Stark Tower but Smallish [Sunday afternoon]

[heroic_jawline]

It had been weirdly awkward between Steve and Tony since the emotional baggage day. Tony had been working in the lab, Steve had been eating all the Moobyburgers working out, restocking the cheese fridge, and checking in with his colleagues at home.

But today, Father's Day, Steve was giving Tony another hour before going into the lab and dragging Tony out, feeding him, and making him talk. He missed them being them.

[OOC: For that husband.]

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[imafuturist]

"Talk about what?" Tony asked slowly.

[heroic_jawline]

"About why you've been avoiding me since the day with the bags," Steve said.

[imafuturist]

"I just needed some time," Tony said carefully. Because denying the avoidance wouldn't work.

[heroic_jawline]

"And have you had enough time?" Steve asked.

[imafuturist]

"I think the answer is yes." Not because it was true, but because Steve had dragged him out.

[heroic_jawline]

Steve settled back into the sofa with his (first) box of beef and broccoli. "Whenever you're ready," he said.

[imafuturist]

"Ready...?" Tont said slowly. "I'm good. Everything is good. Back to normal."

[heroic_jawline]

"I've known you for almost a decade, Tony," Steve said softly. "You're not back to normal."

[imafuturist]

"Well, I'll work harder at that," Tony promised.

[heroic_jawline]

"Or you can just tell me what I did wrong," Steve said.

[imafuturist]

"You didn't do anything wrong," Tony replied immediately.

[heroic_jawline]

"Then why are you avoiding me?" Steve asked.

[imafuturist]

"Me issues," Tony said, looking down into his food container. "Don't worry about. I'm fine. No more avoidance. I promise."

[heroic_jawline]

Steve swiped one of the last ribs in passive-aggressive disagreement.

[imafuturist]

"Hey," Tony grumbled, clutching his fried rice closer.

[heroic_jawline]

"Talk to me about what's bugging you," Steve said around a mouthful of rib bone. "Please."

[imafuturist]

You didn't want to have this conversation, Steve! Tony certainly didn't. Tony wanted to just eat and not have emotions about things for a good long while.

"Why do you want to know?"

[heroic_jawline]

"Because I love you," Steve said, "and I'm worried."

[imafuturist]

Tony poked at his fried rice for a moment longer because it was ridiculous and clearly he needed to do a better job at having a thick skin.

"A lot of people have called me a narcissist before, but never anyone I cared about. Like I said, me thing."

[heroic_jawline]

Steve's eyes went huge and apologetic. "Tony, I'm sorry."

[imafuturist]

"Me thing," Tony repeated, chin up and eyes down because it definitely didn't matter outside his own head.

[heroic_jawline]

"But I hurt you," Steve said insistently. "I'm so, so sorry."

[imafuturist]

"I just needed time to push on through it." To not caring what people thought about him. With his husband. It had not worked. But Howard Stark didn't raise a quitter! He raised himself an absolute wreck of a human being, but not a quitter.

[heroic_jawline]

"You shouldn't have to push through it," Steve said. "I said something that hurt you, and I'm sorry. I'm the person who's always on your side."

[imafuturist]

"You're generally correct about things like that, so I just..." Well, he was real good at hiding from the truth.