Wanted
“Y-You did this for m-me?” Peter stuttered out when he finally found his voice again as it was previously lost in shock. He was wandering around the room, his eyes seem to be permanently wide in surprise, it made all three men chuckle.
“Yes, what gave it away?” Tony said sarcastically with a smirk, “Was it the red and blue tools on the table, the shelves of robotic lego sets, or the label on the door?” Peter furrowed his eyebrows as he turned around and walked back over to the door. Sure enough, Peter’s Lab, was plastered into it at eye level. The kid’s wide eyes welled up in tears, but they were tears of happiness.
“Y-You didn’t h-”
Tony put his hand up, but his face was soft and caring, “Before you say that I didn’t have to do this, know I wanted to. Know it gave me joy to do this.” It did, it was therapeutic for him going from locking the door and destroying the other lab to creating proof that his son was here and safe with his own hands.
Peter nodded, but still looked a tad guilty for the effort Tony had put in. “You don't like something or want to change anything you can, I won’t be-”
“It’s perfect.” Peter cut the man off while simultaneously trapping him in a hug which Tony immediately reciprocated, squeezing the boy tight. As he did so it seemed all his anxiety melted away. He brought one hand to the back of the boy’s head and pressed him a little closer to his chest. Nothing could be wrong as long as he had his kid in his arms. He let out a relieved sigh and a soft smile cracked his lips right before he bent his head down and placed a kiss on the crown of the boy’s head. Peter just hugged tighter at that.
The two super soldiers looked on with finesse. Bucky couldn’t describe how good it felt to see Peter this content and happy, nothing like the broken and/or empty boy Hydra left him within the cell. He didn’t even realize his eyes were welling up with relieved tears until Steve pulled him into a hug of their own. He didn’t even try to stop them as they flowed down his cheeks. Pent-up emotions just spilled free without a care or a judgment from the three other people he trusted in the room.
Peter broke away from the comforting hug when he heard a sniffle. He looked almost apologetically toward Tony when he looked abc at him, but Tony just smiled fondly and gave the boy a nod that said, It’s okay, I understand. Peter gave a small smile before he made his way over to the two others. Bucky’s back was to Peter, but Steve looked up from the embrace to see Peter approaching. He smiled at the boy and started breaking the hug he had with his boyfriend. Bucky looked up at him a bit confused until Peter came around as soon as the metal-armed mad caught sight of Peter he enveloped the boy in a bone-crushing hug, though the younger didn’t mind. Peter hugged back tightly, “Are you okay?” he whispered.
“I’m great,” Bucky replied. Smiling fondly at the kid’s caring nature. Peter smiled at that and they stayed that way for a few minutes. When they finally broke their hug Bucky’s tears had dried, but the smile on his face did not fade and neither did Peter’s.
“Let me show you a few more details of this room and then we can go to the second surprise,” Tony said as he walked toward one of the work tables located on the left side of the room. Peter forgot there was a second surprise and his eyes widened again for a second before he nodded. “I made some gadgets for your senses.” Peter cocked his head to the side like a puppy dog does when it is curious. Tony couldn’t help his smile widening at the adorable gesture. “These here are earplugs, but they’re made specifically for your advanced hearing.” He handed one to Petr and kept the other in his hand. “This dial on the side controls how much sound input you want. For instance, if you want no sound at all you can turn the dial all the way to the left.” he demonstrated. “You want to try it out?” Peter gave a small nod, but his eyes were fully focused on the small black device in his hand. “Do you want help putting them in?” Peter looked up and gave another small nod. Tony smiled again and came closer. “Turn your head to the left for me bud,” Peter did so. Tony used the hand not holding the device to tuck some unruly curls behind the kid’s ear and then gently cupped the back of the boy’s head to keep it from moving as he used his other hand to carefully place the device inside and around Peter’s ear. “Ok, can I have the other one?” Tony asked after he finished placing the first one. Peter handed the older man the other one, “Alright, turn your head to the right for me kiddo.” Peter turned his head to the right so he was looking right at Steve and Bucky who were both looking on curiously. Peter gave them a small smile while Tony repeated what he had just done, but to Peter’s other ear. “Alright all done.” Peter looked up at him, “they are off now, but you can adjust them and try them out.” Tony stepped back as Petr tentatively touched one of the earpieces fiddling with the dial and then did the same to the other one. He put them about halfway up.
“Is it working?” Bucky asked. Peter, turned to him because he did hear it, although it sounded softer and more like a whisper. Peter smiled again and nodded. This time he turned them all the way up, then there was nothing. Absolutely nothing, it was so odd. Even without super hearing, there was always some sort of sound, the wind blowing, birds chirping, cars driving, footsteps, the murmur of other people’s conversation, etc. But there was absolutely, blissfully nothing.
Peter only realized someone was speaking when he came back to himself and saw Tony’s lips moving. Peter turned the dials back down to zero, “Sorry, what?”
Tony chuckled, “I’ll take that as a yes.” Peter cocked an eyebrow, “I asked if it was working when I saw you turning the dials to the max.”
“Oh,” Peter smiled shyly, “yeah it definitely works.”
“Good, I’m glad. If you ever need a break or have an overload these will always be available.”
“Thank you” Peter said genuinely.
“No problem.” He said in the boy’s direction before directing his attention to Bucky. I made some for you too Buck,”
Bucky looked at the mechanic, partly surprised, but that surprise quickly turned to gratitude. “Thank you.”
“It was nothing.” Neither Bucky nor Pete agreed with that, but Tony continued before they could argue, “Let me show you the other things I made for you two.” Tony lifted up a pair of, what looks like, regular sunglasses. “These will help dim and if need be, completely block out light.” He handed them to Peter who looked at them curiously while turning the device over in his hands. “You want to try it?” Peter nodded and put them on, “Like with the ear plugs, there is a dial to help control the light input. At the moment they are acting like regular dime a dozen sunglasses, but turn the dial and see what happens.”
Peter tentatively felt for the dial on the right side of the glasses, he started turning it and as he did everything became dimmer and dimmer. After fiddling with it for a bit longer he turns it all the way, and then… there is nothing but black. Pitch black. He startles as Tony starts talking again, “You see, there are small pieces of the same material the base is made of that come out of the frame and turn them into goggles. The glass part tints to black and thus, no light can get through.” Peter turns the dial back down just to jump back when he sees all three men much closer to him staring at the glasses. He was not prepared for that.
As soon as Peter jumps back the three men step back looking guilty, “Sorry Pete.” Bucky says making eye contact and checking the boy over to make sure all is fine apart from the slight scare.
Tony can’t help but chuckle, “Sorry kiddo, should have warned you.”
Peter gives him a small smile, “It’s fine.” He takes the glasses off and hands them back to Tony who puts them back on the table,
“Just a few other things,” Tony picks up one of the smaller apparatuses, “This is a nose plug, kina of self explanatory, just here incase of a full sensory overload. And finally here,” he puts the nose plug back down and then lifts up a blanket, and from the ‘huff’ Tony let out, they can tell it’s heavier than a normal blanket should be. He unfolds it, “is a weighted blanket, I am entirely sure that this will help with a sensory overload, but it should help with anxiety and panic attacks.” He hands it over to Peter.
“It looks,” Peter says looking down at the colors.
“Yeah, I made it look exactly like the throw blanket you love.” Peter smiles and feels a warmth bloom in his chest. It’s such a small detail. An easy pattern. And yet, the fact that Tony went through the trouble to customize the blanket and make it look like the blanket that he has grown to love and associated with warmth and safety means so much to him.
Peter can’t help but walk forward as he wraps the old man in a hug, still holding the weighted blanket in one hand. Tony smiles down at the head of curls pressed against his chest and hugs back. “Thank you,” Peter whispers, suddenly feeling like crying even though he feels happier and safer than he has in a long time. Tony just tightens the hug in response.
They stay like that for a bit, but then Tony looks up from the hug over to Bucky. “I made one of all of these for you, although the blanket is not done yet, I need to know your favorite color.”
Bucky laughs a little, “I kind of like the red and blue as well to be honest.” He doesn’t want to take away this special thing from Peter, but he does love red and blue and honestly, the colors remind him of the kid. Once they get better at separating Buky thinks having this blanket might help calm him down and remind himself that Peter is okay and safe. Luckily it seems Peter likes the idea.
“Oh cool!” Peter replies, finally breaking the hug, “We can be matching!!” Bucky’s smile widens and he gives the boy an encouraging nod. He decides not to mention that they would only be matching when they had a panic attack, still, he kept that to himself, in his head like many of his other depressing and worrying thoughts.
“Sounds good, it will be ready by the end of the day.”
“Thanks, Tony.” Bucky said with a genuine smile.
“My pleasure. Ready for the second surprise?”
Again Peter forgot there was another, “Oh right! I can’t believe there is more.”
“It’s not much, it’s nothing new really.” Peter was confused by this, but put the blanket back on the work table and then started following the other three down the hall. All four found themselves in the elevator, which was luckily pretty spacious. Things had gotten better, but Peter still grasped Tony’s hand when they started descending down to a lower floor. Tony gave his hand a rescuing squeeze and then a second later they found themselves on the same floor as Tony’s lab. They walked toward said lab, but Tony stopped at the door. “Ready?” Peter looked up at him and nodded with wide eyes. Tony smiled fondly and then opened the door.
Everything looked pretty much the same, except there was a new station. One with the same red and blue tools as upstairs and a copy of each creation he just showed upstairs. “This here is your station in case you ever want to work down here and/or don’t want to work alone. Also when I don’t want to work alone I might drag you down here anyway.” Peter laughed at that. “Told you, nothing new, not much to it.” The mechanic shrugged.
But there was so much to it. Ever since Peter arrived he has in some way or another felt like a burden. Like an obligation, taken care of out of kindness and pity. But having his own lab proved that maybe they didn’t hate having him around. Having a station in Tony’s personal lab, now that felt better than anything. So much of the weight of not being wanted just melted away. This station in front of him proved that he was not just being tolerated, but that others, specifically Tony, wanted him around, wanted to spend time with him; Tony wanted… him.
He is wanted.
For the first time since he was a child in the orphanage, he feels he is truly wanted. He didn’t realize he was crying until calloused hands cupped his face and thumbs were wiping away the fallen tears with gentleness. Peter looked up at who it was, of course it was Tony. “Thank you for wanting me.” Peter whispers before he realised what he was saying. In an instant he was wrapped up in Tony’s arms again being helps unbelievably tight, and yet is comforting.
“Of course I want you Peter. I love you.” Tony dropped a kiss to the crown of Peter's head and kept holding him tight.
Tony found it so hard to understand why Peter didn’t think he was wanted. Then again his whole life proved otherwise or showed he was only wanted for powers he didn’t even ask for. He isn’t going to tell Peter or the others yet, but there is a third surprise. He will not be giving it, or offering it, until things are a bit more stable, but soon nonetheless. Still, this surprise will make sure that any lingering questions about whether Peter is wanted will disappear.
Tony hopes that this third surprise will prove to Peter that he is and will always be wanted and loved.