February 9th - 2019

Perfect!

Peter mentally cheered his accomplishment. He had taken what he considered to be the best possible picture of the plane that had just passed by in the sky above him. He watched the plane up in the air further the distance between them.

He knew very well how that felt.

Peter looked around and watched the busy crowd walk all over the open area. For a moment, the world around him seemed to slow down. They all strolled without much hurry. He felt like that many times before. He shook his head and recomposed himself.

It was time to get back to work. He had been assigned to take pictures of the Abingdon Air & Country Show. It featured many planes, down in the ground and sometimes up in the sky along with a wide variety of historic and modern aircraft.

It got him interested and it was also a good opportunity to make some quick bucks to order something different for the dinner he would share with his girlfriend.

Peter looked down at his pulse and found the watch his father once used, a gift his mother gave to his father early in the marriage. He realized it was time to wrap things up and take the bus to meet up with Gwen at university.

He moved the camera inside his backpack and headed past the crowd so that he could reach the street once again.

Years ago, if someone ever asked him what he thought of his future, Peter wouldn't ever reply with the life he now has. Gwen changed his life in many ways. She was someone who managed to keep him grounded and happy even in the toughest moments.

They were a good team.

At the cafeteria, Gwen found herself sitting alone near one of the many community lunch tables. The majority of her friends were already gone, but the section of the building still was pretty busy with many enjoying the free time to eat or read, maybe both as well.

She took a sip of her warm coffee and looked up to one of the TVs set in the nearest column.

"In other news, as we head to the fifth year since the incident at the Oscorp Tower, the once well-regarded company released a statement detailing the next steps regarding the shutdown of the building. It was also mentioned that Harry Osborn had nothing to do or say regarding such a process. More at 11."

Harry Osborn… Gwen thought to herself.

Gwen took another ship and closed her eyes, shivering slightly. She sighed heavily.

Harry's dead…!

She frowned as she dove back to old memories.

Gwen cleared her throat and shook her head. She got up and threw her empty coffee cup to the nearest trash bin. She headed outside the large room and made her way towards the bathroom. Once inside, she stepped beside the sink and began washing her hands.

It's alright.

Avoiding not-so-welcoming memories, she thought of her boyfriend, and how they were sharing a good moment in their lives. It was more than she could ever ask for. They were both doing great at their respective duties and in their relationship as well. She couldn't think of a moment where their relationship was as stable as it was now.

If what she currently had could somehow be a glimpse of how their future together, she indeed found herself wanting more of it.

Gwen closed the faucet. She smiled to herself in contentment and looked up to the mirror, only to see the horrible and monstrous reflection of Harry Osborn standing beside her in the bathroom.

She quickly turned on her back in shock. He wasn't there anymore.

My god…

Gwen cleared her throat. She breathed harshly and eventually calmed herself. She began checking her corners as she did so.

Gwen eventually stepped out of the bathroom and continued to check her surroundings to find something unusual. The majority of students were now getting out of their classes and were now heading outside. She let out a deep sigh in relief.

Where is he...?

Gwen also headed outside and began looking around to find him somewhere on the campus. After some couple of minutes, she felt strong arms wrap themselves around her waist.

"Miss me?"

Gwen quickly turned around in the embrace and met her boyfriend with a huge smile spread across his lips. "Peter, don't do that! You scared me to death."

He found himself rather confused. What could've happened to make Gwen stay that alert?

"Sorry. I didn't want to... scare you this much. Is everything… alright?"

"It's just… nothing. Everything is okay. Don't worry." She smiled and kissed him deeply, trying to light up the situation, but she knew he wasn't fully buying into it. He would ask her about what happened later on.

She broke the kiss and asked, "Let me guess, you had a traffic jam?"

"What? No, no." Peter chuckled at her question. "I stopped at the Times to give them the photos of that whole thing, that ate some of the time, but no jam... none at all."

"Still… you are rather late" Gwen teased, wrapping her arms around his neck and bringing him closer.

"What could I possibly… do to please you?" He leaned closer and brushed his lips against hers.

"Well… you can start by walking me home," Gwen closed her eyes, before whispering, "The rest I'm sure we can figure it out later…"

"As you wish, Miss Stacy." Peter gave his blonde girlfriend a tiny peck on the lips. He put an arm around her shoulders, holding her tightly while she leaned on his shoulder and slipped an arm around his back.

The couple made their way home while wrapped in each other's arms within the cozy and calm streets of Oxfordshire.

One hour later...

"Almost five years since the masked vigilante known as Spider-Man last swung through the city of New York. People are still asking themselves where he could be. The masked hero hasn't been seen for a long time since participating in the arrest of the Russian known as Aleksei Sytsevich, who's now locked in one of the most secure prisons in the world, Ravencroft Institute."

The TV in the living room announced.

Peter, after hearing the word 'Spider-Man', stepped out of the balcony where he, for the last couple of minutes, had been waiting patiently for Gwen to finish her shower. He sat down on the couch and focused his eyes on the screen.

"We contacted the last person that apparently Spider-Man had talked to for the last time and he told us what he knows about the vigilante."

The image changed to a young teen sitting on the couch with his mother next to him. Despite him now looking older, Peter could tell the boy on the screen was the one he briefly talked to before crashing with Aleksei while Gwen recovered from their encounter with Harry,

"I think Spider-Man will come back. He told me he would one day. I think he's just sorting out some things about his life, but I won't tell anything more. We're good pals. I trust him."

The camera went back to the host. "So, what do you think? Will Spider-Man ever get back? I'm Paul White and you've just watched World News."

Watching the boy talk about Spider-Man as his friend, made Peter smile. It was something that he wanted everyone to feel, that they could count on him no matter how bad things looked, to inspire people to continue fighting and never give up, there would always be hope that way.

Yet, he knew that his decision of leaving the city was controversial to many, even to himself. He tried to not think much about it.

"So, my big and powerful Spider-Man… should we go to sleep?" Gwen spoke from behind him as she snaked her arms around his neck and rested her chin over Peter's hair. He could smell the soft and delicate scent of her shampoo.

"I wanted to talk about something with you." Peter looked up, meeting her emerald-colored eyes.

"What about?" She asked back, softly.

Peter got up off the couch and took her hand on his, leading them to their bed. He sat on the edge of the mattress as she joined him. He slid an arm around her back.

"Back at Oxford, I felt… I felt that something was off. Do you want to tell me something?" He squeezed her hand.

"Nothing happened." Gwen placed a hand on his cheek, reassuringly. "You just caught me off guard, that's all."

She didn't want to worry him. It was just her mind playing tricks over her. Harry wasn't such an easy topic to talk about, to neither of them.

"You can tell me anything, I'm always here if you need anything."

"I know." She gave him a warm smile.

Gwen leaned towards him and they engaged in a passionate kiss while making her boyfriend lose himself to the passion. Since the first kiss, it was something always present between them.

"Don't… worry." She said between the kisses.

With a single hand, she pushed him down into the bed. When they broke the kiss to gather their breath, she took his shirt off and enjoyed the view of Peter's toned chest as she ran a hand over his muscles.

Gwen stood over his chest and teased, "So… how much do you want to please me?"

Later in the night...

Now exhausted, Peter looked to the ceiling while deep in his thoughts. Gwen slept peacefully and used his chest as a pillow. She had just touched his chest and instantly fell asleep after they physically expressed what they felt towards each other.

She must be really tired...

Peter thought about everything that happened in his life. His parents' death by Oscorp's hands, Uncle Ben's death, Captain Stacy's death, and how he also almost lost her.

What would I do without you, Gwen?

He asked himself while trailing circles with his finger on the smooth skin of her back.

After all that I had been through, you are the best thing that ever happened to me.

He gently kissed her forehead and closed his eyes. After some minutes, he fell asleep for the rest of the night with the woman of his life.

A/N: For those wondering if this fic is going to take place forever in England, no, it won't be. I wanted to explore this part a little bit and it's kinda hard, but I'm having a great time with it. I think that one or two chapters will be enough.

Anyway, enjoy it! Any suggestions just PM me :)

25/08/2020: Improved dialogues and description.