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“Alright, class.” Mr. Harrington began, stood up the front of the class with an expression that could be associated with excitement.
To be fair, Mr. Harrington was an easily excitable man, so there were multiple things they could be told in the next five minutes.
“Quieten down, please. Flash Thompson!”
Flash’s mouth immediately snapped shut at the sudden yell that made the entire class jump. Then, a range of sniggers echoed around the room when the boy’s face flushed red. Peter smirked a little, but not big enough for Flash to see. If Flash even caught a whiff of Peter’s amusement, the boy wouldn’t hesitate to throw insults his way.
Not to say that Peter couldn’t handle the insults, he’d been handling the insults for years. It was just… annoying. Even though the words did hurt sometimes, he had learnt to ignore it to the best of his ability.
So, Peter turned to Mr. Harrington and readied himself for whatever piece of information they were going to be given.
“I better not see that kind of behaviour on the field trip, Mr. Thompson. That goes for the rest of you, too.” Mr. Harrington’s gaze was suddenly serious as he took the time to eye every single student in the room. The silence was awkward, and all Peter could do was shift in his seat when his teacher’s gaze lingered on him for a little too long. “We have been given the opportunity to go to an organisation that will not tolerate such behaviour. I expect professionalism from each and every one of you while we are there.”
Peter raised his eyebrows. He’d hardly ever seen Mr. Harrington look so serious.
After another round of stares the man sent around the room, he fiddled with a few papers on his desk before he clapped his hands. Finally, the serious spell was broken, and the usual smile appeared on his teacher’s face.
“Where are we going?” Betty asked just when Mr. Harrington was about to open his mouth.
“If you would let me begin, Ms. Brant.” Mr. Harrington said without much heat. That smile remained on his face, even when people began to whisper. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for most of you, so I would take this very seriously.”
“Come on!” Flash suddenly snapped. “Just tell us!”
“Well, class.” Peter wanted to combust. If this was such a big deal, why was he taking so long? Peter couldn’t deal with the anticipation. “We’ve been allowed to have a tour at none other than… Stark Industries!”
In the moment of silence that followed Mr. Harrington’s announcement, Peter accidentally snapped the pen in his hand. He let out a near-silent curse as blue ink spilt all over his hands, and at the same time, the class exploded with noise. Peter winced from the sudden abuse to his senses.
“Dude!” Ned exclaimed, eyes flickering between Peter’s ink-covered hands and his face. “This is… this is awesome!”
Peter repressed a groan. Around the room, students excitedly chattered with one another, huge smiles on their faces. He thought about trying to listen to what Flash was saying, but he knew he’d hear about it sooner or later, so he didn’t bother. Instead, he sheepishly stood up to grab some tissues.
Everyone looked at him when he sat back down, but he pretended not to notice as he attempted to wipe the ink off of his hands.
“Did you know?” MJ suddenly asked, which made Peter jump. He turned to her with furrowed eyebrows.
“No.” He gestured to his blue hands. “Wouldn’t have done this if I did.”
“Hm. Makes sense.” She shrugged, then went back to sketching in her notebook as if the news didn’t even faze her. Peter’s gaze remained on her for a few seconds before he turned to Ned, who was tapping his arm.
“What?” He asked, already prepared for the onslaught of questions.
“This is so cool!”
“It’s really not.” Peter groaned as he furiously rubbed at his hands.
Before Ned could answer, Mr. Harrington demanded silence. When the room obediently did so, the man began.
“I have permission slips up the front with me, please grab one on your way out.” Mr. Harrington gestured to the pile of papers. “The field trip will be Friday in two week’s time; however, I expect these permission slips to be back Monday next week. If I don’t receive your permission slip by then, you won’t be attending. Is that clear?”
That serious face was back. There was a fair share of nods around the room.
When satisfied, there was no more talk of the field trip from Mr. Harrington and class proceeded as per usual. Well, as usual as it could get when they’d just been told about quite possibly the best field trip they would ever go on in high school. Well, for the rest of the class, maybe. For Peter, it was a storm in a teacup.
If his luck had taught him anything, it wasn’t going to go well.
When class was over, Peter reluctantly trudged to the front of the room with the rest of his peers. Flash elbowed him out of the way, in which Peter pretended to stumble into Betty’s desk. Then, he sent a glare to the back of the bully’s head when he pushed Ned out of his way as well. Mr. Harrington either didn’t notice or didn’t care, because he handed a permission slip to Flash with a big, beaming smile.
Peter was sure he might blow a gasket if Flash kept acting like he was top shit. It was fine if he was shoving Peter around, but not Ned.
Instead of getting mad, Peter plastered a smile on his face when it was his turn. However, it wasn’t reciprocated, and he was left stunned for a few moments when Mr. Harrington didn’t hand him the slip straight away. Instead of the happy look he usually wore, Mr. Harrington looked… disappointed in him.
“May I have a word with you privately, Mr. Parker?”
Peter frowned, but nodded, nonetheless. Flash cackled from where he was positioned at the door, and all Peter could do was stand to the side and gesture for his friends to leave without him. Ned gave him a worried glance before he disappeared from sight, Peter barely able to smile at the way MJ snapped at Flash to get the fuck out of the way.
Peter listened to MJ argue with Flash, even when they were out of sight. However, once the classroom was drained of students, Peter felt the fear return. The tiny smile faded, and all he could do was scuff his feet as he waited for Mr. Harrington to talk. He wiped at the blue ink still staining his skin while he waited.
“Now, Peter,” Mr. Harrington began with a sigh. “I know you’re a good kid. I don’t really want to have to say this, but you and I are both very aware of the ongoing rumour about your supposed Internship at Stark Industries. Am I correct?”
“Um, yes, Mr. Harrington.” Peter replied as he met his teacher’s eyes. The disappointment radiated of the man in waves.
If only he knew.
“Now I believe that Stark Industries does not consider people under eighteen legible for internships. You are aware of this?”
Peter swallowed. “Yes. But my D- Mr. Stark-”
“I don’t like having this conversation as much as you do, Peter. I am sorry, I know you have been going through a lot of grief during your time at this school. I understand, I really do, but as I said, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Mentioning this… internship of yours could be detrimental to both you and the reputation of this school.” Mr. Harrington took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes for a few seconds. “You’re a good kid, you’ve proved that on many occasions, but this is not one of them. Lying about something so big can cause many issues for your future, and we both know you don’t want that.”
Peter’s hands began to tremble. Technically, Mr. Harrington was right. He was lying. But that didn’t mean the Internship was entirely fake, since his father practically owned the company. Peter lived there, in the penthouse, and even did some of the intern’s jobs sometimes.
Well, it wasn’t like Mr. Harrington knew Tony Stark was his Dad. No one but Ned and MJ, along with his Dad’s close contacts did. So, in all truths, it wasn’t Mr. Harrington’s or Flash’s fault for thinking he was a liar.
But still, it stung. It stung enough for tears to burn in the corners of his eyes. If he heard this from Flash, he would brush it off, because most of the things Flash said was complete and utter bullshit. But Mr. Harrington was his favourite teacher, and he’d never accused Peter of being a liar before. Along with that, his grief had never been used against him like this.
Mr. Harrington must have noticed the tears in his eyes, because a flash of guilt and regret passed over his features.
“I know it’s hard for you, Peter, but you have to understand. Hearing this must be harsh, but there isn’t really a nice way for me to say it.” Peter dropped his gaze to the floor and nodded in defeat. “I suggest that you do not mention anything about your internship while we are at Stark Industries. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“Yes, Mr. Harrington. I understand.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” Mr. Harrington let out another sigh. He handed Peter a permission slip, which Peter took with a shaking hand. He made sure to hide his hands from sight as quickly as he could before Mr. Harrington could say something to make it worse. “I’ll see you on Monday. Have a good weekend.”
Peter plastered a false smile onto his face when he looked at his teacher. “You too.”
As soon as his back was turned, the smile dropped, and the tears burned a little more persistently. He held the emotion back as he joined the rest of the students in the busy school corridor, surprised to see that Ned and MJ were waiting for him outside.
They took one look at his probably teary-looking eyes and frowned. Peter just shrugged and didn’t say a word as they made their way to lunch. Peter was able to compose himself and fend off the tears by the time they made it to the cafeteria, thankfully before they saw Flash again.
Once the three of them were seated at their usual lunch table, both his best friends turned to him.
“Are you okay?” Ned asked first.
“Not really.” Peter admitted. What he really wanted to say was I want my Dad, but that would be even more embarrassing.
“What did he say?”
“Basically, told me not to damage the reputation of the school by telling lies about my internship.” Peter sighed and stared down at his food. “That Stark Industries doesn’t hire anyone under eighteen, that I’ve been grieving ever since I came to this school.”
“Well that’s bullshit.” MJ almost growled.
“It doesn’t matter.” Peter sighed. “He’s not exactly wrong.”
“That doesn’t mean shit. It doesn’t mean Mr. Harrington can get away with using your grief against you or accuse you of lying.” She was mad, Peter could tell, and Ned looked just as angry. His mouth was pressed into a thin line as he nodded along to what MJ was saying. “You should tell your Dad.”
“No. I can’t.” Peter shook his head immediately. “It’s stupid, anyways. It doesn’t matter.”
“Yes, it does. This isn’t just Flash, it’s a teacher!” Was MJ’s response. “We know for a fact that your Dad would fire him from his job for saying that shit to you. He’d also get Flash expelled, but you won’t let him.”
She wasn’t wrong.
“Maybe I just won’t go.” Peter sighed, suddenly overwhelmed. His eyes teared up again and a lump formed in his throat.
“But you have to!” Ned replied. “Won’t it be worse if you don’t?”
Peter chewed on his lip.
Ned also wasn’t wrong.
“I’ll talk to Dad. I don’t even know if he caused this or not.” Peter grumbled and regained his composure for the second time in a row. “Ugh, I just want to go home.”
Both his friend’s faces seemed to soften at that.
Before they could reply, Peter’s senses spiked. A second later, Flash slapped him on the back of the head. Peter groaned and tried his hardest not to bash his head against the cafeteria table. It would be less painful than listening to Flash talk.
“So, Penis,” Flash began as he slammed his hands on the table. All three occupants jumped, which lead Flash and his idiot friends to burst into a round of laughter. Peter waited for Flash to recover, thankful that he wasn’t near tears. That would be more embarrassing, especially if Flash noticed. “Are you ready to get exposed?”
“Fuck off, Flash.” MJ suddenly snapped; tone deadpan as always. “Nobody wants you here.”
“Why don’t you, loser?” Flash rolled his eyes. “How do you two put up with a liar as your friend? Must be pretty shit when he’s spitting lies in your faces.”
“We know he’s not lying.” Ned replied. “Go away.”
“Aw, how cute!” Flash exclaimed with false glee. “Penis gets his loser friends to stick up for him.”
“Leave us alone.” Peter snapped and turned back to his untouched food. Honestly, if he had it his way, he would have hurled his tray of food in Flash’s face by now.
“I can’t wait to see you cry when you’re dragged out of Stark Industries by security.” Flash cackled, before he began to retreat. The clowns he called friends followed after him like stray dogs, all snickering and fuelling Flash’s incredibly huge ego. “I’ll make sure to video it for you!”
Peter groaned a second time, then shoved his tray out of the way. Then, he rested his head in his arms and tried not to scream. Someone began to rub his shoulder, though he wasn’t sure if it was MJ or Ned.
This was going to be the worst field trip ever.
Even worse than Oscorp.
-
“Hey Uncle Happy.” Peter said as he got into his Uncle’s car.
“Hey Pete.” There was a short pause. “Care to explain the long face?”
“Can we just go now?” Peter sighed, really not in the mood for pretending like he was okay. “I want my Dad.”
Happy seemed to sober up at that. “Of course.”
The trip home was uncharacteristically quiet. Peter toed off his shoes and brought his knees to his chest, his body leant up against the door as he stared out the window. The rest of his day had been met with too many judgemental stares from the kids in his class, among others who had been told about the field trip. Everyone thought he was a liar, and it was humiliating.
Finally, they arrived home, which he’d be touring in two weeks.
Since the Avengers were broken up, instead of selling the tower, his Dad had converted it back to a Stark Industries building.
Peter was glad. The Avengers knew he existed, but they didn’t know who he was, or even how old he was. Thankfully they hadn’t figured out he was Spider-Man after Germany. Living in the Compound had been hard, especially when he had to hide all the time. It had been him who convinced his Dad not to sell the tower.
Peter took the lift up, ignoring the glance that Happy sent to his still-blue hands. He shoved them in his pockets and waited for the lift to ascend with impatience. Happy cast him worried looks, but Peter ignored them all, and was glad when the man stepped out at his floor.
With a deep, agitated sigh, Peter buried his face in his hands. The permission slip was burning a hole in his backpack, he was sure. He wanted to tear it out right now and rip it to pieces. Peter was pretty sure Dad had a paper shredder. Maybe he could use that.
Once he made it to his and Dad’s personal floor, Peter couldn’t wait to burst out of the lift. He was even more thankful when he saw his father sitting on the couch in the living room, obviously waiting for him. Happy must have alerted him already. Any other day, he would have been pissed, but today he was grateful.
With a grumble that could probably called a whine, Peter dropped his backpack on the floor and collapsed onto the couch. He didn’t give his Dad any time to talk as he laid down and rested his head on the man’s lap. Then, he rolled onto his side and buried his face into the billionaire’s stomach.
There was a short pause where the only sound was the clock ticking, before his Dad spoke.
“What’s up, Bambi?” He cooed, a gentle hand resting on the top of Peter’s head. The other gently squeezed his bicep. “Happy said something was wrong?”
“Mr. Harrington announced a field trip today.” Peter mumbled, testing to see if his Dad knew or not.
“Oh, really? To where?”
Peter couldn’t tell if he was being serious or not.
“Stark Industries.”
There was a long pause.
“Did you know, Dad?” Peter asked and pulled back a little to peer at his father. His Dad was already looking down at him, looking puzzled.
“No. I didn’t.” Peter narrowed eyes in question. Dad spluttered for a moment before he spoke again. “I genuinely didn’t, Pete. Pepper usually handles all that stuff.”
“Okay.” Peter sighed and hid his face yet again.
“I can get it called off, if that’s what you want.” His father resumed carding a hand through his hair, though his tone sounded troubled. “Is that Flash kid bothering you again? You know I can go down there and teach that little creatin a lesson.”
“No, Dad, it’s fine.” Peter lied. Sometimes he wished he could say yes. “I’ll go.”
“No one’s forcing you. We could spend the day in the lab while your class tours, it’s really no big deal. You live here, anyways.”
God, Peter wished he could do that. It sounded a lot more fun than being on a tour with his insufferable classmates in a place he knew like the back of his hand.
“They’ll make more fun of me if I don’t go.”
“Look, Pete, I’ll tell Pep to call it off. That way no one will bother you.”
Peter shook his head at that. “No. Ned’s really excited about it and I don’t want to ruin it for him. Or some of the others.”
“Hasn’t Ned been here before?”
“Yeah, but he hasn’t seen everything, or had a real tour. He’s really excited, Dad, I don’t want to ruin it.”
His Dad sighed.
“Is there anything I can do?”
“Um…” Peter muttered. “I don’t know. Cuddles?”
Dad huffed out a laugh. “I can do that.”
And so, they spent the rest of the night curled up on the couch, and the topic wasn’t brought up again.
-
Peter didn’t mention the permission slip to his father until late Sunday night. If he was honest, he completely pushed the field trip to the back of his mind, right up until he had gotten his books out to do some last-minute homework.
For a moment, he contemplated finding his Dad’s paper shredder and pretend that he’d lost it. But then, there were obvious repercussions to that. Flash, his other classmates, his Dad, to name a few.
So, Peter trudged down to the lab, where FRIDAY said his Dad would be.
“Um, Dad?” He called, nervously fiddling with the sheet of paper. Thankfully, he’d been able to get all the blue ink off of his hands after several showers. “I forgot to tell you about the permission slip. For the field trip. Mr. Harrington wants it by tomorrow.”
His Dad narrowed his eyes. “You’re only telling me this now?”
Peter laughed awkwardly. “I actually forgot; I promise.”
“I’m sure you did, kiddo.” His Dad shook his head a few times before a fond smile appeared on his face. “Come on, bring it over. I’ll send it to May to get her signature.”
“Okay.” Peter said as he handed over the permission slip. His father’s eyes scanned the paper before he began the process of sending it to May. Once he was done, his Dad turned to him. “Why are you still up, kiddo? I thought you went to bed hours ago.”
Peter shrugged. “I forgot to do some homework.”
Dad frowned at him. “Are you sure?”
“Mhm.”
“Come here.” Peter didn’t hesitate when he saw his Dad’s open arms and was happy to slot himself into his hold. He rested his head on the billionaire’s shoulder and eyed what the man had been working on. Nanotech. “You sure you’re okay?”
“Yes, Dad.” Peter muttered. “What’s that?”
“Oh,” His Dad’s voice filled with excitement. “A little something I’m working on. A nanotech suit. What do you think?”
Internally, Peter was thrilled. But he found he didn’t have the energy to show that excitement. “Cool.”
“Someone’s a bit tired I think.” His Dad teased, and Peter rolled his eyes. “Off to bed. I’ll give you your permission slip in the morning.”
“Okay.” Peter reluctantly pulled away. He didn’t want to go to school. “Night Dad. Love you.”
A gentle kiss was pressed to his temple.
“I love you too, Bambino.”
-
“Permission slips, class!” Mr. Harrington reminded them as soon as students began to stream into the class. Peter avoided eye contact with the man as he walked in, permission slip already in his backpack. “I expect them at the end of class.”
“I bet Parker doesn’t even have a signature.” He heard Flash whisper to his friends up the back of the classroom. “I can’t wait for him to be embarrassed in front of everyone. It’s going to be the best.”
Peter narrowed his eyes and stared at his laptop. Why was Flash so obsessed with being a shit person?
“Dude.” Ned whispered, quiet enough for no one else to hear but loud enough for Peter to hear thanks to his senses. “Did you tell your Dad?”
“No.” Peter whispered back in the same volume, but a little louder so Ned could actually hear him. “It doesn’t matter.”
“A teacher called you a liar.” Ned stated. “You should tell him.”
“He has too much else to worry about. It’s fine.” Peter knew Ned was right. Mr. Harrington might’ve been out of line, but he still wasn’t wrong. Peter was a liar. He’d been lying about his name for his entire life, but that was out of good reason. Peter didn’t want to be in the spotlight of the media. He saw the things they said about his Dad. “Don’t worry, Ned. I’ll be fine.”
“But you’re not lying.” Ned whispered back.
Peter shrugged, and their conversation ended there.
Class passed agonisingly slowly, and Peter’s stomach was filled with butterflies as he approached his teacher, permission slip in hand like the rest of the students. When it was his turn, he could hear Flash muttering profanities behind him, but he ignored it in favour of staring dead into Mr. Harrington’s eye when he handed in his slip. The man looked back at him with that same, disappointed look as he took the paper from Peter’s hand.
“Remember our chat, Mr. Parker.” Mr. Harrington said.
Peter nodded and said nothing.
-
Two weeks later, the day before the field trip to Stark Industries, Peter felt off.
His luck was the fucking worst.
Peter’s stomach hurt. It had started the night before, and had barely been there, but was persistent enough to be annoying. Originally, he’d brushed it off as having eaten too much, and didn’t mention it to his Dad. He’d fallen asleep without an issue.
But now, the pain had become worse, and it had crossed his mind that maybe he was just nervous for the field trip. He did tend to get anxious tummy aches days before big events, he always had. So maybe it was just the nerves.
However, he had a feeling that it might be something more.
But he couldn’t be getting sick, right? Peter hadn’t been sick since the spider bite, which had led to the theory that he couldn’t get sick anymore thanks to his powers. There was no real evidence on the theory, but Peter had been hoping it was true.
But of course, his luck was the worst.
Peter didn’t mention the ache in his stomach when he joined his father in the lab, attempting to distract himself with making new web fluid. AC/DC blasted around the workspace, not as loud as his Dad would have liked, thanks to Peter’s sensitive ears. Peter absently mouthed the lyrics as he tapped his foot on the floor anxiously. What if he was getting sick?
“Alright.” Dad suddenly said as he spun around. “What gives?”
Peter’s head snapped up. “What?”
“You’re too quiet.” His Dad was already analysing him, concern written all over his face. “Are you nervous about tomorrow?”
Peter found himself chewing on his lip as he thought of a reply. He could definitely use his tummy ache to get out of going on the field trip to his own house, but he couldn’t just ditch Ned and MJ like that. He also didn’t want to give Flash the satisfaction of being proved ‘right’.
So, he ended up shrugging. “I guess.”
“It’s gonna be fine, kiddie.” Dad wheeled over to him and sat opposite. Then, he grabbed Peter’s hands, which is when the boy realised that they had been shaking. Peter stared dumbly at his hands for a few seconds before he met his father’s eye. “You can call me at any time or tell FRIDAY to come get me.”
“I know.” Peter mumbled. “Don’t you have meetings?”
“Yeah. But you come first.” Dad squeezed his hands. “So, don’t hesitate to call me.”
“Okay.” Peter smiled a little. Though, it fell when his stomach jolted a little, and he was back to chewing on his lip.
“Is there anything else bothering you?” His Dad must have seen the changes in his expression.
“No. I’m just tired.”
“C’mon. Let’s take it easy for the rest of the night, shall we?”
He couldn’t have said no to that, because that was exactly what he wanted to do.
-
Peter couldn’t sleep.
He lay awake, staring at the ceiling, eyes flickering over the glowing stars on his roof. He had been meaning to take them down, because he was way too old to have glowing stars on his ceiling, but it was oddly comforting. It didn’t make the room completely pitch black. So, technically, they were his nightlights.
His stomach was churning so much he knew there was something wrong. A part of it was nerves, but he knew there was something else. Whilst his anxiety could get pretty bad sometimes, it had never felt like this. This felt like the stomach bugs he used to get as a kid.
Peter hated vomiting. Every time he had felt like this, he’d ended up throwing up.
He groaned and rolled onto his side, then buried his face into his pillow. Peter tried for another half an hour or so to sleep, but when he never drifted off, he sat up and buried his face in his hands. Frustrated tears burned behind his eyes because he was so damn tired, and his stomach just wouldn’t stop hurting.
After repressing the urge to scream, Peter eventually yanked his covers off and got out of bed. More overwhelmed than angry, he made his way to his father’s room while talking to FRIDAY.
“Where’s Dad?”
“Boss is in his room, sleeping. Would you like me to wake him, Young Boss?”
“No, it’s okay.”
Peter hesitated for a moment, then gently opened his Dad’s bedroom door. The man lay on his side, fast asleep, snoring lightly. Peter shuffled into the room, contemplating turning around and heading back to his own room, but he accidentally tripped over one of his Dad’s shoes before he could make that decision.
Giving that his father was a light sleeper, the man jolted awake at Peter’s surprised yelp.
“Pete?” The man asked, voice gruff with sleep.
“Sorry.” Peter muttered, already feeling guilty.
“Is something wrong?” His Dad sat up and flicked on the lamp. Peter twiddled his thumbs. “Underoos?”
“I can’t sleep.” Peter sighed and rubbed his tired eyes a few times. “I dunno. I’m just nervous, I guess.”
He was lying through his teeth. No wonder Mr. Harrington thought he was a liar.
“Come on, lie down.” Dad beckoned for him to come over. Peter didn’t waste any time curling up under his father’s arm, immediately comforted by the familiar presence. However, the comfort didn’t make his stomach-ache go away, as much as Peter wished it would. “Do you want to talk about it?”
Peter shook his head.
His Dad pressed a kiss to his forehead then covered them both with the blankets.
Thankfully, around twenty or so minutes later, Peter was lulled into unconsciousness by his father’s soft singing.
-
“See you in a bit, kid.” Happy said as Peter went to open the door. Peter narrowed his eyes at his Uncle through the review mirror. Happy was, quite obviously, trying his hardest not to let the amusement show on his face. “Sorry, sorry. It’s not funny, I know. Go on.”
“Bye Uncle Happy.” Peter replied and sent a smile to the man who drove him to school every day.
Once he was outside the car, Peter wished he had come clean about the tummy ache. Now, he was almost one hundred percent sure that he had caught a stomach bug from somewhere. Whatever it was, it was amplified by the intense nerves he was feeling, and all he wanted was to go back home and curl up in bed and pretend like today wasn’t happening.
Peter shuffled his way to the bus, where around half of his class was waiting already. There was no sight of Ned just yet, but MJ stood leant on one of the light posts with a disinterested look on her face as she read.
At his approach, she looked up, and a slight smile quirked her lips. “What’s up, Dork.”
“Hey.” Peter replied and returned the smile.
“Are you okay?” She asked a moment later. “You look really pale.”
“I don’t know.” Peter was trying his hardest not to bend over and hold his stomach. “My stomach hurts. I’m sure it’s nothing, I’m just nervous.”
“Nervous about what, Penis?”
Peter tensed, then held back a string of curses.
Flash sauntered up to him, a few of his friends following. All of them clearly weren’t there yet.
“Fuck off.” MJ said, just quiet enough to go unheard by Mr. Harrington.
“Nah, I don’t think I will. You nervous about getting caught out on your lie, Penis? Oh my God, just imagine if Stark was there! He’d send you to jail!” Peter wanted to laugh, he really did, but he felt too much like shit to even think of a response. Instead, he just glared. “You wouldn’t even be allowed in any colleges! I can’t wait.”
“Parker.” Peter jumped at the sound of Mr. Harrington’s voice. “May I have a word with you, please?”
Peter nodded and ignored the triumphed look that Flash gave him when he stepped around the bully. He stopped in front of Mr. Harrington, dread only making his stomach churn more as he looked at that same fucking disappointed expression. What the hell had he done this time?
“Do you remember our chat a few weeks ago?” Mr. Harrington began. “This is all in good intentions, Peter, I promise I don’t want to intentionally embarrass you in front of your peers. But this is a serious thing, and it is not to be mentioned.”
“Sir, Fl-”
“That is all. You can go back to your friends now.”
Peter stared at his teacher for a moment, mouth still open. Then, he quickly snapped it shut and turned around, hands in his pockets as he made his way back to MJ. Flash and his followers had moved back to their original position, thank god.
“What did he have to say?” MJ asked.
“Basically what he said last time.” Peter grumbled. “Does everyone really think it’s that bad that I would get an internship?”
“Not everyone.” She replied. “I can go give Harrington a piece of my mind, if you want.”
There was a short moment where they just stared at each other. Peter shocked, MJ completely serious. Peter knew she would do it; he’d seen it happen before. He was sure some of his teachers were even scared of her.
“Nah, it’s okay.” Peter grinned a little. “Thanks.”
MJ winked and went back to reading her book.
A few minutes later, Ned arrived. The boy stayed quiet for about two seconds before he burst.
“This is going to be so awesome!” Ned said as quietly as he could. “Dude!”
“You’ve been there before.” MJ deadpanned.
“Yeah but not on a real tour!”
Peter couldn’t stop himself from whining. He wished he had a light post to lean on like MJ did, it felt like he was about to keel over. He was also beginning to sweat a little, which couldn’t just be from how anxious he was.
“Onto the bus!” Mr. Harrington yelled around ten minutes later. Everyone shuffled onto the bus, and soon, they were on their way.
From the moment the bus took off from the curb, Peter wanted to die.
The motion made his stomach churn almost to the point where it was unbearable. He leant against the window and closed his eyes, arms unconsciously wrapping around his stomach. Peter swallowed, trying his hardest not to whine. It hadn’t been nearly as bad on the way to school with Happy.
“Um, dude? Are you okay?” Ned asked, tone filled with concern. “Peter?”
“I don’t feel good.” Peter muttered and forced his eyes to open. “I think I’m getting sick.”
“But I thought you couldn’t because…” Ned trailed, and Peter could only shrug. “Maybe you should ask for a sick bag… or something.”
“No, no.” Peter shook his head and tried not to think about throwing up. “I’m not… I’m not gonna throw up.”
“Okay.” Ned replied, and thankfully changed the subject. “So, where do you think we’ll go on the tour?”
Peter shrugged. “Don’t know. I don’t really pay attention to the tours.”
“Is Mr. Stark going to be there?”
“Yeah, but he’s got a lot of meetings today. He probably won’t come out to see us.”
Ned sighed. “That sucks.”
“Do you really know Tony Stark?” Betty suddenly asked, who had been sitting behind them with MJ. Obviously, she had been listening to their conversation.
“Um.” Peter turned a little to look at the girl, who looked curious. MJ also watched on but didn’t say a word. “I do.”
“That’s so cool.” Betty grinned at him. “I always believed you, by the way. Flash is an idiot.”
Peter spluttered, and for a moment he and Ned just stared at her. His somersaulting stomach was temporarily pushed to the back of his mind as he tried to process the information.
“Wow. Thanks, Betty.” Peter smiled at her. Betty smiled back, then settled back into her seat and engaged in a conversation with MJ.
Ned and Peter looked at each other. “Wow.”
“See! Not everyone thinks you’re a liar.” They shared a little fist bump.
Soon, their conversation ended, and Peter was back to trying not to throw up his breakfast on the seat in front of him. Flash yelled up the back of the bus with his friends, which hurt his sensitive ears as his health deteriorated. There was no way he wasn’t getting sick, there were too many indicators he’d had as a child that pointed in the stomach bug direction.
Hopefully he’d be able to hold out for the whole day.
The bus ride back to the tower, which he had just left, went for too long. For one, it had started to pour down with rain. Then, the bus driver missed the entrance to the parking garage, so they had to turn around which caused the traffic to bank up and Peter’s stomach to do violent cartwheels. Eventually, they made it, and Peter couldn’t wait to get off of the bus.
The rush inside was a blur. Peter somehow found himself in the foyer, the sounds of shoes squeaking on the clean tile floors making him wince as Mr. Harrington got them organised. Peter stared longingly at the couches, wishing he could just collapse onto them and curl up in a ball. Being rained on only soured his mood more.
“Alright, alright.” Mr. Harrington was muttering, looking around with wild and mildly panicked eyes. “Where’s the front desk?”
Peter couldn’t stop himself. “It’s over there, sir.”
Mr. Harrington’s head snapped to him, then to where he was pointing, mouth pressed in a firm line.
Instead of taking Peter’s word for it, Mr. Harrington caught the attention of an SI worker.
“I’m sorry, excuse me. My class and I are here for a tour, would you be able to point me in the direction of the front desk?”
The woman smiled kindly and gestured to where Peter had. “Just over there, sir. Have a great tour!”
“Thank you.”
Mr. Harrington didn’t look at him as he led the class to the front desk.
“Dick.” Peter heard MJ mutter.
Peter stood off to the side as Mr. Harrington spoke to the front desk lady, Trina. Peter had met Trina on a few occasions, mostly when he was with his Dad. To Trina, he was one of the interns, not Tony’s son.
“Midtown Tech?”
All heads whipped in the direction of the voice. Peter stumbled a little from the quick action, mostly due to his stomach. Discreetly, he wrapped an arm around his tummy and focussed his attention on the woman approaching them. Her heels clacked against the floor, loud and sophisticated, screaming professionalism.
“Yes, that would be us.” Mr. Harrington replied awkwardly.
“Great! You’re right on time.” Peter hadn’t met this woman before. “I’m Lana, and I’ll be giving you your tour today. If you would just follow me, and I’ll give you your badges.”
Peter obediently followed behind the rest of the class, wishing he could just take himself up to the penthouse and go to bed. Or vomit. Or both.
“Each of you will receive one of these badges.” Lana gestured to the guest badges, which were piled up in a small container. “Please do not take these off, as they are what allows you into the building. You will then go through security. But don’t worry, it’s mostly the same as airport security. Nothing in your pockets, bags through the scanner. Normal things, nothing to be afraid of. Make sure to take off all jewellery.”
When she received a round of nods from the students, she began to distribute badges by name.
Peter began to sweat when he and Ned were left, but there was only one badge. He hadn’t talked to his Dad about this part and had mostly assumed that he’d get a guest badge like everyone else.
“Ned Leeds.” Ned gave him a worried glance before he went forward, grabbed his badge and headed toward security. Peter heard Flash’s loud cackle immediately and couldn’t help it when his cheeks flushed. His stomach churned violently as he shifted awkwardly on the spot, unsure of what to do.
“Oh, are we one short?” Lana questioned. Her eyes scanned through the paper she was holding, before realisation dawned on her. “Oh! I’m so sorry, Peter. I didn’t realise you were already an intern here. A special one, it seems. Go on through, you don’t need a badge.”
Peter smiled at her and hesitantly padded toward security to join the rest of his class. Flash had obviously been watching and was gaping.
Peter ignored him and joined Ned.
Security went as normal. Peter had only done it once before, when someone mistook him for one of the lower level interns. He emptied his pockets and put is backpack in a tray, then walked through the full-body scanner. He was last to go through, and everyonewas looking at him.
Peter kept his head down, one arm still wrapped around his stomach. The added attention only made him feel worse.
Next came badge scanning, which led Peter to wonder how exactly he was going to be let in if he didn’t have a badge. Mr. Harrington seemed to notice this immediately, as if he was just looking for a way to call Peter out. Peter felt his relationship with his favourite teacher rapidly declining the longer the man treated him with mistrust.
“Peter, where is your badge?” The man asked, obviously not having heard what Lana had said.
“Um.” Peter muttered. “I don’t… need one?”
Mr. Harrington’s eyes narrowed slightly, but before he could say anything, Lana interrupted.
“If you would scan your badges here and wait by the lift, please.” She said pleasantly, smiling at them all. Peter was grateful for the distraction, and glad when Mr. Harrington forgot about him and worried about his own badge instead.
“What’re you gonna do?” Ned asked after a moment.
“I don’t know.”
Before Peter could say anything, FRIDAY’s voice echoed through the small lift area.
“Welcome, Eugene Thompson.”
A round of snickers and a red-faced Flash followed. Peter couldn’t help but show some amusement too.
Of course, Peter was last again, and everyone watched with curiosity.
“Ha!” Flash jeered. “They won’t even let him in!”
“Flash!” Mr. Harrington snapped a minute later. “That’s enough.”
“Welcome back, Young Boss. Would you like me to alert Boss of your arrival?”
Peter’s cheeks became redder. “No, Fri, it’s okay.”
“Very well. Enjoy your tour.”
It felt like the entire lobby went silent. Peter felt the urge to vomit come on even more as he stood there, sweating.
“Young Boss?” Flash spat out, then burst into laughter. “How much did you pay to get Stark’s AI to call you that?”
“Flash!” Mr. Harrington scolded again. “What did I say? No more.”
Flash smirked at him but said no more.
“Alright!” Lana clapped her hands and gestured to the lift, which was opening. She seemed to pretend like Flash hadn’t said anything. “Come on, everyone, into the lift. I think you’re going to be really excited about the first exhibit.”
Peter was so sure he was going to vomit as soon as the doors closed. It was hot, he was too close to everyone, and his stomach was rebelling against him. He leant against the wall and whimpered as quietly as he could muster, knowing exactly how long the trip up was going to be. Ned and MJ sent him worried glances but otherwise didn’t say anything.
Lana was still talking, but Peter wasn’t listening.
Finally, the lift doors opened, and Peter couldn’t stop himself from stumbling out first. Mr. Harrington scolded him, but Peter just ignored as he caught his breath and willed his stomach to just chill out. In the meantime, the rest of his class exited the lift, all of them staring at him. Everyone had shocked looks, aside from Flash, Ned, MJ and Betty. All for different reasons.
“Parker, a word?” Peter glared at the floor at the sound of Mr. Harrington’s voice. “My apologies, continue with your tour. I just need to speak with Peter for a moment.”
“Oh, that’s perfectly okay.” Lana replied, her gaze however remained directly on Peter.
When the class was led away by Lana, Mr. Harrington let out a long sigh.
Maybe Peter could vomit on his shoes.
He almost laughed at the thought but composed himself when he saw the look on his teacher’s face.
Great. More disappointment.
“I don’t know how you managed to do this, but what did we discuss?”
“I don’t understand, sir.” Peter said. “I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“You have become consumed by this lie. I’m sorry, but if this happens again, I will be sending you home.”
“But I didn’t even say anything about the internship.” Peter snapped, suddenly overcome by the anger burning in his chest. “The internship is real. Did you not hear FRIDAY? She knows me. Why don’t you tell Flash to stop bringing it up?”
“I heard what Mr. Thompson said…”
“I wouldn’t even have enough money to pay my way through this, would I?” Peter replied sarcastically, pleasantly rewarded with a spluttering Mr. Harrington. As far as his peers and teachers knew, he lived with his aunt and was at the school on a scholarship. “I’d like to continue the tour, please. I haven’t done anything wrong.”
For a frightening moment, Peter’s stomach jolted. He winced, feeling vomit come up his throat, but quickly swallowed and pretended like nothing had happened. Mr. Harrington openly gaped at him.
“If this happens again, you will be sent home. Do you understand, Peter? I do not appreciate this sort of attitude. Especially when its coming from you.”
Well, guess I got the attitude from my Dad then.
“I understand.” Peter’s anger began to dissolve as the seconds ticked by. “Can I please go back to the tour now?”
“Yes.”
Peter walked off without as much of a glance in his teacher’s direction, and suddenly felt like crying. Whatever angry spell he’d just had, it was gone as quickly as it came.
He joined the rest of his class and pretended like he hadn’t just been scolded by his teacher. Flash gave him a shark-toothed grin though, which made Peter want to spit in his face. How much did he have to prove himself for people to believe that he was smart enough to have an internship?
“If you can’t already tell, this is the Avengers Exhibit! This exhibit has remained inside of the tower for quite some time, since just after the battle of New York in twenty-twelve. However, as you are most likely aware, the Avengers are not together at the moment.” Peter looked around the room with disinterest. Not because he didn’t think it was cool, it was reallycool, but he’d seen it so many times before. “Most of these exhibits have not been updated since twenty-sixteen, aside from Spider-Man and a few others.”
Peter already knew that, because he’d changed his own just a few weeks ago because his Dad thought it would be funny to put stupid facts on his plaque.
“Feel free to have a look around. Just do not touch anything behind the ropes.”
The class disbanded, and Peter found himself sat down on one of the benches, leaning on his elbow. Ned had tried to stay with him, but his excitement was too obvious to ignore. Ned hadn’t been in the Avengers Exhibit before, so Peter told him to go look around. MJ, however, sat with him, head in her book.
“Mr. Parker.” Peter tried not to scowl. “What did I say about attitude?”
“I don’t feel like looking around, sir.”
“You have been given a once in a lifetime opportunity to have a tour of this organisation. I’d suggest you take it all in while you can. You too, Michelle.”
“Bold of you to suggest that we’d never get to the chance to be here again.” MJ said as she closed her book. “You think we aren’t smart enough? Or the fact that Peter has already been here.”
Mr. Harrington didn’t say anything for a long time.
“Very well.” He soon sighed, then left.
MJ let out an agitated huff. “Fuck him.”
Peter snorted. “I know, right.”
At that exact moment, Peter’s phone buzzed. He pulled it out of his pocket and read through the message from his Dad.
From Dad, 9:34am
Fri told me Flash and your teacher are bothering you. I watched some of the footage. Do I have to come down there?
Peter, despite how much pain he was in, smiled.
To Dad, 9:35am
dont worry its fine, i can handle it
The reply came quicker than ever.
From Dad, 9:35am
If they’re treating my kid like shit, which they are, I’m allowed to worry. Are you sure you don’t want me to come down there, Underoos?
Peter thought about it. He did want his Dad to come down and save him, but he knew his father was busy. Peter would be able to put up with a bully, an annoying teacher and a terrible stomach-ache for the rest of the day, surely. He didn’t want his Dad to leave his meetings for him. Even though he had done it many times before.
To Dad, 9:37am
its okay dad, ill be fine. love you
Peter added the last past on as an afterthought, and mostly to convince his Dad not to miss any more meetings.
From Dad, 9:37am
If it gets any worse, I’m coming down there. No buts. Love you too, Bambino
-
They were allowed to look around the Avengers Exhibit for around an hour before they moved on. The next hour and a half were mostly based around his Dad and Ms. Potts, and how Stark Industries functioned. Peter knew it all already, his Dad had told him all about the company, since Peter was the heir and all.
Man, if Flash or Mr. Harrington knew.
If he was honest, he didn’t want them to know. Peter had a feeling Flash would still give him shit even if he knew who his father was.
Now, it was lunch. They had been led into the cafeteria, which was mostly used by the interns, and the smell was enough to make him want to throw up all over the table. He settled for using one arm to lean on the table and the other to rub at his churning tummy.
He had gotten himself a tray of food, yet he found he didn’t want to touch any of it. The food in the tower’s cafeteria was amazing, but today, he couldn’t think of anything worse. He watched Ned eat, wishing he could do the same, wishing he could have gotten sick any other time but now. Despite how much he hated being on this tour in particular, he loved his home.
However, when he saw Flash approaching, he wished he could flip the table in the bully’s face.
“So, Penis, can I ask you a question?” Flash said as he sat himself down at their table. Peter, Ned and Michelle all sent the teen equally disgusted expressions. “Where’d you get your phone from?”
“My- Mr. Stark.” Peter caught himself very last second. Flash’s eyebrows rose.
“Tony Stark.” Flash tilted his head. “As if you actually know him.”
Peter wanted to laugh. His phone’s home screen was even a selfie of himself and his Dad.
“I don’t know how you got that AI to recognise you, but you’re lying.”
“Whatever, Flash.” Peter looked away. “Go away.”
“I’m gonna figure you out, Parker.” Flash sniggered. “I can’t wait for you to be kicked out of here.”
“Neither can I.” Peter rolled his eyes. “At least it will get you to stop talking to me.”
“You’ll probably be talking to the police instead.”
“Bye Flash.” MJ said before Peter could answer. “Once again, no one wants to see your face around here.”
“Shut up, nerd.” Flash snapped as he stood. Without another word, the bully sauntered back off to his friends and sat down, obviously retelling the conversation to them. Peter didn’t bother listening in as he resisted the urge to burst into angry tears right there.
“Just ignore him.” Ned said.
“See, I shouldn’t have come. It’s just making everything worse.”
“He’s trying to rile you up.” MJ cut in. “Your Dad is probably watching his every move, anyways. Pretty sure the man’s already got Flash blacklisted from every college in the country.”
Peter smirked. Knowing his Dad, the possibility of that wasn’t low.
“I just want to get today over with.”
And maybe make it to the end of the day without vomiting in front of everyone.
But, the chances of that were low.
Good old Parker-Stark luck.
-
“Now, kids, this is the robotics lab!”
Peter had been here before, obviously with his Dad. He never really went anywhere in the building without his father, if he was honest. Peter wished he was here right now.
Since lunch, the feeling in his stomach had only gotten worse. Worse to the point where he wanted his Dad so badly that he wanted to cry like the baby he was. He wasn’t going to make it to the end of the tour without throwing up.
“For the next hour or so you’ll be given the chance to look around, and even maybe build something yourself! We have stations set up just through here. Feel free to ask any current working interns questions about their projects, they’ll be more than happy to answer!”
Peter followed the class, thankful for another chance to sit down. However, before he could even make it to the table that, he, Ned and MJ had mutually decided to sit at, Flash shoved him out of nowhere.
Of course, he had sensed it coming but had been too focussed on keeping his food down to really prepare for impact. So, Peter stumbled right into one of the intern’s work benches.
A sickening crash echoed around the robotics lab as Peter knocked the intern’s work onto the floor. For a moment, no one said anything, before Peter frantically started spewing out apologies as he bent down to pick up the pieces. However, bending down made his stomach jolt again, which led him to slap a hand over his mouth as he gagged.
Thankfully, nothing came up. He recovered quickly and looked to Travis, which was the intern’s work he’d just destroyed. “I’m so, so sorry.”
Travis knew Peter from the times he came down here with his Dad. Travis was one of his favourite interns, which made it even worse that it was his work that Peter destroyed.
“Don’t worry, Pete. It’s okay.” Travis smiled, but obviously looked concerned. “Take a breath, kid, it’s fine. I saw that little shit push you.”
“I’m still sorry.” Peter mumbled. “Shit.”
“Don’t stress.” Travis rubbed his shoulder, then looked up over Peter’s shoulder. “Warning, your teacher’s coming.”
“Shit.” Peter repeated. “He’s gonna kick me out.”
“He can’t kick you out. You work here.” Travis rolled his eyes. “Stark’ll kill him if he tries.”
Travis didn’t know that Peter was really Tony’s kid, but he seemed to be aware of how protective his Dad was over him. Peter was pretty sure most of the interns had made their own assumptions to who he was, since he was there every single day.
“Peter.” Mr. Harrington’s tone was scarily serious. “Up. Now.”
“Don’t punish Peter, sir.” Travis cut in as the two of them stood. “The other kid pushed him into my bench. It wasn’t his fault.”
“Who?”
“Flash.” Peter mumbled. He was still sweating. Throwing up on Mr. Harrington’s shoes seemed a lot more appealing now. “I didn’t mean to get pushed.”
“Go over there and sit.”
Peter now knew hated Mr. Harrington.
Peter did as he was told and moodily slumped into a free seat next to Ned. Both of his friends were staring at him, but he said nothing and began to fiddle with the parts they’d been provided with. He could hear Mr. Harrington profusely apologising to Travis, who continued to say it wasn’t Peter’s fault. Peter was glad the intern was standing up for him, but he knew that Flash would just get a pass. Especially from the look on Mr. Harrington’s face when he headed towards Peter’s table.
“Mr. Harrington, sir.” Lana cut in just before the man could open his mouth. “Could I have a chat with you?”
Peter paled even more. Shit.
Mr. Harrington looked incredibly panicked as he rushed over to the tour guide.
For once, Peter didn’t use his senses to hear what they were saying. He just groaned and leant on the table, head in his arms. He was starting to get a headache, and his stomach was churning so much it felt like he was in the middle of the sea. Once again, one of his friends rubbed his shoulder, but he wasn’t sure which one of them it was.
His phone buzzed, but he ignored it.
“Do you want to build a robot?” Ned said after a while, which caused Peter to look up. It was Ned who was rubbing his shoulder.
“Sure.” Peter smiled a little and reluctantly sat back up. The movement made him almost gag, but he pushed it all down and focussed on getting the parts they needed. Michelle sat across from him, reading her book but obviously observing him. “What kind?”
He and Ned talked quietly about the robot they were going to build, but eventually, Peter couldn’t maintain the conversation or focus on their task. He put both arms around his stomach and hugged himself, foot nervously tapping on the floor as he looked around.
Mr. Harrington sat to the side, on the phone. Flash and his goons were making a right old mess of the parts they had been given, which made Peter want to hurl the bully across the room.
That would definitely get Peter further into Mr. Harrington’s bad books. Andreveal his identity at the same time.
“I can’t do this anymore, guys.” Peter muttered. He was so close to his breaking point. “I think I’m gonna be sick.”
Ned’s eyes bulged, while MJ’s eyebrows raised just slightly in surprise.
When no one said anything, Peter quickly yanked out his phone and started typing to FRIDAY, since he couldn’t really just talk to the AI about his Dad in front of his whole class and interns. Thank god FRIDAY had been put in his phone for times just like this. In his rush, he didn’t even read the text his Dad sent him.
where’s dad?
FRIDAY’s reply was immediate.
Boss is currently in a meeting; however, he is becoming increasingly agitated. I have been sending him footage from your tour and he is not pleased by your classmate’s actions. Would you like me to alert sir that he is needed?
Peter pondered for a moment.
no, its fine. can u tell him im going to our floor please
Of course, Young Boss. Your Father has given you explicit permission to leave the tour if needed. Your tour guide and interns have been given this information also. I will alert Boss of your plans.
Peter put his phone away and sighed.
“I’m… I’m gonna go.” Peter couldn’t stand being down here anymore. There were too many people watching him.
“Do you want me to come with you?” Ned asked, sincere. Peter shook his head. He didn’t want to take anymore from the trip that he already had. “Okay. See you at school Monday?”
“Maybe.” Peter replied, then stood up. The movement jolted his sensitive stomach, and that’s when he knew he had limited time to get out of sight of his peers.
Peter barely managed a goodbye to his friends as he headed toward the lift, hoping to go unnoticed. It was already opening (thank god for FRIDAY), however before he could get to it Flash yelled out.
“Hey, Puny! Where are you going? Gonna steal some more Stark tech?”
“Fuck.” Peter whispered as he ignored the boy and quickened his pace to the lift.
“Parker!” Mr. Harrington yelled, but Peter ignored him too.
He was almost at the lift before his backpack was grabbed, and he was pulled to a stop.
Peter couldn’t stop the whimper that left his mouth when he was spun around, the room spinning long after the action as he tried to meet Mr. Harrington’s uncharacteristically rage-filled eyes. “Where do you think you’re going? You do not have permission to move about this building like it is your home. Do you not recall our several conversations?”
Ironic, this is my fucking home.
“S-sir.” Peter whimpered and tried to pull away. “I g-gotta go.”
“Go where?” Mr. Harrington snapped. “And what is this about you stealing Stark tech?”
“He has a Starkphone that’s not even out yet!” Flash chimed in unhelpfully. Peter just shook his head and tried to pull away again. “He stole it!”
“Shut up, Flash!” That was Betty. Huh. “Leave Peter alone!”
“Why’s everyone standing up for the liar?” Flash asked, tone smug. “Look how scared he is. He finally got caught!”
“Excuse me, Mr. Harrington.” That was Lana. “Let the boy go, please.”
Peter stumbled away from his teacher, embarrassed that there were tears beginning to fill his eyes. He was done for. He wasn’t gonna make it in time.
“I am so sorry for this behaviour, ma’am.” Mr. Harrington rushed out. “I don’t know what is wrong with him today, I’ve told him countless times-”
“Peter’s been given permission from Mr. Stark to leave the tour whenever is needed.”
“What?” Flash exclaimed. “No way. Seriously, how much did he pay to get all these people to lie for him?”
While all this was happening, Peter’s breakfast was quickly making its way up his throat. For his part, he tried to head toward the lift, but he was retching before he could even take a step forward. The room fell silent, and with another violent gag, Peter threw up right there in the middle of the robotics lab in front of a whole room’s worth of people.
“Holy shit.” Flash said after a moment. “That’s disgusting.”
“The appropriate authority has been alerted and will be arriving shortly.” FRIDAY suddenly said, and all Peter could do was moan in despair. He stared down at his own sick, cheeks flushed red with humiliation as he prepared for a second round. Tears had begun to leak from his eyes from the gagging.
“Penis is going to get kicked out for hurling. I can’t believe it!” Flash cackled, a round of laughter following. Peter just stood there, bent over, eyes shut as he felt a long spit string hung off of his chin. Someone was rubbing his back, but he had no idea who it was, nor did he care.
“Damn kid.” It was Travis. “You’ve been having a rough day, haven’t you?”
Peter didn’t answer. He just stood there, hoping he wouldn’t be betrayed by his stomach a second time.
Of course, he was betrayed, and with another wet gag his stomach expelled more vomit onto the floor.
Peter wanted to dig a hole and die in it.
During his internal panic, he didn’t hear the lift doors open, or the several gasps that came from the students behind him.
“Hey buddy.” Peter slowly looked up to see his Dad in front of him, hands outstretched and reaching for him. Despite the audience, Peter whimpered, and straightened himself up a bit to wipe his eyes. “Not feeling well, are we?”
“’M sorry, Dad.” Peter said without thinking.
There was a noticeable stillness to the room as he backed away from the vomit puddle he’d created. After a second, he realised what he’d said, and looked to his father with wide and teary eyes. Dad looked just as shocked but seemed to recover quicker than Peter could.
In the background, Flash’s stupid voice made it to his ears.
“Dad?” The boy spat. “What… the fuck.”
Peter whined again and held his stomach.
“Don’t worry about it, Underoos. Not your fault. Come here.”
“Um, Mr. Stark, sir. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Mr. Harrington cut in, clearly starstruck by the billionaire’s presence. “I’m… I’m sorry for this mess.”
His Dad outright ignored his teacher in favour for using his sleeve to wipe the spit and remaining vomit from Peter’s mouth. Peter couldn’t help leaning into the touch, despite how bad he felt that his Dad was using his own clothes to clean Peter up. His father pulled him into a hug a second later, and Peter couldn’t help but bury his face into the man’s chest. Mostly to hide from the group of people watching them, interns and classmates alike.
The room fell even more silent.
“I’m… confused.” Mr. Harrington said.
“Oh, believe me, so am I.” His Dad replied, tone completely different. Now, it was that scarily calm tone that meant someone was in trouble. “Especially with the information that Fri’s been giving me about you and one of your students.”
“What?” Peter squeezed his Dad tighter. His stomach continued to churn, and Peter knew that sooner or later, he would have round three. “What do you mean?”
“Calling my kid a liar and a thief. Insinuating that he and his friend wouldn’t be smart enough for an internship in the future. One of your students pushing Peter into a desk, among plenty other things I’ve heard be said to Peter.”
“Your kid?” Mr. Harrington squeaked. Peter tensed up even more.
“Yes. My kid. My sick kid.” His Dad sighed. “If you hadn’t have yanked him back like that, he would have made it to my floor, where I was already waiting for him. You and your students will receive an NDA at the end of your tour. If this gets out, the aftermath won’t be pretty. You got that?”
“I- Yes, Mr. Stark.” Mr. Harrington sounded petrified.
“I would like to have an interview with you and that little shit over there first thing Monday morning.”
There was a hush of sniggers and a gasp from Mr. Harrington.
“I don’t understa-”
“Nuh-uh, no more. I’m taking Pete up to our floor. I’m assuming that’s okay, because I’m doing it anyways. Goodbye. See you soon, Ned and MJ.”
With that, his Dad’s gentle tone returned as he spoke to Peter. “Come on, kiddo. Let’s go.”
Peter obediently followed his father into the lift on shaky legs, not revealing his face until he was sure the doors were shut. The moment the doors were closed, he could hear the class explode with noise and questions. His stomach continued with its cartwheels as he looked up at his Dad, hopeless. His cheeks were cupped by gentle, calloused hands.
“How long have you been feeling sick for?”
“Yesterday. I thought it was just n-nerves, though.” Peter’s chin wobbled as he spoke, hands fisted around his Dad’s suit jacket. “I’m s-sorry.”
“No, no.” His Dad hushed and wrapped him in another hug. “I’m not mad at you. I should have come down sooner, I’m sorry.”
“It was nothing.” Peter muttered.
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.” Dad’s tone levelled out for a moment, and Peter knew that was a conversation waiting to be had later. “Let’s focus on your health for the moment. Do you feel like you’re going to be sick again?”
Peter nodded. Soon, they were out of the lift and in the bathroom, Peter hunched over the toilet with his Dad kneeling beside him, gently rubbing his back as he sobbed through it. It hurt, his throat burned as he coughed and gagged.
“It’s okay, baby. Get it all out.” His Dad muttered encouragements as he expelled his stomach into the toilet bowl. “It’ll be okay.”
Eventually, it ended, and Peter felt a little better. He slumped against his Dad, exhausted and embarrassed, however he couldn’t even get out a full sentence. He just let his Dad hold him, body feeling weaker than it had in years.
Once he was tucked in bed, Peter finally felt safe. His Dad carded a hand through his hair while he spoke on the phone, probably with Pepper, about the fact that the interns and Peter’s class had found out that Peter was a Stark. He didn’t care, though, far too tired to do anything but relish in the comfort he had been craving all day.
He must’ve fallen asleep, because the next time he opened his eyes, the room was dark, and his Dad was gone.
Peter threw up again, head pounding. He felt ten times worse than before.
FRIDAY must have tattled on him, because seconds after he slumped back into bed, his father was entering the room.
“Here, I’ll clean that out for you.” Dad took the bucket and went into the bathroom that connected onto Peter’s room. Peter just closed his eyes and tried to fall back asleep, but the pounding headache he had prevented him from doing so. Within seconds, his Dad was sitting on the side of his head, carding a gentle hand through Peter’s curls. “I got some super-kid drugs for you.”
“Mmm.” Peter hummed and squinted his eyes open. The glowing stars on his roof now seemed to bright, bright enough for him to wince. Great. Whatever sickness he had must have triggered a small sensory overload.
“You should’ve told me, bub.” Peter looked guiltily at his father, who had a sad smile on his face.
“What time is it?” Peter asked, then yawned.
“Almost eight.” Wow. Peter had been asleep for longer than he thought. “The tour went normally after you left. Your teacher and Flash looked considerably whiter. I thought it was hilarious.”
Peter didn’t smile. He just sighed and pressed his forehead further into his father’s hand.
“I’m going to get that man fired.” For once, Peter didn’t argue. “The way he was talking to you, fu- freaking disgusting.”
Peter hummed a second time. He’d lost all his respect for Mr. Harrington.
“Try get some more sleep. We’ll talk more about it later. I love you.”
“Love you too, Dad.” Peter’s eyes slipped shut. Thankfully, his stomach was a little more at ease now. When his Dad pulled away, however, his hand shot out to grab onto the man’s wrist. “Stay?”
There was a soft laugh. “Of course. Move over.”
Peter did, despite his aching muscles, and was happy to curl into his father’s hold as soon as he was underneath the sheets.
Once again, Peter drifted to sleep to the sound of his Dad’s singing.
-
Peter didn’t go to school until Thursday of the next week.
Arriving to Mr. Harrington’s class after the field trip was daunting in itself. Everyone was looking at him, mostly shocked, and Peter loathed all the attention. He pretended like nothing had happened as he sat down at his desk, trying to prepare himself to see Mr. Harrington again. His Dad had gone down to the school on Monday like he had promised, and had probably chewed out Mr. Harrington, the principal and Flash all together. He didn’t really want to know.
The most noticeable thing was that Flash wasn’t in class, and Mr. Harrington was late.
He hadn’t spoken to Ned or MJ since, either, since he’d been keeping off of his phone while he recovered. Peter mostly spent his time either vomiting, finishing up his homework, or watching movies with his Dad who somehow managed to get Ms. Potts to reschedule all his meetings for the week.
“Dude.” Ned said when he arrived. “How are you feeling?”
“Better. Thanks.” Peter smiled unsurely. “Um… what did I miss?”
“Flash got expelled.” Peter’s eyes widened. Expelled? “Mr. Harrington got fired.”
Peter gaped a little.
“Like they should have.” MJ cut in as she sat down at her own desk, a smirk on her face. “Everyone could hear your Dad screaming at them… he was mad. No one knows it was Stark, though, don’t worry. It’s just our class.”
“Wow.” Peter replied. Honestly, he hadn’t expected anything lessfrom his father.
When their new teacher arrived, Peter was relieved.
She was a lot nicer than Mr. Harrington had ever been.
-
“You got Mr. Harrington fired and Flash expelled?” Was the first thing Peter said when he entered the lab that afternoon.
“Of course I did. No one talks shit on my kid and gets away with it.”
Peter grinned. “Thanks Dad.”
His Dad’s eyes widened a little. “You’re thanking me? I was beginning to think I went a little far with the whole, y’know, firing and expelling thing.”
Peter couldn’t stop himself from wrapping his father up in a tight hug. “I love you so much, Dad.”
When he looked up at his Dad, the man looked a little misty eyed.
A kiss was pressed to his forehead, and Peter couldn’t stop smiling.
“Love you too, Bambino.”