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Peter knows, he knows, that May’s apartment is empty by now. Even if Happy hadn’t been careful to pack up May’s belongings and tuck them into storage, the building manager would have tossed everything before hiring the cleaners and painters to fix it up, ready to rent to the next family who can barely afford it.
That doesn’t stop him from scaling the wall and slipping through the window into his childhood bedroom.
Not that he’s an adult now, not really, he might be 18 (or 23, depending on how these things are counted now), he might be a superhero, but in this moment he doesn’t feel it. In this moment, he wishes he could curl up next to May, feel her arms around him, comforting him like she did the night Ben died. Like the night Tony died. And, so long ago he can barely remember, the night his parents died.
The apartment doesn’t even smell right anymore.
No more burnt attempts at cooking, no more citrus scented candles, no more wisps of May’s floral perfume that she’d stopped wearing when Peter told her about his enhanced senses.
Just the acrid smell of industrial cleaner and the high-hiding white paint that covers everything.
Peter sinks to the floor, needing a moment to collect himself.
This isn’t his home anymore.
Home is the roach-infested studio apartment he found for $500 a week, no questions asked so long as he pays cash every Friday. With the broken water heater and windows that don’t lock.
Home is the air above the streets, where he swings from building to building, always on the lookout for someone who needs his help.
Home is the roof of the building across from the coffee shop where MJ works, where he can keep an eye on both MJ and Ned, without their knowledge. Which isn’t creepy at all, he just wants to make sure they’re safe.
Sighing, Peter pushes back to his feet and slips back through the window, silently climbing back to the street. He sets off towards his new (really old, dilapidated) apartment building, hoping he can make enough in tips tonight to buy a full week of groceries. Or maybe, that someone will be generous and buy their friendly neighborhood Spider-Man dinner.
If not, he can always grab a meal at FEAST.