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It came as no surprise to anyone that Asgardian and Hulkling spent the break with each other. When it came to the small group of teen would-be superheroes, while they were short-staffed and all largely got along with everyone else, those two ended up gravitating towards each other more often than not. At first, their founder and would-be leader thought little of it, but as time passed, Iron Lad found it harder to ignore that pang in his chest whenever he looked at them, one he ultimately allowed himself to admit was envy.
At first, Nate attributed it to greed. A lonely boy in his own time, the sudden influx of interaction and attention was almost enough to leave the young time-traveler over saturated, but with a constant need for more. Billy and Teddy both were lovely and approachable, and even Eli, for all his hostility, ultimately meant well and kept coming around. At the very least, Nate never really felt like he'd punch him outside of training, and that was more than he was used to, for sure. If he let his guard down, Nate was likely to admit he was having fun - and the fact all three of his teammates were attractive young men was an unexpected bonus he felt like he didn't deserve.
While all made him feel hotter in the pit of his stomach, there was one who made his chest tighten as well, and no, it was not Eli. Nate was fairly certain he wasn't into that sort of relationship, most likely. It wasn't Teddy, either. Perhaps it was due to the fact he was in his Hulkling form most of the time, but Nate just didn't feel that way about him despite how much he enjoyed their conversations.
No, the one who made Nate's chest feel all aflutter and his words catch in his throat was Asgardian, one enchanting and welcoming Billy Kaplan. Perhaps it was due to their shared experiences and similar dispositions, but Nate found he got along with Billy better than with the others, and that he smiled more often around him - a fact Eli bothered to point out one evening in a way where his reluctance to name names did little to obscure his intent. It left Teddy uneasy for the rest of the night, while Billy seemed mostly unaware if a bit confused.
Occasionally, Nate thought it was the same for Billy, who would smile back widely when they talked, and who seemed eager to hear what Nate had to say. It was enough to make Nate think there was actually hope for them - until that one time Eli so casually pointed out -
"They're together again?!"
He went on and complained how he had watched that particular movie too and would also like to talk about it, you guys, but by then Nate wasn't listening. He was too caught up in the sound of Billy's laughter, all ungraceful snorts and coughs, a response to a joke Teddy cracked.
Ah, he thought; it wasn't that he was upset his friends were getting along with each other. It was that Billy was getting along all too well with someone else.
It had been several nights since Eli made that observation, and Nate thought he was taking it fairly well, right up to that moment Eli and Teddy wandered off together to spar and he was left with Billy to practice aerial maneuvers. They had just reconvened after a break, so Billy was riding the afterglow of another conversation with Teddy. That, apparently, was Nate's breaking point.
"You know," he began, and before he realized what he was about to say, went and said it. "My pickup lines are way better than his... just saying," he said with a shrug added for good measure. Billy was lost, and needed a moment before he looked at the other two, then back at Nate. Still unsteady, he opted to first counter it with the kind of unrelentlessness Nate came to appreciate and adore.
"Iron Lad, your pickup lines include--" he threw his head back and narrowed his eyes at Nate in a way that made Nate's knees go weak.
"'You can't spell 'passionate' without 'Nate'."
"Well, you can't--" Nate tried to argue on a factual level while he recovered from the jab, but Billy wasn't listening anymore. He was looking at Teddy, who stopped to wave, only to get punched for his efforts ("Kang wouldn't wait for you!" "You could've..."). Done wincing at the display, Billy looked back at Nate, expression and voice both bashful.
"You really think he was flirting? I mean, I thought-- I hoped--- but..."
It was hard to tell what hurt Nate more, the fact Billy looked outright radiant at the prospect his feelings might be reciprocated, or that he never bothered to acknowledge Nate had been, at any point in time, flirting, too. It was enough to break Nate's heart either way.
"...Patriot was the one to point it out, actually," Nate said finally, not quite seeing it for the half truth it was. It made Billy all the more excited just the same.
"Really?! Even El-- even Patriot noticed?! Then maybe-- ah, no, I can't," Billy growled in an obvious effort not to get too ahead of himself. "I mean, we're on a team together, if things go bad--"
"Billy," Nate's voice cut through the nervous rumblings, and the hand he placed on Billy's shoulder helped to focus him. The way those brown eyes looked at him, bright and wide and pleading, was beautiful. Nate realized then that this was it - this was his only chance. Knowing this, he took a deep breath, gave Billy's shoulder a squeeze, and offered him his best smile.
"We're going to fight Kang the Conqueror. You might not get another chance."
The morbid statement made Billy's face fall. He reached for Nate's hand on his shoulder, his hold on the other's wrist drawing a small gasp from Nate.
"None of us signed up to die for you," he muttered, but there was sobriety in his eyes when next he looked at Teddy. Sobriety, and determination.
"What have I got to lose? He signed up for this crazy mission, he wouldn't cause a stink so long as I was respectful and stepped down if it was one sided, right? Probably?"
"Definitely," Nate reassured and hoped Billy didn't notice that shaking intake of breath.
"That's something for later, though. In the meanwhile, why don't we put all that energy to use right now?"
"Yeah!"
And as they took to the sky, leaving the ground and their teammates behind, Nate couldn't help but wish they never came back down.