Sail

XVIII

Make a deal with God

"No…No, no, no…" Steve watched the man made of Iron crumble into his arms. He hadn't checked the wounds on his back. He didn't want to take his eyes off his face. He brushed across his hair, eyes filling up with wet. "Tony, Tony this… This is okay, isn't it?"

Fury remained still, and so did Hill. The agents coming to were watching. Horrified. Everything was still, soundless only for Steve's breathy cries. Like the whole world had stopped just for this moment.

He was crying.

Fury never thought he'd see the day.

"Tony?"

"Acid…Rounds…" He whispered, smiling as more red fell from his lips with his face growing pale - And he was God damn smiling at him like this was the funniest joke of them all. "…They must have… Experimented on my armor… This is an older version and..."

That made sense. They stripped Tony of his armor and when they released him, they must have been afraid that if he remembered he'd come back for revenge. They were protecting themselves, weren't they? But Tony wasn't killing them. He wasn't out for revenge, he just wanted to protect Steve.

He used stun rounds for God's sake. How was that clarification to use a deadly weapon on him? All to win? It made him sick.

"Someone… get some help." Steve pressed his forehead against Tony's. He stayed there for what seemed like minutes, but in reality it was seconds. He couldn't hear anything move in the room, any call for help. Not a single beat or leather twisting to even summon it. His eyes lifted, lips tensed.

"NOW!"

His voice reverberated across every thing and person in the room, snapping agents to a jump. Maria, whose eyes were glazing over at the reality of what she had done was the first to move. Her hand was placed at her earpiece, voice breaking in to it. "I need a medical team—"

Steve's eyes moved back to Tony, closing his them and rubbing it against the heat of his forehead. He was burning up. That was odd for someone, wasn't it? That meant he wasn't dying, right? It was always supposed to be cold. So there was hope... Right?

"Tony? Tony you can't… I just got you back…" He whispered into his forehead. There was so much they needed to say to each other. He wanted to strip the damn armor off him, hold that fragile body in his arms - but he was unsure if it was what was keeping him together, with the pressure of the metal case holding on to the wound... Stop some of the bleeding.

He could feel his legs turn damp with red. The seasoned soldier's lips trembled-

God… it was Tony's.

"…Yeah this… I didn't plan on this…" The fallen hero said simply. His voice was shaking. Tony Stark's voice was cracking to bits. Acid rounds? What the hell were they doing to him? Was it just like a bullet wound, or worse? "…This…"

"Shh…" Steve whispered with his own pained sound laced in it. He couldn't do it, couldn't go through with the thought of losing Tony again. But this time, there would be no coming back, would there? This would be it, wouldn't it? Not now. He'd just got him back. There wasn't a life without Tony now. There was nothing beyond that. "Please, stop talking. Save your strength."

"…We got so far… Didn't we?" He tried to keep that smile, eyes lifting up to the other. They held so much pain behind them that it hurt Steve to even think about what that man was hiding from him right now. "I mean… We got this far. We did good, right?"

"Yeah…" He felt his voice wavering pathetically now. Tears spilling on to Tony's face. He probably looked like he was in such a state, but he didn't give a damn. He didn't care if he looked weak in front of other soldiers. He'd lost Bucky, Peggy, Howard… And now Tony.

There was too much loss in his life and he couldn't go through it again.

"Don't leave me, Tony." He pleaded in a whisper to him as if Tony could choose, brushing his gloved fingers across his face. "Please, don't… There was stuff we needed to talk about."

"Ah…Sorry…" Tony muttered. He knew exactly what those bullets were doing to him. Soon, the pain would hit him. Hit him hard. "…Why don't you just tell me it in a nutshell, just in case?"

The Iron Man didn't want to move. He knew what would happen if he did. All his nerves would set ablaze. He was expecting a fit soon, or something worse. He could taste the copper in his mouth and could see the twisted face of the Captain above him, blurring in and out of focus.

This wasn't how it was supposed to end.

"…I…" Steve was looking at him, brows knitted upwards. "I can't live without you, Tony." He finally said, watching at how, over the passed few months, Tony had become dependent on him to eat and to sleep. But really, Steve had become dependent on him. Giving him a purpose besides Captain America. Giving him a place in someone's life and giving him back Steve Rogers - not just an outdated hero.

"Cliché huh?" He smiled, feeling the burn in his back increase. He began to tense, hand lifting upwards and brushing the dampness from his cheeks. He wished his glove wasn't there, just so he could feel it. "This is like a movie."

Steve tried to let out a gasping laugh. Couldn't Tony be serious for 2 minutes? He moved his arms around him, repositioning himself to make Tony more comfortable for when help arrived. He just needed to hang on for a few minutes.

"You're impossible," he said simply, tilting his head into Tony's hand. Getting whatever warmth he could from the gauntlet. Funny, really. How he wanted Tony to just move and speak for so long, thought that's all he needed in life and now... He wanted more. "… We have things to do together. You and me."

"Yeah…" His breathing began to quicken and Steve pretended he didn't notice it. He brushed his hand across his hair. He was getting colder now. Why wasn't he screaming in pain? Why wasn't anything happening? Not that Steve wanted it to, it was just… It just wasn't right. "… Yeah I… I had some things to do with you too."

Tony's eyes were laced with tears now and it was breaking Steve's heart. "…We're not good at this, are we?" Steve whispered, fingers moving about his face for the countless time, touching every angle he could.

"No, Hollywood would…" A beat. Steve held his breath. "… Would fire us."

Tony wanted to scream, shout, spasm and vomit. Probably all at once. Those bullets were melting inside of him. The puncture was just the beginning. The pain was excruciating- the acid that melted his suit to burrow in him was dripping across his insides.

But he refused to scream, or cry.

Steve was watching.

He'd protect him until it was over.

Until the end.

"…I can't…" His breathing was hard now, he groaned, blood falling from his lips and the horrified look across Steve's face meant this was it. He could feel the hot tears coming from the soldier and they fell on his face. let out the smallest, crooked smile he could allow; It was over for Tony Stark.

Tony spasmed in Steve's arms, blood, spitting from his lips as the metal slapped the floor. Steve held on to him, not caring how his uniform was stained with blood from the man he tried to save for months. He held him close, stroking his hair, whispering softly. "Shh…" He could feel the tears streaming across his face, feel every single pain in the world. "Shh…"

He could hear slight moans, Tony's eyes flew wide as he coughed, tried to breathe and was failing. How long was he trying to hold that back?

"…Just relax, Tony…"

He whispered, closing his eyes as Tony's movements seemed to come to a stand still. He was just stopping... Stopping in his arms.

"…Shh…"