A day later it was announced that he could go home… with about a million and one stipulations.

For starters, the machines on his head and his heart were going with him, for at least a few days. The doctors insisted that while both issues seemed to have magically cleared themselves up, neither were anything he wanted to mess with, and they wanted a few days of clean monitoring before letting him off completely. But those were something he could do at home, so he was still allowed to go.

Then there was also all his injuries to contend with. One of his legs was broken from his foot to his femur, and the other also had suffered fractures - not to mention moving or putting weight on any part of his body hurt like hell right now - so crutches, for the time being, were out of the question, and therefore so was walking. Tony must have already known this, because the wheelchair he was presented with wasn't one of the hospital's, and he didn't have to give it back as they left.

He also wasn't allowed to go anywhere by himself or really be left unattended at all, but that was to be expected, even if it was embarrassing.

No more embarrassing than Tony hovering and fussing over him had already been, though. It was clear he didn't really know what to do with himself and so was doing his best to keep Peter comfortable and entertained, as that was about all he could do while "supervising" him in the hospital. And since he had almost as much money as he did sense, he had went out a few times - while Peter was asleep, of course - and bought him things.

It took a few times of Peter waking up to things that weren't there before for him to realize what was happening. The first time was simple - he woke up to a different blanket and pillow than he'd went to sleep with. They were both blue, which made Peter wonder if they were actually from the hospital or not, but Mr. Stark didn't mention it, so neither did he. Then other things started popping up. Flowers. One of his favorite movies. A Wookie plush. Each one had a different excuse - from May, or Pepper had suggested such and such, but every time he dozed off he woke up to something new.

On the day they were leaving, Mr. Stark presented him with a new outfit - just fresh boxers, sweats, and a tee shirt, but it was enough to bring to mind the other gifts that had kept appearing. "Did you buy these?" Peter asked.

Mr. Stark looked taken aback for a moment. "Did you think they materialized out of thin air?"

"Well, you certainly wanted me to think that about the rest of the stuff you bought me, so yeah, maybe a little," Peter blurted, before he could think better of it.

Stark's mouth opened and closed once, his lips pressing into a thin line. "You're already on thin ice, Parker. Don't push me." He threw the clothes into his lap and turned away, but not before Peter caught the hint of a smile the older hero was trying to hide.

A short time later, he was being transferred from the wheelchair to the backseat of one of Mr. Stark's cars. Apparently there had been some line of communication going on even while he was still in and out, because Happy was waiting for them outside the hospital.

"Get settled in," the driver warned as he helped him into the backseat, mindful of the miniature machines he was hooked to. "We've got a bit of a drive ahead of us."

Peter nodded, scooting into the backseat and sighing a little as he set the bag with both of his machines attached to them down beside him. He had to have separate monitors for his heart and his brain, but the good news was they were both able to be downgraded to mobile battery-power monitors, both of which fit together in a bag, so at least the were portable. Not that the wires were very comfortable - or hideable - but he wasn't going to be anywhere but a guest room in Stark tower for the next month, apparently, so it didn't much matter.

They also made wearing a seatbelt nearly impossible without disturbing the million and one wires attached to him. He grabbed it and stopped, not sure how to proceed.

"Don't worry about it, kid." Mr. Stark had slid in beside him while he was preoccupied.

Peter looked at him, surprised, both at the words and the fact he'd chosen to sit in the back with him. "What?"

The older hero flashed him a grin. "I said don't worry about it. Happy isn't going to wreck us. Anyway, I'd keep you from going flying if he did." He took his bag of machines and made a face. "Geez, these weigh as much as you do."

"Only about half, Mr. Stark. Maybe." Peter knew he was being dramatic mostly to try to make him feel better, and it was helping.

"Definitely at least half. Anyway-" he set the machines down beside him. "You should take the time to get some rest. No doubt you'll be swarmed with people when we get back to the Tower."

Peter was inclined to agree until the last sentence. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Pepper is dying to make sure you're alright, and so is your aunt. They've both been checking in on you at least every hour or so. And I'm sure your friend Ted or whatever his name was will want to see you, although if you'd rather wait to call him until you've got all those machines off- what?" Tony stopped when Peter's face changed slightly at the mention of calling anyone.

"I, Uh… my phone…" he hadn't been allowed to be on it because of the blue light, nor awake long enough to do so for most of his stay, and he'd talked to May only once on Mr. Stark's phone the day before. He hadn't been awake or allowed on it to notice until they were being discharged that he didn't have it. "It's… gone," he completed.

It occurred to Tony suddenly that Vulture had taken it to send him the video, and it wasn't like the kid had been awake to take it even if the villain had offered it back to him. "Oh. Right. We can fix that - later. You're not supposed to be on it much anyway." He paused again, debating the downfalls of a random teenager having his number against how happy it would make the teenager beside him. Oh well. Maybe if Peter did something else that was stupid in the future, it could be useful. Otherwise he could always block the kid. "Do you want to use mine?" he finally offered.

Peter's eyes widened, no doubt having the same thoughts. Likely the kid wouldn't have ever asked with precisely that thought in mind, and all the more reason why he was sure he was making a good decision. "Really?"

"It's just a phone call, don't get too excited," he scoffed, trying to act nonchalant despite never being gladder to see his overexcited grin. He pulled up the dial pad and handed the phone over. "But you've got ten minutes," he warned. "Then sleep."

"Okay!" Ten minutes was more than he'd hoped for anyway, and for a moment his inner fanboy was getting the best of him again. He was using Mr. Stark's phone! And sure, he'd spent the past two days at his bedside, and he was riding in the car with him, but he'd done that before, and obviously Stark had stayed because he was Spider-Man, and because he felt responsible for him, like he'd already told Peter. That was probably why he was making him stay with him too, so he could make sure he recovered smoothly and he didn't have anything left to worry or feel guilty about when he let him go again. But still, letting him touch his phone? That was a whole different level of trust, and though he knew it was more a gesture of pity than anything, the thought was still exciting.

His fingers trembled slightly as he typed in Ned's number and hit the call button.

Ned picked up on the second ring, sounding confused, probably at the unknown number. "Hello?"

"Ned! It's me!" And just like that, he was grinning.

"Peter! Oh my God, you scared the shit out of all of us! Liz was really upset and then you disappeared and MJ was asking me questions and I was worried you went after Vulture which is absolutely insane because I know Mr. Stark took your suit and that would have been really irresponsible but May said you got hurt and wouldn't tell me what happened and-"

"Ned, slow down," Peter interjected. He threw a sideways glance at Mr. Stark, who was conspicuously not watching him and picking at his nails, but Peter was smart enough to know he was still listening. "Listen, it's really complicated and I can't explain right now. But anyway, I'm out of the hospital now, and I'm going to stay with Mr. Stark for a few days and he said you can come see me so I was thinking maybe after school tomorrow-"

"Wh-WAIT. You're staying with Tony Stark? Dude! That's insane! How did that happen? I know you said you had the internship but since that was a cover for the Spider-Manning I didn't realize that was an actual thing!" Ned sounded like he actually might pass out.

"Yeah, it's, uh, complicated, like I said," Peter mumbled, pretending not to notice the sharp look Tony had thrown him at the "few days" comment. "Anyway, if you come to the tower after school tomorrow, I'll explain everything. I'd come to you, but, uh-" Tony was still giving him a look that hinted danger, so he muttered, "I… don't think I'm allowed to leave."

Ned didn't seem to mind. "Held captive by Tony Stark," he said with no small amount of awe. Peter couldn't help but snort. "That's, like, a dream come true. Probably the most amazing thing to happen to either of us." He paused, then added, "Are you going to be tied up when I show up? Am I gonna have to be, like, patted down for weapons to come see you?"

Peter laughed. "I don't know, dude. I doubt it, but I guess I wouldn't put anything past him."

"You're probably lucky to be getting visiting privileges," Ned joked.

"Probably," Peter agreed seriously, unable to resist looking back at the billionaire again to see his response to hearing this probably incredibly-odd-sounding conversation, from the one side he could hear. He just quirked a brow at him and tapped his watch, indicating he should wrap it up. He huffed, looking out the window, but knowing Tony wouldn't hesitate to simply take the phone from him if he tried to disobey. "Hey, speaking of my incredibly limited prisoner's rights, my allotted phone time is about up. I gotta go. Can you come tomorrow?"

"Anything for you, buddy. I'll be sure to gather up your work and bring it with me."

At the mention of all the work he was accumulating finally being brought to him, he released some of the tension he didn't realize he'd been holding in. "Thanks, Ned. You're a real lifesaver."

"I know I am. That's why I'm your Guy In The Chair."

Peter couldn't help but smile, looking down. "Yeah, it is. I'll see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

Peter hung up and turned back to Mr. Stark, who was by now blatantly listening and watching him with bemused smirk as he took the phone back. "I'm keeping you prisoner now, am I?"

Peter just shrugged, unabashed. "He said it first, not me. Anyway, he's not wrong. Keeping me locked in the tower for days on end to stroke your ego? It's like a twisted fairy tale."

He regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth and he saw the way Stark's face morphed. His mouth fell open slightly in an expression of shock and maybe even a flicker of hurt before snapping shut, lips pressing into a thin line. "Is that what you think?"

"Well, I mean, not exactly-"

"No, that's exactly what you think. That I'm keeping you around as some kind of pet pity project. Is that it?" Tony could hardly believe what he was hearing. Okay, he'd been detached and had admittedly tried to keep the kid at arm's length, but he'd thought he'd made it obvious why and that that was over back in the hospital room.

Peter has frozen, unsure how to react at the sudden anger and indignation coming off the man. "No, Mr. Stark-"

"Peter." He crossed his arms, giving him a look that made the boy shrink away. "The truth."

Peter stared back at him for a moment, then sighed, looking out the window instead, because it was so much easier than meeting his hero's eyes when he looked at him like that. "I just… I don't know. You just showed up and plucked me up to help you with Germany and then disappeared and the only time you ever show up in any form is when it has to do with Spider-Man stuff. Not that I really expected any more than that from you, just like I really didn't expect you to bother with any of my messages when it's not an emergency, because you're busy, being you and doing hero stuff and all that and that's fine, it's just-" He stopped and took a breath, realizing he was rambling. "I just thought that you rightfully only care about the Spider-Man side of things. Because you gave me the suit and if I get hurt in it then you feel like that's on you and if I do good in it then that's also good for you. And yeah, when you took it back…" Peter shrugged helplessly, looking down and wringing his hands together. "I thought we were done. And I was just glad I got to meet you for more than two seconds this time and that I got to fight with you for real. I didn't expect to ever see you again, so…" so I tossed all your previous orders out the window. Yeah, definitely not what he wanted to say to him right now, but it was true. He hadn't expected him to find out because he didn't believe he'd care enough to even look into the possibility of it being him who stopped Vulture or to check up on Peter at all.

Peter peeked up at him to see Mr. Stark watching him intently, his face unreadable. He almost wished the man had his sunglasses on instead of him actually being able to see his face, because it was better to wonder what he was hiding behind the glasses than what emotions he was hiding behind his dark eyes.

"Peter…" Tony started, unsure what he even wanted to say, how he should respond to that. It pained him to hear exactly what the boy thought of their arrangement, of him, even though he knew he'd done nothing that should have made him think otherwise. Peter was right, on how it looked, and no doubt he actually felt that way. But Tony was here now, and he'd be damned if he wasn't going to do something to change it.

Before he could say anything else, though, his phone rang from where he'd dropped it in his lap, and after a moment of deliberation, he decided he had to answer it. He forced his eyes away from the kid across from him - the sweet, broken kid he'd neglected without even realizing it - and answered the call.

Peter knew when he answered their conversation was over, for now. He wasn't sure what to make of Mr. Stark's reaction to his confession, or even the man's behavior since he'd started coming around. It was all so confusing, and it was too much for his still-recovering mind (and body) to handle. He leaned back against the seat and turned to face the window, forcefully tuning out the elder man's conversation and focusing on the nature sights going by. It wasn't very often he got to see such surroundings, living in Queens for most of his life. And it was so quiet, but for the sounds of nature and the occasional humming of car going past them - not full of traffic and bustling people sounds the way New York was. It was actually quite peaceful…

Tony finished the call a few minutes later - he'd tried to be as quick as he could, but one couldn't just ignore calls from government officials too many times, no matter how much he didn't like talking to them. When he turned back to Peter, intent on finishing this conversation and making sure he realized exactly how important he was to him in the suit and out of it, he realized their conversation would have to wait when he caught sight of the kid slumped against the door, unconscious.

He sighed, pocketing his phone and sliding across the seat towards him. Carefully, knowing his senses were still in high alert but not wanting to see him sleep in such an uncomfortable position or risk sliding down and pulling on all the wires attached to him if he were to be jolted at all, he wrapped his arm around his shoulders - keeping his hands on places where his skin was covered by clothes - and gently shifted him so he slumped against his side, his head tucked up under Tony's arm.

The kid shifted a bit on his own, and Tony froze. "Mister Stark?" he croaked, his voice low and groggy. His eyes weren't even open.

Tony brushed his hair out of his eyes. "Right here, kid. Go back to sleep."

"M'kay." Peter shifted enough that he was laying more in Tony's lap than his side, his head resting on his upper thigh and his face mostly hidden by his jacket as he pressed it against his stomach, then settled with a contented sigh and was almost immediately back asleep.

Tony stifled his own sigh and just combed his fingers through the budding hero's curls as he laid in his lap, letting him sleep. Yeah, they'd be having a talk later - likely a long one, because they were just racking up topics he needed to discuss with him - but for right now… this was all that was necessary.

It didn't take long before Tony was asleep too.

Aaaand to think I really had intended for this to be a oneshot. Well. Joke's on you guys for believing me. I've never been good at those. xD

That said, does anyone really want to see more of this? I could just end it here, if you guys would rather. I don't have a whole lot of plot in mind for this going forward besides a lot of domestic fluff and Tony eventually finding the Vulture and giving him what's coming to him. I could continue with that if you guys want, or if anyone has any suggestions of anything else they'd like to see, let me know! I'm always open to suggestions and prompts. You can always drop me a comment here or throw me a line or two on my tumblr (my main is capshorty, but my writeblr is thewritingcaptain).

Anyway, yeah, let me know what you guys think, and thanks so much for reading! Love you all 3000. 3