A/n: This is also a prequel to my series Hamartia but it can stand alone as a one-shot which is why it's also being posted in this book!!

He's been here before. This has happened and he was okay. Peter panicked the first time, not having a Stark suit, being on his own, first time facing off his own villain, only being fifteen. This time is different though. The black and red Stark suit cling to his body, KAREN is right in his ear, connected to every single Avenger as well as his other phone contacts and emergency responses. This isn't his first villain. He can do it. At least, he should be able to do it. Peter should be able to lift the debris from the falling building off of himself but when he moves, when he attempts it, that's when the paralyzing pain strikes him like a bolt of lightning.

An ear piercing scream leaves Peter's lungs, one that's nearly ripping the muscle of his throat to shreds. Tears prick the back of his eyes, water clouding his vision as he tries to focus his mind. His head shakes, trying to get the tears to move from his eyes but it proves difficult with the mask around his face. His breathing becomes shallow, the more he tries to focus, more he tries to ignore the sheering pain shooting through his limbs.

His right arm is trapped, shoulder to just past the elbow. It's all pins and needles, the loss of circulation enough to make him scream with every twitch. But it's his right leg that's got his head spinning and his heart rate going erratic. His blood pressure is dropping, the adrenaline wearing low and it's only then Peter hears KAREN in his ear.

"You are severely injured, Peter. I have signaled for an ambulance." KAREN says.

Peter coughs, the coughing turning into painful and heart-wrenching cries. "Stark." Peter croaks, his head swimming, foggy up. "Need Stark." Peter manages to stay. "Please." A broken cry falls from his blood-covered lips.

Blood comes up with every cough while KAREN is calling for help, Peter stuck just waiting. He's trapped and unable to move. He doesn't know the damage to his body and he doesn't want to know. He knows it's bad. The pain is nothing he's ever experienced, his breathing is too low. A part of Peter is even certain this is what death feels like.

"KAREN?" Peter asks, sniffling back his cry to talk to his AI.

"They are on their way, Peter." KAREN responds.

Peter breaks just enough to let out another cry, one of mixed panic and pain. "Ca-can you call May for me? I–" Peter starts coughing once more, tasting iron with every cough ripping his throat. He sobs, yelling at the top of his legs, the slightest movement making it feel like his arm is being ripped from him, his leg even going numb. "I need to talk to May." Peter cries out. "Please, c-call May."

It's a rash decision but the pain Peter is in and the weakness that's coming over his body, he needs to talk to May. She lost her husband, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law. Her parents are dead and Peter is all she has. Peter cannot let himself slip into the darkness that's whispering his name without calling May.

The phone connects, May's voice ringing through the phone. "Peter? Is everything okay?" Call it a mother's intuition, but when she saw the number on her caller ID, she had a horrible, agonizing feeling in her gut that something was wrong.

"May?" Peter tries his best to hold back a sob. "I-I'm sorry. I tried and I can-can't, I can't do it. I'm sorry, May." Peter sobs his forehead resting against the flat concrete beneath him, tearing flooding his vision.

"What happened?" There's panic in May's voice and no other sound on her end, as if she's completely stopped everything she was doing, frozen in place while she waits for her nephew to say anything.

"'M stuck." Peter croaks. "I dunno but it's not–" Peter coughs and all-too-familiar taste of iron floods his tongue. "You're the best aunt anyone could ask for."

"Don't you say that, do you hear me, Peter?" May's running around the apartment, tossing the phone on speaker as she's contacting Tony.

Peter sniffles and he can feel it. He can feel the light and the darkness coming for him, death ready to hold his hand for the second time in his twenty years of living. It's coming for him. Whatever is wrong with him is killing him and it's doing it painfully slow.

"I'm sorry." Peter cries and May's eyes well up with tears. "I love you and you're like a mom to me. You did a good job and it's not your fault, okay?"

"Listen to me, Peter Parker." May pulls herself together, stopping just before she opens the door to the apartment. "You might be Spider-Man but you're my nephew. You're like a son to me and you're gonna hang on. Do not give up. There is no giving up."

It sounds like a cheesy pep talk when a kid doesn't make a sport's team but it's all May can say. Peter isn't going to go into details but his voice is weak and he is sobbing. When Peter freaks out, May freaks out and vise versa. Peter doesn't freak out and he sure as hell doesn't break down unless something is bad. And this? This is about as bad as it gets and May just needs to make sure Peter hangs on. It's all she can do.

And for Peter? He knows he needs to keep trying to stay awake even when his head is spinning and his blood pressure starts to fall into the danger zone. He knows he needs to hang onto whatever is left of him because without May, without his friends, without the people he calls family, he only has things worth dying for, not worth living for. And he still has most of them. He has his family.

"It just hurts." Peter whines, holding back a sob, trying to gain some clarity.

"Tony is on his way with help." May tries to reassure with the quiver in her voice.

"I know." Peter whispers because he already knows.

Despite the shock, he's not too arrogant to know when he needs help and he knows KAREN can reach any of the Avengers at any time. It's the team. But, with May telling him that, he really knows Tony is coming because that means May texted him. And maybe that means he's close.

"Peter?" May asks, her voice washed with panic. "Peter!"

"Sorry." Peter mumbles and it's like this wave of calm washes over him. His heart is starting to calm down and the pain is only located in his right leg, but it's fading just as his thoughts are and his eyes are drooping closed. His head feels light, light as a cloud even and he's starting to feel at peace. "Tired." Peter says.

"Peter," It's KAREN in his ear now. "You're losing a lot of blood. You need to stay awake."

"Tired." Peter sucks in a shallow and staggered breath.

And there's this part of his brain that is just howling at him to stay awake. If he sleeps, that's it. He is not coming out of this. He doesn't know the damage but if blood loss is part of his issue, he'll need an emergency room quicker than he'll be able to get out from under the building. And if it's blood loss, where is he losing the blood? That voice is just screaming panicked questions at him to keep him alert but there's a quieter, more sinister voice that's lulling Peter to sleep.

It's sticking a hand over the howling voice, long and skinny fingers, skeleton-like fingers just wrapping around the howling voice, hiding it from Peter's mind. From his ears, the place he needs to hear and it replaces that howl with sweet and calm whispers of sleep and happy dreams with bright lights and Uncle Ben. It's calling him to another side, sinister and creepy grin ready to pull the young life with it. And it's working.

Peter's eyes close despite May still on the line screaming for Peter to answer her, despite KAREN's voice telling Peter to stay awake in his other ear. Their voices are drowned out by the grim voice of death. Peter's heart is beating at a low but steady and barely beating rate, the muscles of his body relaxing with every second while his body grows cold limb by limb and then it's over. Peter's lost his fight between fatigue and determination.

-------

It was a light, bright and warm and so welcoming. And Peter walked towards it, steady steps that didn't ache, didn't hurt. His head was clear and content, as if he were perfectly fine. Another building hadn't come down on top of him. The Lizard hadn't gotten away. He didn't call May. Nothing. Just....contentement. Pain-free until it wasn't.

It's still a little bright as Peter's eyes slowly open, eyelids weighing down with a heavy sedative. It's a sharp pain in his right leg, just above the knee that hurts while his shoulder is experiencing a similar pain just a little duller, possibly even a little tolerable while it's hung in a sling. His chest hurts, an ache like after holding his breath for too long and finally letting the air hit his lungs for the first time. And his head is pounding while he blinks. And then everything floods him.

The Lizard. Crunching of the concrete. The darkness and dust. The horrible, muscle tearing pain in his leg and arm. The fear.

Peter groans, the groan deep in his throat while he turns his head, a horrible pain making him stop. It's like he has a kink in his neck, something that doesn't even cause him worry or panic. He was trapped under a building in an uncomfortable position, if his neck didn't hurt, he'd be worried.

"M-m-m" Peter tries to get the word out only for it turn into a dry cough, pulling May from her shallow sleep.

"You're awake." May's face is pale but filled with relief as she jumps to her feet and gets Peter a drink of water. He takes it and May's eyes fill with the tears at the sight of her nephew awake.

It's been three days. It has been the three longest days of her life waiting for him to wake up. She's run over what to tell him a million times knowing there's nothing that's going to lessen the blow to him, knowing it's going to break his heart. Tony offered to tell him as did Bruce but May said it's best if she does it. She's his aunt, the person who's basically his mother, this is for her to tell him.

"Hey, May." Peter mutters, the corners of his mouth trying to pull into a soft smile.

She returns the same shallow smile before kissing the top of his head and running his hand through the messy strands. "I need to get your doctor." It's a sad smile that comes to her face.

"What's wrong?" Peter asks before May can walk away. He'd like to say it's just his spider sense going off, telling him that there's something wrong but maybe it's just the haunting look May gives him.

May shakes her head. "You were hurt, bad." May says, trying to sugarcoat it but Peter knows whatever she's going to say is going to be worse than just bad. "When Tony and Rhodey found you," May chokes away a few tears. "You were already unconscious and lost a lot of blood. It was your leg." May says, her eyes glancing to Peter's right leg and his face falls, the remaining color completely drained.

"What about my leg?" Peter asks and he's scared to look, fearing the absolute worst.

He knew the pain wasn't right. He's had bad pain before, even been electrocuted but there was just something different about how his leg felt under the concrete that covered his body. It was almost a gnawing and sawing pain on the limb, aching and sharp and burning. And then it's a rush of memories with KAREN talking about his blood loss and how the damage his body sustained was really bad. Things piece together slowly and he knows. Without looking, he knows because the pain is still there.

"I'm so sorry, Peter." May brushes her hand over his head. "It's gone. They couldn't save it."

Peter's eyes widen and the tiredness he felt vanishes in an instant. May's voice turns to an echo while panic starts to set in. Gone. It's gone. His heart races and he has to move the blanket from his lower half, he has to be sure he heard May correctly and he hates that he did. The white blanket is pulled off and he's left with his left leg intact but his right leg below the knee is gone. A metal ring covers where the rest of the limb should be. The skin around the metal plate is red, a bright healing red. There are staggered and stitched up cuts at the base of the metal leading up his leg, all stopping in different places and all from being trapped under the building, all willing to leave Peter with scars. And Peter's world feels like it's just been shattered.

How is he supposed to be Spider-Man without a leg? Scaling buildings seems like it's going to be impossible. There's not a doubt in Peter's mind that the metal ring is there for a prosthetic but a piece of metal isn't going to be able to stick to walls or buildings or anything. And how he is supposed to move without a leg, one made of metal? Part of what makes him Spider-Man is his agility and ability to move quick and slick. A metal leg is going to prevent that. He has these powers, his powers lead him here, and now his powers are useless.

"Peter?" May calls, trying to pull him from his thoughts.

"Go away." Peter mutters, head hitting the pillow.

May sighs but doesn't protest. "I'll go get your doctor."

She knew he wouldn't take it well so she tries not to take it personally. Ben and May raised him to believe that if he could do good things for other people, he had a moral obligation to do those things and because of that, Spider-Man has become something more than just a hero. It's a part of him and May knows her nephew is thinking of all the ways this is going to destroy that part of him. And while she knows that, it doesn't make his reaction any easier.

Peter's SHIELD doctor comes in alongside two SHIELD nurses, Tony, and May. The doctor is talking, explaining exactly what happened. The building crushed his leg and the limb was mangled by the time they got him out from under the building. He lost almost half of his blood volume and if it weren't for him being genetically altered, he likely would have died. They decided to add the metal attachment the day after the amputation, knowing his body would be better suited to add the metal and allow the rest of his limb to heal around it.

They go on about how he tore his rotator cuff and he fractured his shoulder blade but those injuries are healing fine and within two weeks, his arm will be back to normal but everything seems to just go in one ear and out the other.

While trapped under the building, Peter felt a numbness through his limbs and through his chest and now that numbness is back but this is worse. At least his numbness then was a sign that he was breathing despite the damage his body sustained. In order to feel numbness, he has to be alive. But now the numbness is just from shock and immediate heartbreak, making him wish he didn't make it out. At least under the building, he had hope but in a SHIELD hospital with bright lights, arm in a sling, people in and out of the room, and one leg, he can't find that spark.

To him, he doesn't have anything to hope for. His life is already changed and according to him, it's worse. It's been minutes and he's already convinced himself that he'll never be the same and everything is over. Under the building, he had the choice to fight or give up but now he's breathing and he'll be fine. He doesn't have this choice and somehow, that's worse.

"I have a leg attachment for you." Tony says, brows furrowing at the distant and straight-faced expression on Peter's face. "It'll move and function just as your other leg."

Peter scoffs, turning his head to look at the window with white blinds covering the glass. "Sure, it will."

"Peter." May warns.

"Can't you just go? I wanna be alone." Peter keeps his eyes on the window while the doctor, nurses, Tony, and May look between each other but decide they'll let him be.

"Are you in pain?" The doctor asks before he steps out.

"You took off my leg and now I have metal attached to flesh. Flesh and metal don't exactly mold well together, what do you think?" Peter slowly turns his head to look at the doctor, expression flat as a board.

"I'll have a nurse get something stronger." The doctor isn't phased by Peter's attitude, used the mistreated by others in the same position as Peter.

A nurse comes in a few minutes later with more pain meds. She sets him up with a Morphine drip and tells him how it works while he remains silent and soon enough, she's out of the room allowing Peter to himself. He presses the button that controls the drip and the medication starts flowing through his bloodstream, a sense of blissfulness consuming him as it makes him drowsy before he falls asleep.

As the day goes on, Peter's friends stop in to see him but he mostly ignores them. He's angry at the world and himself but he's also disappointed and he's afraid they'll start looking at him differently. They already look at him with pity in their eyes and Peter hates it. He's never been a fan of pitty but today, under these circumstances, it just makes his head scream for more morphine to knock him out.

He looked at Ned and you differently after what happened to the two of you and he's not dealing with either of you looking at him differently and he as hell is not going to let MJ pitty him. So, his thumb presses the button and the morphine kicks in, numbing the pain and the ache of his chest before he feels comfortable to sleep.

The first week goes by just like that. Peter stays in pain and barely says anything to anyone, eating just enough to get by. Everything anyone has to say goes in one ear and out the other, relying on the morphine to make him feel anything besides numbness and pain before he lets it drag him to sleep. It's all but killing May to watch him go through his and she's trying the nice routine with him first but as week two rolls around, she's not sure how long she can keep it up.

-------

Three weeks, he's not moved from his bed other than limping to the bathroom in two weeks despite the doctor constantly telling him he needs to get up and start on the prosthetic. Tony has tried, his friends, MJ, everyone has tried getting him out of his bed but he refuses. He doesn't see a point. He's been through a traumatic experience and everyone understands and respects that but Peter doesn't give up. He wasn't raised to give up because something horrible happened.

"Get up." May rips the blanket off of him, earning a glare from Peter before he rips the blanket back from her.

"No." He says, eyes focused on the TV, the news talking about how they need Spider-Man back, how he disappeared after facing off with the Lizard. Everyone is speculating he's dead, not knowing he's sitting in a hospital bed, refusing to do anything.

"Get up right now, Peter Parker." May's voice is stern with frustration. "Now."

"No." Peter snaps. "And you can't make me anymore." Peter scoffs.

"I don't know who you think you're talking to–"

"My aunt." Peter quips. "I don't want to get up and you shouldn't have told them to do this." Peter's voice raises as he points to his right leg. "Maybe I didn't want it."

"You would have rather you die?" May asks him.

"It's better than this." Peter mumbles.

The comment is quick and Peter immediately regrets it but there's depression deep in his mind, clouding his rational decision making and it's making him all the more stubborn. So, he doesn't apologize. He doesn't take it back. He sits with his arms crossed and eyes staring at the TV.

"Fine." May walks away from his bed and grabs her things. "You're not a kid anymore so you can do this on your own."

Peter glances to her and there's a pulling in his chest, eyes starting to gloss over with tears. He doesn't want May to leave. He might not talk, or at least when he does, he's not pleasant but he doesn't want her to leave. She's like a mom to him and, adult or not, he does need her.

And there's the bitter and the pissed off side of Peter that is mean to everyone and judging himself, yelling at himself for everything that's lead to this moment but there's that smaller voice, mouse-like even, that's telling him this is wrong. He's wrong and he needs to try, put a little bit of faith and hope into this. But, he can't seem to bring himself to say anything, he just stares at May with watery eyes and she leaves.

It's not something she wants to do and she will be back because she could never leave him like that but maybe he needs a little bit of tough love. Ever since he went through the events with Thanos, him dying and being stuck in the soul stone, he's had spurts of depression and sometimes to get him out of bed, May has to give him tough love. It hurts her more than Peter will know but it works. It worked when he came back from the dead and it worked after Ned and it worked after Flash and worked again after you. May knows it'll work with this again.

More days go by and Ned has tried talking to Peter but that didn't prove to be any good, the scar across Ned's neck telling Peter he's a failure with or without a leg, making him question if he should have ever put on a mask to begin with. But, Ned tried anyway. He pushed through, Peter asking him to leave and yelling at him to leave. He tried and while it didn't work, it was something.

Tony tried just as well as Rhodey and Bucky. Peter looks at Tony as a father figure, he designed the leg, he had an arc reactor in his chest keeping him alive and then put it right back in. Tony had to try and he couldn't stand seeing a kid he grew to look at his own in this state, locked away in a hospital bed, away from the rest of the world. But, just like with Ned, nothing. Peter refused to get up.

And when it came to Rhodey and Bucky, it didn't go smoothly. It had been almost four weeks and it took a lot from Rhodey to not speak to Peter like he were the kid he grew to know. It's as if Peter, despite being able to see the mechanical legs attached with Rhodey's, forgot Rhodey's paralyzed. Forgot Rhodey's ranking in the military, completely forgot he's War Machine with or without working flesh and muscle. It's not about flesh, it's about what's in his heart and head and Peter is outright ignoring it.

Bucky tried a nicer approached. He tried the explaining how he had fallen way back in the '40s and he was given that metal arm just to be an assassin, the same story Peter heard just with more gruesome details of the things Bucky did, what they made him do. Why they gave him an arm. Bucky's point was that he doesn't have an arm and yet here he is. He can still do everything he did before but, Peter in his state of low depression and stubborness, refused to look at it as the same as him. And it is a little different but not by much.

Bucky is relying on Wakandan tech to replace the limb he lost and Peter is supposed to be relying on Stark tech. They're both relying on tech from two of the best engineers. One just happens to be an arm and one happens to be a leg but that's it. If Bucky can do it, Peter can do it. He just can't see it yet.

That's when they resort to having Michelle talk to him. They've had history so the thought was that maybe someone he was romantically involved with and remained friends with can lead some insight but, it only fell flat and lead to MJ being annoyed with both herself at not being able to help and Peter for being less than kind. It lead to her leaving on the verge of tears from the frustration. She knew he was Spider-man but she didn't sign up for this and she doesn't know how to help him, she doesn't know what to do or say. So, you take your turn.

You take a seat in one of the chairs beside Peter's bed, facing the tv, and all he does is roll his eyes at you, arms crossed over his chest. "Whatever you say isn't going to help." Peter mutters.

"So, you really wanna rot away in a hospital bed in a SHIELD building? That's your big plan, huh?" You snark, looking over to him.

"Go away." Peter sighs.

"Nah, I'm chill here. I should probably watch the news more often anyway." You turn your attention to the TV hanging on the wall in front of Peter's bed and Peter's blood boils while he reaches for the control for the morphine drip but you're already grabbing it. "What? Want more? Hoping it'll knock you out so you won't have to hear me nag your ear off?"

"I'm in pain." Peter retorts.

"You're always in pain and it's been four weeks. Shut up, get up, and deal with it. Don't rely on a drip." You hold it by the chord, taunting Peter.

"I'm not relying on a drip. I'm in pain." Peter grits his teeth.

"Do you know why you're in pain? You're depressed and you're not moving. Your muscles are deteriorating but you know that. If you get up, it won't hurt nearly as bad. Or are you starting to like it, too much?" Your eyes are narrowed while you grasped the drip having no intention of giving it back to him.

"Why do you care?" Peter groans, reaching over his bed but you just push your chair back before standing up and walking to the machine, unplugging the drip. "What the fu–"

"Want it? Get up." You glare down at Peter and you aren't having any of his shit. You care too much to watch him rot away in a bed.

"No." Peter sits back in bed and you take your seat again, stuffing the button into your pocket.

"Look, if you're gonna be a dick to Rhodey, Bucky, my fucking dad, MJ, and Ned, you're gonna deal with me. And I'm not leaving until you get up so I guess you're gonna have to get used to this."

Peter scoffs, a try chuckle coming from his throat. "You have class."

"Do I?" You ask, the quick shrug of your shoulders catching Peter's eyes. "I don't know, Pete. Do I want to be in engineering for me or for my dad? Is it for me, really? Maybe I should do something else. What about genetic studies?" Your eyes aren't even on Peter anymore, they're set back on the TV but Peter is looking at you, the scowl softening.

"You have practice." Peter tries, his voice not as harsh.

You sigh. "Yeah, I do but the team will understand I'm here with you. I already cleared it with the captain."

Peter mimics the sigh, running a hand through his hair and he's been friends with you since you were freshmen in high school. You've never admitted it, but Peter's always been a little convinced you told your dad he was Spider-Man.

You were the first person to find out, Peter just needing to tell someone about it and if your dad is Iron Man, Peter figured you wouldn't tell anyone. And if you told your dad, it's not like he was mad about it. But, either way, you've been friends and he does confide you when he can't to Ned, MJ, or May. You get it a little better than the rest, it's why you're in here now. You get the whole hero thing.

"You're really not gonna leave, are you?" Peter asks, the venom and scowl completely gone but his eyes are back on the tv.

You smile as you shake your head. "Nope, you're stuck with me, dude." You turn your head, sending Peter the smile and he rolls his eyes but he finds it hard not to crack a smile back at you.

"You, uh, you really gonna switch majors?" Peter asks, eyes now on yours.

You laugh with the shake of your head. "Nah. I'm just trying to get you out of bed."

Peter huffs, but there's still a smile crossing his lips. "I don't want to get up."

"You're really gonna throw it all away?" You ask and this time, your voice doesn't hold venom or sarcasm, not snark. It's just an honest question.

"What else am I supposed to?"

"Get up." You say as you move to face him fully. "You get up, Pete. It's hard. No one said being a hero is easy but you gotta get up and try anyway." You press. "Rhodey gave you the whole the spiel about it and so did Bucky but now I'm gonna. We've all had bad shit happen to us that we thought would end everything we do but we got up. We get up because either it's the right the thing or because fuck you. But we get up. And we do what everything thinks we can't anyway. I'm not a damn hero but I get up. Ned gets up. Wanda, Sam, T'Challa, Dr.Banner, Clint, Quill, Mantis, Drax, Fury, Maria, my dad, my mom," You rush name after name in a single breath. "All of us get up and now it's your turn."

Peter lets out a breath and his eyes go to the blanket that's covering his lower half while he thinks. This is why you can snap sense into Peter. You get it in the same way Peter does. You're not kids anymore but sometimes, the older adults talk to you like you are. Like you're kids dealing with adult problems and it doesn't help. And it's different when Ned tries because he's only had one experience and MJ's never had one luckily but you? You've been put in danger since you were little because of Tony being Iron Man.

"What if..." Peter trails off trying to get his words together. "W-what if I can't do it?" He looks to you, his eyes catching the sharp blue of the arc reactor necklace around your neck. "What if it doesn't work? What then?" His eyes meet yours with the end of the question.

"You deal with it." You say. "Look, the only thing that makes you like a spider is your weird sticky ability and your warped circulator system. That's it. You don't have to scale walls. My dad uses blasters, Strange uses magic, Thor flies, Steve just gets around in cars and whatever other vehicles as does Nat and Clint and Bucky. Sam has mechanical wings. Do I need to go on?"

Peter chuckles, a genuine chuckle for the first time in a month. "No," He shakes his head. "It-it's just," He takes in a breath. "Ned was almost killed because of me and I had two legs then. And you were, too." Peter hangs his head as he remembers the sight of his two friends bleeding out at the hands of two other villains he's had to face.

You nod and decide to stand up. "Yeah," You let out a sigh. "I don't have anything for that but, that's part of it. I know you live by the whole moral obligation, with great power comes great responsibility thing and I respect that." You gesture a hand out. "I admire you for it, even but you have to know that you can't save everyone, two legs or one. Sometimes being a hero means you can't save everyone."

That. It's that last sentence that strikes Peter in the way he needed it. Heroes can't save everyone but Peter sure as hell doesn't give up on trying to save everyone. When he's given the ultimatum between a loved one and a group of people, he will figure out a way to save both even against all odds. He will cut the wire every single time and while he's been laid up in this hospital bed, sulking in all his self-pity, it's so much different hearing it come from you.

"I should be able to save you guys though." Peter tries and this time, he moves to sit up straight, more than he's done in weeks while in front of people. And this time, he's not arguing either. He's just stating the thought through his head but he's readying himself to move regardless of what you're going to say.

"We're alive. Sure, we're a little scarred over it but Ned is okay. Ya know, he only goes to therapy once a month and that's his choice. His therapist said he could come in once every two months. And you know damn well my dad would ship me off anywhere if I was really fucked up over it." You crack another smile. "I have the scars from it and Ned does, too but we lived and we're both okay. We're just trying to get you to be okay now. You save everyone, but who saves you?" Peter goes to open his mouth but you don't let him finish. "Us. We save you. We got you so, Peter, get your ass off this bed." You extend a hand to him, your eyes locked with his and Peter wants to be stubborn but you're right.

They always get up.

"Um," Peter sticks out his hand but doesn't lock it with yours. "W-what if I want to stick to walls?" A smile comes to Peter's face, it's nervous and it's a serious question but it makes you laugh.

"Bold of you to assume my dad and I aren't working on one that will allow that." You send him a smirk with the wiggle of your brows.

Peter looks down and pulls the blanket from his lap, revealing his left leg and right leg with the metal band around the end. "I'm ready."

"Alright, Parker." You give him a wide smile, pulling him to sit all the way up so his leg can hang off the edge of the bed before you move to get the prosthetic leg. "You know this is just a temp, right? Just for you to get used to it while we fix up the new one and you say what adjusts you need? It'll be more like Bucky's arm rather than something this detachable."

Peter nods, watching you move to your knee to start hooking up the attachment to the end. "Adjustments?" He raises a brow with curiosity.

"Oh, yeah." You chime. "Whatever can be done by dad and I will do. I'm willing to bet you'll end up with an Iron Spider suit again but it'll come out of the leg." You pause for a second as you look up to Peter. "Actually, that'd be cool..."

Peter laughs from above you but it soon fades into something sheepish and awkward. "You, uh, you know that this...it's not..." He shrugs his shoulders, the expression saying what he's thinking.

"I know." You look up to him. "Your mental health is your fight but we're here to stand beside you in it. This though," Your eyes glance between the doe-eyed brown eyes looking down to you and the prosthetic in your hands. "Is your first step back to where you were."

"Thanks, Stark." Peter gives you a sheepish smile.

You nod. "But, your second step is apologizing to everyone. Rhodey and Bucky especially."

Peter nods. "I will."

There's a stubbornness in his voice but you know as well as Peter does that it's just a pride/depression thing, but he'll apologize. He'll apologize and he'll put this leg on and he'll go to therapy and physical therapy. And then he'll give a genuine, heartfelt apology again. He's going to be depressed and he's sure to have panic attacks and likely nightmares but it'll get better because it always does. And he has all the support in the world, from everyone regardless of what the last month has been like.

"Well, alright," You beam up at him, ready to connect the prosthetic to the metal band. "Ready to get back at it, Spidey?"

Peter looks to the TV, smile decorating his face before he looks down at you, determination back in his eyes. "Do it."