Spider-Man: Coming Back Home

Chapter 7

"Hey, Peter," a familiar voice says to Peter, "did you miss me?"
"Mr. Stark!" Peter exclaims, rubbing towards his father, tears streaming down his face. "How are you back?"
Tony looks at his son. "You really thought I was gone? I just had to make sure I made the right decision by looking at all the possible outcomes. It took me a bit, but hey, I'm back."
"Thank you, Mr. Stark," Peter whimpers, face in Tony's chest as he cries. "Thank you."
"I love you, kid," Tony says softly, "I love you like my own son."
"I love you too, Dad."
"Peter! Peter!" Someone calls in the distance. Suddenly, Tony fades into the darkness and the darkness turns to light. "Peter, what the hell were you thinking?" Peter looks up to see Pepper above him, looking angry, but loving. "Well?"
"What happened? Where's Mr. Stark?"
Pepper's eyes start to form tears. "Oh, Peter, you must've hit your head hard when you fainted."
Peter looks sterner. "What happened?"
Pepper sighs. "I made a mistake and you... needed some alone time after that, but fainted on 2nd Street. What were you thinking?"
"Tony's dead. Still. Right?" There's now panic and worry in Peter's sweet eyes.
"Yes, Peter. He is." Pepper looks down to the ground. "But I'm here. Morgan's in the other room recovering from surgery. We'll be okay."
Peter starts to remember everything once more and starts to break down. "Can I have some time alone?" Peter asks Pepper, and she nods.
"Whatever you need, Peter," Pepper says, walking out the door. "Whatever you need."
"Did I really run away like a baby?" Peter wonders, looking out the hospital bedroom. "And what was that dream?! Am I nuts?!" Peter sighs as he picks up the notepad from the counter next to him. He notices the cast on his right leg. It's red, just like what he would want. He thinks of Tony again, and his Iron Man suit. Then, Peter starts to write.
"Mr. Stark," he writes, but crosses out.
"Tony,
You have no idea how much I miss you. You showed me how to be a hero. You saved my life. You saved everyone, come to think of it, but you know what I mean.
I can't be Spider-Man anymore, Mr. Stark. I'm sorry. You didn't want to be Iron Man, and I want to be like you. I know you told me to be better, but how can I be better than Tony Stark? I wonder constantly what you thought of me. I miss you. I"
"Peter!" Pepper storms in the room, interrupting his writing. "Peter, he's gone."
"Wait, who's gone?" Peter asks frantically.
"Steve Rogers. He had a stroke."
Peter turns to stone. "What?" His eyes have pure sadness inside.
"He's gone."
"He's gone."

Two days after the news, Pepper and Peter take the subway to Steve's storage area, where they find a notebook, that has a sticky note saying, "for the Starks."
"What would he have in a notebook?" Peter asks, looking up at his mother. Peter has accepted that he thinks of the Starks as his family, at least for now. As Pepper starts flipping through the notebook, Peter feels his phone vibrating in his back pocket.
10 MESSAGES FROM: NED
NED: Peter Captain America is gone!!!! Are you okay?!
Are you alive?
Are you depressed?
The news is blowing up about Cap so are you good?
May says that the house isn't in a condition to have guests is she hiding something?
Peter
Peter
Peter
Peter
You'll have a lot of explaining to do when I see you next 😠

"Peter!" Pepper says with great surprise in her voice. "Read this."
As Peter reads, his jaw opens more with every word.
"In the case that I am gone, and Tony is still gone, I want to say a few things.
When I went back to the '40s, I soon realized that I took Tony for granted. I knew he was special, but I didn't realize I loved him more than anyone else. I struggled with that a lot, especially in a world where being bisexual wasn't recognized yet. Now, Tony and I never did anything, but I often thought of him fondly. I wish I had saved him from his death, but I didn't. I didn't, and I should have. I trusted him more than he would ever have known, and I thought of him as one of the best people in my life.
And to Pepper- I know this is alarming for you. Please know that I never spoke to Tony about this, and that I only loved him in spirit. I would never threaten your marriage. Life is so important, and I never want to jeopardize that. I hope you understand.
~Steve Rogers"
Peter gapes at the note, trying to say something, anything. He never expected this. Never.
Pepper laughs. "Well, now we know people like Tony just as much as I do." Peter was surprised at how calm Pepper was throughout this whole situation.
"Uh... yeah..." Peter forces a laugh. He's not homophobic, he's just shocked to no end. He knows tons of LGBT people, and he respects them quite a bit. He just never imagined Captain America to be one of those people. He remembers this. "The more you know," Peter says with a genuine smile.
The two have a good laugh. "Peter, you're a great kid, you know that?" Pepper exclaims with such happiness.
Peter thinks of what he thinks of the Starks. Of Tony and Pepper. And then Morgan. His heart warms. He smiles and laughs to Pepper, even though he wants to give her a hug and say, "Thanks, Mom."