Going Through Changes -> Peter Parker

5.

Liam loved running but running after a suicidal teenager in hopes to prevent the worst-case scenario wasn't exactly how he liked it. Peter was just too careless. He might have superpowers but Liam knew the power behind those weapons just too well. He still got scars from them after all.  He needed all his physical strength to keep his speed consistent enough to don't lose the van which dragged Peter behind like a ragged doll. The criminals had started to shoot at the Spider-Man, who did his best to dodge the bullets but took a few hits of smashing against something instead. Liam speed up his pace, deeply worried about how long the boy could take it. He was responsible for the boy and that meant he wasn't allowed to die on his watch. Tony would never allow him to leave the Headquarters again to go on a mission. So Liam just had to get the boy out of trouble. Or at least stand by his side to protect him. His heart was racing in his chest, his breathing heavy, but he was too stubborn to give up. He could make it. He knew his body was capable to. 

 More energy was blasting at Peter, who dodged every shot successfully, but it was only a matter of time that he got hit. The boy grimly continued to hold on tight to his self-engineered web, hoping this bumpy right would end soon.  Finally, the van made a sharp turn, dragging Peter face-first through a line of garbage bins till he hit a solid brick pillar,  making him lose grip and drop to the ground alongside a heap of bricks. Peter tried to attach himself to the van again, failing. "Great.", he mumbled pissed, when Liam came running by, taking his hand and dragging him along the sidewalk without stopping.

 "We're taking a shortcut.", he explained quickly to Peter, who was completely baffled by the teenager's stamina. But he let himself fall into step with him, gathering his strength for another time. Their way led them across several private gardens, past several puzzled owners, then Peter shot a web into the sky using the streetlamps to swing both of them through the neighborhood. That gave the teens' legs a brief moment to recover, a welcome break from the running.

" I'm starting to like this.", Liam announced grinning, holding tightly onto Peter's waist who had an arm slung around him in return. The other boy let out a small chuckle of euphoria. He'd never shared this experience with someone before. This was certainly exciting. And both boys were enjoying every second of this unusual team. It didn't take long for them to spot the van in the distance and Peter made an attempt to land them on it but ended up narrowly missing it. Just in time, he shot again, landing on a roof instead, immediately taking up the chase again. 

Finally catching up, Peter made a heap for the vehicle, leaving Liam on the roof behind who struggled to stop his feet. He came to hold dangerously close to the edge of the rooftop right in time to watch Peter being snatched from the van by a winged figure. "Really?" he called out annoyed. How high were the odds of a mystery villain turning up to their mission? And of course, it had to attack while he was too far away to intervene.  He heard Peter's scream of surprise cutting through the night. The boy really wasn't doing well on his own. Now Liam understood why he needed a babysitter. Peter's luck was just wicked. With a huff, Liam jumped from the roof, landing hard on his feet, and immediately ran after Peter again,  the damsel in distress who currently wrestled to pull his leg free from the villain's tight grip.