Us Against The World ｡ Peter Parker [2]

40 - Scream Villain

Some people lied because it was easier than harbouring the truth when it was too painful to even consider a reality and some people lied because they liked the thrill. Peter Parker lied about his masked identity to protect the ones he loved. Mary Jane lied about her sadness about never being good enough in her parents' eyes because she knew the truth would tear her soul apart. Harry Osborn lied about his new nighttime hobbies because he wanted to honour his father's legacy. Clayton Cole lied about his broken skin because it would harm his family if they knew the truth. Flash Thompson lied about his horrible home life because he did not want pity. Gwen Stacy lied about her dream to venture into science because she thought others might find it silly because she had never been the shining star compared to her friends in academia. I lied about my visions because it was too scary to think about the outcome sometimes. 

"Are you gonna' eat that?" Ned Leeds peered over at me as we sat at our tiny table at Buttercrust Pizzeria after school one afternoon. He pointed down at my untouched garlic bread and slice of pizza which had been sitting there for a while. Around us students were laughing and soaking up the coming weekend. "I mean, it'd be a waste, you know?"

A smile touched my lips, "Sure. Go for it."

Ned was pulling the plate away from me with a devilish grin while Peter frowned a little bit while sucking on his own drink. Days had passed since the whole Vulture incident and our days had been blissful. It almost felt like we were regular teenagers just floating along with high school and part time jobs and everything simple and normal. But there was a crippling fear thumping in my heart which I had kept to myself. "Are you okay? You're a little...well, far away today." Peter leaned forward, a hand touching my own kindly. 

"I'm okay."

Both boys paused with my almost bland response. "I'm no expert in Florence Parsons's mood swings or whatever, but even I know something is up." Ned commented around a bite of food with a little glance over at Peter. "I mean, it's obvious. You've usually downed your third cherry Coke by four o'clock on a Friday and Clayton's made some snippy remark about your appetite by now. Something's wrong." 

Apparently, Ned Leeds noticed everything. "I am really glad you've picked up on my eating habits, Leeds. It's a real great quality in a man." There was a little poison in my voice today, which had Ned awkwardly shuffling in his chair. 

A low whistle filled our table with my somewhat cruel remark which had been unintentional. Clayton Cole refilled Peter's drink with a nod of his head but his eyes landed on me. "Wanna' retract those claws, Parsons?" he smirked down at me, apparently knowing me all to well too. Weirdly, that ticked me off further. "What's up with you today?"

"Can't I simply be in a mood?" I questioned with a shrug of my shoulders. The boys shared a long glance with each other, my boyfriend going back to sucking on his straw, his eyes averting towards his hands. "If girls aren't remotely bubbly and sunshine all the damn time, we're suddenly asked about our eating habits? Next you'll be asking about my period."

Ned Leeds coughed up his garlic bread. Clayton Cole continued to smile smugly, always enjoying my little outbursts. Peter Parker glanced across at me with confusion in his eyes. "I think that's my cue to leave. Have fun kids." Clayton nodded before wandering away, clearly not interested in getting into an argument. 

Peter leaned forward again, his voice a little quiet. "Nobody is saying you're in a mood or whatever. We're just worried something might be up, that's all. It's not a crime to be worried about you." 

I let out a deep sigh, "You know what? Something is wrong. We've got a green masked villain running around the city and causing chaos and we're not doing anything about it. We're sitting in a pizza place and talking about my eating habits." Peter sunk down in his chair with my comment. We had been dancing around the fact New Goblin was on the rise all week and it was finally time we discussed it. "We know who he is, we need to do something about it."