SUMMER JOB || Peter Parker X Reader

Chapter 16: Plans For Revenge

With Uncle Tommy on the mend, things calmed down around the house a bit. May stopped coming around as much, usually sending her naked gifts with Peter. Lee stopped sleeping on the couch- which was good for you, you were getting a little tired of hearing about how his back was hurting.

Laurie, however, just got quieter.

She would just sit with her headphones in for hours, either reading or staring out the window. She had also taken to sitting in the backyard with Lee in the grass. You were a little confused- in your mind, things getting better would have usually meant happy-go-lucky Laurie would come back, but here she was, quiet and pensive. You didn't want to ask though; you knew this had been extremely difficult for her, and rightfully so.

It turned out, you didn't have to ask though, because Laurie approached you.

"Hey." She poked her head into the living room, where you had been sitting on the couch, reading a book (An Abundance Of Katherines, Peter had recommended it to you- you were liking it so far, and the main character, Colin, really reminded you of him).

"Hey." You replied, dog-earing your page. "What's up?"

"You busy?" Laurie asked, glancing at the book in your hand.

"No." You set it aside.

"Cool... um, do you mind coming upstairs for a minute?" She asked, nodding at her dad, who was passed out in the armchair.

"Sure thing." You replied, getting up to follow her up the stairs. You hoped it wasn't bad... but what would it even be anyway? Maybe she was still having nightmares...

She lead you to your shared room, where Lee was sprawled our over her bed. He shifted over when you walked in, and Laurie sat down beside him, tucking her legs up under one another. You took a seat on your own bed, relatively uneasy. This felt oddly formal all of a sudden.

"So... what's going on?" You asked.

"I don't like that TelePro is still out there." Laurie said. "And I also don't like just... not knowing, where he is or what he's up to or when or if he's coming back- it's been keeping me up at night. So I want to do something about it."

"Do something about it..." You repeated. "Like... what?"

"Vigilante justice?" Laurie said. "God that sounds so stupid out loud."

You blinked. Vigilante justice...? Like Batman?

"And you're on board with this?" You asked Lee.

He shrugged. "That guy shot Stark and Tommy. And then got away. And now people are actually agreeing with him online. The guy needs a reality check."

"Wait, what?" You asked. "People are...?"

"It's all minimum wage workers and people that work for big corporations." Lee said. "They really connect with his whole bit about how the one percent are screwing everyone else over. And I mean, they are, but you don't have to go around shooting people to get that across."

You frowned. "Do they not, like, know about the shootings?"

"There's a couple that are actually congratulating him on nailing Stark." Laurie said. "Fucking neckbeard simps..." She grumbled.

"But what are you guys going to do?" You asked. "Even the police can't find this guy."

"That's why we're coming to you." Laurie said. "I don't know how teleportation works, but you do, you built the thing. And maybe... there's some way we can figure out how he's doing it and where he went."

You say for a minute, letting it sink in. This definitely was not a good idea. There would be consequences even if you managed to pull it off; you were skirting around the authorities and if things got violent...

But this man needed to be brought in. And there was no way the police would be able to get him, not when he could teleport. He was dangerous. If he had shot Uncle Tommy in the head...

"Okay." You said.

"Okay?" Laurie repeated.

"I'll help." You clarified. "At least, I'll try my best. I don't know how useful I'll be if things gets physical in the end, but I can help with the tracking and the teleportation bit."

Laurie got up, coming over to your bed to hug you. "Thank you." She said. "I know what we're trying to do is crazy... but it means a lot to me that you'd even agree to help in the first place."

"It's the least I can do." You said.

And it kind of was. That nagging feeling you'd been having for a while- that this was your fault since you helped build the machine- was silenced at the idea of you bringing TelePro in to custody. This was your opportunity to right your wrong - even if you logically knew it wasn't really your wrong to right.

But... there was no way you were going to let Laurie walk into a fight with him alone. She might have a flaming spirit, but a flaming spirit wasn't really a match for a handgun.

You had a phone call to make.

——

"Peter, they're going to try and bring him in alone." You said.

You had called Peter as soon as Laurie had let you go, and had brought him up to date on the situation. You felt kind of bad for going behind Laurie's back, but Peter was Spider-Man. He knew what he was doing when it came to these types of things.

Peter sighed on the other end of the line. "You shouldn't have agreed to help them."

"But-"

"No, I know." He continued. "But you're not going to be able to do anything. This guy is crazy-"

"Which is why I called you." You cut him off. "You know what you're doing. They- we- could really use your help."

"I can't just out myself to two other people." Peter said. "It's already bad enough that you and Ned know."

You were kind of hurt by that; did he think you weren't trustworthy? "Peter I'm not going to tell anybody. You don't even have to tell them you're Spider-Man. You can just come as Peter and help with the computer stuff."

"What, and let your cousin and her boyfriend walk into a fight alone once they know where he is? No, I'm not going to do that."

"Well they're going to go through with this either way." You said. "And I would rather have at least some assistance from you than none."

Something rustled on Peters end. "I should just go to the police right now..."

"For them to do what? Laurie hasn't done anything yet." You argued. "Peter it's fine if you don't want to help us, you don't have to make excuses-"

"No, I do want to help you... it's you." Peter said. "I just..."

Your heart fluttered. 'It's you'. What did that mean?

"I don't want anyone to get hurt. It's easier when I do these things myself. There's no liability there." He finished.

"Peter-" You started.

"No, I'll help." He said, interrupting you. "I can't stop you, so I might as well try to make sure you come out okay."

"Thanks." You said. "Um... I think Laurie will really appreciate it. And I do too."

"Yeah." Peter said. "Anytime."

The line was silent for a minute, and you thought back to you and Peter sitting in that empty hallway of the Stark building, just holding hands on the floor after you found out he was Spider-Man. And suddenly, you felt the need to tell him.

"Listen-" You started.

"Y/N, I've got to go." Peter cut you off. "But... text me later, okay?"

"Okay." You finished lamely. "Bye, I guess."

"Bye."

The line cut out, and you slid your phone back in your pocket. Peter had tried to tell you something in the kitchen that night when Uncle Tommy had first been allowed downstairs. And before that, at the open house.

You sighed, looking at the time. If you wanted to shower before you went to bed, you would have to go now.

You had a feeling you would be plagued with what ifs for the rest of the night though.