Peter III
The stairwell smelled vaguely like subway tunnels and cheap paint. Peter wrinkled his nose. Before he was Spider-Man, he never would’ve suspected that cheap paint had its own unpleasant chemical smell. The subway smell never bothered him, though, before or after the spider bite. Something in the underlying scent told him he was home. Peter could never leave New York City now. The thought of adjusting to a new set of odors nearly sent him into a panic.
Suddenly, he found himself in front of the right apartment. Before Peter could raise his hand to knock, the door flew open.
“Are you okay?” Apparently Matt asked. Red glasses, white stick, head cocked as though he was listening. Peter nodded and felt like an idiot for a full eight seconds before speaking.
“Um, yeah, sorry,” he stammered. “I..nodded.”
“Happens all the time. Matt,” he said, sticking out his hand. Matt’s handshake was stronger than he would’ve expected. Peter would swear on his life that Matt knew he was thinking that, and that he knew Peter noticed him noticing. Peter was unsettled.
But his spidey sense was totally asleep. Maybe it was broken? Peter decided it was easier to just believe Matt was safe-ish. As Foggy pointed out, Peter could throw a car. He could definitely take this guy, not that he expected it to come to that.
Matt invited him in, and Peter wandered around the open space of the apartment while Matt made tea. Now that he was indoors, Peter felt restless. He was a different kind of trapped now. There were people helping him, and he had to keep them safe after this mess was cleared up, if it ever was.
“Thank you for this,” Peter said quietly as he sipped his tea. The warmth seeped into his bones and felt nice, in spite of the hot day outside. Peter had always run cold, but it was worse since the spider bite.
“You’re welcome, but it’s not an imposition,” Matt answered. “Anything I can do to help.”
Peter was a little unsettled that Matt seemed to sense he felt guilty, but he brushed it aside. Maybe he was just good at reading people.
“How do you know Foggy?” Peter asked, hoping he could lead Matt into small talk and avoid another anxiety-inducing serious conversation. Peter was pretty sure he was close to his limit on those today.
“We were roommates in law school.” A lawyer. Well that explained the uncanny people-reading ability. Matt continued, “Law partners for a while, but I didn’t really go back to it after the blip. Five years of case law to catch up on didn’t seem too appealing.”
“I was gone, too,” said Peter. “Coming back was weird.” Matt nodded in agreement.
“Almost everyone I knew was gone,” he said. “My entire law school class, except for Foggy.” Matt sighed sadly. “He’s...not the same. He lost everyone. I never thought I’d be glad that anyone I knew found themselves with Wade, but I’m not sure if Foggy would be here if it wasn’t for him.” Peter was about to ask why Matt objected to Wade, but Matt spoke first.
“Well, you probably want to get cleaned up and get some sleep. I’ll find some clothes for you while you shower,” he said as he headed toward what Peter assumed was the bedroom. “Foggy said you ate, but let me know if you need anything else.”
Matt set Peter up with everything he needed and added, “Foggy said it’s fine to turn on your phone, assuming you have location services disabled.” Peter nodded and his heart skipped a beat. Being disconnected from his people was hard. He was a teenager. He lived through his phone.
“No contact yet, but you can read your texts. There’s a few chargers under the sink,” Matt hesitated before adding, “You’ve been through a lot. Don’t make it harder on yourself. Avoid The Bugle at least.”
Peter could do that. Peter was, in fact, going to shower while his phone charged and google the fuck out of Foggy Nelson. The warm water didn’t do much to soothe the anxiety running through him, especially with the background noise of his constantly buzzing phone. Peter took a deep breath, turned off the water and checked his phone.
MJ, Ned and May, in order of least to most panicked. Pepper, Happy, FRIDAY (Peter didn’t even know she could text), literally everyone on the AcaDec Team and lots of numbers that weren’t in his phone. He ignored all of those. He read May’s texts and maybe cried a little. Pepper’s texts comforted him, asserting that she’d take care of it, but were short and light on details. Peter forced himself to leave the rest of his messages alone for his own mental health, and he resisted the temptation of Spider-Man news by looking up Foggy and Matt.
He fell into a lengthy article about the Punisher trial before he googled Wade on a whim and nearly dropped his phone.
Deadpool. Wade Wilson was fucking Deadpool. He killed people for money. He enjoyed killing people for money. Not long after he found out about Spider-Man, Ned had pulled up a video of Deadpool menacing a guy with a katana. Specifically, Deadpool left behind the need for stitches scattered throughout a ten minute monologue about consent. The part of Peter’s brain that wanted to cuddle up to Wade helpfully noted that he was menacing a guy who stalked middle school girls, as though this made up for the fact Wade’s hobbies included inventing creative methods of decapitation. Some sensible part of Peter’s brain reminded him that Ned pulled up the video to beg Peter to run in the opposite direction if Spider-Man ever encountered Deadpool.
Thirty seconds of deliberation, and Peter decided to trust the spidey sense on Wade. If Tony has bothered to survive, he would kill Peter, but he was fucking dead so Peter was doing what he had to and if that meant help from Deadpool, then that was how it was going to go. It’s not like the fucking Avengers were here to offer him well, anything.
A sudden knock on the bathroom door startled him.
“Peter?” Matt questioned. Peter looked at the time on his phone. He had been hunkered down on the bathroom floor for a while. He quickly pulled on the clean sweatpants and shirt Matt had left for him and opened the door.
“Just, uh, got carried away,” Peter said, running his hand through his wet hair. Matt nodded.
“Why don’t you try to sleep for a while? Foggy should be here by dinner, and we can figure out what you want to do from here.”
“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea,” Peter said. Matt set Peter up in his bed, over Peter’s objections that faded when he sank into the satin sheets.
“Oh my god, these are amazing,” Peter said into the pillow, embarrassed that he was figuratively drooling over this complete stranger’s sheets. Matt laughed lightly.
A loud crash in the distance jarred Peter from his bed worship, but his heartbeat slowed at the realization that it was probably just the new guy on dumpster duty today. Matt’s head was cocked in the direction of the noise, like he was listening, too. Peter sat up suddenly and blinked in disbelief. Matt looked straight at him, which he shouldn’t have been able to do.
“Oh my god,” Peter whispered. So many things fell into place. “Oh my god,” he repeated. Matt’s expression remained carefully neutral.
Peter had a thousand questions, but what came out was a weak, “That explains the high thread count.”
Matt laughed, a genuine chuckle that Peter would never have expected from Daredevil. He sat down on the edge of the bed, and Peter belatedly realized that he’d stopped using the cane after Peter had come out of the shower. He wasn’t hiding his identity at all.
“You knew I would figure it out, sooner or later,” Peter said. Matt nodded.
“I didn’t know how perceptive your senses were, but it seemed like just a matter of time. And also a fair exchange, Peter Parker.” Peter nodded, since Matt could apparently notice that.
“Would the suit make any difference to you being able to tell who I am?” Peter was curious. Matt shook his head.
“No, it smells like you but just more mechanical. And I’ll be honest that it makes a shit ton of noise, like you have thirty phones. You would never be able to sneak up on a ninja.”
“I need all those phones for TikTok,” Peter quipped. Matt smirked.
“I wish I could say I’m too old to know what that is, but Wade’s daughter is on it constantly.” Matt eyed Peter curiously when he flinched at the mention of Wade.
“I have mixed feelings about Wade,” Peter admitted. Not really, you don’t, his brain whispered.
“It’s fine to compartmentalize after trauma.” Peter raised his eyebrows. Where was Matt going with this? “You have a lot to work through,” he continued. “You have to prioritize or you’ll never get anywhere. Wade is safe, to you at least. Focus on what’s sending you into panic attacks. You can figure out where Spider-Man stands with Deadpool later.”
Peter started on more Daredevil questions, but Matt interrupted. “Go to sleep, Peter. I’ll wake you if anything important happens.” Peter had been sinking deeper into the sheets as they’d been talking, and his eyes were half closed already. He hummed in agreement and didn’t realize he’d been asleep until he heard quiet voices from the other room. The light in Matt’s room had faded, so it was probably early evening. Peter had been asleep for hours. He considered getting up, but the whispers from living room were getting heated, keeping him where he was.
“I’ve registered my objections and it seems like you don’t care enough to listen.” Matt, angry.
“This is his best option, Matt. If we give Tower this, he’ll bend when it counts. We have to get the kid home.” Foggy, pleading.
“I hate it. And also, no. No one is turning in the spider baby. Once he’s in there, we lose control, even if you think the DA will let us bail him right out.” Wade, calm. But with a current of danger underneath that ran straight up Peter’s spine. Before Peter’s still groggy mind could form a coherent thought, the hushed conversation in the living room was interrupted by several phones buzzing.
“Fuck,” said Foggy. “Matt, get the kid up.”
Peter was already sitting on the edge of the bed when Matt opened the door. “Grab your phone.” It didn’t take Peter long to pull up the live video, his phone displaying Pepper Potts, impeccably dressed in a blue pantsuit, in what he recognized as the Stark Industries lobby. She was in front of a monitor with a video of a Spider-Man playing behind her.
“Pepper Potts reveals new Spider-Man footage” scrolled across the bottom of his screen. Peter swallowed nervously, joining the others in the living room without taking his eyes off the phone. A quick glance revealed Foggy and Wade glued to their phones as well, with Matt listening intently.
Pepper explained in a cool tone that Quentin Beck was a disgruntled former Stark Industries employee who went after Spider-Man in an attempt to harm Tony Stark’s legacy. She showed the real footage from when Peter confronted Beck. Peter closed his eyes. He had to listen, to know what Pepper was saying, but he couldn’t watch. Wade wrapped his arm around Peter’s shoulder, and Peter had never been more grateful. He pressed himself into Wade’s side, earning himself a fond squeeze. This close to Wade, and Peter barely thought of Deadpool. But the knowledge was still there, tugging uncomfortably at his heart.
Pepper ended her talk with, “Before I take questions from the media, I would ask you to respect Peter Parker’s privacy during what is a very stressful time for him." She was playing it as though he knew where he was. Guilt washed over Peter. He felt like such an asshole.
Of course, the first question was basically, "But why Peter Parker?" He only thought Pepper was icy talking about Beck.
“It is easily accessible information that Mr. Parker is a Stark Industries intern, making him an easy target for baseless rumor mongering.” If looks could kill, Pepper would put every reporter in New York in the ground.
“She’s so scary. I think I’m in love,” whispered Wade. Peter snorted, earning him a cheeky grin from Wade. Foggy and Matt, intensely focused, ignored them.
“But why him?” a blond reporter pressed Pepper. She looked vaguely familiar to Peter. “Dozens of Stark interns, and the one implicated has been in the same place as Spider-Man more than a few times. Quite a coincidence, Ms. Potts.” She looked smug, and Pepper faltered. Peter felt sick. This was it. He hadn’t been careful enough, and nothing could fix this. Wade squeezed him reassuringly. Peter would die without him, he’s nearly sure.
Pepper hesitated again and looked off to the side, toward someone not visible on camera, before she spoke.
“Mr. Parker worked with Tony directly on Spider-Man’s suit, and has continued to work with the various Spider-Man suits since the blip,” Pepper explained. The low murmur of the crowd increased. A few surprised gasps were audible, even through the tinny phone speakers. Pepper raised her voice. “Being that Mr. Parker is a minor and Spider-Man is a somewhat contentious public figure, we had hoped to keep that information close, but-“ she gestured helplessly, the implication that they were all vultures heavy in the air.
Peter inhaled shakily, some of his anxiety subsiding. What had he ever done to deserve Pepper?
“That was - wow,” said Matt. Peter nodded in agreement, and Matt continued. “I’m a pretty good lie detector, due to my hearing being able to pick up heartbeats.”
“So, so creepy,” Wade leaned down and muttered to Peter. Matt threw a perturbed look in their direction but went on.
“That was - it was total bullshit!” Matt exclaimed. “She completely played them from ‘don’t ask about Peter.’ All that stuff about not taking about how Peter worked on the suit - she absolutely planned it.”
“And it’s not technically a lie,” said Peter.
“The best way to bend the truth,” Matt agreed. “She would make a killer lawyer.” He looked pleased, and they all looked over at Foggy, who had planted himself at Matt’s kitchen table and was furiously taking notes on a legal pad. He looked over at Peter and stood up, stretching.
“You’re so not turning yourself in,” Foggy said, as though that was Peter’s idea in the first place. “I’ll take care of it with the D.A., figure out how pissed he is at me.” Peter could already tell that Foggy liked pissing people off if he thought he was right. Peter could live with that.
“No Ellie tonight?” Matt asked Wade. Well, things were definitely looking up if Matt was willing to discuss something other than Peter’s hot mess life. Wade was slightly tense beside him. Peter gave him a questioning glance, but Wade pretended not to notice.
“Nah, with her mom,” he said to Matt. “She wants 50/50, but we’re working up to it.” Matt appeared skeptical.
“And how’s that going?” he asked sincerely.
“Eh, a little better. I have explained, over and over, that Ellie can’t blame her mom for disappearing, but what are you gonna do?” Wade shrugged and looked down at Peter.
“You know how violating that is,” Foggy suddenly spat. Peter was startled by the venom in his voice. Matt, laser focused on Foggy, answered.
“I can’t help it,” he said calmly.
“Tune. It. Out.” The look on Foggy’s face was murderous.
“You know that’s not how it works,” Matt went from zero to agitated in a moment. He bounced lightly on the balls of his feet like he was itching for a fight. Wade caught Peter's gaze and shook his head minutely. Just riding this out then. Peter had experienced enough Avengers personal conflict to know when it was time to shut up.
“You can hear dozens of heartbeats right now, so make it background noise!” Foggy said loudly, storming over to Matt and getting in his face.
“You have never been background noise!” Matt burst out, fists clenched at his side. He matched Foggy’s fast breathing, and Foggy narrowed his eyes angrily. The room was tense. No one moved for a full ten seconds, until Foggy turned away and walked to the window. He faced away from everyone, gripping the window sill, and took a deep breath. Matt stood with his eyes closed, his breath still mirroring Foggy’s.
Peter mused silently that it was a great injustice teenagers were considered the moody ones in a world that had superheroes. And lawyers.
“Well, I’m going to take this spider baby home unless anyone has any objections,” Wade said abruptly, steering Peter toward the door. Peter grabbed a backpack on his way out, borrowed from Matt to hide the suit.
“Thank you both, for everything. I don’t know what I would’ve done without you,” Peter said earnestly. Matt and Foggy managed to stop glowering at each other long enough to look touched. Foggy promised to call Peter the next day to tie up loose ends, and Peter headed home at last.