Some Things Never Sleep

by Lucky Strike's alter ego

"You never learn when to quit, Spider-Twerp." She told him. "Spider-Twerp?" Spider-Man questioned in disbelief as he glared. Emma smirked. "Well, you annoyingly seem to get in my way all the time. That and you don't look or sound like a man to me." She explained. "I am a man." He told her angrily. "Somehow I doubt that." The first time Emma and Peter met didn't exactly go well.

69. Chapter Sixty Three: Part II

Author's Note: Sorry this chapter took me so long to write. It's the longest chapter I've ever written and it was also hard to write some of the content because it was super emotional for me. I thought about splitting this chapter into three parts instead of just two but I just decided to update it in one chapter. It's probably over 20,000 words long so with both parts combined that means that the chapter is probably 35,000 words long. This is more like a novella but whatever...

I cannot wait for Friday to finally get here! It's been a long time coming. I also have to beg you to please don't spoil anything for me if you happen to see the movie before Friday. I would totally go see it opening night if I could but I usually don't feel like going out anywhere that late. I've already pre-ordered the tickets for my mom and I(and yes I'm going to see the movie with my mom. She loves these movies almost as much as I do...almost). I think I might even be more excited for this movie than I was for the HAIM concert which is weird because I love HAIM...but I also love Marvel. I'm also scared for this movie because I'm afraid that a lot of characters are going to die. Don't tell me if they do...I don't want to know until the movie but I'm still scared. I probably also won't work on the next chapter of this story until after I see the new movie just so I can get a better idea as to how to adapt the Infinity War storyline to fit this one. Obviously Steve and the others don't come back until Infinity War in the movies but in this story they're going to be coming back a little sooner. I just want to have a better idea of how to adapt everything because I really want to do the Infinity War storyline and everyone's going to be coming back pretty soon. There's just going to be a couple of Rumlow RELATED appearances in the next couple chapters and a quick flashback chapter and then we'll be seeing the others. So it's right around the corner. I won't say how many chapters because I don't have a definite number in mind but it's definitely not that far away.

CheekyLove: Another genius idea! I will definitely do that when the time comes. I could maybe see Emma and Peter Quill kind of singing along to 'Ziggy Stardust' or at least something else by David Bowie. Maybe Emma will introduce him to HAIM. I kind of think Peter(Quill) might like HAIM. Emma would probably think he's an idiot but she might end up respecting him a bit for his taste in music. I'm so excited for the Infinity War storyline because it means Emma's going to interact with all these characters. There's probably going to be a lot of Harry Potter jokes when she meets Doctor Strange. She'll probably be able to relate to Nebula and Gamora a lot. Also, Peter's greatest fear will happen...Emma and Loki finally meeting. I don't think he'll be jealous that time around(he's kind of learned his lesson there) but he'll definitely be worried of leaving those two alone in a room together. If Thanos doesn't destroy the world, Emma and Loki probably could together. Lol. I'm also looking forward to writing her reunion with Thor and Bruce who won't have seen Emma for three years at that point. Emma's grown up a lot since they last saw her.

scrapingskies: The concert was fun! I still can't believe I went. I think I read the story you mentioned a long time ago but the author was still updating at the time so I kind of read it up to a certain point, waiting for another update and then got caught up with other things so I never finished it. I do remember really enjoying it so I might read it again and finally finish it since it's been so long. Thanks.

SabrinaBarnes: Unfortunately I don't think Sebastian's coming to the comic-con in my city which is kind of sad but maybe someday. It would be cool if he did because Bucky's obviously one of my favorite MCU characters. I think I might love Bucky even a little more than Peter which is weird because I've been writing a Peter/OC fanfic but I have no plans for a Bucky/OC fanfic. Maybe it's because there's already so many Bucky/OC fanfics so I never thought of making one myself. Okay...I'm just going to say it. Bucky's my absolute favorite. Sorry for rambling so long but I love all things Bucky and Sebastian Stan related. If you really like Sebastian, you should see 'I, Tonya'. It's a hilarious movie and Sebastian was really good in it although he was kind of an asshole in it but that's just who he played in the film. As I re-edited this a Law and Order episode came on with Sebastian in his younger days. Teenage Sebastian was so adorable!

Guest: I actually didn't know how tall to make Emma because I knew she had to be kind of tall because of the serum and everything but I'm not an expert on tallness. I stopped growing four years ago and I'm 5'3. I just turned twenty so I know I'll never grow past that which makes me very sad. I really didn't know what I was doing when I was trying to make Emma tall. I did some research on the internet(which sounds kind of stupid) but I didn't really learn anything. I just did my best because 5'5 kind of seems tall to me at thirteen because I'm not even 5'5 now and I was probably like 4'10 at thirteen. At least I'm taller than Ariana Grande...I'll always have that, I guess. Thanks for the feedback. No one really commented on that before so I never knew. Maybe when I do the edit of this story, I'll go back and change that but that won't be for a long time.

PlanetaryGO: Thanks so much! I kind of wanted to do a pairing like this for a while and the fact that they're so young still makes it cute but it's a different kind of cute than puppy love, I think. Emma's probably the most fun I've ever had writing a character because she's kind of crazy but in a good way. I love writing every single scene with her and Peter. I never had a boyfriend in high school either. Not that I wanted or didn't want one but I just really kept to myself in high school. I was probably more interested in watching movies that had romance in them then actually having that for myself in real life. I was super obsessed with movies and I still kind of am. This sounds bad but I actually sometimes ditched my friends to go watch marvel movies. None of them were interested in Marvel, Star Wars, or anything remotely fun so whenever they wanted to go see something stupid like 50 shades of gray, I used to tell them that I was grounded and then I'd go see a different film. I think they saw 50 shades and I went to see Kingsmen when it came out. Lol. Sorry, sometimes I get way off topic.

Keystone: I wrote last chapter and the one before it with both of them being in the wrong. Peter did act irresponsibly by getting drunk like that because of his emotions and he was only sixteen, after all, so he really shouldn't be drinking. Emma didn't mean he was embarrassing himself for declaring his love for her but she meant that he was embarrassing himself because he was drunk while he was doing it. I didn't mean to make Peter out to be a sexist or anything but he was so drunk that he really didn't even know what he was saying. I wanted to make it evident just how drunk he was. I hate writing Emma and Peter fighting but it really needed to be done. Him getting drunk was kind of a wake up call to Emma who blamed herself a bit for letting that happen and it was what pushed her into finally talking to Jessica about how she could come clean about everything. It just needed to happen and Peter's not going to be responsible all the time because he's still a teenager so he's impulsive. Emma can be impulsive sometimes too but only where Peter's involved. Thanks! I can't believe we're at a thousand reviews. It's all so crazy to me but I'm entirely grateful.

Amberdeengirl17: Thanks for the flood of reviews! I mean...that's dedication so thanks. I really appreciate it.

alleya02: I've been having what I call a mini Marvel movie marathon. I figured that I've seen all the older ones like over a hundred times so I'm just re-watching the newer ones...one every night of the week. Monday was Avengers: Age of Ultron. Tuesday was Captain America: Civil War. Last night was Doctor Strange and tonight will be Spider-Man: Homecoming. I'm holding off on Thor: Ragnarok since I saw it again not that long ago. So excited for Friday! I can't wait! I've been avoiding watching any new clips or trailers so I can be very surprised when I see the movie. Friday could not come sooner for me.

So sorry for not responding to every review but it took me forever to write and update this chapter so I just want to put it out before the movie on Friday. Thanks so much for the 1,000 reviews...seriously, I'm completely amazed. Thanks for all the follows and favorites too because we're almost at 900 follows which is insane to me! Thanks again and please review.

I'm also just going to quickly plug in a new story... I don't really count it as a new story since it's just a collection one-shots from 'Some Things Never Sleep'. I've had these one-shots lying around which I know I'll never use in this story so I'm putting them together in a separate fanfic. It's called 'Dry Bite' and it takes place before Emma meets Peter since I skipped over a lot of time during the course of this story. Some take place before she's born, when she's still a baby, a toddler, and even some stuff with Bucky when she was in Hydra. I'll be including some one-shots between her and different Avengers when she still lived in the tower too. Every one-shot is still somehow connected to Emma even if she isn't in it. The one-shots are in no particular order. So far I just have one chapter out which features the first time Tony and Emma met...the real first time. Just in case you're interested. I know I said I wouldn't be working on 'Some Things Never Sleep' until the movie comes out but I'll be working on 'Dry Bite' in the mean time. I haven't updated my other story 'Rose Garden Dreams' in some time but I just want to get through a certain point in 'Some Things Never Sleep' before I work on that one. Thanks.

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Somehow Happy had managed to find Emma, probably due to the tracker in her phone, and he had picked her up right outside Jessica's apartment building. He had questioned what she been doing all the way in Hell's Kitchen but Emma told him that it wasn't any of his damn business. He promptly shut up after that but she knew that Tony wasn't likely to shut up about it like Happy had. Happy drove her to the compound in silence and she couldn't help but notice she was alone. No Peter although Emma suspected that he was probably too wasted to handle a car ride right now. The blonde arrived at the compound at nearly one in the morning but she didn't feel tired. There were so many thoughts racing through her mind that there was no way she'd fall asleep. Emma was in her bedroom, staring out the window at the night sky, when someone broke her out of her thoughts.

"Still awake?" Tony asked her and Emma barely spared him a glance as she continued to stare out the window. The billionaire stood next to her as if he were also staring out the window but Emma felt his eyes on her. She knew his mind wasn't on the surrounding forest or the night sky outside the window.

"I can't sleep." Emma murmured.

"I thought I was the only insomniac around." Tony joked and Emma shrugged, not bothering with a response. The smile fell of his face because usually Emma would tell him to leave her alone or tell him how unfunny he was. She did no such thing. Tony just stared at her as he tried to analyze the look on her face but he couldn't come up with any particular emotion. Was she angry? Sad? Hurt? Tony couldn't tell. Emma Rogers was the single most difficult person to read and Tony thought she was even better hiding her emotions than Natasha.

"Your boyfriend's not coming up here this weekend." Tony said suddenly and Emma still didn't look up from the window. "He's grounded big time. When Happy found him, he was rolling around in the grass of Ori's front yard whining about how much he missed his girlfriend. He also puked all over the backseat of the car. Yeah, Happy wasn't too happy about that." Emma raised an eyebrow at that.

"So that's why it smelled like Lysol back there." Emma remarked and Tony gave her a look of disbelief. He expected her to be more caring and concerned for her boyfriend. Wasn't the kid supposed to be the love of her life or something? Juliet would probably be worried if Romeo started getting so drunk that he was blowing chunks all over the inside of Happy's car.

"May has him now. Last I checked, he was still puking his guts out into the toilet. He'll probably sleep on the bathroom floor tonight but, boy is he going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning." Tony continued to tell Emma as he watched the expression on her face but she was keeping a really good poker face. "I remember my first hangover and it was not pretty. You're lucky that you don't get those."

"Sure." Emma said, sounding unconcerned with this topic of conversation and Tony narrowed his eyes at her.

"Okay, Mini Cap, what's going on between you and the Spiderling? First, I get that weird phone call from you and then you disappear for two hours. Now, you're acting all weird…at least weirder than usual." Tony told her and Emma shifted uncomfortably which was the first sign of emotion that Tony had seen from her. Truthfully, Emma was still mad at Peter for what he said but she was mostly mad at herself because she knew if she'd only been honest with him from the beginning then none of this would be happening.

"Nothing." Emma said shortly, trying to make it clear that she didn't feel like talking about this and with Tony of all people.

"It's not nothing." Tony said as he tried to figure out what was going on. He quickly went over everything that had happened tonight. Between Emma's vague phone call, Peter's weird behavior, and now Emma's even weirder behavior...there was definitely something going on. His eyes then widened in realization as a bewildered look came over his face.

"Wait…are you two fighting?" Tony asked in amusement. Emma glared at the smug looking billionaire, wishing that she could somehow slap that smug look off his face and teach him a lesson.

"I said it's nothing." Emma hissed but Tony didn't look put off by her tone. In fact, he grinned at her.

"You are, aren't you? What did the kid do this time?" Tony questioned teasingly and Emma just stared out the window. "Did you catch him checking out some other girl? Did he forget your anniversary?"

"Damn it, Stark, I said it was nothing so just drop it." Emma snapped and the smile fell off Tony's face again. It was then that it dawned on him that this was more serious than he originally thought. Emma and Peter fighting had been kind of amusing but the tired expression on Emma's face told him otherwise. This was a real, legitimate fight. A look of concern then came over the billionaire's face as he frowned.

"This is serious, isn't it?" Tony asked her and Emma didn't say anything as she shrugged. He felt worried for her because he realized that the fight must've been serious if it had taken this much of a toll on Emma and made Peter act like a little jackass.

"Did he do something?" Tony questioned, quickly becoming angry with the thought of Peter disobeying the rules he had given him. The thought of Peter somehow taking advantage of Emma made him want to fly over to that little idiot's house and knock some sense into him. "He's not pressuring you, is he?"

"Pressuring me?" Emma asked in confusion and Tony clenched his jaw.

"He's not pressuring you into having sex or anything, right? If he is then I will seriously knock the shit out of that kid." Tony told her and Emma just shook her head, almost wanting to laugh because Peter would never do anything like that. She had even told him that they could have sex on his terms and he refused. Emma knew that Peter would never do any such thing. He was too good…too pure to take advantage of Emma's offer.

"That's not it. Besides…Peter would never do that. You, of all people, should know that." Emma told Tony and the older man felt a bit guilty for thinking of Peter like that. He was just protective of Emma because she had been through so much in her life and he didn't want to let anyone else hurt her. Tony just wanted her to be safe and happy.

"So what is it then?" Tony asked, noticing the way Emma tensed up. He sighed briefly before looking back over at her. "You can talk to me, you know. I know we give each other hell all the time but I do care...even if you think I'm an asshole."

"I don't think you're an asshole." Emma said quietly and Tony gave her a doubtful look. Emma laughed a little and Tony felt at ease now that he made her laugh…now that he made her look anything but tired or sad. "Fine but I think you're an asshole in an affectionate way."

"So what's going on between you and the kid?" Tony asked her, cutting to the chase. Emma sighed as she looked away from him and stared out at the night sky again.

"He just wants everything." Emma murmured and Tony narrowed his eyes at her.

"I thought you said that he wasn't pressuring you." Tony said and Emma immediately shook her head.

"Not like that." Emma was quick to say before further explaining. "I just mean that he wants to know every little thing about me. Everything. He already has my love, my faithfulness, my devotion, and my complete and utter attention but he just wants more. He wants to know every little secret and every little thing that's ever happened to me." Tony just stared at the blonde who seemed so tormented and haunted. He knew for a fact that this wasn't even the half of it. There was something hiding beneath the surface of her words that she didn't dare admit. It was always like that with Emma. Ever since she had made her way into the Avengers' life, he felt like she was hiding something from them. Steve never saw it because he adored Emma and she could never do any wrong in his mind but Tony and the others weren't as blind as Steve. They all knew she had secrets as much as she tried to hide it. They all waited patiently for her to just come out with it but she never did. Now it was three years later and she was still just as tight lipped as she was the day they rescued her from the Hydra base. Only now it seemed to be having a bad impact on her love life.

"This is usually normal for relationships, Mini Cap. It's called communication." Tony commented but he could see that she was really having a hard time dealing with whatever was going on between her and Peter. He wanted to help her because he knew the kid made her happy and Tony just wanted her to be happy. The kid was good at making her happy but communication in a relationship couldn't all be one sided. That's not what communication meant at all. "Look, normally I'd tell you not to worry about it since you two are so young but I know this isn't some high school fling. You and the kid are the real deal."

"No kidding." Emma said sarcastically, feeling like Tony hadn't listened to anything she just said but Tony just gave her a sharp look before continuing.

"I just mean that what you two have is a real, long-term kind of relationship. You're in an adult relationship so you both are going to be have to deal with emotions and feelings like adults. You can't act like children about this." Tony told her and Emma glared at him, crossing her arms.

"I don't act like a child." Emma told him and Tony rolled his eyes.

"Yes, we all know how mature you are. No need to remind me, Mini Cap, but when it comes to relationships you don't know what you're doing. When you're in an adult relationship you have to be open and honest with the other person, otherwise it's not going to work." Tony lectured and Emma scoffed, thinking that Tony almost sounded like Steve in this situation. Maybe he was trying to be like Steve and give her advice. She didn't really know but Tony was the last person she wanted relationship advice from. He was Tony Stark, after all.

"And you know so much about successful relationships?" Emma asked sarcastically. "Tony Stark who fucks anything in a skirt?" Tony should've flinched at the teenage girl's crudeness but he was used to it from her by now. She was probably the only person in the world that talked to him like that. Well, her father used to talk to him like that but he had died many years ago. It became painfully obvious to Tony that they were both related. Steven hadn't cared if Tony was a genius billionaire either. He'd tell Tony where to get off if he had to.

"That used to be me but a lot of things can change you. Especially being held hostage in a cave for months on end." Tony told her in almost sad tone and Emma immediately felt bad for snapping at him like that. She hadn't meant to make him feel bad or anything. She just got defensive sometimes. "I think it changed me for the better. Still…I've been in a somewhat successful relationship for the past seven years. Sure, I probably make Pepper regret not marrying some other more functional guy at times but we're still together."

"Natasha used to say that it doesn't matter how we stay together as long as we stay together in the end." Emma said quietly before looking back up at Tony. "She said that right before all that shit went down at the airport."

"That was different." Tony told Emma, not wanting her to confuse one thing with the other. Emma gave him a curious look as she listened to him. "She was talking about us staying together as a family. I'm talking about how to make a relationship work. Relationships aren't easy. The thing you're struggling with, being open and honest with someone, was something I struggled with too. That's a large part of the reason Pepper and I broke up last year." Emma didn't say anything so Tony continued speaking.

"It's not much different than the partnership between Spider-Man and the Viper Assassin." Emma was beyond stumped by this as Tony explained what he meant. "You two have to rely on each other for missions. If one of you kept things from the other during a mission then the mission would fail. One or both of you could die. It's the same thing in a relationship. You have to be honest and you have to trust that other person. If you can't trust them then what's the point?"

"It's not that I don't trust him." Emma finally said after being quiet for a few minutes. She liked how Tony compared a relationship to being like a partnership. Emma understood why it was so wrong of her to keep so many things from Peter. She hadn't really seen it that way before but now she understood it better. Tony glanced back at her.

"But you're scared of being vulnerable? You're scared that he'll break that trust?" Tony asked her and Emma didn't say anything as she silently nodded. He smiled softly at her before nodding to himself. "I get it, Emma. I get it more than anyone. It was scary to me too but the kid loves you. He worships the ground you walk on."

"He shouldn't." Emma said bitterly, causing Tony to frown. He didn't like it when she talked about herself like that and especially because it reminded him of a moment between himself and her father all those years ago. Steven had said almost the same thing to him back then after telling him that Margot was pregnant. She deserves better, Anthony. She really does. She could do so much better than me. This moment reminded Tony exactly of the same moment he had shared with Steven. A feeling of déjà vu washed over him and he felt regretful. Regretful that Tony told Steven that Margot was probably better off with him or Rhodey instead. He had only been joking but Tony wished he had been a better friend to Steven…a better brother.

"I know you think you don't deserve him but that's not true." Tony finally said and Emma looked up at him in surprise. "In fact, I think you're too good for him. The kid doesn't know how lucky he is." Emma snorted, shaking her head at him.

"How much have you had to drink tonight, Tony?" She questioned but Tony refused to let her think that she was a bad person who doesn't deserve to be happy. Emma deserved the world. She meant so much to him and sometimes he had trouble trying to convey that to her.

"It's true." Tony insisted before continuing as he tried to explain his words. "I wish when I was his age that I could've had a girl like you. If there was a girl like you, someone to keep me in line, I might've turned out alright. I might already have kids instead of a drinking problem. Don't get me wrong. I love Pepper but if there was some girl, when I was Peter's age, that loved me half as much as you love him then maybe I wouldn't be this way. I'd be a somewhat decent person." Emma was incredibly quiet as she watched Tony in shock. She didn't think she had ever heard him sound so honest and heartfelt before. This was probably the most emotional conversation they ever had. There was that time after the thing with Toomes but that was probably still at the top of the list of times that Emma Rogers and Tony Stark had been all mushy with each other.

"You don't know how rare it is to find the person you're meant to be with at your age. Peter's going to get to spend most of his life with you." Tony stated in a thoughtful tone and Emma's eyes widened in surprise. Tony was even amused to see Emma blush. He didn't think he had ever seen the blonde blush but he knew he'd never forget the way her pale skin looked as she blushed. It was truly a rare sight. Something as rare as seeing an albino giraffe or a blue moon.

"Don't be ridiculous. We haven't even been dating that long and not to mention we're young like you said before. Besides…he's probably not going to want anything to do with me. Not after all I've put him through." Emma said dismissively but Tony didn't miss the sad look on her face. He just smirked at her, not believing anything she said for a moment.

"That kid's completely in love with you, Emma. If he could, he'd probably propose right here and now." Tony then frowned at the thought. "Although I don't think I'd like it if he did that. You're only sixteen, after all. God, where does the time go? It didn't feel like that long ago when baby you was puking all over my designer shirt and now you might be getting married? God, I'm getting old." Emma rolled her eyes at the billionaire.

"Geez, Tony, calm down. I'm not walking down the aisle yet." Emma told him. "You're such a mom sometimes." Tony glared at her as he tried to ignore the snide comment before continuing his little speech.

"Anyways, my point is that Peter isn't going to be letting go of you anytime soon. He can't stay away from you. You have the kid wrapped around your little finger. He'd do anything for you." Tony told her and Emma smiled at him. It was a real, genuine smile and Tony knew just how lucky he was to see a smile like that.

"It goes both ways. I'd do anything for him too." Emma murmured and Tony just watched her silently, wondering about the complexities of Emma and Peter's relationship. It was still so weird to him that Emma was dating someone even if it was Peter. She never let anyone in, not even him, but somehow she had let Peter in. Tony was curious about how all this came to be. He supposed it must've started with the Toomes thing. They probably spent a lot of time alone then but Tony was glad it happened. Emma needed to stop hiding things but he wasn't stupid enough to believe that she'd spell all her secrets to him of all people. If there was at least one person she could be open and honest with then Tony was glad it was Peter. Despite the kid's stupidity, he was a good person who loved and cared about Emma. He'd be there for her.

"I know he did a lot of stupid things tonight but just go easy on him, okay?" Tony started to say as the conversation began to come to an end. "He's just a teenage boy. You've had to grow up really fast but he's still trying to catch up. You're too mature for him which I think is a good thing. Just don't be too harsh on him." Emma nodded.

"I won't." Emma promised and Tony smiled at her. They stood there staring at each other for what felt like minutes before Tony finally decided to do something there was no turning back from. He took a step closer before wrapping his arms around her. Emma froze as Tony hugged her, not having any idea as to what was going on. They stood there awkwardly for a minute or two, locked in an embrace…well, not a real embrace. Tony was hugging Emma while Emma just stood there, her arms still at her side. He awkwardly patted her back a couple of times and Emma finally found it in herself to speak.

"What the hell are you doing, Stark?" Emma asked in bewilderment but Tony still didn't let go.

"Hugging you. You look like you could use a hug." Tony told her as they continued to be locked in an awkward embrace. Emma was getting more repulsed by the second as Tony held her in his arms. This was wrong. She admitted that she was somewhat more fond of him than she used to be but that didn't mean that she wanted to be hugged by him.

"Let go of me, Stark." Emma told him and he could tell by her voice that she wasn't fooling around. He quickly let go of the blonde who glared at him. Tony gave her a sheepish smile.

"I guess the Spiderling is the only one you allow to do that." Tony observed and Emma glared at him. "I just hope that's all you let him do. You don't let him do anything else, right? Please tell me you don't, Mini Cap."

"Get out of my room." Emma said in an annoyed voice and Tony knew that this was the end of their conversation. Emma didn't seem to be in the joking mood right now.

"I hope you not answering my question is just you being annoyed and tired…because I will kill that kid if he's done anything else." Tony continued to say and Emma took a deep breath as she tried not to get too angry at him. With Tony Stark it was really hard to not let him get to you.

"Leave before I say or do something I'll regret." Emma told him in a clipped tone. Tony just shook his head at her, giving her an amused smile. He began to walk out of the room and only made it to the door before Emma stopped him.

"Tony," She called out and he turned back around to face her. She had a torn look on her face, not sure whether or not she should say this, before she finally opened her mouth to speak. "You were wrong before…You're a decent person. I mean, you do a lot of stupid shit but you're still a good person." Tony just smiled at her because he knew that was just Emma trying to be nice. She still sucked at being nice to people but he was happy that she was trying.

"Thanks, Mini Cap." Tony told Emma before smirking at her once more. "Listen, if that kid gives you any more trouble just tell me. I can have him deported, rejected from college, or even thrown in prison. I like the kid and all but I like you more." Emma smiled in amusement at Tony, a look of mischief in her blue eyes.

"Don't worry, Tony. I can handle myself just fine." Emma told him, sounding very sure of herself. Tony just laughed before nodding to himself. Tony knew that Emma could more than handle the idiotic teenage boy. Weirdly enough, Emma seemed to be the only one that Peter listened to and vice versa. That kid really did worship the ground she walked on.

"I know you can." Tony told her, giving her one last smile, before finally leaving her bedroom. Emma watched him leave in silence, returning to her own thoughts the moment the door closed behind him. She found, despite how annoying Tony seemed to be at times, that she didn't want him to leave. Tony leaving meant that she'd actually have to be alone with her thoughts.

It was early Saturday morning by now and Emma was afraid to fall asleep. She knew falling asleep meant another nightmare about Rumlow but this time Peter wouldn't be there to hold her. Emma didn't like admitting that she depended on anyone for anything but deep down she knew she depended on Peter to make her feel safe. They hadn't been fighting that long but it was too long for Emma's liking. She missed Peter as silly as that sounded. Emma wished that he was there with her because she really needed him. She didn't think that she had ever needed him more than she did in that moment. Emma just hoped that she could make things right with him.

---

Peter groaned as he woke up from his long slumber although he wouldn't really call it a slumber since he felt terrible. He had a pounding headache and everything seemed so bright. Peter tried opening his eyes but the lights felt blinding. Last night was blurry and Peter could barely remember what happened or why he felt like he was dying. The last thing he could really remember was getting out of Emma's car at the party. Everything else was brief flashes of color that made him groan in discomfort.

"How are you feeling, Party Boy?" His aunt asked and her voice sounded louder than usual. Peter groaned once more at the loudness as he went to cover his ears.

"Don't talk so loud." Peter whined and May rolled her eyes at her idiotic nephew.

"I'm actually not being loud." May explained. "You're just hungover." Peter opened his eyes, partially shielding them from the light as he looked at his aunt in surprise.

"What?" Peter asked her in confusion and May gave him a doubtful look.

"Do you really not remember last night?" May asked him and Peter shook his head as he got up from the floor. It was then that he realized that he had been laying on the bathroom floor next to the toilet. God, what really did happen?

"No. I mean…sort of." Peter started to say when everything suddenly came back to him. Well, not everything entirely but fragments of memories. He remembered drinking with a bunch of juniors before watching Emma talking to Mitchell Ori. From there on, he drank even more and the memories got even blurrier. At one point he remembered Emma coming over to him and insisting on driving him home like he was some sort of child. Peter winced because he also recalled some of the things he said to her. The last thing he remembered in vivid detail was the hurt and angry look on her face before she turned around and left him there. The sight of her retreating form, her blonde hair swishing from side to side, was the most vivid of all the other blurry memories.

"Happy found you lying on the grass in the front yard bawling your eyes out while Ned tried to calm you down." May informed him and a look of concern came over Peter's face.

"Is Ned alright?" Peter asked her and May scoffed.

"Ned's just fine. He told me he had two sips of beer before deciding that he didn't like it. I just wish you thought something similar. Anyways…Happy dropped him off at his house last night and he's grounded for the weekend." May told him and Peter looked awkwardly at the ground.

"Oh…" He trailed off, not knowing what else to say. May just looked at him with a disappointed expression on her face. She looked even more disappointed than she was when she found out that he had been skipping school.

"You're going to be grounded for a hell of a lot longer than a weekend. I hope you know that." May said and Peter felt ashamed of himself. "Seriously, Peter? Drunk at a high school party? Emma had to call Tony, you know." Peter immediately narrowed his eyes.

"So she was the one who ratted me out." He said to himself and May gave him a look of disbelief. She couldn't believe the nerve of her nephew. May thought she raised him better than that.

"She didn't call Tony because she was trying to get you into trouble. She called him because she was worried that you were going to drink yourself to death." May said, exhausted by her nephew's behavior. "I'm glad she called us. Do you know how dangerous that was? What if you got alcohol poisoning? What if you got yourself killed?"

"May, I'm fine. It's not like I'm as breakable as a normal person." Peter said, trying to sooth his aunt's worrying but she seemed even more upset at what he said. Peter instantly felt guilty when he saw tears streaming down her face. He never meant to disappoint her like this. That was never his intention.

"I don't care, Peter!" May said angrily, looking beyond frustrated with Peter's antics. "I don't care. I've already lost your uncle…I can't lose you too. I worry every night when you go out there and try to save the whole world but it's okay because I know you have Emma with you. However, this is something different. This is you being stupid and I'm afraid you'll get yourself hurt or killed. So yes…I'm glad Emma called." Peter immediately got up from the floor, despite how terrible he felt, and went over to comfort his upset aunt. He wrapped his arms around her and she sniffled.

"I'm sorry, May." Peter whispered softly and he genuinely felt sorry for everything he had done. He felt sorry for being stupid and drinking all that alcohol at Mitchell Ori's party to get Emma's attention. He was sorry for scaring his aunt and putting Ned in a difficult situation. Most of all, he felt sorry for all the things he said to Emma. He didn't remember everything he said to her but he knew he hurt her. He hadn't been a good boyfriend to her…in fact, he had probably been the worst boyfriend in history. Peter promised Emma that he wouldn't hurt her but that's exactly what he had done last night. He was starting to feel a lot of regret because he knew he had let her down.

"Peter, why are you crying?" May asked him softly once she looked up at him. She could see tears flooding his brown eyes. Peter shook his head furiously as he tried to stop the tears.

"May, I screwed up really bad." Peter said as he thought about everything that happened last night. He sat on the edge of the bathtub, looking down at the floor in shame. "I said a lot of terrible things to Emma last night…things that I don't think she'll forgive me for."

"What kind of things, Peter? What's going on?" May asked him in concern. Peter begrudgingly looked up at her even though he knew he was probably only going to disappoint her more by saying this.

"Emma and I have been fighting." Peter admitted and May frowned.

"Fighting? About what?" May questioned and Peter had a very guilty look on his face as he looked down at his hands.

"I think she had a boyfriend or something before me and I just…well…I got jealous. I don't like the idea of her with someone else." Peter confessed and May gave him a look.

"It's really none of your business who Emma did or didn't date. That's in the past and all that matters is that you're together now. You don't own her." May told him in that familiar disappointed voice which only made Peter feel worse about everything. "I thought I raised you better than that, Peter. Women aren't possessions."

"I know, May." Peter said sadly because he knew he had screwed up big time. He didn't mean to make Emma feel bad about what happened in the past. Peter knew that whoever this person was in Emma's past, boyfriend or not, had done something really bad to her. She didn't want to talk about it and he shouldn't have ever cornered her like that. Peter shouldn't have jumped to conclusions and made her feel trapped. He should've been more gentle with her and he deeply regretted the way he treated her. "I just love her so much. I wasn't thinking." May immediately caressed her nephew's face in that way she used to when he was little. Whenever he had a bad nightmare or got sick she used to caress his face and run her fingers through his hair. It was tough to think that same little boy was almost a man now.

"I know you love her, Peter." May murmured. "But that doesn't mean that you can be mad at her for something that happened in past."

"I just want to see her and tell her that I'm sorry." Peter said sadly as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "That is if she even wants anything to do with me anymore. She'll probably dump me." May's heart went out to her sad looking nephew as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him in for another hug. She soothingly rubbed his back just like she did when he was little.

"I know I'm in trouble, May, but can I please go over to her house to apologize? Please? I messed things up so much and I just want to see her." Peter begged but May just gave him a sad look.

"I would if I could, Peter, but Emma's upstate with Tony and the others." May informed him and Peter was disappointed to hear that. He also realized just then that it was the first time he had even thought of Tony. What must Tony think? Was Tony going to confiscate his suit? Probably and Peter thought he deserved it. He had been horrible to Emma and had acted even more horribly at the party.

"Oh. I didn't know." Peter muttered, feeling disappointed that this meant that he probably wasn't going to be able to talk to Emma. He felt a bit worried because this also meant that they were going to spend the weekend apart. What if, in that time apart, Emma decided that she didn't want to be with him anymore? She said she'd never leave him but Peter had said a lot of terrible things to her, after all. God, this was turning out to be the worst week of his life. How could this get any worse?

"Maybe it'll do you both some good to spend some time apart." May suggested as she tried to get him to see the bright side of this. Peter, however, didn't think it would do him any good to spend time apart from Emma. Not with what he said to her. "When Monday comes around, you can apologize to her then."

"Monday? Why not Sunday when she comes back?" Peter questioned and May pulled away from him, giving the teenage boy a pointed look.

"Because you're going to be grounded for a long time." May replied as she gave him a serious look. Peter looked at her in disbelief. "You came home drunk so you're definitely grounded. I raised you to be more responsible than that so I'm still very angry with you. Tony confiscated the suit and he's also going to be putting you to work at the compound. You're lucky that I'm still letting you go to London."

"My suit?" Peter said as if that was the only thing he heard. He honestly couldn't believe everything May just told him. No suit? Wait…Tony was going to be putting him to work at the compound? What did that even mean? "Tony can't take my suit? New York needs Spider-Man."

"Tony is completely in his right to take the suit away since he made the suit…and Emma's actually getting her suit back so she'll be taking over by herself until you get back." May told him but Peter was still disappointed that he was going to be spending even more time apart from Emma. Why did he have to drink so much at that party?

"I guess that sounds fair." Peter said quietly although he really didn't like the idea of not fighting crime with Emma or even being able to apologize to her before school on Monday. He wanted to see her right then and now. He wanted Emma to know that he was sorry and he wanted her to know that he loved her…a part of him was afraid that maybe she had forgotten.

"You're not going anywhere other than school for the next two weeks. You'll go to school and then come straight home. No stops." May told him firmly and Peter's eyes widened.

"But Emma-" He started to say when May narrowed her eyes at him and Peter looked away.

"Well, if you're so concerned about your girlfriend then maybe you should've thought of her before getting drunk at some party. I'm sorry Peter but that's on you." May said and Peter knew that she was right. He had no one else to blame for this mess except himself.

"Okay…I get it. You're right." Peter admitted and May smiled softly at him. She patted his shoulder affectionately, glad that he wasn't going to challenge her on this subject. Sometimes Peter could be very stubborn when he wanted to be. He was like his uncle and father in that way. Parker men were sometimes annoyingly pigheaded but May still loved them.

"Good. Now that you've finished puking into the toilet maybe you can take a nap. That has to be a killer hangover." May told him and Peter nodded.

"The lights are so bright." He muttered and May just shook her head at him before reaching over on the bathroom counter and picking up the glass of water she had left there. She immediately handed the water over to Peter who graciously took it from her before downing the contents in a record amount of time.

"Unfortunately for you, Peter, there is no one cure for a hangover so the best thing you can do is to just sleep it off. Maybe your abilities will lessen the pain." May said as she tried to comfort him but Peter just thought that his abilities might've even enhanced the pain. It wasn't like he was hurt physically so there wasn't anything for his body to heal. Maybe Emma was lucky since she couldn't get drunk. It meant that she would never have to get a hangover and Peter was glad she'd never have to go through what he was going through because this was excruciating.

"Thanks, May." Peter told her before he slowly, and very carefully, got up from the bathroom floor. He felt a bit sore from lying on the hard floor all night but he was sure the pain would go away soon enough. He walked slowly to the door but May stopped him before he could leave.

"Promise me that you'll never do that again, Peter." May called out to him with a worried look on her face. "I was so worried and I don't know what I'd do if…you did this again." Peter looked back at her, still guilty over what happened.

"I'm sorry, May." Peter told her honestly. "I'm sorry but I can honestly say that I'm never going to do that again." They both laughed when he said that although it kind of hurt Peter's head to do so. May gave him a sympathetic look.

"Go get some rest. You might feel better later." May said and Peter nodded.

"I will." She then gave him another sharp look.

"I'm still mad at you." She tried to tell him seriously and Peter just chuckled.

"I know." It was then that he finally left the bathroom and headed for his bedroom. Even with his painful headache, a lot rested on his mind and all those thoughts concerned Emma. He wanted to know just how mad she was at him but he also wanted to know what she was thinking. Did she miss him like he missed her? Did she still love him? Was she thinking of ending things? Peter hated not being able to see her. He wished more than anything that he could so at least he could trying mending things between them.

Peter entered his bedroom and immediately made a beeline for his bed. He climbed into bed, his body aching, before pulling the covers over his head. Peter never felt this sore in his life, even after a night of crime fighting but all he knew was that he wanted to block out any trace of light. The teenage boy laid in bed for a long time, he wasn't sure for how long, when he peeked out through a small sliver of light through the darkness of his comforter. Peter's eyes adjusted to the light as he spotted the small bookshelf resting near the door of his bedroom.

It wasn't a big bookshelf like Emma's was. Emma's bookshelf was huge and it took up an entire wall of her bedroom. He liked to think that her room was almost like a library and while Peter read quite a few books he didn't read the kind of books Emma did. He liked reading books that were centered around theoretical science while Emma was more inclined towards fiction. It was a huge difference between them since Emma had no interest in science or math while Peter hated English Literature but he liked that they were different. He liked listening to Emma tell him everything that happened in a favorite novel of hers that she had recently read. She seemed so enthusiastic and happy to tell him everything which in turn made Peter happy to listen. Science bored Emma to death but sometimes he'd try to explain something to her and she'd listen to him with her complete and undivided attention. She'd watch him intently with those ocean blue eyes of hers which made Peter blush although he couldn't deny that he liked having her attention. Sometimes she'd even ask him a question and he'd happily explain it to her. The memory of Peter trying to explain Quantum Physics to Emma almost made him laugh. She questioned every single thing he said until Peter eventually realized that she was just messing with him. The smile faded when he remembered that they were still fighting.

It was then that his eyes rested on the small box sitting on top of the bookshelf next to his lamp. He stared at the box because it had been a long time since he had even noticed it much less looked inside of it. In fact, he hadn't looked inside the box since the day of Uncle Ben's funeral. Of course, he knew what was inside of the box…something that Uncle Ben had given him a couple years before he died. Peter had been so young then, eleven at the time, and hadn't given the trinket much thought as he deposited it into the box before going off to play video games with Ned. It wasn't until now that Peter was even reminded of the box and what it contained but everything made so much more sense now that he did remember.

Uncle Ben's words echoed inside his head as he remembered what his late uncle told him all those years ago. Peter hadn't taken him seriously then and had only brushed him off but now that he was older, he understood what Uncle Ben meant. Peter's eyes remained fixed on the box as an idea slipped into his mind. Peter knew what he was going to do and just what he was going to say to Emma when he saw her again. He didn't care if he was grounded or not…he was going to make sure that she knew how much he loved her. Hopefully Emma would still feel the same by tomorrow.

---

By Sunday night Emma had returned to the townhouse after spending the weekend at the compound. The nightmares had been inevitable but Emma was thankful for the time away from the city so she could think about what she had to do. She just couldn't put this off any longer and in all honesty she should've done this a long time ago. Hell, she should've fessed up the day she woke up in the medical bay of Stark Tower when Steve had saved Bruce and Dr. Cho from her wrath. Emma probably wouldn't be living a life full of lies if she had and maybe it wouldn't have been so bad. It would've been super embarrassing and Steve probably would've forced her to see a therapist but at least she'd be better than she was now. Anyways…it probably wasn't smart to dwell on the past. All she should think about was telling Peter. He probably had a right to know more than anyone else because they were in a relationship together. She knew how confused he was the other night when she started crying when she was underneath him and it wasn't right that he thought it was because of something he did.

Tony, even though she'd never admit it, was right about relationships as well. It was a partnership that would never survive if she couldn't be honest with Peter. So Emma had made a decision. She'd tell Peter first and then her father and Steve whenever they came back. Emma didn't really know if she needed to tell Tony or the others. She was at a point where she was ready to tell Peter, Steve, and her father but she wasn't like Jessica. Emma didn't think she was at the point where she was fine with everyone knowing. For now, it would just be the men she loved most. All equally but all in different ways.

"Hey Emma, this came in the mail for you." Darcy said, breaking Emma out of her thoughts. The brunette was standing in her doorway with a package in her hands...a package that had a letter tucked into it. Emma gave the package and letter a curious look.

"Someone sent me a package?" Emma questioned and Darcy just smirked at her.

"Well, I think we all know who would definitely send you a package and don't worry. It came courtesy of Sharon Carter delivery." Darcy told her and Emma's eyes widened in surprise from her spot on her bed. Darcy then deposited the package and letter onto the bed in front of Emma while the blonde stared in wonder at the writing on the package. The neat handwriting was none other than Steve's and she could feel her heart race just from the sight of it.

"I'll just leave you to it." Darcy told her knowingly and Emma barely noticed as the brunette left the room, closing the door behind her. Emma stared at the package and letter for only a couple seconds before grabbing the letter. She was very careful as she opened it, making sure not to rip the envelope. Emma pulled the letter out of the envelope and began to eagerly read it.

To My Best Girl,

I know by the time this letter reaches you that it'll be past your birthday and for that I'm really sorry. My greatest fear was that you might think I would forget but trust me none of us have. There was a certain sadness and regret that came over me when I realized that I wouldn't be able to celebrate your sixteenth birthday with you. Sixteen? God…you're almost a woman. Please forgive Bucky and I for not being there for your birthday. Just know that we would if we could.

I'm aware that Natasha informed you of Bucky being in the Cyro-Chamber again. I wish she hadn't but you had a right to know. I know you're worried about him but trust me when I say that he's fine. He's being looked after by the most brilliant mind the world has ever seen. I'd say where but I don't want you running around trying to find him. Natasha's informed me that Tony enrolled you at a high school. I'm not going to lie and say that I'm completely okay with the idea of you going to school with hormonal teenage boys(I remember how Bucky was in high school) but I know school's good for you. Besides…I know you're too smart and independent to want anything to do with those boys anyways. I can't really picture you in high school but Natasha told me that you were doing good last time you two chatted and that you even joined the Academic Decathlon team. I wish I could see one of your competitions but maybe when things are calm again, I can. I'd really like that and I know Bucky would like that too.

However, I've also seen the Viper Assassin on the news again and I'm not happy. I thought Tony was keeping you out of danger so I was very disappointed in seeing you going up against the man who called himself the Vulture. Tony has always wanted you to join the team so I don't know why I was so surprised. The fact that you and this Spider-Man guy are spending time together doesn't ease mine or the others' minds. There is little that I know about him and Sam really doesn't have a high opinion of him either. The fact that you're apparently continuing this partnership of sorts puts me on edge because you're not the best judge of character when it comes to these things. The fact that you admire Loki so much still gives me chills at night. When I get back we will definitely be having a discussion about Spider-Man and the continued appearance of the Viper Assassin. Still…the shield looks good on you.

With all that being said, I can't express how much I miss you. It's almost been a year but it feels like so much longer than that. We're currently going from place to place, never staying too long in one area, but I wish you could see everywhere we've been. You'd love it. Sometimes I regret that day at the airport when Bucky and I let you stay behind. I wish we had made you come with us but I know that's selfish. You've made friends back home with kids your age and you're living a somewhat normal life which is all I've ever hoped for. I just hope to see it someday and I hope that day can be soon.

I hope your birthday was fun and I hope that you and Tony are getting along. Emma, I know it's hard getting along with him (trust me, I know better than anyone) but just try. He's not a bad guy and I know he cares about you in his own way. It still makes me sad that I'm missing any part of you growing up but I promise this won't be forever. We'll see each other soon. The others also wish you a happy birthday. Sam says he misses you too and sometimes I think he misses you almost as much as I do. Almost.

Do what Tony says and try not to get into any trouble if you can. I know that's impossible for you but just try. I love you, Emma, and I miss you every single day. Hopefully we can come home soon but until next time I hope you'll enjoy the gift I got you. I knew you'd love it from the moment I saw it. Happy Birthday and I promise to be there for the next one. Please forgive me. I love you…in case you didn't already know that.

-Your Very Young Looking Grandfather

Emma wiped away a few fallen tears as she looked down at the letter. Her finger tracing over the neat handwriting as she imagined Steve sitting down somewhere as he wrote the letter. She never realized how much she missed him until she saw something like this. A part of her felt a bit guilty for the happiness she felt during his absence. Emma was in a relationship with Peter in a state of bliss while Steve and the others were on the run as well as her father being in the Cyro-Chamber. It felt very selfish for her to be so happy without them but she also knew that she could never be completely happy even if she was with Peter. There was still a hole inside of her from their absence and even Peter couldn't fill that hole. He provided a very different sort of happiness to her than Steve and her father did. Emma still knew that she'd never be completely happy unless she had all three of them with her at the same time. It was so strange because she had all three of them at one point in her life but never at the same time. First it was her father during her time in Hydra then it was Steve after the Avengers rescued her and now it was Peter. Was it too much to ask for all of them? Was it too selfish?

Emma decided to distract herself from thoughts of Steve and her father as she focused on the present in front of her. She opened the box up and stared in confusion as she spotted numerous Chinese characters decorating the box. Emma understood what the box said but she just didn't understand why Steve would send her something with Chinese characters decorating it. She took the flat and slender box out of the package before carefully depositing it onto her bed. Her finger traced the cloth fabric of the pale green colored box. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she saw an image of a familiar figure printed on the box. Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang, the Chinese leader that Emma admired more than any other leader in history. Emma even thought that Loki didn't have anything on Emperor Qin who was far more patient and strategic than Emma thought Loki had been when he had attempted in taking over the world. If Emma ever met the god of mischief then she was going to tell him all the ways he went wrong with his original plan to take over the world. Did Loki honestly think he could take over the world in a matter of a couple of days? Even with an army of aliens, that was never going to work.

She then opened the box which revealed a surprise that Emma never expected. There were four stone figurines inside the box that were designed to look like the Terra Cotta warriors. The most recognizable one to Emma was the figurine of Emperor Qin but she also spotted two figurines that looked to be his guards and a scholar. Emma took the figurine of Emperor Qin out of the box and admired the detail and design of the figurine. As she held the figurine carefully in her hands, she realized that Steve knew her very well. He always thought it was weird how Emma held admiration for an a leader who was very intelligent and accomplished but also one who was cruel and something more of a dictator. Emma admired strategy and tactics and as far as she was concerned, Emperor Qin had been the most successful leader in history. He had accomplished so many things and lead China into being one of the greatest civilizations to have ever existed.

Yes, he did a lot of bad things too like banning and burning books as well as executing scholars who challenged his rule but the world wasn't black and white to Emma. It was a very gray place but Steve could never see that. Although, it seemed like he still remembered that friendly debate they had on the subject. Steve didn't like the idea of Emma admiring someone like that but Emma tried to get him to see the point she was making about the world not being black and white like he thought it was. They agreed to disagree even though they secretly both thought they were right. However, Steve seemed to not hate the thought of her admiring such a person since he sent her box of figurines honoring the famous Chinese emperor. Emma also realized what else this meant.

This box of Chinese figurines meant that Steve and the others were in China or they had at least been there recently. Emma knew where he was but she felt no desire to chase after him like she always wanted. There used to be a day where Emma would drop everything and go search for him if she found out information like this but everything had changed. She had actually started to build a life here which was what Steve had always wanted. Even if things weren't going so great with Peter right now, she still knew she could never leave him.

Emma then saw something at the bottom of the box and she immediately pulled it out. It was a birthday card which made her smile. The card was a vibrant shade of red and was also decorated with Chinese characters but what stood out the most was the picture stamped across the front. It was a printed design of a snake and Emma suddenly realized what it meant. She had almost forgotten that she was born during the year of the snake. Her Chinese Zodiac was kind of ironic considering who she was. The card was signed by Steve and the others who all wished her a happy sixteenth birthday. The card made Emma smile despite how much she missed Steve. He promised to be there for her next birthday but what if he wasn't? What if it was years before Steve returned? Emma could be an adult before she ever saw Steve and her father again.

Emma's gaze was then drawn away from the birthday card and gift as she heard something from outside her room but it didn't sound like it was coming from her hallway. It sounded like it was coming from outside. Emma glanced over to the window but saw nothing but darkness. Her enhanced hearing, however, signaled to her that someone was climbing up the wall of the townhouse. Her heart raced and Emma immediately feared the worse. It was Rumlow. Who else would try and sneak up on her like this? Rumlow had finally come for her and he was going to try and take her. He was going to bring her back to Hydra and he was going to rape her again. He'd probably never let go of her this time and Emma didn't know if she could fight him off.

She immediately jumped off her bed and went to turn off the light in her bedroom. Emma didn't hesitate in flying up to the ceiling of her room. She flew just above the window and began to wait for the person to show their face. This was the drill that Emma had trained herself for in case anyone from Hydra came looking for her. Emma's eyes narrowed as the person opened the window and climbed into her room. They pulled themselves over her window seat and just when they stood up, seemingly to catch their breath, Emma flew down from the ceiling to attack them. She ambushed the individual by pushing them onto the floor and sitting on their back. The person grunted as Emma wrapped her hand around the back of the individual's neck, shoving their face into the ground with extreme force.

"Tell me who you are and who sent you before I shove your face in through the floor." Emma threatened and the person squirmed underneath her.

"Emma! It's me! Peter!" Peter exclaimed as he continued to squirm underneath her and Emma's eyes widened in surprise. She quickly moved off of him and stood back up, watching as Peter also got up from the floor. Emma couldn't believe that she hadn't known it was Peter. She should've known it was him…right? Emma should've known by his scent that it was him and she should've even been able to see through the darkness that it was him. Somehow she had ignored those details, thinking he was part of Hydra. Everything was getting much worse for Emma and she knew it. She was more paranoid than ever.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Emma said as she tried to ignore her feelings of guilt. Peter pulled off the hood of his hoodie as he looked at Emma and she immediately turned the lights back on. He gave her a look of disbelief.

"I just wanted to see you." Peter said in a quiet voice. "I didn't mean to scare you." Emma just shook her head.

"Then why didn't you come in through the front door like a normal person? Why did you have to crawl in through the window like a serial killer?" Emma questioned and Peter gave her a guilty expression.

"Aunt May grounded me for the next couple weeks and I didn't want to wait until school to see you." He admitted and the look of anger faded from her face as a more understanding one took place.

"Right…Tony told me about that. Sorry." Emma told him and Peter gave her an unsure look as he fiddled with the sleeve of his hoodie.

"How is he? I-I mean did he seem mad?" Peter asked her and Emma shrugged. There was a certain tension between them that was still new to Emma. She supposed it was because they had been fighting a lot recently.

"He seemed pretty calm about it when he talked to me but I think Happy's the pissed off one. You puked all over the inside of his car." Emma told him and Peter blushed in embarrassment.

"Oh…I guess I should apologize to Happy then." He said awkwardly and Emma just nodded although she didn't really care whether or not he apologized to Happy. Peter then glanced over her appearance, suddenly looking very shy and nervous as he smiled at her. Emma tried to pretend like his smile didn't affect her but her heart still raced nonetheless. Stupid Parker. Sometimes she hated the way he made her feel about him because it was like she couldn't stand her ground when it came to him and his stupid smile.

"You look really beautiful." Peter told her and Emma raised an eyebrow because somehow she doubted that. She wasn't wearing any make-up, her hair was still wet from her shower, and she was only wearing a pair of sweatpants and one of Steve's old shirts. Emma didn't think he was in his right mind if he thought she looked beautiful. She wasn't even trying to look beautiful. No, this was probably just his way of sucking up to her. Tony pulled the same shit with Pepper all the time. Emma didn't really know why he was trying to suck up to her anyways. It's not like she was mad at him anymore. Well, she was kind of mad at how he got drunk the other night and acted like an asshole but she wasn't mad about any of the other stuff.

"Thanks." Emma said dryly, not looking entirely convinced by him. Peter swallowed nervously before his eyes rested on her bed where Steve's birthday present, letter, and card still rested. He cleared his throat as he nodded towards the various items on her bed.

"W-what are those?" He asked nervously and Emma followed his gaze. She sighed.

"It's just some stuff Steve sent me. A belated birthday present or whatever." Emma told him shortly as she immediately began picking everything up from her bed and placing it on her desk. Peter raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Your grandfather sent you something? Emma, that's great. Did he say anything? Maybe he-" Peter began to ramble but Emma cut him off as she gave him a pointed look before crossing her arms.

"Why are you here, Peter?" Emma asked him bluntly and Peter stared at her, completely at a loss for words. He had rehearsed over the weekend all the things he had meant to say to her but now his mind seemed to be drawing a blank.

"What?" He knew it was a stupid thing to say but it was also the only thing he could manage to say.

"I don't know why you're here. The last time we spoke you got mad at me for telling you what to do. You told me that you were the man and I was the woman so I should listen to you. You also accused me of being a terrible girlfriend for not letting you smoke weed." Emma told him and Peter looked down at his shoes, ashamed of the way he had spoken to his girlfriend. He hadn't known what exactly he had said to her before. Peter knew he had acted like an asshole but he hadn't known what exactly he had said. Not the specifics anyways.

"I really said all that?" Peter asked shyly as he hesitantly looked back up at her and Emma nodded.

"And more." She added and Peter gave her a sincere apologetic look, never feeling as terrible as he did in that moment. He still couldn't believe Emma had to stop him from smoking pot. Pot? Peter had never had the desire to do any kind of drugs in his life. If there was one thing he had learned from this entire thing, it was that he acted like an asshole when he drunk.

"Emma, I'm sorry for everything I said and did." Peter blurted out as Emma gave him a confused look. He was apologizing? Him? "I've treated you terribly and I'm sorry. You didn't deserve what I said to you. I've been a terrible boyfriend."

"Peter-" Emma started to say but Peter didn't let her speak.

"No, I have." Peter stated, refusing for her to tell him anything different. "I know it's none of my business who you have or haven't dated. It's all in the past now and I don't care because you're here with me now and that's all that should matter. I'm sorry for saying all those things and I'm really sorry for the party. You were trying to help me and I acted like a jerk." Peter took a deep breath before continuing.

"I treated you like you were a piece of property to me and that was wrong. I never should've done that." Peter told her in an honest and sincere tone as Emma patiently listened to him. "You're my girlfriend but you're also my best friend. I didn't treat you with the respect you deserve so I'd understand if you wanted to break up with me. I hurt you when I promised I never would. I can never express how sorry I am about that. I've acted horribly but please don't leave me, Emma." The expression on Peter's face was almost desperate which scared Emma. She had never seen him look like that before. He grasped her hands, holding them tightly in his hands as he began to plead with her. Emma was speechless.

"I'm not asking you to forget everything I did but please don't leave. I know I don't deserve you after all of that but I don't want you to leave." Peter said pleadingly, his brown eyes flooding with tears and Emma felt shocked at the sight of him. She didn't know what to say as he pleaded with her like he was the one who messed up and not her. "I just want you to know that I love you even though I haven't been acting like it recently…because I don't think I could stand it if you didn't want to be with me anymore."

Peter then quickly let go of her hands as he began rummaging through his pocket as if he were searching for something. Emma just watched him silently, wondering what he was doing. It took a moment but eventually Peter managed to pull out a necklace. Emma's eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she looked at the necklace in his hands. It was a beautiful looking piece of jewelry with a silver chain and a heart shaped pendant. Emma marveled at the emerald stone heart. It was bright green and even shimmered a bit under the light. Peter then locked eyes with her as she looked back up at him.

"This was my mother's necklace." Peter stated quietly and Emma glanced back down at the necklace in surprise before looking back up at him. "My father gave it to my mother on their fourth date when he realized that she was the woman that he wanted to marry and start a family with. At least that's what Uncle Ben told me when he gave me this necklace for my eleventh birthday. He told me that it was my mother's and that someday I would give it to the right girl when I met her. Of course, I thought girls were kind of annoying and gross back then but I see things differently now." Emma told herself that she didn't know what Peter was trying to say but deep down she did. A part of her felt floored by Peter's speech but another part of her felt scared and guilty. The look on Peter's face then softened as he gazed at her. Emma could feel her heart pounding in her chest and the familiar feeling of butterflies in her stomach.

"Emma, I want to give this necklace to you." Peter told her in a firm and sure tone.

"Peter, I-" Emma began to say but Peter yet again interrupted her. He wanted to finish what he had to say before Emma could say anything. Maybe it was because he was scared that she would immediately reject the necklace and tell him to go back home. Peter just wanted her to hear him out.

"No, no, let me finish. I want to give this necklace to you because you're the only girl for me, Emma." Peter told her and Emma fell silent once more as she stared at him with a wide eyed look on her face. "I already know that you're going to be my wife someday…and the mother of my children. People will say that we're too young to know what we want but I don't care. Uncle Ben said that I'd know when I met the right girl and I know that you're her."

Emma could only watch Peter in shock as he spoke. With each word, she became more and more surprised because, secretly, Emma had always assumed that Peter would eventually tire of her and then want nothing to do with her. She never knew that he felt that way about her…that he saw a future with her. A future in which Emma was the girl he wanted to marry and have children with. It all sounded like some sort of fairytale her mother used to read to her when she was little but Emma never thought she deserved a fairytale. She always thought her life would be forever doomed into being a tragedy.

"Emma, I promise that we'll get married someday. Not anytime soon but when we're older, I'm going to marry you." Peter said, sounding very sure of himself as he placed the beautiful necklace in her hand. Emma stared at the necklace, the chain feeling cold against her warm hand. Peter's promising words echoed inside her mind as she stared at emerald heart necklace. He didn't propose to her but he might've as well have. Peter just told her that he was going to marry her someday…no, he promised her. After everything she put him through, he still wanted to be with her and what made her feel worse was that he even wanted a future with her. How could he want any of that after all of the lies she told him? After all the times she snapped at him when he was only trying to help her? Emma knew what she had to do now. It would be so tempting to lie to him so they could continue to be happy together but Emma knew that they wouldn't be happy long. He'd still have questions about her past and Emma would snap at him again which would bring them back to square one. She couldn't lie to him anymore. Even if he didn't want her anymore, at least she could say that she had been honest with him. Emma then glanced back up at Peter, her blue eyes locking onto his brown ones.

"I can't take this." Emma whispered and a hurt look flashed across Peter's face. She wanted to curse herself because she never knew how to use the right words. Emma didn't want to make him think that she didn't love him as much as he loved her. She just wanted to tell him the truth…to tell him all the secrets she had been hiding for the past three years.

"That's not what I meant." Emma told him quickly before continuing. "I meant that I don't deserve this."

"What are you talking about?" Peter said in confusion and he was even more bewildered as Emma placed the necklace back in his hand. He didn't understand. Did this mean that Emma didn't want him anymore? That she didn't forgive him and that she didn't feel the same way anymore? Peter knew if that was the case then his heart would break. Emma bit her lip nervously.

"I haven't been honest with you, Peter." Emma confessed, suddenly feeling nervous because she knew what she was going to have to tell him. It was now or never. "I've been lying to you a lot. Our whole relationship, I've been lying to you…I've even been lying to everything I've ever known. My father, Steve, Tony, all the others…you." Peter just shook his head.

"If this is about the guy I accused you of being with, I don't care. It's in the past now. It doesn't matter to me." Peter said, trying to reassure her but Emma only felt more upset. She furiously shook her head, her eyes filling up with tears. Peter frowned at the sight but Emma didn't allow him to question what was wrong.

"There's no one else, Peter. I was being honest when I said that. It always has been and always will be just you." Emma told him and Peter had to admit he felt a bit relieved when she said that although he wouldn't admit that. He had just gotten through apologizing for his jealousy and Peter didn't want her to think he only thought of her as his property because that wasn't true. However, he was still confused as to why she looked so sad.

"I don't understand, Emma." Peter said, still sounding confused by her sad state. Emma swallowed hard.

"I think we should sit down for this, Peter." Emma said quietly and furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"Emma, I don't-" He started to say but she didn't let him finish as she sat down on the edge of her bed. Peter reluctantly sat down next to her with about a million questions racing through his mind.

"Just let me tell you the truth. I haven't been honest with anyone and I think I really need to do this." Emma told him vaguely which made Peter feel worried. Her voice was full of hurt and pain but there was nothing he could do because he just couldn't understand what was going on with her. A tear had fallen from her eye and Peter made a move to wipe it away but she dodged his touch. Peter felt hurt at that but Emma just shook her head. "I need to say this so please just listen. Okay?" All Peter could do was nod as he stared back at her, not having a clue as to where this was going.

"Okay." He said simply and Emma started to tell her story…her real story. Over the weekend, she had gone over dozens of different ways to approach the subject but she didn't use a single one as she began to speak. There was only one way she could tell this. There was no other way to tell Peter this that would soften the blow. Nothing could soften a blow like this.

"Hydra made me do a lot of bad things but they also did a lot of bad things to me." Emma started to say and Peter knew he wasn't going to like this. He hated thinking of Emma being in any kind of pain. It made him wish that he could go back in time to save her from Hydra which he knew was a silly thought but he couldn't help it. She didn't talk about Hydra often so Peter knew that this was big. He still didn't know where exactly she was going with this. "Remember when I told you they used to give me beatings to suppress my emotions so that I could control myself?" Peter swallowed hard.

"Yes." Peter said softly.

"Well, that was only the half of it." Emma told him as Peter listened to her intently. "They used to see how long it would take me to heal. They'd stab me over and over again. They'd shoot me over and over again. They'd even pull out all my teeth to see how long it would take for them to grow back. They said it was to toughen me up but I think they enjoyed it a little too much. The sadistic bastards." Peter felt a burning anger flood over him as he listened to Emma. She made her years of torture sound so casual and like it was nothing to her which Peter didn't like. It meant something to Peter. It made Peter angry that Emma had been tortured for years inside that Hydra base and no one had come to save her…not until she was much older.

"Rumlow, the man who killed my parents, was the one who orchestrated all the torture. He took great pleasure in seeing me in pain." Emma said as she began to talk about the dreaded topic of Rumlow. This was it. There was no turning back after this point. Once she talked about Rumlow then that was it. "He trained me at the base…when my father wasn't there. I used to tell myself that I would learn from his teachings so that I could use his techniques against him one day and kill him. It was stupid because I was still scared of him." Emma briefly paused before continuing.

"I used to call him the man with the wolf like smile because he reminded me of a wolf. He terrified me but I was so naïve. I should've been more scared." Emma said quietly and Peter began to get a very bad feeling about this. If this was the thing that Emma had been hiding then it couldn't have been good. "He'd always watch me when he thought I wasn't looking…sometimes even when he knew I was looking. I didn't think much of it and sometimes I would even talk back to him. I was so stupid." Emma closed her eyes briefly in an attempt to stop the tears but all it did was cause more to stream down her face. She opened her eyes back up, not really looking back at Peter because she didn't know if she was strong enough to hold his gaze as she told him this. She didn't want to see the expression on his face when he knew what really happened in that Hydra base.

"My father had been put back into the Cyro-Chamber months before so life was pretty dull at that point. I missed him but by then I was used him being in the Cyro-Chamber." Emma said and her throat felt thick as she began to reveal the one thing about herself that she never dared to tell anyone. "I had just turned thirteen when he came into my room one night. It was dark in there despite the moonlight streaming in through the porthole they called a window. I woke up and he was hovering over me in the bed." She felt Peter's gaze on her but Emma ignored him as she continued with her story but Peter already knew she wasn't talking about her father.

"I asked him what he was doing there at first but I think I knew deep down. I was waiting for the day it would happen. Hydra wanted me to be an effective assassin and one who used sex as a weapon…like the Black Widow. In order to do that, they'd have to break me but I just assumed I would be older." Emma said and Peter stared at Emma with wide eyes because even he knew what was coming. He begged God to tell him that it wasn't what he thought…that he was just assuming the wrong thing but he knew he wasn't. The lost and broken look on Emma's face told him that it was exactly what he thought. "But the look on his face told me that it wasn't why he was there. He was there for himself." Emma sniffled as she fought to control her emotions, not sparing Peter a glance because she still couldn't bear to look at him.

"I tried to tell him to get off but he wouldn't listen. He threatened my father a-and I just wanted to protect him. Papa had sacrificed so much for me so how could I let Rumlow hurt him?" Emma said, feeling slightly ashamed of herself as she spoke. Peter felt tears start to stream down his own face as he watched Emma who looked so broken. He realized that this was exactly the thing she had been keeping from him. The reason she had been so hard to get close to and the reason she acted like an animal who had been abused. All her secrets had started coming to light but Peter could feel his heart breaking a little bit. The look on her face was like a knife through his heart. "I-I thought that if I just let him do what he wanted then he'd go away and leave Papa and I alone. I figured that it wouldn't hurt that much. Hydra had tortured me in other ways and I had been fine…I had healed from those injuries but I was so wrong."

"H-He was i-inside me and it h-hurt so much. I thought I was going to die." Emma cried and Peter immediately embraced her as he wrapped his arms around her. She buried her face into his shirt as she sobbed. Peter had never seen Emma cry so much before and he cried too as she told him everything. He cried because someone had hurt Emma and they had hurt her so badly that she was still hurting today. He also cried because he had been so awful to Emma and accused her of those terrible things when she had gone through something like that. Peter thought he was a terrible person for saying those things about her when this was what really happened to her. How could he have said all those things? No wonder Emma didn't want the necklace. He was a terrible boyfriend...a terrible person.

"I thought it was never going to end. I-I don't know how long it went on, it felt like h-hours, and when he finished there was so much blood down there. I-I hadn't even had my first period yet. I was so s-scared and I didn't understand why there was s-so much blood." Peter could hear Emma's trembling voice as she struggled to speak. He soothingly rubbed her back as she cried into his chest. Emma felt like a child again as Peter held her tightly in his arms. Peter swallowed hard before finally speaking.

"It's okay, Emma. You don't have to say anything else." Peter murmured and Emma sniffled. She then pulled away from him to finally look at him but he didn't look disgusted or angry like she thought he'd look. No, he just looked sad.

"But I have to." Emma told him as she looked back at him. "I've kept this secret for too long. It's killing me, Peter. I can barely sleep anymore and when I do I'm always trapped in these horrifying nightmares. I pretend to be braver than I am but the truth is that I'm not brave at all. I'm weak but I'm also scared of h-him. I'm afraid he'll get me and I don't know if I can stop him. I don't think I could even kill him if it came down to it. I'm just too afraid." Peter searched her eyes as he tried to figure out where her mind was right now. He was desperate to know because he never heard her talk like this before. Not to mention she just told him her deepest and darkest secret. A secret that filled Peter with anger and more rage that he had ever felt before but it wasn't directed at her. It was directed at the monster who did those terrible things to her…the monster who hurt her.

"He's not going to get you, Emma. He never will. I won't let that happen." Peter told her seriously but Emma just shook her head, tears still streaming down her face.

"It's what he wants, Peter. This is why he's coming back. He's coming back for me and I don't know if I could go through all of it again if he gets me." Emma said, sounding terrified and Peter wiped the tears from her face. This time she didn't stop him.

"I already told you that won't happen." Peter repeated as he looked down at her. "Besides…once we tell Tony, he'll know what to do. He'll make sure that monster can't get you." Emma shook her head furiously.

"I'm not telling Tony." Emma said and Peter gave her a confused look.

"What? He needs to know, Emma. He'll know what to do and he'll make sure that this man goes to jail." Peter said but Emma didn't look convinced.

"I can't tell him, Peter. I could barely tell you…you're the first person I've ever told." Emma said and Peter couldn't believe that. Emma hadn't told anyone else about this? Not even her father or grandfather? It spoke volumes to him that she trusted him enough to tell him this at all but it still hurt knowing that Emma had been living with this secret for the past three years. She had been alone in this and he hated to think of her hiding her pain. She didn't need to do that.

"We need to tell the others, Emma." Peter said and Emma immediately threw herself back into Peter's arms, taking him by surprise. Peter didn't know what to say or do because Emma was usually never this…affectionate. She wasn't the hugging type. They kissed and held hands a lot but that was different. Sometimes if they were in bed together, she wanted him to hold her but Peter suspected that had something to do with the nightmares.

"Please don't tell the others. I don't want them to know." Emma begged him although her voice was muffled as she buried her face against his chest. Peter just stared down at the blonde who was practically in his lap, crying into his shirt. His heart broke at the sight as he absentmindedly ran his hand through her hair in an attempt to calm her down. He hated it when Emma cried. It was rare for her to cry but he absolutely hated the sight of a sad and hurt Emma. He would do anything to make her stop crying…to somehow make her feel better. She could ask him for anything in the world and he'd give it to her.

"Emma…" He trailed off and Emma held on tighter to him.

"I promise I'll tell Steve and my father when they get back but don't make me tell the others. I can't do that. Not yet." Emma pleaded and Peter knew he was going to cave in even if it wasn't what he thought was the right thing to do. He sighed as he held onto her and felt sadness for Emma, the girl he loved, and everything she had to go through. How could this happen to her? She was a good person despite what she wanted people to believe. Emma didn't show it to most people but he knew she was kind and compassionate. The thought of anyone doing anything to hurt her didn't just make him sad but it also made him furious.

"I won't tell anyone. I promise." Peter said softly as he continued to hold her in his arms. He rested his face against the top of her head, holding her closer because he it was what she wanted. "It's okay, Emma. I won't say a word."

"Thank you." Emma whispered and they were silent for a while as he held her. A million thoughts raced inside Emma's mind as Peter held her close. She couldn't believe she finally told him the thing she had been hiding from everyone for years. The only thing that worried her was that he was going to change his mind about everything. She was scared that he was going to change his mind about her.

"Do you still want me?" Emma asked quietly after a moment of silence and Peter immediately pulled away from her so he could look at her.

"What?" He questioned in confusion and Emma looked down at her hands almost shyly before looking back up at him, an almost worried expression on her face.

"I'm damaged, Peter, and the worst part of it is that I made you believe that I was less damaged than I actually am. I tricked you." Emma told him but Peter just shook his head.

"You didn't trick me. You just…you were just scared and that's okay." Peter said reassuringly before a guilty look came over his face. "I'm the one who messed up. I accused you of all those things when you were just hurting inside. I haven't been good to you. I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to break up with me."

"Peter, I lied to you. You didn't know any different. I should've told you a long time ago." Emma said as she tried to get him to see it wasn't his fault. She didn't want him to feel guilty or anything. "Please don't blame yourself." Peter cupped her face in his hands as he looked down at her, his gaze gentle.

"I will never not want you. Not even for a second." Peter told her in a serious and sincere voice. Emma felt somewhat lost in his warm brown eyes. "Everything I said before still stands. I'm going to marry you someday and I'm going to spend the rest of my life making you happy."

"I still want you too. I'll never stop either." Emma told him before looking away from him, removing herself from his embrace. "Even though I don't deserve you. You deserve someone less damaged than I am. Someone who still has their innocence. I lost mine a long time ago."

"I don't care about any of that, Emma, and you're not damaged. Not to me." Peter told her, trying to get her to see that what that monster did to her didn't change the way he felt about her. "What he did to you was evil. If he was here…well, I don't know what I would do but I can't say it would be anything good." Emma was baffled by what Peter was saying. He still wanted her? There was a world in which he knew the truth about her but he still wanted her? Emma couldn't really believe it. All this time she had been afraid to tell him because she was afraid of being vulnerable and she was afraid he'd leave her but he actually still wanted her…he wasn't disgusted like she thought he'd be. Peter Parker really was something else. It was quiet for a moment as Emma fell silent but Peter still had some questions on his mind.

"Emma…" He trailed off hesitantly before continuing but he still had Emma's full attention. "Is this what all the nightmares are about? Wait…you don't have to answer that if you don't want to." Emma just shook her head.

"No, it's fine." Emma told him before looking back at him. She didn't seem upset by his question but Peter wasn't sure. "But to answer your question…yes. I don't even have nightmares about the people I killed or all the torture at Hydra anymore. I used to but that was before the…rape." Emma paused briefly as she tried to find the right words to say. She didn't really know what to say anymore. However, Peter still listened to her patiently despite the hurt he felt at hearing how much this affected Emma.

"I've tried to forget it over time but I can't get him out of my mind. He's always there with me even when he's not. He's like some sort of parasite." Emma said darkly before continuing. "Not matter how much I try to move on, he's still there. Even when I'm asleep I can't be free of him. Some things never sleep, I guess." It was true too. Some things really didn't seem to sleep. The horrors of her past, the longing she felt for Steve and her father, and even the feelings she had for Peter. Even when she slept, none of those things disappeared. When she dreamed of Steve, her father, or Peter, those dreams were nice and peaceful. Emma could happily dream of those things and have a peaceful night of rest. However, when she slept sometimes she also had nightmares about Rumlow and the nightmares were getting worse. When she had those nightmares, it was like she was trapped inside her own personal hell.

"The nightmares are only getting worse. I think the knowledge of Rumlow getting closer is affecting me in a bad way. I have flashbacks too…sometimes I even think I see him in a crowd or something but there's no one there." Emma told him honestly and Peter didn't know how to respond to something like that. All those times Emma had been sleeping in class or being more moody than usual was probably because of this. He knew she had been more tired lately but he hadn't known why. "I can't even sleep because I'm afraid of what I'll see." It was then that Peter made a decision that wasn't at all difficult for him to make.

"I won't leave then." Peter said suddenly and Emma stared at him in confusion.

"What?" She wasn't sure if she had heard him right. Peter had a determined look on his face as he stared back at her.

"I'll spend the night with you if that'll help…so you know that no one will harm you." Peter told her and Emma just stared at him in astonishment. She then blinked and glanced away from him, suddenly feeling embarrassed. Emma wasn't that used to the feeling of embarrassment but somehow Peter could bring that out in her.

"I'll be fine, Peter. It's nothing." Emma denied but Peter just shook his head at her.

"It's okay to want help, Emma. I won't judge you…I'll never judge you." Peter told her and she looked back at him with a conflicted look on her face. She wasn't sure what she wanted. "You just need to ask and I'll help you. That's all you have to do. If you don't want me to stay, I'll go home right now but if you do…" Emma had been alone for so long, forcing herself to deal with her inner turmoil and pain for that same amount of time but things were different now. Peter knew the truth about her and he was still there. He cared about her. Emma realized in that moment that she didn't have to be alone anymore if she didn't want to be.

"Please stay." Emma said after a moment of silent. The look on her face was almost shy as he stared at her. Emma wasn't used to feeling vulnerable but somehow she knew Peter wouldn't hold it over her. She trusted him.

"Then I'll stay." Peter responded and he was glad that Emma was being more open and honest with him. He could tell it was hard for her but he knew it would be for the best in the end.

"What about May? Won't you get into trouble?" Emma asked him quietly and Peter shook his head.

"May thinks I'm asleep right now but I'll just sneak back in before school tomorrow. I'll be fine. Don't worry." Peter reassured her and Emma just nodded.

"Okay." She said simply and Emma got under the covers at once. Peter immediately kicked off his shoes before kicking them off to the side of the room. He made a move to get under the covers with her and she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion which caused him to pause. "You're going to wear your jeans to bed?" Peter just stared at her, the edge of the comforter still in his hand as he stood over the bed.

"What do you mean?" He questioned and Emma looked at him curiously.

"You're still wearing your jeans." Emma told him as if Peter wasn't aware of this fact. Peter shrugged.

"Well, it's not like I brought my pajamas or anything." Peter said and Emma just gave him that look that told him that she thought he was being stupid.

"You can take them off if you want." Emma told him with the same amount of bluntness she usually used. Peter blushed at her statement.

"Are you sure? I mean…I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable or anything." Peter said, referring to the fact that he now knew what happened to her. Emma just rolled her eyes.

"Peter, I'm not going to have a flashback just because you take your pants off. It's not like I'm forever haunted by even the slightest reminder of a penis." Emma said sarcastically but Peter was secretly happy that Emma was back to her normal blunt and sarcastic self. He just nodded slowly as he began to unbuckle his belt, his hands slightly shaky from Emma's gaze. Peter cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Can you maybe not watch me?" Peter asked and Emma smirked before looking away. He nodded and then proceeded to take off his pants until he was only left in his t-shirt and boxers. Peter hurriedly got under the covers after that so Emma wouldn't peek. It wasn't until she gave him that familiar smug look that he realized that she had.

"Cute boxers." Emma said teasingly and Peter blushed again.

"Whatever." He mumbled but the teasing look faded from Emma's face as soon as Peter opened his hand, revealing the same piece of jewelry he had shown her from before. Emma stared at the pretty emerald heart pendant he held out to her. "Will you let me put it on for you?" He asked her and Emma was perplexed that he still wanted to give her his mother's necklace. She knew the necklace was more than just a necklace. Him giving her the necklace meant that he was promising forever to her…that he even wanted to share his future with her. Emma knew she felt the same way about Peter but she just never expected him to feel that way about her. She hadn't said it before but she thought he was the only boy for her too.

"Are you sure, Peter?" Emma asked him and he gave her a sincere look, his warm brown eyes staring into her ocean blue ones.

"I've never been more sure about anything in my life." Peter told her and that was the only answer Emma needed to hear. She turned around, pushing her hair off to one side so that Peter could put the necklace on her. Her breathing hitched as he came up behind her and put the necklace on with such carefulness that Emma might've even felt like she was capable of breaking which was furthest thing from the truth. When he moved away, she relaxed and laid back down on the bed with Peter following her example. She bit her lip as she looked down at the beautiful necklace that was now hanging around her neck. Peter watched the expression on her face with something akin to adoration, happy that she seemed to like the necklace.

"I know my mother's birthstone is emerald and yours is garnet but I hope you still like the necklace." Peter said almost shyly and Emma looked back at him. They were facing each other in bed and somehow this felt like it was the most intimate they had ever been. Emma didn't know if it was because Peter now knew her darkest secret or if it was because they had made up but something felt different. However, she knew this was a good thing. Emma smiled softly at him.

"Peter, I love it." Emma told him and he smiled back at her. "If you ever want it back you only need to ask." Peter just shook his head.

"I'll never want it back. It's completely yours." Peter told her and Emma decided not to argue with him about the necklace. They were silent for a minute after that as they both tried to find the right thing to say but what were they supposed to say after everything that had happened between them in the past couple days? Peter looked at her with a somewhat guilty look on his face.

"I really am sorry for everything I said and did, Emma." Peter said quietly and Emma just stared back at him before he explained himself. "Everything I said at the party…everything I said the day before that. And after everything you've been through? I just feel like the worst boyfriend in the entire world. I-I should've known something was wrong…I should've been more supportive." Emma swallowed hard before answering because she really didn't want him to beat himself up over this. Not when it was all on her.

"I already told you that it's not your fault. I was a terrible girlfriend because I kept a lot of things from you…and you have been supportive. More supportive than I deserve but I didn't allow you to the chance to be supportive the other day. You didn't know any better." Emma replied and Peter sighed heavily as he looked at her.

"Do you think that we could maybe just forgive and forget then?" Peter asked her in a hopeful voice and Emma nodded.

"Yes. I'd like that." Emma told him and Peter felt relieved that she was willing to put this all behind them.

"I promise that I'll never drink like that again, okay? It was a stupid idea to drink at all and I promise you that I'll never treat you like that again. I'll still get possessive from time to time but I won't treat you like my property." Peter promised Emma, looking very determined as he made the promise.

"I promise that I'll be more open and honest with you. No more secrets." Emma promised in return before she remembered some of the advice Tony had given her. She'd never admit to actually listening to any advice Tony gave her but in the end, she knew Tony was right. "I'll ask for help if I need it too. We're not just lovers…we're partners as well. I just want you to know the reason I didn't tell you wasn't because I didn't trust you. I trust you as much as Steve or my father. Trust was never the issue."

"Then why didn't you tell me?" Peter asked her softly but blushed despite himself at Emma's usage of the term 'Lovers'. She said it so casually and intimately that his heart skipped a beat at the mere whisper of the word. She momentarily glanced away from him before quickly looking back up at him.

"I was afraid you wouldn't be able to deal with it…that it would be the last straw. I know I have a lot of baggage and you don't deserve to have to deal with all my problems." Emma admitted and Peter shook his head.

"This doesn't change the way I feel or care about you, Emma. I still love you." Peter told her, trying to make her understand that there was nothing that could make him stop loving her. A sad look then came across his face as he remembered everything she told him about what that monster did to her. "I'm just sorry this ever happened to you. I wish it hadn't…I'm sorry if I'm not saying the right thing here. I don't know what to say. I just want you to know that I love you and I'll be here for you no matter what." Emma smiled back at him.

"Thank you." Emma told him and he returned her smile briefly. They fell silent again as Emma slipped her hand into his. Emma watched their fingers interlace in pure happiness because she really was happy. She was happy that her and Peter had made up and she was happy that Peter still loved her despite knowing about her past. Emma then decided to change the subject from the previous one. She had already talked enough about the rape and she didn't want to dwell on it anymore…at least for now. Emma knew she'd probably confide in Peter in the future now that he knew the truth but for now she just wanted to talk about something else. "It's okay that you feel possessive over me. I feel possessive over you too." Peter frowned.

"I shouldn't have said those things though and I really shouldn't have treated you like you belong to me. May was right when she told me that you weren't a possession." Peter replied and Emma just shrugged as she looked down at their interlocked hands before glancing back up at him. She slightly got lost in the depths of his gorgeous brown eyes. She really loved those pretty brown eyes.

"But I do belong to you, Peter. I'm yours but you're also mine." Emma said, sounding completely at ease with talking about this. Peter looked at her in surprise. "It's okay if we belong to each other. It's not wrong or anything. It's also why you don't need to feel threatened…you're the only one I'll ever love. My heart belongs to you and only you." Peter felt floored by Emma's statement because it was perhaps the greatest declaration of her love for him that she had ever made.

"My heart belongs to only you too." Peter said, once he felt like he was able to speak again. He briefly looked down at the heart necklace around her neck as if he was emphasizing his point. She smiled briefly and Peter was glad he brought the smile out of her. Her eyes were still a bit puffy from all the crying so it was just nice to see her smile. He hated to see her cry. There was another brief period of silence before Emma decided to change the subject to something that was less serious.

"I'm never going to marry you, you know." Emma said suddenly and Peter widened his eyes as he looked at her, a feeling of hurt starting to come over him but Emma continued before he could respond. "It's nothing personal or anything but I just think marriage is stupid. I still want to be with you but I don't ever want to get married. Besides…no one really gets married anymore. It's so old fashioned and if you think about it, it's just a piece of paper. We'll be just as happy living together. It's essentially the same thing." Peter gave her a confused and astonished look.

"You want us to live together but you don't want to get married? I don't get it." Peter said, perplexed by Emma's reasoning but she didn't seem to think her explanation for not wanting to get married was weird. It seemed like Peter would never understand what went on inside his girlfriend's head. Didn't most girls want to get married anyways? Well, not Emma apparently.

"It's never going to happen and I'm sure as hell not going to have your kids either." Emma said bluntly and Peter gave her a more curious look this time around. He was starting to not take her seriously at this point. This was just Emma being Emma.

"Really?" Peter questioned in a nonchalant tone and Emma nodded.

"Yes. I hate kids. Kids are disgusting and annoying." Emma said, telling Peter what she honestly thought of children. She hated to break it to him but she wasn't a huge fan of kids in general. "Not only that but I'm not carrying your little Spider-Brat inside me for nine months and then have to shove it out of my vagina. I love you but I don't love you that much. I don't love anyone that much. Besides…if the kid's anything like you, it'll probably be hopping around inside my womb and annoying the shit out of me so no thanks." Emma looked over at her boyfriend to see his reaction, expecting an upset or hurt one, but was surprised to see Peter trying to stifle his laughter. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"What the hell are you laughing at, Parker?" Emma asked him in an annoyed tone. At this point Peter was just glad that they were back to their normal bickering antics. He just shook his head at the stubborn blonde.

"You always say that you won't do something but then you end up doing it anyways." Peter explained but Emma still didn't understand what he was getting at.

"What are you talking about?" Peter smirked because he was going to love telling Emma all the reasons why he thought she was going to marry him and have his kids.

"Well, at first you didn't want to enter a partnership together but then you did." Peter said as he began to list off all his reasons. "Then you didn't want to be my friend but we became friends anyways. You also didn't want to fall in love with me but you did that too. Oh and you didn't want to be my girlfriend either but you eventually caved in." Emma just huffed as she playfully glared at him.

"Wipe that smug look off your face, Parker." Emma stated as she tried to get her point across. "There's a big difference between being your girlfriend and marrying you. There's also a big difference between that and having your spawn. Why do you even want kids? What sixteen year old boy wants children?" Peter blushed as he looked back at Emma, a bashful expression on his face.

"I don't think it's weird that I want kids. Everyone wants to eventually have children…well, except you apparently." Peter told Emma as she listened to him curiously. His expression then became sadder as he began to discuss the real reason he wanted kids. "My parents died when I was very young and I guess I just want to be part of a complete family. I love Aunt May and Uncle Ben but I just always wanted to be a part of something bigger."

The expression on Emma's face softened once she heard Peter's explanation. She supposed they were different in that sense. Emma's parents had died when she was young too but she never felt the desire to have kids of her own someday to try and have something that she didn't have when she was younger. She just never saw it that way. Maybe it's because a part of herself had always resented her parents for having her. They probably knew there would be a risk in having a baby related to Captain America but they had gone ahead and brought her into this world anyways. Emma didn't know if she could intentionally have kids and especially with who she and Peter really were in mind. That would be putting the kid at risk just like how Emma's parents had put her at risk.

"Oh…" She trailed off, not knowing what else to say to that. Emma didn't want to tell him that they couldn't have kids because he seemed really fixed on the idea…he even seemed hopeful. A part of her hoped that Peter would forget about the kids thing because otherwise she knew she'd probably cave in eventually. Emma wouldn't be able to say no to Peter if it was something he really wanted. He'd probably give her that stupid puppy dog look and she'd be putty in his hands. Stupid Peter and his pretty brown eyes. He really had no idea how much he affected her.

"I mean, I don't want to have kids right away or anything. Maybe once we graduate college." Peter said casually and Emma felt like her heart was about to jump out of her chest. College?! He wanted to have kids after they graduated college? Wait…she was only going to go to a two year art school so she would probably be twenty when she graduated. Peter, on the other hand, would probably want to go to a university to study something science-y and that was four years which meant he'd most likely be twenty two. Was Peter saying he wanted them to get married and have kids at twenty two? God, this boy really was crazy. What the hell was wrong with him? They were only sixteen now so that meant that Peter wanted kids in six years. Her boyfriend was insane. "I think we should have at least four of them…or maybe even five. Five is a good number." Emma's eyes widened as she looked at him in disbelief.

"Five?! You want to have five children?!" Emma said in shock. "What are we? The Weasleys? Why the hell would you want five kids for? The only reason people ever had that many kids was if the family owned a farm or something and it was 1935. No one has five kids anymore." Peter gave her a sheepish look as he shrugged.

"Well, I want a big family because I never had siblings growing up. I thought you'd feel the same since you're an only child too." Peter told her and Emma scoffed.

"Yeah, it's easy for you to say since you won't be pushing out five Spider-Brats from between your legs." Emma said snarkily and Peter practically glowed with happiness as he stared at her.

"You're saying that we'll have kids then?" Peter asked in delight and Emma mentally cursed herself for slipping up because that was totally not what she meant when she said that. She gave him a sharp look.

"That's not what I meant." She muttered but Peter just smirked at her, looking very confident. Emma didn't like the confident look on his face. It was like he was so sure that they were going to have kids someday. The smug bastard.

"We'll have a family someday. You'll see." Peter told her happily as Emma pretended to be annoyed with him. "We're only sixteen now so I have plenty of time to convince you to have children. We have years."

Emma didn't respond when he said that because she knew nothing she said would convince him otherwise. They fell silent once more but this time the tension was gone. It was only them and them alone. Emma scooted closer to him and immediately rested her face against his chest. Peter wrapped his arms around her, holding her close and Emma felt perfectly content. She missed this…she missed being this close to him. Emma knew it was silly for her to miss something like that since they had only been fighting for a couple days but she didn't like being away from him. Not just because they were in love but because he was her best friend.

"Let's never fight again. Okay? I don't like being mad at you." Emma whispered as she listened to his heart beat, finding it soothing as she always did. Peter looked down at her with an almost thoughtful expression on his face.

"Emma, we're probably going to fight again. All couples fight." Peter told her but Emma didn't like that answer. "You and I both know that we couldn't be more different. There will probably be a lot we'll fight about in the future but I'll still love you at the end of the day. We'll get through it." Emma smiled softly as she laid there against his chest.

"I love you too." Emma told him and Peter felt elated at her response. Everything was back to normal between them…everything was okay. Peter leaned down and pressed a chaste kiss against the top of her head. He inhaled the sweet scent of strawberries and coconuts…a scent that he had spent too long without for his liking. It was her scent and Peter missed her scent.

Emma didn't say anything after that and it was only then that he realized that it was because she had fallen asleep, gently lulled to sleep by the sound of his heartbeat. He smiled at the peaceful expression on her face as she slept. It wasn't often she looked so at peace and Peter realized that she must've been very tired. Not sleeping for a long time had certainly taken its toll on her and Peter only wished that he could've helped her sooner.

However, a different feeling soon came over Peter as he watched the peaceful expression on her face as she slept soundly. A feeling of sadness then came over him as he stared down at her, recalling all the things she had described…all the things she had said about the monster she called Rumlow. His poor Emma had been through so much and she had been hurt more than he could ever imagine. Emma who was his favorite person in the world and who he loved with all his heart. She was a good person despite what she wanted people to think so Peter could never comprehend that anyone would hurt her. It would truly take a real monster to hurt her. A dark look then crossed Peter's face as he thought about the man who hurt Emma.

Peter knew that Rumlow was no man. He was a monster who had hurt Emma. What kind of person did that to a thirteen year old girl? Well, Peter supposed a very evil person since Rumlow had also tortured Emma for many years and murdered her parents. A tear escaped Peter's eye as he thought about how scared she must've been…how lonely. No one had been there to help her and Peter hated to think of her like that. Peter would give anything to go back in time and stop that from happening to her but he wasn't stupid. He knew that you couldn't go back and change the past. So instead Peter just held onto Emma tighter as he gazed at her blonde locks which were splayed across his chest. A familiar feeling of anger came over him but the anger wasn't directed at Emma or even himself this time. It was directed at that monster who hurt Emma…the one he had seen in the pictures at the compound. Peter recognized the feeling inside himself but he was afraid of the feeling. Not because he was a coward or because he was afraid of Rumlow himself. No.

He was afraid because it was the same feeling of rage he had after Uncle Ben's death.