Chapter Twenty-Nine
Tony felt as if it had been forever since Happy went to search Peter's room. Had Peter really been abusing pills? It was hard for him to imagine especially since he knew for a fact that Peter still sometimes took Tylenol for kids. Him chugging down hard drugs didn't seem like his style, then again, these past few months had been a life changing experience for him and nothing else made sense.
He thought back to Flash and wondered if the kid had been lying. It has taken him a while, but he finally realized he did know Flash from somewhere else. No wonder the kid had been staring at him with a mixture of awe and fear. Tony had nearly beaten him to a bloody pulp when he was under the impression Flash was giving Peter problems. He was surprised he had shown his presence and once Tony realized his mistake, he had been too embarrassed to apologize.
The doors of the waiting room opened and Happy came into the room holding a small bag. He looked anxious which was never a good look when it came to Happy. Tony knew he grumbled and complained a lot, but he knew that deep down he really cared about the kid.
"These were all I could find," Happy admitted as he gave him the bag. Tony opened them and immediately recognized the pain medication Strange had given him, the pain and sleeping medication Bruce had given him a few months back, and Adderall.
Jesus Christ, if Tony didn't know better, he would have thought Peter was some kind of dorky drug pusher. The truth was worse though because it was Peter who had been inhaling all these drugs. He was lucky he hadn't overdosed. Unfortunately, for him this led to more questions than answers. Why was Peter doing this? Were the medications taking effect? Was this the reason he had gotten so sick? Why had no one noticed he had been popping pills like candy?
"I'm going out," Tony suddenly said sternly as he gripped the bag. "Tell May I'll be back this afternoon."
Happy looked both perplexed and concerned. "Alright. Are you ok? You look like you're going to be sick."
"I feel like it too," he admitted. His mind was racing. He couldn't talk to Peter when he was still so sick. His friends were completely clueless. Who else could he talk too? The name entered his mind almost instantly. Karen. Peter's personal AI Tony had lovingly placed in his suit to assist Peter. She was now going to assist him. "I'll be back, Happy. Tell me if there are any big changes when it comes to Peter."
Peter pushed the food tray away from him and shot May an apologetic look as he looked at the half-eaten BLT sandwich. "I'm sorry, May. I can't eat any more." Tony had installed a private chef in the hospital's cafeteria to make Peter whatever he wanted. Peter, however, was still feeling groggy from all of the medicine they were giving him and hadn't eaten much.
"That's ok," May patted his hand. "You can eat it later. Just focus on getting better, Peter. Don't pressure yourself in going any faster if you're still not ready. Take all the time you need, baby."
Peter nodded, his eyes welled up and he felt he was going to cry. It had been a mind blowing few days. Everyone was being so kind and patient to him, Peter didn't feel like he deserved it. He was glad Scott hadn't come to visit him so far. May had told him MJ, Ned, and even Flash had come visit him this morning when he had still been unconscious.
Peter was dying to see them. Even Flash.
"May, where's Scott?"
May seemed surprised that Peter was even bringing him up. She fluffed his pillow. "He's at work. Is there anything I can get you?" she pushed back a stray piece of brown hair from his pale face. "I can't help but feel as if you're hiding something."
Peter turned away. "I'm not hiding anything."
May cupped his face into her hands. "Peter, you know you can tell me anything right? Don't worry if I may get hurt or you think something terrible is going to happen. I can assure you that I am a big girl, and I can take care of myself. You would tell me if something was on your mind, right? I just can't get it out of my head that someone poisoned you inside of our own home-"
"I don't know who poisoned me, May," Peter admitted as he squeezed her hand. "But it doesn't matter. What matters is that I'm safe and you're ok. I would rather be poisoned than you. At least my body can resist it."
Apparently, this was the wrong thing to say because May immediately burst into tears. Peter was awkwardly trying to comfort her when Steve entered the room.
"No, it's ok. I'm just a little sensitive." May cleared her throat as she stood up. "I'm sure you want to talk to Peter. Peter, I'll be right back. I'm going to get some lunch."
Once May left, Steve turned to him with a smile. "How are you feeling, kid?
"Better, Dr. Banner told me the poison is slowly leaving my system," he stared at Steve for a few seconds before he said, "Captain Rogers, can I ask you something?"
Steve looked surprised. "Of course."
"Do you ever wish you were human? What I mean to say do you ever wish you were normal?"
Steve took a deep breath. "You mean do I ever wish I've never gotten the super serum? I have actually, especially after Bucky died or when I though he died. I couldn't help but think if I had never been Captain America then maybe my life would be different. I wouldn't have been stuck in ice for one thing." He smiled. "But in the end, I'm glad I did. I've managed to live a second life which not many are able to, not to mention I'd like to think I've made some impact in some people's lives."
He looked taken back when he realized that Peter had started crying. "Peter, what it is? What's wrong? Let me get, Dr. Banner-"
"No," Peter choked out, hating the fact he was crying in front of Captain America. "I'm sorry I don't know why I started to cry."
Steve didn't respond, instead he just wrapped his arms around him and held him.
Pepper Potts pushed the door open of Tony's lab, wrinkling her nose at the smell of liquor and Cuban cigars. "Ok, Tony out. You have been in here for hours and-" She paused when she realized Tony wasn't moving. He was sitting down on his chair which blank screens staring back at him.
His jaw was clenched, and he had a murderous expression on his face. "What is it?" Pepper asked confused. "You look like you're going to kill someone."
"That's because I am," Tony announced flatly. He had Peter's suit in his hand, connected to wires on the screen. "I know who did this to Peter."
-End of Chapter Twenty-Nine-
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