take a chance on me

chapter three

tw: abuse !

~NO POV~

"So who is this guy?" Steve asked once they were in the car. 

"He's- he's my ex." Tony didn't know why he was so afraid to say it like Steve hadn't just agreed to fake date him. He was just- afraid. Afraid of homophobia, of Steve finding more reasons to hate him. "Erm, you know what Viastone is?"

"Yeah."

"My ex is Tiberius Stone." 

"Yikes." Steve couldn't help but say. "I've seen that guy in the news and on social media, and he's- wow, he seems like a dick. More of a dick than you."

"I'm not as bad as him." I'm not really bad at all, it's just a front. "He's- god, he's so rude, so obnoxious, and such a snob, and if you think I'm all of those things just imagine me but a thousand times worse."

"Jesus, why'd you date him then?"

"He was my friend." Tony said. "He- we would stick together whenever we were stuck at business things because of our parents. He was always the only person close to my age, so naturally I spoke to him. And we were good friends, I guess, and he was nice to me. But then he asked me out and I found out he wasn't really that nice."

"Everything I thought he was?"

"That but worse." 

"Worse how?"

Tony swallowed uncomfortably, looked at Steve and hoped the blond didn't see how uneasy he was. Luckily, Steve kept his eyes on the road. "Erm, just mean. He was awful to be around. Like, when we went on dates, he would be the worst possible person to staff and waitresses and he just acted so snobby, and I hate people like that."

"You're bothered by people being rude to service workers?"

"I'm not an awful person, Rogers." 

"If you say so." Steve muttered. "So, if we're going to pretend to date, we're gonna need some rules."

Tony laughed and leaned back in the seat. "Of course, Golden Boy, of course you need some rules. Just gonna warn you, I have a reputation for rule-breaking. It's my thing."

"Never noticed." Steve rolled his eyes. "Actual rules though. You can't go around flirting with people if we're in this fake relationship. It's not gonna look good for either of us, though I'm not very sure how much you care about what people think of you. And you have to come to my games."

"I know fuck all about football, just saying." Tony said. "But deal, I can go to them. Can I wear your letterman jacket? I don't think anything screams relationship more than wearing someone's varsity jacket. I mean, if I have Rogers on my back, that's gonna say something." 

"I guess. But you better not ruin it." 

"I won't, babygirl." Tony flashed a media smile at Steve, who looked and made a face at the nickname. "You have to come to parties with me. Can be negotiated. But one thing I need you to definitely do is drive me home. I'll pay for gas, don't worry."

"You don't have to."

"I will, it's only fair." Tony promised. "Where do you live anyway? I wanna know how far away you are from me."

"Conveniently enough I'm only a ten minute drive from here. Do you need me to pick you up in the morning too?"

"You don't have to." 

"Why do you need me to drive you home anyway?" Steve asked. "Is Stone actually following you home, like, regularly?"

"Yes." Tony sat up and looked out of the window. "Shit. I think- shit, that's him there."