"Yo, Tiger."
Peter blinked rapidly as a hand snapped its fingers in front of his face. His vision was blurry, on account of spending most of the trip sleeping. After a few seconds of snapping, the hand drew back, allowing a blurred face with red hair to come into view. Peter shook his head, allowing his vision to improve. Now, he could put a face to the redhead.
"Oh, MJ. Hi."
Mary Jane Watson just grinned. "You were asleep for, like, an hour. Didn't even react to Kenny shooting spitballs at you. If it weren't for your snoring, I would have thought you were dead."
Peter just laughed. "If I were dead, I'm pretty sure they'd have to fumigate the bus."
MJ smirked. "If you say so." She placed a hand on Peter's shoulder. "Say, are you doing okay? I think you'd be stoked for this field trip. Metropolis seems like a cool town."
Peter blinked. "Okay? Yeah, sure." He sat up straight. "Why... Why wouldn't I be?" He smiled at her, praying that it looked natural and not totally weird.
MJ just furrowed her brow. "Well, it's just that in the past few months, you've been... distant."
"Have I?" Peter shifted in his seat. "I guess I've just been... thinking."
MJ's smirk didn't fade. "About..."
Peter rolled his eyes. "I don't know." He folded his arms. "Still trying to figure it out myself."
"Well, then good luck."
Good luck indeed, Peter thought. These past few months had been a rollercoaster. Actually, no. Rollercoasters are fun. These past few months have been like being tied to a runaway train that stops and starts every once and a while. In one respect, life had gotten a little easier. The Green Goblin was gone. Right after being exposed as Norman Osborn. Well, to three. Peter, Harry, and Gwen. Harry had seen to getting rid of any evidence that confirmed who the Goblin was. To the rest of the city, what they thought was Norman Osborn was really just the Chameleon in one of his disguises, with the master of disguise himself being thrown into jail for being the Green Goblin. As for the whole 'Norman is dead' thing, Harry had told everyone that Chameleon had killed Norman just before his battle with Spider-Man.
But even then, he couldn't feel pleased about it. He had killed Norman. Not directly, but he sent his glider into that water tower, filled to the brim with pumpkin bombs. No matter what he told himself, the little voice at the back of his head still told him 'you're responsible'. The public was rather split on the issue, some blaming him and some blaming the Goblin - Jameson stoked the flames of the former - but his mind was made up. Not helping was that he was still trying to take down any supervillains that were popping up, along with catching the Sinister Six after they had broken up and reconstituted again.
Even without any Goblin/Spidey-related problems, life still felt messy. After breaking up with Liz, she hadn't spoken to him at all. Not that he could blame her. He'd probably be pissed if his boyfriend/girlfriend broke up with him after secretly having feelings for another and right after his brother was sent to jail. (Great room-reading, Pete.) He'd been meaning to talk to her, but every time he tried to do so, she just gave him her version of Gwen's 'look' and stormed off. Such a thing was usually followed by Sally saying that it's good that she's avoiding the 'geek'.
He had confessed his feelings to Gwen, and she did the same, but nothing had come out of it. Ever since the aftermath of the final Goblin battle, Harry almost seemed to be... keeping Gwen close. As in, trying to keep her away from Peter. They weren't official, at least not to his knowledge, but Harry and Gwen could almost always be seen with him. In fact, Peter and Gwen hadn't spoken in weeks, thanks to Harry. But he could tell she wasn't totally happy with the whole Harry situation.
Is she putting up with Harry because she's afraid he'll go back to the Green? He thought. The thought was certainly possible, sadly. He had tried getting Harry help before they had visited Norman's grave, but Harry had brushed him off and said he didn't need help. When he asked him again after a few days, Harry just said "I've got Gwen to help." That was the last time they talked. The only people he was close to at the moment were Aunt May and MJ.
"It's about your social life, isn't it?"
Peter quickly snapped back to reality. "W-Why'd you guess that?" He sputtered.
MJ folded her arms. "I can tell." She looked past him, prompting him to follow her gaze. Just across from him, Liz sat. She was texting on her phone, her forehead creased and her mouth curled into a small frown.
"I think you should talk to her."
Peter turned back to MJ. "What? MJ, you saw what happened all the other times. She totally ignored me and walked off."
MJ just looked at him like he was growing a second head. "And you think she'll just walk out of the moving bus?"
Jeez, MJ's wit was on par with Spider-Man's. "Good point," he muttered. He awkwardly scooched over closer to Liz, trying to push back any doubts of anything bad happening. Hey, Spider-Sense wasn't going off, so there was no danger, right?
Right?
Unfortunately for him, he moved in a little too close, resulting in him bumping shoulders with Liz. When she turned to look at him, Peter's face felt like it was on fire. Something that didn't subside when her expression went from 'kind of annoyed' to 'very annoyed'.
"Oh, hello Petey," Liz said. Her voice was low.
Peter cleared his throat. "Um... Hey Liz!" He nervously grinned. "Uh..."
Come on, Pete. Just say something! Anything!
"What are you looking forward in Metropolis?"
...Well, better than nothing.
Liz blinked, her expression growing a little less annoyed. "Well, the place looks pretty cool. Like, the LexCorp buildings look pretty. I'm pretty sure I can do some of my report on the company. You know, as boring as it'll likely be. I mean, it's better than what Flash is doing: Burrito Bucket."
Peter nodded to what she was saying, before getting his mind on track. Alright, no more dancing around the issue.
"Liz... I'm sorry."
Liz's eyes widened. "Huh?"
Peter sighed. "Liz, I'm sorry for what I did. I mean, dating you while having feelings for Gwen? That... wasn't right."
Liz narrowed her gaze. "You can say that again."
"But look..." Peter rested his hands on his lap. "I should have dealt with our relationship in a better way. I still like you as a friend. You're really cool and friendly. I just..." He bowed his head. "Again, I'm so sorry for how I handled things. I can totally understand if you hate me."
There. It was out. Peter felt a weight get lifted off his shoulders. It felt... nice, and he allowed himself a small smile. He felt genuinely more relaxed now. Lifting up his head, he saw that Liz's face had changed again. Now, she looked... conflicted.
"Petey..." She sighed. "Look, I don't hate you. And honestly, I'm just happy you were upfront about it sooner rather than later."
Peter's small smile grew a little. "Thanks."
Liz shook her head. "Yeah, yeah. But..." She looked into his eyes. "Just give me a bit more time. I might consider your friend request then."
Peter just offered her a thumbs-up. "Sounds good to me." With that, he scooched back over to his regular seat, where MJ waited with that same smile on her face.
"Well done, tiger."
"Thanks." Well, that was one thing off his mental to-do list. Next up... try and talk to Gwen and try and get Harry help.
"Harry?"
Peter's head jolted up. Turning over to the source of the noise, he saw them. Gwen and Harry. They were sitting in the seats in front of Liz, but he could still spot their faces. Harry's eyes were narrowed as his brow was furrowed, while Gwen looked concerned.
"I want to talk about last night," Gwen said. She sounded quiet, yet was still loud enough for Peter to hear. "About the Green in your backpack."
Peter's eyes widened. Harry was back on the Green? He hadn't been on it since Norman's death, a few months ago. That wasn't good.
Harry rolled his eyes. "What's the issue? I didn't drink any of it, did I?"
Gwen groaned, placing her hand on her forehead. "That's not the point, Harry. The Green made you suffer from multiple blackouts. It's not healthy."
Harry just stared at her. "Gwen, please. I can take care of myself. I don't need you babying me." He sounded angry, and looked angry too. His jaw was clenched and his fingers were digging into his seat.
"I'm not trying to 'baby' you," Gwen responded. "I'm trying to take care of you. Have you looked into any of the therapists I've recommended?"
"I don't. Need. Therapy." Harry's voice was strained.
"Come on, Harry." Gwen's voice was getting more annoyed-sounding. "Your mother suggested it and I think it could help with your men-"
"I don't need that kind of help! You're making me sound insane!" Several people turned to look at him, but he continued on. "I can make my own decisions, so stop suggesting things that won't work."
Peter himself tried to say something, but his voice was caught in his throat. He only watched as Gwen sucked in a breath and rubbed her arm.
"Harry... please. You're my friend." Now her voice was strained. "I don't want to see you suffering from any issues. I want to help you." She placed a hand on his shoulder. "Remember, if you need help... I'm here."
At first, Harry's face hadn't gotten any less angry-looking. However, when he looked into Gwen's big eyes, his face softened. "I..." He bowed his head. "You're right. I'm sorry." He turned away and folded his arms. "I didn't mean to... It's just been so hard since my dad died."
Gwen pulled him into a hug. "Harry, it's okay. I'm still here. And, if you'd let him, Peter could help as well."
Harry's mouth curled up into a small smile. "I know. I know. I'll look into that stuff you sent me." He returned the gesture. "But... I don't need Pete."
Peter sighed as he rested his hands in his pockets. Well, it was nice to know he was going to listen to Gwen. Eventually, the two pulled apart, with Harry going back to staring out the window. Then, Gwen turned around to look at Peter. He blinked in shock. Gwen just smiled and waved. Peter waved back. When she looked away, he smiled again.
"Say..." Came MJ's voice. "You got any non-school plans while in Metropolis?"
Peter shrugged. "Eh, nothing much."
MJ rested her hands behind her head. "Well, to each his own..."
Peter just nodded. He looked down underneath his seat and pulled up his bag. Just to be sure, he zipped it open and looked through it. Packed lunch from Aunt May, comics, science books, school supplies for the project...
And, buried beneath it all, a glimpse of red fabric with a web-like pattern.
Peter smiled as he zipped the bag up again and put it underneath his seat.
Just because it's not my home, doesn't mean a Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man isn't necessary.
"Hey, tiger? You hear about these 'Super Hero Girls' that apparently protect this city? They look pretty cool."
