|Towards the Endgame|

•Chapter 51• It's been a long, long time

He was hurt badly, impacted by the use of the Infinity Stones, but he was still walking. Bruce's eyes widened as he watched his friend emerge from the smoke. Tony stumbled down the steps. Bruce hurried to his side along with Strange who had managed to escape his electric prison. "Where am I?" Tony questioned. "Friday, what's his status?" Bruce questioned the suit. "Body severely affected. Burns noted on the right side of the body. Heart rate seems normal." The AI answered. Tony's eyes went to his daughter on the floor. He pushed away Bruce and Stephen, no matter their protests, and stumbled toward his daughter. Stark dropped to his knees beside Peter who turned to look at his mentor with teary eyes. "Mr. Stark..." He couldn't stop sobbing. "We need to take her to the hospital wing. Now. Along with the other boy." Strange ordered. Peter, without hesitation, picked her body off the floor and carried her to the hospital wing. Tony followed close behind, utterly confused about everything that was happening. Once they reached the hospital wing at the facility, Peter placed her on top of a bed. He watched as Harley was already being dragged inside. Bruce immediately started to examine her body with the help of Friday and Stephen Strange. "Is she gonna be okay?" Peter asks them. "The left side of the body is badly damaged. Left lung slightly damaged." The AI told them. "She needs surgery. Right now." Strange said and started to push Y/n away. "Is she gonna be okay?!" Peter exclaimed. "I don't know. Stay here." Bruce told him before hurrying after Strange. Peter's hands went straight into his hair as his breathing started to get heavier.

Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Kid," Tony started. Peter squeezed his eyes shut tightly. His heart rate is abnormally fast and he couldn't calm it down. "Kid, you've got to tell me what's going on. Okay? Where's Steve? Thor? Anyone. What's wrong with Y/n? Was she even breathing?" Tony kept rambling on and on. Tears stung in Peter's eyes as he listened to Tony's words. This was a dream, a nightmare, it had to be. Something he couldn't awaken from. "Kid!" Tony raised his voice at him. "The machine!" Peter snapped at him, "You died! Y/n built a machine to undo your death and she got hurt! I tried to stop her, Mister Stark. I tried." His anger turned into sobs. He would never forgive himself if she died. "She did what?" Tony said in a whisper, barely audible. "She wanted everything to go back to normal. I should've talked her out of it from the start. Mister Stark, this is all my fault. I don't- she can't -" Peter broke down into tears. Tony quickly responded by pulling the boy into his chest. He'd grown. Of course, Y/n did something like this. He rubbed Peter's back whilst he let the boy sob into his shoulder "How long was I gone?" He muttered to the boy. "Getting close to two years," Peter answered. Tony let out a sigh. Sure, it was a shock, but somehow he managed to take it well. Maybe he got used to things like this happening during his time as an Avenger.

"Almost two years..." He repeated as he rubbed his forehead. Peter turned back to the doors through which Y/n was pushed moments ago. "My webshooters ran out. I tried- I wanted to -" The tears came running back in his eyes. "Pete, calm down." Peter nodded his head and wiped away his tears. "After you died, everything changed. Y/n was working so hard and I was busy with school. This guy came along, he managed to trick Nick Fury and tried to steal Edith. He used illusion tech and let us all believe he was the good guy. He tried to kill me. We defeated him and everything seemed fine. But then my identity was revealed to the rest of the world. I went to Doctor Strange to cast a spell to let everyone forget, because it caused a lot of trouble, and I somehow disrupted the multiverse. All these crazy villains came out to get me, and two other versions of me. So, to get rid of everyone, Strange cast another spell to make everyone forget. But Y/n remembered me. She told me she was working on a machine to replace the time stone. She would be able to get you back. Undo your death. And it worked." Tony listened carefully as Peter explained what happened in the last few years. Suddenly, Tony understood why Peter was so upset about it all. "So she brought everyone back?" Tony asks calmly. Peter nodded his head in response. "You did good, kid. You did good." Tony complimented him.