HIIIIIIII
If I you saw that I posted this twice. No you didn't.
SO, MANY OF YOU REQUESTED A PART TWO AND HERE IT IS THANK YOU TO Jeon_SaeWha @Theamazingwolfo and @sruthysreer for suggesting this!!!! If you suggested it and I didn't mention you I'm so sorry!!
TW: NWH SPOILERS BRIEF TALK ABOUT SUICIDE, SELF DOUBT, PANIC
***Peters POV***
What was just going to be a regular coffee stop at MJ's cafe, turned out to be something much greater and I can't thank anyone in the world enough for making her remember. I don't even care about how it happened. All I know is that she's in my arms and I'm never letting her go again.
***a fEw MiNuTeS aGo***
I think looking into the cafe and seeing MJ smiling or taking orders is almost as heartbreaking as talking to her in person and her not knowing who I am.
I, I like to think I was special to her.
She was- is special to me in so many ways.
I open the door and see her talking to Ned in the corner. Just as the bell dings on the door, her head flies up and she looks at me.
Uncomfortably, I shift my feet, "Hey, Michelle, um, coffee? Sorry, if you're busy. I can wait, I'll just stand over here."
I walk over to a corner and look down at my feet, hoping she'll just go about her business and forget I even said anything.
"Oh Peter."
It's almost sympathetic and I want to cry. I can't have her talk to me like that. It wouldn't work. I would die.
Next thing I know, I'm in a bone-crushing hug.
"Michelle?" I hope she's okay, otherwise this would be very awkward.
"Peter . . . I remember."
It's not possible. Please let it be possible.
"You . . .? MJ?" I ask uncertainly.
"Peter, I remember. I remember everything."
I wrap my arms around her tightly and sob into her shoulder.
Oh thank God.
"Oh my god. You have no idea how happy I am to hear that."
"Everything is going to be okay, Peter, it's all going to be okay."
**********************
"Peter?"
We're laying on the bed of my apartment, my head on her shoulder as she plays with my hair.
"Yeah?"
"I, I overheard you. At the cemetery."
My throat immediately runs dry. There's plenty of things she could've heard.
"Go on.."
"What did you mean, 'you can't be a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man if there's no Spider-Man?"
Shoot.
"I wish I had a good, not concerning answer for that, but it's exactly what it sounds like." I play with the hem of her shirt.
"Peter... I'm so sorry."
"MJ, you have nothing to be sorry for. It was my choice to make everyone forget, you couldn't have done anything to change it."
"Peter. I love you, okay, please don't ever think about doing that again."
"With you in my arms and remembering who I am. I would never. I love you so much MJ."
She kisses the top of my head.
"Promise me you'll talk to me when things get hard. Or just in general. You've lost so much and I just want to be there for you."
I turn onto my stomach and pull her into a tight hug.
"I promise. I promise."
"Good, now what do we do about Ned?"
Ah, there is that.
"Um, well honestly, I have no idea. If he hasn't remembered on his own I don't think he ever will." I mumble.
"You know, back when I didn't remember, Ned was looking into you and your backstory. He said you always looked sad all the time and he wanted to find out what was wrong."
"Let me guess, all he found was my ever growing long list of dead parental figures?" I laugh humorlessly.
"Okay, well, yeah, but he was determined to help you so that could be something!"
"Yeah."
"Hey, don't be a debby downer, if I can remember, so can he."
"Expect disappointment and you'll never be disappointed."
"Peter..."
"I know, I know, I just. Can I just have this win before we fight the next battle? I'm so tired of fighting just to wake up every day. I need a day, just a day and then we can figure out Ned."
"Okay, okay. I love you, Peter. Take as long as you need. I'm not trying to rush you."
"I love you too. I didn't meant to be rude."
"You weren't being rude. Just rest, okay?"
I hum into her shirt and before I know it I'm asleep.
I just hope that when I wake up this wasn't a dream.
***MJ's POV***
I take a deep breath and look down at the boy in front of me.
He doesn't even look happy when sleeping. His eyes are sealed shut, he has a death grip on my shirt.
It's then that I realize it's most likely a nightmare that's warranting this reaction out of Peter.
"Peter, wake up." I gently shake his shoulders, hoping that'll be enough.
It's not.
His eyebrows are furrowed and his lip is so close to bleeding from the amount of pressure he's putting on it.
"Peter, hey, it's okay, I'm right here. I need you to wake up. Peter!"
At that, Peter shoots out of the bed and rushes over to a sink by the door.
He splashes his face with water a couple of times before resting his hands on either side of the sink and closing his eyes.
He does this for a couple minutes, so I decide to speak up.
"Peter?"'
When he hears this, it seems to make the situation worse and he starts hyperventilating.
I rush out of the bed and over to the door that Peter is now leaning on for support.
"Hey, hey, hey. You okay?"
He frantically nods.
I bring him into a gentle hug and we stay in that position for a good while.
"I know it doesn't seem okay now, but it will. I promise." I place a light kiss on his head and lead him over to the beds again.
"Try to get some more sleep. We'll talk more in the morning okay?"
"Mkay." Peter breathes.
With that I cuddle him into my arms and we fall asleep without any problems.
And it's a good thing too, cause we have a lot of obstacles to get through tomorrow.
*************(also big thanks to Whyareyouintrouble for helping me with the next thousand words LOL)
Peter's back at his apartment while I finish up my shift and wait for Ned. I talked to Peter this morning and we came up with some form of a plan to get Ned to remember.
It's fairly simple as long as he agrees to meet up.
Speak of the devil, "Hey MJ!"
"Sup, Ned?" I ask grabbing him his usual.
"Nothin really, you know I really need to study."
"Oh yeah, you got that big test coming up."
"Yup." He says popping the p.
"Well, okay weird question, but y'know Peter?"
"Yeah, the kid who comes in everyday looking super depressed and that you made out with for no reason yesterday? Speaking of, what was that all about?"
"It's kind of a long story, but I was wondering if you would like to meet up with him and I at the new diner down the street?"
"And be a third wheel? No thanks." He shakes his head.
"Oh come onnn, Ned. It'll be fun."
"Fine, but you're paying."
"Deal."
"So? When is it?
"We were thinking tonight after my shift so around 6ish."
"Okay, well I'll see you then I guess."
He leaves and I immediately call Peter.
"Hey." He answers softly.
"He agreed." I smile.
"Okay cool, I found the perfect thing to bring."
"Mind telling me?"
"I think I'll keep it a surprise for now."
"Okay, I love you."
"I love you too MJ. God, it feels so good to be able to say that."
I laugh, "I'll talk to you soon."
We hang up and I finish up my shift.
Getting ready and leaving is the easy part. But showing up and trying to convince Ned that he's Peter's long lost best friend is definitely going to be the hard part.
*******************
"MJ! I have the perfect thing!" Excitement clouded Peter's eyes as he walked over to my table.
Ned hadn't shown up yet, but I'm not surprised it's still 10 minutes early.
I can't help but smile at the handsome boy in front of me. Excitement is a way better look than the depressive state he seemed to have been in recently.
He pulls out an unopened box and puts it on the table in front of me.
"No way! Where'd you find that? I thought they stopped selling those!" I pick up the box and look it over.
"Amazon." He states as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.
He puts the box over to the side and put his jacket on top of it. It was perfect timing too, because just a second later, Ned walks in.
"Hey guys! How's it going?" Ned asks as he comes to sit down next to me.
"Pretty good, Ned. I'm glad you could make it!" I respond.
Ned nods, "So, uh, did you order yet?"
I look at Peter through my eyelashes, giving him a secret signal hoping he understands and speaks up. In order to get Ned to remember Peter at least has to try to talk to him.
He seems to get what I'm saying and picks up a menu, "No, not yet, we got here only a few minutes before you did."
"Oh."
The waitress approaches the table with a large smile.
"Howdy folks! What can I get for y'all on this fine evening?" Her accent is thick it's clear she's not from New York.
"Um I'll have a coffee please." I answer.
"Any cream or sugar?" She asks too cheerfully.
"On the side please."
She writes it down on her little notepad and looks over at Ned, "And for you?"
"Pepsi thanks."
"Alrighty and for you?" She nods at Peter.
"Waters fine." He answers.
"Would you like ice, lemon...?"
"Just ice, thank you." He presses his lips into the awkward smile I adore.
She walks away to put in the order and Ned starts up the conversation again.
"So, what's up?" He asks awkwardly.
"Peter brought something for you." Peter looks up, startled.
The waitress comes back with our drinks and places them gently in front of us.
"Alrighty then! What can I get y'all to eat? Do you need a few more minutes?" She claps.
"I think we're good. Do you wanna start, Peter?" I ask him.
"Sure, I'll just have a cheeseburger."
"Okie dokie, and for you, pretty lady?" She winks.
Both Peter and Ned seem to choke on their drinks before looking at me wide eyed.
"Um, chicken tenders please."
"Anything for you." She winks again.
I look over at Peter who seems to be just as lost as I am.
"Mkay, and you?" She looks at Ned.
"Grilled cheese." He squeaks out.
"Lovely, these'll be right out for ye."
"MJ! That girl was totally flirting with you!" Ned whisper-yells.
"How are you so unfazed by this?" Peter looks at me with curiosity.
"It's not the first time a girl has flirted with me before. You forget I work at a coffee shop." I shrug.
It's true, the amount of times anyone or any sexuality has flirted with me, and not to brag, but to brag, is infinite.
"Anyways, as I was saying, Peter brought something for you."
Peter gives me a look that basically reads 'oh come on'.
He lifts his jacket off of the box and puts it on the table next to Ned's drink.
"The lego Death Star? What?! No way!! How many pieces? Where'd you even get this? I tried looking everywhere for one of these a few years back and never found anything!" Ned rants.
"It was on Amazon. I thought you'd like it!" Peter looks excitedly over at me.
I give him an encouraging nod and the waitress comes back with our food. Well, my food.
"I pulled a few strings with our cooks to get these out to you quicker, darlin'." Her southern drawl drags out.
"Oh thanks, I guess." I take the plate awkwardly.
She shakes her fingers in an over-exaggerated wave and blows a kiss as she walks back to the kitchen.
When I look down at my plate, the chicken tenders are in a heart shape and there's a napkin with numbers on it. I guess it's her phone number.
"Well?" Ned looks at me.
"Well what?"
"You gonna use that number?" He wiggles his eyebrows.
I guess using the Death Star didn't work as we had hoped, otherwise he would've remembered that Peter and I are together.
"Ned, no. Im with Peter, besides, she's not my type." I roll my eyes.
"Speaking of! How? When? Why? You guys were practically complete strangers and the next day you're making out in the middle of a cafe!" Ned practically shouts causing other tables to give us a weird look before turning back to their food.
"It's hard to explain! If you would just open your eyes, Ned!" I look at him, exasperated.
"They are open!"
"Well, then you just aren't seeing!"
"What's that even mean?!"
"MJ . . . It's okay." Peter looks up at me with an unknown emotion in his eyes.
Hopelessness. Disappointment. Sadness.
"Peter.." He looks down at his lap and closes his eyes.
Ned looks between us, confused, "Is there something I should know?"
"No, it's fine." Peter sniffs.
He picks his head up and opens his eyes, this time there's no trace of any emotion. Just a smile with nothing behind it.
Their food is delivered and Peter hardly says a word throughout.
I give him a sympathetic look, which he shrugs off with a lopsided smile.
"Here's your checks, but don't worry baby face, I put yours on a separate account and paid for it myself." The waitress looks at me.
"That's very kind of you, thank you."
"No need to thank me, sugar."
She walks away and comes back with Ned and Peters change. As soon as she walks off, Peter stands and subtly rushes out the door.
I try to follow him, but Ned stops me.
"What was that all about?"
"I tried to explain it to you the other day, Ned, but you didn't listen. I don't know how else to help you, but for now, I've gotta go check on Peter."
As I'm leaving I make eye contact with our waitress and she shakes her hand with her pinky at her mouth and her thumb at her ear, signaling for me to call her. I just give her a short wave before heading to Peters apartment as fast as I can.
***Peters POV***
Shoot, shoot, shoot. Come on, Parker, don't cry. It's not that big of a deal. You're such a cry baby. All you do is cry. Be a man.
I unlock the front door of my apartment and rush to the bathroom. Locking the bathroom door, as I'm sure MJ will be right behind me. Or maybe she won't be.
Maybe she'll go out with that waitress. I mean, who wouldn't. Especially, over me. All I've done is trauma dump onto MJ and force her to deal with my stupid panic attacks and nightmares. It would be better if she didn't remember me. She was happy when she didn't remember me.
And Ned. I can't blame him for not remembering me. Sometimes, I wish I could forget myself.
"Peter? It's MJ, please open the door."
She's not worried about you, moron. She pities you.
"Peter, please. I can hear you crying. Please open the door."
"I- I cant right now, MJ. I'm, MJ. I can't." I huff out between breaths.
"Peter, I need you to breathe. It's okay. Everything is perfectly fine. I just need you to breathe for me, okay? Can you do that for me?" Her voice is soft and muffled through the door.
I hum in response and try to calm down.
Why is she even here? She doesn't care about you. And here she is again helping pathetic little Peter. Honestly, look at yourself. You think she likes you? You saw how happy she was without you. Whatever you did to make her remember you, you shouldn't have done. She was happy. She was doing great at MIT she wasn't upset with Ned for not remembering because she couldn't remember. She was doing perfectly fine without you and you came along and ruined it. You ruined her.
So much for calming down.
"-ter? Come on, can you hear me? Please, open the door."
I stand up quickly and wash my face at sink, plastering on a smile.
She doesn't deserve this. She deserves someone better.
I unlock the door to a frantic MJ.
Great job, idiot. You freaked her out.
"See? I'm okay. I just needed a minute." I smile at her.
"No. No more of this." She says gesturing to my whole body.
"W-w huh?"
"No more of this 'I have to do this by myself' attitude. Let me help you, Peter. I love you. I'm here for you. Please. Talk to me."
I look at her genuine smile and I don't see any judgement behind her eyes.
Maybe she does care.
"I thought I could handle it, you know? Being around my best friend who doesn't remember me. I thought I could do it and hold up a conversation, I was so filled with hope. I do that every time. I did that with May, too. I had too much hope and you saw where that led." I take a deep breath to refrain from crying again and look at MJ.
"Peter. We will get through this together, I'm not going anywhere. I love you."
"I love you, too, MJ."
***Neds POV***
MJ is being really cryptic, she went on a stupid rant about wizards and magic and Peter being Spider-Man. Like what? I get wizards and magic, but wizards using magic so that everyone forgets that some random kid is Spider-Man. I don't think so.
He's nice though.
I place the Death Star on my dresser. How'd he know I've been looking for this?
I open it up and pull out Lego Palpatine and set him next to it.
Join me.
Build my.
Death Star.
"Join me and together we will build my new Lego Death Star."
"What? No way! How many pieces?!"
"You're gonna forget who I am."
"W-what?"
"It'll be okay."
"Promise?"
"Yeah, I promise."
Movement, hands.
Handshake.
Peter.
Peter is Spider-Man.
Peter.
My best friend.
I wanted to call him, but only realized that I don't have his number.
I'll call MJ! She remembered! She's probably with him.
Oh no. May. We left him behind, with no one.
That's it. Emergency sleepover. We haven't done one of these in way too long.
"Hello?" MJ answers groggily.
Oh right it's like midnight.
"MJ!" I shout.
"Oh my god, Ned. Go to sleep."
"No MJ. I remember! I did the really cool flashback thing and I was gonna call Peter but then I remembered that I don't have his number anymore and I don't knew that you remembered and so I thought you would be with him cause you know you guys are like a thing or whatever but please tell me you're with him we are having an emergency sleepover and it's going to be great I need an address." I ramble.
"Wait. You do? You actually remember?"
"Yes! That's what I've been saying!"
There's some gentle, muffled speaking and I hear a deeper voice, most likely Peter.
"Okay. I'm sending you the address right now."
"I'm on my way."
*******************
I arrive at the apartment within five minutes.
MJ opens the door and Peter stands warily behind her.
"Hey." Peter waves.
"Are you kidding me with that?" I rush up to him and do our handshake into a hug. Just like last time.
"I really missed you guys."
"You don't have to miss us any longer, Peter." MJ chimes in.
We set blankets down on the small floor of Peter's apartment and turn on a movie. Peter sits in the middle and MJ and I subtly hug Peter a big longer and watch him out of the corners of our eyes.
We never know, he might be gone from our eyes at any moment. For all we know this could just be an amazing dream or maybe we're dead.
But one thing is for sure. We are never leaving Peter again.
*************************
WOWIE WOW WOW THAT TOOK WAYYYY TOO LONG TO FINISH THANK YOU FOR ALL THE REQUESTS AND ENCOURAGING WORDS.
IM SORRY THIS IS KINDA LATE I WAS ON VACATION THIS PAST WEEK. BUT ITS HERE NOW
I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH AND I HOPE YOU HAD A HAPPY HOLIDAYS