Matter of the heart

Steve enters the room quietly, gently shutting the door behind him. He takes in all the machines, all the equipment around the room. He knows every single one of them... what they mean, what they do. He knows them, worked with them before. He knows they work. He has seen them in action. It is very different, however, when it is someone dear in the bed hooked up to them. Suddenly the machines he trusts and relies upon seem so fallible.

Letting out a shaky exhale he moves over to Tony's bedside. He pulls up a chair carefully, making as little noise as possible.

"Hey" he whispers softly in greeting. "I brought you a little something. A present for making it through your surgery. It's nothing much, I just... thought you might light it" Steve puts the doctor bear he bought at the hospital gift shop on the bed next to Tony and reaches for Tony's lax hand.

"Can't I just have a pace maker? Wouldn't that fix the problem" Tony had asked him when he first came to see him.

"Mr Stark... I'm afraid there isn't much that can be done." He had said, feeling sick to his stomach for having to tell him this "The way your heart is failing... a pace maker... it will only exacerbate your condition. I'm afraid at this point, your only option may be a heart transplant... even then..."

"Okay... So a heart transplant... yeah..." Tony had said, leaning forward in his chair.

He held back his sigh. "...The waiting lists are long, and there is a chance that is may not work..."

"Okay" Tony said desperately. He could see how much Tony had wanted that chance, and it was heartbreaking. "Okay"

"I'm sorry" he said, and he was. He did this job, following in his mother's footsteps and example, hopping to save as many people as he could. The hard reality is that you can't always save everyone, no matter how hard you try... and it hurts just as much every single time. But that had never stopped him from taking on a patient before, and he was determined to do all he can for the man before him.

"How long?" Tony whispered, peering down had his hands sadly.

"... There are too many factors to know for sure. There isn't any knowing..."

He had worked long into the night, day after day. Spent so long looking for any answers, any sign he could save Tony without resorting to a transplant... but Tony had already exhausted all the medications and was falling more and more into the risk categories raised by immunosuppressants. Tony had come to him desperate for a chance to live.

After he got to know Tony better, his search for an answer doubled. He needed to know Tony had a chance with this.

It seems fitting that it was by chance that he got to know Tony better. He ran into Tony at the park while walking his dog. Tony himself was only there because he had felt the need to see something green, something part of nature, needed to get out of his office. They had become quick friends soon after. And in the months waiting for Tony to get a donner they became more then friends.

There was a high possibility that Tony's body would reject the heart, or similarly, if any infected tissue possible left in Tony would infect his new heart. The time Tony had left to live was uncertain. But he found he couldn't bear the thought of not knowing what it is like to love Tony and be loved by him in return. Be it a month or hopefully years, Steve wanted to spend what time Tony had left by his side loving him.

There is a quiet but sharp rap at the door, starling Steve from his thoughts. He turns in his chair towards the door. Dr Strange stands proud outside.

Steve sighs and stands up from his chair. He quickly exits the room and closes the door, leaving Tony in peace in the room. With a breath he steals himself. "Dr Strange" he greats.

Strange smiles at him, "Dr Rogers".

"Look, what I said..." Steve says, "I'm sorry. About what I said before the board. I respect you greatly. I just... overreacted."

The board had called in Dr Strange a few weeks before Tony was to go in for the heart transplant to replace him. He remembers how his chest constricted in panic, how sick the very idea made him feel. He didn't want to trust Tony with anyone else. He was the leading specialist in Tony's condition, and he didn't feel comfortable letting someone else handle this.

He had tried to point out how qualified he is to the board, all the reasons it should be him handling this. How dangerous it could be passing on Tony's care to someone without his knowledge. The board had said is goes against the 'Medical Association Code of Ethics'. He argued that is not a law, that it was only a guide. The board had said that in Tony's case they feel they should stick to the code, that he is too close.

The board said Dr Strange will do just fine. He had no doubt of that, Strange has an exemplary record, but Strange is a surgeon not a specialist in heart disorders. He had all the confidence that Strange could perform a heart surgery... but it was a unique case. But the board's decision was final, Strange was to be the lead surgeon and Steve merely a consultant.

He watched over the surgery and consulted when necessary. It was all he was allowed to do. Looking back he was thankful for that.

"I understand", Strange says with a smile "I respect you as well, Dr Rogers. It's a pleasure to meet you, I was thinking maybe we could get together sometime and compare notes while I am down here?"

He offers his hand to Strange, grinning broadly. "Sounds great" he says.

Strange shakes his hand firmly and heads off, "See you then" the man offers in parting.

Steve heads back in to the room and takes up his position by Tony's side again. He pulls out a book out of his bag to read while watching over him.

Tony wakes slowly, looking around him dazedly. Steve smiles at him comfortingly and reaches out for his hand. "Hey, Love" he says, "The surgery went fine".

Tony looks up at him as smiles, filling him with warmth. "St-...eve" he manages, sounding like he had a mouth full of marbles.

The new heart may not solve the issue, maybe it just bought him some more time. The condition may return months or years from now... or maybe never...

No one knows how long they will have... and but they have been given more time. And a chance at love. A love to last a lifetime, however long.

The End

Notes:I went for long prompt No.2 "Steve is a doctor/surgeon and Tony is the patient who has a rare disease. They fall in love despite Tony's biological ticking clock". It just really captured my imagination.