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Tony could hear Peter’s heavy footsteps coming down the hall, loud enough to wake him from his sleep. The door to their bedroom swung open, smacking loudly on the wall, and he braced himself when Peter started chanting, “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!”
Steve groaned beside him in bed, pulling the comforter over his head as Peter climbed up on their mattress. Tony let out a loud grunt when their son all but jumped on his chest, the kid’s bony knees digging into his ribs. “Peter, Christ, what the –”
“Daddy, Papa, wake up, it’s Christmas!” he shouted excitedly, shaking Tony by the shoulders.
Tony grumbled, still not opening his eyes, “Pete, it’s way too early for Christmas.”
“That doesn’t even make sense,” he pouted. “It’s twenty-five, it’s Christma – stop, stoooop, Daddy!” Peter shrieked in delight when Tony grabbed him in a tight bear hug, pulling him down into his chest and proceeding to pepper his chubby cheeks with kisses. His squeals of laughter continued even as Tony turned on his side, depositing the six-year-old in between him and his husband.
Steve poked his head out from under the blankets, blinking slowly as his sleep-weary eyes looked from Tony to Peter. “Christmas can wait, Peter, it’s barely five in the morning.”
Their son flopped his limbs over their bodies, taking up as much space as possible. “But the sun’s awake, so I’m awake,” he cried out dramatically. “And it’s Christmas!”
Tony mumbled, “Should’ve never let you watch Frozen,” at the same time that Steve suggested, “It’s still going to be Christmas in a few hours, so why don’t you get some more sleep?”
“But, Papa, I’m not even tired.”
Steve reached a hand up and placed it over Peter’s face, chuckling quietly under his breath. He started swiping his eyelids closed, trying to lull his son to rest. “Just close your eyes a minute,” he said gently, “see what happens.”
Reluctantly, Peter kept his eyes shut, settling down in his spot sandwiched between both of his dads. In almost no time, Tony noticed his breathing level out as he finally fell back asleep.
“You’re a freaking wizard,” Tony whispered in awe, reaching an arm over Peter in order to hold Steve’s hand.
There was a smile in Steve’s voice when he replied, “I know.”
Tony’s holidays used to be miserable for a multitude of reasons. His traditions had been to drink, sleep, repeat for as long as he could remember, but that all changed when Steve came into his life and redefined his meaning of ‘love’ and ‘home.' Tony’s traditions turned into voluntarily attending mass with Steve (the only time, apart from Easter Sunday, that he was ever convinced to step foot in a church), followed by an afternoon of giving gifts to the kids at local orphanages.
This time a year ago, Peter called St. Agnes’ Orphanage home. The husband duo had come with suitcases full of toys and holiday sweaters, along with a fully catered Christmas dinner. Enjoying the kids’ laughter rebounding from the walls had been the highlight of their day, but there was something about little Peter – fiercely independent and so kind-hearted – that had stolen their hearts when he helped to pass out the toys to all the other kids before accepting one for himself. The idea of adoption had never been on their minds, but it didn’t take a lot of convincing from Steve for Tony to get on board.
This was their first Christmas together as a real family, so Tony understood perfectly why Peter was already bouncing off the walls excited. After having a large breakfast, Peter had immediately run off to the decorated tree in the living room and, to their amusement, carefully unwrapped each and every gift he’d received.
Tony found his husband and son in his bedroom, later on, both intensely focused on setting up the new superhero radio alarm that they bought Peter.
“…Papa, I want it on my table.”
“What? You’d wake up easier if you got out of bed. Don’t you want it on your dresser?”
“Over there? But I’m lazy!”
Their simultaneous bout of laughter caused a broad grin to appear on Tony’s face. He leaned against the doorframe, watching the two of them with a feeling of unconditional affection filling his chest.
Yeah. Yeah, he was home.
