╭ ╮
━━━━ " 📂 "
𝘼 𝙋 𝙊 𝘾 𝘼 𝙇 𝙔 𝙋 𝙎 𝙀
╰ ╯
PETER WAS FEELING BETTER, as judged by the latest voicemail on her phone that had come through whilst she was in the shower that afternoon, and promptly replied to by Margot in a matter of minutes after she heard the joyful ringtone through the noise of the quick falling water.
That hadn't come as a surprise at all, given that by the time MJ had left the Parker household Peter looked as though he had never been ill a day in his life and was grinning from cheek to cheek as he watched her descend down the porch steps like they were seven again, hopping back into the house and answering his aunt's questions with non-committal hums of joy.
Following the lunch that MJ had helped out with (a fact that got her glowing reports and comments of what a nice young lady she had grown into), they had spent the beginning of the afternoon spent watching a Studio Ghibli film they managed to find on his computer, sat together on his bed with the curtains drawn and blacked out with extra towels pinned over the gaps. Her legs had been pulled over his thighs and with his prompting she had curled into the curve of his elbow over her shoulders, head resting on his shoulder. It was no joke how comfortable they had become with each other, and in any other circumstance perhaps she would be a little more concerned.. but it was Peter, and she had no need to worry.
Felicia had told her it was the honeymoon period, to which Gwen had replied saying that it had only been a week and they were disgustingly extreme. Either way, she had spent the evening meticulously planning out ideas to do with him - because she found herself with the unfamiliar feeling of longing for later days to arrive and she could spend more time with him. That was the first notion that she was falling fast and hard.. and although it didn't necessarily advocate something particularly bad, but she knew she had to slow down.
And of course, that started with answering the call she got from him minutes after she had tucked her notebook under her bed and aimed her pen into her designated school bag. Who was she to ignore his call for a second time, especially when it was regarding the reply she had sent asking about his current state.
He had said he was alright, so she believed him, and this was further proved the next morning after she had said her goodbye to Jack before he was sent off to school to be picked up by his mom (Val had gotten back from Toronto the previous evening and called to tell John all about it), and she made her way to Midtown Science and saw him on her way to her first lesson with Gwen, knowing that it didn't matter if they didn't see each other instantly because they had gym together right before lunch, and it was insanely rare for either of them to partake in any sports.
Despite his age, Peter was decisively against basketball, and as much as Felicia would argue that MJ would look incredible in the blue and yellow cheerleading uniform, she hated the very idea of it, and often sat some distance away from each other during the lesson. Usually MJ would take to Missy, but she knew for a fact that she was making a banner during that session and she wasn't that skilled with a paintbrush, and probably not the best person to help out.
Besides.. Peter hadn't been feeling the best and she had to make sure he was okay, no matter how he had felt. It had looked like one of those 24-hour flu things.. but lacking several common flu symptoms, and there was always the potential for it to come back overnight.. so she had to make sure.
And knowing this, MJ may or may not have curled her hair to fall in pretty waves as opposed to the straggly straightness that usually was tucked behind her ears, had chosen her prettiest outfit.. or one of, that consisted of a collared lime blouse with bluebell sleeves and a dark denim pinafore that was a little shorter than when she first bought it thanks to a pair of fabric scissors. On her feet she managed to find a pair of matching socks and slightly heeled shoes that matched and had left a strawberry lip balm-scented kiss on Jack's forehead as she messed up his hair.
"So I'm undeserving of outfits like this, but Peter Parker?" Gwen rose her eyebrows as they fell into step alongside each other. A passing period didn't offer that much chance of conversation, especially when they were going somewhere else but the blonde just had to know, and she could easily take a longer route to her next lesson of Physics.
MJ blushed, adjusting her bag strap instead of replying.
"He's the one you pull these out for? You're even wearing those strawberry earrings that your mom gave to you. And I was there when you bought that blouse and I've never seen it before. Now colour me curious, but in this day and age why the hell are you-"
MJ quickly shook her head. She hoped that was enough to calm Gwen down - because as much as she agreed that it was a horrible idea to dress for someone else, that simply wasn't the case. Almost. She thought at least she wasn't. "It's not for him." She added.
That was a lie, and Gwen knew as much, green eyes rolling back.
"Fine. It is a little bit for him... but it's for me as well." MJ's fingers twisted together. "He takes photos.. not of a lot of people, except me. He likes to take pictures of me and I don't have a lot of pictures taken of me." She was stumbling over her words a little again. "So I thought.. for the photos that are taken of me, I should look nice."
"So you dressed up on a random Monday just in case Peter took pictures of you?" Gwen hummed, and MJ came to realise that she was nervous of her friend's reaction; she had never quite been in that situation before and didn't know what to make of it. She had never had a boyfriend, didn't know what she should tell her friend and didn't know what she should keep secret.
"Am I not allowed to look nice?" MJ and Gwen came to a stop at the end of the hallway, eyes half on the door into the gymnasium and half on each other. "Sometimes you just have to make yourself feel better about it being Monday and-"
"You hate everything about Monday." The Stacy held no qualms about pointing this out to her, and laughed when she saw her friend floundering. "Whatever.. you look amazing. How's Jack and your dad's expedition into sobriety."
The expression completely fell from Margot's face then, so suddenly it was like she had been told some awful news. A wave of anxiety rushed into her stomach and her gaze averted, before looking up to Gwen again. "Jack's going back to his mom's." She replied shakily. "And I think my dad'll be back drinking tonight."
"Oh shit." Gwen hardly ever swore, but at the sight of a physical cloud coming to shadow over MJ's face she couldn't quite help it. "Because Jack's going?"
"Yeah." MJ choked on her words, feeling a thickness rise in her throat. It was such a contrast to how she had been moments before, but her reaction couldn't quite be helpful. Especially not when thinking about her explanation made her want to cry. "I think..."
She trailed off, a deep intake of breath flooding through her lips. Gwen had an arm on her shoulder and turned her away from the crowd. The blonde felt stupid for asking such a question, but there was no way she could have predicted this reaction. It seemed like, for a while anyway, that John Watson was actually trying hard to get back on the rails when he so clearly had fallen off. It sounded like he was doing well. But according to MJ's reaction, apparently not.
"It's fine, take your time." Gwen encouraged. "Has he drunk again?"
"No. It's stupid, I know." MJ sniffed, hating that all of a sudden she couldn't stand behind a screen held up by her own two hands, a screen that displayed her as the forever-strong daughter who loved her father so much she didn't mind the drinking. And she did love her father a lot, which is why she wanted him sober, and why it hurt so much. "But he hasn't drunk.. yet. I think tonight, now that Jack's gone..."
"Oh Margot." Gwen sighed, an arm around the back of her neck pulling her closer. "He won't, he loves you too much to do that. And he's seen how happy you are-"
"But he knows I have no choice but to look after him." Her head was tilted downwards now, tears welling in the corners of her eyes. "It feels like he tried for Jack, and not for me. I've tried so hard before to stop him and it's never worked. And suddenly... when he's there for longer than a couple days it's like a week-long rehab."
Above them, the bell rang to signal the beginning of lessons and Gwen winced. "MJ - I have a quiz.. I would miss it if it wasn't important but... Peter." She felt like a horrible friend for breaking off at that point, but she really needed to sit that test, and it just so happened that the perfect person had walked into her line of vision.
"What?" MJ sniffed.
"Peter.. hey - Peter." Gwen called out. She was cradling MJ's head to her shoulder now and Peter's eyes flickered with recognition, skirting past several crowds entering the gym to come to stand by them. "I have a quiz... and Felicia doesn't go to this school but you do so..."
"Yeah - yeah, hi, MJ." Peter nodded at Gwen, his arms already outreached and taking his childhood best friend into his arms. He watched as the blonde whispered a promise to be back for her soon before rushing off down the corridor, and the Parker reached down to press a kiss to the top of her head. "We won't go in, okay?" He promised.
MJ nodded, feeling an overwhelming sense of embarrassment intermingling with the comfort his hold gave her. Which, in all ways, pointed to her staying there just a little longer. His arms tight around her upper and lower back like she was the most important thing in the world and he was too afraid to drop it, his chin resting on top of her head replaced every so often by a kiss. They had managed to get so... domesticated - for lack of a better word - so soon. And she didn't mind it so much, as long as he didn't either.
"No it's fine.. I'm worrying about something that hasn't even happened yet." MJ stood up, her arms falling by her side before raising to wipe her eyes. She met his gaze, offering a smile. "I guess we're even. I come look after you when you're sick.. and a week after we become friends again I'm crying on your shoulder."
He was confused, searching her face for some sort of answer that wouldn't come. But that was okay, she could tell him when she was ready to - if she was ready to, or if she wanted him. It wasn't important really.. he just wanted to make sure that she was alright. Peter didn't ask, he leant forward and cupped her cheeks, wiping his thumbs under her eyes.
"Fine. Yeah - that's right." Peter nodded, a smile on his face. "We're even." He didn't think it really.. but the look of relief that made its way across her features and eased into her body made him feel all the more better about lying about it. Sometimes people needed to hear the right thing sometimes and as MJ wiped her eyes and waited for the pink around her nose and lips to calm down. "You ready to go in? I.. I need to go to the bathroom and-"
"Flash is in there." MJ finished for him, knowing that as much as she would be able to handle Eugene, there was only a little she could actually do. Who was to know what he could do if he saw Peter in the corridor. "I'll see you in a moment. Come sit with me, okay?"
Peter nodded, watching as she wiped her eyes and adjusted the pleats that lined the bottom of her dress. She only had to reach just a little before placing a kiss on his cheek and slipping through the blue double doors and into the gymnasium. She knew that, ultimately, there was no use to worrying about something that wasn't going to happen.. or wasn't confirmed to happen. But MJ was glad that although she had slipped back into the continuous state of anxiety like before, when she would put herself down for utterly no reason. Instead she had Peter, and Gwen and.. Flash. Who was clutching the basketball as he jogged towards her.
"MJ.. you alright?" Margot didn't think Flash had ever comforted her, too busy beating someone up and then being pissed at her for breaking them up. But now, seeing the pink tint over her features found his hand on the small of her back, gritting his teeth at the awkwardness she felt.
MJ nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." She replied, glancing towards the group of boys behind him who were beginning to look considerably pissed that she had distracted their player. "Your teammates-"
"They can wait a little." Flash shrugged them off, not bothering to throw them the ball to keep them occupied but instead holding it against his jersey, one hand still on his back. "How's your new boyfriend? Does he know you're all alone and upset?"
"Don't be a dick, Flash. It's hard enough to be friends with you sometimes as it is, and me and Gwen really try our hardest but if you're going to hurt-"
"No.. no." The blond moved his arm away. "I didn't mean.. don't get pissed with me, alright? I just wanted to check you were okay."
"I'm fine." MJ reassured him. "Now go and play basketball before they think you've gone soft." She pushed his shoulder gently, directing him back to his game as she made her way to the bleachers, smiling at Missy as she took a seat and extracted her book from her bag.
Finding her place she easily slipped into the world within the pages, her focus entirely elsewhere despite the head cheerleader shouting the timings and then frightening one of the younger girls and Flash barking orders to the rest of his team as they played. Somehow she managed to sit through it all, glancing up momentarily every now and again to see if Peter had come in. One time, she managed to catch Missy's eye and with a smile, she slid an old ticket between the pages and her book was put down.
"Hi." Missy greeted her as MJ reached the large banner she was in the midst of painting. The greeting was returned as the brunette was handed a paintbrush, and Margot crouched beside her. "Was Flash giving you trouble again.. you looked upset?"
"No - not because of Flash. Stuff with my dad." Missy nodded knowingly as MJ explained. "And.. well he found out I was going out with this guy, and started making digs about him."
"What guy?" Missy hummed as they painted strips of blue within the outlines of letters. "Someone from this school right? I'm not surprised if you wouldn't tell him the name.."
MJ nodded. She might be lucky enough to not be at the head of Flash's bullying and teasing, but like she had hoped so many times before, just because she was friends with people it didn't stop Eugene from harming them. Missy would know exactly what could happen to someone who Flash didn't 'approve of' - not that it mattered to MJ, obviously, but there was a potential that her nor Gwen would be able to convince him they were good enough - because she had been at the forefront of his teasing for a while, simply because she wasn't his type.
"Peter." Margot saw no reason why she should hide it from a friend - and her friendship with Missy was a little more complex than with Gwen or Felicia; their parents had dated; they had lived together for a brief few months and thus knew each other in a different way than any other of MJ's friends. Missy was staring at her. "Peter - Peter Parker."
"Oh." Missy blinked. "That Peter - right, you've known each other since you were kids, but I didn't realise you were friends."
"Flash beat him up last week.. which somewhat sparked it... hey-" They jumped back as the can of blue paint was spilt by the hit of the orange ball. Margot's brows furrowed as she turned towards the culpable player. Flash looked positively terrified, eyes wide as they met MJ's. "Flash! What the hell!"
"I'm sorry.. I didn't-" One of the players retrieved the ball as Flash apologised.
"Mean it?" Missy shook her head. "You did that on purpose, Flash!" His features changed instantly.
"No, but I should have." He replied. "You better watch your back." The ball was thrown back to him and he caught it, turning away from the two girls despite the look of disbelief and mourning as one of his closest female friends stared down at her feet, where her shoes and socks were splattered with blue.
"Shit." MJ reached for her bag, finding tissues and Missy joined her in helping her wipe them.
"Your friend's a dick." A third voice spoke and they looked up, Peter stood in front of them. He leant over to pick up the paint can, using one of the brushes to try and salvage as much as he could. "Hey." He added, smiling over at Missy as he straightened up.
The Parker watched as MJ smiled weakly back, annoyed at her socks and shoes being ruined. He would have sympathised with her further, but the weird tingly feeling he kept getting in the back of his school had reappeared and a split second later Peter had leant to the side - further than physically possible with the confines of human balance - and caught a ball he had no idea was coming, saving MJ from being hit.
Both girls stared at him in shock.
"Give it up, Parker." Flash demanded, slowly walking towards them. Evidently, he expected Peter to throw it back but instead, Peter's gaze turned on him and he didn't move, even at the jeering gestures that followed.
"Peter?"
His gaze drifted towards her. She hadn't seemed to realise just how close the ball was to hitting her head, and either way it didn't matter. "Yeah.." Peter called in the direction of the players. "One sec." Peter walked away from the two girls, who shared a glance as they watched him stand in the centre of the court. "Why don't you take it from me?" He offered, as Flash came to a stop in front of him.
"That's right, take it, man." One of the other boys who MJ didn't know shouted from behind him.
"Go ahead." Peter urged, holding the ball out to one side. It was.. unlucky that Flash had decided to be a dick. He was still a little bitter about the injuries that came from him being beaten up a week prior, and he was looking to find out just how far this little extra sense went - how much had this spider bite adjusted his reflexes? "Take it."
When Flash lunged for it, before anyone could even blink it had been passed around Peter's back and ended up in his other hand. Flash tried again, and suddenly the ball was held behind Peter's head, then somehow had been spun around his head and bounced off his back. When Peter looked like he would throw it he ducked on instinct, but it stayed in his hand as though it was stuck there.
"What's happening?" Missy hissed in MJ's ear, who just shrugged and shook her head. It was undeniably good to see Flash finally face some sort of punishment for his unsolicited and unprompted awful actions from others.. but it also seemed so strange on Peter's behalf - although MJ had no idea how he was moving so fast, and was wondering if what she had simply dismissed as a figment of her imagination the day before was actually real.
"I have no idea." Margot replied, her arms wrapped across her waist. "I.. don't know how he's doing it at all."
Peter stared at the ball in his hand, holding it out again. "Just take it." Flash didn't reply, too aware of the embarrassment he was already facing. "All right." He said. "How about this?" His offer came with his hand being raised to cover his eyes completely. "All right? How about that?" He even turned away from the ball, facing MJ and Missy. There was no way he could see the ball anymore, nor where Flash was coming from.
But when Flash got his hands around the ball, that wasn't the end of it - no matter how hard Flash tried to pull on that ball, it was as though it was a part of Peter's hand, and sat there unmoving. Peter whispered something to him as his teammates urged him to stop messing around and take the ball. Eventually, the blond admitted defeat and backed away.
Peter, quite unable to believe that he had faced him and gotten out unharmed, bounced the ball in front of him and when prompted by Flash's jeers to introduce him into the game, he ran forward pushing him to the floor as he passed and - much to the shock of those watching - jumped to take the shot.
Only.. he didn't just jump. He seemed to almost fly over a distance, reaching inhumane heights and speed and as he sent the ball through the hoop, a noise so loud echoed through the hall and everything came to a stop, everyone came to gape at the sight.
The sound of glass shattering and hitting the floor stunned the gym into silence. Margot stared, open mouthed, at the crouched figure below.
He had broken the backboard.
🕸
MJ didn't know how he had done it, how he had managed to achieve such strength or skill in such a short period of time. It was freakish, and she couldn't deny that she was upset with Peter for doing whatever the hell he had done with Flash. She felt like her moral compass was on overdrive as she tried to figure out her own reaction to it.
Because she knew it was different for people. The Flash she knew - and she knew this was no excuse - was different to the guy who bullied them in the hallways, as much as she and Gwen tried their best to stop him and incite him into less damaging behaviours. She knew that Missy and Peter would be so glad that Flash was getting what he deserved, and to an extent she was too. She was glad that someone had finally been able to stand up to him, even if that was Peter.
But on the other hand, as much as she disliked him at times, he was her friend. He had been since she had begun Kindergarten - he was the boy who declared that they were 'dating' at five years old after a playdate, even if that just meant they sat next to each other at lunch and he was just regurgitating something he had heard his older sister watching. She had seen him cry, she had sat next to him at the movies, sat next to him on the rides when he, Gwen and some other friends that time they all went to Coney Island. She knew a different Flash, but that was no excuse.
She had taken him to the Nurse's office for the graze up all his arm after Peter was hauled off to the Principal. MJ had refused to leave even as Flash was treated, using the time to berate him about it being the consequences of his own actions. And then she had been forced to go back to class, as much as she wanted to stay and continue to talk to him.
MJ had a free period, and her journeys took her wandering towards the offices, coming to a stop at the end of one hallway as she recognised the skateboard strapped to a head of hair that was very recognisably Peter's, and the man stood in front of him was the man she saw in many pictures the previous day.
"So all this is about getting even." The man said - his Uncle Ben. "If so, I guess you must feel pretty good about yourself now, right? Am I right or wrong?" Peter didn't say anything, instead letting out a sigh and shaking his head, scuffing his feet against the floor. "Yeah, I thought so. Well, thanks to this little escapade of yours... I had to change shifts at work... so you have to pick up Aunt May tonight at 9:00. Understood?"
Peter didn't say anything again, too ashamed. Ben leant forward. "Is that understood?" He repeated.
"Yeah." Peter nodded.
"Okay, good." Benjamin Parker looked somewhat pleased.. although still considerably solemn in the face of being called down to Midtown because his nephew had managed to become a basketball prodigy overnight. His eyes met MJ's over Peter's shoulder and she quickly looked away, embarrassed to be caught. "Huh.. I recognise her."
Peter looked behind her, eyes widening and instantly filling with guilt. "Yeah - er - that's MJ." He said, appearing more relieved as she didn't hesitate to step forward after her introduction, hand brushing with his as she stood beside him.
"Ah." Ben nodded. "We've met before, so I can't pretend to be his probation officer, and I'm sure you were eight last time I saw you, so I'm his Uncle Ben."
"I know - I mean, pleased to meet you." MJ took the hand offered. He used to take them bowling a lot; her and Peter had been shown his old trophies for it many times - and he was always so nice to her.
"I think I must have just missed you yesterday." Ben nudged his nephew. "Peter was still on the porch when I got back.. and after a bit of grilling I managed to find out you went to an Italian restaurant - I make good lasagna, and I'll refrain from saying the best because it sounds like what you had the other night was just that, and you're invited over any time."
"Oh." A pleased smile appeared on her lips. "I'd love that - please, if Peter's fine with it." The Peter in question was blushing, head tilted towards the ground in hopes that it would swallow him up.
"In that case, just let me know." Ben said. "I should get going, don't forget to pick up your Aunt, Peter." His nephew nodded as Benjamin began to walk away. He paused, and turned back. "And look after him, will you, MJ? You were a good kid, and I believe I can bet that you still are now. If Peter's going to start breaking backboards and come back home covered in bruises, I'd appreciate he'd have someone to watch out for him; someone to whip him into shape when I'm not around too.. so I don't have to adjust my shifts again."
"You got it." MJ smiled and watched as he disappeared around the corner before her gaze turned towards Peter, whose head was dipping down and forehead resting on her shoulder. "What the hell, Pete?"
"I know.. well I don't know." His words were muffled and MJ felt her hand move of its own accord to cradle the back of his neck. "I just.. I got the opportunity and I felt like I should take it.. It was stupid."
"How the hell did you break the backboard?" MJ asked, shaking her head and meeting his gaze as he stood up straight. "You're an idiot. Whose suddenly freakishly good at basketball."
"I wish I could explain it, I really do."
"You know your Uncle's pretty funny.. and he makes a lot of sense." MJ mused as they began to slowly walk down the corridor. "I know revenge and payback usually sounds pretty good.. but you just ended up getting into trouble. And Flash, as much as he's been awful to you, he's my friend - even though he's a dick - and I know I'm just making it sound like I hate him.. but he's my friend, Peter.. and-"
"You know he's a bad person, Margot." Peter sighed dejectedly. "I don't understand why you're friends in the first place but.. I didn't even think about it. It just sort of happened."
"I know - trust me - I know what it's like to have a bit of confidence against people suddenly. But.. I just don't think it suits you to sink down to his level, that's all. You didn't try to fight back last Monday.. so I don't understand why that's changed.
"It hasn't - I swear." Peter turned to face her, bringing them to a stop. "It hasn't, I didn't mean to push him, I didn't want to embarrass him.. that much. It just sort of happened.. I swear, MJ, I swear."
Margot let out a sigh. "I know, Pete. I just didn't like how.. it made me feel. Which is stupid - but it's why I'm reacting like this. Really, if you think that's how you want to go about making things even then go for it. Just try not to change your morals for the sake of it. You didn't get expelled, did you?" She added.
"No, just community service." He replied, but he could feel something sitting in the pit of his stomach. He could hear the unabashed judgement in her tone, whether she meant it or not. It had made him feel good to get back at Flash, but then he had taken it that one step too far with the backboard and ruined whatever point he was trying to make. And he didn't want to make things hard for MJ. That was the last thing he wanted, and he knew the conflict created between him and Flash when trying to get even had hurt her. No matter how good it originally felt, he hadn't actually intended to hurt Flash in the process of proving something, nor had he wanted to hurt MJ.
"I know. I won't." He replied. Margot looked almost disbelieving, and he held up his hand, pinkie extended. "I promise, MJ, I know I went too far this time. It won't happen again."
"It's not me who has to worry about that. It's you." She said, but there was a smile bleeding onto her serious expression and when they linked pinkies, her fingers enclosed over his. "So, how much of a big deal is it that I got invited for lasagna by your uncle?"
"Oh it is a massive deal. I've had friends before - nobody's been invited for lasagna. And I don't like Aunt May's meatloaf no matter what that voicemail says, but I do like that lasagna. It's pretty similar to the one we had - but I doubt anything could compare." Peter hummed his reply, letting the idea sink into his veins. He knew that there was no doubt in the idea of them getting serious, but already both of them were very much okay with going that extra step and sitting down for a meal with the parents - or the uncle and aunt, in this scenario - and he had met John Watson when picking MJ up that first time.
Although he supposed it was different when they already knew each other, even if they hadn't met for the longest of times. "So, lasagna's good. I see." MJ looked pleased - which was good, he had ached at the sight of the disappointment on her face. "This almost perfectly mirrors where we were a week ago."
"Yeah.. except for a week ago you weren't about to miss lunch and I wasn't about to leave for the rest of the day." He really wished that wasn't the case, that he would be able to stay there until English when they sat right next to each other. "So, Margot, have a good day." He leant down and pressed a kiss to her cheek. "I'll call you tonight, I promise."
"You make a lot of promises, Pete." MJ watched as he began to make his way towards the entrance, away from her.
"And all of them, MJ, I can keep."
🕸
For the first time in almost a week, MJ didn't have Peter to walk her to the station, which she didn't mind so much because it meant she could take a couple of detours and end up on the same line that Felicia was taking and managed to meet up with before arriving at work. But it gave her time to muse, gave her time to think about what had happened over the afternoon. She still felt conflicted over the Flash-Peter situation, but managed to feel a little bit better after having a conversation with them.
It didn't help that she was worried about that evening, when she returned considerably late wanting to prolong the inevitable, and she found the house empty and her dad at the bar.
But what did help with many of those things was meeting up with Felicia and having a chance to talk to her, because she always managed to see things from several points of view and give amazing advice. But she also stopped her from worrying too much, and sagely-worded texts followed through the rest of the evening that kept MJ calm.
And she remained so relaxed as she worked, cleaning up after the interns on Saturday and preparing more activities to come for the following session. They would get more into the job-related things next time, rather than the general tour and introductions that they faced last time. She helped prepare samples and slides, and as she was crossing through the main lab area alongside one of the older scientists, she found that calmness dwindled just slightly.
Because Peter Parker was standing with Dr. Connors right in front of the Ganali device. And she had absolutely no idea, and absolutely no way of asking him why the hell he was there. She didn't instantly expect answers about most things, and very much admired privacy in any relationship or friendship.. but this was different. It was her job.. and it was her who had let him get away with stealing an ID for an internship. She had put her employment there on the line for him, and for this she thought that maybe she would be able to ask a few questions to him about that.
But they would wait for their predestined conversation over the phone that night, which almost always happened. All she knew was that Dr. Connors had come out looking immensely happy and that Peter left way before she did.
Which meant she was left on her own as she made her way back to Queens. It was late now, she had worked later and later as she realised just how much she was dreading going home to find out that her predictions had come true and John was drinking again, and she would have to haul him back from the bar.
She hated the idea that he wouldn't try and stop for her, but would try and stop for Jack. It felt awful to know that.. but if that was the reality then there was nothing she could do about it. That was the best case scenario; that he would try and remain at home and sober when the younger boy was around. MJ could deal with it, Jack couldn't, and if he could be hidden from it then she preferred that.
Which was why, despite the fact she was back in Queens, she hadn't called Peter and she hadn't gone home yet. Because she would find an empty apartment, and then have to find out what the hell Peter was doing at Oscorp and whether it was related to what he had mentioned on Saturday or not.
But there was no need for her to make that choice, because as she walked listlessly around the neighbourhood, her phone buzzed with a call. And low and behold, it was Peter.
"Hello?" She asked as soon as she picked up, hearing sharp intakes of breaths. "Peter, what's wrong?"
"I had an argument.. with my uncle. I forgot to pick my aunt up." He didn't sound angry at all, just purely upset. "I broke a door - the glass in the front door. I don't know what's happening MJ - I don't know why I can do these things." He inhaled sharply.
"Pete.." Margot regretted her sharp tone when she answered. "Did you leave the house? Whereabouts are you, I can come and meet you if that'll help. I just.. I just think it would be nice for you not to be alone."
"I knew you'd know what to do.. how do you always know how to say the right thing?" Peter sounded relieved now, and MJ felt a little less conflicted about everything. "I don't know if you remember the grocery store we used to stop at on the way back from school.. on Austin Street.. well I'm getting chocolate milk from there now."
"Yeah, I remember." MJ confirmed. That used to be their secret from the adults, taking longer to walk home from school in order to stop by and pick up a candy bar, or a popsicle on a warmer day. "I'm only a couple of minutes away anyway, so I'll be there soon. Do you want me to stay on?"
"No, it's fine." Peter replied. "I'll see you soon. And I'll tell you everything.. about Connors and everything." He was smiling again, she could hear it in his words. Her phone was shoved into her pocket as soon as she hung up, speeding up her pace. Prolonging her inevitable return to her apartment seemed like the best idea thus far.
She turned the corner onto the street Peter had pointed out for her as what sounded like a car backfiring echoed around. She paused, looking around for a moment before her eyes landed on the storefront Peter was supposed to be in. There was a push on her shoulder and she was forced around.
Running off after bumping into her was a man in sunglasses with straggly blond hair to his shoulders. "Hey!" She yelled after him, wincing as she moved her shoulder around and turned back to face the street. But suddenly her feet stopped and she didn't take another step further.
There was someone laid in the middle of the sidewalk.
She forced herself to run forward, knowing it was crucial to get help as quickly as possible. Basic first aid training had helped her a little bit, but when she reached the person, her heart dropped and she felt like throwing up.
No. There was no way. It couldn't be - absolutely not.
But it was. It was Ben Parker who was hardly moving, Ben Parker who was clutching his side, Ben Parker who was finding it hard to breathe. Ben Parker who laid limp on the ground seconds after MJ had stood above him.
And it was Peter Parker who was crossing the road in a state of shock, Peter Parker slowly approaching his dead uncle, Peter Parker who came to a stop by his feet, Peter Parker whose gaze slowly met her's.
Peter Parker's lips who moved wordlessly, only one name coming from them as he fell to his knees.