Making A Wish For You.

It was cold. Way too cold. Peter hated it. He couldn’t bear the cold. Even before the bite, he wasn’t a fan. But now, it was even worse.

Peter assumed it was because of the Spider, but he wasn’t too sure? Maybe he just randomly mutated through puberty... However it happened, he hated it.

Peter couldn’t thermoregulate properly. Everyone else, ‘normal’ people, can. Because of this, his body cannot control its temperature to the surrounding temperature outside. So, for him, that meant whenever it was freezing outside his body couldn’t keep up. It was a huge problem.

May didn’t know he had this problem, she didn’t even know he was Spiderman. If she knew that he had the possibility to become hypothermic by stepping outside after a small drop of snow, she really would freak out. He didn’t want to put that pressure on her heart. He knew she wouldn’t be able to handle it.

When the heater broke in their apartment, it was typical Parker luck working its magic. The whole room felt like a winter wonderland. Some people would say that would be magical. Well, Peter definitely wasn’t ‘some’ people and he definitely would disagree with the notion that this was ‘positive’ in any way.

It was becoming a problem and May was definitely beginning to notice. She didn’t say anything, but she did give him a weird look when he walked through their living room with three layers of hoodies and a blanket wrapped around his shoulders.

It was getting too much. He felt his teeth chattering as he sat in his bedroom, his whole body shaking along side it. He decided he needed to do something about it.

“It’s too cold, May!” Peter groaned, eating their (burnt) dinner. “Can I ask Mr Stark if I can stay at the tower until its fixed? You can come too, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind!”

“Tony?” May asked, “He’d really let you stay over? I didn’t know he was that close to his interns. If he says yes (I’d be surprised, for one) then go. I’d feel bad if you got ill here. But, I’m okay. I’ll stay and protect the apartment. I’m working lates anyway, Pete.”

Peter wasn’t even sure why he thought of Tony first. He’d usually just go over Ned’s house for a sleepover, but he knew the boy was busy with a project. Also, the tower was awesome! He did love hanging out with Tony too, a lot!

“I’ll go ask now!” Peter said, mid mouthful. He swallowed whatever he was eating, putting the clean plate into the sink. “Thanks May!” He smiled, rushing into his room.

Staring down at Tony’s contact, Peter felt a surge of anxiety over his shoulders. What if Tony got so mad that he cancelled the internship, alongside their entire friendship? He took one deep breath, mumbled that he was Spiderman and a phone call wasn’t the scariest thing he could face, and pressed the call button.

Tony Stark was sat in the most boring meeting he had ever been in. He stared at the back of Steve Roger’s head, fighting the urge to not throw his can at him to see how he’d react.

When Peter Parker called his phone, it was the best excuse ever for leaving the meeting. With a quick, pretend, look of worry, he pointed to the phone and mouthed ‘emergency’. He stepped outside of the room and answered Peter, excited to see what the kid had to say. He hardly ever called Tony first, so he must have something to say.

“Mr Stark!” Peter grinned.

Even Peter’s introduction made Tony’s heart swell. He was so precious. “Hey, kid. What’s up?”

“I, uh, was just wondering! I have a question, you know. I, um, I have a problem at home and, um, I was hoping that maybe you could help me! I don’t want to take advantage of you or anything so don’t feel pressured into saying yes-,”

“Kid,” Tony laughed, “Just ask me already.”

“Ok.” Peter said, almost a mumble. Tony heard the kid take a deep breath, psyching himself up for something. “Ok, um, can I stay at the tower for a few nights?”

Tony could see Bruce staring at him, confused, when his smile lit up. He wanted to blurt out ‘of course’ and tell the kid that he’s been looking forward to this day since he first came into the lab. The ‘spare’ room in the penthouse definitely had not been converted into Peter’s dream bedroom already, it was totally just a big coincidence. “Yeah, sure,” Tony said, trying to sound as nonchalant as he possibly could.

“It’s just because our heater is broken and-,” Peter froze, “You said yes? Oh my god! Awesome! Can I come over tonight?”

“Towers always open, kid. If you’re ever in trouble, you don’t hesitate to call. Okay?”

“Sure!” Peter said, too excited to think properly. “Great, uh, I’ll see you in a bit?”

“Sure will, Petey-Pie.” Tony said, hanging up the phone.

He walked into the meeting, a soft smile on his face. He was oblivious to how his team look at him, sitting back down in his seat. Glancing over at Rhodey, he raised his eyebrows defensively.

“What? What are you looking at?”

Rhodey laughed, glancing away from Tony (whilst also making the man self conscious) to stare at the front of the room instead. He listened into the meeting, the gaze of Tony’s eyesight baring into his skull.

As soon as the team drifted out of the door, Tony rushed to his side, “Rhodey,” He called, trying to talk to his friend. “Look-,”

“Emergency, huh?” Rhodey laughed, looking at Tony with an amused, but charmed, grin playing at the edge of lips. “Is the emergency about this kid that Pepper keeps telling me about? I’ve never seen a smile that wide on you, Stark.”

“He-,” Tony mumbled, playing with the edge of his blazer (he had never really done that before) awkwardly. “The kid’s heater at home is broke, so he asked me (very politely) if he could come over to the tower for a few nights. I said yes.”

Rhodey’s playful smirk grew, “Amazing,” He said, putting a hand onto his friend’s shoulder. “Can’t wait to meet my nephew, Tones. It’ll be good.”

Peter ran to his Aunt, throwing a bunch of clothes into a bag to take to the tower. “He said I could go!” He grinned.

“Really?” May asked, tilting her head. “How close are you?”

“I don’t know, uh, close?” Peter said, “He’s a really nice person, May. He’s definitely not like the person in the magazines! He’s kind, funny, giving and so so smart and he’s being really nice to me. Pepper too, she’s awesome.”

May just smiled at him. In the back of her head, she couldn’t believe that her kid was good friends with a billionaire.

Good friends probably wasn’t the word for it. She saw the look in Peter’s eyes, he saw Tony as a father figure; it was just like the look when he smiled at Ben. She even thought she saw that same loving look in Tony’s eyes the other day at the science fair.

“That’s good, Pete.”

“You sure that you’re okay with it? He’d let you stay too! He definitely would!”

“I got work later, kiddo, and I can always sleep over one of my friend’s houses. I’ll be fine, enjoy yourself,” She smiled, kissing him on the cheek.

“Ok May! Love you!” Peter grinned, running back to his room to finish packing.

May watched him run off, a smile on her face. It was nice to see her kid so happy after a lifetime of misery.

Peter swung through the New York streets. His suit’s heater was the only thing keeping him warm. Jumping onto the penthouse’s balcony, he landed awkwardly. His whole body was freezing. He was so cold, he fell to the floor with the little strength he had left.

Tony rushed out of the front doors, as soon as Friday let him know the kid arrived. Seeing the kid down on the floor of his balcony, he started to panic. “Pete?” He said, running to the kid’s side. He put the back of his hand to Peter’s forehead to check his temperature.

“Mr Stark-,” Peter mumbled, taking a deep breath, as he tried to sort his vision out. “Mmm freezing.”

“Yeah, kid. You really are,” Tony told him, putting his hands around the kid to pick him up gently. Putting the kid over his shoulder, he made sure to support him enough, so that he didn’t fall. “Come on, sweetheart, lets get your warmed up.”

Tony’s softness surprised Rhodey. When Pepper told him that Tony acted like the most loving father, he didn’t fully believe her. Really, he thought she was exaggerating (she definitely had some bias). Watching how Tony wrapped this boy up in a blanket, swaddling him tight to protect him, he couldn’t look away.

Tony looked down at the kid, cuddled into his mother’s blanket. She made the blanket when Tony was younger, telling him to pass it down to his children. Peter wasn’t his, he never would be, but it felt right to keep it around him. “Feeling better, buddy?” Tony whispered, pushing the kid’s curls away from his eyes so that he could look up at hum properly.

“Can’t- Mr Stark- like, mm, a spider. I can’t thermo-thermoregulate. It’s so-so cold,” Peter said, trembling into the warm blanket. “Better though, better than not having a heater at all. T-Thank you.”

“You can’t thermoregulate?” Tony said, “Jeez. These winters must be turmoil for you, kiddo.”

He grabbed another blanket from his collection, putting it over the boy’s lap. He put a hoodie onto the side of the sofa, telling to put it on whilst he went to go make him a cup of hot chocolate (and a hot water bottle, whilst he was at it).

Meeting Rhodey in the kitchen, Tony sighed whilst putting the kettle water into one of his favourite mugs. “It is not what it looks like, honey-bear.”

“All I can see is a father helping his ki-,”

“I’m not his father! Will people stop saying that!” Tony snapped, putting the kettle down a little harder than he usually would.

Rhodey’s eyes drifted to the floor. Tony had never snapped at him like that before, for as long as they had known each other. Never. “Sorry, man. I just-,”

“No, uh, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have shouted at you like that. It’s just been so hard- you know with Pepper. I can’t- and everyone keeps thinking that Peter’s mine and it’s not fair on his own Aunt and Pepper and-,”

“You know, Tones, being a father is not always something biological. Family does not end in blood, we’ve found that. I mean, you’re like a brother to me..,” Rhodey sighed, “Just think about that.”

Before Tony could even reply, his best friend had walked away down to the lift, probably back to his own floor. Tony sighed, finishing what he came into the kitchen to do.

Walking back to the kid, Tony placed the cup of hot chocolate on the coffee table and put the hot water bottle underneath the kid’s blanket. “There we go, honey.”

“Thanks Mr Stark,” Peter whispered, “It was s-so cold at home. It was so nice of you to let me come over here. I didn’t think you would say yes. I, um, I-“

“Peter, my home is always open for you. If you ever need anything, drop me a message. I’m here for you,” Tony told him, dropping down to the sofa to wrap an arm around the kid. His heart warmed when Peter’s head fell onto his chest, clearly tired.

“Mm the best,” Peter whispered, closing his eyes. “You are so nice to me.”

Tony’s hand fell into the kid’s curls, making sure he was comfy. He pulled the kid up so that his legs were curled up onto the sofa, rather than falling down to the ground. Tony held him, putting a film on the TV, so that the kid could fall asleep to the quiet noise of the movie.

“Mr Stark?”

“Yeah, kid?”

“Can you stay here with me until I fall asleep? Its just, uh, it’s been a bad week and, um, my Aunt would usually stay on the sofa with me until we both fall asleep, so, uh-,” Peter looked up at him, anxiously playing with the end of the blanket (Tony couldn’t help thinking that he looked just like Tony did when he was talking to Rhodey earlier).

“Course I can,” Tony smiled, secretly over the moon that the kid even asked. “What kind of host would I be if I didn’t accommodate to my favourite guest.”

“He doesn’t usually do all of that,” Pepper said, Steve, Bucky and Rhodey walking behind her.

Pepper sat beside Tony, on the other side to where Peter was sat. Bucky and Steve sat on the same armchair, Steve’s arm wrapped around Bucky’s waist. Rhodey sat on the lone armchair on the opposite side to Steve and Bucky’s, glancing to where Tony’s arm was around Peter. He couldn’t hide the smile that was on his face. Peter smiled over at him, excited that he was ‘part of the family’.

Tony felt weird for a second. This was his time with the kid, he didn’t want other people around to ruin it. Pepper could stay. Rhodey too, maybe, but Steve and Bucky being lovey-dovey wasn’t really the ‘vibe’ he was hoping for. He quickly pushed that aside, smiling at the new people in the room.

“Oh my god,” Peter whispered, shifting up so that he could only talk into Peter’s ears. “That’s War Machine, Mr Stark.”

Tony smiled at how innocent the kid was and how excitable he got.

“Yes, it is. Captain America and his boyfriend (yes, he’s a superhero too) are on the other side,” Tony whispered back.

Peter’s jaw dropped, “Yeah- Yeah it is... but I’ve met them, Mr Stark. I’ve never met War Machine.”

“You’ve met us?” Steve asked, clearly hearing their whispering due to his super hearing.

“Oh,” Peter’s face flushed a deep red. “Um...”

“Can I tell them?” Tony asked, making sure he was al comfortable again. Peter nodded gently, letting his head fall back onto Tony’s chest. He was too tired to care. “Pete’s Spiderman.”

The rest of the room gasped.

“Seriously? You’re not joking?” Rhodey said, looking at his best friend with a concerned look.

“Believe me, I wasn’t too happy when I found it out. But we’ve been making a suit together and he’s safe. I’m looking out for him,” Tony explained.

Tony waited for Peter to say something. However, when he looked down, the kid was fast asleep. Using his chest as a pillow, Peter’s breathing was quiet and short. He looked peaceful, his own chest rising up and down. Tony’s smile was soft, his hand once again falling into the boy’s hair.

“He’s so young though, Tony,” Steve sighed, “Can we really allow him to keep doing it?”

“Trust me, Capsicle. I’ve talked to him about everything and he’s so damn persistent,” Tiny sighed. “I hate thinking about him out there.. b-but, he loves it.”

“Stubborn just like someone else we know,” Pepper grinned, nudging Tony’s side.

“That’s not a good thing,” Tony laughed, sighing.

They put a film on, chatting quietly as Peter slept. They all left the room after the credits ran, leaving Tony and Peter on their own again. Tony promised that he’d stay with the kid and he definitely was going to keep that secret. He got comfortable, making sure not to disrupt Peter’s sleep.

Eventually, Tony fell asleep on the sofa. He hadn’t fallen asleep that quick in a long time, but something about the situation made him feel so warm that his eyes fluttered shut. With his hand draped over the kid, he was in a deep sleep.

Pepper walked towards the living room, seeing her husband and Peter wrapped up on the sofa. They were both covered in so many blankets, making it even more adorable than it should’ve been. She couldn’t help herself, snapping a photo of the boys and printing it out immediately in her office.

Tony woke up in the morning, the sight of Peter laid over his chest. He smiled down at it, the warmth filling his chest. “Hey buddy,” He murmured, nudging the kid to wake hum up. “Sweetheart, you gotta wake up.”

Peter fidgeted, arms failing about like he was falling. “Mr Stark,” He said, sleepily. “I’m Spiderman, I’m a super hero,”

“Uh?” Tony said, looking at him. “I know that, kid. Come on, it’s time for breakfast. I can smell the french toast already.”

“Mm not French, Mr Stark,” Peter said, pushing his head further into Tony’s side, squeezing his eyes shut tight. “I’m tired.”

“Kid-,” Tony laughed, “Come on.”

Peter opened his eyes, looking up at his hero smiling down at him. He freaked out, thinking he had crossed the line. He almost fell off the sofa, until Tony’s hand grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

“Welcome to the land of living, little Spider,” Tony said, helping the kid sit up. He put a hand on his shoulder and looked at him with a bright grin.

“Mr Stark! I’m so sorry for falling asleep on you like that, I-I hope that, uh, I wasn’t in your way or anything,” Peter said, his words interrupted with a yawn.

“Nah, kid. It’s fine,” Tony smiled, getting up from the sofa. “I’m glad you had a good night sleep.”

When Tony stepped into the kitchen to make them breakfast, he heard Peter’s voice on the phone to one his friends telling him all about how he fell asleep on Tony’s chest. He was clearly mortified, but Tony thought it was sweet. He chuckled to himself, plating the food up. Before he took both of the plates out, he stopped when he saw a note from Pepper on the desk.

‘Just in a meeting. For some reason, you looked extra handsome today. Love you x”

Attached to the note was the printed out photo of Tony and Peter. Holding it, he couldn’t believe how much love was in his heart for this random kid he spilt coffee over. He put the picture in his pocket, with a mental note to himself to place it in a photo frame whenever he got the chance.

“Ned!” Peter whispered into his phone. “I’m literally the most embarrassed I’ve ever been in my entire life, man.” Before Ned got a word in, Peter continued. “Right. So, you know how Spider’s can’t thermoregulate their temperature... apparently they passed that little quirk onto me. So, the apartment heater is broken! I decided to ask Mr Stark if I could stay and, uh, he said yes. I went to the tower and he, he stayed with me on the sofa and I feel asleep and when I woke up- I had trapped Mr Stark!”

“Oh my god,” Ned said, clearly tired. Although, Peter recognised the excitement in his morning voice. “You’re in the Avengers tower right now?!”

“That’s not the problem right now, Ned!” Peter said, “I fell asleep on THE Tony Stark! What if he hates me now?”

“Does it look like he hates you?” Ned asked. He always was the voice of reason.

“Well, um, no? But- oh! Ned he’s coming back, I’ll text you!”

Peter was was sat up, wearing one of Tony’s tops as a pyjama shirt (Tony had thrown it to him after he left to go make breakfast). He looked so young. Maybe he even looked like Tony’s kid? He resisted the urge to take his phone out to take a photo. Was this what it felt like to have a kid?

“Mr Stark,” Peter smiled, as soon as he walked in. “May said that the people that can fix our heater will be coming over on Tuesday. Can I still stay over until then?”

“Peter. I’m going to say this once and, until I say otherwise, it will remain true. You’re allowed to come over whenever you’d like. I can even drive you to school on Monday if you’d like,” Tony said, propping the plate of french toast on the table in front of him.

Tony sat beside him, putting his own plate on his lap. Peter took his, taking a bite. He hummed, apprecating all the flavour.

“Really?” Peter said, stuffing his face with more food. “That’s so cool, Mr Stark. I hope you mean that, because I’m going to show up all the time and disturb you whenever you’re down in the lab,” Peter joked.

Tony laughed, but he wasn’t even sure if he found it funny. He’d like that. He’d like for Peter to be comfortable dropping in, like he was coming back home after college. It was domestic, if that was even the right word to use.

“I mean it, kiddo.”

When Tony went to his bedroom to get changed for the day, Peter was left on his own in the living room. He looked around for a second, propping down on the piano. He played some music, remembering the few lessons May taught him. He was pretty good at it, if he remembered the notes to play.

When Rhodey met Tony in college, the fifteen year old boy was a terror. He couldn’t believe that out lf everyone in the whole college, he ended up with the spoilt, genius, son of a CEO. However, Tony completely proved his first assumption wrong.

Tony was definitely a terror, that wasn’t wrong. But he was also so much more than that. Rhodey quickly learnt that calling Tony Stark a genius was an understatement. The boy, when he first met him, seemed to know everything. He passed every test he did with flying colours, even the ones he didn’t study for.

Tony’s teenage life was rough, Rhodey knew that. He just didn’t know the extent of it. That was until they got a visit from Howard Stark. Rhodey wasn’t sure what to expect, but who he met was far from it.

Howard Stark was an asshole. That was the shortest, and easiest, way to say it. When Tony talked his ear off about all his accomplishments, Howard didn’t look proud. In fact, he looked like he wanted to bolt out of the nearest door. He obviously didn’t care.

So when Rhodey went home for Christmas, in their first year, he made sure to ask Tony if he’d like to come with him. That was first, and one of the only, time Rhodey saw his best friend cry.

Rhodey was pretty sure his parents loved Tony more than they loved him. He was the opposite to how he acted at college. He looked fake, acting polite and sweet in every conversation. The older man couldn’t really believe who he was looking at.

When Rhodey was fast asleep one night, he woke up to the sight (and sound) of Tony playing their family piano, sat beside his own mother. It sounded beautiful. In that moment, he hadn’t seen his friend so relaxed.

So when he walked into the Avengers living room to see Peter playing away at the keys, he felt like he had just travelled back in time. For a second, he was back in his family home watching Tony playing piano with his mother. Relaxed and happy, far from how things played out in that man’s life.

“Mr Rhodey?” Peter asked, his hands stopping. “Are you okay? You kind of looked zoned out there.”

“Sorry, kid,” He smiled, walking across the room to where he was sat. “You just reminded me of Tony for a second there.”

“Mr Stark can play?” Peter questioned. Rhodey nodded. “Wow, that’s so cool. Why can he do everything?”

“I don’t know,” Rhodey chuckled, “He takes it away from the rest of us, I think.”

“Maybe,” Peter laughed, filling the room.

Rhodey realised in only a few moments why Tony was so attatched to the little kid. It was hard not to enjoy hanging out with this one.

“What’s with all the laughter, Pete?” Tony asked, hearing it from the nearest hallway. When he walked in to see both of them giggling, he squinted his eyes in confusion. “You two better not be conspiring?”

“Watch your back, Mr Stark,” Peter said, just making himself giggle a little more.

Rhodey stepped back from the piano, greeting Tony. He chatted with them both for a second, before pretending to leave the room. He stayed in the doorway, observing how they interacted.

Tony sat beside the boy on the piano stool, making him scoot up slightly for the both of them to sit down. Peter played for a bit, stopping when Tony took his hand and directed him to a different key.

“You’re great at this, kid. You just keep pressing the wrong key. Only that one, though. The rest was perfect.”

He watched Tony teach Peter how to play his favourite song, a loving smile watching them play. From Rhodey’s mother, down to Tony and now down to Peter, the magic of music was passed down a few generations.

His mother always used to tell him music was the power of love. Love didn’t have to mean romantic, she would say. It’s platonic and familial and it would always, always, win.

When Peter was down in the training room that afternoon, after two hours of consistent blabbering from the kid to work out with Captain America, Tony walked into his room and got out a photo frame he had FRIDAY order in (same day delivery was the best), placing the photo in it. It went on display on his bedroom’s side table, reminding him how special Peter Parker really was.