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Chapter Text

My heart was pounding too fast. I felt like I was going to explode. Everything was so exciting . Mr. Stark had showed up at my house to tell me that I was being offered an intern position and I was on top of the world. I was having a hard time containing my excitement. My hands kept shaking and my feet couldn't seem to figure out how they wanted to act. When I'd finally gotten my brain to process his offer I gapped out the question that was swirling around my head,

"I appreciate the offer and everything Mr. Stark but why me? I mean I didn't even apply." He just looked at me, I couldn't tell what his expression was behind his sunglasses but he simply pulled out his phone and played a video. When he held the phone out to show me I saw Spider-Man swinging from rooftop to rooftop. 

Wait. He can't know I've been so careful . Had I missed a camera, how much does he know? Is he going to blackmail me?! I felt my throat dry out and I felt as though the walls were getting closer. But in just 4 words he proved me wrong and also tilted my world on its head,

"This is you kid," he spoke with a matter of fact tone. I just looked at him dumbfounded. Those 4 words seared themselves into my brain, hurting more than anything I had ever experienced, just the thought that I’d failed to keep my secret safe. Seemingly oblivious to my panic he continued to speak, "I'd like to give you something sturdier than pajamas. I'm going to give you a suit."

All I could do was stare at him. Just the thought that the Tony Stark was willing to give me a suit started to squash the fear that had taken root when he said he knew I was Spider-Man. But Mr. Stark wasn't done, "I'd like to give you a cover as an intern at Stark industries, however, you are still a kid and I can't have a 14 year old as an intern. Even if he is a super spider."

He quieted his voice for the last part but I still felt my face flush slightly at that comment and then Skip walked in, "Peter is too busy to accept anyway."

My stomach churned. I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to have an opinion. It still stung that he didn’t even ask. He just said that I was busy. My heart sank, I wanted to be his intern. I really really did but if Skip said no then that's that. 

Mr. Stark lowers his sunglasses and levels a look at Skip, "Mr. Westcott, with all due respect," his face goes tight as he says respect, "Mr. Parker is allowed to make his own decisions I am simply opening a door for him. I just wanted him to know that, in a year. If he wishes, he has a spot at Stark Industries."

I wanted to laugh at the thought that Mr. Stark was under the impression that I was still allowed to have choices. That I still had a voice . I hadn’t had either in a long time.

He handed me a business card and that was that. Just like that I had the opportunity to be Mr. Stark's intern. When he came to me with this offer I was still adjusting to living with Skip, my foster father, whose personality seemed to change with the wind. Uncle Ben had died a few years before May and she died when I was 10. She was my last family and so the state had bounced me from foster family to foster family. That was until I was 14. That's when they'd placed me with Skip.

Well, that's what he insisted I call him, his real name is Steven Westcott any time I try to call him by his real name he gets really quiet and I can tell he's angry.

After going through so many homes I wanted to trust him. Going from place to place I always tried to cling to anything that felt normal. I’d come home close to midnight most nights with scrapes that I wouldn’t explain but he’d simply just tell me to go clean up. But slowly he started pulling those things away without giving me a reason. He'd also started getting too close occasionally and my Spidey Senses would go off but I couldn't figure out why. It was just small things, the hairs on my arms pricking whenever his hand lingered too long on my shoulder or back. I told myself I was imagining it, but my body didn’t believe me and if I was truly being honest I didn’t believe me either.

He'd also started giving me massages, and he wouldn't take no for an answer. I always felt weird after them but would just chalk it up to him being someone I didn't know very well and thus it being uncomfortable.

But then after what felt like forever I was 15. I picked up that card and made a phone call that would change my entire life. I had to still my fingers as they trembled but I still hovered over the call button for a few moments before pressing it. Being an intern with Mr. Stark helped me forget about the horrors that I saw as Spider-Man and even the ones that were in my own 'home'. 

The first day of being an intern was the best day of my life. Mr. Stark had asked me how I’d synthesized my web fluid and actually seemed interested and even a little impressed by the formula that I’d created. Like something I’d built mattered. I didn't think anything could dampen how I felt but then I got home. And that's when Skip showed his true colors for the first time. As soon as I entered that apartment I was on edge. But I’d been feeling like that a lot lately so I just brushed it off.

Chapter Text

The door to the room slid open easily and my feet moved towards the desk. The mask was off. The suit shoved back into hiding before I realized it. I was back to being Peter Parker. The kid who never had the strength to fight back. I wasn’t Spider-Man, the superhero who everyone could depend on. Peter Parker was weak. Spider-Man is strong. There’s no way that they could even remotely be the same person, at least not when I looked in the mirror.

“Hey Einstein, wanna ‘pen the door?” Skip called out, slurring slightly, as he knocked on my door. I rolled my eyes. I hated hearing that name called out in his gravelly voice. No matter how many times I heard him say it or how many times I told him to stop just hearing that name on his lips made my skin crawl. No one else's nicknames for me made me feel this way, just Skip’s. But regardless after a few seconds of me not responding he opened the door and walked in. With my enhanced hearing I didn’t miss the sharp click of the lock. That click felt like it shook the whole world. Why had he locked the door?

“What do you want, Skip?” I asked, trying to sound more annoyed than scared. I’d never liked Skip and I always tried to avoid being in the same room as him alone. I was trying to get some rest after Spider-Man had gone out patrolling. Something flashed across Skip's face, annoyance maybe, but it was gone long before I could catalog the emotion.

“Aww Ein~ don’t be like that.” he muttered as he stumbled towards me. I could smell the alcohol on his breath and all my senses were yelling at me to move, to get out of my room but I froze. My jaw clenched and my hands balled into fists but I couldn’t move. He kept moving and the sharp smell of his cheap beer filled my nostrils. He got closer and then suddenly I was pinned to the wall and his mouth was on mine. My legs twitched as if they were finally going to move but they didn’t. Coward . I didn’t move, I couldn’t. I hated myself for freezing .

I felt his hands move from my head to my waist band, untucking my shirt. Once he was done untucking my shirt I felt his hands move under and up. Suddenly his hands were around my nipples, pulling and twisting. I felt tears leak out of the sides of my eyes as I just stood there, useless.

“What a good whore~” Skip muttered against my neck when he finally broke the kiss. His mouth leaving marks in its wake. Like some kind of sick necklace that was engraved in my skin.

“P-please. S-stop..” I muttered but Skip either didn’t hear or, the more likely option, didn’t care. 

“I’ve been waiting” he slurred into my ear, “you’ve been such a tease.”

A sob escaped my lips at those last words. Have I done something to make him think I wanted this? I knew he wasn’t done yet so I just closed my eyes and pretended that I wasn’t here. An old trick that Aunt May taught me when I missed Uncle Ben.

“Just go somewhere you’re happy.” she’d say smiling.

“But what if that doesn’t work?” I’d ask, choking on my own sobs, and she’d just shush me and tell me to close my eyes.

“Remember your favorite place. Favorite weather with your favorite people.”

My eyes were closed and I was there with Aunt May, Uncle Ben, Mr. Stark, MJ and Ned. I felt my mind slowly drift to the park and everything that was happening to my body slowly drifted away. It felt nice to not have to feel everything that Skip was doing. I watched, joy swelling in my chest, as Ned and MJ fought playfully about something insignificant and May and Uncle Ben were smiling and laughing. I was sitting next to Mr. Stark and he smiled at me, my heart felt like it was too full, like my chest couldn’t hold it all. It felt nice to be happy. That was until my illusion was ripped apart, the weight against my body moved, the reek of alcohol slithered its way into my nose imprinting itself there. Then Skip's voice broke through my illusion completely,

“Such an eager slut,” came his voice. I was slammed back into my body and to my horror I realized that while I was taking a break, my body was responding to what Skip was doing. My hands were in his hair and I was rocking against his erection. As soon as I realized that I stopped and dropped my hands. Now they were laying uselessly at my sides. Skip locked our lips together one more time and his hands went down to my waist as he grinded against me slightly. He tried to get his tongue into my mouth as I locked my lips shut to prevent exactly what he was trying to do.

He grunted as he tried to force his way into my mouth but when I didn’t budge his hands moved from my waist to down the front of my pants and into my underwear and grabbed my dick. I gasped at the touch and he used that as his opportunity to stick his tongue as far down my throat as it could go. Now I could taste his beer. It made my stomach flip and I wanted to vomit.

Just then my body seemed to realize that I needed it to move but my limbs felt heavy and weak. So when I pushed against Skip rather than just flying across the room like I wished he would, he just stood there. His tongue was triggering my gag reflex and a new stream of tears was washing over my face. Once he was satisfied he unlocked our lips then kissed my forehead,

“Thanks for the good time Einstein~” he slurred in a smug tone. Like he was proud of what he’d just done but I didn’t feel like that was something he should be proud of. He tucked his shirt back into his pants and all I could do was retch as he stumbled over to my door, unlocked it, then stumbled out of my doorway. My legs felt like he’d taken my ability to move with him. As if when he left the room he took all the strength from my legs with him. My knees hurt as they slammed against the wooden floor of my room. As soon as I got the feeling back into my legs, I decided I was going to move. I went to my door and shakily locked it. Then I slid down and sobbed with my back to the door. I shoved my shirt in my mouth to muffle the sound. I won’t ever let him do that again I promised myself. Never, never again.

I sobbed because I knew that I could’ve and should’ve pushed him away but I didn’t. I had lifted buildings, but I couldn’t push him away. Although I’ve been through lots of consent talks, I understand that just because I couldn’t fully push him away, it doesn’t mean that I consented. I couldn’t stop him so what kind of hero does that make me? I know that Spider-Man could have stopped him but Peter Parker couldn’t.

I cried until I passed out but it was anything but restful. I woke up less than an hour later because Skip had come back, only this time he was in my mind. I was distracted the whole next day at school. Ned noticed and asked if everything was fine, I lied. What else was I supposed to do say,

“Hey Ned, yeah, something happened yesterday. My foster father decided that I was too tempting and he walked in and assaulted me. But even though I am Spider Man, I was unable to get him off of me.”

No. There’s no way that I am ever going to tell anyone what happened to me at the hands of someone that I could throw across the entire city .

Then MJ asked. I knew that she knew that I was lying, but she didn’t push it at all. I was grateful, I could see in her eyes that she wanted to but she didn’t. The whole day blurred into a haze of bells and buzzing light and conversations that no one will remember tomorrow. Without thinking I started walking towards Skip’s place like I always do before I remembered my internship. Crap . I walked, more like ran, back to the school so I could meet Happy to get taken to the tower. I hoped that he wasn’t going to be very angry because this was only the second day of my internship and I didn’t want that to be affected because of a useless bit of brain fog. I blinked and I was back, Skip’s hands around my waist and his body on mine . I shook my head. Thinking about it was useless. I am Spider-Man. I have to be strong . Being strong means being silent, I can’t let him hurt anyone else.

Thankfully Happy didn’t seem any different than he did the few other times I’ve met him. When I entered his car he simply nodded at me. All day I felt off. I wanted to just chalk it up to it being one of those days but everything Skip was saying to me last night was getting to me, I can’t stop thinking about how his lips felt against mine and how much I hated the way I felt helpless. Never, I won’t let him do that ever again.

Chapter Text

I got out of the car and thanked Happy. Today was special. Today Mr. Stark said that I could start trying to synthesize some new web fluid. I couldn’t be more excited and not even what Skip had done a few weeks ago could dampen that. I still couldn’t sleep and I was jumpy but nothing could ruin tonight. But even so I’d started to just chalk up what I thought Skip had done to my imagination as he hadn’t done anything similar since then.

As I entered the building I showed the receptionist my badge and continued forward into the elevator.

“Welcome back Peter Parker.” FRIDAY's voice spoke through the speaker.

“Hey, FRIDAY.” I responded adjusting the straps on my backpack so it would sit better, “Can you let Mr. Stark know that I’m on my way up?”

“I’ve already alerted him and he is waiting in the lab for you Mr. Parker.” I smiled hearing this. I could picture Mr. Stark sitting in the lab waiting for me to get there and then get bored and start tinkering on things anyway.

Once the door opened I exited, placing my backpack at the entrance to the lab just as I’d been doing every time I come over. When I looked up from placing my things down I wasn’t surprised to see that Mr. Stark was bent over one of his gadgets with sparks flying from over his shoulder.

“Mr. Stark? Are you ready to work on that web fluid?” At my words he straightened up and turned around a smile on his face,

“Of course,” then with a smirk he adds, “Spider-kid.”

I just roll my eyes. I’ll get him back later . We get to work enhancing the original formula for my web fluid. We’ve strengthened it to now be able to hold a whopping 10 tons of weight. Within the first hour we’d been able to make the web shooters spin the web in a stronger pattern. Then we looked at ways to strengthen the formula. I savored this victory then I looked outside and it’s dark outside.

“Well Mr. Stark I’d hang around but I hear that crime waits for no spider.” I quip as I put my equipment away and tidy up my designated space. Mr. Stark looks at his watch then outside then back to me,

“Why don’t you spend the night?” he offers, I quirk an eyebrow at him and he continues, “it’s almost midnight and you don’t have school tomorrow. Stay and spend the night, we have plenty of guest rooms and we can make one of them just for our little spiderling.”

My heart skips a beat at the nickname and the implication that I might be allowed to have a room that’s all mine. Though, I remind myself bitterly it’s not for me it’s for Spider-Man. But then I remember that this is all probably because I am Spider-Man and he wants him on his side. I shake it off and I roll my eyes at the name but smile, heart hurting slightly because I wish he’d care about me and not Spider-Man, and nod, “okay.”

He smiles back at me then gets up, sighing, “those old man bones hurting you?”

“You know, I’ve been looking for someone to be used as target practice.” Was his response but there was no real threat behind those words. He walks over and puts his hand on my shoulder, “what do you say we order some pizza and watch a movie?”

I grin, “only if you let me eat as much pizza as I want.”

And clearly Mr. Stark has never had a meal with me because he agreed easily but after only 4 pizzas I was cut off.

“Kid I thought you meant that you were going to eat one whole by yourself not FOUR .” was what he told me as he took his third piece and went to sit down on the couch with the remote, 

“how do you eat that much?”

“First off, old man, normal people eat more than three slices of pizza.” I respond while finishing my pizza then decide to give him the truth, “second I have an enhanced metabolism. And most normal people can eat a full pizza:

I joke but he just rolls his eyes before returning his focus to the TV, 

“Interesting” but he doesn’t sound that impressed about my jab at him, “regardless of our pizza differences, what movie do you wanna watch?”

I immediately forgive him for betraying me by lying to me about pizza and hop onto the couch next to Mr. Stark before I realize where I sat and practically scream, “Star Wars A New Hope!”

He made a noise that might have been considered a laugh, “alright Star Wars it is.”

The movie was just as good if not better than every time I’ve ever watched it. In the tower there was a full surround sound and it made the movie feel so much more real. But at some points I felt my spidey senses screaming at me but after a few moments they would go back to normal and I would look around then just shrug it off. I mean it’s just me and Mr. Stark so we’re fine. But, at one point he paused the movie and looked at me with a concerned face,

“Kid are you okay?” I looked at him confused,

“Yeah why?” 

He pointed at my leg, “your leg has been twitching every minute or so and before that your pinky kept jumping on your knee. I know that you like this movie but if you’re not feeling good you should go to bed.”

I looked down and my leg wasn’t doing anything and I knew that I don’t normally act like this when watching this movie, or any movie for that matter, so I just shook my head and smiled, “I feel fine Mr. Stark.”

His eyes stayed on me, there’s something in them that if I didn’t know better I would think was worry, for a few more moments before he hit play and the movie continued. But I realized that everything was not fine. The more the movie played the more my senses seemed to go haywire and a few minutes before the death star blew up I felt as though my chest was going to explode.

Normally I am completely in control of my body. I’ve prevented myself from trying to draw breath when I was being drowned but this… This was something that I’ve never felt before. All my senses were screaming that I was in danger but I couldn’t see any danger and I couldn’t get my breathing under control. Calm down, you can’t let MR. STARK see how weak you are. Then the death star blew up and, somehow, everything got worse. Before I knew it I was in the corner curled up into a ball and sobbing uncontrollably. 

I thought I heard someone but everything was muffled. I felt like I was trying to listen to things while my head was underwater and someone was playing music somewhere in the distance. My heart felt like it was trying to break its way out of my chest. My lungs burned the same way they did whenever I was in a fire. Suddenly I felt a hand grab mine and place it on their chest. I could feel their breathing as their chest rose and fell slowly. That somehow calmed me down a bit. Slowly my senses stopped trying to melt my brain and I could hear and see again.

“Hey, hey, Pete you with me now?” I heard Mr. Stark ask gently. I’d never heard him use that tone before so I was kinda taken aback but I nodded slowly, “okay I want you to breathe with me okay? In 2 3 4 Hold 2 3 4 Out 2 3 4, alright repeat.”

Me and Mr. Stark stayed on the ground doing the breathing exercise til I was also counting and no longer felt like I was a ticking time bomb.

“What happened kid?” He asked as he pulled me to my feet, that’s when I noticed that the movie was off and I looked back at him and shrugged,

“Nothing, I'm fine. It’s never happened before.” This wasn’t completely true. I’ve had panic attacks before but never while watching a movie that I’ve watched hundreds of times before.

“That looked like a whole hell of a lot more than nothing. It looked like you had a toddler level meltdown on steroids.”

I glared at him at this comment but I was more focused on racking my brain trying to figure out why when I felt like the world had been tilted completely on its side.

“Whoa, kiddo I think you need to go to the med bay,” I would’ve glared at him if I didn’t have the worst headache and I felt like everything was spinning instead I just shook my head slightly. As I blinked I saw Mr. Stark multiplied by three, I know that there’s only one of him but I was seeing three. I’m fine, I don't need the med bay. I back up slightly and blink a few more times, when the copies don’t go away I ask,

“Mr. Stark?” as I reached out to one of them. But I didn’t touch him, I just felt air. I watched as all copies of him moved and one of them grabbed both of my shoulders. Suddenly I realize I was falling but the arms stopped me from becoming friends with the ground,

“Okay that settles it. You don’t get a choice anymore.” came Mr. Stark’s voice and I felt myself get lifted up, “FRIDAY prepare the med bay and alert Bruce that we may need him.”

“Right away sir,” I felt as Mr. Stark started walking but everything was spinning so fast. All I heard was Mr. Stark's low and concerned voice. I felt myself go limp as everything went black.

———Tony’s———

Everything was going as it should, except that Parker was trying to eat me out of house and home via pizza. I didn’t know a human could consume that much pizza but Peter explained it by saying he has an enhanced metabolism. But that was secondary to the real goal, movie night. The kid quickly suggested Star Wars A New Hope and we sat down and started watching.

Right away I could tell something was wrong. He kept twitching, a hand movement here, a knee jerk there. And every once in a while he’d look around before returning his eyes to the screen. He’s normally a very active and hyper person so I was chalking it up to that. But as the movie progressed I could tell it wasn’t. I’ve seen this kid so hopped up on sugar I thought he was going to start flying but he didn’t get like this. As the movie continued they got more and more frequent so I decided to bring it up. I paused the movie and turned to him,

“Kid are you okay?” I asked, he looked at me as if I’d just grown 3 heads,

“Yeah why?”

I pointed at his leg and said, “your leg has been twitching every minute or so and before that your pinky kept jumping on your knee. I know that you like this movie but if you’re not feeling good you should go to bed.”

He looked down at his leg which had stilled since I paused the movie interesting . On the other hand Parker just shook his head and smiled, “I feel fine Mr. Stark.”

I kept my gaze on him for a few more moments before hitting play but I kept a better eye on the Spider-Child this time. When we were getting close to the Death Star explosion I noticed that Peter seemed to be short of breath. But he wasn’t being loud about it, no, the kid was silently suffering but I had no clue how to help. So the movie continued and I continued to watch him because I didn’t want to make it worse by bringing it up again. But that was nothing compared to what happened when the Death Star exploded. Peter looked like he’d been shot, he cried out then catapulted himself into the corner where he had a panic attack.

“Peter?!” I cried out but he didn’t seem to be able to hear me. I turned the TV and movie off then jumped into the corner to comfort my the child, “kid can you hear me.”

He didn’t respond. I wasn’t entirely confident that he could hear me so I tried again, “can you breathe with me?”

Again nothing. The kid was so panicked that he wasn’t able to hear me so I grabbed his hand and put it on my chest and started breathing. Slowly in and slowly out. As I kept doing that his tears stopped a bit and he blinked a few times before his eyes met mine,

“Hey, hey, Pete you with me now?” I asked gently and he took a moment but nodded, “okay I want you to breathe with me okay?” another nod, “In 2 3 4 Hold 2 3 4 Out 2 3 4, alright repeat.”

We kept counting, his breaths syncing up with mine, rough and heavy at first but slowly getting steadier, til the kid looked like he wasn’t going to start sobbing again, “What happened kid?”

I asked, extending my arm, pulling him to his feet and he just shrugged, “nothing, I’m fine. It’s never happened before.”

“That looked a whole hell of a lot more than nothing. It looked like you had a toddler level meltdown on steroids,” but even as I was saying that I was confused and slightly worried. Why did he have such an intense reaction to a movie he’s probably watched hundreds of times . But before I could keep wondering about what just happened Peter was swaying and looked like he was going to fall over.

“Whoa, kiddo I think you need to go to the med bay,” I tell him, keeping my arms ready to catch him if it came to that. He shook his head slightly at that. His face was now wearing a look of confusion,

“Mr. Stark?” He questioned as he reached out to my left, clearly trying to touch something but there was nothing. Then he was suddenly falling and I grabbed his shoulders,

“Okay you don’t get a choice anymore,” I tell him as I lift him up and call out, “FRIDAY prepare the med bay and alert Bruce that we may need him.”

“Right away sir,” the AI replied and as I started walking to the med bay I felt Peter go limp in my arms and I looked down to see that he was passed out.

“FRIDAY tell Banner we will need him in the med bay.” I walked faster, almost sprinting, pulling his head closer into my chest. Then a realization hit me: I care about this kid . My thoughts were spiraling what if he dies. I didn’t have time to process that. I needed to get Peter to the med bay cause I had no clue what was wrong with the kid. When I got into the med bay Bruce was already in there with a look of concern on his face,

“What happened Stark?” He asked as I set Peter down on one of the beds and I kept my eyes trained on the kid as Bruce bent over him with a look of concern.

“I don’t know. We were watching Star Wars. Then he freaked out. Then he jumped into the corner and hadapanicattack,” I sped through the last bit as if that made it better.

“Okay, did he pass out during the panic attack?” He asks as he checks Peters vitals,

“No, I pulled him out of it but then he was disoriented and weak. When he stood up he almost fell over so I picked him up to bring him here and that’s when he passed out.” I finished talking and Banner was done with his checks and turned to me.

“Okay first,” Banner started, “you need to sit down. Ah no. I am the team doctor and I know what I am talking about. Stark, you look like you’re going to give yourself a heart attack at this rate. Okay, good. Second, Peter is fine. He just passed out but I wanna figure out what triggered the panic attack in the first place. Can I have the footage of what you all were doing?”

“Yeah but I don’t have any idea why a movie he’s watched would have this kind of reaction.” I say and Bruce looks between me and Peter thoughtfully,

“So you do have a heart.” I glare at him and he puts his hands up and continues, “I only mean that you care about him more than I’ve ever seen you care about anyone, aside from Pepper of course.”

I nod slowly. I’d realized that over these past 4 weeks the kid had burrowed into my life and if he left I don’t know how I would continue. And because of that I didn’t leave the kid alone in the med bay. I tried to stay awake the entire time but eventually my eyes slid closed.

Chapter Text

Blearily I opened my eyes only to shut them again as the blinding white light grated against my brain. Groaning I tried once more and I immediately knew that I wasn’t in the room by myself as I heard some shuffling then felt a hand on my arm, Skip’s hand traveled where no one’s hand should be,

“Pete you okay?” Came Mr. Stark's voice, breaking through the memory. And I tried to respond but my brain felt like it had been packed with cotton and my mouth was dry so I just nodded. I felt okay, or as good as someone might when they wake up in a hospital bed with no memory of how they got there. I did a quick inventory of my situation. I couldn’t quite remember why I was in this bed in the first place. All I really remembered was that we were supposed to have a movie night, then I was filled with panic and the next thing I knew I was here. In this room that’s too bright and under sheets that made my skin itch. The smell of antiseptic and the beeping of the machines was leading the way for a throbbing headache.

“W-what,” I tried but the word felt wrong in my mouth so I dry swallowed a few times, “w-what happened?” I asked the sentence still came out wrong but I felt as though I’d gotten my point across.

“You passed out, kid.” was Mr. Stark’s response, voice softer than I’d ever heard it before. I passed out? Why? And as though he could sense what my next question was going to be he responded, “I don’t know why Banner is trying to figure that out now but right now I’m just glad you’re okay.”

I sat up a little more, one of Mr. Stark’s hands on my back, and grabbed the water that he was handing me, drinking it gratefully. I noticed that Mr. Stark kept studying me and had dark circles under his eyes, “what’s wrong?” I ask and he just smiles,

“Just making sure that you’re okay kiddo. You gave me quite the scare.”

I immediately felt my face go red in shame, “I am so sorry Mr. Stark I-”

He cut me off with a sharp glance and a hand, “don’t. You don’t apologize for what isn’t your fault”

Before I could respond Bruce Banner walked in. He didn’t seem surprised to see me awake and walked over to both me and Mr. Stark,

“So, I believe that I have figured out why you passed out Parker,” Doctor Banner started and I sat up straighter and I felt Mr. Stark do the same beside me, “were you aware that spiders use vibrations and sound frequencies in the wild to get around?”

I nod. I’m not entirely sure where this is going but I hear an intake of breath beside me and look at Mr. Stark curiously but before I can ask anything Bruce continues,

“I was watching the footage and I recognized a pattern. Whenever something remotely loud happened in the film you would twitch. I am going to assume that you haven’t been to a movie theater since your powers and that you don’t have a surround sound system.” I shake my head to both, now I think I know where he’s going with this, “with your spider-sense you’re acutely aware of vibrations and the surround sound overwhelms your system. It overwhelmed your system so completely that it tricked your body into thinking you were in danger.”

Everything made sense now. It was all clicking into place like some kind of spider puzzle. Why occasionally when something buzzed my spidey sense would go off.

“Okay, that makes sense..” I mutter, internally planning how to counteract that when I remember something. Something so dreadfully important that I am shocked how I forgot, Skip, the memory of my foster father de-railing my thoughts, “I need to go home.”

I miss the looks they exchange as I bolt out of bed. At this declaration both Banner and Mr. Stark are looking at me. I just scurry up and to the door, “thanks for figuring that out doc and Mr. Stark thanks for the pizza.”

I’m out the door and checking my phone, 7:16 am. Maybe, just maybe, Skip won’t be awake yet and I can sneak back inside. I make it back and it’s not 7:20, not bad I’d managed to cut off 5 minutes. I made it back inside and shut the door sticking to the ceiling to avoid the creaky floorboards, quickly I hid the suit and layed down in my bed praying that Skip was still asleep and hadn’t noticed my absence yesterday night. My heartbeat was thrumming so loudly in my ears that I’m sure he could hear it.

I’d tentatively laid down. As I did so my body felt as though someone had replaced my limbs with sandbags as my eyes slid shut. I was more tired than I realized as I actually fell asleep. I didn’t wake up til I felt someone roll me over onto my back and put their lips to my neck. Involuntarily I let out a moan as they bit down slightly. But I quickly realized what was happening and my eyes flew open.

Skip was on top of me. He smelled like alcohol again and was pressing down on me, pinning me down. Just like before I was frozen. I couldn’t get my body to move and push him off of me so I just layed there.

I disassociated hard that day. I don’t remember anything past that point. The next thing I remember is looking at my phone and it being Monday. I’d woken up, covered in sweat. My boxers and sheets were covered in a mix of blood and something else that I didn’t really want to find out about. Where did the weekend go? I tried to remember Saturday or Sunday but I couldn’t. I could only faintly hear the sound of the mattress moving with all the shaking. I didn’t have time to do more than question it slightly but I moved on, I have things to do. I just got up and showered, finding bruises on my thighs, buttocks and lower back along with hickeys all along my chest and on my neck. I stayed under the water scrubbing at my skin til the water ran cold and I had to get ready for school. Clothes and makeup don’t go deep enough to cover up or replace what he took from me but they did enough.

The school day was a blur of people and sounds that I couldn’t quite piece together. Regardless throughout the day my spidey sense was tingling in the back of my mind. Not in the way that it normally does when it’s warning me about stuff like bullets or blows but it was still tingling. It was almost as if it was trying to warn me about something and as the day went on the feeling got stronger. But no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t see anyone looking at me or figure out where this supposed danger was. The start of the day flew by and then it was lunch time.

I didn’t have much of an appetite. Ned and MJ asked what was wrong but I didn’t answer them, I wanted to. I knew they could tell that something was wrong and at one point I opened my mouth to tell them but shut it quickly. They’d hate you. Even so Ned’s face fell slightly whenever I winced and MJ’s constant sarcasm stopped when she asked what I did over the weekend. I didn’t need to remember the details of what happened to know that Skip had gone farther than he had before. I wasn’t a virgin anymore. Skip had stolen something from me that I can never get back.

———Peter’s———

Happy, being the overly perceptive man that he is immediately asked if anything was wrong. I just shook my head and sat in the back seat. Even just sitting hurts. I tried to move as little as possible because everytime I did I felt a shooting pain up my back. The seatbelt across my chest felt like a chain made to keep me from escaping. Once we’d made it to the Tower he asked me again and again. I just shook my head, grabbed my backpack and headed inside the Tower. Once I was inside the elevator FRIDAY spoke,

“Would you like me to stop at the med bay before going to see Mr. Stark?” the AI asked and I jolted,

“Why would I need the med bay?” I asked

“You are injured. Mr. Stark has me do a body scan on everyone when they enter the elevator and you seem to be quite injured. I can take you to the med bay and alert Mr. Stark.”

My heart stopped. He would never want me around if he knew. He would hate me, “wait what. No, NO!” I practically scream then take a breath, “please don’t tell Mr. Stark. I am not injured. I don’t need the med bay. Please. Don’t bring this up again.”

FRIDAY pauses for a second before responding, with what sounds like hesitation, “alright Mr. Parker I will not inform Mr. Stark, however, if you come with injuries that are life threatening I am required to inform him and send you to the med bay.”

I nod. This was reasonable, it still put me on edge but I wanted to move on. I was slightly interested and wanted FRIDAY to just drop it, “why does Mr. Stark, have you do full body scans every time someone comes into the elevator?”

“He calls it the All Superhero I’ve Noticed, Inevitably Need Examinations protocol," I smirk at that because of course Mr. Stark has a protocol that the acronym for it is asinine. The reminder is comforting. Mr. Stark always thinks of everything until that thought sinks in. He thinks of everything. I don’t ask anything else the rest of the way up and I just stare at the wall wondering what I am going to do tonight. All too soon the elevator dings and I walk out into the living room and spot Mr. Stark lounging on the couch.

He looks around at the ding and smiles softly, “hey kid. Why didn’t you return any of my calls? I thought you’d gotten hurt but after talking to your guardian he assured me that you were fine and just studying.”

My heart sank. He’d talked to Skip? When had that happened? But I brushed it off and plopped myself on the couch, “yeah just trying to keep those grades up, you know how it is.”

I try for a casual tone but I think I failed because Mr. Stark sat up a bit and was eyeing me with a hint of suspicion in his eyes, “you are fine right? I mean I know you didn’t go patrolling like normal.”

I just nod my throat feels like it’s closing, my hand goes to my neck and I scratch it. But then I smell something: freeze, and I go completely still. The sharp scent of something filling my nose. My limbs feel like they are hundreds of pounds and won’t listen to what I am telling them to do.

Chapter Text

“Peter?” Mr. Stark says cautiously before everything goes completely haywire. Suddenly, glass shatters and someone is in the room. When had they gotten there? They are wearing what looks like a Spider-Man costume but the colors are flipped, like I was looking in a funhouse mirror. There’s glass everywhere. Mr. Stark is still next to me. But I still can’t move.

“So I was right~” came a voice from the new newcomer. Why can’t I move? My brain is foggy and I felt Mr. Stark shook me.

“Kid?” He asked, panic evident in his face from the creases near his eyes, “kid say something!”

I want to respond so badly. I want to open my mouth. To move. To cry. To do anything but I can’t. It felt as though someone had super glued my mouth shut. My brain is taking a back seat to my instincts. The same ones that have kept me alive in many dangerous situations are now the same ones that are preventing me from doing what I need to.

“Tony Stark and the little spider-child you’ve tried to tame.” The villain taunted me as Mr. Stark shook me, a lick of rage flared. How could he use Mr. Stark’s nickname for me?! I wanted to scream at this villain but my mouth stayed locked shut like my jaw had been sewn shut.

He rounded on the figure, “what did you do to him?!”

The figure just shrugged and gestured to me as he spoke, “you’d be surprised how spider he has become.”

I tried to understand, but everything moved in slow motion. Nothing made sense. Everything was happening too fast. I blinked trying to process but nothing seemed to make sense, why was someone else here?

“What do you mean?” Mr. Stark demanded looking at me with a look of terror, why was he scared? Didn’t he feel as good as I do right now?

The villain's face darkened slightly, “you’ve corrupted him and made him believe that he’s more human than spider.”

The scent shifted: come. The smell had sharpened into something more powerful and I felt myself moving. I wasn’t in control of my movements anymore; the scent that was enveloping me was the only thing that had control over my body. I had one goal and that was to get to the figure but I felt a hand on my arm preventing me from moving forward.

“Kid, snap out of it.” he pleaded. I wanted to. But the need to move was stronger: come to me. I wrenched my arm away and continued forward towards the figure.

“Look at how eager he is to get away from you.” They taunted, stroking my cheek and the scent shifted again: sleep. I felt my body get heavy and my eyes shut as I passed out.

———Tony’s———

My hands shook with the movements that I couldn’t force my body to make. I couldn’t do anything to stop Peter from walking forward and straight into the arms of that villain. I watched in horror as they stroked the kids cheek before Peter passed out and was carried away.

“FUCK!” I screamed, hands slamming down on the coffee table. Tears streaming down my face as I realized that I’d let Peter get taken so easily. My hands were balled into fists, “FRIDAY, assemble The Avengers. We’re getting Peter back.”

———Tony’s———

“Alright so what is the plan to find Peter?” I ask around the room. It had only taken 10 minutes for the majority of The Avengers to show up once they heard that Peter had been taken.

“The villain didn’t talk about why he took Peter?,” Clint asked. My stomach flipped with anxiety as I thought about the million different things a villain might possibly want with the kid but I nodded anyway,

“Only that he was going to ‘fix him’. He seemed to be able to freeze and knock Peter out from afar. He also seemed to be some kind of spider mutant.” I finished but I wasn’t happy. It already felt as though Peter had been gone for years and it was all my fault. I felt Natasha place her hand on mine squeezing gently. I appreciated the gesture but it did nothing to ease the guilt I was feeling.

Cap cleared his throat then started talking, “where do spiders hide? What kind of conditions do they make their homes in?”

Silence and everyone just looked at him with confusion in their eyes. He sighed slightly as he launched into an explanation, “because it seems as though the person who took the kid might have spider instincts and compulsions if he really is a spider mutant.”

This is taking too long. We don't have a solid lead on what exactly that villain is going to do to Peter and I was done trying to debate what was going to happen to the kid, “FRIDAY did you find anything when searching the cameras?” I asked, trying to keep the hope out of my voice but it was present anyway.

“No Mr. Stark.” Her voice came and I cursed and walked out while they continued their meeting. This was useless. I needed to find Peter soon. I could already tell that he was having a hard weekend and now this on top of all that. Shit.

———Peter's———

Wake up. I opened my eyes and found myself in different clothes than I remember being in. I was now in a robe. I was laying on an enormous spider web, the webbing felt different than any I’d ever felt. Straining my ears I could hear the traffic of New York just outside the building but everything within the walls was silent except breathing. I was immediately on the offensive when I saw the figure that had taken me from the tower.

“What do you wan–-” I was cut off by him walking up and hitting me along my temple with a pipe. He walked over and placed his hands on my face and I blinked up dazed slightly,

“I’m going to help you be perfect,” his voice was menacing but I could already tell that I had a concussion from the hit and I felt my spidey senses going off but I couldn’t get the strength to fight them, “you just need a few adjustments then you’ll remember how to be a real spider.”

Get on your knees. I couldn’t find it in myself to disobey the commands that were being whispered into my brain. I watched as he smiled at me, why am I listening.  I tried to get up but my head was pounding, regardless I managed to get one foot up as I tried to stand. When he walked over and strung me upside down with his webbing. All the blood rushed to my head for a moment before he put me back down. My head smacked the concrete with a sickening crack. Now everything was doubled.

“You need some food.” he mused looking at my prone and confused form, “I will be back.” 

Freeze. So I froze, dazed and scared but unable to move. The sun was now high in the sky by the time he came back with bars that I’d had before. He stole these from the Tower. Once more his face darkened when he saw the look of recognition on my face and I felt a hand connect with my face as he hit me hard. It hurt. I couldn’t remember what I was thinking about. I blinked, once, twice and then his face was normal again. But I felt like I was going to be sick, everything was spinning, but he was in front of me again.

“Eat.” he commanded and I ate the pile of bars that he placed in front of me. I felt incredibly full. Stomach churning and threatening to revolt against all the food, “soon~” he muttered looking down at me after placing a hand on my stomach, sleep. And I found my eyes closing and everything went dark. All my days there blurred together. Eat, hit, sleep, repeat.

After 1 week of being with him he decided I’d had enough food.

“I’m going to make you pure again. The Avengers have corrupted you but don’t worry.” He muttered in my ear as he laid me down on my stomach in a much more visible web than the nest. My head hurt from all the times he’d wacked me over the head, slapped or punched me and his favorite slung me upside down only to drop me the next moment. 

Suddenly I was aware of his mouth on my neck, his breath warm against the exposed skin, and the sensation of fangs piercing my skin, but just as quickly as I felt the fangs he removed his mouth. I want to cry out as I feel them inject something. I felt as, whatever it was, entered my body. It felt unlike anything I’d ever felt before both boiling and freezing. A horrific pain and also numbness. I could feel it starting to creep through my veins. But just as quickly as it had started it was over and he was standing up.

———Tony’s———

“Mr. Stark, two heat signatures were detected in an abandoned building on the east side. One matches Mr. Parker’s baseline” FRIDAY informed me and I jumped out of my seat,

“Could it be Peter?” I ask practically screaming and summon my suit already striding to the take off point before it’s fully assembled,

“I can not be 100% certain but I can inform you that one of those low heat signatures appeared when Peter disappeared and hasn’t left the spot while the other one has and every time it leaves it corresponds with a break in at the tower.”

I didn’t need any more proof. I was convinced that this one had to be Peter. It HAS to be him. “FRIDAY inform The Avengers. If they don’t want to come, tell them that is fine but I AM going.”

FRIDAY doesn’t respond but I don’t need her to. She’s always listening so I know that she heard me and I fly to the area of the city that FRIDAY had indicated then with her help I find the correct building and want to throw up when I look through one of the windows. Peter lies face-up in a web, dazed and the villain is hunched over him.

“Peter come here,” I called out, but he didn't move. The skin I can see is discolored with various stages of healed or healing bruises along with a nasty gash on his forehead. His eyes flicker over to the wall but they slide right past me and he’s just dazedly looking at the villain. The villain straightens up and starts laughing,

“Aww look Parker, Iron Man came to save you~” I wanted to kill him right then but suddenly Peter started moving, gingerly but still fast, he ran towards me the way he does any villain. Then, much like the day Peter was kidnapped, lots of things happened at once. One moment it’s just the three of us then there are six people.

Black Widow smashes through a window, Captain America hot on her heels. The Hulk isn’t far behind them, smashing through the roof before going back to Banner. In a blink Black Widow is pinning the villain and Cap had his shield to the guy's throat and Bruce was in front of Peter observing his condition and after Bruce studied Parker quickly he shouted,

“Knock him out. Peter’s still being controlled,” immediately the guy hit the floor and both Cap and Widow looked furious but I didn’t have long to relish in the villain's pain because as soon as he passed out Peter started sobbing. Like heavy gut wrenching sobs and I ran forward taking him from Bruce.

“M-Mr. S-Stark...” was all Peter managed before I was there.

“Shh,” I comforted as I pulled him into my chest and his hands clenched to my clothes. I grabbed the extra shirt Bruce was handing me and with some struggle because I didn’t wanna let go of him and he wasn’t going to let me let go of him. I got it onto him and it went down far enough to cover everything and then some. Although he’d had a robe on when I came in it wasn’t secured tight enough so I placed the shirt over him for additional comfort.

Peter pushed against me slightly muttering, “d-don’t.. No st-stop.. No-no more!”

I just shushed him holding him tight until eventually his mutterings stopped and he tried to talk,

“H-he…” Peter starts but breaks down into more sobs before he can finish and I just run my hand through his sweat soaked curls,

“I know. I know,” I assure as we start walking to leave the building but I realize that the kid is in no condition to be flying so I get Happy to come get us. I instructed the others to take the villain to the prison in the tower. Not really caring about the way that Widow and Cap both looked as though they wanted to murder the guy in our custody. Then it was just me and Peter waiting. After a few minutes of waiting I realized that the shaking had stopped and I looked down to see that he’d cried himself to sleep in the hug.

“So sorry, kid,” I whisper as I pick him up so he can sleep easier and he curls into my chest. Once Happy pulls up I slide into the car with Peter still fast asleep in my arms and Happy just looks at me sadly.

Chapter Text

Once we were back at the tower, Peter was taken straight to the med bay for Banner to assess. I wasn’t allowed in, no matter how much I pleaded. Cap and Rhodey kept me out.

“Tony,” Rhodey started with sympathy dripping in his tone, “I know how close you two are, but you going in right now like this will only make things worse. Banner needs to concentrate and Peter needs a calm environment. When he is stable enough to see people you’ll be the first.”

I’d already heard this speech 100 times. I didn’t want to hear it again. I just wanted to check and make sure that the kid I’ve come to care so deeply about is safe. After taking a few breaths and flipping both of them the bird I walked down to the prison and find the disgusting excuse for a human sitting, cuffed to the wall. His face is bloodier than I remember it being during the scuffle and I look at Natasha who just shrugs.

“He deserves it.” Was all she said. I just nod and look at him and he has the audacity to smile back at me,

“Open the door,” I say and the door opens and the smile that is on his face fades away, replaced with a look of terror.

“I’ll stay right outside Stark.” Was all Natasha said in response, in her usual calm tone, to me entering and that was the last sound I heard from her as the door shut behind me. Now it was just me and the man who hurt the child that I had come to think of as my own.

“Why?” Was the first thing I asked. I wanted to know why he decided to do this. Why did he think that he could get away with this? Why Peter?

He swallowed and just looked at me but didn’t answer. I took out a small cube from my pocket and held it up,

“You have one chance to talk willingly or I am going to start using force.” The villain looked unimpressed and unconvinced, “I have hung around with a young spider mutant for the last few months you don’t think I haven’t learned some weaknesses?”

His face goes pale but he still doesn’t speak. I smile as I hit the button and the device begins emitting low vibrations. With the help of Banner we were able to figure out an estimated range of frequencies that caused adverse reactions in spider mutants based off of Peter’s reactions. I watched as his back arched and he gritted his teeth in pain before screaming,

“S-Stop I’ll tell-tell you,” he panted and stuttered over some of the words but the declaration was enough. I stopped the device and waited patiently for him to begin talking. If he doesn’t start talking I’ll happily turn it up. I thought bitterly

“He needed to be fixed. He’s impure.” His eyes looked manic and it made my stomach churn, “you Avengers have corrupted him and he doesn’t truly know what he’s supposed to act like. I was trying to fix it.

I felt my face get red. He hurt and traumatised Peter because he wanted to ‘fix him’?! As if he could possibly know what the kid could need?!. The man continued, unaware of my growing rage,

“I had started to lose hope but then I spotted him. The opportunity was perfect. He doesn’t have any living biological relatives. Your intern is Spider-Man. So he is so entrenched in your guy’s team. There was no way that you guys didn’t mess him up.”

I was done. I couldn’t stand to listen to this any longer and I didn’t want to think about what he put Parker through for that whole week but I had to ask one more question,

“How many times did you beat him?” For the first time this entire conversation the man looked me in the eyes, 

“I didn’t beat him. He simply didn’t always listen so I needed to take some corrective messages that you might not wholly approve of. But I couldn’t beat him because if I did he wouldn’t have survived.” Although I felt sick I kept listening and at this last part I raised an eyebrow. At my expression he continued, “with his enhanced metabolism he needs to eat more than most and he clearly hasn’t been.”

I was done. I had to see my kid, I pressed the button, turning the cube up to the level marked mild to moderate irritation. I took no pleasure in watching the man in pain but then I thought of Peter and I didn't feel as bad. When walking out I nodded to Natasha before making a b-line to the bathroom before going to the medbay.

Crack. I watched the glass crack in a spider web pattern under my fist as I punched the glass, ironic I think bitterly, of course it’s a spider web. I looked down at my fist, small rivulets of blood running down my knuckles as I tried to get a hold of myself. The room filled with the smell of copper and the only noise was the steady dripping of the blood and my heavy breathing. I’d let the kid down so badly. I hadn’t protected him when he needed it the most. Was going to beat him till he was ‘corrected’. Like he was a fucking dog! I felt my chest tighten and my throat close as images of Peter stuck with that psychopath filled my brain.

Suddenly I was on the floor gasping for breath. I tried my normal technique to get out of a panic attack In 2 3 4 Hold 2 3 4 Out 2 3 4. It was working for a few moments til my mind went to the last time I was doing this technique. The movie night with Parker and everything that followed that. Shit. I can’t breathe.

Eventually I was able to get everything under control but by then I was completely exhausted. I looked down at my hand and noticed that the bleeding had stopped and most of the blood had dried. I wonder how long? The thought crossed my mind briefly but I quickly shoved that thought to the side, Peter was more important.

I made my way up to the med bay and when they saw me both Cap and Rhodey exchanged glances and I felt my heart drop. I quickened my pace and got to the door much quicker than it should take someone walking along the hall normally.

“What’s going on?” I demand as I reach them and they both put their hands up in a placating gesture,

“Nothing Stark, he is just fine,” Rhodey assures me and I immediately move to enter and they step aside allowing me to enter the room they had previously denied me entrance into.

Walking in, had I not known what I know I’d have just assumed that Peter was sleeping on a cot wearing one of his dorky science shirts, but knowing what I know seeing him sleeping on that bed sent shivers down my spine. 

“Stark,” Bruce called out, his voice gentle, but given the situation I didn’t care to think into the tone beyond that, “he is fine. He just needs some sleep and water. It doesn’t appear that the villain did more than knock him about a bit. He’s dehydrated but thankfully not malnourished. The things that are going to take the longest are the mental scars but he does have a mild concussion."

I just stared at Peter’s chest rising and falling as Banner was talking. I failed him. I let this happen to him. I felt the urge to go to him to hold him, to tell him nothing bad would ever happen again. But I didn't. I didn't want to hurt him more than he’d already been hurt. Just then his eyes fluttered slightly and I moved closer, still giving him some distance, but I wanted him to know that I was here and that I would always be here.

Once his eyes were open I could see those brown eyes that I’ve been missing for the past week, “hey kiddo…”

I spoke gently, not wanting to startle him. To my dismay once he seemed fully awake and his eyes were on me he moved away on the bed to be as far as he could from me. I didn’t know what to do. This kid, this kid that I’d spent countless hours with was now huddled on the edge of a bed fearful that I was going to hurt him. This wasn’t something money could fix and I didn’t know how to fix anything that wasn’t a robot.

“H-hey Mr.-Mr. Stark..” he stuttered out. I’d never heard the kid stutter before and hearing the hesitation and fear in his voice made my heart shatter. I sat down in the chair next to his bed and slid it away slightly so he could be on the bed instead of almost falling out of it.

“Do you want to talk?” I offered gently and the kid looked like I offered to shoot him. He just shook his head with a haunting look in his eyes. I just nodded, I understood. He just went through a trauma that, most likely, would haunt him for the rest of his life. He didn’t want to talk to me about it. Someone who failed to protect him from what happened. I felt my face heating up as tears began to gather in my eyes and I stood,

“I should le-let you rest…” My voice broke slightly as I spoke. But as I moved to leave I felt his hand on mine,

“D-don’t,” his voice was small and I could hear that he was almost in tears, “p-please don-don’t leave me-me…”

His last few words sounded more like whimpers rather than real words and I felt my heart shatter all over again. I paused. I wanted nothing more than to slide onto that bed and comfort this child that I’d started to see as my own. I also know what kind of trauma he went through and I didn’t want to hurt him, even if I listened to what he was asking.

“Okay kiddo, I won’t. What do you want me to do?” I ask turning back around to see him scanning my face and body, most likely searching and scanning for some kind of sign that I am lying to him. And that look, that hesitation that was held in every muscle of his body, hurt me in a way that words are too cheap and common to describe.

“Can,” the word was almost inaudible and I watched as his adams apple bobbed with hesitation as words seemed to fail.

“Do you want a hug?” I offered. Trying to take the burden off of him. The kid looked so scared but nodded. Then he cracked a small smile,

“Not ju-just trying to op-open a door?” I smile then shake my head before gently sliding onto the cot and maneuvering Peter so he can lay against me, “y-you’re warm..”

After looking at his eyes, the ones that all at once looked too old and too young to belong to him I sat down stiffly at first I still wasn’t completely sure this was the right thing to be doing. Then he snuggled against me and I relaxed slightly. Not just because his body was against mine but because I realized that I wasn’t going to break him if I relaxed.

At first when I came to the realization that I cared about the kid who was snuggled up against my chest I couldn’t figure out how he had become such an integral part of my life. But hearing that and looking down at his, now sleeping, form I realized that it was something that was inevitably going to happen because of how sweet and caring Parker was.