Stephen was out late.
Now, this wasn’t exactly abnormal. After all, a relationship between two superheroes, there were a lot of late nights and early mornings and everything in between.
But still, Stephen had been out all day at the Sanctum, saying he had business with Wong that couldn’t wait, and Tony was bored. He had disassembled the toaster and microwave four times each -- the toaster could now be used as a weapon, the microwave now had its own AI -- and he was in the process of teaching himself Russian. Why Russian? Natasha and Bucky liked to talk shit in Russian and he wanted to eavesdrop. Boredom and spite were a powerful motivator.
Then, he heard Jarvis announce that Stephen was home, and a half-manic grin spread across his face.
“Hey babe!” Tony started rambling, bouncing out into the main area of the floor they were on. “I missed you! You were gone awhile. I had a lot of coffee, sorry about that. You look tired. Are you tired? I’ve been productive! I’ve gotten nothing actually important done, but that’s irrelevant. Did you know that -”
“Tony, for once in your damn life, I’m gonna need you to shut your mouth,” Stephen snapped, face lined with exhaustion.
Tony froze. He shut his mouth. His father’s voice started to echo in his head.
Don’t you ever shut up, Anthony?
Stop talking so damn much.
Why couldn’t I have had a quiet son?
You need to learn that silence in golden, Anthony.
To his credit, Stephen caught the change in Tony’s expression immediately. “Tony, wait, you know I didn’t --”
“It’s ok!” Tony said quickly. He could hear that he was using his ‘press voice’, and he knew that if he could see his face, he’d see his familiar ‘paparazzi smile’. “You just need some space, I can understand that.”
His voice cracked on the last word.
Fuck.
He turned tail and walked back to his workshop as quickly and calmly as he could, ignoring Stephen’s protests behind him.
Stephen just needed some peace and quiet. Tony wasn’t good at peace and quiet. He didn’t need Tony around when he was so clearly already stressed.
He didn’t need Tony around.
~
Tony wasn’t sure how long he had been in his workshop.
He had overridden Stephen’s access codes; the doctor didn’t need to be worrying himself over Tony right now.
Tony knew he had too much caffeine in his system and not enough food, not any food. He knew it had been long enough that his hair was greasy and hanging in his face. He knew there was enough grease and oil smeared on his skin that he was a walking biohazard.
But it was fine, really. He’d done this before. He could ignore the itch under his skin that made him half-grateful he’d gotten rid of the secret stash on scotch in his workshop months ago.
It wasn’t Stephen’s fault. Stephen didn’t mean to sound like Howard. It was just stress talking.
It was Tony’s fault, obviously. Tony was too loud, too energetic after a long day, too much.
Too much too much too much too much --
Tony was just too much.
He suddenly became aware that his stomach really, really hurt.
How long had it been since Tony had eaten? He couldn’t say.
Hopefully he could get to the kitchen without getting caught. He didn’t want Stephen to see him looking like a hot mess, he didn’t need to make the other man worry.
“Jarvis, as your creator, I’m telling you not to let Stephen know I’m out of my workshop, regardless of what he asked you to do.”
“Sir, I’m not sure that’s a good plan,” Jarvis replied. Damn, even the AI sounded concerned. Why did Tony program him like that?
“Just do it, buddy.”
Jarvis didn’t reply, but Tony knew it was out of agreement, so he quietly unlocked his workshop door and crept upstairs to the kitchen.
It was quiet, and it was dark, so it must’ve been nighttime. Hopefully everyone would stay asleep. Tony started opening cupboards and the fridge at random, trying to find stuff to make a decent sandwich -- screw him, he was no cook -- when the lights flickered on, making him screech like a startled child.
There Stephen stood, arms crossed over his chest, blocking the doorway and therefore Tony’s only chance of escape.
“Damn you, Jarvis,” Toy whispered.
“My apologies sir, it’s for your own good.”
“Don’t blame Jarvis,” Stephen said drily. “He’s not the one who locked himself in his workshop for four days.”
Four days? Shit.
“Well, I’m out now!” Tony said, spreading his arms with a mock-cheerful grin. “So hey, let’s say I grab a shower, and we can pretend this never happened.”
“Yeah, right.”
Damnit.
“Tony, we need to talk, sit down,” Stephen continued, gesturing to the small table that everyone used for breakfast.
The phrase ‘we need to talk’ sent ice running through Tony’s veins. Was this the last straw? Was Stephen leaving him? Tony always pushed too far, damnit, he never just --
“Tony. Stop thinking so hard, and sit down.”
Tony sat. He couldn’t make his mouth move.
“Tony,” Stephen sighed. Upon closer inspection, he looked very, very tired. Had he not been sleeping? “I owe you an apology.”
“What?” Tony gaped.
“I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that, especially when I knew you’d react badly.” Stephen reached across the table, taking Tony’s hand. “I like hearing you talk, dumbass. You listen to me babble about medical theories and magic, and I listen to you babble about mechanics and whatever your latest hyperfixation is. It’s a good system.”
Tony blinked. “But, I talk too much. Everyone says I talk too much.”
“Then I’m gonna bitch-slap everyone,” Stephen said fiercely, startling a laugh out of the other man. “I never meant to make you feel bad for talking to me. I’m sorry.”
Tony felt a weight that he hadn’t known was there get lifted off of his chest. “I’m sorry I locked myself in the workshop for four days,” he said quietly.
Stephen sighed. “Yeah, we’ll talk about your inability to resolve conflict another day,” he said, but he was teasing. “Did you eat anything down there?”
Tony shot him a sheepish grin. “No I did not, Doc, why do you think I came here first?”
“I hate you,” Stephen sighed, his eyes clearly fond in a way even Tony could read. “Neither of us can cook for shit. Take out?”
“God, I love you,” Tony said fervently, and Stephen laughed.
“Thai?”
“Yes please.”
And all was well in Avengers Tower.