Spider-Man: Coming Back Home

Chapter 8

WARNING: There is a mention of suicide in this story. Stop reading now if you are triggered by this and please be safe. Love y'all♥️♥️♥️

Peter spends the next day and a half in his room. So much has happened in the last month, he just can't take it anymore. All the bad news. All the deaths. His father figures are all... ALL... gone. He can't take it anymore, and lies on his bed, not getting up once. He can't get out of bed. Not with this happening.
Suddenly, Peter hears his aunt gasp. "Peter!"
Peter jumps out of bed, ready to dispose of anyone breaking in. He normally would never feel so hostile, but these were strange times.
"What is it?" Peter asks frantically, running toward the kitchen, where May was.
"Peter..." May looks utterly defeated. She is sitting at the quaint kitchen table, phone in hand. She hands her nephew the phone. It's a FaceBook post.
"No." Peter reads the post again and again. It can't be. Not her.
The post reads:
"Last night my amazing daughter Liz Allen was a victim of suicide. She couldn't handle her father in prison any longer. She couldn't handle the move. She couldn't handle Thanos. Or the deaths of so many people. My Liz went to school in Queens until five years ago. I don't know what I'll do alone. I miss you, Lizzie. I don't know why you took the pills, but I know you're out of pain now."
Peter, in tears, remembers how much he loved Liz. He can't imagine that he is the reason she's gone. He failed— as Spider-Man and as Peter. He hopes Liz's mom, who wrote the post, is okay. She was always so kind to him. She didn't deserve this. No one did. But what can he do? This is his fault, and he knows it. At least, he thinks so.
"I don't- I don't know what to say..." May sighs, knowing full well what Peter is thinking about. "Peter, she loved you. She knew something was up with you, and it was clear she cared about you even when you left her at the dance. She loved you."
Peter can't even look at his aunt and stares at the ground silently as one more tear streams across his face. He looks up. He tries to speak, but words don't come out. Peter's face burns from the tears streaming down. He suddenly feels himself collapse to the ground, his knees buckling and back bending over him. He had missed so much, and he hopes Ned is okay. He tries to speak once more, but all that comes out is a whimpered, "Why?" Peter can feel every muscle in his body tense as he thinks again about the last five years. How much he'd done wrong. He feels his face turn as red as the Aether. He tries to get up, but his arms aren't strong enough yet. He isn't strong enough yet. He has no idea if he ever will be.
"Peter," May sighs, looking down at her nephew. "It's not... oh, what do I do to help you? Do you wanna watch 'Grease' again? You always liked that one..." May laughs to herself, but the humor soon leaves her heart once she looks back at Peter.
Peter shakes his head, sobbing still. May gives him a knowing nod and sits down next to him as he cries and drifts off to sleep.

"Peter? Peter, can you hear me?" Pepper says to Peter, who is suddenly in his bed. "Peter, wake up." As Peter opens his eyes, he sees two warm, kind faces: Morgan and Pepper. The two are smiling at him, clearly wanting to tell him something.
"What are you doing here?" Peter asks. "And in my room?" Peter frantically looks to see if he's wearing anything other than his boxers, and is very relieved.
"Peter, you get" Morgan gets interrupted.
"Peter, your aunt and I have been talking..." Pepper explains, "We have some things to talk about. Firstly, we"
"You're my brother!" Morgan exclaims.
Pepper smiles at Peter, as if to confirm, and gives her daughter a look. "Not biologically, of course!"
"You mean like when you and daddy"
Pepper's eyes widen. "Right, like the opposite of that." She turns to her daughter and whispers, "Who taught you that?!"
"Wait...?" Peter says.
"Peter, Tony and I always thought of you as a son. I don't know if you"
"Really?" Peter is elated. He always wondered if it was a mutual feeling. "This is.. amazing."
"Well, we'd like you to come live with us. Your aunt thinks it's acceptable, but if you"
"Of course!" Peter exclaims, tears in his eyes. "Of course!"
Morgan flies toward Peter and gives him the strongest hug a five-year-old has given him. "That's my brother."

"Peter? Would you wake up and eat your dinner, please?"
Peter opens his eyes, confused to be on the old, ratty couch in his living room. "May?" He asks, "What happened?"
"You don't remember... you don't remember Liz?"
Peter comes back to reality from his dream. "Oh. Yeah. I remember."
"Okay. Wash up, okay? Pepper and Morgan will be here in a few minutes."
"Wait, why?"
"Morgan wanted to come see you. Now go wash up!" May responds with a smile.
Peter was excited to see his sister again. She always knew how to make him happy.
"Peter!" A familiar voice says from the doorway.