Welcome back everyone! I hope youre ready for a slight intermission, no fight, no crippling devastation, just Tony and Peter having some quality time together and three guest appearances :) I hope you have fun!
No TW!
Have fun and stay safe ❤️️ 💛💚💙💜
Upgrades are a lot easier said than done, especially when you haven't properly hung out with your idol in a while. Focusing hasn't ever been one of Peter's strong suits and that certainly hasn't changed post-spider bite. He wrote all of his current ideas down, including retractable and acid resistant webs, but he doesn't know where to start. It's one thing to say you want to change chemical composition and another thing to actually execute it. Especially when you want a specific outcome.
It doesn't take long for Tony to notice Peter's brewing frustration. The back-and-forth banter turns into chatter until it's reduced to the occasional comment. When the kid goes silent for a solid ten minutes, that's a dead giveaway. Hyperfixation. Tony doesn't want him more stressed over Scorpion than he already is, so he decides to intervene.
"Hey, kiddo," Tony starts as he meanders over to Peter, "need some help?" He doesn't want to make Peter feel incapable, so the choice is left up to him.
"No thanks, Mr. Stark," Peter politely responds without looking up. He's balancing equation after equation, trying to get the chemistry right. Tony nods to himself and silently wonders if this is the kind of stubbornness Pepper has to deal with when it comes to himself.
"What do you say we take that lunch break, then?" he attempts to propose instead. If there's any way he can get Peter to take a break, he'll try it. Peter presses his lips together in concentration as he scribbles out his thoughts. After a few moments of Tony's question hanging in the air, Peter groans and lets his head fall onto his open notebook.
"I'm tired and I'm angry and I hurt," his muffled voice complains. Tony rolls his eyes at the teenage melodrama, yet pats Peter's back encouragingly.
"I know, UV rays and scorpions suck. Would a milkshake make it better?" Peter slowly peaks up, half of his face still smooshed against his notebook.
"Vanilla?" he asks in a quiet, hopeful voice. Tony scoffs with a look of disbelief.
"Of course you'd be the only kid in existence who prefers vanilla. Yeah, sure, vanilla milkshake it is. Up we go." He nudges Peter's side, which he knows is ticklish, to get the kid moving.
"Hey, that's not fair," Peter whines as his muscles tense. Only May and Tony know he's ticklish and he'd like to keep it that way. Still, they know how to get him moving. As soon as he stands, he stretches out his back with a groan. "Do I look less red yet?" he asks hopefully. Tony looks him over, then shrugs.
"I'd say you're more of a pink now," he says with a smirk. All that does is make Peter groan louder. "Come on, I'm driving." That makes Peter sober up a bit, shooting Tony a skeptical look.
"How come Happy's not driving us?" he questions. Tony gives him the noncommittal shrug of his shoulders.
"Because I said so. And I'm giving him the holidays off," he answers with a blasé demeanor. However, Peter sees right through it.
"You literally had him pick me up yesterday," he reminds as they walk side-by-side out of the lab.
"Yeah, well." Following that halfhearted retort, they make their way down the elevator and out of the Tower. True to Tony's word, they go to one of his many cars in the parking complex and he beeps an Audi. Peter is about to make a comment about the Audi not being undercover per se, but then catches a glimpse of his segway.
"Mr. Stark! Can I ride my segway there instead?!" he pleads excitedly and jogs ahead just enough to turn around and face Tony. This is what Tony was afraid of. It's not like he can take away the gift, even if it does cause him copious amounts of stress.
"No can do, kiddo. No driver's license means no segway on the streets." His reasoning seems fair to him, but Peter thinks otherwise. The teen narrows his eyes and stops to stare at the segway. Tony simply walks past him to the Audi and opens the driver door.
"Do you need a driver's license to drive a segway?" Peter genuinely wonders aloud, looking back to Tony.
"Who knows. You coming or what?" Tony asks impatiently. They both know he'd never leave without the kid, but he can still be exasperated. Well, if he didn't answer the question then Peter has to take matters into his own hands.
"F.R.I.D.A.Y.!" he calls to the ceiling. "Do you need a license for a-"
"Nope! Absolutely not. In you go. The last thing I need is you two teaming up without Pepper here to moderate." Tony says that now, but they all know Pepper would lean towards siding with Peter. Well, maybe not in this specific situation.
"Fine," Peter draws out and relents by getting in the passenger seat. Tony drives out of the garage and, as he does so, Peter initiates a conversation.
"Wanna do another nerd shopping session?" he asks, chuckling at the memory. On the other hand, Tony cringes and scrunches up his face.
"Not particularly. But I won't make you go suit shopping again either." Peter beams at the thought of not having to look at more overpriced suits.
"Deal," he agrees. For some reason, the topic sends his mind into a self-reflecting spiral. To think that just a few months ago, he was going suit shopping with Tony and overthinking. He still overthinks sometimes, but not as much and they weren't exactly on the best of terms back then. They fought a lot and said things they regretted…but now it actually feels like their friendship is normal. Like another person he can hold onto and trust.
Like another person you can lose. Ah, there's the infamous intrusive thoughts. He can't help but think about the nightmare from last night. If there's one thing he won't let happen…it's letting history repeat itself.
"Lord, do I dare ask what you're thinking about? Every time I do, I get a philosophical factoid or an existential crisis," Tony speaks up to break the silence, keeping his eyes on the road. It's a tempting question, and Peter might just have to take him up on it…
"Nah, I have to say them when you least expect it. Otherwise it isn't fun," he says innocently. For a brief moment, he actually considers answering Tony's question instead of deflecting it with humor. Yet, considering the anniversary yesterday and the nightmare last night, he chooses to keep the thoughts to himself. "So, where are we going for milkshakes?" he inquires instead. Tony notices the hesitation, but decides not to push it. They're both all out of emotions for at least the next week.
"Unless your sandwich friend-"
"Mr. Delmar."
"-makes milkshakes, then I was thinking a regular fast food joint," he finishes, ignoring Peter's correction. "That way, you get your boring, vanilla shake and I get a cheeseburger." For the rest of the ride, the two chat about whether or not vanilla is a valid flavor preference. Of course, it ends with Tony giving in and Peter's stubbornness, and puppy eyes, winning him the debate. When they get to the burger joint, the first thing Peter does is look at the Holiday themed menu with distaste. Tony catches it and raises an eyebrow.
"What's up with you?" he questions as they wait in the short line.
"I forgot everything's mint flavored in December," Peter grumbles, eyeing the seasonal, mint flavored milkshake. That along with every other mint flavored thing in existence during the holidays. Tony snorts in amusement.
"You don't like mint?"
"Hypersensitive senses, remember?" Peter points out. "Learned that one the hard way. It makes my nose burn and my eyes water." For some reason, Tony doesn't seem all that fazed by the explanation.
"What, that's it?" he asks with a smile as the line inches forward.
"Did you expect it to make me keel over? It's just mint and I'm not a full on spider," Peter explains in a hushed tone. Luckily, the noise from the fryer and conversations throughout the building drown out his comment. Tony shrugs his shoulders in response, even though that had been exactly what he was thinking.
"Says the kid who can't drink diluted booze," he teases. Peter's face immediately heats up with embarrassment, flushing a light pink against his already sunburnt face.
"That's, that's different!" he wholeheartedly defends as he tries to hide his tinted cheeks. Before Tony can quip back to fluster him more, they're up next to order. They both walk up to the counter, Peter with a pout, and are greeted by an elderly man.
"How can I help you?" the friendly man greets enthusiastically. For some reason, he's wearing sunglasses inside…but then again, so is Tony.
"Hey, we'll take a double cheeseburger with everything on it, fries extra salt, and a large vanilla shake." As Tony finishes, Peter is already pinning him with a skeptical look.
"Extra salt? I thought you had high blood pressure," Peter distinctly remembers him constantly complaining about his hypertension.
"You're my high blood pressure," Tony fires back halfheartedly, instead of acknowledging the point. Even though he turns back to the register, Peter continues.
"That doesn't even make any sense, Mr. Stark."
"Oh trust me, it does." Tony pulls a few bills out of his pocket and hands it to the old man. "Thanks, uh," he glances down to the name tag, "Stan." When he looks back up, Stan is smiling widely.
"You're order number is forty-two," Stan announces and passes them a card with his shaky hand. "Hey, I know you. You're Tony Stank." The moment the words are spoken, Tony is drawing a slow breath in through his nose. He's getting a horrible case of dejá vu while Peter tries to stifle a snicker with his sleeve.
"Stank," the teen repeats into the fabric.
"I met you on another one of my jobs," Stan explains. "I've seen you on the television too, you must be famous." Tony awkwardly clears his throat and half shrugs, half nods.
"I guess you could say that," he reluctantly agrees, unsure of where this is going. All he wants is his cheeseburger. Stan's gaze shifts to Peter next, who immediately quiets his smothered laughter.
"You must be real special to be hangin' out with someone famous," he reasons out. Peter rapidly glances between Tony and the man.
"Uh, I, I guess?" He swallows thickly and hides his hands in his sleeves. Tony flashes him a smirk and gently elbows his side.
"Hear that? I'm a celebrity." Peter pointedly ignores him and continues.
"I'm kinda just here. I'm nobody, really." Leaving it as vague as possible, he nods and presses his lips together. He's never been the best at acting nonchalant.
"Everybody's a somebody. We all have something important to offer that no one else can," Stan confidently counters, the smile never leaving his face. "Enjoy who you are. Life's too short not to. Trust me." He looks past them, as if staring at an invisible audience… Peter is stunned silent for a few moments, but then returns the kind smile. He can't help but feel at ease.
"Thank you, sir," he politely says, standing a little taller. Tony looks down at the kid, a fond smile tugging at his lips, and they wait off to the side for their order.
A few minutes later, Peter's milkshake is set on the counter and, with a nod of thanks, he takes it over to the soda fountain to get a straw. As soon as he turns around, a mild tingle alerts him to quickly step out of the way. He does so without missing a beat and narrowly escapes colliding head first into someone.
"I'm so sorry, sir!" he apologizes profusely despite not bumping into the stranger. When he turns around, he sees a man with blue eyes and combed brown hair.
"Don't worry about it. You alright?" the stranger checks. Peter immediately nods, maybe a bit too much.
"Yeah! Yeah, um, I'm, I'm Peter." Why did I just tell a stranger my name for absolutely no reason? Still, the stranger chuckles and smiles ever so slightly.
"Tobey," he introduces as well. "Your drink okay?" Peter glances down to his milkshake and then back up to Tobey, just to be sure.
"Mhm! It's vanilla. I don't know why I said that. It's not like you, you were asking what kind it was…so…" He gulps as the space between them becomes a bit awkward, at least to him. However, Tobey doesn't seem all that bothered. "I really like vanilla milkshakes," Peter says to break the silence. Luckily, it appears that Tobey is all for a spontaneous conversation.
"They're good. I think I prefer the mint ones, though. I wait for them all year." He holds up his own snowflake-themed cup slightly higher to prove his point. Peter smiles too before saying,
"Nice! That's the cool thing about preferences. We can have completely different opinions about things without, like, tearing each other apart." He has no clue where he's going with this, but it feels right. Tobey laughs, yet nods in agreement.
"And we respect each other's opinion. My opinion doesn't make me better than you. Seems like a lot of people these days don't understand that." For some reason it feels like they click. Like they understand each other without having to say much.
"Exactly," Peter concurs. Their conversation is cut short when someone else skids to a stop in front of them. Peter half expects to see Tony, but instead sees a guy with headphones in, frantic brown eyes, and disheveled, dark hair.
"'Scuse me! My bad! Emergency! Coming through!" he yells urgently as he slips in between the two and starts grabbing handfuls of napkins out of the dispensers. When he turns around, he freezes. The three of them stare at each other, almost as if unable to move at all, and the world seems to stand still.
"Andrew! Hurry! It's gonna drip off the table!" The voice jumpstarts the three back into motion. Andrew runs back to his table with the napkins, Tobey clears his throat before exiting the joint, and Peter walks back to Tony.
"Ready, kiddo?" Tony asks with a paper bag in hand. He's already starting to eat the fries, impatient as always. Peter nods and steals one of the french fries to dip in his shake while they walk out. With a look of disbelief, Tony stares at the kid. "What on Earth are you doing to my perfectly good fries? What'd they ever do to you?" Peter simply maneuvers the bite into his mouth before it drips, then smiles proudly.
"This makes them better, trust me. You haven't lived until you've tried milkshake fries," he explains as he double-dips his fry. Tony scoffs as if insulted.
"First off, stop eating my fries. That's illegal. Second, don't say that like you invented fry milkshake dipping. We were doing that long before you were born," he begrudgingly points out, angrily munching on a fry. Though, he doesn't do anything to enforce his rule while Peter takes another fry.
"So what you're actually saying is that you're old." Peter's mischievious tone and sly glance cause Tony to feign shock.
"You know what? I'm going to be the mature adult here," Tony announces as he decidedly ignores the teen. Seeing his reaction, Peter steals yet another fry. His mentor's eyes shift to him as if planning an attack, but doesn't try to steal the fry back.
"Oh yeah? Since when?" Peter challenges, unconvinced.
"Since now, Half Pint." With that, Tony smiles triumphantly, probably a bit too happy with himself. It's the cold sensation on Peter's cheek that stops him from continuing their banter. When he gently touches his cheek, it feels slightly damp. He looks up to see small, white specks of snow floating on the wind. "Huh, would ya look at that," Tony voices his thoughts, following Peter's gaze.
"The first snow. Took a while," Peter mumbles in awe, still staring at the snowfall as they walk. No matter how many times he sees it, he's always captivated by the snow. As long as it's nice and calm like this, as opposed to the blizzards they occasionally get. His Spidey DNA definitely doesn't agree with that. Anything below 0°F or -17°C is where he taps out. Yes, he lives in the U.S. but it's not his fault his country made the dumb decision to use a different measurement system. He prefers the metric system, especially since that's what he uses in all his science classes and when he makes Spidey gear.
"Earth to Pete. Did the snow freeze your brain?" Oops, looks like I accidentally went on a rant in my head… He laughs nervously and takes a long sip of his milkshake, cringing at the end.
"No, I'll leave that to the milkshake," he grits out. His face scrunches up as the wave of pain passes. Tony can't help but chuckle at his expression.
"I see karma's doing her work." The two take a leisurely, relaxing walk to pass the time. It's even more busy than usual, traffic as far as the eye can see and a dull roar from the abundance of people crowding the sidewalks. Peter sips his milkshake, ignoring the way it adds to his already goosebump-ridden body. He might actually have to dig through his closet to find a winter coat for the next time he goes out. Man, winter sucks, he absentmindedly thinks.
"When's Pepper gonna be back?" he asks curiously. Mostly, he's simply attempting to make conversation, but he wants to see if he can get any information about the Accords too. In other words, he sucks at keeping a conversation going without Spidey banter or science facts. Tony shrugs in response as he chews, then answers once he's done.
"Who knows. Probably within the next few days. She doesn't trust me to not burn down the Tower or fly into space. Why?" He glances down to Peter, wondering why he wants to know. It's then that Peter shrugs his shoulders too.
"Just curious. The Tower feels kinda empty without her," he explains as he shoves his free hand in his pocket. "And I suck at keeping a conversation that isn't hero or science related." With the mild admission he chuckles nervously and averts his eyes, causing Tony to smile fondly.
"You're doing great, kid." Tony playfully ruffles his hair and avoids the batting hands. "I hate to break it to you but I'm both a hero and an engineer, so those are my favorite topics. Hell, I bet I could keep up a conversation about the weather," he feels the need to point out. The last thing he wants is for Peter to be uncomfortable. This appears to be the right thing to see, since Peter perks up at his suggestion.
"I can do boring talking stuff, like, all day," Peter assures. "Like how the snow is late this year even though it feels even more cold than last year. It'll be okay since my suit has a defrost mode like yours, which is really cool and all and…I went off on a superhero tangent already…" Tony chuckles and pats Peter's shoulder.
"Nothing wrong with talking about what's on your mind. If that just so happens to be our suit's heating units, then by all means have at it." With Tony's encouragement, Peter thinks for a moment. That's never a good sign.
"Your suit melts the ice right?" Tony nods, not understanding the train of thought yet. "But the suit's metal, so it still gets cold?" He raises an eyebrow, but nods again nonetheless. There are a few beats of silence. "You know that really old movie a Christmas story?" The silence continues, this time with Tony's unblinking expression. It takes a moment for him to catch Peter's thought process.
"I'm not going to triple dog dare you to lick my freezing armor," he shoots down before it can be fully asked. He must've hit the nail on the head since Peter pouts in response.
"Won't let me see if Raid affects me, won't let me stick my tongue to your armor. You're no fun," the teen grumbles in defeat.
Before long, they gradually begin talking about the holidays and make it to the edge of Central Park. There's a concrete wall overlooking the large pond and skeletons of trees, their leaves having fallen months ago. A slush begins to coat the sidewalk as the snow continues to drift to the ground, already being muddied by stampedes of feet and pollution.
"That's all we've got planned," Tony finishes explaining what he and Pepper will be doing for the holidays. Apparently they'll be sticking to a calm, uneventful time at the penthouse. This usually entails a brief gift exchange and a movie day followed by a homemade dinner. "What are you two doing for Hanukkah?" By now, Peter's milkshake is gone and he holds the empty cup loosely.
"We light the hanukkiyah each night and give each other our presents. Then we eat the best stuff like latkes and chocolate gelt and jelly doughnuts. Trust me, Mr. Stark, you haven't lived if you haven't had a homemade latke. May sucks at cooking and baking but if she can make anything, it's good latkes," he promises enthusiastically. "And sometimes we spend the twenty-fourth with Ned and MJ, 'cause Ned celebrates Christmas and MJ just likes to hang out." Tony nods to show that he's still listening. It's comforting to hear that despite them all having different ways to celebrate the holidays, they still come together.
"Well, if you and the gang want to come over on Christmas you're more than welcome. Rhodey might even be back by then, so you can all have fun driving me nuts," he offers and feigns exasperation. Peter looks up at him, slightly shocked that the man would open his home to them during a time for family. Mr. Stark considers us family…? Or am I just overthinking things again?
"Uh, yeah! That, that'd be awesome! Thank you so much! Of course I'll have to ask May if that's fine but I'm sure it will be and Ned's gonna freak and MJ's probably not gonna react but she'll be excited on the inside!" At the end of his excited rambling, he gasps in a deep breath. It's hard to remember to breathe when a superhero billionaire wants to spend the holidays with you. Tony smiles genuinely at the kid's energy that somehow seems to replenish his own. They both needed a break.
"On one condition." Peter stops freaking out long enough to listen to his terms. "You be extremely careful searching in the sewers. And I mean it, Peter. Better yet, call me when you get down there," Tony insists, giving Peter a pointed look so that he isn't given the chance to protest. Peter sighs, but can't say he isn't glad Tony will be tagging along. Sort of.
"Okay, but it's your funeral. Ned's gonna be on the comms with you." He smiles smugly and Tony blanches at the information. That Ned kid blows out his ears every time they see each other. Maybe he made the wrong call on this one… "But MJ isn't gonna be there, so you'll be like her fill in!" Peter continues to jab with an innocent smile. Tony scoffs indignantly.
"Fill in? I'm no one's fill in, kid. I'm the main event," he counters without hesitation.
"Not this time you aren't." Peter has way too much fun with zero remorse. With that, he gracefully turns on his heel and starts walking back the way he came. Tony shakes his head, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, and follows close behind.
Okay s o yes I added a Stan Lee cameo and YES the three Spideys :) Almost like they were telling you not to argue about who's best,,, Anywho get ready for some recon next week with Peter, Tony, and Ned!
Thank you for reading! ❤️️ 💛💚💙💜
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