Always // Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield)

-17- death

Time had all but stopped as Peter leaped down back to where he left Maya. And there she still laid. Her body trembling uncontrollably as she held her hands to her wounded chest, small sobs leaving her lips.

Through her blurry vision, she could make out someone kneeling next to her. Their heavy, panicked breaths were all she could focus on. She reached a hand out towards the figure.

Death - She thought. Death was kneeling next to her.

The figure grabbed her hand and held it tightly, their thumb rubbing soothing circles over her hand. Maya's eyes fluttered shut. The voice next to her rung out, her eyes opening again at the sound.

"Maya"

Peter. It was Peter next to her.

Her eyes tried desperately to find his through the fog that clouded her vision.

"Maya. Hey- it's me. Maya. Keep your eyes open, please" As much as he tried, Peter couldn't hide the pure panic in his voice. He gently removed her hand from her chest as he let his grip go from her other hand. He applied pressure to her chest, his suit instantly darkening as her blood soaked through it.

He felt like he was teleported back to the night Uncle Ben died. He had held his chest the same way he now held Maya's. How unfair could the universe be to be doing this to him again. What sick and twisted entity was enjoying watching him suffer?

Maya's hands made their way back to her chest and Peter moved them to her sides again.

"I'm gonna get you out of here. You're gonna be fine, okay? Hey,- remember when you said you couldn't lose me? Well I can't lose you either, alright. So keep your eyes open for me, okay?"

Maya's eyes finally found Peter's. She could make out the features on his face as she slowly began to regain some of her vision. His expression was one of fear as he didn't let his gaze waver from hers. Maya forced the shadow of a smile onto her lips in hopes it would stop his worry, even a little bit.

"You won't believe it," Her voice was hoarse as she spoke. "But I thought you were the Grim Reaper" Her laugh was interrupted by a cough that sent a hot, stinging pain into her chest.

"The Grim Reaper? Damn, I was hoping to be more of a Guardian Angel" Despite his anxiety, Peter allowed a smile to form on his lips.

"Well, it looks like your New York's Guardian Angel, Pete. You actually stopped Connors."

"Couldn't have done it without you"

Maya dismissed him with a "pfft" and a wave of her hand. "Please, all I did was get myself clawed by a dinosaur 65 million years after they went extinct"

Peter chuckled as he removed his hands from her chest which had now, thank god, slowed down in bleeding. "Hey, I think that's still pretty badass. Come on, I gotta get you to a hospital"

Peter placed his mask back over his face before guiding her hands to wrap around his neck as he snaked one arm behind her back and the other behind her knees. Maya let out a sharp exhale as Peter began to lift her up. "I'm sorry" He whispered as he stood up, holding her close to his chest. She bit her bottom lip to stifle her sobs, eyes shut tight which forced all the tears that had been glossing her vision to fall and land on Peter's shoulder.

He glanced down at Maya once more before attaching a web to the building opposing Oscorp and swung as carefully as he could. The last thing he wanted to do was to cause the poor girl more pain than he had already caused her.

---

Maya's grip on Peter's neck faltered as Peter attached a web off a nearby crane. A whimper left her as Peter halted and landed them on the ground. They were still about half a block away from the A&E, but hell, if Peter had to run her the rest of they way there, then that's what he'd do.

"It hurts, I can't-"

"Hey, hey it's okay. You're okay. Just a little further"

One of the good things about Peter's spider sense was his ability to not have to take his eyes off Maya as he ran. Her bottom lip was spotted in blood as her teeth still bit down on the bruising skin.

She shut her eyes even tighter as her vision was consumed with bright white light and the loud chaos surrounding her. She could barely make out what Peter was saying to the nurse, all she knew was that he sounded panicked. Maya shuddered as she felt the warmth of his skin being ripped away from her as she was frantically placed on a hospital bed. The hospital was overwhelmed with an influx of people, suffering from the aftermath of the lizard attack. Broken bones, head injuries, but by the quick response the doctors had to Maya, it was obvious her injuries were more serious than those of the patients around them.

Peter extended his hand to grab hers, but he didn't even get a chance to hold it before the doctors had rushed her away behind a set of doors. His legs moved on their own as he went to follow behind them, but was stopped by a nurse before he could get past the doors.

"Only family allowed through" She had an apologetic look on her face as she held an arm out in front of him to stop him going an further. "I can't break the rules, even for superheroes".