A/N: Ahhhh! Sorry I haven't updated in a while… Ug. Life can get in the way, sometimes.
Chapter 3: Puzzles to Solve
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Peter landed with a soft thud as he entered the window to the quaint apartment.
"Peter? Is that you?" Aunt May peered around the corner, a towel and dish in her hand. Peter turned to face his aunt.
"Yep!" Stepping forward to hug his aunt, Peter was completely oblivious as to how unkept his hair appeared. Returning the hug, May mirrored the smile that decorated her nephew's face.
"Well it's good to see a familiar face. And what on earth have you done to your hair?" Aunt May smoothed the unruly brunette strands out, their owner standing patiently in front of her.
"Probably the wind."
"You weren't wearing your suit?"
"No… I had just gotten dressed when MJ asked me to come by here." May nodded, and then wiped her hands on her skirt.
"I see… Well, please, Peter, come inside." The elderly woman hurried ahead of her tall nephew, her voice trailing back to him. "Actually, I just finished baking an apple pie when I heard you…" Peter smiled. He loved his aunt. Almost like an extremely close grandmother. With extraordinary baking skills.
Seating himself on a homey green sofa, Peter looked around the apartment he hadn't been here since his aunt had redecorated. Paintings of flowers and trees adorned the striped walls, along with several little knick-knacks and accessories. Among which were several of Peter's Spiderman pictures, one of Peter without his mask hanging above them. As he followed the array of photos, he found several of May, Many with Uncle Ben. Peter sighed. He missed his uncle so much… There were several pictures of him, at varying ages, the majority of them portraying a nerdy boy with thick glasses and non-existent muscles. But then, around the time he turned eighteen, there was a significant change in his picture. Having lost the glasses, and now sporting an enviable build, the only thing that looked the same was his sweet smile. Next to those were a couple of him and Mary Jane. Both scenes were engraved in Peter's mind. He smiled. One was from when Peter had proposed, and the other from their wedding.
"I can't tell you how many times I've re-arranged those." May commented, catching Peter looking at the photo-covered wall. Peter looked over at her.
"They look great, Aunt May." May smiled dreamily.
"Hmm… I remember when you first sent me that picture of you and Mary Jane." Aunt May motioned towards the frame which held a photograph of Mary Jane displaying her engagement ring proudly as she and Peter kissed. A picture of a couple kissing wasn't normally displayed in a household, Peter considered, but it seemed to sit well with his Aunt. Not many a person saw it besides May, MJ and himself anyway. He was brought out of his thoughts as May continued. "I think that email nearly gave me a heart attack! You could've at least warned me." Aunt May looked accusingly at her nephew.
"I'm sorry, Aunt May. I think I was just too exited to type anything. If I did, it would've been gibberish, anyway." Peter smiled at his aunt. Returning the smile, May sat down across from Peter, setting a dish of ice cream and apple pie in front of him, picking it up carefully as to not spill the quickly melting ice cream.
"How is Mary Jane these days? She said she was fine, but something in her voice told me otherwise." May asked, staring down at her dish of pie. Peter looked up.
"She's fine, I believe… A bit stressed with her newest role, I'd say, but otherwise… I can't really think of anything that would be bothering her." Peter dismissed the subject, but May seemed unconvinced. Peter noticed this rather quickly. "Is something wrong, Aunt May?"
"Oh no… Just, call it a woman's intuition; I'm sure there's something bothering her." May took a small bite at her pie, looking up at Peter to see his response.
"Huh." Peter looked deep in thought for a moment as he stoically took a bite of pie.
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"MJ?" Peter whispered. It was late. He hadn't expected to stay at his Aunt's house so long. Seeing that his wife was no longer awake, he quietly snuck into his room. Making out a human form under the blankets, Peter nodded as he glanced at the clock. Eleven ten. Late. Removing his shirt, he climbed into his bed next to Mary Jane, gently pushing back some of her red hair so that he could see her face. She leant into the touch with a small smile, which made him smile. Saying a quiet goodnight, he settled down to go to sleep.
He would ask her if there was something wrong in the morning.
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Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
Oh, for crying out loud….
BzzzzzzzZZZZBBBZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!
What in the good green world was it this time?!
Peter snapped his eyes open. Glaring menacingly at the window next to his bed, he was less than happy to hear sirens blaring from the outside. In normal circumstances, he would ignore it and go back to sleep, but his buzzing spider sense was screaming at him to go out and do his duty. Sighing quietly, he looked over at his wife. Envying her deep, serene sleep, he got up. Slipping into his suit, he made sure to be as quiet as possible.
1:03. so, he'd only been asleep for about two hours. Better than nothing, he supposed. As the sirens drew nearer, Peter silently walked around to Mary Jane. Giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead, he slipped his mask over his face, and then opened the window shutters to leap into the night.
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Flash Thomson could have screamed. A speeding ticket?! It wasn't even two in the morning, for crying out loud! Cops were actually up at this time of day? What were they, vampires?
"Sir, I'm going to need to see your driver's license." A mustached police officer bent down to look in the window of the old brown car. After a good amount of digging, and a long string of curses, Flash thrust the small rectangular object out the window, into the patient cop's hands.
"I still don't see why I'm getting this ticket," He fumed, "I wasn't even going three miles over-"
"Son," The cop looked at him with stern, aged eyes, "You were going eighty miles plus. You were speeding big time. And I'm afraid that you're going to have to come downtown with me."
"What?! Why you-" Flash's ears turned red as the veins in his forehead swelled.
"Come along, Son."
"Don't call me that!"
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Peter swung quietly towards the commotion. His spider sense was still buzzing, though not as intense as before. Once he reached the scene, he realized that it wasn't a chase, rape, mugging, attempted suicide, or any crime of interest. It was a speeder. Now why in the world would he wake up at one in the morning for a speeder? Frustrated but curious, he lowered himself down so that he could listen into the conversation.
"Son, you were going eighty miles plus. You were speeding big time. And I'm afraid that you're going to have to come downtown with me."
"What?! Why you-"
"Come along, Son."
"Don't call me that!"
Peter raised his eyebrows under his inverted mask. He sure is a feisty little fish. Maybe a drunk. But still, woken up for a speeding case?! What was so dangerous about this guy?Lowering himself in a way so that he could follow the beings covered in shadow, Peter considered the speeder's voice… It sounded familiar, from somewhere…
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Flash had visions of tossing this cop into a nice, thick, hard building. Maybe he could use a right – left punch combination then a kick to- What was Spiderman doing here?! Did he come just to mock him? That little web-brained idiot who considered himself a hero… Chills of anger rolled down his spine. He was there for everyone. He saved all of New York, once. But was he there when his parents were in trouble? Was he there to save them from an armed man – killer? Was he there when he had to listen to the screeching of his mother's dying breath? No. He was never there. He showed up for every other chase, but the one that took both of his parents, he wasn't at that one.
And he hated him for it.
The cop had also realized the wall crawler's presence, it seemed.
"Spiderman! Is something wrong?" The cop treated him with reverence. Ill – placed, undeserved, disgusting reverence for the wall-stalker. Flash thought.
Though upside down, Spiderman held up a hand.
"Oh no, I was just around." He shrugged. "Heard sirens, thought I'd come to check it out, that's all. Everything alright?" He glanced over at Flash, unknowing as to who it was.
"Yes Sir. Just another speeding case, that's all." Spiderman nodded, still staring at Flash, trying to determine if he had seen him before or not.
"I understand." Peter then posed himself to climb away, "But just one thing," he started,
"What's that?" The officer asked, obviously, he was fond of the tights-clad hero.
"Remember to get some sleep. I know that's where I'm headed!" The spider joked. Chuckling, the cop agreed. And with a salute, Peter swung away. "Give the chief my regards!" He shouted back as he started back towards his home, and thus, his bed.
BzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZ!
More work. Just what he needed. Oh well… he thought, I'm up and at 'em. Might as well. With a sharp change of direction, Peter trailed the red and blue flashing lights down the street.
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Hovering between sleep and consciousness, Mary Jane could hear the ceiling fan humming above her head. Soon her heart beat in tempo to its lulling sound, and soon after her mind was drifting back to sleep. That is, until the window opened with a creak.
Vivid sights and sounds flooded her mind. The Goblin, Dr. Octopus, scary black-clad men… Oh wait… Peter…
"Pete? Is that you?" MJ sat up slowly in bed. Peter froze as he looked over at the bed.
"Did I wake you up?" He asked, worried.
"No no, I'm fine. What are you doing up so early, Tiger?" She asked, glancing at the clock, which read 4:28. Peter shrugged as he took off his mask, gloves, and shoes.
"Long story." He said groggily, his tired voice cracking. Clearing his throat, his started to remove his shirt. Though when he began to peel the bright fabric from his right arm, he hissed in pain. On instinct, Mary Jane rose quickly and went around to her husband. Helping him take the rest of the sleeve off of his arm, she examined his wound. A long, red cut slanted across his upper arm. It wasn't extremely deep, but it was deep enough to make her flinch.
"Pete, what did you do?" She reached up on a shelf for the ever-ready first aid kit.
"Taxi cab shrapnel." Peter used his good arm to hold one end of a bandage down on his arm. MJ sighed.
"Why are they always victim to the most damage?"
"What?"
"Taxi cabs. They always seem to sustain the most amount of damage in crashes - Especially when you're involved." She smirked. Peter tried to laugh, but could only smile a little.
"Heaven knows that… And I think it's high time for bed." He closed his eyes as his wife finished off bandaging his arm. Nodding with an agreeing yawn, MJ flipped the covers up and crawled under them as her husband half lay, half fell on his bed. God bless whoever invented the isolated coil spring mattress.
With that, he drifted into a deep, dreamless sleep.
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Mary Jane sighed as she watched her husband fall asleep. She would have to tell him sometime… Just… When? Sighing in self-frustration again, she did her best to force her body into sleep.
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And there you have it! Another chapter! Again, sorry for taking so long. :D
REVIEW, people! (Please?)