A Sick Spider-Man

Rain and Rough Beginnings

CHAPTER 1

As Peter Parker walked to school, he thought about everything that had happened in the last couple of weeks. He was living with the Avengers now, and they were all so accepting. They had welcomed him into their group so willingly after Aunt May had died a few months ago and since then he has become friends with each of them. Tony, Bruce and him would talk science for hours. Clint and him were in the middle of a prank war right now, and it was so much fun. He loved to hear Steve's stories about his past, and Peter helped him with modern day technology. Natasha was like a cool older sister to him and they would go on runs every morning. Thor was so funny and always made Peter laugh with his silly Asgard lingo. Even when he got reminded of Aunt May and he started crying, they were there trying to make him forget for a while because somerimes, it was easier to forget than to face the pain of her death, even though it hit him harder later.

Peter looked at the puddles of rain water on the ground, the sun making them reflect light in just the right way. It had been raining almost non-stop for 3 days now and, as much as Peter loved splashing in the puddles and overall having fun in the rain, it also made him sad in a way that only rain could. Rain did that to you sometimes. It made your memories shine brighter somehow and Peter's memories had too much to do with Aunt May. He felt tears burning his eyes, threatening to spill over. He needed a distraction and he needed a distraction now.

Up ahead MJ was walking while listening to music on her ear buds. She swayed slightly to the music and the raindrops in her hair were shining. Peter sighed of relief. Perfect. As if feeling someone looking at her, MJ turned around and looked at Peter. Peter, embarrassed for being caught staring at her, looked away and blushed. As Peter caught up to her, she had stopped and waited for him, they made eye contact and Peter could feel himself blushing again, even though MJ was chill about it.

"Hey." Peter said, looking for a distraction from this embarrassing situation and Aunt May. "What's up?"

" Well, literally speaking, another raincloud. Physically speaking, nothing much. How about you? " That was one thing that Peter liked about MJ. She was so smart and she wasn't afraid to show it. Not to mention she wasn't afraid to show who she was, and she was pretty. MJ was looking at him expectantly with her beautiful bright eyes. Why was she doing that? Oh, right. She had asked him a question.

Peter didn't want to tell her the truth, that he was thinking about Aunt May and that made him sad. He didn't want to worry her, and he also didn't want to make it seem like he was weak, so he just said, "Nothing much." And MJ moved on to talking about school, while Peter was still thinking about the rain and what it reminded him of. All the things he dreamed about, but couldn't have.

When they got to school Peter could tell that MJ knew something was up but, not wanting to hurt his ego, she let it go. Peter had never liked telling people what was wrong. MJ knew this about him. He always wanted to seem happy and, for the most part, he was. It was just those moments when he wasn't that he didn't want to show weakness, so he buried it. She was okay with that though, so she said goodbye and walked to class, thinking. Thinking about Peter and his problems that he didn't want to talk about. Being worried about him.

                                                                ************

Meanwhile, Peter Parker was still outside. He had found Ned in the crowd of students and was now talking to him about MJ.

"Dude, she likes you!" Ned had said when Peter finished recalling the awkward situation. "I can tell."

There was no way that Ned would have been able to tell. He didn't know the first thing about girls and he had never had a girlfriend. To be fair, the last time Peter had been on a date was homecoming and that had ended with her having to move away because of it. So, truth be told, neither of them would have been able to tell if MJ liked Peter, but it was the thought that counted.

"Sure. Whatever." Peter said. It had started to rain harder now and heavy drops were falling from the sky faster . Peter shivered as the rain soaked his shoes and socks. He was regretting choosing a light jacket instead of something more rain resistant. They walked inside as the warning bell rang through the school, echoing for exactly 2.4 seconds. Peter had counted the other day when Ned was late to school and now the sameness comforted him. It made him feel safer, somehow.

Walking to class he thinks about all of the people in his life. Death can do that to a person. Make them hold tighter to those they love, knowing that someday, they might loose them too. He thought of the Avengers and what would have happened if he hadn't gotten his powers. He wouldn't have a home right now and he wouldn't feel as loved as he did. He wouldn't have learned all the lessons he had learned and he wouldn't be able to say he personally knew Captain America. If he hadn't known Ned, who knows what he would do half the time? He would be lonely and so bored! And if he didn't know MJ he wouldn't have as many awkward converstions, sure. But he liked those awkward moments with her. Looked forward to them, even. And then, if he hadn't known Aunt May, well, that's a whole different story. Wiping away his tears, he walked into class and sat down. 

                                                                              **********

Usually Peter would wait for Ned after school so they could walk home together. Today was no different. Other than the weather, Peter had a normal day at school. That was, until Ned didn't show up to walk home. 

Peter waited there for 30 while minutes until he started to get worried. Ned was never late to meet him. What was the hold up? Just as he was about to go into the school to look for him, he felt a buzz in his pocket indicating a text. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and sure enough, it was from Ned. 

Ned: Don't wait for me. 

Peter: Are you okay? 

Ned: I went home early. Didn't feel good. Don't worry about it.

Peter: Be there in 5 minutes.

As Peter walked up to Ned's house it started to rain again. Peter was so focused on Ned that he didn't have time to be caught up in memories. He knocked on the door and then walked in. Both of Ned's parents worked during the day so he knew that no one would be here to answer the door. He walked up the stairs and into Ned's room. The first thing he was was Ned. He was sitting on the floor reading Harry Potter. Peter internally laughed. Ned looked up from his book and looked at Peter.

"Hey" he said. Peter could hear the congestion in his voice, something he hadn't noticed earlier in the day. Peter felt like a jerk. How could he not have noticed that his friend had been sick? He was too caught up in his own issues to see that everyone else had issues too. Obviously he wasn't a very good friend. But he would make it up to Ned. Somehow.

"Hey" Peter said back. He could tell that Ned knew that he felt guilty. Unlike MJ, he pointed it out right away instead of ignoring it.

"Don't feel bad. I didn't tell you because I didn't think it was this serious. It's not a big deal. Really, don't stress it." Ned said. 

"How long have you been sick for? " Peter asked, wanting to know just how guilty he should be feeling. He could see that Ned was thinking about lying or not even saying anything at all, but in this end he gave in.

"Just a couple days." He said. " It really isn't a big deal though. It's not like I'm dying or anything. " Of course Peter knew that, but it didn't stop him from feeling bad. He felt bad the whole time he was there and still felt bad when he left a couple hours later. 

By now, it was pouring rain and Peter was soaked within minutes. Not only was there an excessive amount of rain, it was almost freezing. At 42°F (5.5°C) the rain coming down was more slush than water.  Peter was shivering by the time he got to Avengers tower. He was planning on doing his homework when he got home, but he felt so tired that he just went strait to bed, ignoring the slight headache he had.

Hey guys! That was the first chapter! This is my first fan fiction so please share advise and comments with me! I would love to know how to improve my writing!

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