Halloween Party (S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ) 

agroovytelepath:

metalbendingatitsfinest:

At first, Erik didn’t notice Charles, but when he did he suddenly felt as though something crawled up inside of him and died. It’s not as though Charles wasn’t aloud to converse with other’s, the problem was who he was conversing with. Of course he’d never actually met the man he was speaking with in person, but he knew his name and face well. The media tends to exploit the man with every chance they get, whether it’s news on his latest invention or about the latest woman he’s slept with. 

His hand gripped itself tight around his Loki staff; he could still turn back, walk away, go back to his place—back to his safe place. Where he can block out everything, even Charles. But he waited too long now, Charles had spotted him, was motioning for him to come over. Erik glanced back at the door, hoping that something would come grabbing for him and throw him out of the party room, disappointingly enough, nothing happened. Charles kept waving, and he, well, he walked over to where the telepath and his already so chummy friend had gathered over by the refreshment table. 

At first, his eyes widened, unprepared for the compliments that came spilling out of Charles’ mouth with such ease, his brows pushed together anxiously as Charles then continued to speak to him with such enthusiasm—he himself wasn’t sure what to do or how to respond. Pull yourself together, Erik. “I—Uh, thanks, Charles.” I really did do all that I could to make this as accurate as possible—I mean, “It was nothing, really.” he said with a small shrug, “And if I say I’m going to do something or go somewhere, I’m damned well going to do it, Charles. As for the lateness though, I believe the saying for that is “I do what I want”.” At that, a smile crept along his lips which parted themselves just enough to make his shark-like teeth visible. Loki himself would be proud. 

You’re ridiculous, laughing at your own jokes like that, Charles. Just how much have you had to drink tonight anyway?

“That aside, you’re outfit is befitting of you, old friend. Though, I think simply being able to read mind’s defeats the purpose of being a detective. Don’t they have to work for it?” He meant no harm, just teasing, but his teasing probably came off as rather ill-mannered now that he had said it. In all honesty, though, it was true, Sherlock Holmes observed every little detail noticed the most unnoticeable of things in order to find his culprit and Charles, well, he could come to the same conclusion without even working up a sweat. 

He glanced back at the man that seemed to now fall into the background as he and his friend spoke, but now Charles was including him once again. A shame, really. That rare smile of his fell clean from his face as the telepath introduced them to one another. Unintentionally, his blue eyes narrowed themselves onto the innovator, “I know full well who he is, I’d be quite in the dark if I didn’t.” I do, however, believe you forgot to mention the part about what a notorious philanderer this man is.

“Yes, well,” he began as Mr. Stark outstretched a hand to him in which the metal-bender unwillingly returned the notion, his hand probably grasping onto the man’s tighter than originally intending to, “nice to meet you too.”

By the way, are you aware of the fact that, while in that suit of yours, I can easily toss you around with very little effort? Because I can. 

Full aware of the fact that the only reason Tony Stark had left such a rotten taste in his mouth was because of the unfortunate circumstances in which they were meeting, he decided to bite back anything foul he may have said had he been careless enough to do so. 

 Erik must have known that Charles hadn’t touched the alcohol, since the party started. It would have been painfully obvious to the world if he had. There would be a lot of singing and poorly rehearsed pick up lines that were never in style. There would also probably be more of a crowd, considering how Charles seemed to be more at ease with crowds when drunk. It was probably the fact that with his mind in a blur, everyone’s mind around him was a blur too. That freedom of not having everyone’s thoughts poured in your head was sometimes a blessing. And Charles was free to do as he pleased without constantly hearing what everyone was thinking about it, because everyone was too drunk to care. Charles bit into his lip. He knew that Erik was uncomfortable, but it wasn’t hard to find warmth in Erik’s words. After all, once you learned to identify intentional bites in his words from the unintentional, you came to understand that Erik was seldom serious in his taunts.  “But you forget Erik, Just because you know what someone is thinking, doesn’t mean you know everything.” “and just because I  can read minds, doesn’t mean that I don’t miss things.” Miss important details.  Charles smiled, trying to make Erik feel a bit more at ease, but it seemed to be a futile effort when Erik’s attention had moved from Charles to Tony Stark.

When Charles introduced Tony Stark, He almost wished he had said ‘he isn’t as bad as you think he is’ at the end of each sentence. ‘ No really, Tony stark is a nice man.’ But even as Charles thought this, he knew it wouldn’t have done any good.  Charles frowned. Even when he had told Erik that he wouldn’t read his mind, it was quite hard to when his thoughts were practically shouting in his head. Trying to push them out was almost like asking Charles to push a mountain. It couldn’t be done. He could probably find a way to make everyone think that he had done it, but in all reality, the mountain would not have moved an inch.

Charles almost wanted to smile when he heard Erik complain about what a philanderer Tony Stark was. It was slightly reassuring that out of all the quality’s about Tony Stark possessed  and all of the rumors and conspiracy theories that surrounded his name- that it was his womanizing ways that stuck out with Erik. Despite the fact that this meeting wasn’t going well, it could have gone worse, much worse. Charles shifted and squirmed, not liking the animosity that was building up between the two. Even if this wasn’t the worst possible outcome it was certainly not comfortable by any means.  

By the way, are you aware of the fact that, while in that suit of yours, I can easily toss you around with very little effort? Because I can. 

Charles frowned and bit the inside of his cheek. That threat wasn’t empty. Even if it wasn’t spoken, Charles could tell that Erik meant it. Charles knew all full well that wasn’t the only thing he could do against Tony Stark, especially with the metal that was keeping him alive in his chest. Charles knew he should find some comfort and Erik acting civil towards Tony and that was at least a step in the right direction, but he didn’t.  Charles decide it might have been best to ‘project’ some of his calmness onto both of the men. He would probably get scolded by Erik later.  Feeling it was best not to dwell on the what ifs, and just do it, Charles tried to push some calmness into the air. He didn’t want to force them to be calm, rather accept it as if it was a part of them all along. Charles would have no idea if pushing his feelings felt different than their own, but he could only assume it that it must have felt similar to being reassured. Where your feelings and the others are shared, and are similar in such a way that they were brothers. 

It took a moment for Charles to realize that Tony had begun to relax, and it wasn’t because of Charles. Charles glanced at the direction that Tony seemed most interested in. Sure enough, Steve Rodgers had walked in. The tension that had found its way in Charles shoulders seemed to ease up a bit.  

Tony, why don’t you go meet up with Steve. I am sure we will meet up again sometime soon.

Charles smiled as he saw Tony make his way to Steve. There was most defiantly a skip in his step that wasn’t there before. When he saw that Tony had managed to make it to Steve, with little problems Charles turned his attention back to Erik. He felt that there was some tension still in the air, and he had yet to figure out if it was because he had done something wrong, or if Erik was just uncomfortable.

“ It’s good to see you here Erik.”

“That’s a nice grip you’ve got there, Erik.” Tony said with a slight smirk, knowing just how it was Erik felt. He could even tell by looking at the man that he was grinding his teeth together to keep from barking something nasty at him. Even if he had though, it would have been nothing new—being the man that he was, Tony was used to that sort of thing. 

As to be expected, Charles tried his best to keep the peace between both he and Charles’ not so friendly shark of a man. Once Erik finally let up on his hand, Tony simply smiled at the other, trying not to draw any attention to the fact that the man’s nails left indentations on his skin. 

“Well then,” he began casually, “I believe you two have some things to work out in private, so why don’t I leave you two to it?” Not to sound rushed or anything, but, he did have his eyes locked onto a certain blonde who’s costume was showing an awful lot of leg. Besides, Erik was not someone he wanted as an enemy, though that might now be unavoidable thanks to his own actions this evening—but really, how could anyone blame him? Charles was there, seemingly single, and very attractive. Smart too. The way Tony saw it, he’d done nothing wrong, and now with Charles’ words in his head he chuckled slightly as he left them, I’m sure I’ll see you around, Professor. Don’t have too much fun without me, now.

Although Steve’s back faced Tony as he approached him, his face lit up in that special way that only a few people could ever evoke from him. Tony tapped lightly on the Captain’s shoulders rather than acting upon the first few things that came to mind after seeing the man; wanting to sneak up behind him, placing his hands against his hips, and whispering a quiet “found you” in his ears. His eyes widened as he realized just where he was going with his train of thought, thinking about things that were more than likely only even being considered because—because of the alcohol, of course. “Been a while,” he said instead; pushing everything else out of the way for further analysis at a later date. 

(Source: marvelworldrp)

It’s Christmas Eve, already? (Steve & Tony) 

captainsteverogersrp:

herointheironsuit:

“Insulting behavior? You think my behavior is insulting?” He asked, glancing at Steve with a pained look; placing a hand to his chest before clenching his hand to a fist, “That hurts, Steve.” Despite his attempts to sound convincing, they both knew better. It also helped that Tony was unable to hide the smile that crept along his lips after he spoke.

“More importantly though, if something were to ever happen to “just Steve” and the other party decides that they can’t comprehend the fact that you’re a little “old-fashioned”, then I guess that means I’ll just have to be your shield for you.” His words were doused in overconfidence, but were very direct all the same, there was no way Steve could argue his methods—they were fool-proof. Want to know why he was so sure of this? Because he’s Tony Stark, that’s why.

It’s really a shame that he can’t have this sort of self-confidence when it came to matters regarding himself personally. When it’s involving someone else—when it’s for someone else—there’s no shortage of his ego.

In a way, seeing himself like this was almost laugh-out-loud material. Forcing his help upon someone he cared about when, if the situation was reversed, he’d all but accept it. Do everything humanely possible to avoid being helped. That was just the way he was. With never having been offered help of any sort as a child (and even as he got older), that sort of thing just sticks with a man after knowing nothing else but that.

But that’s not the point right now. Now’s not the time to get emotional over things that aren’t even a problem at present.

By now, Tony had found comfort in leaning against a wall, with arms crossed before his chest and legs crossed at the ankles, as the two of them spoke not far from the main entrance; a place that hadn’t any furniture that was meant to withstand being sat upon. Tony made a slight face of perplexity at Steve’s words. Why did he call Steve here? Did he need a reason? He didn’t exactly have one.

After a brief moment, he finally offered what appeared to be somewhat of an awkward smile, ”Well, to be perfectly honest, I haven’t gotten that far yet. Besides, I thought we were doing just fine standing here and talking, thank you. We can take this elsewhere, if you’d care for a sit.” He added as he pushed off the wall to stand properly and led Steve to the main living area.

 Steve let out a hearty laugh at Tony’s dramatics, rolling his eyes and giving a light shove. Laughing again, Steve put on the girliest voice he could muster “Oh Mr Stark, my hero!” he said, grinning like an idiot.
He thought to how that’d work, Tony jumping in and just being Tony to take the heat off of himself. That’d mean spending an awful lot of time together, something Steve wouldn’t actually mind. But he’d rather not let Tony take the flack for his own stupidity.

“It’s fine though, I just…need to think more before I speak.” He smiled and looked around at the place again, musing over what exactly Pepper and Tony’s relationship was. He knew they were close, but were they that close?

Steve blushed a little, feeling ridiculous. He didn’t mean to be pushy, but he was just curious as to why he was here and stood in the hallway. Were they stood in the hallway because Tony wanted Steve to leave soon? He mentally groaned to himself, why was he such a klutz. “Oh.” was all he could think of saying.

Tony laughed along with Steve as the blonde joked; Steve’s hands pushing against him teasingly. This, however, didn’t change the fact that he meant what he had said. The way Steve grinned that toothy grin at him made Tony smile, he then rolled his eyes jokingly, and gave the other a gentle shove in return. “Don’t give me that sass, Rogers. I meant every word just then.” 

Steve was probably right, thinking things through more would probably improve things greatly, not that Tony ever did much thinking before he spoke. That came after the damage had been dealt. Which got him into trouble most of the time. 

His eyes followed Steve, watching as the man looked around the place, what was he thinking? He wanted to ask, but chose not to. Perhaps he was just overwhelmed with the estate. Lightly, he nudged Steve in the side with his elbow, “Even though I didn’t have much of anything planned out when I invited you over, it doesn’t mean you have to leave right away or anything. Come on, I’ll show you to the living room. We can sit down and talk there, if it’ll make you feel more at ease.” It must be the holiday spirit that he just realized was going on around him that had him acting so nice. Then again, he generally was a nice guy, once people took the time to get to know him, anyway.

The multitudinous windows in his mansion were now translucent as they had no need to block the sun; making it easy to look out see the elegant outside view of the how the moonlight would reflect off the water. His place was quiet and nice for a change (not that he’d know anything of the noise levels in his own mansion as he rarely spent time outside his downstairs workshop), the only outside sound coming from the cascading wall of water near the upstairs staircase. He led Steve into the expansive living area, passing by the piano and onto the area in which his long half-circled couch was present. In the same part of the room, a large tree stood to the side, in a tasteful place, decorated to the fullest—and to think that there were a few of these trees scattered throughout the mansion. 

“Would you care for a drink?”

Halloween Party (S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ) 

agroovytelepath:

captainsteverogersrp:

metalbendingatitsfinest:

Erik wasn’t what one would call a “people” person, quite the opposite, actually. Perhaps he was more of a “mutant” person, but even that would be cutting it close. He was well known for his dislike of humans on a national level, no thanks to the media, and also for being rather… unsociable (to put it mildly).

With that in mind, it should be indubitable to assume that parties were most definitely not his thing.

And yet, there he was, all dressed up for this “Halloween Party”. A party that he would have never had any intention of going to had it not been for Charles. “Oh, it would be so much fun though, Erik! We must go!” he would tell the metal-bender. Eventually, Erik nearly tore a hole in his cheeks from having bitten down for so long and hard on the insides of them, doing his best to refrain from giving in, but losing sorely in the end.

There was just no saying “no” to Charles. Not when you are the very man who put the him in a wheelchair for life. Then again, this inability to say such a simple two-lettered word to the telepath went back far before that unfaithful event. This probably being because he never wanted to disappoint the younger male, always wanted to see his smile—wanted to be the very reason in which he smiled.

It wasn’t until later that Erik learned that that smile of his almost never faded.

Even so, he found himself standing before his mirror, looking over his outfit. He had cursed more times than he could count trying to put everything on by himself. So tedious a task it was, with all the leather, the layers and straps, and then putting armor on on top of that. At one point he almost even considered calling Charles over for help, but refused. Not only was he sure to have already arrived at the party, but Erik was certain it would be more fun to see the expression on Charles’ face when he entered the party with his costume. He never did tell the telepath just what it was he was dressing up as anyway. (Not that Charles had any expectations for a costume to begin with, considering he’d be lucky to even see Erik at this party.)

Loki. Loki Laufeyson. Complete with magical staff and all. Don’t ask how he acquired that either, he has his connections.

At some point, near what was assumed to be the end of the party, Erik found himself outside the entrance, staring down the door, asking himself why he bothered to show up. Asking why Erik Lehnsherr was dressed up as the Norse God of Mischief for some party full of people he didn’t know. People who more than likely didn’t care to know him. Nor he them. Not that he didn’t want to, it’s just, well. He wasn’t good with humans—Nor heroes or many other mutants (outside of the Brotherhood). He figured though that he could associate himself with these “superheroes” as they weren’t amongst those to judge mutations as they themselves weren’t of the typical homo sapien classification.

Well, here goes.

He took a deep breath before pushing the doors open with a confidence he tried to make evident, though slightly lackluster.

Now to find Charles, which shouldn’t be hard as there weren’t many a people at this party.

Steve had received the invite in the mail earlier this week, he’d spent the rest of the time painstakingly struggling to find a costume appropriate. He’d considered dressing as Captain America, but that’d be cheating. Eventually, after much pushing by Natasha he’d found the right costume, albeit he felt it was a little /showy/ for him, she told him he looked good and shoved him towards the till. Currently, he was standing in front of the mirror adjusting the costume over and over again, he felt ridiculous but wasn’t that the point of dressing up?

Sighing he headed to the party, keeping his head down to hide the blush at the women ogling his legs. He headed into the party, shyly looking around making sure he was the only one with his outfit. He spotted Natasha pouring herself another glass of punch, it seemed this wasn’t her first. He looked around, and found who he was looking for, he grinned and headed in the direction of Tony. He stopped mid-way when he saw he was talking to another man, a man who he seemed to be standing close to. The grin from his face fell. He suddenly felt ridiculous, more so than previously, he looked over at Natasha and considered joining her.

It’s a shame no one else is a roman soldier, so if I make a fool of myself I could have blamed them. He mentally sighed and walked over to Natasha.

“ Well yes- reading your mind would be a easier and far be it much more accurate way of knowing about you, but that wouldn’t solve our conversation problem.”

“There are many places I would rather be, Mr. stark, No offence, it is not because of your company; Just the place of which your company is shared.” “Like I said Parties like this are a bit different, than what I am used to and though I pride myself on being a good conversationalist, I am more or less at a loss right now.”  Charles smiled knowing all too well that Tony wasn’t truly interested in that particular answer that he gave him.  “First question is mine then- How did you meet Mr. Steve Rodgers?” Simple enough question. Too easy really, but it seemed fitting since he seemed to be on everyone’s mind tonight.  

When he first saw Eric, he coughed nearly choking on his own saliva. He then broke into a small chuckle. Of course he would be Loki. It was so obvious now, that he would choose such a costume. It was almost comical to see Eric dressed as a “villain” in a party full of super heroes. If it was his intention to stand out, and knowing Eric it was in some form, he defiantly took the cake.  It took a moment for Eric to find Charles, but when he did Charles motioned for Eric to come over to him with a small wave.

“ Why Eric that costume looks- “

Dashing? Brilliant? Amazing? Fitting?  Charles went down a small list of good adjectives in his head. Too many words came to mine to describe a simple costume. “Brilliant!” “You went to great lengths to make it accurate.” Charles smiled and took turns looking at the costume, to the staff, and then back to Eric. All of it – every last detail was just brilliant. “I am so glad you came!” “I mean I was sure you were going to – not a doubt in my mind; mind you.” “But you had me going for a little while.” Charles rambled. “Really Eric, there is a line between being fashionably late and late, and I think you have arrived late.” Charles couldn’t help but smile at his own joke and then follow by laughing at his own joke. It was times like this that Charles remembered his time with Raven. She would always point out that it was a social crime to laugh at your own jokes, especially when you are the only one laughing. Keeping this in mind, his laughter died and turned into a small cough. It was funny how advice from his sister always seemed to come out at the strangest times. “ Yes well, Oh!” “Tony, this is Eric Lehnsherr”

“ And Eric- This is well -Tony Stark.” Charles said making a gesture to the cowboy dressed man next to him. “He has some amazing knowledge on Electrical engineering and computer science.” That was probably an understatement. No, it was an understatement if Charles had ever given one. But it is best to leave the introductions to the two being introduced right?

It was then Charles noticed the vibe around the other two. This was probably not a good way to start things off. It was not a good introduction at all.  

(Source: marvelworldrp)

serluxfero:

Have a wonderful 2012 you all ♥ ♥ ♥ !

It’s Christmas Eve, already? (Steve & Tony) 

captainsteverogersrp:

herointheironsuit:

captainsteverogersrp:

herointheironsuit:

Tony’s expression sank a little as Steve dodged his attempts to be comforting and mess with his hair, “Hey, come on. You’ve been frozen for, what, seventy-some-odd years? I don’t expect you to know everything, Steve. Things like that take time.” He said with an easy smile, hoping to be of some encouragement to the man. Steve was far too hard on himself, he needed someone to help pick up the weight, right? It wasn’t his burden to bare alone, was it?

Once the tone of their conversation passed on to that of a lighter tone, Tony began to chuckle quietly at the other’s words, “Pfft, me? Have plans with friends? In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t have too many of those.” Acquaintances, sure, but close friends were hard to come by. Pepper, sure, but, things were always work work work with her. There was Charles, but that relationship seemed far too invigorating for the young Professor to handle. And of course there was the Avengers, but, everyone had their own thing going for them outside the group. And by the looks of things, Tony’s only real friend was his work. J.A.R.V.I.S. too, maybe. Though that was more of a one-sided sort of thing. All in all, Steve was probably the only other person he was close to.

“Ah,” he began, his arms falling to his sides in order to refrain as he had been while trying to keep warm. “I’m fine. You were just standing there for so long, some cold air got in. Generally, it’s pretty warm in here. Well, during the winter time it is.” He glanced back over at Steve, the expression the younger-looking male bore caught him off guard. Tony’s expression eased more so than he usually allowed for it to, and smiled lightly, “Don’t worry about me. You do enough of that already.”

 ”It’s not like I can say that to people who I don’t know. ‘Sorry I insulted you there, I’ve been frozen since the 1940’s’” He sighed and scruffed his hair.

“What? You don’t have too many friends? Rhodey, Pepper, Natasha…you have plenty. And then there’s all of the…uh…girls you know. Surely you’re not going to spend Christmas alone.” He grinned at his friend.

“Oh God, sorry. I didn’t-” He shook his head, giving Tony a sheepish smile. “Someones got to worry about you, you don’t worry enough about yourself.”

Tony shook his head, a quiet laugh emanating from him, “You’re not exactly insulting people, you just seem… I don’t know, old fashioned, maybe? Besides, you’re Captain America, everyone knows about what happened to him.” So long as he’s in the suit, no one will question his out-dated logic.

Oh man, how could I possibly forget about Rhodey?

It’s not as though he hadn’t seen the guy in a few years or anything. They had seemed to fall out of touch recently. Even if they hadn’t, it’s not as though they’d spend holidays together, James had a life. He was a dedicated man, not only to the Air Force, but to his personal life too.

And all those girls—The nameless ones, well, they were expendable with no real purpose (other than to make him feel better about himself).

He gave a shrug before saying “Well, then. Seems you know more about me than I thought,” with a smirk. “Anyone else you want to add to that list of people that I could have possibly made plans with?” Surely none of them would be right, but why not give it a go? “And didn’t I already tell you not to worry about me?”

“What if I’m just Steve and I insult them, I don’t have my shield to hide behind then.” He scrubbed a hand over his face, glancing at Tony. “You get away with your insulting behavior, you’re Tony Stark. People expect it from you.” Steve gave him a roguish grin, hoping that Tony will realise that he was kidding with him.

He narrowed his eyes at Tony’s last comment, not sure whether Tony was being serious or just pulling his leg. He did know him, very well, but not as much as he’d like. He wondered if Tony knew as much about him as Steve knew about Tony. Natasha had kindly brought him up to date on the life and times of Mr Tony Stark, he chewed his lip, had she done the same with Tony?

“So, what did you invite me over for?” he grinned again, relaxing in the company of Tony. “Just to stand in your hallway and chat?”

“Insulting behavior? You think my behavior is insulting?” He asked, glancing at Steve with a pained look; placing a hand to his chest before clenching his hand to a fist, “That hurts, Steve.” Despite his attempts to sound convincing, they both knew better. It also helped that Tony was unable to hide the smile that crept along his lips after he spoke. 

“More importantly though, if something were to ever happen to “just Steve” and the other party decides that they can’t comprehend the fact that you’re a little “old-fashioned”, then I guess that means I’ll just have to be your shield for you.” His words were doused in overconfidence, but were very direct all the same, there was no way Steve could argue his methods—they were fool-proof. Want to know why he was so sure of this? Because he’s Tony Stark, that’s why.

It’s really a shame that he can’t have this sort of self-confidence when it came to matters regarding himself personally. When it’s involving someone else—when it’s for someone else—there’s no shortage of his ego.

In a way, seeing himself like this was almost laugh-out-loud material. Forcing his help upon someone he cared about when, if the situation was reversed, he’d all but accept it. Do everything humanely possible to avoid being helped. That was just the way he was. With never having been offered help of any sort as a child (and even as he got older), that sort of thing just sticks with you after knowing nothing else but that. 

But that’s not the point right now. Now’s not the time to get emotional over things that aren’t even a problem at present. 

By now, Tony had found comfort in leaning against a wall, with arms crossed before his chest and legs crossed at the ankles, as the two of them spoke not far from the main entrance; a place that hadn’t any furniture that was meant to withstand being sat upon. Tony made a slight face of perplexity at Steve’s words. Why did he call Steve here? Did he need a reason? He didn’t exactly have one.

After a brief moment, he finally offered what appeared to be somewhat of an awkward smile, ”Well, to be perfectly honest, I haven’t gotten that far yet. Besides, I thought we were doing just fine standing here and talking, thank you. We can take this elsewhere, if you’d care for a sit.” He added as he pushed off the wall to stand properly and led Steve to the main living area. 

It’s Christmas Eve, already? (Steve & Tony) 

captainsteverogersrp:

herointheironsuit:

Tony’s expression sank a little as Steve dodged his attempts to be comforting and mess with his hair, “Hey, come on. You’ve been frozen for, what, seventy-some-odd years? I don’t expect you to know everything, Steve. Things like that take time.” He said with an easy smile, hoping to be of some encouragement to the man. Steve was far too hard on himself, he needed someone to help pick up the weight, right? It wasn’t his burden to bare alone, was it?

Once the tone of their conversation passed on to that of a lighter tone, Tony began to chuckle quietly at the other’s words, “Pfft, me? Have plans with friends? In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t have too many of those.” Acquaintances, sure, but close friends were hard to come by. Pepper, sure, but, things were always work work work with her. There was Charles, but that relationship seemed far too invigorating for the young Professor to handle. And of course there was the Avengers, but, everyone had their own thing going for them outside the group. And by the looks of things, Tony’s only real friend was his work. J.A.R.V.I.S. too, maybe. Though that was more of a one-sided sort of thing. All in all, Steve was probably the only other person he was close to.

“Ah,” he began, his arms falling to his sides in order to refrain as he had been while trying to keep warm. “I’m fine. You were just standing there for so long, some cold air got in. Generally, it’s pretty warm in here. Well, during the winter time it is.” He glanced back over at Steve, the expression the younger-looking male bore caught him off guard. Tony’s expression eased more so than he usually allowed for it to, and smiled lightly, “Don’t worry about me. You do enough of that already.”

 ”It’s not like I can say that to people who I don’t know. ‘Sorry I insulted you there, I’ve been frozen since the 1940’s’” He sighed and scruffed his hair.

“What? You don’t have too many friends? Rhodey, Pepper, Natasha…you have plenty. And then there’s all of the…uh…girls you know. Surely you’re not going to spend Christmas alone.” He grinned at his friend.

“Oh God, sorry. I didn’t-” He shook his head, giving Tony a sheepish smile. “Someones got to worry about you, you don’t worry enough about yourself.”

Tony shook his head, a quiet laugh emanating from him, “You’re not exactly insulting people, you just seem… I don’t know, old fashioned, maybe? Besides, you’re Captain America, everyone knows about what happened to him.” So long as he’s in the suit, no one will question his out-dated logic.

Oh man, how could I possibly forget about Rhodey? 

It’s not as though he hadn’t seen the guy in a few years or anything. They had seemed to fall out of touch recently. Even if they hadn’t, it’s not as though they’d spend holidays together, James had a life. He was a dedicated man, not only to the Air Force, but to his personal life too.

And all those girls—The nameless ones, well, they were expendable with no real purpose (other than to make him feel better about himself). 

He gave a shrug before saying “Well, then. Seems you know more about me than I thought,” with a smirk. “Anyone else you want to add to that list of people that I could have possibly made plans with?” Surely none of them would be right, but why not give it a go? “And didn’t I already tell you not to worry about me?”

It’s Christmas Eve, already? (Steve & Tony) 

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Steve stood numbly before Tony, his mouth had gone dry and his vocal chords had tightened in his throat. His brain was supplying a heavy torrent of SPEAK YOU IDIOT! SPEAK! but for some reason he couldn’t force himself too. Realising Tony had spoken, he blinked and finally managed to shake himself out of his reverie.

“….You’re wet.” Nice going hot shot, point out the obvious. “I mean…uh…am I too early?” he said stepping in to the building. Embarrassment colouring his cheeks already within 10 seconds of speaking to the man.  At the best of times he wasn’t great at speaking to people, make those people highly attractive to Steve and he turned into a bumbling fool. “Thank you for inviting me…it was considerate of you.”

Eventually after spending a while staring at his feet, he risked looking back at Tony, his eyes creased at the corners from smiling. As subtle as he could manage he took in what Tony was wearing, his fist curling into a ball in his pocket just to stop himself from reaching out and just touching. He breathed in, calming himself, he hated the way he reacted around Tony, something about it just spun him until he couldn’t see straight.

Tony’s expression fell slightly when all Steve could do was stand there. Maybe he had a rough day. Or maybe he’d rather be sleeping. Come to think of it, Tony didn’t really seem to give the other much of a choice, did he? If Steve were to have said no, he probably would have felt bad being the kindhearted guy that he is.

When Steve finally spoke it threw Tony off just a bit.

I’m wet?

Oh, right.

“Yeah, well. Shower, y’know?” He offered with a quiet laugh, hand tugging on the towel that was draped around his neck and bringing it close enough to dab the droplets of water away from his face and neck. “You’re fine, don’t worry,” he said, “it’ll dry on it’s own soon enough.”

Tony met Steve’s smile once the man finally peeled his eyes from his own feet, “Don’t just stand there, it’s freezing out here.” The cold was a brutal reminder that it was indeed December, the air seemed to bite at the places that hadn’t been lucky enough to be covered in cloth, and even then he could still feel chills running through his body. He couldn’t imagine how Steve felt having ridden his bike out to his place, though he didn’t seem to show whether or not it was affecting him any. Then again, it probably doesn’t. He’s probably used to the cold after being frozen for all those years.

Steve nodded and smiled at his friend and entered further into the warmth of the house and surveyed the decorations that no doubt Pepper had put up, frowning he realised something “Oh..oh, it’s Christmas…I didn’t..I didn’t get you anything…I’m sorry Tony. It slipped my mind. I’l- Uh…I’ll get you something. Soon.” He nodded, chewing his lip with worry after realising his blunder. “I- I can’t believe I forgot. It’s Christmas…” He then realised something else. “Oh! You’re not Jewish are you? Or Islamic..” He walked towards Tony with his hands out in front of him, feeling like a complete idiot. “I..I’m sorry! I forget that we’re more multi cultural than we were back-“

Steve gulped and took a step back, looking everywhere and anywhere other than his friend. How could he be so insensitive all of the time? And why was it always Tony he did this to? He was the only one he cared about impressing. Natasha, well she didn’t really matter, Steve was pretty sure she’d like him more if he was more of an idiot.

After closing the door, Tony crossed his arms before him, running his hands up and down his already chilled skin, hoping the friction would do well enough to warm him up. He caught Steve eyeing the decorations, “Pepper tends to go all out with this stuff. I’d be fine with just a decorated tree and maybe a few other things here and there, but, well, it’s not worth the fight.” He could have continued on as he lead the blonde to the main downstairs living area, but instead, he stopped. His words faded and his footsteps came to a halt.

Was Steve really getting worked up over this? To be panicking over something he thought required little to no reason for such hysteria.

Tony held his hands up, moving them in a way that he seemed to be patting at the air, “Whoa, hold on there, Soldier! It’s fine, really. I myself hadn’t even realized it was Christmas Eve, let alone December. Nor did I expect you to bring me a gift of any sort.” You just being here is good enough for me. Wait, did he really just think that? Good thing he wasn’t thinking aloud as he so often did at the worst of times.

“You’re fine, Steve. I celebrate Christmas.” He wound up saying to the back of the blonde’s head. Tony observed the man for a moment, not sure quite how to react—whether he should be comforting or poke fun at the guy, but before he had time to make a decision, he found his hand was already ruffling up the blonde mess of hair. “Don’t over do it, okay?”

Steve let out a heave of a sigh and ducked his head out of the way of Tony’s hands. “Sorry…I’m just not used to everything yet.”

“So…uhm…are you doing anything tomorrow with your friends?” Steve asked, unsure how to proceed. He noted Tony rubbing his arms and the goose bumps peppering his skin. “You really should get your hair dry Tony, you’re freezing.” He said with his voice ladened with concern. He really didn’t want Tony to be sick over the holiday period, he always was back when he was…well skinny-Steve. The urge to go and hug Tony or rub his arms for him, just do something instead of standing there like a buffoon, was almost overwhelming. “…Please?”

Tony’s expression sank a little as Steve dodged his attempts to be comforting and mess with his hair, “Hey, come on. You’ve been frozen for, what, seventy-some-odd years? I don’t expect you to know everything, Steve. Things like that take time.” He said with an easy smile, hoping to be of some encouragement to the man. Steve was far too hard on himself, he needed someone to help pick up the weight, right? It wasn’t his burden to bare alone, was it? 

Once the tone of their conversation passed on to that of a lighter tone, Tony began to chuckle quietly at the other’s words, “Pfft, me? Have plans with friends? In case you haven’t noticed, I don’t have too many of those.” Acquaintances, sure, but close friends were hard to come by. Pepper, sure, but, things were always work work work with her. There was Charles, but that relationship seemed far too invigorating for the young Professor to handle. And of course there was the Avengers, but, everyone had their own thing going for them outside the group. And by the looks of things, Tony’s only real friend was his work. J.A.R.V.I.S. too, maybe. Though that was more of a one-sided sort of thing. All in all, Steve was probably the only other person he was close to. 

“Ah,” he began, his arms falling to his sides in order to refrain as he had been trying to keep warm. “I’m fine. You were just standing there for so long, some cold air got in. Generally, it’s pretty warm in here. Well, during the winter time it is.” He glanced back over at Steve, the expression the younger-looking male bore caught him off guard. Tony’s expression eased more so than he usually allowed for it too, and smiled lightly, “Don’t worry about me. You do enough of that already.”

It’s Christmas Eve, already? (Steve & Tony) 

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J.A.R.V.I.S. disconnected the call when the dial-tone sounded. Tony’s head fell forward, that call was more exhausting than it should have been. Maybe that was just from the added strain cause by his head. Either way, he was worn out.

“Not that it’s any of my business, but you may want to get a move on, Mr. Stark.” J.A.R.V.I.S. advised in an unusually caring tone, this being one of those rare moments in which his A.I. didn’t express any sort of sarcasm.

Tony stood up, pushing his chair back under his desk, “Yeah, yeah. I’m going.” he said, waving a hand at the electronic voice. It was nice to know J.A.R.V.I.S. cared, even the slightest bit. His A.I. seemed to know if he didn’t look out for Tony, the engineer would more than likely forget to do so himself. Even though he disregarded what J.A.R.V.I.S. had to say a good majority of the time.

The cool water felt nice against his sweat and oil covered skin. It always surprised him how dirty the water that pooled at his feet became after first stepping into the shower, never having thought he could actually manage to get as sullied as he so commonly did from work. He tried his best to be mindful of his injury when washing his hair; fingers scrubbing as lightly as he could physically manage all-the-while making sure to thoroughly wash his hair, in spite of the incredible stinging caused by his shampoo.

In the end, Tony spent more time in the shower than he originally intended. Not that such a thing was surprising to the man as he usually did take his time while showering; it was the only time he really gave himself a break, to spend time with his thoughts irrelevant to work (though that was often hard to avoid). While most people’s thoughts kept them up at night, Tony’s kept him in the shower longer (this only being because he cherished what little sleep he managed to attain).

It was thanks to J.A.R.V.I.S. that Tony was made aware of Steve’s arrival. He never would have heard the quiet knocking at the main entrance from his bedroom upstairs. He walked down the stairs with a towel around his neck (as he didn’t have time to dry his hair); sporting a black polo shirt and blue jeans, that were just the right shade of blue to compliment the light that shown through his shirt from the arc reactor in his chest, along with a pair of black sneakers. The man knew how to dress even when he wasn’t intentionally trying to look good for special events or media coverage.

He opened the door with a smile on his face, “Hey, Steve. Glad you could make it.” Tony stepped off to the side; his arm held out in a guiding gesture to the inside of his place, “Please, do come in.”

Steve stood numbly before Tony, his mouth had gone dry and his vocal chords had tightened in his throat. His brain was supplying a heavy torrent of SPEAK YOU IDIOT! SPEAK! but for some reason he couldn’t force himself too. Realising Tony had spoken, he blinked and finally managed to shake himself out of his reverie.

“….You’re wet.” Nice going hot shot, point out the obvious. “I mean…uh…am I too early?” he said stepping in to the building. Embarrassment colouring his cheeks already within 10 seconds of speaking to the man.  At the best of times he wasn’t great at speaking to people, make those people highly attractive to Steve and he turned into a bumbling fool. “Thank you for inviting me…it was considerate of you.”

Eventually after spending a while staring at his feet, he risked looking back at Tony, his eyes creased at the corners from smiling. As subtle as he could manage he took in what Tony was wearing, his fist curling into a ball in his pocket just to stop himself from reaching out and just touching. He breathed in, calming himself, he hated the way he reacted around Tony, something about it just spun him until he couldn’t see straight.

Tony’s expression fell slightly when all Steve could do was stand there. Maybe he had a rough day. Or maybe he’d rather be sleeping. Come to think of it, Tony didn’t really seem to give the other much of a choice, did he? If Steve were to have said no, he probably would have felt bad being the kindhearted guy that he is.

When Steve finally spoke it threw Tony off just a bit.

I’m wet?

Oh, right.

“Yeah, well. Shower, y’know?” He offered with a quiet laugh, hand tugging on the towel that was draped around his neck and bringing it close enough to dab the droplets of water away from his face and neck. “You’re fine, don’t worry,” he said, “it’ll dry on it’s own soon enough.”

Tony met Steve’s smile once the man finally peeled his eyes from his own feet, “Don’t just stand there, it’s freezing out here.” The cold was a brutal reminder that it was indeed December, the air seemed to bite at the places that hadn’t been lucky enough to be covered in cloth, and even then he could still feel chills running through his body. He couldn’t imagine how Steve felt having ridden his bike out to his place, though he didn’t seem to show whether or not it was affecting him any. Then again, it probably doesn’t. He’s probably used to the cold after being frozen for all those years.

Steve nodded and smiled at his friend and entered further into the warmth of the house and surveyed the decorations that no doubt Pepper had put up, frowning he realised something “Oh..oh, it’s Christmas…I didn’t..I didn’t get you anything…I’m sorry Tony. It slipped my mind. I’l- Uh…I’ll get you something. Soon.” He nodded, chewing his lip with worry after realising his blunder. “I- I can’t believe I forgot. It’s Christmas…” He then realised something else. “Oh! You’re not Jewish are you? Or Islamic..” He walked towards Tony with his hands out in front of him, feeling like a complete idiot. “I..I’m sorry! I forget that we’re more multi cultural than we were back-“

Steve gulped and took a step back, looking everywhere and anywhere other than his friend. How could he be so insensitive all of the time? And why was it always Tony he did this to? He was the only one he cared about impressing. Natasha, well she didn’t really matter, Steve was pretty sure she’d like him more if he was more of an idiot.

After closing the door, Tony crossed his arms before him, running his hands up and down his already chilled skin, hoping the friction would do well enough to warm him up. He caught Steve eyeing the decorations, “Pepper tends to go all out with this stuff. I’d be fine with just a decorated tree and maybe a few other things here and there, but, well, it’s not worth the fight.” He could have continued on as he lead the blonde to the main downstairs living area, but instead, he stopped. His words faded and his footsteps came to a halt. 

Was Steve really getting worked up over this? To be panicking over something he thought required little to no reason for such hysteria.

Tony held his hands up, moving them in a way that he seemed to be patting at the air, “Whoa, hold on there, Soldier! It’s fine, really. I myself hadn’t even realized it was Christmas Eve, let alone December. Nor did I expect you to bring me a gift of any sort.” You just being here is good enough for me. Wait, did he really just think that? Good thing he wasn’t thinking aloud as he so often did at the worst of times.

“You’re fine, Steve. I celebrate Christmas.” He wound up saying to the back of the blonde’s head. Tony observed the man for a moment, not sure quite how to react—whether he should be comforting or poke fun at the guy, but before he had time to make a decision, he found his hand was already ruffling up the blonde mess of hair. “Don’t over do it, okay?” 

It’s Christmas Eve, already? (Steve & Tony) 

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J.A.R.V.I.S. disconnected the call when the dial-tone sounded. Tony’s head fell forward, that call was more exhausting than it should have been. Maybe that was just from the added strain cause by his head. Either way, he was worn out.

“Not that it’s any of my business, but you may want to get a move on, Mr. Stark.” J.A.R.V.I.S. advised in an unusually caring tone, this being one of those rare moments in which his A.I. didn’t express any sort of sarcasm.

Tony stood up, pushing his chair back under his desk, “Yeah, yeah. I’m going.” he said, waving a hand at the electronic voice. It was nice to know J.A.R.V.I.S. cared, even the slightest bit. His A.I. seemed to know if he didn’t look out for Tony, the engineer would more than likely forget to do so himself. Even though he disregarded what J.A.R.V.I.S. had to say a good majority of the time.

The cool water felt nice against his sweat and oil covered skin. It always surprised him how dirty the water that pooled at his feet became after first stepping into the shower, never having thought he could actually manage to get as sullied as he so commonly did from work. He tried his best to be mindful of his injury when washing his hair; fingers scrubbing as lightly as he could physically manage all-the-while making sure to thoroughly wash his hair, in spite of the incredible stinging caused by his shampoo.

In the end, Tony spent more time in the shower than he originally intended. Not that such a thing was surprising to the man as he usually did take his time while showering; it was the only time he really gave himself a break, to spend time with his thoughts irrelevant to work (though that was often hard to avoid). While most people’s thoughts kept them up at night, Tony’s kept him in the shower longer (this only being because he cherished what little sleep he managed to attain).

It was thanks to J.A.R.V.I.S. that Tony was made aware of Steve’s arrival. He never would have heard the quiet knocking at the main entrance from his bedroom upstairs. He walked down the stairs with a towel around his neck (as he didn’t have time to dry his hair); sporting a black polo shirt and blue jeans, that were just the right shade of blue to compliment the light that shown through his shirt from the arc reactor in his chest, along with a pair of black sneakers. The man knew how to dress even when he wasn’t intentionally trying to look good for special events or media coverage.

He opened the door with a smile on his face, “Hey, Steve. Glad you could make it.” Tony stepped off to the side; his arm held out in a guiding gesture to the inside of his place, “Please, do come in.”

Steve stood numbly before Tony, his mouth had gone dry and his vocal chords had tightened in his throat. His brain was supplying a heavy torrent of SPEAK YOU IDIOT! SPEAK! but for some reason he couldn’t force himself too. Realising Tony had spoken, he blinked and finally managed to shake himself out of his reverie.

“….You’re wet.” Nice going hot shot, point out the obvious. “I mean…uh…am I too early?” he said stepping in to the building. Embarrassment colouring his cheeks already within 10 seconds of speaking to the man.  At the best of times he wasn’t great at speaking to people, make those people highly attractive to Steve and he turned into a bumbling fool. “Thank you for inviting me…it was considerate of you.”

Eventually after spending a while staring at his feet, he risked looking back at Tony, his eyes creased at the corners from smiling. As subtle as he could manage he took in what Tony was wearing, his fist curling into a ball in his pocket just to stop himself from reaching out and just touching. He breathed in, calming himself, he hated the way he reacted around Tony, something about it just spun him until he couldn’t see straight.

Tony’s expression fell slightly when all Steve could do was stand there. Maybe he had a rough day. Or maybe he’d rather be sleeping. Come to think of it, Tony didn’t really seem to give the other much of a choice, did he? If Steve were to have said no, he probably would have felt bad being the kindhearted guy that he is. 

When Steve finally spoke it threw Tony off just a bit.

I’m wet?

Oh, right.

“Yeah, well. Shower, y’know?” He offered with a quiet laugh, hand tugging on the towel that was draped around his neck and bringing it close enough to dab the droplets of water away from his face and neck. “You’re fine, don’t worry,” he said, “it’ll dry on it’s own soon enough.”

Tony met Steve’s smile once the man finally peeled his eyes from his own feet, “Don’t just stand there, it’s freezing out here.” The cold was a brutal reminder that it was indeed December, the air seemed to bite at the places that hadn’t been lucky enough to be covered in cloth, and even then he could still feel chills running through his body. He couldn’t imagine how Steve felt having ridden his bike out to his place, though he didn’t seem to show whether or not it was affecting him any. Then again, it probably doesn’t. He’s probably used to the cold after being frozen for all those years.

It’s Christmas Eve, already? (Steve & Tony) 

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“It was…okay.” Left my mind free to think about things I’d rather not, he noted numbly to himself. “Ah..tonight? Free?…” he gave a short laugh. “It’s me, Tony, who am I going to have plans with?”

Steve chewed his lip, wiping the sweat gathering on his brow. He wasn’t this sweaty before he answered the phone to Tony. The line went quiet a little, as Steve imagined Tony on the end, he probably was in his workshop from the slight echo on the phone, probably in a vest covered in grease and muck and God knows what, the arc reactor glowing dimly beneath the shirt, a light sheen of sweat on his arms, those arms…Steve’s gripped the phone a little tighter, shaking those thoughts away and gathering himself.

He’s a friend, just a friend. And he’s a he. And…you’re sick Steve for even thinking about Tony like this. He smacked himself on the head in frustration taking a deep sigh.  It was Bucky all over again, someone who took care of Steve and watched over him and Steve, well, he did this. He crushed on them. Bucky never found out and Steve eventually got over his school boy crush and Tony will be the same, he’ll just ignore it. “So..uh…have you?”

Tony could feel his lips being tugged down at the corner’s, he was frowning, frowning at the fact that he couldn’t decipher the blonde’s feelings as he so easily could when actually in the other’s presence. “Could have been worse then, I take it.” He mumbled almost silently, unable to get over how difficult this was, how hard it was to speak to someone almost blindly. Was it ever this hard when he spoke to Pepper over the phone?

“Well, you never know, Gene or Nat could have made plans of some sort with you.” Gene especially so, seeing as she was always trying to keep Steve a good ten miles away from Tony at all costs. Fearing that he’d “tarnish” or “corrupt” the poor soldier. As if he’d do such a thing. And if he did it never would have been intentional. Plus, wasn’t there something about all of them being a “family”? Tony didn’t quite remember, his perception on family had always been a bit off anyway.

“But, seeing as you’re free after all, why not come over? We can keep each other company.” After he spoke, there was another silence, there seemed to be a lot of these whether they were his doing or Steve’s. His tongue slid along his dried out lips, dampening them for a moment or two before resuming as they once were, if not slightly drier than before. He could hear Steve breathing into the phone, probably due to the sweat he had worked up from training, but it was still enough to notice. Enough to make Tony’s mind drift elsewhere. Shaking the thoughts away, he heard the blonde asking something, but wasn’t sure exactly what it was, “Hm? Have I, what?”

 ”Sure..sure, let me just get…cleaned up first.” Steve looked blinked at the last question, colour blooming on his cheeks as he thought of a reply to make him seem less of an idiot. “I uh…I wanted to kn- never mind, it doesn’t matter. I’ll be there in half an hour. Do you want anything from the convenience store?”

“That works for me. It’d be wise for me to do the same.” He could already feel the blood crusting over in his hair as well as the tingling feeling that was more than likely caused the scab that was sure to be forming on the wound he had yet to determine the size of.

Tony ran a hand along his goatee, trying to make sense of the man’s answer—the answer that didn’t truly answer anything but instead brought about more questions. Questions he decided not to ask. “Alright, I’ll see you then, I guess.”

“I’m fine though, thanks.” The only thing he could possibly want that wasn’t already available to him at his mansion wasn’t something you could just purchase.

Steve hung up with Tony after saying goodbye, he rushed to the shower and scrubbed the sweat off of his skin. Drying and dressing in chinos and a blue shirt he headed over to Tony’s place on his bike. He loved moments like these when he was alone on his bike, driving here and there. He parked up outside the mansion, gazing up at the splendor, admiring the architecture of Starks house. He waited a little while, he figured he didn’t want to appear eager nor did he want to interrupt Tony’s shower. Wouldn’t we? His brain supplied, before he mentally gave himself a slap at the imagery that caused, groaning he walked to the door and gave a light knock waiting for Tony to answer.

J.A.R.V.I.S. disconnected the call when the dial-tone sounded. Tony’s head fell forward, that call was more exhausting than it should have been. Maybe that was just from the added strain cause by his head. Either way, he was worn out. 

“Not that it’s any of my business, but you may want to get a move on, Mr. Stark.” J.A.R.V.I.S. advised in an unusually caring tone, this being one of those rare moments in which his A.I. didn’t express any sort of sarcasm.

Tony stood up, pushing his chair back under his desk, “Yeah, yeah. I’m going.” he said, waving a hand at the electronic voice. It was nice to know J.A.R.V.I.S. cared, even the slightest bit. His A.I. seemed to know if he didn’t look out for Tony, the engineer would more than likely forget to do so himself. Even though he disregarded what J.A.R.V.I.S. had to say a good majority of the time. 

The cool water felt nice against his sweat and oil covered skin. It always surprised him how dirty the water that pooled at his feet became after first stepping into the shower, never having thought he could actually manage to get as sullied as he so commonly did from work. He tried his best to be mindful of his injury when washing his hair; fingers scrubbing as lightly as he could physically manage all-the-while making sure to thoroughly wash his hair, in spite of the incredible stinging caused by his shampoo. 

In the end, Tony spent more time in the shower than he originally intended. Not that such a thing was surprising to the man as he usually did take his time while showering; it was the only time he really gave himself a break, to spend time with his thoughts irrelevant to work (though that was often hard to avoid). While most people’s thoughts kept them up at night, Tony’s kept him in the shower longer (this only being because he cherished what little sleep he managed to attain). 

It was thanks to J.A.R.V.I.S. that Tony was made aware of Steve’s arrival. He never would have heard the quiet knocking at the main entrance from his bedroom upstairs. He walked down the stairs with a towel around his neck (as he didn’t have time to dry his hair); sporting a black polo shirt and blue jeans, that were just the right shade of blue to compliment the light that shown through his shirt from the arc reactor in his chest, along with a pair of black sneakers. The man knew how to dress even when he wasn’t intentionally trying to look good for special events or media coverage. 

He opened the door with a smile on his face, “Hey, Steve. Glad you could make it.” Tony stepped off to the side; his arm held out in a guiding gesture to the inside of his place, “Please, do come in.”