Spiderdad

45

At first, it was cloud of confusion. Then a wave of realization. Finally, raw anger and pure hatred. Those were the emotions soaring at unfathomable heights the moment MJ's baby was born. Peter couldn't even look at the damn child another second. He averted his harsh glare to the ground as the doctors weighed and wiped down the screaming tomato. He forced himself to sit in the chair next to MJ despite being sick with disgust. 

"Michelle, whose is it," Peter demanded to MJ as she slowed her breathing.

"I-I don't know what you mean," she sobbed.

"Do think I'm blind?" He challenged sharply. 

He knew it the moment his mind absorbed the sight. Baby's skin gave it away. Her skin was darker than Peter's, darker than MJ's, and darker than anyone in MJ's family.

This baby wasn't his.

"Please don't hurt him," MJ weakly managed.

"Michelle," every word was dripping with hateful venom, "tell me who the fuck the father is or the you'll be the one who gets hurt."

MJ whimpered nervously, guilt heavy in her stomach as she replied, "L-Luke Cage," she mumbled.

Without another word, Peter abruptly stood up and shoved past a few doctors as he hurried out of the hospital. 

"Peter!" Adrain called and stood up before he could get past the waiting room, "is everything okay?"

"Adrian, sit the fuck down," Peter ordered.

The boy's eyes widened and he sat back down next to his mother. Nora looked up at Peter, her eyes wide with worry and confusion.

"Pete, what's wrong."

"Your daughter's a whore," Peter spat the whirled around and raced away. 

Adrian's eyes became saucers of realization, "oh shit..."

Meanwhile, Peter glanced at his phone, reading the time to be 3:10. That ment Luke Cage was about to start wrestling practice and Peter had about five minutes to get ahold of him. That's all the time I need. He ran off in the direction of Midtown High, then took a turn through and alleyway— this was his shortcut to the hidden backside of the school. This was where the wrestling team and all the other jocks would take a smoking break, he knew this was where Luke would be, even though the older teen didn't smoke. 

"Hey, Parker," Luke called as he saw him approach.

Peter put on a friendly smile, ignoring the other wrestlers, "hey, man. Can I talk to you inside?"

"Sure," he shrugged then glanced at his friends, "I'll be back in a sec."

"This your tutor or something?" One wrestler asked Luke, keeping his cigarette near his lips.

Peter's face scrunched up in confusion, "he's way too smart to need a tutor."

"Thanks, Parker," Luke smacked his hand against Peter's back with a thump then led him away from the athletes and inside the school. 

The moment the doors closed behind them, Peter's friendly disposition dropped. He swiftly grasped Luke by the collar of his shirt then slammed him against the nearby lockers. Luke gasped at the jolt that was sent through his spine and the unanticipated strength of the smaller teen. 

"Wh-what the hell, man!?" He exclaimed, stunned by the fury in Peter's eyes and the increasing pressure of being pinned against the lockers. 

"Go take care of your daughter," Peter ordered fiercely.

"I don't have a daughter!" Luke protested, certain the kid was about to murder him in cold blood.

"Tell that to my fucking girlfriend!" He spat. 

Luke's eyes widened, "M-Michelle, right?"

"Damn straight."

"Oh shit," Luke breathed as his shoulders relaxed, "man, I didn't know."

"What do you mean you didn't know," Peter's grip loosened slightly.

"I mean she told me it was fine," Luke explained, "trust me, I asked about you. I asked why she was cheating, she said you wouldn't care."

Peter let go of Luke and stepped back, a sink hole now forming in his stomach; his gut twisted into knots in a sickening way.

"Why the fuck would she say that," he wondered aloud. 

"I dunno, but can you really blame her for wanting to sneak off with other people while her man's blackout drunk?" Luke spoke cautiously.

"Are you- how many times did she hook up behind my back?!" Peter cried.

"I dunno, you know I don't normally go to parties," Luke replied quickly. 

Peter ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath, "... you gotta take care of that girl."

"Man, I can't do that!" Luke exclaimed in panic.

"Why the fuck not!" Peter snapped.

"I have a life planned out for me! I gotta go to college, I've just got my acceptance letter the other day," he frantically explained.

Peter was quiet a moment. He couldn't force Luke into anything and, unfortunately, he was a overall good person who didn't deserve to have his obnoxiously bright future snatched away. 

"Go back to your friends," Peter waved him off.

"Are you gonna be okay?" He checked carefully. 

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

"Alright..." Luke glanced at the intense darkness in Peter's eyes, "don't hurt Michelle."

Peter didn't respond to that, he just turned around and stalked out of the school. His muscles trembling with fury and an alien sense of loss, he glanced in the direction of the hospital where MJ lay, crying softly as she held her baby. There was a moment of hesitation, then Peter sighed deeply.

"Your on your own," he muttered to himself before turning around and walking in the opposite direction.

The moment he arrived in his bedroom, Peter slammed the door a little louder than he had intended. He glanced at his desk then swept a framed photo of him and MJ of its surface. The photo was one Adrian had taken shortly after the explosion that took Peter's legs. It captured MJ leaning in to kiss Peter as he leaned against the headboard of her bed— it was the moment Peter had realized that MJ would still love Peter, even if he had metal for legs. 

In an act of rage, he hurled the image across his room, shattering the frame and glass against his bedroom wall. 

"Fucking slut," he hissed under his breath. 

"Peter?" Tony called from the other side of the door, "may I come in?"

"Go ahead," Peter grumbled as he collapsed onto his bed.

Tony opened the door and was immediately shocked by Peter's livid appearance, "kid, what happened?"

Peter ran his hand through his hair and shrugged, keeping his gaze on the ground.

"You should be taking care of MJ-"

"Shut the fuck up, Tony. She cheated on me," Peter spat.

Tony's eyes widened then he furrowed his brow, "wait, what do you-"

"I mean the baby isn't mine," Peter explained sharply.

Tony frowned in pity then sat down next to his son, "so... what're you going to do about it."

Peter leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, "... a few weeks back, Rhodes told me I needed to either step up and be the man MJ needed me to be, or sit the fuck down so she could see the man standing behind me."

That's... really great advice. I'm using that some day, Tony thought as he nodded slowly, "so which are you going to do?"

"I'm sitting the fuck down."