Work Text:
“Matt. Matt. Matt.”
“Peter.”
“Can you hear me stick to things?” Peter asks. He's sitting in the corner of the ceiling, watching Matt run his hands over documents.
“Yes,” Matt replies absentmindedly. It's become the norm for Peter to show up at his…mentor's office, for lack of better word, after school gets out. He lets himself into the office, makes coffee for everyone, and plops down in Matt's office.
It's kind of nice to have someone else who just gets it. The sensory overload, the constant sense of responsibility, being able to hear all crime and only being able to stop part of it. Plus, now they're vigilante buddies. They talk about crime, work together, and Matt teaches him stuff.
He can focus his senses better and further and punch better. His ability skyrocketed after Matt caught him punching with his thumb tucking in his fist. Matt coached him on proper form until Peter could throw a punch in his sleep.
Plus, having someone who can help him with his English homework. Because he's a STEM kid, goddammit, why should he have to know how to write an essay? Matt disagrees vehemently, which led to the marked improvement of his English grade.
And May loves Matt, but not just for that. She says he's the best thing to happen to the city, that all his pro-bono work is the only thing keeping people like them afloat. Matt blushes to the roots of his hair every time May says that. She's taken to sending him home-baked goods as thanks for helping Peter on his homework and because he helped them with a shitty landlord.
Peter usually ends up eating half of whatever she sent, but he's a mutant teenage boy so Matt lets him.
Currently, Peter is chewing on an orange cranberry scone, leaving crumbs on the floor because gravity betrays him. Matt ignores it.
“What does it sound like when I un-stick?” Peter asks.
“Like when you peel a sticky note,” he replies.
“Huh. Weird,” Peter says thoughtfully. His hearing was far better than the average person, but there were still some extremely quiet things he just couldn't hear.
“You're telling me,” Matt mutters. When they had first met as their alter-egos, Matt was so fucking confused as to why this kid could defy gravity with sticky notes.
After some focusing, he realized it wasn't sticky notes. It was the kid's skin, which raised many horrifying follow ups. Rather than deal with any of that, Matt taught Peter how to punch someone.
Fitting for him, honestly.
“Can you tell what I ate on the way over here?” Peter inquires.
“Yes,” Matt replies. Why is this case still a thing? The fact that the DA thinks he can win is laughable at best.
“How?” Peter asks with a head tilt.
“Because you told me as soon as you got here that Mr. Delmar is back in business and that his cat still doesn't like you.”
“Oh, yeah. Why do you think cats don't like me?”
“Probably because they usually hunt bugs but you're too big to eat.”
“You think they can sense that I'm part spider?” Peter gasps.
“You smell like a spider, so probably,” Matt answers. He officially gives up. This case will be easy, and Peter's questions usually devolve into debates that need his full attention.
“What the hell!” Peter exclaims. He sniffs himself surreptitiously. “No I don't!”
“How would you know?” Matt asks with a straight face. His mouth twitches. “Maybe some spiders also use Old Spice.”
“You're an ass, you know that?” Peter complains.
“He's been made aware,” Foggy interrupts from the doorway.
“Good,” Peter grumbles.
With both of them having super senses, and Peter having his handy ‘tingle,’ neither of them are afraid of someone sneaking up on them and catching Spider-man in civvies.
Foggy is a little mad about it because it means he can never surprise either of them. He's working on it though.
“Matt. You read the case with the O'Neals?” Foggy asks.
“You also thinking that this DA is a fucking moron?” Matt replies.
“Language!” Foggy hisses, rushing over to slam his hands over Peter's ears. Peter blinks at him. He wonders if Foggy knows he can still hear everything. Including the Noceda's fighting a block over.
“Foggy. He's a teenager in New York City. He's heard worse,” Matt complains.
“Doesn't mean he should have!” Foggy argues. “Now apologize for scarring the baby.”
“I am so sorry for scarring you,” Matt deadpans.
Peter, with his ears still covered, replies, “You better be. I'm so innocent and unexposed to the cruel, dark, world we live in.”
Matt raises an eyebrow at Foggy and Peter and turns back to his work.
He regrets ever introducing the two.