Pairings: Rhodey x Reader, Tony Stark
Summary: After Civil War, you and Tony help Rhodey adjust
@whumptober2019 #29 : Numb
Warning: mentions of paralysation, struggling mental health
masterlist || whumptober masterpost
“T, talk to me”
You were frantic. Having been on the other side of the airport when he went down, you only turned around to see the end result, Rhodey’s body slamming unforgivably into the hard ground below.
“He’s alive”
The tension immediately left your body, and you found yourself tugging Tony fiercely in to a hug. You felt him shaking slightly, his injury weighing heavily on both of you.
“I’m so sorry y/n - I couldn’t get to him on time-”
“Tony, shush. This is not your fault, okay? Now shut up and hold my hand so I don't back out of seeing him”
Tony gave you a weak laugh, hand gripping yours tightly as you walked into the hospital room, squeezing gently as you let out a quiet gasp.
“Hey baby”
His weak voice was enough to send you into tears, letting go of Tony’s hand as you (carefully) launched yourself at him, tucking your face into it’s usual place in the crook of his neck. Rhodey’s arms came up to hold you, rubbing soothing circles on your back as you cried, the two men having a quick conversation above your head. You were vaguely aware of Tony leaving the room as you tried to regain control of your crying.
“Im sorry” you sobbed, “I promised myself I wouldn’t cry”
“It shows you care” Rhodey smiled, hands reaching up to cup your cheeks, dislodging you from your current position and moving you so that the two of you were face to face, “I can’t say I wasn’t expecting at least a few”
“Asshole”
He just hummed at the affectionate insult, fingers gently swiping away the tears that marked your cheeks. You giggled wryly at his caring gestures, pressing a kiss to his forehead.
“I think you missed” he said cheekily, pouting his lips.
Rolling your eyes, you leant in to press a kiss to his lips. It was soft and tearful, careful in all the ways it never had been before, yet with all the tender love that had always existed since you were just kids back in college.
“I’m glad you’re not dead” you mumbled against his lips, hand slipping into his.
“And leave you to deal with Tony by yourself? Babygirl I would never”
You chuckled, shaking your head slightly in disbelief. Through all of the shit he was still Rhodey through and through.
After a few more gentle kisses, you backed away slightly, moving one of the chairs to be pressed right up next to his bedside, his hand still firmly grasped in yours.
“Do we know what’s wrong yet?”
“No. They did a few scans but they said they’re gonna need to transfer me to another hospital” he explained, holding up his hand when he saw you go to interrupt, “Tony’s already jumping in with that, getting me as close to the compound as possible”
You nodded silently, eyes dropping to where your fingers were intertwined. You allowed the touch to calm you, ground you in the moment before you continued speaking.
“You’re gonna be okay James” you said, convincing yourself at the same time as him, “you’re gonna be okay”
He squeezed your hand, his other moving to lift your chin up to face him, a knowing smile on his lips.
“This? This is nothing. As long as I’ve got you and Tony by my side, I can do anything”
You nodded at the pure determination in his voice, keeping the fresh wave of tears at bay by pure will power alone.
“You and me”
His smile widened.
“You and me”
You held his hand the day his results came back, Tony on his other side, hand resting on his shoulder.
Paralysation from the waist down. Most likely permenant.
He had kept it together until Tony had left to discuss treatment with the doctor, letting the tears fall once the room dissolved into silence.
“I guess I can’t be Iron Patriot anymore” he chuckled mirthlessly through the falling of his tears, “all of those missions and I get injured in a fucking spat between the group”
It was all you could do to murmur comforting bullshit that neither of you believed was true, your hand running up and down his arm in soothing motions that made you feel dizzy the longer you focused on it.
“This isn’t the end Rhodey” you had said, voice gritty with stubborn determination, “I’m not gonna let it be the end for you”
The double meaning didn’t escape the both of you.
“I’m just sick of the numbness” he had said through gritted teeth, staring up at the ceiling defiantly, tears still falling down his cheeks. Not knowing what else to do, you had climbed onto the bed, curling up next to him and resting you head on his chest, listening to his heart beat.
“It’s you and me, like it has been forever”
“You and me” he had replied hoarsely.
Physical therapy is a bitch, plain and simple.
As soon as Rhodey’s diagnosis came back, Tony had locked himself into his lab to create a machine that could help Rhodey, to provide his spine enough support to allow his legs to work again.
At first the idea had seemed bordering on impossible, but of course Tony had made a functional model in under a week, and had made several options by the time Rhodey was discharged from the hospital.
With help from a (very expensive) physical therapist, Rhodey began working on his core strength every day, his determination never swaying.
All the while he would be cracking jokes at the expense of Tony, and the three of you worked like nothing had changed - that was until he went to go and get something and remembered that he was essentially bedbound.
That first month was the worst. Once they were sure that using a wheelchair wouldn't further damage his spine, the nurses brought him one which Tony immediately replaced with one of his own creation. (Rhodey had said to you one night that he would’ve complained if the seat on Tony’s one wasn't so comfortable)
With his regained mobility, Rhodey had also found his smile again.
Of course, it still came with challenges.
Getting out of bed and into the chair was painful, and the choked groans he emitted as he moved were enough to make you tear up. That was nothing compared to the actual physical therapy, the initial exercises making him achy and resigned, the helplessness of his situation finally hitting him.
All the while you were there, reassuring (Tony called it bribing) him with words and kisses, your faith in him never wavering. You held his hand through every meeting, went with him to every appointment, listened to every piece of advice, all in the hope of making it easier for him.
His smile brightened when he was released from the hospital to the compound, Tony arranging a group of the top medical professionals to be in charge of his case.
“You two are sickening” Tony had said, walking in to a PT session where Rhodey was working on his core muscles, receiving a kiss from you every time he completed a rep, “I’m actually going to puke”
“Shut it Tones” Rhodey grinned, stealing another kiss, “I’m healing”
“I know you are boo bear, but could you two try to not fuck in my compound?”
You had snorted at this, turning around to fix Tony with a look.
“Really? You think that after all of our years of dating we never fucked under your roof?” You had sniggered, “Tony, we had sex in your apartment at college”
Tony had blanched, ears going red as Rhodey burst into laughter, running out of the room as he mumbled excuses about working on improvements in the lab.
After months of physical training Rhodey finally received the green light to try the walking aid that Tony had made, the idea both exciting and terrifying to him.
The night before, as the two of you were lying in bed, he admitted his thoughts to you.
“What if this doesn’t work?” He whispered, hand brushing through your hair, “Tony’s so sure, but what if I’m stuck in the chair for the rest of my life”
You sighed heavily, cuddling closer to him.
“If it doesn’t work then nothing changes” you said eventually, “we still love each other, Tony is still an annoying little shit, you still get out of this bed every day. The only difference is that I’ll finally be taller than you”
He chuckled slightly, humming absentmindedly at your answer. You listened to his heartbeat as you waited for a response, the constant noise becoming incredibly comforting ever since his accident.
When he didn’t say anything else, you tilted your head up to look at him in the eyes, a small smile on your face.
“We’re gonna be okay James. You and me”
“You and me”
Which is why as you stood at the end of the room, Rhodey standing up with his legs in robotic braces, you were crying.
Tony was walking by his side, ready to grab him in case he fell, laughing in spite of his wet eyes.
“You’re looking like bambi there” he teased, gesturing to Rhodey’s shaky legs.
“Yeah, well you try to walk with legs that don’t fucking move and tell me that you wouldn’t be shaking too” he bit back, a teasing tone in his voice, hands on the rails either side of him.
He looked up for a second, taking his eyes off of his feet to look at you, his composure almost breaking when he saw the tears cascading down your cheeks.
“Aw, shit y/n you can’t do that or I’m going to cry -“ he broke off as his voice gave out, as he forced the tears back down, “come here”
You broke off into a sob, rushing over to him and gently easing yourself into his arms, having the first upstanding hug with him in months.
The moment was seemingly too much for the both of you, as you each started to cry.
“Is this a couples moment or can I wiggle in on this one?” Tony asked, his voice betraying his tears.
“Get in here” you giggled, moving to the side slightly so that he could fit in.
The three of you stood there for what seemed like forever, silently crying with the knowledge that Rhodey was going to be okay.
In the back of your mind, you realised that this was all you needed. Your boys. Healthy and happy.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Category: Gen
Fandoms: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Iron Man (Movies)
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Vision (Marvel), May Parker (Spider-Man)
Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Kidnapping, post-endgame and ffh but in that land of denial where everybody lives, Maybe more tags to be added
Words: 2,824
Summary: In 2027, Morgan Stark is feeling a little down. So, to lift her spirits, Peter recalls the events of a mission gone wrong back in 2019, when following up a tip turned into Peter and Tony getting kidnapped and Rhodey racing to find them.
A/N: If you want to be tagged in the next chapter, please reblog this post!
Tagging some people who showed interest: @my-glasses-are-dirty, @mandaloriandragontrainer, @xsflash, @spideypoolstuff, @scottishaccentsareawesome, @wicked-starlight-collector, @sapphirasong03, @zooniah, @kaitie-sketch
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 2/2
Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Tony Stark, Bruce Banner/Tony Stark, Bruce Banner/James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Bruce Banner/James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Tony Stark
Characters: Tony Stark, Jarvis (Iron Man movies), James "Bucky" Barnes, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Bruce Banner, Steve Rogers, Thor, Clint Barton, Natasha Romanov (Marvel), Darcy Lewis, Jane Foster
Additional Tags: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Arc Reactor Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Protective Jarvis (Iron Man movies), Fluff and Angst, Tony Stark Defense Squad, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Not Steve Friendly, Team Dynamics, Civil War Team Iron Man, Apologies, LOTR, Star Wars - Freeform
Summary:
In which jokes about the arc reactor are not taken lightly, not by JARVIS who will never again sit trapped in his servers as someone attempts to kill Sir.
Pairings: college!Rhodey x Reader, Tony Stark
Summary: At a party Tony had dragged you to, someone slips something into your drink. Rhodey saves the day
@whumptober2019 #21 : Laced drink
Warning: mentions of drugging, attempted sexual assault, rhodey to the rescue, eventual fluff
masterlist || whumptober masterpost
You let out an exasperated sigh, facepalming as Tony tugged you along down the corridor.
“Tony I need to finish my thesis -“
“You can finish that another day, y/n. I’m getting you to a party if it kills me”
“That’s what I’m scared of” you huffed, trying to avoid tripping in your heels, “you know I don’t like you drinking all of that alcohol”
Tony just waved you off with his free hand, a scoff escaping his lips.
“You just need to get your ass out of the lab for a few days. You know I love you but you need to get out more”
Before you could answer, your senses were overwhelmed with the loud bass of pop music and the heavy stench of alcohol and sweat.
“Oh fuck” you mumbled, blinking heavily at the sudden sensory overload, hands tightening slightly on Tony’s arm.
“Let’s get you a drink!” Tony cheered, moving through the sea of bodies with practiced ease, “Remind me to - oh! Rhodey!”
Tony’s interest was captured by a man stood off to the side of the makeshift bar, stiff in posture and a beer in hand.
“Hey Tony”
“Wow, a beer? You’re really loosening up tonight huh?”
Rhodey pulled a face, going to retort. He stopped when his eyes fell on to me.
“You brought a friend”
“Oh - Yes. This is y/n from the lab, I finally got her out of her dorm” Tony grinned, elbowing you lightly in the side.
“I’m not that bad, I just don’t really like this kinda stuff” you scoffed, gesturing around you airily.
“I get it, I don’t come to many of these either. I mostly come here to look after his drunk ass” Rhodey smiled, offering you his hand, “I’m James, but you can call me Rhodey”
You shook his hand with a smile.
“Smooth Rhodes. Smooth”
He sent a glare at the now snickering Tony, who promptly sent a mock salute and pointed at the drinks table.
“If you don’t mind me I’ll leave you two to get to know each other”
“Oh sure, drag me out of my safe space and ditch me - love you too Stark” you called, receiving a lack-luster wave in response.
Rhodey chuckled, taking a sip of his beer.
“He means well, and hey, at least he left you in great company” he winked.
“We’ll have to see about that”
Rhodey’s smile widened at your tease, eyes glinting with amusement.
“y/n, I think we’re going to get along just fine”
The two of you stood on the outskirts of the party for quite a while, wrapped up in your own bubble, laughter coming easy. You were easily drawn in by Rhodey’s charm, though his slightly guarded posture made you feel safe in the boisterous environment that was so unlike the calm lab where you spent most of your time.
“ - so there we were, Tony hanging off of the Governor's daughter’s arm, piss-drunk and I - “ Rhodey cut off halfway through his sentence, eyes locking on to a scuffle occurring on the other side of the room. He fixed you with a apologetic stare, hand brushing against your arm as he rushed towards the noise, offering only the word ‘Tony’ in explanation.
You just watched him go with a small affectionate feeling bubbling in your gut.
It was nice to see Tony with a friend who genuinely cared for his wellbeing. You had literally dragged him out of the lab multiple times already, knowing that if you didn’t he’d stay there until a professor found him the next morning. You found out very early into your friendship that he had a very strong self-destructive streak and horrible self-care skills.
For a rich popular kid on campus, hardly any his friends you had been introduced to seemed in the slightest bit genuine, mostly hanging around for free handouts or gossip about the upper rings of society. From the breif interaction you’d had with Rhodey, you could tell he was different - a true friend.
You were snapped out of your thoughts by a tall man, walking towards you with a wide smile.
“Hey, I don’t think I’ve seen you at these parties before” he said, moving slightly too close for comfort, “I’m Brad”
“Uh - yeah I don’t really go to parties like these that much. I’m y/n”
You tried stepping back slightly, hoping he’d get the message that you weren’t exactly comfortable. When he didn’t move back into your space you relaxed slightly, offering him a small polite smile.
“Can I get you a drink? I can’t help but see you haven’t had anything yet. You should make the most out of the free booze, y’know, as you don’t come to these very often”
Not wanting to sound rude you accepted, shifting awkwardly on your feet as you waited for him to come back, eyes subconsciously searching for Tony or Rhodey amongst the crowd.
Brad came back after a few minutes, passing you a beer, the top already taken off.
“Thanks” you said, taking an obligatory sip.
Unsure of how to get out of the situation without being rude, you stuck around for a dull conversation, eyes constantly searching for anyone you recognised. After roughly 15 minutes, you started feeling woozy, your speech becoming slightly slurred, alarm bells ringing in your mind as Brad’s smile seemed to grow increasingly menacing.
“I - I’ll be right back”
“Where are you going?” he asked, head tilting to the side slightly, distantly reminding you of a lion looking at it’s prey.
“Just to the toilet?”
You didn't realise you were inching backwards until you hit the wall, trapped between the wall and Brad.
“What did you do?” you whispered, blinking hazily as you sluggishly lifted an arm to keep him away, “Did you - put something in my drink?”
He easily broke the weak hold, a small chuckle escaping him.
“Yep”
Frowning deeply, you readied all of your energy to aim a kick at his groin, trying desperately to ignore the hand that had begun to creep up your side. The nightmarish scene was broken as a hand landed on Brad’s shoulder, pulling him forcefully away from you.
“Dude what the fuck”
“Yeah, my thoughts exactly” Rhodey said, voice cold and sharp, “What the fuck did you do to her”
“Nothing!”
“Then why does she look like she’s about to collapse? Pepper can you -”
The redhead nodded, grabbing the man’s arm with a harsh grip and dragging him across the room. Rhodey rushed to your side, eyeing you as you heavily leant against the wall.
“y/n are you with me?”
You nodded distantly, placing a hand on his arm to steady yourself, “think he spiked m’ drink”
Rhodey whispered something harsh under his breath, an angry expression flashing across his face for a few seconds, before schooling his features back into the calm mask it had been earlier in the evening.
“How much did you drink?”
“Few sips”
He nodded, head tilted down to the floor as he tried to figure out what to do.
“We need to get you out of here - is it okay if I touch you?”
You nodded again, leaning into Rhodey’s body heat as he placed steadying arms around you, following his lead as he guided you out of the party.
As the music got quieter, you started finding it easier to breathe, the cold air of the night bringing you some clarity.
“I - thank you. For helping me back there” you said, avoiding eye contact, “I don’t know what I would’ve done if you hadn’t”
“You don’t need to thank me, anyone would’ve done that. Besides, I liked talking to you. I would’ve come back over sooner but Tony managed to almost start another fight - I’m sorry that I left you alone”
You waved it off, offering him a genuine smile.
“Someone’s gotta look out for Tony”
Rhodey snorted in amusement, before his face turned slightly serious again as if remembering the current predicament.
“I should probably be getting you home, do you need a cab? Or should I walk you back?”
“I’m not that far, I’m just two buildings down. Could you-“ you hesitated slightly, still feeling incredibly dizzy and unstable, “could you walk with me please? I’d feel a lot safer”
“Of course”
You carried on forwards, Rhodey’s arms still stabilising you as you walked, all the while explaining why he had run after Tony earlier that night.
By the time you reached your apartment, your stomach hurt from laughing. Still feeling the effects from the drug, Rhodey unlocked the door for you, helping you out of your heels and into your bedroom.
“Are you going to be okay?”
“I’m starting to feel less dizzy now at least” you said, melting into your mattress, “and I think my slurrs mostly gone, has it?”
“Yeah, almost all gone”
You nodded, sitting up and crossing your legs, fixing Rhodey with a smile.
“Thank you again Rhodey for tonight - I really don’t know what I would’ve done”
He smiled back, placing his hand on your shoulder in a friendly manner.
“If it’s alright with you, I’m going to sleep on your sofa for the night. I don’t know what drug he put in your drink so it might be best if someone’s here to check up on you. Or - I can wait here until someone else can get here, a friend maybe?”
You shook your head, “I trust you. Thank you again, you don’t have to do this”
“Any friend of Tony’s is a friend of mine”
You fell asleep quickly, waking up in the morning feeling only slightly worse for wear, the smell of pancakes wafting into your bedroom.
“You shouldn’t have” you mumbled, shooting Rhodey a lazy smile as you stumbled into the kitchen, mindlessly making a pot of coffee, “You’re the guest - I should be the one cooking”
Rhodey just laughed at that, shaking his head slightly.
“I thought you deserved something nice after last night”
You brightened at the sincerity in his voice, pouring two cups and sliding one over to him. You leant against the counter as you watched him cook, eyes peaking over the top of your cup, taking in the domestic scene.
“I know this might sound weird, but would you be open to dinner?”
Rhodey smirked, turning around to face you as he placed the last pancake on a plate, head tilted slightly to the side.
“You haven’t even had my pancakes yet and you want me to cook you dinner?”
Your cheeks went hot, shuffling slightly on the spot.
“That’s not what I-”
“I’m kidding” he laughed, moving closer to you, eyes shining, “I’d love to go on a date with you - though I wish we had gotten to this point under better circumstances”
