Chapter 1
Peter layed silently in bed, brooding about the day he had just had. I’m gonna get back at them, he promised himself.
After ice cream with Tony, which Peter reluctantly went to, he hauled himself into his room and locked the door. If any of the other avengers showed up before he could get to sleep, Peter thought he would lose it.
About an hour later, he heard three efficient knocks on his door.
“Go away,” Peter said, not in the mood for anyone.
“Open up, Peter. Please? For me?” he heard Peppers voice through the fiberglass door.
Peter reflexively sat up straight. Maybe anyone didn’t include Pepper. Peter got up to open the door.
“Hey,” Pepper said softly. “Can I come in?”
Peter gestured her inside the room. He closed the door and they both sat down on the bed.
“Nice pajamas,” Pepper smiled. Peter looked down. He forgot he had been wearing his deadpool pajamas; he saves them for special occasions when he’s sad.
“So what’s going on?” Pepper started. “Tony says you didn’t like the ice cream.”
“Just wasn’t in the mood.”
“Come on, Peter. Don’t lie to me.”
Peter looked down. He hated lying to Pepper; she had always been so kind and welcoming. When Aunt May was first in the hospital, it had been her idea that he move in. “Today was kind of a disaster. It was my field trip,” Peter waited until Pepper nodded in confirmation that she knew, “and I was sorta thoroughly embarrassed. I mean, I’m not embarrassed by any of you guys; you’re my family. But I just wanted a normal field trip. I didn’t need all of the avengers to make an appearance.”
Pepper nodded in understanding. “Listen, Peter. I know everyone can be a lot sometimes,” Peter raised an eyebrow, “okay, a lot of times. But they only mean the best, and if they knew you would have been embarrassed like that, they wouldn’t have done it.” Peter raised another skeptical eyebrow. Pepper let out a deep sigh and looked at Peter directly in his eyes.
“They knew about Flash before, didn’t they?”
Pepper let out a sigh and nodded. “Natasha figured it out.” She saw Peter’s questioning face and explained. “You came home one day with a bruise on your arm. Before you could cover it up, she noticed. Later that night, she hacked into the school’s security to find out what happened. She saw a fight between you and that Eugine kid, Peter, and figured it wasn’t an isolated incident. After that, she told everyone, and they’ve been waiting for an excuse to jump him ever since. Why didn’t you ever tell any of us?”
“Because Flash would have been scared away, and then he would have just bullied another kid who couldn’t handle it. I was fine with a few punches or teases from Flash; other kids may not be.” Peter said while fidgeting with his blanket. “Besides, I knew if I told someone, they would do something drastic… like what they did today.”
“You’re a good kid, Peter. Don’t ever change. But if someone is hurting you, you have to tell us.”
“But people hurt me all the time! I’m a superhero, fighting bullies is what I do. Flash is the least of my worries. I can handle him.”
“That’s a different type of bully in a different situation. All those guys- Doc Ock, the Vulture, Sandman- they were fighting Spider-man. But no one, Peter, and I want you to remember this, no one should ever hurt Peter Parker. If there’s ever a problem, I need you to come to me, okay? Promise me that, Peter.”
Peter didn’t know what to say, so he just nodded. Pepper accepted it, kissed him on the forehead, and, after wishing him a goodnight, walked out.
Peter fell back on his bed and stared up at the ceiling. Just when Peter’s eyes were about to give in and he was going to fall asleep, his phone buzzed.
He rolled over to his nightstand and looked at the bright screen.
It read:
Shuri: Hey I heard what happened today
How do you feel about some revenge?
Peter stared down at his phone. He had just talked it out with Pepper, and now would feel kind of bad doing anything against the avengers.
On the other hand…
Peter: what did you have in mind?