Irondad Oneshots

a second chance is all i really need

There's nothing he can do but hold on as the two halves of the ferry fall away from him, held together by him and two webs that'll snap any second now. The bad guys got away, civilians are everywhere, and there's nothing Peter can do.

And then he hears it, the Iron Man suit arriving on scene to clean up the mess he made.

"Iron Man?" he calls out, keeping his voice pitched lower than his regular squeaky teenage voice. "Is there anything I can do?"

The cold Iron Man mask turns to him, eyes glowing blue. "I think you've done enough."

It's like the nail in his coffin.

See, his dad doesn't know he's Spider-Man. He doesn't know what Peter does instead of going to Academic Decathlon and instead of band and when he's 'studying at Ned's'. Tony doesn't know and now that Peter's gone and fucked everything up...

"Mister Stark!" he shouts, swinging to the top of the ferry just as the older hero finishes melding the halves of the ferry back together.

But he doesn't even get an answer. The suit just stares at him for a second and then turns and flies back towards the city, leaving Peter by himself on the ferry.

Nausea rolls in his stomach as he shoots a web at the nearest helicopter, swinging hard towards the city as well. He doesn't want to find out the casualties, doesn't want to see the blame pointed at him, doesn't want to know the FBI's wrath.

His head feels split in two, the same way the ferry had been. He wants to see his dad, wants to be comforted and hugged and told that he's doing a good job even if he messes up like he did today. He wants help, wants his worries about the alien tech to be heard.

But he doesn't want Tony to know. He doesn't think he could handle seeing the anger, the disappointment, the betrayal written across Tony's face. He doesn't want to know how that conversation would go. He can't lose Spider-Man.

He finds himself sitting on the edge of a roof on the edge of the water, overlooking the mayhem out on the horizon.

"Is everyone okay?" he asks when he hears the telltale Iron Man suit landing behind him.

"No thanks to you," Tony says, anger already coloring his voice.

The irritation snaps within him and he stands up, turning on the suit. "No thanks to me? I tried to tell you and you wouldn't listen to me!"

"I did listen to you, but obviously you didn't listen to me. Alien tech isn't for some vigilante in a onesie to deal with. I was looking into it."

"What was I supposed to do? Just watch them hurt people?"

He doesn't know why he's so angry, why his hands are shaking so badly, why he can't seem to look the suit in the eyes.

But, like he's sealing Peter's fate, Tony steps out of the suit onto the rooftop, face set in stone.

"Mask off."

Peter's face crumples, he knows he's made a mistake, made it too obvious. "Mister Stark- I- I don't-"

"Mask. Off."

There's no room for an argument, so Peter tugs the mask off his head, letting his hair fall into his eyes as he ducks his head.

For a long few moments, nobody speaks, silence thickening between them.

And then, "This, whatever you think you're doing, is done."

"Dad, please, you don't understand- I-"

"You've been lying to me for what? Four months? Five? Academic Decathlon, Band, weekends with Ned, afternoon studying sessions," Tony's saying, but Peter won't look up, can't look up from where he kicks at the ground, swallowing thickly. "So, yeah, I do understand, and you're done."