Chapter Text
March 11, 2020
Peter was swinging through the streets of Queens with a large grin on his face, hidden by the mask he wore. He hadn’t been able to patrol for a full week, between senior spring midterms and things for his fake-turned-real Stark Industries internship, and it just felt right to be back in the suit after so long away.
His good mood lasted most of the night, even as he dealt with things that usually annoyed him, like rescuing cats from trees and lampposts. (He loved cats, he really did, but why did they always climb up so high if they didn’t know how to get down ?)
He felt buoyant. Weightless. Effervescent. He was in the city that he loved, serving the people that -
- Until a purse-snatcher sneezed right in his face.
Suddenly that good mood was gone, replaced with horror and disgust. “Ewww! Ughh, seriously?!”
To the man’s credit, he also looked embarrassed by his body’s spontaneous outburst. “It’s not like I could cover my nose!” he said defensively, jerking his head backward to remind Peter that the man’s hands were webbed behind him.
“Fair point,” the teen conceded. “I really wish you’d given me some warning though.”
The purse-snatcher shrugged sheepishly, and Peter was spared from having to answer further by the arrival of the police.
“Karen,” he started as he webbed his way back home a few minutes later, “does the suit have any protective properties against bacteria?”
“The mesh over your mouth is fine-woven enough to protect you from most airborne pathogens, Peter,” the AI responded without hesitation. The teen experienced a moment of relief, which disappeared as she added, “Though it is not up to medical standards, and small viral particles may be small enough to pass through. Would you like me to ask the Boss to improve your mask’s integrity?”
“Yeah, please do,” he sighed. “Tell him it’s not priority, though - it’s not like I can get sick with my enhanced immune system. It’s just the principle of it, ya know?” Peter shuddered with a fresh round of revulsion. He was going to take a nice, long shower when he got home.
March 19, 2020
Peter awoke from a deep sleep to the sound of knocking, disoriented and somehow still tired despite the absurd length of time he’d spent in bed. His body ached everywhere, and after a few moments of confused discomfort he remembered the exhaustive workout Natasha had put him through yesterday. It shouldn’t have been enough to make him this tired and sore, though - he must really be out of shape.
Another knock startled him from his thoughts as he began to fade back toward sleep.
“Pete? You in there?” asked a voice from the other side of the door to his room.
Peter really didn’t feel like talking to anyone right then, but he’d never been able to say no to that voice.
“Yeah, it’s open,” he responded, words slurring from the tendrils of sleep that still threatened to reclaim him.
The door opened and Harley entered, taking a moment to process Peter’s position curled up under the covers and sleep-tousled hair with his cat, Leia, curled up beside him. “You forgot, didn’t you?” he asked flatly, knowing full well what the answer would be.
“Forgot what?” asked Peter, sleepy and confused.
Harley pulled out his phone, unlocked it, and read what was on the screen. “ Hey, wanna get dinner this weekend?” he pitched his voice higher in a poor attempt to mimic Peter’s. “I haven’t seen you in 5ever.” “I miss you too dork,” he said, dropping his voice to his own normal speaking tone. “Heart emoji, smiley face. Saturday good? Perf, exclamation point exclamation point exclamation point heart-eyes emoji. Meet me at May’s at 5? You can pick the place. Sounds like a date, darlin’.”
Harley looked up from the phone, fixing his boyfriend with an unimpressed stare. Peter stared back, stomach filling with dread as he scrambled to sit up. Leia glared at him and jumped off the bed, upset that her nap had been disturbed. “Oh god, it’s five already? Babe I’m so, so sorry, I didn’t realize I’d been sleeping that long. I’m - wow, please forgive me, I -“
“How long did you sleep?” Harley asked, tone laced with curiosity.
“I went to bed at two last night. Don’t make me math, I just woke up.”
Harley’s eyes widened. “You slept for fifteen hours? Pete, you never manage more than nine.“
“Nat kicked my ass for like, seven hours straight yesterday. And I’m somehow still really tired?”
Harley’s gaze softened. “Well then scootch over Parker,” he said, kicking his shoes off.
Peter laid back down on his side, sliding over in the bed to give Harley room. He sighed in content as the older teen wrapped an arm around his waist from behind, pressing backward into his body to savor the warmth that always radiated from him.
“Are you mad?” Peter asked hesitantly. “I know I haven’t trained in a while, but I didn’t think it would hit me this hard or I wouldn’t have gone all out yesterday.”
“I could never be mad at you,” Harley replied softly. He removed his hand from Peter’s middle so he could run his fingers through his hair instead. “But are you sure it’s just the training? I don’t know how all your Spidey powers work, can you still get sick like the rest of us mortals?”
Peter denied it instantly. “There’s no way. I haven’t been sick since I was fourteen.”
Harley pressed his hand to his boyfriend’s head for a few seconds before resuming his hair stroking. “You’re burning up, sweetheart.” The concern in his voice was unmistakable now. “Will you come to the Tower with me tomorrow morning? And let Doctor Strange look you over?”
“Harley, I’m fine,” Peter protested. “I’m just tired, really.”
“It would make me feel a whole lot better.”
“Babe -”
“Please? As payback for standing me up?”
Peter sighed, resigning himself to be poked and prodded and worried over for absolutely no reason. “You fight dirty, Keener. But… okay.”
“Thank you.” Harley’s voice was barely above a whisper, now. “Now go back to sleep, darlin’. I’ll order us pizza later, once you’re more awake.”
“‘Mkay. I love you.”
“Love you too, Pete.”
They didn’t end up waiting until morning to go to the Tower.