#but the fact gwen and harry are a constant and not him | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

lamentingwclf · 11 months ago

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The ensuing silence after his confession is what unsettles him. Watching every interaction over the last two years play out and realization dawn. This is why he'd created distance between them, though she did not know about what happened with her parents, the pieces would fall into place from the introduction of Harry. Why he said she failed to see him despite consistently looking to him for guidance. Why he wasn't hers. He tries and fails to find the words to tell her that he's not expecting her to love him back.

I should go, is all that he settles on, as the whistling of the forgotten kettle startles them both.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Bucky deflates when he's freed from her gaze, leaning against the back of the couch. He knows what he's done, what he's thrown out in the universe, but he can't find it in himself to regret it. He has shifted the burden of his feelings from himself to her, and it's cruel in its own right - she's marrying someone else and he's going to war where he could very well die - and a dark piece of his mind reminds him: so could Harry. Would he settle for being second best?

I should go, he thinks for the second time, his face cupped between her palms as she tries to make things better. Because that is what she does - Bucky may pick the others up, but it's Gwen that's always put them back together. The idea that she now sees him as something to fix is not lost on him, and is, in fact, making this significantly worse than he ever anticipated. "Stop." His voice is barely above a whisper, as he pries her hands from his face. "You don't have to fix me. I'm not broken, nothing is broken."

But whether she's not listening, or simply doesn't hear him, he doesn't know. So he drops his grip on her and just observes her. The constant motion, the way she picks up speed, the barrage of questions - then her hands are on him. She's pulling at the buckle of his jacket, undoing the buttons, effectively removing the layers protecting his resolve. "Gwen, stop." He brushes her hands away, but his jacket is falling open by the time he physically shifts away from her. "Stop." It is not yelled, but stated firmly, afraid of which buttons her deviously deft fingers will fall to next.

She is looking at him, but she's not seeing him, but this time, it's not obliviousness, there's a rapidity to her breathing and suddenly, he knows what's happening. She's panicking, and by removing the task she'd been focused on, he's not even sure she's breathing. I should leave. He thinks, not for the final time as he steps forward, cups her face, and presses his lips to hers. He knows without a doubt that there are two ways this could end - she pulls away affronted, or she relaxes into him. Either way the tactic would be successful, but what he doesn't anticipate is his own inability to pull away.

So he kisses her again, without warning, without permission as if trying to steal the very breath she is holding. As if he would suffocate without it. He kisses her like he never really had a choice otherwise, like he's trying to make up for every second he wasted not kissing her. He's hungry, and burning, and at war with himself as he parts his lips and runs his tongue along hers. His hand wraps in her hair, and falls to her waist sliding between the fabric of her robe and nightgown, pulling her flush against him.

And his logical brain is screaming at him for the mistake he is making. That he should care what he's doing, but he can't. He is not as quick to regain control as he is to have lost it. He pulls away, disentangling himself from her, and feeling cold in her absence. "I...can't stay here." His voice feels too loud, too wrong. He feels as bruised and raw as her lips look. "It's not - You'll regret it if I stay. I'm sorry."

Any hope of him liking it is shot down immediately. Any hope of them being "normal" again is gone and it's within moments the look of optimism, and dare she say some happiness, is completely gone. Instead it's replaced with sadness, but most of all a striking loss of understanding. She's confused- far too confused for her own good.

It takes everything inside of her not to grab his wrist as he begins sputtering out his rejection of the item. "I-" She tries to interject, tries to explain, but she doesn't know what to say, and he doesn't give her the opportunity, instead he says she's mean, and the hurt is clear on her face. "I don't- wh-what I do? W-Why am I mean? I thought-"

He turns from her and she uses that quick break to wipe a tear from each eye, though doesn't give her enough time to fully compose herself when he asks his piercing question. "No!" Gwen finally exclaims. "No I don't. You won't tell me- no one has told me. I can't read your mind- I don't understand."

"Bucky," Gwen tries as his head shakes but suddenly he's speaking again, and the words stun her for a moment. Unsure of them, of their true meaning. All she knows is she feels the way her stomach begins to knot and her fingers begin to shake. "I love you too. You're my -"

But he continues and finally it's understood.

Was this what war felt like? The back and forth? The unrelenting agony in your mind? Bracing yourself and unsure of your next move because everything just seems so hopeless? And surely, this is what being shot feels like. All she can do is stare at him. She doesn't know what to say or how she even feels. She doesn't know how to help him, or comfort him.

The blasted shriek of the teapot finally breaks the silence, a overwhelming groan comes from her throat as she sets the box down on the end table, and quickly Gwen goes to it, taking it off the flame, and she's about to do what her mother would- make the tea and pretend like nothing was said- but suddenly she can't breathe. Hands come to the countertop as she braces herself, brown eyes wide, as she tries to catch her breath. And it's not her pain she's concerned with any longer. No, it's the realization of what's to come, not for her, but for him.

He was off to war tomorrow, trapped with this interaction in his mind. And while he was smart and capable...it's clear what's she's done to him- and it's going to get him killed.

She glances towards her ring then shake her head and quickly comes back over to him, and maybe she'll do more harm than good, but she has to try. Hands come up to cup his cheek, holding his face in her hands as she tries to get him to focus on her. "Look at me- look at me- it's alright. You hear me? It's alright. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I didn't see it. I'm so sorry I hurt you. That is the last thing I ever wanted to do. You are-" Her voice breaks, and suddenly she's just as confused at her own feelings as she was about Bucky's just minutes ago. "You are absolutely everything to me. Do you understand that? And I'm so sorry..." Lips press together, a few tears slipping down her cheeks now and she doesn't know what she's doing anymore. She doesn't know how to help him.

"You need to rest. What time is your departure?" She knows, but it's an excuse. "There's no point of you walking all the way back to your apartment, not at this hour, and it is forecasted to rain tonight if it hasn't started already." More excuses. She reaches for his hat, taking it from his hold and sets it near the box. She moves again, this time fingers fumbling with the belt of his jacket, and god she doesn't even know what she's doing anymore. "You may as well just take my bed. I'll get everything ironed and pressed. There's a stock of unused toothbrushes under my sink a-and I have more than enough food to give you a proper breakfast before you go." Her bottom lip quivers as her hands now go for the buttons of his jacket, undoing two of them before Gwen's eyes look up to meet his.

".....Bucky stay with me....please..."

#chamberedbeauty #s : ll a crowded street in 1944

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routledgescherries · 3 years ago

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peace | p.p.

word count: 4.3k

warnings: major nwh spoilers!!, symptoms of depression, slight angst, me wanting someone (peter) to give me a charm bracelet, taylor swift references

summary: peter reunites with you and tries to get you to remember him after all that happens

Life after Dr. Strange’s spell was rough for Peter, to say the least. Although he still fortunately had his birth certificate and driver's license, it was hard to find a job or a place to live when you had no credit and no G.E.D. So he resorted to being a freelance photographer at the Daily Bugle to pay the bills, staging pictures of him as Spider-Man, and getting the only clear pictures of Spider-Man to be found for any paper. Peter was also living in a crappy small apartment in the bad part of town with the little money he made. It wasn’t much, but it was something.

Peter also had to deal with the fact that he literally had no one in his life. It was difficult for him to adapt to being alone, he often found himself turning to tell a stupid joke to you, point out a good person in crisis for MJ to draw, or even a take out place for May to try, and find himself completely alone.

Peter was used to his constant sadness that came with the loneliness by now too. The first couple nights he cried himself to sleep, all of the grief and guilt about his aunt and the loneliness being too hard to deal with. All of the late nights alone with his thoughts made his mind go to dark places. Thinking about how he was always alone in his life. People kept leaving him; his parents, Ben, Tony, May, his friends, you. Was Peter just meant to be alone? Did he deserve to be alone?

Peter shook his head, snapping out of his train of thought. It was probably best not to go down that road again. He rubbed his eyes, closing his G.E.D. prep book. This was depressing. His life was depressing. Peter needed to do something. He needed some fresh air.

He put his jacket on, making sure to have his web shooter in his pocket just in case. This neighborhood was so sketchy. And mindlessly, Peter walked out of his building, not even realizing where his feet were leading him until he found himself right outside the coffee shop that his friends regularly hung out at. Holy Grounds. You all would spend countless hours doing homework and joking around there until MJ had to close the store.

It was where you and Peter had your first date when you were awkward seventh graders being supervised by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben in the back corner. It was where you two had your first kiss. It was where Peter first met Ned in freshman year after he accidentally spilled coffee on Ned. It was where Harry decided to throw an impromptu New Year’s party that ended in Peter reluctantly kissing Harry at midnight when Harry complained he had no one to kiss. It was where the six of you first hung out all together besides school for the first time.

It was the home of so many of Peter’s memories.

As he looked through the windows, Peter saw your group sitting at the counter. MJ was leaning on the counter, probably complaining about the customers while Gwen was listening and also likely coming up with new songs for her band “The Mary Janes” in the back of her mind. Harry was sipping something out of one of the cafe mugs, while Ned was watching and laughing when Harry spit it back out almost immediately.

And you. You, Peter noticed you were sitting on the end closest to the door next to Harry, quietly, fidgeting with your rings and a bracelet, an anxious habit you had. As he looked closer, Peter noticed that it was the charm bracelet he got you for your birthday, that had charms of your favorite things and memories you had made since you’ve been friends.

Peter couldn’t help but wonder if Peter Parker wasn’t totally forgotten in your mind.

That thought quickly dissipated as he watched you. He couldn’t describe the look on your face. You looked something between sad and confused as you twisted it between your fingers, not paying attention to your friends around you.

Peter hadn’t planned to see his friends and give them his speech until two more weeks, just enough time that he would be settled into his new life, and so he would have enough time to craft his speech to make him not sound like a lunatic. But seeing you like that made Peter rashly decide to go in and introduce himself.

He might not be able to make you remember him, but he could be your friend again.

He walked into the store, hands in his pockets, messing with the notecards that contained his speech. Peter kept them in his jacket just in case something caused his plan to change. But the text he had memorized was ignored as you looked at Peter as he walked into Holy Grounds, looking like you recognized him but couldn’t quite figure out from where. You narrowed your eyes, but shook your head and took a drink of your latte.

Doubt treaded Peter’s mind. Would this even work? A few simple sentences was supposed to be enough to counteract a spell made by one of the multiverse’s most powerful wizards?

He took a deep breath, like May taught him to do when his thoughts got overwhelming. Okay, even if he couldn’t get you to remember him, he could at least try to rebuild what you once had. You were best friends and then a couple for years, if it could happen once it could happen again. You could make new memories and have a new love.

Yeah, Peter thought. Either of those could work.

Peter took a leap of faith and stepped closer to you. “Hi, I’m Peter Parker.”

You smiled at him, nose scrunching slightly. “Hi Peter Parker,” you said. “They don’t put your names on the cups here.” You paused, stifling a laugh. “And I don’t work here.”

“Oh I know,” Peter said. “Actually, I didn’t know they didn’t put names on the cups, but I did know you didn’t work here, which now that I think about it sounds kind of creepy because you don’t know me, but that’s not the point, or even why I introduced myself.” Peter took a deep breath and started talking at a more normal speed. “Sorry, I ramble sometimes.”

You smiled softly. “You don’t have to apologize for talking. What were you gonna say?”

Peter couldn’t help but smile too. God, he missed you so much. “I was saying that, uh, I introduced myself to you because I wanted you to know my name.”

Peter heard MJ snort and whisper something to Gwen, who practically cackled. Peter could only assume it was some sort of insult. You hit MJ slightly with your hand across the counter, giving her a ‘knock it off’ look. It was almost like old times.

You turned back over to Peter, smile back on your face. “Ignore her, she's mean to everyone.”

“It’s okay. Anyways I was wondering if I could maybe talk to you?” At that, Peter noticed all of his friends looking towards the two of you. He stiffened up at all the eyes.

You bit your lip, fiddling with the bracelet again. “Um, I think my friends might kill me, or you, if I leave now.” Peter sighed, but at the sight of his fallen face, you quickly followed up with, “But I should be free at 4, if that works?”

Peter nodded, vigorously, grin back on his face. “Yeah, that’s good, yeah. Meet you here?”

You nodded. “Sounds good. See you then.” Peter nodded too as you both kept eye contact.

Harry leaned his head on your shoulder, also looking at Peter. He waved slightly at him. “Bye Peter Parker.”

Peter chuckled slightly. “Bye,” he said, feeling hopeful for the first time in a while as he walked out.

As Peter walked out of the cafe, you heard your friends snickering at him. “He was so dorky,” MJ chuckled. “‘I’m Peter Parker.’ What was that?”

“Knock it off you guys,” you said, in a firm tone. “He was sweet, and trying. Besides, there's something,” you paused, messing with the web charm on your bracelet, trying to find the right word, “familiar about him.”

“Maybe that’s why he wanted to talk to you,” Gwen suggested. “He would’ve had to know you if he came in here, just talked to you, and didn’t order coffee in a coffee shop.”

“Or he’s just a perv who wants to take advantage of you,” Harry said casually, shrugging his shoulders.

“Aw, bub,” you smiled, putting your arm around him. “Thank you for looking out for me Har, but I think if he was actually a perv, he wouldn’t have made plans to meet me at a public place, in front of my friends.”

“Perv or not,” Ned remarked, putting his hands up, “Y/N’s right. That dude looks really familiar.”

“I think so too,” Gwen said. “Maybe he goes to Midtown. Or maybe he went to your middle school and wanted to catch up?”

You shook your head. “I don’t think that’s it.” You sighed. “I don’t know. It’s just, recently I’ve felt like there’s something missing in me, you know? Like I have trouble remembering things, and I feel like there’s a hole in my chest, like I’m grieving but I don’t know why. But when he came in and started talking, that hole and that feeling went away. I felt more whole than I have in weeks, for whatever reason.” You stopped, feeling the pitiful glances of your friends. “I don’t know, maybe I’m just being crazy.”

“You’re not crazy,” MJ said, her voice as soft as you’ve ever heard it. She put her hand on your shoulder. “Lately we’ve all kind of had that problem, even though you more than most.” She gestured to the rest of your friends and they nodded too, their faces filled with sympathy. “I know my memory’s been fuzzy and confusing ever since that weird incident with Spider-Man and the Statue of Liberty.” She snorted. “Who knows, maybe that Peter Parker is Spider-Man and made a magician erase him from our memory to protect the world from collapsing in on itself?” Everyone laughed, a little somberly.

“Thanks M, you guys,” you said. “However unlikely that scenario is, I just feel like if I talk to Peter, maybe things will make some sense again.”

“We’re here for you,” Harry nudged. “And if it turns out that he is a perv, just call me and say the word ‘pineapple’.” He whispered the word, as if Peter was still outside, and could hear him.

You grinned, and gave Harry a side hug. “Will do Harry.”

You loved your friends, you really did, and they were really supportive through whatever had happened and whatever was wrong with you, but you couldn’t help but wonder if Peter Parker could help solve your problems.

Exactly at four, you walked up to Peter, who was already at the coffee shop. He was dressed in a blue sweater over a plaid flannel with some nice jeans. You were wearing Peter’s old Midtown sweatshirt, and he knew it was his and not yours because it was much bigger than yours, going down practically to your knees. It made him smile, just like old times.

“Hi,” he said, waving slightly, before cringing at the awkwardness of it.

“Hi,” you replied. “Do you wanna walk around? Or go somewhere?”

“Do you wanna walk down Cornelia Street?” Peter asked. He knew you loved the Taylor Swift song, and ever since you saw the street in real life, you always wanted to live there. You always walked down there together when it was warm enough, making unrealistic plans for the future. “They have really--”

“Awesome and beautiful apartments that would make a great place to live,” you finished, the words coming out of your mouth before you could even process them.

“Yeah,” Peter said, breathlessly. He wanted to jump up and down at the fact there was still some trace of him within your memory after all. “You took the words right out of my mouth.”

You walked side by side next to Peter in silence for a few minutes as you walked the route to Cornelia Street. “I like your bracelet,” Peter said. “All of the charms are really cool.”

“Thanks,” you said, taking the lightsaber charm in your left hand. “I really like it.”

“Where’d you get?” He asked, hoping to partially jog your memory. “It looks custom.”

You bit your lip and avoided eye contact. “Um, I’m actually not sure.”

“Oh,” Peter replied, trying to hide his disappointment. “Well it’s still cool.”

“Yeah, I think the charms each have a meaning, but my memory’s been really weird lately and I can’t remember what they are,” you said.

Peter knew exactly what the meanings were. A lightsaber for the first movie you ever watched together when you were eight being “A New Hope”. A camera for how Peter always loved to take photo shoots of you ever since he got his first camera. A boombox for how you both loved to watch cheesy 90s rom-coms together. A trident for your Greek mythology-Percy Jackson phase in sixth grade.

Peter could go on. He spent hours looking through jewelry stores trying to find specific ones to fit your memories together, starting with a small web charm (for Spider-Man, obviously), and buying another couple each holiday. You told him it was probably the best and most thoughtful gift you had ever gotten.

He wanted to grab you by the shoulders and shout the meanings and the memories he had gotten those charms for, making it the thing that made you remember everything, and then kiss you to make up for all the lost time. But instead Peter simply replied, “My memory’s been weird too.”

You turned your head to face him as you kept walking. “Really? I thought I was crazy, I feel like it’s only me and my friends who’ve felt like it.”

He shook his head. “No, yeah, I’ve been having gaps ever since that weird thing with the crack in the sky and the Statue of Liberty.”

“Me too!” You exclaimed. “And the strangest things keep happening to me, like, I feel urges to send a text to someone, and make sure they’re okay, but I have no idea who. Or I want to open my window to let someone in, even though my apartment is on the fourth floor, and no one could make it up there since we don’t have a fire escape. I even find clothes in my closet that I know aren’t mine, but I don’t know whose they are.” You turned to Peter, who was nodding his head, genuinely interested. “And sometimes I feel this physical pain in my chest, this overflow of emotions I don’t understand, like I’m supposed to be grieving something or someone, but I don’t know who. Like I’m missing something important inside of me.” You paused, worried that Peter would run at this strangeness. “Does that make sense?”

“Yeah,” Peter said softly. “It does.”

You nodded, taking a deep breath before you continued. “And I know this probably sounds crazy, cause I know we only met a few hours ago, but you look so familiar to me. In a way that I can’t even describe. It’s like I’ve known you forever. And you make that pain in my chest and my head want to disappear. It doesn’t make any sense.”

What you were telling him astounded Peter. He didn’t imagine in a million years that this would’ve happened. His absence was actually causing you physical pain. It was like your mind wanted to continue your life as if Peter was still in it, even though you didn’t know who he was. Peter felt he owed it to you to tell you the truth after all he heard. And even if he hadn’t crafted the perfect ‘not sound insane’ speech, Peter thought you could believe him.

Right as you finished, you turned the corner onto Cornelia Street. The sun was setting, and the orange-pink skies over the luxurious apartments made it look breathtaking.

In a rush of adrenaline, Peter intertwined your fingers together, and led you over to a bench and sat down, you next to him.

He took a deep breath. “Do you remember that flash in the sky that happened a couple weeks ago, near the Statue of Liberty?” You nodded, eyes squinted a little in confusion. “That was a spell that a wizard named Dr. Strange cast that ripped a hole in the multiverse, well technically the second one fixed the hole in the multiverse, the first one made the hole.”

You blinked a couple of times, trying to make sure you heard him right. “What?”

“I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true,” Peter insisted, grabbing your hands. “The second spell he cast made everyone forget me. Because it was the only way to fix everything. You were there. You cried and begged me not to do it. You said you didn’t want to forget.”

You looked at the ground, mouth slightly agape. “Why didn’t I want to forget you? We don’t know each other,” your voice sounded reluctantly incredulous, like you didn’t want to believe him. “What would I have to forget?”

Peter moved his head lower, so you would look at him. “Me. Us. Before all of this crazy stuff happened we were in love, and before that we were best friends since we were kids.” You looked up Peter, unreadable expression.

“Really?” You whispered, slight pain in your voice. “You’re really telling the truth?”

“Yeah,” Peter replied. “I promise I am.”

“You’re Peter Parker,” you said, more to yourself than to him. “And the spell made me forget you?”

“Yeah,” he said again softly. “That pain in your chest, the gaps in your memory, the part of you that you feel is missing?” You nodded at his pause. “That’s me.”

“I believe you,” you said. “As crazy as it sounds, despite the fact that I probably shouldn't, I believe you.” Peter smiled, laughing a little.

“Do you think if you kissed me, all of my memories come back in a rush montage like in the movies with amnesiacs?” You asked, rubbing the back of your neck.

Peter shrugged. “I think it’s worth a shot.”

Peter took your face in his hand and you both looked into each other's eyes for a few seconds, sharing a moment of silent healing for both of you. You leaned in, and he pulled you in, feeling the infamous ‘spark’ as your lips connected. You stayed that way for a second, and when you pulled away to breath, you searched your memory, trying to remember anything, any memory of Peter.

Nothing.

“Did it work?” He asked eagerly. “Do you remember?”

“No.” You shook your head sadly, but a second after you did, you grabbed Peter’s wrist, and pulled a bracelet from underneath his sleeve before you even realized what you were doing. It was a red and blue beaded bracelet, like the kind of plastic ones you gave out to all your friends as a kid. Still acting on instinct, you pressed the blue bead right before the knot that held it together.

A red projection of the Spider-Man mask appeared before the both of you on the bench. Peter had worn the bracelet ever since you gave it to him in fifth grade, and added the projection to it after he found no actual use to it in his Stark suit, but still wanted to keep it nonetheless. You always liked to mess with the bracelet and put up the projection when you were bored.

You both gasped, looking at each other in awe.

“How did you know how to do that?”

You shrugged, adrenaline rushing through your veins. “Muscle memory, I think.”

“Maybe if we kiss again, you’ll remember something else?” Peter suggested. “Like one kiss equals one memory?”

You couldn’t help but laugh, but pulled him in and kissed him once again, feeling nothing but pure bliss.

When you pulled away, you picked up your wrist to look at your charm bracelet on instinct. “You gave me this,” you said, eyes wide. “You gave me this for my birthday.”

“Yeah,” Peter nodded enthusiastically. “I did.”

“And-and this charm,” you picked up the black dahlia charm. “You got it because you tried to buy me a necklace with one in Venice but it broke because you were fighting the dude with the fishbowl head, so you got the charm instead!”

“That’s exactly what happened!” Peter exclaimed.

“Oh my god, I remember what all of these mean,” you said, taking a bunch of them in your hand. “The Empire State Building is for both me being obsessed with it in second grade and you swung me up there the first time you took me swinging. The-The fridge is for that time at three AM when we wanted to dance, but your living room needed new light bulbs, so we just kept the refrigerator door open as a light and played ‘Home’ by Bruno Major on a loop.”

“Yes. Yes. Yes,” Peter repeated, unable to believe this was happening. Unable to believe that you remembered. “We almost melted all of May’s coffee ice cream and she was so mad.”

“But not as mad as that one time when we were kids and decided it would be a good idea to give each other Sharpie tattoos,” you said, breathless as the words rushed out of your mouth. “I still have part of the Black Widow hourglass on my ankle.” You laughed, pulling your legging up to show him. “That’s what that was!”

“Yeah,” Peter said, pulling up his right sleeve. “And I still have the face of the Iron Man mask!”

You gasped again, getting up quickly and confirming your suspicions. Your initials and Peter’s initials were carved in a heart on the back of the wood(ish) bench. “We carved our initials into this bench. So when we have money and can afford to rent a place on this street we could just sit here and talk.”

“Exactly,” Peter said faintly. “Exactly.” You knocked your foreheads together, both just enjoying being together.

“I don’t remember everything,” you murmured. “Some things, but not all of them.”

“That’s okay, I’m just glad you remember anything,” he replied. “I can tell you about things you don’t remember and we can make new memories too.”

“That sounds good.” You shifted, leaning your head on Peter’s shoulder. “Can you tell me some now?”

“Sure,” Peter said, putting his head half on top of yours. “On Valentine’s day, sophomore year, the first Valentine’s day after we started dating, I put chocolates in your locker, and got you the earbuds charm for your bracelet--”

“Because we liked to share earbuds and make each other playlists,” you finished.

Peter smiled. “Yeah. And you waited until after school to give me your present. We decided to eat at Delmar’s in fancy clothes, to seem like adults, and after we were finished eating, you pulled out this gallon sized bag full of candy hearts, and they were personalized with funny messages and pick up lines, like ‘are you copper and tellurium? because you’re CuTe’ and ‘you must be the force because Yoda only one for me’” Peter chuckled. “You also got me a new sweater, but the fact that you took the time to write like fifty different pick up lines for me really warmed my heart and made it my favorite gift.”

You giggled. “That definitely sounds like something I would do. You deserve to have a billion pick up lines.”

You sat there for a moment, enjoying the peaceful noise of New York, enjoying the comfort of having each other there for them.

“Peter?” You asked, not moving from the position you were in.

“Yeah?”

You bit your lip, deciding to tell him what you were thinking. “Do you think we’ll be able to give each other the peace we’re looking for?”

Peter turned his head towards you at that. “What do you mean?”

You shrugged. “I know that we’ve found each other somehow, despite a freaking memory erasing spell, and that’s amazing, and I love that, and I’m pretty sure I love you, but,” you sighed. “We’re both kind of looking for a peace within the other that might not be satisfiable.”

“What does that mean?”

“It’s just that you’re looking for me so you can have a piece of your old life back, and I was looking to fill in my memory and problems, a peace of sorts, you know? I know it sounds stupid and that I’m overthinking this, but what if we can’t give each other that thing we’re looking for? What if we try to seek that feeling instead of love?” Your voice cracked as you finished. “What if I can’t give you peace?”

“Hey,” Peter said delicately, putting his hands on your shoulders. “I don’t want peace. I realized a long time ago that my life was never gonna be peaceful. I was looking for you because I love you. Not because I wanted peace. All I want is you, and the love we have. You matter so much to me, and I’m not losing you again. Especially over something as stupid as peace.” He put your foreheads together again. “I love you.”

Silent tears ran down your face as you smiled. How could you have forgotten this person you loved so much? A person who made you feel so happy and so loved. “I love you too.”

“We might not be able to give each other peace,” Peter said. “But I know that we can make each other pretty damn happy.”

#peter parker x reader #peter parker fanfiction #spider-man #peter parker #spider-man fan fiction #spider-man x reader #peter parker fanfic #peter parker x fem!reader #peter parker x you #peter parker x y/n #marvel x reader #mcu x reader #tom!peter x reader #tom!peter parker #peter 1 x reader #mcu!peter x reader

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chaoticparker · 3 years ago

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Trip

Peter Parker x fem!reader

summary: Peter invites you and some of your friends to a cabin for his birthday, teasing from your friends is ensured; and maybe, you’ll finally get together.

warnings: suggestive jokes, fear of growing up

w/c: 3.8k

a/n: originally i started writing this as a ‘end of summer/ last chance to be young’ fic that would have angst, but i realized i could write in peters b-day so i made it fluffy :) ALSO RETURN OF MJ x GWEN BC I LOVE THEM AND TONY ISNT DEAD BC I SAY SO

anyways happy b-day pete <3

masterlist

You really miss four hours ago when you were not stuffed to the brim into a car with your friends surrounding you. Traveling in the middle of nowhere, far from the city, with only the GPS to guide you. Constant yelling and screaming with the additional music playing in the background made you want to scream at the top of your lungs. And there was one person responsible for your little journey.

Peter fucking Parker.

Tomorrow was his birthday, and he used that fact to guilt all of his friends to go on an impromptu road trip to a cabin that was owned by the Starks. Texting the group chat at three in the morning and said that's what he wanted to do for his birthday. Harry offered his car for the trip and no one was opposed. He came around to pick everyone up and when Peter gave him the top-secret location, they headed south, away from the city and further into isolation in Fairburn, Georgia.

“Pete, are you sure you’re not gonna kill us out here.” Harry joked as he loosened his grip on the steering wheel. Ahead of him were nothing but clear roads and everlasting trees surrounding the highway.

Peter scoffed, taking another bite of the animal crackers he was eating right from the box. He was sitting in the middle row, he offered you, who was in the passenger seat, some, and when you shook your heads he turned his head around and offered some to Mj and Gwen.

“I’ll take some.” Gwen chimed as she took the box and started pouring out a few in her hand.

“How much longer do we have?” Mj complained. “Feels like we’ve been driving for ages.”

“Only been driving for less than an hour-”

“An hour!” Mj shirked, taking her headphones off to listen more clearly. “My playlist only has three hours worth of songs and I don’t want to listen to it five more times.”

“You could listen to my playlist.” Harry offered, but Mj just scoffed and rolled her eyes.

“Absolutely not.”

“Why not?”

“Because it's shit.” Mj sat back down in her seat and leaned her head on Gwen's shoulder. Gwen gave a little kiss on her head.

“How is it shit?” Harry asked, his voice a little offended.

“You have One Direction and Cupcakke on the same playlist.” Mj deadpanned. “You could be crying your eyes out to one song then getting horny the next.”

“And that just how I like it.”

Everyone groaned, and you made a small vow to never let Harry get the aux cord. “Pete, what made you wanna do a roadtrip for your birthday?”

“Dunno.” Peter shrugged. “Thought it would be fun.”

In reality, when Peter was out doing his nighttime patrol when he passed over his school is when he got the idea. This upcoming school year was going to be his last, along with you and the rest of his friends. It all just hit him right at that moment. That this time next year, you all will be drifted apart, only mere memories of each other.

Hell, it's already started.

Betty has been looking at universities out west. Her dream was UCLA, and her grades were good enough already to get in. Ned had his heart set out on CalTech, already looking into scholarships he could apply for and how expensive plane tickets are. That's why they weren’t even here, they were off touring campuses.

Mj and Gwen planned on staying on the east coast, but both wanted to leave New York and its madness. They entertained the idea of Yale, it had a good english programme for Mj and a good art school for Gwen.

Harry planned on getting away from his dad as quickly as he could. He wanted to get out of his grip, but still make a difference. Recently, his dad planned on opening up a new branch of Oscorp in Europe, and Harry was the frontrunner to lead it.

You, on the other hand, still had your plans up in the air. You are still undecided on what you wanted to do. You refused to ever talk about plans, still living in the fantasy like ignorance that your adult life was years away.

Peter hoped that you would stay in New York. He had to stay in New York for Spider-related duties, but it would be so much better to have someone that he knew, that he trusted around. The only person who Peter truly trusted was you. He would only confide in you, knowing that you could help him with whatever problem he had.

And of course, you confided within him too, it's where the deep level of trust comes from. It couldn’t be this deep of a connection with it only being one sided. Being able to rely on one another for comfort and an untalked about love that made your relationship so perfect.

And of course, any love-sick fool would want you to stay with them.

“Dude, wake up.” You nudged Peter on his shoulder. Peter just groaned. “Wake up!” you punched a little harder, causing Peter to sit up and rub his shoulder.

“The fuck was that for?”

“You’re fine, you’ll heal in like two seconds.” Peter scoffed and blinked his eyes. Everyone else was out of the car, stretching and getting ready to go into what looked like a rest stop.

“Where are we?” Peter asked. Rubbing some of the sleep out of his eye.

“Outside of Richmond in Virginia.” You answered. “Now come on.” You patted Peter on the back. He opened the door and both climbed out, immediately squinting their eyes at the harsh sunlight.

“Oh, so he’s finally awake?” Mj teased. She was holding hands with Gwen, the most amount of PDA she’ll normally show. “Thought Sleeping Beauty was gonna need a wake up kiss.”

“I’m sure Y/n would be more than happy to do it.” Harry joined in.

“Shut up Harry.” You groaned. “Now come on, I wanna grab some gummy bears.”

Inside the rest stop was not as disgusting as what you thought it was going to be. It was clean, or clean enough for everyone to use the restroom. And it wasn’t busy at all so you could easily pay for your snack without too much trouble.

You stood with Peter as you waited for the others, reluctantly sharing your food with him. “Ayo, lovebirds!” Mj called, close to the exit. “We’re getting ready to go!”

He took some of your gummy bears as you both headed for the car. Everyone was already out, slowly getting into the car and into their old seats.

“Y'all ready?” Harry asked and a series of ‘yes’s’ was heard. You set up the GPS on his phone and positioned it so it was in the perfect view for Harry to see. A few minutes of silence passed, but it felt like an hour for Harry so he might as well stir the pot and help Peter out. “Don’t you think that Y/n and Peter looked cute standing back at the stop?”

Peter’s ears perked up and he hit Harry from the back seat. “Dude, what the fuck-”

“They really did.” Gwen chimed in from the back. “Looked all sweet, standing there sharing their food like couples do.”

“I’m not sharing my popcorn with you.” Mj mumbled. Gwen rolled her eyes and leaned forward so her face was near Peter’s.

“Are you gonna make your move on the trip?” She whispered, softly enough for only the boy could hear her.

“What?” Peter looked over to you and you seemed to be preoccupied on your phone with your music. “She doesn’t like me like that.”

“Are you serious?” Gwen blurted and looked over at Mj. “Is he serious?”

“You’d think with his genius level IQ he would be able to figure it out by now.” Mj joked, causing her and Gwen to laugh. Peter on the other hand was dumbfounded.

“Hey Pete.” Gwen spoke up, loud enough for everyone to hear. “Isn’t the cabin right by a lake.”

“Yeah? I told everyone to bring a bathing suit-”

“And you got your swim trunks.” Gwen smiled. “Good time to show off your impressive abs.”

Peter went red, “What? It’s nothing-”

“I’m just pointing it out in case anyone-”

“Y/n” Mj coughed, interrupting Gwen’s sentence. You whipped your head back to her and gave her a death glare.

“-was interested.” Gwen finished.

You turned to Mj and mouthed, ‘I will kill you.’ And she just mouthed back ‘I’m helping you!’ You rolled your eyes and looked at your phone.

“Speaking on Y/n, did you bring that bikini we got a couple weeks ago?” Gwen asked. Her voice was sweet but you have never wanted to strangle her more.

“Yeah, why-”

“You looked so good in it, it really made your boobs look amazing.”

“Mhm?” Giggles spread through the car, and heat rose to your cheeks and gave another death glare.

“That purple one you wore to my pool thing a few days ago?” Mj asked. You slowly nodded your head. “Girl you looked good in that! And Gwen’s right, your boobs did look amazing in it-.”

“Your ass too!” Gwen interrupted. You sank further in your seat, and your eyes went wide from embarrassment. You took a quick glance at Peter and he was beat red, while Harry had a concerning smirk on his face.

“You know, I’m sure your tits looked-” Harry started, but you hit him before he could finish his sentence.

The car went quiet, which you were internally grateful for. Peter groaned and layed back in his seat, trying his best to sleep. He tried to stop his thoughts drifting over to you, memories and his brain finding a way to romacize them. He tried his best to never indulge in them, only thinking about it if he needed to calm his brain from the frightening and worrying thoughts that came with the superhero gig.

You on the other hand put the volume all the way up on your headphones so you could drown out whatever anyone else is saying. You stole one last glance to Peter, you saw his eyelids drop and eventually shut. It made you smile whenever he was sleeping, knowing that his mind is safe in whatever dream he was having.

And though you would never say it outloud, you hope he dreamed of you.

Eventually, you were woken up by Gwen poking you and she told you that you arrived. You got out of the car, took your bag, and entered the cabin. You all went upstairs into your respective rooms. In Stark fashion, the rooms were spacious with their own connected bathrooms.

You heard a knock on your door, and went over to open it. “We’re all going out to look at the dock now if you’re ready.” Peter announced. He was wearing a different pair of shorts and a different sweatshirt; curls better than ever.

You glanced behind you to look at your unpack suitcase on your bed. Either explore the million dollar cabin or start unpacking? “Yeah, I’m ready.”

You shut the door behind you and walked next to Peter downstairs and outside where everyone was already waiting. “Hurry up lovebirds, I wanna check out everything” Harry yelled. You rolled your eyes as Peter blushed as you ran over to the group. “You two took forever.” Harry groaned.

“Thought you two finally fucked.” Mj mumbled.

“MJ!” You and Peter shrieked.

“Kidding, kidding” Mj smiled, interlocking her hand with Gwens. “Maybe.”

Continuing to walk with the group you eventually got to a wooden shed with a lock on it. Harry tugged on it, but it didn’t budge. “Don’t suppose anyones got a key?”

“Let me try.” Peter volunteered. He stood weirdly in front of the lock, you peaked your head and didn’t see any key, but Peter’s hands were ready to break the lock. No one else here knew about Peter's secret life, and knowing how stressful it could be, you always did your best to help him out.

“Hey, look at the view.” You pointed away from the shed and when everyone's attention was away from Peter you heard metal break and fall to the ground.

“It’s really beautiful.” Gwen commented, swinging her hand that was entwined with Mj’s, who hummed in agreement. “Wanna go down to the dock?”

Everyone nodded and headed for the water. Harry stayed and turned around and saw Peter with the shed door open. “How’d you do that?” Harry’s jaw dropped.

“I used a rock.” Peter shrugged and went into the shed and Harry behind him. They admired the surprising amount of water guns that looked a little bit too high tech to be only Morgan’s. As well as some high tech scuba equipment that had to be worth at least a couple thousand dollars.

“Hey, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, but I think you should really ask Y/n out soon.” Harry mumbled. “Or else, someone is going to make a move on her and she’s not gonna wait around for you.”

Peter sighed. “I know, but it’s hard. I don’t know how Mj and Gwen did it.”

“They did it because they have enough common sense to see how the other liked them.” Harry wrapped an arm around Peter. “Besides, I know for a fact that she’s in love with you.”

“You don’t know that-”

“Yes I do-”

“Dude, stop.”

“I’m not gonna stop telling you to-”

Peter put his hand over Harry's mouth, “No, I mean stop talking.” Something didn’t feel right and it was coming from all over. He felt the hairs on his arms stick up and a strong compulsion to go down to the dock. Then, they heard a scream and some shouts.

The boys raced out of the shed and sprinted to the dock. He saw Gewn and Mj, pulling you out from the water and back onto your feet. You looked absolutely freezing. Shivering and crossing your arms and rubbing your hands over them, trying to warm yourself up.

“Fuck, Y/n what happened.” Peter quickly took his sweatshirt off and gave it to you to put on to get you warm. He then wrapped his arm around you.

“Mj slipped and almost fell in but I grabbed her arm and I ended up trading places with her.” You gave a sad laugh. Peter still kept his arm around you and you buried yourself closer to his chest.

The others, of course, felt their hearts melt at the sight.

“Let's go inside and get you dry.” Peter decided. You nodded your head. “We’ll be back in a few.” He told the others and you both headed back up to the cabin.

After walking in silence, you eventually made it into the house and up the stairs as Peter guided you to his room. You walked to the connecting bathroom and Peter turned the shower on. “I’ll be waiting outside.”

The way Peter hugged you and held you close made you feel all warm and fuzzy, but when Peter left that shiver came back. You hopped in the shower and turned the handle so the water was burning nicely on your back. Making sure to use enough body wash to get rid of any remnants from the ocean.

As you turned the water off and grabbed a towel, You felt guilt creeping in. It is his trip for his birthday, he should be hanging out with his friends; not dealing with you. You looked at your clothes, your shorts were dry but your shirt that you were wearing was still damp, leaving you in Peter’s sweatshirt.

You walked out of the bathroom, Peter looked up and cleared his throat, he blushed briefly and stood up. “You look nice.” He smiled.

You looked down. “Oh, I’ll wash your sweatshirt and give it back to you soon. I just didn’t have any other clothes-”

“You don’t have to do that!” Peter said, a little too quickly for his liking. He would never want to admit what you wearing his clothes does to him, making him feel like he’s with you. “You -uh- you look really nice wearing it.”

“Really?” You were shocked to say the least. “This is your favorite one, you never let it out of your sight.”

Peter blushed but quickly tried to cover it up. “It’s nothing, you look too good to change.”

“Are you sure, ‘cause I can always change if you want.” You offered again.

“I’m sure.” Peter pursed his lips together and sat back down. You sat down next to him.

“So, why did you want to come here for your birthday?” You admired his face as you asked. His cheeks had a soft blush to them with freckles sprinkled over them and across his nose. His eyes always caught you off guard from the rest of his face though, the dark circles just begin to show how tiresome he is and his eyes always look like they’ve seen too much.

“Thought it would be fun-”

“No, don't give me that, we’ve been friends long enough for me to know when you’re lying.” You wrapped an arm around him, giving him a much needed hug. “You can tell me.”

Peter sighed, giving into your hug. “It’s our last year and I don’t want more things to change y’know?”

You nodded your head. “Everything’s gone by fast, huh.” You agreed. “Pretty soon we’re gonna have to be making decisions about college and I don’t even know where to start.”

“Do you think you’re going to stay in New York?” Peter asked. You gave him a glare. “Sorry, sorry, it’s just everyone has plans and they’re all telling me that I shouldn’t have regrets.”

You quirked an eyebrow, “what would you have regrets on?”

Fuck. “Just, you know.” Peter stuttered. “Normal stuff.”

“What, like asking someone out?” You laughed. Peter’s eyes got a bit wider and your smile dropped for a second, you were right, there was someone. “Pete, if there is someone, tell them.”

Peter sighed, clearly thinking to himself and you could practically see the gears turning in his head. He looked up to you and tried to say something, but he couldn’t think of anything to say. All he could think about was the way you looked in his sweater, the way your eyes looked at him with hope and your lips, just there and looking like they need a little-

Peter closed the gap between you and gave you a kiss. He pulled back instantly, and stood up pacing in his room. “Fuck, fuck, fucking fuck.” He mumbled, pulling his hair and trying not to look at you.

You on the other hand were stunned. Did that just happen? Did you both really kiss? Did he mean you? You stood up and made your way over to Peter and grabbed Peter’s hands. “Y/n, I’m sorry, I know you don’t feel the same-”

You shut him up with a kiss, slowly moving your hands away from his hands and to his hair, deepening the kiss. Peter couldn’t believe what was going on, this had to be a fake. No one could love him, especially not someone as ethereal as you.

You both pulled away, your hands still in his hair and his were now respectfully on your waist. Peter gasped a little, a mixture of needing some air and feeling like he was going to faint. “I love you.” You spoke quietly.

“Oh my fucking god that is the sexiest thing you have ever said.” He blurted out, then immediately regretted it. Thinking to himself that he has been hanging out with Harry too much.

“I just confess my love for you and you go and say that.”

“I’m sorry!” Peter tried, looking up and giving you a sheepish smile. You, although, didn’t look that impressed. “But, I love you too.” Your eyes softened and you went in a little closer, not to give him a kiss, but a hug.

“Do you still love me after I said that?”

“Yes.” You sighed, pulling him away and giving him another kiss. It was supposed to be just a little peck but Peter seemed a little desperate for a little more, but you pulled away. “Just never say it ever again.”

The rest of the night went by quickly, everyone went out to a fast food place to get dinner, and after a movie everyone suddenly yawned and claimed they were too tired, insisting that you and Peter should stay up. You looked over at Peter who blushed, and immediately knew that he told someone -most likely Harry- who told everyone else about the kiss.

“How are you doing?” You asked. “Feeling any better about the future yet?” You combed your hand through his curls and he just smiled.

“Better now that I know I won't have any regrets on my love life.”

“Mhm.” You hummed, sat peacefully with each other, snuggling closer and closer as you got sleepier.

An alarm went off, jolting you both awake. “Whas’ that?” Peter groggly asked, raising his fists a little.

You laughed as you reached over to the coffee table and took your phone, stopping the alarm. “I set an alarm for midnight so I could be the first to wish you a happy birthday.” Kiss. “So, happy birthday, Pete.” You gave him another quick kiss on the lips, pulled away, and got up.

“Where are you going?” Peter whined, making grabby hands at you to come back.

“Just grabbing your birthday gift.” You went to grab a small box with a bow from a drawer that you hid in there earlier, and walked back to the couch. “Here.” He took the box from your hands and slowly opened it. He gasped a little when he saw it.

“It’s... it’s just like in the photo.” He mumbled, pulling out the watch. Only touching it with his finger tips, scared it would break.

“I know you were sad when you lost Ben’s old one. I showed the picture around some shops so it’s the same model too.” You said sheepishly. “I hope you don’t mind.”

Peter shook his head and put the watch on his wrist. “I love it.” Peter smiled again. “Thank you.” You leaned into him and he leaned into you. You gave another peck on the cheek and he smiled again.

“Thanks for the best birthday.”

“It’s only been your birthday for five minutes.”

“I know.” He smiled, holding you a little closer. “But this is my first birthday where I’m not hiding my love for you.”

You kissed his lips. “That has to be the sexiest thing you have ever said.”

#peter parker x reader #peter parker x y/n #peter parker x you #peter parker fluff #peter parker smut #peter parker fanfic #peter parker imagine #peter parker #peter parker angst #peter parker fanfiction #spiderman x reader #spiderman x you #spiderman x y/n #spiderman fluff #spiderman angst #spiderman smut #spiderman fanfiction #spiderman imagine

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koalas-koalas-everywhere · 3 years ago

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I’ve been thinking about the development (or lack thereof) of characters who were MEANT to be the protagonist’s endgame, specifically because they were meant to be their endgame and so their writing was risk-averse, and now I think that the reason Mary Jane was so well developed was because of the constant shipper/non-shipper tug of war, which made her writing extremely risky.

Stan: So clearly Gwen will be Peter’s wife, but first we have to get them together. Let’s do it with style - a love triangle! We’ll finally introduce that Mary Jane girl of the “great personality”, but make her gorgeous. Peter will be interested in her, but ultimately realize that it’s Gwen he wants to be with! We’ll make her a shallow party girl, so that she’ll be instantly charming, but tedious in the long term.

Fans: OMG Mary Jane’s so great! I totally identify with her! She’s such a breath of fresh air! And she’s really friendly, too! She and Peter should get together, they’d contrast so well!

Stan: Um, no! Did you miss the part where she’s a flake who doesn’t really care about Peter but only about having fun?

Fans: It’s so cool to see a female character who’s not always waiting on her man! Oh my, my elders always assume I’m an airhead too just because I’m with the times, I so identify!

Stan: *razzle razzle* Well, Peter’s with Gwen and Mary Jane’s gone now! AND she got an ugly hairdo before she left!

Fans: oh ew

Stan: Yeaaaah, we knew the hair trick would work.

Fans: no, change it back.

Stan: You know what? I’m a nice guy. She’s been dating Harry, Peter and Gwen have been together for over a year now, so there’s no way you’ll prefer her now, is there? Sure, she can come back, with her old hair, too.

Fans: Oh, I remember why I liked her so much! She’s so great! She and Peter should be together!

Stan: ... did I mention how she constantly puts down Gwen, the ACTUAL leading lady, and flirts with Peter even though they’re both in a relationship with other people.

Fans: Oh, yes, I really wish I knew more about her so I could understand her better!

Stan: ...... and how about the fact that she blows off Harry when he says she’s his girl...

Fans: Hot girl shit.

Stan: ... when Harry’s been doing drugs, specifically to get his mind off of her, and he overdoses after she says that.

Fans: ... yikes.

Stan: And she keeps it up, both the relationship and the flirting with Peter, after Harry gets back from the hospital.

Fans: We already said yikes!

Stan: Good. My job’s done. You can take it from here, Gerry.

Gerry Conway: Hi :) First of all, let me tell you guys about how worried Mary Jane feels that Harry relapsed, which happened because of the pressure his father put on him. Next, there’s this bridge...

Fans: ... dude.

Gerry: ... and this door. And Mary Jane stays with Peter even though things aren’t easy or fun anymore. Now let me tell you about her mysterious reluctance to get attached, but how they grow as friends until they’re on the cusp of becoming more (check out that airport kiss!)...

Fans: Ooohhh, okay, this is good.

Gerry, with a red laser dot in his forehead from the sniper Stan’s hired: ... and then Gwen comes back.

Fans: wut? (Some of them: I specifically asked you not to do this!)

Gerry: (She’s a clone!) And Mary Jane feels dejected because Peter seems to have forgotten her in favor of Gwen (even though Peter’s been avoiding her, too, mostly dealing with Spider-Man stuff), but hides it behind a cheerful, party-girl veneer. By the way, between this and the “I don’t want to love him”, doesn’t this make you wonder what else she might be hiding and why?

Fans: I do! I do wonder! Are you gonna tell me?

Gerry: No ;) Anyway, stuff happens, they get together (there’s another door... and a little extra ;)) and Peter is convinced that he’s not a clone because he loves her so completely. Ciao.

Len Wein: A cute couple, yes. A realistic one, too. Mary Jane won’t take Peter constantly ditching her quietly and, after making her displeasure clear to him many times, she takes to cuddling it up with Flash, once more pulling the same “you’re not the only fish in the sea” routine, as Peter calls it, from when they’d first met, only with a vengeance. She’s also messing with Flash by doing this, since he’s assuming that she and Peter weren’t that serious and isn’t aware that he’s hurting his friend by hanging on with his girlfriend.

Fans: Hey, that’s not cool!

Len: No, but nobody’s perfect and it’s already been established that this is how Mary Jane is. However, one thing’s different: she genuinely cares about Peter this time, and probably also Flash, so, after getting chewed out, she and Peter talk things out. Neither of them are fully grown, but they’re growing together...

(Stan, in the newspaper strip: You might have a point there...)

Marv Wolfman: ... then Peter proposes to Mary Jane, she says no and fucks off to LA.

Fans: Oh, come on!

Roger Stern: I hear ya! Now she’s back! By the way, check out her sister, huh?

Fans: Who?!

Roger: Ok, bye!

Tom DeFalco, rushing in: Her sister! From her tragic backstory that gives added depth to her actions up til now, giving more meaning to all the positives (that now look like progress and victories against her trauma) but also her negatives, adding motive and sympathy for her, without coddling her. She confides in him this story that almost no one’s aware of to get even because she reveals that she’s known he’s Spider-Man for a while now.

Fans: ... give me a minute... ok, then, when’s the wedding?!

(Stan: Funny you should ask...)

Christopher Priest: NEVER. It’s not happening! Here, look at them doing couple stuff while refusing to believe that they’re a couple. Now they’ll kiss and be horrified about it because it exposes the lie they’d been telling themselves about the nature of their relationship. They’ll come together at the end when MJ offers a friendly ear to Peter, thus showing how bad they are together!

David Michelinie: ... so they’re dating, even when it looks like they aren’t, which makes this seemingly out-of-nowhere marriage proposal make sense.

-------------------------------

Like, without some writers going “DON’T SHIP HER WITH PETER SHE’S AWFUL” and others going “oh, but I do, so now I’ll try to develop her into someone who could be with Peter”, which meant exploring the reasons for her initial awfulness, which already made her a bit more complex, in ways that also added depth to her character, allowing her a path of growth, and resonated with the main theme of responsibility, she wouldn’t have been such a great character.

#Mary Jane Watson-Parker #Mary Jane Watson #MJ Watson #PeterMJ #Peter Parker #Spider-Man #Spider Man #comics

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ordinariums-a · 2 years ago

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Universal constants was something that Peter had almost immediately picked up on. After realising that May Parker, in Peter One's universe, had died, and Ben had done the same in Peter Two's, it just... solidified everything. Norman Osborn, being the Green Goblin. Harry's story, from Peter Two. MJ falling, just as Gwen had? The fact that most of the multiverse was made from -- Parker's didn't surprise him. But it did make him uneasy. All that.. history, and pain. He didn't want to think about it.

So instead, he focused on- "Spider-Pig?" - The hell? Eyes following the device for a couple more seconds - and now being able to see Miles' face, he picked up on that caution. He'd feel the same thing, in his shoes. Which is why he was so quick to give it back. "Yeah, I'm gonna need more info on that." The Spider-Pig, that was. "But let's do this first, yeah?" He clapped his hands, and moved back, pulling his mask back on. Jameson was going to have a field day when he caught wind of two spider-men swinging around the city. He couldn't wait.

He swung off; his experience with Peter's 'one' and 'two' causing him to be aware of where Miles was at any given time. Last thing he wanted to do was run into the kid; hell, that'd be just embarrassing. It took a little longer than planned, but they got to the site quickly, and Peter thwip'd to a nearby roof, overlooking the place. "This is Oscorp's dumping spot in this reality, for all their tech items. There's a couple of guards on the payroll- over there. Super easy to sneak past. You can follow my lead - might be useful to have your uh.. let's call it a watch. Might be useful to have your watch with me while I get what I need, but if you prefer to say here, that's cool too."

Miles had given him no reason to think he was incapable or untrustworthy. But Peter was also well aware that he was much younger than he had been when he had started out. Having the option to sit back? Always helpful.

It was...weird, seeing his face. Despite knowing it wasn't him, it was like part of his brain still expected to see Peter B. staring back at him. This Peter was younger, though. Probably closer to his Peter's age, if Miles had to guess. He lifted his mask enough to show his own face, letting the fabric rest on his forehead. "Yeah. Peni Parker. A lot of Parkers are Spider-Man, actually. Or Spider-Woman. Or Spider-Pig." He's still not over that. "Peter Parker was Spider-Man in my universe, too. I think you probably are in most of them." Not in Gwen's, and Peni never mentioned him, but that's still at least five out of seven, now. Plus however many variations of himself this Peter had met.

That tight ball of anxiety in his chest loosened once he had the watch back in his hands, Miles quickly strapping it to his wrist again. He nodded eagerly, glad he was being invited along, rather than being told to stay put and wait. He wanted to help, even if he wasn't quite sure how to, yet. Sitting around feeling useless wasn't exactly something he enjoyed, after all. "Yeah, totally! Lead the way."

#ic #verse ; peter parker / tasm #normaltothemax #i mean i was telling the truth #you're fckin ace??#it's kinda amazing

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rosaliestark01 · 4 years ago

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Dusk Till Dawn - Part 8

Peter Parker x Reader

Summary: You play double agent while the Avengers search for you.

Warnings: more swearing than usual, angst, violence

A/N: @annies-marvel-imagines will no longer be posting more parts, but she will still receive credit.

You paced around Ezekiel's secret hideout and realized several things. The first thing is that there was no way that these two individuals managed to get their hands on such high-level tech by themselves. The second was that Ezekiel obviously lied about being your dad. The third was that Ezekiel most definitely had enough money to get a less crappy apartment. The fourth and most crucial thing you realized was that you'd have to play along with their plan longer than you wanted to.

Judging by the number of meals you've gotten, you'd guess you've been there for three days. It was hard to pretend that you wanted to wipe out the Avengers, but you had to remind yourself that this was just another mission. Except, you didn't have your suit or any means of contacting your team. Plus, the Avengers had no idea where you were, what you were doing, or what you were trying to do. You were on your own.

"Don't just stand there, you spoiled brat. Help us out," Eloise yelled at you.

Another thing that made it hard to act like you were on their side was the constant feeling of wanting to strange Eloise every time she opened her mouth. She honestly reminded you of a penny. Two-faced and not worth much.

"What the hell is this thing?" you ask as you approach the strange metal box that Eloise and Ezekiel had struggled to get out of Ezekiel's truck.

"You like it?" he asks, causing you to furrow your eyebrows. Was this guy serious?

"Did your ears suddenly stop working, or are you just that bad at listening to someone else's shit for once?" You say without thinking. The strange looks from them tell you that it was the wrong thing to say, so you backtrack. "Sorry, I'm still a little nervous about all this."

"It's fine," Ezekiel mutters, coughing awkwardly before becoming grave. "As long as you do your job, you have nothing to worry about."

"What's that supposed to mean?" You ask, suddenly becoming defensive.

"This is your new suit." Eloise snarks, clearly trying to get everyone's attention back onto the metal box. She pressed a button, causing it to open.

Inside was a suit that looked similar to your dad's iron suit, but instead of red and gold, it was black and purple.

"Why does it look like that?" You ask. Why would they base the suit off of Iron Man's suit if they hate his guts?

"We figured you'd like an upgrade," Ezekiel beamed proudly. You're assuming that he was the one who built it, but you weren't ready to jump to conclusions. The guy already had trouble figuring out how to open the microwave. "Your old suit seemed..."

"weak," Eloise rolled her eyes as she finished his sentence.

"It was flexible and bulletproof," you defended. The suit you always wore worked well for years. Who do these people think they are? "I made it with my d- with Tony Stark."

"That explains a lot." She crosses her arms as she stares down at you with a judgmental glare. "Trust me. If you're going up against the Avengers, you're going to want to wear this. It'll protect you better than that flimsy piece of shit you always wore before."

"Fine," you mumbled, remembering that it is in your best interest to pretend that you agree with them.

--------------------

Peter felt like he was drowning.

He'd never gone this long without knowing if you were okay or not, and it was killing him. Without you, his Peter-Tingle, or Spidey-Senses as you called it, felt like a timer he couldn't shut off. He wasn't sure if it had to do with the fact that he was worried out of his mind or if it meant that you were in danger. Maybe both?

What was worse was that he had to pretend everything was okay. Happy was in the hospital, you were missing, and the Avengers were moving heaven and Earth to find you, but he couldn't join them. May and the Avengers insisted that he let the "adults" handle this. Did it ever occur to them that you matter to him just as much, if not more?

"Hey, Pete?" Ned and the rest of your friends approached him hesitantly. They all worried about you, but they knew that it was harder on him. "Is there any update on Y/N?"

"Not yet." Peter would have known if there was even a slight update. "Have any of you heard anything?"

"Gwen feels guilty about what happened at homecoming," Harley states ."She says that if she hadn't spilled her drink on Y/N, she never would have left the gym."

They all look to where Gwen was standing with her friends. She didn't look happy. In fact, she looked like she hadn't slept since word got out that you were missing.

"She should feel guilty." Peter huffs, "If she got over her damn pettiness long enough to realize that I love Y/N, I never would have lost her."

"Still... she said she'd back off," Harry says, feeling uncomfortable with the current subject. There is no excuse for what Gwen did, but she did look like she had learned her lesson.

"We want to help," Betty admitted, causing a bit of hope to fill Peter's mind. So far, all he's heard was "let the adults handle this". Knowing that his friends want to help find you was like a breath of fresh air.

"Yeah. It doesn't feel right to sit back and do nothing when Y/N is who knows where," Harry sighs, patting Peter on the back.

"Thanks, guys," Peter replies, smiling for the first time since you've disappeared. "That means-"

Before he could finish, he turned around, and not a second later, an explosion went off right across from the school.

"What the f-"

----------------

"I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that you never told us that Y/N was adopted," Clint says as he paces back and forth in the compound. He didn't have the slightest idea that anything was going on until he received a call telling him that you were missing and that help was needed tracking you down.

"He had his reasons; now are you going to focus more on that or finding Y/N?" Pepper replied, defending Tony. Although she agrees that Tony should have told you, she knows that he had his reasons.

"Maybe she doesn't want to be found?" Clint asks, although the second it came out of his mouth, he knew it sounded stupid.

"No," Steve says, his arms crossed in concentration. "I've known Y/N for a long time, and she's a good kid. She's going through stuff right now, but she'd never run away or leave Happy alone while he's in the hospital. Something else is going on, and I'd bet it had to do with those two."

The TV displayed everything they knew so far. The two likely suspects were none other than Eloise Day and Ezekiel Stane. Security footage showed you getting into Eloise's car, which was later found outside a shambly apartment building. After further inspection, your phone was found inside of the apartment belonging to Ezekiel Stane.

"Agreed". Tony stared at the screen, trying to figure out if there is anything he's missing. He knows that Ezekiel is the son of his old business partner. Tony knows that Eloise was a new student who gained your trust. What he didn't realize was their connection and what their goal is.

"If-When we find her, you need to tell her the truth," Steve tells him.

"Yeah, we'll go out for cheeseburgers and laugh about it. Am I right?" Tony snaps. It was clear that he knew who your real father is and that you might already know him too. "I- I don't want her to hate me when I tell her."

"Trust me. Y/N will understand if your heart was in the right place," Steve encourages, placing a hand on Tony's shoulder. For a second, Tony's shoulders slump before his resold seems to harden.

"Her real dad is-"

"I think you'll be able to tell her yourself," Nat speaks urgently. "Y/N's been spotted in Queens."

"Let's suit up."

-------------------

You couldn't help but feel as though your plan was about to fail. Eloise and Ezekiel have recently kept a closer eye on you than usual, which isn't good. You have a feeling that they're on to you, which means that you might have to improvise.

"Play along," Ezekiel mutters in your ear before roughly grabbing your arm. Out of the corner of your eye, you see Eloise pointing some blaster at you that looks too much like the one that Hydra dude shot you with.

Before you can ask what he was doing, a familiar figure swung in front of you.

"Let her go," Peter demands. Although you cannot see his face, you can tell he's angry. You felt bad for putting him through this, but in the long run, you'll have to put him through it a little longer.

"Fat chance, you spider freak!" Eloise roars, suddenly pointing the blaster at Peter.

"Wait-" You yell, but your voice is drowned out by Ezekiel's yells as Eloise pulls the trigger.

It was like everything was happening in slow motion. You wanted to scream for Peter, but the shot never made it to its target. Instead, it met with a familiar red, white, and blue shield.

"Whatever happened to my signal?!" Ezekiel yelled at Eloise, who rolled her eyes for the one-hundred-millionth time that day.

"I'm not letting you crap on my chance again, old man!" She barks at him as she continues firing the blaster. By now, all of the Avengers seem to have shown up, and her target was everyone.

"Don't you d-" He yells, but she ignores him.

Cursing, he tries to pull you away from the fight as he tries to think of a new plan. You already knew what needed to happen, but you weren't sure if you were ready to see everyone's faces when you are forced to betray them.

"So is this a thing now? Kidnapping my daughter for revenge or something?" your dad asks as he lands in front of you and Ezekiel, ready to fight.

"Who said I kidnapped her?" Ezekiel smirks. You wanted to wipe the arrogance off his face, but you couldn't. You had a job to do.

"Dammit," You curse. You press the button on your bracelet that morphed into your "new" suit. You didn't want to see the looks everyone will give you, so as you took down the people you call your family, you couldn't look them in the eye.

TAG LIST:

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softgrungeprophet · 4 years ago

Text

i liked agent venom when i read it, partially because it actually had a discernible plot and a story that wasn’t just half finished and abandoned from constant cancellations, but at the same time i hate it. i hate it so much.

i hate that flash became venom and suddenly, all of his relationships were completely erased except for like, betty and sometimes peter and that was it. mj and harry who? childhood friendship with liz? no she’s just going to... blackmail him for some reason even though they’ve known each other for literally like 15 years

i hate the agent venom origin slott wrote, i hate flash being pissy about peter confiding in MJ, who they are both friends with, because if you’re dan slott you can’t talk to girls unless you plan on fucking them, i hate how gung ho slott is about the military propaganda and the fucking american flag behind flash in superior spider-man, even though superior (a comic i don’t ever plan to read in full) actually had a good moment with flash and “peter” and flash’s tenseness in a domestic argument situation

(i also hate that that one pre-agent venom web of spidey comic could have been good, actually had good assistive devices, but then... the entire villain plot is about some Mysterious Terrorist or whatever who nonetheless congratulates flash for “constructively” letting out his anger on faceless middle-eastern soldiers, and this is played straight--disgusting)

i hate all of it even the things i like because they took a character who actually was fairly complex and flattened him into a football-loving, gun-toting, all-american patriot who loves god and his country, at odds with the previous 30 years of character development, at odds with the flash who when asked if he liked being in the army (after being DRAFTED into fucking vietnam) said that there is no liking the army, only dealing with it, and i hate every bro who thinks agent venom was the coming of the great whatever and acts like flash was completely nothing before then and that only in agent venom did he have any character when the opposite is true and agent venom trampled out every bit of nuance he had to focus on alcohol and football and nothing else (at least bunn finally put him back into a school again, had him working with youth again (andi in this case))

i hate, unrelated to agent venom, the fact that flash the complex character has been further and further stretched and distorted to have been a horribly violent schoolwide bully as a teenager rather than what he actually was--an obnoxious kid with a fucked up home life trying to fuck with one specific kid--to the point that even in the college stuff, even AFTER having “become good,” he’s the only one who gets repeatedly and purposefully excluded from official works and fan works alike because everyone thinks of him as nothing more than a bully, that every movie appearance of flash sucks except TASM (which is still barely a flutter but you can tell thought was actually put into his character by the actor himself), the fact that he’s the only living member of the friend group (because i assume gwen is dead) who doesn’t get more than a single-line mention in the ps4 game (but at least it’s positive, and i like to pretend that MJ was checking on him when she went to the veteran’s center since we know he works with veterans in the game, even if we never see him) (i still want to be able to go to coffee with mj, flash and harry all together)

i don’t like the bullying flashback in the bunn AV run (even though i liked the comic as a whole, especially with andi, and how bunn and shalvey moved away from the military stuff more toward neighborhood protector stuff), i don’t like bunn’s take on high school flash (he also wrote a different spider-man comic with high school flash a little bit before then)

i hate that flash’s growth wrt his disability, which he came to accept as a part of him that he didn’t need to find some miracle cure for, was completely thrown down the toilet so they could do their stupid supersoldier agent venom shit, which flies directly against the SPECIFIC endpoint of the stages of grief comic, which SPECIFICALLY used superserums and bionic military limb testing as the thing he did not need in his life--and then dan slott runs over like teehee here’s some bionic supersoldier military testing shit :3c

hate that he was killed for the stupidest reason by norman fucking osborn, hate that the disabled abuse survivor was killed by the man who killed one of his best friends, who abused another, who manipulated HIM, who drove him into a fucking building after force-feeding him hard alcohol, hate that norman got to “win” against flash one last time, hate that norman is now being treated as this fucking “couldn’t help it” case while harry is Actually Bad, and still, flash is what? a dream symbiote dragon? fucking stupid and i hate it, i don’t want any of it

every new thing i see about new spider-man and venom comics wrt flash makes me wish he would stay dead lmfao

but it’s not like there weren’t already a ton of bad comics about him but at the very least... i would like something that isn’t just about the Patriotic Soldier Boy who never actually fucking existed

the football thing is a really fun one--and i love that the TASM movie made flash play basketball in that movie because if you look at comics from the 60s through to the early-mid 2000s, preceding agent venom... flash stopped playing football after high school and started playing basketball instead. started doing other sports, probably stopped football because, gee i can guess who told him to play football in the first place, but somehow agent venom happened and decided that his entire life was just Football and Guns? when he hadn’t touched a football in literally like... 10 years in-universe

(TASM best live-action spidey adaptation)

there is not purpose to this rant i just needed to get all this shit out of my head

i am very On Edge the past few weeks and idk why, just ADHD brain shit I guess but everything makes me tense lately (probably why i played through 77% of the spidey game in literally four days by virtue of doing absolutely nothing else in my free time) (i’m taking a break for the sake of my hands but maybe i should go keep playing lol)

i know some people like the dragon and i’ve added it to my “flash trans” list but in the context of stories about flash over the past ten years i really am not interested, and this coming from someone who read eragon 9 times in middle school and grew up reading mostly high fantasy and dragon books. i just. don’t want it. not by the writers currently going at least. maybe if it was someone else or if i knew it would be anything more than a future of soldier boy alcohol football crap lmfao

#nadia reads comics #anyway if anyone has recs for pre-2000s issues that focus on flash i would like that #i have read the prom story though i like that one... nuance...#not interested in the hobgoblin comics either i think those fucked up his character #flash: calls sha shan a wench #me: literally who the fuck is this cause it's not flash

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youwerenevermeanttofeelalone · 5 years ago

Photo

SSTTT ❁︎ 𝐎𝐍𝐄

Pairing: Harry Osborn x Plus Size Reader

Word Count: 3.3k

Gif credit: @lovingpostit

Summary & Warnings || Series Masterlist

𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐭𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬

𝐃𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫?

❁︎ ・・・・・❁︎ ・・・・・ ❁︎ ・・・・・❁︎

Peter Parker was your dream man. He was funny and charming, a little shy; nice, smart, and handsome. His chocolate brown eyes transmitted warmth and at that moment, as you looked at him across the library, those eyes were gazing at his girlfriend while he told her what you assumed to be one of his lame jokes. Peter Parker was your dream man, and you weren’t his dream woman. You weren’t tall, nor blonde, nor thin, nor charming— you weren’t Gwen Stacy.

You turned your attention back to the stupid paper you were redacting. It wasn’t stupid per se, the topic was interesting enough for you to not hate it— what you hated was the fact that you were there because Tony had sent you. Your mentor was still overprotective of Peter, Thanos’ snap was too fresh in everyone’s memory so you didn’t have the heart to tell him any when he begged you with those big puppy eyes of his to watch Peter in his college life.

Your college life had differed greatly from his, from most, it had been way lonelier and stressful. You loved science, it wasn’t difficult for you to get into med school— it hadn’t even been difficult to double major in medicine and biochemistry, but you had been so used to be homeschooled that being around people fucked with your mental health. Tony said it was normal, you liked to think it was but you would be lying to yourself if you said you hadn’t wanted to drop out. The only reason you didn’t switch to an online career was your love for medicine since you were a child, you wanted to save people, make a change. Help people like you hadn’t been able to help your mother.

Maybe your college life had been tough because you missed your mother, or because you went through it without Peter and Ned. The only friend you had at the time were Tony, Nat, Pepper, and Morgan. Five years around adults and a child while mourning your mother and your best friends was a punch in the gut, a constant one. You thought you had been done with it, you envisioned yourself working to get your medical license and maybe learn a new language or whatever.

You cursed Tony as you walked toward the Avenger Compound alongside Peter and Gwen. Leaving the campus with him, as if he was a child who needed a babysitter, was annoying; you could’ve left hours ago, be with Bruce in the lab doing more important things that trailing behind your crush and his gorgeous girlfriend.

Tony was waiting for the three of you to get home like he did every day, smiling with a twinkle in those warm eyes you could never say no to.

”We have a new engineer in chief! Pepper won't be in a bad mood for the week!” he said happily. After everything Quentin Beck tried to do to discredit him and hurt Peter, he had struggled to find someone trustworthy. ”I’m hoping someone here won't fuck him, though.”

You clenched your jaw when Gwen laughed. ”You should hope they don't turn into a supervillain.”

”So you really really fucked him?!” Peter had asked the same thing every time Tony mentioned Quentin.

”Of course I did, Pete,” you said with feigned confidence, ”didn’t you see him?”

”He was older than you!”

”And it showed.”

Tony snorted, shaking his head. ”I’m a terrible influence on you.”

”You’re not mad, Mr. Stark?” Gwen’s questions made you fight a wince.

”She didn’t know who he was.”

Gwen wanted to ask more about it, you were sure of it. And because you were sure you disappeared into the main hallway and made a turn in direction to the lab. You had never spoken with a woman about your sex life, or with someone that wasn't Tony in an explicit manner. The topic was sensitive, you suffered a lot to gain the confidence to get sexually involved with someone because of how insecure you were, and when you finally had the guy turned out to be using you for information.

Information you never gave, but you still felt bad for having fallen for the trick so easily. Maybe Quentin had enjoyed it too, and maybe he didn’t have a lot against you and was only doing what was logical: gain Tony Stark’s protege’s trust to get access to the genius billionaire’s creations. But maybe you should’ve been less naive, maybe you were so desperate to be accepted and wanted that you put the entire world in danger. Shamefully you had to admit the dick had been worth it, but only in front of Tony to whom you never lie.

The memory of the interrogation SHIELD put you under made you scowl. Bruce saw it and inquired if something was wrong, carefully staring at you when you simply shook your head. He often worried, you often lied by saying everything was okay.

“How was school?”

“Boring.” You leaned down to look into the microscope, analyzing the sample Peter had recovered days ago.

Bruce took his glasses off, eyes still on you. “Your master’s degree is boring?”

Humming, you continued examining the sample to write the observations down.

Bruce left the lab way before you did which happened on a daily basis, Tony constantly worried about how much time you spent there and the medical bay, but it helped you focus and relax so he was never pushy about you cutting off some hours. You left at dinner time, though.

Tony loved having everyone around for dinner, even more since Bucky said it made him feel at home. You adored Bucky, not more than you adored Tony because Stark was after your parents the most important person in your life but Bucky was pretty close. James and you understood each other well, and in your free time, you would show him modern things you thought he’d enjoy while he taught you older things.

Around the table, Tony, Pepper, Morgan, Bucky, Bruce, Thor, Rhodey, Carol, Sam, Peter, Gwen, and Peter’s best friend were already sat. Harry would often hang out in the compound with Peter so it didn’t strange you. You didn’t know a lot about him, he was aloof and made efforts to keep himself away from people even though he was extremely popular at school.

Apologizing for being late, you pinched Morgan’s cheek and took your usual seat between Carol and Sam. The male captain ruffled your hair as a greeting like he would do all the time and turned to continue his conversation with Tony and Rhodey without a comment.

The sensation of being stared at unnerved you the entire dinner, it was something familiar and yet there was a slight new feeling. You were used to people staring at you in the streets, mostly because of your weight, but you weren’t used to it happening inside The Compound, and you knew whose gaze it was. Gwen might have been a little annoying for your liking, but she had never made you feel uncomfortable which meant the person looking at you was Harry.

You ignored it, that was what you would always do when someone fixed their eyes on you unless it was someone you trusted. When the meal was over you offered to clean the table and put the dishes in the dishwasher just to get away from the feeling irking you to the point of having to bite your tongue to not snap at Osborn.

Squatting down, you meticulously arranged the plates in the dishwasher before one by one dropping the cutlery to lose time. As you stood up, the sight past the counter made you regret having offered to do anything— Peter had Gwen on his lap, her head on his shoulder as his arms wrapped around her thin waist. They were probably watching a movie in the living room which meant your night would be painfully long.

Said sight was blocked by Harry himself who was approaching the kitchen, eyes still fixed on you. Scurrying off would be extremely impolite, and you cursed yourself this time for being too prideful to look rude.

He leaned his forearms on the counter, “hi.”

“Hi.”

“You suck at hiding it.”

You nodded and then looked up, wide-eyed. You didn’t expect him to be observant, or yourself to slip up so easily. You could act in nonchalance and say something, anything, maybe that you were tired and feign the assumption of thinking he was talking about that, or maybe something more extreme like you were dying; you felt like you potentially were, actually— you had just kind of told your crush’s best friend you had a crush on your crush!

To make things worse, your eyes deviated to the side and behind him, where Gwen was kissing Peter’s cheek.

He lifted his brows, leaning closer, “you really do suck at hiding it.”

Snapping your eyes toward his face, you rolled them. It was better to be as abrasive as he was being, you didn’t know him after all.

“He’s protective over you, y’know?”

“Yeah. He told Tony I’m like the sister he always wanted to have.”

Harry winced, “that’s...”

You hummed. That was worse than being told he wasn’t interested, it was more than a rejection— it was the reminder that you were the chubby friend Peter loved like a sibling because you were nice.

“He told me not to talk to you.” You lifted an inquiring eyebrow. He explained himself, “he doesn’t want us to end up dating.”

Ah yes, because you were dying to jump into a relationship with someone you didn’t know anything about. “Understandable,” you conceded.

“And that’s why we should date.” A snort escaped you and he interrupted the comment curling up in your tongue: “we could fake it.”

“He’s your best friend.”

“That’s how I know he won’t realize it’s fake.”

You shook your head, “it’s pointless, I’m his sister figure, and you’re his brother figure,” you made a face, “that sounds horrendously incestuous...”

Gwen giggled loudly, prompting Harry to crane his neck to see what was going on. You saw Peter tickling his girlfriend in the ribs with his face hidden in the crook of her neck past Osborn’s shoulder. Harry straightened his back, covering the spectacle.

You looked down, finding an irregular shape in the granite on top of the wooden counter. He shuffled around, his steps approaching your left side, the closest to the edge of the island.

Harry took his former position, this time next to you, and looked down too. The shapes he found were less interesting, more normal which made them border in boring. You dared to look to the side, your elbow almost touching his as you mirrored his position.

His eyes deviated toward you although he didn’t move his head, “you good?” You shook your head. That made him turn his neck to face you. “Wanna go for a walk? I always take one after dinner.”

Supposing some fresh air wouldn’t hurt, you found yourself saying you’d fetch a jacket.

Slipping your cellphone in your pocket, you crossed the living room in direction to the door where Harry was waiting for you. The couple on the couch was too busy making out to realize. You opened the door and allowed Harry to get out of the building first, not comfortable with the idea of being followed.

The stroll was slow, the sidewalks weren’t full at that time of the night and it was a Friday. The two of you would probably have walked slowly even if the streets were busy, both seemed in need of some peace. You didn’t know him well enough to ask about it; you actually only knew his name, socioeconomic status, and that he was reserved.

You reached the park where he strut toward a bench. You realized, by seeing him walk, how tall he really was; why hadn’t you seen that before? Shrugging, you stood near the bench, swinging your hips in that way your father always laughed at— from left to right as if lulling a baby to sleep.

He stared up at the sky. “Why does it affect you so much?”

You didn’t have a way of knowing if he was mocking you or not, his tone was plain all the time. “It doesn’t.”

“I’ve seen you. Multiple times.”

He also always went straight to the point from what you could gather. “Emotional investment.”

“Mmhmm.”

“Why are you so curious?” You dared to ask something finally. Minutes of silence had passed, both looking up, presumably deep in thought.

“He talks a lot about you.”

“That doesn’t answer the question,” you pressed on.

Harry scoffed, patting the bench so you’d sit down beside him. You didn’t see the gesture, but you heard it. Complying, you sat down a little less than a meter away from him. He rotated his body, elbow resting on the back of the bench as his flexed knee brushed your thigh.

“Why doesn’t it answer the question?”

“Because I asked why were you curious, not if he spoke about me.”

“You’re into him and he talks about you a lot but he’s dating someone else— wouldn’t you be curious if one of your friends did that?”

You shrugged. “I talk a lot about (favorite artist), do you hear people asking them about me?” He glared at you, making you sigh. “We’ve been through a few hardships together, Pete probably just treasures me.”

“That doesn’t mean he doesn’t get jealous.”

It seemed like he also knew how to press on topics without looking pushy. That was a smooth transition back to their conversation back in the kitchen, you had to admit. “Friends, parents, siblings... everyone gets jealous sometimes.”

“We’ve been forbidden from asking you out, isn’t that a bit too much?”

You had to agree with him on that. “Then why do you want to lie to him by saying we’re dating?”

“Open his eyes, look more functional in society, have a friend...”

“I’ve never dated someone, it wouldn’t be believable.”

“I haven’t dated someone in a long time. That would make it more believable.”

Harry had that reputation. Not of a player, simply of someone who would only have one night stands from time to time but never a serious relationship. You had assumed it to be normal with how closed off he was; feeling his eyes on your face, you wondered if he wanted to change that.

“What if he doesn’t believe it?”

“He will, trust me.”

“You’re kind of a stranger to me,” you reminded him. How could you trust him when they had never spoken before?

He nodded. “But you still have to trust me so the plan succeeds.”

“Right.”

He stretched his leg, introducing his hand in his pocket. Seconds later, he handed you his cellphone. Staring down at it, you then tilted your head for a mere second before it clicked.

Typing your number in, you took your own device out from your jacket and copied his movements so he would do the same. Harry called you as soon as his device was back in his grasp, wanting to make sure you hadn’t given him a fake number.

You huffed a laugh, declining the call just to spite him. As you did it, you looked at the time and with a sigh stood up from the bench— time had gone by fairly quickly and you needed to wake up early the next day to work.

He stood up too, walking beside you like he had when you left The Compound. It annoyed him a little to move slowly, but it was better than being trapped in his house or third-wheeling his best friends.

Gwen’s head was on Peter’s lap as Harry and you passed them, another movie was playing: Star Wars. The two of you rolled your eyes, you once again going behind the counter to take the dishes out of the dishwasher to dry them.

“I’ll help you,” he sighed, opening his palm so you’d hand him a towel.

You opened a drawer, taking a couple of towels out of it and placing them on the counter. He snatched one, waiting for you to withdraw the plates. That was his task, drying the plates while you dried the cutlery and glaziery. Harry was quicker than you which made you think he often would do chores although it was unlikely. He ended up helping with half the glaziery too and storing them of course, you had to take advantage of his height and willingness.

The sounds coming from the living room muted, high heeled steps letting you know Gwen was walking toward you. Harry got closer to you, his back against the counter with his hands flat on the surface to prop himself as you faced him.

“Are you busy tomorrow?” The steps stopped when the question left his lips, Gwen presumably wanting to hear your answer.

“Until noon.”

He hummed. “Would you like to get lunch with me? I promise to not complain when you talk about (favorite artist).”

Lifting both eyebrows at the attention he put to what you said earlier, you felt movement near you. “I would.”

“Great,” he pushed himself forward. Gwen entered the kitchen at that moment, looking at you both with an eyebrow lifted. Harry nodded upward at her before looking at you again, “I’ll leave you to get some rest. I imagine you have work tomorrow?”

You nodded, “that’s why I’m busy in the morning.”

“I’ll text you,” he assured, for whatever reason

Gwen and you watched Harry cross the living room, leaving with a ‘see you tomorrow, Pete’. Peter hadn’t known his best friend was still there, or so it seemed. The shorter young man ran behind his best friend and entertained him at the door, probably asking what had he been doing there.

Unconsciously, you and Gwen shared a look. The chances of you both thinking the same although for different reasons were high and only heightened when the front door closed and hurried stomps in your direction bounced against the walls.

Peter stood in front of both of you, arms crossed against his chest and not intimidating at all. Gwen stepped up a little bit, placing a hand on her boyfriend’s shoulder to tame him or whatever it was she wanted to do— it was unclear to you if Peter often got angry with Gwen around, lately you had avoided seeing them more than necessary to not feel your stomach dropping.

“Harry’s my best friend.”

“Are we stating facts?” you feigned ignorance as to why he had harshly spoken.

Peter frowned. “Baby,” Gwen said softly, an attempt of distracting him.

“Babe, you wouldn’t like it if your best friends dated!”

“We are Harry’s best friends and we are dating, he never complains.”

You shrugged, “if you’re going to keep stating facts, be my guest. I need to get some sleep.” Slipping past the couple, you crossed the doorway before saying loudly enough for them to hear, “have a good night you two!”

When you got to your bedroom, you already had a text message from Harry. You didn’t pay attention to the words on the screen and threw the device onto the bed. You would change into your pajamas first, better yet a nightgown to be more comfortable.

Taking a couple of wipes from the vanity’s drawer, you wiped the makeup off your face. Then, in the bathroom, you washed your face like every night and tapping a clean tower against your face, you allowed yourself to sigh tiredly.

Your day had felt too long since it started so as you mentally went through everything that happened you wondered how had you survived without bursting into tears. Turning the lights off, you did the opposite to the side lamp and slid into bed.

Picking your cellphone up, you did read the text.

Is 2:00 PM okay?

Sure.

Wear something casual.

Okay. See you tomorrow.

Good night.

#ssttt #harry osborn x reader #harry osborn x plus size reader #plus size reader #plus size fanfiction #plus size series #harry osborn series #fake dating au #harry osborn #marvel x reader #marvel x plus size reader #marvel series

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thompsborn · 10 months ago

Text

chapter eight - no one alone can do it alone

word count: 10,146 (10,128 without chapter lyrics)

total word count: 72,142 (71,909 without chapter lyrics)

chapter song: untitled (for now) by oliver daldry

chapter lyrics:

i have been here before to these cemetery doors with my hands almost bleeding my heart barely beating

recap + lines i felt were important enough to jot down:

picking up immediately from the end of chapter seven, harley is hugging peter. when peter stops fighting it and sinks into the comfort, and the pain becomes unbearable

At first, it’s like a live wire. When Harley hugs him—when Peter stops fighting it, stops trying to push Harley away and sinks into the embrace and accepts it—it’s as if he’s pulling back the bandages and exposing open wounds for anyone who may or may not be passing by to poke and prod at as they please. Harley tightens his hold, winds his arms around him and holds him closer and Peter doesn’t even really notice when it washes over him, when the fog that’s been clouding his senses, pushing it all down, away, hiding it—keeping it distant and muffled and quiet—starts to lift. He isn’t sure when he goes from just letting himself seek comfort from a hug that he didn’t even initiate to clutching onto the back of the crewneck that Harley’s got on under his work apron and completely falling apart. The wound is exposed to the harsh weather of the world for the first time in a year, since he first messily patched it up and shoved the memory of it as far back into his head as he could possibly make it go without forgetting it entirely. With the bandages pulled back and the fog cleared, the agony sets in. Peter heaves in a breath that makes his chest ache, makes his lungs twinge with the kind of pain that hints at injuries probably procured during the past day and a half of constant patrolling, though he can’t pinpoint any specific moments that might have ended up with any specific injuries at all, so he can’t quite place anything other than the fact that he’s hurt, in a lot of different ways, and the pain is everywhere.

harley says "i've got you, it's alright" but peter disagrees

"there's nothing he's been more sure of in the past year - the sun rises, the sun sets, he's spider-man before he's peter parker, and nothing is even close to alright"

everything is reminding peter of his trauma and his pain. he struggles to breathe in the face of it. his own heartbeat is so loud in his head that it reminds him of the explosions during the fight again thanos at the compound, of the explosions during the destruction of happy's apartment. he chokes on air trying to breathe and it reminds him of inhaling smoke and ash, of tasting fire and death. he remembers hearing hearts grow weaker until the slow beats turn to eventual silence.

peter's legs almost give out and harley has to support his weight to prevent him from falling. he tells peter to breathe with him.

If Peter were able to make his head work right now—if he were able to reconnect the wires that go from his brain to his mouth—he would say something along the lines of, I can’t. He would say, I’m tired. I’m so tired that breathing feels like too much work. I’m sad, and I’m exhausted, and sometimes I wish I didn’t have to keep going. Sometimes I wish I wasn’t the one who had the responsibility to always keep moving on. I can’t move on anymore. There’s too much, and there’s always more, and I can’t do it. As it is, he just forces an inhale that’s heavy and shaky and painful, and he lets it out, somehow— And he sobs.

harley keeps hugging him - "each touch so gentle, like he's afraid of peter breaking beneath his fingertips." peter tries to breathe in but it comes out via crying before he's able to really make it work. he tries to hold his breath to make it stop, but harley tells him that crying isn't a bad thing and he thinks peter needs to let it out

"a live wire - exposed, raw, agonizing." peter doesn't understand why harley and harry and gwen care about him but they do and harley is hugging him "and peter is a ticking time bomb with three seconds left on the clock." harley says that it's okay to need to let it out like this.

"tick. tick. tick. time's up."

peter's legs properly give out this time and harley manages to lower them to the floor "with no complaint, just murmured reassurances and soft sounds and gentle words" that peter can't really hear while feeling so overwhelmed.

He’s got his forehead pressed to Harley’s shoulder still, and Harley is not only holding him close, but Peter thinks that Harley might just be holding him together—thinks that, if it weren’t for the arms around him, he’d crumble, drift into ash the same way he did the day he died. Pieces. Dust. Gone, completely. It hurts. God, it hurts. He lets the pain overwhelm him.

lol can you tell how proud i am of this chapter based on the fact that i've included three snippets from the opening scene alone?

eventually peter starts to dissociate. "the pain is still there, under the surface, but it feels out of reach and misplaced and no longer directly attached to him, at least for now." he stops crying and starts tryig to catch his breath as he feels himself become dull and vacant. he thinks it might be shock or "if he emptied himself and there's nothing left" and he only realizes that harley has moved both of them from the floor once he's already sitting at one of the booths. he can kind of hear harley talking to him but it takes his brain a few moments to realize what he's saying.

harley asks how peter is feeling. peter just shakes his and harley says that he'd take peter somewhere (his apartment, the dorms) but his shift doesn't end until 5:45 am. he asks if it's okay to call harry. peter wants to say no, already upset with himself for not just locking himself in his apartment to deal with this alone, but those instincts to keep himself secluded are just as far away as everything else is in his state of dissociation. he thinks about harry being his friend and being someone he trusts. he agrees because in his current headspace he would rather seek comfort than sink back into the seclusion he's been forcing himself into,

harley says he's going to call harry, that it might take a few tries because harry is probably asleep but he's calling. peter is latching onto the feeling of one of harley's hands on his arm and onto the sound of harley calling harry to try and stay tethered to reality. even with him trying to hold onto it, the conversation still floats in and out and he only manages to capture snippets. when the call is over, peter has only heard about 20 words from the entire thing, but he does hear harley tell him afterwards saying that harry's getting a cab and is on his way.

peter tries to say thank you. he isn't sure if any actual sound comes out, but harley understands anyways.

Thankfully, he does a good enough job for Harley to understand, because it’s only a second or two later that he sees Harley go loose in the shoulders and nod, just slightly. “Yeah,” he says softly. “Of course. It’s… I said I’m here, didn’t I? This is what I meant, that I’d be here if you needed someone. I’m happy to do it.” There’s a pause, and Peter isn’t sure why he’s latching onto Harley’s words so clearly and coherently now when he wasn’t able to comprehend the phone call all that well, but he just decides to take what he can get and listens with rapt attention as Harley amends, “Well, not happy—I’m not happy that you’re struggling with this and all—ya’ know, all fucked up and definitely in need of some medical attention, but… I want to be here. I want to be the person that helps and takes care of the people I care about.” Peter thinks that there’s something to unpack there—especially since the implication of him being one of the people that Harley cares about is enough to make tears burn behind his eyes and a lump form in his throat so suddenly that it almost scares him—but he’s tired and even this is taking up more energy than he thinks he has to give. Giving in to the exhaustion that’s pulling at him from all directions, he just lets out a hum and unceremoniously slumps forward without warning, letting his eyes fall shut once more. Not asleep, but cutting the strings, he thinks—letting the tension bleed out of him all at once and melting. The world goes quiet again, and he lets it.

i'm only putting a bullet point here because i can't figure out how to recap the next short snippet scene so i'm just gonna put it here but don't want it to look connected to the last snippet lol

Awareness comes and goes like the ocean’s tide. He kind of knows when Harry gets there, and he kind of knows when two sets of hands help him to his feet and guide him into biting cold air. He kind of understands it when familiar voices murmur apologies and he kind of recognizes the fact that he’s being put in the backseat of a car, but it’s still too far away for him to fully understand. “You’re starting to scare me,” he thinks he hears at one point, though he can’t really narrow down if it’s before or after someone’s helped him out of the car and he’s ended up laying down in what he’s ninety-nine percent sure is someone else's bed. He also isn’t sure who says it, or what they’re talking about, or if they’re even talking to him, but he’s still pretty sure that he hears it, which is the most important part.

peter falls asleep. when he wakes up again, he doesn't open his eyes and sort of drifts into consciousness until sound processes in his brain and he hears harley and harry talking over him. harry is aggravated because harley won't tell him the things he knows that harry doesn't (peter having no family left, today being the anniversary of may's death) because harley doesn't want to betray harry's trust. harry says he doesn't understand what's happening and he's freaking out because he doesn't know why peter is so hurt or what's going on.

harry asks if it's someone from home, if peter's actually sharing his apartment with someone who's hurting him. harley says he doesn't know why peter is beaten and bloodied and bruised, which harry doesn't fully believe. he says he doesn't understand why harley thinks hiding things is going to help peter. harley says he doesn't understand why harry thinks harley telling him is going to help, either.

harry says he can't do anything if he doesn't know what's happening and "how am i supposed to be here for him if i don't know what's wrong?" which harley quickly counters with "how is he ever going to trust either one of us again if i decide to tell you what i know?"

(hint: they're both right.)

harry points out that peter didn't get upset when they tracked down his address and harley points out that the risk was worth it then because none of them had seen peter in days after he showed up to late night with blood on his hands, but this time peter is with them and they can see him and when peter wakes up they can try to talk to him about it - "but i'm not betraying his trust and telling you the stuff he's told me. that's not my place, harry. you know that."

harry speaks up, muttering, "yeah, i know. i just..."

"yeah," harley says. "yeah. me, too."

(hint: that unfinished sentence will be explained later in the series, both harry's intended meaning as well as harley's interpretation, which may or may not be the same thing.)

peter waits long enough to make it not seem like he overheard their conversation before pretending to have just woken up. as soon as he does, harley is immediately by his side. peter feels guilty when he hears and sees how worried him and harry are. there’s pain in his side when he tries to take a deep breath, which makes him wince. harley is very alert and asks if peter has any big injuries that they should be worried about. peter shakes his head and tries to sit up while wrapping an arm around his ribs, but harley and harry both notice.

peter says that it’s fine. harry goes to grab peter a bottle of water when peter brings a hand up to his throat, which is hurting a lot due to his emotional outburst earlier. harry starts to say that it’s not fine, but harley tries to cut in and tells him to stop.

harry pushes forward anyway and says “why should i? i’m looking at one of the only friends i have literally ever made and he looks like someone tried to kill him and he—he’s telling me that it’s fine? it’s not fucking fine, peter!”

peter takes the bottle of water and gives himself a minute while sipping at it. he isn’t sure what he wants to say, but also harry is catching his breath after his little outburst so maybe they both just need a moment before continuing.

there’s also the lingering grief. he hasn’t forgotten that it’s the one year mark of may’s death, he’s just trying to not think about it right this second. “the fact is lingering on the edges of his mind like a nightmare clinging to the outskirts of his vision, and he tries to act like it isn’t as noticeable as it really is as he lets out a haggard sort of sigh, resigns himself to his fate, and lowers the water bottle to his lap.”

he decides to talk about some of it because he thinks there’s no reason for him not to disclose at least a little bit, especially since harley already knows these specific things and both harry and harley are very obviously super worried so peter might as well open the door a little bit

“just enough for them to feel like he’s really letting them in, and hopefully won’t continue to worry themselves into their own early graves. peter refuses to think about the fact that letting himself open up, even just this small, tiny bit will only lead to him wanting to open up more, and more, and more—that he’s only giving himself a taste of allowing himself the companionship and comfort he’s been depriving himself of for a year.”

he starts by saying that he was orphaned when he was a kid. harry chokes on his breath and harley looks sad. peter goes on to say that he was four when his parents died and he went to live with his aunt and uncle, but then his uncle died less than two years later when getting involved when someone was robbing a store.

“fuck,” harry hisses, staggers backward until the backs of his knees hit the edge of the bed across the room and he can heavily sit down. he plants his elbows on his thighs, buries his face into his palms—muffles another curse there.

(hint: harry’s feelings in this moment will also be explored later in the series!)

peter says that it was only him and may for a long time, but at one point a guy came into his life that was like a role model/mentor who became more like a dad to him (tony, wbut he doesn’t say tony’s name) but then he turned to dust in his arms and he lived five years without peter and then he died the day that everyone came but, so it was just him and may again

harley tells peter that he doesn’t have to say it, knowing what comes next, but peter thinks that he needs to say it out loud in order to confront the reality of it in a calmer, better way, so he tells harry that a year ago today may was murdered and that he could have done something but wasn’t able to save her. he ends by saying that he doesn’t really have anyone else.

while harry takes a minute to process, harley asks if he can grab his first aid kit to try and help peter a bit. peter is about to say he’s fine but he’s pretty sure that if he says it again then harley might decide to side with harry on taking him to the hospital. plus his healing is still incredibly slow so getting patched up would probably help. though reluctant, he agrees.

harry gets up while harley is grabbing the first aid kit and asks what happened and peter isn't sure how to respond, but settles on saying that he wanted to try to save people. when harley asks for clarification, peter says "i wanted to make sure other kids got to wake up knowing their family members made it home safe"

harley asks "how many did you save?" and peter says "enough" because may taught him that even if he feels he could have done more, sometimes just doing your best has to be enough too. he doesn't usually believe it, but with today because the anniversary of her death, he thinks it's important to try to believe it now.

harley says that peter is gonna have to take his shirt off so that they can check his ribs because peter has had an arm around them since waking up. peter tries to say he's fine but harley doesn't budge and peter, though reluctant because of his scars, agrees. he takes off his shirt and assumes that harley's gasp is because of the scars, but then harley asks, "did you get fucking stabbed?"

peter genuinely doesn't remember the ways that he was injured while patrolling and says that he might have, to which harley laughs borderline hysterically and says "i think i'm going to pass out" which i just think is funny lmao

gwen texts peter at about 6:30 am. she says that she doesn't know what's going on because harry had her go back to her dorm after harley's call. harry's been texting her vague updates but hasn't responded in a bit so she's assuming peter is awake now.she doesn't press for information, just says that she hopes that he's okay and that she's going to go buy some comfort food for when he's ready, and that she's still got the sprite she saved for him, too.

“I just used my first aid kit on you,” Harley tells him, arms crossed over his chest and brows raised high on his face, head tilted slightly to the side. “Literally all of it. Like, the entire thing, Peter. I’m convinced I’m going to need to buy, like, five or six of ‘em just out of precaution.” “Please don’t say that,” Harry says, now sitting on his bed again and wearing a fresh hoodie with his head leaning back against the wall. “I don’t want to think about needing all of those.”

harry and harley insist on skipping their classes. peter says that they don't have to and that he should probably go back to his apartment anyway, to which harry says that if peter wants to go to his apartment then that's fine but that they're not gonna let peter be alone today. peter asks "what if i want to be alone?"

harry says that peter was already alone and got severely injured and that if peter tries it again then he's going to end up in the ICU with another stab wound. peter says he wouldn't call it a stab wound, harley asks what peter would call it then, and peter says "a scratch. from a sharp thing. that might have... gone in. a little."

harley says that if peter really wants to be alone then he'll respect that, but he's pretty sure it's not what peter really wants and says that unless peter can look him in the eyes and say with enough certainty to make harley believe him that he wants to be alone, harley's staying right where he is.

For a moment, Peter lets himself ponder over how to respond—looks down at his phone as he fiddles with it in his hands, thinks about the texts from Gwen that he hasn’t responded to and admits to himself that Harley has a pretty strong point here. Peter doesn’t want to be alone. When half delirious with grief in the café, he’d accepted Harry being called because he didn’t want to be alone. He hasn’t forced his exit from their dorm yet because he doesn’t want to be alone. Hell, he probably went to the café in the first place while half delirious because he didn’t want to be alone. That much is pretty obvious. But he doesn’t want to spend the whole day pretending it isn’t what it really is. A year ago, May died. He kneeled beside her in the rubble of Happy’s apartment building and he listened to her heart stop, he can’t sit here and spend the rest of the day pushing away her memory and acting like the pain of it isn’t still consuming him the way it was earlier, the way it did in order to send him spiraling into that half delirious state. If he’s going to accept the company, he’s going to have to keep accepting the comfort—even more than he’s already gotten, because he’s not going to ignore May’s memory on the anniversary of her murder. It's easier than it should be to allow himself to have that.

peter suggests he goes back to his apartment for an hour or two so that he has time to take a shower and have a little bit of time to himself, and then after an hour or two harley harry and gwen can come over. "and... i don't know. i don't know what i'll want to do, or should do, or need to do, but if you want to be there, then - sure. yeah. you can be there."

he also suggests this so that he has time to clean his apartment of spidey evidence. harry and harley agree and peter says thank you, to which harry says, "for bandaging your stab wound without calling an ambulance? yeah, we're the best friends in the world. you're totally welcome." i love harry so much.

peter replies to gwen's texts telling her that he's going back to his apartment and that she can come over with harley and harry in an hour or two if she wants. he says that he wants her there if she wants to be there. as a separate text, he sends a heart (<3), implying the afterthought and the hesitance of sending it before deciding to do so. it's a very small stupid detail but it makes me very happy.

when his friends are at his apartment, peter brings out The Box. gwen asks what's in it and peter says that it's whatever he has left. gwen asks peter to tell them about may. peter is hesitant but all three of them look curious, look like they want to learn about whatever peter is willing to tell them, and opening The Box feels a lot less scary when it's with the context of telling them what's inside of it.

he tells them that may was the best and opens the box. at the top is a picture of him with may and ben a few months after his parents died. it was his first birthday without his parents. they all have cheap plastic party hats and there's cake on peter's face.

Seeing Ben is a bittersweet thing, like it’s always been—a reminder of a person that Peter could have grown up with, another family member that he never got to know, that he barely even remembers. The man has a warm smile in this photo, kind eyes, and a sweatshirt that Peter actually still has. His arm is propped on the back of Peter’s chair and he looks a little tired, but he looks happy, looks content, looks like he has an entire life ahead of him that he's ready to live and looking forward to experiencing. May is on Peter’s other side in the picture, features bright and grin wide, crinkles by her eyes with the force of it. One of her arms is wrapped around little Peter’s shoulders, the other brought up to pinch his cheeks, scrunching up his features in a way that has him mid-laugh. Even when his parents were alive, May was his best friend. She was his aunt, and his favorite person, and, when life dealt him the cards they decided to deal him, she became his mother. “She was better than the best, I think,” Peter corrects, smiling softly as tears burn the backs of his eyes. He hands the picture to Gwen and reaches into the box for another.

his friends don't leave until after sunset and after peter insists on wanting to be alone for the rest of the night. he locks the door, takes his suit out from under his bed and puts his investigation board back up, but he doesn't go out for patrol.

"instead, he packs up the box and puts it away."

(hint: the emotional significance of the capitalization is something i am very proud of. it starts as The Box - a daunting, scary thing that weighs him down even when it's hidden under his bed, a heavy reminder of everything and everyone he has lost. by the end of this chapter, it's just the box - the one with memories and snippets of his family, of his loved ones. it's still heavy, but it isn't an overwhelming source of anxiety and guilt and overwhelming grief. he ripped the band-aid off by showing his friends what's inside and the importance of the box is not lost, but the intimidating factor is. it's a subtle sign of peter actually starting to process his grief in a way that isn't self-destructive and self-isolating. it's a step towards healing.)

he goes to sleep because he thinks, if may is out there in some kind of afterlife, she'd want him to get some rest after a long and heavy day.

"he dreams of people who have died and wonders if they miss him, too."

on monday in class, harry brings up thanksgiving because he now knows that peter doesn't have anyone to spend the holidays with and he asks if peter would want to come to his house to spend it with him and his mom.

“Oh. Um.” Peter blinks once. His only other plans were to go out as Spider-Man, but Harry’s from New York, from the suburbs, apparently, so Peter could probably still fit it in, and the concept sounds kind of nice. Like, the idea of spending the holiday not by himself. With a friend. That would be… good. Plus, Harry spent all of Friday with Harley and Gwen dedicating his time to Peter. To patching him up and comforting him and not judging how much of a mess he was, how much of a mess he turned into as the day went on and he sank further and further into his grief again. Peter feels like he owes it to all of them to… he isn’t sure what the right words for it are, but he feels like he needs to be trying. All of his talk about keeping them all at arm's length? That’s out the window. But he’s going to protect them, and he’s going to do a better job than he ever did before because he refuses to fail again. And he owes it to them, after the hours and the effort and the care they put into him on Friday, to try harder for them.

peter agrees to go and harry gets really excited and says that he's pretty sure his mom is going to adopt peter on sight because harry's bad at making friends and has been waiting for this moment his entire life. peter thanks him for inviting him.

when he looks up, harry's gone all soft in his features as he looks at peter, still smiling but no longer beaming as wide as before, everything smoothed out into something tinged with the smallest hint of sadness but not in a way that makes peter want to crawl out of his skin. "of course," he says. "i think you're my best friend, you know that? you and harley and gwen. i'm pretty sure that i'd do anything for you guys."

gonna make little chapter recaps while i reread what's posted of homeward bound so far. and then i am going to bust out chapter seventeen. might not finish it this weekend, but i hope to get a majority of it written. let's get into it.

starting with chapter one - i'm so tired of being afraid

word count: 7,535 (7,515 without the chapter lyrics at the start)

chapter song: six by sleeping at last

chapter lyrics:

what would it feel like to put this baggage down? if i'm being honest i'm not sure i'd know how

recap + lines i felt were important enough to jot down:

peter moves into his new apartment (december 2024)

peter needs to be alone

"when he's alone, there's no one to let down but himself."

peter looks up norman, otto, max, flint, and curt as a precaution now that he knows they turned into villains in the other worlds

norman and otto: started oscorp together during the five year gap between snaps, but have not gotten very far due to the world mourning the half of the population that's gone and also because stark industries is already a powerhouse in all the industries that oscorp is trying to step a foot into. peter deems them not a threat for now but will occasionally check on them just to be safe.

max and flint: peter is unable to find records of anyone with their names when looking them up. that's doesn't guarantee they don't exist in this world, they could have different names or something like that, but peter finds no trace of them and feels like it's safe to assume they don't exist here. he'll still check again occasionally to see if anything pops up down the line.

curt: a professor at empire state university with no signs of any of the things that happened in the other world happening to him here. again, peter will check occasionally to make sure, but overall he thinks that his world is most likely safe from these five people becoming villains like they did in the other peter's worlds.

peter looks into empire state university after looking up curt and thinks about how he'd like to go to college. it's always been part of his life plan. his life is completely different than what it was ever supposed to be and he'd need to get his GED, but he thinks about how he'd like to still go if he can make it work.

peter decides he needs to remake his suit, partially because he other suits can't be used anymore now that karen doesn't recognize him - edith doesn't recognize him anymore, either, which makes peter sad because he feels like he's lost a connection that he had with tony after tony's death - but he also wants to remake his suits because he knows the other peter's made their own from suits from scratch as well, so he thinks it's pretty fitting and thinks that it's kind of like he's building himself up from scratch and starting over for good - "...as both Peter Parker and as Spider-Man"

"and karen not knowing him feels a lot like losing another friend."

he includes peter 2 and peter 3 in his suit design to honor them and remind himself that, even if he is alone in his world, he isn't alone in the universe.

raimi spidey emblem on his chest:

and tasm spidey emblem on his back:

"when peter gets lost, or angry, or overwhelmed... he has reminders of them, interwoven into his suit, for him to brush his fingers against and think to himself, be strong, peter. do it for your brothers."

peter had an uncle ben in his world, but his uncle ben died less than two years after his parents did when he was six and a half years old. peter thinks about how his uncle ben impacted his life in a much different life than the other peter's. his uncle ben's last words shaped his morals and his outlook in life, to the point that, when tony first showed up to recruit peter for germany, he had used his own wording based on what ben said to explain why being spidey is so important to him.

"he remembers ben shrugging, remembers him smiling, remembers him saying, "if i didn't help, it'd be my fault, too." the way he said it had been so simple, so sure - a philosophy he fully and passionately believed in."

actually just this whole section feels very important to me so i'm going to copy and paste it right here:

In a way, Uncle Ben played a significant part in Peter becoming Spider-Man, but not in the same way that the Other Peter’s seemed to be influenced by their Uncle Ben’s. Peter remembers that he didn’t think much of the last words he heard his Ben say for a while, but that they seemed to click in his head around the time he was nine or ten, and suddenly they were words he wanted to live by. Doing good, and getting in the way to stop bad things, no matter how big or how small, because then it’d be his fault, too, if he didn’t.

It’s what he told Mr. Stark, back when he was still fourteen almost fifteen and the man had appeared in his apartment. When you can do the things I can, he had said—not exactly what Ben had said, no, kind of added onto by Peter, altered with the weight of Spider-Man stacked on top of the same philosophy he already lived by—but you don’t, and then the bad things happen… they happen because of you.

It’s not what the Other Peter’s talked about, though—because Ben didn’t tell Peter that great power comes with great responsibility. Aunt May told him that. But, for the Other Peter’s, it had been an Uncle that lived longer than his own did.

Then again, the Other Peter’s didn’t have the Avenger’s, and they never had Mr. Stark. Maybe it’s just different because each world isn’t supposed to be the same, and that’s all there is to it.

also may's line from right before ben died, which peter later tells harley about when telling harley the truth about his life:

“You stupid Parker men,” May had scoffed. “Way too selfless for your own good.”

peter thinks that it feels important that uncle ben had such a huge role in shaping who he is, and how the ben's of the other worlds had such a huge part in the other peter's lives as well, even if it was in vastly different ways. he then thinks about how, out of the very few things that peter was able to get out of his and may's old apartment before it was cleared out, one of them happened to be a box of uncle ben's old stuff - including, at the very top of the box, ben's old camera.

peter learns how to use ben's camera to take pictures properly in order to then take pictures of himself as spidey to sell to the daily bugle. he thinks it's amusing and ironic that the pictures he takes are used for articles that slander spidey, knowing that jjj would probably lose his shit if he knew he bought the pictures from spider-man himself.

"everything seems to be trial and error these days - life was never a certainty before, but now it's pretty clearly up in the air and he's left scrambling to try and figure it out, approaching every corner completely blind to what he'll find when he turns it - but that's alright, because he's got the brain of a scientist and trial and error could just be another term for experiment, so it works out well."

that ^ quote is a nice tie in to the tony flashback that happens in chapter 16, where tony calls peter an observer and says that peter is always gathering information and how peter looks more than most people do because peter likes to be prepared and likes to understand.

peter spends new years eve alone (new years, 2024) and watches the fireworks while thinking about the other peter's not being alone before going back to patrol.

peter gets his first Big Injury since ending up completely on his own. he has no one to call and he has no super pain killers like the ones tony had made for him before tony died. the injury starts at his left hip, goes over his ribs, stops at the center of his chest. it was done with a knife. peter has to stitch himself up. it's the first time he's ever done stitches on himself.

he passes out after finishing the stitches and wakes up almost a full day later. thinks about his healing and how his enhancements are definitely being negatively impacted by his lackluster eating habits - he's broke as fuck and also doesn't have much of an appetite due to being traumatized and depressed.

"part of him wonders how drastic a change it really is - wonders if, maybe, the scars will stop fading away. for some reason, that's the thought that makes him feel sick to his stomach."

fun fact: this injury is the one that peter tells harley about in chapter 15 when harley is asking about some of peter's scars.

and that's the end of chapter one! these little recaps are entirely for my own benefit - the only reason i'm posting them is because giving myself the expectation and responsibility of posting them will make me actually commit to recapping every chapter, which will make working on chapter seventeen a lot fucking easier and will make it so i'm able to finish chapter seventeen a lot fucking faster.

i will be reblogging with the chapter two recap shortly

#homeward bound fic

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hellyeahheroes · 5 years ago

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Ghost Spider problems

Disclaimer: the comic is not bad. Take this as constructive criticism

1. Start from the beginning

This is all you get when it comes to Gwen’s origin.

And before you say that this is mirroring Peter, no. Amazing Fantasy #15 was a fully fleshed out origin story. Amazing Spider-man #1 takes place immediately after Uncle Ben’s murder. Gwen’s origin encompasses years of her being Spider-woman with actual events that go beyond just a sparse origin. When Spider-Gwen starts, we are like coming in at the equivalent of Amazing Spider-man #300.

So Jason Latour tries to use flashbacks and detailed full page word dump expositions at the end of each issue to further fill in the gap between the shit the audience doesn’t know. The latter is quite frankly the laziest thing I’ve ever seen in writing. Rather than creating stories to establish characters and create a catalogue to their history, lets fucking just explain everything that happened in essay form.

This, til this day, pisses me off.

Anyways, when Latour did introduce a characters like a Harry Osborn, he relied on flashbacks to detail what happened. The issue however that he was simultaneously advancing a story while retroactively setting foundation of a character. One example of a past event being constructed entirely out of flashbacks: the death of Peter Parker.

In these flashbacks that are construed across multiple issues and not in chronological order of either the issue nor the flashback, Latour basically shows the audience for the first time Peter’s personality, how Gwen was after her dad indirectly told her about his feeling about Spider-Woman, and a little about their high school life.

The problem with this is that Latour relied on the interpretation of 616 Spider-man characters when he didn’t elaborate on their character for characters like George Stacy, J. Jonah Jameson, and Aunt May while simultaneously hiding behind the excuse of it’s an alternate universe to explain why characters are different. This comes with accusations of character shilling since he portrayed Em Jay as a selfish self-centered person, Peter as an arrogant misanthrope, but Gwen completely escapes her negative 616 characterization and comes off looking better.

So Spider-Gwen really doesn’t have an origin story. And no one actually bothered to make one even 4 years later.

2. Alternate Dimensions convolutes stories

Traveling to another dimension to just fucking go to school is cop out. Granted, the explanation as to why it was done was simply because Gwen doesn’t have a secret identity anymore, but okay, far be it for me from wanting a good time. It would have been more interesting if she persisted in trying to go to school in her universe while being known as Spider-woman, anxiety attacks be damned. “Man fuck consequences of a plot point, let’s just create a specific scenario to avoid them” is what McGuire decided to do. Didn’t even bother to retcon. Just fucking noped it.

MJ says what I’m thinking.

Barring this, it is a stretches my suspension of disbelief that ESU would enroll a girl who not only is named after a deceased student who you named a library after in memoriam but also looks like the girl who died and is around the same age. Oh and also, you hired the guy who looks exactly like her mentor who went on to practice unethical experiments and tried to conquer the world with them at one point but he has a different name so...

Granted, Latour twice left Spider-Gwen in a hole. He wasted Gwen revealing her identity to her father for the introduction of the character and Gwen then revealing her identity to the world to defeat Matt Murderdock kind of screwed the pooch. First, there has to be a way for Gwen to defeat him without sacrificing her identity like exonerating herself from being blamed for Peter’s death because clearly she’s innocent(self-defense and saving kids from some incel white boy turned monster is not an jailable offense).

Regardless, McGuire was dealt a shitty hand that nuked any possibility of continuing any story developments in E-65 without Gwen being under constant danger. I, for one, would welcome it and had Gwen continue to try, it would have made shit interesting.

But this is also taking away Gwen from her own supporting cast that she has had since the beginning and also from her setting. The more she is in 616, the less I am going to see of the Mary Janes. The less I see of Harry although I don’t mind that. The less I see of any character that was established in her series. And honestly, those new characters could have been introduced in her own setting. Hell, E-65 Jackal could have been a college professor at E-65 ESU without Gwen knowing if she attended there.

Why are we choosing to avoid superhero drama in a superhero comic book?

3. Don’t rely on 616 Gwen Stacy while simultaneously declaring this Gwen as a different character

For all intents and purposes, the Death of Gwen Stacy has nothing to do with Spider-Gwen. This book and her fans will deflect any criticism about the lack of parallels between Gwen Stacy’s death and Peter’s death by saying Spider-Gwen is not the same as Gwen. You sit there and complain that all Gwen Stacy is known for is dying yet you commentate using a completely amended character while simultaneously avoiding the literal hundred of issues of character that 616 Gwen previously had before her death.

If you read the Night Gwen Stacy Died as a stand-alone, what you did was the equivalent of watching the Red Wedding without the three seasons leading to the event.

Spider-Gwen can’t go five issues without harping on about every miserable or unhappy or dead Gwen in some other universe. It comes to a culmination that writers want to tie Spider-Gwen to 616 Gwen Stacy so much that she is actively going to school in 616. The same school that Gwen attended and has a library named after her in memoriam, and apparently her creepy stalker teacher still teaches at albeit with a different identity because no one apparently recognizes faces anymore.

This doesn’t redeem Gwen. In fact, you proved Gerry Conway’s point. 616 Gwen is so unlikeable that you’d have to completely change her character to make her not worth throwing off the bridge.

Point is that Spider-Gwen treading the stories of Gwen Stacy defeats the purpose of separating the two in personality. What happens if Kindred is revealed to be the ressurrected Gwen Stacy while Gwen basically caught treading her stories instead of continuing her own?

4. The Jackal? Fucking really?

Personal, but point still stands. I fucking hate the Jackal. Jackal is like the catalyst of feeling like you need to take a shower afterwards. Along with the Inherentors, this is one of the villains that go to far in being made for a specific purpose in that they really don’t have a motivation as to just why do they do the things they do other than to be a bad guy.

Warren Miles is a creepy professor with an almost paedophillic obsession with his barely legal and also dead mentee, 616 Gwen Stacy. And it’s only almost because Gwen was 19 and almost certainly would have engaged in a sexual relationship with her. I don’t buy that he saw her as his child because it’s not like Gwen was just this remarkable science prodigy that would warrant any special attention from a professor. No, she was a remarkable and hot co-Ed scientist that was in her sophomore year. He was trying to fuck her and hated that she was dating guys her age. I wouldn’t put it past him to quid quo pro her into some sick shit for grades.

And the thing about it is that this story has been done before with Mary Jane and it was more appropriate to her occupation as she was a model at the time and married to Peter Parker. She is going to get the attention of richer and skeezy men that would have the power to force her into questionable shit. Hollywood is pretty much a glorified sex trafficking ring, don’t @ me. Far be it for me to say male professors don’t abuse their station on women and sure, I’d like a Spider-Man story to explore that, but Jackal takes it to a whole other that defiles the memory of a dead girl. It is basically a type of necrophilia and ew ew ew ew.

His obsession with Gwen and clones doesn’t foil Peter in anyway. It literally carries this creepy and unsettling implication that if Gwen lived, he would have raped her. There has never been a good Jackal storyline. It is literally the CJ meme every time he appears. He is not an engaging or fun.

Guess who is the first villain Gwen faces in 616.

Why people insist on putting him in anything over more thematically appropriate and fun characters is beyond me. I don’t even mind 65 Jackal. He doesn’t seem to interested in teenaged girls. He just wants to kill her like a proper super villain from what I gather. But of course, we had to not be spared from the comic equivalent of taint that is Miles Warren.

@ubernegro

#marvel #ghost spider #spider-gwen #gwen stacy #long post

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camp-campus-universe · 6 years ago

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Camp Campus AU: Part 2

Finally! It’s here, after like a week! This took longer than I thought it would, these characters are really hard to draw but I think I’m pretty satisfied with what I have right now. Since I finished this, that also means I dedicate more time to asks, specifically those that requests drawings! That also means I can focus on drawing comics and stuff revolving around their relationships, which I’m excited. I’m really excited to continue with this project and see it grow, and I’m so glad you’re all here to see it with me! You have no idea how grateful I am for all of the love that you’ve all sent so far! Thank you so much. Anyway, without further ado, here we go!

Maxwell/Max : Like many of his peers, Max hasn’t changed much since his time at Camp Campbell. Max is still as vulgar as ever and maintains his pessimistic outlook on life. However, many people think its all just an act now to keep up his reputation. Since Camp Campbell, Max’s life has honestly taken a turn for the better. He has a healthier home life, loyal companions, and Mr. Honeynuts. He is generally happier than he was 7 years prior. The only inner conflict Max truly struggles with now are his budding feelings for his best friend and whether or not he wants to jeopardize their friendship. Also Max is often teased for his “baby” hands, they’re really really small.

Cornelius/Neil : Intelligent, cocky, and overly sarcastic, Neil plays the role of the parent when it comes to handling Nikki and Max. Unlike his friends, Neil was the only one who matured both physically and mentally and feels as if its his job to make sure Nikki and Max don’t wind up killing someone else or themselves. As mentioned before, Neil and Nikki remained close even after each summer brought an end to their Camp Campbell experience. The reason being his dad and Nikki’s mom eloping and combining the families. While Nikki is eager to invite Neil into her life as the older brother she never had, Neil harbors a sort of resentment towards his dad as a result of his parents’ divorce. Although he is glad to spend time with Nikki as well, Neil is still consciously struggling with his parents’ divorce and can’t help but to think that Candy is a homewrecker, even though he had admitted before that his parents’ relationship was awful. Outside of his home life, Neil can be a bit stuck-up and act like a know-it-all at times. He still harbors a deep loathing for Harrison, now mostly because Harrison claims to be a flat-earther. He’s also still incredibly annoyed by Space Kid, although he has no reason to be. Neil also runs a tutoring business at school in order to make a profit, but unfortunately for him (Or maybe fortunately) Tabii’s his only reoccurring customer. Neil is also Erin’s vice president in the Student Council and they seem to make a great team. He also has custom-made glasses because his nose is so fucking big.

Preston Goodplay : Preston is the stereotypical school thespian. Like at Camp Campbell, he’s outrageous and posses a larger than life attitude. He’s both over-dramatic and overemotional, but refuses to take any form of criticism. Preston is often cast as a main role in any school production and even takes it upon himself to critique his underclassmen in the drama department. Despite coming off as a total wacko, Preston is very talented and each performance that he gives is full of energy. Preston is very particular about his passion and is quick to anger if things don’t go his way. Preston acknowledges his relationship with his of his Camp Campbell peers, but doesn’t really willingly share his interest with any of them because of his fear that they might fuck it all up. However, he and Nikki do bond over some musicals that they both enjoy, although Nikki is usually more interested in the violent parts than the actual plot.

Rudolph “Dolph” Houston : Dolph is the youngest of the cast and the only underclassmen in their friend group. Dolph continues to remain in high spirits and prefers to think positively than reflect upon the negative when faced with difficult situations. After High school, Dolph plans on attending a local Art College in order to truly embrace his career as a professional artist. Growing older, Dolph, like any other boy, went through puberty and grew facial hair. However, he ended up accidentally shaving it in an incident at Camp Campbell one summer and it never grew up correctly after that. Although an innocent mistake, the uncanny resemblance to Hitler disgusts Neil and causes him to keep his distance. Ironically being the youngest of the group, Dolph is a good friend with sole senior Ered. Dolph, like Nikki, has a great admiration for Ered and respects for activism. Using his artistic talent, Dolph often agrees to make protest signs for Ered or even help her vandalize the town to get a message across. Overall, Dolph is the same sweet boy he was years ago.

Neil Armstrong Jr./Space Kid : Space Kid is just as optimistic and upbeat as he was before. However, he’s also gotten a lot smarter. Inspired by his great grandfather, Neil Armstrong, Space Kid decided to take up an internship at NASA and since then has put a lot of focus on his grades. Much to Neil’s annoyance, Space Kid’s GPA is practically the same as his, which is impressive. Although, the constant work has taken a toll on him and has made him absolutely exhausted. His exhaustion explains why he comes to school dressed comfortably in pajama pants (NASA merch of course TM) everyday. But regardless of overworking himself, Space Kid still tries his best to put on a happy face for his colleagues, even if they don’t appreciate it.

Harrison : Exerting the same confidence and pride as before while still upholding his magical title, Harrison is the school’s sole illusionist. Although now his tricks aren’t seen as that impressive anymore among his peers, Harrison often attends parties and other small events and shows off his miraculous talent. He hopes that one day he’ll be discovered and whisked away to a life of fame and fortune. Harrison is kind to practically everyone he meets, but his rivalries with Neil and Nerris remain very alive. As a way to annoy Neil, Harrison often lies and says that he’s a Flat-Earther with no intention of listening to Neil’s explanation as to why the Earth is round. Harrison also rivals Nerris not only in magical skills, but also in opinions. As a die hard Harry Potter fan, Nerris had solely read the books and reluctantly turned to the films but found them to be distasteful. However, Harrison had never read the books and enjoyed the effects that the movies had, claiming that they’re superior. And by saying this, the two renew their fierce opposition to each other, but no one can stay mad at each other forever. Having a mostly positive attitude, many might not believe that Harrison actually has a secret, one that lies beneath his iconic white gloves. But it’s too soon to know for sure what it is yet.

Gaylord “Nurf” Nurfington : Nurf ended up growing into a model citizen. After many anger management classes and corrective punishment, Nurf has finally turned his life around in the right direction. He and his mom currently live together and support each other, trying to rewrite their bad decisions from the past. Nurf often participates in volunteer work as well as lead a therapy group. He has also experiemnted more with his own identity and is comfortable admitting that he is in fact Bisexual. Nurf is also Quarterback for the school’s team and is known as one of their best players, alongside Nikki. Even though he is on his way to becoming an ideal person, Nurf still displays some aggressive tendencies and is very overprotective of his friends from Camp Campbell.

The Wood Scouts (Billy “Snake” Nikssilp/Edward Pikeman/Jermy Fartz/Stephen van Petrol) : The Wood Scouts don’t play a particularly large role in this AU, but they still exist in this universe. Edward’s leader status has deteriorated in the group and has become co-dependent on Jermy and his newfound popularity. Jermy had gotten a major glow-up over the last Summer and is now considered to be the hottest guy attending the school. Because of his popularity, Edward now clings to Jermy in a one-sided friendship and uses his popularity as a way to elevate his own confidence (he wants clouts lmao).Snake and Petrol have both noticed this behavior from Edward and are disgusted by his attachment to Jermy. Edward often neglects his friendship with the two and refuses to associate with them. Snake still has a small crush on Tabii, but understands that she is completely invested in Neil and wants what’s best for her. Petrol plans to enroll in the military after graduation. He also struggles to find shirts that fit him.

David & Gwen : Here they are! In all of their glory! Unfortunately this time around, David and Gwen don’t play as large of a role in the campers’ lives, but are still actively present in this AU. Summers back, David had fully encouraged Gwen to leave Camp Campbell in search for other job opportunities in the hopes of making her a happier person. With some persuading, she eventually left and the two had little contact with each other since. Since then, David has been running the camp by himself. Now David is the proud father of one. And that one is Max. David had officially adopted Max a few summers ago to help him out of his bad family situation and now lives his life as a proud suburban dad. David then started to rely on Max to help him co-counsel the Camp during the summer, because he though it’d be a great father/son bonding experience and the rest is history. When he’s not a happy-go-lucky camp counselor during the summer, David spends the rest of his time as a Dental Assistant because he loves nothing more than to see people smile. Gwen, however, didn’t find the happiness she thought she would after leaving Camp Campbell. Searching for jobs endlessly, Gwen eventually was hired as a high school guidance counselor but was fired months after because of a incident where she made a student cry hysterically. Gwen was then stripped of her title and sentenced to a secretary position. Although thankful she still has a job, Gwen is as miserable as ever and has to deal with the kids she once knew from Camp Campbell. Most of her time is spent with Max, purely because he’s given a detention every other day, and she couldn’t hate her life more. Hopefully one day Gwen will find the fortune she deserves.

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