Every Day ── PETER PARKER²

07. Revelations

Flash looked between the three girls, eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "What? Was I not supposed to know that? If so, you guys are terrible at hiding it." He received three incredulous looks in response, making him roll his eyes. "I mean, you and Parker are always attached at the hip–it's annoying honestly–and today you're not. That, and he's been staring at you since you sat down."

Luna didn't dare to turn, but Mia and Liz did. Surely enough, Peter sat at a different table with Ned, his head leant against his hand with a dazed look in his eyes. Ned caught the two girls staring, smiling and waving at the two, the sudden movement making Peter snap out of his daze. Even from where they sat, they could see the way Peter's cheeks heated up upon being caught, and Liz just shook her head at the boy, before turning back to Luna.

Luna was frowning now. If Flash knew, then who else knew? Was it that obvious that they weren't okay? "Did you tell anybody?"

"That Parker lost the hottest girlfriend he'll ever have in his life? Not yet, but–"

"You're not telling anybody," Luna hissed, making the boy across from her grin. "And we didn't break up."

This made Liz's head snap towards her, and she rose an eyebrow as she asked, "You didn't?"

"No," Luna sighed. "We're on a break."

Liz snorted, "Okay Ross; break, break up, what's the difference?"

"Gotta agree with Captain Queer, there is no difference," Flash pointed out.

"Don't ever call me that again," Liz warned, shooting a glare at the boy.

Mia frowned as she listened to their discussion, she could see from Luna's face that the girl was feeling flustered. She already told them before that she wasn't ready to speak of her situation with Peter, yet here she was, listening to her friend and whatever Flash was to her speak about it casually. She was prepared to interject when when Luna let out a huff, her eyes narrowed at Flash.

"Do you ever shut up?" She interjected, cutting off their discussion of her relationship status. "Last time I checked, we aren't friends Flash, so my relationship status isn't really any of your concern. But if you care so much, my boyfriend and I did not break up."

Mia looked past Luna to the table a few away from theirs, teeth latching onto her bottom lip knowing a lot of people had heard Luna raise her voice at the boy across from her. Peter being one of them. His lips were tugged into a frown, and he watched the girl with a longing look, Ned desperately trying to get him to give it up. Luna wasn't going to turn around and just waltz up to him and declare her love for him, not when the wound was still so fresh.

The teens didn't have time to think about that, not when someone giggled not too far from them. Luna's eyes only filled with rage as they landed on Danielle, her arms crossed over her chest as she smirked. It was obvious she was reacting to what Luna had just said, seeing as she hadn't even bothered to tear her eyes away from their table.

"You'd think after I gave her friend a nice new stained shirt that she'd get the message to leave us the hell alone," Liz scoffed, glaring at the upperclassmen. "How long do you think I need to glare at her before her head falls off?"

"She wasn't like this when we dated," Luna sighed, tearing her eyes away from the girl. "I don't know what happened to her, I have no doubt that if she didn't tell me to go after Peter, I'd probably still be together with her right now."

"You dated Danielle Georgeson, then went to Parker? What a downgrade," Flash snickered, immediately letting out a yelp as Luna kicked him beneath the table. "Whatever. Danielle is a total wreck now anyways, she has been ever since her dad got thrown in jail."

"Her dad got what?" Luna's eyes widened, this being new information to her. Danielle had told her that her mother got full custody of her after their divorce, but never why. Luna had always been jealous of how close the girl had been with her father, especially because she didn't know the whereabouts of her own, so she could only imagine the pain Danielle felt being torn away from him.

Flash nodded, taking the book Mia was holding out to him. "Back in Spring, around the same time you and Parker became a thing. Sexual assault or something, she thinks he was framed, but you don't get thrown in if you're framed, so she's just delusional." Flash stared down at the book, before shooting Mia a pointed look, "You chose this?"

She couldn't hear his voice anymore, she couldn't hear anything anymore. It couldn't just be a coincidence that her dad got thrown in jail for sexual assault the same time Ernie Lakewood got thrown in for the same reason. It couldn't. It made sense why Danielle suddenly hated her, she thought Luna lied about it and got her Dad thrown in a jail cell for no good reason. She could feel her hands beginning to shake, nobody at the table seeming to notice how the girl was reacting to this information. She liked her. She liked the daughter of the man who tried to touch her, who gave her nightmares, who forced her to learn to fight for herself because she was so damn afraid of it happening again. He had tried to touch her while she was walking home from a date with his daughter. As if the situation could get any worse.

Without a word, Luna stood from the table, and left the cafeteria, her head ducked down. Liz and Mia exchanged a look before Liz followed after her, running past Peter, who'd been watching in concern. Ned quickly grabbed onto the boy's arm when he tried to get up, shaking his head. "Liz has it handled," He insisted.

Peter frowned. "But she's-"

"He's right," Another voice added, both boys turning to Michelle, who was still flicking through her book. "The last thing she's gonna want to do is talk to you, no offense Peter."

And with that, Peter sat back down, defeated. Because if Michelle, of all people, was telling him to give it up, then she was probably right.

"Luna?" Liz cautiously approached her friend, Luna's back to her. Her heart clenched as she heard the girl sniffle, shoulders shaking as another wave of tears came over the girl. Liz grabbed onto her shoulders, turning her around and bringing her into her arms. "Luna, what happened?"

"It's her dad, he's the guy," Luna choked out, and Liz tensed up as she made the connection. "Can you believe how stupid I am? This man tries to touch me not once, but twice, and what do I do? I date his daughter."

"Luna, you couldn't have known-"

"But now I do," She cried out, pulling away from her friend. "And I can't forget that. I can't forget that my almost girlfriend's dad tried to take advantage of me. And she hates me for it. She hates me for what her dad to me, because she thinks I lied. How could I lie about that? How could I lie about the trauma he caused me? About the sleepless nights, or the bruises on my hips? How could I lie? How could I..." Her voice faded out as tears welled in her eyes again, and Liz didn't hesitate to bring her in her arms again, releasing a shaky breathe as Luna let out a sob.

— • —

i love luna

luna deserves better