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Peter was generally a good and polite kid, so Tony and Stephen didn’t impose as many rules as most teenager his age was subjected to. Usually any rules imposed is only due to past events that resulted in Peter being emotionally or physically compromised. Like if he’s in any way hurt, even if it’s just a scratch, he needs to tell at least one of his parents. This was after he got hurt while trying to stop a robbery while patrolling, and didn’t think to tell his parents about it thinking it was just a sprained ankle and that it will heal itself the next morning. Turns out he broke his ankle and the bones was not set properly before it tries to heal itself. When Peter woke up the next morning, he was in excruciating pain. Stephen was near frantic after they have to re-break his bone to set it and Peter was a sobbing mess during the whole ordeal. Stephen was on all out Mama Bear mode for the next few days and didn’t let Peter out of the master bedroom for 3 days straight with a lot of Mama Bear-cub cuddles. In the end Tony and Stephen made Peter promise to tell them for any injuries or if he’s generally not feeling well.
Another rules they have set was Peter has to be in bed by midnight on a school day and can only stay up until 2am on weekends. This however does not apply during school break, where Peter is allowed to stay up as long as he wished, provided he get a full 6 to 8 hours of sleep a day. This rules comes from a less dramatic (thank god!) event after Peter’s school has informed them for the third time that their son has yet again fall asleep during class. Between school work, patrolling, lab time, socialising, and general cuddling and movie nights with the family, Peter was barely getting enough sleep. So they decide that they need to put a stop to it. Surprisingly it was Tony who come up with the rule, knowing full well from his own childhood what Peter is heading to if they did not enforce a good sleep habit from young. Peter had grumbled at first, but finally relented since this was not exactly new to Peter, May having set similar rules when they were living together.
It is due to this very rule that found one sorcerer standing with a small smile at the door of the tower lab close to midnight, trying to get his son to bed. Stephen smiles at the thought as this was a rare occurrence, since most nights Peter is already in his room at this time, or already back in the tower 15 minutes before on patrol days. This night however, was not one of those nights. Him and Tony was sitting together while working on what seems to be a new model of Peter’s web shooter.
“Come on Peter. Bedtime.”
“Aww mom. Please, can I stay up a little late tonight?” Peter said while giving Stephen his famous puppy eye and a little pout. Him and Tony are working on the latest web shooter design and he just can’t wait to get it done.
Tony only smirked. He knows Peter knows that puppy eyes rarely works when the sorcerer is in Mama bear mode but it didn’t stop him from trying anyway.
Stephen just raised his eyebrows and was about to replied when Tony stepped in.
“Come on spider baby. Let’s go to bed. I’m kinda tired anyway. We can finish this later.” Tony tried to placate Peter. Peter eyes him suspiciously, as if it’s not a known fact that Tony often works in his lab well into the night and even until next morning. But his Dad did look like he’s exhausted, having just returned from Berlin that evening from a business trip he just couldn’t get out of no matter how much he grovel with Pepper. Peter haven’t see his dad for several days, which prompted him to immediately asked if his Dad wanted to spend some time in the lab with him when he returned earlier that day.
In a hindsight, maybe Peter should have suggested a family movie night after dinner instead to let his dad rest. But he have a wonderful idea about a new web shooter design that he just can’t wait to share with Tony. “Fine. I guess we can go to bed.” Peter sighs while getting up and putting stuffs away for the night. Tony close up his lab and together they walk out of the lab.
Stephen gave a soft smile and open his arm and pull Peter close. “Come on cub. I know you missed your Dad. But both of you need to sleep. Your father looks ready to keel over and I seems to recalled someone said that he could sleep for 24 hours straight after the tiring day at school today.” Stephen teased while grinning at his two boys.
“Are you implying I am old?” Tony said with mock hurt. “I’ll have you know I’m not ready to keel over. I have so much energy left, I’ll just show you how much later” Tony said while winking at Stephen. Stephen just rolled his eyes at Tony “You’re incorrigible.”
“Eww. I do not need to hear that. Urgh, I’m scarred for life!” Peter pretend to gagged at his parent banter.
“Cub, do you want to sleep in our room again tonight?” Stephen asked Peter fondly. On the second night after Tony left for Berlin, Stephen found Peter moping around the kitchen well after his bedtime. Luckily it was the weekends so Stephen decide to let is slide to get Peter to tell him what’s bothering him. It turns out Peter can’t sleep, this being the first time they were separated this long since the day they brought Peter back after May’s untimely demise. He missed Tony and was worried about his safety, and as irrational as it sounds, have this fear of losing him (something he develop after losing multiple set of parents) that it affected his sleep. Stephen does not want to think what will happen when he have to go away for more than a day for his Sorcerer’s Supreme duty, they’ll cross that bridge when they get there. So after getting Peter to drink a warm milk (while protesting he was not a baby) Stephen directed Peter to the master bedroom.
“Come on, let’s sleep in here tonight. I missed him too, let’s cuddle and send your father a picture of us together to make him jealous.” Stephen grinned mischievously and directing Peter to the large bed in the middle of the room. Peter laughed and immediately curled next to Stephen after he settles under the cover.
“FRIDAY, be a dear and send a picture of us now to Tony with the caption ‘he’a all mine tonight’” Stephen directed to ceiling. “Already done sir” FRIDAY replied cooly. Tony, despite it being rather early all the way in another continent, is in a very important, very boring meeting, and was desperately hoping for something to distract him. The message couldn’t arrive at a more perfect timing, and he discreetly open the message to read it. He managed to stop himself at the last minute from cooing at the picture he received. Peter was curled sleepily next to Stephen with his head on Stephen’s shoulder, while the sorcerer’s head is resting on top of Peter’s. God he missed his family.
Tony can’t believe he would ever get to experience this feeling, having already gave up on the idea of a family when he and Pepper separated. Now here he was, only two days of not seeing his husband and son and already missing them so much that he even debated asking Stephen to open up a portal just so he can be back with them for the night. He sighs again, knowing full well the full schedule Pepper has prepared for him for the next few days. He decided that he need to bring his family with him the next time he was forced to leave the country.
The next three days found Peter sleeping in his parents bedroom, on his Dad pillow so he can surround himself with his father’s familiar scent of motor oil and expensive cologne. Peter regarded the sorcerer question for a while, but decide against it. He knows Stephen misses Tony just as much, and Peter has been hogging Tony ever since he returned earlier today, so he figured they should have their time together without Peter bothering them. Never mind what ever they decide to do with that time.
“It’s okay. I think I can sleep well tonight now that Dad’s home.” Peter smiled at his parents.
“Are you sure? I am kinda jealous Mom gets to cuddled with you every night while I’m on my own on a cold hard bed every night for the past week”
Stephen just rolled his eyes as his dramatic husband. “As if you’ll let Pepper book you into a hotel with nothing less than a soft mattresses with crazy amount of threads of cover to keep you warm.”
“Well any bed without my family is cold and hard for me.”
“It’s okay dad. We’ll do movie nights tomorrow since it’s already Friday. We can have family cuddles then. Night Dad, love you.” Peter said while hugging Tony, and Tony kissed him on his head. “Night mom. Thanks for letting me sleep with you while dad was away” Peter said while hugging Stephen.
“You know you can always come to us if you can’t sleep, even if both of us is here” Stephen said while kissing Peter on the crown of his head. “I know.” Peter smiles softly and went to his bedroom.
“So my dear wife, what do you think we should do now that we’re alone” Tony said while wriggling his eyebrow at Stephen. Stephen just chuckled at his husband antics “Well, why don’t you decide my dear husband, while I go brush my teeth.” Stephen said while walking towards the ensuite bathroom. When Stephen steps out of the bathroom, he found Tony already asleep with a light snore under the cover. Stephen chuckled softly while kissing his husband on the head “So much for showing your energy.”