The Edge | Peter Parker

Chapter One

"Peter, why didn't you tell us this stuff was going on?" Meredith asked him, but he just continued to stare down at the tattered mask in his hands. He was definitely going to need a new one after what happened, there was really no hope for this one. He was spaced out, trapped in his thoughts. A gloomy expression was painted across the contours of his face. Meredith looked over to share a glance with Tony, who was leaning against the desk on the other side of the room. He gave her a shrug with his crossed arms, and she let out a barely audible sigh. All Peter could think about was how he'd lost— even though Iron Man and Iron Woman had come to help. He never lost, that was one thing Jameson couldn't put against him. Whatever it was, he typically won the fight. This time, it was bad. He wouldn't have made it out of there alive if it weren't for the two Starks. All he ever wanted was to impress the people he idolized and cared so much about, but it seemed he never did. Now, he was sitting on the couch in Meredith's office, sweat trickling down every inch of his body, along with some blood in some spots, and rips and tears in the suit Tony had made him. How did this even happen? As he reflected on everything, his whole life was a mess. And as he'd broken down and told the Starks everything in the midst of his despair, he just felt like a failure. Like a waste of space. He never told anyone what he was going through because he didn't want them to worry. He was the one who was supposed to be saving people, not the other way around. Besides, not having a place wasn't that bad. He always managed to find random places to crash, but that was usually not often considering there was always something going on in New York. Losing his job wasn't all that bad, either. Working for Jameson wasn't his least favorite job, but hearing him constantly talk about how much he hates Spider-Man and how much of a failure he was made the job unbearable. Peter told the Starks and May that he'd managed to find a new job and things were going great. That was a complete lie, but only because he figured he'd find one soon. That never happened, and it'd been a year. He lost his place, his girlfriend, and pretty much everything else. All he had left was Harry, the Starks, May, and Spider-Man. That was it, but at least it was something. "Peter,"

After calling his name a couple of times, that time got him. He glanced up at her worried face quickly before letting out a sigh and looking back at the floor. He hated seeing that worried expression, he knew it all too well. He was probably the reason behind the lines on Tony and Meredith's foreheads. "Huh? Sorry. Listen, I should really get—"

"No, sit back down." Meredith placed her hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down onto the couch. He fell with a thump. "I need you to stop getting lost in your thoughts, Pete. You're good at that. But, I need you to pay attention to me, now. To both of us."

Peter couldn't bare to meet Tony's gaze as he sat there, so he just continued to toy with what was left of his mask. "Okay."

"I just don't understand why you didn't tell either of us sooner, Pete." She gave him that disappointed look, and he couldn't take it anymore.

"Because I didn't want you to worry!" He exclaimed frustratedly.

"I wouldn't be worried if you'd told me sooner! We wouldn't be here right now if you'd told us! You would've been well-rested and in a good enough headspace to take on this fight. But instead, you irresponsibly focus all your time on being Spider-Man instead of being Peter Parker!" Tony yelled back, and Peter sighed once more. Meredith shook her head at the two boys. They cared so much about each other, but they butted heads so much. Tony used tough love a lot, he always did when it came to Peter. It was the same thing with their father, he always wanted his kids to turn out different than him, so he was tough on them. But, Peter was just like Tony, despite them not even being related. That's why it was so hard for them to get along sometimes. Plus, after everything they've been through, Tony just didn't want to lose anyone else.