Chapter Fifteen

Friends

"No, no, and no. Absolutely not." I continue arguing with Tony as Peter watches, in awe. Tony's trying to convince me to let movers pack up my stuff and I'm totally against it. "I don't want people touching my stuff, Tony!" He rolls his eyes.

"First, kid, you're burning that sandwich," He turns and tells an ogling Peter who then scrambles to fix his mistake. "second, fine. Just fine! You pack up all your stuff and tape it, then I'll have people come in and take it away. Christ!" He breathes and shakes his head, walking out past Natasha. When she walks in, she raises her eyebrows at me, having seen Tony's expression.

"He's being pissy about my packing situation. You're going to be in the room right next to me, right?" I ask just to confirm. She purses her lips in the way she always does and slides gracefully around Peter in the kitchen while making a cup of coffee.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that. Walk with me?" She requests, but I hesitate and look at Peter. He smiles charmingly at me and waves a hand.

"It's fine, I'll bring you your sandwich." He assures me kindly. I hop off my barstool and shoot him a grateful look before ducking out the door with Natasha, heading in the direction of my room.

"You and Peter seem to have really taken a shining towards one another..." She trails off a little before looking at me with a small, knowing smile. I'm tempted to roll my eyes, but can't stop my lips from smiling a little when she says his name.

"Well yeah. He's the first non-douche I've met my age and although we're super different, we also have a lot of surprising similarities." I explain with a stupid grin on my face. I look back at Natasha to see her already staring at me. She hums in interest and is struggling to keep down her own smile.

"I see. What I wanted to suggest is putting you and Peter's room next to one another." Natasha suggests in a nonchalant tone. Interest rises in me instantly.

"Why?" I ask suspiciously and watch Natasha press her lips together to keep from grinning.

"I think it would help both of you to have someone your age nearby. And it'll help Peter not to be killed by the rest of us from all his questions." She tells me with a smirk.

"Uh-huh. And you have no other motives?" I question just to see her reaction, grinning when her smirk grows.

"No others that are pertinent right now." She responds diplomatically. I shake my head and roll my eyes as we reach my room. Empty boxes are leaning against the wall along with a couple of rolls of packing tape.

"Mmhmm. Well, I wouldn't mind if Peter and I were next to one another, but I want you nearby too." I strike a deal, liking how her eyes brighten at my request.

"Deal. I'll make the arrangements with Stark." She says and we both glance to the right when we hear light footsteps. "Have fun." She reminds me and sashays away just as Peter rounds the corner.

"Thanks, Peter," I tell him as he hands me a paper plate with two grilled cheeses on it.

"No problem. Is this your room?" He asks curiously and I nod. I hesitate slightly, then open the door and look at his pretty brown eyes.

"You want to come in?" I offer and smile when Peter grins, then ducks inside.

"Whoa." He whispers instantly and I laugh. "Did you...did you draw all these?" Peter asks with a voice full of awe. I take off my mask and set it on the bedside table, then nod.

"Uh, yeah. It's a sort of therapy for me." I explain while walking to my bed, sitting Indian style with my sandwiches in my lap. Peter walks around the room and takes his time looking at every drawing as if he's in an art gallery.

"You're so talented! These are amazing!" He tells me earnestly before walking back over to me. I gesture for him to sit and he does, on the far corner of my bed.

"Thank you. I'm sorry about today. I'm probably going to spend most of it packing instead of training." I apologize genuinely. I was really looking forward to just hanging out with him and showing off. Peter shakes his head.

"No problem! Actually, I could help you pack if you like? Then I'd still get to hang out with you." He suggests and I can't keep the smile off my face.

"That would be a huge help. This is a really good sandwich, by the way." I compliment and bask in the glow of his bright smile. We finish eating, then start packing. "Okay, so I pack, you tape and label," I instruct and he nods.

"So...do you know the arrangement of the rooms at the new place?" Peter asks with a slight nervousness in his voice. I smirk down at the folded clothes in my box, then slide it over to him. "I mean, like, are we near each other?" He continues as I grab another box and start packing that one.

"Actually yes. I was just talking to Natasha and she says we're right next to each other." I respond and make sure to watch his face for his response. His eyes instantly brighten and his lips stretch into a smile, he can't even help it.

"That's great! I mean...it's uh, it's really cool to be around someone the same age." He tries to recover from his enthusiasm, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't just as excited.

"Yeah, I'm happy about it too." I return in a sober voice, but you'd think I just shouted it by the look of joy on his face. "Don't slack though, Parker." I tease and slide a third box over to his little pile. He's quick to tape, label, and take them to the door before returning to his place beside me. "Alright, that's it. Now all that's left is to get my drawings off the walls." I sigh, looking around at all of them. 

"Steve gave me a folder just a little while ago..." I trail off, ducking down and grabbing it from under my bed. "Got it!" I set the big folder on my bed and look up to find Peter on the ceiling, already working to unpin my drawings from the walls. A laugh slips from my lips and he lets his head hang down with a silly grin.

"You have a really cute laugh." He remarks and blushes when I do.

"Uh, thanks..." I respond happily, then clear my throat. "So just unpin them and I'll put them in my folder." He nods and goes back to work. The drawings flutter down like huge snowflakes and we make surprisingly quick work of it. Once we're done, I set the folder on top of the boxes next to the door and frown. "I'm surprised at how few boxes there are. I thought I had more stuff than this." I muse as Peter drops off the wall gracefully.

"I think I have about three times this amount of stuff in just my room." Peter jokes. "Uh, hey. Do you think you could draw me?" He asks slowly, surprising me.

"Sure. Uh, get comfortable somewhere." I gesture to the room and grab my folder and back pack, getting out my sketchbook and pencils before heading to my desk. A little laugh slips from my lips when I see he's created a little hammock in the corner of the room. "Nice," I comment and sit down, then get to work.

"Do you mind if I ride with you to the new place?" He asks and I grin at the thought.

"Well, that depends." I pause and look up at him. "Do you like to go fast?" Peter nods after chuckling.

"Definitely." I nod and go back to sketching.

"Then sure you can. I'll drive." I allow, smirking because I know he has no clue we'll be going on my red Harley. Both of us fall silent when my doors open, letting in Bucky and Steve. The two men instantly look for Peter, who waves sheepishly from his hammock.

"Hey, kid. We came to see if you needed help packing." Bucky says and walks over to me, planting a kiss on my hair.

"Seems like you managed alright," Steve says and raps his knuckles on one of the boxes by the door.

"Peter and I packed up my things," I tell him while blocking my drawing from Bucky's eyes. When they meet my eyes again I give them both a pointed look to remind them of their promise.

"Right...that was nice of you, Peter," Steve says, but his tone isn't exactly gracious and Peter still looks partially worried.

"Steven Grant Rogers." I hiss and get an eye roll for my trouble.

"Look, Peter. Jo is important to us, so as long as you treat her well, you'll be treated well." Bucky says and walks over, offering his left hand for the kid to shake. I roll my eyes, but at least it's a slight improvement. Peter shakes his hand while staring at it in wonder.

"Of course, sir." He answers sincerely and Bucky backs off, shooting me a wink before heading out the door. Steve is next and he's slow to move, his arms begrudgingly crossed across his chest.

"Welcome to the team, Peter." He finally relents and shakes Peter's hand, nodding at me once before leaving like we agreed. I meet Peter's eyes and laugh at his expression.

"I'm sorry they're being so tough. They're really just softies, I swear." I promise and go back to sketching.

"Can I do anything to get them to like me?" He asks hopefully.

"Peter, just be you. And don't take any of their bullshit." I respond and this time he laughs, filling the room with the happy sound. My hand flies over the paper, adding the little finishing touches before ripping it out and walking over to Peter. "Now this is really unfinished. Right now, it's just you and your hammock, but..." I shrug, handing the paper over to him. He sits up and lets his legs hang over the side, then takes the paper.

"Wow! This looks just like me! You need to go professional or something. Do you have an Instagram or anything?" He asks and my eyes widen. "So, no. Sorry, come on up here." Peter extends a hand down to me and I take it without a thought. He pulls me up easily and we jostle around for a moment before we settle, our sides completely pressed against one another. 

"Do you have your phone?" He asks with red cheeks. I nod and hand it to him from a hidden pocket. "Well, first I'll put my number in and text myself," Peter tells me and even snaps a funny picture for his contact. Next, he downloads Instagram onto my phone and shows me how to use it. "Okay, so you post pictures and videos of whatever you want. Like your art." He finishes and hands it back to me.

"I'm not sure I'm going to be the greatest at keeping up with this," I tell him and he shrugs.

"I think you'll be surprised at how fun it is. I made sure you're following me and some other good people and I'll follow you back when I can get to my phone." He assures me comfortingly. I think for a few moments, then click the plus button at the bottom of the screen.

"Will you take a picture with me?" I ask sheepishly. He perks up like a puppy and nods.

"Uh, wait. Probably shouldn't take one with my suit on." He says and I nod.

"What if we took one with our masks on?" I suggest and he grins.

"Genius, yeah!" He agrees and shoots a web at my mask on the bedside table, causing it to shoot into his hand. He hands it to me and I put it on as he puts his mask back on as well.

"Uh, okay. How exactly do we do this?" I ask, holding out the phone and trying a couple of different angles.

"May I?" He asks and I instantly hand him the phone. "I'm going to go to your normal camera so you can keep the pictures we take." He tells me before holding it out in front of us, moving it around so it gets the webbing in the background. I run a hand halfway through my curls and look at the camera with a half-smile on my face. The screen blinks and I grin when Peter brings up the picture.

"Nice," I comment and Peter nods.

"I'll have to introduce you to snapchat as well, but this is a good start. Now, caption this with whatever you want. Usually, it's best to be short and sweet." He instructs and I nod, absorbing and storing the information in my head. He hands my phone back to me and I go back onto Instagram, typing in a few words before showing Peter for approval. "New Avengers hanging out. Literally." He reads and laughs a little. "I like it." He approves and I post it then let my phone sleep. We both take off our masks and set them aside. I'm happy I can see his face again.

"You want to go train for a little before dinner?" I suggest and those pretty brown eyes light up. He nods and hops off the hammock, then lifts his arms to help me down. I wave his arms away and hop down myself, trying not to smile at his slightly impressed look as we start walking to the training room. We walk in and I'm not even surprised to find Tony's already there, waiting for us. "How'd you know?" I ask with a sigh. Tony smirks and stands from his leaning position on the far wall.

"Jac told me what you two were planning. Naughty children." He scolds us both lightly.

"Sorry, Mr. Stark. We were just going to mess around a little." Peter tries to explain. A few tense moments pass as we all realize the other way Peter's words could be taken. Tony's expression sobers and he moves about a half foot away from us and crosses his arms across his chest.

"You two were just going to mess around, huh?" Tony emphasizes the words as his dark eyes flick between us. He seems intimidating, but I know Tony too well for this bullshit.

"No. No, no, no. You see-it definitely wasn't like that sir. No way." Peter's face is beet red, but my mind is whirring to think of how to handle this.

"Yup, absolutely," I confirm and both their heads turn towards me. Peter's eyes are wide and horrified, but Tony remains collected. "Me and Petey here were going to create a bed from his spider web stuff and make love while hanging from the ceiling," I tell Tony while staring straight into his eyes with a straight face. We stare off for a minute, Peter nervously staring at the two of us, before Tony grins and starts laughing.

"You kill me Josie, but still, no lasers for the two of you." He tells me and Peter sighs in relief, but now stares at me like I'm some mythical creature.

"You can make lasers?" He asks quietly and I just have time to nod before Tony's arms are around both of us.

"Not today. Both of you go change for dinner. In your own rooms." Tony makes sure to specify and pats both of us on the back before we walk back to my room.

"Alright well, I'll show you once we've moved to the new facility. See you at dinner?" I ask, my body hidden behind my door as I wait for his answer. He scratches the back of his neck and nods.

"Sounds good. Uh, did you just come up with that on the fly? The...hanging from the ceiling thing?" Peter asks interestedly with flushed cheeks. I giggle, then purse my lips.

"It's best to always be armed with your wits," I tell him simply. "Especially at dinner." I tease and wave before ducking into my room, grabbing my bag and changing into jeans, a baggy white T that I half tuck in, and blue socks. When I walk out my door I find Peter waiting there for me. He's changed into jeans, a science-themed T, and tennis shoes. "Hey." I greet him, a smile easily taking over my face. He looks up and smiles too, walking to my side.

"Hi. Uh, sorry, I just didn't want to go in alone." He explains himself and it's endearing.

"Peter, you really don't need to be afraid of everyone. Be yourself and maybe ask some normal questions along with your in-depth ones." I advise him as we slowly walk to the gathering room. His eyes are extremely focused on me as I tell him this, like I'm some fountain of great knowledge. I find I don't mind.

"Okay, okay. I can do that." He murmurs.

"I've got your back, Peter," I assure him just as we walk in to find everyone's already here, including his aunt. Gently, I lay a hand on Peter's arm in reassurance, then head over to make sure Steve and Bucky are behaving.

"Ah, so now we're allowed to talk to you?" Bucky sasses instantly and I'm tempted to shock him for it.

"I just think we were at a point in our relationship where we needed some space." I sass right back and both men chuckle in response.

"Look, we're sorry for being less than hospitable." Steve tries to say genuinely, but the smirk on his face belies his sincerity.

"Sure," I respond instantly, grinning when he looks at me knowingly. "Who made dinner tonight?"

"I did," Natasha says as she walks over, a small smirk on her face. "Actually, I was being distracted by Peter. He has...a lot of questions." She tells us while doing her best not to grin, but she must try hard.

"Yeah, be prepared. What did you make tonight?" I ask and watch as Bucky slinks away to pick on Peter.

"Lasagna. Homemade." Natasha answers proudly, but her tone is cool as always.

"Homemade? Surprised I can't smell it burning." Steve teases instantly, earning playful glares from Natasha and me.

"Zip it, Rogers." She quips with a tiny smile before walking back over to prevent Tony from stealing a piece out of the oven. Gently, Steve takes my hand and instantly our minds connect, used to one another.

"How are you, Jo?" He asks considerately, and I smile just looking at him.

"Pretty good," I respond with a swirl of surprise in my mind, not used to the feeling of being okay for a long period of time. His emotions swirl inside his own head and my grin grows a little at the emotion. "What's that, Steve? You miss me after seeing me a couple of hours ago?" I ask teasingly. Shock registers, then resigned acceptance.

"Well, I'm just used to being with you all the time. Not seeing you twenty-four seven is strange." He answers cutely. "And I thought I had more time before seeing you with boys." He adds in a teasing tone.

"Steve," I emphasize his name, half amused and half shocked. "First, it's just one boy and the boy is my friend. Second, what do you want to do? Have a daddy daughter date?" I suggest and break contact when we're all called over for dinner.

"I'm not opposed." He responds and wheels me over to the table when I stop to answer him. We sit in our normal spots, but to include Aunt May and Peter we all slide down a little. Bucky and Steve refuse to remove themselves from my sides, so Peter sits down at the other end with Tony. He seems absolutely fine with the arrangement and actually dominates a lot of the conversation with his questions. 

Natasha's eyes are on me often and it's hard to keep a smile off my face. I don't need to be able to read minds in order to know what she's thinking. Aunt May distracts her for a few moments and my mind drifts to Steve. His eyes are on Peter and I can tell he's watching his every move intently. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to get him out of the house for a while.

"Do you know when we're moving out tomorrow?" I ask him quietly, not wanting any attention drawn to me. His blue eyes land on me quizzically as he answers.

"The evening. Probably around three? Why?" He tells me and questions just as quietly.

"I'm going to come get you sometime before then. For a surprise." I whisper.

"Is everyone invited?" Bucky leans over and asks. I shove him away and roll my eyes.

"No. You can come. But that's it. Me, you, and Steve. Now, shut up and eat." I tell him and both men chuckle before doing just that. Dinner is filled with polite chatter and Natasha's lasagna is better than I thought it would be, no offense to her. Peter's nerves seem to have settled and I settle for encouraging him with the occasional glance. I think he's doing fine on his own though.

"So, Peter, have you decided if you're going to move with us?" The table falls silent when Tony asks this, waiting to hear Peter's answer. I feel his anxiety from over here and instantly send a wave of calm over the entire table. Natasha and Bucky frown and I do my best to focus it more on Peter and Aunt May. I know they both don't like it when I influence their emotions. Peter glances at his Aunt and I see both their hands move under the table to clutch onto one another.

"I have a condition." Aunt May says forcefully, looking Tony straight in the eyes. "I have to be able to visit him and he has to be able to visit me. Whenever he or I want. Without that, you can't have him." She tells him without blinking. Tony grins and nods.

"Of course. I've already set up a room for you. I'd be happy to show you the plans?" He offers and stands, gesturing out the door with a hand. She nods and stands, following him out after ruffling Peter's hair. Peter looks at me triumphantly and I let go of my calm hold over the room, grinning back at him. 

I gesture to the door with my chin and grab a couple of plates, nodding at the people I take them from. Quietly, I load the dishwasher and slip out of the room with Peter just behind me. When we're far enough away from the doors I hit his shoulder.

"I'm so happy you can come!" I tell him genuinely. He stops us both and hugs me.

"I know! I can't believe it!" He tells me enthusiastically when I finally hug him back, the shock finally wearing off. When we release each other our faces are red, but it could just be from the excitement.

"You know what else?" I ask and he shakes his head. "Tony's going to be busy for a while...do you want me to show you some stuff?" His eyes light up and he's nodding before I'm even done.

"Are you joking? Let's go!" He encourages, and we nearly sprint to the nearest training room hand in hand. 

A/N

Oh, god the trouble that these two get into. I'm so unsurprised. Hehehe.

Please keep reading!