Spider-Man One Shots

Bullying

Summary: "I don't understand; I didn't hit him as hard as I hit you, or kick him in the ribs as much as I kick you, I didn't beat him for as long as I beat you, and he still screamed his lungs out and he's still in the fucking hospital because he lost so much blood and cracked one rib- I don't understand."

TW: brief description of an anxiety attack, mentions of blood and descriptions of injuries and bullying.

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When Peter was yanked inside an empty classroom just after school ended, he was taken aback.

It wasn't the fact that someone had pulled him, no; his Spidey Sense had warned him about that. Peter was surprised for the person who pulled him into the classroom, and the expression on said person's face.

"Flash?" Peter asked cautiously. The other teen looked thoroughly distressed. He ran a hand through his hair in an anxious gesture but ignored Peter as he mumbled under his breath.

"I don't understand, what happened? Why? How?"

"Flash, calm down." Eugene could be his bully, but Peter wasn't just going to stand there, watching a fellow classmate have an anxiety attack without doing anything to help. "Follow my breathing pattern. In-" Peter took a deep breath, prompting Flash to copy him- "And out."

It took some minutes, but Flash eventually relaxed. He plopped down on one of the desks and gripped his head with both his hands.

"What happened?" Peter asked. He didn't want to intrude but he still wanted to know.

Flash stared at him from behind his hands for some seconds, enough to make Peter uncomfortable.

"What are you?" the bully asked. It took Peter by surprise, of course, and he paled ever so slightly.

"What- what do you mean?"

Eugene took a deep breath before beginning his exploration. "Today... a kid pissed me off. He started insulting me, tried to make everyone hate me. So I beat him."

Peter didn't like hearing that. Flash was supposed to stay away from other students as long as he let himself be hit, but that hadn't been the case. The young hero took an infimum step back, almost unconsciously.

"I hit him and I kicked him and I did to him half the things I do to you regularly." Peter could see where this was heading, and he didn't like it one bit.

"And...?"

"And he's on the hospital."

Flash's hands, that had stayed in his face the whole conversation, were suddenly pulled down.

"I don't understand; I didn't hit him as hard as I hit you, or kick in the ribs as much as I kick you, I didn't beat him for as long as I beat you, and he still screamed his lungs out and he's still in the fucking hospital because he lost so much blood and cracked one rib- I-" Flash's breath became ragged again. "I don't understand what happened."

"Flash, I-"

"Don't lie to me, Parker. There's something about you... I need to know what it is, I need to understand." His face displayed such desperation that Peter struggled to bite his tongue.

"I- I can't, okay?! Dont ask because I can't answer!" Peter couldn't just tell his bully about his alter ego. He couldn't tell him that getting stabbed and shot repeatedly had made him develop an immense pain tolerance, and that was the reason he never screamed when Flash beat him. He couldn't tell him that his enhanced healing made the numerous cracked bones heal within a few hours, enough for no one to notice or for it to influence his life much. He couldn't tell him that he was letting himself be hit when he was more than capable of defending himself,  and that he did so in order to protect the rest of the students.

Flash's eyes showed raw emotion, more desperation and frustration and pain that Peter had thought the bully capable of feeling. And yet, Peter couldn't say anything, for it would put his family, his friends, his school, himself and Flash in danger. Peter couldn't afford that.

He shook his head. "No, Flash. You'll just have to trust me on this one."

Flash stood up all of a sudden, shaking his head as well. "No, Parker, you can't expect me to let this drop!" He was dismayed, he really couldn't. "I need to know."

Peter sighed worriedly but slowly sat on the floor in front of his bully, his back pressed against the cold wall of the classroom.

"Why? Because he's gonna tell on you? Flash, if I keep a secret it's for a reason, I won't just give it up because you're about to get rightfully punished for your actions-"

"I'm not stupid enough to beat someone that'll tell on me, Parker." Flash sent a weak glare his way, but ended up plopping back down into the desk he had previously occupied.

"Then why do you need to know?"

"Because it seems I stepped over the line without even knowing it. If what I did to the boy happens to you every day, twice as bad, I need to know right now." Flash swallowed.

"Look, Flash... seriously, just let-"

"And the boy got medical attention, you never do." Eugene was ignoring his attempts to avoid the question. Damn.

"Alright, I do deal with it every day-" Flash violently punched the desk he sat on, his face contorting in what looked like guilt and horror. Peter hurried to explain, "But I am different, I can deal with it. It's fine. As long as you don't beat anyone else, it's fine."

Flash closed his eyes and stayed in silence for nearly a minute before he looked up again. His eyes seemed almost broken as he stared at his bullying victim.

"I'm sorry." The whisper rang loud in the silent classroom.

"As long as you promise you won't beat another person other than me, I don't care."

The silence extended for some more seconds.

"I promise I won't beat anyone ever again."