Archive of Our Own ^beta

            It had finally happened- Tony needed glasses in his daily life, not just readers. They weren’t that different from his usual shades, except that the clear lenses magnified his eyes just a tiny bit to the viewer. Not enough to be disconcerting, but certainly enough to warrant mentioning by every single person in the compound, apparently.

            Scratch that. Not every single person had said something. When Natashia and Thor had teased him during training, Stephen had been there and hadn’t said a word. Nor had he said anything at the team meeting after, where plenty of people took their shots at Tony. It was odd- Stephen was usually the first person to make a joke at Tony’s expense, just as Tony was for Stephen- that was just their dynamic. So why hadn’t he said anything today?

            He managed to catch Stephen alone in the kitchen after the meeting, with his final cup of tea before he left for the day.

            “You’ve been strangely quiet today,” he joked as he entered the room, so as to avoid startling the sorcerer. Stephen still jolted before spinning around on his stool, but not as badly as he would’ve if Tony had waited to announce himself. “Something on your mind?”

            “Nothing in particular,” Stephen lied airily, as though Tony couldn’t tell by now. It wasn’t entirely unusual that Stephen lie about what he was thinking about or how he felt, but Tony usually let it slide. This time, however, there was another factor to consider- the staring.

            Stephen had been watching him during training, and during the meeting. Every time Tony looked his way, he’d caught Stephen staring. That was unusual, too, but this morning, as he’d sparred with Nat he’d seen what he thought was a flash of heat in Stephen’s gaze.

            It was this that emboldened him to walk right up to Stephen and brace his hands on either side of the counter, boxing Stephen in on his stool, and leaned in just slightly, offering the other man a satisfied grin as Stephen leaned back just slightly, lips parted in shock. “You haven’t said anything about my glasses all day. It couldn’t be because you like them, could it?” he teased. Stephen had worn civilian athletic gear today, and it was this that allowed Tony to track the flush that spread up Stephen’s neck and over his face as he gaped, clearly still shocked by this turn of events.

            “Wh- What’s it to you?” Stephen stammered, trying and failing to keep his voice even. He was nervous, but he hadn’t told Tony to fuck off, which meant he didn’t want Tony to fuck off. So, Tony took a risk and a small step further into Stephen’s space, until his hips bumped Stephen’s open knees.

            “Am I distracting, Stephen?” Tony asked, ignoring the question. “Am I… hard to look away from?”

            The slightest movement- Stephen was biting the inside of his lip. The mounting euphoria in Tony’s chest swelled- he’d only meant to tease Stephen, but he really did want Tony it would be a dream come true.

            “You’re being rather distracting right now.” This time, Stephen managed to keep his tone a little more even, but he was still blushing bright red, so he retained little dignity through his stoicism.

            Tony grinned, and Stephen’s gaze flickered down to his lips, lingering just too long before returning to his eyes. “Are you gonna do something about it?” Tony asked, leaning forward a little bit more, matching the curve of Stephen’s chest as he arched away, until there were only a few inches between their faces.

            “Do you… w-want me to…?” Stephen’s voice had reduced to something so low it was practically a whisper.

            “Show me what you’ve been thinking about, Stephen,” Tony confirmed, and he barely had time to finish the words before Stephen seized him, one hand fisting in his shirt to drag him forward, the other sliding into his hair to guide him into a desperate kiss. Stephen kissed like he would never get the chance to do it again, like he needed it as much as he needed air. Tony went weak in the knees, but it wasn’t a problem as Stephen’s legs wrapped around his hips, holding him in place. Tony gasped into the kiss, then moaned. It was better than he’d ever imagined it to be.

            When Stephen finally loosed his grip and Tony had to pull away to breathe, he was pleased to see that in addition to being flushed, Stephen looked like he’d just been kissed- hair mussed and lips slightly swollen- and he found that he very much liked having been the one to make Stephen look like that.

            “Wow,” Tony managed between breaths. “Me? First the glasses and now me? You really do have terrible taste.”

            Stephen snorted, letting his legs fall once more but keeping his hands where they’d ended up on Tony’s hips. “I never said I liked the glasses,” he shot back, a half-breathless laugh escaping him at the instant playful pout Tony put on.

            “Really? You haven’t been able to take your eyes off me all day. The only thing that’s different is the glasses, unless you had some revelation about me today.”

            “No, I’ve known I loved you for years-” Stephen responded, before cutting himself off abruptly. “I mean- that doesn’t mean that-”

            Tony silenced him with another quick kiss, pressing close to prevent Stephen from folding in on himself like he did when he thought he’d made a mistake. “So this is more than just physical attraction?” he asked before Stephen could begin to expand on how nothing had to change, or worse, how he’d leave forever if Tony was uncomfortable. That seemed like the sort of thing that Stephen might do, if it was really real for him. And he knew that it was.

            “A lot more,” Stephen confessed, the shaking in his hands getting worse momentarily as he tried to suppress the tremble that had manifested since he’d said I loved you and wasn’t that just marvelous?

            “Do you realize that you are one of maybe ten people in my life that I’d trust with anything and everything?” Tony asked, and Stephen blinked, clearly confused by the shift in subject. “I’ve been flirting with you for the last ten years, did you really think I would reject you? Reject your love?”

            “You flirt with everyone.” Stephen’s voice was low and just as shaky as the rest of him. It was clear that he was terrified that Tony would ridicule him, push him away. “And it’s not like I didn’t flirt back.”

            Both fair points, but both beside the point that Tony was trying to make. “What I’m trying to say is that I’ve been trying to get you to fall in love with me for the past ten years, Stephen. Do you understand?”

            Stephen’s breath hitched, and some of the shaking subsided. “You- trying?”

            “Yes! I thought you weren’t interested in anything more than some banter. But then I saw how you looked at me, and I saw interest.”

            “This was a very bold strategy to get my attention about it.” Stephen commented faux-idly. “Are you going to be this distracting all the time?”

            Tony laughed, his joy doubling as Stephen all but confirmed that he did want some kind of relationship. “I’ve been told I make a very good distraction.”

            “And you’re offering those services on demand?”

            “Among other things. You might even call them boyfriend privileges.”

            Stephen hummed, but his attempt to keep his face straight was ruined by the corner of his mouth quirking up seemingly against his will. “Boyfriend, hm?”

            “Or partner, if you’d prefer. Or fiancé, husband, you know. That kind of thing.”

            “You are not allowed to propose to me until we’ve at least gone on a date.”

            “Wait until the second date, got it,” Tony joked, though there was a part of him that was tempted.

            “I will say no,” Stephen threatened, but Tony could tell he wasn’t serious.

            “Don’t worry, I need some time to plan the proposal.”

            “Who says I won’t propose to you first?”

            “I could stand being proposed to.”

            “Oh, you could stand it.” Amusement bled through Stephen’s tone. “Lucky me.”

            “Pretty sure I’m the lucky one here, actually. I’d given up on love because I don’t really trust people outside of my circle, and I thought you’d never notice me.”

            “I repeat, you flirt with everyone. How was I supposed to know? I thought it was- wishful thinking, on my part.”

            “Wish granted.”

            Stephen’s expression slipped through a range of emotions, settling on something Tony couldn’t quite identify before Stephen pulled him into another chaste, but lingering kiss, sliding his arms around Tony’s back to pull him that small bit closer. “I almost wish you’d caught me staring before,” he murmured as he pulled back.

            “I guess the glasses just had a unique hold on you,” Tony teased. “Do you just have a thing for Clark Kent types?”

            “Okay, first of all, you are not Clark Kent, you’re Bruce Wayne at best and Oliver Queen at worst, and second, that’s not the reason.”

            “So what is the reason?” Tony asked, choosing to ignore the jab about Oliver Queen… for now.

             “I-…  In another universe I met a version of you who was married to that universe’s version of me. He… had the same glasses. I suppose I got caught staring because I was thinking about what it would be like if you shared his feelings, too.”

            Tony was quiet for a moment, considering. Stephen certainly sounded guilty about that, but it didn’t sound like something that required guilt. “Okay,” he said just to say something, so that Stephen wouldn’t think he thought that was bad for some reason.

            He watched as Stephen’s guilty expression was swept away by confusion. “It- it is?”

            “I don’t see why it wouldn’t be.”

            “Really?”

            “Well, it’s not like you lived that other you’s life in order to be with the other me. You just met them. Right?”

            “That’s true.”

            “So, what would I have to be upset about? The fact that you wanted me? Because in case you missed it, I want you, too. You don’t have to feel guilty about that.”

            “I think you’re probably better than I deserve.”

            “I’m not Catholic, I don’t believe in thought crimes.”

            “I- okay,” Stephen bit out, apparently changing his mind about whatever he was going to say. Tony didn’t push it, more focused on making sure Stephen understood that everything was fine.

            He chose to accomplish that via another kiss, this one gentler than the last. “How about we take this upstairs? It’s private, and it’s got a couch and a bed. We can talk, make out, cuddle, whatever.” Stephen looked almost close to tears, and he’d probably prefer not to be walked in on for something like that.

            “Cuddle, huh?” Stephen asked, amusement lacing his tone. “Is that what you want?”

            “Among other things. But it’s cold today, and I have lots of pillows and blankets, so if we did cuddle it would be really cozy.”

            “You can stop, I’m already convinced.” Finally, Stephen smiled. Tony grinned back, pleased.

            “Alright, do you want to take the elevator or a portal?”

            “Let’s just portal.”

            Excellent. That meant that despite his teasing, Stephen was just as eager as he was- if not more. Although, Tony found it hard to believe. He stepped back to allow Stephen to slip off the stool and retrieve his sling ring. When the portal was open, Tony offered Stephen his arm, and they walked through it together into a new life- a shared life.

            And if the events of the past few minutes were any indication, Tony was pretty sure it would be a good life.