definingfuture | IC inbox for duplicity

How about "sorry, the text wasn't meant for you, goodbye!" instead?

Sounds real smooth to me.

If you lead with that, they really won't want to have sex on the ceiling with you.

Don't tell me you're embarrassed?

[ On one hand this conversation is ridiculous and he should back out of it instead of digging his grave further. On the other he's getting more and more irritated by the minute.

Last time he got irritated by Tony Miles ended up in trouble because neither of them was paying attention. Maybe he should cool it and actually act like a mature adult.

Maybe. ]

I'm not embarrassed.

But I don't want to discuss my sex life with you, Stark. Great to know you're here, by the way.

It's okay to be embarrassed.

[He can feel the irritation resonating from the responses. It doesn't take a genius or an AI to tell that much. And... he doesn't exactly feel surprised either.]

Oh? Was I supposed to tell you I was here?

[ He really should just cut the conversation right here and now. He doesn't need to mess things up any further and he's perfectly happy keeping his life as Peter Parker very far away from Tony. And yet. ]

No, that was obviously an attempt to steer this not at all awkward conversation away from how not embarrassed I am.

I can see it worked great.

[There's a tight ache in his chest. He really liked this man; admired him in a way. Although the exact reasons are hard to place and he doesn't think that matters very much now, especially while they are here. But it hurts to feel that disappointment. And... disgust? Maybe. Maybe something else.]

You don't have anything to be embarrassed about.

Really? Because I had pineapple on pizza just the other day. Not as bad as you'd think.

[ It takes him a couple more minutes before he sends another message ]

Do you actually know who I am?

[What a strange response. Comfortable. He doesn't know what to make of that. Or the next one that comes after Tony figures Peter has moved on.]

Peter Parker? I'd like to think so.
You worked with me for a while.

[What does that even mean? He doesn't know. It's just an answer that comes on its own.]

[ Somehow, he feels like going back to the embarrassing text might be better than this. ]

Yeah. A long time ago now.

[ And really, it was. So how come it still feels fresh? He's responsible for his own decisions. Out of everything that happened, the person Peter has been most disappointed by had been himself.

But Tony ... well. It's complicated. ]

How's this place treating you?

How long ago?

[Might as well ask. It doesn't really matter, but he likes to keep track anyway. It's a detail to mull over later.]

Better than it's treating half of the people they bring here. Can I ask...?

Long enough that you don't have to worry about it. Let's maybe never ever touch my professional career again. Sore topic.

[ He's also not sure how much Tony remembers and what he remembers, since he knew he was Spider-man back then. The less he says, the less suspicious he's going to get, which means he's less likely to put the pieces together.

He's again thinking that he should just drop the conversation entirely, it's better that way. He's not even remotely over everything that happened between the two of them, after all.

But he keeps writing anyway. ]

It's treating me well enough too. Unless you were going to ask something else, in which case, well. I might just not answer.

[The conversation is going poorly. Maybe too poorly for the moment, even if it is conversation relating to home. It's strange, and maybe a little familiar in a way that makes Tony want to react in a way he doesn't understand.]

Peter.

We've established that's my name.

Last name is Parker, in case you forgot that.

[It's personal. That's alarming, because Tony can't precisely put his finger on why it would be.]

I haven't forgotten. Actually, I've been wondering about it, but I hadn't gotten a chance to say anything to you yet. I thought it might just be a weird coincidence.

[ See, now it's the time to panic because way to say the worst thing he could have. He hasn't forgotten. Just his last name? Or is he speaking about other things. Peter just went and talked about encounters on the ceiling and Stark knows about Spider-man. Obviously. Has he already made the connection?

No, that's ridiculous.

Should he ask to meet? Does he want to meet Tony? He's never texting anyone ever again. Ever. ]

We are still talking about my last name, right?

[What did he do now? That response is... weird. It's obviously referring to something, and Peter is clearly on edge, but by now Tony expected outright anger and accusations. Threats, maybe. Whatever it is they are dancing around is clearly important to Peter and he'd normally expect to be hearing audible screams by now. So why are they playing hot potato with whatever important event this is?

His head hurts. He doesn't want to deal with screaming. Or pain. Or more hatred from people he knew.]

It sounds like you're the one that wants to forget things.

[ Honestly? He feels like he's the hot potato being tossed around right now. Each new response does put him on edge, and it just keeps on getting worse because Tony is being vague, and he can't figure out if he knows knows or if he's figured out he's hiding something and is trying to get him to say what.

Rather, he's pretty sure Tony figured out he's hiding something. What he's not sure of is whether he actually realized what it is.

That's always been the thing with Tony. He never says what's going on. ]

And if I do, I don't think that's your business, because I was just a former employee. So unless you remember differently, boss, if you're trying to get me to get me to say something, you're going to have to outright ask.

You know.

Like normal people do.

Edited 2019-02-08 20:47 (UTC)

[He'll be awake for days wondering about this one. What the hell is it that he did to hurt this man so much? There's clearly contempt. He'd like to apologize, but apparently whatever it is went too far, because Peter won't even talk about it.

Oh, but he'll throw out some venom, all right. That Tony picks up on easily.]

You were never just an employee. I hope you don't really believe that.

[Does it matter now? If it was really as long ago as Peter says? He thinks the distinction matters at least. Peter was a good friend.]

You're right. I won't ask.

[ Yeah, because he was more like a piece to maneuver. It's worse than just an employee.

He manages not to spit that one out no matter how much he wants to, because it's damning in and of itself. But that last sentence, that's what really pisses him off, and he can't stop himself. ]

Only because you don't want to hear the answer. Maybe you could stand to hear what other people have to say from time to time. Could be eye-opening.

Is there something you want me to be asking? Because I was under the impression you didn't want to talk, so I wasn't going to push you, but now it sounds like you're mad I didn't push.

[Well, maybe he should have just asked. But it seems like anything he does is going to make him angry. Asking for more details about pain feels horribly insensitive. He'd rather dwell on the agony alone that inflict more on anyone else.

...Although that isn't exactly working out either.]

You really hate me?

[ Tony is right that he wanted him to ask - anything. He doesn't even know what he was expecting as a question, but he knows that's not a question he wanted to answer.

Even if he basically pushed Tony into asking it. ]

No.

Wow.

This was a bad idea.

It's all right.
It doesn't make you a bad person.

[Maybe whatever it is was just an excuse. Maybe Peter didn't feel like he should carry the anger and was looking for a good reason to have it. Tony wonders what that must mean. Nothing good.]

If you want to tell me what I did, you can. Or not.
You're not the only one that feels that way.

[ If he says he can't tell it's going to sound even more suspicious. He went through a lot of trouble to erase his identity reveal from peoples' mind, and he hasn't been nearly as careful as he should have been to keep it a secret since then. Blowing it up just so he can argue with Tony is not worth it. ]

I don't hate you. You helped when May needed money for her hospital stay.

[ How much of that does Tony even remember? He was in his suit when he confronted him about that, after breaking into the Avengers Tower didn't work so well. But he knows from their last meeting that he remembers Peter, MJ and May living at the Tower for some time, while he was working for him and "designing Spider-man's suits". Tony giving money to Jarvis, and having Jarvis help him, is something he should still remember. ]

But you infuriate me a whole lot.

[Ah. So he feels indebted and guilty for hating someone that did him a favor. Well, that's natural. It just goes to show that people like Peter are naturally good.]

I suppose it would have been the least I could do...

[It's almost a quote back to Peter, but Tony doesn't remember talking to him. He remembers Spider-Man, angry and berating him for causing an innocent life to suffer and not saving her. It plays out, but it plays out like a dream.]

But I didn't do that.
Jarvis made the arrangements. I wasn't involved.

[He was someone else too, after all. It doesn't count.]

[ He knows it's a lie, because Jarvis wouldn't have showed up if they hadn't had that confrontation. And he remembers how desperate he was to save her life, how guilty he felt that she took a bullet because of him. How he became an actual criminal in the span of a few hours just to ensure she could keep on living.

Then he remembers all the time they did spend at the Avengers Tower together. How it felt like family. And how it crumbled.

Keeping the conversation going really was a bad idea. He should have stopped once Tony said who he was. ]

What about Spider-man?

You said I was never just a employee. What about him? Was he just convenient to team up with?

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