Here's the next one! Hope you like it:) And thank you for all the wonderful reviews:)

Bruce opened his eyes, momentarily disoriented as to where he was. Then everything came flooding back. He was still in the infirmary, asleep on a chair, keeping watch on Tony during the night. There were only two dim yellow lights on the wall behind Tony's bed, casting a faint and admittedly cozy glow on the room. Way in the back, everything was almost completely dark, but over by this wall everything was encased in a bubble of warmth; the only sounds in the room consisting of the quiet hissing of the oxygen tank and beeping of the heart monitor. Bruce sat up straight to see how Tony was doing and smiled. He was in good hands. Curled up next to him on the white sheets was Pepper, her head in the crook of his arm, hand over his chest. His hand came up to meet hers and the two looked cozier than Bruce had ever seen. He quietly tiptoed over beside the bed and changed out the almost empty saline drip for a new one without waking either of them.

"JARVIS." He whispered. "Show me his blood pressure and temperature, please."

A screen appeared, suspended in the air, showing Bruce that Tony's blood pressure was 112/73 and temperature was 101.2.

"Thank you JARVIS."

Tony was responding well to the treatment. His blood pressure was finally stabilized, and his temperature was dropping steadily. It looked like Bruce wasn't going to have to perform surgery after all. Honestly, he was extremely relieved. He stood back with his hands on his hips and shook his head at the two. It was adorable. But Pepper looked kind of cold. She didn't have a blanket; she was lying on top of all Tony's. So Bruce did what any doctor would do and fetched a soft blanket from one of the cabinets nearby, unfolding it and draping it gently over the pair. The light from the arc reactor barely shone through the soft fabric and neither of the two stirred from the movement at all. Satisfied that his duties had been fulfilled, Bruce retreated back to his chair and closed his eyes. He'd been sleeping in a chair quite a bit these past few days and was honestly starting to get used to it.

Tony woke up early, first becoming aware of the pain in his chest. It wasn't as bad as it had been, but it still hurt quite a bit, making it difficult for him to get a comfortable deep breath. Damn Bruce and his reluctance for giving out pain medication. When Tony looked down, curious to see what was lying on his shoulder, he felt a familiar twinge in what he guessed was his heart at the sight of Pepper's peaceful expression. He tried to pull his hand out of hers to tuck the hair that had fallen into her face back into place, but her grip became tighter and he settled for watching her sleep as she was, savoring her body heat. He could tell he still had a bit of a fever because of the familiar chills he felt shivering up and down his back, and he craved her warmth; both the affection and the physical kind.

"Morning Tony." Bruce's voice came from his right. Tony looked up.

"Don't sneak up on me like that, I almost jumped! And whisper please!"

"Afraid you'll wake her?"

Bruce smirked at Tony.

"Shut up."

This only made the smirk wider. Tony narrowed his eyes.

"You're an awful doctor. I want some pain medicine. Preferably the kind that will help with a fever."

"Are you finally admitting you're sick?"

"No. It's an infection. I'm not sick."

Bruce rolled his eyes. Tony was definitely feeling better.

"Whatever. I'll give you some acetaminophen. Just hold tight."

He headed into the back room. Tony started to feel a bit uncomfortable and although he felt guilty for doing so at the expense of Pepper's slumber, he shifted, sitting up some. She woke up quickly with a deep breath and sat up, letting Tony move.

"Sorry for waking you." He said, finally tucking the loose hair from Pepper's face behind her ear and then wincing as his chest flared in pain. "God Bruce, hurry up!" He shouted.

"Are you okay?" She asked worriedly, watching Tony as he held his hand to his chest.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. Bruce has just been withholding the pain meds."

"Stop being such a baby, Tony. Here's your drugs." Bruce handed Tony two white pills and a cup of water.

"It's about time!" He swallowed them both at once in record time, draining the cup of water just as fast.

"JARVIS, stats please?"

"Sir's temperature is 101, blood pressure normal and stabilized. There is no immediate danger, although sir's pain levels are quite high according to the EKG and oxygen saturation."

Bruce eyed his patient.

"Can you take a deep breath easily?"

"Yeah." Tony said quickly.

"Then do it."

"What for?"

"Because I'm the doctor, and I said so."

Tony looked defiant but complied, and took a deep breath. He immediately started to cough, the pain preventing him from taking a good breath, and he groaned as the coughing made the pain worse. He peered upwards at Bruce, his teeth gritted.

"Happy now?"

"Not really." Bruce frowned. He wished he could give Tony something stronger, but he was still reluctant to do so.

"I'm kind of hungry, am I allowed to have food, 'doctor'?" Tony said sarcastically.

"Sure, but nothing too heavy. I can get you some toast and juice."

"I want a pop-tart."

"A pop-tart? Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure. There's some strawberry ones upstairs."

"Okay. I'll be right back."

Bruce turned to the elevator and when he was gone, Tony got up, pulling his IV pole alongside him.

"Tony what are you doing?"

"Looking for some good food. I've got a stash somewhere around here. You can have the pop-tart if you want."

He began searching through some of the cabinets.

"But Tony, I'm allergic to strawberries."

He stopped and turned around.

"Everyone knows the so-called 'fruit' in pop-tarts are about as synthetic as para-aramid fibre."

"What the hell is a para-whatever you just said?"

"It's Kevlar. A synthetic polymer like the fruit in pop-tarts."

She sighed and closed the cabinet he was messing with.

"Go back to bed. You asked for the pop-tart, you better eat it. Bruce saved your life. Don't take him for granted."

"I wasn't taking him for granted; I just don't want a boring breakfast."

"I don't care. Just please Tony, be a good patient."

He huffed, but seemed to give up.

"I'll be good. But do I have to like it?"

"Of course not. But act like it."

He lay back down on the bed and Pepper pulled the blanket over him.

"Now pretend you like the pop-tart."

"Whatever."