Growing Up

4 Years Old

It was Christmas Eve eve and Peter was bouncing around the penthouse. As his first Christmas with his dad and Pepper, he was too excited to stop bouncing long enough and put on his jacket and boots. Even though Peter was eager to go find the best Christmas tree in all of New York, it was taking him quite some time to get dressed. After a little persuasion and what Tony was pretty sure was blackmail, Pepper convinced Peter to settle down just long enough she could zip up his jacket and help him tug on his boots.

"You ready, Peter?" Tony asked by the lift.

Pepper zipped up his jacket and Peter nodded, bouncing over to where Tony was standing. Shrugging on her own jacket, Pepper followed the two of them into the lift and they rode it all the way down to the garage where Happy was waiting for them.

Squirming out of Tony's arms, Peter climbed into his car seat and Pepper slid in beside him. She helped Peter buckle his seatbelt and soon they were headed off to the tree farm. It wasn't too long of a drive, but Peter kept asking if they were almost there. After what Peter was sure was forever, they finally pulled into the tree farm and Happy stopped the car.

Peter was out of his car seat as soon as Pepper unbuckled him. He hardly waited for Happy to open his door before jumping out into the snow. Stumbling over a rock, Peter tripped and landed on his hands and knees in the snow. He quickly bounced up, though, giving Happy a big smile as Tony and Pepper walking around the car. Once he had a tight hold of his dad's hand, Peter pulled him over to the farm.

"Look at this one!" Peter said, tugging Tony over to a scraggly looking tree that was just barely taller than Pepper. "Can we get this one?"

"Are you sure you want this one?" Tony asked, looking at the sad tree. He gestured to all the other trees, fuller and bigger than the one Peter was pointing at. "All these ones are bigger."

Peter firmly shook his head and pointed at the scraggly one.

"If we don't get it, no one else will and then it won't have a good Christmas," Peter told Tony, "It's gonna be sad on Christmas and nothing should be sad. Not even trees."

With a firm nod, Tony turned and told Happy to go find the tree guy.

When the salesman saw Tony Stark, he first asked for a picture. Tony begrudgingly took a picture with the man then paid for the tree. Even the man tried getting him to buy a better tree, but Tony just repeated what Peter had said and the tree was loaded onto the car.

By the time the tree was set up in the penthouse, it looked even more pathetic. However, Peter seemed happy so Tony didn't say anything.

"Let's decorate it!" he squealed.

And so they did; spending the rest of their evening decorating the penthouse and the tree until it looked like Christmas had thrown up in the Stark penthouse.

* * * * *

On Christmas Eve, Tony got off work early and joined Peter and Pepper in the penthouse at exactly 5:07 PM. The two were playing Go Fish in the living room and only Pepper seemed to notice Tony's arrival.

Sneaking up behind Peter, Tony grabbed him and tossed him up in the air suddenly. Peter squealed in delight and as soon as he landed happily in Tony's arms, he hugged his neck tightly. Smiling at his son, Tony kissed his cheek then turned to see Pepper cleaning up the cards.

"Go get dressed in something warm," Tony told them, "We're going out for the evening."

He set Peter on the ground and walked with him to his room, leaving Pepper to get changed on her own. Although Peter refused to wear his jacket, Tony got him dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and a sweater without much argument. Tony grabbed Peter's jacket even as the kid protested then helped him pull on his snow boots. Once Peter was fully dressed, he ran down the hall after his dad into his and Pepper's bedroom.

"Ready, Miss Potts?" Tony asked as she pulled on her jacket.

She nodded and grabbed Tony's winter jacket, handing it to him as they all walked towards the lift.

"Where are we going, Daddy?" Peter asked, following Tony out of the lift.

As they walked through the empty reception hall and onto the busy streets of New York, Peter's eyes widened. The whole street was covered in snow and Christmas lights just like the movies Peter had watched that afternoon.

"We are going to go see Santa," Tony told him, "And ice skating. If you want, we'll even get hot cocoa and watch the fireworks."

Peter squealed happily, bouncing between Pepper and Tony excitedly. A few minutes later, he asked for his jacket so they paused on the sidewalk to help Peter slip it on as well as his mittens. With Peter's hand once again in Tony's, his mittens matching Tony's gloves, they started back down the street to find Santa. Unfortunately, when they arrived, the line was so long Tony worried they would be there for hours.

"Can we go ice skating instead of seeing Santa?" Peter asked. Frowning, Tony looked down at him. "I don't like Santa anyway."

Tony nodded and they left the Santa line to go find the ice skating.

They made it to the ice skating rink in five minutes where Pepper got them skates while Tony and Peter paid. Meeting up at a bench, Pepper helped Peter put on his skates. Once they were all ready, they stood up. Well, Tony and Pepper did. Peter remained seated, looking at the rink with apprehension.

"Come here, kiddo," Tony said, holding out his hands for Peter. "We'll help you."

Still sitting down, Peter tried to grab his dad's hands but couldn't reach them. Tony walked back over to him and helped him to his feet. Wobbling as he walked, Peter grabbed Pepper's hand tightly and clung to his dad's. As soon as they stepped on the ice, Peter wobbled and nearly fell over, but Pepper caught him. Not wanting to let go and fall, Peter lifted his feet up until Pepper was holding him entirely.

"You gotta try it, buddy," Tony said, biting back a laugh at the way Peter was wrapped around Pepper. "We'll keep her from falling."

He had to pull Peter off Pepper but as soon as Peter's skates were on the ice, he was clinging to her again. Very slowly, Tony and Pepper pulled Peter around the rink. He didn't move his feet at all and instead let them guide him around. By the second lap though, Peter was scooting slowly but still holding tightly to Pepper's hand. After their third lap, they returned the skates and went to find some hot cocoa.

While Pepper and Peter claimed a table, Tony ordered three hot chocolates from a nearby cafe. Pepper helped Peter take off his jacket and drape it over the back of their chairs before doing the same. They set their mittens and gloves on the table, but Peter kept his hat and sweater on.

"Alright," Tony said, sliding into a chair beside Peter. "Three hot chocolates."

He handed the one with a straw to Peter then handed another to Pepper. Leaning forward eagerly, Peter started drinking his hot cocoa before Tony could warn him it might be hot. Fortunately, it didn't seem to bother him, so Tony didn't say anything.

* * * * *

The next morning, Peter found himself tucked up in Tony and Pepper's bed. He tried to curl closer to his dad only to discover he was alone in the big bed. Sitting up, he looked around the room, wondering where his dad and Pepper had gone. As soon as he remembered it was Christmas, he jumped out of the bed and raced into the living room where he found Pepper and Tony both sipping on coffee, curled up on the couch. When they noticed Peter, they smiled.

"Merry Christmas, kiddo!" Tony said, but Peter was too busy staring at the pile of presents surrounding his scraggly tree. He had never seen so many presents in his life.

"Whoa," he said softly. He looked up at Tony and Pepper. "Are those all for me?" he asked. They nodded and Peter jumped forward to hug them both. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" he squealed.

When he pulled back, Tony motioned towards the tree.

"Are you just gonna let them sit and rot or are you gonna open them?" Tony teased.

Peter's eyes widened and he ran towards the stack of presents, pulling them down and beginning to open them, thanking Tony and Pepper a thousand times after each one.