Chapter Eight
Two days passed as Peter Parker lie in his hospital bed at Mercy Memorial Hospital with Aunt May by his side. He already had a fever that was giving him constant nightmares. His hair was soaked with sweat; his eyes did not have the bags under them. He was surrounded with covers, pillows and comforts galore. He was jerking his head sporadically as though he was in the process of yet another nightmare. Outside of his room, Jackie and her childhood friend Steve were in the waiting room along with Dr. Hanes and Dr. Simon and Rick Thompson, Emily and Mary Jane Watson . While Jackie and Steve seemed to be having a pleasant conversation, Hanes and Simon were arguing and Rick and the Watsons were not talking at all. Suddenly appearing in the doorway with an air of self-importance, J. Jonah Jameson stepped into the waiting room irritably and in haste. He called on one of the nurses that was taking care of Peter. The nurse was a middle- aged African American woman with an amazing complexion.
"Excuse me," Jameson said in a self-aggrandizing tone, "can you tell me about the status of Peter Parker?"
"I cannot sir unless you are a family member. Are you?
"No."
"Well, I'm sorry sir. You will have to wait like everyone else in the waiting room."
Jameson eyed the nurse and crossed his arms over his chest and gave her a horrid look. " Do you have any idea who you are talking to? I'm J. Jonah Jameson from the Daily Bugle-"
"Look, Mr. Daily Bugle" she said in a mocking tone, "I don't care even if you're Barbra Streisand, you're not going in right now."
" I'm his employer. I have the right to know what's going on. He hasn't been at work and my newspaper is suffering-"
"Like I said before, I don't care. Wait like everyone else, Your Highness."
"Expect a call from my attorney!"
"Oooh," answered the nurse with sarcasm, "I'm scared now."
Jones frowned, shook his head furiously, turned and sat at one of the chairs in the waiting room, picking up a teen magazine. He threw the magazine down as soon as he glanced at it. He walked hastily to the magazine table and browsed through the magazine and newspaper titles: The Daily Woman, Horse and Saddle, Automobile Bi-Monthly, Nerd Monthly, Dust Mites Magazine, Cell Phone Journal and The Enquiring Star. He walked wrathfully over to the receptionist and held up three magazines in his left hand. Jameson took one of the magazines, Dust Mites Magazine, and opened it to a random page as he slammed the other magazines on the receptionist's desk
"Excuse me?! Is there anything remotely intelligent to read around here? I'm fed up reading stupid articles like 'How to clean the dust mites from your sunglasses'! Where's the Daily Bugle? Now, THAT'S an intelligent newspaper!"
The receptionist looked at him with monotony and sighed, "Sir, if you don't want to read our magazines, then bring a book."
"Excuse me?! Bring a book! You've got to be kidding! The waiting room at the Daily Bugle-" As Jameson continued to argue with the receptionist about the magazine selection and the idea of bring books to waiting rooms, Jackie and her friend Steve continued their conversion about Peter Parker.
"What actually happened to this guy?" Steve asked as he crossed his one leg over the other while looking at a magazine. "Is he a drug user, abuser, alcoholic?"
Jackie laughed and suddenly went into a deadpan look. "No. Who gave you that idea?" she asked as she continued to flip through her magazine.
Steve closed his magazine and answered sarcastically. "Oh, I don't know-- maybe it was the 'near the end of dinner, he collapsed out of his chair' and oh! What about this one-- 'out in the freezing weather of New York City, he, yet again, collapsed on the snow'?"
"Aw, come on Steve! You don't honestly believe that-- the nurse said he was suffering through severe sleep deprivation."
Steve looked at his friend defected as he ran his heavy hand through his short red hair. "Okay, but don't you think it's odd? And not only that- why exactly are we here? Do you personally know this guy?"
"Yes, like I told you. He's in my Calc-"
"Yeah, you told me that, but there's much more than that. Do you think I'm a total moron? When I was in college, I didn't visit random girls in the hospital. What's the real deal? Are you having an affair with Peter? If Harry found out-"
Jackie looked at Steve with some disgust, then threw her hands up and remarked sarcastically. "Okay Steve. You caught me! Peter and I were planning to sneak away from my nosey friend and his large barbarian boss!" She began now to speak in dreamlike sarcasm. "We were planning our fourth month anniversary of Calculus Three together in each other arms reciting math theorems with strawberries and chocolate." She bent over with mocking seductively, "You have no idea how sexy derivatives are."
"You were!!!???"
Jackie looked at him and hit him on the head with her rolled-up magazine. "YOU DINGBAT! I can't really believe that you got into graduate school!"
Steve smiled and pat her on the shoulder, "Yeah, I understood what you meant. I was joking." He continued now with renewed concern. "But what was the real motivation?"
"Well, in all honesty, I wanted to figure out if I was the cause of his collapse tonight."
"What did you do? Propose the 'Calculus Three Weekend Getaway thing'?" Steve asked, grinning.
Jackie looked at him with seriousness. "No. I gave him a sugar stick. I should have asked him if he was allergic to corn syrup, dyes-"
"Sugar?"
Jackie nodded with agitation, "Sugar. ugh, I'm so stupid."
Steve turned to face her, "No, you're not. Besides, you said it was sleep deprivation. And by the way, I had Dr. Simon before. He favors guys who visit the hospital often; they must remind him of himself- nurses and all that. You know?" He concluded, adding a wink.
Jackie shook her head. "I don't think Peter goes for that sort of thing. But I wouldn't doubt that about Simon." She said with a smile, then abruptly looked at her watch. "Ugh. I need coffee." She got up from her seat and faced Steve while going into her purse, "You want some too?"
Steve shook his head, "Nah. I'm on a caffeine-free diet thingy. Need to flush my colon."
Jackie smiled, "Alright."
She walked out of the waiting room, passing the argument that Jameson was still having with the receptionist and vanished into the walkway looking for the coffee machine. Steve frowned as he looking around the waiting room, bored out of his mind. He got up and walked to the receptionist and before he could say anything, he looked down and saw Horse and Saddle was still lying on the desk. Jameson stopped arguing as he witnessed Steve walk away from the desk with Horse and Saddle in his hand, slump down on his chair and started to read it earnestly.
"You must understand sir," the receptionist said with a smirk as she witnessed the same event, "The world doesn't revolve around you."
Jameson looked at her, frowned and snatched Automobile Bi-Monthly from the desk and plunged into his seat and irately gawked at the front cover.
Two days passed as Peter Parker lie in his hospital bed at Mercy Memorial Hospital with Aunt May by his side. He already had a fever that was giving him constant nightmares. His hair was soaked with sweat; his eyes did not have the bags under them. He was surrounded with covers, pillows and comforts galore. He was jerking his head sporadically as though he was in the process of yet another nightmare. Outside of his room, Jackie and her childhood friend Steve were in the waiting room along with Dr. Hanes and Dr. Simon and Rick Thompson, Emily and Mary Jane Watson . While Jackie and Steve seemed to be having a pleasant conversation, Hanes and Simon were arguing and Rick and the Watsons were not talking at all. Suddenly appearing in the doorway with an air of self-importance, J. Jonah Jameson stepped into the waiting room irritably and in haste. He called on one of the nurses that was taking care of Peter. The nurse was a middle- aged African American woman with an amazing complexion.
"Excuse me," Jameson said in a self-aggrandizing tone, "can you tell me about the status of Peter Parker?"
"I cannot sir unless you are a family member. Are you?
"No."
"Well, I'm sorry sir. You will have to wait like everyone else in the waiting room."
Jameson eyed the nurse and crossed his arms over his chest and gave her a horrid look. " Do you have any idea who you are talking to? I'm J. Jonah Jameson from the Daily Bugle-"
"Look, Mr. Daily Bugle" she said in a mocking tone, "I don't care even if you're Barbra Streisand, you're not going in right now."
" I'm his employer. I have the right to know what's going on. He hasn't been at work and my newspaper is suffering-"
"Like I said before, I don't care. Wait like everyone else, Your Highness."
"Expect a call from my attorney!"
"Oooh," answered the nurse with sarcasm, "I'm scared now."
Jones frowned, shook his head furiously, turned and sat at one of the chairs in the waiting room, picking up a teen magazine. He threw the magazine down as soon as he glanced at it. He walked hastily to the magazine table and browsed through the magazine and newspaper titles: The Daily Woman, Horse and Saddle, Automobile Bi-Monthly, Nerd Monthly, Dust Mites Magazine, Cell Phone Journal and The Enquiring Star. He walked wrathfully over to the receptionist and held up three magazines in his left hand. Jameson took one of the magazines, Dust Mites Magazine, and opened it to a random page as he slammed the other magazines on the receptionist's desk
"Excuse me?! Is there anything remotely intelligent to read around here? I'm fed up reading stupid articles like 'How to clean the dust mites from your sunglasses'! Where's the Daily Bugle? Now, THAT'S an intelligent newspaper!"
The receptionist looked at him with monotony and sighed, "Sir, if you don't want to read our magazines, then bring a book."
"Excuse me?! Bring a book! You've got to be kidding! The waiting room at the Daily Bugle-" As Jameson continued to argue with the receptionist about the magazine selection and the idea of bring books to waiting rooms, Jackie and her friend Steve continued their conversion about Peter Parker.
"What actually happened to this guy?" Steve asked as he crossed his one leg over the other while looking at a magazine. "Is he a drug user, abuser, alcoholic?"
Jackie laughed and suddenly went into a deadpan look. "No. Who gave you that idea?" she asked as she continued to flip through her magazine.
Steve closed his magazine and answered sarcastically. "Oh, I don't know-- maybe it was the 'near the end of dinner, he collapsed out of his chair' and oh! What about this one-- 'out in the freezing weather of New York City, he, yet again, collapsed on the snow'?"
"Aw, come on Steve! You don't honestly believe that-- the nurse said he was suffering through severe sleep deprivation."
Steve looked at his friend defected as he ran his heavy hand through his short red hair. "Okay, but don't you think it's odd? And not only that- why exactly are we here? Do you personally know this guy?"
"Yes, like I told you. He's in my Calc-"
"Yeah, you told me that, but there's much more than that. Do you think I'm a total moron? When I was in college, I didn't visit random girls in the hospital. What's the real deal? Are you having an affair with Peter? If Harry found out-"
Jackie looked at Steve with some disgust, then threw her hands up and remarked sarcastically. "Okay Steve. You caught me! Peter and I were planning to sneak away from my nosey friend and his large barbarian boss!" She began now to speak in dreamlike sarcasm. "We were planning our fourth month anniversary of Calculus Three together in each other arms reciting math theorems with strawberries and chocolate." She bent over with mocking seductively, "You have no idea how sexy derivatives are."
"You were!!!???"
Jackie looked at him and hit him on the head with her rolled-up magazine. "YOU DINGBAT! I can't really believe that you got into graduate school!"
Steve smiled and pat her on the shoulder, "Yeah, I understood what you meant. I was joking." He continued now with renewed concern. "But what was the real motivation?"
"Well, in all honesty, I wanted to figure out if I was the cause of his collapse tonight."
"What did you do? Propose the 'Calculus Three Weekend Getaway thing'?" Steve asked, grinning.
Jackie looked at him with seriousness. "No. I gave him a sugar stick. I should have asked him if he was allergic to corn syrup, dyes-"
"Sugar?"
Jackie nodded with agitation, "Sugar. ugh, I'm so stupid."
Steve turned to face her, "No, you're not. Besides, you said it was sleep deprivation. And by the way, I had Dr. Simon before. He favors guys who visit the hospital often; they must remind him of himself- nurses and all that. You know?" He concluded, adding a wink.
Jackie shook her head. "I don't think Peter goes for that sort of thing. But I wouldn't doubt that about Simon." She said with a smile, then abruptly looked at her watch. "Ugh. I need coffee." She got up from her seat and faced Steve while going into her purse, "You want some too?"
Steve shook his head, "Nah. I'm on a caffeine-free diet thingy. Need to flush my colon."
Jackie smiled, "Alright."
She walked out of the waiting room, passing the argument that Jameson was still having with the receptionist and vanished into the walkway looking for the coffee machine. Steve frowned as he looking around the waiting room, bored out of his mind. He got up and walked to the receptionist and before he could say anything, he looked down and saw Horse and Saddle was still lying on the desk. Jameson stopped arguing as he witnessed Steve walk away from the desk with Horse and Saddle in his hand, slump down on his chair and started to read it earnestly.
"You must understand sir," the receptionist said with a smirk as she witnessed the same event, "The world doesn't revolve around you."
Jameson looked at her, frowned and snatched Automobile Bi-Monthly from the desk and plunged into his seat and irately gawked at the front cover.