Natasha knows Steve all too well. She's sitting on the couch looking expectant so Steve doesn't even bother trying to hide the fact that he's upset. Steve sits next to her with a shaky sigh and Natasha has the decency not to ask Steve what happened during his walk because she has a pretty good idea.

Eventually Steve tries to sleep, but then he's in bed tossing and turning and trying to dissuade himself from telling Tony about Howard. It's none of his business and it'll only make things worse.

It's been almost week and Steve hasn't heard from Tony. He's not surprised, but he figures now that they've both had time to cool off he'll try calling his husband. He doesn't really expect an answer, but he crosses his fingers and prays that Tony picks up.

Tony hasn't slept in three days. He looks like shit and he's emptied the house of liquor, but the memories still don't escape him. There are good memories of Bucky and their time here and there are horrible memories of the fight with Steve, which Tony has yet to really face and deal with. He's expected to be called horrible things for cheating and lying, but he's never expected to get hit over such a thing or to feel so strongly about any decision he's ever made before.

He definitely isn't expecting it when his phone rings, but when it does part of him hopes that it's Bucky begging for a second chance. But it's not, and Tony sighs when he sees his husband's name flash across the screen.

Steve isn't surprised when Tony doesn't answer, but he calls again and Tony picks up the second time.

"What do you want?"

Steve isn't surprised by that response, either. "We need to talk."

"Yeah, no shit, so get your ass to Malibu so we can do it in person because I'm not coming home until you're out of my tower."

"Tony—"

"No, don't you 'Tony' me."

"This isn't my fault!"

"You hit me, Steve! That is your fault!"

"You were—" Steve sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. He doesn't want to fight about this. He really doesn't.

"You know what?" Tony snorts. "Fuck doing this in person. I'm done; I can't do it anymore." His voice is void of emotion, and Steve can't really believe he's hearing Tony correctly, and he can't hold back the tears that sting his eyes.

"No, you don't mean that. Please just let me explain—"

"There's nothing to explain. You hit me, Steve. Nothing about that is okay."

"I was upset; you know I didn't do it intentionally! You were getting defensive and I snapped. I'm so, so sorry."

"You swore to me that it would never happen again after last time, but it did. I'm not okay with that."

Steve is crying now and it's not only because Tony is asking hinting at a divorce, but it's because he's been so stupid this entire time to believe that things were actually fixable. Maybe they could've been if he hadn't hit Tony, but it's happened, and now Tony doesn't want anything else to do with Steve.

Steve is unaware just how hard he's crying until Tony has to scream over him to be heard.

"Steve!" Tony groans, and he's trying to be strong because this is what he wants. He doesn't want to be married to Captain America anymore. He doesn't want to give Steve another chance because Steve doesn't really deserve one. Getting hit once is bad enough, but Tony has let it happen a second time, and that's not at all okay.

He wants Steve to shut up and he wants Steve to let him go, but he knows fully well that Steve probably won't let go for a long, long time. "I'm gonna go," Tony finally says.

"No," Steve whines softly, wiping at his eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm just—I'm sorry that I overreacted and I'm sorry for hitting you."

Tony holds back a snort. "I appreciate the apology, but that doesn't make it okay."

"I want to talk about what happened."

"There's nothing to talk about, Steve. I want a divorce."

When he hangs up and Steve is left with uncomfortable silence again.

He's glad that Natasha is gone because he needs to let go and he does. He sits on the couch for a long, long time crying and thinking about everything that Tony has told him thus far. And when he remembers what Tony has told him about trying to end things with Bucky, Steve realizes that the fact that Tony has been unfaithful is probably because of his own actions.

"Tony!" Steve hollers, his fist rapping on the bathroom door. "You know how important this is! We're late enough as it is; get your ass out of there!"

"I'm getting dressed! Jesus, shut the fuck up! I heard you the first time. Goddamn—"

Steve's patience is growing thin and he doesn't resist the urge to knock the bathroom door is. Tony spins around and he tries to dodge the fist but he doesn't, and it collides with Tony's right eye and they both stand there in shock.

"I'm not going, you can go by yourself," Tony spits, and he's so upset that he can't see straight.

"Tony—"

"I don't wanna fucking hear it!"

Bucky is surprised when Tony walks into the living room still wearing his tuxedo with his untied bowtie hanging around his neck. He's upset, that's obvious, and he flops down next to Bucky without saying anything.

Steve leaves to go to the event by himself and Tony stays home. He finds comfort in resting his head on Bucky's shoulder as he tries to hold himself together. He doesn't tell Bucky about Steve's punch, but when his eye starts to swell Bucky doesn't ask questions. He can draw conclusions but it's not really his place to say anything. He simply gets Tony a bag of frozen peas from the freezer and kisses him better.

Tony contemplates not answering the phone when Pepper calls him. He knows that Steve has probably called her asking for help, and that she's just worried about him after what's happening. Tony answers it with a sigh and they delve into the whole mess, and Pepper is surprised when she hears that Tony wants a divorce.

"Have you thought about what kind of press this is going to get?"

Tony doesn't pretend to care. He simply shrugs and rests his head against his fist. "You know me, Pep. I've never cared about bad press. I'm putting the whole team at risk and I don't really give a shit. I don't want to be married anymore."

"And what happens after you get divorced?"

"I move on with my life," Tony shrugs. "In fact, I can't wait."

"I hope you know what you're doing."

"You know from experience that I probably have no idea what I'm doing." Tony nearly chuckles. "But hey, I gotta go. I need to make a call."