Peter's P.O.V
"Okay Peter... you gotta calm down. Just... Just breathe..." I take a deep breath, looking around and making sure no one is around to be worried about me. Why did I have to be so stubborn and stupid to follow after them despite being told not to?
I missed May and Ned and MJ and I wish I could just go back. I let out a heavy sigh and sit down on the ground, bringing my hands to my face. Suddenly, I hear someone getting close behind me and I quickly turn around.
"There you are," he says, "you can't just run off when we're here kid. Seriously. It's bad enough that our 'teammates' think they own the place..."
"Sorry..." I mutter, catching his attention.
"Alright, out with it. Better now than later."
"No it's just..." I start, looking away, "I don't know... Maybe I shouldn't have come, y'know?"
"You don't say..."
"Still! I have to do something!"
"Kid. This is scary and I understand why you're scared. But we're here now and... as much as I want to send you straight home, I know I can't."
I stay quiet, looking up at him. Then I stand up and nod. He puts his hand on my shoulder and squeezes it tight for a moment before letting go and tuning around, making his way back to the others.
I watch as his figure disappears and everything around me turns black.
.
.
I wake up with a start, nearly falling out of bed. As usual, I scan my surroundings, letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding when I know I'm still here.
My dreams have been getting more and more real, like they're more of a memory than a dream. But I can't seem to remember anything of what my dreams are showing or saying.
I bring my hands to my face, feeling sweat pierce my forehead.
"You know you talk in your sleep?" I hear someone say suddenly and I jump, frantically looking around my room. My eyes soon land on the person sitting on a chair in the corner of my room. "Oh, sorry. Did I startle you?" Stephen asks, putting away the book he was holding.
"Uhh... Just a little..." I mumble, letting out a sigh.
"Sorry."
"No, it's alright..." I say, looking at him confused. "Is something wrong?"
He's quiet for a few seconds. Then he stands up and walks over to my bed, sitting down at the edge.
"I'm afraid to say that... something is wrong." I gulp. "You've been having dreams, haven't you?"
"How did you know...?" I ask, leaning back against the headboard.
"I don't know." He answers dryly.
"Wha... But you just said..." I stammer.
"It's weird, but that's how this whole thing works I suppose."
"What are you talking about? What is this 'thing'? What is it that's wrong?" I ask.
He's quiet for another few seconds, keeping his eyes fixated on the floor. Then he looks back at me and his eyes only show sadness.
"You can't stay here Peter." He says regretfully.
"Stay here? You mean at the tower? You mean I have to go to some foster care? Does Tony-"
"No not-" He cuts me off but he stops for a second and I looked at him terrified.
I don't want to go to foster care or some orphanage. I just found a family and suddenly I have to leave?
"Not... what?" I ask, my voice faltering slightly.
"I don't mean it like you have to leave the tower just... Oh how should I explain this..." He mutters the last bit for himself.
"Do you think my dreams have something to do with this?"
"Most likely." He looks at me. "Do you remember what they're about?"
"Barely anything... Just... that I'm somewhere else and there are people there..."
"What happened yesterday in the lab?"
"I... I don't know." I say. "One moment I'm in the workshop, then suddenly everything around me just..." I pause for a second. "Everything was chaos and in ruins. The sky was a mix of red and orange and..."
"You don't remember more?" He asks carefully. I shake my head.
"The figures... The people there... They just... just disappeared except for one."
"Which turned out to just be Tony?"
"Yeah... though, I think I also saw another figure in the background. But they didn't make any attempt to move towards me."
"I see..."
"Doc... What if I'm just going crazy? I mean... what if I was just making it up in my head and maybe I've hit my head too hard on something or what if this is just my head coping with everything that happened to me with May and everything..." I start to worry but he places his hand on mine and shakes his head.
"You're not crazy Peter. And this is not... directly from trauma... per se."
"How do you know that?!" I snap, immediately regretting my action. But he doesn't seem to have been faced at all.
"Because I'd know." He answers simply and I just look at him with desperate eyes.
"Then what's... what's wrong with me? What's happening to me? Why am I suddenly seeing these things and... and getting these stupid hallucinations and dreams?" I ask, desperate for some kind of logical answer.
"Nothing's wrong with you Peter. We're just losing time."
"What...? What are you talking about? What time?"
"This isn't real Peter." My breathing gets shaky for a split second. "Nothing of this is real." He says regretfully, looking around the room.
"W-wait... what? What do you mean nothing of this is real? That can't just..." I stammer, looking at him with wide eyes.
"This is a dream created in your head for some unknown reason. The perfect dream."
"Then Why would my 'Perfect Dream' have my aunt abusing me, people dying and so many other stuff that are just... terrible?" I ask, frantically trying to make sense of this.
"I don't know."
"No... no this- This can't be fake. How... I mean... It just feels so... so real." I try to argue.
"I know. And I wish you could stay longer but they need you." He says, putting his hand on my shoulder.
"Who?" I ask, looking up at him.
"That's for you to know when you wake up." I feel my eyes well up and he brings me into a hug.
"I don't want to leave. I want to stay here. I want to stay with my family." I cry.
"But we're just the family you imagined in your head." He puts his cheek on top of my head.
"How do you know all of this? I mean... just how?"
"I suppose it's... because you see me as someone wise and intelligent. Someone logical who knows when things are wrong." he says softly. "Or maybe I was just your alarm clock from the beginning."
I laugh and we break the hug. I try to dry my eyes with my sleeves, making them wet.
"How long?" I ask.
"I'm not sure. But a little more than an hour I would believe. ThenI can send you back to wherever you came from."
"And you haven't told me about this earlier because...?"
"I didn't know then."
"Alright... and I can't visit you?"
"We're just versions of real people you created in your mind. We're nothing physical you can visit."
"Y-yeah... al...alright..." I say, standing up. "Can I just... Can I say goodbye?"
"Of course." He says softly. "Though, I would advise you to not mention or display any indications that you're leaving. You understand?"
"Yeah. I'll be right back." I say, walking over to the door.
"I'll be waiting here." I nod and step out, closing the door behind me and taking a deep breath, feeling tears stream down my face. I try to make it stop, but it just won't fucking stop.
I just stand there outside my door for what feels like eternity. But when I remember that I don't have much time, I quickly dry my face with the sleeve of my hoodie again. I know my face is red, but I don't care.
I walk into the living room and see it empty. I let out a shaky breath.
So for the next hour, I went to everyone's room, hugging the people who were in their rooms. Some weren't and I hated that I couldn't say goodbye to them.
When I got to Natasha's room, I knocked lightly on the door and heard a "Come in." I slowly opened the door and saw her on her bed reading a book. The second she saw my face, she immediately put the book down and walked over to me. I had been able to keep my tears at bay when hugging the others but just seeing the concerned look Nat was showing me, I couldn't hold any longer and I fell to my knees, starting to sob.
"Hey hey hey... what's wrong?" She asked softly, holding me in her arms. I was unable to speak and we just sat there for a few minutes.
When I started to calm down, we broke the hug and I just told her I had a really bad nightmare. She, of course, could tell I was lying. but I think she realized this was not something to push. She handed me some tissues and I blew my nose and dried my tears.
After a few minutes, I left her room, giving her one last hug.
Next... I had to go down to the workshop and say goodbye to Tony.
I felt my heartbeat quicken and my hands were shaking. I had a feeling of dread and a part of me didn't even want to head down for the fear of knowing I would never see him again.
But alas, I forced my legs towards the elevator and made my way down. When the elevator doors opened, music was blasting in the speakers and I winced from the volume.
Tony must've somehow heard the elevator arrive (for the first time ever) and he told Friday to turn the music off. I felt my face getting warmer and my eyes were probably still red. Tony looked up and started speaking.
"Hey Pete, could you come here and..." He trailed off when he saw my face. I probably looked miserable. He put the tool he was holding back on the table and slowly approached me. "Hey... what's wrong kiddo? Why the gloomy look?"
I stayed quiet, not moving. He put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed it, trying to make me look at him.
After a few seconds, I pulled him into a tight hug, feeling tears prick my eyes.
"Woah, kid what's gotten into you?" Tony asked, wrapping his arms around me. I didn't answer and it was quiet for a few minutes.
"Tony...?" I mumble.
"Hmm?"
"What... What would you do if everything and everyone you loved disappeared?"
"Well... isn't that an interesting question. A little on the nose, don't you think?" He laughed but I didn't so much as smile.
"Just..." I whispered, but I couldn't finish the sentence.
"Well... I think I'd go mad." He laughs. "I mean, I need context kid. Do they just disappear like that-" He snaps his fingers, "-or do you mean that they die or... uhh... yeah, die or just disappear? Because if just disappear, then I'd go mad trying to find a way for them to come back. If they died and I knew who did it... Well... I'd probably have some sort of thirst for vengeance. But to be honest... I don't know. You often act very irrational when something very very important is taken from you."
I nod against his chest and he holds me tighter.
"Why'd you ask?"
"Just... just wondering..." I whisper and I feel him bob his head up and down.
It's quiet for a few more minutes and I know I'm running out of time.
"Tony?" I whisper.
"Yeah?"
"..."
"I love you dad." Tears start to run down my cheeks and he holds me tighter, pressing a kiss on my head before resting his on cheek on top of it.
"I love you too son." He says softly, his voice slightly breaking in the end, making me cry even more.
.
"You sure you don't wanna help me?" He asks with a cheeky smile.
"Yeah... I have some... stuff to do." Mumble, starting to make my way over to the elevator.
"Well, feel free to come down when you're done doing some 'stuff'." He laughs, sitting back down at his desk.
"Y-yeah... I'll do that." I force a smile. "Hey dad."
"Yeah?" I see his smile getting bigger.
"I love you."
"Look at you being all affectioned." He laughs.
"Yeah..." I mumble, trying to not break down again.
"I love you too buddy."
I smile at him, then the elevator doors close.
.
"You alright?" Stephen asks as I enter my room an plop down on the bed. He's sitting the chair again, reading his book.
"No." I groan, resting my arm over my eyes.
"Are you ready?" He asks and I can hear him stand up.
"Honestly, no. But for the sake of this to be over, I guess...?" I say, sitting up and looking up at him. "So how does this work? I tell myself to wake up or you use your magic or... something?"
He looks around the room, then back at me. It looks like he's thinking, but it's hard to tell.
"Stand up." He says and I follow his command. He holds his hands out and he makes some sort of movement with them, his fingers in weird positions.
He starts to mumble stuff in a language I don't think we even speak here on earth. The blue color in his eyes are replaced with a green color and a third eye opens up on his forehead, creeping me out a little.
Waves of green mist surges around the room, all originating from Stephen. He's stopped speaking but he starts to create some type of form with his hands. Yellow-ish orange lines form into one 2D square, then a 2D triangle and then a 2D circle all fused into one another.
I watch on in amazement, seeing something I never thought I would ever see happen right in front of me. It's like a light show, minus the things you need for a light show... But I mean... I guess a magic wizard also works for that.
Suddenly, all the green mist gathers into the fused form and I realize the room is quiet. It was like the mist wasn't just shining brightly. It was also giving off some weird tune without me realizing it.
Stephen does a few more movements with his arms and I gulp, feeling nervous.
Suddenly, all of Stephen's three eyes glow brighter and he hits the fused form in the middle, making it fly towards me.
I close my eyes, preparing for the hit.
Then everything turns black.
.
.
.
"Mmm..."
"Holy shit... he actually did it!"
"What...?" I mutter.
"Peter, can you open your eyes." I hear a familiar voice say. I slowy nod, feeling a pair of hands on my back, pushing me up to sit, making me slightly nauseous.
My eyes flutter open and I am met with a bright light, forcing me to close them again. I bring my hand up to my face with a sloppy movement, shielding my eyes from the light.
I let out a dry cough, suddenly realizing how dry my throat actually is.
I try to open my eyes again, and this time, I'm met with several people looking back at me. I feel my cheeks getting warmer and I turn my eyes away from them.
"How are you feeling kid?" Mr. Starlord ask and I look back up at him, only to be met with stress-filled eyes.
"I... *cough* I feel fine..." I look around our surroundings and see everything is chaos and in ruins. The sky is a mix of red and orange clouds, a blue sky hiding behind it. Big star-like and donut-like structures stick out of the ground around the terrain.
"Can you stand?" Dr. Strange asks from beside me. He puts his arms under my armpits and yanks me up. Thankfully, I'm able to balance on my shaky legs and I get a feeling of dread.
"What happened...?" I ask, my voice low.
"We don't have much time. But it's been five years and we have to help." Dr. Strange explains, starting to fly off, followed by the others.
I now realize that we're not on the ground and instead on one of those star-like thingys little wing thing-y.
"What the hell is happening...?" I whisper to myself.
Did I just pass out or something? Because it certainly felt like that. I mean, I remember turning to dust and it... really hurting. But then there's a feeling. Like I just had some kind of dream but I just can't seem to quite remember what it was about.
"Come on kid, No time to stand around. They need us!" Mr. Starlord calls out, snapping me out of my thoughts.
Meh. It was probably not anything important.
I start to run after, shooting out a web and swinging down to were I see Dr. Strange open up one of his portals. I swing through and I'm met with a big battlefield, all destroyed and the biggest army I've ever seen on the other side, led by the Titan Thanos.
I feel my breathing hitch for a second as I see him again. I unfortunately got to meet him and I had to watch him fight Mr. Stark.
My heart beats harder in my chest and I feel the adrenaline surge through my body. More portals open up on our side and our army grows bigger.
Suddenly, I hear Captain America speak.
"Avengers! Assemble!"
Then we all charged.
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A/N
And that, My lovely viewers, is sadly the end to this story.
Sometimes, some things are just too good to be real, and in this case... it was...
I told you you'd hate me...
On a happier note,
Thank you so so much for reading my story! It's been a joy writing it and seeing all your responses!
Now,
here's a little summary of some things in the story:
- IronStrange - Tony and Stephen's bickering in Infinity War made him imagine them as an old married couple, even though he knew Tony was together with Pepper (He woke up to the original timeline where they have Morgan).
- Abusive May - I imagine it as how he sees himself in May's life. He knows he looks a lot like Ben and he doesn't understand how she's always been nice to him. So May kind of represented the demons in his head.
- Texting - Now, why the texting?
Well! It's simple!
The story started out with texting as kind of a representation of how Tony barely ever answered Peter's texts or calls from homecoming.
So, he created a scenario in his head where Tony would actually answer him.
- His Relation with the Avengers - He had seen and even met some of them earlier. He just saw them as a big family. Even after Civil War, he wanted to be part of that family.
- Green Goblin - Before the snap, he had fought the Green Goblin and it ended with Norman dying, kind of like in the first Raimi movie.
If you have any questions, please feel free to ask!
I'm not sure if I should have a bonus chapter because I don't know what I should write. So if you want me to make a bonus chapter, then could you maybe comment some ideas for what it should be about. Like, should it be connected to the ending? Or just something of its own, kind of like a one shot book-ish way?
Again, Thank you so much for reading this story and supporting me! There have been times where I haven't known where the story would go, but I think it turned out pretty okay.
You are all awesome and amazing and just... Thank you!
That's All For Now Folks!
G'night, G'day and G'morning!
/Twizz