Chapter Text
“We’re so sorry Peter…..I’m sure May’s in a better place now, tell us if you need anything alright?”
Peter was sick of hearing those words, knowing the adults only said that for the sake of it and wanted nothing to do with the now orphaned 15-year-old. Heck, they were all so reluctant to give him their phone numbers, how on earth was he going to reach out for help if he needed them?
He was a smart kid after all, being able to see past their pitiful expressions.
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6 months since May passed,
But to Peter, he could still remember the smell of fresh blood and wet asphalt, memories of May’s last moments etched in his head, almost as though the accident happened just yesterday.
Reaching his hands into the backpack, Peter sneakily gave the medium-sized teddy bear a tight squeeze in an attempt to self soothe. Just a year ago, If someone told him that he would be bringing around a teddy bear ( given by one of May’s co-worker and being tossed to Peter because May didn’t want it) to school like a small child, he would have laughed in their face.
But now, he was practically inseparable from the stuffed toy, growing increasingly emotionally dependant on it. Hoping that it would somehow, fill the parental void that was left behind with May’s passing.
Peter was always a tactile kid, he loved getting hugged or having May to brush his curls with her hand.
Now that she was gone, he would often find himself rubbing the ears of Tuffy, feeling the soft fleece material against his fingers as he tries to calm himself down whenever he felt overwhelmed or when he missed Aunt May badly.
Peter made sure to be careful though, he did not need any more nicknames and snide remarks on top of the ones already given to him over the school years. Knowing that he would never hear the end of it if flash ever finds out, spreading the news to the whole class that Peter Parker, was a man child.
Some nights when he felt especially lonely, he wished he could hug Tuffy to bed, nuzzling it closely to his chest as he lulled into sleep. But he knew that wouldn’t happen for a long time, at least until he was out of the foster system.
Mr and Mrs Wilson were a fairly nice couple, taking him in graciously despite having 8 other kids in their group home, they provided him with shelter, made sure he was well-fed and even let him continue schooling in Midtown high.
Just that they were so caught up with their work and having to divide their attention to 9 kids, Peter never really got to receive the emotional support and love he needed so desperately to get through the difficult phase of mourning.
And with 8 other kids living with him, it also meant that he had absolutely no privacy. The bathroom was the only place he truly got to be alone and it had almost become a routine where he would hug Tuffy tightly to his chest, sobbing and finally drenching his face in ice-cold water before heading out, not wanting any of the kids or the couple to find out that he was crying.
Knowing that he could have ended up somewhere worse, Peter tried to make the best out of the situation and put as much effort as he could on his schoolwork, maintaining straight A’s, hanging out with Ned and occasionally bantering with MJ.
To most people, Peter seemed like a reserved but otherwise healthy kid, seemingly gotten over his aunt’s death. Even Ned failed to realize how much he was deprived of love, affection and how difficult it was for Peter to maintain his usual cheerful demeanour.
“Dude! you gotta sign up, they’d choose you for sure.”
Peter’s train of thoughts was interrupted with a firm smack on his back, Ned grinned at him while pointing to the stack of envelopes left at Mr Harrington’s table.
“Huh, what?” Peter gave a confused look, realizing that he had been zoning out throughout the lesson.
“It’s the Stark internship, they’re accepting applications from all the STEM schools around New York. All you have to do is fill up the application package and hand it up to Mr Harrington by Monday. It’s only for the summer break next year and there’s a selection process followed by an interview though, and only 3 students would be taken in.”
“I - I don’t know Ned, an internship just seems so daunting, besides, what would Mr Wilson think?”
“Come on Peter, you’re the smartest friend I know. Technically you are the only friend I have, unless um, MJ wants to be counted in but - you get what I mean right? It’s their loss if they don’t pick you”
Peter smiled at Ned’s rambling. Truthfully he did want the internship, after all, it was Stark industries, one of the richest and renowned company to exist. Even if it wasn’t a paid internship, this was probably the only chance for students like him to be allowed in their buildings.
If Peter happened to be one of the lucky 3s, he would be surrounded with all the brilliant minds, both qualified and wealthy for the rest of his summer break. While he was just a 15-year-old kid from queens, orphaned and under the mercy of the foster system.
“Oops, guess my hands slipped, pick that up.. loser.”
The envelope, filled with thick stacks of paper was dropped right on top of Peter’s head and landed on the floor.
“You know MJ, I might not be the smartest person around, but I see what you did there, just tell Peter already if you want him to sign up too. Or are you too shy because you have a secret crush on Pete -- OUCH” Ned snickered as he gave MJ a nudge on her arm only to be elbowed back.
“Finders keepers Peter, you picked that up so it’s yours now. I don’t want it anymore. And oh look, you even have a profile picture for your application form now.”
Peter’s phone notification went off, he tapped on the messaging app and a picture of him, wide-eyed and dorky appeared on the cracked, worn-out screen. Clearly taken seconds after she dropped the application package on him.
Before he could protest at MJ to delete the picture, she hurriedly scooted out from the classroom.
“Guess I could give it a try huh?” Peter shrugged with a small smile, he knew MJ always meant well.
Even after Aunt May’s passing, she never treated him differently, being her usual sarcastic and cynical self instead of throwing a pity party for Peter or treating him like glass.
That evening, Peter nervously told Mr Wilson about the internship, only to be pleasantly surprised by a reassuring smile with a pat on the shoulder, promising him that he'll sign the consent form after dinner.
"Here you go Peter, you're a smart kid, real bright too, I'm sure the folks at stark industries will love you. How’s school by the way? Everything alright?”
All of the other kids had already left the dining room, scattering to the backyard for some playtime before bath and bed. Being the oldest, Peter took the initiative to do the dishes when Mr Wilson called him out, handing him the consent form he promised earlier.
“Oh, um hi sir! s-sorry, I was kind of distracted. Thanks for the form, yeah, everything’s good, my grades are decent and my friends are nice too, we get along pretty well.”
“Decent? come on don’t be so modest! I know about your grades Peter, heard you topped your level for the last physics, chemistry and math test. You know, I wasn’t the smartest kid around and my school was nowhere near as prestigious as yours. Be proud of yourself, keep up the good work and don’t hesitate if you need anything.”
Peter meekly blushed at the compliment, a warm and fuzzy feeling spreading from his chest. He wasn’t quite sure what that was but he knew for sure that someone cared for him, bothering to remember about his grades, that was something to be happy about right?
He nodded softly thanking him one last time before Mr Wilson had to leave - apparently one of the kids got his legs stuck in the sewer while playing.
His past academic achievements, basic profile, reasons for application and parent's consent.
Stapling the necessary documents together, Peter slotted the papers into the envelope and sealed it shut. He didn't have a passport picture, so he printed out the photo MJ took earlier today, hoping that it would suffice, expecting the other students to do the same.
The following day, he handed up the package to Mr Harrington with Ned.
At this point, he hoped that he got in. Peter knew that May would be so proud of him if he did, recalling how she had brought him to a fancy restaurant to celebrate his acceptance to Midtown high. He wondered how it would have been like if she was here with him right now. Maybe she'd kiss him on his cheek, play with his curls or simply hug him, telling him that he was more than capable to be in the internship.
Once again, Peter unzipped his backpack and sneakily extended his arms to rub Tuffy’s ears
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Pepper glared at Tony, hands crossed over her chest, frowns plastered on her face clearly unhappy with the man sitting in front of her.
“I can tell that you aren’t happy with me, not like this was the first time but..what can I do for you today Miss potts?”
Tony smirked, reaching his arms up in an attempt to pat her shoulders.
“Seriously Tony? you think this is a joke? for Pete’s sake you graduated from MIT at the age of 15, is it that difficult for you to just read through the profiles of the students to shortlist them for the interviews?”
“Sorry what now? the last time I recalled, I hired a personal assistant like you to complete odd jobs like this for me. You know I’m a busy person pep, I don’t have time to look through photos after photos of bratty and hormonal teenagers and neither do I have time to be bothered about their measly achievements.”
“I already went through 300 profiles, Tony. Even narrowed it down to 10 applicants because I knew you wouldn’t bother otherwise! Can’t you just do me a favour and choose 5 students from these profiles?”
“You know I’m handing over my role as a CEO of stark industries to you in a week time Pepper, do you not agree that you should be the one making the final choice huh? since we’re already down to-- Hey! get back here, where do you think you’re going with my morning coffee Ms Potts”
Pepper rolled her eyes, knowing that the conversation would not go anywhere if she tried to talk things out with Tony. Yanking the cup of coffee away from him, she marched out of his room.
“You aren’t getting any coffee until you give me 5 applicants Tony, by 4 pm tonight, sharp. In case you forgot that we are supposed to notify the shortlisted student’s respective schools by tomorrow. Please just give them a chance, those kids are great, some even better than you.”
Tony grumbled as he accepted the stack of documents Pepper shoved to him.
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Anthony Edward Stark’s life was pretty much mundane for the most part, sure, he had all the money to buy the cars, expensive gadgets and even woman if he wanted to.
But no amount of lavish goods and ridiculously flashy parties could fill the void in his heart.
Things weren't going to get any better, especially when he was about to move to the Malibu penthouse, upon stepping down as a CEO of stark industries. He would be living all alone, doing most of his work at home and only occasionally visiting New York for press conferences or gala parties if needed.
Since young, an innate part of him always longed to care for someone.
Someone who would be emotionally dependant on him, be it for love or affection.
As he got older, those feelings seemed to get stronger instead of fading away. Wanting the person to depend on him for each and every need, even for the most basic of things. Just like a young child, unable to survive without their parents.
Lazily, Tony flipped through the profiles, none of the students seemed to impress him enough so far.
Until a single profile caught his eye.
Immediately, he tore the piece of paper from the stack, detaching it so he could get a closer look. It wasn't the perfect academic records the kid had, scoring straight A's for every subject no matter how minor it was.
But instead, it was the profile picture that seemed to grasp his attention.
The picture wasn’t the best of quality, slightly pixelated and clearly taken in a classroom setting with a phone. Unlike the others who had a professional photoshoot, with well-groomed hair and a suit.
It didn’t matter to Tony though, because the boy on the photo - Peter Parker was perfect.
Big brown doe eyes, matching his soft curly brown hair. Pale skin that accentuate his slightly flushed cheeks from the cold winter wind, accompanied by a slightly pursed lip. And what made him irresistibly cute was the Midtown high hoodie he wore, albeit too large for his small frame, forming sweater paws.
Tony had finally found that ‘someone’ he was missing in life, the one who would fill the void in his heart.
With that, he randomly plucked out 5 profiles from the stack, tossed the remaining into the trash and placed Peter’s profile into the drawer.
“FRIDAY, give me every information you can find on Peter Parker” In a single second, Peter’s whole life was flashed in front of Tony through multiple holographic screens.
The teen’s tragic situation made Tony fall in love with him even more.
The poor kid lost his parents at the tender age of 4, subsequently taken in by his aunt and uncle. Who had both died as well due to a car accident and a robbery respectively. It broke Tony’s heart to think that he had to be orphaned at 15, ending up in a group home without a proper parent.
He knew he had no time to waste, there was so much to do to if he was going to welcome Peter to his new home.
In 2 weeks time, his little boy would be spoilt rotten, showered with all the love and attention he deserved and given a proper childhood for the second time by his daddy. Tony was going to make sure of that