"Bruce?"
"Yeah Tony?" Bruce called, looking up from the work on his desk.
"Can you come here?"
Taking his glasses off and dropping them on the stack of papers, Bruce rubbed his eyes and stretched before heading towards living room. Turning the corner from the hallway, Bruce saw Tony stretched out on his stomach, draped over the couch.
"Did you need something?"
"I'm dying" Tony whined pathetically.
"You're dying?" Bruce repeated skeptically, moving closer to get a better look. Perching on the edge of the couch next to Tony, Bruce laid his hand on Tony's forehead, checking to see if he was warm.
"Are you sick? You feel alright."
"My stomach hurts" Tony whimpered, laying his head on Bruce's knee and looking up at him with sad puppy eyes.
Bruce chuckled; he'd been through this before. Iron Man could bravely face and defeat any foe, but the tiniest little virus or stomachache and Tony turned into the world's biggest baby.
"You think you picked up a bug from somewhere?" Bruce asked, running his hands through Tony's hair soothingly. Tony mumbled something too low for Bruce to hear.
"What was that?"
"I finished those leftovers in the fridge and, well…"
"Tony!" Bruce shook his head. "I thought you threw those away? That hibachi shrimp made you sick the first time you ate it. Why would you ever eat it again?"
"It was good" Tony protested. "I just ate too much the first time. So I thought since there was only a little bit left, this time it would be fine."
"Well, maybe you learned your lesson now, huh?" Bruce chided him gently. Tony just moaned and rolled over, burying his face in the couch.
Bruce watched him for a moment, knowing that Tony had brought it on himself, but he felt bad anyway. Sighing, he grabbed Tony's shoulder, rolling him back over so they were face to face.
"Ok, come on. Let's try and make you feel better." Standing up, he pulled Tony to his feet and led him down the hallway to their bedroom. Pulling back the covers, he laid Tony down, tucking him in tightly.
"I'll be back in a second" he called back to Tony as he headed toward the bathroom. He was gone for a few minutes, but came back shortly with a hot water bottle and a cup of peppermint tea.
"Here you go" he said, nestling the hot water bottle against Tony's stomach and setting the tea on the bedside table. "Some heat always helps me and peppermint is supposed to be soothing for upset stomachs."
"Thanks Bruce, you're the best" Tony said, taking a sip of the tea before leaning back and closing his eyes, trying to fall asleep.
"I know, you don't deserve me" Bruce teased, turning to head back to his work.
"Hey Bruce?" Tony asked hesitantly, stopping him before he left.
"Yeah?"
"Could you come lay with me for a little bit?"
A small smile crossed Bruce's face. He would never actually admit it, but Tony was pretty adorable when he was like this.
"Sure" he said, walking around to the other side of the bed and climbing in. Bruce scooted up behind him, spooning together and throwing an arm over Tony, pulling him in close. Tony sighed happily, turning his head to give Bruce a quick peck on the lips.
"You're right, I don't deserve you" he murmured.
"Uh huh, I'll remind you of that tomorrow when you're feeling better" Bruce laughed. They both closed their eyes just enjoying the silence and the contact between them. Bruce thought Tony had finally drifted off and was about to try and sneak out when Tony's grip on his arm tightened.
"Hey Bruce?" he whispered tiredly.
"Yeah Tony?"
"Will you rub my stomach for me?"
Bruce rolled his eyes good-naturedly. Settling back down, he pulled Tony's shirt up just enough to slip his hand underneath, feeling the warmth of Tony's skin on his fingers.
"Of course I will."