Us Against The World ｡ Peter Parker [2]

25 - Detention Buddies

The bell sounded in the hallways, my fingers circling around Peter Parker's wrist as I dragged him away from our friends, mumbling something about needing to speak privately to him. Flash Thompson was already howling with laughter and saying something about a lovers' quarrel, which left his perky girlfriend in stitches. The hallways were growing crowded, Midtown students hurrying for their next class but this was important.

"What's up? You've got that little crease in your forehead." My boyfriend pointed out, letting the tip of his finger touch my forehead but he was briefly smiling, enjoying the chance to tease me lightly but he didn't know how our little private talk was indeed serious.

I flicked away his touch, "I don't have a crease," Already, my fingers were trying to flatten the lines most definitely imprinted in the skin of my forehead, only appearing when I was upset or worried about something. Given the current situation, I had every right to be worried. "I know we don't talk about it, that night gives me the chills still, but we should think about what we're going to do about Harry."

Peter shrugged, "What about Harry?"

He was honestly so thick sometimes. "Well, about...Norman." My one little word had his eyes darkening and his shoulders tensing tightly. Peter Parker suddenly was watching the faces of students blur by us, worried somebody was listening. Without a question, he was pulling me closer and I stumbled on my feet, thankfully, his quick reflexes were fast and he steadied me. "Come on, Pete. Don't shut down on me. Harry mentioned something weird at lunch and it's got me thinking about how Norman went mad, how Green Goblin sucked away his mind--"

"We promised a dying man," Peter was saying quietly, dread and guilt in his eyes. I knew he carried a burden on his shoulders about this secret. His best friend's father was a murderer, a villain and we had promised together we would keep that from him. But that secret was becoming more tangled with each passing day. "Florence..."

Anger slipped through my veins, "Alright, tell me you think Harry's completely fine. Tell me that you believe he's dealing with this like anybody else. Tell me, you don't think something is clearly wrong." My words were laced with poison, knowing my temper was getting the better of me right now and he didn't deserve it. But right now, he was walking around trying to bury that night with Green Goblin but weirdly, I couldn't drop it. Not after today at lunch. "Remember my vision, something about a green hand? What if that's him? What if--"

"No," Peter shook his head firmly. "That would never happen. Come on, Flo, he's our friend. We've known him for years...he would never." I had always loved his blind optimism, his faith in other people but today, not with my visions growing clearer, my own doubt crept into my head. Harry Osborn was troubled and we couldn't tell him the truth, which could very well push him further into a darkness we could not follow him into.

With the fierceness in his voice, my teeth dug into my bottom lip and I stepped backwards. He had such an admirable loyalty and naturally, he didn't want to think the worst in his best friend. But he hadn't seen the visions that plagued my mind. He didn't feel the fear that coursed through my body.

"Okay." The word felt strange on my tongue and sadly, it felt like a river of separation was pushing us apart. Suddenly, my eyes were flicking away from his face and spotting a very familiar boy standing at the end of the hallway, witnessing the somewhat heated conversation. Clayton Cole. Of course.

Peter saw him too, his jawline ticking. "Look, I'm a little busy after school with the internship stuff, but please stop by and we can talk about this privately." The final bell sounded throughout the now empty hallway, meaning we were last for class. He could tell my emotions were clouding my mind right now and let his soft touch grace my cheek. He tilted my face towards his own a little more. "Hey, we'll figure all this out. Together."