A Slice Of Life, Death And Everything In-Between

Oh, How Sad Does Your Smile Look On Camera

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to the wonderful @_quintessentail_z on instagram, who requested the following prompt:

I dont wanna get to specific cause I want you to have some freedom. Perhaps one where Peter is adopted by Tony and someone's mean to Peter? I'm bad with prompts sorry. Really anything with protective Tony, clingy Peter, and cuddles I'll love. Surprise me!

I hope you all enjoy and thank you so much for the love and support, it means the world to me! 💖🥰 Please don't hesitate to let me know what you think!! 

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Despite the adoption not being public knowledge, Peter still finds himself occasionally fighting away a few nosy reporters once and a while.

Being in any range of Tony Stark has the effect and the spiderling swallows as he nears the doors to his school, hitching his backpack further up his shoulders. Through the little glass windows, Peter can barely make out about three or four men, each with what appears to be a camera hanging from around their necks.

The one day Happy can't pick me up and stupid practice ran late. He thinks, clenching his jaw. Twisting on his heel, Peter makes his way down the math hallway to his right, praying that there aren't anymore journalists barricading the other doors.

His Parker Luck strikes again, however, because as soon as he steps out of the second school entrance, a camera gets shoved in his face, the flash nearly blinding him as he staggers backwards.

"What --?" He starts, but is quickly cut off by the sharp voice of a man.

"Look over here, kid, yeah," Another flash of light and Peter hisses in pain, one hand coming up to shield his eyes while his other jerks out in the direction of the reporter. The man, when Peter can finally blink up at him through the dark spots clouding his vision, is grinning wide, teeth on full display. "How'd you know Tony Stark, anyways?"

"Uh," Peter flinches away when the man shoves a small microphone in his face, taking a stumbling step backwards until he's pressed against the school door. "I-I don't --"

"You're not his little bastard, right? Oh, that would be just perfect. Playboy Tony Stark, father of the year, huh?"

Peter swallows. "N-No, I --"

"Eh, doesn't matter anyways, we can always just make something up." The man shrugs, taking yet another picture of Peter and the boy uses the second of distraction to shuffle sideways, ducking away from the man when he reaches out. "Hey!"

Peter just steps down from the final step when the journalist grabs his backpack, jerking the spiderling backwards so hard that the boy slips, slamming his head against the stairs railing. The pop of his skull against the metal echoes in the sudden silence and Peter groans, falling the rest of the way to his knees.

"Shit," He hears the reporter whisper. "What the fuck do I do? Shit. "

The man's grip on his bag loosens and it falls too, hitting against Peter's back with a dull thud. The man slips around Peter, pausing for a second to study the boy still kneeling on the ground, before he turns and jogs in the opposite direction, leaving Peter to rise unsteadily to his feet.

"Ugh," The world swirls around him, the harsh blue and green of the spring afternoon twisting and the teen staggers for a second, reaching up with one hand to feel at his forehead. "Ow."

The bump is large, tender to the touch and Peter retracts his hand with a grimace. Checking his watch, the 15-year-old's eyes widen at the time and he's moving with a few more swaying steps, only pausing for a second to blink a few spots from his eyes.