A/N: Welcome to the story! Hope you enjoy the fluff!
"You need a lab assistant."
"No I don't."
"Yeah, you do. Your un-typed notes are bigger than my ego, and that's saying something."
Bruce sighed. Tony actually had a point. "Fine," he said. "Reassign one of the techies from downstairs."
"No way, they're mine. And they're doing stuff. Find your own."
"No. New people make me nervous."
Tony rolled his eyes. "Get to know them and they won't be new. I'll have JARVIS set up some interviews."
So that was how, three weeks later, Bruce found himself in a shirt and tie, conducting interviews with Tony Stark. He figured, if an interviewee hadn't run out screaming by the end of the interview because of Stark's antics, they were hired.
The first few were weeded out pretty quick, as they were only interested in "the Avengers." The next few weren't qualified and the next few weren't suited to working for Bruce. Another few excused themselves from the high-pressure environment. There were a few good candidates here and there.
"Ok. Last one. Named Leah Keller." Tony opened the last folder. "She's cute."
"Focus," Bruce reminded him.
"Right. Yes. Okay. Degree in physics but a minor in biotech. Well that's a weird combo. Interned at ParaTech, they make prosthetics for people. Cool. JARVIS, send her in."
She walked in through the open door, dressed professionally in dark grey slacks and a light green button-up, her blazer over her arm, and her purse over her shoulder. "Mr. Stark. Dr. Banner."
"Ms. Keller," they both chorused.
Leah Keller was intelligent, polite, and wouldn't take any of Tony's borderline harassment. She answered all the science questions with eagerness, and let it slip that her father was ill, which is why she minored in biotech in the first place.
"What does he have?" Tony asked.
"Bipolar disorder," she replied.
Tony nodded, a knowing gleam in his eye. "And you had to calm him down a lot? Are you good at that?"
"I like to think so. He's always pretty calm around me."
Tony and Bruce shared a glance, and nodded. "You're hired," Tony said.
She blinked. "Really?"
"Really," Bruce confirmed. "You can start Monday."
"Come in at seven to get your keycard and stuff," Tony added.
"Thank you so much, Mr. Stark, Dr. Banner."
They shook hands all around and she left.
"Well that was tedious," Tony said, stretching. "It had to be the last one, too."
"She's nice," Bruce said. "Calming." His tea cup froze halfway up to his mouth. "Tony."
"Yeah?"
"Did we happen to tell her that she's going to be working with the Hulk's alter ego?"
Tony's jaw dropped. "Uh, no." He face-palmed. "JARVIS!"
"Ms. Keller is already out of the building," the AI said. "You will have to wait till Monday."
Those two days of waiting were going to be agony for Bruce.
And then the Assemble alarm went off, and his focus was completely on the upcoming battle. It was runaway robotic technology, sabotaged by a rival company. "A general smash and sweep," Cap summarized. "Let's go. Banner, we're going to need a code green."
Bruce sighed. "Yup."
A~A~A~A
The battle was over, and the tired Avengers were regrouping.
"Hey guys, where's the Hulk?" Steve asked.
A roar answered him, and the Hulk climbed over a pile of cars, holding a rolled up quilt over his shoulder.
"That's not a burrito, big guy, put that down," Tony said. "We can eat when we get home."
Hulk gave him a scowl and very gently put the rolled up quilt on the ground. "SAVE," he ordered, pulling a corner of the quilt back to reveal the form of an unconscious woman.
"Hey, the Big Guy got himself a girlfriend," Tony joked. "Wait, is that the interviewee from earlier?"
"SAVE," the Hulk repeated, annoyed, and pulled the quilt further to reveal the woman's left arm, horribly broken, the bone at right angles.
"Ugghghghg," was Tony's response, nearly gagging.
"Good job," Steve told the Hulk, who looked pleased. He looked at Thor, who looked less winded than anyone else. "Can you take her to the ambulance?"
"Of course." Thor prepared to pick her up.
"STAY." Hulk scooped up the girl and glared at the others. "SAVE."
"I think he wants Bruce to help her," Natasha said. She raised her voice. "You want to save her?" she asked the Hulk.
"RARR." With no further ado, the Hulk began to shrink and transform back into Bruce. Within seconds, there were two unconscious people on the pavement.
"If this whole situation wasn't horrible, it'd be cute," Clint said, smiling briefly at the two people, the burrito-wrapped woman still in Bruce's arms.
They got them into the jet, the quilt transferred to Bruce, since he was buck naked and the injured woman wasn't. He started to wake up halfway through their flight. "Uhh," he groaned lightly, and nearly fell off the seat as he stretched. "Did we win?" he asked roughly.
"Well, you certainly did," Tony smirked.
"What?"
They all pointed at the woman.
"Who's that?" he asked, his eyes going wide at the sight of her arm.
"Your new assistant that starts Monday," Tony said helpfully.
"Okay…And why didn't you take her to the hospital?"
"Well, you see, the, uh, Other Guy, refused to cooperate," Tony said. "He wanted you to take care of her."
"Oh. Natasha, pass me the first aid kit-" He started to stand up, and then realized he only had the quilt on. "Uh first, pass me some pants."
A~A~A~A
When they arrived at the Tower, Bruce hustled Ms. Keller into the infirmary. "Hopefully this new bone treatment should work on her," he muttered, hovering over the doctors as they set up the machine, and ushering the other Avengers away.
"Mr. Stark, should I notify Ms. Keller's next of kin?" JARVIS asked, as they got into the elevator.
"Uh, when she wakes up she can do it." Tony went to shower.
A~A~A~A
Tony went down to the infirmary a couple hours later, after a shower and a meal. He found Bruce pacing a circle in the waiting room, scaring the medical staff. "Brucie! Where's the new techie?"
"Still coming out of anesthesia."
"Ms. Keller is awake," one of the nurses said.
"Cool, let's go." Tony snagged Bruce's arm and dragged him into the room. "Hullo! How do you feel?"
Leah blinked at him groggily. "Fine? I think?"
Bruce, channeling his biology, inspected the cast. "How do your fingers feel?" he asked.
"They feel okay, I guess."
"At least it's not your right hand," Tony quipped.
Leah scowled at him. "I'm left handed," she said flatly.
Tony winced. "Oh…ouch. Sorry."
"It's fine. I guess." Leah yawned. "Thank you for saving me."
"You're welcome. Oh, hey, what were you doing in Boston, anyway?"
"Visiting my older brother and his family."
"Are they okay?" Bruce asked.
"Yeah, they're fine. I should probably call them..." She glanced from one to the other, and started to frown. "Not to be ungrateful that both my bosses came to visit me, but, is something wrong?" she asked worriedly.
"No, no," Tony said, patting her on the uninjured arm lightly. "Just, we forgot to tell you something. Part of the deal, as it were."
"Is this the part where I sell my soul?" she asked jokingly.
"Only if you want to," Tony said. "We're not interested in souls."
"Okay..."
Tony looked at Bruce. Bruce looked back at him helplessly. Tony stifled a sigh and turned back to Leah. "Let's start simple. Do you know who Dr. Banner is?" Tony asked.
"A great scientist who doesn't type up his notes?" Leah asked, making Bruce blush.
Tony smirked. "Besides that."
"A leader in the field of nuclear physics and gamma radiation?"
"Besides that?"
She shook her head.
"Okay. Next question. Do you know who the Hulk is?"
She squinted. "Part of the Avengers?"
"Anything else?"
"That he's really good at fighting bad guys?"
"Anything else?"
"I don't really get the point of all this," she said finally.
"Well you see," Tony said, since Bruce had lost all capacity for speech, "the Hulk isn't the Hulk all the time. When he's not fighting bad guys, he's a mild mannered, nervous, shy scientist who does meditation and drinks bucket loads of tea, trying to find a way to control his alternate self and advancing radiation and medical science in the meantime."
Leah glanced from Tony to Bruce, and then from Bruce to Tony, and then stared at Bruce, her eyes widening. "So you're..." She trailed off, still staring.
"I understand if you don't want to take the job," Bruce started nervously.
Leah shook her head. "Why would I not want to take the job? You're awesome!" She started to grin. "I would love to work with you."
Bruce stared at her. "Really?"
She nodded eagerly. "Really."
Tony smirked and clapped them both on the shoulder. "Well that's settled then. Welcome to the team." He grinned at Bruce, "And you thought she'd quit."
Bruce gave a small smile. "Proved me wrong."
Tony smirked. "Yes I did." He checked his watch. "I have to go. There's a press thing. Leah, get well soon, I'll see you Monday. Bruce, don't stay too long, you need to eat something." And he swaggered out.
Leah smiled at this mother-hen image of Tony Stark, and turned to actually study Bruce Banner. He was wearing a dusty pair of pants and a too-large shirt. His hair had bits of dust and rubble in it still, and his eyes looked tired. She raised an eyebrow at him. "So, not that I mind, but why are you personally fixing my arm instead of getting one of the doctors on staff to do it? And why am I here, at SI, and not a hospital?"
He coughed and fidgeted. She did have a right to know. "Um… the, ah, the Other Guy, found you in the rubble. And apparently, I was the only one who could fix your arm." He gave her a sheepish smile. "I think he likes you."
She stared at him, surprised. "Oh." She started to smile. "I like him, too. Don't tell Mr. Stark, but you're actually my favorite Avenger."
"Me? Why?"
"Because you're the one that makes the greatest changes to become your superhero. Tony Stark is Iron Man, Steve Rogers is still a boy scout even when he's not in the suit, the two spies are still scary no matter what they're called, and Thor is, Thor. But you… I mean I didn't know who the Hulk turned into until just now, it's not like there's a lot of media coverage of that, but..." She shrugged, blushing slightly. "I don't know. I think I'm still hopped up on pain meds."
"No, no, I agree with you." Inside of him, the Other Guy growled warningly. "But, he wants you to know that apparently we're not too different."
"You both like saving people," she offered. "And you're both men of few words."
He smiled crookedly. "Just wait till I start talking science."
She stretched, and then winced. "Owwww..."
"No exaggerated movements," Bruce scolded her lightly.
"I figured that," she gasped, and groaned. "I don't know how I'm going to survive. I live alone in a shoebox in Brooklyn. Maybe I can get my niece to come stay with me, no that won't work, she goes to school..." She frowned and trailed off. "I don't know how I'm going to be your assistant until my arm heals, Dr. Banner." She took a deep breath. "If that means finding someone else for the position, I understand."
Bruce shook his head hastily. "Not at all. You were the most qualified." He grinned wryly. "And, those notes aren't going anywhere, so it's fine."
JARVIS spoke up. "Dr. Banner, Mr. Stark wishes to inform you that Ms. Keller's apartment is ready for occupancy, and she may leave the medical wing at any time."
Leah gave a small squeak. "Am I hallucinating or was than an intercom?"
Bruce laughed. "No, that's just JARVIS. He's the AI Stark built to run things. He's nice." He looked up at the ceiling. "What apartment, JARVIS?"
"Mr. Stark has added room and board to Ms. Keller's work package since, and I quote, "we broke her and we ought to help fix her, and Bruce is up at all hours anyway, so she needs to be close, and that awful shoebox of an apartment ought to be condemned, anyway.""
Leah's jaw dropped. "Was he eavesdropping?"
"Mr. Stark prefers the term 'supervising,'" JARVIS replied.
Bruce looked at Leah and made a 'what can you do?' gesture. "So. New apartment, free of charge? What do you say?"
"As long as it's got a bed I don't really care," Leah said, edging off the hospital bed. "I can leave right?"
"Come on," he said, grasping her right elbow lightly, "I'll walk you to your new apartment."
The silence they shared in the elevator wasn't awkward at all, and he gave her a quick rundown of the floor before telling her to get some rest. Once back in his room, he flopped on the couch. What was going on with the Other Guy?
A~A~A~A
Leah woke up the next morning - and groaned in pain. Every single part of her body ached, and her left arm felt like it had been run over by a skyscraper. Which, it technically had. "Oowww," she said again, rolling flat on her back.
"Do you require assistance?" JARVIS asked.
She flinched, then realized who it was. "No, thanks, JARVIS, I got this." And she promptly went back to sleep.
A~A~A~A
Twelve o'clock rolled around, and there was no sign of her as the Avengers gathered for lunch. "Where's our new pet?" Tony asked. "I mean, er, lab tech?"
"Ms. Keller is still asleep, sir," JARVIS replied. "She is unable to sit up or function without assistance and, I quote, 'unable to do anything like take a shower', so has elected to remain in bed for the duration of her healing process."
"She can't stay in bed for two weeks," Clint said, around a mouthful of eggs. "It's impossible. I've tried."
Tony snapped his fingers. "JARVIS, get Dummy in there to help her out."
"Yes sir."
A~A~A~A
Leah was awakened a few hours later by a small, inquisitive metal finger poking her in the forehead, the only place that didn't hurt. She opened her eyes to see a metal robot. "Hello?" she asked uncertainly.
It squeaked at her happily.
"This is Dummy," JARVIS informed her. "Mr. Stark had the unit sent up to assist you."
"Oh." Leah blinked. "Tell him thanks?"
"I will do so. If you would like to be present, dinner will be in two hours."
Her stomach grumbled. "Thanks, JARVIS." She slowly and carefully sat up, careful not to put pressure on her left arm. "Okay Dummy, wow that's so demeaning, let's go take a shower."
It took Dummy's blade attachments to get her clothes off, and she bid farewell to the torn garments. Once inside the shower, she realized she had no idea how to wash her hair one handed. She figured it out, and slopped shampoo everywhere before finally getting a lather and rinsing. The conditioner was easier, and washing her body was eh. Shaving was more difficult, but she got it, and then it was time to get dressed again.
She was standing there in a towel when she realized. "I have no clothes." She resisted the urge to face palm. "I literally have no clothes."
JARVIS spoke up. "There are clothes laid out on your bed. Mr. Stark ordered them for you."
She walked out, dripping on the expensive plush carpet, and found a small stack of underwear, bras, and loose button up shirts and sweatpants and skirts - all things she could put on with one hand. Well, except the buttons. Dummy helped with those.
She finally was ready to go to dinner, looking half-dead since there was no makeup and she was still incredibly bruised. "I was in a horrible attack, it's fine," she told herself in the elevator. "No one expects me to be any different." She still had terrible feelings of inadequacy as the elevator doors opened on six beautiful nearly untouched Avengers. She nearly turned around and went right back to bed but Bruce saw her.
"Hi, Leah," he said, walking up to her. "How do you feel?"
She gave him a forced smile. "Oh, you know, alive."
"Was Dummy helpful?" he continued, leading her to a seat at the table between himself and Steve.
"Yes he was, thank you."
"Good. Let me have a look at your arm after dinner, all right?"
"Sure."
Dinner was Chinese food, and as they started serving food, Steve kindly got her servings of each food.
She ate slowly, trying to maneuver things with her right hand, and listened to the banter of the Avengers around her. It was surreal, sitting there in sweatpants and a flannel button up, surrounded by all these amazing people scarfing down chow mein and including her in the conversation. Her, the not-yet-lab-assistant.
"Hey, you all right?" Bruce asked, noticing her space-out.
"Uh... fine?" she asked.
He peered into her eyes. "I think you need to go back to bed."
"Probably," she agreed. "I don't deal well with pain."
He frowned at her disapprovingly. "It hurts? Why didn't you tell me?" He stood up and helped her out of her chair, nearly dragging her to the elevator. He punched the button to the med ward and frowned at her. "I'll give you some pain meds, but if they don't work or you need more you've got to tell me or JARVIS."
"All right, doctor."
He gave her a tiny smile. "Call me Bruce."
A~A~A~A
Over the next two weeks as Leah's broken arm slowly healed, she and Bruce formed a connection. He was drawn to her, all his Other Guy protective instincts fired up, and she was drawn to him because frankly, he was an adorably awkward dork of a scientist with a wonderful little smile.
As it turned out, Leah was the perfect assistant for Bruce. She was quiet, listened to music over her Bluetooth while typing up Bruce's notes, didn't interrupt him at vital moments, and didn't flinch away from him like other people did. She was actually very tactile, touching his shoulder briefly while thanking him, brushing his arm reaching over to point out some messy handwriting, touching his arm to ask if he wanted more tea or water. And instead of being irritating, Bruce found it rather nice to be around someone who was so soothing. There was only one flaw. She couldn't use JARVIS's interface to save her life. Something that Tony refused to believe.
"Everyone can use my interface," he said, watching Leah struggle with the sub-menus popping up. "Everyone. Old people, young people, little kids with snot in their noses. Steve, who is older than a few grandmothers, can use the interface just fine. And you, a college-educated intelligent woman from the 21st century who can decipher Bruce's chicken scratch, can't?"
She blushed. "I don't know why it's so confusing to me."
Tony narrowed his eyes at her. "There's something wrong with you."
"Probably," she agreed. "But, I can use the word processor and the scanner, and interpret results, so I don't really need to know the rest of it." She cancelled the whole screen and re-opened her voice transcription program. She couldn't exactly type one handed.
Tony sputtered indignantly and changed the subject. "So, do you have a boyfriend, Leah?
"Nope."
"A fiancé hidden in your closet, maybe?"
Leah shook her head. "Nope."
"Why not? You're an attractive woman."
"Tony," Bruce admonished.
Leah rolled her eyes. "I don't know why, Mr. Stark. I guess it's just not one of my priorities right now."
"What'd I say about calling me Mr. Stark?" Tony said, pouting. "Call me Tony."
"Yes sir," she replied, smirking.
Bruce laughed at the wounded look on Tony's face. "Anyways," he said, "her personal life is none of your business, Tony."
"It is too, seeing as how most of it happens in my tower." Tony frowned. "Speaking of which, Leah, you don't go out much, do you?"
"Not with a broken left hand." She waved her colorful cast at him.
"Why do you have a copy of the Sistine Chapel ceiling on your cast?" Tony asked, inspecting it closer.
"Steve offered to decorate it for me," Leah replied, shrugging.
Tony's jaw dropped. "He did this from memory?"
"He did," Bruce affirmed. "I was there."
"Cool."
"Only one more week," Leah added, tugging her arm out of Tony's grasp gently. She checked the clock. "Lunchtime."
"Go ahead," Bruce said, waving vaguely, "I'll go eat after I'm done with this series of tests."
"All right. Tony, do you want anything?"
"I have a lunch date with Pepper." He winked at them and headed out.
"Okay, I'll be back." Leah patted Bruce lightly on the arm and followed Tony out. She got out of the elevator on the common floor. She walked past the couches and the giant TV and a few scattered pillows, and walked into the greatest kitchen she'd ever seen, stocked with enough food to feed a small army. "Food... uh..."
"Looking for lunch?" a new voice asked, startling her.
She turned to see Steve. "Uh...yes."
"So, what're you having?"
"I don't know. Whatever there is."
"Omelet?" he offered, pulling out the eggs and ham, and some vegetables. "I'm a pretty good cook."
"Sure," she said, surprised. "Let me help." She chopped vegetables while he chopped the ham, and they ended up making a good omelet.
"This is surreal," she said, as they ate.
Steve smirked. "You'll get used to it. Just wait till the others get here. Of course, you've met Tony, and he's usually the worst one. Uh, don't be surprised if Clint pops out of the vents. He does that occasionally. Oh, and don't be surprised if Natasha takes a while to warm up to you. Pepper's nice, though. And, uh, don't eat the Pop Tarts. Those are Thor's. He's coming back from London later today."
"I'm just the assistant," Leah said, shaking her head.
Steve smiled. "Yeah, but you're working with Bruce and Tony. You'll be here a lot."
Leah returned the smile. "Thanks for welcoming me."
"No problem."
"Getting along well?" Tony asked, breezing in. "Wooing her with your forties' charm, Capsicle?"
"He had me at 'I can cook,'" Leah deadpanned, winking at Steve, who turned slightly red. "Is Dr. Banner going to eat lunch?"
"He doesn't want to leave his experiment," Tony said.
"I'll take him the rest of the omelet," Leah decided, putting some on a plate and adding some grapes and a glass of water. "See you later Steve!"
"See you."
A~A~A~A
Bruce looked up as Leah placed the plate in front of him. "Huh?"
"Lunch," she said, handing him a fork. "Made by Steve, so no worries."
He grinned. "You're not a good cook?"
"Meh, more or less. Usually it's just me and my dad so we end up eating the same stuff."
"What about your mom?"
Leah shrugged. "She, uh, she left us when I was two."
"I'm sorry."
"It's fine. I don't remember her. Can't miss what you never had." She gave him a brief smile. "Do you want anything else to eat?"
"No, thank you, I'm fine."
"All right." She took the dishes back up and brought down a bag of Skittles. "Tony showed me the candy hoard."
"Ah yes, the great sugar pile."
They both grinned at each other.
A~A~A~A
The cast came off a week later. "Another money maker," Tony said, patting the bone knitter that had let her arm heal faster than usual. "We're geniuses, Brucey."
Bruce nodded, his focus on her arm. "Can you make a fist?" he asked.
Leah made a fist, her muscles twinging after a month of inactivity.
"Good. And stretch out your fingers?" He pressed gently on her forearm, taking note of the way the muscles were working. "All right. I want you to take it easy with the use of this hand, since it is your dominant one. But do start using it. I'm going to show you some stretches and exercises you can do to get the muscles working again, all right?"
"Sounds good."
They adjourned to the lab, and Leah began to type up notes. She was half way through the pile, and now it was down to the size of, say, Clint's ego.
"Right." Tony turned back to the experiment. "Okay. One more drop and I think we'll do it." He let another drop of green liquid fall onto the piece of metal they were both working on. "Bruce?"
"Not critical yet," Bruce said.
"Okay. One more drop." Tony let the drop fall.
BOOM! There was a white blast of heat, and they were all thrown back.
Leah stared up at the torn ceiling, wondering if Tony had his own insurance policy to cover all the damage he must do to his labs. Then she felt the blood dripping down her forehead, and felt the pain in her left wrist. Probably sprained. Ugh. And then she heard the low growl ten feet away from her.
She sat up slowly and looked around. Tony was out cold, and Bruce was on his side, heaving, his skin turning green. "Bruce," she called, panicked. She knew that the Hulk had saved her but this was a different scenario. "Bruce, stay with me, man." She reached out and touched his shoulder lightly. "Just calm down, Bruce, come on."
He growled again and started to grow into the Hulk before her very eyes. "CALM!" he roared, turning into his huge alter ego.
"Yes, calm," she said, her heart tripling its rate. "Can you calm down for me, Bruce? Tony needs help."
"IRON!" he yelled.
"Yes, Iron," she said, hands outstretched. "He's hurt, so you can't smash anything right now. Okay?"
"KAY." He reached out with a giant finger and almost poked her in the side. "YOU SAVE?" he asked.
"Yes, you saved me," she said, smiling. "Thank you. You saved my life."
He smiled. "GOOD. HULK HAPPY. TINY MAN HAPPY."
"Tiny man?"
He pointed to his head.
"Bruce?" she asked. "Bruce is happy too?"
"HAPPY," he said.
"Miss Keller," JARVIS said, sotto voce, "Captain Rogers and Thor are on their way to your location."
"All right, big guy," she said, reaching out to place a comforting hand on his arm. "Steve and Thor are coming in to get Tony, all right? We can't smash them, okay? We want Iron to be safe, right?"
"SAFE," he said, nodding.
Steve and Thor came in to the lab cautiously, arms at the ready. "Got him," Steve said, picking up Tony and dragging him out.
"Come, my lady, we must get your head looked at," Thor said, reaching out to Leah.
Hulk roared and swiped at Thor, smacking him backwards through the wall. "HULK SAVE!" He scooped her up and held her to his chest. "SAFE." He probed gently at the cut on her forehead. "FIX."
"Yeah, I need to get it fixed," she told him, leaning against his shoulder. He was quite warm, sort of like a green, soft furnace.
"HULK GO?" he asked.
She looked into his eyes and detected sadness. "You really don't want to go, do you?" she asked gently.
"HULK STAY WITH PRETTY."
She smiled and kissed his cheek. "That's good. You can stay awhile."
He sat cross-legged on the floor and she perched on his leg, leaning back against his side. She felt a bit wobbly, and deduced it was the hit to the head. To keep the Hulk from smashing though, she could deal with it for a bit.
He didn't talk, he just sort of looked at her, and touched her hair. The Hulk looked really happy, happier and calmer than anyone had ever seen her. Needless to say, all the Avengers were clustered outside the lab, watching the footage from JARVIS' cameras.
"Is it just me or is she starting to look a little peaky?" Tony asked, squinting at the feed.
"I believe she has a concussion, sir," JARVIS replied. "She requires medical attention."
"He's shrinking," Steve noticed.
Leah noticed it next, as the Hulk got smaller and smaller and began to lose his green tint. "See you around, big guy," she said, reaching up to kiss him on the cheek.
The Hulk merely smiled, and turned back into Bruce, who promptly curled up on the floor with his head in her lap, and fell asleep.
She slumped against the table as the Avengers came in. "Uh, guys?" she asked, looking up at them blearily as the adrenaline wore off. "Did you clone yourselves or am I seeing double?" And then she was out like a light.
Tony frowned at the two of them, unconscious on the floor. "They've got to stop doing that," he stated.
Bruce woke up with a pounding headache and the all-encompassing fatigue that usually meant he'd had an incident. He lifted his head and looked around. He was in his bedroom at the Tower. "JARVIS?" he groaned.
"Yes, Dr Banner?"
"What happened?"
"Mr. Stark's experiment exploded, turning you into the Hulk. The Hulk therefore proceeded to hold Miss Keller in his lap and talk to her, and then transformed back into you."
"Is Leah okay?" he asked, sitting up and then flopping back down again.
"Miss Keller is recovering from a concussion, but otherwise is well."
"Damages?" Bruce asked, wincing.
"Only what the explosion caused, Dr. Banner."
"The Other Guy didn't smash anything?" Bruce asked, confused.
"No sir."
"Well that's new."
"Yes sir. As it is the middle of the night, I'd suggest you get some rest."
"Good idea." Bruce went back to sleep.
A~A~A~A
Leah woke up with a pounding headache and a fuzzy feeling in her mouth. "Ugh.."
"Good afternoon, Miss Keller," JARVIS said quietly.
"What time 's'it?"
"2:57 PM. You've been unconscious for eighteen hours."
"What-" She felt the bump and the laceration on her head. "Ow."
"Concussion," he replied. "Shall I summon Dr. Banner?"
"No it's fine. Is he okay? And is Tony okay?"
"Mr. Star has a bruised tailbone but is otherwise unharmed. Dr Banner is sleeping off his transformation."
"Oh." She let herself go back to sleep.
The next time she woke up, there was a figure standing by her bedside table. She knew that figure. "Bruce?" she asked groggily. "Whatcha doin?"
He startled guiltily and turned to face her. "Sorry I woke you. I brought Advil." He held out the bottle of pills and a bottle of water.
She sat up to take them. "You just keep saving me," she said, smiling at him. "You and the Other Guy."
His face burned hotly. "Yeah. Um, yeah. He really likes you."
"I noticed." She blushed slightly but continued. "Do you like me, too?"
He was pretty sure his face was on fire. "Yes I do," he said quietly.
She smiled brightly. "I like you, too. All of you."
Bruce gave her a shy smile in return.
She crawled out of bed and stood up with a stretch. "Hungry?" she asked, touching his arm lightly. "I'm starved."
"Me too," he admitted. "I just woke up five minutes ago, too."
"Come on. I'll cook up some dinner, or whatever. What time is it, anyway?"
"12:13," JARVIS supplied.
"Then it's time for midnight munchies," Leah declared, looping her arm through Bruce's and leading him to the kitchen. She made him sit and chat with her while she made grilled cheese sandwiches and tea. She sat across from him and took a bite of her sandwich. "So."
"So," he said.
She gave him a slightly nervous smile. "I, uh, I was serious, about what I said earlier. I really do like you, Bruce." She picked at a piece of cheese on her plate and looked up at him. "Will you go to dinner with me?"
He stared at her. "I," he started, "the Other Guy... I don't handle crowds very well, and-"
"Neither do I," she said. "I know this place, it's really quiet..." She picked at her plate. "But if you're not interested, it's okay, I just thought, maybe..."
"Tuesday?" he asked.
She looked up at him, startled. "What?"
"Tuesday, 7 o'clock," he said.
She started to smile. "Yeah, yeah, that'd be great."
He smiled too. "Good." He coughed lightly and rubbed the back of his neck. "I was working up the nerve to ask you, but you beat me to it."
She blushed. "Really?"
"Yes." His smile turned wry. "Although, to be honest, all my experience with, dating, and everything, is all pre- the Other Guy, so, I don't really know what I'm doing."
"I've never had a real date with anyone either," she admitted.
"Uncharted territory," he said. His smile widened. "We are scientists though. I'm sure we can figure it out."
"And if we start with the hypothesis that we want it to work out long-term," she said, waiting for a nod from him, "then we can form a process."
"I think we've started well," he said, "but, we need to talk about, ah, scientific constraints."
"Okay," she said nervously.
"Since there's the uh, Other Guy, to worry about," Bruce started, "we can't go to places that are too crowded. I don't want to take that risk with you. And, uh, stress is bad."
Leah nodded. "All right. That's fine with me. I'm a lab tech, I don't like crowds either. Anything else?"
He swallowed hard. "Uh, as long as we're being honest."
"Yes?"
"I'm sorry if I try and pull away. It's really hard for me to relax."
She smiled and touched his hand lightly. "It's okay, Bruce." She smirked at him. "I don't give up easy, anyhow."
They smiled at each other and finished their tea. Leah yawned. "I think I'll go to bed now."
"Good night," he said, standing up as well. "See you tomorrow for breakfast?"
"Of course. Steve's making pancakes. He ought to open a restaurant." She smirked at him pleasantly.
"Hm. I'll have to make you my famous strawberry crepes," he said.
"You know where to find me," she said. "Good night, Bruce." She walked over to her room, and fell on her bed, giggling happily into her pillow.