Peter opened the door to the Queens Community Center, holding it so that a couple people behind him could slide in first before stepping in himself.

"Hey, Peter," a middle-aged woman spoke up from the front desk.

"Hey, Joanna," Peter replied. "May still upstairs?"

"Yep; I think she's finishing up," the woman replied.

"Thanks," Peter replied gratefully as he continued, turning and heading up the stairs. He walked across the upstairs walkway until he came to a larger room with a bunch of tables where, as expected, he found May and about fifteen other people. His aunt had been teaching a cooking class once a week for a few years now, utilizing recipes from her cookbooks that even those who had very little could do. He leaned against the end of the doorway, looking on proudly at the woman who might as well have been his mother growing up. His aunt continued walking around the room, checking on everyone's progress and encouraging them until time was up for the day. Once everyone started leaving, Peter walked in to greet her.

"Peter," she said as the two embraced. "What a nice surprise!"

"What can I say?" Peter teased. "I just had to come and see the most beautiful young lady in Queens!"

"That's sweet dear," the woman replied. "I don't know how true it is, but it's sweet."

"Ah, don't sell yourself so short, May!" Peter encouraged his aunt. "Anyway, the class seems to be going well."

"Yeah," May said as she walked back over to begin gathering her things. "Everyone seems to be really taking to it."

"I'm sure your books help a lot," Peter assured her as he began assisting in the packing up process.

"I'm just glad that I could find some way to use my cooking other than to feed a young man with a seemingly limitless appetite," his aunt teased.

"Why May, what on earth are you implying?" he teased right back. The two finished packing before they finally left the room, with Peter carrying most of the supplies.

"So, how did your interview go today?" his aunt asked. It shouldn't have caught him off guard, but it did.

"Well... it seems they'd already filled the position," he managed to get out. It was technically at least some of the truth.

"Really?" May questioned. "I thought this was supposed to be the first round of interviews?"

"Me too," Peter replied, shrugging and really hoping for a change of subject soon. "What can I say? I guess they met someone they liked first."

"I'm so sorry, dear," May replied as they came to the bottom of the stairs.

"It's alright; you know that I'm more of a Captain America fan anyway," Peter said. Though he did respect Tony Stark's genius after seeing the Iron Man suits up close, he'd taken after his late uncle in looking up to the one many referred to as "the world's first superhero."

"I'm sure something else will come up soon," May replied. "A genius young man like you has to be found out eventually."

"Let's hope someone agrees with you," Peter said. Though he wanted to share in his aunt's enthusiasm, nearly a year and a half of job hunting had started to grow discouraging.

"How about a nice homecooked meal?" May offered.

"Weren't you just complaining about having to feed me too much all these years?" Peter teased.

"Well, I guess I can make at least one more exception," his aunt fired right back.

"In that case, I will glad accept your generous offer," he replied.

May happily obliged him, and less than an hour later, Peter was indulging himself in some delicious grilled chicken, bread and seasoned broccoli. In his mind, that last part was how he knew May was a good cook; unlike most kids, Peter had rarely had a problem eating his vegetables growing up, as his aunt seemed to know how to make almost anything have just the right flavor. Now, whether their family could afford many of the more expensive healthier foods until recent years was another story.

"So, do you have any other job prospects?" May asked him at one point.

"Not off the top of my head," he admitted before wiping his mouth with a napkin. "I don't know, maybe I need to start thinking outside the box somehow. I just have no idea what that would look like."

"It's a shame it didn't work out with Oscorp," May said. "Mr. Osborn always seemed to like you; I thought for sure he would help you out."

"Yeah," was all Peter could say. Admittedly, that scenario was one he'd just flat out lied to May about. While Osborn Sr. genuinely seemed not to remember anything from the last time the two had fought as their respective alter egos, Peter didn't feel like taking any chances by putting himself in Norman's proximity on a daily basis.

"Is the Bugle still paying you well enough to keep up with rent?" his aunt asked.

"Yes, May; seriously, you don't have to worry about me," he tried to assure her.

"I just know how stubborn you Parker men can be; you and Ben always had to make it on your own." She then let out the thinnest of sighs before changing the subject. "So, have you talked to Mary Jane recently?"

"May, please stop," he said. "It's been over a year. She's on her way to being a household name; she's moved on, and so have I. Anyway, I appreciate dinner, but I have to run."

"Oh, okay," May replied. "But please, at least think about it picking up the phone and calling her. I'm sure she'd love to hear from you."

Peter just shook his head.

"She might as well be living in another universe now."

Finally getting tired of scrolling mindlessly through her phone, Mary Jane put her mobile device away in her purse. She then opted for people watching, glancing to her right and left to see if anyone seemed to be doing anything interesting. Instead, all she found was other people looking at their phones, and even those who weren't were too occupied with figuring out where to go or what their next move was.

Sighing, M.J. checked her phone again to see the time. Her flight had been delayed two hours, but she took comfort when she realized there was only a few minutes left... assuming there were no more issues, of course.

"Mary Jane."

Turning in the direction she'd heard her name from, M.J. was surprised to find none other than her makeup lady, Deborah, from the show she'd just worked on approaching her. She stood up as the older woman drew closer.

"Deb? What are you doing here?"

"I'm just glad I caught you before you left," the woman exclaimed. "These legs don't move like they used to. Anyway, I heard about what happened."

"Wow, word really does travel fast in Hollywood," M.J. said. "Listen, Deb, if you're here to try and talk me into staying..."

"Actually, I came here to say that I think you made the right decision," the woman explained.

"Oh," Mary Jane replied, caught a little off guard. "Thanks."

"I've seen so many people cave to pressures from producers, especially women," the older woman explained. "It's nice to see someone stand up for themselves for a change, especially a young person."

"I appreciate that," M.J. replied. "You know, I don't think I realized how much I appreciated you until now. You always had my back and really worked with me."

"It's what I do," the woman explained. "So, you're going back to New York then?"

"Yeah," M.J. said. "I actually mostly enjoyed the experience out here, but I really miss theater."

"You have anything lined up yet?" Deb asked.

"I've spoken to some people I know back there from my stage days in college," M.J. replied. "I've got a couple auditions for some big parts lined up, so I'm really excited to see what happens!"

"Good," Deb encouraged. "I'm glad; you really seem like a very together young woman."

"If I am, it's because I learned from the best!" M.J. assured her.

"Now you stop it," the woman replied. "Any boys going to be chasing you around when you get back?"

M.J. let out a light huff.

"None I couldn't fend off if I needed to."

"I remember there was one in particular you mentioned a couple of times in the trailer," Deb reminded her. "What did you say his name was again; Pete something?"

"Peter Parker," M.J. replied. "I... I don't know. I want to look him up when I get back, but I wouldn't be surprised if he found someone much smarter than me that he can win a Nobel prize with or something."

"Don't sell yourself so short, my dear," the older woman assured her. "You have a type of beauty that's more than just skin deep; any young man would be lucky to have you."

"That's very sweet of you," she said.

They then called out her flight number, saying it was now boarding.

"Well, looks like that's me!" she exclaimed. "Thank you so much for coming, Deb; that was very nice of you."

"It's my pleasure, sweetheart," the woman replied. "I would say good luck, but I don't think you need it."

"That's the hope," M.J. replied. The woman then turned to leave, but Mary Jane stayed in her spot for a moment, thinking. She pulled out her phone again, opening it and scrolling through her pictures until she found the last one her and Peter had taken together. They were out and about in the city; Peter was making the most ridiculous face as she smiled brightly, the Statue of Liberty in view in the background. She then put her phone away, turning and heading toward her flight. Really, she had no idea how she felt about Peter still, much less how he felt about her at this point.

Even so, as the thought of seeing him again hung in her mind, she couldn't help but feel a little excited.

Turning the key in its slot, Peter pushed open the door to his apartment, stepping inside. Tossing his keys on his desk, he put his hands to his face, letting out a moan.

"What a day," he muttered.

He then went over to his desk, picking up his to do list for the day. He glanced over observing the items he'd had in mind, when he realized there was one important thing he'd missed today: write back in response to Harry's most recent letter. He sat down at his desk, grabbing a spare piece of paper and a pen.

"Harry,

I'm so sorry for my delay in responding; things have just been a bit hectic recently. I'm glad to hear that you're continuing to improve, and I look forward to when you get back and seeing you soon. Don't worry, we'll absolutely hit up Coney Island when you do; after all, I still have to convince you to get on that new ride with me. It's going to happen man, just accept it.

As for me, like I said, things have just been a bit hectic recently. Still been running around trying to find a job. I know, I know, I'm sure your dad would probably hire me at Oscorp, but I just want to make sure that I find the right fit. I'm not ruling it out necessarily, but I want to see what else is out there. May's doing well; between volunteering when she can and guest appearing on a couple cooking shows recently, it amazes me how much she's able to do. I think she has more energy than I do sometimes!

I miss you, man. Things haven't been the same since you left, but I know it's for the best, and I look forward to hanging out again. Stay strong man; I know I can't see you right now, but I got your back, always.

Take care,

Peter."

Folding the paper up and setting it aside, Peter then grabbed his audio recorder. May had always encouraged him to journal in some way, and he'd found over the years that talking things out helped him more than just writing them down.

"March 8th, 2024: Well, Stark Industries was a bust, just like every other job I've gone for so far. This was probably the most excited I'd ever been for a job though; granted, I wasn't the craziest about who I'd be working for, though I could certainly do worse, but the technology I would have gotten to help out with would have potentially helped so many people. This one felt as dumb luck was it did my 'primary job' interfering. I mean, I've heard of good first impressions before, but hiring someone on the spot like that? I used to think that kind of thing only happened in movies, but score another one for life showing me how little I actually know about how the world works, I guess.

It's getting hard, for sure. I've been at this job-hunting thing for over a year and a half now, and still haven't even sniffed a full-time job yet. I'm glad Jameson's at least bumped the pay for my pictures a little recently, which has helped keep me from getting evicted, so that's a plus. Still, as much as I love photography, my first love has always been science, and I would just really love to make a difference using this so-called big brain that May and Ben always told me I had for something other than putting away bad guys. They didn't raise a quitter though, so I'm not giving up, not by a long shot. I just wish it was a little easier sometimes.

It doesn't help that almost all my friends have moved on in some way. Harry's in rehab, Flash is overseas, and M.J.'s on her way to fame in Hollywood. The other two will likely be back at some point, but M.J... I don't know. May says I should reach out to her, but what would be the point? The only way she's coming back to New York is if she's shooting a film here. No, she has what she's always wanted, so things probably worked out for the best anyway.

Anyway, tomorrow's Saturday, so there's that at least. Other than taking pictures and hanging out with May, I'll probably just chill in the city most of the time, get some exercise, try and help clear my head a little. Like I said, Ben Parker especially didn't raise a quitter, so I'm going to take these next couple of days to get refreshed before hitting the trail again."

Shutting the device down, Peter then proceeded to get ready for bed, and before he knew it, he was lying on his at least somewhat comfortable mattress. As he lay there, waiting for sleep to come, he spoke up.

"God... first off, just to start on a positive note, thank you that my landlord didn't evict me before I got my rent in today. I'm very happy to have a roof over my head. Still... I feel like I'm just kind of stumbling through life right now, like I'm on a treadmill and not actually going anywhere. Any chance that might change soon in some way? I'd really appreciate it if it did. Thanks in advance."

Slowly but surely, Peter's eyes finally shut as rest eventually came.

Hope you enjoyed it!

Continuing to pray for you all; stay safe and healthy!

"So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." Galatians 3:26-28