Author's Note:
I know it has been almost a year since it came out, but I had...mixed feelings about Spider-Man: No Way Home. I'll save you the pain of reading an entire essay about my problems with it, but I will tell you that I was really irked by the number of people who watched the movie and said that MCU Peter Parker truly "became" Spider-Man at the end. I'm sorry, was the only one who watched Homecoming? MCU Peter already was Spider-Man. I don't know, maybe I'm just burnt out with watching characters I love get put through the wringer with no comfort or recourse, let alone a happy ending. So, this little non-Endgame-compliant, non-Far From Home-compliant, non-No Way Home-compliant AU was my rebuttal. Plus an opportunity to show my spider boy some love. I have at least one other story in this AU (maybe a few) that I hope to publish eventually.
This short story contains some lines from Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water." Also, many thanks to my wonderful sister who served as editor for this story and helped me feel like I could finally publish it after initially drafting it last January. You can find her on AO3 under the username thebusytypewriter. Thank you for reading, and please let me know what you think.
Historically, Tony Stark has held the opinion that graduation ceremonies are a scam.
Okay, maybe that's a little too harsh. Calling them unnecessary might be more accurate. He didn't attend his undergraduate commencement ceremony, or his postgraduate ceremonies, and he only went to his high school ceremony because it was required, barring death or dismemberment.
It's not that he doesn't think students shouldn't be praised for their accomplishments. He just thinks schools treat ceremonies as a way to make themselves look good—talking themselves up and giving awards to themselves—and use the kids as a way to pull in an audience.
Tony had always thought that if he had a kid of his own (not that he was going to, anyway), he would get them excused from their graduation ceremony—wave some money around, whatever—and then take them out somewhere nice. A fancy restaurant or something. Maybe Disney World.
And, well. To the surprise of the entire world, but no one more than the man himself, Tony did end up having kids of his own. All of his previous misgivings and conspiracies about graduation ceremonies were thrown out the window.
Because, well—Tony's kids are kind of the best. And he wants as many other people as possible to know that too.
So he finds himself with his family inside the gymnasium at Midtown School of Science and Technology on a sunny Saturday morning, practically vibrating out of his uncomfortable seat.
May is too, he can tell. She keeps checking and rechecking the settings on her camera and fidgeting with her glasses even though there's nothing wrong with them. "Oh, I hope he didn't lose that little collar thing on the way here. We tore his room apart this morning when he couldn't find it. It ended up in the dirty laundry somehow. I had to iron it like five minutes before we left."
"Collar?" Happy asks, brow furrowed in confusion.
"It goes under the robe," May answers, taking another test picture of the stage.
"Daddy!" Morgan taps Tony's arm repeatedly, dull metallic thunks sounding as she whacks the vibranium.
He swings his head around from where he had been pretending to examine May's picture so she would stop fiddling with the Nikon. "Yes, munchkin? Princess? Light of my life?"
Morgan, who has been only barely kept occupied by a game on Pepper's phone, rolls her eyes at his antics and pouts. "We've been sitting here forever. When are they going to start?"
Tony checks his watch. "Any minute now. They were supposed to start...four minutes ago. They're probably waiting on someone. Shoot, maybe the kid did lose his collar."
May smacks him lightly on his flesh arm. "Don't even joke about that!"
Tony is about to snark back when the band finally, finally starts the first few notes of "Pomp and Circumstance." The loud talking in the gym dies down to excited murmuring as the faculty of the school file in, followed by the nervous-looking graduates. May is in fine form, sitting up as tall as she can in order to make sure she can see the kids coming in, even though she got there even before the rest of them in order to save them all good seats and Tony is pretty sure even little Morgan can see everyone clearly.
He spots Michelle first, stoic as ever, followed by Ned, who's already grinning broadly. And finally…
"Oh! Oh! There he is, there he is!" May whispers loudly, and she starts unashamedly waving in Peter's direction.
He wears the Academic Decathlon stole, magna cum laude medal, and colored cords for National Honors Society and the robotics club. Tony's chest swells with pride.
The poor kid looks painfully nervous until he sees May's frantic waving and smiles brightly in their direction, shoulders relaxing. Morgan, Pepper having just pointed out to her where her pseudo-big brother is, waves at him with gusto. Peter gives a little wave in response, never one to deny the little girl anything.
Tony's heart is about to burst. He's going to have a heart attack, right here in this stuffy gymnasium. He's going to fall off the uncomfortable metal folding chair that's killing his back and totally ruin the kid's day by making it all about himself, selfish bastard that he is.
The principal starts his opening remarks, talking about how the class faced "unprecedented circumstances" because of the Blip and how they worked through it with teamwork, perseverance, and, of course, the school's courageous and generous help. By the time he uses the word "unprecedented" a fourth time, Tony has made the active choice to tune the guy out.
He tunes back in when it's Michelle's turn to give the valedictorian speech. The gal's got a way with words, that's for sure. She doesn't even mention the Blip, thankfully, instead focusing on the class's ability to affect the future. Tony still feels like he doesn't know her very well, but god if he doesn't love her already purely because of how much she adores Peter. They're great together. Once Tony had told Peter that he had a good feeling about the two of them, with an exaggerated wink, and Peter's ears had turned bright red. But the boy hadn't disagreed.
By the time the kids are starting to walk across the stage, Tony is about as antsy as Morgan. Despite the fact that the principal had requested that the audience hold their applause until the end, there is a burst of cheering and clapping after every student's name is called.
When Peter walks across the stage, the Parker-Stark-Hogan group is no exception, even though May has been steadily dabbing at the tears in her eyes for 20 minutes. They whoop and holler and clap as obnoxiously as they can, just long enough to fill the space between Peter's name and Daniel Perkins. If Tony is hearing correctly, Ned and MJ are equally rambunctious in the front. The commotion makes Peter grin brightly all the way across the stage, even when he has to pose for an awkward picture with the principal.
Finally, hats are thrown and the students file out of the gym to the soccer field. The audience rushes to gather up their things and go meet their proud graduates outside.
On the soccer field, Peter, Ned, and Michelle have already found each other, though as the Parker-Stark-Hogans approach, the Leeds family catches up with Ned. Peter and Michelle share a quick hug and a kiss before Peter sees them. His face lights up.
Tony can't help but grin too, his smile pulling at the scars on the right side of his face and jaw. He keeps a firm hold on Morgan's hand so May can get to Peter first.
The ferocity with which Peter's aunt hugs him nearly knocks his graduation cap off of his head. "Ooh, I'm so proud of you!" she exclaims, grabbing his chin and smacking a big kiss on his cheek.
He just laughs and returns the hug tightly. "Thank you. Let's be honest though, it was kind of a group effort," he adds, smiling wetly at the Starks and Happy over May's shoulder.
Tony throws his free hand up in mock exasperation. "Kid, the bribe I gave the school was supposed to be our secret!"
Everyone laughs, May reluctantly pulling away from Peter. Tony is not surprised to see her crying again. She efficiently pulls a travel package of tissues out of her purse, offering one to Peter, who takes it, before getting herself a fresh one and dabbing again at her eyes. She steps aside and nudges Peter in the direction of the others. Tony finally relents and lets Morgan loose. She sprints to Peter and jumps into his arms.
"Congratulations!" she exclaims.
"Thanks, Mo."
"You looked kind of scared when you had to get up in front of everybody."
"...there were a lot of people."
"You didn't trip though, so that's good. You said you were scared of tripping."
Peter laughs. "You're right, I didn't. Considering my luck, that's pretty impressive."
"Okay!" Tony butts in. "My turn to approach the throne. Out of the way, you little terror."
Peter sets Morgan back down onto her feet and turns to Tony with his arms wide for a hug. They squeeze each other tightly, Peter's chin tucked into Tony's shoulder. When they begin to break apart, Tony keeps a hold of the kid's shoulder, the vibranium one coming up to cup the back of his head. "Proud of you, kid," he says, throat becoming tight.
"Sap," Peter replies, smiling.
Tony brings his hand to his chest in mock offense. "Excuse me, who's the one who's been crying since we got out here?"
Peter chuckles and sniffles. "Thank you, Tony."
Pepper offers the graduate a hug and kiss on the cheek, Happy gives him a hug and a few slaps on the back, and May declares that it's picture time.
Peter and Tony exchange a look when she is turned away, knowing that "picture time" is a process. Pictures are taken of Peter by himself, with Ned, with Michelle, with Ned and Michelle, with May, with Tony, with May and Tony, with Morgan, and with all the Starks and Happy. Finally, Ned takes a picture of all of them together.
By the end, Peter is whining that his face hurts from smiling—not that that stops him from grinning from ear to ear. Morgan, however, is complaining that she's hungry.
Peter gives Ned one last hug and Michelle one last kiss before May claps her hands together. "So! Lunch time?"
Peter and Morgan give simultaneous whoops as the group starts to make their way off the field.
"The Castelli's should be there when we get to the Tower," Tony says, referencing Peter's favorite Italian restaurant.
The kid pumps a fist in celebration. "Yes! I am so hungry."
"I told you to bring a granola bar," May says.
"I did! But I forgot to eat it before we had to line up and then I knew the wrapper would make noise during the ceremony."
"Well, you can eat it now." May raises her eyebrows at him in an amused expression.
Peter looks sheepish but pulls out the power bar, offering part of it to Morgan. She wrinkles her nose at the sight of the nuts in it, so he wolfs it down himself.
They reach the parking lot and May turns to the Starks. "Well, we'll see you guys at the Tower!"
Morgan, predictably, protests, "Aww, can't Peter ride with us?"
May gives Tony a meaningful look. "That'd be fine with me."
Show time. "You know what?" Tony raises a finger in the air like he just got a brilliant idea. "Why don't you both ride with us? I'll drive and Happy can take your car. Let the kids hang out and you two ladies—" He gestures between Pepper and May— "chat."
"Would that be okay with you, Happy?" Peter asks (also predictably—the kid has such a big flipping heart). Happy assures him that he would be happy to, and that he'll enjoy the quiet after the chaos of the Midtown gymnasium.
Everyone pacified, the group piles into the nondescript minivan and heads on their way to Stark Tower.
Right before Tony gets in the driver's seat, however, he gives Happy a wink.
The raucous drive to the Tower takes for-freaking-ever thanks to city traffic, and by the time they're getting out of the car, they've all complained about how hungry they are approximately 57 times each.
They take the elevator up to the common floor between the Avengers' shared quarters (usually at least half-empty, but always ready for whoever's in town) and the Starks' living space. Peter, preoccupied with trying to keep a hangry Morgan entertained, doesn't even notice that they aren't going to their kitchen.
The elevator doors open, and immediately they are bombarded with cheers and applause. Peter jumps out of his skin, yelping, and Morgan—who hadn't been let in on the surprise because the girl could NOT keep a secret, except for anything related to Spider-Man, thank god—squeals.
The Avengers are gathered in the living room, surrounded by streamers and a massive "CONGRATULATIONS" banner. They're still whooping and hollering at Peter, whose shocked expression is slowly morphing into a cheek-splitting grin.
"You guys are here!" He says, one hand coming up to run through his hair in disbelief. He glances back at May, Pepper, and Tony, who are all watching fondly. "You didn't have to do this."
"Come on, man. We couldn't miss this," Rhodey says.
"They wanted to celebrate," May says, reaching out to brush her hand against Peter's arm in an affectionate manner.
Tony leans over and stage-whispers to the kid, "Any excuse for a party with these guys."
"Hear, hear!" Clint chimes in amongst the ensuing laughter. "But seriously, this is a big accomplishment, kid. Congratulations."
The others express their congratulations as well, which leads to some more applause. Peter bows with a playful flourish, despite the fact that his ears are bright red.
"Okay!" Tony interrupts, throwing an arm over the kid's shoulders. "There is a non-zero number of people with enhanced metabolisms in this room, so I say we break out the pasta before you all start dropping like Victorian ladies."
He ignores Sam's muttering that there's only one Victorian lady Tony is worried about as he steers Peter toward the kitchen, where he shoves a breadstick into the kid's hands and shoos him off to change out of his dress shirt and slacks.
Tony doesn't want a repeat of that time the kid nearly fainted while they were working in the lab because they forgot to take a break. Or that time he stood up too fast after a movie marathon and blacked out, smacking his head on the coffee table on the way down. Or that time he briefly passed out mid-swing while doing crowd-control during an Avengers incident in downtown Manhattan and would have fallen 50 feet onto concrete if the Vision hadn't happened to notice him falling.
So Tony is borderline obsessive about making sure Peter's eating a spider-DNA-approved diet. Sue him.
The kid returns to the kitchen in a pair of jeans and a comfortable-looking MIT sweatshirt and promptly groans at the sight of the food May and Tony are dishing up. "That smells so good."
"Yeah, I've already had a breadstick and I'm about ready to get another one," May remarks, picking up a huge bowl of salad.
Peter grabs it from her. "I got it. On the island?"
"Yes, please."
While Peter is doing that, they hear Pepper's voice from the living room. "Peter! Package for you!"
The teen looks at May and Tony, confusion evident. They just shrug at him, so he heads out of the kitchen, May and Tony on his heels.
At the elevator doors stands Happy. "Got your package, kid," he says before standing aside, revealing Ned and MJ, both changed out of their own dress clothes.
Peter bursts into laughter before wrapping them both up in a hug. "I thought you guys had plans!"
"Nah, we were messing with you," MJ responds.
Peter laughs and runs his hands through his hair again, further mussing his curls. "This is ridiculous."
"It was Tony's idea," May interjects, nudging the billionaire in the arm.
When Peter swings around to look at him in disbelief, Tony shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly. "Thought you deserved a proper surprise party, big shindig, hullabaloo, whatever—so sue me."
Peter gives him another hug.
The pasta is delicious. The kid eats two huge helpings of fettuccine alfredo, a big side salad, and approximately a dozen breadsticks. Not that Tony is keeping track. And neither is May. Or Pepper.
In between scarfing down bites of food, Peter's laughs and catches up with the team. He asks how Wanda and Vision are enjoying living in New Jersey and how Bucky is adjusting to Steve's apartment in Brooklyn. He wants to know about Bruce's research and expresses excitement to hear that Nat has reconnected with her family. He hypes up MJ and Ned's accomplishments and aspirations to the others. His hands move in enthusiastic gestures, eyes bright and dancing. Tony feels like he needs sunglasses when he's looking at him.
Once everyone is full, May makes the call for presents. Peter immediately begins a new round of protests, which are ignored as he is frogmarched into the living room and forced to sit in the middle of the big couch so everyone can sit around and watch him open gifts.
It's mostly MIT merch or gift cards from the team, and Peter thanks everyone profusely. Ned gives him a massive bulk package of ramen, which makes him laugh and Steve to threaten to teach them both to cook real food before August. Michelle gives him the ugliest Spider-Man graphic T-shirt Tony has ever seen and a couple of framed posters of vintage camera blueprints, a nod to his up-until-recently secret hobby. Peter is equally pleased with both, giving her a peck on the cheek that results in a lot of whooping and cat-calling from the peanut gallery.
Tony and the Starks have already given him his gift—plans for a trip to California before the fall semester starts. Tony had nearly had to get down on his knees and beg May to let him gift the kid something a little more extravagant for his graduation, and May had only agreed if the gift was a life experience. And then Peter had only felt comfortable accepting the gift of a blank check to wherever he wanted to go with his friends if the entire family went. Ridiculous, those damn Parkers. But he would be lying if he wasn't excited to show the kid his old stomping grounds.
Finally, May gives him a nice new set of headphones, before she hands him one more small wrapped box.
"This is a little different," she says. "It's from both of us."
Peter gives her a confused little smile before briefly glancing at Tony, clearly thinking he's the other person she means. Tony, however, has no idea what she's talking about and tries to catch her eye, but her gaze is firmly set on Peter as he tears off the paper.
He opens the lid and abruptly goes still. He takes a deep, shuddering breath. He moves to hold the box reverently with both hands.
"What is it?" Morgan pipes up.
Peter glances at her then Tony and Pepper—Tony's heart jolting when he sees a wet sheen to his eyes—before his gaze lands on May. "It's—it's my uncle's watch."
May shrugs, voice trembling a little as she shakes out her hair and shrugs, saying, "I know you have a watch, but I thought, you know, you might want something for special occasions, or, I don't know…"
"May. I can't—" Peter's voice cracks a little— "I can't take this. You gave this to him. I can't—"
"He would have wanted you to have it," May interrupts, reaching out to wrap her hands around his own that hold the box. "A little piece of him to take to Boston."
Tears are welling over in Peter's eyes in earnest now. He starts to say something, but he can't get it out.
May shifts to hold his face in her hands. "He would be so, so, ridiculously proud of you, baby."
Tony gets the feeling she isn't just talking about the graduation.
The Parkers then wrap each other up in a tight hug, shaky breaths and a few half-suppressed sobs escaping. Tony's throat feels tight. A quick glance at the room reveals that most of the team has their eyes averted to try and give the pair a little privacy, but it seems he's not the only one moved.
After a few moments, Peter and May separate, both with red-rimmed eyes and wet cheeks. Natasha offers them a kleenex box from the end table.
May plucks several tissues from the box, handing a few to Peter and attempting to wipe up the runny mascara under her own eyes. She chuckles wetly and remarks to the room, "Parkers are criers, you know."
"It's the family curse," Peter adds with a snort as he mops at his face.
"It counts even if you marry into the family, so you have that to look forward to," May says, winking at MJ.
Peter sputters, but MJ just looks amused, and everyone else laughs, any previous awkwardness dispelled. The group goes back to mingling before they break out the cake. After a while, Tony glances up from a conversation with Steve and suddenly realizes Peter is nowhere to be seen. When the teen isn't back another ten minutes later, Tony excuses himself.
Guided by FRIDAY, he finds Peter in a dim little reading nook, nestled into a window seat and gazing at the city skyline. He's still holding the box with Ben's watch.
"Figured you'd come find me," he says without turning around.
Ah, sometimes Tony, cursed by tinnitus after years of listening to too-loud music, is jealous of the kid's super-hearing. "Well, the man of the hour can't ditch his own party." Peter looks at him then, a little smile on his face as he recognizes the tease for what it is. Tony settles onto the comfortable window seat as well, Peter pulling his knees up to his chest to accommodate him. "You okay?"
"Yeah. I just needed a minute, I think."
Tony nods in understanding. "Kind of a big day."
Peter snorts. "No kidding."
"How's it feel?" Tony stretches and pokes Peter's hip with his foot.
"Weird." He hesitates, fidgeting with the box and returning his gaze to the window, and Tony waits. "It's a little, um…scary, actually."
"It's definitely a big change."
"Yeah. I just…" He goes quiet for a minute, jaw clenching while he tries to decide what to say. Tony doesn't push, letting him figure it out. He finally continues, "What if I can't do it? What if I get there and I'm just…not good enough?"
It's Tony's turn to snort. "Kid, you just graduated from one of the most academically rigorous schools in the eastern United States. You managed to keep a high GPA, get involved in decathlon, maintain an internship with a certain genius/billionaire/philanthropist—who, by the way, I hear is kind of a slavedriver—and—oh, yeah, be a superhero. I think you can handle getting your B.S. in engineering, with a remote internship for SI and maybe a little off-brand vigilantism on the side."
"I didn't do that by myself, though. I couldn't have done it without you and May and everyone else." His free hand lifts to half-gesticulate before he lets it fall back into his lap. "I can't even be Spider-Man on my own."
Tony blinks, confused. "What are you talking about?"
"I mean, you made my suit. You made Karen. I can use your resources. Call the Avengers for backup if I need it." He looks at Tony, eyes wide with uncertainty. "What if I get there and I'm on my own and I just can't handle it?"
Tony ducks his head to catch the teen's eye. "First of all kiddo, you're not going to be on your own. MJ and Ned are going to be with you. Hell, you and Ned are rooming together. Then didn't you guys say you might all get an apartment once you can move off campus?"
Peter shrugs. "Yeah."
"And just because May and I and the rest of the Brady Bunch out there are going to be a couple states away doesn't mean we aren't there for you."
"I know."
"As for Spider-Man…You made the original suit. I only made the Mach II and the Iron Spider. You've taken point on designing them all since; I just help out. You have an AI so you can help more people, and so you, you know, don't die. And you can call some other heroes for help. So what? Making your own suit doesn't make you Spider-Man. Doing it on your own doesn't make you Spider-Man. Stitching up your own wounds or, hell, bleeding out alone in some alley doesn't make you Spider-Man." He leans forward a little and pokes over the kid's heart with a finger. "Doing the right thing every time because you can—that makes you Spider-Man."
Peter gives him a little wavering smile, remembering the long-ago conversation he's referencing. "Yeah, I guess."
Tony looks at him for another long moment. "You know, it's not weakness to have support."
"I know." But Peter sounds uncertain, glancing away out the window again.
"No, listen." He reaches out and grabs the kid's ankle. "You said you wouldn't have gotten here without us, which I kind of doubt, but either way, that's normal. It's normal to have people who care about you and help you. A support system. What's not normal is doing it all on your own. Trust me, as someone who once tried to do most of it on his own—it's not good for you. Definitely not sustainable."
Peter looks at him, really looks at him, with something like hope in his eyes. "Yeah?"
Tony holds his gaze. "Yeah. Humans are social creatures, you know. At least according to the Discovery Channel."
That makes Peter smile.
Tony continues, "So even if we're not physically there for you, we're still with you. Always." He reaches out and taps a finger lightly against the box in Peter's hands, drawing the teen's gaze.
After a long moment, Tony squeezes Peter's ankle. "Capiche?"
Peter looks at him then, eyes a little shiny again. "Capiche."
Tony smiles and pats his ankle once before letting go. "So how about you put the watch on and reclaim your place in the spotlight? Your aunt will love it."
"Yeah, she will." Peter quickly swipes at his eyes before oh-so-carefully lifting the watch out of the box. Tony hasn't had a good look at it yet. It's clearly pretty nice—maybe not quite the quality Tony was used to, but certainly not cheap—and is a shiny silver.
Peter looks at it for a long moment before saying, "May got this for him as an anniversary gift. She saved up for ages for it. He loved it. Wore it every day."
"Oh yeah?"
Peter nods. "Yeah. She got it inscribed, actually." He turns it over so the backside of the watch is facing up and hands it to Tony. "It was the song they used for their first dance when they got married."
Tony looks at the words carefully etched into the silver and feels a smile grow on his face.
Like a bridge over troubled water….
Tony hands the watch back. "Seems perfect."
They reenter the party. May exclaims at Peter wearing the watch. MJ says he's "Looking good, Parker." Morgan says he looks like he's a grown-up. The rest of the group teases him about how mature and professional he seems until he's flushed and stuttering again.
Tony just watches, pride and gratitude flowering in his chest. If he squints, he can almost see it—his kid surrounded by gossamer strands of love in every direction, just like one of his webs.
When you're weary,
Feeling small,
When tears are in your eyes,
I'll dry them all.
I'm on your side.
Oh, when times get rough
And friends just can't be found,
Like a bridge over troubled water,
I will lay me down.
