Work Text:
After spending the past few weeks perfecting all the new additions to his suit, it was safe to say he was satisfied with the outcome. The task of connecting rainbow streamers and glitter to the entirety of his spider suit without ruining the fabric proved to be a bit more difficult than expected, but Peter was not considered a genius for nothing.
Sweeping out of his room at the tower held a bit more flare than usual with the addition of the giant pink, purple, and blue cape trailing behind him adorned with the words “I swing both ways” in loud letters.
Spiderman was about to make his first appearance at Pride in style.
To say he was excited would be a massive understatement. Peter, of course, had been to pride before. Ever since he had realized he was bi a few years ago, he and Ned had made it a yearly tradition to get dressed up in the most extra rainbow outfits they could find and celebrate with the rest of New York.
But this year was different. This year he was more than just a random high schooler in a crowd of thousands. This year he was Spiderman. That suit he dorned every day was a beacon of hope for his community, and his hard work to make his neighborhood feel safe and secure under his protection was about to be taken one step further. Peter was proud of his identity, and he was filled with the hope that his city seeing Spiderman not only support, but be a part of the LGBTQ+ community would let all those little kids who looked up to him to see that their superheroes are just as diverse and beautiful as they are, that they are not alone.
When Peter bounced towards the floor’s common area to make his way to the festivities out in the city, it’s safe to say that he was not expecting to be met with the startled eyes of nearly all the resident avengers staring at him in varying degrees of shock from the couches in the common room.
His eyes drifted around the room hoping for some respite, barely meeting the eyes of each hero before he was already skipping on to the next, but even finding some bewilderment on the face of his mentor Tony Stark, he knew he was forgetting something.
His “uhh… hey guys… ” was met with more stunned silence.
He glanced down at the outfit they were staring at. Sure, it was flashy, but this was Pride! He was Spiderman! This was his time to go all out!
Then it hit him. Peter had never actually come out to the Avengers.
He had come out to his few friends and his Aunt May years ago, so ever since, he had just assumed everyone important already knew. Now, he realized that was very much not the case.
Any remains of a smile fled the young spider’s face as the panic hit.
A heat sparked in his chest as the realization came, spreading up his neck and down his arms until he was burning from the inside out, his heart beginning to thump in his ears so loud that the blood racing was nearly all he could hear. He was on the verge of gasping for breath, each inhale and exhale not doing a single thing to calm him.
His rational brain knew that the superheroes wouldn’t mind, that they seemed pretty open-minded, but his rational brain didn’t happen to be functioning at the moment. Every possible negative reaction was racing through the teen’s mind instead. Every instance of homophobia he had witnessed, every slur carelessly thrown about, every child kicked out of their home, all coming to the forefront of his mind reminding him that the world is still an unforgiving place.
The others in the room quickly noticed his immediate shift as his panic rose. The flash of horror in his eyes, fear following quickly in its tracks, his muscles, suddenly drawn taught as a bowstring, ready to make his escape at a moment’s notice, further shocked them silent.
It was when he began to stumble back towards the hallway that Tony finally stood up and rushed over to the panicking teen.
“Pete, kid-”
“Please don’t hate me,” the soft whimper cut him off.
Tony stopped. He took a step back from where he was moving to grasp Peter’s shoulders, his arms hesitantly held out in front of the terrified kid. He could see where tears had begun to form in the inner corners of the younger’s eyes, how the kid was straining to keep them from falling.
“I could never,” he breathed.
This caused him to finally look up and meet his mentor’s eyes, to see the genuine honesty and care they held. A flicker of hope passed over Peter as the words sunk in, spurring Tony to grasp his shoulders and ground him in the present.
“Peter.” He paused, taking a moment to emphasize his point, bending down a bit to make sure that Peter didn’t try to avert his eyes. “You don’t have to say anything you aren’t ready to. But I want you to know that, no matter what, nothing is going to stop me from loving you, kid.”
The breath rushed out of Peter, his muscles following and releasing their strain right as Tony pulled him into a tight hug, free hand reaching up to card through the teen’s curly hair. He could feel a few damp tears land on his shoulder and Peter’s fists bunching into the back of his shirt.
“It’s okay, Pete. I’m here, kid” he whispered into the top of the other’s head, pressing a quick kiss to his scalp before resting his chin there.
“I’m sorry,” he could barely make out the words whispered back into his neck.
“You have absolutely nothing to apologize for.”
Peter pulled back at this, frantically adding, “I never meant to keep it from you, Mr. Stark, I promise - ”
“Kid.” Peter stopped. “You don’t owe me, or anyone for that matter, any apologies or explanations. It is your choice and your choice alone to decide who to trust and when to trust them with an important part of you.”
Peter took a deep breath.
“I’m bisexual.”
“And I love you all the same.”
“Oh.”
The two just stared at each other for a moment before Tony pulled the teen into another gentle embrace, resting his chin on a pile of curly brown hair and letting the kid breathe for a minute. If he happened to feel his shoulder dampen, he didn’t say anything.
Tony barely made out the soft “I love you too” mumbled into his chest, but tightened his hold even so.
Eventually they let go and stepped away, but the soft calm was stifled when the two remembered the fellow superheroes in the room. However, a glance back at the common area showed that they were clearly otherwise occupied, obviously giving the duo a moment of privacy.
Peter coughed. “Umm hey everyone.”
All the eyes in the room turned back to him for the second time that day, but instead of being filled with panic, a more quiet anticipation filled him.
“I’m bi. Which you probably just heard, but I felt like I should actually tell you guys too. If- if you don’t know what that is it means I like boys .. and girls! Boys and girls. Both! Both is good! Yeah. Should I stop now? I feel like- like I should stop now.”
“Yeah kid I think they got it.” A hand came to rest on his shoulder.
Steve was the first to speak up. “We’re all really proud of you, Peter. Coming out takes guts, and we love you no matter what.” The others nodded along.
“You’re the best of all of us, little spider,” Natasha added, “and I don’t think anybody in this room is in any position to judge.”
Peter’s face, still puffy from his earlier tears, broke out into the brightest smile. “I love you guys too.”
Tony felt the need to interrupt. “Alright enough mushy emotions for today. You were on your way to the parade, were you not?”
“Oh shoot I’m late!” Peter perked up. “Bye everyone! -haha bi. Get it? Anyways, good talk!” Peter rushed over through the doors of the balcony and dramatically jumped over the ledge.
And if the hashtag #NoCopsAtPrideJustSpiderman was trending on twitter with pictures of Spiderman swinging over the parade leaving behind a trail of rainbow glitter, nobody had to mention it.