Chapter Text
The press conference had been a success. Peter had refused to attend, telling Tony and Pepper that he didn’t feel comfortable being thrown into the spotlight like that. They had understood and without any argument, the press conference had been handled by Tony as he told the world that he currently had legal guardianship over an ex intern who he’d grown close to. News about May hadn’t broken out, instead reports of Peter’s parents and uncles dying circulating the web.
From what Peter could tell, the majority of people felt bad for him and even more people were just curious as to what he was like. It was so strange to have people questioning him and wanting to know more about him.
Since the reveal almost a week ago, Peter had been laying low. His school work was emailed to him and he spent long hours in the lab trying to clear his head. Being thrown into the spotlight definitely messed with his emotions. Peter had only just returned to school that day.
Peter brought his cap down further as he walked through the busy mall, avoiding eye contact and trying to remain invisible. His place had been plastered on magazines and social media for a week but no one was actively seeking him out. It made it easier to blend in. At the end of the day, he was still just a teenage boy so the fact that he was shopping around a mall didn’t stand out.
He’s been shopping for hours, having skipped after-school patrol to be here. Peter’s fingers brushed over an expensive watch. Normally, when he shopped, he went to the thrift stores or cheaper areas but this time he went to the designer locations. After all, he was looking for a present for Tony (as a thank you for handling the press conference) and the man did have expensive taste.
The watch was silver with gold hands ticking around. It weighted a tonne. Peter put it down and sighed. This was pointless. Tony was a billionaire, if he liked something then he would’ve already brought it. Knowing Peter’s luck, he’d get Tony a present which his guardian already owned.
Peter decided that now was probably a good time to get food. Since he’d ditched patrol, that meant ditching a sandwich at Mr Delmar’s and his stomach was already starting to protest angrily.
The nearest cafe shop smelt good so Peter didn’t think twice before entering. The layout was old with wooden tables and a glass display where the food was held. It was noisy in here, the coffee machine whirring and the buzz of chatter filling the small space. Peter walked over to the counter to read the drink options, his mind already set on a hot choclate.
He heard her before his spidey sense tingled faintly at the back of his neck. “Peter?”
It felt like time had stopped when he made eye contact with May, her expression nervous to match what Peter could only assume was a deer starring at headlights look of his own. May was wringing her hands the way she did when she was uncomfortable and she was biting her lip.
“Hi Peter,” she said again, her voice soft and cautious.
“Umm— hi?” His voice was scratchy and Peter cleared his throat, feeling his cheeks go red.
“You look well,” May nodded, a small but tight smile on her face.
“So do you,” Peter replied. Because she did look well: her skin was glowing and her hair was cascading over her shoulders in a carefree way that Peter hadn’t seen in months. May was dressed casually and she looked healthier in general. Less burdened.
“Can we talk?” May said suddenly. “I have a table over there already. I would just love to talk to you.”
Peter wondered why it felt more like walking to his death as he followed her to her small, wooden table. It had been 6 months since he’d last seen May. 5 and a half months since he’d stopped trying to call her. He’d just started to feel like he’d gotten his footing when she was suddenly back again.
They sit opposite each other, May twisting her empty cup in her hands and Peter staring straight at her with fear. He really wished Tony was here. Even if just to put his hand on Peter’s shoulder to ground him.
“How have you been?” May asks after a long time.
Apart from the fact that i was kicked out? Peter wants to say. “Um, good i guess.”
“School okay?”
Peter shrugs. It was rather weird today but that was granted since everyone now knows that Tony Stark took him in. “Same as usual.”
“That Flash kid still picking on you?”
“Flash is Flash.”
“Ned and MJ doing alright?”
“What’s this about?” Peter cuts her off, sick of her casualness. Every instinct he felt contradicted his feelings. A part of him wanted to cry and hug May, sobbing over how much he missed her. But another part of him wanted to stand up and walk out this cafe like nothing had happened.
He settled with sitting quietly as May explained.
“I’ve missed you Peter,” May admits. “A lot. I was so caught up in my fear of losing you that i pushed you out. I kept having these nightmares of you dying over and over again that i thought if i sent you away that i would stop to worry about you as much. But it didn’t work. It never could. I love you so much Peter.” There were tears on her cheeks by the time she finished.
Peter realised there were tears on his cheeks too. “I called you?”
“I know,” May placed a hand on her forehead, trying to hold in a sob. “And i wanted to answer— i really did. But i kept thinking that if i answered then i would lose you. Stupid, i know.”
“May you kicked me out.” Peter whispered. His eyes felt tight the way they did when you were close to tears.
May nodded. “I’m so sorry.”
“I had to pack my things in bags and walk around Queens for an hour before i got the courage to call someone. I thought i’d go to a homeless shelter or foster home if Tony didn’t want me.”
“I knew he would’ve,” May brushed away a tear. “He phoned me that night and told me he was gonna take you in.”
“That doesn’t change the fact that you didn’t want me.”
“I did want you Peter! I still do,” May reaches out a hand to brush Peter’s on the table. He doesn’t pull away. “I was so consumed in fear to lose you like i lost Ben that i acted harshly. I never stopped loving you Peter— you’re my kid. My son. My only family. I want you to come home, please. We can make this work, i know we can. I’ve been miserable without you.”
“But what about?” He doesn’t need to say the name before she shakes her head, taking in a deep breath.
“I was wrong. You do so much good being him and i know it means we can’t guarantee your safety and i’m always going to worry but i would rather worry with you living with me than not knowing anything about you. Ben would be proud of you Peter. He’d be so proud.” Her voice breaks and Peter finally releases his tears. May moved around the table to hold him as he sobs.
“I missed you s-so much Aunt May,” he cries into her shoulder.
“Oh baby i missed you more,” she kisses his forehead as Peter sobs. It feels like years before he calms down enough to properly see her face. May takes back her old seat, both hands adjoined with Peter’s over the table.
“You want me to come back?” Peter sniffles, his throat sore and his face feeling hot and wet. He was sure he looked a mess.
May nods with a sad smile. “Yes, i really do. I also. . . if you would let me— i want to adopt you Peter.”
Peter stares at her for a long time. After his parents died, he’d never been adopted by Ben or May. He never felt like he’d needed to; Peter had always known his Uncle and Aunt loved him enough that it didn’t need to become legal.
He tried to imagine what being adopted by May would feel like. She’d become his mother. Aunt May would be his mum. Peter wondered why that didn’t make him feel as giddy as it would’ve 6 months ago. Even 5 months ago he would’ve jumped at the chance.
“I uh—“
“You don’t need to decide now,” May flattens his hair with a teary expression. “Ben and i talked about it before . . . and i feel like i’m ready now. I love you Peter. I larb you.”
“I larb you too, May.”
They leave the cafe a little over two hours later, having finally caught up and talked over everything that entailed. For the first time in months, Peter realised May hadn’t kicked him out because she no longer loved him but because the fear of losing him had eaten her up. They said goodbye at the subway, with May heading to work and Peter heading back to the Tower.
The first hug that they’d had in months helped calm some of Peter’s pain but as he travelled the long way back to the Tower, there was only one person he wished he could hug instead.
“Hi FRI,” Peter rubbed his eyes as he walked into the private elevator at the Tower. He was sure he looked a mess with bloodshot eyes and red cheeks. His hair was all ruffled and wild from when he’d run a hand through it a million times on the way home.
Home. The Tower had become his home in such a short space of time but that didn’t make it any less true. Peter loved his home with the Avengers, all of them snuggling up several times a week for movie nights. He loved training with Steve and Natasha, getting his ass handed to him by the Black Widow while Tony cried out about suing if she ‘hurt one hair on Peter’s perfect head’.
He loved messing around with Clint, the two of them teaming up to tease Tony. They’d put salt in his coffee once and gagged when the billionaire had downed the cup without so much as a wince.
He loved having insult fights with Sam, the two of them thinking up funny quips to yell at each other at any given time. Sam would continuously roll his eyes and mumble “oh it’s the little asshole” whenever Peter entered a room with Peter making fun of the Falcon being Captain America’s sidekick.
But most of all, Peter loved how close he and Tony had gotten. The man had been by his side since day one, helping him through nightmares and getting over May. Throughout all his stupid stunts, Tony had been there.
It didn’t feel right to act as if the last few months had never happened and just move back in with May.
“Where the hell have you been?” Tony’s voice thundered just as the doors to the elevator opened to their living floor. Tony was standing in front of the elevator, arms crossed and looking angry as the other Avengers hovered behind him. They all looked concerned.
“Huh Peter?” Tony sounded so mad as he continued to berate the teenager, not looking at him closely enough to see the tears. “You’ve been gone for hours! The Spider-Man suit is logged out and you wouldn’t answer your calls! I’ve been worried sick! We almost sent out a Team to find you!”
“I’m s-sorry,” Peter mumbled, looking down.
“Peter, son are you okay?” Steve frowned at the teenager closing in on himself.
Tony shook himself out of his rage long enough to finally see Peter. He saw the dried tears and diverted eyes. He saw the obvious signs of distress. “Peter, buddy, what’s wrong?” His voice went from angry to concerned in seconds.
Peter didn’t even think twice before he lunged at Tony, arms wrapping around the man’s chest and sobbing into where the Arc Reactor had once been.
“I don’t want to leave,” Peter admitted, his words slightly muffled but Tony heard it clearly. The man’s arms were around Peter in seconds and he ran his fingers through Peter’s hair.
“Why would you be leaving buddy?”
“I s-saw May today.”
“You what?” There was a dangerous change in Tony’s tone. “When? Where?”
“Just n-now. We ran into each other at a cafe. She said sorry for k-kicking me out. She wants me back.”
Peter barely acknowledges as the rest of the Avengers filter out and Tony’s grip becomes tighter. There’s something heartbreaking about his tone as he whispers “You don’t have to move back in if you don’t want to.”
Peter nods numbly into Tony’s chest, still sobbing hard. “I know it’s j-just that i don’t know w-what i want. I want May, i really do, but i keep thinking about the past 6 months and how happy i’ve been lately.”
“If i move out, will you forget me?”
Tony physically balked. “Kiddo, what? Are you kidding me right now? Petey no, if you moved out then you would still be my kid. I said the L word to you kiddo, i don’t do that to everyone.”
Peter smiled into Tony’s chest. “I L word you too.”
Tony took in a deep breath, the nexts words feeling like pure acid as he mumbled them out. “But if you want to move back in with May kiddo, then i won’t kick up a fuss. As long as you’re happy, i’m happy.”
The words were partially a lie but he said them anyway. Yes, he did want Peter happy. But if Peter moving out meant he would be happy, then Tony wasn’t happy. He didn’t want Peter to leave. 6 months ago he’d been thrusted this newly homeless kid and in just a short space of time, he couldn’t imagine ever letting him go.
Tony honestly couldn’t remember what his life had been like before Peter invaded it. He couldn’t see how one day a week lab sessions had been enough. Going back to seeing Peter only once a week felt like he was being deprived of his kid.
He wanted Peter to come home from school and throw his bag into the corner of Tony’s lab, already yammering on about what he learnt that day or something funny Ned had said. He wanted the kid to fall asleep on his shoulder when watching a movie with the Avengers. He wanted to sit up in the early hours of the morning, his fingers in the kids hair as he mumbled a story to lull the kid to sleep after a nightmare.
He wanted Peter here. With him. In his home.
But if Peter wanted May. . . who was Tony to say no? It was all the kid had cried about for months.
“Y-you wouldn’t stop me?” Peter froze in Tony’s grip and the older man didn’t know if he’d done something wrong.
“No kiddo,” he shook his head. “If you want May, you should go with her.”
“O-okay,” Peter nodded, breaking out of Tony’s grasp. He stared down at his feet. “If you think so.”
“I want you happy Peter.” Tony tried again. He desperately wanted Peter to stay; Tony begged Peter say he was happy here.
“Okay,” Peter mumbled before saying he was going to bed.
Tony’s heart broke as the kid walked off. He felt like he was losing his child.
——————————————
“And then he said that i should go with her,” Peter spoke dejectedly at lunch, poking at his sandwich. Ned looked utterly shocked as he listened to his best friend recant the day before’s events.
“Did he literally say that you should move back in with May?” Ned’s eyes were wide as he stared right at Peter.
“Well, he said he wanted me happy and he wouldn’t kick up a fuss.”
“That doesn’t sound like he was telling you to move out Peter!” Ned rebuked. “It sounds like he was trying to be supportive!”
“I don’t want him to be supportive!” Peter shot back. “I want him to want me!”
“What makes you think he doesn’t, loser?” MJ spoke up, her head still in a book.
“He said—“
“We know what he said,” MJ placed her book down, giving Peter an unimpressed look. “But what has he actually done to warrant you thinking he doesn’t want you. Except for some misinterpreted words?”
Peter paused for a second, thinking it through. Tony had picked up Peter’s call at 3am and personally driven to his location to give him somewhere to sleep. He’d tracked Peter down when he’d run away. He’d been worried when Peter had snuck out to Flash’s party. He’d bailed Peter out of jail and he’d admitted that he L worded him.
So why did Peter feel like Tony was trying to send him away?
Peter shook his head, trying to make sense of it all. “You think he wants me?”
“I don’t think he’s shown any indication that he doesn’t,” MJ picked her book up again without another glance to Peter.
“You’re being overdramatic dude,” Ned assured him. “Just as Mr Stark.”
“I can’t ask Tony ‘hey do you want me to stay with you’?”
“Why not?”
“B-because what if he says no!”
“And what if he says YES?”
Peter shook his head again. ”No, no i cant. Anyway, i’ve missed May. Yeah i missed her.” It sounded more like he was trying to convince himself than anything. “She said she wanted to adopt me. I want that— i want to be someone’s son again.”
“Do you want to be May’s son?” Ned asked with no heat.
“I just said—“
“No you said you want to be someone’s son. Not specifically May’s.”
“May’s May,” Peter shrugged.
“That doesn’t answer the question!”
In his heart of hearts, Peter knew the answer was no. May was his Aunt; she always would be. But he did want to be adopted— but the person he wanted to adopt him hasn’t asked.
“Ask him,” MJ speaks up again.
“What?”
“Just ask Tony Stark to adopt you. He won’t say no.”
“He might do!”
“He won’t,” Ned shakes his head. “Trust me.”
Peter stews over their conversation all day, his head full of possibilities as Happy’s call rolls up to the curb. Unlike all the other times Peter has gotten in the car, he stays silent and pensive. He lets the thoughts jumble in his head until he’s shaken out of it by Happy.
“Kid? Kid? Peter what’s wrong?”
Peter finally makes eye contact with Happy. He forces a smile on his face. “What do you mean? Nothing’s wrong Happy!”
“Uh huh, you haven’t spoken one word to me.”
“Isn't that a good thing for you?”
“Sure it is. But that means something bad for you. What’s eating you kid?”
Peter wonders if he should keep his mouth closed. “Happy, do you think Tony wants me?”
Happy frowns into the mirror where Peter’s face is shown. “Of course he does, between you and me that man loves you so much he turns into a teddy bear.”
Peter shakes his head. “I know Tony loves me but does he want me? I’ve learnt that loving someone doesn’t mean you want them— May said she loves me but 6 months ago she didn’t want me. Do you think Tony wants me?”
“Kid, it’ll break his heart to see you go,” Happy is still frowning. “Where is this coming from?”
It’ll break his heart. Peter thought over those words as Happy parked the car, jumping out so quick he wasn’t sure if Happy had even turned off the engine. Peter raced through the corridors, yelling a hello to Steve and Sam as they watched TV before making his way down to Tony’s lab.
The music was blaring and the man seemed to be working intently on something. “TONY!” Peter yelled as the music died down and the man looked up.
“Oh uhh, hey Pete,” Tony looked rather awkwardly at the kid.
“Okay,” Peter took in a deep breathe. “Here’s the thing: i missed May, sure— how could i not?— but i’ve grown so much in the last 6 months and i really think this has helped shaped me and changed me in so many different ways and i’m not saying it hasn’t been hard but i wouldn’t say it’s been rewarding but i would say that things haven’t been horrible and i really see here as home— but of course i see May’s as home too i’m just so conflicted about everything and i—“
“Woah, woah!” Tony walks forward, placing his hands on Peter’s shoulders. “Breathe Peter, breathe. Form actual sentences and not one big word jarble. What’s up?”
“Tony do you want me?” Peter pushes out. “Because yesterday you said that you wouldn’t make a fuss and that made me think that you didn’t want me because you weren’t willing to fight for me. But Ned and MJ said that was stupid at lunch and that you never actually said that. And in the car, Happy said it would break your heart if i left. So, do you want me?”
“Peter?” Tony looked alarmed at the kid. “What? Kid, you know i love you.”
“But that doesn’t necessarily mean you WANT me,” he stressed. “May loves me but she didn’t want me—“
“Of course i want you,” Tony’s voice was low and serious in a way Peter had only heard several times before. “I never want you to leave Peter; you’re my kid and Happy’s right, i would be upset to see you go. But your happiness rivals all of that kiddo. If you want to move in with May then i will support you. I’ll just have to steal you each weekend.”
“I wanna stay here,” Peter admitted, tears welling up in his eyes. “I want to see May more— i do. But i’m scared things will never be the same between us and there will always be this unspoken fear that what happened will happen again. What if i get hurt on patrol and she freaks out again and i’m right back where i was 6 months ago?”
“Peter, you shouldn’t let fear dictate your life.”
“I’m happy here, Tony,” Peter lets a few tears slip down his cheeks. “I like the way the Avengers look out for me and the way we have fun. I like knowing i have people in every corner to count on. I love being with you and feeling like i have a—“ Peter paused, wondering if he should continue.
“Like you have a what Underoos?” Tony nudged.
“A Dad,” Peter whispers, adverting his eyes.
It feels like years before Tony replies. “I like having a son too.”
Peter looks up at Tony, feeling like everything was okay. Because it was. Tony was here and he loved him. He saw him as his son and he didn’t want him to go. Whereas Peter feared what May would do forever and always now, wondering if she would ever be able to accept who he was, Peter knew that Tony saw him for who he was and loved him because of it.
“Tony, will you adopt me?”
The man blinked for a second before a large smile overcame his features. He pressed a light kiss to Peter’s forehead. “I’d want nothing more Pete.”
As they hugged, Peter holding onto Tony like a lifeline and Tony running his fingers through Peter’s hair, Peter realised that he felt so extremely safe. There was something unspoken about Tony that promised he was there for Peter no matter what. Peter snuggled in closer to his Dad, relishing the thought.
Man, he loved his Dad.