A New Home (2.0)

Chapter Thirteen:

The rest of the weekend had been filled with movies, Legos, and junk food. The duo weren't the slightest bit productive, and Tony missed every meeting. He instead spent more time with Peter, and honestly it was the greatest weekend either of them had had in a while. Alas, all good things must come to an end.

Monday came all too soon, starting with Peter already running late for school. He runs put of his room, his messy curls showing underneath his signature blue baseball cap and his shoe laces untied. He stumbles into the kitchen, where Tony's already waiting with Peter's breakfast on the table.

"Come on, Bambi, you gotta eat."

"I can't, Mr. Stark. I gotta go, I'm gonna be late."

"Well take it with you. You're not leaving without eating something." Peter sighs, grabbing a piece of toast from the plate and taking a bite. "Not a full breakfast, but it will do. Do you have your lunch money?"

"Yes, sir. Can I go now?" The boy asks.

"Go ahead. You're sure you don't want me to drive you?" Peter glances at his watch as he adjusts his backpack.

"Its fine. Besides, Mr. Rhodes seemed excited to drop me off. I'll see you after school, Mr. Stark." The boy waves, taking another bite of his toast and stepping into the elevator. The doors close and moments later he's in the garage where James Rhodes is waiting.

"You ready, kid?"

"Yes sir." And then they're off.

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The avengers now stand in front of the tower; Thor, Romanoff, Banner, Barton, and the captain himself. They were all curious considering how their last meeting with Stark had gone. They had seemed distracted. Something was going on, and they were determined to find out what it was.

"So are we all just gonna stand here posing, or are we gonna go in?" Banner asks quietly. "People are beginning to stare."

"Yeah, let's go." Steve replies, and they head inside. They move straight to the elevator and up to the penthouse. When they arrive, everything is quiet. No sign of Pepper, no sign of Tony, and no sign of Rhodes who they assumed would be here.

"Welcome to the penthouse. Make yourselves comfortable and boss will be with you momentarily." Friday's voice rings throughout the area. Of course Clint moves directly toward the kitchen. Steve follows him as Bruce, Thor, and Natasha move to the living room.

Looking around skeptically, Steve walks further into the room. He had half expected it to be a mess, but since Pepper lives with him he should've guessed it would be clean. He opens the refrigerator, half expecting alchohol and who knows what else. What he doesn't expect is-

"DINOSAUR SHAPED CHICKEN NUGGETS!!" Clint shouts from behind him, nearly giving the super soldier a heart attack. The archer reaches in the fridge, grabbing a juice box and the chicken nuggets, preparing to make some for himself. Rogers stands confused; this was not what he was expecting.

Natasha strolls into the living room, falling comfortably onto the sofa. She instinctively takes in her surroundings, noting the Star Wars blanket on the other end of the couch. Taking a look around the room, she notices all the little things. A chemistry book sits on the coffee table and a few new pictures are hanging on the wall.

Standing to her feet she moves closer, inspecting the photographs. A picture of Stark and a young boy, maybe thirteen years old, laughing at a movie they're watching. Another picture of the two, holding a Stark internship certificate. A third picture of the boy with Tony and Pepper in the kitchen cooking. It's a selfie, the boy's face lightly dusted with flour as a mess of ingredients are scattered in the background. The three of them are smiling like they couldn't be happier.