He was sitting behind you in English class. His fingers drummed endlessly against the desk as he stared helpless daggers at the back of your head.
You felt every moment of it, but believed that he would stop at some point. He would get distracted with something else like he always did.
Towards the end of class, the teacher instructed that everyone get ahead in their reading of Hamlet. You opened your copy and settled in your seat, trying to focus on translating the Shakespearean to English in your head.
Your phone buzzed. You were too curious to ignore it. Silently, you pulled it out of your purse and clicked the screen on.
text from: Peter
What can I do to get you to hear me out?
Risking one glance at the teacher that was settled in her desk, you pulled up the keypad and began to type.
maybe try telling me why you ditched me five times this month
You heard his phone buzz with the reply. It took him a few minutes before he answered; you managed to get through Hamlet's entire rant to his mother - including the murder of his soon-to-be father in law before your phone vibrated.
text from: Peter
Okay. Can you meet me on the football field?
Your eyebrows immediately furrowed. Peter on the football field? Absolutely unheard of. Still, you sent back a quick okay and then returned your attention back to Hamlet's depressing adventures before the bell rang.
The rest of the school day went by slowly. You sat by Michelle at lunch. Although Peter was at the end of the same table, he had never felt further away. You barely had the desire to touch the peanut butter and Nutella sandwich you had made for yourself.
When the final bell finally rung, you trudged out of the school building, backpack on your shoulders. The closer you got to the football field, the more nervous you were.
What was Peter going to say? What was he going to show you? Did he have a disease that he was dying from and you completely ruined the last bit of his life? Did he cheat on you with a prettier girl and want to introduce you to her?
As you stepped onto the field, you saw him standing by the bleachers. You walked over to him, giving a little half wave and a smile that really wasn't a smile at all.
He looked nervous when you stopped in front of him. You waited for him to speak. The wind blew your hair around your face.
"Okay," you said after a minute. "You wanted to talk, Peter, so talk."
He nodded. "I want to show you why I haven't been around. A-And I totally trust you enough to show you, but I need you to promise me that you won't tell anyone."
You sighed. "Oh God, Peter... did you do something illegal?"
"What? Illegal!"
You were shaking your head. "Because if you mix me up in whatever you did... I couldn't show my face in school again! Or any store, or my church, or my house!"
He held up his hands. "I didn't do anything illegal! It's not like that, okay?"
You nodded in relief. "Okay. Good."
He held out his hand. "I need you to come with me." When you didn't take it, he frowned, but still started off towards the back gate of the school. You followed behind.
Peter brought you through the streets of Queens. You walked by every family owned restaurant and tiny drugstore smushed between the tall skyscrapers. When you got to two tall, red buildings, Peter pulled you inside. He shut a gate tight and did a quick look around.
You put your hands on your hips. "What are you looking for?"
He ignored you. He wiggled out of his backpack and tossed in on the ground. Next came his shoes. You shook your head, completely confused.
"Peter! What are you doing?"
"I'm showing you," he said, and he had this hopeful gleam in his eye. "I'm showing you why I haven't been around much."
You fell silent as he unzipped his hoodie. The moment it opened, he shrugged out of the sleeves. Out came his arms, and with them, the red and blue suit with a familiar spider at the center.
You felt your jaw drop and your heart sink to the floor. He yanked down the jeans he wore and discarded them with the rest of his clothes. He was now standing in front of you in the complete suit. In his hand, the mask.
"You're... you're..."
Peter frowned. "I know you're probably upset with me. I never told you, and yeah, that's sort of the suckiest thing a boyfriend could do to his girlfriend. But I haven't told anyone yet! I mean - Ned, yeah... but he's it! And he found out on his own."
"You're the Spider-Man," you gasped. "You... you save people. You stand me up for dates and you save people?"
"Yeah," he said. He swallowed nervously. "Look. That's not an excuse for what I did to you. I can't imagine how horrible you must have felt, and I honestly thought about it every time I did it."
You blinked hard. Something behind him caught your eye. A man dressed in black - yanking a purse away from a young woman.
Peter was still talking. "But I love you, ___, and I don't want us to be over like this. You... You were the first girl I ever loved."
"Peter-"
The man punched the woman as hard as he could. Still, her hand did not let go. Then, he pulled out a gun.
"Oh my gosh - Peter!" you exclaimed. You pointed at the man.
Peter turned around. His eyes widened as he saw the man kick at the victim. "Oh crap! Holy - okay!" He pulled the mask on and looked at you. "You stay right here, you hear me?
You nodded, hand going to your mouth. You stood on the sidelines as Peter - Spider-Man sprinted to the man. He held out a hand and you saw webs shoot out, wrapping around the purse and smacking it into a wall.
Before he could hit the man, the guy threw his leg forward, getting Peter in the side. He fell over, grunting. He got back up, and they were fighting.
The woman scrambled off, picking at the webs that held her purse to the wall. You ran over and helped her as Spider-Man leapt on the wall and scurried up.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The man fired several shots up the wall. Each one missed Spider-Man, but not by much. You held your breath as he did a backflip off the wall and landed on the guy's shoulders. The guy fell, hitting his head against the wall, but Peter fell, too.
He groaned when he hit the back of his head on the concrete. You ran to him at once, panicked.
"Please tell me you're okay!" you said.
He nodded, lifting his head. "Totally. Totally good."
You yanked off the mask. He had a bruise already shadowing on his cheek. Thankfully, that was the only real injury, although you were sure he would have a bump on the back of his head by morning.
He had this wild look in his eye. He was trying to find out what you were thinking. You were glad it wasn't obvious. "Are you okay-"
You made fists around the front of his suit. At once, you planted your lips on his. This boy you loved suddenly seemed so different to you until the taste of his Chapstick touched your tongue. He was still Peter, the boy who risked his life and everything in it to save every one in the city. Including you.
You broke away, shutting your eyes tight. He took a deep breath and slowly sat up, pushing you to your knees. You dropped your hands in your lap.
"Does this mean we aren't broken up?"
You looked at him and nodded. A grin crossed his lips for a split second before he focused on your lips. You let him push your hair back over your shoulders. He kept his hands there as he kissed you again.