#peter parker prompts

Pairing: College!Peter Parker x HOH!Reader

Words:4,586

Warnings: Mentions of fire, mentions of anxiety, a tiny little bit of angst I suppose

Summary:When you, an intern for the Daily Bugle, are set out to find the person behind the mask of New York’s Spider-Man, your life turns upside down with secrets, supervillains, and a boy by the name of Peter Parker.

A/N: A spoiler but I promise Harry isn’t the villain this time lmao I do that in like every series but NOT this one for once

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Your feet pattered against the pavement, while people and buildings around you became a blur. Your heart thundered in your chest, constricting and burning with every step as you ran towards the disaster after getting out of a taxi. The Brooklyn Bridge was filled with cars and a large fire was spreading after what seems to be some type of semi-truck accident.

Most people, they avoid dangerous situations. They stop and stare, watch whatever disaster is unfolding because it’s human nature. It’s unbelievable and people need to watch to believe it’s happening. But, most people don’t go into the danger zone if they’re not already there. Most people don’t have a death wish. You don’t have a death wish but you have a dream and that dream includes you running around New York and chasing the masked hero by the name of Spider-Man. And where is Spider-Man normally? Around these dangerous, life-threatening situations. So, you go into them, when you can.

A crowd is gathered as you approach and it’s a lot. The mixed voices and sirens, distant yelling, and noises all fade into one clustered sound. It’s all being amplified. Everything clouds together and now it’s not just the running that has your heart racing, but the creeping anxiety.

It’s not something that happens all too often, but it happens. Sometimes, this will just be too much. Sounds, people, movement. It doesn’t really matter and there’s no direct cause that you can even pinpoint. Sensory overload, for you, just happens and maybe today it’s because you’re racing towards another disaster. The idea of running towards something like that is already a bit uneasy, allowing the anxiety to have a perfect little crack to seep right through. But, you do not have time for that. So, you don’t slow down, you keep going.

You tell yourself that if you can focus, it’ll go away. So, you grab your camera from around your neck, gripping the hand hold tight. You reach the barricades where police are making sure people stay put. And that’s when you really see the bridge. It looks like something’s split it nearly in half and it’s only being held together by webs. There are cars still slowly falling into the water but people are running from the bridge, others are being held up by different webs. It seems Spider-Man has been there for a little while already, webbing people up and keeping them safe. It reminds you of the Staten Island ferry just five years prior.

You were just a Sophomore when it had happened but you remember seeing it all over the news. Something strange had torn through the ferry, splitting it in two. Spider-Man had tried to pull the ferry back together and keep it together with webbing but it didn’t work so well and Iron Man saved the day. No one was hurt, luckily, but it was something that stayed with you. Your brother was on the ferry and he could have died but he didn’t because Spider-Man and Iron Man showed up. Now you’re here, watching a bridge being held together by Spider-Man, trying to find out who he is to out him to the world. The universe is funny that way.

You hold your camera to your eye and that’s when you see him. The red and black-suited superhero swings around the bridge saving a little kid before he falls into the water. Your job isn’t to catch Spider-Man catching children and saving them from certain death but you don’t care. You take the pictures anyway because how cool is that? It’s Spider-Man saving a kid. So, you keep your camera on him the entire time, taking pictures and waiting for him to finish.

There’s just a fascination with watching him swing around at speeds that cannot be human. Well, obviously. But, how? That’s something that’s been eating at you since Spider-Man started showing up. What makes him a superhero? How does he stick to buildings? What are his webs exactly? How does he land perfectly fine despite the velocity of his swings? Humans have a closed circulatory system so he shouldn’t be able to just survive swinging like that. But, he does, just like a spider. So, something’s mutated but how? Why? You have a hundred questions and none of them have been answered and by the looks of it, you’ll never get them answered. Instead, you’ll just be taking pictures and hoping you get the shot you need to unmask him.

But, you don’t get lucky today, not that you ever think you’ll get lucky in this, because just as the kid is safe, Spider-Man takes off. It seems like everyone is safe and there are now plenty of first responders on scene so he leaves. And you quickly follow in the direction, quickly apologizing to anyone you bump into while you try to keep up with him, something you know to be completely useless but you’re not a quitter.

The entire time of trying to keep up with Spider-Man, you just think about how nice it would be to fly or have super speed or literally anything but this. Your feet burn with every step and you swear your heart is going to explode any second. It’s just exhausting having to, uselessly, keep up with someone who’s swinging above you and who’s doing it faster than you can run, especially in a busy and crowded city. But you follow him anyway until you lose sight of him.

Your head hangs as you sigh, disappointed but not surprised. Your hand grips your camera, looking at it before you look back to the sky. You roll your neck, bones cracking with every movement. Your shoulders roll and there’s no sign of that hero so what’s left to do? Nothing. This happens every time if you even manage to get to Spider-Man before he leaves. It’s a bit tiring but what else are you supposed to do?

“Y/n?” The sound of a familiar voice pulls you from your thoughts while a smile splits your face.

“Harry? What’re you doing here?” You ask while the tall boy approaches you.

He shrugs. “My dad a thing, had to show up. You know, you would think he would want me focusing on classes but here we are.” Harry rambles once he closes the distance between him and you. “And what are you doing here?” Harry slings an arm around your shoulder while the two of you start walking.

“Spider-Man.” You roll your eyes, the annoyance in your voice evident.

“I take it he’s still a man of mystery?” Harry gives you a cheeky smile before turning his attention in front of you.

“Yep.” You pop the ‘p’. “Where are we going?”

“I’ve got a car waiting, of course.” Harry states as if you should have known better which maybe you should have, Harry never uses public transport or really walks anywhere. “You’d have better luck if you’d just figure out who he was.”

You glare up at him, his green eyes catching the sun just right. “Gee, I hadn’t thought of that, Harry. Where would I be without your expert opinion?” You quip.

Harry shakes his head, the cheeky grin not budging. “If you know, why don’t you do some researching, then?”

“Because there’s what? Eight million people living in New York? Does it sound practical to try to research him?” Your voice is snarky as you look up to him.

“Does it sound practical to chase a superhero around the city?” Harry retorts, getting another glare from you. “Alright, but you know he’s here, you know he’s been in Queens so that narrows it down.”

You pause, keeping up with his long strides. He has a point. Spider-Man showed up in Queens, so he is probably from Queens which narrows down the list of suspects unless Spider-Man went to Queens as a cover-up. So, maybe Harry could be onto something.

“That’s still a lot of people.” You try to argue. “He’s done like one appearance at FEAST.”

Harry pauses, looking to you with a raised brow. So, you have done some research into the spider. “Yeah, because he’s probably local, y/n.” Harry chuckles. “Just, go with me for a second.” Harry sighs. “How old do you think he is? You’re chasing him so surely you have some vague idea at the very least.”

“Uh, probably mid to late twenties based on athleticism if that even really counts? He is a superhero. Captain America was like over a hundred years old.”

“But we’ll go with that because you said you’ve had friends who heard him talk. They all said he sounded your age which would mean you’re right because that was in high school. So, now going from that, he’d be our age now, right?”

“Right,” You nod. “And that means college aged which would also explain why he isn’t normally in Queens unless it’s during breaks. He’s at college.” You add on. “And normally around ESU.”

“See, you’re getting it. You already have your suspect list narrowed down to a few thousand instead of eight million.”

You give him a shy but thankful smile. “I still think it’ll be a lot of work to figure out which student is Spider-Man.”

“If anyone can figure out who Spider-Man is, it’s you.” Harry looks down at you, eyes soft and the cocky smile has turned into something sweet like honey. “Then you can just stalk the poor kid until you catch him either masking up or unmasking himself. JJ will be off your back and you can hang out with me more.” The sweet smile turns large and cocky once more making you roll your eyes.

“Mhm, that’s what I’ll do with my free time.”

“Speaking of, having a party Friday, you coming?”

“So long as Spider-Man doesn’t pull me away.”

“Yes! I will hunt him down myself if he pulls you away again.” Harry tugs you closer to him.

“Shut up.” You groan, bumping into him as you reach his waiting car.

The scent of coffee hits Peter like a bus as he walks into his favorite coffee shop right off-campus. It’s one of the few that’s open past nine and they make the best coffee, if anyone were to ask Peter anyway. Plus, their coffee can actually keep Peter awake unlike most places. But, his normal routine of getting his coffee and sitting down to try and study or finish up an essay is interrupted.

The shop is almost empty but then there’s you. You have an elbow on the table, chin on your hand as you stare at the screen in front of you. Your eyes are drooping and you look about as exhausted and drained as Peter does. There’s something about the difference in your appearance compared to earlier that seems to tug at Peter’s heartstrings. You were so bright earlier but now, you’re just dimmed.

Peter walks to up to the counter and orders his usual coffee, caramel macchiato with four extra shots of espresso. The baristas always give him a bit of a strange look, wondering how he can even taste the caramel but also if he ever sleeps. Then again, what college student does sleep like a normal human being?

The barista hands Peter his coffee and he says a quick thanks before turning around and questioning where he’s going to sit. He could sit by you. You look tired and he sure as hell is so maybe you could keep each other awake. But, maybe you want to be left alone and Peter doesn’t want to disturb you. The last thing he wants is to make anyone uncomfortable. But, you also seemed really nice. So, why not?

“H-hey.” Peter greets once he approaches your table, both hands holding his cup of coffee.

You look up to him but your brows are furrowed and your eyes scan his face as if questioning what he was doing beside you. You knew you heard someone say something but it sounded distant and clogged, similar to if someone is trying to have a conversation underwater. Not really coherent or loud, just distant and groggy. And you weren’t paying attention to your surroundings which definitely added to the distant sound of Peter’s voice at first.

“Sorry, what?” Your voice is louder than Peter expected and it’s a little scratchy.

“Uh..I, I just said hey.” Peter gives you a sheepish smile.

“Oh! Hey.” You give him a sweet smile with the louder than conversational level tone.

Peter’s heart lifts a little with your seemingly happy change but you still look completely exhausted so he feels the need to ask, “Are you okay?”

“Sorry,” Your cheeks heat up as you turn your hearing aid back on. “Sometimes, I shut it off, ya know? When I’m studying or getting work done. Being able to drown out some noise helps me focus.” You ramble and bite your lips as you finish. “So, yeah, I’m okay…internship, ya know?”

You take in Peter’s appearance, messy hair as usual but there’s a little faint bruise you hadn’t noticed earlier, right on his jawbone. There are bags under his eyes and his clothes aren’t completely straight. The collared shirt under the grey sweater is crooked and only part of one end of the bottom of the shirt sticks out under the sweater. His bag is slugged over just one shoulder and he’s holding onto his coffee like it’s his lifeline to keep him awake. Even his skin is a strange pale color, a little paler than you think is normal.

“Are you?” You ask.

Peter nods and he holds the sheepish smile. “Internship.”

It’s a bald-faced lie. While Peter still hates lying, after all of these years of lying to pretty everyone, he’s gotten quite good at it. And while he doesn’t really want to lie to you, he doesn’t have any other reason for him to out at a coffee shop this late when he has classes in the morning. Internship is a lot better than vigilante.

There’s a soft laugh you both share and a warmth spreads throughout Peter’s chest. “Can…I sit?” Peter asks, gesturing to the open chair in front of you.

“Sure,” You close your laptop and move a few things out of the way.

You always liked this coffee shop. It’s far enough away from your home that no one really comes to bug you but it’s in a well-lit and high trafficked area so you’re not too uneasy about being here late at night. Plus, Harry’s within walking distance so you always have him you can go to. This place also actually has pretty good coffee, not something that tastes overly processed like Starbucks or bottom tier coffee like Mcdonald’s but coffee that actually tastes good.

“What’s your internship?” You ask as Peter takes a seat. “I…I just mean if it keeps you up at a coffee shop at eleven at night, it must be tasking.” You ramble, not wanting to intrude on Peter’s business if he doesn’t want to share his work.

“Oh…uh, yeah.” Peter stutters, he hasn’t gotten this far in the lie in a few years.

Does he still say Tony Stark? It really hasn’t been brought up in ages, if that’s the excuse he should still use when people ask questions. But the longer Peter’s taking to figure this out, the more you’re just staring at him, waiting for a response and now he just feels dumb. Maybe he could just pretend he didn’t hear you. No, that would not work, he already started to answer. Okay, now he has to say something. Anything.Anything at all.

“UM,” Peter shakes his head while your brows knit together. “Tony Stark.” He blurts it out finally and he’s swearing it should not have been that difficult. He really could have just said Stark Industries. Why must he name drop and sound like a total nerd? It takes everything in Peter not to facepalm right there until he hears your voice turn high-pitched.

“Really?” Your eyes widen as you lean forward. “Wait. So you know….like, Iron Man?”

Someone you just met, knows Iron Man? That has got to be the wildest thing you’ve heard and there are millions of thoughts racing through your mind like F1 drivers. If he knows Iron Man, maybe he knows Hawkeye? How cool would that be? THE Hawkeye? Clint Barton? But if he knows Iron Man, maybe he knows Spider-Man? Maybe you can get lucky and Peter will hate Spider-Man and can help you unmask him. Okay, now you’re getting a bit ahead of yourself and that’s kind of a shitty thought anyway. So, you stick with Hawkeye.

Peter nods. “Yeah.” His voice is a bit flat but holds the smallest touch of questioning.

“So…do you know the other Avengers?” You ask with so much excitement it brings a genuine smile to Peter’s face. Your leg bounces beneath you as a smile splits your face. “I mean, do you know Hawkeye? Clint Barton?” Your eyes hold so much hope and Peter would normally just…lie and say no. If it were anyone else but you have much hope, he can’t just crush you.

“Well, uh,” Peter shrugs and he tries to find words between stutters but you don’t seem to mind. “I, uh, I mean…I…yeah, I’ve…met him. A few times.” Peter swallows thickly, taking another drink of his coffee.

“That’s so cool!” You nearly squeal. “Is he cool? What’s he like? I mean, if you can tell me….or if you want to. It’s okay if you don’t want to. I’m sure you get asked all the time about the Avengers so maybe you don’t want to talk about it which is totally fine. This is fine. It’s okay, never mind. I’m rambling. I’m sorry.” You immediately become taken over with embarrassment.

Everyone loves the other Avengers and you get it. They are cool and everything, Thor is a God for crying out loud. That’s pretty awesome but…they’re not Clint to you. Someone he seems pretty ordinary, mostly, and is the best archer to exist. And he’s deaf. And he saved your life once. Clint’s always the biggest hero to you, not Iron Man or Captain America or Spider-Man.

“Sorry, uh, it’s just…ya know? He’s cool.” You make a very weak gesture towards your right ear where a hearing aid sits.

Peter remembers the first time he met Tony, the Stark Expo. Well, he didn’t really meet Tony but Tony saved him and told him “nice work, kid” so, it kind of counts. He was little then but he remembers never shutting up about it. May has a video of Peter relaying the whole story to Ben and how his face lit up the entire time. That’s what you look like. Same excitement and you haven’t even met Clint. It’s just talking about him.

“Yeah, yeah, no I get it.” Peter says in a rush. “He’s really cool.” Peter beams. “He drinks a lot of coffee though and he adopted a one-eyed dog. His name is Lucky.” There’s a chuckle that escapes his lips and you’re completely captivated, hanging out to every word like a tightrope.

“Mood.” You state, laughing softly and taking a sip of your own coffee. “That’s so cool he adopted a dog. Bet that dog has the best life.”

“Yeah, he does.” Peter lets out a chuckle and he figures this could be a good way to get out that conversation before he starts saying too much and it becomes suspicious. “So, uh, what’s your internship?” Peter asks.

“I intern at the Daily Bulge under J. Jonah Jameson.” You say softly. “Definitely nothing like yours.” You let out a quiet laugh.

Peter’s heart drops with the name of both the newspaper and the reporter. JJ has been out to unmask Spider-Man for over three years now. He’s always publishing stories about how Spider-Man is what’s wrong with New York. He’s a vigilante who does more harm than good. The takedown of bad guys and villains should be done by those equipped, like US forces and police, not some scrawny kid in a blue and red spandex suit. But, Peter, in this coffee shop with you, is Peter Parker. He’s not Spider-Man here, so he doesn’t say a word about it.

“What’s it like? I mean,” Peter starts. “What do you do? D-do you enjoy it?”

A sad smile comes over your face. “I mean, yeah, I-I guess?” Your words come out as a question while your whole demeanor switches like a light. “Usually, he’s a good reporter. I have a lot to learn from him and he has connections, ya know? But,” You chew on your bottom lip. “Sometimes, it kind of sucks and he’s a bit…” You pause, not really wanting to speak ill of your boss but you feel there’s a sense of confidence between you and Peter in this coffee shop. “Vengeful? Spiteful? Kind of insane?”

“Why, uh, why do you say that?” Peter asks and he feels bad. No one should feel like their work or internship sucks or that their boss is any of the things you just listed. It should be something someone enjoys, especially with most internships not even being paid internships. If you’re going to do something for free, you might as well enjoy it.

“I’m always running around everywhere, day and night. I never get enough sleep because of it. I fell behind in a few classes when I started interning and I have never fallen behind before. I lost most of my friends because I’m at his beck and call, ya know, people kind of get tired of you always bailing on them last minute.” You say quietly, looking down to your half-empty coffee cup.

But, Peter understands. Always running around night and day, losing sleep, falling behind, losing friends. He’s lucky that he still has Ned and MJ but he did lose them before and he’s lost a handful of others because he can’t always commit to showing up. That said, there have definitely been times where he’s seen both Ned and MJ disappointed because he can’t make a birthday event or a movie night. It’s not exactly easy sometimes but he has extenuating circumstances, like the greater good, that’s what he tells himself. So, what’s JJ got you doing that’s making you lose friends and sleep?

“I-if you don’t wanna talk about it…it’s okay…but what’s he always have you doing?” Peter asks, his hands wrapped loosely around his to-go cup.

You sigh and take a small sip of your coffee. “I have to follow Spider-Man around, try and catch him unmasking himself or doing something incriminating to make New York hate him.” A tinge of guilt cascades over you with your words, you’ve never really said that out loud before and it goes against everything you believe in.

Peter’s eyes widen and his jaw falls open a little. One thought comes to his mind in big, red, flashing letters like an exit sign: Well, shit.

This is not good. He can’t befriend someone who’s trying to ruin his entire life. That’s just cruel. Why would you want to do this to someone? Who wants to do this? JJ is just an asshole but you seem so nice. Peter doesn’t know you but he still, for some reason, expected more of you. And now what’s he to do? Get up and walk away? Just out of nowhere. That also seems a little rude and maybe he shouldn’t care but he also doesn’t really want to hurt your feelings because you don’t know Peter Parker is Spider-Man. It is a dilemma and it’s a dilemma Peter is taking too long to try and sort through because you’re just staring at him.

“You’re a fan of his, aren’t you?” You ask as if walking on thin ice.

“Uh….” Peter stutters. “Kind of, yeah. He’s pretty cool, why would you want to do that? Do you…hate him?”

You shrug. “I don’t.” The reply is short and simple. “Don’t hate him or want to do this.”

“Then why would you?” Peter asks, his voice growing a little pushy.

“My brother said something once and I don’t know. It was something about how like….if it brings you any form of excitement, maybe it’s worth pursuing and this does. And…” You pause, trying to avoid the guilt flooding your veins. “I feel like I have to make something of myself, I guess?” You scrunch your face. “Six older brothers, one is a teacher, one is a zookeeper, one is a lawyer, one is in medical school, one is in school to be a physical therapist. I don’t know, they’ve all made these huge strides to be these awesome people, feel like I have to do the same and JJ has connections. He swore he’d hook me up if I get this picture. Get the picture and I’m set for everything I wanna do.” There’s another pause and Peter just waits. “If I make it….I could help my family, too and I don’t know, it’d be nice.”

Peter can understand that. He’s an only child but he knows what it’s like to be surrounded by people who’ve made themselves into something so incredibly amazing. It’s hard not to compare yourself to them and that’s what you’re doing. It’s hard to deal with it and deal with the pressure. But you’re going to destroy his life if you do that and Peter can’t let that happen. So, he can’t just walk out and he can’t just let this go because what if you catch him? Maybe, if he can be friends with you, maybe he can convince you that this would go south? That this could destroy someone’s life. He knows firsthand it will.

“Um…” Peter’s brows are furrowed.

“I don’t know.” You cut him off with a sigh. “Everyone thinks I wouldn’t turn in the picture if I got it cause it goes against everything I really believe in, so maybe I won’t.”

“Uh, yeah.” Peter nods. “Is compromising your morals worth it?”

You pause because no. No, it’s not but you’re doing it anyway. The problem you have always had is that you just listen to everyone else. You were never the leader type. You wouldn’t just follow along either, you have a mind of your own, but you’ve always fit into this tight little box with a bow. And maybe this is something for you to show you aren’t just this little box, you’re more than that. Maybe you can prove everyone wrong. That’s not a good enough reason though, spite. Spite makes people angry and bitter and that’s not you.

“That’s the million-dollar question, isn’t it?” You let out a dry chuckle. “I don’t know.” You shake your head. “But, hey, uh,” You check your watch. “I do, um, like talking to you despite you being a fan of Spider-Man who is currently my nemesis,” You laugh a little bringing a smile to Peter’s face. “But I gotta head out, um, Harry’s having a party on Friday, you should come.”

“I-I don’t know.” Peter shakes his head, this whole conversation is a lot to take in and he’s unsure if he should really try this friendship even if it is in his best interest.

“It’ll be fun and we can talk some more about anything that’s not this.” You laugh and that’s enough for Peter to agree.

“Okay, yeah, uh I’ll come.”

“Cool.” You get up, grabbing your laptop and backpack.

“Do you want me to walk you back to campus?” Peter offers before you can take even one step. “It’s just, dark and stuff.”

“Oh, uh, I don’t live on campus.” You shake your head. “Queens isn’t that far so I’ll be okay.”

“Are you sure?” Peter asks,

“Yeah, thank you though.” Your cheeks heat up. “I’ll see you around, Peter Parker.”

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