Hello friends! This is a fanfic idea I have been chewing on for a while now. I have been a bit skeptical to write it because, despite being a history major, I know surprisingly little about the military. I'm just gonna do what I gotta do for the sake of the plot, so ENJOY!
Peter wished he could live in this moment. His brother was temporarily home from the war for a reason Peter did not know, though he was glad to be able to spend even a few days with him. This brief visit happened to time up perfectly with the New York City Stark Expo, which the 15-year-old had only ever dreamed of attending, and his older brother saw that this dream came true. His brown stared in amazement at all the inventions surrounding him, both inspiring and challenging his own genius, occasionally glancing at brother, whose presence had him in awe as well.
It had been months since he had seen him, and that time hadn't exactly been easy for the remains of their family. Their mom had fallen sick, leaving May- their sister- to support them. She was gone constantly, working in the factories making, still, barely enough even with their brother's pay from his service. Steve's mere presence, though, had the power to make things feel at least slightly normal. His kind-hearted humor, and 'Good- Samaritan' nature fit into Peter's life with the same ease it always had.
Obviously, he was different- no one returns from war the same whether they're gone for a few months or a few years. The biggest change being his physique. Steve climbed the ranks quickly, which left Peter baffled, being that his sickly brother barely managed to get enlisted. The man before him now, though, was so obviously still his brother, yet so blatantly different. While war can make one stronger and faster, it cannot make one taller, in fact very few things can. Peter was determined to figure out what caused this phenomenon, being that his older sibling went from being four inches shorter than him, to four inches taller.
Despite it all, having Steve around was still a welcomed taste of life before the war. Before the rations, before the paranoia, before the propaganda. Before his mother's illness and his sister's absence. Before his uselessness.
Peter let these thoughts leave his brain so he could focus, instead, on Howard Stark's demonstration of a flying car prototype. A label read 'The Car of the Future' but the future, these days, was hard to think about.
"Hey Peter," Steve nudged his arm, "when this is over I have a surprise." He gave Peter a cheeky smirk. After the end of Howard's speech, Steve grabbed the younger's arm and yanked him through the crowd. They went past some doors that Peter was pretty sure were off limits, and ended up behind the stage, on which, they were just watching the demonstration.
"Hey, Howard!" Steve hollered while Peter flushed red, cringing at the fact that his brother just called one of the world's most famous men by his first name after sneaking backstage. What he wasn't expecting was the boisterous, "Captain! Good to see you!" That his brother received in response. The two men briefly hugged before Howard spotted Peter.
"Who's the tag along?" He questioned, almost skeptically.
"This is my brother, Peter." Peter didn't miss the look of warning that Howard shot Steve. "Relax Howard, Peter is a science geek himself- he's not going to break your toys. I thought I would introduce him to you- he's somewhat of a genius himself, I would say."
Howard turned to Peter and gave him a hand shake. "Normally when people introduce someone as 'a genius' I assume it's a dotting exaggeration at best, but I don't think your brother even has the ability to lie."
"It's an honor to meet you, sir." Peter says overeagerly, earning a chuckle from his brother.
"The nauseating manors must run in the family." Howard quips it more at Steve than Peter, but still leaves the kid feeling embarrassed. "Relax kid, I'm rich, not royalty. It was good to see you Steve. You'll have to reintroduce us when this chaos is over- the war not my expo- speaking of, I should get back to that. Try not to die on me." The man said with a charismatic wave as he walked away.
"How the heck, do you know Howard Stark? You're supposed to tell me these things!" Peter exclaimed to his older brother.
"There's a lot I don't tell you…" Steve mumbles, and immediately regrets when he sees his brother's analytical expression. "Howard isn't the only Stark I know," he blurts in an attempt to save himself from his previous utterance.
"Wait… WHAT?! Are you suggesting that you know Tony Stark, as in THE TONY STARK?" He assumes from the younger's excitement that he forgot about his previous cryptic statement. He turned to his little brother and offered him a fond chuckle. This kid was still, well, a kid, and Steve was determined to keep it that way.
