request by stale_potatochip (Wattpad)
TW/CW: coming out, kissing
Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel.
3rd Person P.O.V.
Peter sighed, staring up at the ceiling. He felt stuck. Physically, he was fine, there was nothing keeping him in bed. But mentally? Peter just had a lot on their mind.
She had a secret, one that they wanted to share with his closest friends and family. One he especially wanted to share with Harley, their boyfriend.
Peter was genderfluid. And she went by any pronouns.
But nobody knew, so they never heard anything except for he/him used to refer to her. It was frustrating, even though Peter liked he/him pronouns, they would appreciate being called something else every once in a while.
Being genderfluid was difficult, considering his identity changed from time to time. Sometimes, Peter felt like a boy, and he didn't mind the constant usage of he/him pronouns. But other times, she felt like a girl, or they felt like neither- or maybe both- and got frustrated by the barrage of incorrect pronouns.
But it was time to change all that. Or, at least some of it. Hopefully.
Peter's boyfriend was coming over today. Harley had never been a mean or ignorant person, and that made him a good candidate for the first person Peter would tell. Harley was their everything, and she was Harley's world. It couldn't be that hard, right?
Or... maybe it's a little bit more difficult than expected. How do you even bring it up? How do you explain it, if they don't know? How do you reassure them that you're still the same person, because pronouns are only a small part of who you are as a whole?
How? How how how?
"Peter? You in here?" A gentle southern accent rung out against Peter's eardrums, letting them know that Harley was here. She took a deep breath, nodding to himself in reassurance.
"Yeah, come on in." Harley came in, leaving the door cracked to abide by Tony's rules.
"Hey. You feelin' alright, darlin'?" Harley pressed the back of his hand to Peter's forehead, searching for a temperature.
"I'm not sick, Harls," he mumbled. Harley didn't pull his hand away, instead sitting on the bed and running his hand through Peter's hair comfortingly.
"Alright, but something's bothering you. Talk to me." Peter sighed, turning his head slightly so she was looking up at Harley.
"I... I wanted to talk to you, about something... something that's really important to me..." they murmured, glancing away.
"You know you can tell me anything, right? What's on your mind?" Peter took a deep breath, squeezing his eyes shut.
"I'm genderfluid!" Harley was silent for a moment, before nodding slowly.
"Okay... so what pronouns do you want to use?" Peter's heart did a flip. Harley truly was the perfect boyfriend.
"Any are fine, but sometimes I'd rather have certain pronouns over others... if that makes sense?" Harley nodded encouragingly.
"It makes sense, darlin'. Just tell me everything I need to know." Peter smiled, quietly explaining their feelings on the matter. Harley sat and listened to his partner, nodding attentively.
"I'm so proud of you for telling me, I love you," Harley praised softly, kissing Peter's forehead. "Does anyone else know yet?"
"No. Just you." Harley nodded, humming.
"Okay." They laid together for a little while, cuddling into each other contently. Well, until it came time for Harley to go home.
"Can't you just stay over? Please?" Peter begged, clinging onto his boyfriend. Harley sighed, running his fingers through Peter's soft brown curls.
"I can't, I promised my mom that I'd be home for dinner tonight," he shrugged. "But I can come back tomorrow. Okay, darlin'?" Peter sighed, nodding.
"Okay."
~
The next day, Harley got to Stark Tower, as promised. In his hand, he held a box, big enough to be seen by passersby, but small enough to be held in one hand. He took the elevator up, going to visit his partner.
Peter was in her room still, same as yesterday. They looked deep in thought when Harley arrived, carding his fingers through the brunette's hair.
"Hey."
"Hey," Peter mumbled. Harley pulled the box forward, setting it on Peter's lap.
"I brought you something. I think you might like it." Peter tilted his head, a soft smile gracing her lips. Carefully, they opened the box, revealing three bracelets.
"I thought maybe this could be an easier way to know which pronouns you prefer. So you can change it easily, y'know?" Peter nodded, picking up a purple bracelet.
"Harls..." They put on the purple bracelet, grinning happily. "Thank you, thank you so much!" With a short, joyful laugh, Peter hugged their boyfriend, hands gripping the fabric of Harley's shirt. "Oh my god, you're so sweet..."
"Anything for you, my love." Harley tilted Peter's chin up, kissing their lips gently. It wasn't a lustful kiss, but rather one of love and appreciation. When they broke apart, Peter fidgeted with Harley's knuckles, sighing.
"I want to tell them."
"Your family?" Harley asked, clarifying. Peter nodded.
"Yeah. I just want to get it over with. The sooner, the better," they insisted. Harley nodded.
"Do you want me to be there?"
"Yeah. Do you think you could stay over tonight? Maybe I could do it before everyone goes to sleep." Peter was incredibly nervous, and it showed. Harley took his partner's hands, smiling comfortingly.
"It'll be okay. I'll be there the whole time, and your family has been pretty accepting of us, so why not this as well?" Harley pointed out. Peter just shrugged, sighing. They slumped against Harley's chest, listening to the blond's quiet humming.
Time always seemed to pass quickly when Peter and Harley were together, and before they knew it, it was nearly 10 pm. Peter knew some of the Avengers went to bed at this time, so they took a deep breath and walked down the hallway, Harley in tow.
"Ready?" Harley whispered as they approached the common room.
"As ready as I'll ever be." Peter stepped past the doorway, Harley close behind. Tony looked up at the pair, wondering what they wanted at this time.
"Hey, I wanted to talk to all of you about something..." Peter's nervousness was obvious, and it caught the attention of their family.
"Yeah? What's up, Pete?" Tony wondered, taking a seat next to Cap.
"Well, I uh-" Harley put a hand on Peter's shoulder, encouraging them. "I wanted to tell you all that... I'm..." They were struggling with saying it, hands shaking with anxiety. Peter balled their hands into fists, taking a deep breath. "I'm genderfluid." They were met with silence, a bunch of confused Avengers in front of them. Nat was the first one to stand up and say something.
"Congratulations, маленький паук," she smiled, nodding reassuringly in Peter's direction. The brunette felt some of their stress wash away, but there was still the remainder of the room.
"Uh..." Cap looked at Tony, both of them looking completely lost.
"What does that mean, kid?"
"Oh, um... it- it means that my, um, my gender, it changes...? Like... um... sometimes I feel like a boy, but sometimes I don't?" Peter bit their lip nervously, stuttering through the explanation. "Like... I could feel like- like a girl, maybe, or sometimes I'm neither..." Peter looked to Harley, looking a little pink in the face.
"Their pronouns change. Like right now, Peter is wearing this purple bracelet, see?" Harley held up Peter's arm, showing them the bracelet. "The bracelets show what their preferred pronouns are at the moment."
"Yeah!" Peter was feeling a bit better, beyond thankful he didn't have to do this alone. "The purple means they/them pronouns." It was starting to make sense to the other people in the room, based off the nods and slightly less confused expressions. "I have two more bracelets, a red one for she/her pronouns, and a blue one for he/him pronouns," they stated, much more confidently this time.
"What'd you call it again?" Peter smiled, feeling much more at ease now that they had a decent reaction.
"Genderfluid. My gender and pronouns can change."
"That's kinda cool," Clint remarked, shrugging.
"Thanks for telling us, Pete." Tony smiled fondly, getting up to ruffle his kid's hair.
"Thanks, Dad," Peter murmured, hugging Tony. The billionaire pulled Harley into the hug as well. "And you, thanks for being there for h- for them."
"Always." They all pulled away from the hug, Peter leaning into Harley with relief.
"Alright, I'm heading to the lab. See you in the morning, and Harley- I assume you're staying over?" Tony asked. Harley nodded, smiling. "Mhm. Just keep that door open, okay?"
"Dad!" Peter groaned, hiding their face in their hands.
"Yeah, we will," Harley answered, chuckling. Peter and Harley went back to Peter's room, leaving the door open a crack. Peter sat on the bed, humming for a moment before putting the blue bracelet on in addition to the purple one that already hung on his wrist.
"Why does he need to say it every time?" Peter grumbled, sighing.
"Well, darlin', let's be honest- the day he forgets to say it is the day we close the door," Harley pointed out, smirking. Peter blushed, shaking his head.
"Oh my god, shut up and just get in bed!"