One Shot Collection

I can't do this anymore, Happy - Peter Parker/Happy Hogan

*

This is not how Peter was planning to spend his eighteenth birthday. A few years ago, the plan was pretty clear. He was supposed to relax in the hut tub on Tony’s balcony, enjoy the sunset and end up sprawled out on the older man’s bed, tangled in his ridiculously expensive egyptian silk bed sheets. Of course, that was before the asshole decided to sacrifice himself.

So, he didn’t have big plans for the day, but running off to Happy because his latest supervillain decided to out his identity and his secret relationship with his mentor… that was not on his list of ideas.

Happy looks completely opposite of the emotion his name is based on when he crawls through his window, but thankfully, he doesn’t question anything. He just barks some orders about changing clothes and meet him in the garage. It’s the only time Peter has ever needed the extra stash of clothes Tony forced him to leave here. For emergencies, sweetheart. 

He hasn’t paid much attention to his body since Tony died, and it shows in the way his clothes from two — err, seven years ago — clings a little tighter to his skin than they used to. The t-shirt doesn’t hang loosely on his shoulders anymore, and his baggy jeans are hugging his thighs and ass in a way that would have made Tony drool. If only he was here, right now. He could have fixed this mess in less than an hour.

Happy won’t tell him where they’re going, but assures him he called his aunt to tell her he is being taken care of. Good thing Happy actually has another tone than bored and insulted while talking to May, or else she might have thought he was going to get killed. Peter certainly would have been a little concerned, if it wasn’t for his nick named Peter-tingle staying silent at the words ‘taken care of’.

Time passes in silence, Peter can’t even listen to music, because Happy ordered him to use that strength of yours and crush your phone. Peter gets it. Happy doesn’t want to leave his life to save some kid from ruining his own. Peter hopes he knows he wouldn’t have been dragged into this if he had any other options. Like if Tony was still here.

It gets dark before Happy opens his mouth to say something. And it’s only to ask if he’s hungry. There’s still a few hours left, he says. Peter doesn’t want to eat. He doesn’t want to do anything. Except maybe close his eyes and escape to a time and place where his biggest concern was being caught making out in his mentor’s lab. It was a pretty big deal back then, the thought of losing Tony to a prison sentence for screwing a sixteen year old with the maturity of someone twice his age. It pales with the reality of being hunted down by every villain he’s ever crossed and police forces sending him off with S.H.I.E.L.D for a murder he didn’t commit.

*

This is not part of Happy’s job. It was never a part of his job to drive the kid around. It’s definitely not stated anywhere that he has to babysit him when the world screws him over. He would do it a million times anyway. He still gets flashes of him, beaten, broken, terrified, and not even trusting his own damn eyes. He would do just about anything to avoid anything like that happening ever again.