunker to die,” Tony snarled.
“It was just the suit,” Steve said weakly.
“FRIDAY, damage report,”
“Boss suffered multiple contusions, several cracked ribs, and a bruised sternum. Add that onto a severe pre-existing heart and lung problems due to time spent with the arc reactor in his chest. Boss was in critical condition when he was found,”
“I… I didn’t know,”
“Of course you didn’t,” Tony muttered.
“Tony!”
He took another step forward. Tony jerked his hands up to protect his chest. Steve had the audacity to look hurt at Tony’s reaction.
“You’re going to listen to me, this time,” Tony said quietly.
“I always-”
“You don’t! You didn’t about the Accords! I tried so many times to tell you that I could amend them, that I would never let anyone take advantage of us. I’m good at this! I could have fixed the Accords to be more agreeable but you didn’t listen to me! You only cared about your own damn opinion!” Tony snapped.
He didn’t want to raise his voice. He never liked yelling at Steve, it didn’t seem to work ever- talking was better, just barely.
“The Accords were wrong!”
“You know better than 117 countries?” Tony asked.
“They’re scared of us Rogers, don’t you get that?”
“I’m scared of you,”
Steve took a step back. Tony didn’t relax.
“I didn’t mean to-”
“But you did,”
With his back still against the wall, Tony made his way to the hallway. Steve didn’t follow. Tony entered his workshop and felt himself relax. He felt more comfortable in his shop, surrounded by Dum-E, U, and Butterfingers than he did around anyone in the old team. He sat down at his workbench and pulled up a few different schematics.
His chest still fucking hurt.