#frankie

They would be best friends and you can’t convince me otherwise

Imagine Indy and Ben having to work together during WWII or something and talking about the boys they picked up off the street ❤️‍🩹

i’m having such a bad time on pinterest…… oh my god could you even imagine .

Summary: When Ben notices a change in his little paperboy’s behavior, he decides to investigate. What he finds wakes up a side to him he didn’t know existed

Or where the author learned that female tarantulas are very protective of their babies, and who’s to say that spider in the lab wasn’t a girl?

CW: Fluff and a little bit of angst. Ben and Janet being Frankie’s parental figures

Ben had known Frankie for a couple of years, the little twelve year old boy shoehorning himself into the old detective’s life. Ben still remembered the day, nearly knocking the paperboy over while hurrying to his office.

—-///—-

“Whatch it, kid!” He barked, half-eaten hotdog splattered on the concrete. Frankie picked up his hat, looking the least bit guilty as he grinned up at the man.

“Sorry mister,” he grabbed his stack of papers, “Like one?”

Ben snorted but snatched one regardless, starting his power walk towards his office. Despite his advanced hearing, he didn’t pick up the little feet trailing behind him through the city noise.

“Good morning, Ben…” Janet’s rested face turned to utter confusion as she noticed the boy at his side.

“What?” Ben asked, then looked down with a hard sigh. Frankie smiled up at him. “Kid…”

“C’mon, I’ve always wanted to see a real detective’s office, mister! I’ll even work for ya!” Frankie practically begged, giving him the biggest puppy eyes he’d ever seen. And damnit, he’d never admit how well they worked.

—///—

Now, Frankie was almost a constant in the office, learning reading and writing with Janet when she wasn’t busy or just hanging around. Sometimes Robbie would bring him a candy or toy when he’d drop by to talk to Ben or bring him in after a rough night.

And Ben wouldn’t say what kind of relationship he had with the boy was. Frankie made his living off of selling newspapers to busy New Yorkers. That’s all he ever knew how to do; sell or starve. No mom to make his favorite meals, no dad to teach him how to throw a baseball or tie a tie. And it did rub him the wrong way that Frankie had to go to a shelter to sleep or eat. And if he didn’t bring enough money he didn’t eat well.

Ben blamed it on morality alone when he felt something hot and visceral in his chest when he noticed Frankie’s cheek bones a little more, a bruise here or there, more time in the office like he was afraid to go back out on the street. Janet pulled him aside one slow afternoon to confirm his suspicion with her own.

“Have you noticed Frankie? He seems awfully quiet lately. And he looks sickly.” She whispered, looking over at the tiny form curled up in a chair.

“Yeah…as a matter of fact I have.” He replied, getting a good look at the boy, “He acts like something spooked him. Did you see how he was yesterday?”

Janet nodded, “Definitely…it might not be bad idea to check on him tomorrow. See what’s going on out there, y’know?”

Ben couldn’t agree more, the fire in his chest blazing at the thought.

—-///—-

He brought his mask just in case, stuffed in his coat pocket as he snuck around the sidewalk to watch the paper boys. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, busy people either walking by or taking notice and buying a paper. He stalked Frankie a little more, watching the kid.

“Read all about it!” Frankie shouted, holding up his newspaper like it was the key to life. He’d huff when he got ignored and grin big and bright when he’d make a quarter. It soothed something in Ben’s heart that he couldn’t put a finger on.

It was only when Ben’s attention moved away from Frankie that something happened. The smell of food wafted across his nose and made his belly rumble loudly. He sighed, wanting to stay but knowing that if he didn’t eat he’d be chasing bugs all over the place. Spidery things. So he reluctantly tore his vision away to track down the source of the smell.

—-//—

Good call, he thought as he bit into the loaded hot dog he had purchased, eyes closing in bliss—-

“Help!”

And he nearly choked when he picked up Frankie’s cry. And it was like something flipped inside of him, roaring to life as he tore through the traffic of people, running faster than he ever did.

—///—

There were two boys on top of him. Not adults, but old enough to know better. One of them, lanky with brown hair, had Frankie pinned down while the other boy who was a little shorter tore up page after page of newspaper. For anyone else it wasn’t a big deal, not caring about what the little boy was going through. But Ben knew. Oh, he knew what that paper meant to Frankie. It dictated whether or not the boy ate.

And ohhh…was he furious.

“GET OFF MY KID!!”

—-////—

Frankie was on the ground one second and being lifted the next, the two boys fleeing down the street. Two warm arms wrapped around him and held him up, a familiar voice reverberating in his head.

“You okay, kid?” Ben asked gruffly as he carried Frankie, looking nothing short of a pissed off animal.The busy mid day traffic of people split for him like the Red Sea, the vicious look in his eyes yet the gentle hold on the boy conveyed a simple message. Leave me alone.

“They didn’t hurt you bad, cariño?” Janet murmured to Frankie as she stuck a bandage onto his cheek, the only cut that had gotten on him thankfully.

Frankie shook his head, “No, ma’am…but they always like to do this. I’m used to it.”

Janet shared a mortified look with Ben, who looked ready to let The Spider handle the boys. He joined her, crouching down in front of the boy.

“Now listen, kid…I wanna know how long this has been going on. And don’t lie to me. Trust me, I’ll know.”

Frankie seemed to scrunch up on himself, shoulders touching his ears. Janet leaned in and tucked his chin up with a finger.

“Tell Ben what’s going on, niño…” She urged gently. And to their horror, the boy’s lip began to tremble.

Seeing Frankie cry broke a part of Ben’s heart that he’d never felt before. His miserable sobs shaking his whole frame, big tears streaming down his cheeks in a way that reminded Ben that he was just a boy. And it made him wonder how many nights at the shelter he’d spent crying like this.

“I’ve been dealin’ with these two boys for weeks now…” he scrubbed at his face, “been bullyin’ me and taking the money I make…” He sucked in a breath, “and my boss won’t do anything about it…”

Ben thought he could commit a murder right then. He let out a dangerously calm breath that Janet noticed. Ever his voice of reason, she touched his shoulder gently.

Not worth it.

Janet offered to take the boy home with her to let him take a good bath and sleep in a good bed. He didn’t put up a fight.

All the while, Ben swung through the city, hunting. A new kind of rage simmered underneath his skin, boiled his blood and stirred up lava in his belly. He stood at the edge of a building, goggled eyes scanning for who he was hunting for. And there, messing around by a closed shop, were the two boys. Ben might not make a scene this extreme over a kid. But The Spider?

“Hey, look what I scored,” one boy bragged as he pulled out some loose cash he had swiped. Too young to be doing petty theft.

The other boy went to show off his winnings and froze, eyes wide and terrified as he looked over the other’s shoulder.

“You boys have been very bad.” The Spider grunted firmly as he caged the two youngsters against the wall. “I’ve been keeping an eye on you two. I’ve seen what you’ve been up to with those poor newspaper boys.”

The taller one nodded, elbowing the other to agree that yes, that had been them. Ben smirked under the mask and pointed a strict finger. “Now,” he commanded, “I don’t want to see you two stealing from anyone else. I’ll find out. And I won’t be so nice next time. Got it?”

The boys stood motionless, shaking from head to toe.

“Got it?” He urged.

“Yes…yes sir…”

“Good. Now go home, it’s not safe at night.”

Ben watched the boys scurry away, tripping over themselves as they headed home. A job well done, he’d say.

The next morning Frankie was back out on the street selling his papers without a hitch. The news story caught the public’s eye, too.

—-///——

“Local child shelter owner cracked down by The Spider,” Janet read aloud, holding a smirk, “Threatens to contact Mayor Morris if children are not better cared for.”

“Didn’t know the Spider had a soft spot for kids,” Robbie smirked, nudging Ben teasingly.

Ben rolled his eyes, “I’m just doing my job and that’s all—“

Frankie came barging in that moment, face alight with joy as he held a wad of cash.

“Mr. Reilly! Mr. Reilly! I sold every paper today! Look, look, I got 20 bucks!” He waved the money wildly, amusing the adults.

“Nice job, kid. What are you gonna use it on?” Ben asked.

Frankie got shy all of a sudden and looked at his feet, “Could you take me to the pictures? I wanna have a big popcorn and a pop and watch a moving picture like you talked about..”

Ben’s face softened and he nodded, “Of course, kid…how about this evening I take you?”

Frankie perked up and rushed over, shocking Ben as he hugged his neck.

“Thank you, thank you!” He cheered, laughing as he rushed off to go brag to his friends. Ben stayed silent, his heart growing fuzzy. Janet and Robbie’s snickers brought him back to reality, and he swore he heard the words “papa spider” leave Robbie’s lips.

A small conversation with age itself — seventy‑five years in my bones now, and Frankie turning ten beside me, both of us learning how to age with a bit of grace and a bit of mischief, reminding us that growing old is just another way of staying present. When I Am OldIf,I was youngback in nineteen-sixty-one –no,when I am young again,without these strokes of paindown the other side of my brainI…

Hold on it’s blurry

And…

Frankie from Peach Riot 🛼