Work Text:
The Stark’s guest bedroom smells like lavender fabric softener and pine trees as a warm burst of air floats in the room from the open window. Peter lets out a small sigh as he finishes putting his clothes away in his duffel bag that he packed for the long weekend up at the cabin. He zips up the bag before taking a seat on the edge of his bed as he tries to push away the sadness clawing away in his chest, thinking about how he’ll be leaving in less than an hour so he won’t be late for dinner with May.
But Peter doesn’t want to go home. He doesn’t want to leave Tony, Morgan, and Pepper. Whenever he’s at the cabin with them, Peter feels lighter and happier, more at peace, like a weight has been lifted off his shoulders. He’s surrounded by a peaceful silence compared to the hectic city back at home.
His thoughts are interrupted by a knock at the door and he looks up, only to find Tony standing in the doorframe. “Are you almost ready to head on out?” He asks.
Another wave of sadness flows through Peter at the question. “Yeah...” he mumbles.
Tony’s brows pull together in concern. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Peter says as he bows his head and looks down at his hands in his lap.
He feels the bed dip beside him as Tony sits down. “Something’s wrong,” he points out.
Peter raises an eyebrow at him. “And how do you know that?”
“Because I’m a dad. Dads always know when something’s wrong with their kids.” Tony says, offering him a small smirk.
A warmth blossoms in Peter’s chest amongst the dark sadness when he calls him “his kid,” which isn’t the first time Peter’s heard Tony call him that. But it does nothing to cheer him up.
“Pete?” Tony questions softly as he gently nudges Peter’s leg with his. “What’s going on? You know you can talk to me.”
Peter bites the inside of his cheek as he continues staring down at his hands. He wants to tell him the truth but he doesn’t want to sound like a little kid, desperate to stay with his father because he’s too afraid to be alone. In all honesty, Peter’s starting to feel a little desperate.
“Pete?” Tony repeats gently as he leans forward a little to look at his face.
“I-” Peter pauses for a moment as he closes his eyes and breathes a sigh out through his nose. “I don’t want to go home yet.” He admits as guilt presses against his chest. He doesn’t want to overstay his welcome or disappoint May—or worse, hurt her feelings.
“Why?” Tony asks in a soft voice.
“I don’t know...” Peter says guiltily as he shrugs, picking at a piece of lint on his sweatpants. He doesn’t want to go because that means that he’ll wake up from a nightmare alone, even though he has May but she doesn’t understand like Tony does. Tony’s been through the wringer more times than Peter has. No one knows the superhero life and the consequences that come with it better than Tony. Peter can’t explain the safe, protected feeling he feels whenever he’s around Tony. Peter feels his eyes and cheeks heat up as he swallows around the growing lump in his throat. “I just... I don’t want to leave you.” He whispers.
“Oh, Pete,” Tony says with a soft, sympathetic smile as he holds his arms out. “C’mere, kiddo.”
Peter’s face crumbles as he lets Tony wrap his arms around him, pressing his face against his chest as he lets out a pathetic-sounding sob. He doesn’t even know why he’s crying or why he’s acting like a child right now.
“I-I’m s-sorry,” Peter chokes out.
“It’s alright, Pete,” Tony soothes as he feels the man’s calloused hand rub soothing circles on his back through his sweatshirt.
Peter squeezes his eyes shut, feeling warm tears slide down his cheeks as he presses his nose into Tony’s collarbone, inhaling the familiar and calming scent of cologne and the cabin.
“Why don’t you want to go home?” Tony asks.
Peter sniffs wetly. “I-I don’t know. I just don’t want to go. I-I feel so alone,” he admits shakily.
“You have May.” Tony points out gently.
Peter shakes his head. “I-I know but i-its not the same,” he says as he’s cut off by another sob that makes its way up to his throat. “I-I just feel... safer here w-with you. A-And I k-know how mean that s-sounds a-and how much of a baby I am.”
“It’s not and you’re not a baby,” Tony says as he pulls away, only for a small ghost of a smirk to pull at his lips. “You’re a Spider-Baby.”
Peter weakly glares at him. “Tony—”
Tony laughs as he shakes his head. “I’m just kidding, Pete. You're not a baby for wanting to be with me. Heck, I hate being away from you too. If I had my way you’d never leave. I know exactly what you mean.” He says as he pulls Peter back into a hug. “Tell you what... how about I call May and ask if you can stay over for a few more days?”
Peter shakes his head against Tony’s chest. “Y-You don’t have to do that,” he weakly argues.
“I want to, Pete.”
“B-But what about school?”
“I’ll drive you.”
“A-Are you sure?” Peter asks hopefully.
“Of course I’m sure. And I can tell you that Morgan is going to be thrilled about having her big brother around a couple more days.” Tony adds. “And maybe... I’ll call you out tomorrow and we can have a nice, relaxing day around the house. That sound good to you?”
“Yeah,” Peter says with a small nod, hating how childish he’s being but not really caring at the same time.
When they pull away from each other, Tony offers Peter a small smile. “You could have told me this earlier, you know.” He says softly.
Peter lets out a sigh as he wipes at his eyes. “Sorry. I just didn’t want to bother you with it.”
“You can never bother me, kiddo,” Tony tells him before he lets out a sigh. “Now, how about we head downstairs and see what’s cooking for dinner and I’ll give May a call?”
Peter’s face falls at that. “She’s expecting me home for dinner though.”
“Happy’s with her, so we’ll be giving them a date night and some alone time,” Tony says as he wiggles his eyebrows.
“Eww, Tony!” Peter says, his face scrunching up in disgust, only to receive a laugh from Tony in response.