Although Pepper Potts was famous for dealing with Tony 'PR nightmare' Stark, she was just about to create a big one herself. Yes, even she had moments where she went against all logic in her brain telling her to plan things out and just said screw it and announced whatever it was. It was rare, but this was one of those occurrences. Sometimes it was because she was so passionate about it, she couldn't keep from talking about it. Other times she just couldn't keep a secret to put a reporter in their place. Like right now.
"Thomas Adamson from Youth Magazine. Stark Industries likes to present as this company that uses about 10% of its profits to give back to the community. How can you justify saying this and do nothing about the growing population of homeless people on the streets of New York and actually around the whole country and the average age?" The reporter asked, getting increasingly more aggressive in how he asked the question.
Pepper was furious. Not only can an organization only do so much, but instead of acknowledging that they, a multi-billion-dollar company spends 10% on of its profits, which is an extraordinary feat because these profits also need to be used to compensate for failed products, invest in new ones, could be pocketed by the stakeholders. They could be doing so many things and instead, they are using it to give back to the community. They are helping children go to college when they are less fortunate, they help veterans get the support they need, including medical expenses. They are helping transgender children get things they need for their transition. That's just the tip of the iceberg.
How dare he claim that they are doing nothing for the community because they can't immediately supply a solution for a rapidly growing problem that only increased significantly somewhere in the past of last year. They are not a relief organization, their support is not the main goal of their company and they have to deal with so much backlash from greedy stakeholders, legalities and it's just... It's infuriating because they would love to have solved the problem already and now they are accusing them because they haven't yet.
"Mister Adamson, although I would advise you to next time not ask a question so out of context from the original intention of this press conference about the appointment of a new Head of our Legal department, I would like to clarify that we are currently working on shelters across the country dedicated to youth, especially those from the LGBTQ+ community. This, however, requires time and space amongst other things. It requires people to run shelters, it requires places for the shelters to be, it requires all sorts of legal matters that the legal department is currently knee-deep in. So needless to say, we don't need to justify anything as your claim is false. I will not be further commenting on this project and will only be accepting questions about Mx. Ramirez's new position in our company. She proclaimed and continued on with the press conference.
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Meanwhile, Joan was sitting behind their desk and watching the press conference, groaning. They were going to murder Pepper. She can't just make these claims and not answer anything about it. Misinformation was going to be spread, the release dates were going to have to be moved up or the public would react negatively, and combatting the backlash about the fact that it would focus on teens in the LGBTQ community needed more employees than were scheduled to be present today. So yeah, they were going to murder Pepper Potts. But not right now, because right now they needed to think of how to handle this mess.
When they heard the phone ring, they eyed it wearily, it wasn't going to be more bad news, was it? One sigh later they picked it up. "Stark Industries PR Department, you have reached Joan, how can I help you?" they asked, trying their hardest to keep up the façade of being ready for every challenge and able to help everyone.
"Yeah this is Kai, I saw the press conference, need me to head on in?" Joan could almost cry with happiness, thank god for Kai.
"Yes, yes, please. That would be great. Thank you so much."
"Don't worry about it, I get it. Wait until Tony pulls one of these, it's going to be twice as busy." Kai said, chuckling. "Well, I'm about ten minutes out, I was just at the skatepark but took a break to watch the press conference. Good thing I did, ain't it. Well, I'll see you in a bit. Go and do your thing, you got this."
"Thanks, Kai, you are a lifesaver." They said and with that, they hung up. "FRIDAY, can you remember me to look into Kai's performance? Is this something he does often? When is the last time he got a raise, that sort of thing."
"Of course, Mx Ramirez." FRIDAY responded.
"Oh none of those formal titles, although I'm glad you are using the correct one. Just call me Joan. You are going to make me feel old."
"Naturally, Joan. I would like to inform you that Miss Potts is video-calling you."
They hit their head against their desk a few times before responding. "Thank you, FRIDAY, accept please." A holographic screen appeared in front of her, the width of her desk and the right half was covered by Pepper's face. The other half had the current social media statistics displayed, as they had indicated when they set it up. "Ah, Miss Potts, to what do I owe the pleasure." They said, sarcastically. "It couldn't possibly be about a surprise announcement that someone decided was not worth discussing with the... I don't know, head of PR?"
Pepper smiled apologetically. "Sorry Jo, that reporter was just..." Pepper made a strangling motion with her hands. "That doesn't excuse it, I know. Let me know what I can do to help."
Joan waved the apology away. Even though it wasn't what they wanted their first day to look like and it would mean a lot of problem fixing, they too knew that they would probably have reacted the same way. It's what happens when you put together a bunch of passionate people and give them the opportunity, they are going to do something they are proud of and want to shout it from the rooftops. "Oh, can't whine about having to do my job. I would've preferred it once I had gotten to know my staff better, but we can't get everything in life. What you can do is go and talk to Legal, you know, the people who currently have the most to do with the project. Try to have them work even faster. Pull a few all-nighters, make it a pizza party I don't care. The public is expecting a launch date and it will ideally be within two weeks instead of the planned two months. I want legal to get back to me within two days so I know what to announce."
Pepper ran a hand through her hair. "Pizza party, yeah that could work. Create the best out of a bad situation. Keep up morale. Besides, the earlier this is up and running, the better. Kids being able to get out of abusive households, all that. Alright, I'm going to be in my office, trying to gather as many employees as possible and try to get enough pizza for everyone. Thanks again." Pepper was already hurrying off when FRIDAY ended the call. Joan inspected the now full-screen statistics. Twitter was raving about it, Tumblr even more so. The hashtag QueersStanSI was already trending. But there were quite a few comments on the demographic as well. Some saying stuff as kids pretending to be part of the community, just to get shelter. Sending out a message to all employees that whoever was free was encouraged to help with this PR emergency, paid in overtime. They got to work on reacting to the messages with the official Stark Industries account. This was going to be a long day, they could already tell.
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Spider-man was swinging through the streets of Queens, looking around for people to help. The rain was pouring and he was already freezing, but it wasn't like crime stopped because of a little bit of rain. People still needed help and accidents still happened. So he wasn't surprised and was strangely relieved when his spider senses got significantly more noticeable as he saw a car crash waiting to happen when a car started slipping on the wet road. He managed to shoot a web to stop the car from hitting other cars and out of danger and went to check up on the driver. The driver was, understandably, in a state of shock. But instead of just needing to catch their breath and being filled with adrenaline, they were actually starting to have a panic attack. Thankfully, Spider-man had experience with those, so he knew a few techniques that could help them
After knocking on the window to announce his presence the driver managed, with some effort due to shaking hands, to let the arachnid hero inside. He immediately got to work. "Hey there. As you probably already know, I'm Spider-man. I saw your car slipping so I pulled you out of danger. Now I need you to breathe with me. Is it okay if I touch you?" He started and his question earned a nod. He grabbed their hand and placed it on his chest, pushing away the dysphoria he was currently feeling because this was more important. "Breathe with me okay, in for four seconds out for eight. In 2 3 4 Out 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 In 2 3 4 Out 2 3 4 ..." and this continued on for a bit until the panicked individual had calmed down enough that they would be okay if they were left alone. Meanwhile, a police car had stopped by to check up on them but after seeing what was going on, they had waited in their own car until they saw a wave from Spider-man beckoning them over.
"Can you tell us what happened...." The man paused. "Miss... Mister... Mi.." Oh, this was awkward.
"Don't bother, I'm neither. I slipped. I lost control over the wheel. Thankfully this man over here managed to pull me away from the rest of the traffic and other dangers before anything else could happen. But I panicked, and he helped me with my panic attack."
The agent, still confused by the gender of the person, nodded. "Well then, could I see your drivers license please?" He asked and the person handed it over after some digging for their phone in their bag. The man looked at it, noted some things on a notepad, and handed it back. "Thank you, miss. Have a nice day." After that, he got out and walked back to his partner in the car and drove away. The driver did not. They sat there, their hands gripping the steering wheel so tight that their knuckles turned white. Then they put their drivers license back in their phone case and threw the phone into the backseat of the car. It appears they had forgotten about the other figure in the car.
"They will never understand. Well, maybe someday, but for now they won't. It sucks and it shouldn't be like that but... it is what it is." Spider-man said, trying to console the visibly upset driver.
They slumped in their seat. "It's not even that. I know I'll get misgendered my whole life. I know that. I realize that. It just hurts even more that I told him that I was neither and he decided that the marker on my license meant more than my words. I usually don't even say anything but he couldn't figure out what to call me and I had this surge of euphoria and was confident for just a second and then it got stomped back in the ground and I hate it."
"I get what that feels like, honestly. I'm just a bit more privileged than you are but I still get it."
"What, you are a bit more privileged because you are cis? I think you are a whole lot more privileged than me, buddy."
Spider-man burst out laughing. "You... you felt my chest, you heard my voice, you heard me say I know what it feels like and you still assumed I was cis? Oh, thank you for making my day." The driver turned to face him now, eyes wide. "Just, maybe don't tell a whole lot of people. Maybe tell a trans friend if they are feeling down but... I'd rather not have it out in the public if you get what I mean."
"Yeah, no sure, I get that. Uhm. Thank you. For telling me. Yeah. Holy shit. I'm Nico. They/them pronouns." They said extending their hand.
"Spider-man, alias unknown. He/him pronouns. Do you... have a discord or something by any chance?" He said, grabbing and shaking it.
Nico climbed in the back to grab his phone. "Uhuh, yeah. If you remove your glove I can write it on your hand?" Spider-man removes his glove and Nico grabs a pen that is lying in the pocket under the window and starts writing the code needed to add them as a friend. "There you go, thanks for offering it. This is just... awesome."
Spider-man put his glove back on and got ready to leave. "Need anything else?"
Nico debated whether to ask for it or not. In the end, he decided that he could always ask. "I was wondering... I mean if you don't want to, say no by all means but... Can I perhaps get a hug?"
"Of course, I love hugs. Don't get them enough." Spider-man reached out to hug them. It was nice. One of the best hugs they had ever had. "Well, I'll add you later tonight. Stay safe, maybe even park the car somewhere and walk back and come back when it is less slippery. Good luck!" And with that Spider-man slipped out of the car and started swinging away.
The first thing Peter Parker did when he slipped through his bedroom window was take off his Spider-man suit and change from the size-up binder he used when patrolling to a hoodie. He may be binding for over 12 hours every day but he tried to compensate by at least not wearing it at home if his dysphoria allowed it. Stretching a bit and coughing to make sure there wasn't fluid building up in his lungs he gave his body and himself room to breathe. He stuffed his suit away and walked into the apartment to find his aunt.
"May, are you home?" No response. Weird, May should be done with her shift by now. He checked his phone, but her latest message was her enquiring whether tacos for dinner was alright with him. Peter shrugged and sent her a text asking her where she was. He wasn't too worried for now, but he would if she didn't respond within 15 minutes. But he needed to fill those 15 minutes so he decided to add Nico as a friend on discord. Nico responded within 5 minutes, saying that they were home safe and thanking him again. Peter liked Nico, they seemed nice. It was this that kept Peter busy for another 20 minutes. But when Nico had to leave and Peter checked the time, he realized he still hadn't gotten a response from May. Now he was starting to worry. It wasn't like May to be home later than expected and just not say anything.
His anxiety started to take over and he eventually dug through his phone to find the number of a colleague of May that she had sent in case of emergencies. One ring. Two. Three. "June speaking, who am I speaking with?" Oh, thank god it was the right number. He always thought it was funny how June and May were friends, the joke wasn't lost on him. But he couldn't laugh about it now, not while his heart was pounding faster and faster. "Hello?"
Oh right, he had to actually speak. "Uh yeah hi. I'm Peter? Peter Parker? My aunt gave me this number. May. Parker." That came out... reasonably well.
"I'm glad you called Peter. I couldn't find your number anymore. You are probably wondering where May is. The thing is, she is in quarantine."
"Quarantine? What, why, how long?" Okay, now he was actually panicking.
A sigh was heard from the other end of the phone. "It's just a precaution. Someone came into the ER with these strange symptoms and the symptoms resembled something that could be highly contagious but we only found that out after your aunt attended to him to assess what was happening to him. Actually, a lot more people are in quarantine, but I figured right now you would only care about your aunt."
Peter started frantically packing some stuff to take to the hospital. He needed to talk to May. Needed to see her be alright. "I can visit her, right. Of course not inside the containment but I can see her?"
"Yeah, you should be allowed, being a relative and all that. Send me a text when you arrive here, will you? I'll take you to her without having to go through all those forms." June replied.
Peter sighed out of relief. "Thank you, June. You are a lifesaver."
"No worries. See you in a bit, Peter."
"See you in a bit." June ended the phone call as soon as he said that. "Alright, important decisions. Binder or no binder. Who am I kidding? I'm not leaving the house without a binder. Binder or size up binder." He said to himself. "Don't know how long I'll be there. Think I should play it safe. But I don't want to get too dysphoric there. So I could just wear a newer one and take the other binder with me just in case. Yeah. Sounds like a plan. Good job, Pete! Thank you, Peter!" He finished the verbalization of his internal debate and started rushing to the hospital.
____
He texted June when he was about five minutes away and she was there as promised to escort him to May. He was really glad he wouldn't have to go to the people at the desk because when they walked past the desk, he saw that the guy who didn't like him was manning the desk and he didn't really need anything else on top of his current point of anxiety.
Following June with just a few stops because someone needed her help Peter arrived at the quarantine room. He didn't know what to expect. On one hand, he expected her to just be... May, but with a clear divider between them. On the other hand, he expected to see her lying in a hospital bed, close to dying. What he got was a bit in-between. She wasn't very ill it seemed; you wouldn't even tell that there was something going on if not for the IV that she was attached to. And of course, her being in quarantine.
She was glad to see him, he could see that. "Peter! You are here! Did June call you?" She said. She sounded exhausted. Was she just tired or was she infected? Did they know whether she was infected? What even was the infection, what kind of disease? Peter didn't know and he didn't like not knowing.
"No, she didn't. She couldn't find my number. I called her after you didn't come home and didn't let me know." I replied. "But it's fine. Just a tad hungry because I was waiting on tacos with you. More importantly, how are YOU?"
May waved him away. "Oh, I'm fine, I'm fine. Don't worry about it. That gentleman over there might have whooping cough, and he may have coughed while I was checking on him. But the cough is what gave us the suspicions so it seems we caught it quickly. It's just hoping that he didn't give it to any other people and that we don't have an outbreak on our hands. For now, we just need to wait for the tests to come back. At least it happened in the hospital, so we have a lot of professionals handling it." She explained.
However, Peter was still not at ease. Whooping cough could be bad. Real bad. Also, this meant Peter would have to be home alone for an extended period of time or spend long nights at the hospital. He already knew this wouldn't end well. Did he trust himself enough to take care of himself? That would be a no. Maybe he could stay at Ned's house? No, he couldn't be a burden, he didn't know how long this would take. Maybe May had thought of this already. "Are you- Do I need to stay home alone while you are here?" He asked, hesitantly.
This made May give him a sorrowful smile. "I'm afraid so buddy. Unless you can stay at Ned's or something like that. But you are becoming an adult, maybe this will do you some good. Give you a sense of independence, something like that. You can always visit me of course and I'm soon going to get my phone back so you'll be able to call me if you can't turn the stove on or something like that." Peter nodded. This was going to suck.
May and Peter talked for a bit after that, until May got her dinner and Peter admitted that he was starving as well. June had tried to get him dinner too, but the kitchen was already unprepared for the quarantined people, let alone for superhero arachnid relatives with high metabolisms that they didn't know about. May told him that she'd refund him for all the grocery shopping he'd do while she was away, within reason, as she couldn't exactly hand him money right now. But then it was time for him to leave and he decided to get a pizza at the Italian restaurant nearby the hospital. They always had a lot of food for a small price and he usually ended up with a doggy bag. He figured it'd be fast and he might also have some pizza for breakfast so he didn't have to get that either.
After a quite tearful goodbye, with a promise to visit tomorrow and to stay safe, Peter left the hospital.