💙
since bruce is busy in the lab, like most days, i decided to head out and go to the library to check out a new book, excited to see my new friend clark, whom i just recently met
i told tony about him during one of his lunch breaks, after he asked why i was in such a good mood
i told him it was because i made a new friend and after i explained the story, he immediately said that clark has a crush on me
i honestly don't think he does, but i guess i could be wrong
last week
i walk through the doors, instantly smelling the scent of old books
i head towards my favorite section, horror, as i hear a voice say "i'm going over there real quick, deb"
i think nothing of it, already too distracted by reading the back of a book that caught my eye
"have you read any stephen king books yet?" a voice asks
i turn to see a nerdy guy with suspenders and prescription glasses that make his eyes looks ten times bigger than they actually are
i raise my eyebrow "no, what kind of books does he write?"
his eyes light up "he writes horror, and i figured since you are in the horror section, that you would enjoy some of his scary books"
i smile politely "is he any good"
"oh my glob yeah. his writing is amazing and his books are terrifying. they absolutely keep you hooked up until the last page"
i smile widely "i think i'll check him out then, thanks"
he smiles "your welcome. i'm clark by the way"
"i'm y/n. it's nice to meet you clark"
he gives me a big, cheesy smile "it's nice to meet you too, y/n"
i squat down towards the bottom shelf where the 'k's start before glancing up at clark who's watching me, curiously
"which one do you recommend i read first? there are so many"
"that's an easy choice. the one called 'it' is amazingly horrific"
i giggle at his use of adjectives, before finding the 'it' on the shelf, holding it in my hands as i stand back up "well that was a painless trip. thank you"
he smiles "oh, your welcome, i'm always happy to help"
i follow him to the desk as he checks my book out before i wave goodbye and walk out of the library, excited to start reading this thick novel
back to present
i walk through the doors, placing my book on the front desk, grabbing clark's attention
his face instantly lights up "what did you think?"
i smile "it was awesome. what else do you recommend by him?"
"let me show you" he says, placing my book in the return pile before walking around the desk and leading me to the horror section, once again
he scans the titles before bending over, grabbing an even thicker novel before handing it to me
"this one is just as amazing, if not more" he says, brushing his fingers over mine for a second
i watch his cheeks heat up, feeling a pit in my stomach
"clark, i don't want you to get the wrong idea, but- i have a boyfriend"
"oh, ye-yeah, that's cool-i-i wasn't trying to like-ask you out or anything-cause that'd be silly and-" he stops rambling, staring at his feet
"i'm sorry if i led you to believe that i was flirting with you" i say, softly
i see his ears turn red in embarrassment "no, i'm sorry. i didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. i just-"
i give him a warm smile "it's okay"
he nods, still blushing wildly "friends?"
i smile "friends"
i check out the book and drive back to the tower, internally groaning, knowing that i have to admit that tony was right for once
i walk into the lab, book in hand as i walk over to tony's side of the room, dropping my book on the table near him
a smirk appears on his face as he looks at the book before looking at me
"so how's your new friend?" he asks, smugly
i roll my eyes, plopping down on a stool "you were right okay, he likes me"
tony laughs loudly "how did it go down?"
"i asked for another book that he recommended and when he handed it to me, he brushed his hand on mine and the got all blushy and- ugh- i felt so bad trying to let him down easily"
"who were you letting down, easily?" bruce asks, walking over to me, pressing a kiss to my cheek
i smile at the gesture, leaning into his touch
"i told y/n that the librarian who she just befriended had a crush on her and she didn't believe me. but today, she found out he did, and then she proceeded to let him down gently"
"i felt so bad. you should've seen the look on his face. it was as if i broke his heart" i say, a pout on my lips
"so you have to go to a different library now?" tony teases
"no, he offered to just be friends, so now we are"
tony's eyebrows shoot upwards as bruce stiffens next to me
"what?" i ask, confused
"that means that he hasn't given up on the thought of wanting to be with you, so he's saying he wants to be your friend just so he can still be near you" bruce explains
"yeah, and guaranteed that he's still going to try and make attempts to flirt with you and touch you and all sorts of stuff" tony adds
i groan, stuffing my face in my hands "but i like that library"
"i can go with you when you exchange your books, if you want" bruce offers
i pull my hands away from my face, smiling up at him "you'd do that for me?"
he smiles, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear before resting his hand on my cheek "of course, plus i'd do anything to show anyone and everyone that you are mine"
i smile widely, leaning up to kiss his lips as he leans down to connect them in a blissful kiss
"gross" tony whines
i flip him off before deepening the kiss, feeling bruce rest his hands on my waist as he pulls me into him
when we pull away, out of breath, tony makes fake puking noises, making me and bruce laugh
"next time take that to your room" tony whines
"if we did that, neither of us would get any work done" i say, making bruce blush wildly as tony fist bumps him, making me burst out laughing
~
a week or so later, i finished the book
i hold bruce's hand as we walk into the crowded library, which is odd because it's normally quiet in here
i shrug it off, walking to the front desk to return my book
the lady scans it back into the system as i notice clark staring at me
i feel bruce stiffen next to me, noticing the staring as well
i squeeze his hand, reassuringly before leading him over to the horror section
"so this stephen king guy, what are his books about?" bruce asks, trying his best to stay calm
i turn towards him, resting my hands on his chest as i look up into his eyes, giving him my full attention as i briefly explain the plots of the last two books i've read
"those sound interesting, maybe we should start reading together" he says
i smile "that's sweet baby, but you know you're really busy. how about i'll give you a recap on all that i've read that day instead"
he smiles "that'd be nice"
"it would be, now, which one should i read next?" i ask, taking my hands off of him as i scan the titles, all of them sounding interesting
i finally decide on one called 'pet sematary'
i pick it up, briefly reading the back when i get interrupted
"pet sematary, huh? good choice"
i look up, seeing clark, smiling at me
"oh, uh, hi clark" i say, slightly caught off guard
"i see you presumably brought your boyfriend. or perhaps you told him what happened the other day and he insisted on going with you today to make sure that i didn't make another move on you and quite possibly steal you away from him" he pauses "like i could easily do"
i set the book on the shelf before turning towards bruce who is glaring at clark with a hint of green in his eyes
i gently place my hand on his cheek, catching his attention, seeing his feature soften slightly as i motion for him to breathe out and in, a few times, watching his eye color go back to brown
i turn back to clark, seeing a smug look on his face
"what, jealous that i'm better than you, huh?" he asks, trying to intimidate bruce
i can't help but laugh, catching clark's attention as he curiously looks at me
"that's a laugh and a half coming from a guy who's a librarian for a living" he starts to say something, but i cut him off "no, no, let me formally introduce you to my boyfriend, clark. this is dr. bruce banner who is a magnificent scientist with over seven phDs. he is also formally known as the man who turns into the big green guy, named hulk"
his eyes widen as his face turns a ghostly white
i smile widely, seeing bruce smiling just as wide
"so i'd suggest that you don't try making any more moves on my girl, got it?" bruce says
clark nods, deathly afraid
"cool, let me just get this book and then we can head back to the lab, babe" i say, turning to kiss bruce's cheek, making him blush and laugh
after getting the book and driving back to the tower, bruce and i strol into the lab, trying our best to keep straight faces
tony drops what his is doing, a smirk on his lips
"you scared him away, didn't you?"
"actually, y/n scared him away" bruce says as a curious tony looks at me
"explain"
i giggle "he was saying all this shit about how he's better than bruce and i couldn't help but literally burst out laughing. then i hit him with that facts about bruce's success and of course added the small detail about him being the hulk"
tony bursts out laughing as bruce and i can't help but join in
"i would've payed to see that" tony says, clutching his stomach
"it was pretty funny" i say, resting my head on bruce's side
"yeah, i don't have to worry about him hitting on her ever again, that's for sure" bruce says, smiling widely as he wraps his arm around me
i smile, hugging his side tightly
"i love you, b"
he smiles, looking down at me "i love you too, y/n"
"i love it when you two don't profess your love for each other right in front of me" tony mumbles
i giggle and bruce chuckles as tony's cheeks heat up
"did i say that out loud?"
we nod, before bursting out laughing again
💙