What did I do to deserve you?
"Boss. There is a breach opening up in the middle of the city." FRIDAY informs Tony and the team through the blaring alarms.
"Suit up! Hey kid, I think you're ready for a mission." Steve says looking at Tony. Tony's brow creases in worry but he eventually sighs and nods.
"Well, I can't keep you here forever. You can come with us this time." Tony tells the teen.
"Really?! Thanks Mr. Stark!" Peter says excitedly. Peter wraps his arms around Tony, pulling him into a tight embrace. Tony's eyes widen in surprise but he hugs his kid back.
"Now go suit up!" Tony tells him fondly. Peter nods and runs into his room to get changed.
As soon as Peter is out of sight, Tony allows the panicked expression itching to come up, take over. If anything happened to his kid, he would never forgive himself.
"You ok man?' Rhodey asks, flipping his WarMachine mask up.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Tony lies.
"Cut the bullcrap Tony. You look like you're going to be sick. I know when you're lying. Might as well tell me the truth." Rhodey says, rolling his eyes.
Tony sighs. "I don't know if I can let Peter come, Rhodes. I'll be worrying about him the entire time and I won't be able to focus."
"Believe it or not Tones, Peter isn't a baby. He patrols almost every night. He trains with all the Avengers every day. I think he's ready for it. I know you love him, but you have to let him out of the nest sometime." Rhodey reassures him calmly
"If something happens to him-,"
"Nothing will happen to him. He has you, not to mention the Avengers in his corner." Rhodey insists. Tony nods and everyone starts to file into the room. Tony taps his device on his chest twice and the IronMan suit encloses around him.
"Ok! Get into the Quinjet people!" Tony announces.
Peter runs into the jet first with the chuckling Avengers on his tail.
"FRIDAY, what are we dealing with here?" Tony asks when they approach the breach. The Avengers had cleared the area as much as they could and were just waiting for something to happen. Before the AI can answer, two beings popped out of the portal. They are 10ft tall and a dirty white color. Red veins bulge out of their muscular bodies. They have razor-sharp claws at the end of their hands. One of them places a device on the road below them, which seems to be the thing opening the portal.
"Well, these guys look friendly." Sam says, flying over the scene.
The aliens look at each other, then regard the hero's standing a few yards away.
"We come in p-" Steve tries.
Then, one of them screams into the portal. Suddenly, a horde of the creatures burst through the portal and charge at the Avengers.
"Peace." Steve finishes annoyed.
"Let's kick some ass!" Clint yells from a roof, firing arrows into the thick of creatures.
"Ok guys. Here's the plan. We take them down and throw them back into the portal. Then, destroy that device. Problem solved." Tony says into the coms.
"Easy enough." Sam says, grunting as he dodges a swing from one of the aliens.
Steve lets out a grunt of pain. "Shit! Don't let those claws touch you!" Steve yells into the comms, panting with effort.
"You ok Steve?" Natasha asks.
"I'm fine."
"Woah! These guys are so cool!" Peter says, kicking one in the face.
"Be careful kid." Tony, Steve, and Natasha say at the same time.
"You guys! I'm fine geez." Peter complains, webbing one up and throwing it into the portal.
An hour passed by and the Avengers were still at war. They had managed to get everyone to safety, but the creatures were really hard to immobilize and the heroes were running low on energy.
"They have some weird-ass weapons. The newer ones from the portal are bringing them in." Rhodey says.
"Shit. Do you know how powerful they are?" Natasha asks.
"No, but I don't really want to find out." Rhodey says, blasting his repulsor ray into the monster's chest.
Peter was beyond excited. He was on a real mission with the Avengers! And they were fighting actual aliens! How cool was that? He swung from building to building kicking the creatures with the momentum and all his might. Whenever someone looked like they needed help, Peter would kick the creature away and web them up.
"Thanks squirt." Clint says, getting back on his feet.
"No problem!" Peter says, swinging his way to Tony's side to check on him.
"Catch Pete!" Tony says, throwing an unconscious monster at him. Peter catches it with ease and chucks it into the portal.
"You're doing great kid. Good job." Tony says, secretly proud of his spider-kid. Peter glows at the praise.
"Thanks Mr Stark." Peter says.
There were only a few more left and they were about to win. Tony and Peter were separated, but Peter had Natasha for backup, so he was fine. Suddenly, Peter's spider senses went off. It was like a surge of electricity that shocked his entire body. He turns around to see his mentor fighting an alien. And, there was one behind him, only 15 ft away, aiming its weapon at Tony's chest. Peter lets out a strangled scream and launches himself at Tony. Tony turns to see where the scream came from and looks at Peter with a confused expression.
"Get out of the way!" Peter yells.
Peter tackles Tony just as the weapon is fired. He can feel the heat of the small missile as it whisks past them into a small shop. Peter winces and finds a piece of glass in his shoulder.
"Oh my God. Peter." Tony whispers, pulling the boy into his Iron-clad arms.
The team is screaming into the coms asking whether they are both ok.
"Are you ok buddy?" Tony asks, tears pricking the back of his eyes.
"Oh my God. You almost died Tony. I-It was right there dad." Peter says, letting out a weak sob.
"Oh, Pete…" Tony trails off, holding the teen close to his chest. Tony's heart swells from Peter's words, but he has more important things to think about right now.
"Take care of the kid Stark. We've got this." Sam says.
Tony lifts Peter up bridal style and they fly to the Quinjet.
"He will be ok Tony. I took out the glass and stitched it up. You can stop pacing now." Bruce says softly. He pats Tony on the shoulder and retreats into the small lab on the jet.
"Oh thank God." Tony says, his heart thundering in his chest. Peter walks over to Tony and pulls him down on one of the beds.
"Are you ok Mr. Stark?" Peter asks, his eyes more than a little glassy. Tony almost died. If Peter was a second too late, his mentor would have been gone. Peter doesn't even want to think of life without Tony.
"I'm fine Peter. But what the hell was that huh? Why the f-...hell would you do that?" Tony asks pointedly. He knows he shouldn't be mad at his kid, but he is. What if that missile had gone off a little early? Then Peter would have died along with Tony. Peter could have died protecting Tony. Tony would never forgive himself if that happened.
"What do you mean why did I do that? Did you want me to watch you die?" Peter asks, anger burning in his eyes.
"You could have died Peter! My suit would have protected me!" Tony shouts.
"We both know that that's not true. That thing was too big, and you would have died! I would do it again in a heartbeat." Peter tells him confidently.
Tony's throat constricts. "Stop it with that self-sacrificing BS. If you died-" Tony stops, swallowing bile.
"Why do you do that? Do you think your life doesn't matter? You've saved so many people but you still think you're somehow lesser than everyone else. Why do you think that?" Peter asks frustratedly.
Tony blinks the tears out of his eyes. What did he do to deserve this perfect child in front of him? One who sees only the little good and none of all the bad.
"Peter. You mean more to me than you can imagine. You can not risk your life for me. I forbid it." Tony says, trying to make the teen understand.
Peter shakes his head. "And you think I would be able to take it if I let you die, knowing I could have saved you? Tony, I got a piece of glass stuck in my shoulder in exchange for your life! I would take that any day. Do you know how terrified I was when I saw that thing point that missile at you? I-If I was late for even a second, y-you would have…" Peter lets out a small sob, thinking about what would have happened. Tony pulls his kid into his arms and cards a hand through Peter's sweaty curls. They both listen to the other's heartbeat, thanking whatever was above that the other was alive and in their arms. Peter trembles slightly, looking up and memorizing every part of Tony's face.
"Just...just promise me you'll never do that again." Tony sighs. Peter wrenches out of Tony's grip.
"No. I will never promise that. I will always save you no matter how many times you tell me not too. That's something I will promise." Peter says, avoiding Tony's piercing stare.
"If you died it would be on me Peter! Damn it kid! You know I wouldn't be able to take it if you died, especially if you died saving me. I need you to tell me that if it's my life or yours, you will choose yourself over me." Tony stops and catches his breath. He knew he was dangerously close to a panic attack.
Peter flinches. "I can't lose another dad! My father died. My uncle died in my arms. I'm not letting you die too!" Peter yells, tears streaming down his cheeks.
Tony mentally slaps himself. Shit. Of course, the kid would want to protect him. All the male figures in his life were ripped away from him. And...and Peter had called him dad.
Idiot. You're an idiot Stark.
"Kid-" Tony tries.
"No, just stop. I-I need to go." Peter says, wiping at the tears. He runs into the conference room and shuts himself inside.
Tony massages his temples defeatedly. He feels like absolute shit. Sure, he didn't want his kid to risk his life for him, but Tony didn't think about it from Peter's point of view. Obviously he wouldn't want to watch Tony die in front of him, like his uncle. But what really caught Tony off guard was how much Peter cared about him. Enough to call him a father. Tony wiped at his eyes again. He desperately wanted to coax his kid out and talk to him, but he knew he needed to give the teen some space.
After a little while, the team comes tromping back in, looking more than a little beat.
"Where's Peter?" Steve asks.
"Is he alright?" Natasha asks.
"Hey, where is the little squirt?" Clint asks.
"He's fine. Bruce fixed him up." Tony says, looking down.
"Tony. What's wrong?" Rhodey asks, looking at his best friend.
"I messed up. He saved me and I told him my life isn't worth his and he got mad at me. I just forgot how much he lost for a second and didn't think about how he must be feeling." Tony rambled.
"Tony. The kid idolizes you. We all see the bond you two have. And we all heard him call you dad. You mean the world to him. Just give him time." Natasha says patting his shoulder and sitting down on a bed. The rest of the team agrees.
"He's probably pretty scared Tones. I mean, you almost died. You might want to talk to him when we get home." Rhodey tells him.
"Yeah, I know. I'm just scared I lost him Rhodes. Geez without that kid, I don't know. Tony croaks, furiously wiping at his eyes.
"Give it maybe an hour. That kid loves you, Tony. You couldn't lose him if you tried." Rhodey chuckles, making his way over to an empty chair.
Tony sighs. He hopes his friends are right.
As soon as the Quinjet lands, Peter walks briskly into the Tower before Tony can catch him. He rides the elevator up to his room and locks the door. Peter sits on his bed and puts his head in his hands. He regretted yelling at his mentor. Peter had made him feel guilty and that too after calling him dad. Peter hadn't meant to call him dad, but he was just so relieved Tony was in one piece and was holding him. He would be lying if he said he didn't think of Tony as a father. Peter meant everything he said to him though. He would save his mentor again in a heartbeat.
Peter sighs. He needs to find Tony. He knows how big Tony's guilt complex is, and he knows he's going to blame himself for what happened. Tony probably thinks Peter hates him right now. And Peter can't let that happen. Because, the opposite is true.
"FRIDAY? Where's Mr. Stark?"
"He is currently in his private lab. Would you like me to get him for you?"
"No. I'm going down there."
Peter walks into the lab quietly. Tony is hunched over some tech. Silent tears are streaming down his face but he doesn't seem to notice them. Peter's heart clenches at the sight. He walks toward Tony, but the mechanic is so lost in his thoughts that he doesn't notice him. Peter kneels down and wraps his arms around his mentor. This jolts Tony out of his thoughts and he relaxes into the hug when he realizes who it is.
"Wh't are you doing here kid?" Tony asks, trying to wipe his face. Peter sighs but stays silent.
They stay there like that for a moment before Peter wordlessly leads them to the couch. Tony leans on Peter's shoulder, allowing himself a few moments of weakness. Peter puts an arm around his mentor and a hand in his hair. It always makes him feel better when Tony does it for him, and Peter knows Tony needs some comfort right now. He hates seeing his mentor so vulnerable, but Tony was always there for Peter, and Peter was determined to be there for the few times his mentor needed him.
"It's not your fault. None of it is." Peter tells him.
Tony doesn't answer. One, because Peter's hand in his hair is grounding. He understands why Peter likes it so much when he does it. And two, he knows it is his fault. He didn't think of what Peter was feeling. And he had hurt him.
"You didn't hurt me." Peter says. He could read the expression on his mentor's face almost as easily as he could read a book.
"How did you know.." Tony trails off. Peter ignores him.
"If anything, I hurt you. I yelled at you." Peter says, hanging his head.
"You didn't-"
"I did. And I'm sorry. It's just...you mean too much to me. I couldn't watch you get hurt, or..worse. I didn't mean to yell at you." Peter gets out.
" God I thought you would hate me." Tony admits, curling into Peter more. He hated feeling so weak. And the feeling he hates most is vulnerability. But everything about Peter made him feel safe enough to let go of the self-loathing.
"I could never hate you. I wish you would understand that. I love you. You're my mentor and my father-figure and I would do anything for you." Peter says sincerely.
Tony holds back his tears as he wraps his arms around his kid.
"I hate this. Shit. I hate this so much. Working in the lab is so much better."
"That's your problem. You avoid everything and bottle it all up and then eventually, everything will come out. I just wish you would see yourself the way I see you." Peter tells him, tears pricking his eyes. He hated how little his mentor thought of himself. But Peter vowed to fix it.
Tony pulls himself together, Peter's words encouraging him.
"I'm sorry kiddo." he says, his voice low.
"I'm the one who's sorry. Dad." Peter says gently. Tony hugs Peter tighter and puts his face in Peter's neck. Peter resumes playing with his mentor's hair. Tony smiles and closes his eyes.
"What did I do to deserve a kid like you?" Tony asks sleepily.
Peter smiles fondly.
"Just being you. That's enough."