Was he dead? He had to be dead. After all, he’d done it. He’d finally done it. He’d ended it all. Hadn’t he?
But if he was dead… why did he feel so bad? Why did his head and his throat hurt so much? Why was it so hard to breathe? This wasn’t how he was supposed to feel. He was supposed to not feel anything bad anymore. He was supposed to feel good. He was supposed to feel light and free. Instead, he could barely move a muscle.
He opened his eyes and blinked, but for a couple of seconds, he couldn’t see anything. Everything was fuzzy and swimming in front of his eyes. He felt a little sick.
Michael woke up to the feeling of pain. He scrunched up his face and flinched back from whatever was hurting him. He was disoriented, felt groggy and weak. He moaned softly.
“Hey. It’s okay. You’re safe” A different voice told him. Michael opened his eyes and blinked a few times. Warm blue eyes met his own. A gentle hand caressed his hair. His sight slowly cleared and focused on the friendly face of a middle-aged man with short brown hair and light stubble on his cheeks and chin. There are two others wearing the same red and blue outfits much like the middle aged guy.
One was on the young side, possibly 15 or 16. This guy was lean and a bit muscular, his suit was red and blue. His eyes were also expressive as well. The spider emblem was a bit sharp, it was a little similar to Michael’s red back symbol.
The other one next to him, the other Spider-man was taller than him. Taller and lean. He was muscular, but lean. His suit looked different than any suit he’d ever owned himself, the spider emblem in the middle of his chest so big, the legs reached all the way down to his stomach
Michael’s spider senses tingled, but not in the way that told him that he was in danger. The three others got the same feeling.
“… You guys are like me?” He softly asked, astonished. The man grinned in that slightly dorky, but endearing way.
“Yeah. It’s pretty crazy. All three of us are Peter Parker or you can call me Peter 2."
The taller one raised his hand to introduce himself, "Peter 3."
"Peter 1."
Michael twitched again, as Peter 2 pressed something soft and wet against the gash right over his eyebrow. It smelt like disinfectant. “Sorry. You’re in pretty bad shape. We were able to help you out before you lost a lot of blood."
Michael held still now that he was slowly taking in his surroundings. He was lying on a small bed, a thick blanket covering him up to his chest. Peter 2 was sitting on the edge of it, a first aid kit lying open on the nightstand. They were back at his house.
“I… I don’t understand, why choose to save someone like me?" Michael helplessly said. His voice was hoarse. He suddenly realized how thirsty he was.
Peter 2 seemed to notice, because he reached for a glass of water on the nightstand. “Here, drink.”
Michael carefully sat up, the blanket falling back to reveal his bare chest. He looked down at himself. Some of his injuries had been dressed – the slightly deeper cuts that were on his wrists. He felt very self-conscious with his muscle and bruised body exposed like that, the scars were covered with bandages as his mask and top suit was on drawer, only his bottom suit remained on his body. These three had now seen identify and scars, he felt that the three were now giving off sympathetic vibes showing that they were sort of understanding his pain and struggles.
He bit on his bottom lip and took the offered glass of water without meeting the other Michael’s eyes. He drank greedily, almost emptying the glass in one go. Peter 2 took the glass out of his hand and urged him to lie back. “Tell us what happened”, he softly prompted.
Michael, now lying down again, just lightly shook his head. “Is this a dream? Am I a ghost or something?”
Peter 2 huffed, amused. “It’s not a dream and you're not a ghost.” He assured Michael, but his smile faded quickly. “We were able to find you on that rooftop. You were passed out and hurt.” He hesitated, then slowly reached out. Started to gently pet Michael’s buzz cut again which was getting a little long, he'll definitely need a haircut. “It’s okay. We can talk later. You should rest, let your healing factor do the rest of the work. I’ll make some food in the meantime.”
Michael wanted to argue. Wanted to know what the hell was going on now. But Peter 2 pulled the blanket back up, all the way to his chin, then went back to petting his hair. Warm blue eyes calmly returned his gaze. And Michael strangely felt safe, in a way he hadn’t in a long, long time, not since Fubuki was gone.
~~~
All three Peters were letting Michael rest up in the bedroom. They were in the living room of the penthouse. There were picture frames on the wall, it was Michael in his Spider-man suit where he was next to an astonishing beautiful woman. They could pretty much tell by the pictures of her alone screams nothing but beauty and genuine love all the same.
There were some pictures on the wall where it showed Fubuki in her Spider-Blizzard outfit next to Spider-man looking heroic and doing their signature stances much like the 3 Peter whenever they land on the ground heroically in their Spider-man outfits.
"Wow, she's…beautiful." Peter 1 says he checked out the pictures.
Peter 3 saw a picture of them on their wedding day, "Looks like they even got married."
Peter 2 takes a look at the photos on the fridge, "Guess they made it work on their relationship. That's a powerful bond right there."
"Totally, reminds me a lot of Gwen. Kind, understanding, loveable, funny, but she can get pretty scary when she's angry." Peter 3 sits on the couch, turns on the TV as he sees a video section. He clicks on the wedding section as it was showing the video of the wedding starting with Fubuki coming up the aisle.
The other two decided to join in, they were at the part where they were saying their vows to one another.
"Spider-man," she continued. "I swear to always keep you safe, to always make you happy, to wake up every day and dedicate all the love in my heart to you. No matter what happens, no matter what challenges we face, I will be with you, right by your side. Whatever nightmare you go through every night, I'll be right next to you in my arms and face them with you head on. We're here for each other, to support each other, until our very last day on Earth. It's easy to feel hopeful on a beautiful day like today but there will always be dark days ahead of us too, there will be days where you feel all alone, that's when hope is needed most. No matter how buried it gets or how lost you feel, you must promise me that you will continue to hold on to hope. Keep it alive, we have to be greater than what we suffer. And even if we fail, what better way is there to live? My wish for you is to become hope. People need that whether they appreciate it or not. Never stop being who you are for your mother, Yuri, May, and me. They would be very proud of the man you've grown up to be."
Spider-man was tearing up behind the mask. Fubuki spoke to him as if they had already been married for decades, a reminder that they were destined for one another.
"I swear that I'll always listen to you," said Fubuki. "I know you'll love me back with everything you have, I want to hear every silly joke, see every little cute thing you do, enjoy being around your childish behavior, be a part of your life forever. With or without the mask I swear that I'll always love you for who you are, Spider-man, you're the one for me."
Spider-man wasn't sure if he could top that. He'd sure as hell make it just as good.
"I'll love you forever too," said Spider-man. "I swear to do everything I can to make every day the best it can possibly be, anything you need, anything you want, I'll provide. I swear to be the best husband I can be, to give you everything I've got, to make a great life with you!"
Fubuki watched her loveable Spider in the world with adoration in her eyes. God she couldn't get enough of him.
"I'll always love you," said Spider-man. "I know you'll love me too. I swear to make the rest of your life amazing and be there for you through the darkest and best of times just like I have before. Whatever life holds in store for us, we will never forget these words. 'With great power, comes great responsibility' This is our gift and this is our curse. Whatever comes our way, whatever battle raging inside us, we always have a choice. It's the choices that make us who we are, and we could always choose to do what's right."
All three Spider-men could only think of one thing in their minds, 'Who'd this guy get so lucky?'
~~~
The second time he woke up, there was no pain and no distress. He was just warm and comfortable. He nuzzled the pillow and shifted under the blanket. The room was dark apart from a sliver of light coming in through the semi-closed door. He could hear some soft noises – the murmuring of a TV, the frizzling of something cooking. It smelled pretty good.
He moved on, putting on his suit which was freshly clean as he made his way to the kitchen. He could see Peter 2 standing in front of the stove. He’d barely stepped into the room before the older man looked over his shoulder. His face lit up. “Oh, hey. Good timing. I was just about to get you. Food’s ready”, he said.
Peter 1 was resting on the couch while Peter 3 was up on the ceiling with a blanket over his body much like an actual spider.
For a moment, Michael awkwardly stood there, not sure what to do with himself. The entire situation was so bizarre and surreal. All three of them had civilian clothing on to fit as well. But as for Michael, who was only in his Spider-man suit.
“You can sit down, you know” The man smiled, nodding towards the kitchen table. Michael stiffly did as suggested. A bowl of soup was put in front of him, as well as a plate with two grilled cheese sandwiches on top of it. “Sorry, I’m not a very good cook” Peter 2 sheepishly admitted, while taking place at the table beside him. “MJ does most of the cooking. I’ve been told my grilled cheese sandwiches aren’t too bad though.”
Michael glanced at Peter 2, then down at the food. “Looks and smells pretty good to me”, he softly replied, before reaching for the spoon. Peter 2 grinned at him.
Peter 1 and Peter 3 woke up a little while ago as the smell of grilled cheese was entering their nostrils.
They ate in silence for a while and the food was good. Nothing special, but good. It had been a long time since Michael had had appetite, but he realized how hungry he actually was, once the soup was gone and he was tearing into the grilled cheese sandwiches with gusto. Peter 2 watched him but didn't comment nor react to his slightly impolite table manners.
“Do you want more?” He instead asked once Michael’s plate was empty. Michael blushed, realizing how quickly he’d eaten.
“Uhm… no, it’s- it’s okay, I’m full now. Thank you.”
He nervously played with the sleeves of his too large sweater, while Peter 2 finished his meal more calmly. Michael kept glancing at him, taking in his slightly greying hair, the stubble, the broad shoulders. The muscular biceps straining slightly against the fabric of Peter 2’s shirt, every time he moved his arm to eat. The slightly raised and paler spot on his wrist, which Michael knew, that Peter 2 had organic webs much like him.
“Do you remember what happened before you ended up here? Well in your own home?” Peter 2 asked, startling him out of his thoughts. He was done eating and leaned back against the backrest, his eyes expectant, but not pressuring, as they met Michael’s masked red eyes which were sharp much like Peter 2’s Spider-man mask.
“I- I was just walking in an alleyway… heading to a rooftop… then everything went black.” Michael replied, not bothering to hide his bewilderment.
Peter 1 stared at him, frowning lightly. “You just stopped on the rooftop? And nothing happened?”
Michael returned his gaze, almost sheepishly. He shrugged. “No… not that I can remember. There was nothing there… I just…” He fell silent. Lowered his gaze. He played with a healing scab on his knuckles. “… I just felt really bad…” He nibbled on his bottom lip. “I wish that I could just stay there back at that rooftop.”
It was silent for a moment. Michael could feel the older man’s eyes on him. He avoided them, instead just nervously picked at the scab on his hand, until it started to lightly bleed again.
“Stop it”, Peter 2 scolded, but not unkindly. He put his hand on top of Michael’s, stopping it from hurting himself. Michael twitched but didn’t move. He stared at the hand on top of his, warm and heavy, noticeably larger than his own. Slowly, he raised his gaze. The other Michael was looking at him, his face serious. His eyes sad and sympathetic. “Kiddo, what happened to you?”, he asked.
Michael couldn’t help it. His eyes started to burn with unshed tears. He choked up, tried to swallow down the lump in his throat. He tried to hold back, but despite his efforts, he just couldn’t help it. He broke out in tears.
Even Peter 2 seemed taken aback for a moment, leaning back and looking at him with wide eyes. He released his hand in the process. So he resorted to just hiding his face by lowering his head, covering it with his hands. If only the ground would open up and swallow him whole. He felt weak and vulnerable. Ashamed of himself.
He shouldn’t be crying like a baby in front of these guys. Surely, out of all the Spider-men, he thought he was the most pathetic one.
Shaken by his sobs, Michael didn’t even notice when the older man shifted closer with his chair. “Hey… hey, hey…”, he softly said. A gentle hand caressed his back. “Michael right? It's okay. It’s okay.” Peter 2 carefully pried his hands away from his face and instead gently pulled him into a hug. Michael put up much less resistance than he felt he should. Instead, he just let himself fall against the other Michael, crying and shaking even harder.
Peter 2 closed his arms around him, one hand in the hair at the back of his head, the other stroking his back. “Shhh”, he tried to calm him down.
Peter 1 and 3 kneel close to Michael as they pat his back comfortingly.
It took a while, but Michael’s hysterical crying slowly turned into quieter sobs, until he was just occasionally hiccupping with tears streaming down his face under his mask. The older man still held him, not urging, or pressuring him into anything, just waiting for him to calm down. Michael closed his eyes and buried his face against his shoulder.
"Things haven’t been going so well for me…" Michael mumbled with a voice so tiny, he felt like he was 11 once again instead of 23. He hiccupped and raised his mask to use a hand to wipe away some of the tears.
He blinked his eyes to clear his vision and sighed deeply. “My mother is dead. Yuri, and May are dead. My wife Fubuki has been missing for a year. The Blizzard Group is dead. I've been removed from my own universe and been sent this one. I have no one and nothing left, for the past 12 years of being Spider-man I have nothing left. I don’t know what to do. I thought I could handle it, but I can’t. I just can’t. I- I'm too weak…I'm not as strong as I used to be, not anymore, not anymore.” He started sobbing a little again.
Peter 1, 2, and 3 didn’t say anything, but Michael could still feel their hands, gentle and comforting. Michael raised his own shaky hands, curled his fingers around the older man’s shirt. He felt the absurd desire to crawl into Peter 2’s lap, curl up, and make himself as small as possible. Hide. Disappear. Disappear completely. He just wanted this all to stop. He just wanted this pain to go away.
“It’s so fucking stupid!” He whined. “My life has been nothing but a curse since I got these powers at 11.” That startled a chuckle out of said three Peters knowing what it felt like with these powers. Which in turn made Michael half laugh, half sob. Some of the tension left his body and Michael sagged a little against the older Spider-man. Peter 2 gently pushed him a little back to look into his bloodshot eyes.
“Hey.” He softly said. He brushed curls of brown hair out of Michael’s brow. “Listen to me. You are not weak. Everybody would struggle with what you're going through. This shouldn’t be happening to you. It’s not fair. It’s not right. It’s- it’s too much. No wonder you’re hurting so much.”
Michael’s lips pressed against each other in a line, new tears welling up in his eyes at Peter 2’s words. Hearing these words was like having his feelings and thoughts validated. Like maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t overreacting, and his despair was justified after all.
“I felt it, you know? I didn’t know what it was. Not until now. But I felt it. I felt how lonely you were. How sad. How much you were hurting…” Peter 2 continued, slowly lowering his gaze. He looked a little upset too. It took him a moment, to talk again, clearly thinking hard about something. “I… I think… I think there’s a connection between us, all of us. I think- I think, when we came to your universe, we knew we had help you. Prevent you from doing something you'll regret."
Michael stared at him. He’d stopped crying, too taken by what the older man was telling him. His hands relaxed around Peter 2’s shirt. “You… you really think so?” He asked. He should be worried.
Michael, who’d stopped crying completely by now, stared at the older man, his gaze flickering back and forth between his blue eyes.
Peter 2 returned his gaze. He averted it again after a moment, shaking his head. “This is beside the point”, he said a little awkwardly. He sighed. Looked back into his eyes. “What… what I meant to say is, that- that you're not alone. You know? You're not alone.”
It was silent for a moment. Then, Michael sniffled, a tear slipping out of his eye and running down his cheek. He slowly leaned in again, closing his arms more firmly against the broader body in front of his. He leaned his chin against Peter 2’s shoulder and closed his eyes. He felt strong arms wrap themselves around him again. A gentle hand started stroking up and down his back in that soothing manner once more.
'You're not alone' He repeated in his head and dared to hope. Michael fully stood up to his full height as the others did the same, made Michael a little insecure since he was still somehow the smallest Spider-man in the room, he really didn't like being the 5'4, "Ok…so this is my life story. You guys may want to sit down for this."
2 hrs later.
"So that's it. My life's story from the beginning all the way up to here. In this penthouse. Where you saved my life. From committing suicide."
"Yeah I think we got that covered." Peter 2 commented as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Wow, that's a lot to take in." Peter 3 said still at his grilled cheese.
"Man, and I thought my story was a little breathtaking but yours definitely takes the cake." Peter 1 replied.
"I get that a lot."
Suddenly a knock was heard at the door. Peter 1 decided to go get it, he opened the door to see who it was meanwhile the other Spider-men were talking.
"Hey Michael, there's someone who wants to see you."
Michael gets up from his seat to see who was at the door who bring escorted by Peter 1, it was none other than Fubuki in her torn up hospital gown who was limping, covered in bruises, blood pouring out of her eyes, one bloodshot eye and one bruised eye, her hair was even a little longer than usual, her body even had claw marks and stabs, whatever it was that she went through it must've been hell.
Fubuki breathed softly as she continued to smile no doubt to hide her broken mind and pain that she had endured for a full year of being missing and having to deal with Carnage's little funhouse of sanity breaking, "H-hey Web-head. Long time no see."
There are no words, there are absolutely no words to describe how much happiness that Michael was feeling right now but now was not the time for him to overreact from joy, now was the time to try to comfort Fubuki as much as possible and finally get answers once and for all.
Someone lands on the balcony, two figures move the sliding door as they enter the penthouse in a rush, it was Saitama and Tatsumaki. They both stop their movements as Tatsumaki was the most shocked of all, she sees that her little sister was on her knees being held in the arms of Michael who still had smile on her face as her eyes were closed, no doubt very exhausted from whatever hell she had been through.
Michael exhaled softly as he sensed Tatsumaki's presence without looking as he continued to stare at the resting Fubuki in his arms. "Tatsumaki help me heal her....please."