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“He’s like a cat!”
Rhodey stood there silently, trying to figure out if he had heard what he thought he heard.
“I’m sorry?” he asked, puzzled
“You hang out with Tony Stark, right?” asked a girl, from Rhodey’s math class he thinks, some short haired blonde that sits behind him
“Yes?” He answered, slowly
“He’s just like a cat! It’s so cute!” She squealed, bouncing on her toes
Rhodey took a small step back
“Tony…A cat?” He tried to clarify, he shook his head in confusion, “Why do you…”
“He’s always cuddling with you.” She interrupted her smile getting wider
Ah, now it was starting to make sense…..
---
Jim was just finishing up another night at the library, he had an agenda by now.
Wake up and go to PT
Shower and then go to class
Then go to the library and study until his eyes hurt
Then head back to his dorm
Somewhere in between there invest multiple gallons of coffee, just like the rest of the students at MIT.
It was a good agenda and for now, until he got more comfortable, that’s how it would stay.
He was just starting step 4 when he heard a rustling coming from the bushes on his left. His steps faltered and he stopped, craning his head for a closer look. Barely, in the dark, he saw a head of messy brown hair moving in between the bushes. The light post that was over the mystery person did little good since it was burnt out. He looked around not entirely sure what to think, it was possible that this was some kind of trick or something. And while Rhodes was sure he could defend himself (that he was damn sure of) this day and age it was possible he may get in trouble because of the color of his skin regardless if it was self-defense or not. He narrowed his eyes, pulled back his shoulders, and slowly walked forward anyway.
“Uh…Excuse me?” He asked cautiously, squinting his eyes in an attempt to make something out, “Are you okay?”
“Fuck off” Was the reply he got, a male voice, which should have made him stop, but the voice sounded young and that made him curious.
“Do you need help?” He asked, now he was standing over the muss of dark hair that was moving around in the bushes.
“I said fuck off,” the voice replied again, and this close…Jim could hear a slight tremble in mystery person’s voice.
Jim rolled his eyes before kneeling down, “What are you doing?”
When he kneeled down the mystery person (a boy) started with surprise and landed back on his butt…and Jim finally saw who he was talking to
“Stark?” He asked in surprise, which he was…surprised that is
One doesn’t expect to see the son of one of the richest men in the world in the kneeling down in bushes at his college or any place now that he thought about it.
“What are you doing in the…” He stopped because now that he was closer, he could see what happened. There was stuff all over the ground, notebooks, scraps of paper, pens, and pencils…everything strewn across the dirt and Jim was sure he saw shoe prints on some of his papers when he looked closer. He felt a spike of anger and looked at Stark, his spike of anger then turned right into pissed off.
Stark... This wasn't how Jim was used to seeing him. He was used to seeing him smiling at the camera, his hair perfect, and his clothes immaculate. Shiny, bright, snarky. Looking confident and acting charismatic in any situation and in any room without any effort.
This Stark...This Stark was every year of his young 15, his hair was a mess, it looked like it had some kind of black oil in it, his jeans were torn at the knees and his band tee, AC/DC, was worn, and there was no smile, not even a smirk and there definitely wasn’t any confidence in his eyes.
Instead, his big brown eyes were wide open and staring at Jim like he was expecting him to throw his stuff around some more.
"What do you want?" Stark snarled at him, kicking his foot at him as if to warn Jim away (it came off as a desperate move rather than an angry one), "I just want to get home, okay? I just want to go home."
But Jim didn't pay attention to what he was saying, he was busy staring at Stark's eyes, slightly wet, red, with faint tear tracks running down his dirty face.
Jim bit back his anger, white hot, and started to collect Stark's things from the ground and gathering them into a pile. Stark didn't say anything but Jim could feel his eyes on him, obviously trying to figure out what game Jim was playing.
"I don't need your help."
Jim nodded, "Can you move a bit?" He reached for a piece of paper that Tony was sitting on, giving it a slight tug.
Tony got up, back onto his knees and starting taking his things from Jim, "I said I don't need your help, go away."
Again, Jim nodded, "Do you need me to help you up?"
Tony ignored him and collected the rest of his things quickly, hugging them to his chest as they got back to their feet.
“Do you have a bag or something?” Jim asked standing up and eying everything that Stark was trying to carry in his arms
Stark didn’t say anything but Jim saw his eyes flick up to the post above them and Jim’s gaze followed. It was still pretty dark but Jim could make out a bag shaped lump hanging off high on the pole.
“Let me carry some stuff,” he said, reaching for the pile Stark kept tight to his chest. He wasn’t surprised when Stark moved his arms to the side to move his things away from Jim. The quick move unfortunately made some of Stark’s pens and pencils fall to the ground. Stark, probably because he was too proud (or ashamed), didn’t move to pick them up...So Jim did.
He knelt down to pick them up before straightening and offering them back with a, hopefully, reassuring smile on his face
They stared at each other silently, Stark not moving and eyes were filled with distrust, “Are you with the press?”
Jim raised an eyebrow, “The press? No…I’m just trying to help.”
“Why?” Stark asked quickly, his eyes narrowing, “I don’t need your help or your pity”
That was an interesting question….Why was Jim helping? Not just helping, why did Jim care? He shouldn’t… This doesn’t fit in with his schedule and it was obvious Stark didn’t really want his help. He had other things to worry about and worrying about Tony Stark wasn’t one of them.
But he did…He was worried.
Worried because he had just found Tony in the bushes after someone obviously threw his stuff to the ground.
Worried because Tony had been crying and, despite him trying to hide it, he was afraid.
Worried because Tony was distrustful about his intentions which means someone made him that way.
Worried because he couldn’t imagine how hard it must be for a 15 year old kid alone at college.
Worried because was anyone out there really worried about Tony Stark?
“….Because…” he said, staring at Tony and eyes taking in the dirt stained knees, tired and scared eyes, and fading tear tracks, “I think everyone should have someone watching their back. Don’t you think?”
Tony cocked his head, eyes widening with surprise as he considered him, “You’re weird”
Jim laughed, “Let’s go, my dorm is close by, we can get you cleaned up.”
Jim grabbed some of the loose papers and books from Tony’s arms and this time Tony didn’t stop him. Jim nodded toward his dorm before he started walking.
Tony paused for a second but eventually followed Jim as he led the way
“So what’s your name?” Tony asked, as he fell into step next to him
“Jim” he answered, pleased that Tony choose to trust him
“…..Jim?”
--
After that night Rhodey, who was quickly renamed by Tony, soon found himself with a new best friend. He also discovered that Tony was actually a sweet kid, he was excitable, funny, and quick. He could go on for hours talking about robots and engineering, sometimes talking about the same thing two or three times in one conversation. Rhodey also began to understand why Tony often got in trouble with some other students and sometimes even the staff. Tony might have been smaller and younger than most (read:all) of the people here but what he lacked in size he made up for with sheer attitude. Young or not, he was still smarter than everyone here and he had no problem reminding you of this fact. This sometimes resulted in Rhodey having to step in and protect his new friend from getting hit by someone Tony recently made a fool of. Which he didn’t particularly mind honestly, Tony kept him on his toes and he never found himself bored.
Rhodey learned more and more things about Tony as their friendship grew and after a few months he learned one more thing…
--
Despite Tony dragging Rhodey out all the time lest he “become a hermit...a sad sad little hermit” as Tony had said, he still made time to study for his classes. Rhodey had been sitting in his room on his pink, yes pink, (it was on sale and it was comfy), beanbag with his Chemistry book on his lap when Tony came in. After the tenth time Tony picked his way into his room Rhodey simple gave him a key, it stopped him from scratching up his lock and it wasn’t like Tony was going to tell the RA that Rhodey made him a key.
“Hey Tones” Rhodey said, not bothering to look up from his text
He didn’t get an answer but what he did get was Tony collapsing on his lap in one quick move
Rhodey grunted, Tony might have been small but he wasn’t expecting to have a energetic lanky 15 year old drop onto his lap.
“Uh…Tony?”
He still didn’t get an actual answer but Tony made a small sound from the back of his throat and wrapped his arms around Rhodey’s waist. His upper body was on Rhodey’s lap, head resting on his upper thigh, eyes closed. His lower body was hanging off onto the floor, he tucked his knees and snuggled closer.
Rhodey froze for a second, not quite sure what to do with a lapful of quiet, cuddly Tony.
“Tony?” he tried again
And again he was met with nothing but Tony burrowing in closer to him, his arms tightening around his waist. Rhodey stayed still for a moment…before shrugging and rearranging so his book was in one hand and his other dropped to Tony’s hair.
He didn’t know what happened but if Tony needed comfort then he could give him that. He started reading again, his fingered carding slowly through Tony’s hair…and he didn’t miss the small sigh of contentment that came from Tony’s lips.
--
“So then I was thinking, why stop there?” Tony buzzed excitedly, “Not just a robot but a robot that could think for itself? An AI!”
“An AI?” Rhodey asked as he watched Tony teeter around one of the mechanic labs
“Artificial Intelligence, Rhodey…seriously?”
“I know what an AI is!”
Tony nodded quickly while digging into his bag looking for something among the loose papers and pencils. He made a small sound of victory when he found what he was looking for, holding up a piece of paper.
“Look, look, look” Tony said, slamming the paper down on the table in front of Rhodey, “I have it all figured out…Well, mostly figured out. I still gotta figure out some of the finer details but the math checks out. Which really shouldn't be surprising to you because, well, it’s MY math.”
Rhodey watched as his friend started pointing out things on his paper that was filled with equations and small drawings. Thinking how different Tony was now from the beaten down boy in the bushes. No less young or small but definitely happier as he spouted out numbers animatedly.
“Rhodey!” Tony said, waving his hand in front of his face, “Are you listening to me? That’s not nice Platypus, you’re supposed to listen when your best friend is talking. I’m trying to explain the fine delicate arts of AI building and you aren’t giving me your full attention.”
Rhodey snorted and flicked Tony’s ear, “I’m listening, I’m listening.”
His grin grew as Tony squawked with indignation and as he started up again.
--
Rhodey was sitting in one of the student break centers at school, he had a small break between two of his classes and decided to get something to drink and watch TV before he had to go back to class. He was sitting on one of the couches, watching but not really paying attention to some football game, when he was suddenly tackled from his left side.
He groaned at the sudden impact, confused but not for long because he then felt warm arms wrapping around his waist. He rolled his eyes fondly and quickly readjusted before Tony got comfortable. He was getting used to Tony suddenly accosting him out of nowhere and cuddling up with him whenever something was bugging him. He never really wanted to talk about it and Rhodey wasn’t going to push him, it was becoming more obvious the more he found out about Tony that his best friend was more than a little touch-starved. Besides it didn’t really bother him, if Tony needed a hug or a snuggle then Rhodey was more than willing to be his teddy bear (or Rhodey Bear as Tony likes to call him despite Rhodey trying to put a stop to that right quick).
Tony wrapped his arms around his waist and buried his face against Rhodey’s stomach, his body curling up as he got comfy. Rhodey dutifully got started scratching his scalp and running fingers through dark brown locks. Rhodey looked down at Tony affectionately as Tony sighed and then looked back up as he felt eyes watching. There weren’t a lot of people in the room with them but the people that were there were staring with wide eyes.
Rhodey simply raised an eyebrow in challenge and they looked away. By now everyone knew that they were close and everyone knew that if you messed with Tony you in turn messed with Rhodey. Thanks to a couple guys that didn’t quite understand that concept and the same guys then catching Rhodey on a particularly bad day (Did they forget what program he was in?)…everyone usually let them be.
Rhodey smiled smugly as he turned back to the TV, Tony snuggling in just a bit closer.
--
“Honey Bear!” was all he heard before Tony sat down into the seat across from him at the local college coffee shop.
“I thought I told you not to call me that anymore?” he asked, as he took a long sip of his coffee
“You did” Tony said, nodding but his smile was growing, “But I have elected to ignore you.”
“Uh huh”
“So,” Tony started, reaching across the table to take Rhodey’s mug, “I wanna go see a movie and I have also decided that I need my bestest friend there to see it with me.”
Rhodey rolled his eyes, “You decided, huh?”
“Of course! If I didn’t force you outside and away from you school books you would become a pod person or something” Tony explained, taking a break to drain half of Rhodey’s coffee in one go, “I think of it as my duty, No, my honor to make sure my friend doesn’t become a pod person.”
Rhodey plucked his drink back from Tony’s hand, “Seeing as how well I know you, my bestest friend, so well and know you won’t let this go….What movie?”
“Aliens!” Tony exclaimed excitedly, “I saw the first one and come on! It has everything you could want in a movie…Aliens, space, violence, space, androids…space!”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it…space” Rhodey said, wiggling his fingers with wonderment
“I knew you would see it my way!” Tony said, getting up and pulling Rhodey to his feet, “Come on, we gotta get there to get good seats. I hear that most people like to sit in the middle but I would think you would want to sit in the front, right? Course that would make your neck hurt, maybe we should sit in the back? I heard movie theater popcorn is much better than regular popcorn. Why is that? Think is has something to do with salt and butter ratios? Or maybe…”
“Tony!” Rhodey stopped him, laughing at his friend’s eagerness, “Relax, why are you so excited? You’re acting like you never been to the movie theaters before.”
Tony’s silence is what made Rhodey look over at his friend, Tony was quiet and staring ahead
Shit, Tony had never been to the movies before…Now that he thought about it, who would Tony go with? The first time Rhodey went it was with his mom and from what he learned from the few things Tony had said, his parents weren’t exactly the type to take their only son out to the movies. He sometimes talked about a man named Jarvis, but he never said anything about them going outside together.
Tony never told him explicitly but Rhodey knew Tony didn’t have any friends at home to go out and play with. No one to hang out with, no one to go to the movies with…
Rhodey felt his heart break a little for Tony before it was replaced with determination
He threw his arm around Tony’s shoulder, “First things first, what kind of candy are we going to get?”
Tony perked up quick, his excitement coming back, “All of them of course!”
--
Rhodey knew there were stares but he just couldn’t bring himself to turn around and glare at anybody or really even care. He was doing some last minute studying before his midterm and fulfilling his “Rhodey Bear” duties to Tony at the same time.
Rhodey was sitting in the library at a study booth with Tony sitting in his lap, legs astride with his arms around his shoulders and his face buried into Rhodey’s neck. Rhodey was unquestioningly rubbing small circles against his back with one hand as his other was taking notes. When Tony’s arms tightened around his shoulders, so did Rhodey’s arm around his waist. When Tony made a small sound of contentment, Rhodey responded with a small sound of reassurance. When Tony nuzzled in closer, Rhodey turned and pressed his lips gently into his hair.
All in a day’s work…
--
“Fuck!” Tony growled, throwing his hands up in frustration
“Such language” Rhodey said, biting his lip to hold in his laugh
“Fuck you!” Tony said, glaring at him, “This is stupid!”
“You’re getting stressed, maybe we should stop?” Rhodey asked with fake sympathy, patting Tony’s hand
“I’m 15 and at MIT!” Tony snarled, “I built a circuit board at 4 and a freakin’ car engine at 6!”
“Uh huh, uh huh” Rhodey nodded solemnly, “I hear you”
“I am a genius!!”
“Complete genius, so smart sometimes I can’t look at you for too long for fear that your sheer brilliance will blind me.”
Tony glared at him again, “Are you mocking me?”
“Nope”
“I hate you, I hate this, and this is stupid.” Tony said, scowling down at the table, “You are not the judge of me!”
“Are you talking to the…”
“Don’t look at me like that!” Tony hissed, pushing the table towards Rhodey
“Tony!” Rhodey laughed, picking up the tweezers, “It’s just a game!”
“What kind of stupid ridiculous game is Operation anyway?” Tony asked, flicking the red light in the board, “It does nothing to help a doctor prepare for a real surgery, this game is worthless in the real world. It means nothing…You mean nothing Operation!
“And CandyLand is what? Important and life changing?” Rhodey asked, as he focused on the game
“CandyLand is an informational game that teaches people to be tenacious and that despite getting stuck in the Molasses Swamp you can reach the end of your long perilous journey if you stay positive.” Tony said, nodding, “It’s a motivator. I mean, I could design a better operation game and more amazing game in my sleep.””
“Shhh,” Rhodey said as he slowly pulled the butterfly from the board, “I’m in the middle of surgery.”
--
Rhodey was diligently taking notes in his Math class, which was actually helping him pay attention considering the class was considerably boring. The class was divided into staring at the professor in a daze, taking notes, or simply ignoring the class all together.
A loud bang of the classroom door made everyone jump and look at the new visitor, well…almost everyone. Rhodey was taking notes and didn’t care who was coming in so late so long as they didn’t hold up the class. He does admit though, he did jolt in surprise when someone sat down in the seat next to him. He turned and saw Tony, looking upset and tired and Rhodey simply reacted. He pushed his chair out a bit, placed his hand on Tony’s shoulder and guided his head down onto his lap.
Tony gratefully went, placing his head on his lap and turning to curl up onto the chair beside him. Most of Tony’s upper body was on Rhodey, while his lower body was on the chair next to him. Tony settled his arms on Rhodey’s lap and nestled his head on his arms, settling in.
Rhodey smiled and turned back to the professor who, along with the rest of the class, was staring at them.
A quick eyebrow arch later and class had got started again, no one said anything as Rhodey brushed the hair back from Tony’s eyes.
---
---
“I guess he is kind of like a cat…” Rhodey said slowly
The blonde smiled widely, “That is so adorable!”
He smiled back and watched as the blonde walked off
Huh….He was brought out of his musings by his cell phone playing Thunderstruck; Thank you, Tony.
“Hello?” he answered
“Rhoooooodeeeeyyy” Tony moaned, “Where are you?”
Okay…It was kind of cute, “I’ll be right there, Tones”
Looks like his “Rhodey Bear” duties won’t be ending any time soon.