*Peter's POV*
Peter got to the apartment as quickly as he could once school let out, he even resorted to changing into his suit and swinging a part of the way. He was desperate to get home and ask May about the internship. A small part of him was undeniably excited for this opportunity, but a larger part of him was just nervous.
Peter hadn't even thought about the fact that his hero life and normal life could collide because of this internship. Spider-Man was already in an alliance with the Avengers, which was great and there was nothing wrong with that. But now Peter would be working at Stark Industries, at the Avengers Tower. The thought of meeting any of the Avengers as Peter Parker instead of Spider-Man was terrifying— there were so many ways he could slip up around them! It would be scarily easy for them to connect the dots if they looked close enough, from voices to body shapes and small mannerisms that can't be changed, it could all give away his identity.
Did Peter really want to risk his identity for an internship? Sure— this was the opportunity that he had been waiting for since he was a kid, but he had dedicated his life to being Spider-Man. Being the masked hero meant Peter Parker had to make sacrifices. His normal life wasn't as important as all the lives he could say as his hero-counterpart.
The only thing that mattered to Peter was May and his friends, but everything else could be sacrificed. His identity needed to stay a secret, Peter had known that he would need to make serious choices when he became Spider-Man, and as much as he didn't want to admit it, he might need to sacrifice the internship.
Peter Parker wanted to accept the internship so badly, but Spider-Man could be compromised because of it, and that wasn't something that he could risk. But, for once, Peter wanted to be selfish. Was it so much to ask for? He wasn't even fifteen yet and he was making sacrifices that most adults couldn't make! It wasn't fair.
Peter sighed and shook his head as he walked up the stairs to the apartment, he had known this life wouldn't be fair. He stood outside the door to the apartment, feeling apprehensive. Should he even ask? If he changed his mind and decided the internship was too much of a risk how would he explain that to May? She knew how much he wanted to go to Stark Industries so if he changed his mind she would definitely be suspicious.
Peter took in a deep breathe and steadied his thoughts. Peter Parker deserved something for once. He could juggle his two lives, and if he ever thought that he couldn't then he could just quite the internship.
With a firm nod, Peter pushed open the door and walked in, his confidence wavering as he spotted May sitting at the kitchen table.
The two of them hadn't spoken more than a sentence to one another over the past few weeks, each living entirely different lives at this point. Thankfully, May wasn't taking any pills or rushing out the door currently so he could actually talk to her.
"May?" Peter spoke softly as he closed the door and dropped his bag on the ground, walking over to the table and sitting across from his aunt while she looked up with tired eyes. "Um... I was wondering if I could ask you something?" Peter said unsurely, wringing his fingers nervously while May sat up straighter and tried to force a smile on her face, though it looked more like a grimace.
"I... I was offered an internship..." He started, the anxiety trickling away as a real smile graced May's lips. "At Stark Industries." Peter finished with a confident smile, realizing that May was just as happy as he was about the news.
She jumped up and squealed, rushing over to engulf him in her arms. She kissed the top of his head and gave an airy laugh. This was the most energy he had seen her express in weeks and it was so relieving. "Oh, Peter, that's great!" May exclaimed happily, only for the smile to drop off her face when a beep emitted from her phone.
She groaned, the same exhaustion from earlier flooding her face. Peter had brought up the idea of him getting a job to May a few days after she came back from the hospital and she had been so upset that she hadn't spoken to him for days, and since then he had been too nervous to bring the thought back up in conversation. So she was working her many shifts once again.
"Sorry, baby..." May mumbled as she grabbed her phone off the table and checked the message. "Work." She confirmed with a grim tone, flashing Peter a guilty look.
"Do I need to sign anything quickly?" May asked softly, gathering her things while Peter reached an arm into his bag and fished out the paper that had been shipped to the apartment, he had no idea how it had been mailed so quickly but he didn't question it.
"Just this line." Peter answered, the excitement overcoming his worry for his aunt as she quickly signed the line he pointed to and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Thanks, May, love you." Peter called out as his aunt pulled on her coat and grabbed her purse, rushing out the door in a hurry.
She waved at him distractedly, calling out a distance 'love you' as she went, and then she was gone. Peter sighed, once again worried for his aunt, but he pushed those thoughts away and glanced over at the signed paper. He could do the internship.
Peter felt like he was floating as he carefully pushed the paper back into his bag and wandered into his room, crashing onto his bed with a dumb smile plastered on his face. He could do the internship. Those words flashed across his mind again and he let out a small giggle. He felt genuinely happy, almost giddy.
And for once he thought of Ben without any sadness, knowing his uncle would have been even happier than Peter if he knew that Stark Industries had offered him an internship.
—
—
—
*Bruce's POV*
Bruce read through the file again, slightly surprised by this Peter Parker kid. The teen's intelligence was impressive and some of the projects he worked on were college-level, good enough that they even intrigued Tony.
Bruce had of course been curious when he heard that Tony was actually going to let a teenager be his intern, though the man said he wouldn't let the kid into his lab until he completed a few weeks in the lower labs. That was understandable, but Bruce was a little excited to meet the kid, and yes he was going to meet him even if Tony wanted to keep the team away from him at first to make sure he was going to be a more permanent intern.
It was nice to meet younger people who had the potential to rival Bruce or Tony. Now, he wasn't saying Peter was that smart yet but when Bruce was Peter's age he was on a similar intelligence scale so he knew the kid had a promising future if he continued to grow in his intelligence.
The elevator door dinged opened and Tony stepped out, a cup of coffee in his hand as he wandered into the lab. He smirked at Bruce and leaned over his shoulder, taking a quick glance at the file he was reading through for the umpteenth time.
"Can you stop stalking the kid already, Brucie?" Tony asked with a snort as he walked over to his usual workplace and sat down. "You're almost as bad as Nat and that's saying something."
Bruce rolled his eyes but pushed the tablet away, turning it off and instead focusing on his current project. "I was just curious, Tones, it's not often that someone catches your attention." Bruce responded with a shrug, tinkering with the object that sat at his workplace.
"And don't be a hypocrite— I know you researched this kid for hours before you actually decided to offer him an internship." Bruce grumbled under his breathe, not caring if Tony heard.
The duo lapsed into silence after the small exchange as they began to work on their own separate projects, making a few snarky comments or sarcastic remarks as the time passed.
The hours went by quickly, neither noticing the approaching late hours as they sat immersed in their work. That was until the elevator dinged once again and Steve stepped into the lab with an unimpressed look on his face.
"Nope— c'mon. You two need to eat and rest." The ex-soldier commanded while Tony groaned, sticking his tongue out like a child while Bruce sighed and stood up, slouching over to the elevator while Steve tried to usher the pouting man onto the elevator.
It nearly took ten minutes but once Tony was on the elevator he was quickly distracted by what the team would be having for dinner, which was honestly not something Bruce was looking forward to. This shit was going to take at least another hour to decide. Fucking fantastic.
The three men stepped off the elevator together and stared out across the chaos, unaffected by the sight that usually greeted them during dinner.
Clint was standing on the island table like the chaotic gremlin that he was, shouting some random shit that Bruce didn't feel like trying to decipher at the moment. Thor was shouting back at the archer, but he wasn't even saying words, he was just plain shouting. Bruce sighed, that was just Thor for you.
Wanda was sitting on the love seat as per usual with Vision, the duo was whispering amongst themselves as the chaos erupted around them. Scott and Sam seemed to be plotting on the couch together with Natasha sitting on the ground in front of them, staring at them with an unimpressed expression.
Bucky was in the kitchen reading through the list of restaurants and fast food establishments, looking confused as he stared at the many options. Steve sighed from beside Bruce and walked over to Bucky, trying to help him while Tony wandered over to Clint to most likely bother him. Those two were such children and they strived to bully one another at every opportunity.
Rhodey and Pepper were there for once, the latter looking disappointed as she stared out across the utter chaos that was the Avengers team. Rhodey stood beside her like he was completely used to this kind of behavior, and considering the fact that his best friend was Tony, he probably was.
Bruce walked into the living room and sat down on the ground beside Natasha, sharing a look with her as they sat together and stayed out of the conflicting parties. But they were both in agreement about one thing— no more pizza.
The whole situation was such a typical thing to happen and Bruce realized how oddly domestic it all was. A small smile rested on his face as he admired the team, almost like a chaotic family.
Domestic was a fitting word to describe them when they weren't fighting off villainous figures. And Bruce could honestly say it made a warm feeling bubble up inside of him as he called the team a family. It felt right.
He glanced over at Natasha and noticed the same smile resting on her face, almost unnoticeable, but he had known her for years and he knew how to read her micro-expressions. She was thinking the same thing and he knew it.
Her eyes flickered in his direction and they met eyes, sharing a knowing look before they turned back to stare at the family that they had created in the tower.
Bruce never would have thought that by joining the team he would be apart of something so much bigger than he had ever imagined.
It definitely didn't start well— far from that actually. They had almost despised one another when they first met, forced to be a team that none of them had agreed to join, but he would be forever grateful for what that blossomed into.
His thoughts flashed to Spider-Man, the masked hero that was warming up to the team faster than Bruce had been anticipating. If he revealed his identity would he join this makeshift family?