The Party!
It was party day, and everything was set. Stephen was dressed in his single-breasted tuxedo. He checked himself in the mirror before heading to Christine's room. He knocked on the door.
"Hey, Christine, you ready?" Stephen asked.
"Yes," Christine replied, opening the door.
She looked stunning in a black dress, both beautiful and hot.
"Christine, you look beautiful," Stephen said.
"You look good too," Christine said with a shy smile.
"I can't wait to flaunt my girlfriend," he said, kissing her cheek.
"Okay, let's go," she said, linking their arms.
Stephen's parents were at the door, welcoming everyone. Donna and Victor were playing with balloons. Stephen and Christine walked over to the door.
"Wow, Christine! You look amazing!" Beverly said, cupping her cheeks.
"Thanks, Aunt Bev," Christine said, smiling.
"Stephen, our guests are here, so be nice," Eugene said.
"Sure," Stephen replied, rolling his eyes.
Guests started arriving, and Stephen and Eugene greeted them warmly. Most of them were from the hospital. Then Bruce arrived with his parents, followed by Thor and Loki with their family. Thor hugged Stephen like they were old friends, which amused Stephen—Thor was always so exuberant. Then Natasha, Clint, and Steve arrived.
Stephen noticed that their families weren't with them. He greeted them with a handshake, but Steve's grip felt more firm than friendly. Stephen noticed but let it slide.
Wong and Mordo arrived next, bringing their families along. Wong and Mordo were his library mates. Stephen hugged them and welcomed them in.
It was almost 7, and the party was about to begin, but Tony and his family still hadn't arrived, which made Stephen a bit anxious.
"Dad, everyone is here. Let's start the party," Stephen said.
"Mr. Stark isn’t here yet. He’s an important guest. We should wait for him," Eugene said.
"I don't think he's coming, and what about our other guests? They all arrived on time. We can't waste their precious time," Stephen said.
"Alright, let's start the party," Eugene said.
Eugene officially welcomed all his guests, and the party began. Stephen and Christine stayed close together.
Bruce, Thor, Natasha, Clint, and Steve were hanging out.
"Where's Tony?" Thor asked.
"He said he'd come when his parents returned from some meeting," Bruce said.
"I don't think he's coming," Clint said.
Steve looked disappointed to hear that; he had been planning to make a move.
"Hey, there he is," Natasha said, pointing to the entrance.
Howard, Maria, and Tony were entering the hall. Eugene, Stephen, and Christine went to welcome them.
"Mr. Stark, Mrs. Stark, please come in," Eugene said.
"We're really sorry, Doctor. The meeting ran over," Howard said.
"No problem. Come in," Eugene replied.
Howard and Maria went inside, but Tony lingered awkwardly. Stephen stood with Christine.
"Hi, Tony," Christine said with a warm smile.
"Hi," Tony replied.
"Honey, you can hang out with Donna. I’ll be right back," Stephen said, kissing her cheek.
"Okay," Christine blushed at the nickname.
"It seems your date has already run off from your asshole self," Stephen said, smirking.
Okay, he's back to being a douchebag, Tony thought.
"What's your problem?" Tony asked frowning.
"I don't have a problem. But it's a pity to see the great Tony Stark alone," Stephen said.
"Who said I'm alone? I have a date," Tony retorted.
"Oh? And who would that be?" Stephen asked, still smirking.
Tony quickly scanned the room for someone who could play his date for the night. Bruce, Nat, and Clint—no, not believable. Loki—no way. Thor—too bad at acting and lying. Then there was Steve. Yes, Steve it was; he could be his date for tonight.
"It's Steve. We're dating," Tony said confidently.
"I thought you were just friends," Stephen said.
Was that disappointment on his face? Tony thought. Of course it was; Stephen wanted to mock him for being single. But now he lost that chance.
"Yes, we're friends, and we're dating. Do you have a problem with that?" Tony asked, smirking.
"Why would I have a problem with that?" Stephen scoffed.
"Okay, then. Let me go to my boyfriend," Tony said, walking away to join his friends.
"Hey, we thought you weren't coming," Bruce said.
"Steve, Steve. I need your help," Tony said, grabbing Steve's hands.
"What is it?" Steve asked.
"Can you be my date for tonight?" Tony asked.
"What?" Steve asked, flushing.
"Please, Steve, just for tonight. I told Stephen you’re my date," Tony whined.
"Why would you do that?" Bruce asked.
"Because he was mocking me for not having a date," Tony said.
"But, Tony..." Steve started.
"Please, Steve, help me out. Tomorrow we’ll go back to being friends."
"Okay, alright," Steve said.
"Thank you," Tony said, hugging him and kissing his cheek. Steve grinned widely at Tony.
Stephen was watching Tony and Steve. Now he understood why Steve had been so hostile earlier—Tony was hugging and kissing him. Stephen felt a strange pang. But why should he care? He had his girlfriend. Stephen thought and walked over to Christine.
Eugene and Beverly were talking with Howard and Maria.
"So, Dr. Strange, I haven't met your children," Howard said.
"Oh, sure." Beverly called her children over.
"Mr. Stark, meet my son, Stephen. He’s starting his med degree at Columbia this year. And this is his girlfriend, Christine. She’s also joining Columbia," Eugene said.
"Wow, that's great. Nice to meet you, Stephen," Howard said.
"You too, Mr. Stark," Stephen replied.
"And these are Donna and Victor. Donna is in 8th grade, and Victor is only 3," Eugene said.
"Nice to meet you too," Howard said.
As they started talking about their project, Stephen took the opportunity to leave with Christine.
"Are we allowed to drink?" Christine asked.
"No, but I think we could steal one or two," Stephen said, smiling.
"You're a bad boy," Christine said, chuckling.
"But we can dance, you know," Stephen said, wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Okay, let's do that," Christine said.
Stephen pulled her to the dance floor, where others were already dancing.
Steve and Nat were at the bar.
"Steve, this is your chance. Go talk to him," Nat urged.
"Nat, he asked me to pretend to be his boyfriend, not to be the real one," Steve said.
"So? Show him what a great boyfriend you can be. Convince him."
"How do I do that?" Steve asked.
"See those couples? Dancing, touching, sharing lovey-dovey looks? Do that," Nat said.
"But I need him to want that," Steve said, taking another drink.
Tony and Bruce were discussing their new project when Tony noticed Stephen and his girlfriend dancing and laughing. Tony thought, I can do that too. No big deal.
"Bruce, give me a minute," Tony said and went to Steve.
"Hey, Tony, want some drinks?" Steve asked.
"No, I’m not allowed to. My parents are here. Will you dance with me?" Tony asked.
"Sorry, what?" Steve asked.
"Can we dance? Since you're my date?" Tony asked.
"Uh... yeah, sure," Steve said, glancing at Nat.
Nat gave him a thumbs up.
"Okay, then, come on," Tony said, pulling Steve to the dance floor. He gave a pointed look at Stephen as they passed him and took their place on the floor.
Steve awkwardly put his arms around Tony's waist, while Tony looped his arms around Steve's neck, and they started swaying.
Stephen kept staring at them.
"I didn't know they were a thing," Christine said, looking at them.
"Who cares! Let's focus on us," Stephen said, pulling Christine closer.
"What's gotten into you? You called me 'honey' before, and now you're being so romantic," Christine said, chuckling.
"You look so pretty today, and I can't help it," Stephen said, leaning in closer.
Christine just smiled at him.
Now they’re acting all lovey-dovey, Tony thought. I can do that too.
"Steve, pull me closer," Tony said.
"Why?" Steve asked.
"We're dating, remember? You’re allowed to touch me," Tony said.
"Tony, why put up this act?" Steve asked.
"Because I want to prove to that douchebag that I can get people who care about me. Please, Steve, do this for me," Tony said.
"Alright, alright," Steve said, pulling him closer until their bodies were fully touching.
Tony ran a finger along Steve's face with a flirty look, and Steve couldn't stop blushing.
"Maria, did you know about Tony dating Steve?" Howard asked.
"No, I didn’t. But they seem very close," Maria replied.
"I’m okay with it, as long as it doesn’t affect his grades and Steve doesn’t break his heart," Howard said.
"Steve is a very nice boy. He won’t do that," Maria said.
Tony was playing his role well, and Steve was starting to get the hang of it. Tony kept glancing over at Stephen to gauge his reaction. He couldn’t quite understand Stephen’s expression, but it was clear he wasn’t happy, which made Tony feel proud.
Stephen didn't want to stare, but he couldn't help it. He knew Tony was doing this to rile him up. If that was Tony's game, Stephen was ready to play along.
"Christine, you look stunning," Stephen said in a low voice.
"Stephen, you're saying this for the tenth time today," Christine said, chuckling.
"I might say it 10 more times. Christine, can I kiss you?" Stephen asked, cupping her cheeks.
"Here? Now? Everyone is watching us," Christine said, a little tense.
"Yes, what's the problem? You're my girlfriend. We can kiss," Stephen said.
"Okay," she replied.
Stephen leaned in and kissed her. It was a sweet kiss. When he pulled away and looked at her, she was blushing hard. She looked pretty, but Stephen wanted to see someone else’s reaction. He looked at Tony.
Tony was all red. Why was Stephen doing this to him?
Tony looked back at Steve and said, "Steve, kiss me."
"What? We can't," Steve responded.
"Steve, kiss me. It's all part of the act," Tony insisted.
"No, I'm not going to do it as part of an act," Steve said.
"Ugh… Come here," Tony groaned, pulling Steve by the head and kissing him.
"Whoa, whoa... What's happening?" Thor asked, watching them.
"Tony kissed Steve," Bruce said, shocked.
"Is there some kind of competition going on between Stephen and Tony? Tony's been mirroring his actions all this time," Clint said.
"Four people in love acting stupid, because the pairings are wrong," Loki said, giggling.
"What do you mean by that, brother?" Thor asked, frowning.
"Think, brother, think. But it's fun to watch," Loki replied.
Loki knew his brother would never figure it out.
Tony pulled away from the kiss. Stephen and Christine were long gone. Tony looked back at Steve.
"Uh, Tony… I need to tell you something," Steve said, all red.
"What?" Tony asked.
"I was thinking... maybe we could continue doing this," Steve said uncertainly.
"Steve, I was going to tell you the same thing. Let's act like a couple for a few days and make everyone believe it. This is so cool. Thanks, Steve," Tony said, grinning.
Tony wanted to act, but Steve wanted to really date him. However, Steve didn't want to say no and disappoint Tony, so he agreed.
Throughout the party, Stephen held Christine, and everyone was talking about how cute they were together.
When the party wrapped up, the guests started leaving one by one. Eugene thanked everyone.
Howard, Maria, and Tony also said goodbye and got into the car. They were driving back home.
"Honey, why didn't you tell us that you're dating Steve?" Maria asked.
"Uh, we just started dating a couple of days ago," Tony said.
"Okay, I'm happy for you, Tony. Steve is a good kid," Maria said.
"Thanks," Tony replied.
But he couldn't tell his parents that Steve was just a friend and that Tony was a loser in relationships. So he kept quiet.
Stephen was tired from all the dancing. He lay on the bed, thinking about the kiss with Christine. It was good, but he couldn't stop thinking about how Tony would have tasted instead. He wanted to pull that Steve guy away and kiss him senselessly. This wasn't helping. Stephen groaned. He had to find a way to stop thinking about Tony, but he didn't know how.