Dark Paradise

People just do it.

Peter kept pacing around the house without closing his mouth. Recent events have upset him so much that Tony had to add sedatives to his drink during dinner to make him fall asleep. After the meal, Peter's eyes blurred, he yawned a few times, then he apologized for not feeling well and went to bed. He had the had to try really hard to make his body walk into the bedroom at all and not fall asleep twisted on the stairs. He didn't even realize that he went into Tony's bedroom instead of his own. He crept over to the made double bed, fell exhausted on it, and immediately no longer noticed anything around him.

Tony left the room immersed in the dark and lit only by the white rays of the moon. He sat on the edge of the bed, watching the features of a boy sleeping peacefully on his side. He watched his relaxed face, which was partly covered by a pillow which the boy was pressing in his arms.

"Who would have thought I would get jealous of an ordinary pillow," he snorted mockingly, brushing dark brown hair from the young man's forehead.

Peter made a sound from his sleep that resembled the purring of a satisfied cat, and for a moment a smile appeared on his face. But he did not respond to other touches.

Tony slid beside Peter and pulled his body closer. He spent some time listening to Peter's regular breathing. He lay there quietly, thinking of everything that had happened in the last few hours. He certainly wasn't expecting a news from the TV, but it was great for his plan. Peter's barricade was collapsing slowly, he recognized it. In his mind he had to insult himself that he hadn't massacred the boy before. All it took was a few whiplashes, one news on TV, and the cheeky boy was suddenly becoming into someone completely different. Most of the time, his eyes were red with tears and he kept blabbering. Little was almost impossible to understand Peter's words. Tony was surprised at how easily Peter could be swayed in the end. It was enough to know and use the right words. He had no idea how much time had passed while he lay there, but finally he closed his eyes as well, aligning his breath with the Peter's one.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Peter looked around the room and was horrified by the hands around his waist. He took Tony's hands off, left the room at a slow pace, and descended the stairs. He needed a moment to himself. In the living room, he stood by the glass door separating him from the garden. He rubbed his half-healed wrist. He wondered what it would be like to make it bleed again. This time, however, he would not call desperately for help, he would remain quietly sitting on the ground.

Tony rolled onto his back. He wasn't a fool, he could feel Peter getting up. He pulled him out of the dream as he began to fidget. But he let him go, pretending he was still asleep until the sound of footsteps receded. When Peter didn't come back, he didn't wait long and went downstairs, where he saw the boy standing motionless.

"Pete, why aren't you sleeping? 

"I can't," he answered, looked down, but didn't turn. "Why did she lie to me?"

"People just do it," Tony shrugged after a moment of silence. He'd heard this question several times before, but it wasn't entirely clear what the boy meant. It didn't matter how many times Tony answered, Peter asked again soon.

"But why did she lie to me?" He fixed his teary eyes on the man. He just couldn't understand it. May and him were a family. They should always stick together, she told him years ago. But what if he did something his aunt hated him for? Did she blame him for Ben's death? Was that why she wasn't looking for him?

He looked at his shaking hands. He thought he has Ben's blood on them. If he had never run across that damn road, there would be one missing grave in the cemetery. Back then his aunt knelt in front of him so that her eyes were level with him, wiping his tears with a handkerchief and keeping convincing him that she wasn't to blame, but she lied to him once, she could lie to him more than once.

"I'm sorry," he muttered before Tony could even open his mouth to say anything. He surprised him. All along, he heard virtually nothing from Peter than swearing, whether at him, the world around him, May, or Peter himself.

"For what?"

"For every-everything ... I sho-ouldn't have run and ... and..." his voice broke, his gaze slid back to the floor. A smile appeared on Tony's face. But he immediately disguised it, what if Peter noticed? He took a few steps toward the young man and his fingers touched the young face, wet with salty tears. Then he hugged the boy. Peter hated him, but he didn't dodge. He couldn't stop shivering. He was suprised by the way Tony cared for him. He didn't understand it, he didn't deserve it, the pantry deserved a few more wounds for his cowardice and weakness. Young brunette was constantly afraid that door will open, the evil Tony will burst into the room and things will turn in the opposite direction. But the truth was a little different. Have you ever heard of the sugar and whip method?

"Calm down," a hoarse voice whispered in his ear. The young man closed his eyes and exhaled as the man kissed his hair.

Tony had long ago decided to keep young Parker with him and re-educate him a little. He knew very well that his boy was disgusted by his touch and his very presence - but when he will be done with him, the boy will beg for them.