Genuinely this might be the longest fic I've ever written 💀 I hope u enjoy!! <3

Steve was surprised the first time he saw Peter Parker hanging around Tony.

He never thought he'd see Tony Stark, the egotistical, sometimes selfish genius-billionaire allow some random person- let alone a kid- take up any of his valuable time. Although he and Tony had become good friends despite their unfriendly-sounding banter, it appeared Steve didn't know him as well as he thought he did.

For a while, he kept his eye on the kid, thinking it may have been some kind of brainwashing situation- it's not like it'd never happened before. He thought that maybe Parker was a spy or looking for something more than a mentor. Money perhaps. Maybe fame.

He'd requested Natasha to keep an eye on him but even she couldn't find any dirt on him. There was absolutely nothing about this kid that seemed... dangerous. Nothing to frame him as untrustworthy. (Other than the fact that it was suspiciously easy to become fond of Parker.)

All of it was just so odd. He was just some kid. A nerdy, un-athletic, squeaky-voiced high school kid. It reminded Steve of himself in his younger years.

Yes, he was endearing but since when was that enough to get a free meet-and-greet with the avengers? Enough to spend his after-school-hours at the compound in the lab with Stark? Enough to spend weekends? To be Tony Stark's personal goddamn intern?

Upon more silent observation, he started to see what Tony liked about Peter Parker. It's like they were on the same exact wavelength. Tony would say something wildly smart that the others could never understand, and Peter would bounce off the topic and add his own information like it was a mere addition problem.

It was almost as if they had their own secret language. A secret language made of math and long scientific terms that could bore the others out of the room they occupied.

So, Steve understood that part of it all. Parker was smart. Extremely smart. It made sense Tony would pick a kid that was the best student at the best school around.

This internship must've started a long time ago, because they seem so in sync. They seem so familiar with each other. Parker doesn't act like any other screaming fan, despite the fact that he claims to have always been a huge fan of his mentor.

Most fans wouldn't talk back to Tony Stark like he's their annoying parent or leave the room when he's particularly embarrassing.

Sometimes, he thinks their similarities have to be more than just the universe bringing two people together by pure luck. He thinks maybe they could be related. He wouldn't put it past Tony given his years of drunken one night stands.

Steve remains silent, chin resting on his hands as he watches the two.

They continue with their usual banter, followed by the sprinkled in comments of their teammates through their own laughter.

"Hey. Enough from the peanut gallery. Go do something useful. Get me a coffee or something like I pay you to do."

"Mrs. Potts told me not to do that anymore."

"Kid, I'm your boss-"

"Ok fine but I'm getting you decaf."

"We don't use filthy fucking words in this house, kid."

Peter throws his head back and laughs as he leaves the room.

Steve's had enough watching and assuming. He's going to ask and he knows it's going to be embarrassing when he says no.

"Tony," he says, "is he yours?"

"Um, my intern? Yeah." The man's tone implies that Steve is stupid for asking. He repeats himself anyway despite the grimaced looks of his teammates.

"No- I mean- your kid. Is he... yours?"

"My... Jesus, Steve, not- no not like, mine mine. He's... my kid-intern whom I pay to help me with shit I don't want to do. where the hell did this come from?"

"You just seem like you know eachother well. You never get to know your workers like that. And you act the same. And you don't even let the press see him. You've never seemed to care that much about the people that work for SI."

Tony pauses and glances at the others.

"You can't blame him for wondering, Tony. You guys are like, the same exact person. He's literally a mini version of you."

Tony's lips twitch as he holds back a smile at the comment. He turns away from everyone, deciding then to leave the room to avoid a conversation he doesn't feel like having.

"Yeah whatever. But no, he's not mine like that. He's just... a good kid that deserved an internship. I'm leaving now."

Steve continues to think about what more there could be to Parker's hiring.

~~~~~~~

There was more to it. Much more to it.

Steve was right.

He wasn't right in the way that Parker was Tony's blood relative, no, but his smarts weren't the only reason Tony keeps such a close eye on him. In fact, he now wonders if it had ever been about his intelligence.

Tony had seemed on edge all night and it had something to do with the fact that Peter was out late on a night he's supposed to be in the tower.

He'd claimed it was nothing- Peter was just... out with friends. And he was a little late.

Steve had assumed this was just some helicopter-parent type thing. He'd assured the man that this happens with teenagers but Tony just waved a dismissing hand in his direction and retreated to his lab. Though, it wasn't long before he ran out to the living room again, hand lingering above his arc reactor. Natasha was the first to stand in alarm, then Steve when he realises there may be a threat.

Before he can ask what's going on, there's a low thump. Then a crash, and suddenly, a body falls through their ceiling. Their ceiling crumbles and there's dust and debris flying around them.

Steve coughs and swats his hand through the cloud of dust, and sees Spider-Man sprawled out on the floor, mask lifted enough to reveal most of his face.

That's-

"Peter?"

He doesn't answer at first. Any other kid his age would've screamed in pain or- or- died, but instead, he groans as he rolls onto his side and mutters a quiet,

"Ow."

He just fell through three floors and got the beating of a lifetime and all he said was ow?

This would explain everything. The black eyes he'd come over with. The- the cover story of high school bullies. This is why Tony keeps an eye on him. He allows some little kid to run around New York in a high-tech multimillion dollar suit and get the shit beat out of him nightly.

To say Steve was pissed would be an understatement.

No, he was livid.

"Peter- Tony," he growls.

He looks over at the others in shock, and watched how they look between the three of them nervously. Even Thor looked worried about what could happen next.

When he whips his head back to the scene in front of him, Tony's crouched over helping Spider-Man- no-  Peter up.

"C'mon," he murmurs, "Up."

He's gentle where he grabs him, tenderly cupping his side and holding onto his arm as he lifts him.

"Ow, ow, ow," he hisses. "Tony- shit."

"Sorry."

Steve somehow becomes more angry. He tenses,
"Stark."

The man shoots him a look of frustration.
"Not. Now," he snaps.

"Tony."

Peter hobbles and leans into his side, grimacing at the movement.

"Not now, Steve! Be pissed off at me later."

They all watch the two leave the room slowly, dumbfounded. They glance up in unison at the swaying figure above them, wrapped in tangled wires and spiderwebs.

"Should we take care of this?"

The bad guy in a shitty diy suit groans.

When they finish Spider-man's job for him, Steve makes a beeline for medbay. If he allowed himself to think for even a second about confronting Tony about this while he's literally next to Peter's hospital bed, he'd realise it was a bad idea, though, it didn't click until he roughly pushed the door open.

He softened slightly when he saw them conversing quietly, but Tony's brows furrowed when he saw him.

"When are you gonna learn to take a goddamn hint, Rogers."

"No. No, you don't have a right to-" he cuts himself off when he sees the hurt expression on Peter's face.
"We're not having this conversation in here."

Finally, Tony agrees with him.

Though, he doesn't comply without rolling his eyes dramatically.

Real mature, he thinks bitterly.

They're silent for a while as they stand in the hallway, tense and glaring.

"He's Spider-Man."

It's not a question. If it were a question he'd have to be an idiot.

Apparently the statement didn't make him look any smarter than if he'd questioned it because Tony huffs out a laugh anyway.

"Yeah, no shit."

"Tony- I- I'm just so- insanely angry right now I don't need your sarcasm!"

"God, Steve can't we just have a conversation like adults?"

"No! No, we can't, Tony! Because you can't call yourself an adult right now," he points an accusing finger at his chest. "An adult wouldn't give a 15 year old kid a high-tech multimillion dollar super suit! An adult wouldn't just say 'here you go! Go out and fight bad guys twice your age and get the shit beat out of you!' Where are his parents? Do they know?"

"His Aunt May- she knows- she-"

"SHE-" Steve drops his head into his hands, feeling a strong urge to punch a hole into the wall. "She knows?! Who-who do I call about this- who would just allow this?!"

"Rogers, you know nothing-"

"I know enough! I know that you might be the most irresponsible person I've ever met! Why would you put some kid in danger like that?! This was never about the internship, was it? This was just so you could keep watch on your latest project!"

"That's not what this is! You don't know what happened. You don't-"

"Then enlighten me, Tony," he snaps, crossing his arms. He feels like his head is going to explode. "Go ahead. Tell me what could possibly make this justifiable."

"It's not justifiable. It's not. But I can't just take this away from him- it's not that easy."

"It's your suit!" He exclaims, throwing his hands up in his exasperation. "Of course it's that easy!"

"I tried that and all that did was get him trapped under a fucking building! So if you've got any other ideas- shoot! Cause all I've got, is giving him this suit and letting him do good because at least then I can keep an eye on him instead of letting him run around in a cotton onesie. You may think I'm a monster, but I'm not. He's not my latest project. I-I don't like that he puts himself in danger, Steve! But I'd rather be here if he needs backup than have him do it on his own because I know he will."

Oh.

Steve's stunned into silence. They both stand there, chests heaving, both still furious at the other.

Steve is an asshole.

He's an absolute, steaming hot pile of trash.

"Tony, I-"

"I can't- I can't do this. I could be obsessing over the kid's health stats right now. It would be more productive than all this," he waves his hand around. "You know I hate being unproductive."

Steve hates when he deflects. He tries to apologise again before he can leave but Tony turns away from him and rushes back to medbay.

He stands there frozen for much longer than he should have, trying to gather his thoughts.

He shouldn't have blown up like that. Of course this was more complicated- it's always more complicated. They're freaking superheroes.

He finds himself crossing medbay again, but this time, he doesn't throw open the door. He passes it, but pauses at the sound of their conversation. He can't help hearing it with his superhearing, but he still feels guilty for it.

"I got you in trouble," Peter whispers.

Tony just laughs.
"Pete, I don't get in trouble. I'm not fifteen."

"Hey."

"I'm kidding," he chuckles, "But no, I am not in trouble. He's just a little mad right now cause, you know, you're a kid. Who goes out in the dead of night fighting maniacs in an extremely expensive and dangerous suit."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize. I understand why you do it and all I ask from you is to try and be safe. You called me earlier and you brought the baddie here so I could come help you- and I'm proud of you for that. It just went sideways."

"I'm sorry I broke three of your floors."

"I don't care about that," he says, his tone stern but soft. "All I care about is the fact that you broke three of your ribs. If it makes you feel any better, let's just call it even. Three ribs for three floors or whatever."

"I broke two ribs. The third one is only cracked."

"Pete."

Steve scrubs a hand over his face.

God, he's a douchebag.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Steve's always surprised by how far technology has come. Sometimes, he thinks he's become used to it but then, there's a fight with a giant robot monster.

The avengers circle around it, attacking what they hope would be a weak spot.

They fail miserably multiple times.

Steve stays behind a large piece of debris, trying to catch his breath. He watches as it waves it's hands around as if to swat away an annoying bug. He pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs.

"Tony how's the scanning going?"
The coms crackle with commotion.

"Um, not so great Cap. FRI's not picking anything up."

Peter speaks up,
"Maybe if I get closer-"

"No," Stark snaps.

"But-"

"No."

There's a groan.

"Listen to him, Peter," he says. "He's right. It could be dangerous."

"It is dangerous. That's the point!"

"Yeah. The point of you staying on the ground."

They keep trying to beat this thing, both from air and ground. It's becoming frustrating at this point because the more they try, the more the city gets smashed and blown up. The entirety of Twitter's going to be pissed at them. He gives it an hour before another fucktheavengers hashtag starts trending again. Understandably, they don't like it when Hulk smashes their cars or when ironman is thrown through their walls.

"Cap it's no use! What do we do?"

Before Steve can even begin to state that he in fact has no idea what to do, there's a battle cry coming from a certain spider-man.

"I see it! Karen's got a good scan! Go for the back of its neck there's a thinner layer of metal and a bunch of wires! You'll be able to get to- IT-!"

A giant metal hand swats spider-man across the city.

It would have been funny in any other situation.

Because he's a bug-themed superhero. And he was just swatted away. Ha.

The second Peter's sent flying the other direction, Tony's already on his tail, boosters in full power.
"Kid!"

Luckily, Peter catches himself on a building close by, rocking back and forth on the web with his white lenses as wide as they go.

Steve watches as Tony begins to slow down, waving his hands around in his frustration.

Peter drops onto a building mirroring his gestures as he argues back. It's quite funny how Tony's finally met his match in stubbornness. Steve still finds it hard to believe they're not related by blood sometimes.

When Tony's finally closer, he's about to drop onto the building next to him to check for any injuries but there's another crash and scream of yet another one of their teammates being punted halfway across the city.

Oh look there's Thor.

Tony looks back at the mess they've yet to fix and then to Peter, repeating the action as he has an internal debate on what to do before he decides on finishing what they'd started.

Far away, he hears Tony's shout.
"You're on timeout, kid. Take ten."

Peter's foot stomps slightly as he throws his hands up.
"Aw, what?! Mr. Stark!"

Just for a moment, the suit spins around and faceplate flips up. Steve can only imagine his expression.
"I'll make it twenty! Stay!"

Peter drops into a sitting position on the roof, arms crossed and looking like the child he is, and the anger Steve had felt when he first found out about him being Spider-Man returns just for a moment before he becomes distracted by the frantic robot who's beginning to realise it's about to be shut down.

When it all ends, he watches as the tin man flies back over. He thought he was going to chew him out for getting too close and distracted enough to get hit, and Peter seems to think so too. He gets up, shoulders hunched and his hand clutching his hurt bicep.

He stares at his shoes as he waits for his mentor to say something but instead, the suit opens up and Tony steps forward and hugs him.

The eyes of the suit widen before he melts into the embrace and the eyes close slightly, mimicking a smile.

Steve smiles softly to himself.
"C'mon gang let's go."

Clint throws his head back and roars with laughter.
"Gang?? What is this, the closing of a Scooby doo episode?"

"Shut up I meant to say team."

~~~~~~~~~~~

They're all at the tower and Tony's pacing back and forth, mumbling to himself. Steve had seen him like this a lot since finding out about Spider-Man but never this bad. Peter had also never been this late to curfew before. At this point, he'd wondered if Peter had forgotten it was a school night and tonight he was supposed to be back earlier.

When word got around that Peter was supposed to be home hours ago, (yes, hot goss spreads within minutes in the tower) Sam told everyone they were all going to wait up for the kid until he gets home.

It made sense to Steve. He thought it was a nice thing for everyone to wait up for him and make sure he's safe. Maybe he'd realise he'd worried them and not put Tony through this level of stress again. Though, as nice as the thought was, it'd be very unlikely. These things just happen whether on purpose or not.

It's a little upsetting to see his friend this stressed. He allows his eyes to follow his tense figure back and forth. He hears Nat sigh quietly. He doesn't think he'd have heard it without his super-hearing.

"Tony you look like an idiot. Stop," Natasha mutters, staring down at her phone.

"No. No, the kid was supposed to be back, like," he looks down at his watch. "4 hours ago. None of my calls or texts are going through, he added a do not disturb mode in his goddamn suit, and Karen just told me to piss off!"

Clint grimaces, "Shit, kid's in trouble, huh."

"Uh, yeah."

"Welp, this is what happens when you tell a super-kid to be home by 9."

"I changed it to 10 because he was complaining. He has a project due tomorrow."

"That he finished."

"So?! It's late. And I was trying to help out- did you notice his eye bags have eye bags? This is why."

"I'm sure he just got caught up in patrol," Bruce hums tiredly. He's sprawled across the couch with an arm over his face. "I don't see why we all had to stay up and wait for him though."

Tony blinks.

"You don't have to. I don't even know why you're all up it's the middle of the night. I thought I was the only one with the ability to stay awake past 11."

"We're not that old."

"Steve is," Natasha grins.

Steve sends a look of faux hurt in her direction.

Banner's head snaps up.
"Sam told me we were all staying up to wait on Peter."

"Yeah he told me that too."

Sam throws his head back and cackles.
"I thought it would be funny to embarrass the kid when he walks through the window."

His teammates groan.

"You're the worst, Sam!"

"Boo."

"I thought you guys were just being supportive," Stark teases.

The others stare back at him, suddenly scrambling for a way to say, yes, they were here to be supportive. Definitely not because they'd all been tricked into a childish joke.

Clint chuckles as he flicks through channels on the tv.
"I dunno about you guys but I was in it for the movie marathon. They've got a bunch of oldies playing tonight."

Steve perks up.
"Oh, really?"

"Yeah Cap, a lot of em are from when you were in the ice."

He grins and sits beside him.
"If it makes you feel any better Tony, I was in it to be supportive."

Tony rolls his eyes but seems appreciative. His lips twitch up into an amused smile.
"Yeah, thanks Cap."

"Boss," FRI's voice echoes from the ceiling. "Peter has arrived to the tower and is currently climbing up to this floor."

"About time."

"Stark, I'm begging you to sit in a chair and spin around dramatically when he walks through. Bonus points if you flick on a light for the effect."

"Sam," he snaps, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I can only deal with so much immaturity in my life. Please let it come from an actual child."

"Ugh, you got so boring when you became a parent."

"I'm not-" he sputters before giving in. "Whatever."

The window ahead of him lifts up slowly before Peter steps through, tense and already cringing at the scene in front of him.
"I swear I didn't make Karen say that just for your call. It was just supposed to be a joke and I forgot we even programmed it in-"

"That's all you have to say," he snaps. "Nothing else?"

"Um," Peter grimaces, wiping his hands on his sides awkwardly. "Sorry?"

Steve stares at them, eyes flicking between the two as they speak. It's incredibly uncomfortable but he can't tell if it'd be more rude to stay or leave. The others seem to feel the same way, sending glares Sam's way for putting them in this situation.

"Kid, you can't just be hours late past curfew with no call and especially with your suit completely turned off! I-I-"

Tony groans into his hands and paces for a few steps. He takes a deep breath and drags his hand down his face. Everyone's completely silent as he has his little tantrum.

He suddenly turns to his friends who are all huddled together on the couch before turning back at the kid, burying a hand in his hair in thought.

"Alright I'm done with the audience. We're talking about this somewhere else."

He begins walking in the other direction.

Peter, who had been standing there quietly, looks a little surprised.

"I-I- Tony..."

"Come," he snaps.

They leave quietly.

Steve had to say, he's surprised. He hadn't really seen Tony angry at him before. He'd probably seen every other emotion directed at the kid, but never anger.

He hoped Tony hadn't lost his temper on the kid. He's sure his lateness had really been an accident. Though, he's yet to hear any muffled shouting behind a door, so he supposes they'd just talked.

It wasn't very long before Tony returned, but Bruce had already fallen asleep. When he walks in, his lip twitches with amusement.

"I see my lessons on shitty sleep schedules haven't worked on Brucie."

"We can't have more than one insomniac on this team."

He laughs breathily, letting himself fall into the last spot on the couch. "Don't kid yourself, none of us sleep like normal people. I'm just... a smidge more unstable."

Steve rolls his eyes, feeling fond. "Yeah, a smidge."

His friend laughs before they all fall into a slightly tense silence.

Natasha's the first to speak,
"I hope you weren't too hard on him, Tony."

He blinks, "What? No, we just talked about it. We're all good."

Clint leans back to make eye contact with the man.
"I think we all thought you were gonna loose it."

"I mean, yeah, I get frustrated because sometimes he just doesn't listen but... I know he listens better when I just talk to him- as anyone would. And, you know, tell him why I need him to listen and give him a reason to."

"You read that in a parenting book?"

Steve shoots Clint a look. He shuts up and looks back at the tv screen.

Tony grins at the jab anyway.
"What else am I supposed to read, 'how to mentor your rebellious teenage superhero'? Oh, maybe I should write a book..."

Steve ignores his efforts to change topics and leans his elbows against his knees, closer to the man so the two of them can continue to talk.

"That's good of you, Tony," he says quietly, "You try really hard with him and it's working. I know it's difficult."

The previous humoured expression on his face shifts.
"It is... I just- I need him to be safe but I also need him to meet me halfway and help me keep him safe."

Steve nods in understanding. Tony was never angry at Peter for tonight. He was worried.

"And you told him that?"

"Yeah. I did. He-he understands. He's a good kid. He's smart."

He smiles softly before glancing at Sam, who's leaning into their little conversation bubble,
  "Sooo where's Parker now?"

"Do you have any idea what time it is? He's in bed."

Clint cackles, "That's rich coming from you, Stark!"

"Can it, birdie. I never said I was a good influence."

"You are, Tony," Steve says. He doesn't reply, but he does offer a closed smile.

He glances down at the other scientist, who's currently snoring loudly, leg stretched enough to rest on Sam's lap.

"Maybe we should all go to bed," he says before shaking his head fondly at the immature boo's he gets in response.

~~~~~~~~~~~
(TW- panic attack)

It's game night and everyone's sitting on the floor in a circle, playing Uno. Steve had thought this would be a peaceful game but it seemed like every time a new card was dropped the next person had a problem with it, and had no shame in using profanities to express their frustration. Or insults. There were a lot of insults.

He had noticed Peter came home from school a little on edge. He fidgeted and darted his eyes around the entire night, not even seeming to enjoy the game he recommended just nights before. Steve had only noticed because his super-hearing picked up on his rising heartbeat.

Luckily, the kid was sitting right next to him.

"Peter," he whispers. He glances up, fear in his eyes, and Steve doesn't understand. "Are you ok?"

"I-I-" he swallows and takes a shaky breath before nodding, a fake smile on his face.

His brows furrow, realizing he made it worse when his heart rate picks up again. He watches closely as the kid stares down at the stack of cards in front of him, consciously taking deep breaths.

Steve watches, feeling helpless. He's conflicted on what to do. Provide comfort? Do nothing at all? Tell Tony? No, bringing attention to him will make everything worse.

He decides on moving his leg to the side a little, bumping their knees together gently. He keeps his eyes facing forward but letting him know he's there quietly. Peter pushes his own knee against his in acknowledgment.

It seems to help.

Though, it doesn't last long.

"Hey, blues clues, it's your turn," Sam says, grinning. "Kid?"

Clint then leans forward and waves a hand in front of his face, snapping him out of his focus.

Steve glances at Tony, watching as his expression morphs into one of worry.

Peter stares at the group, eyes wide and glassy. He opens his mouth to say something but he chokes. His hands shake, thumbs making small indents in his cards.

"I-I- there's," he inhales a sharp breath, "There's- something's happening."

Natasha's head snaps up before darting her eyes over to Tony.

"Wait, what? Like, spidey sense happening? Stark, FRI would pick up on that right?"

"Um, yeah- FRI?"

"My sensors are not picking up any signs of danger. There's been no reports of suspicious activity in the area here or near the tower currently."

Colorful cards drop from his fidgeting hands.
"But- but- I swear I feel like I- shit." Peter grabs at his shirt as his chest heaves, looking mortified. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry."

Tony finally stands.
"Ok we're going on recess kids. Peter, c'mon."

He doesn't waste another second sitting there, shooting up from the pillow on the floor and rushing towards the kitchen, passing Tony.

"Clint, Sam- if you look at the kid's cards while we're gone I'll kill you," he calls before retreating into the other room.

The two sputter in their offense.

Steve watches them leave and is once again reminded he has super-hearing. At moments like this he wishes it would go with his age because this has to be an invasion of privacy. He can hear their footsteps against the tile, the quickened, breathy pants, the creaking of the seat Peter drops onto. He really doesn't mean to hear these conversations.

"Hey, it's ok we're out of there. Just take a breath- watch me," Tony murmurs.

"I swear I wasn't lying my- my spider-sense-"

"I know you weren't lying, but Pete, I recognize an anxiety attack when I see one. We'll fix the other thing once we fix this, k?"

There's a small, panicked whine from Peter, followed by a painful-sounding gasp.

"You're alright, we're in no rush. Take all the time you need."

"I-I ruined it."

He sounds like he's going to cry and it breaks Steve's heart.

"Ruined what?"

"This was supposed to be fun- the game night- and I-I ruined it and I'm-I'm not supposed to-" Peter chokes on his words as he makes another effort to take a bigger breath. "They're gonna be weirded out I just freaked out over nothing-"

"Nothing's ruined, kiddie. I promise you they don't mind. Breathe."

"I am."

Tony shushes him gently.

He's constantly surprised at how good Tony is with Peter. He never saw him as the father type. He hadn't seen past the big ego, overwhelming personality, and frankly inappropriate background that he assumes would be a hard talk to have with a child. Though, if Steve were to have a kid, he supposes it would have been an uncomfortable conversation to say that yes, he technically got his powers from a super-drug, and yes, he was paid to do videos for school telling them 'say no to drugs kids!' So yes, he was in fact kind of a hypocrite.

Being a superhero is just- complicated and families as a superhero are just the same.

But Peter knows about all that stuff he did as a young adult. He grew up hearing about it on the news because Tony Stark had zero privacy his entire life and anytime he made a mistake the world just had to know. He thinks that's why he cares so much about Peter completely staying out of any press.

He's actually insanely good at this and Steve wishes he gave him more credit from the beginning. He's always been a good person.

"Steve?"
He glances up and notices his friends' eyes on him. Natasha grins,
"Eavesdropping?"

His face becomes hot,
"No I-... you know I don't mean to..."

Sam rolls his eyes in amusement and lays back on his mattress of pillows.
"No worries, man, we won't tell."

"I hope he's alright," Bruce mutters. "Panic attacks are hard."

"Yeah.. they can sneak up on you."

Steve thinks about the conversation he heard, and Peter's insecurities about this happening in front of them.
"Yeah. Make sure we let him know this is a safe space for that to happen. And that we're not put off by it in any way."

"Why the hell would we be put off by it? Shit happens. And it's Spidey- there's nothing he can do to scare us off."

"You know Peter," Nat says, "He sneezes and apologizes."

Just a few minutes later, Steve hears footsteps and shushes his friends. The duo walk out of the other room, Tony with an arm thrown around Peter's shoulders.

They stare at each other in silence and Steve wants nothing more than to facepalm at the other's inability to act natural. (Except for Natasha, obviously.)

Tony narrows his eyes,
"One of you guys looked at the kid's cards, didn't you?"

"NO!"

They glance at Clint judgingly.

"Well that was a little dramatic, wasn't it?"

"What? I didn't!"

Thor suddenly throws his cards to the floor, hard enough to smack against the wood floors.

"GO FISH!!"

There's a beat of silence.

"Thor, buddy, that's not even the game we're playing."

"Oh."

Peter laughs and Tony smiles softly at the sound, gently squeezing his shoulder before they sit back on the ground to resume their game.

Steve smiles to himself.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Steve wakes up in a cold sweat tonight, the only light source in his room coming from his digital clock. (The one that he told Tony he didn't need. He knows how to tell time-)

It's 4:30am.

He pushes himself up to a hunched sitting position, elbows pressing into his knees. He drops his head into his hands before swiping his sleeve across his dripping forehead.

He doesn't even remember what he was dreaming about tonight, only the feeling that came with it.

He decides not to dwell on it long, instead pushing up to his feet despite his body weighing him down, tempting him to rest longer. He'd rather do something more productive anyway. (Jeez, he sounds like Tony)

Also he'd probably be up in an hour or so any other day.

He decides to stop in the kitchen for a drink of water but hears a small clatter of objects. The fear he'd felt in his dream returns.

His mind on fight or flight, he inches closer to the doorway and notices a shadow walking right past him. His heart races but still, he whips around the corner ready to attack but is immediately met with a net-like object hitting his fist and connecting to the counter, knuckles smacking against the marble.

He goes to rip out of the bonds but finally feels the material.

Web.

FRIDAY finally turns the lights up to a dim.

Both he and Peter relax when their eyes connect.

His shoulders drop, "Oh, Peter I am so sorry I- I didn't realise. I shouldn't have jumped out like that."

"Nono! It's ok Mr. Rogers! You don't really expect anyone to be up at this time."

Steve huffs out a laugh. "At this point we probably should assume half of us are awake at all times."

Peter pauses.
"Yeah, also understandable. We all kind of suck at sleeping."

Steve glances at the milk carton still sitting out before darting his eyes back to the bowl of cereal in front of the kid.
"Can I join you?"

He looks surprised.

"Yeah! Yeah, of course," he sputters, scooting over and moving his own bowl to the side.

Steve looks around the room, feeling a little awkward. He doesn't usually have moments alone with the kid. With this many people living at the tower, you're rarely ever alone with anyone.

Their kitchen is filthy. He usually tries to clean up a little, and the others do too (sometimes) but right now, it looks like a frat house.

He decides he should be the adult and break the silence. Maybe find a way to send the kid to bed.

"So, why are you up? It's late."

"Couldn't sleep. You?"

"Couldn't sleep," he agrees. "Nightmare."

"Oh," he murmurs. "I'm sorry."

Steve waves him off with a small grin.
"Nah, don't be. It's in the job description. Besides, I don't even remember what it was about."

"Yeah, but those are worse sometimes. The feeling stays longer and you can't even figure out why it's there in the first place."

"That happens to you a lot?"

Peter's expression turns into a grimace of indifference.

"Eh. I usually remember. Either way nightmares suck."

Steve nods quietly. He glances at Peter, watching as his hands fidget. He stares at his lap anxiously, shoulders tense.

"Is that why you're awake tonight?"

"No. Just couldn't sleep. Thinking too much."

"The same thing happens to Tony a lot. Do you want me to-"

"No. N-no thank you."

"He's probably up anyway. You know him."

"Don't want to bother him."

Steve laughs. He didn't mean to, but it happens anyway and he suddenly feels bad when Peter looks up at him desperately, looking genuinely troubled.

"Hey," he says softly. "I just laughed because you could never bother him. Ever."

He looks away again in embarrassment.

"I'm being serious."

"I know," Peter says quietly. "I'm just... thinking a lot."

Steve can take a guess what he had been thinking about. Earlier today, there was a mission and Tony hadn't let him tag along. It happens often- especially since he got particularly injured on one just a few months back. It was pretty bad- some new alien had made itself known and he'd been bitten and injected with its venom.

They knew nothing about it so everyone stayed by his side until the effects wore off. Turns out, it wasn't deadly just extremely destructive  to anything in its path and the venom caused extreme pain and a quickened heart rate. It hurt Steve to look at Peter that night, gripping his arm tight with his eyes squeezed shut as he grunted in pain.

It scared the shit out of Tony. They had no idea if he would have died and all they could do was allow the doctors to watch his vitals. They couldn't even give him pain meds because they didn't know what kind of a reaction he could have with a bite like this.

But being benched during these missions have been driving Peter crazy. He's been a good kid- he's listened- but they could tell it was taking a toll on him.

Tony had mentioned it to the team before that he was torn. It's been taking up a lot of brain space not letting him go to most missions but if he goes, he's jeopardising his life. He didn't know what to do. Eventually, he decided on letting him go to less dangerous missions. (usually a hard call because they're all dangerous but Fury can usually categorise them)

"Thinking about the mission," Steve asks dumbly.

Peter hums.

"I know I couldn't have made that much of a difference but I'm just thinking about all the people I could have helped... there could have been less casualties. And I-I could've come tonight."

"Well, you did have a rough patrol the other night. That wound is still stitching itself up days later and you've got enhanced healing."

"I could've ignored it."

"I don't think Tony would like you ignoring an injury."

Peter's silent for a moment, and Steve suddenly feels as if he said something wrong. Maybe he shouldn't mention what Tony thinks of things. This isn't about Tony. Not right now.

"I... I hate that he doesn't let me come on missions sometimes."

"But you listen."

Peter knows what he means. He didn't always listen to Tony's orders to stay out of trouble, though, there was a recent night where they had one of their talks and Peter hadn't went against his word again. Steve had to admit he was curious as to what he had said to finally get it through his stubborn head to keep himself safe.

"Well, yeah... I-I do get it... cause, like, I guess I understand he gets worried and-and then he gets all distracted because he's worried I'll get hurt and then if he's distracted there could be more casualties."

Steve hums, watching as Peter's mouth gapes as he hesitates on his next sentence.

"I wouldn't... I wouldn't want to disappoint him again. I just... wish I could be more help."

"Hey," Rogers mutters, tone stern, "Let's bring that back real quick- disappointed?"

Peter dips low into his seat, hands covering his face in embarrassment. He groans quietly.
"Let's not bring that back."

"No, listen. Peter, in all my time I've seen you two together, Tony's never been disappointed in you. Worried? Absolutely. Frustrated? Sometimes, but it all comes from him caring about you."

"I know," he whispers.

"You're still learning to be a superhero- and you have to juggle so much more than we did when we started out."

"That's not true."

"We didn't have to get AP Calc homework done before patrol. Or worry about college applications or asking your crush out to a dance. We weren't 15 when this happened to us."

"Ok, ok, I get it," he laughs, waving a hand dismissively.

"Tony knows that. I'm just repeating what he's said."

Peter glances at him again before fiddling with the spoon in his cereal bowl. Steve becomes proud of himself when he sees how he makes an effort to hold back a smile.
"Thanks."

"Of course."

"I'm, uh, I'm gonna go to bed. Night."

"Night," Steve says. He hopes Peter can sleep better after talking about it.

On his way out, he almost walks right into Tony, who, as always, was awake at this ungodly hour.

Peter had jumped out of the way and stared at him like he wasn't expecting him.

"Woah, hey. Why're you up," he asks, before suddenly catching Steve's eye. "Steve?"

He offers a small smile.

"Late night conversations."

"You mean early morning. Kid, why didn't you come get me? You know I'm always up."

Peter laughs awkwardly,
"Yeah, I, uh, I haven't been up long. Just needed a snack."

Tony's brows furrow as he glances at Steve, hoping for a more informative answer.
"O...k. You're heading to bed now?"

"Yeah," he whispers before making the sudden decision to hug his mentor. Tony hugs back, still looking worried. "Night."

When he's out of earshot, Tony walks over and takes a seat next to Steve.

"The hell was that about?"

"Tough night, I think. He was eating cereal when I got here."

Tony's silent for a moment, dragging his thumb across his palm.
"I thought he was mad at me. For not letting him tag along for the mission- he hadn't talked to me all night. I was trying to give him some space... did you talk to him?"

Steve couldn't lie.

"Yeah. I did."

"Is he?"

He's shocked to see the desperate look on his face. Tony never cares what people think.

Despite the situation being serious, he laughs. He makes a mental note to stop doing it when he feels Deja vu from the similar expression to Peter's when he had initially laughed at the assumption of Tony being disappointed in him.

"Sorry- no. Of course he's not. He looks up to you. He just wanted to help and make you proud."

"I'm always proud of him," he says easily. "Always."

"It seems like everyone knows that except for him. He's scared of disappointing you in some way."

Tony sighs and drops his head into his hand before massaging his temples. He looks tired.

"The kid- he's so- ugh," he grunts, "He embodies what good is left in the world, you know? Despite everything he's been put through in just the last 15 years he's been alive, he didn't just... shut down and hate the world. I feel like I've done that over and over again throughout my life- but he never did. Instead, he helped it."

Steve sighs, "I know. I don't know how he does it."

"Steve- that kid has a goddamn villain origin story. But he didn't let it make him a villain- He fights all these baddies every night and still sees the good in people. How come he doesn't see it in himself?"

"I don't know."

"Helpful."

"I'm not a therapist, Tony."

"I know," he laughs, "Thank you. For listening. To me and the kid. I think he needed it tonight."

"You did too."

"Maybe," he murmurs. "I should talk to him. Tell him I'm proud of him."

"You do tell him that."

"But I never tell him why. I just assume he knows. Kid doesn't acknowledge what he does enough."

"No, he doesn't. But he'll learn."

"I hope so..." Tony gets up from the cushions. "I'm going to bed but I'll talk to him tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes. Maybe. Probably not."

Steve makes a mental note to invest in earplugs, feeling quite annoyed with himself that he's accidentally eavesdropped on some personal conversations. He'd rather not deal with the guilt of hearing another one.

"I'm sure I'll hear it anyway," he mutters in thought.

"What?"

"Nothing. Night. Or, morning."

"It's not morning until I've had my third coffee since the sun came up. Night."