summary: due to your nightly fire escape dates, new york’s friendly neighborhood spider-man has grown to be more to you than just a stranger but now you find out that he was never a stranger to begin with
pairing: peter parker x reader
word count: 979
warnings: just fluff
a/n: this is more of a blurb really but i’ve just been told that today’s spider-man day!! so this is in special honor of our sticky boy double p. enjoy x
small hours
noun [plural]; the first few hours after midnight and before dawn and sunrise
You sighed, head falling back to stare at the rusty metal above you. A gentle breeze carried the echoes of the city pass you and your shoulders slumped, muscles relaxing and head clearing. Sitting on the fire escape had that effect on you. It was nice to observe your surroundings from afar without actually seeing anything. Your window faced a tree, and beyond that, a bare brick wall—not really a sight to behold. But in a way, you liked depending on your other senses to paint the picture of your happenings outside this alley.
Glancing into your room that was lit up in purple lights, the clock on your wall read 3 a.m. and just on time, the person you’ve been waiting for landed on the metal railing with a soft thud. You didn’t need to look up to know it was him—nobody moved like him.
“You don’t ever sleep, do you?” The boyish voice scolded with the edge of amusement. Lifting your shoulder in a half shrug, you took in the sight of him sitting on the railing, legs swinging freely.
“Do you?”
His head cocked to the side and even with the mask covering his face you could tell he was giving you a deadpanned look. “Gotta save the city, you know. For the people.” You eyed the half-eaten churro in his hand and clicked your tongue with raised brows. “Right.” Following your gaze, he sheepishly offered you a bite which you gladly took.
And just like that, the two of you indulged in comforting conversation that slowed down the echoes of New York.
It was nights like these that made you fall in love with this city. You had never lived anywhere else, so you always liked to imagine how, in a parallel universe, your daily insomnia could have you possibly chased out of small towns for wandering around at witching hours. You clearly didn’t know how towns functioned outside of New York, but you liked to joke about it with this masked hero that somehow always knew when you were awake. At first, it was downright creepy but now, after endless nights of jokes and conversations on the deeper side, you didn’t mind and were just glad for the close company.
As usual, the two of you stayed out and talked until the first sun rays would peak through the leaves. You were gone now, finally dozed off into dreamland. It would only last for two more hours though until school would start. Routinely stepping through the window, the masked boy carried you cautiously into your room and pulled the blanket up to your shoulders once you laid in bed. And with that, your good friend was gone too.
Groaning as the alarm yanked you out of the blink of sleep, you croakily made yourself look decent to prepare for a never-ending school day. Once standing outside the elevator, you squeezed your eyes shut only to open them wide again. You were definitely feeling the aftermath of your previous night now. With every increasing red digit, indicating that the elevator was almost on your floor, your eyelids grew heavier and fell shut as the book in your hand slipped from your fingers. But instead of the expected loud thump that would probably anger grumpy Georgia, whose apartment you were standing in front of, you heard the shut of a door instead. Forcing your eyes to open, you met the worried gaze of your neighbor and classmate Peter Parker as his eyes locked with yours, arm still stretched out from heroically catching your book.
Adjusting the strap of his backpack, he handed it to you and you took it with a dozy smile of gratitude. His eyes gleamed with amusement when you only responded with a low groan to his cheerful ‘good morning’.
“You don’t ever sleep, do you?” he chuckled lightly as the doors to the elevator opened. He stepped in and held his arm out to keep it from closing, patiently waiting for you to follow but your feet were stuck on the spot. The air was knocked out of your lungs and Peter lifted his brow to question your sudden wide eyes. “You coming?”
You snapped out of it and faintly shook your head, partly in denial of the familiar ring to his innocent words. Once you stood next to him, he pushed the button to get to the lobby. Instead of the usual chatter, a thick layer of silence was weighing on Peter and he almost squirmed. Eyeing you suspiciously, you were still staring at the closed doors. Everything about your facial expression and body language pointed towards the assumption that you must’ve seen a ghost of some sort. Your rapid heartbeat was driving him insane, so he reached out and laid a gentle hand on your arm, making you tense up. “Are you sure you’re okay?” You gulped and nodded, not convincing him but he let his arm drop anyway while murmuring, “Alright, if you say so…” After all, you weren’t that close—at least, not with this version of Peter.
With another ‘ding’ the doors opened again and he stepped out before looking back at you, a hint of worry still present in his eyes but he smiled nonetheless. “See you in class?” He asked as usual and you forced yourself to smile back. “Yea—sure, of course.” You stumbled over your words and Peter decided to interpret your soft tone of shock as tiredness. With a small wave, he disappeared around the corner and you let out a shaky breath. It was all crystal clear to you now and you couldn’t help but laugh lightly at the obvious signs all along. You shook your head again with a faint smile on your lips and mumbled under your breath, “Sure, Spider-Man, see you in class…”
* * *
just wanted to use this opportunity to thank you guys for all the nice feedback on ‘olives and popcorn’. it’s still surreal to me that people have actually read and enjoyed it 🤧💞 if you liked this bad boy too, feel free to leave some feedback or talk to me on my ask or messages! i want to meet the cool people who read my stuff!! i also have a really fun one shot planned for monday so stick~ around if you’re feeling fancy. if you don’t, that’s okay too. have a great day, buh-bye! x
The chill of an empty bed woke Thomas just as the sky was turning from black to indigo. Confused, he stretched out his arm in search of his husband. His sleep-muddled mind had some trouble recalling exactly why he was alone in bed, but memories of the night crept back into his consciousness. He vaguely recalled the baby monitor crackling on the nightstand, the plaintive cries stirring Thomas into motion--but before he could draw himself out of bed, Richard had leaned over him from behind, kissed his cheek, and in a low voice, said, “Rest, love. I’ve got her.” And, evidently, Thomas had done just that.
He dragged himself up now. That short conversation must have happened some time ago, hadn’t it? Thomas pulled in his dressing gown--comfortable, and no matter how much Richard teased him for it, Thomas knew his husband was glad to receive his own--and headed down the hall.
Upon reaching the nursery, he stopped in the threshold, breathless. Richard dozed, lounging in the plush armchair in the corner, housecoat undone, chest exposed. Upon that chest he cradled Audrey. Their baby. Their daughter. Warmth bloomed within Thomas’ chest as he took in every detail of the scene. Dimly lit as it was, his little family was illuminated only by the soft, barely-there light of the creeping morning, and the glow of the moon-shaped nightlight beside the crib. Even slumbering, Richard held Audrey in a protective embrace; the little girl lay on her front, with one strong hand enveloping her back and shoulders and another under her bottom, keeping her secure. Her downy head was tucked under Richard’s chin. To Thomas, Richard looked like some sort of guardian angel. Certainly, if anyone was qualified, it was him. God knew he’d held Thomas just as lovingly, just as securely as he now held their daughter.
When he finally did step into the room, he almost regretted it; Richard’s eyes opened, startled out of his light sleep. Thomas hurried with light footsteps to the side of the chair so that the wouldn’t have to speak above a whisper. He leaned down to kiss his husband sweetly on the lips as he knelt beside the chair. In a breath, he said, “I was wondering where you’d gone off to.”
Richard offered a sleepy smile. “I quite lost track of time, I’m afraid.” He carefully adjusted Audrey in his hold, and then set his thumb in motion, caressing her soft skin at her shoulder. His eyes met Thomas’ in the darkness. “Couldn’t bring myself to put her down.”
Thomas knew the feeling. He’d spent the whole of the last week floating on air, having finally brought their little girl home for good. As focused as he’d been on her, he’d not yet had much of a thought to spare for Richard; but he beheld him now, and he was glorious. Pride and unspeakable love swelled in him for the man he’d married, and the man with whom he now had a family. Knelt as he was, Thomas leaned his cheek against Richard’s shoulder and placed a hand atop his, joined over Audrey.
Richard’s voice, low and gentle, hummed through the silence. “I love you. Both of you. So much.”
Speechless in his happiness, Thomas only breathed against the sting of tears and kissed the arm against which he leaned. He should, all things considered, try to get Richard back into bed for a decent rest. The man had work in a few hours, after all. At the very least, Thomas himself should probably start thinking about making breakfast for the both of them, if Richard was to stay as he was for as long as he could.
But not yet. Here, with this man and this little girl, his world was perfect.
Part 1
Remember that sad thing I did some time ago? Yeah. I fixed it :)
Small Hours is a stealth horror game about a little girl named Ausha searching for her lost cat in an otherworldy town. The player will explore the corrupted streets, looking for signs of their cat...
I’m happy to reveal the first trailer for the 3D Stealth Horror game that I’m working on!
