Author's Note: This was originally written as the closing chapter to a story I was writing for my own amusement. I've struggled with chapters five, six and seven, but I liked the epilogue, so I'm publishing this here. If there's interest then I'll try again on the chapters I was stuck on. Cheers.


Peter and Mary Jane sit on the edge of the west tower of the Williamsburg Bridge and look out across New York and the East River sharing a picnic lunch. They have reconciled as (best) friends following the tumultuous events that saw the demise of Paul and Wayeb. Mary Jane breaks the silence as Peter eats his sandwich.

MJ
Do you remember Funny Valentine?

Peter stops chewing his sandwich. He stares at Mary Jane, frozen in place mid-chew. After several long seconds of silence he swallows his food.

PETER
...What did you just say?

MJ
I said, "Do you remember Funny Valentine"?

PETER
…You remember Funny Valentine?

MJ
Yeah.

PETER
You remember when that happened?

MJ
Yeah.

PETER
When I was a mutant wrestler and a celebrity and we filmed
a movie together called Funny Valentine?

MJ
Yeah.

PETER
You remember all that?

MJ
Yeah.

PETER
...I thought you said you didn't remember anything.

MJ
I know. I just knew that you wouldn't want to talk
about it, so I kept it a secret that I remembered. I didn't
want you to feel guilty for having lived that life with
Gwen while we were together back then. You carry too much
guilt around, Peter.

PETER
But you remember that?

MJ
How many times do I have to say "yeah"?

PETER

You've been carrying that around all this time?

MJ
I'm good at keeping secrets, Peter.

PETER
...Yes I remember Funny Valentine.

MJ
I remember it too.
It was a weird experience but there's a lot of weird things
that have happened to me. I guess that's what happens when you
fall in love with Spider-Man.

Peter looks back across the city.

MJ
Out of all of those experiences, that one at least had parts that
weren't awful. I mean, I was a celebrity there.
But when it all faded away and all my memories came back, I was happy.
When I thought back to the fame and the fortune once it was gone again,
sure, it made it easy to do what I wanted in that weird alternate reality,
but I realised how fulfilled I felt when we were back together.
That feeling never left me. I've never forgotten it.

PETER
So why'd you break up with me?

MJ
Because you're a lot.

PETER
That's fair.
...Why bring it up now?

MJ
…Because I know you had a son.

PETER
…Yeah. Richie. He was named after my father.

MJ
When Owen and Romy—when they—
What sustained me through that was knowing that someone
understood how I felt. I tried therapy but how could they help me
cope with the disappearance of my children who never—how
could they help when they couldn't understand?
But someone out there could understand. Someone who could
empathise and validate my feelings despite their unnatural circumstances.
And that someone was you.

PETER
MJ, I—

MJ
I pushed you away. I did it because I felt I had to. I was scared that if we got close again—
...It was cruel. I was cruel, and I'm sad that I did it. I needed to
give my children the safety and security I wanted them to have.
And their mother leaving their father for a boyfriend they didn't
know wasn't the right thing to do. I had to choose between my own
desire to have a family on my own terms, and putting myself aside
and providing a happy home to two children. And I put them first,
even at the expense of myself. Of us.

PETER
...I know.

MJ
…I missed you.

PETER
Yeah.
…Do you wanna talk about it?

MJ
I think I'd like to.
...I'm sorry I gave up on us.

Peter moves his hand and covers hers.

MJ
I'll always regret it.

PETER
No you won't…

Mary Jane looks at Peter sadly.

PETER
…Because I won't let you.

MJ
We haven't talked about it until now, but… you saved me.
Knowing that you'd had that experience and had overcome
it showed me that I could overcome it too. Because you didn't
overcome it by sticking to walls in a costume. Spider-Man didn't
overcome it—Peter Parker did, and Peter's a boy from Queens.
And I thought, if a boy from Queens could do that, maybe a girl could too.
After all this time, you're still my hero, Peter.

PETER
MJ, I need you to understand something. Maybe it'll help.
Richie wasn't my son. I have memories of our time together,
of playing and fishing in a lake, wrestling with him, tickling
him. And those memories are a part of who I am. But I don't
live my life trying to make him proud, because he never truly
existed to feel that pride. He was a fiction. A cruel and spiteful
fiction. And it hurt for a long time, but I eventually let him go.
The memories I have with him make me excited to be a dad one day,
but Richie—he wasn't my son.
I don't know how you'll mourn your two children. Your
journey might take you to a different
place than where I ended up. But I'll be as involved in that
journey as you want me to be.

MJ wipes tears from her eyes and holds Peter's hand.

MJ
Thank you.
...Maybe one day this loss won't be the canvas for the rest of my
emotions. But right now—
They were my children, and I loved them. For four years I cared
for them, fed them, washed them, clothed them,told them bedtime
stories. They're a part of me now. They always will be.
I grew up in a broken home. For a lot of my childhood my
sister and I were alone and scared. The first time I saw
Romy I—I saw—

PETER

MJ
I couldn't just leave them. I was determined to care for them,
even if I had to do it alone. And over time
they bonded with Paul,and you weren't there.
And then we bonded as a family.

PETER
I know. I just—I always hoped that one day we'd get to bond like
that with our own family.

Mary Jane is silent. Peter rubs his face to hide him wiping his eyes. He clears his throat.

PETER
I'm happy that you got to experience that. I'm happy you
found joy despite your circumstances there.

MJ
…You really are the perfect gentleman, aren't you?

PETER
Only when I'm trying to impress you.

There is a long silence.

PETER
What bedtime stories did you tell them?

Mary Jane smiles softly at Peter.

MJ
I told them about an amazing hero called Spider-Man.

PETER
Knew it.

The two look out across the city again, enjoying the catharsis of each other's company. Mary Jane leans over and kisses Peter on the cheek. He smiles as they press their foreheads together, eyes closed, before he looks out again.

PETER
Yaknow, everytime we break up I go over it and over it in my head.
I try to figure it out but I can never make sense of it. And I'm not
an idiot but—I dunno. The devil's in the details, I guess. But no matter how
hard I look I just can't spot the devil.

Mary Jane looks out across the city.

MJ
Do you think we'll ever figure out how to be togeth—

PETER
Yes.

Mary Jane looks at Peter.

MJ
That was fas—

PETER
Yes.

MJ
...You really mean that, don't you?

PETER
Yup. Just not right now.

MJ
…Why not?

PETER
I need time. This whole thing has—It was hard. This really hurt me.
You really hurt me.

MJ
I'm—I'm sorry.

PETER
I'd do anything for you, Mary Jane Watson. Anything at all.
I'd die for you if it came to it. And I wouldn't think twice if I thought
it would save you.

MJ
What if it wouldn't save me?

PETER
You ever read Romeo and Julliet?

MJ

PETER
There's nothing for me in this world if you're not in it. That's what
made this so difficult. To have you shut
me out like that, and so soon after things had been going so right. It—I…
Not a day goes by where I don't wake up and wonder what you're
doing, or go to bed at night hoping you're safe. My heart
still skips a beat the first time I see you on a new day. Every idle thought I
have is of you.
I think about our life in Soho all the time. Pretty sad, right?

MJ
What about the other women in your life?

PETER
Please don't tell them.

They share an uncomfortable smile before continuing to look out across the city.

MJ
Peter. I want to try again.

PETER
I do too. But I just want my head to be straight.
…I brought something, by the way.

Peter reaches into his backpack and pulls out two sky lanterns and a box of matches.

PETER
I thought we could light these for Owen and Romy.

Mary Jane smiles through the tears flowing from her eyes.

MJ
Yeah. I'd like that.

They light the candles and Peter hands one to Mary Jane. She holds it as the heat gently carries it into the air. Peter hands her the second one and Mary Jane lets it lift from her hand. The two of them rise into the sky and float on the southerly wind as they drift down the East River.

END