Spider-Man Oneshots

It's not your fault.

I open the door onto the roof of the police precinct, peering out at the grey, clouded sky. stray drops of water spill from the sky, dots of dark against the otherwise pale concrete.

Popping out against the dreary landscape is a man in a brightly colored suit, silently crouched on the railing. Unfazed by the gloomy weather, he quietly scrolls through his phone, wiping off the few raindrops bold enough to challenge him.

The phone itself, cracked and old-looking, is tucked close to his face, hiding most of the screen. Only the edge is visible, the official-looking website shining obnoxiously bright.

"Are you doing something up here, or do you just like getting wet?" He jumps, nearly flying off the railing.

"Jesus, Yuri!" Chuckling, he hurriedly turns off his phone. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to be getting soaked. What are you doing out here?" He springs off the railing, twisting midair to land next to me.

"Criminals are not deterred by the weather," He declares, not taking his eyes off the cityscape. "So neither am I."

"You were sitting on your phone," I say.

"Nothing was happening." He shrugs.

"Then maybe come sit on your phone inside," I respond. Sighing, he shakes his head. "Come on, you can listen to the police scanner and everything."

"I think..." He taps the top of his nose like he's pushing up a pair of glasses. "I'm just going to stay out here."

"If you're doing that, I'm getting an umbrella."

"You really don't have to do that Yuri, I'm fine on my own." I roll my eyes, turning back towards the building.

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"Nice umbrella." He says, poking the web design on the top of it with a chuckle.

"Oh shut up!" I scowl. "It was on sale!" He just laughs again, covering the bottom of his mask with his hand.

"Do you think this is some sort of copyright infringement?" I ask, staring at him.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"The umbrella. Last time I checked, your costume is entirely original." I say. "Wouldn't it be some sort of copyright infringement to use it on an umbrella without your permission?"

He shrugs. "Maybe. I'm not gonna sue them or anything though. I don't really care."

"Your costume design isn't worth protecting to you? I mean, that mask is probably as well known as Iron Man's." He just shrugs again, leaning on the railing.

"I mean... it's really just a mask, isn't it?" He says. "I wear it to hide my face from the bad guys, and that's kind of it."

I bite the inside of my cheek as a question bubbles to the surface of my brain.

A question that has been on the tip of my tongue since the first day we met, but I was never really sure how to ask it without scaring him away.

"Whatcha thinking about there Yuri?" He questions, tapping his knuckles on the side of the railing.

"You always say you wear a mask to hide your face from criminals, and it's about protecting the people you care about," I say. "But if that's the reason you wear it, why do you still wear a mask around us?"

He sighs, the goofy mood dropping out of the air and splatting on the sidewalk somewhere. "You know it's not because I don't want you guys to know right? I just-" He crosses his arms, thinking. "I think it's for the best."