Chapter 1
High school graduation. Tony couldn't believe it. Peter was actually graduating and heading off to college. Tony reminisced on the past years that he had gotten to know the kid.
He remembered fondly their first interaction: that day he had inserted himself into the Parkers' apartment with the premise of a "internship". In reality, it had been his excuse to ship Peter off to Germany to help him fight Captain America.
He frowned at the reminder of his selfish actions. Yet he was grateful that despite his early failed attempts to provide the kid with the care he needed, Peter had allowed him to fix things and truly look out for him.
And now here he was, sitting in a crowded auditorium with May by his side as he waited for Peter to walk the stage. Usually he wasn't one to enjoy sitting in large crowds, but today was an exception. He would gladly sit in the uncomfortable metal seatings in the scorching sun all day if it meant watching Peter receive his diploma. "Can you believe he's actually graduating?" May sighed from beside him.
"Yeah, I had figured he'd have been crushed by some super villain before he actually got to graduate," Tony chuckled.
At the glare May threw his way, he held up his hands in defense. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding! I'm proud of him. Really."
May smiled softly as she looked out across the crowd of high schoolers across from them, her gaze resting on Peter, fiddling anxiously with his tie. "I don't know how I'm gonna do it when he moves to Boston. I really don't," she said, a tinge of sadness in her eyes.
"Yeah, you and me both," Tony responded. He leaned over. "If it helps, I installed a tracker in his suit that he still doesn't know about," he whispered.
May laughed at this. "Serioulsy, though, how is this kid going to survive without us?"
Tony thought about it for a bit before responding. "Well, he did it when he was running around in those pajamas before I discovered he was Spider-Man. I think he'll be alright. Karen will alert me the minute anything goes wrong. And we'll have Ned and his scary girlfriend to make sure he's sticking to his vigilante schedule we set with him." May smiled.
"Huh, since when did you get so good at handing out advice?" "I always have been, you just never noticed," Tony smirked proudly.
As May turned her attention to the graduation pamphlet in her hands, Tony reflected on what had been said.
When Peter had been deciding which colleges to apply for, of course Tony had had to recommend MIT. "Don't you want to see where the great Tony Stark resided in his younger years," he had jokingly questioned. At this Peter had rolled his eyes. "Besides," Tony had said, "I could get you in with a letter of recommendation. And maybe a donation." Peter had smiled.
"No thanks, Mr. Stark. I appreciate the offer, but I wanna get in on my own efforts. I want them to want me because of me."
Tony had softly beamed at this. "Ok, kiddo. You got this." When Peter had later announced his acceptance into MIT, Tony had never felt prouder. He had thrown the kid an extravagant party, inviting the kid's friends and the Avengers.
Some time had passed, and Peter had made his decision to attend MIT. It was then that May and Tony had sat him down and created a schedule for alloted time for "Spider-manning" that didn't interfere with his college schedule.
"But why!", Peter had groaned. "I'm practically an adult already! I can balance Spider-Man and college on my own!"
"Peter," May had gently yet firmly responded. "I know you. You won't be able to rest knowing what's going on out there and you'll be spending more time on Spider-Man than you need to. It's good to help others, but you gotta focus on yourself too. We just want you to get to be a college student too."
"Yeah, kid. College is tough. Trust me when I say this schedule will be helping you," Tony had chimed in. At their advice, Peter had reluctantly allowed them to create the schedule, promising that he would follow through with it.
Tony was shaken out of his reminiscing at May's excited shout. "He's next! He's next!" Tony grinned as Peter stood on the stage steps, ready to accept his diploma. "Peter Parker," the principal had announced. Tony and May cheered loudly as Peter walked across the stage, a shy smile on his face as he shook the administrator's hand, receiving his diploma. Tony grinned as he proudly snapped multiple pictures. "I can't believe he did it!," May grinned, happy tears in her eyes. Tony sighed. Old him never would have thought it, but this was one of the happiest days of his life.
As the ceremony had ended, Peter scavenged the crowd for Ned and MJ. He was caught by surprise at the shout of his name. He swivled around to see May and Tony waving excitedly. He grinned, rushing over to them.
May immediately enveloped him in a tight hug. "Oh baby I'm so proud of you!!" "Thank you, May!" Tony pat him on the head. "Congrats kiddo." Peter smiled. "Thanks, Mr. Stark! Thank you guys for coming, it means so much to-
"Hey, Peter!" MJ's voice cut in. The three of them turned to see her surrounded by the graduated decathlon members, waving Peter over. Peter turned back to look at May and Tony, eyes pleading. "Mind if I hang out with them?"
The two older adults shared a look before facing back to Peter. "Sure," May answered. "Just don't be too long." "Peter grinned before throwing them both in a tight hug. "Thank you thank you!" He raced off, shouting out over his shoulder. "I'll see you at the party Mr. Stark!" May and Tony watched as Peter ran off to his friends.
"Well," May sighed, "That's a preview of the next 4 years." Tony smirked. "Eh, he'll miss us at some point and be begging to come back." "I hope so," she replied. "I know so. Now if you'll excuse me, I've gotta go finish putting the last finishing touches on Peter's party." "Need some help?" May questioned. "Nah, I think I've got it. Pepper's helping me out with the designer part of it." He gave a quick side hug to May before moving back to leave. "Thanks a bunch for inviting me. See ya later!" May smiled fondly as she watched the billionaire stroll off. "See you, Tony."
Tony paced as he nervously awaited for Peter's party to begin. He had insisted on allowing the kid to have it at the Tower. The Avengers had been invited, along with Ned and MJ. He had put hours into making sure the party would be to Peter's likings. "Tony, you need to calm down," Pepper laughed. "You're acting like it's the end of the world." "It will be the end of the world if Peter doesn't like this party," he jokingly snapped back. "Honey, Peter's gonna love it. Promise."
The elevator chimed, bringing their attention towards the front of the room as Peter and May stepped through the doors. Peter's eyes widened in excitement as he took in his surroundings. Tony had decorated the room with all things Spider-Man. Red and blue balloons, streamers, and cutouts hung everywhere. There was a huge cake, decorated to look like Peter's suit. The teen's favorite food lined the back of the room on four large tables. In the center of the room, there was Peter's senior photo, signed by the Avengers.
"Wow, Mr. Stark, this is- I don't know what to say! This is amazing!" "You're welcome kiddo," Tony replied. The elevator opened again, revealing MJ and Ned, each holding a gift for Peter. "Whoa!" Ned shouted, equally in awe of the room as Peter had been.
Tony grinned as he watched the teens interact excitedly. May walked over towards Pepper and Tony.
"Thank you guys for doing this. I really, really appreciate it." Pepper smiled. "Of course. We're so proud of Peter. It was the least we could do."
As Peter chatted with his friends, he noticed the elevator opening, with Steve, Sam, and Bucky emerging from it.
At the sight of the teens, the heroes walked towards them. "Peter," Steve boomed. He clapped a hand on Peter's back. "Congratulations on graduating, son! You should be very proud of yourself." Steve glanced over towards Ned and MJ. "And congratulations to you two as well." Peter suppressed a laugh as Ned stared in slack jawed shock. He nudged his friend, breaking him out of his stupor. "Thank you, um, Captain America, sir. I really appreciate it." MJ nodded. "Yeah. Thanks." Steve smiled brightly. Sam and Bucky gave their congratulations as well before the three headed off to greet the other party members.
As soon as they were far away enough, Ned erupted. "Dude! CAPTAIN AMERICA JUST CONGRATULATED US ON GRADUATING!!" Peter and MJ laughed. "Yeah, and you were pretty calm about it too," MJ smirked.
"So, Peter, is Tony paying for your college?" "He said he would, but I don't know. I kinda want to pay for it from my own work." Mj stared at him deadpan. "Peter, college is expensive. Let him pay. Trust me, it would make things so much easier." Peter smiled. "You know he'd pay for your school too if you guys let him." Ned beamed at this, while MJ rolled her eyes with a small smile. "Yeah, I'm not letting an old billionaire feel good about himself by taking over my tuition," she replied. Peter grinned. "Yeah, guess not."
As the evening grew later, the party neared its end, with many of the attendees and MJ and Ned having to go home (and successfully convinced to accept Tony's offer of paying for their tuition), leaving just Steve, Tony, Pepper, May and Peter.
The group moved around the room as they cleaned up remnants of the party. "So, Queens," Steve said. "What are your plans so far for after college?" Peter squinted, thinking before responding.
"Well, I should be set to graduate a year early since i took some college classes in high school. So I'm thinking I'll come back to New York after I graduate. I want to get a job a doing research. Then maybe after a couple years I'll go back and get my Master's or Doctorate. But that might just be wishful thinking," Peter said bashfully.
"I think you're more than capable of doing all that. You're extremely intelligent," Steve responded. At this, Peter smiled. "Thanks, Mr. Rogers."
Peter tossed the last of his trash in the can, where Tony stood close by, throwing out the deflated balloons. "Thanks again for the party, Mr. Stark. It really meant a lot to me." "Of course kid. You deserve it." Peter dwindled there for a bit, as if trying to decide his words, before speaking.
"Y'know, you don't have to do it for me though, right? All of it, the suit, my tuition, this? I don't want you to feel obliged to help me cause I don't always have the money for stuff." Tony stilled.
He turned to face Peter, an earnest look on his face. "Kid, I don't feel obliged to do this. I want to help you. Not because you can't do it on your own. I just- I see a bright future for you Pete. You're gonna change the world someday. And if I can help make things easier while you take that path, than I want to. Not because I think you're some charity case."
"Ok, who said anything about a charity case," Peter laughed. Tony's eyes widened slightly. "Oh no, that's not what I meant-"
"I'm kidding Mr. Stark, I'm kidding," Peter laughed. "I get what you mean. Thanks. It's nice to have someone looking out for me, y'know?" Tony smiled. "Yeah, I know."
Summer quickly passed, and Peter's first semester at college begun. Peter had insisted on a "road trip" to drop him off, which led to Happy, May, and Tony driving the kid to Boston.
Tony tried to ignore the sudden wave of sadness he felt as they left Peter in his dorm. Besides, he reasoned with himself. Boston wasn't too far from New York. He could still have the kid's suit AI tell him if he was staying out of trouble. "Overthinking too?", May asked. Tony blinked in surprise. "I didn't realize i was being that obvious." She smiled. "Don't worry, parenting is tough."
Tony's face reddened at the comment. Parenting? No. Sure he loved the kid, but he wasn't that important enough to the kid to be a parent. And yeah, sometimes people called him a helicopter dad. But that was different, wasn't it? It was better to leave the parenting stuff to May. She handled it better than he did.
It was only a few weeks before Thanksgiving when Peter had his first injury as Spider-Man in Boston. Tony had been working in the lab when Karen's voice cut in through the music playing. "Mr. Stark, Peter is currently injured! I'm putting him through to you right now!"
Tony shot up straight. "Mr. Stark?" Peter's feeble voice echoed across the room. "Peter," Tony said, already walking across the room to his Iron Man suits, "Is everything alright? Why is Karen saying you're injured?" There was a pause before Peter responded. "Because someone threw a knife at me? And they hit their target pretty well?"
"Peter!" Tony shouted. "What do you mean someone 'threw a knife' at you?!?" Peter groaned on the other end. "I dont know. It just-oww."
Tony softened. "Just hang on ok? Don't hang up. Stay awake, I'm headed your way. Friday, call May and let her know." Tony arrived to find Peter in an alleyway not too far from campus. He was hiding behind a trashcan, hands clutched around his side from where a knife handle emerged.
He lifted his head weakly as Tony approached him. "Hey Mr. Stark," he said with a woozy smile. "I'm impaled." "I can see that," Tony said, trying to remain calm.
"Karen, will Peter be ok if I transport him to Cho?" "Yes," the AI responded. "Just be careful with not disrupting his injury." "Alright kiddo," Tony spoke, lifting Peter up gently. "Time to go for a quick flight."
At the arrival of the Avengers Tower, Tony had immediately handed off Peter to Helen Cho and her medical team, who had promptly brought him into surgery.
Now, Tony sat in a chair in a recovery suite alongside May, as they both waited for Peter to wake up. "He's only been in Boston for 3 months and he's already been injured," May said, shaking her head.
Before Tony coukd respond, Peter began to stir. He opened his eyes slowly, raising his arm immediately to shield himself from the bright light. He blinked as he adjusted to the brightness, slowly turning his head to face the two older adults.
"Oh, hey," he croaked, smiling crookedly. "Hey yourself mister. How are you feeling?" May asked. Peter seemed to think for a bit before replying. "Good, just a little sore." "Alright good, then I won't feel bad about what I'm about to say," she answered.
"What were you thinking?!? Getting yourself stabbed?! Do you realize you could bled out alone in that alleyway if Tony hadn't gone to get you?" "But I didn't?", Peter gulped.
"Plus," May continued, "It was five minutes till your patrol time ended. That menat you should have been headed to your dorm already. Your patrol end time doesn't mean the time you stop fighting, it means the time you should be in your dorm already."
"But I'm an adult! I'm 18! I don't need a patrol time! I can handle myself." He paused. "Well, obviously yesterday was a mess up, but I can take care of myself just fine!"
"Peter," Tony said. "Just because you're 18 doesn't mean you're fine to be out fighting till who knows how long. You need boundaries. Besides, what happened to your whole "spider sense" thing?"
"I was distracted!" Peter answered. "There was a of guys surrounding me, and I was trying to move the lady they were trying to mug out of the way, and some of the guys shot at me so I turned right into the crossfire of this other guy who was throwing this knife at me."
He paused as if unsure if he wanted to reveal the next bit of information before continuing, voice coming out softer. "I got cocky. I thought i could handle it with no effort but those guys were quicker than I expected."
Tony and May shared a look. "Ok. This isn't the ideal way to learn something, but at least now you know. Don't underestimate a situation. I know you don't like not helping, but you gotta make sure you're keeping yourself safe too. Who's going to help the person if you get hurt too?" May spoke.
Peter nodded. "I know. I'm sorry for scaring you guys last night. I'll follow my schedule more closely from now on." May smiled. "That's all we wanted to hear."
In a little less than 3 years after the incident, Peter found himself graduating from college, alongside Ned and MJ once more. Tony and May were relieved to have him close by again as he moved back to Queens, on the hunt for a job now.
"Look Tony," Peter had said one day, shoving a newspaper in the man's face (how Tony missed the days when Peter called him Mr. Stark). "Dr. Octavius is hiring a research assistant for his new lab!"
"And who's that again?" Tony asked sarcastically. Peter rolled his eyes. "Only one of the best scientists in the field of phsyics. His lab is working with nuclear energy. I think I'm gonna apply." Tony smiled.
"You do that." He had long stopped joking about having Peter work for him. Peter had talent, and that talent deserved to be shared with others, not just within his personal lab.
It was no surprise when Peter excitedly called Tony a few weeks later, announcing he had gotten the job.
After a few months passed, Peter, now having the funds to do so, moved out into an apartment with MJ, who by now also worked as a social worker, helping primarily with displaced children. Tony had brought them multiple housewarming gifts, after Peter had insisted that "No Tony, you don't have to buy a house for us".
Then one day Peter asked Tony if he could stop by the Tower, a nervous edge to his voice. Tony awaited anxiously for Peter to enter the common floor, mind racing as to what could be wrong. As Peter suddenly entered through the elevator, Tony did a quick scan to ensure he wasn't injured before wrapping him in a side hug. "You gotta remember I'm an old man with heart issues, Pete. I thought you were hurt."
"Sorry Mr. Stark," Peter answered. "Huh, haven't heard that name in a while. You must be nervous," Tony said, eyes squinting suspiciously. "Yeah, um can we sit down? I wanna ask for some advice." "Sure. Come on."
As two sat down at a nearby table, Peter hesitated, fidgeting before finally speaking. "I'm going to ask MJ to marry me."
Tony's eyes widened slightly. At his reaction, Peter stiffened. "Unless it's too soon?"
"No, no, it's not. I just wasn't expecting you to say that. I thought it was going to be something about your suit. But I can help."
"Oh, ok," Peter responded bashfully. "I just- I just don't know how to go about setting up the proposal. I know MJ's said before she doesn't like the huge extravagant proposals that you see like on YouTube, but I feel like she deserves something huge, y'know?"
"Well, she deserves it, but does she want it? You've got to give her what she wants. There's no point in making her uncomfortable if she'd prefer something less explosive." Peter chewed on his lip as he thought.
"Yeah, you're right. I just don't know what to do, then. My mind's blanking on good ideas." "Well," Tony responded. "Does she have a favorite restaurant? Maybe you could propose there?"
"Wait," Peter stood. "She has this restaurant she likes near Central Park. I could take her there, and then we'll take a walk in the park where I can propose there. She'll love it!".
"There you go," Tony smiled. So, that weekend Peter proposed to MJ, elated when she excitedly said yes.
A few months later, they had their wedding at a small venue that they had fallen in love with in Queens.
Ned, who had stayed in Boston for work after college, drove down to be Peter's best man. The Avengers were of course in attendance, albeit keeping their presence as low key as possible.
When other guests asked about their appearance, Peter simply stated that he had been an intern at the Tower and had grown close with the team.
Then, one day Peter dropped a bombshell on Tony. It had been about a year and a half after the wedding. Peter and MJ had saved up enough to buy a house in the outskirts of Queens.
They had been living there for a while, Peter and MJ happy to still be close to work while having a large spacious yard they could call their own.
"You know," MJ had said one night as they sat in the backyard, gazing up at the night sky. "Now that we have our own real home, we could have our own little family."
Peter froze. "That is, if you're ready for that kind of responsibility," MJ said earnestly. Peter thought before speaking. "I am, really."
"But you'll have to promise me something. And I mean this, Mr. Parker," she said, wagging her finger at him. Peter nodded.
"You have to promise to be more careful when you're out as Spider-Man. I don't want to tell our child their dad died running around in spandex."
Peter smiled, then turning serious. "I will, MJ. I promise."
"Ok," Mj smiled back. She reached out for Peter's hand. He gave her it, looking up with her at the bright stars that littered the inky dark sky.
So, a few weeks later Tony had an anxious Peter sitting in front of him. "So," he said, "what exactly did you want to tell me?"
"MJ's pregnant."
When Tony didn't respond, Peter glanced up nervously to see the older man frozen, eyes widened.
"Tony say something! You're making me more nervous!"
Tony composed himself. "Ok, I'm sorry. I just, I don't know whether to be nervous or happy for you. I mean, are you ready to be a dad?"
"Tony!"
"Well, I mean it seems like just yesterday you were calling saying you were impaled and needed help." "That was more than 4 years ago!" "Right, sorry," Tony said. "I guess I'm just being a helicopter parent."
Peter groaned. "I came because I wanted reassurance that everything was gonna be ok. But now I'm definitely not so sure."
Tony gazed at him for a moment, choosing his words before speaking. "It will be. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have overreacted like that. I guess sometimes I see you and I still think you're that same kid I took under my wing all those years back. But you're not. You're a mature, responsible adult. You take good care of MJ. And I'm more than certain you'll take good care of your kid. You're gonna be a good dad, Pete. I know it."
Peter smiled, relief washing over his face. "Thanks Tony. I'm just so scared I'll screw it up." "Everyone feels that way. Just ask Clint or your Aunt May. But you'll handle it just like you do everything else. And if you ever need a break from the little bugger they can hang out with me in the lab and make some adjustments to my suits."
Peter laughed. "Thanks. I'll keep that in mind."
9 months later MJ and Peter introduced to the world a little girl: Mayday Parker. When Peter had first mentioned the name to MJ, she had laughed.
"Mayday? What kind of name is that?" "Imagine how cool she would be? She'd be the only kid in school with that name!" Peter playfully argued back. "And I wonder why," she had responded.
Yet, as time passed, MJ grew to like the name. "It's pretty in its own special way. It'll make her stand out. People will know she's a force not to be reckoned with."
So, they had settled on the name. They had decided not to tell anyone else until she was born. Now, a few days after Mayday's birth, Tony waited outside the Parker residence, anxious to meet her.
He carried a small Spiderman onesie with him. He knocked on the door and waited. The door creaked open, revealing a tired yet happy Peter.
"Tony," he smiled, "you made it. Come on, she's over here!" Tony followed him behind.
His heart beat rapidly. Why am I so nervous? He thought to himself. They approached a small basinet near where MJ sat.
"Hey Stark," she said, a smile on her face. Though she still didn't agree with his economic status, she had seemed to now somewhat enjoy his presence. She could see how much he cared for Peter.
"Hey," Tony smiled. "Congratulations. This is for her." He presented the small onesie. She took it in her hands, laughing at it. "This is great, thanks." She glanced at his nervous expression. "What are you waiting for? Say hi," she said gently.
Peter bent over, reaching into the bassinet to gently pick up the small baby. She had dark brown hair, with the biggest doe eyes. She stared at Tony.
Tony stood in awe. Peter smiled. "Mayday, say hi to your grandpa Tony." Tony blinked at the expression, tears threatening to fill his eyes.
Grandpa Tony, he thought. He liked that.