A/N: This one-shot idea has been occupying my mind a lot lately and I need to write it before it drives me insane. Could be same verse as my other multi-chapter or not. You decide.
Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel…
Summary: Tony can't sleep, Steve can't sleep… actually, none of the Avengers can for some reason or another. Rated M for language and some content. Full cast of Avengers.
A Normal Night
Steve shouldn't have called Stark's tower an ugly building in the middle of New York, because now he felt like a hypocrite in need of apologizing.
Too late, he knew, for apologies. It had been months and a few close-call missions since the invasion, and bygones were bygones. He and Stark were pretty close friends now, so Steve let it go in a sigh of hot clouded air mingling with the winter breeze.
The balcony had soon become his favourite spot to dwell on his thoughts at night. His room was too quiet- he;d never had a whole floor to himself before. he;d never slept alone, at the orphanage or in the army, there was always someone snoring or making noise.
Now the quiet was oppressing and too much to handle.
A siren erupted a few blocks away from th Tower, and Steve tracked its process through the streets before it vanished behind a building, its wails fading with the honking of horns or loud partygoers below. The city never quieted, even in the cold winter months where the streets were covered in slush.
Steve returned to gazing at the stars, dripping in light as if reassuring him there were other worlds above them, that there were bigger things at work other than his insomnia.
The truth was, whenever he closed his eyes, he either saw Peggy's beautiful face or Bucky's terrifying reaction to falling thousands of feet to his death.
Either way it hurt more than going a few days without sleep.
The city's solid colours faded, and it took Steve a few seconds to realize why.
Someone had turned on a light in the penthouse behind him, and he twisted from his position against the glass to see who.
The floor above was dark, so it wasn't Tony getting a drink from the bar.
Yet it was Tony- just in the kitchen which the balcony connected to from both sides.
Steve got up and headed in, watching as Stark rummaged in the fridge.
"A little early for breakfast, isn't it?" The blonde asked after Tony hadn't noticed him and set a carton of eggs on the marble countertop.
Steve was sure JARVIS had told Tony he was out there, because the billionaire didn't jump like usual. Tony liked 'spying' on where people were, mostly to avoid them.
"Is it? JAVIS, what time is it?"
"Two in the morning, Sir."
"Guess to normal people- hold it. Why're you up, Cap? Don't you believe in a solid eight hours and getting up at the crack of dawn to read the newspaper? You do know people don't read newspapers anymore, right?"
Steve sensed a tangent, held up a hand, "Couldn't sleep. Anyway, the view is nice."
"Sure," Tony was absently scratching at the bandage on the side of his neck. It had been a day and a half since their last mission- a pretty bad one from what Steve recalled. Fury had given them the week, hence everyone decided to hole up in Stark Tower. Tony had taken a nasty blow to the side of the head, his suit had almost crushed his trachea completely if it hadn't been for the Hulk spiriting him away and ripping off Stark's helmet.
Which brought Steve to wonder if Tony was up late fixing his suit, or most likely something else, the guy never seemed to stop working. It explained the dark circles under his eyes and how he slumped in the stool while whisking eggs for an omelette.
"Stark, the doctors at SHIELD said you should rest-"
"I never really listen to them. I'm the energizer bunny, Rogers." Tony knew he wouldn't get what the hell an energizer bunny was, which was his intent. Throw the Captain off so he'd just give up and leave.
So early in the morning, the Captain was getting a real glimpse at the man. The one who looked so run down and too proud to admit he was human and needed rest.
Shrugging off the Captain of the Team role that had been thrust upon him by so many degrees every mission, Steve decided Stark needed a friend more than a team leader. Plus, Tony wasn't good with authority figures.
"I'm not used to being alone. There used to always be someone there when I was a kid, even in the army, so most nights I sit on the balcony just for the sound of the streets. I know I should move on but I know it's okay not too remove myself completely."
Tony put the bowl down he was about to pour into the pan, turning off the burner before rotating to look at Steve. "Caring and sharing time? Did you do that in the army too?"
"Stark,"
"If you say you're concerned or only trying to help, don't bother. I have Pepper for that."
"I'm trying to be a friend. We got off on the wrong foot,"
Tony shrugged, brushing it off but Steve could see the genius calculating something as he cleaned up from his non-breakfast. He looked exhausted. "I think we've made up for that. You did kind of saved our lives the other day."
"It was a team effort."
"Such a you thing to say, Rogers." And it seemed to piss Tony off. "Just take credit for once, you deserve it."
"What's the problem here?" Steve didn't like the haunted gleam in Tony's eyes. It reminded him too much of a reoccurring nightmare, the terror he had seen in Bucky's eyes when his friend fell. Steve shook off the icy feeling.
Tony wiped a hand down his face, resisting the urge to rub his skin off. He was so tired. "I can't shut off. My brain, it just… it's stuck on one channel every time I try and sleep."
"When I can't sleep I-"
"Steve, if you say you drink warm milk, my gravestone will say I died of laughter."
Steve chuckled, and the two sometimes friends shared a peaceful moment of just sharing a joke.
"Nat?"
Nothing but a rustle of sheets, and a small feminine groan was all it took for him to feel sorry if he'd woke her. Fluffing the pillow under his head, Clint closed his eyes tight.
"What, Clint?" Even in a secure room, one of the world's best assassins lying in the bed beside Clint, he still jumped at her soft, guarded voice.
"Nothing. Go back to sleep."
"I was never asleep."
He snorted. "Fucking jet lag."
"Mhmm." She affirmed. "What did you want?" Her voice, muffled by the sheets over her head, sent vibrations down his spine. Her body was snug with his, her head at his back. They usually never slept in the same room, but the last mission… it had sent Clint into a panic when they'd lost contact with Widow for a few hours after the initial attack.
His nightmare was that they'd find Black Widow dead somewhere and he'd never know what happened. He wouldn't be there to assist his partner.
"Never mind," He drawled, closing his eyes against the dark shadows again, they'd left the blinds open, the city skyline lit like brilliant diamonds.
Natasha shifted, sitting up straight before dipping down and whispering in Clint's ear. "I'm not going anywhere, Hawk. I'll be here when you wake up. Now go to sleep before I force you."
He grinned up at her, eyes narrowed trying to focus on her beautiful face so close to his. He could feel her breath trail across his cold cheek. It was too many times in the past they'd been separated on missions, and it was a luxury to be able to spend nights together in Stark Tower away from the curious eyes of SHIELD.
"Okay," He closed his eyes.
She shuffled back under the covers, returning her forehead to touch his shoulders lightly.
A few minutes passed, her breathing evening out. Clint was on the cusp of falling softly into sleep when Natasha's firm voice close to his ear spoke: "Clint, get your hand off your gun. We're both safe. Go to fucking sleep."
Guiltily, Clint removed his hand from under his pillow still clutching the gun. Slipping it into the bedside table, he forced himself not to laugh as Nat rolled over to bury herself further in the sheets like a child, rolling him over with her so that he hugged her back.
She always knew his fears and how to effectively deal with them. Her actions seemed clinical, but her heart was the same as his; meaning they both had one and it worked on occasion. For what others believed about the notorious Black Widow, Clint couldn't imagine her being as cold-hearted as the rumours. He knew her better, after all.
Bruce fiddled with the thing for the eighth time, not that he was keeping count. It still wouldn't turn on, and the scientist didn't blame it. The alarm clock that had been thrust into his arms by one god of thunder had seen better days. There was no salvaging it.
"What happened, Thor? Tony designed this to tolerate your fists." It was made of high quality adamantium which Stark received from a certain Professor, legally, once he found out Thor could break absolutely every piece of expensive equipment while underestimating his strength.
The alarm clock clearly didn't withstand whatever the god had done to it.
"I listened to Stark's sky friend, Master JARVIS, on how to set this clock to go off when I wanted. It didn't work. It woke me up."
"Well, that's what it's designed to do." Bruce's patience was wearing thin. It was two in the morning and the god had woken Bruce up from his nap in the lab while waiting for test results on one of his many projects. God, he was getting as bad as Tony when it came to always being in the lab.
Thinking of the billionaire, "Has Tony seen this?" His hand gestured to the heap of metal and wires among the files on the desk.
"No, the Man of iron was not in his chambers. Hence I came here." Thor sounded resolute in his logic, and expectant for Bruce to fix the chiming clock before Stark found out and shouted his face purple… again.
"How did you break it?" Bruce thought not even a truck could tear apart the precious alloy.
"I wielded Moljnir to defeat the raucous beast." Thor's chest puffed up, the embarrassment that such a small device could have frightened him enough to wield his hammer lingered in a pink hue on his cheeks.
"Don't tell me you sleep with that thing."
Thor didn't tell Banner anything except to beseech the man to fix the 'weak Midgardian clock'. "Of course I'll fix it. JARVIS?"
"Yes doctor Banner?"
"When it's not this early in the morning, could you call Professor Xavier and ask very nicely for more adamantium?"
"It would be my pleasure."
Bruce stopped Thor from walking out with a hand on the gods large bicep, "One condition, Thor."
"There are conditions for your help? I believed us friends." The pout on Thor's face would have put his younger brother to shame with how manipulative the action was.
"Don't get cute. When you get the new clock, you're leaving your hammer with Tony's suits."
Thor's playful grin fell, he crossed his arms. "So be it." The God entered the waiting elevator.
Once he was gone, Bruce sat down, eyeing the pathetically crushed thing that used to be a pretty nice clock. "JARVIS, where's Tony right now?"
"On the balcony with Mr. Rogers. I advise you do not tell Sir until the new clock is complete."
"Good idea."
"Thank you, doctor Banner." If the AI sounded smug, it was because his creator was always smug, most likely won't stay like that for long. How was he going to hide building a new clock from Tony when the guy was always in the lab? Bruce started getting a bad feeling that it would be impossible. "I could be sleeping right now." His groan echoed off the walls like a dead man's prayer.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Read and review! And I realize Natasha seems a little OOC but I like to imagine she is a human being with a heart and not a badass assassin all the time.