Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Jeremy stretched his arm up and silenced his alarm. He wasn’t ready to go to school. Anxiety filled his system as he opened his eyes. Technically he had already skipped a day. His dad had been nice, given the situation. But he couldn’t hide forever.

Jeremy peeked through his blinds, confirming that, yes, there was still a crowd of reporters and photographers all waiting outside his house. Everyone wanted an interview or a photo with Spider-Man.

“Kiddo?” James knocked on the door. “I heard the alarm, are you up?”

Jeremy took a breath before getting out of bed. He opened the door to confirm to his father that he was awake.

His remaining weekend had been spent being interrogated by police. And they weren’t done with him. However, his dad had pulled some legal strings and managed to get them to back off for at least the school week.

At least he wasn’t being accused of murder. It had been his main fear.

He meandered around his room while getting ready. He wasn’t ready to face everyone. Michael had stayed home yesterday too, though mostly so Maria and Darcy could prepare themselves for anything thrown their way with Michael. This entire situation was fucked up.

Normina had exposed him. A security tape showed her demanding Jeremy be charged with murder, since Spider-Man hadn’t died like intended and instead she had lost her husband. It was why Jeremy wasn’t being charged, in her distress she admitted to Harrison being the one to control the glider that killed him.

Jeremy looked at his reflection in the mirror. Was he seriously going to do this? Life would never be the same again. Everyone knew. The mask meant nothing now. And everyone else would have to hang low or risk being exposed with him. He would probably be friendless until things calmed down, at the very minimum he wouldn’t have any powered companions.

James arched a brow at him as Jeremy walked into the kitchen. They had all the blinds closed and curtains drawn. No one was allowed to see in.

“You’re wearing your popular kid clothes,” James stated, passing Jeremy a plate.

“My what?”

James shrugged, tugging on the sleeve of Jeremy’s jacket. “These…this is the style you wore last fall. When that computer was in your brain. I noticed when your outfits changed, private. And then after? You slowly went back to normal, mixing in the computer picked things sometimes. But this? Kid you look like you want to be someone else.”

“I do,” Jeremy whined, biting his face in his arms at the counter. “Everyone knows I’m Spider-Man. If I don’t look…people have cameras at school. If I don’t look or act the right way they’ll rip me to shreds.”

James sighed, “High school sucks.”

Jeremy scarfed down his breakfast before running around to finish getting ready. He did look like he was Squipped. It was a defense mechanism at this point. It was easier to pretend that everything was fine if he pretended someone else was controlling his life.

Jeremy snagged his backpack from the floor, making sure his suit was shoved way down into the bottom before heading towards the door. He slowly tied his shoes, not wanting to step out into the chaos.

“C’mon, I’m right here with you,” James squeezed his shoulder in support.

Jeremy sighed, tugging his hood over his head and ducking down before opening the door. They stepped out and people began shouting. Along with the reporters and news personnel there were also some protesters. Those who were insisting Jeremy should be incarcerated or put to death for what he could do and had done with his powers. Jeremy slid down in his seat in the car. He was hiding as best as he could. James had to be an adult and face the crowd, someone had to know where they were driving.

Their saving grace was that the police were still watching the house. They had arrested a few people who tried to walk on the property to peek through windows. And it meant that the crowds never got too large so no one was charged with disorderly conduct. As they got further from the chaos Jeremy allowed himself to sit up. He was going to make it. He could do this.

“Call me if you need anything,” James ordered. “Today is my last day with Alchemax, they want me gone as it is, given…everything.”

Jeremy nodded, stepping out of the car. He flipped his hood down but still tried to keep to himself. He didn’t make direct eye contact as he walked up the front steps.

“Jeremy?”

He looked over, finding Madeline now standing next to him. Holy fuck. Even Squipped she had never bothered with him. What did she want? She was hot. Jeremy had lied about dating her but that wasn’t something she was aware of. Holy shit she was hot. Chloe was too, but there was a reason the two were at each other's throats.

He needed to remember that he had a boyfriend.

“Is it true? You’re Spider-Man?” She twirled her hair around one finger.

Oh. That was why she cared to speak to him. Of course. He should have known better. Did he try to deny it at this point? He had already admitted it to the police when trying to explain how he didn’t murder Harrison.

“I…yeah. It’s true.”

Madeline grinned, moving her hand to trace along the collar of his shirt. “That’s like, so cool of you. You’re literally my hero, Jeremy.” She batted her eyes at him, “Did you…maybe want to go to homecoming with me?”

Jeremy backed up out of her reach, “I have a boyfriend. Sorry.”

He stepped into the building and beelined to his locker. He made his boot transfer quick, wanting to escape and get to class.

People were already whispering and pointing at him. Fuck. This was worse than when no one gave a fuck about him.

“Mr. Heere?”

Jeremy closed his locker, finding the principal standing in front of him.

“I wanted to make sure that you were aware our school will be making sure to support you and any special needs you may have,” he said, holding a clipboard in his hands. “Staff has been asked to make sure you are safe and comfortable.”

“Um, thank you?” Jeremy wasn’t sure of what to say. “But I’m just…a normal student. No special treatment needed.”

“We are also working with local law enforcement. They will make sure no potential protesters or reporters bother you while you work.”

“Thanks.”

“If you feel the need, you are welcome to walk on the ceiling to get to class.”

Oh Jesus, this was stupid.

“The floor works for me, but thanks for the offer.”

Jeremy walked away before the conversation could continue and get worse. He made it to class and felt all of his peers take notice of him. He tried to ignore it, going to his seat and pulling out his homework. Chloe and Brooke had messaged him the assignments so he could keep up while absent the day prior. He had actually sat down and done the work. It had been easier than dealing with the knowledge that someone was waiting outside his home at all times to try and pick his life apart.

“Jerry!” He looked up as Chloe came running into the room. He stood, accepting the embrace from her. His ribs cried out in protest. Some were for sure broken, but his body was mostly healed on the outside. No more black eye, and his burns were already turning back to normal.

Jeremy eyed up Chloe’s jacket, finding it black. He narrowed his eyes at the jacket, watching as the fabric rippled. Vee was the jacket.

“You’re okay?” Chloe looked panicked.

Jeremy nodded, “Yeah, I’m okay.”

Brooke came walking in and gave him another hug. Her tight grip was still comforting. He had missed them. It had only been a few days but…

Life had changed.

“Guys,” Chloe lowered her voice to hardly audible. “Half the kids in here have their phones out.”

Jeremy pulled out of the hug and returned to his seat. Brooke and Chloe went to their spots just as the others began filing in. Jenna gave a polite wave and Christine walked up to him to squeeze his hand in support. He couldn’t help but wince as Jake came into view. He was back with his aunt again. And the bomb Harrison had thrown at Jake had shattered his left knee. Jake was using crutches again, hobbling around the room.

“Hey man,” Jake hopped closer. “How are you holding up?”

“Better than you.”

Jake glanced at his knee, the cast covering his leg. “I…yeah. It sucks.” He looked up at the ceiling and blinked away tears. “But I don’t blame you.”

Jeremy held up a hand for Jake to slap before he went to sit down. He messed with his phone, not noticing as others came walking in. He would try and pretend that things were normal.

“Jer?”

He looked up again, finding Michael standing by his desk. Holy fuck.

“Michael, I—”

Michael just grabbed his hand and dragged them from the room. Jeremy kept his head down to avoid prying eyes, the two making it into the library to hide.

“Dude,” Michael pulled him in for a hug.

Jeremy squeezed, ignoring the pain in his ribs. He hadn’t seen Michael since getting dragged from his house by police officers for questioning.

“Are you okay?” Michael brushed a hand through Jeremy’s hair.

“The entire world knows I’m Spider-Man, not really,” Jeremy whispered.

Michael pulled him in for a kiss, Jeremy clinging to him tight. He didn’t want to be at school. Not when his life was falling apart. Not when he couldn’t be himself.

“We should ditch,” Jeremy stated, gripping Michael’s hoodie in a tight hold. “We should ditch school and go to your place and play video games and get high and—”

“And you’re rambling,” Michael covered his mouth with one hand. “Take a breath, Jer.”

Jeremy inhaled deep, hiding his face in the crook of Michael’s neck. He gave himself a few moments to breathe. He had Michael. Michael was going to make sure he stayed safe and sane.

“Everything is just fucked,” Jeremy whimpered.

“I love you, I’m here for you,” Michael pressed kisses over his skin. “We can do this.”

Jeremy nodded, slipping his hand back into Michael’s so they could return to class. Eyes watched him wherever he went. He did his best to look past them. He kept his chin up, and didn't let them know how terrified he was. He would be okay.

Unfortunately his classmates weren’t stupid. Jeremy kept checking his phone during his down time, finding several posts had been made questioning if Michael was Torch. Photos of Jeremy and Michael at prom were compared to those taken of Spidey and Torch. Some photos as recent as the same day of Michael and Jeremy holding hands in the hall right next to a picture of them kissing in their suits.

“My mom had to leave work,” Michael pulled him aside before they could make it into the choir room. “The media found her salon. We’re fucked.”

Jeremy hung his head, “I’m sorry—”

“Not your fault,” Michael stated, kissing his forehead. “I love you, Jer. Just trying to keep you updated.”

Their choir class was arguably the largest in the day. Over half of the entire student body was in choir and they only offered two class hours for it. The room fell quiet as Jeremy and Michael walked in. Jeremy had to fight himself to not react. To not let the staring get to him.

“Everyone start warming up,” their teacher ordered. “We have a concert coming up!”

Students began to sing, Jeremy going about tuning his guitar. He felt eyes on him again and looked up. The teacher was standing in front of him and Michael.

“I’ve decided that you two will be playing without my piano recordings this time,” she stated. “Solos for the both of you at the concert.”

“Ma’am, do you really think that’s the best idea right now?” Jeremy felt himself tensing up.

“I see no problem.”

Jeremy pinched the bridge of his nose, “I…I don’t want to be the center of attention. Okay?”

Their teacher only shrugged, “My class, my decision.”

Jeremy stared at the tiles on the floor as she walked away. Michael reached over and squeezed his hand for support.

“We can’t even ditch the concert, she’ll fail us,” Jeremy grumbled, pulling his hand free so he could continue tuning. “And if I can’t keep my secrets I’d at least like to graduate.”

Michael sighed, “We’ll just have to suck it up then.”

He could only nod. He was still pissed with the teacher. He should have known better. Of course being Spider-Man meant people wanted to use him. He would be the new focal point for any campaign debate coming up in the next few months.

What was worse was dragging Michael down with him.

Lunch was…stiff. Their friend group gathered at the usual table. And they tried to act normal. Like things were fine. But everyone was staring at them. It was horrible. Jeremy wanted to turn tail and just leave, but he had to act like he wasn’t bothered. Like he was content with the entire world watching.

“I’ve had four different girls ask if you have venom,” Brooke sighed, glancing across the table to Jeremy. “They think since we dated I must know your entire biology.”

“Well, I don’t have venom,” Jeremy hummed, stabbing his lasagna with a fork. “I want to just jump on the table and scream at them to fuck off.”

“Everyone keeps asking me why I’m bothering with you, after…” Jake looked down. “Uh…my aunt, she’s hosting the funeral next week. If any of you could come? Just so I’m not alone? It would be cool.”

“Excuse me?”

Jeremy and Michael swiveled around in their seats. A freshman had approached the table. She looked terrified.

“We were just wondering, my friends and I,” the girl was looking at Michael. “Does it hurt?”

“What?” Michael seemed lost.

“The fire. Does it hurt?”

Jeremy hadn’t expected that of all possible questions. Michael clearly hadn’t either.

“Um,” Michael glanced down at one  of his hands for a moment before properly responding. “No. It doesn’t hurt. I do feel a sensation though, I can tell when my body is on fire. It’s kind of like goosebumps, but…the opposite? It tingles. A little.”

The girl turned to Jeremy, “Do you feel when your hands are sticky?”

Jeremy really didn’t want to be hounded but this kid seemed nice enough, “Not really, it’s just natural. I don’t have to think about it or notice any change.”

“You can feel like…pressure? Slightly. If he’s stuck to you,” Michael added.

Jeremy hadn’t ever known that. He was so used to just moving his body and sticking as needed. He hadn’t considered what it felt like. And considering how frequently he would cling to Michael it made sense for him to know the feeling.

“Oh, cool,” the girl nodded her head before turning tail. “Thanks!”

Jeremy hoped that the interaction didn’t cause people to start bothering him all the time. He wanted to keep pleasant with his peers but he had worn the mask for many reasons, one of which being that he didn’t want the notoriety. Thankfully they weren’t confronted for the remainder of the lunch hour.

Jeremy drifted into the locker room to change for his gym class. He usually left early to get changed before the rest of the annoying teenage boys could be gross. He was in the middle of changing shirts when a group came in. Jeremy ignored them as he reached for his gym shirt.

“So do you like…bench press train cars?” One of the students asked.

“What?” Jeremy scrunched his nose at the idea. “This isn’t a goddamn Disney movie. No.”

“How did it happen?” Another student asked.

He really didn’t want anyone knowing he got powers on school property, and he definitely didn’t want people to try and recreate what had happened to him.

“I was cursed by a spider witch from another dimension,” Jeremy was clearly spouting bullshit but his classmates listened anyway. Jeremy pulled on his shirt before continuing to talk. “She offered me a choice. Either become an immortal spider, or be cursed with the power of a spider in a human body. And last I checked my boyfriend said he wouldn’t love me if I was a worm so I was positive he wouldn’t love me as a spider. The rest is history.”

“Be serious, Heere.”

“I literally have no idea, just woke up like this,” Jeremy lied again. But it was more believable. And they accepted the second lie.

He made his way into the gym, regretting his choice in a tighter shirt as the girls in his class began eyeing him up. Maybe he could go back and grab his jacket before class started. It felt weird to have them openly ogle him. They only liked the idea of him because of his powers.

The bell rang and everyone lingering in the locker room filed in. Damnit, no jacket. Jeremy finally noted the lack of volleyball nets set up for them. They weren’t done with the unit yet, right?

“Dodgeball today!” Their teacher announced “Everyone over to the wall!”

Jeremy had never been fond of the gym teacher. He would have to just deal with it for the semester. He liked the excuse to run around during school. He followed his class towards the wall as the teacher lined up the foam balls on the halfcourt line of the gym.

“Not you, Heere! Other side!”

What? Jeremy froze, watching as the class continued to walk. Just him? Jeremy walked over to the other side, waiting for his teammates to be assigned.

It didn’t happen.

“Students, it appears we’ve got a self proclaimed hero in the class,” their teacher spoke to the rest of the group. “First one to get him out is guaranteed a perfect score in my class for the quarter.”

Jeremy felt rage fill his system. He hadn’t asked for this! All because the teacher didn’t like him?!

“I have a question?” Jeremy yelled across the room. “If you’re going to discriminate because of what I am, do I get to use my talents?”

“It’s not discrimination—”

“A genetic difference I have no control over? That could classify as a disability.”

The whistle was blown and Jeremy just shrugged, running forward to nab himself a few balls. Some sportier students had a similar energy, whipping the foam at Jeremy. They missed, Jeremy more than able to easily dodge. He aimed for ankles with his own throws, getting people out. This would be easy, just run around and dodge. He had done more while bleeding from a gunshot wound.

The sporty kids seemed to get an understanding quickly that Jeremy was able to avoid their attempts to get him out. Still, Jeremy continued to throw the balls. He had a point to make. All this without a major showing of his abilities. On a normal day he would have let himself be hit by now, it was the only difference.

When his last classmate was standing against the wall Jeremy finally stopped wiggling. He looked to the teacher and raised his brows. Was he done trying to make a fool of Jeremy yet?

“Everyone split for round two, underclassmen against upperclassmen. Heere, you’ll run laps for your attitude.”

“Excuse me?” Jeremy was getting pissed again.

“Run!”

Jeremy sighed, beginning to run around the gym in circles. This was so stupid. He muttered to himself as he set a steady pace. This wouldn’t wear him out. Was the goal to see him weakened? Not happening.

He wanted to web the teacher to a wall. Tell him off for being an asshole. But he was going to avoid using his powers if he could. It wouldn’t be worth his time to prove his point so hard. He didn’t want trouble with the staff.

“Heere! Pick up the pace!”

“Okay,” Jeremy shrugged, beginning to go faster. Still nothing. His classmates that were getting out in the game watched Jeremy complete lap after lap.

Jeremy almost cackled as the principal walked in. He avoided the game, standing next to the teacher. He watched on silently for a bit, watching as Jeremy silently ran his laps.

“Jeremy, come here for a moment.”

Jeremy bounded over, stopping in front of his superiors.

“Jeremy, why aren’t you participating with your peers?”

“Heere has an attitude, disrespect means laps,” the teacher spoke for him.

“He had the entire class play against me in the first round,” Jeremy explained, gesturing behind him to the current game. “He didn’t like that I won.”

“Did the meeting yesterday not make things clear?” The principal seemed annoyed. “Mr. Heere is to be treated as a normal student. Not treated as a circus attraction.”

“I don’t want a show off in my class, that’s all.”

The principal turned to Jeremy, “Perhaps we should look into swapping your class, I’d hate to bring you discomfort.”

“I like gym class,” Jeremy shrugged. “But if me being here is going to be a problem I don’t want to ruin my classmates' experiences.”

“You are doing no such thing. Please feel free to stay if you want.”

Jeremy looked at his teacher, “Back to running?”

The teacher didn’t make eye contact, “Just get to your side.”

Jeremy jogged over to join his classmates. The other team was visibly bummed to be against him. Without the stress of being ostracized Jeremy played casually. No signs of his powers, excusing his body dodging a few close calls on instinct. A freshman threw a ball at him, Jeremy choosing to let himself be hit. He was out. He walked over to the wall to watch on, smirking as the younger student cheered. They had managed to hit the superhero.

The remainder of the day was filled with more staring, but no more disruptions from teachers. While his display in gym hadn’t worn him out, by his last period Jeremy could feel that at least one rib had shifted. He needed help.

Jeremy had been blessed. His last class of the day was a free period. Just tell a teacher he was there and he was allowed to do whatever he wished. Jeremy made his way into Chloe’s class, the room dark as a documentary played on the projector. He crept along to Chloe’s desk, pain flaring as he did so.

“Hey,” Chloe greeted.

“Hi,” Jeremy whispered, glancing at Chloe’s fake jacket. “Is Vee still mad at me?”

Chloe glanced at her jacket, “Um…a bit.”

“Can I borrow the jacket for like two minutes? Something inside my body is broken and I’d like to cover it up.”

Chloe furrowed her brow, clearly arguing with her parasite. After a moment she shrugged off the jacket, the cool substance laying in his arms while holding form. Keeping up appearances. Jeremy thanked Chloe before sneaking back out. He made it into a bathroom, Vee diving under his skin.

“I’m sorry I didn’t say anything sooner, but Chloe is fine at least,” Jeremy sighed, feeling his remaining exterior injuries heal up as Vee found them. “She didn’t get hurt.”

I’m still mad. But I don’t want you to suffer. You…I’m sorry you had to watch another man die.

Jeremy glanced at the floor, “Thanks.”

He felt and heard a loud snap inside his body. Jeremy yelped as his bones were set, gritting his teeth as Vee mended things.

That’s for calling me a parasite. You know I’m not one.

Jeremy could only whimper as another shockwave of pain coursed through his body. Still, after the pain went away, he felt good. Jeremy lifted his shirt to inspect his body, finding that his swelling had already gone down. Vee pooled back into his hands and reshaped herself into the jacket. Time to return to Chloe.

Jeremy went about returning the living jacket, Chloe thanking him with a silent nod. He tucked himself into a quiet corner of the library, finding comfort in the peace and quiet. For once no one was staring at him. No teachers, no students, just Jeremy and his homework.

When the dismissal bell rang Jeremy packed away his things and made his way to Michael’s locker to wait for him. Students went back to staring, but Jeremy was ready to ignore them. Michael arrived and the pair locked their fingers together, preparing to exit the building. Jeremy made it to the front door when he spotted a crowd just outside the property. Shit. Police officers kept them off school grounds, but Jeremy was doomed if he went outside.

“Shit,” Jeremy grumbled, hesitating to step forward.

Michael spotted the crowd, turning his head to look at Jeremy, “I have my suit. We can use the back door and fly away?”

Jeremy nodded, accepting the offer. The pair ran through the building, ducking into a bathroom to change. Jeremy tugged his mask over his head as Michael placed his own over his eyes. Jeremy held both backpacks as they hurried outside, Michael igniting his body before taking Jeremy’s hand and flying away. They took a large detour, Jeremy watching as they flew through the outskirts of town to avoid the press. They went to Michael’s house since Jeremy’s was likely still surrounded.

Michael flew low once they made it to his block, using the buildings to hide them as they made it to the backyard. Jeremy peeked around the side, finding that there was in fact a crowd beginning to grow outside the property. Michael unlocked the back door and the two made it inside.

“This is insane!” Maria was peeking through a curtain to look out at the crowd.

“I’m sorry,” Jeremy pulled off his mask.

Maria hurried over and pulled both of them into a hug, “It’s not your fault.” She tugged off Michael’s mask. “And you’re okay? Both of you?”

Michael nodded, Jeremy joining him. He didn’t bother changing out of his suit, but he went down to the basement and nabbed one of Michael’s hoodies to seem more casual. They lounged around the basement, Jeremy halfheartedly doing his homework. He didn’t quite understand the work, but at least he was attempting to complete things for once.

“Jer,” Michael reached for his hand. “Are you doing okay?”

Jeremy could only shrug, “I wish people didn’t know.”

Rich came down to the basement once he was home, laying down on the floor with his eyes closed. “Thith fucking thuckth!”

Jeremy tucked away his books, he had done enough work. “Yeah. It does.”

Rich sat up, brushing a hand through his hair as he moved. “Jake ith at leatht getting time to relax. He’th not allowed to play football with a fucked up knee.”

“He needs a break after everything,” Jeremy sighed. “Is he…I mean, his parents…”

“He won’t talk about it,” Rich said, picking at his nails. “But…he ithn’t thobbing? We just…thit in thcilence.”

Jeremy didn’t know if that was good or bad. He sighed, checking his phone for the time. He hopped to his feet and peeled off the hoodie. “I should get going—”

“You didn’t eat dinner,” Michael chided his behavior. “You have bones to heal.”

“Vee healed me, actually,” Jeremy corrected. “She just didn’t make it painless as revenge.”

“Upstairs,” Michael pointed anyway.

Jeremy trudged up, sitting at the counter and watching Michael pull out containers of food. Maria caught on, helping Michael plate up leftovers for Jeremy. It felt a little silly, but it was nice to see them care.

Jeremy ate in mostly silence. Maria kept peeking through the blinds while Michael sat next to him. Rich came upstairs to do his homework, shutting himself in the spare bedroom. Darcy came home when Jeremy was almost done eating, all of them picking up the shouting crowd outside trying to get a word from the mother of a superhero.

“This is fucking rediculious! I just wanted to pull into my own driveway!” Darcy cried out, dropping her bag by the door. “Fuck!” She locked eyes with the teenagers in the kitchen. “Oh. Hi kids.”

They both waved, watching as Darcy went digging for a wine bottle. Jeremy finished his early dinner before pulling his mask on. Michael brought him his backpack and he slipped out the back door.

“Will I see you tonight?” Jeremy rocked on his heels.

Michael shook his head, “Probably not. I’m not exactly subtle in the dark.”

Jeremy pressed a kiss to Michael’s cheek before covering the remainder of his face. “Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Michael waved at him as Jeremy ran across the yard to hop the fence. He would sneak through some yards to avoid the crowd. He wound his way around, swinging into the city. People looked up, paid him more attention. Jeremy ignored the stares, the calls of his actual name. Swinging was his time to fully embrace the fun parts of Spider-Man. People knowing his name wouldn’t take that away from him. He wouldn’t let it.

▣

“Hi Jeremy. It’s been a while.”

Jeremy felt fully uncomfortable sitting in his seat. His dad had insisted that he visit the doctor again since he had nearly been blown up the other week. No hiding it, everyone knew now. It felt pathetic to act like he was just an average patient.

“Hi,” Jeremy responded lamely. He didn’t want to be there.

“So, what brings you in today? Your dad mentioned he was worried about—”

“Can we not beat around the bush?” Jeremy was already irritated. “You know why my dad is worried! We don’t need to play this stupid game where I’m lying about shit! Bombs went off! A man died! My friend broke his fucking knee!”

The doctor dropped her practiced smile, “Are you in pain? You appear to be physically well.”

Jeremy bowed his head, “I’m fine. I think my ribs were broken but they aren’t anymore.”

“Why do you think that? You aren’t a medical professional.”

Jeremy crossed his arms over his chest, “I just…I know I’m fine.”

“I’d like some images of your bones, your father specifically mentioned being worried about your ribs.”

Jeremy let his eyes close, “Fine.”

He was brought a hospital gown to change into. It felt stupid. Why didn’t anyone believe him? Vee had healed him. He was fine.

The imaging didn’t take all that long. Jeremy was back in his own clothing within twenty minutes. He slouched in his chair, his dad being allowed back into his exam room.

“Kiddo, you know I’m just worried, right?”

Jeremy pressed his lips into a line, “Yeah.”

The doctor came back in after they continued to sit and wait for what felt like hours. The only good thing about this visit was that Jeremy wasn’t at school. No crowds of people staring at him. Just one doctor questioning his own knowledge of his body. It wasn’t like she knew how a spider person would work on a biological level.

“You were right, Jeremy,” the doctor hummed, revealing the images of his skeleton. “Nothing broken. I can’t even find your previous signs of healing. I’d like to run a full set of blood and urine tests. Just to rule out infections from your accident.

“No,” Jeremy did not want that.

“Private—”

“No thank you,” Jeremy kept his voice firm. “I’m fine.”

The doctor looked at his dad, “James?”

James looked to Jeremy for a moment, searching his face for something. “If Jeremy says he’s fine…and nothing is broken? No. He doesn’t need labs.”

The doctor hummed, clearly not pleased about being denied Jeremy’s blood. Of course people wanted to pick him apart. He was an experiment to people now.

“Jeremy, how did you obtain your…for lack of a better word, mutation?”

Jeremy looked up at the ceiling tiles, “I was born on a moon colony, when I came to earth my powers developed.”

The doctor looked annoyed, “James?”

“He never told me how it happened,” James kept his secret. “And uh, I hope I don’t have to make this clear, but I’m a lawyer. So…if anything hits the media about my son? Anything spoken in this clinic? You will never treat another patient again.”

The doctor hummed, “Of course. Was there anything else you wanted addressed today?”

James glanced Jeremy over, finding him healthy. “No. Thank you.”

Jeremy and his dad began to exit the clinic. He pulled his hood over his head as they stepped outside, not trusting the shocking absence of cameras and shouting. They had to be watching. They always were.

“Ready for school?” James asked, unlocking the car so they could slide in.

Jeremy nodded, dropping into his seat. He had probably missed lunch, but that was fine. What he really was hoping for was to miss gym class. It had become a fucking nightmare lately. He was on the brink of snapping, but he was holding himself to a higher standard. No obvious use of powers. He couldn’t exactly control his own endurance. But he could control his actions. No webs, no obvious strength. He was acting normal. Sure his name was trending, sure he was being photographed or filmed the whole day, but he was just a kid.

Jeremy trudged into the building just in time for the bell to ring. People flooded the halls, Jeremy finding he had just missed gym class. He wound his way into the office to sign himself in before heading to his locker. He had the stupid concert tonight, but he and Michael intended to be as boring as possible for it.

“Hey, freak!”

Jeremy felt his head ring out, pivoting on his heel and catching a textbook that had been thrown at him. This was a new development. No one had expressed anger with him yet outside of the gym teacher. Disgust? Yeah that was a bit expected. He made webs. Fear? Obviously. He was Spider-Man after all. But anger was new. At least among the students.

Jeremy dropped the book to the floor and went back to walking. He didn’t have time for this. He wasn’t looking for a fight.

“Hey! I’m talking to you, Heere!”

Jeremy kept walking. Phones were filming. Jeremy stepped to the side as his head warned him. Watching as his angry peer tried tackling him.

“You cost us the best player on the goddamn football team!” The teenager shouted.

Jeremy ignored him.

“You ruined Jake’s life! Are you even sorry?!”

Jeremy stopped walking, “Obviously I’m sorry. My sincerest apologies if I didn’t already beg for your forgiveness, I didn’t realize your name was Jake Dillinger.” He stepped closer. Not threatening, just to get a bit closer. It was a single step. “I’m sorry that trying to not die ruined your life along with Jake’s. I’m sorry that I had to watch someone die. Have you ever watched that? Have you seen life leave someone’s eyes before? I’ve been dead before. I don’t remember it. But watching someone else die? It’s horrifying. Movies don’t really give it justice. I’m sorry for every single bad thing that has ever happened to anyone. I try doing what I can to prevent some of the bad, to make it so people can have happy lives. It’s why I jump in front of cars sometimes. Why I willingly let myself be shot at. Why I’ve been shot before. I’m so sorry my existence is hurting your life.”

Jeremy felt his head ring out, catching a fist thrown at him. He just held the fist there, his expression growing bored.

“Just let me get to class,” Jeremy sighed, letting go and walking away. He was fed up with all the attention. He had hoped the buzz would die down. It didn’t appear to be. If anything the Spider-Man craze was only growing. It sucked.

Jeremy dropped in his seat like a rock. He scribbled in his notebook and hardly paid attention. He was exhausted. He couldn’t sleep half the time, scared someone was going to hurt his dad. He feared for his friends and family all the time. His identity was putting them in danger. And Jennifer was still out there.

Fuck.

He made his way to Michael during his last class. He found his boyfriend and Jake standing over a lab table. The two were taking a biology course together. It was the most he had seen them interact in months.

“Hey,” Jeremy waved to them and seated himself on the table.

Michael grinned, pressing a kiss to the back of Jeremy’s hand, “How was the appointment?”

He shrugged, “I’m fine.”

Jake arched a brow at him, “You look like shit.”

“Compared to you I at least look like hot shit,” Jeremy retorted. “Someone is pissed that you’re out of commission for football and made it my problem.”

Jake glanced down at his homework, “Yeah. Most of the team is pissed, but I told them it wasn’t your fault. They’re just mad I can’t play. But my knee is shattered. I’ve got an appointment next week to see if I need it replaced or not. Two bad breaks in less than a year isn’t great for my prognosis.”

That did not make him feel better. Jeremy chose to just shut his mouth and let the others return to their work. Eyes followed Jeremy and Michael at all times, the pair of exposed superheroes never allowed privacy. Jeremy did his best to ignore the staring. After the past week and a half it was getting easier. He was almost to the point where he could pretend that things were normal.

He still hadn’t done a single interview. Hadn’t spoken to anyone except the police. And he only spoke to them because he had to. He saw his own face wherever he went, but he didn’t say a thing. Jeremy had even been holding back his quips, not wanting to give any criminals he encountered the time of day and effort it took to be snarky and funny. Spider-Man was growing silent. Something Jeremy hated.

After school Jeremy waited in the library. Brooke had told him that he wasn’t allowed to return home. Not that he wanted to face the crowd outside his house. He sat and watched from a corner as students filed out. Eventually Brooke came to fetch him, Jeremy keeping his head down as he walked from the building to Brooke’s car.

They went to Jenna’s house. Jeremy followed as the girls came rushing into Jenna’s room. Michael had joined Rich and Jake for the evening to get ready, something Jeremy hadn’t thought they were open to doing yet. Their willingness to get along probably had something to do with Rich living with Michael.

“So, um, my parents are coming home next week,” Brooke hummed. “And…Zach and I are going to tell them that he’s…alive.”

Jeremy sat against the wall, “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

Brooke looked a bit hesitant, “I…he’s my brother. He can’t keep sneaking around. He can’t get a job, he can’t really do anything in his current state. But…if he could at least be allowed to freely walk the house that would be great. My parents could fire the maid.”

“If you want us there, let me know,” Chloe pressed a kiss to Brooke’s cheek before digging in her backpack to pull out a curling iron.

The girls spread out around the room to get ready, taking turns in the bathroom as needed.

“Knock knock?”

Jeremy dropped to the floor just as the door opened. Dr. Rolan poked his head in, Jenna rushing to her feet. Jeremy couldn’t help but tense up when he felt the older man’s eyes lock on him.

“Dad,” Jenna properly let him into the room. “You, uh, you’ve met Jeremy. He went on that tour at your lab?”

Dr. Rolan ruffled Jenna’s hair, “The kid saved our lives, Jenna.” He stuck out a hand for Jeremy to shake. “Thank you, son. For everything.”

Jeremy accepted the handshake, “Of course. Any time.”

Dr. Rolan glanced around at the kids, “Should I order something for all of you? You should eat before singing for two hours.”

“Please,” Jenna nodded her head.

“Thank you,” Christine beamed.

Dr. Rolan motioned for Jeremy to follow as he went downstairs again. Jeremy followed, rocking on his heels as they stopped in the kitchen.

“This is…I should be past this by now,” Dr. Rolan sighed, wringing his wrists. “But…did Gary…did he say anything? When he…”

“It was too sudden,” Jeremy whispered. “He didn’t get a chance to say anything.”

Dr. Rolan nodded his head, “Okay. Thank you. I’ve just…I’ve wondered for so long but never thought to ask Spider-Man before when you would visit because it felt wrong and…yeah. Thank you.”

Jeremy didn’t know what to say. He could only offer a smile, unsure of what else he could say that hadn’t already been said. He made his way back upstairs and let brooke run a product through his hair. He didn’t want to go to this stupid concert, but he had to if he wanted to graduate. He let his eyes close as Brooke worked her magic. All he had to do was play guitar and drums for a few hours. He could do that with his eyes closed. He knew what he was doing.

“Why do we have to wear…dress clothes?” Jeremy asked, watching as Brooke pulled out a button down and nice pants for him. “It’s a high school concert, not the fucking Grammys.”

“We don’t make the rules, Jerry,” Chloe came drifting into the room, her hair now curled and dressed in a black floor length dress. Jeremy narrowed his brows at the sight of the fabric, trying to figure out if it was actually Vee or not. He couldn’t remember seeing Chloe with a dress prior to now.

Vee’s eyes came to the surface and she gave him a toothy smile. How the hell did pure ooze have such sharp teeth? Vee was honestly kind of terrifying, Jeremy had gotten really lucky that she wasn’t evil.

“You look so pretty!” Brooke rushed over to her girlfriend and ran her hands over the long lace sleeves. “Y’know…you, me, and Vee could reshape the fashion industry. If she could read my mind? All my ideas could come to life in her ability to shapeshift. And you could model!”

“I already have normal beauty standards to adhere to,” Chloe chuckled, brushing her thumb over Brooke’s cheek. “I don’t want to add the standards those twigs have.”

Brooke chuckled, “Yeah, good point. Vee is more into being a hero anyway.”

“Girls!” Dr. Rolan shouted up at them from the bottom of the stairs. “And Jeremy! Dinner!”

Everyone scurried down, Jeremy and Christine sliding down the stair railing and landing on their feet. Jeremy couldn’t remember the last time he had ordered from a normal local restaurant. He was usually more of a chain pizza joint kind of guy, his dad too.

They all ate in near silence before rushing around the house to finish getting ready. Brooke did up his tie, Jeremy letting out a small snort at the sight of tiny spiders embroidered on the tie.

“I did one for Michael with flames,” Brooke pulled out a matching tie. Indeed, the flame chest emblem was adorning the tie. “I know you want to blend into the background, but it’s important you don’t act like you’re ashamed of who you are. And with how much you’ve avoided the media? You need this. No one will see it, and if they did? It’s small.”

Jeremy pulled her into a hug, “You’re the best, Brookie.”

Dr. Rolan brought them all back to the school, Jeremy hiding behind his friends as they made their way through the school. The actual theater was being worked on for the upcoming play, so this concert was being held in the gym. Jeremy made his way with the girls into the choir hall where everyone was gathered. Heads turned, and Jeremy was back to pretending. He huddled in a corner with Christine and Jenna while Chloe and Brooke talked with their other friends.

Sometimes Jeremy forgot they had other friends. Jeremy’s whole circle was the people he saw on a daily basis. He was popular, sure, but he didn’t have friends outside of the small group of heroes at their school. He was popular by association. And now because of his powers. But that was besides the point.

Michael came in with Jake and Rich, everyone now huddled together. Jeremy laced a hand with Michael’s while Brooke went about replacing his tie for him. Michael looked tired, lightly bonking their heads together.

“Those two flirted so much it made me sick,” Michael whispered, watching as Jake and Rich talked. Since the concert was going to take a while Jake was going to be sitting in a wheelchair. It would be safer than him standing on one leg for upwards of two hours. Rich had been dubbed his pusher for the night.

“Hey, at least Jake flirted in front of another person,” Jeremy shrugged. “That probably means something good.”

They were all filed in for the concert, Jeremy taking a seat at the drum set. The eyes of the parents were on him now, and Michael next to him as well. They were off to the side, but clearly the attention was centered on them. Jeremy hated it.

Their teacher gave a quick welcome speech, something tacky about welcoming them and being so happy the other parents could join. How honored she was to have such talented students. Jeremy bit back his own distaste for her choices to force him and Michael to play without any backing piano. He just needed to get through the concert. He could be angry and rant to his dad after.

Jeremy locked eyes with his dad from across the gym, finding his dad shooting them a quick thumbs up. Maria and Darcy were sitting in front of him. Both grinning at the pair. They could do this.

Jeremy took a calming breath and began to play when motioned to. Michael and him had been doing this for weeks, they knew what they were doing. At least this saved them from having a singing solo. He had no doubt their teacher would try and force it on them if they didn’t play instruments for her. Jeremy let his eyes drift to Michael, finding his boyfriend had set his face into an unreadable expression. He was blocking out the stares too. Trying to pretend that this was normal. That any of this was normal.

At the end of a song Jeremy got up to switch seats. This song required two guitars instead of the drums. Jeremy sat and set his guitar in his lap, taking a slow breath to calm his racing heart. They could do this. They had to be over half though by now.

He was about to ready his hands to begin playing when he felt his head ring out in warning. It was quick and sharp. It caused adrenaline to fill Jeremy’s system.

“No!”

There was a loud bang, everyone beginning to scream and panic. Jeremy shot up out of his chair, looking over at the audience. Jeremy watched in horror as someone came tumbling down the bleachers to the floor. It took Jeremy a moment to notice that it was his father who had fallen.

“Dad!” Jeremy shouted, bolting across the gym. He caught his dad just before his head hit the hard floor. His hands began to shake, Jeremy watching as his dad took in a wheezy breath.

He looked up at the crowd, what was left of it at least, finding a man in a dark jacket stalking away, a gun being holstered. Oh fuck.

“Dad?” Jeremy reached for his hand. “Are you–”

Jeremy saw blood soaking into his dad’s sweater. Oh god. Fuck.

“Dad, we need to go,” Jeremy helped his dad to his feet, using his own hand to put pressure over the wound. He was going to focus on his dad. Make sure he was okay before anything else. People were still screaming, still running, but some were just watching.

“I-I’m okay,” James said, brushing Jeremy off. He offered a hesitant smile to his son. “But I should—we should go to a clinic. Hospital. Yeah?”

Jeremy nodded, “Yeah, c’mon.”

“You’re okay?” James looked worried for a moment.

“I’m okay, Dad,” Jeremy assured him.

They began slowly walking out, Jeremy running ahead to get the door for his dad. They were okay. James was still standing. They were fine. They just had to get to the car–

Jeremy heard a crash, turning back to find his dad on the floor again. Jeremy jogged back, helping him up again.

“Dad? What happened?”

“I just, I need to…” James was panting. “To catch my breath.”

Jeremy nodded, helping his dad sit down again, “Yeah. Let’s just sit for a moment, let you catch your breath. You’re okay, take your time.”

James looked pale. Jeremy hesitantly lifted his dad’s shirt, finding blood everywhere. He resituated the clothing, his own breath catching.

“Can somebody call an ambulance?!” Jeremy called out to the remaining stragglers.

“What’s wrong?” James whispered, his eyes blinking rapidly. “Jeremy?”

Jeremy looked back to his dad, “Nothing. Nothing’s wrong we just…you’re catching your breath.”

Maria and Darcy came walking over with Michael, Darcy already on the phone with emergency services. Weren’t cops supposed to be following him? Where were they?

“Jer…” Michael crouched next to him.

Jeremy ignored his boyfriend, focusing on holding his hands over the wound. He had to stop the bleeding. He could…

Jeremy lifted the shirt again and covered his father’s stomach with webbing. That would work. That would keep him safe. Stop him from bleeding out.

“Jeremy?”

Jeremy looked over, holding his dad’s hand in his own. “You’re okay. We’re going to take our time. And we’ll get you to a doctor.”

“I just need to…” James was staring at him. “I just have to catch my breath. I just need a minute to—”

“You’re okay,” Jeremy whispered. “It’s okay. I’m right here.” He squeezed the hand he was holding. “It’s just me and you. No rush. I’ve got you. We’re okay.”

His dad began to nod as his body slipped back, now laying on the floor. Jeremy felt the hand in his grow weak, the grip lightening. His dad wasn’t holding on to him anymore. His eyes were open. Not blinking.

“Dad?” Jeremy swallowed a lump in his throat. He didn’t get a response, so he tried speaking louder. “Dad?”

James stilled, his shaking ceasing. Jeremy felt ill, watching as his father didn’t take in another shallow breath. He kept waiting for his chest to rise and fall, but it didn’t.

“Dad?!” Jeremy shook his dad’s shoulders. “Dad?!”

Maria let out a sob, pulling Michael into her arms while cowering against Darcy.

“Dad!” Jeremy screamed at his father. “Wake up! Please! Dad, you need to get up!” His breath hitched and Jeremy wiped at his face. His father’s blood smeared across his own cheek. “Dad!”

Michael broke out of his mother’s hold and ran to Jeremy’s side, kneeling next to him. “Miah…” Michael reached a hand out, checking James for a pulse. “Miah, he’s—”

Jeremy ripped his gaze up as his head rang out in warning again. He pushed Michael back, sending him crashing into his parents and knocking them all to the floor. Jeremy jumped to his feet as another bullet grazed past him, imbedding into the floor. Jeremy screamed, charging forward out of the gym. The shooter turned tail, trying to get away from Jeremy. While running he tried firing at Jeremy again, Jeremy shooting a web and catching hold of the weapon. He yanked it away from the attacker, the gun hitting the wall behind them and shattering. Breaking into pieces. They made it outside, Jeremy firing another web and catching the back of the shooters jacket. He pulled hard, causing the man to go flying backwards. He landed face down on the pavement, Jeremy grabbing him by the neck and throwing him into the wall. He watched the man almost stick in place before gravity took hold and made him fall down again. Jeremy was silent, picking the shooter up before jumping to the roof. He threw the man into an air unit and webbed him there. He fired two web lines and used them to pull himself forward, slamming his feet into the attacker. He flipped around and landed back on his feet before stepping forward and punching the man. He watched bruises form, his hands turning red from blood. He didn’t care. The attacker was wheezing, eyes swollen shut. Jeremy stepped back to admire his work.

Bloody. Bruised. Broken. All deserved. And much more.

“F-freak!” The shooter spat at him. Jeremy ripped him from the air unit, holding his victim in the air by his throat. All he would have to do is squeeze. He was strong. It wouldn’t be hard.

But he wanted this man to suffer. Dropping him from the roof would be better.

Jeremy stepped over to the edge of the roof, watching the pathetic excuse for a human in front of him struggle to breathe. Jeremy tightened his grip just a bit. He wanted to watch him squirm.

Officers came flooding out of the roof access door, weapons pointed at him.

“Jeremiah Heere! Put the man down and step away!”

“He killed my dad!” Jeremy screamed back. He looked into the eyes of the shooter, what little they could open from Jeremy’s abuse. “You killed my dad! You killed him! You killed my dad!”

The bastard had the nerve to grin, “That’s your fault.” He managed to choke something out.

“Put him down or we will have to open fire at you!” One of the officers yelled.

It would be worth it. Jeremy prepared  himself to let go, to watch the man drop. He had never killed someone before.

There was a first time for everything.

“Miah!”

Jeremy watched as Michael came flying into view, his flames brightening up the darkened sky. He flew close to Jeremy’s side, catching his attention.

“Killing him won't bring your dad back,” Michael whispered. “Let him be punished for what he did, death is the easy way out.”

Jeremy grit his teeth, his eyes welling up. His weak walls were beginning to crumble. “He killed my dad.”

Michael put out the flames and landed next to him, “I know, Miah. I’m so sorry. I know this is hard. Please.”

Jeremy let out a shout before spinning on his heel and tossing the asshole in his grip into the roof. He made impact and a large crack sound was heard, the officers rushing forward to arrest the murderer. Jeremy broke, collapsing into Michael’s arms and sobbing. The two of them fell to their knees, Jeremy letting the fabric of Michael’s suit soak up his tears.

“I love you, Miah,” Michael assured, lightly rocking them back and forth. “I’m here.”

Jeremy was only able to cry. He could smell blood all over him. Could feel it on his hands and face. Michael pressed kisses into his hair and held him, letting him soak his shoulder in tears.

Eventually Michael scooped him up into his arms. Jeremy just kept crying, not bothering to look where he was being carried. Michael’s gloved fingers ran through his hair in an attempt to comfort, Jeremy couldn’t find it in him to be consoled.

“I have to put you down now,” Michael murmured in his ear.

Jeremy was set back down on the floor, finding them back in the hallway outside the gym. Tears still fell freely, but Jeremy was able to hold back his sobs and reduce them to whimpers. Police tape was covering the entrance to the gym. Someone was by his dad.

“No!” Jeremy screamed, jumping over the tape and rushing to his father’s side. “Don’t touch him!”

“We need to move his body—”

“Don’t touch him!”

Jeremy fell to his dad’s side, sobbing again as he looked at the empty eyes. He took his hand, squeezing only to find a lack of warmth.

“Dad please,” Jeremy begged, beginning to hyperventilate as he waited for his dad to end the torture. “Please wake up! Dad!”

“Can someone restrain him?!”

Someone grabbed at Jeremy’s arms, trying to pull him away. He made his body stick to the floor and shoved the annoyance back. He wasn’t going anywhere.

“Jeremy?”

He looked up, finding Chloe now standing next to him. She was avoiding looking at the body, tears rolling down her face and makeup sneaking.

“You need to let these nice people take him,” Chloe whispered, inhaling hard enough she hiccuped. “You need to let them take your dad so he can rest. Okay?”

“No.”

Chloe kneeled next to him, “I’m sorry, Jerry. But your dad can’t rest here forever.”

“H-He needs a hospital,” Jeremy insisted.

“These people will take him there. Right?” Chloe looked to the paramedics.

“Yes,” one of them confirmed.

“See? They’ll take care of James for you,” Chloe assured. “I think Michael wants you to come back to him, he’s in the hall. We should go check on him. And we can see your dad at the hospital.”

Jeremy nodded, letting Chloe help him to his feet. Jeremy stumbled, nearly falling over. He felt sick. Why did it smell like blood?

They ducked under the tape and Michael pulled Jeremy into an embrace. He felt really weak all of a sudden. He let his eyes close, finding they burned from his crying.

“I want to go home,” Jeremy whimpered.

“That’s a good idea,” Michael agreed with him. “I think Brooke has our bags. We should find her and then go home. My moms are waiting for us.”

“I want to go to my home,” Jeremy clarified, his chest heaving in a shaky breath.

Michael tensed for a moment, “Okay. We can do that. Yeah. Let’s get our bags and go.”

“Jeremiah Heere?”

Jeremy looked up, finding an officer staring at him. What now?

“You need to come in for questioning.”

“Question what? There were cameras!” Michael snapped. “His dad just died!”

“Mr. Heere, you just assaulted someone. Please come without difficulty.”

“His dad was just fucking murdered!” Michael yelled.

“I—” Jeremy cut himself off as he watched his father be rolled away on a stretcher. They had covered him with a few blankets. “Dad?”

“Can he come in the morning? Please?” Michael was holding Jeremy in place so he couldn’t chase the stretcher. “I’ll make sure he’s there bright and early. Give him a few hours. He’s covered in blood.”

The officer watched Jeremy for a moment. Jeremy tried following his father, but Michael held him close. Jeremy broke, crying out and hiding his face against Michael’s shoulder.

“I want him at the station by eight tomorrow.”

“Deal.”

Michael scooped him into his arms again, carrying Jeremy towards the front door. He was vaguely aware of Michael talking with someone before being carried out the door. He was brought to the cruiser, Jeremy curling into a ball and trying to quiet his cries as Michael drove him home. For once the crowd outside his house was gone. Though more cop cars were on the street. Jeremy made his way inside, glancing around at the decorations in the house.

“You should take a shower,” Michael murmured, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

Jeremy nodded, slumping forward. He made his way upstairs and into the bathroom. He watched as the water in the shower ran red while he stood under the spray. Fading to pink as the blood was wiped away. Jeremy felt exhausted.

He pulled pajamas on, staring at his reflection once the shirt was pulled over his head. His eyes were bloodshot. He looked like garbage.

Michael tried coaxing him to bed, but Jeremy wasn’t having it. He went digging into his backpack and pulled out his mask.

“Jer—”

“I want to go see Dad,” Jeremy stated, pulling the fabric over his head.

“Let me drive you—”

“No.”

Jeremy jumped out his bedroom window and began swinging towards the nearest hospital. No suit, just his mask and sock covered feet. He didn’t give a shit. He hardly remembered to pull the mask off as he approached the doors to the hospital.

He walked to a desk, “My name is Jeremy Heere, I’m here to see my father James.”

The receptionist seemed shocked to see him. “Oh! Mr. Heere, I—”

“Jeremy?” An officer approached him. “Come with me.”

Jeremy was brought into a tiny hospital room. There was nothing to note if his dad was alive or not. No year monitor. No wires. Nothing.

“The bullet hit some major arteries along with puncturing several organs,” a lone doctor was in the room, looking at Jeremy. “I’ll give you some time.”

The officer patted his shoulder before stepping out to give him space. Jeremy pulled up a chair, sitting and holding his dad’s hand. It was cold. His fingers were growing stiff.

“Dad?” Jeremy felt his voice crack. “Please?” He didn’t remember when he stopped crying but the waterworks began again. Jeremy looked at his father and found his eyes had been closed. He was resting now. “I’m so sorry. Please come back? I need—” Jeremy coughed into his own sleeve, feeling lightheaded. “I don’t want you to go. You’re all I have.”

But his dad didn’t open his eyes. The warmth didn’t return. It was quiet save for Jeremy acting like a sniffling mess.

“I love you,” Jeremy sobbed.

A group came to take his dad in for a proper autopsy. Jeremy couldn’t stick around any longer. His dad was gone. The officer who had directed him offered to drive him home, but Jeremy refused. He launched himself into the air once he was outside and made his way home. Michael was still up and waiting for him.

“You have school tomorrow,” Jeremy grumbled, aggressively blowing his nose to try and get the build up of snot out of his nasal cavity.

“I don’t give a shit, you’re more important,” Michael stated. He had changed into pajamas while Jeremy had been gone. He scooted over to give Jeremy room on the bed. “C’mere.”

Jeremy ignored the offer and made his way downstairs. He stepped into his dad’s room, crawling on top of the bed and holding a spare pillow in his arms. He let his eyes close, the salty burn hitting him again. He flinched as Michael tossed a throw blanket over him, finding his boyfriend scooting in to spoon him.

“I’ll get you up in the morning, Jer. Promise,” Michael hummed, stretching over to kiss his cheek.

Jeremy honestly didn’t care. He didn’t want to open his eyes ever again.

▣

Jeremy sat in the dingy metal chair in the interrogation room and lowered his head to the table. He was exhausted. Sleep had been fitful the night prior. He had woken up at least once an hour sobbing. Each time he hid his face and tried to muffle his own noises so Michael could sleep. Being woken up in the morning hadn’t been enjoyable at all.

The door opened and an officer stepped in. Jeremy made himself lift his head off the table but he didn’t bother with much else.

“Mr. Heere, let’s talk about last night—”

“I want a lawyer,” Jeremy stated, his voice rough and filled with cracks.

Before all of this his dad had been his lawyer. He had been helping him protect himself from whatever these people wanted.

“Mr. Heere, you aren’t under arrest.”

“I want. A. Lawyer.”

The officer sighed and stood up, “Do you already have a lawyer or do we need to appoint one?”

Jeremy felt his eyes burn for a moment as he tried to think. His dad had been his lawyer…until yesterday at least. He wanted a good lawyer. He knew he wouldn’t be as prepared if he was appointed one by the clerk’s office.

“Uh, Murphy,” Jeremy chose the lesser of two evils from the tatters of Jennifer’s old partners. He couldn’t remember meeting Murphy, but knew the guy hadn’t known of Jennifer’s work. He had seen interviews, the guy had been torn apart by what Jennifer had done. He was looking for redemption. What better way than representing her son? Spider-Man of all people.

“Murphy? I need more than that. Look, how about we just—”

“Lawerence Murphy, from Duke and Murphy,” Jeremy snapped. He let out a cough, his throat running raw. He softened his voice before continuing. “And, like…a bottle of water if it isn’t inconvenient?”

The officer nodded and left the room. They had taken his phone before being sat down, so Jeremy didn’t have anything to do while staring at the blank walls. He sighed, picking at the skin around his nails instead of allowing his brain to wander. If he didn’t think about it he wouldn’t cry.

He was allowed the water, and the officer brought him his phone. Apparently it had needed to be cleared as not an explosive device. Jeremy thought the excuse was bullshit, but he didn’t argue with them over it. He might have been strong but those people still had guns.

“Jeremy,” his new lawyer burst into the room. Damn, that had been fast. He looked to the officer watching him, “I want a moment alone with my client.”

They were left alone. Larry pulled up a chair, sitting next to Jeremy.

“I’m so sorry about your father—”

“Don’t,” Jeremy recoiled at the mention.

Larry patted his shoulder, “Jeremy, it means the world that you thought of me. Consider this a thank you, I wouldn’t ever try and ask you for money. What’s going on? What do I need to know? If you’re going to say anything about yourself do not state it as fact.”

Jeremy sighed, “I—these officers want to talk to me about last night. Because the man who shot my father…they think I…hurt someone.”

Larry nodded, “Okay. We can work with that.”

The officer was let back into the room, sitting across the table from them. Jeremy held his water bottle in his hands in case they tried taking it from him.

“Jeremy, do you know who it was that opened fire on your school yesterday?”

Jeremy hung his head, “No.”

“Well, he’s in the hospital, Jeremy,” the officer stated. “With over fifty different fractures throughout his body. You nearly paralyzed him.”

Jeremy cowered. He didn’t mean to be so aggressive he just…

“Is this man pressing charges?” Larry asked.

“He can’t speak at the moment, but the family made it clear they intend to.”

Larry took charge, “Well, let it be known that my client will be pressing charges of his own. For attempted murder on himself and for the murder of his father.”

The officer looked at Jeremy, “You put on that mask and call yourself a hero, but you’re worse than those you’ve put away. You’re bad just like your mother, the only difference is she wasn’t willing to get her own hands dirty.”

“And now you’re speaking of the escaped convicted felon, Jennifer Fisk, who is putting my client at active risk? It could even be possible that the shooter from last night had been hired by Jennifer to murder Jeremy. She’s placed a target on his head before. If you’re insinuating that my client committed a crime it would just as easily be noted that it would have been in self defense and passion. How would you have handled your parent or loved one being murdered right in front of you? In front of your peers? A public display to leave you weak and ready for your own execution? Would you not be upset? Released audio showed my client was distraught at his father’s death. Look at him. Actually look at him! He’s a child!”

Jeremy was honestly hardly keeping himself held together. He didn’t want to be there. He wanted to go home and cry. Break something. Maybe go out in the suit for an excuse to punch bad people. But instead he was stuck in a chair while people tried to rip him open.

“Mr. Heere do you understand there is a chance that you could be arrested if charges are pressed against you?”

“I’m aware, but I also didn’t murder someone,” Jeremy’s voice broke, hiding his face in his arms as he began to cry again.

“Unless my client is being arrested and handed charges you have no legal reason to hold him,” Larry stated. “You’re only torturing the poor boy. Being here is causing him to miss out on his education. Your department should have done a better job making sure my at risk client was protected, and mind you his father was in the same boat. And the school should have done something more to make sure no weapons made it on the property that wasn’t attached to an officer.”

The interrogation wrapped up pretty quick after that. Larry and Jeremy walked out, Jeremy unsure of where to go or what to do.

“Have you been appointed a guardian?” Larry asked. Jeremy shook his head. He didn’t know what was going on at this point. “I’ll look into it, figure out what your father’s will stated. James was a smart man, a good lawyer when he practiced, I trust he had one and thought of you. For now…you should go to school. I know you don’t want to, but until you have a guardian you shouldn’t risk a truancy. I’ll take you to school and I’ll keep in touch.”

Jeremy nodded, allowing Larry to lead him to his car. They stopped at the house so Jeremy could retrieve his backpack before being brought to school. They were in the middle of a class, Jeremy finding the halls empty as he walked to the office. He signed himself in for the day before traipsing the halls to his class. He didn’t speak, didn’t pay attention. He dropped in his seat and hid his head in his hands. He wouldn’t allow himself to sob in front of all his peers.

Everyone stared at him. They had been before, but today it felt worse. Did they think he was a monster because of what he had done to the shooter? Was it pity for his father? A third option Jeremy couldn’t think of?

He pulled his hood over his head and tried to block it out. Jeremy sighed, scribbling random lines into his notebook. He couldn’t bring himself to bother listening to his class.

When the bell rang Jeremy followed along the path. He knew where he needed to go. It was all he could do. Keep moving.

“Hey Heere!”

A student ran up to him, walking next to him. Jeremy wanted to be polite but he didn’t have it in him today.

“Fuck off.”

“Hey man, c’mon—”

Jeremy pivoted on his heel, grabbing the nuisance by the collar and shoving him into the row of lockers beside them, his feet hanging off the ground. Classmates gasped and cried out in shock, but Jeremy was numb to them. The student who had bothered him looked terrified.

“Woah, dude,” his voice was wavering. “Look, your dad died. I get it. I—”

Jeremy dropped him and stalked away, students parting like the sea to let him through. He kept his head down as his eyes burned.

“Jeremy!”

He was stopped, Jeremy looking up to see Christine standing in front of him. He tried maneuvering around her but she rushed forward, pulling him into a hug. He hid his face against her shoulder as he began to break. He couldn’t do this.

“I’m so sorry, Jeremy,” Christine whispered.

She brought him into their next class, the choir hall all turning to stare at him as he walked in. Michael stood from his seat, approaching and taking his hand. Christine made her way to her seat while Michael walked them to their corner.

“What are you doing here?” Michael asked, squeezing the hand he was holding. “Of all places—”

“My lawyer told me to keep good attendance,” Jeremy whispered. “But I think any assault charges will probably be dropped? Y’know…since…”

Michael nodded, “I mean, yeah. God, Jer.” Michael pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Do you need anything?”

Jeremy just shrugged. He was trying really hard to not start crying again. He stared at his and Michael’s connected hands, focusing on that to help keep him grounded.

“Jeremy?”

He looked up, finding their teacher standing in front of them. Jeremy really didn’t want to talk to her. He didn’t bother gracing her with his attention. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and opened his social media. His messages were full of random people. All wanting to know something about him or trying to ridicule him or thank him if he had done something for them in the past.

“Jeremy, I wanted to offer my condolences—”

“You can take your condolences and shove them up your own ass!” Jeremy yelled at the woman in front of him.

“Jeremy—” Michael tried to reel him in but Jeremy shot him a warning look for it. It shut him up.

“You knew I didn’t want to be at that concert!” Jeremy stood from his chair and stepped closer. “You knew why I didn’t want to be there! Congratulations, you got the full use of my identity! Are you happy now?! My dad is dead!” He swung his backpack over his shoulder and began to march out. “Just leave me alone!”

Once he was out of the choir hall he bolted. He didn’t want to leave school, he wasn’t going to risk getting into any legal trouble. But he wanted to be alone. He tucked himself in the library, sliding to the floor and tilting his head back. Tears fell, Jeremy trying to keep quiet as he sniffed. He was a fucking joke. No hero, that was for sure. Why wasn’t he out there avenging his dad? Why hadn’t he found Jennifer and tossed her off of a roof yet? Why was he failing in every aspect of his life?

“Hey, Jeremy?”

Jeremy startled, turning his head to find Jake standing in front of him. Perfect. Another example of his failures. Jake had a cast on his leg again, all because Jeremy hadn’t done enough. Was he finally ready to rip Jeremy a new one? Scream at him for what he had done? Not only failing to save Jake’s body but also not even attempting to save his dad?

“Do you…do you want a hug?”

Jeremy scoffed, a wet noise that sounded as ugly as he felt on the inside. “Not really.”

Jake arched his brow at him, “Well, I want one. And you’re pretty good at giving them. So get up and give me one.”

Jeremy jumped to his feet, pondering how to maneuver around Jake’s crutches for a moment before giving him a hug. Jake squeezed him back, Jeremy unable to stop his eyes from welling up as he was held.

“How do you do it?” Jeremy blubbered, not allowing himself to show Jake his face in this state. “How do you act like it doesn’t hurt?”

Jake was quiet for a moment, patting his back. “Well, my dad didn’t…he didn’t love me, Jeremy.” Jake pulled out of the hug, a melancholic expression on his face. “At least, not like yours loved you. So…I don’t have to pretend. It doesn’t hurt for me like it does for you.”

Jeremy looked to the floor, “I’m sorry.”

“You didn’t kill him, Jeremy. Either of them.”

They moved to a table, both of them growing quiet as they let the class hour pass. Jeremy lowered his head to the table and let his eyes drift shut. He could feel a crust around his eyes from all the dried up salty tears. If he could just rest his eyes for a few minutes…maybe everything would be okay. At least for a little bit.

Jake and him were the first to their table at lunch. Jeremy didn’t feel hungry. He felt like an empty husk. All his body seemed to be good at was taking his brain from place to place. He could have been normal. He could have lived a normal life. But he was an idiot. A failure. A mistake. He was worthless. He couldn’t even save his own dad.

“Mr. Heere?”

He was genuinely two seconds away from breaking something. Jeremy turned his head, finding the principal standing at their table. Jeremy didn’t speak, but he at least gave a head nod motion so the man knew he was listening.

“The staff and I wanted to offer, if you wished, we could gather your work for you and you could simply work in one of the conference rooms. Then you could have some…space. From your peers.”

“Do you think I’m dangerous now?” Jeremy tried to make his voice not sound as angry as he was. “Are you scared I’ll hurt someone now or something?”

“No,” the principal seemed shocked at Jeremy’s assumption. “You suffered a great loss. And given how…public this loss has been for you, we only wanted to offer some peace of mind. If you want to you could simply take breaks as needed. The choice is yours. Feel free to stop in the office and we can welcome you in.”

Jeremy watched the man walk away, turning back to stare at the worn lunch table. He might just take that offer. Sure it meant no help from Chloe or Brooke, but it was better than dealing with all the staring.

Michael sat next to him at the table, handing Jeremy a soup container. “All warmed up for you.” Michael pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Mom said this might be easier to eat than real food right now, and you skipped breakfast earlier.”

Jeremy sipped at his soup like it was a drink, “Thanks.”

It did make it easier. Jeremy had hardly been able to force himself to drink water, let alone think about eating. The others in the group tried to make light chatter, tried to make things seem normal. More for Jeremy’s sake than their own.

“Zach said he could help out if you needed anything,” Brooke said, reaching across the table to squeeze Jeremy’s hand. “Just let me know.”

“You’re always welcome, Jeremy,” Jenna assured. “If you ever need anything.”

“Thanks,” Jeremy sighed, resting his chin on his hand. He didn’t feel better, but he was so worn down that this was the most docile he had felt since the day before.

After lunch was his gym class. Jeremy made the decision to leave early so he could get changed before his classmates arrived. He didn’t want anyone staring at him in general, but knowing that they were looking at his magic spider abs didn’t help him. It wasn’t the confidence boost he had imagined.

They were supposed to meet in the hallway. The gym had been sectioned off with police tape. There was still technically an investigation going on. Jeremy, with his spare time, chose to ignore the tape covering the door to the gym and slipped inside anyway. He kept quiet, scaling up the wall to the vaulted ceiling. He crawled his way over to the scene, watching the handful of officers work. They were talking in front of a dried pool of blood. Jeremy felt ill, his eyes locked on what had once been a part of his dad. He bit down on his cheek to keep from crying, hurrying his way back across the gym and into the locker room once more. His peers had gathered to change, all of them pausing as Jeremy walked in. No one spoke, so Jeremy kept walking. He made his way into the hall, standing at the back of the growing crowd of students.

“Everyone outside!” Their teacher yelled out. “Since a certain incident occurred last night we aren’t allowed to proceed with lessons as usual.”

Jeremy lowered his head, following the group outside. The early October air had a sharp breeze, Jeremy and several other students shivering against it. This was going to suck. Jeremy hated being cold.

“Everyone to the practice field!” The teacher motioned them to the large field next to the parking lot. “We’re playing football!”

The sporty students seemed excited. Jeremy didn’t bother emoting at all. He had been subjected to only running laps since his identity had been revealed. He wasn’t expecting anything different now.

“Heere!”

There it was. Jeremy turned on his heel, facing the teacher. This was going to be a long class hour, wasn’t it?

The teacher approached him, the usual pissed off expression on his face. “Heere, I think you should go ask those lovely officers, the real heroes, if they need help cleaning up the gym. Make yourself useful for once. That blood is fifty percent you after all.”

Jeremy clenched his hands into fists. He was not going to be able to tolerate this bullshit for much longer.

“Last night only proved my own point, you’re no hero. Reports are saying you not only let your own father die, but you also nearly killed a man? That isn’t what heroes do, Heere. Who exactly are you trying to fool?”

“Hey, Sir,” Jeremy growled, sticking his feet to the ground so he didn’t kick the bastard by accident. He was feeling violent, after all. “Do me a favor? Go fuck yourself.”

Jeremy couldn’t help but smirk as his head rang out in warning. He leaned back, avoiding a punch thrown at him. He was looking for an excuse to be mean.

But his classmates were watching. He could hear gasps as the punch was thrown at Jeremy. They would only learn to agree with him if he got violent. He couldn’t stoop to his level. No matter how much he wanted to.

“Wow, trying to hit kids is in the lesson plan?” Jeremy rightened his body into a proper standing position. “I don’t remember that on the syllabus.”

“Detention!” The teacher screamed at him.

“Gladly.”

“Now!”

Jeremy rolled his eyes as he began to walk inside. He could see the crowd of reporters off the property, they had to have seen the altercation. Maybe the asshole would actually get reprimanded now. For being a piece of shit. For trying to hit him. Something substantial for once.

Jeremy changed back into his street clothes and made his way into the office. He sat outside the principal’s private room, waiting for someone to acknowledge him.

“Did you need a break, Mr. Heere?” A secretary asked, eyeing him cautiously.

“No, my teacher tried to hit me and then gave me detention.”

The principal was out to greet him only a few seconds after being messaged by the secretary. “He what?”

Jeremy repeated himself before being brought into a conference room. He was left alone with his books, having nothing else to do besides attempt his homework. Since he was alone he checked to see what had been developing with the media, finding that there was a new article saying Jeremy had been targeted for harassment by a school staff member. A blurry image of Jeremy dodging the punch attached to the weak piece of journalism. He hoped they ripped his gym teacher apart. He had never liked the man.

Jeremy opted to stay in the conference room for the remainder of the day. It was much easier on his mind to be alone. Jeremy found himself actually able to focus. He completed assignments, he was by himself, it was nice.

For a brief moment Jeremy forgot.

And then Jeremy walked out to go to his locker. And the staring returned. And Jeremy had all the wind swept from his sails.

His dad was dead.

Jeremy looked to the floor as he walked to his locker. He was silent, grabbing his books before walking out the door. He waited by the cruiser, hoping Michael wouldn’t be held up for long. The crowds lingered around him just as much as they did Jeremy.

“Jeremy!”

He turned his head at the sound of Rich’s voice. He seemed frantic, rushing over and nearly crashing into Jeremy.

“Thomeone opened fire on the houthe.”

“My house?”

“Michael’th. The officerth took him at the end of latht period for thafety.” Rich shook the keys to the car. “I’m thuppothed to go to the thtation and meet the otherth.”

Jeremy cursed under his breath, “Did they arrest the shooter at least?”

“I don’t know. Let’th go find out.”

Jeremy ran a hand through his hair, “I’ll meet you there. I want to check on my place first.”

Jeremy took off running before Rich could respond. He ignored the crowd of reporters, launching himself into the air before swinging down the street. He hadn’t ever gone without a mask before when he knew people were looking. He bit back the anxiety and propelled himself as fast as he could.

As he made it to his own street he saw that his house looked about the same. Nothing out of the ordinary, the cops still fending off the reporters. Jeremy slipped in through his bedroom window, grabbing his suit from where it was folded up on his dresser. Michael had washed it at some point during the night. Maybe while he had been at the hospital. He hadn’t bothered to ask. Jeremy pulled it on and covered the suit in his street clothes. With everything secure Jeremy made his way back outside, sprinting to the police station. Even with his detour he managed to beat Rich, sliding to a stop once he made it inside. He spotted Michael, Darcy, and Maria huddled in a corner. Jeremy ignored the officers and rushed over.

“Are you okay?” Jeremy looked over at all three of them.

“We’re okay, we weren’t home,” Maria assured, pulling him into a hug. “Is your place okay?”

Jeremy nodded, hiding his face against her shoulder. “I’m so sorry, this is my fault—”

“No it’s not,” Darcy insisted, ruffling his hair. “This has been…a really shitty twenty four hours, but it isn’t your fault.”

“Jeremiah Heere?”

What the fuck was happening now? Jeremy turned, finding a whole group of officers approaching him. One of them had handcuffs.

“Yes?” Jeremy almost didn’t want to respond.

“You’re under arrest for assault and battery,” one of the officers stated.

“What?!” Maria was outraged. Pushing Jeremy behind her in an attempt to conceal him.

“You have the right to remain silent—”

“He’s a child!” Darcy joined in.

“—Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law—”

“Who is pressing charges?!” Michael demanded.

Jeremy was grabbed, his hands being forced behind his back. What the hell was happening? Why him?

“—You have the right to consult an attorney. If you do not have one or cannot afford one we will have one appointed to you—”

Jeremy felt his breath catch. What the fuck. Why was this happening? His dad had been murdered, he hadn’t done anything wrong that wasn’t justified. This was bullshit.

He made a choice. Probably the wrong one, but he wasn’t thinking all that straight at the moment.

Jeremy jumped, sliding his legs through the limited space given with his arms bound. He landed back on his feet with his hand now in front of him. The officers startled, fumbling for tasers. Shit. Resisting arrest was something he could actually get into trouble for.

He committed, snapping the chain holding his wrists together. He fired webs at the officers, sticking them together. With that he bolted, ripping the cuffs off of his wrists as he ran outside.

“Jeremy!”

He kept running, sliding into an alleyway. What the fuck was he doing? He was supposed to be better than this.

“Jer!”

Michael rushed over to him, his eyes frantic. “What the fuck are we doing? This is crazy!”

“I already ran! Go back!”

“Fuck that, let’s go,” Michael hopped on his back, allowing Jeremy to carry them up.

“You’re sure?” Jeremy brought them to a rooftop.

Michael nodded, kissing his cheek. “Evil supercomputers couldn’t split us, this is nothing. It’s you and me Jer.”

Jeremy nodded, pulling his phone out of his pocket, “D’you think they’ll track us?”

“You just ran from arrest, yes.”

They both left their phones on the roof, Jeremy hopping rooftops while carrying Michael. It was more subtle than Michael flying around in a bright ball of fire.

“Where do we go?” Michael asked.

“I didn’t think that far ahead,” Jeremy confessed, crossing the street. “Brooke’s?”

“Better than nothing.”

Jeremy ran them across town, breaking open Brooke’s window for them to slide inside. She startled, staring at them with wide eyes.

“Jeremy! You ran from the fucking cops?!”

Jeremy held up his hands in surrender, “I know I’m stupid, don’t remind me.”

Brooke ran a hand through her hair, “This is a disaster.”

“Can we just hide here for a bit?” Michael asked. “Please?”

Brooke thankfully let them stay. They moved downstairs, finding Zach standing in the kitchen. He wished them well, unaware of what they had just done.

“How are you feeling, Jeremy?” Zach reached across the counter to squeeze his arm in support. Him and Brooke had very similar mannerisms.

“I…I’m fucking exhausted,” Jeremy confessed.

Everyone chose to keep Zach aloof. Jeremy didn’t want to know what Sandman would do if he knew his sister was helping hide a supposed criminal. Was he a criminal now? That felt…wrong. Fuck. Jeremy didn’t want to be a criminal. Why had he run? Would they forgive him if he went back now?

Jeremy and Michael joined Brooke and her brother for dinner, not speaking a word about what was going on. Jeremy was able to play his silence off as grief. The others seemingly just supporting his decisions.

Jeremy and Michael pretended to leave after dark, ducking around the side of the building and climbing back inside. They kept quiet, waiting for Brooke to go to bed. She crept into her room, holding her phone in her hands.

“The others are asking about you,” Brooke said, staring at the screen.

“Don’t tell them anything,” Jeremy instructed. “You can share at school tomorrow, but not over the phone.”

Brooke nodded, clicking off her phone. “How the fuck did this happen?”

They fell quiet. Not answering her question. Brooke pulled out extra blankets, only able to offer the floor for them to sleep on. Michael didn’t seem to mind, curling up in a corner. Jeremy opted to launch himself to the ceiling, clinging with his body as he laid flat against the surface.

“That’s so weird,” Brooke chuckled, crawling on her bed and tucking under her covers.

“Thank you, Brooke,” Jeremy whispered.

One day down. Who knows how many to go.

His dad had only been gone for one day. Jeremy hadn’t realized how much him just being there had been protecting him.

Jeremy bit down on his cheek. He wouldn’t cry again. Not now. He could cry later. When things got at least a little better.

▣

Jeremy woke up first, silently dropping back down to the floor. He crept down the stairs, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl. It was quiet, peaceful. Jeremy eyed a ceramic pot, finding it full of sand. Oh fuck. Was that how Brooke was keeping Zach secret? He had to stay a pile of sand for decoration when the maid was in the house? That was horrible.

He made sure to keep quiet as he walked around the house. This wasn’t his best idea. He wished Michael hadn’t come with. He could have been safe. Now things were fucked.

Jeremy happened to peek through a curtain, finding the maid outside. She was talking to someone in the front driveway. Jeremy rubbed his eyes, finding it to be an officer. Shit.

Jeremy hurried back upstairs, shaking Michael awake.

“What?” Michael whined, opening his eyes.

“Cops are here, we need to leave,” Jeremy stated. “I think the maid ratted us out.”

Brooke stirred, “What?”

“Brooke, play dumb, please,” Jeremy begged, making Michael get to his feet.

Brooke sat up, blinking back sleep, “What’s happening?”

“Jeremy Heere!” A voice shouted from downstairs. “Come out with your hands up!”

“Shit!” That woke Michael up. He shimmied out of his clothes, shoving them into Jeremy’s backpack. Beneath sat his Torch suit. Michael tugged on his mask and gloves while Jeremy followed suit. Brooke readied herself to play dumb while Jeremy and Michael slipped out the window. Michael ignited his body once they were outside, taking Jeremy’s hand and flying them away. This was all going much worse than he had imagined.

“Where do we go?” Michael asked, flying them up higher to avoid being seen.

“New York? It’s a big city, it’ll be harder to find us.”

Michael nodded, carrying them into the city. They dropped down on a roof, Michael cutting the flames before they could be spotted. Jeremy sprawled out on the roof, heaving out a sigh. This was all insane. How had his life fallen apart so fast?

“What do we do?” Michael asked. “We can’t go home. My moms are probably being questioned. We can’t go to school. We’re fucked. We’re completely fucked.”

“I know!” Jeremy shouted, staring up at the sky.

This was all his fault.

“Hey!”

Jeremy sat up, watching as a civilian came bursting out of the roof access door, a gun pointed at Michael. Oh fuck. Jeremy got to his feet, readying himself. He would not be losing Michael in this mess.

“You freaks get the fuck away from my home!” The civilian shouted. “I don’t want you near my kids!”

“We’ll go,” Michael held up his hands. “Just put the gun down.”

The gun wasn’t lowered. Jeremy moved fast, firing a web to yank the weapon out of reach. He wasn’t fucking risking it. Not Michael. He couldn’t lose Michael too.

“I’ve got rights!” The civilian shouted, watching as Jeremy tossed the gun out of reach.

“You can go get it when we leave,” Jeremy stated.

Jeremy had Michael hop on his back before diving off the building. He didn’t know where to go. He had no idea what to do.

“Jer, this isn’t going well,” Michael sighed, holding tight as they swung up towards the sky again.

“I’m well aware,” Jeremy muttered.

They found a quiet roof, not an apartment complex this time. They changed back into their street clothes before Jeremy brought them down to the ground. Their faces might have been everywhere, but this was far more subtle than their suits. Jeremy left the backpack on the roof, figuring they could always return to it.

“Maybe we can fly away to Canada,” Michael hummed.

“And do what? We’re minors. We’re fucked.”

Michael sighed, pulling them into a café. He tucked Jeremy into a booth before going to order. This was such a bad idea. Why had he run? He would have never been charged with assault, right? Not when his dad had…

Jeremy took a slow breath in, fighting back the urge to cry. He kept his head down, waiting for Michael to return.

“Eat up,” Michael encouraged him while setting a plate down in front of him.

Jeremy didn’t want to eat, he was anxious and felt a bit sick to his stomach. But he had to keep moving. He had made a bad choice, but he had to stick by it.

“We should have ditched that concert,” Jeremy grumbled, forcing himself to eat.

Michael sighed, “Yeah? Probably. Do you think my moms are okay?”

“They didn’t do anything wrong, Michael.”

Michael only offered a shrug in response. He had reason to worry, Maria and Darcy had been left at the police station when they ran. It wouldn't surprise Jeremy in the least if they decided to use the two mothers as bait to try and get them to come back.

And if Michael did want to return to his moms? Jeremy wouldn’t be the one to stop him. Michael hadn’t asked for this, Jeremy shouldn’t have run. He was stupid and irresponsible and exhausted. Of all the people to get powers, why had it been him? He didn’t deserve it. He couldn’t protect his own father, why had he ever thought he was a hero? Why had he tried playing himself for a fool?

Jeremy and Michael took turns using the bathroom, not wanting to risk anything with each other. They would protect each other and they would make sure they didn’t get caught. It was all they could do in the grand scheme of things.

He couldn’t help but wonder if Jennifer was gloating. Jeremy was ruined. He had nothing. No father, no family, no secrets. He had Michael, and he didn’t even deserve him. Jennifer was probably long gone, and she was probably laughing her ass off about how pathetic and stupid he was.

“Hey, Jer?” Michael caught his attention. “It was supposed to…Jake’s dad. His funeral is today.”

Shit. And now he was a bad friend too. They couldn’t risk flying back home. Swinging was out of the question too. They couldn’t even show up for Jake. Jeremy really had ruined everything.

Jake had lost his dad first. It almost felt like Jeremy had tired upstaging him in a way. It obviously hadn’t been that way, but looking back that was how things appeared to be. Jeremy sighed, rubbing at his eyes. What would they do?

“We could jump the terminal and take the train?” Michael offered. “We’re a bit underdressed, but I think we could at least sneak in to say hi.”

“I resisted arrest, and now I’m adding terminal jumping to my criminal record?” Jeremy winced at the idea of him having a criminal record.

“Jeremy we’ve been smoking weed since age thirteen, this is nothing,” Michael raised his brows.

He had a point. Jeremy sighed, getting up from his seat. They could try. And if they did get caught it wasn’t like they couldn’t run again. Jeremy was Spider-Man after all.

Somehow they made it back to Jersey without being caught. Both Jeremy and Michael covered their heads with their jacket hoods, walking along the streets while avoiding every passing face. How was it still early? Jeremy felt like ten years had passed in the span of five minutes.

The funeral was being held outside. It was shockingly sparse, apparently no one wanted to associate with domestic terrorists. Jake was off to the side, Rich attached to his hip. Jeremy approached them with Michael, trying to keep hidden from the few adults lingering about.

“Hey,” Michael greeted.

“Dude!” Rich seemed shocked to see them.

“Why the fuck did you run from the cops?” Jake asked, pulling them further away from the rest of the crowd.

“I never said I was smart,” Jeremy sighed. “We just wanted to…I mean, he’s your dad, Jake.”

“And my mother is in prison, there’s not much I can do about it,” Jake hummed.

“Hey!”

Jeremy flinched, watching as an adult approached them. Jeremy didn’t know who it was, and he hid his face as best as he could.

“You’re that fire kid!” The stranger was staring at Michael.

It had heads turning. Someone caught sight of Jeremy, murmurs spreading like wildfire. Shit.

“You should go,” Jake encouraged. “Stay safe.”

They tried to keep casual as they left. Walked instead of running. Maybe if they acted like things were normal they could get away without issue.

They bolted at the sound of police sirens. Luckily Jeremy had speed on his side. He grabbed Michael and took off, sprinting down the street. They ducked into an alleyway, hiding behind a trash pile.

“This is fucking crazy, Jer,” Michael whispered, squeezing his hand.

Jeremy nodded, “I know. I’m sorry—”

Michael cut him off, pulling him in for a kiss. Jeremy froze, his brain shockingly quiet for once. Michael hadn’t kissed him, a real kiss, since…

They had both been stressed out. It had been a long few weeks. The last few days especially.

Jeremy threw himself into Michael’s arms, kissing his boyfriend back. He wasn’t…he was far from stable. But kissing Michael was the closest to normal Jeremy had felt in what seemed like forever.

“I love you,” Jeremy stated, brushing his fingers through Michael’s hair.

“I love you too,” Michael assured him, pressing a kiss to Jeremy’s chin.

Jeremy was set back down, the two of them sliding out the other side of the alley. They just had to survive. It couldn’t be that hard, Jeremy had lived through worse.

Just never without his dad’s support before.

They managed to get back into New York. They found a quiet rooftop to hide out on, the two of them huddled together as they let the day tick on.

“Did you bring anything to do in this bag?” Michael asked, looking in Jeremy’s backpack. All he pulled out was various textbooks. Jeremy just shrugged, sprawling out.

“Sorry I didn’t think of entertainment when I chose to run from the police,” Jeremy sighed.

Michael set the bag down, laying next to Jeremy on the roof. “Remember when the goal was to just…make a cool apocalypse game?”

“You mean three weeks ago?”

Michael elbowed him in the ribs for being snarky, “Oh hush. It just…it feels so small now. Y’know?”

Jeremy rolled on his side to face Michael, “…Yeah.” He fell quiet for a moment. “Michael?”

Michael turned his head, reaching a hand out to brush over his cheek. He let out a hum of acknowledgment, his eyes focused on Jeremy’s.

“I…” It wasn’t the time. Nor the place. But Michael was the one person he talked to about this stuff anyway. “I don’t think I’m okay. Like…y’know, with the depression stuff?”

Michael scooted closer, “Oh? What do you mean? How so?”

Jeremy wrinkled his nose, “No. It’s stupid. I don’t know why I brought it up it doesn’t matter—”

“No, Jer, I’m just trying to understand,” Michael pulled Jeremy on top of him. “I’m not dismissing you. Talk to me. Please.”

Jeremy crumpled, “M-My dad? I just—” his breath stuttered as he inhaled. “It hurts? So bad. All the time. And I can’t—I can’t stop thinking about it.”

Michael squeezed him in an embrace, “Jeremy I’m so sorry—”

“And I keep thinking that I should have just died when the building exploded,” Jeremy sobbed into Michael’s shoulder. “Then none of this would have happened!”

Michael squeezed him tighter, “I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad you’ve lived.”

“I couldn’t save him,” Jeremy sobbed.

Michael held him and let him cry. He had thought he was past it, but his walls crumbled under the slightest pressure. He was useless.

Eventually Jeremy wore himself out. They decided to move, to try and find lunch. Jeremy brought them to the ground and they started walking again. Was this what their life would be from now on? Walking and hiding? No more home?

The sound of a siren had them both tensing up. Jeremy watched as a firetruck came zooming by. Oh fuck. A fire?

“Jeremy,” Michael caught on to the way his eyes followed the truck. “We can’t risk it.”

“I’m going,” Jeremy decided, running into the nearest alley. He pulled off his street clothes and tugged on his mask and gloves, tossing his backpack to Michael. He climbed up before swinging down the streets, ignoring the yells from pedestrians. He was Spider-Man. He had to help. Had to not fuck up for once.

It was an apartment building. Jeremy rushed in, crashing through a window. The smoke burned his lungs, but Jeremy brushed it aside. He ran around the building, searching for trapped people. The fire had been blazing for a while, support beams already beginning to cave in.

Jeremy found a group of young adults, all decked out in college apparel. Freshmen. Jeremy hoisted a burning beam and had them crawl under, quick to let go so he could help them out. Thankfully his arms weren’t fully fried.

Jeremy began helping the students out one at a time. Scaling them down before going back up for another. Firefighters were doing the same on the lower floors, helping people escape. Jeremy looked up, his eyes catching as Michael came in to fly circles around the building. Jeremy watched as the flames siphoned into a tower, Michael forcing the flames to go up. He hadn’t known he could do that. The flames left the building, Michael flying up in a bright flash. The light went out, Michael lowering himself back down without the overly bright blaze. The fire was out.

Jeremy continued to help evacuate the building, searching floor after floor for anyone who was trapped in the debris. Jeremy worked from top to bottom, eventually meeting the firefighters in the middle.

“Everything is clear,” Jeremy stated.

They all rushed out, Jeremy staggering for a moment as he took in a full breath of smoke free air. Michael landed next to him, making sure he was steady.

“Spidey,” a paramedic called him over. No cops yet, Jeremy felt safe to approach. The paramedic offered him an oxygen mask. “Take a breather, kid.”

Jeremy took the offer, lifting up his mask a bit and breathing through the mask. It did help. Michael stood guard, smiling at him.

“Good job,” Michael squeezed his arm.

“Thank you,” a firefighter approached them. “I’ve never seen a blaze go out that fast.”

Michael smiled a bit brighter under the praise, “You’re welcome.”

The paramedic offered them water and snacks. Jeremy was shaking and felt a bit woozy, so he accepted the water. He was exhausted, but for once it felt like a good kind of tired.

“Oh fuck, Jeremy you’re bleeding,” Michael grabbed him by the jaw.

The paramedic perked up at the panic in Michael’s voice. “What? Let me see?” She squinted at the sight of Jeremy’s mask covered face. She pointed to the fabric, “Can I?”

Jeremy hesitated before removing the mask. Jeremy’s forehead was wiped at with an alcohol pad, a sharp sting forming. He didn’t remember anything falling on him but…

“It looks like the bleeding has mostly stopped,” the paramedic noted. “I’ll just make sure it’s clean.”

Jeremy took in his appearance. His suit had melted a bit in the building, holes adorning the fabric. Shit. It wasn’t like he would be getting a new one any time soon.

“Freaks!”

Jeremy whipped his head up just as a pedestrian threw a glass bottle at them. It missed Jeremy, but hit Michael square in the face. The glass shattered on impact, Jeremy watching Michael’s lip split open from the force.

“Hey! Back up!” The paramedic marched towards the heckler.

“Murderer!”

Jeremy reached a hand out, catching a rogue brick that had been thrown at them. Shit. Jeremy looked to Michael, his eyes wide.

“We should go,” Michael stated, taking Jeremy’s hand.

Michael flew them away, towards where he had left the backpack. Jeremy webbed it into his hold and they kept moving, flying across the city as fast as Michael could carry them. Holy shit, today had been a fucking roller coaster.

They landed on a rooftop and took a moment to breathe. Michael removed his mask and shoved it into his pocket, rubbing at his eyes. Jeremy looked over his face, finding a bruise blossoming along his cheek.

“Are you okay?” Jeremy asked, wincing at his sore skin. The burns were setting in now.

Michael nodded, running his tongue over the slice in his lip. “Yeah. I’m okay. You?”

“I…I guess?” Jeremy stepped closer. He felt kind of…weird. “Do…do you feel that?”

Michael glanced around, his eyes whipping to his hands. “Like…tingling?”

Jeremy nodded, “Yeah, I don’t…”

His vision went dark. Jeremy cried out in surprise, confused why he couldn’t see. Fuck!

“Holy shit!” Michael grabbed hold of him in the darkness. Jeremy squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, opening again to find them floating. He could only describe it as a red void. The space pulsated around them, depth perception non existent. He could tell they weren’t falling. But they weren’t standing on anything either. Jeremy grit his teeth, looking around as the void continued to pulsate. What the hell was happening?

“Hello, gentlemen.”

They both pivoted around, a smokey black creature hovering in the void next to them. Michael shoved Jeremy back, igniting his body as he got between Jeremy and the creature.

“Now now, Mr. Mell, your little pyrotechnic show is simply useless here.”

The smoke rushed at Michael, dousing his flames. Jeremy felt unnerved, but his spider sense wasn’t screaming at him. No alarm bells. They weren’t in danger. Yet.

“Mr. Heere, you’ve been through quite a lot these past few days.”

The smoke seeped forward towards him, swishing through his hair and disturbing the slice to his forehead. Jeremy held his gloved hand against the cut, the smoke retracting and irritating the sting.

“What’s it to you? I’m not exactly in the mood for games, Smokey the Bear.”

“I’d imagine not, young man. What with your identity being exposed—”

“Fuck off—”

“Your mother breaking out of prison—”

“Shut up—”

“Your little boyfriend being dragged along with you—”

“Zip it—”

“And your poor father taking that bullet meant for you—”

“Shut the fuck up!” Jeremy screamed, firing webs into the smoke. They did nothing to the creature. Jeremy tried charging at the creature, but he suddenly couldn’t move forward. Jeremy fell to his knees, pulling at his own scalp. He didn’t want to think about it anymore! Every time he closed his eyes—

His dad staring off into nothing. His hand cold to the touch. The blood. Sometimes Jeremy could still smell it.

Michael went after him, pulling Jeremy’s hands back down and pulling him into his arms. Jeremy looked up and failed to hold back the tears. Michael’s lip was still split open. He still had a bruise from the glass bottle being thrown at him. This was all his fault.

“You’re in quite the predicament, Spider-Man,” the smoke swirled up. It began shaping into a human form. The smoke solidified, what appeared to be a grown man now standing in front of them. The cape was pretty corny, but at least he looked put together. Jeremy had his ripped up and burned suit, Michael only staying together because people feared being burned. “I can help. If you’re willing to make a bargain.”

Jeremy wiped at his face, tears and blood and sweat and snot soaking into his gloves. Ashy debris streaked across his skin. “And how the fuck did you plan to do that?! My dad is dead! My mom is long fucking gone! How can you help?! Everything is already broken!”

The man flew closer, a wicked grin forming on his face. “I will fix things for you. Alter time so that your identity was never revealed. The world will forget that Jeremy Heere is Spider-Man and Michael Mell is the Human Torch. With it you get your father back, Jeremy. Your friends. Jennifer would be back in her cage. You’d get your old life back.”

“What’s the catch?” Michael spoke for the both of them. “Seems like a fairly tall order. What if we can’t pay up?”

The demon shrugged, “In return I only ask for this,” he gestured between the two of them. “Your relationship.”

“What?!” Jeremy clung to Michael’s arm.

“Love is a powerful thing, Jeremiah,” the demon chuckled. “And you two have a lot of it. You will still be friends, but it will be as if your romantic relationship never existed.”

“Wh…no. There has to be more! Something else!”

The demon shook his head, “That is all. You don’t have to say yes. I can send you back without change, you’ll still be on the run. Still have no father. I imagine Dr. Rolan will be targeted soon for assisting you in the past, your poor friend Jenna without her father as well. How many is that now that you’ve taken the father from? Three? Four, counting yourself?”

“Fuck off!”

Jeremy got to his feet and turned away. This was bullshit. It had to be. That couldn’t be it. He wouldn’t give Michael up for a scam. A farce put on by a demon.

“I’m in.”

Jeremy whipped his head around, staring wide eyed at Michael, “Excuse me?!”

Michael took his hands in his, “Jeremy. You’ll get your dad back. My moms will be safe. We can go home. No more running. No more staring. No more media.”

“But we’ll be back at square one.”

Michael moved his hand to cup Jeremy’s cheek, “You’re worth that. I love you, Miah.” Michael leaned in to whisper into his ear. “Besides, I wouldn’t mind getting to watch you fall in love with me all over again.”

Jeremy threw himself into Michael’s arms, the two of them holding each other tight.  “I love you too.” Jeremy turned to look at the demon, not letting Michael go. “Where do we sign?”

The demon waved an arm, two platforms appearing in the void. One black, one white.

“Step on the white and you agree to give up your romance. Step on the black and you will return to a reality that is unchanged. Either way you will not remember our interaction. Letting mortals retain memories of me tends to cause their brains to melt. Literally.”

“What will you use…whatever power our romance has…on?” Michael asked.

The demon smirked at them, “Leverage. Nothing you need to concern yourself with. The doings of mortals are typically uninteresting to me. You are a special circumstance.”

They laced their hands together, walking forward. Jeremy paused in front of the platforms. What if he just went back? Why mess with time? Hadn’t he fucked up enough already?

“Jeremy, c’mon,” Michael nudged him towards the white platform.

Jeremy took in a breath before stepping on the platform. Michael joined him, the two turning to face each other.

“You will wake up in the morning and the change will have already taken effect. You won’t remember the past as you do now, and some things may be a bit blurry to your mind as you rediscover them. History being changed is far from easy.”

Michael pulled him into an embrace, pressing their foreheads together, “I’ll see you at school then.”

Jeremy nodded, “Yeah. I’ll have Dad drop me off.”

Michael chuckled, the platform beginning to rise up. Jeremy held on tight, pulling Michael in for one last kiss.

He hoped he didn’t need words to express how much love he had for Michael. And from the way Michael kissed him back? He already knew.