Wasted time Version 2

I've done two versions of this story so I'd appreciate it if people could read both parts and tell me which one they prefer.

The other version can be found here:

s/10763384/1/Wasted-time-Version-1

You can imagine this story takes place either during J. Michael Straczynski's run on Spider-Man shortly after Amazing Spider-Man Volume 2 #54 or at some indeterminate point in time in the future when Peter and Mary Jane have recently gotten back together.

Please leave a review as I am keen for feedback.

Peter stared up at the ceiling as the fan slowly turned. His fingers were linked behind his head on the pillow. Golden light filtered through the blinds onto the bed as the sun set over New York City and night began descending.

Peter turned his head and stared towards the window, peering at the city through the gaps in the blinds.

"Nice view you've got here" He called out.

"You haven't noticed that before?" MJ replied, raising her voice so Peter could hear. The corner of his mouth twitched into a tiny smile.

"Whenever I've been in here we've been kinda busy."

He heard hinges lightly creek and turned his head back so that he was now facing the opposite side of the bed. The once slightly adjacent door was now fully open, with MJ standing in it giving Peter a small smile. Peter was reminded of when he first laid eyes on MJ in the doorway of Anna Watson's home many years ago. Except back then she hadn't been wearing a bathrobe and her hair wasn't slightly wet.

"We've been 'kinda busy' a lot recently" She said, as she crossed the room and lay on the bed next Peter, tossing his shirt onto the floor. Peter turned his head back up to the ceiling to watch the fan.

"Probably making up for lost time" He said casually.

There was a slight pause before MJ leaned over and kissed his cheek. Peter moved his gaze away from the ceiling and onto MJ.

"More like wasted time" She said quietly, before she kissed him again, this time on the lips. Peter unlinked his fingers and moved his arm and torso around so that he could hug MJ around the waist.

"Compared to this any other time is time wasted" He teased, after they'd broken apart. His expression changed though when he saw that MJ didn't seem amused at all. "What's the matter?" He asked.

MJ continued to look more serious as she sat up and propped a pillow behind her. Peter followed suit. For a moment or two MJ just stared out straight ahead.

"It's just..." She began, seemingly searching for the right words. "It's just...we really did waste time didn't we?"

MJ's head turned to look at Peter, who just stared at her, unsure of what to say. "Errrr..." Was about all he could manage.

MJ seemed slightly exacerbated, but also slightly amused. "What I mean is...whether it was months or years...we wasted a lot of time we could've spent together. Time we can't get back. All because I was-"

"Hey, no!" Peter interjected. "Don't blame yourself okay. I was the one who-"

This time MJ interjected. "You, me, both of us, whatever. Point is...whether we weren't in a good place, or being stupid, or prideful, or however you want to look at it...we spent a lot of time apart. Or at least not together. Not like we are now anyway. And recently...recently it's been getting me kinda..." MJ trailed off and turned away, uncertainty etched on her face.

"Anxious?" Peter offered. MJ shrugged and gave a small nod. "But why though? MJ we're together now right? What's to worry about?"

MJ didn't answer immediately, but instead continued to stare dead ahead. Finally though, she turned back to look at Peter. Staring straight into his face she replied in a flat and neutral voice.

"I'm worried something bad will happen to us?"

Peter was surprised at this. He'd thought things had been going very well since he and MJ got back together awhile ago. "I...I thought we were good MJ. Not perfect or anything, but I thought we were in a good place. You seemed...you seemed happy."

"I am!" MJ exclaimed, taking Peter's hands in hers'. "Really I am. We're great, tiger. Really great."

"Then if you're feeling good about us...Are you anxious because you think I'm not? Because if you are you gotta know MJ these passed months have bee-"

MJ shook her head, the glint of a smile at Peter's befuddlement crossing her mouth. "Tiger, I'm not worried about you. Or me! At least...not in that way"

"Then what way are you talking about?" For a second or two, MJ didn't break her gaze. But then she turned away and sat on the side of the bed. For about two or three minutes she didn't do anything. Peter waited patiently as the light in the room diminished to the point where it was too dark to see properly. And then, from out of the semi-darkness MJ spoke.

"I'm...I'm worried one of us will get hurt..."

Peter stared at MJ's back, a dark silhouette in the withering light.

"Wh...Why would you think that..." He asked.

He saw MJ turn around to look at him, flicking on a lamp next to the bed, illuminating a look of almost sad exacerbation.

"Come on tiger...you know why."

Peter sighed deeply.

"That other guy in our relationship..."

"There is no other guy tiger. Just you."

"And I thought we'd put things to bed about...me...?"

"We have. Or we pretty much have."

"You know the risks MJ. You accepted them. I accepted them. I know it's hard for you. Heck it's hard for me too but...after all this time I thought we'd...come to an understanding"

"We have come to an understanding Peter. It's just...Our lives are dangerous. Hell living in this city, everyone's life is dangerous, but ours more than most. And...however much either of us tries not to think about that, at the back of our minds we both know that any moment of any day might be our last. Every time we say goodbye to one another we both know there is a chance, a very real chance, that one of us might not come back.

I mean let's be honest here tiger, ever since we began our life together the reason why we took every chance we could to...be together, was because we never knew that'd be our last chance."

Peter frowned. "But what's that got to do with us now? Whether it's here or at my place, we're just doing what we did before, right? Why's that got you worried"

MJ took Peter's hand and squeezed it gently for a moment. "Because...we wasted so much time apart Peter. And I can't help thinking, what if something happens now. Now that we're back together. Cruel irony, wouldn't that just be-"

"The 'Parker Luck'?" Peter butted in.

MJ tilted her head to the side, then shrugged. "Well...yeah something like that. After all that time we could've spent together, but didn't for...for meaningless reasons, we get screwed when we finally figure things out. And then one or both of us are left wishing we'd not thrown away that time we had by not being together. Wishing we could've used that time for one more moment with each other."

Peter looked down and closed his eyes. Realising how this had been eating away at MJ stung bad. He opened them again and took MJ's other hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

"Mary Jane...we...we can't worry about that stuff. And we can't get back the time we lost. Because you're right...we've always made the most of the time we've had together, because we never know for certain if we'll have anymore. So...as much time as we wasted before when we weren't together...we can't afford to waste anymore time worrying about the yesterdays we've lost, or if we will or won't have any tomorrows. Let's just...Let's just live as much for today as we can...okay?"

MJ gave him a piercing look before slowly nodding and again squeezing peter's hand. "Sorry for being...well...like you most of the time honestly. All worry and guilt." She gave a tiny little smile which Peter returned.

"It's okay. For the record I didn't mind 'being you' for a change. Though I don't like how we seem to be rubbing off on each other."

MJ arched an eyebrow.

"Well...I dunno about that..."

The room fell into total darkness as MJ turned the lamp off.