Peter winced, backing up.

"STOP!"

He froze, holding his breath.

"You disobeyed me."

"I-I didn't m-"

"What was that?!" May stepped closer, putting one hand on his chest and pushing him back against the wall. Peter flinched, saying the words he knew she wanted to hear even though it was too late to pacify her.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. It won't happen again, ma'am. I swear." He squeezed his eyes shut as she grabbed his arm and yanked him into his room.

"Shirt off."

"Please, ma'am."

"Shirt off."

Peter's hands shook as he unzipped his jacket and took his shirt off. May opened a drawer in his desk, pulling out a belt. She looked at him expectantly. Peter turned around, bracing his hands against the wall. His back was covered in raised marks, scars left from over the years. The most recent scars were from a few weeks ago.

He let out a shuddering breath as she turned on incredibly loud music to drown out the sound. By now she knew how to keep the neighbors from asking questions.
Peter held his breath, clenching his jaw.

Thwick.

He could feel blood running down his back, his forehead resting on the wall. His chest heaved, his eyes closed.

May grabbed a fistful of his hair, pulling his head back. "When I tell you not to go out, you don't go out."

Peter gasped as she tugged harder.

"You won't break the rules again, will you?"

He gave a tiny shake of his head. She pressed her free hand into his bleeding back. He barely held back a cry.

"I ask you a question, you give me a proper answer. Are. You. Going to follow the rules?"

"Yes ma'am."

His voice was hoarse, pain laced through it. She flipped him around so his back hit the wall. He bit his tongue to keep from crying out. She hadn't turned the music off yet, and making noise would just make the rest of his punishment worse.

May lifted his chin. "Hands behind your back."

Peter squeezed his eyes shut as he followed her instructions, linking his hands behind his back and holding his breath. Her fist hit his stomach repeatedly until he couldn't hold back a cry and was bent over, his hands resting over his stomach. May grabbed his hair again, forcing him up. "Hands back."

He struggled to catch his breath. "Please-"

"Now, Peter."

He shuddered and slowly slid his hands back. May hit him again, and again, and again.

Peter lay curled up on his side on the floor. It was easier to clean blood off the floor than to stain his sheets. That would just cause another beating. He was still breathing heavily, though the music was off and May had left him locked in his room. She'd taken his phone, of course, but left him his computer for homework that he had to have done by morning. Blood still trickled down his back, mostly because of the new bruises over them.

After a few minutes Peter tried to sit up, arms giving out almost immediately. It took another minute before he could breathe close to normal again. It took another twenty before he tried to get up again. Finally he made it to his feet, leaning heavily on the wall.
Peter managed to limp his way to his desk chair, falling into it.

Shaky hands opened his laptop. It was worn, with a few cracks in the screen. Someone had thrown it away because the battery died. It hadn't taken much to make it work again.
The teenager opened his browser, the latest news stories popping up. Right at the top was a video of a news conference with Tony Stark.

He clicked the video. Halfway through his eyes squeezed shut and a tear slipped out. His dad kept talking to the reporters about the latest Stark Industries technology. His dad who didn't want him. May didn't hesitate to remind him that every chance she got.

Peter vaguely remembered a time before she had started hurting him. Back when Uncle Ben was alive… That was nearly nine years ago.

Another tear fell before the video ended. He closed the laptop and pulled out his textbooks. He'd be in more trouble if he didn't finish his homework.

The alarm blared through the room, Peter jolting upright from his desk. He gasped as a wave of pain flooded his system. His hands gripped the desk so hard his knuckles turned white. Luckily his alarm would turn off by itself after a minute, so he didn't have to worry about stumbling over to his nightstand.

It was going to be hard enough getting ready for school. She never let him stay home, no matter how bad the beating had been.

It took forty minutes for him to be ready for school, compared to the usual ten. He leaned on the wall as he made it to his door, knocking gently on the wood. The door unlocked and May opened the door, pulling him out by his arm. Peter winced, stumbling a bit. He kept his eyes locked on the ground.

May opened the front door. "Get to school. If you're late…" The threat hung in the air.
"Be home by four."

"Decathlon practice is today, ma'am."

Her fist clenched, Peter flinching. "Be home by six."

"Yes ma'am."

The door shut in his face. Peter leaned against the wall as he started making his way out of the apartment building. He walked through back alleys, though it was more of a stumble.

"Hey handsome."

Peter looked up, a small smile breaking across his lips. M.J. stood by the front of the alley, her own smile making his face light up a little more. She started towards him. He let go of the wall and stumbled the last few steps into her arms, hugging her close. M.J. carefully held him back. She wrapped one arm around his waist, while her other held the base of his neck, keeping as little contact with his back as possible.

"Hey." He whispered into her ear, resting his forehead on her shoulder.

"Hey." MJ whispered back.

They held each other for at least a minute before letting go enough so that they were walking side by side. "What happened?"

Peter rested a good portion of his weight on her, wincing every few steps. "She caught me sneaking back in after a patrol. Lucky I wasn't in the suit."

MJ gently tightened her hold on him, one hand interlocked with his. "You shouldn't be patrolling, loser. She's gone crazier the past few weeks. You're trying to stay off her radar, remember?"

He nodded tiredly, softly squeezing her hand. "Sorry."