Coldness was the first sensation that overtook Steve's body when he awoke, his eyelids loosing the battle to stay open as he reached across the bed to grab for something to pull around himself. His tongue stuck to the dry roof of his mouth and he puckered a little at the feeling.

His hand settled on something warm and...fleshen. His eyes fluttered open despite their dryness, and it took him a moment to remember where he was. Which mean that what he was holding onto...

Tony lay sprawled on his back, legs spread, with one arm clutching a majority of the bedsheets in a bunch up to his neck. Left arm outstretched toward Steve, Tony was just blinking awake. His brown eyes glanced up to where Steve's hand clutched his forearm and then to Steve's face.

They both blinked, and Steve drew his hand away, curling in on himself just a little. "Sorry," he whispered. "I didn't mean to wake you. I was cold."

"Mm?" Tony groaned sleepily, chest rising and falling under the bedsheets as he stretched his arms over his head. It took a moment but the comment registered. "Oh! Damn, m'sorry, here..." He chucked the covers at Steve, who tucked them around himself and snuggled in them.

Tony rolled over with his back to Steve, clutching his arms around himself, body falling limp into the mattress with a sigh. Steve blinked at the full window beyond him. Small pink light trickling over the city's silhouette was the only evidence of daylight. "Time'zit?" he breathed.

Stirring with a tired moan, Tony glanced over his shoulder at the supersoldier. "Sisfi'teen," he slurred. "Lemme sleep."

"Mm, sorry." With an unintelligible muffled reply from Tony, Steve closed his eyes and breathed in the crisp silence of dawn-silent except for the sound of the couple of car horns that could actually make it all the way up here from the street. His head felt shimmery and light, fingers twisting in the sheets, but when he opened his eyes Tony had changed his position, now hugging his pillow for warmth.

After watching Tony fidget for a good minute, Steve rolled to his front and side-winded to the middle of the bed, tucking up a corner of the bedsheets in his fist and throwing it over Tony. Tony's body twitched and he turned his head, cheek smushed against the pillow, to face Steve. One of his brows quirked up on his forehead.

But the confusion vanished from his face quickly enough, and his eyes closed, and he accepted the bedsheets with clutching fingers and curled toward Steve, breathing softly. His forehead nearly touched Steve's shoulder, the crown of his head level to Steve's face and his hair was so mussed that the only think keeping Steve from combing it out with his fingers was the thought of losing the heat of the blanket around his arms.

Each of Tony's breaths on Steve's shoulder slowly tensed up Steve's body, and he tried not to move and thus disturb the dozing man. He let his eyes close, though he could not return to sleep for his care not to wake Tony.

That's when he felt warm, bare skin against his chest, and opened his eyes to see Tony had rolled nearly onto him, snuggling with his back to Steve's front and a mess of sheets bunched in front of the arc reactor. Steve didn't mind much; anything was better than being cold. At the contact, something in Steve realized it was very foolish to cease all movement for fear of waking the other and allowed his knees to bend, even as they hit the back of Tony's. Right arm trapped under his own pillow and the other between their bodies, Steve realized how cramped his muscles had truly become, and let his left arm fall along his side. It couldn't stay there long without strict control over Steve's own muscles, so tentatively, he let it fall against Tony's back, and then just gave up and draped it over Tony.

A warm set of fingers grabbed at his hand, entwining in his.

Before he even had the chance to tense up, Tony backed up into him, head tucking under Steve's chin as he greedily snuggled Steve's arm to his unshaven face. The pressure of Tony's body against Steve's chest made him relax, and reach up from under the pillow to give in to straightening Tony's hair. He felt, more than heard, Tony's low chuckle.

As Steve drifted back to almost-sleep, he felt Tony continue to play idly with his fingers. His head began to nod, sliding from the gentle slope of the pillow, and Tony's thick hair tickled his nose.

He found himself annoyed with any cool air that dared impede his comfort, working the sheets to adjust, to block out any of the world around this little bundle of bed and human heat. Steve had had his fill of cold. And his fill of alone, as well, he realized as Tony squeezed his hand lightly.

Clenching his teeth, and touching his tongue to the roof of his mouth, Steve grimaced at the taste and realized again how very thirsty he was, and remembered the half-full glass of water on the end table. Immediately conflicted with the prospect of leaving this warmth but for a second, Steve weighed whether it was worth it to quench his dry throat. He wanted the water. But he wanted the warmth. But he really wanted the water.

Tony mumbled something.

"Hm?"

"I said, 'you're tense,'" Tony spoke against Steve's hand. "Why are you tense? Don't be tense. It's not comfy."

"I-" Tony kissed Steve's hand and the rest of his reply was lost in a flustered huff.

"Well what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm just thirsty."

Steve sighed as the heat between his fingers was replaced by an uncomfortable coolness as Tony let go. "Then get your water."

"But I don't want to move," Steve whined, tipping his head closer to Tony's and begging the headboard with his blue eyes. "You're warm."

Tony tugged on Steve's arm again, trapping it to his chest. "Well good, 'cause I don't want you to move, either. For similar reasons."

And suddenly a warmth in Steve's chest grew suffocating.

"Your heart's beating super fast," Tony remarked. Steve said nothing. "I'm gonna go out on a limb...and ask...is it something to do with the dream?"

"I...yes, and no," he replied, pressing his face into Tony's hair. "It's...I already said I don't want to lose you. It would...be too much like losing those I've already lost."

He felt Tony nod.

"Not like I count you as Peggy. Or Howard," he added. "It's...you do remind me of them, a lot. I just feel like I am closer to you than I was to them."

"I get that," Tony encouraged.

"And you're so warm," he mumbled reverently. "I'm sorry. I'm getting all sentimental on you."

A chuckle in reply. "Maybe you're just dehydrated."

Much against both of their wishes, Tony sat up. He stretched over Steve's body and reached for the glass on the end table, and brought it back, and Steve sat up with his back against the cool headboard and downed the contents. It wasn't nearly enough to quench his thirst; in fact, he felt thirstier after drinking it than he had when he woke up. He reached over to replace the glass, and slid back down, settling his head into a pillow. Portions of his body lied in warmth, while others were shocked by the coolth of untouched sheets. He blinked up into the brown eyes of the man lying on his side, propped up on an elbow. Tony just looked down at him, looked over his bare chest and down at the jeans he had failed to remove earlier, and then he gripped the bedsheets and drew them up over Steve and himself, snuggling up to Steve's side.

"Tony..."

"Don't be confused. Don't say anything." His command was punctuated by a sudden cling to Steve, who felt the arc reactor press into his side. He hesitated, but looped his right arm around Tony, snuggling him closer.

Readjusting to new warmth, Steve closed his eyes, only to open them again the moment Tony's warm lips kissed his dreadfully chapped ones.

He didn't let himself think, just kissed back, tucking his fingers into Tony's hair and gripping his shoulder gently. In a fluid movement, Tony's weight rested atop Steve, and Steve wrapped his arms around him, kissing his lips lightly. Tony ruffled the sheets around them, trying to keep them contained, and every kiss he pressed to Steve's lips was urgent, every kiss to his cheek and the base of his jaw understanding, comforting, and he squeezed Steve and nuzzled his chest, listening to the hastened pounding inside.

Don't think, Steve told himself, for he did not want to lose this heat. He did not want to lose feeling this loved.

So he wasn't the one to break the silence; Tony was. "I've never been held like this before. And I never pictured it."

Pause. "Why do you sound like that's a bad thing?"

"Oh, it's not. I...I think I love it," Tony confessed. It was odd, but Steve could feel the man's cheek heat up against his bare chest. "I mean, you're a fucking comfy mattress."

Steve chuckled, a tad nervously. "I've...never been held like this, either. Never got the chance..."

"Well, we're sharing firsts. Yay!" Tony cheered wearily, half-heartedly raising a fist in victory before adjusting himself on Steve's body. "This is so weird. But it's good weird. So don't get all self-conscious on me."

Steve nodded, and chuckled. And he rested a hand on Tony's back, and Tony's hand found Steve's other, fingers locking in his again, and they fell asleep as the sun rose.

A/N -

Honestly, this was a oneshot when I started. What happened? Haha. I'm fairly certain this will be the last chapter. But they're so cute oh my gosh I love them so hard they make me use run-on sentences. LOVE.