Everything's Fine

I

Peter woke up with a start, heaving for breath and clutching his chest. It happened every night. He hated it. The nightmares had started after homecoming. It had been about a month since homecoming, he would've thought they would've stopped by now. Boy was he wrong.

He took a breath and stood up, looking around the room. Clothes. He needed clothes for school. Peter didn't hate school, but he sure didn't like it. He'd much rather be Spider-Man, but as Mr. Stark had said, "Stay in school Kid, you won't get anywhere in life if you dropout to be some superhero saving people,"

So of course Peter listed to him. He was only 15 after all, and May would have a stroke if he came home telling her he'd dropped out. He got dressed, grabbed his backpack and walked out of his room. He hadn't been that hungry lately, so once again he skipped breakfast.

Peter's excuse for May? "Oh, I'll just eat at school. I don't want to be late for class," He'd only eat twice a day, well, almost. His lunch consisted of  a small bag of chips and some juice or water. He'd eat half a plate of dinner and then excuse himself mumbling something about a test he had to study for. And May believed him.

"Bye May! I'll see you tonight!" Peter said before walking out the door.

A muffled "Bye Peter!" Was heard from May's room. Peter smiled and closed the door behind him. Now for his walk to school.

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As soon as he entered school he saw Ned, his best friend, and walked towards him. Ned was hanging by Peter's locker, which was convenient for him as he needed to grab a few things from it.
"Hey Ned!" Parker smiled as he greeted his friend.

"Oh, hey Peter! How are things?" Ned asked.

"Good, I just gotta get through this day of tests and then relax." He sighed. They talked for a bit and then heard the bell, signaling to the teens to get to class.

Peter's first two classes ran smoothly for him, just a quiz and then a review day for an upcoming test. It all bored Peter half to death, as it was all pretty simple. The only classes he enjoyed were science and math.

The school day was over before he knew it. After school was patrol, so Peter would have to hide and secure his backpack so May wouldn't have to buy another one ("That's the sixth one this year!") and change into the suit Mr. Stark had made him.

It was the same routine everyday. School, patrol, homework and then sleep. Every. Single. Day. But Peter didn't mind it. The less sleep he got the better. He hated sleeping. The nightmares made things not that fun.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts. 'Focus on patrol, Peter. The people need you. Or maybe they don't, since you're so pathetic.'

Peter tried to ignore the thoughts but they always got to him. Always. His suit was on and he was ready for patrol. He loved patrol.

Peter swung from building to building keeping his eyes out for any crime below.

An hour later and still nothing. He sighed. It was going to be a long night.

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Peter returned home at around eight o'clock at night. He climbed in through his window and started his homework. The work was minimal tonight to his dismay. After he was done he decided to call Mr. Stark to see if he had any work for him, such as upgrades for a suit or something.

His finger hovered over the contact name. Maybe he shouldn't bother him. He was probably busy as it was. So Peter put the phone down and decided against it. 'Even if  he wasn't busy he wouldn't pick it up for a loser like you. You could barely could save yourself'

He didn't want to think about homecoming. That night was... horrible. Then he remembered the crushing pain and how he couldn't breathe. Screamed for help yet no one came to his aid, so he had to lift the ceiling off himself.

He couldn't breathe. Peter felt warm tears sliding down his face and onto the floor. He started shaking and had been standing up but now he was sitting on the ground, his back against the wall. His hands were in fists, grabbing his hair. He couldn't breathe.

Then he heard his phone buzzing. He looked at it. It was Mr. Stark calling. He tried to compose himself before picking up. His voice was still shaky from anxiety.

"H-hello?" He stuttered. 'Please don't ask about it.' The last thing he wanted was to worry Mr. Stark.

"Hey kid. Listen, I need you to come by real quick. It's important. Bring your suit," He said.

"Alright-t, I'll be r-right over." Peter went to hang up but then heard Mr. Stark say something.

"You okay Underoos?" He questioned.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine." And with that Peter hung up.

Now he had to figure out how to calm himself down so Mr. Stark wouldn't find out.