EXPOSED! P.P Oneshots/Imagines

Tea's ready

May was suspicious, to say the least. 

A month ago, Tony had tried offering money to her after being told by Peter that they were struggling.

May had declined, claiming that Peter shouldn't have bothered him with that, and assured him that she could handle this just fine.

Tony knew she could handle this bump, of course he did. She could handle anything, she was May! Tony knew so... But he didn't like Peter's worn-out shirts or the fact that one of the hems of his bookbag had to be sewed on every few weeks.

"I accidentally bought them in the wrong size, it's not worth going back to the store for," Tony had told offhandedly, handing Peter the box before returning to work, pretending as if nothing had happened.

May had looked from the brand new sneakers, Peter's exact size, and then to Tony's Oxfords, the dress shoes he always wore, but let it slide. Only because of the fact that the sole was already coming off Peter's old shoes, though.

"He bought some stuff for Pepper, but she didn't like it, so he's taking her on a trip to Paris instead. They said to bring it home for you, and that if you didn't like it, we can just throw it out," Peter told after coming back late one night; "The bags are in the hallway." 

He'd disappeared into his room, and May had slowly walked out to the hallway. Three bags, stuffed to the limit with brand new clothes.

She wanted to bring it up with Tony, but she didn't want Peter getting caught in the crossfire, so she'd reluctantly placed the clothes in her closet.

After Tony had been over for dinner, May had found a 10 on the couch. She'd given it to Peter and told him to give it to Tony, next time he saw him.

"It's not his, May." 

Those were the words Peter had returned with. 

"Pete, of course it's his! Whos else would it be?" May had argued tiredly.

"He says he'd never carry around something so small and refused to take it," Peter had replied, putting the bill on the kitchen table before adding; "Besides, we can use this! Didn't the car just break down?" 

May did her best to look strong and looked up to avoid the tears overflowing.

"Yes, it did. But we'll get it fixed, I promise. We just have to wait until the next payday, okay? We can do that, I can take the train to work," she promised, pulling Peter into a hug.

When Peter had left to go to Tony's that night, she'd broke down crying.

The next morning, she'd gotten up as if nothing was wrong. She was in the middle of making tea for when Peter woke when the doorbell sounded. 

"Peter mentioned your car was acting up," Tony mentioned with a shrug, a toolbox in his hand.

May crossed her arms over her chest.

"That's a bit under your paygrade, isn't it?" she'd countered, leaning her shoulder against the doorframe.

"Nah. I am a mechanic, you know," he'd replied, smiling sincerely. 

"Mr. Stark!" Peter's excited voice sounded from his bedroom door, and May knew the moment was gone; "What are you doing here?" 

"Well, you mentioned the car wouldn't start, so I thought 'hey, what kind of mechanic would I be if I didn't check it out?'. Wanna go have a look?" he offered.

"Hell yeah!" Peter said excitedly, bouncing over to Tony.

"Hey, language," Tony corrected, placing a hand on Peter's shoulder. 

May had gone in to finish the tea before returning. She stood in the doorframe, watching Tony explain the different bits under the hood to Peter, who kept asking questions. Tony kept answering, never losing patience. 

May cleared her throat, making Tony look up.

"Hey, keep working, I'll be back in a sec," he muttered before walking over to the kid's aunt.

"I know what you're doing," she warned him.

"I know," he admitted; "You're too smart to not figure it out. Peter didn't exactly get his brains from strangers." 

"I told you I didn't want your financial support, bu-"

"But I didn't listen, I know," Tony interrupted, sounding almost ashamed; "But I see Peter writing assignments on his laptop from 2005 when I literally own a tech company! I see the closed up holes in your shirts when I know my t-shirt costs more than your entire closet! That piece of crap car right there? Fixing it would cost more than its entire worth! I know you don't want my help, but please, please just let me do a little, because this, this is breaking my heart, and that's not good for my reputation," Tony finished with a heavy breath, running his hand through his hair in frustration.

"Are you done?" May checked. "I told you I didn't want your financial support, but that was before I realized the support's not just financial. You're there for Pete. And... Maybe you're the role model I could never quite be," she admitted. 

"What are you talking about? May, you're a brilliant role model, the best Pete could ever ask for! He didn't turn out that amazing entirely by himself, did he?" Tony pointed out.

"But he needs more than that. He needs a dad," May told; "And I'm glad he's found one." 

Tony slowly looked up at her.

"Anyway, I just wanted to say thank you. And the tea's ready," she added with a smirk before disappearing in again.