I’m alone
Tony didn’t know what was happening.
He was barely awake for thirty seconds and was already getting on a sweater and some shoes. He was dressed in his grey track pants and now a black sweater. He still wasn’t comprehending what FRIDAY was saying to him.
Peter left the tower? Peter had never done that before and knew that he wasn’t allowed to unless he had someone with him.
The first thought that crossed Tony’s mind was Spider-Man. He thought that Peter went out as Spider-Man for some weird reason.
“Where’s the Spider-Man suit?” Tony asked FRIDAY as he ran down the hallway upstairs.
“In Peter’s bathroom.” FRIDAY answered which only made Tony even more confused.
He ran down the stairs with his heart pounding heavily in his chest. That didn’t make any sense. “ Why did he leave?” He asked himself as he grabbed his jacket and went into the elevator but FRIDAY was answering.
“It appears that Peter was sleep walking when he left.” FRIDAY told him which made it ten times worse.
No. Peter was leaving the tower most likely dressed in nothing but his thin pyjama shirt and pants and that is it. No shoes, no socks, no nothing.
“Find him! I want to know where he’s going.” Tony didn’t know what to do. He wanted to wake the team up so they could help him find Peter but the only thing that he could think of was to call Pepper at this ungodly hour.
The phone picked up on the fifth ring. “Hello?”
“Peter’s gone. He just left the tower and it’s freezing outside.” Tony rushed out and got to the main lobby.
“What? Tony, slow down. What do you mean Peter left?” Pepper was worried now too but Tony didn’t pick up on it.
“He… he’s gone. He, I woke up and he was gone and FRIDAY said he left the tower five minutes ago.” Tony ran over to the front desk as Pepper was saying something in his ear but he put the phone down.
The woman at the desk, Jenna, looked extremely surprised to see him down there at that time of night. “Did you see my kid come down here? About five minutes ago?”
The woman shook her head, worry written all over her face. “No. I’m sorry, Mr. Stark, but your son didn’t come down here. I’ve been here all night.”
Tony left without saying anything to her. He put the phone back up to his ear and heard Pepper still talking. “Did you guys get into a fight of something-”
“No! He-he slept walked out of here and… I don’t know, he’s never done anything like this before.” Tony walked outside of the tower and looked around. He didn’t see Peter but he didn’t expect to see him there.
“I gotta- I gotta call you back.” Tony said and then hung up his phone and started to speed walk down the cold, dark streets of New York where no child should be out in just their pyjamas at that night of night.
He had to find his kid.
.
.
.
Peter woke up and almost fell to the ground.
The first thing that hit him was the cold and the fact that he was absolutely freezing.
He looked around wildly and saw that he was outside but that wasn’t possible. He was in bed with his dad so how did he get where he was now.
A whimper escaped his mouth as he ran down the sidewalk of the surprising busy street for so late at night. He’s never been out this late as Peter but even as Spider-Man he’s never on the streets.
Peter had no idea how he got to where he was. His heart was pounding and his feet were practically numb from the cold ground.
Peter stopped running when a man almost twice the size of him stepped in his way and grabbed him by the arms.
“Hey. Where are your parents? You lost, kid?” The man, who smelt like cigarettes, asked him.
Peter shook his head and ripped himself out of the stranger's grip then walked away from him, glancing back every so often to see if the man was following him. Once he turned down a street corner and the man was out of sight, Peter realized that he had no idea where he was.
He lived in Manhattan now but he only knew his way around Queens. He had only walked to a few places with Tony in Manhattan and now he was completely lost with no way of calling his dad.
Peter felt tears run down his face. He tried to wipe them away but more kept coming and then he let out a particularly loud sob.
He wanted his dad. He was cold and scared and one minute he was in his bed but the next he was on the cold streets and he didn’t know how he got there.
Peter continued on walking, having no idea where he was going but then someone grabbed his arm and pulled him back. Peter turned around to look up at them.
It was a woman who had a concerned look on her face as she looked Peter up and down. “Are you lost? Where’s your parents?”
It was the same question that the other guy had asked him. Peter assumed that he must look extremely young running around in New York in the night wearing nothing but his pyjamas.
When he didn’t answer, she asked again. “How old are you honey? It’s dangerous and way too cold to be out at this time of night.”
Peter shook his head and pulled his wrist out of her grasp but he didn’t try to run away this time.
“I-I don’t know how I got here. I was-I was just sleeping.” Peter told her and rubbed a hand over his eye.
She stared at him for a few seconds and then pulled her phone out of her purse. “I’m gonna call the police so they can take care of you. Clearly your parents are unsuitable to look after you.” She mumbled the last part to herself but Peter still heard it and it wasn’t true.
She started to call but then another woman was walking up to them. “Hey, your Stark’s kid. I saw you on the news.”
The woman with the phone scuffed. “Well, that explains it. Do you got him?” Set asked the other woman.
“Um, yeah.” The second woman said and then the first woman was hanging up the phone and walking away. She looked down at Peter. “Hi. My name is Sindey. And you’re Peter, right?”
Peter nodded and shifted from foot to foot. He was freezing. She looked down at his pyjamas and smiled at them but then she was taking off her coat and wrapping it around Peter. “Let’s go sit down on this bench.”
Peter was grateful for the extra warmth. He brought his feet up and his knees to his chest. He wasn’t wearing any underwear so the cold bench was making his butt numb.
“Why are you out here at the time of night?” Sindey asked him and put a box of diapers on the ground under Peter. Peter looked at the box.
“I um, I don’t know.” Peter answered. He didn’t know how he got out of the tower and onto the streets.
“You don’t know. Well, my toddler ran out of diapers so I had to come out and buy him some. Late night diaper trip.” She said in a funny voice and Peter smiled slightly.
“I bet your dad is super worried about you so do you have a phone to call him?” She asked Peter and already started pulling out her own phone.
Peter shook his head. He didn’t even know what direction the tower was in since he couldn’t see it from where he was.
“That’s okay. You can use my phone to call him.” She held the phone out for Peter but Peter just stared at it. He couldn’t remember what his dad’s number was right now.
“Um… I can’t remember his number.”
The lady was silent for a few seconds while she seemed to think about what to do.
Peter just wanted his dad. He was cold with a cold butt and numb feet and he knew his dad was either worried sick about him or still sleeping with no idea where he was. Both scared him.
“I just-I want my dad.” Peter cried out and attempted to wipe away his fresh tears.
“Aw, honey. It’s okay. He’ll come soon but he doesn’t know where you are so you have to remember his number.” The woman wrapped her arm around him and hugged him so her side which was some nice comfort but it wasn’t his dad. He realized that he really does take comfort from just about anyone who would give it to him.
“How about I try to call the tower? Do you think that would work?” She asked him and Peter knew it was almost impossible to get through to Tony but it was worth a try. He nodded.
She went online to dial the number for the tower and waited for it to pick up. “Hello, this is Sindey calling. I think I have Tony Stark’s son here. I recognized his face on the news a few weeks ago and I just saw him wandering around.”
Peter didn’t bother to listen to the other side of the conversation.
“Yes. We are… were next to Max’s Pharmacy. Yes, I’ll wait with him here.” The woman then hung up the phone and put it in her lap. “Your dad will be here soon, Peter.”
Peter hung onto that thought. He needed his dad.
.
.
.
Tony was walking down a rather busy street and getting looks from some of the people passing by since it wasn’t everyday you saw Tony Stark walking the streets of Manhattan at three in the morning.
Two nights in a row he was getting a rather terrifying wake up call from Peter.
He had been looking for Peter for a total of ten minutes but it felt like an eternity. He was terrified of Peter still being asleep and wandering into somewhere dangerous or some creep paedophile seeing his kid in nothing but two thin layers and try to take advantage of his kid.
Tony was about to have a freaking panic attack but then his phone rang and he saw that it was the front desk so he answered right away. “Yes?”
“Mr. Stark, there is a woman who just called the tower and she says she thinks she has your son with her.” Jenna said to him and Tony wanted to cry in relief but he couldn’t yet.
“Where are they?” He said, stopping in his tracks until he got the location.
“They are at Max’s Pharmacy on fifth avenue. She said she will wait with Peter until you get there.” Jenna said to him, sounding relieved herself.
“Okay. Thank you. I’m going there now.” Tony hung up his phone and put it in his pocket. He was two blocks away from where his kid was but over six blocks from the tower so he had absolutely no idea how Peter got that far but the thought terrified him.
It was so easy for Peter to just leave the tower. FRIDAY didn’t even try to stop him and that was entirely Tony’s fault for not setting up that protocol.
Another reason that he fails as a father.
Tony turned the corner and immediately saw Peter sitting on a bench with a red coat wrapped around him. He was sitting next to a young looking woman who was rubbing his back and saying something to him.
Tony just needed to hold his kid. Peter must have heard or sensed him there because he was looking up and his face lit up once his eyes landed on Tony.
“Dad!” Peter shot off the bench, the jacket falling from around his shoulders. He ran over to Tony and Tony immediately lifted Peter into his arms so he could hold him close. “Mm daddy.”
“Oh Peter. I’m here. It’s okay.” Tony felt Peter wrap his legs around him so he put his hand on his butt to support him but he could feel how cold he was through the thin pyjamas.
Tony walked over to the woman and stuck out his hand that wasn’t holding onto Peter. “Thank you so much for staying with him. What’s your name?”
She stood up and grabbed the box of diapers after shaking Tony’s hand. “My name is Sindey and no worries. He’s a child and it’s dangerous for him to be out on his own with all these creeps in the world.”
Tony couldn’t agree more. “Thank you. So much.”
Tony went to put Peter on the ground so he could take off his jacket and give it to Peter but Peter clung onto him tighter and shook his head. “No. Carry me.”
“I will. I just have to put you down for a second.” Tony placed Peter on his feet while Peter was running in place but Tony could only imagine how cold it was on Peter’s bare feet.
“It’s cold. It’s cold.” Peter tried to lift his arms up again but Tony wasn’t ready.
“I know. One second.” He took his jacket off and helped Peter get into it. He still had on a sweater but he was sweating from the stress he just went through so he was already boiling. “Put your arm through.”
The jacket was huge on Peter and looked more like a dress on him but Tony didn’t care because he needed his kid to stay warm. He lifted Peter back up once the jacket was on him and relaxed when Peter wrapped his arms around his neck and laid his head on his shoulder.
He looked at Sindey one last time. “Thanks again.” He bounced Peter a bit, “Can you say thank you?”
Peter lifted his head up and cranked his neck to look at her. “Thank you.” He then looked at his dad. “I wanna go home. M’cold.”
“I know. That’s where we’re going now.” Tony turned and started walking back in the direction of the tower. It was a far walk but as long as he had Peter it was okay.
Peter laid his head back on Tony’s shoulder and shut his eyes. He knew he was safe. “I don’t know how I got there.”
Tony tried to imagine how scared Peter was when he first woke up and realized where he was. “You were sleepwalking.”
Peter opened his eyes and looked down at the ground moving as Tony carried him. “Oh. Why? I don’t sleep walk.”
“I know you don’t. I don’t know why you did it.” Tony knew he was going to be awake for the rest of the night and figuring out a way to make sure that Peter never leaves the tower again. Well, when he’s not supposed to leave.
Tony turned the corner and saw the tower in view. The streets were a lot more quiet near the tower, with the odd person walking the streets. He held Peter just a little bit closer whenever they would pass by a person.
His phone rang in his pocket so he held Peter with one hand to answer it. “Hello?”
“Tony? Did you find Peter yet?” Pepper asked in a panic.
Tony felt bad for forgetting to call her. “Yeah. I have him now. Some lady found him and stayed until I got there.”
“Oh thank god. I was so scared.” Pepper admitted.
Tony felt the same way. “Me too. I’m just carrying him back now because he’s not wearing any shoes but I’ll call you in a few minutes.”
“Okay. Alright.” Pepper hung up the phone then Tony put it in his pocket and went back to holding Peter with both hands.
“Are you awake?” Tony asked him since he was silent.
Peter nodded. “Mmhm. M’cold.”
“I know, baby. Almost there.” Tony didn’t know what else to do to keep Peter warm. He knew how the cold affected him but they were almost at the tower.
Tony turned into the front entrance and walked up the roadway then into the lobby. He sighed in relief at the warmth and being back home where Peter was safe.
Jenna smiled when she saw them walk in and Tony gave her a smile back and walked into the elevator. Tony hoisted up Peter higher since now that he was home and he knew they were safe, his arms were starting to strain from carrying a seventy pound child over six blocks.
“Want to walk now, Pete?” He asked him but Peter shook his head and held on tighter.
Tony sighed. Almost there. “Alright.”
He carried Peter straight into his own bedroom and into the bathroom to wash his feet and was no doubt disgusting and also to check on his wound to see if it opened at all from Peter’s leg rubbing against him the whole way home.
He put Peter on his feet but Peter was reaching up again. “No. Let’s check out your cut. Does it hurt?”
Peter thought about it. “Mm, no. It feels normal.”
“Let me see.” Tony grabbed Peter’s leg and moved the pyjamas a bit to see if the skin looked any worse but it looked exactly the same, if not better than it did before bed. “It’s almost completely healed. No scarring or anything.”
Peter just wanted to go back into bed with his dad but Tony was leading him into the shower. He sat him down on the same place he sat before bed on the dry towel.
The shower was long and didn’t reach that part of the shower if the shower on that side wasn’t turned on so it worked perfectly.
“It’s clean now.” Peter mumbled after Tony cleaned his feet so he didn’t get some New York street infection. “I wanna go back to bed now.”
Tony rinsed Peter’s feet and his hands and then turned off the shower. “Okay. Go dry your feet and hop into bed.”
“Mm, you do it.”
Tony complained even as he dried Peter’s feet. “I’m not doing everything, Peter.”
Peter stood up after Tony was done and raced to the bedroom so he could go back to sleep. He was exhausted and just wanted to pass out again after waking up randomly and going for a stroll.
Tony cleaned up in the bathroom so he didn’t have to deal with that later. He shoved all the dirty towels into the laundry hamper and put it in the corner for now. Ever since Peter came to live with him, he had been doing triple the laundry then he had been doing before which he didn’t necessarily mind but it also meant that he always had laundry that had to be done.
“I’m gonna go down to my lab to do some stuff, okay bud?” Tony told Peter after he shut the bathroom light off and went to walk out of the room with the laundry hamper in his arms.
When Peter didn’t say anything, Tony walked closer to the bed. “Pete?”
Tony saw that Peter was completely passed out and already looked like he was in a deep sleep. Tony grabbed a throw blanket from the floor and covered Peter with it before quietly leaving the room.
He dropped the dirty laundry off on his way down then pulled out his phone to call Pepper. She didn’t answer on the first ring so Tony put his phone on ring so he would hear when she called back.
Tony ran a hand down his face once he sat down in the lab. It was just after five in the morning now so he knew he was going to be absolutely exhausted by the time tomorrow night rolls around.
“FRIDAY, let me know if Peter wakes up.” Tony said. He pushed off his desk and rolled over to his other desk. “Let’s add some more protocols now.”
“What would you like to add?” FRIDAY asked him. Tony knew what he wanted to add but he wanted to make sure it was perfect so nothing like this ever happened again.
“I want to know, wherever I am, as soon as Peter gets up to start sleep walking, he is never allowed to leave the tower.” Tony thought better of that. Peter could still wander around somewhere else. “Actually, Peter is never allowed to leave this floor if he sleep walks again.”
Tony hoped that that was the first and the last time. He didn’t want to go through something like that again but he knew it was bound to happen one day. He just needed to be ready for it.
He thought about blocking off the steps with some kind of baby gate but that probably wouldn’t stop Peter, plus the top of the stairs were too big to attach a gate.
“Protocol added. What would you like to name it?”
Tony thought about it and grinned when he came up with a name. “First steps protocol.”
“First steps protocol added.” FRIDAY announced just as his phone was ringing.
“Hey.” Tony answered and smiled at Pepper’s voice.
“Is Peter okay now?” She asked him.
“Uh, yeah. He’s sleeping and I made sure that that is never gonna happen again.” Tony flicked a pencil on his desk as he spoke.
“Has he ever done this before? Even before you met him.” Pepper asked him which really got Tony thinking.
“Never with me but I don’t know. I could call his paediatrician and see if she knows anything about it.” Tony debated calling Peter’s doctor. If anyone would know it would be her but he knew Peter hated going to the doctors so he didn’t want to bring him in for a check up. He would probably just call to see if Peter has any history of sleepwalking.
“You should call her so you know if you should expect this again.” Pepper made a good point. Tony would definitely be calling her tomorrow if he can get away from Peter for a few minutes. “Oh yeah, did you talk to him about having a therapist yet?”
Tony sighed. He had so much on his plate and more things kept getting added. “I didn’t get a chance. I’m gonna find a good time tomorrow and talk to him before he goes back to school on Friday.”
“Alright. Tell me how it goes when you do.”
Tony was about to respond but FRIDAY was speaking up and for a second Tony thought that Peter was sleep walking again.
“Peter is awake and is asking for you, Boss.”
Tony rubbed his face aggressively. They desperately needed a therapist.
“Yep. Tell him I’m coming. Okay, well I gotta go so I’ll talk to you tomorrow if I get a chance.” Tony hung up the phone after Pepper said bye and then he was making his way upstairs.
When he got to the stairs, he saw Peter sitting at the top of it. “Why are you out of bed?”
Peter rubbed at his eye but didn’t say anything. “Come on. You keep getting out of bed, bud. You’re gonna be exhausted tomorrow.”
Tony got to the top of the stairs and pulled Peter to his feet. “No school tomorrow right?”
Tony sighed. “Yes, Peter. No school tomorrow.”
With that, Peter was content to walk back to Tony’s bedroom and climb back into the bed. Tony checked the time and saw that it was just after six in the morning. He would let Peter sleep until ten at the latest because then he won’t be able to get him to sleep in the nighttime.
“Come.” Peter weakly held out his hand for Tony to sleep next to him so Tony got back in bed and shut the light off. “Stay till morning.”
“It is morning, Pete.” Tony smiled and ran his fingers through Peter’s hair.
Peter sat up so he could lay his head on Tony’s chest. It was a new position that didn’t look comfortable at all but Tony wasn’t going to question it. “Mm, then stay till afternoon.”
“Okay. Just close your eyes.”
.
.
.
Tony was waiting for the perfect opportunity to have a deep discussion with Peter but it was already 5pm and he still hadn’t found the right time.
Peter was in a surprisingly good mood which Tony did not expect after last night.
Supposedly the reason for Peter’s random sleepwalking, according to his paediatrician was that Peter was over tired and went through a lot of stress recently which was the whole Spider-Man thing and getting stitches. Tony found out that Peter didn’t have a past of sleepwalking which he was grateful for.
What he was not grateful for was for the fact that his paediatrician wanted him to bring Peter in for a checkup but Tony knew Peter wasn’t going to like that.
Tony walked into the living room with two bowls of ice cream in his hands. He planned on sitting with Peter and asking him about a potential therapist but he knew that he needed to bring the topic up by not making it a big deal.
“Look what I have.” Tony held out a bowl to Peter and smiled when he sat up on his knees to grab the bowl.
“Mmm! Thank you.” Peter took the bowl from his dad and felt his mouth start to water once he saw it was ice cream. “Chocolate. My favourite.”
“I know. What’re you building?” Tony sat down on the carpet and crossed his legs out in front of him. The whole living room was scattered in legos. Tony was even finding pieces in the kitchen and the upstairs hallway.
“Um, should I make the roof red or blue?” Peter asked, totally ignoring Tony’s question.
“Uh, blue. The base is already red.” Tony answered and watched Peter build for about a minute while he ate his ice cream. “So, Pete, I was thinking about something and I wanted to get your opinion on it.”
Peter hummed, too concentrated on his legos so Tony reached forward and slid it over to his side. “Can you look at me?”
“Hey! I’m building.” Peter glared at Tony so Tony glared back but then remembered that he was the adult so he simply picked up the lego and put it on his other side.
“You can play with it soon but I wanna talk to you and I want your full attention.” Tony picked his bowl back up and took a bite.
Peter grabbed his bowl and moved closer to his dad. “What is it?”
“So I’ve been thinking about something for awhile and I think it’s a good idea but I want your opinion on it.” Tony paused. “What do you say about talking to a therapist?”
It was out. The question was out. Tony unconsciously held his breath as he watched Peter’s face for any sign of anything.
Peter paused his stirring in his bowl and started to chew on his lip. A long couple seconds passed between the two of them before Peter was speaking up and what he said, Tony did not expect at all.
“Why?”
For some reason, as simple as that question was, it hurt Tony to hear. It was as if Peter was asking why because he thought that Tony thought that he was messed up or something.
Tony thought about how to answer this correctly. “Well, bud, because I want what’s best for you and for some things, I can’t help you with. You need someone who can help you with things.”
Peter frowned. “With what things?”
Tony played with the spoon in his bowl as he spoke. “With your separation anxiety from me. I’m trying but you need someone else to help you with it too.”
Peter put his bowl on the floor, obviously not in the mood for ice cream anymore. “Well, maybe if you would homeschool me and never leave again then I wouldn’t need a stupid therapist.”
Tony sighed. “Peter. Stop it. I want you to think about it. It’s a good idea.”
“No. I don’t like them.”
“Peter, you don’t even know who it is yet. I don’t even know.” Tony knew it would take a lot of research and interviews before he even lets someone see Peter.
“I don’t want to meet them. I hate them.” Peter went to stand up but Tony reached forward to grab his hand.
“Please. Sit down and let’s talk about it more.” Tony practically begged Peter. He needed Peter to want this. It won’t work if he doesn’t want it.
Peter reluctantly sat back down. “I don’t want a therapist. I have you and I don’t need anyone else.”
Tony sighed again. Peter wouldn’t understand yet or maybe ever understand that Tony couldn’t give Peter what he needs in those ways. If they continue on like this then Peter is gonna be thirty years old and sleeping with Tony in his bed still. It’s not healthy and as much as Tony probably makes it worse by giving Peter what he wants, they can’t keep doing it.
“Peter, it’ll benefit you and me. To make you feel more comfortable too, I’ll sit down with you guys for the first meeting. Or I’ll be as far as you want me to be. Whatever you want.” Tony said to Peter. He could see Peter thinking it over in his head.
“You’ll stay for all the meetings… but I’m not doing it. I just want you. No one else.” Peter sat fully on the floor and picked at a crum on the carpet.
“I want you to think ab-”
Peter cut Tony off. “Would they come into the house or-or would we go somewhere?”
“Well, preferably in the house but wherever you want to go.” Tony liked how Peter was asking questions. It meant he was considering it.
“No. I don’t like it. So no.” Peter looked up and Tony and then reached over him to grab his legos again.
Tony sighed as he sat there and watched Peter play. He didn’t know how he expected the conversation to play out but he hoped that Peter would be on board with the idea.
.
.
.
Tony had a rough morning with Peter to say the least.
Peter absolutely refused to get out of bed so Tony had to drag him out and bed and practically get him dressed all while Peter tried to fall back asleep.
Then trying to convince Peter to leave the car to go to school had been a whole task in itself. Tony was exhausted by the time he got back home but something just didn’t feel right about the whole ordeal.
He felt horrible for sending Peter to school after his kid had literally begged him not to send him. The only reason why Tony sent him to school after that fit was because Tony didn’t want to give in and then Peter would learn that if he threw a long enough fit then he didn’t have to go to school.
Tony rubbed his hand over his face. He was wrong for sending Peter to school. He knew that the past week had been rough for him.
Just then, Tony got a text so he pulled his phone out of his pocket and saw it was a text from Peter.
Peter: pleaseeeewe come get me I can’t stay here dasadddd
Tony: I’m sorry. I’m coming now baby
Tony was reversing in his car and going to go get Peter after being home for less than five minutes. He drove to the school in under twenty minutes which was surprising but there wasn’t much traffic at that time since mostly everyone was already at school and work.
He pulled his car up to the front of the school and sent a text to Peter.
Tony: I’m out front
Peter: you have to sign me out cause they won’t let me leave. Commmmmeeeee
Tony rolled his eyes at Peter’s text and shut his car off, not caring that it was illegal to park there. The first thing he heard when he walked into the school was the distant sound of someone crying and his heart dropped. That better not be his kid.
As he walked closer to the office and the crying got louder, Tony sighed in relief because he knew Peter’s cry and that was not it. He then felt bad because someone else’s kid was crying and they sounded miserable.
He opened the office door and his ears immediately started to ring from the loud, miserable crying.
Tony’s eyes landed on Peter first and smiled when he saw his kids' eyes land on his and then Peter was standing up and throwing himself into his arms.
Tony tried to speak but he could not hear himself. He stepped further into the office and saw a boy, around the same age as Peter, lying on the floor, spread out and screaming as if his life was ending.
“Why’s he crying?” Tony asked Peter, almost yelling to be heard over the screams.
Peter shrugged as if it was completely normal and didn’t even phase him one bit. “He got in trouble. Hurry up and sign me out, I wanna go home.” He pushed Tony towards the sign out sheet so Tony picked the pen up.
“Is he okay?” He asked the receptionist since she was ignoring the boy and acting like he wasn’t even there. Tony didn’t know if his parental instincts were kicking in for some random person's kid but he knew that if Peter was crying on the floor then he would want someone to help his kid.
The receptionist rolled her eyes. “We called his dad instead of his mom so he’s having a tantrum over it. Can I help you?”
Tony stared at her in shock. “Uh, yeah. I’m signing my son out.”
The receptionist smiled up at him. “Oh yes. Sorry it’s just really busy here today. You can sign him out right here and I have this for you,”
Tony signed Peter out and then watched as the woman flipped through some papers and handed one out to Tony. “It’s take your kid to work day next coming Tuesday for the younger grades so Peter has the day to follow you to work.”
Tony smiled. That was so cute. He got to keep Peter home from school and he had a reason to take him to work and let him sit in on a meeting or two. “Oh that sounds fun. Did you hear that, Pete?”
Tony turned around and saw Peter just standing there and staring at the kid on the ground who was still at it. “Peter. Come.”
Peter looked over at his dad and went to stand by his side. “Can we get McDonald’s now?”
“No. We eat it too much. Do you know what’s happening next Tuesday?” Tony asked him, taking Peter’s backpack from him that Peter was handing over.
“Um… no.” Peter rested his chin on the desk and looked at the receptionist. She was looking between him and his dad with a smile on her face.
“It’s take your kid to work day. You get to come with me to some meetings.” Tony ruffled Peter’s hair.
“Really? Yay! Those are the best.” Peter lifted his head up and tried to look at the paper that Tony was holding. “Is it next Tuesday?”
“Yeah, bud.” Tony handed the paper to Peter and guided him out of the office. “So, I have a surprise plan for you. It’s gonna be fun.”
Peter bounced down the steps of his school. He was excited that it was Friday and Tuesday was take your kid to work day and now his dad has a surprise for him. “Really?! What is it?”
“I was thinking that we could go to the hardware store now to get some paint and stuff so we can decorate your bedroom.” Tony explained to Peter. He wanted to make Peter’s bedroom his bedroom and not just a place to store his clothes and toys.
“You're gonna paint your room?” Peter asked, genuinely confused.
Tony looked down at him. “What? No. Your bedroom, Peter.”
Tony opened up the back door of the car to put Peter’s backpack there while Peter climbed into the front seat. Tony shut the back door and then stood by Peter’s door. “Well… what do you say?”
“I say yes. And I can paint it any colour?” Peter asked while he put his seatbelt on. Tony hated how Peter kept moving the seat forward because this suv was a lot bigger than his car so Peter was smaller in the front seat. He thought that it was illegal to have Peter sitting in the front seat with his weight anyways.
“Yep. Any colour you want.” Tony moved Peter’s seat back. “Stop moving it forward or I’m putting you in the back.”
Peter glared at him so Tony shut the door and walked around to get into the front seat. “I want you to pick out whatever you want for your room. Do you want a new bed? New side tables? Desk? Anything.”
“But I already have all that. I don’t need two desks.” Peter knew that his dad was a billionaire but he still didn’t like to spend money if there was no need.
Tony smiled. His kid was too sweet. “Well obviously not. We’ll get rid of your old one.”
“But you got me everything in my room. I like everything. Maybe I can get some more shelves to put my legos up. And like picture frames to put more pictures of us up.” Peter looked over at Tony and grinned. Tony ruffed his hair.
“You’re so cute. What would I do without you.” Tony hoped he never found the answer to that question.
Peter smiled. “Nothing. Because you’ll never be without me because we’re gonna be together all the time.”
Tony knew that Peter was implying that they would never ever be apart, even to go to school or to sleep so Tony didn’t want to agree with him since as much as he would like to keep Peter next to him 24/7, he knew he couldn’t.
When they got to the hardware store, Tony got out of the car and raced around to the other side of the car since Peter had a habit of running in front of cars in parking lots.
“Don’t run, Pete.” Tony warned him as they walked down the parking lot. Tony was trying to keep up with Peter but he was walking ahead pretty quickly.
Peter was walking up to the road just before the store and Tony waited for him to stop but it looked like he was going to continue walking. “Peter! Stop!”
Tony rushed to Peter’s side and grabbed him by the arm. “Can’t you see the cars driving by? You have to stop and wait.”
“Ow. You’re hurting my arm.” Peter tried to rip his arm from out of Tony’s grasp but he didn’t light up. “Dad.”
“Stop. Are you gonna hold my hand or walk next to me?” Tony asked him, giving him a choice since taking Peter through parking lots was a whole mission.
“Walk next to you.” Peter whined out so Tony let go of his arm and went to grab onto his hood just in case he made a sudden dash.
Once they got into the store, Tony grabbed a shopping cart and checked out how busy it was. Thankfully it was an awkward time of the day, just after work started but too early for lunch so it was quiet in the store with no one really in there.
“Did you think about what colour you want to paint your room?” Tony asked, leaning against the cart as he pushed it.
“Um… I think blue. Because I feel like even though red is my favourite colour, it might be too red and it’ll hurt my eyes so I think blue.” Peter answered and grabbed onto the side of the shopping cart as Tony pushed it.
“Blue. I think that’ll look great, bud. Do you want a light blue or a dark blue?” Tony asked but before he had the chance to answer, a worker was walking up to them.
“Can I help you guys at all?” The worker asked.
Tony watched Peter revert back to his side and watch the man with wide eyes. Tony had no idea why Peter was so shy in front of strangers. He’s glad that he didn’t cause that and that Peter had always been like that. He remembered how Peter was when he used to take the kid out in public even when he was thirteen.
“Yeah, we’d like two cans of blue paint.” Tony put his foot up on the shopping cart and stood up straighter before his back started to hurt him. Peter was looking down and playing with a piece of plastic coming off of the cart.
“Oh of course. Do you want a light blue or dark blue? There’s a whole wall of blues to choose from.” The man gestured to the wall across from them.
Tony nudged Peter. “The man asked you a question, Pete. What kind of blue do you want?”
“Um… maybe sky blue?” Peter looked up at the man through his eyelashes. He didn’t know why he hated being around new people all the time. He just always felt really awkward and uncomfortable around new people since he didn’t know them yet.
“That would look nice. We have a big selection over there so please have a look and let me know if you need anymore help.” The worker smiled at them and left.
Tony moved the shopping cart over to the paint section with Peter walking beside him again. “What colour do you like? Lots to pick from.”
Peter stepped in front of the paint board and looked at all the options. There was a lot to choose from and he sucked at decisions.
“Ummm… I like this one. It looks like the ocean.” Peter held up a blue card and handed it to Tony who took it from him.
Tony tried to imagine what the colour would look like in Peter’s bedroom and he smiled. It was a boring dark colour now so this one would definitely add some brightness into his room. “I love it, bud. Grab the can under B9.”
Peter searched for the can and then grabbed one and put it in the shopping cart. “Grab two more so we don’t run out.”
Peter grabbed two more cans and put them into the cart but then decided to climb in himself like he used to do when Ben was still alive. “I wanna sit in it.”
Tony went to reach out to help Peter climb in, completely forgetting that his kid was Spider-Man. “Do you need help?”
“No. I can do it.” Peter climbed into the cart and sat on his knees so he was facing the aisle.
“Pull up your pants. I can see your butt.” Tony told him and then started to push the cart down the aisle.
Peter pulled up his pants but turned around to look at Tony. “You can’t see my butt.”
“I could before.” Tony told him. He stopped the cart by the paint brushes.
“Just a little. My butt crack.” Peter laughed when he said the last part which caused Tony to start laughing too.
“Yes, Pete. Now be serious, pick some paint brushes.” Tony moved the cart over to the wall so Peter could reach the brushes while Tony grabbed some rollers and some palettes. They were going to be doing the painting all by themselves so Tony knew it was going to get very messy.
He grabbed some plastic overs just in case and the green tape to help them stay on the walls.
Peter threw a bunch of brushes into the cart and turned around to face Tony. “Can we get McDonald’s before we go home?”
“No.” Tony said without even thinking about it. They had been eating McDonald’s every other day for the past week and it was starting to become a problem.
“Please. I want chicken nuggets.” Peter tried to give Tony his best puppy dog eyes but Tony wasn’t even looking at him.
“Well in that case… no. Let’s get some shelves for your room. Pick out ones that you like.” Tony pushed Peter into what he assumed was the aisle for shelves. Peter shifted in the cart to look at the selection.
“Ummmm?”
“What about this one? We can hang it over your dresser and you can put your legos on it.” Tony pointed to a sample of one of the shelves that would look really good in Peter’s room.
“Yeah. I like them.”
Tony grabbed the box but stopped before he put it into the cart. “You have to get out now so I can put it in.”
Peter shook his head. “No. Put it at the bottom.”
Tony looked at the bottom and saw that there was in fact a spot for the shelves there. As he went to go place them there, he thought about how only one person in the whole world could actually tell Tony Stark what to do and that person was Peter.
After they were done shopping, Tony pushed the cart to the front to go pay. They ended up getting new curtains that had more character to add to the room since Peter’s old ones were plain and boring.
Once everything was paid for, Tony brought the cart to the exit and went to go park it. “Time to get out.”
“No. Push me to the car.” Peter rocked the cart to try and make it go but Tony held it with his foot.
“No. Come out.” Tony tried to grab Peter’s arm but Peter pulled his arm back. “Fine. Once we get to the car you’re coming out.”
Tony didn’t know why he was letting Peter call the shots but they did have a lot of stuff in their cart so it only made sense to take the cart out to the car.
Tony opened up the trunk and put everything in until the last thing in was his kid. “Okay. I’m gonna leave you here because I don’t want you anymore.” Tony joked but he regretted it right after because Peter snapped his head to look at him.
“No. Don’t say that.” Peter was already moving to stand up so Tony held his arms out for him.
“I’m just joking. Want me to help you out?” Peter was already going into Tony’s arms so Tony lifted him with one arm out of the cart. “Life your legs up.”
“Carry me to my seat.” Peter patted Tony’s shoulders so he didn’t put him down but before Tony had the chance to say something, a man was appearing by their car.
“Tony Stark! Can I get a few words about your recent adoptive son?” The man yelled and Peter tried to turn his head to look at him but Tony held his face away from the camera.
“Give us some privacy, man.” Tony hated how these vultures thought it was okay to take pictures of him and his kid.
The man snapped a bunch of pictures of them and then ran off. Tony was in a bad mood now and he just wanted to get out of there. He opened the back door so he didn’t have to walk around to the other side.
“Sit in the backseat.” Tony put Peter in there and then shut the door. He got in on the driver’s side and rolled his eyes at Peter climbing into the front seat. “Peter.”
“What? I want to sit next to you. Not behind you.” Peter said as he put his seatbelt on, not understanding why his dad was commenting on it when he always sat in the front seat.
Tony started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. “I know, Pete. I just want to get home. It’s freezing. Hey, I’ll check your stitches tonight and maybe we can finally go in the hot tub for the first time.”
“Yeah! That’ll be fun. It’ll be like a big bath.” Peter leaned his head against the seat and looked over at his dad. “Thank you. For everything you bought me. I love it all.”
Tony took his eyes off the road to smile at his kid. “You’re welcome, bud. We can start painting it when we get home.”
Peter nodded. “Yes. After lunch. I’m hungry.” Peter reached forward to grab onto Tony’s hand that was lying on the center console. “Dad?”
“Hm?”
“I think I want a therapist.” Peter admitted and looked down at his dad's hand.
Tony looked over at Peter. He felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of Peter wanting a therapist but it was hard since he was so happy. “That’s good, bud. I’m glad.”
Peter smiled weakly and looked up at Tony. “But… I just… can you stay when I talk to them?”
“Of course I will. And when you get more comfortable with them then I can leave.” Tony knew after a few sessions then Peter would not want him there since he would most likely get really deep but he didn’t tell Peter that.
“No. I’ll want you there all the time.” Peter said. He knew he wouldn’t want his dad to leave him.
“That’s okay. So, I’m still gonna have to do some research and find someone but when you do eventually talk to someone, you have to do it the right way and not feel like you have to keep any secrets from them or keep your guard up so we’ll have to tell them that you’re Spider-Man.” Tony really didn’t want to tell anyone his son’s secret but he was going to be letting this person into his home and eventually leave them alone with his son so he knew he’d be able to trust them.
Peter didn’t know how to feel about that. Part of him didn’t really care because he now knew that his dad would keep him safe but he always hated how people would react when they find out that he’s Spider-Man because he’s so young.
“Okay. I guess that would make most sense so yeah.”
Tony couldn’t get the smile of his face. He was so happy that Peter wanted this.
“It’ll be for the best. Trust me. And you won’t even have to talk about Spider-Man if you didn’t want to but you know it’s safe to bring it up if you want to. Also, would you want it to be a woman or a man or do you not care?” Tony asked him. He would prefer for it to be a woman because he doesn’t know if he’ll feel fully comfortable with a man talking to Peter in their home.
Peter thought about it. “Ummm… a girl. I don’t want it to be a guy.”
Tony silently sighed in relief. “Okay. A girl it will be.” Tony took his eyes off of the road for a second to look at Peter. “I’m so proud of you, buddy.”
Peter felt his cheeks heat up. “I know.”