PETER PARKER
Present

I listened to Quentin's soft, quiet snores that he would occasionally let out once in a while. I gazed up at him and the moonlight coming from the window illuminated his features. I rubbed my thumb over his lips and smiled as he leaned into my touch, still unconscious. I snuggled closer to him and pressed a soft kiss against his lips, adoring the way he felt next to me.

I carefully untangled myself from his arms and slipped out of the bed while being as quiet as possible. I started taking off my clothes so that I could change into my suit. I was going to turn myself in. It was the only way to make sure Aunt May was safe and that he wouldn't harm anyone else I cared about.

I fumbled around in the dark until I finally got it on, looking sadly at Quentin, knowing it'd be the last time I ever saw him. I tiptoed toward him and placed another delicate kiss against his addictive lips. He let out a quiet moan when I pulled away but he remained asleep and I chuckled silently.

I tugged my mask over my face and shut the door quietly. I was about to go into the elevator but thought about never seeing everyone else again. I sighed and made my way toward the room Ned was staying in.

He was snoring so loudly that I was surprised the
entire building wasn't shaking. He looked so peaceful in his sleep though.

I then went over to Happy's and peeked in. I frowned. His entire bed was covered in tissues and he looked like he was dead. I'd never seen him so miserable before and it absolutely broke my heart.

Don't worry Happy, I'm about to bring her back to you.

I finally stopped at the elevator, clicking the button to go down before I heard a cough from behind me and I spun around frantically.

MJ.

To be honest, I had kind of forgotten about her.

"Are you sneaking out?" She whispered, clutching a glass of water in her hands, "To find May?"

I gulped and averted my eyes, "Depends." I mumbled and she took a sip of her drink before placing it on a stool beside us.

"On what?" She asked me and took a step forward, causing me to subconsciously take a step back.

"If you'd try to stop me or not." I fiddled with my fingers and shuffled my feet nervously.

She looked at me so intensely with no definitive emotion expressed on her face, "No."

My lips parted in shock as I was taken aback, "No? You wouldn't try to stop me?"

She shook her head, "People have to do what they have to do. If you have your mind set on something then there's not much you can do about it. If I tried to stop you then you'd just figure out another way to get to her."

She has a point.

"Thank you." I offered a half smile.

She nodded and twirled a strand of her hair anxiously, "I heard about you and Mysterio, by the way." My face paled.

"MJ, I'm so sorry." I began but she interrupted me.

"It's fine, really." She grinned but it didn't reach her eyes, "It would've been nice to get a heads up but I get that you're going through a lot and I can't hold it against you."

I sighed in relief and surprisingly pulled her into a hug, "Thank you." I murmured, "You deserve better anyway. You're a really great girl." I admitted to her.

"I am pretty great." She teased, pulling away with a chuckle, "But on a more serious note, you need to stop being so insecure. It's endearing, but unhealthy."

I stared at her with wide eyes, "I-I'm not insecure!" I lied straight through my teeth and she rolled her eyes.

"I saw you and Mysterio today when you found out about May. I've watched you since freshman year because I always had a crush on you. It might not seem like it, but I know you." She placed her hands on my shoulders securely, "And if you want to get literally anywhere in life then you need to be more confident in yourself. Do you really want to lose against this burnt chicken nugget looking ass bitch?"

I laughed as she continued, "Honestly, what kind of a name is Shadow? That's so lame."

"I agree." I chuckled.

"But, Peter, seriously." She went back to the previous topic, "If you want to win, go in with that attitude. Don't go in there with the intention of getting yourself killed to save everyone else. And if you think that Shadow's going to stop after he killed you, then you really are an idiot."

I scoffed but didn't respond since I knew she was right.

"Okay?" She asked, "If you go then I want you to swear that you'll at least be smart about it."

"I will." I hummed, "And thank you." I trailed off in thought, "I guess that I'm so insecure because I can't save everybody. Being a superhero is great and all but watching just one person die, even if you saved a hundred in the process, all that accomplishment is just ruined. And especially when the people you love die- that's when it really gets bad. After Mr Stark died I was a wreck. And then everything with Quentin happened and I just wanted to die with them. All the time. I honestly considered it a lot." I confessed.

But MJ didn't look at me with those sad, pitiful eyes that everyone else always forced me to watch. In fact, she smiled. And it was a genuine smile. The kind that you couldn't fake.

"And that just makes you so much stronger, Peter Parker." She hugged me again, "After all that pain and loss and suffering here you are, fighting for what's right. For the people you love. You battled all of the problems that you've had to encounter and even when it was so tempting to give up you never did. You're a hero." She finished.

My eyes would've been glazed with tears if I hadn't cried them all out just a few hours ago, "Thank you so much, MJ." I whispered, hugging her tighter for a quick second before moving away, "For everything."

"Be safe." She warned, "And you better go into that dirty, rotten old building with nothing except determination to win. Focus on all that pain, all of that rage built up inside of you and use it for good instead of sulking around."

I beamed at her, smiling the biggest smile I had in a long time before stepping into the elevator, "I'll see you later." I assured her, "And that's a fact."

QUENTIN BECK
Present

The door to Peter's room bursted open and I shot up immediately, "Ok, he just left. Let's go on with the rest of our plan." MJ huffed while I stood up and started to put on my suit, not caring that she was in the room.

"Did he sound convinced that you were just letting him go?" I asked, pulling on my pants while she turned around.

"Yeah. I think it went really well."

"Good." I nodded in approval, "I still can't help but dislike you a little because Peter used to have a crush on you and I'm annoyingly overprotective, but you're starting to grow on me, kid."

I couldn't see it but I knew she had a smirk on her lips, "At least you're honest." She laughed, "I'll go wake up Ned and Happy."

I finished getting dressed after she left and walked out of the room. Guards were already scattered around the place and everyone was wide awake.

I felt bad about everyone manipulating Peter but I knew it was for his own good. I wanted him to have the satisfaction of winning, but in case he didn't, we would swoop in and protect him. Well, if he got a single scratch on his pretty face then there would be hell to pay from me personally.

Not to mention that if Peter knew we were coming then Shadow would know for sure that he had backpack. He was a terrible liar. He would stutter nervously and fumble with his hands while avoiding eye contact altogether. It needed to be believable that it was just the two of them. That way it would be easier to trick Shadow.

"Is everyone ready?" Happy yelled, gathering everyone up. His face was a sickly shade of red and his eyes were bloodshot. I felt a little bit bad but all I could focus on was making sure Peter went unharmed.

"Yes Sir." The guards said sternly in conformation. Ned and MJ looked a little bit nervous and I bet I looked like a wreck, but I tried to put on a tough exterior to assure everybody that everything would be okay.

"If he ends up getting hurt because you all forced me to lie to him, then you're all getting your asses beat." MJ announced, "I just wanted to make that clear in advance. So don't screw this up." She ordered in an intimidating voice, raising her posture.

Happy led everyone out of the building. Some soldiers got into helicopters and some into cars but Happy stopped us before we went outside.

"I want you three to stay here." He instructed while we all looked at him like he just came out of an insane asylum.

"Excuse me?" I laughed, "That's a funny joke. Get out of my way." I went to push past him but he shoved my chest back.

"You guys are going to be too emotional. That's not a bad thing, it's just not a good thing if we want everything to go to plan." He looked at Ned and MJ, "You two are just kids. Stay here and... be a lookout."

"A lookout?" MJ scoffed, "And what exactly are we looking out for?"

"In case... Shadow decides to come here." He improvised, obviously not thinking his change of plans sooner.

"I'm a grown man." I went to push past him again but he stepped out of the doorway, hitting a button on his watch.

I reached out to put my hand on the door handle, "You think I'm scared of a little button? I don't give a shit wh-" I yelped when an intense electric shock sizzled through my arm, "What the hell!"

"You'll thank me later." Happy said monotonously, not caring at all.

"Get back here!" I screamed, "I need to protect Peter! I'm not letting him go alone!"

"He isn't alone," Happy called, already walking away from the door, "And you being this unstable with your feelings for him is exactly why I'm not letting you come!"

My breathing became harsh as I watched them all drive away causing rage to burn through my body.

"How good are you with technology?" I grunted and turned to face the two wide eyed teenagers, "Hello? Do you speak?" I barked angrily when they didn't respond immediately."

"Y-yeah." Ned stuttered, "We're both on the academic decathlon team."

"Good." I walked away and made my way towards the first computer I saw, "We're getting out of here." I rasped, a new kind of determination flooding through my bones.

Fear.

A/N
Um this is my 4th update within 24 hours wtf.