DAY THREE
Prompt: Dancing
Word count: 1177
Date: 22nd of May 2019
One thing that hadn't changed about Tony was the parties. Sure, the guests for said parties had changed, but the parties were still as extravagant and full of life as ever. It was this that made Stephen believe that Tony was still the same man he'd once been, but better, having learned from past experiences to become the person he'd unintentionally fallen for.
It was the fact that Stephen had fallen for Tony that meant he was at the party right at that moment. Stephen wasn't one for big, extravagant events; they reminded him of the galas and such he attended during his career as a surgeon, and that was a period of his life that brought back painful memories for more reasons than one. But here he was, at a party hosted by Tony Stark, meaning it was one of the most extravagant parties in the whole of history.
Stephen was standing awkwardly to the side, away from all of the energy of the party, an almost empty glass of alcohol clutched in his hand. People were already drunk, had already torn through so many drinks, and Stephen hadn't even finished his first one; in fact, he might not even finish his first drink. He didn't particularly wish to get drunk, since being sober was probably the one thing holding him back from doing something stupid. Like telling Tony how he feels or something.
He knew that Tony definitely didn't feel the same way about him; how could he, when Stephen's hands no longer worked in the same way and his past constantly haunted him and he definitely wasn't as good a hero as Tony was. Tony always seemed to know right from wrong, always knew the right thing to do and what was best and how to defeat whatever adversary stood against him.
He was the only man Stephen had ever found he truly admired, in every single way. He couldn't find fault with him, agreed with his every decision. And sure, he knew Tony wasn't originally the hero he was now, and he wasn't the best of people in the first place. But the decisions he made to get to where he was now always struck Stephen as the right ones, and Stephen wasn't about to stand and list all the flaws in Tony's past; not when he had so many in his own past.
Stephen let out a small sigh and leaned back against the wall he was standing right in front of, swishing the small amount of alcohol left in his glass around before pushing himself up to walk the few steps to the nearest table; he placed his glass down, then wandered back to where he'd been. It was a sure way to make sure he didn't end up drunk.
His eyes roamed over the crowd, picking out people he knew. There was Thor, quickly finishing his drink then grabbing Bruce by hand and pulling him into the middle of the dance floor. There was Peter, sipping on some juice and chatting to his girlfriend MJ, who took a sip from a, presumably stolen, beer.
There was Steve, dancing with Bucky, who looked flustered; Stephen knew for a fact that Steve had just dragged him out onto the dance floor with no further explanation. There was Nat, chatting to the head of T'Challa's guard (yes, Tony somehow managed to get Wakandans to his party), whom Stephen recalled her name to be Okoye.
There was T'Challa, hanging back at the edge of the party until his girlfriend Nakia dragged him onto the dance floor. There was Sam, who'd somehow managed to start a conversation with T'Challa's younger sister, Shuri. There was everyone Stephen had ever met that worked alongside Tony, all looking like they were enjoying themselves. And then Stephen's eyes fell upon Tony himself, and everything seemed to freeze.
Because Tony's eyes were locked on Stephen. And he was making his way over, a big, slightly dopey grin on his face. Stephen couldn't have moved if he'd wanted to, seemingly frozen in place by Tony's gaze. Then Tony was right in front of the sorcerer, and he was grinning even wider.
"Dance with me."
It wasn't exactly a request, but it wasn't a demand either. It was spoken in a way that made Stephen feel compelled to comply, not that he'd ever say no to such a request from Tony anyway. His vocal chords didn't seem to want to work however, and all he could do was nod and take the hand Tony stretched out towards him.
Then the shorter man was pulling him out onto the crowded dance floor, and the music was changing to a slower beat, and Stephen's breath just stopped because Tony definitely knew this song was going to come on because he organised the party and-
And then Tony's hand was on his hip and he forgot where he was going with that train of thought. Tony was smirking slightly, and Stephen took a small step closer, steeled himself and put his hand on Tony's shoulder; the shorter man took Stephen's other hand in his own and took the lead as they began to dance together.
"I've been wanting to dance with you for a long time," Tony murmured as they moved together, and Stephen almost froze in shock at his words. Tony leaned a little closer, and Stephen realised there wasn't even the hint of alcohol on his breath. This meant Tony was completely sober, and that what he was saying must be the truth.
Stephen managed to smile at him. "A long time, huh?"
Tony nodded. "A very long time. Since I first laid eyes on you, to be exact."
Stephen exhaled. "That's... a very long time."
"I did say that," Tony said with a wink, and was it Stephen's imagination or did Tony step slightly closer? Silence fell between them again, and Stephen didn't mind at all, still scarcely believing he was actually dancing with Tony. The song slowly drew to an end, and Stephen didn't want to have to pull away from Tony, didn't want the moment to end.
He needn't have worried, though, because the moment the final note of the song played, Tony was leaning in, and Stephen was barely able to do anything other than lean in, too. And then Tony's lips were pressed to his, and Stephen's eyes slipped closed as he kissed him back, and Tony pulled him closer and holy shit Tony was kissing him-
"Get a room!" came a yell from across the room, and the two broke apart, Stephen looking somewhat guilty and startled while Tony glared daggers at the owner of the voice, who was none other than Rhodey.
"Come on," Tony said, pulling Stephen in a direction that he could vaguely recognise as the way to Tony's room, and he was more than happy to comply. The last thought he had before the two of them exited the room was to wonder why hadn't he come to parties earlier in his life.
