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Peter stared at himself in the mirror, biting his lip as he retied his tie for the millionth time. For some reason it kept ending up wonky and having a wonky tie just simply wouldn’t do. Today had to be perfect and if Peter’s tie was wonky then it might be a bad omen for the day and Peter’s life would crumple around him. He groaned as his finished result was wonky again.
“If you keep doing that, i’m pretty sure the material is going to get worn away,” Tony speaks up from where he’s leaning on Peter’s door. He’s watching the teenager with a look of worry despite the smirk on his lips.
Peter looks at Tony with desperation, hoping his eyes could convey just how much the wonkiness of his tie was working him up. “It’s always ends up wonky!”
“It looked fine the last few times,” Tony shrugged but stepped forward anyway so he was standing in front of Peter. He reached out and grabbed the material and began to tie it himself. “You don’t have to be so nervous kiddo, today is going to be fine.”
Peter stared up at Tony through thick eyelashes, his hands twitching at his sides now he had no tie to obsess over. “You really think so?”
“You don’t?” Tony shot back, not meeting Peter’s eyes as he focused on the tie in his hands. When he was done, he stepped to the side to show the teenager the finished result. Peter nodded with satisfaction, not finding anything wrong with it. “See? No wonkiness now.”
“I’m just scared about if this goes wrong,” Peter bites his lip, looking down at the floor. His stomach was in knots, constricting and pulling as the butterflies turned into daggers. He felt like his whole life was depending on this.
“Nothing is going to go wrong,” Tony placed a hand on Peter’s shoulder, squeezing gently. “The CPS lady is going to come here, inspect the house and then sign off on the guardianship. She might ask a few questions and then she’ll go.”
“What if the house doesn’t pass?”
“It will, i personally made sure that the house ticked every box on the list. I made sure every house i owned did.”
“What if she asks something bad?”
“You tell the truth, we have nothing to hide here. Ignoring secret identities that is.”
“What if. . .”
“Pete, listen to me,” Tony sighed, squeezing Peter’s shoulder tighter so the boy would look up at him. From the way the teens’ chest had begun to raise and fall in heavy motions, Tony knew that Peter wasn’t too far away from a complete panic attack. The last thing they needed was a distraught Peter just before the CPS lady came.
“Everything is going to go smoothly,” he promised, hoping his calm smile would ease Peter’s nervousness. Of course, Tony was slightly terrified himself but if he showed any unease or weakness then Peter would soak it up and his own panic would worsen.
“What if she says i can’t live with you anymore?” Peter’s voice is so small and quiet that Tony almost misses it. The look of pure devastation is written on the kid’s face and Tony would do anything to wipe it off. Ever since May’s untimely death, Peter had clung to Tony— he wasn’t fully dependent on the man but the amount of emotional support he’d needed had doubled and Tony, despite his reservations to anything about feelings, had been more than happy to be a shoulder for the kid to cry on. Tony was sure that if Peter was taken away by the state now, it would break the last of his spirit.
Which was why Tony was never going to let that happen. The home inspection by this CPS lady was going to go perfectly and Tony knew the only way he was going to allow Peter to be taken away was if he died (even then, there were steps put into place for the kid to end up with either Rhodey or Pepper because Tony would rather walk through fire and climb Everest than leave Peter in the foster system).
“I’m never going to let them take you away,” the words slipped easily out of Tony’s mouth because they rang with the truth. He’d had a complicated past, sure, and his parental tactics could be rather sketchy but Tony loved this kid and he swore to always be there.
“Boss, Mrs Hattin is on her way up.” FRIDAY called out, breaking the moment between the two.
“Alright kid, show time,” Tony tried to lighten the mood but FRIDAY’s words had sent a shiver down Peter’s spine and all the blood had rushed out of his face. The kid looked like a walking zombie.
As long as he wasn’t in the midst of a breakdown, Tony would take the zombie look.
When the elevator doors opened and Mrs Hattin walked into the spacious living floor that Tony, Pepper (when she wasn’t off doing work around the globe) and Peter occupied, both men were standing before her. Their hands were clasped and a nervous smile had spread across both their faces.
“Mrs Hattin, welcome,” Tony took a small step forwards and held out his hand. From a young age he’d been drilled with social skills. Hosting and impressing people was almost second nature to him by now. “Thank you for taking the time out of your day to come here.”
Mrs Hattin was a tall woman with black hair that was cut into a bob, she had square glasses resting on her nose and thin lips that pressed into a line as she took in Tony. “This inspection is mandatory,” she stated simply as she shook Tony’s hand, a look of being unimpressed splotching her features. The elder man swallowed down his nervousness: obviously, charm wasn’t going to win this battle.
“I’m, uh, Peter,” the kid’s smile looked more like a grimace as he held out his own hand.
Mrs Hattin graced Peter with a smile of her own, looking more pleased at his introduction. “It’s very nice to meet you Peter.”
Tony cleared his throat, hoping the sooner they started, the sooner it would end. “Let’s give you a tour.” They walked from room to room, Mrs Hattin scribbling things down on her paper as they went and ticking boxes. At one point, Tony had snuck a look at her sheet and all he could see were ticks— that was a good sign right?
All in all, he thought it was going pretty well. Mrs Hattin wasn’t much of a speaker, in fact all she would reply with was a ‘hmm’ or ‘huh’ every now and then. But despite her obvious dislike of Tony, it was clear that the house was more than suitable for a child like Peter to live in.
“And do all your houses have similar features?” Mrs Hattin asked near the end of the tour.
“Yes,” Tony nodded, standing beside Peter and wrapping his arm around the kid’s shoulder. Peter was less freaked out now than he had been before the woman arrived but Tony could still feel his nervous energy.
“And Peter, you like living here?”
Peter cleared his throat. “Yes, very much so.” Mrs Hattin hummed in response.
“What is your view of Mr Stark’s parenting?”
“He’s very good,” Peter admitted. Another hum.
“And the transportation to Peter’s school?”
“My driver takes him to and from school each day,” Tony tries to keep the edge out of his voice despite the sound of the woman’s scratching pen almost driving him up the wall. “On the odd day that a meeting finishes early, i pick the kid up myself.”
“And you are present each meal time?”
“Everyday, yes.”
“You don’t have to travel a lot?” Mrs Hattin looked up from her sheet with a small frown.
“Nope, i cut my travel time down significantly when Peter moved in.”
“Well i think that concludes this,” she speaks with a matter-of-fact voice, devoid of any emotion.
“Does that mean i’m legally allowed to stay here now?” Peter’s voice is full of hope.
Mrs Hattin makes a noise. “Nothing is being signed off today.”
“Why not?” Tony frowned, hating how rigid Peter became next to him. “Surely we must have passed the home inspection with flying colours?”
“It isn’t your house Mr Stark,” Mrs Hattin sounded bored as she spoke. “It’s more a matter of . . . character.”
“You don’t like me,” the words were so blunt that they couldn’t have even cut the tension in the room.
“My opinion on you isn’t being questioned here.”
“Then why aren’t i being granted guardianship?”
“Mr Stark,” the woman sighed, taking off her glasses to rub at the top of her nose for a second. “I’m going to be brutally honest here. The state is worried about your ability to parent a child, given your history of substance abuse. Your life has been very public— not for your own fault of course— and due to that, every mistake has been very public as well. CPS takes that into account.”
“So my previous alcoholism— which i overcame by the way— is potentially jeopardising my chances of taking in Peter?” Tony wanted to balk at the fact. He was ready to go down to his lab that instant and create some time travel device so he could stop his younger self from screwing up Peter’s life. If at 21 he’d known what problems would be caused from his years of drinking, he never would’ve had one sip of the desired substance.
“The state has reason to be concerned.”
“How?” Tony tried not to flip out; if he yelled at this woman now, Peter would be dragged away before he could even tell her to stop.
“You have a fully stocked bar in your living room, Mr Stark!” Mrs Hattin pointed to the corner where amber and clear liquids lay stocked with different shaped glasses and juices.
“I don’t excessively drink!” Tony tried to reason with her. “I don’t see CPS taking away children just because their parents have a stocked cupboard of booze!”
“You have a history of abuse,” she said it like fact. Peter was starting to shake now, no doubt the fear of being taken away over past events that neither he or Tony could change, was making him panic.
“The alcohol is a problem,” Tony nodded, deciding to take a different approach. “I understand that. However, i can’t change my past as i’m sure you’re aware.” He walked away from Peter’s side and towards the bar. “I can prove to you that it isn’t a problem anymore though.”
Both Mrs Hattin and Peter watched with wide eyes as Tony grabbed a crystal bottle filled with something strong and amber, twisting off the cap and holding it over the sink. The liquid poured out of the bottle, splashing in the sink with ferocity as Tony shook it all out. When it was all gone, he reached for the next bottle and did the same.
In under five minutes, every drop of alcohol had been poured away. Thousands of dollars down the drain and Tony knew each one was worth it.
Mrs Hattin looked shocked, shaking her head with slight confusion. “You can always buy more Mr Stark, this proves nothing—“
“FRIDAY, dear?” Tony called out to the ceiling.
“Yes Boss,” the AI spoke back with something akin to pride.
“Cancel any and all alcohol shipments for the future. I want all of my credit cards to be shut down if they attempt to buy any of the stuff. Use Code 3765 so it can’t be overridden.”
The AI took a second to respond. “Confirmed Boss, alcohol is now blacklisted for the unforeseeable future.”
“There you go,” Tony nodded to the shocked woman as she looked from the ceiling back to him. “Cold turkey; no alcohol will be able to be brought or stocked in the Tower.”
“Mr Stark—“
“I can’t change my unhealthy coping tactics from the past. I can’t change or hide my mistakes. I’ve screwed up a million times and i’m sure you have a whole cabinet full of my very public blunders. I just want you to know that i’m not going to let the kid fall down the rabbit hole i did. I won’t let him screw him up so badly and i’m gonna be on his ass till the end of time if he ever does. This isn’t something that i’m taking lightly. Peter means a lot to me and i hope that, if anything, this just proves that to you.”
Mrs Hattin makes a face for a few seconds, staring Tony down like she was still on the fence about the decision.
“You are happy here?” She turns and asks Peter, the kid’s wide eyes going from watching Tony in awe to nodding widely at her.
“Yes— please don’t take me away.”
The woman sighs, acting as if this was physically difficult for her. She leans down and quickly signs her name on something, placing it on the nearest table with care. “Very well, the state of New York permits Mr Stark legal guardianship of Peter Parker. Congratulations.”
Mrs Hattin begins to walk away, heading the way she’d arrived. “Oh and Mr Stark, we will be watching,” she says with warning before disappearing into the elevator.
“Wouldn’t expect anything less,” he sighs, rolling his eyes at the woman’s stiffness.
“You did it Tony!” Peter beams, pure happiness radiating off of him. He rushes forward and wraps his arms around Tony in a vice-like grip. The elder man just smiles, very used to the kid’s tight hugs by now.
“Of course kiddo, i made a promise. They couldn’t have taken you, no matter how hard they tried.” He leans down to press a light kiss to the crown of Peter’s head and sighs.
“I’m sorry you had to throw all your alcohol away for me,” Peter whispers into Tony’s chest, burying his face in deeper to the man’s fabric.
“Peter, trust me: if it ever came down to you or alcohol, i would choose you. It isn’t even a question.”
“Still,” Peter sighs with contentment. Tony couldn’t see his face but he was sure the kid was smiling. “It must be pretty hard to never be able to drink anymore.”
Despite curbing his alcoholism years ago, Tony still loved to have the occasional drink. Drinking a glass of whiskey or scotch was one of his favourite past times and he knew that it was going to be a struggle to not even be allowed one sip. His late night glasses of something strong as he worked on tech was over now. A glass of wine at dinner was no longer on the cards (Pepper might struggle more with that though) and a friendly pint with Rhodey was something of the past.
“Losing you would have been harder,” he whispers, arms tightening around Peter’s frame. It wasn’t even a lie. Giving up alcohol fully was going to sting but if it meant that Peter lived under his roof, in his care, then Tony couldn’t even complain.
After all, he’d promised.