Assessment
May whipped her head to watch Peter struggle to sit up from the bed, wincing and holding his body again, confusion plastered on his face.
“Woah kid, here, I got you.” Tony reassured as he picked up the remote for the bed and activated it so it folded inward to a more comfortable seating position for Peter.
May stood up off the chair and hovered over his head. Kissing his forehead with the softness only a mother could achieve and cupped his face in her hands.
“How you feeling sweety?”
Peter thought pensively at the question. Looking around he realized he was in a hospital room. With all the tech around it was easy to guess he was in the tower.
Which was weird cause he had been on the roof top just seconds ago…
“I’m so sorry Mr-Stark! I was only able to take down one of them.” He said feeling a bit embarrassed and defeated. “The other one got away…” Peter continued in a guilty whisper.
But then got confused when all three adults all looked at each other.
“I’m sorry, What?” Tony stepped to the foot of the bed. “Your telling me you fought two criminals. Not one? You sure about that kid? Didn’t hit your head?” He asked talking animatedly with his hands.
Peter shook he’s head vigorously. “Nah Mr-Stark. There were two guys. One was surprised I got there so fast, surprised I specifically showed up and the other one didn’t seem to care who showed up and wanted to pick a fight. I guess the other one had no problem with that because he tossed his gun, the one I dismantled, to the other guy and bolted.”
Peter recounted with his usual hyperactive flare. “I tried hitting the runaway with a tracking spider but the guy I fought had crazy reflexes! Crushed it with his bare hands! Crazy amount of strength that guy.”
“No wonder he was able to get a few licks in, usually regular people aren’t as nimble as you are.” Tony said with a small wink and a smirk.
Which made Peters cheeks fill out with just a bit of color from the praise.
“T-Thanks Mr-Stark. Boy did he. Most of my time was spent dodging his fast but heavy punches. He’d be hitting walls and leaving craters. Which was so odd cause like he looked so normal? No huge muscles you know?” He said while lifting his arm up and doing a power pose and pointing at his arm where he would have assumed the criminal would have been jacked. But he wasn’t. Nothing like captain America’s physique but all of his strength. “I was able to keep step with most of his attacks until…”
“Until?” May pushed.
“… I… got sun in my eyes and next thing i know I’m getting hit with the nerf water gun.” He said sheepishly not looking anyone in the eyes. Completely embarrassed that that was what did him in at the end.
“I’m not sure what happened after that. It’s all a bit of a blur. But I remember I was able to web him up and dismantle the gun like I said.” Peter then tried to recall what happened after that. “Then I…”
“Had severe symptoms of viral rhinitis.” Tony interjected. “The common cold if it wasn’t so common.”
“Almost like your body’s fast regeneration wasn’t working… like at all. Not even the amount of a normal person.” Rohdy added.
“Oh man, I do kinda remember that…” Peter shifted uncomfortably and winced at what felt like an overall pain now. Not centered in his abdomen like before. Just kind of… everywhere. But also specifically in his back. Which freaked him out a bit.
May not missing a beat with her nephews discomfort. “Back to my previous question. Since the men in my life seem to ignore them the first time around.”
Peter watched as Tony rubbed the back of his head with guilt.
“How are you feeling?.”
If Peter had been standing up his usual foot tapping and side stepping would of been enough of an answer.
But laying on the bed he found himself twiddling his thumbs on how to answer truthfully without freaking his aunt out. He hated seeing her worry.
But man did he feel awful.
Tony right away sensing the turmoil in the kid decided to take initiative. “Ok let’s start with an easy question bud. On the 0-10 scale of pain severity, where would you place your current pain?” Tony asked as he walked over to the bedside table and pulling out a laminated paper in the drawer. “And don’t you lie to me.”
Peter sheepishly took the paper and read all the descriptions for each stage of pain and really thought about it.
“Um, I guess, maybe, I’d be a six? Inching closer to a seven?” He responded while physically pointing to the numbers on the chart. While keeping eye contact with Tony.
May could tell her boy wasn’t looking at her on purpose cause he didn’t want to see her absolutely see through his half hearted answer. She almost audibly sighed but caught herself. She knew he was just trying to protect her. But he needed to be honest with somebody. Even if it stung just a bit that it wasn’t her.
Rohdy nodded in agreement. “Yeah that sounds about right.”
Peter looked at him with curiosity. “So you know what’s wrong with me?”
Tony stepped in front of Rohdy who looked like he just let something spill. “Sort of kid.”
“What does that mean?”
The adults both looked at each other again with Peter sensing that they were holding back on something.
May also felt the two adult men were being suspicious.
“Come on guys. It’s my body. I gotta know why she ain’t working right.” He said in an almost child like plea.
He hated feeling like they were using kid gloves on him. Didn’t he do enough to prove his maturity at this point?
May was about to tell him what she knew from the earlier conversation but then Tony cut her off.
“We’re not sure ourselves on the situation, which is why I called Banner to come do a full diagnosis on you. He can do much more than what I’ve currently been able to program into my medical tech.”
Peter frowned not satisfied with the answer.
And though May knew that was partly true, she wondered if Tony was also stretching the truth to keep Peter calm. What would panic do to his body while those things were swimming inside him? She understood what he was doing even if she didn’t like it.
“Im no doctor Peter. And this stuff inside you… it’s bigger than Aunt May.” He said with a knowing look.
He could practically see the gears in Peters head turning. Probably wondering why a literal nurse didn't know what was wrong with him.
Which May played into the white lie by nodding in agreement and giving him a weary look.
Peter let out a sigh. “Ok. Guess it’ll be cool to see Doctor Banner again.”
Tony had made a really particular face towards that statement that Peter couldn’t quite place. But kept it in mind.
He shifted his body to a more comfortable sitting position and immediately felt a sharp pain in his backside causing him to, for a split second, wince and freeze until the pain subsided and he was able to relax again.”
“What was that?” May said quickly while grabbing his hand again.
“I’m not sure? Just a sharp pain in my back.” He tried to reassure his Aunt. But honestly it was a constant pain he was feeling and it was growing with every minute.
May could feel the hesitancy in his words. Her kid was definitely not being as truthful as she’d like him to be.
So maybe…
“I’m going to get you some water.” She kissed his forehead. Feeling the heat radiating did nothing to quell her worry. But she wouldn’t react. “I’ll be right back.”
As she walked out the room she gave a knowing look to Rohdy who completely understood the assignment.
“I’m… going to give Bruce a call? and find out his ETA?.” He said with raised shoulders and both hands in the air giving a look to Tony that Peter couldn’t quit place again! What was going on with the two of them?
Leaving Peter alone with Tony in a sort of awkward silence.
When Peter closed his eyes he could feel his own heartbeat in his ears and the speed in which it pulsed was slowly starting to give him anxiety which only made the beating faster.
Everything hurt.
His stomach.
His head.
His joints.
But his back especially was the root cause of his distress.
Tony watched as the kid closed his eyes as if trying to center himself if to distract himself from the pain he could only imagine he was feeling.
Guilt started to boil up in his throat with the knowledge he had. But that got pushed down immediately when he realized the kid was starting to hyperventilate.
Tony placed a hand on Peters foot as what he hoped was a calming gesture. “Ok bud, it’s just you and me. If your not-“
“I’m definitely a eight!” Peter blurted out hugging himself and squeezing his eyes shut. While recoiling his foot away from Tony’s touch.
Tony was startled by the abrupt declaration. “Ok. Your ok, what’s up?”
Peter spoke through closed eyes and a quiver in his voice. “It’s my back. It feels like tiny needles are jabbing themselves into my spine.” He breathed out the explanation with an increasing amount of anxiety. “It started near my waist and its traveling up my back with an alarming speed.”
“It’s like… somethings crawling all round my insides…” he spoke in barely a whisper.
Peter took a shallow breath. “It hurts Tony.”
Oof. Did the kid just use his first name?
“I’m so sorry you got caught up in this kid. I should be the one on that bed…. That attack was meant for me…” He spoke more off to the distance then to Peter himself.
“Wait, what do you mean?” Peter probed. “I thought you didn’t know what was wrong with me…”
Tony snapped back to attention but realized to late what he had spilled. The jig was up.
Tony let out the third sigh he’d made that day. “Ok so I haven’t been quite truthful to either you or Aunt May.”
Peter didn’t break eye contact. But there was frustration in his voice. “Tell me the truth.”
Tony took that as “I want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” And he already felt exhausted at this point so the truth the kid would have.
“Ok kid.” Tony walked around the bed and sat himself in the chair Aunt May had been occupying.
“So, Banner was already here Six hours ago.”
“Wait… what?”