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storiesnobodyreads · 5 years

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Hard To Be Loved 5

PART FIVE

Characters: Tom Holland x Reader

Story: You are Tom Holland’s girlfriend, afraid of being in the spotlight. Your concerns are proven right when a crazy fan starts stalking and threatening you. Will your relationship with Tom stand, and are you in real danger?

A/N: this is part 5, as promised, on sunday! let me know what you think!! lots of lovee

Warning: curses

PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | PART 4

“Can I say it?” Chris asked, voice higher pitched than usual.

The ones who understood, so mainly the founding Avengers, all sighed in desperation. Clearly, Chris had attempted to do this before. The rest looked around a little confused. Jeremy Renner answered for the sake of the group, “God, Evans, Just get it over with!”

“Alright,” Chris cleared his throat. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them again, he was Captain America. “Avengers…” he spoke, voice low and deep and serious. “Assemble!”

*****

The meeting with the Avengers passed by awfully quickly. Even though you had in fact met all the wonderful actors plenty of times before and even considered them as more than just acquaintances, it took your breath away to see them all in the same room. Tom was looking around wide-eyed and in awe, seeing his childhood heroes every way he turned. Unfortunately, the atmosphere had been serious and tense.

Because yours and Tom’s reputation was on the line here.

Every one of them had agreed to post something on social media, a picture with either Tom or you or both, making a statement about privacy and respect to this couple.

It triggered you that you didn’t know anything about Rebecca except her first name. You wished that the actors could have tagged her in their posts, unleashing the storm of rage from the fans upon her. Or perhaps it would be the other way around, and you would be burned to the ground for exposing an innocent person to the world of paparazzi. No matter what, it pissed you off that Rebecca was ruining your life and you didn’t even know her last name. She knew everything about you and Tom.

Hours passed and eventually it was actually quite fun. After a while, however, it became time to go back home and have dinner. Lots of hugs and manly embraces were exchanged.

Sebastian Stan held you a little longer as he was hugging you. “Stay strong, kid,” he murmured.

“Man, I’m like the fucking Hulk,” you grumbled in his chest.

Seb’s low laughter made you shake. “Good.” He held you at a distance, rubbing your arms. Suddenly, the smile vanished from his face and his blue eyes sparkled sadly. “I really hope you don’t get your heart broken.”

His words stung.

“Well, I’ll let you know if I do,” you commented, trying to laugh light-heartedly, but truthfully you felt as if you chest was as heavy as the entire fucking world. “I do expect you to bring my chocolate if something goes wrong.”

“Of course,” Seb nodded firmly. “For now, though, let’s believe that everything will be okay. You do have the Avengers on your side, you know.”

You made a face. “I guess that’s kind of cool.”

After that, more encouraging phrases were thrown at you and all your heroes told you to stay strong. It should make you feel more prepared, less frightened, however, the fact they all so seriously cared so much made you only the more concerned that this was massively messed up.

Tom found you when most of the cast was leaving. “Love,” he smiled, smoothly taking your hand. “Everything’s going to be okay. Right?”

“Right.” You couldn’t quite tell whether he was comforting you or you were comforting him.

Robert Downey Junior joined you by your side, wrapping a supportive arm around you. “Well, kids, I’d say this was a success. Now I suggest you two go out for dinner. Or order pizza and watch movie. Have a nice night together. Sound like a plan? Then I can start debating which picture I’m going to post.”

Tom stared at his mentor. “Please don’t post an embarrassing picture of me.”

Robert’s eyes shone mischievously. “I’d never do that, Tom.”

“You’re going to do it, I can tell,” Tom sighed.

“I would never!” Robert exclaimed, hitting his hand against his chest as if he was truly insulted that Tom would dare think such a thing. His face broke into a smile, clapping Tom on the back. “Now get out of here. I’ve seen enough of you two. We’ll all see each other at the Superhero Party in tomorrow, right? Not everyone is going, but I am confident that the youngest members of our team will be there.” He expectantly lifted one eyebrow eyeing you and Tom.

Tom grinned, “Absolutely.”

*****

That evening, everything finally felt kind of fine. Tom had ordered New York pizzas and and had opened up a bottle of red wine. You and Tom were lying on the couch, eating pizza, drinking wine, watching the new Sandra Bullock movie Bird Box. It was a good, cozy night. Tired as you both were, you curled up in each other and enjoyed each other’s warmth. Tom had his arm around you, drawing patterns on your back.

You period had begun the second you had returned from Robert Downey Junior’s house, and although you knew timing couldn’t be worse, you were also infinitely relieved you hadn’t leaked through your pants in front of all the Avengers. Having your period, emotions were at your all-time high and cramps soon became your enemy. Therefore, having Tom softly massage your lower-back and every now and then pressing a loving kiss into your hair, was the best thing you could wish for.

The two of you went to bed early. Tom had filled a special pillow with hot water to keep your uterus heated and lessen the pain. It wasn’t a night of many words. His actions spoke louder than his words anyway. Even though Tom regularly told you he loved you and how beautiful you looked, the main way he showed you how much he truly loved you was by his actions. He knew your period pain was intense the first day and did everything he could to make it easier.

In bed, you curled up into his side. He was cold, perhaps because you were practically a living furnace right now. Softly, you whispered, “Thank you for taking care of me. I know that’s probably not where your mind is at right now. Sorry.”

Tom kissed your temple. “Are you kidding? You’re the most important person in my life. And it’s not your fault that periods exist.”

“That’s true, I guess,” you murmured, appreciating the gentle way Tom was stroking your hair, fingers tracing over your sensitive skin. “I love you, Thomas. Very much so.”

You cradled your head on his chest, listening to his breathing. His steady rhythm slowly carried you to sleep, forgetting the pain in your back and belly.

Very much so: that was your thing. The first time Tom had told you he loved you, he’d said it rather fast and hesitantly, too scared of your reaction. Um-I-um-love-you-Y/N, he’d brought out. You’d apologised: sorry, didn’t catch that, babe. He’d taken a deep breath, fixing his sleeves nervously. I. Love. You. You’d kind of heard him the first time around, but didn’t mean to be the idiot who misunderstood such an important sentence. Your cheeks were redder than tomatoes, heart racing in your chest. Really? Tom had nodded. Very much so.

Tom’s chuckle rumbled underneath you. “I love you too,” he yawned. “Very much so.”

*****

The next morning, you didn’t feel much better. Cramps and nightmares about Rebecca had kept you awake. You remembered how Rebecca had texted you to break up with Tom and it would all be over--especially after how sweet he had been to you, this simply wasn’t an option. You should have broken up with him, of course. For the sake of his career. For the sake of Spider-Man and the millions of people who loved the character.

Tom was no longer in bed, which surprised you for a second, before you spotted the time and saw it was literally one o’clock in the afternoon. You’d woken up multiple times, but since your day had no agenda, you had decided to continue sleeping.

You grabbed your phone from the nightstand and scanned Rebeca’s last text message from yesterday: I saw the police in your home. Don’t think it’ll be easy to catch me. You know nothing about me except my first name, and I’ll destroy this phone immediately. You keep underestimating me, you whore. Stop thinking you’re so much better than me, or this will end very badly for you. Break up with Tom now, and I might leave you alone.

Letting out a deep sigh, you rolled over to take up the entire bed. It hardly felt real to you anymore. You’d experienced too many emotions the past couple of days; you were exhausted. You considered going back to sleep despite knowing it was 1 P.M., when the delicious smell of bacon and eggs hit you. Tom must be cooking breakfast, or lunch, for the two of you.

Cute.

Tom was fucking cute.

The bubble that exploded in your chest drove you to get out of bed, pull on a sweater from Tom and your sweatpants and Tom’s happy socks. Sauntering into the kitchen, you found Tom was wearing a similar outfit. He was busy with the bacon and didn’t hear you come in. You stood leaning against the wall for a bit, admiring him for who he was.

Finally, he did turn around. Seeing you, his face lit up. “Hey lo--”

You attacked his with a hug, firmly wrapping your arms around his neck. “Good morning, you wonderful human being. I’m super hungry.”

Tom was laughing. “Yeah, you probably should be after sleeping fourteen hours.”

You shrugged, letting go of him. “I expected to be going into hibernation, so really this is not so bad.”

Tom studied you. “You look like you could use more sleep, actually.”

“Gee, thanks, babe.”

“I’m sure you’re still just as beautiful on the inside,” Tom smirked teasingly, pulling you closer.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you hummed, “I’m looking so flawless right now. Like damn, even I would date me.”

“Can’t think of a single reason why anyone wouldn’t want to date you,” Tom agreed with a smile.

The two of you had lunch together. The bacon was perfect and the scrambled eggs were just how you liked them. After eating, despite it being perfect, you were struck with an after dinner dip. You found yourself reluctantly yawning.

Tom eyed you suspiciously. “How can you still be tired? I swear if you’re going back to bed, I’m going to punch myself in the face.”

“Don’t do that,” you smirked, “Not in that face. I like that face.” You changed the subject, aware that you most definitely were going back to bed within a couple of minutes. “What are your plans for this afternoon?”

“I’m meeting Haz to go to the gym,” Tom told you excitedly. “And then I’ll go to the supermarket ‘cause we don’t have any food for tonight. So I’ll be back at like five.”

You nodded. “Sounds good.”

“Your plans?”

You shrugged and flashed a mischievous smile. “I’m going to sleep,” you answered truthfully. “I’m tired as hell. But then I’ll have enough energy for the Superhero Party tonight.”

Tom tilted his head. “Okay, fair enough. I do need you to be awake tonight.” The unsaid meaning of that sentence lingered in the air: because what if Rebecca might do something?

“I’ll be so awake, you won’t even know what’s happening to you,” you promised. “But for now, I’m going to bed.” You wiggled your brows. “Join me?”

Tom was on his feet faster than you could say please.

*****

Tom was gone when you woke up. You guessed he’d gone to the gym after you had fallen asleep in his arms. A fluffy blanket was wrapped around you burrito-style, and by your head you found your favourite book and hot chocolate with marshmallows that had unfortunately cooled, but the idea was sweet. You wanted to see if he’d sent you a message, but your phone was out of your reach and you didn’t want to ruin his carefully crafted burrito. Therefore, you stayed in your position for quite some time, warm and comfy, thinking about how adorable Tom really was.

Tom came back home a little later than he had promised, around 5:30 P.M., carrying three bags filled with food. Face white. Eyes empty.

You tried to kiss him hello but he sort of dodged your gesture with a swirl and ended up patting you on the shoulder politely.

Huh?

Something was wrong. You felt it immediately. What had happened? Had you done something wrong? This morning he’d been warm and fluffy, and now it was the complete polar opposite.

You cooked together, and you attempted to quip back and forth, joking around like the two of you usually did, but Tom was unusually quiet. His responses were dialled back to: “Uh-huh.” and “Yeah.” Which made it hard to have a conversation.

“How is Haz?” you asked.

“Fine.”

“How was the gym?” you asked.

“Fine.”

“Yeah, what’d you train?” you asked.

“Just the regular.”

“Is everything okay?” you asked.

“Ya.”

“Sure?” you asked.

“Ya.”

Dinner was made and smelt pretty good. You set the table and was thinking so hard your brain was whirring, spinning, until anxiety was crippling you. Anxiety was always quick to come to you when you were on your period, and also when you were being threatened by a psychopath named Rebecca. You and Tom sat down at the kitchen table, and you got nervous simply by the fact Tom refused to look you in the eye.

You watched Tom take a deep breath. “Y/N,” Tom said.

Oh, god. Just from the way he said your name, the light quiver in his undertone, you could tell this was going to be a serious conversation. You looked at him, cocking up one brow.

He swallowed thickly. “I was thinking...”

“That’s never a good sign,” you murmured sarcastically.

Tom blurted out his thoughts before he could change his mind. “Maybe you shouldn’t come to the Superhero Party. I mean, it’s going to be lots of people, from Marvel and DC and really anyone who has anything to do with superheroes. There’s going to be so much media attention and interviewers and paparazzi. I just... with everything that’s been going on, I don’t want you to be a victim to that. It might trigger you, you know?”

You frowned. You didn’t know whether to feel heartbroken that Tom didn’t want you by his side, or to deem it sort of sweet that he intended to protect you. “Tom, that’s very... thoughtful of you,” you brought out, blinking heavily, still unsure of how to respond. “But I... I want to support you. We can’t really let Rebecca have that kind of impact on our lives. She’s just one girl. She can’t keep us away from the things we’d usually do.”

You didn’t understand the look on tom’s face: the glimpses of panic in his brown eyes, combined with misplaced determination. “Well, love, that’s true for our personal lives,” he argued with a growl. “But this is just too public. Too much media. I don’t think it’d be a good idea.”

Something in his eyes made you straighten your back, an uncomfortably chill running down your spine. “Is this a discussion, Tom, or have you already made your decision?”

A hard glare passed over Tom’s expression. “I think it’s the best decision for you not to come, yeah.”

You could feel yourself shrink under Tom’s gaze. It was highly unlike him to portray this dominant character and act as if you were his subordinate, his obedient wife. He was never like this. He was always kind and happy and bubbly and ready to communicate and converse to find the best solution for both of you. It was so badly out of character that a piece of your soul crumbled. Just for a bit, you couldn’t recognise the man sitting opposite you.

You tried to swallow your tears away, feeling them burn dangerously close to the surface. Goddamn, you hadn’t been able to stop crying since Rebecca entered your lives. “Oh. Okay. Whatever you want, I guess.”

Tom’s jaw tensed. “Yeah.”

“Yeah.”

Tom didn’t say anything else. He reached out as if he intended to hold you, comfort you, but halfway through the gesture he seemed to change his mind and pulled back.

What a lack of love.

You felt painfully empty, gaping hole in your chest, making every heartbeat ache through your whole body. This was the end then. This was the end of your healthy, loving relationship, wasn’t it?

The two of you finished your plates in silence. Despite having lost your appetite, you shoved the food down your throat to leave the table as soon as possible. As soon as your plate was empty, you rose to your feet. “You should get dressed, then. I’ll clean this.”

Tom offered, “I can help--”

“You should get dressed, Tom,” you repeated.

Tom moved up, now matching your height. You refused to cry. You weren’t going to show him that you were stupidly girly enough to start crying over the fact he didn’t want you to come to the Superhero Party. Any other day, you wouldn’t have cared and wished him all the fun in the world. But now, it felt like a statement. “Y/N,” he tried to say.

“No, I think you’ve made your point,” you interrupted. “Look, Tom, I totally get it. I understand you. But I was looking forward to going to this party together. It just hurts a little, is all.”

Tom stared at you, shoulders hanging, eyes glistening. His cold determination vanished like snow in the sun. “I’m sorry,” he brought out.

“It’s fine,” you dismissed your own pain like it was nothing. “You should get dressed for real. I need a little time to myself right now.” You knew very well that if this conversation was going to last any longer, you wouldn’t be able to hold back the tears.

“I’m sorry,” said Tom again.

But actions speak louder than words.

*****

Tom got dressed. Suit and tie, just like the Infinity War premiere though slightly less formal. Whelms of perfume coming of him, he smelt fresh and ready to conquer the universe.

From the couch, you gave him a small smile. “You look handsome,” you commented flatly.

“Thanks,” he murmured unenthusiastically. “Have a good night, love.” He didn’t look you in the eye. Didn’t kiss you good night.

What the fuck was wrong?

“You too,” you whispered quietly, watching as he swirled around and marched out the door of your apartment that now suddenly felt chilly and abandoned. The front door slammed shut loudly. You flinched. And then Tom was gone. Just like that.

*****

You had ordered pizza and was drinking red wine, lying on the couch, watching Brooklyn 99 on Netflix. Any other day, it would have been a perfect night. Last night it had been a perfect night--but that had been with Tom. Everything was better with Tom.

It didn’t help that you were on your period and in pain and tired and stressed and emotions were cruel.

Your phone was buzzing continuously but you weren’t very interested, convinced that it was Tom texting you. Or perhaps you were only hoping it was Tom, and you didn’t want to be disappointed again.

After a solid hour, and three Brooklyn 99 episodes later, you finally decided to check your phone.

Well, it wasn’t Tom.

Hundreds of messages from friends and family and, strangely enough, Tom’s colleagues. The amount of attention you got was weird. You were used to seeing Tom’s phone blow up like this but not yours. “If this is because of Rebecca, I swear to god...” you whispered to yourself, panic clouding your judgement.

What if something was wrong with Tom? What if she’d hurt him as punishment for you not responding to her text message?

Harrison, Zendaya, Laura, Jacob, your good friends from high school, even Sam, Harry and Paddy, Robert Downey Junior, Sebastian Stan, Chris Evans and so many more had called you and texted you. You were confused, because at least half of those people should be at the Superhero Party and shouldn’t be focused on you.

First, you opened Harrison’s messages.

Harrison: Y/N, where r u?

Harrison: Tom didn’t say where you wereeee so text back plz

Harrison: Lol don’t think you’re here, why not??

Harrison: Ummmm I don’t mean to mess up your relationship and all, but I’m your friend too, and Tom is here with another girl?

Harrison: PleASe don’t say you broke up

Harrison: REPLY TO ME Y/N PLEASE

Harrison: Who is this girl????? Tom is ignoring me what the fuck

Harrison had sent a photograph, secretly taken from the back of the room and dramatically zoomed in to show Tom in his suit, side by side with a red-headed girl. Rebecca. It was actual fucking Rebecca. You couldn’t quite see Tom’s face, but Rebecca’s face was clearly visible: widely laughing, having the time of her life.

“What the fuck, Tom?” you brought out. Your heart skipped a beat, the earth tilting as you looked at the picture, its meaning boring through your chest like a sword. The end of the world would have hurt less than this.

So this was how Tom Holland betrayed you.

*****

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cuthian · 4 years

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Starting Over Chapter Four

Hi guys!

Please enjoy the next chapter and be sure to keep an eye on the dates--there's some time jumps coming up :)

Love, Annaelle

Chapter Four

POLYAMOROUS RIGHTS ADVOCATES SEE MARRIAGE EQUALITY COMING FOR THEM

Like many others across the country a few weeks ago, a Washington D.C. couple and their housewarming guests buzzed about the Supreme Court’s ruling that legalized gay marriage in all fifty states. This group, however, was far more interested in Chief Justice John Robert’s dissent than the majority opinion that made same-sex marriage the law of the land.

The couple—a husband and a wife—are polyamorous, and just moved in with their girlfriend. […]chief justice wrote that polygamy has deeper roots in history and that the decision to allow gays to marry “would apply with equal force to the claim of a fundamental right to plural marriage.”

Other comments of note from Chief Justice John Roberts on plural marriage include: “If not having the opportunity to marry ‘serves to disrespect and subordinate’ gay and lesbian couples, why wouldn’t the same ‘imposition of this disability’ serve to disrespect and subordinate people who find fulfillment in polyamorous relationships?” and “When asked about a plural marital union[…] petitioners asserted that a State ‘doesn’t have such an institution.’ […]that is exactly the point: the States at issue here do not have an institution of same-sex marriage, either.”

[…]believe that Roberts’ dissent will prove as useful to the polyamorous movement as dissents written by Justice Antonin Scalia in gay rights cases were to the most recent—and successful—same-sex marriage suit.

Polyamorists and similar communities have never found more vindication in a dissent than this, however. It truly is causing quite the stir, amongst supporters and protesters alike.

[…]movement for equal right to plural marriage gained a lot of traction in the last few years, after Tony Stark’s announcement of his polyamorous relationship with longtime boyfriend Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes and Stark Industries C.E.O. Virginia “Pepper” Potts. Stark, Potts, and Rhodes have already issued multiple statements saying they’d love to marry each other, but that they refuse to marry between themselves unless they can all marry.

“Tony and I have been together for most of our adult lives,” Rhodes said when asked during a press conference. “We’ve been with Pepper for a long time too, by now. We know this is it for us. If we could, we would already have been married.” […]many people living in polyamorous relationships “are in the closet and being very careful”, with a large number of them feeling it’s more important to protect their employment, housing, and children than to lead the charge for marital rights.

[…]polyamorous partners, particular younger ones, are increasingly “out” about their lifestyle, and believe that change will come with greater swiftness than for gay people. Having public figures like Tony Stark, Pepper Potts, James Rhodes and even Captain America himself lending support to their cause is predicted to have a large impact.

[…]explosion of media interest in polyamorous families hints change will come—so long as polyamorous people continue to step out of the shadows—and she hopes in the meantime states will expand domestic partnership laws.

"The same-sex marriage movement has really broadened our perspectives on what family means, what love means," a spokesperson for the National LGBTQIA+ community says. "There's quite a strong possibility in the next 10 or 20 years we'll have a very different idea nationwide of what it means to be in a committed family."

—Steven Nelson, “Future Polyamorous Marriage Right”, U.S. News & World Report Online, June 2015

————————

Common floor of the Avengers Tower, Manhattan, New York, U.S.A.

November 23rd, 2015

Tony

Whatever else occurred, Tony maintained that organizing an Avengers Game Night the day after Becca, Capsicle and Thor returned to the Tower was a brilliant idea. They hadn’t done anything together as a team since the party they’d thrown Steve had Becca when they abandoned them for a new, shiny job in D.C., and now that they were back and they had a few new members, Tony wanted to make sure they had some time together.

They tended to hang out in clusters, and it wasn’t like they didn’t all get along or weren’t all friends, it was just that they tended to stick to their pre-Battle of New York friendship dynamics.

It was, quite possibly, the first time they’d all managed to be in the Tower at the same time in years.

He’d convinced Rhodey to stick around for the weekend, citing a few promises that made Tony feel a little hot under the collar just thinking about them, and had J.A.R.V.I.S. sneakily reschedule all of Pepper’s appointments so her weekend was free, and even lured Bruce up from his lab with some kind of weird Himalayan tea the man had mentioned once.

Natasha had texted him three days ago that she and Clint would both be there—even though Tony hadn’t even really decided to do anything yet back then—so he’d resigned himself to having his Tower invaded by formerly brainwashed—semi-Russian, at least one of them—spies.

Steve and Becca had planned on spending their three days off in the Tower anyway, so Tony had relished in not having to convince them to show up.

The wonder twins had not confirmed they’d be leaving their floor, but Tony figured they’d show up at some point. Even Thor would be there, coming in from D.C. with Becca and Steve, and he had happily provided all the Asgardian booze needed to get both Steve and himself delightfully drunk as a damned skunk, and promised he would ensure Becca and Steve wouldn’t skip out tonight’s activities.

Tony had PlansTM for the night.

It wasn’t that they didn’t all know each other reasonably well, but Tony felt like there were probably a few things that they could stand to learn about each other.

Besides… They all needed a break from the Avengers op from hell.

Tony hadn’t really been able to find any solid evidence of a cover-up, no matter how many databases he hacked and how many firewalls he bypassed, and he knew Natasha hadn’t found anything more damning either.

It was intensely frustrating.

So. Game night.

It was, even if he did say so himself, a perfect plan.

Steve, Becca and Thor wandered onto the common floor first. Tony hadn’t actually seen all of them together that often, and it was pretty interesting to see the dynamic. Thor and Becca were holding hands, while Becca used her free hand to gesticulate excitedly about whatever she and the Capsicle were talking about. Thor wasn’t speaking much that Tony could see, but he looked utterly content to listen to Becca and Steve babble without providing much input.

Tony shrugged.

To each their own.

At least he’d brought a bottle of what Tony assumed was the booze that would get him and Steve drunk too. He narrowly resisted the urge to pout—he had hoped Thor would’ve foreseen to bring more than a single bottle for the two of them.

Pepper walked in a few minutes later, engrossed in whatever legal documents she was undoubtedly reading, Rhodey pulling her along by one hand to make sure she didn’t run into anything.

Tony may have swooned a little.

Just a little.

Rhodey being a gentleman had always been a bit of a turn-on, and basically everything Pepper did made Tony’s heart feel like it grew three sizes—in the non-lethal, metaphorical way, of course.

He watched as Pepper greeted Becca, Thor and Steve with a hug, a little puzzled by the strange, long look Thor gave her when he released her from his arms, before he turned to Rhodey and shook his hand. He didn’t get a chance to really think on it more, because right then the twins decided to appear on his couch in a single blurred movement.

He hadn’t spent much time with Wanda and Pietro yet—he didn’t think any of them had, except maybe Natasha—but he looked forward to getting to know them.

He’d been the one voting for their addition to the team the most, despite them being underage at the time, and he hadn’t regretted the decision yet. Once they had gotten over their resentment for his bombs being used in the attack that killed their parents and little brother, they turned out to be wicked smart and incredibly resourceful.

He liked them, even if Speedy Gonzales was snarkier than Rogers and Becca combined, and Little Red had a meaner side-eye than the goddamned Black fucking Widow did.

The superspies suddenly appeared on his couch, a bottle of excellent vodka already clenched in Red Scare’s hand. Tony just threw his hands up and figured he didn’t even want to know how they got past J.A.R.V.I.S.—

…he really did want to know though.

For Science.

Once Bruce had trudged in, looking for all intents and purposes like he was completely surprised to find himself suddenly surrounded by his teammates, Tony herded all of them towards the lounge area, where there were enough seats for all of them, and where they could put down all of the booze and snacks they’d collected.

Of course, ample seating still meant Clint and Natasha somehow twisted themselves together into a human pretzel, and Becca cuddled close to her Asgardian beefcake while Rogers seemed to come to the conclusion that Becca’s lap was the perfect place to rest his head while he squinted at all of them suspiciously—Tony had to admit Rogers might be onto him just a little bit.

The twins commandeered one of the love seats for themselves, and the Flash kid grinned smugly at Bruce when he had to settle for a seat next to them.

Rhodey and Pepper perched next to each other on the sofa and Tony flung himself at their feet, very subtly tilting his head back into their knees until one of them dug their fingers into his hair and gave him the hair scratches he’d been angling for.

Excellent.

“Okay,” he said when everyone had settled with their respective favorite alcohol—and juice, for the not-yet-of-legal-drinking-age Maximoff twins (yes he was a hypocrite)—within reach. “We’re going to play stupid drinking games like we’re still in college and spill some juicy gossip and we’re going to generally not be responsible tonight. Pep, darling, light of my life, put away the phone, I know you’re working.”

He felt rather than heard Pepper sigh before she handed her phone to Rhodey and accepted the glass of her favorite Merlot from him. “Thank you, sweetheart,” Tony heard her say quietly, and damn if that didn’t make his heart squeeze a little too.

He loved his partners, damn it. He was allowed to be sappy.

“Oh,” Clint exclaimed happily from somewhere in the human pretzel. “Let’s start with Truth or Dare! It’ll make everyone loosen up a little!”

“No it won’t,” Steve grumbled from his spot in Becca’s lap, but he quickly shut up when she patted his cheek consolingly and just pushed his lip out into a pout—God, it was easy to forget the guy was one of their younger members until he did shit like that.

“I’ll start,” Clint chirped. “Rogers, truth or dare?”

“Truth,” Steve replied mulishly, sitting up straight and curling his legs beneath him.

“What did you really think of the uniform Phil designed?” Clint grinned, winking at Steve lightly. Tony was actually inordinately pleased to see that Clint was able to say his late husband’s name without dissolving into hysterical sobbing.

Rogers hadn’t been the only hot mess in the Tower for a while there.

“Ugh,” Steve said eloquently, taking a sip of the Asgardian booze Thor handed him. “I hated it. Tight in all the wrong areas and flimsy as fuck. The tights the USO gave me were better. Those were stretchy. I could actually move properly in those. Plus they made my ass look great. There was an excessively appreciative audience.”

Tony hadn’t expected that, and burst into surprised laughter along with the others, hiccupping a little when they calmed down a little. Steve had the most shit-eating grin on his face and Tony feared for himself a little when Steve said, “Stark. Truth or dare.”

“Dare,” he said, pushing out his chin a little in defiance, keeping his eyes on Steve’s as the other man came up with an undoubtedly devious dare.

Steve grinned, baring all his teeth, like Tony had just played right into his cards—which he probably had, damn it—and chuckled. “I dare you to let Clint style your hair and your beard and to wear it like that for the rest of the night.”

Tony yelped indignantly while the others laughed and jeered at them, but refused to back down. “Fine,” he hissed, snatching one of the full shot glasses from the table and downing it. “But I need to be drunker for this.” He pointed one finger at Barton, who had excitedly extracted himself from his human pretzel and said, “But you’re not touching the beard. And I swear to God, Barton, if I have to shave my hair in the morning to save it, I will break your bow and all of your arrows.”

Everyone laughed at his expense—even Rhodey and Pepper, the traitors—and Clint hopped off to the bathroom to gather whatever nefarious supplies he needed to deface Tony’s beautiful hair.

“I get to go right now though,” he demanded, glaring at Steve as Barton returned with an armful of brushes, pots of gel and hairspray—was that temporary coloring spray?—and immediately dumped all of it on Pepper’s lap. He barely had the chance to look at Steve’s nod in acquiescence before Barton dug his fingers into his hair and began combing through it.

“Becca,” Tony called, grinning wickedly at Becca, because he couldn’t actually get back at Steve directly, but he could do it like this. “Truth or dare?”

Becca groaned and sipped her whiskey before she replied, “I’m going to regret this, but dare.”

“Aha!” Tony exclaimed triumphantly, valiantly trying to ignore whatever atrocities Barton was committing on his hair. “I dare you to make out with Steve!”

“No!” Becca shouted, nose wrinkling in disgust while Steve made a face. “God, gross, no. I take it back, truth, give me truth instead!”

Tony wagged his finger at her with the smuggest grin he could muster, given that most of his higher brain function was preoccupied with Barton’s deeply questionable fashion choices.

“Them’s the rules, Baby-Becs. No take-backs. Someone make out with him!”

“Oh, come on,” Becca whined, tossing an olive in Tony’s direction. “I’ll answer two questions and take the shot, promise. Just let me switch it out. I don’t wanna kiss Steve, he’s gross.”

“Ah, Krúttið mitt,” Thor boomed with a large grin. “You do not do our friend justice. His kissing is most satisfactory.” Tony burst into surprised laughter with the others, mostly because Steve’s face was tomato-red, and he seemed to be torn between pride and utter embarrassment, while Becca was looking between her boyfriend and the Capsicle with an expression that told him she wasn’t quite sure whether to be amused or angry at the reminder that her boyfriend had made out with her best friend.

“Really?” She pouted at Thor, frowning. “Maybe you should be kissing him then.”

Thor smirked and slung an arm around her shoulders, and Tony was far too amused to protest when Thor leaned across Becca to plant a smacking, barely-decent kiss to a speechless Cap’s lips—Tony would have sworn he saw tongue.

Scandalous.

“There,” Thor proclaimed happily once he had released Cap, turning to Tony with a shit-eating grin. “Someone has kissed our fair Captain. Will you allow Rebecca’s dare to be converted to two questions?”

“What the hell?!” Becca demanded right then, smacking Thor’s arm indignantly.

Tony watched, with slight amusement, as Thor tried to placate his rather irate girlfriend, while Steve sat frozen beside them, lips still slightly parted, like he couldn’t quite believe what happened.

Tony snorted at the thought.

“You okay in there, Capsicle?” he asked, grinning smugly when Steve visibly startled. “It can’t have been that great of a kiss, it barely lasted a second.”

“I don’t know,” Wanda piped up from her seat, grinning at Thor in that peculiar way of hers. “I think if the Thunder God kissed me, I’d be speechless too.” Tony gaped at her—because that was the most he’d ever heard her say out loud in two years—and her brother elbowed her in the side while the others blinked at her. “What?” she asked innocently. “He’s very pretty.”

“Okay, okay,” Tony finally conceded, grinning a little at the flabbergasted expression on Becca’s face. “Two questions, Baby-Becs.”

“Fine,” she grumbled, leaning out of Thor’s embrace to down one of the shots set on the table.

Tony graciously waited until she had settled back onto the couch—and it had nothing at all to do with the vicious way Barton was yanking at his hair—before he pulled out the big guns. “So,” he began ominously. “Out of everyone in this room that you’ve made out with,” he gestured grandly. “Who is the worst kisser?”

“Oh God,” Becca groaned dramatically as the group collectively shouted, “ooooooh.”

“Answer the question,” Clint jeered from behind Tony, the others cheering along with him. Becca was flushed as red as Steve had been a minute ago, and she looked furious. Oh, he was going to pay for daring to ask her that in public.

“Come on then,” he said, grinning wickedly. “Who is it?”

Becca groaned and let her head fall back against Thor’s bicep for a moment before she sat up again. “You of all people do not want me to answer that, Tony.”

Tony gasped. “Such outrageous implication. I am an excellent kisser.”

Becca smirked at him and shook her head. “Oh, I’m not saying you’re not. I’m just pointing out that you’re up against the Black Widow and the God of Thunder.”

Said God of Thunder merely smiled beatifically, and the Widow smirked at him—at him.

“Lies,” Tony exclaimed, because there had definitely been extenuating circumstances the last time he’d kissed Becca. Clearly, she was just misremembering—it had been a long time. “I demand a rematch. I was drunk off my ass the last time we made out, and so were you. I can do way better.”

Pepper kicked him in the back—in a very dignified way, he was sure—and Tony muttered, “I mean, not that it matters,” because he wasn’t an idiot.

Becca just grinned smugly—the little shit, turning his question around on him like that—and leaned back against her stupidly pretty boyfriend. “Second question, Tony? Or do you and your hair need a minute to mourn first?”

Tony resisted the urge to run to the nearest bathroom to see what Barton had done to his gorgeous hair. It could wait—he had vengeance to exact.

“Oh, I’m good,” he boasted. “I got a question.” He raised a hand and pointed towards Thor grimly. “About him.” Thor raised an eyebrow at him while Becca groaned. Tony wasn’t worried that Thor would be offended or embarrassed—they had a good enough rapport for him to feel comfortable asking this question in front of him, and Tony knew him well enough to know Thor would probably think it was funny, while Becca would die of embarrassment.

“Tony, no,” Becca said sternly, as though she was the boss of him. He only listened when Pepper or occasionally Rhodey told him not to do something.

“Oh, come on, Baby-Becs,” he whined playfully, waggling his eyebrows at her. “Thor doesn’t mind, do you, Point Break?”

Thor snorted. “Please, by all means, Stark.” He gave Becca a look that was far too sappy for the situation and added, “There is little elskan mín could tell you that I would not be happy to share if asked myself.”

Becca smiled back and added, “And I wouldn’t tell you what he doesn’t want to share anyway.”

“Okay!” Tony exclaimed before those two could start making out on his couch—if anyone should be making out on his couch, it should be him. “None of us are blind… As Little Red said, your boy is pretty—but tell me, how well-proportioned is he?”

He smirked when the rest of the room actually fell silent, because honestly, every single one of them had had a crush on their resident Thunder God at one point or another. Just because Becca was the only one to ever have acted on it—with Cap being a notable exception—didn’t mean they hadn’t all thought about making a move.

He held up his hands, relatively close together, and winked at her and Thor, who was chuckling beside her, shaking his head at them lightly. “Come on, just tell me when I’m getting close.”

“Tony, I’m not telling you the size of his dick,” Becca hissed, cheeks flushed as she downed another shot. “That’s really not—”

Nat interrupted and grinned wickedly at Becca. “Come on, котенок. Don’t be shy. He isn’t.”

The room erupted into jeering and catcalling and Tony barely caught Becca shooting Nat a comically betrayed look before she looked back at Tony and sighed. “More,” she finally said, gesturing towards the distance between his hands. “A lot more.”

Tony raised an eyebrow and moved his hand, jaw dropping a little when Becca shook her head. They continued that way for a few long, tense moments, Becca indicating Tony to give another inch while an awed—slightly impressed—hush fell over the rest of the group.

Thor seemed fairly amused by the entire affair, but Tony was too engrossed in the moment to care.

“Stop,” Becca finally said. “That’s about it.”

“Holy fuck,” Tony choked, eyeing the distance between his hands with wide eyes—because damn, that was impressive—before he realized Steve was staring rather intently too. The super-soldier seemed deep in thought—and possibly drunker than Tony thought—before he nodded at Becca and casually remarked, “You sure? I thought it felt bigger than that.”

The room erupted into chaos again.

————————

Personal floor Of Steve Rogers, Becca Barnes and Thor, Avengers Tower, Manhattan, New York, U.S.A.

November 23rd, 2015

Thor

Rebecca pressed into his arms as soon as he joined her in their bed in the Tower, mere hours after Stark’s impromptu game night, flinging an arm across his chest and a leg over his own. “You took too long,” she complained quietly, the cold tip of her nose pressing against the side of his chest.

“I apologize for the delay,” he hummed, slipping his arms around her to hold her close. He did so enjoy moments like these; he was grateful he had opened his heart to her when she had done so for him—that he had allowed himself to see where their relationship could take them, rather than run away from the possibility. “There was a… a matter that required my attention.”

“You gonna tell me what it is, or should I guess?” she murmured, shifting a little so her head rested on the pillow beside him.

“Letting you guess could be amusing,” he grumbled playfully, reaching out to push a few stray locks of hair from her face, watching her smile widen a little before she reached out to poke him in the side. He snorted and poked back, laughing at her high-pitched squeal, going along when she launched herself at him, allowing her a moment to pretend she could overpower him.

They wrestled for a moment before he rolled her onto her back and pinned her down, grinning down at her with the smuggest grin he could muster. “I won,” he said dryly.

“Gotcha right where I want you, though,” she replied cheekily, reaching up to tangle her fingers in his hair, pulling him down into a kiss.

After a few slow, soft, languid kisses, however, he pulled away to break the kiss—albeit very reluctantly—and rested his forehead against hers. “While I do enjoy your line of thinking, Krúttið mitt, I could actually use your advice on the matter.”

“Okay,” Becca nodded, smoothing her fingers through his hair before he rolled off of her, settling on his side beside her. She turned on her side too, propping her head up on her hand. “Tell me then.”

Thor sighed heavily, settling his hand atop Becca’s hip, idly rubbing at the soft fabric of her tank top.

“One of my secondary powers,” he explained slowly, trying to find the words to explain what he had sensed without coming off as… creepy. “It… involves the ability to sense pregnancy.” Becca’s eyebrow raised high on her forehead, and Thor chuckled. “I suppose it sounds odd put like that. It is more… I can sense the budding life force. It is not a skill I have taken much time honing… I might be mistaken.”

“Okay,” Becca said slowly. “So who is it?”

“I believe it to be Lady Pepper,” he confessed, looking down to where his hand rested on Becca’s side. “I am simply unsure of how to proceed, and I hoped you might provide some insight. I am still not entirely certain of proper Midgardian protocol in all social situations, and I would hate to offend Lady Pepper with my suspicions.”

“Pep’s pregnant?” Becca breathed, eyes wide and shocked.

Thor nodded silently.

Becca blinked, before she nodded slowly. “And you’re not sure if you should tell her?”

“I think I must,” Thor admitted. “I do not even know if she herself is aware.” He bit his lip and gingerly inquired, “Do you know if they want children? The lady Pepper and Anthony and James?”

“No,” Becca said quietly. “I don’t know. I’ve never talked to them about it. I can’t imagine them being unhappy about it though. A little shocked, probably, but not unhappy. Rhodey has a passel of nieces and nephews and they all dote on them.”

Thor nodded silently, moving to pull Becca closer again, nestling her smaller frame against his larger one comfortably. “Do you want them?” Rebecca whispered so softly that he nearly did not hear her, her face pressed against his shoulder, keeping her expression hidden from him for a long heartbeat before she exhaled and looked up at him. “Children, I mean,” she added quietly, uncertainly.

Thor blinked at her, considering which answer to give, before he settled for honesty. “I did,” he conceded. “I… I always assumed I would have them with…”

“With Loki,” Becca finished for him, smiling sadly at him.

Thor nodded.

“How would that have worked?” she questioned curiously, setting her chin on his shoulder. “He was a man, wasn’t he? Could he—is that a thing, with Aesir?”

Thor smiled lightly and shook his head. “No, but Loki was special. He was born a shapeshifter. I always assumed we would be able to… well, that he would be able to…” He sighed and shrugged a little, careful not to dislodge Becca. “And if he hadn’t been able to, I suppose we would have adopted. There were—there are—plenty of Aesir children in need of a good family.”

He leaned down and kissed her forehead, lingering for a long moment before he asked, “Do you? Want children?”

“No,” she replied immediately, before blinking, apparently just as startled as Thor by her own harsh tone. “I don’t think…” She breathed shakily. “I don’t think I’d be a good parent. I don’t think I have what that takes, and I… I just don’t know.”

“Oh, Krúttið mitt,” Thor whispered, trailing his fingers through her hair tenderly. “You would be a wonderful parent, I’m certain.”

“What?” Becca looked up at him, eyes wide and confused as she shook her head. “No, I wouldn’t. Being a parent… that requires a kind of selflessness I just don’t have. Having a kid is… it’s making a lifelong sacrifice. I mean,” she floundered, shaking her head again. “I know that that’s not... that you get so much in return, but… You gotta love that kid unconditionally, and I don’t know if I’d be able to do that. I would never… I know what it’s like to know that your parents’ love is conditional. I couldn’t risk ever making my own child feel like that.”

Tears were running down her cheeks, and Thor hated that she had such a skewed vision of herself still, that her parents—who had been fools, clearly, to toss aside someone like his Rebecca—had such a strong hold on her still. He wished he could go back and smack them in their faces, to show them the incredible woman their daughter would become.

“You could never,” Thor pledged, wiping her tears away with the pad of his thumb. “The fact that you worry means that you would never allow your child to feel like that.”

Becca laughed weakly, pulling him down for a quick kiss, her tears tasting salty on his lips.

His fingers fisted in her hair as he kissed her again, deeply. He was not sure what it was about humans that brought out the strongest emotions in him, but all he could feel was desperation to show her that he would not doubt her for a second. She pulled away from him after a moment though, kissing his cheek tenderly. “I love you,” she whispered.

“And I you, Krúttið mitt,” he replied when she wriggled around to get comfortable, “And you should know… were it possible… if I should choose to begin a family with someone other than Loki… I would surely choose you, Rebecca.”

He felt, rather than saw, her shaky exhale, her fingers curling around his hip tightly. “Thank you.”

Thor smiled weakly and pressed a kiss to her hair, falling asleep with a soft smile on his face.

————————

Pepper Potts, Tony Stark and James Rhodes’ kitchen, Avengers Tower, New York, United States of America

November 24th, 2015

Pepper

“It’s your own fault, you know,” she told Tony amusedly. Her boyfriend had an alcohol tolerance that both impressed and terrified her sometimes, but even Tony’s liver wasn’t able to handle liquor like an Asgardian God, a super soldier or a Russian super spy. She’d told him not to try it, to let them get their silly drinking games out of the way without trying to compete with them, but Tony was… well, Tony was Tony and he hadn’t been able to resist a challenge.

He looked like he was regretting it now.

She wasn’t even sure how he was conscious, much less able to get himself out of their bedroom and into the kitchen. Granted, he hadn’t gotten much further than that—he’d plonked down on the nearest seat and faceplanted on the kitchen island, moaning about the injustice of life or something.

Rhodey, smart man that he was, had stopped drinking around the same time she had, after the game of Truth or Dare had morphed into a game of Never Have I Ever that they could clearly not keep up with, not with Tony “absolutely-no-shame” Stark, Thor “I-am-so-old-I’ve-done-everything” Odinson and Steve “I-only-look-innocent” Rogers playing.

“Hey honey,” she told Rhodey when he followed Tony in, smiling when he patted Tony on the head when he walked past him, and turning into his embrace to accept his customary kiss on the cheek. “You look better than Tony does.”

Rhodey snorted as he moved past her and opened the fridge. “Everyone looks better than Tony right now. He hasn’t found the time to destroy Clint’s masterpiece yet.”

Pepper barely managed to suppress a grin at that.

Tony had indeed managed to get drunk enough to forget what Clint had done to his hair, and had fallen into bed wearing it just like Clint had styled it—which meant half of their pillowcases were now smeared with green and purple coloring spray, an unholy amount of glitter, and hairspray. The mohawk Clint had meticulously shaped Tony’s hair in had deflated overnight, and his hair mostly looked messy now—it could’ve passed for his normal bedhead if not for the vibrant patches of bright green and purple and glitter in there.

“Miss Potts,” J.A.R.V.I.S. interrupted her train of thought. “Master Thor is requesting access to your private floor. He informed me it is quite important he speak to you.”

Pepper exchanged a glance with Rhodey, who looked as confused by the early visit from their resident god as she felt, before she shrugged. “Let him in then, J.A.R.V.I.S.” She turned to Rhodey and smiled lightly. “Take care of Tony while I talk to Thor? I doubt it’s that serious, or he would’ve just busted in here without asking politely.”

Rhodey chuckled and nodded, catching her hand and drawing her close for a quick peck on the lips.

She relished in the touch for a moment before she pulled away, walking out of the kitchen to meet Thor in the hallway. The God of Thunder stood just inside her door, looking comically large in the narrow hallway—she wasn’t actually sure why they hadn’t designed the hallway to be bigger—and slightly underdressed in his sweatpants and t-shirt in the classy, if she did say so herself, décor she and her interior designer had painstakingly put together.

“Good morning,” she told him warmly, leaning in to hug him lightly when he approached. “What brings you here so early? I thought Becca would force you to stay in bed until early afternoon, at least.”

It was quite interesting to see how bashful the man could be when you knew the right button to push—the man hadn’t batted an eyelash when they had been discussing the more intimate details of his anatomy right in front of him yesterday, but when Pepper displayed any knowledge of how he and Becca felt about each other, he blushed almost as hard as Steve would when something sexual came up.

“Ah, well,” Thor shrugged, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck, “Rebecca is still asleep, and I think I might join her again later, but I… I had something of importance to speak to you about. It did not feel right putting it off.”

That didn’t sound ominous at all.

She eyed him shrewdly, trying to find any sort indication as to what was so important he wouldn’t feel comfortable about waiting to talk to her, but she was coming up blank.

“Okay,” she sighed. “I think Rhodey’s making breakfast. Do you want to join them?”

He shuffled his feet a little, and it was so odd, because she’d never seen him act this nervous and uncertain before, and she had been there when he told Becca he loved her the first time—although they had all been there, really, and he’d kind of blurted it out in the middle of their Christmas party when he turned up suddenly after having disappeared for two weeks.

“If you don’t mind, I think it’s best we speak in private first.”

She nodded, trying not to show that his hesitance was making her a little anxious, and nodded towards the living room. “Let’s talk there then.”

They didn’t speak while they settled, and she took the time to observe Thor. He’d looked at ease yesterday, calm and relaxed even when Becca had been mad at him for kissing Steve, although he’d been a little pensive at times—she hadn’t missed that he’d been looking at her a lot during the night too. She wondered if whatever he wanted to talk about had been on his mind for longer—but he looked downright uncomfortable now. Maybe it was something he’d been holding in for a while, something that was threatening to burst out of him if he tried to keep it in any longer.

She couldn’t fathom what though.

It wasn’t like they were particularly close. They’d chatted, of course, and she liked it when he came to her for recommendations for things to do in the city, but they didn’t tend to spend a lot of time one-on-one unless it was in an official capacity—Stark Industries, after all, functioned as the Asgardian Ambassador’s official liaison still.

“So,” she said when he’d sat down on the seat opposite hers. “What can I do for you?”

Thor smiled for the first time since she had seen him this morning, and said, “I suppose what brings me here is more something I can do for you, Lady Pepper, rather than you for me.”

Pepper blinked. “I’m afraid I don’t follow.”

Thor swallowed thickly and looked away for a moment. “I do not know how much you know about the mythology surrounding me and my family in this world?” He paused, and Pepper shrugged, wholly confused and unsure where he was trying to go with this line of conversation.

“Not a lot,” she admitted. “No more than the general public, I’d say.”

Thor nodded. “I am mostly known as a God of Thunder. It is, however, not the only power the Norns have given me.”

Pepper nodded slowly, still unsure.

“I am also a God of Fertility,” he said, looking at her oddly. “I’ve not had much use for my other powers,” Thor admitted slowly. “Therefore I cannot say with absolute certainly, but…” he sighed and shrugged, looking up at her from beneath his eyelashes.

She blinked.

“I’m sorry,” she said slowly, “Thor, I don’t see what this has to do with me.”

Thor sighed and hung his head, and Pepper abruptly felt like she’d kicked a dog, her stomach twisting at the sorry sight he made. She didn’t understand though, because he was making no sense—what would him being a fertility god along with a thunder god have to—

Oh.

She froze, eyes wide and fixed on Thor.

He smiled wryly. “I cannot say with absolute certainty, but I do believe you might be with child.”

“Oh,” Pepper breathed, hand falling to her abdomen without any sort of conscious thought. She swallowed, mentally calculating if she’d be able to reschedule the appointments she had tomorrow, so she’d be able to go see her gynecologist, because the word of a god of fertility was all well and good, but she’d need to confirm it with an actual doctor before she could…

Before she could think of it as real.

“How do you know it’s me?” she asked Thor curiously. “Could it not be Natasha? Or Becca?”

“Ah,” Thor smiled. “Rebecca has been with none but me in quite some time. Aesir cannot reproduce with humans, so I am quite certain it was not her. As for the lady Natasha,” he fell silent and frowned. “I’ve been told she cannot bear children and has no wish to either.”

Pepper nodded slowly, feeling more than a little overwhelmed. It wasn’t that she, Rhodey and Tony had never talked about having children, or that they’d been particularly careful about it, but it had always seemed like a farfetched idea. Their careers had always come first, and they’d been happy with just the three of them. She’d never really craved being a mother, but… that didn’t mean she wouldn’t be happy if… if Thor was correct.

“Thank you for telling me,” she said. “It’s…” She stopped and shook her head. “It’s not what I was expecting, but I’m glad you told me.”

“Of course,” Thor insisted sincerely. “It was the least I could do.”

She smiled tightly. “If you don’t mind, I think… I think I have to talk to my partners.”

Thor shot to his feet, nodding urgently. “Of course. It’s time I return to Rebecca anyway. She’ll be cross with me for leaving the bed before she woke. With some luck I can be back before she wakes.” He smiled charmingly and Pepper couldn’t help but smile back—it was a very nice smile, after all, and she was only human.

Becca was a lucky girl.

She followed him back out into the hallway, eyes lingering a little on the more relaxed set of his shoulders—she supposed the hard part was over now, for him. He stopped at the door, hesitating with his hand on the doorknob before he turned back to her with the sincerest expression she had ever seen on anyone—including Steve.

“I know we are not quite as… close as the others, but… I do like to think of us all as a family, of a sorts,” he began, and the admittance made her feel warm. The Avengers, despite their clashing personalities, had become somewhat of a—slightly dysfunctional—family. “I just want to say that if you need someone to speak to, regardless of what decision you make, I will be here for you,” Thor continued, and Pepper abruptly felt tears burning in her eyes.

She knew she wasn’t sure yet, that she hadn’t confirmed anything, but—definitely hormones.

“Thank you,” she croaked. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

Thor smiled. “Please do.”

Before she could say anything else, he slipped through the door, leaving her alone in the hallway, tears still burning in her eyes and her two partners waiting for her in the kitchen.

“Well,” she told herself, inhaling deeply and holding the breath for a moment before she exhaled shakily. She glanced down to her belly, as flat as it had been that morning, and hesitantly rested her hand on her lower abdomen. “Guess it’s time to talk to the men, isn’t it?”

“Here I go.”

————————

Start from the beginning:

In Hell We Stand By You:

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8)

Never Feel Alone:

(1) (2)

Decisions: (1)

Dancing with a Limp:

(1) (2)

Chances:

(1)

Starting Over:

(1) (2) (3)

Or read it HERE on AO3 :D Find the next chapter HERE on Tumblr :)

#IHWSBY sequel #starting over #stucky #Stucky fanfic #Steve rogers #thor #Rebecca barnes #my writing #Lisa writes

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