AN: Here begins the harem. A little late. But here you go.
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Tony stood there, still holding the smoothie, watching Yelena's back as she tried to walk away.
"Jealous?" he repeated. "Of what?"
She stopped.
Her fists clenched.
And then slowly, she turned around.
"You never looked at me like that," she said quietly.
Tony blinked. "Like what?"
"Like the way you look at her," Yelena said, each word sharp as glass. "I saw you. On the floor. With Natasha. You were... kissing her like she was the only person on Earth. Like she was gravity. Like she was home."
Tony's lips parted, a breath caught in his throat.
"I wasn't spying," Yelena continued, jaw clenched. "I brought food. For you. Because that's our thing, right? We do that. You joke, I roll my eyes. We eat. We train. We don't talk about what any of it means."
She looked away for a second, then back.
"And I just keep wondering," Yelena continued, her voice rising slightly, but still steady. Controlled. "Why didn't you ever kiss me like that? Why didn't you ever even try? Why didn't you ever make a move on me? I... I'm not so good with feelings, but I did try to..."
"Yelena…"
"Is it because I'm not her?" she snapped. "Because I'm not graceful like Natasha? Because I am not good with words like Natasha, or because I was just a mission partner? Or is it because she's more beautiful than me?"
'Damn it! I was so busy with work... Trying to make the world a better place and... Haa...' Tony stepped forward, shaken now. "What? No. God, no, Yelena..."
"Then what?" she asked, voice cracking now. "What did I do wrong? I trained beside you. I bled for you. I stayed beside you, more than she ever has. I was there. Every day. And I thought…"
Her throat tightened.
"I thought I mattered."
Tony took another step, but slower this time, cautious. His voice softened. "You do. You do matter."
She laughed bitterly. "Funny way of showing it."
Tony finally set the smoothie down and ran a hand through his hair. "You don't get it. I didn't stay away because you didn't matter. I stayed away because you do. Yelena, you scare the hell out of me. You see through all the bullshit. You don't give a damn about my money or my tech. You talk to me like I'm just… a guy. Like I'm just Tony. Not Stark. Not Iron Man. Just... me."
Yelena's eyes shimmered, but she blinked hard, swallowing it.
"That's not an excuse," she said.
"I know. I know it's not. But it's the truth." He paused. "Natasha and I? We've been dancing around each other for years. It's easy to fall into that. Habit. Familiarity. Pain with a smile."
He took a breath, voice quieter now.
"But with you... it's something else. Something I didn't see coming. You challenge me. You fight me, not just in the training room. And yeah, maybe I avoided you because I didn't know how to handle that. Or what to do with it."
She looked down at her boots. "You should've just told me."
"I should've," he agreed. "But I didn't know how. I... I am not good with emotions like this. I was in love with Natasha way before the Red Room thing. Then, the last two and half years... You came into my life. You made me feel things, complicated feelings. The same way Natasha made me feel. I was afraid."
"Afraid?" She whispered.
"Yeah. Afraid of breaking both your and Nat's hearts. That's why I never made a move against any of you. I just kept it locked up and went on doing what I do best... Create things. Then, today when Nat came at me... Like... Haaa... I just couldn't... It just happened in the spur of the moment," Tony did his best to explain.
Yelena didn't respond at first. Her eyes were locked on Tony's face, searching for something, maybe the truth, maybe a lie, maybe just a reason to walk away without looking back.
And then the door behind them opened.
Soft footsteps.
They both turned.
Natasha stood there.
No smirk. No mask. Just… her.
Her gaze flicked from Tony to Yelena. And she already knew. She had probably known for longer than either of them admitted. Maybe that's why she'd made her move today, because she'd seen the shift, felt the distance.
Natasha crossed her arms, her voice calm. "Yelena. I need to ask you something."
Yelena blinked. "Now's not really..."
"Do you love him?" Natasha cut in.
The room went still.
Tony froze.
Yelena stiffened like she'd been slapped. "What?"
"I said," Natasha repeated, stepping closer, "do you love him? Not the way you love being right. Not as a way to beat me at something. Not because he makes you laugh when you forget how to smile. I mean really love him. Like… you'd let him see the parts of you no one else gets to see. The broken ones. The scared ones. The ones you bury under sarcasm and Widow pride."
Yelena's jaw tightened.
"That's not fair," she said quietly.
"No, it's not," Natasha agreed. "But I'm asking anyway."
Yelena looked away, her chest rising and falling with unsteady breath. "You think this is about beating you?"
Natasha shook her head. "No. I think… you don't even know what it's about yet. And maybe that scares you more than it scares him."
Tony watched in silence. He didn't move. This wasn't his moment.
Yelena looked at Natasha again, and something shifted. Less anger. More pain. More truth.
"Yes," she said finally, voice raw. "I love him."
Silence.
Natasha didn't flinch. Didn't back down.
"Then you should've said something," she said gently. "Before today."
"I didn't think I had to," Yelena whispered. "I thought it showed. In the way I stayed. In the way I fought. In the way I never asked him for anything but time."
Tony stepped forward now, slow and careful. "And I should've seen it. But I didn't. That's on me."
Yelena met his eyes. "Does she win now?"
"It's not a competition," Natasha said softly. "It was never supposed to be."
Yelena scoffed bitterly. "Maybe not for you."
And with that, she turned and just walked a few steps, creating a little distance between them.
There was a moment of silence.
Tony sighed, running a hand through his hair again.
Natasha walked to his side and looked at the half-spilled smoothie still sitting on the floor.
"She made that for you?" she asked.
"Every day," Tony replied.
Natasha nodded once. Then quietly, "She's not wrong, you know."
Tony frowned. "About what?"
"You being scared of her," she said, turning toward him. "Because she sees you. Not the version you try to sell. The real one."
Tony didn't argue. "She deserves better than this mess."
"She deserves honesty," Natasha said. "So do I."
Tony looked at her, eyes tired. "What do we do now?"
There was a moment of silence...
Natasha broke the silence first.
"Okay," she said, calm, steady. "Let's stop pretending."
Tony tilted his head. "Pretending?"
She walked to Yelena. "You love him."
Yelena tensed, not backing away from the truth anymore. "Yeah. I do."
Natasha looked at Tony next. "And you love her."
He hesitated, but only for a breath. "Yeah."
She nodded, then looked between them. "And you love me."
Tony's voice was quiet. "Yeah."
Natasha took a breath and dropped the bomb. "Then let's stop trying to choose."
Both Tony and Yelena blinked.
"What?" Yelena said, voice sharp with disbelief.
Natasha didn't flinch. "We live in a world that tries to shove people into one box. One path. One answer. But we're not normal people. We were made to survive impossible things. So maybe... we stop playing by normal rules."
Yelena stared at her like she'd grown a second head. "Are you saying we... what, share him?"
Natasha shrugged, calm. "Yes."
Tony's eyes went wide. "Wait, hold on..."
"No." Yelena cut in, stepping forward. "You're not serious."
"I am," Natasha said plainly. "I've seen the way he looks at you. I've felt the way he looks at me. And I've watched both of you suffer trying to dance around each other like this won't explode eventually. So... why not make our own rules?"
Yelena looked like she couldn't decide if she was about to laugh or hit something. "That's insane."
"Probably," Natasha admitted. "But I'd rather be insane with a little bit of truth than sane with a pile of regret."
Tony finally found his voice. "Are we really having this conversation right now?"
"Do you want us to stop?" Natasha asked.
Tony rubbed his face. "I don't even know what the hell to say."
Yelena crossed her arms, still reeling. "You're really okay with this? With just... handing him over half the time?"
"I'm not handing anyone anything," Natasha said. "We're choosing. Together. Or we're not. But let's stop pretending we don't all feel it."
Yelena paced, clearly overwhelmed. "You think this is some cute solution to make everyone happy?"
"No," Natasha said. "I think it's a shot at not losing each other. That's all."
Tony looked at Yelena, his voice soft now. "I didn't mean for this to happen. I didn't mean to hurt you."
She turned to him, eyes locked. "But you did."
"I know," he said. "And I'll regret it for a long time. But if there's a way through this that doesn't involve losing either of you... I want to try. If you do."
Silence fell. Heavy. Real.
Yelena looked at Natasha again. "You're sure?"
"I am," Natasha said. "I've watched you chase death for so long. Maybe it's time we try chasing something else."
Yelena didn't respond right away. But something in her eyes softened. Just a little.
"I'm not promising anything," she muttered. "This is... stupid."
"Most things worth doing are," Natasha replied.
Yelena looked at Tony again, then back at Natasha. She exhaled.
"If he messes this up…"
"We bury him," Natasha said without missing a beat.
Tony raised both hands. "Noted."
Yelena sighed and sat down heavily on the couch. "I need vodka."
Natasha grinned and dropped next to her. "We all do."
Tony looked between them, half-stunned, half-speechless. "So... this is happening?"
Yelena reached over and grabbed the smoothie. "I'm drinking this out of spite."
Tony smiled. "Please do."
Natasha leaned back, folding her arms. "Welcome to the weirdest love triangle in history."
Yelena took a sip and muttered, "More like a triangle that just decided to be a straight-up trident."
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