The Little Match Spider

Matches

"Keep going Parker, keep going".

Peter repeated to himself sadly as he walked along the wet dark streets of Queen's feeling his cold feet touch the snow or water with every step he took. He noticed his feet were getting number by each step he took further.

Here he was currently wearing ragged up clothes with some luckily having poorly sewn patches on them, he wasn't all lucky though, some of his clothes had plain holes in them and he didn't have any shoes on his feet or any jacket, hat, or mittens on his body leaving some of his skin to be victimized to the cold winds.

He didn't know how late it was. He knew that it was still early though, the dark sky seemed to come quicker than he remembered. The cold weather was bad enough, but of course it had to snow that night. Snow had been falling from the sky for a while now, it had started to pile up against the roads and the sidewalks. He had tried to keep himself warn by stopping every once and a while and rubbing his feet to try and keep them from completely freezing up, he wasn't sure it mattered though he was sure he had already gotten frostbite on multiple spots on his body.   

His body shook and shivered as the wind and snowflakes hit his skin.

He sat himself down on a bench outside a city cafe as he hugged himself.

He had been out for hours now.

But he couldn't go home

Yet.

His Aunt May had made him go out to sell matches to people in the city, hoping for him to make some money pennies even. His Aunt had lost her job a while ago Peter wasn't exactly sure what she worked as but he knew it brought good money as they hadn't had to worry about food or bills. Now, they had been running out of money and his Aunt hadn't found a job yet. He supposed that May thought people were more likely to buy things from a teenager perhaps that was why she had been forcing him to sell small random things.

Tonight, she had sent him to sell matches

Usually, he was lucky if he got some dollars, but he hadn't gotten any money from tonight.

And that made Peter scared.

If he didn't sell anything or get money his Aunt would often take one of his Uncle Ben's leather belt and whip him with it. Currently, it was why Peter had several marks on his body. He knew going back home with no money meant a beating, but he didn't want to stay outside in the snow. 

By now it was black out besides the street lamps. No cars, no people walking down the streets, everybody was now inside their warm houses. 

Peter didn't have anyone to go to. Besides May he didn't have any family. His mom and dad died had died when he was really young to the point Peter had barley remembered them besides the flashbacks of their smiles he got occasionally. And then his uncle Ben had been shot, which Peter knew for a fact his death was the start of the abuse on him. He had always been closer to his uncle Ben than his aunt bonding over their love of science. It had destroyed him mentally when he was gone.

Well, he still had one person. Not technically a person but he still had his stuffed bunny "Carrot" Ben had made for him. A white bunny with "Peter" sewn into the chest by his uncle. Carrot (like him) had gotten dirty over the years from sleep with Peter on an old mattress, but Peter still kept him with him it kinda felt like his Uncle Ben was still with him. 

Peter hugged Carrots to his face trying to keep himself warm as his body shivered and he tried to keep his feet off the wet ground. He was so cold and he didn't have anything on him to keep him from freezing to death.

Wait a second.

Peter held the match box up to his face looking at it temptingly. He couldn't use the matches to warm himself up he'd probably get a larger beaten and likely no dinner that night. But he'd likely freeze to death if he didn't.