Chapter Text
It wasn’t like things were perfect. At least, not in the conventional sense.
Tony wasn’t always available. He had to be in pain or drunk to express his feelings out loud. He was oblivious to social niceties, and forgetful about holidays and anniversaries. He could be demanding and then neglectful and then overbearing.
But none of that was ever a problem for Peter, because Tony always noticed the important things — and then fixed them. Hell, he even fixed the things Peter hadn’t considered a problem. Like how Peter’s laptop slowed to a crawl whenever he launched his university software. Or how Peter’s two jobs and commute to Queens cut into his patrols. Or how his paper-thin apartment walls and loud neighbors kept him constantly sleep deprived.
All things, Tony said, that he could fix.
Peter, who had grown up with the looming threat of eviction while dumpster-diving for electronics, understood more than most the value of Tony’s gifts. They weren’t superficial. They were stability and security and life. What’s more, coming from Tony, they were something even more valuable than money.
Because when it came to the languages of love, Tony was a giver. And Peter?
Peter was happy to take.
So yeah, the problem wasn’t with that. The problem was — as usual — other people.
Because Tony’s gifts weren’t subtle.
When Peter was papped driving up to Stark Tower in his Spider-Man-red sports car, or wearing custom sneakers, or walking out of designer stores with a handsy Tony on one arm and a shopping bag on the other — he knew what it looked like and he didn’t care.
(At least, not anymore.)
Who cared if the press called him a gold digger? So what if the sugar baby hashtag was 90% paparazzi photos of him? The internet had an off switch and Peter knew how to use it. Tony’s love was a literal gift and, for some reason, he had given it to Peter. If strangers judging him was the price he had to pay, then he’d gotten it for cheap.
As long as Peter got to watch Tony’s eyes light up when he opened his gifts, and watch those eyes go dark when Peter stripped out of his ludicrous designer clothes. As long as he got to see Tony smirk when he showed off SI’s latest tech to Ned, and Tony smile when he developed gauntlet designs from the comfort of his absurd penthouse.
So what if Tony got distracted by work or stuck in meetings with the NSA? Why would he care about that, when he got to sit at his own desk in Tony’s lab, holding a tablet Tony had designed, wearing a sense-muffling robe Tony had invented for him? Completely surrounded by the physical proof that Tony Stark loved him.
No, none of that was the problem.
The problem was that he was the only person in Tony’s life who understood this. The problem was that the friends and lovers and coworkers Tony had amassed over his 48 years on the planet still didn’t speak Tony Stark.