I don't think there really are any significant TW here, there is some mentions of food and just the general themes of homelessness and all thats associated with it. Let me know if I am missing anything.
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The first thing Peter did as he exited the tower, was text the group chat. "Got the internship. Will talk about it in person after I had time to process."
Ned, of course, was too excited to realize that adding questions was going to overload Peter even more because he got flooded with them. The final messages did say 'of course you don't need to respond now because you are processing' and 'but just... holy shit dude. I'll just have to be excited for you'. Peter loved Ned, they were best friends for a reason because they could just be themselves around each other, however crazy they may seem.
Peter didn't know how to feel about this. All of this. He should be excited, right. This was an incredible opportunity. So why did it make him panic. It might have something to do with the fact that he was just in such a stressful situation that he was unprepared for. Spider-man is always on high alert, Peter Parker was just trying to make a good impression. That doesn't mean he wasn't on high alert, he pretty much always was. It was just that he thought that anxiety was about impressing Mr. Stark.
When he walked out, he realized in all his hurry to get out of there he forgot to check back in with the staff he met. But he supposed he would be coming back soon enough. Damn. Tony Stark offered him an internship. He was coming back to Stark Tower. Somehow terror and glee managed to coincide within his brain. He was excited that Tony Stark, Tony Stark, wanted him to intern there. It was a dream come true to talk with the man, let alone leave such an impression that he wanted him to come back for an internship. On the other hand, he was afraid that every single mistake he made would ruin his chances of working for Stark Industries forever. Of working with Tony Stark forever. He wasn't sure whether he could handle that rejection.
Then of course there was also the matter of his hidden identities. He was planning to go stealth, getting to know Tony as Peter Parker, and only Peter. But Spider-man was also something that he needed to keep hidden. The fact that he was homeless was also a fact that he preferred not to be revealed. He didn't want Mr. Stark to think less of him.
He realized that he needed to talk this through with his best friends to actually get his mind to quiet down. Get some different perspectives. "Delmar's in 15?" He texted the group chat.
Almost immediately he got an excited response from Ned and a non-committal response from MJ. He headed over to Delmar's and ordered his usual. "Can I have the number 5, extra...." He started before being interrupted.
"Extra pickles and pressed extra flat. I know, mijo. You taking it with you?" Delmar interrupted him.
A blush started to appear on Peter's face. "No, MJ and Ned are joining me here in a second. Ned likes to switch things up and MJ has a usual but sometimes chooses vegan or vegetarian so I can't order for them."
"No worries, mijo. Look, there they already are. Here, take some chips on the house. You are a growing boy."
"Oh no I couldn't possibly..." He tried to argue.
"Nonsense. Don't test me or I'll make your sandwich free as well. Theirs too if you keep it up." There was a hint of playful anger in his voice. Enough that Peter knew he wasn't mad, but he was also serious about following through with his threat.
He didn't even get another chance to argue though. "PETER!" Ned said, slamming the door, causing Mr. Delmar to throw his hands up in the air and curse in Spanish. Ned didn't a notice a thing and just ran to give Peter a hug so tight he wasn't able to breathe for just a second.
"Sup, losers. Hey, how long does it take for Ned to hug you like that before you pass out from lack of oxygen?" MJ said, scanning the board to see what they fancied that day. Ned almost immediately let go of Peter, panicking.
Peter took a few deep breaths, his chest tight due to the combination of the hug and his binder. "Wasn't really hoping to find out, if you don't mind."
"Pity. Delmar, do you still have vegan cheese?" They replied, then directing the question to Delmar.
Delmar grumbled a little bit. "Yeah, yeah. I get why people would want to eat vegan, but not why you would eat vegan cheese. Maybe I just haven't found the right one though. You want the number 3?"
"Yes, please. With the hot sauce as I know the one you use is vegan. And I like this vegan cheese, as long as it is on one of your sandwiches of course."
"Hmrpfh. Flattery won't get you a discount." He replied. Peter couldn't help but notice though, that as they went to pay that the extra charge for vegan cheese wasn't added.
Ned, having recovered from his excitement, also ordered and they went to sit down in a booth. It was practically deserted, save from a couple who appeared to be on their first date and the regular writer who liked to write accompanied by a sandwich and coffee from Delmar's.
Peter put the chips in his bag, as they were a good emergency snack. He looked up and both of his friends were staring at him, waiting for him to talk. To explain. MJ at least was still, acting nonchalant, Ned was literally shaking the table by how much his leg bounced. He took a deep breath and started explaining.
He explained about the interview, and the explosion that followed and how Mister Stark had asked him when he could start immediately after. He told them about Stark Industries, the people he met and the food and drinks they had on offer. Honestly, he almost forgot that the reason he was still talking about Stark Industries was because he was avoiding a different topic. The topic of why he was off.
Almost.
He decided to just bite the bullet. "The last foster placement couldn't support my needs, and I realized that with my extracurricular activities, personal life and... well.... trauma, the chances of me finding a home were very small. And even if I did find one, I would probably feel guilty, like I was taking away a place from someone who needed it. Or that I would get injured, and the foster parents would get accused. Or that they wouldn't be able to afford enough food for me." He took a deep breath, letting his words sink in for a second. "So, I went to Mister Abu. He mentioned that the Pepper Potts Foundation might be a better place for me than the shelter. I spent the night with him, and the next day I went to one of the shelters. I have been staying there since."
He didn't realize that it was possible for Ned to be speechless, but here there was proof. MJ was looking straight into his eyes, he could almost see the gears turning in their head. Chances are, they knew he was still leaving things out. But he also knew that this was enough of an explanation for now.
"What could we do to help you right now?" Was the first response, MJ carefully having selected their words.
"I am honestly not sure. The foundation has some things covered like a bed and showers and food. But I also don't want to eat too much, because other people also need food." He decided to ignore the pointed looks that they were both sending him. "But maybe some snacks at Stark Industries would make up for the less food I am eating. I just don't know how often I will be going there, how often I can grab a snack. I do think I need a place to stay and clean my wounds. I don't want to do it at the shelter because they might ask questions, but the rooftops aren't exactly hygienic or sterile. So, if you wouldn't mind it if I drop through one of your windows occasionally?"
"Of course, loser. Maybe send a message to see if one of us is up if you have the time. If nobody responds or if you just need the closest house, just drop on in. Our windows are open to you and even if you ring the bell someone will open the door."
"Yes, dude. We might not be able to take you in, but you are always welcome at our place." Ned got over his stupor and piped in.
Peter felt a little bit of tension leave his body. "Thanks, guys."
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Peter knew High School liked you to 'expand your horizons'. He hated that it meant being forcibly paired with people. There is the odd time that someone learns a different side of someone and gets along, but usually people are friends for a reason. Sitting next to your friends makes it just a little more bearable. It also didn't help that being one of the top students, the expectation of an easy A with none of the work was very common amongst his previous pairings. Peter was in general just not looking forward towards the new seating and partner chart.
"Listen close, everyone. I am going to call out the names and point to where you will be sitting. Do not move until I say so. Just because you know your new place doesn't mean that the person sitting there does. Pairings are not up for discussion. You are in high school, and will need to be able to work with all kinds of people in college and in the workforce." The Chemistry teacher droned on and on.
Finally, it was time for the names to be called. It started with some of his classmates but slowly it started to become more relevant. "Leeds and Brant. Center table in the back. Parker and Thompson, right in front of me." Peter was not sure how to feel about this. Ned was probably ecstatic, he liked Betty and was looking for ways to get closer to her. Flash was.... not that bad anymore. Previously this would have been hell, of course. But Flash had changed. They avoided each other most of the time, only sharing the odd moment at the shelter or at school. Maybe this would change that.
Ned clapped him on his back. "Come on dude, we need to go to our new places. Good luck."
Did he need good luck? He knew why Ned said it. Flash might have been rejected from his friend group but for all he knew he might resent Peter for it. Who knows, maybe he did. Maybe that why he was avoiding him, only talking to him to try and see that he would not share his secret.
Peter was glad that he had already finished his last batch of web fluid. Having to move that to his new desk without anyone noticing would have been difficult. Now, he could come back later to set up a new batch. He would have to be even more sneaky, with Flash instead of Ned sitting next to him.
It was awkward. Neither of them new how to act around each other at school. They couldn't just... disregard years of bullying without having to explain to people what was going on. While the classroom was still filled with noise from the shuffling of students trying to reach their new desk, Flash cleared his throat and tried to break the ice with an awkward "Well at least meeting up after school shouldn't be that hard." Peter snorted, actually snorted. That was one way of looking at it. Who knows, maybe after this they wouldn't be so awkward anymore.
Right now Flash was the only person who understood that part of his life. He might not comprehend it, saying the wrong things or lashing out, out of habit. But he understood. He knew what it was like at the shelter and he knew what it was like to not know what the next day would bring. They were still underage kids, CPS could come knocking at the shelter at any moment.
HissmilefromFlash' jokehadbarelyfadedoranotherthoughtpoppedintohishead. "Doyouthinktheymadethesenewpairingsbeforeorafter.... ourdynamicshifted. BecauseI'mjustimaginingthattheyputustwotogetherforentertainmentortryingtoworkthingsoutbetweenusandusalreadybeinglike... yeah." Peterrambled. Ifhewasgoodatreadingfacialexpressions, hewouldactuallythinkthatFlashwassmilingathiminadoration. Buthewasn't. Still, Flashwassmilingathim. Theyreallyneededtogetusedtothisnewdynamic, andfast. Becausetheywerestumblingconstantly, tryingtofigureouthowtodealwithhidingthingsandadjustingatthesametime.
Theydidn'tnoticetheincredulouslookstheyweregettingfromtheirclassmates, whowerewonderingwhethertheyhadlandedinanalternatedimension. ParkerandThompsongettingalongwasnotsomethinganyonehadforeseen.
Theteacherwasalreadyseeinghisoddsofwinningthebetreducesignificantly. Karmareallyisabitch.
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So uhhh, christmas gift I guess? My internship was something I really needed to focus on and after with my minor I had the time but... well it's not exactly writers block but executive dysfunction that I was struggling with. Switched up my meds some more and right now of course is christmas holiday so I wanted to finish the chapter that has been sitting open on my laptop for all these months. I'll try to post another one soon, now I still have the story fresh in my head but past times I've promised that multiple months have gone by soooo.
Either way, christmas is weird right now because we usually dont celebrate it the day off, we have this like combined celebration and we dont like mandatory things. But, my mom is sick and im literally getting overstimulated by the coughing and blowing of the nose and she needs sleep but with the slightest movement of us she wakes which sucks because it means that I am confined to my room during the day because I get overstimulated and the tasks I *want* to do I can't really do because I want to just watch a series or something while ironing my clothes but I don't want to wake her by a sudden noise in the series etc. My autism doesn't like the lack of routine (though that was already a thing with the minor in general) but my adhd hates that it can't be impulsive right now. Worst of both worlds
Either way, let me know what you are looking forward to in this book. I have general outlines of the next few chapters but yaknow, I am the writer so I can always incorporate some stuffs.
Happy holidays and if you are reading this in like... a week, happy 2024!