Avengers x Male Reader

CYOR: Choose Hulk

"Ben, you go with Bruce," Cap decides.

You look over at Bruce and he gives you his signature grin. It's kind and gentle, the sort of demeanor you've noticed that he goes out of his way to cultivate. Knowing of the beast that lurks beneath the mild-mannered exterior, you understand why he does it. You don't know him very well- hell, you don't know any of the Avengers that well. But you're more than familiar with the footage of Bruce's alter ego.

"Cold out here, isn't it?" Bruce says in that shaky way of a person who is trying to make conversation but isn't particularly comfortable with doing so.

"Yeah," you agree. "But the sooner we find what we're looking for, the better."

Bruce flashes that sheepish smile again and stuffs his hands in his pockets. "Probably get there quicker if I Hulked out, I guess."

You hear the note of reluctance in his voice. "You don't like your other side."

Bruce shrugs  and kicked at the snow. "I mean, he has his uses. It's just...not fun waking up and figuring out what the other  guy did while he was driving."

"That's understandable."

"Yep. So on we trudge I guess."

You shake your head. "Maybe not."

Bruce turned and looked at him as the newbie knelt and placed his hands on the snowy earth. He pressed into the snow and shut his eyes. Bruce stands back and watches, eager to see what you can do. When several seconds pass by, Bruce clears his throat. "Uh...what's up?"

You open one eye and grin. "Just sensing the earth. Looking for any hollow spaces."

"You can do that?"

Your smile widens. "Yeah. I just learned how, actually. If I focus I can...see the earth? I don't know if that really makes sense."

"No, no- it does," Bruce says before kneeling beside him.

As you sit near him, you can't help but imagine sketching him. You wish you had your sketch pad and pencils. Most people would find it amusing that you enjoy art. The last thing anyone expects a tough S.H.I.E.L.D. agent to do in their spare time is go to the park and sketch. But that's always been your calm. As you watch Bruce, you wonder what his calm is.

"You alright?" Bruce asks you.

"Yeah, I'm good," you say. But then feel the changes in the earth beneath you, noticing where it yields to open caverns. You stand up and begin to hastily walk. Bruce takes off after you, intrigued by the sudden singleminded way he was acting. It reminds him of when he used to metal detect as a hobby when he was younger.

"Here," you declare. You stop and kneel again, this time reaching out more aggressively with your powers. The ground trembles, then begins to split open, revealing a dark opening below.

"Wow. That was...wow," Bruce comments before crouching and taking a look. "Should we drop down and take a look?"

You nod. "After you?"

Bruce's eyes widens and he lets out a nervous chuckle.

"Wait- don't tell me the Hulk is afraid of the dark."

"Not afraid," Bruce hastily says. "Just...Hulk tends to come out in stressful situations and I think an underground tunnel could be a bad place for that to happen. You know?"

"Oh, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to..."

"It's okay. Really."

"Wait for the others?" You ask.

"Yeah," Bruce agrees before hailing the others through the radio. "Bruce to team- Ben found the underground base."

You listen to the praise in Bruce's voice and felt a warmth spread through him. The doctor is typically pretty buttoned up, so this rare glimpse of emotion is pleasant.

"They're on their way," Bruce says before taking another look into the darkness beneath them.

You shiver suddenly and jump to your feet. "Bruce, back up!"

Bruce starts to stand when the ground beneath him suddenly begins to crumble. He looks at you with a mixture of alarm and fear before his body suddenly falls into the tunnel below. Wasting no time, you jump down into the tunnel where he fell and immediately begin to reach for him.

"Bruce," you cry out as you take hold of him and attempt to help him up. "Bruce, I'm so sorry!"

A sudden roar bursts from Bruce's mouth, startling you and causing you to let go and stumble backward. You trip over some rubble and fall onto your back where you hastily begin to crawl backward.

"Get away from me!" Bruce screams in a voice entirely different from his. It's deep, angry and so loud or nearly deafens you.

You clamber to your feet and watch as Bruce's face begins to turn green. "Oh, no..."

Bruce moved to his feet and slams his palm into the side of the tunnel, causing everything to shake. He takes a few tremulous steps closer, then falls to his knees and puts his face in his hands. You stay where you are, very much aware that Bruce is doing his damndest to regain control of himself. Several tense moments slip by before his breathing evens out. Finally, after what seems like a lifetime, he rises up.

"Bruce?"

He looks at you and smiles. But it's a sad smile. "I'm sorry," he mutters. "I...I almost lost control. Could have demolished this place."

"You're sorry? I'm the one who's sorry! I...that was super careless of me. I'm so sorry. You were just telling me about...the other guy...in stressful situations."

Bruce raises a hand to quiet you. "Don't worry about it."

You detect the sorrow in his voice and then, right before your eyes, another transformation happens- Bruce reverts completely to his usual closed-off, remote self. He doesn't have to say anything; you see the distance in his face, his body language.

"The others should be close now," Bruce says.

Sure enough, shadows pass overhead and you spy Iron Man and Thor descending from the sky.

Guess there goes our moment, you think. But what kind of moment? You want it to be romantic. The more you look at Bruce and contemplate him, the more guilty you feel for getting him into this situation. He always fights so hard to keep his composure and limit the presence of the Hulk.

"Hey," you say. "Drinks on me when we get back?"

Bruce cracks a tiny smile. "You don't have to..."

"I insist!" You urge. "Really. It's the least I can do for causing you any trouble."

Bruce's smile broadens. "Alright."

Iron man clears his throat. "I'm not interrupting anything, I am?"

"No," the two of you say abruptly.

Iron Man's faceplate opens and he looks at the two of you with skepticism. "Right."

"It seems our new friend is trying to woo you, Banner," Thor points out.

You spot Bruce's blushing and can't help but notice how handsome he is when he lets himself be. It's transformative and although it makes you happy to see it, you can't suppress the sadness that accompanies it.

He spends his whole life keeping everything locked down.

"So...yeah," Bruce says as he runs a hand through his dark hair. "Back to this, uh, secret Hydra base? You know? That thing we came here for?"

"I don't know," Tony laughs. "I'm starting to think your love life is more exciting than some musty old Hydra base."

Bruce shakes his head and turns away. But before he does, he flashes you the warmest smile you've seen on his face yet.