"Th-that was…" Peter whispered.

"Y-yeah…" Sam replied before he supplied a weak chuckle in order to ease the tension between him and Spiderman.

Peter gave himself time to rest for a little while longer as did Nova. Neither wanted to get up and neither wanted to talk. It was obvious that they were both confused. Never had Peter imagined he would do something so intimate with a person whose name he did not even know. Even though Peter had done more than just kissing with his previous boyfriend, he had never felt such a fire penetrate his skin and burn him to the core from just slight contact.

He had felt uneasy and uncomfortable at first. He had initially put the blame on Nova, but in the end he had been the one to close the gap between them. Now he had to live with it. Just as that thought registered his mind drew a blank. After all, he did not know what this 'it' was. For all he knew what had just transpired could be a one time thing. Nova might regret it tomorrow morning and decide to never mention it again.

Ignoring the numbing pain he experienced both physically and mentally, Peter said:

"I think it's high time we got up."

Fortunately, no one had come, but Peter did not want to chance his luck. Plus, it had been late before they left the tri-carrier. Therefore, an unknown lapse of time had passed which seemed to grate on Spiderman's nerves.

Sam appeared more than happy to oblige. Nova rose quickly and helped Peter get up. However, once their fingers connected a surge of electricity passed through their bodies, making them both jump. Both of them tried to cover it with a nervous chuckle, but their efforts proved to be futile. Even though the temperatures of their bodies had come back down, the issue had not disappeared. They would undoubtedly have to address it sooner or later, but not tonight.

With a quick exchange of good night wishes, they parted ways. Nova flew back to the tri-carrier and supplied an excuse as to why he had been late to Fury. Of course, Fury had not believed him, but seeing as Nova had not been harmed, Nick allowed Sam to go back to his room and rest for the remainder of the night.

Peter was lucky that Aunt May had fallen asleep and had not woken up, otherwise he would have been in deep trouble. Having kissed her goodnight on the forehead, Peter exited her room and entered his after a quick walk through the hallway. He took a quick shower and went to bed. Once his head was rested on the pillow, Peter went to sleep.

Next morning found Peter swinging running in order to make it to school on time. He had considered swinging to school, but decided against it since the chance for some random villain to occupy his time was quite high. Peter yelled for someone to hold the door open, but received no response. He closed his eyes as he cursed mentally and prepared himself for the impact. However, it never came. Just as he was about to collide with the door someone opened it, allowing Peter to storm through freely.

Naturally, Peter stumbled and tumbled to the ground. However, once he conquered the urge to rub his bottom a hand was extended towards him and someone asked good-naturedly:

"Need a hand?"

Peter looked up and nearly gasped. Before him was Sam and he was smiling. No, smiling would not do the beautiful expression justice. Sam was practically glowing like a Christmas tree and as guilty as Peter felt, he could not help but feel slightly jealous of the reason behind it.

"Pete?" Sam questioned as his smile morphed into a frown.

Peter internally cursed. He wanted to gaze at Sam's beaming face a bit longer.

"Yeah, I do need a hand." Peter suddenly said as he grabbed Sam's outstretched one and rose from the ground with a slight tug from the still confused Nova.

As Peter dusted himself off and nodded his thanks, Sam could not help but question whether something had happened last night. After all, Peter did space out, but only once or twice and that was when he was tired which happened only during the late afternoon. During the morning Peter was never fatigued or irritated or unfocused; something which Sam always envied. Now, something was up and Sam was going to find out what it was.

Peter soon turned around and began walking to his class. Naturally, Sam followed. When he managed to catch up, Nova asked:

"What's wrong?"

Peter tensed. His whole form became rigid. His fingers trembled slightly. And Sam noticed it all. His eyes narrowed when Peter opened his mouth and stuttered out something incoherent.

Sam halted, making Peter do the same. He crossed his arms as he glared at his friend.

"I do not appreciate being obviously lied to, Parker."

The use of his surname made Peter flinch. Sam had never addressed him with so much venom before. It seemed Peter had just made a grave mistake.

"Sam, I… I am sorry. I just… I can't tell you." Peter opted for honesty. After all, even if he did tell Sam what happened, the boy would probably accuse him of lying anyway.

Sam rolled his eyes, then sighed and uncrossed his arms. He looked at Peter. The solemn expression on Sam's face was enough to make guilt parade in Peter's mind, heart and vessels.

"Alright. Sorry for prying. I just thought that after everything you told me, you would mind sharing your troubles and worries. Guess I was wrong." Sam uttered before he walked past Peter.

Peter's eyes widened. He turned around sharply and ran after Sam. He grabbed the boy by the shoulders and spun him around. Peter locked eyes with Sam's, making Nova flinch. The intensity inside those blue depths was excruciating.

"The problem is not that I do not want to share. I just can't, Sam." Peter then sighed and let go of the boy's shoulders, making him sigh in relief.

Peter then rubbed his forehead with the tips of his fingers and confessed dejectedly:

"There is someone else involved. I…I did something with this person I should not have and now I don't know where we stand."

Sam was stunned for a while, but soon managed to recover, realizing that Peter had nothing against him and that the situation simply called for a lack of lucid details.

"Wow that was specific and detailed." Sam quipped.

Peter punched his shoulder, making Sam wince and stagger backwards. Nova grabbed the area Spiderman had just hit and rubbed it soothingly. Sam soon sighed in relief and mumbled:

"Jesus, what are you made of? Steel?"

Peter rolled his eyes and aimed to punch Sam once more, but the latter was prepared this time and skillfully evaded it. He then adopted a battle stance and said:

"Unless you're ready for a full-blown fight, I would not try such a thing again."

Peter chuckled, adopted a battle stance as well and pretended to swing his fist against Sam, startling the latter and making him jump to the side. Sam's posture obviously tensed, but immediately relaxed once Peter started laughing. Sam was flabbergasted, but soon managed to recover his composure. He stood with his hands on his hips, glaring at the laughing Peter. After a few minutes Peter managed to calm down for which Sam was thankful. Just as Sam was about to open his mouth the bell rang. The two cringed at the loudness of the sound, but otherwise there was no other visible sign of their discomfort.

The two sighed and decided to walk the remainder of the way to their respective classrooms in silence. After they parted ways and entered their rooms, there was a nagging feeling in both of them that something had changed. It was not alarm that plagued their minds. Nonetheless, it caused both of them distress, knowing that a knot between them had tightened without them even realizing it yet.