This is going to be a mini series of Cap/Steve 'adventures'. Since my last Captain America fanfiction got such a good response I thought I would make more for you guys. They won't follow on from each other (most likely) but will simply be little stories each chapter. The chapter will have the name of the little 'adventure' so you can choose to read whichever takes your fancy. Thanks for reading this note and for being so lovely about The Right Partner.
It was dark outside when Steve opened his eyes but a faint glow of artificial light from the monstrously tall buildings surrounding Stark tower crept in through the window, illuminating certain patches of the floor. He turned over, rubbing his eyes as he did, to check the bedside alarm clock for the time.
"3 am. Of course." He rolled back over on his side to once again face the dully lit window. He was still not used to the bright lights of the city, the hustle and bustle of the everyday working man and woman, life without Peggy. He'd seen all of this before but somehow it all seemed so different now. Steve was occupying Tony's spare room for the night as he'd lost the only key he had to his apartment and couldn't get his hands on a spare key until the morning. Tony was the only man Steve knew would still be up at the late hour of 12am, and had no other option but to turn up and ask ever so nicely if he could stay the night. He would be out of their (Tony and Pepper) hair before they even knew he was there. Unable to fall back to sleep, Steve decided to wonder around the place in search of a kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. Stumbling out of bed and into a large open spaced room, he continued to rub his eyes and stretch his muscles.
Clink
Steve stopped dead in his tracks. 'Oh gosh! Have I knocked something over?' he thought, blind in the darkness of the open room. After a moment of being completely silent and stationary his eyes adjusted to the room's lighting. He knew he hadn't knocked anything over by this point as he had heard multiple clinks, trickles, and sniffs telling him that he wasn't making those noises and he wasn't alone in the room.
"Tony?" He tried searching the room but couldn't make out any figures, only furniture. He noticed a built-in bar at one side of the room lined with alcoholic beverages, some stacked behind the bar top on shelves, teamed with glasses and one open bottle of what appeared to be whisky.
Sniff. Gulp.
Steve turned and followed the sounds of Tony's drinking which lead him, quite obviously, to the couch. He saw there, Tony sat gulping a large glass of whisky with a faint but noticeable tear in his eye. He was slouched over and resting his arms on his knees staring down into his glass as if trying to find a hidden treasure at the very bottom. Clearly he hadn't heard Steve enter and was completely unaware of his presence.
"Tony, what are you doing?" there was a hint of fear in his voice as he spoke, trying to keep to a low volume as not to wake Pepper. Only now Tony realised that Steve had been in the same room with him for the past 5 or so minutes just silently observing.
Tony quickly ran the back of his hand across his face and caught any stray tear droplets that may have been there.
Sniff
He looked away from Steve and buried his head in his sleeve to disguise his face and every little emotion rushing through his body, but it was too late for that, Steve had seen all he had needed. Steve gently perched himself on the empty seat next to Tony and picked up the glass that had been placed on the table by Tony only moments before. He took a quick sip and, just as Tony had, watched the whisky as if it were about to reveal an important secret.
"Did I ever tell you I can't get drunk?" He continued and swilled the drink around in elegant circles. "It was a side-effect of the serum. A lot of people think it's an added bonus but... I never saw the up side." He lifted the glass to his pursed lips and took a second sip. Without warning Tony's hand reached out and grabbed the glass from Steve's grip, swigging down a mouthful for himself.
"Then why drink it." He said bitterly, still looking away from his guest.
"I could ask you the same question but you never answered my first. What are you doing sat in here at 3 in the morning drowning yourself in whisky?"
For the first time that night, Tony looked up from his glass and into the face of a friend, and more than that, a friend who cared for his wellbeing.
"My dad... how- what was he like?" He tried to sound casual and uninterested in Steve's opinions or thoughts but couldn't cover up just how much this question had been eating away at him for so long. Far too long.
Steve was taken aback by this question but soon it sunk in. 'Me being around must have triggered this. He must be upset because... I knew Howard and he didn't'. It wasn't an easy thought for Steve to process but he swallowed it up for Tony's sake and staggered on.
"He... well..." He mumbled awkwardly as he tried to get the right words out. "Your father was a great man. Much like you actually." Tony twitched. "When I knew him, he was more focused on keeping me and the other soldiers alive, y'know? He wasn't out with the rest of us drinking or any of that... a little less like you in that respect." A miniature smile crept its way from one side of Steve's face to the other as he reminisced about the good old days. "He was a genius. There wasn't anything he couldn't figure out or fix or build." The smile faded from Steve's face as he turned to look at Tony. Tony however, had one hand balled into a fist which was keeping his head up as he soaked in every drop of the conversation. Every little detail was precious to him but he didn't want Steve to know that. No. To Steve he was a big man, a tough guy with no cares who just did what he wanted and everything was a joke. Steve patted him on the back reassuringly for a moment, keeping his head down and taking a gulp of whisky that was once more placed on the table. Without a word he got off the couch and majestically made his way back to the spare room. Taking one last look over his shoulder before he went into the low-key lit room, slumped back into bed, and lay gazing at the ceiling. 'And in the morning none of that will have happened. I'll be treated with the same coldness he always showed towards me.' Steve thought as he drifted in and out of consciousness. 'I'll just avoid any awkwardness by leaving before Tony or Pepper gets up. But for now' He took a brief glance at the alarm clock once more 'I think I need some shut eye'.
