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CHAPTER ONE
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THE BOY IN THE
MIDDLE OF THE ROAD

THE SKY WAS EMPTY.

It was pure dark, not a cloud in the sky, not that there was anyone there to notice. The sun was not visible and neither was the moon for there was no one to look up and confirm that they were. The sky was empty, not that the dark eyes knew. Tires seamlessly passed across the road as they made their way towards someplace the driver did not know. The road was smooth until the eyes looked down, then it would become worn and tread upon, as roads should.

Lights passed by. Maybe red, yellow, or orange, but they were gone so fast that it didn't even matter because they did not exist. Dark eyes snapped back into focus, keeping an eye out for cars that would never appear because they did not exist. Headlights illuminated the worn out road; the parts shrouded in darkness being nonexistent.

She didn't know where she was. She squinted to try and see, reaching one hand over to the heater, desperately trying to warm herself up, her jacket not doing enough to properly shield herself from the cold of wherever she was. She had no idea where she was or why she was driving. All that she knew was she had to just go.

If she were to ask her father, he would tell her to come back, but that wasn't an option. She continued to drive, not searching, but not idle. She just drove. Just let her mind wander, eyes drooping to the point of being closed.

She opened her eyes again, unsure of the time, to find the road still empty. She saw lights on the other side and turned her head to catch sight of it, only to find it had disappeared from view. Frowning, she turned back to the road, only to slam on the brakes.

Her heart thudded in her chest and in her ears as she stared at the figure illuminated by her headlights. With shaking hands, she unbuckled her seatbelt and stumbled out of the car, leaving the door open as she warily went to check. Her suspicions were affirmed.

There was a boy lying in the middle of the road. He had a mop of curls, plastered on his forehead from either rain or sweat, his eyes closed. He looked peaceful. Like he had found his bliss on the worn out concrete of the empty road and never wanted to get up.

She wondered if he was dead or just asleep. Carefully, she reached down and shook his shoulder. That was when she noticed the cuts and bruises on the patch of skin by his neck, uncovered by his jacket and shirt. She shook him with more force, heart beginning to race as her mind conjured up thoughts of muggings and runaways.

"Hey," she whispered, her voice grainy like a long forgotten speaker, worn, yet unused for some time, "Hey, are you alright?"

The boy continued to lie there, his face one of pure bliss. He almost seemed to be smiling. Afraid, she shook him harder, repeating her question with more force, more fear. She could feel her heart sinking as she began to contemplate the more drastic of assumptions.

"Hey, please wake up," she called out, hearing her voice echo in the empty night devoid of sky and road.

Suddenly, the boy jolted awake and she jumped back, heart racing as she scrambled away from the stranger who was now sitting up and looking at her with wide brown eyes. He stood up as well and she moved farther back, towards her car, a hand out in front of her.

"Hey," he said, somehow managing a small smile, "How's it going?"

She frowned. "How's it going? You-you were just passed out in the middle of the road!" She threw her arms up, running her hands through her hair.

He looked down, as if just realizing where he was for the first time. Though, it seemed as if, having just woken up, it was his first time for however long he had been on the ground, unconscious. He hummed slightly before looking back up at her, still smiling.

"Yeah, I guess so, but it's not that big of a deal," he said shrugging. Then he gasped loudly, shocking enough for her to jump again, and immediately began searching his person for something, mumbling to himself.

She looked around before speaking, wondering how quick of an escape she could make. "Are you looking for somethi—"

"It's like a circle," he said, almost in a panic, "It has a spider symbol on it, it's small and gray and I need it back, it's very important." He pulled up his sleeves, sighing in relief when he caught sight of two watch-like objects on either one of his wrists.

She glanced around, unsure of where to start looking. She looked towards her right and found that there were bushes and trees on the side of the road after the concrete ended. She motioned towards them and watched as he practically threw himself into the dark green.

She took a step back, slowly making her way towards the car. This boy, he was so odd, almost frightening. Waking up on the road like he was taking a nap, unfazed by the prospect of a near brush with death, choosing to panic over the loss of a circle.

"Found it!" he crowed, reappearing from the dark and stepping back onto the road, the only strip of dark illuminated by the lights of her car.

She watched in wonder as he placed the circle onto the center of his chest, pressing down. She watched as it stuck on, the boy seeming to lose sight of her, looking at something both past her and in front of her; there and yet not.

"Hey, Karen," he said conversationally, "Sorry, I know, I kind of lost it–erm, you, at first, but I got it back. Please don't tell Happy or else he'll tell Mr. Stark I'm not being responsible again. Look, it's fine, just tell me if I'm on the right track."

She blinked a few times, trying to make sure she wasn't seeing things, she even went so far as to pinch herself. But every single time, the boy was still there, talking to someone named Karen, asking questions and making comments, giving commands.

"O-okay," she said, already making her way towards her car door, "If you're good, then I'm just gonna go—"

"Hey, wait!" he shouted, causing her to jump again. She inwardly groaned; she was never this jumpy before, she had no reason to be jumpy now.

She looked at him, still partly turned away. "Yeah?"

"W-what's your name?" he asked, stepping towards her.

She forced herself to hold her ground, not wanting to jump away again. She considered giving him a fake name, but decided against it.

"Barbie."

He smiled, tilting his head. "Barbie? Like the doll?" He glanced upwards, as if hearing something, and mumbled softly, "I know, Karen, I'm being funny."

She rolled her eyes, despite her nerves, despite how odd it was that he was having a separate conversation with someone she couldn't see. "Yes, actually, it was my mom's idea. Doesn't mean you have to make all the jokes. Or any at all. Got it?"

He nodded, putting on a faux-serious face, saluting her mockingly. "Yes, ma'am. So, Barbie," he smiled at the name, "Where are you heading?"

She shook her head, shrugging. "I don't know." She didn't know where she was going, only that she needed to leave.

"Well, in that case," he said, patting the hood of the car, "you wanna go on a road trip? I don't have a ride."

She frowned. She didn't know who he was, what he was doing, where he need to go, or why. But he was the only person she had seen in the indiscernible amount of time she had been driving and despite his oddities, his presence was comforting.

"Tell me your name and I'll let you come with," she said, opening the door. She would let him come either way, but knowing his name would make her feel better with letting a literal stranger into her car.

"Peter," he replied, practically skipping towards the passenger side, climbing in, "My middle name is Benjamin." He buckled his seatbelt, turning his head to look at her, stray curls falling into his face like short streamers.

"That's more than I need," she said, turning the key, closing her door as the car hummed to life. "Do you have any directions, Peter? I don't know where I'm heading."

"Just keep going straight."

He rested his head against the seatbelt, head lolling to the side. As she began to drive, he closed his eyes, his breathing becoming even. She wasn't sure if he was asleep and didn't dare to check.

She glanced over him every few minutes, her mind still not fully sinking into the fact that she allowed a stranger into such close proximity to her. There were an innumerable amount of scenarios that she could imagine in which this took a turn for the worst, yet she knew she couldn't just leave him on the road.

He looked so peaceful, as peaceful as he had on the road. His curly hair fell delicately across his face, his eyelids fluttering when loose strands would fall onto them. He had shoved his hands into his jacket pockets, his body pulled in on himself, legs up to his chest.

She reached over and tried to raise the heater some more; she was a mother at heart. It took all her power not to brush back the curls out of his face. She glanced towards the backseats, wondering if she might have a blanket she could throw over him.

She didn't know how long she drove, but soon she caught sight of a few gas stations and road signs. She tried to read what the signs said, but found that she couldn't, the words disappearing too fast for her to read. The words were nonexistent, but she didn't know that.

She continued to drive until she could barely keep her eyes open. Yawning, she caught sight of a gas station, her watery eyes blurring out its name, and pulled up into the parking lot in front of the store. She frowned at the singular, flickering light above the gas tanks but simply locked the doors and climbed into the backseat.

She reached around for a blanket, but her hand came up empty. Sighing, she curled into a small ball, arms wrapped around herself. She closed her eyes and let the dark envelope her into a dreamless sleep.

○ ○ ○

"Barbie, can you hear me? It's Papa. Please, wake up. Please, I need you to wake up, you're all I have left."

Barbie tried to open her mouth, but found that she couldn't. She couldn't even open her eyes. Barbie just sighed and fell back into the darkness where the sky was empty and a boy named Peter was waiting.

○ ○ ○

"—no, Karen, she's sleeping, that's creepy!"

She groaned and twisted in her seat, sighing as she tried to move her weak right arm which she had slept on. She looked around, unsure of what the time was as it was dark out. Not completely dark, but dark, the sort of dark that still had light despite not having any at all. Though, judging by the way Peter was looking at her, it was probably daytime.

He was looking at her with lively brown eyes that glistened like sun shining through a glass of whiskey, though there was no sun to be seen. He was smiling brightly, though it seemed to be rather strained, probably by whatever Karen told him to do. She wondered who Karen was and why Peter always seemed to be exasperated with her.

"I have a camera, you wanna take a picture?"

She blinked, realizing that she was just staring at the boy. Her surprised expression instantly contorted into a scowl and she scoffed, pushing his head back as she climbed into the front seat, huffing.

"Aw, c'mon, doll, I was joking," he drawled, poking her arm lightly.

She whipped her head to the side to glare at him. "Don't call me that. What did I say about Barbie jokes?"

He held up his hands. "Sorry, sorry, no Barbie jokes, got it." His stomach grumbled and he blushed sheepishly. "I'm hungry. You wanna grab something to eat?" He motioned towards the gas station store.

She shrugged and nodded, unlocking her door. "Sure, why not. I haven't eaten since..." she trailed off; she couldn't remember the last time she had eaten.

Peter whistled, breaking her out of her thoughts. "We need to get you some food, doll. Come on." He opened his door and climbed out, slamming it behind him with more force than he probably intended, if his little squeak and wince were anything to go by.

She frowned at the nickname, but followed him regardless, grabbing the keys and locking the doors. He was already inside by the time she reached the door, running across the aisles, grabbing various snacks and the like.

She looked at the counter, surprised to find it empty. In fact, it seemed as though the entire gas station was deserted. She said as much to Peter who shrugged and offered that maybe they were on break or were late. Though unconvinced, she decided to push away her thoughts and sit on top of the counter, watching the boy run through the aisles.

"How old are you?" she asked, watching as he grabbed packets of gummy worms.

He stopped and placed his hands on his hips. "How old are you?"

She rolled her eyes. "Fifteen." It didn't occur to her that she wasn't allowed to drive at fifteen, especially since her father already taught her how. There were no laws, so she had no worries; though she didn't know that.

He grinned. "Me too!" Then he went back to his foraging, stuffing his pockets with snacks, occasionally muttering to Karen and asking for her opinion. At one point, he called out to her, "What do you want?"

"I don't care," she replied, "Wait. Do they have those powdered donuts?"

He laughed and ran towards the back, lifting a bag of the sugary treats above his head in triumph. He added it only his growing pile of snacks, candy bars and smaller packets crammed into the pockets of his pants.

"You know," he said, dropping the hoard onto the counter next to her, "I really think doll suits you well. If I let you call me a nickname, can I call you doll?"

She scowled. "What is this, the forties? I don't even have a nickname for you, so what would I even call you? Pete?"

He snorted. "No. Call me Spidey. My alias is Spider-Man, but that's a little too long."

She raised an eyebrow. "You're not a man, dude. Also, what are you talking about, I honestly have no idea what you just said."

He opened and closed his mouth. "I-it's complicated. Look, I'll explain while we're driving. Come on." He reached into his pocket and slapped a wad of cash onto the counter, pulling the snacks into his hands, pushing the door open with his shoulder and walking out.

She frowned at the money, wondering where the cashier was. Her confusion was soon replaced with guilt; she didn't mean to let him pay for her. She considered switching out his money for hers, but realized that she didn't have her wallet on her. With a sigh, she followed him out, surprised to find him already inside.

When he caught her staring, he held up her keys, grinning madly. She patted her pockets, letting out a growl of frustration when she realized he had pickpocketed her. She didn't even notice him get close enough to do that.

She stomped all the way until she was in the car, struggling to climb inside. When she finally closed the door, she turned to find Peter smiling at her.

She snatched the keys out of his hand. "What?"

"Nothin'," he replied, opening a bag of chips.

She sighed and put the key in the ignition, the car humming to life. As she backed out of the parking space, she sighed. He did pay for her food.

"You can call me doll if you want. Spidey."

AUTHOR'S NOTE

So! First chapter! I am honestly pretty happy with how this came out, I love Barbie, she's a lot like my other oc Phoebe except smaller and a lot more in your face.

If you couldn't tell, the Peter of this universe is a lot more Spider-Man than he is Peter Parker, a lot more witty, a lot more confident.

If you also didn't notice, I never referred to Barbie as her name, only as 'she'. Peter calls her Barbie, but that's his dialogue. This is a deliberate choice.

Also! This is what Barbie's car looks like just for reference. It's a 1957 Volkswagen Beetle that neither she nor her father bought (as mentioned, she's too young to have a car) so...just read on and it'll be explained why she has it at all.

That's all I have to say so thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!