A New Hero - Peter Parker (BOOK 1) | Spider-Man: Far From Home

Chapter Thirty-Nine - Finally

"Is it me, or did we just win?" Clara asks, Peter turning to face her with a start, having, for a brief moment, forgotten she was there. At the sight of her, he rushed forwards, pulling her into a warm embrace, burying his face in the crook of her next. Clara smiled into the embrace, wrapping her arms around Peter to hold him close.

"Yeah, I think we did." He mumbled, the moment bittersweet. Yes, they had won, but at what cost? Peter pulled away, still holding Clara, but now giving her some room to breathe. "We're both alive, right?"

"Right." Clara agreed, looking up to meet Peter chocolate brown eyes. He looked back down, his gaze flicking between her eyes and her lips. He leant down, hesitating inches away. The feeling of Peter's breath against her face making goosebumps spread along Clara's skin. The hair on her neck standing on end as if electricity joined the two teenagers.

Clara lifted her chin only slightly, closing the distance, but still not making contact with Peter. He lifted a hand, resting it gently on her cheek, his thumb running over her smooth skin. He wanted to kiss her, he really did. So why hesitate? Peter continued to gaze down as he wondered the question, soon realising that he wasn't moving because he didn't want the moment to end.

The only thing stopping him was the idea of this ending one chapter and beginning another; having another problem to solve, another battle to fight, and something else to stop him from enjoying the summer with his friends, travelling around Europe, spending time with the girl he really likes, and telling her how he feels.

But that wasn't this. This wasn't a problem, a battle, or a fight - this was exactly what he wanted, and he wasn't going to ruin it. He was going to take this chance, just as Clara had done before, and he was going to show her how he felt.

Clara watched the calculations behind Peter's troubled eyes. She felt dizzy almost, her head spinning as she waited in anticipation for him to make his move. When he did, his eyes closing, Clara felt a surge of emotions, his lips brushed gently against hers. Finally, she thought, it was finally happening. It had only been a few days, but it felt as though she had known Peter for a lifetime, long enough to build a connection stronger than any she'd had before.

But, she also felt sick to her stomach.

Clara frowned, trying to focus on Peter as his lips pressed against hers, moving slowly, softly. A fresh wave of nausea swam through her, and she then realised it hadn't been the apprehension making her head spin. The pain in her stomach had amplified, the dull ache growing to a sharp sting, then, searing agony.

Clara broke away from the kiss, Peter resting his forehead against hers as she did, his eyes still closed. She moved her hand, fingers shaking as she let them brush her stomach. As they made a connection to her t-shirt, she felt a wetness to it. "Peter." She said, her voice weak.

"Yeah?" He whispered, his voice just as quiet. A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. They were both alive, they had won, and it was finally all going right.

"I..." She trailed off, her knees weakening and she lifted her hand in the space between her and Peter to see the red-tipped fingers. "I..." She tried again to the same effect, though this time her knees gave out beneath her, Peter snapping out of his thoughts in time to catch her.

"Clara?" He asked, lowering her to the floor and her body began to fall limp. Peter noticed her bloodied fingers hovering above her stomach, a red patch spreading across her t-shirt. He reached out, moving her hand out of the way. "No, no, no, no, no!"

"Peter?" Clara asked, her bottom lip shaking as the pain rippled through her stomach. "Is- Is it bad?"

Peter stared down at her abdomen, the wound puckered where a stray bullet had struck her. Blood was still seeping from it, dripping onto the floor beneath them from the exit wound in her back. "No. No, you're gonna be fine, Clara." He said shakily, Clara immediately knowing it was much worse than he was making it out to be. "Just- Just stay here."

I wasn't planning on going anywhere, Clara tried to say, the words morphing into something else as she spoke: "It hurts." There was a metallic taste on her tongue, and she could feel blood tickling in her throat. She refused to cough, her stomach screaming at her each time she tensed her muscles.

"That's good, Clara. That's good." He reassured her, knowing that the pain meant there was still time to save her. His heart sank as she stifled a cough and a bead of red trickled out of the corner of her lips. He knew that wasn't good - that was far from good.

"Peter? Clara? Are you okay?" Clara heard Happy through the comms. "The drones have gone, we're good."

"Happy?" Peter called out, his voice breaking. Clara looked back at him, her eyes not leaving his, and she saw they were red-rimmed and tear-misted. "Happy, you have to get here, now. Clara's hurt, Happy, please."

"Okay, Peter, it's okay, what happened? Where are you?" He asked, keeping his own voice calm to try and ease the young boy into telling him the information he needed.

"I- We're in the walkways above Tower Bridge." He rushed out, fresh waves of panic hitting him as Clara cheeks paled further, the blood draining from her face. "I'll bring her down to the road - Clara's been shot, Happy. She's bleeding. It's- It's not good."

"Okay, I'll get one of Fury's men to bring a jet, I'll meet you there."

Clara felt Peter lifting her from the ground, her vision blurring, and her fingers going numb. "Just stay with me, Clara." Peter begged. "Please, just stay with me."

"I... I can't." She confessed, letting her head rest against his shoulder, her eyes fluttering closed. There was a quiet engine somewhere close, a jet hovering just beside the bridge, waiting for Peter and Clara to join them.

"Clara, just hold on, okay?" Peter told her. "There's a doctor on that jet, they'll help you, you'll be okay."

Clara knew he was saying that to reassure himself as much as he was her, and she could hear the tears in his words. She wasn't sure whether she would survive or not, but that was okay, because she had protected Peter. Spider-Man was alive. Peter Parker was safe. "It's okay." She muttered, Peter's heart sinking further as the words reached him.

Fresh air hit Clara, a warm breeze and the smell of salt water. "We're almost there okay? You can't give up. Not now." Peter sounded breathless, the battle having taken a toll on him, and he struggled to keep his pace, but the fear of losing another loved one spurred him on. "You're going to be okay. You have to be."

Clara drifted, hearing multiple voices around her, numerous hands holding her as she was taken from Peter. His voice sounded distant now, fading as she was pulled away from him, though he still stood by her side. 

She didn't want to die, but if that was the only way to have kept Peter safe, then it was worth it.

The world needed Peter Parker.