Melancholy Hope {Spiderson&Irondad}

Chapter 17

{Okay I know it's been a long time, and I'm really sorry for that. I got caught up in writing my other fic for the 31 days of whump and now I'm really busy with schooling, I've got my exams in a week and I'm trying to cram as best as I can so basically after this, I'll be waiting until February to continue. Once February starts, I'll get back on a good schedule!}

Wade's POV

There's a part of me that doesn't want to answer the ringing phone with Peter's dorky contact photo. A part of me that's still angry with him for leaving and blaming me for it. A part of me that wants to hate him. 

The other part of me, the bigger part, would never leave him to deal with anything by himself. He's been through hell and if he needs me to be his constant, I'd do it for him in a heartbeat any day. 

I let myself relax against the couch and bring the phone up to my ear.

"Peter?" I say, as though I hadn't been staring at his contact photo just seconds earlier.

"Wade?" Peter sounds wrecked to say the least. Shaking, hoarse voice coming through with a little bit of static.

"Hey, Petey. Been a while," I say, almost able to pull off nonchalant despite my pounding heart.

"I know... I'm sorry," Peter murmurs. 

"Not your fault. What's up?"

That's all Peter needs to dive into a shaky explanation of what's been happening in his life. I make sure to add in all the appropriate yeahs and hmm's and questions when he doesn't quite make sense. It takes almost an hour for him to make it through the full explanation, and by the end of it, I'm fucking angry. 

I tuck away the raging emotions as well as I can, knowing there's not much I can do at this point. I can't fly across the country and fight a bunch of dumbass judges just to try to get Peter to safety. I don't even know if there's anything that can count as safe anymore. I yelled at him, Tony hit him, and May kicked him out after a screaming match. Is anything really safe? Is anything really the right place for Peter to stay?

"I'm really sorry, baby boy. Is there anything I can do?" I ask, trying to keep my voice soft as to not scare him. 

Peter sniffles, "I don't know... I don't know why I called you in the first place... There's nothing you can do. I just- What do you think I should do? I have to make some really big decisions tomorrow, and I'm lost. You've always been good with judgement like this."

"I can't make these decisions for you. This is totally up to you... You remember your home when we first met, right?" I ask, hoping this isn't a trigger for him or something. 

Luckily, Peter doesn't seem to mind remembering. "Yeah. I remember. What about it?"

"Do you remember the day we met?" 

"Obviously. That was one of my good memories," Peter says, and I can imagine the blush that probably dusts his cheeks at the words.

"I asked why you bothered, and you said why does anyone bother with anything when nothing lasts forever. You remember?" A hum of confirmation on the other end of the line. "When you showed up at my apartment all those months ago, you kept saying that you needed something permanent. I'm not saying to stay with Tony forever. I'm not telling you to make that decision now. All I'm suggesting is don't throw away your chance at permanent over one mistake. I know you've been through a lot of shit, but not everybody is actively trying to hurt you."

"What if he's changed his mind?" Peter says. He sounds small. Like a child would. I have the sudden realization that Peter is still a child. A kid. A kid who has to make decisions like this one and has worried for his life more than once.