#Peter Parker one shots

[dracowars]

your friendly neighborhood nurse | peter parker

pairing: mcu!peter x gwen!reader

word count: 2,2k

summary: where peter is badly injured and y/n helps him

a/n: my first peter parker os, ahhh!!! i'm so excited and can't wait to see what you think of it 🫶🏻 please be kind and enjoy~

warnings: angst, mentions of blood, mentions of (severe) injuries

universe: marvel

Your gaze lazily flies over the first few lines of the page, the words logically connecting in your head to form a coherent sentence. The book lies open on your lap, your knees pulled a bit closer to your body so it is easier for you to dive into your newest book. Whenever you read, you feel like you leave New York City behind, escaping into different worlds and other realms, fading out the real world around you.

Outside your room, you hear the quiet clinking of glass as a member of your family is apparently emptying the dishwasher. You can hear the deep tone of your father's voice but your mind is too busy with the words you are currently reading to concentrate on any of them.

You even block out the loud sirens from several passing fire trucks and police cars, subconsciously perceiving them, but not actually understanding them. What you do notice, however, is a loud but dull bang a few seconds later as something hits your window with so much force to startle you out of your dreamland but not enough to break the glass.

Suddenly, your whole body is tensed up, your pulse increasing vehemently when you look at your window and see nothing. The sirens continue to blare through the streets of New York, but the moment you think you see a shadow on the fire escape, you couldn't care less about them.

Quickly, you carelessly toss your book onto your blanket, reality now more important than the words in it, and you swing your legs over the edge of your bed in a haste before quickly stepping to the window.

Strong rays of sunshine hit your face and your eyes close out of reflex, but you reach for the window anyway and lift it up. You still haven't discovered the source of the bang, but something inside of you tells you that it is important, that you are needed.

And you were right because once you lean out of your window a tiny bit, you spot a figure on the right side of your window, sitting against the wall.

"Peter?", is all your vocal cords manage as a shiver runs down your spine when he looks at you before his name even fully left your mouth, his senses striking, your eyes meeting.

If there is one thing in this already cruel world that you hate the most, it's seeing others suffer, especially if you know those people. Especially if you love those people. Deeply.

That is why your heart beats even more painfully now that you see the numerous wounds and the blood - so, so, so much blood - on his face and body, his hair disheveled from the mask. His suit is torn in a few places, the areas you sewed last week ripped open again.

"Oh my god", you curse under your breath and don't waste another second to climb out the window and onto the emergency staircase of your huge apartment building, crawling to his side.

As soon as you reach him, his pained face lights up for a second, shooting you his characteristic smile. But it doesn't fully reach his eyes as it normally does which worries you even more.

"Hey you", he whispers softly, his voice obviously strained as he tries to turn his body into your direction, failing as he whimpers in pain.

"What happened?", you immediately ask, concerned about his current state. You have seen him after a lot of fights, after good and bad battles, after winning one or losing one, but never did he look so weak and vulnerable to you. Peter always tries to seem strong in front of you, he wants to be twice as strong for the both of you, but in this moment, right now, it just breaks your heart.

"Oh, you know. Just the usual", he replies, shrugging before realizing that every little movement hurts. "A bad guy striving for world domination. Nothing new, really."

"Peter, this is no joke", you scold him, startled about the fact that he can still make jokes looking like this. "We need to get you to the hospital immediately."

Stumbling to get up, you are immediately stopped by his scraped up hand that wraps around your forearm, his grip tight to keep you from leaving.

"Relax, cupcake. I just needed to see you, that's all", he tells you, but you don't buy it, especially not when every breath he takes causes him unimaginable pain. "Just gonna rest for a bit and then I will feel much better."

"Peter! I'm warning you, keep your damn eyes open", you immediately shake him as he only whispers his last words quietly and his head slowly lowers. You quickly grab his face and force him to look at you and sure enough, his disoriented pupils find yours. A small smile creeps onto his lips as he takes in another shaky breath.

"You have to listen carefully now, okay? We have to get you inside. I'm going to lift you up, but I can't do it alone. You have to help me with this with the last bit of strength you can muster, alright? It will probably hurt, but I can't help you any other way, Peter", you gently speak to him, a certain urgency in your voice, and even though his senses seem to be quite foggy, he nods and immediately tries to get up with his arm against the wall of the building. Quickly, you support him and pull his arm over your shoulder so that most of his weight is now on you.

"Okay, okay. One step-" you start to explain, but Peter staggers forward dangerously before you quickly press your hand against his chest to steady him. "One step at a time. Just look at what I'm doing."

Together, you finally manage to get him to your open window, where the next obstacle is already waiting for you: how are you supposed to get him inside?

“Let me think about the best way to get you in there", you mumble, your head lost in thought as another police patrol drives past your apartment building. Before you can come up with a solution, however, Peter suddenly bends down and squeezes himself through the window in excruciating pain. That done, he almost falls over if you hadn't followed him, cursing, and prevented him from meeting your floor by grabbing his waist. With his help, you maneuver him to your bed, where he lies down groaning.

"I swear to God, when this is over, I will be the one to kill you", you say under your breath, eyeing his entire body, inspecting all the wounds that need medical care.

At the sight of him, dark thoughts suddenly rush through your mind and your eyes become watery, but you know that you have to be strong for him and you do not allow a tear to fall down. With a deep breath you get up and go to your adjoining bathroom, where you always keep a first aid kit under the sink. After all, this isn't the first time Peter has asked you for help; it's just never been this bad.

Before you can get to your bed again, there is a loud knock on your bedroom door all of a sudden and you stand still for a second, completely frozen in place. Your eyes wander to Peter, lying on your bed in his miserable state. A boy lying in your bed.

Spiderman lying in your bed.

"Y/N?" your father speaks from the other side of the door, turning the doorknob like he always does, not waiting for your answer.

"Stop, Dad! I'm changing!", you shout, running up and reaching the door just in time so you can lean against it and shut it close again.

"Oh, my bad. Listen, something happened and I have to go out again. That useless Spiderman guy- Whatever. I know we were supposed to cook your favorite meal today, but that has to wait until tomorrow, sweetheart", he now speaks to you through the door and your heart beats a beat faster the moment you put two and two together. "I just have one request for you: stay here, in your room. Don't go out today. Your mom is in the kitchen if you need anything."

"Yes, Dad. Don't worry, I have loads of homework", you reply, letting out a sigh of relief as soon as you hear his footsteps walking away from your door, quietly locking your door from the inside. But it's only when you hear the front door closing that you move again and rush to Peter's side, who, to your surprise, still has his eyes open, even if only slightly. Immediately, his hand blindly reaches for you.

"I'm here, I'm here now", you assure him quickly and squeeze his hand tightly, but let go again to open the first aid kit. However, when you see all of his wounds, you find it difficult to keep track of all of them and feel overwhelmed.

"Cut it open", he croaks quietly, making you look at him in surprise. "The suit."

Understanding him, you nod and quickly cut through the fabric so you can tend to his injuries better. However, you also see the numerous dark blue and purple spots that are spread all over his upper body and your head doesn't even realize that he is now lying in front of you shirtless.

"Are you checking me out right now?", Peter mentions with a mock undertone, immediately snapping you out of your thoughts and your cheeks take on a deep red blush.

"N-No! Of course not!"

"Ah, man. If I had known that, I would have done a few more pushups beforehand", he teases you and on the one hand you are relieved that he is no longer on the verge of passing out, but on the other hand this really isn't the time to make jokes.

"You are such an idiot", you giggle quietly and use a damp cloth to wipe away the blood that is spread all over his muscular upper body. Then you use an alcohol-free wipe, and gently dab his skin with it. He immediately groans in pain and wiggles around, but since you both know there is no other way, he grits his teeth and tries to make as few sounds as possible.

When you reach his face to clean the wounds there, you repeatedly catch yourself looking into his glittering eyes, which are fixed on your face. With every eye contact you feel warmer and you try to suppress the blush that wants to creep onto your cheeks again.

"I'm sorry that you won't get your favorite meal today", Peter finally says, a pained expression on his face as you dab at the deep cut on his nose. "Ouch! That stings!"

"Well, if you didn't always jump into hopeless fights, then we wouldn't even be in this situation", you roll your eyes at him, concentrating on being as careful as possible so that you do not cause him more pain.

"Others would have been hurt..", he murmurs under his breath and if it weren't so quiet in your room, you probably wouldn't have heard him at all, but his words make you pause as you look directly at him.

The serious look on his face warms your heart and with a smile you nod, showing him that you understand. That he just can't help but to help others because that is what he likes to do. That is what he is made for.

When he still doesn't break the intense eye contact after several seconds, you clear your throat and begin to apply a healing ointment on most of his wounds and then bandage them.

"Peter, you really have to go to the hospital and get checked. I'm not sure if you broke some bones", you plead and he nods in agreement, but reluctantly. Absentmindedly, you run your hand through his hair and then down his face, always careful to not touch any of his wounds.

"But you are the best nurse", Peter admits, making your heart beat faster again as he intertwines your hands on his bare chest. He places his other hand on your cheek and you nuzzle into it, never breaking eye contact. And when he puts his hand on your neck and pulls you closer and closer to his face, you feel like your heart stops completely. Only shortly before your lips touch do you break eye contact.

Peter kisses you with so much affection that you almost feel dizzy and you feel every part of your body that touches him.

With a hiss of pain, he is forced to break the kiss eventually, the pain now less but still present. Tucking a strand of your hair behind your ear, he looks at you with so much love in his eyes that you want to kiss him again immediately, but he stops you.

"Thank you", he says and you can literally feel his gratitude, which he emphasizes with a kiss on your knuckles. Smiling, you place a soft kiss on his cheek before connecting your lips once more.

"Everything for my superhero."

[etoileholland]

With love, from me to you

Synopsis: when the student government decides to sell Valentine’s Day balloons and cards, both you and Peter have a similar idea.

Warnings: none

Word count: 2k

a/n; happy Valentine’s Day! Here’s a quick thing I wrote last night at midnight (whoops) but I hope you enjoy!

Valentine’s Day: a wonderful day for many, a dreaded day for some. It all depended on whether you had someone to spend the day with, to gift flowers and chocolates too, to write love letters to, and most importantly, to see who can outdo the other. For some, they were able to partake in the festivities, and for others, such as Peter Parker and his friends, they dreaded the holiday altogether.

“It’s honestly just a capitalist racket.” MJ remarked, taking a bite of her sandwich. It was lunchtime, and everyone congregated in the cafeteria. Even though Valentine’s Day wasn’t until the next week, people were already gearing up for the holiday. Roses and balloons with a card attached were available for purchase through student government, and the committee was pushing the event during lunchtime. The trio watched as the valedictorian hung up the poster advertising the event.

“Tell me about it.” Ned replied before stealing a fry off of Peter’s tray. He ignored Peter’s confused face and popped it into his mouth. “It’s a pointless holiday, really. People should be telling they love each other throughout the year, and not just on one day.” MJ shook her head in agreement.

“Exactly.” She answered, “it’s a dumb holiday.”

The trio nodded their heads as they continued eating and watching their classmates hand out flyers for the valentines balloons with cards attached, or “valentines grams” as they were called. The friend group all had the “sour grapes” mentality—they were bitter about the fact that no one gave them valentines.

“It would be nice to receive one, though.” Peter remarked, taking a fry off of Ned’s plate as revenge. “In all our years in high school, we’ve never received one.”

“We could always buy one for each other.” Ned spoke up, but the disapproving looks on MJ’s and Peter’s face shot that idea down quickly. “It was just a suggestion.”

As lunch continued, the three ate and spoke about various topics. At the next table over, you couldn’t help but overhear what the friend group conversed about. In a way, it was surprising to hear that they hadn’t received one. It seemed as though everyone had received at least one during their high school years—even you had received one.

Even if they didn’t think so, the trio were more popular than they realised. They had a solid group of friends, people knew them by name, they all had a lot of talent and were kind. So it was incredibly shocking that no one had gifted them one.

—

“Did you do last night’s homework?” Peter questioned you right as he sat down at the shared table in your chemistry class. “I only did half of it as I was babysitting my little cousin Morgan.” He laughed, setting down his backpack. “She wouldn’t let me do my work because it interrupted her tea party.” His face had a large smile on his face as he recounted his day yesterday. Seeing him happy brought a smile to your own face.

To be honest, when he told you about his days, it made it feel as though he was your friend. Although you secretly wished for more, you were happy with what you got.

“I also didn’t finish my homework, but only because I barely understood it.” You slowly pulled your half completed homework out of your chem folder.

“Oh.” He answered, “I’m sorry.”

You shook your head. “Don’t be sorry about it, it’s not your fault.”

It is my fault, because I’m too nervous to suggest having a study date, he thought to himself.

“Ha, right.” He awkwardly chucked.

Your chemistry teacher walked in from his office with a stack of flyers in his hand. “I was told by the student body to hand out these flyers for the valentine’s grams that are on sale starting today.” He began to walk around the classroom, handing out the flyers to the students. “They’ll be on sale until the 13th at the main office, so make sure you buy one soon.” When he got to your table, he placed a few down and continued walking.

Both you and Peter reached for the stack at the same time, your fingers brushing against his. Electricity coursed through your veins, and you could feel yourself become flustered. You looked up at Peter whose face was the same shade as the pink flyers. He brought one to his face in an attempt to cover his blush.

“So,” his voice came out higher than anticipated, “the valentines grams seem nice this year.”

“Yeah.” You breathed out, “it comes with a balloon and a handwritten card for $5.” What are you, a spokesperson for the grams? You thought to yourself.

“I see.” Peter replied, “it’s a good deal.”

“It is.”

“Alright class, turn to page…”

Your awkward conversation was cut short by the teacher who rambled on about skeleton structures, a subject that began to bore you to death. When you glanced up at Peter, you noticed that he was looking at you instead of the teacher.

“Sorry about that.” Peter whispered to you, his face turning pink again.

“Don’t worry.” You replied as you focused your attention on what your teacher was rambling on about.

—

After school that day, you ran into the main office where the grams were for sale. You hoped that you wouldn’t run into Peter, but when you serendipitously saw him walk into the auditorium, you sped walked to the office.

“I would like to purchase a valentine's gram please.” The secretary handed you a card to fill out, and you handed her the bill.

What should I say?

Maybe, “happy Valentine’s Day?” That’s a bit too average.

Or maybe “be my valentine.” You shook your head. That’s way too forward.

As you racked your brain for what to say, you failed to notice the secretary growing impatient. “Please write something honey. There are people behind you who’d also like to purchase one.”

“Sorry.” You uttered as you moved out of the way. The pressure made it harder to figure out something to say, so you sat down on a chair outside of the principal’s office.

After a few minutes, the perfect response came to you. You handed in the gram and left the office, now feeling excited for Valentine’s Day to come around.

—

“May, can I have $5?” Peter asked when he returned home later that day. He saw his aunt preparing dinner, knowing that she would be more willing to accept his offer while she was preoccupied.

“What for?” She questioned, turning off the stove. The pan almost bubbled over, but this was a normal occurrence when she cooked.

“Um, I owe the lunch lady that money.” Peter lied, hoping that May would believe him.

“Nice try, but I added money to your account today. You have a positive balance, so what’s it really for?” She placed the pan back on the stove. It was spaghetti night, so once she finished draining the pasta, she added in the marinara sauce.

“Is it for the valentine grams that are on sale?” She smirked, “I saw the flyer earlier today, and I happen to know that they’re also $5.”

Shit.

Her response need no reply as Peter’s face turned bright red. “Is it for a girl?” May asked in an enthusiastic tone.

“Yes.” Peter choked out. “There’s someone in my chemistry class that I think is really pretty.”

“Well why didn’t you say so in the first place?” May asked before walking over to her purse. She rifled through her wallet and exclaimed “aha!” when she found a $5 bill. “Now,” she paused, walking over to her nephew, “write something thoughtful on it, yeah? Don’t just say happy Valentine’s Day—give it some thought.”

“I will.” Peter answered confidently, “I promise.”

—

Valentine’s Day came quickly, and the student government announced that they would be delivering the grams during 6th period, which was when you had chem with Peter.

You held your breath when you heard the announcement. Peter would receive the gram, and you would have to sit there watching awkwardly. The gram was addressed to him from you, so he would know you got it for him.

You couldn’t be more mortified.

Peter was feeling just as mortified when he heard the announcement. He too addressed it to you from him, so he would have to watch as you read the gram.

—

When sixth period rolled around, you slinked into class. Your heart rate was through the roof, and you knew this would be the most awkward experience in a long time. What if Peter is repulsed by your valentine? Would he cease to interact with you?

You watched as Peter was the last person to arrive to class before the bell rang. He slumped in his chair and turned away from you, his face beet red.

The teacher began his lecture, and neither one of you could look at each other. The tension was thick enough to cut through, but you tried your hardest to pay attention.

Halfway through class, a few students from the student body burst through the doors, balloons in hand.

“Sorry teach, but we have a special delivery for a select few.” A guy whom you think is named Harry began to search through the balloons that he and his classmate Emily had in their hands. After a minute, they pulled out two balloons with their cards attached on the balloon weights.

“We have two grams here, one of which will go to Peter Parker.” He scanned the room for Peter, and he held his hand up a bit. When Harry saw him, he rushed over to Peter as he placed the balloon in his hand. “And the other goes to…” He glanced down at the card. When he saw it was for you, he passed the balloon to you. “That’s everyone, thanks for allowing us to crash the party.” Harry awkwardly laughed, frowning as no one laughed with him. The two left as quickly as they initially entered.

“I wasn’t expecting a card.” Peter whispered to himself. The teacher continued with his lecture, but both you and Peter were preoccupied.

“Neither was I.” You remarked. The card was attached to the balloon, and with shaky hands, you read the card.

Will you be my valentine? ~Peter

Peter? Peter gave you a card?

Peter reached for his card, and gasped when he read it.

Happy Valentine’s Day Peter. Hope the day is as wonderful as you.

The message was addressed from you, to him. At first, he couldn’t believe you actually gifted him one, but he recognised your handwriting.

He was grinning like an idiot with a bright red face.

You looked over at a blushy Peter, and your heart melted. You would do anything to see him this happy.

When class ended, both you and Peter took your time putting away your school supplies. After a minute of silence, Peter spoke up.

“Thank you for the valentine gram. I loved it.”

“You’re welcome.” You answered, “I loved mine too.”

The two of you were smiling, and you wished you could stay in that moment forever. But when students came in and began to sit in their spots, you moved towards the door. Following you, Peter walked out of the classroom after you. When you stopped near the door, he stopped too.

“Oh, I would love to be your valentine.” You replied softly. Even though the hallway was bustling, he heard you perfectly.

“Yeah?” He asked with a shy smile.

“Yeah.”

“Well that’s good.” Peter reached up to rub the nape of his neck. “Are you busy tonight?”

When you shook your head no, Peter’s face lit up.

“Would you like to go to dinner tonight?” He asked in a hopeful voice.

You smiled back at him, “I would love to.”

He walked you to class, even holding your books on the way to your class. As you both walked through the hallway, you couldn’t have been more grateful for the student government and their valentine gram campaign.

——

a/n; a short one, but I hope you liked it! Requests are open and if you’d like to be added to my taglist, let me know!

[imaginefan]

Without The Mask

Peter Parker X Fem!Reader

Word Count: 800

Requested: Anon

Request: Being a superhero and showing up to save Peter or people when they need them. You didn't know whose Peter identity was and he didn't know yours, but it became questionable after a while. The man wanted pictures of the new superhero and Peter takes the job and does it. He finds out who you are without meaning to, but keeps your secret cause he knows how important it is. (One shot. Thankies.)

You hadn’t been a hero for a very long time, in fact the only thing that separates you from being found out was the ski mask that covered your face, you had no idea what you wanted to be called or how people were seeing you but in all honesty you didn’t actually care, you did this to help people and that was what you would continue to do.

“Hey there, you wanna give that back or am I going to have to make you?” You asked. “Now why would you care about some photographer, you know he was trying to get pictures of you right?” The thug asked and you looked between the two before walking over, easily knocking the guy out and taking the camera, you put it out in front of you and snapped a picture. “Hope that’s good enough.” You winked before handing back the camera. “T-thanks.” He stuttered out before you nodded. “Be careful out here alright?” You asked. “Yeah.” He answered and you turned and walked out of the alley to help anyone else that needed it.

A few hours later you were sitting on the roof of a building watching the quiet streets “there she is.” You recognised the voice of Spiderman and before long he was sitting on the ledge next to you. “Hey.” You greeted him and he nodded. “You saved a friend of mine today.” He said. “A photographer, called Peter.” “Oh really?” You asked. “Yeah, he told me about it, when I saw him a few hours ago.” He said. “Oh.” You nodded as you looked at him, now that you thought about it he sounded a lot like the photographer in the alley but you wouldn’t say anything about that yet. “He also said that Jameison has taken an interest in you, you need to be careful if he really wants a picture of you he won’t stop until he has one.” Spiderman said and you nodded. “Don’t worry about that, it'll be okay.” You said “he got his picture.” “That might not be enough for him.” Spiderman said before diving off of the rooftop.

The next morning Peter took the picture that you had taken to Jamieson “what is this?” He asked. “The picture you wanted.” Peter answered, he had a feeling this was going to happen, there was not going to be a picture good enough, even if it was taken by you. “I wanted a picture of her face, we’re supposed to be unmasking the vigilante, there can not be 2 in New York city.” Jamieson said, throwing the picture on his desk. “Parker, get me a picture of her face or I’ll find someone that can.” “I don’t think that we can get a picture of her face, she never takes the mask off.” Peter argued. “Then take it off yourself.” He ordered. “Get me the picture.”

Peter had tried to get a couple of other pictures of you hoping one of them would be good enough to get Jamieson off both your backs, he knew it was important to keep yourself a secret but others wouldn’t, he had just taken a photo when it happened the guy that you had been fighting grabbed at your masked pulling it clean off your face, you punched him knocking him out before he could get a proper look at your face but you turned to where Peter was hiding without missing a beat. “I know you're there!” You called as he walked out from the cover that he had taken. “Your boss was looking for a picture of my face, did you get what you wanted?” “No.” Peter answered “I’m not taking the picture.” “Really why is that?” You asked. “Would you take mine?” He asked. “What?” You asked, he threw the camera to you and opened his shirt to show the red and blue suit underneath. “Anyone could get that suit, they sell them no-” You didn’t get to finish the sentence because he shot a web effectively covering your mouth and stopping you from talking, you tore the web from your face glaring at him. “Still not funny.” “Mmm, still effective though.” He smirked and you narrowed your eyes at him. “So we keep each other's secrets?” You asked. “Keep each other's secrets.” He nodded. “And your boss?” You asked. “He keeps saying he wants a picture of Spiderman’s face, he still hasn’t got one, I think he likes the chase.” Peter answered. “As long as I have something to give to him we don’t have to worry.” “Alright… I guess I’ll have to get to know you without the mask then.” You said and he shrugged. “I guess so.” He nodded. “Names (Y/N).” You introduced yourself. “Peter Parker.” He shook your hand.

Requests and general question!

[mushrubes]

Red

Masterlist | marvel masterlist |

Requested : no

song used - Red - Taylor swift 

Pairing : peter parker x (they/them) Stark! reader

Type : fluff + angst

Word count : 5.1k

happy new year!! <3

——————————–

Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead end street

Faster than the wind, passionate as sin, ending so suddenly

“Who’s this?” A voice called from the front of the lab, a teenager leant against the door frame, arms folded on the chest. Tony internally groaned, his hope of them not coming down now ruined. “The new ‘intern’” he said, his attention back on the suit in front of him as Peter watched the interaction, unfamiliar with this new person. He had been an ‘intern’ for a while, and even now an avenger, and yet he’d never seen this person around - not even once. “Oh!” they gasped, putting some rubbish in the bin before heading over, holding a hand out to the brunette next to their father. 

“Nice to finally meet you, spiderling.” They smirked, Peter freezing in his spot for a second before clearing his throat and shaking their hand. “Nice to meet you too, uh...” he paused, not knowing their name. They smiled as Tony muttered something under his breath. “Y/n. Y/n Stark.” they finished for him as Peter nodded. Tony got up, handing something to Peter before turning to his child. “Right, now get out, we’re busy.” he instructed, the two having a conversation with their eyes. Y/n gave him a pleading look making him shake his head, huffing and walking back to the door. “I’ll see you around, spider boy.”

Loving him is like trying to change your mind

Once you're already flying through the free fall

Like the colours in autumn, so bright, just before they lose it all

“Oh, spiderboy!” Y/n called as they saw him enter the building, resting on the kitchen counter. Peter looked up and smiled, his cheeks heating up slightly. He barely knew them, but there was something so intriguing about Y/n. Maybe it was their smile, or how he never really saw them. Maybe it was the fact there was finally someone his age around the avenger’s facility or maybe it was Tony telling him that Y/n was ‘off-limits’ made him want to rebel. He couldn’t figure out what it was. “Hey!” he greeted, walking over and looking into the living room as the kitchen was open plan. He saw the Captain and Bucky sat on the sofas chatting and looking at them, Peter nervously raising his hand to greet them. No matter how long he had been here, he still felt nervous when he saw them, having looked up to the team ever since he was a child.

Losing him was blue, like I'd never known

“Y/n! It’s so nice to see you! And you two!” May greeted, welcoming the Starks into her family home. She had thrown a party for Peter’s birthday, inviting close friends round which included Michelle, Ned, Y/n and the Starks as he had become quite close with Y/n now, so May had seen Pepper, Tony and Happy often as a result of this. May pointed to the direction where the other teens were and they thanked her, the adults all gathering in the room to have their own little chats. Y/n gripped the bag tightly, their hands sweaty. They had met Ned once or twice, but they had never met Michelle, and with Peter being one of their best friends, they hoped they could all get along. They didn’t have the best history with friends, the very few they had in the past were only friends because they knew who their dad was and used them. “Y/n!” Peter cheered as they walked into the bedroom, getting up and pulling them into a hug. His cheeks were tinted red again and he slightly tripped on his own feet as he made his way over causing the other two to snort. The hug ended briefly, Y/n passing the bag over to Peter whose eyes widened as he quickly went to open it. 

Y/n made their way over to the bed where Ned was sat, who gave them a wave and a comforting smile as they sat next to him. “It’s nice to meet you, Michelle, is it?” Y/n nervously said, MJ nodding at them. “It’s nice to meet you too glad to know there’s finally another sane person around here. You can call me MJ, I’m Peter’s uh...girlfriend.” she finished, Y/n’s heart dropping slightly as they heard the last of her words. Girlfriend? Peter had never said anything about having a girlfriend the last time they had hung out which was a few days ago. Even Ned seemed confused by the comment. “Girlfriend?” he gasped, looking between the two. “Yeah! I asked her out the other day! I must have forgotten to tell you guys...” he laughed nervously, scratching his neck before pulling the present out of the bag and opening it as an awkward silence settled over the room.

 He interrupted it with a loud hum. “These are sick!” he gasped, pulling the present out. Y/n smiled at him, knowing it was what he wanted. They had overheard him talking about upgrades for his suit and they had managed to find some (totally did not ask their dad) that would make his web slingers better. They spoke about random things, Y/n mostly just listening before they excused themself to get a drink. “Oh, I’ll come with!” Ned said, following them out of the room, knowing there was something wrong. He had only hung out with Y/n a few times, but they were never this quiet - it was the opposite of their normal lively and bubbly self. “You okay?” he asked as he saw them pull out a drink from the fridge, not saying a word and nodding instead. He saw Y/n’s eyes get misty and opened his arms for a hug, Y/n taking the offer, feeling as if they had just lost their best friend.

Missing him was dark grey, all alone

Ever since Y/n had found out Peter and MJ were dating; they had hung out less. Not because of jealousy, or pain but because he was constantly busy. If Peter was not out fighting crime or on a mission of some sort, he was with her. He wasn’t even an avenger yet, Tony declaring he was not ready, and yet he was busier ‘saving the world’. “Have you spoken to Y/n?” Pepper asked, walking into the lab, not being able to find them anywhere. “Y/n? Are they not with Peter?” he questioned, looking at her confused. Pepper sighed before shaking her head, sitting on the chair in the lab. “They won’t come out of their room, other than to eat and drink.” she explained, her head in her hands. Tony looked confused and furrowed his eyebrows, handing something to Cap. “Those two are literally inseparable as much as I hate it, he was here a few hours ago and said he was going out.” he informed, running his hand through his hair. 

“I’ll go and try to speak to them.” Tony asked, Pepper grimacing. He apologised to Steve and Bruce who assured him it was fine and headed up to the rooms. He carefully approached their room, knocking on the door and waited for a response. “Hey, kid? What’s up?” he asked, waiting again and getting no answer. He knocked once more leaving it a few minutes before hearing a faint ‘come in’. He frowned as he saw them, sat on their bed, knees up, puffy eyes and a tired face. “Oh Y/n/n.” he muttered, closing the door behind him and pulling them into a hug. He didn’t pester them with what was wrong, just embraced them while his heart dropped as their body shook with sobs in his arms. He rubbed his hands up and down their back soothingly, holding them tightly as he contained his anger. “I... I just miss...Peter.” they managed to breathe out as Tony took a deep breath, trying not to show his anger towards the boy in front of them. “I know, kid. I know. He’ll come around soon...” he assured, making a mental note to have a talk with him the next time he saw him. 

Tony stayed in there for around half an hour, comforting them and staying until they had fallen asleep, heading back down to the lab where Pepper was still sat, now talking to Nat as Steve and Bruce still worked on whatever it was they were doing. “Are they okay?” Pepper asked, Tony nodding as he approached the table. He went to talk as a voice interrupted him. “Mr Stark! I have an idea-” Peter said, jogging over as Tony held his hand up to signal him to stop talking. “I hope that idea is to sort whatever the hell you’ve done to Y/n out, because she has been a mess all because of you, Peter. You’re making it harder for me to trust you.” Tony retorted, walking off and leaving Peter stood there dumbfounded and frozen. 

Forgetting him was like trying to know

Somebody you never met

Peter internally groaned as he looked around the compound, not finding his best friend anywhere. He had tried the lab, tried the training room and the gym. He tried the living room and the kitchen, the game room, the movie room, the bedrooms - he could not find Y/n anywhere. Guilt and shame overtook him as no trace was found, feeling as if he’d never be able to make it up to the one person who means the most to him, his best friend. He checked the last place, a lump filling his throat as he saw the familiar figure sat in the rooftop balcony bar, sat with someone else. “Y/n?” he called, getting the pairs attention. Their laughter died down; the smile now replaced with a blank face as Steve pat their back comfortingly. Steve looked between the two, ignoring the urge to stay as Y/n gave him a pleading look, getting up and leaving to allow the two some privacy.

“Don’t you have something better to do, Parker?” they asked coldly, looking back and staring out into the view, not meeting his eyes. “I just want to talk...” he started, wincing at the coldness of their actions. The glare they gave him almost took his breath away, full of hatred and hurt, Peter regretful of his actions. “There’s nothing to talk about, you chose her. Just let me forget you, move on.” they almost begged, their eyes misty and playing with their hands. He slowly approached them, standing next to them, occasionally glancing at Y/n. 

“We broke up.” Peter said after a while, Y/n looking at him with a sad look. He saw them open their mouth and cut them off before they could even get a word out. “I’m okay, it was mutual. It just felt...more right as friends.” he half lied, not telling the whole truth. Yes, the break up was mutual and they felt better off as friends, but he didn’t mention the fact that MJ had pointed out there was someone else, someone he clearly loved more, even if he didn’t necessarily realise at that point in time, but almost everyone else around them could see it. The two found themselves slowly inching closer to the other, until they were both gazing out, his arm around their shoulder and holding them tightly. “I’ll never do that again.” he promised, looking down at them and feeling the usual heat rush to his cheeks - Y/n was looking back at him and had a massive grin on their face. “I know, Pete. I know.” they comforted.

But loving him was red

Loving him was red

"Goddamn it Peter, help me out!” they whispered, making sure they wouldn’t wake any of the adults up. They were currently trying to sneak out of their room, Peter calling them and telling them they had to absolutely come with him at...three o’clock in the morning. “Just fall! I’ll catch you; I promise!” he argued back, his arms out ready to catch them. Y/n huffed before pulling the window shut and letting go of the windowsill, allowing themself to fall and braced themself for the impact of the grass below them. Luckily, Peter had kept his word and caught them, giving them a cocky grin, which made them roll their eyes at his behaviour. “Told you.” he retorted, Y/n scoffing and wrapping their arms around his neck. “Just hurry up and swing wherever you wanted to go spiderling, before I take it back.” they instructed him, Peter nodding and gripping their waist tightly as he swung through the trees, into the city. He had swung into a park, just on the outskirts, a little picnic blanket on the top of the hill where he carefully put Y/n down, whose mouth was agape, in awe of the sunrise. 

“I knew you’d like it.” he chuckled, sitting down next to them on the blanket, letting them put their head on his shoulder. He took a deep breath, controlling his nerves as his heartrate increased. They sat in a comfortable silence, watching the sunrise and enjoying each other’s embrace. “Y/n?” Peter called, getting their attention. They put their hand on top of his, interlocking their fingers. They stared in each other’s eyes, faces going forward before they were right there, their lips only meters away from each other. Y/n bit their lip before leaning forward, connecting their lips for a much-needed kiss. Nothing was said, but it was as if they could read each other’s minds, a mutual feeling between the two. “Be my partner.” Peter grinned as they pulled away, Y/n reflecting the lovesick smile. They went to respond, being interrupted by their phone ringing, their eyes widening as they looked at the contact - Tony. “Shit.” Peter groaned. If they weren’t dead already, they were definitely dead now.

Touching him was like realizing all you ever wanted

Was right there in front of you

“Hey, kid.” Tony called from behind, smiling as he saw their eyes widen and put down whatever they were doing to come and greet him. “Dad!” Y/n cheered, running over and hugging him. Tony smiled and hugged them back, rocking them side to side. He stuck his tongue out as he saw Pepper enter the room, holding up his middle finger and mouthing ‘I’m the favourite’ to her causing her to muffle her laughter. “I’m here too, you know.” Peter smirked, Y/n’s face dropping again, pulling away from Tony and tackling Peter into a hug. “That’s not fair.” Tony grumbled, Pepper hugging him and comforting him as he walked out the room, going on about how he didn’t support them two.

Peter swayed them side to side, smiling as he could hear their heartbeat speed up. “Your hearts beating faster, that’s cute.” he teased, Y/n’s cheeks heating up and pushing him away playfully, Peter wrapping his arms around them as they turned. “I hate you.” they responded, causing Peter to laugh and shake. A lovestruck smile covering both of the teens faces. “I love you too.” he said, not realising what he said until they stopped moving. “Say that again.” they asked, Peter not realising at first what he said. “I... love you?” he repeated, his mouth forming an ‘oh’ as he saw the look on their face and connected the dots. “I love you too, Pete.” they grinned, pecking his cheek.

Memorizing him was as easy as knowing all the words

To your old favourite song

“Where did you get this?!” they gasped, recognising the song as soon as the record started playing the vinyl. He held his hand out which Y/n took, their arms instinctively wrapping around his neck as his softly held their hips. They swayed in time to the music, occasionally muttering amongst themselves and staring into each other’s eyes. “I have my ways, my love.” he admitted, not telling them exactly how he had found it (he had to go around to pretty much every record shop in the area). They were so engrossed in each other they didn’t realise Tony and Pepper walking into the kitchen who watched the two, not disturbing them. “They’re just like when we were younger.” Pepper joked, intertwining her hand with Tony’s who was watching them with a small smile on his face. “Maybe they’re not as bad as I thought.” he commented.

Fighting with him was like trying to solve a crossword

And realizing there's no right answer

“I didn’t have a choice, Y/n/n, don’t do this.” Peter huffed, running a hand through his hair. He had been on a mission that Tony had to come help with, annoyed at the boy for putting himself in such danger after he had been told to stay out of it. He risked himself and his suit all over something Tony had claimed to have control over. Now, he sat here, in the Stark house, cuts and bruises almost covering the whole of his body while Y/n treated him. “You did! My dad told you to stay out of it for a reason! Maybe he was right, maybe you aren’t ready to take this responsibility on.” Y/n harshly commented, guilt consuming them as the harsh words left their mouth. 

“Pete...” they whispered, looking up at him as he sadly smiled, their heart breaking. “It’s okay, I know you don’t mean it harshly...” he comforted, leaning forward and kissing their cheek. “Still, I shouldn’t have said that...I’m just so scared to lose you.” they confessed, Peter cupping their cheek and rubbing his thumb on it comfortingly. “Let’s stop arguing, I don’t like it when we argue. You’re never losing me, I promise.” he assured, kissing their lips. 

Regretting him was like wishing you never found out

That love could be that strong

“Peter, what are you doing?!” Y/n whispered to him as they both looked out the window, spotting the odd spaceship they knew would cause panic in the bus. They watched as he grabbed his bag, almost as if they could mind read him, knowing what he was going to do. “No, no, no, don’t you even dare.” they pleaded, looking at Ned for help who just nodded along. Peter opened the bag, seeing his suit inside and leaned, kissing their cheek. “Peter Parker, I swear to God if you leave this bus to go over there...” they started but he had already told Ned to distract everyone. “I’m sorry Y/n, I have to. I’ll see you later.” he apologised, leaving without giving them a chance to respond. Ned placed a hand on their shoulder, knowing they were hurt by his actions and it added onto the unspoken issues and tension between the couple.

Losing him was blue, like I'd never known

“Mum?” Y/n called, putting their bag down and taking their shoes off before walking into the living room - no sign of her. They walked to the kitchen where they saw her cooking food. She greeted them with a quick hug and a kiss on the head. “Hey, how was school? Was the trip fun?” Pepper asked, frowning when they dismissed it. “It was alright, where’s dad?” they questioned, getting straight to the point. “He had to go on a mission, however this one was more important apparently, why?” she informed, confused as to why they tensed up and panic and anxiety was evident in their face, Tony having gone on multiple missions before. “I think Peter’s gone too without him knowing.” they revealed, Pepper’s face now mirroring the same expression knowing this mission was way more dangerous than the ones he had been allowed on. “Oh god...”

Missing him was dark grey, all alone

Strong arms wrapped around them, letting them let their wracking sobs out onto his shoulder. Steve didn’t say anything, knowing how scared they were and not wanting to make it any worse. “Where’s...where’s my dad? Where’s Bucky? And...and Sam?” they gasped, seeing only a few of them return from the group that had left to go help others fight. “We lost...” Nat told Pepper, her eyes welling up as they both hugged each other. “Steve? What’s going on?” they questioned, eyes misty and their legs feeling like jelly. “I’ll tell you later, for now, let’s get a hold of your dad, he wasn’t with us.” he explained, Y/n nodding slowly, trying to process everything that happened. Pepper wrapped an arm around her as the small group walked into the compound, trying to come up with an idea of what to do now. “He’ll be okay darling, it’s your dad we’re talking about.” Pepper tried to comfort, not finding reassurance in her own words, unsure of what to do.

Forgetting him was like trying to know

Somebody you never met

The group jogged outside, hearing the loud sound outside and the compound shake slightly. A gasp left Y/n lips as they saw a ship being pushed by who they assumed was Captain Marvel, having been told she was sent to try and find Tony and the others he was with on the other planet. The ship opened, Tony being carried out by a person they’d never seen before, before collapsing on Steve as the blue lady came out with a raccoon. “Dad!” they breathed out as he hugged them back, Pepper joining in. “Hey, was there anyone else? Namely a brunette kid? About this tall?” Steve questioned, roughly making Peter’s height with his hand. The two shook their heads as Y/n’s eyes misted over. “I’m so, so sorry, kid. I tried to save him.” Tony comforted, his heart breaking even more, knowing he couldn’t save Peter and now his own child was in immense pain, losing the people around them, one by one.

But loving him was red

Oh, red

Burning red

Remembering him comes in flashbacks and echoes

Tell myself it's time now gotta let go

The photo in their hands seemed so fake. They could barely remember his soothing voice, his addictive laugh, his loving touch and his warm embrace. The way he always greeted them in the morning either in person or calling them, the way he’d do whatever they wanted to do even if it was something he truly despised or did not have the energy to do. The new avengers compound now felt cold, for what would have been swarmed with a bunch of people only had a couple, the others for what they knew were gone, somewhere else that they couldn’t reach. Y/n frowned, looking at the date, seeing it would be Peter’s birthday. They didn’t bother with the others, their own parents barely saw them anymore, Y/n shut themself in their room, their thoughts being their comfort. 

But moving on from him is impossible

When I still see it all in my head

Y/n hugged them one by one, Steve for last. “I won’t give up, I promise.” he mumbled, making sure Tony wouldn’t hear. Unlike the others, Tony had given up on trying to figure out a plan on how to solve this, guilt most likely consuming him with a mix of fear, knowing he couldn’t save Peter, his one responsibility out there. He had bought a cabin, about half an hour away from the compound, him and Pepper deciding it was time to properly settle down, ‘retiring’ from the avengers, despite Y/n’s arguments. This had caused a strain on Tony and Y/n’s relationship, the both being very stubborn in their thoughts. Tony demanded that it was time to give up, they had tried everything and still lost whereas Y/n sided with the avengers that they still had to try and help everyone, refusing to give up on them all and mostly Peter so easily.

It had been a year since they had moved now, Y/n having a younger sister now called Morgan which helped their parents to be distracted to the point they were oblivious of the fact, Y/n still had contact with the rest of the Avengers. A car pulled up, Y/n looking up from the tent they were sat outside with Morgan in. They got up without thinking, instantly running over to the group and greeting them all with hugs. Tony however, had a much colder attitude. “There’s no way this would work, time travel, really?” Tony huffed, looking at them as if they were all idiots. An awkward silence set over before Y/n broke it.

 “I’ll help.” they spoke up, getting the attention from all of the adults. Steve and Nat looked proud of them meanwhile Tony was practically glaring knives into them. “Absolutely not. I already lost Peter; I’m not losing my own child to some stupid plan.” Tony argued, shaking his head at the comment. “I’m eighteen, I can basically do what I want.” they defended as Tony shook his head. They glanced at the others who gave them encouraging nods, telling them to go ahead. “I’m not giving up on Peter that easily. So, either you help too, or I’ll do it by myself.” They argued back, Tony sighing. Y/n’s legs started shaking slightly, afraid of what was to come but nothing could have prepared them for what happened next. Tony smiled and chuckled at their response. “God, you’re so like me. I’m in, but only to keep them safe and if it doesn’t work, we’re not trying again.” he instructed. 

In burning red

Burning, it was red

Oh, losing him was blue, like I'd never known

They turned to their side, seeing the portal open and feeling their legs go dumb, having to pinch their hand as they saw people appear. First Bucky, along with some people they didn’t know, then Doctor Strange with who they had learnt were the Guardians. They froze as they saw a familiar red suit in the background, and the sound of webs being shot. They locked eyes with him, their mouth agape and his covered in a massive grin. “Hey, you can go see him in a second.” Steve assured, squeezing their shoulder as they nodded. “Right, yeah, of course.” they agreed, knowing the fight in front of them was more important. The fight started, Y/n embracing themself and fighting with Steve before it changed to Rocket, to their dad. They tensed up and embraced themself for the hard landing as they felt themself get launched from a hit. But the hard floor never came. 

Instead, it was the warm embrace they had missed and been yearning for. He looked older, which to be fair, they couldn’t be surprised by, they had also aged. Peter was now nineteen, his baby face they constantly mocked still present but at the same time looked more mature. “Hey-” he got out before they connected their lips to his, fireworks going off and feeling whole again, despite the battle going on around them. They pulled away, grinning at each other. Peter looked at their suit, smiling as he saw the spider on the middle of their chest just like his. “You ready?” he asked, looking at the enemies coming towards them. They intertwined their hand with his briefly, smiling up at him. “Ready.” they responded.

Missing him was dark grey, all alone

"How is he?” Y/n asked, Peter squeezing their hand to assure them everything was okay. “He’s finally stable, I’m not sure how soon he’ll wake but it’ll be within two weeks.” Bruce informed, smiling as he saw the relieved look on Y/n’s face. “I told you everything would be fine.” Peter bragged, causing him to get a light slap to the back of his head. “Okay, yeah, I deserved that.” he admitted, Y/n laughing as they went upstairs. “Y/n/n!” he heard a voice call, looking at the child who was almost the split image of them running over. “Morg! Hello!” they greeted, picking their sister up and spinning them around. “Who’s he?” she asked, pointing at Peter and frowning at him. 

Y/n stifled a laugh as they saw the offended look on Peter’s face. “That’s Peter, my boyfriend.” they told her, offering to give her to him as she desperately shook her head. “Boys are gross!” she argued, making them both laugh. “Not Peter.” they assured as Peter took Morgan from her, Morgan allowing him to and leaning up to his ear. “Do you love y/n/n?” she whispered, Peter nodding in response as Y/n looked at them confused, unsure as to what they were planning. “Very much.” he answered back, Morgan nodding before hugging him. “I like him.” she smiled. 

Forgetting him was like trying to know

Somebody you never met

"There’s no way.” Peter laughed, not believing what Y/n had just said. Tony groaned and shook his head. “Did you have to tell him that?!” he asked, rolling his eyes as they laughed even harder. “Yes, because you! Iron man! The iron man was willing to give up!” they teased as Tony huffed. He put his hands up in defence. “Okay, yeah, I guess I deserve being made fun of.” Tony admitted. “Honestly though, you better treat them properly kid, they didn’t give up on you at all.” Tony exposed, Y/n now groaning in response. Tony winked before leaving the room. “You didn’t?” Peter questioned, butterflies swarming his stomach as he looks at them. “Well, no... I joined the avengers for you, how much more evidence do you need?” Y/n joked, their cheeks heating up and Peter kissing their cheek. “That’s true, I’m lucky to have you.” Peter said, pulling them in for a hug. 

'Cause loving him was red

Yeah, yeah, red

Burning red

“Merry Christmas, love.” Peter said, kissing their cheek as he sat on the sofa next to them, handing a gift over. “Merry Christmas, Pete.” they said back, handing him his gift too. They opened the gift he had given to them. Inside was a locket, a spider locket that had a picture of the two of them inside they hadn’t even known he had. “Peter, it’s so pretty.” they thanked him, a grin covering his face. He opened his to see a Lego death star they had managed to get for him as well as a few other sets he had really wanted. “Holy shit! How did you get this?” he asked, confused but also very thankful. “I have my ways, Peter.” they winked, laughing as he realised, they quoted him. “You’re amazing.” he complimented, kissing the top of their head. Y/n smiled and intertwined their hands. “I love you, Peter.” they smiled as he leaned closer. “I love you too, my love.” he said back. 

“Hey! You better not be kissing in there!”

And that's why he's spinning 'round in my head

Comes back to me, burning red

Yeah, yeah

His love was like driving a new Maserati down a dead end street

[literaryavenger]

Thoughtful

Summary: You find something of Bucky's.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avengers!Reader

Warnings: My poor attempts at being funny. No use of Y/N. Bucky being a bit of a tease. Just a whole lot of fluff.

Word Count: 1.1K

A/N: This is a dream I had and I couldn't get it out of my head so I decided to write it down. Hope somebody enjoys it!

Masterlist

“Good morning.” you say casually to Bucky sitting at the island as you enter the kitchen.

He merely nods back to acknowledge your presence while sipping his coffee. It’s not like Bucky doesn’t like you, he’s just not a morning person. But the whole team is used to his morning grumpiness.

Also, you and the brunette supersoldier aren’t particularly close, so you don’t really expect bells and whistles when he sees you.

You pour some coffee for yourself and then sit on the kitchen island in front of Bucky. A light jingle coming from under your shirt gets Bucky’s attention and he raises an eyebrow at you.

“What was that?” He asks you, his curiosity getting the better of him.

You frown at his question before following his eyeline and seeing him looking at your chest. But he’s not staring at your boobs through your admittedly thin tank top, he’s looking under them where he can see something resting between the fabric and your skin.

You’re honestly confused at what that is for a moment before you remember and your eyes widen a little as your cheeks start reddening in embarrassment.

Bucky’s confused at your reaction as he watches you take the chain around your neck to bring out the set of dog tags around your neck and Bucky frowns even more.

“I didn’t know you were in the military…” He comments while looking at the tags and then at you, unclear as to why you’d be embarrassed about it.

“I wasn’t…” You say quietly while glancing down at the tags. “They’re kinda… yours.”

Bucky’s even more dumbfounded by your answer. But, after letting your words sink in and deciding he indeed heard you correctly, he couldn’t help the grin that started to grow on his face, much to your surprise.

You thought maybe he’d be mad, although it’s not like you stole them, you simply found them. But still, you were worried what he might think about you wearing them.

“Oh good, I thought I lost them!” He says relieved. “I looked for them everywhere.”

“Well, can I have them back now?” He asks you after a moment of silence and you realize you haven’t even taken them off yet this whole time.

So you quickly do, leaning over the kitchen island and setting them down carefully on his outstretched hand. You watch him put them on, your eyes lingering on the metal on his chest a minute longer than necessary before going back up to his. 

“And why exactly are you wearing my dog tags?” He asks, and right now you wish he’d get mad at you instead. Anything is better than the amusement that’s all over his face at watching you squirm in your seat.

“I found them at the gym… But it’s not like I was planning to keep them.” You quickly justify yourself, your tone entirely too defensive even to your own ears as you blush more. “But you had just left for your mission with Steve and I thought I would just keep them safe until you came back, so I put them on… But I had every intention to give them back, I swear!”

“That’s very thoughtful of you, doll...” He says, his grin turning into a full grown smirk as he points out the obvious. “But I’ve been back for a week, and you were still wearing them.”

“Yeah, I-I guess I got so used to them that I forgot to give them back…” You say quietly, your face turning impossibly red as Bucky seems to be having the time of his life right now.

You groan internally when you see his smirk still going strong at your embarrassment and you decide to cut your losses and not give him more fuel to add to the fire before 9am.

You get up and put your empty cup in the sink. As you turn around you’re startled to find the Sergeant much closer to you than he was before, the kitchen island no longer between you. He doesn’t give you a chance to say anything or even pull away before he’s talking.

“On the other hand…” He takes his dog tags off and reaches out to put them around your neck, making sure to keep his eyes on the metal and not glance at your boobs no matter how much he wants to. “Maybe you could hold onto them for me.”

He looks at the tags on your chest then up to your face before he pulls away completely with a quiet “Beautiful.” and takes a step back, leaving you a flustered mess.

After a minute you remember how to breathe and you glance down at the tags. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. We wouldn’t want me to lose them again now, would we?” He says with a smile, reaching out to lift your chin gently and making you look at him. “But you’ll keep them safe for me, right doll?”

You nod almost without thinking about it, his eyes putting you in a trance. You’re sure you’d agree to anything right about now, all you can really hear is your own heart pounding anyway.

“Plus, now I can do this…” He lets go of your chin and wraps his hand around the chain of the dog tags. 

He uses his hold on them to pull you closer and your heart skips a beat as he leaves you a soft kiss on your lips. You barely realize what’s happening before he’s pulling away again and you merely look at him with your mouth agape in shock.

Before you can say anything, though, you hear snickers from the door of the kitchen and you both turn towards it just to see the whole team there. All of them have smirks, grins and smiles, everyone delighted at the situation as your face starts getting redder than Tony’s Iron-man suit.

You look back at Bucky and the cheeky bastard is also smirking, clearly much more amused than you at being caught like this.

“Okay, well,” You say while clearing your throat awkwardly and stepping away from Bucky to escape from this situation altogether. “I’m gonna go research the tallest building in New York so I can throw myself off of it.”

Your deadpan reaction leaves everyone laughing as they get away from the door so you can pass.

“Oh, come on, sweetheart, it wasn’t that bad!” Tony yells after you between laughs, obviously sarcastic and you roll your eyes.

“Bite me, Stark!” you yell back, not even tempted to look back as you try to hide a smile of your own while hearing the team’s amusement in the kitchen.

You’re still a little in shock that Bucky kissed you but, once the embarrassment at the team having witnessed it washes away, you can’t wait to follow up on this with Sergeant Grumpy.

Part 2

[moonstruckme]

Hi Mae! I hope your day has been as lovely as you are—which is to say, the loveliest! Could you please write a drabble with tasm!Peter and a reader who is generally not shy but flusters easily when Peter is affectionate and soft? The curse of not being used to it! No worries if not! 💞

Hope your day was as lovely as you are, sweetheart--which is to say, even lovelier <33

tasm!Peter Parker x fem!reader ♡ 412 words

“Baby,” Peter laughs, “I know how to dress for the cold.” 

“Right, but this isn’t the subway.” You’re wrapping a scarf around his neck, mouth pulled into a frown. “It’s a long walk to your work, and it’s freezing out. They say it could even snow tonight. This early in the year! Isn’t that crazy?” 

“You’re crazy,” he says warmly. “And cute.” Your eyes dip from his face, lips pressing together to keep a smile at bay. Peter watches it happen amusedly. “If I’m late because you’re putting a dozen layers on me, I’ll just have to web to work.” 

You snap out of your bashfulness. “Peter, that’s even worse. That suit is like wearing nothing!” 

“That’s my point, sweetheart.” Peter takes your face in his hands to press a kiss to your lips, stopping you from reaching for a pair of gloves. You’re outfitted in a coat, scarf, and a hat, appropriate garb for what really is a frigid day. But no matter how many times Peter has told you he runs hot because of his mutation, he doesn’t think you really believe him. 

“I’m gonna go,” he says, “but I’ll come by your work during lunch so you can see none of my fingers have frozen off. I’ll bring you a hot chocolate, okay?” 

You wet your lips, expression softened by the kiss. “You don’t have to do that.” 

“And what if I want to?” He lets his voice drop into a lower register, syrupy sweet. Kisses you again between your brows. “Maybe I wanna thank you for taking such good care of me, did you think of that?” 

He can practically feel the warmth emanating from your skin now. Your face pinches as if in agony. “Stop,” you chide him, but there’s little bite when you can hardly speak above a murmur. “You’re doing this to me on purpose.” 

Peter smiles. “What is it that I’m doing to you, pretty girl?” 

“Peter.” 

“Now I bet you want me gone, huh?” 

He thinks you’re trying to glare at him, but you’re too shy at the moment to pull it off. “Just stay warm.”

“You too.” Peter pulls your hat down over your ears, dropping a kiss on your nose. It’s burning hot under his lips. He suppresses a laugh. 

“You’re so mean.” 

“One of us has to be; you’re too sweet.” He does laugh when you cover your face with your hands, stealing out the door. “See you at lunch!”

[erinwantstowrite]

currently writing out some stuff for "Itsy Bitsy" (what I'm calling the one shot where Peter gets magically de-aged for a little bit) and I went back and looked at what I wrote a while ago and found some gems

[forever-rogue]

TASM!Peter thought I cannot get out of my head for the life of me: Reader pestering him about him and his weird spider abilities like Ned in the MCU movies, but he’s just so loving and patient because he knows he’s weird and she’s naturally curious

AN | Imagine finding out your boyfriend is Spider-Man. It’s going to leave you with a lot of questions, isn’t it?❤️

Pairing | tasm!Peter Parker x fem!reader

Warnings | mild language

Word Count | 2.8k

Masterlist | Main | Peter

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

“Peter?”

“This isn’t what it-”

“No way!”

“Babe, this is not. I”m not-”

“Holy fuck.”

“Please, you’re dreaming. I’m not actually-”

“Spider-Man,” you blinked a few times and scrubbed at your eyes just to make sure you weren’t dreaming. But when you looked back at your boyfriend he was still standing there, halfway between the window and bathroom, mask in hand and spandex still covering his body. He looked entirely mortified at having been caught, “Peter.”

“Honey, it’s not…I…” he hung his head and let out a long sigh, annoyed with himself for being so careless, “I’m sorry.”

“You’re Spider-Man,” it was all setting in and you weren’t quite sure how to feel; it was a wild mixture of excitement and annoyance and worry and love - everything all at once, “I…you never told me. We’ve been together for almost three years.”

“I know, sweetheart…it was just better than way,” he tossed the mask onto the couch and took a few steps closer to you. You tensed up and shook your head, “I just wanted to keep you safe. That’s all.”

“You lied to me,” you pouted at him and that was enough to break his heart. If there was anything he hated in the world, it was seeing you upset, “for years.”

“I didn’t lie,” he tried softly but you huffed at him, “purposely. You know I would never do anything to hurt you. Everything I do is to protect you.”

“I feel so stupid,” you scrubbed a hand over your tired face in exasperation. All the weird quirks and odd comings and goings seemed to make sense. It felt almost silly that you hadn’t put the pieces together before. Peter wasn’t exactly subtle, “all this time. The random bruises and cuts…the times you suddenly have to leave - your weird schedule. It seems so obvious, doesn’t it? I…Peter Parker.”

“Baby-”

“You’re trying to keep me safe but what about you?” a deep frown settle on your features and Peter shook his head, trying to keep you from going down that particular train of thought, “oh my god. Anything could happen to you! And what if…if something did happen, how would I know?”

Peter gently shushed you, his strong hands settling on your shoulders with a reassuring squeeze. You looked at him, studying his big honey brown eyes and tried to keep the tears in your own eyes from spilling over, “nothing is going to happen to me, I swear it. You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”

“It isn’t funny,” you sniffled as a few tears ran down your cheeks, quickly and tenderly wiped away by Peter, “I love you, you dumb bug. I don’t want anything to happen to you. I don’t want to lose you.”

“Nothing is going to happen to me,” he whispered, brushing his knuckles along your cheek, “you know why?”

“Why?” you huffed softly, reaching for his hand and bringing it to your lips so you could press a kiss to it.

“Because I have to get home to you,” he smiled softly, looking more boyish than anything. You exhaled slowly but nodded, “I’m always going to come home to you. There’s nothing I want more.”

“Promise?”

“I promise,” he agreed and you allowed yourself to relax slightly, “by the way, spiders aren’t bugs. Spiders are spiders…well arachnids but they’re a completely separate thing.”

“Fine, you big dumb spider,” you let out a small laugh before playfully rolling your eyes, “you’re just lucky you look in spandex.”

“Yeah?” he teased, turning in a circle and striking a pose, “you think?”

“Shut up,” you groaned as he laughed, “just come to bed with me. But just so you know, this conversation isn’t over.”

“I would expect nothing less, love.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It took some time to get used to the idea of Peter, your sweet, nerdy, wonderful boyfriend, being Spider-Man. He just never seemed capable of something like that but when you really thought about it, it all made sense. Peter was brilliant and had a kind soul; him helping people just went hand in hand with who he was. 

You weren’t sure if you’d ever get over your worries that something would happen to him - just like he wanted to protect you, you wanted to protect him. That, however, didn’t negate the fact that you had numerous questions for him. You wanted to know everything you could about him well, his spider abilities rather. 

You were curious, luckily Peter loved that curiosity. 

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

“Where do your webs come from?” you’d been wrapped up in the book you were reading but the question suddenly hit. Peter was sitting across the couch from you, doing some work on his laptop. He raised an eyebrow as he looked at you, causing your face to warm up, “I just…you have webby stuff, right? Like…where does it come from?”

“Web shooters,” he answered simply, closing his laptop with a soft laugh and giving you his full attention, “it doesn’t come out of my body, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“But spiders have it-”

“Not a spider,” he reminded you as you closed your book and tossed it on the coffee table, “human-spider hybrid. Kind of. I think that’s what you’d call it.”

“Why don’t they call you Human-Spider-Hybrid-Man?” you made a small sound of surprise as Peter reached over and gently maneuvered you onto his lap. His large hands settled on your waist as you wrapped your arms around his neck, “wouldn’t that be more accurate?”

“You’re overthinking it,” he pressed a kiss to your forehead, “I don’t make it in my body. I make it at the lab.”

“My genius Human-Spider-Hybrid,” you grinned at him and he couldn’t help but return the smile. To say he adored you was putting it lightly, “will you show me sometime? I wanna see it in action.”

He cocked his head to the side as he let go of your waist and held his arms up. You looked at him in confusion and he pulled back the sleeves of his sweater, “they’re right here.”

“Oh,” you reached for one of his arms and looked over the small band around his wrist, “oh? I always thought they were just…bracelets.”

“That’s the point,” he said as you made a small sound of revelation. You held his hand in yours and gave it a tight squeeze, “it’s really not that exciting.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” how could he think being Spider-Man wasn’t exciting? You took his face gently in your hands as you studied the pretty boy, “you are always fascinating and exciting to me.”

“That’s because you love me,” he put his hands on top of yours and give them a squeeze, “you’re biased.”

“I do love you - very much,” you agreed, “but I’d still think the same regardless, Peter Parker.”

He paused before nodding slightly, “I love you too.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Peter could feel you watching him, despite your best efforts to remain subtle. It should be noted, however, that your best efforts were pitiful; you might have been openly gawking at him. He stopped what he was doing and turned to you with a small little smirk on his features, “take a picture, it’ll last longer.”

“That’s your area of expertise not mine, Parker,” you weren’t going to bother denying that he’d caught you. You walked over to the kitchen and hopped onto the counter, swinging your legs back and forth as you watched him finish putting away the dishes, “but you make a pretty picture.”

“And yet still not nearly as beautiful as you,” he put the last mug into the cabinet before turning on his heel and pressing a kiss to your cheek, “why were you watching me like a creepo, huh?”

“I wasn’t watching you! Not like a creepo,” your cheeks warmed up as you gnawed on the inside of your cheek, “I was just…admiring.”

“Uh huh,” he teased, settling his arms on the counter and caging you in, “ admiring. You’re cute. Now tell me what you’re really thinking about.”

“It’s stupid,” you offered him a sheepish smile but Peter just tutted at you before nudging his nose against yours, “promise not to laugh?”

“I promise,” he whispered sweetly, “you know you can tell me anything.”

“It’s a question,” you paused for a moment, “are you like super, super strong? ‘Cause aren’t spiders like proportionally strong?”

Peter leaned back and laughed softly, causing you to gently shove his shoulder. Not that it would matter - he was basically unmoveable. He grabbed your hand and laced his fingers through yours before you could say anything, “sorry, sorry! I didn’t mean to laugh - I’m a horrible, terrible liar. It’s just…you’re precious.”

“Shut up,” you couldn’t deny that inside you were beaming from his praise, “I am not precious! Just curious.”

“I’m pretty strong,” he explained softly as you nodded, “maybe not the strongest being in the galaxy but its up there. I can show you sometime.”

“That’s why you can move things so easily,” it made sense now, why he never seemed to have an issue with moving the furniture or carrying in all the groceries at once, “wow. You’re amazing. The Amazing Spider-Man.”

“Not amazing,” he wrapped his arm around your waist and pulled you off the counter, easily and effortlessly holding you. You wrapped your legs around his waist and looped your arms around his neck, “just basically a mutant freak.”

“You’re my mutant freak,” you buried your face in his chest, but not before pressing a kiss to his neck, “that I love, very much.”

“The mutant freak loves you very much too,” you could feel the laughter rumble in his chest as you allowed yourself to melt into him, “curious girl.”

“Can’t blame me,” he could feel you grinning against his skin, “not everyday you find out boyfriend is Spider-Man.”

“True,” he agreed, “I’d be pretty shocked if I found out my boyfriend was Spider-Man.”

“Peter!” this time you were laughing too as he started to walk you both down the hall towards the bedroom, “where are we going?”

“Bedroom,” he rasped, “I can show you how strong I am.”

“Oh,” you felt your entire body warm up, “yes please.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It was late at night, but you weren't feeling too tired just yet. You were in bed, staring at the ceiling and deep in thought as Peter laid next to you reading. You liked listening to him make some small sounds as he read and the sounds of the pages turning.

“I'm not a mind reader but you're thinking much too loudly,” Peter stole a quick glance at you, causing you to scoff loudly as you rolled onto your side so your back was to him, “honey.”

“Mind your business, Parker,” you burrowed further into your pillow, “I was just staring at the ceiling.”

“Hmm,” he mused softly, “what's your silly question of the day?”

“Excuse- first of all, my questions aren't silly,” you sat up right and crossed your arms over your chest, “and secondly, you're Spider-Man! I have a million questions. Don't be a jerk.”

“I am not,” he insisted through a few giggles as you smacked him with a pillow. You knew that you'd never hurt him which just made the situation all that much more ridiculous, “I love your curiosity. I love all the little things that cross your mind.”

“Now you're just pitying me,” Peter rolled his eyes as he pulled in between his legs so the the two of you were facing one another. He put his large hands on your calves and gave them a gentle squeeze, “Pete.”

“I love you, you know?” He asked softly as you nodded. If there was anything you knew in the world it was that Peter Parker adored you to no end. But then, you loved him just ask much, “you never gotta worry about asking me anything. So come on baby, tell me.”

“Fine. Fine,” you groaned softly before mumbling your question to him, “can you like stick to walls and stuff?”

You'd said it so quickly and fast that Peter hadn't caught what you were saying, “pardon?”

“Ugh,” you huffed, “do you have the ability to crawl on the walls and ceiling like real spiders? Or is something your weird mutant DNA didn't get.”

Peter tried his best not to laugh but he could barely stop the corners of his mouth from quirking up, “yeah, babe, that is something I can do.”

“Whoa,” you watched as Peter stuck his hand to the wall and showed you how it stuck, “that's so cool. Kinda gross but cool.”

“It's definitely gotten me out of a few scrapes before,” he admitted, “I'll take you for a ceiling walk some time.”

Your face lit up with pure excitement before your brows furrowed in confusion, “will our kids have your spidey thingies? What did you call it the other day? Spidey senses?”

Peter had stopped processing anything you were saying as soon as he’d heard our kids. It had stocked something deep within him. He only came back to reality when he felt you tickling his side, “our kids? What do you mean our kids?”

“Oh,” your cheeks warmed up as you bit your lips and shrugged lightly, “I dunno, I just think about it sometimes. You know, one day we’ll have kids. We’ve always talked about that. Unless…you changed your mind?”

“No!” he said much too quickly as a small smile tugged up the corners of your mouth, “I haven’t changed my mind. I-I want kids. With you. Only you.”

“Good,” you relaxed slightly as Peter’s entire face turned bright red, “so what do you think? Will they be part mutant spiders?”

“I don’t know exactly how that works,” he whispered as he pulled you closer to him, “maybe it would be inherited or not. I’m not a geneticist.”

“No,” you shook your head as you took his hand in your face, “just a biophysicist and biochemist. Hardly anything to brag about.”

“I’m basically a professional clown,” he grinned as you traced your fingers along the contours over his face. He was so pretty and you loved getting to have him just like this, gentle and quiet and all yours. He took one of your hands in his and brought it to his lips, pressing a kiss to your knuckles, “luckily I’ve got you.”

“I’ve got you too, Peter Parker,” you pulled him into a tight hug; if he had been a normal person you might have crushed him a little too much. Luckily, he was able to withstand your embrace and tenderly hugged you right back, “my Spider-Man.”

“All yours,” he agreed easily, “all yours.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It was spring now, and the nights were gentle and warm, finally not filled with rain as they seemed to have been the entire winter. You were leaning out the window and taking in the sights and sounds of the New York evening. 

You heard the door to the apartment open, followed by Peter’s familiar footsteps. Before you could turn around to greet him, you felt his arms wrap around your waist as he pulled you into his chest and pressed a kiss to the side of your head. You sighed softly as you pressed your body into him, “hello my love.”

“Hi sweetheart,” he whispered into your ear, “what are you doing hanging out the window?”

“Just admiring the city,” you turned around so you were facing him, “and now I’m admiring you. I’ve got another question for you, my spider.”

“Which is?”

“Will you take me swinging?” you asked softly, a nervous little expression on your face. Peter’s face grew into a large smile as he nodded eagerly. He’d imagined what it would be like with you loads of times before. He never thought he’d get to make it an actual reality, “but promise you won’t drop me?”

“I swear I won’t let anything happen to you,” he promised, “and I promise you’ll have fun. Whenever you’re ready, just say the-”

“I’m ready,” you said excitedly as Peter laughed softly, “can we go now?”

“Yes,” he kissed your cheeks, “let me go and change. Then we’ll go swinging.”

“You’re the best, Parker,” you grinned at him, “I love you so much.”

“I love you too,” he looked at you with soft heart eyes, “my spider girl.”

[ddejavvu]

hi mei, i was curious if you could write about reader hiding like their childhood stuffed animal or comfort item like a baby blanket from maybe hotch or peter parker the first time they come over cuz they r embarrassed

this is not age regression shit, just to justify LOL

this works with any peter (hopefully) - the first time my bf came into my room i hurled my decrepit old childhood teddy bear into a corner and when he left i grabbed him like i'm so sorry man i couldn't let him know about you and me.

It's a testament to Peter's natural curiosity that you've been sprawled out over your bed for twenty minutes and he hasn't taken the bait and kissed you yet. Instead he's walking around your room inspecting every nook and cranny, peering into picture frames and opening drawers to paw through their contents.

"Peter!" You laugh, watching him duck beneath your desk, "The only things under there are cords; what are you doing?"

"I'm just looking around!" He insists, "My aunt always tells me you can find a lot out about a person by the space they keep."

"Oh? What are you finding out about me?"

"You have terrible cable management," His nose wrinkles as he ducks out from beneath your desk, "But that's better than what May says about me. She says my room tells her that I'm a pig person with no standards for cleanliness."

"Ouch," You snicker, "May doesn't hold back, does she?"

"Never," Peter grins, and does a final lap around your room before finally succumbing to the call of your mattress. He flattens himself out beside you and sighs, "Your room is boring."

"Hey!" You jab him in the ribs, "What do you mean?"

"I mean it's so clean!" He groans, rubbing his side, "There's no- there's no personality here, there's no trash on the desk, there's no clothes on the ground, there's no comfort blanket on the bed."

"I don't have a comfort blanket," Your cheeks rouge, and Peter zeroes in on it with an eagle's eye.

"Yes you do," He accuses, leaning up on one hand to tower over you, "Where is it? Show me!"

"It's not a blanket!" You insist, but you've implicated yourself, "It's- it's a teddy bear, okay? And I put him away because he's... fragile."

"Mhm. Fragile." Peter nods, "I'll be careful. Show me."

"He's kind of hard to get to."

"Show me."

"He's- uh, he's falling apart, too, not pretty to look at."

"Show me."

"He needs to be washed."

"Show me."

"No!"

"Come on!" Peter groans, "I'm not gonna make fun of you! I've got a stuffed animal too."

Your glare is perhaps made less effective by the way that your cheeks are on fire. Peter isn't deterred in the slightest, and the second you grumble, 'He's under the bed,' Peter's swinging himself over the side and jamming a hand beneath it.

"Got him," Peter laughs, peering at the plushie that he's dragged from beneath the bed, "This is your special one?"

"Mhm," You nod, watching warily as Peter surveys him, "Like I said, he's- he's kind of worn out and he needs to be washed, and-"

"He's great." Peter smiles, tucking the bear to his chest as he gazes fondly up at you, disarming the nerves bundled tightly in your chest, "You can meet mine the next time you come to my place."

[spider-stark]

INFINITELY YOU

part three // spitfire

SUMMARY - In every universe, Peter Parker seems destined to fall in love with you. And, in every universe, he realizes it too late. When universes collide and two of them are granted a second chance at rectifying their biggest mistake, neither of them are willing to let the opportunity go to waste–even if you end up not being the person they thought you were.

WARNINGS - 18+, minors DNI

WORD COUNT - 4.5k

// masterlist // series masterlist // send me your thoughts // no way home fan fiction // rewrite

name key: tom!peter = peter // andrew!peter = parker // tobey!peter = pete

On the walk back from Peter Pan’s, it seemed as though Parker had managed to entirely escape the sputtering awkwardness that had ensnared him the night before. 

And, after countless city blocks of listening to him babble about absolutely everything and anything, you realized that there was one very striking similarity between him and Peter. 

Both boys had a fervent interest in all things nerd. 

“New Hope takes place nearly two decades after the rise of the Galactic Empire, meaning that Leia is only nineteen when she's kidnapped and forced aboard the Death Star! Which is like, absolutely insane, right? Seriously! Imagine being nineteen years old and stuck inside of something that has the potential to obliterate an entire planet!” 

Shoving open the lobby door to your complex, Parker hardly even waits for you to hum your agreement before continuing his retelling of the Star Wars film. 

“And at the exact same time, Luke is finally beginning his Jedi training! Which, honestly, nineteen is actually super old for that, but-” 

Moving towards the stairs, Parker close on your heels, you cut him off with a question. “Too old? Nineteen is hardly even an adult,” you argue. “What age do most Jedi start training?” 

“About four or five, so obviously Luke was way behind,” 

Not even a full three stairs up, you come to a grinding halt, leaving Parker to bump into your back. “Four?!” You cry out, wide-eyed as you spin around to face him. “That’s insane!” 

Parker only lifts his shoulders, clearly not understanding the reason for your horror. 

Furthering your point, you add, “There’s nothing ethical about taking a bunch of little kids and training them to be weird, intergalactic warriors!” 

“It’s the best way to train them!” He lifts his hand defensively, explaining, “The earlier they start training, the less likely it is that the kids will have formed an attachment to their families! That way they learn to act out of logic instead of emotion!” 

For a heartbeat, you’re rendered entirely speechless by the absurdity of his claim, left to stand with your mouth agape as you blink at him. 

“That sounds like emotional abuse,” you finally huff, shaking your head. “Actually, scratch that—it doesn’t sound like emotional abuse, it just is!” 

“It’s not abuse-” 

You hold a hand up, stopping him before he can say anything else. “Give me one good reason why a group of adults should withhold love and affection from children if they aren’t abusing them.” 

“Uh, how about the fact that love is basically what made Anakin turn to the dark side!” Parker scoffs, clearly unwilling to recognize how insane the notion he was pushing actually is. 

“Or maybe Anakin turned to the dark side because he was indoctrinated and traumatized by some stupid space cult!” 

The expression on his face is downright laughable. 

It was as if you had just reached out and slapped him across the face. His jaw went slack, his mouth hung open in blatant offense. As a sputtering noise falls from his lips, trying and failing to come up with a good rebuttal, you smirk. 

“Exactly,” you boast, taking his inability to speak as a sign of victory. 

Twirling on your heel, you continue up the stairs, nearly all the way to the top before you finally hear him come stomping up behind you. 

“The Jedi Order is not a cult!” He finally shouts after you. 

Already traipsing through the hallway, fiddling with your keys, you sing-song, “Whatever you say, bug-boy.” 

Reluctant to admit defeat, Parker continues grumbling under his breath as you unlock the door, spouting something off about your lack of respect for George Lucas. 

“Look,” you tell him, pushing the door open, “if liking Star Wars matters this much to you, then I’ll gladly watch them with you.” A wry smile plays on your lips as you turn to look at him, standing in the doorway, “Maybe watching them will be enough to change my opinion on turning kids into galactic slaves.” 

Eyes narrowing in a playful glare, he’s only able to hold the expression for less than a few seconds before a laugh causes him to break character. “I just can’t believe that Peter hasn’t made you watch them already,” he admits. “I had you watch them so much that you could probably recite the scripts from memory alone!” 

His amusement dies off as soon as he finishes the sentence. Despite having been the one to bring it up, the mention of his world seems to cast a sullen shadow over him, ruining his sweet, boyish smile. 

Curiosity instantly claws at you, begging you to ask him why his world seemed to have such a negative effect on him. Or, rather, why his version of you seemed to have such an effect. 

This had happened last night too, when you had asked him if the two of you were friends in his world—and it was because of this that you assume that you’re somehow the common denominator in his discomfort. 

Still, you don’t let yourself ask him about it. For as much as you’re starting to like Parker, you don’t know him nearly well enough to try prying into his life. 

Not yet, at least. 

“Well, you’re more than welcome to force me into sitting through them in this world, too.” You tell him sweetly, sweeping an arm out to gesture inside of your apartment, inviting him. “It’s not like I’ve got any plans for the rest of the day.” 

You couldn’t even remember the last time you did have plans. Life had been so quiet since that last night with Peter and Mj—the night when everything went so horribly wrong. 

Parker sucks in a breath through his teeth, a hand coming to rest against the back of his neck. “I should probably get back out on the streets,” he reluctantly says, sounding more like he was convincing himself of that than you. “But, I don’t know, maybe we can take a rain check on it, yeah?” 

Disappointment washes over you, sudden enough that you’re sure it shines through on your face. It takes a shocking amount of willpower to stop yourself from trying to persuade him to stay, wanting to remind him that two other Spider-Men were already running themselves ragged in pursuit of the villains—so why did he have to go, too? 

You had grown used to his constant talking, having found solace in the chatter that kept you from slipping too far into your own thoughts. Selfishly, you wanted him to stay so that you wouldn’t have to be alone; so that you wouldn’t have to risk thinking too long about Doctor Strange or the multiverse or constants or Peter. 

The thought of admitting any of that out loud, however, felt incredibly humiliating. 

“For sure,” you force a smile, trying to ignore the many thoughts swirling in your mind. Then, eyeing the slightly too-tight Ramones shirt that he’d stolen from you, you add, “But shouldn’t you at least come in and change?” 

His nose wrinkles slightly as he shakes his head. “Nah—I think this city has more than enough spider-people swinging around it right now. I figure we might actually benefit from one of us patrolling on the ground-level, y’know? Maybe I can ask around for any giant lizards or blown light bulbs.” 

It’s hard to tell if the last bit is meant to be a joke or not, but you laugh anyway if only to avoid knowing why you should be worried about lizards and light bulbs. 

“Sounds like a plan,” you second his idea. “Well, I guess I’ll see you later then?” 

A surprising sense of joy lights his eyes at the sound of your hesitance, unfitting of the simplicity of the moment, but charming nonetheless. He grins—a wide and endearing sort of grin—as he takes a step back, “I won’t be gone long,” he promises before reminding you, “lock the door behind you, alright? And if you need anything-” 

He pauses, patting the pockets of his jeans only to remember that he didn’t bring a phone with him to this universe—and that, even if he did, there likely wasn’t a wireless plan good enough to support multiversal travel. 

“If you need anything, call 911.” 

“Got it,” you laugh, watching as he stumbles backwards towards the stairwell, cheeks red with faint embarrassment. 

Turning to go inside, you can’t ignore the warmth that now blooms in your chest. 

You could definitely get used to having him around. 

A peculiar sensation prickles at your skin, curling along your spine like icy fingertips. 

Something was wrong. Very wrong. 

The usually comfortable atmosphere of your apartment had shifted. An eerie tension fills the space, a near-suffocating feeling that has the very walls holding their breath, humming a tune of warning as you inch further into the living room. 

Your stomach twists as the sharp tang of exhaust fumes fills your nostrils. By the couch, a faint breeze rustles the curtains of a window, wafting in the nauseating scent of the city street below—a window that hadn’t been open when you left earlier. 

A mere foot or so away, you notice that the picture frame Parker had been fiddling with before is now lying on its face, having been knocked off the end table and abandoned. Atop the table, you notice that the lamp is sitting askew, its base just inches from tumbling over the edge and joining the frame. 

Someone had come in through your window—and it didn’t appear as though stealth had been very important to them, given that they had clearly stumbled into the table upon their entrance. 

Adrenaline floods your senses, your spine stiffening as you take a series of slow, quiet steps. 

Moving towards the corner, you carefully reach out a hand to grab the metal bat propped against the wall. The bat had been an unlikely housewarming present from when you first moved in, given to you by Peter’s mentor and your own reluctant renegade, Tony Stark. For nearly two years now it had sat in this corner, unused and gathering dust—until now. 

You wrap your fingers tightly around the base, wincing slightly as the rubber grip pulls at the still-healing flesh on your palm, making you curse yourself for not properly bandaging the wound last night. 

But you’re used to pain—and so you’re easily able to bite back against it as you ease through the living room, checking for any sign of the intruder's presence. 

As you walk, gripping the bat like your life depends on it, you can’t help but hear Tony Stark’s voice echo in your mind. 

If you’re gonna live alone, then you should have some sort of protection—he had told you, gently placing the cool steel into your hands for the first time, a ribbon tied sloppily around it—not that you need it. 

Satisfied with your search of the living room, you start easing towards the hall. You’re good at sneaking around, having had a lot of practice at it—every movement you make is calculated, every footfall so purposefully gentle that it’s nearly silent. 

Quiet as you were, you could do nothing to ease the sound of your blood thrumming wildly in your own ears, your heart pounding against your chest. 

The incessant beating worries you—because you know that there are people in the world with the unnatural ability to hear such things. Peter, even with his enhanced hearing, had to be close to someone in order to hear something as soft as their heartbeat; but you had heard rumors that there were others who could hear a pulse from miles away, others like the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen. 

The thought makes your blood run cold, though you try to push the worries from your mind. From what you know, the Devil doesn’t have a habit of breaking into apartments, nor was Queen's his usual jurisdiction. 

No—what you were dealing with had to be no more than an average burglar! 

An average burglar who, somehow, scaled up the side of a building to break into your apartment… 

Alright—you think, approaching the end of the hall—perhaps it’s a not-so-average burglar, then! Still better than the Devil. 

Peeling one hand from the bat’s handle, you curl your fingers around the doorknob to the guest room, Parker’s room. You ease the door open slowly, trying to keep the old hinges from crying out as you peer into the space. 

The sweet scent of vanilla is the first thing that hits you, contrasted by the subtle bite of vetiver. 

Parker—the room smells of him, even though he had only been here for one night. 

On the bed, the quilt is rumpled and thrown about, pillows strewn about. The doors of the armoire are wide open, a few old shirts hanging over the edge of one of the shelves, no doubt from when he went digging through your clothes in search of something to wear. 

The room was messy, but empty. 

Your shoulders sag, half-a-breath loosing from your lungs. The relief is short-lived, however; as by the time you edge back into the hall to turn towards your own door, you’re overwhelmed with dread. 

If whoever broke in was still here, then this was the only place they could be—save for the bathroom, though you seriously doubt any burglar would have much interest in scouring through your toiletries… 

Easily, gracefully, you twist the knob, the metal yielding quietly to your careful touch. 

The curtains are tightly drawn, eradicating any trace of sunlight and leaving the room cloaked in shadows. But, even in the darkness, you’re able to see the rough outline of a figure sprawled out across your mattress. 

For a split second, you think of Parker’s advice to call 911, the weight of your phone suddenly heavy in your back pocket. 

You think of how you should follow that advice. 

You think about how fast you could run—if you would be able to reach the front door before they could catch up to you. 

But then you stop thinking, disregarding all logic and reason as you take a step into the room, as if drawn in by some invisible force. 

Remaining mindful of your surroundings, you slowly approach the edge of the bed. Squinting in the darkness, you try to study the body laid out atop your comforter. Watching the steady rise-and-fall of their chest, it suddenly hits you that, whoever they are, they’re asleep. 

Slinking around the corner and coming to stand at your bedside, you’re finally close enough that you can see them in spite of the absence of light. Crimson and blue spandex clings tightly to their arms as they cling one of your pillows to their chest, and you feel your entire body sag with relief as you loosen your grip on the bat. 

So this must be Peter 2. 

The fabric of his mask is bunched up and resting along the bridge of his nose, which is somewhat smushed against the pillow he’s holding, no doubt leaving him to breathe in the scent of laundry detergent and your perfume. 

Lower, you can make out the subtle contours of his jawline and the curve of soft, pink lips. Higher, you’re met with the impassive stare of then white lenses sewn into his mask. 

The lenses shield his eyes from your view, and a curious feeling begins to tug at the furthest corners of your mind. Take it off—it seems to whisper, compelling you to move in closer, your shins pressing against the side of the mattress—take it off. 

You grit your teeth and try to ignore the feeling, try to ignore the velvet-voice slithering through your mind; begging you to look at him, to touch him, to notice him, to-

Pain shoots along the side of your temple, likely in response to the sudden tightness in your jaw. It distracts you enough that you’re able to shake the strange feeling long enough to regain your focus—even if the remnants of it still linger. 

You shouldn’t be interested in him—you should be pissed at him. 

Not only had he broken into your house, which was already bad enough, but he had also climbed into your bed and made himself cozy! The absolute gall, the audacity he must have, has you allowing the tiniest sliver of rage to ignite inside of you. 

Both hands still gripping the bat, you lower it from where it rests against your shoulder to swiftly jab its head into his stomach. 

A cough sputters past his lips as the impact pushes the air from his lungs. 

You’re actually shocked that you landed the blow—in truth, you had expected his spider-sense to kick in and detect the incoming hit, waking him with just enough time to dodge the shot. But, apparently, his instincts had made the mistake of assuming that you were of no threat to him. 

“Morning sunshine,” you chime, your feigned cheerfulness set off by a sneer. 

He’s scrambling into an upright position, knees sinking into the mattress as he presses a hand against the sore spot you’d created on his stomach. “What the fu-” 

His voice is hoarse—from sleep or pain, you’re not sure—and he doesn’t finish the curse spewing from his mouth once his head shoots up towards you, as if finally registering the sound of your voice. 

“I don’t know what things are like in your world,” you muse, swinging your bat back to rest against your shoulder, “but in this one, breaking and entering is considered a crime.” 

He’s still catching his breath, and while those damn white lenses covering his eyes give so little emotion away, you assume that he’s going to apologize. It’s what Peter would do, and Parker, too. 

But not him. 

“Your friends said I could stay here,” he defends himself. Taking another deep breath and extinguishing the burning in his lungs, the lower-half of his face transforms into a defiant smirk. “It’s not breaking and entering if you were invited.” 

“And did they tell you to sleep in my bed, too?” You shoot back, brows rising in annoyance. “Word of advice: next time you’re invited to stay in a total stranger’s house, maybe try not to repay their kindness by crawling through their window.” 

He mocks you without missing a beat, “Word of advice: you live in a shitty neighborhood—if you don’t want people coming through your windows, you should try locking them.” 

“Ah, right! Cause the average person is definitely willing to scale the side of a building for the prospect of an unlocked window!” 

“You’re a pretty girl in a dangerous city,” he drones, lifting a shoulder as he meets your sarcasm with purposeful calm. “You’d be surprised what people would be willing to do for a chance at getting you alone.” 

The insinuation sends a shiver down your spine, but you mask your unease, flashing a smile that’s more predatory than sweet. “Aw,” you coo, “so you think I’m pretty?” 

He returns the expression, skillfully avoiding your derisive question. “I think you’re irresponsible—and a little cocky.” 

“Better to be cocky than a felon,” you remark. “Just spare my neighbors the acrobatics show next time, would you? Maybe try knocking on the door like a normal person! Preferably when you’re not dressed like… that.” 

It’s not that his suit wasn’t nice, because it was. But it lacks the advanced Stark-tech that makes Peter’s suit so uniquely sleek, meaning that it was likely safe to assume that no one in this world would mistake this boy for the real Spider-Man. 

Unless they were to catch him scaling up the side of your building… 

“I tried knocking.” he sounds exasperated, as if you are testing his patience. “You weren’t home.” 

You snort a laugh, wondering if he truly believes that is all the reason he needs to break into someone's home. 

“Then you should’ve waited until I got home,” 

“I hadn’t slept in over twenty-four hours. I was too tired to wait.” 

“Then you should’ve slept in the alleyway with the rest of the strays,” you hiss at him, fingers tightening around the bat as your frustration builds. 

The sheer ferocity in your voice gives him pause, stunning him into silence. 

Then the corner of his mouth begins to twitch upwards, lazily grinning at you as if he actually enjoys the verbal onslaught. 

You can tell that he’s watching you through those white lenses, and his tongue darts over his bottom lip, you feel your breath catch in your throat. “Fine,” amusement dances in his tone as he raises his gloved hands, “fair enough.” 

For a moment, no sound comes from your parted lips, leaving you to stand there gaping at him until you remember how to speak. “Fair enough?” You echo, shaking your head slightly. “That’s all you’ve got? No apology?” 

He moves, forcing you to take a step back as he shoves his legs over the side of the bed and rises to his feet. He’s not as tall as Parker, but he still stands an inch or so higher than you, making it hard to not feel intimidated as he stares down at you, your own face staring back from the reflection of his lenses. 

“Better not push your luck, Spitfire,” 

He’s baiting you—he has to be! Using a stupid nickname to get under your skin, to try and prod further at your short temper. And it’s working—god, you hate how much it’s working!—because you find yourself contemplating putting his superhuman durability to the test by whacking him over the head with your bat. 

“By the way,” he says before you have a chance to act on your intrusive thoughts, pointing at your hands, “you’re bleeding.” 

As if his words switch a flip in your head, you’re suddenly aware of the acute throbbing in your palm. You loosen your grip on the bat, letting it clatter recklessly to the floor as you hold your hand out to examine it. 

Unsurprisingly, the rubber handle managed to tear open the barely-healed cut on your palm, courtesy of your too-tight grip on it. You hiss through your teeth, watching as blood oozed from the cut, dripping down towards your wrist. 

Slipping past you, the boy only half-manages to stifle his laugh. “You should probably take care of that.” 

He’s already slipping out into the hall by the time you regain enough awareness to follow after him, gritting your teeth against the pain. 

“And where do you think you’re going?” 

“To the other room,” he calls over his shoulder. Once he’s standing in front of Parker’s door, he spins back around to face you, his snarky expression still in-tact. “Where I’m hoping you won’t follow me.” 

Everything about him causes your blood to boil—his grating voice, his insolent attitude, his stupid soft lips. 

“Would it kill you to be nice to me?” You exclaim, your voice strained with pain as you try to wrap your hand in the lower half of your shirt. 

It takes no-time for blood to start seeping through the thin material, and you certainly don’t look intimidating like this—the lower half of your abdomen on display as you try to apply whatever pressure you can to the wound—but you don’t care. 

“I don’t have to let you and Parker stay in my house—I’m doing it because I’m nice, alright? And, so far, you’ve been nothing but a dick!” 

The thin fabric of his mask shifts, brows furrowing at the mention of Parker. Unlike Peter, however, he doesn’t bother commenting on the nickname. “Nice isn’t exactly the word I’d use to describe you. Especially since you’re the one calling me names.” 

The levity in his tone makes you want to scream—what was his deal?! 

You press harder against your bleeding palm, your breathing turning shallow. You’re not sure if it’s frustration or pain or what, but you feel like your head is spinning. “Look, I don’t know you, alright? But this? Isn’t gonna work,” you bark at him, chin lifted defiantly as you stare into his mask, unrelenting. “If you plan on staying in my house, then you’ll get your shit together—got it?” 

His head tilts, curiously watching as you continue your frantic speech. 

“No crawling in through my windows or sleeping in my bed or smarting shit off! And take off that stupid mask!” You huff, shaking your head. “Or, I don’t know, pull it down the rest of the way! Just do something because you look stupid like that!” 

The words are spewing from your mouth like a torrential downpour, fueled by the rage swirling in your stomach and the throbbing in your hand and—

He laughs, a genuine laugh that isn’t born of derision, and you feel your racing thoughts slow to a halt. “You should work on your insults,” reaching for the nape of his neck, he tugs his mask off. “Because that was pathetic.” 

It’s no longer just your thoughts that have slowed, but the entire world. Everything around you feels like it has come skidding to a stop—leaving you staring up at him like a dumbfounded idiot. 

He’s beautiful—a commonality among Peter’s variants, it seems. 

He’s smirking, an infuriatingly charming smirk that lets you know he has no intention of listening to your demands for him to silence his quick wit. But you’re not focusing on that—no, you’re focusing on the features that had been hidden from you this whole time; his dark hair, tousled from removing his mask, falls in a chaotic halo around his face, contrasting the vibrance of his eyes. 

His eyes. 

They leave you breathless, and you hate it. Colored with the deepest cerulean you’ve ever seen, his eyes feel like staring into the depths of a crystalline ocean. You can almost feel yourself getting swept up in their tides, feel them enveloping you in a feeling of familiarity, as if this wasn’t the first time you had been pulled into their ebbing waters. 

“Have we–” your mouth has gone dry, your voice cracking. “Have we met before?” 

It’s a ridiculous question, and you recognize that even as it’s spilling from your lips. You couldn’t have met him before—not when the two of you weren’t even from the same universe! 

He seems to be thinking the same thing, and you’re already preparing to take the full force of whatever smartass comment he’s about to fling at you. “I’ve met you,” he says simply, taking you by surprise. Then he inclines his head towards your still-bleeding hand, “You should patch yourself up before you stain the carpet.” 

You look down at your hand, at the hem of your shirt, soaked in blood. 

“But just so I know,” you look back up, his body half-turned towards the door, his fingers resting against the knob, “if Peter and Parker are already taken, then who does that make me?” 

You have to force yourself to take a breath. “What did I call you in your world?” He’s silent for a moment, staring at the floor and chewing on his lip. Then, pushing the door to Parker’s room—their room—open, he smiles.

“Pete.”

a/n - ayyy, pete's finally here! and, ofc, lots of other little important details sprinkled around as well.

also, i really wanna say thank you to everyone who has been reading and enjoying this story so far! it truly means the world to me to read all of the nice comments and to know that you guys are interested in this story! so, again, thank you 💖 as always, please comment/like/reblog and let me know if you wanna be added to the taglist!

part four, titled "blooms of subterfuge", to be released april 29th

[heartpascal]

is it freedom?

▹— spiderverse (future) found family x platonic!reader

▹— summary: after losing everything, you struggle to accept the one thing you needed all along.

▹— a/n: ok i have been enabled by exactly two (2!) people. (thank you both) SO dare i start a spiderverse series??? IF YALL WANT MORE OF THIS… I WILL DO IT. this is really just a set up thing idk but i feel like arachnid has potential for further parts and ACTUAL found family!! also haven’t tagged people on my general taglist bc idk if you guys want to be tagged in ALL works or just all pedro works :(

▹— warnings: slight across the spiderverse spoilers, not really found family yet, injuries, blood, treating own injuries, stitches, fighting (canon-typical violence yall), dead parents (mentioned a LOT), a whole lot of angst (it’s a spider-person so what do we expect), reader has a whole lot of bad thoughts, loneliness, isolation

masterlist PART TWO

∘₊✧───── ───── ───── ─────✧₊∘

Had you known what this, this thing, would lead to, you would have never started it. Not that you had done so purposely, at least to begin with, more so happening as an event of pure chance. You were in the right place at the right time, and since then, you had been addicted.

But if you could go back, look at yourself just a year younger than you are now, tell that kid what would come if you went through with saving a life for the first time, you wondered. It was a question that scratched deep in your brain, sending you off balance the more you thought about it; would you have still done it? Would you have saved that person’s life, knowing it would lead to your own falling apart?

You would like to think yes. In fact, you know that back then, when your eyes were bright at the prospect of helping people, when you still marvelled at the world like it was good, you would have been certain that it would be worth it. Why should that person die, just to save you? It’s a harrowing realisation. A conclusion that makes your fingers tremble, your voice shake. Now, you’re not sure you would do it. You don’t think you could bear to face that decision knowing what you know of the world around you now.

It’s something cruel, really, that the spider that bit you gave you these powers, and nothing to go back and fix your mistakes. Your perceived victories. Your losses.

But the worst has already happened, and the only one left to die is you, so you carry on. You don the suit every day, you sew up your own injuries on the top floor of the abandoned offices that you’ve claimed as your own. Each day, you wake when you choose, you sleep when you want to, and you work yourself down to your very bones with nobody to object.

The hollow feeling in your gut is a pain you have no choice to ignore, to smother with assurances that this is freedom. What else could it be? You do whatever you so please, you spend your time swinging through the streets of New York rather than doing schoolwork at home, you eat all the junk you could ever have wanted.

It’s freedom. It has to be.

You tell yourself that you don’t miss the home part of having to do schoolwork, promise your heart that you don’t miss home-cooked meals as opposed to greasy food that leaves you unsatisfied. You swear that you like having nobody to tell you what to do. There’s no other choice, after all.

And each day, when you spend a little bit longer out on the streets, getting yourself into needless fights that the police could certainly handle, you tell yourself it’s because you’re protecting the city. You convince yourself that it’s not because of having an unending rage to satiate, or a permanent feeling of breathlessness when you leave police to handle anything, as if you could relive the moment your father, the captain, was left to handle something he couldn’t.

So, you’re almost relieved by the appearance of something… strange. Something dangerous. This is what you live for — this is your job.

You crouch against the wall, fingers splayed and suit itching where you had crudely sewn it back together across your ribs at an almost too-close call. You hold your breath, you watch. The lenses over your eyes shield your sensitive sight from the harshest colours of this new opponent, who looks almost… unreal. Too different to be a part of reality. He yells out, seemingly glitching? A distorted scream of what is apparently pain, accompanied by flashes of colour that are unfamiliar to you.

“Well, that doesn’t look good.” You comment, eyebrows raised beneath your mask, and the strange looking guy snaps his head towards you, long hair slapping across the goggles over his eyes. He bares his teeth at you, something almost resembling a grin marring his face.

“Spider-man!” He yells triumphantly, cackling as he wipes the hair away from his face, tendrils unfurling from behind his back and lifting him into the air.

“Not quite!” You call back, dodging below the metallic arm that shoots towards where your head was, crumbling through the wall. You try to think back to the jokes you used to tell to rile up whoever you were facing, but find your mind is blank. Instead, all you can think of is questions. “Where the hell did you come from, anyway?”

The man follows you as you spring from wall to wall, heading towards the center of the building where it tunnels up for about forty floors, balconies overlooking the fountain below. “A new spider, eh? Well I’ll take you down just as easily as I have the other!” He tells you, though you’re immediately suspicious of his statement. You’re the only Spider-related hero around, and even if you weren’t, you doubt this guy could squash a worm, let alone you.

“Sure thing, man.” You say, sighing, already exhausted by the repetitiveness that comes with every fight. Your opponents always say they’ll beat you, kill you, squish you, take you down, and yet you always get back up at the end of the fight, and they always remain defeated. When you started doing this, you never would have thought you’d get so tired from winning all the time.

And yet here you are, slipping further and further up the building with the octopus-looking guy chasing after you, metal arms crumbling walls and bannisters on his way up. He falters once more, another one of those glitch-like movements sending him down a few floors, but he’s quick to recover. Of course, it wouldn’t be that easy.

You crouch down on one balcony, somewhere around the thirty mark floor-wise, peering down at the guy as he shakes lingering pain from his body. He charges upwards, aiming to reach you quickly with an almost predatory smirk on his face. Before he can even get close to you, however, you’re back on the move, setting a trap for him that he doesn’t even seem to notice.

It’s only when a group of late workers emerge on what you’re pretty sure is the twenty-first floor that you become more anxious about this fight. You don’t like when civilians are involved.

There’s about a dozen of them crowding the balcony, looking up to where you’re facing off with octopus-man above, some having begun to descend the stairs to the next floor before catching on to your presence. You try not to draw attention to them, but their pointing and whispering sets the Spidey-sense off, ringing loudly between your ears, almost deafening in its intensity. Maybe you underestimated this guy. The flash of a camera sends the last hope of him not noticing down the drain, and he grins at you as he switches targets, climbing down towards them with some semblance of caution.

You’re much faster than he is, dropping down and using a web to catch yourself rather than having to climb. It’s hard to stop yourself from yelling at them, cursing them out for being so damn foolish — who in their right mind would stick around a very dangerous fight to take pictures?

Instead, you choose to yell, “Get out! Go, go, go.” And usher them down the stairs, but it’s not difficult to realise that this guy is going to get to them before they manage to descend to the bottom. You shouldn’t be surprised, really. Nothing is ever as simple as it could be, not for you.

The split second decision to drop down and form a net-like web low enough to catch the workers worked out for you in the end, as you swung back up and pushed the workers off of the balcony and stairway just as the octopus man was reaching them. He cursed at you, refocusing his efforts on you as you vaguely noted the workers clambering down after their screaming had stopped. Honestly — did people really have so little faith in you? Had you ever sent anybody to their death before?

“You are just as pesky of an insect as Spider-man!” He growled out, teeth gritted, and came after you with renewed force. He kind of reminded you of that doctor you faced not long after getting your powers, but this guy looked completely different. The doctor you faced — aptly named Doc Ock — had turned himself into some form of a mutant, he had reinforced tentacles which sprouted from his back. Was this guy some kind of copy cat? Maybe he was just delusional.

“I don’t know who Spider-man is, man!” You shout to him as you ascend the building again, trying to figure out the best way to take this guy down. His tentacles seem electronic, so surely you could disable whatever machinery resides on his back?

“That’d be me.” A voice came from above you, two floors ahead of your position. Your head snapped towards it, seeing a man in a blue and red suit, framed by a burst of orange behind him. He didn’t linger up there long, instead moving to leap down to the guy who had turned his attention to the new guy. The closer you looked at this new guy, the more similarities you saw to yourself — his webs looked remarkably similar to your own, the pattern that went across his suit matched your own, even the wide white lenses that shielded your eyes on your mask. Who the hell was this guy?

The octopus man grinned widely, shaking greasy hair from his face. “Ah, finally! The real Spider-man. Got yourself a new protégé, I see.” He drawled, dodging this new guy’s hit straight off of the bat. You tried not to get annoyed at being referred to as a protégé, considering as far as you were aware, you were the only Spider-person around. Where was this guy when you were holding a bridge full of civilians together? Where was he when you took down villain after villain, never once failing to get the guy? No — you were the real Spider-man, if anyone.

“I don’t know who you are, man, but I’m handling this just fine.” You call to the guy, swinging down to rejoin the fight, webbing the villain’s metal tentacles to the wall behind him, before dropping down to kick him towards the wall.

“Oh, so you know how to send this guy back to his own dimension?” Spider-man asks you, eyebrows raised beneath his mask, and as if on cue, the guy glitches once more, ripping his arms away from the wall and just about catching himself on a balcony below before he could fall into your net.

You gape at the new guy, glancing back up to where the burst of orange remains opened, and is that a portal? Is this Spider-man from another dimension? Is that why you’ve never heard of him before? God, if your mother was alive, she’d kill to find out about this. Inter-dimensional travel was something she had spent her life researching. If you didn’t remain so bitter toward her even after her death, you might’ve been sad she wasn’t alive to see this.

But you were bitter, and it made the experience all the worse.

Because you’re pretty sure that that bitterness takes the place of grief within you. It’s hard to understand why you crave to feel that pain, that grief, as opposed to the aching resentment that floods you with the thought of her. It’s such a sharp contrast to thinking of your father, your kind father, the man who threw himself into a battle he couldn’t have hoped to survive, just on the off chance he could save somebody. You hope you take after him.

“Wait— you’re from another dimension?” You question anyway, eyes flickering between the battle and the looming portal above. In fact, you’re so distracted by finding out about that tidbit of information that you miss octopus man aim a tentacle for you, and it snatches you around the ankle. “Oh, you gotta be kidding me—!”

The man waves you around like some kind of rag doll, and you try not to be too bitter about being caught off guard. You should probably learn that getting caught up in your little pity party always ends up badly, always distracts you from that renowned Spidey-sense. You formulate a plan in your mind when the drip of blood around your ankle draws your attention back to the battle at hand.

You web the wall opposite and hold on tight, pausing the movements and letting the dizziness that had come over you fade away. The man growls out in annoyance, and gets closer to cut the webs with another tentacle, which is exactly what you planned for. The tension from the webs launches you towards him when you let go, and in his surprise, the metal tentacle releases you. You wrap around him, and start webbing up the machinery embedded in his back as Spider-man distracts most of the tentacles, keeping them from pulling you off.

His tentacles start faltering, clearly not obeying his movements, and you wrap them up where they emerge from his back, continuing along until the movement is so limited that he has to use them all to clutch onto the nearest balcony.

You crawl up the tentacles in the very same spidery manner that you’re known for, and crouch, watching the octopus man struggle as Spider-man observes from the balcony opposite. “You wanna finish this one off, Spider-man?” You ask, unable to hide any bitterness from your tone at his mostly unhelpful actions throughout the battle.

“Hey, not bad!” He praises, and it annoys you. You’re good at what you do — for the most part. You manage without help constantly, and that’s the way you prefer it. “You’d make a good addition to the Spider Society!”

Now, you don’t know what the Spider Society is. But honestly? You don’t care. You don’t need help, and you prefer working alone, and you certainly don’t like feeling patronised.

“Whatever, man. Just send him back to whatever dimension he came from.” You tell the guy, and drop down as you hear sirens outside, landing on your injured ankle and just about stopping yourself from cursing. Through all the adrenaline and fighting, you’d forgotten about the way the metal had ripped into your skin, drawn blood. It’s just be another place you’d have to sew up your suit with itchy, uneven stitching. “Officers,” You greet as they open the doors, guns drawn, radios murmuring. “All taken care of. Civilians okay?”

“Shaken up, but fine.” The leading police officer says, immediately relaxing and holstering his weapon. You wish it reassured you that the police trusted you now, but it didn’t. Nonetheless, the other officers follow suit. “Thank you, Arachnid.”

The name your world has bestowed upon you has yet to grow on you, but you nod your head regardless, and salute them as you make your way out, swinging across the city, trying to put the existence of the multiverse and inter-dimensional travel out of your mind. Surprisingly, it’s pretty easy when you have a busted ankle to fix up.

∘₊✧───── ───── ───── ─────✧₊∘

You’re halfway through stitching up your suit, having already sewn your skin back together with as much skill as you possessed in the matter — which was, not much. But the bleeding has stopped, and your stupidly slow healing will take care of it within a few days. You know that the itchy stitches on your suit will just irritate the injury, and though you wouldn’t lose anything if your identity was revealed, it doesn’t feel right to go out into the city with any part of you on show.

No, you wear the suit for a reason. You keep every part of yourself covered because nobody can know it’s you underneath the suit. Not because you had anything to lose, no, you had already lost everything. It was because then you could never make a mistake, you would have to be absolutely perfect, flawless, to make up for the fact that it was you underneath the layer.

So, you settle with a sewn suit that will itch and make the stitches on your ankle sting.

However, when there’s a burst of orange across the room, you have no choice but to forgo the suit, to simply drop the needle and thread and hover your fingers over your web shooters. You wait, nervously, for some other villain to appear. You’re not sure if Spider-man appearing would be better or worse.

But when a foot steps through the portal, it’s nobody familiar. In fact, it’s a suit you have never seen before, made up of dark blues and bright reds, sharp edges and long claws. It’s… unnerving, and considering the silence coming from the person wearing it, you’re not entirely certain of what they’re here for.

A moment later and another person steps through, a woman, with bright yellow lenses across her eyes that filter her irises into an amber. She steps forward, standing beside the person who had stepped through first, and if she hadn’t showed up, you would’ve been tempted to attack. With that being said, you remain on edge, but there’s something… comforting about her presence. Like her presence softens the man’s jagged edges.

She says your name, and then adds, “Arachnid.”

You furrow your brows and curse as you glance back at the suit so crudely laid out on the floor. Still, it doesn’t explain how she knows your name. Was it an inter-dimensional thing?

“Spider-man told us about your work in capturing Doc Ock earlier.” She tells you, as if that explains their presence. You did what you were supposed to do, which was take out the bad guys. “We’re here to offer you a place in the Spider Society.”

You can’t help but wonder if this is some kind of good cop, bad cop thing. She presents an offer which doesn’t sound too bad, and then her sharp-edged companion presents all the drawbacks and the catches. They don’t seem like the type to take no for an answer, either way. You still don’t even know what this Spider Society was! Was it some kind of multi-dimensional cult?

“I already told Spider-man that I wasn’t interested in joining whatever cult you’ve got going on.” You practically hiss, though you didn’t exactly tell him in such blatant words. You were more dismissive earlier, so you’d have to be clear now.

“It’s not a cult,” The man speaks, voice harsh and sharp much like the blades that branch from his forearms. “We work to protect the multiverse from anomalies that threaten to destroy it.”

The woman glances at him in a way that you translate as being vaguely annoyed, like he wasn’t approaching you in the way she had wanted him to. “He means to say that it’s a big job, and we need all the help we can get.” She says, softer, but only in comparison to the man’s harshness. “Listen, kid, you’re good at what you do. We need that kind of talent.”

“You’ll have to find it somewhere else.” You say firmly, because why would you want to leave your universe? This was a lot to think about when you had only learned of the multiverse existing mere hours ago. Regardless, you weren’t about to abandon your city just to go across the multiverse to help other heroes who couldn’t keep a leash on their own villains.

The two of them shared a look, a mere glance, before the woman heaved a sigh. “Look,” She sighed, heavily, like whatever she was about to say was something she didn’t want to be voicing. “Before you make your choice, you should know, your Green Goblin is currently terrorising another universe.”

You couldn’t work out if this was some kind of recruitment tactic, or something. That just wasn’t possible. You had put Gwen Stacy in the highest security prison after all antidotes to her goblin-tech failed. She was stuck in there — permanently. There was no way she had gotten out, let alone gotten out to another universe.

…Right?

It’s hard not to think of the memories at the mention of her—Green Goblin, not Gwen Stacy. Never Gwen Stacy. You wonder if this is where your fear comes from, the terrifying fact that you are remembered only for your mistakes. Because before she was the Green Goblin, she was Gwen. She was everything to you. She was the sun you orbited, the stars that charted your path. And it hurts, it hurts that you can only remember the blood and the dust and the destruction when you think of her.

People aren’t born as monsters, are they?

Like the spider that bit you, that invertebrate that so many fear, it was born the way it was. It was born with those fang-lined maws, with those eight legs and dozens of eyes. It was made into the monster it became, artificially crafted to deliver a venom that changed you forever. But it wasn’t born that way.

Surely, Gwen wasn’t either. She was kind. You remember that about her. You can remember her soft hands that used to hold your own, the loud laughter that always ended in a snort when she laughed at her own jokes, the gentle eyes that stared into your very soul. But those eyes are the very same ones that let her see through your mask, let her see exactly where to hit you to make it hurt. Was that what she was born as? Or is that what she was made into? A killer. A monster.

“Show me.” You say, because what else could you possibly respond? If what they’re saying is true, if the Green Goblin is loose once more, then people will die.

You can’t let her get fresh blood on her hands. Not when somewhere, deep inside your chest, so far down it’s almost unreachable, you have hope for her. You have an innate desire to look for the best in her, even when the Gwen you knew was the first life that the Green Goblin took.

∘₊✧───── ───── ───── ─────✧₊∘

If there’s one thing you’ve taken from being Arachnid, it’s to expect the unexpected. And you go through the orange portal after Jessica Drew and Miguel O’Hara with that exact mindset about you, staring at where an orange watch-like device is wrapped around your wrist.

It’s in your nature to be suspicious, and these people weren’t an exception to that.

In fact, their presence only heightened that behaviour. After all, what were you to expect from two Spider people, who supposedly came to you for your help?

You weren’t blind, you saw the aged lines of their faces the moment you got close enough to see them clearly, away from the dim lighting of the building. They were adults, adults who had clearly been doing this type of thing a lot longer than you had. You, who was barely bordering on adult, who had fought enough battles already to last a lifetime — so why would they need you?

It didn’t feel right.

And when this Miguel person summoned Lyla the moment you walked through the portal, it felt all the more wrong. She was a hologram of some kind, much higher tech than the kind of thing you saw on your earth. But then again, you had never really been in high tech labs back in your earth. Still, it unsettled you. “Lyla, get me the location of Green Goblin, Earth 5011.” He commanded, and they argued in hushed voices for a moment, before a wider hologram appeared, stamped at Earth 3899.

“How did she get to another universe?” You ask, then, because it doesn’t make sense, and you’re shaking underneath the thin material of your suit. You’re hyper aware of each drag of stitching against the wound on your leg, each patch of fabric you had sewn on in hopes of the suit lasting you just a little longer, because you didn’t have the resource to produce a new one.

“It’s an anomaly.” Jessica Drew tells you, her tone softer than you’d heard it, as if she was attempting to reassure you in some way.

It didn’t help. But how could it? The last time you had faced Gwen Stacy—Green Goblin— you had lost so much. It had been the beginning of the end of everything good in your life. The explosion she had caused at your mother’s laboratory was the very same one that killed her, the very same explosion that sent you and your dad miles apart all while living in the same home. And still, you found a way to hope that there was something to salvage within Gwen.

But not only had you lost your mother, and not long after — your father, you had also lost your closest friend. The one person you had confided in, who knew you from your surface to the deepest level, and she had used that against you the moment the Goblin had taken over.

It had taken everything in you to beat her, back then.

And that was on home turf! How did these people expect you to do that a second time, in a completely unfamiliar place?

“Specifics aren’t important right now. Jessica, you take Arachnid. Lyla, send another one of the teams.” Miguel instructed, dismissing your questions right off the bat. It was frustrating. They were leaving you completely in the dark, and sending you to fight the worst enemy you had ever faced, and they were sending you alongside others like you from different universes. It was like asking you to bare your soul in front of them, to reveal your secrets, your deepest regrets, everything that you wanted to stay buried.

You knew Green Goblin. You knew that’s exactly what she would do. She would undermine you, she would lay your life out in front of you like tiles on a scrabble board. In the end, none of it amounted to much.

Jessica Drew made her way out, glancing at you and nodding for you to follow along. Your moment of hesitation had drawn Miguel’s attention, and he called out to you after a moment of hesitation. “We’ve all faced one like it, kid. It’s easier with others.” He told you, though he held a pained expression on his face all the while. Instead of admitting to the way he had hit the nail right on the head, you simply nodded and followed after Spider-woman.

It was a whirlwind from there.

Meeting up with others. Travelling the length of the so-called Lobby to wherever it was that Jessica was taking you. When you finally arrived, she offered an empty glass box with a mannequin inside, bare. She gestured towards it like it should’ve been self explanatory, but soon realised she’d have to spell it out for you.

You shouldn’t have been so upset by the offer of a new suit.

But you were.

This suit was your life. You had nothing outside of it, not anymore. You couldn’t just throw it away, as if it meant nothing, as if every rip and patch and wonky stitch didn’t mean anything. These were proof that what you were doing was real, that it was worth something. Each stitch proved you had value. You weren’t about to throw all of that away, especially for whatever overly technical suit these people would provide.

You had everything you needed.

And so Jessica led you to the next destination: Earth 3899.

The moment you stepped through the portal, it was like you were hit with a wave of familiarity. And not in a positive, slightly nostalgic way, no— this was chaos. This was the state your world had been in when Green Goblin ran riot, unchecked. She had torn apart buildings, blown up parks, she had set New York City aflame. And she was doing exactly the same here.

It was more contained here than it had been on your earth, and you had to assume that was thanks to the Spider-man already on site, coordinating police, ambulance and fire responses to douse the fires as quickly as she set them. If only the police in your city had trusted you so much, back then.

“Where is she?” You ask, the moment you get close enough to speak to the resident Spider-man of the universe. He looks at you as if you’re familiar, but doesn’t comment, instead just pointing a finger toward a skyscraper just a short way ahead. You’re gone the moment he tells you where to go.

She had the uncanny ability to stay quiet. It had freaked you own back on your own earth, but it was even more terrifying here, where things were ever so slightly different.

“Arachnid.” Gwen’s voice called, and for a moment, you could forget. You could forget every horrible thing the Goblin had done, and you could remember your friend, your Gwen, who had called out to Arachnid more than once without knowing it was you behind the mask. Whether it was for a story or to provide information on your most recent opponent, the voice calling your alias was familiar. But then there was that crackle of laughter, an unnatural gurgle in the way it left her throat, and you turned to see the green-tinged pallor of her skin. “I was so hoping you’d show up.”

You didn’t know how much her appearance would effect you, until you were stuck to the side of the building, staring at what had once been your best friend. You’re so choked up that you can’t even formulate a response, because you want that to be Gwen so badly, but you know it isn’t. The more you look at her, the more Goblin you see, the more you know that the Gwen you love is never coming back.

“Nothing to say?” She asks, and then says your real name, the name she used to say down the crackle of a phone line, or across the school hallway, and she smiles. “I thought you’d be happy to see me.”

“You should’ve stayed in prison, Gwen.” You say, your voice unsteady as you say her name aloud for the first time in what must be forever. She seems to relish in the tremble of your voice, and you have to curse yourself for being so stupid, for already showing the vulnerability she was so easily able to pick out.

The Green Goblin tutted at you, stood atop her glider, but the smile you saw didn’t belong to Gwen. “You’re pathetically predictable, you know. You’re like a moth to the flame.” She tells you, and you fear that she’s right, that you’re the same person you were back when you fought her, back when she almost won. She sighs, like something heavy is weighing upon her, but it turns wistful in the blink of an eye. “I’m just glad your dad isn’t here to see this. He’d be so disappointed.”

“Arachnid, focus.” Jessica’s voice interrupts, before you can spiral down that rabbit hole. How did Gwen even know about your father? She was in prison long before he died. It didn’t make sense.

“Maybe,” You say, that familiar tremble around your words. “He did always hope for the best for you.”

She bares her teeth at your words, the only visible reaction before her mask is slipping over the bottom of her face, stretching out up to pointed ears, all metallic and tinted a murky green. Then, she’s attacking.

It’s muscle memory, mostly, you think.

If you don’t think too hard about it, it could be like playing a game with a longtime friend from your childhood. You know the moves to make, you know how she’ll respond. It’s a constant push and pull, a balance which leaves only destruction behind, the path of the Green Goblin’s wrath tangible in each battle scene the two of you leave behind. You can’t beat her like this.

It’s her glitching that gives you a slight upper hand — and you send her careening off of her glider to the ground below.

Your heart squeezes suddenly in your chest as you watch her fall, her eyes wide in what could almost be perceived as fear. If you didn’t intervene, would she die? Would you have put an end to her story, once and for all, when you secretly hope there’s a cure out there for her? You can’t bear the thought of finding out, of watching her die, and so you foolishly dive after her.

A web to her midsection allows you to grip her before she hits the ground, and you set her down with a far more gentle hand than you would ever admit.

She says your name, then, a whispered version of it that sounds like Gwen. You think you can see her in those wide blue eyes, in that stare, and you approach with some caution. “Gwen,” You say, more of a question, “You with me?”

“I’m with you,” She answers, as you reach her side, as you resist the urge to pull off your mask. You’re so preoccupied staring at her expression that you don’t see the blade until it’s too late, your Spidey-sense failing you as you wallowed in your search for someone who was gone. “You sweet, predictable bug.” She spits then, twisting the blade she had sunk deep into your side, and you writhe, trying to move away from her.

“Arachnid!” Jessica Drew calls out, drawing the Green Goblin’s attention, allowing you to pull away from her slackened grasp. You leave the blade where it is, knowing your only slightly enhanced healing wouldn’t make up for the onslaught of blood that would pour from the wound. “I think that’s enough, Green Goblin.” Jessica says, riding a motorbike that you swore she didn’t have earlier. Nonetheless, she uses it to put even more space between you and your villain.

“You need a hand, kid?” A new voice asks, and a gloved hand reaches out for you where you had knelt against the tarmac. You look up, seeing a new Spider-man, but this one has his mask up, showing off his aged face and the bags underneath his eyes. You wave him off, staggering up to your feet, and clench your jaw as you stare at Green Goblin, watch as she pulls bombs from her waistband, barely the size of a chocolate bar, but capable of causing irreparable damage. “Get back to HQ, Arachnid, we can handle this.” Spider-man tells you, in what you suspect to be a fatherly voice, but you ignore him.

Time flies, slips out of your grasp, and you don’t know how long you and the others spend fighting Green Goblin, but she proves to be just as difficult of a foe for them to face as she was for you. Each time the three of you manage to get the drop on her, she slips away before she could be caught. It’s frustrating, and you can even see the way irritation thickens in the air, tangible.

Spider-man, or Peter, as Jessica had called him, is with you, focusing on trying to take Green Goblin down, whilst Jessica Drew is focused on damage control, blowing up Gwen’s bombs before they could hit their intended targets. You’re pretty sure the resident Spider-man is around here, too, pulling any lingering citizens out of harms way before Green Goblin could end them. You’d admit, it works better than you had done alone back on your own earth.

But it doesn’t work well enough, and more than one building is damaged almost beyond repair, and in the dust and rubble, Peter was distracted by the few citizens poking their heads out of the gaping hole in the side of their apartments. He didn’t see Green Goblin coming until it was too late, until she had thrown two of her bombs, one towards him, and one towards the already wrecked building.

Your throat dries up as you try to figure out what to do, who to go for, but in the end, you don’t have to choose.

Beams of glowing orange webs shoot into the bombs where they arc towards their victims, blowing them up and leaving both Peter and the civilians in the apartments without a scratch on any of them. Well, nothing that wasn’t already there before. You see him then, running alongside Jessica Drew, none other than Miguel O’Hara — who clearly didn’t think that the three of you were capable of handling Green Goblin.

“We’ve gotta end this.” Peter tells the three of you, glaring over at Green Goblin after coming so close to one of her bombs.

“You distract, I’ll go in.” You say, the only plan that makes sense. The only plan that’ll work. You wouldn’t be much use as a distraction, not with the blood still pooling around the blade hanging from your side, but you could beat her. You knew you could.

Peter nodded, and he, Jessica and Miguel went in one after another, landing hits on Green Goblin before she could even think to withdraw another bomb, or land a hit of her own, whilst you made your way behind her, swinging as high as you dared to go in your state. She was getting angry, you could tell, a distinct flush rushing up the back of her neck, a tell that Green Goblin shared with Gwen.

It was only when she was starting to turn the tide that you jumped down from your spot against the side of a building, looking for your opening.

She sent Jessica Drew tumbling off of her motorbike, which was your chance.

Green Goblin heard you only a moment before you were on her, not giving her a chance to make a countermove. Instead, you were curling your arms around her, as tight as you could, holding her hands away from her waistband. You gripped the blade in your side and yanked it out, holding it to her chest, breathing heavily through the pain as you bared your teeth at her, her face beside your own.

“Don’t make me kill you.” You say, and try not to hear the pleading in your own voice, the distinctive tone of a beg. You may have the upper hand on her, but as always, she had the power. “Don’t.” You repeat, because you can feel it in your bones that you would do it. If it was the choice between her or the hundreds that she would kill on this world, it would be those hundreds. There was no doubt about it, no questions to be asked.

You may have resented your mother, but she wasn’t the only one who died because of the Green Goblin. You wouldn’t let that happen again.

Perhaps she heard the plea in your voice, the giveaway that you weren’t bluffing, because she went still in your arms, still enough for the other Spiders to approach with some caution, eyes on her hands where you held them away from any weapons, using your forearm connected to the hand holding the blade to her chest to keep her left hand from grasping anything.

“I won’t be asking again.” You tell her, which is as much of a threat as you can muster. Or, more so, a promise.

As Miguel pushed you back with a firm hand, throwing a machine at Gwen’s feet, you think she understands. If the two of you are ever in that position again, there will be no hesitation about it. You will kill her.

“Good work, kid.” Peter says as Miguel and Jessica get to work with getting your Green Goblin through a portal to the HQ. He glanced down at where your hand is now pressing into your side, blood pouring steadily. In your other hand, you still hold the blade that had pierced your own skin, that would have killed Gwen Stacy had she not surrendered. He winces as if it’s him who got hurt, and guides you through the portal after the others. “C’mon, we’ll get you checked out. You not got enhanced healing?” He asks, though you suspect he doesn’t expect you to answer, and you’re glad.

∘₊✧───── ───── ───── ─────✧₊∘

“I can do this myself, you know.” You sigh, wincing as a Spider-man — who apparently is also a doctor and works in the Spider Society’s infirmary — stitches up the wound on your midsection. It’s uncomfortable, though less painful that when you do it yourself. Still, it’s uncomfortable to accept help from these strangers.

“Ooh, shouldn’t say that to him.” Peter B. Parker laughs, one of the many Peter Parkers of the Society, but the same one who had fought Green Goblin with you. “He’ll lecture you on proper healthcare for days if you give him the opportunity!”

The Spider-doctor glares at Peter, or you assume he does, from the slight squint of the lenses of his mask. He kisses his teeth under the mask, tutting, muttering about “Spiders and their complete disregard for their health. Lucky you haven’t died ten times over from infections.” But he doesn’t say anything that requires a response from you, and he soon finished up the stitches. He goes to offer to fix up the injury on your ankle, but you’re up on your feet before he can even get the words out.

“Now, I gotta get back home to the wife, but Miguel wants to see you. He’ll take you home,” Peter tells you as he walks out of the infirmary by your side, but he stops you in the hallway with a hand on your shoulder, surprisingly gentle. “If that’s what you want.”

Your eyebrows furrowed before you could stop them, and the confusion over his words must’ve been written all over your face.

“Why wouldn’t I want that?” You ask, defensively.

Peter opens his mouth, but nothing escapes. Instead, it’s his expression that tells you everything he’s thinking. The crease between his brows screams pitying, or sympathetic. He’s talking about the way you live back on your earth, about the life you lead, Arachnid by day, and by night. With no room for you, no room for your secret identity. He’s thinking of the way you’ll be returning to a world with nobody awaiting you, with not a soul to look out for you, to stitch you up after a battle. Nobody but yourself, anyway.

You pull away from him, brows furrowing further, into an almost angered expression, and you don’t watch the way his hand falls away from your shoulder back to his side. He sighs when you turn away, scoffing as you make your way through the hallways of the Lobby towards where you think Miguel will be.

It’s overwhelming, all of these people. They all believe that they know you, that they know your circumstances, your story, but the truth is that they don’t. Nobody does, and that’s the way you prefer it. You don’t need a Society of Spiders surrounding you, breathing down your neck, telling you they’re sorry, or not trusting you to handle yourself in your own fights, because you can handle yourself. You’ve spent the last year of your life trying to prove that, trying to prove that you can do good things, that you’re worthy of the title Arachnid. You certainly shouldn’t need to prove that to a whole Society of people like you, most of which had been doing the job a lot longer.

You’re capable and you’re content.

You don’t need a life as your secret identity to be content, in fact, it’s better without one. You don’t have to tell so many lies, don’t have to worry about hurting the people you love, because there are none of them left. There’s nobody to hurt, and there’s nobody to lie to. Why would you want to change that?

The hallway ahead looks familiar, and you follow it until you enter a room where Miguel stands, looking at orange tinted screens on a platform halfway up the room. You enter with the absolute certainty that you want to return to your own earth, and you’re not going to let anybody stop you.

“I’m ready.” You tell him, expectantly.

He scoffs, saying nothing, still staring at the screens in front of him. For whatever reason, the reaction makes you angry — inexplicably so. You’re slinging up to the platform before you can have a second thought about it, and you’re pushing his shoulder so he’ll face you, so he’ll acknowledge you.

He stares at you, unimpressed.

“Send me back to my earth.” You press, brows furrowed beneath your mask, but you’re sure he can see the anger in the way your shoulders tense up.

“Sure,” Miguel said blankly, staring at you as if you’d suddenly change your mind or something. “But you know, there’s a lot more like her.” He added on when you said nothing, waiting for him to send you back to your world so you could give him back the stupid watch still wrapped around your wrist.

You stared at him like he was speaking a foreign language. “There are no more like her.” You respond, feeling that hot press on your chest. You don’t want to talk about Gwen Stacy anymore than you’re sure he’d like to talk about whatever he had gone through in his life. Hell, you don’t even want to think about her, but you know that nobody else you would ever have to face would hurt you in the way that she did. In the way that having to see her as an enemy, rather than your friend, had hurt. So, yeah, there was nobody like her, not for you.

Miguel seems ready to let you go for a moment, but then he’s shaking his head at you. “You have a place here. You can be with people like you. You don’t have to do this alone, anymore.” He says, and you think that is ironic, because you don’t see anybody else in here. To you, it seems like he is doing exactly that; doing the job alone. You can practically see the weight of the world on his shoulders.

“I prefer being alone.” You tell him, and it has to be true. It has to be.

His jaw sets, acceptance, you think, and he nods. He glances past you, to where a portal was open on the floor below. Considering that you hadn’t seen him set up the portal, you’d wager that his AI Lyla must’ve listened in and done it for him. You pull the watch off of your wrist, relishing in the way your very atoms seem to sag with the weight of being in another dimension.

“Thanks.” You say, and drop down, landing on your sore ankle but not murmuring a word about the pain. You walk back to your world with your head held high, despite your tattered suit and multitude of wounds that would take days to stop hurting.

Miguel stares after you as the portal closes, eyebrows furrowed. He barely acknowledges Jessica Drew’s arrival in the room, already having known she had been lingering in the hallway, listening in. “Well, that went well.” She comments, glancing between where the portal had been and where Miguel stands, brooding. She knows how much pressure he puts on himself, and she knows that he cares about each and every Spider-person in the multiverse. It doesn’t take a Spider-sense to see the way in which you struggle. It’s a familiar struggle, sure, but there were so many Spiders across the multiverse who had a shoulder to lean on in their hardest times. Who did you have? There was no Aunt May for Arachnid, or Gwen Stacy, or Harry Osborne, or, well, anybody.

Jessica thinks that if anybody were to know exactly how that felt, it would be Miguel.

[webslingingslasher]

i'm a sucker for angst to fluff. what if parker's friends say some mean things ab your body but parker doesn't defend you. that night, you won't cuddle him, you won't even sleep in the same bed because you don't wanna disgust him... and peter has to make it up to you.

parker is a dunce!!! peter supremacy!

Peter had two sets of friend groups. 

The first one was the original one. Kids he grew up with, suffered through high school and flew into the freedom of college with him. The group you knew the most of, they were the closest to him and nearly the entire group became your friends too. Weekends spent smashing drinks and staying up too late before hitting up a diner for greasy burgers at four in the morning. 

Then the second group, which you did not know well, don’t know how Peter knows them and can’t fathom why Peter would entertain them. 

It’s split like this. 

With friend group A, he’s Peter.

With friend group B, he’s Parker. 

You don’t like Parker; not one bit. 

Parker can be stark, blunt, bold and cocky. 

It was the friend group, they made him believe he was one of them so sometimes he acted a little too much like them. It wasn’t ever too bad, just the stuff you know he normally wouldn’t feed into, he gorged. 

His friend, leader of the group, Nick, said it in passing. It’s not the first time you met, granted you try to spend as little time as possible with them but you also won’t give them the cold shoulder. The mutual understanding with friend group B is that you both are there for Peter’s sake, it just makes things easier. 

Nick threw his beer back, foam swirled to the top. His long arm extended to the seat next to him, his watch clicked against the chair top. 

“I’m surprised you didn’t bag someone with a better body, Parker.” A sharp wink is thrown at your boyfriend, and in response he snorted, “yeah, right.” 

It was sarcastic, you’ll give him that. But he didn’t give more, you waited for the ‘real funny, but don’t talk about my girlfriend like that.’ However, he just rubbed your shoulder and sent a small smile, almost like he was saying, ‘you know how it is.’ 

You didn’t miss the tiny curl of Nick’s lip when you shook Peter’s hand off your arm. 

If he couldn’t stand up to his friends over a shit comment then why would you let him put his hands on your body, knowing everyone thinks he could do better?

—------------------------------

Peter frowned when you pulled away from his grasp, he was going for a hug but you floated away. You were quiet on the ride back, not starting conversation but not letting it fail either. 

If Peter could describe your emotion right now it would be ‘fine.’ 

“C’mon, gimme a hug.” 

You cross your arms, “you sure you want your hands on me?” 

Peter reaches out and tries to pull one hand back with the other but his right hand breaks free and grabs you, “I can’t control them! They need you too much.” 

Sometimes it’s really, really hard to be upset with him. 

“I’m gonna take a shower,” you pull away, forcing yourself to stand up for yourself, if the situation was reversed you’d shut it down at the dinner table. Not smile sympathetically and give him an ‘oh well!’ 

“Want company?” 

Disappointment covers your features, “not really.” 

He wouldn’t stand up to defend the body he loves but he wants to be first in line to use it. 

“Oh. Okay, if you want I’ll make us some ice cream cones and set up a movie?” 

You shrug, “sure.” 

Peter knows what’s wrong but he views it as a boundary issue between his friends and him, not you. He knows what he needs to do but doesn’t want to involve you further. 

That message doubles down when you told him you would sleep on his couch tonight, he woke you up after the movie to take you to bed when you shrugged him off, “I’ll sleep here tonight,” that never happens, ever. 

“No, c’mon, I’ll carry you.” 

His hands slipped under your thigh when you rolled over, “if it wasn’t so late I’d be at home. Consider yourself lucky that I’m still here.” 

So, Peter presses a kiss to your temple with an “alright, honey. Goodnight, we can talk in the morning, okay?” 

When he walks away you mumble under your breath, “hope you dream about girls with better bodies.” He hears you, it takes everything in him to not bring you with him. 

—----------------------------------

Noise woke you up. 

The room was bright, sleeping in the living room left you exposed to nearly every window in the apartment. Peter’s room was dark and cool, if you were in there it could be well into mid morning before you rose. 

There was a blanket on you that wasn’t there last night, it’s one from Peter’s room, he keeps an extra by his bed for you. The sun peering in warmed up the room and you started to feel just a little too warm. 

You almost forgot why you were awake until you heard a cabinet shut loudly and a soft curse murmured from the kitchen. Peter was up early making breakfast, you know he feels largely guilty. It almost makes everything okay. 

It took heat swarming your face for you to pull the blanket away, the cool breeze from his ceiling fan felt really good. You yawn, then cough from a dry throat. 

“Baby?” 

You sniff, nothing more than a harsh breath, “morning.” Your voice croaks from the couch, you hear shuffling, steps get louder until you looked up at his face peering over you. 

“I slept like shit, how about you?” 

You stretch your arms over your head, “no complaints.” 

Peter recognizes you’re still mad. 

“Waffles or pancakes?” 

You grin, “french toast.” 

Peter leans over the back of the couch, his lips puckered. “Deal,” you push his chin away. “No kisses, you’re on time out.” 

He wanted to wait until after breakfast but he really can’t last that long without a kiss. 

“Okay, come here.” 

You got up and followed him, he grabbed his phone sitting on the counter and gestured to taking a seat at the breakfast bar. Peter unlocked his phone and tapped around, he handed it towards you, you looked at him confused before he wiggled it. “Take it, read it.” 

Taking his phone you looked down, it was blurry and you had to blink a few times. Peter busy with moving around the kitchen. 

A text thread between him and Nick. 

“hey man, I know you didn’t mean anything by it but you hurt some feelings by that comment tonight. From here on out no jokes on or about her, cool?” 

“Ah shit man, my bad. I didn’t mean to get you yelled at, no jokes about the lady in front of her from now on.” 

“I mean don’t joke about her, ever. It’s not cool to me, and it disrespects my girlfriend.” 

“Say less, I’ll tell the guys, no more jokes about parker’s girl.” 

“Appreciate it, man.” 

A small pout takes over your face, he texted it last night after you got home. If you can track it back it would’ve been around the time you were in the shower, unprompted he stuck up for you. 

Peter stood up for you, he had your back. 

You assumed he didn’t, but he just didn’t make a scene. He kept cool and calm until he was back at home, in regards to not embarrassing you or his friends and maybe damaging either relationship. 

You click your tongue, your boyfriend meets your eyes, he’s awaiting a response. 

“Well, now it’s hard to be mad.” 

“I will always defend your honor, sweetheart. Just because I don’t do it at that moment doesn’t mean I wont, okay? I love you and you are absolutely the hottest woman I could ever bag, alright?” 

You respond with countless kisses and cuddles, Peter needs to nearly peel you off his body so he can use the stove safely, but not one complaint utters from his lips. 

[inkdrinkerworld]

Tasm peter with shy!reader and *sharing a warm kiss under the first snow of the season*

Congrats 👏

You’re bundled up, a day of learning to ice skate with Peter as your teacher etched into every corner of your mind as he walks you home.

The rink was cold, but New York was colder, your thermal tights were doing nothing now but adding to your aesthetic.

Still, you weren’t expecting it.

Peter’s watching you and you’re looking up at the sky, not quite believing that it’s actually happening.

You’d been talking about it for weeks, telling Peter about the days you thought was well below freezing enough for the snow, but the timing wasn’t right.

Not until now.

When you see the snowflake flicker down, hitting the apple of your cheek you giggle. Peter thinks you sound like wind chimes, he’s more than a little in love.

“It’s snowing!” The words bubble out of you, surprised and ecstatic and maybe a little breathless when you catch Peter’s eyes on you.

His brown eyes are pools of warm adoration and it makes the buzz of everyone seeing the snow dull.

“You’re adorable,” Peter whispers, his mittened hands cupping your cold cheeks. “Utterly fucking adorable.”

His lips press into yours softly, a quick peck of anything really, but it feels longer. It feels infused with something that far surpasses the beginning flushes of a relationship and you find yourself liking it. So does Peter.

The snow halos the two of you, melting on your eyelashes as you pull away.

“C’mon, before you freeze, bug.” You touch your lips as he reaches a hand for you.

“I can’t believe it’s snowing.” I can’t believe you’ve kissed me.

Peter smiles as your fingers link, your skin buzzing under his palm, “It’s the best day for it.” And he really, really means it.

[critters-crossing]

The forgotten child

Pairing's : fem! reader x peter parker, tony stark daughter! x tony stark, tony stark daughter! x peter parker

Warnings: really sad angst, jealousy, daddy issues, neglect, lmk if i missed anything! :)

Summary: dad of the year award? surely isn't going too him

a/n : I know the gif doesn't really match the theme of this story I just really liked it. I did not reread this so please ignore any grammar mistakes. Also, I'm not sure if i wrote a panic attack correctly but I wrote based on what their like for me. hope you all enjoy!

you really tried not to become the forgotten child, always tried you're very hardest to live up to your father expectations, trying to make him proud in hope's he'd show some form of attention.

always studying to get straight a's even through countless anxiety attacks from fear of failing and disappointing your father.

all you ever wanted was reassurance, and if you ever got lucky enough a "You did a good job" after getting a high score on a test.

but it never came, it would forever be something you longed to hear. he would usually just mumble a small, quiet "congrats" as his mind stayed focused on his work and his eyes stuck to the blueprint laid out on the table Infront of him.

you always tried you're best not to feel jealous whenever your father held morgan, you had no ressentiment towards morgan whatsoever, in fact she was the one that kept you smiling most days. although you couldn't help but feel your heart tighten from jealousy as you watched them have daddy daughter time

you really did try you're best to be happy for your younger sister, but you couldn't ignore that aching feeling. all you wanted was the attention she had that your heart ached so desperately for, but it never came despite your countless attempts.

you we're astound to hear a new avenger had been recruited, you always enjoyed meeting new people. mainly because they gave you attention they didn't even know you craved.

you always seeked to see the best in people, no matter what the circumstances we're. including peter parker, there was nothing wrong with him, he wasn't a bad person in fact quite a good one, and if you weren't so envious of him you possibly could have been friends with the boy. but you watched how peter and your father clicked so easily becoming like father and son.

it made the knots in your stomach tighten as you watched them spend time together, it made you feel as if something was wrong with you, like maybe if you tried harder or changed, he'd give you the attention you deserved.

your mother, pepper always said he loved you just as much as he loved morgan or even peter, but you knew the truth as much as you ignored it you knew. but oh, how you wish he did.

"Mom, I'm home" you called out knowing if father was home, he wouldn't answer you. after not receiving an answer, you decided to look through the house in search of your mother, after a couple of minutes searching you still hadn't found her and decided she probably went out and took morgan with her. you heard talking but it sounded like your father, and peter?? "what's peter doing here?" you wondered. you decided to peak you're head through the door and saw peter and tony standing with their backs faced away from you, working on some upgrades for peter's suit.

"you're a pretty great kid peter" tony told him as he smiled at him patting his shoulder. a wave of jealously hit your chest as you watched them, your throat tightening. "Thank you, Mr. stark," peter smiled cheekily as your fingers clenched into a fist at your side.

"Becoming like my son."

once those words left Tony's lips, your mouth went dry, your head aching as you backed away from the door as quietly as possible, you're breathing picking up rapidly. you quickly made your way to your room, tears forming in your eyes, you walked into your room and shut the door softly as your hands started shaking as you paced around your room quickly, trying to stop the tears from rolling down your cheeks. you never liked crying, it made you feel weak.

you're breathing came out in heavy gasp as you struggled to breathe. you leaned against the wall coughing as you squeezed your eyes shut as you tried to stop the words from replaying in your mind.

"Becoming like my son" continuously echoed through your head as soft sobs left your lips, you didn't want to feel this way, envious of what your father and peter had. it's not peter's fault about what your father feels about you so why hold him accountable. he'll never love you, at least not like he loves peter. you can't figure out why? you always tried you're best to impress him, but nothing seemed to be enough for him, it's like he didn't even care about your existence.

you stumbled over to your bed, taking deep breathes as your body grew exhausted from crying. you plopped down on your bed tiredly as you snuggled up against your blanket that was where your pillows we're supposed to be, you grabbed a pillow and hugged it too sleep.

you didn't want to put the blame on peter because it wasn't his fault, but a little piece of your heart blamed peter parker.

a/n: CLIFFHANGER!?!? I decided to leave it for now because I haven't come up with an ending that I thought fit the way I wanted so if you guys have ideas, please let me know. reblog's are highly appreciated, thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!

[mushrubes]

Do to me

Masterlist | marvel masterlist |

Requested : no

prompt 40. “You don’t know half of the things you do to me.”

Pairing : peter parker x (they/them) reader

Type : fluff

Word count : 623

merry christmas!! <3

——————————–

“It’s nice to have you over, kid.” Tony greeted as he welcomed Peter, May and Happy into the cabin. It had been about a year since the events with Thanos and surprisingly, Bruce had managed to get Tony back to health after the events, making it end the way it should of. The Starks had agreed to hold this christmas at theirs, obviously having to upgrade to a new house - one that actually fit well, almost everyone. With Y/n being 18, they agreed they’d need their own space. As much as they loved their sister Morgan, they desperately needed their own space. Speaking of Y/n, Tony had recently found out about the growing romance between them and Peter much to his dismay. Pepper had tried hiding it from him but he had found out, threatening Peter that if anything happened to them, he would be the first one dead.

Pepper got up and greeted May, bringing her into a hug before bringing Peter in. “It’s nice to see you Pete. I guess you’re looking for Y/n?” she teased, grinning as she saw his face redden, May ruffling his hair. “She’s in the kitchen talking to Steve.” she informed him, Peter thanking her before heading through the living room, greeting other people before going through. Y/n didn’t notice him at first, paying attention to Steve and Bucky who were showing them how to do some cool trick. Steve also was still here, Bucky and Sam having persuaded him to come back after putting the stones away, Peter overhearing it had something to do with a lady he was seeing or something. Steve had handed his shield to Y/n who was now copying the trick they had been shown a few minutes before, both of the men cheering as Y/n got it right. He leant on the door frame, not saying a word and silently admiring his lover, a massive love struck grin on his face. 

“Pete!” he heard from behind, him turning around almost instantly. He smiled instantly as he bent down opening his arms for a hug. “Morgan! Hi! Woah, look at you!” he laughed, seeing them in a onesie that was Y/n’s costume. She pretended to attack him and he looked at her with a hurt expression before smirking. Morgan’s face dropped as she realised what he was about to do, his arms slowly stretching out. “Y/n!” she shouted, running over to her sibling as Peter chased her, letting Y/n pick her up. They gasped before looking at Morgan. “What happened?” they asked as they playfully glared at him. Morgan tapped Peters arm before huffing. “He was trying to tickle me!” she whined as Y/n gasped, passing Morgan to Steve. “Here go to uncle Steve, I’ll tell Peter off!” they played along, softly punching and hitting Peter’s arm and stomach who got the hint and acted like he was being attacked, resulting in Morgan laughing and Steve shaking his head at the two teenagers before heading into the living room with Morgan. 

“I missed you.” Peter said, pulling them into a hug and kissing their cheek. Y/n wrapped their arms around his neck, feeling their cheeks heat up at his actions. They had been together for a few months now, and yet, no matter what Peter did, whether it was a simple i love you or a passionate kiss, he drove them wild, making them blush hard and butterflies constantly swarm their stomach. Peter chuckled as he saw their cheeks darken. “Nice to know I can make you blush easily, darling.” he teased, Y/n rolling their eyes at his usual tactics and pressing a kiss to his lips.

“You don’t know half of the things you do to me, Spider boy.”

[literaryavenger]

Can I be him?

Summary: When Bucky finds something of yours, he hopes against hope that you feel the same way about him.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Enhanced!Fem!Reader

Warnings: Language cause it's me. Fluff. A lot of angst. Idiots in love. Self-deprecating thoughts, both reader and Bucky. No use of Y/N. My poor attempts at being funny.

Word Count: 4.8K

A/N: It’s 3am where I live, so… Happy 107th Birthday to my favorite Supersoldier! Today I’m posting 2 Bucky fics because my baby deserves it, this one and another one sometime around the afternoon. Hope someone likes it! Thank you to my angels @ordelixx and @mrsbuckybarnes1917 that gave me so many ideas that helped me finish this. I love you🖤

Masterlist

Being an Avenger is not easy.

The long missions, the intense training, the weight of the world on your shoulders…

Everybody on the team has a different way to unwind after a mission: Steve draws, Clint and Natasha compete doing target practice, Thor sleeps, Sam plays video games, Bucky takes motorcycle rides, Tony and Bruce work on side projects in their lab, Loki reads, Peter does his homework and Wanda cooks with Vision.

For you, it’s going to the rose garden behind the Compound.

It’s a bit of a sanctuary for you, Tony allowed you to put tall hedges of roses with a gazebo-like structure in the middle of them facing the lake, only it’s entirely made of vines.

You made it yourself, that’s your power: you can manipulate anything plant-related. 

Everytime you finish a mission the team splits up as soon as the debriefing is over and you walk straight here.

You sit on the bench, also made of vines, take out your diary and start writing.

You write about everything, from details of missions to your feelings about the team. From things you did that you don’t want to forget to things that you want to do after you’re not so tired anymore.

The hedges hide you from view and the only thing you can see when you’re here is the lake.

Sometimes, after a particular difficult mission, you don’t even write. You just sit there and look out into the water, the sunshine or moonlight shining down on you, and you feel at peace.

It helps that nobody else ever comes here. The team understands it’s your safe space, and the agents are mostly scared of your powers ever since you grew a giant carnivorous plant and it bit an agent that squeezed your ass during training. 

The agent got both taken to the medbay and suspended on the same day, and you got the thanks of about a dozen girls that had the same problem with the same asshole.

You walk out of the conference room, the debriefing of the team’s latest mission just wrapped up, and like usual everyone scatters to their own after-mission ritual.

Today, though, you can’t concentrate on anything.

Your feet take you to the rose garden by reflex, but your brain doesn’t even register you’re there until you sit on the bench.

Today’s mission took a lot out of you, not just because of the amount of magic you had to use to get everyone out safely, but also because it was your fault the team was in so much danger in the first place.

You fucked up your task, Natasha had to step in and save your ass, moving away from her post and making her late for her own task and that derailed the entire mission.

At the end, you had to use your powers to take out the hundreds of Hydra agents at the same time, which is no small feat and made you almost pass out.

Everybody told you on the way home not to worry, the mission was successfully accomplished and everyone made it out safely, but you know that if it wasn’t for your screw up the team would’ve gotten in and out of base without so much as a scratch. 

Nobody had fatal injuries, thank God, but Sam got shot in the leg, Clint got stabbed and everyone else had various degrees of injuries because Hydra got the jump on the team.

Because of me.

That was all you kept thinking about. Your brain had a field day making up all kinds of scenarios where your mistake cost someone’s life, a few of them even had the entire team dying because of your stupidity. 

You were so caught up in your head that you didn’t even notice someone following you to the rose garden.

Not that you ever do. 

If there’s one thing Bucky Barnes knows how to do, is move around undetected. He’s a master assassin, he was trained for this for over 50 years, he knows how to be a shadow.

Except now he uses his skills for good during missions and, occasionally, to follow you.

Not in a creepy way, of course, just to check on you. At least that’s the excuse he always uses so he won’t have to admit to himself that what he does is, indeed, a little creepy.

But he can’t help himself, Bucky knew from the moment he saw you that he was fucked. 

The moment you walked into the room to meet the team his heart was yours. You stole it with one simple smile, with one look of your beautiful eyes.

You introduced yourself and shook hands with everyone, but when you looked at Bucky he felt like a light came on and it was just you two.

You shook his hand and he felt like he had to take it off and give it to you, it was yours now. His hand, his arm, his leg, his head, his heart, his soul. Everything he is was now yours, he just knew it.

Then you said his name and he could’ve died right there and then. It was the sweetest sound he’d ever heard, and it was barely two syllables. Every word you said, every laugh and sound that came out of your pretty mouth, Bucky felt like it was all for him. Nobody else mattered.

Bucky knew then he was in love.

But he didn’t know how to approach you. You were like a fairy, like a princess. Growing flowers, always smiling, baking, growing everyone’s favorite flowers and always willing to help, like growing Aloe when Wanda burned herself cooking, or Chamomile to help with Tony’s anxiety, or Valerian roots whenever someone was feeling down. 

You were like sunshine and he was terrified he’d kill your light. But he’d be damned if he’d let the world kill it either, he’d protect you with his life.

So he took to following you, making sure you were safe from a distance.

But it’s not like he never talked to you, the more time you spent with the team the more comfortable Bucky got around you and eventually you became friends.

Bucky knew you could take care of yourself, you were one of the strongest members of the team, but he didn’t like it when you were in your rose garden by yourself. The tall hedges made it impossible to see incoming danger, so he kept an eye on you just to be sure.

For his own piece of mind. And you never saw him.

That was Bucky’s actual way to unwind after a mission.

He’d tell everybody he was going for a ride on his bike, but he’d drive it through the woods around the compound and to the other side of the lake where he’d have a perfect view of you without you knowing. 

Deep down he knew it was a little creepy, he could just ask you if he could join you, but he felt like you needed your time alone without anyone else around, and he knew if he asked you, you’d say yes no matter what you were feeling, because that’s just the kind of person you are.

So Bucky watched you from afar, always careful not to be seen. He watched you write for hours, it relaxed him to see your beautiful face so concentrated.

Sometimes you’d laugh quietly at what you were writing and those were the only times Bucky was grateful for the supersoldier serum that allowed him to hear such a beautiful sound even with so much distance between you.

But it was torture for him when he knew you had a bad day. Sometimes you’d hug your knees and cry, Bucky could tell how much you’d need a hug, and it killed him that he couldn’t just walk up to you and hug you.

Everytime he sees you cry his heart breaks a little and he always tries to make you feel better when you walk back inside. He doesn’t ask you what’s wrong, he just tries to make you laugh. But all he wanted to do was dry your tears.

You did notice Bucky always seemed to act a little goofy when you're feeling down, like he somehow knew, but you never thought much of it.

You knew he was a very observant person, so you assumed he just saw your mood through your behavior better than most.

Bucky loves hanging out with you, even if it’s just as friends. You make fun of him like with everyone else, you don’t treat him like could explode at any moment, never walking on eggshells around him like most people do.

You’ve never been afraid of him, and he’s glad that you don’t treat him like glass. You treat him like everyone else, and it makes him feel normal.

Everytime time he hangs out with you, you take him back to a time where he was unbroken. You make him feel alive again.

And he falls more in love with you by the second because of it. You’re all he wants, he wants to have you and kiss your lips and never let anyone hurt you. That’s all he can think about, but he knows that’s not gonna happen.

He heard you talk to Natasha and Wanda, heard that there’s someone you’d gone on a few dates with. But Bucky knows that guy doesn’t deserve you, nobody does.

Even Bucky himself doesn’t deserve you, you’re too pure for anyone in this world, but if there’s someone that has any chance of making you happy, Bucky prays to God that that someone is him.

Bucky knows today’s mission shook you deeply. He knows you blame yourself, and no amount of reassurance will make you believe that everything is okay.

So today, for the first time, Bucky actually follows you. He can see your unfocused eyes even as you walk and he wants to be near you, just in case.

He almost walks to you when you curl up on the bench and start sobbing quietly, but he holds back not wanting to startle or upset you further.

He just listens to your soft cries until you stop and compose yourself. You sigh and get up, walking back to the Compound to take a much needed relaxing shower.

But you’re still so much in your own head that you don’t even notice you left your diary on the bench in the gazebo.��

Bucky did notice, though.

He’s tempted to call after you and tell you, but something deep down tells him not to. He waits until you’re gone and then walks to the bench, picking up your diary and opening it.

He doesn’t know why, he knows it’s wrong, these are your private thoughts, but he’s just drawn to it for some reason.

When he starts reading he notices you don’t mention any specific names, which makes sense because only you read it, you know who you’re writing about. He reads a page here and there, reading about your missions or lazy days. 

He reads about some memories with the team you wrote about, some he remembers and others he probably wasn’t there for, but seeing all these memories from your point of view does something to him.

It makes him feel connected to you, makes him feel like he’s reading your heart and soul, because he kind of is. Then he reads something that captures his attention completely. 

You write about eyes blue like the ocean and just as troubled, about a smile that could light up the world. You write about someone with a complicated past that never lost his spark, never lost his love for life. 

A man that went through hell, and never once took it out on the world. A man that didn’t ever blame the world, even when he had every right to, choosing instead to protect it. 

You filled pages and pages with everything you admire about this man, everything you love about him that you know he hates. 

And Bucky feels like every word you wrote, you wrote for him. But could this be him? Could he be the one you talk about in all your stories?

He wants to. He wants this to be him. He prays you’re talking about him. He wishes this could be him… Who is he kidding?

Of course it’s not me. 

It’s probably the guy you’ve been dating. Yeah, that’s it. You’re in love with that guy, that much is clear. 

Bucky gets to the page where you write about your dates with the guy, but he can’t read them.

He closes the diary, not knowing that you compared your date to Bucky every step of the way. Not knowing that you granted the guy a second date just to be sure he couldn’t compare to Bucky, and went on a third date at a coffee shop just to let him down gently.

Bucky didn’t read how you know he’s the one for you, he didn’t read his own name written in your handwriting, the only name in your whole diary because he’s the only person you never want to forget, even though you know you never will.

But Bucky didn’t read that.

He puts your diary back where it was on the bench and, with his heart broken and his hope that one day you could be his lost, he goes back inside and to his room.

It’s only when you go back to the rose garden after your shower that you notice you left your diary there, but don’t think much of it. Nobody ever comes here anyway, as far as you know.

After finding out you’re in love with someone else, Bucky can’t stop himself from acting differently towards you, which you don’t fail to notice.

It’s not like he’s mean, but your interactions get shorter, like he tries his best to end the conversation quickly.

He no longer sits close to you, no longer tries to make you laugh when you’re feeling down, doesn’t hang out with you as much during your down time and if he does, it’s never just the two of you anymore.

It’s silly to say, but you miss him.

Bucky knows he’s been distancing himself, he knows you’ve noticed and he can see it’s affecting you, but he’s doing this to protect himself.

He knows it’s only a matter of time before you present your boyfriend to the team, the man you’re in love with and he doesn’t want it to hurt more than necessary.

You decide not to push Bucky, knowing he has his reasons to pull away from you. Maybe he’s just trying to deal with all the stress the team’s been under and you don’t want to add any more to that, so you let him be.

A few weeks later the team’s on their sixth mission in just as many days and everyone is exhausted. You’ve been taking down Hydra base after Hydra base, because waiting too long meant losing your chance to shut down their operations for good before they got the opportunity to leave.

You’ve been dividing in smaller teams to take down the bases while still giving the team a chance to recuperate, but this last one was the biggest and required the whole team together, which sucked for you because you were in the last team with Steve and Bucky that took down a base just yesterday, so the three of you got barely a few hours of sleep while you flew to the last base.

You’ve cleared the base, all that’s left is the agents in the courtyard who are really going down fighting. The whole team is outside now, the Hydra agents giving you a hell of a fight. You’re using your magic against your better judgment, giant vines coming out of your arms like whips, covered in poisonous thorns. One touch of that and anyone would go down immediately, everyone except you.

Or at least that’s what you think.

As you’re fighting you can see an agent trying to sneak up on Bucky who’s fighting near you, so you quickly take care of it for him.

Bucky turns around and sees the agent down and then looks at you with that charming smile you fell in love with and winks at you. “Thank you, doll.”

That’s the friendliest Bucky’s been towards you in weeks and you can’t help but smile back with a small blush.

You can see the last agent standing coming at you from your peripheral vision and you quickly whip him with a vine, taking him down as soon as you can so you can turn back to look at Bucky, still smiling at you.

Bucky’s smile drops quickly, though, as he sees your face draining of any color. You barely have the time to register the sting of your own thorn on your arm that you’re already falling to the ground.

Bucky tries to catch you, but he gets thrown back by your magic that goes into defense mode, creating a wall of thorns to protect your now unconscious body.

The team doesn't know what to do, none of them know enough about plants to be sure that these thorns wouldn’t just kill them all.

The only one that would know that is you, the person that’s passed out, or worse, trapped in the midst of a cocoon of thorns.

“Okay, we need to find a safe way to-” Steve starts but cuts himself off almost immediately. “What are you doing?!”

Bucky doesn’t even turn around to answer, too intent on breaking the thorns around you with his metal arm, not caring that the thorns are ripping his clothes and scratching his face, all he can think about is getting to you.

He finally manages to get through to you, but nobody can follow because your magic regrows the thorns Bucky broke, trapping him with you inside the cocoon.

But Bucky doesn’t care, his eyes never leaving your face as he kneels behind you, running a finger softly along your cheek and shivering when he feels your skin is cold as ice.

His mind goes to the worst possibility, that there’s nothing he can do, but his brain gives him some hope reasoning that your magic wouldn’t be working if you were dead.

Right?

He snaps out of his thoughts when he feels the thorns around you vibrate, he takes you in his arms and shields you with his body from whatever is about to happen.

But the only thing that happens is the shade cast by the thorns gets replaced by sunlight. Bucky looks up and realizes Wanda used her magic to lift the thorn cocoon.

“You couldn’t have done that before?!” Bucky barks at Wanda with a glare while carefully picking you up to take you to the Quinjet.

“She’s not the dumbass that threw himself headfirst in a mess of thorns without even considering another course of action!” Natasha came in Wanda’s defense, though she seemed more amused at Bucky’s antics than annoyed.

As the team heads back home in the jet, Bruce examines you and lets the team know you’re still alive but in a sort of coma.

Their relief is cut short when Bruce makes it known that he has no idea when, or if, you’ll wake up.

As soon as the Quinjet lands you’re taken to the medbay and hooked up to machines, an IV in your arm to keep you hydrated.

Bucky holds your hand through it all, staying all night next to you just in case you wake up. He didn’t want you to be freaked out and alone, he wanted to be the first person to see your beautiful eyes open.

When morning comes, though, you’re still unconscious, but Bucky doesn’t lose hope. You probably need a good sleep.

That’s what he tells himself for two, three, four days.

That’s what he keeps telling himself for a week, two weeks. Never once leaving your side, not eating unless Steve brings him food and makes sure he eats before leaving, and using the bathroom of your room in the medbay.

He barely sleeps and, when he does, he dreams of you.

Everyone was getting worried about him, he refused to leave your side until one day Steve came into your room to tell Bucky there was something wrong with your rose garden.

Bucky was torn between staying with you and seeing what Steve was talking about, but decided that it would kill you if something happened to your roses so he had to make sure everything was okay when you woke up.

Because you’re going to wake up.

Bucky follows Steve to your rose garden, and his eyes widen in horror as soon as he sees it. The roses, the hedges, the vines.

Everything is dying.

Bucky’s heart breaks, only one thought in his mind. If your plants are dying, does that mean you’re slowly dying too?

No. That’s unacceptable. You’re not gonna die, not if Bucky has anything to do with it.

He takes it upon himself to take care of your garden, watering it and doing everything he can to keep the roses and vines alive, fooling himself into believing that this will keep you alive.

He stays on the gazebo day and night, sleeping on the bench, spending every waking moment trying to keep a hold of even the smallest part of you.

But it’s not enough. Nothing is enough.

Bucky loses track of how many days he’s been in your garden, sleeping maybe an hour at a time here and there, watering the roses every few hours and crying the rest of the time.

After all it’s his fault, if he hadn’t distracted you none of this would’ve happened. You’d be in your beautiful garden, probably with your boyfriend, and the only broken thing would be Bucky’s heart.

That he could’ve lived with. 

But how can he live with the knowledge that he caused your end? That he killed your light? That he killed his sunshine, his hope, the love of his life? He can’t live with that.

Not that he has to.

While Bucky’s spiraling while surrounded by dying roses, inside your room in the medbay you’re finally waking up after almost a month.

You open your eyes slowly, looking around you at the hospital-like room. There’s nobody around and, as you look at the window, you can see it’s really late at night.

You sit up and try to make sense of what happened while rubbing your eyes. The last thing you remember is Bucky’s bright smile, and then nothing.

You look down at your arm and see an IV, which you take out while frowning. How long have you been sleeping?

You carefully get off the bed and make your way outside to your rose garden, just to be sure everything’s okay. It’s not like anyone’s gonna stop you anyway.

When you get close, the moonlight shines on the hedges and you gasp at what you see. Your beautiful roses withering away, the gazebo made of vines dying too.

But the most confusing thing is the sobs coming from the bench, although no one’s sitting on it.

You get closer and see Bucky sitting in front of the bench while hugging his knees and crying softly. You frown and get a little closer before stopping, not wanting to startle him.

“Bucky…” You say quietly and his head snaps up, his eyes instantly meeting yours.

For a moment it feels like he’s trying to decide if you’re real, he reaches out and you extend your hand to take his. That seems to convince him and he gasps.

“Doll…” His voice is barely above a whisper, almost as if he thinks if he makes too much noise you’ll disappear.

“What’s wrong?” You ask him while getting a little closer to him, concern clear in your every feature.

It’s only when you get closer that you see his face full of cuts and you frown. Those are not just any scratches, it’s clear to you that they were made by thorns. “D-did… Did I do this to you?” 

You’re kneeling in front of him now, one hand still in his one the other comes up to trace the cuts in his face softly, but he takes your hand in his and kisses your palm.

“I’m okay…” He reassures you.

Just then he realizes, you’re fussing over him when you’re the one that’s been in a coma for a month. “Are you okay? How long have you been awake?” 

“I… I just woke up.” You tell him honestly, then look around at the dying roses and vines before looking back at him. “What happened to me?”

“You got stung by one of your poisonous thorns.” He says quietly, his thumbs rubbing circles on your skin while he refuses to let go of you. “You’ve been unconscious for almost a month.”

“A month?!” You’re shocked at the news, not knowing what to say or do, so you just stay there while letting the information sink in. The silence is broken by Bucky after a minute.

“I’m sorry about your roses… I tried to keep them alive, but…” He looks around with a hopeless expression. “I failed you.”

Your heart breaks a little. Does he really think he failed you?

You take a deep breath, then close your eyes and when you open them again a second later everything’s back to normal. The roses are as beautiful as ever, the gazebo just as majestic. It’s like nothing ever happened.

Bucky looks around in awe when he feels you take his chin and you make him look at you.

“You could never fail me.” You say firmly, wanting him to understand you mean it. You look at the cuts around his face and you can’t help the guilt and pain that you feel deep within you. “I’m sorry…”

“It wasn’t your fault.” It’s like Bucky can read your thoughts, he knows all you can see are your faults, and he wants you to know he doesn’t blame you for anything. “You weren’t even conscious. You have nothing to be sorry for.”

“I never wanted to be one of the people that hurt you…” Your voice is a whisper as a tear escapes you. “The world hurt you so much already… I never wanted to be part of that. You don’t deserve it.”

Bucky frowns. He feels like he’s heard those words, but where? No, he didn’t hear them. He read them. He read them in your diary, where you wrote about the man you’re in love with. Could it be possible?

Could I be him?

“It’s me…” He says lower than a whisper, his eyes locked on yours, and it’s your time to be confused now.

“What?” You ask him with a frown while wiping your cheeks.

“It’s me you’re in love with.” His voice is a little louder, but firm. He’s not asking you, he’s making a statement.

Your eyes widen in surprise, you almost take your hands away from his but his hold prevents you from doing that.

“I-I… What?” Is all you can bring yourself to say, confused as to why he’s so sure of it. Are you really that transparent?

“I read your diary…” Bucky says, guilt written all over his face, but at least he’s owning up to it. “You wrote about the man you love… and you wrote the same thing you just told me. It’s me, isn’t it? You love me back?” His voice is more hopeful now, his confident demeanor weavering.

“You… You read my diary?” You say, your mind still playing catch up.

It’s only a moment later that you register the ‘love me back’ and you don’t give him a chance to apologize or justify himself before you’re speaking again. “You love me?!” 

Bucky hesitates a moment but nods firmly. “I love you, doll. I’ve loved you since the moment I met you.” 

You feel like someone punched you and all the air has left your body. You have no idea what to say, so you don’t say anything.

Instead you lean in and kiss him.

Bucky wastes no time kissing you back, but a thought pops into his mind and he reluctantly pulls back. “What about your boyfriend?”

“Boyfriend?” You frown again, having no idea what he’s talking about. “I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“You don’t?” Bucky feels like a weight has been lifted off his shoulders and he pulls you to straddle him. “What about the guy you went on a few dates with?”

You narrow your eyes at him but decide to table the conversation about how he knows that for another time, so you smile at him and decide to just be honest with him.

“Do you honestly think that anyone could ever measure up to you? Because if you do, you’re an idiot.” Bucky grins and kisses you again. 

Maybe he is an idiot. But when he’s the idiot you’re in love with, how much of an idiot can he really be?

It looks like he can be him after all.