Spider-Son & Iron Dad two shots

Everything Machine

a/n: just some classic peter parker hurt comfort, title from the song by half-alive!

Peter slipped in through his window and pulled his mask off with a tired exhale. He cricked his neck and stretched his hands up, stretching out his aching spine, then fell back on his bed with a sigh.

Across the house, a glass clinked on a hard surface. Peter's eyes shot open and he slowly sat up.

Someone was in the apartment. He's a hundred percent positive May told him earlier today that she had errands, that she'd be home late around eleven, so it couldn't be her.

He pulled his mask back on and carefully opened the door, slow enough that every creak was low and drawn out. He took one step out the door, into the hallway between the bedrooms and the kitchen, and waited. Listened.

Five heartbeats. Someone sniffed, there was the sound of fabric against fabric. Whoever these people were, they had just been sitting there... Waiting.

Peter gritted his teeth, slowly turned the corner into the kitchen.

Immediately his shoulders relaxed as he saw the people sitting in the living room. Michelle, Ned, Tony, May— Even Happy. After the relief came a very sudden sense of confusion and concern. Peter pulled the mask off his head and furrowed his eyebrows.

"Guys?" Peter smiled nervously. "Everything... okay?"

"Peter," May said first, smiling at him with something almost made of pity. "Hey, baby. How was patrol?"

Peter slowly stepped into the living room, looking between everybody with a reasonable suspicion.

"Um, yeah," Peter nodded. "It was, uh— It was alright. May, I thought you wouldn't be home til eleven?"

"Pete," Tony grimaced. Suit and dark shades covering his eyes. He was packed like a sardine beside Happy and MJ on the old turquoise couch, which was a weird thing to comprehend much less witness. "It's three in the morning."

"Almost four," MJ added. She and Ned looked at each other with matching looks of concern before looking back over at Peter.

"What? No, that's—" Peter frowned deeply and turned to look at the clock above the oven. 3:48AM. Peter turned back over to all of them. He hesitated. "Oh, I— I didn't realize."

"Hey, do you wanna sit next to me, Peter?" Ned asked. He sat on the carpet, holding an empty water glass in his hand. Peter watched the condensation drip down onto his fingers.

Peter narrowed his eyes. He tried to keep his tone light. "Sorry. What uh, what is this? Someone having a birthday party?"

"We just," May started, nodding with expectant eyes to the rest of the group in the living room. (At the prompt, they nodded in agreement with her.) "wanted to come together, you know, as— as— Spider-Man's support system, and talk. Really talk about how we can best support you."

Peter looked at MJ. She only looked back, with something mixed of worry and sympathy. She didn't say a word. He singled in on Ned, who was looking at him like a scared dog. "Ned, is this an intervention?"

Ned stuttered.

"Yeah," Tony answered for him. "It is. Baby's first intervention. I should take a picture."

"I don't need an intervention," Peter smiled ridiculously. "Are you serious? What do I need an intervention for?"

"Peter, we haven't seen you outside of school in four weeks," MJ continued. "You barely answer your texts. You're having nightmares when you sleep in class—"