"Harper."
"Huh?" She asks, looking up at me with her pale blue eyes.
"Did you even hear anything I just said?" I ask, slightly annoyed.
"Yes..." She starts. "But, just in case, tell me everything again I wasn't listening."
"Harper," I whine.
"Sorry," she mutters, before raising the mug of coffee to her lips. Ally's off somewhere with Tyler, leaving just Harper and I at the coffee shop. It would've been smarter telling Ally first, because she actually listens (well, most of the time) unlike Harper, who happens to always be distracted.
"Okay. Hear me out. Please don't scream or be loud. Okay?" She stares at me intently, with her big brown eyes, and it's kind of creepy in a way.
"Okay. Go on." She says. I lean over the table some.
"I think Peter is the Spider-Man," I whisper. She stares at me, and doesn't say anything for a moment. And then she bursts into laughter.
"I knew this would happen if I told you first," I mutter, setting two fingers on my forehead and leaning back in my chair. She laughs hysterically, but surprisingly doesn't catch anybody's attention. When she finally calms down, she stares at me and looks as if she may burst into laughter again.
"You know what, never mind." I say to her. She snorts.
"Peter is not the Spider-Man," she says softly.
"If you would listen to me, you may think otherwise." I mutter.
"Fine. I'm listening." She says, leaning forward with a straight face.
"Okay. I'm going to start off from the beginning. Remember the whole coffee shop and the Spider-Man thing?" I ask.
"Yeah."
"Well, I was following Peter. And instead of Peter, I got the Spider-Man." I say quietly.
"But what if that's just a coincidence?" Harper asks.
"But listen to this - the Spider-Man obviously lives in Queens, so why was he at DC during the decathlon field trip? Like, that's so precise, that can't be a coincidence. And, like New York, DC is big, and he was at the Washington Monument when we were, and at the exact time we were in the elevator." I say. Harper doesn't say anything, but she looks deep in thought.
"Okay, I'll admit, this one's kind of crazy, but I saw the Spider-Man be slammed into a building by something on the news. The next day, Peter was really beat up."
"That's probably a coincidence."
"But what if it isn't?" I ask. "There was this other time when I called him and-"
"You got up the courage to call Peter?!" She exclaims. I roll my eyes.
"Yes. I called him and-"
"Oh my gosh. Why am I hearing about this now?? Did you tell Ally instead of me?!"
"No, Harper, I didn't tell anyone because it's not a big deal. Anyways, I called him and-"
"Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod-"
"Harper." I state.
"Sorry. Continue." She says quickly.
"I called him and he sounded way out of breath and I heard a crash, and somebody scream in the background of the call." I say. "And he wouldn't tell me anything." Harper's jaw is hanging open just slightly, and she doesn't say anything for a bit.
"...oh my god, he really could be...him." She finally murmurs. I nod.
"I know. And I don't know what to do. Should I talk to him? I mean, s-should I-"
"But what if he isn't?" She says. I nod. "Then that would be super weird and awkward..."
"What if we just wait it out for a bit?" I ask. She raises an eyebrow and shakes her head. "I mean, like, more time to get more...evidence?"
"Perfect." She says. "But first, we tell Ally."
~~~
"So...you're telling me you think Peter is the Spider-Guy because he's really cute and has super muscular arms." Ally says. Atlas yawns and rolls onto his back, laying on my bed.
"No!" I whine, pinching the bridge of my nose and hearing Harper snort.
"It's true," Harper snickers.
"Okay...He is really cute and his arms are muscular, but he disappears all of the time and acts really weird sometimes!" I say quickly. "Did you hear anything I said?"
"Of course I did. I'm not Harper." Ally says.
"Oh, please." Harper groans.
"Do you believe me?" I ask.
"Of course. I mean, it makes sense." Ally says, starting to pace across my small room. She's wearing a fuzzy white sweater and high waisted jeans, and to top it all off, her long, red hair is pulled back in a perfect french braid. "You running into the Spider-Man in the alleyway, the Spider-Man showing up at the decathlon field trip..." she finally stops and turns to me, with a grin plastered on her pink lips.
"Peter obviously has a crush on you." She says. I squeeze my eyes shut with a sigh.
"Ally, that is totally off topic. And false."
"It's true!" She exclaims. Harper looks at me with a grin.
"It makes sense, Juniper." Harper chuckles. "He came to DC, he-"
"Harper, he came to DC because his best friend is on the decathlon team-"
"Oh, we know." Ally says. "But the whole elevator thing!! That was so romantic," she gushes, clapping her hands together and dreamily looking off into the distance. Atlas sits up and sneezes.
"Oh, please." I say. "He doesn't like me. He just saved me. It means nothing."
"You did not just say that." Harper says.
"Can we please talk about the serious stuff?" I sigh. "I really think he's the Spider-Man."
"If he really is, what are you gonna do?" Ally asks, sitting on the edge of my bed.
"I...I don't know." I reply.
"Talk to him," Harper says.
"What do I say? 'Hey, I know you're the Spider-Man by the way'?" I say, turning to her slightly.
"Or," Ally chirps. "you could be super romantic about it."
"Oh my god," I mutter, punching the bridge of my nose again.
"I, personally, think those could be crazy coincidences, and I think we need to give it more time." Ally says with a sigh.
"You're right," I say.
"It's probably best, because that would be so awkward if he isn't actually the Spider-Man." Harper says.
"Well," I say after awhile. "I'm surprised you guys aren't as freaked out about this as I am." They don't reply, they just exchange glances with one another.
"You guys do believe me, right?"
"Well, yeah, of course we do." Ally replies quickly.
"It's just..." Harper starts.
"You're overthinking it, Juniper." Ally says softly.
"What do you mean? Peter could die."
"If he is really the Spider-Man, he obviously has it all under control." Harper says. I sigh and fight the urge to roll my eyes.
"Maybe you're right. I should just...leave it be." I say softly. My friends don't reply.
"Well," I start with a sigh. "my dad's gonna be home soon." That's a lie.
"Oh, okay. I have homework to do anyways." Ally says, standing up off of my bed.
"Yeah...I have...stuff." Harper says awkwardly.
"Thanks for coming over," I sigh, following them out into my small living room.
"Of course," Ally says with a small smile. I grab the door from them, and they go on their way. I shut the door, and Atlas walks out and stretches his front legs.
That was a complete lie. I am not going to leave this be.
Author's Note
Gah!! I haven't updated in forever I'm so sorry. I'm not really happy with how this chapter is turning out, but, it's an update, so here it is. I'm slowly going to be rewriting each chapter of this book, because I really think I could've written so much better. But, I'll still be updating as much as I can! I rewrote and published chapter one already, so if you want to go read it, it's up.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope you had wonderful holidays! Have a great day!