"What do you have so far?" Peter asks Ned as he carefully climbs through the bedroom window. Ned is sitting at his desk typing rapidly on his keyboard with precise movements.
"Well the first thing that came up was what happened to him in Afghanistan," he answers, getting straight down to business. "It's the kinda stuff we already know: Tony Stark was doing a weapons demonstration, got blown up, had to get an electromagnet to keep the shrapnel from getting to his heart, was tortured for three months, then broke out after building the Mark I." It'd be surprising if anyone hadn't heard that story. No one knows the exact details, but everyone knows Iron Man's origin story. Of course, Peter knows the incident is most likely where the majority of Tony's PTSD first came from. "But," Ned continues, "I did find something about his dad, Howard Stark, being...not the nicest person. There's barely anything about it, but what's here isn't very encouraging." He drags a tab onto the screen. It's a short article containing a quote from Tony about his father.
"'My father was absent from most of my childhood. When I did see him, he was a cold, calculating asshole. When we talked, it was always yelling and arguments. Hard to miss someone like that.' -Tony Stark"
Tony didn't have a great support system to begin with and then he lost his parents when he was young. Peter can...empathize with that, but he was lucky to have parents he knows cared about him. Tony, on the other hand, had a father who barely talked to him. Maybe...that's why he's afraid of getting emotionally attached to anyone?
"Next trauma inducing event was when he was in Afghanistan and his car got blown up. The shrapnel almost killed him and the only reason he lived is because those jerks tried to make him build a weapon or something. But..." Ned pauses, only making Peter more anxious.
"But?" Peter urges. Instead of answering, Ned simply tilts his computer screen towards Peter for him to read.
"Tony Stark, CEO of Stark International, has been rescued after he went missing three months ago prior to his trip to Afghanistan. Pictures have been taken of Stark exiting an Air Force jet, with a sling on his arm, while being guided by his close friend Colonel James Rhodes. He had apparently refused a stretcher from paramedics on standby. An official statement has been made by the billionaire himself in a press conference, only mere hours following his return:
'I saw young Americans killed by the very weapons I created to defend them and protect them. And I saw that I had become part of a system that is comfortable with zero-accountability.'
At the time, Stark had the press sitting down, but they all stood when Stark made a shocking announcement:
'I had my eyes opened. I came to realize that I have more offer this world than just making things that blow up. And that is why, effective immediately, I'm shutting down the weapons manufacturing division of Stark International. Until such a time, as I can decide what the future of this company will be, what direction it should take, the one that I'm comfortable with and is consistent with the highest good for this country and the world.'
Obadiah Stane, Stark's longtime business partner and family friend, then chose to take over the press conference in Stark's place."
What happened in Afghanistan completely made Tony do a one-eighty with his company. Peter kind of knew what happened, but the details were never released, not that he'd ever want to release the details of him being tortured for three months either. He shivers at the thought of releasing the details of what happened Homecoming night.
"Yeah...and we all kinda know what happened next," Ned says regrettably. Peter slowly nods.
"Obadiah tried to kill Mr. Stark because of it," he mutters. Okay, that's probably where Mr. Stark got the other half of his trust issues. Ned takes a deep breath before switching tabs.
"Then we have what happened with the Chitauri alien stuff about six years ago." A shaky video of the Iron Man suit starts playing. Tony has some sort of missile or nuke in the strong grip of his suit. If Peter had blinked, he would've missed Tony suddenly disappearing into thin air. "He flew a nuke into an alien portal." Peter shakes head in shock.
"I knew they beat up all the aliens and went through hell to save everyone...but this? This is insane..." A few moments later, Tony reappears. He limply falls through the sky until the Hulk catches him midair and takes him to the ground. The video ends there. Definitely trauma and PTSD inducing.
"The next thing took a bit more digging to find, but it definitely fits your requirement of 'traumatizing.'" Ned clicks on another video, even shakier than the last, and Peter waits for the scene to unfold. The phone camera is trained on someone, presumably Tony, rushing through a crowd outside of some sort of restaurant. Peter's thoughts are confirmed when the Tony quickly lets the Iron Man suit envelop him. Surprisingly, he drops to one knee and his fist rests on the asphalt beneath him for support. What's happening? It's hard to hear over the chattering crowd, but Peter can make out bits and pieces of Tony's mechanical voice; "check...heart...the brain...poison...severe anxiety... me?" Rhodey walks up to him and knocks on the outside of the suit before Tony flies off.
"Did he just..." Peter can't even finish his thought.
"Yeah. Anxiety attack." That's...that's how Mr. Stark knew how to help me with my anxiety attack. He's had them. Not only that, but the torture in Afghanistan and the Chitauri battle is probably why he didn't want anything to do with blood when Dr. Banner started talking about blood tests. It's starting to make sense. "That's all I got in the trauma department, but I do have information about the Sokovia Accords. There's not much info that I could get to legally, but I was able to do a bit of...investigating." Peter raises an eyebrow.
"What kind of investigating? On a scale of Scooby-Doo to Sherlock Holmes?"
"At least Nancy Drew levels of sleuthing," Ned admits with a sly smile. Peter chuckles and shakes his head. One of these days, the FBI is going to bust down our door. "The dude who proposed the Accords in the first place was the U.S. Secretary of State Thaddeus Ross. I swear, I got chills when I read his name. I mean, that's totally a villain name!" Ned squeaks.
"Focus, Ned."
"Right. Well, Ross is a retired Lieutenant General and, like I said, the current U.S. Secretary. He's not a nice guy, like, at all. I have no idea how he got elected." He clicks on a picture on his desktop and it expands to show a picture of a grumpy, older man with silver hair. "The Sokovia Accords are, and I quote, 'a framework for the registration and deployment of enhanced individuals.'" Peter sighs, the pieces clicking together.
"Which especially includes the Avengers and people like me," he grumbles. Secretary Ross wanted to put the Avengers on a leash and Captain America pushed back. "But that means Mr. Stark...agreed with Secretary Ross? I mean, I know that's why I went to Germany. Mr. Stark said Captain America thought he was doing the right thing, but wasn't. I had no idea it was something like this..." Peter obviously doesn't know a lot about the Accords, but he does know that he wouldn't want the government telling him when Spider-Man could save someone's life or not. The sudden thoughts startle him. Am I a part of the Accords? Is Spider-Man?
"It's okay, man. You had no way of knowing." Ned looks up at him with genuine eyes and Peter smiles. Still, there's an unsettling feeling in the pit of Peter's stomach. If this Secretary Ross guy is pushing Mr. Stark, is something going to happen to him? Is that why Mr. Stark has been so anxious and...overprotective lately? Even if that's the case, it still makes him sick to his stomach the way Tony snapped at him. With the way the man has been stressed lately though, he can't exactly blame him. Especially if Secretary Ross has been on his case. Ned's desk starts vibrating and Peter looks over to the lit up phone. "Crap, we're gonna be late for Betty's party! C'mon, we gotta go!" Ned flies out of his chair and practically leaps into his closet to find something to wear.
"You said it's gonna be a cas ual party. What's wrong with what we're already wearing?" Peter chuckles as Ned hurls a hat at him, which he easily catches.
"We have to make a good impression! But we can't stand out either. We don't want a repeat of last time." Peter internally winces.
"Oh, you mean having an entire crowd of people chanting 'Penis Parker?' I don't know what you mean! That was a blast!" he replies sarcastically with fake enthusiasm.
"That's what the hat is for, dude! Hat of confidence!" Ned defends while continuing to dig through his clothes. The hat he threw to Peter is a black, velvet top hat with a small red feather tucked into it.
"You've got to be kidding me." Peter turns the hat around in his hands to get a better look at it. Ned pops his head out from the closet, revealing his own famous, confidence-providing fedora.
"We don't joke about hats in this house," he says, deadpan. They both stare at each other. One beat of silence. Two beats of silence. Then they both can't hold back their laughter and all but die cracking up. Ned goes back to searching for an outfit and Peter pulls out his phone.
"Did you ask MJ if she wants to come?"
"I didn't get that far yet." Ned's voice coming from the closet is muffled. Peter shakes his head and pulls up MJ's number.
MJ
Peter: hey MJ! ned and i are going to betty's party and we wanted to know if you wanna come too?
MJ: Why?
Peter: um
Peter: because it would be fun?
Peter: and we wanna include you?
MJ: I don't do parties.
Peter: you went to liz's party
MJ: Did I though?
Peter: ...
Peter: yes?
MJ: I might come.
MJ: To make sure you losers don't embarrass yourselves.
Peter: thank you?
Peter: we'll see you there!!
"MJ's coming too," Peter announces as Ned gets out of his closet with an armful of clothing options. "You said we need to hurry, but you're the one who's gonna make us late." Peter laughs as Ned rolls his eyes.
"I'll take, like, five minutes tops and then my mom can drive us." With that, he rushes into the bathroom to change. Peter decides to text May that he's going to a party with Ned, which he's pretty she is okay with since she's still at work. She should be off by the time the party's over and able to pick him up. Ned is true to his word and gets dressed pretty quickly. Then, Mrs. Leeds drives them to Betty's house.
"Alright boys, have fun! And don't take any sketchy...substances from anyone, okay? Make good life choices! Love you both!" Mrs. Leeds tells them as they get out of the car.
"Love you too, Mama." Ned slightly waves to her.
"Thank you for the ride, Mrs. Leeds," Peter politely thanks her, but she shakes her head with a smile.
"For heaven's sake, Peter, call me by my first name. I've only known you since you were in diapers," she teases. Peter mirrors her smile and nods.
"Sorry, Paola." She gives them a wave before driving off, leaving Peter and Ned to brave the party alone.
"Have I mentioned how much I don't want to do this? And how antisocial I am? 'Cause this sucks. I don't know about this, Ned," Peter mumbles when Ned starts walking towards the front door with music blaring through it.
"What do you mean?" Ned narrows his eyes in confusion before adjusting his hat.
"I mean that, that what if Flash is here? Or, or something happens while Spider-Man's just goofing off? Like, what if Mysterio attacks and people get hurt because I was at a stupid party?" That would be on me.
"Peter," Ned puts his hands on Peter's shoulders, "everything's gonna be okay. Spider-Man can take one night off. Karen can tell you if anything happens. You have the mask, right?" Peter nods shakily, biting the inside of his cheek. He has the suit on underneath his clothes and the mask tucked away in his back pocket. "If worst comes to worst, you're not the only superhero in New York. Iron Man is, like, fifteen minutes away at most." Peter nods again, trying to convince himself of what Ned is saying.
"Okay...okay, you're right. Yeah." Peter adjusts the hat on his head, hoping that he'll just disappear into it. They walk towards the house.
The sounds are already too loud when they enter the pristine, overly large house. It's not too loud, but it's enough to annoy Peter. The house is dimmed so that multicolored lasers can be easily seen as they move across the walls. No problem. Just stay calm and you won't give your senses a reason to wig out.
"Ned! Peter! Over here!" Ned and Peter turn to see Betty in a blouse and skirt, waving them over. The boys glance at each other before walking to Betty and one of her apparently many friends. Peter puts on the best smile he can muster. "Thank you two so much for coming! I was worried you wouldn't show up when Michelle got here before you guys." Betty laughs nervously as she adjusts the navy blue headband on her head.
"MJ's already here?" Peter questions, tilting his head slightly. How'd she get here so fast?
"Yeah! She was one of the first people to show up, actually. I haven't seen her in a while though. We can look for her if you guys want?" Betty offers sweetly. Don't be awkward, Peter, be...nice? Yeah! Be nice, don't overthink it. Mr. Stark said to not overthink. Overthinking is bad. Does this count as overthinking? Maybe I can-
"We probably should," Ned speaks up after Peter remains silent. Shit, stop thinking! Just be helpful or something!
"Yeah!" Peter blurts out, then quickly clears his throat. "Yeah, you do that and I'll, uh, get us some drinks!" He gives them a tight-lipped smile and shoves his hands in his pockets to keep from fidgeting.
"Sounds good! We'll be right back once we find Michelle," Betty assures.
"Root beer, please!" Ned calls as he and Betty start to navigate their way through the mass of people. Peter takes a deep breath to calm his nerves and walks toward the kitchen. There's an older guy, probably a senior, who's handing out drinks from a cooler behind the countertop. What does Betty want to drink? Water is a safe way to go, right? Maybe lemonade? Do they have that?
"Um, hey," Peter greets awkwardly. The guy looks up with a half, lazy smile.
"Hey, man. Whatcha feel like?" the guy asks as he opens the cooler. He pulls out a few cans of different soda brands.
"A root beer, two waters, and a coke for me, please." The guy nods and starts pouring the sodas into their respective glasses. Peter holds the water bottles under his arm and waits patiently. His leg bounces nervously as he looks around to avoid any unnecessary eye contact. He hates being awkward. When the guy finishes, he hands Peter the root beer, but hesitates handing him the coke. Peter narrows his eyes slightly in confusion.
"Unless you want something a bit more..." the guy pulls out a glass bottle, "potent. You look like you need to loosen up a bit, pal." Peter's muscles tense. Alcohol?! He frantically shakes his head.
"No, no it's fine. No thanks. Not, not my thing. Nope," he laughs nervously and goes to reach for his glass when his phone buzzes. "One second." He fishes out his phone and visibly relaxes when he sees that it's Ned. Peter faces away from the guy to hide his quick typing.
Guy in the Chair
Ned: we found MJ! we're in the living room :)
Peter: dude theres alcohol here! beer!
Ned: oh jeez
Ned: i dont think bettys the one providing it
Peter: definitely not
Peter: what do i do???
Ned: well you dont drink it
Ned: can you even get drunk????
Ned: either way theres bound to be booze at a high school party
Ned: let betty handle it
Peter takes a deep breath, but he's still a bit unsettled. He debates calling May to let her know what's going on, but a dull, barely noticeable tingle at the base of his skull manages to catch his attention. Danger? Here? No, not immediate danger. My Spidey Sense isn't loud enough for it to be life threatening. But... He immediately turns around, but the guy is holding out the glass of coke with a smile. Peter is apprehensive, but the tingling slowly starts to fade. He gently takes the glass, doubt very evident on his face. Maybe I'm just on edge. He takes all the drinks and gets to the living room as fast as he can. Ned and MJ are sitting on a couch while Betty stands in front of them to talk.
"Three orders of drinks," Peter announces as he hands them out to the three. MJ nods her thanks and Betty smiles.
"Everything go okay?" Ned asks carefully. Peter nods with his lips pressed together in a thin line and sets his drink down on the hardwood table.
"I'm just gonna text May real quick," he says in one breath before moving to one of the quieter areas of the house, which happens to be an empty hallway.
#1 Aunt
Peter: hey may, do you have a sec?
Aunt May: I always have time for you baby
Aunt May: Is everything okay?
Peter: theres alcohol at this party
Peter: i dont thinK betty knwos tho
Peter: i know its just alconol but its making me nervous
Peter: i just dont inow what to do
Aunt May: It'll be okay, I promise. Take a second to relax, okay?
Peter: yeah. im in a hallway by myself
Aunt May: Good job. Ned's at the party, right?
Peter: yeah
Aunt May: And Betty's nice, right?
Peter: yeah she is
Peter: MJs here too
Aunt May: And you trust them?
Peter: of course
Aunt May: Then they're going to be there for you. You protect this city day and night, let someone help you for a change. If anything happens before my shift ends or you feel too uncomfortable, call Happy and he can pick you up. Okey-dokey?
Peter: okie dokie
Peter: thanks may
Aunt May: Always <3 Love you
Peter: love you too
After taking a few breaths to calm his heart rate, Peter slowly makes his way back to the living room and puts on a brave face. MJ looks up when he reappears and raises a curious eyebrow at him. She's leaning back into the couch with her arms crossed comfortably over her chest.
"You good, Parker?" she inquires. Something about her tone seems to be asking a deeper question, as if she wants to know if something Spider-Man related happened.
"Yep. Not a problem," Peter instantly reassures her with a forced smile. She keeps her hard eyes on him, but ultimately looks away to continue her conversation with Ned and Betty. Peter picks up his coke and goes to take a sip when the wave of tingling reappears over his neck. He discreetly shifts his eyes around the room, but doesn't see so much as a hint of danger. Before he overreacts, he sits down next to Ned and whispers,
"Police scanner." Ned gets the gist and quickly pulls out his phone. After a minute of searching, he looks back up at Peter to shake his head. Peter checks his phone too, just in case, but he hasn't gotten an alert either. Is it possible for my Spidey Sense to go haywire? He's starting to feel like it's very possible, the sensation still subtly causing goosebumps over his arms. With a huff of frustration, he decides to ignore it and just relax into the couch. He is at a party after all, right? He tries to focus on following the conversation as he takes a drink of his soda. His muscles immediately tense as the liquid seems to burn his throat as he swallows it. Not soda not soda not soda not soda, his senses scream as his Spidey Sense erupts across his shoulders. He chokes trying to stop himself from swallowing it, but the damage is already done. Suddenly, the glass shatters underneath his death grip that he hadn't realized had tightened. All eyes snap towards the broken shards of glass, then to Peter. He can't muster any feelings to care about the stares. All he can focus on is the sudden heat that courses through him.
"Peter, what's wrong?" Ned's distant voice asks, but Peter's thoughts are too loud. I can't stay in here. It's too stuffy and there's too many people and I need to get out. If I don't get out, I won't be able to breathe and then it'll be like that night and I can't do that again. Everything will close in too fast and I won't be able to get back out. As soon as Peter is able to force himself to move, he sprints through the crowd and out to the driveway. His breathing picks up, turning into harsh wheezes as he feels his throat closing up. Am I going into anaphylactic shock or something?! From a bit of alcohol?! Why does my body keep trying to kill me?!
"Peter!" He recognizes MJ's voice before her face comes in view. Why is she crouching? I'm on my knees? My face feels like it's on fire. Spontaneous human combustion might not be that far off. "Peter, can you hear me?" MJ's stone cold voice repeats. Peter nods, but everything starts to spin. Oh crap, I think I'm going to be sick. He squeezes his eyes shut and wills his stomach to cooperate before he embarrasses himself even more.
"Feel sick," he's somehow able to croak out. "Face's on fire." He'd be surprised if his face weren't already bright red. A cool hand presses itself to his cheek and he almost flinches away out of pure shock of how cold it feels. It's getting harder for him to breathe, but it feels nothing like a panic attack. His lungs don't feel like they're being crushed, it's more like his throat is just making the executive decision to close up. Still, the sensation of not being able to breathe is all too familiar. Just keep reminding yourself that you're not in the warehouse. Toomes is in jail. You got yourself out, because you're Spider-Man. Spider-Man can do anything. But...but I'm not Spider-Man right now. I'm Peter Parker. And dammit it's hard to breathe.
"Where's your phone?" Ned's panicked voice makes its way into Peter's ears. Peter shakily pulls out his phone and holds it out to whoever grabs it first. "Aunt May?" Ned asks, but Peter shakes his head. She's still on shift. "Stark?" Peter wants to shake his head no. Call Happy, he wants to yell. Instead, he finds his head nodding. No no no, call Happy. Peter then shakes his head. "Peter, I have to call someone. I'm calling him," Ned insists. Before Peter can argue, Ned dials. Ned puts it on speaker, which Peter is grateful for. He wants to talk, but he can barely focus on getting enough air. Thankfully, Tony answers on the first ring.
"Peter, thank god you called. You have no idea how sor-"
"Mr. Stark," Peter manages to gasp out. He knows how desperate he must sound, but he tries not to think about it.
"What's wrong?" Tony's voice shifts into something resembling concern, but also gravely serious.
"I-" Cough. "I can't-" Wheeze. "Breathe." You're not underneath concrete. Toomes isn't trying to kill you. You're not going to die. You're not going to die. You're not going to die.
"Where are you?" Tony keeps his voice stable, but Peter can hear his underlying panic. Peter wants to respond, but he can't. It's too hard to breathe and focus at the same time and he feels lightheaded and everything's spinning and it's all falling apart and it's too hot and-
"We're on-" Ned starts, but Tony interrupts him.
"I've got your phone tracked. I'm coming to get you, kid. Transfer the call to my suit, F.R.I.D.A.Y.." Peter hears a familiar sound in the background, but it's hard to place. I know that sound, don't I? It's...mechanical? Like an engine? But, not an engine. Engine engine engine... His attention shifts to the sudden pressure on his face and he opens his eyes to see cement. No, please no. It's not real. It can't be real. I'm not there. I'm not there. He starts to panic until he realizes that his head is on the ground. Huh. "Peter? You okay? Can you still hear me?" Yes.
"He's not looking so good," Ned's muddled voice regretfully informs.
"Keep him warm, alright?" Tony orders. No no no, already too hot, Peter wants to scream. "I'll be there in two minutes tops. What the hell happened?" Tony sounds mad. Peter doesn't want Tony to be mad. Not again. He doesn't deserve to be mad anymore. Not allowed. Only happy Mr. Stark. Not Happy, but he can be happy too. Happy Happy.
"We don't know! He just, just took a drink of his soda and reacted like this!" Ned is definitely panicking.
"Has he ever had that brand of soda before?" Peter realizes that Tony is looking for what could've triggered his reaction. Smart. Mr. Stark's always smart, except when he's not. Sometimes he's not so smart. Like with people and emotions.
"Yeah! It's just a regular coke!"
"Who made it?" Tony demands. Then it dawns on Peter. Oh god. That creepy guy made it. The senior student. My back was turned when I was texting. He must've slipped some of the beer in. I'm such an idiot!
"Guy...kitchen. Had beer..." Peter speaks up. He takes in a few ragged breaths. "Offered...some...said no...turned...my back..." He has to stop to catch his breath.
"Alright, kiddie. Hold tight, I'm almost there. No more talking or you're grounded. Save your energy," Tony encourages. Peter almost wants to say that Tony can't ground him, but they both know that's not true. Besides, Peter can tell he's just trying to lift the mood. It's then that it occurs to him that Tony said it would only take two minutes to get here. That's not possible. He's too far. Ned said fifteen minutes away. Is he going to get here in time? Nothing's making sense and my hearts pounding. I don't understand. I don't understand. He's not going to make it!
"Hurry," Peter pleads in a whisper, but he knows Tony picked up on it. I'm scared.
"I'm almost there, Pete," Tony repeats. "Don't worry. We'll watch all the Star Wars movies you want, even the crappy prequels. We'll get sick from eating too much ice cream and I swear, I'm gonna make this up to you. No matter what. Just...just hang in there."
Notes:
Irondad and Spiderson to be reunited in the next chapter! Thank you for reading!