MAGIC TRICKS [PETER PARKER]

ELEVEN

THE TENSION INSIDE THE CAR WAS PALPABLE.

I sat between Peter and Liz in the back seat, while Liz's father drove through town to drop us off at the school gym, nervously wringing my hands in my lap as I stared at the back of his head. Peter and I shared a glance; What are we going to do? I thought, any mind running a mile a minute, What are we going to do? What are we going to do? What are-

"What are you gonna do, Pete?"

The voice of Mr. Toomes snapped me back to reality. Peter's eyes were wide as he stared up at the man, shrinking back into the seat. "W-what?" he stammered, looking like a deer stuck in the headlights.

"When you graduate," Toomes elaborated, glancing back at them in the rear view mirror, "What do you think you'll do?" Peter relaxed slightly, his shoulders leaning forward from where he had them tensed up. I let out the breath I was subconsciously holding; it didn't seem like the man knew who we were- at least, not at the moment. Still, a horrible feeling of dread had cemented itself in my bones.

"Don't grill him, Dad," Liz said, looking up from her phone for a short moment. She was oblivious to the whole situation, and I really wanted to keep it that way. Liz admired her father, and I didn't want to be the one to ruin that for her. Her father shrugged his shoulders as he shifted lanes, mumbling, "Just saying, you know. All you guys who go to that school... you pretty much have your life planned out, right?" His eyes were glued to Peter.

"Y-yeah, no, we're just sophomores," I interjected suddenly, making the man's hazy green eyes slip over to me. Swallowing harshly, I nodded my head. "It feels crazy to think about college already."

Mr. Toomes stared ahead. "It'll be here before you know it. No plans whatsoever?" We pulled up at a red light, allowing him to shift his eyes to the rear-view mirror again. My nerves were buzzing under his gaze, the same phrase running through my mind- What are we gonna do? My best friend's father was the one who had tried to kill Peter on multiple occasions, the one who was manufacturing and selling dangerous alien-tech weapons all over Queens and who knows where else. What are we going to do?

I shook my head, opening my mouth to answer his question, but Liz beat me to it. "Peter and Nadia have internships with Tony Stark," she said nonchalantly, continuing to tap on her screen. I silently screamed at her for bringing Tony Stark into the conversation; if her father didn't know who we were then, he was bound to soon enough if I didn't find a way to change the conversation. "Really? Stark?" Mr. Toomes asked, impressed. I nodded. "What do you do?"

"Yeah... actually, I don't intern for him anymore," Peter said shakily. His face was as pale as they moonlight reflecting off the window. Liz leaned up in her seat to see him better. "Seriously?" She asked, her lips parted in surprise. Peter cleared his throat and laughed nervously. "Yeah, it got... boring."

Liz's eyes widened and she laughed. "It was boring? You got to hang out with Spider-Man!" exclaimed the girl, gesturing wildly with the hand that held her cell phone.