"Parker!" He sighs as I approach him, "don't think I forgot about our little field trip." I say falling in step with him as he spares me a glance. "Ready to go?" I ask making him nod, "you know I can do this on my own." I nod, "I know but I'm more valuable, I know like all of his passwords and stuff so if he's not there we can snoop. Plus he likes me better so you may need me if he is dangerous."
He wants to argue with me I can tell, he always wanted to argue with me, but surprisingly he sighs once more and nods, "alright let's go."
The car ride so far was slightly awkward, seeing how we barely liked each other we didn't really have much to speak about. "So uh, how's your mom?" Peter tries to break the awkwardness but it doesn't really work as I glance at him and shrug, "she's ok, yeah she's doing better." The silence resumes after that and he takes to tapping on the window before he turns to me like he may speak again.
I quickly just put the radio on to stop him. I hated awkward conversations, I'd much rather just sit in silence. He takes to tapping against the window again, only this time it's in beat with whatever song is playing on the radio.
***
"Hey," I turn to Peter as we walk through the halls of Oscorp. "You wait out here and I'll go in." He murmurs and I go to protest but instead I just nod surprising him. "What you're not gonna fight me on this?" He asks making me shrug, "well I don't mind being lookout."
"Is the world coming to an end?"
"Oh get in there dork."
"Mj." Oh he was back, I swallow my nerves as I plaster on a smile, "is everything ok?" He asks making me nod, "yeah, I just thought I haven't really seen much of you lately."
"Did you drop me a lunch off yesterday." That makes me panic a bit, "uh yeah, I came by but you weren't here I don't think." He nods not suspecting anything and I manage to keep distracted for a short while. He asks about my face, my mom had told him already and so he takes to giving me a small talk about safety.
"Alright Curt, don't worry I'll try to be more careful, it should be easier now Anna gave me her car. No more walking home late at night." He nods before making his way over to his lab.
I follow after him wordlessly. "It's not nice to snoop." He says startling Peter as we enter the room. "I gave everyone the week off."
"Yeah."
"Shouldn't you be at school?" Funny, he didn't ask me that. "No, I got a free track. I wanted to ask you a question.How would a predator... track a reptile?"
"Oh, they don't. Most reptiles are at the top... of their food chain. Kings of their domain." Curt answers making me look over at Peter confused. "They gotta have vulnerabilities."
"Why the sudden interest in the cold-blooded?" Peter was making things very obvious, "Just asking a question." He shrugs making me step in. "It's school stuff. We have Biology profiles to do." I answer making Peter shoot me a small smile, before he goes back to his questioning. "So because of the cold blood... would they react to changes in temperatures?"
"You'd have to catch one first. Did you know there's a rumour of a new species in New York? Beautiful and quite large." I was feeling a bit nervous for how this could go.
"What do you know about it? You seen it?" Peter asks standing, "No, it's not yet classified. But it can be aggressive... if threatened."
"Doc, you all right?"
"Never been better, Peter. Never been better. Now, if you'll excuse me. Afraid I have to ask you both to leave. I have a new project... I'm working on. I need to be alone." He says walking us out of his office.
"Good. Good, good. Good. Don't worry, Mr. Parker. I'll be back. Wonderful things are coming. Wonderful things."
"You're going somewhere?" I ask making him turn to me, "I'll be back Mj, I promise. I can't leave you for long. Now get to school." I nod and send him a tight smile as he leaves Peter and I behind in the lab.
"So wanna snoop?" I ask glancing at Peter our faces mirroring each other's once we hear low growling. "Mj." He whispers pulling me back once I begin walking in the direction of the sound. Instead he holds his arm in front of me as we approach the sound.
"Holy shit!" I grip his arm in shock as I flinch back at the sight of what seemed to be a mouse on steroids eating another mouse?! "What the fuck!" I say turning to Peter in horror. He turns away from where he'd been looking after Curt in horror.
"Peter can we go, please this is freaking me out." I whisper my fingers curling around the sleeve of his shirt in an attempt to tug him away, from the freaky mouse that was staring right at us. "Yeah, yeah. Come on." He says turning to me and nodding before leading me away as I can't seem to tear my eyes off Fred the mouse.
He watches me as we get in the car and doesn't say a thing to me as I sigh and place my head on the wheel for a second. "We have to tell the police right?" I ask turning to him making me nod his mouth a straight line. "He's hurting people?" He nods and so I nod too as I put the keys in the ignition.
***
"Hey, look uh I can, I can go in and tell the chief. You don't have to." Peter says once we arrive at the station, I don't reply for a moment before I turn to him my lips in a tight smile, "uh, yeah can you do that?" He nods sending me a reassuring smile of his own making my fake smile turn just a bit more genuine as he unbuckles his seatbelt.
"Hey Parker." I call to him as he opens his door, "thanks." His lips tug up slightly and he does his little awkward nod. "Drive safe Watson."
"I'll wait for you." I say making him shake his head, "nah get back to school, you know you can't afford to miss anything, you don't wanna fall behind me do you?" I scoff at his smirk, "like that would happen."
I almost want to just drive home and curl up under my covers and cry but remembering I had plans with flash I sigh as I watch Peter enter the station and get ready to go back to school.
