This chapter is short because next chapter is going to have a lot of angst and action.

The ice bath did end up bringing Tony's fever down, but Bruce was still concerned about how congested his lungs were. There was a rattling that was slowly getting louder every time Bruce listened to Tony's chest.

Currently, Tony was laying in bed curled up next to Steve. They had a humidifier running that was making the air moist, but Bruce did not see it working much.

Steve had asked him earlier if he thought Tony was going to get better soon, and he didn't know what to tell him. Yes, pneumonia was curable- but with Tony's arc reactor and the damage from his Iron Man adventures was putting a large strain on his body. Tony never was particularly healthy with his drinking and smoking habits. Bruce just hoped Tony's heart had a bit more juice left in it to let him make it through this.

Clint and Natasha sat on the common room's loveseat. Clint's head sat in Natasha's lap and her ankles were crossed on the coffee table. Clint's knees were pulled up and his eyes were closed in thought. Natasha's hand rested on Clint's chest but her body was tense as she thought about her friend suffering upstairs.

"He was dying and said nothing," Nastasha finally whispered into the silence.

Clint's eyes opened slowly, but he said nothing.

"He was dying of palladium poisoning and he didn't even tell us."

Both were silent for a few moments.

"I don't want him to die," Natasha said finally, her voice cracking a bit.

"He's- he's not gonna die," Clint responded, "He's just sick. Everyone gets sick, and then they get better."

"No, you don't understand. I saw him one day, replacing the arc reactor. It was horrible. It's literally a huge hole that goes straight through his chest. His ribs and lungs were cut to make room," Natasha recalled.

Clint frowned. They both went quiet.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. He's Tony freaking Stark. He's gonna be fine," Clint finally said.

"I'm not afraid," Natasha said firmly, schooling her features.

Clint simply held her hand.

Upstairs, Steve had silent tears running down his face. He looked down at Tony's pale features and his hitching breath and he prayed. Steve wasn't religious by any means, but he felt absolutely helpless. What the team didn't know was that Tony hadn't been feeling good for weeks now. It started with fatigue and restlessness but had upgraded to a cough- and he hoped the pneumonia wouldn't tip the already sinking ship. Tony had been completely open with him regarding his health. He told Steve things that no one, not even Rhodey knew. Like the asthma attacks, the debilitating pain caused by the reactor, and how his doctor said being Iron Man combined with his lung issues would lead to an early death. When Tony told him, he had to be physically held back by Jarvis from trying to destroy Tony's suits so he could never step foot in them again. But he gave in, and let his husband continue killing himself with each new mission. Part of him knew that all of this was his fault.

"I love you so much," Steve whispered into Tony's ear, tears clogging up his voice.

Tony moved his fingers sluggishly to lay on Steve's chest. "Love you," he whispered back.

"You gotta get better, baby. Come back to me," Steve pleaded.

"Always," Tony responded.

Steve smiled slightly before hearing a soft knock at the door.

Bruce walked in quietly with a nebulizer in his hands. He watched Tony's hitched breathing as he plugged it into the wall and hooked up the mouthpiece. When the machine was set up, Bruce walked over to the bed to get Steve's attention. "Can you sit him up?" He mouthed quietly.

Steve nodded before softly jostling Tony, who had fallen back to sleep. "Tones, you got to sit up," he whispered.

Tony groaned lightly before nodding sleepily.

Steve stared for a second as Tony's nose crinkled cutely, but the man made no move to sit up. Steve smiled and rolled his eyes before gently lifting his husband up to lay against his chest. Even though Tony was sick as a dog, Steve still felt warm inside seeing his small husband curled against his broad chest.

Seeing Tony sitting up, Bruce handed Steve the mouthpiece before turning on the nebulizer. Steve coaxed the plastic piece into Tony's mouth as the loud sounds of the nebulizer running woke Tony up a bit.

"Deep breaths," Steve told the man as his eyes fluttered.

Tony hummed and grabbed the mouthpiece to hold.

Bruce picked up the garbage before heading back to the door. "I'll be back when that is finished", he says to Steve.

"Thank you," Steve mouths, before grabbing the mouthpiece when Tony's hand goes lax with sleep.

It only takes a few minutes of the nebulizer treatment before Tony is coughing uncontrollably. Steve steadies him against his chest as Tony bends with harsh coughs. Bruce comes back into the room at the noise.

"Cough it out Tony, its okay," Bruce coaches.

Steve frowns at Tony's dry-sounding coughs, he knows they are painful. He remembers when his own mother sat at his bedside, patting his back as he panted. He hated the parallels he frequently found with Tony and his pre-serumed sick self.

After a few minutes of restless coughing, Tony went limp against Steve's chest, still panting from the effort. Bruce sits on the edge of the bed to listen to Tony's chest.

He frowns. "There's still a lot of mucus build-up."

Tony whines in anger.

"It's okay," Steve whispers into his shoulder.

"Okay, we are going to try a different technique. Come to the edge of the bed Tony and lay on your side," Bruce says.

Steve helps Tony maneuver to the edge and places a pillow under his head to help him settle. Bruce stands in front of his back and places a soft towel over Tony's side. "This shouldn't hurt, but try to stay still," Bruce says.

Tony nods.

Bruce cups his hands and starts hitting Tony's side in an effort to dislodge the mucus. Tony starts coughing immediately and Steve reaches over to grab a bucket for Tony to spit into. This happens several times as Bruce forces Tony to switch positions. After he's done, Steve helps Tony get comfortable in bed again.

"How do you feel?" Bruce asks.

Tony frowns, his chest doesn't feel much clearer but he doesn't want Bruce to feel like he didn't help. "Better," he grins.

Bruce smiles. "I'll be back to check on you later."

Bruce leaves and Tony snuggles closer to Steve. "Try to get some sleep okay baby? You'll feel better in the morning," Steve smiles.

Tony nods and tries to fall asleep despite the rattling that shifts his chest with every breath.

Spoiler alert: In the morning, Tony does not in fact feel better. In fact, he feels worse. Much worse.

Thanks for reading, don't forget to review! See you next chapter!