Tony was weird. Alright, no that isn't fair. He is brilliant. It is like he has to live in a world where he isn't understood. He plays his life to rules that do not exist to the rest of us.

So when he started teasing me, I assumed it was nothing. When he openly groped me in front of everyone, I glared at him, and dropped it. Then he told Black Widow we were "fonduing" and I told him off, but both just laughed at me.

And then Pepper came to me. We had dinner together, she was friendly, showed me some of the plans for the Avengers tower and was overall very kind. And very pretty.

But as the night wore on, her conversation became more and more Tony-centric. I mean, I knew these two were together, or a "hot item" as every magazine seemed to deem them, but I knew she was more interesting than just Tony's girlfriend.

"Now listen, Steve. I know Tony. Better than anyone. He is an idiot. But he is interested in you. So, I am giving you two my blessing. Have some fun and go ahead and get it out of your system."

I stopped. Or maybe time stopped, I don't know.

"Excuse me, ma'am?" My voice swinging remarkably high.

"He wants to "fondue"with you. He wants to have sex with you."

Time definitely stopped. It was as if the universe was putting all the pieces of the puzzle together; all of Tony's behavior was his love-sick-horny-"I have a crush on you!" mode. Like... Like a teenager. Or an immature adult who had no idea how to express himself. Like an idiot who knew himself so poorly that someone else had to tell other what he was feeling.

I looked at Pepper. I really looked at her. She really was the best of Stark Industry's assets. Did Tony know what he had with this woman? Did he even know how deep and powerful and incredible she was?

"He... wants to have sex... with me?"

"Yes. And he is in his lab tonight, as with every night, and you are welcome to drop by at any time. I am out of town for a month starting, well," she glanced at her watch, "in two hours. Jarvis will recognize your voice and let you in. You are welcome at any time. I have to catch a plane now, so think it over." She kissed me sweetly on the cheek. "Thank you for the wonderful time, Captain. Best of luck."

Time moved then. It moved sideways and awkwardly, but it moved. This feeling was as close to drunk as I had ever experienced.

I made it home. Not sure how I got there, but I did make it home. I laid on my bed, wide awake for the entire night. I don't know when I fell asleep, or what time it was when I woke up, but the sun was past the center of the sky.

I thought about it. I thought about the possibility of Tony and me. Of me and Tony. Of us... of us...

I didn't know. I wasn't a virgin. But I had never slept with a man. And I didn't know what he wanted. Or what I wanted.

That day was a complete waste. I read the Internet, trying to get aquainted with this odd new technology, reading about the war I vanished from, about how homosexuality used to be considered a "disease." I read about Stark Industries, the evolution through time, its changes to clean energy initiatives in so recent years. I read biographies of me online; my life on "Wikipedia." Intimate details of my family, how they died, how they dealt with losing me.

She was not on Wikipedia. Maybe I should be grateful.

Pepper was though. I felt like a "creeper," as one blog put it.

The world felt dizzy and I fell asleep before the sun fully fell from the sky.

It took a few days. Okay, it took two weeks. I did like Tony; I could even see room for attraction. Only one way to find out.

I walked to his home; I could have taken a taxi, but feeling the slow tug of traffic in the city just did not appeal to me.

Jarvis let me in, and with a bit of guidance, found the stairs to his lab. He was working alright, papers everywhere, every screen on, talking, typing. This man worked at only one pace; mach five. I wondered if he ever slept at all.

The door opened at my touch, and it took until I stood in front of him for him to realize I was really there. He glanced at me, and kept up his work. I supposed he was addressing things to me now. Around the room were blueprints; this was Avengers tower he was creating.

And he was not about to stop working on it just because I had come by. But I had questions. My questions needed answers, and as before, I am not willing to wait for technology to figure out what I can on my own.

I stepped right in front of him and kissed him lightly on the lips. All the bright holographic information around us glittered away. He kissed back briefly, and went back to work.

"So, what brought you here? I know Pepper must have said something, because my hints clearly weren't working. And she knows everything, she really does. So you're either curious or confused now, but you aren't sure you're interested. You came here to gauge what the attraction level actually was. You're here to test your hypothesis and yet you say you aren't a scientist."

"I'm a soldier. Thinking isn't supposed to be our strong point."

I pulled him around, I kissed him again. He slid his hands up my shirt, and with my help, took my shirt off. I responded by taking his shirt off; the shine of his arc reactor uninhibited by fabric. I leaned forward and kissed the rim of it ever so slightly. I could feel the slight shake in my body; confusion and curiosity defining my actions tonight.

He reached forward to unbutton my pants, but I pushed his hand away gently, kissing him again. Then I lifted him. His face betrayed his surprise. For a man who was always confident in his control of a situation, his face looked hilarious in confusion. I brought him to the back seat of his beautiful Porsche and laid him across the leather. He was smiling again, though. Already assured of the situation, already happy and calculating, brain zipping away at outcomes, appearing and disappearing like falling stars in a meteor shower.

I let him remove my pants. I let him admire my body in excitement and eagerness. It was almost embarrassing, like the first night I had ever been naked with another person level of awkwardness. His social skills were remarkably horrible; he was embarrassing the hell out of me and he couldn't even stop himself.

So I kept moving. That's what you do after all? Never stop moving. Every soldier knows that. I took off his pants. I admired him in return. A part of me quietly let me know that men were more attractive than I had thought.

Kissing. We kissed a great deal. Completely naked men, laying on each other and all we can do is kiss. Not sure where or when he got lube (probably one of those machines brought it over), but he pushed it into my chest rather forcefully.

"Well? What were the results of your research?"

I looked at the tube, I looked at him. I kissed him.

"I think it requires more testing."

I opened the tube, poured it out onto my hand, strawberry scent overwhelming. He hiked his legs up, giving me access to him. I rubbed it on him, I took a finger and slid it in him. And I did this with directions. He had to direct me. I couldn't think anymore.

"Now put some on your dick as well. Lots. More. How much do you think alot is? More. Perfect. Now. What do you think you should do next?"

Sticky from more than one substance, I slid my dick into him. He was tight, he was warm, he was moist in a way very unlike a woman. Lube made everything smoother, easier, like friction ceased to exist.

"Very good, Captain. Now keep moving."

I moved in and out, the feeling intoxicating, his voice directing speed and intensity. HIs voice mixed with moans of pleasured praise. I reached forward of my own accord to stroke his penis at the same time. I wanted to touch him. I wanted to him to feel overwhelmed in every sense like I did.

I came first, pulling hard on his dick at the same time. He grunted at the change of pace, the sudden pressure on his penis, and with only a few more strokes from me, came as well.

I collapsed on top of him, but was quick to roll off. Into the floor of the Porsche. God, the carpet was very itchy on my bare bottom. I looked at him, eye to eye, the pleasure of sex rolling through both our bodies.

Tony looked up and away. He was already on to other thoughts. For all I knew, he was considering who to taught next, who to pursue, to want, to desire. The thought hurt. The thought hurt and it shouldn't have, because what had I come here for anyway?

He turned back to me.

"Want a drink?"

"I can't get drunk anymore."

Tony was very silent.

"Damn. That sucks. I will see if I can concoct something that will at least give you the sensation of being drunk."

"What we just did kind of reminded me of the feeling. Course, I didn't throw up this time."

Tony stared at me. His eyes narrowed so slightly, I knew he couldn't put his finger on the exact meaning of that statement. Finally, something to make him feel as out of his element as I did, even if it was on such a small scale.

The robot had a martini into his open hand quickly after that. He downed it without even sitting up.

The silence became awkward. Great. Awkward sex. Nothing better.

Tony snapped his fingers and typed things in the air. I sat, stunned and confused and tired; we make love and Tony goes right back to work. It felt like a slap across the face. He really was just a self-righteous asshole.

I started to stand, directing myself to where the various places around the room that had my clothing.

"Steve."

I pulled my boxers and pants up.

"Steve. What did the data you gathered tell you?"

I was by my shirt now, reaching down to grab it.

"Inconclusive?"

I rumpled my shirt into my fist.

"Tony. We make love. And, and you just go right back to work! What the fuck? I mean. What is this, Tony? What is this?" I felt angrier than I knew what to do with. Why was I angry? I had come over to find out what it meant, what Pepper meant, what my curiosity was for, what... what was this?

"Sex? Two men who are attracted to one another, having casual sex?"

I turned to the door. I was leaving, right now.

"Steve! Steve! Wait, hold on now!" He was up, stumbling out of the back of his expensive ridiculous car.

I stopped. Why was I stopping. Why was I talking?

"I can't do it. I can't do casual. I died. To the world, I was dead. But I am not dead, Tony. I was never casual and now it is so much worse, because the things I care about seem two-dimensional and when they tell me they want to remain two-dimensional, it's too much."

"... You want more than casual? Like, dating and shit? Cause Pepper really doesn't even get that and let's be real here, she's probably first on the list of people who deserve that."

I groaned and slammed my hand into his table. Bad idea of course, because super soldier barely knows his own strength. Also, it was a computer. I felt the glass of the screen splintering under my hand.

"Steve. I like you. I care about you. And in my own way, I... lo... lo... care about you a great deal. But I live in a world of flux, and everything moves up and down in my mind all the time. I would like... this... again. If you want this again."

"Just keep testing your hypothesis, Steve. Maybe we'll both find conclusive answers."

I stood there. I stood quietly for a while. Finally I simply sat down on the floor.

"Tell me about your plans for the Avengers tower."

I let him talk. I let him flicker screens off and on for hours,robots quietly replacing and fixing the broken computer beside me.

Time had stopped for me again. The puzzle was all in pieces again; I wondered how long it would take me to put all the pieces in place again, but I pushed it from my mind. The entire night we enjoyed the glow of the computers and ideas, and when I finally could no longer stay awake, I slept on the floor.

Tony was beside me the next morning. I studied the lines on his face and sighed to myself. Always in control, always getting what he wanted. I realized I would play to his rules until either he found conclusive evidence or he realized that I hadn't come here on a hypothesis but a theory.