#INY Chapter One Hundred Seventy Two

[evien-stark]

✧I Need You✧ Chapter 172

Wherever you were, it was warm and comfortable. Memories of the horrors in Sokovia were fading. Sleep had been blissfully long and uninterrupted. An almost impossible task, considering you’d had to board the helicarrier and be taken home. Somewhere in the middle of all that you’d slipped unconscious, and hadn’t woken back up. At least until now. And wherever changed its definition as you returned in small bits and pieces. 

You were home. You were safe. One of the things not always assured. 

Tony’s voice was a low murmur in the next room. You wished he was in bed alongside you. Realizing that that spot that belonged to him was empty pulled you slowly from the sleep you’d been enjoying. Tony was working. You were lazing. That was probably unacceptable. But almost as if he somehow realized you were stirring, the door of the bedroom opened and you turned on your side, meeting his gaze with your own pair of sleepy eyes. His smile warmed you straight through and he held a finger up to signal- at least you thought- not to move, and that he’d be with you in a minute. 

“Well. Don’t wait up for me. I’m not planning on a ribbon-cutting or anything, but if I was I’d want it in a week.” He came further into the room, pacing in lingering steps towards the center, one hand in his pocket. You sat up just a little, blinking to better adjust your eyes. He was half well-dressed. Suit slacks, an ice-blue button up with the sleeves rolled up to his arms, and a loose black tie. You imagined a waistcoat and suit jacket were sitting on the back of a chair somewhere near the front elevator. “Sure. Look. I gotta go. Keep me updated.” 

When he turned, you patted the spot next to you on the edge of the bed. Your beckoning worked, he moved as if you’d thrown a lasso around him. Tilting your head up, “What’s going on?” 

He sat down on the edge of the bed. “A million things. Nothing terribly important.” Grinning just a little. “The new facility is on schedule- at least they are now.” Facility… oh. He was talking about the new Avengers Facility upstate. They must have put work on hold while deciding whether or not the Avengers were actually going to be alive, and Tony had to come in and kick them back into gear. Something that was kind of important. 

“And it’ll be done in a week?” It was difficult to remember the last time the two of you had talked about it. He’d already had it half in the works then. 

His shoulders came up in a weak shrug, and he threaded his fingers loosely together over his lap. “They’re placating me. We’re probably looking at something closer towards the end of the month.” 

“Just in time for your birthday.” 

“Lucky me.” Said flatly with a little roll of his eyes. Once he was done he turned a little more towards you, reaching out to slide some hair behind your ear and then cup the side of your face. “You alright?”

This was something you probably should have been expecting him to ask. Something you should have had an answer for. But the question left you a little stunned until you finally decided on, “I have no idea.” 

For one reason or another this seemed to amuse him, if only lightly so. “Yeah. That’s probably fair. Seems like there’s been a lot of that lately.” The fall of your face hit him, and he quickly went to nervous correction. “Not that- not that that’s your fault.” 

Had it even been one entire week since your life had started falling apart? Tony had told you you had absolutely no idea about yourself in the lab. JARVIS had died. Ultron had  been born. Fury was an alien- and the real one confirmed you knew even less than Tony had gathered. JARVIS had been found- and nearly died again- only saved by some efforts of yours- and then been reborn. The Infinity Stones had been revealed. Six in all. And no telling where they were, or why suddenly they’d become important. Tony had almost died. And had told you to leave him- and you had. Sokovia had been utterly destroyed. You’d kept Pietro from dying. Somehow. At the behest of powers beyond your comprehension. You’d been burning up, and your gamma pulses had been out of control. Ultron had died, and in his last moments had sought out your comfort in a realm you understood very little. You had offered him peace in his final flicker, and then sent him off. And JARVIS had helped you come down off that edge somehow.

...did that about cover everything? 

“Honey?” Tony’s quiet pang of nervousness brought you out of your cloud. “You still with me?” 

Your eyes lowered from the thousand yard stare you’d assumed and you put a hand to your forehead. “I hate to do this. Can you- ...can you debrief me?” It was such a cold and removed way of doing things. Of listening to the things that had happened to you. To your team. Just asking for a recap of events was never enough. But it was what you needed. 

He gave a weak nod and then cleared his throat. “Well… Sokovia is gone. The Relief Foundation is working on helping everyone that was displaced which is- ...well. Everyone. Casualties are still being counted. Ultron’s presence has been wiped clean. The press wants a statement. Bruce is gone.” 

That last bit of information struck you hard and fast. “What do you mean gone?” 

A terrible blue took over him. Heavy sorrow that he was reluctant to show. ��Gone. Hulk took over the quinjet. Nat tried to get him to come back but he turned off all the comms. He put it in stealth mode and- thanks to me- that means it’s untrackable. So. He’s gone.” There was a soft flicker of resentment but it was mostly buried by guilt. 

Reaching out you put a hand over his. “That’s not your fault.” 

He scoffed with a bitter smile. “That’s not the way everyone else feels. Which is fine. Maybe they’re right. You know, I had redundancies for this kind of thing- but I had no idea the big guy was that smart.” Speaking quickly. Always a sure sign that he was struggling. 

“Bruce knew all of your protocols. Are we sure it wasn’t him?” Not really sure what the point of arguing who had taken off was. Maybe just to get an idea of who had really left. Hulk? Or Bruce? 

Tony just shrugged weakly. “There’s no way of telling. At least not until he comes back. I’ll do my best to find him but. He’s gonna have to meet me halfway.” Bruce taking the quinjet was something else entirely. Maybe if it was just Hulk, there was a chance he’d crash it somewhere. But if Bruce had run off? 

...why? Why would he do that? You remembered overhearing him and Natasha, but Natasha was still here. So Bruce had just ran away? It was nearly unfathomable. ...and an incredibly painful thought. To think that he thought his only means of contrition after what happened in Johannesburg were to just disappear off the face of the earth... You would have protected him from the media. From accusations that it was his fault- it hadn’t been. He had a life here. Family.

Which made all the more sense why Tony was taking this so hard. You found yourself sad, too. There was so much more to say here- so much more that you should have said. Things you should have done to try and help Tony process this, even when you couldn’t do it yourself. But he moved on while you fumbled with your own sudden grief. “The Facility is getting its roots settled- like I said. It’ll be a little while yet. But the team knows about it and they’re starting to migrate that way. Surprisingly had no qualms. For once.”

“It’s out of the way. They probably like the idea of being a little more protected. Less in the public eye.” The Tower was great. You remembered a long time ago when it had been your baby. And the new face of justice after just being the new face of clean energy for barely a day. But. It was time to- 

“And I’m working on a speech that goes with our two week notice.” 

Retire. Funny. You were just about to think that. “A speech, huh? You wouldn’t happen to be planning some annoying retirement party, would you?” 

His face fell just a little and then he moved quickly to looking insulted. But only jokingly so. “Okay, well, now that you called it annoying-” 

“Tony-” 

“Look. I just think it’s fair. We put in a ton of work. The least they can do is drink champagne from an open bar and- I don’t know- is it too much to ask for one of those oversized cards?” The sight of his grin encouraged your own smile. 

Something you hid as you bent forward, nuzzling your forehead against his shoulder. “Maybe asking a little too much from them, yes. They’re not really that socially coordinated.” 

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” 

The thought buzzed around in your head. Not angrily. But it did make you slightly nervous. Your tone backed off. Quiet and thoughtful. Not really wanting to invite the universe to give you ten more reasons that you couldn’t. “You really think we’re allowed to retire?” 

That question had been out there for much longer now than was fair. The both of you had had long discussions- too many at this point- about what an actual life looked like. One with each other. That you were in control of. No more of this superhero business that Tony had thrown himself into. ...it still didn’t seem possible. 

His own voice lowered to match yours. “That’s not a question I can answer on my own.” 

Meaning… he needed you there with him. He needed your agreement. Your consent. He needed you to walk along this path with him. He couldn’t decide to retire on his own and have you work. Nor could you walk away with him still on the frontlines. It just didn’t work that way. 

“How do you feel about it, Tony?” Sitting back again just so you could look at him. Have a real conversation with him about this. About the fate of your lives. The next chapter. 

He looked at you for a long time. Really thinking. And you appreciated it. “Well… Vision is no Ultron. Maybe he’s better for it.” The whole reason this had started. The one thing Tony had promised you. Ultron was what he’d been working on. To protect the earth. And to give you both the ability to feel safe. To… do exactly what you were talking about now. “He’s ready to be part of the team. And, don’t tell him I told you, but I think he’s our ringer right now.” 

JARVIS certainly seemed extremely powerful. It was hard to even label what it was he could do. But he was also holding an Infinity Stone. Whatever they were. Something also incredibly powerful. With it in his hands- good hands- the world did seem a little safer. Like he would come to challenge whatever tried to hurt it. Like an Avenger. 

You caught Tony looking at you. Waiting. Waiting for your judgment. You felt your brows knit. “You trust him? With our future?” Not just the world’s future. A little more selfishly so… you were asking if Tony could turn his back on the Avengers knowing JARVIS (or Vision, as they kept calling him) was there. That he trusted JARVIS to keep everyone safe, so that no matter the crisis, you and Tony didn’t have to come back onto the battlefield. 

“Next to you? JARVIS was the only other person I trusted that much. Vision might not be entirely JARVIS but. You’re right. There’s part of him there. Enough of him.” Talking himself through that thought until finally he nodded. “Yeah. I trust him.” 

This was a lot. This was saying more than a lot, in fact. Tony was ready to give up this life. He was ready to move on. He had been for a long time. But he knew the importance of what the two of you were doing. Of what the team was doing. He’d seen the horrors that you would never understand. He’d sat in space for a full minute- sometimes it still haunted him. Yet despite all that… he was ready. 

The question now was, were you? 

He startled you from your thinking when he raised a hand, the backs of his fingers brushing gingerly down over your temple and then traced the line of your jaw. “If you want me to beg, just say the words.” 

“Beg?” It was too much to ask that you didn’t fall immediately to pieces with the way he was looking at you. The way he was touching you. It was hard to think beyond that. “I don’t want you to beg-” 

“But I will. Whatever it takes to get you there- whatever I need to do- if I need to beg for you to run away with me- to start a life with me- I will. I want this. I want a home. I want stability. I want you. I want you to be happy. I want you to be safe. With me. And- frankly- I’m getting tired of sharing you with everyone else. So if you want me to beg-” 

His silence was easy to earn. You reached over, securing your hand around the middle of his tie, and drew him in with a pointed pull. He went very easily. Words stopping in a catch of breath, eyes lowering and then closing just as your lips connected. His palm went flat against the side of your neck. Against your wishes he broke back, so you chased him, and it was the parted lips, the small brush of tongues that made your muscles go slack. 

Which seemed to be fine. With another tug as you fell back, he followed you in, keeping close. His knees went to the sides of your thighs on the bed, while his hands reached out to steady himself over you. While you had him, you looped your arms around his neck, drawing him further. Kissing him harder. Leaving the two of you breathless. He was panting as he asked, “Is that a yes?” Smile the next thing pressed against your lips. 

But it didn’t stay. He was on the moved, dragging fleeting kisses down from your jaw and over your throat as your head tipped back all the way to give him access. “Tony- please-” The tingly scratch of his beard and mustache had you writhing beneath him.

An amused hum bubbled out from him, “I thought I was the one doing the begging?” A warm glow bounced back and forth between the two of you. Easy to acknowledge. Happiness.

Nothing simpler and yet somehow still nothing more complex. Almost strange to be able to access the feeling after everything the both of you had been through. But when you were together- like this- ...it was so easy. 

His teeth at the juncture of your shoulder and neck sparked a pleasurable thrum that had your hips lifting to meet him, a soft noise leaking from you. You were getting lost. So was he. You had to make sure you put a cap on this before it was too late. “Yes-” It came out in a quiet hiss, a half moan as he nipped again, working his way out towards the round of your shoulder. You tried again for something less salacious. “Yes- Tony- let’s do it-” 

At this he really did chuckle, a dark and loving noise that rumbled out against your skin and shot straight through you. “We’re about halfway there.” Teasing you so easily. “Though I’m not sure about the crass language. Usually you’re much more eloquent-” That smirk he was suddenly pressing onto your collarbone lit up all your hot points. “Tony-” Warning him. Liar that you were. Not even his smart-mouth sass would stop this. He probably knew that. “-but I’ll forgive you, considering...” Deciding better safe than sorry. Smart man that he was. His right hand moved down, cupping the back of your thigh, hefting you up into another press of hips that had your mind reeling- especially with the quiet groan it urged from him. 

“Yes- please-” Losing the thought again. Having to struggle to get it back. You settled your hands on the sides of his face, tugging him back up to look at you. His eyes were darkened with lust, but after only seconds of looking at you he eased into something far softer. “Tony- let’s retire. Let’s start our lives.” Agreeing. Finally. 

Your moment was now. You were finally going to have a life with him. An actual life. 

His smile was nothing short of enamored. “I love you.” He didn’t give you a chance to echo the sentiment as he closed in on another heated, deep kiss. Not with words- so you let him know anyway- 

I love you more. 

The message hit its mark almost instantly, and he went a little weak over you for just a handful of seconds. Then it seemed to renew his drive all the more. Yet he was moving in slow motion compared to after- when your hands moved down and you ruined his shirt. Ripping it open with a quick yank, sending torn buttons scattering. 

I need you. 

Another thing he needed to know. And as always, he was up to the task. 

It took no time at all after that- part of you wished you’d savored the moment- but the rest of you was intensely grateful when you were able to rid him of his clothes, and he of yours. His hand gripped your hip tight, and you pressed yourself against his warm body, legs locked around his waist, drinking in every moan between you as he fucked you senseless. As the two of you finally found time for each other. Found comfort in each other. 

Finally had time for each other. Finally were committing to each other.

Finally. Finally.