After the events of No Way Home, Peter Parker had the chance to restart his life and start fresh. But without his family, friends, mentors or fellow Avengers, his life began to spiral into darkness.
His new neighbour however, seems to make that dark...
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PETER PARKER
The pharmacy worker looked at me quizzically with his eyebrow raised as I put my shopping basket on the counter with a thud. He was an older gentleman dressed in all white. It somewhat matched his salt and pepper beard which was cut closely to the skin. He was well put together, which made sense as to why he was looking down at me because I looked the complete opposite.
"Do you need medical attention Sir?" He asked cautiously, looking at me holding a wad of toilet paper under my nose to clot the bleeding.
A big thank you to the City of New York for finally installing public bathrooms in East Harlem - they're a great place for people to shoot up heroin, have sex, urinate on the floor and attend to broken noses.
"I just get nose bleeds, it's common for me," I said smiling softly and trying not to wince in pain.
To be fair, this broken nose would be a lot more serious for the average man. The average man would be rushed to hospital or something and have splints shoved up his sinuses to straighten the cartilage or whatever. I just had to wait for my body to heal itself. The recovery admittedly took longer than when Venom was with me but I knew that I would be fully healed in a few days. I just had to look hideous for a little while.
"I recommend stitches for that wound on your forehead as well young man, do you wish for us to call the authorities? Was this inflicted by another person?" He said lowering his voice, scanning each of my items slowly.
"No, no, no. I just- I slipped in the shower and smacked my head on the tub. Sorry for lying before I was just embarrassed. No need to call the police, I'll be fine with those little butterfly tape things," I shrugged, pointing at the box of gauze strips I added to the basket.
Look, it technically wasn't a lie. I did fall in the bathroom and I did hit my head on the edge of my bathtub. And the shower is technically attached to my bathtub so it's also kind of true.
"You should get some antiseptic to kill any bacteria first, like Betadine. If there are any signs of infection, please come and see us right away though," he nodded, ringing up the register to show the final total.
Whatever the fuck Betadine was, I don't need it. My body fights infection better than anything a chemist could sell me. I think.
I tapped my phone to pay, took the little paper bag from him and attempted to smile at him once more before leaving the counter and almost running into a woman triple my age. I found an empty bench to sit down on and I pulled out my newly acquired medical supplies. Carefully pulling the scrunched up ball of toilet paper from my nose to check if it was still bleeding, I opened my phone camera to look at the damage.
