The old school ding signaled the end of Peter and M.J.'s trip, the elevator doors opening and allowing them to step out. They then entered what was the busiest floor of the Bugle by normal standards and it was proving even more so today; in Peter's experience, this was pretty typical; Jonah only let them throw parties for employees near their desks, so that way they could get right back to work and especially to be ready in case some hot news suddenly dropped. He scanned the room, navigating their way around several chatting groups before he finally spotted the center of all the commotion, Ned and Betty. They turned to him as he and M.J. approached them, Betty's eyes especially lighting up with happiness.

"Peter, I'm so glad you could make it!" she exclaimed, giving him a hug, which he reciprocated with the arm that wasn't carrying the gift. Betty then turned to his girlfriend. "And you must be Mary Jane!"

"That would be me, but please, call me M.J," she said, the two women meeting in a hug as well, "and congratulations."

"Thank you," Betty said. "It's so nice to finally meet you; even though Peter left us a while back, you were just the talk of the place when we found out he was seeing someone."

"A position you two made sure to takeover!" Peter pointed out, shaking Ned's hand as well. "Congratulations, guys; I know how much you both wanted this."

"Thanks man," Ned replied. "Oh, and are we supposed to guess what's in the box?"

"Oh," Peter said, glancing down at the package that he was just now remembering he had. "No, it's for you to open and find out for yourselves."

Betty eagerly took the package, swiftly going through the wrapping and opening it, a small chuckle coming from her as she took in her hand what was inside: a scrapbook, specifically one purposed to document a child's first years.

"Aww, Peter," Betty spoke up as she looked over the gift. "This is so sweet!"

"Thanks," he replied somewhat sheepishly. "I'll be honest, I really struggled with what to get, but then I remembered my Aunt May always talked about how she wished my parents had kept better record of my first few years before they passed away. I thought it might be good to give you guys the opportunity to do that."

"Oh, trust me, I just know she's already getting some ideas for how she wants to format it," Ned reassured him.

"Well, I'm sure you've been asked this already, but are there any way-too-early gender predictions between the two of you?" Peter asked.

"Ned SWEARS it's a boy, but I'm confident it's a girl," Betty explained.

"I'm telling you, boys run first in both of our families!" Ned clarified. "There's NO WAY it's a girl!"

"And I'm telling you, sweetheart: never doubt a pregnant woman's intuition!" Betty countered.

"That's just superstition!" Ned replied. "An old wives' tale!"

Peter and M.J. shared a glance at each other, trading silent chuckles as the couple before them went back and forth.

"Sorry about that," Betty finally spoke up, the couple apparently having caught themselves in their light bickering. "Anyway, you actually look kind of familiar, M.J. You're and actress, right?"

"I am," M.J. confirmed; she tried to play it modestly, but Peter could see just a little pride beaming through his girlfriend's face. "I was in a medical drama a couple years ago, but it only lasted one season. I've been plugging away at the theater scene ever since I got back to New York, and I actually just had my Broadway debut last night."

"That's right!" Ned exclaimed, pointing at M.J. "You're the lead in that new play about the girl who wants to be the detective, right? And weren't you also the co-lead in the off-Broadway version of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream?"

"Yep!" Mary Jane confirmed. "I'd been fortunate that I'd done that play several times in high school and college, so I practically didn't have to rehearse much for it."

"No wonder you were so great!" Betty spoke up. "Ned and I saw it three times, and we loved it! We're hoping to come see your new show sometime soon too!"

"Please; we definitely need all the filled seats we can get!" Mary Jane exclaimed. "They really messed us up by having us open on a Monday. We actually had a pretty good turnout compared to what we'd expected, but we need a lot more these next few days to keep going!"

Peter could only stand there and smile as M.J. led the conversation along. He'd known there was at least a chance that this could happen, since Betty and Ned were both theater nuts, but his girlfriend's enthusiasm for her work only elevated the energy of the discussion. Admittedly, part of him felt like he'd been left behind in the conversation as a result, but honestly, he cared very little, instead remaining perfectly content to listen to his girlfriend make a great impression with his friends.

Before Peter knew it, his alert was going off on his phone, indicating that he and M.J. needed to high tale it out of the building, and soon. Though he still wasn't sure when his next big opportunity to present his project would come, he still had plenty to do, from working to prevent anything that could be a potential problem down the road to constantly trying to improve the materials it consisted of so that it could be cheaper and more easily accessible to the public once it did hit the markets. On top of that, Mary Jane needed to be at the rehearsal in just under half an hour, and she'd always prided herself on maintaining her professional image in the theater scene.

After saying goodbye to Ned and Betty, Peter and M.J. ran into Robbie.

"Thanks again for inviting us, Robbie," Peter said.

"Of course," the older man replied, shaking Peter's hand. "You're still a part of this family, Peter, and you always will be. It was also lovely to meet you as well, M.J."

"The pleasure is mine," M.J. replied, gracefully shaking Robbie's hand as well. "I'd always wanted to meet the man Peter had talked about like a second father."

"He exaggerates," Robbie explained. "I'm just an old man out here trying to do my part."

"Where was Jolly Jonah today, anyway?" Peter asked. "He's usually here for stuff like this."

"He already had a lead on something he'd planned on attending to before this was planned," Robbie explained. "I tried to convince him to leave it for later, but he wouldn't hear it."

"Wow," Peter said. "I mean, don't get me wrong, I know as well as anyone how he can be, but still, that's not like him."

"The Bugle's doing better, but after that scare we had earlier this year, he's not taking any chances," Robbie explained. "He's just trying to make sure everyone here gets to keep their jobs. Speaking of which, I better get back to mine, and let you two get back to yours."

"Thanks again, Robbie," Peter replied, shaking the man's hand one more time. From there, he and M.J. descended back down the elevator, promptly exiting the building and heading down the street towards the nearest bus stop.

"Man," Peter spoke up as they walked along, "I know Jonah's always worked too hard, but I can't believe he'd miss something like this for Ned and Betty of all people?"

"I know you two have had your differences, but try not to be too hard on him," Mary Jane encouraged. "He's just trying to do what he thinks is best for everyone, including them."

"I know, it's just..."

Peter paused, focusing his gaze down on the street below as he contemplated his next words.

"I've just been thinking about what you said last night, about accepting that good things can happen and not focusing on the what if scenarios," he explained. "I don't know, noticing Ol' Fuzz Head's absence today, it just makes me want to take that to heart more. I know it won't be easy, but I want to be able to be more present. You're right, Fisk is arrested and preparing to stand trial, I have a job I love that actually pays the bills now, and the most beautiful woman in the world just happens to be my girlfriend. Those should all be plenty for me to keep my mind where it needs to be."

"Wow," M.J. said as they came to the corner where the bus stop was. "That's very introspective and grown up of you. Also, would you mind saying that last part again? I'm not sure I heard it properly."

Peter could feel the smile that was coming over his face. He took a couple steps closer to her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"The most beautiful woman in the world is my girlfriend," he repeated, "and, now that she's under my spell, I have no intention of letting her go."

He then leaned in, planting a deep kiss on her lips, her hands clasping the top of his head and shoulders almost to hold herself up.

"I'm going to hold you to that, Tiger," she replied as they separated, the bus pulling around the corner.

"Wouldn't have it any other way," he assured her.

Pausing just before the doors, Harry sucked in a breath, bracing himself as he let it out.

"Come on, Harry, you're an Osborn," he muttered quietly to himself. "You got this."

He then took the handle to the right door to his dad's home office, pushing it forward and opening it. He observed as his dad's chair was rotated the other way, facing the window behind the desk, and he could also hear the man speaking over what was likely the phone. Shutting the door back gently, Harry quietly stepped forward, making his way toward the desk. He couldn't hear exactly what was being discussed, but as he came to about ten feet from his dad's workspace, he heard what sounded like his dad hanging up on whoever he was speaking to, the conversation seemingly ending well if the man's tone was any indication.

"Hey, dad?"

"Why Harry!" the man said as he peered from around the side of his seat, spinning the chair back around to face his son properly. "What is it, son?"

Harry opened his mouth to speak at first, but paused as he observed his dad recline deeper into his chair, even going as far as to put his feet up on his desk. As if that wasn't strange enough, the man was also sporting something on his face he rarely if ever did: a smile; it wasn't just any smile either, but one where Harry could actually see his dad's teeth a little. Frankly, it was almost unnerving seeing him this way. If there was one thing Harry's father had stressed to him over the years, it was always to appear proper: sit up straight, look someone in the eyes, always be the assertive one, etc. Right now, however, the man seemed to embody the opposite of all those things; frankly, Harry's dad looked as if he didn't have a care in the world.

"Harry? Was there something you wanted to speak to me about?"

"Oh, right," Harry said, trying to shake off the daze that seeing his father in this unusual disposition had placed him in. "Dad, listen, I get it."

"Get what?" his dad questioned, remaining in exactly the same position.

"I get why you're hesitant to bring me on board to work alongside you at Oscorp," Harry clarified. "You're afraid that the pressure will get to me, and I'll have a relapse. I get it; frankly, if I were in your position, I'd probably do the same thing. But at the same time, dad, I want you to see it from my perspective. When I was at that place, getting my treatment, I had a lot of time to really think about and decide what was important to me. I thought about how things have only gone south between us ever since mom... ever since we lost her."

Daring to take another step closer to the desk, Harry continued.

"Look, I'll be honest: I don't know exactly what I can bring to the table for Oscorp. I have some ideas, but as of right now, that's all they are, ideas. But I know that you'll push me to figure things out, to adjust and adapt, to be better than I've ever been. I've never really tried to understand your world because it was all you forced on me for so long, but dad... I'm ready now, because I believe that this is how we heal the rift between us. This is how we learn how to be a family again."

His father didn't respond verbally at first, instead simply giving him a stare that looked like it might have... sympathy, maybe? The man then stood up, walked around the desk, and came over to him to deliver the most surprising thing yet: a hug. This wasn't like the ones that were just for the cameras when they were out in public together; rather, this was an authentic, strong, fatherly hug. Slowly accepting that this was reality and not just some dream, Harry allowed his arms to come around, squeezing his father's backside as well.

They remained like that for several seconds before they finally separated, Harry's dad just staring at him.

"I'm sorry," the man said. "I haven't told you this often enough since you got back, but I'm proud of you, Harry."

"Y-you are?" the young man questioned.

His father nodded.

"Mhm; you reached one of the lowest points a man could possibly hit in this world, but instead of giving up, you pulled yourself back up and made the decision to move forward in life. It takes great courage and strength of character to be able to do that, and you're right, Harry: you're not quite yet ready for all I have in mind for us to do together. However, one day, soon, you will become all that you were meant to be in this life, and we'll figure it out together, as a family, just as we always should have been."

"Wow," Harry said; he had to admit, of all the things he was caught off guard from since he'd entered the room, that whole speech was currently sitting atop the list. "You really mean that?"

"I do," his father replied. "Now, why don't you run along, son. I want you to enjoy your time with your friends, because soon, your training will begin."

"Oh," Harry replied. It was a similar response in a sense to what he'd been getting ever since he'd gotten back, but somehow, this one had him believing what his father was telling him much more than any other time. "Well, alright. Just let me know when you need me, I guess."

"Harry," his dad said, a grin coming over his face. "Trust me: you'll know."

Hope you're still enjoying it!

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

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1