Who: Tony Stark & Bertram Beckham (Bumblebee) When: October 26th, Morning Where: Somewhere downtown, on the side of the road. What: Tony’s car is being temperamental-- Bee lends a hand! Rating/Warnings: PG13 for Language Status: Complete
Bee had just left the auto body shop, he was swinging the small bag holding his purchases, bouncing a little on his toes. But he’d slow his pace as he saw a car pulling off on the side of the road, about fifty feet on front of him. There was room to park right up against the sidewalk and Bertie watched as the car began to smoke from under the hood.
The man driving would get out and come around to open the hood, causing the smoke (steam, Bee recognized) to begin to billow out. The poor guy didn’t look like he knew what to do with it.
Bertram knew immediately, though, what the issue was. He’d continue walking until he reached the man and his expensive looking car and would give him a smile, then step up to look over the engine. Setting his bag down, he would reach in and touch at something, then wiggle a hose, and he’d bend to reach into his bag and bring out a set of pliers and make an adjustment. The steam would slowly come to a halt and he’d poke around for a moment longer before popping open the reservoir and digging through his bag to find the bottle of coolant he’d just purchased. He’d dump it in a good portion of the liquid before setting it aside and making another few little adjustments.
Then he leaned away and made the motion of a key turning in the ignition.
Yes, a total stranger had just poked around in your very expensive car without asking and was now giving you instructions, Tony.
**
So, Tony was a bit embarrassed. He hadn't been keeping his eye on his car as he'd been spending so much time working on Jarvis 2.0, and on the Mach 51... when the car started to act funny. Knowing that his best bet was to pull over and figure out what was wrong with the thing before driving it on the freeway and doing even more damage, Tony pulled to the side of the road. Steam or smoke started coming out from under the hood. Damnit.
He climbed out of the car and moved around to open it, and then was joined by some other guy. Blonde guy. Mute guy? Tony gave him a gentle "Hi, there," and then explained that he'd had a lot on his plate lately, and blah blah blah, but the other guy didn't seem to be too interested in the chatting. Weird.
So Tony moved back into the driver's side and turned the car on. Well, shit if that didn't seem to do the trick.
**
The blonde waved a hand as if Tony’s half-hearted attempts to prove he wasn’t a bad car owner fell on deaf ears. Once the engine started up, though, Bee was grinning in a pleased manner and would dust his hands off, then close the hood and grin at the man in the driver’s seat. He’d pat the hood gently, then stoop to pick up his plastic bag and step back onto the sidewalk.
He’d lean to look at the older man through the passenger window and point at him in a faux stern manner.
Take it to see your mechanic, man!
**
"Hey, thanks." Tony said, turning to give the man a smile through the passenger side window. He lifted both of his hands in an I give up manner. "I know, I know. If only I had a mechanic on speed dial."
He reached into the glovebox and pulled out a business card. One with his personal info on it. "I want to repay you for the coolant," he said, and reached over to hand the card to the blonde kid. "...call me." Or text. Or email. Whatever. Tony had a feeling this kid wasn’t the gabbing on the phone type.
**
He would reach out to take the card, shaking his head as the man said he wanted to pay for the coolant. Bertie was a big believer in Karma. He genuinely wanted to help people, he certainly wouldn’t let this man pay him for the coolant. It was a gift-- of sorts.
But when told to call, he’d smile and shrug, then look down at the card.
Then he coughed and looked back up with wider eyes.
Tony Stark?
His cheeks turned pink, unable to repress the flush that continued to grow, and he’d nod. Okay. He’d.. get in touch with him somehow. If only to write home and tell his parents he had talked with Tony Stark.
They wouldn’t believe him.
**
That was the kind of reaction that Tony had seen time and again from people after being handed his card. Tony nodded, encouragingly. "That's me." He said, motioning to the card in the young man's hands.
"...you don't talk much, do you?"
**
He let out a breath through his nose and his cheeks turned from pink to red when called out on the fact that he didn’t talk much. Maybe just painfully shy? He’d shake his head some. No. He didn’t talk much. Setting his bag down, he’d crouch some to stick his hand in the car window, clearly for a shake.
It was so very nice to meet you, Tony Stark.
**
Tony reached forward and wrapped his hand around the younger man's. His shake was firm, quick. He didn't have a lot of time for lingering touches and feelings and all that stuff. "...Well, you ... email me. I'll reimburse you for the coolant." He repeated.
Then there was a beat while he considered. "...and if you're this good with cars, I might have more use for you."
**
He’d nod again for the handshake and again, shook his head at the mention of reimbursement. He didn’t care of Tony could have bought the entirety of Japan on a whim, he still hadn’t done it because he wanted anything out of it. He’d done it because it was the right thing to do.
Righteous boy.
Though, as Tony Stark told him that he might have use for him, he’d break into a wide smile and he’d nod. If there was anything he could help with, he’d be more than happy. His parents were never going to believe this.
He’d back away from the car then swaying some as he rethought what had just happened... then he picked up his bag and kept walking. The bus stop was only fifty feet down the way and-- oh, man. He broke into a run, but it was already pulling away.
Today was just not his day. He’d slow when he got to the bench, then sink down onto it again. Well, the next one would be along in half an hour.
**
Tony watched the kid (because to Tony, everyone younger than him was a kid) in his rear view mirror as the blonde jogged off toward the bus stop. Then frowned as he sat down on the bench. His, Tony’s, car was working now, so he flipped around on the street and pulled up next to the bus stop, his window still rolled down.
“Hey, you need a ride?” He asked. If this blonde kid could be his savior and fix his car, the least Tony could do was to give him a ride home.
**
Poor Bertie. When Tony came back around and blue eyes came up-- he’d flush deeply again upon seeing it was Tony Stark offering him a ride. Sorry, Tony, he’d surely get a little flustered each time he saw you. He was, after all, amazing.
Looking up the street, then down the street, he’d glance at his watch, then look up again and give a sheepish little grin and shrug some, then nod. He’d like that. It was a suitable payment for fixing his car-- a favor for a favor. Never money.
So he’d pick up his bag and come around to climb in the passenger seat, though he looked a little uncomfortable.. like he didn’t want to touch anything. He didn’t want to mess it up or get it dirty. So he’d carefully buckle himself in, then pull up the GPS on his phone and type in the address to the hotel he was staying at, and the little British man in the phone would announce the address, then begin to give directions.
A seedy, scary section of town, thanks. It was one of those parts that you would drive through and wish your car had more locks on it.
But Bee seemed more than content-- and a little eager-- just to be in the car with Tony. His cheeks were still red. So excited he hadn’t managed to utter a word.
**
Tony was pretty amazing, wasn't he?
The car doors unlocked so that the young man could climb on in. Tony pulled his glasses down from where they'd been hanging on his rear view mirror and put them on his face. "Where to?"
Thank God for GPS, right? Especially when trying to communicate with people who didn't talk much. Tony started to drive, following the GPS's instructions.
"So. You work as a mechanic?" Tony asked. Why else would he be wandering around with coolant?
**
Bee was looking out the window with interest when Tony spoke up and he turned to look back with a smile, nodding in agreement. Yes, he was a mechanic. He was actually a damn good one-- it wasn’t what he wanted to do, but he couldn’t exactly do Kenjutsu as his career, now could he?
How long would Tony take the silence? How long would he accept the painfully shy quiet coming from the boy beside him?
**
Tony only caught the nod out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head to glance over, then brought his eyes back to the road. The silence wasn’t doing great things for him. Actually, it made Tony incredibly uncomfortable.
He probably should have just turned on the radio.
Tony shifted in his seat and cleared his throat.
“Don’t talk much, do ya, kid?”
**
Bee was used to it, he didn’t notice it as much as others did, and it certainly didn’t make him uncomfortable. So when Tony brought it up, he flushed deeply and rolled his shoulders, then silenced his GPS for a moment to type something-- and a man’s crisp voice would speak from the phone.
“My vocal cords were removed when I was a child.” He didn’t have to say that he couldn’t talk, that statement would say everything it needed to-- he couldn’t talk, but he wasn’t deaf. You’d be amazed at how many people started talking loudly and slowly when they realized that he couldn’t speak.
**
Tony was used to that voice. The computer voice. Jarvis 2.0’s voice. Even though it was saying something horrific, it was still a little comforting. Which was unnerving.
“Sorry,” Tony said, and he meant it. He didn’t speak louder and slower, but he was ridiculously curious now. “...you know how to sign?” He added. That would be a way for him to communicate without having to speak.
**
The blonde shrugged some when Tony said he was sorry. He didn’t really feel badly about it at all. It wasn’t like he’d been able to talk and then lost it-- he didn’t even remember it at all, so he didn’t miss speaking. Like a blind man who’d been blind all his life, he didn’t know what he was missing.
Though, when asked how to sign, he broke into a wide smile and nodded. His hands would come up in a few gestures-- Of course I can!. His hands made the signs deftly, though he wasn’t sure Tony would understand them, it was at least a way to show that he could indeed do it.
He just didn’t imagine it’d be safe for him to talk with Tony in sign language while the other man was supposed to be, you know, watching the road.
But they were soon coming into Bee’s section of town, and the people on the sidewalks would start to watch. Eyeing the car. Eyeing the man inside it. Make no mistake, most of those people wanted to mug you and steal your car, Tony. This wasn’t the section of town anyone from Tony’s neck of the woods wanted to get caught in.
The blonde, though, didn’t seem phased. Naive, innocent thing.
**
Nah, Tony wouldn't understand any of them. But he knew someone who could.
Tony wasn't afraid. Far from it. Bring it. This car was tripped out with all sorts of--well. Let's just say if a mugger came to Tony's window, they'd regret it.
Tony turned onto Bee's street. "Okay, here's the deal. I want to learn... that. The Sign Language thing. I've got a good friend who doesn't hear well, and I wanna learn how to communicate more efficiently with him." He turned to the young blond. "If you email me, I'll hire you to teach me Sign Language."
He was Tony fucking Stark. You know he'd pay well.
**
Bee turned to look at him when they parked in front the hotel he was staying at, tilting his head some when he said he wanted to learn. That was exciting! And then Tony mentioned hiring him to teach him sign language and his cheeks flushed red.
He’d be blushing around Tony a lot-- sorry, Tony. He’d blush around Steve Rogers, if he ever got to meet him, too. They were, after all, huge icons-- and Bee could admit he was a little (okay, a lot) nerdy when it came to the superhero types.
So he’d just nod. Yes, he’d love to! Sticking out a hand for a shake, he’d nod once in thanks, then climb from the car and turn to wave, then he would be heading into the building.
If Tony didn’t get out of there soon, he’d soon have a gaggle of prostitutes headed his way.
**
Tony reached over and shook the young man’s hand. Let’s hope this worked out better than the last time he tried hiring someone. Just as good as the first. There was something about this kid that reminded Tony of Stiles. A bit. They had a similar wide-eyed wonder and optimism?
Whatever.
Tony released his hand, and let him out of the car. Then he made sure that the blonde was inside the building safe and sound before turning around in the street and heading back in the other direction.