Iron-Hawk Short Stories

Gifts

Out of every couple to have ever existed nobody had expected Clint Barton and Tony Stark to date. The two were casual friends for about two years before Stark had decided to ask the other man out. He was rejected but not because the other man disliked him but because Barton was currently going through an unstable point in his life.

"I-I need to fix parts of myself before I can even consider a relationship. I don't know how long I'll take, so I'm sorry if this wasn't the answer you wished for."

Barton looked so heartbroken when he had to turn the other man down. Stark although disappointed wanted nothing more but the best for Clint. Besides, he was patient, he didn't mind waiting, no matter how long. If Tony had learnt anything in his life it was that patience was the key to most things.

Soon after that, the blonde had disappeared without telling anybody. The team worried for his health but when they tried to contact him they received no response. When they tried to track him down, it also resulted negatively. However, they knew that the man was more than capable of taking care of himself and decided to leave him to his privacy.

Clint Barton showed up a year and a half later at a party that Stark held at the tower.

The blonde was sitting on a couch, conversing with others whilst sharing laughter. Stark was surprised to see him, he thought that Barton would never come back. For a while the genius stood there and stared at Barton from afar.

Clint looked a little different than what Stark remembered. The younger man's hair was longer and styled in a quiff rather than his previous crew cut. He had tattoos on his left forearm and he genuinely looked happier.

Tony approached him when the man had wrapped up his conversations. The blonde noticed his presence and shifted over on the couch to let Stark sit. Stark sat a little closer than what one might consider 'comfortable' but Barton didn't mind at all. If anything, he placed his arm on the frame of the sofa behind Stark.

"Can I get you a drink?" Stark offered to break the ice, the blonde stared at him and smiled a little.

"Depends what it is." Barton spoke, it had been a while since the two had heard each other's speech. Tony wanted to ask where the other man had been but he realised it was probably too invasive.

"Whiskey? Beer? A margarita?" The brunette tried which earnt a soft chuckle from the younger man. "Man, looking at you is like seeing a ghost."

"I'm sorry for my disappearance." Barton mumbled and watched as Stark moved himself closer until eventually his head rested on the blonde's chest. The blonde moved his hand from the frame of the sofa to the other man's lap. "Guess you didn't move on, or at least, I hope you're not cheating on anybody."

"I'm surprised you're even letting me get this close. I thought you were genuinely going to shove me back." Stark said and felt Clint's thumb brush his knee. The old Barton would have definitely pushed Tony away but now he seemed to enjoy the intimacy.

"You're not a total stranger Stark." The blonde said, he could breathe in Tony's expensive cologne. The smell itself wasn't too overwhelming, if anything it was sweet and comforting.

"So if Rogers did this, you'd be fine with it?" Stark tested with a large grin, Barton smirked and sighed though his nose.

"I think the real question is, if Rogers did this, would you be fine with it?" The blonde shot another question back. Stark thought about it for a while and wasn't sure how to answer. The two weren't dating, but there was no doubt there was an attraction.

If Rogers were to lay down in Barton's arms, Stark would feel nothing but jealousy with a touch of anger.

"How long have you been back for?" Stark changed the topic and Barton took a note at the other man's sudden evasion of the question.

"A month at most. I went MIA for a little while because I was trying to sort things out for myself."

"Oh yeah? Did you go anywhere?"

"I went to Asia actually, Korea and Japan to be specific."

"Did you bring back any soju or sake?"

Barton scoffed in amusement, "Somethings about you never change huh? But yeah, I did." Tony couldn't help but smile.

"Why those two places though?"

"It's relaxing and quiet there. I could collect my thoughts wherever I was." Barton answered as his lips briefly brushed past the top of Tony's head. "You should go attend the rest of the party."

"Are you trying to get rid of me Barton?"

"I'm not going anywhere Tony, I promise." Clint whispered and nudged the other man. Stark whined but eventually stood to his feet. Barton smiled at him and waved goodbye signalling that Tony should leave and socialise.

That night when the party concluded, there was a bottle of sake on the coffee table. There was a tag attached to the bottle, it simply said, 'Hope you like it'. With that, Barton was nowhere to be seen.

"Not going anywhere huh?" The man muttered to himself as he picked up the bottle of alcohol and stored it away for another day.

Months later the sniper returned with more gifts. This time he brought home cake from Germany. The genius enjoyed the rich and sweet taste of the cake whilst he caught up with Barton. The blonde once again changed his appearance slightly, opting for a stubble instead of a clean shaved face. It suited him.

"So what? You're just going to leave, come back months later with gifts each time?" Stark prompted as he pushed the fork into the desert. He scooped some up and put it in his mouth, savouring the taste.

"Sounds right to me." Barton answered with a smile, "What? You don't like the gifts I bring back?"

"No, it's not that." The engineer answered as he prodded the cake this time. "I just- The team just doesn't want you gone for so long." The blonde felt a slight pang in his heart as Tony talked with such sadness. "I don't mean to sound selfish because I know you're still going through things but we all miss you."

"I miss you guys as well." Clint empathised, "I just need a little more time before I can wrap my head around things."

"And we can't help you?"

Barton smiled sadly and shook his head, "It's one of those finding yourself kinds of trips." He finished up the last bite of the desert and stood up from the table. "I'll bring back something nicer next time."

"You better." Tony teased slightly but he wanted nothing more than to say, 'I just want you next time.'

From then on, the blonde had started to send postcards and photos to keep both Tony and the rest of the team updated. Stark swore that the man was in a new country every other week and envied how beautiful each place looked. Barton even started to mail the gifts back so that he could give presents sooner.

They ranged from snacks, small mementos and occasionally alcoholic beverages.

One day however, Barton did come home. This time he came home with his luggage which shocked the team.

"So, you decided to come back?" The brunette smiled but was cut off when Barton suddenly pulled him forward by the waist. The blonde kissed the other man and hummed in agreement. As they pulled away Tony flushed an intense red. "W-Why'd you do that?"

"For one thing, you're single and secondly, I've wanted to do that since you asked me out." Clint said with a kind smile. "I'm sorry I didn't bring anything back with me this time." To his surprise Tony hugged him.

The blonde just laughed and hugged him back. Stark pressed his head against the other man's chest, "It's okay, as long as you're back."

"I promise I'm not going anywhere."

"You said that last time."

"Hey, I already kissed you. That should be enough to seal the deal right?" Barton smirked, Stark only hugged him tighter. "I missed you."

"Missed you too asshole."