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presidentrhodes · 5 years

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Title: Executive Privilege Rating: Explicit / Smut / PWP, as in do not read this if you’re under 18. Pairing: James Rhodes/Tony Stark Summary: Tony needs to see President Rhodes. It’s a matter of national security. @van-dyne wanted President Rhodes and Tony having sex at the Oval Office. @robertdowneyjjr promised me a good URL in return if I wrote some and she very helpfully beta-ed this so that it isn’t complete garbage.

There is no plot and I refuse to apologise for that lol.

Tony’s been on the American intelligence community’s radar since he hacked the Pentagon’s internal systems on a dare at 15, forcing them to finally implement a Stark Industries software upgrade. Pleased with his efforts, his father, Howard, bought him a nice vacation in Lyon.

When Stark Industries won the contract to become Uncle Sam’s official weapons’ supplier, under Tony’s leadership, the CIA installed a backdoor on his computer—the incompetent underhandedness reeked of a young, fresh-out-of-college analyst who thought they struck gold by bugging Tony Stark. He let J.A.R.V.I.S humour them for almost a year before the intelligence community’s best and brightest figured out all of the information they had been gleaning from his systems were false.

“You know, Honeybear,” Tony said, a little breathless from the constant, unforgiving assault on his senses. “This isn’t how I imagined reacquainting myself with your buddies at the CIA.” His voice cracked and whatever else he planned to say dissolve into a lewd moan.

Bent double over a polished mahogany desk, its hard edges digging into his pliant hips, Tony’s hands searched for purchase, something to grab hold of and anchor himself against the wanton, breathtaking pleasure lighting up his nerve endings, his face pressed flat on the empty tabletop. His 900-dollar designer shirt was bunched up over his chest, his sweat-drenched skin flushed red, and the branded dress pants pooled in a heap around his ankles; Tony’s usually immaculate hair fell into total disarray as taut muscles spasmed with every hard grind—he looked wrecked, a sharp contrast to the sense of order permeating the empty, oval room.

***

Like most things in life, Tony didn’t mean to fly out to D.C. on a whim and intrude upon the White House and insist to the administration staff that he needed to see President Rhodes, even if the latter was in the middle of an important diplomatic briefing ahead of a state visit to Australia. “It’s a matter of national security,” Tony explained to the Harvard-educated, stuffy Chief of Staff, whose irritable expression told him everything he needed to know about how Rhodey’s entourage felt about him. No doubt, his best friend must’ve sat through a dozen security briefings with the CIA and the Secret Service, each one of them urging him to reconsider his friendship with an eccentric billionaire and part-time superhero.

To state his case more emphatically, Tony flashed a salacious smile that forced Mr Chief of Staff to exit the waiting room. Within ten minutes, he was ushered into the Oval Office, where Rhodey waited for him with a closed-off, annoyed look. “We’ll resume the meeting at 4, sir,” Mr Chief said, shutting the door behind Tony.

Before Tony opened his mouth, Rhodey held up a hand; the predatory hunger in his eyes did most of the talking. “Strip,” came the curt, firm order.

A small, logical part of Tony tried to object because even he knew the dangers of them both getting caught with their pants down by the beefy, expressionless secret service guys standing outside. But the rest of him, teeming with untamed, unfulfilled chaotic energy, had a mind of its own. He untucked his shirt and undid his buckle when Rhodey beckoned him closer until Tony stood directly in front of his best friend, who leaned back in a large leather chair.

“Kneel,” Rhodey said, unusually reticent, but his eyes and the tent in his pants betrayed his arousal. “Well, don’t just wait for an invitation. Go on, do what you came here to do.”

Tony tried to protest, but Rhodey cut him off.

“Don’t even try to deny it. I’m lucky Mr Millman’s professors at Tufts drilled into him the art of discretion, otherwise, we’d have quite the scandal on hand.”

Huh. So, Mr Chief of Staff wasn’t an uptight Ivy, but, still, the dirty looks were obnoxious, Tony reflected.

He smacked his lips and reached for Rhodey’s zippers. It’s been months since he went down on his best friend, his boyfriend, because the commute between the Avengers headquarters and the White House turned out to be too much of an inconvenience for a quick fuck. He relished running his tongue over Rhodey’s erection, tasting the saltiness around the slit before a pair of hands pushed his head down with gentle firmness. Tony felt the bulbous tip graze the back of his throat, salivating at the idea of tasting his lover after months of quick tugs in the shower or before bed. Taking Rhodey’s erection deeper, he swallowed around the length, earning a well-deserved sharp intake of breath and a keening sob.

“Fuck, Tones…”

That’s the plan, Mr President, Tony thought, giving in to the ravenous desire to taste every inch of Rhodey’s cock, from shaft to the tip.

***

As far as rough fucks went, this had to be the hottest one, Tony thought. Mostly, because the idea of a bunch of burly men bursting in through the closed door, guns drawn, thinking the most powerful man in the country was in trouble, only to find him buried balls deep in Tony’s ass, made him tremble.

"Not that I have any complaints here because, damn, honeybear, this dick is just as good as I remember from..." Tony's words dissolved into a long, drawn-out moan as the thick, large cock drilled into his ass, hard, relentless, and with an express purpose of reducing him into a sobbing, incoherent mess. He was halfway there, the forceful pounding and the constant assault on his prostate leaving his skin, feverish, and his paper-thin resolve, crumbling. His own erection rubbed and glided against the smooth, polished wood, the constant friction keeping him in a state of perpetual ecstasy. "Please, Rhodey. I need...need—"

Above him, Rhodey growled and leaned over Tony’s back, biting down on his shoulder, pulling a loud, agonized wail from him. “What? Use your words, Tones. If you can’t, then I’m going to stop fucking you right now and leave you like this and ask Secret Service to escort you out, you. Insufferable. Infuriating. Cocktease.” Rhodey punctuated each word with a thrust that pushed Tony further up the desk, making his toes curl, and his eyes rolled to the back of his head.

Tony let out a string of expletive-filled screams because, really, fuck the Secret Service outside, fuck the stuffy advisers Rhodey sent away to lunch early, and definitely fuck Mr Non-Harvard for daring to try and deny him face time with his Platypus. “Mr President, please. Please, sir, I need you. I need your cock, sir, been craving it for so long. Just, please, please give it to me, I’ll do anything you want, sir, anything, but please don’t stop. Fuck me harder, Mr President—oh god, yes, yes, like that, oh fuck…” Tony’s voice broke, so did his brain, leaving him a drooling, panting mess on the desk.

One of Rhodey’s hands snaked around Tony’s hips, the other held his neck down in place; he set an almost inhuman pace, in the way he plunged into Tony’s tight, warm channel, withdrawing till only the tip remained buried before ramming in again and again and again—in his desperation to be fucked, Tony had insisted they make do with spit because the idea of waiting any longer in their search for lube sounded ludicrous to the inventor.

The pain and discomfort had eventually given way to a bone-deep satisfaction of feeling Rhodey’s cock inside him, after months of longing for it; and, Tony wasn’t about to admit out loud that he had spent a good part of the journey from New York in his jet with three lubed fingers up his ass as he prepared to be ravished by his Platypus.

Tony trembled. He felt Rhodey press his forehead into his back as the consuming, heart-pounding smack of skin-on-skin left him gasping for air. Drops of sweat fell on the wooden surface and Tony couldn’t tell if they were his, or Rhodey’s, but he noticed the tell-tale signs of his boyfriend’s fading composure—Rhodey’s moves turned frantic, delirious, as his dry, calloused fingers squeezed Tony’s cheeks.

“You’re getting more daring, baby,” Rhodey said, nipping at Tony’s earlobe. “Dropping in unexpectedly like that, being so damn mouthy with my staff, flirting with me at work. Is this what you’ve been hoping for? You wanted to get fucked in the Oval Office, darling?” His hand slipped down from Tony’s hips and gripped his leaking cock, drawing a debauched moan from Tony. “Well, answer me.”

Tony whimpered and nodded.

“Unbelievable,” Rhodey said, his voice barely louder than a whisper. “What would people say? What would the team say when they find out how needy you become when I put my cock inside you?” Rhodey tightened his hold over Tony’s throbbing erection, the pre-come leaking onto his hand making the glide easier. “Go on, you know what to do. Get yourself off.”

In his eagerness, Tony didn’t need to be told twice as his hips moved on their own, pushing into the tight hold of Rhodey’s hand and then pulling back to impale himself on the stiff cock buried in his ass. He set a quick, punishing rhythm, rocking back and forth until his muscles tensed up and pushed him over the edge. Tony came with a shout, coating the polished wood with his semen while some of it spilt on Rhodey’s hand.

“Good boy,” Rhodey said, kissing his temple and held up his soiled hand up. Without being told, Tony licked his fingers clean and said in a gruff but satiated voice, “Thank you, Mr President. Thank you, sir.”

“My turn.” Rhodey held Tony down and plunged into him, repeatedly, assailing his boyfriend’s oversensitive body, drawing soft whimpers. He lasted only a few moments longer, muttering into Tony’s ears just how good he felt under him, around him, until Rhodey stilled his hips, spilling inside Tony with a needy, drawn-out moan. “Fuck, baby. I love you,” he groaned, nuzzling into Tony’s neck.

They stayed idle, boneless, leaning over the desk and not trusting their legs to keep them upright. With some reluctance, Rhodey pulled out and they cleaned up in silence—the small, self-satisfied smirk on Tony’s face morphed into a frown as he felt the dampness spread inside his pants. “Well, all of that’s gonna come out and make a mess. You owe me a new pair of boxers, Platypus.”

Rhodey rolled his eyes, crashing his lips against Tony’s; he wrapped the other man into a firm embrace and said, “I missed you.”

Tony’s grinned. “I missed you, too, Mr President. I love it when you give me good dick and show me my place, sir. I’ll let you get back to your presidential stuff.” He moved to leave when Rhodey caught his wrist.

“Where do you think you’re going, Mr Stark? I didn’t dismiss you. No, you will not leave the premises, I have plans for you this evening.”

Tony’s eyes darkened—well, fuck, it must be his birthday.

“Ask for Brad outside. He’s hard to miss; think Rogers, but somehow beefier. He’ll escort you to my residence, where you’re going to wait until I’m done with my day. You will not touch yourself, you won’t relieve yourself, and you are going to prepare yourself for me. Do you understand?”

Tony nodded and straightened up. With his chest puffed out, he said in a semi-serious tone, “Sir, it’s my patriotic duty to be of service to you.”

“Oh fuck off, Tones,” Rhodey said, biting back the peal of laughter that threatened to erupt as he watched Tony give a full salute and limp out of the room. The Secret Service was about to have a field day with the White House’s nuisance #1.

#tony stark #james rhodes #ironhusbands #rhodeytony #tonyrhodey #ironhusbands au #mcu #rhea writes

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somethingjustsouthofbrilliance · 5 years

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Heartsick (chapter 3)

@tonystark5ever and I are back with a new chapter. Finally. Progress :D

Tagging a few folks here. If I forgot somebody, pls, let me know.

@i-fucking-love-the-avengers @random-fandom-stuffdom @keltainen13 @giulisetta @bad-days-and-beautiful-nights @ashleymarie1684 @itsafandomaddict @konoriart @swanheart69 @almhw85

Link to chapter 1 (masterlist)

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Chapter Three

“Dr. Rhodes?”

A young voice, quiet and unsure, pulls his attention away from Stark’s retreating back, stopping short his intention to follow after the man.

He turns, frowning slightly at the skinny, curly-haired teen that stands behind him, fiddling nervously with the line of his IV pole.

“I’m… I’m… I’m Peter. Peter Parker.”

Rhodey feels his lips twitch into a smile despite his unpleasant mood. “Ah, yes, Mr. Parker. I had the pleasure of listening to you play just now.” He nods toward the room the teen has recently vacated. “Very impressive.” And it had been, the bit he’d heard.

His grin widens as the teen ducks his head at the praise, the tips of his ears flushing pink. Adorable, Rhodey thinks, amused, and feels the uncomfortable sting of anger at the idea of Tony Stark doing anything that might put the kid in harm’s way. “What can I do for you?”

“I...uh….” Peter starts fidgeting with the IV pole again; throws a hesitant glance at Rhodey’s face. “I heard your argument with Mr. Stark just now and…”

“I see.” His mood sours instantly; Tony Stark is the last thing he wants to talk about with this kid. He frowns, waiting for the boy to continue with whatever was on his mind.

“You need to get him to hire you back!”

The unexpected nature of the request and the heat of the conviction behind it bring him up short.

“What?”

“I… I mean….” Peter takes a step back, flustered, his gaze dropping back down to the floor. “Mr. Stark, he’s… he’s a really good guy. He… he takes care of everyone around him, but he doesn’t really… he doesn’t let others take care of him.” The kid looks up again, brown eyes intent. “And he needs to,” he insists heatedly. “Especially now. His heart-”

“You’re defending him…” Rhodey can’t quite hide the incredulity coloring his voice. “Even after what he’s done to you. Taking your place in line?” he adds at the puzzled expression on Peter’s face.

The teen’s expression darkens, his large brown eyes hardening in clear disapproval. “That was my decision,” he says mulishly. “Mine and my aunt’s. We came to Ms. Potts when we found out from Tony that things were getting worse. We made her agree not to tell him, as a matter of patient confidentiality. He was never supposed to find out about it.”

“Is that so?” Somehow Rhodey had assumed that Peter and his aunt had been kept in the dark. The fact the kid knew about it almost made it worse. “And why is that?”

“Because he never would have allowed it if he knew.” Peter shakes his head, heaving out a dejected sigh before he plops tiredly onto the nearby bench. “I just wanted to help him. I wanted… and now, because it’s me, because he knows it’s me, he won’t…” The teen trails off, eyes momentarily squeezed shut; wraps his fingers around the IV pole in a white-knuckled grip. When he looks up again, the desperate intensity of his stare nearly forces Rhodey to take a step back.

“I wouldn’t even have a place in line if it weren’t for Mr. Stark. He is the reason I have a chance to live, Dr. Rhodes! And I… I can’t be the reason he loses his!”

And that right there? Definitely not what Rhodey was expecting to hear. He frowns down at the earnest, wide-eyed gaze that meets his; bites his lip at the guilt-tinged despair he sees there.

“Alright, kid.” He knows he’s already given in; doubts there’s anyone alive out there who can stay strong in the face of these imploring puppy eyes. He just really hopes he doesn’t come to regret this later. “There’s a couple things I need to get straight, and I think you’re the one to help me.”

“What do you mean?”

“How about you tell me all about Tony Stark over a cup of hot cocoa, huh? Start with why you think you owe him your place on the organ recipient list.”

Peter watches him silently for a few moments, his expression wary. Nods, his curls flopping over his forehead. “Okay.”

***

They settle on a bench outside some ten minutes later, Peter cradling a cup of chocolate ice cream he opted for instead of hot cocoa. It’s nice and quiet out here, the air pleasant, tinged with a mild spring morning chill, and Rhodey finds himself relaxing just a bit, letting go of the angry tension he’d been carrying around since daybreak.

“Thanks Dr. Rhodes,” Peter speaks up beside him, poking hesitantly at the mound of chocolate in his cup. “Dr. Banner told me to try and beef up my calorie intake since I can’t eat much.”

“Well, I hope you enjoy it,” Rhodey responds, smiling encouragingly as the teen scoops up his first spoonful. Urges mildly, “Whenever you’re ready, Peter.” He doesn’t want to push the boy, but time isn’t exactly a luxury he has to waste.

Peter’s expression darkens, the second spoonful dropped half-heartedly back into the cup. “I’m… I’m not supposed to tell anyone about this. I could get in big trouble, but even worse Mr. Stark could get in big trouble. I had to sign some huge non-disclosure agreements, there were lawyers there and everything, it was crazy. If anyone ever found out I told you, then they could sue Mr. Stark and he could even go to jail.” He shoots Rhodey a slightly anxious, pleading look. “So… you… you won’t tell anyone, right Dr. Rhodes?”

“I won’t tell anyone,” Rhodey agrees, his curiosity piqued.

“No, no, I need-- you have to understand. No one can know.”

“Peter. I promise. On my word as a doctor, doctor-patient confidentiality, do no harm, Hippocratic oath. I won’t tell anyone.”

This seems finally enough to reassure Peter and he leans forward, a frown of worry on his face that speaks of a lot of fear and anxiety… more than he would expect for one so young. “Okay, well. It all happened about two years ago. The hospital was losing money, all the political stuff going on right? So they hired a consulting company to come and make it profitable again. You have to understand, there were talks of closing the doors.”

“Right,” Rhodey nods his understanding. He’s not surprised, even given the hospital’s reputation for excellent care; healthcare in general was facing a major crisis and there were systems all over the world taking the same kind of steps in order to keep their doors open.

“So the first thing they do is fire all the administrative people here,” Peter goes on, ice cream forgotten. “Let them go with severance only. I remember it a little bit because the nurses and doctors were in a huge uproar about it, it wasn’t pretty.”

“I’ll bet!”

“Well yeah. So they hire this new guy, Thaddeus Ross.”

Somehow Rhodey thinks the shudder that goes through Peter at the mention of that name has little to do with the morning chill.

“Ross… Yeah, I’ve heard of him. He did some great things for that hospital system in Orlando.”

Peter scoffs. “Wherever you heard about that, I’ll bet it didn’t mention a body count,” he counters darkly.

“No… it didn’t as a matter of fact.”

“Well, I can practically guarantee you that there was one. Because Ross doesn’t come in and fix things, he comes in and he cuts corners. First thing he did after firing the administrators was fire all the experienced nurses and techs. Forced some of the higher paid doctors into early retirement -- claimed their judgement would be called into question and their malpractice insurance would go up, that kind of thing.”

“Peter,” Rhodey cuts in, trying, rather unsuccessfully, to keep the skepticism from his voice, “even if that were true, how could you possibly know about it?”

“Because I’m one of the schmucks that almost got killed!”

“Oh…” He pulls back, stunned silent by the teen’s outburst. Motions for him to continue.

Peter nods grudgingly, huddles in on himself. “I was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome and had, like, three surgeries when I was a baby and all that. I was doing good, real good, until a year ago I got bit by a spider. So like, not normally a big deal, but for me it was. I got super sick. But Dr. Banner… he’s my cardiologist, right? He found a treatment, and it seemed like a miracle because there was nothing anyone else could do. I mean… it was a miracle. Only the drug I was on was crazy expensive, like $20,000 a dose.”

Rhodey lets out a low whistle and Peter huffs angrily in response.

“I have to take it every three months for three years,” he says, nodding toward his IV bag. “Obviously, there was no way for us to afford it. Our insurance wouldn’t cover it because it’s technically not even approved by the FDA. So the hospital was writing it off. You know. They were using it as a charitable donation, which means it technically doesn’t cost them anything because they get the money back in tax credits and government payouts. Only...” Peter falters, a muscle in his jaw twitching. “Only they weren’t making money off it.” He gives a vicious stab at his now mostly-melted ice cream before hurling the cup into the garbage can with a bit more energy than was strictly necessary.

“Right.” Rhodey can already see where this is heading, and he feels his own fingers itch with the urge to curl into fists. Money. Of course. Of-fucking course! Everything always comes back to money. It was one of the reasons why he’d gone into medicine, to do something about this kind of thing, to do surgery for the right reasons and not to make a buck.

“Yeah! Right!!” The teen slaps his hand palm down on the bench, agitated. “I mean, can you believe I had the audacity to exist and want to live and not have a disease that the hospital could benefit from? Ross came through and he eliminated most of those programs. The ones that helped people.”

“Why don’t people know about it?” Rhodey interjects. “Why wasn’t any of this on the news?”

“Oh it was.” The sharp bitterness in the teen’s voice surprises Rhodey. For as broken, small, and sick as the kid appeared, he had clearly developed quite the backbone. “The headlines were ‘Local CEO Turns Failing Local Hospital into Model of Health Care Efficiency.’ He’s a jerk but he’s not an idiot! Dr. Banner did what he could but they were threatening his license. There were a couple of assault charges thrown around when Dr. Banner got really mad during a meeting and punched the guy. Satisfying, right? Except now he was suspended and I was getting sicker and sicker because no medicine. And this is the only pediatric cardiac hospital in three states that’s able to deal with my problems. We were looking at moving to Colorado but I was too sick and May, my aunt, had been out of work to take care of me so no money. I was…”

There’s a suspicious hitch in the teen’s voice, his breath coming a little harsh, a little fast. He shakes his head viciously, swipes irritably at his cheeks where thin trails of tears cut a path across anger-flushed skin.

“I was so tired,” he admits in a whisper, “I wished I could just die and get it over with!”

“Okay,” Rhodey exhales past the stunned horror of the teen’s admission, “okay.” Reaches out haltingly to put a soothing a hand on the kid’s trembling shoulder. “Do you… uh… do you need a break from this?”

“No.” It takes him a few moments, but Peter swallows down his emotions; manages to steady himself. “Sorry. It was just… it was hard. I hated it. I was sick and things were getting so much worse. It was hard to see these things taking their toll on May.”

Rhodey gives the boy’s shoulder one last squeeze before letting his hand fall away. “I imagine she must have been pretty upset.”

“Upset doesn’t even begin to describe it,” Peter scoffs. “She was furious. And she wasn’t taking it sitting down either. She was calling our legislators, trying to see about the legalities, but we weren’t having any luck. She tried to go after him directly, you know, suing him for medical malpractice. Failure to treat. Medical neglect.” He shrugs, exhaustion written into every line of his body.

“Like I said, it got ugly. And here I am… dying because my heart is failing, and I get sick on top of it and it’s looking like the end for me. They start talking about hospice and making me comfortable, but I’m in the ICU in the meantime…”

“What happened?” Rhodey prods cautiously, afraid to push too hard because the kid is a walking war wound and it feels like even the slightest amount of pressure could cause him to bleed out.

Peter blinks as though coming out of a trance, his expression softening, pale lips pulling into a small smile. “Tony Stark happened,” he murmurs, sounding simultaneously awed and fond. “He got admitted the same time as me, just on the adult side, and he was being monitored because he was on some weird drug that was giving him trouble, but he was not so sick as me. He bumped into May in the hallway one time, and they got to know each other a bit. They had a lot in common, you know? Going through all this. Tony, see, he wanted to help, he offered to pay for everything. And May, she was real thankful and she wanted to take him up on it, but the thing is? Ross could just turn around and do it again to some other kid and their family. May said if it happened again it was because of them not fighting so she wanted to keep pushing on.”

Rhodey shakes his head, a bit conflicted. On the one hand there’s an already familiar flare of annoyance at Tony Stark, whose answer to everything seems to be to throw money at it. Yet on the other - it was a hell of a thing for him to offer to do for someone he had just met.

He also can’t help but admire May Parker’s bravery and tenacity. To go up against the hospital with all of its money and its fancy lawyers all on her own? That took guts.

“One night, Ross himself comes by and says he has a court order to withdraw treatment on my case.”

Lost in thought, it takes Rhodey a moment to realize that the kid is talking again, and once the actual meaning of the words registers, he feels himself grow cold all over. “What??”

“Yeah.” Peter swallows hard several times, a bitter smile twisting his lips. “See… what he’s done is… he’s accused May of child abuse. For doing all these expensive treatments and prolonging my life. He got all these doctors to say that it wasn’t in my best interest, it was causing pain and suffering. He had all these records that showed it was harming me and wouldn’t save my life in the end and he said a third party should be asked to make medical decisions on my behalf. Basically, Ross made it so the government had medical decision-making power over my course of treatment.”

Rhodey sits back, stunned silent once again. He knows there are certain laws for that kind of thing, but they are meant to protect kids from abusive parents, who use medical diagnosis to harm their kids-- Munchausen by Proxy, that kind of thing. He can’t believe anyone would do what Peter’s describing. It’s… it’s... unconscionable!

“Ross and May get into a big fight, and May… she’s in tears, alright? I hadn’t seen her like that since my uncle died. She starts pleading with him. Promises to back down if Ross doesn’t withdraw treatment. Says she’ll stop the lawsuits and the push to get the laws changed - drop the whole thing just… just to keep me going.” Peter grits his teeth, his breath hitching once again. “Ross was in my room, see,” he continues, voice tight with barely controlled emotions. “He didn’t want anyone witnessing what he was doing, and he’s right in her face, laughing at her tears. And I’m… I’m just lying there like a rag doll, useless!”

Peter’s face screws up as if in pain, eyes squeezing shut, and Rhodey can’t help reaching for the teen once more; lays a gentle hand on his back. Peter nods in mute thanks; breathes, slow and deep, in an attempt to calm down, in and out, in and out.

“And then Mr. Stark walks into the room, out of nowhere,” he continues, hoarse, “with like three lawyers in tow. I don’t know who called him or how he got there so fast, I don’t know any of that. He’s just there, looking like a king even in a hospital gown, you know? The lawyers, they’re talking fast, serving Ross with all kinds of notices and cease and desist orders, and there’s even…”

Peter’s voice chokes up a little, and he fists his hands around the edge of the bench, white-knuckled fingers digging in.

“There’s even a restraining order, so he has to leave us alone. He can’t say anything to May or me, not ever again. And he never… he never does. Ross never has talked to us again. And I start getting my medicine. Because of how sick I got without the medicine, I was moved way up on the list, but then thanks to Mr. Stark, I’m okay now. I’m good to wait. It’s actually good for me to wait, to get stronger, let this medicine heal my body.”

He turns, his gaze boring into Rhodey, intent, pleading. “But Mr. Stark, he… Dr. Rhodes, he can’t wait anymore. He passes the rope again, he, maybe, won’t be around when a chance comes back up again. That’s why… that’s why we went to Ms. Potts about giving him my spot.”

Rhodey nods grimly, digesting that information. “What about Dr. Hammer?” he wants to know. “He did the surgery on Mr. Stark, didn’t he? How did that--”

He trails off, taken aback by the abrupt shift in the teen’s expression. Peter’s whole face darkens, lips twisting into an ugly, bitter grimace.

“Hammer’s a hack,” he spits out with such venom that it leaves Rhodey gaping at him in frank surprise. “He botched that surgery. On purpose probably, too, I’m willing to bet!”

“Come on, Peter…” Rhodey shakes his head in disbelief, because an accusation like that? It’s utterly ridiculous!

“Ross threatened Mr. Stark, did I tell you that?” the teen cuts in as though Rhodey hasn’t spoken. “When they were arguing in my room, when Mr. Stark told him to get out? Just before he left, he pinned Mr. Stark against the wall and he told him, told him Mr. Stark would regret doing this. And you know what the last thing he did before leaving the hospital for good?”

“He assigned Dr. Hammer to do the surgery,” Rhodey guesses, feeling a horrible numbness spread forth within his chest. “But… why?”

“Hammer’s a butcher,” Peter sneers, voice dark with resentment, “everyone knows that. He only ever got to be a surgeon thanks to his daddy’s money and Ross’s influence. He never should have… he never should have gone anywhere near Mr. Stark.”

“He… I heard the nurses talk after. Hammer ignored the warning on Mr. Stark’s chart; gave him a drug that should never have been combined with the medicine Mr. Stark was taking. Nearly killed him right on the operating table. It’s what… it’s what’s killing him now!”

The teen grits his teeth; drops his gaze to where his hands are clasped impossibly tight in his lap. “I visited him the day after his surgery. He looked… he… I’ve never seen him look so bad. Like… like death. And he was in pain. He was trying to hide it, but I could tell.” He looks up again, his face twisting in anguish. “He’s dying, Dr. Rhodes. And there’s no one who can help him but you. Miss Potts, she told me, she said you’re the best in the field. That’s why I told her to take my spot, so you could… so you could save him. And then I hear he fired you, Dr. Rhodes, and I don’t… I don’t know what to do.”

He looks at Rhodey with such raw, open worry that Rhodey wonders if he’s ever felt worse in his entire life, as if he’d kicked a puppy or pulled the wings off a butterfly. Killed a mockingbird, all that. Guilt and shame spread through his chest with hot prickles, as well as a burgeoning fear that he’d done something irrevocably foolish. He’d just thrown away the one chance he had to save someone… someone who is, despite what he’s been initially led to believe, utterly worth saving.

At the same time, he’s not sure how much he can rely on the opinion of a child, much less one so obviously emotionally compromised. There’s a chance that Stark had manipulated him, he hates to think it but it is a fact. People do... desperate things when they are desperate.

But Peter seems so damned earnest.

“Peter. I… I didn’t know any of that,” he manages finally -- as close to “I’m sorry” as he can get.

Peter nods gravely, brown eyes boring into Rhodey’s, dark, urgent. “I know, sir. I know. But… the thing is. Now you do. So what are you going to do about it?”

***

He doesn’t mean to eavesdrop, he really doesn’t. He went looking for Pepper after he dropped the Parker kid back in his room, and he will honestly blame his conversation with the teen - the conversation that left him so thoroughly shaken and off his game that he doesn’t become aware of his surroundings until he nearly collides with a group of interns that huddle in an oddly conspiratorial-looking clique in the middle of the hallway in front of Pepper’s office. It is only then that he snaps back to the here and now. It is only then that he becomes aware of the raised voices coming from behind the closed office door, and of the awkward glances the interns are throwing each other as they wait for Rhodey’s reaction.

“I refuse to allow it, Tony!” Pepper’s voice rages from behind closed doors, and Rhodey can see through the haphazardly open blinds as she paces angrily in her spacious office. “I can have you blue slipped!”

“A psychiatric hold, really?” Stark sounds peeved, his temper from earlier having escalated even further. “Don’t think I won’t sue you if you pull that crap, Potts! My lawyers are faster and smarter than your corporate lackeys. I’m not your hostage or your science experiment and you agreed, you agreed! I say when I’m done. And I’m done!”

“Well I take it back! You can’t do this! I won’t let you!”

Pepper is shouting now, her voice - a heart-rending mix of anger and despair, and Rhodey doesn’t even have to pretend not to overhear them now. Everyone in the vicinity can hear their argument, and the interns once again begin talking in low voices to each other, flicking awkward glances in the direction of the office.

Rhodey has had enough. Calling on his most authoritative tone, he shoos the interns back to work. Waits a few beats as he watches them disperse, chastised, and then marches determinedly toward the office, trying his best to ignore the angry rise of Stark’s voice.

His ears register an abrupt, almost choked-off cessation of Stark’s response just as his fingers curl around the door handle, followed by a clatter of office supplies being knocked off the desk and a heavy thud of a body hitting the ground. Alarmed now, he yanks open the door and freezes, just out of their line of sight, struck momentarily dumb by the scene that opens before him.

Stark sits on the floor, slumped gracelessly against the desk, his legs splayed out before him. His eyes are closed, ashen face pinched in pain, his trembling left hand tugging unsuccessfully at something inside the pocket of his pajama pants.

Pepper is kneeling before him, wide-eyed and almost as alarmingly pale as Stark himself, one hand resting on his rapidly heaving chest, the other gently pushing Stark’s hand out of the way to take out what the former has been so desperately trying to reach.

A bottle of pills.

Odd, Rhodey thinks, squinting as he tries to make out the label. Because he doesn’t remember seeing any mention of any specific pills in Stark’s chart. And yet...

“How many of these did you take? Tony? How many?” The undeniable urgency in Pepper’s voice cuts off his train of thought, and Rhodey notes the undisguised worry on his boss’s face.

“Three,” Stark huffs out, barely audible, eyes still stubbornly closed.

Pepper pulls back, lips pressed together into a thin white line, the bottle clasped tight within her trembling fingers.

“You know that's not safe,” she says finally, sounding like she’s pleading with Stark. “You know they're just supposed to give you time. They’re not a cure! Tony, these damage your heart if you take them too often, you know this! You know--”

“Yeah,” he cuts her off abruptly, pain-glazed brown eyes sliding open to stare back at her with tired defiance. “Yeah, I do know Pepper. I’m the one who helped develop the damn things. Mixing Palladium and Epinephrine, not in the usual bag of tricks. So yeah. I know.” He nods weakly to the bottle almost completely hidden within her crushing grip. “I need one now, though. Please.”

She watches him a heartbeat longer; sucks in a quick, shuddered breath. “Okay,” she concedes finally, carefully jiggling one out into her hand. “Okay, Tony, you win.”

Dejectedly she hands the pill over to him; stretches to get a bottle of water from her desk, while he pops the pill into his mouth. Reaches out to support him as he drinks, washing down the pill. It takes another few minutes before he nods to her, shifting as though to get up, and she helps pull him to standing, careful, anxious, her hands lingering on his shoulder, as if unable or unwilling to let go.

“Please, Tony, please promise me you won’t take any more of these today,” she pleads, and there’s an uncharacteristically vulnerable note in her voice, one Rhodey has never heard before. “Just… just give me some time, I’ll sort this out somehow--”

Stark smiles in response, weary and almost apologetic. Leans in to place a soft kiss on her cheek.

“Okay. Time. Sure,” he agrees placatingly. “All I got is time, Pep, you can take all of it you need to.”

The words sound wrong somehow, coming out of his mouth, like their meaning is different, like Stark is saying goodbye. And Pepper must sense the same thing, for Rhodey sees her open her mouth in protest…

Stark shakes his head, presses a gentle finger against her lips, silencing her. “We both knew it was a long shot, Pep. Part of the journey is the end, all that; I've been on borrowed time, I'm not about to borrow any of Peter's. We knew this doctor was a hail mary and it didn't work out. Let me leave, Pep. Okay? Just for a little bit. I'll see you soon.”

Rhodey doesn’t stay to hear her response. Steps back outside, letting the door close softly behind him. Mere moments later the door creaks open again, and Stark walks out, shuffling slowly toward the elevators. Rhodey watches him go, wondering briefly if he should go after him and stop him. But there are things about him he still feels he needs to know, needs to understand. So after a moment of hesitation he turns on his heel and pushes his way back into Pepper’s office before he can change his mind once more.

***

He finds Pepper seated back at her desk, face buried in her hands, shoulders trembling ever so slightly. It’s an uncomfortable sight, to be sure, and he has half a mind to tuck tail and run, but she raises her head just then, a pair of tear-filled blue eyes pinning him firmly in place.

“Dr. Rhodes.” She straightens out, a professional mask slamming back into place. “What can I do for you?”

And he flinches despite himself. Because this is Pepper. He’s known her for years, been a close colleague of hers for years. And he has been “Jim” or “Rhodey” to her for nearly as long. But the look in her eyes now is cold as ice - the same look he’s seen her level at those who dared cross her, and he finds it frankly terrifying to be on the receiving end of it.

Though, to be fair, he supposes he deserves it.

“I… I formed an opinion about a man based on the word of someone I don’t respect as a surgeon and barely tolerate as a human being,” he begins carefully, stepping closer to her desk, gauging her reaction. “What I have seen until recently seemed to have confirmed that opinion for me. And yet…”

“And yet?” Pepper prods, blue eyes narrowing in silent warning.

“I can’t help feeling that I’ve missed something,” he admits. “A couple people pointed out to me that maybe I was wrong in my initial assessment. That… that I should get a second opinion.”

He takes a deep breath, trying his best not to fidget under her steely glare. Squares his jaw in quiet resolution.

“So this is me,” he finishes softly, spreading his arms out to the sides, “asking for that second opinion.”

TBC

#ironhusbands #ironhusbands au #tony stark #james rhodey rhodes #doctor/patient au #hurt/comfort #angst #pepper potts #peter parker #co-authored work #tonystark5ever #somethingjustsouthofbrilliance writes

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justlous-art · 3 years

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day 4: crossover (sk8 x marvel)

#rhodeytonymonth #rhodeytony month #rhodeytony #ironhusbands #tony stark #james rhodes #rhfe #rhodey #marvel #mcu #war machine #iron man #tony x rhodey #rhodey x tony #iron husbands #mit era #sk8 au

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shipskicksandgiggles · 2 years

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Idk if you're wanting a prompt but if you are! "It was never real to begin with" "it was to me" 💖💖💖

okay okay okay okay I stg I'm writing two other papers right now and I have so many words in my head so this finally got done

prompt: ''it was never real to begin with.'' ''it was to me.'' (from this list)

Read Just a Push here on ao3

~~~

“Colonel Rhodes, it’s good to have you here!”

“General, how are you?”

The man clapped him on the shoulder. “Well I’m just fine, son. This is the first we’ve seen of you since that big promotion of yours.”

“I got a bit held up with paperwork, sir, I’m sure I’ll be in regular attendance at these events from now on.”

‘These events’ being a gala where the military sent their higher ranking officers to mingle with bureaucrats and civilians to remind them of where their interests lie.

He let out a hearty laugh. “Atta boy! Go on and get yourself a drink. I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

“Yes sir.”

There was a slight commotion to his left, and James did his best to ignore it. He caught a snippet or two of the conversation, but nothing he could make sense of.

“No oh… but… row…”

James started making his way to the bar, but before he could take more than a few steps, someone stumbled into him.

“Woah, are you okay?”

“Rhodey! See, I told you it was Rhodey.”

He looked down, and for a moment, he saw the messy hair and glasses of his college roommate. Then he blinked and he was gone, replaced by the artfully tousled hair and dark eyes of the same man, 10 years older.

“Anthony, stop accosting this man right this instance,” the man following him commanded. Then he turned to James. “I’m sorry, I believe he’s had a bit too much to drink. I can take him off your hands Mister…”

“Colonel, sir. Colonel James Rhodes. Only this one can call me Rhodey.”

“Oh so he was right. Still, it’s hardly professional-”

“It’s hardly professional for me to not at least chat with an old friend. I’ve dealt with his drunken antics before, I’ll get him back to you safe and sound. We’re just gonna take a walk, right Tony?”

“A walk? Sure. It’s been too long, we need to catch up.”

“Just what I was thinking. If that’s alright with you, of course.” He put on his most practiced smile, the one he gritted at his superiors who barked orders at him like he was a dog, but still showed enough respect that he wouldn’t get in trouble.

It didn’t go unnoticed based on how he narrowed his eyes. “Of course!” he said cheerfully. “I’ll be around when he wants to find his way back.”

“I’ll make sure he gets back safe,” Rhodey said, already guiding Tony away from the man.

Was he his escort? Tony’s taste in men had really changed since college, but maybe…

“Are you okay?” he asked when they were far enough out of ear shot. He dropped Tony’s arm in an attempt to give him space, but he didn’t move away.

“I think I’m a little drunk, but you've seen me like this before and we both know I’ve been worse.”

“No, I mean, well,” he glanced in the direction the older man had gone. “Do you need help?” he asked meaningfully.

“With who, Obie? Honestly, I think he's just being overprotective. You spend one too many days in bed with a woman who wants to kill you and suddenly I’m not allowed to hang out with my friends. Rude if you ask me.”

“Obie?” Then it dawned on him. “That’s Obadiah Stane?” he hissed.

“I forget you never met him back in college, but yeah that’s him. I still don’t get why I would need help.”

“Regrettably, I have firsthand experience with your taste in men,” Rhodey told him.

“Huh? You thought I was- ew, that’s disgusting!”

Rhodey threw his hands up in surrender. “Like you said, I never met the guy.”

Tony let out a giggle, so he was drunk enough to let his true self show in public. “God, it’s good to see you again. It’s been too long.”

It almost surprised Rhodey how easily they fell back into step. “Yeah. Makes you miss the good old days.”

“Before all the adulthood and responsibilities. Speaking of which, a little birdie told me about your promotion. I believe a congratulations is in order, Lieutenant Colonel.”

“It still doesn’t feel real,” Rhodey confessed quietly.

“I’m proud of you,” Tony said, seemingly sober for a moment. “You got so far.”

“Don’t sell yourself short,” he brushed it off easily. “You might even come to resent my promotion. There’s a decent chance you’ll be seeing more of me.”

“Good. My job could stand to be a little more fun.”

Rhodey snorted, and silence lapsed between them.

“We should get coffee. Catch up when we’re not in the suits,” Tony said suddenly. “How long are you in town?”

“A few more days. I could go for coffee.”

“Great. I um, I better get back to Obie, but I’ll be in touch alright?”

“Yeah, sure. See you around.”

He passed Tony off to his godfather and expected that to be the end of it. Tony didn’t have his number, and every time someone says they should catch up over coffee, it’s more to get out of the conversation than to actually make plans to get coffee.

Except he woke up the next morning, and while he was in the bathroom getting ready, he missed a phone call.

Tony left a voicemail.

“Hey Rhodeybear, don’t ask how I got your number, but if you’re still up for it, meet me at the café on Jefferson at 11am. I hope you come.”

~~~

One morning of catching up over coffee turned into two, and then five, and then it became routine every time Rhodey was in town.

Then once when he was on extended leave, Tony propositioned him over breakfast.

“I need a date to a charity ball.”

“Did you run out of swimsuit models?”

“No, but I need someone better for my image.”

“So lingerie models are out of the question then,” Rhodey notes. “What are you thinking?”

“Why don’t you come with me?”

Rhodey nearly spat out his coffee. This wasn’t college, they weren’t in their dorm room. They were in public, and talking like that could get Rhodey dishonorably discharged if the wrong person heard.

“It would be fun! And Obie likes you so he wouldn’t be opposed to me bringing you-”

“Tony-” Rhodey rasped, coming out of a small coughing fit. “Tony, that’s a bad idea.”

“What? Why?”

“You have… a reputation,” he said delicately.

The dates Tony would bring to these events always ended up on the front covers of all the tabloids. Not that Rhodey read them. He just saw the covers while standing in line at the grocery store, and that’s one way to keep up with your college roommate.

Still, when the paparazzi swarmed in, it could ruin his career and everything he’d built for himself in a moment.

“Yeah, rich genius who can show up to parties with anyone who wants on his arm.”

“People you tend to take to bed afterwards,” Rhodey said pointedly. “I can’t have those rumors anywhere near me.”

Realization finally dawned on Tony’s face. “Right. Right. Okay, so we get ahead of it. Spin it as two bachelors shooting the shit for the night, no women on our arms, the same way it was in college.”

The same way it was in college. Rhodey being helpless to Tony’s every will and whim to the point it almost killed him. Exactly the same as it was in college.

“I don’t want to lose my job over this, Tony.”

“You won’t,” he assured him. “You’re too valuable to them anyways. Trust me, we can do this.”

“Alright, fine, but don’t expect this to be a regular thing.”

“Never,” Tony promised.

He would hold him to that.

~~~

Rhodey didn’t hold him to it. He actually agreed to be Tony’s date to a few more events over the years, all under the condition that it was completely platonic and no one tried to insinuate that they were dating.

Tony still went out with models and actresses and women he could sweep off to bed, but that wasn’t his business. Not as long as he could stand at Tony’s side without any consequences.

Then Don’t Ask Don’t Tell was repealed, and nothing changed. If Tony didn’t want to deal with the press creating rumors anymore, he didn’t have to, but they had a routine, and that was that.

He didn’t know how to feel about that.

Until one day Tony swooped into the room frantically, startling Rhodey out of a long deserved personal lab day.

“I need you to be my date for a fundraising ball.”

“Excuse me?”

“I need you. To be. My date.”

“Right.” He waited for Tony to explain.

Tony did not explain.

“Why?” he prompted.

“It’s a ball. A real one with dancing.”

“I see. Why me though?”

“You can dance.”

“So can all the girls that were your back up dancers when you did the Iron Man expo. You’re not answering my question.”

“All of Pepper’s contacts are falling through. They don’t know how to ballroom dance. We can’t find anyone who can and is available.”

“And I’m guessing you’ve already checked my schedule to see if I am?”

“Yes, precisely. So you’ll do it?”

Rhodey regretted getting drunk that one night in college and confessing to Tony that he had ballroom dance training.

“I guess if it’s that dire of a situation.”

“It is. It is that dire.”

“Great. How long do I have to get on top of this so there are no major consequences in my life, personal or otherwise?”

“Two days?”

“I hate you so much. Fine, but you owe me.”

“I know. Anything you want.”

“Good. Now get out before I throw something at you.”

“Can we at least go over steps later? Just so I don’t look like a clumsy mess?”

“Get out, Tony!”

“Penthouse, 7pm!”

Rhodey flung a pen in his general direction, and Tony squawked as he ran out the door.

~~~

He got the phone call hours after the ball was over.

“Rhodes.”

“Was this- were you two really a thing this whole time? Did you just not tell us because of the law?”

Even though he knew this call was coming, he still didn’t know what he should say. He stared at Tony, disheveled suit and all, sitting across from him, head cocked to one side, as if to say What’s wrong? Are you okay? And suddenly, he knew.

“Honestly Major, no we weren’t. It’s fairly recent, but I had him in my arms and I realized after all these years, I couldn’t let him go.”

Tony smiled softly, and it broke his heart. It was the truth, and Tony would never know. He would never know that when they danced, Rhodey’s heart was in his stomach, wishing that it was real.

“Okay then. As long as it doesn’t interfere with your job, that’s your business.”

“Thank you Major.”

“And Rhodes, I know it’s not my place to say so, but you looked happy out there. I hope he treats you well.”

“I hope so too, sir.”

“Have a good night, Colonel.”

“You too, sir.”

The line clicked, and he let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“Everything alright?” Tony asked, ever so sincerely.

“Perfect. Everything’s perfect.”

Rhodey was going to ruin his own life, and he was going to do so happily, knowing that once, just once, he had been able to sweep the only man he had ever loved off his feet.

Just once, he’d been able to kiss him, spur of the moment when their faces got too close. Dips did seem to run that risk, but from the look on Tony’s face afterwards, it hadn’t been amiss.

But just this once, he could pretend to be happy.

~~~

One of these times, Rhodey was going to learn that he couldn’t promise just one time to Tony.

Charity galas, speaker events, product launches, business meetings disguised as double dates, anywhere where Tony should have a romantic partner, Rhodey appeared beside him.

Maybe it was because their friendship was so set in stone that a staged breakup wouldn’t make sense. Because a one night stand with the guy you’d known since college would stand out.

He hated how much sense it made, but he knew it had to come to an end soon. This couldn’t last forever. That was something he had known since the very beginning. At no point could he get his hopes up because eventually all he would be was another footnote in the tabloids, linking him to Tony Stark.

A week before he was due back on base, there was another party Tony wanted him at. He was getting ready in Tony’s bathroom.

They were supposed to arrive together, but Rhodey was all too aware that this would likely be the last time they ever did anything together. The last time he got to hold Tony in his arms. The last time he got to herd him back towards the car so they could go home together. The last time he would spend the night in Tony’s guest room only to slip back to his own apartment early the next morning with an empty pit in his stomach.

Tony popped his head behind the door. Rhodey realized he must have been taking too long, but there was a heaviness in his bones that he couldn’t shake.

“Cuff links giving you trouble?”

“A bit, yeah.”

“My mom always said that helping each other get ready like this gave you a stable foundation for marriage,” Tony said offhandedly, fastening them securely.

“Yeah? Is there anything you need help with?”

“My tie actually. Can’t seem to get it even.”

“Give it here.” He deftly formed the knot just above Tony’s heart and tightened it, stepping back to examine his handiwork.

If they were together, he would kiss him.

He would pull him in by the tie he just tied and let him know he loved him even though Tony’s always been awful at tying them himself.

But they weren’t together. Not really.

“Is the car here?” he asked instead.

“Happy’s waiting for us. Ready to go?”

“Yeah.” He patted down his pockets to make sure his phone was there before grabbing his jacket on the way to the elevator. “The window of time where we will be fashionably late is closing, Tones.”

“Then I guess we’d better get going.”

Tony pulled Rhodey into the elevator and back out the other side when they hit the garage level. He laughed when Rhodey opened the car door for him.

“Such a gentleman.”

“Everything you deserve,” Rhodey joked, ignoring how much his chest hurt.

“I deserve a man who gets in the car with me, for Christ’s sake.”

He ducked his head so as not to hit it on the car, and closed the door behind him. There wasn’t even time to buckle his seat belt before Happy pulled out of the garage.

It was a quiet drive, quieter than normal.

“Are you alright?” he asked Tony.

“Always,” Tony answered automatically.

“You’d tell me if something was wrong, wouldn’t you?”

“Sure. I’m just a little tired, I think, that’s all.”

“Well, play our cards right and we’ll see about getting out of here early.”

“Yeah? I think that requires there to be a bit of tension when we arrive, don’t you?”

“Or we could just fake an emergency,” Rhodey suggested futility.

“Not as fun,” Tony returned, already reaching for Rhodey’s tie.

He was going to hell. “Fair enough.”

Rhodey felt guilty threading his fingers through Tony’s perfectly coiffed hair. He spent so long perfecting the look, and Rhodey messed it up in a second, just trying to pull him closer. To preserve the best thing that had ever happened to him.

Then their lips met, and the guilt was gone. In its place was pure elation. Warmth, happiness, and pleasure, all wrapped into one neat little package of this man.

Happy knocked on the partition, interrupting them as they approached the venue.

They came apart unsteadily, and Rhodey couldn’t help but assess what he’d done. Before he could stop himself, he ran a thumb over Tony’s swollen bottom lip, sucking in a gasp as he pressed another light kiss to the spot.

Tony fixed him with those dark eyes, and Rhodey considered asking Happy to turn the car around and taking them back where they came from.

But he couldn’t. Because they weren’t really dating. And they had an obligation.

Right.

“We might be too obvious like this,” he said instead, gesturing to Tony’s rumpled suit.

“Possibly, but it sends a message.”

“Which is?”

He straightened Rhodey’s tie carefully. “That I want you. And you want me. And no party will stop us from being apart for long periods of time.”

Oh he had no idea. “I’ll drink to that.” The car came to a stop, and Happy knocked again. “Shall we?”

“Stay close, Hap. We may need a quick getaway.” He ran a hand through his already messy hair so it at least looked intentional before he let Rhodey pull him from the car and into the flashing of cameras.

~~~

All told, they stayed for less than an hour and a half.

Honestly, Rhodey would have stayed longer, but there was an incessant pull between him and Tony all night that he couldn’t figure out if he was imaging.

Then Tony gave him the signal to say he wanted to leave, and Rhodey happily grabbed his hand and excused them as quickly as he could.

“For the record, I’m not going to miss this when I leave.”

“Don’t lie, you’ll miss it a little bit.”

He would miss dressing up, getting to see Tony dressed up, the smiles from before and after the events where there were no cameras and they could just be themselves, having Tony on his arm.

He wouldn’t miss the way all of it seemed false, the camera bulb flashes, Tony’s fake smiles that were too sharp on his face, the lies, leaving Tony at the end of the night, always wishing for more.

“Yeah, maybe a little.”

The car ride was quiet after that. Neither of them were really up for talking just yet, but the silence was comfortable. Normal.

They got back to Tony’s apartment, and Rhodey threw himself down on the couch while Tony looked around the kitchen for food. He tossed a box of cold pizza down before flopping down across from Rhodey.

“You’re an angel,” Rhodey groaned.

“You know it, buttercup. This is our post event tradition, so I made sure I was prepared.”

“For the record, I’m going to feel incredibly betrayed if I find out you’re going this with the next person you start taking to events.”

Tony stilled in his seat. “What?”

“If you get your next date pizza I’ll consider it a personal attack,” Rhodey rephrased.

“Of course, but can we back up to ‘next date’ please?”

“Tony, I’m leaving to go back to base at the end of this week, you knew that.”

“Well yeah, of course I know that. What about it?”

“I’m not going to be able to tag along for these events anymore,” he said slowly.

“Obviously, but why would you think I’d start going out with someone else?”

Now it was Rhodey’s turn to pause. He started to speak a couple of times before he managed to find the right words. “I guess what I’m trying to say is I’ll understand when someone else starts accompanying you to these things,” he said.

“When?” Tony asked incredulously. “Rhodey, honey, I’m not just going to leave you high and dry. Pepper can come with me if I can’t go alone. It’ll be good for her, and she’s fantastic at keeping me out of trouble.”

She was, honestly Rhodey was in awe of her. “I mean I understand not having someone right away, but eventually, when you feel comfortable dating again, I won’t be mad.”

A look of hurt crossed Tony’s face. “Are you breaking up with me?”

Rhodey laughed, but it came out closer to a. “I don’t think break up is the right term for it, but if that makes it easier, then sure.”

“You’re really doing this right now. Do you want a drink? I need a drink.” He got up and walked back to the kitchen, and Rhodey followed.

“Tony, wait, come on.”

“No, if you want to break up with me, go ahead, don’t mind me.”

“Come on, we both knew this was only a temporary arrangement. I was convenient, and everyone believed we were together, so it just made sense not to say otherwise and go our separate ways when I left. No hard feelings involved.”

He was looking at Rhodey like he’d completely lost his mind. “Did it ever occur to you that it was all intentional, and I never wanted this to end?”

“What’s the point in that?”

“My whole life has been night after night of people who don’t care about me, and I never really cared about them. Did you ever consider that I wanted something real?”

“It was never real to begin with!”

“It was to me!” Tony shouted.

The words seemed to echo off the walls.

Rhodey was so shocked he had to sit down.

“Look, I know I’m probably not what you wanted, but even if it wasn’t real, I love spending time with you, and I wouldn’t give up these last few months for the world.”

“Not what I- Tony, hold on a minute.”

Tony had started to turn away from him, glass trembling in his hand, but he stopped. He didn’t turn back around, but he stopped.

“I always thought this was about convenience. You needed somebody, anybody, to go out with you, so if we could just pretend, that would make it easier. All your relationships up until-” his breath caught “-up until me were different. Faster. I was worried that no one would believe it because of how much different we are. Now I know I shouldn't have been. I’m sorry.”

“Convenience?” Tony asked quietly. “You thought I only wanted you because you were convenient? That I hadn’t thought about how to ask you out over and over and over again, how I would do it right? That ball threw a wrench in everything I had planned. I'm sorry, I never meant to make you feel like you were just a pawn. You deserve better than that.” He sighed, and fully turned away. “I’m sorry, I wouldn’t blame you if you left. Just try not to sound happy about it.”

He was quiet for a moment, watching Tony’s back. Neither of them moved. His guess was that Tony was expecting him to get up and leave right then.

Instead he pushed back his chair, the legs scraping against the tiled floor with a hard screech. Tony’s shoulders tensed, and Rhodey walked around the kitchen island. He wasn’t sure how to go about doing this, but he had a pretty decent idea.

Rhodey brushed his fingers against the back of his neck, and when Tony started to turn, he secured his grip there, and pulled him into a bruising kiss.

For the first time since this mess had started, he didn’t feel guilty. He wasn’t ashamed. He felt like something finally clicked into place.

“You’re telling me,” he said when they finally broke apart, “that we could have been doing this this whole time?”

“Didn’t think you wanted it,” Tony returned, already leaning back in. “Didn’t wanna push.”

“Push all you want, sweetheart,” Rhodey muttered against his lips.

And push he did.

He pushed and pushed and pushed until Rhodey was using his tie, the same one he wanted to use as leverage earlier, to drag him towards the bedroom door.

Until they were a mess of sweat and limbs.

Until he was able to pull Tony up against his chest, and breathe a sigh of relief.

“We should have done this months ago.”

“Like I said, I didn’t think you wanted anything.”

“I wanted everything, Tony. I just didn’t want to lose you.”

“You have got to stop reading the tabloids. I wouldn’t have a one night stand with someone I care about.”

“I'm going to hold you to that,” Rhodey yawned. “Now be quiet, we can talk about this in the morning.”

“Okay.” Tony snuggled in close to him, and Rhodey couldn’t wait to wake up in the morning to learn whether or not it was a dream.

And then he could press kisses to the smattering of freckles on his shoulders and share sleepy mornings and coffee and not have to sneak out early because he was finally his.

#ironhusbands #james rhodes x tony stark #ellis writes #sarah tag #fluff #fake dating au #fake dating #getting together #friends to lovers #tony stark #james rhodes

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the-chickenshit-oddity · 2 years

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All the ships

Vampire Romance, kinda.

I want A to be a vampire, but middle aged. They're like...forty. And at first they say they're thirty and just look older, then it's been ten years and now they say their age finally caught up to their looks. And then they put some grey in their hair to look older. All in all, they can stay about twenty years in one place.

But A is all about the job, there's really not much in their lives, up until they reach the "grey in the hair" part of the plan, and go to the next town over to get some dye in. And who's the hairdresser but B, their soon-to-be best friend who's nice and everything and just thinks that A wants to look more mature to get a promotion at the fake job they told B about.

Anyway. B starts noticing stuff about themself, not about A. Like how it feels weird to not wear a scarf/collar around A, and how their hand keeps straying to their neck when it gets dark at night, things like that. And that's all I have.

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sibmakesart · 3 years

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Your art is so beautiful 🥺 if you’re still taking promts — MIT era!Tony with hangover and Rhodey taking care of him?

MIT ERA IS THE BEST

also you know that moment where its super dupper early but youre awake bc alcohol fucks with your sleep cycles and you have hours before your day starts ? it sucks BUT when youre with someone whos also awake ????? or its just me

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dykeninthdoctor · 4 years

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“tony getting deaged and rhodey being the only one he trusts/surprised rhodey is still in his life” for @official-impravidus. happy birthday, lexie my love!

“What the fuck happened to him?”

Jim knows his voice is shaking, but it’s better than yelling, better than seeing the teenager in front of him shrink away and curl in on himself, a habit that took years for Jim to coax out of him with gentle words and even gentler touches. Rogers raises his hands in a show of peace–I’m on your side–but it does nothing to quell the anger building in Jim’s throat.

“We don’t know what happened, Rhodey–“

Jim’s fists clench at his sides at the nickname from Rogers’s mouth as Tony–little Tony, tiny Tony, the Tony that used to be his–looks up in shock.

“Rhodey?” he asks breathlessly, hopefully. “You–you’re Rhodey?“

Jim nods, not trusting his voice.

And then his arms are full of a trembling teenager, a trembling teenager that was once his, and his shirt is slowly growing damp from the silent tears Tony cries against his chest.

It’s easier than breathing to hold Tony closer.

He starts carding a hand through Tony’s soft hair, the usual gel that Jim’s become accustomed to absent, and rubs his back with the other hand, humming just soft enough for Tony to pick up the melody and tap it out on his shoulder with light brushes of his fingers.

Rogers stares at them.

Jim doesn’t care, because Tony’s not shaking anymore.

He takes Tony to the lab first, because the lab is where his Tony feels safe.

But this Tony looks around with an unreadable expression–almost unreadable, except to Jim.

It’s disbelief. And fear.

“I did this? Not–not Howard?”

It breaks Jim’s heart.

“Yeah, Tones. It was you.”

“Oh,” Tony whispers. “Wicked.”

Jim tells him about the future, and Tony listens with wide eyes.

Jim tells him about Tony’s place in the future, and Tony understands with wider ones.

It’s not hard to tell Tony about his parents’ death.

It’s the hardest thing in the world to tell Tony about Edwin Jarvis’s.

Tony tries to make JARVIS again, for the first time in his lifetime, and Jim has to stop him, for the fifth time in his lifetime.

Jim holds him while he cries.

Tony doesn’t ask about Rogers until two days in, after two days of not leaving Jim’s side, after two days spent in the lab with the bots, his creations, his children.

They’re on the couch in the common living room, watching Star Wars Episode VII, because after Tony had heard there were more than just the original trilogy, he’d begged for a marathon and Jim’s never been able to resist his puppy eyes. Tony’s head is pillowed on his chest, Jim’s nose is resting against the crown of his head, and their arms are around each other. Tony’s watching the movie. Jim’s watching him.

Rogers walks into the room right as Finn and Poe reunite on screen.

Tony tenses. Jim holds him tighter.

“Oh–I didn’t realize you were in here–“ Rogers says. Jim taps a calming pattern against Tony’s back.

“It’s all good, man.”

There’s a beat, a moment of silence as sharp as glass where Rogers’s eyes stay on Tony, and Tony’s eyes don’t leave the screen.

Jim clears his throat and shatters it. Rogers blinks, nods, looks at Tony one more time, and leaves the room.

There’s an explosion on screen.

“How did he find him?” Tony asks, barely a whisper.

Jim frowns into Tony’s hair. “How did who find him?”

“Howard.”

“No,” Jim says sharply, before he can stop himself. “It wasn’t Howard.”

“Oh.”

“He’s gone, Tones. Rogers wasn’t his find. And Rogers–he’s–“ Jim sighs. “He’s okay.”

Tony relaxes against his chest.

“Okay, platypus.”

The overwhelming feeling of relief, and then guilt, creeps its way into Jim’s heart when Tony still refuses to leave his side, even with his newfound trust in Rogers, and to an extent, the rest of the team.

It takes them a week to figure out how to reverse it, a week for the flowers of relief and weeds of guilt to continue to grow, along with the coiling, painful root of longing, longing for his Tony.

Tony’s always been perceptive, so when he picks up on it, Jim isn’t surprised.

“You miss him. Me. The other me. Your me.”

“Every you is mine,” Jim says immediately, and means it.

Tony will always be his, and he will always be Tony’s. It’s the way the universe works.

Tony just rolls his eyes. “No shit, Sherlock. But you still miss him. I mean…it’s weird to be in love with a seventeen-year-old when you’re like…fifty.”

Jim drops the casserole dish and spills Momma Robbie’s famous peach cobbler across the kitchen tiles, staining white with yellows and oranges.

“Shit,” he says, because Tony flinched, even if he tried to hide it. “C’mere, Tones.”

“Did I guess wrong?” Tony asks weakly, tucked into Jim’s chest, head under his chin.

They fit together like pieces of a puzzle; or, two puzzles with matching pieces.

“No. No, you really didn’t. You picked up on something my Tony’s been missing for years, though.”

“He doesn’t know you love him?”

“No, he doesn’t know I’m in love with him.”

“Maybe he just doesn’t want to believe it,” Tony whispers softly.

Jim doesn’t know what to say in response.

It takes them a week to figure out how to reverse it.

When they do, Tony, Jim’s Tony, stands in front of them, gray at his temples and in his goatee, a lifetime clouding his eyes, but still drowning in Jim’s old MIT hoodie.

“Tones?” he asks weakly.

“Hey, platypus. I think you’ve got something to tell me.”

“I hate you.”

“No, I’m pretty sure it was the opposite,” Tony says, a smirk that looks more like a smile on his face.

And then he’s in Jim’s arms.

His Tony is in his arms.

Jim smiles.

It’s easier than living to kiss Tony breathless.

#uh so. when i got this prompt. i was not expecting to write all of this. but. i did.#i just. guess i decided to have a running theme of tony being his yk #anyway tony's a little shit in this and i love it for him #james rhodey rhodes #tony stark #war machine #iron man #rhodeytony #ironhusbands #ironhusbands drabble #idk how the FUCK to tag these #deaged au #??? i hate tagging bruh #aven.writing #official-impravidus

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