Prompt: Midnight Kiss (part 1)

Pairing: N/A / Fandom: Marvel

New Year's Eve had arrived and, with it, one of Tony's famous parties. Only this time, it was slightly different. This time, instead of inviting strangers, he had invited only his friends. Everything was ready. He had the DJ setting the mood, the food placed in tables around the room, the drinks were flowing and the decorations were everywhere. Now, to have some fun.

Tony walked around the room, with Pepper by his side. His first stop was with Bruce and Natasha. It was quite a sight, seeing Bruce, who had a problem with stress, being so in love with Natasha, someone who thrived in stressful situations. However, she was able to do something that no one else could: she could calm the Hulk and bring back Bruce. Tony greeted them, telling them to eat and drink and wished them a happy new year.

He spotted Rhodey, Sam and Bucky in a corner of the room, having some sort of argument. When he got closer, Pepper staying behind with Bruce and Natasha, he realized that the argument was about who could kick the Hulk's ass in a one-on-one fight. Tony shook his head and decided to leave them to their argument, before walking away.

Tony had invited Clint, as well as his wife, but he wasn't sure the man would actually show up. So, when he saw him coming out of the elevator with his wife by his side, Tony was thrilled. Sure, he would call him "Legolas" and "Stick in the mud", but that didn't mean that he disliked the man. Engulfing Clint in a tight hug and kissing his wife's hand, he told them where to find drinks and food and left them so they could greet the others.

A flash of light was his cue to know that Thor had arrived. Looking out to the balcony, sure enough there he was, accompanied by his girlfriend Jane. Tony walked out and welcomed them, leading them inside and letting everyone know that they had arrived. He left them to say hello to everyone and walked over to Vision and Wanda.

He asked them how they were doing and if they were comfortable at the compound. Wanda assured him that they were fine there and that they were happy to be spending the new year with their friends. Vision then asked Tony what was the normal conduct for a night like that, to which he heard Pepper say, behind him, to let Wanda explain that to him, since Tony wasn't the best person to explain. With all his excesses and such, he was quite the wrong role model.

Tony chuckled and said that Pepper was right, before leaving them. He heard the elevator opening and, when he looked over, saw Steve and Samantha, his girlfriend, walking out of it. He had meet Samantha before, but had yet to actually have a proper conversation with the woman.

Steve and Samantha had only been dating for a few weeks, taking things slow since this was Steve's first real girlfriend since he defrosted. So, it had impressed Tony when Steve asked him if it was okay for him to take Samantha to the party. Tony asked him if he was ready for her to meet all of them, to which Steve answered that if she could handle all of them in one room, then she could handle everything that came with being his girlfriend.

Tony had chuckled and said that he made a good point. They could be a rowdy bunch, specially after a few drinks and drinks were something that were flowing that night. He had to give it to Steve. The man was right, if she could handle them at their drunkest, she could handle them at their best behavior.

Grabbing a drink from the bar, Tony leaned against the bar top and looked around. In one room, were all the people he cared about. Seeing them all there, talking and laughing, made his heart full. He knew he could be the most stubborn man in the world, and sometimes the most egocentric one, but they all had their own unique way to bring him down to reality.

Things weren't always easy, they had made mistakes in the past, but even through all of that, they managed to stay together. "Here's to one hell of a new year.", he thought, before taking a sip of his drink and making his way back to Pepper's side.