Tony had done his best with four unexpected superhero children, but it likely hadn't come easy to him. And James especially had gotten sulkier and harder to deal with as he got older and more frustrated by his situation. It wasn't fair to say Tony had never reached out - but it hadn't been often, and it wasn't something James was accustomed to coming easily or without a certain level of uncertainty or briskness. He and his siblings were hands-on and quick to shove or touch or sprawl out close to each other.
But it was very different suddenly having the very warm weight of your father's hand (sort of father) dropped onto your shoulder like that. James froze under it, brief as it was, blue eyes blinking and cheeks flushing.
It was casual and friendly and didn't mean anything, and James knew that. He wasn't stupid, no matter what Francis probably thought. These people didn't know him at all, they hadn't ever had him for a son. But ... it still felt like approval and James had wanted the approval of the hero-father he'd had on a pedestal for his entire life. He felt a pang of longing and resolved silently to do whatever it took to make sure that they liked him. He wasn't a baby or a little kid, they didn't have to take care of him or do anything for him or ... he wouldn't be a problem. He could take care of himself. He just needed them to like him. Maybe tell him more about their lives. That was all.
He looked slightly dazed as he slid back into a seat, knocked out of it only by surprise when Steve sat next to him, and not his mo - the Black Widow. "Oh. Uh, okay," James said again. He smiled a little. "Yeah ... Guess it's hard not to keep an eye on things." There might not BE robots who wanted to kill him here, or even any surprise training scenarios (maybe? that could still happen he guessed), but James had been raised to always be alert.
He admittedly had maybe not always taken that entirely seriously when he was sulking. But it was still ingrained.
"I have some money," James said, just so his dad - Steve - didn't think he had to pay. "I could get it next time?" that was the kind of thing people said, he thought, in movies he'd seen. He realized his mistake a second later and rapidly backtracked. "I mean if there was an again. Not that there has to be." He pushed the shield up against the wall, mostly for something to fidget with, scooting to give Steve a little more room. "I guess there's not a lot of ... I mean they don't need you to fight a lot of villains here, so you must do ... other stuff?" he asked finally, wincing inwardly.
Maybe he should have brought Hawkeye - Francis - after all. He seemed good at talking. (And not shutting up.)