Always Be My Baby

Peter kicked his feet in the back seat, humming along to the music in the car as he drew a picture of his dad and him, smiling when he added poop on his dads hand, laughing at the memory from last night. 

“What are you giggling at, Mr?” 

Peter gasped, giggling more. “It’s a secret. I’ll tell you after I’m done.” 

Tony loved hearing his giggles. Fifteen minutes later, they arrived at Karen’s office so Tony parked, shutting the van off and getting out of the car to open up Peter’s back door and a drawing was held up in front of him. 

“Look! It’s us last night.” 

Tony looked at the drawing. He noticed what looked like dirty underwear on the floor and even on his hand. “Is that… poop on my hand?” 

“Yeah!” Peter proudly said. “Cause-cause last night you touched my poopy.” 

“By accident. It was literally everywhere.” Tony unbuckled him from the car seat, holding his hand out so Peter could jump out. 

“No. I can do it by myself.” Peter jumped, looking back at his dad with a smile. “See?” 

“Wow, buddy, good job.” He reached into the van, grabbing the diaper bag and shutting the door. 

“Can I carry it?” 

“It’s heavy.” 

“I can do it.” 

Handing the bag over to Peter, Tony watched him struggle but didn’t help him. The two made their way past the front desk and into the elevator to go to Karen’s office. 

“Okay. Now you carry it. I’m tired.” Peter was feeling confident today so he walked ahead of his dad and sat down, waiting for Karen to call them in. 

“We’re ten minutes early so we have to wait here.” 

Deciding to wait on his dads lap, Peter crawled onto him, making Tony wrap his arms around his belly. “Are you going to tell Karen I pooped my pants yesterday?” 

“Yeah, it’s important she knows. Are you okay with that?”

“Yeah. But are you gonna tell her that I wore underwear too?” 

“I will. Or maybe you could tell her.” 

“Noo. You do it.” 

The door to her office opened and a little boy around Peter’s age walked out, red eyes and clinging onto his mother. Tony couldn’t help but wonder what he was in for. 

Peter stood up, about to walk into Karen’s office but Karen walked out, talking to the boys mother so Peter poked his arm. “Hi. Why are you here? Are you here to see Karen too?” 

Tony walked over to Peter, pulling him back since Peter didn’t understand the concept of privacy and personal space. “Bud, let’s wait over here.” 

“He’s sad, dad.” 

The boy looked at Tony and began crying harder so Peter patted the boy's head. 

“Did you get kidnapped?” 

Tony’s heart bursted with pride at Peter trying to make this random boy feel better but also broke a bit because Peter thought the boy was also kidnapped, as if that was the only reason for talking to a therapist. 

“No. My-my d-dad died.” 

Peter took a step back from him, not saying anything. He stared at the boy then suddenly turned to face Tony, lifting his arms up and as soon as Tony picked him up, Peter began crying against him. 

“Peter.” Tony asked worriedly. “What’s wrong, baby?” 

Peter just cried against him so Tony held him until Karen let them in. 

“Did he wake up a bit cranky today?” She asked, seeing Peter clinging onto Tony and crying. 

“No. He woke up so happy and was so excited to come here. I don’t know what just happened.” Tony kneeled down and placed Peter on his feet in front of him but Peter refused to let go. 

“Baby. What happened? I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me.” 

Peter cried something to him but Tony didn’t understand. 

“Peter, take a breath and talk to me.” 

“He-he-he-he says t’at he’s died! I don- wan’ you eftg’.” Peter sobbed out but Tony understood, used to his son's incomprehensible words by now. 

“Oh baby. I know it’s sad and difficult. That boy is going through a lot right now but so are you. Just for different reasons. You aren’t going to lose me, okay? I promise you I’m going to be around for a long, long time.” He kissed his forehead and wiped his tears away. “I love you too much to leave. But he has his mom and maybe other siblings and he’s going to be okay. And so are you.” 

“But-but he’ll n-never get to-to hug his daddy ever a-a-again. Or-or tell his d-daddy how m-much h-he loves h-h-him.” 

Damn. Now Tony was going to cry, thinking back to how he felt when he didn’t have Peter. 

“I know. But I’m sure he has amazing memories of him. And he’s going to always remember that.” 

Peter wrapped his arms around his fathers neck again. “Stay. Don-don’ leave this time.” 

“Okay. Okay. I’ll stay.” Tony stood up, picking Peter up with him and placing him on the couch beside him. “Buddy, how about we change the subject so you aren’t sad anymore? Let’s talk to Karen now, we have something to tell her, remember?” 

Wiping his tears, Peter sat up on his knees and whispered in his dad’s ear. “I want paci.” 

Tony felt bad for him. That’s why he always gave in. He knew Peter’s little heart could only take so much stress. So he dug around in the bag and pulled out the blue plastic soother, handing it to Peter who took to it immediately, leaning against his dad. 

So Tony began. “So… Peter wore underwear yesterday. He stayed dry and even managed to pee on the toilet twice.” 

“Wow. That’s amazing, Peter. You should be so proud of yourself. Are you wearing underwear today?” 

Peter shook his head. 

“No. He’s not, last night after dinner, he had a poop accident in his underwear. So his mom and I decided to keep him in a diaper today.” 

“Oh. I see. Did you not make it to the toilet, Peter?” 

Peter shook his head, speaking around the pacifier in his mouth. “I just wanted to go in my underwear. I always do.” 

“Peter, I talked to you about this. You have to go in the toilet.” 

“Can I show Karen my bum?” 

“No, Peter.” 

“But-but I want her to see my bum. I have no more diaper rash.” 

Tony sighed, looking at the other adult. “Petey. Karen doesn’t need to see your bum.” 

“Can I show you?” 

“Not right now.” 

Peter turned and sat up on his knees but the pacifier fell out of his mouth, over the back of the couch. “Oh no.” 

“Go get it. And go wash it in the bathroom before putting it in your mouth.” 

Peter grabbed it, about to put it in his mouth while looking at Tony. “Uh Uh Uh. Go wash it.” 

“Okay!” 

Tony took advantage of him being gone. “Can you please tell me how I get him to stop using the pacifier? Pepper and I are completely at a loss.” 

“Well, he uses it for comfort and for sleep. I suggest taking it away during the day first. Then when he doesn’t seem to need it anymore, or as much, take it away at nights.” 

“How? It’s basically in his mouth all day.” 

“When he asks for it, talk him through why he wants it to begin with, then work through that problem with him. At night, let him know he can have it only to fall asleep then he has to give it to you in the morning when he wakes up. Eventually, take it away at nights too but that will be harder so don’t rush it.” 

“I’m still confused but it’s fine.” He was so overwhelmed with all of this. He turned around to make sure Peter wasn’t there yet. “And what about the diapers? Even if he’s pooping himself, so I keep him in underwear?” 

“You can try putting him back in underwear at home or keep him naked from the waste down.” 

“We tried the second one. He would get off the toilet and pee on the floor. Or couch.” 

“So try keeping him in underwear at home and remind him to go to the bathroom every twenty minutes or so. If he starts to get frustrated, ask him if he wants to stop for today and put him in a diaper. But when you’re in public, I suggest a pull-up so he doesn’t have an accident in front of others. It might help to have a training potty in the car, that way he can still go if a bathroom isn’t close by.” Karen explained while Tony took mental notes in his head. 

Okay. Okay. This could work. He just had to try it. 

Again. 

He turned back to see if Peter was done but he still heard the water running so Tony stood up to go see, gasping at the sight he saw. 

The sink was overflowing and Peter was soaked, covering his pacifier in soap. “Peter. What happened?” He quickly shut the water off, grabbing towels and placing them on the ground. 

“I had to wash it. But the water didn’t stop.” 

Karen walked over, gasping as well and grabbing the towels to help clean it up. “It’s okay, Peter. Next time you should tell an adult to help you.” 

Peter rinsed his pacifier off and put it in his mouth, watching them clean up the water. “Daddy. It’s like a pool here.” 

“Yeah, it shouldn’t be though.” Tony picked up the soaking wet towels and dumped them into the sink, turning to Karen. “I am so sorry.” 

“Don’t be. It was an accident.” 

Tony wasn’t so sure about that. “More like Peter experimenting.” This was exactly what it was like at home. Only now it happened outside of their home and to someone else’s property. “Peter, this was very naughty. Look at the mess you made.” 

“Uh oh.” 

“Yeah. Uh oh. Can you grab a towel and help clean it up?” 

Peter walked around the counter, grabbed a towel and stomped in the puddle, looking up at his father and laughing. Tony had to look away to hide the smile on his face. 

In his mind, Peter could do no wrong and it was so hard to be mad at him. But Tony knew he had to teach Peter right from wrong. 

“Buddy, you made this mess so help us clean it up.” 

Peter sat down, getting himself even more wet but at least he was cleaning up. Once all the water was off the floor and the soaking wet towels were in the sink, Tony looked down at Peter. “You’re soaked.” 

“Yeah. It’s like I took a bath with my clothes on.” He smiled, looking down at himself. 

“Can you go grab the bag and bring it here?” 

Peter didn’t move. “Why?” 

“Because I want you in blue rather than red.” He sarcastically said. “No. Because you’re all wet.” 

“Then we’re going home?” 

“No, buddy, we just got here.” Tony took it upon himself to grab the bag, then he walked back into the bathroom, digging inside for a shirt, track pants and a diaper. “Shut the door.” 

“But Karen’s outside.” 

“Yeah, she’s going to wait for us.” 

Tony shut the door himself, sitting on the closed toilet seat and pulling Peter to stand in front of him. “I think your soother has no more germs on it after that bath, don’t you think?” He tugged his wet top off him, tossing it on the floor. It was 9am and he was sitting on a toilet seat and stripping Peter head to toe from his wet clothes. He didn’t wake up this morning thinking this is where the day would lead him. 

Although he didn’t wake up most mornings expecting to do what he did. 

Everyday was an adventure being Peter’s dad but Tony loved seeing the world through his eyes. 

Peter held onto Tony’s shoulder so he didn’t fall over. “Yeah. I think so. And I used the strawberry soap there.” He pointed behind him. “So now it’ll taste like strawberries.” 

“I hope not because that means all the soap isn’t off.” He put his wet clothes into a bag and tied it up, reaching down to grab a clean diaper. “Can you stand still?” 

“I am.” 

“You’re bouncing around.” He placed a gentle hand on Peter’s shoulder to get him to stop moving and when Peter stopped and grinned at him, Tony’s heart filled with so much love. Everyday he woke up wondering how he could love Peter anymore than he already did but then something like this happened and Tony was proven wrong. “I love you. You know that?” 

“Uhhh I don’t know. It’s not like you tell me a million times a day.” 

“Uh.” Tony had to pause to look at him. Did Peter really just sass him. “Okay, cutie. I’ll say it again. I love you. I love you. I love you.” 

“I know, dad. I love you this much!” He had to stretch his arms up, standing on his tiptoes to show his dad just how much he loved him. 

Finishing up, Tony stood up off the toilet seat and ruffled Peter’s damp hair. “Can you put your shoes back on for me?” 

“I need help.” 

“Just try.” 

“No. I need help.” 

Tony tried not to get upset at him. They had so much progress of recovery thrown out the window. It was hard. 

But seeing Peter so happy (most of the time) made Tony the proudest dad in the world. 

“Okay. I’ll hold it so you can step in.” 

Peter was about to step in but then stopped. “I don’t want to wear boot’s anymore. I want to go home.” 

“After we talk to Karen.” Opening the bathroom door, Tony walked out and turned around to hold his hand out for Peter. “We’ll be done here soon. Let’s go have a chat.” 

Taking his hand, Peter followed him out. 

.

.

.

It was after dinner when it started. 

Morgan complained of stomach cramps and made her way over to the couch, lying down and hugging a pillow to her chest. 

Tony watched her carefully and frowned, looking over at Pepper. Morgan usually pushed her stomachache aside and continued playing or downplayed it. She never admitted she was sick unless she was really sick or not feeling well so to see her lying down now, that meant she really wasn’t feeling well. 

Peter approached her and patted her hair. “Morgan? Wake up. Wanna play cars with me? Morgan?” 

“Pete, let her rest. She’s not feeling too well.” Tony placed a picture book on Peter’s lap. “How about you read this and try to keep a quiet voice so Morgan can rest.” 

“I’ll read the book to Morgan.” Peter pushed her feet to the side and climbed onto the couch, opening the book and began reading. Tony was a bit concerned. He hoped Morgan wasn’t getting sick. They really didn’t need another child sick. 

Pepper cleaned up the kitchen a bit but filled up a water bottle with cold water, hoping to make Morgan feel better. “Hi honey. Does your tummy hurt?” 

Morgan whimpered and rolled onto her side, her face scrunching up in pain. “Yeah… my side.” 

Tony caressed her hot face then stood up to grab the thermometer. 

“Daddy, can I do it? I wanna be the doctor.” Peter tried to grab the thermometer from Tony. “Daddy.” 

“Morgan isn’t playing right now, Peter. She’s not feeling well. Can you be a good brother and go get her a pillow from her room?” 

Peter crossed his arms over his chest. “No. I want to play doctor with her.” 

“She’s sick, Pete. Can you please go upstairs to get a pillow?” Peter made a dash for it upstairs but Tony didn’t know if he was going to actually get a pillow or not. He kneeled on the ground in front of Morgan. She was pale and sweating. He sighed. They noticed it earlier this morning when Morgan woke up exhausted but she refused to stay home from school, insisting it was just her being tired. 

Now Tony felt like an awful dad sending her to school, knowing she wasn’t feeling well. 

She placed the water bottle on the couch beside her and whimpered. “Mm. My tummy hurts.” 

“Her fever is 100.8.” Tony hummed. “Do you want to try sitting on the toilet?” She shook her head. “Then do you feel like you’re going to vomit?” Another shake. “Okay. Just rest. Try to sleep. And drink more water. It’ll help you feel better.” 

Tony brushed her hair out of her face and looked over at Pepper. If this was Peter, they wouldn’t be that worried because he cried if he stubbed his little toe. He made a big deal over everything because he was dramatic. Morgan was the complete opposite so the fact she was actually lying down right now meant that she really wasn’t feeling good. 

“Where’s Peter gone?” Asked Pepper. 

Tony sighed. He knew he wasn’t getting that pillow and was probably doing something he knew he wasn’t supposed to. “He’s upstairs. I’m going to go get him.” 

When he walked into Morgan’s bedroom, Tony found Peter drawing on her wall so he snatched the crayon out of his hand. “No. You do not draw on walls.” He had no idea what was up with Peter drawing on freaking walls. 

“I’m drawing Morgan a picture to make her feel better.” Peter insisted. “You’re being mean!” 

“Peter, you know you’re not allowed to draw on the walls. Grab a pillow for Morgan and let’s go back downstairs.” 

“I want to play with her.” He frowned. They always played after dinner while their parents cleaned up, then they got ready for bed and watched a cartoon together. “Tell her she has to.” 

Tony took his hand to lead him downstairs. “Your sister isn’t feeling well. Can you be a good brother and let her rest? She was such a good sister when you were sick.” 

“I’m never sick.” 

“Yeah you were. Remember when we got home from grandmas and grandpas? She was so patient.” Tony shut the lights off to make the room more cozy and comfortable. “Give it to her.” 

Peter walked over to Morgan. “I got you a pillow. Then you wanna play?” 

“Mm-mm.” She shook her head, rolling over to face the other way. 

Peter looked back at his dad as if he was slapped across the face. “She doesn’t wanna play with me.” 

Tony sat down on the couch and pulled Peter onto his lap. “She’s sick, Peter. You know when you’re not feeling well and you don’t feel like playing? That’s how Morgan feels right now.” He felt like he should be comforting Morgan because she was the one that was sick. 

That was how it was, plus Morgan didn’t want any comfort right now. Tony didn’t blame her, when he was sick, he preferred to be left alone until he felt better. 

Peter reached for her water bottle and shoved it in his mouth but Tony pulled it out. “No, if she’s sick you can’t share a water bottle.” Peter turned to look at him, his face looked funny so Tony chuckled. “Want me to get you a water bottle?” 

“Uh huh. But in my bottle.” 

Tony didn’t want to deal with any fighting right now. “Okay. But only water. Or do you want juice? No milk yet.” 

“Uh huh. Grape juice.” Peter sat on the couch, waiting patiently for Tony to walk back with his bottle then took it and got comfortable as he drank it. He pointed at Morgan. “She’s sleeping.” 

“Yeah, can you be a good brother and look after her? I’m going to go mop the dining room floor quickly.” 

“I’m not going to be a good brother.” 

Tony nodded. He knew Peter was just being Peter. “Okay. I’ll be right back.” 

Peter watched him leave until he disappeared from sight then he peaked over at Morgan. He felt bad. Her face was scrunched up in pain and Peter wished she didn’t feel so bad, he reached out and rubbed her back like his dad does for him. 

He continued on doing it and half switching between watching her and watching tv but then Morgan moved. “What’re-” 

Morgan cut him off by sitting up and throwing up all over the blankets, causing Peter to scream and stand up on the couch. “She throws up! Help!” 

Tony and Pepper both ran over. Pepper grabbed the blankets and rolled it into a ball to get it out of the way and rubbed Morgan’s back. “It’s okay. It’s okay.” 

“It hurts. My tummy. It hurts!” Morgan bent over in pain, holding her stomach tightly. “It hurts!” 

She threw up again, getting it on the pillow this time. 

Peter hated throwing up so he especially hated watching his sister throw up and be in so much pain. 

“What’s going on?” Harley ran downstairs to see, tossing his phone off to the side. “What’s wrong?” 

Tony placed a bowl in front of Morgan. “Maybe try some more water-” 

“Urgggg! It hurts! My stomach.” Morgan was practically screaming in pain and rolling around at this point and it scared everyone. 

“Um, okay. Um,” Tony stood up to pace around. Maybe she got food poisoning. Maybe she was constipated. He was thinking of all the options but one thing they learned from Peter was that they were not going to take any chances. “I think we should bring her to the hospital.” 

Pepper thought about it for a split second and one look at her daughter had her standing up and agreeing. Morgan’s face was pale and scrunched up in pain. “Okay. I’m going to get her files.” 

Tony wrapped a blanket around Morgan and lifted her up, carrying her to the front door. “Harley, you need to watch your brother. We’ll update you as soon as we can.” 

Peter chased after them, tears pouring down his face. “No! I wanna come!” 

“No. You stay here.” Peter tried to grab onto Tony but Harley held him tightly. “No! Daddy! Don’t take Morgan away! No!” 

Pepper ran over with the file and got her shoes and coat on then left. “It’ll be okay. Look after him, Harley.” 

The door shut behind them and Peter screamed, running over to it and banging on the door weakly. “No! Come back! Come back.” He tried to open it but he couldn’t so he sank to the floor and sobbed. 

Tony sat in the back seat with Morgan on his lap while Pepper drove. It felt like a long ride to the hospital because every thought was running through Tony’s mind. Was Morgan dying? Did something happen at school? Was she bleeding internally? 

By the time they arrived, all the colour drained from Morgan’s face so Tony wanted to get her to see a doctor immediately. 

“Please. Help us. Our daughter…” Pepper grabbed the first nurse she could see and pulled her arm over to Morgan but a doctor ran over to them. 

“What’s the problem?” He gestured they bring Morgan over to an ER bed so Tony carefully laid her down and held her hand. 

“She’s in a lot of pain. She threw up three times and said her stomach is hurting a lot.” Tony ran a shaky hand through his hair. They were so used to doing this with Peter so it was so different having to do this with Morgan now. 

The doctor lifted up her shirt and pushed down on her lower stomach, nodding in affirmative when Morgan whimpered. “It’s her appendix. Book an OR and page general surgery. Tell them I got a female child with an appendix that is about to rupture!” 

“Wait wait. What’s going on?!” Pepper grabbed the doctor's arm as two nurses came to wheel Morgan’s bed away. 

“Ma’am, your daughter's appendix is about to rupture so we need to take her to surgery immediately. Please follow that nurse into the waiting room!” He ran after Morgan being rushed away and Pepper leaned against Tony, crying into his chest. 

“Can you please follow me? I need to ask you a few questions.” 

Tony was staring at the door they took Morgan away through. She couldn’t die. 

She couldn’t. 

They wouldn’t survive that as a family. 

Morgan was his only daughter and now she might not make it… 

.

.

.

It had been an hour since their parents and sister left. 

Peter cried by the front door while Harley picked up the vomit soaked blankets and pillow and tossed them in the laundry machine then walked over to Peter and pulled him onto his feet. 

“Stop crying. Because Morgan’s going to be okay. Okay? She’s probably… constipated or something.” Harley pulled his crying little brother into the living room and sat down, placing his phone on the table and putting it on ringer, waiting for his parents to call. 

Peter looked at Harley and whimpered, wanting comfort from him. 

“Morgan’s going to be okay. We just have to wait for mom or dad to call me.” Harley was nervous. He was always stuck at home with one of his siblings while his parents dealt with the other in the hospital. 

Something was always happening to them and Harley was convinced that they were cursed. 

Peter reached for his bottle of grape juice on the floor and drank from it, wishing his dad was with him. “When’s daddy coming home?” 

“Morgan went to the hospital, maybe you should be worried about that first.” He snapped and immediately regretted it when Peter’s bottom lip shook. “Peter-” 

“No! You’re so rude!” Peter ran away but forgot his bottle so he ran back and grabbed it then ran upstairs and slammed his bedroom door behind him. He threw himself into his beanbag chair and continued crying for a few moments but after he wasn’t getting any attention from Harley, he tossed his bottle across the room and walked over to his window. 

It was bolded shut from the inside so no one could get in but he wasn’t trying to get in, he was trying to get out. 

He wanted to see his sister and if he couldn’t open the front door then he had to leave through his bedroom window. Peter dragged a chair in front of it and opened it up, almost falling back but he caught his balance using the curtains. 

It was a bit stiff but once he got it open, the cold air hit him. “Woah.” 

He smiled. He was almost out and then he could slide down the eavestrough like the pole at the park and start running to the hospital. He knew where it was. 

So Peter pulled the screen out and stepped onto the ledge, using the curtain as balance. He looked down and immediately regretted it. It was higher up than he thought he was. 

It made his legs shake and the cold air was making his hands clamp up so Peter turned around to jump off the window ledge and into his bedroom but his foot slipped and he fell backwards, falling out of the window and landing on the ground below him. 

Harley heard a faint scream. 

He wouldn’t normally have gone to check up on him but Peter was his responsibility so he walked upstairs and opened up Peter’s bedroom door. “Peter, if you’re mad at me or-” 

He saw the window was wide open with a chair under it and his heart dropped into his stomach. “Peter?!” He ran over to it and stuck his head out, seeing Peter’s body lying on the snow below. “No! Peter! No no no no no!” 

Harley raced out of his room, down the hallway, practically jumping down the stairs and running outside to go see Peter. “Peter?! Oh my god! Peter? Wake up! Wake up! Help! Help! Somebody help us! Help!” 

Peter was lying on his side with his arms and legs stretched out, completely unresponsive. 

Aiser ran out of the house with him and was running around Peter, barking like crazy. Harley tried to keep him away from Peter because their dog kept head butting him and Harley didn’t want Aiser to hurt him anymore than he already was. 

“Go, Aiser.” Harley reached into his pocket for his phone with stumbling hands and dropped it twice in the snow before he managed to call 911. 

“911 emergency, what’s your emergency?” 

“Help. My little brother fell out of his bedroom window!” He reached down to touch Peter, trying to get him to wake up. “Please help me! Oh my god!” 

“Okay, can you tell me your name?”

“Harley. My name is Harley. My little brother, he’s, oh my god!” 

“Okay, Harley. What’s your address?” 

“4172 Club Drive in Manhattan, New York. Is he going to die?! Oh my god!” He touched Peter’s cold, unconscious face and cried over him. 

“Harley, is your brother awake?” 

“No!” 

“Is he breathing?” 

Harley tried to check but he wasn’t thinking straight so he didn’t know. “No. I-I don’t know.” He placed his finger under his nose and felt a warm, steady breath. “Yes. He is.” 

“Okay. The ambulance is coming right now. Stay on the phone with me and do not move him. How old is he?” 

“Okay um… um he’s fourteen. He just turned fourteen.” Harley leaned over Peter’s practically dead body. “Please please please please.” 

“The ambulance is almost there. What’s your brother's name?” 

Harley was crying so hard, he could barely form any thoughts, never mind words. “His-his name is Peter.” 

“And where are your parents?” 

Harley could hear the ambulance in the background getting louder and louder. “They’re-they went to the hospital. My sister. She- I don’t know.” He placed his hands on Peter’s chest. “Please don’t die. Please don’t die. Oh my god. Stay alive, Peter. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.” He cried over Peter’s unconscious body. “I-I was supposed to be watching him. I was supposed to be watching him. Oh my god. Wake up, Peter. C’mon.” 

Aiser stood up from his position next to Peter and started barking and running all over the place once the paramedics pulled up, clearly distressed. 

He barely registered a bunch of paramedics crowded around him so they could get to Peter. They were talking to each other and feeling for Peter’s pulse then putting a neck brace on him and lifting him onto a board. 

Harley stood up with them, Peter looked so small on there and it made Harley realize just how young he was and how much he still had to do. 

He watched them get Peter into the ambulance and hopped in right after. “Aiser, no go back inside. Aiser. Go inside!” He yelled at their dog and saw that their front door was wide open but he didn’t care. That wasn’t important. 

What was important was Peter and the fact that he could be dying. 

Aiser ran back inside the house but when he saw the ambulance drive away, he chased after it. 

.

.

.

Tony was pacing in the waiting room for an hour. 

He watched as doctors came out to talk to families, some good news, others were taken out of the waiting room to talk privately. Not so good news. 

He had been in this position way too many times. He had already been here before with Peter. He was glad Peter was safely at home and he wasn’t here with him now. 

A doctor walked up to them and smiled. Both of them sighed in relief. “The surgery couldn’t have gone better. Morgan was a champ. She’s asleep in the recovery room right now and I can take you to see her.” 

Tony bent over, trying to catch his breath. He was so relieved. The not knowing was always the worst and he was so incredibly grateful that his daughter was okay and alive. 

He led the two relieved parents into Morgan’s room and Tony was the first one at her bedside. “Hi, little miss.” He whispered to her. 

“We have her on some pain medication right now but once she wakes up, we’ll lower the dosage. She’ll need to stay here for twenty four hours and then recovery is one to three weeks but as long as she takes it easy, I bet she’ll be back at school in two weeks.” 

Pepper smiled. “Thank you so much. Thank you.” 

“Of course. She’s going to be asleep for a few hours so I’ll leave you guys. If you need anything, just press the call button and a nurse will be with you shortly.” 

Tony thanked him one last time as he left the room. He sighed heavily. This was a relief. “I’m gonna call Harley and let him know and see how things are going on there.” He reached into his pocket for his phone but it wasn’t there. “I think I left it in the car. Do you have yours?” 

“Oh. Yeah.” 

Tony sat down, grabbing Morgan’s hand. She was so tough. 

“It went straight to voicemail.” Said Pepper. “I’m gonna try again.” 

The phone rang once just as their door opened up and a doctor walked in. “Mr and Mrs. Stark?” 

Tony stood up. He knew that face. That face meant no good news. “What? What’s wrong?” Tony walked closer to the doctor and looked back at Morgan. Maybe something went wrong with the surgery after all. 

“We got a call, a 911 call from your house. There’s been an accident. Um, your youngest son fell out of his bedroom window and he’s coming here in an ambulance right now.” 

Tony was already sprinting to the ER, thinking about every possible outcome.

No. Not Peter. Not my baby. 

Tony felt like he was going to be fucking sick. 

If Peter died… 

If Peter died… Tony just couldn’t do it. 

He just got over the waiting period to find out if his daughter would be okay and now his son… now his son is being rushed to the hospital. 

This couldn’t have been worse timing. Peter fell out of a fucking window. How does that even happen? Why was he opening up his bedroom window and where the hell was Harley?! 

He made it to the ER just as Peter was being wheeled in with Harley a sobbing mess behind him. 

Tony focused on Peter. “Oh my god. What happened?! How did this happen?” Tony made eye contact with Harley and then he was running away. “Harley? Harley?!” 

“You need to move out of the way, sir.” 

Tony looked at Peter. He looked like he was sleeping. He had no blood on him, no cuts, nothing looked wrong on the outside and that meant something was wrong on the inside which terrified Tony. 

“Is he alive?” He asked one of the doctors. 

“Sir, you need to get out of here and let us work!” 

“That’s my son! He fell out of a fucking window. Is he alive?!” 

“Yes. We have a heartbeat.” 

Tony looked up at the ceiling and shut his eyes. Peter was alive. He was alive. 

“Pupils are fixed. Let’s take him up to CT.” 

Tony stepped out of the way so they could wheel Peter out of the room. He reached a hand out to briefly touch Peter’s small hand. 

Once Peter was out of view, Tony kicked a tray, sending a bunch of medical equipment flying onto the floor. 

This was not happening. He was dreaming. 

Two out of three of his children were not in the hospital right now, this was not happening. 

Tony found his feet leading him down the hallway and into a small chapel. He opened the doors and broke down. 

Peter had a death sentence it seemed like. Peter walked in front of cars like it was no big deal, he purposely ran with knives, he got drugged, had seizures, had a microchip in his arm that almost killed him and he was jumping out of freaking windows. 

Tony wasn’t much of a believer in god or any higher power until he lost Peter so he turned to god and prayed to god to give him his son back and his prayers were answered and now, Tony was absolutely petrified that god was going to take Peter away from him for good. 

He walked down the aisle and sat down in the pew. No one else was there which he appreciated but he didn’t think that would have stopped him from getting on his knees and begging god not to take Peter from him. He put his head in his hands and cried. 

“Don’t take him from me. Okay? Don’t take my little boy from me. Just…” 

Tony cried into his hands. 

His heart was aching. It was a different kind of ache than with Morgan. 

With Morgan, it was like deep down, he knew she would be okay and he knew he would be leaving this hospital with her, he knew she would always come back to him. That was certain. 

With Peter, it was different. 

Tony felt like he physically couldn’t breathe at the thought of Peter leaving this life without him. 

He couldn’t do this life without Peter. 

He simply wouldn’t. 

Tony tried to breathe. “God…I-” Tony broke down in sobs, shaking his head. “Please. Please. Don’t take him from me. Just… please. You can’t.” 

Peter still had so much to accomplish. He had his entire life ahead of him and had barely started it. 

He didn’t know how long he was crying for when he felt a sudden relief wash over him. He stopped crying and stood up, making his way out of the doors and running down the hallway. 

He didn’t even know where he was going but he felt like he had to be there. 

His legs carried him into Morgan’s room where Pepper was standing there, staring at one of the doctor’s standing in front of her. He glanced at Morgan who was still sleeping in the bed, blissfully unaware of Tony falling apart in front of her. 

“Oh. Tony.” Pepper rushed over to him. “This doctor said he has an update on Peter.” 

Tony wrapped an arm around Pepper. “Is he okay?” He practically whispered. 

“We brought him to a CT scan where we cleared any brain bleeds or internal injuries. He only has a concussion. In fact, Peter woke up in recovery with a smile on his face and was asking for you.” He looked at Tony, smiling when Tony broke down. It was happy tears this time. 

Tony leaned over to try and gather himself. “Thank you god. Oh my god. Thank you. Can I see him?” 

“Of course. Follow me.” 

Tony looked at Morgan and walked over to her first to press a kiss to her forehead. “I’ll be right back.” He took Pepper’s hand and walked down the hallway. He saw Peter sitting up in bed before he even walked into the room. 

“Peter. Hi, buddy.” 

“Hi daddy.” 

Tony sat on the bed and pulled him onto his lap. “Hi baby. Oh my god. You scared daddy so much. I love you so much, baby boy. Don’t leave me. Ever.” He squeezed Peter probably a bit too hard and rocked him side to side, trying to calm down at the fact that Peter was okay now. 

He was alive. 

“Are you in any pain?” Tony asked him, and Peter shook his head. 

Pepper sat down next to them and rubbed Peter’s back so he turned his head to see who it was. “I fell out of the window.” 

“Yeah, you did. How did that happen?” Tony had the window bolded shut from the inside, he knew he was now going to have to put a lock on it so it was impossible for Peter to open it. 

Peter leaned his head against his dad’s chest. “Um… I’s coming to see Morgan. Harley said I couldn’t so I was going to run to the hospital to see her.” 

Tony held him tighter but stopped. He was scared he was hurting him. He looked at the doctor who was watching them. “Are you sure? Are you sure he’s okay? He fell two stories.” 

“He’s lucky the snow outside cushioned his fall. If it was summer, it may have been a different story. But his head scans came back clear and he has no broken bones or fractures. Besides for a small bump on his head and a concussion, he’s fine.” 

Tony hugged Peter a little bit harder. “Oh, thank god.” He pulled away to look at him. “You know it’s dangerous to…” Tony stopped himself. Peter wanted to see Morgan so he had good intentions, Tony didn’t want to say he was old enough to know because this was Peter he was talking about. 

He sighed and hugged him harder. “I’m just glad you’re okay.” 

He didn’t want to leave but he had to go look for Harley so he stood up and went to lay Peter down but he screamed. “What? Did I hurt you?” 

“No. Don’t leave.” 

He stood up straight and turned to Pepper. “Carry him to Morgan’s room and we’ll wait with him in there.” 

“Okay, but I have to go look for Harley.” 

Peter pointed down the hall. “He’s at home.” 

“No, he came here with you.” Tony looked at Morgan who was still sleeping. “I’m gonna go look for Harley and I want you to stay here with mommy.” 

Pepper sat on the sofa so Tony gently placed Peter on her lap and waited until Peter got comfortable on her before leaving. 

“Mm. I don’t want him to leave.” He sighed and laid his head on her chest. “Can we play a game?” 

“No, I think you should rest.” She rubbed his back but Peter sat up. 

“Noooo, I wanna play a game.” 

“Okay. What kind of game?” 

“Um… doctor. You pretend you’re sick.” 

Pepper pulled him back against her chest. “Shh, you need to rest.” 

Peter fought her to sit up again then he lifted his gown up, exposing his lower half. “My clothes left. Someone took them away and throws them in the garbage can.” 

She pulled his gown back down, noticing that he was in a fresh diaper that wasn’t theirs. “That’s because the doctors needed to check you over to make sure you had no broken bones or anything.” 

“I do. My arm is broken. And my leg. Now pretend to fix it.” 

“Peter, how about we rest. Shh shhh shhh.” She pat his back rhythmically so Peter relaxed against her and stuck his thumb in his mouth.

“Tell me a story.” 

“Okay, well, one day, long long ago in a far away kingdom,” 

.

.

.

Tony walked through the hospital hallways in search of Harley. 

He felt bad that Harley was always the one having to witness his siblings coming into the hospital for getting hurt, mostly it was Peter. It was always Peter actually. 

Peter was prone to accidents. He ran around the house and Tony cringed every time he got too close to a wall or a corner but at least once a day he would get hurt or draw blood and come running to Tony crying, never did Tony think he would fall out of his bedroom window. 

Yet another thing he needed to Peter proof in the house.  

Tony turned a corner just as a dog ran past him. He thought it was strange a dog was running around a hospital and it did look a lot like Aiser… 

The dog came running back to Tony, having smelt him and that’s when Tony got a good look at his face. “Aiser. What the hell.” He grabbed him by the collar and looked around for Harley. He had no idea how their dog was here now too. 

“Sir, you can’t have a dog in the hospital.” 

Tony turned to see who said that but he couldn’t see who it was so he stood up and continued to look for Harley but out of all odds, he found him sitting in the waiting room just around the corner. “Harley.” 

Harley looked up at his dad and rushed over to him. “I’m so sorry, dad. I promise I was watching him. I-I got annoyed with him and he ran upstairs! I didn’t know he was going to jump out of the window!” 

Tony pulled Harley against his chest. “It’s okay. Peter’s okay. He’s fine, he just has a small concussion. That’s it. It’s not your fault and no one blames you-” 

“But I was the one who was supposed to be watching him!” 

“Accidents happen. I should have made sure the window was locked in his bedroom anyways.” Tony didn’t think he had to but Peter didn't outweigh any risks with his actions. He simply did what he wanted. 

Harley just wanted to get out of there. “He’s okay?” 

“Yes.” 

“What about Morgan?” 

“She just needed her appendix taken out. She’s fine now. She’s resting.” 

Harley nodded. Both of his siblings were in the hospital. One of them was because of him. He looked down at Aiser. “Can we take them home now?” 

“Morgan needs to stay overnight and I want Peter here with me. Do you want to go home?” 

Tony could tell Harley was anxious. 

“Um… yeah. Can you let me know if anything else happens?” 

“I’ll call you on mom's phone because I don’t know where mine is.” He handed Asier over to him. “Take Aiser home. I don't even know how he got here.” He handed him the car keys. “You have to pick us up tomorrow because we don’t have another car here.” 

Tony went back up to the paediatrics floor once Harley was gone. He walked into their room and saw Peter passed out against Pepper and Morgan still sleeping on the bed. “Did Morgan wake up yet?” 

“Not yet. Can you go down to the shops and buy pull-ups? If we’re staying here tonight, he’ll need them.” Pepper gestured to Peter who was sleeping on her chest. 

“Yeah.” He turned and left, getting it really quick and then going back to their room. Just as he walked in, Morgan started to stir so he approached her bed and caressed her face. “Hey, beautiful girl. How are you feeling?” 

Morgan moaned and rubbed at her eyes then looked around the room. 

“Mm.” 

“Are you in any pain?” 

Morgan thought about it then shook her head. 

Tony smiled. “That’s good. Do you remember what happened?” 

“Mm.” 

Tony looked over at Pepper then back at Morgan. “You got to have your appendix taken out. That’s why you were in so much pain. But you’re all better now.” 

“Can you take him so I can see her, Tony?” 

“Oh, yeah.” Tony lifted Peter off of Pepper and laid him on Morgan’s bed by her feet then pulled up his gown and ripped open the pack of pull-ups. If Peter fell asleep against someone and then was placed onto his back, he always woke up after that but Tony couldn’t do anything about that. 

“He’s already in a diaper.” Tony pointed out, looking at Pepper. 

A nurse walked in and approached the bed, talking in a quiet voice. “How are we feeling in here?” 

Morgan rubbed her eyes some more. 

“Are you still feeling groggy waking up from the anaesthesia?” She grabbed Morgan’s chart and read it over. 

Tony pulled Peter’s gown back down and lifted him into his arms just as he started waking up. “Is she okay?” 

“Yeah, I’m just going to check over the incision and see if there’s any swelling.” 

Tony held onto Morgan’s hand, stepping aside to let the nurse work. 

“After you heal, you’re going to have three tiny little scars that aren’t even going to be visible.” She explained and smiled at Morgan. “Everything looks good here. If you need anything, just press the call button.” 

“Thank you, nurse.” Pepper sat on the edge of the bed and leaned down to press a kiss to Morgan’s forehead. 

“And how is he?” 

Tony turned so she could see Peter a bit better. He woke up a bit and had one thumb in his mouth and the other arm was wrapped around Tony’s neck. “He's good. The doctors said he only has a concussion.” 

“He’s a lucky boy.” She rubbed Peter’s back and left, walking into the hallway and placing a file on the nurses station. “Poor family.” 

“Who’s in there?” 

“The Stark’s.” 

One of the other nurses grabbed Peter’s file. “They bring their daughter in to have an emergency surgery to get her appendix removed and an hour later their son is being rushed to the hospital because he fell out of a bedroom window.” She felt bad for them. 

“You know,” The nurse leaned forward to be more quiet. “Peter is a kidnapped victim.” 

“I heard.” 

“Wait, I didn’t know this. Poor baby. What happened?” 

“He was kidnapped when he was three. His kidnapper was crazy and raised him as his own son for seven years then the Stark’s got him back.” 

“Oh god. That’s awful. I can’t even imagine being his parents.” She shook her head. 

“Then the same man kidnapped him again just a few months ago. It was this huge thing on the news. He only had him for a few days I believe though.” She continued. 

The other nurse grabbed Peter’s file and opened it up. “Is he younger than his sister?” 

“I don’t believe so.” She opened up Morgan’s file. “No, he’s a few years older than her.” 

She hummed. “Oh. He looks younger. He doesn’t look fourteen.” 

“Yeah, he doesn’t.” 

Inside the room, Tony sat down in the sofa chair with Peter, moving one of his legs that was digging into his lap. “Pep, come sit. She’s sleeping. Let her rest.” 

Pepper turned to look at him. “How did we end up here? We have two kids in the hospital. In one night. Peter could have died or-or have been paralyzed or seriously hurt. It’s like having a toddler, why can’t he just…” Pepper placed her head in her hands. 

Peter was too much sometimes. 

He was always getting into trouble and no matter what they did to prevent Peter from hurting himself, he still did. It was something they had to learn to accept.