A Stark of Mine || Peter Parker x Reader || Tony Stark's Daughter

CHAPTER 14 - Not your fault

You sat on the edge of your bed looking out at the sleeping city. It was late, and you should have probably been asleep, but your thoughts kept stirring you. You let out a gentle and unheard sigh as you found yourself holding tightly onto one of the last pictures of your friends. You kept thinking back to Emily and Josie – all that seemed like so long ago. But her words still drilled into you. The door clicked open and a soft light flooded your room only to disappear as it shut behind whoever had walked in.

"Everything okay kid?" Your dad's concerned voice asked quietly from the corner that shrouded him in darkness. You nodded in silence as he approached your side. "You sure?" You stayed quiet, too lost in thought to think let alone respond. The mattress sunk as he sat next to you, closing the distance so his shoulder rubbed up against yours. "What's that you got there?" Slowly you passed the frame to him, his eyes scanning the image before him. He recognised them as the people that happened to be there when he burst down the door. Emily and Josie. With a loud exhale, he placed the photo face down on the blanket next to him. He stared at you, his complicated daughter who was torn between two worlds. One where she lived a simple life and another where her life entailed riches and extravagance. The soft glowing ambiance from the heart of New York reflected your glazy eyes, the ever so faint tear stains. "Okay, It's okay...Come here." He wrapped his arms around you tightly like he would never let go. You let your body relax and go ever so slightly numb as you welcomed his embrace. The distinct smell of his jacket, the beating of his heart against your ear, the steady breathing and soft exhales. He planted a kiss on your head before resting his chin in your hair, his unshaved face scratching but comforting.

"I'm sorry..." Your whisper muffled by his shirt. "I'm sorry for being so weak."

"No, you're the strongest person I know. I couldn't be prouder of you (Y/N)." His voice was deep and rumbled soothingly.

"It's all my fault." You sniffed.

"What?"

"It's all my fault that you're stuck with me. I should've just stayed home instead of begging mum to take me out to the city. I should've stayed home." A rare sob escaped causing Tony to hold you even tighter. So, tight you couldn't even move. "I wouldn't be such a burden. You could've gone on with your life, had a perfect family, a perfect home, someone who wasn't an accident." His jacket became damp with your tears.

"You're not a burden, you're the best thing that's ever happened to me (Y/N)...You're what keeps me fighting, I have a purpose because of you. I have someone to care for and teach and experience the world with. I didn't come back for you because I felt obligated to, I came back because I missed you and I couldn't go on without you. Because..." He trailed off and gulped, the words stuck in purgatory. "Because I love you...more than you'll ever know." Your tears and cries halted. You couldn't recall a time where your father had said he loved you, not once. He was much more like his father than he knew, and you were much more like Tony than you knew. But he wanted to break the unforgiving, cold and calculating cycle of his father's relationship with his only son. He cared about you, and he wanted you to know that. You wrapped your arms around him tightly, the back of his suit jacket scrunching up.

"I love you too." You whispered causing a wide and loving smile to crease his lips. After what felt like forever he pulled away as he felt your body go limp with sleep. He lay you to rest but didn't want to move you too much as he feared disturbing you. So, sliding off his jacket he lay it gently over you. The warmth comforting your subconscious. He got up to leave but found himself pausing in the doorway. He didn't want to leave you alone, something inside him told him to stay – so he did. He lay down on the bed next to you, studying your peaceful sleeping face. And soon enough, the man who almost never slept, fell asleep next to the one thing he needed the most. You. (Y/N) Stark.