Hush Little Baby (Discontinued)

Ch. 42

The room was quieter after Peter left, as if his absence had sucked a vacuum into the space.

"I know-"

"I'm sorry-"

They both started to speak at the same time, and stopped, small smiles turning up the corners of their mouths.

"I'm only going to say this once and you better pay attention." Rhodey held up a finger to stop Tony from speaking. "I know what you're about to say, and it's bull."

"You don't-"

"I said listen, Tony."

Tony pressed his lips together in a thin line, right hand gripping his left to stop it from shaking.

"This wasn't your fault." Rhodey paused, waiting for Tony to meet his gaze before he continued. "I know the risks every time I fly and I've accepted them. It wasn't your fault, plain and simple. And if you dare go blaming my best friend for it, I'll punch your lights out. I've got two fists that work just fine, see?" 

He raised both in demonstration, getting a huff of laughter from his best friend.

"That's better." Rhodey let his hand fall to rest on Tony's shoulder. "I chose to fly this mission with you, Tony. Knowing this could happen. And yeah, it sucks, but it could've been worse. Although if I know you, and I do, you're already brainstormin' up something in that mind of yours to fix it, am I right?"

At the small smile on Tony's face, he squeezed gently. "That's the Tony I know."

Tony ducked his head slightly, raising a finger. "Technically, I'm not allowed to be working with screens yet. Concussion recovery, y'know. Peter's doing that part for me. You can thank him later. But yeah, we're working on something."

The smile on Rhodey's face got wider. "I've got the best family ever."

"Yeah yeah, we love you too." Tony stood up shakily, leaning in for a brief hug. "I better get back to my bed. Harley's getting in this afternoon, and I'm gonna need all the sleep I can get to keep up with those two."

"Good luck," Rhodey said fervently.

"When Pete comes back in here, tell him I'm back in my room?"

"Sure thing."

"Alright. See you later sourpatch."

"Yup."

It was exactly thirteen minutes later when Peter reappeared, and he took in the room with an unsurprised air. "He bailed?"

"I think emotions give him hives."

"Probably." Peter dropped two pudding cups on the table, along with a wrapped spoon. "Go wild."

"You are my favorite nephew."

"I'm your only nephew."

"Details."

"I'm gonna go check on dad real quick, then I'm going back to the hotel for a nap before Happy and Harley get here. If you need anything, you can text or call, okay?"

"Don't worry, Pete, we'll be fine."

The corner of Peter's mouth turned up in a faint smile. "I'm sure you will be. Just in case."

"I know. Bye kiddo."

"Bye."

Surprisingly, Tony was asleep.

Or very good at faking it.

Peter watched him for a minute, feeling older than his fifteen years.

Everything ached.

The kind of ache that couldn't be washed away by sleep.

He gave a heavy sigh, and stepped closer, pulling the light blanket up, and smiling softly at the relaxed expression on his dad's face.

It was rare to see that.

He left a note on the side table, and shut the door behind him.

On the way out of the hospital, he stepped into a small cafe to grab something to eat.

The main menu was in German, with a smaller one off to the side on English.

He placed the order, stepping to the back to wait.

Within ten minutes, he was on his was with a bag of some sort of pastries that smelled really good.

Peter stepped into a welcome blast of heat in his room.

He relaxed slightly, dropping onto the bed with his bag of goodies, and digging in.

The first one was raspberry cream, and it was the best thing he'd tasted all week.

He demolished about eight of them in one sitting.

They were smaller sized, in his defense, and he had a very fast metabolism.

No sooner had he finished eating than his tiredness kicked in, and he piled the blankets into some sort of nest on the mattress, and burrowed in.

He was asleep in minutes.