The traumas of a hero
Peter thought it was stereotypical.
To think heroes walk everything off. The wormhole, killing others, being betrayed by your loved ones, you name it. But Peter never thought that heroes have traumas.
He barely registered the fact that he may have PTSD when he was bought to the hospital for his monthly checkup. When Natasha went for her monthly checkup, Peter couldn't help but think about it.
Peter thought about being left to die under the cinder blocks that help the roof that fell on him. Peter remembered calling out for help and realizing no one was going to help him unless he helped himself. Peter thought about the fire surrounding him and Adrian as they were on the beach, rushing over to save him with nothing but an almost emptied web shooter and his own body. Peter could remember steering a crashing plane from such a high altitude to get somewhere safe.
Peter could remember the claws holding him down as he groaned in pain, just waking up from an airplane crash similar to his father and Mary. If you could ask Petr where the Vulture hit him, he'd point to every designated body part as if he repeated it every day.
Peter could remember the Vulture throwing him up and down, and Peter was fighting until he hit the ground of sand. He could remember the Vulture inspecting him and deciding that he was too weak to be in the way anymore, so he just dropped him.
Point was, he could remember it. And he hated that his brain could remember every minut detail of it all.
His body stayed still, his eyes now trapped in a gaze. He couldn't move but Peter didn't feel panicked. He dealt with this before. (But Peter didn't realize how unhealthy this was). He stayed in his brain until someone was shaking him, "Pete?" He can hear his mom speak to him, "I'm going to get Doctor Cho, stay here."
In a few minutes(?), He could see Doctor Cho. Peter didn't know what she was doing, but spontaneously, she started to talk about him as if she knew him, "You are Peter Benjamin Parker. Son of Natasha Romanoff and Richard Parker," Cho spoke, "You're also Spider-Man. Currently, you're inside Medbay for a monthly checkup..."
He forgot he was in Medbay.
Suddenly, the lights were dimmed. Something was in his hand. Cho rolled his hand as if he had to squeeze it and he heard music. Soothing, nice, music.
"Squeeze the ball, Peter," Cho commands quietly.
Peter did so.
Cho noticed that he still is blanked out. So, she bent down and reiterated everything she said again, and again. She would tell him to squeeze the ball and the music would repeat. Each time the cycle repeated itself Peter was coming back. And as he did, he slowly, slowly, slowly, put his eyes on Cho. It stayed there for a few seconds, then it went to his mom who had her hands up in prayer as if the devil took Peter out of his own body and the only way to get him back was to pray the devil out of him.
But it worked.
Peter looked at himself and noticed he wasn't wearing his homemade Spider-Man suit, but regular civilian clothes. He looked at a small mirror and his face had no cuts or grime. He didn't look like Spider-Man unmasked. He looks like Peter Parker, son of Natasha Romanoff and the known nephew of May Parker.
"Let's go in shall we?" Cho asks.
Peter walked behind her.
-
After the extremely long checkup, it was done. But sadly, he had to wait a few more minutes for his brain scan to print.
While he was waiting, his mom was talking to Dr. Cho about Natasha's brain scan and the results of her checkup. She couldn't have any more babies, she was physically fit, but Dr. Cho pointed out her brain scan with not so positive results. "Romanoff, when I did mental health tests on you, you passed all but two ."
Natasha was similar to a war veteran. Fighting for others without thinking about if she'll out of come of this war. "Have you been sleeping lately?" Cho asks Natasha.
After receiving the answer, Cho nods and leaves to grab a paper and write. "I'll schedule an appointment for you." Was all Cho said before disappearing in the halls.
When she comes out with a dark paper and a white paper, Peter knew one was for him. "Peter," Cho calls, "Come over." Peter sees his mom and Cho. He walks over and she walks them to the nearest room. Cho holds up the paper and he could very much say it was his brain due to his name being on the bottom left corner.
"When I scanned Peter's brain, I asked questions related to the Ferry incident and his usual patrols," Cho starts, "And each time I did ask, there was a stress response--" Cho points to the hippocampus, "There and increased norepinephrine when I asked about the Ferry or the first time he was enclosed in a tight space."
Natasha didn't get it. Peter didn't either. For geniuses, they didn't even know what was going on in their own brains.
"I'm saying Peter has PTSD. Peter has post-traumatic stress disorder."
It was like Peter got knocked down. Peter wanted to deny the claim. Peter walked it off. Sure, he'd wake up crying about the Ferry sometimes but he was fine.
He was fine.
Was he?
As Cho gave Natasha more papers, Peter couldn't help but hide on his mom's neck as she listens to Cho.
And as they walk back, Peter glues himself to his mother and his mom didn't make any indication that she was uncomfortable.