"Tony, this is serious," Pepper said angrily, rubbing her fingers together at her temples while the billionaire across from her fiddled with an hourglass on her desk. "Stocks have been dropping ever since the attack at the Expo."
"That's funny because I distinctly remember rescuing everyone from those ridiculous Hammer Drones," Tony remarked, barely focusing on the former assistant turned CEO.
"The general public thinks you are irresponsible."
"Well, they're not entirely wrong—"
"Well, you're still the face of this company so our PR team has put together a plan." Pepper interrupted with a glint in her eyes.
"They put together several plans in the past, but none of them have worked." Tony sighed deeply and looked at his empty wrists peaking above his sleeves. News organizations and conspiracy theorists have been forming their ideas about why he hasn't found his soulmate for years. This year, he turned 40. He was unquestionably in the upper percentile of markless people and had given up on finding his soulmate long ago. Having read countless news articles suggesting that it stands to reason that the "Merchant of Death" would not have a soulmate.
"Tony..." Pepper found it difficult to relate to him because she had known her soulmate, her older sister, her whole life. The initials had shown up the moment her Mom let her hold baby Pepper.
Tony could feel her pity and had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. "So, what's the plan this time?" he raised an eyebrow at her.
The change in subject was obvious to the CEO but she had lectured him hundreds of times about staying optimistic and knew it wouldn't get through to him. "Orphans," she said finally.
"You're kidding," Tony almost laughed at the obviousness of it.
"I'm not. A group of them will be here tomorrow for a tour and to meet Iron Man." She gave him a pointed look as if daring him to make an excuse.
"You know how I am with kids Pep."
"3:00" she informed, ignoring his attempt.
"Fine. I'll be there."
Pepper smiled, satisfied. Tony stood from his chair and made his way to exit her office "I'll be in the lab if you need me."
****************************
Peter squeezed into the back of the small van next to Alex and Maddie. The two of them were excitedly talking about the field trip they were taking and how rare it was to get to leave the orphanage for anything other than school. Peter, being the newest addition to the group, wouldn't have known otherwise. He had lost his Aunt May and Uncle Ben in a robbery only a month prior and didn't necessarily care about the field trip. Alex turned to face him "Are you excited to see Iron Man, Peter?" she asked gently.
Before Peter could nod politely, Maddie interjected. "Why bother? He's not gonna answer you anyway."
"Maddie don't be mean."
"Why not? We're all orphans here. He's just being dramatic." She rolled her eyes.
"He's only five," Alex defended. The two girls continued to bicker and Peter just turned to face the window as the van began to drive away. As the decrypted building faded from view, he couldn't help but miss Queens. He missed his daily walks to the park with Aunt May, he missed watching Uncle Ben cook while making fun of May for being terrible at it, and he missed story time before bed. He even missed being forced to eat his vegetables. If he could go back, he'd eat every piece of broccoli on his plate just to make May happy. Tears began to well up in his eyes, but he quickly forced them back. He didn't want to be called a crybaby again.
The van was vibrating with anticipation by the time they pulled up to the tower. Peter strained his neck to look all the way up to the large "Stark Industries" logo. He was starting to feel the excitement at the prospect of seeing Tony Stark. The man had saved him at the Expo a few months ago, even telling him "Good work, Kid" after Peter stood up to the Hammer Drone.
The van pulled to a stop and the matrons began helping the kids out one by one. Peter hopped out of the van and was quickly pushed to the back of the group as the overexcited kids tried to get closer to the front.
"Alright, everyone quiet down." The head matron boomed above the chattering. "I want everyone to stick close to the group. No wandering off during the tour." The group began to move forward and into the modern lobby.
"Hi everyone! My name is Ally and I'll be your tour guide today!" A peppy blond girl in her early twenties smiled at the group. "We're going to start by getting some temporary badges for everyone! You'll even get to take these... back with you" She faltered towards the end, trying to avoid the word 'home'. A few of the older kids weren't impressed but the young ones, including Peter, didn't catch the slip.
"Alright, I'm going to call your names one by one and you'll come up and grab your badge. She began calling names off of her list and one by one the kids ran up to grab their badge.
" Peter Parker" She called out the last name on her list. A boy began to make his way to the front of the crowd. He had curly brown hair, chubby little cheeks, and a pair of glasses too big for his face. Her heart melted at his cuteness, wanting to just scoop him up and take him home. He stood in front of her, looking up with his big brown eyes and she helped him put his badge on. He scampered away afterward and hid behind one of the matron's long skirts, gripping the fabric like a lifeline.
Ally held back a giggle and continued with her script. "You'll want to keep these visible at all times so our AI can keep track of you. Does anyone know what an AI is?" She asked the group.
Peter knew, but of course, didn't raise his hand. "Anyone?" Ally was met with silence. "AI stands for artificial intelligence. Our AI's name is JARVIS, named after Tony Stark's butler growing up. Say 'Hi' JARVIS!"
"Hello, I am JARVIS. I'll be assisting Ally with her tour today." A male voice came from the ceiling. The kids all looked around in awe at hearing the disembodied voice.
"We'll be starting our tour in the R&D Department" Ally's voice continued as she led the group to the large elevators. Peter allowed his mind to drift away. He wondered if Mr. Stark would remember him. He doubted it, but he was determined to find a way to say thank you, even if it wasn’t with his voice.
****************************
"Mr. Stark, the tour group is finishing their lunch and will be heading to the meeting location in five minutes." JARVIS reminded Tony as he tinkered with his suit in his lab. Tony groaned and put down his tools "Didn't I tell you to find me a way out of that?"
"It was not possible sir; Ms. Potts has ensured nothing short of a heart attack will make you miss this."
Tony waved a hand in the air and rolled his eyes, dismissing the AI. He stood from his chair and stretched out his back, readying himself to deal with a group of rowdy children.
Reaching the meeting room, he could already hear screaming children from outside the double doors. He stood waiting for his cue for all of two minutes before hearing it and opening the doors instantly quieting the room with his presence. The children whispered to each other in awe as he made his way to the front. Reaching his destination behind the podium, he equipped his charismatic person and began his speech. It was short and to the point. He is Iron Man, he is a genius, he owns Stark Industries, blah, blah, blah. It's the same speech he's given at schools many times before and will give many times to come. What caught his attention halfway through was a small boy in the very back, scribbling on a notepad. Is he taking notes? Now that's adorable. Tony thought to himself. After finishing off his speech with some words of inspiration both children and adults clapped.
“Now who wants a group photo?” Ally cheered.
The kids eagerly jumped from their chairs and began crowding the podium to get in the shot, all wanting to be next to the superhero.
Peter decided to use his size to his advantage. Crawling through the legs of the taller kids and squeezing past the shorter ones to get right next to his idol.
Tony felt a small tug on his pant leg and looked down at a pair of big brown eyes hidden behind glasses looking up at him. The boy reached out, a folded piece of paper in hand. Tony’s heart melted, so he wasn’t taking notes, he was writing me a letter.
“Alright everyone, smile!” Ally announced, holding up a big camera.
Tony reached down to grab the letter.
“3…2…1!” Ally snapped the picture just as Tony’s hand touched Peters.
A wave of what they could only describe as love washed over the two of them as a warm glow beamed from their wrists. “PBP” in childish handwriting formed on Tony’s wrist and he could see “AES” form on the kid's wrist in his own cursive handwriting.
Tony couldn’t focus on anything but his tiny soulmate, still staring up at him but with the same love and devotion in his eyes that Tony could only assume he was mirroring.
Ally looked up from behind her camera, shock evident on her face. A few matrons caught the look and found the source. Realizing what had happened they quickly began to try to gather the kids and get them out of the room to give the new soulmates some privacy. They whined, wanting to spend more time with the hero but were shut down quickly.
As the kids filed out of the room, Tony snapped out of the haze and bent down on one knee to get eye level with Peter. “I guess we’re soulmates,” he smiled warmly.
Peter matched his smile and nodded fervently. Aunt May had told him about soulmates all the time. She and Uncle Ben were soulmates and so were his parents. She had always told him that when he met his, he’d know instantly, and he’d never love anyone more. Peter always denied it and said he’d always love her the most, but now he knew what she meant. He still loved May of course, but the feeling of love and safety was never as strong as when he touched Mr. Stark's hand.
Tony’s eyes began to well up. He had a soulmate. “What’s your name kid?” Tony asked, still smiling. Peter opened his mouth to reply but hesitated. Peter looked down in shame; he couldn’t even talk to his soulmate.
“Kid, are you okay?” The boy refused to look up, not wanting Mr. Stark to see him upset. Tony cleared his throat, “Will you wait right here? I’m going to go talk to an adult, but I’ll be right back, okay?” Peter nodded and Tony walked over to where a matron was waiting by the room’s entrance.
“Hello, Mr. Stark,” she greeted him. “I’m Ellen, the head matron at St. Mary’s Home for Children.”
“Nice to meet you.” Tony shook her hand and then placed his hands on his hips. “I’m not really sure what to do here.” He admitted.
“Well, believe it or not, this isn’t the first time a parent has found their soulmate at our home so this process should be relatively smooth.”
“Parent?”
“Well, you’re taking Peter home, aren’t you?”
Tony froze. His heart stuttered at the idea of it. “I-I don’t know.”
The head matron was speechless for a moment before composing herself. She realized this must be a lot of stress on the man and she should calm him down. “That’s okay. Why don’t I just tell you a little bit about Peter?” she offered.
Peter. It was the second time she had said his name but the first time he fully processed it. He has a soulmate, and his name is Peter.
“Peter is five years old, and he’s only been with us for a few weeks. His parents died when he was just a baby, and his Aunt and Uncle took him in. They unfortunately passed away in a robbery last month. Peter witnessed the killing and has been unable to speak ever since, our counselor has been working with him but hasn’t made much progress. He said the trauma was too much for Peter and he stopped speaking as a defense mechanism.”
Tony listened intently, glancing over at his soulmate every few words. Peter was sitting on a chair and swinging his legs back and forth as his legs were too short to reach the ground.
“The most he’s done so far is write to us. He’s very bright, he can write full sentences and his vocabulary is far beyond his age group. His kindergarten teacher wanted to have him bumped up to second grade, but we decided to hold back until he gets further with talking.”
Tony hung on to her every word. His heart was breaking, he wanted to just wrap Peter up in a big blanket and never let him go.
“Mr. Stark?” She pulled his attention back to her. “Do you need more time to think?”
“I… need to talk to Pepper.”
****************************
“Ms. Potts, you are needed in conference Room A,” JARVIS announced to the redhead.
“Conference Room A? That’s where the orphanage tour is. Did something happen?” Pepper asked the AI; she knew Tony had given his speech already. She had been keeping tabs to ensure Tony did what he was supposed to do. So, what could’ve possibly happened?
“Mr. Stark has met his soulmate.”
Pepper dropped her pen. The bombshell making her hands lose function. She recovered quickly and a huge smile spread over her face. She knew Tony would meet his soulmate and she couldn’t wait to rub it in his face.
“Tell him I’m on my way.” She practically jumped from her desk and sprinted to the elevator as best as she could in her heels. She couldn’t wait to meet Tony’s soulmate. As she reached the hallway leading to Conference Room A, the orphans and matrons were standing in groups and chatting amongst themselves. Ally was standing in front of the double doors, as if guarding it.
“Ms. Potts,” she greeted before stepping out of the way and letting the CEO enter. Inside she saw a plump woman standing by the window, looking out at the city, and Tony seated at the front of the room. As she approached the billionaire, she could see he was seated next to a small boy, who was staring up at the older man with stars in his eyes while the billionaire talked a mile a minute.
Tony looked up at Pepper and smiled bigger than she’d ever seen him before.
“Pep, this is Peter, my soulmate,” Tony gestured at the small brunet.
Pepper squatted down in front of the child. “Hi Peter, my name is Pepper.” Reaching out her hand to shake his. Peter hesitated, biting his lip, and looking up at Tony. Tony nodded in encouragement and Peter took Peppers's hand gently and shook.
“Peter, do you mind if I talk to Tony for a minute?”
Peter nodded cutely and Tony stood to follow Pepper to the other side of the room.
Pepper pulled Tony into a tight hug. “Congratulations,” she whispered sincerely. Tony hugged her back, and his body began to shake. He let her go and cleared his throat. “So, what do I do?” He asked her.
Pepper’s eyebrows pulled together in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“I’m not ready for this.” He whispered, not wanting Peter to hear him in the quiet room. “I can’t be a dad.”
“What are you talking about?” Pepper wanted to slap some sense into the man. “Of course, you can.”
Tony met her eyes, doubt and surprise evident in his gaze.
“Tony,” Pepper sighed “I know your history with your father isn’t great. And I know you’re not the most responsible person on Earth. And I know you aren’t prepared for this kind of thing-“
“Wow thanks,” Tony said sarcastically.
“-But Peter needs you.” She said in complete seriousness. “And you need him.”
“Pep- “
“You do. And I believe in you.”
Tony was stunned. He hadn’t expected Pepper to be so supportive of taking him Peter in. He thought she would tell him he wasn’t ready for this, and Peter needed someone more reliable. If Pepper was sure he could do it, then he could. Pepper was never wrong, not that he’d tell her that.
It was then that he remembered the note Peter had handed him during the group photo. He quickly turned around and reached into his pocket as Pepper watched carefully. He unfolded the note and inside, in the same adorable handwriting on his wrist, was written: Thank you for saving me from the robots!
“He was at the expo?” Pepper questioned, reading the note over Tony’s shoulder.
Tony looked over to where Peter sat, the small boy was blushing as he watched Tony read the note.
“Get the paperwork started.” He ordered and left to go back to Peter.
Pepper wanted to roll her eyes and remind Tony she was no longer his assistant, but her excitement took precedence, and she nodded before going to talk to the head matron.
****************************
Peter leaned his head onto Tony’s chest as the elevator rose to the top floor. Tony had Peter balanced on his hip as the elevator doors opened to reveal his lavish penthouse. Peter’s eyes widened in disbelief, the apartment he lived in with Ben and May was half the size of Tony’s living room.
“Welcome home Young Master,” JARVIS announced as they entered.
Peter wrinkled his nose at the name making Tony laugh. “You can just call him Peter, Jar,” he told the AI.
“Are you hungry?”
Peter shrugged one shoulder and buried his head deeper into Tony’s chest. “How about a little snack and then a nap?” Tony suggested, but he wasn’t sure if that was even right. He could see that Peter seemed tired but at what age do kids stop taking naps? He really needed to do some research after putting Peter down. Tony carried Peter over to the kitchen and set him down on the barstool at the island. He decided on a PB&J. Peter watched fascinated as Tony made the simple sandwich. It was just like when Uncle Ben would cook for him. The tears he held back earlier that day came back with a vengeance and began to spill over before he could stop it.
“Oh shit-“Tony panicked seeing his soulmate start to sob. He rounded the island and picked Peter up, holding him in a tight hug. Peter clung to his neck and Tony could feel his tears soaking into his shirt.
“P- please don’t leave me.” Peter wailed through the tears. Tony’s heart broke at the plea before realizing Peter had spoken. “I’m not going anywhere.” He assured the boy, rubbing his back in soothing circles. “You’re stuck with me for a long long time.”
Peter’s sobs started to subside, and his eyes started to shut on their own accord. Tony continued to rub his back until it was clear he was asleep. He carried his soulmate over to the couch and sat down with Peter still in his arms.
Tony took a deep breath and thought over the events of the day. In one hour, his entire life has changed, but he’s never been happier than right now in this moment. Everything everyone had ever said about soulmates was true. It felt like he was whole after missing his other half his entire life. The ding of the elevator snapped him out of his thoughts.
Pepper strode towards him, a pile of paperwork in her hands. Seeing the sleeping toddler, she said in a whisper “Everything is all set. Once you sign these Peter is officially your son.” She set down the papers on the coffee table in front of them.
“Thanks, Pep, I don’t know what I’d do without you.” He smiled.
“How about I go put him down then we can plan a few things?” Pepper suggested.
Tony agreed and carefully untangled Peter’s hands from his neck, allowing Pepper to take him. She returned a few minutes later and sat down next to Tony who was halfway through the large stack of papers.
“I spoke to the head matron, and she told me about Peter being mute,” Pepper started.
“He spoke to me just before you got here,” Tony told her, trying not to brag but utterly failing to keep the smile off his face.
Pepper smiled as if that made perfect sense, “That’s great, Tony!”
“He was begging me not to leave him.” He admitted.
Pepper’s smile faded “We should look into a therapist for him.”
“Agreed. JARVIS, compile a list of the best child therapists in the country.” He directed the AI. “Oh, and all the clothes and toys a five-year-old could ever need.”
Pepper rolled her eyes at his actions but was glad he was taking charge of what Peter needed.
It was then that he got to the last page and signed his name big and proud on the dotted line and a warm light started to glow from his wrist. The childish “PBP” morphed into “PBS”.
Peter Benjamin Stark.