Chapter 2:
"We have a heartbeat!" shouted the doctor. "Tony, he's come back. Where are Bruce and the others? We need that serum now if we are to save him." Tony sighed a huge breath of relief. He had come back. Steve had returned. Tony once again started to feel the tears roll down his face. Stop it Tony. Hold it together! He said to himself. Just then Bruce walked into the door.
"Doctor, has there been any change. I…" he paused in midsentence when he noticed Tony standing next to Steve's bed. "Tony? Uhh…excuse me for being rude but what are you uh…doing here?"
"What Bruce? I know I am a jackass 99% of the time but that still leaves me with 1%. I can be kind of nice" he said fidgeting. "Besides someone needs to be here in case he wakes up. You know what happened last time he woke up alone. I believe the count was five nurses and three doctors placed in intensive care." A smirk appeared on his face and Bruce could not help but laugh. Tony Stark was acting like his old stubborn self. "So naturally, me being the kind, wonderful loving person I am, I have decided to be here when he wakes up."
"Yes, you are kind" said Bruce; a hint of sarcasm was noted. Tony smirked then turned to face the doctor.
"Just how exactly are you going to fix him doctor?" he asked. He immediately regretted saying the word 'fixed'. Steve was not another piece of machinery that Tony was building. He was more than that. He just hoped he would be able to tell him one day. The doctor didn't notice Tony's choice of words.
"We need more of the serum. Without it, his body doesn't stand a chance. He has severe head trauma, three broken, ribs, and he has a fever. We're giving him as many antibiotics as we can but his metabolism is burning them up like it's nothing."
"Where is the serum?" cried Tony. "Natasha and Clint should have found it by now!" Suddenly the door burst open and Natasha and Clint rushed into the room.
"We've got it!" exclaimed Natasha holding up three vials of the blue serum. "Sorry for the delay. Are we too late?" she asked. How strange, Tony thought. Blue plasma blood was all that was needed. Thank god he and Bruce had been smart enough to go through Epkeins files in order to produce more.
"You're just in time. Thank you" said the doctor. It wasn't long before the doctor and the nurses began hooking up the necessary IVs. Finally, everything had been done. Wearily, the doctor approached Tony. "I have done all that I can. All we can do now is monitor and observe him. Hopefully, he will improve."
"He will sir. He is Captain America. There is nothing he can't fight his way through" stated Tony.
"If anything changes, please, let me know. I will have nurses come in and check on him periodically to get his vitals."
"Thank you. Do you mind if I stay?" asked Tony.
"Suit yourself Mr. Stark. My job here is done." He then walked out of the room followed by the nurses, leaving just Bruce and Tony alone with Steve.
"Uhh Bruce, do you mind if I be alone with him for awhile? I have some things I would like to say."
"Sure Tony. If you need anything just let me know." Bruce walked by Tony and patted his back. He was surprised by Tony's actions. He had never seen him act like this. Tony usually was able to keep his emotions in check, but seeing his reaction when he had dug Steve out of the rubble began to raise some questions but still, he figured now was not the time for answers.
After he left, Tony pulled up a chair and moved it as close to Steve as he could get. He reached out and took Steve's hand. He held it tight. It was in this moment that Tony completely let go. He cried and cried into Steve's hand. "Listen up Steve ol buddy. You gotta survive this mess. You are stronger than this. Believe me, I know. After all I am a genius. No seriously though, you have to wake up. You see there are so many things I want to tell you. I won't say all of them; I'll just say the big one. "He was silent a few moments as if trying to find the courage somewhere to say what he had wanted so desperately so say. He took a deep breath and said "I love you Steve. I have loved you from the moment I met you. Now I know that seems somewhat hard to fathom, but I assure you no one has even come close to it, not even Pepper. So that's why you have to live soldier. I need to tell you all these things." He began stroking Steve's face with his hand. He pushed some of Steve's blonde hair out of his face to look upon the face of his wounded soldier. He couldn't stop the tears from flowing. He needed Steve. He loved him, despite everything that had transpired between them; the hate, the fights, the competition, despite it all, Steve was the one Tony had fallen for.
Tony began to squirm in his chair. He knew he shouldn't expect Steve to wake up just having Tony talk to him, but it made him feel better so Tony continued to talk. It wasn't long before he was ranting on and on about nothing. Tony didn't care. He didn't want to just hear the beeps on the monitors. The sounds were unbearable. Tony continued to sit by Steve's side. He wanted to be the first one Steve saw when he woke up and Tony knew he eventually would.
Days passed and Steve showed little signs of change. His fever had gone down but he was still unconscious. Other than this, Steve was still the same. The serum was taking longer than normal. Tony never left his side except to use the restroom. Tony barely ate anything. The rest of the team would take their turns visiting, but no one ever stayed for long. It was too awkward. It was also too depressing. No one wanted to see their leader all drugged up and in pain. Bags began to develop under Tony's eyes. He obviously wasn't sleeping normal hours. He would take 15 minute naps every once in awhile, but they too were scarce.
Finally, on the sixth day of his hospitalization, Steve's eyes opened and the first thing he saw was Tony, his head asleep in Steve's hand. At first the captain did not want to wake him. He looked peaceful yet so troubled. He couldn't help but smile a weak little smile. Here he was. Tony Stark as in the most successful engineer ever and he loved Steve. He moved his other hand and gently touched Tony's face.
"What…who is there?" cried Tony. He jolted awake. How long had he been asleep? His head was spinning around to see if anyone was there. He looked straight ahead and noticed he was staring into Steve's bright blue eyes.
"How's the world's most obnoxious man of iron?" said Steve, a small chuckle escaping his mouth. As Tony lifted his face, Steve felt a twinge of hurt for the man. He looked exhausted and his face was stained with dried tears. His dark black hair was disheveled and his eyes looked tired and worn out from all the crying.
"Oh my god, Steve. You're awake! How are you feeling?" Tony knew that was a stupid question but he didn't know what else to say.
Steve winced in pain but still kept his perky smile. "I could be better. What happened to me?"
"Well let's see shall we? We the Avengers were fighting this gloriously epic battle against Loki. We had just beaten his ass and were prepping for the clean up when you noticed a building was about to collapse. You also saw the obnoxiously cute little girl who was too terrified to move and decided to play 'Mr Hero of the Year' and push her out of the way. You tried to get out but well basically you got dog piled by a building and nearly died and as a result you have three broken ribs, a broken leg, a serious head injury, oh and let's not forget a raging fever." Tony saw Steve's expression change from a smile to an expression of woe and despair. His face then became still.
"Did she survive?" he finally asked. Tony let out a sigh. He couldn't help but feel a small sense of admiration for the captain. Here he was in a hospital room all banged up; hell he had nearly died and he was worrying about a child. Tony also felt a little bit of jealousy. Secretly he wished he could have been more like Steve. Steve was never afraid. No matter what the mission Steve always signed up without asking any questions.
"Yes, Steve. She survived" he said quietly. "Look, I'm uh…I'm glad you're back, Steve. I um…was worried." Steve's quirky smile returned.
"You know me Stark. I always come back. I've been frozen and now crushed. I can survive anything. Besides, I couldn't leave you alone to lead the team. Fury would hate that."
"Well I see your injuries have not hindered your sense of humor." Steve just smiled. He went to move then looked down. Tony was still holding his hand. Tony noticed this and quickly pulled it away.
"Oh, um, I'm sorry Steve. I guess I fell asleep for too long." For a few moments, there was nothing but an awkward silence between the two. Neither of them knew what to say. It was the same type of moment they had shared right before Steve had passed out. The silence grew louder with every second that passed. Both Tony and Steve felt their hearts race. Tony then felt an intense pressure. He was becoming overwhelmed. What was he doing? Why was he not saying anything? Steve had nearly died and all he was doing was trying to make jokes. Tony struggled to think of the words he so desperately needed to say. Finally after what seemed like an eternity, Tony Stark began to speak.
"Look Steve, there are um some things I need to get off my chest but well…"
"Tony, there are things I need to say too." Tony was surprised by the interruption but refused to be the last one to talk.
"Steve let me say my peace first. I am going to get this out before I lose my nerve!" he began to shout. Steve, surprised by the change of Tony's tone decided it best to let him finish. Tony took a deep breath and began to talk. "Steve, you nearly died and these past few days have been the toughest few days I have ever had. We all thought we had lost you. I just couldn't imagine a world without you. This past week has really opened my eyes to what is important in my life which is why I am about to say the words I never thought I would say." He walked back to the side of the bed and relaxed back into his chair. He took another deep breath. "Steve…I…I love you. I have loved you since I first met you. I was just too much of an alcoholic asshole to see that." He sighed heavily and leaned back in the chair. He had finally said those words and he was surprised at how good it felt to say them. He looked over at Steve hoping to find some comfort in his eyes. Instantly he started regretting his choice to toss all this on Steve. He began to doubt himself. Maybe he was wrong and that Steve Rogers didn't love him and that all the subtle hints and the 'accidental' touches were all just a figment of his imagination.
"Tony" Steve said weakly. He found he was losing some strength to talk or to even move. "Can you come closer please?" As soon as he was in reach, Steve grabbed Tony's hand and pulled it to his face and kissed it. He watched as Tony's expression changed from anxious to down right confusing. "Tony, please do not think me crazy but while I was "gone", I went to this strange place. Everything was white and Peggy was there. She started speaking to me. She told me there was someone down on Earth that loved me. It was while I was looking into her eyes that I realized that it was you whom I had loved all this time. I love you Tony Stark. I love everything about you. You're a plain old fashioned jackass but I know you have a good heart and that's all that matters to me."
Tony began to smile. His heart felt like it was going to explode out of his chest. Had he not had the arc reactor built in, he was sure he would have died right then and there. Tony then out of nowhere, leaned over and kissed Steve on his beautiful mouth. The kiss was passionate. Both felt like a burden had been lifted off of each other's shoulders. They wrestled for control, but ultimately Tony overpowered Steve. Steve's heart felt like it was on cloud nine. Peggy had been right. He was completely smitten with Tony Stark and it made his desire for him increase once he found out that Tony felt the same. He had been waiting for this moment to occur ever since their first encounter with one another. After several minutes, they both came back up for air.
"I love you Steve" said Tony.
"I love you too" Steve replied. "I'm glad you are here with me." He then began to gently rub the side of Tony's face.
"I promise I won't let anything happen to you Steve. I can't lose you again. I want to spend my life with you."
"Now hold on there Iron Man. Let's get to know each other first" Steve chuckled. "You might decide you despise me after awhile."
"I could never hate you Steve, but you're right. We should take this slow. I just want to be able to make you happy and to never be afraid anymore."
"Hey Tony, do you think you could do me a favor?" asked Steve.
"Of course cap. What is it?"
"Can you lay with me?" Tony was puzzled by this request but he couldn't help but grin.
"With pleasure Steve" was his response. He watched as Steve gingerly moved to the other side of the bed as Tony got in beside him. "What if the others walk in?" he asked as he positioned himself closer to Steve.
"I don't care what they think. Life is too short for that kind of petty nonsense." Steve then pulled Tony close to him so he was cuddled up beside him. It was a beautiful sight to see. Tony had his arm wrapped around Steve and both closed their eyes. It was the moment to top all other moments. They looked like lost souls who had finally found each other's soul mate. Both were the happiest they had ever been and for the first time, both Tony and Steve were in peace.