I Am Karen - Spider-Man / Peter Parker [1]

Chapter Twenty-One - To Save The Little People

"Liz" Ned replied with excitement – he was very proud of his best friend. "Isn't it awesome that Peter managed to get a senior?" Maria kept her forced smile on her face whilst internally she just wanted to shout. Maria knew Peter still liked Liz – that had never changed.

"It's impressive" Maria said, though in her eyes it wasn't. Peter could get any girl he wanted he just didn't realise it. In true Ned fashion, the boy began talking unaware of Maria's struggle with her emotions and Michelle feeling guilty herself for not being able to help her best friend. Distracting herself, Maria took a quick glance down to her watch where she noticed a message from the Reconnaissance Drone. It had found Toomes in his car and the car had stopped. This would get her mind off of Peter and Liz. Clicking on her watch's screen she had a look into the Drone's cameras and realised that Toomes was in the car with Liz and Peter and they were approaching the school.

"Maria, is everything alright?" At the sound of her name, Maria's head shot up to find Michelle and Ned looking at her worriedly. Clearly, her face had portrayed her worry about Peter being in the car with the Vulture.

"Err, nothing, its fine" Maria said with a smile as she closed her watch off before she looked towards the doors of the hall to see none other than Liz. This was not good. Where was Peter? Knowing she had to check, Maria quickly turned back to her friends. "Excuse me." With that she left them and raced to the school's bathrooms.

Thankfully, as Maria left the hall, she entered an empty corridor. With a practiced hand, Maria opened her holographic watch and connected to the Drone's cameras. The little flying spider was perched upon the headrest of a car seat to the left of Peter and behind Toomes. After she entered the school's bathroom, she checked for anybody being inside before she locked the door to keep people out. Leaning up against the sinks, Maria activated the sound on the Reconnaissance Drone.

"...Peter nothing is more important than family. You saved my daughter's life. I could never forget something like that. So, I'm gonna give you one chance. Are you ready?" Adrian said to Peter in a quiet yet threatening voice. Peter sat silently in the back. Maria took a shaky breath as she had the drone record the encounter. "You walk through those doors, you forget any of this happened and don't you ever, ever interfere with my business again. Because if you do, I'll kill you and everybody you love. I'll kill you dead." Maria chuckled in disbelief; she had just gotten Adrian on tape threatening Peter. However, her little joy was short lived as she suddenly spotted the black gun that sat in Adrian's hand that was placed across the back of the front-passenger's seat. If Peter tried anything he could get shot or heaven forbid the students walking into the school would become the Vulture's target. Peter was stuck and all three of them knew it. "That's what I'll do to protect my family, Pete. Do you understand?" Peter lowered his head and gave a small nod. This situation was getting more and more complicated for him – this was his date's father and Maria did feel sorry for Peter. "Hey, I just saved your life. Now what do you say?"

"Thank you" Peter mumbled quietly after he had lifted his head. Maria turned the drone to face Peter and noticed a look on his face, the look that he was planning something. That he had decided something. But what?

"You're welcome. Now you go on in there and you show my daughter a good time, okay? Just not too good" Adrian joked yet no one laughed. Peter nodded his head once again and opened the car door.  Knowing this was the only chance to get the drone out, Maria hid the drone behind Peter's head but she knew that his super-hearing would pick up the noise. Peter climbed out of the car and closed the door. Adrian took off whilst Peter watched for a moment before he turned around and stared directly at the drone. He knew Maria was on the other end. The determined look on his face did not comfort Maria in the slightest. The boy then turned towards the hall and began climbing the steps to the dance.

This was bad, very bad. Maria knew Peter, knew Spider-Man enough to know he wasn't going to be able to just sit back and watch. And that look on his face had said everything. Quicker than she thought she could move, Maria closed her watch after ordering the drone to come to her, unlocked the bathroom door and bolted back towards the hall. She had to get to him. The Vulture had clearly been triggered, he had just threatened a teenager and that teenager was about to run right into the lion's mouth.

Whilst she had raced to the hall's back entrance, Maria knew running into the hall like a madman was not going to accomplish anything so she calmly entered the hall with her eyes peeled for Peter. She had seen him heading towards the hall so he had to be around somewhere.

Finally, she spotted the boy talking to Liz who had clearly been waiting for him. However, whatever Peter was saying to her had made Liz's face drop in disappointment and upset. Maria assumed he was telling her he had to leave but she couldn't actually hear. Seconds later, Peter went to run off, heading directly towards Maria who quickly closed the distance between them and placed her hands upon his chest halting his footsteps.

"Don't" Maria pleaded. Her eyes were darting between his with panic. Peter could tell that Maria already knew what he was planning.

"Maria, I have to" he replied as he gently grasped her wrists.

"No, you don't, Peter" Maria stressed. She just knew something bad was going to happen, she had felt this before with the Staten Island Ferry, she had ignored it then and it was disastrous. She couldn't let him run off.

"I can't do nothing. If I do nothing ... the little people get hurt" Peter said breaking Maria's heart. Those were her words, and he was using them against her. Maria clutched to his lapels whilst words were lost for her.

"Peter..."

"Don't worry, I'll tell Happy before I rush off" Peter replied as he gently unclasped her hands from his suit with a small smile. Reaching forward, Peter gently tucked a curled strand of her hair behind her ear, all the while Maria's brain struggled to form a sentence of words that would stop Peter's actions. "You look beautiful." Pressing a kiss to her cheek, Maria closed her eyes against the feeling, she couldn't believe that the one moment she needed words she had none. As Maria opened her eyes, Peter was gone.