AN: Me again! School is driving me INSANE! But, hulkwidownet on tumblr started this wonderful Prompt Month idea, and of course I HAD to contribute somehow.
So, this is my entry for Week One: Domesticity.
Again, the only thing I own are my mistakes.
Tony Stark knew and accepted he wasn't the best at reading into people's emotions, he never pretended to be so. But he wasn't as stupid or as dense as everyone thought. Only few people knew that; among those were Pepper, Banner and -for professional reasons- Romanoff. But still, he was well aware that certain glances and tones of voice would usually fly over his head, that he would not even register their existence. Subtle actions and glances were his weakness.
It did not mean he didn't try though.
He was constantly trying to understand Pepper, although he knew he probably would never grasp her mind entirely, far too complex and far too emotionally intelligent for him to even try to match.
With Bruce, he found out, it came easier, a mind in tune with his own, yet as different as water was to oil.
Tony felt confident he knew Bruce Banner better than most people did, that he had learned how to read the doctor better and could now understand his needs and disgusts to almost perfection. They were different, but in a way, they were similar. They spoke the same language: science, and Tony had found it quite easy to try and fully grasp the doctor's personality and mannerisms. Bruce was a man who wore his emotions on his sleeve, who couldn't afford to keep his feelings fully inside him, in fear there would be very big and green consequences for swallowing back any kind of strong emotion.
So Tony found himself at a loss that morning, questioning his entire progress (one which even Pepper had validated) as he stepped into Bruce's lab, casually whistling a tune from his favorite Black Sabbath album, happy because he had finally finished re-wiring his suit and Pepper had announced she would be arriving at the Tower near noon. He had suddenly felt hungry and knowing Bruce, the doctor probably still hadn't had breakfast yet.
But there was no one inside. Some machines were running, others were keeping fresh samples of blood and other fluids in motion, and there were papers spread out all over the main desk, all without order or sense. It wasn't like Banner to leave his lab in a haste without even warning JARVIS about it, but the program didn't know anything about the sudden state of his friend's lab.
Grumbling about loyalties and reprogramming and hacking, Tony got out of the lab and headed for the elevator, pressing the floor number which held the kitchen, with an annoyance which was palpable enough for even JARVIS to sense.
The elevator dinged, announcing his arrival. Tony stepped out, already prepping the little speech he would give his friend, half of it true, half of it to simply annoy the man.
But a laugh –no, a chuckle which closely resembled a giggle stopped Tony in his tracks, his face scrunching up in confusion. It was a woman's voice, but the only woman he was sure to be currently inhabiting the tower rarely laughed, much less –chuckled and/or -giggled.
"There are times when I do know what I'm doing, you know?"
Just before Tony reassumed his walk towards the kitchen, came his voice. Bruce's low tone and shy laugh. Tony blinked and switched into stealth mode, hoping the Widow wouldn't call him out on sneaking up on them, because as quiet and subtle as he could try and be -there was no way he would get away with his little spying without being caught by one of the world's best.
"Never said you didn't, doc." She threw back, in a tone which almost had Tony laughing out loud. The woman was flirting with his friend, and as he could see, Bruce was well aware of it.
"I simply asked if you were sure two eggs would be enough for the both of us?" She smirked at Bruce, her eyes smiling along with her lips.
Tony blinked again, biting his tongue.
"It'll be enough." He chuckled, turning from her and facing the stove, where Tony could see the man was cooking. He had never seen cook Bruce before, or smile so freely for that matter.
"Unless Tony comes down, then I'll need three more."
"What?" She asked, a tease in her eyes as she moved behind him, making it impossible for Tony to view their faces. "Two for him, and one for breakfast?" She joked, dipping a finger into whatever it was Bruce was making.
Bruce playfully smacked her hand away, chuckling alongside her.
Tony would have felt offended if he hadn't been completely thrown off guard by what he was witnessing.
How had he missed this? When had it happened? How had it happened? If Bruce wasn't in his lab, he would usually be asleep, or hiding out in Tony's own lab. The guy was a workaholic, forgoing meals, sleeping on his desk. How had the most forlorn and introvert of the team managed to -
It made no sense, it baffled Tony to the point where he was about to jump in and interrupt them, to demand answers out of both -and most importantly Bruce.
But then, Bruce playfully shoved Natasha as if to get her out of his work place, and Natasha retaliated by standing on her toes and resting her head on his shoulder, her arms loose around him.
Tony gulped and started to retract. It was clear to him that whatever it was his coworkers had going on was nothing new. They were comfortable around one another, their little domestic exchange, almost rehearsed.
He watched Bruce's elbows tremble with laughter once more before he turned away, trying to remember the last time his friend had laughed so much in his presence without it feeling forced or awkward.
"Son of a bitch, and he didn't tell me." He muttered to himself as he reached the elevator. Bruce had a lot of explaining to do.
It wasn't until Tony arrived back at his own lab when he remembered he had been hungry and hadn't managed to grab anything to eat. He cursed Bruce and Romanoff, and popped one of the energy bars Pepper had left there during her last visit.
About two hours later the doors to his lab opened and a shyly grinning Bruce Banner entered, clearing his throat and lightly shaking his head as if he were trying to regain his focus on something.
Tony tried to hide his knowing grin, but he couldn't.
"What?" Bruce asked, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion, his shirt a little askew.
"Nothing, just wondering something about your shirt, that's all. So, want to hear the most fantastic news of –the past 48 hours?" He was quick to tease and retract, checking his watch out of pure spite.
Bruce reddened, but showed no other signs of having been caught. For all Bruce knew, Tony had simply seen him with an askew shirt. The billionaire had no way of knowing why or because of whom.
"Yeah?" Bruce asked, his interest peaked, glad in having the discussion migrate quickly from his persona into one of Tony's extravagant reports.
"Well first, Pepper's arriving in an hour which couldn't really come sooner. And I finally fixed the bug on the suit, not to mention I think I found a way to make Veronica's walls not crumble when they hit the ground."
Bruce's eyebrows raised and then he proceeded to nod in agreement. He had also been working on something regarding the safety-system they had created. "Great! I've also been working on the sedative, it should be effective, if not a little dangerous, but it shouldn't harm the Other Guy." He added as he took a sip from the coffee he had been nursing, moving towards one of Stark's boards.
"Brilliant! We'll program a test drive for next week then? Because there's this thing with Pepper that -hey now that I-" Tony cheered, but was interrupted by Bruce.
"Sure, whatever you want Tony, it's not like I have places I need to be at." Bruce shrugged in response. He knew the trials were necessary, but that didn't mean he enjoyed having to expose himself to the will of Tony Stark and his Iron Man.
It was amazing, how different a man Banner had been merely hours ago, how the glint in his eyes had gone, how his muscles seemed tense and his posture rigid. His joke was dry and self-deprecating, his mood somber and gray.
Those were things Tony might have once not picked upon, but he saw them clear as water now. How there was a heaviness to Bruce Banner, and how being in the presence of Natasha Romanoff seemed to make him -weightless. It was disgustingly domestic and had Tony itching to make it known, to making a tease out of such an event as the one he saw that morning.
He waited for about thirty seconds before he couldn't stop himself, the words rushing out of his mouth with a both amusing and accusing tone.
"When were you planning on telling me about Romanoff, Banner?"
Bruce choked on his coffee and nearly dropped the cup as the question was asked, his face turning a blushing red.
"I, I -" Bruce stammered.
"Oh, save it! I don't want to hear it. Just promise me you'll keep your little domestic, sickening acts to your rooms and not in the lab."
Bruce blushed again and thanked the universe Tony seemed to miss it. "But you and Pepper-" He tried to defend himself.
"I said I don't want to hear it, Banner. I can't believe you two tried to hide it from me." He pretended to be offended. "You know, I'm technically your landlord. I could kick you both out if I wanted to."
"Oh come-
"I said don't! Just, remembered that I've never tried to hide anything from you buddy, ok? Remember that."
Bruce did not know how to respond to that, debating whether to take his friend seriously or follow up on the joke. Tony was almost never serious, and so Bruce always had to look for the truth hidden behind his puns and dramatics.
He opted to give a light chuckle, making a mental note to either warn Natasha, or simply confirm with her, the fact that Stark now knew about them. "Whatever you say, Tony. Whatever you say."
Bruce turned from Tony to look at the screen again, his eyes fully focused on the hundreds of letters and numbers on display. It was then Tony gave a small smile, hidden behind a paper, quick and unseen by anyone except for JARVIS, whom Tony was sure wouldn't rat him out. Because even if he was offended, and still more than shocked by his morning discovery, Tony was happy for his friend. Because if there was someone who deserved to smile more in this world, it was definitely Bruce Banner.