Who's This?

33

Silence; that's all there was for the first thirty seconds. However, it was too-soon interrupted by Tony's bewildered stuttering and mumbling.

"What- You mean- Wait-" Tony fumbled over his own lips, desperately trying to process what the kid had just said. I've gotta say something intelligent to make up for my idiotic stammering, "Wait, what?" nailed it.

"Please don't be mad at me Mr. Stark," Peter pleaded, his voice shaking with every other word. "I know I shouldn't have kept such a big secret from you. I'm sorry."

"Kid, shut up," Tony mindlessly blurted, grimacing when he realized what he had said. "No, no. Don't shut up. Just let me speak for a second, okay?" Tony attempted to soothe the panicking boy, completely ignoring the fuming woman next to him. Peter gave him a small nod. "You're Spider-man?" Tony attempted to confirm.

"I'm sorry," Peter let out an uncontrolled sob, "I'm really sorry, Mr. Stark."

"You don't have to apologize kid," Tony's voice quieted, "I just need you to answer my question, okay?"

"Yes," Peter anxiously fiddled with his shirt sleeves, "I'm Spider-man. I promise I won't keep anything else a secret from you."

"Okay, okay." Tony took in a deep breath, "You're spider-man and I'm Ironman."

"Yeah, now shut up dipshit." Natasha pushed Tony away so that she could talk to Peter. "Go inside with May, okay?" Peter gave her a questioning look, causing her to gently push him towards the room entrance. "We can talk about all of this later. For now, let's just get you calmed down and by your aunt's side." Natasha gave him a comforting smile, watching as he nodded and entered the room, softly closing the door behind him.

"What the hell, Natasha?" Tony hissed, confusion and shock written all over his face.

"Don't 'what the hell' me," Natasha hissed back, "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"You knew about this?" Tony waved his arms around in puzzlement, not knowing how else to respond. Natasha rolled her eyes, confirming his assumptions. Tony continued, "And you thought it was a great idea to hide it from me?"

"Believe it or not, Tony," Natasha glared, "But you're not entitled to every piece of information about every single person."

"Maybe not every person but with him I am," Tony's jaw clenched as he watched Natasha, once again, roll her eyes.

"He is not your kid," Natasha remarked, "And even if he was, you don't have the right to helicopter him like some controlling parent. He's a big boy, he's made it this far in life with little issues; you have to trust his abilities and experiences."

"He's a kid." Tony narrowed his eyes.

"He has more common sense than you do." Natasha paused, a smirk growing on her lips, "So, what does that make you? A toddler in an adult's body?"

"A toddler in an adult's body," Tony altered his voice, mocking Natasha, yet only further proving her right. Noticing the woman's muffled snickering, Tony sighed, tiredly rubbing his temples with his fingers. "I don't know what to do," he lowered his voice, grumbling out a bunch of curse words that he probably shouldn't be saying in the hallway of a hospital. Suddenly, his eyes widened, his mouth dropping in shock.

"Hey," Tony started, "This Peter is the Peter we've been texting, right?" Natasha pursed her lips, staring at him in silence. Slowly, the 'genius' began piecing all the new information together. "Holy shit, our Peter is Spider-man."

"Stop being a drama queen and calm down," Natasha suggested sternly, but her eyes had softened. "He doesn't know anything yet, so be quiet."

"He doesn't know?" Tony muttered, "I'm sure he'll find out soon."

"Until then," Natasha narrowed her eyes, "Be quiet."

"Jesus," Tony exhaled, "This is all gotten a lot more interesting."

"Didn't I just say to be quiet?" Nat grumbled, rubbing her forehead in frustration. Suddenly, a nurse rounded the corner, speedily walking toward the two.

"Excuse me," She nervously spoke, "Are either of you related to Ms Parker?"

"No, we're not, but we're friends." Natasha gave her a gentle smile, "Is there anything we can do for you?"

"I've just looked into her nephew's document's and have found that he has no one to stay with," She pulled out a stack of papers from who knows where. "Would either of you happen to know of any family?"

"Does he have to stay with family?" Tony interrupted, glancing over to see Natasha having the same thought process as him.

"It would be preferable, but we understand if that's not possible." The nurse shuffled through the papers, "If he consents to staying with someone that we have legal documents of, then we can allow him to stay there." She pulled out a paper from within the stack, "Or, we can set him up in a foster care unit until Ms Parker has recovered."

"Would it be possible for us to take him in?" Natasha questioned, watching as the Nurse's eyebrows furrowed.

"I'm sure we would have enough legal documentation to back up the Avengers," She spoke slowly, tapping her foot against the floor in thought. "If you're positive this is what you want, then I'm sure I could make it happen."

"We're positive." Both Tony and Natasha spoke unanimously.

"Alright," She smiled, "Just follow me down to the lobby so that we can get all the paperwork sorted out."

"How long will it take for May to recover?" Tony asked as they followed the nurse.

"It's undetermined," She sighed, "Since her vocal cords were slit, she may be required to stay in our care for longer to help her through physical therapy."

"Her vocal cords?" Natasha asked curiously.

"Yes, It seems the perpetrator slit her vocal cords, presumably to keep her from yelling for help." A frown fell upon all three of the adult's faces. "However, the doctor believes that with proper care, she'll recover fully and smoothly."

"Recover fully?" Tony asked, "As in, she'll be able to talk again?"

"That's the hope," The nurse said as they finally reached the main lobby, "Anyways, let's get all this pesky paperwork done." She reached underneath the desk, pulling out a large stack of papers, presenting the hero's with paper-cut hell.