Thank you to everybody who read reviewed the last section. You're also fabulous. We are back in the darkest timeline. Well, maybe not the darkest timeline. I think the sacred timeline is darker, but it isn't sunshiny here either. WandaVision is making me reevaluate things. (This reevaluation continued with the release of Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Tony's actions in this story may have prevented the Power Broker. Don't even get me started on What If.)

Welcome to part three of the 36 questions that lead to love. I did promise Tony and Steve would get through them a lot faster than there good timeline counterparts.

Warning: This chapter does have some minor spoilers for WandaVision. However, I did change something. I can do that because this is a slightly different timeline. Things are not entirely identical to the Sacred timeline. I promise it's not very plot-relevant.

In-person conversation 4: Confessions

"I'm glad the principal let you see Kamala," Tony said as Steve slid back into the passenger seat of the car. Tony opted not to go in because even though he's been more of a recluse for the last five years, he could still cause a bit of a scene at a gifted kid school. Even if Brooklyn Academy was less science-focused than Midtown. Kamala has been trying to get him to be a guest speaker since freshman year, but he keeps turning her down. Maybe he should reconsider that.

"I am too. Of course, he knows me because I was friends with his grandfather during the war." Steve explained.

"That gets you all sorts of privileges," Tony commented as he started the ignition.

"Principal Morita might know you too. He was principal at Midtown previously. He was moved here because both he and the vice principal of Midtown were not snapped, and…" Steve trailed off.

"Brooklyn Vision Academy was not as lucky." Tony finished for Steve. It was, unfortunately, a very common story.

"Yes."

"I never understood why it was so random." Tony wondered out loud. "From a math perspective, I get it, but from a human perspective, I don't."

"Why were we the ones left behind?" Steve voiced the question that he's been thinking about for a while.

"I don't know. Maybe the universe knew we could set things right again. Strange said something like that to me before disappearing." He told Steve.

"Maybe there is something to that," Steve said just before he turned on the radio. Thankfully, Friday wasn't piping in songs of heartbreak this time.

"Do you want to finish the rest of the questions?" Tony asked after several minutes of silence. He's already on the freeway.

"Yes and no. I'm kind of dreading the rest of the set. Apparently, phase 3 is where the real intimacy begins allegedly." Steve remarked. Tony scoffed.

"Maybe that is the case for complete strangers. That doesn't apply to us." Steve smiled softly. "Although I kind of regret we didn't meet at some sort of Shield mixer where we could've played team bonding games. Instead of getting mind fucked by Loki and Agent Agent having to die for our sins."

"Twice," Steve said sadly. "May never really recovered from losing Phil. I think that's the real reason why we are just…"

"Friends, who raise children together that occasionally have sex?" Tony finished for Steve.

"Yes. May wants us to divorce after we bring everybody back. She actually said that to me in a text message this morning." Okay, Tony wasn't expecting Steve to say that.

"Oh shit! Are you okay?" Tony asked, concerned.

"I am resigned. It's not a shock because we always knew the arrangement would end if one of us fell in love with someone else. But she's convinced I'll never make a move on that person if I'm still married to her."

Why did Tony feel like Steve wasn't saying something? Like maybe Steve already met that person he was in love with. And maybe, just maybe, if there are some universal constants, Tony could be that person. Oh great, now Friday's playing the Backstreet Boys song Chances. (Every member but Brian survived the snap because it really was that random.) Friday really has it out for him. If she starts playing Siberia, he's donating her to the nearest community college.

"I can see her point. You are loyal to the people you love. I had the bruises to prove it." Tony joked. And apparently, it was a bad joke because he could see Steve's eyes darken.

"That wasn't just me protecting Bucky. That was me protecting you. You wouldn't be able to live with yourself if you actually killed him." Tony can hear the sincerity in Steve's words.

"I know you're right about that after a good seven years of reflecting on the horrible choices of Siberia." Once his doctor got him on the good drugs. "Mistakes were made on all sides."

"The next question is supposed to be us using we sentences. I guess the first one is we really screwed up in Siberia." Steve supplied.

"We screwed up so badly in Siberia that it led to us fucking up with the purple one," Tony added. "We really, really regret the Siberia fuck up along with not taking time to fix it then because maybe if we fixed it, then we wouldn't be dealing with the mess we have now."

"We are trying to do our best to make things right even though we have no idea what we're doing half the time," Steve added.

"We are absolutely clueless idiots." So ridiculously clueless, Tony thought at that moment.

"We are stubborn assholes."

"Language." Tony joked.

"I only watch what I say around the kids and over the comms. Curse words should be reserved for when things really go FUBAR."

"I feel like accidentally hitting a building should qualify, but sometimes I think you were trolling me. You feel like a troll sometimes." Steve smiled at that.

"Okay, I think we covered 'we' sentences. We even did bonus sentences. Yay us."

"Agreed. For the next one, we are supposed to figure out a way to complete the sentence I wish I had someone whom I could share…" Steve explained.

"My burdens with." Tony finished. "Maybe my life with, all aspects of it. I'm semiretired from the superhero stuff, but if the world needs saving, I'm in. But Morgan is my main priority. I need to find somebody who gets that. Pepper gets Morgan but not the other stuff." Tony confessed.

"Robin and Kamala are my main priorities. May understands that, but we are never going to have that type of love. I know May is right that we are just staying together as an emotional crutch. We will never move on if we don't let go." Okay, that was more self-aware than Tony thought Steve would ever be.

"But our kids need us. I don't know if we will give them what they need if we are not together. We may not even have to worry about that because if this works, Kamala will get to go back to her parents." Tony realized that Steve was equally worried about losing his child. Yet Steve was the first one who wanted to try because he wanted to do what was needed for the world.

"You don't know if that's what she's going to choose? Have you talked to Kamala about what you're planning?

"Yes. I even told Kamala more details while I was in there. She wants to see her parents again." Tony could hear the sadness in Steve's voice.

"You and May are her parents. Did she call them her parents or her biological parents?" Tony asked

"Her biological parents," Steve acknowledged.

"There you go. You are still important to Kamala. I'll be there for you through this. I'll help you share this burden. You can even stay at the cabin for a while with Robin. Whatever you need." Tony wanted Steve there to help him through this. Breakups are hard, even under the best circumstances.

"Thank you." Steve gave him another soft smile that made Tony's heart flutter.

"Okay, next question." Tony really hopes they move to safer ground.

"I'm going to change this wording a little bit since we're not complete strangers. If you were to become a close friend again with me, what's something you would want to tell me."

"I question the again part of that question because I don't know if we were really close friends, to begin with. I think we were keeping things from each other. But I want us to get there this time around. That's what I want to tell you. Which is why I finally told you about Pepper yesterday."

"I didn't actually know until I saw the video that Bucky killed your parents. I suspected it was him because I knew Hydra was involved, but I couldn't find evidence that it was 100% him until that video. I just didn't know how to explain that to you back then." Considering what he knows now about Hydra's multiple attempts to kill his family members, Steve's uncertainty was 100% warranted.

"Unfortunately, I was too angry to hear your words. I'm sorry I came into our relationship with too many misconceptions and wasn't willing to hear what you needed to say. Especially in Siberia. That was half the problem." Tony acknowledged.

"I regret not talking to you before everything blew up. I regret not talking to you after everything blew up." Steve confessed, and it practically broke Tony's heart.

"Do you know what the real difference between us and our other selves is?" Tony asked Steve.

"That they figured out how to fix things," Steve remarked.

"The Friday in the not completely fucked up timeline sent you my drunk text messages where the Friday here didn't. I texted you all the time during those two years you were on the run. I just never sent them. I was afraid. Now I found out that somewhere in the multi-verse, there is a version where the messages were sent, and we did fix things. I think that's the hardest thing to accept about our other selves." Tony confessed.

"I know, and I wish we would've fixed things, but we wouldn't have Morgan or Robin or even Kamala. I hate thinking about us not having them, even if it was at the expense of something so horrible. I don't want to lose my daughters. I'm terrified that when we undo the decimation, I'm going to lose them both. Kamala because her parents will be back and Robin because of the divorce." Via the rearview mirror, Tony can see there is a tear falling down Steve's cheek.

"I'm scared of losing Morgan too," Tony confessed. "It's why I said no the first time when you asked. I didn't even consider that there was a way to bring everybody back but not lose what we've gained."

"Although it's going to be chaos doing it that way," Steve remarked.

"Millions of babies have been born in the last five years. Possibly billions if you include the rest of the universe. We can't wipe them out of existence even if it would be more convenient. Because there are people that love those babies as much as I love Morgan."

"But what about the people who died by suicide after the snap? Do we bring them back? Or Carol's wife. They didn't even get together until after the snap." Due to some prodding by Deke and Simmons. Tony has no idea what actually happened. "And then three years later, she died of cancer. Do we bring her back too? Can we? Should we? I don't know the answers to these questions."

"I don't have answers either, and you know I hate not knowing stuff." Steve laughed at his joke. "I think whatever we do, it's going to be a complete mess, but those people deserve to live. Yes, it's going to be a mess. It was a mess when they left, and it's going to be a mess when they get back, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try."

"I know you're right. I'm just worried everything's going to blow up in our faces." Steve acknowledged.

"That feels like most days. Let's move on to the next question because I don't want to drive crying." He was already halfway there.

"That would be bad."

"Crying while driving is the absolute worse. I try to avoid it whenever possible." When in doubt, joke.

"I'm now supposed to tell you what I like about you. I'm also supposed to be honest about it and say things I wouldn't say to a complete stranger." Steve explained.

"It is a good thing I'm not a stranger. We even cuddled in bed together last night. You are the best blanket ever. All warm and soft. I like that about you. I bet you have always been a cuddler." Jokes were his best weapon of defense right now.

"May pointed out that I never cuddle her like that. Pepper sent her pictures from this morning." He's not even surprised Pepper did that.

"Did May tell you this before or after she asked for a divorce?"

"Before," Steve answered simply. Oh, that is definitely not good.

"In the old days, before I got sober, I would get you a giant bottle of something very expensive and alcoholic." Tony joked.

"Not that it would help. Although I do react to edibles. Although I need like three times as much. The thought is appreciated all the same."

"I'm abstaining because anything can be a slippery slope for me," and this whole entire mess with that other timeline has been making him crave a drink for a while. "However, one of the good things about the snap is they decriminalized marijuana. I'll get you a breakup starter kit." Tony said seriously.

"After we fix things," Steve said, surprising Tony.

"It's a date." Tony couldn't help but smile at that.

"I like how you try to fix things even when you have no idea where to start. I like that you're there for me during this when I wasn't always there for you, and I should've been." Steve acknowledged.

"I'm well aware I am a bit of a prick. At least that's what came out when Pepper and I were in couples therapy. I wonder if our old therapist would help us?" He and Steve definitely needed couples therapy.

"It wouldn't hurt to have a possible backup name in case May and Laura can't get Dr. Cruz. That's why they're in New York right now."

"They're getting us a therapist. How lovely."

"It's obvious we need one." Ain't that the truth.

"Oh, we are both a fucking mess."

"Is it okay that I like that we're both screwed up?" Steve asked tentatively.

"As long as we both acknowledge that we are working to fix it. We are working to fix this?" Tony asked. Deep down, Tony wants to fix this. He doesn't know if they will end up where his other self is, but he wants to be somewhere other than where they are now.

"I wouldn't be going through these ridiculous questions with you if I didn't want to fix things. I know answering these 36 questions isn't going to fix everything, but…"

"We have to start somewhere." Tony finished for Steve.

"Yes, and if this is where we need to start, then so be it."

"It beats us eating our feelings over churros." Tony joked. Again he's only going to survive this conversation with high amounts of wisecracks and humorous deflecting.

"Those were some good churros, though. I kind of want one now."

"Well, as you were talking to your daughter, I found the churro lady. Check the bag under your seat." Tony instructed.

"You are wonderful," Steve said just before he took one out of the bag and quickly took a bite. "These are so much better."

"Of course, they're better. The churro ladies are the best."

"Okay, what are the other things you like about me?" Steve asked between bites of his churro.

"Is somebody fishing for compliments? Is it okay if I say I like your ass? You know I appreciate your ass. I liked your ass the moment I met you. That's definitely something you wouldn't tell a stranger." Tony quipped.

"I don't know. A lot of people said I had a nice dick after the Instagram incident."

"Catcalls on Instagram don't count," Tony remarked.

"So interestingly enough, the next question is we're supposed to share an embarrassing moment with each other. You go first,

"If I share something extremely embarrassing that has never made it to the tabloids, will you tell me the real story behind the Instagram incident?" Tony asked.

"I will."

"Okay, Howard caught me using your propaganda poster for personal time when I was a teenager." Technically he was a preteen, but he wasn't quite ready for Steve to know that yet. "I'm still shocked he didn't yell at me. Instead, he had Aunt Peggy give me the Captain America was really bisexual speech. You're actually the reason why I figured out I was pansexual. You're also the reason why I was comfortable being not that heterosexual. Because if Captain America was queer, then it was okay for me to be too." Tony explained.

"Oh. Is it okay to say that I'm sort of happy that I helped you figure that out even if I kind of always hated those posters? I never liked being a dancing monkey for the government. I still don't. I despise those posters."

"Is that why you never asked me for the shield back?" Tony has wondered about that a lot. Even more so after finding out other Steve changed his codename to Nomad and made May the new Captain America. The government wasn't exactly happy about that and tried to take back the shield more than once. That doesn't surprise Tony one bit. They've tried it with him. However, he's no longer in the business of passing Stark weapons to the American government, even if they were designed by Howard.

"Partially. But it really didn't change things. When I accidentally posted my private parts to Instagram, everyone said how un-Captain America that was."

"Even though you made a dick pic for your wife." Tony was rolling his eyes at the ridiculousness of it.

"Actually, it wasn't." Steve acknowledged.

"Did you have a side piece?" Tony asked, even though he knew it was a ridiculous question.

"No, I haven't been with anyone else besides May, even though our relationship is technically open. May is right. As long as I'm married to Melinda, I will never feel comfortable moving on to someone else. That picture was for you." Thank God Friday was doing most of the driving; otherwise, he would hit the car in front of him.

"Okay, I need more details," Tony said as he put the car into full Friday mode.

"You had the kids that weekend, and there may have been some edibles involved. May suggested that I send you a picture of my privates. When high, this seemed like a good idea." Tony is now 100% sure Steve's future ex-wife ships them.

"Those must've been some strong edibles," Tony remarked. Of course, he can't say anything because if Twitter existed during the worst of his drug addiction, there would've been so many pictures of his genitals everywhere. Actually, there already is because screenshots from the infamous sex tape make the rounds every few months. Fuck Tiberius forever.

"Maybe. Deke and May have theorized I react differently to marijuana than a regular person. It makes me more open and less scared to do things I really want to do."

"And more likely not to know that you're using Instagram instead of Stark messaging?" Tony asked.

"Yes." Steve acknowledged. "Not that I'm very good at technology when I'm stone-cold sober."

"Okay, I'm having Friday put parental locks on your Instagram account before I get you your breakup edibles." Tony was absolutely serious about that.

"That would be best."

"Hey, do you want to take over driving? We should be approaching my favorite gas station in the next 20 minutes. I want to text Laura to see how operation get a therapist is going." Because he probably shouldn't let Friday keep driving for too long. Technically, AI drivers are a little illegal. They definitely have to get rid of those stupid accords.

"Sure, I hope she succeeds. I could also use a soda after the churro regardless."

"I could use 3 cups of coffee." And at least a chocolate bar after that last revelation.

"Do you want to save the rest of these questions until after we switched drivers?" Steve asked.

"That is a great idea." Because he doesn't want to accidentally crush the car if there's another strange revelation.

To be continued…

So in this timeline where Carol and Maria got together after Monica disappeared, Maria lived 18 months longer than in the Sacred timeline. Off-world technology may have helped prolong her life, but it wasn't a cure. Maria also said no to Kree blood antibodies.

Also, I did the rewrites of this chapter the day after watching episode four of Falcon and the winter soldier. I kept thinking Steve's privates accidentally ending up on Instagram would not be the worst potential Captain America PR incident. Definitely better than what John Walker did.