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Day 4: On A Date
Tony was pretty sure he knew how dates went, as a general rule. There’d be a movie in the VIP booth, dinner at a fancy restaurant, then a ride around in his limo. It’d be either a pretty girl or a handsome guy, and if he played his cards right, he’d get laid that same night. Tony Stark always played his cards right. Only he hasn’t actually been on a date in several months now. He didn’t want to think about why it was that way, but it just lost most of its appeal.
Steve, on the other hand, had his own set of preconception as to what a date was like. It resembled Tony’s views in that it included a movie and a dinner, but it lacked the fancier aspects of it, and the indecent ones, as well. That was why, even after so long out of the ice, Steve was still single. He’d had a handful of dates, none of which seemed too keen on talking, and he had no interest in potential partners who only saw in him a bunch of muscles and a pretty face.
Going by these guidelines, what happened once a week, where Tony would drop by at around seven o’clock, bearing a DVD of one movie or another, and where Steve would take care of the food, constituted a date. And if they were dates, then the two had had quite a few by now.
Only they weren’t dates until either of them pointed out that that’s what they were, and neither really cared to do that. The reason neither of them dared raise the issue was that Tony thought Steve was straight, and Steve thought Tony hated him. Both were gravely mistaken.
“So there are no women in this movie.” Steve said, watching Tony toy with the DVD player. He never knew in advance what kind of movie Tony would bring, so there was always the element of surprise, but Steve actually preferred it that way, knowing that had he gotten the chance, he would probably have investigated each title before they watched it, forming prejudice and perhaps even digging up spoilers. Still, at times he thought knowing the name in advance could be nice. He might be able to assess how significant the movie was and ask for a change of title in extreme cases.
“There are women, but no actresses.” Tony replied as he inserted the DVD into the machine and took the remote as he turned to settle on the sofa next to Steve. Usually Steve would make one form of snack or another, not the cheap junk - something home-made, but there were times when he just didn’t feel like doing that, so they would order something - usually pizza. That was how they knew it would take no less than two pizzas to fill them up.
“Oh.” Steve responded and reached for the DVD cover. A brief glance at the front cover was followed by a glance at Tony, who was occupying himself with the first pizza box. The DVD cover was replaced on the table and Steve set his gaze on Tony, curiosity taking over his usually guarded approach to the guy. Tony ignored him completely, even though Steve saw the nervous twitch at the corner of his mouth which usually indicated he knew he was being watched. “Are you gonna start the movie?”
-
“I don’t understand.” Steve said when the movie was over. It’s not that he didn’t get the plot, that much he hoped was obvious. Tony turned as though to look at him, but his eyes were set on the TV still, watching the end titles go. A questioning sound left Tony, and Steve turned to look at the TV too. “Tony, how many people know this movie?” was the only question that came to mind, eventually.
“You question my choice.” Tony responded, still not looking at Steve. He gave a small smile and reached for the pizza box, pulling a slice out and taking a bite. “Well, here’s the deal. I admit it’s not as well known as Pulp Fiction and Titanic - not by a long shot. Still, I chose to show it to you today, even though there is absolutely no chance you’d hear anyone refer to it, ever.” Tony chewed for a moment, then swallowed before continuing, eyes wandering to settle on a spot behind Steve. “But here’s the question - did you enjoy it?”
“That is not what you were going to say.”
“Wasn’t it beautiful, though?”
“Tony, just say it.”
“And the actors-”
“Tony!”
“Fine!” Tony dumped the slice of pizza on top of the box and got to his feet, surprising Steve. “I gotta know, ok? I’ve been thinking about it for a while.” Tony wasn’t lying, but when was he not thinking - over-thinking things? “And just…” he pointed at the DVD cover and then at the pizza beside it, making sure Steve saw what he was referring to. “Movie and dinner. What do you make of it?”
“When you put it like that..?” Steve had a brow raised and an uncertain look on his face. “… Sounds like a date.” he concluded, crossing his arms as he eyed Tony carefully. Tony stayed where he stood, and nodded his head in response. His arms crossed to mirror Steve’s movement and he seemed thoughtful.
“So…” Tony braved a smile, “Looks like we’re going steady.” He said, and his smile widened when Steve nodded his head once, reaching to cover the lower half of his face with his palm, an action that did nothing to hide the blush that crept onto his face. “For the record, I was sure you were straight.” Tony said then, meeting the crystal gaze of Steve’s eyes.
“And I thought you hated me.” was the quiet admission on Steve’s part, as his hand dropped from his face.
“At first, sure.” Tony said easily enough with a wave of his hand. “But you’re not Captain America for nothing.” and that really wasn’t an explanation at all, but it was the best Tony could think of at the time. Steve gave him a long, steady look, and then turned his gaze to the black screen of the TV.
“Next time, we’re going to the cinema.” Steve said eventually. “There’s a movie adaptation to a book that I like and I want to see it.”
“You got it.”