Tony swung the door to the restaurant open and stepped out quickly when he saw Peter fall to the ground. The sight of him on the floor clutching at his knees like they were a lifeline made Tony sick. His instincts kicked in and he immediately went to grab Peters shoulder in comfort, realizing too late that it was the wrong thing to do. Instead of leaning into it, like Tony had expected, Peter immediately pulled back from the touch as though it burned him.
"No, don't touch me! I don't want to hurt you," Peter forced out, his words wavering. Shaking hands reached up to grab his head as though it was protecting him from all the horrible thoughts.
"You're not going to hurt me, Parker." Tony knew it was a blatant lie, but he didn't really know what else to say. As he crouched next to the suffering kid, he fumbled with his hands, not sure what to do but also not wanting to make contact with him.
"Yes, I will! It's not like I haven't before... remember? " The air crackles with even more tension as a heavy silence settles over the two. Tony remembers the night as if it happened the day before.
That night Peter had spent with his friends, so he was a little late to the movie with Pepper, Happy, and myself. Suddenly a 'ding' came from the elevator, revealing Peter and Happy. I ignored the two as they walked in, continuing my conversation with Pepper about Star Wars, which Peter coaxed me into watching.
"I mean, how do these guys get away with being so reckless? Look at the mess they're making… it's ridiculous."
"Says you, the one who literally flew a nuke into a wormhole," Pepper quipped. Wow, I was not expecting that.
"Well, what else did you expect me to do? Let everyone in New York, and possibly beyond, die?" I said, half jokingly. I felt a tightness start to form in my chest at the memory of the trauma. Crap, I can't deal with emotions. Thank goodness Peter decided to join at that second or else it would have gotten really uncomfortable.
"I'm pretty sure I agree with Pepper on this, that was pretty crazy…" I turned towards Peter and I opened my mouth to say something in his defense, but Happy so rudely interrupted me. He shouted from the kitchen, where he was popping some popcorn, "It was dangerous Tony, but you did save tons of lives."
I rolled my eyes, "You're all ganging up on me now?" I turned to Peter with a half-smirk on my face. "Honestly, you're one to talk, you could've died during that ferry fiasco a little while ago-"
Peter groaned in annoyance. But being the prideful kid he was, I knew he would have some witty comeback. "I also didn't build a robot intent on destroying all of humanity, think about that." The end came out with a bite. There he is. But as I turned to him, I could tell we weren't just joking around anymore. Pent up regret and anger were bubbling to the surface. Peters annoyed-beyond-belief face slowly morphing into one of rage.
"Well I'm not the one who got a building dropped on him," I reprimanded. "Not to mention taking on a villain that clearly was too much for you to handle."
I must've overstepped some boundaries because the kids face just went blank, I couldn't tell if he was angry or sad. I reached a hand out to rest it on his shoulder, in an attempt to calm him down a little. Peter drew back with a flinch and met my eyes with his own, the burning rage and hatred swimming in the previously wide-doe-eyes I loved so much. Silence mingled with the new but intense tension that filled the air. "Kid, I-"
I was sharply cut off when Peter grabbed my outstretched hand and squeezed as hard as he could. I could hear and feel every bone in my hand break, but that's not what I was focused on. I couldn't stop looking into his eyes… they were filled with a sick sense of satisfaction. I don't know what's causing this, but this isn't the same Peter I know. The Peter I know, would never do something like this… or would he?
"Let's get you somewhere you can calm down," Tony spoke in a soft voice, trying to coax Peter off the cold, unforgiving ground and into the car. He tentatively places a hand on Peter's back, and without much of a reaction from the boy, guides him to the backseat of the car. Closing the door, he gets in the driver's seat and starts the journey to the Tower.
Looking in the rearview mirror back at the 'kid', Tony takes the time to really think about how much Peter has changed. It's crazy how much one experience can change someone. Peter went from a bright-eyed, chatty boy who never shut up about science theories or bike robberies to a young man who has been burdened with the fear of himself, shying away from everyone for the fear that he will hurt them… again. The drive was silent. If it was because Peter had fallen asleep, exhausted from the episode earlier, or if he couldn't find it in himself to talk... Tony wasn't sure. The passing lights of the city became a blur when Tony delved deeper into thought, almost driving on autopilot now.
After a few minutes Peter started to shuffle in the back seat. His breathing was shallow, Tony realized, probably because of the way he had slept. Quicker than expected, Peter shot up in a panic.
"Calm down Peter, you're alright," Tony spoke softly, attempting to comfort the boy before he had the chance to fall back into his panicked state. He could almost immediately see the way Peter's eyes diverted to the cars floor as though it was the most interesting thing in the world. "So… um, how are things with May?" Tony hesitantly questioned. He'd been trying to make conversation, simply because of the fact that Peter looked like he wanted to jump out of the car. "It's, uh... it's been rough," Peter mumbled, his arms wrapped around himself, not in defense, but rather to comfort himself. Tony was left with the familiar want to wrap his arms around the boy. "How so?" He asked, coaxing Peter on.
"I haven't talked to her in a while." His answers were short and to the point, but they were something.
"How come?" Tony found the comment worrying, May was Peter's second half. What happened?
"Well," Peter paused, seemingly noticing Tony's subtle ploy to get him to open up. "It's complicated."
Tony hums in acknowledgment and then the car is enveloped in a uncomfortable silence. The ambiance of car honks and New York's nightlife buzzed all around them, creeping into the silence that's gripped the two passengers. As they turned around corners, weaving through the other cars, Peter swayed in the backseat, seemingly in his own world as he looked out the window. His eyes were just as glossy as the glass he peered out of.
A slight pang of guilt made its home in Tony's heart when he looked in the rearview mirror and back at the 'kid' who was obviously grappling with himself internally. The bright New York lights died out as they pulled into the underground parking garage, and the car coming to a halt when they parked. Tony sat in his seat for a moment, thinking. He wanted to do something, anything, to reach out to his kid and try to uncover the bright and carefree Peter Parker he once knew. But as he glanced back at the kid when he got out of the driver's seat, he knew it would be a long journey to find that joy that the kid had before. He saw a million problems and worries swimming behind the kid's eyes, Peter not even having noticed that they were parked. Tony knocked slightly on the car door, pulling Peter out of whatever funk he had fallen into after their short conversation came to an end.
He opened the door for the miserable looking teenager. In that moment when Tony saw the kid drag himself out of the seat and to stand outside the car with his eyes looking anywhere but to meet Tony's own, he decided that he would tear the world apart to bring back the kid he once knew. He'd do anything to place the happiness and youthful-innocence back into that kid's eyes. They'd both fucked up, but Tony Stark was going to do something right for the first time in his life, and set things straight.