Big, Fluffy Furball
Peter didn't know how long he'd slept for. All he knew was that it was morning, because warm rays of Spring sun were currently beaming down on him from the windows.
He groaned, sitting up and blinking away the remainders of sleep. He didn't dream last night.
Peter scrubbed a hand over his face, yawning as he stretched and cracked his back against the back of the worn couch.
...Oh, yeah. He needed to go back to Delmar's today.
He scratched his neck absent-mindedly as he lumbered over to the sink, switching on the tap and splashing his face. He leaned on the sink for a moment, letting the cold water really wake him up before clasping his hands together to drink. Then he hurriedly washed his pits and made a mental note to buy a toothbrush soon. And deodorant. And shampoo? Maybe he could wash his hair in the sink.
Peter shrugged off the dirty, torn clothes he'd been wearing for the past two days and tore open the pack of boxers, slipping a pair on.
He meandered over to the table, grabbing the black jeans and the faded Star Wars t-shirt. He pulled the pants on and pulled the shirt over his head.
He made another mental note to try and thrift for new sneakers. His were beginning to wear out pretty badly. He had had them for quite a while before he was dusted.
Peter slipped them on, before jogging out of the break room and into the main room so he could squeeze himself out of the window.
He landed with a thud on the other side.
As he got up and started walking, Peter's mind drifted to the check ups he'd have to do on the Iron Spider suit.
He'd have to see if he needed to replace anything, but Peter was pretty sure the suit was still operable.
Then his thoughts swayed to ones of Tony... The lab visits after school.
Peter missed Tony. He knew Tony was here, but it wasn't his Tony. This Tony had no idea who Peter was and was probably very different from the Tony that Peter once knew in his timeline.
He missed Ned, too. He could really use his best friend right now. His guy in the chair.
Peter sighed.
Most of all, he missed May.
But May in this timeline wouldn't know him either, right... According to that-
OH! That's what his dream had been about!
According to Dr. Strange, he completely annihilated any trace in this timeline of the original Peter Parker... Meaning Peter Parker didn't exist. Technically.
The timeline must have had to make room for his existence, removing the original him to stop a universe-crushing paradox or something.
But that's just a theory.
Peter soon stopped outside of the Deli.
He pushed the door open, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the lighting.
"Ah, there he is. My mysterious janitor boy." Delmar greeted him as he entered.
"Hi," Peter said, waving awkwardly. "So. Um, I'll just start cleaning-"
"Woah, woah, woah, not so fast," Delmar said, holding up his hands to stop Peter. "First, I'm pretty sure I forgot to ask what your name was last time, and second, come sit and have a sandwich first or something." He pulled a readymade sandwich out from behind the counter, waving it. "You look like wind could blow you over, no offense."
Peter paused in front of the counter. "Oh. Thank you, Mr. Deli- I mean- Mr. Delmar," he said, reaching for the food, "my name's Peter... Uhm. Peter Parker."
Delmar hummed in acknowledgement before handing over the sandwich. "Well. It's nice to formally meet you, Peter Parker."
Peter smiled thinly, unwrapping the sandwich and digging in. He looked around the place a bit as he ate, his eyes not able to focus on one thing for too long.
"So, I adopted a cat recently," Delmar's voice cut through Peter's eating daydreams.
"Huh- what?" Peter swallowed his mouthful. "A cat?"
Murph?
"What's it's name?" He asked interestedly, taking another bite.
"Murph. Fat thing. Fluffy, though. You wanna see him after you're finished eatin'?" Delmar offered, gesturing to the back room.
Peter nodded eagerly. He'd very much love to scritch some fluffy Murph fur right now.
"Great. Well, hurry up and finish, then," Delmar smiled, folding his arms. "And then after you see Murph you can clean."
Peter hurriedly scarfed the rest of the sandwich down, wiping his hands and mouth on a serviette he'd nabbed off the counter and throwing it in the bin. "Finished," he announced.
Delmar nodded, before heading into the back room.
Peter waited a moment, rocking back and forth on his heels.
The deli-owner came back out moments later, cradling a big bundle of gray and white fur in his arms.
Peter grinned, holding out his hands and meeting Delmar's eyes in a silent question.
"Knock yourself out," Delmar shrugged, handing him Murph.
Peter coddled the cat close to his chest, beaming as he scratched the cat behind its ears, eliciting a loud purr from the ball of fur. "Thanks."
Peter stayed like that for a while, petting the cat and giving it goo-goo eyes before handing the feline back over to Delmar.
"I'll start, uh, cleaning now, please," he mumbled, looking up at Delmar.
Delmar nodded, taking Murph into the back with him as he retrieved the cleaning items for Peter.
He came out, handing the stuff to the patient Peter, who took it and almost immediately set to work.
He polished, dusted, hell, he even mopped, for a solid five hours.
When Peter finally finished mopping the floor and put the mop back in the little blue bucket, his back ached from hunching over and he was thirsty.
"Mr. Delmar, sir?" Peter spoke up, catching the attention of the deli-owner, who had just finished ringing up an order.
"Yeah, kid?" He arched a brow, dropping the change into his register and looking Peter's way.
"...if it's not any bother, could- could I have a drink, please?" Peter mumbled nervously, scratching his neck. "I'm. Um. I'm finished cleaning, by the way."
Delmar stared a moment, before shrugging. "Sure you can." He said, before fishing out a bottled water and chucking it to Peter. He looked around the bodega. "Good job, by the way. You really deep-clean when you come here."
Peter blushed from embarrassment, the tips of his ears turning a little red. He dipped his head, taking a sip of water to hide it. "You're welcome, I- I suppose."
Delmar chuckled, shaking his head.
"Well, here's your money," he said, sliding a white envelope over the counter. "And an extra sandwich to go. Seriously. You look like a toothpick."
Peter rolled his eyes. "Thanks for the confidence boost, Mr. Delmar. Really helped." He muttered, fastening the lid on the water and grabbing the money.
He slipped it into his pocket and plucked the sandwich off the counter. "And thanks for the sandwich, too."
"No problem, kid," Delmar shrugged again. "And call me Delmar. Mr. Makes me feel old."
Peter huffed out a laugh, shaking his head. "Okay, okay. Delmar. I'll see you later!" He said, waving bye as he jogged over to the door.
"See you, Parker! Stay safe!" He responded in kind as the door shut behind Peter.
Peter unwrapped the sandwich and began to eat it as he walked back through the streets of New York.
At least you have Delmar, Peter thought, sighing internally.
He passed a few shops as he trudged down a street near the fire station, but backtracked as he passed a convenience store.
He needed hygiene products. Desperately.
Peter finished off the sandwich before pushing open the door and walking inside.
He located the aisle where the small amount of hygiene products were kept and found a cheap roll-on, a toothbrush, cheap toothpaste, and some cheap shampoo. His hair was already beginning to get greasy.
As he made his way over to the counter, Peter spotted a small emergency toolkit for $5.
...He did have $22 after the last payment from Delmar.
Peter nabbed that off the shelf and hurried over to the counter, dropping his items onto it and looking up at the teenager behind it.
He boredly scanned in the items. "Would you like a bag?" He sighed.
Peter nodded.
He rolled his eyes, rang it up, and looked at Peter. "That'll be... $9.38." He drawled, holding out a hand.
Peter pulled out his remaining $7 from yesterday and slipped a crisp $5 note out of the white envelope he'd just received, handing it to the disinterested young man.
The cashier bagged his items, ripped the receipt from the machine and stuffed it inside before passing it to Peter. "Have a nice day... Bye." He huffed.
Peter took the plastic bag and thanked the cashier before heading out of the store.
Peter arrived back at the fire station in record time.
He emptied the bag onto the table and quickly set the hygiene products onto the counter next to the sink.
He placed the toolkit in one of the cupboards.
Peter looked outside the window, noting how it was still quite light outside. He still had a couple more hours before it went dark.
He could go fishing for parts for the Iron Spider suit, just in case. And for a clock. He could really use a clock.
And by fishing, he meant dumpster diving.
Wow, Peter blinked, you've already hit rock bottom, hobo.