Walking the Wire | PETER PARKER [1]

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Me too, Eloise thinks, but for a different reason. She doesn't know anything about Peter being Spider-Man. If she knew, she probably wouldn't let her nephew leave the apartment. May would freak out if she found out.

Eloise looks down at the homemade meal on her plate. Pushing the green beans aside, she says, "Yeah, me too." May cocks her head. Eloise clears her throat and explains, "I mean, he's always so busy and I think the lack of sleep and stress is taking a toll on him."

May nods and takes a bite of her turkey. "He's just like his father," she says after swallowing. "Smart, hard-working, strong..." She shrugs. "But his father wasn't as caring as Peter is. He's got a good heart."

"Yeah," Eloise says softly. She knows Peter has a good heart, but when he told Eloise he didn't need her the other day, it really hurt. She thought they were becoming close friends, but Eloise figures she was just in the way of things. She doesn't mean as much to him as he does to her.

May studies Eloise from across the table with a thoughtful look. It looks like she's about to ask Eloise if she's okay, so before she has the chance, Eloise speaks again.

"What happened to Peter's parents?" Eloise asks carefully, taking another bite.

May clears her throat and looks down. Pain flashes in her eyes, and before Eloise can take back the question, May says, "They died in a car accident when Peter was young."

Eloise stops chewing. She didn't know what she was expecting to hear, but it wasn't that. They both died at the same time? That must've been extremely hard on Peter.

"I'm sorry," Eloise finally says after a few moments of silence.

May smiles sadly. "It was a while ago. They were always coming and going; Peter never really got to know them."

There's another beat of silence.

May clears her throat and sits up in her seat. "Okay, let's talk about something happy." She sets her chin on her hands and narrows her eyes on Eloise. "So ... do you have a boyfriend?"

She laughs. "No, no I don't."

May pouts at her answer, but then smiles. "That's okay, you don't need a man." She cuts up her turkey on her plate with a knife and fork. "You're a sophomore, right?"

"Right."

She nods. "Just two more years and then you're out of high school," she muses. "Do you know what you want to do?"

"My parents want me to go to college, but ..." The brunette trails off with a shrug. "I don't know. I don't really know what I see myself doing in the future."

May says, "You still have time."

Sometimes time isn't enough. The next two years will pass and Eloise will still have no idea what she's doing with her life, she's sure. The thoughts of the future make her head hurt, but it's better than thinking of whatever Ned and Peter are doing.

May and Eloise talk more about the future. Eloise replaces all thoughts of her two friends that she may never see again with thoughts of her future. Who will she marry? What college will she attend? What will she major in? How is she going to earn money to support a house, car, and all her bills?