Chapter Text
The air felt different on patrol tonight. I wasn't sure why, or really how to explain it, but something deep in my bones told me something was different.
I look up at the setting sun, the horizon giving a delicate sunflower glow as the day came to an end. Pulling out my phone, I decide it'd be best to leave Happy my nightly voicemail. It felt stupid at this point, I didn't think he ever listened to them. But nonetheless, I called!
"Hey, Happy." I sigh heavily as I hold the phone up to my ear. I was sitting on the ledge of a smaller building in Queens, eating a churro. "Tonight went good. Stopped this guy from getting mugged. Kinda funny..." I give a small chuckle, "...the guy tried to pull this knife out, but I took it away, so don't worry! Then he took out this gun, and I was like, 'Why didn't you start with the gun?'" I take another bite of my churro. "Anyways, I helped this lady cross the street and she bought me a churro. So that was nice."
I pause, as if expecting the voicemail receiver to reply in some way. I'm not surprised when it doesn't.
"I guess that's it. Bye, Happy." I murmur and end the call. Happy never answers, why do I even try anymore?
He's told me so many times to stop calling, but I still do. I don't really know why.
OH, I almost forgot—I quickly dial Happy's phone again and call back, "HEY, I almost forgot, I actually caught this guy earlier with this really weird glowey gun and I know I'm not an Avenger but it totally seemed like an Avenger kind of thinggggg and-"
I'm cut off by a scream sounding from somewhere nearby. "Gotta go, Haps." I mutter quickly and push my phone in my pocket. I shove the churro in my mouth.
I swing over, landing on top of a building in order to examine the situation. It was your classic stick-up: some dude holding up a knife to a poor lady with a purse.
"Oi!" I shout out, swinging down to help the womxn out, "Why don't we let the nice lady go, yeah?"
The guy turns his knife on me, "Who are you?" He spits.
"Oh, I'm usually hanging around." I laugh internally at my joke and gesture widely to the buildings looming around us.
The mugger spits at me and holds the knife up to her throat, "Get out of here! She's mine."
"Um, she's no one's actually." I reply matter-of-factly and web the knife out of his hands, slinging it to the ground quickly. "Run!" I shout to the womxn.
Without hesitation, she books it out of there as fast as her legs can take her. I brush my hands against each other nonchalantly and sigh as I turn my attention to the burglar, "Now, what to do with—"
A tingle dances along my neck just before my phone goes off, "I like to move it, move it. He likes to move it, move it. She likes to—"
I nearly jump out of my skin when I take a look at the screen--Mr. Stark's calling me?! Mr. Stark almost never calls me!
I panic internally and smack my thumb on the answer button. It automatically goes to a video call, and Tony's sun-glassed face appears on-screen. He seems to be in his lab. "Hey, kid." Tony smiles at me.
"Mr. Stark!" I shout in reply and smile widely, even though he can't see it under my mask.
"So, Happy told me you mentioned something about glowing weapons on your last voicemail?" He questions and I start to hear the familiar, borderline comforting, sound of bolts and tools being put away, the metal clanking together.
"Oh! Yeah, I—" My spider senses suddenly freak out on me, making me feel as though I was momentarily paralyzed. It's never been this bad before.
I go to turn, but it seems I was just a second too late—The knife pierces right through my back, the tip extending just out of the front of my abdomen. My smile immediately falls and I look down to see a small stream of blood start to pour from it. The knife is yanked out of me, and I give a heavy grunt.
"Peter?" Tony bunches his eyebrows at me and turns his full attention to the video call.
I take a gap of breath as the phone falters in my hand, revealing the knife wound going through my body. "That shit kinda hurted though." Even dying, I'm still gen-z.
Tony drops everything he had been previously holding, "Peter, where are you?" He shouts as he starts jogging somewhere. His voice is coated with panic.
"Mr. Stark, I, uh, I think I messed up." I whimper and grasp at the wound, my fingers soon becoming coated in the red substance. As I turn around, I see the man gone, only the bloodied knife lying on the asphalt. I plummet to the ground, both adrenaline and pain overwhelming my enhanced senses.
"Bruce!" Tony yells, "Bruce, get Dr. Cho to set up the Med-Bay!" I hear the familiar hum of his Ironman thrusters ignite, then the sound of metal clanking around. He must be putting his suit on. "Peter, where you at, kid?"
"I'm–I'm in Queens, on 6th street." I mumble as I push myself against the alley-way wall, my eyes widening at the sheer amount of blood streaking on the asphalt around me. "There's so much, Mr. Stark."
"You're gonna be fine, Peter." Mr. Stark replies breathlessly as he switches the call to connect with his suit's interface. "Just stay with me, okay?"
As my adrenaline fades away, pain comes to smack me right in the face. My eyelids become heavy with exhaustion, my thoughts becoming light. "I'm kinda tired, Mr. Stark."
"Don't you dare fall asleep on me, kid. Keep those eyes open." Mr. Stark replies with concentration as he starts to fly somewhere.
"Hey, I'm sorry, Mr. Stark." I apologize as tears start to drip from my eyes onto my paling cheeks. My words are slurred, progressively melting together, "I'm really sorry for bothering you and Happy so much. I know you guys don't need to care or anything, like I can do it myself, it's just that—"
"What?" Tony interrupts. "Peter, don't apologize for anything. I love hearing your messages, kid. You always sound so excited about helping people." I can almost hear tears in his voice. "But we can't focus on that right now. Right now, I need you to focus on me."
The phone starts to fall limp in my lap as I run out of strength to hold it up and angled at my face. "Peter? You still there?" Mr. Stark sounds beyond worried.
I barely reply, only mumble something in response. Slowly, the familiar sound of thrusters enters my conscious mind, drawing closer until I hear the suit's metal feet clank onto the ground. "Peter!" Tony exclaims.
I look up at him with a tired smile, sweat beading on my forehead. "Mr. Stark..." I trail off as my eyelids flutter closed.
"Nope." Mr. Stark insists and lifts me up bridle-style into his arms. "You're staying here." He takes a deep breath as we shoot off into the sky. "You got that?"
"Thanks, Mr. Stark." I heave out between breaths. The pain starts to send my mind spiraling.
"Anytime, Pete." Tony looks down at me one last time, then his face snaps to one of worry as he sees me passing out. "Peter? Peter!" His voice echoes.
But I'm already asleep.