This has been nearly a year in the making between Clover-Rose and I, so we hope it's good!

And this is obviously pre FFH.

And now, on with the story!

••••••••

Peter couldn't believe MJ agreed to come see Star Wars during Christmas break with both him and Ned for the latter's birthday, even if she claimed it was 'cause "It's funny to see your stupid nerd faces light up when Kylo-Ren and Chewbacca come on screen."

But Ned was really excited, which made Peter excited. And when someone's excited, better judgement goes out the window. Especially when it's thirty five degrees near Christmas, and that's considered warm.

After the movie ended (with Ned being the most into it, Peter following suit, and MJ dozing off during it) and they had gotten dinner, they had about a hour to kill before the boys would head back to Ned's house for a sleepover. So Peter did what any good friend would do to seal the deal for his friend's birthday.

Use the debit card Tony Stark had gotten him for his birthday and buy two toy lightsabers.

So, after finding a good, clear spot in the middle of a plaza and away from the peace of the public (so they wouldn't disturb them), that was what the two were doing; having a lightsaber battle (Peter had blue, and Ned had red) while MJ sat down, read her book, and filmed them from the sidelines.

All in all, Peter thought things were going pretty good.

That is, though, until he was being cornered a bit too far, and accidentally fell down an entire flight of stairs, as his shoe slipped on a cold, frozen piece of ice and a sickening 'pop!' was heard.

Losing his hearing for a few minutes, Peter's senses were completely drowned out by the ringing in his ears, and the fact that he felt like he was dying. From a few feet away, he could see two pairs of footsteps race down the exact same flight of stairs he had just fallen down from, and could just barely register a whisper of "Oh, jeez," before he picked his head off the cement and felt his two friends crash to their knees as they sat on either side of him, their faces plastered with shock and concern.

"Peter!" That was Ned, Peter recognized, with guilt in his eyes, as panic and worry soaked his tone. "Oh my God, man, I'm so sorry! Are you—"

"Ned," MJ said, before swallowing harshly. "Look at his knee."

For a moment, as he tried to take deep breaths, Peter wasn't really sure why MJ was so concerned or worried about his knee. But, then, it became apparent why she was; because, even under the jeans he was wearing, it was evident that, not only was his right knee heavily covered in blood, but it was also significantly bigger, and thicker, than his left as well.

"Wh-What? What's wrong with my knee?" Peter asked, as he tried to sit up and get a better look at the injury.

"Nothing, man," Ned said, as he gently pressed on the superhero's shoulders and helped him lie back down on the ground. "Just... Just stay still and try to get some rest, alright? Everything's gonna be fine."

Groaning, Peter sucked in another breath, as pain raced through his leg again. "Promise?" He inquired, shutting his eyes tight.

"Yeah, man," Ned replied. "Promise." Then, as the superhero was relaxed (or as relaxed as someone could be when they couldn't even sit up), the Guy-in-the-Chair had then shook the shoulder of the girl across from him, before pointing at her bag. "Scarf. Gloves," He said, slightly breathless. "We need something to stop the blood, he's losing too much of it. Do you have anything?" He asked.

"Uh..." Spotting the hair elastics around her wrist, MJ had quickly taken them off and handed them over, watching as Ned slid them up and over Peter's knee, in order to put pressure on the injury. In response, Peter tensed and drew in another breath, but didn't open his eyes and didn't say anything. "Okay, what now?" She asked.

"Taxi," Ned answered, almost instantly. "Peter doesn't like ambulances, but we need to bring him to a hospital, his leg's probably broken—"

"On it." Casting a quick glance at Peter, MJ had then squeezed the boy's hand once more, before racing over to the streets in search of a taxi. And it wasn't like it was hard, considering they lived in New York, but it was hard to convince the driver not to drive away while Ned and her helped Peter up, 'cause she had to pay the driver an extra ten bucks.

"Where to, your three?" The driver asked, once they were seated in the back of the cab. From her seat on the right side, MJ could see the driver eyeing Peter's knee as it sat, elevated, on top of hers, but he didn't say anything, so neither did she. "Should I drive you all to a hospital, or...?

"Yeah, Queens Medical Center. And—" Pulling a twenty out of her pocket, MJ slammed it on the man's hand. "Go as fast as you can, alright? Our friend slipped on ice."

The driver's once annoyed eyes were replaced with a brief flicker of unsettlement and anxiety, as he stared at the three teens, before snapping out of his trance. "Yeah—Yeah, I'm sorry, of course," he replied, before he passed the money back, put the keys in the ignition, and started driving straight to the hospital.

Then, seeing as the driver was going as fast as he could while still staying within the city's limits, MJ had sighed and forced herself to calm down in order to stop her emotions from showing. Unfortunately, though, it couldn't have been more than a few minutes when Peter shifted, groaned, and placed his head near her neck, so his legs were now resting on top of Ned's.

Michelle smiled, a little sadly, as Peter's pain-filled eyes poured into her own. "It's gonna be okay, Peter," she found herself saying. "It's gonna be okay, alright? We're gonna bring you to the hospital, and they're gonna fix you up, and then you and Ned are gonna have your sleepover, alright? I promise."

She didn't get an answer. To be honest, she wasn't expecting one, but she also wasn't expecting Peter to nuzzle his head into her neck, like they were boyfriend and girlfriend.

'Whatever,' MJ thought, as she played with his hair and planted a kiss on top of his head. It wasn't like he'd remember it, anyway.

••••••••••

"Alright, we're here," the driver announced, as he turned around in his seat, his eyes apologetic. "But I'm not gonna charge y'all, since your friend's all injured, and you probably need that money, so you can just go."

"Thanks." Michelle smiled tightly, before she turned to Ned and gestured to the superhero laying on her lap, with his eyes closed. "Help me get him out of the cab."

Ned nodded in acknowledgment, and put an arm under Peter's knees and around his back, before gently pulling the sleeping boy out of the car. However, unfortunately for Ned, he must not've been as gentle as he thought, as Peter woke up as soon as his knee accidentally bumped against the opening of the car door.

"Ned!" The teen shrieked, as he reached forward to rub his knee (which was still covered in blood and had pressure applied on it to stop said blood, by Michelle's hair elastics). "What are you doing, man? Put me down!"

From the other side of the cab, Michelle closed the car door, and Ned instantly followed her towards the big, red "24/7 – EMERGENCY" sign. "No," He said, as he shook his head and tightened his grip on the teen. "Your leg's messed up, remember? And you can barely stand, so there's no way I'm letting you walk like that." Then, quieter, he had added, "May would kill me."

Peter rolled his eyes and muttered something along the lines of "May's not here," but said nothing else, and, for a moment, Ned thought he'd give in and let someone take care of him. But, then, he had put his friend down on one of the nice leather chairs in the waiting room, and, as soon as he did, Peter started to stand and protest.

"Peter!" Ned yelped, as he gently pushed on the superhero's shoulders, and hurriedly looked at the girl at the check-in desk. "Michelle, I need your help!"

"Cool." Michelle nodded, as she stared at the two boys, her tone unenthusiastic but much calmer than Ned's. "And I need to get the paperwork, so he can actually get checked in and have tests done on his leg. Now, calm down, will you? We're in a building full of the sick and the injured, and I really doubt they wanna be stressed out."

Sighing, Peter finally conceded, and let himself slouch against the chair he was sitting in. Up ahead, Michelle was explaining the situation to the receptionist, and, beside him, Ned was rambling on about Star Wars (probably trying to distract him from the pain), but Peter honestly wasn't listening to either of them. Instead, he was staring at his knee, and trying not to think about just how gross it looked, when he felt someone tap his shoulder.

"Excuse me?" A nurse was kneeled down next to him and Peter smiled at her, trying to be polite, even though he was in obvious (and intense) pain. "But, why don't we move you to a wheelchair, sweetie? Make your leg feel better?"

"Okay." Peter nodded, and slowly started to stand, before Ned came over and swung his arm over his shoulder. Then, after moving to the wheelchair, Peter watched as the same nurse from earlier propped his leg up on one of the foot rests, before she turned and looked at him with kind eyes.

"Just stay here," she stated. "I'm going to go get you some ice for your knee, but a doctor should be calling for you soon."

Finally done at the check-in desk, Michelle had then came over with a small stack of papers, and sat on the corner of the coffee table. "Shit," she whispered, twirling a pen between her fingers, before she glanced at the 'Guy in the Chair.' "We need to call his aunt. They're asking for information I don't even know, and there's no way we can pass as his emergency contact."

"What?" Ned asked. "Why do I have to call her?"

"'Cause, it's your birthday," MJ excused, as if it couldn't have been more obvious. "Plus, I need to fill out the papers."

Ned huffed and still looked annoyed, but did as he was told and pressed the iPhone to his ear, while glancing repeatedly at Peter, and, even though the conversation was one sided, she was pretty sure she could just imagine what May was saying.

•••••••••

"Looks like a grade two tear," the doctor announced as he entered the room, before handing said scans over to the woman across from him. Then, he had taken a seat on a nearby office chair, before continuing to speak. "Your ACL's only partially torn, and no other ligaments seem broken. You got lucky, kid."

Peter, who was lying on the hospital bed, only stared at his leg. Cleaned, disinfected and dressed in gauze, he knew his healing factor had kicked in and that it had to be doing better than before; but, although the doctor said he was lucky, he still didn't feel like it.

May searched through the scans, taking occasional glances at them, before passing them to her nephew and squeezing his shoulder. "So, what's the plan?" she asked. "Is he going to need surgery?"

"No," the doctor replied (Peter learns his last name is Davidson from the name on his tag). "Luckily, it's not that severe, but he will need physical therapy and a brace for a while. As for now, though, all he needs to do is follow RICE and use crutches whenever he walks. If all goes well, then I'd say you should be back on your feet within three to four months."

Upon hearing this, Peter shot up like a rocket. "Three to four months?!" he repeated. "What?!" How was be going to be Spider-Man if he couldn't do anything for that long?

Dr. Davidson shrugged. "It could be a lot worse," he offered, though it didn't really help that much. "And, right now, three to four months seems to be the best outcome. I'd offer you the surgery if you're really interested in sports or are active for long periods of time, but since your friends told me you do decathlon, I don't really think you need it."

Peter opened his mouth to response again, only for May to interrupt before he could. "And that's totally okay," she said, shooting him a mild glare. Then, after turning back to the doctor, she had stood up and shaken his hand. "Thank you so much."

"No problem. A nurse should be in with his brace and crutches soon, but, otherwise, I hope you feel better, Mr. Parker. And please come back if there are any complications."

"We will. Thanks so much," May stated, as she ushered the doctor out the door and carefully closed it behind her. Then, once that was done, she had taken a seat on the edge of the hospital bed and used one of her hands to squeeze his reassuringly. "Well?" she questioned, quietly. "How's your knee? Feeling any better yet?"

Peter shook his head. "Still hurts," he mumbled.

"At least it looks cleaner," May tried, hoping to get her boy to laugh. Unfortunately, all it got her was a shrug of disinterest, and, so, she decided to try something else. "And Michelle and Ned will be really happy you're okay, baby. And, if you still want the surgery so you can heal faster and continue swinging through the city, then that's totally fine and we can get it done at the compound. I just didn't want to mention it in front of the doctor, in case they'd be suspicious of your abilities."

Peter nodded, as he sunk back into the pillows the hospital staff had given him. "I know," he replied, truthfully. "I just... I'm not going to be able to be Spider-Man, May. What if someone needs me? What if someone gets hurt?"

"Then they go to the hospital. Or call the police, or the fire department—"

Peter rolled his eyes playfully and laughed. "May!" he protested, with a groan. "I'm serious!"

"So am I," May stated, as she tilted her nephew's chin a bit to make eye contact with him. "There's a reason we have the police, Peter. You deserve a break, and you shouldn't have to go out and worry about saving the world every day, when there are literally people who are paid to do it. And they're experienced."

"So am I," Peter huffed.

May nodded. "I know you are. But, you're also injured, and are gonna be out of commission for two months, at least, and should take it easy. All the robbers and drug dealers aren't going anywhere. They're still gonna be here when you get back. You understand that?"

Peter nodded and muttered a small "Understood," but still didn't look happy about the situation.

"Good," May said, once that was finally dealt with. Then, grabbing a beige blanket from the end of the bed, she had then draped it over the superhero, before pushing him back against the pillows and placing a kiss on top of his forehead. "Now, I want you to try and rest, okay? Today has been very stressful, and I'll wake you up once the nurse comes back with your crutches and says we're free to leave."

Peter, for once, did as he was told, and laid back against the big, fluffy pillows. "M'kay," he muttered, as he closed his eyes. "Larb you."

May smiled. "Larb you, too."

•••••••

"I'm sorry your night didn't turn out as planned, Ned," May apologized, as she drove slowly, not wanting to skid on the cold, frozen road. "If you want, I could drive you guys down to that robotics competition next weekend. It's in Wisconsin, right?"

"Washington," Ned corrected, as he shared a glance with his best friend. "But it's okay, Mrs. Parker. You don't need to do that. I can just tell my parents that we've decided to sleep at Peter's house."

"Are you sure?" May asked, as she met the boy's eyes in the interior mirror. "I don't mind—"

"No, it's okay," Ned insisted, giving the woman a polite smile. "I already texted my parents, and they said they can pick me up tomorrow afternoon. And my sister has a soccer competition next weekend, anyway, so it's totally fine."

"Alright." May still looked like she wanted to offer something as a form of forgiveness, but dropped the topic, anyway, and turned to the girl beside her. "Michelle, if you want, I could drop you off. Your house isn't too far from here, right?"

Michelle nodded, but turned down the offer. "Yeah, but it's okay," she explained. "The bus still runs for a few more hours, and I know my dad wants me to use all the money I have on my transit pass."

May looked hesitant, seeing as it was almost pitch-black outside, but she pulled over to the curb and watched the girl take off her seatbelt. "Be careful," she stated, as she watched her go. "And make sure to text Peter or Ned once you get home, okay? I want to make sure you're safe."

This time, it was Michelle's turn to nod. "I will. Thank you so much," she said, as she closed the car door, and motioned for the injured superhero roll down his window.

Peter, in response, did what he was told, and rolled his window down enough so that he could hear her, but not enough so that the rain would start coming into the car. "What?" He questioned, softly, his eyes meeting her own, underneath the flickering gas lamps.

"Nothing." MJ shrugged, the small sliver of a smile lacing her face. "I was just gonna tell you to feel better, nerd. And, that just because your knee's broken or whatever, doesn't mean that you can skip out on decathlon practice when we have to go back to school."

At this, Peter's smile grew wider, and Michelle swore she could see his eyes just shine with pure happiness. "Yeah, don't worry," he replied, before rolling up his window. "I won't."

He knew that promise wouldn't be a hard one to keep.