A/N: Let me see, how many views does this story have? Over 5k! Wow! I'm really impressed. I'm sure most of those views were from you, my lovlies, coming to check if it'd been updated. Well, look no further! Here's the long awaited Chapter 4!

Now, if you guys want to see Chapter 5 next week, it's important that you go vote for this story to be updated! You get two votes, so put at least one of them towards this story! Your votes matter, trust me. If it doesn't get enough votes, this story doesn't get updated! You can vote on my profile.

So, please, read, review, enjoy, and vote! :) mwah! Kisses, my darlings!

Chapter 4

After that, Tony spent a lot of time alone in his lab. He'd stay down there for days at a time. None of the Avengers even knew if Tony was getting any sleep. They knew he was torn up about what was going on between him and Pepper, but it seemed odd, the way he secluded himself. Before, if Tony and Pepper had a fight, he'd seek the company of his friends, and usually he'd suggest a movie marathon of some kind.

But this was different. Tony wasn't letting anyone into the lab, not even Bruce.

No one was sure that Tony was eating, either. They hadn't seen him come out for food. Maybe he had some sort of food storage down there, or he was finding a way to have the food delivered to the lab without anyone noticing.

Either way, something had to be done. Now, the Avengers just had to figure out which one of them should be the one to coax Tony into coming out of hiding.

"I've already tried to go in there three times," Bruce argued. "He won't let me in, so I don't see the point in me going back there."

"But you're his 'science bro'," Clint retorted, a big bite of donut in his mouth. "You guys are like best friends."

"But I'm telling you, Clint, he doesn't want to see me. He doesn't want to see any of us."

Natasha shrugged. "Don't you have the key code to go in on your own?" she asked.

Bruce sighed. "I'm pretty sure Tony changed it; either that, or he's completely deactivated the keypad. I'm shut out."

Thor looked at all of them with a confused expression. "I do not understand. Can the door not be brought down with force?"

Bruce nodded. "Yeah, it's just made of glass, but I'm pretty sure it'd only piss Tony off more if we went around breaking his house."

Thor nodded back in understanding, stuffing a donut in his cheek like a chipmunk.

Steve's eyes darted between all of them. His heart had been saddened by Tony's attitude lately. He remembered Tony looking directly at him when he told the others that he had said something to Pepper about someone else, and that had been what caused her to leave. The two hadn't broken up yet, but, still, Tony was taking everything really hard. And Steve couldn't help but to feel guilty.

The worst part was, he didn't even know how any of this could be his fault.

As the others were still arguing that Bruce should be the one to go down to Tony's lab, Steve slipped away and headed downstairs. Slowly, they noticed, and exchanged looks.

"Hey, have you guys noticed that Steve's been acting kinda weird too?" Clint asked, wiping his hands on a napkin. "He's been really quiet, even quieter than usual."

"Yeah, he's seemed sad," Natasha added. "Ever since Tony and Pepper started butting heads, Steve's been looking depressed."

"Could the son of Rogers just be saddened by his friend's loss?" Thor asked.

Natasha exchanged curious glances with Bruce. Bruce pursed his lips. "It's possible. But, since when have Steve and Tony been that good of friends?"

They all shared a curious silence for a few moments before Clint threw his arms up in the air. "Shit- JARVIS! Football!"

"Very good, sir."

Natasha groaned as the TV in the living room roared to life with the game. She put her head on the table and Clint and Thor practically tackled each other, trying to make their way to the couch. Thor didn't quite understand football's concepts, but he enjoyed seeing the Midgardians smash into each other.

When Steve finally made it down to Tony's lab, he could hear the pandemonium upstairs, and, silently, he felt sorry for Bruce and Natasha. Since Steve didn't actually know any codes to open the door, he just knocked, then felt somewhat childish afterwards.

Inside of Tony's lab, it was almost completely dark. He couldn't tell, exactly, but Steve was pretty sure that the glass of the door was vibrating under his fist. This confused him. Had there been another explosion?

"JARVIS? Can you open the door for me, please?" Steve asked politely.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Rogers, but I have been expressly forbidden to do so," the AI system responded, sounding maybe even a little bit annoyed. Surely, though, if the AI system could be annoyed, it wasn't annoyed at Steve.

Steve pursed his lips. "So…if I just break the door, what would happen?"

There was a pause before JARVIS responded, "I have not been given instructions on such a situation, so, I suppose I would take no action."

For a computer, JARVIS was pretty sneaky.

Steve half smiled, then nodded. "Okay, good." Steve barely had to punch the door for it to shatter, and then, suddenly, he was hit with a wave of music so loud, he literally felt it push him back. "Holy! Mother of-" Steve ground his feet into the concrete floors and forced his way into the lab. Some soundproof glass that was. Just barely, above the pounding of the music, Steve thought he could hear laughter, or something.

"JARVIS!" he screamed. "Please turn down the music!"

The music was silenced. "Very good, sir."

"Hey!"

Steve turned his head to the sound of the shout and ceasing laughter, upon which, his eyes widened and he looked away, mumbling, "Dear God…"

Tony was laid out on the hood of his Audi, surrounded by, what Steve had counted in the brief second he saw them, maybe 3? 4 women? And they were all mostly naked, including Tony.

"Steve, who the hell do you think you are, coming in here, breaking my door, turning down my music. You're spoiling the party!"

Steve couldn't will himself to look up from the floor. "Tony, for the love of all that is good in this world, please, put on some pants or cover yourself or something."

He heard the women giggling, and a slight bit of blush sprung to his cheeks as he heard one of them whisper, "Wow, what a commander. Military man?"

"Alright, ladies," Tony said in a dismissive voice as they all groaned in disappointment, "take ten. Don't start without me. I mean it!"

Steve could hear them all scurry away somewhere. When he thought it was safe, he looked up at Tony, who was pulling on a pair of suit pants, glaring at him. "Well, Steve, I'm still waiting for an explanation. Care to tell me why you came in here?"

Steve was practically aghast with surprise. "Seriously, Tony? Why do you think I came down here? Certainly, not to join in on your little party."

"So instead, you crashed it?" Tony asked. Steve couldn't tell if he was serious or joking. Either way, he wasn't particularly happy.

Steve cocked a brow, and sighed with astonishment. "I'm totally blown away, Tony. I don't know if you're an idiot or if you're just really broken."

Tony shrugged. "Maybe- probably both." He pursed his lips. "Why does it matter to you?"

"Because the whole team is worrying about you, Tony. We've all been wondering what the hell you've been doing down here, if you've been eating." Tony scoffed, and Steve narrowed his eyes. At first, anger was spreading through his veins, then he paused, swallowed, and tried to let it wash away. His face held real, true sadness, and when Tony turned to look at him, Steve was sure that he saw it.

They were both quiet for a minute, then Tony chuckled angrily. "So, what do you want, Steve? Want me to go back up there, get back into my routine? Get on with my life?" He threw the shot glass that Steve hadn't even noticed he was holding. "Pepper is gone! And it's all because of you, and your stupid face!"

Steve was appalled. "Me? What the heck did I do?"

Tony froze, and he fell silent again. He stood there quietly, staring down at the floor. Throughout the silence, Steve wondered what was going through Tony's head. 'So, I was right for feeling guilty,' Steve thought.

During that quiet moment, Steve felt himself lost in thought as well, so he wasn't expecting to hear Tony say abruptly, "Get out."

Steve looked up at him quickly with question, and his eyes looked hurt. Tony shared a very similar face, and Steve wondered why. "Tony, please, tell me what I did. Is this because I broke your nightstand?"

And then, Tony smiled and began to laugh.

Steve started to wonder if Tony was going insane, then he saw Tony slump to the floor in a crumbling heap. He rushed over to him, only to be waved away. "Leave me alone," Tony begged. His voice was raspy, and Steve eyes widened at the thought that Tony Stark just might be crying…

At first he stood still, then he slowly knelt down, trying to look at Tony's face. Tony swatted at him and missed, giving the Captain an opportunity to grab his hand. "Tony, if you don't talk to me, what am I supposed to do?"

Tony looked up at Steve, a vein popping out in his temple, his eyes red with strained emotions. "You made me drive Pepper away. You, and your stupid, selfless need to put bandages on my head and take care of me like a wounded soldier."

Steve's eyebrows furrowed, and he searched Tony's eyes for the true meaning to his words. "Did I…wrap your head wrong?" It was the only thing he could think of.

The were both still again, before Tony smiled, chuckling. "I like that about you, Cap. You're so clueless. Like a child. It's adorable."

Steve's brows knitted together again, but, this time, not in confusion, but anger. "Tony, just what the hell is going on with you?"

Tony groaned and leaned back on his hands. "Fine. I was going to have to spell everything out to you one way or another, so, why not now?" There was a pause before Tony started talking again. "Pepper broke up with me because of you, but also because of me." There was more silence, and Tony grumbled something under his breath. "She surprised me the other day, and I thought…she was you."

His eyes met Cap's, and he hoped that there would be some clarity on his face, but, instead, there was even more confusion. Tony couldn't decide if it was endearing or down right ugghhhhh. He rubbed his eyes with his index finger and thumb, then he sighed, his eyes on the floor again. "It's happened, for the past few nights, especially before Pepper and I separated, that…I've dreamt about you. And not in the way that I was playing chess with the Queen of England and you were eating hotdogs or anything like that, but the type of dream that…"

And then Tony paused, because he realized just how quiet it was in the lab. There was nothing. No sound whatsoever. He looked up to meet Steve's gaze, which had softened into, what appeared to be, understanding.

"They were…romantic dreams?" Steve asked slowly.

It took Tony time to nod, the bones in his spine creaking with disapproval. His eyes looked up to meet Steve's again, and held them there for second. There was the smallest, vaguest bit of pink on the Captain's face, and, at the sight of it, Tony lit up red like a stoplight. He stood up quickly.

"Okay, story time's over. Time to go, Cap."

Steve stood in front of him, looking sad. "You're sending me away now? I have questions."

Tony groaned dramatically. "What do you want, a script? I dreamt about having sex with you. A lot. Now get the hell out of my sight."

Steve's blush had spread to his ears and his eyebrows had practically disappeared into his hairline. "Tony…"

Tony began trying to push the statue of a man. "Go! Get out of here! I don't want to see you! And send someone to fix my door! And someone else to bring me hot wings!"

Steve barely budged. "But, Tony, don't I get to express any opinions about this?"

Tony shook his head violently, almost glowing red by now. "No, no, no! What you can do, is leave! Right now!"

The Captain stayed there a few seconds longer, but Tony continued to push, so Steve sighed, turning and walking out quickly. The absence of Steve almost made Tony fall over, and he cursed as he stumbled. When he looked back up, Steve was gone.

He shared the silence with the concrete and tech for a few more seconds before he could hear giggling and clicks of high-heels as the girls returned. Somehow, he was less than thrilled.

As he came back out of the lab, Bruce looked to Steve, hope of leaving this noisy room and going to the lab in his eyes. "How'd it go?"

"Not well," Steve quickly responded. Then, he disappeared down the hallway, and there was a loud thud as he went into his room.

Bruce and Natasha exchanged looks of curiosity before Natasha nearly jumped completely out of her chair and Clint and Thor stood, Clint shouting with a mouth full of chips, "YEAH! TOUCHDOWN!" Clint and Thor turned to each other, and Thor chest bumped Clint back into the kitchen.

It wasn't until later that night that Tony finally emerged from the lab and made his way upstairs. By this time, surely everyone was asleep. He crept down the hallway, but when he turned the corner, he froze. In the dark, Tony could make out Steve's outline in his bedroom doorframe, moving up and down, making grunting sounds. Tony slowly came closer to see that Steve was doing pull-ups.

"Steve?" Tony whispered.

At the sound of Tony's voice, Steve lost his grip, falling on his back. He groaned, and Tony covered his mouth to hold back his laughter. As Steve sat up, Tony asked, "You okay there, Rocky?"

Steve looked at him questioningly and Tony cocked an eyebrow. "Were you not around for that?"

Steve looked confused. "Was Rocky someone from the forties?"

Tony chuckled as he remembered just how old Steve really was. "No, uh, but that can be our next marathon night."

Steve stood quickly. "So, I can keep coming to those?"

Tony looked around the hallway, confused. "Umm…yes? Did you think otherwise?"

Steve shrugged sadly. "I thought you never wanted to see me again. I was actually planning on moving out."

Tony glanced around him to see that- 'Holy shit he really packed. With actual boxes and everything.' He looked into Steve's sad, disappointed eyes. "Seriously?"

"Tony, you were so mad at me. I thought this would be what you wanted."

"Of course it's not, you big dummy."

Steve actually looked hurt. "And why do you keep calling me stupid? I mean, I know I still don't really understand how to use the microwave, but-"

Tony's chuckling made Steve stop talking, and he sighed, trying not to let himself smile. He was so frustrated with Tony. The adorable, confusing Tony Stark.

Tony swings his arms a little bit at his sides. "So, umm, since you're already packed, I guess it's too late for me to be making apologies, huh?"

Steve's eyes widened, and he looked horrified as he grabbed Tony by the shoulders. "No, Tony, please, don't think that. Let me apologize to you. I never sent anyone to fix your door for you or send you chicken. I don't want you to hate me, Tony. You don't need to apologize to me."

Tony was honestly surprised, and he half smiled. Steve was silent for a moment, then he swallowed, letting go of Tony's shoulders. He rocked on his heels before idling a hand into his dark bedroom. "Did you want to come in and talk, or something?"

Tony didn't hesitate to nod. "Yeah, that'd be great."

Tony led the way in, and they both sat on Steve's bed. Suddenly, both their hearts were racing, and Steve quickly reached out to turn on the lamp on his nightstand, making them both feel simultaneous relief and disappointment, which they both also questioned.

Steve was the first to break the ice, clearing his throat. "So, what exactly happened in these dreams of yours?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, both Steve and Tony regretted hearing them. Steve stuttered, trying to recover, "I mean, I didn't really mean to say that and make things awkward."

Tony shook his head. "No, we should talk about it." He half smiled, looking up at Steve. "But, I gotta say, Cap, I thought you'd be satisfied with me stopping at saying I had sex with you."

Steve swallowed, and turned his head down, eyes glued to the floor. Then, he was suddenly happy that he kept a clean room. It would've been embarrassing for Tony to walk in and see a pair of Steve's boxers on the floor. But then again, after being in the army, Steve kept most everything he owned in tidy order. Even the boxes stacked in one corner of his room were pristine.

Tony sighed. "I'm not even sure why I've been having dreams like this. I know it's not because of what's going on with me and Pepper, because I was having these dreams before we fought. They're the reason we fought." Steve just watched Tony with interest, a lump caught in his throat.

Tony shrugged before continuing. "There's not much to say that isn't graphic. The dreams were romantic, they were…graphic. And, umm…" he paused to glance at Steve, who had his eyes glued to the floor again. Tony chuckled once. "The most bizarre part was, apparently I liked the dreams. At least, that's what my body told me every morning."

Steve's eyes widened, and he choked, causing Tony to smile. Why were Steve's reactions so humorous? "Pepper found out because, well, like I said, she surprised me one day…in the shower." Steve cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. His virgin ears were too precious for all of this. "And, the reason Pepper got so angry, is because, I thought she was you…" Tony fidgeted. "I guess, I wanted her to be you…"

Where was all of this courage coming from?

Now Steve's face altered to something plain. He turned to look at Tony, who was already looking at him. Steve swallowed again, cursing mentally at the lump in his throat.

"I'm sorry, Steve," Tony said, his voice low. "Really, I am. I know how hard it must be to hear all of this. Believe me, it was really hard for me to face having these dreams-"

"It's okay."

Then there was silence.

Tony slowly looked at Steve again. "What do you mean it's fine?" His face read bewilderment, and maybe even a hint of anger?

Steve half smiled at the ceiling. "I mean, just that. It's fine, Tony." Then he turned to face Tony again, who looked like he might be scared. "They're just dreams."

"Yeah," Tony scoffed, "dreams about us having passionate ass sex."

Then they were both quiet. Tony had embarrassed himself and Steve. Somehow, Steve wasn't really being hit by the impact of everything until Tony said ass sex. For just a split second, he wondered, 'wait, whose ass?' then quickly waved it away, wondering why that part would even matter.

When Steve looked at Tony again, he noticed that his eyes looked distant, pained. He considered asking Tony if there was something else bothering him, but Tony beat him to it. "What am I going to do about me and Pepper?" Tony quietly asked no one.

Steve cleared his throat again. "If…there's any way I can help, maybe if I were to talk to her-"

"No," Tony replied, shaking his head. "No offense, Steve, but I'm pretty sure she'd be even less likely to talk to you than me."

Steve nodded, understanding but somehow still feeling hurt. He felt compelled to help Tony in any way that he could, but part of him knew the truth that Tony may never give him that chance.

Tony stood, and Steve snapped back into attention. Tony glanced back at him, but still didn't look directly into his eyes. "I think I'll go to bed. Sleep sounds nice for a change," he said, his voice low.

Steve quickly stood next to him, though he wasn't sure why he did. "Yeah, umm, sleep. You should really get some sleep."

Tony cocked an eyebrow at him. "Yeah, uh," he chuckled, holding a hand up in a small wave, "goodnight, Cap."

Cap nodded, a quirky half smile coming to his mouth. For a moment, Tony's heart tickled in his chest, like…it had grown these little moth wings and was trying to break out.

"Goodnight, Tony."

Tony opened his mouth like he was going to speak, then he quickly turned, walking out. Steve smiled, then frowned when Tony disappeared. An ache grew inside of him: a mysterious ache, a wanting ache.

An ache to have Tony at his side again.

A/N: A little fun fact, I wrote this chapter listening to "Wrecking Ball" by Miley Cyrus and "Miss Atomic Bomb" by The Killers. I recommend both songs. I don't necessarily recommend the first song's music video (it's just not for everyone), but if you haven't seen "Miss Atomic Bomb"'s music video, go watch it now! If you vote, I'll see you all again on Tuesday.