Chapter Text
The first thing Peter noticed was that he couldn’t see Queens, even though he was looking in the right direction. He couldn’t even see Queensboro Bridge.
He knew, logically, that they were straight ahead, somewhere, but Manhattan seemed to stretch on forever from where he was standing, buildings nestled together in a chaotic patchwork of old and new, high and low, glass and concrete and brownstone, Central Park a sliver of green among the many hues of grey, silver and red. The streets cut valleys into the chaos, pathways for cars and trucks and bikes and people to get wherever they needed to go. They seemed small from his vantage point standing at the panoramic windows of an empty room on the sixtieth floor.
“This bedroom has a walk-in closet, its own bathroom and its own little terrace. It’s smaller than the master bedroom but the view is stunning, especially when the sun sets. I think this would be the ideal room for a teenager or young adult.” The realtor, Lucy, smiled at Peter then and he answered with a quick smile of his own before turning away slowly to walk towards the back of the room, where the walk-in closet and the bathroom were tucked away behind a frosted glass wall.
Tony was perusing the brochure Lucy’s assistant Dana had handed them during the elevator ride up here, one hand tucked into the pocket of his suit pants. He had pushed his sunglasses up into his dark hair, an AC/DC shirt clashing fashionably with the suit jacket he wore. “When would we be able to move in?”
“Immediately, if you wish. However, some of the amenities are not open for business before late August. Currently, only the fitness center and the children’s activity space are available.” She turned to leave the bedroom and Tony followed her, their voices drifting away along with the click-clacking of her high heels on the wooden floors.
Peter didn’t follow them. Instead, he approached the door leading out onto the terrace and opened it carefully, stepping through.
It would still be a while before the sun would set, the warmth it had brought would probably linger for a while longer on the dark wood paneling of the terrace. As the rest of the penthouse, the area was immaculately clean but empty, awaiting the occupants to leave traces of life. Peter turned his face towards the sun and breathed in. Summer had started off with great weather this year and the school holidays were just around the corner. As was the Mini-Stark Expo which Peter had helped organize over the last couple of months.
As was the anniversary of May’s death.
“Mr. Stark.”
Sometimes, it was hard to believe that a year had passed already since that night. Other times, it felt like so much more time had gone by.
“Mr. Stark.”
Sometimes, Peter felt like he shouldn’t be as happy as he was now. Other times, he was glad he could finally laugh and joke without feeling guilty, that he could think of May and Ben without tears pressing against the corners of his eyes.
He tried to remember how long it had taken him to work through his parents’ deaths and he came up empty. He only knew that sleeping on his own had been hard at first. He’d run into Ben and May’s bedroom countless times in the first few months, hysterical after a nightmare, scared that May and Ben, too, had died. He’d slept in their bed a lot, cradled in May’s arms with Ben’s chest solid against his back and the triceratops plushy he’d carried around everywhere serving as a pillow.
“Mr. Stark.” A hand touched his shoulder and he jumped, turning to Dana, who gave an embarrassed smile. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”
He shook the memories off, clearing his throat. “It’s fine,” he replied. “Just … not used to it yet.”
She gestured towards the door. “Lucy is about to show the gallery. Would you like to join?”
The gallery, as it turned out, was taking up the part of the penthouse not dedicated to the bedrooms, and housed the kitchen, dining area and living room in an open-plan layout which was surrounded by panoramic windows, sunlight warming the wooden floor and the white walls. There was another terrace connected to the gallery, which was easily as big as the apartment Peter had shared with May.
It was easy to see that Tony loved the space. Peter would have been surprised if that hadn’t been the case. Tony loved modern apartments with open-plan layouts. The less walls, the better. He looked at Peter once they’d crossed the length of the gallery, putting an arm around his shoulders with a wide grin lighting up his dark eyes. “What do you think?”
“It’s …” Peter looked around, tucking his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “It’s great.” He wasn’t even lying. The penthouse was beautiful. It was smaller than the one they currently shared in Avengers Tower, but it had everything they needed, and they could make the space truly their own.
It was a fresh start. Not being able to see Queens shouldn’t matter.
“How much?” Tony asked Lucy and she handed him a piece of paper.
But, strangely, it mattered a lot.
***
By the time Tony pulled out of the garage and into traffic, rush hour was in full swing.
Tony sighed deeply as they crawled forwards to cross an intersection, coming to a stand-still soon after. He took the sunglasses out of his hair and folded them into his breast pocket. “You better text Pepper to tell her we might be late.”
Peter pulled his backpack up onto his lap and got his phone out, noting that he had received several messages from Ned during the viewing. He opened his chat with Pepper first, though, typing out a quick message.
Sorry, stuck in traffic. :(
Then he switched to his chat with Ned.
Dude, bad news about Friday.
Abraham’s parents are having friends over, so no movie night at his place.
Also not at MJ’s place.
Or Liz’s and Cindy’s.
We already had it at my place last time, so I thought, maybe we could meet up at yours?
That would be AWESOME, dude.
An answer from Pepper appeared at the top of the display.
I’m already at the restaurant. I told him you wouldn’t be able to make it in time coming from Tribeca.
Peter smiled. “Pepper says she told you so.”
Tony huffed a breath, fiddling with his tie. “She isn’t always right,” he muttered.
“Is that the answer you want me to send?”
Tony gave him an exasperated look. Peter chuckled and sent Pepper three laughing emojis. The light in front of them turned red. Tony sped up just enough not to have to stop.
“I saw that,” Peter said.
“Yes, and you will not do this when you drive. Do as I say, not as I do.” He stopped at the next red light, his eyes finding Peter’s. “You okay? You seemed a bit distracted during the tour.”
Peter considered mentioning the penthouse’s distance to Queens, but even in his own head, it sounded ridiculous. So he just shrugged. “I’m fine.”
Tony huffed a breath. “I hate it when you do that.”
Peter brushed his thumb over the display of his phone, staring straight ahead. The distance to Queens didn’t matter, he repeated to himself several times. Tony didn’t need to know.
“Is it about the announcement?”
Now, Peter turned his head to look at Tony. ‘Is it?’ he wondered. Actually, it was possible. He sighed, his shoulders slumping. “Yeah, I guess.”
Tony’s expression softened. “You know, you don’t have to do a thing. It’s just going to be posted on the Stark Industries website. No press conference, no interviews-”
“I know.” Peter gave a tight smile. “I’m just …” He released a breath. “Dana called me ‘Mr. Stark’ and I didn’t even realize she was talking to me.”
Peter could tell that Tony tried to keep his expression neutral, but a small wince flickered across his features. “I’m sorry, that was my bad. I should have made it clear-”
“No, it’s fine.” He smiled reassuringly and looked out the windshield again. “Really. She made an assumption and she wasn’t … it’s not unreasonable to assume I’d go by your name. Won’t be the last time this happens.”
Tony’s hand went to the nape of Peter’s neck, squeezing gently. “Mr. Parker-Stark,” he said, his voice so fond and warm that Peter turned towards him, offering a smile of his own at the sight of Tony’s happy grin.
The adoption had gone through a week ago. Tony and Peter had not exactly been keeping it a secret since then. Their small extended family was already aware, so were Peter’s friends and the school administration. However, the official announcement from Stark Industries would only be made the next day on the company’s website, with Tony and Pepper expecting the public interest to peak again as a result.
While Peter was happy about the adoption, he dreaded the next few days just a bit. He didn’t like to be at the center of attention. It wasn’t just the paparazzi, either. All kinds of people eager to snap a picture of him doing the most mundane of things were just as bad, and even worse were those who thought it was okay to invade his personal space. It bothered him because he didn’t think he’d ever done anything which warranted the attention, which caused him to avoid going out alone, feeling more confident when he was with Tony or Pepper, who handled those kinds of situation with professional calm, or his friends, who were always ready to shield him when necessary. Especially MJ, who turned out to be a fantastic bodyguard.
Remembering Ned’s messages, Peter cleared his throat. “Tony, about that movie night on Friday?”
The light turned green and Tony pulled his hand back, crossing the intersection just to end up at another red light. “Yes?”
“We can’t do it at Abraham’s place anymore. And everyone else kinda had their turn already, so Ned’s asking whether we could have it … at our place?”
Tony looked at him for a second before turning his attention back to the street. “At the penthouse?”
“Our place, yes,” Peter replied. “My room, to be exact.”
Tony sped up slowly when the light changed, turning into a street with less traffic. “Would that mean I finally get to meet your friends?”
“You know my friends.”
“I know Ned.”
Coming to think of it, that was true. Except for Ned, none of Peter’s friends had officially met Tony yet. That was definitely going to be interesting. After all, despite being currently not on active duty, Tony was still Iron Man. A certified Avenger. Peter knew at least one person in his group of friends who would consider this to be a big deal. Abraham had been an Iron Man fan for years. “Is that a yes?”
“You don’t even have to ask, kid,” Tony answered.
“Cool, thanks.” Peter tapped out a thumbs-up emoji and sent it to Ned when Tony pulled up in front of the restaurant.
“You know what we should do?” he said as he turned off the engine and checked himself in the rearview mirror, fiddling with his hair. “We should order from that catering company that always does the Stark Industries events. They make great appetizers.”
Peter stared at him in disbelief. “We are not ordering luxury appetizers for a movie night.”
They got out of the car, Peter leaving the backpack behind, but pocketing his phone and stretching to snag a dark denim blazer from the backseat, which he shrugged on over the dress shirt he was wearing. Tony handed the valet his car keys and draped an arm around Peter’s shoulders as he led him to the door. “Pizza it is,” he answered, frowning thoughtfully. “Now, I just need to decide on an outfit.”
Peter laughed. “You know they’re coming to see me, right?”
“I want to make a good impression,” Tony answered. “Be the cool dad, you know?”
“Never gonna happen,” Peter answered, yelping indignantly when Tony messed up his hair in retaliation.
***
“It seems like a fair offer,” Pepper said, perusing the brochure for the penthouse.
“That’s what I thought,” Tony replied. With a defeated sigh, he gave up on his dessert. The chocolate cake was one of the best he’d ever had but he just couldn’t finish it. Not after the huge plate of pasta he’d had as a main course. He leaned back in his chair, pushing the cake over to Peter, who had finished his piece a while ago and had been eyeing Tony’s portion for the last ten minutes.
Now he grinned at him, already digging into the cake. “Thank you.”
Tony rolled his eyes at Pepper, who was watching them with an amused smile from across the table. “The perks of having a black hole for a stomach.”
Gentle laughter drifted towards them from a nearby table, the low hum of conversations and the smell of Italian food lingering in the air. The restaurant had been Pepper’s choice. It belonged to an acquaintance of hers, so getting a table on short notice to celebrate the adoption hadn’t been an issue. The restaurant was high-end, but still casual enough to ensure Peter, who always went strangely tense in noble restaurants, felt comfortable.
Pepper looked stunning in the green silk blouse and black pencil skirt she’d been wearing during the board meeting this morning, but she’d opened her ponytail by now, her hair falling onto her shoulders and gleaming golden in the low lighting. Tony’s heart clenched and, once again, he regretted not having fought harder to keep her by his side.
Noticing his look, Pepper smiled faintly and handed the brochure back to him. “There doesn’t seem to be much space for a workshop, though.” She used her fork to steal some chocolate frosting from Peter’s plate.
“There are two guest rooms,” Tony answered. “We can transform the bigger one.”
Pepper frowned, obviously skeptical.
“We thought it through,” Tony said, glancing at Peter. “We don’t need a big workshop in our home. A small one will do. Minimum equipment, small parts, one Iron Man suit. We have the Avengers Facility for bigger stuff.”
She still didn’t seem convinced.
Tony had to admit that she had a point. She’d been by his side for years and Tony had always put a high priority on having at least five suits at his disposal to tinker. He gave a half-smile and draped one arm over the back of Peter’s chair. “You said to use the opportunity to reprioritize. I did.” He tilted his head towards Peter, who had finished the cake and leaned back in the chair.
Pepper nodded. “So, is it going to be this penthouse or are you looking at others?”
“We’ve seen five. I liked this one the best. I don’t need to see more.”
“Peter?” Pepper asked.
“It’s great,” Peter said, fiddling with his napkin. “Nice view.” He had the same guarded expression on his face that he always wore when he didn’t want to rock the boat. The same expression he’d had in the car. Tony didn’t like it when Peter made that face. It usually meant that he was going along with something he thought Tony wanted, that he thought his own opinion didn’t matter for some reason, and that just wouldn’t do. It didn’t happen often anymore, but Tony was nothing if not determined to get the instances it still occurred down to zero.
Pepper seemed to notice as well, glancing at Tony questioningly. He shook his head. Trying to get Peter to open up now wouldn’t work. He needed to find the right moment for it.
The waiter stopped by their table, giving a friendly smile. “Was everything to your satisfaction?”
“Everything was great,” Tony said. “If we could get the check, please?”
“Of course, sir.”
“And another piece of chocolate cake to take home?” He poked Peter’s shoulder, who nodded. “Make it humongous.”
***
The announcement of the adoption was published early the next morning. A few tabloid social media accounts picked up on it immediately and the news spread quickly. By the time Peter was picked up from school by Tony, a few more serious newspapers were writing about the adoption as well, focusing on the question of what it would mean for Stark Industries’ future as a company instead of how good of a parent Tony could possibly be. Peter and Tony spent the way home laughing about some of the weirder articles tabloids had posted, each more ridiculous than the next. It was easy to forget how unnecessarily nervous Peter had been about all this.
At least until he was standing in the Stark Industries press room just half an hour later, practicing his keynote speech for the Mini-Stark Expo in front of an empty room.
“I would like to welcome all of you to the first Mini-Stark Expo, an event centered around science and technology specifically organized with children and teenagers in mind. I am Peter Parker-Stark.” Peter paused, as indicated by the teleprompter.
The rows of empty seats didn’t give a reaction to his words, but Danielle, standing just next to the teleprompter, gave Peter a nod to continue.
He took a deep breath, blinking into the afternoon sun falling through the frosted glass windows, and pretended that a crowd was gathered to listen to him. “Stark Industries has brought together the best companies, universities and institutions focusing on science and technology to give you an opportunity to explore and learn.”
The door at the back of the room opened and Pepper’s assistant Alex stepped in, taking a seat in the last row to watch. Danielle turned around to him briefly, her green eyes narrowed in disapproval, but she didn’t indicate that Peter should stop, so he continued.
“Stark Industries firmly believes in the generations to come. We are convinced that today’s youth can change the world, regardless of your background and origin. Everyone has the potential to become better …” He faltered as the next words registered and frowned, looking at Danielle questioningly.
“Go on,” she said.
“That part’s new.”
“Yes,” she answered. “Go on.”
Peter cleared his throat, flexing his fingers to relax.
“Don’t do that,” Danielle said immediately. “It makes you look nervous.”
Trying to keep his hands still, Peter folded them in front of his body loosely, as he’d seen Tony do during official speeches. “Everyone has the potential to become better and rise above their origin to be …” He released a breath and shook his head. “I’m sorry.”
Danielle looked up from where she’d been making a note on her clipboard and brushed a strand of dark hair behind her ear. “What’s the issue?”
“I just … I don’t feel comfortable with this.”
A hint of impatience slipped into Danielle’s voice. “Why?”
When Peter caught Alex’s eyes, he was looking at him with a frown edged into his face. He became nervous, knowing that Alex had invested a lot of time into writing the speech. He didn’t want to offend him. “It’s just … the wording,” Peter answered, turning his attention back to Danielle. “It implies that we think less of some people or think that their origin or background is something that should be left behind if it doesn’t fit in.”
Danielle stared at him. “It’s just a speech, Peter.”
“Maybe, but I don’t-”
“Just read the words, Peter,” Danielle said, her voice taking on the edge he heard whenever she spoke to Alex. “You don’t have to think about them.”
“But …” Peter swallowed, hesitating for a moment before he said, “I want to think about them. I want to believe in what I say. And I-I … just … don’t.”
His voice faltered under Danielle’s gaze. She didn’t look angry or disapproving or even annoyed. She just looked completely neutral, her flawless face set into the kind of expression she wore when talking to the press in the name of the company. She was the head of the PR department and Peter knew that Pepper valued her work a lot, but he couldn’t claim to like her very much. And he had the feeling that this was mutual.
Alex cleared his throat, then, pulling Danielle’s attention towards himself. “Maybe my original draft was better-”
“The original draft was uninspired,” she interrupted him, causing Alex to press his lips together in annoyance, his boyish face settling into a frown.
In an effort to give Alex the chance to broaden his professional horizon, Pepper had insisted that he should write Peter’s speech for the expo. Peter knew that Danielle wasn’t happy about that, had in fact questioned the decision but hadn’t been able to change Pepper’s mind.
Danielle took a breath and gave Peter a practiced smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Listen, sweetheart, all you have to do is stand on the stage, hold the speech and represent. Let me and Alex worry about the wording.” She consulted her clipboard, a frown settling on her face. “On that note, don’t make it so obvious that you are reading the speech off a screen. You should ask Mr. Stark to give you some pointers, he’s an excellent speaker. And don’t introduce yourself as Parker-Stark. We decided to go with just Stark and that’s what the teleprompter said.”
Peter frowned, a knot settling in his stomach. “I know, but … that’s not my name.”
“I know that. It’s shorter, though, and it would create a stronger connection to the company if you dropped the ‘Parker’.” She smiled sharply. “Just for official appearances, of course.”
Peter ducked his head, unsure what to say.
“I suggest,” Danielle continued, “that you read the new version of the speech until the expo and we do a test run on the real stage just before the opening?”
Peter nodded, crossing his arms. “Sure.”
“Great. We’re done here.” With that, she descended the stage and grabbed her purse and laptop off one of the chairs before leaving.
When the door to the room clicked shut, Peter closed his eyes and sighed deeply, cursing himself for not being more assertive. He didn’t even remember that Alex was still in the room until he opened his eyes and saw him come closer slowly.
Alex gave a tentative smile. “I … I told her that the wording wouldn’t go over well. I could … I could try and rework the speech again and talk to her, if you want?”
Peter shrugged, jumping off the stage. “I don’t think she’s interested in changing anything.” He gave a small smile. “I mean, it’s just a speech, right? All I need to do is represent.” The word caused a heavy weight to settle in his stomach and he wasn’t quite sure why. Maybe because he’d thought that he would be doing more than just that. The expo’s planning team had been more receptive to his suggestions regarding the program and the set-up of the expo. Peter had enjoyed working with them, had looked forward to the event. Now, it started to feel like a chore.
Alex bit his lip and shrugged. “I get where you’re coming from, though. I mean, working for Miss Potts is …” He took a deep breath, his voice lowering as if he was about to share a secret. “Nobody in my family is even close to having that kind of a job or … pay. It’s … I’m the one getting my family out of debt right now, just because I … got lucky. Knowing that … it’s a reason for me to appreciate my job and I wouldn’t be able to do that if I forgot where I come from.”
Peter stared at him. He hadn’t talked much to Alex up until now, mainly knew him as Pepper’s assistant with a crush on Tony. He knew that Pepper thought he had a lot of potential, though. Now he started to see why. “Thank you.”
Alex smiled widely, his green eyes lighting up along with his face. “Of course. So … I’ll revise it and talk to Danielle.” His phone beeped and he pulled it from his pocket, grimacing at the message on the display. “Miss Potts needs me upstairs.” His eyes found Peter’s and he reached out to shake his hand tentatively. “It was nice talking to you, Peter.”
With that, he left hurriedly, the door swinging shut behind him.
***
Peter curled his legs tighter around the highchair and took the weight of the seat by leaning on his elbows for a second, pulling the chair as close as possible to the workbench. His frown deepened and he positioned the lamp closer to the magnifying glass. Squinting at the cabling of his web-shooter, he reattached the wire of the trigger mechanism carefully as the news droned on in the background. He was almost done, a triumphant grin already spreading on his face, when the web-shooter suddenly sparked. Peter yelped, rearing back a bit. He pushed the safety glasses higher up on his nose and frowned at the device.
“Did you break it?” Tony asked.
Peter frowned at him, though Tony wouldn’t be able to see it. He was situated at a different workbench in front of several screens with his back to Peter, not paying attention to the coding running itself ragged in multiple windows as he rapidly typed notes about Rhodey’s leg braces. The lights in the penthouse’s workshop were dimmed, making their little corner at the back an isolated island of brightness on which they could let their imaginations run wild. This was one of the ways they were very similar to each other. Working together had always come naturally to them and it had provided the familiarity they’d needed while learning to live together. Now, it was a pastime after dinner when they weren’t in the mood to watch TV and still the most comfortable they got around each other.
“No, of course not,” Peter answered Tony’s question, trying to ignore the stab of indignation Tony’s words had caused. He knew he had only been kidding. He looked at the wire, sighing when he saw the blackened edges on the isolation. “I … might have fried it a little bit, though.”
Heaving a sigh, Tony got up from his chair, stretching his back muscles while he joined Peter at his workbench to look at the web-shooter through the magnifier. “Let’s see,” he said, picking up a meter.
Peter got distracted by the TV screen mounted on the wall, which showed a reporter walking along the shore of the East River, Queensboro Bridge rising behind him. His face was serious and sad at the same time as he said, “The disturbing find was made by a couple of tourists taking a walk by the shore. Police has not yet identified the body, but we know that the deceased was a man in his late forties or early fifties and that his death was very likely not caused by an accident or suicide. Already, theories are making rounds on social media connecting four other deaths in the last three weeks to this newest one. All bodies were found on the shore of East River, one near Hallets Point, two by Socrates Sculpture Park and now two by Gibbs Point.”
Peter swallowed, a shudder running down his spine. All these locations were in Queens.
“You’re good,” Tony said, and Peter pulled his attention back to the web-shooter. He watched Tony finish connecting the wire before stepping back and gesturing at the device.
Peter reached for a screwdriver to close the casing carefully. In the corner of his eyes, he could see that the news had moved on to another story and the tension in his shoulders loosened a bit.
“You know,” Tony said, “at some point in time, you’ll have to admit that you’re done improving that thing.”
Peter looked up at him quizzically.
“You keep tweaking it.”
Peter frowned. “You keep tweaking your suits.”
“No,” Tony answered, leaning against the workbench with crossed arms. “I build new suits whenever I feel the need to tweak.”
Peter fastened the last screw. “And that’s different?”
“I always have a workable suit at my disposal. You don’t.”
Peter froze, looking up at him.
Tony’s expression was serious, a furrow between his brows indicating that he was worried. “You’re stalling.”
“No, I’m not.” The answer was instinctive, a flare-up of the old habit to ‘deny, deny, deny’ when something was wrong.
Tony sighed and gave him a look with raised eyebrows, seeing right through him.
Peter swallowed and ducked his head.
Tony’s voice softened when he said, “I think you’re ready. You want to go out. You wouldn’t work on the suit if you didn’t.”
Peter kept his eyes on the web-shooter, his fingers tight around the screwdriver.
“What’s the matter?” Tony asked and shifted a bit closer.
Peter took a deep breath to gather his courage, to try and get his point across without his usual tendency to fumble his words. When he felt ready, he looked at Tony. “If we buy the penthouse in Tribeca, I’ll need forty minutes to get to Queens using the webs.”
Tony frowned in confusion, his dark eyes narrowing. “Okay?”
“That’s almost ninety minutes lost just on travel time.”
There was a pause, heavy and tense, then Tony replied, “You know, I heard that Manhattan has neighborhoods, too. I know Hell’s Kitchen is taken but maybe you throw your hat in for Greenwich Village?”
He smiled, his words clearly meant as a joke, but Peter just felt irritation flame up.
“Tony-”
“Bowery?”
Peter shook his head.
“Two Bridges?”
Peter huffed a breath and snapped, “Spider-Man’s from Queens!”
Tony raised his eyebrows in surprise at his harsh tone and straightened. He looked at Peter for a long moment, as if he wasn’t sure what to do next, then he asked, “Something I said?”
Peter already felt bad for snapping at him and ducked his head, crossing his arms. “I …” He closed his eyes, unsure what to say … how to say it. Everything he came up with sounded petulant and pathetic. He looked up at Tony finally and gave a helpless shrug. “It just … that can’t change.”
Tony hummed thoughtfully and then reached out to move Peter’s safety glasses, pushing them up into Peter’s hair.
Peter shook his head, feeling silly already. “I’m sorry, it’s just … I don’t know, weird day.”
“The weird part started when exactly?”
Peter shrugged.
Tony gave a sigh. “You know, Pepper says that Alex is going to revise the speech. She was confused because she thought that he was done with it, but it seems that there was some kind of difference of opinion on the content between you and Danielle during today’s rehearsal.”
Peter nodded. “Yeah.”
“Do I need to get involved?”
Peter hesitated, but finally shook his head. “No.”
Tony shifted, his hand touching Peter’s shoulder. “Okay. But you know-”
“I can change my mind,” Peter interrupted him, looking at him with a small smile. “Yeah, I know.”
Tony crossed his arms. “So you have an issue with the apartment?”
“No, the apartment’s great. It’s the location.”
“Why didn’t you just say that after the viewing?”
Peter shrugged. “It sounded stupid.”
Tony sighed. “So … I won’t buy it?”
Peter swallowed. “You really like it, though, don’t you?”
“Yes,” Tony answered, his brows pulling together. “But we both should like it, Peter. It’s going to be our space. I’ll have Lucy look for something else. Just … be honest with me from now on, okay?”
Peter pressed his lips together. “Okay. Sorry.” He didn’t look at Tony, feeling strangely ashamed.
Tony’s hand took his wrist in a gentle grip and pulled it closer. “How is the watch doing?”
Peter cleared his throat, recognizing the change of topic as what it was: an escape. “It’s good.”
“Not too tight?” Tony asked.
“It’s perfect.”
At first glance, the watch he wore looked just like that: a normal watch. However, it did not just contain a panic button and tracker, it was also a minimized web-shooter. The cartridge it contained wasn’t as long lasting as the ones in the suit’s web-shooters – not by far – but it would work in a pinch to his advantage in a fight. Tony had started to develop it after the attack on their penthouse half a year ago, still guilt-ridden about the fact that Peter had managed to fight his way to his suit’s web-shooters to defend himself … and they’d failed him. They’d solved the insulation problem in the meantime, making sure that the web-fluid wouldn’t dry out in the cartridges if not used, but Tony had still felt the need to make sure that Peter was able to defend himself no matter what.
“What the hell …?” Tony’s surprised words caught Peter’s attention and when he saw that Tony was focused on the TV, he turned to watch as well.
A news anchor was speaking into the camera, a picture of Mayor Gavin Lewin hovering just over her shoulder, accompanied by the words: Mayor Fraud? Registration Act Banned.
Peter’s breath caught as he listened to the woman speak.
“This is most surprising to the citizens who elected him to be mayor for his central promise to implement the Registration Act in New York, which he did a couple of months ago. Today, Gavin Lewin announced that the registration of enhanced humans is on hold with immediate effect, citing no concrete reasons for his decision.”
“Did you know about that?” Peter asked.
“No,” Tony said. “I had no idea.”
“What do you think the reason is?” Peter asked.
“I don’t know,” Tony answered. He looked worried. “But for a mayor who successfully implemented a registration for enhanced humans in his city to turn around a couple of months later and say it’s on hold?” He looked at Peter. “It can’t be good.”