There was a flower tucked behind the man’s ear, nestled in his salt and pepper hair. It was a daisy, the center bright yellow and the petals a delicate soft white.
His face was crinkled in a smile and his head was tipped back in what sounded like the first real laugh in forever. His dark eyes were glowing, brightly sparkling and gleaming with life. Steve hadn’t seen Tony this lively in years. It was a good look on him. It made him look younger and happier and for a single second it made Steve forget where they were; it made him forget who they had lost. And that Pepper, the man’s apparent true love, was no more than dust in the wind and a memory in their minds.
The man was sitting perched on a rock, his bare feet dangling in the warm lake water. Every few seconds, Tony would hyperactively kick his feet and the water would bubble up.
It had been forever since the men had seen each other and when Steve had showed up on Tony’s doorstep- he had feared the man would turn him away. But, Tony had done no such thing. Instead he dragged him over to the lake near the side of the house, plonking his body down on a large rock and stripping his shoes off to dip his feet in the water. Steve had followed the man, but had rather sat with his legs folded near his chest than in the water.
They hadn’t talked much, rather sitting in silence until Steve nervously plucked the daisy from the ground and tucked it behind Tony’s ear.
When his hand brushed against the man’s skin, Tony’s breath had hitched and his skin shuddered. A warm blush crossed his face and he titled his head back down to look at his bare feet in the lake.
Steve knew he should not have let his hand linger on Tony’s skin longer than to tuck the floor behind his ear, which already felt like an inappropriate action. But he couldn’t help but run the pads of his fingers over the side of Tony’s face and on his lips. They were chapped from where the man had clearly been anxiously biting them as a repudiative, nervous habit for years.
The running of his fingers had quickly turned into Steve leaning into the man and gentle kisses shared between them.
Tony’s skin felt warm and explosive against his skin and he couldn’t help but leave his eyes open- if only to have the ability to stare at the crinkled skin of Tony’s own shut eyes.
The man was melting into him. His entire body was flush against Steve’s and his legs had stopped kicking the moment there lips connected.
Steve traced a scar on Tony’s neck with his one hand, the other pulling gently at the hair at the naps of the man’s neck. The entire exchange felt so undeniably innocent. It was one small kiss and a daisy and a man sitting barefoot on the edge of a lake.
But there was nothing innocent about this moment. There was nothing innocent about the way Steve felt for Tony, about his willingness to sacrifice everything for this perfect man.
Tony pulled away from the man, panting and out of breath. He seemed to not want to look at the man, as he started down at his feet in the water. However the man did not kick the feet and they instead sat there in relative silence, enjoying each other’s presence and the feeling of being loved.
Steve moved to sit closer to the man, resting his arm around Tony’s shoulders.
“I love you” His words broke the silence and Tony moved to pull away. But Steve wouldn’t let him and he tightened his grip. “I know we’ve had our differences, but I need you to know that I’m the brink of this war, I love you more than anyone in this entire galaxy. I can’t lose you Tony”
Tony seemed to have given up his reluctance and he hummed softly and sweetly. He twisted his head and Steve felt chapped lips tentatively kiss his cheek. The man’s hand wrapped around Tony’s bicep and squeezed tightly. “I guess I love you too, asshole.”
He then tuned and used his leverage on Steve’s bicep to launch the two men into the lake. They were fully clothed, but Steve didn’t have a care in the world. He only focused on the taste of lake water between their lips as they gently made out and the feeling of Tony’s small, wet body pressed against his own.
Steve felt warm breath against his neck as Tony began to talk. This time his tone and words lacked the sarcasm they usually held. “Promise we’re going to be ok?” Tony sounded so small and innocent when he asked. “After the whole accords thing and I lost you the first time, I promised I would never be with you again. But I love and miss you and I can only do this if we’re going to be ok.”
Steve cringed at the mention of the accords and consequently his relationship with Tony following apart. He had barley arrived without the man the first time and here on the brink of war he released that he needed Tony more than he needed anyone else.
Steve pulled the man close to his chest, running his hand through Tony’s wet hair. “I promise I’ll never leave you again Tony. This is war and I can’t say we’ll be ok, but it’s me and you until the end of the line.”
Tony smiled, then moving to press his wet lips to Steve’s collarbone and kissing. He hummed in concentration and then softly said “ok then,” He kissed the skin once more and the flower dropped from behind his ear into Steve’s wet torso. “It’s me and you until the end of the line.”
Steve rested his chin on Tony’s head, closing his eyes in bliss. All he needed was Tony and he would be ok. He needed this man to make it to the end of the line.