Work Text:
"Pete? I wasn't expecting you today." Tony furrowed his eyebrows when he saw the teen walk into his lab.
"Yeah, I didn't have any homework so I thought I would stop by." Peter looked like a lost puppy as he stood in the entrance of Tony's lab, wringing his hands uneasily.
Tony let out a sigh, turning his chair to face Peter, almost rolling his eyes when he saw how anxious he looked. "Don't just stand there. Come sit." Tony decided he needed to help the kid along.
"Are-are you sure? I mean I didn't even call to see if you were busy. God—this was stupid. I'm sorry I'll go, Mr. Stark." Peter felt his throat go dry as he began to turn around, cringing as he thought about how stupid he was to go to Mr. Stark.
"Nuh-uh! No you don't! Come back here, you troublesome-spider." Tony powered down his many holograms and stood up from his chair.
Peter reluctantly, yet quickly complied to Tony's orders. He shuffled over to where Mr. Stark was pointing, in his office chair, and sat down.
Peter kept his gaze fixed firmly on the ground, letting out a hot breath of air every once in a while.
"How was school?" Tony was confused at the fact he had to prompt Peter to start talking to him.
"It was okay. I got an A on my physics quiz." Peter swiveled slightly in Mr. Stark's chair, arms crossed over his chest as he spoke quietly.
"That's great, Pete." Tony commented, watching the teen carefully. When Peter surprisingly didn't elaborate any further, Tony was officially concerned. "You feel okay?" He questioned.
"Yeah." He responded with a dismissive shrug.
Tony rolled his eyes at the stubborn behavior. "What's going on?" He stood in front of Peter, who had hardly moved a muscle since he sat down.
Peter began to shift uncomfortably under Tony's intimidating gaze. "Nothing, Mr. Stark, I just wanted to come over..." He trailed off.
"That's alright, Pete, I've got nothing important today." Tony shrugged, figuring he could deal with Pepper's anger at him for blowing off a board meeting later.
"R-really?" Peter looked up at Tony, a smile already taking over his previously anxious expression.
"Yes, don't question me. I was hoping you'd stop by soon. I have a few new designs I want you to look at. I know you mentioned the tensile strength in your webs needing upgrading." Tony couldn't hide the grin that came to his face as he patted Peter's shoulder firmly as he walked passed him.
"Here's a prototype I put together the other day," Tony tossed it at Peter, eyebrows furrowing when he almost didn't catch it. "Something wrong with your... tingle thing?" He asked.
"No. No! And don't call it that, Mr. Stark. Did May call you?" Peter stood from the chair, placing the web-shooter prototype on Tony's desk.
"Why would she call?" Tony began to pull up another blueprint.
"I-uh, no reason. It's just that she calls it that too." Peter scratched the back of his neck as he walked to stand near Tony to look at the design.
"Well, so does Happy. I prefer calling it your spidey-sense, but Happy told me it gets on your nerves, so I had to shift my language accordingly." Tony spoke with a smug grin as he watched Peter look through his latest suit design. His smile faltered when Peter didn't play along. "Alright, come on. Something's up. What is it?" Tony sighed.
"I already said; I just wanted to come over here." Peter shrugged, trying to look anywhere but in Tony's eyes. "Everything's normal."
"Yeah, you know what? You're absolutely correct. You seem completely normal, kid. I must be confusing you with another crime-fighting spider who never shuts his mouth." Tony scoffed.
"I'm just a little tired today." Peter shrugged once again, trying to look preoccupied with the screen he was looking at.
"Friday, close all of Pete's files for the moment." Tony commanded, and the screen went black within seconds. Tony shot Peter a firm look when the teen glared at him, causing Peter to quickly look away.
"No more spider-stuff until you tell me what's up." Tony crossed his arms.
"Come on, Mr. Stark! I've told you so many times, there's nothing!" Peter stressed, his voice getting more and more emotional as he spoke.
"Hey. I'm only asking why you don't seem like yourself." Tony reiterated, forcing himself to remain calm even though the kid was testing his patience. "Something happen at school?" He tried to coach the kid along.
"No... no. I just thought since May wouldn't be home and I didn't have any homework I could come over." Peter tried to dodge the question.
"Today's Friday. Isn't that movie night with May?" Tony furrowed his eyebrows and looked at the teen.
"Yeah, normally." Peter let out a sigh, annoyed that Tony could pick up on the smallest details.
"She's working?" Tony guessed, trying to keep his tone casual, even though he was almost certain he was finally getting somewhere.
"Yeah. She picked up an extra shift, it's no big deal." Peter almost cringed at the fact his voice gave out slightly as he spoke. He didn't want Tony to know he was actually very affected by how much May was gone recently.
"Kind of a bummer though, right?" Tony tested the waters, trying to see how emotional the teenager was. When Peter only shrugged, his gaze locked on his sneakers, Tony realized he needed a new approach.
He hummed at the response, picking up one of Peter's prototypes and gesturing for the kid to help him with a tilt of his head. Peter understood and complied to his command. "Hold that there." He instructed as he began to loosen part of the web shooter.
"When does her shift end?" Tony didn't glance at him, knowing it sometimes made Peter nervous when he did.
"Not until nine or ten." Peter also kept his focus on the web shooters in front of him. He was desperately attempting to keep his voice from cracking or letting out any sign he was upset.
Tony nodded slowly, finishing up the adjustment and moving onto another aspect. He was sure to keep Peter busy as the two worked in mostly silence. Tony was only able to get a few brief smiles out of the boy the entire time.
He glanced up at Peter every so often, seeing him halfheartedly complete the tasks Tony asked him to.
"Well, I think that was all I needed help on." Tony clapped, shooting Peter a grin.
"Oh. Uh, okay." Peter immediately stood up and walked toward where he placed his jacket.
"Wait a minute, Pete. I'm not giving you the boot here." Tony chuckled. Peter turned around quickly, a hopeful look in his eyes.
"Do you really want to go home to an empty house?" He questioned, hoping the kid would realize he was inviting him to stay longer. "How often has May had to work late?" He added, after Peter only shrugged to his previous question.
"Everyday this week." Peter couldn't help it and let out a small sniffle at the end of his sentence. His face immediately went red at the fact he was now crying in front of Ironman. He attempted to cover his face in utter embarrassment.
Tony let out a long sigh, somewhat relieved the teenager was finally opening up. As much as he was relieved, he was also worried about how to deal with the emotional kid in front of him. Lucky for him, Peter had more to say, which bought Tony more time to plan his course of action.
"I just miss her... It's weird being home alone all the time. But I can't tell her because that's stupid and insanely selfish." Once he started, it was like a dam was broken. "And I'm lucky to have her at all! I shouldn't complain about her having to work. I just would rather be able to spend more time with her I guess." He wiped his damp eyes and runny nose, annoyed at his emotions. He finally dared a glance up at Mr. Stark and was filled with anxiety at his unreadable expression.
"That's what all this is about? You're feeling guilty for wanting to spend time with your aunt?" Tony couldn't help but smile softly at the morals Peter possessed.
"I don't know why I'm even upset. It's not a big deal and here I am crying about it. I'm supposed to be a superhero!" Peter did not find any humor in Tony's response and was seemingly getting more worked up as he talked.
"Alright," Tony reluctantly realized his sarcasm was not going to cure anything. "Pete. Look at me." He instructed, his heart clenching when he saw how upset the kid's eyes looked. Peter dropped his gaze back to the floor, and Tony didn't have the heart to scold him for it.
"You shouldn't feel bad about wanting to spend time with your aunt. I have offered May countless times to let me help out finically, but she never accepts it. Maybe I can call the hospital and bribe them not to give her anymore shifts, hows that sound?" Tony was only partially joking on his offer, relieved when Peter laughed through a quiet sob.
"Now, as for the whole 'I'm a superhero so I can't be upset' argument, I can't even begin to tell you how wrong you are. Trust me when I say it's difficult, but vital to express your emotions. Pepper has drilled that into my head and you're next. You can't go around saving people when you feel like shit." Tony lectured, feeling more in his element when he could speak from his own experiences.
"I'm dead serious when I say you're welcome here whenever you need." He pointed at Peter, trying to catch eyes with him, but he refused to look up. "You understand?" He checked.
Peter nodded quickly his arms wrapped around himself, making him look smaller than usual. Tony couldn't stand watching the kid look so vulnerable anymore.
"Come here, kid." He opened his arms, rolling his eyes when Peter gawked up at him. "I don't bite." He laughed quietly, happy to see Peter start walking toward him immediately. "I can however summon a very powerful suit of armor with a single gesture." He bragged, watching as Peter stopped approaching him at those words. "But I won't." Tony smiled, gesturing for Peter to walk closer to him.
Peter closed the distance between them, eagerly accepting every bit of comfort Tony offered. He kept his hands wrapped tightly around his mentor and sniffled into his t-shirt.
"Damn, it's like niagara falls over here!" Tony exclaimed, tightening his grip around Pete.
"Mr. Stark!" Peter was highly embarrassed by the amount of crying he did over such a small thing.
"Joking, kid. Just joking." He backtracked with a snicker. "I don't mind." He said truthfully, rubbing Peter's back gently.
"Thanks, Mr. Stark." Peter murmured into his mentor's chest. He kept a firm grip around Tony, still trying to calm himself down.
"Don't sweat it, kiddo." Tony was surprised at how natural the hug they shared felt. He was only used to hugging Pepper. "The door's always open if you want some company, you know that?" He repeated, pulling back from the embrace and holding the teen's shoulders to grab his full attention.
"Th-thats nice." Peter smiled, slightly in awe at the fact Tony was inviting him whenever he wanted to come over. "Thank you." He added hastily again.
"You better come by more. Friday misses you. Isn't that right, Fri?" Tony questioned.
"Very much so, boss." Friday responded, causing both of them to laugh.
Tony nodded, ready to change the subject away from anything serious.
"Since May isn't going to be home until late, what do you say we have a little movie night of our own?" He suggested, hoping Peter couldn't sense his uncertainty.
"Are you for real Mr. Stark!?" Peter instantly lit up.
"Completely, Mr. Parker."
★★★★★★★★★★