The Mortician's Daughter by Black Veil Brides

Tony lay in the hospital bed, his distended belly shuddering with the impending fact of new life. He chewed on his ice chips, trying to focus more on the television than anything else at this point. He didn't want to focus on the idea that he left Peter with Clint and Thor or that Pepper was the one going into the delivery room with him. What he mostly wanted to ignore was that Steve was not here with him while he delivered their first biological child - it was a complete accident, what with Ultron and Extremis monkeying around with his body. Bruce had said that Extremis responded to an incident with Peter in school that left Tony wishing Peter had been theirs biologically. Tony rolled his eyes, but remembered how much he really did want contraction pulled the billionaire from his typically complicated thought process and he clutched at the bed rails, nearly breaking his cup of ice chips to handle the agony in his lower back.

"You contacted Steve?" He asked Pepper once the pain subsided, "it'd be real shitty if I didn't tell him this happened."

"I did," she replied sadly, "he feels so awful, no one knew you'd deliver early."

Tony didn't say anything else to his faithful assistant, taking his phone from his small bed tray. There were twenty-six missed calls from Steve, none of which he wanted to respond to. He knew it was childish, but was so sick of his husband's job getting in the way of everything. Steve was home for the first two years of Peter's life with them and for these past four, he couldn't stay. S.H.I.E.L.D. had Steve running around like some sort of military dog. Wincing, Tony knew it wasn't Steve;s fault, but he couldn't take any of this any longer.

"You know that if I could help it, I would," Steve argued over video-chat, "after everything that's been happening, the world is in chaos!"

"We are in chaos, Steve!" Tony snapped with tears in his dark eyes, "you haven't even seen our baby yet! You missed the birth and Peter's seventh birthday!"

"I'm trying to get home, Tony," Steve's voice softened, "don't you think that it hurts me, knowing I'm missing everything!"

"I can't do this anymore," the brunette replied, "Steve, no one can. The kids are fatherless, I'm partnerless. Christ, we aren't even married!"

"Tony, please..."

"I can't." was the last thing Tony said.

Steve sent letters, texts, calls and left voicemails. He sent gifts and notices as to when he'd be home. He tried to videochat Tony and would call the other Avengers when the philanthropist wouldn't answer him.

Finally, Steve returned home, to the small domicile they'd agreed on when the Avengers disassembled. He found most of Peter's toys gone from the yard and almost everything aside from furniture gone from the house.

Tears welled up in the Captain's eyes as he entered the bedroom he shared with Tony and found that there was indeed no Tony Stark curled up on his side of the bed. He sat at the foot of the bed and cried, let out all the pain he'd been feeling and letting everything go.

"My God, Tony," he sobbed, "please, come back...I can't do this without you."

He didn't hear the door downstairs opening and closing.

"If I could have stayed..."

He didn't hear the footsteps coming up the stairs.

"Don't you know how bad I want to see and hold and kiss our new baby?"

He jumped, seeing Tony's still-plump figure in the doorway, a box in his arms. The playboy-turned-mommy stood there, frozen.

"Steve..." he sounded lost, but quickly found his voice, "I was just getting the rest of Peter's clothes."

"Tony," he stood, quickly towering over the smaller man, "please, Tony, don't go."

"Steve, I can't stay with a man that's never around!"

"I will be around," Steve insisted, taking Tony by the shoulders, "let me fix things!"

"Things are already broken, Steve!"

And with all the strength and tenderness the soldier possessed, he pulled Tony closer and melded their lips together. Tony's cheeks were immediately stained with tears and he dropped the box, letting the taller man nearly crush him to his chest.

"Where I'm from, we fix what's broken," the Captain murmured into Tony's hair. "Please, Tony."

With a quiet sob, Tony nodded.

And the Captain was home again.