On The Edge (Science Bros)

Three

"Did Pepper send you?" Tony asked from the hallway on the tenth floor, tossing a tennis against the wall as he sat with his back to the opposite one, his head banging back against it.

"Yeah," Bruce nodded, seeing no sense in lying to one of the sharpest men he knew. He sat against the other wall, joining Tony.

"Well, then there's no getting rid of you, is there?" Tony joked, thinking of Pepper. Bruce shook his head, even though he didn't think Tony was watching him, but rather staring at the ceiling, where he was now tossing the tennis ball out.

"Then you better make yourself at home. What'd she tell you?" Tony tested him, getting up and leading Bruce to the elevator, clicking the button for the fourth floor.

"That you need to eat dinner."

"And?"

"That's it," Bruce now lied, feeling that Tony would get upset if he knew just how worried Pepper was.

"I read the email she sent you. Yes, I purposely didn't take my drugs. Yes, she wants me to tell Steve and company about my brain issues. Has Pepper psychoanalyzed me enough to figure it out?" Tony joked as they entered the lab.

"This isn't funny Tony." Then, after a brief moment of silence, "What are you working on?"

"Playing around with probability. Fun times, wanna join me?" Tony set the tennis ball down on his desk.

Bruce glanced at his watch. 6:17. "Why not?" he sighed.

Around seven, Bruce said, "Are you ready to eat?"

Tony glanced at the screen, the numbers dancing down it in his blurry vision. His stomach was crawling around his insides, his brain feeling fuzzy. "I'm good," he said despite that.

"Tony," Bruce warned.

"Fine," Tony shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. He pushed back in his chair and followed Bruce up to the kitchen, who began heating up some leftover casserole in the microwave. Tony pulled a beer out of the fridge, but was immediately shot down by Bruce, who took it out of his hands and placed it back where he found it. "You're not getting drunk on me," Bruce chastised him. I wasn't going to get drunk, Tony lied to himself, just wanting the hallucinations to dispell, but he didn't argue. Bruce set a plate in front of him, then a cup of water. He slid the pills towards Tony, "Eat," he ordered.

Tony shoved food down uncomfortably as Bruce watched him intently, eating his own helping of casserole.

After Tony swallowed down his pills, Bruce relaxed a bit, but he still actively studied his friend.

When Tony glanced to the side for the tenth time, Bruce finally asked, "What's over there?"

"Nothing," he replied too quickly.

"Tony," Bruce warned.

"It's nothing. I know it's not real, I'm fine."

"Yeah right," an echo taunted Tony in his head. "You've never been fine," it spat. "You're a freak."

"Shut up," Tony seethed to it.

"Tony, what are you hearing?"

"It's not real, it doesn't matter," Tony attempted.

"Humor me," Bruce dead panned. Tony shook his head, ignoring the aggressive backlash from his inner peanut gallery. "It's just this kid named Peter I used to know. He likes to make comments on my life decisions. I know he's not real anymore."