Chapter 10 – The Mary Janes

Back in the Brooklyn of Earth 1610, Saturday had arrived. This was the day of Gwen's big concert, and Miles wanted to look his best without dressing too decoratively nor conservatively. He wasn't just going to meet his girlfriend and her bandmates; he was also going to meet her father.

He ultimately settled on a tight pair of jeans and his Brooklyn jersey with the number 42 on it, this time without a long-sleeved undershirt; he wanted to show off his toned arms. Checking himself in front of a mirror, he snickered at his jersey; the irony of its number didn't escape him.

In the back of his mind, he now had to wonder what his Earth 42 counterpart was up to, especially since he and his spider-friends helped to clean up his world's city and rid them of the supervillain cartel.

Is he alright?

Is his family doing well?

Is he still taking care of business as the Prowler?

He was also getting used to the nasal cannula by now; at least in his eyes, it hardly bothered his appearance anymore, even if he had to carry it everywhere with him. All he could feel, apart from the looming probability of heart failure, was pride.

The excited teen used this time to practice in the mirror. "Hello, Mr. Stacy… nah, that's too formal. Hi, I'm Miles… no, that's too casual." He cleared his throat and breathed deeply. "Hello, George Stacy, I'm Gwen's boyfriend—I mean, friend… I-I mean… d-date…?" He bowed his head in shame. "God, you are terrible at this!"

Miles swore that if he screwed this up, he'd rather be back in the hospital.

Cause of death… embarrassment.

"Nah, you got this!" He straightened up, fixing his top. "You're just meeting her dad… who is also a cop but not anymore…" Puffing his chest up, he exhaled.

Downstairs, Miles felt himself passing through a lowering atmosphere. He looked over to his parents, both who were sat at their dinner table in silence. His mother had her eyes in her phone while his dad was sipping almost vacantly from his coffee.

He frowned at them slightly. Lately, something was off about them. Usually when they were quiet, their home was chilled and relaxed with smiles… this, however, felt awkward and claustrophobic. There was just this tension in the air that not even his spider-senses could piece together.

He decided to break this silence. "Hey, mom. Hey, dad."

His parents, as if just realizing their son was there, broke out of their daze to put on their best smiles, which Miles could tell were forced.

"You guys okay?" he asked, trying to look cheery himself.

"Huh?" His mom took a delayed second to hear his question. "Oh, yes… we're fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, yeah…" his dad chimed in, "… we're just enjoying a quiet morning."

Miles cocked his head, doubtful. "By staring into walls like a ghost?"

"No, son…" When his dad tried to place his cup back in its saucer, he missed its center and toppled its side, which created a mess on the table. "Shit."

His wife protested in her native language and got up from her chair, only to be stopped.

"I got it." he said, somewhat weakly, and he shuffled into the kitchen to grab the napkins.

Miles then wondered if these two had an argument while he was out, because they've also been acting despondent with each other. His head started piecing things together.

"I take it you didn't get good news from the donor centers… did you?"

Both flinching, they faced their son with alarmed expressions, which quickly faded into sad knowing glances, and both sighed.

"It's okay, guys." He shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "We just gotta wait a little longer, that's all."

He managed a lopsided smile, which managed to relieve his mom and dad somewhat as they came over to embrace him.

"You're right, son." said Jefferson, patting him.

"I don't want you guys worrying so much." said Miles. "I know you care."

"Oh, mijo." His mom held him tighter. "We love you."

"I know, ma."

Soon after, they pulled apart, their spirits hopefully lifted a little.

"Go on, get out of here." she waved him off. "Don't keep tu futura esposa waiting."

"Mom!" Miles turned red in the face within seconds before he turned to the door, eager to now leave in a hurry, before he looked back at his parents and smiled one more time. "See ya."

"Have a good time." she spoke in a quiet tone.

And with that, he left.

Meanwhile, in Chelsea of Earth 65B, Gwen was pacing in her room over what to wear for her date with Miles. She didn't just want to dress like a punk rock tomboy, nor did she want to doll herself up and look too girly and fake. With each wardrobe change, she became more and more frantic with indecision.

She groaned to the ceiling.

"Everything okay in there?" she heard her dad call from behind her door.

"Yeah, just… tidying my room." she lied, faking calmness.

"Is that where you think this'll lead?" His tone made the subtext too obvious.

"What!? No! No, no, no…"

She glared at the door, swearing she heard the old man chuckle as he walked off.

"It's okay…" she let out a few breaths, trying to relax her nerves, "… it's just Miles. We've been through a lot together… it's not like he's gonna judge you." She hid her face in her hands.

She loved Miles as a person, and she knew he felt the same about her, but right now, all she could picture was him in his room… topless… with those toned muscles… that dazzling smirk.

Gwen wanted to pay him back for that… for making her so flustered… so… lewd?

She muffled a frustrated squeal. "Why did he have to be so hot?" It was driving her crazy.

Just then, she heard their doorbell ring… and her stomach dropped.

"He's here already." she muttered, now in panic mode. "Shoot!"

Not only was she far from ready, but her room was in fact a mess.

George Stacy opened his front door to see a teen in a jersey standing tightly in the corridor, bouncing on the heels and toes of his Jordans. He quickly noticed the tube under his nose that strung into his backpack.

"Uh… hi." Miles waved timidly, forcing a grin. "I'm Miles Morales… you must be Mr. Stacy."

"Call me George." The man smiled welcomingly, accepting his handshake with a firm grip. "Why don't you come in? Gwen's talked a lot about you."

"Has she?" Miles inquired, scanning the apartment as he was led into the living room to sit at their dining table.

"Want anything to drink?" asked George as he fumbled through the kitchen cupboards.

"I'm good, thanks." He waved, finally at ease.

Removing his backpack, he extended its top handle, which converted it into a wheelable, and placed it down next to him.

"So, uh, how have you been doing?" George asked, sitting down with his own glass.

The boy paused before saying, "Trying to do better… and you?"

"Same." The man shrugged. He was silent for a moment before he glanced sideways and said, "Oh, don't worry about my daughter. She's still deciding what to wear for tonight."

They both laughed.

"So…" Miles began, clearing his throat, "… you know that Gwen is…?"

"The Spider-Woman?" George nodded, his smile disappearing. "Yeah."

There was another pause.

"I guess… it wasn't easy, huh?"

George shook. "I'm still wrapping my head around it, but…" He checked sideways to see if his daughter was there listening, then turned back to Miles.

"You don't still think she did it… do you?" He raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Peter, I mean."

Miles faced away, quickly wishing he hadn't.

Good move, dumbass!

He immediately tried to correct himself. "Actually, sir… just forget I asked…" he was stammering, "… that's none of my—"

"I thought I did…" the former police captain answered calmly, "… but I was more confused than anything. It was surreal." He faced Miles again, showing no signs of annoyance. "Two sides were playing tug of war with me, and I knew I had to choose." He looked over at his family frames on the wall, all with photos of Gwen through different ages of her childhood to now.

Many of these pictures also had Peter in them, Miles noticed… he was so young.

Soon enough, they heard Gwen exiting her room. When Miles turned and saw her, his jaw nearly flew off. She had on a pair of high boots, some tight jean shorts, and a light top that was cropped to show part of her tightly defined belly.

Gwen sneered when she saw the look on her boyfriend's face.

Payback achieved.

"Finally ready?" George asked her, also smirking.

She stood behind one of the empty chairs, looking between the two with curiosity.

"So… you had quite a chat?" she inquired, smiling dumbly.

"Yeah…" Miles nodded, still distracted by her look.

"So…" she continued, turning away from Miles to her dad to break the awkward tension, "… I never asked this, but what are you gonna do now since you're no longer a police captain?" She drummed her fingers, waiting for any answer.

"Good question." He sipped his coffee. "I still don't know yet, but I might consider joining the DA… in an advisory capacity." He stressed that last point to avoid worrying the girl. "I just won't be directly involved in any more investigations."

Gwen thought about this, then nodded with a hum. "Fair enough."

Turning back to Miles, sneering again, she cocked her head towards the door. "You ready?"

Miles took a few seconds to hear what she said, and then responded. "Oh! Yeah, let's go."

Gwen helped him out of his chair, watched as he retracted his wheelable mini case into a backpack again, and took his hand as they started towards the exit.

"Have her back home by six!" he called out. They paused, looking back at him with ludicrous expressions before he broke into another chuckle. "Just kidding, you two. Have fun… but not too much fun!"

Gwen humorously rolled her eyes as they headed out.

"Your dad's awesome!" Miles whispered enthusiastically.

"So… what do you guys bet her boyfriend will be like?"

"He'll probably be nerdy… similar to Peter Parker."

"Personally, I'd figure he'd be more of a rocker,or at least a bad boy."

Three of the Mary Janes sat in a diner, each discussing their drummer's date while waiting for the two.

"It's kinda weird picturing Gwen with a boyfriend, considering how isolated she always was."

"You mean still is."

"And—"

"Speak of the devil."

The three girls rose to see Gwen entering with her new friend, and they were stunned.

"He's… actually kinda cute," stated Betty in a hushed voice. "except for that… thing he's wearing." She gestured the nasal cannula as subtly as she could.

"Hey, guys." Gwen waved nervously. "This is Miles."

"Hey." He waved as well.

"Miles, this is my band, the Mary Janes." She pointed to each of her bandmates, and they all stood to shake his hand at once.

"I'm Betty. I do bass."

"I'm Glory, the songwriter and keyboard player."

Finally, Miles turned to the redhead. "I'm guessing you're Mary Jane."

"Em Jay, actually." She winked, shifting her glance to her blonde drummer.

They all sat down to order food and drinks. To Gwen's surprise, her band warmed up to Miles rather quickly as they conversed about each other's lives, as well as the upcoming concert. It was also because he was much better at socializing than she was, something she would work to improve.

She also couldn't help but feel a little jealous of how talkative he was with MJ in particular, but she knew that neither of them was to blame; it was going to take some time for herself to reach that same openness. Modestly, she slid her hand over to hold his as they continued talking.

Their meet-up, however, was cut short when their spider-senses alerted them simultaneously, and both glanced at each other knowingly.

"Oh, sorry!" Gwen stood abruptly. "I just remembered I have to go pick up something!"

Miles shuffled so she could get out from the table.

"What about band practice?" MJ protested lightly.

"I'll be there, I promise!" she declared and pecked Miles on the cheek. "Love you."

"Love you too."

Gwen hurried out of the diner, leaving Miles with the girls.

"Hopefully, you'll get used to that." said MJ with slight annoyance.

"It's cool." Miles turned back to stir his drink. "She's got her own things to do."

"Like?"

"Like...?" Miles looked up to see the band eyeballing him. "S-Stuff…"

Miles drank from his straw, still feeling their questioning glares.

"And she told you?"

Miles coughed, trying to hide his rising discomfort. "Yeah." he said, clearing his throat.

"Does she often bail on you like this?" Betty inquired, eagerly probing.

"Nah… well, actually…" Miles bit his tongue, thinking back to all their recent times while choosing his next words carefully. "She and I are going through a lot right now," he began, "and we share a lot of things with each other, that's for sure."

The girls quickly gazed down at his breathing tube and understood solemnly.

"We're working on it." he then concluded, rubbing his chest with his fingers. "And I'm sure… when she's ready… she'll let you in as well."

The ghostly Spider-Woman swung through the streets to chase down a speeding black car; the threat she had sensed turned out to be a couple of carjackers barreling down the road. She was more worried about the police that were hot on their tails, as well as hers.

Like second nature, she dodged every bullet from both sides with the grace and ferocity of a ballerina while making sure to swoop down and keep civilians out of harm's way. Most of them, of course, thanked her with terrified shrieks as they fled from her.

When she managed to lose the cops, she tracked down the carjackers in an alleyway and dispatched them effortlessly. She was mainly going through the motions, not really paying attention to the fists and crowbars that were thrown her way. Countering them all, she sent the thugs careening into walls with her own punches and kicks before webbing them all together.

Job well done… but wait, one's missing.

Spider-Woman's tingle had her turning one-eighty to see a lone battered gunman aiming his weapon at her. She hunched into her stance, ready to dodge more incoming bullets, when a web-line streamed down from above, snaring his feet, and strung him up on a lamppost upside-down. A mohawked Spider-Man leapt down right after.

"Hobi—I mean… Spider-Punk!" she gasped and ran over to hug him. "What are you doing here?"

"Lookin' out for my drummer and her boyfriend." He pulled away; his tone wasn't laidback like usual, and Gwen could sense it right away.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Hobie sighed, then got straight to the point. "There's a Green Goblin on the loose." he said. "Thought I oughta warn you."

"A Goblin?"

"Apparently… this one can travel between dimensions."

Gwen stiffened, realizing what this meant. "But… that's impossible. I thought we took care of the anomalies."

"Apparently not." Hobie stared at the young Spider-Woman, dead serious even though his intricate mask. "Just watch yourself, okay?"

She couldn't speak anymore.

No… how could this happen?

Why did it have to happen now?

The punk spider picked up on her anxiety. "Miguel and the others are hot on his tail, so hopefully, they'll get him soon enough." he tried to assure her.

"T-Thanks…" she stuttered.

Turning from her friend, she webbed away from the scene before the officials could show up. Hobie did the same shortly after in the other direction.

Gwen Stacy, the Spider-Woman of Earth 65B, was always confident in her strength and abilities, yet the mere mention of a Green Goblin sent chills down her spine. She understood this foe's history with many Spider-People, particularly the ones that involved her variants.

If what Hobie said was true, then this threat had to be stopped.

The evening came, and all the concertgoers were gathered in a small venue; Miles, with the ticket Gwen had bought for him, found his specially reserved seat near the front of the stage.

Backstage, the Mary Janes peeked through the curtains to see the anticipating crowd. Three of them were hyped while the fourth member, the drummer, was checking over her shoulder every minute… for obvious reasons that weren't known to the others.

She remembered the prom… the false sense of security… and then the attack.

"Hey!" MJ snapped Gwen out of her thoughts. "You with us!"

"Yeah!" she replied hastily. "Let's do this!"

Mustering courage, Gwen followed closely behind her band as they entered the stage and waved to the cheering crowd. She spotted Miles at the front, also clamoring in support on his own two feet, and she grinned back. Tonight was just going to be about them, she declared to herself.

Pushing back on her fear, he knocked her drumsticks together and proceeded to blow the roof off this venue. The air was fiery with excitement. All through the night, she lost herself in her drums. The world had blanked around her, all but one… Miles, whom she singled out mentally.

When all was said and done, the band parted ways, Gwen with Miles, as they returned to her apartment late in the night, climbing in through her window from the stairs.

Inside, Gwen checked to see that her dad had passed out on the living room couch again and closed her door. Miles shut her window, then looked to her with concern.

"Gwen…" he turned to his gentle voice, "… are you okay?"

She thought of lying at first, but seeing his caring eyes, she relented. "Hobie told me some news today about the multiverse."

Miles went still, but then inched towards her. "What happened?"

"There's apparently a new multiversal threat… not as big as the Spot was… but scary nonetheless." Gwen started breathing shallowly. "It's a portal hopping Goblin."

The name itself almost stopped the boy's heart. He too had recently learned the history of the Goblin with every Spider-Man. Softly, he pulled her in towards his chest, holding her firmly and she broke down sobbing.

"I don't know… why I'm so scared." She choked, tears wetting his shirt. "Why is it… that whenever I think I've found peace at last… more things have to go bad?"

"I don't know." whispered Miles as he stroked her hair.

"I hate being Spider-Woman!"

"We'll figure this out together…" he pulled back to cup her face in his warm hands, "… okay?"

Sniffling, she nodded.

Kissing her on her salty wet lips, he turned towards the window when a cold hand gripped his wrist. He turned back to see Gwen staring into him, her eyes glistening, her lips parted.

"Could you…?" She swallowed. "Could you stay… please?"

He saw the need, the want, the desire… and it reflected his own feelings for her.

"Please?" she begged again, her lip quivering.

How can I say no to that face?

Giving in, he melted into another kiss, their hands lacing around each other.

But this was different… there was hunger.

They wouldn't separate… they didn't want to.

They also weren't stopping either.

It was dark, and it was just them two in this room, this tiny little space, shut away from the rest of the world, and there was only one thing they wanted to do now…

Discovering you…

Discovering me…

TO BE CONTINUED.

Author's Note: The next chapter may or may not push this story's rating to an M... depending on how I will word it for you readers.

Inspiration: Your Body is a Wonderland by John Mayer.