(A/N: And this is lovely part 2 of yet another fic that I never thought I would add to. It wasn't that I didn't want to, but that I didn't have the ideas for it. But now that I do, I am back to make it happen. I don't own the Avengers, and I never will. Yes this is still Steve/Tony and that isn't going to change. I don't really know what else to say, so I'm going right on ahead and start the story.

Quietly and Softly

Part 2

Steve's shoulder ached and his fingers were asleep, but he didn't dare move because it was the first time that Tony had slept in the last four days. The billionaire was curled up, knees to his chest, arms draped around himself and his whole body tipped so that his head was pillowed on Steve's shoulder joint. The lack of sleep had left bruise-like circles under Tony's eyes and four days' worth of a beard on his cheeks.

It had been two hours since Steve had gone down to the lab and extricated Tony from some project or another, four nights in a row sleeping by himself in their bed had begun to wear on the Super Soldier. Tony it seemed, hadn't been aware of the time, but fell asleep almost as soon as Steve had pulled him into bed. They hadn't even lain down; they were still sitting with their backs propped up on pillows against the headboard.

Steve gently pressed his lips against Tony's forehead and closed his own eyes, letting his shoulder fade from his awareness and sleep claim his mind. Sleep always came more easily when he had Tony beside him to keep him warm.

Several hours later he woke to a soft knock at their door.

"Come in," he said softly, wrapping his arm around Tony, whose head had fallen to his chest sometime during sleep. Bruce poked his head into the room, looking slightly healthier than he usually did and Steve granted him a smile.

"We've got dinner on the table. Thor and Loki brought BBQ from Texas. It's still hot and there's like 20 lbs. of French fries. But I figured you might want to try to get some food in him," Bruce said and glanced at Tony. Everyone knew that the inventor tended to avoid eating when in the lab. Steve nodded and began to shake his partner awake, gently running his fingers through dark hair.

"We will be out in a moment," Steve said calmly as Tony jumped awake, like he always did after one of his insomniac marathons. Bruce vanished through the door before Tony was awake enough to get angry or embarrassed about him having been there. He was barely okay with Steve seeing him in such a state and they had been together for nearly 8 months.

"Oh, God, what time is it?" Tony asked, pressing his fingers against his eyelids and sighing.

"It's 6:30 PM and there's BBQ for dinner straight from Texas. Let's go eat and then we can get a shower and get some real sleep. How's that sound?" Steve asked, kissing Tony on the cheek, ignoring the prickly stubble. Tony gave a weary smile and nodded, turning his head to give his boyfriend a proper kiss before they hobbled out of the bedroom together, bodies stiff from awkward sleeping positions.

The rest of the team had already dug into the food, but it was obvious that Loki and Bruce had defended a decent portion for the two latecomers. It wasn't a courtesy normally given in their household, Thor could eat as much as Tony did in a week for a single meal and Hawkeye had a hollow leg. Natasha was gone on some messed up mission and Steve missed her dearly, she was much better at keeping everyone in line than he was.

"Thanks guys," Tony said happily accepting the plate that Loki pressed into his hands and the can of Dr. Pepper that was shoved his way. Loki just smiled at Tony briefly before turning and jabbing at Thor's wandering hand with his fork. Perfectly normal dinnertime behavior in the Avengers household.

"So what were you working on down there anyway?" Clint asked as he passed yet another box of fries in Tony's direction. Tony blinked at him and stared for a long moment, his eyes saying that he could have been just as ready to answer the question as to ask where all the ketchup had gone.

"I've been designing a new transport vehicle for our flightless team members. Something that can fly regardless of what the bad guy of the day is doing to the atmosphere or temperature. I'm not looking forward to frozen fuel lines ever again. It was only chance that Thor and I were able to get everyone out safely. I mean, sure we could hope that Loki is there to just poof us elsewhere, but I would rather not take the chance," Tony said and the group rolled their eyes. It did seem like almost every other week the villains were finding a way around their safety protocols and Tony was killing himself to make sure it never happened again.

"You could let other people help you know," Loki said and Bruce grunted in agreement. Neither of them liked the fact that Tony, though open with the use of his lab, was hesitant to be anyone's teammate in a project. Both understood why, but neither thought that it was a very good reason, or that it was good for the team to keep indulging in Tony's insecurities.

"I could. I suppose," was Tony's only response. The smile that crossed Steve's face was one of relief. If Tony were more willing to accept help then maybe they would be able to spend more time together as a couple. He hadn't pushed the issue before because he didn't want to make Tony feel like he needed the help, but with Loki insisting, maybe they were actually going to get somewhere.

"I'm a physicist and Loki has knowledge of science so advanced its freaking magic. We won't blow up your lab or ruin your plans," Bruce assured, finally wrestling the ketchup away from Clint. The archer had a well-known addiction to the tomato based condiment and an even greater aversion to mustard. Had Natasha been home, half of Clint's fries would have been coated in the yellow stuff and he would have given them up with a grumble.

"I know that. I will give you guys a rundown of the schematics tomorrow and maybe you can give me a hand with a few issues I've been having. But I think Stars and Stripes here might have my head if I don't sleep first," Tony said with a tired smirk. Steve ruffled his partner's hair and gave him a little nudge with his elbow, his silent 'I'm proud of you' gesture.

Eventually they all settled into a conversation about some of the new recruits that Natasha was apparently out scouting for. Everyone participated except Thor, who had learned not to speak with his mouth full and as such rarely spoke at meal times. The team was infinitely grateful to Loki for his little shock therapy sessions because they could now confidently take Thor out to eat in public places.

"You ready to get some sleep Tony?" Steve asked after Tony's third plate of fries, which had been doused in ketchup and seasoning salt. He was going to have to pour a gallon of water into the other man to deal with potential dehydration if that was how he was going to eat after 4 days of sleeplessness.

"Yes mother hen," Tony said with a little grin, allowing Steve to pull him away from the table. It was Clint's night to do dishes and Tony had been trying to hang around long enough to watch the spectacle. But Steve was right, Tony had almost fallen asleep in his food and it didn't seem wise to keep himself awake any longer.

"You just going to shower when you wake up?" Steve asked, watching Tony undress with unsteady hands, but not offering to help until the dark haired man began pulling at buttons instead of undoing them.

"Yeah. I don't stink that badly," Tony muttered, groaning slightly at Steve's hot hands on his skin as they slipped into bed together.

"Sleep well love," Steve said and kissed Tony on the lips. The billionaire smiled and tucked himself down against Steve's chest. The Super Soldier watched as the Arc Reactor slowly grew dimmer until it was a soft glow. It was like a built in stress detector, near as Steve could tell from the data he had collected over their time together. But it was so good to just hold onto Tony again that he didn't think about it as much as he normally did. He just buried his face in Tony's hair and fell asleep.

(A/N: And there you go. I like domesticity, and you don't get any more domestic than dinnertime and sleepytime. I hope you liked it though. Leave me a review to let me know what you thought.)