It's Not Over Yet

Ch. 5

Natasha landed the quinjet right outside the Avengers facility. Surprisingly, it had remained completely untouched during the battle. The worst thing that had happened to it was that all the plants had died and the place was covered in dust. Tony quickly set his bots out to fix that, though. At Peter's immediate request, he also went into the garage and started one of his cars. He wasn't sure how far he would be able to drive before he came across destroyed roads, but he figured driving was probably better than flying the kid home. First, though, Peter changed out of his suit and into some spare clothes he had left at the Compound.

"Let's go, kid!" Tony called, honking the horn. Peter came running out of the Compound and tossed his backpack into the backseat. He jumped in the passenger seat and Tony shot out of the driveway and towards Queens. He didn't like the idea of Peter being out of sight and out of reach, but he knew Peter could contact him if anything went wrong and May would be there to take care of him too.

"I wonder if she looks different," Peter said. "Do I look different? Do you think she'll recognise me? What if she doesn't and thinks I'm some stranger?"

"You look the exact same as you did in fifth grade, don't worry," Tony replied. Peter glared at him and he just smirked. Peter rolled his eyes and continued to wonder aloud what it would be like to finally be back with Aunt May. Tony didn't mind the constant chatter. He knew he would be without Peter after dropping him off with his aunt and would miss the kid's endless talking, so he let him think out loud as they drove to Queens and parked outside Peter's apartment complex.

The neighbourhood was untouched. Most of New York had been fixed after the battle, but there were still sights that were obviously where battles took place. Thankfully, Peter's neighbourhood was still intact and he could see people walking around inside. Peter took a deep breath and reached back for his backpack. Tony asked if Peter wanted company, but Peter shook his head. It was best if he did it alone, probably. He promised to call Tony later that night before he went to bed and stepped out of the car.

"See you tomorrow, kid," Tony said. Peter grinned and nodded. He waved to Tony as he shot across the street and into the apartment complex. Tony waited until he was out of sight to turn around and return to the Tower. Pepper had said she would wait for him there. While it had been destroyed during Thanos's two year reign, Pepper had brought in a construction crew to rebuild it. Tony had never been happier to see the Stark sign at the top light up after calling Pepper to say he was within sight of the Tower.

* * *

Peter walked into his apartment building and all but ran to the elevator. He bounced slightly as he rode it up to his floor then ran down the hall. He took a deep breath then knocked on the door. No one answered. Peter twisted the knob and found it unlocked. He walked inside, but the apartment was dark and he couldn't hear Aunt May anywhere. He frowned and walked further into the apartment, shutting the door behind him.

"May?" he called. No response. He saw a note on the table and walked over to it. He picked it up and skimmed over it: At work. I'll be home at 9pm. Love you! - May. Peter smiled and set the note back down. She was okay! She was just at work as usual. How she knew he would be returning today, he had no idea. He figured Tony had probably called ahead to let her know.

Peter walked into his room and found it exactly how he left it. His window had been shut, though, so Aunt May had been in his room. He walked over to his comics and picked one up. It was dusty, so he brushed it off then sat on his bed. It had been a long time since he'd read comics. He turned on the lamp by his bed and began to re-read his comic books. He wanted to stay up until Aunt May got back and what better way to do that than read comic books that he hadn't seen for two years?