can I ask for asexual Tony Stark for the trope thing? it would mean a lot to me!
(Iâm pretty positive asexuality isnât a trope butâŚI want to write ace Tony, so sure. Weâll roll with it. Iâm sorry if this bugs you but I wanted to put a ship in here and I chose winteriron for this one. Also, Tony doesnât know what asexuality is and is kind of hard on himself. I envisioned him figuring it out but it didnât fit. Maybe down the line).
Tonyâs always been great at projecting the playboy act for one reason. Itâs an act. He can study how itâs supposed to go, what heâs supposed to say, from TV and movies and even, after a while, the trash magazine articles about him.
At first, Tony thinks everyoneâs making it up. This attraction thing. That itâs aâŚmyth, a story, an act of some sort. But after a while, after managing to brush off the weird looks and the explanations, Tony accepts that maybe other people get it.
Which isnât weird. Thereâs a lot of things other people get that Tony doesnât. Like when money is and isnât an appropriate response and why people get so mad at him so suddenly and when to shut his damn mouth. The list goes on. Tony keeps a running list of the times people have told him heâs failed on this front, and just adds âsexual attractionâ to it.
So he fakes it, like he fakes so many other things. He takes home super models and debutantes, actors and heirs and heiresses and, eventually, titans of industry. He comments on all those things people say make them sexually attracted to another person. He makes it public, he lets them call him a pig, because thereâs one truth heâs learned.
If you tell a lie, make it the biggest, most public lie possible. Dare people to comment. Almost all of the time, they wonât.
Tony gets good at sex, too, gets, if rumors are to be believed, incredibly good. He supposes his skill is a byproduct of the attention he pays his partners. Itâs not that the actual act of sex is awful, just kind ofâŚblah. So he distracts his partners by paying them attention. The better he makes them feel, the less they focus on him.
So Tony has a reputation, and he knows that even if he wanted to, he couldnât lose it now. he told too big a lie, went too public, theyâll never believe anything but that now.
And TonyâŚisnât really sure if he wants the public to know. But the persistent rumors of his love of sex are getting in the way of this attempt at a relationship.
âHow come we havenât had sex?â Bucky asks out of the blue, nuzzled up with Tony on the couch after dinner. Theyâd gone out, even dressed up a bit, but returned home for dessert, now in pajamas.
The night had been great, until Bucky asked his question.
Tony tenses. Frozen to the spot, really, and Bucky is observant and notices immediately. âOh,â he says.
He sounds so dejected that Tony gets some life back in him, having to fix this immediately, because he canât let Bucky think whatever heâs thinking. He canât let him walk away.
âI donât like it,â he says.
âYouâŚdonât like it?â Bucky says incredulously.
Tony closes his eyes. Even the guy out of the world for seventy years knows the stories. Get a reputation and then you can never, ever lose it.
âThereâs an image, and Iâm..I wasâŚresponsible for it, and I did some thingsâŚit wasnât all bad, but itâs never been my, uh, cup of tea. So. I faked it.â Tony takes a deep breath. âI can fake it for you too! If you need it. But, uh, you know me? In a way the others never did? So youâll probably be able to tell and Iâm trying this honest communication thing, so here it is. Uh.â
Bucky blinks at him, then grabs Tonyâs wrist, the move sudden but the grip gentle. âYouâŚwould sleep with meâŚjust to make me happy?â
âUh..yeah?â Tony says. âI like you happy, you happy makes me pretty happy. And, uh. False advertising and all.â
âYou are not a product,â Bucky says firmly. âIf you donât like sex, then we donât have sex. Thatâs fine, Tony. Now I know.â
âI still loâŚlike you a lot,â Tony says, barely catching the almost-slip-up. âI justâŚI donât get why people feel that way? Iâm sorry.â
âYou donât need to be sorry,â Bucky says, now stroking the underside of Tonyâs arm, which is pretty damn distracting. âJustâŚtalk to me. Whatâs okay?â
âEverything we do?â Tony says. Kissingâs great. The way Bucky holds him, great. âAnd, uh, the things I say. I think youâre hot as hell, Bucky. But. The things about, uh, wanting that or whatever? I. Donât. Thatâs just how people talk.â
âRight,â Bucky says. His fingers move up Tonyâs arm, stroking under the sleeve of his t-shirt. âSoâŚthis is good?â
âVery good,â Tony agrees. âYou good?â
âVery good,â Bucky mimics. He settles back into the couch, wraps his arm all the way around Tony, and pulls him close.
