In Plain Sight (BoyxBoy)

Chapter 31

It had been four days.

Tony hadn't deigned going out of his penthouse, and Jarvis kept the doors locked at all times.

No one noticed at first. They were all busy mourning Thor, each in their own way. Steve went through sandbag after sandbag at the gym. Bruce went down to the lab and watched a Tesla sphere for hours. Natasha seemed unaffected, but Clint saw her bite her lip so often that he knew it was all a façade. He pretended not to notice in the same way he pretended she didn't see him up at night, with his eyes open and just looking at the ceiling.

When they did notice, they figured it was only natural. Understandable. It was also an implicit agreement that barging in to yell 'I told you so' in his face would be of poor taste. It was only by the end of the second week that they decided to send Pepper in.

Jarvis let her in without a word.

"It's not like I'm surprised, you know? Were his welcoming words. Pepper waited patiently, and then grabbed a seat next to him as it became obvious that she was expected to do so.

"I knew he'd pull out something like this." He started again, and Pepper was as surprised she didn't smell alcohol in his breath as she was enraged about the absolute resignation in his voice. "I knew it would happen. Makes one wonder where Thor got that blind faith from."

This wasn't her Tony.

"You couldn't have known."

"Thing is, I could and I did. Ironically, he never lied to me about that." He shot her a glare, as if she could somehow be made responsible for Loki's betrayal. "You can have fun with me, but in the end you don't stop life and ask Tony Stark to play house with you because I won't. And he won't, either, so I never had too much hope for that." He shook his head.

"I... Don't know what to say. Where do you think he went?"

He shrugged, and only then did Pepper notice the glass ball he rolled back and forth in his hands.

"Not back to Asgard, that much is sure. For all I know he could be out there, killing elves or dwarves in one of his branches."

"Tony, I..."

He rose from the couch.

"I'm fine, Peps."

"Come out. We're all worried."

"There's nothing to be worried about. Nothing. That's all there ever was to it."

It took Tony another three days to join his team in the communitarian levels of the tower, and it had more to do with keeping them from breaking into his floor than actual desire to do so.

He pretended he didn't see their pitying looks whenever they thought he couldn't see them. He was too tired. Nodded absently whenever Steve attempted to engage in conversation, until he got fed up and walked away. Bruce sat with him and he appreciated the thought, but couldn't bring himself to break the silence that settled between them. Clint came to him at some point, and be braced himself.

"Don't blame yourself." He sat at his side and passed him a beer. "He's his own kind o bastard."

Tony smiled for the first time in a while. "He is."

"He fixed me, though."

"He did." He took a sip of the beer. "Thor would have taken that as a motive for hope."

Clint laughed. "Thor would be sulking with you."

"Fuck you."

And for a second it was good.