NEXT LEVEL|PETER PARKER (2)

1.4

"Hey, it's Peter. Leave a message," The voicemail sounded into Ned's ear as he tried calling Peter for the fifth time.

The paramedics were on their way after the guy who had apparently brought alcohol to Liz's party had decided to run and get help. He caused a scene and Liz pushed her way through the crowd of people to see her best friend on the ground unconscious.

She called the police quickly and tried to wake up the girl. It was no use. "Peter, where are you? Jessie's hurt and the paramedics are on their way but you should really be here," Ned said into the phone before hanging up and dialing again.

Finally, once the paramedics had arrived and were taking Jessie to the hospital, Peter picked up the phone. "Hey, man, what's up? I'm on my way back."

"Actually, I was calling to say maybe you should just go to the hospital instead," Ned told him and Peter felt his heart jump.

"Uh, w-why?" Peter asked feeling sick to his stomach.

"The paramedics are on their way over there now with Jess. Some guy found her passed out in Liz's backyard and no one knows what happened. I'll see you tomorrow," He told him.

"See you tomorrow," Peter quickly hung up before shooting his webs and swinging to the hospital.

He quickly changed behind the building and then met May in the waiting room. She had tears in her eyes and Peter walked over to comfort her.

"They say she must've fallen from the roof or something. Did you see what happened?" She asked and Peter shook his head with a pained expression.

"Why weren't you with her? Why would she be on the roof?" May cried as Peter hugged her.

Peter felt terrible. Had he not run off, he could've been there to make sure Jessie had gotten down safely. Now, she could be in critical condition because he had to go and be a superhero.

They waited in the waiting room for a while until Jessie's doctor came out two hours later. "Who's her parents?" The doctor asked as May and Peter ran up to him.

"Um, I'm her legal guardian," May said behind tears. "Her parents don't live here," May told him and he firmly nodded as he looked down at his chart.

"Well, Miss Tanner has a minor head injury that needs to be monitored, but she is awake now if you'd like to see her," The doctor told them and they sighed in relief before rushing him to let them see her.

He led them to the hospital room where she lay in the bed scratching at the IV attached to her arm. "Oh, thank god," May rushed over to her and enveloped her in a big hug. "Are you okay? Are you in pain?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," She muttered and winced at May's loud voice. She noticed Peter standing by the door watching her with an uneasy stare.

"Right now, her hearing is a bit sensitive and we're keeping her here to make sure her head injury doesn't worsen ," He pointed to the monitor that held her CT scan. "See, when she fell, she landed on the ground which impacted her occipital lobe. That part of the brain is connected to her cerebral cortex which is responsible for thinking and perceiving. We just want to monitor it for a few days to make sure we can help her if the injury worsens."

"Thank you, doctor," She told him and he nodded before leaving the room.

May sat beside Jessie on the bed and gently took the girl's hand in her own. Peter sat on the chair across the room and bowed his head in shame as he rested his elbows on his knees. He regretted leaving her there so badly. Seeing her in this position, he couldn't help but feel like he could've prevented it.

"Why on earth were you on the roof, Jess?" She asked with worried eyes. Jessie met Peter's eyes and then quickly looked away from him to see May.

"I just wanted a break from the party. I thought I'd go up to the roof to look at the stars," She responded with a small shrug and May sighed. May started to tell her the possibilities of what could've happened to her, but all Jessie could hear was the sound of Peter feeling sorry for himself. "Hey, uh, Aunt May. I'm um, I'm kind of thirsty," She told her and and May quickly shot up from the bed.

"Oh, yeah, I'll go get you some water from the vending machine outside!" She grabbed her purse and sped out of the room. An awkward silence ensued between her and Peter.

"It's not your fault," Jessie told Peter and he shook his head. "You should go home. Get some sleep," She told him and looked down at her hands which were clasped tightly together.

"Had I stayed at the party, you wouldn't be here in the first place," He stared at the ground before meeting her eyes again. "I can't leave this time. Not again," His eyes were glossy and Jessie's features softened when she saw how hurt her was.

"Come here," Jessie told him and he hesitantly walked over to her and sat down on the side of the bed where May had just been. Peter stared at Jessie's pale skin and dark eyes that were looking at the wall ahead of them. "Can I tell you a secret?"

Peter nodded and Jessie closed her eyes. She could hear everything he was thinking. Her powers had returned to her when she woke up in the hospital except this time, they were turned up a notch.

Before, Jessie had to look into someone's eyes if she wanted to hear their thoughts. But now, after waking up to two doctors checking her responsiveness, she could hear everything they were thinking without even opening her eyes.

"They're back," She said in a quiet tone.

"Who's back?" Peter asked. His face contorted from worried to confused and Jessie felt her head pound as the voices flooded through her mind.

"Not who. What," She corrected him before looking toward the door. May walked in with a water bottle and some snacks looking flustered.

"Sorry that took so long," She said through her breath as if she'd ran back to the room.

"Meet someone new?" Jessie asked and May looked shocked but laughed.

"As a matter of fact, I did just bump into a doctor who was a very nice guy. Even paid for these snacks," She smiled and set them down on the bed.

Jessie looked up at Peter with her lips turned up in a happy smirk and Peter's eyes were wide disbelief. May stood there looking bewildered.

"So, uh, what did I miss?"