He was running. Well, it would be more accurate to say that Miles was swinging away from his pursuers, but in the case that you are Spider-Man running and swinging tend to correspond very heavily. Personally, Miles would never recommend getting chased by a billion of your counterparts in a world you didn’t know, hoping and praying that you wouldn’t glitch long enough that someone would be able to catch up.
Thankfully he seemed to have made some progress away from the other Spider-People, even taking a couple of them out on the way. Maybe if he wasn't convinced that the world would come crashing down on him if he stopped he could have taken a breather. But if the universe had taught him anything, it was that bad things tended to happen to Miles Morales. Which meant that he didn’t get a break.
Miles looked behind him, relieved to see a distinct lack of Spider-People. Maybe the sharp turn had actually worked to lure some of them in the wrong direction. Well, that’s what he thought until his spidey-sense blared. His brain didn’t react fast enough that he would be able to move and avoid it, so a web stuck to his chest. Before he had a chance to really think about anything the web sharply pulled him back into a crevice between the shadows.
Acting out of pure instinct Miles channeled his venom through his fingers and moved to try and shock his attacker. The Spider-Man in the corner side stepped, narrowly avoiding the venom attack. “If you keep that up they’re gonna see you!” The other Spider-Man warned, moving backwards to the opposite end of the crevice. Probably in an attempt to look less threatening.
“Is there some kind of internal bounty for whoever catches me? I don’t want some random creepy guy in the corner to bring me in. If I wanted someone to bring me in I would have Gwen do it for Pete’s sake!” Miles exclaimed, gesturing wildly with his hands as he started to back up to try and escape again. He was tense, ready to move the second his spidey-sense blared again.
“No! I mean,” The Spider-Man lowered his voice, “no. I’m not gonna catch you. If you keep this up someone else will though. Although the thousands of webs may muffle you a bit, some of those guys have crazy enhanced hearing.” The Spider-Man took off his mask, curling it between his fingers. “You need to trust me for two seconds.”
Miles bit his tongue, observing the person in front of him. He had absolutely seen this Spider-Man when he walked in. The huge white spider on his chest and other white accents were a dead giveaway for anyone wanting to identify him. He was a brunette, with short hair slightly messy from being trapped under the mask. This guy was probably around Peter B’s age. No, younger than that. “Why should I trust you?”
He tried to keep his voice tense, as if it was a rhetorical question. That he shouldn’t trust this guy. Though Miles cringed after it left his mouth, aware that he had allowed way too much vulnerability into that statement. “Because there’s a Miles in my universe. I’m Peter from Earth-1048. Together Miles and I are Spider-Men together, and I can’t let someone who resembles him so much be put in the position you’re in.”
He hesitated. On one hand, this Peter seemed to be telling the truth. On the other hand, Miles had been lied to enough times in the past couple of hours. Though something told him to trust Peter for a little bit. “Okay…” He said uneasily. “Wait, you and Miles are both alive in your universe.”
“We’re..?” Miles could see the gears turning in Peter’s head. “Oh. Yeah, we’re both alive. A couple close calls,” he joked a bit, “but we’re still here.” The joke really had not eased the tension at all. “Sorry, I tend to make bad jokes in tense situations.”
“It’s okay.” Miles let down his guard a little, breathing in deeply, finally letting himself catch his breath. “Uh, tell me about your universe a little?”
Peter nodded, thinking for a second. “Well, I’m dating MJ. Aunt May… passed away a little while ago, but we’re moving on past it. I went with MJ to help take photos for her news article on a foreign country a little bit ago. That was when Miles got his first bit of solo experience. Though I was on call when he needed it, even if he called me a little less than he probably should’ve.”
Miles let out a dry chuckle. “Tell me a bit more about your Miles. Did he also lose his Uncle?”
“No, uh,” Peter scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “He lost his dad. Jefferson Davis. He was a good cop and I had just started working alongside him when he passed away. There was a bombing at city hall when he was supposed to get an award for some of the amazing stuff he did. His uncle isn’t much better though. I wasn’t there when it happened, but he tried to kidnap Miles to prevent him from being Spider-Man.”
“Oh!” The eyes on Miles’s mask widened with shock. “Seems like you guys can’t seem to catch a break in your universe.”
“Seems like you can’t seem to catch a break in any universe.” Peter countered.
“I guess so.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” He asked. Miles paused, weighing his options. It didn’t seem like he had anything to lose here. This was some random Peter that he would probably never see again. Might as well vent his feelings out to someone because clearly he couldn’t trust his friends with that, and if he told his parents they would never understand. This Peter would at least listen.
“Sure.” Miles relaxed against the wall, sitting on the floor, a move that Peter copied. “I just- Everything I do seems to disappoint everyone around me. First it was just my parents with my performance in school. Then Spider-Man made me start to miss stuff with them. After this I feel like I’m disappointing my friends now. Miguel is after me because I’m an anomaly. I just wish everything would go back to before. Before I was Spider-Man. Before all my friends betrayed me. Before I felt so incredibly alone.”
“Miles, I-” Peter started. “You are so much like my Miles. I think both you and him would get along very well. Maybe once all of this is over you two can meet up sometime.” He mused. “Listen, Miles. You’re not alone. Even if you may think you are, you'll always have someone in your life who’ll be there. Right now that happens to be me. Hiding in a little corner away from the Spider-People trying to catch you. And probably interrogate me once they find out I helped you.”
“I guarantee you that those friends of yours want to talk to you, even if it may not seem like it.”
Miles groaned. “I don’t think you understand. I’ve been alone in my universe for over a year since we last saw each other. While they’ve all been here with their fancy watches and ability to travel to different dimensions I’ve been alone. I’ve been figuring it out. Not a single one of them came back to see me when they could’ve this whole time! And Gwen’s hanging out with this other guy, and Peter, not you, has a kid now. Why am I the only one who’s still so stuck on us!?”
Peter watched as the younger spider curled in on himself, pulling off his mask. At this point Peter could see tear tracks running down his face. He had probably pulled the mask off to prevent them from getting all over it, and if he was a snotty crier then it could prevent snot from getting on the inside as well. Unfortunately he had fallen victim to forgetting to remove his mask a few too many times.
Carefully he moved forwards towards Miles, reaching out his hand and very slowly lowering it onto Miles’s shoulders. At first he flinched away, but moments later Peter found him sticking to his side. “I missed them so much, man. Why didn’t they come visit me?”
The older spider moved his arm to reach around Miles’s shoulders and gently rub circles into his arm to help calm him down. “I don’t know. I wish I could tell you, but I don’t know. I don’t spend a lot of time here. I’ve got a city to protect and a Miles to take care of. So I’ve probably said hi to them once or twice at most.”
“But you now-“ Peter was cut off by a short blare of their spidey-senses before both of them glitched. Sparks of all different colors erupted around them before they settled back down, both breathing heavily. “Wow, I forgot how much that sucks.”
Miles was staring up at him in shock. “You glitched too?”
Peter nodded. “LYLA is in the watches, monitoring stuff. Mostly why I leave it off in my own dimension, especially since Miles doesn’t need access to this stuff.” He stretched out his limbs, trying to shake off the rest of the effects. “I figured that if I wanted a chance to talk to you without being interrupted the watch would need to be left behind. It’s webbed up a little bit away, and I’ll grab it once we’re done.”
He nodded, “That makes sense. Thanks for that, I guess.” Miles retreated back into himself for a minute. “Thanks for this. I needed a break from all that.” The end of the sentence was punctuated by a vague gesture in the direction that Miles had originally come from.
“Of course. You Miles’s tend to land yourselves in more trouble than you know what to deal with.” Peter’s face took on a fond look, clearly thinking of his own Miles. “You’ve got people in your corner though. Remember that. Stand up for what you believe in. Even if I’m not directly with you, just know me and my Miles are cheering for you. Maybe you’ll even be able to come find us when this is all over. Earth-1048, if anyone asks who you are, just say you’re with me.”
Miles smiled softly. “Thanks, man. I appreciate the support. Now go get your watch before you glitch again.”
Peter nodded. “Stay safe.”
“You too.”
With that the Spider-Men split up. Miles had a dad to save.