Disclaimer: I do not own anything Marvel!
So, this is the last chapter of the story, thank you for all your support! I was thinking of making this chapter the opening to a sequel/a sequel taking place after this? Would that be something you guys are interested in? Let me know! I hope you enjoy it!
The One Time it was True: Tony and Peter
Peter yawned and stretched out across the couch like a cat. It had been a long night working in the lab, and he ended up falling asleep in his chair. He wasn't sure how he ended up here, though.
"Hey, FRIDAY?" He asked the AI, "How did I end up here?"
"At approximately 2:32 am, Sir moved you to the couch and draped the blanket over you." His robotic voice replied.
Peter was perplexed, "he moved me?"
"Yes, Mr. Parker. Would you like to see the footage?" FRIDAY offered.
"Sure." A hologram appeared in front of him. Tony was hard at work on his new nanotechnology with his ACDC blasting in the back. Tony turned to see that Peter had fallen asleep in the chair, his head drooped back at an awkward angle. "FRIDAY, turn off the music." The sound died out, and Tony walked over to Peter, carefully lifting him out of the chair and onto the couch behind him. "Huh. He's pretty light for a 15 year old. I should feed him more." He turned around and kept working, but this time with the sound of Peter's soft snores providing sound as opposed to the rock that was playing before.
Peter couldn't help but smile, a mix of embarrassment and happiness displayed on his face.
"In case you were wondering, Sir is upstairs. I suggest you join him, as he is attempting to make breakfast, which is not a task he is skilled at."
Peter chuckled and headed up the stairs. FRIDAY's analysis, was putting it lightly. It smelled of burning, there was flour all over the floor, and Tony had milk in his hair.
"Oh, wow," was all Peter could manage to say about the sight in front of him.
"Yeah, I know. I was sitting up here fixing the toaster, and I decided I wanted pancakes. I love pancakes. Anyway, I tried to make them, and it didn't turn out so good."
Peter laughed, and asked him, "did you follow the instructions? The recipe?"
Tony frowned a little. "I followed the instructions. Pepper or Steve usually are the ones cooking, so I didn't know where the measuring stuff was-" "Measuring cups?" "-and so, I just eyeballed it."
"Tony!" Peter gaped, peering into the bowl. "You can't just eyeball it!"
"Why not? It worked before! That looks pretty close!" Tony told him, taken aback.
"Tony." Peter insisted. "It looks like you put about five cups of flour in here."
"I didn't! I only put two in, like the recipe said!" He held up a drinking cup.
"Oh my god. Drinking cups and measuring cups are not the same thing!" Peter yelled, cracking up.
"Well I am sorry nobody taught me how to cook! I pay people for these kinds of things!" Tony yelled back before sighing. "Do you just want to go to that breakfast place by your apartment? Waffle House or something? I know you mentioned you needed more clothes from your apartment anyway."
"Well, I thought May was going to be in the ICU for two more days, not five! But anyway, I do need some clothes that place sounds great."
Peter had been staying with Tony for a few days while May was still recovering. Thanks to Peters less extensive injuries and his healing factor, he was back to normal after a week. May still had a few complications so they were monitoring her, but they were told that unless something drastic happens, she should recover.
"Awesome. Are you going to change?" Tony smirked, looking at the Iron Man pajamas Peter was wearing because he lost a bet to Tony.
"Nah, I like these!" He said smiling, like he wasn't wearing them for the sole purpose of embarrassing Tony. "Besides, it is like 8:30, nobody will probably care. Besides, it's Waffle House."
So, they got in the car and headed to go get pancakes from Waffle House, because why not. When they got there, the waiter gave them a smile and directed them to a mostly hidden booth in the back, to the pair's relief. They had just ordered, when Tony got a call.
"Huh, that's weird. This must be pretty important, or it would be directed to Pepper. Do you mind if I take it?" Peter shook his head, so Tony hit accept call. "Hello, Tony Stark."
"Hello Mr. Stark. I am calling to inform you that May Parker has recently suffered from a stroke due to the blood loss. She passed away at 8:23 this morning and you are listed as her only emergency contact. I trust that you can explain this to her relatives and figure out funeral planning. A social worker has been notified to find a place for Peter and she is willing to meet at the hospital where there is some paperwork, we need you to complete. My condolences."
Tony went completely numb. May had a stroke? The doctors said she was recovering, and now Peter – oh god Peter –.
"Tony, what is going on?" Peter asked, concerned.
"Um," he struggled to find the right words. "Listen, Peter, something happened."
"Oh no." His face went blank. "Did something happen with my aunt?"
Tony nodded, solemnly. "She had a stroke last night and… passed away."
Peter's mouth slowly fell open and he started to blink back tears. Tony moved to his side of the booth and enveloped him in a hug.
"Hey, Peter, it's okay..." Tony tried to comfort the boy, slowly helped him stand and led him out to the car. "Well, it isn't okay, but we will figure everything out, you hear me? We can organize a funeral, something she would love, okay? Spider-Man can take a quick breather for as long as you need, and maybe some of the Avengers could help out so you don't need to worry about the little guy."
"What about me?" Peter asked softly, his voice cracking. "They're going to put me in a foster home. I don't have any relatives left. It was just me and May." His voice caught on the last word, and Tony squeezed his shoulder in a comforting way, as they slid into the car. They sat there, not yet pulling out.
"Don't even worry about that. You can stay with me." Peter looked up at him taken aback.
"Really? I don't want to be a burden. If you need me to, I can go somewhere else-" He looked down, uneasily.
"Absolutely not." Tony told him. "there is no way you are staying in a foster home when you have people who care about you and can support you here. Don't ever think that."
They rode to the hospital in complete silence, except for Peter's sniffles and almost silent tears. Tony couldn't stand to see the boy that was so chatty and animated minutes ago, now falling apart at the seams.
As soon as they got there, Tony wrapped Peter in another hug, before carefully guiding him inside.
"Okay, Peter. We need to decide what to do with you." The social worker chirped, too perky for her job. "I see that you don't have any relatives and-"
"Peter will be staying with me." Tony deadpanned. "Give me whatever forms you need to sign, whatever lawyers you need me to call, I'll do it. There will be no debate on 'what to do with him.'" He said the last part mockingly, letting the social worker know that what she said was not okay.
"Absolutely, sir. Let me get everything together." She backed away, slightly freaked out.
The next few hours were filled with papers, tears, lawyers, and an unhelpful and insensitive social worker. The poor kid was still in his Iron Man pajamas, looking as small and helpless as Tony had ever seen him. Finally, everything was taken care of and Tony could bring Peter back to the tower. They walked in to find all of the Avengers playing games and chatting like usual.
"Hey, you can go ahead to your room, I'll talk to them." Tony whispered softly to the kid. "I'll come find you when I am done." He practically ran off to his room that he used whenever he stayed here, which left Tony with the confused Avengers.
"Hey guys?" Tony called out to the Avengers lounging in the living room. "Uh… I have a kid now."
Ok, I know you guys didn't want May to die; I am so sorry! I didn't want her to die either, but I had to for the sequel! Ugh, it really kills me because I love May. :(
Edit: Sequel is up! It's called "Horizon at the End of an Ocean"!