My Neighbor, Mr. Rogers

Chapter Thirty-Nine - So...That Happened

A/N: I just...I don't even know.

After we had talked for a while about how exactly our relationship is going to change (and perhaps after some more kissing), we thought we should find James and tell him the good news.

"The Tower seem extra quiet to you?" Steve asks as we check the empty lounge.

"Considering there are six superheroes living together under the same roof and not a creature is stirring, not even a mouse? Yeah, it's too quiet."

"Okay, how about a different approach? JARVIS?" Steve calls out.

"Yes, sir?"

"Where is everyone?"

"They're in the training room, sir."

Steve grins down at me. "There we go."

I smile back hesitantly. "Yep. So, everyone?" I swallow. "I mean, are you ready to, to have that conversation with all of them?"

*cough*Tony*cough*

His smile shifts to a smirk as he crouches down beside my wheelchair. "Not backing out already, are you?"

My face scrunches. "Of course not. I just don't want to deal with Tony's 'Tony-ness 'once he finds out- because he will tease us and I will roll over his toes."

Steve's expression momentarily stiffens as I remind him of the facts of Tony's personality. "Good point, but it's worth it."

"Telling everyone or rolling over his toes?" I ask, half joking.

"Both," he answers with a grin. He kisses my nose before rising to his feet. "Now, shall we?"

I grudgingly agree and roll down the hall.

When we reach the training room, we both come to an abrupt halt. Instead of the clean, gray monotone look the area usually has, it's littered with streamers and balloons of every bright color. Every piece of workout equipment has been wrapped in ribbons and pushed to the perimeter of the room. A fully stocked bar is off to our left. In the center of the room is the rest of the group– Tony, Pepper, Bruce, Natasha, Clint, and James –gathered around a table that has a rather large, three-tiered, white cake on it.

Once we get over our initial surprise, we walk over to join them.

"What's all this for?" Steve asks. "I didn't think it was anyone's birthday..." he trails off, probably concerned that he forgot to get one of his friends a gift.

Tony steps forward with his arms out to us; smirking crookedly with as much self-satisfaction as I've ever seen on his smug mug. Come to think of it, they're all looking rather smug (except for Pepper who looks resigned to some forthcoming disaster, and Bruce who looks uncomfortable). "Oh Steve, you naïve little unicorn. This is your birthday- well, rebirth, if you will." Seeing the confused look on Steve's face, Tony steps aside and gestures to the table behind him.

The white cake, under a spotlight, is frosted to say in big, bright, blue letters, "FINALLY".

"I was wrong to call you 'Capsicle'. You've been a glacier. Honestly, how can you survive moving this slowly?" Tony asks, completely serious, before shrugging. "Oh well, at least you finally 'fon-did' it." He wiggles an eyebrow, looking back and forth between the two of us.

My eyelids disappear with how wide my eyes have gone. I'm going to take scissors to all of his ties. I'm going to take a sharpie to his arc reactor so he has to be a walking projector of pink ballerinas. I'm going to shave half of his goatee. I'm going to give him the worst spray tan he's ever gotten – on just his forehead. I'm going to let a class of six-year-old girls into his suit room, give them a full wardrobe of dresses and a crate of paint and tell them to go nuts making-over his Iron Man suits. Or maybe I'll just punch him in the nose.