"Give it back!" Miguel demanded, reached for his cup.
Peter snatched it away, keeping it out of his friend turned ward's reach, "No, you are allowed one coffee a day. And I shouldn't have let you have any at all, considering how much coffee you had the other day."
"I need it!"
"No you don't need it," Peter slapped his hand away, "You already had a cup."
"No I didn't!" he complained.
Peter glared up at him, "So when we got here I didn't see you go right to the cafe and get a cup of coffee? I didn't see that?"
2099 paused, thinking about it, "I…did I? Well…it was just a little one," he turned to see the man glaring at him cross armed, causing him to shuffle in place uncomfortably, "Please?"
"No! You are not getting another one!" he reprimanded, "You can stop with the 'please' nonsense. I said no, it's no."
Miguel stamped his feet several times, "F*ck you," he muttered, crossing his arms, flopping into his office chair.
He flinched, feeling Parker take a firm grip on his elbow.
"What did you say?" his eyebrow twitched. His honeyed voice hid a very thinly veiled irritation that was threatening to boil over.
"N-nothing," 2099 whispered, trying to pull the man's hand away, "Nothing."
"You say that to me again and I promise you won't be sitting for the rest of your visit. Do you understand me?"
Mig nodded, wincing as Peter's grip tightened.
"I want to hear you say it," he emphasized each word with a hard shake of Mig's arm
"Yes I understand," he whispered, scooting his chair away some.
"I don't care what your problem is. The ice you're skating on is paper thin right now. So thin it's one sided," Pete warned him, pointing at his face, "You are being a real a$$ right now."
The giant sulked, averting his eyes, "How's it that you can call me that but I can't say f*ck?"
Peter's brow bore down hard, glaring at the man as he swayed, looking to the ground. Without saying another word he pulled 2099 off, leading him to the QR because they were in real need of a private talk.
X
Mig bit his thumb as he was yanked into the room, "I didn't say it to you though. It's not fair you can curse at me but I can't even say the word in general."
Soon as the door was shut, Pete turned Miguel, slapping his bottom hard enough for the noise to echo in the room. Mig reacting by yelping and dancing in place, feverishly rubbing his rear.
"I am sick of your attitude!" he shouted over the man's pained whining, "Why do I get the worst version of you? The last two days you have been a right terror!"
"I'm s-sorry," Miguel winced, shrinking away at the shouting.
"You don't get to be mean to me and MJ because you miss Jess and Virgil!" Pete huffed, letting him go. He walked around shaking his head, trying to compose himself, "You know-"
Pete was taken aback when he turned. Miguel was shaking, sniveling loudly as he had his head dropped and tears dripped from his cheeks and chin. He was at a loss for a moment. He knew he swatted him pretty hard, but Miguel had never cried like that from being spanked before. He was sure it wasn't that.
Was it something he said? That was a dumb question, of course it was. And if it wasn't what he said it was probably how he said it. But he wasn't wrong! Miguel was being a total brat! True as that might have been, his bud was clearly in distress.
"Hey? Don't cry," Pete leaned over, gently touching his friend's arm, "I'm sorry I cursed at you, you're right, I shouldn't have called you that name."
"I'm sorry!" Miguel sobbed, sliding onto the floor in a crying heap "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I'm not trying to be mean or bad!"
"What's wrong?" Pete kneeled down to his level, rubbing his back, "Ok, talk to me, tell me what's going on in your head?"
Mig sobbed, clenching his fist to his face, "I'm not trying to be mean, I'm not. I'm not trying to be bad."
"You miss mommy right?"
"I-I don't know why. I don't know. I go a week without them all the time, but, but it just feels bad," he cried.
"It's ok to miss them, I get it, I get it," Pete reassured, trying to soothe him, "You want to call them? Would that make you feel better?"
"No," he shook his head, "They are on vacation, and they need it and they deserve it. And I should be happy for them, and I am. But it, but it hurts."
The older man tilted his head, listening more intently as his ward gripped him in a hug.
"I know they just need a break, but it feels like they need one from me. Because I'm always around them and they are always taking care of me. And I, and I don't want to bother them," he cried into his shoulder.
"Its ok, don't cry," Pete pat his back, panicking lightly, "You aren't bothering them. Why won't you let them tell you?"
"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry! I'm not trying to be mean to you! It just really hurts!"
Pete kicked himself for losing his temper, "It's ok, baby, I accept your apology,"
X
"I need this to be important man, Virgil has whipped cream and I have chocolate sauce," Jess rememarked, tying her braids back.
"Yeah, after your precious little baby has been a brat for the last two days he had a breakdown," Pete shouted in a whisper. He had found another pacifier for Migs in the QR and had managed to calm him down enough to take a nap.
That got her full attention, "Is everything ok?"
"He really misses you both and doesn't want to call because he's afraid to bother you," he sighed.
The woman rubbed her temple, "I'm sorry, I hadn't expected it to be so bad. He can be a little clingy and need some reassurance, but I didn't think it would level up to anxiety."
Pete peered down at Miguel as he slept, gripping his leg tightly, "Clingy? No. Maybe just a smidge."
Jess rolled her eyes at his sarcasm.
"Well, I got him calmed. Took me thirty minutes, but I managed to distract him with Out Of The Box and a pacifier I found. He lost his other one."
"I'm sorry he's acting out, do you need me to talk to him?"
"No, I have a feeling he'll be ok now that he has a soother," he sighed, patting Mig's head, "Maybe just call and check in on him more often so he doesn't feel abandoned."
"Absolutely. We'll try to call at breakfast and and around lunch. Gunner has been pretty content with a good night call, we figured he'd be fine with it too," she made a mental schedule.
"That would sure help, I don't know if I'm prepared for another breakdown. I thought I was gonna start crying."
"Hey, congrats, you survived. Get used to tears, he can be a little emotional when he goes full baby mode."
"You keep adding 'little' because you're used to it. It's not little to me," he scoffed, pausing as the baby shifted, gripping his leg again as he made sure Peter was still there, even in his sleep, "Ok, he's not in a proper headspace to be at HQ. I'm taking him home. Enjoy the rest of your vacation."
"Will do. We'll call him later."
"Don't tell him I told you."
"I wont."
X
"You guys got back early," Pete's wife glanced down as May ran over to the two.
"Yeah, we decided on a short day and, y'know," he waved his hand around.
He and Miguel were currently on the floor putting together a puzzle as Cyberchase played in the background.
"Oh! I like this show!" May stared at the tv from atop Miggy's back.
X
"Is someone in a better mood?" Mary Jane tickled Miguel's chin.
He smiled around his paci, taking her hand, giving her a contrite look.
"Ok, I get it," she ruffled his hair, "I'm not mad at you," she smiled at his sigh of relief, "You plan on reading to him tonight or do you want me to?"
"I got it. Alright, bedtime sippy," Pete waved the cup, "What book are we going with?"
Mig muttered something around his soother. Pete plucked it from his mouth, leaning over to hear Mig's whispers.
"Ah, ok," he walked back to the kitchen momentarily before returning with a bottle instead, "Better?" an enthusiastic nod, "Ok, book time," Peter sat on the edge of the bed, preparing to read until he felt a tugging at his side, "Yes?"
Mig gave him a begging look, his crimson eyes cutting through Peter's heart as his brows furrowed.
Pete sighed, climbing under the blanket in bed next to him. That pleased Miguel immensely and he leaned against the man's chest, greedily sucking his bottle.
"Are we comfortable?" a nod, "Good baby," he rubbed his head, beginning to read.
By the time the story was done Mig's had fallen into an incredibly restful sleep. Pete was pinned under him and ended up accepting that he was sleeping in there tonight. But he preferred clingy baby over brat anyday.
