With your hands deep in your coat pockets, your scarf tight and your hat pulled far down over your head, you were reluctantly walking down the busy sidewalks of New York with your boyfriend, the one and only Tony Stark. Trying to keep the sniffles to a minimum, you held his arm tightly and pulled yourself closer to share his warmth.

"Tony, how are you not freezing? I'm shivering."

"Do you want to head back? We don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"No, no, I'm game. I just wish ice skating was more of a summer activity, that's all." You took a deep breath of cold air, sending chills thru your chest. "I've never been skating at Rockefeller Center before."

Tony pulled his arm out of your grasp to put it around you and pull you in closer. "You know what, neither have I! We can fall on our asses together!" His voice was almost too excited about this idea, but you sensed a bit of nervousness too. It made you feel better to know that you wouldn't be the only one making a fool of yourself out there.

Turning the final corner, you were greeted with the biggest, most gorgeous Christmas tree that you had ever seen. The skating rink and pavilion were decorated with gold and silver lights, Christmas music was filling the air, and people were joined in the holiday spirit everywhere you looked. Suddenly, you didn't feel all that cold anymore.

"Wow. Wow, Tony look at this. Isn't this beautiful?"

Unbeknownst to you, Tony had been watching you as you looked at the scene before you, smiling as the lights created a warm glow across your face. "Yeah, it really is." He took your hand to lead you down towards the crowd. "Come on, sweetheart, time to make fools of ourselves."

~~~

This wasn't your first time ice skating, but with Tony watching you, you felt a bit nervous. You had only been together for 6 months, but it was the best 6 months of your life. Sure, he got on your nerves, sure he was a smartass more often than not, but he had a gentle side to him too. An emotional side that you felt privileged to see; almost like a secret that only the two of you shared. When he asked you to do this with him today, the look in his eyes and his excitement not unlike that of a little kid wouldn't allow you to say no.

"Here, I got us some hot chocolate. That should get you to stop shaking once and for all." He handed you the cup, steam rising from the top. You held it close to your face and closed your eyes, just soaking in the heat for a moment. "This is perfect, thank you."

"Anything you need, I'm your guy." Taking a sip from his cup, he looked out at the rink full of skaters, surveying the scene before him. "Looks a bit crowded today. What time is it anyway?"

"Um, I don't know?" You grabbed your phone from your pocket to check the time. "Almost 7 O'clock. Why?"

"No reason." He threw his empty cup away and turned towards you, hand extended. "You ready?"

With a deep sigh, you stood, a bit of a wobble as you balanced on the blades of your skates. "Let's do this."

As you approached the rink, the clock struck 7pm, and the people skating began to clear the ice and instead take seats at the tables nearby. Looking around, confused, you pulled on Tony's arm to stop him. "Hey, what's going on? I thought this was open to use all night?" He stood at your side, looking out over the rink as it cleared, not saying anything. Once the last person had stepped away, he looked down at you.

"Ok, now I'm ready." He gently held your hand as you stepped onto the smooth, frozen surface, your feet slipping a bit as you found your equilibrium.

"Tony, did you seriously close down the rink for us?" He raised your hand over your head, twirling you around. You tripped as your skates bumped together, Tony grabbing you and pulling you in against his chest.

"What's the benefit of being Tony Stark if I can't do things like this for you? I wanted you all to myself." He leaned down to kiss you, pulling you closer. After a moment, you pulled back, pushing against his chest. His skates skipped as he fell back on his rear. "Hey! Not fair!" You skated away quickly as he stood to start his chase.

Laughing, though a bit scared of being caught, you moved as fast as you could without risk of making yourself fall too. It was amazing how quickly he caught up to you, grabbing you and throwing you over his shoulder. "No, Tony! You're gonna make us both fall!" You continued to laugh as he dug his fingers into your sides, making you laugh hard enough to throw him off balance, sending you both tumbling down onto the ice.

"Oh, shit! Are you ok?" Now he looked concerned, but you continued to laugh, having too much fun to worry about any bumps or bruises.

"Oh, baby, I'm fine! You're such an idiot, you know that?" Sitting up, you wiped your near-frozen tears away, sniffling from the cold air. Something caught your eye next to Tony, and you looked at him quizzically. "Um, Tony? What's that?"

His eyes darted to the box at his side, then back to you, his expression now quite anxious. "Um, that's um, that's for you...it must have fallen out of my pocket when we landed." He snatched it up quickly and threw it back in his coat.

"So, do I get to see it?"

He stood, grabbing your hands to pull you up with him. Putting his arms around your waist, he pulled you close and kissed your head. "Yeah, of course. I had a different way to do this in mind though." Reaching in his pocket, he pulled out the small red box, anxiously fumbling it between his fingers. Watching his own hands, his voice was unsteady. "I know it's only been six months, but...I feel like...I mean I want...I think that you and I...oh, hell."

"Tony." You put your hand on his chin, lifting his face so that he would look at you. "It's just me."

"But that's it! It's not just you! You've turned my whole world upside down, and I love it! I...I love you, (Y/N). It's only been six months, but I just know...ya know? I feel it." He finally opened the box, holding it for you to answer the unasked question; to understand what he meant without it being said.

Grabbing the front of his jacket, you pulled yourself up to kiss him, giving him the answer he had been waiting for. His eyes grew wide as his feet slipped out from beneath him, sending you both back down to the cold ground as cameras flashed, hearing the spectators cheering and laughing with you.