~Broken Family~

Finally, Now the Plot's Getting Somewhere

"You don't control my life, Tony!" Harley shouted as they sped down the road.

"Oh, really?" Tony took a sharp left turn, making Harley's head bonk against the window and the non-expiring handicapped placard nearly fly off the rearview. "'Cause if you look at the legal documents, I'm pretty sure I do!"

"Just because you get to sit around and do nothing all day, staring at the wall like an empty-souled old man, doesn't mean you can make me go around and act like everything's normal! It's not like you can't stop me from doing the same!"

"You are sixteen, Harley," Tony seethed. "And I'm a frail, old man. You shouldn't throw your life away just because---"

"Oh, because what, half of it was taken away?! Because you let Thanos kill half of the universe?"

Tony slammed on the brakes so hard, Harley flew forward and his seatbelt jammed into lock mode, making him wheeze. A dark memory flitted through his mind for a fraction of a second, filling him with fear, but he pushed it down. He wasn't going to get PTSD or some kinda crap from car accidents like Peter had. Still, it took him a second to unfreeze, to force the shattering sound from his ears.

"I am going to pretend like you didn't just suggest that," Tony said, his voice dangerously calm. "Your brother did not give his life so you could sit around and mope, days wasting away like me."

He pulled up to the curb, not even bothering to put the car in park.

"At least I'm trying!" Harley yelled after he got out. "At least I still care! You don't even---" Tony sped away from the ice cream place, kicking up smoke and dust in his wake. Harley glowered, clenching his hand around the handle of his crutch as he watched him run a red light.

***

Harley was still reeling from excitement after his meet-up with Gwen. It was hard not to smile at Grover as he jumped all over him, tail wagging with joy. He tripped over his big paws as he ran to grab his bone to show Harley, eyes sparkling. Harley gave him a scratch behind the ear, glancing up at the empty house.

After picking him up, Tony had gone to the compound, something about signing stuff. Pepper was probably working there, too, so that left Harley by himself.

He wandered into the workshop, fingers sliding over various tools and the shiny armor of half-finished suits.

His heart was still racing, Gwen's smile playing behind his eyes. 

"It was so nice to meet up with you, Harley. I hope we can do it again soon."

Was she warming up to him? She'd always seemed so cold and distant, but lately she'd seemed like a different person.

Well, heck of a time to shape up. Now Harley was the mean one.

He sat at the table, digging his homework out of his bag. Might as well get a head start on the last stuff he had to do before the year was over.

Halfway through filling out a worksheet, Harley saw something blinking in the corners of one of the computers. Intrigued, he hopped out of his chair and waddled over to it, squinting in confusion.

It was a small symbol, too pixilated to make out, even for Tony's computer. It was red. He tapped his pencil against the side of the screen, biting his lip.

"FRIDAY, what's this?"

No response.

He tried his phone, but it was dead---strange. It'd been on ninety the last time he'd checked it.

"FRIDAY...?" Harley slowly glanced over his shoulder, but the other computers and devices had the same blinking logo. The screens were slowly darkening.