Actions

Work Header

Rating:
Archive Warnings:
Category:
Fandoms:
Relationship:
Characters:
Additional Tags:
Language:
English
Stats:
Published:
2021-02-13
Updated:
2021-06-25
Words:
55,182
Chapters:
10/16
Comments:
57
Kudos:
155
Bookmarks:
36
Hits:
5,931

STARKER, by Peter B. Parker

Summary:

After Peter’s identity has been compromised, he runs to the only place he can think of, as memory-filled it may be. He may be alone, but the loneliness was something he’d worked on becoming accustomed to. And it was something he could fix, given the right technology.

Lucky for him, that tech fit right in the palm of his hand.

Chapter 1: Fix-It

Summary:

warnings/tags: Peter is 17, set directly after FFH, canon death mention, canon divergence, inappropriate use of Stark tech

Notes:

A/N: SO excited to finally share this with everyone!! It started as a WandaVision-fueled concept and turned into a whole ass fic. We’re absolutely obsessed and we hope you guys love it as much as we’re loving writing it!!

The plan is to update weekly on Saturdays.

<3 bloo and bri

Chapter Text

Peter’s eyes were wide as he crouched on top of the lamp post and stared at the screen, stunned. This couldn’t be happening. Not here, not now. 

It had to have been an illusion. It wasn’t real. Right? 

His brain was racing, thoughts moving too quickly to keep up with what was going on. 

His name was said. His real name. The name ‘Peter Parker’ didn’t just belong to a nobody anymore. 

It belonged to Spider-Man. 

Which meant it belonged to the public. The public who blindly believed that he was a murderer. 

His body moved before he could think about what he was doing, swinging over the crowds that stared at him in shock. He ignored the sound of MJ calling his name from below, desperate to get away. And it would be better for her if she wasn’t associated with him. She’d be safe if people didn’t know. 

People yelled, their voices coupled with the sounds of the city pushing him towards overstimulation. They were angry, throwing things in an attempt to knock him down. But nothing got high enough. He stayed well above everyone, breathing heavily. He felt like he was going to pass out.

His eyes flitted around, glancing at all the buildings around him, all the possible routes, without really focusing on any of them. Where was he going? He couldn’t go home; there was no way he could face May. It was guaranteed that she’d seen the clip already and he didn’t want her to be super worried about him. He couldn’t do that to her. Not when things had finally started looking up for her, not when she finally seemed truly happy again.

Ned’s house wasn’t an option either. His best friend’s parents had a shaky opinion of Spider-Man last time he’d heard and he didn’t want his entire friendship to fall apart there. 

He definitely couldn’t involve Michelle in this. They had pretty much moved on from their ill-fated attempt at romance that ended when she couldn’t deal with the nightmares he still had, but he wasn’t over it enough for that to be a viable option. 

His brain screamed one name but his heart ached over the mere thought. He could only imagine one way for this to be okay, for him to ever feel truly okay again. It wasn’t even a possibility anymore and he knew it. But that didn’t make the pain any less excruciating.

No matter how much he wanted it to happen, Tony couldn’t save him from this. 

The reality tugged at his heart and stole the breath from his lungs. He had to pause on top of a building, perched on the ledge so he could easily take off again if he needed to. 

It had been almost nine months since the man had died. Since he’d saved everyone else and sacrificed himself. But it still hurt Peter like the wound was fresh.

He knew that the move had to be made. Someone had to do it. 

But god, he wished he had been the one to take the fall. There wasn’t a day that went by that he didn’t regret not getting the gauntlet from Mr. Stark before he snapped. 

Maybe his motives were purely selfish. Because any time he considered the idea, it wasn’t for the good of everyone else. 

He just didn’t like living in a world without Tony Stark.

Peter heard someone opening the door that led to the rooftop and he bolted again, not needing to be caught. But he still needed to figure out his destination. 

Then it clicked. A real possibility. Even though he’d have to do more than swing to get there. 

The compound upstate. 

It was almost completely in ruins when he’d last seen it, destroyed by Thanos and his army. And it wasn’t likely it was too much better since the person funding it….

Well, he couldn’t be in charge of the upkeep anymore. Peter didn’t even like thinking about that part of it. 

But he’d be able to hide there for a while, at least. Completely unbothered. There weren’t too many people that knew about the exact location or how to get there. So he’d be safe while everything cooled down. 

He could use some time alone anyways. 

In order to get there, he’d need to drive. But he didn’t exactly have access to a car. And it was highly unlikely he’d be able to get an Uber while everyone thought he was a murderer. 

There was one person he knew he could trust. Although Peter wasn’t sure he wanted to pull him into everything. 

But he really did need a ride. He had to get out of the city. There was no other option.

“Karen? Can you call Happy for me?” 

“Of course, Peter.”

There was a dialing noise for a few seconds before the call picked up. 

“Peter? Where are you?” Happy was as harsh as ever as soon as he picked up. 

Peter swallowed down the lump in his throat. “I need a favor. Please, I need a ride to get out of town. I can’t deal with all of this. Please.” His voice cracked pitifully on the last word. 

A moment of silence before a heavy sigh crackled through the speakers in his mask, the sharp sound making him wince. “May wants you to come home. She’s kind of freaking out here, she just saw the news.”

Peter chewed his lip, his eyes dropping to the crowds in the street below. They were all watching him, phones trained on his every move. The feeling of their eyes on him made his skin crawl. “I can’t. Tell her I’m sorry, but I can’t go home. Not right now. Not yet.” 

Happy didn’t say anything for a minute, but Peter could hear May’s frantic plea in the background. He felt horrible. But he couldn’t go back. Nearly everyone in the whole city was against him. He couldn’t deal with that. And he didn’t want May to have to figure everything out for him. 

Finally the other man spoke again. “I can’t help you. It’s not that I don’t understand, it’s the principle. I’m not helping you run away.”

“I’m not-“

“You are. It doesn’t matter the circumstance. You’re running away. And I’m not going to be a part of it. Just come home, Peter,” Happy told him, his voice gentler then the young man had ever heard it. 

“Karen, end call.” In a brief moment of anger, Peter hung up. He knew Happy and May were right. But he just couldn’t go home. He was already sick of being leered at and the broadcast had just gone live. It would only get worse. 

And he still didn’t have a ride. 

A heavy sigh left him, the sound accurately conveying his sheer exhaustion. 

The directions to the compound were something he knew well, he’d probably be able to instruct someone there in his sleep. That wasn’t the issue. It was just so far and without a ride it would take forever. 

Maybe a run would do him good. A very, very long run. 

***

He’d made an extremely brief stop before leaving the city, buying a set of civilian clothes (even though that didn’t matter, where he was going), a small backpack to hold everything, and enough food for approximately two weeks. It wasn’t the most nutritious stuff, but it was something he could survive on until he felt safe enough to go back home.

After that, it took a few hours for him to finally reach the compound site, but at least he hadn’t been spotted. Most of his escape had been through woods, so despite the fact that he was now an extremely recognizable face, no one saw him. Or tried to come after him, at least. 

The sun had set, only the barest bit of orange still hanging above the horizon as he walked up to the damaged building. At least it wasn’t quite as bad as he’d remembered. 

It was completely destroyed in some places, while others were just crumbling. It seemed like someone had tried to fix bits and pieces, but eventually just gave up. No longer was it the beautiful campus that Tony created. But it would do for what he needed. 

Peter headed to one of the more intact areas, breathing heavily as he finally was able to relax. No more running to try and get to his destination as fast as possible. He was there and he could finally calm down. 

No one else was within miles of the place. He was safe. 

But it was so lonely. That was par for the course, though, he supposed. He’d been feeling lonely for a while now, despite the best attempts of those around him.

He decided to settle down in one of the old training rooms. It was probably one of only spaces still mostly together. The roof hadn’t been displaced at all, the walls only had the slightest bit of charring. The space was huge, but a lot of it was taken up by pieces of furniture and equipment. At least it didn’t feel extremely empty. 

He sat on the ground, eyes slipping shut as he leaned his head against the wall. It was almost nice to be able to just sit and not be worried about being caught. 

Almost. 

The silence screamed at him, amplifying his anxious thoughts and nearly suffocating him. 

Having someone to talk to would have been nice. But who was he supposed to talk to? He still felt bad about hanging up on Happy, so he wasn’t a choice and neither was May. Ned would probably make things worse, despite just wanting to help, so he couldn’t do that either. Thinking about MJ just made him feel guilty, so she was off limits too. 

No, if he was honest with himself, there was only one person he really wanted to talk to. 

The thought took him by surprise all over again, grief clenching around his heart like a vice grip. 

Tony would know what to do. He’d be able to easily get Peter out of the insane situation, fixing everything all up again and making it all right. He’d gotten himself out of plenty of messes, why would this be different? 

For just a moment, Peter smiled to himself as he imagined how Mr. Stark would have handled everything. None of it would have felt so grave. There would have been a joke or two made before he worked his magic and made Peter safe again. It would have been over and forgotten about before dinner. 

Then reality sunk in again, as it always did. 

Tony wasn’t there to help. He couldn’t be. Wouldn’t be ever again.

Peter didn’t like thinking about the fact that he was gone, but if he didn’t tell himself that it was true, that it had really happened, then he’d get hope again and fall apart. He didn’t have the luxury of falling apart when everything was already such a mess. 

As a distraction, he began sorting through the backpack he’d gotten, taking out every item and looking it over. Then he got to the front pocket and remembered the last thing he had tucked inside. 

Since getting them back, Peter didn’t go anywhere without the EDITH glasses. He’d made the mistake of giving them to someone else before, a mistake he was clearly going to keep paying for. He couldn’t let anyone else get a hold of them again. 

He slowly pulled them out, holding onto them for a moment and looking at them. His last gift from Tony. An extremely powerful gift that probably should have been given to someone else. But they weren’t. They were his, for better or worse. 

Their full capabilities hadn’t really been something he’d thought about. He didn’t know much of anything about them, really. He knew they had an AI that had absolutely no chill and could control drones, but that was about it. 

Peter hadn’t considered what the drones could actually do. The projections that Beck created had been intense and so real, it was hard to believe that he held the power to such a thing in his hands. 

If entire beings and monsters could be created, what else could they do? 

A sudden thought appeared, prodding at the grieving part of his brain. What were the limits of the projections? How much could they create? 

How real could the illusions get? 

Letting himself fantasize about possibilities was dangerous and he knew it. But just messing around with the technology wouldn’t be so bad, right? He was just going to familiarize himself with it some more. See what it was capable of. 

For the night, however, he needed to sleep. It had been an exhausting day and his eyelids were heavy. The floor wasn’t the most comfortable place ever, but it would do for the first night. 

He was asleep within minutes of laying down, dreams of bringing Tony back comforting him. Fantasy was dangerous, no matter how he tried to excuse it. 

But maybe it didn’t have to stay just a fantasy. 

***

Peter slowly slid the glasses on, breathing shakily. His stomach was churning anxiously. He was still reeling from yesterday’s events and what they meant for him. 

But at least now he had an idea, something to focus on, to keep him from getting trapped in a downward spiral.

“Hello, Peter,” EDITH greeted, voice soothing as always. 

“Hey, um-“ he raked a hand through his hair. What was he doing? He didn’t have a plan. He had no idea what to ask, or how to ask it without sounding crazy. 

EDITH, as intuitive as they came, seemed to sense his pause. “What do you need help with today, Peter?”

He opened his mouth, then closed it again. Swallowed down the lump in his throat. “So...you know how Be- how Mysterio used the drones?” It was probably awful phrasing given everything that had happened. But it was his only frame of reference for the tech’s use first-hand. “Can I do that? The...the pictures and all. Projections.”

“Yes, Peter. You have access to each of those systems. Would you like to call them here?” 

He sucked in a harsh breath. That was something. Maybe… “I...yeah. Please.” He knew the vast majority of the drones had been destroyed in the battle on the bridge. But he was sure that, in true Tony Stark fashion, there were more out there somewhere. Mr. Stark was nothing if not prepared. 

Peter knew that the drones could create projections, illusions, elaborate scenes that were impossible to tell from reality. But he didn’t just want to see . He wanted to feel, too. 

“EDITH? Can you run me through the programming you run on? Basics, advanced, everything in between.” He certainly had the time to go over it all. 

“Of course, Peter.”

He had all the time in the world to figure things out, as far as he was concerned. And once he understood how the tech worked, he could bring his questionable plan to life. Piece of cake. 

***

As requested, EDITH filled him in on everything. Her own coding and controls, as well as the tech she was based on, BARF (the name never failed to force a hint of a smile to his lips). He had a pretty good understanding of how it worked, especially after watching a video of the presentation Tony gave at MIT. 

BARF allowed the wearer of the glasses to access their hippocampus and project their memories. Though Tony always maintained that the tech was intended to be therapeutic and assist in healing from past traumatic events, Beck had obviously allowed for the projection of whatever the wearer desired.   

In this case, if it worked correctly, whatever Peter desired.

Since he wanted to be able to actually feel the illusion, he’d have to alter the programming to interact with other parts of his brain. Namely the parietal lobe, which was responsible for tactile sensory information. 

Shouldn’t be too hard.

***

Peter slipped the glasses on again. “Hi, EDITH,” he started, biting his lip. Was he really going to do this?

“Hello, Peter. What can I help you with?”

“Run program: STARKER.” He’d slipped some of his own programming into her code in order to do what he wanted. No turning back now. He closed his eyes and prayed to whoever was listening that it worked. 

It had to work. 

He thought of the only place he wanted to be right now. The place where he’d always felt at home.

When he opened his eyes again, he watched as pixels began to overtake the room, going from the ground up as everything fell into place around him. In a passing thought, he noted that it was similar to watching the smooth ooze of the nanobots that made up his Iron Spider suit. Then suddenly he wasn’t in a bare, badly destroyed training room. He was in Tony’s penthouse at the tower. 

And he wasn’t the only one. The sight of his own illusion startled him, left him feeling disoriented. Illusion-Peter blinked at him blankly since he wasn’t thinking of anything in particular for him to do. It was...unsettling, looking at himself. Could he-

Closing his eyes again, Peter swallowed. He thought of his illusion, seeing things from his point of view- 

When he opened his eyes again, he could no longer see himself. Much better. Now he was still able to see, feel, and interact with everything in the illusion without having to watch it play out like a movie, the way Tony had in that video. It was just like real life.

He looked at his surroundings again. 

The window-wall in front of him looked out over the city, and the sun was shining brightly. To his left was a bar, and the elevator was to the right, sandwiched between two staircases, one of which went up and the other down. Peter’s eyes were wide as he slowly turned around, trying to take it all in. The amount of detail was incredible. He hadn’t realized how much of this place he remembered. The little conversation pit was there, complete with the semi-circle couch and the fireplace he’d seen in a photo spread years earlier. Everything screamed Tony, from the decor to the coffee and whiskey scented air. 

But despite the astonishing realism, it still felt so empty. The space felt wrong. Incomplete.

There was definitely something missing. Or someone. 

Peter chewed his lip, closing his eyes as he focused. Nervous energy was churning in his stomach. “Come on, EDITH,” he mumbled. His hands clenched into fists at his sides. This was it, the make it or break it moment. “Do your thing.” 

Everything was silent for a moment and Peter was worried that it hadn’t worked. His heart skipped a beat, thudding painfully in his chest. Maybe all the work he had put in meant nothing since it hadn’t originally been part of the program. 

But slowly the pixels started again, building a figure up seemingly out of nowhere until it formed a full person. 

The only person he wanted to see right now.

Tony blinked, a bit disoriented before he glanced over and saw Peter. He shot his signature cocky half-smile towards the young man. “Hey, kid. What did I miss?”

Peter let out a choked sound, a mix between a sob and a borderline-hysterical laugh. “Tony,” he rasped. 

And suddenly everything felt okay again.

Chapter 2: Friends to Lovers & First Time

Summary:

warnings: Peter is 17, first time, VERY nff

Notes:

A/N: ok we may have gotten a little...carried away with this chapter. but writing this fic really is so much fun and we’re excited to hear what you guys think!

- bloo and bri

Chapter Text

Tony was back. And it almost felt like he’d never been gone at all. 

Peter was beyond grateful that his plan had worked. Sure, it might've been a bit desperate and hair-brained, even for him, but he was pretty sure that the end justified the means.

He had spent the past nine months in a sort of fog, going through the motions because that's what he was supposed to do. It was what was expected of him. 

He knew that he had never properly grieved Tony, not really. He hadn't been able to handle it. And now he didn't have to. 

Peter felt like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. He hadn't felt this happy in a long time. Having Tony back was...indescribable. 

The older man had always felt like home. The two of them were able to connect on so many levels. They both understood the pressures of being a hero, of having such great responsibility. Both knew what it felt like to suffer great losses. There were hours spent in the lab, poring over suit designs and updates, their intellectual and innovative capacities always meshing seamlessly, never clashing. They got each other, plain and simple. 

But then he wavered between being content with his and Tony’s comfortable mentor/mentee relationship and doing what he really wanted to do: push things along so that he and Tony would finally be together, as two people that loved each other. Because he knew that deep down, Tony did love him, had always loved him in some capacity.

Peter had done a lot of thinking in the months after- Well, after. He’d always cared for Tony, and everyone knew about his crush and the hero-worship could be seen from the moon, but it wasn’t until the man was gone that he’d realized just how much he had truly come to love him. It had eaten away at his insides, the knowledge that he’d found the person he was meant to be with and then immediately lost him. 

But Tony was back now. It was surreal.

And to be completely honest, Peter hadn’t even expected it to work, this whole thing; but he really shouldn’t have been surprised. Tony was a certified genius, of course EDITH was capable of creating such a complex illusion. And the teen thanked the universe that he was smart enough to understand the mechanics enough to alter them to fit his needs. 

He thought back to Happy’s words on the quinjet in the Netherlands. He had said that Tony only ended up doing...what he did...because he knew that Peter would be here. 

And here Peter was, doing...this. 

Thankfully, this Tony had no reason to question the situation or his behavior. So, because he’d made it this far, and because he was so fucking sick of having everything good taken away from him, Peter decided to run with it. 

For starters, in order to set the right tone, he decided that he wasn’t going to ever say the words “Mr. Stark” ever again. If he wanted to convince Tony that they were lovers, he needed to act like it himself. (And the title, though it was said with affection, always brought him back to feeling numb on that dusty planet, his arms wrapped around Tony’s neck before they disintegrated into nothing. Before he disintegrated into nothing.) 

That also meant there was no need to hold himself back when it came to physical touch and affection. Tony had always been rather touchy-feely with him, and Peter now had the opportunity to initiate the contact himself. No over-thinking, no more being worried his advances would be met with rejection.

Tony’s voice startled him, pulling him out of his thoughts. "What'cha thinkin’ about, kid? Lost you for a minute there." The man was leaning against the counter of the bar, looking relaxed as ever, glass of scotch in hand. An easy smile curved his lips upwards and the shimmer in his eye was one Peter had seen a million times before.

The young man took a breath and looked down at his bare feet on the soft carpet of the living room, steeling himself where he sat on the couch. "Us." He cut his eyes upwards, making eye contact with the billionaire.

Tony simply raised a questioning eyebrow in response and Peter felt his heart lurch in his chest at the familiarity of that expression. 

Before he could talk himself out of it, Peter decided to be brave and pushed himself up off the plush sofa. "I want there to be an us," he clarified, taking the two small stairs in stride and then making his way towards the older man. "I want us to be...together. I love you so much, Tony. And I- I think you love me, too." He stopped walking once he was about a foot away, biting his bottom lip. His hands were clasped in front of him. 

“Say something,” was his soft mumble when all Tony did was cock his head to the side slightly, eyes searching his face for something. Peter felt his face get hot after a moment and he suddenly felt completely foolish. God, was this not even realistic in an illusion created by his own brain-

“Hey,” Tony said, gently. “Look at me.” He sat his glass down and took a step away from the bar and into the boy’s personal space. “Why do you look so panicked?” One of his hands moved to cup Peter’s face, thumb caressing his cheekbone. “It’s just me.” His voice was soft and warm, and that combined with the fact that he was touching Peter made the young man let out a quiet whimper. 

“There’s no such thing as ‘just you’, Tony,” Peter replied, his own hand coming up to clutch at Tony’s wrist. It was warm under his fingertips. “You’re everything. You always have been.” 

Tony tilted his head down a bit, forcing Peter to tilt his up to maintain their eye contact. “And you’ve always been everything to me . You’ve gotta know that, kid. Pete. Tell me you know that.” When Peter just continued to blink up at him owlishly, he chuckled lightly. “I invented time travel for you, baby. I couldn’t handle living in a world without you in it.” His voice had trailed off to barely a whisper by the time he finished. 

There was something deep and warm in Tony’s eyes. Pride, adoration, vulnerability. And it made Peter feel like he could do absolutely anything.

He knew he was rushing things but- He was in charge here, he really could do whatever he wanted. So he opened his mouth again.

“Take me to bed, Tony,” Peter whispered, breath ghosting across against the older man’s lips. God, they hadn’t even kissed yet and here he was begging to sleep with Tony.

Whose eyes were searching his face again, but Peter still didn’t know for what, exactly. “Pete...Are you sure you-”

He cut the other off, the words coming out without his permission. “I’ve never wanted anything as much as I want this, as much as I want you.”  Peter bit his lip after his interruption, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He hadn't really meant to be that honest. “I love you, Tony,” he said, opening his eyes and making eye contact with the billionaire. “I want you.”

Something smoldered between them for a few seconds before-

“Then c’mere,” Tony rasped, pulling him close once more. He pressed a chaste kiss to the shorter man’s lips, followed by another soft peck, sighing as he pulled away. “I love you, Peter,” he mumbled before he licked his way into Peter's mouth.

Shivers shot up the younger man's spine at the sensation. He’d been kissed before, but it had never felt anything like this. Like fireworks, like everything was falling into place. A soft whine escaped him as one of Tony’s hands moved to hold the back of his neck, the other grabbing at his ass. “Tony,” he mewled. His own hands clutched the fabric of Tony’s t-shirt in an attempt to ground himself. 

A soft hum left Tony’s mouth, his lips brushing against Peter’s. “I’ve got you,” he said, closing the distance between them once more.

Their tongues caressed each other languidly, the filthy, wet sounds almost deafening in the large room. Peter felt himself growing hard in his pants and he pressed his hips forward at the feeling, the lust twisting deep in his belly. It felt too good for the embarrassment of being so needy to take hold. He brushed up against Tony’s own burgeoning erection, which prompted them both to let out simultaneous groans.

“So good for me,” Tony breathed. “Let’s go, baby. C’mon, come to bed with me.” He jerked his shoulders up, encouraging Peter to wrap his arms around his neck, and grabbed at the smaller man’s thighs and behind in order to lift him up. 

Peter closed his eyes and buried his face in the crook of Tony’s neck. When he opened them again, he was being placed on the soft, carpeted floor of the bedroom. 

Tony stalked forward slowly, entwining his fingers with Peter’s and forcing him to shuffle backwards until he fell down onto the plush bed. “Hey.”

Peter’s eyes were wide, pupil’s blown as he stared up at the man of his dreams who was crawling up over his body until they were face to face with each other. He drew in a shaky breath, a hint of a smile gracing his lips. “Hi.”

Tony pressed a kiss to the tip of Peter’s nose. “You doin’ okay? Still wanna do this?”

Fighting the urge to roll his eyes, Peter nodded. He wished that Tony would stop asking, but at the same time, it felt nice. It made him feel important, valued. “I’m great, I want this. I promise.” He shifted a bit in order to wrap his arms around Tony’s neck as kisses were pressed into the crook of his neck and shoulder. 

A grin overtook Tony’s face as he pulled back. “Then we’re wearing far too many clothes, huh?” He sat up so that he was straddling Peter’s waist, an arm raising to pull at the collar of his shirt and yank it over his head before throwing it somewhere across the room. Then he climbed off the brunette’s slight frame in order to shuck his jeans, leaving him clad in only a pair of black boxer briefs. He stood at the foot of the bed, one knee on the mattress. The fingers of his right hand brushed against the inside of Peter’s ankle. “Your turn, baby.” 

Peter took a breath as he pushed himself up into a sitting position and crossed his arms in front of his stomach, gripping at the hem of his sweatshirt. He cut his eyes away, staring at the covers as he fiddled with the fabric somewhat anxiously. He was about to be naked in front of Tony for the first time. Sure, the older man had seen him in various states of undress before in order to fit him for the suit, but this was different. 

He looked back up at Tony, the man’s warm, patient gaze bringing a flush to his cheeks. Peter steeled himself and started pulling the shirt up and over his head. He could do this. The garment was discarded over the side of the bed before he layed back down, pressing his heels into the mattress as he pushed his hips up in order to scoot back so that his head was now in the mountain of pillows at the head of the bed. His thumbs hooked in the waistband of his pants and pushed them down below his knees. “Help me,” he said imploringly, blinking up at Tony.

The billionaire reached down slowly, running his hands along the pale expanse of Peter’s thighs. The chocolate of his eyes darkened when one of Peter’s legs twitched at his touch. “You’re beautiful, Peter.” His voice was reverent as he looked down, gazing into Peter’s eyes as he pulled the sweatpants down the rest of the way and dropped them on the floor. “So perfect.” His beard scratched across the boy’s chest when he leaned down to press kisses to each of the freckles scattered on the smooth skin. “So strong.” A hand caressed his lower belly, running over his abs. 

And for maybe the first time, under Tony’s eyes and his hands, Peter truly felt that way. 

He pulled at Tony’s salt and pepper hair, gasping as the pecks against his flesh turned into wet, open-mouthed kisses, teeth occasionally pinching at his skin. In his boxers, his cock twitched as he got fully hard. “T-Tony,” he whimpered. “I’m- Feels good.” 

Tony smirked into his stomach. “That means I’m doing something right then, kid.” He continued making his way south, Peter’s breath picking up as he released his hair to clutch at the covers. Once reaching the plaid boxers, he let his mouth land over the hard member inside. At first he just let Peter bask in the feeling of the warm, moist air before sucking slightly.

A choked cry left Peter’s lips and his hips bucked harshly. “Fuck, fuck, Tony do- Do that again,” he panted. Peering down the bridge of his nose, he watched as Tony, who had his own eyes closed, suckled at the head of his dick again, the fabric growing dark and damp. There was more suction this time. That familiar feeling was starting to tug behind his belly button. God, how was he already so close? 

And apparently Tony could tell. “You close, honey? Gonna cum in your boxers from me kissing your cock?” He didn’t seem upset, pulling away to run his tongue from the base back up to the tip and sucking the salty fluid he found there through the plaid material. A groan rumbled deep in his chest. “Taste so good, baby.” He paused for a moment, looking up at Peter from underneath his eyelashes, making the younger man suck in a sharp breath. “Wanna see you, Pete. Can I take these off?”  He fingered the waistband with his pointer finger. 

“Yes, yes- Please.” Peter shifted his hips again in order to help Tony remove the last of his clothing. Once he was naked, his erection thudded obscenely against his lower belly, smearing saliva and precum over the skin there. 

Tony took the hard flesh into his spit-slicked hand, stroking it slowly, teasing his young lover. He greedily drank in the wanton sounds that were escaping Peter, his own cock straining in his underwear as he pressed himself against the edge of the bed. Taking the now uncovered tip into his mouth, he began to bob his head. 

Peter keened. One of his hands flew up to grab blindly at Tony’s hair again, eyes closed in pleasure. It was so wet, so warm- “Tony, Tony, please!” He fucked his hips up into Tony’s mouth, crying out again when the older man allowed his cock to slide to the back of his throat, making him gag slightly. “Ahhhh, shit!” The pressure was building up inside him once more and his whole body started to get tense. “I’m so, I’m s-so close, Tony.”

All the other man did was hum around his dick and take it all the way down to the root, his nose pressing up against the chestnut curls at the base. His hands clutched at Peter’s asscheeks, pulling them apart slightly in order to gently press the pad of his index finger against the boy’s quivering hole. 

The vibrations, coupled with the unexpected sensation at his opening, had Peter cumming with a broken whine, hips stuttering as he emptied himself in Tony’s mouth. 

Not pulling away until Peter was whimpering from overstimulation, Tony kissed the skin over the teen's hipbone. "That was so good, baby." Crawling until he was fully on the bed, he laid beside Peter, pulling him into his arms to bring their mouths together. "You were so good for me." 

Peter moaned at the taste of himself on Tony's tongue. "Thank you," he whispered when they pulled away. He shifted, slipping his thigh between Tony's. The older man's erection was still pressing against the material of the tight, dark briefs. Reaching down, he cupped the impressive bulge in his hand. From what he could see and feel, Tony was larger than his own slightly above average length. 

"That was amazing. But I want this now," Peter said coyly, tightening his grip before releasing. He looked into Tony's eyes, wanting him to see the truth in them, the trust. The love. "Want you to fuck me, Tony, please." 

Tony groaned, flipping them over so he was once again looming over the other man. "Fuck, Pete. How can I say no when you beg so sweetly?" He brought up a hand to cup at Peter's cheek, thumb pulling at his bottom lip. A hiss escaped him when Peter began to lightly suck on the digit. "As good as that feels," he started, "I think we're gonna need some lube."

Peter paused for a moment, releasing the finger with a soft pop, before reaching behind his head and under one of the pillows, then proudly brandishing the small bottle and thrusting it in Tony's direction. "Got it."

“That’s perfect, honey,” the man mused, taking it. He clicked the top open before looking over Peter again. “Just want to do it like this? On your back, me like this?”

“Yes, Tony. I want...I want to see you,” Peter whispered, his heart pounding in his chest. It had been something he’d thought about for years, something he’d dreamed about. Far too many times. And it was finally happening. 

Tony nodded, smiling down at him. “Then I can definitely do that,” he assured him, gently pushing his legs apart a little more in order to get between them.  

Peter slightly shifted the position he was laying in, angling his hips so that it would be easier for Tony to get to him. There were plenty of pillows on the bed, so he leaned back onto them but stayed sitting up enough to see what was going on. 

The clear, slick liquid was poured over Tony’s fingers. It was probably an excessive amount, but he figured they were better safe than sorry. If he was going to be Peter’s first time, they definitely needed to focus on prepping. 

The younger man bit his lip gently, watching as Tony’s hand disappeared between his legs. Then he felt the cold, wet fingers up against his hole and a surprised gasp left him. 

“Sorry.” Tony chuckled, his fingers prodding gently at the tight muscle as he talked. “Meant to warn you about that. It’s cold.”

“Little too late for that,” Peter mumbled, but he was smiling again as soon as the initial shock wore off. It was really happening. Tony was touching him without a hint of resistance, like it was something they’d done a million times before. 

Tony’s eyes studied Peter’s expression as he started pressing forward with the tip of one finger, making sure the young man wasn’t hurting at all. He paused as soon as there was even the slightest hint of pain on his face. “Need me to stop?”

“No, Tony,” the teen breathed. “Don’t stop. It’s just...different.” He tried to relax, that way it would be less uncomfortable and even maybe go faster. 

“Right...just let me know if you need me to stop. And I will, immediately,” Tony assured him. 

And Peter knew the words true. “I know. Promise, I’ll tell you. But it’s really okay.” 

Tony nodded slowly, continuing on with his task. His finger gently pushed in further, trying to relax Peter’s muscles as he went. 

Peter’s eyes slipped shut as he instinctively clenched around the intrusion. It was such an odd feeling, but it wasn’t bad. Just odd. Different. New. 

He slowly relaxed more as Tony kept working and eventually a second finger was added. His hole began to loosen, letting the older man easily slide his fingers in and out as he continued the prep. 

When Tony decided he was satisfied with the results, he pulled his fingers free and pushed his own briefs off. 

Peter’s breath caught as he watched the length of Tony’s cock come uncovered, bowing under its own weight once the clothing was completely off. And all of it was going to go in him. 

He knew he could take it. He had faith in the prep that Tony had done for him. But that didn’t make him feel any less nervous. 

“Maybe we can start in a different position?” Peter suggested, trying to keep the nervousness out of his voice. He wasn’t sure if he was completely successful or not. 

Tony just looked amused, slicking up his cock with a generous amount of lube as he watched the teen. “Whatever you want, baby. What do you have in mind?”

Peter chewed his lip, slowly sitting up more before moving so that he was on his hands and knees. Though he felt terribly exposed in the new position, it was much preferred to the alternative. He glanced over his shoulder at Tony. “Like this?” He asked, almost sounding shy. 

“Yeah, we can do that,” Tony told him softly, sliding his hands over the younger man’s ass gently. His bottom lip found its way between his teeth. “Definitely can do that. You’re still sure about this, though?” 

“I am. I promise I am.” Peter got more comfortable, moving down so that he was leaning on his elbows. He felt so empty now, without Tony’s fingers inside him, and he couldn’t wait to be filled again. “Take me, Tony. I’m ready for you.” 

The older man nodded, stroking himself for a moment before positioning the head of his cock at Peter’s entrance. “I’m ready for you too, honey. I’ve been ready.” 

“Then what are you waiting for?” Peter asked flirtatiously, grinning back as he watched Tony. Then his grin melted away, replaced by a mixed expression of pleasure and a bit of discomfort as Tony thrust his hips forward slightly. 

“Shit, you’re tight,” Tony mumbled, hands holding onto Peter’s hips as he started pressing forward. He watched as the teen’s hole stretched around his cock, easily taking the entire length. “Fuck, Pete.”

Peter buried his face against one of the pillows, mouth open wide around a moan. “And you’re huge,” he breathed, weakly pressing his hips back. 

Tony pushed himself in until his hips were flush with Peter’s ass, breathing hard as he bottomed out. “Oh, you are so perfect. So...yes, god.” His hands cupped the young man’s ass, squeezing before he remembered to check in again. “Is it good for you too? Nothing’s hurting?” 

“No, not hurting, don’t worry,” Peter assured him with a shaky moan. “Don’t stop. I need you to move, need you to fuck me, Tony.”

The man grinned a little, nodding. “I can do that.” He started with slow thrusts, letting Peter get used to the movement at first. 

Peter kept his face against the plush bedding, breathing hard. Before he realized what was going on, he felt a tear slip from the corner of his eye. Why was he crying? He was finally getting what he wanted, there would be no point in tears. It made no sense.

But then he realized that was just it. He was getting what he’d wanted for so long. Tony’s love, his intimacy, his attention. Just...having Tony at all. 

The realization brought a whole round of tears, making him bury his face in the pillow so that Tony couldn’t see him cry. If his shoulders shook with his sobs, Tony wouldn’t be able to tell with the way he was moving anyways. 

He was enjoying it immensely regardless, whimpering through his tears and moving his hips along with Tony’s as the older man moved behind him. The grip on his waist loosened a little and Peter whined, wiggling a bit. “Don’t stop. Please, don’t stop.” He wasn’t even ashamed of how needy he sounded, it felt too good. 

“I’m not stopping, Pete. Just...I want to see you, while we do this,” Tony whispered. “Is that okay?” 

Peter stilled, sniffling a little. If he turned around, it would be obvious that he had been crying. And Tony couldn’t know. He didn’t want to ruin this. 

“Is it okay?” Tony repeated, sounding a bit nervous. It was strange to hear such an inflection in his voice. The man was always so strong, so sure of himself. 

It stirred something deep within Peter. “Yes. Yeah, it’s okay. I want to see you too.” He wiped his eyes quickly, trying to dry his tears and make it unnoticeable that he had been crying. But he wasn’t so sure that it worked. He felt Tony’s hands completely release him and he steeled himself before turning over so that he was once again laid out on his back. “Hi,” was his soft mumble as their eyes met. 

Tony smiled at him with his eyes as much as his mouth. “Hey, honey,” he replied just as gently, as if they were in a trance that would break if they were any louder. Positioning himself back between the slighter man’s spread legs, he took his erection in hand and slowly breached the ring of muscle. A shuddering breath escaped him as he kept going until he was completely seated in the tight, warm heat. “Peter,” he sighed. 

Peter closed his eyes briefly, taking a moment to appreciate how deep Tony was buried inside him at this angle. “So deep.” He breathed the words out, groaning a bit when Tony pulled out only to start thrusting in earnest. “S-so good, Tony.” One of his legs bent at the knee in order to wrap around the man’s thick waist. 

“Yeah? Feels good?” Tony’s voice was breathy as he pounded into Peter, holding himself up on his arms. He shifted his weight in order to clutch at the thigh that was pressed against his abdomen. “That’s all I want, baby, just want you to feel good. Wanna make you happy.” 

Peter felt like he’d been waiting his whole life to hear those words. Because hadn’t been truly happy in so long, and here he was now, with the man of his dreams, feeling loved and cherished, so happy it was overwhelming. 

The soft sob bubbled up from Peter’s lungs before he could stop it, and he immediately slapped a hand over his mouth in an attempt to muffle the sound. But they wouldn’t stop, and neither would the tears that were again stinging behind his closed eyelids. God, he had to stop fucking crying . He felt Tony slow down before freezing completely and blinked rapidly before shutting his eyes, not wanting to see the expression on his lover’s face.

But he could imagine it perfectly well.

One of Tony’s hands brushed against his cheek. “You’re crying again. What’s wrong? Peter? Did I-” He cut himself off with an audible swallow, voice unsure. “Did I do something? Does it hurt?” Starting to pull out, he stopped when Peter’s eyes snapped open and a hand clutched at his wrist. 

Sniffling, Peter shook his head as he tried desperately to control breathing and his wobbling lower lip. “No no no, you’re perfect. I’m fine. I just- I just love you so much, Tony.” He hoped that the truth in his words could be heard. Because it was true. This was everything he had ever wanted. 

The shine of tears appeared in the older man’s eyes, too. He shot a shaky smile down at Peter, reaching his head down to pepper kisses on his face before landing the last one on his lips, their foreheads pressed together. “Oh, baby. I love you too, Peter.” They kissed deeply for a moment, Tony starting up with gentle thrusts again. His hand wrapped around Peter’s cock that was trapped between their bodies, stroking it in time with the movement of his hips. “And I’ll show you just how much, honey. You gonna let me?” While his hand kept the same pace, he began to speed up the rocking of his lower half.

Peter let out a choked cry as the head of Tony’s dick repeatedly nudged against his prostate. “Yes, Tony, fuck, fuck me,” he heaved, breath catching with each thrust, the soft ‘ah- ah- ah’s filling the bedroom. Despite getting emotional, he was still extremely close to the edge, it wouldn’t take much for him to be pushed over. “‘M so close, Tony.” His legs splayed to the side, muscles unable to hold them up any longer. 

If the way he began to lose his rhythm was any indication, the dark haired man wasn’t faring any better. “Yeah, baby? Gonna cum again, cum on my cock?” His voice was rough with the exertion of holding himself upright, his core flexed tightly. 

Peter gasped, hole twitching wildly as he shallowly pumped his hips up into Tony’s grip. “Mmhmm. Want- want you to fill me up, Tony, please.”  

Shit ,” Tony hissed, his balls drawing up as he reached his peak at the young man’s words. “Jesus, Peter, fuck-”

Peter groaned at the feeling of the hard flesh jerking inside him, the heavy warmth that was filling him. It triggered his own orgasm, thick ropes of cum shooting from his tip and covering his stomach and Tony’s fingers. His toes twitched as he curled them, lost in the sensations. “Tony, Tony, love you,” he muttered through the haze clouding his head. 

Tony trembled above him, hips still thrusting shallowly as he rode out the aftershocks. He pressed a messy kiss to Peter’s temple. “I love you too, Pete. So much. And I’m never gonna let you forget it.” He let his lips rest there for a moment before pulling away and slowly pulling out of Peter before rolling off to the side. His arms grabbed the smaller man and pulled him in, close to his chest. 

Peter sniffled lightly, squeezing Tony’s waist. He stretched a bit, getting comfortable in the man’s hold before pressing his mouth to one of the gently defined pec muscles. “I love you more,” he whispered quietly, eyes slipping shut as they lay there in the afterglow. 

He hadn’t been this content in nearly a year. And now, it was all his. This feeling, this man, this love.

And he wasn’t going to let it go.

Chapter 3: Domesticity

Summary:

warnings: domestic fluff, nff

Notes:

petey’s having a grand old time and so are we! lol
- bloo and bri <3

Chapter Text

In the first few moments after Peter woke up, things were perfect. Memories of the previous night came flooding back and a slight smile tugged at his lips as he snuggled into Tony’s warm embrace. 

Everything was alright. 

But as soon as he had the thought, something shifted. 

Because everything wasn’t alright. 

His eyes snapped open, instantly pulling him out of the illusion. His hands roamed over his body, trying to mimic the sensations he had felt before. But it wasn’t the same and he knew it. 

It had all felt so real

He slid the glasses off, just for a moment, while he reached for his phone. When he checked it there were dozens of missed calls and unread texts. Mostly from May, but there were quite a few from other people as well. MJ, Ned, even a couple from Pepper.

Shit, that made him feel ridiculously guilty. She was trying to get into contact with him and he was busy playing house with his fantasy of her husband. 

Yet the guilt wasn’t enough to make him respond. Instead, he turned his phone back off and tossed it to the side, putting the EDITH glasses back on. Out of sight, out of mind.

Indulging himself and just pretending for a little longer wouldn’t hurt anybody. It wasn’t like they’d know. This was just for him. 

Him and Tony. 

He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as he focused back in. And he was taken right back to where he wanted to be. 

When he opened them again, he was laying down with Tony. A smile appeared on his face. 

The older man was still fast asleep, limbs tangled with Peter’s. He seemed to be completely unaware of Peter’s brief absence, not that he would have felt it in the first place. As far as he knew, both of them had stayed in bed the entire night. 

Peter gently began pulling himself away, pressing a quick kiss to Tony’s forehead before he dug his way out of the covers and slid out of bed. 

The room was cold and made him shiver slightly before he found the shirt that Tony had been wearing the night before and pulled it on. There. That was much better. It fell just to the tops of his thighs, hardly hiding anything, but he didn’t mind. And he was sure Tony wouldn’t either.

He wandered a little, making his way out of the bedroom and looking around. The penthouse was huge, but it didn’t feel empty in the way it had before. Love filled up the space, bringing everything to life. It made the place feel like a home. 

The thought brought a smile to his face as he continued his wandering. He knew exactly where he was going, of course, but it was nice to just explore in the morning quiet. 

Everything was just as he remembered it, down to the smallest details. The neatly stacked magazines on the coffee table (it wasn’t like Tony ever read them), the way morning sunlight beamed gently through the window wall, the various mechanical parts strewn about from late-night projects that got brought out of the lab. It was all the same. 

Peter eventually made his way to his initial destination, the kitchen. 

He started pulling ingredients out, mentally running through what he needed to make breakfast. Eggs, flour, milk...everything was there, all the things that were necessary. Not that he’d doubted they would be. 

The teen got to work soon after, humming quietly to himself as he started prepping. He combined, sifted, whisked, and followed each step to make sure everything came together. Ruined pancakes just wouldn’t do. 

As he was standing over the stove, finishing up the cooking, a pair of strong arms wrapped around his waist from behind. 

He instantly melted into the touch, leaning back and grinning when he felt the warm press of lips against his cheek. When he spoke, his voice was soft so as to not disturb the intimate moment. “Morning, Tony. I figured I’d let you sleep in.”  The facial hair covering his chin and jaw rubbed against Peter’s skin, making something tingle deep in his belly. 

The man made an appreciative noise, nodding a little. “Thank you, honey,” he murmured, voice still rough from sleep.

Peter thought it was one of the most wonderful sounds he’d ever heard and he wanted to keep hearing it. The tone was raspy and low, insanely sexy. He loved it. “You’re welcome. Working on breakfast now, it’s about done,” he informed Tony happily. 

“It smells incredible, I can’t wait.” Tony slowly pulled away, as if it was the last thing he wanted to do, before walking over to the cupboard and pulling out two plates. “I’ll make things a little easier on you, I can help plate everything once it’s finished. Teamwork makes the dream work, and all that.” 

The young man nodded a little, the hint of a grin pulling the corners of his lips upwards, though his main focus was the food on the stove. He didn’t want to let any of it burn, he wanted it all to be absolutely perfect. 

Not that any of it could turn out anything but that. The fact tugged persistently at the back of his mind, no matter how hard he tried to ignore it. He’d coded the STARKER program for perfection, with instructions to replicate exactly what he desired. So no matter what he did, breakfast would be perfect regardless. 

He just wanted it to feel real on his end, too. 

“Okay, I’m ready- bring the plates over here,” he instructed, glancing over at where Tony was standing. 

Tony nodded quickly, holding out the two plates. He stood there patiently, giving Peter a small smile as they met eyes. That warm glow was there again, the one that reminded Peter of sunlight shining through honey and made him feel like he was the most important person in the other man’s world. Which meant- a lot, considering the life Tony had lived, the experiences he’d had, the people he knew. 

Peter blinked himself out of his thoughts in order to dish out the food, stacking each pancake just-so and making sure the yolks in every egg stayed unbroken. So he was being a bit neurotic- sue him. 

Once he was finished plating breakfast, the pair made their way over to the square table and sat right across from each other. It wasn’t overly large, so they were close enough to hold hands, which was exactly what they did. Their hands stayed clasped together as they got situated , both digging in almost instantly. 

A contented hum came from the other side of the table. “This is great, Peter, I had no idea you were such a whiz in the kitchen,” Tony complimented, tone light and playful. He sounded truly happy, and it transferred over to the younger man as if they were in some sort of feedback loop.

“I have to be,” Peter laughed, swallowing the bite he’d taken. “May burns everything she makes, I can’t survive off of that. I had to learn some basic things myself. And it’s fun.” 

He’d imagined cooking for Tony a lot. Not anything big, it wasn’t like he was really that good. But he always thought that it would be such a nice thing. Something sort of domestic the two of them could do together. Something special for them to share with each other. And the reality was just as good as he’d imagined. 

Tony nodded, watching him. “Well, you did amazing. It’s really great, I couldn’t have asked for better.” He grinned, sincerely impressed. 

Peter smiled softly at him, squeezing his hand gently. “Thank you.” 

They continued eating in silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. Quite the opposite, in fact. It was a gentle, companionable quiet. Nothing needed to be said, they were just enjoying being with each other. 

That was all they needed. 

By the time they were finished with breakfast, Peter was already lost in other thoughts. 

The simulation was going so much better than he ever could have imagined. It was all so real. Which was everything that he had hoped for. 

He really could have everything that he wanted, everything he’d envisioned life with Tony to be. They could really have their happily ever after, the one they both deserved. The universe owed them this.

“I can see you thinking,” Tony teased lightly, snapping Peter out of his thoughts. “What’s up?”

Peter looked up again, blinking rapidly as he tried to reorient himself. “Hmm?” He couldn’t really explain it all. Nor did he want to. “Oh, nothing. Just...thinking about how happy I am.” That was fairly true, at least. Lying by omission wasn’t really lying in his book. “I’ve wanted this for so long. With you.” 

The older man smiled a little, eyes once again filled with adoration as he gazed across the table. Peter swore he’d never grow tired of being on the receiving end of that look. “Me too. It’s always been you, Pete.” 

He said it with such sincerity that Peter could almost believe it. Although, he figured that for this Tony, Peter was always the one for him. And honestly- That was enough. 

“It’s always been you for me too, Tones.” The nickname slipped out, but he didn’t try to take it back. It didn’t hurt anyone and it felt so much more personal. Intimate. He liked it. 

Tony smiled at him, nodding. 

Peter watched him, meeting his gaze and not looking away. Suddenly he remembered the silly plan he’d made after he met Tony for the first time. 

It didn’t make any sense, not really. It was unrealistic, just the silly dream of an obsessed, love-sick teenager. 

But he used to imagine getting married to Tony. He had things planned out exactly in his elaborate daydreams, down to the flavor of cake they’d have and the color scheme. There were even a couple venues that he’d researched. Peter could admit that he’d spent an embarrassing amount of time focused on that specific fantasy. 

And that’s all it had been, fantasy. But...he could bring it to life. Here, in his ideal world. Where things were exactly as he desired. He could easily have that dream become a reality. At least for a little while. 

Before he could stop himself, he was standing up from his seat and letting go of Tony’s hand. 

Tony raised an eyebrow, watching his movements curiously but not commenting. He stayed in his seat, eyes following as Peter rushed away to the other room. 

“I just have to grab something!” He called over his shoulder, running back to the bedroom. The bed was still unmade, reminding him of what they’d done the previous night. It brought a small smile to his face before he resumed what he was doing. 

He began shuffling through drawers, moving stacks of clothes and papers in his search. For a moment, he wasn’t even sure what he was actually looking for. 

Then his fingers brushed against a small box and wrapped around it. He pulled the velvet cube out, hands shaking slightly as he brought it up to look at it  and set it on top of the dresser. 

He opened it, revealing a gold engagement band. It had a beautiful, intricate pattern and deep red stones set around it. It was perfect, exactly what he’d imagined in his daydreams. Of course it was.

He closed the box again and held it close to his chest. He’d give it to Tony. Maybe it was moving fast, but he thought he deserved it. This was supposed to be everything that he wanted, so he would make it match his fantasies exactly, down to a T. 

But he could wait for just a little bit. He didn’t want to break the soft, domestic bliss they were feeling just yet. After all, he had all the time in the world to pop the question. Even the thought was exciting; in his dreams, Tony had always been the one to propose to him. This would be an interesting flip in the script. 

So he tucked the box away again, remembering where he left it. Then he peeked back out of the room. “Tony?” He called softly. 

“Yeah?” From the sounds of it, Tony was washing the dishes from breakfast. He was so thoughtful that way. 

“I think I’m gonna get a shower,” Peter started, fingers sliding against the smooth door frame. A slight smile tugged at his lips as he got an idea. “Maybe you could...join me?” He offered. 

He heard a dish crash from the kitchen and he covered his mouth in an attempt to hold back his mirth. Then he gave up and laughed when he heard the sound of Tony’s footsteps rushing back to the bedroom. 

“I would love to do that, yep.” Tony grinned, looking at him as he all but fell through the doorway. He almost sounded like he was out of breath from running from the kitchen. 

Peter laughed harder, leaning up to kiss the other man before pulling away to walk to the en-suite bathroom. He didn’t have much to do in terms of undressing, just slowly pulling off the shirt he’d put on. He tossed it down to the floor, taking note of where it landed so he could find it again later. 

He glanced back over his shoulder, meeting Tony’s eyes and giving him a small smirk before walking in further. 

Tony was close behind, stepping out of the thin sweatpants he’d slipped on. 

Peter moved to turn the shower on, eyebrows furrowed for a moment before he figured it out. How could a shower be so damn complicated. Then he turned to look at Tony, feeling breathless. He wasn’t sure he’d ever get used to seeing the man like that. And he didn’t want to. He wanted to always be just as excited as the first time. 

“You’re absolutely stunning,” Tony murmured, taking the young man by surprise. 

The teen felt one of his eyebrows shoot up without his permission as he gazed over at Tony with wide eyes. “Me?” It’s not that Peter considered himself ugly, but he didn’t think he was anything special. Just average. Nothing like the man in front of him who was undeniably one of the most beautiful people on the planet.

“Of course you.” Tony grinned a little, grabbing his hand before stepping into the shower. “Who else would I mean?” 

That was fair. It wasn’t like anyone else was there, no one else for Tony to be referring to. But the words were thrilling and made him happy all the same. The fact that the billionaire saw him like that, thought that they looked good together, did wonders for his ego and self-confidence even if he wasn’t completely convinced.

“Well...I don’t know.” Peter smiled a little. “You’re sweet. And you’re...absolutely gorgeous too.” He laughed a little, getting into the shower with the older man. His cheeks flushed as he talked, but he meant the words. 

“I’m glad you think so.” Tony chuckled, moving to stand under the water and wet his hair. “Hey, get over here really quick,” he encouraged after a moment, stepping out from under the showerhead again. “I want to do something.”

Peter was pulled away from his thoughts, raising an eyebrow at the other man. “Get over where? We’re barely standing a foot apart.”

“Hush. Come get your hair wet and let me do this.” 

The teen did as he was told, a small smile tugging at his lips as he gently brushed his fingers through the now-dripping curls. “There. Better?” 

Tony nodded, grabbing a bottle of shampoo and getting some in his hand. “Much.” He lathered it up, humming softly to himself as he did. “Let me wash your hair?”

Peter watched him, nodding slowly. It was such a small thing, but the action was so soft. He would never deny Tony of something like that. 

He stepped closer, turning around so that his back was to Tony. 

Tony smiled, hands moving to Peter’s head. His fingers began gently working the shampoo into his hair, massaging his scalp as he went. 

The teen made a content sound, eyes slipping shut. Tony’s fingers in his hair felt nice. 

“How’s this?” Tony asked softly, grinning a little. He loved how Peter started melting into his touch as soon as he’d started. 

“It’s so good,” Peter nearly-whimpered, biting his lip. It was so nice, gentle and intimate. 

The older man smirked a little as he heard the tone of Peter’s voice. “I’m glad you think so.”

Once the shampoo had been effectively lathered and worked in, it was time to wash it out. 

Peter didn’t want the feeling to ever stop, the action incredibly soothing. But he knew that he couldn’t just have his hair washed forever, that wouldn’t work out. And they still had more to do. 

So he stepped under the water again, rinsing out the suds and watching them swirl down the drain. 

When he was done, he stepped back and looked at Tony again. He hadn’t expected something so sweet, but he loved it. 

Peter watched him closely, mouth nearly watering at the sight before him. This absolute god of a man, completely bare in front of him. No matter how soft and sweet he was, the teen couldn’t help but think about other things. The water slid over Tony’s body, making his skin glisten and shine. 

And Tony didn’t seem to notice the reverent way Peter was gazing in his direction at all. 

He recalled the night before, how agreeable Tony had been to their activities. So he had no worries that he’d be denied here. 

But he did, however, want to shake things up a bit. 

He took a few more moments to admire Tony’s form before he was stepping closer, his hands dragging over the older man’s chest and abs, tracing the scar where the reactor used to sit. The muscle definition was softer than his own, but he loved it just the same. This body was so strong, had been through so much and done so many amazing things.

Tony raised an eyebrow, moving so that his back was to the water. “Pete?” He couldn’t help but smirk a little. He’d expected some sort of contact, Peter was very handsy that way. But he was really going for it fast. 

“Hmm?” Peter didn’t look up. His cheeks were burning as he touched Tony, but that didn’t make him stop. Then, slowly, he began to sink down onto his knees. His hands slid down Tony’s hips until they rested on his wet thighs. 

He’d imagined a moment like this for a long time. Pleasing Tony, being able to watch the man as he fell apart from the way Peter was making him feel. And of course, he’d seen it partially when they’d slept together. But he wanted to cause that pleasure in a different way, now. 

“What are you doing down there?” As though it wasn’t obvious. Tony’s fingers gently threaded through the young man’s hair, the strands sticking together from the water falling from his fingers. “Thought we were showering.” 

“We will,” Peter whispered, placing a gentle kiss on Tony’s left hip. “I want to do this first.” He started kissing down the man’s stomach, lips brushing against the light happy trail once he reached it. 

One of his hands moved from its place on Tony’s thigh to wrap around the man’s cock, gently taking hold of it. It was mostly soft, but it wouldn’t stay that way for long. He stroked slowly, glancing up as he kept his lips pressed to Tony’s lower belly, trying to hold back the urge to just let his tongue ghost over the sensitive skin there. 

Tony was watching him with half-lidded eyes and his lips parted just slightly. His hips gently rocked forward, fucking into Peter’s slick grip as he was gradually brought to full hardness. 

Peter leaned back and shook his wet hair out of his face, looking over Tony as he figured out how he wanted to approach things. Then he leaned in again, pressing a soft kiss to the tip of the man’s cock. It wasn’t much, but it was what felt right. It was sweet, intimate. 

And it made Tony shiver above him, so he thought it was a good choice. 

The young man smirked to himself slightly, batting his eyelashes as he looked up. “Did you like that?” He asked sweetly. 

“Uh huh...Peter, do you know what you’re doing?”

Not at all. He had never done anything even remotely like it. “Yeah, of course I do.” His tongue darted out, giving a soft little kitten lick over the head to punctuate his sentence. 

He’d never given oral, and the only time he’d even received had been the night before. But he’d seen enough porn and read enough that he was sure he wouldn’t be awful. He just needed to remember the things he’d read. And he knew what felt good to his own body, he just needed to translate it to another person. Shouldn’t be too difficult.

Tony nodded slowly, fingers tightening in his hair slightly at the feeling of the young man’s wet tongue on his erection. “Okay, honey.” He relaxed, ready to take whatever Peter wanted to give him. 

Peter kissed the tip one more time before slowly wrapping his lips around it. It was weird, the slightly salty skin against his tongue. But he liked it. And he definitely liked the sounds that the action caused Tony to make. 

So he sucked gently, his eyes slipping shut in order for him to focus solely on what he was doing. It wasn’t all that different from having a lollipop or a popsicle in his mouth, if the treat was warm and gave way under the pressure of his ministrations.

His tongue brushed over the slit in the head, gathering the small amount of precum that had welled up already. Then he rubbed it against the slight ridge on the underside of the tip. He knew that would feel pretty good. 

A low moan came from Tony, causing Peter to echo the sound, instinctually responding to his partner’s pleasure. The vibrations made the older man grip his hair tighter. 

“Maybe you do know what you’re doing,” he mumbled, eyes dark and heavy as he gazed down at Peter. 

Peter smiled a little at that, as best he could around the flesh in his mouth, at least. He liked knowing that he was doing well, that he was pleasing Tony, even if he hadn’t done much yet. Hopefully it would only continue to get better. 

At the slight praise, he started trying to take down more. Peter hadn’t known how much the validation would turn him on. He wanted more of it, wanted to be good for Tony. He started with just a couple of inches, sucking lightly and humming to give different types of stimulation. His head bobbed slightly, only taking as much as he had before. It wouldn’t be good if he tried to do too much too soon. He didn’t want to embarrass himself by choking or anything. 

Tony stayed fairly quiet, but he just wasn’t the most vocal in his pleasure, Peter knew. He showed his appreciation in other ways, holding Peter’s hair tighter, nudging his hips forward slightly into the wet heat of the teen’s mouth. And Peter eagerly drank in the few sounds that did escape him. 

The younger man held onto Tony’s thigh with his free hand, nails leaving small crescent-shaped indents as his fingers dug in slightly. His other hand stayed wrapped around Tony’s cock, holding it steady as he took more down and stroking what he hadn’t yet fit into his mouth. 

He slowly moved further down, taking more and more of the length in as he let himself get used to the feeling. But before he was able to take it all the way, the tip hit the back of his throat and made him choke, the gagging sound obscenely loud in the tiled room. 

He pulled off, eyes watering as he coughed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that.” Sniffling and taking a shaky breath, he licked at his lips in an attempt to clean off some of the thick saliva he could feel running down his chin and smearing along his lips.

Tony groaned, still holding Peter’s hair as he pulled away. “It’s alright. Don’t worry, not a big deal. You’re still a beginner, it’s alright,” he assured breathily. The gag made Peter’s throat tighten deliciously around him and he was still recovering from the sudden sensation. 

“Still.” Peter pouted a little, looking up at him for a second. He blinked against the light spray of water ricocheting off of the shower walls and Tony’s body. He didn’t want to embarrass himself like that any more.

Tony frowned slightly at whatever expression he saw on the younger’s face. “Hey,” he said softly. “It’s okay, I mean it, baby.” He paused for a second, looking like he was considering something, before opening his mouth again, a glint in his eyes. “It, uh, I actually think it’s pretty hot, feels good, too. I promise.” A lopsided smile pulled at his lips as he let his fingers scratch lightly against the boy’s scalp.

Peter felt his cheeks flush. If it felt good for Tony, maybe they could explore it another time. But today he just wanted to get acquainted with this new part of Tony’s body without feeling like he was going to throw up. He slowly started taking the man’s cock again, making sure he was patient (well, as patient as he could be) and didn’t force himself too much. Closing his eyes momentarily, he focused on relaxing the muscles of his throat and breathing through his nose.

And it worked, he was able to ignore his gag reflex and start bobbing his head while taking the entire length down his throat. 

Tony dropped his head back, chest heaving with labored breaths as he kept his hold on Peter’s hair. His hips twitched forward with the teen’s movements, trying to keep himself at least partially composed. 

Although it wasn’t really working. 

“Pete, this...okay, fuck,” he swore under his breath. “I won’t last much longer like this,” he warned. “You feel so good, baby, so good for me.”

Peter hummed in acknowledgment, but didn’t still or slow down his actions. Hearing Tony’s praise only made him more determined to make the older man come apart for him. His head kept bobbing, taking Tony’s cock down easier every time. 

Maybe it would have been nice to go further, have Tony press him against the wall and fuck him until he couldn’t remember his own name. But there were still things he wanted to get done today and there would always be plenty of time for sex later. He was happy to just please Tony for the moment. That was more than enough for him. 

Tony groaned softly, but it was strained. He was quickly nearing his release and they both knew it. 

Peter felt the man’s cock throb against his tongue and he switched up his technique, quickly moving to just suckling at the sensitive tip again. Making his eyes intentionally wide, he looked up at his partner from underneath his wet eyelashes as he made a show of letting his tongue peak out as he licked around the head before resuming the light, teasing suction.

And that was Tony’s undoing. 

His fingers tightened in Peter’s hair again, tugging slightly as his hips thrust forward through his high. 

Peter moaned around him, tasting the first burst of cum as it hit his tongue. He kept his head bobbing slightly, just keeping his lips wrapped around the tip as he worked the older man through his orgasm. 

“Jesus, Peter,” Tony breathed, legs trembling as he came down from his high. He pulled his softening cock from Peter’s lips, eyes not leaving the teenager’s face. 

Peter stared up at Tony, something fluttering deep in his belly as he knelt there on the shower floor. 

But it wasn’t arousal this time. 

Maybe it was the wrong time. But as far as he was concerned, whenever he wanted it to happen was the right time. 

“Marry me, Tony,” he said softly, eyes shining as he gazed upon the man that he loved. "I know that this is all going fast, so fast, but I love you more than anything in the world. I can't imagine life without you, and I don't ever want us to be apart again. So will you… Will you marry me?" 

It wasn’t anything like how he’d dreamed it. Not anywhere close. But it still felt right. It was them.

Tony's deep brown eyes were wide and glistening with unshed tears that he tried to blink away. "Peter," he whispered, "Come up here. I would get down there with you but my knees don't work like they used to." A soft chuckle escaped his lips. 

Peter stood slowly, wincing at the slight ache in his own knees before pulling Tony completely out from under the water to look at him. “I don’t want you to say I’m too young, or it’s too fast or anything like that.” But he knew that he wouldn’t. Because Tony would never. 

But especially not when everything Peter wanted got to happen. 

Instead of responding, Tony took Peter’s hands in his before pulling him in for a gentle kiss. It was soft and sweet, but there were still the hints of passion behind it that made Peter’s heartbeat quicken. 

By the time they pulled away, Peter had almost forgotten what had inspired the kiss in the first place. Tony’s kisses had the ability to do that, they took his breath away and made him forget anything but Tony himself. 

Then he was reminded when Tony kissed his forehead and whispered against his skin. “This is the beginning of our forever, Pete. Yes. Of course I’ll marry you.” Another chuckle, this one a bit louder and slightly baffled sounding. “Although it is a little surreal for this to be happening when I just came down your throat.”

A shocked cackle erupted from Peter’s mouth before he could stop it and he wrapped his arms around Tony’s neck, hiding his smile and laughter in the crook of his neck. “Shut up,” he muttered halfheartedly, content in the older man’s hold. He pressed a soft kiss over Tony’s pulse and let his lips linger there as the water cascaded over his back.

What a beautiful forever it would be.

***

Peter was okay with how the proposal had gone. It had felt right and the outcome was exactly what he’d wanted. He was thrilled, even if the proposal itself was a bit...unorthodox. So were he and Tony.

But he wanted a wedding, wanted the experience and the memory of having that moment with the man that he loved. He wanted to look into Tony’s eyes and say ‘I do’, and to hear those words repeated back to him. And he wanted it to be the wedding he’d always planned in his dreams. 

The issue was that he wanted it to happen as soon as possible, since he knew on some level that things couldn’t last forever. And planning an entire wedding was difficult. 

“It has to be perfect,” he mumbled to himself, frustrated. 

Perfection shouldn’t have been hard to achieve in his simulation. The program was designed for ‘perfect’. But things still felt off no matter what he did. 

Or maybe he just felt off about the whole thing, somewhere deep in the back of his mind. That didn’t mean he had to acknowledge the feeling, though. 

Peter shook his head like that would shake the thoughts away. Then he got started planning out more of what he wanted to do, writing notes and ideas in a little notebook he’d found after they’d gotten dressed to go about their day. He would have included Tony in the planning, but…well, he wasn’t really sure how that would work. 

Could this Tony have actually shared his own ideas on the matter? Or would it have just been all of Peter’s ideas repeated back to him anyways? 

The teen honestly wasn’t sure. So he determined that it would be easier for him to keep his sense of the reality if he just went about doing all of the necessary preparation himself. That would be okay, he could do it. 

They already had the ring. He’d given it to Tony after their shower, his heart pounding as he slipped it onto the man’s finger. It looked perfect on him. Just as Peter knew it would. Now he just needed one for himself, something complementary.

Figuring out the venue wouldn’t be difficult. He could have the wedding anywhere he wanted, nothing was off limits. But he knew where he wanted it to be. At least...he had a pretty good idea. He had always envisioned something grand and luxurious, something worthy of Tony. The man was a billionaire, for fuck’s sake.

After that, there wasn’t too much left to take care of. He didn’t want anything big. Although the half-formed guest list in his mind was fairly impossible, he could come back to that. What was impossibility when EDITH was involved?

***

The man gave a heavy sigh as he sat in front of the holo-display, one hand moving up to rub across the skin of his head. He spun around in his chair to make eye contact with the other individuals scattered throughout the room. “Any news? Anyone? Please tell me we’ve got something.” The frustration and exasperation were clear in his voice. 

Only silence followed as the agents looked at each other uneasily, no one daring to speak up. 

Fury slapped his hand down on the desk. “Why the fuck,” he ground out, “can the world’s leading intelligence agency not locate a goddamn teenager ?”  

Rolling her eyes, Agent Hill walked into the briefing room, shooting a long-suffering look at the director. “He obviously doesn’t want to be found, Nick.”

He made an affronted face, mouth opening. “Do I look like I give a rat’s ass what Peter Parker wants? What I want is to find his ass and bring it back here so we can do some damage control on this shit storm!”  He turned to face the agents again, staring them all down. “And since you incompetent motherfuckers can't find him, the least you can do is bring me someone who can!” 

One of the agents, clearly the greenest of the bunch, hesitantly raised her hand as she turned away from her computer screen. “Where should we start, Director Fury, sir?” 

Nick scoffed, throwing his hands up in the air. “Can you all do nothing on your own? I’m not your mother, figure it out!” 

She narrowed her eyes at him, almost like a challenge. “I actually have an idea, sir. One of Peter’s closest contacts is an Edward Leeds-”

Fury shook his head before she could finish. “No, absolutely not.”

The young agent pressed on, rising up out of her chair. “With all due respect, Director, I think he might be our best bet. We know from Stark’s files that Mr. Leeds is an extremely capable programmer, he’s helped Mr. Parker alter Stark tech in the past.”

“With all due respect, Agent Oliver, absolutely fucking not.” Fury looked at her, eyebrows knit together. “No. No, no, I’m not recruiting another damn teenager.” Obviously there were enough issues and liabilities just from Parker being involved. And while it was for a different purpose, he would rather just stick with adults. 

“But Peter’s more likely to listen to him. And he knows his way around tech,” Hill pointed out, casting a look in the younger woman’s direction. “I think Oliver’s right, Nick. He really is our best bet.” 

Fury shot her a weak glare before pinching the bridge of his nose. He didn’t want to agree. The last thing he wanted was to deal with another teenager. “Well, I’m not babysitting him.”

***

Ned hadn’t heard from Peter since the big announcement from the Bugle and that asshole J. Jonah Jameson. And what kind of a name was that? He wasn’t sure that anyone had been in contact with his best friend, which was worrisome considering he’d just been outed to the entire world. He’d sent him a dozen messages and called even more, but there had been silence. The texts weren’t even read. 

So he wasn’t as surprised as he probably should have been when he received a secure message with an obvious SHIELD logo on the bottom. He may have freaked out for a minute out of sheer excitement, though.

“This is so cool,” he mumbled to himself once he’d calmed down, eyes quickly raking over the message to see what it was about. 

He smiled weakly when he got to the point. ‘Locating Peter Parker.’ Of course that’s what it was about. Why else would SHIELD ever contact him? “Guy in the chair,” he whispered, automatically responding to the message. 

He really wanted his best friend to come home. It couldn’t be good for Peter to be out there all alone. “I hope you’re alright, man,” he thought aloud after sending his reply. 

If he couldn’t find Peter, who could?

Chapter 4: Reunion

Summary:

warnings: death mention, Peter is still 17 (that isn’t changing), marriage discussion, resurrection (in a way), mention of trauma

Notes:

things are moving along! we can’t wait to hear what you guys think! - bloo and bri <3

Chapter Text

Ned stared up at the overly large glass doors in front of him. “Whoa.” 

The new SHIELD headquarters was pretty impressive, mirrored glass making up the entire outside. An interesting choice for a building that got attacked quite a bit, but maybe it was reinforced glass. It wasn’t his place to judge. 

The agent that had been sent to pick him up simply looked at the teenager blankly before snapping his fingers a few times in quick succession. "Inside, please."

"Oh, yeah, okay right." Taking a step forward, Ned walked through the doors when they slid open. "So, uh, do you know where I am supposed to go, exactly?" He looked over at Grumpy expectantly.

"Front desk," was the only response he received as the man walked away from him.

So much for that. "Thanks," Ned muttered to himself, clutching the straps of his backpack and making his way to said front desk. Not off to a great start. The first guy definitely was not the most helpful person in the world, but maybe someone else would be. He hoped that would be the case. 

The blonde woman sitting behind the desk looked up at him, pausing her typing. "May I help you?" She didn’t sound unkind, so Ned decided to try his luck. 

He cleared his throat. "Uh, yeah, I think so. I'm here to see-"

"Leeds." 

His head jerked up as he heard the voice. That was not at all something he had expected. It was hard enough to convince himself that the email was real, but he hadn’t even dreamed that he’d be having any direct interactions with the man in front of him.  "Holy shit, you're Nick Fury! I mean- uh- yes, Ned Leeds, that's me."

There was a moment of tension before the director narrowed his eye in Ned’s direction and spun around on his heel. "Come with me. You need to be fingerprinted and we need to get you a badge."

“A badge? Like- the kind someone who works here gets?”

“Not exactly.”

Throughout the whole process, Ned was wide-eyed with amazement. Everything was so cool. The whole thing had to be a dream, and he was sure he was going to blink and wake up in his bedroom. He repeatedly did his best to hold back streams of thrilled babbling and little noises of excitement.

He still hadn’t held back as much as the director had hoped.

“You’ll be working with one of our agents,” Fury groused, pausing as the door to the briefing room slid open to allow them to enter. He stepped away from the teen to sit in the dark leather desk chair placed at the head of the long glass table. Looking down at his watch, he sighed before raising his gaze back up. “Oliver will be your point person. You’re not to bother anyone else, understood?” 

Ned nodded his head a few times in quick succession. “Yes sir, Mr. Fury, sir.” When the man’s eye narrowed at him, he hastily corrected himself. Shit. “Sorry, sorry- Director Fury. Sir.” He hurriedly let himself fall into another desk chair to Fury’s right and waited for further instructions.

None came. The only sounds to be heard were the ticking of the clock on the wall and the soft whoosh of their breathing. What was with no one giving him any information? It was unnerving, as was the silence, and Ned couldn’t help himself-

“So, uh-,” he started, fiddling with his backpack, which he was now clutching in his lap. “When’s this Oliver guy supposed to get here? What like, department is he from?” 

Fury merely stared at him blankly, expression giving absolutely nothing away. “That’s classified information.” His eyebrow twitched minutely, betraying the fact that he was fucking with Ned, but the teen didn’t pick up on it. 

“Oh, oh okay. Well what can I know? Like- How am I supposed to help you guys-” 

The door burst open, a slight female form rushing into the room, arms full. “Sorry I’m late, Director,” she breathed, nearly gliding along the floor as she made her way to a seat on the opposite side of the table from Ned, beside Fury. Her glasses were slipping down the slope of her nose and she hurriedly pushed them up with the side of her hand. She took a deep breath  before tucking a strand of hair behind her ear that had come out of the intricate braiding atop her head. “I-” 

The man sighed and shook his head. “I don’t wanna hear it Oliver-” 

Ned’s mouth was open wide as he stared at the girl   woman across from him. “Huh? But you’re-” 

His interjection made the young woman turn her attention on him, a smile overtaking her kind face. “Oh! You must be Mr. Leeds! It’s nice to meet you, thanks so much for coming in. We could really use your help to locate your friend Peter.” She stuck her hand out, delicately French-tipped fingers shining in the light. “Paige Oliver, SHIELD Agent.” 

Palm slightly clammy, Ned’s fingers twitched as they shook hands. “Paige,” the teen whispered, awestruck, before catching himself. “I mean, um, Oliver?” His cheeks flushed a little and he cursed himself and pulled his hand back. How was he supposed to address her? He had not been prepared to be working with a girl, much less one as pretty as this agent was. She couldn’t be that much older than him, probably an older teen, but only 25 at most. Fuck. “I’m uh, I’m Ned. Guy in the chair.” 

Paige grinned at him, dark eyes lighting up behind her lenses. “Welcome to the team.”

Fury just rolled his eye with a huff as he waved a hand through the air. “If you two are finished- Oliver, catch him up to speed.”

***

Peter looked up from his notebook when he heard footsteps padding across the carpet of the sitting area. His eyes burned slightly and he couldn’t help but wonder just how long he’d been working. It was hard to keep track of time in the illusion. “Hey T,” he smiled, running a hand through his hair as he looked back at Tony.

“Hi yourself,” the older man replied, looking rather cozy in his sweatpants and t-shirt as he sat down on the couch beside his fiancé. His arm wrapped around Peter’s shoulders and he pressed a quick kiss to his temple. “Whatcha workin on? Wedding stuff?”

Peter sighed, snuggling into the embrace. It was so nice to just be held. “How’d you guess?” Like it hadn’t been all he’d been working on since the proposal. 

Tony chuckled. “You get this little wrinkle- right here,” he poked the middle of Peter’s forehead before smoothing the pad of his finger over the area. “Means you’re focused too hard on something.” 

Letting out a little huff of a laugh, the teen let himself relax a bit more, head falling to rest on Tony’s shoulder. He liked how the man picked up on some of his body language or little quirks. “Yeah, some of this is just- it’s taking a lot more work than I thought it would.” 

The billionaire made a soft noise. “Anything I can help with, baby? You know I don’t mind.” 

Peter shook his head. “No, I… It’s okay, thank you, though. I really wanna do this- wanna surprise you, y'know?”

“Well, how about I-” Whatever Tony was beginning to say was cut off by the sound of Peter’s stomach growling. Loudly. He laughed before continuing, “How about I go get started on some lunch? You keep working, and I’ll call you when it’s ready, okay?” 

“That sounds amazing, Tony, thank you.” 

“Of course. Love you.”

“I love you too.” Opening the notebook back up once he could hear Tony banging around in the kitchen, Peter stared at his next task, one he’d been avoiding: the guest list. The blank guest list. 

Other than himself and Tony, there were only a few people that he wanted there. He wanted his family to be there to see him get married, to see him finally get his happy ending. 

Too bad everyone he’d ever loved was dead. (Except for May, but- He didn’t want to think about that.)

But...maybe he could bring them back. Just like he’d done with his new fiancé. 

Just the thought made his heart beat faster in his chest, the possibility of seeing them all again. Uncle Ben. Fuck, his mom and dad. He’d give anything to hold them, to see their smiles and hear their laughter-

Before really even thinking about it, his pen was flying across the page. Mom. Dad. Ben. May.

He paused after the last one. He felt- Was it wrong to bring May back? She wasn’t really gone, not in the same way that the others were. She was just- missing. Fuck, he missed her so much. But maybe this was something he would have to do without her. Tears stung his eyes as he crossed her name out with a shaking hand. 

Mom. Dad. Ben.

No. It looked incomplete with one of the most important people in his world missing. Wiping the tears away, Peter started writing again.

Mom. Dad. Ben. May.

***

“Have you guys tried to access EDITH?” When no one responded, instead just looked at him blankly, he furiously began flicking through the holograms in front of him, looking back and forth between it and his laptop. “Okay so EDITH is this really cool AI that Mr. Stark-”

Fury was quick to interrupt. He was doing his best to make sure there was no more rambling than was truly necessary. “We know about the tech, Leeds. But what reason would Parker have for creating illusions or utilizing the world’s most powerful armed-drone weapons system?”

“Look,” Ned sighed, fiddling with a pen. It made him feel weird, talking about Peter like this. “I know Peter. Probably better than almost anyone else. He...never really dealt with Mr. Stark’s death, and all of that stuff that happened in Europe with that Mysterio guy really didn’t help. Add in him being outed as Spider-Man?” He’d done a lot of thinking about this. And if he was honest with himself, he’d kind of known what was going on as soon as he knew his best friend had gone missing. 

He desperately wanted to be wrong, but he knew that he wasn’t. 

The young man shook himself out of his thoughts and continued. “He’s...hiding. He doesn’t want to be found because, well- Everything’s gone wrong here, for him. So he’s gone somewhere where nothing can go wrong.” His words only served to further convince himself as he said them out loud for the first time. 

Nick stared at the teenager. “You’re telling me that Parker is creating his own alternate reality where everything is sunshine and fucking rainbows? He’s running around making daisy chains?” 

Paige’s brows were furrowed as she tapped the cap of her pen on the table. “It’s a fairly normal and reasonable reaction, actually. Healthy, in some circumstances, though I’m not sure about this one. Mr. Leeds is right, Mr. Parker has dealt with extreme levels of trauma recently, and he’s most likely gone untreated if he’s anything like his older counterparts. He’s attempting to protect himself.” 

Rolling his eyes, Fury turned his attention from the young agent back to their new ‘consultant’. Lord help him. “So you think he’s out there, unsupervised and unstable, with a multimillion dollar piece of Stark tech? Great. How do we find him, Einstein?” 

Ned began typing furiously on his laptop. “Well, uh, I kinda already tried? I asked Paige, I mean- Agent Oliver, sorry, for access to SHIELD’s file on EDITH from last summer. I was able to look at the program logs and analyze their code. Once I figured out what I was working with, I was able to bypass some of the encrypted security features and download the logs up til now.” He frowned a bit, pausing. “I can see that the EDITH program has been in use recently- but the dispatch data for the drones… The location is scrambled.” 

“So what you’re saying is we still don’t know where he is.” Paige’s voice was slightly amused.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” The director’s most definitely was not.

“Hey, we might not know where he is, but we can at least get in contact with him now. Well- hopefully. Maybe. Since I was able to access EDITH’s archives and- basically, I think I can hack deeper into her programming and alter Peter’s illusions remotely.” 

He thought back to the footage he had seen when he’d cautiously (read: uneasily- there had been things he’d never wanted to witness his best friend doing) made his way through the most recent files in EDITH’s archives in order to make sure Peter was indeed the one using the tech. And he definitely was. There was a lot to unpack there, especially considering the amount of time Peter was spending wearing the glasses. 

But he was thinking specifically about the way Peter had written May’s name down on the notebook page titled “Guest List” before scratching it out, then repeated the whole process all over again several times. 

This was definitely going to hurt his friend, Ned knew. But he also knew that it was for Peter’s own good. Hopefully the other teen would realize that in time, too. 

“I think we should send May Parker in.”

***

Tony and Peter were laying on the couch in the living room, watching TV and cuddling. Or, well, their legs were cuddling. The older man was seated on one side, while Peter was stretched out on the other, their lower limbs entwined with each other under the fluffy throw blanket that the teen had claimed as his own.

Tony pointed his toes, pressing them into the meat of Peter’s thigh. “What’s up, baby? You aren’t even paying attention- this is your favorite show.” He waved his hand through the air, the gesture pausing the program. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he turned to study the young man’s face. “You look...anxious, Pete. What is it?”

Quickly trying to school his facial expression into something more neutral, Peter made eye contact with Tony for a second before directing his gaze to the giant flatscreen in front of them. “I’m fine,” he said softly. “Just thinking, y'know? Sorry for getting distracted,” he trailed off as Tony started the show back up again.

He had made up his mind about bringing his family back. He missed them and wanted to spend time with them, share this part of his life. There was no reason not to; it wouldn't hurt anyone.

Anyone other than Peter, that was. But he’d already worked on coming to terms with that. 

So he was starting to second-guess himself. What would happen when it was time to say goodbye? Could he handle that? 

Or- actually, he never got to say goodbye to them in the first place. His parents had died miles away from him. He'd been young enough that he couldn't really remember them dropping him off with his aunt and uncle when they left for their trip. He hadn't been with Ben when he was murdered. Maybe this time he could finally get the closure he so desperately needed, on his own terms. 

This would help him in the long run, he was sure of it. The whole thing would.

With his mind now made up, Peter reached his arm out to grab at Tony's hand, which squeezed his comfortingly. He watched the action on the screen without really following what was happening, debating the best way to move forward. 

Peter took a deep breath and closed his eyes, focusing for a moment. 

Then the elevator gave a soft ‘ding’ behind them, and FRIDAY’s gentle voice rang out through the penthouse, signalling that someone was on their way up. 

Peter felt like all the tension he’d been holding in his body released at that moment. He was ready. 

Tony, however, jumped a bit in surprise, the sudden interruption pulling his attention away from the TV, and turned to look at Peter with a confused look on his face. “Who- Are we expecting someone, Pete? Did you order pizza or something?” Waving his hand again, the program paused once more. 

A nervous chuckle escaped Peter’s lips as he wiggled his way out from under the blanket. Thankfully the AI hadn’t mentioned exactly who was on their way up. “Or something,” he said, pushing himself off the couch. He walked up the two little steps to the main area of the penthouse, stopping a few feet from the elevator. The LED screen above the door indicated that it would be arriving momentarily, only two floors away. 

The older man slowly made his way towards the teen. “Peter?” He sounded a bit anxious too, feeding off of his partner’s energy.

Shaking his head, Peter shot Tony a quick smile, one that he hoped was reassuring. He thought he’d had more of a grip on his emotions, at least from the other’s point of view. He would have to do better, couldn’t let his control slip so easily. “It’s nothing bad, I promise. Just- There’s some-”

Another ding, this one a bit louder, and the doors opened. 

“Peter?”

Tears immediately welled up in the young man’s eyes when he heard the voice say his name. A sob erupted from his mouth as he brought his shaking hands up in an attempt to muffle it. “Mom,” he cried, barely even glancing at her before he was all but running into the arms that hadn’t held him in over a decade. “Mama- I-”

Mary ran her hand through her son’s curls, pulling him close to her chest. “Oh, Petey, it’s okay. It’s okay, baby, I’m right here.” She hummed softly, squeezing him tighter. 

Peter shook his head, forehead digging into his mother’s collarbone. He didn’t want to let go, never wanted to let her go ever again. He felt like he was back to being six years old. She still smelled the same, like honey and vanilla. Like safety and home. “Missed you, missed you so much-”

Richard laughed softly from his place beside his wife once his son had started to calm down a little. “And what am I, Pete, chopped liver?” 

“No, of course not,” the teen mumbled, turning his head to smile shakily at the man. One of his hands came up to wipe some of the tears away while the other stayed clutched around the fabric of Mary’s sweater. “But you’re not Mom.”

His father only laughed some more, moving to wrap his arms around them both. “It’s good to see you, bud. We’ve missed you something awful. Look how big you’ve gotten.” 

“I’ll say!” Ben's exclamation made another choked sound bubble up from his nephew's lungs. His warm, booming voice broadcasted his happiness as much as the grin on his face. “Not a rugrat anymore, are ya champ?” 

"Hi Uncle Ben," Peter said through more tears, overwhelmed at the sight of the man he'd grown to love as much as his own father. 

After a moment and a few more pleasantries, the group started to move towards the sitting area, and Peter didn’t stray far from them, content with letting himself be enveloped by all the love he’d missed for so long, even as he heard Tony begin introducing himself to everyone. 

But someone was still missing. He glanced behind his family in the direction of the elevator, trying to focus again. 

May was supposed to be there too. She had to be, he couldn’t do this without her. 

***

“Dammit, Leeds, patch her through,” Fury urged impatiently, closely watching the screen where they could see the illusion playing out in real time. 

Ned winced in response, switching around a bit of the coding in what he hoped would be the last step. He hadn’t really had enough time to perfectly add any more tech to the program, but even his minor modifications would be helpful. They needed anything they could get in order to try and get through to Peter. 

Hopefully his attempt would work. 

He turned to look at May, who was watching everything with wide eyes. "You ready, May?"

And for a second, she didn't know how to answer that. The woman wasn’t so sure about getting involved with SHIELD, but she was desperate to have Peter back. She wasn’t sure what was going on with him. Things had been weird ever since Tony Stark died- well, weirder than the new normal of her teenage nephew moonlighting as a superhero. So there wasn’t any hesitation on her part when she agreed to going into his illusion. 

It seemed complicated, but maybe that was just because she hadn’t ever been very into technology. Anything other than her phone seemed to be beyond her understanding.

Ned had managed to get an old virtual reality headset semi-patched  into the EDITH program. In theory, it would allow May to see and participate in the illusion that Peter was living. And the hope was that he’d just think she was part of it until she could get to him. Then she could talk some sense into him and convince him to come home where he belonged. 

“Alright May, here we go,” the teen spoke up again despite her silence, eyes back on his computer screen. “Anything coming up yet?”

May sighed and shifted her position in the chair, about ready to pull the stupid headset off. She knew that she probably looked pretty ridiculous to everyone else in the room. And for what? All she saw was a black screen, mocking her with its emptiness. “No. Nothing. It’s just-“

Suddenly there was a flicker of light that turned into a hazy mess of colors- It almost looked like what she saw without her glasses. “Wait, I think I might have something!”

A hush took over the room as all eyes were on May, everyone waiting with bated breath to see if their efforts would be successful. 

“Remember what we discussed earlier, you have to act like you’re part of his world. He can’t know that you’re actually you yet. It is imperative that you assimilate into his alternate reality,” Paige said from where she was standing across the room, watching as the older woman began to turn her head about, clearly trying to explore her surroundings. “We might only have one shot at this!” 

May took a deep breath and nodded. Yeah, no pressure. She definitely remembered. She had been instructed to keep her feelings in check until they either got Peter to shut the whole thing down or they learned his location. No matter how much she wanted to, she couldn’t act differently than how Peter expected her to in the scene he’d set. Which was going to be- challenging, to say the least. Because she definitely had a lot of feelings about this whole situation going on between him and Mr. Stark.

Ned’s hands flew across the keys, his whole focus on successfully getting May into the illusion and to Peter. He had to save his best friend. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself, otherwise.

The whole picture slowly came to life before May’s eyes, blurred blobs sharpening into recognizable objects, and she could no longer hear the commotion of the people around her. All she heard was- 

She heard the sound of Ben's laughter, mingling with the voices of Richie and Mary, and her heart somehow sank to her stomach and jumped up into her throat at the same time.

He’d really brought them all back. 

***

The elevator dinged once more, the missing piece to Peter’s puzzle walking out with a gentle smile on her face as she looked around the open layout apartment. May made eye contact with Peter and her face immediately lit up. “Oh, Peter. Hi baby, it’s so good to see you.” 

Peter’s own eyes widened, and he grinned as he took a step towards her. He heard his uncle cry out happily behind him, “There you are, May! What’d you do, get lost?” At the same time, the hair on his arms stood on end and a shiver ran down his spine. And huh- he must’ve missed his aunt even more than he thought, in order to be excited enough for this type of-

With a gasp and a panicked cry, Peter’s eyes flew open as he fumbled with the glasses until they went flying from his face. The sound of them hitting the padded floor vaguely registered in his mind. He turned his head left and right frantically, while simultaneously springing to his feet and leaping up into the corner where the ceiling met the wall. 

His heart was racing in his chest and thudding in his ears as his eyes darted around the room, trying to locate the threat that his extra sense was picking up on. (He refused to call it the Peter-Tingle on principle.)  

It was silent for five minutes as he sat there, shaking and blinking back tears. Nothing had happened- Karen said there were no other heat signatures within a 70 mile radius. There was obviously no threat but- What the fuck was that?

His spidey-sense had been haywire for a while, yeah, ever since he came back after the Blip. But it was always a case of them not alerting him to potential threats, never had they been overactive like that, unnecessarily hyper-vigilant.

Maybe it was all the stress finally catching up with him. 

Trying to control his breathing, Peter let himself drop down to the floor, landing in a crouch. He stood up and slowly made his way over to the gym mats he had been lounging on. The teen spun around in a circle once he reached them, searching the ground for the blue-framed lenses. 

They weren’t too far away so he retrieved them in a couple steps and ran his finger over the dark glass. There didn’t seem to be any damage, thankfully. He’d never forgive himself if anything happened to the glasses. They were the only good thing he had left. 

Tucking back into his prior position, Peter curled up on the cushioned surface. After looking around a few more times, listening as hard as he could, he sighed and placed the glasses back on his face. 

He had a family to get back to, and he didn’t want to keep them waiting any longer than he already had.

Chapter 5: Wedding

Summary:

warnings: marriage, reference to canonical character death

Notes:

A/N: because it comes up in this chapter: we took the artistic liberty of changing canon, so our may was not blipped.

and the big day is finally here!! our babies are getting MARRIED!! enjoy all the sap! <3
- bloo and bri

Chapter Text

"So, Tony," Mary started, leaning against her husband on the couch, glass of wine in hand. "How long have you and Peter known each other?"

Everyone was gathered in the sitting area, having just finished a wonderful home cooked meal of pot roast, potatoes, and roasted veggies, prepared by Mary, May, and Peter. But most of the work had been done by the latter. 

Tony smiled softly at the question, casting a glance at Peter, who was tucked into his own side. He took a small sip from his glass before speaking. "A few years. We met through my job, actually. I was in a bit of a tricky situation, and in my search for possible- solutions, I stumbled across some of Peter's work. And I was absolutely blown away."

The statement elicited a hum of pride from Ben as he raised his beer in the air. “That’s our Pete, ever the genius. He gets it from his uncle.” The grin on his face was easy and relaxed as he nudged his knee against May’s.

Peter snorted out a quiet laugh, gazing at his uncle and then landing his eyes on Tony. “I was just happy to help,” he said sweetly. And it wasn’t untrue. He had been beyond thrilled to go to Berlin with Tony. He’d been idolizing the man nearly a decade at that point.

How had that been less than three years ago? It felt like a lifetime had passed since the day they first met, when he walked into their tiny apartment to find Tony Stark sitting on his couch, winking at him.

Mary nodded, an easy smile on her lips. “That’s perfect.” She looked at Richard, holding onto his hand. The diamond on her wedding ring glinted in the light. “Sounds a bit like us, doesn’t it?”

Her husband laughed, pressing a kiss to her forehead, his gaze fond. “It does, doesn’t it? But like father, like son, I guess.” He grinned at Peter. 

The young man laughed, smiling sheepishly. He knew it was different, completely so, but he made no effort to correct the statement. He liked the idea that he and Tony were like his parents. That they were just another normal couple, living a normal life. One without extraordinary responsibility, risk, pain, and loss. 

The life that they were meant to live, together. 

Tony chuckled, hugging Peter closer to his body. He kissed the top of his fiancé’s head, nearly a mirrored action of how the younger man’s parents had acted. And- wasn’t that something? “Well, I’m just glad I found him when I did. He changed me, and my life, for the better and I couldn’t imagine living without him at this point.” 

May snorted, covering it with a cough. It wouldn’t have fit the scene for her to laugh at something that was seemingly so random. Especially since she was the only person in the room other than Peter that knew that this Tony definitely wouldn’t be able to imagine life without Peter. Not without direction from her nephew’s fantasy, that is. 

Hopefully Peter wouldn’t catch her slip up. 

He didn’t seem to, just glancing over to her for a second before looking at his mom as she spoke again. 

“Now, what’s the plan for the wedding? When is it going to be? Oh, a late-summer wedding would be so lovely. What are you thinking?” Mary asked, rambling excitedly, eyes wide as she looked over at Tony and Peter. “I can’t believe our boy is finally getting married!”

May wished that she could ignore the way her heart clenched at the words. There was no ‘finally’. Peter shouldn’t have been getting married. He was far too young. She hated the way that no one else there could understand how wrong it all was. She had to keep reminding herself that it wasn’t real

“Oh, well,” Peter paused and looked at Tony, both apprehension and joy visible in his eyes. He flipped his hand over on his thigh, opening and closing his fist until his partner got the hint and clasped their hands together. “We want to do something soon since everyone is here. Maybe that’s a bit unorthodox but-“

“But so are we,” Tony joked lightly, nodding encouragingly at the younger man. 

Peter’s cheeks flushed a soft pink as he laughed. “Well, there’s no denying that.” And it was okay to joke about it. Because none of his family would think there was anything out of the ordinary. They couldn’t. All they’d see and react to was their love. As they should. “But yeah, something...within a few days?” Maybe even less than that. 

He wanted to have his dream wedding as soon as he finished what little planning was left. 

And with his family surrounding him, everything was almost complete. 

It was going to be perfect.

***

With his guest list prepared and everyone nearby, the ideal venue nailed down, and the other details listed out in his notebook, Peter could only think of one last thing that needed to be taken care of.

His vows. 

Sure, it wasn’t mandatory for him to write his own. But he needed Tony to know just how strong his love was, and he wanted his words to be something personal rather than the generic cookie-cutter vows. He couldn’t let such a meaningful event go by without taking the opportunity to convey how much he truly loved the older man. 

So Peter started on that last step, the words pouring out of him as he wrote them down. It felt as if he was putting his whole heart onto the paper, bearing it for all to see. Luckily, none of the people who would witness the fruits of his efforts would be judging him in any way. 

No one other than himself, that was.

***

The night before the wedding found Peter puttering around the bedroom in one of Tony’s band t-shirts and a pair of pajama pants. He ran his hands through his already unruly hair, going down his mental checklist, when the older man walked in. “Hey T,” he sighed, smiling softly in his direction.

“You’re sure I can’t sleep in here tonight?” Tony pouted, sitting down on the edge of the bed. His overnight bag was on the floor by his feet, the garment bag containing his suit already out in the living room for him to grab on his way to one of the guest rooms. Where his soon-to-be husband was insisting he spend the night.

Peter chuckled under his breath and took a few steps so that he was standing in front of the other man. He draped his arms around Tony’s neck, looking down into his eyes. “I’m positive.” When the pout only deepened at his words, he rolled his eyes playfully. “It’s bad luck for you to see me before tomorrow, Tony! I’m serious- You are not to lay eyes on me until I’m making my way to the altar!”

“I don’t think that superstition counts if you’re not wearing a dress,” the sulky man pointed out, grumbling under his breath. He paused, frowning at Peter once more for good measure. “But fine,” he muttered after a moment, having accepted his fate when Peter’s expression didn’t change. “At least give me a kiss to hold me over, then?”

And who was Peter to say no to that? 

He leaned down a little, closing the short distance between them as he pressed his lips to Tony’s quickly. Just a peck.

Of course, it couldn’t just stay a soft kiss with Tony. He was immediately trying to turn it into more, pulling Peter closer and nipping at his bottom lip enticingly. 

Despite the way his stomach swooped at the sensation, the younger man pulled away, laughing softly. “No, no. That’s not going to work. Don’t even try that.” 

Tony hummed, a slightly smug look on his face. He seemed to know just what kind of reaction he’d elicited. “Don’t try what? I can’t say I know what you mean, Pete...”

Peter laughed again, shaking his head. “You’re impossible. You know that?” He kissed the older man gently one more time before sitting down on the bed beside him. Letting his head lean to the side to rest his temple on Tony’s shoulder, he let out a deep breath, just enjoying the warmth of the innocent contact.

“It’s one of my best qualities,” Tony shot back playfully, his own head tilting to lean on the top of Peter’s. He slowly stood up after a moment, stretching his back and rotating his torso a few times. He cast a look in the teen’s direction. “But fine, I’m going now. To that cold, empty guest room. Where I’ll sleep all alone,” he said dramatically, throwing his head back slightly with a flourish. He bent over to scoop his bag up from the ground and took a step away from the bed.

Despite knowing that his partner was joking, Peter couldn’t help the way his chest grew tight. He didn’t  want to actually go to sleep without Tony. Just the thought caused his heart to lurch with panic and made him want to cry. He didn’t want to be away from him at all, not even in their current situation. Traditions be damned. “Tony...”

Turning around, the taller man raised an eyebrow. “Yeah?” He caught the look in the other’s eyes and immediately turned around to face him, taking a small step closer. “Peter? What is it, what’s wrong, baby? Is it what I said? I’m just joking, Pete, it’s okay. I’m sor-”

Peter shook his head rapidly. He sniffed softly to try and lessen the stinging sensation in the back of his nose. “No, no don’t be sorry Tony, I know you’re kidding. But- Can you maybe…,” he trailed off, blinking a few times against the moisture that was building up. His eyes locked on Tony’s before darting away. 

God, why was he so anxious and upset? Literally all he needed to do was tell Tony that he’d changed his mind. 

“I just- Can you stay, maybe?” He chanced a look back at Tony, who was nodding with the expression of someone who had just been asked what they thought was a ridiculously easy question.

“Of course, babydoll,” Tony said, dropping the small duffel to the floor and pulling the young man into his arms. He pressed a kiss to the side of his head and squeezed him tight for a moment. “C’mon, let’s go to bed, we can cuddle for a while.” He smiled softly as they pulled away from each other, ducking down quickly to touch his lips to Peter’s. “We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

***

Everything went smoothly after that. The couple slept soundly, snuggled together all night long with Peter’s head pressed up against Tony’s chest. 

And they stayed that way for a while after waking, whispering to each other in the morning light. The two didn’t separate until it was absolutely necessary and they needed to get ready, lest they be late to their own wedding. 

Everyone made their way to the venue (although the rest of them would have believed they traveled by car, Peter knew that all he’d done was shift the scene) and settled in their appropriate areas to get ready. 

It was getting close to starting time and no one had seen Peter yet. So May decided that it could be a good time for her to fully immerse herself in the illusion once again. 

“Not getting cold feet, are you?” She asked gently as she stepped into the room that was serving as the 'bridal' suite. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight that greeted her.

Peter was standing in front of the full-length mirror, his back to the door. His hair was curled haphazardly on top of his head, effortlessly beautiful, a few pieces falling down into his face as he fussed with the white button-up and black vest he was putting on to go with his dark tailored trousers

She was suddenly struck with the memory of watching a much smaller boy get himself ready for a funeral, staring at himself in the too-large suit jacket that had been her husband’s just a few days prior. 

Just a little boy playing dress up, trying to be a man. 

Peter’s head jerked up at the sound of her voice, and she realized that her sudden appearance must not have fit exactly with his script for this scene.

He made eye contact with her in the mirror, finishing up the last button on his shirt. An excited yet nervous smile tugged at his lips. “What? Of course not.” The tone of his voice suggested that he thought it silly, the notion that he’d ever second guess marrying Tony. That it was a decision he would happily make without thinking at all.

And in her opinion, he kind of was. 

The woman held back her reservations and gave him a gentle smile, coming to help with the tie that was hanging undone around his neck. “I’m glad to hear that, bubby.” At least, that’s what she was going to lead Peter to believe. She still didn’t approve, illusion or not. 

It was only partially due to the fact that the other party involved was Tony Stark. Her dislike, bordering on apathy, for the man was no secret. He’d gotten her nephew, her baby, killed further away from home than she’d ever even imagined possible. But not before whisking him away on a covert mission to Germany, then abandoning him after burdening him with what was an absurd amount of responsibility for even a grown man. Peter had come clean about everything after he returned from the Blip.

She never forgot the way she felt when she saw the video of Peter being dragged into space by that creature, the panic of not being able to get in touch with him. 

Nor the way Tony Stark had shown up on her doorstep, haggard and unkempt, after dodging her calls for weeks. How he wasn’t able to even look her in the eye as he confirmed what she already knew- That her baby wasn’t coming home, that he’d been taken away from her without the chance to say goodbye. The chance to tell him that he was enough, that he didn’t need to save the world to be worthy. That he was her world. 

She’d come to a sort of peace about it all after the Blip was reversed. She never absolved Stark of the role he played in Peter’s death, but she was able to reconcile it with the fact that he sacrificed his own life to restore those of half of the world’s population. 

With that, she believed that she’d never have to see him again. He was gone. And that was just fine with her. 

Yet he was still haunting her. The very man who she felt was at fault for robbing her of five years with Peter was causing her nephew to break, to get lost in his own mind. The ass was dead, but he was still managing to screw things up. 

Because even the near-peace she felt she had reached towards the man didn't mean she was okay him marrying, or even dating, her underage nephew. Sure, Peter was the age of consent in New York, but that was just a technicality. She kept having to remind herself that none of it was real, but rather an extremely detailed fantasy that she was experiencing secondhand. 

She was definitely going to talk to Peter about the relationship once the whole thing was over. He had to know that none of it was possible in the real world. 

Peter couldn’t let go. He’d already lost so much, she could see that he couldn’t bear to lose this too. Not at the moment. It was the one place he felt safe and happy, after not feeling either of those things for who knew how long.

And May was forced to watch helplessly from the side. 

She could see that he was different. Even if what she saw wasn’t his physical body, there was a look in his eyes that broke her heart. It was almost wild as he frantically grasped at pieces of his reality, unhinged. But his eyes also held a dullness that she hadn’t seen in a long time. One she’d hoped to never see again.

The same look she’d seen on that newly orphaned little boy’s face on the way home from the service, in the faraway expression on the lanky teen that had lost yet another person he loved.

She had to keep reminding herself of the plan. She had to play along to the best of her abilities and keep Peter happy until she could convince him to shut the illusion down and come home. 

Everything in her wanted to beg him to just give up this mess and come home to her already. She’d barely had him back before he was gone again, this time of his own accord. But she knew that she couldn’t. Not yet. She just had to play along. 

Hopefully not for much longer. 

The woman directed her attention back to Peter after pushing the thoughts away. “It’s about time to get this show on the road, isn’t it?” She didn’t want to give him away. Even if it was just for this fantasy of his. It felt like she was losing him entirely to the world he’d created in his mind. 

Peter nodded slowly, hands fidgeting nervously with his clothes. “Yeah, almost. I should probably start...heading out there, huh? Although it’s not like things can start without me,” he joked softly. 

May figured that much was definitely true. “Yeah, I guess you should. And I should too. I’ll be right there, bubby. Right next to Ben and your parents.” The words felt wrong to say. No matter how badly either of them wanted it, Mary and Richard were never going to be there to see him get married. Neither was her Ben.

But there they were anyways. Saving a seat for her. 

She wasn’t sure if it was any better than sitting beside three empty seats, reserved for people incapable of occupying them.

***

There was an easy smile on Peter's face as he looked around, heart pounding. It was nearly time for it to really begin. Almost time to finally make his way down the aisle. 

He was really going to marry the man of his dreams. He was gonna marry Tony Stark.

Then the scene began shifting, the walls slowly disappearing from around him. 

His heart nearly stopped. He was worried that the whole thing was all falling apart, melting away right before his eyes. Panic bloomed in his chest.  But he was still in control, evidenced by the small bouquet of flowers he thought into existence on a whim, so he didn’t understand what could possibly have been happening. 

When the smoke (or pixels, technically) cleared and he could finally work out his surroundings again, he felt tears stinging his eyes as his breath caught in his throat. 

It wasn’t the huge, extravagant venue from before. Not even close. Gone was the large ballroom, striking in its opulence. There was nothing grand or luxurious about what he saw now but it felt so much more like them. It was perfect. 

All around Peter was a bright, plush green meadow dotted with pastel-colored wildflowers. Tall trees surrounded the perimeter of the clearing, separating them from the rest of the world. Sunlight shone through the foliage in scattered beams, casting everything in an ethereal glow. The air was sweet and calm, instantly calming his nerves. 

Turning his head, he saw that he was standing on the porch of a small log cabin. May was standing in the entryway, watching him with wide eyes. It warmed his heart to see how emotional she was, how much she cared about him and his happiness.

And just a few yards away was the ceremony. Tony was already standing in front of the makeshift altar with Uncle Ben, eyes shining as he watched Peter. He smiled softly before biting his lip and winking, the actions at odds with the way he brought a hand up in a slight wave before clasping them both in front of him. His thumbs wrestled with each other, twiddling back and forth.

Peter recognized the gesture as something his lover did when he was feeling nervous about something and trying to hide it. 

Too bad Peter knew most of his tells.

The young man smiled from the steps as he began descending them, stepping down into the lush grass in a few strides. 

He caught movement out the corner of his eye and he watched as a small pastel yellow butterfly landed on the wildflower bouquet clutched in his left hand. 

A soft laugh bubbled up from Peter’s chest. He just couldn’t help himself. He thought he’d had what he wanted, but what he ended up with was so much better than he could have imagined. It was absolutely magical. 

He turned around slightly when he heard May come to stand beside him. 

“You ready, baby?” Her eyes were shining wetly behind her glasses, the wind gently blowing the skirt of her lilac colored dress.  

Nodding, Peter took a deep breath and clutched at his aunt’s hand. “I’m getting married, May,” he said quietly, awestruck and wide eyed as they started making their way to the altar, unable to help the teary smile on his face. 

May sniffled and squeezed his hand. “Yeah, you are, bubby.” Her voice was soft, but he could hear the slight wobble she was trying to hide. “You make sure he treats you right, okay?”

“I know he will,” Peter assured her, turning to look at the older man as they walked, the song of the birds in the trees serving as the wedding march. “Tony would never do anything to hurt me.” 

May just hummed softly in response, locking eyes with Ben as they reached the beginning of the trail of brightly colored petals leading up to the altar, which had the same blooms intertwined with the lattice of the thin sticks it was composed of. She choked out a wet laugh when the man just grinned and winked at her. 

Peter felt something give in his chest at the interaction, struck by the familiarity, and he clutched the bouquet tighter in his hand when Tony’s eyes met his. 

The teen didn’t look away once until he and May came to a stop in front of the two men. 

His aunt pressed her lips to his cheek in a kiss, squeezing his hand one last time and taking the bouquet from him before going to sit down beside his parents, who were seated on a wooden bench a few feet away from them.

Ben took a small step forward to knock his elbow against Peter’s. “You ready, champ?” His eyes searched the boy’s as the younger nodded. “Great,” he said softly, grinning as he moved back to his spot, glancing at Tony before turning to his family.  

“We’re gathered here today to celebrate the marriage of the two men standing in front of me, Peter and Tony. To celebrate their love. Which is something I’m fortunate enough to know a thing or two about, myself. My May, our love and the wonderful life I’ve been able to share with her, that’s the most special thing I’ve ever experienced, and I’m overjoyed that Peter has found his own soulmate.” 

Peter sniffled, tears already stinging in his eyes, despite the fact that they’d just gotten started. His hands were clenched into fists at his sides, fingers twitching restlessly.

“I’ll be reading some traditional vows, but first, Tony and Peter have some words they’d like to share with each other. You're up first, right Pete?” Ben turned his head toward the younger man.

The teen nodded at his uncle and looked down at his feet, taking a deep breath before lifting his head up and gazing deeply into the eyes of the man he was about to marry. 

"Tony," he said, voice cracking. "I've spent hours trying to figure out what I wanted to say to you, but nothing I came up with seemed good enough. And I realized that nothing ever would be, and that all I could do was try my best to show you how much I love you. And that's just it, that's exactly what I'm going to spend the rest of our life doing. So I- Tony, I promise to always do my best, to be the best man that I can. Because you and your love are the best thing that will ever happen to me." He took a shaky breath, steeling himself for his next words. “And I know that nothing is stronger than our love for each other.” 

The older man gazed at him, eyes alight with adoration. “I’ll be the first to admit that I never really believed in true love. Had I felt love, even been in love before? Yeah, of course. But none of that ever felt predestined, none of it felt like fate. None of that was inevitable.” He paused, swallowing thickly. “But then I met you, Pete. And you completely turned my world upside down. You changed everything.”

A soft sound slipped from Peter’s lips, and he slapped a hand over his mouth to prevent it from happening again. “Tony,” he said tearfully, the sound muffled by his palm. 

His love just shook his head and shot him a wobbly smile. “It’s true, baby. You are what was always missing, that thing that I never knew I needed, but now know I cannot live without. And I’ll continue to do whatever is necessary to ensure that I never have to. You’ll never want for anything, physically or emotionally. I vow to give you all of me, everything that I am. Because you’re it for me, Peter.” The tears escaping his eyes did nothing to take away from the lopsided grin that overtook his face. “This right here...this is my endgame.”

Peter’s mouth was open before he could stop it. “I love you,” he blurted as he reached out to grab the older man’s hand, biting back a sob. “Tony I love you so much-,” he rushed out.

Tony chuckled, the hand Peter wasn’t holding moving up to cup his cheek and swipe away the tear that was rolling down his skin. “I love you too, baby.” 

It was quiet, everyone touched as the love between the two of them was put on display.

“And I guess it’s my turn now.” Ben cleared his throat after a moment in an attempt to get rid of the lump that had formed there. “If you’ll take out the rings, please.” He waited as the men each pulled a thin gold band from their pockets. "Do you, Peter Benjamin Parker, take this man, Anthony Edward Stark, to be your lawfully wedded husband-"

"I do, you know I do," Peter choked out through his tears, unable to keep himself from interrupting yet again. He reached out for Tony’s hand and clumsily slid the metal onto his ring ringer. The chuckles that followed caused a red flush to take over his face, but he held fast to his statement. Of course he did, Tony was the most important person in his life. Getting to marry him and spend the rest of their days together was a dream come true. He wasn’t sorry about it at all. 

His uncle just shook his head, smiling fondly at his excitement. "Alright, hold your horses, Pete- And do you, Anthony Edward Stark, take this man, Peter Benjamin Parker, to be your lawfully wedded husband?" He paused there, eyes shining as he playfully glanced at Tony as if he were going to interrupt as well. 

Tony just bit back a smirk, eyes moving from Ben back to Peter. His hands squeezed at the younger man’s, and his eyes twinkled in the afternoon light that came through the trees.

Ben continued once it was clear that the man was going to keep quiet until it was his turn to speak. "To have and to hold from this day forward? To love and to cherish for better or worse, for richer or poorer, through sickness and in health, til death do you part?" 

“I do,” Tony answered, not breaking his gaze at Peter as he spoke. Then he did look away, taking both of Peter’s hands in his to place the ring on his finger, running his thumb over it once it was in place. 

“Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you Mr. and Mr. Stark. You may now kiss your husband.”

Their lips met before the sentence was even finished.

***

Peter laughed as he was lifted into the air, not fighting it as Tony grabbed him bridal-style and carried him into the cabin he had exited earlier. “What are you doing?” His giddiness was apparent in his voice.

“What? I’m carrying you over the threshold,” Tony told him with a grin. “It’s traditional. I was under the impression that  you were all for traditions.” He carried his husband through the doorway, leaning down to kiss him gently. 

They were officially husbands.

As their lips met, the scene began shifting again. 

The soft, homey feel of the cabin slowly melted away, a more sophisticated room developing around them. It was almost like watching instant film develop, though much faster. The sounds of family and nature slowly ceased. All that mattered was Tony and their kiss. The way Tony’s slightly chapped lips were moving against his. 

When they finally parted again and opened their eyes the setting was completely changed. 

Tony didn’t seem to notice, carrying Peter over to the plush white bed and setting him down. His eyes drank in the way the teen looked in the evening light, bathed in the pinks and purples of the sunset outside. “I think this will be a wonder to sleep on tonight. As well as...other things,” he said suggestively. 

Peter laughed, shaking his head as he glanced around the room. The bed was huge, a California king like the one in the penthouse, with crisp sheets and topped with a down comforter that swallowed him up like a cloud as he lay on top of it. Two of the walls were almost completely glass, reminding him of their bedroom and making him feel at home in the luxurious setting.

 It was way nicer than anything he’d ever actually been in, except maybe for the hotel they’d stayed in on their ‘retreat’ to Berlin. But this time he wasn’t down the hall from Tony, they were sharing a room. Sharing a bed. And it was perfect. His blood thrummed in his veins. “Oh yeah? That’s some pretty big talk. You sound like you have plans.”

The older man hummed, crawling onto the bed with his husband after kicking his shoes off and leaving them to land on the plush dark gray carpet. “I just might. Would you be interested in hearing them?”

“Hmm. Perhaps I could be persuaded.” Peter stretched out on the bed, stroking one hand through Tony’s hair as the man leaned his forehead against his chest, pressing a kiss over his heart. “Of course I wanna know, I’m just teasing.” One of his hands came up to grab at Tony’s hair. 

Tony nodded, a soft hum escaping his lips as he moved up closer in order to kiss Peter again. He shifted and nudged a knee between the young man’s thighs to support himself as he hovered over his body. The kiss deepened, mouths moving together sensually before they pulled apart to breathe, only to reconnect seconds later, neither of them wanting to part any time soon. 

They could leave the talking and just do. Following the way they felt, using their bodies to communicate with each other, was so much better than talking it out, anyways. There was no second-guessing, no pausing to try and get the words right. 

Their bodies stayed intertwined the rest of the night, the newlywed husbands hardly parting from each other once. 

And nothing was going to break them apart. 

Til death do us part, their vows claimed. 

But not even death was strong enough to do such a thing.

Chapter 6: Honeymoon & Sugar Baby

Summary:

warnings: nff, daddy kink, brief somnophilia (and minor under discussed kink with that), brief choking, sugar baby-esque relationship

Notes:

A/N: did we really write 6k of porn and sugar baby fantasies?? yes we did.

also bloo is a 7 year old, so here is the link to peter’s shorts https://www.chubbiesshorts.com/products/the-fowl-plays-shortie-stretch

Chapter Text

When Peter woke up, the first thing he registered was the feeling of a warm, thick erection pressed up between the bare cheeks of his ass. A soft whine left his mouth as his belly flipped, his own cock stirring against his thigh. His back arched into the touch, grinding back against his husband’s dick.

His hole twitched wantonly and he paused, waiting to see if his movements caused any reaction in the older man. Turning his head slightly, he strained for a moment as he looked at Tony’s sleeping face. 

The bearded man’s mouth was open slightly and a soft snore escaped him under the teen’s watch. His hand, which was resting limply on Peter’s hip, twitched and he pushed his body a bit closer to the warmth in front of him.

Peter bit back a groan at the sensation of the velvety flesh gliding across the skin of his crack, slick with residual cum and lube. He could tell that he was still open and loose from the night before, could he just- he could just slip it inside, right? It would be so easy. All he had to do was tilt his hips the right way and it would be in, filling him up. 

Maybe...maybe just the tip? He was sure Tony wouldn’t mind. They hadn’t exactly...talked about it, but it had never been mentioned as a limit. (Not that they’d had that conversation-)

Biting his lip, he reached back behind him to stroke the hot, rigid organ a few times. It was heavy in his palm, and just feeling the thick weight of it there made a shiver run through him. He paused his actions to use one hand to pull his cheeks apart so he could run his pointer finger over his puffy rim, sucking in a breath when the tip of the digit breached him with almost no resistance. 

He pushed a little and then his finger was truly sucked in, muscle clenching below the second knuckle. A soft keening noise filled the air and Peter tried desperately to resist the urge to crook his finger and press against his prostate.

Somehow he managed to hold himself back, slowly sliding the digit out until his opening was twitching around air once more. 

Checking again for any signs of consciousness, he shifted his hips and nudged Tony's ankle with his big toe.

Nothing. 

Peter took it as a sign. He again grasped the man's erection in his hand and brought the head to his hole. He let it rest there for a moment before pushing his hips back, the tip making its way inside easily. There was a bit more resistance once the flare of the head was inside, but the teen persevered, whimpering slightly until it was inside him, along with the majority of Tony's cock.

It felt so good, the stretch and fullness causing liquid flame to pool behind his belly button.

He started thrusting softly, canting his hips back to get some friction inside him and spitting into his hand before reaching for his own neglected dick. The sensation caused his muscles to tighten their grip on his husband, who began to stir in response to the stimulation.

“Mmmm. Baby...wha’s goin’ on,'' Tony slurred, still not fully awake. “Was havin’ a good dream…” He blinked groggily, trying to rouse himself from the sleep-induced haze that was clouding his mind. Moaning softly, his hand tightened on Peter’s hip as he realized that the pleasure he was feeling had nothing to do with the remnants of his dream. “Fuck, Pete, Jesus-”

A whimper left Peter’s mouth at the sound of the older man’s raspy morning voice cursing at him. “I couldn’t w- I couldn’t wait, Daddy, needed you. Needed your cock,” he mewled, clenching around Tony’s erection. 

“Yeah, baby boy? You needed Daddy’s cock inside you so bad you couldn’t even wake me up first? Had to take it for yourself, didn’t you,” Tony growled deep in his throat, hot breath ghosting over the shell of Peter’s ear. His hand tightened where it was clutching the teen’s waist while the other moved to grip at the pale expanse of his throat. “Daddy’s greedy little thing.” Without any warning, he snapped his hips forward so that his entire cock was sheathed in the boy’s quivering hole, buried to the root.

“Yeeeesssss,” Peter cried, drawing the word out as he threw his head back in pleasure. “Please, Tony- Daddy, please.”

“What, what is it, Pete? What do you need- Tell me, baby, I’ll give you whatever you want. You know that.” His lips skimmed across the sensitive skin just below Peter’s ear, tongue peeking out briefly.

Peter mewled at the sensation, surprised at how good it felt and desperately wanting more. “Just- just need you to fuck me,” he breathed, leaning his head back against Tony’s shoulder. “Please. Need you.”

Tony hummed softly, his hand around Peter’s throat tightening slightly as he flexed his fingers. “Do you, now? Even after everything we did last night?” He nipped at the skin over Peter’s jugular.

He would gladly do anything that his husband wanted. It just seemed like a wonder to him that Peter was up for anything at all. They’d had a long, eventful night. He had to be at least a little sore.

Little did he know that the younger man was relishing the feeling of his rim stinging slightly as the motions of Tony’s cock tugged at it. The pain meant it was real.

“Yes! Please, Daddy,” Peter whimpered, eyes slowly slipping shut at the way Tony’s hand tightened. It was just pressure, not affecting his breathing in the slightest, but it was incredibly effective. The sign of possession was obvious, only aiding in making him that much hornier. 

Maybe one day he’d get Tony to choke him for real, to cut off his air supply and keep him at his mercy-

The older man nodded, taking the opportunity to slowly start thrusting his hips in earnest. His cock slid easily from the teen’s hole before he was pushing in again, creating a quick but fairly-gentle pace. Just how Peter liked it. He felt owned and cherished at the same time.

He felt loved. 

Peter slowly moved his hips in tandem with the larger man’s thrusts, keeping up with the pace and fucking back onto Tony. He knew neither of them were going to last long this early in the morning, but that was okay. As long as they both felt good. 

Tony groaned behind him, his hot breath ghosting against Peter’s skin. “That’s it, baby. Is this good?” His hand on Peter’s waist started slipping lower, curving over the teen’s hipbone and settling there for the moment. 

“It’s so good, Daddy, thank you,” Peter moaned, clenching around Tony’s cock as he kept moving. “You’re so big, makes me feel so good. ‘M so full.” His cheeks burned as he talked, but he let himself say the words. No need to be embarrassed when there wasn’t anyone else to hear him. 

The one person who could hear had a visceral reaction, hips stuttering for a moment. “And you’re- god, you’re so tight,” Tony ground out, biting down on his lip. “Squeezing me like that. It’s almost like you’re still a virgin, fuck.” He groaned low in his throat. 

They definitely wouldn’t be lasting long. 

Peter shivered at the words, rolling his hips back again. The fire behind his belly was spreading, the tension growing closer to snapping. His erection slapped against his stomach, and he whined at the small bit of friction. It wasn’t enough.

Tony’s hand on the boy’s hip finally moved to wrap around his weeping cock, slowly pumping him in time with his thrusts. “Here, baby, here you go.” The strokes were slick, aided by the pre-cum that had dribbled out from Peter’s slit to run down the ruddy shaft.

The teen started, pelvis jerking forward rather than pushing backwards, fucking into the channel that Tony’s hand created. “Oh! Oh, yes, Daddy,” he moaned louder, breathing hard. “Thank you- oh!”

Tony’s cockhead brushed against Peter’s prostate without warning, causing his entire body to jerk and tremble with the shock of pleasure. “Oh, Daddy, please, don’t stop! I need-,” He cried, breath hitching. 

Tony groaned quietly, his movements speeding up as he listened to the wrecked, breathy noises Peter was making with each thrust. “Won’t stop, baby, don’t worry. I’m not stopping, never gonna stop fucking this pretty little hole.” 

Peter’s cock twitched in the man’s grip, signaling how close he was getting to his orgasm. A little embarrassing, given the short amount of time they’d been going, but he couldn’t help it. He was still new to being touched, and being fucked by Tony was otherworldly in terms of pleasure. Even the slightest touch from him was so much better than anything he’d ever felt before. 

His husband could tell the boy was almost there, but he wasn’t far behind himself. Tony just kept moving, fucking into Peter and drinking up the wonderful sounds he made while at the same time trying to hold off his own release. He had to satisfy his baby first, no matter how good he felt. 

“Oh- fuck, Tony,” Peter moaned, gasping softly. “I’m- I’m gonna cum, Daddy. Gonna, gonna cum.” His hips jerked, movements becoming erratic as the fire in his belly started burning through the rest of his body. He was so close he could practically taste it. 

“Cum for me, baby, it’s okay. You can cum,” Tony encouraged through clenched teeth. He didn’t stop, keeping his movements as consistent as he could, knowing that a steady rhythm was a sure way to send Peter over the edge once he was close. But he felt his own high approaching quickly, every thrust inching him closer. 

Peter closed his eyes for a moment, letting himself be lost in the pleasure before opening them again. He wanted to watch Tony’s hand on him as he came, wanted to see the way the man very literally gave him his release. 

The teen’s dark eyes trailed over his own lithe body, taking in how every muscle was tense with how close he was to his high. Then, just a little lower, was his cock. Flushed pink and still leaking over Tony’s fingers. His husband’s hand moved quickly, helping him get that much closer. Always helping him. “Tony...”

“Cum, baby,” Tony murmured. It wasn’t quite a command, but the intent behind it was clear. He was giving the younger man permission. Like a gift. “C’mon Peter, cum for me.”

Peter cried out again, taking the words for what they were, hips jerking once, twice more before he was cumming. “Oh, fuck!” He spilled onto the bed, cock twitching in Tony’s grip as he rode out his high. 

Tony kept fucking him through it, moaning softly at the clenching of the boy’s asshole as he watched Peter’s cum dripping onto his hand. “My messy baby...shit, you’re perfect.” He took his hand off of him when he whined in overstimulation, but didn’t stop fucking him. “Can Daddy cum too, fill up your little hole, baby? Or do you want me to stop?”

“No, don’t stop. I want...want you to feel good too,” Peter whispered, hiccupping slightly as he lay there limply, still somewhat lost in the aftershocks. He clenched down weakly, trying to make things tighter for Tony. From the noise he got in return, he felt like it worked how he wanted it to. 

“I won’t take long, baby, promise.” Tony moved his hand down from Peter’s neck, shifting so that both hands were on his hips. That way he could pull him easier, fuck him back onto his cock. “You feel so sweet around me, you know that baby? I’ve never felt anything so- fuck, so perfect.” 

Peter preened at the words, taking it as praise. “I want you to feel good, Daddy.” He rocked his hips softly, gasping when the head of Tony’s cock brushed against his prostate again, this time just for a second. “Just want to make you feel good.”

“You do, Pete, you make me feel so good, honey.” A choked moan pulled itself from his throat as he felt his balls tightening, drawing close to his body. “Shit, baby, I’m almost there.” 

“Cum, Daddy,” the teen whispered with this wrecked voice, strained from all the noise he had been making. “Fill me up with your cum, add to what’s already in me. Can you feel the cum you put in me last night?” He sighed, his own spent cock twitching between his legs at the words.  “Want you to make a mess in me, Daddy. It’ll keep me ready for you later.” He bit his lip gently, looking up at Tony as best he could. 

“Fuck, Peter,” Tony groaned. The sight of the teen’s big brown eyes blinking up at him as he said such dirty things did him in. His hips stuttered to a stop as he buried himself deep in the slick channel. “Here you go, baby, fuck.”

Peter felt the warmth flooding him as Tony came, every spurt pulling a quiet moan from his mouth. “Oh, Daddy….” He pushed back slightly, lazily grinding against his husband. “Thank you,” he said sweetly. 

The older man rode out his high, breathing heavily as he curled close to Peter. He didn’t even pull out, just kept his softening cock inside of the teen. 

“I love you, baby,” Tony whispered in Peter’s hair as he held the smaller man to his chest.

Sighing softly, Peter pressed a kiss over his husband’s rapidly beating heart in return, then he craned his neck to brush his lips over Tony’s adam’s apple. “I love you too.” 

The pair stayed there for a while, tangled in the luxurious white sheets and simply holding each other in the afterglow. Peter was running his fingers through Tony’s salt and pepper locks and gazing at him affectionately when the older man spoke up. 

“Let’s get a shower, sweetheart. We’ve got plans today.”

“Oh?”

“You’re officially a Stark, baby boy. And now, it’s time for you to see exactly what comes with that.”

***

Peter munched on a granola bar, frowning at the truly absurd amount of crumbs that fell to his lap with every bite. 

The EDITH glasses sat beside him, folded blue lenses glinting in the fluorescent lights of the training room.

He hadn’t necessarily meant for things to go quite how they had. None of it was supposed to go this far.

He’d just wanted more time with Tony. That was all. Just a few moments together to give himself some type of closure, to patch the gaping hole in his chest.

It had spiraled so fast from there, though. 

Absently rubbing his thumb over his ring finger, Peter made an unhappy noise at the feel of the bare skin. A sick feeling curled in the pit of his stomach as he ate, looking down at his hand. He wanted his ring. But he had to eat first, in order to satisfy the desperate growling of his stomach that had finally gotten his attention, before he could let himself go back into the illusion. 

Back to his husband.

In the silence, he let himself fall back into his thoughts.

He was on his honeymoon with Tony, something he’d once thought he would never experience. Things could go any way, exactly as he wanted them to. 

But what did he want?

He figured that the change in wedding scenery was proof that he wasn’t completely giving in to what were his most true desires, even if he wanted the things he’d had in mind on some level. It seemed that even if he wasn’t able to be completely honest with himself yet, the STARKER program had no such qualms about accessing the deepest parts of his brain, where the things he hadn’t admitted to himself resided.  

A pleasant heat curled in his belly as he thought about what Tony had last said. The implications of the obscene amount of money that he was now entitled to. As though the luxury of their hotel wasn’t enough. 

As though the luxury of Tony wasn’t enough.

Peter couldn’t deny that he’d thought about being spoiled in such a way. Growing up with so little, it was a dream to be able to just spend money without any care or reservations. And being with Tony made that easily attainable. 

The illusion gave him the perfect opportunity to finally indulge in his sugar baby-esque fantasies. With his new husband, the man who vowed to take care of him, to never let him want for anything ever again. 

Definitely something he could get used to. 

Nothing could stop him from being treated like a princess and pampered to his heart’s content. He could go anywhere he wanted, do anything he wanted. He could have anything he’d ever wanted (or, as he was learning, never knew he needed.)

The boy thought he deserved a bit of that, at least for a little while. At least in his own mind.

No matter what he did, it was okay. There were no ‘real world’ repercussions (although he really didn’t like thinking of it that way.) 

And following that logic, he couldn’t get in trouble no matter what he did with his Tony. 

That little fact had definite implications. It meant that the possibilities were endless, there were no limits other than his own imagination. And he had every intention of taking advantage of that to do all of the things he had dreamed of experiencing. 

After all, who was there to stop him? 

Peter finished off his granola bar with a few more crumbly bites, tucking the empty wrapper into his backpack with the others when he was done. He dug through the bag for his water bottle, taking a few small sips before putting that away as well.

Brushing the crumbs off of his lap, he looked down at the glasses. He was so happy with all the things he’d done already. He’d gotten to not only see Tony; he’d been intimate with him, and introduced the man to his family, and married him.

And all he saw in his future was more. More sex, more love, more happiness. Everything he’d ever wanted and so much more than that. 

He reached for the glasses, fingers closing around the cool metal as he pulled them closer. Then he put them on again, taking a deep breath as he prepared to enter the illusion. 

All it took was a little focus and there he was again, wrapped up in the covers. With his love, somewhere that no one could take them away from each other. 

***

They’d already stopped at a few places, spending what was truly an obscene amount of money. But it didn’t matter. Peter was able to get everything he wanted and Tony didn’t even bat an eye or so much as glance at the price tags. He was happy to watch the way the younger man's eyes gleamed with each purchase.

Their next stop was another one he figured Peter would like. Hopefully it would be a good surprise. 

Peter stared up at the storefront, mouth wide as he took in the name. La Perla. A squeal left his mouth before he could stop it, followed by a soft blush spreading over his cheeks. He tried not to jostle the iced latte he held in his hand, lest he spill it on the floral-patterned red silk of his airy button-up top. “Are you serious?!”

Tony just smirked and raised his brows, eyes shielded by the lenses of his expensive sunglasses. Peter thought he definitely looked the part in his charcoal three-piece Tom Ford suit and Gucci oxfords. The silver in his hair seemed more prominent today, catching the light of the mid-morning sun.

But not even his Daddy’s beauty could sidetrack him for long.

“Oh my god,” Peter breathed, a grin overtaking his face as he clutched excitedly at the older man’s hand, fingers skimming over the watch that wrapped around his wrist. It was a nice complement to the thin, dainty chains that hung from his own neck and draped down into his shirt. “Let’s go, let’s go!” He tugged at Tony’s arm, pulling him along as he made a beeline for the large glass doors, nearly skipping in the Louboutin derby shoes he had picked out earlier. 

Tony followed happily, watching the way the denim of Peter’s darkwash jeans hugged his ass.

And he continued watching, eyes never straying as Peter paraded through the store. 

The young man’s eyes glided over racks full of lingerie and he grabbed at various pretty things in all sorts of styles and colors. Sheer, lacy bralettes and miniscule pieces of fabric stitched together to make a thong practically jumped at him. Elegant babydolls seemed to call his name as he pulled them into his arms. He looked at a sheer robe, the deep blue color catching his eye. He picked it up before scanning the racks again. 

Everything was soft and dainty, things he desperately wanted to wear. He wondered how much of it Tony would like to see him in. 

Hopefully all of it.

His fingers rubbed over the silk edging of the robe he’d picked before something else caught his eye. A flash of deep red and something sparkly. 

“Daddy, look! It’s your color,” Peter cried, clutching a strappy garnet...something to his chest. Tony could see rhinestones - or likely actual gems - glittering on it. “We’ve gotta get this!”

The older man just smiled at him, eyes twinkling behind his shades. 

He’d created a monster.

***

Throwing himself belly-down across the bed, Peter let out a groan. He toed off his shoes, which probably cost as much as some people’s rent, letting them drop to the floor without a care as he flexed his socked feet.  “I’m tired,” he whined, pouting up at Tony playfully. One of his hands toyed with the end of one of his necklaces, the delicate ‘t’ charm hanging there.

The older man just chuckled as he shut the door to the hotel room and locked it before bending over to pick up the bags from the floor, giving Peter a glorious view of his ass in the tailored pants of his suit. There were at least ten of the bags scattered on the carpet, all of varying sizes and colors. “I bet you are- you spent a lot of money today. It’s hard work, ain’t it, baby?” 

Peter huffed out a laugh of his own. He turned to nuzzle his face into the cloud that was the down comforter. Letting his eyes close, he sighed and burrowed into the cozy warmth. “What time is it? Can I take a nap?” His voice was muffled but he couldn’t be bothered to turn his head.

Looking down at his wrist, Tony moved the cuff of his suit jacket so he could squint at the face of his watch. “It’s almost three.” He paused and thought for a moment before opening his mouth again. “How about this: we nap for an hour and then head up to the pool?” At Peter’s dubious noise, he rolled his eyes. “It’s a saltwater pool, baby, I know how you feel about chlorine.” His voice was amused as he waited for the other’s reaction. “No chemicals to ruin your skin or curls, I promise.”

Peter shimmied excitedly and he did turn his head, then. His eyes sparkled as he gazed up at the man. “Oh, you’re so good to me,” he said, grinning. Shuffling around on the bed, he slipped under the covers and snuggled up to the pillows. He patted the spot next to him impatiently. “Now, come nap. I need a big spoon.”

Tony placed the bags on the coffee table by the sofa and made his way to the bed, removing his shoes and his suit under Peter’s watchful eyes. When he got under the covers in his white undershirt and boxers, he didn’t even blink an eye at the $15,000 trail in his wake. “Your wish is my command, baby,” he grinned, nestling up behind the boy. 

They were both out like lights.

Tony was the first to wake up. He took a moment to just lay there, watching Peter as soft snores escaped his mouth, a thin line of drool connecting him to the pillow underneath his head. They had shifted during their nap, ending up facing each other with their legs intertwined. He looked down at his wrist, sighing when he saw the time. A few minutes after five o’clock. So much for an hour. They needed to head up to the pool now, if they wanted to have a decent amount of time before it was time to get ready for their dinner reservation. Careful not to disturb the younger man too much, he stretched a bit, whole body tensing before he relaxed back against the mattress.

Peter made a soft noise in his sleep, hips twitching forward against his husband's thigh.

Laughing softly, Tony climbed out of the bed before he could be tempted by the little minx. "Insatiable," he muttered to himself, smiling fondly at the snoozing teen. 

He made his way to their luggage, rifling through the suitcases until he found his midnight blue swim trunks. Stripping out of his clothes, he pulled the shorts on before turning to dig some more until he found Peter's swimsuit and rolled his eyes at the sight of the garment. 

They were tiny little things, Peter’s trunks, the inseam only 4", and similar in color to Tony's but with rainbow chickens taking up a majority of the fabric. The younger man referred to them as his ‘cock shorts’. 

Holding them in his hand, Tony walked back to the center of the room and tossed them on the comforter as he climbed on the bed on all fours. He redistributed his weight so that he could reach out and run his right hand through Peter’s hair before stroking the side of his smooth face. “Peter, time to wake up, baby,” the billionaire said gently, not wanting to startle the slumbering man. 

The teen groaned in response, but nuzzled into the touch just the same. “‘M sleepin,” he mumbled without opening his eyes. “Lemme sleep.” 

Tony chuckled and pushed himself up onto his knees in order to slowly pull the covers down to the foot of the bed. “We’re gonna go swimming, remember?” His eyes roamed over Peter’s prone form, now spread out like a starfish in his jeans and top. “If we don’t go now, we won’t have time before dinner, baby,” he coaxed him softly.

Peter sighed and buried his face in the pillow for a moment before rolling over onto his back. He blinked blearily in the older man’s direction, propping himself up on his elbow as he ran his left hand through his hair, the sight of the gold band there making a smile twitch at his lips. “Okay,” he yawned as he rolled his shoulders and neck. Then he caught sight of Tony’s bare chest in the afternoon light. “Mmm. You’re ready already? Where are my-” His eyes landed on the brightly colored swim trunks. “Oh, my cock shorts,” he chuckled, reaching forward to grab them. 

Tony’s eyes were rolling before he even registered it, and he turned away from the younger man to put together a bag with sunscreen and their water bottles. “Get dressed, you goof.”

Once Peter had gotten changed (which admittedly took a few minutes longer than it should have, given that he’d put on a bit of a show for his husband, who watched him with heady eyes), they headed to the elevator in their trunks and flip flops. Their hands were linked between them, and Peter let himself lean on Tony, enjoying the contact of their bare arms and torsos. 

The couple walked through the metal doors when they opened and out onto the rooftop. 

A gasp left Peter’s mouth at the scene before them. The infinity pool had to be one of the most breathtaking things he had ever seen. It took up around half of the expansive roof, and seemed to blend directly into the city skyline, no clear line where one ended and the other began. Luxurious-looking chaises were lined up in a row, and there was a small fire pit with circle seating in another area. 

Then he noticed the sign off to the side of the elevator. This area is currently reserved for a private party. 

He turned to look questioningly at Tony with furrowed brows. “The sign says it’s closed,” he pouted, taking on the tone that had become increasingly familiar throughout the course of the day. It was almost second nature at that point. 

Tony snorted, pulling the smaller man along with him towards the loungers. “Who else do you think had enough money to rent out the rooftop of the most expensive hotel in the city, baby boy?”

The words had the fire in Peter’s gut igniting instantly. His Daddy was one of the richest (if not the richest-), most powerful men on the entire planet. 

And he got him all to himself.

“Daddy,” he said sweetly once they had set the bag down and grabbed a few towels. At Tony’s soft noise of acknowledgement, Peter held up the bottle of sunscreen. “Can you help me with my sunscreen? I can never reach my back, and since we don’t have tons of time, it’ll probably be faster if you just do all of it.” He grinned up at the older man from where he sat cross legged on the cushion, eyes crinkling behind his sunglasses. 

There was an answering grin from Tony as he took the bottle and moved to sit behind the teen. “Of course, sweetheart,” he said, squirting the citrus-smelling substance into his hand. Rubbing his hands together, he warmed the sunscreen up before beginning to rub it into the freckled skin of Peter’s shoulders and back, then his arms. 

Soft sighs left the brunette’s mouth, coupled with a few groans when Tony used just enough pressure to have his dick chubbing up in his shorts. “Feels good, Daddy,” he said breathily when Tony moved to sit on the chair beside them and looked at him questioningly, pulling Peter’s feet into his lap. “Love it when you touch me.”

Tony grinned back at him, reaching up to rub sunscreen into his legs and relishing in the harsh breath that the boy let out. He let his fingertips drag along Peter’s inner thighs as he worked, fingers occasionally dipping inside the legs of his swim shorts. 

Once he was finished, he bent at the waist and nuzzled into the crease of his husband’s hip, the tip of his nose brushing against his burgeoning fabric covered erection. He placed a gentle kiss there before pushing himself into a standing position so he could look down at Peter as he squirted another small dollop of the lotion into his palm. “Settle down, baby boy,” he chided, rubbing the sunscreen into the skin of Peter’s face with two fingers. 

Peter just pouted yet again, narrowing his eyes at the older man. “Tease,” he huffed out, playfully pushing Tony away from him when he could tell he was finished applying the sunscreen and was instead just running his fingers over Peter’s skin.

Tony just kept grinning as he got started on his own UV protection.

They splashed around in the pool for a while before Tony decided he wanted to swim a few laps. Peter found himself in the corner, taking in the way the sun was just beginning to set, the first bits of color beginning to bleed across the sky. He peered over the edge of the glass down at the city below, struck by how similar the view was to when he was swinging over-

“What’cha doin all the way over here, baby?”

The boy jumped at the words, a hand flying up to his heart in surprise. He was thankful for that particular section of the pool being shallow enough for him to stand. “Oh, you scared me,” he breathed and rested his forehead in the center of Tony’s chest, allowing himself to be pulled into the man’s arms. “Was just taking in the view. You done swimming?”

Nodding, Tony leaned his head down to press a kiss just below his husband’s ear. “Yup. There goes my exercise for the foreseeable future.” Another kiss, this time a little lower, closer to the junction of Peter’s neck and shoulder. “Let’s go dry out before the sun’s completely gone.”

They ended up laying on the loungers, just watching each other with hungry eyes as dusk approached, the sky changing around them.

Peter was once again hard in his trunks, but this time he had no reservations about letting a hand skim down his chest until it was resting over his cock. His breath caught in his throat and he rocked his hips up into his touch. He never moved his eyes away from Tony’s, even as he used his other hand to tease at his nipples while he continued to rut softly against his palm.

“Fuck, Peter,” Tony groaned roughly. He rolled over onto his side, reaching out for the younger man as he adjusted himself in his shorts.

The teen licked his lips and shook his head softly. “Uh-uh, Daddy,” he admonished. “You can look, but you can’t touch. I gave you a chance earlier and you didn’t take it.”  

Eyes darkening in response, Tony retracted his hand and didn’t even pause before reaching down and pulling himself out of his swimsuit. 

Peter gaped at him for a moment before he reminded himself that no one could see them. His heartbeat was thudding in his ears, a pink flush overtaking his face and upper body as he followed the older man’s lead. He took his dick in hand, stroking in time with the other’s movements.

“Look at you,” Tony breathed, running the pad of his thumb over his cockhead. “So dirty for your Daddy, aren’t you baby? Touching yourself out here in the open where anybody could walk out?” He clocked the way Peter’s hand jerked at the words and continued, his own muscles clenching. “But I bet you’d like that, wouldn’t you? Wouldn’t you, Peter? I wanna hear you say it baby.”

Suddenly the tables were turned, and Peter willingly gave up the control he’d intended to have. “Yes, Daddy, I’d love it. Want everyone to see how much I love you,” he whined, fucking into his fist. Shit, how was he so close already? “Want you to f-fuck me, so everybody knows how well you t-take care of me-” He cut himself off, gasping as the tugging behind his bellybutton grew stronger. 

“No,” Tony said, the change in tone making Peter obey immediately and let go of his erection. 

Which- Okay, that would have to be explored later.

“We don’t have time for all that, baby,” the older man continued, expression softening at the wounded look Peter was aiming at him. “We’ve gotta get ready for dinner.” He stroked himself a few mores times, savoring the feeling, before tucking his cock back into his swim trunks. Standing after a moment, he watched as Peter did the same, pulling the ridiculous cock shorts back up. 

Peter was still sulking when they got into the elevator, so Tony backed him into the corner, hands dropping to grab at his ass. “Don’t worry, Petey,” he said, voice smooth as silk. “Daddy’ll give you what you want after dinner. I promise.”

That seemed to do the trick, as the younger man smiled up at him and puckered his lips to ask for a kiss. Tony happily obliged.

When they got back to the room, Peter called first shower, going through through an abbreviated version of his pre-sex ritual. He walked out of the bathroom in one of the large, fluffy bath sheets when he was finished, accepting the kiss Tony pressed into his cheek as they passed each other.

Once he heard the shower start up, the teen dug through their shopping bags from earlier that morning until he found the one from the lingerie store. 

Tony was in for a surprise when they got back.

Chapter 7: Betrayal

Summary:

warnings: nff scene in the beginning, heavier angst (it’s finally starting 😈), character death mention, invasion of privacy and non-consensual voyeurism

Notes:

!!! and the plot progresses, with this absurdly long chapter!! we would love to hear your thoughts on the story so far and any ideas you have about what’s coming in the future!

- bloo & bri <3

Chapter Text

When they walked through the doors of the fancy restaurant with the French name that Peter didn't even want to attempt to pronounce, the couple was met with a young woman standing at the hostess station, looking like she'd rather be anywhere else. 

Barely looking up from the little podium where she obviously was 'hiding' her phone, she glanced at Peter as she spoke, not paying any attention to the older man beside him. "Sorry for the inconvenience, but unfortunately we're full tonight. I'd love to help you make a reservation for another time if you'd like." Her eyes moved back down as she fiddled with a pen absentmindedly.

Tony didn't respond, just smirked down at Peter from behind his dark sunglasses. 'Wait for it' he mouthed. He sniffed lightly, nose twitching. 

And Peter, well he just stood there and did exactly that. His eyes wandered, landing on the small, gold metal rectangle pinned to the hostess’ black button up. Hailey, it read in flowing black script.

The woman looked up, finally, when neither of them said anything. Her eyes met Peter's again and she smiled at him, raising one of her eyebrows questioningly. "Is there a specific day you'd like?" She turned to the side and began clicking through options on the computer. "We could do next Tuesday evening, at seven-thirty?”

Tony took that as his chance, clearing his throat. He shifted and took a step closer to his husband, hand moving to rest on his lower back. “We have a reservation, actually.”

Hailey looked up, then, head turning to face Tony in response to the sound. 

Peter had to bite back a laugh at the way the hostess' expression changed, leaning into Tony’s embrace. 

Mouth gaping, she simply stared at them for a moment, eyes wide with shock. Then a deep flush overtook her face. Hailey hurried to speak, spluttering over her words as she straightened her posture. “Oh, God, I am- I am so sorry. Mr. Stark. So sorry, Let me just-.” With shaking hands, she began typing before turning to them a moment later, an embarrassed smile pulling at her lips. “Everything’s, um, all set for the private room you reserved, sir. M-mister Stark.” 

“That’d be ‘Misters’ Stark,” Tony corrected, smiling down at Peter. He pressed a kiss to the boy’s temple, eyes closing briefly and making a delicate blush spread over his cheeks.

“Yes, of course. If you’ll both follow me, I’ll show you to your table.” Having reconstructed her mask of professionalism, Hailey grabbed two menus and gestured for the two men to follow her into the main area of the restaurant.

They walked through the deep, navy velvet curtains that were drawn and made their way through the dining area. There were tables scattered throughout, all occupied by people who looked like they had more money in their wallets than Peter had seen in his entire life up until that point.

He could feel all of their eyes on him, no doubt wondering who was so lucky as to be on the arm of Tony Stark. He could hear their scandalized whispers. And he’d honestly thought he wouldn’t know how to feel about the attention. But here he was, preening under their gazes. The teen loved everyone seeing that yes he, Peter Benjamin Parker, had somehow lucked out and captured the attention of the playboy. He certainly looked the part, in his powder blue button down (of which the top few buttons were undone, exposing a bit of his chest and the thin chains draped from his neck, but not open enough to give away the lingerie he was wearing underneath) and his tight gunmetal trousers, both by Gucci. He didn’t even want to know how much the outfit actually cost.

But he wanted everyone else to.

The warmth of Tony’s palm on the small of his back as they walked, his fingertips ghosting over the top of his ass, had something warm fizzling deep in Peter’s belly. 

Once they reached the far end of the dining area, they were led into an alcove off to the side, separated by another dark curtain. There was a single table in the moderately sized room, set up for two. A bouquet of red roses sat in the middle of the white table cloth like a centerpiece. The lighting was inviting and intimate at the same time, and it was quiet, the conversations of the other patrons but a low murmur in the background. 

Hailey sat the menus down on the table in their respective places before turning to the two patrons. “Here you go, gentlemen.” While the two of them sat down, Tony pulling Peter’s chair out for him, she reached for the glass pitcher of ice water and filled each of their glasses. “I’ll start you off with some water, and a server will be right with you. I hope you enjoy your visit with us here at La Brise Fraîche.” She shot them a quick smile before making a hasty exit, face once more taken over in a rosy blush. 

Tony chuckled as he shifted his chair a bit closer to the table. Slipping off his sunglasses, he popped them into the pocket of his black suit jacket, in front of the little pocket square that matched Peter’s shirt. “She certainly changed her tune, huh baby?” He shot Peter a soft smile as he picked up his menu and gestured for the younger man to do the same. 

Peter hummed in response to his husband’s teasing, following his lead and opening the menu in order to look it over. A frown soon formed between his eyebrows, and his eyes flicked from the parchment up to Tony’s face. “Tony,” he said softly, “this, uh, most of this is in French. I can’t- And there’s no prices on here. How do I…” He trailed off, uncertainly, all of his earlier confidence gone now that they were alone again. He felt extremely out of his element all of a sudden. 

Reaching across the table, the older man brushed his fingers over the back of Peter’s hand. “It’s alright, Pete. What are you in the mood for, baby? We should definitely get some wine,” he said, winking. 

Peter giggled and threw his head back a little. When he looked back over at Tony, his eyes were gleaming and he bit his lip, running the toe of his shoe from the inside of the man’s ankle up to his knee. “You trying to get me drunk, Mr. Stark?”

Tony’s gaze darkened, causing Peter’s breath to catch in his throat. “Maybe I am, Mr. Stark.”

Their waiter approached them, then, slipping through the navy drapery. “Good evening gentlemen. I’m Jacques, and I’ll be your server tonight. Can I start the two of you off with something to drink?” He smiled at them both as he spoke with a light French accent, eyes flickering between them before focusing on Tony. 

The billionaire cleared his throat, not even bothering to reach for the proffered wine list. “We’ll have whatever the finest Cab Sauvignon is, and how about a Sauvignon Blanc as well?” Though he phrased it as a question, it didn’t very much sound like one, and Peter squirmed in his seat at the authoritative tone of his voice. 

God, how was he going to make it through this dinner? They hadn’t even ordered yet and he was already horny.

And it only got worse from there.

The wines Tony had chosen were really strong, Peter thought to himself as he fumbled a bit with his fork, trying to twist up some of the creamy pasta on the plate in front of him. It was some sort of mushroom-based sauce, and it looked delicious. And it would be, if the numerous other dishes they had ordered and already sampled, Tony insisting that he try a little bit of everything, were anything to go by.

He was flushed from the alcohol, and inebriated enough that he was no longer bothering with trying to hold back the little sounds of ecstasy that left his mouth at each bite of the incredible cuisine. 

His eyes fluttered shut once he finally managed to twist up enough pasta to put in his mouth, and the soft noise he made sounded truly indecent. He heard Tony’s sharp intake of breath and sighed contentedly as he chewed the bite of food before opening his eyes again in order to get another forkful. 

Feeling his husband’s eyes boring into his skin, Peter looked up from his plate. A small whimper escaped him at the hungry look in his eyes. “Tony?”

The older man licked at his bottom lip as his eyes roved over Peter’s face. His voice was somewhat rough when he spoke, leaning forward in his seat. “You’ve got a little something there, baby,” he said lowly, bringing his thumb to his mouth to lick it before reaching across the table to swipe the digit just under Peter’s bottom lip. The small smear of glistening white came off easily, and he pressed the pad of his thumb against Peter’s lips, prompting him to open.

Another whine escaped the teen as he did so immediately, granting Tony’s finger entrance. Peter began sucking on it lightly to clean the sauce off, and he hummed once the light cream dissipated and he’d swallowed it down, allowing him to focus on the sensation of Tony’s calloused skin on his tongue. 

Tony groaned softly, shifting in his chair. “Mmm, that’s my good boy.” He pulled his thumb away, smirking at the displeased noise that came from his young lover as he reached down to adjust himself in his pants. 

Peter caught the movement. His own cock, which had been slightly interested since they’d left the hotel thanks to how sexy he felt in the lingerie he had slipped on, gave a slight twitch. “You hard for me, Daddy,” he asked, blinking coquettishly at the man and reaching for one of his two wine glasses, bringing the one filled with the red wine to his lips. He made a bit of a show of running his tongue from the base of the goblet up to the rim, cleaning up a rivulet of the dark, blood red liquid that had dripped down while he drank.

“Always, baby boy,” Tony said softly, keeping his eyes on Peter as he took a bite of what was left of the steak au poivre in front of him. 

They continued eating, and Peter continued his teasing, until their server arrived a few minutes later to check on them. The young boy was glad the table cloth was there to hide the erection in his lap, his flush intensifying as Jacques approached them. Tony, however, didn’t look phased, continuing to eat the rest of his food and sip at the full-bodied alcohol in his glass, eyes trained on his husband.

Beginning to clear away the empty plates, Jacques spoke up. “I hope everything has been to your satisfaction, gentlemen.” When they both responded in the affirmative, he continued. “Would you be interested in ordering anything for dessert? Tonight’s special is a beautiful lavender and honey posset, it’s absolutely to die for,” he intoned, making eye contact with Peter and smiling.

Tony scowled at the interaction, sniffing lightly and narrowing his eyes a bit. “Nope, I think we’re all set…” He trailed off at the pleading look Peter gave him, big brown eyes peering over at him dolefully.

“Please, Tony,” the younger man asked, foot once again moving to rub against the inside of his husband’s leg. “I’m not sure what a, um, posset is, but it sounds really yummy, and Jacques says it’s good.” He looked at Jacques briefly, who nodded, and then back at Tony. “This is about trying new things, right?” He bit his lip for good measure, just to punctuate his little performance.

With an eye roll, Tony caved, his hand wrapping around Peter’s ankle underneath the table. He squeezed it, not ungently. “Alright,” he said, sending Jacques a quick smile as he piled the last plate into his arms. “We’ll have one of the possets, then, please.”

And he’d obviously made the right choice, as he was now watching Peter suck the remnants of the custard off of his pointer finger like it was his job to ensure that the small glass jar was spotless. “That good, sweetie?”

Peter hummed around his finger, eyes flicking up to meet Tony’s, which were once again flashing at him dangerously. His body thrummed in response, every fiber of his being screaming out in want. “It’s so good, Daddy,” he whined softly, the hand not in his mouth pressing down on the bulge in his pants. “So good.”

Sitting up straighter in his chair, Tony took a deep breath before reaching into his pocket for his wallet. He flipped through it for a moment before pulling out a stack of hundred dollar bills and slapping them down on the table. Standing, he walked around the table to Peter’s seat in order to gently pull him up and closer to him. 

Peter followed willingly, stepping into Tony’s personal space and craning his neck up to that his lips could meet the older man’s. He moaned softly at the feeling of their clothed erections pressing up against each other. 

“Let’s go, baby,” Tony whispered into his mouth, pulling away so that he could lead Peter out of the room and through the main dining area. He paid no mind to any of the other patrons, who were no doubt scandalized by the sight of the two of them, rumpled and clearly aroused.

Peter just flushed, grinning as he made eye contact with a few people, winking at an older lady who was looking at him with wide eyes.

Yeah, he liked people knowing he was Tony’s.

When they got back to the hotel, Tony backed Peter up against the door to the hotel room as he began to lavish his neck with kisses and bites while his hands gripped at Peter’s ass. “Fuck, baby, you look so pretty tonight,” he rasped, relishing in the way his husband jerked in his hold in response to a particularly sharp nip. 

“Just for you,” Peter moaned, hands fumbling to remove Tony’s jacket. He threw it to the ground as it was shrugged off, gasping when he was lifted into the older man’s arms in order to be carried over to the bed and deposited on the covers. Kicking his shoes off, he watched as Tony did the same and rolled up the sleeves to his wrinkling white dress shirt. 

Crawling on the bed to kneel over Peter, Tony reached for the buttons on the boy’s shirt and began undoing them. A low growl sounded in his throat at the first peek of black lace that became exposed. “What do we have here?” 

Peter preened under his heavy gaze, pushing up onto his elbows so he could slip the shirt off his arms, exposing the black bodysuit he wore underneath. “Do you like it, Daddy?” He peered up at him from underneath his lashes.

“Like it? I love it, baby boy.” Tony trailed kisses down the teen’s chest, feeling the muscles in his abdomen twitch under in ministrations. When he reached the waistband of the dark trousers, he undid the button with practiced ease and pulled them down, pausing for Peter to lift his hips and throwing them to the floor once they were off. His eyes raked over Peter’s form, mesmerized by the sight of him spread out on the fluffy comforter, the inky lingerie creating a strong contrast. He could very clearly see Peter’s erection straining against the lace, and the wet spot that was glistening with precum. 

“Daddy,” Peter whined, hips twitching upward in an attempt to get some friction. “Touch me, please.”

Tony hummed softly, eyes locking on Peter’s lips for a moment before he got off the bed in order to walk over to the kitchenette area. He rifled through the drawers for a moment, ignoring Peter’s indignant noises. When he found what he was looking for, he resumed his previous position. 

Making eye contact with Peter, Tony uncapped the lid of the honey bottle and squeezed some out onto his pointer and middle fingers. “Get up, baby,” he said softly. “Kneel for me.”

Eyes wide, Peter followed the request, only wobbling a little bit as a result of the alcohol in his system. 

“Now open,” Tony instructed as he brought his dripping finger’s to Peter’s lips. He groaned when the digits were enveloped in the warmth of the boy’s mouth, shivering when he started suckling, not unlike the way he treated the man’s cock. “Fuck, Peter.”

Bolstered by Tony’s words, and desperate for the sticky sweetness he was desperately chasing with his tongue, Peter whined in the back of his throat before he closed his eyes and began sucking in earnest. 

Eyes blazing, Tony watched in awe as the teen fellated his fingers. His other hand moved up to grab at Peter’s unruly curls, using his grip to hold the boy still as he pressed his fingers further into his mouth.

Peter’s eyes flew open as he gagged around the intrusion, throat convulsing as Tony held him there. He whimpered, eyes watering as he struggled to breathe. He gasped when Tony eventually removed his fingers, spluttering as thick saliva dripped down his chin. “Daddy- please,” he rasped, voice already a little wrecked. “More.” His eyes flickered to the honey bottle that was laying on the bed.

Smirking, Tony snatched it up. His hands moved to his belt and began unfastening it. “Want some more dessert, baby?”

***

Peter was going to be mortified when he realized that they were able to see everything that was going on. Every lingering touch or look, every...well, every time he was with Tony was being broadcasted to SHIELD through EDITH. No matter what was going on, sensitive and tame content alike, it was all being witnessed by the agents (plus, even more uncomfortably, May and Ned.) 

Unfortunately, he wasn’t aware. So it didn’t seem like he was going to stop anytime soon. 

So Ned was forced to suffer through every moment of it in a room full of adults. Again, including Peter’s poor aunt. Hopefully she wasn’t paying attention, though, because it definitely would have been even more awkward for her to see. Or even think about. 

Just. Ew. 

Personally, he was trying to figure out if the situation was illegal. After all, Peter was seventeen. And even though technically it was all in his head, it was still explicitly sexual content that they were all witnessing, starring him. 

Maybe it wasn’t the best or most relevant thing to be thinking over, but Ned was trying to ignore the reality of what was actually going on. Watching his best friend make bedroom eyes at and get railed by their deceased idol wasn’t something he was particularly fond of. 

He just needed to distract himself from the...activities that kept occurring on the monitors. So he tried to keep his mind away from that part of the situation, legality and all. 

What he really needed to focus on was getting Peter out. It had been nearly two weeks since Beck’s announcement that outed Peter’s identity. It had been almost two weeks since Peter had run away and gone into hiding. 

They hadn’t even been able to make contact with him through May for days now. He was solely focused on Tony, just as he had been since the wedding. They weren’t sure how much longer that pattern would continue. Or if it would ever stop.

Everyone was getting more and more anxious by the day. 

Ned hadn’t found any real solution yet. There were no cracks in the program, no hidden door in the code that he could sneak his way through. So far, it was all sealed tightly. 

Usually, that would be considered a good thing. But it just made his job that much more stressful in the moment. They still had no location for Peter. They were yet to discover a way to shut down the illusion. All they had was the ability to send May in when Peter wanted his family there. Nothing else. And there hadn’t been much family bonding time lately. 

“When do you think they’ll finally stop?” Paige wondered out loud, eyes firmly on the screen as she leaned over Ned’s shoulder. 

The teen jumped at the sound of her voice, head whipping around until they nearly collided. He had no idea that she’d snuck up on him. “What? Oh.” He made a face as he processed her question. “I don’t know. Hopefully soon.” Although that was doubtful, if he was honest with himself. 

She hummed in acknowledgment, nodding a little. Her eyes seemed to follow the movements on the monitor before she finally glanced away, seeming a bit flustered. “Yeah. They’ve been at it a while, huh.”

Ned had absolutely no desire to discuss his best friend’s sex life. Especially considering the circumstances. And the interest in the agent’s voice sparked something in him. Not annoyance, not at her, but something very close to that. He wasn’t quite sure how to describe it. “They kinda have. But I’m trying to not pay that much attention to all of it. I’d like to have something of a normal friendship with Peter when he’s out. I can’t do that if I spend all this time watching him get-“

“Leeds,” Fury interrupted, standing over the two young people. 

Paige instantly straightened up when she heard him, a light flush overtaking her cheeks as she pushed her hair back behind her ear. 

“Yes, sir?” Ned answered, slowly looking up at the man. 

“Any change? There has to be something you can do to get his attention.” The director worked to keep up his hard exterior, but was obviously uncomfortable. As was everyone else. 

Except maybe Paige. But Ned didn’t want to think about why that was. 

Ned sighed, fingers absently tapping at his keyboard. “No. Nothing yet, sir. I’ve been looking for a way to slip through into the program more frequently, but everything is airtight. Tony Stark knew what he was doing.” He couldn’t keep the admiration out of his voice. Which was a little annoying, since the tech and designer in question was causing nothing but issues. “And Peter too, I guess,” he added, knowing that Peter had probably input quite a bit of his own code into the program.

“Do you think he knew that Peter would use the glasses for this?” Paige murmured. 

Again with the interested tone. “Probably not,” Ned supplied, clicking away from the live-feed for a moment. He technically wasn’t supposed to do that, but it would make everyone more comfortable for the moment. And it made certain that agent Oliver would have to stop watching, at least for the time being. “I mean, maybe. But probably not.”

“Stark wasn’t exactly the picture of perfect morality, but I don’t think he ever imagined anything like this happening.” Fury shook his head, face contorted in visible discomfort. “Especially not from Parker. I knew he was a devious little shit but not like this.”

Ned was pretty much on the same page. He knew that Peter had his moments, but it was never anything more than normal teenage hormone-fueled...lust felt like too strong of a word, but nothing else was coming to mind. He’d never thought that Peter was even capable of the things he had seen playing out on the screen. Although, he really hadn’t thought about it too much. Or ever. 

His best friend was objectively an attractive guy, but Ned had really never thought of him in anything but a platonic way. So this was a lot of stuff that he’d never wanted to see. 

“I dunno, I don’t know much about him but he seems like the closeted-kinky type,” Paige offered with a slight smile pulling at her lips. “Y’know, eager to please and all? Maybe I’m the only one that sees it.”

“Can we not talk about this?” Ned said quickly, definitely louder than necessary. The annoyed-but-not feeling was back. He adjusted his glasses just so he could have something to do with his hands for a moment. “I’d rather just focus on getting him out. Or figuring out how to talk to him.”

“Leeds is right,” Fury agreed, looking at the screen again. “It wouldn’t be my first choice, and it pains me to say it, but I suggest you turn that back on. Just to be sure nothing gets missed. We need to send Ms. Parker back in as soon as he shows signs of wanting her back in.”

None of them believed that it would be happening anytime soon, but Ned begrudgingly clicked to the feed again. 

“Great. Keep checking to see if there’s anywhere you can slip through, he’s already held onto that tech for too long.” 

The man walked away, leaving Ned and Paige alone again. 

Ned looked at the agent, giving her a smile. “So, any ideas? We’re still stuck with what we’ve got and I feel like I’ve tried everything.” He sighed heavily, looking back to the screen. 

He expected to see more of the same, ‘the same’ being Peter engaging in some insanely sexual scene with no end in sight. But it seemed like they had finally stopped, as the screen was dark, Ned’s reflection looking back at him. Something that only happened when Peter fell asleep, therefore unable to keep the tech running. 

“They’re asleep!” He announced to the room. Everyone seemed to collectively relax. No more having to watch a potential lawsuit. 

And sleep was good news for Ned; that meant he was able to finally get some real work done without having to constantly check up on the feed. He would have about seven hours or so (going by how long the illusion was typically down for a night of rest) to work and figure out a way to shut things down without worrying about his friend waking up and realizing it. Maybe even stopping him. 

Nothing had come of the other nights he’d been able to work, but he kept hoping that he’d get lucky soon. He was determined to save his best friend. He had to.

So he started the stopwatch to record how long Peter slept and then got to work. 

***

Ned worked all night, but was still stuck exactly where he had been, in terms of progress. The only connection they had was through the small gap he’d been able to squeeze his own coding into to get May through. And he had a bad feeling that his ‘solution’ with that wouldn’t last for much longer. 

He kept track of what Peter (and Tony, by extension) was doing as the morning went on, instantly becoming more focused when he heard a brief mention of family. 

”I think it would be nice to spend another day with them,” Peter commented through the crackly speakers, seeming to pack up the countless bags that he’d acquired over the past couple of days. 

Not-Tony hummed in agreement, moving to help his- husband? (Ned wasn’t quite sure how all of it worked. It was all just pretend, after all.) No matter what they were considered, Tony began helping Peter with gathering up his bags. ”I think that’s a great idea. Haven’t seen them since the wedding, we should spend some time with them.”

”Yeah, just having everyone over would be nice. We could watch a movie or something. One of those old ones you like.”

Tony made an offended noise, glancing in Peter’s direction. ”Just because it came out before, what, two thousand? Doesn’t make it old. You’re just a baby,” he teased. 

”Cradle robber,” Peter shot back playfully, an easy smile on his face. Like what he said didn’t make Ned’s skin crawl. They joked so easily (Peter’s mind did, at least) and yet the age gap between the two seemed to become that much more apparent in the moment. 

”Oh, quiet.”  Tony waved one hand. "So are you thinking that you just want to go back to the tower? Or was there another idea in that pretty little brain of yours?”

"Just home. Please.” Apparently ‘home’ was the tower, where Tony had mentioned, because he nodded and smiled after the answer. 

“That isn’t his home,” May said softly from somewhere behind Ned, causing the teen to turn around. 

Ned leaned back in his chair, looking up at her. “I’m hoping that he remembers that,” he admitted. “But I’m sure he does,” he corrected quickly when he saw the woman’s expression fall. 

“He has to. He can’t just- he can’t leave us like this. For someone who got him killed.” May’s voice took on a slightly angrier tone as she spoke. But the anger fizzled out just as quickly as it came. “I need to talk to him, Ned. Not just within his little script. I need to actually get through to him.”

The teen nodded slowly, watching her closely. He knew it was a bad idea. The mission so far was just to stick to the scene that Peter wanted and to follow his lead. Get close to him. May wasn’t nearly close enough yet. And Peter didn’t seem to be close to changing his mind in any way. “But Fury said-“

“I don’t care what he said,” May said sharply. “Peter needs his family. His real family. He needs me. Not the me he expects to play along with his little game.”

That was a dangerous thing to say, especially given how the director seemed to know everything that was going on. Ned hoped that Fury hadn’t heard her. That could possibly compromise the one advantage they had. “He does need you. But just- not yet. You have to go along with his scene right now. Just for a little while longer.” 

The woman watched him, expression softening slightly. She knew that he was right. But there was nothing she wanted to do more than reach out to Peter and bring him home. To his actual home. “Okay. But I’m not going another week or whatever without him. I can’t do that shit. This has already gone on too long. He needs to be home. And if he doesn’t get it together, I’ll be bringing him back with or without SHIELD’s help.”

The last bit sounded like a threat, and it probably was. Ned knew that she missed Peter. He was her only remaining family member. And he missed him too, of course he did. He just knew that it was different because May had seen him break too many times before. And she didn’t want to see it again. 

She left, presumably going back to the small room that had her setup for entering the illusion. If Peter was talking about family, she had better get ready to go in as soon as he expected her to. 

She slipped the headset on and waited, heart aching as she watched Peter interacting with Tony through the screen. She’d never seen him look at anyone quite like that. With so much love in his eyes. It nearly broke her heart to think about how her goal was to take him away from that. But she felt less guilty when she thought about all she was bringing him back to. 

His home. His family. His friends. Everything he needed was all here in the real world. And he’d find someone else to look at in that same way, she was sure of it. And when he did, it would be okay. Because it would be the right person and the right time. 

Not a dead man who was the root of all his issues. 

May held her breath as the scene changed before her eyes, transforming into the sleek and expensive interior of Stark tower once again. And as the couple relaxed in the living area, she saw how Peter’s expression shifted into one of more concentration. 

And she heard the quiet ding of the elevator and knew it was time for her to slip into the fantasy again. She heard agent Oliver instructing her in the background, but she already knew what to do. 

She let herself relax, getting pulled into the illusion until she was standing in the elevator with the rest of Peter’s ‘special guests.’ It still gave her an odd, sick feeling of deja vu to see Mary, Richard, and Ben all together like that. It was all wrong. But she had to act like everything was okay. Like she wasn’t horrified by being surrounded by family members (and her husband) that she’d already lost and grieved for years. 

Her participation in the scene had to be perfectly in accordance with Peter’s intentions or it would all be ruined. At least that’s what she’d been told countless times. But as soon as the doors opened and she saw Peter again, every plan they’d ever discussed dropped to the bottom of her list of priorities. 

She just wanted him to come home. 

Peter glanced up once he heard the doors, beaming. “Perfect!” He held onto Tony’s arm gently, leaning against him. “Now everyone is here.” 

They filed out of the elevator, going over to the couple. May couldn’t help but realize how off it all felt. Without Peter actively controlling the other figures, it was like they were hardly there. Nothing more than stand-ins. 

It was terrifying to witness, making her that much more determined to bring the boy home. He couldn’t stay in this environment, living entirely in his mind with no real company. It would only do further damage to his mental state. 

As soon as they were in a certain vicinity, the scene seemed to come to life. Suddenly there was soft chatter from the other people as they started carrying their own conversations. 

May jumped when she felt a hand on her lower back, instantly wanting to bat the intruding touch away. She knew who it was before she even looked and forced herself to relax. She had to remind herself that it wasn’t her Ben. Letting herself get attached wouldn’t do her any favors. It couldn’t happen. She had to keep her focus on the goal of saving Peter. That’s what was important.

“It’s nice of them to have us over like this,” Not-Ben murmured to her. “Yknow, I like seeing Pete so happy.” He smiled a bit and May’s heart ached. There was the smile she remembered. Easy, slightly mischievous. All Ben. 

“Yeah…,” she started, forgetting what they were talking about for a moment. All she could think about was her husband. She could finally have him back like this, maybe she saw the appeal- 

No. She couldn’t let herself get sucked in. 

“I don’t know. I’ve never been a huge fan of Tony Stark,” she whispered back, not caring about possible consequences. She had to keep her mind straight, and in that moment that required being honest. 

“But he’s happy, May.” Ben’s eyes searched her face, but she knew it wouldn’t matter. He wasn’t seeing anything. And even if he did, he couldn’t do anything with the information he found. He was just another figment of Peter’s imagination. 

“Yeah. For now,” she mumbled, looking away. She had to focus on what was wrong. So her brain didn’t get convinced that he really was her Ben. 

He was too tall. Not by much, but just enough that it was noticeable. And it bothered her.

And he was too...muscular. Sure, he’d never been thin, but it wasn’t like this. 

Then it clicked. 

This Ben only existed as Peter saw him. 

Of course her husband would have seemed like some big, strong man to the boy that he raised. He was Peter’s superhero. And Peter never saw anything different. 

That fact shouldn’t have hurt as much as it did. 

She fixed her expression, not letting her true feelings show. She still needed to focus on the task at hand, and that was getting close to Peter. She had to follow along with his scene and make sure everything was in place. Nothing could seem out of the ordinary from how he wanted it. 

They all sat down, on a couch facing Peter and Tony. 

Peter grinned at them, clapping his hands together happily. “Okay, so, I was thinking maybe we could play some games? That’s always fun, right?” 

“Yeah, as long as you don’t cheat,” Ben mumbled with a smile. It was all just teasing. 

“I would never! Mean.” The teen stuck his tongue out at him before laughing. “What should we play?”

“Monopoly?” Tony suggested, wrapping his arm around his husband’s waist. 

“You’re so old,” Peter whined. Then he giggled, leaning into the touch. “Kidding. Monopoly would be fun, it just takes forever.” Good thing they had all the time in the world to play. 

“And ruins families,” May said under her breath, but thankfully no one else seemed to catch it.

“No one has anything else going on, we can play for as long as we want,” the older man assured him. “Want me to go grab it?”

Peter nodded, smiling up at him. “Sure, baby. Thank you.” 

Tony stood up to get the game, coming back only a moment later with the box in his hands. “I call being banker,” he said playfully. He sat down and started setting the game up on the table between all of them. 

No one argued, just laughing as they kept joking and teasing each other about the entire thing. 

As the night went on, the energy level never wavered. Everyone was happy and relaxed, excited to be around each other. 

Everyone except for May. 

She hid it well, playing along, but inside she was deeply bothered by all of it. Nothing felt right, no matter how the others were acting. None of them were real. It was just her and Peter. 

She watched as Tony reached out for his “husband” again and her stomach flipped. She was tired of watching them behave like that and pretending it was okay. 

“Don’t touch him.”

The words left her mouth before she could stop them and the guilt set in instantly. She had just ruined the whole mission. 

But now she could try things her own way. 

Tony’s hand pulled away from Peter immediately, the confusion clear on his face. And May knew that the expression was only reflecting what her nephew was feeling. 

“May, he can touch me. He’s my husband, after all. We got married, remember?” Peter shot her a smile, cuddling up to the other man. He tried to brush it off as how protective she always was. Maybe that was just bleeding into his projection of her. 

“No, he isn’t, Peter.” May’s voice shook as she stood up, trying to move closer to him. “He isn’t real. You know that. None of this is real.”

You’re not real,” he said quietly, eyes wide as he tried to figure out what was going on. That wasn’t supposed to happen. But as much as he tried to focus, she wouldn’t go back into place. Things wouldn’t go back to how he wanted them. 

What was happening? 

“Yes, I am. I’m the only real one here. It’s just you and me, Peter.” She met his eyes, looking desperate. “It’s me, baby. It’s actually me, I’m here. Please come home, this isn’t good for you. You need to come home and give the tech to Fury so-“

“No,” he said quickly, seeming to snap out of his confusion. “Tony gave it to me. It’s mine. No one else’s. And this is my home.” He glared at her, moving into Tony’s arms more. 

How had SHIELD hacked May into the program? There shouldn’t have been any way for them to do that. He’d worked on the security coding himself, adding onto what Tony had already designed.

“Did I?” Tony mumbled, looking like he was trying to remember. What tech was being used? It seemed like they were just in the tower, nothing out of the ordinary. 

But May ignored him. She continued tearfully. “Your home is with me. Your home is in the real world, not this thing you’ve made up! You can’t stay here!” She was getting more frantic. 

“No, May. I can stay here. Maybe you should, too.” He watched her, trying to keep himself calm. He needed to regain control over the illusion. Maybe he wouldn’t have to lose anything. He just had to convince her to stay. 

“I’ll be doing no such-“ 

“What’s the issue?” Ben cut in, moving to stand next to May. But he wasn’t going to help her. He was looking directly at her. “You could stay, couldn’t you. Right here. What’s the harm in that?” He grabbed her hands, brushing against her wedding ring. 

The one she knew was buried in her closet, amongst the other things that reminded her of him too much to leave strewn about the apartment but she couldn’t bear to completely get rid of. 

But it all felt so real. 

“You’re dead,” she whispered, her own tone surprising her. She sounded terrified and just as weak as she had in the time right after he died. “I can’t stay. You’re gone and never coming back. All of you are.” Except for Peter, who didn’t want to be saved. 

Ben smiled at her, like he’d expected the answer. Then he leaned in, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. Like he had a thousand times when he was alive. “I’m here now, May. Isn’t that enough?”

She hated how real it all felt. How tempting it was. She hated how she could feel his lips against her skin and how easily it pulled her back into the denial she’d felt right after the accident. 

Maybe she could stay. She could have him back, live out life like they were supposed to. They were supposed to be together until they were old and grey until finally going from natural causes. Old age. His murder couldn’t touch them here. 

It would be so easy to just stay. 

But she knew that she couldn’t. It wasn’t possible. It would only destroy her mind to stay with him. And if she wasn’t taking care of her physical body then what would happen? She had to go. Staying wasn’t an option. She just had to convince him of that as well. 

She stepped away from Ben, ignoring how much it hurt her to do so. Then she turned to Peter again, moving closer. Maybe if she could just hold him- 

His eyes narrowed more as he watched her. He pushed her away when she tried to get closer again, instantly feeling guilty. But he wanted to keep her away. She was trying to take everything from him. If she didn’t want to stay, fine. She could go.

But he wasn’t going to lose this too. 

“Get away from me,” Peter snapped, staying close to Tony. He looked almost protective, although he knew that physically it was impossible for anything to happen. “This is my home. Here. With him. And my family.” 

May was still shocked at how he’d shoved her. He’d never behaved in such a way before, no matter how things had gotten. And he’d never been so angry, not at her. Not at anyone. 

Where did her boy go? What happened to him?

“Peter, please,” she begged. “You can’t live like this. It might seem good for now, but you’re just going to hurt yourself. Please, you’ve gotta shut it down and tell us where you are. We’ll come get you and everything will be okay. SHIELD is working on fixing what happened with Mysterio, you can-“

“I’m not going anywhere! And I’m not telling you where I am, you’ll just make me stop!” There were tears welling in his eyes and his voice was shaking despite how strong he attempted to sound. 

All May wanted to do was wipe those tears away and pull him in for a hug like she’d done countless times before. But she had a feeling that was a bad idea. 

She felt so helpless, watching him from afar. She was losing him and she knew it. 

That hurt more than anything else. 

“Baby, please,” she murmured gently. “You can come home. Everything is going to be okay. We can get you some help,” she said slowly. 

“I don’t need help. I need this.” And no one would take it away from him. “EDITH, find however she got in. Patch the hole. Make sure it won’t happen again.”

Yes, Peter,” The AI answered, almost sounding nervous. If that was even something she was capable of. 

Fear flashed through May as she stared at him. “Peter, please, don’t shut me out.” 

“You’re not taking this from me. Everyone has taken *everything* from me!” Tears streamed down his face freely. “I get to keep this one thing. I get to have them all back. And you can’t take that. No one can. I won’t let you.” 

“Peter, you need to come home. I miss you, we all miss you so much, baby. Please!”

“I miss you too. That’s why I wanted you here. But you messed it all up. You could have stayed here with me. With Uncle Ben.” He wiped his eyes, trying to calm himself. 

“I’m sorry, baby, you know I can’t.”

“So you have to leave.” He was informed that EDITH found the coding that had been put in and she started fixing it. 

“I love you, Peter. Please, think about what you’re doing,” she begged him. She was pushed from the illusion, still able to see through her headset but she couldn’t interact anymore. 

“I love you too. But I’ve already thought about it. This is where I belong.” 

Her screen went dark. 

She ripped the headset off and threw it, burying her face in her hands. She’d fucked it all up. 

And she’d lost him. He didn’t want to come home. 

He wasn’t going to come home.

Agent Oliver rushed in, wincing when the tech hit the wall. It was probably broken now, but that could be dealt with later. She’d just watched everything play out on the screen, just like the others had. May was the first priority. “Ma’am-“

“I’m going home.” She looked up, eyes red like she was holding back tears. She pushed her glasses up and sniffled. “I’m leaving. This entire operation is pointless.” She stood up, quickly leaving the room without looking back. 

“Ms. Parker, please, we’ll figure out another way,” Paige followed after her. 

“May?” Ned looked up from his computer, quickly wiping away his own tears. There was enough to deal with, he could hold it together. He still had to figure out how to save Peter. “Please, don’t go. Not yet.”

She looked at him, but shook her head. “I’m going home. I can’t...I can’t do this. I messed it up, you’ll be better off without me. I can’t help you anymore. I’m sorry.” 

As she walked away, she heard other people calling after her. Probably Fury, some other agents. But she didn’t turn around. She needed to get out. 

Unlike Peter, all she wanted was to go home.

The drive to the building was short, her brain in a fog the entire time. She didn’t let herself feel. She couldn’t yet. Not until she was in the safety of the apartment. 

Her car was parked and she was going up the elevator before she knew it. She blinked, slightly disoriented. She kept her eyes closed during the ride up, almost convinced that she would see Peter again when the door opened. 

Of course, she didn’t. And she walked to the door of the apartment, posture defeated. Her whole body felt heavy, weighed down. 

As soon as she put the key in the lock, the door opened and Happy pulled her into his arms. 

“The kid called me,” he told her gently. 

Her heart skipped a beat when he said that, hoping maybe he meant Peter. Maybe he changed his mind.

“The one you’ve been working with. At SHIELD,” he clarified, seeing the look on her face. 

With that, she promptly dissolved into tears. 

May Parker was a strong woman. She didn’t cry often. And even less often around other people. 

But too much had happened, even for her. And she knew that Happy wouldn’t go anywhere no matter what she said. That he would stay, that he wouldn’t let anything happen to her. So she let herself cry, not holding anything back. 

Everything was falling apart. Each tear that fell reminded her of it all. The guilt, the hurt, the anger she’d felt. The reopened wound of missing Ben. The aching void in her heart where Peter was missing. 

Her boy didn’t want to be saved. So what was there that she could do? 

Maybe this was just another loss that she’d have to learn to live with.

Chapter 8: BDSM

Summary:

warnings: privacy invasion (Peter dealing with the fallout of the previous chapter), very nff, bdsm dom/sub relationship

Notes:

A/N: how do these chapters always end up so long? we don’t really know. peter’s going through it, yall. we’re officially halfway through this story, and we can’t wait to get the rest of it up for you to read. big things are happening!!

(also- you may have noticed, but for every chapter, the title is in reference to the au or trope it features. we aren’t just lazy and unoriginal lol...there’s a method to the madness)

- bloo and bri <3

Chapter Text

With shaking hands, Peter slid the glasses from his face. He closed his fist around them as he tried in vain to steady his breathing. He had no idea what he was supposed to do. What the fuck was he supposed to do?

Once again, it felt like the world had shifted on its axis and everything was closing in on him.

What the fuck was that? How had SHIELD infiltrated EDITH’s programming in order to allow May into his illusions? How long had she been real? If she’d been the May he’d conjured every time...

That would explain why his spidey sense had reacted so strongly that first time, when he introduced his family to Tony. He had known that something was wrong, but hadn’t been able to discern what. Because he was looking for a threat in his environment, not a digital one.

Hindsight was always fucking 20/20.

May’s presence in the illusions aside, the fact still making his skin crawl, how long had SHIELD been watching him? What had they seen? Were they always watching?

The thought made Peter feel sick to his stomach. They all knew what he was doing, they saw him with Tony. That meant that they...they knew how he felt about Tony. Fuck, they’d seen them having sex, something that was not meant for anyone else to even know about, much less witness. If they’d been watching at all, they had to have seen it, there was no way they hadn’t.

Tears began to sting in the teen’s eyes, and he swallowed thickly around the bile that was making its way up his throat. He felt...dirty. Violated. 

Betrayed.

This was supposed to be just for him, just for him and Tony. But instead, a bunch of people he didn’t even know were watching his deepest fantasies play out with an illusion of a man who was thirty-odd years older than him. Not to mention the fact that said man had been…gone for nearly a year. 

...That meant that even May had seen.

The reality of that fact made his stomach flip, shame and disgust burning in his veins. 

Not only had his aunt seen him cuddled up to Tony, watched as he married the man, not holding anything back... She’d probably seen him in every vulnerable moment, any time they’d slept together, even the less explicit intimate interactions the two of them had shared. Just like the people at SHIELD had.

He wrapped one arm around his torso in a weak attempt to comfort himself and soothe his churning stomach. He hadn’t eaten anything in a few hours, but the meager food he’d had was threatening to make a reappearance. The more he thought about the reality of the situation, the more it sunk in, the worse he felt. 

Guilt piled on top of shame, disgust was added onto betrayal, violation was added to the entire mix. And it all made him want to crawl out of his own skin and be sick. 

He wanted to disappear.

The only consolation he had was that they wouldn’t be able to get in again. There was no way for them to influence him or have any sort of impact on the illusions. He couldn’t control anything else they might do, but EDITH had guaranteed that the new 24/7 monitoring and firewall improvement would ensure that they wouldn’t be able to get back in and mess everything up. 

He couldn’t believe May had done something like that. Well. He could, but he didn’t want to. He knew that she wanted him to go back to New York, back to her and Happy, but it hadn’t crossed his mind that she’d actually get involved enough to try to intervene

He’d thought that maybe she of all people would understand why he was doing it. She had lost so much herself. Maybe she would get it and let him be. Since he was finally truly happy, for the first time in a very long while. 

But apparently not. She’d somehow come in without permission, lied to him in order to get him to trust her and then proceeded to try to take him away from the one thing, the one place, the one person that made him feel safe. She obviously didn’t give a fuck about Peter’s actual happiness and well-being. She was just being selfish, not thinking about what he actually wanted but rather what she wanted for him. 

He still missed her, though. What she did... really hurt him. He wasn’t going to get over it anytime soon. But he still loved her. He knew that in reality, she was the only living family that he had left. He wished that she could have just understood, could have accepted the choices that he’d made and would continue to make. Maybe they could have even coexisted, in the new world he was creating for them. He could have had his family back, all of them, together and whole, just the way it should have been. 

He was doing everything in his power… How was everything still falling apart? The whole point of leaving, of coming to the compound, of not communicating with anyone, was so that he could get away. So that he could have some peace.

And he’d found some, or at least he thought he had.

But his happiness was once again being stolen from him,

He was so tired of having to deal with the utter crock of bullshit that was his life. Fucking Parker luck. 

He didn’t want to be in charge anymore.

Maybe he didn’t have to be.

(In the back of his mind, he thought briefly again of the fact that everything he did had spectators, whether he liked it or not. Despite feeling massively uncomfortable, he knew there was nothing he could really do about it, not without having to rewrite part of the program. And there was no way he was going to do that. There was always a small chance that he would lose any existing data. He couldn’t risk losing what he had built with Tony.

If they were going to watch, then…..well, he was going to put on a show.)

***

Peter had decided that he was going to bring his idea up to Tony. Even after thinking about it for a while, he wasn’t sure how to go about it. What was he supposed to say? “Hey Tony, I want you to be my dom?”

If he was being completely honest, that probably would have worked. (In fact, he knew it would have.)

But Peter couldn’t make himself just come out with the words like that. It wasn’t him. That wasn’t how he did things.

So instead, when it was time for Tony to come home from work, and he had gotten himself ready, put on some of the lingerie he’d bought during the honeymoon, Peter positioned himself on the floor in front of the elevator, kneeling on a pillow he’d taken from the couch.

He was only there for a minute or two when the doors opened and out walked his husband, making his heart beat wildly in his chest.

“Peter? Baby, what’s going on? What’s wrong? Why are you in the floor?” He paused, taking in the fact that Peter’s body was clad in only a lace bralette and matching panties, the aegean blue material popping enticingly against his skin. The man blinked, letting his eyes roam over the man’s submissive form before they snapped up to meet his husband’s. “Pete?”

For a moment Peter just sat there, searching Tony’s face. Then he closed his eyes and took a deep breath to steel himself for what he was about to do. His gaze met the older man’s once more. “Daddy.”

Eyes flashing, Tony reacted to the title much like Peter had hoped he would, and he recognized the dynamic that the boy was trying to set up. But he still wasn’t sure what was happening. “C’mon, baby, talk to me.”

That was the last thing Peter wanted to do. He shook his head minutely and closed his eyes again, sighing heavily. 

Why couldn’t Tony just roll with it? He never had a problem indulging his kinks with no conversation before. They never needed to talk about it. Or so Peter thought. Why was the man insisting that he come out and say it this time?

“If you really want this, I need to hear you say it, Peter.”

“I’m tired,” he said finally, voice soft. “I don’t want to think anymore, I don’t want to think about any of it. I want…” Peter let himself trail off, swallowing. “I want to give control to you, Tony.” He let his eyes meet his husband’s again.

The man watched him for a moment more, face neutral. Whatever he saw must have satisfied him, as his eyes darkened and his stance shifted almost imperceptibly.

But Peter definitely noticed. 

Something about the subtle change in his posture made Tony immediately appear more dominant, and Peter felt something deep within himself give. Yes, this was exactly what he wanted. To give himself to Tony, all of himself, until there was nothing left of him that wasn’t Tony’s, too.

A low hum emanated from the taller man’s chest as he crossed his arms, sharp yet caring eyes still trained consideringly on Peter’s kneeling form. “You need Daddy to take care of you, honey? Show you that you don’t have to do everything on your own, that it’s all gonna be okay?” 

Peter was nodding before he even realized it. “Please,” he whispered. “Tony, please, yes.”

“Ah-ah,” Tony chided, walking forward a few steps until he was standing right in front of the boy. He reached down, taking Peter’s chin in his hand. His grip was firm, but gentle enough that it didn’t actually hurt. “That’s not my name right now, kid. What do you call me?”

Mouth suddenly dry, Peter swallowed. “Daddy.” The word had the muscles in his lower stomach clenching as he felt that molten heat begin to pool deep inside of him.

Tony smiled down at him as he ran the pad of this thumb over Peter’s bottom lip. “That’s right, baby.” 

Peter let his lips part and he pushed his head forward slightly so that the finger entered his mouth. He gently sucked on the digit, enjoying the weight and warmth of it on his tongue. 

“Do you trust me, Peter?” Removing his hand, Tony shrugged off his suit jacket, letting it fall to the floor and rolling up the sleeves of his white button-up. 

“With my life,” Peter said automatically, still staring up at the man with wide eyes. 

“Good.” His hands moved to pull at the knot of his tie, feeling the boy’s gaze burning into his skin. The gold of his wedding band glinted in the light. “Now crawl to the bedroom.” 

Tony watched as Peter did just that, adjusting his position so that he was on all fours as he began making his way across the entryway and through the living room. A shiver ran through Peter’s body, and Tony knew that the hardwood floor was cold, especially with practically all of his skin exposed. 

But he knew that his baby could take it.

Peter would take whatever Tony wanted to give him.

Staying a few paces behind his lover at all times, Tony’s eyes roved over Peter’s ass, watching the way it moved as he began ascending the stairs. He licked at his bottom lip, already imagining all the ways he was going to take his boy apart, break him down until he was begging for Tony to fill him up, to stuff him full of his cock. 

The heat of Tony’s eyes on him had Peter’s blood thrumming in his veins as he reached the top step, turning the corner where he could see their bedroom door a few feet away. He felt...anxious, but in a good way. He didn’t know exactly what the older man had planned for him, but he was being honest when he said he trusted Tony. 

(He didn’t say that Tony was probably the only person he trusted at this point.)

Once they had both made it into the room, Peter now kneeling down on the floor at the foot of the bed, Tony didn’t let the teen out of his sight even as he pushed the door closed, arm extended out behind him. It shut, the sound nearly deafening in the quiet. 

Shifting his weight, Tony opened his mouth, making no moves to get closer to his partner at the moment. “How you doing, baby?” The man tried to keep his voice soft, so as to not startle Peter, but as he had already allowed himself to slip pretty far into his dom headspace, he couldn’t completely get rid of the deep, commanding rasp. 

Peter swallowed. “I’m okay,” he said quietly, making eye contact for a second before lowering his gaze to his knees, where his hands were loosely clasped. 

Tony raised an eyebrow. “Just okay?” He paused and ran a hand through his hair, resulting in him looking slightly disheveled. It was at odds with the rest of his put-together appearance. “I’m gonna need more than okay, Pete. What are you thinking? Tell me.”

Eyes wide, not able to explain why he felt so compelled to comply, Peter did. “I’m great, Daddy. I’m just...nervous, I guess. I trust you, more than anything, and I want to know what’ s going to happen. Also I just,” he paused, a flush coming to his cheeks. “I love you so much.” 

The older man’s eyes softened, and then he did take a step towards Peter. Then another. “I love you too, Peter.” He kept walking until he was standing right in from his husband, staring down at him, the tips of his shoes not even an inch from the bare skin of Peter’s knees. “Your safeword is ‘rhubarb’, okay baby? Repeat it back to me.”

A hint of a smile tugged at Peter’s lips at the word. He took a deep breath to compose himself before peering up at Tony again and speaking. “My safeword is ‘rhubarb’,” he intoned lightly. 

“Good boy.” Something ignited in Tony as he witnessed the other’s reaction to the words. “You like that, don’t you, baby?” As if he didn’t know the answer from the barely audible mewl that escaped his lips and the way the ruddy tinge to his cheeks intensified. “Like knowing that Daddy’s pleased, that he’s happy with you?”

Peter nodded softly. “Yes, Daddy.”

“That’s all you want, isn’t it baby?” His hands moved to his tie, which was draped over his neck. He pulled it down and held it out in front of him, an end in each hand. “Close your eyes, Peter.”

Obliging after only a moment of hesitation, Peter’s lids fell shut. He sighed at the feeling of the soft, cool silk on the heated skin of his face. 

“How does that feel?”

“It’s nice. I like it.” He paused. “There’s no strong smells in here which is nice but I can hear everything. I mean I already could but- This is so much more-” 

Tony tutted softly, seeing the way the boy was getting frustrated with himself for rambling a bit, the nervous energy needing some way to escape. “Shhhh, relax baby. You don’t have to think, remember? Turn that little genius brain of yours off for a bit, huh? Let Daddy handle it, I’ll take care of everything, Pete.” He made a point not to touch him, not wanting to overwhelm him any further. 

Peter sniffed, his nose twitching. “Okay.” He shifted his posture, rolling his shoulders and leaning to the side a bit to adjust his legs. He focused on the beating of Tony’s heart rather than his own, finding it more reassuring. “Okay,” he repeated, quieter this time, mostly speaking to himself. 

Tony let them sit in the quiet for a moment, until he was satisfied that Peter had calmed down. “Good job, baby.” Hands dropping to his waist, Tony began to unfasten his belt. The sound of the metal clink might as well have been a gunshot with the way that Peter jerked. “Easy, kid, it’s just me.” After he pulled the leather through the loops on his pants, he let it drop down to the carpet where it landed with a thud. He undid his button and zipper before pulling his cock out so that he could stroke himself to full hardness. 

“Look at you, baby. So pretty, down there on your knees for me,” he groaned. He circled his thumb around the head a few times, spreading the wetness there as he took in the sight before him. “So perfect for Daddy.”

Peter’s nipples had hardened underneath the dark lace and he pressed his thighs together at the sound of Tony’s hand moving over the slick skin of his shaft. Saliva was beginning to pool in his mouth; he could feel the heat of Tony’s erection in front of his face, the deep musk of the man’s scent like a drug to him. He made a soft noise in the back of his throat. “Please,” he whispered. 

Now fully hard, Tony grabbed at Peter’s mussed curls with his left hand. He used his right to guide his cock to the boy’s lips, letting the tip rest there before tapping it against them a few times. “Open up, sweetheart.” When Peter did as he was told, Tony let out a deep sigh at the feeling of his mouth suckling on the head.

Peter whined again. His tongue danced around the tip of his husband’s cock and he sucked greedily at the salty fluid there. It was so heady, and he could already feel himself slipping down, bleeding into that space he’d always wondered about. His jaw began to go slack, the rest of his body relaxing in kind. 

“There you go, baby,” Tony groaned, starting to cant his hips, pushing himself further into the wet heat of Peter’s mouth. He could tell from the way Peter suddenly went more pliant that he was starting to drop. “It’s alright, I’ve got you.”

The boy took him readily, even unconsciously reached a hand up in an attempt to find Tony’s hip and pull him closer. He keened in displeasure when Tony gently nudged him away. 

“Hey, uh-uh, hands behind your back, kid. No touching.”

Another whine, but the young man once again followed the instruction. He began to bob his head, the lewd sounds of his mouth moving on the slick flesh filling the air. 

Tony kept his fingers tangled in Peter’s hair as he cursed under his breath. “Fuck, Peter, that’s it baby. So perfect, you suck Daddy’s cock so good.” He started to thrust his hips again, shallowly at first but then getting deeper. When he reached the back of Peter’s throat, the boy’s muscles contracted around him as he gagged, desperately trying to swallow. “Shit, shit,” Tony muttered, eyes slipping shut at the sensation. 

When Peter started to tense up, rising on his knees slightly, the man pulled back, leaving him spluttering as he tried to catch his breath. Thick drool was running down his chin as he coughed, and Tony didn’t hesitate before running his dick through it. “Open,” he commanded, scooping some of the liquid up with the pads of his fingers so he could push it back into the boy’s mouth. His cock was quick to follow, immediately going as deep as he could in order to make Peter’s body jerk again. “Swallow.”

Peter did his best, trying not to choke as the muscles in his throat contracted weakly around the intrusion. He tried to focus on breathing through his nose, but he gagged anyway, lurching backwards even though he was unable to get away, tethered by the firm grip of the hand clutching at his head.

Pulling back to let him breath for a moment, the sound of the frantic gasping making him grow impossibly harder, Tony only waited a few seconds before snapping his hips forward again. He fucked gently in and out of Peter’s mouth, praises falling unbidden from his own. “So perfect, Peter, god, you’re perfect. So good for me, kid.” 

He could feel himself getting close, too close, after a minute so he roughly pulled Peter from his dick. “Shit, baby, almost made me cum,” he breathed heavily, almost as loud as the boy’s hurried lungfuls of air, and slowly tucked himself back into his slacks, still slick with spit. “You did so good, Peter.” His fingers released Peter’s hair, running through it soothingly a few times instead before moving to the lack of his head to tug at the blindfold. 

Peter was firmly in subspace now, so the older man felt that the sensory deprivation wasn’t necessary anymore. And he wanted to see those big brown eyes for what he had planned next. 

Kneeling down in front of him, Tony kissed the teen’s forehead and then his lips. His thumb swept over the apple of his cheek. “Hey, baby, can you look at me? How are you doing?”

Said eyes blinked up at him tearily, and Peter sniffled before coughing wetly. “Good,” he said, voice soft and wrecked, only able to meet the man’s gaze for a moment before his eyes fell. They paused on Tony’s clothed erection for a moment until they were trained on his own knees again. He blinked a few times before his mouth opened. “Knees hurt.”

Tony immediately moved, scooped the boy into his arms. “Thank you for telling me,” he said into Peter’s temple, pressing a kiss there before he gently deposited him on the bed. “Lay down for me, honey.” His eyes ran over the slight body sprawled out on top of the sheets, taking in the flush that seemed to cover most of Peter’s skin. 

He looked absolutely delicious, slightly dazed with his cock hard and leaking in the dark blue of the lace panties. 

Leaning down, Tony pressed gentle pecks over each of Peter’s red kneecaps, then switched to leaving a trail of them up the inside of his thighs.

Peter sighed happily, squirming a bit at the touch. He inhaled sharply when he suddenly felt the heat of Tony’s mouth over his fabric covered erection. “Daddy,” he whimpered, hips automatically twitching up in an attempt to find more stimulation. 

“Shhhh,” Tony soothed, pulling away. He rubbed his thumb over this inside of Peter’s ankle. “Think you can kneel again for me, baby?” At Peter’s slight frown, he clarified, smiling softly. “Not on the floor, up here on the bed. Can you do that?” When he received a soft nod in response, he helped get the boy into position before climbing off the bed to rifle through one of the drawers in the nightstand, reassuring Peter that he just needed to grab something.

Peter watched him for a moment, mind drifting. He felt floaty, like he wasn’t quite in his body. It took a lot of effort to wiggle his toes, they felt...far away. Moving his fingers was easier, but it still took a good bit of concentration. Everything was soft, muted, like his head was stuffed full of cotton. Or something thick, like molasses.

It was a feeling that he decided he liked. 

Suddenly Tony was back in front of him, stroking his cheek. “There you are, kid. Gonna tie you up now, okay honey?” He waited until Peter made eye contact with him before accepting it as consent, pressing a soft kiss to his lips and beginning to fiddle with the bundle of soft, black rope in his grip.

Peter smiled dopily to himself as he watched how Tony wrapped the silky cords around one hand before unwinding them again. 

His gaze stayed on the man’s hands. He trusted those hands with anything. They were strong, capable. He never worried that those hands would hurt him. Not unless he wanted them to.

His eyes snapped up to Tony’s face when the dominant cleared his throat, calling Peter to attention once more. 

“I’m sorry,” he murmured, not breaking the heated eye contact that followed. He was getting lost in the depths of Tony's dark irises. 

Tony hummed softly, fingers sliding against the soft rope that he was holding. “Don’t be, baby. It’s alright. What were you thinking about?” It was asked gently, but was clearly more of a command to answer than just a casual question. 

“Your hands,” Peter answered instantly, cheeks heating at how eagerly he responded. He wanted to look away but found himself unable to.

“Uh huh. And what about them?”

“How strong they are. And beautiful. And how much I trust them. How much I trust you,” he whispered. He finally broke the eye contact, face burning. He probably sounded ridiculous. 

“Look at me, honey.” Tony watched him, moving closer until he was kneeling on the bed in front of Peter. “I’m so glad you trust me.” He leaned in and pressed a gentle yet firm kiss to the sub’s lips as his hands moved to remove the blue lace from Peter’s chest. “Gonna take this off okay?”

Peter nodded slightly, melting into the kiss and whining when the heat of the other man’s lips left his. 

A low chuckle came from Tony when he heard. He let the bralette fall to the floor at the side of the bed. “Sorry, baby. I’ve got something else I need to do before I can keep kissing you. Is that okay?” 

“Yes, Daddy.” Peter’s bottom lip poked out slightly in a pout, despite his words. 

“Thank you. Now, can you work with me here? I’ll need you to stay still for this part. Then we’ll lay you back down to do the rest.” 

Peter nodded obediently, fixing his expression as he gazed at his husband. 

Tony got to work quickly, staying silent as he focused. 

The rope was looped around Peter’s chest, resting snugly on top of his pecs as it was brought back around and secured. 

It was wrapped around again, underneath this time. The rope was tight around him, but not enough for it to hurt or even dig into his skin uncomfortably.

All he knew was the firm pressure of the cords around his body, holding onto him. He knew that he felt safe. 

His eyes slipped shut as he relaxed, letting Tony artfully secure the silk rope around his body. 

He didn’t open them again until he felt the warmth of his partner’s hands pulling away. He wasn’t quite sure how long he’d been spaced out, peacefully floating in his mind while Tony worked on him. 

Tony leaned back to admire his handiwork, a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “How does that feel, baby?” It certainly looked gorgeous, the black silk contrasting perfectly against Peter’s pale, lightly freckled skin. 

“It’s-“ Peter’s voice was crackly as he started speaking. How long had it been since they started? Much longer than he’d realized, it seemed. “It’s really nice. Tight. But not too tight. Huggy.” 

The older man laughed softly, rubbing a finger over one cord. If it was obvious that Peter was deep into subspace after the blowjob, Tony didn’t even know how to describe the boy’s current state. He loved it. It was nice to see him so relaxed and content. 

He’d obviously needed someone else to take control of him for a while. And Tony was happy to help. He’d do anything for Peter.

“That’s good, honey. I don’t want it to hurt you. It’s supposed to be calming. Is it working? Do you feel safe?” He couldn’t keep the amused note out of his voice. 

Peter nodded sluggishly, like the movement took all his focus. And it honestly did, given how deep he was in his headspace. Everything was soft and warm around the edges and nice. 

“Good. Let’s lay you down now, okay? I’ll do your wrists next. Then your feet.” Tony walked the boy through the plan, letting him get used to the idea. He rubbed at his back as he straightened up on his knees, humming. “Not as young as I used to be, huh.” It was more to himself than anything. 

“That’s okay, Daddy,” Peter spoke up gently as he moved forward on the bed a bit. It was hard to do so without being able to put his arms out to help steady him, so he was a bit wobbly on his knees, but managed to get to the center of the mattress. “I like you just the way you are.”

Tony chuckled, nodding. “I guess I’m glad for that, huh.” He placed a hand on the small of Peter’s back, helping guide him first into a sitting position, legs out in front of him, and then so that he was laying on his back. “Come on, baby. I know you’re all relaxed and everything, just need you to help me out a little with this.” 

Once Peter was settled, he relaxed into the down comforter, content to just watch what the dom was doing. 

Tony grabbed the final lengths of rope that he’d need to finish up. One for Peter’s wrists, then two others: one for each of his ankles. Those would be used to tie his feet to the end of the bed, keeping his legs spread. Less calm-inducing than the others, but it was infinitely more functional given his plans. 

He took the longer cord first, humming as he tried to think about how he wanted Peter’s hands tied. 

Typically he’d go for behind the back, it always had a nice, clean look and made the temptation to touch lessen. It also did a lot for making one feel truly restrained. But he needed the sub to be on his back, so he ultimately decided that his hands would be tied in the front. 

He mentally went through the rope work he was planning, wanting to make sure he didn’t overlook anything, before he began executing the action on his husband. 

It took only a few minutes for Tony to secure his hands in front of him, before he was moving on to his lower body. He tied the rope around his ankles and feet, so that the pressure wasn’t all in one spot and making the boy sore, and then finished by securing it to the footboard of the bed. 

Peter tugged at the bonds slightly when he noticed that Tony was done, looking down at the loops around his ankles from where his head was propped up on the pillows. 

He knew that he could easily get out of the restraints if he wanted. But the thing was...he didn’t want to. 

He was finally able to give up control, not having to constantly have everything in his grip. He was able to hand it all off to Tony, letting himself relax. 

And it was absolutely perfect. 

He was pulled out of his thoughts as Tony’s hands started sliding up his sides, stopping when they reached the harness wrapped around him. 

“You look amazing, baby,” Tony mused. Then he leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to the center of his sub’s sternum. Right above the place where the harness was divided up the middle and split to loop over Peter’s shoulders. 

As he pulled his lips away, his hands came up to cup at Peter’s chest. His pecs were pushed out from the way the rope was tight around them. Tony was entranced. 

“Look at these gorgeous tits,” he teased, thumbs quickly swiping over Peter’s peaked nipples. 

It caused Peter to flush and shiver, arching up into the slight contact. It was nothing too serious, but he needed it all the same. 

“Daddy,” he whined, breath catching in his throat. “Please….”

“Please what?” Tony asked, smirking slightly. “Use your words, kid. What do you want?” 

Peter huffed. “Want you to touch me,” he breathed. 

Tony’s eyes flashed dangerously. “Oh, is that all? Want me to touch you? Well, baby, I’m sure I can do just that.” 

The gleam in his eyes made the teen slightly nervous again, but- 

No, maybe nervous was the wrong word. He still couldn’t quite come up with a better description, though. Maybe he was… He was excited. Tony obviously had plans for him. And he still couldn’t wait to know exactly what they were. 

“Thank you, Daddy,” he said sweetly. 

Tony hummed softly, quickly pinching one of Peter’s nipples before withdrawing his touch entirely. “You remember that, okay? You wanted me to touch you. Acted like you’d die without it.”

Peter whimpered at the sharp stimulation and then again at its absence, hips rocking up unconsciously. “I’ll remember, Daddy, promise.” 

“Good. I think it’s about time we start.” He paused for a moment, sitting back as he looked over his boy. “You remember your safeword?” He shook his head as Peter nodded. “I need you to tell me what it is, kid. So I know that you know.” 

Another little huff, the teen squirming impatiently. “It’s ‘rhubarb’, Daddy. Please-”

Tony smiled. "Alright, baby, thank you." Reaching out, he caressed Peter's cheek before leaning down to press their lips together. He let his tongue swipe over the teen's bottom lip and he was instantly granted access. 

Peter mewled when Tony’s tongue licked at his own, body going boneless when a hand also began to apply a gentle but firm grip on his neck. He could feel the metal of Tony’s wedding ring. The soft, plaintive sounds just kept coming while Tony explored his mouth and a punched out little gasp left him when he suddenly found himself under the pressure of the man’s bodyweight. Without his permission, his hips jerked forward, desperately seeking more friction than the snug press of the lace panties against his leaking cock. The differing textures of Tony’s shirt and pants sent a shiver down his spine, and while the pace of his rutting was slow, the amount of force behind it increased.

Breathing heavily, Tony pulled back for a minute and turned his head so that he could mouth wetly at the side of his husband’s neck. He sucked a bruise into the skin there, drinking up the high, whines that the action elicited from Peter. “That’s it, baby, you gonna use Daddy’s body to get off?” He let out a groan when Peter’s erection slid against his own where it lay trapped in his briefs and suit pants. 

Nodding, the boy shifted as he tried to move his limbs to wrap around Tony’s neck and waist. He cried out softly when he couldn’t, pulling at his restraints. “Daddy,” he whined, voice thin. “I want- I need-”

“Shhhh,” Tony soothed, lips capturing Peter’s again before pulling away, a strand of spit connecting them. “I know what you need, Peter.” He licked filthily into the teen’s open mouth. His dick throbbed at the way Peter went boneless underneath him again, offering himself up and letting Tony explore his mouth in a way that was truly indecent. 

Their bodies undulated against each other as they made out, and Tony could tell that the younger man was getting close by the way his muscles would clench every couple of seconds.

He ground down against the soft, pliant body on the mattress, groaning. “Fuck, baby,” he breathed, looking into Peter’s moony eyes as the boy rutted desperately against his abdomen. “You’re so perfect, Peter, so beautiful. Shit, c’mon kid, make yourself cum for Daddy. C’mon baby.”

“Ahhhhh,” Peter whined, squeezing his eyes shut. “Daddy, please, gonna- I’m gonna-,” the words were cut off by a choked gasp as he tensed, toes curling. Still trapped in the panties, and in between their bodies, his cock jumped in its confines, hot spurts of sticky cum pooling underneath the head and smearing with his movements.

Tony could feel a wet patch forming on his thigh and he moaned low in his throat, his own erection almost painfully hard. But this wasn’t about him, it was all for Peter. He’d get his turn eventually. “Good boy, Peter,” he whispered roughly, pressing kisses wherever he could reach, taking in the blissed out look on his boy’s face.

“Daddy,” he sighed, heart thumping wildly in his chest. Peter’s body continued shuttering through the aftershocks, hips twitching up weakly as Tony pulled away. 

After one more kiss, Tony started sitting up again to look over the teen’s body. His mouth watered at the sight of the cum against the lace covered hipbone, and the corresponding stain on the dark fabric of his pants. He ran a hand lightly over his own cock, adjusting it. “How did that feel, baby? Happy now?”

“Mhm….” he mumbled, again going limp against the bed. He felt like he was melting, disappearing like wet spun sugar. Everything felt slow. “Jus’ what I wanted, so good Daddy….” but he couldn’t deny that he still wanted more. He wanted his Daddy’s hands on him, possessive and guiding. Although he already felt the sensitivity creeping in, making him think that maybe waiting for a little bit before going again would be a good idea. 

“Uh huh. That’s good, honey. You were so good for me, Peter.” Tony’s fingers trailed up Peter’s thigh, watching the muscles flex and tense underneath his touch. “But I’m not done with you yet, kid.” 

Peter made a confused noise in the back of his throat before he started whining as his Daddy’s fingers brushed over his slowly softening cock. He arched his back, pushing his ass down into the bed in a fruitless attempt to get away from the touch. “Daddy, too much.” 

Tony raised an eyebrow. He didn’t move his hand away, since Peter didn’t safeword, but he did pause, not doing anything more. “Too much? Do you need to use your word?” 

The teen slowly shook his head, breathing hard. He didn’t want Tony to stop. He was just sensitive and he knew that the feeling would only increase. 

“Okay, baby. If you’re sure.” He hooked his fingers underneath the waistband of Peter’s panties, slowly starting to tug them down his thighs. 

He grinned at the sight of the teen’s flushed cock laying against his hip, skin slick with streaks of cum. “You look gorgeous, Peter. You know that?” He brushed over the half-hard length, chuckling at how the boy twitched. “I know, I’m sorry. But I’m just doing what you wanted.” 

Peter figured that was right. He had wanted to be touched. He should have known that was going to come back to bite him in the ass. A soft whine left him as Tony’s fingers started massaging his cock back to hardness. Although it didn’t take much. 

“There we go...I knew you could go again. With that incredible recovery period of yours,” he teased. 

Suddenly his touch was gone and Peter squirmed, hips rocking again. But he stilled when he noticed what Tony was doing. 

The older man started with a chaste kiss to his lips, trailing presses of his lips down the teen’s body slowly. He moved down the bed as he worked, settling between Peter’s thighs with his lips on his hip bone. Hardly an inch away from where Peter wanted him. 

Peter’s cock twitched against his stomach, like it was trying to reach Tony’s mouth. “Daddy….”

“Uh uh,” Tony chided, blowing a gentle breath across the sub’s damp skin. “You stay still. I’m doing things at my pace, you need to be patient.” 

Dropping his head back against the pillows, Peter let out a shaky breath. He had a feeling that it would be a long night.

Chapter 9: Hurt/Comfort

Summary:

warnings: subdrop, traits of borderline personality disorder (ie splitting), gunshot wound, discussions of wounds and wound care

Notes:

A/N: we started joking that we should call this chapter ‘hurt/ no comfort’, bc it turns out that neither of us actually know how to write comfort :) the things that happen in this chapter will make more sense soon, we promise. but for now, we’d love to hear what you guys are thinking!

thanks so much for reading! (and thanks for being understanding about this chapter being late; we’ve both been really busy, and sometimes brains just don’t cooperate <3)

- bloo and bri

Chapter Text

A choked off whine slipped from Peter’s lips as his eyes flew open. He screwed up his face, expression twisting into something pained. His chest somehow felt tight and hollow all at once, making him conscious of every single breath he took.

Sitting there, tucked up in the gym mats, he tried to clear his head, rid it of the unsettling fog, but found that he couldn’t. And his body...it felt like it wasn’t his. He felt trapped in his skin, like it was closing in on him. 

The sudden low that he was experiencing was strong enough that it had pulled him out of the illusion entirely, his body trembling. 

He tried to focus on what was around him, but it was hard when he felt so disconnected. He could feel cold globs of cum drying against his skin and causing his boxers to stick to him uncomfortably, his cock spent and sensitive as a few tears trickled down his cheeks. Wiping one away, he stared blankly at the wetness on the back of his hand.

What the fuck was going on? He hadn’t even realized that he was crying.

Everything felt wrong. His brain still felt floaty from his headspace, but it wasn’t in a good way anymore. He felt disconnected, floating without a tether to ground himself with. Gone was the happy and content feeling from before. This kind of floating... It was terrifying, and all he wanted was to feel real again. 

But he couldn’t seem to quite get there. 

His breaths became shorter as he started panicking, frantically trying to grab at the floor beneath him. But there wasn’t a surface to hold onto, just smooth, cold rubber. It didn’t help rid him of his distress in any way. 

He knew that what he needed was Tony. But Tony wasn’t there. 

Peter had heard of sub-drop, but he’d never felt it firsthand before. Obviously.

And even going into the scene, he hadn’t thought it was something he needed to worry about. It surely hadn’t crossed his mind while everything was taking place. Tony was gentle, perfect and sweet to him, even as he pushed his limits. Drops only happened to people with uncaring doms, right? And...it wasn’t like any of that had actually happened, so surely there was no reason for him to experience any after effects?

Wrong.

Peter was left alone to fall, just waiting until he finally felt connected to his own body again. Being grounded again took what felt like forever. But at least it happened eventually. 

He felt sick. His skin was crawling and it all felt wrong. Like he had been taken apart and then put back together again, but the pieces had been jammed together, put back incorrectly. Puzzle pieces forced to fit. 

All he wanted was to be held, to feel safe and protected. But there was no one there to hold him. 

He was alone. He was always alone.

When he realized that, he truly started to cry in earnest. His eyes stung as more tears built up and spilled, falling in quick succession when he squeezed his eyes shut. A sob shook his frame and he pulled his knees up to his chest before wrapping his arms around them in an attempt to make himself as small as possible. 

He was convinced that he’d never felt as empty as he did in that moment. Any pain from before was forgotten, incomparable to the sadness that was suddenly overwhelming him. 

Tony left him alone. 

Again.

Peter knew that it was too good to be true. He knew that he would never really have Tony, that Tony couldn’t protect him. Not in the way that he needed to be protected. He was stupid to think that he would be allowed to have something good, even in his own mind.

He never got to keep the good things.

But despite how much he was hurting, and the fact that he could feel the whole thing falling apart right beneath his fingers, he knew that his life with Tony was the only thing keeping him together. It was the only good thing he had left, the only chance he had at feeling even the most fleeting moments of happiness.

He had nothing without Tony, he knew that. 

So, wiping the tears from his face, Peter sniffled, reaching for the glasses. He bit his bottom lip to stop it trembling and took a shaky breath.

He needed comfort from Tony, and if he had to get it himself, then that’s what he would do.

Because he was in control.

***

Pausing in the doorway of their bedroom, Peter took a moment to simply look at his husband. 

Tony was stretched out on the bed, leaning back on what was an absolutely absurd amount of pillows and fiddling with some sort of schematic hologram that was being projected from the tablet in his lap. His hair was a mess, sticking up in all directions, and there was a wrinkle between his eyebrows. His eyes were narrowed slightly, one of his hands was cupping his chin. 

Peter recognized it as his concentrating face. He’d always found the expression ridiculously endearing, and now was no exception. He could feel some of the resentment he’d been harboring begin to melt away.

The engineer didn’t seem to notice the younger man’s presence, continuing to manipulate the projection, fingers splaying out in various gestures as he tried to work out the problem. 

Peter cleared his throat softly and shot a gentle smile in Tony’s direction when he finally looked up. “Um. Hi, Tony.” The fingers on his right hand fidgeted with his wedding band.

“Hey baby,” Tony sighed, giving Peter his own tired grin. His eyes flickered down to the younger’s hands, then back up to his face. “What’s up?” He began to close out of whatever he was working on, eyes shifting between the holograms he was moving and Peter’s face as he waited for him to respond.

Cocking his head to the side, the brunette slipped his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “I, uh, was thinking maybe we could go for a walk?” It came out like a question, even though he had intended for it to be more of a statement. “Wanna get out of the house for a bit, get some fresh air. Wha’d’you think?” 

“I think that sounds great, Pete. I could use a break from this anyway,” Tony said, finishing up. He took a minute to roll his shoulders, groaning as he did. “God, I’m getting old,” he muttered under his breath as he pushed himself up off the mattress so that he could walk over to his partner. When he reached Peter, he leaned against him for a moment, pressing a kiss to his temple. “Let me grab some sunglasses and shoes and I’ll meet you by the elevator, okay?”

Once they were down on the street in front of the tower, Tony had suggested that they walk a few blocks to the park, maybe grab something to eat on the way back home. When Peter had agreed, they set off down the sidewalk, making small talk and just enjoying each other’s company. 

It seemed that everyone had the same idea as them, families and joggers and couples populating the large open area when they arrived.

Tony reached over to grab Peter’s hand, lacing their fingers together as they continued walking through the crowded park. 

Peter glanced down. He thought about pulling away from the touch, not really sure if he wanted Tony holding his hand. He was still pretty upset from the drop. He was feeling much better, hence them taking a walk together in the first place, but he hadn’t forgotten how he’d had to figure things out all on his own. Far from it.

Sure, it wasn’t exactly Tony’s fault that the sudden endorphin drop had caused the illusion to glitch, but he was still upset. He had been left alone and miserable. 

He didn’t pull his hand away, though. But he kept thinking about it. 

Tony did nothing to suggest that he noticed anything was wrong. He was unaware of Peter’s thoughts, of course, but he didn’t seem to notice the teen’s hesitation regarding the contact either. Which was probably a good thing, honestly. Peter didn’t like confrontation and he wouldn’t know what to do if the older man brought attention to his behavior. 

But it also kind of bothered him that Tony wasn’t paying attention. Which was stupid and probably untrue, but his brain wouldn’t let go of it. 

In a moment of fleeting irritation, Peter did pull his hand away sharply and tucked it into his pocket. Maybe now his husband would finally realize that he did something wrong. 

Because he had. Right?

The older man looked at him, blinking slowly in his confusion. “Peter?”

“Yes?” His tone was a little snappy, which he hadn’t necessarily intended. He needed to try and relax again. But it felt like he was wound too tightly, a rubber band whose elasticity was about to be pushed past its limit. 

He didn’t know what would happen when the tension finally snapped.

He could see Tony watching him out of the corner of his eye, but he didn’t look at him again. He kept his eyes forward as they walked. 

“Talk to me,” Tony encouraged, trying to reach for his hand again. When Peter didn’t pull away or react negatively, he laced his fingers with the teen’s. “What’s wrong, baby?”

Peter bit the inside of his cheek. Hard. He knew that he couldn’t explain it. There wasn’t a way to tell Tony about the drop without explaining the illusion. And obviously that wasn’t going to happen. 

But what else could he say? 

“I just feel kind of off. I don’t really know how to explain it.” Not technically incorrect. But he knew that it wasn't really the answer that his husband was looking for. 

Tony’s eyes were burning holes into the side of his face. “I’m sorry for that, honey. And that’s completely okay, everybody has off days, but I just… But did I do something? Because it kinda seems like I did….”

Peter finally glanced over at him, expression softening at the look on Tony’s face. He’d taken off his sunglasses and seemed sincerely apologetic, despite not having a clue what he had done. And he looked worried, too. Worried about him. “I...it’s okay, Tony. It’s- You didn’t do anything.” Lie. “I’ll be fine. Just feeling weird today, like I said.” 

“Okay….” Tony sighed softly, nodding. His fingers squeezed Peter’s hand lightly. He let his eyes rove over his husband’s face for a moment, looking like he had something else to say, the words poised on the tip of his tongue. But all he did was quirk the side of his mouth up in the slightest hint of a smile, though Peter could tell it wasn’t quite a real one, staying silent as they kept walking. 

Peter was quiet too, keeping his eyes trained on the sidewalk as they made their way through the park. He knew that it wasn’t Tony’s fault that he hadn’t been there to take care of him. That was just the reality of their situation; they couldn’t be together all the time. But the teen couldn’t get past the fact that he just hadn’t been there to help at all, no matter whose fault it was. It stirred something deep down inside of Peter, something hurt and upset and desperate. Something he hadn’t really known was there before. 

It was a feeling that he wished he could just force down, back to wherever it came from. Ignore it until it dissipated. 

But he kept coming back to the complete hopelessness that he’d felt as he sat on the floor of the compound. 

Exhausted, dirty, and disconnected. With no one there to help him get better. Abandoned. It felt like he would never feel happiness again. Desolate.

And on purpose or not, it was all Tony’s fault. 

“Are you ever going to tell me what’s going on?”

Peter felt irritation flash hot through his veins. “What are you talking about, Tony? I just told you that it’s nothing, just a bad day. Just drop it.”

“I- That’s not what I mean, Peter, I’m sorry. It’s just that…” Tony squeezed his hand gently, taking a deep breath as he tried to search for the right words. “Well...I don’t know. I guess I’ve just been feeling weird too, kind of off? I realized that I don’t...remember much.” And the last thing that he *could* remember from before he and Peter got together wasn’t exactly something he wanted to dwell on. 

The older man paused for a moment before speaking again. “I tried to ignore it because everything else felt...good. Perfect, even.” He gave his husband a small smile. His eyes betrayed him though, revealing his confusion and anxiety. “But then the thing that happened with your aunt…,” he trailed off. “Something’s happening and I can’t just pretend it’s all okay. Not anymore. Peter, what’s going on?”

Peter just looked at him, heart pounding. There was no way this was happening. Tony shouldn’t have remembered anything about what happened with May. He’d made sure of it... Hadn’t he? “What? Nothing is going on, Tony. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He just needed to try and manipulate the situation slightly, to ensure that this time Tony forgot all about the disaster with May. 

Tony frowned at the panicked look that was overtaking Peter’s face, wanting answers but worried about causing his husband any distress, knowing that he was already feeling vulnerable. “Peter, I need you to tell me. Who...what am I, baby?”

Peter heard the words, but they didn’t register immediately. He just watched Tony, the way his mouth moved and how his expression went slightly...sad? Yes, he definitely looked sad. 

But then his brain processed what the other man had said and it hit him. 

Tony knew. He really knew. 

How did he know?

“What?” Peter froze, pulling his hand away again as he slowly took a few steps back from Tony. Was that his voice? It sounded far-away, like he was disconnected from his body again. No, no, he wasn’t going to let that happen. He never wanted to feel like that ever again. He just had to focus and fix the situation. That’s all it was, just a small fix. 

He closed his eyes, trying to focus long enough to make the small adjustment to the illusion. But he kept getting distracted by the distant feeling, and the reminder of his anger from before. It wasn’t working. He huffed out of frustration, dread prickling under his skin. Why wasn’t it working? “Tony, I don’t-“ 

“Please, Peter,” Tony said gently. His eyes flickered down to Peter’s hand that was now hanging limply by his side. He softly shook his head, looking back up at the teen. “I just want to know the truth, whatever it is. It’ll be-”

The rubber band snapped.

“Don’t you dare tell me it will be okay or fine or whatever the hell it is you're about to say!” Peter was all but yelling, unable to keep the bitterness and pain out of his voice. He stopped walking completely, turning to face the older man. His eyes were wild as he glared up at Tony before looking away as he continued to speak.  “You have no fucking right to say that Tony, you have no idea how I feel! You don’t know what it’s like to try so hard and always end up so fucking alo-”

There was a loud sound, almost a pop, that caused his eyes to open again from surprise, having closed them as he blinked back tears of frustration. His head whipped around to see if the older man knew what was happening, concern overpowering his anger, when the words died in his throat. 

Red. All Peter could see was deep, dark red, spreading across the fabric of Tony’s white t- shirt. And the shocked look on his husband's face, his eyes wide with disbelief as he moved a hand to feel the spot, just underneath his heart. Right under where the arc reactor used to be. 

Tony had gotten shot.

But what? No. No, no, that wasn’t right. Tony couldn’t get hurt. He wasn’t supposed to get hurt. Peter was only trying to correct the things he had somehow overlooked, get rid of the memories the older man wasn’t supposed to have, not-

“Peter?” Tony’s voice was a mumble as he touched his fingers to his chest, pulling away with red stained tips. 

“Tony,” the teen choked out, tears stinging in his eyes again. How the fuck had that happened? He didn’t- He hadn’t meant to do anything like that, Tony wasn’t supposed to get hurt. He couldn’t- 

He couldn’t leave Peter again. 

“I’m so sorry,” he choked out, the first tears falling. Peter pressed his hands to the wound on his husband’s chest in a weak attempt to rectify the situation. He shifted his body, easily supporting most of Tony’s weight as the man’s legs started to give out. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to do this. You’ve gotta believe me, Tony, I- I didn’t- I swear I didn’t mean to-”

Tony’s face was pale as he leaned his head on Peter’s shoulder, taking a shuddering breath. The sound terrified the younger man. “You didn’t...Peter, you didn’t do this.”

Peter shook his head quickly, choking back a pained cry. He didn’t want to believe that had done it. But there was no other explanation, how else would it happen? He was the only one with control in the illusion, despite the way he ‘let’ Tony be in charge during their scene the other day. 

(Although that fact was seeming more and more questionable as time went on.) 

He pushed Tony’s shirt up with a trembling hand after wiping his own eyes, looking blearily at the wound. It went clear through, back to front. 

“Fuck, Tony,” he breathed, ignoring the blood that was dripping over his fingers. The sensation barely registered. He just needed Tony to be okay. 

Maybe if he focused he could actually fix it. It had to work, there was no other option. He just... needed to focus without getting upset again. Because clearly that had only made things worse. 

So much worse. 

He tried to narrow his attention again, one hand pressed lightly over the injury and the other helping to support Tony as he closed his eyes. He was in control. He could make Tony better again. 

Peter felt Tony’s hands cover his own and he opened his eyes, lashes still wet with tears that fought to spill over. 

“I’ll be okay, baby,” the older man said quietly. He blinked slowly at Peter, trying to convey with his eyes that his trust in his husband was as strong as ever.  “I know you’ll make sure I’m okay. You won’t let anything happen to me.” Maybe he didn’t know what exactly was going on, but Peter was obviously playing some sort of role in the things that were happening. He just wasn’t sure what. And trying to find out clearly hadn’t done him any good. “Let’s go home.” His voice trembled despite how he tried to sound calm. 

Peter looked at him, breathing hard as he looked around. The park and the people around them carried on as if the past few minutes never happened, oblivious to the situation and his distress.  Which he guessed was a good thing. Maybe. The contrast was jarring, regardless. “Home...yeah, let’s...go. We should go home.” He could keep trying to manipulate things on the way so that Tony would be okay and...maybe he’d actually get him to him to forget about everything that had happened on their walk. 

He clung close to Tony, and he knew that he wouldn’t have been willing to let go of him even if he hadn’t needed to help him walk. He couldn’t. He had to make sure that his husband would be okay, and touching him allowed him some assurance that he was for the time being.

The teen regretted how angry and upset he’d been before. What happened hadn’t really been Tony’s fault and he knew that. It was all his. He’d known that the whole fucking time. It was just so easy to be hurt when he was alone and vulnerable like that.

But he wasn’t alone. At least not in Tony’s eyes. 

Or… Or maybe he was since Tony was figuri-

No. He couldn’t think about that, thinking about that was only going to make things worse. He had to focus on Tony. 

Despite his best efforts, spending the entire walk home watching Tony worriedly, Peter was unable to make any kind of progress in closing the wound in the older man’s chest. Tony’s body got heavier the closer they came to the tower, and by the time they reached the elevator, he was breathing shallowly as Peter supported all of his weight. 

Grunting in pain as they stepped out into the foyer of the penthouse, Tony grit his teeth. “We gotta do something about this hole, Pete.” Sweat was rolling in beads down his forehead and back, soaking his already saturated shirt. “Don’t-,” he swallowed roughly, knuckles white as he clenched his fist. “Don’t wanna pass out.”

Peter nodded slowly, his reaction time slowed with his stress over the situation. Tony’s words made his heart go into overdrive again, because fuck. That was a fucking possibility, wasn’t it? Tony could lose consciousness- He could actually bleed out, even, despite the wound not being immediately fatal.  Peter felt sick. “You need to stay awake,” he agreed quietly, voice shaking, unable to say the other words out loud. 

If he remembered one thing from his own mishaps, it was that staying awake was vital with an injury. Especially such a serious one. Life-threatening. But he really didn’t want to think about it that way. 

(Didn’t want to think about the way he’d felt cold as his eyes slipped shut on the dark train, body screaming with every breath, every pump of his heart, sure that he was dying. Sure that he’d get to be with Tony again-)

What was he supposed to do? Hell, what could he do? He clearly couldn’t get the wound closed by trying to mentally control the situation. (But why? Why was nothing working? The illusion was still up and running, so he obviously was still directing it.) So he needed to take another approach. 

He wasn’t the best at doing stitches, only using them when he absolutely had to, on the wounds that he knew would take too long to heal, the ones that would catch May’s attention, but maybe that would have to do. He morbidly thought that at least he wouldn’t be the one feeling the pain this time. It probably wasn’t even the ideal response to the situation. Actual medical professionals would likely have other, more effective methods of intervention. Tony had a hole straight through his body. Peter didn’t care. It would have to do. He’d try just about anything to make Tony stop bleeding, at this point. 

He silently guided Tony to their room, still supporting most of his weight as they walked. He was tempted to just hold the man in his arms, as it would certainly allow them to reach their destination faster, but he didn’t want to cause Tony any further discomfort by jostling him any more than what was necessary.

Once they were in the bedroom, he helped Tony sit down on the bed. Then once the older man seemed (relatively) comfortable, Peter reluctantly pulled away. Only to find a suture kit, but he still felt guilty. 

The whole fucked up situation started because he felt alone, now he was leaving Tony alone when he needed Peter the most. Even if it was only for a couple of minutes. 

Peter didn’t have to search for a kit long. Once he was able to focus, he made sure there would be one in the next drawer that he opened. Because of course there was, of course it worked. All he had to do was think of it, conjure it into existence.

Sure, he could make the equipment he needed appear on a mere whim, but he couldn’t save Tony from his own fuck up that he’d caused in the same way. 

That was just fucking perfect. 

He tried not to break the faucet as he turned the water on, frustration bleeding into anger.

As soon as he had the kit in his now clean hands, he rushed back to Tony’s side. 

“How are you feeling now, baby?” Peter asked weakly, all of the fight that had built up in him in the bathroom disappearing at the sight of the older man. He didn’t know what he was hoping for. Maybe the wound had miraculously healed. A delayed reaction from what he’d tried earlier, or even just responding to his desperation. Anything.

Tony just gave him a pained expression, face somehow paler than it had been before. Not exactly promising. His eyes were glassy as he blinked up at Peter, mouth twitching when he grit his teeth.

“Okay...well, I found the first aid kit. So I can try to...try to fix this, okay?” Peter’s voice shook slightly despite his attempt to steady it. Even though he knew he was mostly talking to himself, he didn’t want Tony to know how afraid he was. 

As if the panicked set of his eyes and the frantic way his once again blood-stained hands were jerking around trying to find something to do weren’t giving him away. He ripped Tony’s t-shirt in half, exposing his chest as he tried his best to wipe away the excess blood with some cloths he’d brought from the bathroom.

There was no real response from Tony, just a vague imitation of a nod and a grunt from the pain he was in. 

Maybe… Maybe he could at least try and take away some of the pain first.

“Tony,” Peter said softly, lips trembling as he leaned down to press a kiss to his sweaty temple. “It’s gonna be okay.” He took a shaky breath, letting his eyes slip shut as he stayed in that position, curled around Tony’s body. He thought about the way he’d felt after those extra strength painkillers he’d received after his fight with Liz’s dad. The warm, thick, fuzzy feeling. 

After a moment he opened his eyes again and sat up, gingerly pressing his fingers to the skin just to the side of the wound. “Can you,” he swallowed. “Can you f-feel that Tony?”

The older man groaned, squeezing his eyes shut. “Yes,” he bit out. “Of course I can feel that.” He took a labored breath. “Fuck, Pete, it hurts.” His voice was a whimper, or at least the closest thing to one the younger man had ever heard come from him.

Peter’s heart lurched in his chest and he immediately pulled his fingers away. Fuck, fuck, so he was going to have to do this without any kind of relief for Tony. “O-okay, okay,” he said unsteadily, mostly in an attempt to calm himself. He could do this. 

He opened the kit that was beside them on the bed and pulled out a bottle of sterile water (there was alcohol too, but Peter knew that it would do more harm than good on such a deep wound) and a smaller kit with everything needed for suturing: suture thread, a needle driver, a couple different curved needles, and some scissors. There were forceps too, but he’d never had the patience for using them. 

“This is, uh, this is probably gonna sting a bit, T, I’m sorry,” Peter whispered, looking up at Tony’s face as he uncapped the plastic bottle. “I’ll try to be quick, I p-promise.” All he got in response was another nod that was simultaneously jerky and sluggish. God, he was so out of it, and this was going to hurt so bad, Peter knew it. “Here, wait,” the teen rushed out after a moment, yanking his shirt off. “Open your mouth.”

Tony complied, making soft noises of discomfort as Peter placed some of the fabric in his mouth.

“Bite down on that, okay?” Taking a breath, Peter began to pour the clear liquid into the wound. He let out a pained cry of his own as Tony immediately began whimpering, the veins in his neck and head bulging as he pushed back against the pillows, teeth clenched around the bunched up t-shirt. “It’s okay,” Peter sobbed out, putting down the bottle and narrowly resisting the urge to run his hand through Tony’s sweat-soaked hair. He had to keep his hands as clean as possible. “It’s okay, Tony, I’m gonna fix it. I- I love you, I’m so sorry.” 

Once he was satisfied that he wasn’t going to trap any bacteria inside Tony’s body, and Tony’s wails had quieted down to soft whines, Peter opened up the package of needles. He grabbed one that looked to be about the right size and threaded it with the suture line before securing it in the grip of the needle-driver. “Ok-kay Tony, here we go.” 

His left hand manipulated the torn skin into the correct position while his right pushed the tip of the curved needle through. Peter gagged at the resistance he could feel, pausing and squeezing his eyes shut as he tried to breathe through the nausea. He had to do this, for Tony.

Peter placed a few interrupted sutures in the front of Tony’s chest, letting out a shaky sigh when the last was secured and the surface of the small wound was closed. He knew that the only reason Tony hadn’t yelled his throat raw was because his brain wasn’t processing the pain anymore. “You did so good, Tony,” he breathed as he blinked over at the man who was shuddering with his own labored breaths before looking down at his bloodied hands. 

Sitting the tools down on the sterile pad he’d laid out, the young man’s hands moved to clutch at his husband. “Baby,” he said gently, voice calm now that he had fallen into the rhythm of his actions, satisfied now that he knew that he had a way to take care of Tony. A way to help him. He could take care of Tony the way he’d wanted Tony to take care of him. “I’m gonna roll you over now, okay? I need to stitch up the e-exit wound now, on your back. You’re doing so good, it’s all gonna be alright, T.”

After placing two stitches in the skin of Tony’s back, Peter took the kit back to the bathroom. He came back with a few warm, wet washcloths that he used to wipe the blood from his husband’s body. 

Tony let out a soft whimper at the touch, his features crumpling in discomfort. “Pete,” he breathed, blinking wetly. 

“I know,” Peter murmured softly. “But it’s all done now, you’re gonna be okay.” He went about settling the older man properly in the bed, stripping him of his jeans and pulling the sheet up over his legs and abdomen. 

The blood-soaked comforter turned operating table had been pushed to the floor along with Tony’s shredded shirt, another blanket having been dragged out of the linen closet to be draped on top of the wounded man. 

Peter sat down on the bed gently, right at Tony’s side. He wasn’t going anywhere else, this was where he needed to be. He had to take care of Tony. He wasn’t going to leave him alone. 

One hand held onto his husband’s, the other moving to finally gently stroke through the older man’s hair. He knew that always tended to relax Tony when he was stressed. 

Tony’s eyes slowly opened up to look at him, a slight smile tugging at his lips. Well, as much of one as he could manage. “Hey, baby...” He closed his eyes again. “Should’a been a doctor, Pete,” he sighed.

Peter tried to give him a smile back, but it was just as weak as the older man’s. The adrenaline that had allowed him to focus and successfully tend to Tony’s wounds was seeping out of him, leaving him feeling drained and overwhelmed once more.  “Hey, Tony. How are you feeling?” There was a pit in his stomach as he waited for an answer. He was worried that Tony would hate him once his head was finally clear from the pain. He couldn’t lose Tony here too, he couldn’t-

Tony being alive but wanting nothing to do with him would be even worse than the man dying again.

As he started panicking, Peter completely missed Tony’s answer. He was lost in his own thoughts as he spiraled further and further into the chaos in his mind. 

Tony’s hand lightly squeezing his brought him back to the present, grounding him. The older man always knew just what he needed. “Peter? You okay, honey?”

“What? I’m- yeah, I’m fine.” A huge lie. But he didn’t need Tony to worry about him. All his husband needed to worry about was healing and getting better. “How are you feeling?” He repeated his question. 

“I already answered that.” Tony laughed weakly, making a face when his chest throbbed at the action. “You keep spacing out on me, baby. I’m feeling alright, not too bad. It takes a lot to get me down.” 

That was definitely true on some level, at least. It seemed like Tony would keep fighting no matter what. The reactor, the palladium poisoning Rhodey had told him about, the...the stones. It was both endearing to Peter, the way the man persevered despite the damage done to his body, and completely terrifying. Although he’d thought he wouldn’t have to worry about the terrifying part here in the illusion. 

But Tony got hurt anyway. 

The older man shook Peter out of his thoughts once again when he started speaking. He was frowning softly, and Peter could tell that it was half playful and half genuine concern. “Why are you just sitting there? Come here. If you’re banishing me to be in bed, you can at least lay here with me.” 

Peter slowly nodded, moving to lay down next to the other man. He remained on top of the covers to be sure  he stayed clear of Tony’s injury, not wanting to hurt him, but still cuddling up to him as best he could. He couldn’t stay away. The mere thought of being away from Tony made the panic in his chest rear its head again.

And the regret. The guilt.

He’d fucked up. He knew he did. Everything that had happened was all his fault. 

But he could fix it. And it would actually work this time. He was in control of his actions, he could handle some of the issues directly. He’d care for Tony while he healed, try to figure out what the disconnect was with his influence on the illusion, and make him forget all about this horrible situation. And he’d  be sure to take away memories of the confrontation from May that set the entire thing into motion

Peter knew that he could fix everything. It had to be possible. He still had control over the situation, and Tony was going to be absolutely fine after some TLC.

He just needed to do some more patching on EDITH’s neural pathways within the STARKER program. 

That would surely take care of things. 

Chapter 10: Doppelgänger

Summary:

Additional tags: Peter is Not Okay, the Big Angst, Gun Violence (mention), Gun Mention, Wound mention, a lot of guilt, victim blaming, gaslighting?

Notes:

A/N: hello and welcome back to this clusterfuck of a fic! i, bloo, sincerely apologize for the delay in the posting of this chapter. real life took over for a bit, i started coming out of my winter depression session and feeling better led to me doing more things irl, and thus fandom took a seat on the back burner for a couple of hot secs.

bri has been SO patient with me and she is the best and the sweetest for dealing with my ADD ass. <3 we love bri.

ANYWHO-

we also love y’all, and appreciate you so much! hopefully updates will become more regular again.

thanks for sticking with us,
- bloo and bri <3

Chapter Text

“Did Tony just get- shot?” Ned asked incredulously, eyes wide with disbelief. “Peter shot him?”

“I mean...yes? I think? But wait, look- Peter’s acting like he doesn’t know what’s going on. Did he not do that?” Paige rushed the words out, gazing intently at the screen for a moment. Then she turned and looked first at Ned, then at the other agents in the room. “We didn’t do that, did we?” When everyone hurriedly shook their heads with wide eyes, the teen included, she sighed and took off her glasses to run her hands down her face. “So he’s shooting people now?”

Another heavy sigh sounded from a few feet away. Fury closed his eye, taking a deep breath before cutting his gaze to an agent who was leaning against the doorway, arms crossed as he stared at the monitor. “Grayson.” The man stood up straight, blinking with a sheepish expression on his face and he looked over at the director. “Contact May Parker. Now.”

The agent frowned and hesitated before ultimately deciding to speak up. “But… Sir, didn’t she ask that we not-”

Fury was quick to interrupt, his tone biting. “I’m sure she would like to be notified that her nephew has turned homicidal,” the bald man spat, rolling his eye in irritation. “Now like I said- contact May Parker and let her know that there have been some…developments.” 

Even if it wasn’t intentional, the violence was still Peter’s doing. Which didn’t seem like a good sign. 

He let out a heavy breath. “Tell her that a car will be outside her apartment waiting for her within the next two hours.”

The already tense atmosphere of the room only grew as Fury never looked away from the man, keeping their gazes locked as he dared the agent to question his authority for a second time.

“Of course, Director Fury.” Eyes on the ground, Grayson quickly turned and walked through the doorway, the other occupants turning back to their tasks.

Everyone’s eyes were trained on the screens as they watched Peter all but drag Tony into the penthouse from the elevator. The older man didn’t look good in any sense of the word, not even close. He was pale, sweaty, with rattled breathing and an ever-growing bloodstain covering his chest. And Peter’s panic was clearly visible on his face. 

After a few moments, Ned spoke up, discomfort lacing his tone. “I- Someone please tell me he’s not about to do what I think he is…”

“Holy shit,” Paige breathed. Her hand placed itself over her mouth that was dropped open. 

Noises of shock echoed throughout the space, and Ned averted his eyes, swallowing with difficulty. 

Agent Hill spoke up for the first time since the scene had unraveled. “I don’t think Peter’s controlling this thing, not anymore.” 

Fury turned to look at her, gaze narrowed. “What do you mean? The illusion is obviously running, and I’m assuming that means the glasses are receiving input from him. Right Leeds?”

Ned, still unable to keep his eyes on the monitors, nodded slowly. “Yes, sir. Th-That’s correct.”

It was Hill’s turn to nod, then. “Yes, that’s true, but not what I meant. I don’t think he is consciously influencing the illusions anymore. Or at least not completely.”

Paige hummed softly, head hanging as she leaned down over one of the desks. The dark ringlets of her hair fell around her like a curtain, obscuring her face. “I agree. He seems to still be in control of some aspects, like location. And he was able to, uh, place the sutures. Successfully stopping Mr. Stark from bleeding out. But he wasn’t able to heal him indirectly, even though he obviously tried.”

“What...but then how? Why are things happening if Peter isn’t the one doing the um, influencing?” Ned turned back to the screens, specifically the one full of lines and lines of green characters. He wasn’t ready to look at the others yet. “I’m constantly checking the logs and the security, there have been no breaches. Um. Other than us, that is.” He looked back up, waiting for a response from one of the others, eyes searching Paige’s hopefully, but none came.

No one had an answer to that question. 

***

Tony may have been the one who got shot, but there was a hole in the middle of Peter’s chest, too. Raw, tender, cavernous...aching with every single breath that he took. 

And he couldn’t close it up, like he had done Tony’s, because the piece of him that was meant to be there was just...gone. 

Missing. 

And he had no idea how to get it back.

Something was glaringly and obviously wrong, but Peter didn’t know what exactly it was, or what he was supposed to do. Despite having tried his hardest to fix things, nothing was getting better. It was all just...getting worse. (He was getting worse-)

He knew that something was missing. It felt like a huge part of him had been ripped from his life, leaving a gaping void that couldn’t be filled. 

And things were only getting worse, still. 

Especially between him and Tony.

Peter had thought that things were okay as Tony recovered from his...injury. Not perfect, but okay. Good. Improving. Sure, his husband had been quiet and subdued for the past few days. But he thought that was reasonable and to be expected, the man was in pain. (He was in pain, too, though. Tony didn’t seem to notice. Or care.)

But even now that the older man was mostly healed, there was still a strange tension between them. Distance. 

And Peter had no fucking idea what to do about it. Because Tony refused to tell him what was wrong. 

Deep down, Peter knew. He knew that everything was wrong, that the whole situation was wrong, that there was no part of their world that was even remotely okay. But if he acknowledged that fact, what was the point? Of any of it? What did he have then, without this, without Tony? Absolutely nothing. So he just wouldn’t acknowledge it.

He’d tried everything he could think of. He’d been attentive to Tony’s every need during his recovery, keeping him supplied with food and water, providing entertainment in the form of working together on various projects and watching TV or reading together, never letting the man out of his sight for more than a few minutes at a time. 

He’d even tried to initiate sex, once it seemed Tony was feeling better, so that they could be close to each other in such an intimate way in hopes that it would fix things. Nothing too strenuous on his husband’s part, of course. Peter had simply wanted to make the older man feel good, bring him some pleasure and show him just how much he meant to his lover.

And Tony had turned him down each time, always pushing him away softly with that clouded, far away look in his eyes. The one that had been there ever since he’d brought up his feelings about what had happened with May. 

Now that the older man was better, now that he was healed and had more energy and things could possibly go better, Peter was still too scared to try. He didn’t want to be rejected again. He didn’t know if he could handle it. 

He didn’t understand Tony’s refusal in the first place. This world was supposed to be whatever he wanted. And what he wanted was for his husband to want him again, for his husband to love him, touch him, smile at him the way that he used to. And that obviously was not what was happening.

Why did it feel like Tony had more control over things than he did? Sure, the teen intended for his partner to have some semblance of autonomy, in that he could take care of himself and his basic needs, but Peter consciously gave him that autonomy. But now… 

Now it seemed like Tony was able to actually think for himself on some level, which would explain why he was able to remember the incident with May despite Peter’s best attempts, and why he seemed hesitant to bring it up to Peter. 

And he could see it in Tony’s eyes, the way he didn’t quite know what to make of what little information he did have.

Peter didn’t want to add to the confusion, or cause any more frustration. He didn’t want to stress Tony out. 

But he couldn’t tell him the truth, either. 

There was nothing he could do.

***

Peter gazed into the bathroom, hands gripping the door frame as he watched Tony. 

The older man was standing under the spray of the shower. His hand gingerly rubbed at his chest with a washcloth, head back and eyes closed so as to not look at the mottled knot of scar tissue there.

Peter wanted so badly to join him, his husband, to stand there wrapped in his arms and surrounded by the warmth of the water. 

But Tony didn’t want him.

Not anymore.

The two of them were merely coexisting at this point. It was like they weren’t married anymore, not really, like they had slipped back into that painful distance from before, when Tony was still Mr. Stark and Peter was just that fucking kid

Tony hadn’t touched him since the accident. 

“That’s a pretty nasty scar he’s got there, huh? I know you tried to stitch him up but damn. No awards for your suture technique, that’s for sure.”

Peter turned around so fast that he was sure he nearly snapped his neck. That was- That was his voice. 

But he knew he hadn’t said anything. 

Craning his neck and peering around the large bedroom with wide eyes,  Peter held his breath as he listened intently. The sounds of Tony showering could be heard from the open bathroom door. He couldn’t hear anything else, but he could have sworn... “H-hello?” The teen kept turning his head, eyes wide as he looked for any sign of someone else in the room with him. 

“Up here.”

And up there he was. Crouched on the ceiling, a position Peter frequently found himself in, was... well, Peter. Another Peter.

He was smirking, something sinister and unsettling glinting in his dark eyes as he gazed down upon his counterpart. “For someone with a sixth sense, it’s really sad that I had to give myself away for you to notice me. So much for that Peter-tingle. You really are losing it, Spider-Boy. Pathetic.” His grin only grew as the words left his mouth.

Peter gaped up at him, heart pounding. What the fuck was going on? He blinked a few times as he tried to take control of the illusion, alter whatever was happening. It wasn’t working. Just like when Tony had been shot. “Who are-“ 

The other Peter was quick to cut off his questioning. His eyes flashed. “Don’t act like you don’t know. You know exactly who I am.” The double dropped from the ceiling, standing right across from Peter. 

It was like looking into a mirror. The doppelgänger was a spitting image of Peter, save for the dark look in his eyes and the cocky smirk pulling at his lips. 

“I-I don’t know.” Peter shook his head, soft yet frantic. He was still desperately trying to influence the situation, hands shaking as he clenched them at his sides. 

Not-Peter shook his head in return, laughing as he copied the action. But the sound was cold and harsh, no joy in it at all. “I’m you, you fucking coward. It’s as simple as that. All of this is you! Stop pretending you don’t know what’s going on.” 

Peter didn’t want to believe it. This…fake him was cruel. He could never be like that. He never wanted to be anything like that. 

The doppelgänger scoffed. “You’re no fucking saint, Peter, no matter how much you’d like to convince Tony that you are. He’s catching on, isn’t he? Starting to realize that things aren’t as perfect as you’ve been making them out to be?” 

“That’s n-not true,” Peter stuttered as he tried to control his breathing. “You don’t know anything about Tony. Don’t bring him into this-”

“How are things with Tony, by the way?” The doppelgänger's lip curled up at the pained expression that took over Peter’s face. “Ohhh, that bad huh? I can’t say I’m surprised…” He let himself trail off. “It really is sad, you know, Peter? Call me redundant but I feel it needs to be said again, so bare with me. You’re pathetic.”

“Stop,” Peter ground out, hands clenched into fists at his sides. His eyes were clenched shut, but when he heard the other move, his lids flew open instinctively. “You aren’t- You aren’t real.”

A harsh bark of a laugh seemed to echo throughout the room. “I’m as real as anyone you’ve been interacting with these days.”  

“That’s not true,” Peter said softly, denying what he knew deep down was, in fact, the truth. 

Not-Peter scoffed, taking a step towards his double. He shook his head softly in admonishment. “You really are pathetic.” He’d made it more than obvious how much joy the word brought him, with the way it all but oozed from his lips. “Like I was saying, this whole thing is tragic, it really is, Peter. You know that there is no way that Tony Stark could have ever wanted you, in any sense of the word. Definitely not like this, this weird relationship you’ve conjured up as a byproduct of your unaddressed daddy issues. That’s why you ran away, like the little fucking coward that you are. You ran, so that you could hide out and construct this sick little fantasy world of yours.

“And how’s that working out for you…kid? It’ll tell you: you shot your husband because he was starting to question you, and of course you couldn’t have that. How dare Tony be anything other than the obedient little puppet you want him to be.”

“That’s not true,” Peter choked out, chest constricting. “I- I didn’t do that, it wasn’t me! I tried- I tried to stop it, I tried to undo it but it wouldn’t work so I had to- I had to f-fix him-” 

The double cut him off again, as if he had never spoken at all. “I guess you’re right in that sense, so I’ll give you that. I know it wasn’t you. Because it was me.” He paused, hand moving up to his chin as he pretended to think, waxing philosophical. “But then again, I am you, so-”

“You aren’t me,” Peter argued one last time, knowing it wasn’t true. His voice was weak because he knew the truth. Even if he didn’t want to believe it, refused to believe it. “And I would never hurt Tony.”

“No? Not even after he abandoned you?” The fake Peter was taunting him, voice dripping with condescension. “Because you were having some pretty contradictory thoughts that are leading me to believe otherwise. Remember how angry you were?”

Of course he remembered. The teen had been so hurt and betrayed and he knew it was irrational. But Peter was certain that he wouldn’t- he would never actually hurt Tony. He couldn’t. 

But how else did he get shot, if Peter was the one in control? 

“Stop it,” Peter snapped, voice full of vitriol. Then he instantly recoiled, stomach sinking. That wasn’t him. The angry, frustrated feelings that he kept having weren’t him. They couldn’t be. He couldn’t act like that, that’s how he got here in the first place, it was everything he was trying to fix. 

It was how Tony had gotten hurt. 

Maybe he hadn’t been holding the gun, but he’d been the one that caused it to happen. 

Peter became aware that the sounds of the shower had stopped when he finally shifted his focus away from the double and back to his husband. Partner. Whoever they were now. He heard footsteps approaching and didn’t have enough time to try and make the doppelgänger disappear. 

“Pete?” Tony asked softly, rubbing his hair dry with the towel in his hands. Another was wrapped around his waist, leaving his chest bare. (Peter’s eyes were immediately drawn to the scar.) “Were you just...waiting out here for me?” 

His eyes were on the double, unaware that it wasn’t actually Peter, not catching on to the fact that there were two of them yet. 

“Of course I was,” not-Peter said, eyes blown wide as he attempted to look innocent, to look like Peter. “It’s not like there’s anything else I could be doing.”

Tony’s eyebrows furrowed. “What? What the hell is that supposed to mean?” When he had first emerged from the bathroom, his tone had been light, more so than it had been since his injury. It had sparked something hopeful inside Peter, and now his heart ached to hear the rough, distrustful edge come back. 

“Oh, I mean,” the doppelgänger continued with his act, though Peter could see the mirth shining in his eyes. “I just meant that, y’know, there’s nothing else I would rather be doing. Otherwise I would be doing it, since I am control-”

Peter was across the room before he was conscious of the movement, backing the interloper up against the wall and pressing his forearm up to his throat. “Shut the fuck up,” the teen growled desperately, voice breaking. “You ruined everything-”

The double struggled in Peter’s hold, face turning slightly red. His voice was raspy and choked off when he spoke. His nails dug into the skin of Peter’s arm. “Which means you ruined it yourself, you fucking coward! Go ahead, tell him. Tell Tony-”

“Peter? Tell me what? Who is- Peter, what the hell is going on?”

“Shut up!” Peter’s fist jerked back before it flew forward, connecting with the nose of the body in front of him. He heard Tony gasp and call out his name, but he ignored the man in favor of swinging his arm forward again. “I hate you! Why won’t you go away? I hate you!”

Despite the blood pouring out of his nose and rolling in crimson rivulets down his face, not-Peter grinned, the red smearing in sharp contrast on the white of his teeth. “We all knew you hated yourself, Peter, that’s not news.” 

When Peter moved like he was going to strike again, Tony decided to actually intervene, even though he still had no idea what was going on. “Hey, Peter- Peter, baby, come here, let him go. This isn’t you baby-”

The teen let out a panicked gasp, melting into the other man’s embrace. “But it is,” he cried, brokenly. “It is me Tony, I-”

Tony hushed him, holding Peter close. He still didn’t know what was going on, but he needed to try and keep Peter calm. And from fighting the other one. “I know this isn’t you. You wouldn’t hurt anyone,” he said softly. Although he wasn’t sure he believed himself. He was so lost with everything going on, he didn’t know what to believe. 

The other Peter just stayed leaning against the wall, arms crossed. “You don’t even know, Tony.” The name was said like an insult. “You don’t get any of this, do you?”

“Shut up,” Peter whispered, all the fight leaving his body as he was held. “Just stop. You need to go away.” Why couldn’t he just make the imposter disappear? He was in control. 

At least, he was supposed to be. 

A grotesquely sinister expression took over the doppelgänger's face. His eyes were bright, burning, as his gaze locked with Peter’s. 

The expression set the teen’s already frayed nerves on edge. He froze in Tony’s arms, heart pounding. Why was he looking at him like that? And why was that look so familiar? Where had he seen-

“It’s pretty easy to fool people when they’re already fooling themselves, Peter.” 

The reaction was almost instantaneous. 

“No, no, no, no,” Peter muttered to himself, voice shaking. His hands moved to his head, pulling at his hair, and when he opened his eyes for a moment, it wasn’t his own face staring back at him. 

It was Beck.

“You’re not real,” he whispered, choking on his breath. “Y-you’re not-”

“Peter, baby, you’ve gotta calm-”

“N-not real-”

***

“Peter, sweetie, could you take the rolls out of the oven?”

“Sure thing, mama.” He opened his eyes, glancing back before going to do as she said. That was better.

“And where’s that husband of yours, he’s joining us for dinner, right?”

Peter bit his lip. He hadn’t even noticed that Tony wasn’t there. “He should be back soon, just had to step out for work.” There, that sounded convincing enough.

“Such a hard worker, that Tony,” May chirped, a grin pulling at her lips as she sliced tomatoes for the salad. “You really lucked out, Petey.” 

It was a sweet thing to say. It was exactly what he  thought about Tony. But it sure as hell wasn’t anything that May would say. However, Peter just let the genuine affection in her tone relax him, letting out a soft sigh. “I really did, Aunt May. I really did.” He smiled at her and then to himself as he got the rolls from the oven and set the pan on the counter. 

Ben snorted, taking a sip of his beer. “Stark’s the lucky one, May-Flower. Pete’s quite the catch. Takes after ‘is uncle.” At Richard’s eye roll, he laughed again. The sound filled Peter’s chest with a fuzzy warmth. “Fine. And his father. Parker men ain’t nothing to mess with.”

“Uh huh, right.” May laughed. “I agree with you on one thing, though. Parker men are definitely something else, that’s for sure,” she teased. 

Peter laughed along with them, but it was all beginning to feel uncomfortable on some level. He felt just as empty as he knew the rest of his guests were. 

His doppelgänger’s words kept racing through his mind. Beck’s words. ("If you were good enough, maybe Tony would-")

But he pushed them away, steeling himself and blinking blearily for a few seconds. His gaze locked on the food spread out over the counter. None of that mattered. 

He was at dinner with his family. They were all there, happy and healthy. Together, the way it should be. There was nothing that he needed to be worried about.