Word count : 2247
Warnings : cursing, angst with a little bit of fluff.

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"FOR FUCK'S SAKE, Y/N, ARE YOU EVER GOING TO LISTEN TO ME???"

Tony was fuming with anger, throwing his hands in the hair and breathing heavily, while you... Well, you were screwed.

"WHY DO YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO ACT LIKE A HERO AND PUT YOUR LIFE IN DANGER WHEN I SPECIFICALLY TOLD YOU NOT TO??"

You lowered your head, biting your lip and accepting the scolding. Recently, although Tony has forbidden you to do that, you still went on a mission, a very dangerous one even, which resulted in you getting hurt.

"I'm sorry, ok? I just... I just wanted to help. I'm fine though, alright? I just got a few scratches, which is completely normal. That's why I'm an Avenger after all." you mumbled quietly, still avoiding his gaze and trying to explain yourself.

Although you were 25, Tony was treating you like a kid, always trying to protect and prevent you from getting hurt, but you couldn't just stay back all the time and watch other people getting hurt, especially when you knew you could do something to help them.

"A few scratches? A FEW FUCKING SCRATCHES, Y/N? YOU HAD FIVE BROKEN RIBS, BEEN SHOT IN THE RIGHT LEG AND YOUR ENTIRE BODY WAS AND STILL IS FULL OF BRUICES, ESPECIALLY YOUR FACE!!!"

Well, damn... He was right. You lost so much blood on the way home and your heart almost stopped beating at some point, which had everyone worried. However, you were ok now, but you knew that Tony was disappointed.

"I'm sorry..." you whispered, your voice cracking. "I didn't mean for that to happen. I swear! I just wanted to prove myself to you and the others. You never let me do anything, so I felt worthless, Tony. I felt like I wasn't good enough and-"

"DON'T FUCKING START WITH THIS SHIT!" he intervened. "YOU COULD HAVE FUCKING DIED, OK? DID YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT HOW I WOULD HAVE FELT IF THAT SHIT HAD HAPPENED?"

Taking a deep breath, you closed your eyes, trying your best not to break down. You felt disappointed in yourself for screwing things up, but especially for disappointing Tony.

"ANSWER ME, Y/N!" Tony kept on yelling, not noticing how your body started shaking. All he could think about was the day you came back from the mission, full of injuries and barely awake. When you almost died, he felt like his entire world was going to fall apart. He felt guilty for not being there to save and protect you. However, the fear of losing you turned into anger the moment you woke up.

He ignored you for days, knowing that he would snap the moment you would approach him, just like you did today, and as much as he tried to calm himself down, he just couldn't.

"T-Tony, please..." you cried. "Stop yelling. I know what I did was wrong, but I had good intentions."

The billionaire shook his head, biting the inside of his cheek. "You know what? I'm done with you and your childish behaviour. Starting from now on, you're not an Avenger anymore."

Before you could even complain, he turned around and left, without any other glance. Everything that has happened was just too much for him and he couldn't handle seeing you getting hurt ever again.

Sighing, you went to your room and threw yourself on the bed. Tears were soaking your face, but you didn't bother to wipe them away. The thought of leaving the team was encouraging them to keep on falling, but what hurt more, was the fact that Tony hated you. Or at least, that's what it seemed like.

"Y/N?" you heard Natasha's voice on the other side of the door. "I heard what happened between you and Tony... Can I come in?"

You didn't bother to reply. You didn't even have the energy to do that. The pain the last mission left you with was nothing compared to the one you were feeling now.

Although she got no response, Natasha opened the door and stepped in, frowning at the sight of you. She knew you made a mistake, but she couldn't blame or hate you for that. Your intentions were pure and you just wanted to impress the man you secretly loved. You weren't that good at hiding it tho.

"Hey..." she started, her voice soft and comforting as she approached the bed. "I'm not going to ask if you are ok, cause it's obvious that you aren't, but I want you to know that you are a great person and you did the right thing."

You shook your head almost immediately, closing your eyes tightly. "No, I'm not. I'm just a disappointment. Tony hates me now and it's just my fault."

"That's not true, sweetie." she disagreed. "He's just angry, but he loves you. Try to understand him tho... You've been in coma for several days. Those days have been like hell for him. He wouldn't sleep, wouldn't eat, wouldn't even leave the room you were in, because he was so worried about you. You know how Tony is... He always feels guilty whenever one of us gets hurt. Especially you."

"I know, Nat, and I didn't mean to worry anyone. I just thought that if I succeeded in a mission, he would have more faith in me and wouldn't baby me all the time, but I screwed up as always." you sniffed, feeling too many emotions at the same time.

"Y/N, listen to me. You're one of the bravest people I've ever met, ok? Everyone makes mistakes. You don't have to blame yourself for each one of them tho... Tony acted out of anger, but I can assure you that, once he calms down, everything is gonna be fine. You're not going to leave the Avengers anytime soon."

You sighed, getting into a sitting position and wiping your tears, before hugging your friend. "Thank you, Nat. You're the best."

She smiled, patting your back comfortingly. "I was just telling the truth, ok? Everything will be ok. You did great."

***

Later that day, after you finally managed to calm yourself down, you decided to take a shower and try to talk to Tony again. You hated knowing that he was upset with you and wanted to make it up to him.

It was 09:23 in the evening when you got dressed and headed back to his lab. Although you didn't ask anyone, you were almost 100% sure that he was in there.

As soon as you stepped in, you noticed that he was seating on a chair, his elbows leaned on the nearby table and his head in his hands. He wasn't saying anything, just staring blankly, probably too lost in his thoughts to hear you.

"H-hi..." you spoke in a small voice, approaching him slowly and hesitantly. Your heart was already beating faster than usual, but you tried to ignore it.

Tony glanced at you shortly, before looking away again, ignoring you completely. He didn't wanna see, nor hear from you. Not now and probably not anytime soon. Every time he looked at you, he saw the image of you being hurt and he couldn't handle that.

"Tony, please, don't ignore me..." you pleaded as you stood in front of him, your shining eyes struggling to find his.

He got up of the chair and went to another table, taking a pen and starting to write something on it, as if you weren't even there.

A tear fell down your cheek, but you wiped it away, before approaching him once again.

"You really hate me, don't you?" you laughed half-heartedly, watching him closely, only to get nothing in response for the third time.

That was your breaking point tho. Crying, you threw your arms around him, hugging him from behind. Your entire body was shaking, but you couldn't care less. "Please, don't hate me. Please..." you sobbed, holding him tightly  so he couldn't push you away..

At that point you didn't even care if you were going to have to leave the team, but you wanted things to be ok between you and Tony.

Sighing, the billionaire tried to detach your arms from him, only for you to tighten your grip. "Sweetheart, I just wanna face you." he whispered softly, caressing the arms that were trapping him.

Hesitantly, you gulped, taking a step back and watching his movements. He turned around, staring into your soul for a few seconds, which you didn't regret however, then pulled you towards him, hugging you close to his chest and whispering sweet nothings in attempt to calm you down. However, you cried even harder, your shaking hands gripping onto his shirt tightly.

Tony kissed your head, his own eyes tearing up. "Shh, it's ok, baby... " he soothed. "I could never hate you, sweetheart... Never. I was just upset, worried and scared, ok? I'm so sorry, love... I know I overreacted, but I couldn't imagine my life without you."

You sniffed, hiding your face in the croak of his neck and feeling the tears come to a halt. Being on his arms and knowing that he didn't hate you was more than enough to stop you from crying and make you feel relieved.

Tony took a small step back, taking your head in between his hands and wiping the tears away from your beautiful face. His eyes bored into yours, watching you lovingly and somehow apologetically.

"F-forgive me?" you asked quietly as you blinked, taking his hands into yours.

Tony smiled shortly, moving the hair out of your face. "Y/N... Please, promise me you'll be more careful next time and you're forgiven."

"I promise." you replied quickly, making him grin and place his hands on your waist.

"In this case..." he started. "I guess everything is fine. If you make me go thorough something like that again tho, I'll kill you myself."

"Fair enough." you grinned. "Also... There's something I've been meaning to tell you for a while... I'm not sure how you're going to react though."

"What is it?" he frowned. "Is it bad?"

"I... I'm not sure..." you trailed off. "I hope not."

"Go on then. Surprise me." he smiled as he crossed his arms over his chest, watching you intently.

You took a deep breath, looking straight into his eyes while trying to find the right words. Your body was shaking again, but this time just because you were nervous and excited to confess your feelings to the man that changed your life.

"I... I love you, Tony." you finally let out. "I have for a while. I know you're older, but I don't really care. You're always taking care of me like nobody else, you make me feel safe and whenever you look at me with that beautiful eyes of yours, I feel like I'm in heaven... You're a great man, Tony, with a good heart and an amazing personality, and yes, you may be an asshole from time to time, but I still love you. So much... "

You paused for a second, taking a deep breath, while he was watching you with un unreadable expression.

"Look, I... I know that you probably don't feel the same about me, because I'm just an ordinary girl, who never listens to you and always makes you worry, but I had to-"

Before you could finish talking, you felt a pair of soft, delicate lips engulfing yours into a sweet, passionate kiss. Your eyes widened and for a second you thought you were dreaming, but as soon as you realised it was real, you closed your eyes and pulled him closer, kissing back almost immediately. One of his hands was now resting on your hip, while the other one was on your cheek, caressing it as he moved his lips against yours.

That wasn't only the best kiss you've ever had so far, but also the sweetest one, full of meaning for the both of you. Your heart was beating faster than ever and you hoped you weren't going to faint because of the strong emotions you were feeling at the moment.

Needing to breath at some point, you two parted, getting lost into each other's eyes. Tony leaned his forehead over yours, his thumb tracing your bottom lip softly.

"Although I know you deserve someone much better than me..." he started, quietly. "I guess I'll just be selfish and keep you to myself."

You grinned, pecking his lips lightly. "So... Does that mean that you... feel the same?" you couldn't contain your excitement.

Tony seemed to think for a second, before taking a step back. "Um, no, no... I just kiss people out of the blue when I get bored. Just a habit of mine..." he replied sarcastically as he crossed his arms over his chest, making you roll your eyes and smile brightly at him.

"You're a jerk." you joked, shaking your head.

"You're in love with this jerk tho..." he smirked. "I don't blame you. I'm perfect."

"Well, perfect man, what do you say about watching a movie and cuddling for the rest of the night, huh?" you chuckled.

"Perfect." he agreed, kissing your forehead. "Let's go."

With that, he took your hand into his, leading you out of the lab. You guys talked, laughed, cuddled, kissed and had fun all night and you couldn't feel happier.

Natasha was right after all. Everything was perfect now.