Simi the pirate ⚓️🏴‍☠️

So, of course, for him, letting you go was like dying while still breathing in the putrid smell of a place he could no longer call home.

And even though in your mind there was no memory that Peter Parker ever belonged to your chaotic life, the body remembers.

Sooner or later, all memories suppressed by Stephen Strange's spell would cease, and perhaps your path and his would cross once again in an attempt to make up for the lost time…at least that’s what he still hoped for, even though four years had passed since the multiverse had opened and closed with the promise of leaving a ghost of Spiderman’s true identity in everyone’s lives.

Now, all he knew about you was through the news reports that showed you alongside the rest of your new team, the New Avengers. Despite all the years that had passed, he still wasn't strong enough to approach you and confess everything he had written on that crumpled piece of paper, stained with the faded traces of the tears he shed on his nights of utter solitude. For the time being, that paper was hidden in the coffee cup he once ordered just to be close to his friends one last time. It was the only evidence of who that boy was, at least, it was the only one he allowed himself to have.

For the moment, it was still just him against some criminal trying to disrupt the peace on the streets of New York, and thanks to the new settings he'd created on his phone, he could instantly know when the city was in danger and be ready to come to the rescue like the admired and respected Spiderman. Fortunately, there wasn't nearly as much crime as before, thanks to him and his work alongside the police and detective DeWolff.

But the peace the city was trying to get used to did not last that much longer.

Damage control was under attack again, for the fourth time in a month, and things were spiraling out of control. Peter couldn't stop feeling those strange sensations in his body, like it was bracing for something. His headaches were only getting worse, and no amount of aspirin would do the trick to make them go away.

And what happened in the last attack, when people like the old lady who had driven the tank and that guard who let the Scorpion go, seemed to be mind-controlled by someone else in the shadows, which only made the situation worse. It made him realize that he needed help from someone, someone who knew how to search for a person, who had more access to information he couldn't.

That person? Yelena Belova, the new Black Widow.

Peter knew she could help him, just like on previous occasions when he’d needed her services, or all those other times when he just needed to talk to someone and Yelena would ask stories involving her sister Natasha.

Seeing her meant hearing about you, which was a bonus, and something that sent his heart racing.

Just thinking about the possibility of knowing something beyond what the news, magazines, or interviews said about you and the new Avengers made him ecstatic, eager to learn about this new mind-controlling threat and, if the universe allowed it, knowing about you.

What Peter Parker didn’t expect when he arrived at the place where Yelena had summoned him to —which seemed to be a Russian spa rather than an actual office— was that, first, Black Widow was in a heated pool completely naked, asking him to take off his clothes, and second, she wasn’t alone.

Because next to Yelena, there was you, a little embarrassed by Yelena's lack of filter but at the same time ashamed of having to be naked in front of a total stranger, at least, that's what your mind was telling you.

This wasn't what Yelena promised you for a "girls' day out."

It seemed as if the world had stopped for an eternity for Peter, who looked at you with a gaze filled with all the emotions that flooded over him every time he thought of you or saw you, until the russian spy caught his attention.

“Helloo? Earth to Spiderboy,” called Black Widow after he didn’t answer her, and snapped off his daydream.

Filled with a flurry of nerves, he took off his suit, leaving only his mask on, and went into the water, trying to keep his body from tensing up and forgetting the real reason he was there now that you were here.

“I hope you don’t mind her being here. I tricked her into coming but i think she can help with your little problem,” Yelena said, pointing her thumb at you.

You waved to the masked hero with an awkward smile, not really knowing what was going on. Yelena hadn't mentioned anything about a meeting with Spiderman; you were supposed to go out so you wouldn't be stuck with Alexei and John competing over who was better than Captain America again.

While Spiderman and Lena were exchanging theories about what was happening with the Damage Control buildings and the attacks they were receiving, you just watched them, listening carefully to what they were saying and drawing your own conclusions.

“You said that the person who was controlling the workers and the old lady who was driving spoke directly at you, right?” you asked, trying to prove a theory you had.

“Uhm– Well– Yeah, it was like they were trying to see right through me,” Spiderman explained, feeling the heat rise to his ears and cheeks when he heard your voice.

He was lucky to have the mask on because hearing you, speaking directly to him after everything that had happened four years ago, was like falling in love with you all over again, just like when you spoke for the first time at the airport in Germany.

His heart was about to burst out of his chest and his stomach was churning, just like that time. He was lucky that the two women in front of him couldn't see his face.

The only difference between then and now was that both of you had grown up, your features making you look older, wiser and more mature. Your eyes carrying the burden of loss, sadness and new beginnings, a life he could no longer be a part of.

At that moment, the only thought running through his mind was simply being able to take off the stupid mask he was wearing and kiss you with that sweet gentleness that used to bring you so much comfort and security.

“Are you even listening to what Puppy here is saying?” Yelena interrupted his reverie yet again.

“S-sorry, what?/I told you to stop calling me that,” you and Spiderman said at the same time.

“She’s telling you something that could help you and you’re in another world, Spidey. It's rude,” Yelena pointed out, and you didn’t know where to hide.

It was true that the hero in front of you seemed not to have heard anything you'd said in the last minute, as if he'd been momentarily disconnected from himself. You couldn't help but feel something strange in your chest when you looked at him again, even without seeing his face, your heart started pounding faster than usual.

It must be the nerves, you thought as you tried to explain everything again.

“I was saying that maybe that person–”

“Leshy,” Yelena interrupted.

“Yes, Leshy,” you corrected, rolling your eyes before continuing, “He probably knows you, or at least know you have arachnid powers. Maybe he sees you as someone who's like him? Criminals often gravitate towards those they see similar to themselves…”

“Good one, Puppy,” Yelena praised.

“Thank you,” you smiled, ignoring the nickname for now.

"Wow, that's– that's a good theory, seriously. Thank you. You’ve alwa– I mean, I hadn't considered that," Spiderman said, impressed and hoping you hadn't caught his near slip-up.

You did, but you tried to not overthink it.

After a few more minutes, Yelena started rambling about small potatoes and big potatoes, apparently a topic she was far too passionate about to explain what you guys did compared to what Spiderman did in New York City.

“You should hurry and find out who that person is. I remember someone who was close to me had similar powers to those you mentioned, and believe me, things can get worse way too fast,” you warned before the masked man began to emerge from the pool, remembering when Wanda had mentally controlled you and the rest of the Avengers during the fight against Ultron years ago, a memory you were not to be very fond of.

“I’ll go to Damage Control and ask them myself,” the hero concluded, finally emerging from the water.

It was at that moment that you caught a familiar scent in the air coming from him, a very familiar one that didn't remind you of anyone in particular but at the same time made your heart beat a thousand miles an hour, heat rising to your cheeks without you being able to control it. When the hero was ready to leave, you spoke before it was too late. 

“It was a pleasure meeting you, Spiderman”

“T–thank you, it was the same for me,” he replied nervously before leaving the room.

Little did you know that seeing you again reopened a wound that hadn't yet healed, but it’d also given him even greater motivation to find the person behind all the attacks on Damage Control. 

Meanwhile, Yelena looked at you with a raised eyebrow and a mischievous smile.

"What?"

“Do you have a crush on Spiderman?” she asked with the same smile.

“Of course not! It’s just that…I don’t know, talking to him felt like I’d already met him and his scent–”

“Ew!  I don’t want to hear it anymore,” Yelena cut you off, submerging herself in the water while you were left thinking about the interaction you’d just had.

And if Spiderman was a complete stranger to you, why did you feel this pressure in your chest that told you otherwise? It was impossible that you knew who he really was; you remembered working with him, but he never took off his mask, just like now, when he hadn't either.

Weird, you thought, with the feeling in your chest giving you a headache that lasted even when you arrived at the old Avengers tower that now belonged to you and the rest of the losers that Valentina called the New Avengers.

Bob had prepared you some herbal tea for you to soothe the pain you were feeling, and Bucky tried to talk to you about what was happening, being the only one who had known you for a long time, but you declined his offer with a tired smile, promising to tell him everything soon.

When you were in your room, you decided to investigate what the arachnid had said, as well as search the internet for what you were feeling and also started reading the old files that were written about the friendly neighborhood spiderman.

A day had passed since your conversation with Spiderman in Yelena's office, and that feeling you had when you were talking to him and smelled his scent still lingered within you, except now something new was part of the equation.

Inevitably, during your research last night, you had fallen asleep. Apparently, you had searched enough for your brain to activate and started dreaming about someone you didn't remember meeting, but that was the thing about dreams, they could create a whole relationship with someone you saw passing by on the streets.

Even so, when you woke up in the morning, dried tears remained on your face, evidence of something much bigger than you could remember.

Your chest tightened when you thought of that someone, that boy from your dream who held you tightly in his arms and promised that everything would be okay, even though all you heard in his voice was agony alongside your desperate cries to stop what was happening.

Again, your heart wouldn't stop beating with a force you’d never felt before, as if you were missing someone you couldn't quite recall, longing for a warmth like the sun being close to you.

And despite never having seen his face in your dream, for some strange reason, all you could think about was how the only person who could possibly have  the answer was the friendly Spiderman, which was totally ridiculous and and beyond insane. You didn't even know his identity, and you didn't remember him being close to you during the time when you both belonged to the Avengers.

Were you going crazy?

“Are you alright, kid? You’ve been staring at that plate of pancakes for almost an hour,” Bucky Barnes said, who was sitting next to you. He was the only one who got up so early in the morning and the only one who knew you well enough to know that you were acting differently.

You looked at him for a second before nodding, unsure how to explain what was happening to you, but you knew that if anyone could understand, he would be the one. You took a deep breath before telling him absolutely everything that had happened in the last 24 hours.

“I know it sounds far-fetched, I know…but there’s something about that guy that reminds me of someone, someone i loved very much but can’t remember who he was,” you explained, your voice trembling and afraid that everything you were saying sounded completely crazy.

“I understand,” Bucky replied, with a nostalgic smile that expressed much more than he let on, “Kid, you know my head has been a minefield for a long time, and when i couldn’t even remember Steve, something inside me told me i knew him anyway…”

"Yeah?"

“Of course i did, what I’m trying to say is that– it seems like your body, your heart, remembers something that was altered in your memory and is trying to break free,” he explained softly, and clarity began to dawn on you after his confession.

“I think…I think you’re right, Buck. Maybe it’s best to look for the answer, isn’t it?” you asked, even though you already knew what you would do it.

“I looked for one when i felt like that, you should too,” he encouraged you.

With a smile and a quick side hug, you said goodbye to Bucky, grateful for his words and quickly leaving the tower. 

You opened the app that Spiderman fans used to track his location. It had been created by a guy named Ned Leeds, whom you somehow knew, but you couldn't quite put your finger on why you did. That same feeling from before resurfaced, a gnawing pressure, awakened by not knowing exactly what you were forgetting.

But while you were waiting to see the masked hero's location, a notification from an unknown contact lit up your screen.

Hi! Ms. Black Widow gave me your number :)

I hope you don't mind – S

Meeting at the top of the Empire State Building at night was private and beyond intimate; no one would be eavesdropping on your conversation with Spiderman. On the other hand, your nerves were on edge, your heart pounding in your chest again at the thought of being alone with New York's local hero, who hadn't said much more in his message than the meeting place and that it was urgent, which only made you more nervous.

When you reached the top, Spiderman was already there, holding something in his hands as he paced back and forth as if he were feeling the same way you were.

“Hey…You wanted to see me?” You asked timidly, your right hand holding your left forearm, trying to pretend that you weren’t on edge and your heart wasn’t about to jump out of your mouth.

Spiderman turned towards you at that moment, abruptly stopping whatever he’d been thinking before you arrived and approaching you. The air carried back that scent you had smelled in the Russian spa, the same one you had felt in your dream— a comforting, clean, soft musk aroma that reminded you of a hug from someone you’d loved in the past. He smelled like home, warm and safe.

“Hi…yeah, Uh– sorry, I didn’t want to say much over the phone, i was afraid you wouldn’t come or wouldn’t want help with what Yelena said about the small potatoes and–”

“Don’t worry,” you smiled at him, “I can help you with whatever you need.”

“Thank you,” he replied softly, his voice echoing in your head again.

You both sat on the floor near the building's optical towers, and it was when the arachnid started asking you if you could help him find a teenager who apparently seemed to be the threat that had been attacking Damage Control to look for this «V-max» thing. You felt a sense of déjà vu, a feeling that you had once helped him with a similar situation to the one he was going through right now, but again, that mental block  in your mind prevented you from going beyond what your memories allowed.

It was when his hand raised an old, used paper cup towards you that a chill ran through your body, a violent reaction that took the air out of your lungs and made you quickly stand up from where you were.

Your skin prickled, and it wasn't from the cold of the city at night, it was from the electric sensation that ran through your body, as if a switch that had been off for a long time had been abruptly flipped.

The person next to you wasn't just a former colleague you'd crossed paths with in the past, he wasn't a stranger. You knew him, and quite well it seemed, but the reason you couldn't recall his name or face was unknown to you, though perhaps not to him.

“Excuse me, but…do we know each other?” you asked Spiderman in a whisper, who, while you were lost in your thoughts, had also gotten up, worried about your reaction to his gesture.

“What did you just say?” he asked, his voice strained and tense. You could smell the levels of cortisol his brain had begun producing after hearing what you’d said, confirming his theory that this person in front of you had something to do with what was happening to you since yesterday.

“It’s true, isn’t it? Were we– were we friends? Something more? Please, ever since i saw you yesterday, i’ve been feeling like a thread is pulling me towards you, and my heart keeps racing every time i think about your scent, your voice, your face, which is still a mystery to me,” you blurted out quickly, trying to recall everything that was happening to you so that he could understand. “I swear i won’t tell anyone, but please…let me see your face…” you begged.

At that moment, it was his turn to stop breathing, not knowing what to do. This was the scenario he had dreamed of for all these years, and though part of him said it wasn't a good idea to succumb to your pleas, the other, much larger part allowed your hands —those hands he missed so much— to grasp the edges of his mask and beginning to slowly lift it, gradually revealing his face until the mask fell delicately to the ground.

His eyes, which he had unconsciously closed, opened slowly, and your gasp was the first thing he heard before noticing your eyes filling with tears that streamed freely down your face.

Your chest tightened again with a new feeling; memories lost in a locked cage began to flood your head. Silences that spoke louder than a thousand words, conversations that lasted until dawn, shared laughter over jokes that only you and him knew the meaning of, soft whispers murmuring those three words that many were afraid to promise.

A name came to mind as the face of the person in front of you filled those spaces where you thought you had been alone. That name was Peter Parker.

Peter, the boy you’d met thanks to Tony in Germany.

Peter, the boy who, despite not having known you for very long, was already more of a friend than all of the people who had surrounded you for years.

Peter, the boy to whom your heart belonged to, the love of your life that you’d lost thanks to the stupid spell of the stupid Sorcerer Supreme.

Peter Parker, who stood before you with that look that even with a spell cast upon you, you could never forget. Those eyes, full of sweetness and melancholy, watched you as if you were about to disappear at any moment, his hand extended towards you, waiting for you to take it as proof that you were real, and that you weren't going anywhere.

“Peter!” You exclaimed, hugging him with a force capable of knocking you both to the ground, and he immediately returned the embrace, tears welling in his eyes and a relieved laugh escaping his throat as he heard you say his name after so long n of not hearing it.

“I’ve missed you so much,” he whispered against your ear after kissing the top of your head, and you smiled, unwilling to let go of him.

“I love you, I’ll love you forever, baby, I promise,” you whispered as your hands gently cupped his face and your lips met in a kiss that unleashed a torrent of ​​emotions within you.

Your breaths mingled and Peter's hands wrapped around your waist to get as close to you as possible, a muffled moan escaping your mouth as your hands played with his hair, recalling the countless times you had been in the same position.

It was a kiss filled with love, longing, and the memory of something you thought you'd never had.

And the thing about memories is that, despite being repressed, they will always find a way out. Thoughts of the past may not reside in our memory, as if a wall were blocking their escape, but the truth is that memories don't only exist in the mind.

The body remembers an unavoidable truth, whether it's a scent, a melody, or the voice of the love of your life yearning for you even after so much time apart.

For Peter Parker, meeting you had been his salvation, and for you, remembering him was like learning to breathe again. And if you had overcome a spell that wasn't supposed to be broken, you could handle that little bugger that was threatening New York City again, and this time, you would fight as you always had before.

You would do it together, for the rest of your life.

author's note. my first peter parker shot! i saw Brand New Day on wednesday and needed to write something about the movie. I cried so much watching it and loved the interactions between Peter and Yelena. Did anyone else miss Happy's absence? Cuz i did ):

btw, i used google translate for this, i proofread it and i think it’s okay but im sorry if there's any mistake!

P.S. i hope someone noticed that when I wrote Peter from reader's pov, he was just spiderman, but when i wrote about Peter, he was just himself and nothing else T-T