Survivor's Guilt || Peter Parker

Three

If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?

Peter's thoughts return to the philosophical question as he continues to walk through the forest, Morgan's dead body limp in his arms.

At one point in his life, he would have said yes, content with the definitive answer to the multilayered question.

Now, he wasn't so sure.

Peter continues to debate alone, distracting himself from the way Morgan lays cold and heavy against his chest.

He reaches the end of the forest hours later when the sun begins to set, and Peter decides then and there that the universe will always be cruel and unforgiving.

Peter has reached his salvation alone. The death of Morgan Stark will haunt him for the rest of his life, and the realization destroys any celebration he has for surviving the odds.

He's void of emotions, numb with pain.

After walking some more miles, he reaches a busy highway with cars speeding past him, and he's shocked to see any form of civilization. At this point, Peter doesn't know where he's headed or where he is, but he no longer cares.

He clutches onto Morgan when a car pulls to the side, and a middle aged couple walks out.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Peter wants to tell them to leave, to ignore him like all of the other cars had. After all, May has taught him to not trust strangers, and while his spider sense wasn't going off, he still couldn't bring himself to acknowledge their arrival.

He continues limping along the side of the road, blatantly ignoring their presence. Unfortunately, they don't let him travel very far, and they stand in front of him with their arms extended, as if trying to tame a wild animal.

"Hey sweetheart, what are you two doing out here alone?"

Peter doesn't respond, because what was he supposed to say.

The couple looks at one another and Peter can practically feel their worry suffocating him.
The man pulls out a cell phone and begins to dial a number.

"We're going to call for an ambulance-"

There was more that was definitely said, but Peter had stopped paying attention as fear raked through his entire body, and that's when he finally speaks out loud.

"Don't."

Peter doesn't mean to yell, and he almost feels bad when the couple startles away in shock. They stare at him for a moment, and they must see something broken in Peter's eyes, because a second later the man hangs up the phone with no questions asked.

"Okay, we won't call, but how about you hop in the car with us and we can take you where you need to go."

In any other situation, Peter would have refused, but he was unbearably tired and his feet were cut up and blistered. He knew that he wouldn't last on the road for much longer if he kept traveling on his own.

So, without a word, he walks towards the parked car and hops into the back seat. He keeps Morgan tucked into his lap as he buckles his seat belt, refusing to let go of her even for a second.

The couple jumps in as well, and they appear flustered by the turn of events. They must notice the way Peter's entire body is shaking, because one of them cranks up the heat without saying a word. The silence in the car is long and uncomfortable, but Peter embraces it.

Eventually however, the woman turns around to address him, and Peter stifles back a sigh.

"Where are we taking you, honey?"

Peter shrugs, because he doesn't know.

The woman isn't happy with his lack of response, so she tries again, this time more persistent.

"Can you at least tell us where you're coming from?"

He shrugs again, because he doesn't know.

"We can't help you if you don't talk to us."

"You can take me wherever you're headed and I'll figure it out from there."

His voice sounds hoarse even to his own ears, and he cringes at the scratchy sensation. His answer earns a deep frown from both of the strangers, and Peter has to look away.

Cars zoom by, and he despises how time continues to move on even after he feels the world crumbling around him.

No other words are exchanged as the man pulls the car into drive.