Trippin'
You let go of Chris, took a step back and rested your hands on his shoulders, looking up at him. He couldn't tell what you were thinking, so he asked, "What?"
Your face was still blank, "Catch."
"What?"
You were already jumping as high as you could manage and he instinctively bent his knees, caught you under your thighs and lifted you higher as your legs went around his waist and your arms around his neck. You latched on for dear life and then his arms went around your back; he felt he shouldn't be touching your thighs.
He was severely caught off guard, "(Y/N)--"
You whispered, "Shhh, it's okay. Just for a second, okay?"
His face was pained as he pressed you tight against him, closed his eyes and buried his face in your hair and neck. He took in a deep breath of your scent. He felt so torn. God, this felt so wrong for so many reasons, but he couldn't stop; you felt so right... With him... Like this. He whispered, "God, I fuckin' missed you."
You whispered back, "I missed you too. I'm so sorry I hurt you."
"I know, sweetheart."
He set you down gently; it was getting too intense and wasn't helping him accept his fate. He sighed looking at you.
You looked a little apologetic, "I'm sorry. That was too much. I just needed to monkey on you for a minute. Get in a really good one, ya know?"
He smiled softly, "Yeah. I get it. I needed it too." He handed you your beer, took his and hitched his head toward the front door, "Let's go join Seb... You know, your boyfriend. You remember that guy?"
"Okay.", you laughed and he followed as you lead.
You all had a mid-week hang out with everyone over. That couldn't wait for the weekend; everyone missed those times.
About halfway through the night, most of you were around the fire, Tony shouted, "HEY! ANNOUNCEMENT!"
"Pepper's pregnant?!", Thor asked enthusiastically.
Tony just scoffed, "Hey, where's Bartons and Chris and that girl?"
"Jesus, Tony,", Sebastian spoke up, sitting in a chair with you sideways on his lap, playing with his hair, "Don't be a dick. Her name is Sharon. And they're all in the house." He took a sip of his beer.
"My dear, Seb, I don't be a dick, I am a dick.", he returned.
"Deal with that.", Sam interjected on Tony's behalf.
There were chuckles all around.
Sebastian chortled, "Seriously though, dude. She has a name."
Tony scoffed in reluctant defeat, "Fine." He put his hands up like a megaphone and shouted towards the house, "Bartons! Chris!...", he narrowed his eyes and glanced at Pepper and just about everyone outside spoke up in unison, you and Seb included, "Sharon!"
"Thanks everyone. You keep calling her like that for me and I never have to remember her name."
God, he really was a dick, but he was also a really good guy when he needed to be. You smirked.
The four who were summoned all came filing out, Chris looked confused, "Why are you all shouting Sharon's name?"
You had just taken a sip of your beer and gestured towards Tony with your bottle, nonchalant, "Tony's bein' a dick."
Sebastian pulled his arm around your waist tighter, hiding his face against your shoulder in an attempt to stifle an outward snort of a laugh and he was failing miserably.
It made you burst into a smile, which you quickly tried to wipe off your face. You pressed your hand still holding your beer to your mouth, covering a loud giggle as you looked between Seb, Chris and Tony.
Chris nodded, pulling the corners of his mouth downward, "Sounds about right."
Sebastian pulled his head back up, his laugh slowing while he spoke quietly, "Ahhhhh, that was amazing." He looked at you and pulled you to him by the back of your neck to kiss you as you smiled. You loved making him laugh.
"Hey!", Tony nearly yelled, "Everyone needs to stop calling me a dick or I'm not making this announcement and trust me, you're gonna wanna hear it." He lifted his beer and started, "In four weeks I am hosting an all expenses paid trip for seven days to Yellowstone National Park for everyone here."
Everyone's faces expressed surprise and excitement as he continued.
"I'll be chartering two private, double decker luxury buses for the 7 hour drive. We'll be staying in the historic and beautiful Lake Yellowstone Hotel, right on the lake front. So, leave the kids with Grandma and Grandpa,", he pointed and Clint and Laura. "Everyone who works for me-", Pepper cleared her throat loudly and Tony continued without even looking at her, "Or Pepper,"
Pepper winked at you and you grinned at her.
Tony went on, "you will be getting the time off, paid, of course. If anyone who doesn't work for me can't get the time off, quit your job and I'll find a place for you to work for us."
Everyone laughed and Tony started again, "I'm not kidding. I will hire you, even if it's to scrub tile grout in the restrooms... There are 8 on every floor, you'd stay busy and I pay well. I want ALL our friends there."
There's the good guy you were referring to.
Once it was time for the trip four weeks later, everyone was able to go and drove to Tony and Pepper's that morning. Tony had everyone park in his huge garage. The buses were there, fully stocked and completely luxurious, of course. The drivers loaded everyone's luggage into the compartments in the bellies of the buses.
The lead bus had Tony, Pepper, you, Seb, Chris, Sharon and Sam. The second bus carried Nat, Bruce, Thor, Jane, The Bartons and Maria. The buses had a wireless intercom system so the passengers of both buses could talk to each other quickly. The drivers had radios to talk to each other about the travel details and stops.
As the buses left, you poked around in the fridge for something since you had only had a hard boiled egg for breakfast. You gasped, "There's sushi!"
"You can thank Pepper for that one. She was looking out for you there.", Tony called out behind him as he jogged up the stairs to where there were beds and closets.
You sat by Pepper at the circular booth style table to one side of the bus, "Thanks, Pep.", you smiled, opening the container and putting a piece of the roll into your mouth.
She grinned back, "Anything for my best assistant."
Sebastian returned from the back of the bus where he had been checking everything out with Chris, Sam and Sharon.
He sat on your other side, gave you a quick kiss on the cheek, grabbed a piece and popped it into his own mouth as Pepper spoke, "And her boyfriend, apparently.", she chuckled as Sebastian, gave her a big, closed mouth smile and squeezed his eyes shut.
"I'm your only assistant.", you looked to Pepper, laughing at Seb's goofy expression.
"Well, that means your the best then, because with you, I don't need more than one assistant. I've had to have two before; not everyone can handle it on their own.", she gave you a proud smile.
"Wow.", you said with your hand in front of your full mouth, then swallowed, "Thank you. Is there soy sauce?"
Pepper laughed, "There's packets in the drawer by the fridge."
"Got it.", Sebastian stood to get it for you as he took another piece.
"Honey, there's more in the fridge. Please quit eating mine."
"Well, then I'll get another container when this one is gone.", he handed you the packets and sat next to you again, putting an arm around your shoulders. "Sharing means I get to sit really close to you."
You thanked him for the soy sauce and you were opening one of the packets when he grabbed another piece, eating it quickly.
"Seb! Seriously!", you wanted to be serious, but you were chuckling, "It's almost gone. There are only so many pieces in a roll. Now go get me another container since you're eating all mine." He removed his arm from you and you shoved the back of his shoulder away from you playfully.
He laughed, kissed your temple as you poured soy sauce in the container lid and he scooted to the edge of the seat, "Yes, dear."
You smacked his ass with the back of your hand as he got up and he let out a whoop and laughed, "Ooh, baby!"
You and Pepper laughed and you shook your head, smiling.
"You two are so cute together.", Pepper grinned at you.
"Aw, thanks. I sure love that dork. He's really good to me,", you spoke louder as you looked at Sebastian who was already coming back, container in hand. "when he's not eating my food!", you teased.
He laughed and took his place next to you, dragged your container to him and set the new one in front of you, you kissing his cheek as he did, "Thank you, honey."
"Welcome, baby doll.", he smiled at you lovingly, then whispered in your ear, "I love you."
You put your hand on the back of his head as he gave your neck a kiss just under your ear. You stifled a giggle when his stubble tickled you.
Tony came back down with a deck of cards in hand, "Cards anyone?"
Chris came from the TV area in the back, "No, thanks, we're good." He grabbed some waters out of the fridge and headed back. He, Sharon and Sam found a movie to watch.
So Tony, Pepper, Seb and you played cards for about an hour.
Tony was shuffling the deck for another game you hung your head and rubbed your forehead, "I think I'm gonna go lay down."
Sebastian furrowed his brows and dipped his head to get a better look at you, "You okay, baby?"
"Yeah, just tired, getting a headache and my stomach feels a little off. I probably should get a bottle of water too. Probably just a little dehydrated or didn't get enough sleep."
He scooted out of the booth and went to get you a bottle of water from the fridge as Pepper spoke up, "Use whatever bed you want, there's a queen at the back and one at the front, blankets are in the drawers underneath."
"Thanks, Pep.", you started up the stairs, Sebastian following after you with your water.
"Hey,", Tony called out, "No nookie on my bus." He was often teasing you and Sebastian about that, even before you were together. Guess Chris wasn't the only one who had noticed you were a little closer to Seb.
You rolled your eyes and Sebastian scoffed. Pepper elbowed Tony in the side and he grunted.
Once you reached the top of the stairs, you went to the closest bed, which was a twin. You sat and Sebastian stayed standing next to you, opening the water before handing it to you, "You want some pain relievers?", he asked as you took a long drink.
"No, lemme see if the water and rest helps first.", you took another long drink.
You handed him the water and he twisted the lid back on, then dropped it on the bed next to you.
He took a step closer and gently pressed your head against his stomach, holding it there. Your arms wrapped lazily around one of his thighs as he started to rub the base of your skull on either side with a thumb and finger.
Your eyes closed and you let out a long sigh, "God, you're an angel."
He chuckled softly, "Nah, just taking care of my girl."
He massaged your head for a couple more minutes and then you took another drink of water before kicking off your shoes and laying down. He got a blanket from the drawer under the bed, pushed off his own shoes and layed up against your backside. He pulled the blanket over you both and wrapped his arms around you.
You woke up to Sebastian's quiet voice, "Doll?"
"Hm?", you voice was rough and your brain felt foggy. You rolled onto your back partway, coming to rest against his chest, opened your eyes and saw him leaning over you.
He spoke soft and sweet, "Hey, gorgeous." He gave you several soft, quick kisses on your cheek without his lips leaving it.
You put your hand on the back of his head and smiled sleepily, "Hi, handsome."
"We're stopped to get lunch. How you feeling? You wanna get up?"
"Yeah. Did you sleep?"
"Nope. Just stayed here to watch over you."
"Yep, you're an angel; my guardian angel.", you smiled and kissed him.
Everyone ate lunch at a restaurant while the bus drivers got gas and then joined you all to eat. Nice couple of guys.
You all were on the road again in an hour. You were feeling better, but still a bit tired.
You cuddled up with Sebastian and you each read your own book on one of the couches in the TV room in the back for a little bit, then you joined the others up front. They were listening to music, chatting and having beers. Sam, Tony and Pepper were on the couch across from the table where Chris and Sharon sat along with you and Sebastian. He had his arm around you, your hand on his thigh and your tilted head resting in the crook of this neck.
Sam was handing our another round of beers to everyone and when he held one out for you, you declined with a smile, "No, thank you."
Sebastian looked down at you, but Chris spoke before he could say anything.
"You okay, (Y/N)? What's goin' on?", he looked a little concerned and you seemed a bit off.
You answered casually, "I'm just still tired and I think a beer would actually put me to sleep." You chuckled.
Sebastian put his cheek on your forehead, "You wanna go lay back down, doll?"
"No, I'm fine.", you smiled up at him.
He kissed you, "Okay. I'll grab you another water." He got up to get it as you thanked him.
The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful; everyone just visiting, hanging out, playing a few games. Sam took a nap at one point and Sebastian sat at the other end of one of the front couches and gave you a foot rub while you both watched out the window. All the passing fields with cows and horses soon turned into forest trees and mountain walls.
Tony turned on the intercom to the other bus and exclaimed at the change of scenery, "Almost there!" Tony stood right behind the cab, facing toward the back of the bus. "How long we got, Teddy?", he turned asking the driver behind him.
Teddy spoke up, "Almost an hour, Sir."
"It's Tony. I told you. Thanks, Teddy."
"Sorry, Sir.", Teddy apologized.
Tony scoffed and addressed the group, "Old military habits die hard." He threw his fists in the air, "Less than an hour until we're in!"
You all laughed and humored the exuberant Tony by clapping. Everyone was looking forward to this vacation, but Tony was beyond stoked to be treating all his favorite people to this national treasure and being with them for a whole week.
When the lead bus pulled up to the park enterance toll booths, Teddy parked the bus and got in the passenger seat as Tony took the driver seat, "Afternoon!", he beamed at the attendant as he took out his credit card. "I got this bus and the one behind us."
"Yes'sir.", the attendant took his card. Once the payment was made, the attendant gave him all the passes and information about staying in the park, including safety concerning the wildlife. Tony thanked him and Teddy took his seat and the buses continued on.
Tony asked Teddy how long until the hotel and Teddy glanced at the GPS and then said about another hour.
"Okay!", Tony announced to the rest of you and the other bus over the intercom again, "About another hour until the hotel."
Chris's eyebrows shot up, "Wow. Really?"
"Yep. But I basically rented homes on wheels for the comfort of my friends, so it's not so bad, huh?", Tony smiled. "But keep your eyes peeled for wildlife. There's bison, elk, wolves, bears..."
"Oh my.", you said softly. It was ridiculous, but you couldn't help it. Everyone chuckled anyway.
Not even half of you had been to Yellowstone before. Only a few had; Tony, Pepper, the Bartons, Sharon and Bruce.
No one spotted anything the whole time. Once turning onto the road that led to the hotel, the buses stopped in a traffic jam on the long, narrow, two lane road. It took the drivers nearly ten minutes to move less than a mile... Then everyone saw what caused it.
There were two huge bison that had crossed the road and were now on the other side of the street in the grass near the tree line. They were less than 5 feet from the road. Everyone driving ahead of the buses and on the other side were crawling like sloths to look and take pictures. You gasped and your face lit up as you knelt on the couch and sat on your feet to face the window head on. Everyone was finding a window on that side to look out of.
Sebastian was right next to you, sitting sideways, his knee resting on the cushion toward the back of the couch. He got up just enough the slide the window open so you both could see without glare. He lowered himself back down and rubbed your back gently while he watched them.
Everyone was 'oohing' and 'ahhing' and then Sam nearly shouted from the second level, "Holy shit! They're huge!"
Everyone laughed... But not you. You let out what sounded like a tiny distressed squeak and Sebastian's head snapped to look at you and you had your hands over your mouth and nose and there were tears in your eyes. He got worried, "What's wrong?" He put an arm over your shoulder and dipped his head down to look into your face.
Pepper was on your other side and put a hand gently on your back just lower than Sebastian's arm, her face concerned, "Are you okay?"
Everyone started to look at you when they heard Sebastian's question.
You hiccuped and answered with a soft whine, your hands clasped together against your mouth as the tears started to fall from your eyes which were still glued to the animals, "They're so beautiful." It also made you ridiculously happy to see them in the wild... Where they belong.
Sebastian gathered you in his arms, "Aww, baby." He kissed your temple as you continued the watch the bison as the bus passed.
Chris had been watching and then spoke up, concerned, since he couldn't tell what you were saying so quietly from the window he was at, "What's going on?"
Sebastian turned his head to Chris, "She's just excited."
Chris smiled, relieved. 'God, could she get anymore precious?'