Chapter 15
Stephen was at library, looking for book for his study. His family is not in the town. They went to attend a function to which Stephen was not interested. So he kept him busy by reading at the library.There he heard 3 men talking.
"Guess who I slept with yesterday night?" A taller guy asked smirking.
"Who?" The other one asked.
"Tony Stark. Oh man! He is sexy as fuck on bed." He said.
"But he is dating Steve Rogers, isn't he?" The other one said.
"You really think that could stop him. I didn't even try hard. But he was just on me with a simple touch on his ass" He said.
"What a bitch" The other said laughing.
"Do you think, I have a chance on him?" The third one asked.
"Just go for it, man. I'm sure he will definitely sleep with you"
Stephen wanted to punch those boys for speaking about Tony like that. But what if they're telling the truth. What if Tony has slept with anyone approached him.
Stephen tried to push away the thoughts and tried to concentrate on his book.
It was very late, when he finished his study. He put everything in his bag and started walking to his house.
On his way home, Stephen saw the boys whom he had seen in the library. They were holding a boy. Not just any boy. It was Tony.
"Get off me, you bastards" Tony yelled at them.
"Oh, stop acting like you don't enjoy this Tony. We know, you want this." One said grabbing his ass.
"We know you spread your legs with anyone who touched you. Come with us" The other said trying to kiss him.
But Tony punched him on the face.
"You bloody bitch" He said and slapped Tony's face.
Stephen couldn't watch it anymore. He rushed to them and pushed them away from Tony and punched the one who slapped Tony.
"Run off now, or I will call the police" Stephen sneered.
They realized they couldn't fight back, so they ran away from the place.
"Are you okay?" Stephen asked touching his cheek.
Tony's lips were bleeding. He winced with pain when Stephen touched
"Where are you coming from at this late night?" Stephen asked.
"I went to Thor's, but there is no one home" Tony said.
"Come with me. We need to treat this." Stephen said.
"It's okay. I will go home" Tony said.
"You're not going alone. I will drop you there. But first, let me take care of this" Stephen insisted
Tony thought for a moment then he followed Stephen.
Stephen made him sit on the couch and went to bring medicine and cotton.
Stephen sat near him and gently wiped the blood from Tony's lips.
Tony winced again.
"I'm sorry. It's going to hurt a little" Stephen said.
Tony nodded his head.
Stephen continued treating his cut. Tony's eyes were glassy, which meant he was on the verge of crying, but he was controlling it. His face was pale, which showed he was scared. Stephen felt a surge of rage toward those bastards for making Tony like this.
"Finished" Stephen said.
"Thanks" Tony said.
"Who were they?" Stephen asked.
"I don't know" Tony said in small voice.
"Tony, I know, it's your life and you can do whatever you like. But stop acting like a slut. You have a boyfriend now. If you keep sleeping around with the guys you see, they are going to take advantage of you. You're not even at the age to do sex" Stephen said.
"I'm acting like a slut, am I. People think I'm a slut so they can treat me however they want" Tony said bitterly chuckling. But his eyes we're teared up.
"Tony, I didn't mean it like that." Stephen said quickly
"It's okay, Stephen. I get it. I have been a slut since I'm 12. You know how? Three boys kissed and touched me at the corridor without my consent. I didn't even know what was happening. There were lots of kids there in the corridor. But nobody came to help me. Because they thought I'm weird. I'm too young to be in high school. After that, so many boys have kissed and touched with me whenever they want. Because I won't oppose, because as you said I'm a slut" Tony said with a sad smile, but tears were running out of his eyes.
"Tony, I.. " Stephen started
"You said, I'm sleeping around with anyone I see. But hear this out. I have never slept with anyone. But still I'm a slut" Tony repeated.
"But I heard people talking about they having.. " Stephen didn't complete the sentence.
"Of course, people talk. Because they know, I can't reject that, even if I did nobody believes that. Only my friends believe me. I thought, you will also trust me" Tony said.
Stephen wanted to slap himself for making Tony sad. He didn't know what to do, so he hugged the boy tightly.
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," Stephen said.
Tony started sobbing against his chest.
"Hey, it's okay. You're safe here. I'm here," Stephen said soothingly.
Tony was so exhausted that he passed out on Stephen's chest. Stephen laid the boy down on the couch and tried to move away from him, but Tony was grabbing his shirt. Stephen didn't want to wake him up, so he sat beside him, watching Tony sleep. His left cheek was swollen. Stephen ran his fingers over it. He had been so wrong about Tony and felt guilty for it. He also realized it wasn't just a phase—he really liked Tony and wanted to be in his life.
Stephen gently moved the hair strands falling over Tony's face and kissed his forehead.
"I'm sorry," he murmured to the sleeping boy.
The next morning, Tony woke up on the couch. It took him a couple of minutes to realize where he was.
"Good morning. Here's your coffee," Stephen said, handing him a cup of coffee.
"Thanks," Tony replied.
"Does it hurt?" Stephen asked, concerned.
"Yes, but it's okay," Tony said.
"Uh, I'm sorry if I hurt you with my words. I was so wrong about you," Stephen said.
"Everyone is," Tony replied.
"No, I mean it. I want to apologize properly. Can we go out for coffee?" Stephen asked.
"Strange, stop it, or I’ll think you care about me," Tony said, smirking.
"I do care about you," Stephen said.
Tony was surprised by that. He kept staring at
Stephen.
"Tony, I..." Stephen started.
But at that moment, Tony's phone rang.Tony startled at the sound and took the phone.
"Hi, Steve," Tony said.
"Where are you? I'm at Thor's and the house is locked," Steve's voice came through.
"I'm at Stephen's," Tony said.
"What are you doing there? Wait. I’ll come there now," Steve said, hanging up.
"It's your caring boyfriend, isn't it?" Stephen asked in a small voice.
"Yes, he's coming here to get me," Tony replied.
"You were saying something?" Tony asked.
"Uh, no, it's nothing," Stephen said, leaning back in the chair.
Steve entered Stephen's house.
"Tony, are you okay?" Steve asked, coming over to him.
"What happened to your cheek?" he asked, concerned.
"What did you do, Strange?" Steve demanded, glaring at Stephen.
Stephen just smirked back at Steve, which only fueled the latter's rage.
"Steve, he didn't do anything. He actually helped me," Tony said, breaking the tension between them.
"Then, who did this?" Steve asked.
"Aren't you a responsible boyfriend? Can't you take care of him?" Stephen asked.
"Are you going to teach me how to take care of my boyfriend?" Steve asked in a low voice.
"I think you could use some lessons. If you had done your job well, Tony wouldn't have gotten hurt," Stephen said.
Before Steve could respond, Tony intervened.
"Stephen, stop it. Steve, let's go," Tony said, taking Steve's arm and leading him outside.
Once outside, Steve asked,
"Who did this to you?"
"I don't know. Some random guys. Stephen helped me patch up," Tony said.
"You could have called me," Steve said.
"For what? To take care of my wounds? Do you even know how to treat a wound?" Tony asked, chuckling.
"I meant when you were attacked," Steve clarified.
"Steve, attackers don't give you a chance to make a phone call," Tony said, rolling his eyes.
"What's your problem now? Are you upset because you weren't there to save me or because I got hurt?" Tony asked, annoyed.
"I'm sorry, Tony. I'm just worried," Steve said.
"It's okay. Let's go," Tony said, linking their arms together.
Stephen watched the two of them walking away. He knew he should stop having feelings for Tony. He was someone else's.
"Tony, we should report this. Otherwise, these guys might do it again," Bruce said.
Tony was with all his friends, recounting what had happened.
"I'm so sorry, Tony. I should have informed you that we weren't home," Thor said.
"It's okay, Thor. Thankfully, Stephen was there," Tony said."
Stephen punched those guys for you?" Clint asked.
"Yes, he did," Tony said.
"Of course, he did. He’s Tony's knight in shining armor," Loki said, smirking.
"What are you guys talking about?" Steve asked, clueless.
"Stop it, guys. He's straight and has a girlfriend. He was just being a gentleman," Tony said.
"Tony, if he was just being a gentleman, he would have dropped you home. But he didn’t. He took care of your wounds, let you sleep at his place, made you coffee in the morning, and even asked you out. Isn't it clear to you?" Loki asked.
"Yes, Tony, Loki is right. I think he's into you," Thor said.
"Finally, Tony's crush is crushing back," Bruce said, whistling.
"Tony's crush?" Steve asked.
"Yes, Steve, he’s had feelings for Stephen for a long time," Bruce said.
Steve looked at Tony. He was blushing and had a small, shy smile on his face.
Steve felt his heart breaking. Tony had a crush on someone else, not on him.
"Tony, you should open up about your feelings to Stephen," Thor said.
"But what about his girlfriend? I don't want to ruin his relationship," Tony said.
"Okay, at least go out with him for that coffee. Then you'll understand what's on his mind," Clint said.
"Yeah, I’ll do that. Steve, what do you think?" Tony asked.
"Uh, you can do whatever your heart wants, Tony. I'm happy for you," Steve said with a small smile.
"Thanks, Steve," Tony said, smiling.
"Guys, I should go. I have something to do at home," Steve said, walking out.
Natasha was the only one who noticed how heartbroken Steve was, but she didn't know how to help.