Michelle "MJ" Jones

I wasn't feeling too hot after my argument with Peter. As he swung away, I just watched him. I wanted to call out to him. I didn't think I was in the wrong about what I said at that moment. I just didn't want things to end off on a sour note since we were both in a shitty situation. I had a feeling he wouldn't turn back around, though. Still, I had this feeling in the pit of my stomach for some reason. Instead of contemplating it, I just went home and practically went straight to bed, barely taking time to change into my sleeping clothes.

The next morning, I was still upset over the argument. I was a lot calmer, though. I had the day off from school today – something about a faculty meeting that needed to be had. I thought it was rather odd when it was announced earlier in the week. But after the night I had, I was glad for it. I needed it. So, I went to the kitchen and brewed a cup of chamomile tea. Once the tea was ready, I threw out the tea bag and took my tea with me as . As I sipped my tea, I reflected on the night before.

I really wanted to stay mad at Peter. It was to the point that, in my head, I was trying my best to make him the bad guy of that situation, all in an attempt to ignore the feeling of regret in my chest. But I was throwing shit at the wall and trying to see what would stick, and all I got was shit on the floor.

It turns out sound logic makes a for a very good nonstick surface.

What was even there for me to say? No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't find fault in what Peter did or say. He said he wasn't in the mood to talk, but I kept pushing. And what he finally told me what his issue was with me, what did I do? I threw The Spell back in his face – again – and brushed off his feelings him being jealous. No matter how I looked at it, there was only one conclusion.

I fucked up.

"Well, wasn't last night perfect?" I said to myself bitterly. "I invaded Hammer Industries with Betty and Cessily, found absolutely nothing but a damn business card. I started an argument with Peter… after he rescued me and the others, and probably burned that bridge between us… while I was standing underneath it." I took another sip of my tea. "Yup, this right here ranks very high on the scale from 1 to Fuck This." I set my mug down. "I need to talk to somebody." I paused for a moment. "I need an adult."

About thirty minutes later, I was in Bed-Stuy – specifically, the apartments at 1111 Fulton Street. Once I reached the apartment I was looking, I knocked on the door. A few moments later, Joanna opened it. She was dressed in a black t-shirt with a pair of matching jogging pants. She looked me up and down in slight surprise.

"Aren't you supposed to be at school?" she asked.

"I'm off from school today," I explained. "Something about a faculty meaning that needed to be had, if I remember correctly." Joanna stared at me for some seconds. I was feeling a bit unnerved. Quietly, she nodded slowly before she stepped aside. I walked inside and took off my shoes. "I hope I didn't come at a bad time."

"Scott left an hour ago." I looked at her as she walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge.

"I see."

"So what brings you here? It's not that I don't mind your company, but within our mutual circles, no one besides Scott ever comes here, especially unannounced." I saw her reach in and grab something. She then turned away from the fridge, kicked it close, and tossed something towards me. I barely got my hands up in time to catch it. I almost fumbled the object. When I caught it, I looked at the item in my hand. It was a can of water – Liquid Death, to be exact.

"…Peter and I got into an argument last night." I looked at Joanna. She raised an eyebrow at me.

"How bad?"

"…Very bad."

She nodded. "Let's sit."

"Okay."

I walked over to the sofa and took a seat. Joanna came over and took a seat on the opposite end of the sofa, leaving a space between us.

"So, what happened last night?" Joanna asked. "From what Scott told me, you, Betty, and one of his undercover folks did a little snooping in Hammer Industries."

"We did," I confirmed as I cracked the can open. "And we found absolutely nothing. The room where Jessica Jones allegedly attacked Justin Hammer was supposed to be an active crime scene. It still had crime scene tape over the door. But once we were inside, the only thing we found was a business card and the kind of stuff you'd see in a conference room. There were no signs of a fight or even a struggle."

"So it was all staged?" Joanna scoffed as she cracked open her can of water. She didn't look the least bit surprised. Then again, should it have been a shock to anyone? "The only question is why. Actually, that's not the only question on that. But you're not here to talk about that, so that begs the more relevant question. How did you go from infiltrating a building to having an argument with Peter?"

"Well, Peter took me home once Betty, Cessily, and I reached the roof. He disabled a helicopter before he did so. After he dropped me off… I did thank him. He didn't say anything. He turned away and was about to swing away. Then I asked him how long this silence between us was going to last." Joanna raised her eyebrows slightly. She did it so slowly that I almost didn't notice. She had something to say, but she stayed quiet. "He called me out for being distant. Then he tried to walk away again. Then I… Then I threw The Spell in his face."

Joanna tilted her head and sneered. "Now why'd you go and do that for?"

"It's because…" I paused for a moment. I shook my head as I looked away. "It's a long story."

"It's not like you got anywhere to be anytime soon." I looked at her. She gave me a pointed look. "Or you can shorten it. That's up to you."

I nodded slowly. "So, um… how much do you know about the Valentine's Day Dance?"

"You mean the one you and the rest of the American Idiots went to over at Midtown, right?"

"Right."

"I got the SparkNotes version of it from Scott after Peter and Kitty told him all about it." Suddenly a lump formed in my throat. "A certain Brad stuck out in that conversation." I swallowed that lump. She must of noticed it. She narrowed her eyes at me. "…MJ, what did you do?"

"It's just…" I paused for a moment. "…Peter and I broke up. I told him I needed a break from us. He called me twice after that. Both times I didn't answer. I wanted space. I guess he got the memo after the second unanswered call because he didn't call since."

Joanna nodded slowly. "Okay…"

"Well, sometime later, my friend Liz came back to town. She wanted to hang out since we haven't seen each other in person in a very long time. So, we go out shopping. While there, we ran into Brad. Liz suggested I go have lunch with him. And I did. When we were done, we both stepped outside and… there was Peter, standing across the street from me with Ned. Fast forward to last night, after I threw The Spell in his face, Peter tore into me over that, saying he found it funny that I broke up with him because I didn't have trust in him but I was willing to have lunch with Brad. I then accused of him just being mad that I can be happy without him. And that's when he basically told me that, when this situation is over, I won't have to worry about seeing him again."

Joanna nodded slowly. "I see."

I grimaced. "How badly did I screw up?" I asked, as if I didn't know the answer.

"I don't even know where to begin," Joanna replied with a shake of her head. "Like… sis… Brad? Why? Seriously, why?"

"I didn't even want to go to lunch with him. Liz was the one who suggested it and she wouldn't drop it. Nothing even happened between me and Brad. No spark, no interest in a second…" I trailed off. I didn't want to call it a date. But was there a better term for it? I shook my head. It was semantics at this point. "…I felt like it was a waste of time."

"…So you're telling me you let yourself get peer pressured?"

I didn't answer at first. I thought about it. "…I… I guess."

Joanna raised her eyebrow at me. "You guess?"

"I…" I cleared my throat. "I did." I sighed. "I did." I shook my head. "What am I supposed to do?"

She tilted her can slightly, pointing the bottom edge of it towards me. "Most people would start with an apology." She took a sip from her can. "You might want to hold off on that, though."

I grimaced. "Why?"

"Peter hasn't exactly been happy since the afternoon before. Craig got kidnapped by some mysterious men, and Peter and David – one of Scott's peoples – tried to rescue him. But, they failed, unfortunately. Craig is MIA and from what Scott told me, Peter is beside himself."

I was already feeling bad when I had my cup of tea this morning. I was remembering the argument again. This time, I was seeing things in a different light. Peter wasn't just having a bad day. He was upset over him being unable to rescue someone close to him. There was a part of me that felt some type of way about Peter not telling me that, but I wasn't sure if I was upset over the lack of communication or if I just wanted something to rake Peter over the coals over. As it was, I saw things differently at that point. Peter was trying to avoid an argument he just wasn't in the mood for, and I just kept forcing the issue, lashing out in anger over something that was really my fault.

Yup, once again, I was being a stereotype and a hypocrite.

"…I really fucked up, didn't I?" I whispered out. I stood up. "I gotta go."

"Where are you going?" Joanna asked.

"I'm going home. I need to fix this."

"Give me a few minutes to change clothes." Joanna stood up. "I don't want you out and about by yourself."

It was at that moment I realized that I was supposed to have Cessily watching over me. As Joanna walked to her room, I couldn't help but scoff at myself.

"I'm just moving stupid this morning, aren't I?"

When I got home, I went straight to my room. After I closed the door, I sat down on the bed and pulled out my phone. I went through my contacts and pulled up Peter's number. I stared at it for some seconds. I hesitated. Would Peter even pick up? I didn't think he would. I was afraid that Peter was really done with me. I was even afraid that he blocked my number. That thought alone made me want to just put the phone down and give up on that idea. I almost did. After several seconds, I finally dialed his number and put the device to my ear. The phone rang and rang until I got his voicemail.

"I can't come to the phone right now," said the recording of Peter's voice. "Please leave a message or shoot me a text and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Have a good rest of the day." Then came the beep.

"Hey Peter," I said. I paused for a moment. "…About last night… is there any way we can talk? I didn't handle things well and…" I paused again. "…Look, I fucked up, okay? I get that. I just want to talk to you so we can hash things out. So, please call me back?" I hung up the phone after that. I was about to get up and grab my headphones so I could just listen to music while I lay in bed. However, before I could even move, my phone rang again. I looked down at the screen to see Betty's name. I blinked once before I answered the call. I put the phone to my ear.

"Hello," I greeted.

"Hey, MJ, have you heard from Peter?" Betty asked in a hushed voice.

"Not since last night. Why?"

"Peter was supposed to be at The Daily Bugle about ten minutes ago, but he's not here. I tried giving him a call, but all I got what was his voicemail."

"…That might be my fault."

"…What do you mean, MJ?"

"…Listen, Peter and I… we got into an argument last night and I pissed him off."

"…Okay, I didn't know that, but I don't think it's your fault."

I shook my head. "Betty, I chose the worst possible time to –"

"No, MJ, I'm not talking about the argument. We can talk about that later. But Peter has had problems with you before, and he has always showed up to work afterwards. I think something else is up wi- MJ, hold on." I heard the line go silent. I figured she was on another call. After some seconds, I heard a rustle. "…We got a problem."

I closed my eyes and bowed my head as I took in a breath – something told me I didn't want to know. "…What's the problem?"

"Right now, Spider-Man is fighting that woman in flames. And from what I can tell, he's getting his ass handed to him."

I was quiet for a few moments. "…Betty, I'll call you back."

"MJ, I don't –"

I hung up the phone. I then quickly called up Ned. After a few rings, he picked up.

"Hello?" he said.

"Ned, I need a favor," I said. "I need you to portal me to the Bunker. And, while you're at it, please portal Joanna to the Bunker as well."

"…What's going on?"

"Peter's in trouble. Please Ned, just do this ASAP!"

"Just give me a moment."

He hung up. I stood up and moved to the closet. I opened it, reached in, and pulled out a trench coat and a plastic bag with some items in it. I barely turned away from the closet when the portal opened up in front of me. Seeing the bunker in front of me, I walked into the portal. As the portal closed behind me, I took in a breath.

"Today just keeps on getting better and better and better," I grumbled to myself. I huffed out a breath. I then looked over my shoulder as another portal opened up behind me. I turned around to see Joanna walk through it. As the portal closed behind her, I smiled at her sheepishly. "…Fancy meeting you here."

Joanna narrowed her eyes at me. "Why do I have a feeling this isn't a social call?"

I stopped smiling. "Because it's not. Peter needs our help."