Car Crash
`”I’m just saying- how do you not want to go and get ice cream?”
“And I am just saying, the Pizza, the Fries, the Chips, and everything else we just ate was enough. Ned, stop giving me that look.”
“I just can’t believe that you are refusing more food. Doesn’t your metabolism make you want to eat all the time?”
“Not all the time and I can still get full Ned.”
The look Ned gave Peter made him sigh. The two of them and MJ were at Ned’s house after finals had finally finished and they were celebrating finishing their junior year of high school. Ned’s parents had gone out to give them the house to themselves and they had been celebrating by eating as much food as they could, and watching as many movies as they could. MJ had been less interested in the movies than the two boys.
“Please can we go get ice cream?” Ned pleaded and Peter sighed again. He was uncomfortably full but he didn’t want to disappoint his best friend when he hadn’t spent all that much time with him as of late.
“MJ?” Peter asked the girl.
“I’m the only one with a car here and that can drive so you wouldn’t be able to go without me.” MJ replied. “So yes.”
“YES!” Ned whooped as he stood up, looking around the room for his jacket. It was May but it was a rainy, colder day in May so warmer clothes were needed. Ned threw Peter’s hoodie at him as both Peter and MJ stood up to leave the house. As they left, Ned made sure to lock the door and the three hurried through the downpour to MJ’s car.
Once they piled inside, Peter in the passenger seat and Ned in the back, MJ blasted the heat.
“Oh crap. I forgot my phone.” Peter said, after feeling around in his pockets for the device.
“We’ll only be gone a few moments. It’s fine.” Ned assured him as MJ pulled out of the driveway and headed onto the main road. The closest ice cream place was about 10 miles down the road, and Peter nodded. He had been texting Tony before Ned began pleading for ice cream, but he could wait a few moments until they got back.
They were a few miles from the ice cream store when Peter’s neck suddenly flared up and he gasped. A glance up saw the headlights of a car headed straight for them, and Peter didn’t even have time to think. He unbuckled his seatbelt and threw himself over MJ, trying to protect her as the car slammed into the drivers’ side door.
It was a jumble of pain and glass after that. Peter kept his arms wrapped around MJ as the car spun and then flipped. He could hear both MJ and Ned calling out as they were all flung around in the car. Something hard smacked into the back of Peter’s head and he felt his grip on MJ release as he flew backwards, already blacking out.
-
He came to again to the sounds of MJ and Ned calling his name. His head pounded and he could feel wetness running down both his face and the back of his neck. A hand moved his head and touched the back of his head and he involuntarily flinched.
“Peter? Are you awake? Open your eyes dude!” Ned sounded upset and Peter wanted to respond. He tried to force his eyes open, only managing to squint a little. He could tell that he was back in the passenger seat with his head on the middle console. Ned and MJ were both leaning over him, concern in their eyes. MJ had a cut above one eye that was bleeding and Peter couldn’t get a good look at Ned.
His eyes felt heavy and Peter closed them again, ignoring Ned and MJ’s calls. He could vaguely hear them talking above him, his normally sharp senses dulled by the pain in his head. The darkness was calling to him again, and as he went towards it, he felt the watch on his wrist vibrate.
-
He came back to a new hand touching his head, this one felt rougher than the previous one as it ran down his face. He could hear sirens and even beneath his closed eyes, the lights flashing. He forced his eyes to open slightly and then yanked them shut when the lights made his head throb.
He groaned involuntarily and the hand paused its movement.
“Peter?” That was Tony, Peter realized. “Kid, can you open your eyes?”
Peter wanted to tell him no, but he couldn’t get his mouth to move properly or his thoughts to connect together, so he tried to force his eyes open again. When he managed to get them open, he could see that he was out of the car and lying on the ground but everything was blurry. The man was kneeling next to him, and through the blurriness, Peter could see that he looked relieved to see Peter’s eyes open.
“Hey kid. How are you feeling?”
Peter just groaned in response.
“Yeah I know, you got knocked about quite a bit. Does anywhere hurt besides your head?”
Peter knew Tony needed an answer so he worked to get his mouth moving again. It took a few moments and the man patiently waited for Peter to sort himself out.
“No.” Peter managed to get out and Tony nodded, looking at someone over Peter’s head.
Another hand touched Peter’s arm and he flinched, completely unaware of that persons’ presence before then. His senses were completely dulled by the amount of pain his head was currently radiating. The flinch made his head throb again and he groaned again. The hand that his mentor had been rubbing down his face started up again. It felt nice and Peter felt himself leaning into it hoping for some relief from his aching and throbbing head. He closed his eyes again as the warmth from the hand flooded into the side of his face.
“Hey Peter.” A new voice called out and Peter moved his eyes to see both Bruce and Steve kneeling on his other side.
“We had to move you away from the car as gas was leaking, but do you feel any pain in your neck or your back?” Bruce asked. Peter looked away from Bruce over to where the car was. It was laying upside down and there was glass everywhere. Firefighters are hovering around it and when Peter tried to hone in, he could smell the aforementioned gas.
“Peter?” Bruce asked again, slightly nudging Peter to get his attention.
Peter shook his head slightly, his eyes flitting back to the scientist who was still a blur in his eyes.
“Can you move your hands and feet?” Bruce asked.
Peter fought to get his body moving, the three men watching as he clenched his fists and then made his feet move. Bruce nodded, seeming satisfied as he moved away from Peter slightly.
“Peter, we need to get you back to the Tower. Steve is going to pick you up to get you to the car but let him know if you feel any pain okay?”
Peter nodded again and Steve went to pick him up. Peter whimpered as his head swam as he was being moved and then Tony was there, rubbing Peter’s arm with his hand and shushing him softly. As Steve gathered Peter fully into his arms and they headed to the car, the hands stayed there, the voice softly shushing him as the whimpers continued to come out of Peter’s mouth despite his best efforts.
He kept his eyes closed as there was talking around him to try to figure out the best way to get him into the car. Peter realized as this was happening that he hadn’t even asked about MJ and Ned, but his mind was already sinking back under and he didn’t want to open his eyes again. He felt himself being set on a seat and someone sitting next to him, pulling his head gently to rest on their shoulder. The same hands as before were touching his face gently and Peter registered them as Tony’s. The man seemed concerned and Peter wanted to tell him it was okay, but instead he headed towards the darkness once more.
-
The next time he woke up, it was the beeping machines that woke him. His head didn’t hurt nearly as much as before and when he opened his eyes, he was relieved to see that everything looked clear and there was no more blurriness in his vision. A hand was resting on his arm and he turned his head to see Tony sitting there. The mans’ other hand was on a tablet that he was looking down at, unaware that Peter was awake.
“Hi.” Peter said and the head shot up, the tablet being put to the side.
“Kid! How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay. My head doesn’t hurt as much.” Peter took a look around the medbay, seeing no one else in the room. “Where are MJ and Ned? Are they okay? What happened?”
Tony shushed him again as he started rubbing his hand up and down Peter’s arm again. “They’re okay. MJ got a few stitches in her head and Ned hurt his arm, but they are around here somewhere. You were hurt the most. MJ said you leaped on her and protected her. What am I going to do with you kid?” Tony sighed as he shook his head.
“What happened?” Peter asked after a few moments of awkward silence and Tony staring at him.
“Someone lost control in the rain and slammed into you. They tried to run after the accident but didn’t get far.”
“How did you even know where we were? I didn’t have my phone on me.” Peter asked, suddenly remembering that the cellphone was back at Ned’s house.
“Did you forget about the watch?” Tony asked. “It alerted me that your vitals weren’t normal and Steve, Bruce and I came to find you. How do you always manage to find trouble Pete?”
“It’s just one of my charms.” Peter said, grinning at Tony who just shook his head.
“A charm that takes 10 years of my life every time it happens.”