It wasn't the glamorous hotel suite in Paris or even the spacious room in the tower you had for a while, but it somehow felt more like home than any of those places ever did.
You've only been back here once since you were taken in by SHIELD and to see it hadn't changed, was definitely a comfort.
You went out to pick up some supplies and then came back and gave the place a good scrub down before throwing your overalls that you couldn't part with on, starting to paint. You played music off your phone, a smile finally returning to your face as a favorite of yours started, and you finished the room before taking a break. It was only a couple of coats of white, but it really gave the place a fresh, clean look. It was a studio, so there was really just the bathroom left, but you were exhausted already. You ordered a pizza, reminding yourself of the first time you came here, meeting the two super soldiers for the first time, and then plopped down at the table.
A couple of slices and a generous glass of wine had you oddly energized, so you went back out and bought some bedding along with some groceries. You chuckled to yourself when you returned, wondering if this was the first time you really felt like you had a place of your own, even though it wasn't yours, and then fixed everything up to your liking.
You knew Bucky wouldn't mind, he'd probably just be surprised it was clean, and when the night came along, you shut the windows and crawled into bed. There was an old TV that you flicked on, watching some late-night comedy show before drifting off to sleep.
It wasn't the best sleep you've ever had, but you woke up pretty well rested. You made some eggs and toast, humming along to the song stuck in your head, and smiling sadly at everything you had to leave and sacrifice these past six or seven months. You brushed off even entertaining the thought that your brother could somehow be out there like that man said. He contradicted himself anyways, saying at first that you killed him and then that he was still alive. It didn't make sense and you needed to chalk it up to just some psycho who didn't know what he was saying.
But even if you could let it go, you had a feeling that would all come back to bite you in the ass.
After breakfast and a long shower, you went out for a walk, needing a paint refill and maybe some bleach, that place was still a bit of a mess. You also didn't want to be in there too long with all the fumes, so you left a couple of windows open before you left to air it out.
You were dead to most of the world and even flying this close to the sun didn't seem to bother you that much.
It should've, but it didn't.
You wandered around, hopped on a train after purchasing a new MetroCard, and rode it without a destination in mind. But you didn't want to get off in just a different area of Brooklyn, so when it opened in Queens, only to be headed back to Manhattan afterwards since this was its last stop before it went back the same way, you weren't motivated to get out just yet. The subway car felt just as anonymous as the train stations or airports and you could breathe in these places more than most.
But what you didn't expect was to see a dimpled grin on the face of the curly haired kid you had met forever ago. He gasped loudly when he stepped inside, the doors shut behind him, and it drew some eyes, but then they looked away, not caring.
"Pete!"
You laughed at his reaction, getting up to hug the boy, and he couldn't stop smiling even as the tears in his eyes surfaced, holding onto you for dear life, needing to know you were real. His chuckle came out half a choked sob and you squeezed your eyes shut, gripping his shoulder tighter. You pulled away when the train jerked, throwing you both back a bit, and making you laugh again before finding some seats close by.
"You're – you're really here," He held onto your arm, wanting to ground himself, and his cheeks hurt from smiling so much, but it had been so long since it was genuine that he didn't care, "You're..." He trailed off excitedly and then whispered a low, "Alive."
"And I'm so sorry you had to think otherwise." You told him honestly, a frown replacing your previous smile and he was already shaking his head.
"No, I get it," He waved it off, "It doesn't matter now because this is so nuts, man, like what're you doing here? Have you been in Queens this whole time? Or New York? Does Mr. Rogers know? Is that why he left in the beginning of the summer? Did you-"
"Peter, slow down!" You laughed and he took a breath, nodding in agreement, "I know you have a lot of questions and I want to answer them, but nobody else knows I'm here, so can you keep it a secret?"
"You're saying you weren't coming to Queens to see me?" He teased and you chuckled, "But yeah, of course. I'm not some British actor who gets too excited and spoils everything, I'm Spiderman."
"What?" You scrunched your eyebrows and when he opened his mouth to explain, you put a hand up, "You know what? Never mind," He smirked and then you added, "So, where're you headed?"
"The tower," He answered immediately before asking, "...Do you maybe wanna come with me?"
"Um," You hesitated, but before he could tell you not to worry, you said, "I'll take the ride with you."
He wouldn't let you go the entire trip to Manhattan, talking your ear off about everything that's been going on with him and this included both Peter Parker and Spiderman news. You were happy to listen, having missed the teen more than you realized, and you could tell he was back to his old self. You didn't know how much your death had affected him, but you could tell by how he acted it was as if some very dark clouds had finally cleared. Honestly, his cheery voice and positive attitude always lightened your own mood, so it was as much for him as it was for you at this point.
The train slowed to where your stop was and you both got out. The walk to the tower was shorter than you remembered, but when the two of you got there, it was like staring down a trap.
"Does Mr. Stark know?" He finally asked, standing next to you across the street from the building so the security cameras didn't pick you up and breaking you from your thoughts.
"What? Um, no, just you, Steve, Bucky, and Sam," You thought for a second, "...I think."
"That's crazy," He breathed out, peering up at the tower, "But I can hang out with you now, right? You're not leaving again, are you?"
"Of course, you can," You smiled softly over at the boy, "I'm staying at Bucky's apartment for now if you need me."
"Maybe I'll swing by in a couple of days?"
"That'd be nice," You nodded, "Just remember to bring some churros or something."
"You got it." He hugged you again with a laugh and then crossed the street towards the tower with a spring in his step when the road was clear, waving to you before he went inside.
You knew everyone was probably inside unless they were out on a mission and that thought made you smile. It was like checking in on your family, making sure they were okay, and seeing Peter was definitely someone you wanted to be sure was doing well. The other one was-
"You do know my favorite coffee shop is right across from tower."
"Hey, Wanda."
