Chapter Text
Of fucking course. These types of things only ever happen to Peter Parker. It’s all thanks to that damn Parker luck uncle Ben always told him about. There is no other logical explanation to reasonably justify why Peter has found himself in this situation.
You see, Peter was just doing his thing, saving his city from a fucking rhino mutant. To anyone else that might seem like the weird part, but honestly, it’s one of the more normal things to happen to Peter. It’s also normal for the Avengers to put him on civilian duty because they think he can’t handle himself - which is a whole other issue.
What isn’t normal, is when one of the civilians he’s been tasked with saving, turns out to be none other than his childhood rapist. Skip Westcott.
‘Come on Einstein, it’ll be fun!’ Peter hears echoing through his head as he stares at the familiar face in front of him.
The pale blue eyes that are looking back at him make him feel nauseous. Peter feels his body moving, stumbling backwards towards the exit. His vision goes blurry, and all he can hear is the pounding of his own heart thudding in his ears. Tingles shoot down his spine as phantom touches from distant memories dance across his skin.
‘Stay still or someone will catch us and they’ll see what a little slut you are, see how excited you are for me to touch you.’
It would be so easy to grab the other civilian, carry her to safety, and leave the man to be crushed by the soon-to-be collapsing building. Admittedly, Peter spent a shameful amount of time seriously contemplating that option. But in the end, his conscience won out, and Peter was climbing back through the window.
Even though he knew he was going to see Skip again, it didn’t stop Peter’s stomach from twisting or his breath from catching in his throat. Despite his best efforts to act casually, Peter froze, unable to move his feet any closer to the man. His eyes are wide, making Peter that much more appreciative of his mask. Although, the “eyes” on the mask were probably reflecting his own.
Neither male wanted to make the first move. Peter’s body refused to go any closer or offer any type of support, and Skip looked like a mixture between being frightened and star struck. The whole scene was a little comical as it stretched beyond a comfortable amount of time - not that there was ever a ‘comfortable’ period of time for staring wide-eyed and terrified at another person. Unfortunately, it seems the longer their staring contest lasts, the more reluctant each party gets to break the silence.
Five minutes ago, Peter would have said that nothing could be worse than running into Skip again. It was horrible and he never wants it to happen again, but things got so much worse.
With his attention focused solely on the man in front of him, and the constant ringing in his ears, Peter failed to see the countdown reach its end, or hear Karen’s voice advising him to move. He didn’t notice the increased dust falling from above or the ground rocking beneath his feet. Not until a warning tingle shot painfully through his entire body, snapping him out of his frozen state. The next few seconds passed slowly as Peter registered the crumbling building, leapt across the room in a single bound, and grabbed Skip, holding on tight as the floor caved in.
Ever the optimist, Peter has to say that he and Skip got a little lucky. Unlike the last time Peter was trapped under a toppled building, there were no slabs of broken concrete pressing him into the ground. Somehow, miraculously, they had ended up in a small pocket between two walls, stopping each other from falling flat. There wasn’t much room, but it was enough so that Peter didn’t have to touch Skip.
But like all things, any bit of good luck is always matched with twice as much bad luck. As far as Peter could tell, Skip doesn’t have any major injuries - just a few cuts and bruises and maybe a mild concussion. Peter, however, being the hero that he is, he took the blunt end of the fall, leaving him with the normal bloody nose, some broken ribs, and his left leg is currently facing the wrong way.
To top it all off, the fall damaged his line of communication. They were officially trapped, and with the condition that Peter is currently in, they won’t be getting out on their own.
“Holy Shit, Man.” Skip gasped as he took in Peter’s injuries. “Are you okay?”
Rolling his eyes, Peter focused on breathing through his nose in an attempt to clear his now fogged up brain. The desire to take off his mask is tempting, but there is no way Skip can find out he’s Spider-Man. It honestly couldn’t get worse than this. The pain has started to really set in, and it fucking hurts. “Oh yeah, just peachy.” He retorts, sarcasm dripping from his tone. “Breaking my leg is a normal occurrence. I just have to walk it off.”
A small part of Peter feels bad for mocking the man’s stupid question, but right now it’s the only thing keeping him from screaming in pain. If he can focus all of his attention towards something else, then maybe he won’t start to panic about the fact that he can’t feel his toes. Right now, the only other thing that needs his immediate attention, is Skip - which really isn’t much better. Because the longer Peter thinks about Skip, the more memories start to make their way to the surface.
It’s been years since Peter had truly thought about the man who raped him. About Skip. About the look in his eyes after he would shut the door as May and Ben left. The first time the sudden change of expression happened, Peter thought his babysitter was playing a game with him. Then the man had pulled out some pictures and magazines with naked men and women in all sorts of strange positions. Peter was 8. He had a vague sense of what the pictures were, but Skip would never admit that it was porn. Instead, the man would tell Peter that they were going to play a game where they had to try to look like the people in the picture.
The first few rounds of the game, Skip let them leave their clothes on. After a while, he would take off a new article of clothing for each new round. Peter didn’t like it, but Skip was cool and Peter wanted to be cool like the teenager who would hang out with him. When the only thing Peter was still wearing was his underwear, he tried to tell Skip that he wanted to stop. His babysitter didn’t listen. Skip ripped off Peter’s underwear, refusing to give it back, holding Peter’s arms above his head when he tried to cover himself.
For weeks, Skip would babysit Peter every Friday night, forcing the young boy to play his games. And every time, before May and Ben came home, Skip would remind Peter that if he told anyone, they would be mad at him. Peter never wanted to disappoint his aunt and uncle, so he kept his mouth shut - locking up the secret and throwing away the key.
Now though, the key has resurfaced, eager to unlock the past for all to see.
“Hello?” Skip questioned, pulling Peter from his thoughts. Judging by his tone, it was not the first time he’d tried to get Peter’s attention. “How are we going to get out of here?”
Glancing around the small space, Peter looks for anything that could signal to others that they are trapped, but there’s nothing. Of course there’s nothing. They are stuck under who knows how many feet of rubble, debris, and dirt. There is no getting out without someone else digging them out.
“I-I can’t..it’s..we just have to wait.” Peter finally stuttered, his thoughts feeling scattered. “The rest of the Avenger’s will notice I’m gone, and they’ll come looking. Hopefully Karen will be able to tell Mr. Stark my location.”
“Well this sucks.” Skip huffs, crossing his arms.
:You’re telling me.” Peter mumbled under his breath. Geez, Skip really thinks he’s a special brand of entitled.
Sighing, Skip runs a hand over his face. “How long do you think it’ll take them?”
“How the hell am I supposed to know?” Peter snaps. He really is trying to keep his cool, but Skip is making it really hard right now.
“Yikes, it was just a question.” Skip holds his hands in front of himself in a surrender.
“Ugh.” Peter groans, his head dropping back against the concrete slab he’s leaning on. He can’t afford to snap at people right now. He’s Spider-Man. Not Peter Parker. Letting go of his cool will only lead to bad things. “I didn’t mean to snap. Just don’t..please don’t talk to me right now.”
It’s still not a very Spider-Man type thing to say - you know, with the whole looking out for the little guy thing. Skip is technically a part of the ‘little guy’, and no matter how much Peter Parker hates the man, he has a responsibility to help him. But Peter swears, if Skip says one more boneheaded thing, he’s going to lose it. Thankfully, Skip listens.
With his thoughts bouncing between ‘ow’ and ‘don’t freak out because Skip keeps dragging his eyes over your body’, Peter was having a hard time keeping his breathing steady and his mind from having a panic attack.
Peter’s not sure how long they sat there - time feeling both fast and slow. At first, he thought he was going crazy hearing things that weren’t really there. There was a dull banging with the occasional crash that caught his attention first. Then Peter heard a distinct “Kid!” calling from above and he knew everything was going to be okay. He’ll get out of here, let someone take a look at his leg, and never have to see Skip again.
Bright lights illuminate the dark space as a chunk from above is moved out of the way. “They’re over here!” Steve called out over his shoulder. Looking back at the two males, the first thing Steve’s eyes landed on was Peter’s leg, before he turned his head back to the side. “Someone tell Dr. Cho to get the MedBay ready!”
“Holy shit, kid!” Tony’s head popped next to Steve’s. “You can’t scare me like that! You know I have a bad heart!”
“I didn’t do it on purpose.” Peter grumbled. Everything was really starting to annoy him. Why haven’t the others helped them out yet? “Were you waiting for an invitation to get us out, or do you expect us to do it ourselves?” Tony and Steve glanced at each other, shocked that Peter would speak to them like that. They’ll have to worry about that later though, because the kid’s right - they need to move.
Steve helped lift Skip out of the hole, handing him off to a SHIELD agent, before lowering himself next to Peter. He tried to be gentle as he cradled Peter in his arm, but every little twist or turn hurt so bad. Peter was biting his bottom lip to stop from crying out in pain, causing his lip to start bleeding.
“I know, Pete. I’m sorry. I’m so so sorry. We’re almost done.” Steve tried to comfort as he carried Peter to the quin jet.
“STOP SAYING THAT YOU’RE FUCKING SORRY!” Peter snapped, a few heads turning towards the commotion.
“Language!” Steve chastised at the same time Tony said, “Kid!”
“Oh, get off your high horses.” Peter said with an eye roll. “You both cuss all the time. You don’t get to lecture me about my language.”
“Kid, I know that you’re hurt and in a lot of pain, but I swear if you don’t lose that attitude I’ll..” Tony started.
Peter laughed, cutting off the man. “You’ll do what? Ground me? Tell May? Take away my lab privileges?” Peter scoffed. “In case you’ve forgotten, you’re not my dad or my guardian. You can’t do anything to me.”
Tony was trying. Tony was really trying not to lose his cool with Peter, but the kid was pushing buttons. All of them. The things Peter is saying, isn’t just an ‘I’m in pain’ anger. There was more thought and feeling behind his words. And Tony would be lying if he said it didn’t hurt. He tried to walk away without acknowledging Peter’s outburst, but the kid just couldn’t let it go.
“What?” He taunted with a mock pout, and damn it, if Peter didn’t shut up right now Tony was sure to do something they’d both regret. “You’re not gonna yell at me or tell me to fuck off? You’re just gonna walk off because you’re the great Tony Stark who doesn’t give a shit about anyone else? Where’s the Tony Stark I saw growing up who never backed down from a fight? You can’t really tell me that you’ve grown out of that stage. People who are as arrogant and self righteous like you never change.”
“WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?” Tony finally yelled back. He took a second to be grateful that they made it to the jet before Peter crossed the line. This was not going to be pretty and he felt sorry for the other members of their team who had no choice but to listen as they flew back. Steve laid Peter down on the stretched, but the kid sat up, pushing off Bucky’s hand to keep him down. “I don’t know what the fuck your problem is, but you acting like this is not okay. But you don’t leave it at that, do you? No. You then decide to attack the one person who defended you when everyone thought you were too young to be an Avenger. So you know what, I’m done, Pete. I’m done with this conversation. I’m done with the attitude. And I am so far beyond done with you.”
The jet was silent as Tony waited for Peter’s retaliation. He expected the kid to flip out and for the screaming match to continue. But it never came. Peter, still wearing his mask, just stared at Tony. When the air in the cargo area became too suffocating, Tony went to sit in the cockpit with Natasha. That’s as far as he’s willing and able to get from the kid at the moment - after all, Peter is still seriously injured and even though they’re fighting, Tony still cares about the kid.
While Tony sat in the cockpit, able to get away from the situation, Peter was still stuck in it. He doesn’t know why he freaked out, or why he said all those horrible things to Mr. Stark. For whatever reason, Peter just was so mad at his mentor, so he said the worst things he could think of. And now Mr. Stark is never going to forgive him, and he’ll probably take the suit again, and mother of all the loving fucking shitballs his leg is killing him. He just wishes the pain would knock him out already. The pain doesn’t do anything except increase the tears that he’s been blinking back.
‘I am so far beyond done with you.’ That’s what Mr. Stark said. He’s done with Peter. Does that mean the man doesn’t want to see him anymore? Of course that’s what it means. Peter fucked up so bad and Mr. Stark is going to kick out of his life, abandoning Peter like everyone else in his life has decided to do.
It was only a matter of time, he figures. All good things come to an end, and those ends usually leave Peter with a ton of broken pieces and nothing to put it back together again. It happened with his parents, with Skip, with Ben. Soon it will be Mr. Stark, and then the only other person that leaves Peter with is May. It won’t be long until she’s gone too. And when May’s gone, well, maybe it would be better if Peter was gone too.