Archive of Our Own

Johnny was knocked to the ground after an errant swing from one of Doc Ock’s long arms hit him in the shoulder. His flames sizzled, nearing blue as he took in all the damage around him. Almost 4 city blocks had been destroyed in their fight, and it didn’t seem like it was going to be ending anytime soon. He sat on the floor for a mere few seconds, using his own finger to check for a concussion while he kept an eye on the battle raging in front of him. 

Sue was in the air above him, force fields thrown up almost faster than the eye could see as she tried to hold back Mysterio’s attacks, along with Electro’s wildly unpredictable bursts of electricity. The attacks seemed as if they functioned like a magic trick, simple diversions to throw off the Four as some of the other members of the Sinister Seven wrecked havoc all around them, but Electro’s additions made them exceptionally dangerous as one wrong move could have Sue fried in an instant.

Ben was busy in a fight with Kraven the Hunter, rock against muscle as they tumbled around the block, smashing glass window displays and knocking over street lamps. The Vulture was occasionally joining in, swooping in and battering Ben while he was already down. Reed, on the other hand, was in the middle of distracting Doc Ock. Reed’s long arms helped him in trapping the doctor’s mechanical limbs, but Ock must have upgraded them recently because their strength was far more powerful than it had been the last time they fought. 

Johnny had been busy trying to turn Sandman into glass when a mechanical arm had come out of nowhere and smacked him into the ground. There he now sat, done with his own shoddy concussion check. Johnny pulled himself off the ground with Herculean effort, almost 100% sure that his shoulder was dislocated. As he started to float in the air, he moved his arm to throw a fireball, but quickly stopped and bit his tongue to stop himself from crying out in pain.

Yup , Johnny thought. Definitely dislocated . 

Suddenly, he felt something whiz past his ear. He turned, expression smoldering as he prepared to once again face Sandman’s stupid sand tendrils, but stopped when he realized who was hanging upside down in front of him.

The Spider, in all his ugly, broad-shouldered glory, hung from a web. His comical—yet creepy—blank white eyes widened in surprise at seeing Johnny in front of him.

“Wow, is that second-rate superhero Johnny Storm? I haven’t seen you on the cover of any magazines in the bodega for a couple of weeks. Fallen behind on the workout routine, Torchy? You’re looking a little pudgy under all those flames.”

“Why, you—!”

Johnny started to rear back his arm before realizing his mistake. He couldn’t hold back the cry this time, a moan of pain slipping past his lips as his arm dropped limply to his side. 

The Spider laughed before swinging away. And that was exactly why Johnny hated him the most out of all of the Sinister Seven. The Spider was a cocky bitch who couldn’t even be bothered to spray one fire-proof web at Johnny. With his injury, the Spider didn’t even see him as a threat. At least Marko would fling some goddamn sand after him or something.

Johnny flew after the Spider, trying to keep his arm steady by his side. He dodged Ock’s arms, and managed to fly close enough to Marko’s tendril that he actually turned a bit of it to glass. But the Spider was always one step ahead, webs slinging through the air faster than the eye could see. The bug flipped through the air like it was nothing, dodging Johnny’s attempted fire blasts like shots from a water gun. 

Johnny cursed and flew faster, head pounding from both the fall and the exertion of the flight. He knew that if he pushed just a little further, he would be able to catch up with the webslinger before he managed to do any more damage. The Spider turned his head, white eyes standing out against the pitch black pattern on his suit. 

“Keep trying, Torch!” He called jeeringly. “You’ll never be able to catch me!”

Johnny could feel that he was pushing himself farther than he was meant to go. This was just a normal Tuesday fight, even if they were losing a bit more than usual. There was no reason to push himself to the brink for something that wasn’t world-endingly catastrophic. But, something about the Spider had always burnt him the wrong way. Maybe it was the fact that after years of fighting him, he still didn’t know a single thing about the guy. Maybe it was the fact that Johnny knew he was his age, knew that he could have been a brother-in-arms but instead turned into a nemesis. Maybe it was his cute butt. Whatever it was, Johnny knew it was pushing him today.

Johnny gave one last burst of speed, arm tingling while his head pounded harder than it had ever had before. The last thing he heard was the Spider yelling “Get bent, Johnny!” before he lost consciousness and plummeted to the ground.

-

Johnny awoke in the med ward in the Baxter Building. He knew it was the med ward because it smelled like rubbing alcohol and everything was a pure, disturbing white. 

He looked to his right to see Sue slumped over in a chair, blonde hair covering a swollen black eye. He shifted a little, hoping the noise would wake her up. It didn’t.

“Sue?” He whispered, voice hoarse. 

She startled awake, immediately leaning over him.

“Oh my god, Johnny, you’re finally awake! I’ve been so worried, we’ve all been taking shifts to watch over you. When you hit the ground, Johnny, it was so scary. I was still fighting Mysterio so I couldn’t do anything but I could see you. Your body just... stopped being lit and you plummeted almost twelve stories. “

Sue stopped and sniffed, hands shaking the tiniest bit. 

“We... we were afraid you weren’t gonna make it.”

Johnny looked into his sister’s eyes, swelling with tears. He could feel his heart clench at having made her worry. All because of his stupid beef with the Spider.

“I’m so sorry, Sue. It was stupid of me to keep pushing myself like that when I knew I wasn’t in good condition. It... I’ll try really hard to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Sue smiled tentatively, hand coming to rest on top of Johnny’s.

“So,” he started, unsure of how to continue the conversation. “Where did that black eye come from?”

Sue reached up to touch it before thinking better of it and putting her hand back on Johnny’s. It seemed to him that she had almost forgotten about it in the hubbub surrounding his fall. 

“Oh, this old thing?” She said with a weak laugh, eyes still watery. “After you left, Marko turned his stupid sand on me. Did you know that properly thrown sand balls hurt like a bitch?”

“Huh, tell me about it,” Johnny said with a small laugh that quickly turned into a wheeze.

Sue looked worried for a moment before Johnny recovered from the small coughing fit. 

“Sandman’s gotten me good a couple of times, too. It always makes me happy to melt a bit of it into glass, though.”

Sue squeezed Johnny’s hand before getting up. 

“I’m really happy you’re safe, Johnny. “

Johnny sighed, thinking back to the Spider’s emotionless eyes and hate-filled taunts.

“Me too, Sue. Me too.”

-

TWO MONTHS LATER  

Jen turned around, modeling a bright pink pantsuit that stood out against her green skin.

“I’m thinking that I need a new signature color. Purple is a little overrated, don’t you think?”

Johnny sighed, flipping mindlessly through a gossip magazine before taking another look at Jen’s outfit.

“Honestly, Jen, you know you look good in anything. I would just get a couple of the same suit in different colors and then accessorize differently each time.”

Jen turned to face the mirrors, playing with her hair as she hummed, considering his advice. Johnny knew the tune—it was the one she used when she was about to disagree with him.

“Johnny, you know I’m not one of those ‘capsule wardrobe’ girls. I need some killer outfits for court.”

She began to take off the suit jacket, meeting his eye in the mirror. A teasing smirk appeared on her face.

“And for dates with John. You know, those things where two people who like each other grab dinner and talk. When was the last time you had a good date, Johnny? And don’t give me any of that one-night stand shit I know you’ve been doing.” She eyed him disapprovingly as he folded the magazine and set it down on the chair next to him. “Wyatt’s been telling me about your little escapades.”

She turned, dropping the jacket over a chair before walking over to the rack, pulling out a dark red dress. 

“It’s just been hard, Jen. Between all the superheroing and family exploratory missions, I feel like I’m never in New York enough to start anything serious. Plus, there hasn’t even been anyone good enough to consider ‘serious’”.

Jen frowned at his use of air quotes before stripping. Johnny was used to it, and didn’t really care either way. She slipped into the red dress as Johnny picked up a different magazine, sighing as he saw yet another B-list celebrity gracing the front page. He had been too busy avoiding civil war on some alien planet Reed had connections with to even think about his usual ego-boosting modeling appointments.

“Besides, Reed told me this morning that he has a new lead on the Sinister Seven. I want to put them down before even thinking about starting something with someone special, especially a civilian. You know that those guys like to go after loved ones.”

After their epic fight two months ago, the Sinister Seven had gone quiet. The Four had managed to beat them in the end, only after calling in back up in the form of Jen and some other friends. Johnny had completely missed the end, what with his fall and all. 

However, they hadn’t just started to lay low. The Seven had completely disappeared off the map—not a single member had been spotted within the last two months. 

Jen twisted and turned in front of the mirror, admiring the way the dress snugly fit her curves. She turned to face Johnny, smoothing her hands down the front of the dress.

“I know how hard it is, Johnny,” she said with a hard look in her eyes. “But I care about you. And I don’t want you holding yourself back because of some imagined threat.”

She took a couple steps toward him, her usually imposing figure turning uncharacteristically caring. Her face softened and she reached out to cup his cheek. 

“You deserve someone who appreciates you, Johnny. You’re a goddamn catch who is also super hot, both figuratively and literally. Anyone would be lucky to have you.”

Johnny drank in the determination on her face, sensing only truth on her part. God, he was so lucky to have such amazing friends. He reached out to clasp her on the shoulder before pushing her back a little.

“Get that one for date night. You’re the one looking figuratively hot right now.”

Jen nodded, seemingly satisfied with his assessment.

“Red hot,” he said with a wink. 

-

Johnny returned to the Baxter Building a couple hours later. He and Jen had grabbed lunch at the Thai place they liked after her little shopping spree. He had brought back some coconut rice pudding for Sue, dropping it on the counter in the kitchen before making his way to Reed’s lab. Johnny figured that that was where everybody else was, considering the rest of the house was empty.

He took his time heading down to the lab, pondering on Jen’s (uninvited) musings into his love life. So what if it had been a little lackluster lately? Everybody had slow times, even Johnny Storm. And like he said, he’d been super busy lately. Plus, the thought of the Seven getting to someone he cared about? It scared Johnny more than he cared to admit.

He usually didn’t have to worry about things like that, but he had heard rumors around town of mysterious things happening—murders, break-ins, robberies. Stuff that normally would just be part of the violence of New York City, but ever since the Seven burst onto the scene, suddenly Johnny had become much more aware of every crime committed in the city. 

Some of the crimes even had the Spider written all over them, but nobody could ever prove anything since the Seven had gone underground. People who owed debts or had something of value were often found beaten to a pulp, their faces practically unrecognizable with all the blood. 

Johnny had shown up to one of the scenes once. He had peered down from the roof, saw the bruised and bloody body of a man who owed debts to the villainous underground that practically ran his part of the city. 

Johnny had watched the cops zip that man into a body bag. 

When he got home, Johnny tried to wash off blood that wasn’t even on his hands. 

-

Johnny arrived at the lab deep in thought. He looked through the glass and saw Sue, Ben, and Reed huddled around one of Reed’s displays. He hurried in after noticing that the Vulture’s information page was up on the screen and Reed was typing in some new info.

“Anything on our guy?” Johnny asked.

The new development that Johnny had mentioned to Jen was that a piece of the Vulture’s wings had been discovered in a park in Queens. It had been hidden in a bush, like Toomes had noticed that it had come off and only had a limited amount of time to stick it somewhere. 

The question was, who or what could the Vulture possibly be running from?

“Well,” Reed replied, eyes not moving from the screen while his fingers flew across the keyboard. “The police have found another piece of Toomes’ tech caught up in some brush on the side of the Hudson. Also, after some of Ben’s searching on Yancy Street, some people that frequent the Bar with No Name said that Toomes had lost contact with them a couple of days ago.”

Johnny slowly nodded, putting the pieces together for himself. 

“So... the Vulture is either dead or lost? Is that what you’re trying to say, Reed?”

Reed turned around, glasses sitting on the tip of his nose. Sue and Ben turned with him, slightly worried looks on their faces. Reed scrubbed a hand through his hair, looking unusually worried over this. Sue reached out and laid her hand on his shoulder.

“What I’m saying, Johnny, is that someone is trying to get rid of the Seven. And it’s not one of the good guys.”

-

Johnny flew around above the Hudson, trying to spot anything that may even vaguely suggest that Toomes was around. Sue and Reed were working with some of their other friends to try and piece together the Vulture’s story, while Ben had gone down to the Bar with No Name to try and get something out of the regulars. 

Johnny was bored out of his mind, having combed the river for hours with nothing to show for it. He had just a little left to go before he was allowed to give up the wild goose chase and head home for some rest and a shower. 

Suddenly, something caught Johnny’s vision in the corner of his eye. He turned, hovering in midair while he tried to puzzle it out. It seemed almost as if he had spotted the Spider’s big white eyes peering at him from out of a tree. 

But it couldn’t be. The Spider—nor any of the other members of the Seven, for that matter—hadn’t been spotted for weeks, yet Johnny suddenly saw him on a stupid inspection on the river? It was too good to be true, and also a little worrying. Only the Four knew he was going to be here. How could the Spider have found out?

Johnny flew closer, still studying the tree for any movement. He couldn’t even throw a fireball at the guy because of the risk of the trees catching on fire. 

As Johnny stared, a tree to his left rustled. Johnny flew closer, tamping down his flames enough where he could still fly, but not set any trees on fire.

Then, the Spider suddenly popped down from the tree, hanging upside down on a web. 

“You!” Johnny shouted, flames spiking before he could wrangle them under control.

“Me,” the Spider replied lazily, slowing spinning circles on his web. “Why’re you here, Torchy? Nothing better to do than fly around over the dirtiest river this side of the Mississippi?”

Johnny growled low in his threat. “I don’t have time for small talk, bug. What are you doing here? Anything about Adrian Toomes?”

The Spider’s eyes widened for a fraction of a second. He stopped spinning, web going taut.

“What do you know about Adrian Toomes?” He asked stiffly.

Johnny smiled. The bug was caught in his own web. Something fishy was going on here, and Johnny could smell it a mile away.

“Oh, you know, we just realized our good close personal friend the Vulture hasn’t shown up in a while, but pieces of his suit have. It got us thinking, maybe Toomey is in trouble?”

“Thinking?” the Spider laughed. “You worry your pretty little head with thoughts? Nice try, sweetheart, but I bet it was Mr. Fantastic and the Invisible Woman who did all the thinking in this one. Maybe even the living boulder helped out. But you? Nah, you can’t fool me.”

Johnny’s flames jumped a bit at the insult and he could see the Spider gearing up for a fight. However, Johnny didn’t need the fight today. He needed to finish his search of the river—it was obvious something was going on here and he needed to figure out what it was before the bug did.

“Buzz off, the Spider. I don’t need the fight, and from the looks of it, neither do you. I think you’ll need all the strength you can get for whoever is coming after the Seven.”

Johnny reveled in the way that the Spider’s eyes shrunk in annoyance before he flew away, making sure to stay close to the middle of the river so the Spider would have no way to get to him. 

He combed the sides of the river for another hour before he stumbled upon something worth noting. It was a wing from Adrian Toomes’ suit, torn and broken where it had been ripped from his back. The electronics were a mess, like someone had ripped through them, possibly searching for something. 

“Reed?” Johnny buzzed through his comm. “I think you’re gonna wanna see this.”

Reed, Sue, and Ben arrived on the scene in almost no time, Sue lowering them carefully down from one of her invisible platforms. Reed was over the wing first, some sort of scanning device already set up.

“It looks like this happened not too long ago. Maybe a couple days at most.”

Reed looked again at the wrecked wing, slowly tracing a finger over the electronics. 

“These look like they’re missing a part. I think it might be a tracking beacon. Perhaps Toomes ripped this out himself, and then someone ripped the wing off of him.”

“But, who would do that? The Seven are already some of the most powerful guys on the scene—we fight them practically every week and they always bounce back.”

Reed turned and gave Johnny a long, hard look. 

“You’re missing something, Johnny. We haven’t fought them in months. I think—and correct me if I’m wrong here, Sue—that the only thing that would make these guys go cold is something bigger than themselves. Something more dangerous.”

Johnny looked to Sue, only to see Reed’s frightening declaration reflected in her eyes. 

“I’m afraid he’s right, Johnny. I think we’ve got bigger fish to fry than the Seven right now.”

Suddenly, they heard a gravelly shout from a little ways down the river.

“Stretch, you’re gonna wanna see this one. Looks like the Vulture finally became the prey.”

Ben waved them over, his rocky torso shielding the Vulture’s body from view. When they arrived, Johnny gasped.

The Vulture’s body was practically unrecognizable, the skin of his head pulled to expose his skull, his body torn to shreds. There were what seemed to be acid burns on almost every part of his skin, and some of his suit had melted into his flesh. 

It seemed as if his body had been there for a couple days, same as the wing, slowly starting to rot away. Whoever killed him was either very stupid, or they wanted to make a statement. When Johnny turned to face Sue, she put a voice to his thoughts.

“Reed, this wasn’t left here by accident. Whoever killed the Vulture wanted someone to find his body—whether that be us or the Seven, we’ll never know. For now, let’s just call the police.”

Reed sighed, running a hand over his face. “Sue, I’ve got to study this, as morbid as it may seem. The police can be informed after I’m done.”

Sue stood up straighter, her eyes hardening. “Reed, you and I both know what the police will say. If you examine his body without their oversight, it’s tampered evidence. If—no, when—we catch whoever did this, we’re bringing them to justice. We have to turn this over to the police, but I’m sure they’ll let you work on him with some oversight.”

Ben nodded in agreement. “I’m with Sue on this one, Stretch. We need ta to be careful ‘round this kinda stuff. I don’ want it ta be your body on the side of the Hudson next. We need ta bring this guy to justice—and fast.”

-

The Four ended their day sitting around the dining table, Val and Franklin playing in the other room. Reed had called the police, making sure to secure his involvement in their investigation. If the police couldn’t bring this villain to justice, the Four would. For now, the Four needed to keep their image as America’s First and Best Superhero Family. 

After all, they usually dealt with interplanetary and international threats, not recurring city criminals like the Seven. They had only gotten involved after the Avengers had asked for help on an attack about two years ago, and then Doc Ock had apparently taken some kind of weird interest in Reed—“scientist to scientist”, he had said.

Johnny moved the food on his plate around, not feeling very hungry after seeing—and smelling—the Vulture’s dead body. He looked up from his practically untouched meal to see the rest of the Four was pretty much the same. 

“I think I’m going to head to bed, if that’s alright?” Johnny said, with a pleading look in his eye.

Sue barely even looked up enough to see the look, flicking her head toward the door. “Go ahead, Johnny. I think we all need a little alone time tonight.”

Johnny left the dining room, still as unsatisfied and restless as he had entered it. This... thing with the Vulture was really getting under his skin. 

As he flopped down on his bed, Johnny realized he had forgotten to tell the rest of the Four about his little... encounter with the Spider earlier in the day. With everything that had happened after, it had slipped his mind to tell them. After all, they hadn’t even fought and the Spider hadn’t given him anything good.

Well, actually, now that Johnny thought about it, maybe he had given them something. When Johnny had asked him about Toomes, the Spider had frozen up. That meant that the Seven had no clue who was doing this to them, not even the clever and usually all-knowing the Spider.

Johnny sat up, twisting his sheets between his fingers. If the Spider—and by extension, the rest of the Seven—didn’t know anything about Toomes’ killer, that meant the Four had a leg up on them. Reed had actual evidence from the scene, plus Toomes’s body, that they could study for DNA evidence and other clues the killer could have revealed.

Johnny got up, walking across his room to his bathroom. Content with this new knowledge, he was ready for a nice, relaxing shower. 

Johnny exited the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, toweling his hair dry. The shower had been extra hot today, as Johnny sometimes used his powers to warm up the water way beyond what would be safe for any normal human. He barely felt it, but he liked the way the steam filled up the room, fogging up the mirrors and turning the bathroom into a sauna. 

He dropped his hair towel on the floor when he reached his bed, lying down and reaching over to pick up his phone. He turned it on to see zero texts. Great, just what he needed. Johnny was hoping to get lost in some meaningless conversation with one of his friends, but it looked like no one had reached out tonight.

Johnny tossed his phone over to the other side of his bed and scrubbed his hands over his face. He turned over, lying face down on the bed. He screamed into it, just a little bit, as dramatic as ever. He stayed like that for a bit, listening to the wind and the sounds of the city through his open window.

Wait, open window? Johnny didn’t remember opening his window. He slowly turned over, feigning ignorance as he peeked out of the corner of his eye to see that yes, his window was indeed wide open. Open like... open like someone had opened it from the outside.

He got up, careful to keep his movements as quiet as possible so as to not alert whoever might be lurking outside. He adjusted the towel around his waist, ready to burn it to a crisp in a second if he needed to defend himself. After all, Johnny Storm wasn’t known for his modesty, was he?

Johnny soon reached the window. He couldn’t hear anything particularly out of the ordinary, but for all he knew someone could be right outside his field of vision ready to ambush him.

Suddenly, a face and body swung into view. The dark night made it hard to tell, but the awful white eyes confirmed it.

“Hey, Torchy,” the Spider slurred, swaying dangerously as he clung to the outside of the Baxter Building. “Had no one else to come to. Needed shelter. Somewhere safe. Am glad you’re here.”

With that, the Spider tumbled through Johnny’s window and landed directly on his pile of dirty laundry. Johnny just stood in shock, too weirded out to even think about flaming on. 

The Spider shifted around on the floor, mumbling stuff under his breath. Johnny bent down to his level, trying to ascertain what exactly could be making one of the the most fearsome villains of all time suddenly turn into a five year old.

The Spider quickly answered that for him, however, when he rolled over and said:

“Been... think am drugged. Lots of drugs. You look soooooo pretty. Pretty Torchy, pretty Torchy.”

Then, the Spider did the last thing Johnny expected of him. 

“Do you think I’m pretty too?” He said as he pulled off his mask, revealing a face half lit with moonlight. A face with tall cheekbones, full pink lips, a twice broken nose, brown eyes, and a head of thick brown hair.

A face that Johnny knew.

-

FIVE YEARS AGO

Johnny awoke to the sun streaming through his windows and loud voices coming from the living room. He stretched, groaned, and shifted on his bed, trying to fall back asleep. Suddenly, the voices picked up, excited and quick, but Johnny couldn’t make out what exactly they were saying. 

Johnny grabbed his pillow and smushed it over his face, trying in vain to block out the growing noises. Whatever those people were doing out there, they were too fucking excited about it.

Finally, Johnny was too awake and too annoyed to go back to sleep. He kicked off his covers, slowly sitting up. His feet had a mind of their own, searching the ground next to his bed for his slippers. 

Johnny yawned and scratched his head as he got up, fluffy slippers securely on his feet. He wandered into his bathroom, looking at himself in the mirror. His hair was a bit of a mess, but other than that, he looked fine. 

Johnny grabbed his phone on his way out of his room, immediately opening Instagram and searching for any pictures his friends might have put out last night. Johnny needed to be ready to inform the Four’s PR reps if they had a media shit storm coming. 

Johnny kept his head down the whole way into the kitchen, his attention completely focused on his phone. He had tuned out those annoyingly loud voices in favor of turning on the espresso machine, seeing as those loud voices were the ones that made him need the caffeine this early in the morning.

“Uh, Johnny?” Reed said from somewhere to his right, sounding uncharacteristically pained. “Johnny? Are you okay?”

“No, Reed, I’m not okay!” Johnny snapped, not lifting his eyes from his phone. “Who could you have possibly been shouting with this early in the morning? Don’t you know some people had a late night last night?”

Johnny turned, exasperation filling his body. He fully expected to see one of Reed’s geeky science buddies there, but instead he was met with something completely different—someone completely different.

Suddenly, Johnny became distinctly aware that he was standing in the kitchen in the corny cartoon flame-covered boxers that Ben had gifted him last Hanukkah. 

“Uh... hi,” the mystery guy said, all broad shoulders and full pink lips. “Nice boxers.”

“Haha, yeah... they were a gift.” Johnny said, internally cringing inside at the very obvious blush on the mystery guy’s face. 

“Johnny,” Reed said, a fake smile plastered onto his face. “Meet Peter Parker, my new intern from ESU. Peter, meet Johnny Storm, my brother-in-law.”

“It was... ahem... nice to meet you, Johnny,” Peter said, his face now bright red. “I think Reed and I have some important business in the lab.”

Johnny just gave a half-assed smile that probably looked more like a grimace before turning back to his coffee.

God, Reed sure knew how to embarrass the fuck out of him.

-

PRESENT  

Johnny was shocked out of his memories when the Spider—no, Peter —rolled over and started convulsing. Johnny fell to his knees and rolled the Spider over to face him. With the mask now off, Johnny could see that his face was covered in sweat.

Johnny turned and started to yell for help. He didn’t want to leave Peter’s side in case something worse started to happen. The Spider may, for whatever godforsaken reason, be a villain and a killer and a criminal, but he didn’t deserve to die. 

“REED!” Johnny screamed. “REED! GET IN HERE! SUE! BEN!”

His voice started to get hoarse after a while, and it seemed like no one was coming. That was, until a giant rocky fist broke down the door and Reed came rushing in with Sue right behind him. Ben hung back by the broken door.

“Reed, Sue, it’s-it’s the Spider. It’s-he’s Peter, it’s Peter, oh my god, why is it Peter, I thought he was good, oh my god–“

Reed pushed Johnny away, into Sue’s waiting arms. She held him tight and rocked him back and forth as he sobbed into her arms, still hearing Peter convulse behind him.

“I thought–he was so nice, Sue. He was so nice!” Johnny cried, tears rolling down his cheeks. “Why is he–he can’t be evil, Sue, he just can’t.”

Sue shushed him, her fingers running through his hair. 

“We don’t know anything yet, Johnny. Just calm down, Reed’s got this, we’ll have the 24-hour doctors up as soon as possible.”

Johnny just cried harder, unsure why this was affecting him as hard as it was. He just... no one had ever begun dying in his arms.

“Shhh, it’ll be okay, Johnny. Look, here comes the doctors now....”

-

FIVE YEARS AGO

Johnny barged into the lab, scaring Peter. The young new intern had been working with Reed for almost two months now, helping run experiments and offering his own more reasonable opinions on Reed’s outlandish ideas. 

Johnny had found out that Peter was currently in undergrad at ESU studying bioengineering. Peter was 20, same as him, but a hell of a lot more accomplished. When Johnny told him as much, Peter had just blushed and looked down.

“I’m not the one that’s a superhero,” he had said. 

“And I’m not one of the smartest minds on the entire planet,” Johnny had reminded him before Peter had ushered him out of the lab, cheeks still a little pink.

And boy, did Johnny like to make him blush. It was the highlight of his day, getting back from lunch or a fight (whichever came first that day), and seeing Peter working in the lab, oversized glasses falling off his nose.

“Hey, Pete,” Johnny said today, hopping up onto a countertop. “Why do you wear those glasses if you don’t need them? Like, I’ve seen you read stuff completely fine without them.”

Peter laughed and turned around. 

“Is this your plan, Storm? Come in here everyday and ask me questions to distract me from my work so your brother-in-law eventually fires me?”

Johnny just smiled in response.

“You know me, Pete. I’m in it for the long con.”

“Yeah, I know. And to answer your question, the glasses are a holdover from high school. My eyesight miraculously cleared up at the end of senior year, but MJ told me I looked ‘nerdy chic’ in them, and they’re pretty comfortable, so I keep ‘em. What about you? Does the Human Torch need reading glasses?”

“Well, MJ was right about the ‘nerdy chic’ part, Parker,” Johnny said with a wink. “And no, the Human Torch doesn’t need reading glasses. Well, not yet, at least.”

Peter blushed, his whole face going red before he ducked his head. 

“Just let me get back to work, Johnny.”

Johnny huffed, faking exasperation with a fond smile on his face. 

“Of course, anything for my favorite intern.”

-

PRESENT

Sue had helped Johnny up after they took Peter out of the room on a stretcher. Johnny hadn’t even looked as they carried him out, having heard the doctors put straps on him to keep him down. 

Johnny was now sitting in a comfy chair in the med ward next to Peter’s bed. He had told Sue that “someone needed to keep an eye on the criminal”, but he could tell Sue hadn’t believed his flimsy lie. In reality, Johnny just wanted to make sure Peter was okay— Peter , not the Spider.

Johnny shifted in the chair, its overstuffed padding in contrast to the rest of the sterile med ward. Reed had decided to put in some new chairs after Johnny’s own stint in the ward, seeing as the ones before then were plastic and hard and uncomfortable to sleep on. 

Johnny was fighting off sleep right now. Maybe the chairs were a little too comfortable? Johnny didn’t know and didn’t care, all he could focus on was not falling asleep. For all he knew, the minute he dozed off was the minute the Spider escaped. 

Suddenly, Peter rolled over in his sleep and started mumbling. Now, he had done this a couple of times since Johnny had sat next to him, but this time he sounded... upset. Johnny sat up, eyes focused entirely on the Spider. 

Perhaps he was just reacting badly to the medicine they gave him to put him to sleep... or perhaps Peter was having a nightmare. 

Johnny almost laughed out loud. The Spider having a nightmare? That was almost too good, considering the fact that the Spider was most people’s real nightmare. 

Peter shifted again, a small whine slipping from his lips. 

“No! No! Not... not Aunt May! Please!” Peter cried out, voice trailing to a whisper at the end. He reached out, his hand almost getting ensnared in the tangle of cords next to his bed. Almost, because Johnny caught it. 

“Please! I’ll do anything!”

Peter squeezed Johnny’s hand tighter while Johnny watched him thrash around in morbid fascination. How thrilling it was to see the unbreakable Spider finally weak.

Except... it wasn’t really a thrill, because when Johnny looked at him, it wasn’t the Spider’s creepy mask staring back at him. It was Peter’s face, the sweet intern who humored Johnny’s embarrassing and uncalled-for flirting before he quit. 

And yeah, it was all coming back to Johnny. He held Peter’s hand and began to hum a small tune in an effort to calm him while he reflected on Peter’s brief internship. 

Not even three months had passed before Peter had slipped Reed his resignation papers. He had said that responsibilities at home, school, and work had piled up too much for him to continue with the internship. When Reed had offered him a living wage instead of the lump sum offer usually given to interns, Peter had turned him down, citing the fact that he already had a job—“it’s not the money” he had said, “it’s the time”. So, Reed had let him go, despite complaints from the rest of the family and the lab staff. They had all genuinely liked Peter, so they were all genuinely sad to see him go.

Peter had calmed down from Johnny’s humming, so Johnny slowly let go of his hand and settled back into the chair. 

Now that he thought about it, the time that Peter had resigned was right around the time the Spider had sprung into prominence as a much more—well, villainous villain. Before, he had barely been a blip on the Four’s radar, just some petty crimes like theft, mainly in Queens and a small bit in Manhattan. 

However, Peter’s resignation coincided with the first major Spider crime—the crime that had put him on the Seven’s radar. Johnny had actually been there that day, many years ago....

-

FOUR YEARS AGO

Something crashed into the window of the bodega across the street. Johnny had been minding his own business on a park bench across the way, waiting for Wyatt and Jen. He just stared at the broken glass littering the sidewalk, in shock that someone would openly attack a bodega in broad daylight—in a city full of superheroes.

“Oh, fuck this,” Johnny groaned, flaming on. 

He flew over to the bodega and saw that no one was hurt. The shop owner pointed to the left, indicating that whoever had attacked him went out the other window. Johnny flew out the already broken window, hovering above the street trying to spot someone on the move. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a figure dressed in black running across the rooftops. Bingo.

Johnny flew after the criminal. The figure turned, giant white eyes blankly staring at Johnny. It sent a shiver through Johnny’s spine; whoever was doing this obviously planned it. This wasn’t some run-of-the-mill thief. This was someone who planned... whatever they had done. 

They hadn’t taken anything from the bodega, so perhaps they were running away from the scene of their real crime and just happened to bodily crash into the window of a local store.

“Hey, Johnny,” a voice said to his right. 

Johnny just about jumped half a foot in the air at the surprise. 

“Jesus, Jan, warn a guy next time! You're chasing this guy, too?” Johnny replied, nodding his head to the criminal who was still running extremely fast across the rooftops, zigzagging in an attempt to lose them. 

“Yeah, I was actually the reason he crashed into that bodega. Believe it or not, he robbed the Tiffany’s. I was with some girlfriends across the street having brunch at that new place—have you been yet? It was so good, they had some chilaquiles that were to die for-“

“Yeah, Jan, I’ve been. Anyway, back to the criminal who’s currently banging his wrists against his side and jumping from building to building.”

“Oh yeah, right. Well, I went after him and chased him all the way over here. He was swinging from something... it wasn’t exactly flying, but close enough to it. He’s super agile and quick, but took a corner too fast and crashed into that bodega. Then, here you were!”

Johnny laughed, doing a couple twirls in midair. 

“Yeah, I was also off duty. I was waiting for Wyatt and Jen. We were gonna have coffee. However, when duty calls, I—Hey! He’s getting away!”

Johnny made a sharp right, Jan following suit. The criminal had dropped into an alley, disappearing from their line of sight. 

Jan flew down first, then called Johnny down. The criminal had disappeared, but left two small diamond rings sitting on the ground, a small note attached.

For my first two fans. Love, the Spider.

“Son of a bitch– Jan, how much did you say he took?”

Jan flew down to the ground, growing back to normal size. She stared at the rings, frowning.

“I didn’t, I just saw him burst through the windows at Tiffany’s. However, if he could afford to leave these behind, I’d say quite a lot.”

Johnny cursed again, crumpling the note in his hand. 

“I guess we’re gonna find out real soon.”

Johnny arrived home to see the news about the criminal on TV. The rest of the family was sitting in the living room, avidly watching the story. Sue turned as Johnny entered the room, a disappointed look on her face.

“Chatting with Jan? Really, Johnny? You have got to know how bad this looks. And, I’m seriously disappointed that you barely put any effort into bringing this guy to justice.”

“First of all, Sue, you know I don’t get to talk to Jan all that often,” Johnny began, crossing his arms. “Secondly, we don’t usually catch common criminals. I thought this was just some guy in a costume. By the time Jan told me he had some sort of tech or powers, he had already escaped down into that alley.”

“Mommy, look!” Val pointed to the TV. “They’re calling the man Uncle Johnny let get away ‘The Spider’. That’s so cool! I want to be the Spider when I grow up!”

Sue ruffled Val’s hair then lifted her into her lap. 

“Val, that man is a criminal. He stole lots of money from a nice store.”

“Lotsa money,” Ben interjected. “Look at the TV. Ol’ Matchstick over here owes Tiffany’s $5 million!”

Johnny almost passed out. 

“That bug stole FIVE MILLION DOLLARS?!” 

-

PRESENT

Peter’s little stunt at Tiffany’s had caught the eye of the Vulture, who had been doing some weapons dealing. The Vulture wanted someone with the Spider’s abilities, so he put him to work. A couple months later, Doc Ock approached the two of them about joining the Sinister Seven.

As Johnny now sat vigil next to Peter’s bed, his emotions were a mixed bag of both rage and pity. He didn’t know what had forced Peter into a life of crime—if he was even forced at all. But Johnny couldn’t—he wouldn’t—believe that someone as sweet as Peter would end up being a criminal who stole from and killed innocent people. Johnny had to believe that there was some extenuating circumstance, some stroke of horrible luck, that pushed Peter into a life of crime.

Johnny waited for hours next to Peter’s bed. He tossed around theory after theory in his head, debating and proving himself wrong on each one. Eventually, he had to stop. There was no use debating Peter’s origin story. Johnny would find out sooner or later, but now he was focused on taking down whoever was apparently smarter and more evil than the Seven. However, he knew the only person who could tell him was currently knocked out cold on the hospital bed next to him.

So, Johnny resigned himself to waiting.

Johnny waited for three fucking days. Peter has apparently been put entirely out of commission by whatever poison he had taken and then the steps taken by the doctors to prevent his death. The lab results were taking a while because Peter’s blood was apparently unlike anything Reed had seen before, so he had to decode the blood before he could decode the poison. 

On the third day of waiting, Johnny was flipping through a magazine and mentally planning his next photo shoot when he heard a small groan next to him. He turned to see Peter starting to move around the bed, his eyes flickering open. Peter’s face was pale and gaunt under the bright white lights of the med ward—he hadn’t been taking care of himself long before he was poisoned. Peter shifted some more before he tried to sit up. That was when Johnny moved in.

He stood up and quickly pushed Peter back onto the bed, pushing his hair out of his eyes. Peter relaxed into his touch for a moment before springing away, wincing in pain as he did so.

“Johnny?! What the hell are you doing here? Wait, where even is here? Where the fuck am I? Have you taken me hostage or something?”

Johnny lit up one hand, flames flickering and crackling around his fingers. He twirled the flame around, keeping a sharp eye on Peter.

“Are you sure you wanna be making accusations right now? Cause you’re the one in the hospital bed, not me. Your Spider-strength won’t do you any good here.”

Peter’s eyes widened for a millisecond before he smoothed his face back under control. 

“Spider-strength? I have no idea what you’re talking about. Now, can you please tell me what I’m doing in the Baxter Building med ward.”

“Oh, finally recognized it, have you?” Johnny replied, unable to keep the venom out of his voice. “You’re here because you climbed through my window at 11:30 at night three fucking days ago, wearing the Spider suit and clinging to the outside of my building. So don’t give me that bullshit about ‘Oh, the Spider? Never heard of him’ cause I know everything, Parker. Everything.”

Peter just grimaced, knowing he was done for. 

“Why’d I do it? Why’d you take me here? I don’t have any bruises or anything. The last thing I remember was having a couple of drinks at the Bar with No Name with Daken... and then I woke up here.”

“Apparently, you were poisoned. We haven’t figured out by what yet because you’ve got some weird fucking blood. Also, you’re here and not on the Raft cause it seems like someone is out to get the Seven. And we’ve seen villains get their enemies in there before.”

Peter sighed, flopping his head back on his pillow after awkwardly turning to look at Johnny this whole time. Johnny just stared, waiting for Peter’s reply. Peter didn’t move for a while, his eyes focused on the ceiling with his mind obviously focused on something completely different.

“I just... after Adrian was attacked, I knew something was up. I had talked to the rest of the Seven about it, but they didn’t seem too concerned. They said they had always thought Adrian was the ‘weakest link’—the easiest to take out. I guess that means I’m the second easiest.”

Johnny sat there, staring at Peter who stared at the ceiling. He considered Peter’s statement. The Spider was most definitely not the “weakest link”, no matter what the rest of the Seven said. In fact, in Johnny’s opinion, he was second only to Doc Ock. The Spider had skills, talent, intelligence, strategy—pretty much everything one needed to be a super successful supervillain. And a super successful supervillain he was. Peter had stolen hundreds of millions of dollars in the past 4 years and been a real violent menace. Not that Johnny told him any of this, of course. Instead, he told him the idea that had been forming ever since they found the Vulture.

“I don’t think that’s true at all. I think the Seven were covering. You’re extremely smart and I bet they were pretty scared after someone took out Toomes. They didn’t want you making a scene out of it, so they put you on the defensive. Makes sense, really. They took their biggest player out of the game. However, in doing so, they made you vulnerable because you were paranoid. They effectively fucked themselves over.”

That got Peter’s attention. He turned his head, tired eyes latching on to Johnny’s own. His hair was mussed and his twice-broken nose cast a shadow over the right side of his face. 

“I’ve never thought about it like that, Storm. You’re pretty smart, Torchy.”

Johnny gave a small, sad smile. Then, he got up and walked out, taking one last lingering look at Peter before he headed up for a much needed shower and nap combo. 

He felt bad for the guy, he really did. However, it didn’t cure him of his sins. Johnny didn’t know what it was that had made Peter join the dark side, but he was going to find out. Perhaps that was the clue they needed to solve whoever was doing this to the Seven.

-

Johnny awoke the next morning surprisingly more rested than he would have thought after all the action the past few days. He laid in bed for a few minutes, just enjoying the feeling of the sun on his skin. Even though he could make his own fire, it still felt great to get some from the original source.

Eventually, Johnny dragged himself out of bed. As he put on his pants, he could hear Reed and Sue talking in the living room. He couldn’t make out exactly what they were talking about, but he figured it was probably about their new guest. Then, he heard footsteps heading away, likely towards the lab. If Johnny was a betting man (and he was, as long as it was Ben’s money), he would put a thousand on them being in the lab at pretty much any time of day, anyways.

Johnny headed out to the living room in a pretty good mood, which was promptly ruined by seeing freaking the Spider just lounging on his couch like he had done nothing wrong ever. Johnny stomped over to him, pointing a finger in his face.

“You! What the hell are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be rotting in some cell in the basement of the Baxter? Sure, you were a nice guy once, but that doesn’t give you a right to act like you’re some kinda saint, sitting up here watching TV like nothing’s wrong. You’re a sack of crap, Parker. Don’t let anyone tell you differently!”

Johnny’s venom bled into the last part, his tone shifting from anger to biting contempt. Peter winced, his hands up in surrender.

“Look, Torch, I didn’t come here to start a fight. Reed told me it was fine to stay here while he and Sue did some final checks in the lab.”

Johnny got two steps closer, towering over Peter’s seated form. He pointed at him again, his finger an inch away from Peter’s nose. 

“You step one fucking foot out of line, Parker,” Johnny spit, “and I’ll burn your fucking face off.”

Johnny lit up his finger, flames jumping to barely lick Peter’s nose. Johnny knew all about the Spider’s enhanced healing—hell, he’d even witnessed it a couple of times—so he knew Peter wouldn’t be too hurt. The little pink burn on the end of his crooked nose would be gone by the time Johnny was back from the lab. 

“You’d better keep your ass on this couch. I’ll be back to make sure you haven’t stolen anything or killed someone.”

Peter nodded, wisely keeping his mouth shut. Johnny then stomped off to the lab, ready to give Reed and Sue a piece of his mind.

Johnny arrived at the lab literally smoking. As in, when he entered, he made sure Reed and Sue could see the smoke coming off his shoulders. He’s sure his absolutely pissed expression helped the image too. 

Sue was the first to see him.

“Uh oh, I don’t like that look, Johnny,” she sighed. “What’s the problem now?”

Reed turned at that, noticing Johnny’s smoking shoulders.

“John, you know better. Turn off the smoke so you don’t set off the alarms.”

Johnny got right up in Reed’s personal space, finger poking him in the chest. 

“No, you know better, Reed!” Johnny shouted. “What is that killer doing in our living room?”

Reed sighed, rubbing his temple as he drew back his chest. The contortions never lost their weirdness, they just became a normal weirdness. A weirdness Johnny wasn’t in the mood for right now.

“We’re fucking superheroes, Reed. You can do your bendy shit, Sue can turn invisible, Ben is made of rocks, I can light myself on fire, for God’s sake! We’ve dedicated our entire lives to the safety of the world. And now a confirmed killer, a horrible fucking person, is sitting in the living room where your children play!”

Sue pushed Johnny back, trying to calm him down. But Johnny wouldn’t calm down, he was too worked up about this.

“So give me one fucking reason, one good reason, Reed, as to why that killer can sit on our couch and watch TV like it’s all fine and dandy!”

Reed snaked out a hand behind him to turn the computer screen to face Johnny. He pointed at the article on the screen. 

“That’s why, Johnny. Kraven the Hunter was just found dead in a warehouse on the edge of Brooklyn. He had been drugged, just like Peter, then stabbed almost 15 times in the back. He was literally stabbed in the back, Johnny. The only safe place for Peter right now is our apartments, as awful as it sounds. Anywhere else is just too dangerous.”

Reed stopped for a moment, looking for once like the old man he really was. His wrinkles more profound, his grey hair more grey, his eyes sunken. He lifted his eyes from the computer screen to meet Johnny’s.

“We’ve never dealt with anything like this, Johnny. We usually deal with diplomatic planetary issues or idiotic villains like the Mole Man. These are cold-blooded killers we’re dealing with. And they’re killing each other. The Spider is the only lead we have on this, and I’m not letting him end up the same way his colleagues did: dead and alone, killed to send a message.”

Johnny slumped back into Sue’s hold, by now probably considered a hug. Johnny was just so worked up about the fact that it was Peter who was the Spider. Not some random weirdo on the street, but the nerdy kid Johnny used to tease in the lab. Johnny held onto Sue for a moment before pulling out of her grip. He walked over to Reed, patting him on the arm as he took a glance at the computer screen.

“Alright, Reed. I guess... I guess I better go tell Peter what poisoned him. What was it, by the way?”

Johnny walked into the living room dejected. He just couldn’t believe he had to live with this killer for the foreseeable future. Peter turned, his face a blank slate. Johnny knew he was building himself up for the inevitable eviction. Sadly, it wasn’t coming.

Johnny stopped a few feet in front of Peter, who was sitting exactly where Johnny left him. Johnny still didn’t trust him though, as he could have gotten up to sneak a look around before rushing back as soon as he heard Johnny’s footsteps. 

“Arsenic,” Johnny tossed out after a couple minutes of uncomfortable staring. 

“Ars– What?” Peter asked, confusion filling his face.

“Arsenic. Is what you were poisoned with. It–it, uh, triggered the convulsions.”

Peter slowly nodded. 

“Ah, I see. Well, thanks for telling me. I’ll–I’ll just, uh, get back to watching the television.”

Johnny gave a curt nod before turning away, fully determined to spend the rest of the day brooding in his room.

As he began to take the first few steps into the hallway, he heard Reed and Sue approaching from the lab. He cursed under his breath, turning on his heel to greet them.

“What now?” He huffed, still intent on pursuing his whole “disappear and brood” plan.

Sue gave him a hard glare before she plastered on a fake smile and turned to Peter.

“Well, Peter, it looks like you’re going to have to stay with us for a while. You can sleep in the guest room next to Johnny’s room. While you’re here, you’ll be expected to participate in chores. Also, any and all access to the lab or your equipment is denied and any attempt to access it will result in harsh punishment. Furthermore, you’ll be restricted to our floor. Got it?”

Peter nodded, looking surprised and confused. God, Johnny had seen him way too confused today already.

“It means you’re on house arrest, idiot. But not at your house, instead you’ll be here. Sleeping next to me. Where you can kill me in my sleep. Whoop-dee-fucking-doo,” Johnny deadpanned before spinning on his heel and stomping off to his bedroom. 

If nothing else, at least he could make a dramatic exit.

-

Johnny spent the rest of the day exactly as planned, sulking in his room. He watched some YouTube videos, texted with Jen and Wyatt, played some video games, and had a nice, long hot bath. He wallowed in his misery all day. Every time he would try to distract himself, his mind would always circle back to Peter and the Spider. He couldn’t make the thought disappear from his mind, so he called it an early night and was conked out in his bed by 8:30.

Johnny slept fitfully that night. He woke up in a cold sweat multiple times, heart practically beating out of his chest. He dreamt of Sue and Reed, covered in webs, flailing on the floor as they convulsed like the Spider. He dreamt of Ben, broken and defeated, lying on the ground in front of the Spider, who crushed his head with one powerful step. He dreamt of Franklin and Valeria, sobbing as the Spider ripped each finger out of its socket. He dreamt of pain and suffering, of death and destruction. 

It was the most pain Johnny had felt in a long time, and it was all because of the asshole sleeping in the guest room next to him. Peter wasn’t a fucking guest—he was a murderer. He was a thief and a criminal and he deserved to be thrown out onto the street to die. Sure, Johnny was scared when he thought Peter was about to die on his carpet, but now that the danger had passed, all Johnny could feel was anger. 

He couldn’t find it in himself to even think about forgiving the guy, let alone actually doing it. Johnny was a stubborn man—if he had a grudge, he would do his damn best to hold true to it. Peter wasn’t going to be the exception because he used to be a cute little nerd who helped out Reed in the lab. Peter was just as evil—maybe even more so—than half the people Johnny held grudges against. 

Peter was a supervillain, a mastermind of evil who schemed with other twisted sick sons of bitches to inflict pain and harm on Johnny’s city. And it was Johnny’s duty to protect it, so he was going to damn well do it.

With that, Johnny tossed off the covers, glancing at his bedside clock as he put on his slippers. 12:55 in the morning. Peter was sure to be asleep right now. Johnny was going to storm in there and demand some answers. If Peter didn’t answer them the way Johnny knew he could... well then, it would be Peter’s funeral, not his.

Johnny stood outside Peter’s door for a couple minutes, debating whether confronting him in the middle of the night was really a good idea. Sure, his webslingers were locked away in another room, but Peter still had his strength and weird spider-crawl ability. Now, Johnny logically knew he could just light himself on fire and burn Peter to a crisp, but still, the Spider was a pretty intimidating guy.

Johnny steeled his nerves and slowly turned the knob, the door creaking slightly as he pushed it open. The light from the windows shone down on Peter as he lay fast asleep on the bed. He looked different like this—softer, perhaps. Almost like the boy Johnny used to know.

Johnny crept into the room, years of sneaking around Sue finally paying off. He got close to the bed and stood for just a second before he lit a powerful flame in his hand. Peter jerked awake, breathing heavy and eyes wide.

“Parker! I need some answers and you’re the only guy who has them. So, you’re either gonna answer or you’re gonna get burned.”

Johnny moved his hand closer to Peter’s face, the flames dancing in Peter’s big brown eyes. The villain looked frightened, his hands tightly clutching the sheets.

“Wh– what do you want?” Peter mumbled, leaning away from the hot flame.

Johnny leaned down so he was eye level with Peter.

“I want to know why you did this. Why you ruined the lives of so many people and killed who knows how many more. Or do you want to get burned?”

Peter shook his head and scooted back even further. His retreat left an open spot on the bed, and Johnny sat down, flame still burning bright and hot in his hand.

Peter picked at the sheets for a second, seemingly gathering his thoughts.

“Can... can you turn off your fire? It just... makes me uncomfortable.”

Johnny looked at him quizzically, studying Peter’s eyes. Peter was the more powerless one here, and the fear in his eyes seemed real enough. So, Johnny toned down his flame until it was the size of a match.

“That’s all you’ll get for now. So, tell me, why are you afraid of fire? After that, maybe I’ll get rid of it completely.”

Peter nodded, Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed. He looked down and didn’t meet Johnny’s eyes as he began his story.

“Well, it started when I first became the Spider.”

Peter took a deep breath and flopped back down onto the bed, staring straight at the ceiling. His eyes were blank—Peter was somewhere else.

“It was the period between my first crime—you chased me on that one—and when Adrian recruited me. It’s really tough, starting out, because so many villains want to protect themselves and their loot. So, it’s like... kill or be killed, I guess. I, uh, definitely didn’t want to die, so I just fed into it. If someone took a swing at me, I’d hit them back twice as hard. Sent a couple guys to the hospital, a couple more to the morgue.”

Peter took a steadying breath as Johnny got more comfortable on the bed, feeling like this was going to be a long story. Johnny laid back, his head lying on the sheets pooled at the bottom of the bed while his feet hung off the side. He looked up at the ceiling, wondering what Peter saw in it as he flashed back to this time that caused him so much pain.

Johnny felt for him, he did, but his empathy was far outweighed by his anger and resentment. Peter had killed in cold blood to gain rank in a system that existed only to profit off of innocent, helpless people—he was evil, plain and simple.

“It was... pretty harsh, a lot of the stuff I did. I’m—well, I guess I was—way past that now, so it seems even worse, what I did. But, you know, it had to be done. I needed to protect myself, and I needed to protect my family.

When I put on the mask, it’s like everything else fades away. When I have the mask, it’s like there are no holds barred. It’s open season and it’s scary, but freeing. And it’s not like the people I was hurting were sinless beacons of light. Those people were shitty, low life criminals that stole from grandmas and stalked young girls in the middle of the night.”

Peter paused for a second, perhaps to let that sink in. Johnny just laid silent, in morbid awe of the way Peter justified his crimes.

“One night, I was coming out of a bar frequented by criminals and villains. It wasn’t the Bar with No Name, that was too high profile for me back then. No, it was just some dirty backwater joint in the middle of Chinatown. I had had a couple drinks and was kinda buzzed. As I was walking towards the street, these thugs came out of nowhere and knocked me out from behind. They dragged me to some warehouse where an up-and-coming crime lord was doing business. Low level drug stuff, just dealing in the neighborhood. He’d been on my radar, but it wasn’t– it wasn’t that serious... until it was, I guess.”

Peter stopped again, his breath going shallow. They laid in silence for a couple minutes. Johnny just mulled over the story in his head. Peter definitely had a different way of looking at the world—it was like he was sorry, but at the same time, completely absolved of all guilt. Johnny wondered if Peter was like this all the time; if he was two people at once.

“They... they had found out I had killed some of their ground soldiers. It was nothing special, just a quick twist of the neck when I caught them trying to rob a local bank. One of them had some kind of small mutation, nothing extremely helpful for crime. It was quick and easy for them. Not so quick and easy for the bank teller, though. I didn’t kill him, but he must have had a hell of time in physical therapy. When he was giving me the money, he tried to call 911, so I broke both of his legs. 

Anyway, after I had killed their guys, they had come up with a plan to get back at me. They knew, as pretty much everyone did, of my advanced healing, so they figured they could get in a few more hours of torture than normal. They had drugged me as soon as I had woken up, and the sedatives made it hard to move. I was coherent enough to feel the pain, but not enough to do anything about it.”

A small, shaky intake of breath. A hand tightening in the sheets, noisy in the night. A small rustle against the pillow. By now, Johnny had closed his eyes, electing to focus on Peter’s story rather than the ceiling. He could imagine everything Peter had said thus far, and none of it was flattering.

“They figured fire was an easy way to prolong the torture. After they drugged me, they lit a stick on fire and held it to my hands. It was... it was some of the worst pain I’ve felt in my life. It was like something was eating away at me, blistering my skin and burning me to a crisp. They always stopped before it could get too bad, but they kept me there for hours. Occasionally, they would heat up a poker until it was red hot and press it against my skin. I can still smell the burning flesh. 

It... it was unreal. It seriously felt surreal because I was smelling this flesh, I was hearing this crackling sound, I was hearing my own screams, I was thrashing around... but with the combination of drugs, adrenaline, and shock, it’s like I was a witness in my own out of body experience. I wasn’t me, but I was, but I wasn’t, and I can still smell my burning hands and back and chest and arms, I can still feel the pain, but I can’t because I watched it, but I can.”

Peter’s voice cracked as he spoke and he almost cried the last part. Johnny could hear his quiet sniffles, and he could imagine the tears falling quietly down his face.

It made Johnny think of his own fire, the way it’s constantly in him. It made him think of how easy it would be to light up right now, to scare Peter. Then, Peter’s voice hardened as he told the last part of the story.

“But, of course, they failed to realize that what should be an almost 12 hour dose of sedatives burns much faster in an advanced body. As we closed in on the sixth hour, my body was covered in burns, some healing, some fresh, but my mind was sharpening. They had tied me to a metal chair with chains, but failed to realize that I am really fucking strong.”

Peter’s voice was cold as ice.

“I ripped through the chains when they were off lighting another fire. I beat every last one of them until they were bloody and unrecognizable. For the crime lord, however, I reserved special punishment. While I was busy dealing with the rest of his henchmen, he had been busy trying to escape. I found him outside, trying to start some old car next to the warehouse. I ripped open the door, pulled him out, and then literally pulled off his left arm. Then his right. And then both of his legs.”

Peter paused before he gave a humorless chuckle.

“Human limbs are so... fragile. It was like yanking a petal from a flower. I left him there to bleed out—he was crying like a coward. The police found him the next morning. And then Adrian called.”

Johnny laid stock still. The man lying next to him was not a nerdy tech boy. He probably never had been. To do something so evil, so vengeful—it took a special kind of person. Johnny hadn’t learned what he had come in here to learn, but he figured he had learned something more valuable. Peter had given him an example of how far a man could go when pushed to the edge—how far Peter had gone. 

Johnny sat up, ran his fingers through his hair, took one last look at Peter, and walked straight out of the door. 

-

Johnny laid in his bed, hours after his talk with Peter. It was pitch black outside, but he knew the sun would be rising soon. He still couldn’t reconcile the two versions of the man that he had in his head. 

On one hand, all he could see was the sweet boy who blushed at every flirtation and was whip smart, in a humble way. He remembered the shared lunches, the walks in the park during Peter’s break, the way his whole family had adored him.

On the other hand, he heard the venom and bitterness dripping from Peter— the Spider’s —voice as he described ripping people apart, robbing banks, teasing Johnny about his looks, his weight, his intelligence. Johnny had always wondered how the bug had known so much about him; how he had managed to get under his skin with perfectly placed, biting remarks. He shuddered to think of the crime scenes he had stumbled upon: blood dripping from webbing, skin ripped and shredded, men with their heads punched clean off.

It was like Johnny was trying to force oil and water to mix. Peter was pure, he was a good man who loved his work and cared for his friends and family. Johnny caught himself smiling softly to the ceiling as he remembered the way Peter had waxed poetic about his Aunt May and how much he loved her. 

The Spider… his personality made Johnny’s skin crawl. He was slimy and slick, always ready with a punch hard enough to bruise for weeks, and full of scathing criticism and thinly veiled threats. He was the nightmare in most people’s dreams. The Spider would grab you in the middle of the night, rip you apart in a show of sheer strength, and still have time to humiliate you. He was a sick, twisted bastard who only loved violence and degradation. 

Johnny knew that from personal experience.

The oil and water wouldn’t ever mix. Johnny knew that, too. He couldn’t help but try harder, anyway.

-

FIVE YEARS EARLIER

Johnny watched Peter shiver next to him in his cheap coat. 

“Cold, Parker?” He asked, snickering.

Peter glared at him playfully, his eyes a startling brown under his glasses. The snow coming down on them had landed in his fluffy hair. Johnny smiled.

“Not all of us can be human space heaters, Johnny,” the other man sighed, his breath fogging up as he spoke.

Johnny just shifted closer and the two continued their walk through Central Park. He could feel Peter relax next to him as he warmed up.

“You know,” Peter said after a few minutes of silence, “I’ve never seen it snow this much in November.”

Johnny looked around at the snow laden trees and fresh falling powder all over the grass. They were walking to the Met, as a new exhibit had popped up on photography that Peter wanted to check out. Johnny was, to be frank, a little obsessed with him, so he offered to go with him.

“It’s nice,” Johnny replied, voice light. “I can’t feel the cold, but it’s beautiful.”

“Yeah,” Peter agreed. Johnny could feel his eyes on the side of his face. “It is.”

They stomped all the snow off their shoulders (well, Peter did) as they entered the Met. Johnny paid for their tickets, giving a generous amount for the both of them, and shot a wink at the starstruck cashier before Peter grabbed his arm and dragged him towards the stairs. 

“Seriously, Storm?” Peter whispered, faux anger apparent in his voice. His eyes were lit up in good humor. “I really thought we had something. I guess all those special ‘I accidentally made one too many sandwiches’ were for nothing.” 

He sniffed and withdrew his hand, and Johnny mourned the loss of heat that wasn’t his own. Peter’s heat. Johnny blushed as he stammered his way through a response.

“They—they were for Franklin and Val! But they had already eaten!”

“Sure, Johnny, I totally believe you!” 

Peter shot him a wink and Johnny almost collapsed in the European painting wing. Nerds who can speak fluent Reed should not be allowed to be this cute.

“C’mon, hot stuff, we’re almost there.”

Peter smiled at him softly, something in his eyes Johnny couldn’t figure out. He just returned the smile and grabbed Peter’s arm again.

-

PRESENT

A week later, Johnny still couldn’t figure out where Peter stopped and the Spider began. The bug had been nothing but respectful and cordial the entire time. He stayed out of their way unless Reed or Sue needed his help with their research on the Seven, and offered up everything he knew willingly. He cleaned up after every meal, and intruded on nothing. Johnny couldn’t even find evidence that he rifled through his drawers, for god’s sake! Not like there was anything interesting in there, but the other man could at least pretend like he cared.

Johnny strode out of his bedroom in his Sunday best, ready for brunch with Jen. They had snagged a table at the hottest new spot in town, and Johnny knew a flashy spread in People would be the exact thing to cure him of his spider-induced funk. 

Stopping to check his hair in the hallway, he spotted Peter lingering behind him in the reflection. Johnny’s expression hardened and he turned to face Peter with an annoyed sigh.

“Yes? Is there anything I can do to help you?”

Peter looked almost… awkward. Johnny couldn’t, for the life of him, understand why, but he enjoyed watching the bug squirm. Peter scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and coughed before starting to speak.

“You look… nice,” he offered.

Johnny scoffed and crossed his arms, anger beginning to grow.

“Just spit it out, bug. I’m not in the mood for any more drama.”

Peter closed his eyes like he was in pain and Johnny could see whatever he was about to ask was going to sacrifice a bit of his pride. On the outside, Johnny looked angry. But on the inside, he was loving the show.

“Well, I kinda left my phone at home the day that I got drugged, and I haven’t had it all week.”

Johnny laughed, a venomous, biting thing that hung in the air.

“So?” He bit out. “You don’t need a phone. For all we know, we give you a phone and the rest of the Seven—well, the ones that are still alive—come bursting in through the windows to save you.”

Peter winced at Johnny’s reminder of his dead… friends? colleagues? What were they to him, Johnny wondered.

“I’m not asking for anything like that,” Peter said worriedly, rushing out his words. He paused for a second.

“Oh god, this is so embarrassing,” he mumbled.

Clearing his throat, Johnny tapped on his watch. “Time’s running out, Peter. I have brunch in 30.”

“Well… I sort of text Aunt May every day? And now I haven’t texted her for a week? And I know she’s worried sick about me and I just would like to let her know I’m doing okay.”

Johnny stared at him, incredulous. This just made the line begin to blur even more. He could do anything with a phone, want it for literally anything in the whole fucking world, and he wants it to call his aunt. And Johnny knew those eyes. No matter how hard he wished he didn’t, he did. They had been friends and Johnny was a man who knew his friends. He could see Peter wasn’t lying.

Johnny huffed, and rubbed his palms against his eyes in frustration. Dropping them back down to his sides, he could see Peter was still staring at him expectantly.

“Fine, Parker, I’ll get you a phone. It’ll only be able to contact your Aunt May and the Four. Reed’ll make sure of that. Now, I’m off to brunch, and hopefully at least 10 margaritas. Anything else?”

Peter just shook his head. Johnny could see him looking him up and down. He wondered what the bug saw when he looked at him. Then, Johnny spun on his foot and headed straight for the elevator without turning around.

“Everything alright, Johnny? You’ve been uncharacteristically quiet this whole lunch.”

Johnny sucked down the last of his margarita and set it down next to the rest of the empty ones. 

“I’m fine, Jen,” he said with a tired smile. “Just working on something big with the Four right now.”

“Not something universe ending, I hope. John and I still have that trip planned to the Cayman Islands, you know.”

Johnny chuckled and leant back in his chair. Jen looked beautiful in her brunch-appropriate white dress. She looked happy—radiant. That’s all Johnny wanted: for his friends to be happy.

“No, not universe ending. At least, not this time.”

“Then what is it?” Jen frowned. “You know you can tell me anything, Storm.”

Johnny sighed and looked up at the bright sun. This place had great lighting. He needed to bring Sue here.

“Just… something personal with the family, Jen. You know how it is.”

He knew she didn’t believe him, but she was a good enough friend not to press. 

“I saw Matt the other day. In court. We had lunch.”

“Oh really?” Johnny asked, leaning forward again.

-

Johnny dropped leftovers of his cheesecake (surprisingly tasty for a trendy place) onto the kitchen counter as he scrolled through Twitter on his phone. Seeing kids freak out about him with grainy pictures and videos never got old.

“Hi, Johnny,” he heard from behind him.

Johnny practically jumped a foot in surprise at the noise. He thought he was alone. He turned and sighed.

“Parker, why is it always you? Sometimes I wish it was you out there, not Kraven.”

Peter’s eyes hardened quickly and Johnny winced on the inside, almost wishing he could take his words back. Almost . 

“I was just going to ask you about the phone thing.”

Johnny really didn’t want to deal with this right now. 

“Look, Peter, frankly I don’t trust you, and I don’t want to trust you. So you can use my phone to call your aunt. You have her number memorized, right?”

Johnny could tell the other man barely held himself back from rolling his eyes. Peter grabbed the phone from his outstretched hand before responding.

“Of course I do. And… thank you.”

Johnny just nodded in response and sat down on one of the kitchen stools, staring expectantly at Peter. He watched the bug type the number into his phone, and noticed how fidgety he was. Fingers tapping on the counter, foot striking a sloppy rhythm on the floor, head bobbing to a tune Johnny couldn’t hear. He wondered what it was like for someone who was so used to total control to be completely cooped up. Someone used to swinging over buildings, climbing walls, punching guys to death. Johnny would be out of his mind if he couldn’t fly for a week.

“Hi Aunt May,” Peter breathed out when she finally picked up. 

Johnny could hear an older woman’s voice scolding Peter through the line. He suppressed a fond smile, remembering the stories Peter had told him of her during his internship. She was one feisty woman. 

“Yes, I’m fine. No, I’m not hurt. Yes, I know I missed our weekly gossip session. Yes, I know MJ is worried about me. No, I’m not doing drugs. Yes, I’ll call MJ next. Or at least text her.”

Johnny could barely hold back his giggles as Peter answered every rapid fire question his aunt shot at him. He wondered how a man so evil could be so… normal. Sitting here, answering his aunt patiently and even a little embarrassed. 

“I… I love you, too, Aunt May. I’m gonna be gone a little longer, okay? I have some business to take care of. I’ll try and call you more. Remember to set the alarms on the house. Take care, yes I’ll take care, too. Stay safe, yes I will, too. I love you. Bye.”

Peter ended the call with a small sigh, barely imperceptible. Johnny noticed it immediately. 

“How is your aunt, Peter?” He asked gently.

Peter looked up at the ceiling and inhaled once, slowly, before letting out the breath and looking back toward Johnny.

“She’s fine.” He looked away—it seemed he couldn’t bear to look Johnny in the eyes. “I just really regret dragging her into this with me.”

Johnny let out a small gasp. 

“They—they know?” 

All Peter could do was nod.

“Peter, holy shit, I’m… is ‘I’m sorry’ a proper response?”

Peter snorted, finally turning to face him. 

“More like ‘Told you so, you murderous bastard. Everything you do comes back to haunt you. Up yours’”.

“My, my, Mr. Parker, your impressions have improved,” Johnny said with faux seriousness.

They shared a laugh before an uncomfortable silence descended on them again.

“Well, what are you going to do?”

Peter’s face was unreadable. Johnny was so used to reading him like an open book, all his emotions out there for everyone to see. How odd it was to be on the outside, trying to force a look in.

“Peter! Johnny! Down to the lab, quick! Reed just made a breakthrough!”

Johnny sighed and grabbed his phone back. Somehow, the Spider was always able to dodge his questions.

“So, based on the evidence we gathered from Toomes’ body and the notes provided to us by the police on Kraven’s murder, we have put together a rough hypothesis.”

Reed pointed to the images on the screen, all focusing on small details from the two deaths. Unfortunately, Johnny could still smell the Vulture’s rotting body, even from a picture.

“Uh, Reed, can you hurry it up here? Not all of us are stone cold killers used to looking at mangled bodies.”

Perhaps it was a little too mean, but Peter could handle it.

“Sorry, Johnny, but this is important,” Sue cut in. “All of these details add up to something bigger than themselves. See the way the Vulture’s wing wiring was so precisely cut? And the way Kraven’s death seems so messy, like he was disoriented?”

At this point, Reed switched the screen to show photos of medical reports.

“See right there?” He pointed out, taking over from Sue. “Kraven had been dosed with something to drive his enhanced senses crazy. It’s like he was in his own fever dream. Like everything was a little too real. The assailant then attacked him from behind and ripped straight through his chest, tearing out his heart.”

Reed tapped a button and a picture of the crime scene popped up. Johnny had to hold back vomit. 

“Whoever was tracking down these two men knew their weaknesses intimately.”

Johnny turned to look at Peter, whose brow was pinched together and expression was murderous. 

“I understand what you’re saying, Re—Richards.” 

Sue nodded gravely and Johnny felt a fear unlike anything he’d ever experienced before wash over him.

“One of the Seven is picking you all off,” she stated. 

“And I know exactly who it is,” Peter bit out, voice like ice. “Doctor Otto Octavius.”

-

Johnny awoke with a start. He could hear voices outside his door, but he couldn’t make them out too clearly. He flopped onto his side, staring out at the city beyond his window. He knew he wasn’t going to be able to fall back asleep. He groaned and got up, pulling on a random pair of sweatpants.

He wandered to his door and headed out to the kitchen. He had left his phone in his room, just intending to grab some water and make a little small talk with whoever was in the kitchen.

“—and that’s how the arc reactor was made. You know, I’m surprised you didn’t know this already, Valeria. You’re pretty smart for your age.”

Johnny froze outside the kitchen door as he realized who was inside there with his niece.

“I know I am, Mr. Parker. My daddy just doesn’t like to tell me about his competitors and Uncle Doom is usually too busy with his own projects to tell me about other people’s.”

Johnny peaked inside and saw Peter ruffle Val’s hair with an easy smile on his face before handing her a glass of milk. 

“You know, my Aunt May always gave me a glass of cold milk when I couldn’t sleep.”

“Your Aunt May sounds like a nice lady,” Val said, taking a sip of her milk and swinging her legs off the barstool she was seated on. “Do you have any more science stories for me?”

“Not right now, little one. I think it’s time for bed. Let’s get you down from that stool, huh?”

Val set the drink down on the counter and Johnny almost couldn’t believe his eyes at the delicacy with which Peter was handling the situation. The bug lifted his niece off the stool with careful hands and set her down on the floor as gently as possible. Then, he grabbed her drink in one hand and took her little hand in his. 

“Back to bed now, Valeria. Maybe I’ll tell you another science story if you’re good.” 

Then, they headed directly for Johnny. Too stunned to move quickly, he clumsily tried to make his way back to his room. He accidentally bumped an elbow against the wall and winced when he heard their footsteps stop. He slowly turned.

“Hi, Uncle Johnny,” Val said, still holding on to Peter’s stupidly large hands. 

“Uh, hi, Val.” He paused. “And Peter.”

He watched Peter carefully for any signs of ill intent. But, he knew that any kind of violence towards kids wasn’t the Spider’s style. He went after… banks and rapists and scary men in back alleys. He was dangerous, yes, but he wouldn’t do some of the things other members of the Seven did. Johnny gave him an almost imperceptible nod and Peter returned it.

“C’mon, Valeria, wave goodnight to your uncle. Time for bed.”

Val waved and Johnny shot her a shaky smile. Then, they turned and headed for her room.

“The kids, Peter, seriously? What, do you think manipulating your way into their hearts is going to make us like you? Gonna save you from justice after we’ve got Octavius?”

Johnny exhaled and he could almost see the steam rising from his head. He saw no reason to hide his visible anger from Peter, who had just returned from putting Valeria to bed. He stared the other man down, noting his sleep ruffled look and wrinkled pajamas.

“Ugh, it’s not—” Peter exhaled. “It’s not like that, okay?”

Johnny took a few steps forward and slammed his hands on the kitchen island. This time, his hair ignited, flames swirling in between his messy blonde hair. He could see the reflection of the flickering flames on the fridge out of the corner of his eye. It was the only light in the room besides the weak ceiling light.

“Then. What. Is. It. Like. Spider ?” 

Johnny spit out the moniker, his voice dripping in disdain. Peter stood his ground, however, and just looked tired. He scrubbed his face with his hands and Johnny watched as he obviously searched for an answer.

“I was in here, grabbing a glass of water because… because I couldn’t sleep. Valeria walked in, said she couldn’t sleep either. Nightmares.” At this, Peter’s face turned dark. “I know about those. And she’s so young, you know? She shouldn’t have to deal with that shit. So… well, I did what Aunt May used to do for me. Always made me feel better, so I figured she’d like it, too.”

“And what, exactly, did she do for you?”

“Tell me stories, give me a glass of cold milk, wish me sweet dreams. Unc-Uncle Ben used to do it, too.”

Johnny could hear the hesitation in Peter’s voice. He knew he was vulnerable right now. Why, Johnny didn’t know. Carefully, Johnny asked his next question.

“How… How is your Uncle Ben?”

Peter was silent. Johnny could see the pain behind his eyes. Ah, this was it. His secret . 

Peter walked over to the window over the sink and looked out at the city. At night, it always looked like someone had spilled a bag of multicolored crystals, mismatched and sparkling. Johnny walked over and leaned against the island, waiting for him to talk. 

“My Uncle Ben died. A few years ago. Well, five years ago. December. It was cold that night. Practically freezing.”

Johnny put together the pieces in his mind. 

“Around the end of your internship?”

Peter just nodded, his back muscles tense in the backlighting from the window. 

“Cold…”

“Cold,” Peter confirmed.

“Sorry to hear that,” Johnny said, trailing off. “He—from what you told me, he seemed like a good person. They both did.”

Then, Johnny walked away, forgoing his glass of water for something much more enticing: information about the infamous Spider.

-

Two days later, Johnny was flying around in the fresh midday air when he spotted something suspicious in an alleyway. 

“Sue, come in,” he said into his comm. 

It crackled to life and he could hear something going down in the background.

“Jo-Johnny, we have a little, uh—“ His sister interrupted herself with a grunt and what sounded like something bouncing off her force fields. “Reed accidentally opened a portal—BEN! Over there! To a different planet that doesn’t seem to like us too much.”

She paused again and the comm crackled loudly in his ear as he heard her swear.

“Look, Johnny, just send me your location!”

With that, the comm clicked off and Johnny squared his shoulders. He clicked a button on his phone and his location was sent to Sue. Then, he dropped into the alley.

“Marko? What the fuck are you doing here?”

Sandman turned around, a crazed look in his human eyes. He was in his human form, no sand anywhere in sight. 

“My sand! My sand! It’s gone. He fucking took it!”

Marko was screaming the words. Johnny took a step back, unsure of exactly how sane the villain was at this moment. Then, Marko jumped on him, clinging to his suit.

“He took it!” He wailed, spittle flying from his mouth. “I can’t feel it! It’s gone!”

Johnny pushed him off with a harsh shove. Marko hit the opposite wall and collapsed onto the floor. He was dirty, his clothes were ripped, and his eyes were bloodshot. Johnny couldn’t believe what he was looking at—another member of the Seven, disgraced.

Marko continued to mumble to himself as Johnny just stared. He figured that without his sand, Sandman didn’t pose too much of a problem to him. So, he could use this as an opportunity to gain some insight into the whole Seven situation. Johnny crouched down next to Marko, careful not to bother him.

“Who took it?” He asked gently.

Marko let out a sudden sob and shoved his face into his knees. Johnny already knew who took it, but he would like some confirmation that Octavius was actually behind all the Seven stuff.

“My sand… my sand…”

Marko suddenly shot out an arm and grabbed onto Johnny with a vice-like grip. He pulled Johnny in close, and Johnny didn’t protest. Without his sand, Marko was just another civilian. Johnny couldn’t hurt him, as much as wanted to.

“It was… it was Otto!” He hissed the last word, like it pained him to even say his former colleague’s name.

“That stupid fucking scientist! He told us all he was going to help us with upgrades. Give Adrian new wings…. Sergei would get even more enhanced senses. But no. It was all a ploy! A cover!”

Marko wailed again and let go of Johnny. He slid down the wall even further. 

“He took my sand… did those fucking tests of his on it… then gave me a ‘test batch’ to see if his experiment worked.”

Johnny scooted closer to the crazed man, looking at his face for any signs of lying. He couldn’t find a single one. Marko’s sand really was gone.

“It worked over the course of weeks. Of course, I should have been suspicious when Adrian and Sergei died, but I was too prideful. Hah! I’m not prideful, I’m fucking stupid. Otto conned us all. Even Peter.”

Johnny tried to hide his shock at hearing Peter’s name. He didn’t think Peter was stupid enough to share his identity with such dangerous people.

“He’s dead, too, you know. Vanished into thin air one night. Otto was… I should have seen it earlier. He was proud that night, not sad. I was sad.”

Marko let out some more pathetic sniffles. 

“I liked the kid. He was the best of us.”

Johnny couldn’t hold back a snort at that. Villains, having the “best” of them. What a fucking joke.

“Something funny, Torch?” Marko said sharply.

Johnny lit his hand on fire and watched as the man shrunk into himself.

“Something funny, Sandman?” He mocked, popping the flames.

“No, no, not funny. Don’t call me that. Without my sand, I’m nothing. Nothing…”

Suddenly, Johnny heard a shout from above. 

“Johnny! Restrain ‘im!” Ben called. “Sue sent me. Her and Stretch are still locked up in tha lab.”

Johnny stood up and brushed the dirt from his suit. 

“He doesn’t have his powers, Ben! He’s defenseless. And insane!”

Johnny was so focused on Ben that he didn’t hear the movement behind him. Some scuttling in the trash, then the slap of shoes on pavement. 

Marko was running away. 

“Get ‘im, Johnny! I’ll follow ya in the Fantasticar.”

“Flame on!” Johnny shouted. 

Marko was running as fast as he could, but not fast enough to keep up with Johnny. They raced down the street, Johnny almost close enough to reach out and snag his shirt. Then, Marko made a quick right into an apartment building. Johnny cursed under his breath and flamed off. He ran into the lobby.

“Well? Where did the bastard go?”

The doorman looked absolutely spooked.

“He went up the stairs, sir.”

“Fuck, this is the most annoying thing ever.”

Johnny weighed his options. He could run up the stairs and find Marko, but the idiotic villain was probably headed to the roof. That’s where they always seemed to end up. Maybe he thought he could get some help from his friends up there. 

Johnny raced back outside and flew up to the roof. He waited for a minute, wondering if Marko had instead decided to hole himself in an apartment or something. But, he didn’t have his powers. He was just a sad, crazy man looking for a way out of being captured. There’s no way he could force the door open to any room, and in his state, even the scrawniest kid could knock him out with a single punch.

Finally, he burst through the door to the roof and Johnny watched as he scanned the air. When he finally spotted him, Johnny sent a warning flame to his left side. 

“Give up, Sandman! The Thing will be here soon with handcuffs and a nice, comfy jail cell in Rikers!” Johnny called, sending a second burst of flame to his right side.

Marko screamed, an ungodly thing full of pain and torment.

“Don’t. Call. Me. That!” 

Johnny swore under his breath and lowered himself down closer to the roof. Where the fuck was Ben?

“Just calm down, Marko. We can offer you protection from Octavius, in exchange for some information.”

Marko let out a broken laugh. 

“Protection? From Otto?”

Johnny nodded, wary of the man’s reactions.

“I don’t need fucking protection. I need my powers back.” 

Johnny lowered even further, only a couple feet or so off the roof now. He nodded again, slowly approaching Marko like he was a scared cat.

“Stay—stay away from me!” Marko scrambled backwards, almost tripping.

Johnny obeyed the command, counting off the number of fire blasts he was going to send Ben for being so goddamn late.

“C’mon, Marko, we can work this out. Together. Reed can get your powers back.”

Marko trembled. Those bloodshot eyes were starting to creep Johnny out.

“No—no one can get my powers back! He took them. And he’ll take everyone’s soon enough. And your life will be nothing without them. NOTHING! Like mine is.”

With that, Marko took off like a speeding bullet. Johnny watched in horror, a delayed reaction time slowing down his pursuit of the villain. Marko leaped off the edge of the building and Johnny got there in time just to graze the back of his ankle. He watched as Sandman’s body smashed into the concrete, blood leaking from his body. Down below, people screamed. Johnny himself could have screamed. He couldn’t tell. His ears were ringing. 

Johnny choked back a strangled cry, and without warning, fell those last few feet to the roof. He gripped the edge and looked down, transfixed by the way Sandman’s body was broken, legs bent at unnatural angles, head cracked open like a melon. 

“Where. The. FUCK. Were. You?” Johnny screamed, body smoking as he stalked around the living room. He was pulling on his hair, throwing cushions, and he was so close to picking up the coffee table and chucking it straight at Ben, super-strength or no super-strength. 

Reed and Sue stood off to the side. They were silent as Johnny blew up on Ben.

“I told ya, matchstick, I wuz gettin’ attacked by Doombots. They came outta nowhere.”

Johnny screamed, voice hoarse and throat sore from sobbing. 

“I don’t give a FUCK about Doombots, Ben. The Fantasticar has shields. The Seven are here , Ben, not in fucking Latveria. We had him—we were this close…”

Johnny trailed off and collapsed onto the couch. He let out some pitiful tears, fully aware that the rest of the Four was awkwardly standing around watching him have a breakdown. He felt the couch dip next to him and Sue pulled him close.

“He just… threw himself over the ledge. Like he had nothing left to live for. He wasn’t even human anymore.”

Johnny sobbed into Sue’s shoulder. She rubbed him gently and whispered sweet words into his ear. None of it helped.

“He was a shell of a man… he was gone. Just like his sand.”

-

Peter stood from the messily made guest room bed. Johnny glanced around the room, noting the state of disarray. It was as if the bug tried to keep things clean, but they ended up messy anyway. Johnny was still in his uniform. He glimpsed himself in the mirror over the dresser as he walked to Peter. He looked like shit—eyes red and puffy from crying, suit covered in dirt, hair splayed in all directions.

Johnny stood in front of Peter and cleared his throat. He glanced out the massive window—what a temptation it must be for Peter.

“We—I—found Marko. He… told me enough to confirm your theory before we lost him.”

Peter watched him carefully, eyes tracking every movement.

“The walls are thin here, Torch,” he tried.

Johnny snorted, a fresh wave of tears rising in his chest.

“No, they’re not,” he replied. “You just have freakishly good hearing.”

Peter waited, silent.

Johnny sat down wearily on the messy sheets.

“He… he jumped.”

Peter’s body tensed. 

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“I couldn’t make out everything. I wasn’t sure if you…”

Johnny laughed bitterly.

“Killed him? C’mon, Peter, don’t play the damsel with me. You’ve done it more than I have.”

Peter sat down next to him, leaving a considerable gap between them, though. Johnny wanted to appreciate the gesture, but he couldn’t find it in himself to care.

“I was chasing him, and managed to get to the roof of an apartment building. I figured he was, I don’t know, waiting for Electro or Mysterio or another one of your evil friends to arrive… and I guess he was all alone.”

Johnny paused and inhaled a shaky breath.

“Didn’t even have his sand,” he whispered.

Peter scooted closer.

“His sand?” He asked.

Johnny nodded, curling in on himself. Tears were starting to leak out of his eyes. Damn it, why was he such a crybaby?!

“He said Octavius took his sand. Experimented on them. Used their trust against them.”

Johnny felt an arm snake around his shoulders and soon he was pulled against Peter’s muscled side. He wondered faintly why he never noticed the nerd was so ripped before.

“Them?”

“Yeah, them. Apparently he told them you were dead, too.”

At that, Peter stopped his soft circles on Johnny’s back and went deathly still. 

“He called you by your name, too. Not the Spider , but Peter. They knew?”

Peter relaxed the tiniest bit. His shoulders sagged.

“It was… it was the only way for us to form the alliance, Otto had said.”

Peter sighed and began rubbing circles again. Johnny was sniffling against his side like a baby. If he was so evil, why was he being this nice to Johnny? It just didn’t add up in his head.

“I had to reveal my identity in exchange for my place on the team. We all did. Some kind of brothers-in-arms bullshit, Otto had told us. Later on, I realized he took advantage of some crazed freaks and a scared young kid to get dirt on them.”

Peter paused, and Johnny slowly leaned up and out of his grasp. The other man didn’t face him, so Johnny was watching his side profile. The way his jaw tightened as he obviously remembered his start as a supervillain, his messy hair, a small scar on the side of his chin that was still a fresh pink.

“It’s good he thinks I’m dead. Means he won’t go after Aunt May.”

Johnny wiped away the last of his tears then reached out a hand and gently rested it on the bug’s shoulder. 

“Peter…” he said softly. “What happened to your uncle?”

The two of them leaned with their backs against the window. For some godforsaken reason, they were pressed up against each other. Johnny could feel the line of heat right next to him, emanating out from scarred limbs. Peter sighed and leaned his head back against the cool glass.

“It was right before I quit. Obviously. A cold night in December. I had had my powers for a year or so by then. Used them a couple times to win some cash in boxing tournaments when I was low. Other than that, I figured they weren’t of much use.”

He let out a hollow laugh.

“I was fucking stupid. Anyway, I was late coming home from the internship. Uncle Ben hated it when I was late. So, he was going to drive over and pick me up. He left home, decided he was hungry.

“He stopped off at a bodega a few blocks down from the Baxter. I was coming out the doors at around the same time. A mugger ran past me, holding what looked like a woman’s purse and a gun.”

Johnny heated himself up a bit more. Warmth always helped.

“I let him run straight past. Didn’t do a thing. I could have, though. I should have.”

Peter paused here, for a long while. Johnny waited patiently. This was for the case, he told himself. For the case.

“I waited like an idiot for Uncle Ben. Checking my watch, going on and on in my head about how I didn’t need to be treated like I was a teenager. Then, I heard the sirens. And… the hair on the back of my neck pricked up. I started to run.

I ran straight to that fucking bodega and the first thing I saw was Uncle Ben’s car. The second thing I saw was the blood. The third thing I saw was Ben. Lying there on the floor, gunshot wound in the side. I dropped to my knees, and held him as the last few breaths drained out of him.

He… he, uh, tried to say something. But I shushed him. And that was it. I’ll never know what he wanted to say to me. And the last thing I felt for him was anger.”

Johnny risked a glance at Peter’s face and saw cold, hard eyes staring straight ahead. Peter was somewhere else right now: a cold night in December five years ago.

“After that, I had one mission in mind: find the guy who killed my uncle. And I did find him—didn’t even take that long. I put on a flimsy black mask and dressed in my oldest clothes. I knew they were going to get bloody.”

Peter’s voice was bitter, but strong. Johnny decided he didn’t want to look at him anymore.

“I beat him to a pulp. Literally. He was unrecognizable when I was done with him. I didn’t pull a single punch. He could have been dead five minutes or 15 minutes in… I just kept punching. Someone told me later they had to ID him from his teeth.”

Johnny felt an involuntary shudder go through him. He was certain Peter felt it, too.

“There are things out there you know nothing about, Storm. Sometimes in order to right a wrong, you have to do wrong. After Ben died, I was just so… bitter. Nothing mattered anymore.”

Johnny stood up, his back toward Peter.

“And once you got a taste for it, I bet it didn’t seem so wrong anymore, huh?”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about, Johnny. None. You live here in your fancy tower, with a beautiful, healthy family who loves you.”

Johnny whirled around, eyes ablaze. The fire danced in the reflection of Peter’s own eyes.

“Don’t you dare try to use my life against me! You don’t know shit about me, Parker! Do you think it was easy when I realized I could burn down my house or my school in an instant? When Reed couldn’t control his body, becoming a pile of sludge every time he even tried to move? Do you think it was FUCKING okay when we couldn’t find Sue for days ? When Ben will NEVER look human again? When supervillains like you, fucking ungrateful immoral bastards who can’t take an OUNCE of hardship without turning to the other side, come after me and my family and my niece and nephew every day? 

“Your uncle died, so fucking what? All over the world every single fucking day people’s uncles die, Peter. And they don’t beat a man to a pulp for it. They cry and they grieve and they move on. They don’t go around robbing banks and beating up people for fun. You’re a piece of shit, Peter Parker. At least man up to that fact and face it.”

With that, Johnny whirled around, entire body alight so the Spider wouldn’t be able to lay a hand on him. He slammed the door so hard it rattled in its frame. 

-

Johnny took a few days to calm down before he spoke to Peter again. He got updates on the whole Seven situation from Reed and Sue, and any time he saw the bug in the hallways, he would take a hard turn into the nearest room and not look back. He heard and saw snippets, though; it seemed like Peter was being agreeable.

Johnny saw him play with the kids one afternoon. Make small talk with Ben in the kitchen. Help Reed in the lab. Cook dinner with Sue.

He didn’t understand how his family could act like this. Like nothing Peter did mattered, like they were back five years ago. Johnny saw the world in black and white. Good and evil could never coexist.

Johnny finally spoke to Peter again when all of the Four had to take off in an emergency—well, a back before lunch type of emergency. Reed and Sue had, of course, noticed his recent hermit-like habits. They had somehow managed to wrangle him into being the one to talk to Peter about what to do while they were gone.

“Parker! Hey!” Johnny jogged to catch up with his quickly retreating back, only reaching him right before the threshold of his room. “Look, we’ve got a… situation we have to deal with. Some planets we have peace treaties with are about to go to war, and Sue is needed as an intermediary while Reed thinks up some technological solution to their famines.”

Peter raised an eyebrow, probably wondering what the hell this had to do with him. Johnny let out a huff and prayed to whatever gods were on Earth today that he didn’t punch the bug’s lights out right now.

“What that means is that you have to—as much as it pains me to admit this—take care of the kids.” 

Johnny mumbled the middle section but he knew Peter’s super-hearing picked it up. 

“Reed and Sue told me you’ve been doing a good job with them, so they’re somehow trusting you to take care of them while we’re gone. We should be back to have a late lunch.”

Peter stared at him for a second, looking expectant. Johnny didn’t know what he was holding his breath for.

“Look, Spider, if you think I’m going to apologize for what I said the other night, think again. Just do this.”

Peter stayed silent. Johnny let out another huff. The bug looked extremely punchable right now. 

“Please?”

With that, Peter’s face broke into a big smile and he slapped Johnny’s back, so strong that he stumbled a bit.

“Of course I’ll take care of the kids, Torch. They love me now.”

There was a dark glint in his eye, as if he loved letting Johnny in on that little secret. Johnny could feel his body heat rising and knew he needed to get out of there before he caused a scene.

“If I see so much as a scratch on the kids, Peter, so help me God I will murder you.”

He leveled Peter with the patented Storm glare, a trick both he and Sue used. The damned villain didn’t even bat an eye.

“Late lunch, remember!”

Johnny almost collapsed onto the table after stumbling through the portal into Reed’s lab. 

“Why the fuck did that take so long?” He moaned into the cold steel, ready to take the nap of a lifetime.

“Cheer up, Matchstick, ya know Reed told us that it wuz gonna take ‘em a while to make progress. At least they didn’t wanta keep us with ‘em.”

Johnny turned around to glare at Ben. 

“And that’s your fault! Did you have to start picking on me in front of the entire royal court?”

Ben let out a deep belly laugh and clapped Johnny on the back. The entire table shook.

“Calm down, Johnny. It wuz the only way ta get Reed and ol’ Suzy to send us home.”

Johnny let out a sigh and decided to let it go. He pulled himself off the table with great effort and checked his watch, now calibrated for Earth time.

“Oh, great, it’s WAY past time for a late lunch. How long did Reed and Sue say they might be there for?”

Ben grinned at him.

“They didn’t.”

Johnny walked into the main area of their living quarters to a frankly startling sight. Peter had Franklin on his shoulders and was spinning Valeria around with hands. They were all laughing… more than Johnny had seen the kids laugh in a while, actually. He watched from the shadows of the hallway as they collapsed in a pile on the couch, all of them still giggling and out of breath. He watched the kids crawl all over the bug, and Peter did nothing to stop them.

“We’re home,” Johnny called, stepping out from the shadows.

He leaned against the wall and watched as the three turned to look at him.

“Uncle Johnny!” The kids called in unison, scrambling over each other in their haste to get to him.

He laughed and scooped them both up, hugging them tight to his chest. God, he had been so worried about them.

“They’re fine, Storm,” Peter said.

Johnny just nodded in response.

“So, what did you guys do today?” He asked as he set them on the floor.

“Well, Peter let us play in the living room. We played hide and seek and tag and a bunch of other games,” Val responded.

“And he cooked us lunch! And dinner! We had grilled cheese for lunch and dino nuggets for dinner! They were sooooo yummy!” Franklin added.

Johnny smiled at their enthusiasm. He could feel Peter’s eyes on him. He pointedly ignored him.

“Alright, well, now it’s time for bed. Mommy and Daddy are still helping the other planets, okay?”

“Okay!” The kids chorused, already used to Four missions running long.

“Go ahead to your rooms and get in bed, okay? I’ll be there in just a minute. I need to talk to Peter .”

The kids ran off, still giggling and shoving each other. He knew it would be hard to get them to sleep tonight. He sighed fondly, looking at where they had just been. Then, the bug cleared his throat.

“So, how’d I do, Torch?”

Johnny put on an air of faux nonchalance. 

“You did okay. We try not to give them such unhealthy meals for lunch and dinner, though.”

Peter laughed, leaning on the back of the sofa.

“C’mon, Storm, I saw you eat an entire pint of ice cream for dinner just last week. And you had brownies for dessert.”

Johnny put his hands on his hips.

“Hey, I burn a lot when I’m, ya know, actually burning! It’s not the same with them.”

Peter just laughed again at Johnny’s defensive tone.

“Sure, Torch, sure.”

Johnny walked over to the couch, now in a huff. 

“Look, just because you took care of them today doesn’t mean I suddenly trust you. For all I know, you could be doing this whole docile, innocent act to get us to let our guard down while you plan something—something nefarious!”

“Big word there, Torchy, are you sure you aren’t working your brain too hard?” Peter said, smirking.

“Ugh! I-I… you’re so annoying!” Johnny threw his hands up in frustration. Peter was always avoiding the conversations Johnny wanted to have with him.

“Johnny.” Peter fixed him with a serious stare. “Do you really think I would do that? Do you really think that if I was planning something ‘evil’, wouldn’t have I already done it? Think about it, Torch. You haven’t really kept me on a tight leash. If I was gonna do something, trust me, I would have done it already.”

And there it was. Johnny could see the darkness in him, clear as day. The hard-edged glint in his eye, the sharp little laugh he let out—he wondered why no one else saw the things he did.

“Then why haven’t you, Peter? What has suddenly made the vicious the Spider a good guy? Did your heart grow three sizes?”

They were both tense. Johnny was still standing, arms crossed in front of him. Peter was sitting on the couch, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. After the long day he had already had, this conversation was the last thing Johnny wanted. But, it had to happen.

“I just… have you ever paid attention to the way I operate, Torch? Really paid attention?”

“You kill people. That’s all I really need to know.”

Peter leaned back. 

“It’s that black and white for you, huh?”

Johnny huffed. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means, Torchy,” he said mockingly, “that you haven’t seen enough of the real world. Down there, in the streets, it’s a whole different ball game compared to this gilded tower thing you’ve got going on.”

Johnny, as pissed off as he was, stayed silent. 

“You sit up here and fly around out there, but you’re never on the streets. I am. My uncle got shot on the streets, Johnny. After that day, I realized that sometimes people need to be dealt with the hard way. I have these powers, and I have a responsibility to use them the way I see fit. 

“And when I punch a rapist in the mouth so hard his neck snaps, I don’t see that as a loss. When I rob a bank that’s charging extremely high interest and preying on immigrants, I leave enough cash for the community to build a new skate park. I do what I want, on my terms.”

“And the Seven?” Johnny said coldly.

“The Seven.” Peter paused and sighed. “They’re a… All this punching and stealing gets attention. The Seven are a safety net. Something for me to fall back on, if I need it. I do some stuff with them, I get support. I become feared, notorious. The low level guys get scared and the higher level ones stop trying so hard.”

Peter shrugged.

“I don’t regret a single thing I’ve done. I’ve done what I thought was right. I hurt the bad guys, steal from the bad guys, and if a good guy gets caught in the middle occasionally, well, that’s life. My Uncle Ben tried to be a good guy. And look what happened to him.”

Johnny nodded. He was beginning to understand Peter’s twisted way of seeing the world.

“And what does your Aunt May think of all this?”

Peter tensed and looked away.

“She doesn’t know.” He shot Johnny a hard stare. “And it’s going to stay that way. That’s why it’s good Otto thinks I’m dead. She… she has enough on her plate already.”

They were both silent for a few minutes. Johnny was thinking hard about what Peter had said. He was connecting the dots of everything he’d heard, everything he’d seen. Peter was bitter and angry and it had given him a hard shell. Johnny knew he would never admit it, but the bug definitely enjoyed the violence. Johnny had felt it himself in fights; it was like the greatest drug in the world for Peter. He was more alive when he was throwing a punch. He always had more quips, more energy, more everything . 

“You know,” Johnny said quietly, “I hope the things you’ve seen here, with my family—the kids, our lives, the easy kindness we have with each other—has left some kind of impact on you. You were a good kid when I met you, Pete.”

With that, he walked away. It didn’t slip his mind that he accidentally called Peter “Pete”. That’s what he called him five years ago. Maybe when he saw him with Franklin and Val, so carefree and open, it reminded him of the naive boy he once knew.

-

Johnny walked into the kitchen the next morning to find Peter awake and cooking breakfast. 

“Ben told me Sue and Reed contacted him and they aren’t going to be back for a few days. Maybe even a week.”

Johnny made a small noise of agreement. He opened the fridge door and pulled out the orange juice. He prepared the rest of his breakfast in a… not uncomfortable, but not comfortable, silence with Peter. The two of them sat down at the kitchen island together. Johnny looked across at the other man, looking for differences and similarities with the man he’d known five years ago.

Last night had given him new insight into Peter. Johnny wanted to know what made him tick. He was close to cracking the secret of the Spider, he knew it. 

Peter ate his breakfast slowly. He avoided eye contact with Johnny. Johnny didn’t mind, however, as he was too busy studying the bug’s face. He had more scars, Johnny realized. And of course he looked older. Johnny knew they both did. Peter had a cut right above his lip, practically healed but still pink. He had so many new scars. Johnny imagined before his impromptu isolation he was getting new ones daily. His hair was a little longer, more unruly (if that was possible). His shoulders seemed permanently tense, like he was always waiting for an attack. 

“Johnny?” Peter asked suddenly, snapping him out of his investigation.

“Hmm?” He responded, face now turned towards his almost empty plate.

“Do you think I could have your phone again to call Aunt May?”

Johnny grabbed it from his pocket and slid it across the table. He didn’t say “You’re welcome” and Peter didn’t say “Thanks”. They weren’t there yet. It was enough of an olive branch to give him the phone without fuss.

“You can call her when you’re done. I’m gonna head to my room to get changed for the day. I’m gonna take Val and Franklin to the park.”

Johnny watched the kids race each other through the grass. They looked so happy, so carefree. It didn’t matter that Reed and Sue were gone—they would be back, and that’s all that mattered. He leaned against the trunk of the tree behind him and watched the sun shine down on his beautiful niece and nephew and wondered how he got so lucky. Sure, they’ve had their fair share of woes, but they’ve gotten over them together. As a family.

Some people didn’t get that, though. Some people didn’t have a big family to protect them. Like Peter. He was—or at least he thought he was—alone. He had Aunt May, and maybe a couple of those friends Johnny half-remembered him talking about all those years ago. He had his work… colleagues, if you could call them that. He was surrounded by evil, despicable people who encouraged him to do evil, despicable things. 

Johnny sighed and focused back on the kids. They were wrestling in the grass, getting big green stains all over their clothes. He wished he could be as innocent as they were, but his innocence had long passed him by.

He wondered what the difference between him and Peter was. It had to be family. If Johnny had been lost, alone, and scared like Peter had been when he’d gotten his powers, he can only imagine the kind of havoc he would have wreaked. Instead, he had three other people going through the exact same thing as him who supported him the whole way through.

Peter, though, had felt that he was totally and utterly alone. His Uncle Ben had died, and he felt it was because he didn’t use his powers to stop the guy who killed him. He couldn’t tell his Aunt May because he knew she’d worry. He didn’t have anyone close to him he could confide in; he didn’t have anyone to help him bear the weight of the world. 

Now, Johnny could see what his family had seen. Peter needed to see what having a support system could do for a hero… or a villain. Johnny put himself in the bug’s shoes; he imagined leagues of people with their faces burned off; he imagined Sue, dead from a gunshot wound to the side, and him chasing down the son of a bitch who killed her and cooking him alive; he imagined burning down the steel doors of bank vaults to help Ben get some cash; he imagined burning down the building of the next scientist who ripped off Reed and used his invention for profit, not help.

Johnny could see it all, now. He was a good person, and he needed to help everyone, no matter how horrible their crimes. Peter needed him. He needed them .

The Fantastic Four. 

“Val! Franklin! We’re heading back to the Baxter, c’mon!”

“Kiddos, what do you think of Mr. Parker?” Johnny asked them in the cab.

“Peter?” Val said, turning to face him with those big blue eyes. “He’s nice. Smart, like Daddy. And he’s brave, too.”

Johnny laughed and squeezed her tight to his side. 

“Is it Peter now, Val? You guys are on a first name basis?”

“Me too!” Franklin piped up on his other side. “The other day, he helped me with some exercises to control my powers. I like him, Uncle Johnny.”

He hugged Franklin close, too, and soon they were all squished together on the seat.

“Has he been nice to you guys?”

Val nodded frantically.

“He’s even better at bedtime stories than you, Uncle Johnny. He tells me about these awesome battles he has against bad people.”

Smiling wryly, Johnny let the kids go and looked out the window. The city smiled back at him in the midday sun.

“I believe you, Val. I believe you.”

-

Johnny dropped the kids off with Ben in the living room before heading to Peter’s door. He steeled his resolve and knocked quickly. 

“Come in!” He heard Peter call.

He knew the bug knew it was him from his footsteps alone. Peter’s enhanced senses had always given him an uncanny ability to have control of any situation.

“It’s me,” Johnny said awkwardly.

“I know,” Peter said. 

He didn’t look up from whatever he was reading. Johnny took a few steps closer.

“What’re you reading?”

“One of Reed’s books on unstable molecules,” Peter replied, and closed the book and set it off to the side. “What are you really here for, Johnny? I know you don’t give a shit about what I’m reading.”

Johnny stepped close enough that he was right next to the edge of the bed. He was silent for a moment, watching Peter’s shoulders tense under his tight t-shirt. Johnny swallowed.

“I wanted to… thank you for taking care of the kids. Really thank you. They seem to love you, for some reason.”

Peter searched his expression for any signs of mockery or anger. All he found was plain, open, awkward honesty. The bug laughed a bit, and his shoulders relaxed.

“C’mon, Torchy, is ‘for some reason’ the best you can do? It’s not my winning personality or Broadway-worthy storytelling skills?”

Johnny took the bait. It was easier to joke around than talk honestly. This is what they needed, he told himself. A break.

“Did all those hits to the head manage to finally knock a screw loose, Parker? You’re just as standoffish as you were five years ago.”

“Aw, no need to be so mean, Storm. I seem to remember you following me around like a lost puppy all those years ago.”

Johnny felt himself go red.

“I-I-I did not!” He sputtered. “I was just trying to make you feel comfortable!”

Peter let out a laugh, light and carefree. There was a sparkle in his eyes Johnny hadn’t seen in a long time.

“Oh, you were starting to get real comfortable, alright.”

Johnny threw his hands up in frustration and started to march towards the door. 

“Aw, don’t leave, Johnny, we were just getting to the good part!”

“Get bent, Peter!” Johnny shouted back, flashing him a flaming middle finger.

He walked out of the door with a smile on his face. 

“I don’t know, Jen, it still doesn’t seem like the right time to get back out there. You really need to stop pushing this!”

Jen put down the book she was holding in the random trinket shop they had walked into. 

“Seriously, Johnny, one day you’re gonna wake up 85 years old and wrinkled to all hell. I just think you should take my advice.”

Johnny huffed and turned around to inspect the overpriced baubles on the shelf behind him.

“Johnny, I mean if any time is the perfect time to get back out there, it’s now. The Seven are dropping like flies, it’s been all over the news lately. With them gone, you can focus a little more on yourself.”

Johnny tensed at her words, then forced himself to relax. He pasted on a fake smile—the one he usually gave to paparazzis who got just a little too close to the man who could set himself on fire—and turned back around.

“Jen. Seriously. Stop with the relationship crap. I’m not looking for anything right now. The rest of the Four and I are actually working hard on the Seven thing. I don’t need any distractions.”

Jen took the hint and stopped talking about it with just a raised eyebrow as penance. Johnny counted himself lucky. He knew she could probably hear the seriousness in his voice.

“So, how’ve you been?” He asked as they walked out of the store and back onto the street. 

“Oh, you know, same old, same old. Life in court has been more interesting than anything else, really. Some of those kids they’re letting graduate from Harvard Law need to be taught a thing or two.”

“Ouch, they’re letting you loose on them in their first case? That should be considered cruel and unusual punishment,” Johnny said, laughing.

“I’ll have you know, Mr. Storm, that I actually took a constitutional law course. I know what counts as cruel and unusual punishment.” She pushed him lightly, but he still went stumbling a bit. “And you’re right, it totally should!”

The two of them burst out laughing, scaring some poor tourists trying to snap a picture of the big shot celebrity superheroes. When their laughter died down, Johnny directed them into a nearby coffee shop.

“Heard it was good,” he said in response to her curious expression. 

“Oh, so that means Sue mentioned it and you just had to come here to see if it was really worth the hype.”

Johnny rolled his eyes.

“You know me so well, Ms. Walters.”

They ordered two coffees and grabbed some baked goods before taking a seat. Johnny was just ripping into his croissant when the lights flickered.

“Well, that’s never a good sign.”

Both he and Jen got up. They flickered again. A bright, crackling flicker that lasted a while.

“So, what’re you thinking?” He asked Jen in a whisper.

“I think one of your friends is back.”

With that, the window burst in a shatter of glass and the other patrons in the shop began to scream.

“Go, get out of here!” Johnny yelled. “It’s not safe, just leave!”

The slack-jawed barista stared at him for a second as the others raced out the doors

“Does it look like I’m kidding? FLAME ON!”

Johnny shot into the air and watched as Jen shepherded people away from the coffee shop. 

“And to think I was just about to have a really good fucking snack, too.”

He examined the lights on the ceiling, seeing if he could find any trace of Electro still in the system. He sensed some heat behind him and turned, but he was a moment too slow.

The materialized form of Electro slammed his fist into Johnny’s jaw and Johnny went flying backwards. He steadied himself near the windows then slowly backed out of them, avoiding the rough edges.

“Hey, Max, you look like you need a little sunlight, buddy. How about we fight out here? It’s a nice day.”

The villain growled and mumbled something under his breath, his voice distorted by the crackle of electricity. No matter how many times they fought, it was still creepy as hell. 

Electro flew at him, electricity crackling all over his body. But he looked… deranged. Like he couldn’t control the chaos anymore. Little bolts of static and lightning were arcing off of him at random moments, flying through the air then fizzling out. Johnny could see the heat signature of the electricity fluctuating wildly—the other man would be all red hot electricity one moment, then practically dead the next. 

Johnny swerved as Electro flew around him in an erratic rage. It was easy to avoid the villain; perhaps the lucky punch in the shop had been just that—lucky. 

“C’mon, Max, calm down a bit! How about a nice vacation to Rikers? Or a trip down to Reed’s lab?”

Electro roared again and Johnny had to fling himself backwards to avoid the massive electrical discharge he let out. Johnny looked down at the ground worriedly. Jen was looking up at him and making some kind of hand gesture, but he couldn’t figure it out. Scanning the area, it seemed like the three of them were the last ones left on the street. What really worried Johnny, however, was the buildings surrounding them. If Electro lost control, he could fry the entire power grid. Worse, he could agitate the electricity in the air so much people could be killed just from touching their doorknobs. Johnny needed a plan, and fast.

He shot out a burst of flame on Dillon’s right side and yelped as a burst of electricity grazed his own side in response. Wracking his brain for answers as they tumbled through the air together, he eventually remembered Reed telling him something a long time ago. “Remember, Johnny,” his brother-in-law had said, “Electro’s powers rely on control, much like our own. If he loses control enough, he’ll pass out. But it’s a risky move.”

Sighing to himself, he knew the risk was worth it. Electro already seemed out of control; if Johnny prodded him just a little further, his powers would overcome him and he’d be weakened.

Johnny flew as close as he could and slowly heated up his own temperature. He could see Dillon start to feel the effects. Hovering around him, he watched as the other man slipped further into insanity. What had Doc Ock done to these men that was so heinous it could make them act like this? Whatever it was, Johnny wasn’t too eager to find out.

“My electricity! It’s… it’s caught between two extremes!“

“Give up now, Max!” Johnny called, turning his temperature even higher. “You can’t win!”

“Octavius…” the other man muttered, lost to the world around him. “He promised me more… I craved more. Now, I feel like I’m riding on a high.”

Johnny noticed the other man stop resisting so much. He flew a little closer and continued to up his temperature in small doses.

“But now… my current… it’s weakening. It’s fighting against the serum Otto gave me.”

Watching the madman ramble, Johnny almost felt sorry for him. But, there was nothing Johnny could do to save him besides attempting to stop him.

“Max, don’t you feel a bit tired?” Johnny tried.

“Hmmm… my current is so slow.”

Then, the man dropped straight out of the sky. Johnny raced to catch him and managed to snatch him just as he was about to hit the ground. Setting him down gently, he went to look for Jen. 

“Jen! Where’d you go?” He called.

She came rushing towards him from a side alley, panting. 

“Sorry, Johnny, I ran around telling the people in these buildings to be careful touching anything made of metal. What’s-What’s happening to Electro?”

Her end question raised an octave, and her face took on a horrified expression. She pointed over Johnny’s shoulder.

He turned and saw Electro’s body convulsing on the ground. He raced over and dropped to his knees. 

“Shit! Shit! Call Reed! Now!”

Johnny sat down heavily in one of the uncomfortable chairs in Reed’s lab. In front of him stood Sue, watching him carefully. 

“He’s fine, Johnny. He’s awaiting containment on Rikers. Reed and I will be studying him from there.”

“Study—… you say ‘studying’, Sue, as if he’s some kind of animal! He’s a human being, and Octavius just experimented on him like some kind of monkey!”

Sue tilted her head. It seemed as if he was just something to study to her now, too. All those years of marriage to Reed were starting to catch up with her.

“Why’re you defending the super-villain right now, baby bro? I thought you hated them all, with the way you’ve been acting with Peter.”

Johnny blushed a little against his will at being called out. He stood up, angrier than before.

“Well, I guess I just realized that whatever the fuck Otto is putting them through is inhumane, even for them! You haven’t been there, Sue. These men are tortured, deranged, played with on a string like they’re mice in a lab.”

Sue frowned and walked over to him. She pulled him to her chest and held him in a tight hug. 

“I know I haven’t been there, Johnny. And I understand why you’re feeling this way. But he’s alive , Johnny. And as much as I’ve hated fighting Electro, he’s going to stay that way. We’re going to help him.”

She pulled back, still holding onto him at arm's length. Her bright blue eyes, copies of his own, scanned his face. Her expression softened.

“And Peter. We’re going to help him, too.”

Johnny shrugged out of her hold and turned away. 

“Don’t you have to meet Reed at the Raft?“

-

Johnny was lying on his unmade bed in the same clothes he’d fought Dillon in when Peter knocked on the door.

“Come in!” He half-shouted.

He was tired and done with the world for today. But every time he shut his eyes, all he could see was Electro’s convulsing body. He let out an involuntary shiver.

“It’s me,” Peter said, closing the door with a gentle click. “So I hear you had a spat with Max today.”

“I’m not in the mood, Spider,” Johnny said, voice hoarse.

“That’s okay,” Peter replied easily. “I’m not either. We can just sleep tonight.”

At that, Johnny’s head snapped to face the bug. The damned villain looked like he was holding back laughter. He moved closer to the bed, and when Johnny offered no resistance other than a glare, sat down.

“Seriously, Johnny, tell me about it.” With these words, Peter adopted a serious, but not cold, expression. “If anyone can help you deal with it, it’s me.”

Johnny wondered why Peter would care to help him, but decided it was a good thing. Right now, he couldn’t deal with any more pain. 

“Well, Jen and I were grabbing a coffee when suddenly…”

Johnny wiped the tears off his face, lying on side away from Peter. The other man still sat stoically next to him, like it was awkward for him to even be touching Johnny’s bed.

“And that’s what happened.”

Johnny breathed in a shaky, rattling breath. He felt Peter move a bit on the bed, but whatever touch he was attempting, he quickly abandoned it. Johnny secretly yearned for the other man to reach out; goddamn it, he would take the Mole Man right now. He just wanted a hug.

Suddenly, Peter reached over awkwardly and wrapped Johnny in a strong embrace. It was uncomfortable and weird, as Peter was stretched over him to hug him at an angle, and Johnny couldn’t even return it besides holding onto his arms. Still, it was exactly what Johnny needed.

“I said the hug thing out loud, huh?” Johnny said with a snot-filled laugh.

Peter mumbled a “yes” into his side. They stayed wrapped like that for a few seconds more before Johnny began to speak again and Peter withdrew his arms. He still stayed closer to Johnny, however. It was comforting to feel the bug’s heat radiating next to his own.

“Every… every time I close my eyes, all I can see are his convulsions. To know it was me, even if accidentally, that caused all that pain—it’s a horrible feeling.”

Expecting a laugh or a retort at that from Peter, he tensed. When nothing came, he raised his head and looked back to see the other man deep in thought. Those big brown eyes were dark, full of something Johnny couldn’t put his finger on.

When Peter raised his head to look him straight in the eyes, Johnny’s snot-covered face and red eyes and all, he knew exactly what was going through the bug’s mind right now. It was the exact same thing Johnny felt every time he got a little too hot or burned a little too bright next to someone he loved. 

It was regret.

“Johnny, that pain—“ Peter broke off his statement and looked away. “It’s normal. Everything you do has a price. And sometimes that price is pain. With great power, comes great consequences.”

Johnny shifted into a sitting position and gently placed a hand on Peter’s shoulder. The other man turned to him with misty eyes. Either he was an Oscar-worthy actor, or the bug had some depth. Despite wishing for it to be the former, Johnny knew it was the latter. 

“Do you regret any of it? At all?” Johnny whispered—voice a tad desperate.

Peter squeezed his eyes shut. 

“No.”

Johnny let out a small sigh, but didn’t remove his hand. He knew that touch could be an anchor for some, and it seemed to be that way with Peter.

“That’s the worst part. You’re a good person, Johnny. I know that if you went back to that moment with Electro right now, you would have figured out some other way to end the fight without him being carried away on a stretcher. But for me?”

Peter opened his eyes and they were red, just like Johnny’s. Tears threatened to spill out.

“I wouldn’t change a damn thing,” he whispered. “I don’t regret anything. I feel guilty, sure, but that’s natural. I don’t feel enough guilt to change anything. I’d do it all again, if I had to.”

Johnny watched the other man fall apart right in front of him. His face was like an open book; Johnny could see every emotion as it flitted across his features. Terror, guilt, anger, despair—all of them working in tandem to weigh Peter Parker down. He was a man who carried the world on his shoulders, from the violence of his actions to his overpowering love for his Aunt May. 

Johnny realized at that moment that no one in this world was meant to carry that kind of weight alone. And no one in this world was as black and white as they seemed. It was an impossible task to sort people into “good” and “bad”. Everyone had a mix of both, and you could only pray that the good would overtake the bad. It had happened for the Fantastic Four, and Johnny knew it could happen for Peter Parker.

He wrapped his arms around the other man as he sobbed into his shoulder. The two of them sat like that for a long time. Johnny let out some more sobs himself, and soon they were both covered in snot and tears.

“We’re pretty pathetic, huh, Torch?” Peter asked with a hollow chuckle after they had calmed down a bit. 

His voice was still wet. As he looked up at Johnny from where his face had been tucked into his neck, Johnny smiled sadly down at him.

“Yeah, Pete, we are. We really are.”

-

Peter had left after a few more minutes of awkward, but nice, hugging. Johnny had collapsed in bed and conked out immediately. Thankfully, this time no nightmares of Electro plagued him.

Johnny awoke the next morning just the teeniest bit more hopeful. Electro was alive, and that meant they could get information out of him. Johnny would, however, be staying far away from him. He didn’t think Max would take too kindly to his presence after he’d practically sent him to his death.

But he was alive, Johnny reminded himself. And with his help, maybe they could take Doc Ock down once and for all.

Johnny stretched and tumbled out of bed, sheets tripping him on his way to his door. He was still pretty sleepy, and yawned loudly as he opened it.

“Is that you, matchstick?” Ben shouted from the dining room. 

Johnny could hear the morning paper crumpling under his grasp.

“Mhmmm!” Johnny shouted back, rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

“Get your butt ova here! You’ve gotta see this!”

Johnny headed to the dining room and stopped in his tracks at the headline. 

HUMAN TORCH AND SHE-HULK FIGHT SIZZLING BATTLE WITH ELECTRO: IS THERE A NEW SUPER-ROMANCE HEATING UP?

“Aww, not again!” Johnny whined as Ben laughed uproariously behind the paper. “How many times do we have to deal with this? Jen is perfectly happy with John, and I’m perfectly happy by myself!”

“Sure, Johnny, sure! And I’m my own Aunt Petunia!” 

Johnny ignored the big oaf and stomped over to the coffee machine. He was much too tired and much too annoyed to deal with this today. 

“Ugh, now I’m gonna have to call Jen and ask her what we should do… and send the media a statement… and then probably stay away from her for a while…”

Ben was still laughing to himself as he read the paper. Johnny knew that objectively it could be a funny situation, but he hated whenever the papers pried into his love life. All it did was remind him of his lack of a love life. Especially now. He was so busy dealing with this whole Seven thing—emotionally, mentally, and physically—he had no time for dating. Especially a civilian. It just wouldn’t work out, and Johnny didn’t want to waste the effort trying. 

His coffee finished brewing and he grabbed the cup and heated it even more with his hands. He liked it past the scalding point. For some reason, he had tricked himself into thinking it worked better that way. He stood at the sink, staring out at the city gleaming beneath them. He let his mind go quiet as he sipped his coffee. What he needed now was to recharge before heading out into the field again.

“Hey! Peter! Come get a load o’ this flaming lover!” Ben called out suddenly.

Johnny groaned. He could feel a headache forming. He didn’t turn around; he didn’t want to see Peter’s face.

Peter started laughing as soon as he could see the headline. Johnny cursed Ben under his breath as the two started taking turns teasing Johnny for the article.

“That’s it!” Johnny yelled, spinning around. 

Flames were coming out of his head. He looked at the two of them and saw red. Peter’s face was split into a wide grin, and he was shirtless. Shirtless. Peter was shirtless.

Ben faded away from Johnny’s mind as he stared at Peter’s ripped torso. The two were still laughing at him. He shook himself out of his stunned stupor and pointed at the both of them.

“Until you two can behave like adults, I’m leaving!”

“Aw, Torchy, can’t handle a little teasing?” Peter mocked.

Johnny felt his flames spike and willed himself to loosen up. Losing even more control would not look great. 

“Jen. And. I. Are. Just. Friends!” He yelled.

“Oh c’mon, matchstick, we wuz only takin’ the obvious bait,” Ben said, having the decency to look at least a little ashamed. 

Peter, on the other hand, had crossed his arms across his chest and wore that goddamned smirk that Johnny had just known was behind the mask all those years. And yet, all Johnny could see was the way his biceps were flexing. Focus, Storm, he told himself. Take your eyes off the bug’s disgustingly nice arms.

“I don’t care if it was the obvious bait, Ben, can’t you tell I’m really not in the mood for this right now?”

Johnny breathed some steam out of his nostrils and then glanced back out the window.

“I’m gonna get some air. Don’t follow me.”

Johnny felt Peter approach. His heat signature was unique—probably due to his spider-y physiology. 

“I’m not in the mood, Peter,” Johnny mumbled.

“And I’m not here for you. Can’t a man enjoy the view without an ulterior motive?”

Johnny didn’t answer and let Peter sit down next to him. They sat in silence for a few minutes, just watching the city. You could barely see any movement on the streets below them from this high up. All of the cars and people looked like ants. Usually, Johnny was all flame and focus when he was in the air. He never had time to people watch like this.

“Life always goes on,” Peter said finally.

“What?” Johnny asked, turning to look at the man next to him.

Peter stared down at the city. His expression was open, but carefully guarded. For some reason, Johnny could tell this was about to be another serious conversation. He mentally sighed and prepared himself for even more to deal with.

“I just… being gone from being ‘The Spider’ has made me realize how much life goes on. All those people down there, they’re going to work and taking the subway and picking up their kids from school. And I’m…”

“Gone?” Johnny supplied.

“Yeah,” Peter let out a hollow chuckle, “I’m gone. Poof, disappeared, a nightmare no more. And it’s a weird thought. Their days are probably better, now.”

“Now that they don’t have to worry about you and the Seven?”

Peter nodded.

“They can just… be. Without any interference.”

They lapsed into silence again. Johnny turned his attention back to the slow-moving cars beneath them. There was a tour bus parked outside the Baxter and some tourists were filing out of it, hoping for a heroic encounter.

“Johnny. I want to tell you something.”

Johnny’s eyes snapped to Peter’s face. His jaw was tightened and he looked almost regretful.

“Me and the Seven, we’ve done some bad things. And I know Otto won’t stop. After hearing what you’ve said about Adrian, Flint, Sergei, and Max… well, it’s got me thinking.”

“What are you saying, Peter?” Johnny whispered.

Peter looked at him, those big brown eyes filled with pain. His wild hair was blowing in the wind, and Johnny could feel how cold he’d gotten during their time on the roof.

“I want to help you take down the rest of the Seven.”

-

Johnny was in Reed’s lab with the rest of the Four, discussing Peter’s involvement with them. Sue and Reed had arrived back late that evening.

“Sorry, Stretch, but I don’t think lettin’ the kid join us is the solution we’ve been lookin’ for,” Ben said, crossing his big rocky arms across his chest.

Johnny leaned on the table, thinking hard. He wasn’t too sure whose side he would be taking in this argument—on one hand, he agreed that Peter was dangerous, but also, men could change.

“I know, old friend, but there are things at stake here bigger than Peter’s past,” Reed responded, for once not splitting his attention between his tech and them. 

After all, this was a serious conversation. Something had to be done about Doc Ock, and it needed to be done soon . Peter’s help was something that could fast-track “soon”. Johnny glanced over toward Sue and saw that she was deep in thought as well. He wondered if she was thinking the same things he was; if she had noticed the same things he had. 

“We don’t need the bug’s help ta take down Doc Ock. The bashful blue-eyed Thing only needs his hard right hook.”

“There’s a time and a place for that kind of fighting, Ben, but with this, we need to be more delicate. Don’t you agree, Sue?”

Sue was startled out of her thoughts by Reed’s sudden attempt to draw her into the conversation. Johnny could see she wasn’t too sure of her own opinions on the issue, but like always, she stood her ground.

“I can see where Ben’s coming from, Reed—“

“See? If Suzie-Q agrees with me, I gotta be on the right track.”

“You didn’t let me finish, Ben. While I do see your point, I think Peter’s help could outweigh the hurt he might cause. After all, we know next to nothing about the Seven. We’ve been on this for months, and we still don’t know where their hideout is, if Mysterio is still out there… There’s so many unknowns.”

She paused and sighed.

“We’re an intergalactic team. If there’s trouble on an alien planet or if Galactus acts up again, we’re the ones to call. This street level stuff is a little out of our expertise. We need Peter’s insight.”

Johnny pushed himself off the table and walked closer to where the other three were standing.

“I agree with Sue.”

He was met with looks of confusion.

“Look, while you guys were gone, Peter and I had some time to talk. I can see… he wants to help. He told me so himself.”

“See, Ben, there you have it. If Peter himself wants to help us, who are we to deny the lad?”

Ben growled something unintelligible and Reed leveled him with an unimpressed look.

“Look, Stretch, all I’m sayin’ is that we don’t know the Spider’s true intentions. For all we know, this whole thing wuz a ruse to get us comfortable. Then he’s just gonna join up with the ol’ doctor again and we’re gonna be in for some hurt.”

Johnny had to put his foot down on that one.

“Look, Ben, Peter’s changed. Just trust me.”

Ben looked at him, ready to throw back a joke about Johnny’s immature nature or his easy-to-trust ways. But he didn’t. He must have seen the seriousness in Johnny’s stare. Plus, Johnny hadn’t sulked around the building for weeks being upset about Peter’s impromptu stay for nothing.

The big oaf groaned and finally relented. Then, they started to work on a plan.

“Peter?” Johnny said, attempting to knock on his door while juggling all of the things in his arms. “Got a minute?”

The door swung open and Johnny almost fell over. Peter let out a chuckle then reached down to grab the few things Johnny had dropped.

“For you, Torch, always.”

Johnny pointedly ignored the comment and led the way to Peter’s window. 

“What’s with all the snacks, Storm? Are we having a movie night? Gonna tell each other all our little secrets? Ya know, right place, right time, Mole Man could do it for me.”

“Wha-What? What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Jeez, Torch, denying a man his right to a gossip-y sleepover? Harsh.”

Johnny smacked him with one of the hot dogs he was holding and just barely managed to avoid splattering himself with mustard. The carpet, on the other hand, was not so lucky.

“I’m telling Sue you did that,” Johnny said as he sat down in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows. 

The lights were off in Peter’s room, but the city was so bright that they didn’t need them anyways. Johnny portioned out the food. He had gone a bit crazy at the stand; they both had about five hot dogs, a couple of bags of questionable fries, and an extra large drink. 

“All of this for me, hot stuff? I’m touched.”

Johnny raised another hot dog in warning and Peter held up his hands. They ate in silence for about a minute before Johnny broke.

“We want you to help us,” he mumbled.

Peter heard him, though. He always did.

“I already said I would. I don’t go back on promises.”

“Good.”

Johnny wondered how all this had come to pass. If you had told him he would be eating hot dogs with the wanted criminal Spider in said criminal’s guest bedroom next to his own, he’d have laughed in your face and maybe lit you just a teeny bit on fire for pissing him off. 

But, Johnny had come to see that there was more to Peter than meets the eye. Although he had hardened a lot in the last few years since the internship, he still retained much of what had drawn Johnny to him in the first place—the quiet seriousness, the passion for his work, his commitment to his friends and family. Johnny felt it in his heart that Peter Parker could be a good man, given time and motivation. By helping the Four take down his former teammates, he was taking the first step towards freedom from evil.

“Thank you for this, Johnny,” Peter said as he finished the last of his fries. “And for everything.”

Johnny would have thoughtlessly said “no problem” or “of course” had it been anyone else. But Peter’s words carried weight; there was history between them, and Johnny just couldn’t ignore all of it.

“You’re welcome, Pete. It’s been… it was worth it, to me.”

Wordlessly, Johnny’s eyes found Peter’s in the moonlight. Here they were, surrounded by fast food trash sitting on the floor. Peter was wearing a comfortable grey shirt and black sweatpants. His feet were bare. Johnny was wearing a threadbare T-shirt and his pajama shorts. He had bags under his eyes, and somehow Peter had a seemingly never ending array of half-healed scars littered across his body. 

They were both exhausted of everything, yet all Johnny saw in Peter’s eyes was a spark. They were full of light and passion and something else Johnny couldn’t quite name. 

He leaned forward, entranced.

Then, the door slammed open. 

“Matchstick, Spider, you’re gonna wanna see this,” Ben said.

They sprang apart from each other and Johnny quickly hauled himself off the ground. 

“We’re coming, Ben.”

They ended up in Reed’s lab, watching live feed footage of Mysterio wrecking the shit out of Rockefeller Center. Ben whistled and told Reed to zoom in on the man himself.

“He’s gone off the rocker, hasn’t he, Stretch?”

“Yes, Ben, it seems that Mysterio has finally cracked. His behavior follows the pattern established by his colleagues. He is acting entirely irrational, and seems to be causing chaos without considering the consequences. We must get over there as quickly as possible.”

The rest of the Four dispersed to prepare themselves for the upcoming battle. The only ones left watching the screens were Johnny and Peter. Well, Peter was watching the screens; Johnny was watching him. He had an intense look of concentration on his face, and kept scrubbing the bottom of his face with his hands. 

“I’m the only one left,” he finally said.

“Well, the good ol’ doctor is still out there,” Johnny responded.

Peter leveled him with a hard stare and Johnny quickly realized that now was not the time for jokes. He tentatively reached out a hand and placed it softly on Peter’s shoulder.

“Pete, hey, look at me.”

Peter turned but stayed silent.

“Look, you’ve already agreed to help us take down Octavius. That’s one thing that can help clear that red in your ledger. Maybe…”

Johnny took a deep breath.

“Maybe helping us take down Mysterio could be one more thing.”

Peter tensed under Johnny’s touch. He could see the gears turning in the big head of his, and Johnny knew the bug would say yes. He could feel it in that place in his heart that Peter carved out for himself five years ago.

“I… I’m in.”

Johnny could see the ash and smoke rising in the air from the top of the Baxter. He had never really liked Rockefeller Center that much anyways, but to see so much destruction in the city—it always made his heart hurt. Turning to look at Peter, now clothed in his classic black suit (minus the mask), he could see the sentiment reflected in the other man’s features. Johnny wondered if he was thinking back to all the destruction he had rained down upon the innocent city, all in the name of “righting wrongs”.

“It still creeps me out to see you in that suit, you know,” Johnny said, his tone purposefully kept light.

It was already awkward that Peter was joining them to fight Mysterio. Johnny needed his comments to be trivial enough to calm them all down, but serious enough that he didn’t seem like he was making fun of the situation. Peter had a rather volatile temper, after all.

“Ha,” Peter replied with a wry smile on his face. “How do you think it feels to be back in it? Somehow after all this time it still hasn’t lost that ‘New York sewer’ smell.”

Johnny pinched his nose closed and smiled as he retorted.

“Oh trust me, bug, I can smell it from here.”

“You know spiders are arachnids, right? All these years and you’ve been calling me something completely different.”

Johnny smirked and walked a little closer. He tried to keep his eyes on Peter’s face, but his costume left very little to the imagination. Very little. 

“Trust me, I know. I’m not as stupid as the papers make me seem, you know. It was just funny to see you get riled up. Even under that mask, I could always tell when you were annoyed.”

Peter was about to reply when Sue called them over. She explained their plan of attack and then they all climbed into the Fantasticar to head to the scene. 

Johnny surveyed the damage as they approached. There were entire chunks taken out of buildings, and debris littered the streets. He wondered what the hell kind of tech Mysterio had gotten his hands for this level of devastation.

Then, he saw. Somehow, Mysterio had turned all of Rockefeller Center into a jungle. Large mechanical tigers and other assorted jungle animals were running rampant as Mysterio stood in the center of it all, shrouded in green mist and muttering maniacally to himself. 

“You know, I always thought they could do something during the year, too. The ice rink gets a little old after a while.”

Johnny slapped Peter on the arm, and when the other man turned to flash him a self-satisfied little grin, he felt his heart skip a beat. 

The Fantasticar touched down on a nearby rooftop and all of them climbed out. Reed and Sue headed into the fray first, Ben quickly following behind them. Johnny watched for a second as his sister, brother-in-law, and friend started corralling the mechanical monsters. 

“Quentin’s vulnerable,” Peter muttered. 

Johnny looked over and didn’t like what he saw. Peter had a look in his eye that Johnny had only ever imagined—a look of rage. 

“We’re just here to incapacitate him,” Johnny reminded him.

Peter hummed noncommittally.  His eyes were tracking the action down below them.

“Peter,” Johnny said forcefully, grabbing the other man’s arm to get his attention. “Nothing lethal, okay?”

Peter’s wicked grin made something in Johnny crack a little bit. It was full of cold, focused rage. It sent chills down his spine.

“Of course, Torch. It’ll only hurt him a little.”

With that, Peter slipped on his mask and jumped off the building. Johnny flamed on and threw himself after the bug. They dodged hits left and right as Peter headed straight for his old teammate. Something in Johnny told him that this confrontation was not going to end well. He reminded himself that there was always a learning curve; Peter not killing Beck would most definitely be an improvement. Even if he broke the majority of his bones. And maybe punctured a lung. Which it looked like he was ready to do.

“Fuck,” Johnny muttered under his breath as he melted a leaping panther. 

“Hey, Quentin! Did ya miss me?” Peter yelled.

Johnny watched as Mysterio turned, unsteady on his feet. The other man’s eyes carried the same fearful mania Johnny had seen in the other members of the Seven. He hung back as Peter dropped down next to Beck. Johnny was there for support, apparently. 

“Spider! What-what are you doing here?”

“What, can’t a guy drop in to see an old friend?”

Beck glanced around wildly.

“Otto… he said you were dead! Are you a ghost?”

The crazed man reached out to poke Peter on the shoulder, but the other man gracefully dodged it. Johnny could see the seething tension rippling under his skin. His rage was practically palpable in the air. 

“No hug for an old buddy? Jeez, Hollywood really made you cold, huh?”

Beck was confused; he kept glancing around like he was waiting for something to catch him. He looked like prey, and Johnny wasn’t so sure Peter was the intended predator. Suddenly, he felt terrible for suggesting Peter don the suit and get back out. 

“Well, Quentin, if you’ve got nothing else to say, I guess it’s time for your regularly scheduled nap.”

Peter threw a massive swing. Beck went reeling, clutching his nose. A river of blood was gushing down his face. Mysterio snapped his fingers and all of his pawns immediately surrounded the two men. They lost all interest in any of Johnny’s team; the only two who mattered now were Peter and Beck.

“C’mon, fight back, Quentin. I know the great Mysterio is better than this.”

Peter’s mocking tone made Johnny shiver. He remembered it being used on him—and the accompanying swing—all too well. 

“Well? Nothing to say for yourself?”

Peter went in for another hit. He danced around Beck like it was nothing. The other man could barely raise his arms to block hits in time. And his illusion was starting to weaken; the animals were stuck between wanting to help their master and suddenly turning back to fight the Four. The jungle scene wiggled and vanished for a second before reappearing.

“Sp-Spider! Stop, stop, please!”

Beck looked pathetic. He was covered in blood and cuts and his suit was ripped and dirty. Peter didn’t reply to his pleading. Johnny could see that he only began to hit him harder.

The angrier Peter got, the more he lost control. It was like he operated on instinct. He stopped pulling his punches, and his shots got even dirtier. Johnny could barely bear to watch it.

Zooming down, he quickly placed himself between Peter and Beck as the Spider readied another attack.

“Stop! He’s had enough! He’s down!”

“Not down enough,” Peter growled. “Get out of the way, Johnny.”

Johnny turned his flame on even higher. He could only imagine what kind of spectacle they made amid Mysterio’s failing illusion. He could hear the sounds of the rest of the battle winding down behind him. Unfortunately for him, he knew this battle was only beginning.

“He’s begging for mercy, Spider. He’s done.”

Peter stared at him, those big unblinking white eyes boring into Johnny’s soul. But, he stood his ground.

“Look at him, Spider. He’s not getting up any time soon. Lower those fists. No one is dying tonight.”

The silence that stretched between them seemed like it went on for decades. Finally, Peter lowered his arms, but his stance was still tense. He was still ready for action. Johnny knew he wouldn’t let that tension go until Mysterio was locked up on the Raft or in one of the impenetrable cages in Reed’s lab. 

“Just help me get him into some cuffs and then we’ll head ho-back. We’ll head back to the Baxter, okay? And you can take a shower. You reek.”

Johnny’s poor attempt at humor seemed to work, as Peter let out a tiny laugh. Johnny slowly turned around to face Mysterio, who was still cowering on the ground. 

“We’re not gonna hurt you anymore, okay, Quentin? We’re gonna help you now.”

Johnny leaned down to help the villain off the floor. With unnatural speed, Beck latched onto his arm with a deadly grip and spun them around so he held Johnny against his chest. He was so strong—why was he so strong? Johnny would flame on to escape, but he couldn’t risk burning the other man. His costume had enough gashes that any flame would touch bare skin. Mysterio began to cackle.

Suddenly, he saw a flash of black in the corner of his eye. With a sickening crunch, Peter’s fist connected with the side of Beck’s head and the villain’s grip slackened enough that Johnny was able to tug himself away. He quickly flamed on and watched as Beck swayed on the spot before collapsing onto the ground. Johnny turned to Peter, who was already standing on the ground with his hands up in the air.

“Last hit, I promise,” he said gently. 

Blood stained the side of that damned black suit. Johnny couldn’t tell if it was Peter’s own, or Beck’s. He didn’t know which one he’d prefer.

“I promise, Johnny.”

-

Johnny watched the news in silence. It was unlike himself, to be so still. Sue had passed by him, always with a gentle touch or tousle of his hair, but that was as far as it went. She respected him.

The news was—well, it was possibly the worst they’d ever had. People were calling them traitors, the government was making official statements, even the goddamned Bugle had stopped printing stuff about how awful the Spider was and started on about how the Four were even worse for teaming up with him. 

But, no matter how bad it was, Johnny couldn’t stop himself from watching it. It was like there was something in his soul that needed him to be hurt; needed him to be beaten. On top of the physical pain he was carrying, he needed to pack on the emotional guilt. Marko’s splattered body, the Vulture’s torn wing, Electro’s cries of pain, Beck’s body collapsing like a bag of bricks—Johnny couldn’t escape any of it. They were painted onto the backs of his eyelids in vivid, gory detail.

The TV suddenly clicked off. Johnny pushed himself off the couch, not even protesting the change. There was something wrong with him: he needed air, he needed his room, he needed twelve stiff drinks in his system by fucking yesterday.

“You can’t live like this, you know,” Peter said from behind him. “You’re just torturing yourself.”

“As if you don’t pull the same crap. At least I don’t kill people when I feel guilty.”

Low blow. Johnny could barely even believe the words had slipped out of his mouth. He… he needed to rest. Pulling himself out of this funk needed to be the most important thing on his mind right now. Not Peter. Never Peter.

“C’mon, Torch, you did everything you could for every single one of those men. Everything that happened to them was the result of their own choices.”

Johnny shrugged off the kind hand placed on his shoulder and started walking toward his room. He couldn’t deal with Peter right now, and he was most definitely too worn out to even think about arguing. 

“You’re not gonna say anything? Johnny, please, just say something, anything,” Peter pleaded, a hint of desperation leaking into his voice as he spoke to Johnny’s retreating back.

Johnny flinched almost imperceptibly at the other man’s tone. But, Peter—clever, angry, complicated, kind Peter—caught it, as he always did.

“Look, I’ll go to your room with you. We don’t have to talk. I’ll just… sit on the floor and face the wall or something. Just so you’re not alone. Please, let me do this.”

Johnny sighed and Peter took that as a yes. He hung back as they walked to Johnny’s room. 

The inside was a mess. Clothes were thrown everywhere, there was trash on the floor from old takeout, and tissues were scattered randomly across all the junk. Johnny just swept an arm across the bed to clear everything off it before flopping onto the soft sheets. Peter stood awkwardly near the door.

“You can lie on my bed. We’re not 15 with Sue demanding the door open.”

Peter’s laugh was weak, but it was still (unfortunately) the best thing Johnny had heard all day. The other man laid down next to Johnny—there was a bit of space between them, but not much. Johnny could feel the heat radiating off him.

They laid in silence for a long time, long enough for it to slowly grow dark outside. Johnny was restless, but he didn’t show it. He also wanted to cry half the time, but he only let a few silent tears trace a path down his cheeks. Focusing on Peter’s breath, he tried to count the inhales and exhales. It was a trick an old therapist had taught him—the therapist Sue had barely afforded after their parents’ deaths.

“How did it feel? To be back in the suit, to swing around the city again?” Johnny asked softly. 

The question seemed to float in the air for a minute before it settled between them.

“It was exhilarating, I won’t lie. But it was also terrifying. The suit holds so much meaning, and while I tried to use it to my advantage, it just brought back old memories.”

“Bad memories,” Johnny interpreted.

“Yeah. The swinging, though—it’s always been the best part of my day. There’s no greater freedom than a sunset swing through New York.”

Johnny sighed. 

“I know exactly what you mean. When I’m flying, everything else fades away.”

“How did it feel for you today? Truly, Johnny.”

Johnny hated how much Peter knew him. It wasn’t fair that they had this history together that Johnny was still wrapping his head around; I mean, sure, he’d pretty much already gotten there, but then Peter would say something and Johnny would remember how he had known the whole time. How he had had the upper hand in every fight, every confrontation, every planned set-up all these years.

“I’m-I’ve been better. But,” Johnny shrugged, “I’ve been worse, too. Just not in a long time.”

He let out an acidic laugh. It bit right through whatever light facade they had between the two of them.

“The other shoe always has to drop, right? I’ve been waiting for it for a long time. I never thought it would drop like this, though.”

“Like what?”

“Like… like, I don’t know, you fucking tell me, Peter. Like my family being ripped to shreds because we’re all working ourselves to the bone over this, like the specter of the Seven finally coming out of the shadows to shatter our bubble, like the guy I’ve had a massive crush on since he worked for my nerd brother-in-law FIVE FUCKING YEARS ago turns out to be the Spider and now I have to readjust my whole fucking world view because apparently when you become a superhero in your teens everything is pretty black and white, but then you realize it’s all kinda grey and your life just kinda falls apart, too.”

His outburst left Peter speechless. They’re both still staring at the ceiling, unmoving, as they have been this whole time. They stayed like that for a couple seconds before Peter got up on an elbow and suddenly Johnny’s face was full of messy brown hair, a twice-broken nose, and full, pink lips. Dark brown eyes were blown wide, staring down at him in both shock and awe.

“You in love with me, Storm?”

Johnny snorted and a few tears came leaking out of his eyes. Peter raised his other hand to wipe them away.

“You wish, webhead. I’m too hot for you.”

“You got that right, Torch. You’re smokin’”.

Then, Peter leant down and everything else faded away.

His lips were slightly chapped, and they’re at a slightly wrong angle, but to Johnny, this was the best kiss he’d ever received. He could feel the passion Peter was putting was into it; no one had ever kissed him like that. Johnny hadn’t felt the cold since he was a teen, but this was a new type of heat. As Peter’s lips moved against his own, and as his hands found themselves entangled in Peter’s messy curls, Johnny was pretty sure this was hotter than going nova. He hadn’t ever thought he would be kissed like this; he had felt he wouldn’t deserve it.

But, Peter— Peter —put his everything into this kiss. Johnny kissed him back with as much passion as he could muster, and Peter fell on top of him as the sheets around them became even more messed up. All Johnny could feel was Peter : his tongue in his mouth, tasting every bit of Johnny that he could; his hands cupping his jaw, that quiet power resting behind them; his toned chest against his, just a centimeter away through his thin shirt. Johnny wanted him to devour him whole. He wanted his handprints on him, he wanted to be wanted like he never had.

Peter’s mouth slipped down from Johnny’s mouth to his neck. Johnny keened, high and vulnerable, as Peter sucked blue and purple onto his throat. Johnny tilted his head back to give the other man as much access as possible.

He could feel Peter’s hardness rubbing against his own and moaned as Peter slowly circled his hips down. 

“Peter, Peter, Peter !”

Johnny felt like some errant worshipper, stuck under the lustful eye of a god. Peter leaned back and Johnny had to bite back a disappointed groan. He quickly discarded that thought, however, as Peter pulled his shirt off and tossed it to the side.

“After all these years, this was under that stupid black suit,” Johnny said in appreciation, reaching out to run his hands across Peter’s chest.

“There was even more hidden under that suit, flamebrain,” Peter replied with a laugh.

He leaned down and kissed Johnny again. It was filthy—and suddenly Johnny needed to get out of his clothes as quickly as possible. 

He pushed Peter off him, and smiled at the small groan the other man let out. He shed his shirt as quickly as possible and tried to work off his sweatpants as much as he could with Peter sitting on his thighs.

“Let me help.”

Peter slid backwards and onto his knees on the floor. He pulled Johnny’s sweatpants off in one fluid motion and tossed them to the side haphazardly. Johnny was wrong: maybe he was the god. After all, Peter looked so good on his knees. 

Johnny was left in his briefs, dick straining against the tight fabric. Peter looked absolutely ravenous, sitting between his legs and looking at him with those big brown eyes. 

“As much as I love you on your knees,” Johnny rasped, voice thick with lust, “get the fuck out of those pants and kiss me again.”

“Yes, sir,” Peter responded with a little salute and that classic smirk painted onto his face.

Johnny couldn’t be more in love. 

Peter stood up and kicked his pants off and— oh . He wasn’t wearing any underwear.

“Yeah,” Johnny choked out. “That suit was hiding a lot.”

That damn smirk was still in place on Peter’s face. Johnny grew impatient and reached up to tug him down onto him, but Peter easily pulled out of his grasp. 

“Uh-uh, mister,” he said. “You’re a little more clothed than me right now.” 

Johnny huffed.

“Take them off, then, webhead.”

“Your wish is my command.”

Peter then proceeded to do the most fucking annoying and also the hottest fucking thing Johnny had ever seen in his life: he ripped his briefs off. In one clean swoop, his dick bounced against his flat stomach and Peter’s eyes grew insanely dark. His pupils were blown wider than Johnny had ever seen; his eyes were practically black.

He covered Johnny with his body as he made out with him, and Johnny whined into his mouth when he grabbed Johnny’s hands and held them above his head.

“You like that, huh?” Peter said breathlessly, pulling away for just a second.

“Asshole,” Johnny replied as he leaned up to kiss him again.

Holding Johnny’s hands in an almost brusing grasp, Peter reached down with the other to grab both of their dicks. He started slowly, and Johnny moaned like a pornstar when he did something with a flick of his wrist that almost made Johnny cum right then and there.

Johnny had never felt so complete in his life. Peter somehow jerked them both off like it was his one goal in life to make Johnny Storm have the most mind-blowing orgasm of his life. He sped up as he sucked hickies down Johnny’s neck and onto his collarbone, his chest, his stomach. Somehow, he kept his vice-like grip on Johnny’s hands and Johnny silently prayed he would have bruises in the shape of Peter’s fingers there tomorrow. It seems like all the rage Peter carried around with him all day had a productive purpose: it made him insanely good in bed.

Johnny arched his back as Peter started to jerk them off impossibly fast. Peter himself was moaning into Johnny’s pecs. He was sure they sounded like some god-awful porno, and was glad the walls of the Baxter were soundproof. Johnny could feel the heat building in his stomach as Peter led them to orgasm.

“Cum for me, hot stuff. Cum for me,” Peter whispered into his throat, his ridiculously toned and sweaty body grinding against Johnny’s own.

That was the last straw. Johnny saw stars as he cummed harder than he ever had in his entire life. Peter came soon after and they rode out their orgasms together.

Johnny laid limp on the bed as Peter let go of his hands and slowly eased off him. They were both a mess—Johnny glanced up to see Peter smiling softly at him, hair messier than Johnny had ever seen it (and boy was that a feat) and skin glistening with sweat. Johnny was sure he looked equally—probably more—fucked out. Cum covered both their stomachs. 

“I’m gonna grab a towel, beautiful,” Peter said, leaning down to give Johnny a chaste kiss.

He disappeared into the bathroom and Johnny closed his eyes. The sound of running water filled the air, but all Johnny could hear was Peter’s voice calling him beautiful. 

“Hey, open your eyes for me, hot stuff,” Peter said. “I’ve got your towel right here.”

Johnny lazily cracked an eye open and smiled when he saw Peter leaning over him.

“You couldn’t kill me in five years of trying, you think one measly handjob is gonna do it?”

Peter laughed, light and carefree, and it was the best thing Johnny had heard in a long time.

“Measly, was it? Maybe I won’t do it again, then.”

Johnny let out a chuckle before his eyes widened.

“Again?”

“Of course, beautiful. You think I wipe down all my hook ups?”

“To be honest, you don’t seem like the kinda guy to score many chicks out of costume. But I guess nerdy chic is in these days,” Johnny replied with a shrug and a smirk.

Peter wiped his stomach then threw the towel on top of their discarded clothes. He climbed into bed and situated them so they were cuddling with their heads on the pillows.

“You’d be surprised,” Peter said, face buried in the back of Johnny’s neck.

His hair ticked Johnny’s jaw as he stared out the window, holding Peter’s arms around him tightly.

“No, I wouldn’t,” Johnny whispered. “After all, I only loved you for five years straight.”

Peter pulled his head up and manhandled Johnny to face him. 

“You mean that?”

Johnny reached up a hand and stroked Peter’s jaw reverently.

“Yeah, Pete, I do.”

Peter sighed. 

“I-I love you, too, Storm. And I think I did all those years ago, but I was too young and stupid to realize it. But being here, with you, watching you be so gentle with the kids, be such a great, loyal friend and brother, seeing you beat yourself up about things you can’t control cause you’re just that damn good —it’s made me fall deeper in love than I ever have. With anyone. You’re something special, Johnny Storm.”

Johnny was silent for a moment, in awe of the raw vulnerability Peter was putting on display. He had tears in his eyes—they both did. Johnny cupped his face in his hands and leaned forward until their foreheads touched.

“Say it again,” he whispered.

“I love you, Johnny Storm.”

-

They woke up tangled in each other the next morning. Everywhere they touched was like a flashpoint of heat—a kind of heat Johnny had never felt before. They lazily made out in bed for a while before Johnny heard Sue clanking together pots and pans in the kitchen. 

“C’mon, Pete, we’ve gotta get up,” Johnny spoke against his jaw.

He could feel rather than see the smile that slowly spread across Peter’s face, but couldn’t help himself leaning back to see it. It looked right on him. Peter was someone who deserved to smile.

“What is your sister gonna think about this?”

“Sue?” Johnny laughed. “Ben’ll probably slide her ten bucks and say she called it.”

“Damn it, matchstick, if only you two lug nuts had waited a week, then I woulda won $20!”

Peter’s hand rested on the small of Johnny’s (bare) back. It made it a little hard to focus on Ben’s complaining.

“When you know, you know, isn’t that the saying?” Johnny replied with a smirk.

Sue turned around from cooking, her hair in a messy ponytail and her eyes bright with mirth. She pointed the spatula at him.

“I’m pretty sure you ‘knew’ five years ago, little brother.”

Johnny scoffed and made a face. Sue just smiled even wider and turned back around.

“Franklin, go grab your father. It’s time for breakfast.”

“Okay, Mommy. But what if he says he has work to do?”

Val rolled her eyes from where she sat at the kitchen island. 

“Franklin, you know Mommy says we’re supposed to use our puppy dog eyes on him. He can’t resist them.”

Franklin smiled wide at her, one of his front teeth missing. Johnny felt his heart widen almost to bursting point. This was the happiest he’d been in a long time.

As Franklin hurried away, Peter hooked a finger under Johnny’s chin and he looked up to see big brown eyes staring down at him. 

“You wanna grab some air?” 

“Yeah,” Johnny said faintly. 

Was it hot in here or was that just him?

“I could use some air.”

The roof was cold when they stepped out. He couldn’t feel it, obviously, but he could see the goosebumps suddenly raise across Peter’s skin. Johnny brushed over his arms faintly, using his powers to warm up the other man quickly.

“Jeez, all those years fighting aliens and monsters and supervillains and your true calling is massage.”

Johnny whacked him on the shoulder and turned to face the view.

“Idiot,” he said fondly.

“Hey, I’m not the one in love with me.”

Peter joined him at the edge of the roof. Standing shoulder to shoulder like this, it was easy to forget they had been bitter enemies until very recently. 

“Your copious amounts of self-timer pictures would suggest otherwise.”

Peter gasped and whirled Johnny around to face him.

“You went through my phone?!”

Johnny smirked. It seemed he had a little nerve.

“Hey, you were a super villain who unceremoniously dropped in on me in the middle of the night! Of course we went through your phone, webhead.”

Peter wrapped his arms around Johnny’s neck and tugged him closer.

“Did you think they were any good?”

“Oh, sure. I especially loved the ones where you were swinging away from the camera. You know what they say, hate to see him leave, but love to watch him go…”

Peter’s laugh was full of surprise. Johnny reached a hand down to grab Peter’s ass and tugged him even closer. They met in the middle with a stunning kiss—it was sweet, but not too innocent. Johnny figured the two of them weren’t too good at the whole “innocent” thing.

They pulled apart after a little while and then sat down on the edge of the building, their legs swinging over the edge. It was a gorgeous day, full of sun and very few clouds in the sky. He wished he could go flying and enjoy the sights, but as he looked over at Peter, he realized he had one of the best sights in New York right in front of him. 

They spent a couple hours on the roof, alternating between making out like teenagers and watching the city beneath them. Johnny drew hearts and letters and little pictures in the air with his flames, and Peter regaled them both with tales of his more savory adventures as the Spider. They tactfully avoided the elephant in the room: Peter’s unsavory adventures as the Spider.

Johnny loved it. He loved spending time with Peter, he loved the feeling of the other man’s lips on his and his hands in his hair, he loved the way his eyes sparkled and his hands gesticulated wildly in the air as he told a story, he loved the way the other man was so fucking passionate about everything. He could practically see Peter growing in front of him; he could see the effect love had had on him. Peter cared more now, he cared deeper and with more feeling. When Peter looked down at those people, he didn’t see targets or debts or killers—he saw them for what they truly were: just everyday people like the two of them, trying to make a living and make it undisturbed. 

Johnny figured discussing Peter’s past could wait a little while. Right now, he was much more interested in kissing that stupid smirk off his face.

-

The next few days continued in much of the same fashion. Ben pretended to gag every time the two of them even went near him, and Peter practically moved himself into Johnny’s room. They all did away with the pretense of keeping Peter “prisoner” or whatever they had been doing (after all, they’d been pretty bad at it). Peter got his suit and webshooters back, and of course, his old-ass, half broken phone.

Johnny couldn’t help the fond smile that always crossed his face when he heard Peter call Aunt May. 

They were still trying to calm everyone down after the media blowback from their little escapade with Mysterio, but Sue was working her magic and it seemed to be working. Staying in the house was fine by Johnny, however, because it meant more time with Peter.

As he laid on his bed (alone, for once, because Peter was helping Reed in the lab), Johnny’s phone started ringing. He reached over blindly to grab it and picked it up without even reading the caller ID.

“JONATHAN LOWELL SPENCER STORM!!! The Spider? REALLY? You know, when I told you to get with someone, I didn’t mean YOUR BIGGEST ENEMY!”

Johnny couldn’t help himself—he started laughing so hard tears came out of his eyes. Jen was absolutely FUMING on the other side. He could feel her rage coming through the phone.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about the Spider, Jennifer. Besides, how could you even tell?”

She scoffed.

“Unfortunately, you’re one of my best friends. I know you wouldn’t let anyone near your family unless you trusted them. And loved them. And I’ve seen that man’s ass. Trust me, you love-love him.”

“Love-love, Jen, really? Are we in middle school?”

“You might as well be, ‘cause it seems like you have the IQ of one. The Spider? I just can’t believe it.”

Johnny sighed and got serious.

“Jen, I know you never expected this. But I want you—no, I need you—to back me up on this.”

She was silent for a moment. Johnny’s heart was beating out of his chest in anticipation of her answer. Realistically, he knew she would support him. After all, she’s the only one who's figured it out so far. Sometimes she knew him better than he knew himself. So, he needed her to be with him on this.

“I… I.” She sighed. “Jesus Christ, Johnny, of course I support you. I can practically hear your panic attack from here. Just—you sure you’re doing the right thing?”

Johnny smiled to himself and thought back to the last few days of bliss with Peter.

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

Johnny felt a breeze flow over his naked skin. He stirred, just barely, but enough to catch sight of the open window. Blinking his eyes, his blood suddenly ran cold.

He flamed on immediately, remembering what happened the last time he woke up to his window open. He wasn’t going to let himself be surprised so easily again. He carefully walked over to the window and looked around for any signs of intrusion. Nothing. Holding up a flaming hand, he stuck it out the window quickly, hoping to scare any would-be assailant. Nothing. It didn’t seem like anything was remiss. Then, he glanced back at the bed. 

The sheets next to where he slept were messy, but empty. Peter had been staying the night recently; now, Johnny knew he hadn’t gone back to his own room.  

Cursing under his breath, he flamed off and glanced down. Stuck to the outer edge of the window sill, a slightly charred post-it flapped in the window. It was secured to the window with a small piece of webbing.

Johnny could feel his heart practically pounding out of his chest. Hands shaking, he reached out and plucked it from the window. He could barely make out the chicken scratch handwriting.

Went to save Aunt May. Otto sent me a message. Too dangerous for you. I’ll be back soon.

-

Johnny screamed as jets of fire streamed from his fingertips. The air was thick with ash and the smell of burning plastic. Of all the places in the world to take Peter’s aunt, Octavius just had to pick the factory where they made insect traps. Later, Johnny would probably laugh at the irony. But now, as he watched the rest of the Four around him battle it out with Doc Ock and his newly created robot henchmen, Johnny wasn’t laughing. 

Johnny scanned the building for any sign of Peter. When the Four had arrived, Peter had been in the middle of a devastatingly brutal fight with Octavius. It seemed that after collecting information on the Seven all these years, the evil scientist had adapted his arms to block all of Peter’s usual attacks and tricks.

Johnny had let out a whimper at the state of Peter. His suit was bloody and torn, and he was fighting purely on instinct; Johnny could see it in the way he moved. There were no quips, no jokes, no poorly timed puns—it had just been Peter, fighting on the defensive. 

The Four had rushed in to help him, but then Octavius started cackling maniacally. He pressed a button on the side of one of his arms and all around them, container doors sprang open and out flooded tiny little robots, complete with Ock’s arms, Vulture’s wings, Sandman’s sand, Electro’s electricity, Kraven’s strength, and Mysterio’s illusions. It had become the battle of the lifetime; the bots were ruthless and made no mistakes. It wasn’t like fighting men, who loved to monologue and who tripped and stumbled and had brief flashes of conscience during fights. These bots were made for one thing: killing.

Peter had disappeared soon after and then Octavius turned his attention to the Four. Johnny had assumed Peter had gone to rescue his aunt. The Four held off Ock for a long time, and by methodically taking out the bots, they managed to gain some leverage. After all, the Fantastic Four were a team and Octavius, as much as he liked to think of himself as a god, was just one man. And besides, the Four had fought gods and won—a crazed scientist with metal arms wasn’t going to be their downfall.

Still, it was a brutal fight. Johnny couldn’t imagine how much worse it must have been for Peter. As the Four had slowly pushed back against Ock’s barrage of attacks, Johnny had seen Peter swing past with someone clinging to him—his aunt. They had swung out the window and off to god knows where. As much as Johnny hoped Peter’s aunt was safe, he also wished the other man would come back and help them out. 

Suddenly, as Johnny melted even more legions of the mutant Seven bots, his wish was granted. Swinging through one of the large warehouse windows with a massive shatter, Peter landed on Doc Ock’s back. Octavius was distracted by Reed and Ben, who were doing a tag team maneuver. It was chilling to watch Peter at work—he wasted no time at all using his bare hands to dig into the circuitry on Octavius’ back. The doctor, however, was clever and used Peter’s rage against him. While Peter ripped through metal, an arm came up behind him and grabbed him. Johnny could see the pronged tip had gone straight through his shoulder. Then, all Johnny could see was red.

He flew down and hovered in front of Octavius. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the arm drop Peter like a sack of flour. The other man landed with a sickening crunch. 

Johnny’s flames were at their peak, burning hot enough to melt the plastic ten feet away. He could feel Reed and Ben behind him, slowly retreating.

“Ha!” Octavius laughed. “Sending your little soldier after me, Richards? How quaint. I don’t think the boy will pose a problem at all.”

Smirking, Octavius raised himself up higher than Johnny and used his back two arms to strike quickly. But, Johnny was quicker. He zoomed out of the way and then focused his flame into a tiny stream coming out of his right hand. He watched Octavius’ eyes widen in fear.

“Dumb little Johnny Storm, huh, Otto? Is that all I am to you?” 

Johnny’s voice sounded gritty and gruff through the flames. They flickered higher and higher as his anger grew. Pointing the focused stream of fire at one of the arms holding Ock off the floor, Johnny enjoyed watching the scientist squirm.

He knew Ock would attempt to get away. As the villain turned tail and tried to flee, even the speed of his arms wouldn’t have been able to stop Johnny. He just hovered in the air, a twisted smile on his face.

The stream of fire cut through the metal of Ock’s arms like butter. Down went the first two that held him up; then, the other two as they tried to hoist him up the side of the building in vain. 

It was almost laughable how easily Johnny had beaten him. But, all the other times they had fought, Johnny hadn’t been shooting to kill. Now, he was.

He flew closer to the villain and watched in morbid curiosity as his own flames were reflected back at him on Ock’s glasses.

“You know, it’s a shame we didn’t do this sooner. We could have been rid of you years ago.”

Enjoying watching Ock squirm, Johnny raised his arm slowly. The heat was making Ock sweat, and as the beads of sweat slipped down his face, Johnny’s sick grin only grew. Faintly, he could hear his family yelling for him to stop in the background, but all he could hear was the roar of the flames around him.

As his flames slowly startled to sizzle against skin, he suddenly felt someone launch themself at him. Heat signatures were unique, and every person had a different one. At this temperature, Johnny was highly aware of all the heat around, and he would have known this heat signature anywhere. His concentration broke as he flickered his flames off. He could hear Ock groan in relief as Peter slammed into his side.

They crashed onto the ground, dirt and dust covering them. Distantly, Johnny was aware of the rest of his family capturing the now-harmless Doc. But all he could really focus on was Peter’s face above him, half-crazed.

The other man looked over for him for injuries as Johnny laid there in silence. His heart was racing and he could feel the adrenaline pumping through his bloodstream. He wasn’t… that wasn’t him. He had let his anger take control; he had let the fire take control.

Peter dropped his head onto Johnny’s shoulders, and Johnny could feel his body shake with sobs. Johnny clutched him as tight as he could. Peter’s hair smelled like smoke and blood—the iron tinge left a sour taste in Johnny’s mouth.

“You’re okay,” Johnny whispered into Peter’s hair. “We’re okay.”

Peter pulled back just enough to make eye contact with him. 

“D-Don’t ever do that again. Don’t make the same mistakes I have.”

Johnny could see the brutal, heartbreaking honesty in Peter’s eyes. He nodded and raised a hand to wipe the tears slowly making their way down Peter’s beautiful, messy, broken face.

“I won’t, Pete. I promise.”

Peter nodded mutely. He looked about two seconds away from sobbing again. Johnny just held him even tighter, if that was possible. 

They stayed that way until Sue came over. She bent down and ran a hand through Johnny’s hair, as soft and caring as when he was 10 and delirious from fever in bed.

“It’s time to go,” she whispered.

“Okay,” Johnny said. “Okay, we can do that. Right, Pete?”

Peter sat up, and then they leant on each other to get upright. They were both exhausted and needed the other to even stand. 

“Can you walk?” 

Johnny nodded, but Peter shook his head. Sue looked more concerned than she had in a long time. 

“We-I can create a force field, you guys can follow us in the Fantasticar.”

They were completely silent the entire way back to the Baxter. It was an unnerving kind of silence—intensely oppressive, and heavier than any silence Johnny had ever experienced in his whole life. Peter leaned on him for dear life, and Johnny did his best to stay upright and awake. He was so tired. Using his flames like that had taken it out of him. Still, he could feel them writhing around in him, waiting to be let out; they never did like being cooped up.

Their arrival at the Baxter was quiet. They slowly touched down next to the parked Fantasticar, and Reed and Ben rushed to support them. When Johnny inquired about where they had taken Octavius, Ben just shushed him gruffly and led him towards the stairs. Blindly, Johnny reached out for Peter behind him. When their fingers brushed ever so slightly, he felt his racing heart begin to slow down.

Ben deposited him gently onto his bed. He looked unsure, his rocky features twisted into an expression of concern. It was something Johnny was not used to seeing on Ben’s face, and that’s how he knew he looked as terrible as he felt. Still, he waved his teammate away.

“I’m okay, Ben. Really. I just need to take a shower and then go to sleep.”

Ben looked him over again, then nodded. Johnny could still see the doubt in his eyes as he left. 

Johnny laid down on his bed and sighed, letting everything out. He was tired, so fucking tired. But, he still had shit to do and things to sort out. Letting himself go boneless and weak for only a few seconds, he then stood up slowly. He stripped out of his uniform, wincing at the amount of cuts and scrapes that now crisscrossed the body.

Tossing it to the side, he painfully made his way to his bathroom. Johnny avoided looking at himself in the mirror; he didn’t need to see the damage done because he could feel it in the bone-deep ache of his entire body. 

The hot shower only made things slightly better. At the very least, it washed away all the dirt and grime that had somehow made its way into every nook and cranny of his body. He watched it all swirl down the drain, and tried to imagine it taking the pain with it, like Sue always told him. It didn’t work.

Johnny took his time washing himself, from the soothing motions of lathering up his hair to the skin-tingling way he scrubbed down his skin. There were traces of blood on him; whether it was his own, or Peter’s, he couldn’t tell. He watched it float down the drain with everything else.

There was a certain kind of twisted tranquility that came with being in the shower after a battle as soul-sucking as that. It was like he was an observer of his own life; like he was floating just outside his body, watching himself perform the theatrical act of cleansing himself. Grab the soap, lather it up, scrub down his arms, repeat until his skin turns red and raw on top of all the scrapes and bruises. 

To himself (the one floating out of body, watching someone else perform all of his actions), it was morbidly funny. He was like a little doll, used and abused for someone else’s fun. Yet, paradoxically, he could feel every pinch and sting and rub at the same time. 

Johnny shook himself out of his thoughts and turned off the water. He stood in silence in the tub for a few moments, just him and the drip, drip, drip of the water falling off him. His hair, a dull blond instead of the usual golden shine, hung listlessly in front of his eyes.

He stepped out and grabbed a towel. The plushness of it was almost too much for him; it seemed like the antithesis to the griminess he felt still covered his skin. An act like the one he had been about to commit wouldn’t go away so easily. A hundred more showers wouldn’t cure him of the guilt. 

Johnny half-heartedly dried his hair, then wrapped the towel around his waist and headed out to his bedroom, pointedly ignoring the mirror again. He slipped into the closest thing he could find, which turned out to be an old t-shirt of his, and a pair of Peter’s too-big sweatpants.

Oh, Peter .

Johnny didn’t understand why the other man had to go it alone. Johnny had grown up with a family; where one of the Fantastic Four went, the other three were usually not far behind. He knew he had people to rely on, people who had his back, people who were equally as super-powered up. 

Foolishly, Johnny had thought that Peter had learned that lesson during his stay with them. But, apparently not.  Johnny paced around his room, fire restless inside him and mind racing as he debated whether or not he should go see Peter. He wasn’t going to confront him or anything, god no, but he was going to try and comfort him. 

Unfortunately, the more he thought about it, the more it seemed like a bad idea. Peter needed rest and peace and quiet; he didn’t clingy Johnny Storm to burst in and disturb his healing process. 

So, Johnny decided to take his troubles to the sky. After all, fire needed to be let out somehow.

-

Johnny hovered hundreds of feet above the Baxter. Everything below him looked like splotches of color on a canvas. Just how he liked it.

He felt the fire under his skin for just a few moments. It wriggled and slithered in uneven patterns. It was practically begging to be let out; it still contained the remnants of his anger and hatred from his encounter with Octavius.

Taking a deep breath, Johnny let the flames explode out of him. He’s sure he looked like a star up here; he could just imagine the little kids tugging on their mothers’ hands and pointing up to the sky. 

The flames swirled and undulated into the evening air. Johnny could barely feel the blast of heat, but he was sure it was beyond scorching. This was where he was the most in his element: in the clouds, just him and his flames, without the fear of hurting anyone. 

Feeling fully satisfied, Johnny slowly flew down until he touched the roof of the Baxter. He went in lazy circles; some days, when he was just letting unruly flames out, not going nova, it felt like right after a big meal. He was tired, dopey, and ready to knock out for a few hours. 

That is, until he heard the voice behind him.

“Johnny. I thought I would find you here.”

He turned. It was Sue.

She was dressed down, in an old pajama set. Hair messy, makeup off, eye bags prominent—this wasn’t the Invisible Woman. And he wasn’t the Human Torch. They’re just two slightly scared kids again, full of love for each other. 

Johnny fell into her embrace as soon as she held her arms out. She was strong and warm and holding him as if he could break. And perhaps he could. Perhaps that’s what almost happened today.

“That wasn’t me, Sue. I swear to God it wasn’t. I don’t-I don’t know what came over me.”

She didn’t say anything for a few moments, just patted his back and let him drip snot onto her shoulder.

“You know,” she started, “there are times when I look at Franklin and Valeria, and all I can see are the worst parts of myself.”

Johnny pulled back and searched her eyes. She seemed lost, far away, deep inside herself.

“And not because I think they’re evil or something, no, God no, but because… I see all the things I’m willing to do to protect them. If I ever thought—I mean ever thought…”

She paused and pulled Johnny back to her. Her hold tightened, but he didn’t mind. It felt safe, and that was exactly what Johnny needed right now. He needed someone else to hold him up, someone else to take the reins and lead him for the night. He didn’t trust himself to do it.

“I would do anything to protect them. If they were ever in real, clear mortal danger, I wouldn’t even need a second thought to just… make a forcefield expand out from inside someone’s stomach. And the thought of it makes me sick, it’s revolting, because it’s not something I would do willingly… but I’d do it.”

She loosened her grip and held Johnny at arms length. Looking deep into her eyes, all he could notice was how similar they were. They’re practically carbon copies of each other. And he loved it—he loved being her little brother, and he loved that she was saying exactly what he needed to hear right now because if situations were reversed, he would probably be saying the exact same thing.

“And I’d do the same for you, little brother. And Reed. And Ben. Because we’re a family. And sometimes when fear and rage and hatred get all knotted up like that, that side gets the better of you. That small, teeny tiny side that only jumps out when someone you love is seriously threatened. So don’t worry, honey.”

She cupped the side of his face, so gentle and kind that Johnny began to cry again. His own blue eyes were staring back at him, misty-eyed. God, he loved his sister.

“That’s what happened tonight. Because you love Peter, pure and true. We can all see it. You wear your heart on your sleeve, Johnny, as much as you like to think you’re a cool guy. But that’s good, because he loves you right back. He wouldn’t have risked so much jumping at you like that if he didn’t. He trusts you, Johnny.”

Johnny gave her a small smile and wiped away some of the wetness on his face. He’s sure he looked gross again, even after his shower, but he felt so much better. Sighing, he grabbed her arm and led her back to the door.

“You’re right, Sue, as always. Now I think I need to talk to that big trusting idiot.”

-

Peter’s room was dark. Only moonlight shone in through the windows, but Johnny liked it. He thought it was moody, maybe a little too dark and gloomy, but he wasn’t feeling like himself right now anyways. After the fight with Ock, he didn’t feel as light as he usually did.

“Pete?”

A small groan came from the pile of blankets on the bed. Johnny laughed quietly.

“Pete? You under there?”

Another groan, this one of affirmation. The blankets rustled and soon Peter popped out of them. His hair stuck out in all directions, and he had the imprint from one of the blankets pressed into his cheek, but he still looked great. Johnny could almost hate him for how great he still looked.

“We gotta talk, webhead. What you did back there was pretty stupid. There was no way you could have known that I would flame off.”

Peter shrugged, rubbing the sleeping out of his eyes.

“I knew,” he said simply.

Johnny’s heart almost broke at the sincerity in his voice. It was like he was so sure that Johnny would have flamed off that he couldn’t even confront the idea that he wouldn’t. Johnny had never felt more known than in that moment; because he, too, knew in his heart that he would have recognized Peter anywhere. It didn’t matter—he could have been three feet in the air or 300. He would have dropped like a stone if it meant Peter didn’t get burned. 

Johnny walked over to the bed and stood hesitantly at the side.

“Peter,” he said seriously, “You can’t take risks like that. Even if you were 100% sure, it was stupid. You could have been seriously injured. Fuck, you are seriously injured right now.”

Peter patted the space next to him and Johnny sat down with a sigh. There was tension in the air, but Johnny couldn’t bring himself to care. He leaned his head onto Peter’s shoulder and used his steady body heat to calm himself while he waited for Peter’s answer.

“It was the only thing I could think of that would’ve stopped you. And you needed to be stopped. I couldn’t-I won’t let you become like me. Whether it’s one life or thousands, it changes you forever.”

The tension seemed to sharpen to a breaking point. Outside, the city sparkled. Johnny wished he was out there right now, flying amidst the clouds and dipping low enough to touch the ground, instead of having this conversation.

“Peter… I know about your past. And I appreciate that you want to protect me. But I can’t—“

Cutting himself off, Johnny turned himself to face Peter. Those dark brown eyes stared at him with a serious sincerity. Taking a deep breath, Johnny continued.

“I won’t let you protect me if it hurts you. I need to trust that you won’t put yourself on the line for me. I’m… you don’t need to take that kind of risk.”

Peter’s face broke into a soft, sad smile. His fingertips were rough where they reached out to touch Johnny’s face, and Johnny could feel tears welling up in his eyes. He’d always been an angry crier.

“You can’t hide anything from me, Storm. I know what you were gonna say. And you’re worth it. Worth it to me. If it meant you wouldn’t have to live with the pain like I’ve had to, then I would do it a thousand times over.”

A tear slipped down Johnny’s cheek. Peter brushed it away gently before leaning down to press a gentle kiss to Johnny’s lips.

“But,” Johnny whispered as Peter pulled back, “you’re worth it to me. To save you, I would’ve done it. And I’d do it again.”

Peter’s expression was absolutely heartbreaking. He was looking at Johnny like he could break, like he was a child who didn’t understand that too much pressure could make something snap.

“You weren’t doing it to save me, Johnny. I was already safe. You were furious and trying to find a way to let your anger out. Octavius will get what he deserves in prison. You don’t need that weight on your conscience.”

Johnny hid his face in Peter’s neck as the other man wrapped his arms around him tightly. Peter smelled like a mix of web fluid and day old coffee, but Johnny couldn’t get enough of it. He breathed in deeply, and relaxed his body in Peter’s hold.

“You’re… you’re right,” he breathed out. “I just—you were so hurt—and I needed someone to blame.”

Johnny could feel the rumble of Peter’s laughter in his chest. It was hollow and slightly bitter, but Johnny still loved the sound of it.

“If you need someone to blame, flamebrain, blame me. All my poor decisions led to that moment. The only person responsible for what happened is me.”

At those words, Johnny pushed himself off Peter’s chest. Looking the other man deep in the eyes, Johnny enunciated every word that he spoke.

“It. Wasn’t. You. And, as you’ve so passionately shown me, apparently it wasn’t me either. Or maybe it was some combination of the two of us. Or it was Octavius, or it was my sister, or—fuck, Peter, maybe it was goddamn Paste-Pot Pete. Whoever it was, I’m just glad we’re both okay.”

Peter stared at him for a couple of seconds, a weak smile on his face coupled with watery eyes. Then, he pulled Johnny in tight, and as those toned arms crushed him into Peter’s chest, Johnny remembered that the other man was one of the strongest people he knew. Not just physically, but mentally, too. This would hurt them both for a while, but they’d move past it. Together.  

-

The next morning was a blur. Between providing statements to the press and finishing up all the documentation to get Octavius his own luxury suite on the Raft, Johnny barely had time to breathe. Sue was breathing down his neck at every second, reminding him that this was the perfect opportunity for them to redeem the Spider. As if there wasn’t enough pressure in bringing down New York’s most feared supervillain team—Sue just had to throw his boyfriend into the mix, too.

Boyfriend . The word still sat crooked on his tongue, like a puzzle piece that was just slightly out of place. He figured it would take some time for it to settle into something comfortable, but he enjoyed the newness of it. It was something… dependable. It wasn’t a fling, it wasn’t a hookup, it wasn’t something he could worry about and obsess over; rather, every time he caught Peter’s eye from across the room, he felt something warm and content settle in his heart.

Boyfriend . A good word, Johnny decided. 

Dinner that night was a quiet affair. Everyone had been worn out from a long day of being “The Fantastic Four”, with camera-ready smiles and personas locked firmly in place. Each of them played their parts to perfection, from Johnny’s coy answers about his and Peter’s relationship to Reed’s fatherly approval of the Spider as an ally. 

It was always weird for Johnny to see the masks descend so easily, but it was what was expected of them by now, so he leaned into it. He let the top of a hickey show out of his costume, and he flirted a little too much with the camera crew. The public knew them—at least this version of them—and the public adored them. As Ben remarked sarcastically once, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Peter was lying next to him now, the bags under his eyes dark and prominent. Across from them, Ben was sitting in his recliner, yelling something at the ball game, but Johnny could care less at the moment. He was wholly focused on Peter, who looked as if he was about to fall asleep at any second, yet still managed to smile winningly at Johnny. 

“Something on my face, hot stuff?”

Johnny couldn’t help the blush that spread over his cheeks.

“Only your face.”

Sue groaned from where she was sitting next to Reed, tapping away at something on her pad. 

“It’s like we’re reliving high school. You have a bedroom, Johnny. And you do too, Peter. Take your pick.”

Johnny just smirked and pushed himself up off the couch before offering a hand to Peter.

“Oh Pete, if we don’t see each other before fourth period, know that I love you unconditionally.”

The other man snorted before grabbing Johnny’s outstretched hand.

“My love, my darling, I’ll see you in AP English Lit! A class I am only taking for you, since I’m terrible at writing.”

Johnny laughed, a joyous and free thing, before tugging Peter up. He pulled a little too hard and Peter banged into him. They got a little lost in each other before Sue coughed loudly. With some more laughter, and feeling like kids again, they snuck away into Johnny’s room.

-

A few weeks passed, and the press from their big blowout with Doc Ock started to wind down. Johnny usually loved media coverage, but in this particular instance, he was glad that he was getting a bit of privacy. Of course, Sue managed to make all the coverage on it—even the coverage of the Spider—positive, but Johnny just wanted space. Space for him and Peter to figure things out, just the two of them.

Peter had been gone all day visiting Aunt May, but Johnny had invited him to meet him on top of the Statue of Liberty at sunset. It seemed like a good spot; it was out of the way and guaranteed to have no paparazzi. He wanted this moment to be for them.

Johnny kicked his heels as he sat on the edge of the statue. It was a beautiful sunset tonight, a bright burst of oranges, reds, and pinks. Johnny figured he could stare at it for hours without ever getting bored. Suddenly, he heard a thump on the statue behind him.

“Beautiful night, huh?” 

Johnny smiled and turned to greet Peter.

“Not as beautiful as my boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend, hot stuff? He must be one lucky guy.”

“Oh, you know,” Johnny said with a shrug. “I could always do with some more compliments from him.”

Peter plopped down next to him and Johnny relished in the way he easily slid an arm around his shoulder and tugged him in close. Peter was a very touchy guy, and Johnny could never get enough of it. Each point of contact between them always burned so good.

“So, why are we here?”

“Well, I figured we could do with some privacy. And… I’ve got a present for you.”

Peter made a faux gasp of surprise and Johnny could already imagine the absolutely asinine expression on his face behind the mask. 

“A present for me? My, my, Mr. Storm, whatever will your boyfriend think?”

Johnny smirked before he stood up to go grab the box from its hiding place.

“Oh, I think he’ll manage fine.”

Johnny’s stomach fluttered with nerves as he sat back down across from Peter. This was a really big step, and he just hoped the other man would be as on board with it as he was.

“Okay, before I give this to you, I want you to know you can totally say no. I don’t expect anything from you, and you’ve already done enough in your life for a dozen men. But, it would mean a lot to me if you considered it.”

The eyes on Peter’s mask scrunched a bit, and Johnny hated (but really loved) that he knew what that meant.

“Marriage, Storm? I thought I was gonna be the one to propose.”

Johnny’s breath caught in his throat. 

“No, no—not that.”

The “not yet” was unspoken. 

“Here.” Johnny slid the box across the space between them. “Just open it.”

Peter tore off the wrapping paper with his usual gracelessness, but took his time actually opening the box. He gasped a little when he realized what it was. Pulling it out slowly, his unblinking white eyes that Johnny used to hate were somehow filled with emotion. 

“Oh, Torch… I love it.”

Johnny rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. 

“Really? ‘Cause if you don’t, I can just put it away and we forget this happened.”

Peter reached out and placed a hand on Johnny’s knee. 

“Johnny,” he said seriously, “I love it. And yes, whatever the implications of this are, I’ll do it.”

Peter rubbed the red and blue fabric under his fingers, admiring it. Johnny watched as he placed it up against his body, the bright colors a vivid contrast to the dark black of his current suit.

“I was thinking we could work on your image. A new suit, maybe a new name, and a couple of choice outings with the Four… you’ll be good as new in the eyes of the public. I mean, look at Magneto. He’s good one week then evil the next.”

Peter laughed, a fond little thing that made Johnny’s heart squeeze. 

“A new name? You think that’ll stop the Bugle hating on me?”

“Well, maybe not the Bugle,” Johnny conceded with a chuckle. “How does Spider-Man sound?”

“Spider-Man”, Peter repeated, trying it out on his tongue. “Spider-Man. Huh. I like it.”

Johnny beamed and it was like Peter couldn’t help himself. He rolled up his mask to his nose and let the new suit fall into the space between them as he leaned forward to kiss Johnny. 

Johnny melted into it. Kissing Peter never got old. As the other man tried to lick his way into Johnny’s mouth, Johnny pushed him off with a breathless grin.

“C’mon, we’ve got to get back before it gets dark.”

Peter grinned back and Johnny could feel his resolve wavering. That is, until Peter replied.

“Wanna race?”

Johnny’s shoulders lit up, a line of flames in stark contrast to the rapidly darkening sky.

“You’re on!”

-

The next morning, Johnny woke up bright and early. He slipped into his Fantastic Four suit immediately after hopping out of bed, and went to knock on Peter’s door. He found the other man, usually one for sleeping in, already awake. Johnny’s breath slipped right out of him as he took in the sight before him.

“You like it, hot stuff?” Peter said, a devastatingly handsome grin adorning his face.

The spandex clung to his body perfectly, and the bright colors were so much more attractive than the off-putting black that Johnny still associated with the Spider.

“You look—“

He cut himself off and raced across the room to capture Peter’s lips with his own. He heard the mask Peter was holding fall to the ground as Peter’s arms wrapped around his back and raised him into the air. Johnny pulled out of the kiss and just rested his forehead on Peter’s, the both of them laughing giddily.

“You’re pretty strong, you know?”

“Kinda comes with the whole ‘superhero’ territory, Torch.”

“Oh, so you’re a superhero now?”

“Duh! Haven’t you heard of Spider-Man?”

Johnny leaned back down for another kiss, this one chaste and light and full of love. It felt like all the love in the world had found its home in Johnny’s chest, and it was practically bursting out of him. He didn’t know how he got so lucky. 

Peter set him down soon and a twinkle of mischief appeared in his eye.

“How do you feel about taking Spider-Man out for a spin?”

Johnny waggled his eyebrows and Peter laughed at the sight.

“Not like that, you pervert! Maybe Sue is right about us. No, I mean like a patrol. See if any bad guys are out there, looking for the ol’ Spider-Man/Human Torch combo.”

Johnny glanced out the window. It was a beautiful day; not a single cloud was in the sky. Looking back at Peter’s beautiful face, with those deep brown eyes and infinitely messy hair, he couldn’t find it in himself to say no.

“Sure, Pete,” he said with a fond smile on his face. “Let’s go for a swing.”

-

EPILOGUE

People on the street could barely see the open window on one of the top floors of the Baxter Building. What they did notice, however, was the flaming figure of the Human Torch and a guy in red and blue spandex flying—no, swinging —next to him. They took a dip towards street level, and everyone from the hot dog vendor on the corner to the family headed to the park could hear when the guy in the red and blue spandex—when Spider-Man —whooped and did a flip as the Human Torch soared alongside him.

“HELLO NEW YORK!!!” Spider-Man yelled. “What have you got for us today?”