Jealousy

Spider-Man, Captain Britain, and all associated characters, are property of Marvel. My Hero Academia and all related characters are property of Kohei Horikoshi

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"Mmmh-Haaa!" Johnny Storm sighed deeply, smiling widely as he stared down the Baxter Building. "Is there any better smell in the world than New York City?"

"Had an aunt that made the best apple pie this side o' the Mississippi," a gravelly voice spoke up behind him.

Johnny's smile twisted into a frown, "No one asked you, rock-breath."

Ben Grimm chuckled, "So, what? You make a habit of talking ta yourself standing on the edge o' rooftops?"

Johnny tensed, making to turn around, only to stop himself. He exhaled, releasing the tension in his body, growing serene. "You know what? Go ahead. Nothing you've got to say can ruin this moment."

"Sue's pregnant."

"She's what?!" Johnny whirled around, slack jawed. His expression grew sour upon seeing Ben's rocky lips shut in thin line, shoulders shaking. "Oh, screw you!" He turned back around. "…She's not though, right?"

Ben snorted, "Nah…I mean, probably." He hummed, "Course, she and Reed—"

"I don't want to hear it!" Johnny cut his teammate off with a shout. He rolled his shoulders, "Think I'm going to go for a fly, shake off the rust."

"Visit your boyfriend?"

The Human Torch groaned, dropping his head in his hands. "How many times do I have to tell you, me and Spidey—"

"Ooh, ya got pet names now?"

Johnny just glared in response, flipping Ben off before leaping off the roof. "Flame on!" he shouted, willing his body to morph into plasma, igniting in the air and lifting him into the air. And through it all he could still hear Ben Grimm's rumbling laughter.

Ah, what did he know? He and Peter were friends. Friends hung out together. Went to ball games, had meals together, crashed at each other's places, beat up bad guys, buy each other's merch—well, he did that more than Peter.

Briefly, he wondered how Peter was doing. Last they'd talked, he and some blonde—Gwen something—were working together on some project. He remembered that Peter had been nervous. Gwen's father was a cop—a captain or something—and he'd been afraid that prolonged exposure would awaken some latent cop skills she'd subconsciously absorbed as a child and figure out his secret.

Johnny called him a worrywart that could put Reed to shame. Then Peter called him a reckless idiot. And then some mole men crawled out of the ground and that took up their day.

So, lost he was in his memories, he didn't see that he was about to fly into something. Something that very worriedly shouted, "Oi!"

Quick as a flash, Johnny dove, corkscrewing in the air before righting himself. He cocked a brow at the sight before him. The something turned out to be a man; a Hero. He wore a red body suit with a golden lion printed on the front. His mask…wasn't really a mask. It showed off his thick, wavy blonde hair—it was good hair to be certain. Hair a guy should be proud of. But…a bit of a target. And familiar.

Johnny realized the flying guy was staring, and he cleared his throat. "Er, sorry about that." He turned around, gazing at the clouds. "Not really used to sharing the skies." He frowned, "I mean, sometimes Iron Man will be around, but he's pretty loud."

The man waved his hand, "It's alright." Johnny blinked at the man's British accent. "I get it. Most of the Heroes in New York stick close to the ground."

And then, it clicked. "Oh!" Johnny snapped his fingers, "You're one of those new guys that popped up in August." He wracked his brain for a name, "Er…Union Jack?"

"Captain Britain," the other flyer flatly replied.

"That was my second guess."

"Of course. And you're the Human Torch." Johnny smirked, puffing his chest a bit. "Spidey's mentioned you once or twice." Johnny frowned; Peter and this guy talked? "Anyway," Captain Britain turned around, "I've gotta go, things to do and all." He looked over his shoulder, "Oh, if you see the web head, tell him I took care of the weapons deal in Sugar Hill." And before Johnny could even think of asking for clarification, the foreign Hero zoomed off.

Peter…worked with this guy? Johnny quickly shook his head; no! That couldn't be right! The other Heroes always thought the worst of him—Johnny pointedly ignored the little voice in his head (that sounded like Reed, of all people) that reminded him that he didn't trust Spider-Man in the beginning either.

But…the other Heroes weren't idiots. Spider-Man was by far one of the most capable Heroes around. Always moving, always saving the day. Luke Cage roamed Harlem. Daredevil guarded Hell's Kitchen. Cloak and Dagger bounced between the Upper East and West Side. Moonknight haunted Midtown. Prowler…prowled Chinatown. All sorts of Heroes carved out their own little corners of the city. Even the Avengers popped in every now and then. But everyone, everyone, knew Spider-Man was the veritable King of New York. This new guy was just…paying his respects. Yeah, that's all!

He shook the head, wondering why he'd even got worked up in the first place, and continued on his way.

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New York was surprisingly quiet. Johnny had yet to come across a crime in progress. Of course, it could be that criminals were able to see him soaring through the air and wisely fled.

It was a good thing, of course—the ordinary citizens of New York deserved whatever breaks they could get. But it also meant that he'd yet to find Peter. Not that there wasn't tomorrow but…he wanted to catch up sooner rather than later.

He supposed that he could give the man a call…but Johnny was nothing if not spontaneous.

Just as he was about to cave and call his friend, a loud BOOM sounded from his left. He turned, eyes widening at the sight of a car trailed by smoke and fire shooting into the sky.

Only for the car to stall in the air as a large net of white webbing caught it between two buildings.

Johnny smirked, shooting forward.

He could see the source of the chaos now. Looked like Scorpion and Rhino were doing a team-up. Johnny considered his options—Rhino was basically fireproof (something he'd learned the hard way) but Scorpion wasn't nearly as resilient. Picking the (slightly) easier target, Johnny flew closer to the ground, charging up fire in his palms as Spider-Man danced between the two Villains.

Until a blur came in out of nowhere, slamming into Scorpion and sending the tailed Villain crashing into a lamp post.

"Fear not!" the blur stated with a deep, masculine voice. He rose, and Johnny had to blink because good lord this guy was buff. Really filled out his obviously Captain America inspired uniform. "For I Am He—woah!" the Hero cut himself off, ducking under Rhino's haymaker. Wasn't quite able to dodge the gut punch that followed. The Villain probably would have followed that with another blow, had Spidey not shot webbing in Rhino's face and pulled him to the left.

Spidey huffed, "All Might, what have I told you about those introductions?"

The buff Hero groaned, rubbing his gut, "Don't stand still."

"Exactly. I mean, I get talking wanting to talk." Rhino bellowed, charging in and forcing the two Heroes apart; All Might jumping backwards, Spidey ducking under Rhino's legs. "But if you're going to announce yourself," the arachnid-themed Hero leapt onto Rhino's back, "then you need," Rhino swiped at Spidey with both hands. The Hero leaned back attaching webbing to Rhino's hands and twisting them against his back, "to keep moving!" Spidey jumped off the armored Villain, pushing his into forward.

All Might caught the stumbling Villain by his horns, slamming his unprotected jaw into his knee. The Villain groaned, crumpling to his knees.

The buff hero nodded, dusting his pants. "Right. I'll remember that."

"That's what you said last time," Spidey chuckled.

Johnny was nonplussed. Friendly banter? On both sides? With some newbie? Did Reed accidently send them to some strange, alternate earth?

"Ragh!" Johnny turned in tandem with Spidey and All Might to see Scorpion leap at them, tail glistening in the sun. The other two Heroes tensed, but Johnny just raised his hands, blasting the Villain back with a gout of orange flames.

As Scorpion was blasted into a newspaper stand, All Might and Spidey turned around. "Torch!" his friend shouted jovially.

"Hey, it's the Human Torch!"

"He's back!"

"Johnny, I love you!"

Johnny blinked, suddenly aware of the crowd of people around them. Around him, really. Falling back into old habits, Johnny dropped down the street, changing back to his flesh and bone form and flashing the crowd a smile. "People, people! No need to crowd! There's enough Storm to go around!" That sent a few of the more impressionable youths wild, the adoration infecting him and raising his mood. Until he caught sight of Spidey and All Might gathering up Scorpion and Rhino for the police to book. He couldn't hear them over the crowd, but Spidey must've said something funny, because All Might lifted his head up and laughed. Johnny did his best not to frown as he answered his adoring public's questions.

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Johnny managed to give the crowd the slip when the police arrived to book Scorpion and Rhino. He hoped Peter hadn't swung away somewhere in the interim—he'd spent so much time trying to find him. Thankfully, the wall crawler was overlooking the police pick-up from a nearby rooftop. All Might was also there.

Peter turned around as Johnny landed on the roof. "Been awhile, hot head."

Johnny smiled, making to reply, only for All Might to step forward, smiling widely and bowing slightly. "Human Torch!" he bellowed. "It's an honor to meet you!"

Johnny cocked a brow, "Er…right." And then, it clicked. "Oh…you're one of those other new guys!"

All Might deflated slightly, but Peter perked up. "Other?"

"Almost crashed into uh…Captain Britain earlier." The Fantastic Four member snapped his fingers, "Oh yeah! Said he took care of…weapon smugglers over in Sugar Hill."

Peter sighed, shoulders dropping in…relief? "That's great!" he said, "was hoping he'd be able to check it out." Spidey…trusted that new guy?

Seriously, what the hell?

Shaking his head, he turned a critical eye towards All Might. He was in a better mood than minutes prior, staring at Johnny expectantly, blues eyes practically—no, literally—glowing. He cocked a brow, "Got something to say?"

The Hero blushed, "Oh, well, it's nothing…I mean," he looked over to Peter, Johnny managed to keep a straight face when the web head chuckled and gestured for All Might to continue. The buff Hero turned back to Johnny, a bright smile splitting his face, "Is it true that your sister can create forcefields out of thin air?!"

Johnny blinked, "Uh…yeah."

"But…what does that have to do with being invisible?"

Johnny clicked his tongue, furrowing his brow, "Sue's not a one-trick pony, you know?"

"I didn't mean I like that!" the man quickly said, eyes wide and hands held up defensively. "It's just, well, your whole group has some rather unique powers among Heroes and Villains alike. Even Mr. Grimm."

" ?" Johnny whispered, nonplussed.

"I mean, he's made out of rocks, but Spider-Man has told me that the man can run as fast as the best of them. I mean, I'm no physicist, but—" he started rambling a bit more, Peter huffing in amusement.

Despite himself, Johnny found himself smiling, "Well, we're gonna be around for a bit. You could always ask rock-face himself; he'll probably be on Yancy Street or this one bar over in—" Johnny paused, realizing that Ben wouldn't appreciate being bombarded with questions while nursing a drink. "…Or you could always just come to the Baxter Building."

"Oh!" All Might blushed, looking away, "I wouldn't want to impose."

"Ah, don't worry about it," Peter said, walking over and playfully slugging the Hero on his shoulder, "I mean, they let me hang around; not like they got that many standards." Johnny frowned at the self-depreciative put-down, noting that All Might's smile had lessened as well. "But before all that, don't you have somewhere to be? Something to do?"

All Might blinked, before gasping, "Gah!" he shrieked, clapping his hands over his mouth. "I almost forgot!" He spun on his heel, running across the roof. "Nice to meet you, Human Torch!" he said over his shoulder, before leaping high into the air.

Johnny followed the leaping Hero with wide eyes. "Woah…guys got hops."

"Yeah," Peter walked closer, "can't dunk to save his life, though." Peter then gently clapped his shoulder. Johnny turned; it was faint, but he could see the imprint of a smile under Peter's mask. "Nice to see you, Johnny."

Johnny reciprocated the gesture, "You too." He stepped back, crossing his arms, "So…what's with those new guys?"

Peter shrugged, "Not much. Just some new kids on the block. We help each other out occasionally."

Johnny cocked a brow, "Why?"

Peter grunted, "What do you mean, why? They need all the help they can get. Sometimes they return the favor."

"I'm just saying," Johnny held up his hands, "Since when do you do team-ups?"

"I do team-ups!" Peter indignantly replied.

Johnny huffed, narrowing his eyes, "Not willingly! Took me the better part of a year to get you to let me help when I offered," he grumbled.

Peter stared at him for a long, silent moment. Then, he snorted, "Oh my god…you're jealous!"

"I'm not jealous!" Johnny shouted, face unwillingly heating up.

"You totally are!" Peter was laughing now, clutching his stomach.

"I am not—shut up!"

But Peter kept laughing. "Man," he said between gasps, "I never thought anyone would be jealous of sharing me!" He started laughing harder, "If fifteen-year-old me could see me now," he stopped suddenly, tilting his head, "well, he'd probably think someone spiked his lunch."

Johnny couldn't help but smile at his friend's antics. "Speaking of lunch," he said, taking the out, "I am getting a little hungry."

"Yeah," Peter stood straight, "I could go for a good hotdog right now."

Johnny rolled his neck, shifting forms, "There are good hotdogs?"

"Say that again flame-breath," Peter mock-growled, "see what happens." He then leapt off the roof swinging away.

Johnny quickly followed, "Okay, enough about work. How's the other half of your life?"

"Not so bad…Oh! You remember that girl I was working with before you left?" Before Johnny could respond, Peter continued, voice giddy, "We started dating!"

"That's…great."

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A/N: Johnny Storm and Peter Parker have a weird relationship. Like, even for superheroes. Be sure to leave a review. Later.