Hold Onto Me 'Cause I'm a Little Unsteady

Chapter Nine

When morning comes, things don't feel any better.

Harley had barely slept, staying up most of the night curled between his dad and his little sister, his pops's arm slung over his stomach. Tony didn't sleep either to Harley's knowledge, spending most of the time flipping through security footage to see if he could find anything that brought him close to finding Peter.

It's been a week and a half. Peter's been gone for ten days. Nobody has found anything yet and Harley worries he might have to start the grieving process. He doesn't know what the time limit is yet to when Tony and Steve give up and call him dead.

Harley's never grieved anyone before. Not properly at least. He was too young to really care when his dad left and he's still in touch with his mom and little sister who're living in Tennessee. He's never really lost anyone before.

"How do I grieve?" he murmurs, words muffled by Tony's t-shirt. His dad's hand stills in its path through Harley's curls and his lungs stutter. "I'm supposed to start grieving, right? That's how this works. When we give up, how do I grieve?"

Tony's silent for a long few moments to the point where Harley wonders if he's sent him into cardiovascular arrest.

Finally, "I don't know. I don't think I could give up on him ever... I'm going to find him. I- I have to. There's no other option."

Harley pulls his head off his dad's stomach, curls falling in his face when he shakes his head.

"There's a point where giving up is the only option. I'm not saying... I'm not saying we should because, believe me, I'd do anything to get him back, but there comes a point in time when-"

"No," Tony says, face falling to sympathy and sadness despite his firm tone. He tugs Harley back against his chest, pressing a kiss to the crown of his head. "No, I'm going to find him. We're going to find him. I'm not giving up on Peter no matter what. I don't care what it takes."

"Thank you," Harley says, letting out a breath of relief. "Not to get all emotional or anything but thank you."

"You're allowed to be as emotional as you want to, bambino. I know I have the longest track record of not being good with emotions, but I've learned. We can have all those sappy talks if you really want it."

Harley's laugh is watery and a little too over the top for the stupid situation, but it's a start.

"It's okay. You don't need to do that. Just... Just thank you."

*

Morgan escapes from the movie marathon sometime past noon, when Harley had finally passed out after not sleeping the night before. She wanders nervously into the lab where the adults have been since breakfast.

Dad is lying across a table, flicking through dozens of holographic screens projected above him, bickering quietly with Jarvis and Dum-E. There are a few picture frames crowded just above where his head is.

Pops and Tasha are arguing on the other side of the lab, voices lifting louder as they struggle to get their points across. Tasha wants Pops to join the movie marathon. She wants him to take a break with his other kids while she continues to follow leads. He doesn't want to stop. He can't stop.

Rhodey is sitting on a chair by Dad's feet, a tablet in hand and a few holograms around his head. He's saying something to Dad about the others' progress in their leads. Absolutely none. They're still checking through abandoned buildings in New Jersey, trying to use a different approach to find Peter.

Morgan tugs her sleeves of her Spider-Man hoodie over her small hands, letting her hair fall in front of her face as she nervously shuffles into the room.