It's okay to smile again
Eventually, they had gotten Rhodey to calm down.
It wasn't easy. The man had gone into full Mama Rhodes mode, which in itself made Tony slightly nervous to even attempt to defend the two men. But he did, and Rhodey calmed down, and now everything was fine.
At least he was fairly sure it all was. The two men, Tony had learned their names were Bucky and Steve, kept staring at him. Which was probably fair. They probably wanted to strangle Tony for causing so many issues within a good two days.
Tony had hopefully somewhat made peace with them when he offered for The Avengers to play at the cafe later tonight. Whether Steve and Bucky hated him or not, everyone knew that if they did end up preforming, business would be buzzing for at least a year after their visit. No, Tony wasn't even exaggerating. They had millions of fans, many of whom wanted to "sit in the same place he sat" and, "breathe in the air the legend Pepper breathed" and everything.
Creepy? Yes. But also endearing. Also endearing. Tony loved his fans, hence they were allowed to be as creepy as they wanted. Well...for the most part.
His mind shifted, getting back on track of tonight's show.
Preforming wasn't the issue. Tony loved preforming. He never had stage fright, was never nervous. Failure on stage? Nope, Tony had never heard of her. The only problem is, he needed to come up with a song in the span of a good hour or two. He was left clueless.
He was single, so there goes the love songs. As good as he was about angst, this was supposed to be a small, upbeat, happy little gig, not some soul bearing, heart wrenching, teeth clenching agony he usually put his fans through with his lyrics.
Tony wouldn't even mind winging some random lines as he got onto stage, but the two unfairly hot owners of the cafe have been staring at him for a half an hour now, and he was nearly positive he was going to spontaneously combust.
The worst par was, Tony was goggling at both of them. No, no he couldn't just pick one of them to realistically crush over, but the stubborn bastard he was had to go and squeal over the both of them.
One was a soft blonde. He was tall and broad, but his face didn't match it. His face seemed smaller, just a bit. His blue eyes seemed like the most innocent things in the world. What was Tony supposed to compare them to? Puppies? Flowers? Everything good in the world? Yeah, probably all of the above. The man looked firm in his stance, like he always has some small, uptight nature to him. Tony wondered what he was like around close friends. Maybe then he let back a little?
Probably not. Then there was Bucky. Tony didn't like the name. It sounded like a mutt. The man's actual name was James. James had long hair, a nonexistent smile, and just about the most beautiful jaw Tony had ever seen. Yes, he said jaw. It wasn't his fault that jaw line could cut paper, sue him. But James was so different from Steve. He had this look that just screamed he knew too much of the world, too much of the harsh reality of it. Maybe that was what Tony yearned for in the man. Someone who could genuinely understand why he was awake at three in the morning every morning, sobbing, because of the world.
Both men made him wanna smile. Smile... He tugged out a small, leather bound notebook and started quickly scribbling down lyrics.
Bucky watched as Pepper Potts walked up to Stark, reading something over his shoulder. Tony had been huffing and puffing over some tiny little notebook for the past half hour.
He watched as Pepper nodded, plucking the notebook out of Stark's hands and walking over to James Rhodes, quietly muttering something about a build up before the chorus. Maybe the notebook was full of lyrics. Did Stark write all his songs last minute?
Damn, that was cute. Bucky blinked, sighing at his own lack of self control, before taking a seat with Stevie on the counter, waiting as the band members set up in the corner of the cafe. Luckily, they had brought their own equipment, mics included. Anything they hadn't brought with them had been hauled in by what Buck assumed were workers and security guards.
"How the hell did we get so lucky? The Avengers? Not only snatching some tickets, but also having them play at our place?" he asked, honestly wondering exactly how the world work for such a string of events to come together so perfectly in their favor.
"Not sure." Steve replied, honest confusion in his voice, "Don't question it, though. Ma always said questioning great things makes them less."
Bucky was about to go into a mini rant about how he'll question whatever he wants to question, when a guitar strum silenced the entire cafe in a single second. Aside from hushed gasps of excitement and stunned eyes, everything stood still as they all looked towards the band.
Pepper continued to strum for a while, the music taking it's time to make it's self known. Bucky noticed, they were all different in their music.
Tony sang as though he needed to be heard, like he was a dying man trying to spread all the thoughts that had killed him within a matter of three minutes. Pepper played firmly, not questioning. It was as she knew what the music meant, and was just providing it for the audience. She knew she had nothing to prove, just enjoyment to give. Rhodey played like he was in his bedroom, hands moving across numerous instruments. Playing for himself, not the audience.
Then, Tony grabbed onto the microphone perched on the stand, looking around at the crowd as his words kicked in, soft and paced.
"As the light, washes over the morning rise
You're still asleep, and that's all right
I can be still, cause you look so sweet
And beautiful, next to me"
And suddenly Tony was making eye contact with him as the chorus pushed through, and Bucky's breathe was gone.
"And all my life
I've been waiting for someone like you
To make me smile
You make me feel alive
And you're giving me everything
I've ever wanted in life"
Bucky's fingers gripped tight to the counter top, his eyes never leaving Tony's. Tony looked meek, but his voice never trembled, never wavered. Then, suddenly, Tony was looking just to Buck's right. It took him a second to realize Tony was looking at Steve now.
"You make me smile
And I forget to breathe
What's an angel like you
Ever do with a devil like me"
Tony had to have just written this. There was no proof, of course Buck knew that, but it felt like more. And suddenly Bucky needed to be in front of Tony, holding Tony, demanding him for an explanation.
Eventually, the song ended, Tony having spent the rest of it gazing over the crowd. Bucky understood, he really did. Tony had millions fawning over him, he had to pay them attention when he could. So, the rational part of Bucky's mind understood. The other part, however, wanted to lock Tony away in a bedroom, keeping the perfect little man hidden from the world's terrifying eyes.
He glanced over, noticing Steve seemed to be stuck in his own head too. Before he could really try and form a somewhat casual question to Steve to break him out of his daze, a short form shuffled up to them, hands hanging loosely at his side.
Tony stood in front of them, smiling softly. His cheeks were a pale pink, only somewhat flustered from the long performance. His hair was a small, fluffy mess and all Bucky wanted to do was run his hands through it.
"Did you guys like it?" Tony asked, looking up at them like a small child asking for approval. A small tinge of pain poured through Bucky's heart, as he wondered how little praise the man had gotten when he was younger, that he still seeked it out so much.
And then Tony was looking up at him, his eyebrows knitting together in a cute confusion, and Bucky couldn't have been held accountable for his actions. He gripped onto the shorter man's chin, tilting it up and pressing their lips together.
Suddenly, the flash of hundreds of cameras were all Bucky could see.