Some women preferred pepper spray, some preferred tasers, and others carried guns.
Mary Jane's weapon of choice: a baseball bat.
It was the aluminum stick that she clutched tightly in her hands as she waited just around the corner of her bedroom, ready for whoever or whatever had just come in. She'd come out of the kitchen when she swore that she heard what sounded like footsteps in her room, and had grabbed her bat to investigate. A hard thud-like sound then confirmed that someone was in there that wasn't supposed to be.
To M.J.'s surprise, no one came out, nor was there any more noise coming from inside. Perhaps whoever had entered through the fire escape or whatever had left? No, it couldn't be that easy; besides, in New York City, there was no telling who it could be and why they would randomly sneak into her room in the first place.
She also could've just been hearing things, but she was not about to take that chance.
Taking a quiet breath, she gathered her wits.
"Here we go," she thought before she quickly stepped in, only to find...Spider-Man lying on her floor? M.J. relaxed her grip on her bat, though she kept it upright just in case there was more that she wasn't seeing.
"Stay cool, stay cool," she whispered to herself as she carefully stepped towards the body on the floor. She soon got to where she could confirm that his mask was off, and...wait, was that...
Suddenly tossing the bat aside, M.J. rushed over to the body, bending down and turning the unconscious red and blue figure over, the face of the individual now clear as day.
It was Peter. Peter Parker. Peter Parker was Spider-Man.
Oh wow. Oh, WOW.
Mary Jane's mind was suddenly racing faster than a speeding vehicle as her head flooded with so many thoughts and questions that she couldn't process it all. Peter was Spider-Man? She was neighbors with Spider-Man? How had she missed this? Also, what was he doing in HER apartment, lying uncon...
He was unconscious.
What was she DOING?
Desperately trying to wrangle her thoughts in, M.J. refocused just enough to steady her ever increasing heartbeat and start to think through what she needed to do. She put two fingers to his neck, greatly relieved when she picked up a pulse. He may have been unconscious, but at least he was alive. However, if that nasty bruise on his head was any indication, he definitely needed medical attention.
Mary Jane pulled out her cell phone from her back pocket and dialed 911. However, she stopped before hitting the call button, her finger hovering over it. She realized that, if Peter had made a point to keep his identity as Spider-Man a secret, then obviously he probably wouldn't want a whole hospital full of doctors and nurses potentially to see his face. Then again, she had no idea how extensive his injuries were. Shouldn't she be more concerned about saving his life than maintaining his privacy?
Could she perhaps take care of him herself? M.J. did have some first aid skills that were likely a bit rusty, but if she had a decent chance at it, shouldn't she take it? Then again, the main thing she was seeing was a wound to his head, which was one of the places a person really DOESN'T want to be seriously hurt. Spider-Man, er, Peter had probably been through some nasty fights and dealt with serious injuries before though, so he likely had a solid ability to heal himself, so maybe she could trust that.
What should she do?
Mary Jane finally put her phone back in her pocket, making a choice that she really hoped she wouldn't regret. Moving around to Peter's head, she stuck her arms under his shoulders and started to lift. She grunted during the effort, having anticipated he'd be at least a little lighter. Instead, it felt like there were a ton of bricks underneath that costume. She managed to get his head and shoulders on the bed before getting back behind him, dragging him the rest of the way until he was completely flat on his back.
Now that he was in a more comfortable spot should he wake up, M.J. realized she needed some ice to cool down the swelling on his head. She sprinted out of her room to her kitchen, where she opened the freezer and grabbed one of her ice packs she kept on hand. She then grabbed a few more, just in case there were more spots swelling that she hadn't seen yet.
Running back to her room, Mary Jane sat the packs down on her desk, realizing that she would need to likely remove the top half of his costume in order to see if there was any other damage like there was to his head. She got behind Peter, sitting him up against her. She grabbed at his waist, finding where the material was divided, and tugged upward. The material clung to his skin, and she had to fight it a little in order to get it off.
"Sorry," she said out loud at one point, "I really hope I'm not making this worse."
Finally, she got off the top half of the costume, and she could instantly see multiple spots already a swollen purple on his back especially. He also had some cuts, but none of them were nearly as intense as the swelling.
My goodness, how had he made it here?
M.J. opted to turn him over so that he was lying on his stomach, before grabbing the packs and placing them on the bruised spots on his back. Since she had no gauze or other medical material to tie down the pack that went to his head, she took an old shirt of hers and cut it, using it to tie the pack just enough so that it would hopefully stay on his head well and have its intended effect. She would've just held it there herself, but she wanted to be free in case something else came up that she needed to handle to take care of him. The cuts were minor enough that they could wait; for all she knew, they might just heal on their own.
With all the immediate needs that she could see taken care of, Mary Jane pulled up the chair from her desk beside her bed, planning to wait it out until Peter woke up. Now that she wasn't in go-go-go mode, her mind started to become restless again as she sat there, watching over him. All the questions that she had briefly managed to suppress came flooding back into her mind again, and then some others as well. Mainly though, she always came back to the basic truth of it all: Peter Parker, her next-door neighbor and the guy she'd been seriously starting to fall for, was Spider-Man, a hero who'd saved the city several times over, and possibly even the world on occasion.
It was so strange; the man she had come to care about and the hero she had admired so much that she got a tattoo of his symbol on her person were one in the same. What was particularly weird though was that the more she thought about it, the more it made complete sense. In her brief time getting to know Peter these last few months, the main thing Mary Jane had picked up on was his selfless nature. Whether it was something little, such as him holding doors for her, or something massive, like comforting her while she had a breakdown over everything with her father, Peter had constantly given up of himself for her, even when he had his own problems that were far worse than her own. Of course someone like that would end up being none other than the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.
But how was this going to change things between them?
At some point, Peter was going to wake up, and when he did, he would see her and realize that she knew perhaps the greatest secret in the history of secrets. How would he react? Could she convince him not to worry, that his secret was safe with her? Would this bring them closer, or would things just be weird between them now?
All these thoughts and questions just kept rising and crashing down on her brain repeatedly like waves of the ocean stirred up by a hurricane. Mary Jane fought to keep in mind that the most important thing she needed to worry about right now was Peter and his wellbeing. However, as the hours started to drag on and Peter still didn't wake up (and several pulse checks to make sure he was still breathing), all her questions started to feel like they were taking on a physical weight that was bearing down on her.
Nevertheless, Mary Jane waited quietly, not leaving Peter's side as the hour only continued to grow later.
The first thing Peter noticed when he finally opened his eyes was Mary Jane. She was sitting on a chair next to him, reading a book. The second thing was the top half of his costume, which was currently hanging over a bedrail. As the fog slowly cleared from his brain, the pieces came together: he had passed out in her apartment, she had found him with his mask off, and now, Mary Jane Watson knew that he was Spider-Man.
Peter's reaction to this was apparently to just lie still, as if she somehow wouldn't notice him if he didn't move, like in Jurassic Park with the T-rex. He remained almost frozen, and...wait, speaking of frozen, why did his back and head feel kind of cold in spots? Was that an ice pack that he could see out of the top of his eyes?
Had M.J, like, taken care of him while he was out?
The woman in question then just happened to look up from her book, her eyes widening as she immediately closed and discarded what she had been reading.
"Oh my goodness, you're finally awake," M.J. said, relief evident in her tone, even to Peter's still somewhat rebooting brain.
"M.J?" Peter questioned, his glance darting back and forth between her and his costume. She followed his line of vision.
"Yeah, sorry about, you know, finding out against your will and all that," M.J. said. "Your mask was already off, and you were just kind of, like, lying there."
It finally dawned on Peter that, on top of the cool packs on his head and back, he was also on her bed.
"Did you, like, take care of me?" he asked.
A small smile broke out on M.J.'s face that somehow brought a little bit more life back to Peter.
"Yeah," she responded proudly, "well, I mean, I did what I could at least. I'm kind of rusty when it comes to the whole first aid thing."
Peter tried to get up, but he paused when his body didn't seem to appreciate it very much.
"Easy," M.J. said, jumping to his side and helping him ease back down. "After how awful you looked when I found you, I'm guessing even you need some time before getting up and doing anything."
Time.
"M.J, how long have I been out?" Peter asked, his tone becoming concerned as a potential realization hit him.
"About six hours," M.J. stated.
That was six too long.
"I have to go," Peter said, forcing his way up almost all at once, all his body's aching and soreness hitting him as a result.
"Woah woah woah, uh uh," M.J. said, rushing over to the other side of the bed that he had got off at. "You are in no condition to..."
"They took it M.J," he interrupted as he walked past her to get the top half of his suit back. "They took the treatment for May."
"Wait, who did?" M.J. asked.
"Some of my enemies," he replied.
"Look, Peter, I'm sure the police can handle it," M.J. protested, "you need your rest."
"The police can't handle people like the Rhino or the Sandman," Peter countered.
"Peter, please," M.J. said, her tone now on the verge of begging, "just give yourself a little more time to heal first."
"I'll be fine," Peter said, removing the cold pack that had been on his head. "Besides, I don't know how much time May has left, so I need to pick up on their trail.
He tried to move towards the window, but M.J. stepped in front of him.
"I know you're worried about her," she said, "but if you go out there and get yourself killed, what good does that do your aunt?"
The look in her eyes was both painful and intense, but Peter met her gaze nonetheless.
"M.J, I have to do this," he said, hoping that was enough. "Please."
After a few moments, M.J. finally relented, letting him step past her, though she grabbed his forearm just as he did.
"Please, be careful," she said, before planting quickly planting a kiss on his cheek.
Man, they were going to have a lot to talk about at some point.
Peter hopped onto the window.
"What are you going to do?" she asked.
Slipping on his mask, Peter turned back to her.
"What I have to," he replied, leaping out into the night.
This was another chapter that I'd initially thought it would look very different but ended up changing in service of the story. Hopefully it will prove to be the right call!
Anyway, hope everyone is still enjoying it!
Continuing to pray for you all; stay safe and healthy!
"If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you." James 1:5