Author's Note: This chapter and the next are primarily Stony, but Peter won't be far from their minds. Irondad will come back, though, I promise ;)
The next morning Steve went out for a run and was returning to the compound when FRIDAY alerted him.
"Captain Rogers, you asked me to inform you when Boss returned."
Steve brightened at this. "Thanks, FRIDAY. Where is he?"
"Boss is currently in your bedroom."
Steve passed through the communal kitchen to grab some water before going to find Tony. Peter was there as well, apparently making himself breakfast. He was busy putting some kind of cinnamon/sugar spread on slices of bread and putting them in the toaster oven.
"Morning, Captain Rogers." Peter seemed to be in good spirits, so hopefully he wasn't feeling insecure about the night before.
"Good morning, Peter. Did you sleep well?"
"I did after you left." Peter said, sounding a little embarrassed. "Thanks for, you know, helping me out last night. Sorry I woke you up."
"You don't have to apologize for anything, Peter. I'm glad I was able to help. I'm guessing my strategy worked?" Steve decided to be discreet, as there was always a chance someone could walk in. Or be crawling through the vents.
"Yeah, actually, it did. Uh, I didn't know where you kept it, so I just put it back on your bed."
On his bed. In the bedroom. Where Tony currently was. Steve had a feeling he was about to have an awkward conversation very soon. He wanted to go and confront the situation but outwardly he betrayed none of what he was thinking.
"Well if you ever need it again, you're welcome to borrow it."
"I'll remember that, thanks."
With that, Steve forgot about the water he initially came into the kitchen for and left to go find Tony. Maybe Tony didn't even notice. There were always a million things vying for his attention, after all.
"Tony?" Steve called as he entered their bedroom. He noticed the bear sitting on his pillow.
"In here!" Tony called back from their walk-in closet. Steve started to make his way over as Tony was coming out, having already changed out of his business suit into a basic black t-shirt and jeans.
"Well hello, Captain," Tony said in a sultry voice, meeting him in the middle of the room. Tony reached up and put his arms around Steve's neck, giving him a kiss which Steve eagerly returned, his hands around Tony's waist. For a few minutes, Steve forgot about his potential embarrassment.
"I've missed you, Tony," Steve gasped out as they came up for air.
"Oh yeah?" Tony said with a teasing grin on his face. "Looks to me like you had some company." He jerked his head toward the Iron Man teddy bear on Steve's pillow. "I don't know whether I should be touched or jealous."
Steve sighed. Of course Tony noticed it was there. "I can explain that. Peter was having nightmares last night and even though he said he didn't need me to stay, I could tell he didn't want to be alone. So, I let him borrow the bear for the night. That's just where he put it when he returned it."
At the mention of Peter, Tony's expression softened. "I assume it helped. I just saw him in the kitchen a few minutes ago and he looked rested."
"He was shaken up at the time but didn't want to talk about it. After I gave him the bear FRIDAY didn't alert me again so I'm guessing it worked."
"Good to hear. Thanks for being there for him. I'm sorry I couldn't be here."
Wanting to stave off any potential Tony Stark Guilt™, which he was particularly prone to when it came to Peter, Steve was quick to reassure him. "You have nothing to apologize for, Tony. The important thing is that it helped him calm down."
"Right, of course. I'll be honest," Tony said as they broke apart, "I didn't even know you still had it. I thought maybe you had donated it or something. I'm surprised you didn't just let the kid keep it."
"Well yeah, I could have…" Steve trailed off. But I still use it, he thought to himself. He felt the heat start to rush to his cheeks. Tony looked at him with hungry eyes.
"What are you trying to do to me, Steve? You know I have a hard time resisting you when you blush like that. What are you blushing about, anyway?"
Guess it was time for the whole truth. Tony could make whatever teasing remarks he was going to make and hopefully that would be the end of it. It wasn't like Tony was going to think any less of him because of it. "I didn't give it to him to keep because I still sleep with it sometimes," Steve blurted out before he could change his mind.
Tony stared at Steve as his mind tried to process what he was just told. "Seriously? Because now's your chance to change that story."
"Look, when you're not here, if you're on a business trip or whatever, I sometimes have trouble…sleeping alone. Peter's not the only one around here who gets nightmares, after all."
Tony had a teasing quip right on the tip of his tongue, but then Steve had said all that and looked at him with that earnest face of his. He let out a sigh. "Well, since we're being so honest and open with each other, I guess it's only fair that I bare my soul too. FRIDAY, enable the Santa's Toy Shop Protocol." A panel slid back along the wall across from their bed. Tony went to stand in front of it so Steve wouldn't be able to see what was inside right away. He reached in and pulled out a Captain America teddy bear and tossed it to Steve. "You and Peter don't have a monopoly on sleeping issues, y'know."
Tony watched Steve's eyes widen as he looked at the bear. "Tony-what? How long have you had this?"
Tony tried to appear as non-chalant as possible. "I got it at the same time I got yours. They were limited edition, and I figured what the hell, right? Might be good for a laugh".
Steve was looking amused. "It's even got a little shield."
"That was a separate accessory, but let's face it, it wouldn't have been complete without it." Tony was starting to feel awkward and did his best maintain confident demeanor. A part of him felt stupid for feeling this way. It was just Steve after all, not a Senate hearing. "And to save us both from an emotional conversation I know I'm not mentally prepared for, I'm assuming we were both doing this for similar reasons." Tony hadn't even had any coffee since the flight back and he was definitely not equipped to talk about feelings right now.
Steve luckily was just as willing to let the subject drop. "I'd say that's a correct assumption." He let out a nervous laugh. "God, we're a pair."
"No argument there. Well, not that this hasn't been heartwarming, but I think it's time I put it back." Tony went to take the bear from Steve's hands and put it back in the alcove in the wall, the panel sliding back in place automatically.
"Thank you, Tony." Steve said with a sincere tone in his voice.
"For what?"
"For opening up to me. I know that wasn't easy for you."
Tony gave a dismissive sniff. They were still teetering on the edge of a feelings talk, so he did his best to deflect, his eyes looking anywhere but at Steve. "Yeah, well, I mean, who cares, right?"
"Right."
"We were both being silly."
"Agreed."
Tony's eyes fell on the Iron Man bear that was still on Steve's pillow. His expression turned thoughtful, and as he went to pick it up, the gears in his genius mind started to turn.
"I know that look Tony. You coming up with something?"
"Always. Mind if I borrow this for a bit?"