Steve watched helplessly as Tony plummeted down from the sky like a lifeless doll carelessly dropped off a skyscraper. For a moment, he was perfectly sure that after a second, Tony would regain his consciousness and land himself safely. He was Tony Stark, after all. He’s been through hell and beyond. But seconds went, and seconds were running out, and Tony showed no signs of any awareness to what was happening to him.
“He’s not slowing down!” Thor boomed as he prepared to take off with his mjolinir. Steve, who couldn’t possibly do anything to slow down the momentum of the fall, felt guilt and sheer uselessness. There was nothing at that moment that he wanted more than to be able to do something. But thankfully, the Hulk was able to catch Tony just before he hit the ground. The two crashed onto a car, and before Steve knew what he was doing, he ran towards them as the Hulk set Tony down onto the asphalt.
Thor threw the faceplate to the side as Steve knelt beside the unconscious man in the iron suit. No, no, no, he thought frantically as his eyes skirted over the expressionless face of Tony. On instinct, he pressed his ear on the solid metal right over Tony’s heart. The suit made it impossible to tell whether or not he was still alive. He must be. He must be alive. It took every fiber of Steve not to cry out Tony’s name, not to speak. He knew if he did, his trembling voice would give him away.
Steve dragged his hand over the smooth surface of Tony’s chest plate. His heart was beating fast, and he thought it was unfair. Why can’t Tony’s do the same? Dammit, Tony, breathe. Tony. You can do this. Tony. Don’t leave me. “Tony…”
The Hulk suddenly let out a growl that sent a jolt through Tony, making him scream his way back into consciousness. Steve let out a breath he didn’t know was holding as he saw Tony’s brown eyes flutter to life again, feeling as though a weight had just been lifted from his shoulders. He had been drastically wrong about Tony. He didn’t know what he would’ve done if Tony had left this world without Steve getting the chance to start over with him.
“Please tell me nobody kissed me.”
Actually, Steve wasn’t that wrong.
