A/N: So... I know I said this book of oneshots was complete, and it is! But - the other day we hit 1k votes. And then we 50k reads. 50k reads!!! I am actually, actually flabbergasted. I never imagined this. So I wanted to give y'all something in thanks - just a nice, fluffy little oneshot to hopefully brighten up your day with all of the insanity currently happening in the world.
"This is stupid."
"It's not stupid," Peter objected, swinging his and MJ's intertwined hands between them.
"Sorry dude," Ned said, coming up beside them. "It is kinda stupid."
Peter shot him a betrayed look. "Remind me why you're even here?"
"Hey, you're the one who invited me," Ned protested. "This could've been a romantic date for the two of you. Some alone time. But you were the one who insisted it needed to be all three of us."
"You did," MJ said. "That is kinda on you."
Peter shook his head. "I cannot believe it," he said, clearly launching into a speech. Ned and MJ groaned. "You know what, I just wanted to have some fun with my two best friends - feel like wild and carefree teens again - but I get it. You guys are just too grown up and too mature for theme parks anymore. You just wanna go - I don't know - whither away somewhere awful and boring."
"Like a dark basement," Ned suggested thoughtfully, staring at the sky like he was really trying to think of the most boring awful place to wither away and die in.
Peter shot him a look. "What? No, I said boring, not terrifying and creepy, jesus."
"I think being alone in a basement would be pretty boring," MJ mused, clearly faking the concentration written across her face. "Especially if it was dark. Then you really wouldn't be able to find anything to do."
Peter scoffed. "Okay. I get it. The two of you are teaming up against me. Yeah. That's cute. Heaven forbid I try to plan anything fun - "
He broke off as MJ leaned over and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. Ned mock-gagged.
"I - " Peter said.
"Thank you," MJ said. "For planning something fun." There was a glint in her eye that Peter knew meant she was laughing on the inside, and in that moment, he was reminded of how much he loved her.
"You're still mocking me," he grumbled, while smiling.
"It's kind of my job," she said, holding his hand tighter.
"Exactly," Ned chipped in. "We've gotta make sure the one and only Spiderman doesn't get too large of a head, don't we?"
Peter laughed, tipping his head back and feeling the sun hit his face. Sometimes it was hard to believe that he was allowed to have this. That he could be this happy, here with his two best friends. Here with MJ, who loved him, and Ned, who would do anything for him.
"I love you guys," he said, meeting both of their eyes in succession.
MJ knocked her shoulder into his, grinning brightly. "Love you, you idiot," she said.
"Love you, bro," Ned said from his other side, slinging an arm over Peter's shoulders. For a moment, they walked in silence, enjoying the sunny, peaceful day, the birds chirping and the squirrels running around in the grass.
"You know, I really think a dark basement would be more boring than creepy, though maybe it would be creepy if there were rats - " Ned started.
" - I changed my mind, I hate you." Peter said, shrugging Ned's arm off and flipping him the finger.
"What?" MJ said. "It would be an interesting experiment - what factors actually go into making a basement creepy - "
"Both of you are the worst," Peter said. "Nerds."
"Are you calling us nerds?" Ned asked. "Really?"
"The. Worst." Peter repeated, smiling.