When Tony woke up, it took him a moment to realise where he was. Sun filtered past the curtains at the windows and Tony felt refreshed for the first time in a while. It had definitely been a good idea to go on this holiday retreat to a cabin Tony owned in the middle of nowhere which he had forgotten about. They hadn't had a chance to get away over Christmas or new year as they were with family and work conventions had to be organized and attended, not that Tony had much part in the organizing, that was all Pepper and Obadiah doing the work and him pretending to be paying attention. On second thought, the attending part was also sketchy, Tony couldn't really remember much besides wanting to leave and get back to Peter. That was what he did in the end, obviously- he did what he wanted after all, and his son was more important than some company gala. He only stayed for about an hour or two before he disappeared to get back to his son who was more than pleased to see him, running straight into his open arms as soon as he opened the door chanting his name.
That brings him back to now. He had been able to take time off work (Obie was left in charge, with Pepper obviously) to take Peter to this cabin he had been reminded of. Peter had been so excited when told about it, he had been missing his father with all the events he had been forced into going to and couldn't wait to spend some alone time with him.
Thinking of Peter -not that he was ever far from his mind anyway- brought Tony's attention to the warm bundle in his arms. He looks down and couldn't stop the smile that spread across his face at his sleeping son, his arms tightening around him. He was adorable, his curls wide and unruly, eyes softly closed, he looked like a little angel. Tony's little angel.
Tony checked the time from the clock on the nightstand. 9:00, that was just about a reasonable time to get up. Tony nudged Peter gently, bringing one of his hands up to his hair and began running his fingers through the beautiful mess.
"Peter, its time to wake up sweetheart," Tony whispered softly, bringing his kid out of his sleep. Peter's eyes fluttered and he brought his fists up to his eyes, rubbing them before they opened properly, a yawn stretching his mouth open in the most adorable way. Peter blinked sleepily before his eyes found his fathers and then his mouth stretched into a wide sleepy smile.
Tony's heart filled with warmth at the sight. Nothing made him happier than seeing Peter smile.
"Morning daddy," Peter said brightly, sleep falling away, quickly being replaced with his usual energy.
"Good morning baby" Tony sat up, Peter still in his arms, "What do you say we get up and have some breakfast?" Peter nodded enthusiastically, but neither of them moved. After a few minutes of cuddling, Tony dragged them out of bed and to the kitchen.
"What do you feel like today, bambino?" Tony looked down at the child on his hip.
"Pancakes!" came the excited response, Peter flinging his arms up eagerly. Tony laughed slightly.
"Of course. I should have known." Tony put Peter down on one of the chairs around the table before getting to work making the requested pancakes, Peter rambling all the while. His chatter filled the silence as he talked about how fun this was going to be, how much they were going to do together and how he couldn't wait to explore.
Tony put a plate of chocolate pancakes in front of the toddler with a glass of milk, his own plate and mug of coffee waiting for him on the counter.
"Thank you, Daddy!"
Tony kissed his forehead in reply, before sitting next to him and starting his breakfast. Peter was still talking excitedly, the words only interrupted when he took a bit of food before he chewed and swallowed it quickly and starting up again. Occasionally, Tony would interrupt to remind him to eat or breath or chew properly, sometimes even giving a comment of his own, but otherwise, he was happy to let Peter do all the talking. He had missed this, the feeling of having nowhere to be, of having no one on your back about doing something or other, just spending time with his son.
Tony had finished his breakfast and was on his second mug of coffee while Peter was finishing his last pancake when he abruptly cut off his stream of babble and gasped. Tony looked up sharply, his heart skipping a beat in worry, only to find his son staring out the kitchen window. Tony turned to look too and found snowflakes falling gently to the ground. He grinned. Having lived in Malibu all his life, Peter had never seen snow before and Tony couldn't wait to see what he would do.
"Its snowing" Peter said, wonder clear in his voice. He quickly turned to his father, "Can we go play in it? please please please!" Tony chuckled.
"Finish your pancake first, Pete, then we can bundle up and go outside." Tony didn't think he had ever seen Peter finish three-quarters of a pancake so fast. He was then jumping off the stool – giving Tony a heart attack in the process – and taking off to their room. Tony ran after him quickly after downing the rest of his coffee, regretting that he had let Pete have the sugar this early in the morning.
After Tony had swaddled Peter in as many layers as would fit on his small frame and deemed him finally ready, he put on his own gear – though not nearly as much as Peter- and picked Peter up and walked out.
Peter gasped and stared at everything. The world had been transformed into a winter wonderland, so much like the movies, Peter watched. The snow was still falling, and Peter grabbed onto his dad's shoulders before leaning back and trying to catch a snowflake on his tongue, giggling when he could.
Tony watched his son experience his first snowfall and couldn't help the swell of love in him as he looked at his closed eyes, his pale skin rosy with cold and little tongue peeking out trying to catch the snow. Tony had never much cared for snow, it was one of the reasons he loved Malibu so much, but watching Peter laugh as he felt the snow hit his tongue, Tony decided that he loved snow.
A few minutes later, Peter pulled himself up and grinned at Tony, Tony smiled back at the boy who had snowflakes caught on his eyelashes and hat, nose turning pink.
"Can I play in it please?" Peter asked, already wiggling and gazing longingly at the snow-covered ground.
"Sure, bambino, just make sure you don't run off to far," Tony crouched down and set him down, the snow crunching beneath him. Peter stared at it in wonder before he took another step, laughing at the feeling. He jumped and ran, laughing all the while. Tony watched him amused.
Peter suddenly fell back, and Tony jolted, starting to run to him before he saw Peter moving his arms and legs and realized what he was doing. Tony sighed in relief before walking over. He took out his phone and snapped a picture of Peter from above. It was too cute to resist, his kid with such a wide smile on his flushed cheeks, making a snow angel.
"Come on, daddy, make one too!" Peter gazed up at him, and he could see the pout beginning to form before he sighed, his protests dying on his lips as he got down in the now next to him and started making one too. Tony would have felt ridiculous if not for the huge smile Peter shot him, and how they turned their heads to look at each other while going so.
Peter decided that he wanted to experience all the wonders of snow that he had seen on TV and of course dragged Tony into doing them with him, after all, it was so much more fun playing with daddy.
They threw snowballs, they built a snowman and they even found a sledge tucked away in a room in the cabin and a convenient hill. Tony would treasure all the memories made that day, especially the one of holding Peter around the middle tightly, hearing him scream and laugh out as they went soaring down the hill before reaching the bottom and Peter jumping out yelling, "Again again again!"
It had started going dark when Peter approached him, and his brow instantly furrowed at the tears glistening in Peter's eyes and his quivering lip. "What's wrong Petey?" Tony crouched down to be at eye level with him, trying to find what could have dampened his kid's bright mood
"My fingers really really hurt daddy" Peter whimpered, and Tony looked down to see Peter's soaking wet gloves "They hurt" Peter cried out again and Tony knew they had gotten way too cold. Tony gently took his wet hand in his own, shushing him softly when he whimpered.
"Sh-sh, its alright bambino, its okay" Tony mumbled to him softly as he slowly peeled away Peter's right glove from his hand, Peter's quiet cries piercing his heart. When that glove came off, he immediately started on the other, quiet reassurances continued to fall from his lips.
As both gloves came off, Tony took Peter's hands in his own. They were ice cold. There was no heat at all radiating from them and that worried Tony. He wanted to rub his hands over Peter's to try and generate more warmth, but he knew that would just hurt him so refrained for the time being.
Tony figured inside would be better to warm Peter up so scooped him up and walked inside, not stopping to put Peter down but carrying on towards the kitchen.
He went straight over to the tap and turned on the hot water. He had some basic first aid training and knew not to put someone suffering from hypothermia into hot but into warm water and gradually start turning up the heat and, while Peter didn't have hypothermia (Tony shuddered at the thought), he figured it would be the same concept.
Tony put his hand under the tap and adjusted it until he felt it was the right temperature. The action reminded him of preparing Peter's bottle when he was a baby, testing it to see if it was the right temperature on his wrist. The thought brought a sense of nostalgia and love for the boy sitting on his hip, hands currently resting on his shoulders and he felt the overwhelming urge to show it. So he turned his head and kissed Peter's temple softly. It brought a giggle from the boy who looked up through his damp lashes at him. Tony smiled at him adoringly.
Tony took Peter's hands gently in one of his and brought them under the water. He slowly felt Peter relax after having them there for a little while so kept them there for a little while longer before he took them out and dried them with a nearby towel.
"Thank you, daddy," Peter told him, looking up at him in that way that never failed to turn Tony to mush, and then leaned over and planted a kiss right to Tony's cheek. If Tony wasn't mush before, he definitely was now, in fact, Tony was almost certain if he looked down there would be a puddle of Peter-loving goo on the floor.
Tony wrapped his arms around Peter and pulled him into his chest, squeezing him as tightly as he could without hurting him. Peter squeezed back just as tightly from where his arms were wrapped around Tony's neck. Tony felt so much love he didn't know how it was possible, towards this tiny human who had somehow stolen his heart right out of his chest. And was apparently now squeezing. What other explanation was there for the tight feeling in his chest?
He stood suddenly from his crouched position on the floor, Peter still wrapped securely in his arms. The rise was so unexpected that Peter let out a squeal as he was lifted.
"Come on bud, let's take off these wet clothes and get some food in you so we can get changed into comfy pyjamas and cuddle all night long. How does that sound?"
Peter nodded enthusiastically and grinned, "That sounds like the bestest idea daddy"
Tony smiled and didn't bother correcting his English. He knew that Pepper would have but he found Peter's phrasing adorable. Besides, he knew he would grow out of it so might as well enjoy it while he could.
He helped Peter take off the heaps of layers he was wearing and thanks to them, Peter's trousers where the only thing to be wet (other than the winter gear and coat of course) so he changed those and followed Tony out the room.
Peter sat at the kitchen counter doing a puzzle while Tony went about making dinner. Tony had decided to stick with something simple but delicious tonight and so pasta it was. As he poured the chopped tomatoes into a pan, he looked over to see how Peter was doing, only to find him finished the previous puzzle and halfway through the next. Tony grinned. He had no doubt that his kid was a genius. Like father like son after all. They made idle chat but were happy to be engulfed in comfortable silence.
His time in the snow must have really worn Peter out because he barely said a word. From time to time Tony would look over to check if he had fallen asleep or if he was okay, but every time he was met with Peter staring intensely at the puzzle he was doing, sometimes his tongue would peak out when he was concentrating hard. Tony had to restrain himself from 'aw'ing at the sight knowing Peter wouldn't appreciate it. He also didn't want to pop his little bubble of focus but as he finished making the meal, he found that he had no choice.
He walked around the island to stand behind Peter, gently putting a hand on his back. Peter startled, and his head snapped around. He relaxed immediately when he was met with his dad's smiling face.
"Come on now Pete, go wash your hands an get ready for dinner." Peter rushed to put his puzzles away and wash his hands, only now fully realizing how hungry he was. When Peter was ready, he rushed back to the kitchen as Tony was finishing serving up the pasta. He put down the plate he was holding and picked Peter up to sit him down on the higher than usual chair.
Dinner went similar to how breakfast went. Peter seemed to have regained a lot of his energy now that he had food in his stomach and was back to talking Tony's ear off recounting his experiences that day and even though Tony was with him the whole time, he didn't mind listening to his son retelling it to him, although he did almost knock over his plate with a particularly exuberant hand gesture.
"Can we do this again daddy?" Peter asked when he had finished recounting the day's events and was now more focused on his father and his dinner.
"What? Play in the snow? Sure, we can buddy. If it's still there we can play in it tomorrow. Though we won't stay out as long next time"
Peter was marginally appeased but it looked like he wanted to say something else, so Tony waited patiently. He didn't have to wait long, within 20 seconds Peter was talking again.
"Not just playing in the snow, though that was really fun. Can we go away again? Just the two of us, me and you? Sometimes Uncle Rhodey should come and maybe Pepper if she wants, but us two to do fun stuff again?"
Tony sighed. He knew Peter missed him when he had to do boring work-related things and the past few months had been gruelling, so many different work functions, presentations and meetings he couldn't weasel his way out of (the downsides of being CEO), he had barely seen Peter some days and that was unacceptable to him. He resolved to never let that happen again, his decision solidified seeing the sadness in Peter's eyes. He wasn't going to let anything put that sadness in his son's eyes, least of all himself or his company.
"Absolutely sweetheart. We will definitely do this again, and we should totally bring uncle Rhodey with us to some. And Peter, I know that in the past few months I haven't really been around as much as I wanted to, but I promise it will never happen again okay?"
Peter nodded, his eyes suspiciously glassy but with a small smile on his face. Tony opened his arms and Peter melted into his side. I was adorable that Peter's arms couldn't yet reach all the way around his waist, and Tony hefted him up and placed him in his lap get a better grip on him.
All this cuddliness must be a side effect of the snow, no wonder it is on almost every greeting card this season, families out together, surrounded by it.
After a while Peter pulled back and grinned widely at Tony, Tony responding likewise, his smile only growing as he saw the tomato sauce surrounding Peter's mouth. He placed Peter back on his chair to finish his food while Tony finished his own.
After they were finished, Tony put their plates in the sink and started washing them. "Can I help please daddy?" Petr asked and Tony looked down at him to find him staring up at him which an endearingly helpful look on his face. Tony smile, "Sure thing Petey-pie" Tony dragged one of the high stools over from the table and lifted Peter up to kneel on it so he could reach the sink. He handed him the forks and a sponge with dish soap already on it. the cabin, while nice in every way, was severely lacking on the technology from an didn't have any electrical devices other than the TV, the kitchen stuff and the heaters. This meant no dishwasher and they had to do it themselves.
Surprisingly, Tony found he didn't mind having to do the dishes and even started on the plates and cups from breakfast. It was strangely therapeutic, and Tony loved the domestic feel of standing by the sink with his son and doing something so mundane as doing dishes. After all the ceramics had been washed and dried Tony looked to see that Peter had copied him and had dried the cutlery, he had been cleaning.
"All done there, kiddo? Seems like you did a really good job on those forks and spoons, we might have to have you do them every time." Peter had a large smile on his face, happy to have been a help and that his dad liked what he did. He loved making his dad proud, he got a glimmer in his eyes that only Peter ever got to see and he loved that, that he had something with his dad that no one else did, no one else saw that glimmer and it wasn't directed anyway than to him.
Tony picked Peter up off the chair and placed him on the ground before moving the chair back to its place at the table. They walked to their bedroom and Tony picked out their pyjamas, Peter insisting to dress himself, "I'm 4 now daddy, a big boy, I can get changed myself" Tony purposely picked pyjamas without buttons so he wouldn't have to ask for help. They also just made them all the more comfortable in Tony's opinion, no hard, bumpy buttons getting in the way.
Tony also got dressed into a ridiculously fuzzy pair of pyjamas which he was pretty sure Rhodey got him as a joke one Christmas. Oh well, what he doesn't know can't hurt him, and it would spare Tony an awful amount of teasing. He went about starting a fire in the fireplace which was much harder than it looked on TV. Tony was getting steadily more frustrated - seriously how did people do this? – and had just about reached his breaking point where he was going to say screw it and get a lighter when finally, finally a spark caught on the kindling. Tony sat back on his heals triumphantly as the fire continued to grow, engulfing the logs in the fireplace. Then he heard the telltale pitter-patter of little feet on the wooden floors and smiled.
When Peter came running out of the bedroom on his little toddler legs after having successfully put on his pyjamas by himself, he had a smile so wide it showed his adorable dimples. Tony couldn't help it as he ran towards him and picking him up and twirling him around before throwing him into the air. Peter's gleeful squeals filled the cabin as he spread his arms wide into the air and even as he fell, he had an absolute unwavering faith that his father would catch him again. and with good reason, there was no way Tony would ever let Peter fall.
After a round of a tickling fight that included a chase around the house and a close call with a glass ornament, the pair sat cuddled on the sofa in front of the now roaring flame, each cradling a mug of hot chocolate. The making of this hot chocolate had ended with Peter having a nose dusted in cocoa powder and sneezing 9 consecutive times. The combination of his adorable sneezes and the baffled look on his face afterwards left Tony with a hard time trying not to coo at him, just the memory brought a smile to his face and he glanced down to the child curled up into his side.
His son's weight against his side was comforting and Tony felt himself relax completely in a way he never had before as a result of growing up in constant media attention, a rubbish home life and then later on a company to own and manage and a child to look after. Not that looking after Peter was stressful, in fact, it was the part of Tony's life that he valued the most, the part he wouldn't give up for anything, nothing at all. But the idea of having a baby relying wholly on him had never failed to intimidate him. How easy would it be to completely ruin Peter's life of his happiness?
It terrified Tony sometimes but when the doubts got to be too much Peter would come barging in with a new story to tell or something to show him or to simply spend time with him and all of Tony's doubts would fly out of the window, sealed out with a layer of love and protectiveness. Because no matter what, Tony knew he would do everything in his power and beyond that to make sure that the smile never left Peter's face. And he knew, deep down where his insecurities failed to break, that he could never be his father. He had taken one look at Peter's angelic little face and had fallen in love faster than you could say the word. And he knew that he could never hurt Peter, it went against his every instinct, just the idea of it being a possibility send a spike of pain through him and he unconsciously tightened his arm around Peter.
Peter looked up and smiled up at him, and as usual, the smile burned away all the doubt pain and insecurity. Tony laughed when he saw the moustache of hot chocolate that decorated his son's face, the boy himself not seeming to care as he just popped another one of the obscene amount of marshmallows in his mug into his mouth.
"So, do you like it here in the cabin Peter?" Tony asked conversationally, his attention trailing from the flickering fire to the boy tucked into his side genuinely curious about what the kid thought. Peter's eyes immediately brightened.
"I love it here, its so much fun! There's so much to do and we haven't even explored the full house yet, can we do that tomorrow daddy? And I also want to go play in the snow again tomorrow, it was really really fun, even more fun than they have on TV" Tony stared on amused at his son babbled on, happy that he was enjoying himself. Tony quirked a brow at the last statement.
"Why do you think that is, bud?" Peter appeared to think about it for a moment, a cute look of concentration came to his face as he stared into the fire and Tony smiled at it waiting for his answer. He did not, however, expect the answer he got.
"Because they didn't have you there daddy" Peter finally said, voice firm with resolve, sounding sure in his answer and Tony felt a lump form in his throat. He blinked rapidly and cleared his throat trying to formulate a response, but Peter beat him to it when he added, "And we're in the middle of nowhere which is pretty cool" Peter shrugged and ate another marshmallow.
"Are you sure about that? What if a bear or something breaks in at night? There won't be anyone there to help us" Tony teased. Now teasing is something he could do with ease, but Peter just stared at him like he had two heads.
"We won't need anyone there to help us, we've got you, daddy. I'm always safe with you" Peter added a bit quieter, "You're my safe place" Tony was left speechless and that damn lump had come back, only now it had apparently also fallen down to his heart and was swelling. Warmth spread through him and it had nothing to do with the drink in his hand or the fire a few feet from him, instead, it had everything to do with the boy currently staring at him with such deep devotion and trust and admiration. On anyone else, Tony would have feared he would cave under the pressure of it, but it was Peter and instead of crushing him it made a wave of love wash over him, so huge it took his breath away.
Tony placed their mugs on the coffee table before gathering Peter in his arms and hugging him tight to his chest. "You're my safe place too" He murmured into his curly hair, fluffy from the day in the snow. He felt Peter beam against his chest and smiled, breathing in the smell that was so distinctly Peter.
It was true as well. With Peter, he didn't have to worry about putting up a front because Peter didn't expect him to be anything that he wasn't, just what he was. His daddy, the one who was there after a bad day to come running to, his shoulder to cry on and protector from his nightmares and the shadows in his room, the one who makes him pancakes on special days and cancels important business meetings to look after him when he is sick. The one who can cheer him up and make him laugh, who he always knows is going to be there for him. And Tony finds that that is the side of him that he loves the most, the only side really that he loves, and it was because Peter loved it, how could he really hate something that Peter loved? That made him happy? He couldn't. It was impossible because Peter's happiness is directly proportional to his.
Tony stroked a lazy hand through Peter's curls as Peter nuzzled into his neck. Tony might as well have been horizontal, the kid was basically on top of him, fingers curled into his pyjama top.
"Comfortable?" Tony asked him, voice a soft whisper.
Peter just nodded sleepily and let out a quiet 'hmmh', not moving an inch. Tony spent a few moments watching the fire that was still burning strong, despite its rocky start which reminded him of him and Peter like so many things did.
Their relationship had also started out rocky with mistakes on the way of earning what to do but in the end, those mistakes only made their bond stronger. They weren't just there for each other during the good times when everything was going how they had hoped, but also the times when they were a mess and needed someone to lean on. And even though Peter was just a child, practically a baby, that didn't stop him from being there for his dad. He could tell when he was having a hard time whether it be with the company, the memories or the media and he would be there for him, offer a distraction when he needed one, remind him of one of their happy memories together or just offer silent support. He would toddle up to wherever his father was and lap in his lap of beside him, making sure they were touching somewhere to show that he was there if or when he was needed. Just because Peter wasn't an adult didn't change how extremely empathic the kid was, or how much he wanted to help his father.
Tony knew he should get up from the sofa to go to bed but he found himself reluctant to do so. He was comfortable and warm, lying on the sofa with a fire burning, in the middle of nowhere, far away from duties and obligations, hot chocolate in his stomach and a- no his – content, sleeping child in his arms. It was all he could ever ask for. And as he fell asleep to flickering flames and Peter's soft breaths against his neck, he had one thought. Yeah, this was definitely a good idea.
Author's Note
I hope you all enjoyed the story, it was my firs time properly writing Kid Peter and Tony being his dad. How did I do? I saw a tumblr post about this and just had to write it.
Until next time.