Disclaimer: I don't own these guys, just playing around. Please don't sue.

Author's Note: Wow! I'm just blown away by the reviews! Tactac, thank you thank you thank you! I'm glad you like the little details…keep your eyes open, there's going to be more. And your wait for Harry is over!

Jenny, thank you for your encouraging review!

Captain Napalm, glad you think it's interesting! And Harry has been cued…

Free Fall

Chapter Three: The Chance Meeting

He had to admit, her sudden appearance had caught him off him guard. Gwen had told him a friend of hers would be looking for him after class so to keep an eye out for her. He didn't really know Gwen Stacey that well but she did have a couple classes with him and he knew her father was a police Captain. She vouched for this friend, Kenzie something, so Peter had just shrugged and said he would look for her. He found that it wasn't just her appearance that threw him off, it was everything about her.

A spider clearly had bitten her, she showed him her ankle and the mark was similar to his. A spider bite during a radiation treatment sounded plausible. She seemed genuinely unsettled by her circumstances. Next, she admitted recognizing him from the train fight with Octavias. He was still expecting a media leak of his true identity but it hadn't come yet. When she said that she had kept his secret, he believed her. Then she had admitted she had cancer and he was still reeling from that admission.

He was extremely surprised at her reaction when she said she had cancer. It was as if that was the first time she had ever said it. As soon as the words left her mouth, her entire facial mask just shattered in that moment. Tears welled up in her gray eyes and every muscle seemed to quiver from the effort to not cry in front of him. He wanted to help her but he couldn't do anything for her cancer. That was one public enemy he didn't have any ability to fight. However, he could help her with the spider bite.

"I have to go meet my friend at the Malibu Diner just a couple blocks from here," Peter said, trying to give her a supportive smile. "I mean it, why don't you come with me."

She swiped at her eyes and brushed her black hair out of her face. "I don't want to impose. Asking for your help is an imposition enough."

"There's no imposition. Come on, you'll like her."

"It's not your girlfriend, is it?"

"Well," he tried not to look too hopeful at that prospect, "not yet."

She finally gave a slight laugh. "Alright. I can't stay long anyway. I have an appointment later on."

Peter started down the steps and noticed that was carrying a worn backpack. "Are you a student here too?"

"Yeah, forensic science. I'm in my internship right now."

"That's how Gwen Stacy knows you."

"Right."

Peter never had any experience with someone who had cancer before so he wasn't sure what were appropriate questions or conversation. He figured he would just ask whatever was on his mind and judge her reaction whether the subject matter was off limits or not. "So, uh, what kind of cancer do you have?"

"It's a brain tumor, next to my carotid artery."

"Can they remove it?" She sighed slightly and Peter immediately felt he had overstepped that invisible boundary. "I'm sorry, you don't have to answer that."

"No, it's fine, really." She scuffed the toe of her well-worn flip flops on the pavement. "I haven't really talked about this to anyone."

"What about your parents?"

She shrugged her thin shoulders. "My mom died a couple years back. My dad lives in the Midwest but we've never had a strong relationship. It's easier if he doesn't know."

"I'm sure he would want to know." Peter thought about Harry Osborn and his father Norman. He had never witnessed such a dysfunctional father/child relationship as that and he was certain that Norman would want to know if Harry was dying from some disease.

"What my Dad doesn't know won't hurt him. Anyway, back to the surgery question. They don't want to risk it because the tumor is so close to the artery. I'm going through double rounds of radiation and chemo."

"Had you seen the spider in the room before it bit you?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah, it was there from my first session. I told the nurses about it but they couldn't find it."

Peter thought about the spider for a minute. "It's possible the spider was exposed to the radiation for a long time. Do you have any idea what kind of spider it was?"

"The kind with eight legs and spins a web."

He looked over at her and found a cheeky grin on her sharp featured face. He got the impression this was the regular face she showed the world. The one she had showed to him in front of the science building had been her true self: earnest, frightened and desperate to survive. He also noticed how alone she must be in this fight for her life.

The Malibu Café came into view and their conversation was cut short as they entered the small, street side restaurant. Peter immediately found MJ out of the crowd that had gathered for an early lunch. She was always easy for him find, she practically glowed whenever she went. As he made his way through the tables, he saw she was talking to someone who was sitting at her table. She was smiling at them so Peter thought it might just be a fan of her plays or photo shoots. He caught her eye and she smiled even bigger.

"Hey, Pete," she greeted. "You'll never guess who I ran into."

Then the visitor turned in his seat and Peter's mouth went dry.

"Hey, Peter."

"Harry." Peter swallowed a couple times, trying to find his voice. "How, uh, how are you?"

His one time best friend gave him a bone-chilling smile. "Doing great."

"Good," Peter managed. "Are you going to be joining us?" He glanced over at MJ who nodded encouragingly. "You're more than welcome."

He looked liked he was going to decline the invitation but then he caught sight of Kenzie standing behind Peter. "Maybe I will stay. Who's your new friend?"

Peter had actually forgotten Kenzie was standing behind him and quickly motioned for her to step up towards the table. "This is Kenzie Marshall. She's a friend of a friend who wanted some help."

If Harry had a smart remark for the comment, he kept it to himself. Peter sat down next to MJ and Kenzie sat across from him.

"So," MJ asked, "are you in Peter's class?"

"Uh, no," Kenzie answered, "but my friend is. I actually study forensic science. I love the crime solving part but," she looked over at Peter, "science isn't my strong point."

"Crime solving, huh?" Harry said. "What kinds of crimes do you want to solve? Thefts? Fraud? Homicide?"

Peter tried to ignore the edge that the last word held. At least Harry had agreed to sit with them. That was more than he had done since his father's funeral. Maybe things could be patched up between them after all. "How are things at Oscorp?"

"I've been busy." Harry picked up his mug of coffee and took a sip. "Trying to clean up that mess from Octavius."

Kenzie turned in her chair in a very quick motion that startled all three of them. "Wait a second," she pointed towards MJ, "you're the Emma Rose girl!"

Peter watched as a pleased smile passed over MJ's face and the two girls started talking like high school friends who were catching up on things. He wasn't sure if Kenzie was purposefully turning the conversation away from dangerous territory or if she had just honestly recognized MJ from the billboards around the city. Whatever the reason, he was glad he now had a chance to finally talk to Harry. But when he opened his mouth to say how glad he was Harry was there, Harry cut him off.

"Don't, Pete." He lifted the coffee mug up to his face again to hide his lips. "I stopped for MJ, not you."

Peter tried to hide his hurt and disappointment at the statement and started listening in on the conversation between MJ and Kenzie.

"You're kidding me?" MJ was saying. "What made you quit?"

Kenzie shrugged. "Family issues came up and I just couldn't practice as much. It was fun."

"Will you ever go back to it?"

A shadow seemed to pass in front of Kenzie's face. "Probably not."

"Go back to what?" Harry asked nonchalantly, all coldness absent from his voice.

MJ grinned brightly. "We are sitting in the presence of the regional champion of ballroom dancing."

Kenzie held up a finger. "Jive, it was just in the jive."

"Wow," Peter beamed. A dancer with his powers. If he wasn't careful, she might out-gracing him in the city. But it all honesty, he wasn't concerned about that. In fact, it might help her adapt even more having balance and rhythm down already. He knew it sure would have helped him in the early stages.

"I hate to leave so soon," Kenzie said, standing up, "but I have an appointment to keep uptown. Here," she pulled out a pen and scribbled something on a napkin, "this is my number if you want to get to together."

MJ was the one that took the napkin and Peter could see she had written her address on it as well. "Great, we'll be sure to do that."

Kenzie did the polite rounds of "good-byes" and "nice to meet yous" before turning to leave when Harry stood up.

"You know, I have to go uptown," he said, dropping a couple bills on the table. "You can ride with me if you don't want to spend money on a cab."

Peter felt like a deer caught in headlights. Had it been six months ago, he would have encouraged Kenzie to go with Harry. However, he didn't know if Harry was playing games with him or if he really was just being polite. He didn't know how to dissuade Kenzie without being rude or an alarmist. It would only raise questions that MJ would start asking and Peter wasn't ready for them yet. Instead, with a sinking feeling, he watched Kenzie nod, wave good-bye and follow Harry out of the diner.

"She seems really nice, Pete," MJ said after they were out of earshot. "And it was good seeing Harry again."

"Yeah."

"So, what kind of science does she need help with?"

Peter pulled his eyes away from black town car that Kenzie and Harry had disappeared into and focused on MJ. "Just some, uh, spider science."

MJ's eyebrows went up in surprise. "You mean like, Spiderman type science?"

Peter leaned over the table so he would whisper. "She was bitten by a spider while undergoing radiation. She's developed some similarities to what I can do and wanted to know how to use them."

"How did she know to come to you?"

Peter moved his chair closer to MJ's, using secrecy as an excuse to get closer to her. The familiar scent of strawberries drifted over him and he took a deep breath, inhaling the smell, before starting the story. "See, there was this train…"

"You really don't need to give me a ride."

"I don't mind, honestly." And he truly didn't. The one thing that he had been craving lately was company. Ever since he had discovered his father's Green Goblin lab, he had this unshakable need to not be left alone. He would occasionally call Mary Jane just to hear someone's voice but he knew her sights were set on Peter. He may have issues with Peter, but there was still a part of him that saw Peter as a friend. He tried to beat down that part of himself but he couldn't quite do it completely. And whenever he passed in front of that mirror, his father was always there berated him for it. So when Peter walked in with this young woman behind him, Harry grabbed the chance of meeting a new person. It didn't hurt she was pretty.

She gave a shrug of her shoulders and ducked into the open door of the Lincoln. Harry followed after and waited for the door to shut. "Where are you headed?"

"St. Anne's Hospital."

"Did you hear that, Charles?"

"Yes, Mr. Osborn."

Harry watched the privacy partition slide up before he started to ask questions. He took a moment to look at her though. She was dressed like a typical college student: jeans, t-shirt with some band he didn't recognize and realized they much be local, and flip-flops. They actually must look comical together with her dress and his tailored suit and tie. "Are you a nurse at St. Anne's?"

"No, I'm not." She gave him a slight smile before looking out the window.

"You must be a doctor then."

"I'm a patient, actually."

That caught him off guard. "Really?"

"I'm headed for my chemo."

He nodded in understanding but didn't ask any more questions. It would explain the fatigue that showed in her eyes. "How do you know Peter?"

"I don't really. A friend of mine just referred me to him for some help. How do you know him?"

I know him as my father's killer. "We went to high school together. He actually helped me out with some of my science classes." He looked over at her and found her smiling. "What?"

"I think that's the first time I've seen you genuinely smile. Back at the diner, I don't know, you just seemed on edge." Then her face light up. "You're last name is Osborn?"

That was never a good sign. "Yes."

"You run Oscorp then?"

Harry shifted uncomfortably on the leather seat. "Special Projects, yes."

"No wonder you're on edge then. That's got to be stressful."

He laughed shortly. "You could say that. I'm still trying to recover some face from the Octavius scare."

"The media comes and goes. Once something like that happens to another company you'll be out of sight and out of mind." Kenzie leaned her head back on the seat. "Besides, no one ever got anywhere without taking some risks."

"You should go into public relations. I think that's the most positive spin I've ever heard on the situation."

A serious look passed across her face. "There are enough negative voices out there whispering in your ear. Lord knows, you don't need another one. No one in a position of power does."

"Negative voices whispering in your ear." Harry rolled the phrase around in his mind and found it brought a strange sense of comfort. What if that was where the hallucinations of his father were coming from, just his own negative feelings manifested. If it were really that simple then he shouldn't have any problem quieting that voice.

"St. Anne's Hospital, sir," Charles' voice crackled over the intercom. Were they there already?

"Thank you for the ride, Mr. Osborn. I appreciated it."

"Please, it's just Harry." He felt as if his tie were choking him. "I would, uh, like it if I could see you again."

Surprise sprung out on her face and it took her a couple seconds to cover it over again. "You're the head of Oscorp, dropping me off for my cancer treatment and you want to see me again?"

Okay, it did sound a little strange but there was something about her, her attitude, which he seemed to take strength from. "Yes, I guess I am."

She reached into her bag and pulled out a receipt and a pen. She scribbled down the same information she had given MJ and passed it to him. He glanced over it and slipped it into his breast pocket. She thanked him again before getting out of the car and disappearing behind the sliding glass doors of the hospital.

He sat back against the seat and mulled the situation over his mind. She was a student, with a slightly bohemian style of dress and a matching philosophy from the sounds of it. She lived in the Bronx, was being treated for cancer and was friends with Peter Parker. Given his father's reaction to MJ, he would absolutely have hated Kenzie Marshall.

And in Harry's book, that was just more incentive to pursue this girl. Perhaps she could quiet his father's disappointment once and for all.