How long have you wanted this?

Part 3; Cooling off.

Dinner that night was awkward to say the least. You could feel Steve's eyes on you as you relaxed in your chair, your hair messier than what he saw earlier. Tony sat a few seats down, quietly piling pasta in his mouth. His hair was no longer perfectly slicked back and his lips still bright red from when you were kissing him.

Everyone was talking except you, Tony, and Steve. You shifted uncomfortably as you saw Steve's gaze shift down the table to Tony. Tony felt Steve's eyes on him and decided he was going to leave. He stood up, shoving one last bite into his mouth and mumbled to anyone who cared, "I'm going to the lab, I have shit to do," and he waltzed away.

After everyone finished dinner, you tried to quietly put your dish in the sink and sneak off but Steve grabbed your arm.

"Oh, hey, what's up, Steve?" you tried to ask cooly.

"Just wanted to make sure you were okay." His eyes searched your own to try and read your expression but failed.

"Yeah? Why wouldn't I be?"

He shifted uncomfortably, his hand rubbing the back of his neck before he spoke, "Noticed some, uhm... marks..." he gestured towards your chest and you looked down, realizing the love bites Tony left you earlier were fully visible.

You abruptly pulled up your tank top and stuttered, "Oh- Oh- yeah, ya know' how crazy parties can get! Was at a rager last night and might have been wasted and hooked up with some frat boy, no biggie!"

Steve didn't looked convinced but you turned around anyways and basically ran down the hall to your room before he could say another word. After all, he wasn't your dad, you didn't have to explain yourself to him, or anyone.

When you turned around, out of breath, you saw Peter already sitting on your bed.

"Hey, you ever confront Tony?" Peter asked, sitting back on your bed as you sat next to him.

"Oh, no. I think it was all in my head." You mumbled.

"I could have told you that." Peter laughed.

*

Steve knew something was up. He might not be as smart as Tony but he wasn't completely oblivious. He made his way down to Tony's lab after talking to you. The way you ran off and how you words came out stuttered led him to believe you were lying to him.

As he opened the door he saw Tony hunched over his computer, furiously typing away.

"Hey," Steve called out to him, looking around at all the gadgets as he made his way over to Tony's desk.

Tony continued typing and didn't look up, "I'm a little busy here, Cap."

Steve was now standing right behind Tony's chair, "I think we need to talk, now." His voice was stern and slightly aggressive. Tony took a breath, knowing what this might be about and spun around in his chair, now looking up at Steve.

"Well..." Tony said, crossing his arms impatiently. 

"Are you messing around with Y/N?"

"Wow, you really don't beat around the bush," Tony remarked.

"This isn't a joke, Stark. Answer the question." Steve's face was tensing up as he continued to lock eyes with Tony. Steve always felt responsible for you. He was the one who found you and got you to join the Avengers. He was by your side when you were hurt and was always there to talk to. He was someone you knew you could always trust, and even though you were close with Peter, you always found yourself connecting with Steve the most.

"What? God no.." Tony said defensively, now standing up, his face in line with Steve's.

"Tony, I don't have time for you to come up with some excuse, so let me rephrase," He took a moment, "I know you're messing around with Y/N and I need you to cut it out." His voice was deep and growing more angry by the second.