Chapter Text
“HI, this is Peter Parker and this m-is my submission for the…th- science Fair. This Larry… and” a disappointed sigh escaped from his slightly trembling lip as his posture slumbers. He moves toward the camera that is positioned infront of him. “Larry is a shit show who doesn't know how to speak” Said peter while staring at his drone. It didn't look anything thing special, in fact it seems as a disaster waiting to happen, and he knew it, yet in his mind it didn't hurt to participate in another science competition except this one have fancy rich kids who attend fancy expensive schools that can afford an actual laboratory.
Peter chose to not replay the video once again as he had been it at for hours, choosing to give up. There's not any progress made, every time he sit infront of that camera he mutters words dumber than the one before, like a curse splitting his tongue to stripes until it's impossible to utter the words in his minds.
glancing at the watch hanging loose from his little lab, it's not much, a wary old train compartment abandoned in a huge room in similar conditions. No one knows about this hidden place, Peter assumes since no one ever came her before he did, or even after. He himself didn't knew about it until accidentally seeing it from the train's window.
8:37pm, the time. He haven't been out for long but May would be worried by now.
He packs the camera, gets his drone and gets out. passing through the dirty tunnels, which seems to host a bigger clan of spiders every time he passes through and no matter how much he cleans it up, soon enough they would reach his lab. disgusting, Peter thinks.
The lab wasn't something fancy, really. he builds a few things, and on special occasions gets to mess and fix with broken engines that he finds in the garbage,if he could actually call it garbage when it's the broken pieces from the car repair shop down the street. Gary, the owner of mechanic sees him sometimes, he never comments about a 14 years old teen digging in his bin. However Peter guessed it wouldn't be a long time before he will be told to stop, which was exactly what happened except the minor detail of Gary asking him to work in the shop after school sometime in exchange for the parts.
The way to his apartment isn't far, technically it's Ben and May apartment but they let him stay. This area in Queens isn't the safest, but Ben is a police officer who like to tell him things are looking up lately. The only hassle is relocating from his lab to the train station without getting hit by a bus or caught by security, May will kill him if she- a sudden sting toke him by surprise, the shook hurts more than the spider's bite itself. He slapped his neck, feeling the squashing of the spider body under his hand, it's too small for Peter to distinguish it's blood from the organs.
Shity spiders all over the place.
It wasn't personal, really it wasn't. But when an aggregation happens in one of your favorite places you cannot do anything except hate it, or in Peter's case to tolerate it hatefully.
He despise the heated pimple the spider created with his bite and how much it itches against his shirt collar. Yet, if he didn't let it go and moved quickly out if those tunnels, then the pimple would be the least of his problems. Lowering his head and jogging till the hallway gets darker and darker the more he's moving away from his hideout to the rest of New York.
Stepping on the train track is a bit spooky, him alone walking in the dark till his feets hurt. He can use the flash on his phone, however it's not worth the waster battery and if he's gonna waste his phone battery then it's worth losing on some music -especially since he mesmerized the way by heart- the same songs Flash makes fun of him for listening to.
SHE'S A 90'S SUPERMODEL, UH-UH-UH.
WAY BACK IN HIGH SCHOOL, WHEN SHE WAS A GOOD CHRISTIAN.
Putting his ear buds on while make sure he turns the right direction. He kneels close to the edge of one hella big step, then jump of to the middle of the under ground train track. Honestly it's a good band he shouldn't be embarrassed at all, although Ned doesn't like it as well so maybe he should start looking for something a bit more settling.
Peter thoughts lingers around as he switches from one topic to another, he thinks about the band, after that he gets back to the competition. His abilities to create and build are out of questioning, however he doesn't have the funds to buy the pieces he needs to make whatever he wants. Normally the annual science fair he joins is backed by the school, so he gets to have some kind of support. This time it's different with all types of people participating, from IVY universities geniuses to the elites of scientists and inventors around the U.S.A. of course they weren't Tony Stark level or the actual ELITE-elite, although they're so close to the point of using this event as a hiring site by big companies, even the tenths place could gain scholarships.
Except Peter would've liked to win, first or second place to be exact.
I USED TO KNOW HER, BUT SHE'S GOT A NEW BEST FRIEND.
..dum...
A DRAG QUEEN NAMED THE VIRGIN MARY TAKES CONFESSIONS.
. .Duuuum....
SHE'S A 90'S SUPERM-
Wait,what is that sounds?
The bottom of his feets are tingling funnily while he's getting goose bumps all over his body. A weird sensation overwhelms him wholy.
The train is early, Peter think, no scratch that, he knows it's the train and he can't do nothing about it, nothing, noth- GOD DAMMIT.
Peter bolted running forward, the sound isn't getting any lower. It didn't make any sense for him to run his way back to the lab and towards the train in hope for getting of the track back to the empty hall, so he only have to hope the station isn't far.
He stayed running cursing the unexpected early arrival of the train in his mind. The metal track got shakier the more his vision blurred with darkness, his breath hitching and slowly after a piercing pain near his abdomen. He feared the idea of catching a breath as in his mind all what matters is the movement of his legs. Fighting his arms is a wasted effort so he let them, but he couldn't let his lungs distract him. Peter Haven't even given them any regards. Because right now as streaks of two lights evade the darkness around gradually. The train white lights scorching, searing lights behind him -getting closer and closer than any step he's ever going to stomp- joined by the soft yellow dim coming from the station, the one he's supposed to be at in the next moment or he would be crushed to death. The sounds are only getting worse, as he feels them gushing his blood cells. For a moment he could imagine the track as a rope feeling of it means death, so he fights whatever holding him back to stay on track, because nothing is of importance right now except staying on the rope. Trying to ignore any fear that could hold him down.
As he sprints faster as the adrenaline is making his magic on Peter's body, even if it doesn't matter no more.
Stuck in the fuzzy heat and lights for what felt like a life time, no matter how much he runs the ground still feel like a drum underneath him. And when orchestrating the song of death its getting weirdly leisure, he's starting to doubt. Feeling a need to glance back to the train to face his inevitable death ,which seems to be only a hair slim away from him.
At this particular second Peter managed to hold to thoughts only.
First, it's his family waiting in NY right above him, May and Ben who couldn't possibly know about his outrageous den that he regrets having at the moment. Those people who will cry and mourn for him. He didn't want them to weep again like how they did for hus parents.
Secondly, he thought about how much he wanted to puke.
Another second passed and he could feel that this is it.
A sudden electricity shot through him. He'd been running his fastest but now it's on a whole other level, an energy he didn't know he could ever possess, even with the adrenaline rushing through his veins.
Peter lunged himself off the tracks in a swift motion in the blink of an eyes.
It have way too brisk for him to, Peter couldn't grasp at what possibly could've happened. One beat he was feeling the train's winds in his hair and the other he was on the station's platform, clutching the cold surface, the lack of air hitting him hardly ad he began gasping.Peter couldn't believe it, still it didn't matter, he's so God damn happy to be alive, so happy.
In fact it doesn't matter what the hell happened to make him cross the very fine rope he'd been dangling off for God knows what, because now he's in the land of the living again.
The goose bumps are back as he chocks on his own breaths, they're way chillier than before, washing all over his body in relief.
Barely half a minute passed when people started surrounding him as he shivered due to fear. The voices were too loud but the loudest was the sound of his own heart, as it drums quieter with every breath he takes.
He stands up, feeling weak in the knees.
The druming sound continues as if he's still on that track, that's when Peter realizes that the sound wasn't the metal layout shaking or the train, it's the sound of Peter's heart beats, loud and throbbing in pain.
One heavy step after another and he manages to get out of the subway before any security guard came his way.
By the time Peter arrived home half of his inhaler had been used up, and he was on the brink of passing out. Opening the apartment door with a bit of a lift up so he can minuplate the door into being quieter when announcing his arrival. He stared at the living room where his aunt was watching TV, some show about the lives of doctors, he guessed. May looked greatly engaged with the show to notice his arrival, he toke it as an opportunity to hide the mess he was - sweating and breathing heavily as he dragged his feets of the floor- so he tiptoed the stealthiest he could manage. Still, he was out if luck as May noticed his presence after minutes.
His sweet aunt as expected is sickly concerned after seeing his looking worse than ever, she proceeds to ask questions and touch his four head looking for any sign of a fever. Peter wanted to acknowledge her, but he couldn't make any sense of the word uttered to him with his nausea only getting worse.
He wanted to tell May who's overwhelmed with worry upon seeing her nephew's yellowish skin and slightly dilated pupils. Peter tried brushing it off but even he, himself, couldn't disregard his current state.
"...-You must've gotten the cold from Ben.." Peter heard May between the mumbling and the words the didn't get through the facade covering his brain. "-Yeah,I probably did." He muttered softly, interrupting May when he did.
"Hey, May. I think I gonna go lay my head,aaah, bye-rest, bed" Peter pointed at his room, then giving his back to May heading to his room feeling lightheaded. He hardly managed to close the door threw himself onto his bed, closing his eyes to sleep before his head hits the pillow.
He moved in his sleep way more than usual, until he eventually woke up due to the discomfort. Peter thought it must've been a couple of minutes, maybe half an hour of tossing and turning. Definitely not a 16 hours coma of sleep.
Or so he calculated, he had arrived home Friday night close at 9:30pm and now it's currently 2pm of the next day.
What the heck
He had missed lots of shifts, Gary must've waited for him for way too long and he STILL hadn't filmed a video for Larry.
dragging his feet acroos the floor, Peter felt a shity as his sleep was. His lefs were sore as hell and he's sure he lost the record player while running yesterday. Then adding to the terrible TERRIBLE day, he have to face to May after brushing her off last night. Except may wasn't home since she have a double shift today so he won't see her at all.
"Finally awake I see."
Uncle Ben's warm voice reached his ear, the words didn't come as a scolding at all but rather amusement with a hint of worry that not anyone can catch usually. It had a certain effect on him, making him feel as if all the craziness he face is over now, making feel as if everything is alright.
Following the source of the voice when he entered the kitchen, Peter was met with his uncle eating-probably some leftover from yesterday- with his uniform still on.
"Your aunt told me you came home very late yesterday. something I should be worried about?" Ben said while trying to gather each inch of seriousness out of his body to keep a straight face to attempt scolding Peter.
"No,sir."
Even if Peter didn't have it in him to lie, he still can't bring him self to worry Ben about the whole mess with the train and his secret dungeon. It would be for the best if he didn't tell them, yet. Beside, yesterday was a one time accident, a dumb mistake that will never happen again.
"Make sure to be home before dinner."
"Yes, sir"
Silence stretched out for a couple of second while both of them were tempted to speak. Eventually, Ben proceeded with a little hesitation in his voice but staying strong on the eye contact. "You know drugs are bad for you. Don't hang around sketchy people, especially some of those gang wandering around. I know it's a stretch but I gotta make sure you know all of this"
"Of course, unless building Lego with Ned is sketchy, then I'm alright"
Ben looked relieved to have a verbal confirmation out of Peter. His uncle valued trust above all else, which made Peter feel a tiny bit guilty to not confess his secret to the man infront of him.
"If anything happens, Ned will snitch to May immediately, so make sure you stay friends with him till forty" Ben said while loading his now empty plate in the dishwasher.
All peter could do is to laugh sheepishly at his uncle's statemen and reply to the last time "Yes ,sir".
"So, how was school today?"
"Huh?"
"School? May told me she woke you up before heading to work. Didn't you go, pete?"
"I must've slept over her calling" Peter staring at the ground bewildered, as his brief coma was lighter than any sleep he had before, in a way it was impossible to even over sleep anything. "and my alarm as well".
Peter realized that his uncle shared the same confusion as him when he looked back at his uncle's face he saw the disbelief in his eyes, accompanied with a slight frown as his eyebrows touched each other. If anything Ben was surprised way more than disappointed or angry by any means. His nephew was never someone who took school on a whim. It's quite the opposite actually, he goes on and beyond to excel in every aspect and to hold a perfect record. He even have a ridiculously big poster of MIT hanging above his bed to feel closer to his dream, then all of a sudden he sleep through all his classes, Peter himself would be suspicious if it wasn't for the fact he knows what happened last night. Still he considers this whole thing odd.
He glances back at his uncle even when didn't realize his eyes betraying him to avoid the questioning looks directed his way. Shuffling his mind to have an answer, Peter chooses lying ince again in the favor of closing this chapter of his life. He mutters some lame excuses about being tired and carrying too much pressure because of the science fair. And his uncle, Ben, eat it up, or more accurately- doesn't have any reason to believe otherwise.
'Peter, you should start taking care of your self. That competition or even school aren't that important if the price is your health'.
Ben said before heading to work, leaving Peter all alone at home. Also, before Peter found himself hanging from the ceiling upside down barefooted.