Kinda cheesy chapter here, but oh well. Every good story has 'em, right? Right! Okay, same disclaimer spiel. Spiderman blah blah blah Marvel, Jack blah blah blah Disney. Friends appearing in this chapter are based on people; they know who they are. And la-dee-da-dee-da.
"Thanks Joseph, you're a big help," Angela sighed with relief. Spiderman was in the bathroom, changing into some of Joseph's spare clothing. Thank goodness he'd just done laundry.
"No problem," he said with his trademark grin, "but could you remind me why he needs clothing?" The smile widened a bit. He remembered just fine, he just wanted to hear the explanation again. His arms crossed as he waited.
"Well…see…" she tried to remember what she'd told him, "my cousin's….friend's….roommate…was on his way to a comic book convention in…uh…Idaho Falls…when his car broke down…and he's from Pocatello, so he didn't bring any extra clothing, and well, I was closest…so…." she trailed off uncertainly.
"I thought you said he was from Boise and the convention was in Pocatello," he pointed out with a roguish smirk.
Spiderman chose that moment to emerge from the bathroom, wearing one of Joseph's less recognizable shirts and a pair of jeans. There had also been a pair of sneakers left behind by a previous tenant that happened to fit. His face was far from what Angela had expected, but she managed to mask her surprise. No, he didn't look anything like Tobey Maguire. For one thing, he was taller. His hair was short and somewhat unkempt. His eyes were a golden brown and almost puppy-like.
"How do I look?" the unmasked hero asked, arms spread uncertainly. He was obviously not used to having people know that both the man and the mask were the same person. It was probably rather unnerving.
"That'll do," the short girl nodded in approval, "even if you do have mask hair." He looked up as though to see the top of his head and tried to flatten his hair unsuccessfully. They would worry about that later.
Thanking Joseph again, they left and headed to a house just a little ways down the street, carrying a paper bag with the costume safely tucked inside. Angela needed to talk to Kathryn to find out if she could hide Spiderman until they figured out where he could stay. 'Peter,' Angela reminded herself, 'he's not just Spiderman, he's Peter…' She shook her head. She needed to get over the fact that she was wandering around Rexburg with "Spiderman".
Surprisingly, Kathryn was the one to answer her door. It was usually roommates who did. Actually, they were lucky they even caught her at home, as they found out. She was about to head to the local Wal-Mart for something. The others refused the idea of the guy crashing at their place. Kathryn, however, had a few tricks up her sleeves. She had connections all over the place, and, with a few phone calls, Peter had a place to stay for a little while.
"Well," Kathryn told them, "I'd better get going. See ya!"
"Hey wait," Angela said, just getting an idea, "my car is over at Joseph's….and Pete needs to get something to wear… I'll drive you."
And so the next two hours was spent with both girls finding him things to wear. He was not happy, but at least he had clothes.
Soon as the shopping was finished, the trio headed back to Kathryn's, where they dropped her off, then to the dorm where they left Allie unconscious. She had woken up by then and was holding an ice pack to her forehead. Jack was nowhere to be seen. He'd probably sobered up a little and used the opportunity to get more rum. His stash was running low.
"Allie, you okay?" asked Angela as she walked right in. Neither girl knocked on each other's doors anymore.
"I will be, as soon as this headache goes away," she said, opening one eye just enough to see not just one person, but two.
"Do I know you?" she asked the young man, then, after looking around a moment, "…where's Jack?"
"I think he left," said Angela with a shrug and a casual glance at the other couch.
"Hey, you okay?" the stranger asked with concern.
"No, not really. But I'll live," Allie closed her eyes, then, raising the ice pack, "Angela, how bad does it look?"
Angela and her unknown friend winced in unison, hissing in sympathy.
"That bad?"
"Let's just say you should go back to wearing the bandana…"
Allie nodded slowly so she wouldn't aggravate the throbbing pain in her head.
"Who's your friend?" she finally asked, opening both eyes this time to look at him.
"Oh…Ummm…" Angela thought quickly. She couldn't name him as Peter Parker…that would tell Allie right away that he was the one to cause the massive headache. She continued very haltingly, trying to think up a good cover name.
"He's…uh…Bruce….Lee……..Anderson!" Allie raised an eyebrow and smirked at her friend's remark. It was so obviously made up that she couldn't help a slight snicker.
"So do I call you Bruce, Lee or just Mr. Anderson?" she joked lightly, a smirk crossing her face.
The guy nudged Angela with his shoulder and chuckled a little, "quit makin' up stuff." He offered a hand to the girl with the bruised head.
"Logan Peterson," he said as they shook hands, "but my friends call me Pete." His hand was sturdy and callused in a less than normal way. Okay, so it was downright bizarre, like he was always pulling on ropes and hitting a punching bag. Maybe he's trying to build some muscles, she thought to herself, he could use some. Truth be told…the clothing he wore hid everything, making him look rather scrawny.
"Alison Hudson," she replied, "just call me Allie." He grinned down at her, flashing his pearly whites. Adorable. Like a puppy smiling. Jack… she reminded herself for the second time that day, I'm in love with Jack. Which reminded her...
"Really…" she wondered aloud, looking around again, "where did he go?"
"You mean Jack?" asked Angela. Behind her the door opened and in walked none other than Jack Sparrow. He carried two bottles of rum to add to his stash and was grinning widely. Or, at least he was until he saw the look on Allie's face. He promptly made a U-turn and walked right back out.
"JACK!" she yelled, then winced and clutched her head. Yelling had been a big mistake.