Chapter 23

Tony knew something was bothering Peter. It was obvious the kid was hurting, which wasn't surprising. Tony knew the kids had so much fun the day before but seeing Peter's dried tear tracks on his face was heartbreaking. Furthermore, Tony hoped that Peter would come to him. He was wrong.

"Dad, can I go out on patrol tonight?" Peter asked.

Tony was somewhat hesitant, but Peter had done pretty well the first night of patrol.

"Sure, Pete."

Peter mumbled a thank you. He had been in a really weird mood, but he couldn't quite figure out why. Patrol went bad, like really bad. To make a long story short, Peter came across a robber who was fighting an old woman. It made Peter so angry and his emotions got the best of him. Most of the time, Peter would just web the bad guy up to the wall and call the cops. This night, however, he beat the guy up, over and over. Peter didn't know how but just as he was about to throw another punch to the guy's face, he heard a voice.

"Spider-Man, he's had enough." Rhodey called out, in his war machine outfit.

Peter didn't move and was about to throw another punch when War Machine grabbed hold of him and took off. Peter wriggled and squirmed all the way back to the tower. By the time, they got up to their personal floor, he was in tears. Tony was at the elevator door in an instant, thanking Rhodes and pulling Peter into a tight hug.

"Deep breaths, kiddo." Tony whispered to Peter.

Peter tried to do what Tony had asked, but was having a hard time because his sobbing was so intense. It just wasn't working, he wanted to yell and scream. So, he fought hard to get out of Tony's grasp. Tony was surprised when the kid started in, yelling and kicking. Peter was more surprised when he fell to the floor. In the midst of the yelling and kicking, Tony had said something about falling to the floor. Peter somehow made it to his room and locked his door. He didn't want to be bothered, He was angry, so angry!

The week that followed had been rough. Rough not even covering how the week had been. Tony had tried several times to get Peter to talk to him or even come out of his room. Peter refused. Monday came around and Tony sent Peter off to school, even though Peter had expressively told Tony he would NOT be going. And of course, Tony received a call from the school saying Peter was in trouble.

When Tony got to the office, Peter was sitting there with his earbuds in, sporting a scowl on his face, and staring firmly at the ground. Tony knew this wasn't his kid, at least not the one he used to know.

"Peter." Tony said.

"Peter." Tony said, trying again and more firmly.

Tony reached over and pulled the earbuds out of the kid's ears. Peter jerked away angry and glared at Tony. The staring contest didn't last long as the principal started to talk.

"Mr. Stark, Peter got into a fight with one of the kids. To my knowledge, Peter has never had any issues with this other kid before. I was quite surprised to find out that a male teacher had to drag Peter in here, like he was five years old."

Tony nodded and then turning to face Peter. "Peter. Sit up like a big boy and tell me why."

Peter mumbled something, but Tony wasn't having it. "Peter. Sit up now and look at me."

Gees, it was like talking to Morgan when she was in trouble. Peter didn't move, so Tony had to resort to actually physically moving the boy. Peter started yelling and kicking. Tony was surprised and embarrassed. He couldn't figure out what was wrong with the kid. When the principal saw that the meeting was going nowhere, he ended the meeting by telling Tony that Peter would have two weeks of out of school suspension.

The car ride home was silent, besides the occasional whimper Tony could hear from Peter.

"Go to your room, Peter. When you have calmed down enough and are ready to talk like the fourteen-year-old you are, you can come out. Do you understand me?" Tony asked as they arrived at the tower.

Peter nodded.

Tony was exhausted. It had been really rough. So, he made the decision to make Peter an appointment with Dr. Zhago. After dinner was over, Peter had been told to go back to his room. Before he made it to the stairs, Tony called out,

"Pete, I made you an appointment with Dr. Zhago in two days."

Peter groaned, being overdramatic, "Why?"

"You need to talk to him. Let him help you."

"I don't need his help!" Peter said, louder than intended.

Morgan heard Peter and went to him. She looked up at him with her big brown eyes, "Bubba."

Peter took a deep breath and knelt down to her height, "Yeah, Mo?"

"I don't wike seeing you so sad." Morgan said as she played with her hair mindlessly.

Tony couldn't help but smile at how Peter's whole mood changed around her.

Peter sighed, "Oh, I am not sad, Mo."

"Then why did you say you didn't need help?"

"'Cause I am a big boy and big kids don't need help." Peter said as he began tickling Morgan gently.

She giggled until Peter stopped. When he did, she started yelling for him to do it again. Tony was still staring at them in awe but confused. Peter couldn't help but feel bad for acting the way he was, but something was bothering him. He just didn't want to talk about it. Not yet.

As Peter was climbing into bed to go to sleep, Tony walked in. Both of them had calmed down after the day's events.

"Hey, Spider."

Peter couldn't help but give a small smile at the nickname.

"You feeling a little better?" Tony asked, concerned.

Peter nodded and finally spoke, "Am I in trouble?"

"Should you be?"

Peter shrugged his shoulders, not knowing what to say. He did break some rules, after all.

"Pete, we will talk about what happened on patrol later. Right now, I want you to get some sleep." Tony said, as he pulled the covers over the teen.

Peter's eyes widened and filled with tears, "Please! Dad! I am sorry! I didn't m-mean to be bad! Please!" He sobbed.

Tony was surprised by the outburst and pleading. He gently grabbed the boy's shoulders.

"Shh. Shh. It's okay, spider. It will all be okay."

The boy practically fell forward into Tony's chest and continued to sob. Tony rubbed circles on his back. After a few minutes, Tony noticed that it wasn't working to calm the boy down. So, he tipped the boy back and picked him up like a baby. He maneuvered himself so that he was against the headboard. Tony then placed the boy between his legs, with the teen's lanky legs hanging over. Tony held the boy close and let him cry. It was the best he could do. Tony knew that whatever punishment, if any, would have to wait.

-Two days later-

Peter hadn't said anything, nor had he come out of his room. It was nearing his appointment and here he was waiting to see this "idiotic" doctor. Tony thought Peter would have made a big deal out of having to come see the counselor. Much to his surprise, the kid actually behaved enough to come. When the doctor was ready, Peter insisted that Tony wait outside. Tony had to admit he wasn't sure about that and he was a little hurt that Peter didn't want him. The appointment didn't last long. In fact, it lasted about five minutes. Peter was having none of it and here Tony was again having to get the kid up off the floor like a five-year-old. The car ride home was silent once again. And of course, Tony sent Peter straight to his room. Tony was actually really mad this time. He was torn. He knew the kid needed some help, but did Tony need to step up and go "dad" mode? He didn't know. The kid was 14, he was a little old to put in the corner. Then again, it might be good. Writing lines would become more of a fight than a solution. Tony didn't know what to do. He left the kid alone that night to calm down and hopefully come to his senses.

The next morning, Tony woke up and went to go check on Peter. The kid was gone. There was a note saying, "I can't do this anymore. Don't worry about me, I am not worth it. I wanted and needed out."

The kid was gone. Tony would not give up on this kid. Where was he?

Author's Note: Ha! Ha! Cliffhanger! Sorry for the angst! This chapter was one of the easiest ones to write. It flowed so easily. I promise that I am not some depressing person! It will get better! I will only have 8 more chapters and then this story will be completed! Any ideas for what Tony should do, if he finds Peter? Any ideas welcomed!