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A huge snowstorm has hit New York City, and for the first time in what feels like forever, the Avengers are free of important life-saving duties.
The heavy snowfall is keeping everyone inside, and the most that has happened is a few people complaining online about the snow, but nothing much. The Avengers are biding their time, making the most of what they have. Clint and Natasha are training together, honing their skills for the next fight. Bruce is playing in the one of the labs, messing with some new technology Tony acquired a few days prior. Thor is choosing to be with him instead of with the people of Asgard, watching Bruce with rapt interest as he works. In the lounge at the top of the Avengers tower, Steve is using his time by catching up on movies that he has missed while being in the ice, trying his best to understand what is on the large TV screen.
The entire day, he has not seen or heard anything from Tony. The man has always been elusive when not in combat, appearing and disappearing at random. Steve assumes Tony is most likely in his private lab, not with Bruce or Thor, but he cannot be certain on that fact. Turning away from the television, Steve looks towards the nearest window and watches as the snow falls, seeing the thick flakes fluttering down from the sky and making the environment seem almost magical. Below, the snow piles up, burying whatever is on the ground where it lands.
Shifting on the soft couch beneath him, Steve returns his attention to the movie he has put on for himself, watching as the one of the characters runs through a long, dark hallway, clearly frightened. It was not in Steve's intentions to get into the horror genre, but he found it mildly interesting after a movie night where it was Clint's turn to pick what to watch. Tony has a rather extensive library of movies to sift through, which Steve is very grateful for.
Steve watches as the main character gets to the end of the hall, still scared out of their mind, when they suddenly come face-to-face with the killer in a barely-lit room. As the protagonist screams, the killer lunges forward with their weapon, then-
The lights above Steve flicker twice before the television suddenly turns off, followed quickly by the rest of the power in the building going dark.
Steve sits for a few moments, the wind from the brewing snowstorm outside filling his ears rather than the movie on the TV. With the sudden lack of the heater running, the cold begins to nip at his skin lightly, and Steve groans. He imagines Natasha and Clint are still training, uncaring of the sudden loss of power. Bruce and Thor are probably filling the space by chatting and working without the advanced holo-screens Tony usually has. He knows Bruce is used to working without assistance, so the man is probably falling back into old habits. Tony does cross his mind, but the man is probably still fine in his lab, most likely using a backup generator of sorts to keep everything powered so he can work for longer.
With a sigh, Steve rises from his seat, walking around the lounge to try and find something to take up his time that is not a movie. Quickly, stuffed in a drawer inside of a side table, Steve finds a rather well-loved book with a faded cover and scuffed spine. With a satisfied smile, Steve takes the book, closing the drawer after he fishes it out. Once he has it, he makes his way back to the couch, settling in once more and prying open the book. He finds his way to the first page and begins reading, relaxing once more, the power being out and the snowstorm raging outside becoming background noise to him.
The book is a bit older, something Steve has a faint memory of seeing in libraries before going to war. He easily loses himself in it, smiling at the fact that some people left little notes in the margins. He recognizes the handwriting of Thor, Natasha, and even Bruce, all in different colored pens, having little conversations with one another and building off of each other's thoughts and ideas. After a few pages of seeing these notes, Steve considers getting up to grab his own pen to add onto these annotations. However, before he can do that, he hears the sound of aggressive footsteps padding around the hallway of the tower, and a moment later, he looks over the back of the couch to see a rather frustrated Tony Stark.
From what Steve can see, Tony's body is tense, his fists clenching and unclenching by his side. His sleeves, usually rolled up to the elbows, are down at his wrists, and his chest visibly rises and falls with heavy breaths. Despite the man wearing darker clothes, the blue glow of the arc reactor is visible through the fabric, partially lighting up the dark room with a soft sapphire hue.
"Tony?" Steve calls, dog-earing his page in the book and setting it aside, sitting up so he can get a clearer view on his boyfriend. The man hums, acknowledging Steve's presence but not turning to face him, keeping his eyes on the wall across from him. "Are you alright?" The words echo throughout the lounge, and it seems like a lifetime before they finally hit Tony. Steve watches as his chest still rises and falls with stuttering movements, observing how he seems unsure of himself and his environment.
The lack of response from Tony and the fact that he is simply unmoving worries Steve. He knows how his boyfriend gets on those bad days where his mind tends to wander too far and too deep into the past, but oddly enough, this does not seem like that. Despite only seeing him from the side, Tony's eyes seem to not have that vacant, glassy look to them. Instead, he looks more so like he is thinking something over, tossing it around in his mind, playing with it to see if it is actually worth it or not.
Before Steve even has time to process what is happening, Tony looks in his direction, then proceeds to walk over to him. Easily, the man climbs over the back of the couch, being mindful of Steve's limbs sprawled out on the cushions. Steve remains quiet, watching Tony with wide eyes as the man lowers himself down slowly. Then, Tony moves around, fitting himself quite easily against Steve's body, the two men now chest to chest, and as Tony gets himself comfortable, Steve realizes what is going on.
Tony is freezing. Steve can feel it through his clothes and on his skin, especially around the man's hands and feet. With a whine, Tony buries his face into Steve's chest, seeking out that warmth that has been taken from him the moment the power went out. As Tony settles, Steve does as well, his worry and shock dissolving into something soft and understanding. Really, he should have seen this coming. Tony always runs cold, often seeking Steve out for warmth in the smallest ways possible. After missions in the snow, Tony would place his hands all over Steve's body, leeching that super soldier body heat from his skin. Other times while they are in bed together, Tony hogs the blankets and makes sure to keep himself plastered to his boyfriend, especially in the winter.
The moment he is comfortable, Steve feels as Tony sticks his hands underneath Steve, wedging them between his boyfriend and the couch. Tony attempts to do the same thing with his feet, instead forcing them underneath Steve's legs, but it is a bit difficult to do so. However, after a bit of trial and error, he is successful. "Jeez, you're cold," Steve says, a smile spreading on his face as he hears Tony make a soft noise beneath him, muffled slightly due to his face being buried in his chest. "I'm assuming the lab lost power as well?"
"Yeah," Tony mumbles, moving so his mouth is exposed and Steve can hear him more clearly while also keeping his nose buried in the comfortable warmth of Steve's pecs. "You're like a portable space heater." Steve smiles at Tony's words, moving his arms so he is now comfortably resting his hands on the small of Tony's back. Gently, Steve rubs one of his hands up and down the expanse of his boyfriend's back, doing his best to warm up his body. Tony relaxes into the touch, but it is clear to Steve that the man is still somehow cold.
Steve can feel Tony shivering in his grasp, his muscles twitching as he lets out a soft, barely-audible whine to express his discomfort. Carefully, Steve moves one of his hands from Tony's back to his head, gently threading his fingers through the short, soft strands before moving to lightly scratch at the man's scalp. In response, Tony leans into the touch, a momentary distraction from the biting cold. "Why don't we go to the bedroom?" Steve asks, watching as Tony opens his eyes to look at him properly. "It'll be warmer and more comfortable there, but we can still stay here if you don't want to move."
Instead of responding right away, Tony sighs, considering Steve's words. Sure, he would like to be in the bedroom, all safe and warm in the heavy blankets and Steve's arms, but the only downside is actually getting there. Currently, he is not too keen on unwrapping himself from his hold around Steve, but the cold is still nipping at him at this very moment, even if he is snuggled up against his boyfriend. "I would really like that. It's still too fuckin' cold here." Tony says, unraveling himself from his hold on Steve, despite not wanting to.
The moment the two men are separated, the cold is back to eating Tony alive like he's its own personal buffet. It bites and gnaws into his skin, causing him to shiver and take in shaky breaths. It fades a bit when Steve moves from where he was laying down and gets closer to Tony to start guiding him to their bedroom, but it is not enough.
Navigating through the dark halls is not that hard due to Tony practically being a flashlight due to his arc reactor. The two men find the bedroom easily, making their way inside. Steve closes the door behind him as Tony moves to change into something more comfortable and warm. As he does that, Steve walks over to the bed and climbs inside, adjusting himself as Tony finishes getting changed. Once he is done, Steve feels the bed dip as his boyfriend joins him, crawling under the heavy blankets and groaning in satisfaction when Steve moves to envelop him in a warm hug.
Tony clings to Steve like a koala, wrapping his cold limbs around the man to take in enough warmth to accommodate for the poor circulation in his hands and feet. He can hear and feel the rustling of the blankets as Steve adjusts them, moving to cover himself and Tony. Steve keeps his upper body uncovered, but chooses to cover Tony's entire body, leaving a bit of a gap near his head so he can breathe. Faintly, Steve hears Tony let out a small whine, nuzzling impossibly closer as his shivers die down, finally feeling warmth overtake his body. It is soft and comfortable and manages to calm Tony down, easily guiding him towards sleepiness rather than trying to survive the cold.
Steve resumes rubbing over his boyfriend's back, now able to feel how the rise and fall of his chest is steady rather than unstable. Warm puffs of breath coming from Tony's nose tickle Steve's neck, and he can feel how they slowly start to even out as time passes. "I think a nap is in order," Tony mumbles sleepily, adjusting his face so he can hear Steve's heartbeat as he rests. Aside from the cold, the quiet is another thing Tony hates dealing with, so having his boyfriend's heart in his ears is cathartic. "The power will come back on later… We can wait it out." At Tony's words, Steve hums with a smile.
Using a free hand, Steve once more moves to pet the back of Tony's head, blunt nails scratching at the man's scalp as he settles into sleep. Tony's hands twitch, clearly wanting to mimic the movement from Steve, but the man is too tired to do so. Instead, Steve feels as Tony grabs onto the back of his shirt, loosely holding the fabric in now-warm hands. "That sounds like a good idea, Tones. I'll keep you warm. Just go to sleep, okay?"
Tony lets out a soft noise in response, too sleepy to even form a proper reply. Steve feels as Tony's body finally begins to properly relax, practically melting against Steve as he succumbs to nap time. The last thing Tony feels against him before he fully falls asleep is Steve's warm lips pressing a gentle kiss to the center of his forehead.
For the first time in ages, despite the power being out and the snowstorm outside, Tony finally feels satisfied. He is in Steve's protective embrace, safe, warm, and happy, and he would not have it any other way.