hi there, haha so I'm back, sorry lol
I'm warning you, I know next-to-nothing about medical stuff sorry
Disclaimer: I don't own Marvel.
3rd Person P.O.V.
When Peter woke up, he felt like crap. His nose was stuffy, and he sneezed- once, twice, thrice. He felt like he was on fire, but at the same time, colder than ice. His arms and legs were heavy and tired. His throat felt like he had screamed himself hoarse, but then again, maybe he had. Peter couldn't remember. All he knew was that, in that moment, nothing felt right.
"Peter! Are you up yet?" Peter's aunt May called from outside the door. Peter grumbled in response. "I'll take that as a yes. Don't forget decathalon practice after school, and I'm coming home late."
"Kay," Peter mumbled. He heard the click of the door locking behind his aunt. He smushed his pounding head into the pillow, trying to block out the sunlight. He could hear the blood rushing in his ears, and the noise was deafening. The spider-powered teen groaned, knowing school was going to be a nightmare. Peter's mind slowly registered his thought. School... school! He needed to get going if he didn't want to be late.
Peter sat up, wincing at the stabbing pain in his head. Nevertheless, he stood up, walking down the hall to the bathroom. He stared at his disheveled reflection in the mirror, frowning at the small scar trailing along his cheekbone.
That should've healed by now... he thought, tracing it lightly with his finger. Peter shrugged it off, chalking his scar up to bad luck. He grabbed his bag, and started his walk to school.
The noise of the city streets resonated inside Peter's head, shining a mental spotlight on his headache. It didn't help that his spidey sense seemed to be on the fritz, warning him much too late to be of any help. Peter had a lot of close calls on his walk to school, barely avoiding getting run over at least three times. And school was no walk in the park either. Of course, Flash picked today, of all days, to be especially persistent in his bullying techniques.
"Hey look everybody, it's Penis Parker!" Flash sneered, pointing at Peter. The spider-powered teen put his hood up, walking faster. "Why are you in such a hurry, Parker?" Flash followed after him, smirking. "What, are you afraid?" Peter took a sharp turn into the locker room, sitting in one of the stalls toward the back. He put his head in his hands, his headache becoming more intense. Peter couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. He just felt so incredibly dizzy, and Flash's yelling wasn't helping.
"I'll find you, Parker. Don't think you can escape that easily," he growled, storming out of the locker room. Peter wasn't entirely sure why Flash went after him. Maybe he did something? Peter didn't know. He sighed, standing up to head to class. The dizziness came back, making Peter stumble and lean against the wall. Black spots rapidly started taking over his vision, until all Peter could see was darkness.
"He's waking up." Peter groaned, slowly forcing his eyes open. He blinked, looking around at his surroundings.
"Hey Pete, how do you feel?"
"Awful," he admitted, bringing a hand to his head. He suddenly frowned, a confused look on his face. "Wh't happen'd?" Tony and Bruce shared a glance.
"Pete, you fainted. I got an alert about your vitals, and had to go get you from the locker room," Tony explained. Peter nodded, soaking in this information, seemingly new to the spider-teen. Tony frowned, turning to his science bro. "Bruce?"
"106.3 degrees. It's gone down a bit, but it's not nearly enough," he informed. Tony stared back at Peter in shock. He had never seen anyone with a fever that high before, and the medicine Bruce had given him earlier didn't seem to have much of an effect. Sure, it had gone down from the terrifying 107.1°F it had been when they first brought him in, but that has been hours ago, and Peter wasn't doing too well.
"Is there anything more we can do?" Tony asked, hope straining through his voice. Bruce looked wary, but one glance at Peter's glazed over eyes, flushed face, and sweaty forehead was enough determination for him.
"There is, and it should be strong enough to lower his fever quickly." Bruce bit his lip. "But it's untested. Theoretically, if it was to work, Peter would be up and back on his feet in no time."
"And if it doesn't work?"
"His fever will go up. And Tony, there's no telling how high it could get," Bruce stated solemnly.
"What are the chances of success?" Tony asked skeptically.
"No idea. It's untested." Tony nodded.
"Ok." The iron hero cast a worried glance at his teenage apprentice. He had never seen Peter look so weak, so horribly ill before, and he didn't like it one bit. He would never admit it, but Peter was like a son to him, and it would break him if he ever lost the young hero. "Do we have any other choice?"
"Not really. If Peter was normal, the medicine would be worked better, but his super metabolism is too fast for regular drugs to work," Bruce stated. He nodded at Tony, running to fetch the medicine. Tony went to Peter's bedside, the teen's sickly appearance bringing him close to tears. He looked like he was barely holding on to consciousness, his eyes droopy and dull. Tony was scared. He didn't have any power in this situation, no way to sacrifice himself for Peter. And it terrified him.
Bruce hurried back, a large bag of a yellowish liquid held close to his chest. He hooked the bag up, inserting an IV into Peter's arm. Bruce worked quickly, setting up a virtual thermometer so he and Tony could watch Peter's temperature closely.
For the first few moments, nothing happened. Peter's temperature stayed at a steady 106.3°F. Tony and Bruce watched, anticipation and anxiety gnawing away at their sanity. Then, what Tony feared became reality. Peter's temperature jumped to 107.5°F, and steadily rose to a frightening 108.7°F. Tony was frozen to his seat, unable to believe what he was seeing. Peter was fading right before his eyes, the teen's half-lidded gaze staring into his soul.
Then those lidded eyes slipped shut. Peter was now at 109.2°F, and the spider-kid's chest was barely moving up and down. Tony let a tear slip down his cheek, one of disbelief and pain. He had assumed that everything would be ok, just as it always is. Everything always turned out ok in the end. This had to work.
"Tony... I'm so sorry," Bruce apologized, his heart dropping. Peter was nearly at 110°F, which would be almost certain death. He left the room, the knowledge that he had killed Peter, even by accident, was too much for him to handle.
Tony, however, remained in Peter's room, eyes still glued to the screen. He watched Peter's temperature hit 109.8°F, more tears dripping down his cheeks. But then, the impossible occurred. The numbers starting dropping, and fast. Tony leaped out of his seat, staring at the monitor in awe.
"Bruce, come quick!" He screamed, his eyes never leaving the screen. Bruce shuffled in, keeping his head down.
"Look, Tony, I'm really sorry, I thought-" his voice was shaky, on the verge of tears.
"Shut up and look!" Tony was right. Peter's temperature had dropped significantly, now at 103.4°F. Bruce almost screamed with relief. Immediately, he got to work, grabbing fresh ice packs and cold cloths to cool Peter down further. The young boy shivered, but Bruce kept trying to cool him down.
"Mister Stark?" The voice sounded confused and exhausted, but wonderfully alive. Bruce had never felt so relieved, and Tony was just glad to have his spiderling safe.
"Peter, how do you feel?" Bruce questioned. His temperature now read 101.2°F.
"Kinda cold. My head still hurts." Peter thought for a moment, rubbing his temples. "I'm a little hungry too." Both adults let out a chuckle at that.
"So you feel ok? Quick, what's 86+109?" Bruce quizzed. Peter gave him an odd look.
"195?" He answered. Bruce sighed with relief.
"Good. You remember what happened?" Peter frowned.
"... Yeah." He paused. "So, I guess the 'untested drug' worked?" Bruce bit his lip, avoiding eye contact. Peter looked frightened. "I mean, I'm alive, aren't I? Didn't it work?" Peter was becoming more nervous, his breathing picking up speed.
"Peter... it worked, yes, but not the way I expected it to," Bruce said, choosing his words carefully.
"What do you mean?"
"Your temperature went up, Pete. It went really high up," Tony jumped in, slightly pale. "I thought you were going to die." Peter's jaw dropped.
"H-how high?" Peter stuttered.
"Almost 110°F." Peter's once flushed cheeks turned a ghostly white.
"I almost died," he whispered, staring off into space.
"Yes, Peter, but the medicine did end up working," Bruce reassured him. "You're going to be ok."
ok that's the end I'm done
that was waaaaaaaayyyyyy too long and I'm sorry lmao
Anyway, if you haven't read The Pain of Existing yet, now's the time! I recently uploaded the final chapter!