Spider-Man//Avengers//Marvel One shots

Family Growing Pains (PT2)

Peter's never had a clingy phase, not that he can remember anyways. But he supposed he never had to share his Dad with anyone else before.

Pepper, a little, but it wasn't the same. She was practically his mother.

He didn't live under any illusion, either. He's had many expensive babysitters over the years, and he knows his Dad has put him in their capable hands to partake in many, many one-night stands.

It's just... he's never brought one home before. Not one soul. Man, woman or otherwise he's never brought any of them home.

To Malibu or to one of the few properties he owns around the city, definitely.

But not to the Tower. Because that's his space. That's where his joke iron man pyjamas are, and where his diploma hangs on the wall next to Peter's Middle School graduation letter and where there's YooHoo in the fridge and always, always a stack of science fiction movies underneath the television.

His space. Their space.

And Peter never complained. Never talked about it, never judged his Dad. That was just what he was like. He didn't mind.

So considering all that: sure, Peter might be a little bit clingy, but he deserves to be angry about this one thing. This thing that his Dad keeps dangling over his head, not quite ever addressing and not quite ever apologising for.

Letting Steve into their apartment. Into the lab where they work. Into Peter's life as well as his.

Peter hates it.

He stays and sulks in his room for the rest of the day. There's a short little knock quite late and when Peter bothers to go check what it was, there's a plate of lukewarm pizza from that place he likes downtown.

Peter ignores it, and cries again when Wade calls.

-

He sneaks out the service exit early the next day and slides into the passenger seat of Wade's car at 5:30am on the dot. He knows because the little stereo is blinking the numbers back at him in a bright neon green.

An air freshener that's cut out to look like a samurai sword hangs between them from the mirror.

"Thanks." Is all Peter can croak out.

He doesn't plan to stay all night but that's just how it ends up.

He gets a few texts from his Dad by the time they're cuddled up in Wade's bed watching the end of A New Hope and eating the half-burnt waffles his sister makes them when she sees them pull up in front of the house.

Wade rolls over him to grab the vibrating phone and Peter's laughing and helpless to stop him from switching it off and lobbing it across the room.

"Hey!" Peter complains, "Hey! What if-"

Wade cuts him off with a kiss. Peter's brain glitches when a tongue pushes into his mouth. He's half way gone by the time they pull apart to shut off the movie.

"My Mom's going to want to make you lunch soon." Wade sighs as he switches his pyjamas for actual clothes- a bright red t-shirt with black jeans and a black hoodie, he looks like a child delinquent- and runs a hand backwards through his floppy blond hair.

Peter laughs, pushing himself up onto his elbows, "That's so nice of her, don't diss the fajitas." He growls, stealing the large green hoodie Wade had been wearing last week up from the floor.

He gave it a precursory sniff- because this is Wade they're talking about, something could have died in this thing and he'd still wear it- before pulling it on over his head.

He's still in the dark of the fabric when Wade grabs his hand and they nearly fall down the stairs. The laughter is contagious to Wade's little sister and only makes the meal that much better.

Even when Wade's Dad comes home and tells them to scram if all they're going to do is make noise. He's not kind, but he's not a horrible person, so Peter lets it go and snuggles into Wade's car while they drive across the city.

It takes them two stops, one for gas, another for some snacks, before they get to the harbour and the old beach below it.

It's stony and uncomfortable but no one else is there so it's perfect, and they lay a blanket out and munch on the strawberry laces between them- they even try one lady and the tramp style to no avail- before they cuddle up and watch the sun set below the concrete jungle they call home.

Wade's smart enough to make sure the beach they're on faces away from Stark Tower.

When they start kissing, Peter pushes forwards and wraps his arms around the other boys neck as an unsaid thank you.

-

They sleep on the beach and thankfully no one's made off with Wade's car or their wallets when they wake up.

He carries all their stuff and kisses Wade when they stop outside of Stark Towers.

He hasn't got his phone but he just shrugs when Wade mentions it and says he can pick it up tomorrow. It really doesn't bother him.

He's more bothered, in the end, that when he stumbles tiredly into his kitchen, no sign of his Dad, that he finds Steve cooking eggs.

It's five o'clock in the morning.

Peter just blinks at him like a crazy person. Then he collapses into one of the chairs, and cuddles deeper into the hoodie Wade let him keep.

After a long stretch of moments, Steve sighed, "You want some?" He asked, brighter than Peter was going to think he'd sound like at five am.

Peter glanced up, frowning. The man had two plates in his hands anyways, slices of bacon, eggs, and toast on both.

How'd he known Peter was coming home?

"Sure." He sits up when the plate is placed in front of him, and Steve chooses the chair opposite.

"Your Dad isn't here. He left when you stopped responding to his texts. He asked me to stay behind. He didn't want you coming home to an empty place."

It's sweet, really.

Peter just can't see that right now, through his anger. He snorts, "Sure he did." Before shoving a slice of bacon into his mouth.

He chews more angrily when it starts tasting really, really, really good.

"I'm serious, Peter. Your Dad loves you."

It's the last straw.

"I KNOW HE DOES! Okay? I don't need you to tell me that!" He screams.

His outburst weighs the room down that bit much more.

Steve lets out a big breath. He opens his mouth but Peter cuts him off.

"I'm sorry." He grumbles, "He's never... just... he's never brought anyone home before! If all you want to do is have sex with him then stop trying to be nice to his kid and stay in his house. It sucks."

Before Steve can say anything in his defence, Peter picks up his plate and traipses down to his room.

He eats it while he Skype's with MJ and Gwen. They ask him all about which broadway show his Dad's going to take him to for his birthday.