Growing Up

15 Years Old: Part 2

So some people requested a part two of the last chapter so here it is.

Peter woke up with a splitting headache. Groaning, he rolled over to block out the light streaming into his room, but his pillow did very little to help. He couldn't remember anything after finding that miserable house party and Peter knew he could probably guess why. If he had guessed correctly, it would also explain his headache and why his spider senses were going off the walls.

"Good morning, Peter," FRIDAY said.

Peter was certain his dad had turned up the volume of his AI. There was no way FRIDAY was usually that loud.

"Morning, FRI," Peter mumbled back before slowly sitting up and squinting around his room.

There were some painkillers and a glass of water on his nightstand which he gratefully took, but his door was closed and his dad was nowhere in sight. After swallowing the pills and gulping down the rest of the water, he stood up and stumbled towards the door.

He walked down the hall with one hand on the wall, guiding him into the living room. His dad was sitting on the couch. Although he was on his laptop and made no move to acknowledge him, Peter knew his dad knew he was in the room. Peter sighed and walked into the living room, plopping down on the couch opposite his dad and burying his face in the pillows.

"How do you feel?" his dad asked. He still didn't look up from his laptop even though he wasn't working on anything.

"Like crap," Peter answered, his voice muffled by the pillows. "How long am I grounded for?"

When his dad didn't answer immediately, Peter turned his head so he could look at his dad and squinted through the light. Tony was staring at him, but Peter couldn't tell why. His face was blank and Peter didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Why did you drink last night, Peter?" Tony finally asked. Peter wished he had the energy to look away from his dad, but he didn't.

"Did I tell you when I was drunk or do you really not know?" he replied.

"You didn't tell me everything, but you told me enough to know something was wrong," Tony said, finally setting aside his laptop.

Peter closed his eyes, but Tony waited silently for him to answer his first question. After a minute or two, Peter gave up on the silent game but kept his eyes closed.

"It's just—you're so busy working on the Accords and getting the Avengers reinstated—not that it's not important because it is—" Peter said quickly, "That I kind of feel like sometimes you don't want me around and that I'm just a pain."

He held his breath, waiting for his dad to say something but he stayed surprisingly quiet. Beginning to panic, Peter blurted out more.

"I know they're important, but sometimes I feel like they're more important to you than me and ever since the battle in Leipzig, you're too busy to talk to me so I just try to avoid being in the way."

This time when his dad stayed silent, Peter did as well. There was a long pause before Tony said anything and buzzing with nerves, Peter nearly bit through his lip.

"I'm sorry, Peter," Tony said softly, "I don't really know what I'm doing right now with the Avengers and the Accords. I'm just trying to make things right again. I'm sorry you feel like I've been ignoring you, though, because I haven't been meaning to."

Peter managed a small smile, but it didn't make Tony feel any better.

"I told Rhodey I needed a break," his dad said, "You obviously aren't as okay after Leipzig as I thought and I'm gonna make sure you're okay before I start working on the Avengers stuff again, okay?"

This time when Peter smiled, Tony knew it was real.

"Okay," Peter murmured.

Tony smiled at him then got off his couch. Instead of following his dad though, Peter stayed on his couch and kept his eyes closed.

"Do you have any magic hangover relief other than regular pain killers?" he grumbled.

"Yeah," Tony answered as he walked into the kitchen. Peter opened his eyes at that only to see his dad's back.

"Can I have some?" Peter asked hopefully. Turning around, his dad gave him a smirk and Peter frowned.

"No, it only works before you drink," Tony told him. More confused than ever, Peter propped himself up. "It's called abstinence. Stay away from the stuff that causes the pain and you won't have the pain."

Peter rolled his eyes and groaned.

"Not helpful," he muttered, going back to laying on the couch with his head buried in the pillow.

From the kitchen, Tony chuckled. Needless to say, Peter stayed away from alcohol well after he reached the legal drinking age. Not that Tony would have let him as he was grounded until he graduated college.