No Lie

Decathlon Team vs. Tony Stark: Part 3

It was the last question of the quiz and only MJ and Charlie were left. Peter had gotten out on purpose, not wanting to let his dad have the joy of getting Peter in the lab for a day (not like he didn't every day). The minute he chose to fail, he saw his dad scowl, but he had just smirked. Now, they were down to the final question and Peter was really hoping MJ would win.

"According to the article Jurassic Genome, what is junk DNA"?" Tony asked.

MJ's hand shot up while Charlie's slowly raised. He looked uncertain, but MJ looked sure of herself.

"Yes, MJ?" Tony said, hoping against all hope that she had the right answer.

"DNA that doesn't code for proteins."

And that was what relief felt like, Tony decided.

"We have our winner!" he announced proudly.

MJ grinned and pulled out her book while the rest of the team clapped for her. As MJ was one of Peter's friend, Tony had met her before and didn't think he would mind having her in the lab for a day. That is, of course, if she agreed to it and didn't ask to spend the day with Pepper instead (which he was pretty sure she'd do).

Turning in his seat, Flash smirked at Peter. "How's it feel to be a loser in front of your hero?"

"Knock it off, Flash," Ned replied, frowning at him.

Flash glared at Ned.

"Come on," he scoffed, "I know you believe Penis about his fake internship, Tony Stark doesn't know him."

"You haven't even asked him," Ned said pointedly.

Flash straightened then stood up.

"Fine," he agreed, "I will."

Peter scrambled out of his seat and raced after Flash, trying to stop him before he got to his dad. Noticing, Flash ran towards Mr. Stark, nearly colliding with him in his rush to beat Peter.

"Whoa, who are you?" Tony asked, stepping away from Flash.

"I'm Flash Thompson and I just wanted to know if you allow high school interns," Flash said rapidly.

Tony frowned and glanced behind Flash at Peter who was looking very nervous.

Smirking, Flash pointed back at Peter and said, "Penis claims he works for you, but I know it's not true, isn't it?"

"Penis?" Tony repeated, staring at Peter who was suddenly very interested in leaving. "Hey, no, you stay here, Peter."

Peter stopped and Flash frowned. How did Tony Stark know Peter's name?

"You know him?" Flash asked, glancing at Peter.

Tony looked down at Flash and glared at him.

"Yes, I do," he answered, "Peter's my son and the internship was a cover-up."

Flash's eyes went wide. Stuttering, he said, "I'm—I'm sorry!"

"I'm sure you are now that you know he's my son," he said sharply.

Flash nodded quickly while Peter remained frozen behind Flash. Unfortunately for both of them, Tony wasn't finished.

"If I ever hear about you bullying my son, whether it's physical or verbal, I'll press charges. Got it?"

"Yes—Yes, sir." Flash gulped and Tony nodded, stepping around Flash to face Peter.

"How long has he been bullying you?" Tony asked.

Peter shrugged, wishing the stares of his classmates would disappear.

"Beginning of high school?" Peter replied weakly.

Tony's eyes widened and he glanced back at Flash who had scurried for cover with his friends. In a panic, Peter blurted, "It's not that big of a deal! Please ignore it!"

"Peter, he's bullying you!"

Peter tried arguing but wasn't very successful.

"Just—he's not that bad of a kid," he told his dad, "He's only bullying me cause I stood up for Ned. I can take it. If I can't, I'll tell you."

"Promise?" Tony asked. Peter nodded. "Good. Now, where's your teacher? You're not going back on the bus."

Across the room, Peter pointed to Mr. Harrington and Tony left to go talk to him about while Peter went over to Ned and MJ. The rest of his classmates continued to stare at him.

Looking up from her book MJ asked, "Is your mom around?"

"She's in the Tower somewhere," he told her with a shrug. "Why?"

"Because I'd rather spend a day with her than Tony Stark."