p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The next morning was different for Annie. Mainly since she stayed up until past midnight to tell Harper about the previous night. Annie couldn't leave out the fact that he was borderline insufferable with him acting like he knew what he was doing. There was no way that he could possibly know any more than she did, not when he was clearly her age. It was just so obvious that the other superhero was a teenager. The way he acted and spoke just screamed that he was around her age./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She sleepwalked her way through a good amount of the school day. No amount of caffeine was enough to keep the girl from dozing off and spacing out of her classes. Ned questioned it, but Peter seemed rather tired too. Annie just claimed that she stayed up reading Pride and Prejudice. That was the book she was seen with, she just hoped that no one pointed out that she was less than twenty pages into the classic./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Better than me, I was up watching conspiracy theories," Peter said, talking over a yawn./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" As badly as Annie wanted to press further, she knew that she had no right. If she asked too many questions then he probably would too. The last thing she wanted was to blow her own cover when she hadn't even been in the city for very long./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Days were starting to go by with a sort of simplicity. Well, everything except for her theater class. There was already a set hierarchy that Annie just wasn't a part of. She was automatically thrown to the bottom of the metaphorical food chain. The worst part was that most of the class was filled with girls, hardly any guys. Even then, most of those guys could barely act. It was all a joke to her after getting out of a performing arts school where she'd had a minor role in the spring production./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The black-haired girl felt she was better than everyone else, but no one bothered to realize it. Needless to say, it left her feeling rather hopeless and left out of the normal theater kid shenanigans she was used to. Then there were other issues that were completely unrelated to her acting and singing abilities./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Truth be told, Annie had no clue how she was supposed to meet Spider-Man again. They never discussed a meeting place or a time. It wasn't like she had any way to text him or something. All she could do was hope that the art of coincidence was on her side. It was a little bit fishy to her. Why would he claim they could work together and then not offer a place to meet?/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Physics was still the death of her and it was as irritating as ever. How was she supposed to ever really use her powers if she didn't even understand their concepts? She hated how the main reason she could use her powers was due to past coincidences and accidents that occurred. Why couldn't she have sucked at something like history or English? Nope, she was terrible at something that she would genuinely need. Not to mention that she was in a school geared towards science, so Annie was practically fighting to get a C in the class as it was./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" At least there was Peter. Annie would bother him continuously in the class. Though something told her that he didn't mind her constantly pestering him. They worked together on a worksheet, but it was more like her asking a million questions and writing down what he did./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "You're almost hopeless in this class," Peter commented as he wrote down more work./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed, "I know, I don't even know how to do anything. It wasn't like this in Seattle at all."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Um… well, maybe I could help you for a bit after school," Peter suggested./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie thought a moment before nodding, "Sure! I can't stay long though, my parents want me home kind of early tonight."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It was a lie, but what else could she tell him? I have an important meeting with Spider-Man that should've happened days ago? Like hell was she about to do that. At that point she should have just started telling everyone on the street that she was a superhero./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The day finally ended, and the both of them left the last hour class to get to the library. They both seemed to be a little tense. However, both were far too preoccupied to notice the other. Still, they both got out their stuff to study./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "So, it turns out I don't have much time myself, the internship needs me to do some stuff," Peter explained./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie shrugged, "That's fine, I just needed a crash course anyways. I'm not gonna become an expert in an hour or two."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Right, so what do you wanna cover first?" he asked./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, how about energy balance? I mean, I just think I should probably know that, I kinda bombed the quiz about that," she replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Of course Annie chose the one thing that appeared to relate to her powers the best. It took a lot of drawing to get the girl to have any type of understanding. Peter's drawing of a rollercoaster was mediocre at best, but Annie didn't mind. The picture did kind of help her understand how energies were supposed to work together. It actually felt like it was making sense. Though they both had to leave rather soon, and Annie found herself lost in the city again./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Her phone had died because she forgot to charge it after calling Harper the night before, so her GPS was obviously useless. It was a complete pain for her, and she had no one to talk to about it. Then there was the possibility of Spider-Man looking for her, or worse, he was already figuring things out before she could. She just wanted to scream or cry with her frustration kicking in, feeling as though making it back to her apartment and running off within the next fifteen or twenty minutes would make up for days of lost time./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Um… Miss, are you alright?" an extremely familiar voice asked./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie turned, her jaw dropping when she saw who the voice belonged to, "Oh, uh, yeah? I'm good, just a bit lost."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I can help with that," Spider-Man replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She shook her head, "That's okay, you probably have more important stuff to do."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Nonsense, I'm the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, I gotta keep it local," the hero insisted./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" They stood in silence for a bit. Annie contemplated explaining that she was White Swan. Though she didn't feel like giving herself away just yet. Even if Spider-Man seemed to be alright, she wasn't about to let down her guard that easily. He had left her hanging for days, she wasn't about to trust someone like that. The only reason she wasn't pushing him away was because she knew that she couldn't remember which way she was supposed to go to get to the apartment building./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, come on, miss, let me help you," he pleaded, his eyes seeming to get bigger./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie shrugged, "Alright, you got me, I actually have the address right here."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She dug into her jean pockets before pulling out a piece of paper with the address of the building. The writing done messily in black ink from when she asked her mom what the address was and she wrote it down for Annie./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Hey, you're not too far off. I'll just walk you there," he offered, and Annie wasn't sure how to say no./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" There was a huge awkward silence between them. Annie wanted to ask if he was looking for someone. That would be too odd of a question, so she decided against it. Still, she really wanted to know who this guy was, and if he even bothered to think about what happened a few days before. She wanted to have the chance to catch him by surprise and make him feel like the awkward one./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "You seem new," Spider-Man commented as they walked./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie gave a half-hearted laugh, "It's that obvious? I'm guessing it's because I was lost."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Yeah, you were pretty clueless, but it's a big place. And here you are," he replied, stopping in front of the building./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She nodded, "Oh, right, thanks."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, I'll see you around, miss," he said, about to web away./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Um, it's Annie, I'll see you around maybe." she responded as she entered her building./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Walking into an empty apartment, Annie took some time to charge her phone and get food. Knowing she would likely run into Spider-Man again felt somewhat assuring. Working with someone would probably help her to feel less insane about everything that was going on. On the other hand, she didn't want to end up with little credit. Not to mention that she needed to give him a hard time for completely leaving her hanging./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Once dressed in her suit, Annie glided out of her window, catching the energy. She looked around, truly able to see the sky. The first thing she did was use her vantage point to try and retrace her steps. Seeing everything did help her to put it all in perspective. She could even see the church and the homeless shelter next to it./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie went inside of the shelter when she landed, hoping to find someone. It made her feel a bit odd, the way she just went in. Finally, she saw an old man in a robe./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Hey, um, Mr. Priest Sir, I need to talk to you," Annie said, approaching him./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, yes, I was told I might see some odd-looking people. Tina is doing well," the priest replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie straightened a little, the girl really had expected to see them again after all, "Can I speak with her? It's important."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "She said that she does not wish to see anyone at the moment," he responded./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie frowned, "Please, I wanted to talk with her."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I will keep the wishes of my patrons," he stated firmly./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She nodded, "Okay, I guess I'll go then."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It was then that Annie saw the girl. Annie rushed over to the side room. There were so many questions she had. She had no clue as to where she would start. The girls just looked at each other. She waited for the priest to leave before rushing into the room to talk to Tina./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I have some questions, and I understand if you can't answer them," Annie started, unsure if she was making the best decision./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I don't wanna talk about it, I'm not your charity case," Tina said, turning away to leave the room./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie nodded, "Yeah, right, of course, but Tina, if you help me… well, we could save a lot of other girls. Surely that means something to you."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Look, I get that you think you're helping, but you're just getting in the way. I'm finally healing up, getting cleansed. That priest guy has been so helpful. I don't wanna ruin that," Tina replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie stopped for a moment, "But I could get rid of those terrible people, they wouldn't be around to ruin it for you."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "And then what? Others will come anyways. It makes no difference, I don't want to have any part in anything else that happens," Tina retorted./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed, "You're missing the point, it makes a difference for the people involved, Tina. For the people that are like you."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, my point is that I'm out. I don't wanna be involved anymore, I'm done," replied Tina, seeming to have a firm tone./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie frowned, but relented, "Okay, I guess I'll go then, but you'll have to talk about it to someone eventually. It's your choice if it's me or the police."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Walking out of the church, Annie felt relieved for the mask that covered her face. It kept her from looking as defeated as she felt. Besides, that Spider-Dude had probably done all that work anyways. Maybe that was why he never gave a meeting place. Maybe that was why he left her hanging for a week. And maybe she wasn't going to end up making a difference./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Still, she walked along, looking for trouble. There wasn't much for her to do aside from scaring off some thief. It had been a half hour since she gave up on finding Spider-Man. Then, just as she finally gave up any type of hope, she saw the red and blue guy. She could hardly contain just how infuriated she was. It was her chance to truly prove herself. Before approaching him, she gathered all the energy she could from the busy New York streets./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Where the hell were you?!" Annie exclaimed, using the energy to shove Spider-Man backwards./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" There seemed to be an expression of surprise on the guy, or his eyes were all the way white at least. He tried to say something, but Annie hit him again before he could say it. So instead of getting hit around, he went to fight back. It wasn't long before they were both fighting. The only thing was that they weren't fighting to kill each other. It was more like they were arguing without saying anything at all./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie continued gathering energy, using it to deflect webbing and to get in more hits. They both kept going, but Annie wasn't quite used to such an intense fight. She hadn't thought that he would fight back and actually be difficult. It was to the point Annie spent more time dodging attacks rather than giving them. As they continued to fight, she wondered if it was the best idea./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Odds were that she should have thought ahead and decided against fighting against someone who was obviously better prepared for a fight than she was. After all, she wasn't completely sure of what she was doing. She didn't want to use any electricity if she could help it. Her plan hadn't been to hurt the guy, just to get her point across. Though she quickly forgot what her point even was./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Okay, okay, I think we should-" Annie started, putting her hands up in surrender./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;"When she put her hands up, her right wrist was webbed to a brick wall. Needless to say, Annie had seen better days and had made better decisions. As she tried to pull her wrist away, she quickly realized it was in vain./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Spider-Man approached her, "Okay, um, so Swan Lady, what was all that about?" he asked, sounding as awkward as ever./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, you webbed me to this motherfucking wall, and now you can't even remember my name?! Why don't you tell me what all this was about?" Annie exclaimed, rolling her eyes as she spoke./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "S-sorry about that, miss, it's been a long week. A-an-and you attacked me," he pointed out./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed, "I know, you're right… sorry it's just… I don't know. How long am I long am I stuck like this anyways?"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, right. Just a half hour or so," said Spider-Man with a shrug./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie bit her lip in thought, "Or, instead of waiting for that long we can figure out how that one guy got out so fast."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Actually, I was gonna leave and come back later. You do some serious damage when you're mad," he replied, slowly backing up./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She glared, "You were the one not taking me seriously. I was mad, I wanted to prove you wrong. It's like… I could've blown something up and it would make no difference," she trailed off, "I talked to Tina. She's not any help."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Maybe Annie had been relying a little too heavily on Tina. After everything that the other girl must have gone through, Annie didn't fully blame her for not wanting to talk about it. Though at the same time it was awful, the first real mission she was starting to formulate, she couldn't even make any headway on./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Look, Swan, it's not your fault. If she doesn't want in, you can't force her. I know it's hard, but you can't save everyone," he pointed out./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She nodded, "You're right, but I'm still gonna figure this out."br / "Not on your own, I wouldn't let you," he said./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie huffed, frowning, "And why not? I'm powerful enough for it."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "You're new. If you thought I sounded like a fetus earlier… then you sound like… like an unfertilized egg," Spider-Man countered./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She rolled her eyes, pursing her lips, "I've been doing this for long enough. You just haven't been around to see it."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Sure, Jan," he deadpanned./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She scoffed, "If I hadn't been there when I was that girl would've been worse off. Hell, she could be dead in a dumpster if I hadn't been there!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Maybe, but just look at your costume, you're a disaster waiting to happen, I would know. You don't have any armor or anything that could allow you to make a mistake," he maintained./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It wasn't an incorrect statement, which was why Annie stayed silent for a few moments. God, this hero was insufferable. She couldn't figure out why people seemed to like him so much when all he did was talk down to her. He talked as if she didn't have any powers at all. The whole conversation left Annie longing to slug the guy, but that would just leave her back at square one. Maybe if she could just prove him wrong in a different way. That was when her eyes glinted with the hint of an idea./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Disaster, maybe, but smarter, without a doubt," Annie stated./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The city was teeming with energy and she gathered what she could of it. When she pulled, the energy finally allowed her to break free from the wall. Annie couldn't help but give a mocking shrug as she used electricity to disintegrate the webbing to ash. The black dust that was left over scattered and was hardly even visible when she finished wiping it off of her hands./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Spider-Man stood there with his arms crossed. With the mask on, Annie kept on trying to figure out what type of emotion he had on his face. Of course, that was impossible for her, especially with the silence between the two superheroes. It was a heavy silence where, if nothing else, Annie knew that Spider-Man was thinking about something. The problem was that she couldn't tell what that was./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "So, you gonna say anything, Spidey?" she asked, rocking back and forth on her heels./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" There was another silence before he started speaking, "What the- how the- you just… what do you even do?!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, that's a great question… I mean, I've had these powers for years, so I guess I screw around with energy and electricity, I don't really know for sure," she explained with a small shrug./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Spider-Man paused, seeming to take a moment to think, "If you really think you can handle it, fine. But you're not doing a trafficking case alone, Swan."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Okay, but if you doubt me for one second, I'm out. I've worked alone before and I'll do it again," Annie responded./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" He shrugged, "Fine, maybe you have, but that was before. You're not doing that anymore."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "And why not?" she countered./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" He started to pace, "Well, you're looking for a fight. You don't have anyone here to give you advice. I-I guess I just don't want to see you by yourself when you don't have to be."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" That was true enough, and it left Annie wondering if he was as condescending as she had initially found him to be. It was clear that she didn't have anyone there to help her. There wasn't anyone close by for Annie to confide in. Sure, there was Harper, but they were across the country. It wasn't like they could sit and gossip over a cup of coffee or go over different costume designs. Asking her parents was completely off the table. Then she couldn't get over how sincere Spider-Man had sounded./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" After a few moments of silence, she relented, "Okay, Spidey, partners it is. But then what're we doing about the trafficking?"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, we know whoever's behind it knows how to get away quick," he replied, seeming to be staring at nothing, almost as if he was in thought./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Discussing the situation pointed out a handful of conclusions. Annie needed a better White Swan suit, they needed to find the headquarters, and they were both were definitely high school students. Had an adult been there, both heroes would have been barred from the operation. They wanted to make a difference on their own, if nothing else, they agreed on that. If Spider-Man hadn't wanted her on the mission then he would have made that clear earlier. Hell, he wouldn't have bothered to have the conversation that they were having./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Suddenly having to work with the person Annie perceived as insufferable and cocky changed things up a bit. She still found Spider-Man to be infuriating, but she also found that he meant well. It was better than someone who was impossible to deal with and had a massive ego./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" They didn't have a plan yet, but they would in time. It was hard to have any sort of plan when they had no clue of what they were even doing. Annie felt that at the bare minimum, she was clever enough. If nothing else, it was nice to not have everything going on be just inside of her head./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed a bit, "But what about Tina?"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, I can try convincing her instead. It might work, I don't know though," Spider-Man responded before seeming to listen to something else, "We should probably get home, it's pretty late."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It had been late, and when Annie snuck back into her apartment, she claimed that she had taken a long nap. Thankfully her parents took that excuse and she went back to her room to call Harper. They were the only person that Annie could use to talk things through with./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Hey, did you finally meet Spider-Man again?" Harper asked as soon as she picked up the phone./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie laughed a bit, "Hello to you too, Harper. And yes, I kinda fought with him, but it's all okay now."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "That's not something you hear every day. So are you guys, like, friends now? Or do you still find him to be overrated?" Harper questioned, seeming to mock their friend./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie scoffed, "I don't know what you're insinuating here, but I guess… we're actually just working together right now."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, that's good. Just don't let emotions get in the way of the job too much. Well, you know what I mean," they replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Woah, woah, woah. What?! I don't have any feelings towards that guy. I've only talked to the guy for the total of an hour!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Mhm… you say that, but then you got so defensive."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I most certainly did not! You take that back!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I will when you stop fangirling over the guy, but I gotta go, I'll talk to you later, Ann, bye!" Harper said before hanging up./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The click of the phone being hung up left Annie laying on her bed to see that it wasn't quite midnight. What she needed to do was get the reading for her history class done, but the sheets on her bed were just too soft and warm. Annie couldn't bring herself to get off of her twin bed to walk over to her backpack and get the textbook. Before she could even realize it, her eyelids drooped down. Not long after, her eyes were closed and she drifted off to sleep with the light on./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She sleepwalked her way through a good amount of the school day. No amount of caffeine was enough to keep the girl from dozing off and spacing out of her classes. Ned questioned it, but Peter seemed rather tired too. Annie just claimed that she stayed up reading Pride and Prejudice. That was the book she was seen with, she just hoped that no one pointed out that she was less than twenty pages into the classic./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Better than me, I was up watching conspiracy theories," Peter said, talking over a yawn./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" As badly as Annie wanted to press further, she knew that she had no right. If she asked too many questions then he probably would too. The last thing she wanted was to blow her own cover when she hadn't even been in the city for very long./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Days were starting to go by with a sort of simplicity. Well, everything except for her theater class. There was already a set hierarchy that Annie just wasn't a part of. She was automatically thrown to the bottom of the metaphorical food chain. The worst part was that most of the class was filled with girls, hardly any guys. Even then, most of those guys could barely act. It was all a joke to her after getting out of a performing arts school where she'd had a minor role in the spring production./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The black-haired girl felt she was better than everyone else, but no one bothered to realize it. Needless to say, it left her feeling rather hopeless and left out of the normal theater kid shenanigans she was used to. Then there were other issues that were completely unrelated to her acting and singing abilities./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Truth be told, Annie had no clue how she was supposed to meet Spider-Man again. They never discussed a meeting place or a time. It wasn't like she had any way to text him or something. All she could do was hope that the art of coincidence was on her side. It was a little bit fishy to her. Why would he claim they could work together and then not offer a place to meet?/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Physics was still the death of her and it was as irritating as ever. How was she supposed to ever really use her powers if she didn't even understand their concepts? She hated how the main reason she could use her powers was due to past coincidences and accidents that occurred. Why couldn't she have sucked at something like history or English? Nope, she was terrible at something that she would genuinely need. Not to mention that she was in a school geared towards science, so Annie was practically fighting to get a C in the class as it was./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" At least there was Peter. Annie would bother him continuously in the class. Though something told her that he didn't mind her constantly pestering him. They worked together on a worksheet, but it was more like her asking a million questions and writing down what he did./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "You're almost hopeless in this class," Peter commented as he wrote down more work./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed, "I know, I don't even know how to do anything. It wasn't like this in Seattle at all."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Um… well, maybe I could help you for a bit after school," Peter suggested./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie thought a moment before nodding, "Sure! I can't stay long though, my parents want me home kind of early tonight."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It was a lie, but what else could she tell him? I have an important meeting with Spider-Man that should've happened days ago? Like hell was she about to do that. At that point she should have just started telling everyone on the street that she was a superhero./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The day finally ended, and the both of them left the last hour class to get to the library. They both seemed to be a little tense. However, both were far too preoccupied to notice the other. Still, they both got out their stuff to study./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "So, it turns out I don't have much time myself, the internship needs me to do some stuff," Peter explained./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie shrugged, "That's fine, I just needed a crash course anyways. I'm not gonna become an expert in an hour or two."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Right, so what do you wanna cover first?" he asked./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, how about energy balance? I mean, I just think I should probably know that, I kinda bombed the quiz about that," she replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Of course Annie chose the one thing that appeared to relate to her powers the best. It took a lot of drawing to get the girl to have any type of understanding. Peter's drawing of a rollercoaster was mediocre at best, but Annie didn't mind. The picture did kind of help her understand how energies were supposed to work together. It actually felt like it was making sense. Though they both had to leave rather soon, and Annie found herself lost in the city again./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Her phone had died because she forgot to charge it after calling Harper the night before, so her GPS was obviously useless. It was a complete pain for her, and she had no one to talk to about it. Then there was the possibility of Spider-Man looking for her, or worse, he was already figuring things out before she could. She just wanted to scream or cry with her frustration kicking in, feeling as though making it back to her apartment and running off within the next fifteen or twenty minutes would make up for days of lost time./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Um… Miss, are you alright?" an extremely familiar voice asked./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie turned, her jaw dropping when she saw who the voice belonged to, "Oh, uh, yeah? I'm good, just a bit lost."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I can help with that," Spider-Man replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She shook her head, "That's okay, you probably have more important stuff to do."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Nonsense, I'm the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, I gotta keep it local," the hero insisted./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" They stood in silence for a bit. Annie contemplated explaining that she was White Swan. Though she didn't feel like giving herself away just yet. Even if Spider-Man seemed to be alright, she wasn't about to let down her guard that easily. He had left her hanging for days, she wasn't about to trust someone like that. The only reason she wasn't pushing him away was because she knew that she couldn't remember which way she was supposed to go to get to the apartment building./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, come on, miss, let me help you," he pleaded, his eyes seeming to get bigger./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie shrugged, "Alright, you got me, I actually have the address right here."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She dug into her jean pockets before pulling out a piece of paper with the address of the building. The writing done messily in black ink from when she asked her mom what the address was and she wrote it down for Annie./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Hey, you're not too far off. I'll just walk you there," he offered, and Annie wasn't sure how to say no./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" There was a huge awkward silence between them. Annie wanted to ask if he was looking for someone. That would be too odd of a question, so she decided against it. Still, she really wanted to know who this guy was, and if he even bothered to think about what happened a few days before. She wanted to have the chance to catch him by surprise and make him feel like the awkward one./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "You seem new," Spider-Man commented as they walked./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie gave a half-hearted laugh, "It's that obvious? I'm guessing it's because I was lost."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Yeah, you were pretty clueless, but it's a big place. And here you are," he replied, stopping in front of the building./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She nodded, "Oh, right, thanks."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, I'll see you around, miss," he said, about to web away./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Um, it's Annie, I'll see you around maybe." she responded as she entered her building./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Walking into an empty apartment, Annie took some time to charge her phone and get food. Knowing she would likely run into Spider-Man again felt somewhat assuring. Working with someone would probably help her to feel less insane about everything that was going on. On the other hand, she didn't want to end up with little credit. Not to mention that she needed to give him a hard time for completely leaving her hanging./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Once dressed in her suit, Annie glided out of her window, catching the energy. She looked around, truly able to see the sky. The first thing she did was use her vantage point to try and retrace her steps. Seeing everything did help her to put it all in perspective. She could even see the church and the homeless shelter next to it./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie went inside of the shelter when she landed, hoping to find someone. It made her feel a bit odd, the way she just went in. Finally, she saw an old man in a robe./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Hey, um, Mr. Priest Sir, I need to talk to you," Annie said, approaching him./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, yes, I was told I might see some odd-looking people. Tina is doing well," the priest replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie straightened a little, the girl really had expected to see them again after all, "Can I speak with her? It's important."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "She said that she does not wish to see anyone at the moment," he responded./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie frowned, "Please, I wanted to talk with her."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I will keep the wishes of my patrons," he stated firmly./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She nodded, "Okay, I guess I'll go then."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It was then that Annie saw the girl. Annie rushed over to the side room. There were so many questions she had. She had no clue as to where she would start. The girls just looked at each other. She waited for the priest to leave before rushing into the room to talk to Tina./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I have some questions, and I understand if you can't answer them," Annie started, unsure if she was making the best decision./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I don't wanna talk about it, I'm not your charity case," Tina said, turning away to leave the room./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie nodded, "Yeah, right, of course, but Tina, if you help me… well, we could save a lot of other girls. Surely that means something to you."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Look, I get that you think you're helping, but you're just getting in the way. I'm finally healing up, getting cleansed. That priest guy has been so helpful. I don't wanna ruin that," Tina replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie stopped for a moment, "But I could get rid of those terrible people, they wouldn't be around to ruin it for you."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "And then what? Others will come anyways. It makes no difference, I don't want to have any part in anything else that happens," Tina retorted./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed, "You're missing the point, it makes a difference for the people involved, Tina. For the people that are like you."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, my point is that I'm out. I don't wanna be involved anymore, I'm done," replied Tina, seeming to have a firm tone./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie frowned, but relented, "Okay, I guess I'll go then, but you'll have to talk about it to someone eventually. It's your choice if it's me or the police."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Walking out of the church, Annie felt relieved for the mask that covered her face. It kept her from looking as defeated as she felt. Besides, that Spider-Dude had probably done all that work anyways. Maybe that was why he never gave a meeting place. Maybe that was why he left her hanging for a week. And maybe she wasn't going to end up making a difference./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Still, she walked along, looking for trouble. There wasn't much for her to do aside from scaring off some thief. It had been a half hour since she gave up on finding Spider-Man. Then, just as she finally gave up any type of hope, she saw the red and blue guy. She could hardly contain just how infuriated she was. It was her chance to truly prove herself. Before approaching him, she gathered all the energy she could from the busy New York streets./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Where the hell were you?!" Annie exclaimed, using the energy to shove Spider-Man backwards./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" There seemed to be an expression of surprise on the guy, or his eyes were all the way white at least. He tried to say something, but Annie hit him again before he could say it. So instead of getting hit around, he went to fight back. It wasn't long before they were both fighting. The only thing was that they weren't fighting to kill each other. It was more like they were arguing without saying anything at all./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie continued gathering energy, using it to deflect webbing and to get in more hits. They both kept going, but Annie wasn't quite used to such an intense fight. She hadn't thought that he would fight back and actually be difficult. It was to the point Annie spent more time dodging attacks rather than giving them. As they continued to fight, she wondered if it was the best idea./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Odds were that she should have thought ahead and decided against fighting against someone who was obviously better prepared for a fight than she was. After all, she wasn't completely sure of what she was doing. She didn't want to use any electricity if she could help it. Her plan hadn't been to hurt the guy, just to get her point across. Though she quickly forgot what her point even was./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Okay, okay, I think we should-" Annie started, putting her hands up in surrender./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;"When she put her hands up, her right wrist was webbed to a brick wall. Needless to say, Annie had seen better days and had made better decisions. As she tried to pull her wrist away, she quickly realized it was in vain./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Spider-Man approached her, "Okay, um, so Swan Lady, what was all that about?" he asked, sounding as awkward as ever./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, you webbed me to this motherfucking wall, and now you can't even remember my name?! Why don't you tell me what all this was about?" Annie exclaimed, rolling her eyes as she spoke./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "S-sorry about that, miss, it's been a long week. A-an-and you attacked me," he pointed out./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed, "I know, you're right… sorry it's just… I don't know. How long am I long am I stuck like this anyways?"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, right. Just a half hour or so," said Spider-Man with a shrug./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie bit her lip in thought, "Or, instead of waiting for that long we can figure out how that one guy got out so fast."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Actually, I was gonna leave and come back later. You do some serious damage when you're mad," he replied, slowly backing up./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She glared, "You were the one not taking me seriously. I was mad, I wanted to prove you wrong. It's like… I could've blown something up and it would make no difference," she trailed off, "I talked to Tina. She's not any help."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Maybe Annie had been relying a little too heavily on Tina. After everything that the other girl must have gone through, Annie didn't fully blame her for not wanting to talk about it. Though at the same time it was awful, the first real mission she was starting to formulate, she couldn't even make any headway on./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Look, Swan, it's not your fault. If she doesn't want in, you can't force her. I know it's hard, but you can't save everyone," he pointed out./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She nodded, "You're right, but I'm still gonna figure this out."br / "Not on your own, I wouldn't let you," he said./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie huffed, frowning, "And why not? I'm powerful enough for it."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "You're new. If you thought I sounded like a fetus earlier… then you sound like… like an unfertilized egg," Spider-Man countered./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She rolled her eyes, pursing her lips, "I've been doing this for long enough. You just haven't been around to see it."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Sure, Jan," he deadpanned./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" She scoffed, "If I hadn't been there when I was that girl would've been worse off. Hell, she could be dead in a dumpster if I hadn't been there!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Maybe, but just look at your costume, you're a disaster waiting to happen, I would know. You don't have any armor or anything that could allow you to make a mistake," he maintained./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It wasn't an incorrect statement, which was why Annie stayed silent for a few moments. God, this hero was insufferable. She couldn't figure out why people seemed to like him so much when all he did was talk down to her. He talked as if she didn't have any powers at all. The whole conversation left Annie longing to slug the guy, but that would just leave her back at square one. Maybe if she could just prove him wrong in a different way. That was when her eyes glinted with the hint of an idea./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Disaster, maybe, but smarter, without a doubt," Annie stated./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The city was teeming with energy and she gathered what she could of it. When she pulled, the energy finally allowed her to break free from the wall. Annie couldn't help but give a mocking shrug as she used electricity to disintegrate the webbing to ash. The black dust that was left over scattered and was hardly even visible when she finished wiping it off of her hands./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Spider-Man stood there with his arms crossed. With the mask on, Annie kept on trying to figure out what type of emotion he had on his face. Of course, that was impossible for her, especially with the silence between the two superheroes. It was a heavy silence where, if nothing else, Annie knew that Spider-Man was thinking about something. The problem was that she couldn't tell what that was./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "So, you gonna say anything, Spidey?" she asked, rocking back and forth on her heels./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" There was another silence before he started speaking, "What the- how the- you just… what do you even do?!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Oh, that's a great question… I mean, I've had these powers for years, so I guess I screw around with energy and electricity, I don't really know for sure," she explained with a small shrug./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Spider-Man paused, seeming to take a moment to think, "If you really think you can handle it, fine. But you're not doing a trafficking case alone, Swan."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Okay, but if you doubt me for one second, I'm out. I've worked alone before and I'll do it again," Annie responded./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" He shrugged, "Fine, maybe you have, but that was before. You're not doing that anymore."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "And why not?" she countered./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" He started to pace, "Well, you're looking for a fight. You don't have anyone here to give you advice. I-I guess I just don't want to see you by yourself when you don't have to be."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" That was true enough, and it left Annie wondering if he was as condescending as she had initially found him to be. It was clear that she didn't have anyone there to help her. There wasn't anyone close by for Annie to confide in. Sure, there was Harper, but they were across the country. It wasn't like they could sit and gossip over a cup of coffee or go over different costume designs. Asking her parents was completely off the table. Then she couldn't get over how sincere Spider-Man had sounded./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" After a few moments of silence, she relented, "Okay, Spidey, partners it is. But then what're we doing about the trafficking?"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, we know whoever's behind it knows how to get away quick," he replied, seeming to be staring at nothing, almost as if he was in thought./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Discussing the situation pointed out a handful of conclusions. Annie needed a better White Swan suit, they needed to find the headquarters, and they were both were definitely high school students. Had an adult been there, both heroes would have been barred from the operation. They wanted to make a difference on their own, if nothing else, they agreed on that. If Spider-Man hadn't wanted her on the mission then he would have made that clear earlier. Hell, he wouldn't have bothered to have the conversation that they were having./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Suddenly having to work with the person Annie perceived as insufferable and cocky changed things up a bit. She still found Spider-Man to be infuriating, but she also found that he meant well. It was better than someone who was impossible to deal with and had a massive ego./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" They didn't have a plan yet, but they would in time. It was hard to have any sort of plan when they had no clue of what they were even doing. Annie felt that at the bare minimum, she was clever enough. If nothing else, it was nice to not have everything going on be just inside of her head./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie sighed a bit, "But what about Tina?"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, I can try convincing her instead. It might work, I don't know though," Spider-Man responded before seeming to listen to something else, "We should probably get home, it's pretty late."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" It had been late, and when Annie snuck back into her apartment, she claimed that she had taken a long nap. Thankfully her parents took that excuse and she went back to her room to call Harper. They were the only person that Annie could use to talk things through with./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Hey, did you finally meet Spider-Man again?" Harper asked as soon as she picked up the phone./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie laughed a bit, "Hello to you too, Harper. And yes, I kinda fought with him, but it's all okay now."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "That's not something you hear every day. So are you guys, like, friends now? Or do you still find him to be overrated?" Harper questioned, seeming to mock their friend./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" Annie scoffed, "I don't know what you're insinuating here, but I guess… we're actually just working together right now."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Well, that's good. Just don't let emotions get in the way of the job too much. Well, you know what I mean," they replied./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Woah, woah, woah. What?! I don't have any feelings towards that guy. I've only talked to the guy for the total of an hour!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "Mhm… you say that, but then you got so defensive."/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I most certainly did not! You take that back!"/p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" "I will when you stop fangirling over the guy, but I gotta go, I'll talk to you later, Ann, bye!" Harper said before hanging up./p
p style="color: #888888; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 19.2px;" The click of the phone being hung up left Annie laying on her bed to see that it wasn't quite midnight. What she needed to do was get the reading for her history class done, but the sheets on her bed were just too soft and warm. Annie couldn't bring herself to get off of her twin bed to walk over to her backpack and get the textbook. Before she could even realize it, her eyelids drooped down. Not long after, her eyes were closed and she drifted off to sleep with the light on./p
