Summary: While at a valentines ball with the rest of the team, Peter and Tony take risks that could put their secret relationship in peril.
A/N: My gift is for the Starker community and everyone in the valentines exchange. My prompter unfortunately had to withdraw but I’m glad to still be able to post this work for the event. Thank you to @starker-valentines for having me for the event and @the-mad-starker for helping me edit this. I loved writing it. Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! I can’t wait to see everyone’s works :)
Warnings: There isn’t any serious warnings, but it does mention assumed coercion as their relationship is/was a secret, and the start of a panic attack. There is a little bit of NSFW action also so if you’re with family maybe don’t read it lol.
It’s all Tony can focus on, the colour of Peter's lips so enticing from the other side of the room. His curls look like they’re begging for Tony to run his fingers through them, the soft, warm glow of the ballroom highlighting him like a beautiful angel. The hand-sewn Dolce and Gabana suit he has on should be illegal, the fabric clinging to every inch, every curve of his sinfully young, eighteen year old body that Tony loves too much. His tie is a soft red, matching his handkerchief effortlessly, while the suit itself is a dark, navy blue, perfectly picked by Tony to match the very first Spider-Man suit he ever made for Peter.
The suit Tony wears is black, a non-exuberant gold and red pocket square accentuating his hot-rod red tie. Peter had picked it out for him when Tony chose his suit, all smiles, curls, and pure Peter that he can’t help smiling into his scotch, eyes locked on his boyfriend. He exudes confidence, even from the other side of the room, and Tony can see it in the way Peter is standing.
His hip is jutted out as he speaks to Natasha, the Russian spy dressed in a gorgeous green dress that accentuates her red locks. Peter leans into her casually, eyes flitting between her and Tony. If he didn’t know him better, Tony would swear he’s smirking down into his drink, a light pink cocktail Tony prays is strawberry. He can’t wait to lick it off his lips later, hear him gasp as he makes him come undone.
Tony rolls his eyes and smirks, eyes flitting away as he slides over to Pepper, ever the gracious host in her sunset orange ball gown, hair perfectly curled and pinned up, makeup done to perfection. She stands almost comically taller then Tony in her orange stilettos, his dress shoes not doing much to add to his, as he would argue, very average height.
The overhead lights shine on her as well, albeit not as dazzlingly as it did on Peter. The room's ceiling is filled with them, soft pinks, reds, and whites all making up the love and valentines theme. White marble pillars, interwoven with rich, black waves, tower towards the high ceilings, elegant archways at both ends of the massive space. The room smells of roses, large, extravagant bouquets lining every dining table in the space.
Pepper chats up the guests easily, donations already pouring in and the clock hasn’t even struck nine yet.
Reporters, journalists, world leaders, fellow Avengers. They’re all here for once, it seems. Bruce stands in the corner with Sam and Thor, smiling in the awkward way only the scientist can as he watches Thor drink. Cap is nowhere to be seen, surprisingly, but neither is Bucky, not surprisingly. Wanda, Vision, and Clint all stand by the bar, people watching it seems, just like Tony.
He smirks as a young blonde eyes him, putting on the façade even as he groans from annoyance in his head. Reporter? No, the dress she wears is ostentatious, breasts squeezing to bring his eyes towards them. Maybe just a regular client of Stark Industries, not that he would ever bother to remember her name anyway.
It isn’t exactly his first choice to be here tonight, but as a full-time member of the Avengers, it would have been rude of him not to show up to a charity ball for Valentine’s Day, all to raise money for the children’s hospital. He could definitely be an asshole, as Pepper always so eloquently puts it, but he isn’t that ridiculous.
He could be a nice person sometimes, especially when it comes to events he actually considers important. Peter is also really good at convincing, not that Tony needs to be convinced. If he had known Peter was going to show up looking like this tonight, he wouldn’t have argued with Pepper about it.
He and Peter have been dating secretly around 5 months now, Tony’s desires finally outweighing the guilt that plagued his stomach ever since he admitted to himself his feelings for the younger man. He tried to ignore them at first, trying so damn hard to make them fatherly feelings, but he could never quite squash the nauseous feeling he would get when he thought of being Peter's father.
Mix that with the fact that Peter had still been in high school, and you get the perfect recipe for a shit-storm that the news would eat right up, putting Tony on a pedestal that he didn’t want to be on. He could see the headlines now- “TONY STARK- PERVERT OR ATTENTION WHORE?”
He prayed it was in his head at first, when Peter started to show returned feelings. Working in the lab together, their hands would bump as Peter passed him a tool, his fingers lingering just a little too long, feeling like a burn and yet, an answer to a question he had always been looking for.
He could always tell when the kid was looking at him, eyes always so hot and heavy on his bare shoulders, his hands on the machinery. It made him feel so dirty, craving Peter's touch when he and Pepper made love, that he eventually ended their relationship. He couldn’t bear to look her in the eyes when he was lusting after a teen.
But still, even then, Tony hadn’t caved. He kept his dirty hands to himself, didn’t look back at Peter for longer than he needed to. He got the kid to send updates to Happy, only reading them when he really let himself feel selfish. After losing Pepper and his feelings only getting worse, he quickly succumbed to the bottle again, spending all his nights in the workshop as he built new suits and upgrades for Peter; to feel some connection to him even if he couldn’t have what he so desperately craved.
Eventually, Peter’s birthday came around, and he turned 18, turned legal, and it became harder to ignore him.
When the alcohol didn’t work, and Friday had to lock him out of the workshop in order for him to eat something, he finally allowed himself to start giving in to his selfish feelings. He let his touches linger a bit longer, kept eye contact with Peter longer than necessary. Even with his own reservations, Peter had been nothing short of persistent on his part, wearing tighter and tighter outfits and showing off his lithe body, practically killing Tony until he decided to bite the bullet one day and give in to his desires.
Tony is many things, but denying himself of the poison apple when the tree was right in his grasp? Well, he was never one to say no to something so tempting.
It has been, in all honesty, the best 5 months of his life. They fit so well together, have a lot more in common than they ever thought they would, and, if Tony had to go there, the things they’d gotten around to doing in the bedroom were amazing.
It was like Peter is the one he waited for his whole life; his missing puzzle piece. That, on the one hand, was really most of the reason they hadn’t told anybody yet, except Aunt May, of course. She had reluctantly allowed it, not before graciously attempting to maim Tony first.
It wouldn’t be a lie to say the 30 year age gap freaked him out a bit at first, but after spending so much time with Peter, Tony really started to realize just how mature he is for his age. Besides Bruce, no one else on the team is able to spend so much time in the lab and understand everything Tony says.
Tony has never seen another teen his age speak so intelligently on anything in his life, and it amazes him to no end. And Tony? Well, he’s always been ridiculously immature, so they are practically the same age in the end.
He can hear Peter laughing, his attention brought back over to his boy, watching him as he and Natasha speak to each other. She leans in close, right near his ear, and he giggles. There’s a light flush on the top of his cheeks, the drink he held in his hand no doubt holding a small amount of liquor. He can see his eyes flicking around the room, the hunger in his eyes surprising Tony as they meet.
It’s subtle, the nod he sends Tony, but it screams so loud to him he knows exactly what he wants. Bathroom?
Peter excuses himself from his conversation with Nat who just waves him off, smoothing his suit down as he makes his way towards the small room in the corner.
What a shame, Tony thinks. He’s just going to wrinkle it again, perhaps even worse.
He waits a moment, long enough to hopefully not seem suspicious, before excusing himself from the too-fake people in the too-fake room to make his way to the bathroom.
The lights are way too bright in the space, a gross pale yellow that really doesn’t make him look good. It’s a large bathroom, he knows, but Friday confirms for him quickly that it’s just the two of them in the room.
Tony doesn’t have much time to think about anything else before a soft pair of lips are attaching themselves to his neck, small but strong hands gripping onto his hips under his suit jacket.
“God, Tony. Do you have any idea how good you look tonight? How am I supposed to act like you’re just my mentor in front of all those people when all I want to do is jump on you in the middle of the ballroom? I’m pretty sure I was almost drooling in front of Nat!” Peter sighs, pressing his nose into Tony’s neck, feeling his heartbeat thrum.
“Jesus, Pete. Seriously? You’re concerned about me? I’m Tony Stark. According to everyone out there, I should’ve already taken some ditzy blonde up to some random room and fucked her. You have no idea how hard it is to keep up my ridiculously handsome façade when my teenage intern looks delicious enough to eat,” Tony growls back, pushing Peter against the sink as he backs him up.
Peter's eyes grow wide as he gasps, the small noise swallowed by Tony as he locks their lips together.
Gosh, there it is. Strawberry, mint, and something so Peter he can’t help but moan, gripping onto his curls. He feels breathless, not being able to get close enough to the boy as he grinds against him, smirking against his lips at the whine he gets in return as Peter feels how hard he is for him.
He grips the boy’s hips, pulling back from the kiss to attach his lips to Peter’s neck, right below his ear.
“T-Tony! My suit, you can’t-“
“Oh, Pete, sweetheart, no one will know. Just try to keep quiet for me...”
Peter moans and gasps, hips working a steady rhythm against his boyfriend's as Tony bites and sucks bruises into his neck. Not enough to leave a mark with his superhealing, but enough to get Peter over the edge with his hypersensitivity. He grunts, meeting Peter’s thrusts as he melts against him, the younger boy's breath hitching as he gasps.
“Shhh, Pete. Don’t want anyone to hear you, right?”
Peter whines high in the back of his throat, leaning back on the sink as he wraps his legs around Tony’s waist, head tilted back just enough for Tony to meet his own eyes in the mirror. He looks sinful, lids hooded and lips red from all the kissing.
He grins at himself maniacally, grinding up harder to hear Peter make that sound- oh, oh- as he gets close- He can hear his breathing getting faster, choking on a sob, he whispers his name like a prayer- Tony!- as he almost gets there.
Tony moves, determined to sink his teeth into Peter’s shoulder, to get him over the edge and ride out his high with him, but freezes, eyes locked on the mirror, on the figure now standing in the bathroom doorway. Peter whines, leaning up to bite at Tony’s neck, clearly unaware of their guest. The door that Tony was too busy to make sure was locked before he started humping Peter closes behind them.
If it was any other day, any other moment, and any other person, Tony probably would have made a joke at the swear word, told them to grab a seat if they really wanted to watch, but this was not the time, or the place, or anything for that.
Peter squeals at the voice of the intruder, climbing down off the sink and hiding behind Tony, eyes watering as he shakily watches Bruce Banner gawk at them from the doorway. Tony meets Peter’s eyes quickly, trying his best to calm the boy. He turns around, holding Peter’s hand behind his back, Bruce’s eyes following the movement.
“Of all the things I could walk in on in a bathroom, You touching-“
“Are you fucking kidding me-“
“He’s eighteen! Has been for six months!”
Bruce shuts up at that, glowering at Tony as he crosses his arms across his chest. Peter sighs warily from behind Tony, leaning forward to rest his forehead on Tony’s upper back. Tony glares at Bruce, mouth in a grim line.
“You have to realize how this looks, Tony. This looks so, so bad. How can I-“ he pauses to shake his head, running a hand over his face, “-assume this hasn’t been going on for longer than he was legal? I know what kind of person you were in the past, Tony. Peter isn’t just one of those toys you can throw away. What would the press say? What would Pepper-“
“Don’t,” Tony says, cutting him off. “Come on, Bruce. We’ve known each other for years. I know I'm fucked up as a person in a million ways, I know what kind of person I was in the past, but accusing me of assaulting Peter? Do you really think that low of me?”
Bruce looks ashamed at that, and Tony hopes for his and Peter’s sake, he’ll try and see it from their point of view.
Peter shakily reaches a hand out, gripping onto Tony with a grip so hard it could only be his. “Bruce, please. I know how this looks but I swear to God, this was all consensual. You know Tony, and you know me. This wouldn’t have happened unless I wanted it to. Tony is too good of a man, now, to do anything like this, especially to me.”
Bruce sighs heavily at that, nodding his head warily.
“Look guys, I’m not going to tell, but you need to talk about it, at least with the rest of the team, before someone else does. I really don’t want to see a picture taken when you thought no one was looking. I can’t say I totally agree with this, but I know you guys. The world doesn’t. Just, consider it, okay?” With that, Bruce walks out the door, leaving a very distraught Peter and Tony.
“Holy fuck, Tony. What are we going to do?” Peter says, clutching his curls as he sags against the sink.
He’s breathing deeply, and Tony knows him well enough by now to know he’s right on the brink of a panic attack.
“Hey-hey, hey, hey, It’s okay. You’re okay, Pete,” Tony soothes him, clutching onto the boy as if he’s the one that needs the support.
Someone raps on the door, softly at first, the door squeaking as it’s pushed open.
Tony tenses, turning around to shield Peter as he sighs at the second intruder.
“What a lovely surprise I would say, except this isn’t even really a surprise at all.” He sighs, shaking his head at the person.
Peter glances up at that, peeking from behind Tony’s shoulder to see none other than Black Widow smirking at them both. “I’m not here to yell at you, don’t worry. At least not at you, Peter.”
Tony grunts at that, nodding his head. “Understandable. I knew you couldn’t be in the dark about this. You know anything and everything about anything and anyone.”
Natasha shrugs at that, stepping into the room after she locks the door. She stills for a moment, eyeing the two with a wariness Peter's never seen her carry.
“You may have fooled everyone else, but not me. Bruce didn’t tell me anything, if you’re worried about that. He didn’t even see me come in here. You must agree-“
“Oh, Nat, please don’t try and give me ‘the talk’. You, of all people, are not one for that. If you want me to say I regret anything, that I didn’t mean to do any of it, that I wouldn’t do it all over again in a heartbeat, I won’t say that. I sure as hell didn’t jump him when he didn’t want it, if that’s what you want me to say. If I wanted an argument, I would’ve told Cap by now,” Tony says, pinching the bridge of his nose.
Natasha puts her hand up, effectively silencing the billionaire as she tilts her head to study them. “You know me enough by now, Tony, to know that I won’t beat around the bush about this. I’m not here to berate you, but I’m not going to say this is fine either, because it isn’t. This isn’t completely right. It’s the same thing anyone on the rest of the team would say. What I will say, that I think you already know anyway, is that I see a light in the both of you that I hadn't seen before.”
Peter furrows his brows at that, stepping around from behind Tony to meet Natasha's eyes. She smiles faintly at him as he does, eyes ever watchful as he and Tony lace fingers. “We’ve all been through it. Civil war, the stones, getting the gauntlet off just in time... These weren’t things we faced alone, Peter. But you two, you made something out of that trauma; you leaned on each other.”
She regards them with a look that Peter can only guess is slightly hesitant to continue, as if she’s already said more than she had ever planned to say. She looks out of place in the grand bathroom, and it’s the first time that Peter's ever really seen her like this.
“I wasn’t sure at first that Tony was reciprocating. I was hoping he wasn’t, but when I look at you two now...” she continues, “Tony is a better man because of you, Peter. I won’t be the only one who sees it. I’m not forcing you. You can tell on your own time. I’m just saying that you mostly have me on your side. And if Tony hurts you?”
Tony looks up at her sharply at that, the smallest hint of fear in his eyes as she smirks at him. “He knows I’ll show him, Peter. You have my word.” With that, she turns and leaves, unlocking the door and opening it to a loud chorus of chatter that quickly falls silent as the door falls shut behind her.
The two men sag against the counter together, older and younger, unexpected lovers, complete geniuses, unlikely soulmates, and, at one time, mentor and mentee.
Peter clutches at Tony, face buried in his lover's suit as he tries to think. This was not at all how he expected things to go, but it could’ve been worse. In all his years of being Spider-Man, Peter's learned that the hard way. It’s not over, not even close. There is still so much to do, so many people to tell, so much inevitable backlash to face together.
All this was just that. Together. From being in Peter's room, back in Queens before the civil war, to the spaceship heading to space, to an unknown ending, they were always together, always there for each other. Becoming a couple hadn’t been easy for them, but they never thought it would have been.
In their lives, nothing’s ever been easy. If you had told Tony three years ago that the boy in his arms would be the love of his life, a teammate with the Avengers, and the one thing he would never stop fighting for, he would have been shocked.
Now, all these years later, he would- will do anything for Peter. No one can take that away from him.
“Hey, Pete?” Tony says, putting a finger under the boy's chin to lift his face up.
Peter meets his eyes, and Tony can see the fear in them.
“You know you have me, right? I’m not going to let anything happen to us. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me,” he says, caressing his cheek.
Peter smiles, the same beautiful smile that Tony unknowingly fell for all those years ago, small but full of heart, and he knows. He knows that as long as this boy is by his side, there’s nothing they can’t do together.
