The Talk

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“You know, I’d really like to start this out cold.” Tony began as Peter made himself comfortable in his rocky abode, and he reached for the phone. “But this is a two-milkshake job.”

The No Dairy, No Red Meat, and No Gluten rules sat woefully forgotten under the pile of Tony Stark’s vices. He had resorted to theorizing that Thor had passed along some metabolic tolerance by way of exposure.

Comments

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“That’s the way dad’s are.” He gave a knowing shrug. “They care. They watch. They know what’s best, god bless them.” He added the last bit through partially grit teeth.

[st_arkintern]

"Yeah, most of the time. Not all of it."

Peter looks up at Tony, tissue still balled up in his hand. "What else did you and your dad do?"

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

His cheeky smirk softened. “Less and less as the years went on. He got old. Tired. Busy. ...Don’t get me wrong, he was always all three, but...he was real good at keeping his distance. I think he stopped knowing how to do much else.”

[st_arkintern]

"It kinda reminds me of that old Harry Chapin song," Peter says, thinking back to that lazy day he and Quill spent listening to the music Quill picked out. "Quill played it for me once. It's called Cat's in the Cradle or something."

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

’Little boy blue and the man in the moon
"When you coming home, dad?" "I don't know when"
But we'll get together then
You know we'll have a good time then’

“Pete. Listen closely.” Tony reached up to grip Peter’s shoulder. “Mr. Stark—he loves you. Once he, ah, forcibly extricates his head from his ass, you’ll see it. You both have your lives ahead of you in a world far, far wider than the one we’re in now.”

[st_arkintern]

"I'm happy with what I have right now," Peter insists. If he wasn't, maybe it wouldn't be so hard to accept it.

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“It’s not the end, Pete. It’s a beginning.” Tony pulled Peter back against his side.

[st_arkintern]

Peter lets Tony pull him close.

"Okay," Peter concedes. He doesn't agree with it, but he doesn't want to argue the point. He wonders if Tony really feels that optimistic about things, or if it's just the adult thing to say to someone in this situation. All Peter's sure of is that when he finally leaves this place, it won't feel like a beginning. It'll feel like an end. Maybe there'd be new and good things ahead of him when he returned home; in fact, he was sure there would be. But he wouldn't ever have what he had here, even if they got to the point where Peter could call him Dad.

Peter isn't sure they'll have enough time to get to that point anyway before Thanos arrives.

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“Any one of us could be gone by tomorrow. I’ve taken that to heart. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.” With a final pat to Peter’s head and the journal on his lap, Tony released him. “Go wherever you want to go.”

[st_arkintern]

Peter takes that to heart. He nods numbly and stands, one hand gripping the tissue, the other one clutching the notebook.

Peter wets his lips.

"I love you, Dad."

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“Love you more.” Where Tony could barely let himself be hug the boy or praise him before, the words and the gestures now flowed astoundingly simply.

[st_arkintern]

Peter smiles at that. "Love you the most."

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“Oh, do you wanna challenge me on this?” Tony spread his forearms in defiance. “I’ll pull the googolplex card.”

[st_arkintern]

"No higher number than infinity," Peter says, smiling.

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“Infinity isn’t a number.” Tony shot back.

[st_arkintern]

"Okay, okay," Peter says, holding up his hands in surrender. "Love you equally?"

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

Tony couldn’t stop himself from grinning over hearing it from Peter’s mouth, folding his hands as he leaned over onto his knees.

“You know. You asked me about my old man. He turned up right around Christmas.”

[st_arkintern]

Peter's smile mirrors Tony's own. "Yeah?"

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“He was younger than me. That was a trip.” Tony made his long bangs flutter with an upward sigh. “Thought I was hallucinating but...I knew. Just did. That was my old man. He had come down to visit by virtue of whatever laws this eldritch location abides by.” He swallowed, staring at nothing in particular as the sight of his father standing there in the bar came back in vivid flashes. His father had been smiling.

He’d almost never seen his father smile for anything that wasn’t a camera.

“He said...” he swallowed again. “He said...”

[st_arkintern]

Peter sits back down and sets the notebook back in his lap.

"What'd he say?"

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“...Said a lot of things he wished he’d said in life.” Tony clapped his hands together softly. “Mentioned you. He’d have liked you.”

[st_arkintern]

"What'd you say?"

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“That I have a boy. He knew.” Tony’s jaw worked from side to side. “That I’m trying to set a good example. ...Enphasis on trying.”

[st_arkintern]

Peter looks at Tony, his brows furrowed. "Do you think you're not doing a good job?"

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

“You know I love you.” Tony nodded to one side. “Think I’m doing alright so far.”