Chapter 25: Reprise Chapters: Sweet Child O' Mine
Back in the present, Tony and Steve (mostly Steve) called a meeting for the Avengers that were currently inside the tower.
It was the usual bunch plus one.
Natasha, Bruce, Clint, Thor, and Bucky patiently waited in the conference room. Bucky was not an Avenger but, it wasn't like he had anywhere else to go.
Steve and Tony didn't even set down their things. They assembled the meeting as soon as they got home.
Clint rocked back and forth in his chair as he waited. When Steve came into view Clint's smile was wide.
"HAH! Welcome back!" Clint felt happy to see them and he waved one of his arrows to display his rejoice-ment.
The others just smiled at Steve and then they smiled at Tony as he set his stuff down.
"Hello everyone." Steve waved and then he smiled at Bucky.
Bucky got a haircut. Steve took a moment to look at his friend and then he started the whole shindig. Steve got straight to the point. Tony got straight to avoiding the shindig and he said hello to Bruce.
"Sorry, we were gone a few extra days. Tony ended up getting sick and I kept him on lockdown until he got better." Steve confessed as he took a seat.
"Yup. I ruined all the fun." They both LIED to the group. They remained at Steve's for a few extra days because they felt like it. Oh they just had soooo many more issues to work out. They worked them out all day and all night. Then they worked them out again, and again, and again.
Tony was happy to see Steve LIE under oath and tell the group that he got "sick". HAH. Tony scanned the room for a seat.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Tony smiled at Clint and headed in his direction. He sat beside the archer and he leaned back in his chair just like him.
Steve was in his super-serious mode and Tony wanted to laugh about it. He was in a good mood. Instead of laughing, he swayed and paid attention instead.
March on, oh fearless leader.
"I've informed Tony about what's been going on with Bucky, he's informed me about ruining things with Nick Fury, and we've both informed each other that we're actually in a relationship." Steve stopped his talk for a moment to let the information digest.
"SO. I've assembled this meeting because in light of all this stuff going on there are going to be some changes."
Clint sat up straight.
"Are you two getting married?" HIS LAUGH WAS LOUD and Tony's face turned bright red. HELL NO, they were not!
Steve's gaze snapped in Clint's direction. Steve found it funny. But, he decided not to humor the archer.
"No. We are not getting married. Sorry, Barton. But we have decided to split the Avengers into separate divisions."
"I'm sorry whut?" Clint spoke up again and his jaw dropped open. He looked unhappy with what Steve had said.
"Tony and I will only work together if there is an emergency that requires both teams to assemble. I know the idea of us splitting up will probably make some of you mad but we feel it needs to happen. At least for now."
Steve was very official with everything. Tony was amused and he looked at everyone's faces. Natasha looked undecided, Thor looked confused, Clint looked pissed off, Bruce just sipped his drink, and Bucky looked.
Tony stared over at Bucky.
Bucky just looked at Steve but then slowly glanced in Tony's direction. Tony smiled at him. Uhhmaahh, fucking awkward.
Steve started to talk again and they both looked his way.
"Don't freak out this isn't going to happen tomorrow. Just think it over and we'll discuss it again some other time."
He didn't want his friends to think all of it was forced. He wanted them to have a chance to open up to the idea on their own.
"I get first draft pick too by the way." Tony chimed in with a grin. Steve just glanced at him and he ignored the comment.
"That's all I needed to say really. So, how has everything been going here?" Steve looked over at Natasha.
He completely forgot to call her and tell her when they would return to the tower. Steve felt bad about it but he was certain that Natasha didn't take it to heart.
Tony leaned a bit on the table and he looked over at Bucky. He wanted to know if the Winter Soldier still wanted him DEAD.
"Thor has an update!" Clint pointed at Thor. Steve looked over at the other blonde in the room and he smiled at him.
"There are more important matters. Like this Winter Soldier here beside me." Thor pointed at Bucky.
Bucky finally focused and he felt a bit uncomfortable. Everyone now stared at him and he felt uneasy.
Natasha started to talk because she felt that Bucky was about to get ganged up on.
"Bucky's doing a lot better. He-"
"I don't want to kill Stark. Not right now anyway if that's the matter you're talking about." Bucky cut her off.
He didn't need Natasha to help him out. He could function like a normal human being and answer a question. She looked over at him but he wasn't focused on her. He was focused on Tony. Tony became engaged immediately and he stared back.
"You wanna test your progress Bucky Wonder? Let's see how long it will take for you to try and kill me."
For some reason, Tony wanted to know and he decided to taunt him.
Bucky sat up and he leaned his complete focus in Tony's direction as he spoke.
"I don't have to TRY, Stark. I could do it right now if I wanted to." Bucky felt challenged and he could feel the anger build up. His arms felt warmer and his shoulders tensed a bit.
"I think you're starting to want to." Tony toyed with him again and Steve's voice got in the middle.
"TONY. KNOCK IT OFF." He actually glared at Tony. What the hell was going through his damn head?
The two lovebirds scowled at each other.
"Knock it off?! How the hell are we supposed to know if he still wants to kill me or not!?"
"You antagonizing him does not help at all and you know it."
Tony just crossed his arms and relaxed in his chair. TCH. He looked away from Steve. Steve was mad. Tony knew he was mad and well he didn't exactly care.
How else would they find out if they had made any progress with Bucky if they didn't antagonize him and make him mad?
It made sense to Tony so WHATEVER STEVE. He was a big friggen BABY. Steve was just too soft when it came to his BFF. Tony rolled his eyes.
Steve turned his focus to Thor.
"Thor, you had an update or something?" Steve took in a deep breath. He began to feel a bit strange.
Thor pointed one hand at Steve and the other hand at Tony.
"Steven, Anthony, this involves the two of you. I received an update from Dr. Strange about the way the younger version of Anthony was returned."
Tony's interest in the conversation returned. He looked over at Thor and he was all ears. Steve remained quiet.
Steve actually looked down at his arm.
"Strange has actually discovered a development. We weren't really sure about the outcome when we altered time and I need to confess that our methods were technically an experiment. Neither of us really knew how to correct the issue that was created and we only did what we could."
Thor dropped his hands and his head lowered a bit.
Uhhhh Tony stared with a blank expression. He looked at Steve and for some reason he. Tony looked down at his hands. WHAT THE?
He felt a crazy rush of anxiety wash over him. Whoa whoa whoa, he started to wonder why his heart started to beat at such a crazy pace.
No one noticed Tony as he stared at his hands.
"What does that mean Thor?" Steve's voice was off. He had a strange feeling within him that he dealt with as well. Steve gripped the edge of the table in front of him.
Before Steve could hear Thor's response a very cold feeling started to pump through Steve's chest. His body started to feel cold.
Steve touched his face and he started to shiver.
"What's going on?" Natasha was the first to notice Tony. He had sweat on his forehead and he looked like he was about to have a panic attack. Then she noticed Steve as he started to act strange.
Steve's body began to ache and he tried to stand. It felt like he was being chopped into a million different pieces.
Tony stood up quickly but he almost fell back into the chair. WHOA, he was hella dizzy. Clint caught Tony and the archer held him up.
"STEVE? UH TONY? What the hell is going on with you two?" Someone said something but Steve was out of it. It was so damn cold he couldn't move.
It felt like he woke up again. Somehow, it felt like he had just woken up from the ice.
He couldn't breathe and he felt all locked up. His body physically locked up. His muscles and his joints all became tense.
At that precise moment, 20 something years or so in the past, Steve was woken up and his body felt pierced all over from the bitter cold.
The younger Tony was about to have an anxiety attack as he tried to get Steve out of the ice.
Tony yelled at his father to pull them up.
Steve was awake but he was in no way coherent. Howard pressed the control that pulled the heavy suit out of the water. Tony had a fear that he was going to drop him or lose him in the ocean current.
What if he drowned?! The cable could snap or the aircraft could crash. ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN. Tony freaked out.
It didn't help that it took an eternity to get Steve out of the water. When they reached the floor of the aircraft Howard headed to a place where he could land. Tony pried the suit off his body as fast as he could and tried to get to Steve. He watched as Steve shivered on the floor and he even screamed.
"HOLY SHIT! You actually found him I can't believe it!" Howard was amazed and he could barely fly straight. He kept trying to look behind him.
"Believe it, dad!" Tony had to get Steve warm as soon as he got out of the fucking suit!
Tony was completely dry and Steve looked like he was about to freeze to death. He threw away the final pieces of the suit and he hurried over to Steve. Tony was beside him and he grabbed his face.
He grabbed the blankets that they packed and he dove down to the floor beside Steve. Tony covered them both and he hugged the frozen Yankee.
Steve still wasn't coherent. He felt arms around him and he reacted out of instinct. Tony flinched because Steve gripped the only thing around him that had warmth.
Tony felt squeezed and he gasped from the pain of Steve's embrace.
"Ay ay you're gunna be ok Yankee. Hey!? Is your brain on ice?" Tony tried to get Steve to look at him but he couldn't get his attention. Steve was blinded by the cold and all the lights that were around him.
Nothing he saw was clear and nothing made sense. Tony's nerves couldn't settle and he tried to focus and make him warm.
Steve just gripped the warmth and Tony tried to handle it.
Both Steve's struggled and they were being held by whoever was around them, while both Tony's hearts were about to beat out of their chests.
Thor stood back and watched in horror. That was the exact issue he attempted to explain. He was informed but he was not at all prepared for what he saw in front of him.
Hoooolyyyy shit.
On Steve's personal floor in the tower, he stood beneath an extremely hot stream of water. His body still felt cold regardless of the attempts he took to get warm.
"Sir, Tony Stark would like to access your floor. Shall I allow it?" Steve heard Jarvis's voice and he turned the shower knob and it made the water even hotter.
Steve started to shiver again even though he was rained with hot water. His teeth chattered and he answered.
"Yes, Jarvis, thank you. Tell him I'm in the shower." Steve found it funny to have the power to deny Tony access to his room. He would never do that of course but that was beside the point. After a few minutes, Steve heard Tony as he entered his floor.
"Steve?" His brain received Tony's voice and he just put his face beneath the scalding hot water. He was too cold and confused to talk.
Tony stood outside the shower for a moment. He chewed on his bottom lip and then started to undress.
He knew Steve wouldn't mind, and he needed to talk to him. Tony dropped his clothes to the floor and opened the shower door. He waited a moment then went to step in.
The steam came out of the shower like a friggen sauna. The water hit Tony's arm and he immediately yelped from the shock.
"FUCK THAT IS HOT!" He scowled and Steve turned the knob. He had no idea that the water was hot enough to burn Tony.
"I'm, freezing. How long, was I out?" His body was still as cold as ice. Steve shivered and it wouldn't stop.
Tony studied the situation as he slowly stepped into the shower. Ow ow ow wow ow owwww. He winced and tiptoed his way over to Steve.
Tony looked over Steve's golden skin and made sure everything was in its proper place.
"Don't burn yourself dummy.." he was pretty worried. Tony was scared to death! Steve just smiled and hugged his arms to his chest.
Tony could see the chills that rippled through his body.
"You were out cold for almost two days. Jarvis told me that you just woke up. You're really still freezing huh?" Tony looked him over with a frown.
Steve's teeth started to chatter again and he looked away.
He nodded his head and kept his focus elsewhere.
"I spoke to DR. DAMN STRANGE. That was a mess. I spoke to him after that whole fiasco happened. He was just about to tell us that my younger self made some plans of his own and it was going to have an effect on the two of us."
Tony explained as he turned the showerhead so it only hit Steve's body.
Then Tony turned up the heat a bit.
"So, do you think that is why I'm, a walking popsicle and you, almost went into cardiac arrest?" The chitter box Steve formed words in between each shiver.
Steve tried to keep his spirits up. He absolutely hated being cold but he refused to freak out about it.
Oh, and the water did nothing to calm his nerves.
"It has to be the reason! I want to go back in time and kick my own ass. Mini-me is up to something. There is no other explanation. THOR and STRANGE gave the younger me free rein to do as he fucking pleases! So of course.."
Tony stopped. He tried not to smile and he glanced over Steve's gorgeous body. Steve just shivered and tried to make sense of everything.
"Soooooo of course, what?" He wanted Tony to finish his train of thought. Not stare at him.
"Of course my younger self is fucking with YOUR timeline. I'll bet Mini-me went to find YOU.. I mean, come on. The younger me was obviously into you or whatever." Tony smirked and he finally touched Steve's body.
Steve was on fire for fuck's sake! His skin was so hot Tony was worried that he would melt his flesh off.
He still shivered in front of him so it did not look good.
"Right. He was a bit interested. I forgot all about it."
"OH YEAH. SURE YOU DID." Hahah Tony laughed and Steve looked away again.
Tony pulled Steve into a kiss. He didn't want him to even THINK about his idiotic younger self. Steve had a confession to make. He broke out of the kiss and he looked up into the showerhead. He wanted the water to warm him uppppp.
"I thought you, remembered things, from your younger self." Steve was about to confess and he wasn't sure where it would go.
Tony turned his head to the side. Huh?
"I remember a bunch of fun adventures from him. Am I supposed to remember something specific?"
CHAPTER CLOSED REMEMBER?
Steve just kissed Tony. He felt a huge fight in his future.
"OHhhhh no no no no. Back up buddy. What are you talking about?" Tony backed out of Steve's kiss. He wanted to turn the water to COLD.
Steve pried his frozen arms apart and wrapped them around Tony. Steve thought that the contact of Tony's skin might work better than the water. He shivered against Tony's face and he just confessed.
"I told the younger you to find me. I told him to wake me up in his own time."
Steve kissed him again and he felt a bit warmer. Tony allowed it and he just sighed against Steve's lips.
"It felt like, I woke up all over again. He must have found me." Steve admitted as he broke from the kiss. Tony nodded and forced Steve into another one.
He was just really in the mood to kiss him and since Steve showed no sign of protest he went for it.
Tony figured there were a number of things he could do at that moment to warm Steve up. His devious mind wandered to fun places.
But, Tony knew Steve like the back of his hand. Steve was nervous and freaked out. If he tried to seduce him or anything like that he would have been uncomfortable.
Steve was in "I am freezing but I want answers" mode.
"You feel warm at all yet?" Tony asked as he let the subject of his younger self go.
"I felt warm for a moment, but it went away. I don't remember, how long I was like this when, I was found before."
Tony listened to the chittering and he turned his head to the side again.
"Thor said that he created a rift between that time frame and this one. He created it so I wouldn't change or disappear and now I'm the only Tony Stark that exists in this realm or whatever. He has no idea why we are being affected like this."
Tony thought on his own words for a moment and then sighed.
"All of that, is beyond me. Time rifts, dimensions, realms, and all that other world stuff. I think it basically comes down to the fact, that it's you and me. Thor made a rift to keep you from changing but, maybe, we are still linked." Steve did not believe that things could be changed without a consequence.
He learned that the hard way when he was sent back in time to protect Tony. Everything blew up in his face. Steve reached beside Tony's waist and he shut off the water.
It didn't help him and his mind was distracted. Steve kissed Tony's lips and the smaller of the two latched onto him in an instant.
Tony just had to kiss him. They were friggen naked and close so Tony couldn't resist.
He grabbed Steve's face gently and the two pressed into each other.
"I need to talk to Thor." Steve managed to say something to Tony before he was kissed again.
"Talk to him later.. You already solved the mystery." It made sense to Tony. They were linked. AWESOME. So, now it was time for sex.
Steve grinned and grabbed Tony's wrists. NO.
Tony grinned up at him and continued his attempts. YES.
"I'll make you so warm. You've got nooo idea." Tony teased the blonde and it caused him to smile again.
"Oh I've, got annn idea. Sorry, Tony." Steve still SHIVERED.
Tony knew that Steve wasn't in the mood but he tried for it anyway. The water drained beneath them. Steve just shook his head and he stepped out of the shower.
He grabbed the towel and immediately covered his lower half. He grabbed a second towel and covered his shoulders. Steve GRABBED The THIRD TOWEL. He needed a blanket because the cold had become unbearable.
He ignored it. Steve needed to talk to Thor.
Steve dried off and pulled a t-shirt over his head.
Tony poked his head out of the shower and he followed Steve's lead.
"AY. Just remember what happened the last time you refused sex." Tony pestered on because he found it funny.
A dark thing fell over Tony's head and he was blinded for a moment.
Steve tossed one of his towels in Tony's direction and it covered his head completely.
They both got themselves ready to talk to Thor. While Steve pulled his pants up on his waist he stopped for a moment.
He gasped and stood up straight.
Steve felt warm. It felt like warm water flowed down his shoulders.
He looked at Tony and thought about how to explain the strange sensation he felt.
"I think he's awake." Steve stared off into space and he took in a slow breath.
At that exact moment, the Steve Rogers that was awoken in 1989 opened his eyes.
He saw a textured ceiling and he could hear what sounded like small, motors that buzzed beside him
Steve turned his head and he saw three space heaters pointed at him. They were all set at full speed. He stared at the red coils that emanated the heat and helped warm him up.
Steve closed his eyes and immediately thought of the impact of his plane that hit the water. His gasp was loud as he shook the thought away.
He uncovered himself from the five blankets that trapped his body and he tried to get out of bed. His legs felt like wood blocks. Steve looked down at himself and he tried to understand. He was no longer in his uniform. Steve looked at the pale slacks that he wore and the white t-shirt.
He heard someone walk into the room.
"Hooooolllyyy shit. Look at you." Howard couldn't believe it. To him, it felt like he stood in front of a ghost.
Steve stared at Howard.
It took him a moment to realize who it was. Howard was much older than when he last saw him. The eyes were the most recognizable part of his face. Steve stared for a moment then eventually spoke.
"Howard Stark?" Steve blinked and Howard smiled.
"Steve Rogers? You do know that is your name right? I hope you don't have amnesia." Steve started to rub at the side of his forehead. He wondered if he was in the middle of a strange dream.
"I know who I am. Where am I?" That part he did not know.
"You're in my home. We're in California. I think you should get some more rest. I'll fill you in when you are more up to it."
Steve closed his eyes for a moment. He thought that he was hallucinating or not completely awake. He wondered, why did Howard look so much older? He winced and tried to think.
Steve heard someone else walk in and he forced his eyes to open. He looked over at the person that walked up beside Howard.
He was small-framed and stood just above Howard's shoulder.
Steve's attention went straight to the person's eyes. They looked almost lined, just like Howard's.
"This is my son Anthony. He's the one that drug you out of the chunk of ice that I'm going to tell you all about at some point."
Tony couldn't close his mouth. It hung open slightly and he stared at his Yankee. His hair was about an inch shorter. He looked younger than the one that protected him.
Tony stared at him. He studied every inch.
"You have a son? Since when?" Steve was baffled by what Howard said. He never expected Howard Stark to have a son. He looked at the young man that stood beside his friend. Howard smiled and explained further.
"I've got a wife too! She's a keeper. But Anthony? Not so much." Howard looked at his son and he grinned.
Tony just stared at Steve. He didn't even hear his father.
"You'll meet Maria a little later."
Steve took notice that Howard's son didn't respond at all. Steve became aware of his stare. He glanced at Howard for a moment to see if he noticed the way his son looked at him. Then Steve looked back at Tony.
He looked at Steve in such a strange way. The soldier wasn't sure what to make of it.
It made him feel a bit nervous.
Steve's mouth formed a smile but it didn't feel genuine. His mind was lost and he couldn't focus.
"You gunna say something kid? Or, you can hit the road." Howard did NOT forget what Tony said to him before he jumped into the ocean to get Steve out of the ice.
Tony told him that he was in LOVE? With Steve Rogers? It was a level of insanity that he couldn't comprehend.
Howard was going to have NO BEHAVIOR LIKE THAT IN HIS HOUSE.
"You can call me Tony." Tony finally spoke and he remained fixated with Steve. The soldier noticed that Howard's son had a pretty direct aura about him. He had a sharp demeanor as well.
Steve was about to thank him, but then his brain focused on something Howard said.
"You drug me out of what ice?" He wanted to know sooner rather than later and Steve did not want to rest.
Tony stared at Steve. He could do nothing else. The man in front of him looked lost and distraught. But mostly he looked, attractive. Tony didn't know what to say to him all he could do was stare.
His father did all the talking and for once Tony was good with that. He started to talk to Steve and Tony was happy about it. He was happy to gawk at the person in front of him while his father blabbed on and on about stuff.
Tony wondered if Steve even listened to him. The Yankee looked like he listened but Tony wondered if it was an act.
He was too nice. Too polite. The type of person that bent over backward for others.
Tony knew from experience that the Yankee was a terrible liar and a very good kisser. He bit his lip and Steve took notice.
Howard continued to talk. Steve listened as best he could and then his eyes glanced off in Tony's direction. Steve wondered why Howard's son continued to stare at him. Howard noticed Steve's change in focus.
Was he to assume that Tony's feelings were RETURNED? That was the part that had him confused the most. HOWARD was not going to allow it. In his mind, Tony was going to go nowhere near Steve.
Tony didn't know shit about how his father felt. He continued with his happy bliss and he waited for his dad to start his blah blah talk again. Tony could stare at Steve all damn day. He was so happy about it. That is until his dad kicked him out.
"I need to catch him up on a lot of things. So, take a hike Tony.." Howard walked Tony out of the room.
"What, No!" Tony was rushed out. Pushed out and he gasped when Howard slammed the door behind him.
WOW RUDE. He could not believe his father. Tony scowled at the door and he wanted to give it a hard kick.
He growled and stomped off to, somewhere.
How the fuck was he supposed to act now? Tony wanted to tell the Yankee how he felt about him. But he started to think that he would only sound like a total crazy person!
Tony started to pace around the living room. It still smelled like sawdust in the house. He tried to think. Think think thinkkkkkk...
The Yankee was under his roof and he had no idea who he was anymore.
Tony had a small glimmer of hope at his disposal..
"Tony you will be seeing me again someday. And when you do I want you to know that I'm going to love you."
The older Yankee told him that when he took him back to Obadiah's house. He wouldn't just SAY that unless he actually meant it.
The Yankee that he met was already taken by his older self. Tony would never hurt his older self in any way..
ESPECIALLY after he found out everything that happened to himself as an adult. The problem was, he couldn't let go of Steve's words to him.
When they kissed it felt so real. So, he knew that if one Steve Rogers felt something for him then what would stop the other one from having the same feelings for him as well?
Tony had a lot on his mind.
He stole his father's liquor decanter that was full of scotch and decided to get drunk in his room. He had no idea how long story-time would last with his damn dad so why not?
Tony busied himself. He latched onto a long-forgotten project that he had on his desk just to pass the time.
He decided to only get a little buzzed. He couldn't get drunk and make a fool of himself in front of Steve.
At least not for the first few days. Haha. Tony grinned at the thought as he pulled the top off the jug and he stared at the crystal.
Tony got about half-way through the bottle when he heard Steve and his father outside the room. Tony got excited. He hoped that they would knock. His father showed Steve the house and told him that he was welcome to stay in the room that he was in for as long as he wanted.
Tony looked over at the door to his bedroom and debated the idea of leaving. He started to wonder what his dad told him. Then, his head filled with unanswered questions.
He realized that he didn't even know how old Steve Rogers was. He looked younger.
Tony also had no idea how old Steve was when he first went onto the North Atlantic. He remembered that he enlisted in the army when he was very young. His body was the same and didn't that technically make him the same age that he was back in the day?
HOW DID THAT CRAZY SHIT WORK?
The scotch began to get the best of him. Tony stood up from his desk and he dropped the little gizmo he tinkered with onto the floor.
He looked at his bedroom door again when he heard his father's voice.
"This here is Anthony's room. But you don't need to know that the most important room in this place is the kitchen." Howard walked onward and Steve followed.
Steve glanced back at the door because he never got the chance to thank Howard's son.
Steve was too busy being polite during his tour of the mansion.
"Is it brand new?" Steve noticed that it looked newly remodeled.
Howard stopped and turned to Steve.
"Nope. It's older than dirt. I just had to have the place fixed up because we had a few Hydra cronies try to kill.." Howard stopped before he could tell him the whole story.
Steve looked at Howard with a confused expression. He did not like to hear the word Hydra and he wanted Howard to finish.
"They tried to kill my son. But let's not get into all of that. I don't want to overwhelm you with all this information."
Howard went to his liquor cabinet out of habit.
He looked inside the glass doors and immediately noticed that his decanter of scotch was gone. He rolled his eyes and turned to Steve.
Steve stood up straight because Howard caught him as he stood somewhat slouched.
He was overwhelmed already but he didn't want to admit it.
It was 1989? Howard told him that everyone he knew was older and, he had been frozen for how many years?
Life had carried on without him. Peggy Carter carried on without him, Howard was older, married and he even had a son. Then there was always his friend Bucky..
Well, he was dead so Steve tried not to look so depressed. But he felt so lost. It felt like he had been robbed.
Tony decided to show his face. He ventured out of his room despite feeling buzzed and he located his father and Steve.
His white socks slid over the hardwood floor as he came to a stop.
Howard and Steve looked at Tony.
"You stole my scotch." Howard was not amused and he wanted Tony to stay in his room. He had a lot of things to deal with in regard to his son and he wasn't in the mood to even think about it.
He wasn't in the mood for the situation to continue. He didn't want his son to be in love with Steve Rogers. He didn't want his son to be in his presence. Howard was angry with Tony.
Every time he saw his son he wanted to slam a certain someone's face into a brick wall.
Tony brushed off his dad and kept his focus on Steve. Steve finally had a chance to talk to the younger of the Starks so he stepped in his direction.
"Hello." He greeted Tony. Howard just covered his face with his hand and he tried not to freak out.
"Hi." Tony felt awkward as he stared back at him. He moved his foot over a part of the wood floor and he forced his eyes away.
"How are you?" Steve asked politely as Tony quickly looked up. How was he? Uhmm.. He couldn't think of an answer. Tony shrugged his shoulders and got a bit tense.
He noticed Steve's crisp, clean shirt and he wanted to touch it.
"It's Tony right?" Steve smiled at him and Tony tried not to melt into a puddle of buzzed goo.
"Uh right. Yeah. I'm Tony." HE FELT STUPID.
"OK! You two have said the greetings. Now say the goodbyes. Tony, go back to your room."
Steve was about to thank Tony for getting him out of the ice, but Howard spoke and another person walked into the room.
An older man walked in and Howard greeted him immediately.
"Steve, this is Edwin Jarvis. He was in the British Air Force and fought right alongside you. Jarvis, do you remember Captain America?"
OH DEAR GOD. Tony almost had a heart attack when he saw the way Jarvis looked at Steve. Steve turned to the older man and he got that lost look in his eyes again.
Steve didn't recognize him. But, he smiled and reached out to shake his hand.
OH DEAR GOD. OH DEAR GOD. OH DEAR GOD. Tony grabbed handfuls of his hair. Howard, Steve, and Tony all gasped when Jarvis roughly smacked Steve's hand away.
"I've already met this so-called Captain America. I may be old but I'm surely not senile."
Steve was shocked. His jaw fell open and his hand remained stiff in the direction it was hit. Howard flipped out and he glared at his butler.
"And what the hell is your problem?! This is Steve Rogers you f-"
"HE IS NOT the Captain America that I knew. I caught him red-handed fooling around in the garage with THIS ONE here. Don't you even try to deny it, Anthony, because I will tell your father everything that I interrupted."
Howard stood bewildered. Steve was about to die from shock.
HOLYYYYY CRAP Tony flew over to Jarvis and he covered the old man's mouth with his hand. AHAHAHAHA Tony started to back them both away.
"He's just being crazy! Hahaha funny story Jarv." The old man swatted Tony away and became angry.
"You had your hand down his damn pants Anthony. Call me a liar, I dare you."
Tony wanted to scream his head off! TONY COVERED HIS EYES! He wanted to die from embarrassment. Steve's confused expression immediately changed because obviously Edwin Jarvis was mistaken.
Steve was insulted.
"Um, That never happened. He has not had his hand down my pants." Steve had to argue because even the idea of that was insane to him.
Jarvis turned to Steve. They both looked at each other and Tony jumped to react. HOLY CRAP. Jarvis looked like he was about to THROW DOWN and fight with Steve. Hooo my gawwwd.
"Liar. The two of you were practically having sex right against his father's car. And then you both left me alone when this mansion was destroyed. Are you going to continue to lie to my face now? You, imposter."
Steve heard the accusation and he looked over at Tony. I'm sorry, what? The look on Steve's face could not be properly described. He looked pretty horrified.
Tony had to say something. Howard was about to lose his shit and the situation was really bad.
"LOOK JARV! It..." Tony thought of the only thing to say that would be able to save him from the mess he was just placed in. The only thing he could say to get out of the situation was the absolute WORST thing he could say ever. But, it had to be done.
"It was someone else Jarv. It was some other guy." Steve kept his eyes glued to Tony and Tony kept his eyes glued to the floor.
Howard observed all the madness and he looked at Tony's expression.
Tony looked up at Steve and he continued his explanation.
"It was a different guy. They just look verrrrry similar. Almost identical, actually." A small, devious grin formed on Tony's face, and Steve immediately took notice.
Steve felt like he was being flirted with and he did not expect that. He coughed a bit and looked over at Howard.
"Look Jarvis, Steve just woke up from a very deep sleep. It was obviously someone else like Tony said. Some other GUY. His name was BRUCE, Right?" Howard spoke between clenched teeth.
Tony gulped and he looked at his father. His dear old dad figured it out. Tony's face caught on fire as he stared at his father. Steve looked at Howard and then he looked at Tony. The tension between them was pretty thick at that point.
"Yes. Bruce was his FAKE name." Tony forced a heavy emphasis on the word fake. Howard scowled and he turned away from his son. He needed to talk to Fury immediately and understand exactly who "Bruce" was. Howard was annoyed and disgusted by Tony's behavior.
JARVIS was having none of the lies that were being told in the room. The brunt of Jarvis's anger was directed at Steve. He glared at the soldier and his voice was filled with outrage toward him.
"I'm not mistaken. It was YOU and Anthony. " He pointed at Steve and then he pointed at Tony. Steve felt a few different emotions. He looked at Tony and he tried to process.
"You're both trying to play mind games on an old man. And Howard, you need to control what is happening under your own roof. He brought home two "boyfriends". This one and another one."
Howard just tossed his hands up and sighed loudly because he DID NOT want to think about his damn son and everything that he had to deal with when it came to him.
When Obadiah returned from Russia, Howard had that to deal with that. He had a feeling in his GUT that Tony would not control himself around Steve for very long. And NOWWwww he found out that Tony brought people to the house and had Jarvis all freaked out.
Plus, he stole his liquor!
HOlyyyyyy... hellllllll He felt so angry all of a sudden. Howard needed to leave the room.
"Are you hungry Steve? I haven't shown you the kitchen yet."
Steve tried to make sense of what had been said. The old man was convinced that he actually did something like that. Steve continued to look at Howard's son. He was, how old?
Steve stared and Tony looked up at him. The soldier was perplexed.
Howard interrupted his thoughts and he turned his gaze away from Tony. That was obviously a huge issue between the father and son and he did not want to be involved in it.
"I could eat. Yes. Thank you." Steve glanced in Tony's direction for a moment again and then he headed after Howard. He had no idea what to say to Jarvis in order to make amends. Steve decided to worry about it later.
Tony swallowed and felt an uneasy burn in his chest. He watched Steve walk away and he didn't move a muscle.
The slow burn made it's way to his face.
"I am so upset with you Anthony." Jarvis left Tony to stand there all alone. Gggggggggggrrrreeeeeaaaattt. Fucking great.
That was NOT how he wanted things to go at all. Tony retreated to his room and he quietly closed the door. His young heart acheddddddd. He leaned back against his bedroom door and tried to sort out his thoughts.
Tony looked over at his bed. He bit his lip and he thought about how the situation went from bad to HORRIBLE in less than five seconds. He looked so bad in front of the Yankee. Tony wanted to friggen DIE.
It really wasn't someone else. It was him, and Tony wanted Steve to know it. Yeah, his only plan at that point was to finish his dad's scotch.
Tony needed to get druuuunkkkkkk.
CHAPTER END:
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