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Chapter Thirty-Four

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Mary Jane lay in bed that night, unable to fall asleep. The sheets were too warm but whenever she kicked them off, she would then get cold. No position was comfortable, either. She tried laying on her back, her sides, and even her stomach - though she never slept like that before in her life.

And every time she closed her eyes, it was to see Peter Parker - wet, with defined muscles and wearing nothing but his boxer briefs. She whimpered slightly at the image before she huffed and snapped her eyes open in frustration. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't shake the thought of Peter Parker's fit figure out of her brain. Especially when her mind's wandering eye always fixated on his… package. She could tell that even though he hadn't been hard, he was still very well-endowed based off of the bulge that had been unintentionally displayed earlier in his bedroom. Mary Jane bit her lip. She really had no shame, did she?

Then she sighed and rationalized that if she was going to sit here fantasizing about Peter and his ridiculously hot body, then she might as well do something about it.

Sleep was a necessity, after all.

She closed her eyes and gave in fully to the image - with Peter standing there in nothing but his underwear. Only in her fantasy, Peter wasn't looking at her with wide-eyed panic. No… instead, he was looking at her with lust in his eyes. Mary Jane whimpered again as her hands wandered over the expanse of her chest before snaking down the valley of her stomach… making purchase at the top of her panties.

Her fingers delicately snaked their way underneath the elastic barrier just as fantasy Peter's own hand went down to palm his arousal through his briefs. He moaned at the touch in her mind and Mary Jane gave her own answering moan as her hand found the heat of her sex. She masturbated to these thoughts as her mind fixated on different parts of what she could remember of Peter's body.

It wasn't until Peter gave her a blazing look of desire and said to her, "I want you so bad, Red…" that Mary Jane let out a groan as her climax found her.

….

On Sunday, Ned came over sometime in the mid-morning. They had plans to venture over to see Harry today at his new penthouse apartment in order to find out how he was faring. Harry really had lost a lot as a result of the party - a party that he only threw to help Peter out. His house had been burned down and didn't have plans for reconstruction until the spring, and Harry needed a cast for his whole right leg as he had broken two of his bones from the ceiling beam that had fallen on top of him.

Over the week, Peter also found out from Betty that Sha Shan had only just woken up in the hospital on Thursday from her head injury. All week, he had never seen Flash so quiet before… getting the unconscious girl out of the burning building must have really affected Flash based off of his melancholy attitude. Not to mention Mary Jane… Peter suspected that her care-free demeanor was nothing but an act. There were some moments, while he was covertly watching her out of the corner of his eye, where her mask would slip and a deep expression of loss would haunt her eyes. Apprehending her father had been the right thing to do, but that didn't mean that Mary Jane wasn't still affected emotionally by the results of it. He could tell that she was still mourning the man that her father used to be when she was young.

Peter tried to push down the guilt but he still felt responsible no matter how many times Aunt May and Ned tried to tell him otherwise.

They took the bus all the way across town, with Peter carrying a backpack filled with Harry's homework. He was going to offer to stay and help him catch up with it. It was honestly the least that he could do after everything…

When they arrived, they had to be checked in at the front lobby from a pre-approved list of guests and then wait to be announced. That was how fancy this apartment complex was. It was no mansion, but still…

Luckily, Peter and Ned didn't have to wait very long before they were given the green light to take the elevator all the way up to the top floor - which the Osborns occupied entirely to themselves. In fact, the elevators opened directly into the suite itself. Ned and Peter looked out in awe at what the doors revealed, unable to comprehend having this much money.

Waiting for them by the door was a butler, who inclined his head slightly in greeting.

"Welcome Mr. Parker, Mr. Leeds," He said before he gestured with his white, gloved hand to the room beyond, "Master Harry is in the Breakfast Parlor waiting for you. May I assist you with your bag?"

Peter's wide-eyed gaze shot down to the backpack draped over his shoulder. "Uh, no thanks. I've got Harry's homework in here."

The Butler nodded before he said, "Follow me and I will lead you to the Breakfast Parlor."

Peter and Ned looked at one another as the Butler started to slowly walk away before they scrambled to follow. Ned shot him another look as they walked and mouthed the words, 'Master Harry?' at him. To which Peter could only shrug at. It kinda reminded him of Dobby and Harry Potter to hear someone being referred to as such, which caused an amused grin to tickle at his lips.

They were led around the corner and into another room that was cozier than the rest of the suite, with its singular round table and padded ornate chairs. The walls were also a warm tan rather than the sterile gray that they were greeted to in the foyer. And at the table, sat Harry - writing notes in his copy of the 'Pride and Predjudice' book that they had to do an essay on. Peter had already finished his essay - having written it on gender roles and expectations from that time period, specifically on how the women in the book believed that happiness only stemmed from marriage. He highlighted this point by focusing on Charlotte Lucas, who outright admitted that she only married Mr. Collins in order to live a comfortable life while she thought that her husband was 'neither sensible nor agreeable'.

Harry looked up at the sound of their approach and flashed them his widest grin. "Finally!" He exclaimed, putting down his book as Peter and Ned took their seats around the table. "Another day without real human interaction and I thought that I would just about die of boredom." Harry complained, but his eyes showed just how happy he was to see the two of them there.

"Sorry we didn't come sooner," Ned supplied, looking just as guilty as Peter felt. He knew that he was busy trying to find The Vulture this week, but he could have taken the time to stop by, just to see how Harry was doing.

Harry waved him off, looking unconcerned. "My dad wasn't letting anyone come over until the place was fully furnished, anyways. We've got a reputation to uphold, afterall…" Harry broke off with an exaggerated roll of his eyes, which had Peter grinning. He couldn't help but admire how Harry stubbornly tried to forge his own path away from the one his father set for him.

Then, Peter's expression softened as he caught a glimpse of Harry's leg again underneath the table. He looked back up at Harry, contrite, "I'm really sorry about what happened to your leg, man… and your house."

This, Harry didn't wave off like Peter came to expect from him. Instead, he got quiet as his gaze dropped to the table in silent reflection. When he finally looked back up at the both of them again, there was a hard edge to the lining of his eyes. "Yeah, well… that's what happens when an irresponsible and reckless superhero crashes your party, right?"

The air gushed out of Peter's lungs as though he had been kicked in the gut.

"What do you mean?" Ned rushed to ask, his voice tight and high.

Harry shrugged one shoulder at them, trying to appear nonchalant when Peter could still detect an air of malicious irritation surrounding him while thinking of Peter's alter ego. "I mean just what I said. What was he even doing there, anyways? He seriously could've killed someone by the stunts that he's pulled. We've been lucky that there haven't been any lawsuits involved - not that my dad would let them get very far."

Peter could feel all of the color leave his face as he paled on the spot. Immediately, his gaze dropped down to his hands twisting together on his lap.

"But…" Ned began, before he paused and shot a look at Peter, then tried again, "But, Spider-Man was there to save us. He stopped the bad guys, right?"

Smiling and shaking his head at Ned, Harry looked on at him as though he were hilariously naive. "But he didn't try to lead the fight elsewhere. And I have a feeling that the only reason why the two 'bad guys' were there was only because of Spider-Man. Besides, this isn't the first time that Spider-Man has royally screwed things up. Look at what he did to Coney Island? Crashing a plane on the beach? What if someone had been walking on that beach and had gotten crushed by the debris? Then what about the ferry that he tore in half? If Iron Man hadn't been there, all of those people would've died! And all for what? To stop an illegal trades deal? And then, there was the bomb he 'took care of' at the Lincoln Charity Ball… when he lifted the table to get to it, he whacked the table in my dad's face! He could have gotten brain damage. Not to mention that the bomb would've never been planted if not for Spider-Man in the first place. The guy is reckless, I'm telling you man. He has no regard for his surroundings or the people that he 'tries' to protect. In the end, he does more harm than good."

Deafening silence followed. Peter's tongue felt like lead in his mouth, too heavy to move. Was all that Harry said was true? Was he reckless? Did he not care to pay attention enough to his surroundings and the innocent people that could get hurt in his pursuit to stop criminals? It was difficult to grasp, because deep down, Peter knew that he did care. But he couldn't use his own personal feelings as a way of defense to Harry… So, Peter stayed silent.

"You're wrong about him, Harry," Ned said, his voice strong and definitive, "Spider-Man is a hero."

Harry shook his head again and smiled weakly at Ned. "That is where we will have to agree to disagree, my friend."

The tense silence that followed was getting rather uncomfortable and Peter desperately wanted to branch away from this subject matter. He would take the time to self-reflect on it later. So, with that, he dropped the shoulder of his backpack and put the bag onto the table before stating out in a rush, "I've brought your homework, Harry. And I'm free for the day to help you catch up if you want me to."

…

Ned had to leave not long after that. He had kept his summer job but transitioned to a casual position where he could pick up open shifts on the weekend. Peter was kind of glad to see him go, if he were being honest. He didn't feel that he deserved the defense that he brought to Harry's arguments about Spider-Man. And besides that, he wanted to just shove it all in a box and forget about it.

So Harry didn't like Spider-Man. So what? He wouldn't let that affect the friendship that Harry had with Peter Parker. He also highly doubted that Harry would come into contact with his alter ego much anyways. And if he did, it would merely be circumstantial. Like, maybe Harry would spot him web-swinging up above.

Immediately after Ned left, Peter helped Harry dive into his homework. The more time that passed, the more easy-going their conversations went as they worked. Harry was too good of a friend for Peter to let a differing opinion sway their easy-going bond.

It was about an hour or so into their work when they were interrupted by a new figure that walked through the door. Peter looked up at the man, who wore a crisp, gray business suit and a severely serious expression on his features. The man's eyes took Peter in before he turned his attention to Harry. "Son. I didn't realize that we had a guest."

Now that Peter knew who the man was, he could see the resemblance between father and son. With their brown hair and sharp angles to their jawlines. The reason why he didn't pick up on it sooner was because Harry always had softer expressions than that of his dad.

Harry looked up from his textbook, merely daining to give his dad a glance before he looked back down while saying, "Dad, this is my friend Peter Parker from school. He was nice enough to bring the homework that I missed from this last week. Peter, this is my dad, Norman Osborn."

Mr. Osborn didn't step forward to shake Peter's hand, so Peter merely nodded in greeting at the man as he said, "Pleased to meet you, sir."

A single, firm nod was what he got in response. "I suppose I should be grateful to you for ensuring that my son doesn't get kicked out of yet another school."

Peter snuck a glance back at Harry, feeling the full weight of the awkwardness of the situation after that statement. Harry merely rolled his eyes to himself but otherwise gave no response. Emboldened on Harry's behalf, Peter turned back to face Mr. Osborn. "Harry is brilliant, sir. He fits into MSST like a glove."

"Only with your help, Peter," Harry felt the need to supply. Why was he deliberately selling himself short when Peter was trying to bolster him up to his dad?

"You're helping Harry pass his classes?" Mr. Osborn asked, only a mild curiosity in his voice.

Before Peter could respond, Harry interjected for him. "Well, Peter is the type to read scientific theory books for fun, so what do you think?"

"Really?" A tad bit more interest flowed into Mr. Osborn's speech as he eyed Peter speculatively. Peter swallowed heavily under the gaze, feeling as though he were a bug underneath a microscope. "What sort of books have you read?"

"I read your book on Nanotechnology," Peter said politely, "Very brilliant, sir."

Mr. Osborn's brows rose as a rare look of surprise crossed his features, dropping the stern expression altogether - which made him look considerably younger. "And you understood it?"

Peter nodded. "Yes, sir. I wrote a paper on it in my Freshman year."

The barest of smiles crossed Norman Osborn's lips before it fell and scorn overtook his features once again. "My theory had promise, yes. But Stark managed to beat me to the punch on that front."

"Peter actually has an internship with Mr. Stark, dad," Harry supplied, his voice sounded bored as he turned the page in his textbook and then wrote down some notes. But Peter could detect a taunting lilt to Harry's tone. Why did Peter suddenly feel like a chess piece that was used as a pawn in an epic game between father and son?

Peter would have thought that his ties with a rival company would have black-listed him for life, but if anything, Mr. Osborn looked impressed. "A Stark Industries Internship, huh? That's quite the feat for someone your age. You must be brilliant for Stark to take an interest in you."

Peter flushed and looked down at his hands folded in his lap. Yes, sometimes he and Tony tinkered around in the lab at the Avengers Compound upstate, but that wasn't the initial reason why Tony took an interest in him. It was his alter-ego that caused Tony to discover him. It wasn't until afterwards that he found out that Peter had some skills in a laboratory - such as the web fluid formula that he had created from scratch.

Mr. Osborn noticed the expression on Peter's face before he said pointedly, "Modesty won't get you very far in life, son. Remember that."

Peter could only stare at the man as he turned to stride out of the room. But just before he was about to pass through the door, he paused and turned back to Peter and said, "If you feel that you could tear yourself away from Stark Industries, feel free to stop by Oscorp sometime, Peter. I would be interested to learn more about your skills."

Not knowing what to say, Peter only nodded - all the while, knowing that it was an offer that he would likely never take up.

With that confirmation, Mr. Osborn left and Peter felt that he could finally breathe easier as he turned back to Harry. What he saw was his friend's blatant look pointed in his direction.

"What?" Peter asked.

Harry gave a short laugh and a shake of his head. "Oh, nothing. It's just that I think he wants to adopt you or something." Harry said this with a mixture of sarcasm and bitterness in his voice. Peter looked on at him with something akin to pity. He really couldn't imagine having a father like Norman Osborn - intimidating and serious. He almost marveled at how Harry had somehow managed to come out of the other end of his childhood semi-normal. It must have been difficult being raised under the long shadow of his father, and Peter was seeing signs of that in his friend right now.

Peter patted Harry on the back before saying, "One conversation with Flash about how much of a loser I actually am would change his mind really quick. Any dad would be proud of you, Harry. It's really no contest."

"You're not a loser," Harry contradicted immediately before he closed his eyes and sighed. A moment later, he opened them again and gave Peter a grateful look. "Thanks, Pete."

Peter smiled at him softly and nodded, deciding to change the subject to help the tension in the air. "So, back-tracking to the essay on 'Pride and Prejudice', you said that you wanted to write your paper on the sheer volume of misunderstandings that stem from modesty?"

Harry nodded as he took out the book in question. "Yeah. A lot of the conflict wouldn't have even happened if the characters hadn't been so afraid to just sit down and talk to one another."

Peter considered this for a moment. "You may want to expand on that. Maybe include the expectations of modesty to one's feelings back in the 18th century."

Harry flashed him an incredulous look and gave a short laugh, shaking his head at him.

"What?" Peter asked, confused.

"You think that people were afraid to talk about their feelings only in the 18th century? It still happens to this day, my friend. Look at the relationship between me and my dad. You really think that we sit down and have cozy conversations with one another?"

This left Peter stunned. He had never thought of it that way before. When he read the book, the customs seemed so outdated in his mind that he had failed to see the parallels to modern-day life. Hence as to why he wrote his essay on a subject matter that was limited to the time-period that the book took place in. But the more that he reflected on it, the more that he realized that Harry was right.

"Huh." Peter said, dumbfounded as he fell back in his chair. Then he gave his friend an easy smile. "I think that you just found your essay topic, man."

….

It was Monday night and Mary Jane was feeling restless. She wanted to go over and knock on the Parkers' door and see Peter but she needed to think up an excuse. She bit her thumb as she considered her options.

What did she know about guys to be true?

Well, she knew that a lot of men loved it when women smiled a lot - but that wasn't something that she could use as an excuse to go and see Peter…

She could ask for help again on her homework but she didn't really get very many assignments for tonight. Besides that, she didn't want Peter to see her as incompetent in her schooling. She was trying to impress him, not play dumb.

But, that didn't mean that she couldn't go a different route with the same idea… because there was another thing that she knew about men to be true - it was that guys liked to feel important, needed, and maybe a tad bit helpful.

With that in mind, she grinned and made her way to the kitchen. Her Aunt Anna stood in the middle of the room, going back and forth between the cabinets and fridge, gathering up the ingredients to make some spaghetti and meatballs. Mary Jane meandered her way in and stole the jar of marinara sauce from the countertop, already making her way toward the door with it in hand.

"Mary Jane," Her aunt said, confused, "I was just about to use that-"

"I'll bring it right back, Aunt Anna," Mary Jane interrupted, "I promise!"

She didn't wait for her aunt's response as she went out the front door and closed it behind her. Then, taking the few steps until she was in front of the Parkers' door, she knocked definitively and then waited. She beamed when she saw that it was Peter that answered the door, looking as breathtaking as ever. He was wearing a forest green sweater. Mary Jane had never seen that color on him before and she had to admit, he made it look good.

"MJ?" He asked, staring at her in mild surprise but not at all displeased. She took that as a good sign.

Then, she pouted slightly at him before holding out the jar in front of her. "Help?"

His eyes roamed down to the jar with the tightly closed lid as he said, "Oh! Yeah, sure."

He grabbed the jar from her and easily twisted the lid cap off of the jar before handing both back over to her.

"Thanks, Tiger!" She beamed back at him as she took them back from him, "Look at you, Mr. Strong Man."

She got the desirable results of watching a flush crawl its way up his neck. His hand came up immediately to ruffle at the back of his hair. Could he be any more adorable? "Wha-? Uh, no. Not really. Just got a good grip is all."

Shaking her head at him, she gave a little laugh. "And as modest as ever," Then she paused and bit her lip before plunging forward, "We're making spaghetti and meatballs if you want to join us?"

The regretful smile that she got in response was disappointing. "Sorry, but May wanted us to go out to eat tonight. She said that she rarely ever gets to spend quality time with me anymore."

"Oh."

It was an understandable excuse but that didn't mean that Mary Jane felt more than a little bummed at his refusal. "Well… Have fun with your aunt, Tiger. Thanks again for being my human jar opener."

At this, he laughed and grinned wide at her. "Anytime, Red."

And with that, Mary Jane regretfully turned away, walking back to her door as she watched out of the corner of her eye as Peter closed his own. She sighed. Okay… so not exactly how she wanted that to go, but it wasn't a strike-out. Just because he already had plans didn't mean that he didn't want to spend time with her. She was still in the game.

With another heavy sigh, she opened her door and walked through the living room and all the way to the kitchen. She planted the open jar onto the countertop in front of her Aunt Anna, who flashed her a look that told Mary Jane that she was questioning her sanity. "What was that all about?"

Mary Jane paused from her attempted escape out of the room, turned and said as innocently as she could, "I wanted to help you open the jar but the lighting seemed better out in the hall."

If her sanity was in question before, now it looked as though she were about to be committed to a mental institution. Mary Jane couldn't blame her aunt. It was a terrible excuse. But the truth was rather embarrassing… that she went and sought the help of the boy that she was crushing on to open a jar that Mary Jane hadn't even attempted to open herself. So before her aunt could question her further, Mary Jane escaped to her bedroom and closed the door behind her.

….

Her confidence was bolstered an hour later when she got a call from Mr. Lincoln. He wanted to set up a photo shoot of her to promote his new recycled clothing line. Mary Jane was ecstatic and couldn't have said yes fast enough. Plans were made for Thursday evening next week after school for the shoot to take place. The finer details would be emailed to her by his secretary, Glory Grant, but otherwise, everything was squared away.

She went to bed that night with stars in her eyes. And her fantasies went wild. Perhaps, once she had billboards up of her pictures around the city and in magazines, then Peter would start to look at her differently. One could only hope. She was starting to think that drilling her way into Peter Parker's heart was more difficult than shattering a diamond with her bare hands would be…

With that thought in mind, she resolved that perhaps it was time to up the ante a bit and start to pull out more when it came to what was in her arsenal.

…..

As the days passed, Mary Jane found herself getting into a routine.

She would get up. Dress to impress. Go to school. But then, after school, she would always stop by Delmar's Deli every single day.

All because she was starting to figure out Peter's routine as well…

Whenever she stopped by Delmar's, and she saw Peter there, she knew that he would be out as Spider-Man for the evening. But, if she didn't see him there, then she knew that she would be free to knock on his apartment door because he was choosing to stay in.

More often than not, Mary Jane saw Peter at the Deli. It kinda disappointed her that she would only get to see him for those few minutes, but she treasured that time all the same. Because in those few minutes, she would get him to smile and laugh. They would talk about their days at school, and Peter would update Mary Jane on how Harry and Ned were doing.

And as each day passed, Mary Jane got bolder with her touches.

It started with a pat on the shoulder. Then it moved into a brief caress. Then a lingering touch…

Once, he actually took the time to sit down with her outside on a nice day to eat their sandwiches and Mary Jane took the full opportunity to reach over and touch his muscular thigh as they laughed about nonsense together. Peter's laughter had choked off at the touch and Mary Jane struggled to get a read on whether that was a good sign or a bad one. How was it after finding out his biggest secret, she still considered him to be a mystery?

When the weekend rolled around, Mary Jane was already formulating excuses to go over and knock on Peter Parker's door. She felt that she needed one in order to not come off as desperate and needy. So, Mary Jane had to wait all afternoon for her aunt to come back home in order to fully execute the plan. But when her Aunt Anna finally walked through the door after her work shift and Mary Jane asked her for her favor, she was disappointed to hear a less than favorable answer…

"Please, Aunt Anna?" Mary Jane begged again, fully prepared to get on her knees at this point.

"I told you, Mary Jane, I'm tired," Aunt Anna said as she sat down at the couch and turned on the T.V. to some sort of afternoon game show. "It was a long day at work."

Mary Jane worried her lip between her teeth. She could just set out on her own and try it herself but she didn't have enough faith in her baking skills to trust that she wouldn't burn the apartment complex down. "Can you at least teach me how?" She asked, hating how her voice came across as a bit whiny even to her own ears.

Aunt Anna sighed and turned her attention away from the T.V. to look at her. "Why is this suddenly so important?"

Now that was a question, wasn't it? Mary Jane found herself hesitant to answer. It was one thing for her to know her own motivations, but a completely other thing for her to go around saying it aloud. Then, she sighed. It was time to fess up if she really wanted her aunt to help her. "Peter just… really likes your oatmeal raisin cookies… and I happen to really like Peter."

She watched with a red face as her Aunt Anna froze, staring wide-eyed at Mary Jane before a slow grin started growing on her face. "Really? That's fantastic news, dear! Peter is such a nice boy. And will keep you out of trouble, unlike Spider-Man- Oh! Sorry dear, I know that you like him but being associated with him could be dangerous."

If only she knew… that Peter Parker and Spider-Man were one in the same.

"Wait until I tell May!" Her aunt was gushing, much to Mary Jane's panic.

"No! No, Aunt Anna. Don't tell May… I- uh, I have a plan, see? Peter has told me that he wants to be friends and… I'm trying to change his mind. Show him that we could be good together."

Gosh, this was so humiliating when she said it all out loud. It honestly sounded like she couldn't take 'no' for an answer or something.

"Oh." Her Aunt Anna sobered, her face a bit crestfallen. "But- I would've thought that he… I assumed that he already had a crush on you, dear. I guess you could say that I'm surprised he would say that to you."

Her eyes stung at the reminder. She had assumed as much about Peter too before she really got to know him. "Yeah, well…"

Mary Jane looked down and tucked her hair behind her ear. She suddenly couldn't meet her Aunt's pitying gaze.

Then, the sound of her Aunt slapping her knees before standing met her ears, and Mary Jane reflexively looked up. "I suppose we better get started on those cookies then."

Releasing a breath, Mary Jane shot her aunt a grateful smile as they quickly set to work on making the cookie dough. Luckily, her aunt always had all of the ingredients on hand. It was actually a fun bonding experience that she had with her aunt. They both laughed at the amount of flour Mary Jane had managed to get in her hair - which was very prevalent against her striking, red hair.

Once the first batch was out of the oven, her aunt shooed her out of the kitchen. "Go and make yourself look cute and get that flour out of your hair. Let's show Peter Parker exactly what he's missing."

Mary Jane loved her aunt so much. She had so much spark and life. Mary Jane knew that a lot of her own liveliness was due to Aunt Anna's influence. She ran to the bathroom to do as she was told, where she managed to extract all of the flour out of her hair without wetting it down too much before she worked on her makeup. Then she went to her room to change into a blue blouse with a sweetheart neckline and some tight jeans. When she returned to the kitchen, her aunt had already displayed the warm cookies onto a decorative plate and handed it over to Mary Jane. With a wink, she added, "Tell me all about how it goes, sweetheart. I want to hear all of the details."

Taking the plate from her, Mary Jane grinned and nodded back to her in return before making her way out into the hall. Taking a brief moment to center herself, Mary Jane took a deep breath before she knocked on the Parker's door. She only had to wait a moment, before Peter Parker's handsome face appeared on the other side.

He brightened as soon as he saw her standing there. "MJ!" He grinned, beaming as his hand went up to ruffle in his wavy hair. "How's it going?"

Pleasure ran up her spine at his genuine happiness at seeing her. "I've been good, Peter," Deliberately saying his real name for how intimate it felt. Then, she handed out the plate of cookies to him. "I remember you telling me that they are your favorites."

He looked down at the plate and his eyes lit up at the sign of the baked goods. "Oh my gosh, yes. And they're still warm, too? You're making my mouth water, here."

He took the plate from her before he leaned his head in closer to it to inhale the sweet scent as Mary Jane watched in amusement at how cute his mannerisms were. He released a satisfied sigh before he looked back up at her and grinned once again. He stepped to the side as he asked, "You want to come in and eat these with me?"

It was just the invitation that she had been waiting for. "I would love to, thanks Peter," She said as she walked past him with a lingering pat on his shoulder. "Someone's got to make sure that you maintain control and not eat them all in one sitting."

Peter laughed behind her as he shut the door. Mary Jane saw May sitting on the couch, reading a book. "Are you accusing me of being the Cookie Monster?"

Mary Jane waved at May before she turned back to Peter and raised a sardonic brow at him. "There are much worse things that you could be accused of, Tiger. Would you rather prefer Oscar the Grouch and live in a garbage can?"

He shook his head at her with a smile. "I can live with Cookie Monster. But if I'm that, then what does that make you? Abby Cadabby?"

"Pshhh!" Mary Jane waved her hand in the air at him. "Please. I'm obviously Elmo. With the red hair and all."

Peter hit his forehead with his palm as they both settled into the stools at the kitchen island. "That's right, stupid Parker."

Peter wasted no time in grabbing a cookie from the plate and taking a large bite out of it. He closed his eyes and groaned at the taste, which set Mary Jane's fantasies running wild. She wondered if he made that sound in any other situations…

She shook her head against the thoughts before taking a cookie of her own and taking a smaller bite than the one Peter took. He was right, they were really good. Mary Jane hadn't had these for years and they reminded her of her childhood. She swallowed against the bite and watched in amusement as Peter had already devoured his first and was already reaching for a second. "After this, do you want to go to the park to walk these off a bit?"

His mouth was stuffed full but he was nodding as he swallowed against it. "Sure! I'm free for the rest of the day."

Mary Jane grinned, self-satisfied. If every day turned out like this one, then perhaps she would have already convinced Peter that they would be good as a couple. But she would take her wins wherever she could find them - especially if it was while Peter was glancing her way with such happiness in his eyes as he took the last bite of his third cookie.

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A/N: So the spark of Harry Osborn's hatred for Spider-Man begins…

And I promise that there will be a bit more development between Peter and Mary Jane in the next chapter - I just needed the time to jump forward a bit in order to fit the narrative to my story here.

Please leave a comment/review!

Thanks so much for reading!

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