Peter was now sitting in a separate room with Susan, away from the children's eyes and the noise of the long day.
The air was still, so silent that even their breathing felt loud—like the room itself held time still to offer them a moment of clarity.
Outside, Franklin and Valeria had fallen into deep sleep. They didn't need dinner or bedtime stories.
The hug and short laughter they shared with Peter had been enough to exhaust them, as if meeting him lifted a heavy burden they never realized they were carrying.
As for Peter, he remained in shock. Everything was tangled in his mind—their looks, their words, memories of pain, and a reality that clashed with those memories.
But he didn't speak. He knew silence now was more honest than any rushed question, and that he shouldn't judge too quickly, the way others often judged him.
Susan and Carol both wore the same expression. They both understood the real reason for his shock. Both were from the future. And both knew Peter still carried the wound from the moment he thought his family had betrayed him.
He wasn't just hurt. He was broken.
As far as he remembered, Susan had kicked him out of the Baxter Building. Not only that, but her eyes held hatred, and her words were so cruel they were the only thing that fully shattered him—and drove him to jump from that building.
And Valeria? She hadn't even looked at him. Franklin had called him dangerous and put up a wall of ice between them.
He was attacked by Susan, thrown out of the building.
But today…
Here was Susan, in his home. And the children hugged him like nothing had ever happened.
Still, he didn't rush. He didn't speak. He didn't get angry. He didn't smile.
He just sat there, trying to understand the picture. Something deep inside told him that what had happened was bigger than just a falling-out. So he let her speak.
Susan sat across from him, her eyes searching, lost, looking for a way in that wouldn't hurt him more. She didn't want to lose him again.
Peter said nothing. He just nodded slowly.
A slight hesitation crossed her face, then she spoke in a quiet voice "I know you're shocked, and… maybe you don't trust me right now. But I'm here to explain everything."
His expression didn't change. No surprise, no anger, only waiting—shown through a frowning poker face.
"I didn't kick you out. I didn't attack you. I wasn't even there. I didn't know anything about what happened."
Her eyebrows lifted, as if apologizing with every cell in her body.
"I was on the island, me and the kids, at one of Stark's resorts. Reed offered us the trip—no contact, no news. It was strange, yes, but I never thought… Reed would do something like that."
Peter tilted his head slightly.
"I saw you. I heard your voice. There was no room for doubt."
She closed her eyes for a moment, as if gathering courage.
"Reed used a hologram. Not just any, a very advanced one. It wasn't just an image, it was a copy of me—my voice, my face—and it used weapons built into the building to attack you."
Peter's eyes widened slightly. He didn't interrupt.
"Even the kids weren't real. They were fake images. They were fooled, just like you. Everything was carefully planned… even your breakdown. He used the excuse of the Superior Spider to justify it."
His eyes shimmered, but no tear fell. "Why?"
"Because you changed everything. Because your presence with us started making a difference Reed couldn't understand or control. Maybe he felt you were threatening the order he knew. Or maybe… he was just jealous."
She looked into his eyes and saw confusion—not because he didn't believe her, but because he was starting to. And that's what hurt him.
"I'm sorry. Sorry I wasn't there, sorry I didn't know. But believe me, none of us said those things you heard. We never hated you. Neither did the kids."
Peter whispered, his voice barely audible, "Valeria didn't even look at me… Franklin said I was a walking danger."
She shook her head firmly. "Lies. All of it. When I told them later what happened, they swore they never felt that way. They asked about you every day. Wondered where you went, why you weren't answering, why you stopped visiting."
Peter's gaze turned to the room's door, where the children were sleeping. He remembered the moment they hugged him, their laughter, the warmth in their honesty. That wasn't acting. There was no fear in their eyes.
Susan said in a softer voice, "If you saw how they ran to you today, you'd understand. You weren't just a friend to us. You were their safety."
Carol moved quietly at the door, as if observing from a distance, then smiled faintly without interfering. She understood that one of the biggest reasons Peter was broken was Reed's deception.
As for Wanda, she leaned back in her chair, watching silently, her mind spinning in the depths of the scene. Why did she feel like she belonged here—and yet didn't? So many feelings. She wished the children were hers. She wished Peter was hers. She wished she had that same bond with him that she saw now between him and Susan.
Susan stepped closer to Peter and sat beside him without touching him.
"I'm here now. Not to justify what happened, but to be honest. I won't tell you to forget—but I hope you'll give me a chance to fix what was broken, or at least try… Please, let me this time."
Peter hesitated for a moment, then said, lowering his eyes to the floor "I… I need time to get past this. And maybe I still don't understand everything. I'm just… so confused."
Then his tone shifted, tinged with anger.
"Why is everything always against me… f***… why me… f***… f***…"
Susan didn't dare move when Peter started yelling. But when the moment allowed, she hugged him quickly, expressing her understanding of his pain.
"I'm here. No matter how long it takes."
He looked at her, and this time, there was no coldness in his eyes. But rather a faint spark—and deep sorrow reflected in those watery brown eyes, on the verge of bursting with tears, yet held back by the will of a man.
Peter whispered and slowly sank into Susan's arms, closing the eyes that had enchanted the woman "At least now… I'm starting to understand."
.
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I did the best I could with this emotional confrontation between Peter and Susan. Sorry if I disappointed you.
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