7
Mary-Jane stepped off the train and onto the pavement. She looked around for some sign that there was a subway station around, but saw none nearby.
Guess I'm walking.
It was a chilly morning in New York City and it was MJ's first shot at a real audition. She was auditioning for a small part in a small TV show, but hey, everyone starts somewhere. She was hoping she'd be able to get off to a good start, make a good impression on the audience and the critics. She had dressed up a bit, not much, just a blue skirt and a white long sleeved shirt. She pulled her coat around her to avoid the cold and looked around nervously. She didn't want to be late, especially if she was going to make a lasting impression. She didn't want to be the girl who was late for her first audition. She passed a newspaper stand that people were flocking around, getting their morning paper to bring to work with them. She glanced a the cover of one of the tabloids and saw the blaring headline: "Masked super-hero saves twenty! Exclusive inside!"
She raised an eyebrow and smiled. It seemed people would do anything to sell a paper these days.
---
Peter clambered in through the window of his room in the apartment he shared with Harry. He seriously considered telling Harry what had happened to him, but decided against it. It was too risky, if someone overheard, Harry let it slip, or if Harry decided he didn't like Peter with his new powers. Imagine that.
Peter didn't keep the money he won. He felt like it was dirty money. Peter had sent the money to Aunt May, anonymously. As far as she knew, it was money from 'someone who cared.'
He had been a celebrity wrestler for almost three days. After that, he didn't show up anymore. He couldn't. Not with the still fresh memory of Uncle Ben lingering in his mind. It had been almost a week and a half. He knew that Aunt May was distressed, but she was a strong woman. Peter admired her for this, he knew that Aunt May could make it through tough times. She always had, but she was alone now, and Peter worried every now and then. He still hadn't forgotten MJ either.
MJ. Mary Jane.
The way she had comforted him after he'd returned to the house. She was there, and she helped him. He loved her even more than ever now. Too bad she'd never know. She'd probably laugh at him.
He hadn't forgotten his newfound powers and responsibility either. Uncle Ben's last wish was that Peter would use his power responsibly, and he was going to do just that. Since his death, he'd used his powers to help others. So far, he'd stopped a few muggings here and there, a bank robbery, an out of control train, and bunch of people on a tourist helicopter that went down. Now all he had to do was... pay the rent.
He heard the door open and a slam as someone set something down.
"Peter, you there?" It was Harry.
"Yeah, hold on, I'm coming down..." Peter immediately buttoned up a collared shirt over his costume and shoved the mask and gloves in his pocket. He went downstairs and found Harry slouching on the couch, flipping channels and looking bored and tired.
"Hey buddy. I was wondering, if you need a job, my father has a couple places that he could call..."
"It's alright Harry. I can find something."
"Well... alright Pete."
"Well, I was... uh, going to save for college this fall. At the University." Peter said, looking around. He knew Harry had the money for college, but it didn't seem like it was an oppurtunity that Harry was particularly passionate about. Peter had received an academics scholarship for all around excellence in all his school courses.
"Hey, that's great Pete. Listen, I uh, I'm gonna go out for a while. You know, just clear my head. Do you want me to pick anything up for you?"
"Ummm.... no, I'm okay."
"Right, see ya Pete.'' He stood up and pulled on his jacket. "Right, Bye Harry." Peter said. He heard the door shut and wondered why Harry had even bothered to come into the place anyway.
"Okay, time to see about getting a job." He was just about to pull open the newspaper when a siren broke his train of thoughts.
"Crap!" He jumped up and sprinted to his room upstairs. He frantically pulled his shoes and clothes off, pulling on his mask and gloves. He looked around his room quickly, "Crap, where is my other glove?!" He spotted it on the stairs and dashed over to it. He then took off out the window, firing a webline in the direction of the sirens. He spotted the police cars just ahead of him. He figured they were following a call and swung ahead of them. He looked around for any sign of danger and finally saw some thug taking off with what looked like a student's bag. He reached the top of his swing and soared through the air, landing just in front of the thug.
"Aw c'mon, no running on school grounds bud," Peter said.
"Get away from me you freak!" The thug tried to run across the road to get away from Spider-Man but didn't get far when he stopped and felt a sticky substance grabbing at him from behind.
"What the hell?!" He was reeled backwards and received a kick from Spider-Man as he fell to the ground, limp.
"Ugh... c'mon, gimme a break..." The thug cried. "Sorry, I'm out of Kit Kats for now," He joked, and webbed the guy to a street light. He turned around, looking for the lady that lost the bag. His eyes fell on a girl who was peering from behind a wall.
"Uhh... here's your bag, Miss..." Spider-Man said, handing her the backpack. She looked like she was at least 19 or 20, a student in college most likely. She had long blonde hair and ocean blue eyes. She stared at him like a little kid would his hero, and smiled gratefully.
"...Thankyou... Spider-Man!" She said as he leapt into the air and swung away.
--
Mary Jane walked out of the audition office, somewhat less than satisfied. She wasn't sure if she'd gotten the part, but they'd said they would call her and let her know. Like that was a good sign. She was feeling particularly lonely and longed for a friendly face. She wondered if Peter was around, he'd said he was moving into the city with Harry. She hadn't spoken to him since his Uncle's death.
It was almost noon, and MJ had no intention of getting home. She didn't have work today, which was somewhat of a relief. She hoped she'd feel the same way when the bills started coming in.
--
Spider-Man was swinging back towards his apartment when he spotted a familiar red-head walking down the crowded New York streets. She looked a little down, and he wondered if something had happened to her. He swung into an alley and quickly changed back into his street clothes, which he'd been leaving all over the city. He really needed to stop doing that.
He ran out of the alley just in time to see her pass him.
"MJ! Hey MJ!" He caught her just in time. "Peter!" She turned and smiled brightly. She hoped she didn't look too happy to see him.
"Hey, I uh, how're you?" He said, Great move, Pete... He thought bitterly.
"Oh me? I'm fine. I... haven't seen you in a while, Pete. I missed you." He found himself blushing. She had missed him!
"Me too... MJ. Hey, do you wanna grab some dinner or something? I have a shift later today, but d'you, I mean, I don't know, you probably have things to do..."
"No, Pete, I'd love to."
"Really? Awesome! Hey, I'll come by your apartment later, where d'you live?"
"Oh, right, here," She scribbled something on a piece of paper and handed it to him. "That's the place."
"Alright... great! Okay, I gotta go now, but I'll see you at around 6:30 or so, okay?"
"Great! Bye Peter." She said, waving to him. He turned around and jogged off.
--
With the prospect of actually going out for dinner with the love of his life, and her actually agreeing to go with him, it was no wonder he'd shown up 15 minutes late to his job at the coffee shop. Luckily, the manager was out on a lunch break and no one noticed except one of the girls who worked there. She smiled at him and waved him into the store.
"Hey there, are you new here?" She asked. She looked oddly familiar...and it hit him. It was the girl he'd saved only hours before. The blonde student.
"Oh... yeah, I am. I'm Peter Parker." He smiled and put out his hand, and she shook it.
"Gwen Stacy. If you need any help, you can ask me. I'm not an expert or anything, but I've been around here a couple months." She turned and went to wash out a measuring cup in the sink.
"Oh... okay. Thanks." He smiled awkwardly and looked around. There weren't any customers. The scene seemed pretty tense. He didn't really know what to say to her, since he didn't know her at all, and the silence was unnerving.
"Umm... are you, from around here? In the city?" She asked him. Thank goodness.
"Oh, uh, yeah, I actually just moved in. I'm going to go to NYU this fall, so I'll be around."
"Really? That's awesome! I go there too, but I'm trying to do some studies this summer also. I needed this job to y'know, pay my rent and all..." She leaned against the counter and looked around. "It's quiet today."
"Yeah... I suppose..." She giggled at this remark, and Peter looked at her, curiously.
"You're cute."
He found himself blushing, not knowing why. Maybe because he'd never been called 'cute' by a girl before. Except his Aunt May, maybe, but that didn't really count.
---
Five hours and hundreds of dish cleaning later, Peter finally got out of the cafe, waved good-bye to Gwen, and walked out. It was getting dark out and he hoped he'd be able to find MJ's apartment. He followed her directions and after about twenty minutes of walking around, found a building that seemed to be the right number.
"Okay. Don't be nervous, you'll be fine Pete." He straightened his tie and patted his hair down, walking towards the building. Just before he touched the door handle, the familiar sound of police sirens roared behind him.
"Oh no, not now, come on, gimme a break, please..." He closed his eyes and sighed. Duty was duty. He'd have a lot of explaining to do later. He took off at a sprint and ran into the nearest alley, pulling on his mask, leaping into the air and swinging after the cars.
--
MJ waited in her apartment. It was 6:28. She looked out her window and smiled brightly. Peter was under her window, coming up to the door. He reached out for the handle and hesisitated. She frowned and wondered why he wasn't going in. A downcast look fell over his face and he looked around as if looking for something, or someone. He then turned on his heel and sprinted out of there, into the darkness. She was suprised and concerened. Peter had never walked out on her before. Maybe he was afraid, or maybe he went to make reservations.
"Peter..." She whispered. She sat down on her bed and waited to see if he'd return.
A/N: This chapter was probably a little boring. Sorry! please RR! Next chappie up soon, probably tomorrow. :)
Mary-Jane stepped off the train and onto the pavement. She looked around for some sign that there was a subway station around, but saw none nearby.
Guess I'm walking.
It was a chilly morning in New York City and it was MJ's first shot at a real audition. She was auditioning for a small part in a small TV show, but hey, everyone starts somewhere. She was hoping she'd be able to get off to a good start, make a good impression on the audience and the critics. She had dressed up a bit, not much, just a blue skirt and a white long sleeved shirt. She pulled her coat around her to avoid the cold and looked around nervously. She didn't want to be late, especially if she was going to make a lasting impression. She didn't want to be the girl who was late for her first audition. She passed a newspaper stand that people were flocking around, getting their morning paper to bring to work with them. She glanced a the cover of one of the tabloids and saw the blaring headline: "Masked super-hero saves twenty! Exclusive inside!"
She raised an eyebrow and smiled. It seemed people would do anything to sell a paper these days.
---
Peter clambered in through the window of his room in the apartment he shared with Harry. He seriously considered telling Harry what had happened to him, but decided against it. It was too risky, if someone overheard, Harry let it slip, or if Harry decided he didn't like Peter with his new powers. Imagine that.
Peter didn't keep the money he won. He felt like it was dirty money. Peter had sent the money to Aunt May, anonymously. As far as she knew, it was money from 'someone who cared.'
He had been a celebrity wrestler for almost three days. After that, he didn't show up anymore. He couldn't. Not with the still fresh memory of Uncle Ben lingering in his mind. It had been almost a week and a half. He knew that Aunt May was distressed, but she was a strong woman. Peter admired her for this, he knew that Aunt May could make it through tough times. She always had, but she was alone now, and Peter worried every now and then. He still hadn't forgotten MJ either.
MJ. Mary Jane.
The way she had comforted him after he'd returned to the house. She was there, and she helped him. He loved her even more than ever now. Too bad she'd never know. She'd probably laugh at him.
He hadn't forgotten his newfound powers and responsibility either. Uncle Ben's last wish was that Peter would use his power responsibly, and he was going to do just that. Since his death, he'd used his powers to help others. So far, he'd stopped a few muggings here and there, a bank robbery, an out of control train, and bunch of people on a tourist helicopter that went down. Now all he had to do was... pay the rent.
He heard the door open and a slam as someone set something down.
"Peter, you there?" It was Harry.
"Yeah, hold on, I'm coming down..." Peter immediately buttoned up a collared shirt over his costume and shoved the mask and gloves in his pocket. He went downstairs and found Harry slouching on the couch, flipping channels and looking bored and tired.
"Hey buddy. I was wondering, if you need a job, my father has a couple places that he could call..."
"It's alright Harry. I can find something."
"Well... alright Pete."
"Well, I was... uh, going to save for college this fall. At the University." Peter said, looking around. He knew Harry had the money for college, but it didn't seem like it was an oppurtunity that Harry was particularly passionate about. Peter had received an academics scholarship for all around excellence in all his school courses.
"Hey, that's great Pete. Listen, I uh, I'm gonna go out for a while. You know, just clear my head. Do you want me to pick anything up for you?"
"Ummm.... no, I'm okay."
"Right, see ya Pete.'' He stood up and pulled on his jacket. "Right, Bye Harry." Peter said. He heard the door shut and wondered why Harry had even bothered to come into the place anyway.
"Okay, time to see about getting a job." He was just about to pull open the newspaper when a siren broke his train of thoughts.
"Crap!" He jumped up and sprinted to his room upstairs. He frantically pulled his shoes and clothes off, pulling on his mask and gloves. He looked around his room quickly, "Crap, where is my other glove?!" He spotted it on the stairs and dashed over to it. He then took off out the window, firing a webline in the direction of the sirens. He spotted the police cars just ahead of him. He figured they were following a call and swung ahead of them. He looked around for any sign of danger and finally saw some thug taking off with what looked like a student's bag. He reached the top of his swing and soared through the air, landing just in front of the thug.
"Aw c'mon, no running on school grounds bud," Peter said.
"Get away from me you freak!" The thug tried to run across the road to get away from Spider-Man but didn't get far when he stopped and felt a sticky substance grabbing at him from behind.
"What the hell?!" He was reeled backwards and received a kick from Spider-Man as he fell to the ground, limp.
"Ugh... c'mon, gimme a break..." The thug cried. "Sorry, I'm out of Kit Kats for now," He joked, and webbed the guy to a street light. He turned around, looking for the lady that lost the bag. His eyes fell on a girl who was peering from behind a wall.
"Uhh... here's your bag, Miss..." Spider-Man said, handing her the backpack. She looked like she was at least 19 or 20, a student in college most likely. She had long blonde hair and ocean blue eyes. She stared at him like a little kid would his hero, and smiled gratefully.
"...Thankyou... Spider-Man!" She said as he leapt into the air and swung away.
--
Mary Jane walked out of the audition office, somewhat less than satisfied. She wasn't sure if she'd gotten the part, but they'd said they would call her and let her know. Like that was a good sign. She was feeling particularly lonely and longed for a friendly face. She wondered if Peter was around, he'd said he was moving into the city with Harry. She hadn't spoken to him since his Uncle's death.
It was almost noon, and MJ had no intention of getting home. She didn't have work today, which was somewhat of a relief. She hoped she'd feel the same way when the bills started coming in.
--
Spider-Man was swinging back towards his apartment when he spotted a familiar red-head walking down the crowded New York streets. She looked a little down, and he wondered if something had happened to her. He swung into an alley and quickly changed back into his street clothes, which he'd been leaving all over the city. He really needed to stop doing that.
He ran out of the alley just in time to see her pass him.
"MJ! Hey MJ!" He caught her just in time. "Peter!" She turned and smiled brightly. She hoped she didn't look too happy to see him.
"Hey, I uh, how're you?" He said, Great move, Pete... He thought bitterly.
"Oh me? I'm fine. I... haven't seen you in a while, Pete. I missed you." He found himself blushing. She had missed him!
"Me too... MJ. Hey, do you wanna grab some dinner or something? I have a shift later today, but d'you, I mean, I don't know, you probably have things to do..."
"No, Pete, I'd love to."
"Really? Awesome! Hey, I'll come by your apartment later, where d'you live?"
"Oh, right, here," She scribbled something on a piece of paper and handed it to him. "That's the place."
"Alright... great! Okay, I gotta go now, but I'll see you at around 6:30 or so, okay?"
"Great! Bye Peter." She said, waving to him. He turned around and jogged off.
--
With the prospect of actually going out for dinner with the love of his life, and her actually agreeing to go with him, it was no wonder he'd shown up 15 minutes late to his job at the coffee shop. Luckily, the manager was out on a lunch break and no one noticed except one of the girls who worked there. She smiled at him and waved him into the store.
"Hey there, are you new here?" She asked. She looked oddly familiar...and it hit him. It was the girl he'd saved only hours before. The blonde student.
"Oh... yeah, I am. I'm Peter Parker." He smiled and put out his hand, and she shook it.
"Gwen Stacy. If you need any help, you can ask me. I'm not an expert or anything, but I've been around here a couple months." She turned and went to wash out a measuring cup in the sink.
"Oh... okay. Thanks." He smiled awkwardly and looked around. There weren't any customers. The scene seemed pretty tense. He didn't really know what to say to her, since he didn't know her at all, and the silence was unnerving.
"Umm... are you, from around here? In the city?" She asked him. Thank goodness.
"Oh, uh, yeah, I actually just moved in. I'm going to go to NYU this fall, so I'll be around."
"Really? That's awesome! I go there too, but I'm trying to do some studies this summer also. I needed this job to y'know, pay my rent and all..." She leaned against the counter and looked around. "It's quiet today."
"Yeah... I suppose..." She giggled at this remark, and Peter looked at her, curiously.
"You're cute."
He found himself blushing, not knowing why. Maybe because he'd never been called 'cute' by a girl before. Except his Aunt May, maybe, but that didn't really count.
---
Five hours and hundreds of dish cleaning later, Peter finally got out of the cafe, waved good-bye to Gwen, and walked out. It was getting dark out and he hoped he'd be able to find MJ's apartment. He followed her directions and after about twenty minutes of walking around, found a building that seemed to be the right number.
"Okay. Don't be nervous, you'll be fine Pete." He straightened his tie and patted his hair down, walking towards the building. Just before he touched the door handle, the familiar sound of police sirens roared behind him.
"Oh no, not now, come on, gimme a break, please..." He closed his eyes and sighed. Duty was duty. He'd have a lot of explaining to do later. He took off at a sprint and ran into the nearest alley, pulling on his mask, leaping into the air and swinging after the cars.
--
MJ waited in her apartment. It was 6:28. She looked out her window and smiled brightly. Peter was under her window, coming up to the door. He reached out for the handle and hesisitated. She frowned and wondered why he wasn't going in. A downcast look fell over his face and he looked around as if looking for something, or someone. He then turned on his heel and sprinted out of there, into the darkness. She was suprised and concerened. Peter had never walked out on her before. Maybe he was afraid, or maybe he went to make reservations.
"Peter..." She whispered. She sat down on her bed and waited to see if he'd return.
A/N: This chapter was probably a little boring. Sorry! please RR! Next chappie up soon, probably tomorrow. :)