Things were a little less than alright.
There was a brief period of silence as the two of them tried to process what they had just been told.
“One bed?” Tony asked, “Are you sure?”
The receptionist nervously bit her red lips, “That’s what it says here.”
Tony ran a hand through his hair and blew out a breath.
“It’s a king bed, sir. It should be enough room to fit you two.” The receptionist said in a meek tone. Peter felt a pang of sympathy for her.
“Are there any other rooms available with two beds?”
The receptionist tried for a smile but it still ended up looking like a wince, “I’m sorry, we just booked our last room with multiple beds.”
Exhausted, Peter placed a hand on Tony’s arm to get his attention, “It’s fine. Let’s just take the room and settle for the night. It’s one night.”
Tony’s shoulders slumped slightly, “I guess you wouldn’t want me to use my money to try and…persuade people to give up their room.” He mumbled more to himself than to Peter. “We’ll take the room.”
The receptionist smiled as she finished checking them in and, at Tony’s nod to Peter, handed Peter the keys.
Apart from having only one, huge by Peter’s standards, bed the hotel room was pretty good.
Tony flopped onto one of the chairs in the hotel room. Peter hesitated in the doorway briefly.
He could try and confront Tony now.
Peter walked to the side of the bed closest to the door, the side he was claiming as his own, and set his bag down. As he pulled out the essentials, Peter watched Tony out of the corner of his eye.
The rigid figure was a telling sign that Tony likely wouldn’t respond to prying or talking well right now. Perhaps a bit of space would do Tony well.
Maybe tomorrow, after a good night of sleep and some breakfast, they would talk about what happened and Peter could get to the bottom of what had happened.
“Tony?” Peter called waiting until Tony hummed in acknowledgment, “Is it okay if I shower first?”
Tony didn’t waste a second, “‘Course, Pete.”
Peter gave a tense smile, not that Tony could see from where he was burning holes into the ground.
Peter took note of the time as he texted a small update to Aunt May, which was just responding to her messages and telling her that he was still alive.
He’d give Tony a half-hour. That should be enough time for Tony to somewhat come down and be calm enough to talk about what happened and what’s going on.
.
As planned, twenty-eight minutes later, Peter was exiting the bathroom. What was unplanned was Tony looking worse now than when Peter went into the bathroom.
Peter let out a soft sound as he walked out of the bathroom, instantly spotting Tony with his head in his hands. Immediately noticing how his shoulders were shaking slightly.
"Tony? What's wrong?"
"Everything!" Tony exclaimed. Shocking Peter only slightly. "I-" he huffed as he tried to find words, "I can't do anything right. I couldn't pitch a tent, I couldn't correctly book a room. I- I put you in danger. This was supposed to be a relaxing trip! A nice getaway, and what do I do? I ruin it just like I ruin everyth-"
Throughout Tony’s rambling, Peter had tried to softly interject until he’d had enough. Placing his hands on Tony's shoulders, not roughly. "Enough!"
Tony looked up at Peter. Well, slightly.
"Look," Peter softened slightly, "I'm not good at this stuff." Peter gestured between the two of them, "So if I say the wrong thing, I'm sorry in advance."
Peter took a deep breath, "Tony, first of all, you don't ruin everything. That's just- wrong. And I don't ever want to hear you say that again. And if I do I'll tell DUM-E that your doctor prescribed a shake with at least one meal a day and then he'll never stop trying to poison you."
Tony huffed a small laugh, "So you admit his shakes are poison?"
"Never to his face. Second, you could have put up that tent if you had bothered to glance at the instructions. Third, what happened at the campsite wasn't your fault." Peter paused for a moment and Tony took his chance.
"If I had listened-"
"You're right." Peter conceded without letting Tony continue on his tangent. "We wouldn't have gotten lost. We would have gotten back to the campsite and then been ambushed when we didn't expect it."
"I should have never taken us there. Should have never taken you there." Tony grumbled, looking down. And Peter belatedly noticed that through this he had yet to make eye contact.
Peter crouched down to force Tony to look at him, "But you did. And then we got out. And neither one of us got hurt. So, water under the bridge as far as I'm concerned. And as for the room situation, FRIDAY booked it. And she didn't exactly know any better. You said to book a room for two and she did." Holding up a hand to stop Tony from saying whatever it was he was going to say, "This room is perfectly fine for one night."
Tony furrowed his brows and opened his mouth to protest.
"I mean it, Tony. It's fine. The bed is big enough that we can both sleep in it without being cramped." Peter nudged him slightly in what he hoped was a comforting motion.
Peter stood and patted Tony on the head before walking away, “Go get cleaned up. We can figure the rest out later.”
Peter dug through his bag to look for his charger and get it set up.
“Don’t get too cozy over there.” Tony poked his head out of the bathroom doorway, “That’s my side.”
“Uh-huh.” If Tony could move him, then he could have the side.
Not that he would be successful. Peter set his bag on the floor next to the bed and heaved a sigh as he sat down on the bed.
He could definitely use a few hours of sleep. Tucking himself into bed he scrolled on his phone for a few minutes, reading through the messages and memes Ned had sent, before deciding to just sleep.
He’d give Tony a break for the night.
.
Depending on the situation, what the mutation had done to his sleep cycle was either a blessing or a curse.
He didn’t need a lot of sleep, and when he did sleep it was a lot like dozing.
It was as if he was caught between complete consciousness and unconsciousness. Peter was aware of the things going on around him, he heard the shower switch off. He heard Tony fiddle around and then exit the bathroom.
He heard Tony’s sigh and heard the flick of a light switch. He felt the bed dip as Tony lay on the bed.
And then it was quiet. There was nothing new going on around him. No new sounds or movements.
Peter felt himself begin to sink deeper into blissful unconsciousness. Or as close to unconsciousness as he could get.
Then Tony shifted.
Feeling the bed shift, consciousness came rushing back in as he quickly reoriented himself. After another few minutes of nothing new happening, Peter felt himself begin to drift off once more.
Then Tony shifted.
Once again, consciousness washed over him like a bucket of cold water on a hot day.
It’s just Tony, he told himself. Peter ignored the urge to turn over so that his back wasn’t to Tony, knowing full well that if he did that then his back would be to the door.
He could lay on his back, but with how often he was slammed into buildings back first, he didn’t think his spine would ever fully heal.
Peter shifted slightly, trying to get more comfortable.
Listening to Tony’s breathing, Peter could tell that he had yet to fall asleep.
And so, the cycle continued.
Peter would drift into unconsciousness, and then Tony would shift and bring him out of that state.
It took five, maybe six, more times of this cycle repeating for Peter to shoot up into a sitting position.
Tony jerked as if he hadn’t expected it. Which…was fair. Why would Tony expect it?
Peter turned the lamp next to him on and whipped his head around to face Tony. “What’s the problem?”
Tony blinked at him, “What?”
Peter took a deep breath “I know I'm not…the perfect role model for talking about feelings. But, Tony, bottling this all up is not going to end well."
"I already talked about my feelings," Tony muttered as he looked away.
Peter huffed, his patience was running out. “Clearly, there is something else that is going on. And I was going to wait until tomorrow to bring it up, but, it's obviously bothering you now.”
Tony shrugged.
“You were willing to tell me earlier,” Peter tried, “What changed between then and now?”
Tony mumbled something into the pillow.
Peter closed his eyes and counted to five, “Could you repeat that? Preferably not while your face is mushed into a pillow?”
Tony groaned and rolled back on his back. “I already unloaded on you once.”
“And I’m asking you to finish unloading.” Peter jabbed his hands at his own chest, “I can’t help you if you don’t let me.”
“That’s the problem! You’re always helping me.” Tony complained, “And the one time I can actually help you, they make it damn near impossible!”
Peter blinked at Tony, not put off by the yelling. “Who does?”
Tony sighed and sank back into the bed. “The Avengers.”
Peter processed for a moment then shook his head. “Okay, I’m missing something. What do the Avengers have to do with anything?”
Tony hesitated for a moment, eyes looking away to the window. “In exchange for leaving you alone, the board asked that I house the Avengers.”
Peter closed his eyes once again and blew out a slow breath, “How long? How long did you agree to house them?”
“...Six months.”
Peter shook his head, “Call it off. No deal.”
Tony looked at him, “No.”
Peter clenched his jaw, “I’m not asking you, Tony. I’m telling you to call off the deal.”
Tony shook his head. “You don’t have the authority to tell me that.”
“Tony, it’s a fucking scam.” Peter spat, “Don’t you understand that? I’m well aware that what I do is illegal, just because they decide to leave me alone doesn’t mean that everyone will.”
“It’s different, Peter.”
“How? Tell me how.”
“They don’t want to arrest you.” Tony sat up slightly, “They want to experiment on you. Something will go ‘wrong’ and then you’ll be gone forever and subjected to who knows what kind of torture.”
Peter's lips curled, he ignored the way some of his scars burned. “I don’t care.”
“How could you say that?” Tony screeched as he glared at Peter.
Peter opened his mouth to snap back but faltered when he saw how tense Tony had become. Peter took a moment to collect himself before speaking, “I’m sorry, Tony. I just don’t want you putting yourself in an uncomfortable position because of me.”
Tony sighed. “This is the best solution. The world needs the Avengers, and I -” Tony swallowed and looked away, “You’re one of the few people that bring me coffee, and I need my coffee.”
“Right.” Peter agreed. “I’m sorry, Tony. I didn’t know you felt so strongly about coffee.”
“Coffee is very important to me. Ask Honeybear, he’ll tell you all about it.”
Peter looked away. “Maybe right now isn’t the best time to talk about this. We’ve had a stressful day, let’s just try and relax. We’ll talk about this more in the morning, okay?”
Tony agreed easily, “I don’t know what else there is to talk about since I’m going through with this either way.”
Peter slowly exhaled. "Okay. Then tomorrow we can talk about the finer details. How long they’ll be staying, and what boundaries you’ve put into place. Jim already told me that last time they were with you, you let them walk all over you.”
Tony scoffed, “That’s a damn lie.” Then after a second, “When did Rhodey tell you that?”
“Over coffee,” Peter explained calmly.
“Oh, okay.” Tony was satisfied with the answer for five minutes, “Wait a damn minute, since when do you two get coffee?”
“We got coffee a few days after we met. So that we could get to know each other a bit better. It’s really not that serious.”
In the dark, Peter could see Tony narrow his eyes.
“Just go to sleep, Tony,”
Tony grumbled his complaints but eventually let the conversation drop.
.
Despite the conditions being perfect to sleep in - dark, quiet, and still- Peter felt too worked up to sleep.
The silent atmosphere was broken by Tony’s quiet whisper.
“You didn’t mean it, right?”
Absent-mindedly, Peter’s hand drifted to his chest.
“Peter?”
Peter shifted onto his side, turning away from Tony. “It’s been a long day, Tony.”
There was quiet for an hour, maybe even two. Peter didn’t dare move.
“I hate it when you do that."
He did too.
Words that could be comforting got clogged in Peter’s throat. He ignored the slight trembling for a few minutes before he turned over onto his back. One arm grabbed at Tony to pull him closer.
He didn’t acknowledge Tony pressing his face into his shoulder. He didn’t acknowledge that part of his shirt was getting wet.
Peter closed his eyes and slightly tightened his grip on Tony's shirt and ignored the memories that were trying to flood in.
-
The next time that Peter opened his eyes it was morning and Tony was still snoring quietly. Still partially on top of him, too.
Peter huffed and gently moved Tony off of him so that he could escape. Peter winced as he moved into a standing position.
His back cracked as he stretched on his way to the bathroom.
Peter had hoped that by the time he left the bathroom, Tony would be awake, but no such luck. Peter glanced at Tony, still peacefully sleeping, before leaving the room. He’d grab the two of them breakfast and coffee, by then, Tony would surely be awake.
Peter took one sip of the coffee they offered and immediately decided, absolutely not.
“People really call anything coffee these days, huh?” Peter grumbled as he walked to the nearest coffee shop. There was one half a mile away from the hotel.
“I bet they don’t even clean their machines. Disgusting.” Peter shook his head in disappointment.
“Hello! Welcome to Mimi’s!” One of the employees called.
Peter glanced around at the coffee shop, it was cute. It smelled nice, too.
After a glance at the menu, he decided he might as well get breakfast from here as well. The pastries smelled and looked a lot fresher here than they did at the Hotel, anyway.
“So, are you new around here?” One of the customers asked.
Peter smiled politely and shook his head, “I’ve been around.”
“Oh? I’ve never seen you around here before.” The guy remarked, stepping a bit closer. “I think I would have remembered seeing a face like yours.”
Peter side-eyed the man, “What does that mean?”
The man was caught off-guard for a moment. “I’m just trying to pay you a compliment, sweetheart.”
Peter turned toward him, “Oh. Well, thanks, I guess.”
“Peter?” The barista called.
Peter smiled and grabbed the drinks and bag of food. “Have a great day.”
“That’s a nice name.” The guy said.
Peter sighed and turned to face him, “I didn’t choose it. What’s your name?”
“Richard.” The man, Richard, smiled.
It felt as though his heart had stopped for a moment. Peter forced himself to smile, “That was my father’s name.”
“Oh, really?” Richard stepped even closer to Peter.
Peter took a step back. "Yeah...you know, they never did find his body." The man at least had the sense to look a bit puzzled. It likely wasn't something he expected to hear. "If all goes according to plan, they never will." His father, on record, died in a plane crash; so these words would never be taken seriously and wouldn't be used against him. And yet, he still felt the urge to look around to make sure there were no familiar faces to hear his not quite confession. Richard took a few steps back with an uneasy lugh that made his hands clasp together behind his back.
“Where are you going?” Peter took a step forward and was pleased when the man backed up. "I just remembered that I've actually got some, uh, plans today. And I don't really have time to stay and chat." Peter scoffed as he watched the man walk away. "Audacity must be on sale this week." -
By the time Peter made it back to the room, Tony was sitting up in the bed. Not looking fully awake, but more awake than he had been before.
“I brought coffee and food,” Peter announced as he shut the door behind him, walking over to Tony to set the coffee on the nightstand.
Tony grunted and took the coffee as soon as he could.
After finishing his coffee and getting halfway through the breakfast sandwich, “You get this from somewhere else?”
Peter nodded and balled up his sandwich wrapper to throw into the bin, “Yeah. A little coffee shop named Mimi’s.”
“See anything interesting on your way there?”
“Nah. I honestly don’t want to spend another moment in this town. I was out for less than an hour and already ran into a creep.”
Tony paused, “Do I need to kill somebody?”
Peter waved a hand, “I already took care of him.”
“Should I be concerned?” Tony queried, mostly joking.
Peter shrugged and took a sip of his coffee. An impressed hum left him, “This is pretty good.”
Tony smacked his lips, “My mouth is burned.”
“Well, maybe if you waited for things to cool down before chugging them then you wouldn’t have that problem.” To emphasize his point, Peter chugged part of his coffee down.
Tony sniffed and rolled his eyes. “You’re just a hater.”
Peter placed a hand on his chest and mock gasped, “How’d you know?”
“I’m an excellent judge of character.” Tony jokingly bragged before sniffing again. “Well, I’m gonna clean up and then we can head out of here.”
Peter leaned forward as he finished off his coffee, “Got any ideas as to where to?”
Tony stretched as he stood out of bed, “I hear the beaches in Florida are wonderful this time of year.”
“Isn’t that what you said the last time you brought up Florida?”
“It was true then and it’s true now.” Tony declared before shutting the bathroom door.
Peter rolled his eyes, Tony seemed to be doing a lot better. He didn’t seem as on edge or tense.
Peter rolled his shoulders and stepped out of the room for a moment to answer the call from his Aunt.
“Hey, Peter!” His Aunt greeted instantly, “Are you doing okay?’’
“Hi, May. Yes, I’m doing fine. Are you?”
His Aunt heaved a sigh, “I’m fine, my friend…not so much.”
“Oh, is she okay?”
“No. At the funeral, some of the family started arguing about the will.”
“At the funeral?” Peter spluttered.
May groaned, “Literally over her dead body.”
Peter winced, “Well, I honestly have no idea what to say about that.”
“Yeah. But, what’s been going on with you, baby?” Aunt May probed and there was a slight shuffling sound on her end.
Oh, you know. I almost got murdered, was hit on twice by two random guys, and made one of my best friends cry- “Nothing much, Aunt May.”
"How's your friend Anthony? You said you were going on a trip with him?" Aunt May asked, a hint of worry in her voice.
Peter ran a hand down his face, sometimes he hated how well Aunt May could read him. "He's fine. We just got into a bit of a disagreement. I said something out of line."
He could hear his aunt's disappointment.
"It wasn't anything mean!" Peter defended. He honestly hadn't expected Tony to care that much… and he could see how that could be insulting.
"Have you apologized?"
"Yes."
"Is he still mad?"
"I don't think he was ever mad, Aunt May."
"Oh," May hummed. "Well, make it up to him."
"How?"
"I don't know, he's your friend, not mine."
Peter furrowed his brows.
"Quit pouting." Aunt May admonished, and Peter began to look around for cameras. "What was it about?"
Peter ran a hand through his hair, "It was about a decision. He's putting himself in a…not good position."
Aunt May waited for a second to see if anything else was going to come. "Well, that's his choice. And-"
"But he's making it because of me. And I don't like that because-"
"Baby, we can't control the actions of others. People are going to do what they're going to do. From the few things I've heard, he seems to be a very stubborn individual."
Peter's shoulders slumped. "That he is, Aunt May."
"It sounds like whether or not you approve, he's going to stick with his decision."
"I wish he wouldn't."
"I know, honey. But, sometimes all we can do is stick with someone. You said this position was going to put him into a-” May paused to remember Peter’s exact words, “-not good position?”
Peter made an affirming noise.
“Then, just be there for him. That’s all you can do sometimes, honey.” Aunt May sighed, “I have to go, but I love you, Peter.”
“I love you too, Aunt May.”
Peter hung up the phone and stepped back into the room to see Tony walking out of the bathroom.
“Where did you go?” Tony asked as he packed away the clothes he had slept in.
Peter began to pack up the few things that he had taken out of his bag the night before, “Talking to my Aunt. Apparently, some of the family started arguing about the will at the funeral.”
Tony grimaced, “At the funeral?”
Peter nodded sadly. “They didn’t even wait for the funeral to end.”
-
Tony was tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. Unlike the drive to the campsite, the car was silent.
The two had picked up another round of coffee, Tony’s coffee was caffeinated and Peter’s was decaffeinated.
“So, where are we headed? Florida?”
Tony glanced over at him, “Would that be acceptable?”
Peter grinned, “I suppose, that’ll be fine.” After a few minutes of silence, “So, you’re going to drive us back and then we’ll fly?”
Tony hummed to confirm, glancing at the side view mirror before merging into the other lane. “It’ll be faster that way.”
“Sounds good.” Peter grabbed his phone and hooked it up to the car, “I hope you’re ready for some bangers.”
Tony side-eyed Peter, “No Demi Lovato.”
Peter rolled his eyes, “I wasn’t going to. Now quit being grumpy and enjoy the music.”
“I’m not grumpy-”
Peter turned the music up slightly to drown out his complaints and leaned back in his seat.
-
Peter grunted as he sat into the seat on the plane or jet. (Whatever it was that Tony wanted to call it.) His back still ached from laying on it all night, and the car ride hadn’t done anything to soothe it.
Peter raised a brow when he glanced up at Tony and saw him staring with a confused look on his face. “What?”
“You winced.”
Peter felt his face scrunch, “Hah?” He was hunched forward slightly in the chair, although it didn’t do much to help the burning feeling.
“Did you get hurt?” Tony persisted with his questioning.
Peter shook his head, “No.” Scratching his head, “Well, I did. But, not recently.”
Tony cocked his head, likely coming up with a hundred and one theories and trying to determine which one made the most sense. “Old injury acting up?”
“Something like that.”
Feeling the burning begin to fade, Peter leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes.
And less than fifteen seconds later something was thrown at him.
“What the hell, man?” Peter opened his eyes to glare at Tony.
Tony crossed his arms and, if Peter didn’t know any better, he would have guessed that he was the one to have thrown something by the irritated look on Tony’s face. “You know, just once I’d like to receive an actual answer whenever I ask you a question."
“And for once I’d like you to listen to me!” Peter retorted without missing a beat.
Tony’s grip on his arms tightened, “I do listen to you!”
Peter laughed incredulously. “Read the instructions, Tony. We’re going the wrong way, Tony! WE’RE LOST, TONY!”
“Quit yelling at me!” Tony snapped and further tightened his grip on his arms.
Peter dropped his head into his hands and took in a deep breath, held it, and let it out.
Tony’s heartbeat was awfully fast.
Peter took another deep breath. He didn’t even mean to get heated. His back just hurt and he was still tense about the thing with the Avengers.
“It’s my back. I took a bad fall some years ago and it’s never really fully recovered. And it doesn’t help that every month or so, without fail, I’m slammed into something back first.”
Tony sniffed.
Peter turned his head back down, placing it back down into his hands. “I’ve been acting like an ass. And you don’t deserve that.”
There was the sound of fabric shifting as Tony moved his shoulders, likely shrugging. “It was bound to happen. Only so many people can withstand my- well, just me in general before snapping.”
Peter squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. “No, Tony. This doesn’t have anything to do with you. I’m just in pain and worried.”
“About what?”
Peter lifted his head up to narrow his eyes at Tony. “About you, genius!”
“Well…don’t be. I’m a grown man. I can handle myself.”
Peter bit his tongue to prevent himself from saying anything that would just make the situation worse. “It doesn’t matter how old you are or how well you can take care of yourself. You’re one of my people, and I’m gonna worry about you because I care about you. And there’s nothing you can do about it.”
At Tony’s lack of response, Peter continued. “I can’t stop you or force you to change your decision and let them continue to rot and wither away. No matter how much I want to.” The last part was muttered more to himself than anything.
Peter focused back on what had started the argument. “Does me giving nonanswers upset you?”
Tony made a breathy noise, as though he was trying to find words but couldn’t. “Sometimes.”
Peter rested his cheek on his fist that was propped up and with his free hand made a ‘go-on’ gesture.
Tony’s face was scrunched, kind of like he smelled something awful. “This sucks.”
“Feelings? Or talking about them?”
“Yes.” Tony nodded in agreement.
Peter gave a sympathetic look. “Well, that’s too bad. Take your time, but, keep going.”
“It doesn’t really bother me whenever you do that when we’re joking. But, when I’m trying to ask you a serious question, and you do that, it makes me feel like-. I don’t want to do this anymore. Can we just be done?”
Peter furrowed his brows, “It’s just us, Tony. I’m not going to judge you or scream at you if I hear something I don’t like. I just want to understand. I’ll do my best to stop with the nonanswers regardless, but, I want to know what you feel so I can reassure you.”
“This is all backward!”
“No, it’s not.” Peter shook his head. Pointing at Tony, “You, my friend, are having feelings about something I do.” Pointing at himself, “I, your friend, am trying to learn about those feelings so I can help.”
Tony was quiet as he fiddled with his watch.
“Do you want to write it down?” Peter offered, “Or text it to me?”
Tony leaned his head back onto the headrest of the plane seat. “It feels like you’re shutting me out.”
Peter pursed his lips and nodded slowly. “I can see why you would feel like that, and I’m sorry that I made you feel that way.” Looking at the floor, “Sometimes it feels easier to give a nonanswer rather than the truth.”
Tony followed his gaze, “So, last night-”
Peter swallowed, “If it came down to it, and I had to choose between you getting hurt and me getting hurt. I’d rather me get hurt than you.”
“It’s more than just being hurt, Peter. It’s-”
Peter cut Tony off, “Getting strapped down and cut open? Getting parts of your organs taken out so that they can watch them regenerate?” Still not looking at Tony, “I know. And I’d do it all over again if it meant that you were safe. Mentally and physically.”
Peter leaned forward and placed a hand on Tony’s knee. “But it won’t come to that.”
“How could you know that?” Tony's voice was rough.
“Because-”
“You’re Spider-Man?” Tony laughed wetly.
“No. Because you’re Iron Man.” Because you won’t let that happen.
Tony processed the response and untucked his hands away from where he had hidden them.
Peter gently took Tony’s shaking hands, “Make whatever decision you think is best. And regardless of what you choose, I will be here. I promise.”
Tony squeezed Peter’s hands and as he looked out the window, the tension slipped out of him.
-
Grabbing their bags, “Alright, what’s on the agenda?”
Tony glanced at his tablet, “I have prepared a list of activities.”
“Based off of research?”
Tony didn’t falter, “I am a scientist, Peter. Obviously.” Pushing up his sunglasses with a knuckle, “We still have about three days left of your break. It’s not nearly as long of a break as you need, but, it will have to do for now.”
“Don’t worry, Tony! I’m about to graduate.”
A somewhat pained look crossed Tony’s face for a second, “And then you’ll be away at college or university, who knows how many states away.”
Peter raised a brow, “None. I’m not leaving.”
Tony blinked. “What? College is non-negotiable-”
“I’m going to a community college.”
Tony sputtered, “You could do so much better-!”
“Hey! Don’t shit on community colleges.”
Tony waved a hand, “Wouldn’t you rather go somewhere like…I don’t know…MIT?”
“That’d be cool, but I like the college I picked out. It’s a good distance away, they have good programs.”
Tony huffed, “Fine. But if you ever change your mind, I can make it happen.” Tony froze for a second and hurried to add on, “Not that I don’t think you can get in on your own. I was just talking about transportation and-”
Peter leaned into him with a smile and pinched Tony’s cheek, “I know what you meant. And it was sweet of you to say that.”
Tony cleared his throat but didn’t lean away, “So, here’s the plan. We go to Disney one day. We go to Universal another. And then, on the last day, we relax at a beach.”
“Are you sure that you’ll be okay to do that?”
“What do you mean?”
“We’ll go to Disney on one day, and then the next day you’ll still be sore.”
“It will be worth it, to take my most favorite-”
“I’m telling Jim you said that.”
“-person that is under the age of 30-”
“Good save.” Peter grinned.
“-and watch them have a good time.”
“I vote that we find a hotel today, go to Disney tomorrow, and then see how we feel after that. If we’re too sore, we’ll have a beach day, if not we can go to Universal Studios.”
Tony hummed but agreed. “Sure. But, I’m positive that I will be fine. I think, in the end, you’re going to be the one that’s sore.”
Peter shrugged and began to walk. “I’m not the one pushing sixty.”
“I’m not even fifty!” Tony cried as he rushed to catch up with Peter.
-
Peter took another bite out of the churro. The two were on their way back out of the park, “I’ll admit, I’m surprised no one noticed that you were here.”
“Peter, please. Not even Pepper knows where I am.”
Peter paused his chewing to slowly turn his head to look at Tony, “Isn’t she, like, your boss?”
“Kind of. Anyway, I just told her that I was going to be on vacation.” Tony waved a flippant hand.
Peter nodded, “Uh-huh.” Looking Tony up and down, “Are you ready to admit it?”
Tony hummed innocently. “I have no idea what you’re referring to.”
Peter side-eyed Tony, “You’re literally limping.”
Tony shook his head. “Lies. Filthy lies.”
Peter huffed and raised his hands in mock surrender. “Alright, fine.”
.
Tony whined again, and despite not finding humor in his friend being in pain Peter couldn’t help but snicker.
“Does Universal still sound good?”
“No.” Tony shook his head squeezing his eyes shut, “The beach idea was a good idea.”
Peter stood up from where he had been sitting on the hotel bed he had claimed. The one closest to the door, of course. Tony had tried to claim it, but, Peter simply lifted him up and deposited him onto the other bed.
“I know it was. That’s why I suggested it.” Peter tossed his phone onto the bed and made his way over to Tony.
“What beach do you want to go to?” Tony asked, “As in which coast, we’re in the middle of Florida, right now.”
Peter shrugged. He didn’t exactly have a preference for which coast. He didn’t exactly plan on getting into the water. His plan was to lay in the sun and relax. “Doesn’t make a difference to me.”
Peter blinked down at Tony and cocked his head, Tony’s face was still caught in a slight grimace. And Peter began to wonder if Tony really was as uncomfortable as he had been complaining to be.
Without thinking too much about it, Peter grabbed Tony’s foot and began to softly massage it.
“Is this helping or making it worse?” Peter asked and at the lack of response looked up to find Tony relaxing into the sheets. Peter stopped rubbing and was immediately met with a glare, “Is that a yes?”
“You’re evil.” Tony grumbled, “Yes. Now I will pay you to keep on.”
Peter rolled his eyes but went back to it. “I don’t know if I want to do this for you anymore. I don’t think I appreciate you calling me evil.”
“I say it with affection.”
“I accept that with doubt.”
Tony hummed an unintelligible response. After a minute or so of silence, a glance upward revealed Tony was well on his way to sleep.
Peter made a mental note to add another observation to the list and continued to massage. He’d give Tony ten more minutes and then call it.
-
The next morning was boring. Most mornings were whenever it was just two people and one of them communicated strictly through grunts and grumbles (Tony) until they consumed some kind of caffeine.
They had gone to a more private beach, there were still people there but far more spread out than at a typical beach.
Peter felt himself relax as a cool breeze blew past, a welcome sensation just like the burning sand beneath his feet. Tony had side-eyed him whenever he took off his shoes but otherwise said nothing.
He let Tony pick their spot, only because he had no preference either way. The spot Tony picked was a good distance from the ocean. It wasn’t a long walk to it but they also weren’t right in front of it.
Somehow, Tony had been completely prepared for the beach trip. Not needing to stop at a single store for the supplies. An umbrella, towels, chairs, etc.
Seriously, when had Tony packed this stuff? How did he know to pack this stuff?
As Tony laid out two chairs from who knows where he waved a free hand to the ocean. “There, the perfect distance for you to go splash around and still be in my line of sight so you don’t get lost.”
Peter raised a brow and straightened up from where he had been crouched, “Geez, okay, Dad.” And then promptly turned back to what he was doing.
He only half-registered a choking sound coming from Tony as he crawled into the hole he had dug and began to pull the sand over him.
After a few more adjustments and wiggles to further burrow himself into the sand, Peter relaxed and melted into the sand.
“Um, what did I just watch you do?”
Peter blinked and snapped his gaze to Tony, and then down to where he had buried himself. Truthfully…he hadn’t exactly known why he did this either. Turning to Tony, “Do not question me. My motives are- you need sunscreen.”
Tony blinked and raised a brow, “I’m under the umbrella, why do I-”
“Clearly not enough!” Peter narrowed his eyes at Tony, “You’re already turning red. Go put on sunscreen or-”
“Or what? You’re gonna dig a tunnel back to the car?”
Peter spluttered before giving up with a sniff. “Fine. Get sunburned, see if I care.”
Tony relaxed into the chair next to where Peter had buried himself, “And my face is not red.”
Peter rolled his eyes, “How would you know?”
“I know everything.” Tony slid a pair of sunglasses on his face and leaned back.
Without missing a beat, “Oh, yeah? What color is my underwear?”
“I know everything that is relevant and matters.”
“Oh, so I’m not relevant?"
“You are. Your underwear isn’t.”
“That’s hurtful. What if I was Underwear-Man, what then, huh?”
Tony turned to study him for a long moment before sighing and turning back to the ocean. “Sometimes I hate having conversations with you.”
Peter laughed and followed his gaze, “There was an opportunity and I took it.”
“I’m ending this conversation before it gets any more…disturbing.”
“Disturbing, he says.” Peter scoffed and he would flip his hand if it wasn’t buried in the sand, “I think the word you meant to say was entertaining.”
Tony inhaled and opened his mouth with a click, “I don’t think I did.”
“Reality is what I make of it.”
“I’ll make sure to visit you in the psych ward.”
“If I go to a psych ward, I guarantee you’ll be there, too.”
“I am the picture of mental stability, I don’t know what you’re on about.”
“Tony, my beloved friend, you don’t like thin mints. That alone suggests there’s something wrong upstairs.” Peter brought a hand out of the sand to poke at his forehead.
Tony scoffed, “I watched you eat an entire sleeve, get sick because your mutation doesn’t like mint, and then finish off the last sleeve the next day!”
Peter shrugged his shoulders, which was hardly noticeable due to the sand. He watched Tony shake his head with a sigh, and if not for the fond smile on the man’s face he would have guessed he truly was exasperated.
With a matching smile, Peter burrowed deeper into the sand and closed his eyes. Enjoying the breeze, the soothing sound of the ocean, and the warmth of the sand. Enjoying the safety and comfort that he felt from both being hidden under the sand and having Tony next to him.
He didn’t know how much time had passed before he heard Tony clear his throat softly.
Peter cracked open his eyes to find Tony looking at him. “Yes?”
“Aren’t you going to go in the ocean?” Tony gestured to the ocean.
Peter blinked at the ocean and then looked down at where he had buried himself and tried to burrow deeper. “Do you want me to?”
“If you want to, you should. You don’t have to stay up here with me.”
Peter furrowed his brows, “Do you want to go into the water?”
Tony looked a little sick at the mention, “Wet feet and sand don’t exactly equal a pleasant sensation.”
Peter felt his nose wrinkle briefly. “So, neither of us wants to go in the water?”
Tony sighed, “Peter, you don’t-”
“I’m serious, Tony. I don’t want to go into the water.” The mere thought of leaving his burrow to go into the salt water made something in him churn.
Tony studied him for a moment, maybe looking for any indicator that he was lying. “Okay. But if you change your mind-”
There was an antsy, unnerving feeling that washed over him. “I won’t.” Peter interrupted. He no longer wanted to entertain the idea of leaving his burrow.
“Oh-kay.” Tony dragged the word out as if something else was on his mind.
After a few moments of quiet, Peter decided to ask the question he’d been waiting to ask. “So, the Avengers are coming back?”
Tony blew out a breath, “Can we not, right now? I really don’t want to fight again.”
“I just want to know the details of it all. That’s it. I’m not going to try and change your mind or anything.” Peter pursed his lips, “It’s your decision to make, Tony. And I’ll support you regardless of what that decision is.”
Tony flipped the sunglasses up to rest on his head, shifting slightly so that he was somewhat facing Peter. “Thank you. I appreciate you saying that.” The words came slow and awkwardly, but genuine.
Peter gave a small smile, “So, is there any set date?”
Tony ran a hand through his hair, “Not yet. There is still so much shit that needs to be agreed on and- ugh.”
Peter frowned, bringing the hand closest to Tony back out of the burrow and placing it on Tony’s arm.
"It's a long process, Pete. It could be shorter but, you know. They all want to make things difficult for some reason." Tony squeezed his eyes shut, placing a shaky hand over Peter’s. “They want to argue over every little thing. Oh, who am I kidding? Steve’s the one arguing.”
Peter gently squeezed his arm.
“He just can’t seem to wrap his head around the fact that things aren’t going to go back to how they were.” Tony shook his head and took another breath. This one was shakier than the last.
“Rogers wants me to cover all expenses, which is understandable. And Platypus wants me to draw a line. But-”
Peter shook his head, “No but’s. He’s right.”
“I’m a billionaire-”
“Okay, and? You still need boundaries. Healthy boundaries.” Peter emphasized.
Tony shook his head, “It doesn’t work like that.”
Peter gently rubbed Tony’s arm, which was closer to petting thanks to the somewhat awkward position. “Sure, maybe not all the time. But, this time, it can. What does Jim want you to draw the line at?”
“He wants me to draw the line at anything extra and unnecessary. But they-”
“Should be able to recognize how gracious that is. Because, guess what, you don’t have to pay for anything. The deal was that you would let them live with you, right?”
Tony nodded, “Show the people that everything has been worked out and we’re all besties again.”
“Was buying them coffee creamer and the newest phone on the market a part of the deal?”
Tony hesitated for a moment, understanding flashing on his face, “No.”
“Then, there you go. You’re still upholding your part of the deal. Who initially asked about paying for stuff?”
“Wilson, but Rogers was the one that got all pissy whenever it came out that I would only pay for necessary things.”
Peter stilled his hand, “Can I ask you to do something?”
Tony looked at him with a confused look.
“The more Rogers pushes and fights, the more I want you to dig your heels in. Do not be scared to say no. Especially when it comes to that man.”
“I just feel…bad.”
“Why?”
“I have so much money. I know that I can afford it-”
“It’s not about that, Tony.” After a second of thinking, Peter decided to cover all his bases. “And who gives a shit about what they think of you. The only person that you may even slightly owe is Barnes.”
There was an odd look that passed on Tony’s face, and he began to grow tense.
“Don’t misunderstand me, Tony. I’m on your side, one hundred percent. But, Barnes was brainwashed. Rogers is the one in the wrong for keeping that from you and making you find out in one of the most horrific ways.”
Tony deflated and mumbled more to himself than anything, “There’s a difference between the gun and the guy that pulls the trigger.”
Peter tensed at the metaphor but forced himself to relax, “Yeah.”
“...how did you know that?” Tony asked in an odd voice.
“Know what?”
“How do you know about what happened in Siberia?”
Peter blinked, “I only know what Jim told me. He gave me the rundown without going into specifics.”
Tony seemed a little on edge about it, but let it go. And Peter felt himself growing equally curious and scared.
What went down in Siberia? Did he even want to know what went down in Siberia?
Peter cleared his throat, “So, what will the living arrangements be?”
“Well, Barton will be going back to his family. Lang, Ant-Man, will be dealt with by Hope. I don't know exactly what Wilson is doing. So, Maximoff, Nat, Rogers, and Barnes are the only people that need somewhere to go.”
“Wakanda doesn’t want them anymore?”
“Well, the- Now, how do you know that?”
“Convenience.”
Tony started to say something but shook his head, “It’s complicated, let’s just go with that for now.”
Peter nodded his agreement.
“So, they are the only Avengers that will be coming back to the Compound.” Tony slouched back into his chair.
“Well, as long as Aunt May isn’t home, know that my door is open.”
Tony cracked a small smile, “That’s okay. I have safety features put into place.”
Peter nodded, “Well, just know that the offer still stands.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
The pair sat in silence for however more minutes. Peter kept his hand on Tony’s arm, and Tony kept his hand on Peter’s.
“Are you sure you don’t want to go in the ocean? It looks very nice.”
Peter blinked his eyes open and slowly turned his head to face Tony, who was now slightly laughing at the display.
“I’ll take that as a no.”
“I’m starting to think you’re the one who wants to go into the water,” Peter suggested in an unimpressed tone.
Tony looked at the water with a mixed expression. “Kind of.”
“Maybe we can just stand with just our feet in the water?”
Tony looked a Peter with a quizzical look, “I thought you said you didn’t want to get in the water?”
“I’d go for you.” He didn’t want to leave his burrow, everything in him screamed not to, but he was good at pushing urges and feelings like that down.
Tony seemed hesitant, “I don’t know if I should.”
Peter shrugged and snuggled deeper into the burrow. “Let me know what you decide.”
He heard Tony sit up and shift in his seat. “I think I might.”
“Okay.” Peter swallowed and enjoyed the feeling of the sand for one last moment before getting up from where he’d buried himself. “Aw.”
For some reason, he hadn’t thought about the fact that sand would stick to his shirt and shorts. He brushed off as much sand as he could before turning to Tony.
“Ready when you are.”
Tony stood and shifted for a moment, before sliding his sunglasses down and beginning to walk toward the ocean. But, his pace quickly slowed to a grinding halt as they approached the wet sand.
Peter came to a stop where Tony had. Looking down at his wet feet with an unimpressed look. But, reminded himself, he came out of his burrow for Tony.
“Is this as far as you’re willing to go?” Peter asked not unkindly.
Tony swallowed, eyes locked on the water. “No. No, I can go further.”
Peter raised a brow, gaze switching between watching Tony and the ocean. “Don’t hurt yourself.”
Tony huffed, “I think I know-”
Peter interrupted smoothly. “Sometimes people fish and they leave their hooks. Very dangerous. I knew a girl whose sister got a hook stuck in her foot.”
“Oh.” Tony nodded and looked down at the sand.
Peter blinked and stepped slightly closer to Tony. “Whenever you’re ready.”
Tony waited a few seconds before walking a few more steps closer to the water. Until there were only a few more steps needed. He tensed slightly at the proximity before relaxing somewhat.
Whether it was because he could feel Peter’s arm brushing up against his or for some other reason remained undetermined.
“This is stupid.” Tony blurted.
Peter kept his gaze locked on the ocean, “What is, Tony?”
“This.” Tony gestured, “Why can’t I just walk into the ocean?”
Peter looked at Tony with a plain face. “Because bull sharks will hang out where people’s feet touch the shore. And people don’t know how to pick up after themselves. We just went through this.”
“That’s not what I meant.” Tony huffed, and Peter heard where the waves crashed.
“I sold my comic book collection.” Peter turned back toward the ocean.
“What?”
“Not even for a good price, too.” There was a mourning tone to his voice. “Truthfully, I didn’t care how much I got from it. I just wanted them gone.”
Tony stayed quiet.
Peter blinked and swallowed around the lump in his throat. “I couldn’t look at them. The mere idea of having to look at them made me sick.”
The urge to bury himself in the sand crawled up once more.
Turning his head to face Tony, “Fucking comic books, Tony. Simply because they were enough like a magazine to me.”
Tony gaped for a moment as if he didn’t know how to respond.
“Do you think that’s stupid?”
That got a response. “Of course, it isn’t.”
“Then you not wanting to be submerged in water isn’t stupid,” Peter finished. Noting the way Tony shivered slightly at the mention.
“Shouldn’t I be over it by now?”
Peter shrugged, “I still think about the bird that popped my balloon in second grade.”
There was silence for a few moments before Tony let out a wobbly laugh. “You’re ridiculous.”
Peter smiled, slow and soft, looking to the sky. “I think it might be raining, Tony.”
Tony slung an arm around Peter’s shoulders, his free hand coming to swipe at his eyes. “You’re not getting in my car with this much sand on your shirt.”
“I’d like to see you stop me.”
Tony crossed his arms, “I’ll lock the door.”
“With what keys?”
“My keys. The car keys.”
“Oh, yeah?” Peter began to grin.
Tony began to look a bit unsure.“Yeah.”
Peter was grinning now. “Where are they, then?”
“In my pocket.”
“Are you sure?” Peter asked with a raised brow.
Tony began to feel around his pockets, his gaze snapping down when he couldn’t feel them.
A jingle in front of him made his gaze snap to Peter, who was dangling the keys in front of him. “Looking for these?”
“Ha ha, now give.” Tony held out an unsteady hand.
Peter’s grin widened impossibly more as he pulled the keys away. “Take them from me.”
Tony made another swipe for the keys, one that was easily dodged. At first, Peter’s attempts to keep Tony away from the keys were to hold them higher or just out of reach. And when that wasn’t working, resorted to keeping the keys as close to him as possible.
It wasn’t until Peter was laughing too hard to say any more taunts and Tony was having to stop to catch his breath, both from laughing and trying to get the keys, that Tony noticed he was standing in the ocean.
Far enough that the water was above his ankles. “Holy shit.”
Peter wiped a tear out of his eye, “What?”
Tony looked down at his feet, “I’m in the water.”
Peter followed his gaze, “Yeah, I guess we are.”
Tony sniffed and moved one of his legs in the water, and waited until Peter was staring at the ocean with a soft smile to make another swipe for the keys. This time successful.
Peter whipped around to face him, “You’re a brat.”
Tony turned to face Peter with an incredulous look, “I’m the brat?! You’re the one who stole my keys!”
“You made it so easy. Besides I was going to give them back. Eventually.”
“Cheeky little shit.” Tony ruffled his hair. Raising a brow when sand fell out. “Still think it was a good idea to bury yourself in the ground?”
“The best.” Peter placed his hands on his hips in a proud gesture.
Tony looked to the horizon, “Do you want to get lunch?”
Peter immediately turned and began to wad his way to the shore, grabbing Tony’s hand on his way out. “I thought you’d never ask. I swear I’m about to turn into a pile of bones, I’m so hungry.”
Tony laughed as he followed Peter to their setup. Peter easily picked up most of the stuff to bring to the car. “I don’t suppose you know any good places to eat around here, do you?”
Tony tapped on his phone on the way to the car, allowing Peter to steer him away from poles and bushes that he wasn’t paying attention to. “Golden Bear Restaurant?”
Peter shrugged, “Sounds good to me.”
After they got to the car and Peter packed the stuff away, Tony will swear up and down that he helped by opening and closing the trunk, Tony fixed Peter with an expectant gaze.
“Get the sand off your shirt,” Tony said as he climbed into the car.
Peter scoffed and turned to face the car, his mouth dropping when the car door locked. With a disgruntled sigh, he pulled off his shirt. He shook out his shirt until there was significantly less sand.
He ignored how the car had immediately unlocked after he pulled off his shirt.
After sliding into the car, he waited a few seconds. “Not gonna ask?”
“Does it have anything to do with what you said in the jet?”
Peter patted Tony on the shoulder, his other hand lightly tracing the scar that ran vertically down his chest. “I don’t mind it too much, so, you shouldn’t either.”
It certainly didn’t bother him as much as the mark on his hip did.
“Does it ever hurt?”
Peter thought about it for a moment. Debating on what answer he should give. “Sometimes, it does. But, not all the time.”
Tony glanced at him, “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to give up a name?”
Peter paused for a moment as the question rang in his head. Then a laugh shook out of him, abrupt enough to startle even himself. “I don’t know what you’d do with a deadman’s name other than agonize over it.”
At the stop sign, Tony turned to look at Peter, “I could probably figure out how to bring a guy back from the dead.”
“Wouldn’t you need the body to do that?”
“What’s one more thing to add to the: ‘shit I shouldn’t have done but did anyway’ list?” Tony made a wavey hand gesture.
Peter looked out the window, “Good luck finding the body.”
“Quit talking sense.” Tony groused as he merged into the left lane.
-
It was quiet in the hotel.
And it was silent in their hotel room. Save for the street lights and moonlight shining through the window, there was no light in the room.
Peter was laying on his side facing away from Tony.
“Do you still want to know the name?”
Tony shifted slightly on his bed, “If you’re willing to tell me, I’m willing to hear.”
Peter swallowed and with his gaze locked on the doorknob of the hotel door, whispered the name that he had once spent many nights cursing.
And Tony’s answering silence after the name was said was louder than any scream that had ever rang through Peter’s ears.