Note: So, if the Mark V cannot fly, I have just made up a variation on the suit. We'll call it the Mark V and a half. So, so sorry. Anyway, the sap continues. These following moments occurred because I could not get them out of my head, and I am a sucker for cuteness.

Public Displays of Affection:

Please Forgive My Awkwardness

Steve was not new to the dating scene. Perhaps he was new to going on more than one date with the same person, and he had never actually dated another man before, but he was not romantically incompetent. Well, only slightly.

"Did you bring me flowers?"

In hindsight, Steve thought that bringing flowers for a date might be restricted to times when he was seeing someone of the opposite gender. Now it was too late, and he could only manage damage control. Unfortunately he never was that great with aftermath. He usually anticipated things like this, avoided them. Since this was new territory, he was stumbling blindly along, hoping to god he didn't screw up too badly.

"It… yeah," he said finally.

Tony tipped his sunglasses down to consider the bouquet in Steve's hand. He looked skeptical for a moment, hesitant, and he reached out and took the flowers a little uncertainly. Steve got the distinct impression the man was holding back, and he found himself wishing Tony would just say something about the ridiculousness of the situation.

"I, um… might have a vase around here somewhere," Tony muttered. Steve made a mental note never to bring flowers again. Maybe a bouquet of wrenches. Tony would probably get a kick out of that. "Pepper made sure… Jarvis? Do I have any vases?"

"In the cupboard below the sink, sir."

"Right! Of course." Tony padded across the room, looking a bit silly in his suit and no shoes. The flowers—a mix the street vendor had promised was lovely—gave the impression that he was preparing to go out on a date. With a woman. Steve felt like an idiot all over again. There had been a couple guys in his squadron who he was certain had been sleeping together, and now he was regretting never asking them about it. At the time he had been head over heels for Peggy, and it did not seem relevant.

"I already told Bruce he's not allowed to interrupt this date because you're only allowed to leave once curtain raises if it's an emergency and even then people get touchy," Tony said. He pulled out a dusty-looking vase and frowned at it. Steve drew from his army training to keep from smiling when Tony shrugged, dropped the flowers in—wrapping plastic and all—and shoved the flowers under the tap. When he set the display on the counter, he was frowning again. "It never looks like that when Pepper puts them out."

"I think you're supposed to unwrap them first," Steve said mildly. "And trim the stems."

Tony hummed and tilted his head at the flowers as though that would somehow make it better. In the end, he snatched a rosebud from the collection and wandered around the counter, picking up things as he went—an envelope, his phone, scissors.

"Our reservation's at six," Tony announced, momentarily disappearing down a hallway. He reappeared less than thirty seconds later with shoes and no scissors. Steve was grateful for that. He was not sure what Tony would have done with a scissors on a night out. "I hope you like seafood."

He stopped in front of Steve, looking up at him with casually raised eyebrows, and then stepped in close, fiddling with Steve's jacket. Confusion was a way of life when spending time with Tony, so Steve looked down as Tony patted his chest and took a step back. The rosebud, newly trimmed, was tucked neatly into the button hole of his lapel.

"Very nice," Tony declared. "Shall we?"

It really was impossible to hold back anymore. Steve burst out laughing. Tony blinked at him, completely taken aback, and Steve could only laugh harder.

"I'm missing something here," Tony decided. "What's the joke?"

"Nothing!" Steve protested, still laughing helplessly. "It's just… You. And the flowers. And I am so sorry. I wasn't really thinking when I bought those."

He calmed enough to see the rueful twist of Tony's lips and the way he tucked his hands behind his back, folding them away, withdrawing. Which alerted him to a moment of wrongness. Maybe he should not have laughed.

But then Tony was pulling off his sunglasses (which were rather silly since he was indoors), and there was something in his eyes that Steve rarely saw. Something hard to describe but something very definitely nice.

"Don't be," Tony said abruptly. "Sorry, that is. Well, except for my general incompetence with flora, but Jarvis will help with that later."

And then he smiled, and it didn't matter that it was only their second official date. Steve caught the back of his neck and pulled him forward, swallowing the startled words.

Kissing Tony was definitely a new experience for the books. Steve was not used to kissing someone with facial hair, for one. The goatee tickled at his face, and he found he did not mind. He had also expected Tony to be a bit more aggressive. Instead, Tony just stood there, until Steve started to doubt himself and pulled away.

His worries did not fade when Tony swallowed and licked his lips. His hand was braced against Steve's collar, and he stared at it a moment before lifting it to curve around Steve's neck. Which was good. Steve figured Tony making an effort at closer physical contact was a good sign.

"Okay, you're right," Tony said, his voice catching on the last word. "I was, um… hmm…" He cleared his throat and met Steve's cautious stare. "You brought me flowers, Cap."

"I admit, I panicked," Steve chuckled, liking the warm weight of Tony against his chest. "I didn't really know what else to bring. I've never dated a man before."

"Bring yourself," Tony declared. "And… you kissed me. I… were you planning that?"

"You make it hard to resist."

"See, with smooth lines like that, why aren't you out dating supermodels?"

"Why aren't you?" Steve challenged, smiling. He never thought it would be this easy to get Tony so flustered.

"I have no idea," Tony mumbled. "But you're making a rather convincing argument for me to avoid them for the foreseeable future."

The hand on Steve's neck tightened, and they were kissing again. He had been right about Tony. He was far more aggressive when he was actively participating. His other arm curved around Steve's back, paper crumpling slightly as Tony attempted to cling without dropping the envelope he carried.

Something wet swiped across Steve's lips, startling him. He broke away, looking at Tony curiously. Wide dark eyes stared at him, equally anxious, and Steve could not recall the last time he felt this good about himself. He tugged up as Tony tugged down, and this time Steve met the tongue with his own, shuddering at the slick slide in his mouth.

When they pulled apart, Steve was breathing heavily. Tony gave a strained laugh and leaned into him, breath harsh in Steve's ear. It was comfortable, the warmth of his body against Steve's, and he clung to the man a bit tighter.

"We're going to be late for dinner," Tony remarked eventually, and Steve glanced at his wristwatch. It was after six.

"We're already late," he said.

"So we are."

Steve did not mind a bit. Judging from Tony's general lack of movement, neither did he.

"Sometimes I forget," Tony said as Steve puzzled over his phone and the iPod he had received from Tony and Clint respectively. The gadgets looked nearly identical, performed many of the same functions, but Steve knew only one of them was capable of making phone calls.

"You forget stuff all the time," Steve said, finally figuring out the difference when he accidentally dialed a number. He quickly canceled the call and looked over at the other man. Tony was looking at him with a strange mix of amusement and pensive contemplation. "What?"

"You've adapted so well to the times," Tony paused, marking something in the glowing display over his table with a wave of his hand. "But then you do something like that, and I remember when you were born."

"Come on," Steve protested. "They look almost exactly alike! Why would anyone design them like this?"

"I designed the phone," Tony reminded him.

"You know what I mean." That earned a grin.

"I don't speak for Apple," Tony shrugged and considered him again, his face once more falling into that odd expression. "You said you've never dated a guy before."

Just like that, the look made sense. Steve smiled, joining Tony on the couch and noting the way the man shifted to allow him room and yet somehow move closer. It seemed to be an unconscious movement, and it was rather endearing.

"Honestly, I haven't dated very much at all," he admitted. "No one wanted the scrawny sick kid from Brooklyn. After Project Rebirth, I went out a bit, I guess. I was on the road with a bunch of pretty girls, so it happens, right? Nothing clicked."

"And now you're gay?" Tony asked, ever so bluntly. "I thought people in the 40s were totally repressed."

Steve had to wonder where this was coming from. Why this question was eating at Tony to the point that he had to ask.

"Homosexuality isn't a new concept, Tony," he reached out, teasing a finger along the hair at Tony's chin. "Although the slang for it has changed a bit."

Tony laughed, a little funny sounding, before reaching out and yanking Steve forward until their lips met.

"Besides," Steve felt the need to add when they parted long enough to breathe. "I don't think I'm truly gay." Tony grunted and looked at him curiously. Steve offered a half smile. "Is a man considered gay when he's only ever found himself interested in one other man? It's always been women before you came along."

"In this enlightened age, we call that bisexual," Tony said loftily, then smiled and kissed Steve again. "Confession time."

"Do tell."

"You know I dated Pepper, right?"

Yes, he did. He also knew how bad it had been when the pair broke up. Tony had tried valiantly to be normal, but the entire tower had been on edge watching him, wondering when he would break.

Natasha, interestingly enough, had been the one to initiate movie nights directly following this, and she made them mandatory (barring any life-threatening emergencies). She made Tony pick out the movie the first night, and then she, Tony, and Bruce had somehow ended up piled together on the sofa. Steve would never forget that sight: Natasha with her feet on Tony's lap and Tony slumped against Bruce (sliding down until the other scientist relented and put a pillow on his lap for Tony to comfortably fall upon), Bruce's hand absentmindedly stroking Tony's hair. Things had been so much more relaxed after that night.

"That makes you bisexual as well," Steve predicted.

"No… well, yes," Tony frowned. "But that wasn't what I was going to say. I know you read SHIELD's file on me, but I'm pretty sure that doesn't mention personal relationships prior to Pepper."

"True enough," Steve wondered if he should be wary. It was difficult to tell with Tony. One never really knew what he would next say.

"Before Pepper, I didn't really date," Tony admitted. "I… slept with people."

True, that had not been in Tony's file. But it was difficult to know Stark this long and not hear about it. Steve supposed he might have found it offensive at one point, but Tony seemed to be a serious dater when it came right down to it. He was loyal to a fault. There had never been so much as a whisper of a rumor of infidelity while Tony was dating Pepper. And in the short time since Tony and Steve had been seeing each other, Tony had not so much as looked at an attractive woman or man. At least, not that Steve had noticed.

"Pepper says it's because I was afraid of commitment," Tony said, smiling wryly. "I think it's just because before… well, that was the sort of vapid, shallow lifestyle I enjoyed."

"Is this all supposed to be news to me?" Steve asked, gently teasing.

"I'm having a moment here!" Tony protested. "I just thought you should know. You know, if we're going to do this thing for real."

"I would like to do this for real," Steve murmured, enjoying the way his hand settled at Tony's waist. The other man seemed not to even notice, or just took it for granted. He was very focused, either way, and not on the hand. Steve smiled and raised an eyebrow at him, leaning in to kiss the man again. God, he loved kissing Tony. "So you were… promiscuous. Now, you're not. That's what matters to me."

"You're a dream," Tony mumbled against Steve's mouth.

"I heard about the women," Steve said, parting briefly to consider Tony. "You must have kept the men on the down-low."

"Ah… no men," Tony said with a grimace. "There is no keeping that from the media. Strangers sell anything for a moment in the limelight. Definitely no men. That would have been too much of a shit storm for me. I never did it."

That was somewhat surprising. Partly because of Tony's restraint, of which he had never been known to practice any, and mostly because it had been Tony to initiate this. It must have taken some serious guts to take that leap and ask another man out on a date. Especially when Tony had just admitted to believing that Steve would be completely against that type of relationship.

Steve dragged Tony forward, all but into his lap, and kissed him again. Tony groaned, shoving back against him with graceless abandon. If there was one thing Steve appreciated, it was that Tony threw everything he was and everything he had into these things. Steve met it head on, squeezing Tony's waist and neck, their tongues battling for dominance.

Steve won the tongue battle. Tony seemed not to mind.

TBC...