For Jesse, for spidey-sensing it when I felt sad and helping me feel better. This was a little fic I got while working and it was a lot of fun to write!
1)
The first time someone noticed something fishy was going on, it was during a get-together party at the Oscorp tower. It wasn't a big fancy party or even a mildly crazy shindig. The group was small enough that they don't need to go to the theater room but large enough to fill the couches.
It was a miracle that as many people made it as it was. Apart from Harry running Oscorp, Peter jumping between being a part-time college professor and Spider-Man, MJ's job and education, and the busy lives they've all found themselves in, get-togethers like this were few and far between.
MJ, as punctual as ever, was the first to arrive. She was talking on the phone with her editor and boss when Harry opened the door. She smiled at him as she entered, pulling the phone away to mouth "I'll be off in a second," as Carnage peered out of her jacket and curled around her wrist like a curious red snake.
Harry tried not to recoil. It's been a while since he's had a panic attack from seeing a symbiote, but he still has to repress a cold shudder when it's blank white eyes level at him. Even years later, he still had nightmares that he was Venom and Anti-Venom. The symbiotes wouldn't hurt him now, and he knew that, but it was hard being in the same room with them sometimes anyway.
The next to arrive was Flash, Luke, and Ava. And after them, Sam, Miles, and Ben. The only people who'd managed to make it that night.
They all settled on the couch as Harry set out the snacks he'd prepared for the evening. (Or had the kitchen prepare, anyway. He wanted to do it personally, but frankly, he was a little busy running a company, and no that wasn't just an excuse he made just because he didn't know the first thing about cooking.)
"Where's Pete?" Sam is the first to ask as he flipped through the movies picked for the evening and read the descriptions, looking for something good.
"He's going to be running a little late," Harry said, putting a platter of meat, cheese, and crackers on the coffee table, "Called in and said his class went a little overtime."
"Only Peter can make a science class fun enough to go overtime," Flash rolled his eyes, picking in the chips.
"Yeah, and I figured he'd probably swing on his way here, and you know how he gets when he's in costume. He's going to be stopping to help every person he comes across."
"Sounds about right," MJ laughed, finally getting off the phone and tucking it into her jacket, "But if he's going to be late, we're starting without him."
Luke snorted, leaning to the side of the couch and pulling the case of beer he'd stashed there up. Most of them couldn't get drunk, but that didn't stop them from enjoying a little buzz once in a while. "You know he's going to be late. How long have you two been dating? I thought your deadlines would've rub off on him by now."
Harry laughed, "Believe me, it's a lost cause. Peter couldn't be on time to save his life."
A rumble of agreement.
"Well, before we get this started, I need to use the bathroom," Miles announced, getting up. He put down the beer can he was jokingly pretending to intend to drink. There was no way any of them were actually going to allow underage drinking.
"Oh, the guest bathroom is going through some maintenance, you're going to have to use mine," Harry said and gestured over his shoulder for him to follow. He led Miles to his and Peter's room and pointed out the bathroom. But just before leaving, Miles stopped, his eyes landing on a stack of papers on the nightstand.
"Hey, what are these?"
Harry glanced over his shoulder and his cheeks flushed. He snatched the magazine Miles picked up and stuffed it inside a drawer in the nightstand, as if it were some secret porno that Mile's innocent hands shouldn't be touching.
"Were those wedding magazines?"
"No...yes," Harry muttered, and cupped a hand over his eyes, "Look, they just showed up in the mail, okay. They're junk, don't worry about it."
Miles quirked an eyebrow, "If they're junk, why are they in here?"
Harry cleared his throat and adjusted the cuffs of his shirt, as straightening himself out, "I just...haven't got to throwing them away yet," outside, the front door opened and a chorus of loud greetings followed, "Sounds like Peter got here, so I'm gonna," Harry gestured to the door, "Can you...not mention this to him? Please?"
Miles studied him critically but slowly nodded. Harry sighed in relief.
"Okay. Awesome. Thanks," with a somewhat awkward thumbs up, he left the room.
Miles cast another suspicious look at the drawer, then at the door.
"Hmmm."
2)
Sam was shopping with Peter and Harry. It was meant to be a last little 'hoo-ha' fun trip with two friends before he headed out on a space mission with the Guardians in the coming weeks.
It was great because Harry had no qualms with spending money and Sam got to shop and eat in the lap of luxury. Besides, watching Harry force Peter to buy clothes that were actually decent never failed to entertain him, and he found personal enjoyment in watching Peter go cross-eyed when he looked at price tags. Why he couldn't accept Harry's offer to buy him an entirely new wardrobe was beyond him.
But it served as an entirely new level of entertainment, so he wasn't about to complain.
They side-stepped into a formal looking store, and as Harry and Sam roamed the aisles, Peter tried on the 5th suit he's changed into today. They were talking about trivial things, like recent shams in the celebrity world and the new c-list villain of the week, when they found themselves wondering into the wedding aisle.
The wedding suits are sharp and pristine, very well made and extremely expensive, even for someone with Harry's money. Sam assumed they were just going to skip over these racks, but had to look over his shoulder when he realized Harry was no longer next to him and was still lingering in the aisle. His fingers were grazing suit sleeves, feeling fabric, and he even checked the price tags on a few of them.
Sam slid next to him, looking between Harry's thoughtful expression and the expensive 3-piece suit he was staring at. "Uh...what's up?"
"Peter would look really good in this, don't you think?" Harry's attention is caught on a clean-cut suit that's all-sharp black lines and ironed edges. The suit is black, but accented in a deep blue that is oddly close to the hue in Spider-Man's costume.
"Uh...yeah, I guess," Sam shrugged, he didn't necessarily go around dressing Peter up in clothes. Still, something akin to a smirk tugged at his lips, "Why so interested?"
That shakes Harry out of his thoughts and he quickly stepped away from the rack, "What? Nothing. Nothing, I was just thinking. I'm, uh..." he gestured to the changing rooms not far off, "going to go check on Peter."
"Okay," Sam said, watching him go. He glanced back the suits, eyes roaming over the blue shirt. He looked back at Harry, lips pursing, but followed him, nonetheless.
3)
"I think that we need to take our relationship to the next level."
Flash paused; his sandwich halfway to his mouth as he raised an eyebrow at Harry. His question to the other man had been simple enough, "How are you and Pete doing?" He didn't expect an answer like that. He hadn't really even meant anything by it.
After class at SHIELD Academy, Miles had stayed behind to talk to Flash and mentioned something about wedding magazines and Harry and asked if he knew anything about that, being so close to the other two. Flash did not.
But it had stayed in his mind ever since, and because he was having lunch with the two of them, he thought he'd see if anything was going on.
Now, he was looking at Harry, who's eyes were pinned to the table as he fiddled with the napkin next to his fork. The chair next to him was empty, saved for Peter, but he was running late. Again.
"Uh...what do you mean?" Flash asked, fidgeting uncomfortably. He wasn't usually someone people talked to about relationship stuff. What was he supposed to say?
"I...I don't know," Harry muttered, looking to the side as if purposefully avoiding Flash's eyes now, "I've just been thinking about a lot of...nevermind. Just forget it," he shoved a spoonful of expensive soup in his mouth and switched the conversation to a bout of company drama he was handling at Oscorp.
Flash listened, nodding where it was appropriate and humming when he needed to, but his brain was elsewhere.
What was the next level of their relationship? Harry and Peter have been dating for years now. They lived together, they spent every holiday together, the only level they could go from there was...
He thought back to the wedding magazines Miles mentioned.
He quickly stuffed the rest of his sandwich in his mouth when Peter appeared next to their table, out of breath, and apologizing for being late. Harry greeted him with a large smile and a peck on the lips. When Peter took his seat and ordered his meal, Harry held his hand as they talked about their day, his finger rubbing against Peter's ring finger, almost absent-mindedly.
Flash had the feeling this was going to be a very long lunch indeed.
4)
Ava wasn't supposed to see it.
She was positive she wasn't. Harry probably just forgot that he left it in there when he handed his jacket to her and directed her to the inside pocket where his wallet was stored. He owed her money after she'd won a bet, and she planned on snatching some gum while she was at it, but her rummaging came to a grinding halt when she spotted it.
A small black box tucked neatly into the pocket, safely placed between his wallet and a pack of mint gum. The velvety sides peered up at her almost mischievously and Ava felt like she was staring down some strange new creature. She quickly grabbed the money she was owed and a piece of gum, before thrusting the jacket back at Harry, who'd been too busy looking at a company report to notice her hesitation.
He took it carelessly, not looking up and not at all concerned about Ava's sudden silence. She opened her mouth, prepared to ask him about it, but found herself stuffing the gum inside instead. It technically wasn't any of her business, and she didn't have a right to ask about it.
"I've got to head out," Harry said, glancing at his phone, "If I don't leave now, I'm going to be late for my board meeting."
Ava nodded and feigned nonchalance until Harry was gone. Even then, she stood there for a few minutes longer, assessing her options. It wasn't her business, but holy shit, if Harry was going to propose.
She whipped out her phone, going straight to MJ's number. If anyone knew about this, it would be her. She was just about to push the call button when her screen lit up with Sam's contact picture and she quickly answered.
"Hey, Sam?"
"Ava, I think Harry is going to propose to Peter," was the rushed response on the other end, "I was talking to Flash, and he was talking to Miles, and we all think it's going to happen, like, really soon."
Ava sat down, "Tell me everything."
5)
They hold a meeting at SHIELD Academy. It's after school hours, so they file into an empty classroom to talk. Word spread fast between them after Ava revealed the small box she'd found and in order to keep the secret contained, they agreed that a minor debriefing was in order.
Most of their old classmates were there. Some were missing, like Danny who was back in Kun'Lun, and Triton who was spending time in the Inhuman city, and even a couple others who were too busy with their own lives for an impromptu meeting.
But there were enough of them.
"Okay, but how do we know," Amadeus asked from the desk he'd claimed, tinkering with a gadget that could either be a discombobulated toaster or a bomb.
"Oh, come on," Miles said, nudging Amadeus with shoulder. He was sitting on the edge of the boys' desk and kicking his feet out, "The wedding magazines, the ring box, shopping for suits, wanting to take it to the next level. He's definitely going to propose!"
Amadeus hummed, mulling that over, but didn't sound necessarily convinced. That, or he just wasn't focusing on the conversation and Miles pushed the tray of food he'd grabbed from the cafeteria toward the other boy. He forgot to eat when he got really into a new invention and it usually took a lot more brainpower to hold a conversation and work on his gadgets at the same time.
"Okay, calm down," Ben said, leaning against the teacher's desk and crossing his arms, "There could be perfectly good explanations for all those things. Let's not assume anything without concrete-"
Luke burst into the room, "Harry's planning a special date for Peter!"
Ben sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose, "And how do you know that?"
"Because he just texted me asking if I had any good ideas for a, and I quote, 'very special date for Peter.'"
Flash made a noise that could almost be described as a squeal of delight as he lifted Ben and Sam clean off their feet in an excited hug, spinning them around gleefully, "They're getting married!"
"They're getting married!" Miles crowed with him.
"He didn't even say yes yet," Ben snapped, pushing Flash away in an attempt to escape.
"Not yet," Amadeus emphasized without looking up.
Ben rolled his eyes, but there was the smallest hint of a smile on his lips. "Not yet," he agreed.
+1)
Tonight was supposed to be the special night. The teams managed to keep the proposal to themselves, not wanting to spoil the surprise for Peter, but if they were a little more giddy when normal when Peter and Harry entered a room together, they didn't have to explain themselves.
They all stuck close to their phones that night, waiting for the call of good news so they could spring into celebrations the moment they were given the word. Luke even bought a nice, vintage bottle of wine to celebrate the occasion.
So, of course, with all the excitement in the air, everything had to go to shit.
A villain attacked. Some magical wizard type who escaped from their dimension and was disturbing peaceful New York life. The teams congregated, hoping to put an end to the nuisance before Peter looked at a screen and ruined his big night by running off as Spider-Man.
Unfortunately, things don't always work out.
The magician looked like he'd stumbled his way out of a Harry Potter convention from a dimension straight out of a DnD game. His magic was centered on emotions and truths, and as he soared through New York, he cast civilians and heroes alike inside magical barriers that got smaller and smaller until someone spilled their guts or revealed a truth. A very cliche tactic if you asked them.
Still, he'd proven to be a bigger nuisance than anyone anticipated, and 10 minutes passed before Spider-Man and the Patrioteer were arriving on scene. The team collectively groaned upon seeing them.
So much for the big night.
Harry didn't really don the Patrioteer armor anymore. Only putting it on ever-so-often, if the battle was big enough or if he wanted to join Peter on a patrol. Or if he was very mad and needed to blow off some steam, and he seemed very mad right now.
It was when they were close to actually defeating the villain, with the help of Dr. Strange, when bad turned to worse. They were forcing him back into his own dimension, but in a shout of fury, just as the portal was closing, the magician shot one last blast of blue energy that hit the congregated heroes and trapped them inside a blue barrier that immediately started shrinking in on itself. Faster than any of the others had.
"Oh fuck," Ben groaned as Mile's sputtered, "Quick, someone say something," and everyone collectively went silent.
"What, like a secret? Okay, uh...," Sam racked his brain, "I...I don't actually like Aunt May's meatloaf."
The barrier stayed intact, but Peter did point a finger at him, "Aunt May is going to be so upset, Buckethead."
"If you tell her..."
"Hmm...anyone else?" Amadeus asked, sounding as though he had no intention of revealing a secret of his own as he examined the barrier, chin in hand, "It needs to be a big secret."
When no one offered their innermost thoughts, Miles perked up, casting a look at Harry, "Patrioteer, it's now or never, man."
Harry stiffened, head cocking behind the helmet, "Uh...what? What are you talking about? Why me?"
Ava seemed to catch onto whatever Miles was implying and nodded, "Look, it's not the most ideal situation, or the most romantic, but we're going to be squished together if we don't break this barrier."
"Yeah, just ask," Flash insisted.
Harry looked between them, arms crossing tightly over his chest in a small whine as metal scraped against metal, "Seriously, what are you guys talking about?"
Amadeus crossed his arms as well, finally turning toward the rest of them, "You know, the proposal. Obviously."
The team winced at his blunt tact.
"The what?"
"You know, your proposal to Peter."
Harry's helmet whipped between them, his confusion practically oozing out of the cracks in his armor, "Wha -what are you – I not -...I wasn't going to propose to Peter. I have no idea what you're talking about."
"It's okay, we all know," Miles insisted, "We know all about the wedding magazines,"
"And the ring," Ava added.
"And the suits," Sam piped in.
"And your special date tonight," Luke included.
"What? Guys, I wasn't going to propose to Peter. Why - why would you even think that? It's our anniversary. We're celebrating our anniversary. You know, the day we officially started going out?"
The team fell horrifyingly silent.
"W-what?" Miles sputtered, "Then what about those magazines?"
"I told you, they were junk mail. I didn't order them."
"Then what about the suits? You were looking through the wedding aisles," Sam pointed out.
"We were shopping for suits in a suit store. That's the whole point. I was just looking around for things that looked nice."
"But you said Peter would look good in that one fancy wedding suit."
"Yeah, I thought my very attractive boyfriend would look good in a suit. What's weird about that?"
"Then what about the ring," Ava said, hand planting on her hip, "I found it in your jacket."
"Ring? You mean the earrings I got for Aunt May? You do know those come in small boxes too, right?"
Flash made a frustrated noise, "Then what about what you said to me? About taking your relationship to the next level?"
Harry's sounded somewhat flustered this time, "I...I was just thinking that maybe we could move look into getting a new apartment. The one at Oscorp is fine, but we can do better, but I know how Peter is about spending a lot of money."
The barrier was getting uncomfortably small now.
"Then what the hell?" Sam demanded.
Amadeus, who'd been quiet the whole time, looked at Peter, "Yeah, what the hell, Spidey?"
Everyone's heads immediately snapped to Peter, who dragged a hand down his neck, "Well, guess the surprised is out anyway, huh?"
The silence that followed was almost enough to stop the barrier itself, as if it too were stunned with the turn of events.
"What?" Miles croaked, but Peter ignored him in favor of approaching Harry, taking his armored hands into his own. And then, slowly, he lowered himself to one knee. Flash gasped.
"I don't have the ring on me right now, and this isn't exactly the romantic setting I wanted it to be, but...I love you so much, Har. And...and I want to spend the rest of my life with you," his hands rubbed gently over Harry's, as if he could feel his actual hands, real and warm, against his own, "Will you marry me?"
It was silent. No one even noticed when the barrier disappeared into a blue, misty haze.
"I-" Harry said, voice so soft it was almost a breath. Then he was laughing, maybe crying, but so incredibly happy it was inundating. "Yes. Yes, I'll marry you!" He swept Peter back up to his feet, lifting him clear off the ground in an embrace only possible with the armor. "Yes, yes, yes!"
Harry slid mask slide up, but he didn't have to worry about anyone recognizing his face as Peter covered the space with his own, kissing him.
++1 )
They stumbled back into their room later that night, hands running through clothes and unbuttoning shirts as they went.
After the proposal, they spent the rest of the evening celebrating with the team and laughing over their shared assumptions. It was a fun and had gone long into the night, but now that they were alone, and no one was to interrupt, they were more than happy to occupy the time with each other.
Just as Harry was leading Peter back to the bed, Peter grabbed Harry's half unbuttoned shirt to stop him.
"Wait."
Harry stopping fidgeting with Peter's t-shirt, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, I just," Peter brought his hand up, palm out, where a ring lay in the center, "My proposal didn't go the way I wanted it to, but I still want to give you the ring."
Harry felt something in him melt, warm like candle wax, and he grinned, holding out his hand so Peter could slide the ring on his finger. He liked the way it looked.
He pulled Peter back into a kiss, less rough and insistence, and more soft and slow. Reveling in his closeness.
"Hey," Harry murmured against him, "Is that why you insisted we going shopping for Aunt May's earrings at that one store? So, you could look for rings?"
Peter's grin was sly, "I wanted to see which one would catch your eye."
"And is that why you made us go suit shopping too?"
"I was listening to you and Sam talk. You have such a better fashion sense than me, I wanted to see which one you thought was best. It was Amadeus's idea; he saw right through me from the beginning. "
Harry shook his head, grinning so wide it almost hurt, "How did you know I would even go over there?"
Peter laughed, "There's a reason I asked MJ to sneak those wedding magazines in your mail. I needed it on your mind."
"You jerk," but Harry was glowing with so much happiness, he felt radioactive himself. He lay his head down on Peter's shoulder, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him close. "You know, I lied a little bit before. I had been thinking about proposing to you. Ever since I looked at those magazines, I haven't been able to get it out of my head. When I told Flash I wanted to move our relationship up, I was talking about marriage."
Peter kissed the side of Harry's head, "It's a shame we didn't propose at the same time then. That would've been a hilarious story to tell at the reception."
Harry laughed, feeling a familiar burst of love and affection pop in his chest.
"I love you, Peter Benjamin Parker, soon-to-be-Osborn,"
"And I love you, Harry Theopolis Osborn, soon-to-be-Parker."
Just something cute and fluffy because sometimes we just need that. Thank you Jesse for drop-kicking my sad moods into the sun.