#rhodey angst

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.

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