Hey guys, I'm back with a new chapter. It's a bit long, I hope you don't mind ;)
Anyway, here's Tony sharing his thoughts about the latest events. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: no, I don't own Marvel. I wish.
It's the middle of the night and Tony is still sitting on the couch in his living room, staring into darkness. He hasn't bothered turning on the lights; he doesn't really need them for what he's been doing for a few hours now. Thinking. Mulling over everything Peter told him and everything he knows about Spiderman.
What is Tony supposed to do?
He has absolutely no idea. There's only one thing he knows for sure: the kid doesn't want him to do anything. He doesn't even want Tony near him. Okay, that might sound as if Tony's a pouting child but it's true. And for a reason he can't understand, it kinda hurts.
He knows Peter is upset. And Tony can't blame him considering the horrible line of tragedies that happened to him. And he went through most of that all alone. That would have been way too much for any adult, let alone for a kid.
And it sounds very sad but Peter's used to being alone. He's probably in shock that someone knows about him now and he can't handle it.
Maybe. And honestly, Tony doesn't know if he can handle it. Gosh, what should he do? Should he call some kind of social worker? The police? Okay, that would be too much.
He rubs his eyes tiredly. He should sleep, he knows that but he couldn't before, so why try now?
Maybe he should call Pepper. Okay, not now but in the morning.
Or maybe he shouldn't. He exactly knows what Pepper would say anyway. That Tony needs to alert the authorities. CPS.
But if he did that, Peter would hate Tony for betraying him. There's a reason why the boy didn't want to go into foster care and decided to live on the streets instead.
However, Pepper would say Peter's not old enough to make a decision like that.
And Tony knows Pepper would be right. Still. Something tells him this wouldn't be the right thing to do.
It would be the easiest way to deal with the kid, sure and Tony could go on with his life convincing himself that he helped bringing in a kid from the streets in the middle of winter. Peter has a roof over his head and a bed to sleep in, so it's all good. Maybe the kid would hate him first but later he would realize Tony did him a favor. And Tony would never meet him again anyway, so who cares if the kid hates him?
But this is not what Peter would want and Tony should respect that. At least, he should listen to the kid's reasons for not asking for help. Maybe he didn't do it because he's Spiderman and he worried that he couldn't go on with the superhero stuff while living in a foster family.
But no. Tony remembers the dates on the documents he found. The date of May Parker's death. The appearance of Aunt Julia. All that stuff had happened before Spiderman first turned up. So Peter had decided to live on his own before he became Spiderman.
Geez, this whole stuff is so complicated! Why does Tony have to deal with this? This is so not what he signed up for when he decided to go after Spiderman!
Spiderman is a kid. It's crazy! He still can't believe it.
He's a kid and a kid shouldn't live on the streets all alone. He needs people who care for him.
So he obviously doesn't need Tony.
The man wishes he never wanted to find out who Spiderman was; he wishes he never met him. He wishes he could just go on with his life oblivious to the fact that there's a lonely kid out there in the cold. See? He's not good at caring.
But… why can't he sleep then?
Morning comes and Tony decides to pay Peter another visit. Maybe another conversation could help him figure out what to do. Or make things even more complicated. But Tony can't stop himself, he needs to see the kid again, he needs to know more about him and he needs to ask the tons of questions he couldn't ask last night. He hopes Peter will be okay with that.
The door to the kid's room is partially open and Tony can see him sitting on the bed, back against the headboard and scrolling on his phone uninterestedly. He must be damned bored.
Earlier, Friday told the man that Peter hadn't required anything special to eat. He told the nurse whatever food he got would be fine. Tony couldn't help rolling his eyes hearing that.
At least, the kid looks better now. Bruce said Peter had almost fully recovered, which impressed the scientist very much. He called Peter's healing ability incredible. The concussion and the bruises are gone; the gunshot wounds have almost entirely healed. The boy could use some more weight, though, Bruce added.
He's right. Kid looks too small on the hospital bed. Smaller than a boy at his age should be.
Even though the door is open, Tony knocks. "Morning, kid. Do you mind if I come in?"
Peter looks up and nods putting away his phone. Then he quickly lowers his head again. Tony hates that he can't see the boy's eyes. Why wouldn't he look at him? Is he still mad?
The man walks into the room and stops at the edge of the bed. He decides to get straight to the point like he always does. "Listen, Peter. I'm sorry about last night. I shouldn't have pushed you."
Peter suddenly looks up at him and his eyes go wide. "What? No, Mr. Stark, I am sorry! So sorry. I mean… you've been so nice to me. You brought me here, got Dr. Banner to help me and let me stay until I recover and I was rude to you. I-I had no right... I kicked you out from the room that you own. Where you let me stay. The way I behaved… I have no excuse, Mr. Stark, I'm sorry."
Tony smiles. He likes Peter's rambling. It's much more fun than their conversation last night. Kid's adorable.
Gosh, does he really think the kid is adorable? What's next, he's painting the Iron Man suit pink?
"What if we start over?" Tony offers. "Do you mind if I sit down?" he gestures to the couch.
Peter seems stunned again. He has probably never expected the man to actually ask for his permission. He nods dumbly.
Tony drops himself on the couch and smiles at the boy. "Okay, what if you tell me how you became Spiderman? If it's okay with you, that is."
He won't push the kid this time. No, they can take it slow. So that he'll get his answers and Peter won't be upset again. Win-win.
Plus, he has a feeling that it's easier for the kid to talk about Spiderman than about Peter Parker. That's what upset him earlier. Not Spiderman but the boy under the mask. Tony could try to tell him again that he's not disappointed (surprised? sure, even shocked but definitely not disappointed) but he guesses Peter wouldn't believe him.
It seems easier to talk about Spiderman. About the strong, fearless, cool guy and not about the lonely, scared, sad kid.
And it turns out, Tony's right. Peter talks and talks. About the spider that bit him and got him sick (Tony suspects there are a few details left out, though), about his powers, his strength, his stickiness, his healing factor. He tells how he made his suit, how he came up with the web shooters and how he makes web-fluid at school. He tells how he stopped bank robbers, muggers, bicycle thieves. On and on.
And Tony can't wipe the amused smile off his face.
They have cheeseburgers, fries and milkshake for lunch. Tony has ordered twice as much food for the kid than for himself because he remembers Peter needs to eat a lot to heal. And gosh, the kid eats fast! Peter demolishes his double-size lunch faster than any Avenger would. And damn, those guys can eat.
Tony wonders if the kid has always enough to eat. Probably not, he's so thin that getting enough food must be an endless struggle for him.
"Thank you, Mr. Stark," Peter says finishing his shake.
"Don't mention it, kid," the man smiles. "I hope you feel better."
"I do, thank you. I'm totally fine now. I think I'll leave, Mr. Stark. I mean I'm grateful for your help, I really am but… I need to go. I don't want to miss school. No longer than necessary."
"Don't worry about school, kid. Aunt Julia called them and told you had the flu," Tony winks.
Peter cracks a small smile. "Did she?"
"Well, it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. I mean I never thought it would be so hard to ask the AI I created myself to lie for me," Tony explains with mock frustration.
"I am not comfortable with providing false information to anyone, boss," Friday claims with a hint of resentment in her voice.
Peter looks around frantically trying to find the source of the voice.
"Kid, meet Friday, my AI. Friday, it's Peter," the man laughs. "Friday runs the Tower and acts as my usually helpful PA."
"Nice to meet you, Peter," Friday says kindly.
"Hello, Friday," the boy replies hesitantly, still trying to figure out where to look exactly while talking to the AI.
"Loyalty over honesty, that's all I'm saying, Fri," Tony continues grabbing his last fries. "And I mean loyalty to me. That's your job, girl, just leave the honesty to me, will you?"
"Of course, boss," Friday answers dutifully. Tony grins. He can almost hear an eye roll in the AI's voice.
"That explains why Ned asked me about sneezing and coughing," Peter says taking his phone from the bedside table. "Ned's my best friend," he quickly adds when Tony raises an eyebrow.
"I hope you didn't blow my cover story, kid," the man smirks. "Oh, and I meant to tell you that I'm giving you a new phone."
"You really don't have to, Mr. Stark. There's nothing wrong with this one," Peter protests holding up his phone.
"It might function but barely."
"I like this one, it's perfectly fine," the boy shrugs.
"Because the shattered screen reminds you of a spider web?" Tony laughs.
Peter gives him a mock pout and then smirks. Like a sassy teenager. The man grins back. When did they become so comfortable?
Tony realizes he likes spending time with the kid. Peter is smarter than most people he talks to; he's humble, kind and funny. It breaks Tony's heart when he remembers what horrors the kid went through. He totally didn't deserve any of that.
"Thank you, though," Peter says with a smile.
Tony realizes the kid is still talking about the phone. He nods nonchalantly. He decides not to push it. This strategy worked before, right? Maybe the kid would feel too uncomfortable if Tony gave him something more, a gift. Probably he's not used to getting help. Which makes Tony's heart wrench again, but he understands he can't overwhelm the kid either. Maybe later. Baby steps.
But there is something he needs to ask. Has to. Even if it could upset Peter again.
Tony groans and rubs his eyes. He hates ruining the positive atmosphere that they have built since morning. But he has no choice.
The boy must have noticed the sudden change in the air, because he quickly comes up with a question on his own before Tony could speak. "Don't you have somewhere to be, Mr. Stark? I mean I really appreciate that you're here with me, sir but I'm sure you're a very busy man with plenty of meetings and stuff."
The man grins. Kid has found a smart way to dodge whatever issue he thought Tony would bring up. And it's way more polite than asking him to leave like last night.
"This is where I want to be now, Peter," he assures the kid.
If it's possible, the boy looks happy and uncomfortable at the same time. Then he glances at the window, so Tony quickly gets up in case he needs to stop Peter from leaving again.
"Listen, kid, I know there are things you don't want to talk about, but we have to," he starts. Peter stares down at his hands as Tony continues. "Just… help me understand, alright? Why didn't you ask for help when Aunt May died? It might have been easier. I mean there's a good chance that they would have found you a foster home that is better than the streets. I know it wouldn't have been perfect; I get that, but the streets, kid! It's freaking January!"
"I don't sleep in an alley if that's what you think, Mr. Stark. I found an abandoned building," Peter all but mutters.
"Come on," Tony hisses. "Do you even hear yourself?"
The man knows he's walking on dangerous ground. He has promised himself to be careful and not to say anything that might upset Peter. He really doesn't want the kid to run away. He could tell Friday to lock the doors but he doesn't want it to come to that. He doesn't want a fight. He just wants to understand the motives of this kid. He's so smart, why on earth does he think that it's okay to be homeless when he has a chance for a better life? Yeah, some foster families might be creepy, but surely not all of them are that bad. Not that Peter would know, he has never even tried.
"Mr. Stark, I lost everything when May died," Peter starts with tears shimmering in his eyes. "Not just my only family but my home, too. My school and my friends are all I have now… What if they found me a family out of Queens or out of the city? I would have to leave behind the very last pieces of my old life, too. I just don't want that. I couldn't do that… I don't want any more changes."
Peter could have given it a try, though, right? Maybe they would have found him a nice family close enough to his school. On the other hand, after losing basically everything, the risk of having to leave must have looked way too big for the kid. And still, Tony asked him why he hadn't taken that risk.
The man remains speechless. All he wants to do is to literally bang his head against the wall. How could he be this stupid? This insensitive? Just last night he was thinking about how much this kid had lost, how hard his life was. Yet here he is now, asking Peter why he didn't want to risk losing more. Idiot!
Then another thought strikes him: he's so fucking bad at this. Dealing with emotions. Caring. What is the opposite of considerate? Because that's him. And he has made a poor kid cry. What is he supposed to do now?
He walks to the bed and sits down on the edge. He reaches out to grasp the kid on the shoulder. "I'm sorry, Peter. I should have known. I'm sorry."
Peter just nods while trying to swallow back his tears. This situation has obviously become awkward for both them. The boy doesn't want to cry in front of Tony and the man has absolutely no clue what to do with a sobbing child.
Then he has an idea. It's just a temporary solution and probably stupid, too, he knows that but at least it's something. "Hey, kid, listen. How does ice cream sound?"
Peter looks up at him and his red eyes go wide as if he couldn't quite believe what turn this painful conversation has suddenly taken. Tony gets it and snorts. It is really pathetic how he's attempting to comfort a sad kid. As if Peter's a toddler who's crying because he dropped his popsicle. As if they didn't talk about a bit more serious stuff than that, like losing family, living on the streets and foster care. Yeah, as if offering ice cream could be any consolation.
But to Tony's surprise, Peter gives him a small smile. "Yeah, ice cream sounds great, Mr. Stark."
Thank you for reading! And thank you for the reviews, follows and favorites.
I would love to know what you think :)
In the next chapter: Peter is about to leave the Tower, but what will Tony do?