I Swear I'm Fine
"Peter! Do you know what time it is! I've been worried sick! If you had waited ten more minutes, I was going to call the police!" His aunt screamed through the phone.
"I'm sorry May, I really didn't mean to worry you. I stopped by Ned's place to check out the new lego set and I lost track of time and my phone died and I'm really sorry." the teen lied easily. He really needed to keep a better eye on the time, but he had gotten so wrapped up in crime fighting and got a bit beat up so he had spent some time stiching himself back up and forgot to text May to let her know he wasn't dead. Peter still felt bad every time he lied about where he was or what he was doing but he needed to keep his Aunt safe, and this was the only way.
"When you get home, you an I are having a little talk, okay mister?" Her voice was slightly aggravated.
"Yes, Aunt May. I'm almost there, I'll see you in a couple minutes." Came the weak reply.
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He was already on the roof of the apartment building, all he needed to do now was put his regular clothes on top of his suit and he could change after May would no doubt ground him for a week or two. Walking down the flight of stairs, he could already hear the conversation in his head, 'Peter you can't keep doing this to me, blah blah blah, you’re grounded until you can understand how to call me when you’re staying out late, blah blah'. The door swung open before he even had the chance to unlock the door, and he was thrown into a giant hug by his Aunt.
"Oh Peter, I was so worried, you weren't answering any of my calls or texts, and the news! Oh the news was talking about the new influx of dangerous criminals, and I was just so scared!" She cried.
"I'm sorry, May, I really didn't mean to scare you, I just got caught up with Ned and my phone was already dead since after school. I couldn't ask Ned for a charger because he has a StarkPhone and they use a different plug then my phone does and I'm just really sorry Aunt May." The excuse tumbled out fasr as he apologized. A sinking feeling in his gut matching the shame of making May worry.
"It's alright dear, but we are going to have to talk about you never calling. You could've let me know by texting me on Ned's phone."
"I know, I know, I just wasn't thinking." he started, before being cut off.
"Is that blood?" she asked in a pinched voice. Peter's heart stopped. Was he bleeding through his suit? Did the stitches pop when he wasn't noticing? "Oh dear, were you mugged? What happened to you lip, and your nose?"
"No May, I wasn't mugged, I just--I got hit in the face...with a dodge ball...in gym."
"Peter, I know that your lying, so tell me what happened." Silence only greeted her words as Peter tried thinking if a good argument "How about this: I'll head to the grocery store and get ingredients to make some brownies and we'll talk while we bake." Peter nodded and may got up to gather her things.
"Do you want to come with me?"
"I'll stay here." he said
"Okay, take your time to collect your thoughts. I love you, I'll be back soon."
"I love you too, Aunt May."
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She was gone for more than an hour and peter was really starting to freak out. He glanced at the clock, now it was an hour and five minutes. He tried to reason with himself, maybe she was trying to show him how worried she was by not answering any of his texts, but his aunt wasn't that mean, she would never do that to him. Peter checked the clock again, an hour and fifteen minutes. He was now really starting to think that maybe something happened to her. She had said something about more criminals being out right now, and Peter was tempted to go back out as Spider-Man to find her when his phone began to ring.
"H-hello?" he answered, hating how young he sounded on the phone.
"This is Queen's Hospital, we are looking for a Peter Parker."
His blood went cold. "This is him."
"We are calling regarding your aunt. We are requiring you to come by the hospital as soon as possible."
"I'll be soon." the call ended, and Peter knew that something really bad happened.
He ran out the door as fast as he could, blood pumping in his ears. He had his backpack on and was still wearing his Spider-Man suit under his clothes, he had forgotten to change that time where he didn't know where May was. The moments seemed to drag on for hours, from leaving the apartment to being lead to the hospital room, it felt like an eternity. When he got inside, he could see the pale form of his aunt laying on the bed. Nothing was attached to her, he knew what they were about to tell him.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Parker, but your aunt was in a severe car accident. There was a high speed chase and the driver crashed into her, she died on impact."
"N-no"
"I'll give you a moment to call anyone if you have to. take as much time as you need." the nurse had said nicely to him.
It was official. Peter Parker was now an orphan. He lost his parents, his uncle, and now his aunt. He almost couldn't believe it, if he didn't know any better, he would've thought she was just sleeping, but there were too many cuts and she was too pale. The teen willed himself not to cry, he needed to stay strong for Aunt May, but knowing that he would never be able to eat her delicious cooking again, he'd never smell her sweet flowery perfume, that he'd never hear her voice again--he couldn't stop a tear from rolling down his cheek.
"I'm sorry, May. If-If I had just come home on time, this wouldn't have happened." he choked on his words "I'm sorry, May, I never meant to do this to you"
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Peter didn't know how long he was in there, but it felt like hours. He checked his phone, 4:27 am. What was he going to do now, he had no one to call and no where to go. The teen couldn't go into foster care, it'd only make crime fighting almost impossible, and he couldn't just ask Ned to stay with him until he was eighteen, so he only had one choice left. Tony Stark.
With a shaky hand, he dialed the billionaire's number. It rang once before he picked up.
"Hey, Pete, whacha doing up so early?"
"Mr. Stark?" His voice slightly shook
"Kid, did something happen, are you okay?" Tony asked, a concerned edge to his voice
"M-May got in a car crash and-" his voice broke off. He couldn't say it, it would only make it more real.
"Pete, oh my God are you alright? Here, I'm coming to get you. Where are you? Never mind, I'll just track your phone. Stay there, I'll be there in a few minutes." The call abruptly ended, and now Peter was all alone again.
For a while there was nothing more than the distant sounds of doctors and nurses bustling through the hospital, determined to help the injured people around them. Peter was fighting the urge to just scream, he'd never felt so angry, so sad, so hurt before. He wanted to scream and cry and beg for his aunt to come back, to just give him one more hug, but at the same time, he felt so exhausted and drained, and like he had just been punched in the gut. A pair of footsteps grew nearer and Peter couldn't bother looking up to see who it was. It wasn't until a pair of hands grabbed him by the shoulder, did he notice Tony Stark was standing there right in front of him.
"-id, hey kid, look at me Peter." Tony's voice was foggy and distant.
The teen looked up at his idol, wide red eyes staring at him. The engineer was telling him something, but he wasn't really hearing what he way saying. In his head, his last conversation with Aunt May was replaying over and over in his head, his thoughts clouded in guilt and grief. Walking out of the hospital room, Peter took one last glance at the cold and lifeless form of his aunt, a tear running down his face. He angrily rubbed it away before he was whisked away to wherever Tony was taking him.