Disclaimer: Same as chapter one.
Warning: Lame jokes ahoy!
A/N: Right, my writing system's all jumbled up, every things everywhere and I stayed up 'till twelve watching a movie with friends. Sorry if it's late or short or the futures one are late or short…
Expect the Unexpected
They were all at Steve's house, after school, doing particularly nothing at all. Just having one of those I'm-not-doing-anything-productive days. It was better than going to Natasha's house, where her parents criticized every single one of her friends except Clint.
Steve smiled down at the picture. His good luck charm. A picture of his family, together and smiling. "Ooh, what's this?" Natasha asked, recovering a leather bound book from the closet, nicely worn out through the years. "Oh no…" He groaned. He lunged forward, ready to take the book out of her hands. She was too fast for him and slipped away easily. "Is it a journal?" Clint asked, lounging back in Steve's desk chair.
"No…" Steve hesitated. "Then?" Thor asked, playing with the old game boy he'd found. "It's my sketch book." He said rather shyly. No one but his parents had ever seen his drawings. "So what type of drawings do you have in here?" Clint asked, bouncing over to Natasha.
"If he doesn't want us to see, then we won't." Natasha said with a firm nod in his direction. "It's okay, go ahead." Steve relented. "Okay, great, I think I would've died not knowing what was in here." She said with a smile.
Opening the little metal clasp, Natasha opened it. She smiled warmly, eyes roaming the page. "What is it?" Thor asked, joining the duo by the book. He gasped slightly and grinned. "This is amazing Steve!" Natasha said, making Steve blush and flipping the page. Clint let out a disgruntled noise and stumbled a bit back.
"Which one are you guys looking at?" Steve asked, peering at it. "The one with the wounded soldiers lying down in the infirmary." Natasha told him. "Oh… yeah. Busy day that was." Steve replied. "Clint gets queasy whenever he see's blood." Thor said with a smirk. "Shut up…" Clint murmured.
"It's just a picture, suck it up." Natasha chimed, changing it all the while. They spent the next few minutes just looking through the pictures, commenting how good they were, how they looked so realistic, and how much detail each contained. Finally coming up with the latest page, they stared. "Whose eyes are these?" Clint asked, pointing.
On the page, there were different little sketches, just randomly. Steve would never admit that he had drawn Tony's eyes, or the fact that everything he had drawn on that page was related to him. "I don't know, sometimes I just draw." Steve lied, shrugging. Natasha leveled him with a knowing stare.
"Cool, you should draw me like one of your French girls." Clint said, posing in what one might say a 'sexy' pose. "Yeah, right." Steve replied, rolling his eyes. "No seriously, you can start drawing me, I'll even get ready!" Clint said, taking off his shirt.
At that moment, Trudy opened the door and began rambling. "Steve, some ones at the door looking for you. They have this box and it's really weird. I've always read that sometimes boxes contain a bomb, but I seriously doubt she would have a bomb stuck in there because she looks really sweet, and why is one of your friends have naked anyways?" She asked, sucking in a breath when she finished.
"He's a French girl." Thor piped up, grinning. Sending them a confused look, his aunt left. "I'll be back soon." Steve said, leaving the room while the rest of them trailed after him. He turned around to see them huddled up next to each other. "You guys don't have to come, you know that, right?" Steve reminded them.
"We want to though." They replied.
"Fine." He relented.
"It's settled then." Natasha said, ushering him back to the door.
Steve opened the door and saw Carol there, holding a box. "Hi Carol." Steve greeted. "Hello Steve… um…" She stood there, rather awkwardly. "Do you want to come in?"
"Yeah, thanks." She replied, walking in. She looked rather surprised the rest of the group there. "Oh hey Clint, Thor, Natasha." Carol said, waving, smiling. "Carol." They all greeted simultaneously. They all peered at her, studying Carol's every movement. "Guys, settle down." Steve whispered.
"So what brings you here?" Clint asked casually. "Um, just came to bring this to over for Steve." She said, holding up the package. "Goodie, what is it?" Clint asked, grabbing it while Natasha smacked him upside his head.
"Don't be rude." She said.
"Don't be my mother." Clint shot back. Natasha simply rolled her eyes.
"Their cupcakes. I was going to bring them to you guys too." Carol explained, grabbing the box and opening it. On the cupcakes, were little designs on the tops. "This one," She pointed at one the one with a star in the middle with red and white rings surrounding it. "Is for Steve." She took it out and handed it to the blonde.
Everyone stared at him, waiting. "Uh, what do you want me to—" Steve asked.
"Eat it." His friends chorused. "Make sure their not poisoned." Clint added as an afterthought. Carefully taking a bite, Steve grinned. "It tastes really good." He told Carol. "That's unexpected." Clint mumbled. "Deal with it." She said, suddenly perking up and sticking her tongue out at him. "Which ones mine?" Clint asked, changing the subject.
"The one with the bow and arrow." Carol told him.
Squealing with delight, he grabbed it from its place in the box and bit into it. He shivered, then grinned. "Perfect!" He practically screamed. "Clint's got a serious sweet tooth." Natasha explained to Steve, who nodded.
"Thor, yours is the one with the hammer. Natasha, yours is the red and black one. See, this green and gold one is Loki's, and this green and purple one is for Bruce." Carol explained, pointing every single one out.
"Where are Loki and Bruce anyways?" Carol asked, looking around. "They both had dates, apparently." Natasha replied. "With who?" She asked, interested. "Don't know yet. I would've been surprised if one had a date, but both at the same time, it's almost a miracle." Clint butted in. Steve grinned knowingly. "Yeah, I've been trying to get Loki interested in a couple of girls, but to no avail." Thor replied, shaking his head.
"Mmm, interesting." Carol said before changing the subject. Soon, everyone was comfortably chatting with someone else, lounging around. It was like an exclusive club of some sort. Everyone fit into it comfortably, like a snuggly finished puzzle.
(X)
"Tony, your home!" Maria said, surprised. "Yeah… I'll be in my room if you need me." Tony replied, running upstairs the second he opened the door. He just really hoped Pepper wouldn't visit him. After all, he had literally just left her at the hotel, no note, no excuse, just disappeared.
There a knock on his almost thirty minutes after he settled back into his house. Opening the door an inch, Tony looked down to see a fuming Pepper. Apparently, whoever controlled his future, present, and past wasn't giving him a break. "Hey honey." He drawled, smiling.
"Anthony Stark open this door right now or so help me God I will break it down." Pepper hissed. "Really? I thought you'd burn it, since your glare is so intense." Tony replied. "Get out here, now." Pepper snapped, clearly not in the mood for his usual behavior. "Nooo, I don't want to." He whined, about to close the door. The red head stopped it from closing, sticking out her foot to do so.
"Come out here before I get your mother." She threatened.
"Pep, that's not fair—" Tony was saying. She turned redder than her hair at that moment, saying "This isn't fair? Anthony, you cheated on me with a guy, you left me at the hotel, and now you're saying that I'm not being fair?!"
"May I just say that, that sentence used a lot of emphases." Tony replied. "Shut up before I slap you." She growled. He loosened his grip on the door and she barged it. She began to pace, Tony sat down on the foot of his bed, looking close to saying something twice but stopping herself.
Finally, sighing, she turned to him. "Tony, I'm trying to make this work, I really am. But when you're being you," She gestured towards him, "I can't get the relationship to move an inch for the better. I need you to at least try to cope with me." She finished, sending him a meaningful look.
"You're saying this as if it's all my fault." Tony replied. "Well, it sort of is. I want you to straighten your act, or we're through." She said, leaving. Sighing, Tony regretted even just telling her. She completely over reacted.
(~Flashback~)
"You… what?" Pepper asked, eyes widening. "I kissed Steve Rogers, you know, the new kid." Tony said, taking in a shaky breathe and preparing for a blow to the head. He swore that if he got hit just a couple more today he'd have a concussion.
"Tony, you just said you kissed Steve. Not the other way around…" She said, eyes wide with anger. Uh oh… "I mean he kissed me. Steve kissed me." Tony corrected himself. "I don't care who kissed who Tony, you cheated on me with a guy. Steve, no less, someone you supposedly hated!" She cried out suddenly.
"I guess…" opposites attract he was about say, but stopped himself on time. He seriously needed time to screw his head on right. "I guess you can break up with me if you want." He said. "Screw that, you're not taking the easy way out! We're going to go through this like a team. I don't care if you think that you like him, it's a phase and you'll get over it." She said harshly, turning on her heal and returning to the room.
(End of Flashback)
Maybe breaking up with Pepper might be better than waiting to see if their relationship could fix itself up again. Maybe.
(X)
The next day, nothing much happened. Steve was tired of having clean up duty, seeing as Loki would grumble complaints under his breath, but now that Tony was back, Steve actually thought picking litter up might be fun.
When lunch time rolled around, and everyone was done eating, throwing trash on the ground on purpose ECT. Steve waited around the little sink built into the wall. It's were all the cleaning supply was around, the little towels to wipe down the table, the cleaning solution, and the brooms and other things to pick the trash up.
"Hey buddy." Loki greeted, getting small white towel and running it through with water. "Hey Loki-dokey." Steve replied. "Looks like your lover-boy's finally here." Loki commented with a cheeky grin, starting to wipe down a table. "Shut up." He said, glancing over his shoulder and spotting Tony.
"Hey Tony!" Loki chirped, eyeing Steve. "Hey guys." Tony mumbled. "So, watcha up to?" Loki asked, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. "Um, cleaning?" Tony answered, throwing him a confused glance.
"Steve just told me the funniest thing ever. He was just saying how great you—" Loki began. "I was just telling him a joke. A funny joke a friend of mine told me." Steve interrupted, glaring at Loki. "Good for you." Tony grumbled, grabbing a broom. "Aren't you curious what the joke is?" His green eyed friend asked with a slight frown. "Guess so." Tony replied with a shrug. Both of the other guys stared at Steve expectantly. "What?" He asked.
"Tell him the joke you just told me." Loki demanded with a devilish grin.
"Oh I don't know, it's pretty lame." Steve said, glaring at his friend. "Oh come on, it can't be that lame if it was funny to Loki." Tony piped up, looking mildly interested. "Ah, okay. Two peanuts walk into a bar. One was assaulted." Steve said. It was silent for a second before Loki burst out laughing.
Tony frowned. "I don't get it." He said. "One was assaulted. It sounds like salted, since their peanuts… you know what never mind." Steve said, feeling his cheeks heat up with embarrassment. "It's okay Steve, I've heard lamer." Loki said with a grin. "Yeah, that makes me feel loads better." Steve replied, rolling his eyes.
"Anyways, we better get to work." Loki replied, patting Steve on the back once before heading off to the corner farthest from the other two.
Steve and Tony stared at each other for second before Tony cleared his throat. "Ah, right, cleaning. Cleanings good, lets clean, shall we?" Steve asked quickly. He mentally hit himself for saying so stupid. Tony cracked a smile. "We shall." He replied, grabbing his broom with both hands and putting it between his legs.
"Want a ride?" Tony asked, stretching his hand out to the blonde. "Okay, witch spot should I take though?" Steve asked, grinning. "The closest one to me." Tony replied, a twinkle in his brown eyes. Steve was sure he blushed, something he didn't do often.
"Get a room!" Loki yelled from across the room, interrupting the moment.
"Get a life!" Tony responded, changing the position of the broom so he was holding it correctly.
"How about we get working?" Steve said, getting a little white towel and beginning to wipe down a table. "I'm already working, tell your friend to work!" Loki said, putting extra emphasis on friend. "Alright, alright, I'm working." Tony said, beginning to sweep.
They spent the rest of the time cleaning, talking here and there. When they all finished, having a bit of free time, they began to talk about their relationships.
"I went on a date, what? Saturday?" Loki said, lounging back in a chair. Tony was sitting down on the table next to Steve, swinging his legs lightly. "Really, with who?" Tony asked as Steve smiled at the question. "Oh, you know him already." Loki said with a yawn.
Tony stared down at the green eyed man before it dawned on him. "Oh, oh." He said, blanching at the thought and slowly adjusting so that he was a bit farther from Loki. Tony's reaction to what his friend just told him made Steve uneasy.
If he acted like this when he found out about Loki just going out with a guy, how would he react to Steve if he told him he loved him— wait, no, not loved, but liked. You just like him Steve, don't get ahead of yourself… The blonde scolded himself.
"Who… did you… go on a date with?" Tony asked, shifting around uncomfortably. "Just your best friend, nothing out of the usual." Loki replied casually, eyeing Steve out of the corner of his eye. He noticed Tony's reaction also.
"Steve? You went out with him?" Tony asked Steve. "He means Bruce, not me. I'm not your best friend silly. At least I don't think I am." Steve replied hastily. "Oh… good… But you went out with Bruce?" Tony asked Loki. "Yeah, it was pretty fun, considering he took us to a bookstore." Loki said. "I didn't know Bruce rolled that way." Tony said with a small pause.
"He never saw you like that, if that's what you're wondering." Loki replied, leaning back in the chair. "Okay…" Tony stated.
"What about you and Pepper?" Steve asked, steering conversation from it.
"I think we might break up." Tony admitted.
"Really? That's horrible." Loki said, grinning a bit. "Why are you smiling like that?" Tony asked. "What? I'm not smiling!" Loki replied, his grin growing on his face. "Yeah, you're doing it right now." Tony said, eyeing him suspiciously. "I don't know what you're talking about." Loki said sincerely.
"Fine, whatever… but you were smiling." Tony said quickly. "So what about you Steve? I'm sure there's a girl out there who loves being the center of your world." Tony added before Loki could say anything else. "Uh, there is someone I like…" Steve admitted.
"There is?" Tony asked, surprised. Tony would never admit it, but he felt a pang of jealousy for whoever this girl was. "Yeah, absolute catch. But, she's in a serious relationship with someone else and won't even give me a second glance." Steve said, bending the truth just a bit. "Her loss." Tony said with a snort.
"Oh, yes, this reminds. Carol likes you." Loki said, snapping his fingers mid stretch. "What?" Steve asked, mouth open in surprise. "Carol likes you. She told me to tell you… or did she tell me not to tell you? I don't know." Loki shrugged. "Miss Marvel likes you?" Tony asked, a hopeless feeling settling in the pit of his stomach. "Guess so. But… she likes me?" Steve asked, a small smile tugging at his lips.
Natasha had tried to get them together, seeing as they would make a good couple. Seemed like she got what she wanted.
"She can't like you that much, right?" Tony said, noticing Steve's smile. "She seemed to like him a lot." Loki said. "Shut up punching bag." Tony snapped. Steve stared at him with a stern glance. "Don't look at me like that! First, he practically insulted my relationship with Pepper, and now this!?" Tony said. "Fine, if I bug you so much, then I might as well leave." Loki fumed. "Then leave!" Tony yelled.
Steve, confused at the sudden change of events, stared as Loki stormed out of the room. "Was that really necessary?" Steve asked Tony. Tony simply shrugged. "Go apologize." Steve demanded. "What?! Are you crazy?!" Tony sputtered. "Go apologize to Loki." Steve said. "Or what?" Tony said, his eyes daring Steve to do something about it. "Or this." Steve grabbed tony by the shoulders and planted a firm kiss on Tony's lips. "Now go apologize." Steve demanded, trying to ignore the fluttering in his stomach.
"Fine… just don't… tell anyone about this." Tony said, his hands gesturing the two of them. "Okay." Steve said with a shrug. His stomach was going wild, intent on making Steve giggly about anything. Tony slid off the table and went to the direction where Loki left.
A few minutes later, he came back, looking speechless and breathless. "What happened?" Steve asked nervously. "I… he just…" Tony began. His face distorted into one of anger and annoyance.
"When I apologized he just said 'Apology denied' and stalked off!" Tony spewed. Steve stared at him for a second before bursting out laughing. "It's not funny!" Tony said, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly anyways. "No, but seriously, Mr. Grinch didn't have to act like such an ass when I apologized!" Tony added.
"You'll get over it." Steve said with a grin. Tony stared at him for second before giving a slight nod. Before either one could say anything more, the bell rang. "Better get going to class then…" Tony said with a small smile. "Yup…" Steve agreed. They said their goodbyes before going into the hallway and heading in opposite directions.
"I have a plan." Loki said, suddenly popping up next to Steve. Steve let out a little scream and jump before panting, "I didn't see you there." Loki smirked. "You scream like a girl. Anyways, I have a plan." Loki said. "Go on…" Steve said, eyeing him suspiciously. "We'll make Tony jealous." Loki said simply, looking around. "What?" Steve asked.
"We'll make him jealous, and he'll realize all on his own that he likes you. Simple as that." He responded with a proud smile. "Yeah, but how will we make him jealous?" Steve asked. "Well, we could ask Carol, but then again…" Loki replied. "Look, Tony's coming." Loki piped up, interrupting himself. "You were saying we could ask Carol for what—?" Steve began, but stopped abruptly when Loki intertwined Steve's hand with his own.
"Hey guys! What's… up…?" Tony greeted, staring at their hands. "The sky." Loki said with a grin. "So what's with the hand thing?" Tony asked. "Steve just asked me out on a double date." The long haired brunette replied.
"I did?" Steve sputtered.
"He did?" Tony asked at the same time. "Yeah, with Clint and Natasha. We're all going to the movies." Loki said smoothly. The corner of Tony's lips twitched downwards for a couple of seconds before he broke out into a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Good for you." He said, turning on his heel and leaving.
"It worked!" Loki said, pumping his fists up in the air. "My plan worked! Did you see him? He was totally jealous of me. And the way he smiled? It was obviously fake!" Loki laughed joyously. "Maybe I should go check on him—" Steve wondered. "No! You can't. The whole point of doing this is to get him jealous, and if your just giving him all your attention whenever he gets upset then he won't get jealous. He'll probably think he has the upper hand." He shouted.
"This isn't a game Loki. These are his feelings we're toying with… and mines." Steve replied. "He'll get over it when he confesses his everlasting love to you and you, my friend, confess you went along with this charade to get him to realize." He replied.
A/N: Holy poop! I'm so sorry it took so long to update *hysterical sobbing* I swear on my life I'll update more frequently because I'll get the internet back on this Friday! Also, I think Loki has an OTP set hahah. My tumblr url thing, incase you guys are wondering is .com
