Work Text:
Lab Days
“Kid, can you knock it off?” Tony tossed a spanner on the pile of discarded tools. “That’s starting to get annoying.”
“Oh sorry.” Peter stilled his hand where he had been nervously tapping his pen against the desktop. “I do that sometimes... when I’m thinking,” he explained.
Tony doesn’t answer and things lapse into an awkward silence. These lab days are new and they’re still figuring out what works for them.
Peter loses himself in thought again, this time holding the pen in front of him between fingertips and staring off into space.
‘Creepy,’ Tony thinks as he watches the dazed teenager out of the corner of his eye. “Homework?” He finally asks.
The kid starts, “Oh, uh, no. I was thinking…” he trails off again, but he’s not lost again Tony realizes. He’s not sure if should share, was allowed to share. Well, that’s not going to work.
“Chemical or mechanical?”, Tony prompts.
“Oh uh, mech-mechanical?”
Tony moves from his space behind Peter, tapping a quick code on the touchscreen desktop. Immediately, a holographic workspace pops up.
Peter rears back a bit. “Whoa! Whoa I had no idea it could.. that was there the whole time??”
“Oh yes, this is my lab, everything is ‘super cool’ and all that jazz. Now pay attention.” Tony finishes setting up a folder labeled ‘Parker.’
“This is where you can unload all those ideas floating around in that big brain of yours. We encourage that kind of thing around here.” He pauses. “Ok, I encourage it. Pepper is more selective and isn’t a big fan of the ‘scientific progress goes boom’ model. You following?”
The kid is nodding but Tony can see the gears turning behind bright eyes. Peter’s already sitting up straighter.
“Now, FRIDAY can help you. She can assist in calculations but you can manipulate all your own data points here and here.” Tony taps in some figures. ”You press this and you get a complete 3D rendering. Once you get to this point, you can do whatever you want.“ He pulls the holographic model apart. “Sky’s the limit.”
Peter reaches past him, opening a new file and getting started. He’s tentative at first but is quick to gain confidence.
Tony goes back to his own project, sometimes stealing glances at what it is the kid is busy designing. Step by step an elegant new web shooter is taking shape.
Peter stops suddenly, catching his eye.”Mr. Stark, this is incredible. Thank you.” His grin is bright and his enthusiasm contagious.
“Sure, Kid.” Tony smiles. “Knock yourself out.”
They continue on in companionable silence.
End