Extra hours out of school meant extra hours of doing absolutely nothing. Besides drawing, listening to music, more drawing, and watching those martial arts tutorial videos from YouTube that Spider-Man sent. Harper decided to volunteer that time at F.E.A.S.T. It'd get them out of the house and somewhere they could use their energy more productively.
Today, the shelter was on the busier side, which meant Harper was immediately put to work. The adults were fixing some lunch and Harper was sent to fill up the residents' coffee cups. To hold them over until the food was prepared.
Peter had come along, just to supervise the activity. He and Harper walked along the hall. Harper held a tray with a pot of fresh coffee and Peter made sure the doors were open so they didn't bump into anything.
"So, how's school?" Peter asked. He couldn't think of anything else to ask.
Harper blurted, "Oh, I got suspended."
Peter's eyebrows raised in shock. "Suspended?"
"I kept missing classes." Harper sighed. "Not my fault. Traffic screwed me over."
"Dang," Peter said as he winced. "Well, I appreciate you coming out to help."
"No prob. I still got some homework, though. Science sucks ass..."
"Science?" Peter perked up. "Maybe I can help. I am a science whiz, if I do say so myself."
Harper snickered. "Yeah, and you dress like one."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Peter laughed, looking down at his flannel shirt.
"Dude...you look like a nerd."
"Well, I happen to like my clothes."
"You look like a dad. Or a college kid. Maybe both."
"How dare you insult my style! Do you want the homework help, or not?" Peter laughed.
-
"I seriously do not understand this!" Harper exclaimed with a loud groan, slamming their pencil down. They were sitting in one of the meeting rooms, Harper's school supplies scattered across the table.
"Don't get frustrated," Peter said. "Breathe, kiddo." He took in a deep breath, beckoning for Harper to do the same. They did. Most of the tension left their body, and when they were ready they nodded for Peter to continue.
"Let's go over it again." He tapped the next question on Harper's homework sheet.
"I'd rather just look up the answers."
"But you'll never actually learn how to solve the question on your own if you do that."
"Uuugghhhh...."
Peter shook his head and let out an amused sigh. "Come on, Harper. You're doing good so far." He put on his best encouraging tutor voice.
Harper sighed as they leaned on the table. "Fine..."
They watched Peter as he explained the concepts of balencing equations or whatever it was. Something about him reminded them some someone they had met before, but Harper couldn't exactly put their finger on it. Once they actually focused on the work itself, they saw it wasn't that hard.
"See?" Peter said. "Easy."
"Yeah, I guess."
"Hey, if you need help with your homework again, I'm your guy."
Harper gave a small smile as Peter attempted to cheer them up. They began cleaning up their things and slipping them into their bag.
"Thanks. I still have some homework to do, but my brain is fried."
"Well, you did a good job. Once you get the hang of it, you'll pass the class in no time..." Peter trailed off as he checked his phone. He hopped out of his seat. "Damn, my, uh- my boss needs me. We're working on this big project thing, and-"
Harper narrowed their eyes. They could tell Peter was lying about something, but it wasn't their place to press, even if they were curious as hell.
"Okay," They said, "Don't worry about me, worry about your aunt."
"Right-" Peter said, "Gotta go. See you next time you need help on your homework."
Harper let out a short laugh and waved at Peter as he ran out of the room.
This was the second time he had skidaddled off somewhere else, out of F.E.A.S.T, in a hurry. They wondered what his job was like. Maybe he worked for Oscorp or something?
Then they checked their own phone and saw a crime alert. Harper stared at their phone, but then decided Spider-Man would take care of it. They had other plans.
-
"-so then Alex got on his Instagram talking about some 'last semester there was some allegations about me'-"
"Fuck he mean last semester? That shit was a fucking month ago!"
"That's what I'm saying!"
Harper laughed as she slightly peered down at her shoes, keeping the same pace as Tanya as they walked around the block. Tanya had been filling them in on what they missed at school, plus some of the drama that Tanya loved and Harper didn't pay attention to.
"And his girlfriend was trying to defend him and stuff even after finding out he cheated on her with a freshmen."
"Mai's crazy, bro," Harper said.
"I know. I wish you would've been there to see it- they had an argument in the hallway and one of her friends tried to fight him."
"Are you serious?! I missed that?"
"I think Miles recorded it, I'll ask him to send it."
"Thank god for Miles," Harper joked as they put their hands together in mock prayer.
Tanya smiled as she looked up at Harper. "Hey, I know I got mad at you yesterday, but I was just worried...like, I'm not actually mad at you or anything." Her smile faded and she sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I just get so caught up and stuff-"
"No, I get it. I was a little worried but it's not a big deal. It's just y'know, stuff at home. But my brother offered to drive me, so it's all good."
Harper glanced at Tanya, then down again. "Let's not talk about that. Tell me about something else."
A moment passed. Then Tanya's face lit up, and so did Harper's.
"I entered an art competition! I still don't know if I'll win or not, but I tried really hard and- the top prize is fifty thousand. I'm so excited-! I really hope I win."
Harper chuckled good-naturedly at Tanya's enthusiasm. It warmed their heart to see their friend so excited about something, and they returned the feeling in spades.
"I'm proud of you! And you should be proud of yourself too. What are you gonna do with the prize money?"
"I'm not sure yet. Probably buy some art supplies or put some of it toward a new car."
"You don't even know how to drive!"
"Neither do you," Tanya said.
"At least I can skate."
"You can't skate everywhere! Like what if it's cold, or you're carrying groceries-"
Tanya's phone buzzed and she groaned as she took it out of her pocket. She answered the call, brought the phone to her ear and signaled for Harper to shush.
Harper, naturally, did as they were told. When Tanya was done she returned her phone to her pocket, a less than happy expression on her face.
"My dad needs me home."
"Shit, is it past six already? My bad, Tanya, I didn't mean to keep you past the time-"
"No, it's okay, Harps." Tanya took Harper's hand into her own with a reassuring smile. "I'll see you later?"
"Tomorrow? We can go eat or just go to the skate park or something, I don't care."
"Tomorrow," Tanya said, pulling away. Her lips parted again, but she didn't say anything.
So she waved, turned around, and started on her way. Harper watched her, at least making sure she got to the end of the street.
Then Harper turned on their heel and jogged in the opposite direction, pulling their mask from their bag. It was still frayed to hell and back but Harper didn't have any other option right now. They tucked it into their sleeve and kept going.