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Peter always loved his spider man patrols. They were usually very chill. For example, helping an old lady with her groceries, cheering up a kid or even playing with a stray dog. But obviously, the main duty was catching criminals.
This was one of those days, when Parker was snacking on some chips, when he heard a loud bang on the glass. A person rushed from the local grocery store, a cashier yelling after him
Spider-man quickly got his mask back on, as he jumped down the building. He swung on the traffic light, taking a lot of sharp turns. The stranger was really fast, a hoodie covering his identity. That still didn’t stop him from catching the possible robber.
After blocking some of the paths that the person took, with teasing comments that he loved to make during a chase. Peter finally managed to lead both of them to a closed alleyway.
„God finally! You know, you should really go to a running competition. You can get some serious money out of it-„Just as the teen was approaching the runner, his spider-sense went off, dodging a spinning knife. His body landing on his toes, crouching down to the stranger.
„Woah there, drop the weapon buddy, we don’t want anyone getting hurt-„ Right before he could finish his sentence, the knife swung once more. Peter dogged it as usual, reaching out for the sharp weapon.
Another spider-tingle went off, but before he could process what he was supposed to do, a sharp, stabbing pain introduced itself right underneath his ribs.
He let out a big gasp of pain, quickly webbing the boy to the wall, with one of his knifes on the ground and the second one being webbed in the robbers hand.
They had two knives on hand.
Peter’s hands were tightly pressing onto the stab wound. His whole body immediately started to sweat, and as much as he could feel himself losing consciousness, he still managed to notify the police.
He rapidly shot another one of his webs and swung his way back to the apartment which thankfully was only two blocks away.
~
The bathroom doors were instantly knocked down open, as the teen quickly reached for the cabinet above the sink. He was very thankful that May wasn’t home, since the pain was unbearable.
He couldn’t handle his aunt worrying about him all the time.
Shakily, the boy grabbed and unzipped the first aid kid, feeling like his heart was beating twice the speed, which it probably was.
„Karen, Vitals” His voice broke down. Peter has gotten a lot of injuries ever since he was a kid. He had always been very adventurous, which lead to a lot of different trips to the ER.
He also gained some scars from the missions with the team, but that was the first time he got severely hurt, without any professional medical help.
But what made it the worst, is that that all of his favorite Avengers were supposed to have a meet up the next day, which to his surprise, he was included.
He couldn’t be laying in hospital, when such an important thing was happening few kilometers away. Especially that everyone has been on their own missions recently, making it very hard to gather the whole group.
„You acquire various of small cuts, including a stab wound. The wound isn’t life threatening, but it will require professional medical help” Karen spoke up from the suit, informing the boy about the current state of his condition.
„Would you like me to call Mr.Stark for help with-„
„ NO. No Karen” Peter snapped at the bot in frustration.
If she contacted Tony, tomorrow’s party would be canceled. They have been planning it for months and if his boss would find out, he wouldn’t hesitate to pass on the event. Not only that, his suit would also be stripped away from his reach, grounding him once again.
“Karen, what do I have to do to heal this wound” Parker sat down on the floor, still holding onto the scar. He was struggling to breathe, each time having to go through a sharp stabbing pain, feeling like his lung was stabbed as well.
The bot didn’t answer for a second. Peter was scared that he might have messed up few of the controls, after getting some of the “baby-protocols” from his suit.
“First, stop the bleeding injury. Use a clean bandage or cloth” Karen finally spoke up, telling him what to do.
The teen followed the instruction, getting a cloth from the aid kit and putting it on the bleeding surface. A hiss of pain echoed through the house.
The material quickly got very red, starting to leak after only few seconds of applying it onto the chest.
It took a few tries to stop the bleeding, but after a massive amount of used up cloths, he finally managed to dry the area. “Ok, what now?”
“Now you have to wash your wound for around 5 to 10 minutes” The bot kept on instructing the boy.
The thought of washing the gash wasn’t very appealing for Peter, but he knew it had to be done, if he wanted the scar to heal properly.
For the next 5 minutes, Peter cried out and groaned out of pain. The stinging feeling caused by the hand soap was very unsettling, but the thought that this wasn’t the worst part of this whole situation, made the boy even more stressed.
“Now you have to stitch the wound with a needle and a thread. Afterwards, apply some cream and don’t irritate the area. Make sure that it doesn’t get infected”
“I don’t want to stitch it” Peter wanted to somehow avoid the problem, trying to find a solution.
After a minute of brain storming any types of ideas, he gave up, finally picking up the needle and the thread. He took a big breath and begun the painful process.
The pain was absolutely horrific, having quick glimpses of passing out after each stab with the needle. Having to stitch your own skin wasn’t on his bingo list. The loss of blood wasn’t helping either, making it very hard to stitch with his trembling hands.
But after a long and tedious 30 minutes, the skin was officially pulled together. A knot on the end of the string was made, and the remaining thread was cut with his teeth. He didn’t have the energy to look for the scissors, which excused his action.
Lastly, he applied some cream, bandaging the whole torso. He still felt the stinging in each breath he took, but it was a bit better after the stitches. Peter cleaned up the drops of blood all around the house, packing up the first aid kit and putting on his PJ’s
Although how much he wanted to just collapse onto his bed, he couldn’t do it with his pulsing injury. Instead, he delicately sat down on the bed, carefully lying down on his back. He was hoping that the sleep would maybe help him forget about the pain.
Peter didn’t want to think about the day anymore, so he decided to close his eyes one last time for tonight.
~
An alarm went off at 7 AM, yelling at the boy to get up. He sat up while the injury reminded him that it’s still there. Lucky for Peter, he was too tired to currently give a shit about the pain, making the morning a bit better. The alarm was then turned off, showing the current time.
After wiping his eyes a few times, the teen finally stood up, this time the scar made sure he felt the most uncomfortable sensation known to man kind, waking him up from his sleep. Peter left the room, with a 90 degree slump, stumbling towards the living room. His eyes instantly landing on his Aunt sleeping on the couch.
By the sleeping position of his guardian, resting in the same outfit as yesterday and strands of mascara on her cheeks, he knew exactly that the date was a failure.
He felt very anxious about May constantly looking for a partner, being scared that one day she can get physically hurt by one. It was really hard for his teenage mind to cope with the idea of his only “mother-like” figure to not come back from a meeting.
The resting body was covered with a blanket, having the iron man pattern across the whole fabric. The blanket was given to him on his 10th birthday, when he really got into superheroes. His favorite was obviously Iron man, which he still is, even though he is currently working with him.
After checking on his relative one last time, he made his way to the bathroom.
The whole bandage around his chest was covered in blood, which meant it was leaking the whole 4 hours he was asleep. He carefully unwrapped the soaked up material, revealing the swollen stab wound.
The view really made him sick to his stomach, almost vomiting onto the white tiles. The boy decided to swallow it up, cleaning up the scar in the shower.
Only after he actually wiped off all the red fluid, Peter was able to analyze the condition of his body. The stitched up skin was obviously swollen, a tint of purple was visible from underneath the skin. As far as he was aware, it wasn’t yet infected, which was a big relief for the teenager.
The phone that was located on the sink, started to vibrate, someone clearly calling. Parker reached for the device, not wanting to leave the shower. There was a big text on the phone, with a funny picture of his mentor.
Mr.Stark
He swiped the screen, picking up the call.
“Hey Underoos. Do you remember about today’s meeting?” Tony’s voice spoke from the speakers.
“Yeah, of course! How could I forget?” Peter answers truthfully to Mr.Stark. He would never forgive himself if he missed something so important.
“Ok, so- a little change of plans. Happy will be waiting for you at 1PM instead, since the team decided to go bowling”
Well isn’t that great. He’ll have lots of fun, weeping in pain trying to roll an 8kg bowling bowl for 6 hours straight!
Peter was clearly really unhappy about the idea of going bowling. But he could definitely figure something out
“Oh! Well that’s great! Although I must admit, my muscles are really sore after yesterday’s patrol. I forgot to properly stretch before hand” The boy lied to the person on the other side. He realized that he was never a good liar and long time ago, but he could only hope that Stark will actually believe him for once.
There was a short pause, before the man spoke up again. “Well, I guess you’ll be just laughing your face off on the couches then”
Both of them chuckle at the joke, Peter quickly stopping since the laughing irritated his healing skin. For some reason, he had a feeling that Tony knew something was up.
“Ok kid, get yourself ready and pack everything you need. Call me if you need any help, kk?”
“Alright Mr.Stark” Peter answers the man
“Buh-byeee” Tony casually said, hanging up the call, leaving the boy alone once again.
Peter sighs, the stress leaving his body. The teenager had only few hours to get himself ready, convince everyone, and his body, that he isn’t badly hurt, and try to make it through the day.
It might be difficult, but not impossible. The phone was put down onto the floor, as he continued to wrap up his body.
~
As he packed the last thing into his backpack, he took one last glance at himself in the mirror.
He was wearing some baggy jeans, with a layered top. A red pattern T-shirt was matched with a black golf underneath it, clinging onto his body. Peter wasn’t stupid and he knew that with his luck, the bandages would soak up his clothing sooner or later.
The black-red theme was a little safety protocol, just in case the bandages wont hold stop the blood from getting out.
His backpack also contained the first aid kit, including extra bandages. He placed them at the very bottom, covering them with different types of card games, snacks and electronics.
The boy was very confident about today, knowing that he won’t ruin anything this time. Aunt May, who finally woke up, gave him a kiss on the forehead and messed up the styled hair.
“You looks better with your messy hair” The woman pointed out, giving him a faint smile. May looked wasted, but she still tried to be there for Peter.
He put on his black cap, covering his head, smiling back at the relative.
„Happy is already waiting for me. Larb you!” Peter opened the door, leaving the apartment
„Larb you too baby” May answered tiredly, closing the door after him.
He slowly started getting down the stairs, not wanting to cause any harm to his wound. While he was going down the stairwell, his phone started to vibrate in his pocket.
Mr.Stark was calling
..again
The kid answered the ringing phone.
„Hey kiddo, are you going? Happy is already waiting for you right in front of your building”
„Yeah yeah, I am already going down”
Just as he was reaching for the wall, he missed one of the stair steps. He let out a silent hiss.
“What was that?” Tony instantly questioned the kid, sensing that something was wrong.
Peter held his breath, gently letting the air out. „Um- nothing! It’s just- those awful sores.”
The conversation went silent, which really made him anxious, thinking about how he is going to have a full on lecture about hiding injuries, just because there was a reunion party going on. He patiently waited for the person on the other side to finally speak up.
„Next time you’ll be going on a patrol, I will make you stretch your muscles for a whole hour”
He let out a sigh of relief. If Peter ruined another one of the meetings, just because he did something stupid again, it would take him a long time to forgive himself.
„Yeesh, Then I guess you’ll have to drag me to the next patrol than.” Peter chuckles, trying to keep up the good spirit. A glitchy laugh leaves from the phones speakers, filling the staircase.
„Alright Pete, see you in a minute” The device rings three times, ending the call.
Peter released a long sigh of relief. One wrong answer and it’s over for him.
He finally left through the buildings exit, instantly noticing the black car. He pulled on the cars handle, letting himself in. The earplugs were plugged to the phones outlet, muting all the noise coming from the mobile. He inserted one of his earplugs into his left ear, choosing the playlist in the meantime.
Peter would usually tell Happy everything he did this week, including all the meals he ate. But today the teen wanted to just disintegrate into dust.
The little window between the front seat and back seats was open, Happy looking at the boy, waiting for him to start info dumping everything that happened during this week.
Although he never hears a single word coming from the teen.
For the rest of the ride, the car was dead silent, with no one speaking in the background, since the passenger accidentally fell asleep from the lack of sleep.
~
The next thing Peter remembers, was someone slightly tugging his shoulder. The teenager jumps out of shock, noticing Happy already waiting for him to leave the car.
“It’s just me- It’s only me” Happy reassures the teenager.
“We are here” Happy informs the half awake boy.
Peter snaps out of being tired, leaving the car. His eyes landed on the group of people talking to each other. But it wasn’t just a typical group, noticing a bunch of familiar faces.
Wanda immediately spots the young boy approaching the team, making a few other people look his way as well. Not long after, the whole party was already staring at the boy, smiles appearing on their faces.
The group had most of his important avengers, including Wanda, Natasha, Bruce, Sam, Bucky, Thor, Strange for some reason Rhodey and most importantly, Tony.
The first person to greet the teen was of course Thor, hooking Peter’s skinny body with his massive arm. He took off the cap and messed up the hair as usual
“The infamous man of spiders himself! Long time no see, young Avenger” Thor announces, everyone hearing his greeting.
Not long after, Bruce joins the two men. “Gosh, it’s been ages since I last saw you and you still have the baby face. Not a hair under this nose”
Everyone cracks up in laughter, circling the boy, happy to see him back. Tony looks at them from a far, seeing everyone trying to start a conversation with the new arriver.
Though, the man’s attention was focused on the teenager, which looked very happy to see the rest of the team. But Tony was the only person to notice the uncomfortable side on his face.
“Everyone, let’s not surrender the poor teen. How about we actually go bowling instead of spending the rest of the day outside ” Everyone’s attention landed on Tony, the group looking at each other’s expressions.
“Fine, I still need to beat Strange’s ass in bowling” Wanda cracked her knuckles, going towards the entrance
“If you think your going to beat a retired surgeon in bowling, then you better find another goal in your life”
The rest of the group followed the two, talking about who is going to win for tonight.
Peter was going at the very end of the team.
Stark joined the awkward boy, putting his arm around the shoulders. “They really have missed you, huh?”
The kid would never except that from the Avengers, especially Sam, that they would have missed him so much. Only then he actually realized that it was quite the first time that anyone was so excited to see him, other than his aunt May, and two of his friends.
“Yeah, I guess they have”
~
For the next 4 hours, they have taken up the whole venue for themselves. There have been multiple fights, that were expected in the group.
They started the game with Thor not understanding the rules and instead the bowling bowl landed outside the building. Of course Tony had to pay for all the damage they cause in 6 hours of bowling.
Bruce almost turned into hulk after Sam started to distract him whenever it was his turn, while Strange and Wanda got themself a whole separate station, just to see who would win. Each game they played though, always ended with a perfect draw.
Peter also decided to join in for just few minutes, so people don’t suspect he is hurt.
The first 3 rounds were all strikes, immediately making him the 4th place on the chart. It was obvious that after he beat Sam an Bucky, they were going to tease him for the rest of the night.
Although Peter really enjoyed the party, he still couldn’t quite laugh or yell, because of the amount of pain it brought him. Each time he let himself give in and laugh with the others, another dose of fear entered his body, not knowing if the stitches will loosen up or not.
Tony couldn’t stop giving him side-eyes, trying to figure out why the boy hasn’t been really himself tonight. The man sat down next to him, giving the boy another can of coke.
“Is everything okay? You haven’t really been the causal Peter I know” Tony started the conversation, sipping on his 8th can of soda today.
Peter anxiously looks at his friend “Yeah I am alright. I just haven’t really slept well yesterday”
Parker technically told the truth. He went to sleep around 3 and woke up at 7. It wasn’t really enough sleep for the teenager. But that obviously wasn’t the only thing that caused him to feel so under the weather.
“Kiddo, you’re not being honest with me. What is going on?” He keeps putting pressure on the teen, hoping he would finally tell him what has been going on. That just makes the teenager even more stressed, barely making any eye contact with the person next to him.
He had to distract him somehow. Something had to happen.
Just as Peter was standing up, wanting to excuse himself to the bathroom, Clint’s elbow accidentally touched Parkers can, spilling it onto his outfit. It didn’t take long for the man to look behind him and realize what he did, seeing Peter’s clothing soaking wet in the beverage.
“Oh my god Peter, I swear I didn’t mean to-” Clint apologizes, quickly grabbing some napkins off the table. As always, Sam and Bucky were having the time of their lives, laughing at the incident.
While everyone’s attention was brought to the boys, only then did Peter realized what he did previously.
“I don’t have anything to change to” he thought to himself, loosing all the color on his face.
There were two possibilities. One, which would be him going home and changing, or he would stay at home for the rest of the day. Although he would love to stay for a little longer, Tony was already getting frustrated because of him
“No Clint- it’s fine really, I was about to go home anyway” The teen sees a sorrow look on his friend’s face.
He grabbed his backpack and started to head towards the exit door. A hand stopped his his shoulder, twisting him the other way
“How about we go to the tower and have a movie night and I will give Pete some spare clothes in the meantime?” Tony was waiting for the agreement from the rest of the team
Peters faced lacked any type of happiness, not quite registering what Stark just said. He was confident that the secret will be out any minute now. He didn’t have enough bandages and energy to get through another 8 hours with the team constantly tugging and laughing all the time.
“I AM TAKING THE CORNER OF THE COUCH” Sam yelled out, running towards the exit. The rest of the group going after him, clearly making a lot of controversies over a seat on the couch. While they were laughing, Peter was once again brainstorming for a plan B.
~
The ride to the tower was really funny, chuckling at all the stupid jokes between Rhodey and Bucky. Pete was having the time of his life seeing them argue about how everyone accused James of cheating during bowling, just because he had a metal prosthetic.
But the only thing that the he had on his mind was accidentally staining whatever clothes he gets from Stark with blood. An uneasy look on Peter’s face was noticeable in the car, but no one else seemed to notice except for one person, Tony.
When they finally arrived to the tower, Peter got out of the car first, wanting to take some deep breaths when no one was looking.
He felt the piercing pressure underneath his ribs, constantly trying to kill him. This time it was worse then ever, not only hurting, but stinging at the same time. Just as his vision was going blurry, a voice spoke up behind his back.
„Peter?” Natasha reached out to the boy, the eyes full of concern were looking directly at the struggling kid. He looked back at the woman, playing dumb.
„What is it Nat?” He turns around, staring at the red head.
„Is everything alright? I saw you leaning on the wall. It looked like something was off”
„Oh no, It’s just the- motion sickness. Yeah! I got dizzy during the ride” Peter runs his fingers through his sweaty locks. He was smiling back at his friend.
„Peter you don’t have motion sickness.”
Nats sentence brought Steve’s and Wanda’s attention and made them further investigate in the situation.
„Oh, well I must have drank too many sweet drinks. I just needed some fresh air. I am alright now!” Sadly, he wasn’t a good liar, making his bluff unbelievable.
„Kid, You know you can tell us if anything is going on, right?” Steve walked up to the teenager.
Peter couldn’t let them know about the injury. It would ruin the whole evening for everyone, including him. Another strike from the wound made itself heard, making the boy twitch, his hand impulsively reaching towards the scar
That was the part where everyone finally left their cars and noticed the three people circling Peter. In the corner of his eyes he could see Tony rushing to the scene, the glasses covering his uneasy expression on his face.
„Guys I am really fine! Let’s go to the tower already, I am starving-”
Before Steve could respond to the boys lie, wanting to actually get to the bottom of the story, his eyes froze on the dirty spot located on Peter’s shirt. Except it wasn’t the previous stained fabric caused by the spill, but it was a darker shade of red, getting bigger and bigger each second.
Something must have gone wrong, since the pain has been getting worse. He reached for the injury, feeling something wet on his hand.
The stitches loosened up.
“Is that blood ” Starks voice was weak, his heart rate skyrocketed in seconds. He immediately ran up to the boy, inspecting the unknown leakage. He pulled up his shirt, revealing a blood soaking bandage around the chest, covering the unknown stab wound.
Peter’s vision was going darker, his legs feeling like jelly. The sight of blood was unexpected for the boy, leaning his upper body on the wall trying to keep himself in place
“Mr. Sta’k I’m t’red”
“No, Peter. Listen. Stay with me.” Tony picked up the kid. They immediately rushed towards the towers med bay.
Tony’s fast heartbeat and the voices talking in the background helped to keep Peter awake. He was quickly transported to med bay, his mentor putting him on one of the beds.
The bandages were quickly removed from their chest, revealing an infected wound. He saw his bosses horrified face looking at the bleeding scar.
Bruce, who was also in the room with the two men looked nauseous. Both of them were speechless, making Peter embarrassed about the situation.
“Mr.Stark I’m sorry-“ Peter spoke sadly, apologizing to the man. That was the only thing he could do in this situation. Unfortunately for him, Tony hadn’t said a word, getting right to work on the injury.
He cleaned the wound, making the boy groan out of pain. He started to take out the previous stitches, and replacing them with new ones.
It was very unpleasant, to say the least. No one spoke up for the rest of the procedure, silence filling up the room.
The teenager couldn’t really tell what was his father figure feeling in that moment. He looked like a bundle of bad emotions, unable to make out what he was actually feeling.
Bruce on the other hand looked terrified. Each time he looked at the boys chest, he could feel nausea coming in. Although he had a doctor’s degree, it’s still didn’t change the fact that some of the wounds were horrid to look at in the first place. He had to help Tony either way, handing him stuff and checking on the procedure.
Lastly, a thick layer of bandages was wrapped around the whole body. Making the boy really stiff. Tony took off the elastic gloves, putting them on one of the trays.
“Mr.Stark-“
“ NO. THIS IS WHERE YOU ZIP IT ” The man finally broke, letting out all the anger built inside him.
“Are you even aware what could have happened if you wouldn’t get ANY HELP?”
The boy was silent again. He knew that anything he will say would make his guardian angrier.
“You could have died ” His voice was subtle, making his point. His arms unexpectedly wrapped around the boys shoulders, gently resting his chin on the boys body.
“You scared the shit out of me, Underoos”Tony softly rubbed his kids back.
“Why didn’t you tell me? What was so important, that made you think that it was a good idea to hide it?”
Peter hugged the man back, tears finally rolling down his cheeks. “I-I just wanted to see everyone again”
“We would have obviously re-scheduled it. You’re part of the team now so a reunion without you, wouldn’t be a reunion.”
Those words really sunk into the boys heart. He totally forgot that Spider-Man was officially an Avenger now. He wasn’t just a kid from Queens in a red suit, but an actual superhero.
He sniffled quietly under his breath.
“If you would have died, I would never be able to forgive myself. Ever Underoos.” Tony whispered weakly. He was so afraid about his boy, all the anger in his heart was gone by now.
After giving him a tiny pat on the back, the man released the boy from his grip. Peter wiped away his tears, having a faint smile on his face.
All of the emotions he had gathered through the day, finally letting them all out, really made him exhausted. He yawned, rubbing his eyes with his fists.
Tony couldn’t help but smile at the tired teen. He ruffled the curly hair, annoying Peter.
“You know, I am definitely taking your suit away because of this”
“I wasn’t really expecting anything else”
~
When the three man entered the living room, they were quickly greeted by everyone else waiting for them. It looked like Pepper also joined into the reunion party, which made the boy very happy.
When Peter was approaching the group, he was wearing a red oversized t shirt that had the iron man helmet printed on the center of the shirt. He also wore some grey pajama pants randomly found at the bottom of Tony’s wardrobe.
“Jesus Christ kid, will you ever stop worrying me?” Pepper was the first person to come up to the injured teenager. She gently embraced his body, giving him a kiss on the top of his head
“Eh, I like it the old fashioned way”
The group chuckled at the joke, already making some space for the four members.
The table was all set with snacks and drinks, topped off with a mountain of pizza boxes. When he saw the tower of food, his eyes were automatically glued to the heavenly picture.
Peter sat between Tony and Pepper, getting himself one of the blankets laying around the sofa. The tv screen wasn’t playing anything.
“So, what do you wanna watch?” Pepper looked to the person next to her. It took the teen a few seconds just to notice that everyone is waiting for his answer
“Wait- no one likes the movies that I like-“
“Just pick the movie!”
James spoke up, putting pressure on the youngster. He thinks for a moment, trying to find one that will please everyone preferences.
“..Lord of the rings..?”
The tv instantly puts on the first movie on the screen, turning up the volume and dimming the lights. There is a huge smile forming on his face, looking up at the huge device.
This screen was bigger than most of the screens in the local cinemas. The idea of watching one of his favorite movie on a giant led screen with his second family was something that he never thought would become a reality.
Everyone grabbed something from the table, digging into their plates. As Peter ate his cheese pizza, the previous exhaustion came back stronger than before.
The boy tried to keep his eyes open, wanting to watch one of his favorite parts. Suddenly a warm hand was placed on his head, messing with his curls. He immediately leaned into the touch without realizing. His eyes were fighting to stay open, but at the end of the day, they have lost the fight
The last thing that Peter remembers were Tony’s gentle lips kissing his forehead.
He was going to be fine.
Someone cared
and someone helped.