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“Uh, hey. Can we keep this just between us?” Tony asked pulling on his t-shirt before zipping up his jeans. “I have enough problems with the board and the press without them finding out I'm dating a guy too.”
Clint shrugged. “Yeah sure.” He pulled his hoodie on then leaned in to plant another kiss to Tony's lips.
“Thanks Darling.” Tony grinned.
---Six Months later---
“What the fuck is this?” Clint demanded storming into Tony's lab and throwing the gossip rag at him. There on the cover were several photos of Tony with some woman. A woman he was getting very handsy with.
Tony looked at him shocked. He wasn't supposed to be back from his latest mission so soon. “I have a reputation to protect.” He shrugged trying to brush it off. “People were starting to ask questions about why a certain playboy was never seen with a woman any more. I couldn't risk anyone looking to closely at my relationships.”
“So instead you slept with her?” Clint growled.
Tony opened his mouth to deny it had gone that far but Clint grabbed up the magazine. Inside there were pictures of Tony leading her into the tower and of her leaving in the morning along with an interview with her. “It didn't mean anything.” Tony protested.
Clint sighed. “No. It never does, does it.” He flipped the magazine closed tearing it in the process. “How many Tony?” He asked. “How many others have I missed seeing the pictures of because I was away on a mission?”
“A few.” Tony whispered not meeting his gaze.
A muscle in Clint's jaw twitched as he clamped his teeth together. He took a deep breath in through his nose, then released it with a sigh. “They don't care about you Tony.” He said at last. “Not those women, not your board, none of them.” He said at last. “They'd all sell you to the highest bidder.” Tony nodded sadly still not looking at him. Clint sighed again. “I'm sorry Tony. I can't do this any more.” He turned and left without a backwards glance.
---
Clint had left the Avengers after that and Tony had gone back to his playboy lifestyle full time. He'd been dating some popstar for about a month before a serious Avengers incident had left him hospitalised.
She didn't come to visit and when he'd gotten out and finally managed to get in touch with her, she informed him she hadn't signed on to be nursemaid to some old man.
Tony had stopped dating after that. Not just because it took months to heal and months again to fix the issue that had allowed the injury to happen in the first place but also because he realised it didn't make him any less cold inside.
---
Tony was digging around in a drawer on his workbench looking for a particular type of screw when he came across a photo of him and Clint he'd hidden in there after Clint left.
Looking down at it, Tony realised he'd never felt this lonely before. He also realised Clint had been right. He never should have let him go he thought. Never should have let the opinions of ass-holes allow him to push away the best thing he'd ever had.
He pulled out his Starkphone and scrolled the contacts until he came to Clint's name. He stared at the photo as his thumb hovered over the call icon for a good five minutes before he finally tapped it.
“Hey, you've reached Clint Barton. I'm not available right now so please, leave a message.”
Tony immediately hung up. He tried to go back to work but all he could think about was how much he wanted to talk to Clint so he tried the number again. The same message started up but this time he was ready for it and at the beep, he began to talk.
“Hey Darling.” He began softly. “Haven't seen you in a while. Heard you're living on a farm now. I'm doing all right. In case you heard the suit went down.” He paused for a moment and then continued. “You were right you know. When I was in hospital, they never came to visit, or called. I never needed to care about their opinions.” He sighed. “They tried to remove me from the company. Can you believe it? The day I got out of hospital.” He paused. “Yeah, you can probably believe it. If it hadn't been for Pepper, I'd have lost it all. So I gave her the money for a takeover. Bought out the shareholders and fired the board. God that felt good. I wish you'd seen it. Just like that scene in Batman you love.” He chuckled briefly then continued in a quiet voice. “It's been so lonely since you left.” He took a deep breath. “Any way.” He tried to sound more cheerful. “Give me a call sometime. Maybe come around?” It'd be great to know how you're doing.” Another pause. “I'm sorry you know. Should have said that sooner.” A huff. “Should have never needed to say it.” A whisper. “I still love you.” He hung up the call and decided to give up on work trudging off to bed.
---
Clint awoke to his alarm and reached for his 'phone on the bedside table. One new voicemail. He frowned, who would have been calling him in the middle of the night. He grabbed up his hearing aid and pushed the button for his voicemail.
“You have one. New message. Left today at. 2:27. A.M. From. Tony. Stark. Press one. To play, two. To save, three. To delete.”
**Beep**
“Message deleted. You have. No. New messages.”