He didn't like loud noises. Never had. Whether the sound came from a gun or from someone suddenly dropping a glass plate on the floor, Noir found himself flinching.
It took years for him to learn to stop flinching when in front of, or near, others. Now, when someone fired a gun, Noir fired back. He still didn't like the sound, but he could deal with it.
It was a late night in Miles' universe. Actually, it was just really, really early in the morning. Rain was pouring from the sky and forming puddles all around the outside of Aunt May's house.
Each member of the Spider-Gang was deep asleep in their respective area. Peni and Gwen had the guest room, as usual, Peter B. had taken the the living room couch with Miles sleeping in a sleeping bag on the floor, and Porker and Noir were in the so call 'basement'.
Porker was snoring rather loudly, but Noir couldn't bring himself to care. He too, was asleep. That is, until a loud boom exploded somewhere above him. A startled yelp escaped the monochrome man as he sat up quiclly- a bit too quickly- and fell out of the Spiderweb hammock he had made. A loud huff left him as he hit the floor.
Another explosion of thunder sliced through the air, sending Noir into a fit of panic. He felt himself shaking as he slowly pushed himself to his feet. He took a moment to put his glasses on before stumbling over to the lift that would bring him above ground. As the lift took him up, he was glad to find Ham still asleep.
Noir flinched as lighting flashed in the distance and more thunder followed. His hands shook greatly as he tried to open the back door that led into Aunt May's house. The moment he got inside, he shut the door behind him and collapsed on to the kitchen floor.
Thunder was bad. It was loud, unpredictable, and terrifying. He had always hated it, ever since he was a kid.
Aunt May and Uncle Ben would find Peter curled up on the floor, next to his bed, crying whenever a thunderstorm would pass through their area. Peter remembered Uncle Ben quietly picking him up and holding him against his chest as the older man whispered calming words into his ears. When Peter finally calmed down enough to sleep, they would take him into their room and allow him to sleep in their bed.
A sudden voice jolted Noir out of his thoughts. He tried to find the source of the sound before his eyes landed on Peter B. The man looked exhausted, but concerned.
"Hey. Have a nightmare, or something?" Peter B. Knelt down next to Noir and offered the other man his hand.
Noir shook his head and reached out to take the hand when more thunder echoed through the room. Noir flinched back and shut his eyes, attempting to somehow calm his erratic breathing.
A sense of understanding filled Peter B.'s eyes. "Ah. The thunder spooked ya. I used to be scared of it too," he admitted.
Noir finally took the outstretched hand and allowed Peter to pull him to his feet. "It's a stupid fear, I know," Noir said, softly. He refused to look Peter in the eye.
"Nah. It's not stupid."
Noir let out a shaky sigh as he curled his fingers into fists. This was pathetic. The fact that a simple sound was terrifying the supposed hard-boiled, emotionless, and cold-hearted Spider-Man Noir was absolutely pathetic.
Apparently, Peter B's and Noir's voiced had woken Peni up, because the child had, at some point, tiredly wandered over to Noir and attached herself to his still shaking leg.
"I dunno what's wrong, but 'm sure 's not stupid," Peni slurred as she looked up at Noir with tired eyes.
Noir's face softened as he carefully picked the girl up. Peter B. had a faint smiled on his face as he gestured for Noir to follow him back into the living room. Miles was still asleep, so Noir quietly settled himself on one end of the couch as Peter B. layed back down on the other end, with his legs curled.
Peni was asleep when Noir attempted to remove her arms from their position around his neck. He decided to leave them there as she snuggled into his neck. It definitely helped to calm his nerves enough to fall back asleep.
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Noir cracked open an eye when an elbow dug into his side. He glanced down to find Porker laying against his side, obviously asleep. Apparently, the pig had noticed his absence and wandered into the house.
Peni was still pressed against his chest and Peter B. was deep asleep on his end of the couch. Miles was laying on his side, still asleep in his sleeping bag on the floor, though Gwen was now sleeping on the floor next to him.
A small smile graced Noir's features as he let the sound of the rain outside lull him back to sleep.
And when another blast of thunder exploded outside, Noir continued to sleep without so much as a wince.