Chapter Text
Peter glanced up when Tony cleared his throat, the jump in his pulse the only reason he actually set down his project and paid full attention to him.
"Kid," Tony said, his face beginning to furrow before smoothing out. "There's someone I wanted to invite up here," he said, watching as Peter raised an eyebrow. He winced at the look, reaching up to tap on his arc reactor, the familiar motion soothing his nerves. He coughed, waiting for Peter to look back at him instead of watching his fingertips. "I met him a while ago," Tony began. "He lives in Tennessee." To Tony's surprise, Peter brightened, a grin spreading across his face.
"Are you talking about Harley?" He asked, his hands flexing in front of him. "From Rose Hill?"
"Yeah," Tony said, surprised, before narrowing his eyes. "How the fuck do you know that name?"
Peter waved off his look of concern. "Pepper gave me his number a while back, said something about Harley being a good influence on you."
"And you just, what, reached out?" Tony said, baffled.
"Well, yeah," Peter said, unaware of the sense of impending doom Tony was feeling. "I figured if Pepper thought he was fine, he couldn't be too bad, so we just started talking."
Tony breathed out, sitting down abruptly in MJ's claimed seat. "So you two get along?" He asked, distantly wondering if he could hear the apocalypse coming or if it was just his high blood pressure.
"Duh, Mr. Stark," Peter said, rolling his eyes. "He could hotwire a car at ten, of course, we got along."
***
Three Months Ago
hi!! this is Peter Parker, Ms. Potts gave me ur number, she said u kno mr. stark??
2:27 pm
who the fuck is peter parker
7:14 pm
i'm kinda mr starks intern
7:15 pm
bully for you mr parker
7:21 pm
oh i'm not an adult, srry that i didn't make that clear!!
7:23 pm
okay in hindsight i realize this is weird, like super weird
7:26 pm
you're telling me?
I just got some rando texting me and saying that they know Pepper
Like hell i'm just gonna believe that
7:38 pm
that's fair
I mean, i am his intern but yeah
7:40 pm
wait, this is harley keener, right
9:56 pm
***
Current Day
Pepper looked up, her expression smooth until she saw who was standing in her doorway. "Tony," she said, surprised. "Is everything alright?"
Tony blinked at her, almost stumbling through the doorway. He waved her off when she tried to get up, the door shutting smartly behind him. She raised an eyebrow at his panicked look, readying herself to have to deal with whatever mishap Tony was bringing to her now.
"Pep," he finally said, after the concern in her gaze had sharpened to a menacing look. "Are you trying to kill me?"
She leaned back, keeping her surprise neatly tucked away, running through the list of things she had accomplished in the past week. "No?" She said, her voice uncertain. "Why? What's happened now?"
Tony stared at her, shaking his head, completely oblivious to how the quick motion had smeared black grease from his hairline across his forehead. "You just had to do it," he muttered, almost glaring at her. "You just had to introduce Parker and Keener, didn't you?"
Pepper rolled her eyes, relaxing completely. "You're blowing this out of proportion," she said, turning back to her paperwork.
"No," Tony said, standing, his eyes wild. "You have no idea what you've done."
***
Three Months Ago
I've traced this to a NY ip address
say I believe you, do you have any proof
3:14 am
i dont have any now but i can ask ms potts
later i mean
im not gonna txt her rn, yk?
3:37 am
Why the fuck are you up
3:42 am
i could ask u the same, buddy
3:44 am
don't call me buddy
But
touché
3:53 am
***
Pepper hid her smile as Peter slid into the kitchen cautiously. Even though he had stayed over before, he still acted as though everything was a surprise to him, from his own bedroom to the fact that he was allowed to eat anything from the kitchen. He smiled at her, turning to the cupboard to grab a box of cereal and sit down next to her.
They sat in silence for a few moments, Peter taking the time to fully wake up before he turned to her. "Pep," he said softly. "What's something you know about Harley and Mr. Stark that no one else knows?"
Pepper took a sip of her tea, lifting her gaze from the tablet in front of her. "Harley made a potato gun and shot Tony with it," she said, grinning at the look of shock on Peter's face. "I believe he also called him The Mechanic."
"He shot him with a potato gun?" Peter spluttered. Pepper nodded serenely, taking another sip of her tea. Peter shook his head. "That's… kinda crazy."
"That's Harley," she said as if that should have cleared up the confusion. "That's just how he is."
***
u made a potato gun????
7:31 am
why are you up so early
9:13 am
that doesnt matter
u shot mr stark with a potato gun?????
9:14 am
lol, yeah, good times
9:16 am
so u believe me now
Rite
9:21 am
uh, jury's still out
9:24 am
what???? why????
if it helps, u call him the mechanic
(according to pep)
9:26 am
send me a selfie with pep and I'll believe you
9:26 am
Done!!
9:27 am
***
"Can we take a selfie?" Peter asked, glancing up across the living room at Pep. "Harley says he'll only believe me with a selfie with you in it."
"Sure," Pepper said, looking up and smiling at him. "But don't forget you should go get dressed soon. May will be here to pick you up and we're going to brunch when she comes."
Peter nodded, before holding up the phone and snapping a few pictures with the two of them in it. He settled back in, shifting through them before deciding on the first one where Pepper was smiling, curled up on the couch, her hair pulled back but loose tendrils curling around her face. She looked content, a mug of tea at her side, a thick gray blanket over her legs, and a book in her lap. Peter was in the bottom half of the picture, his brown eyes and curls the only part of his face that was visible. It was clear though, that he was smiling, the corners of his eyes crinkled up and the bridge of his nose furrowed.
Pepper looked up again, watching Peter. "Pete," she said, a fond look on her face. "Send me all of those." Peter nodded, smiling at her before getting re-absorbed into his phone.
***
Photo Sent
see, that's me and Pep!!
9:32 am
huh, well, I'll be damned
that is you and pep
9:34 am
so we can start chatting!!
what do you like to do??
9:36 am
I'm a mechanic, i like to make things
9:37 am
can you teach me how to make a potato gun
9:38 am
this is going to be quite a partnership, isn't it parker
9:39 am
hellllllllllllllllll yeahhhhhhhhhhh
9:40 am
***
"Who are you texting?" Ned asked over the din of the cafeteria, watching Peter out of the corner of his eye. Peter hummed in response. Ned sighed, reaching over and poking him in the side. "Who are you texting?"
"Oh," Peter said, sliding his phone into his pocket. "Harley," he said, rolling his eyes at the face Ned made. "He's teaching me how to make a potato gun."
"Did you just say someone is teaching you how to make a potato gun?" Betty said, pausing at their table in the lunchroom, her face impassive. Peter nodded slowly, a questioning look on his face. "Fuck," Betty said, shaking her head. "That's pretty cool." She turned to go, throwing a wave over her shoulder.
MJ sighed from across from them, looking up from her book. "It's a miracle you ever kept the secret as long as you did," she said, neatly sliding a bookmark into her place. "Seriously, Parker," she said. "A miracle."
"Good thing I have you two watching my back?" Peter tried, looping his ankle with Ned's underneath the table and extending a hand across the table. Ned and MJ shared a look rife with fond exasperation. Peter pouted at them and then grinned when MJ slid her hand into his. "Love you," he said, his eyes sparkling.
"Ditto," MJ said, squeezing once before going back to her book. Ned elbowed him and nodded, his eyes crinkling up in the corner. Peter beamed, swooping in to dash a kiss across Ned's face, picking his phone back up and sighing contentedly, his ankle wrapped a little bit tighter around Ned's.
***
and by then, the velocity will be so great that it should be able to smash through glass
1:47 pm
sometimes i hate this town
10:34 pm
are u okay?
do you need me to get mr stark?
10:36 pm
oh, shit, sorry, this was meant for Abbie
10:37 pm
whose abbie?
10:38 pm
uh, she's my little sister
10:45 pm
wow, you have a younger sister???
what's that like????
10:47 pm
uh - annoying?
10:51 pm
oh, idk, it's just me
10:54 pm
well, the basics of siblings
I mean if you want to know?
11:03 pm
yes, plz!!!!!
(im assuming it isnt like the movies)
11:04 pm
some of them are, I think?
life without mental illness must be nice
11:07 pm
lol
11:08 pm
in my instance, with Abbie - we hate each other most days
And on the days that we don't it's cause we hate Rose Hill even more
11:11 pm
that-
idk really how to take that
11:12 pm
I'd kill for her and vice versa
we just sometimes don't get along, and that's okay
11:14 pm
thats pretty nice tho
to always know that someone has ur back
11:16 pm
Yeah, it is.
11:17 pm
***
Peter ducked his head when he saw Mr. Stark exiting the elevator doors. "Fri, please shut this down and save it," he hissed, scrubbing at his eyes. He shot a smile at the ceiling when she listened immediately, failing to hide the grin when Tony shot him a suspicious look. "Hi, Mr. Stark!" Peter said cheerfully. "What'd you do today?"
Tony gave him a long look before glancing around the lab, his eyes narrowed. "I had some meetings with Pep, squirt." He rolled his eyes at Peter's protests at the nickname. "What are you up to? Where are you better halves?"
"Ned had to go do something at home and MJ was volunteering this afternoon," Peter explained. "I asked to go with her and she told me that I wasn't allowed to." He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair, looking like a pouting toddler. "It's because last time I accidentally spilled a whole thing of dog food all over the place."
Tony held in a snort, nodding along. "Well, that's not that bad," he said, before gesturing to the lab. "We do worse stuff here."
Peter bit the inside of his cheek before sighing and elaborating. "It was wet dog food, Mr. Stark, and I spilled it across myself and my old laptop." He sighed. "It was the best laptop I ever had."
"What?" Tony said, frowning at him. "What about your new one?"
"My new one?" Peter repeated confusion splashed across his face. "What new one?"
Tony groaned, pointing at the back table. "I put a bunch of laptops back there and told you guys to take one."
"Yeah," Peter said, slowly, his eyes flickering between Tony and the laptop in front of him. "We use them in the lab."
Tony shook his head. "No, Pete, they were for you three." Peter blinked at him, as Tony scrubbed a hand over his face. "Please, dear lord, take them."
"Oh, I can't do that, Mr. Stark," Peter said. "It's too much."
"Kid-" Tony sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "If you don't take it now, it will just show up at your apartment, and that will be embarrassing for both of us but mostly you."
Peter looked down, reaching out to trace his finger over the keys of the laptop in a moment of contemplation. "Deal," he said, smiling shyly at Tony. "I still think it's too much."
Tony waved a hand at him, turning back to his lab bench, all thoughts of figuring out what Peter had been up to swept to the side. "It's no biggie," he said, cracking his fingers and picking up his blow torch.
Behind him, Peter grinned, his eyes bright as he sent a wink to Friday, the folder in front of him slowly re-opening to show the basic outlines of a potato gun.
***
what's rose hill like?
9:47 pm
boring
what's ny like?
10:13 pm
busy
a good home though
a fun place to live i guess
10:21 pm
nothing like the movies tho
y???
10:27 pm
idk, why'd you ask about rose hill?
10:28 pm
cuz ive never left ny
it sounds dif
10:31 pm
alright city boi
10:32 pm
i no u cant see it but i rolled my eyes
10:35 pm
I mean I assumed
10:36 pm
when u assume u make an ass out of u and me
10:37 pm
and yet i was still right
10:38 pm
touché
10:40 pm
***
"Psst, hey," someone hissed at Peter as he walked by the double doors leading from the gym.
Peter turned around, his face already set in a mask of confusion. "Flash?"
Flash nodded, his face vaguely disgusted. "Someone spilled pig intestines all over the floor in Mrs. G's class and the smell is awful, MJ sent me to tell you to skip, something about olfactory senses?" He shook his head, sending another glance around before reaching out and snagging Peter's wrist, tugging him after him.
Peter contemplated for a moment, the ease at which he could wrench his hand back, the way he could break from the grip like it wasn't even there like it was completely inconsequential. Instead, he took a shuddering breath, suddenly grateful for the usual gross but bearable smells of the gym locker rooms, and let Flash pull him somewhere.
Instead of walking down the hall like they were not breaking rules, Flash was ducking in and out of shallow doorways, glancing about in the most suspicious manner which wasn't helped by Peter just standing next to him, shrugging and grinning at the looks the two of them were getting.
Flash huffed as he pulled them to a stop before the auditorium, cracking the door open and yanking Peter through. "You know-" He began before cutting himself off as he made his way to the audio booth in the back.
"What?" Peter said, following sedately behind.
Flash flushed, the red visible even in the dim lights. "Nothing, Parker."
Peter shrugged, patting him on the shoulder as he walked through the door into the booth. "If you had wanted to be stealthy, that was not the way to do it."
"Peter!" Cindy cheered from where she was spinning in her chair. "Nice job Flash!"
"Wait," Peter said, furrowing his brows and glancing at the door. "I thought you said MJ sent you."
"MJ did," Abe said, as he wandered in through the door. "She told us all to bring you here."
"All of you?" Peter asked, narrowing his eyes at Betty who grinned back, completely unrepentant. "Are you sure about that?"
"Yeah," Charles answered, prodding at the buttons on the soundboard and ignoring Sally's vague swats at him. "I think she wanted to see if we all would listen."
"I mean," Cindy said, stopping her spinning chair and making a face. "It's MJ, we'd be dead if we didn't follow her orders, and she has a superhero at her command."
"I wouldn't kill you guys because MJ told me to," Peter said weakly, sitting on a folding chair and dropping his backpack to the ground beside him.
Sally and Betty exchanged a look before Betty turned to Peter. "It's cute that you think MJ needs you to kill us dead."
"She told me the name of every person who lives in my house when I asked her if she needed my name at AcDec," Charles said, his tone admiring. Abe laughed, ignoring the dirty look Charles shot him as he continued. "Women who can kill me are my favorite type."
"If you group women into types again Charles," MJ said, standing in the doorway. "I will know." She said nothing else, just staring at him for another moment until Charles looked away.
"Don't do it," Ned advised, making his way past her and sitting down next to Peter. "When'd you get here Pete?"
Peter shrugged, pointing at Flash. "He dragged me here in the weirdest way possible," he said. "But almost everyone else was here."
Abe nodded. "I came in after them and it was because I wanted to see just how many weird looks Flash would get when he went about his 'stealth mode'."
"That wasn't-"
"Yes, it was," Abe said, snickering. "My personal fave part was when Peter just stood next to you smiling at the looks he was getting."
Flash flushed, ducking his head at the looks everyone shot him. "I wanted it to be like-" he cut himself off, sighing deeply. "Never mind."
"Wait, what did you want it to be like?" Peter asked, curiously, ignoring the look MJ was giving him. Flash looked up, his eyes narrowed like he thought Peter was making fun of him.
MJ clapped, the noise disrupting the tension that was building. "Alright," she said. "I'm sure you are wondering why I gathered you all here today."
"Actually," Cindy said, leaning back and slouching in her chair. "Yes, we are, O Fearless Leader."
MJ rummaged around in her bag for a moment before withdrawing flashcards. "Let's go losers," she said, a sly grin on her face as everyone groaned. "Just because we're skipping doesn't mean we aren't learning."
***
how was ur day??
3:13 pm
fine, the usual
why? how was your day?
4:56 pm
someone spilled pig guts in bio
so we skipped
4:58 pm
don't tell mr stark
4:59 pm
i like that i have blackmail material already
whose we?
5:00 pm
well, i thot it was gunna be me n mj n ned originally
but then the acdec core 6 were there so
5:03 pm
i have no idea who any of those people are
what's acdec?
5:04 pm
ned n mj are my partners
acdec is academic decathlon
like a team that competes on facts?
5:07 pm
i know what an academic decathlon is, parker
5:08 pm
well, ok then mr smartypants
and the core 6 are my closest school friends!!
5:10 pm
their names are flash, cindy, sally, abe, charles, and betty, btw
5:17 pm
interesting
7:34 pm
what's interesting?
9:17 pm
nothing
9:18 pm
I mean its clearly somethin
9:19 pm
it's not the ned and mj thing is it?
9:23 pm
What? No!
9:26 pm
just the whole group of friends thing
9:28 pm
also, it def would not matter to me, i'm bi
just so we're clear
9:31 pm
oh thank god, ngl was kinda worried
just cuz some people were not so good w it in the past
9:34 pm
did you kick their asses
9:35 pm
lol, no, ofc not, like I could anyways!!!!!!!
9:37 pm
uh-huh.
9:38 pm