Tony was mixing a drink and Thor was finishing his to-go second breakfast in the common room.
(They had recently watched "Lord of the Rings," and Thor had taken a great shine to the hobbits' meal lineup. Natasha still chuckled every time he asked if anyone wanted to go out for elevensies.)
"I have to say, that waitress was gorgeous, and you didn't even have to do anything to get her attention." Tony sounded admiring.
"She was pleasing to the eye, I agree," Thor nodded, mopping up some syrup with three pancakes. "But she gave me these numbers." He brandished the receipt, with the waitress's number scrawled across it. "And this keeps happening. Is it some sort of code I do not understand?"
Bruce poked his head in. "What do you mean, 'keeps happening'?"
Thor stuffed the pancakes in his mouth, stood, and beckoned.
Clint and Steve came out of the gym as the other three hit the stairs. "What's going on?" Clint asked.
"Thor, apparently, has been collecting phone numbers and hasn't told anyone," Tony said, sounding scandalized.
Clint slung his towel around his neck. "This I have to see."
Steve shrugged. "Count me in; I didn't have anything else to do today."
They all piled into Thor's suite, taking seats on the bed and the various oversized chairs.
Thor opened his top dresser drawer and turned it upside down. A small blizzard of receipts, napkins, and scraps of paper, all bearing a name and phone number - and most bearing at least one doodled heart and notes ranging from innocent to rather graphically detailed - fluttered out and floated downward.
"Thor, you must have over a hundred phone numbers here, man! How do you do it?" Clint sounded very impressed.
"Do what?"
"Get all these women to give you their numbers!"
"I do not do anything," Thor said, perplexed. "It just happens when I go out to eat. What am I supposed to do with these?"
"Have you called any of them?" Tony asked.
"Called them? What do you mean?"
A slow smile spread across Tony's face. "Oh good. Can I have them?"
"No, because Pepper would beat you ten ways to Sunday," Steve interrupted.
Tony sighed. "That's probably true. Never mind." He bent and scooped up a handful. "They gave you these so you'd call them and hopefully ask them out."
"Oh. Should I do that now?" He looked at the paper-covered floor, deep in thought. "It may get awkward with this many people there."
"Yeah, four is usually the limit. After that someone's getting ignored and that causes hurt feelings," Tony nodded, chuckling when he noticed Steve rolling his eyes.
"At this point, I'd just hang onto them," Clint said, scooping some up and tossing them back into the drawer. "We could have a pool and see who can guess how many phone numbers Thor collects each year."
"I like this plan. I shall treat the winner to a meal of their choosing," Thor grinned.
"Thor's buying? I'm in," Bruce said, standing. "But I have to get back to my lab; let me know the details later." He disappeared out the door.
"So guesses have to be in by December 29th, and we'll count them up on the 30th." Tony took out his phone and made a note. "Cap, you'd do well to watch Thor and see how he does it."
"Who says I need lessons?" Steve smiled. "I just don't have to ask you all about it. Besides, I'm sort of seeing someone."
"Betty Grable poster finally agreed to see a talkie with you?"
Steve stood, sighing good-naturedly. "And that's my limit for Tony Stark one-liners," he said, heading for the door. "Make sure you tip well, Thor."
"I do. Natasha made sure to let me know that if I did not, she would annoy me more than Loki does."
"She can, so it's smart to listen to her," Clint laughed as he got off the bed. "See you guys at dinner."