Us Against The World ｡ Peter Parker [2]

23 - No Longer Partners

Sometimes in life, we don't see the moments that change everything. Usually, tiny things like maybe losing your car keys could save your life, those short minutes actually resulting in you not being in the middle of a car accident that very day. It's those little variations in life, that can change everything and you don't even realise it. Last year, I was paired up in biology with a boy that I hated. It was something that indeed, changed a lot. If it had not have happened, I wouldn't be the girl I was today. I would still be holding tightly onto grief and anger and maybe, I wouldn't have powers or have Peter Parker in my life. Those moments in life occurred everyday, you just didn't see them and sometimes, they can change your entire life.

"Today, we're shaking things up again." Ms. Riley, our overly chipper biology teacher declared, wandering around the classroom with a smile pressed to her painted lips. Last time she had declared a change in our class, I had ended up with Peter as my lab partner. "I know last year we changed up lab partners and it worked out pretty okay, right?"

A few grunts sounded through the students, my gaze settled on the boy seated beside me, his hair a little messy from sleep but his eyes twinkled with humour. At the given time last year, landing that geeky boy as my partner was the worst outcome, now I couldn't help but wonder what I would do if it had not happened. "Alright, time for another social experiment." Ms. Riley went on, suddenly holding a baseball cap, the whole class watching her. "In this hat, I've written down half your names, and you'll be choosing new lab partners today based on total chance. Good luck."

Ms. Riley started up the front, holding out the baseball cap for each student. A few murmurs echoed through the classroom, but my stomach was slowly twisting into knots. It had been a few days since my parents injected their serum into my veins and thankfully, the pain had subsided almost immediately. I was sleeping through the night, the nightmares staying away for now. Although the visions had improved, the fear of what had blinked in my mind still had me worried. 

Oddly though, my nerves picked up with the thought of not having Peter Parker as my lab partner anymore, the worries about the future slipping from my mind quickly. "You didn't have anything to do with this sudden change, did you?"

Mary Jane Watson was already shaking her head with my question, her eyes growing guilty with the very mention of her scheme about getting me paired with Peter Parker in the first place. "Cross my heart..." my pretty redhead friend noted quietly, doodling in her margin.

"And hope to die." Gwen Stacy piped up randomly, peering over my shoulder. I saw the tiny piece of paper already in her fingertips, Ms. Riley growing closer and the looming dread hanging over my shoulders. Maybe fate, or chance, would play in my favour today. "Flash got Harry as a partner, that's going to be a total disaster."

My eyes glanced away from Peter, now reaching into Ms. Riley's hat and removing a tiny piece of paper like other students had done already. I was holding my breath, hoping for a little bit of luck today. I noticed how his shoulders sagged a little bit and wordlessly, he was showing me the name written down. "Oooh, partners, huh? That's cool. We're going to have so much fun, Pete." Ned Leeds was suddenly standing at our shared desk, his eyes landing on Peter's piece of paper and my heart fell in my chest just a little bit.

Gwen was already handing me her very own piece of paper, "You're stuck with me, Flo."

"Great."

My friend frowned, "Come on, it won't be so miserable."

Suddenly, I felt terrible. Clearly, my friends could see my sudden drop in mood with the outcome of our new lab partner situation. I had hoped that fate would give me a little luck today and I could stay as Peter's lab partner but that had not happened naturally. I knew having him as a lab partner had been the very platform of our relationship, the corner stone if anything. It had opened up a very new possibility of us. It had been one of those tiny variations in life, now it seemed, a brand new one was upon us. Although, in theory this should not change anything but deep down, I couldn't help but wonder how this could change us, good or bad. "Gwen, you know I'm thrilled about having you as a lab partner." I told her, trying to smile through the crushing pain. The bell had sounded suddenly, everyone packing up their belongings. "It's just..."

Gwen gave me a tiny smile, "It's fine, don't worry." she was scooping her textbooks into her arms as Mary Jane broke away from us, seeking out her own lab partner before we had to scurry towards our next class. "I know you got used to having Pete, but nothing is going to change. You two are practically attached at the hip these days."

We weaved through the desks, making our way into the hallway. "Come on, no we're not." I laughed quietly, spotting his familiar mop of hair in front of us, walking alongside Ned, who was chatting loudly away. "We're not that bad."

My friend rolled her eyes, "I would gag at how sweet you two are but considering, I kind of played Cupid in setting you up, I'll let it slip." her voice carried over the roar of chitchat in the hallway, students piling around lockers and making plans for after school. "Anyway, you don't take out the prize for Cutest Couple, that belongs to Flash and myself."

I was already laughing again, noticing how Gwen's eyes sparkled with lightness. It was honestly refreshing seeing her so happy, it actually warmed my heart. We all had our problems, some we kept from our friends, but it was really great seeing Flash and Gwen happily in love, they deserved it. Suddenly, somebody was brushing by us, not even glancing back as he blended into the sea of students. Clayton Cole. "Hey, at least you're not partnered up with Clayton, that would have been some cruel joke from the heavens above."

Gwen Stacy had a point. "Yeah, that's true."

We parted ways after that, Gwen heading towards the library for her spare, while I rounded back to stop by Peter's locker before heading towards my calculus class, the only class I wasn't remotely failing right now. Peter was still with Ned, both boys chatting excitedly about something. "Maybe we could study tonight? We could build that new lego--"

"Tonight? I'm busy." Peter slammed his locker door shut, letting his gaze swing back to Ned Leeds, his face a little saddened by the quick slap of rejection. Stepping up besides both boys, I hugged my books closer to my chest, giving him a quick smile. Ned Leeds had been hanging around a little bit lately, which was nice since he got along with all of us, even Harry didn't shut down his rambling about Star Wars. "Um, I've got that internship for Tony Stark."

Ned paused, "Wait..." he pointed a finger over to me. "Aren't you interning for Stark too?"

Peter heaved his backpack higher up on his back, shifting on his feet. I could already feel his mind ticking away with another excuse. "Different internships." I blurted out, not very smoothly but it was some sort of an excuse. "Completely different."

"Yeah," Peter was nodding quickly, following suit with my cover up. It wasn't like we could tell Ned Leeds that Peter's fake internship was actually him being mentored by Iron Man because he was Spider-Man. It seemed lately, our lies were becoming more of a burden. "Mine is more...of a mentoring sort of thing. Florence spends more time in the labs, stuff like that."

Ned nodded, "Oh, that's pretty cool."

The hallways were thinning with students, timing ticking on. Ned was already giving us a little smile in goodbye, mentioning something about them meeting up the following day. When we were finally alone, Peter fell into my step as we headed towards our next shared class. "I'm sorry about the whole lab partner thing...it sucks."

"Fate played its hand," I shrugged my shoulders, still a little upset about the whole thing, but I was taking Gwen's advice to heart, reminding myself that this wouldn't change anything, we were more than lab partners now. "Anyway, we'll be fine."

Peter Parker was agreeing quickly, "Yeah, absolutely. It's not like everything we have is based around us being lab partners, you know? It may have brought us together, but we're more than that." His words were sweet but with the look in his eyes, I couldn't help but feel like he was trying to not only convince me that was true, but himself too.

"Yeah, totally." I weakly noted, my books feeling heavy in my arms. I just hoped this didn't change everything we had built together. But that moment in history, had played a part in blowing our relationship down like a house of cards.