A/N: Hey everyone! I'm super sorry for the delay! I've been on vacation for the past few weeks, but I am back now with the next chapter and I hope it was worth the wait!
Disclaimer: I do not own the Avengers!
Chapter 5
The next few weeks pass by like a dream, and Tony finds himself feeling better than he ever has before. The group had returned to Coney Island a number of times and the engineer even let Steve coax him onto a few rides, much to everyone's amusement. Speaking of the blond, Tony has been spending the most time with Steve. In fact, the other day, the pair went on a motorcycle ride around the city, with Tony clinging to Steve's back the entire time—not that he's complaining of course. The billionaire has come to terms with the fact that he's hopelessly and completely in love with Steve. Despite JARVIS's snarky attitude (When did the AI become so sassy, Tony wonders), he's decided against telling Pepper, or Steve, for that matter. The genius fears that the soldier won't return his affections, even though it appears like Steve has some sort of feelings for the brunet.
Bringing himself back to the present, Tony is currently lounging in the living room with the rest of the team on a bright and sunny Wednesday afternoon, watching some lifetime movie that Natasha wants to see. Nat and Bruce are sitting next to each other looking intrigued, Thor is enthusiastic as usual from his place next to Natasha, and Clint is slumped against the one of the arms of his couch looking bored out of his mind. The engineer rolls his eyes. Clint should have just followed Steve's example. The Captain, who is sitting next to Bruce, had fallen asleep about halfway through the movie, not because it was boring, but because Steve usually falls asleep while watching television. At least he doesn't snore.
The engineer stretches and then curls back into himself. He grabs the fuzzy green blanket draped over the side of the couch and pulls it around his form. He leans to his right and rests his head against Steve's left shoulder. The blond doesn't wake, so Tony uses this opportunity to press closer and mold himself against Steve's side. He sighs content and closes his eyes. The billionaire doesn't sleep; he just listens to the white noise of the movie in the background and the sound of Steve's steady breathing.
Sometime later, the movie ends and Clint groans with relief as the credits roll. Natasha fixes him a glare, but the archer ignores her as he stands and stretches. Tony opens his eyes and yawns. He slowly sits up and stretches, crossing his legs and looking over at the others.
"So," Bruce begins. "What do you guys want to do now?"
"We could watch another movie?" Natasha suggests.
"No," Clint responds, immediately shooting down the idea. He pointedly looks away from Natasha as the redhead gives him another glare.
Tony thinks. "Let's go to Costco. We need a new TV out here so we can give Clint his back."
Natasha shrugs. "Sounds doable."
"How about we meet back here in half an hour," Bruce suggests. The team mumbles their agreement and leave for their respective rooms.
The brunet watches everyone leave. He looks over at Steve and nudges him in the arm. "Hey, Steve, wake up."
Steve groans and shifts, opening his eyes and stretching his limbs. "Tony?" He yawns and settles his eyes on the engineer. The blond gives the other a sleepy grin. "Hey you," he says, voice still rough with sleep.
Tony's stomach flutters and he smiles wider. "Hey yourself," he responds. "We're going to go to Costco again. You want to come?"
The soldier nods, yawning again and rubbing his eyes. "Yeah, I just need a minute."
Tony says, "We're meeting back here in a half an hour, so I'll see you then?"
Steve nods his agreement and yawns again.
The billionaire smiles. He picks up the blanket covering his lap, and sets it down on the couch. He gives the blond once last glance before turning away and walking towards the elevator. Tony presses the button to go upstairs and watches the doors open for him automatically. After selecting the button for the penthouse, the doors close and take the billionaire to his floor.
The elevator doors open and Tony walks out before wandering into his room. He quickly showers and dresses in a faded plain dark blue t-shirt with white long sleeves, light blue jeans and a pair of simple black shoes. He parts his hair and combs it, deciding he needs a change from his usual spiked do. He glances over his appearance in the mirror before deeming himself ready. Grabbing his phone, wallet, sunglasses, and one of his many leather jackets, Tony exits his room and heads for the elevator.
The genius arrives in the Avenger's main room moments later, finding Thor and Bruce already waiting on the couches. Tony walks over and plops down next to Bruce, startling the scientist.
Bruce places a hand over his chest. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"
"Obviously that plan is failing."
"Oh har-har," Bruce deadpans, rolling his eyes. He has a fond smile on his face and Tony knows the man isn't offended.
Tony goes to respond, but Thor burps loudly which prompts Bruce to go into an explanation about proper etiquette. The brunet rolls his eyes and shivers, feeling a sudden chill. He picks his jacket up from his lap and moves to put it on. He slides his arm into the right sleeve before realizing that this jacket is too big for him. The engineer's face goes hot.
He has Steve's jacket in his hands.
The elevator dings and Tony turns to see Steve emerge from the elevator and head towards the kitchen, sparing the three men on the couch a quick glance. The brunet stands suddenly, jacket clutched tight in his grip. He ignores the curious glances from Bruce and Thor and follows Steve into the kitchen.
"Here's your jacket back," Tony greets, entering the kitchen and holding the clothing item out to the blond.
Steve closes the fridge and turns to face Tony, a red apple in his hand. He takes a bite and raises his eyebrow. "I said you can keep it."
"It's not right for me to keep something that isn't mind," Tony says, thinking he sounds ridiculous. Every time he's around Steve, his supposed "genius" flies away like a kite.
"Tony Stark is worried about keeping something that someone else gave him full permission to use?" the solider teases.
The brunet snorts. Apparently, he's not the only one who thinks Tony is acting out of character. He shakes his hand that has the jacket clutched in his fingers at Steve. "Just take it."
Steve sets his apple on the island counter and walks over to Tony. When the blond takes his jacket, their fingers brush and Tony involuntary shivers, feeling sparks. Instead of walking away with his jacket, like Tony thought the man would do, the soldier drapes his jacket over the brunet's shoulders. The engineer's eyes widen, too shocked to protest Steve helping him slip on the jacket. Tony looks between the jacket and Steve's fond expression.
"See," Steve says gently, attempting to fit the larger jacket to Tony's smaller frame. He's standing close enough to the brunet that Tony can smell the other's sharp yet sweet cologne. "It looks so much better on you."
Tony takes a trembling breath and shakes his head, his heart pounding against his chest. "Stop it."
The soldier raises an eyebrow. "Stop what?"
"Making me feel . . . things," the brunet says lamely. He sounds like a teenage girl confronting her crush. Well, technically, that's what he's doing, but Tony Stark is no teenage girl.
"Oh?" the other answers with an amused grin. "I hope those things are good."
"More than you know," Tony mutters. His eyes widen as he realizes he just admitted that aloud. Maybe Steve didn't hear him. Though judging the soldier's widening smile, that isn't the case.
"Oh yeah?" Steve says, stepping closer to the engineer.
"Yeah," Tony says, raising himself on his tiptoes, so they're nose to nose. He braces his hands on Steve's chest, curling his fingers at the base of the man's neck. He looks the blond square in his crystal blue eyes. "So stop."
"Make me," Steve challenges with a smirk, leaning forward slightly. Tony thinks this is an unconscious move, but it doesn't stop the brunet from leaning forward and closing his eyes to make Steve shut up when . . .
"Hey guys."
That's it. Clint's losing his balls.
"Bruce told me to come and get you guys because everyone is here now. You coming?" the archer asks. If Clint's wondering anything about their position, he's keeping it to himself.
"Yeah, just give us a minute," Steve answers.
The engineer listens to Clint's footsteps retreat. Moment ruined, he places both feet flat on the ground and turns his attention back to Steve, who's grinning down at him. Tony huffs. "This conversation isn't over," he declares, whirling on his heel and walking out of the kitchen, with Steve following behind him.
"I hate you," Tony says to Bruce as he walks past the scientist and heads for the elevator.
"What did I . . . do?" the scientist wonders aloud.
The elevator doors open and the team piles in. Clint, being the closest to the doors, presses the button for the garage. The doors shut and the elevator takes the team downwards. Tony finds himself once again pressed against Steve's front. The brunet looks up at the other man and meets his gaze, knowing that if the rest of the team wasn't here right now . . .
"Oh dear Lord!" Natasha exclaims, cutting off Tony's thoughts. She plugs her nose and waves her hand at the air around her. "Clint, did you just pass gas?"
"I ain't got no shame," the archer answers simply.
Tony scrunches his face up as the smell hits him. "Dude, you're such an asshole."
"Tell me something I don't know," Clint responds with a smile.
"Oh God, I'm going to die," Bruce says, letting out a series of coughs. "What did you eat?"
The Agent thinks for a moment. "Hmm . . . some roast beef, some chicken, a pizza . . ."
"That's SpongeBob!" Tony exclaims.
"Oh right," Clint says. He falls silent before snapping his fingers. "I found what appeared to be a tuna sandwich is the back of the refrigerator and since no one had their name on it, I decided it was going to be my breakfast."
"Appeared to be?" Natasha repeats.
"Wait," Steve begins. "Was the sandwich in a small clear container? And it had a price tag on the lid?"
"Yeah," Clint says.
"Oh . . . so that's where that was," the soldier says.
"How long ago did you buy that sandwich?" Natasha asks her nose still plugged.
The blond thinks for a moment. "Uh, I think I bought it not long after we first . . . moved . . . in."
"That is a month old sandwich you ate, Clinton," Nat says.
"I'm surprised you're not dead," Tony adds.
"While I'm not that kind of doctor," Bruce begins. "I can predict you are going to have some major bowel problems tonight."
"Alright, bring on the diarrhea," Clint challenges with a clap of his hands.
"Oh my—" Natasha exclaims looking nauseated. "You are disgusting."
"I is what I is," Clint declares. "And I ain't changing."
"I do not understand," Thor says, reminding everyone of his presence. "Why are you Midgardians so disturbed by certain odors? I am not bothered by Clinton's passing of the gases."
"That's because your nose is less sensitive than ours, buddy," Tony answers.
"Thank you, Thor," Clint says, grateful that someone agrees with him. "Farting is a normal part of the human process and I will not let you shame me for doing it."
The elevator doors ding, signaling their arrival to the garage. When the doors open, everyone except Clint and Thor, pile out of the elevator and gasp for breath. "You guys are so overdramatic," the archer says and based on his tone, Tony is assuming that he's also rolling his eyes.
Tony straightens his posture and crosses his arms while Steve, Natasha, Bruce collect themselves. He watches Clint place his hands on his hips and glance around the garage. "Oh! Minivan!" Clint exclaims. "I want to ride in the minivan!"
"Technically, it's a Sedona . . ." Bruce adds.
"Whose car is that?" Natasha wonders. "Tony?"
"Steve's," Tony answers.
"Tony thought it'd be a brilliant idea to buy me one," Steve informs Natasha.
"Mom car for our mom," the archer says, nodding his approval. "Nice."
"Wait, what?" Steve asks confusion on his face.
The engineer pats Steve's arm—damn, Tony would give anything to run his hands along those muscles right now—and grins. "Ignore him and let's go! I'm getting hungry and we can pick up lunch while we're there."
Clint snaps his fingers. "I like the way you think, Stark," he says as the team heads for the Sedona. Steve pulls the keys from his pocket and unlocks his car with the remote. Clint grabs ahold of the door handle and throws it open.
"Steve," Natasha pipes, right before everyone enters the car.
"Yes," Steve responds, stopping mid step on his way to the driver's side.
"Could we ride with the windows down in case . . .," she asks, jerking her head towards Clint who was halfway inside the vehicle.
"Of course," Steve says, nodding his head in understanding. Nat gives him a small smile of thanks.
Clint climbs the rest of the way into the car. Natasha waits until Clint is fully seated before climbing into the car and settling herself next to him. Thor enters next and sits behind the driver's chair, where Steve has already situated himself. Bruce climbs in last and settles behind the passenger's side next to Thor. When Bruce is situated, Tony shuts the door and slides into shotgun next to Steve. The blond starts the car and places his seatbelt on, motioning for the team to do the same.
"Everyone ready?" Steve asks. The team chirp yes in unison. The blond rolls down the windows, much to everyone's relief, and locks the doors. He carefully backs out of his parking spot and places the car in drive. He barely pulls out of the garage when Natasha exclaims: "Clint, did you just—"
"I will not let you shame me."
Tony resists the urge to face palm. He slides on his sunglasses and takes a deep breath. This is going to be a long drive.
Steve pulls into the Costco parking lot and shuts off the Sedona. Thankfully the ride over wasn't horrible and had minimal farting. Tony makes a mental note to remember to clear out the common room's fridge at the end of the week. The team piles out of the car and make their way towards the store. A cool breeze suddenly moves through the area, causing Tony to shiver and instinctively tug Steve's jacket closer to his form. He silently chides himself for wearing the item, but is also glad that Steve didn't take the jacket back. It still smells like the blond.
As the team approach the front doors, Tony notices something weird. The building is completely dark, the automatic entrance is sealed tight and there are two female employees clad in their uniforms, standing behind the door. The woman standing on the left is short with pitch-black hair and pale skin. The other woman is tall and has light blond hair and tanned skin. Tony can't tell if her tan is real or not. Both women look terrified and the engineer assumes they're new. The group pauses in front of the doors and exchange glances with the employees.
"I didn't know you guys were closed today," Bruce wonders aloud.
"Oh, we're open, but we're not allowed to let you in," the dark haired woman, whose nametag says "Melanie", explains before being elbowed by the blond woman.
Tony gives the women a confused look. "But, we didn't break anything," he protests.
"Well . . ."
"Clint, what the fuck did you do?" The engineer demands.
The archer shies away from Tony's glare and scrunches his face up with shame. He laughs nervously and scratches the back of his head. "It's a funny story, see me and Nat were—"
"Oh no," Natasha says. "Don't you drag me into this."
"But you were there," Clint protests. "And if I'm remembering correctly, you're the reason why I lost control of the cart in the first place."
"Your memory is failing you, Clint, you will not blame what happened on me," Natasha quips.
"I'm not fully blaming you, I'm giving you partial responsibility—"
"Will someone please just explain what happened?" Tony demands, crossing his arms, and fixing both assassin's with a steady glare. Natasha narrows her eyes, challenging the billionaire, but he doesn't back down. As scary as Tony finds the redhead, the sooner this problem is solved the better.
Clint lets out another nervous laugh. "You see it all started when Natasha and I were by electronics and she—"
"Don't," the female assassin warns.
"—tried to jump out of the cart while I was running at full speed and pushing her . . . and . . . she slipped on some silly putty I'd found—"
"Again: Why did you take the silly putty out of its container and just throw it in the cart? You make no sense."
"—And she fell out of the cart, right, and she tried to balance herself, but instead she rolled into the store's storage facility and knocked into a television stand and well . . . we all know how the domino effect works."
Tony sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. He doesn't remember hearing any crashing, but from what Pepper's told him, storage rooms are usually sound proof. Plus, he was also focused on Steve and oblivious to the actions of others around him. "What else happened?"
"After that, we bolted. We managed to find another cart and pulled random items off the selves, trying to fill both carts up. That's why I grabbed the television in the first place," Clint answers. "Then, we met up with you guys. We thought we could, you know, keep it hidden, but—"
"Clint just so happened to forget about the security cameras," Natasha interrupts.
"Like I said, you have partial responsibility for this mess—"
"Like hell I do," Natasha answers, sharply. Her body goes tense as though she's rearing for a fight.
"Guys," Steve warns authority and power creeping into his voice, leading to Natasha immediately relaxing her muscles and Clint to stop speaking. Tony likes to call this the "Cap tone."
The genius sighs, irritation coursing through him. Is this what his life has become? Is he never going to have a normal outing again? "How much is this going to cost me?" he asks, addressing this question to the employees.
"Around fourteen thousand dollars," the blond, Tiffany, explains sounding chipper. The engineer would sound chipper too if he was going to be paid back fourteen thousand dollars in damages.
Clint cringes and Tony sighs again. "Just bill me," he says, turning on his heel and walking away from the store with the team following behind him.
When the team reaches the car, Clint shifts awkwardly on his feet. "So . . . are you mad at Natasha?"
"Now, wait a minute," the redhead begins, anger seeping into her voice.
"I'm not mad, just . . . annoyed," Tony shrugs. "It's not like I can't afford to pay, it's just a hassle. But, nothing that Pepper can't handle," he explains before climbing into the car.
After everyone settles into the car in the same seating arrangement as before, Bruce asks, "Well, since we can't go to Costco at the moment, should we try Best Buy? I mean, technically you can get a television almost anywhere."
Tony thinks for a moment. "Yeah, let's go and see what they've got," he says while Steve starts the Sedona and puts it in gear. "Oh and you two," he says, addressing Clint and Natasha. "Try not to break anything."
"Tony—?"
"Holy fucking—!" Tony exclaims. He drops his tools and whirls around, both hands on his arc reactor and his eyes wide. "Steve! You scared the shit out of me!"
Steve holds his hands up, looking amused. "I'm sorry?"
"No, you're not, you punk," Tony says, his voice laced with amusement. "So, what brings you to my humble lab? Don't you have a kitten in a tree that needs rescuing or something?"
"Har-har, very funny," Steve deadpans. He sidesteps Dummy, who is sweeping up some debris into a little dustpan and approaches Tony's workbench. "No one's seen you since we got the new television and I just wanted to make sure you didn't die."
"Aw, you were worried over little old me?" Tony teases with his trademark smirk.
Steve rolls his eyes. "Hardly," he tries deadpanning again, but the fond look in his blue eyes doesn't escape the brunet. "How long have you been down here?"
Tony shrugs. "I don't know like . . . twelve . . . maybe fourteen hours?"
"Approximately, seventy-three hours, and counting," JARVIS inputs.
"What?"
"Really? It's been that long?"
Steve huffs. "Tony, it's not good for you to keep doing this."
"I appreciate your concern, Capsicle, but I've been doing this for years! I'm fine."
"When's the last time you ate?"
Tony thinks for a moment, and then shrugs.
"You don't remember, do you?" At Tony's nod, Steve rolls his eyes. "You're coming with me and we're going to get some real food in you and then, you're going to bed."
"But, I'm on the verge of something big! It will revolutionize life as we know it!"
"And it will still be here tomorrow. Come on, Tony."
The genius wants to continue arguing, but judging from Steve's stubborn glare, Tony is going upstairs whether he wants to or not. He sighs and reluctantly tells JARVIS to save everything and then shut down the lab. Steve turns on his heel and walks out of the lab with Tony reluctantly following. The engineer is so consumed with thoughts of his project, he doesn't realize that Steve stopped walking until he runs smack into the man's back. Tony stumbles backward a few paces and rubs his nose. The soldier turns slightly, his mouth twisted in an amused grin. "You okay?"
Tony huffs and waves him off. "Yeah, I'm fine, just thinking." He walks around Steve and enters the kitchen, heading for the fridge.
"There's some leftover Chinese, if you want it," Steve says.
Tony hums and pulls out the containers. He sets them on the counter and grabs a paper plate. He shovels a hearty amount of food onto the plate before popping it in microwave and placing the containers back in the fridge. The billionaire hops onto the island counter and looks at Steve who is fiddling around with the stove.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm making tea," Steve answers, chuckling when Tony wrinkles his nose. "I know it's not your forte, but I'd like for you to sleep tonight."
Tony sighs and Steve laughs. Silence falls over the pair until Tony speaks again. "Hey, let's watch a movie."
"Alright. What movie?"
Tony thinks for a moment. "Have you seen Dirty Dancing yet?"
Steve throws Tony a confused look, which answers his question. "Guess what we're watching, Rogers?"
The soldier snorts and turns back to the kettle, pulling out two mugs and setting them down on the counter.
The microwave beeps and Tony eagerly hops off the counter. He opens the device and pulls his food out. Grabbing a fork and a napkin, Tony walks out of the kitchen and sets down on the couch in the living room, waiting for Steve to join him. "JARVIS, load up Dirty Dancing." He says, crossing his legs and setting the food on his lap.
As JARVIS is loading the movie, Steve walks out with two piping hot mugs of green tea. He sets one mug on the coffee table in front of Tony and cradles the other in his large hands. The soldier sits on Tony's left, close enough to touch (and oh, does Tony want to touch). The genius shovels a forkful of food into his mouth as the movie begins playing, not missing Steve's amused look at Tony's enthusiastic eating. In the engineer's defense, he's always hungrier than he originally thinks.
Tony finishes his meal just as Billy is inviting Baby to the secret staff party. The genius sets his plate on the table and grabs his mug, before settling back down on the couch and taking a few sips. Tony turns to the side and sees Steve eagerly watching the movie, not tearing his eyes away from the screen. He smiles at Steve's joy, before a slow grin crawls over his face with the formation of an idea. He leans to the left and presses himself against Steve's side. His grin widens and stomach flutters when he feels the blond's arm wrap around his form. The brunet curls against Steve's side and rests his head against the other's chest, smiling fondly when he feels careful fingers running through his hair. Carefully cradling his mug so he doesn't spill, Tony takes another sip and turns his attention back to the movie.
Hours later, Tony's phone rings startling the engineer from his slumber. He groans and gropes around for his phone. Grabbing the device, he accepts the call. "What," he answers voice rough with sleep and laced with annoyance.
"Stark? It's Coulson. We have a problem."
Tony glances at his alarm clock. That's odd. Didn't he fall asleep on the couch with Steve? How did he get to his room? "It's four o clock in the morning and I was actually sleeping for once. Can't this wait?"
"If the problem could wait, I wouldn't be calling you at this hour, now would I?"
"Alright, sassy pants, it looks like you woke up on the wrong side of the bed."
"The same could be said for you, now shut up and listen. The faster we deal with this, the faster we can all go back to sleep."
Tony rolls his eyes. "I'm listening."
"It's Loki," Coulson says, his voice grave. "He's out."
A/N: I don't really know how I feel about this chapter because I was halfway through writing it when I had to leave. Idk it might just be me, but it sounds off. But, at least we've finally hit the main plot now yay! :) Anyway, thank you guys so much for reading! Please review and let me know what you think!