Studying (Bruce X Reader)

                                    

                                          

You let out a long sigh, leaning back into the couch. You're working on some math problems from your professor and you just can't seem to figure them out. Well, you can figure them out, you just want some help. 
                          
You look around, checking if anyone was taking notice to you. Since nobody even took a glance at you, you let out another sigh. 
                          
"Short of breath or something, (Y/N)?" Natasha asks, keeping her eyes on her computer. She had been glued to that thing all week. She must have found some interesting, classified files. 
                          
"No, I just can't seem to get these problems. It's stressing me out." You say, tapping your pencil on your notebook. 
                          
"Going for a walk always clears my head. You should try it." Steve says, looking up from his book. You internally groan. They clearly weren't getting the picture. 
                          
"Thanks for the advice, but I think I just need some help." You say, hoping that they could see what you were implying.
                          
"Well, Tony's out with Pepper. I think Bruce is back in the lab." Steve says, shrugging his shoulder. 
                          
"Or you could just look up the problems on your laptop." Natasha says, now studying your face. 
                          
"I don't understand problems by just reading them online. I think I'll go ask Bruce." You say, grabbing your stuff and walking to the lab. As you exit the room, you hear Natasha immediately whispering to Steve. You have pretty good idea what it's about. 
                          
You give a soft knock and enter the lab. Bruce looks up, a smile growing on his face. "Hey, (Y/N)." He says, setting down his tools on the table. 
                          
"I was wondering if you could help me with a few math problems." You say, standing beside him and setting your items on the open spots on the counter. 
                          
He slightly backs away, shaking his head. "That's not really my expertise. I'm not really great at teaching." He says, chuckling awkwardly.
                          
"Well, Tony promised me that he would help, but he seems to have disappeared into thin air and this is due at midnight." You say, pointing at your computer. 
                          
He lets out a sigh, glancing at the computer. "I guess I could try a few problems." He says, pulling the computer closer. 
                          
Once you two get past the first few problems, Bruce starts opening up. You lean closer to him every chance you get, almost completely in his arms. He wraps his arm around you to type the answers into the computer for you.
                          
"See, you are great at teaching. One more problem left and I'm done." You say, looking up into his brown eyes. 
                          
Something flashes across his face. Hurt? Disappointment? You can't tell.
                          
"Yeah, we're really flying through these." He says, looking back down at the problems. 
                          
You bite your lip. What did you say that turned him away? Was the compliment the problem? Did he take it the wrong way? 
                          
"You know, it's a good thing Tony ditched me. You're a lot easier to deal with. Tony just mostly tells me the answers so I get out of his hair. You actually help me with the problems. I should come to you more often." You smile, gently touching his hand. 
                          
His cheeks turn a light pink as he chuckles. "Sure. I don't mind the company in here." He says. 
                          
You study his face. From what you can tell, he's okay with you flirting with him. You take this as a sign to keep going and maybe say some more risker things. "Maybe I could come here for more than just help on homework." You say, your voice a bit softer. 
                          
He pauses. Your eyes meet his and you can tell he's trying to read what you're thinking. "I'd like that." He says, his voice just above a whisper. 
                          
You lean forward, softly kissing his cheek. "I should probably go back out there. I'll see you at dinner?" You ask, gently backing away.
                          
"Yeah, I'll see you at dinner." He says, helping you pack up your things. 
                          
As you leave you glance over your shoulder. "Thanks for the help. This will probably be the first assignment I actually ace." You chuckle as the door closes behind you. You drop your items off in your room then head back out to the living room. 
                          
Steve was in the kitchen and Natasha was scrolling through the channels on the tv. "So, did you two actually solve some math equations or just flirt the entire time?" She teases as you enter the room. 
                          
"Flirt? No, none of that was happening. We're just friends." You say, plopping down beside her. 
                          
"Yeah, 'cause friends stand that close to each other." She smiles. 
                          
"So you were spying on us?" You laugh. 
                          
"Is it really spying if the room is made of glass?" Steve asks. You look over the back of the couch, his back turned to you. 
                          
"You too?" You ask. 
                          
"Hey, we were just walking by to go train." He says with a smirk. 
                          
You groan, rolling your eyes as you sink back into the couch. "Just keep it to yourselves and don't tell Tony." You say. 
                          
"Lips are sealed. Right, Steve?" Natasha asks, getting a hum of agreement. 
                          
xxx
                          
At dinner, you two just couldn't stop looking at each other. Of course, Natasha totally noticed. She would give you a discreet elbow shove when she noticed you hitting it off with Bruce. Your checks were on fire the entire time. 
                          
"For once, I'm glad to have offered to do dishes. Those two just can't leave us alone." You say as you rinse off a dish and hand it to Bruce. 
                          
"No kidding." He says, wiping it dry and putting it away. "Though I'm sure the two of us doing dishes will just become another topic for them to tease us about." He smiles. 
                          
"Oh. Trust me. They won't shut up about it for the next two weeks." You laugh as Tony enters the kitchen. He grabs a glass from the cupboard then fills it with some water. You  watch him throw it back quickly then wipe his mouth. 
                          
"Hey, thanks for doing the dishes, guys. Really, I mean, you two make a great team." He says, gently patting both of your shoulders. Quickly, he throws his dirty dish into the warm water.
                          
"Okay, Tony. Just for that, you can finish you." You say, wiping your hands and leaving. He scoffs as you walk away, but takes over anyways. 
                          
"So, did you just forget that (Y/N) needed help with her homework?" Bruce asks, making you stop in your tracks and listen. 
                          
"What are you talking about?" 
                          
"Well, she said that you were going to help her with her math assignments but you left with Pepper." 
                          
"(Y/N) has never asked me for help on anything. Ever." Tony replies. There's a stillness in the air, like everyone was waiting for someone else to fill the air. "Seems to me that she needed an excuse to get you alone." 
                          
"With math homework? I don't think so." 
                          
"Dude, she's going back to school to get another degree in math. I think it comes plenty easy to her." Tony says. 
                          
Before you can hear another response, you rush back to your room. Well, the mission in getting some time with Bruce alone might have succeeded, but keeping the reason a secret was now blown. At least you both agreed to meet for reasons other than homework. 
                          
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