Make Him Proud, Peter Parker

EIGHTEEN. make him proud, peter parker

The flight back to Atlanta had been rather uncomfortable. Aunt May and Pepper had made Nellie and Peter sit apart from each other as punishment, but Nellie felt the most punishment was having disappointed Pepper by sneaking away without word the night Peter had left.

In the days following their return, the anger and tension had died down, like it normally did between bickering parents and their children. Nellie had apologized to Pepper endlessly, even days after she'd been forgiven.

Aunt May had been mad at Peter for maybe a full 24 hours before she went back to coddling him, as May did best. Watching the two interact made Nellie chuckle; she knew it would take a lot for May to see Peter as the capable young man he was. Mostly because when Peter wasn't in the suit, he was a complete and utter goof.

But that was why Nellie liked him, right?

For the remainder of that summer, Nellie and Peter spent every day either out on the water or in the fields surrounding the cabin. They roasted marshmallows, took the canoe out, and just spent each day like normal high-schoolers. They stayed up late watching old horror films, but not the truly scary ones, mostly because Peter fabricated flimsy excuses as to not. Nellie knew it was because he actually was just frightened easily by them.

They rode bikes to the Farmer's Market on Saturdays to get fresh watermelon for Pepper. They swept the front deck of the cabin after Morgan created little messes. Nellie sat by the fire and brushed Morgan's hair after bath time every night. The summer was everything Nellie and Peter could have wanted.

But like all good things, the summer was coming to an end.

Those two bittersweet months leading up to the start of the school semester meant the world to them, as they knew it was only a matter of time before they'd have to part ways again. In those two months, Nick Fury hadn't contacted Peter once. Nellie wasn't quite sure what that meant, but she was just glad to have him all to herself during that time.

"So what happens tomorrow?" Peter sucked in a breath, dipping his feet in the water below the dock's edge.

The sun was just beginning to set, casting a pink haze over the lake. Soon, the lights that Peter had strung up around the dock's railings would cut on, creating an illusion of fireflies dancing across the water.

Nellie looked out at the shimmering surface, her chest feeling heavy. She hated goodbyes. And Peter was her hardest.

"You'll go back to Queens. Midtown starts school in a week, and you need to get back in time to prep for the academic decathlon team." She replied, her eyes still fixated on the water's rippling waves.

Peter reached his hand out to where hers was splayed out on the dock beside his. He cupped his hand over hers, causing her to turn her attention his way.

"I guess we knew this day was coming," he nodded.

She could see him fighting back a frown.

"Maybe I'll stir up some trouble down here in Georgia sometime. . .the kinda trouble Spider-Man would be obligated to look into," she couldn't help but grin at how ridiculous she sounded.

Nellie was and always would be way too well-mannered to actually cause any trouble. Only in Peter's presence or for Peter was she capable of getting in over her head. Without him, she kept strict boundaries for herself.

Peter leaned over and rested his head on Nellie's shoulder, to which her heart ached. She'd miss him when he was gone - she'd miss these perfect moments.

She brought her other hand up and ran it through his messy locks comfortingly, "I'll come visit. It'll be fine."

Peter let out a sigh, but nodded, "I know."