Entry tags:

-complete, bruce banner, steve rogers

Who: Steve and Bruce
What: America's Delivery Boy
When: Slightly backdated/after the wedding
Where: The Lab
Rating: Green



Steve had the strangest thing happen to him today...and that’s saying something. Agent Morse came out of nowhere while he was on a walk, shoved a bag into his hands as she instructed him to take the contents to the lab for Dr. Banner. She prattled something about needing to be somewhere to do something and she couldn’t make sure Bruce was eating at the same time so please thanks Steve bye. Steve blinked as he watched her run off, the bag held with both hands and he looked as if he’d been hit in the back of the head with a board. He peered inside the bag to find Thai food for two, he sighed as he closed up the bag then changed direction for the lab.

A few minutes later he was walking into the lab. “Hey, Bruce?”

---

Now that Thomas Green was dealt with, Jane was on the mend, and Tony’s wedding was over, Bruce found himself a bit at loose ends. There wasn’t much going on at the clinic, so he was spending a lot of time in the lab, not working on anything in particular, just tinkering around with some different things.

He wanted to start testing out some options to help him and the Other Guy co-exist without having to walk around all big and green all the time, but he was afraid of screwing up something so he was proceeding with caution.

When Steve walked in, he looked up with surprise. “Hey, what brings you by?” he asked, hoping there wasn’t some new crisis.

---

The baffled smile on Steve’s face confirmed there wasn’t any emergency. The white paper bag he held up explained his presence. Sort of. “I’m apparently on the Nutrition for Scientists lab delivery service.” He chuckled as he found a place to set the bag down. “Thai day. Courtesy one Assistant Director Bobbi Morse. Ah...apparently she had somewhere she needed to be.”

Steve jerked his head toward an empty chair. “Mind if I join you? If I’m going to do her job I should at least be allowed to eat her share.”

---

Steve’s explanation didn’t really clear things up for Bruce, but he nodded as he tidied up a bit and went to wash his hands so he could eat. He hadn’t realized he was hungry until he smelled the food.

“Uh, thanks,” he said, wiping his hands on a paper towel as he joined Steve. “She brings me food once in a while. Sorry you got roped into it.” Not that he would mind chatting with Steve for a little bit. It would likely be far less confusing than having Bobbi there. He still really didn’t know what her angle was. “How’ve you been?”

---

Steve waved off the apology. If he’d known Bruce was skipping meals he’d have arranged for steady deliveries himself...and brought them if necessary.

“Good,” Steve replied as if surprised it were true. “It was good to see Tony and Pepper so happy. Finally.” The wistful look in Steve’s eye spoke to more than just being happy for his friends.

---

It wasn’t so much that he was skipping meals. It was more like he forgot to eat sometimes because he got distracted. Bruce was the stereotypical absent minded scientist in a lot of ways.

He was not too oblivious to notice the look in Steve’s eyes though and raised his eyebrows slightly as he opened a container of food. “They deserve it,” he agreed. Especially with the recent batch of memories they all got. “Everyone does.” Especially Natasha, though Bruce wasn’t going to say that.

---

“Did you get a turn to hold the baby?” Steve smirked in that awkward kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar look. “Someone shoved her into my hands and I was so scared I was going to crush her or drop her. Something. Pretty sure someone got a photo of it so I expect memes.” He pronounced it me-me-s. He was never good at modern slang.

Steve passed a box to Bruce along with chopsticks and plasticware in case he wasn’t that dexterous. “Smells good. Don’t know what it is, but it smells all right.”

---

As a doctor, holding babies didn’t bother Bruce at all, so he was visibly amused by Steve’s obvious discomfort at the idea of holding one. “You know I delivered her, right?” Bruce said, his tone gently teasing.

He used his chopsticks to take a bite of food. It was a little weird that Bobbi always managed to pick his favorites and he tried not to think too hard about how she knew.

“So, is there going to be another wedding in the near future?” he asked.

---

“That’s right!” Steve grinned as he nodded. “Has Tony forgiven you for that yet?” Bruce got a front row seat to a view of the new Mrs. Stark than any one of them ever had or maybe even wanted to have. Not to mention that Bruce got to hold Morgan first.

At Bruce’s question, Steve got that little boy sheepish smile on his face then reached into his pocket to chuck a small black velvet box underhanded to Bruce. Inside nestled an antique diamond engagement ring.

“Tony helped me,” he said. “Been carrying it around ever since, but I wanted to wait until after their wedding. Didn’t want to take attention away from them, y’know?” Steve smiled helplessly as he shrugged his shoulders. “Now I’m just...picking my moment.”

---

Bruce chuckled at the question. He was pretty sure Tony was so in awe of his daughter that he hadn’t even realized just how up close and personal Bruce got with his wife. Not like it was somehow illicit or thrilling. To Bruce, it was simply work.

He didn’t have the best reflexes, but he easily caught the small box that Steve tossed to him and whistled softly when he opened it. “Tony has excellent taste,” he said, wondering how much that purchase had set Steve back. Tony’s taste was excellent and expensive.

“I’m happy for you though,” he said. “You deserve it.” He’d been equally happy in the dreams he got when he realized what Steve had done while returning the stones to their proper places.

---

The truth was that Tony had schemed with the antique dealer about the price. Steve was led to believe the ring was only one grand then Tony covered the rest as an early wedding present to Steve and Peg. Pepper had been moved to tears. It was all very romantic, and Steve was left believing he hadn’t gone all Stark extravagant.

“Look at who he married,” Steve commented about Tony’s tastes.

The box was pushed back into his pocket as he smiled at Bruce. “Thanks. I had been a little reluctant about it since this place makes people come and go like Alice down the rabbit hole, but we should jump at the time we have, right? Especially after those dreams.”

---

“Absolutely,” Bruce agreed. About everything, really, but especially taking advantage of the time they had here. “It’s weird being here and knowing what waits for us there.”

It made him think that maybe he should be a little more open to the idea of taking advantage of being here. He’d put so much of his life on hold since the accident and maybe he could have some semblance of normalcy. For a given definition of normal.

---

“What about you?” Steve jerked his chin toward Bruce. “What are you going to take advantage of?” This was Cap checking up on his team, wanting to make sure they weren’t hiding away. He considered them all his friends. He wanted his friends to be happy too. Some would say Steve couldn’t be happy if no one else was.

---

Trust Steve to get right to it. Bruce shrugged. “I’m not sure yet,” he said. “I’ll let you know when I figure it out.” There were definitely a lot of options and he wasn’t entirely sure what he wanted. It had been a long time since he let himself want anything.

---

“What do you want to take advantage of?” For someone who could be exceedingly oblivious about certain things he could be not just blunt, but perceptive. He could tell Bruce had something on his mind. Then again, Bruce wasn’t exactly a closed book.

---

Bruce shrugged. “I’m not sure yet,” he repeated. “I’m not used to having the time for anything personal.” Nor had he had the inclination for anything personal what with the constant looking threat of the Other Guy. Now that his alter ego might not be as much of a threat as he’d been in the past, it might open up some things that Bruce hadn’t thought about in a long time. Things he wasn’t sure he was ready to talk about, though Steve would be far less likely to mock him than Tony.

“Other than Peggy, did you date at all?” he asked.

---

Steve huffed with his smile becoming amused. “Despite Nat’s attempts at playing match-maker, no.” He shrugged his shoulder. “Never seemed to connect to anyone that way, and I couldn’t be sure any woman who wanted to go on a date with me wasn’t really wanting the chance to date the shield.” His brows lifted. “Know what I mean?”

---

“Yeah, I do,” Bruce said. Not that Hulk was a draw, at least not for most sane women, but he definitely understood the part where people might be interested in the fame aspect. “It’s not something that I had time for.” Plus the whole being afraid he would inadvertently hurt someone thing made it a non starter in his mind.

He shrugged again. “Tony thinks I should put myself out there.”

---

Unlike Tony, Steve understood Bruce’s hesitation. He was sympathetic, but he’d do the same thing. Hearing what Tony suggested made Steve sigh.

“Tony thinks everyone should put themselves out there,” Steve said. However… “But he does have a point. “I mean, if you aren’t interested in pursuing a private life so be it. I’ll be the first one to tell everyone to back off. But people need people. You’ve spent enough time alone, I think. So if it’s safe to do so…” he ended with a shrug.

---

Being part of the Avengers, knowing that he’d helped save lives instead of taking them, had helped assuage some of the guilt Bruce carried over the death and destruction his alter ego caused, so he didn’t automatically react to Steve’s remark by insisting that he didn’t deserve people because he was a monster.

“You know, I honestly haven’t taken the time to figure out what I want,” Bruce admitted. “So I guess that’s a good place to start.”

---

Steve smiled. That was a big step for Bruce. It would be good for him whether that answer was getting into the dating pool or learning how to do origami. Whatever Bruce figured out Steve would be there to back up.

“Sounds like you have a plan.” Not an easy one. Steve knew that from experience. “Let me know if you need any help. From one extremely private person to another, I know what you’re feeling.”

---

Bruce appreciated that. “Thanks, Steve,” he said. “And thanks again for bringing by food. I should probably get back to work though.” Even if he was going to try to figure out some kind of life outside of that, Bruce would always be something of a workaholic.

---