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Hulk felt his hand grow tighter around the puny spider. Years of being suppressed by Banner, years of being hidden away like a secret, and he was angry. He was so, so incredibly fucking mad… and who better to take it out on then the Spider-Man? The one who wanted to help keep him contained, locked away in Banner's brain for good?
"Dr. Banner… please…" The poor spider tried to beg, thought he could talk to Banner. Doesn't he know Banner is gone?
He tightened again, feeling hands come to claw at his fist. "Bruce…" Silly spider, thought he could beat Hulk.
All Hulk had to do now is squeeze very tight, and the spider would be crush—
"It's Peter."
That name. Why did that name sound familiar? Hulk didn't know a Peter. Banner didn't know a Peter. So why was that name cutting through so many layers of deep fog, fog laced with magic?
Hulk took a second, tried to access Banner's brain, tried to remember why Peter was seemingly so important.
"God, Bruce, I have to introduce you to Peter. Besides you he is the only one who can keep up with me in the lab, and at fifteen? He is something special. He's going places."
All that came up were memories of Stark. Memories of Tony.
Tony having to cancel plans. "Can't today, Brucey Bear. Gotta work on the kid's suit, him and his friend somehow fried the GPS wiring and he is anxious to have this back."
Tony gushing about someone. "Straight As! In all advanced classes! Told ya he's going places. I'm calling MIT, I don't care. It can't be nepotism if you're not actually related, right?"
Tony crying in front of him. "Sorry for zoning out on you there, it's just… August 10th. He would have been 18 today. God, Bruce, I failed him. He should still be here. I miss him so much."
God. This was the kid.
Hulk had his big, monstrous green hand around the goddamn kid.
The one that Tony wouldn't shut up about, who Tony loved as his own.
Hulk looked close at his masked face, and was able to faintly see a set of huge, terrified brown eyes looking back at him through the sheer lenses, and the realization of just who he was about to hurt, about to kill, hit him like a freight train.
"I'm your friend."
And he was. He truly was.
Because any friend of Tony's was a friend of his.
Hulk looked up and caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, and felt nothing but horror as Bruce started to come back.
Tony never saw him as a monster, was one of the only people who treated him as a smart, kind, and capable human being.
But would he still if he saw this? Saw his huge meaty hand around his kid?
Hulk let go of Peter, and began moving backward towards the ledge, not taking his eye of his reflection, seeing the kid compose himself in his periphery.
What have I done? What have I done? Repeated in his brain until he felt himself fall backwards, off the ledge, arms scrambling for purchase.
Before realizing he doesn't deserve to. That he should just let himself fall.
He locks eyes with Peter one last time, and lets go.
With a single thought on his mind.
I'm so fucking sorry Tony.