Nyáááááál

- Still, you’re a good kisser.

After they got their beds in a sick-ward with six beds ban could slip out to the corridor to give a call to Craft. It wasn’t late but she was almost sure that Bruce told her about Ban’s exiting from the lab.
She was right; Craft was so worried and she was patrolling in the city with Steve to find her. She threatened Ban, then started crying, then Steve took the phone from her and told Ban they were going to the hospital. Then a nurse found her and told her back to bed.

Half an hour later their friends broke into the room. Craft had Steve’s jacket on her, and they both were soaking wet, Natasha had her training clother on under her coat and Thor didn’t wear a coat, but his shirt was turned out, so he obviously dressed up in a hurry. Bruce was there too, but he stayed back.

Craft was broken, she almost started yelling at Ban, and wanted to attack her, which was a very cute attempt, but Steve held her down until she calmed down to quiet sniffing.

- How can you be so stupid? I bet that you were rushing up and down on the road like it’s your playground. You could’ve died!

- We didn’t – Tony stated. – I almost did, by the way. Scarlett saved me.

Natasha pulled her chair between the two beds.

- Tell me. Everything.

- We’re very interested in why exactly did you ran out and attempted suicide on the highway without telling anyth... – Craft started to get angry again, but Steve covered her mouth.

- I just got annoyed – Ban shrugged her shoulder. The good one. Tony nodded.

- Ditto. At her.

- So you went out to settle your differences on the road...?

- No way.

- We only recognized each other after we fell from the road. Our differences didn’t seemed that important there.

- She saved my life.

- Would you quit it?

- How come? Were you out? – Natasha frowned. Tony licked his lower lip.

- No... It’s... I just want you to know. Some of you already know. Don’t take it too personally, but I consider all of you my friends.

- We won’t take it personally – Natasha ensured him. He buttoned down his borrowed pajamas, and showed them the reactor.

- I thought it’d be better if you, at least knew. Like, if I’ll ever be out, you won’t just look at this thing, but know what’s it for.

They leaned closer as one person, looking at the gleaming circle.

- But... what’s this? – Steve asked. Natasha’s eyes widened.

- Holy shit, you really got a pacemaker! Why?

- First of all: it’s not a pacemaker, it’s much more complicated. And the why part, that Craft and Bruce already know.

Bruce shivered in the background, but didn’t come closer, and Tony didn’t look at him.

- Scarlett and Bruce knows the mechanism more or less, the others wouldn’t understand so I won’t explain it.

- We don’t even care – Natasha said again. – Tell me why do you need it.

- I had an accident in the summer.

Ban looked at him. She didn’t think about reasons on the slope, she only thought about keeping Tony alive and getting back to the city. Now it hit her.
I love you, I had an accident, and I changed. Stuff like that.

- Craft was there too. I was working on a generator that’d make possible to the factory to run on it’s own powers, and it was going well, but I had to overlook every step, cause they messed up a lot of things. So I stepped in the half-finished machine, to correct the mistakes and I was explaining the stuff to Craft. And the guys around us didn’t really payed attention, they switched the power back while I was in there.

He raised his eyes and saw all of them looking at him jaws dropped.

- I don’t really know what happened after that, and Craft wouldnt tell me, but my guess is that she went crazy, kicked everyone out, turned down the power, dragged me out and gave me CPR.

He grinned.

- I’m so sorry I can’t remember.

Craft blushed.

- It was hard. I’m weak.

- Anyway, I don’t know how, but she could make my heart work again for a while. Must’ve been magic, cause half of my heart was basically dead. Some elder engeniers from the factory put together a machine that stimulated my heart to work, but it needed bigger impulses and it made the state of the tissue worse. I was chained to bed and most likely had a few weeks back...

- Holy shit – Ban whispered, but didn’t realize that she said it out loud just when everyone looked at her. – Sorry.

- Nah. So Craft saved me again by scolding me. looking back it’s funny, but that time it really did the job. i used my time to small down and upgrade the arc reactor, and with the doctors and with the Bruce telephone-help-line we figured out a way to replace the dead part of my heart and to connect it to the reactor. And it works.

- It was Pepper – Craft said awkwardly. – She asked me to pull you together, since she couldn’t come. She booked a flight, but her company disabled it. She was basically trapped. And she told me not to tell you, but it’s been half a year now.

- Wow – Natasha said. – Day of truth. And I thought my summer was shitty.

- Tony, my friend – Thor patted his shoulder. – I’m more than pleased that you didn’t leave for Valhalla.

- Must have been tough – Steve grimaced painfully. – I’m... I’m just glag you’re alright now... More or less.

Ban didn’t say anything. For a while she just watched Tony as everyone talked to him, then just looked at her hand, which saved him, and for once she felt really happy that she was a genious mechanican.

- Bruce – Tony called out, and the guy shooked, with his face terrified, but came closer. – I’m not asking for anyone’s forgiveness, it’s just not my style.

Bruce swallowed, and let a small smile appear on his face.

- I know. Thanks.

- So – Tony fought hard to get the words out. – So if we can work it out somehow, it’s fine with me if Clint takes my bed. You can have our room. I’ll move in with Clant’s late roommate, if so.

Bruce looked at him unbelievingly, then started blinking, searching for words, but he just went to the bed and leaned closer.

- No huggin... oh shit Bruce, I hate hugging, stop it.

- Thanks Tony – his voice was trembling with emotions – You really are a great friend.

- Cut it out, you’re destroying my personal image. I’m a jerk.

Natasha chuckled, and soon they were all laughing again.

- Clint sends his best wishes too – Bruce added – He just tought it would be better if he didn’t show up.

- He’s right, I’ll kick his ass for being a showoff.

- When you’ll have a leg to kick with – Ban teased.

The doctors wouldn’t believe that they only had their breaks and a few other fractures after that fall, so they had to stay in for a while. The story of their accident spread like plague, and they had a lot of visitors, who wanted to hear it from them. It started to become a legend how they raced in the storm, fell because of other reasons and then rode themselves back to the hospital.
Tony enjoyed telling the part when they arrived after rain to the hospital, went in, leaning to each other, dirty and all wet, and the nurses would ask them what happened, and then they wouldn’t believe that they got back by themselves.
They agreed that the story was that Tony hit a tree hard and Ban kinda slapped him back to life; it wasn’t cool at all, but Tony didn’t want to leave out the part when Ban saved him.

There were classmates and their friends who were interested. Tony enjoyed the spotlight and Ban found it funny too; she was hardly in the middle of anything before. When they didn’t have visitors they were mostly talking about their semester’s-end project, and arguing about physical and chemical problems; their roommates didn’t pay attention to them, as they didn’t get a thing about what they were saying. Before the day they were released, their lab professor visited them; he was the last person they expected.