Hey there. Sorry for the wait. I've been fleshing out several of the future chapters. It seems most of those are finished. Now I just have to get to that point in the story. Lol. Backwards I know.

As always, enjoy!

The Amazing Spider-Girl

|Issue #10|

Digital

|Midtown High - Lunch|

By lunch time Payton was ready for the day to be over.

With everything that had happened this morning and then that weird moment with Brittany and Santana, all Payton was looking forward to was sitting down at her workstation at home and tinkering with whatever she could find to occupy her brain before her aunt would get home from work and Payton would start helping her with dinner.

Of course, that didn't seem likely to happen any faster than usual so the teen, as a result, was left by herself, staring rather hard at the large salad she had packed for herself in a lunch container in front of her.

It felt like the day that would never end and Payton sighed as she recalled all the events from today.

First it was Quinn, looking lovely as always and stunning Payton's heart with that gorgeous smile like she was wont to do. However, as wonderful the moment may have been, it still ended with Flash being stupid and macho. Then there was that thing with Harry. She should probably let that go. She had let the boy stew for a bit. Though, she doubted he had learnt anything from it. He probably doesn't even know why she was frustrated with him to begin with, so staying mad won't do her much good. That's Harry for you. She should probably give the guy some credit, he's surprised her before.

After that was Brittany. She still found the girl odd, but from what Brittany had mentioned, she wasn't the only person to think that way of her. Of course, Payton herself was odd also, in her own way. Her own freaky super powered way. Freaky was actually a good word to use, it described the levels of shivers she felt every time Brittany said anything too close to the truth. Which was pretty much most of their conversation. And what was that crap about her strength?

It could be nothing and Payton was simply reading into something deeper than it needed to be looked at. She did look different, stronger. The attempt to hide that new physical difference from everybody obviously blew up in her face. People had still noticed when she was so certain she would still remain invisible despite the new changes. Payton hadn't prepared for that; others noticing. She had concealed herself in the hope of blending in, not drawing attention. But that plan went out the window the moment she helped Kurt from not getting his teeth kicked in by Flash. Standing up to Flash had somehow put Payton on other people's radar. They were more aware of her than ever before and it was much too late to change that now and call for a redo.

If that wasn't enough, then there was the matter of...ugh. Santana. Which was even weirder. Payton didn't really know what to think about that. Should she feel flattered that the only reason she underwent years of bullying and harassment was because her tormentor had a hard on for her and was crap at expressing it in a healthy way?

Honestly, and unsurprisingly, she was unable to answer that question for herself. She supposed it made sense now that she knew the truth. Why Santana pushed her harder and egged her on more than anyone else Santana normally interacted with. It didn't make up for it though.

After that hot mess, she had made it just in time to take her seat before the bell rang. Flash glared at her through most of the class period but Payton ignored it without trouble. She barely felt a tingle at the harsh stare so knew that Flash wouldn't try anything in class while this many people and a teacher were around.

Also, much to Payton's growing dismay and confusion, it seemed every where she went she ran into a Gleek. What's worse? They started talking to her.

Normally she wouldn't have minded, but the sheer number of them that had come up to her at various moments throughout the day alarmed her. She wasn't really used to having to interact with so many people during a normal school day. Besides Harry, Stan, the school librarian and fellow comic book enthusiast, was about the only other soul she engaged with during the day.

Despite her slight social awkwardness, Payton tried her best to appear interested and approachable anytime one of them walked over to her.

Most of them had only ever asked questions about the photos she would take and a few had made suggestions on how they would like the photos of them to look, clearly uneasy about the idea of having their pictures taken. Payton did what she could to reassure them that she wouldn't use the photos of anyone who looked too horrendous in a shot but said she would consider their input and see what she could do. It wasn't a promise however, but she was confident in her ability to capture each teen in a flattering light.

Even with Gleeks coming out of the woodwork, Payton somehow managed to make it to lunch, which is where she found herself now. Staring into her packed greens and wondering distantly where her new found generous appetite had gone.

Payton shook herself out of it and tried to just focus on eating. She wasn't completely certain but she had a theory that her growing appetite of late was her body's way of trying to compensate all the new changes it had gone through recently.

Having fuel while it adapted to its new found self made sense in the long run so Payton made it a point to pack more food in her lunches, otherwise she was bound to endure her stomach eating itself in its impatience while in class.

She found herself idly flipping through a magazine she had pulled from her bag as she fed herself between page turning. She wasn't reading it, she had given that up a few minutes after she pulled it out. Mostly, she was just eyeing the thing through for something she knew she probably couldn't afford. Still, dreaming does wonders to a person's preconceived ideas for a little while.

Payton sighed as she turned another page.

A minute later, Harry sat down with a plate full of his own lunch. It took him a few tries before he went about eating what he had in front of him, the idea of talking felt annoyingly too difficult to accomplish.

"What?" Payton said, her eyes not straying far from the new page she had just turned to.

"What are you reading?" He finally asked her instead of saying what he really wanted to.

"A photography magazine. Uncle Ben picked it up for me yesterday."

"Oh yeah? Anything good?" His smile had nothing to do with the current topic and had everything to do with Payton's casual tone and the fact that she was talking with him again.

"Pretty much everything." Payton sighed longingly. "Some of these cameras would cost more than my college tuition for two semesters."

Harry nodded in agreement and then tilted his head as he thought of something,"Well that would depend on where you go." He said thoughtfully.

Payton nodded.

"Okay fine. Two semesters at a community college. Which is probably where I'm going anyway." She tried not to grumble at the truth of her statement but ultimately failed.

Harry frowned. "I thought you said last year you wanted to go to NYU or some big wig college or something."

"I did." She amended quickly. "I do." She shook her head, fighting the frown she could feel working itself across her face. "I don't think it's in the cards for me." Payton opened her mouth to continue but Harry looked confused and beat her to it.

"What are you talking about? You are so college material. You're way too crazy smart to not go, Pay."

"I didn't say I wouldn't go to college, I just meant that a university is probably out of my league." She leant forward, lowering her voice so as not to be heard by the nearby tables and passing students that were finding places to sit so they could eat. "We don't have the money for it Harry." She said unashamedly and with a nonchalance Harry didn't really understand.

His earlier frown from before was back with a vengeance. He knew about Payton and her family's financial situation. He just didn't think it would stop her from going to the college she really wanted to go to.

It was quiet for a moment between them as they ate their lunch while both remained deep in their thoughts.

An idea struck Harry and he snatched onto it quickly, the words nearly running into each in his excitement.

"What about scholarships?" He looked hopeful at the idea and Payton smiled at her friend who always seemed to genuinely want the best for her, anyway she could have it.

"It's an option. And I've already looked into it. But there's stiff competition either way." She shrugged.

Harry narrowed his eyes, his lips pulled into a slight grimace. "Wow. You are really negative today. Like, I think your vibes are making my lunch taste worse."

Payton chuckled softly, not finding offense by that statement.

"What happened?" He asked tentatively, hoping her mood hadn't anything to do with what made her upset at him this morning.

Payton sighed, again. She was doing a lot of that recently.

She told him about the encounter with Brittany, leaving out the weirdness with Brittany seemingly knowing more than she should. When she got to the part about Santana showing up, Harry leaned in further, his eyes sparkling with intense interest. He was such a gossip whore.

"Then she grabbed Brittany and stormed off."

She got to the end of her story and punctuated her last response with a forkful of her lettuce and croutons.

Harry responded by throwing his head back and laughing, loudly. Payton jumped a bit at the outburst.

"Called iiiiit!" Harry sang obnoxiously. Payton's cheeks burned hotly at the volume of it and now several tables were looking in their direction, the Glee table included. "I told you it was sexual tension! I fucking told you! I called that shit man." Harry guffawed as he threw his head back again.

Payton shushed him earnestly. "Pipe down, you ninny."

Only it didn't have the desired affect and Harry laughed louder. Payton could practically feel the stares on her.

"That is just too good! I was right! Ha!"

"Would you shut up already? How many times do you have to shout it?" Payton said, growing more irritated with every word falling out of Harry's mouth. It was her fault, naturally. She should have known what Harry would do with that heft of information. After explaining her 'encounter', as Harry had dubbed it, with Brittany and her least favorite Cheerio, Harry couldn't stop laughing by the end of it. It got to the point that Payton felt her cheeks burning as she ducked her head in mild embarrassment.

"Until being right stops feeling so damn good." He grinned widely as he bounced in his seat. "Sadly for you that is not likely to happen anytime soon." He said smirking. "This still feels insanely satisfying."

Payton sighed and rubbed the side of her temple. "Fine. Can you at least take a break from screaming it for all the cafeteria to hear?" Honestly, she shouldn't even have to ask. Whatever.

Harry thought for a few seconds and then nodded.

"I can do that." He snagged a crouton off her plate and popped it in his mouth.

Payton sighed in relief.

"So called it." He whispered quickly.

"Fine, yes, you were right." She said exasperated the same moment she threw her hands in the air. "Now can we please talk about something else? Anything else? Hell, I'll even talk about sports."

Harry snorted.

"Damn you must be desperate."

Payton wanted to strangle him.

"Fine, I'm desperate. Can we drop it now?"

"Yeah sure, whatever. You don't need to freak out."

"I'm not freaking out!" She hissed.

"Whatever you say." He sing-songed

Payton sighed heavily and rolled her eyes.

Harry looked at his friend, realizing, once again, that he had managed to put his usually easy going friend into a prickly mood for the second time today. He wasn't much for censoring his thoughts or his witty sense of humor, if he did say so himself. As it was, Payton never really minded all that much what he said before. She would give the vague snort or scoff a bit, but other than that, she was as docile as a little lamb. Well, okay. There have been the occasional fight or two. Or five. Or was it more? Harry never remembered such things. Payton would probably know the exact number but the thought of bringing up all his past failures as a friend when he managed yet again to piss her off made him frown and wrinkle his forehead at the unpleasant thought. Damn. Why is he even thinking about this?

His friend looked upset about something and he could only assume it had to do with either Quinn, Flash or the two Cheerios Payton had talked to.

Not knowing which one to tackle first, Harry decided that his priorities should be to cheer his friend up first before anything else should be discussed.

Payton glanced at the table next to theirs, immediately finding warm brown eyes watching her.

Rachel smiled and Payton felt her stomach flip as a result. Ignoring the sensation, Payton smiled back, waving slightly.

Rachel's smile widened as she waved back.

"I didn't know you were friendly with Berry." Harry commented.

"New development, actually." Her eyes not leaving Rachel's own as she said it.

Harry looked impressed by the information, wondering if this was his friend's way of moving on from the head Cheerio that she was clearly in love with but had little hope of making hers.

"Development huh?" He waggled his brows and she finally broke eye contact and looked at him and then snorted.

"It's not like that. I'm helping her out with something."

"Oh really? With what? Does she need help with her vocal exercises? Are you helping her to hit the high notes? Payton, you naughty girl." He waggled his brows at her again and she laughed at his ridiculous Peter Griffin impression

"Don't make it dirty, you perv." She chucked a crouton at his forehead, hitting him square between the eyes. He picked up the bit of dried, seasoned bread and popped it in his mouth. Payton chuckled and flicked another in his direction just to see what he would do which he then picked up and popped in his mouth like the other one. She shook her head at him and continued, "It's nothing scandalous as that. I'm taking a couple photos for her and her club."

Harry raised an eye brow.

"You mean that band of losers."

Payton raised a brow of her own, though hers looked more severe than his.

"Hey. They're not losers. You need to stop repeating the crap you hear around school when you don't even believe it yourself." She scolded him. He shrugged.

"So you're helping them. Why photos though? Do they need photographic proof of just how lame they look dancing around and singing show tunes?"

"Now you're just being mean."

"Yeah. That was a bit harsh. Oh well. Valid question though."

"No it's not. Anyway Rachel wants to do something with the photos. She wants to make a book out of it for all the kids in Glee. It's actually really nice when you think about it. She asked me before telling the club about it so I think it's just her wanting to do something nice for her teammates."

Harry smirked at her. "Are you in her fan club with Hudson now too?"

"What?" Payton snapped her eyes away from Rachel again and looked at her friend.

"Nothing." He said innocently.

He asked more about the project, knowing full well that the subject of photography would have Payton talking at length for a little while. She explained more about what Rachel wanted and Harry was curious to see how all this would pan out.

"Have you ever thought of going digital?" He asked after the subject trailed off. He knew she was partial to the 35mm her uncle had given her when she was 12.

"Sometimes but I don't have the money for it yet, I was thinking about saving up for it by getting a job soon. I heard that the bowling alley and arcade a couple blocks from my house is hiring and they're known for hiring teenagers more than most places do." She began to explain.

Harry made a face at the very idea. She didn't need a job. He could solve that problem right now.

"That's it. I'm getting you a new camera for your birthday." He announced with a self satisfied smile. It was perfect. He would solve both of Payton's problems with just a swipe of his black credit card.

Payton picks up her head from her lunch to give him a raised eyebrow.

"I thought the cell phone was for my birthday."

Harry rolled his eyes.

"You can have more than one birthday present." He said this like the very idea otherwise was absurd, therefore making Payton an idiot. Actually this was an apology gift. For what the apology was for exactly he had no idea but when you screw up you buy them gifts. Or at least that's what his dad does for his mom, and he does that pretty often. Harry took out his phone from his coat pocket and entered his password. From his peripheral he could see Payton's denial face and knew that he was about to hear a nicely worded no in the next few moments.

"Harry, seriously, that's not necessary. I'm thankful for what you're trying to do but I can make it on my own. I like to pay my own way." She said earnestly.

Harry looked up from his phone just as he was about to enter his PIN number for his credit card.

"Who says you can't? Hugs are currency too. Well, in my world anyway." Harry waggles his eyebrows at the girl, smirking when the only response she deemed him with was the roll of her eyes.

"You're unbelievable."

"I know." He grinned.

"That wasn't a compliment."

"Well, I refuse to take it any other way." He grinned boyishly at her and she shrugged with a slight shake of her head.

"Suit yourself."

By the end of lunch Payton and Harry had reestablished their familiar rapport. Harry smiled as he dumped both his and Payton's trash. The gift idea sounded like the perfect solution to make Payton forgive him completely and Harry was awesome at gift giving.

He would just have to somehow persuade her to keep it and it would be smooth sailing for his friend's new project. He smiled to himself. He was such a good friend.

Thoughts? I know the pace so far has been slow and up to this point there hasn't really been much action, but fear not! I do have my reasons and promise you once things pick up, you are all in for a fun ride. :)