𝔸𝕤 𝕝𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕒𝕤 𝕀 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕪𝕠𝕦

Chapter 2

Tw: Panic attack

Tony sat with his back pressed against the wall, cross-legged with a half-eaten apple in his hand. An open laptop balanced precariously on his knees, wobbling dangerously. Bruce was leaning on the metal handrail that separated the walkway and the stairs, flicking through the pages of a book with complicated diagrams tattooed on the front. Thor was in a heated conversation with Clint about football, emphasising his points with wide sweeps of his arms. Nat, who was regarding Thor with raised eyebrows, grinned when she caught sight of Steve, Pietro and Wanda.

''Hey, Steve!'' She ran up to him, her crimson locks bouncing. ''Loki's not here yet. I thought Bucky and Sam would be coming with you.''

Steve shook his head. ''I'm showing the new kids around.'' He nodded at Wanda and Pietro. ''They're probably stuck in class still.''

Nat rolled her eyes. "Stuck in a closet more like," she murmured under her breath. Seeing Tony's sideways glance at her, Natasha quickly amended herself. "They'll be here soon."

She gestured to Wanda and Pietro, who were both standing awkwardly at Steve's side. ''C'mon. I'll introduce you to the rest of the guys.''

Wanda grinned and quickened her pace to match Nat's, while Pietro trailed behind, casting an uncertain glance at Steve. Noticing Pietro's hesitancy, Steve jogged up to him, throwing an arm around his shoulders as they followed Nat and Wanda.

--

''Tony Stark.'' Tony gestured to himself. ''And this is Jolly Green, Goldilocks and Legolas.''

''Hey!'' Clint began in an indignant tone, starting towards Tony, but was slapped gently on the shoulder by Nat, who gave him a pointed glare. ''This is Thor, Clint and Bruce.'' She translated, looking towards the twins. ''And that arrogant idiot there is Tony Stark.''

''I prefer the term Genius Billionaire Playboy- ''

''Guys, this is Wanda and Pietro Maximoff.'' Nat interrupted, waving her arm at the siblings. Bruce reached to shake their hands, and Thor waved.

Steve leant against the brick wall Tony was sitting on and looked towards Thor. ''Hey, where's Loki? You haven't killed him yet, have you?''

Thor sniffed. ''I wish. Clint and Nat pushed me out of class before I could murder him.''

''Who's Loki?'' Wanda asked, confusion evident in her face.

''My brother!'' Thor exclaimed, grinning.

''Adopted,'' murmured a quiet voice behind Thor. Everybody else jumped (save Nat) but Thor hardly flinched, as if he was used to his brother's invisibility.

"And Stephen?" Steve asked.

Nat nodded at a tall, dark haired student with silver highlights and a red scarf loitering near the school gates, checking his watch. "My guess is that he's waiting for Wong. I haven't seen him today."

A pair of familiar laughs entered the earshot of the group. Sam and Bucky, both flushed red and giggling like children, threw themselves next to Tony on the floor, who looked them up and down deprecatingly. "Surprising turn of events."

Steve shook his head amusedly. ''Leave them alone, Tony.''

He narrowed his eyes at Steve, but relented, slumping back against the wall and turning his head so Steve was blocked from his view.

Steve felt his heart twist in his chest, inwardly, and cursed himself for it. Whatever he had done in the past year seemed to have hurt Tony so badly he wouldn't even talk to him anymore. There was a time in freshman year when they'd formed a type of school club: The Avengers, and would have spent lunchtimes trying to bring down Hydra, forming diabolical plans that would not have worked in any way, but were still fun to devise.