Aftershock

The Completely Normal Christmas Party

I turn to Sam, who pats my shoulder. "Merry Christmas, Cap."

I smile. "You too, Sam." My gaze wanders back around the room. "Where's Tony?"

"Basement, with Nat and Rhodes." He points to the back of the room. "It's the door on the other side of the staircase." He grabs my arm before I go, and I turn to face him again. "I gotta warn you, though, he's in a...strange mood tonight."

"Stranger than usual?"

It's sort of a joke, but Sam nods solemnly.

Alright, so the knot in my stomach is justified. Noted.

"Thanks for the heads up," I say.

With that, I follow his directions down some rickety wooden steps and into a cement-floored room, lit by a few incandescent overhead bulbs. It's sparsely decorated; there's a large circular rug, a few armchairs and a couch facing a flatscreen TV, some unopened cardboard boxes, and a bar on the other side of the room that Tony, Natasha, and Rhodey are currently congregated around. Nat sits on a barstool, nursing some sort of cocktail, and Rhodey's leaning against the counter. Tony stands behind the bar, mixing something. His face is already flushed with the warmth of a few drinks. He looks up when I enter, and I swear his smile falters for just a moment. Then its back to beaming.

"Cap! You son of a bitch, you made it! Come, come, let me make you a drink," he shouts, ushering me over.

Nat turns to face me. "Welcome to the party."

"Hey, Nat."

"What do you want? Something sweet? Dry? Packs a punch?" Tony doesn't give me much time to respond before adding, "You know what, I'm just gonna surprise you. Don't worry, you'll love it." He turns to the wall of liquor and rummages around until he settles on a large bottle of something I can't see the label of.

"What made you change your mind?" I ask.

"About what?" Tony pops the cork. It goes flying over Rhodey's head, who scrambles to cover his face.

"Jesus, man, be careful," he says. "I don't feel like losing an eye tonight."

"Ah, shit, sorry. But I mean, who's ever really ready to lose anything, know what I'm saying?" Tony laughs while waving his prosthetic hand. Rhodey and Natasha share a conspiratorial look.

"The party, Tony," I say.

"Pardon?"

"What made you change your mind about the party?"

Tony finishes mixing my drink and slides it across the counter. I manage to catch it before it crashes to the floor. "Well, you know, Cap, I've been thinking. A lot."

"Yeah?" I say, arching an eyebrow. "Come to any conclusions?"

"Nothing matters!" he exclaims through a toothy grin, spreading his arms wide and nearly knocking down a couple bottles in the process. "Who fucking cares? Happy holidays, life's a bitch, why not celebrate?"

"Oh...Okay...wow. Thats— "

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have some hors d'oeuvres to grab from the fridge."

Tony jogs upstairs, leaving me alone with Natasha and Rhodey. As soon as the door closes after him, I let out a drawn-out breath and pull up a barstool between the two of them. "Sam warned me he'd be bad, but I didn't think he meant existential-crisis bad."

"He's been alone for a long time," Nat offers.

I take a sip of my drink. It's a little too fruity, with a bitter aftertaste that kicks me in the throat.