MIND GAMES|PETER PARKER

1.5

2 months later

Jessie sat atop the building again, stargazing as usual when a shadowy figure swung passed her line of vision. She looked around in confusion, but saw nothing. She shrugged and returned to looking up at the sky until she felt an arm snake around her waist and pull her into the air.

She screamed and looked up at the person holding her. She felt a little bit better seeing the familiar red suit and black goggles above her, but she was still afraid of falling.

"Peter? Please don't drop me," She begged as he continued to shoot webs, swinging from building to building. She felt him chuckle and she closed her eyes and hugged him tightly until he landed.

"You can open your eyes now," Peter laughed at the frightened girl in his arms. She looked up and saw the whole city from the top of the building they were standing on. Her eyes lit up like a Christmas tree as she stared down to look at all of the colorful lights.

"Woahh," She gasped at the sight of it. Peter smiled from beside her and looked around the balcony for a place to sit.

"Welcome to the tallest tower in Queens," He announced like a television promoter of some sort. Jessie giggled and moved him to the side of the building where they sat on the edge. "Um....why do you like sitting on the edge of buildings so much?"

"It calms me. Makes me think about life and death more clearly," She admitted and he stared at her as she spoke. It wasn't a staring like a sympathy kind of stare, but more like a curiosity stare.

"How?" He urged.

"Well, I'm living, breathing, and surviving....but I could end all of it with a single push off this ledge," She explained and Peter's heart jumped at the thought, but he let her speak. "Once I have that thought, I seem to realize how precious life really is. How...it could all end in one millisecond and happen anytime, anywhere. By your hand, or by someone or something else's. Me...I'd rather die by someone else's hands while saving the people I care about."

Peter continued staring at her, but this time, with more admiration. He lifted his hand to the strand of hair blowing in her face and tucked it safely behind her ear. She turned and looked into his eyes. "You are amazing...and I hope you live the best life you could imagine."

He said those words with such meaning in his eyes that Jessie's heart leapt from her chest and she leaned forward, instantly kissing him. Their lips danced with each other for minutes until she felt his tongue slide across her bottom lip and she allowed him access to explore her mouth.

Things were getting heated until Jessie pulled away, her eyes streaming with tears. "What's wrong Jess?" He put his hand on hers to calm her down. Her heart soared at the sound of him calling her by her nickname.

She was caught between telling the truth or saving him from being hurt even more than she could possibly make him. "I'm leaving in a few days," She told him. His eyes contorted into a confused glance and he was pulled deep in thought.

"Why?"

"I have to go back home," She lied. She didn't know where home actually was. She wasn't sure if it was in that tiny, white room back in the old S.H.I.E.L.D. building, or if it was Clint's house, or even if it was at Tony's mansion where she spent plenty of time helping Pepper and Tony with Stark Industries.

"Why are you telling me this now?" He asked shaking his head, not understanding. Jessie knew he didn't get the situation which is why it was so much harder to lie to him.

"Because after tonight, we won't be seeing each other again," She admitted. That was the truth. She wouldn't be seeing him because she'd be packing tomorrow and then meeting Tony at a diner called Shawarma the next day to talk about the information from the mission.

"What-What do you mean?" He asked and shook his head confused. "You're just leaving? What about me? What about...what about us?" He motioned to them both.

"I don't want to leave you, but I have to. We can't continue with us. I can't explain it any further but I need to keep you safe," She said through tears. Peter climbed off the edge of the building and started pacing along the balcony. She followed suit and went to calm him down, but he stepped further away from her.

"Dont.....don't touch me," He warned and she nodded in understanding. She knew this was her fault for falling for him in the first place. She knew she should've listened to the agents when they told her she could never fall in love.

"I'll just go," She said quietly and walked into the exit which connected to an elevator and brought her all the way down to the first floor of the building.

She got to the lobby and saw the clerk watching her weirdly. She checked his mind just to see what he had been thinking about.

I don't remember seeing her enter the building. Should I call security?

She started walking faster and the man noticed and began punching numbers into the telephone so she stopped and made eye contact with him. She started making him move his arms away from the telephone.

He paused and his face turned bright red. He ended up passing out from fear which caused Jessie to run. She was sprinting down the street when she ran into the chest of someone.

"There you are. I've been looking for you," A familiar voice said and Jessie looked up at the man. It was the same guy from the night Peter had saved her in the alley, except now he was wearing sunglasses. "I came prepared this time," He smiled. She threw a punch at him and he ducked before he could feel the impact, but she stomped on his foot and kneed him. He grunted and she tried to make a run for it, but multiple arms grabbed her from behind.

She tried yelling out Peter's name, but a cloth was shoved over her mouth causing her to panic and take in a deep breath.

She fell dizzy and seconds later, passed out, falling into the people's hold.

Peter was still on the rooftop thinking through what Jessie had said when he thought he heard someone call out in distress.

He walked over to the ledge and peered over it seeing Jessie being shoved into a car by people in dark uniforms. A pit formed in his stomach at the sight.

Without thinking any further, he jumped off the building and shot his webbing through the air.

Once again, he was going to save the girl he'd met only a few months ago and seemed to have fallen for. He needed to tell her that so that she wouldn't leave. He needed to convince her to stay and be a normal crime-fighting teenager with him. He just needed her.

And this time, he was sure he wouldn't lose her again.