Rooftop Conversations - {Peter Parker}

T H R E E

"... complete the packet by next Tuesday."

You catch the tail end of the teacher's words as you walk out of class, the bell having sounded for lunch already. Within seconds the halls of Midtown High were swarming with other students, and the cacophony of loud voices soon echoed off the walls. You made your way towards the cafeteria, bobbing and weaving through the throng of kids.

Today is going to be different, instead of going out to lunch somewhere nearby and eating it on the walk back, you brought your own, so you could sit with someone. His name is Ned and he's in your English class.

He had an open seat next to him, and most of the period was spent getting to know each other. Apparently, he'd just gotten a Lego Death Star kit that was over three thousand pieces he was going to build with his best friend. It will be rather impressive once it's done, you even exchanged contact info, so you could get a picture of it.

All in all, Ned seemed really nice and you could use some nice right about now.

Entering the cafeteria for the first time was a little ominous. There are so many faces and none of them look familiar. You scan the crowd for a minute and before you feel to helplessly lost you spot Ned sitting by himself waving his hand at you.

With a smile you walk over and sit across from him.

"Hey Ned, thanks for letting me join you," you say politely and take out your lunch from your bag.

It's just leftovers, a chewy granola bar, and your water bottle. You're a bit jealous of Ned's chicken nuggets, but you ignore the craving and proceed with your own food.

"Yeah—I mean I was kinda surprised you wanted to anyways," Ned says with a goofy shrug.

Your eyebrows furrow, "why?"

"Oh, right. New Girl," Ned says as if that explains everything, and once he catches himself he continues to explain, "oh! Yeah, Peter and I are kind of losers? I mean if Flash has anything to say about it."

"I'm sorry," you start through laughter, "this guy's name is Flash?"

"Eugene technically."

"Is his ego huge?" You ask.

"Gigantic," Ned sniggers.

"Of course, it is... and for the record I don't think you're a loser and I'm sure your friend isn't either. I'm honored to sit here."

Another moment passes before footsteps approach and a loud smack comes from across beside Ned. Your head whips up to see the disheveled lunch tray and then further to see who it belonged to. At first you see a total stranger, and it doesn't phase you much. As seconds tick by you notice small things; his sharp jawline, distinct lips, pale skin.

All those combined paints a very vivid and familiar lower half of the face.

Your eyes meet big brown ones that share your shocked look.

"Ummm, h-hi there," he bites out, his voice confirming everything else. Proving this isn't some fluke.

"Stop being weird and sit-down dude," Ned says in a terrible hushed whisper.

You clear your throat and hold out your hand, "hi. I'm (Y/N). I just moved here last week, it's nice to meet you...?"

"... Peter," he mutters and shakes your hand.

His hand is large and surprisingly soft given his part-time occupation.

You and Peter can't look away from each other, and Ned squirms uncomfortably. A throat to you left clears and the three of you look over. There is a girl at the end of the table, looking back with an unimpressed expression on her face.

"Are you two losers alright?" She asks.

You almost get upset at the audacity, until the two just give her a look and it's clear that this is a common exchange.

"We were doing just fine," you tell her.

The girl huffs and goes back to her book, pausing, looks back and says, "I'm Michelle by the way."

"(Y/N)."

With that Michelle goes back to her book.

You turn back to the two boys across from you and take a bite of food to pass the time. They do the same, but eventually the silence is awkward and tense. You put the lid back onto your container and slip your lunch and water back into your backpack.

"Where are you going?" Ned asks with a frown.

Peter is still looking at his food, mostly playing with it with his fork.

You give Ned a smile, "I forgot I needed to grab a textbook I didn't get during lunch today... but I'll come sit with you guys tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yeah," Ned says, his mood improving.

You wave goodbye and get up, quickly getting out of that mess. You're not too far from the table when you hear Ned and Peter start bickering and it makes you pick up the pace. The last thing you want is to overhear something you're not supposed to. When you get out to the hall you pull out your schedule and double check for your next class and start heading towards it.

When you get to the closed classroom door in the mostly empty hallway you lean against a row of lockers and take a moment to think.

Peter is Spider-Man... or more like Spider-Man is Peter.

Your thoughts are interrupted as jogging footsteps approach. You open your eyes and spot Peter coming over, his face the textbook definition of the word worried. It isn't until he is standing right in front of you that you start to understand how heavy this situation is. It makes your stomach flip and chest tighten uncomfortably.

"The first night we met," you start softly, "you took off your mask, and trusted me to not look. I kept that promise. The second night you trusted me enough to take half of it off with me within view... so if you're worried about me saying anything I won't."

Peter's mouth parts a bit, and your eyes follow the movement for a split second before flickering back up.

"You promise? Like really promise (Y/N)?" He asks, voice low and breaking in the middle of his words.

You can see it now; how terrified he is of this, of himself, of the world knowing who he really is under that mask. You nod with purpose—like you mean it—and step into his space much like the other night. Instead of kissing his cheek you wrap your arms around his shoulders and hold him close. He tenses for a second before relaxing into the hold and allowing for his arms to wrap around your waist.

You pointedly ignore how... strong and solid he feels.

"I promise Peter, your secret is safe with me," you tell him and pull away.

He holds out his pinky to you, and you smirk at the familiar gesture.

"Pinky promise?" He asks, a bit more of his playful Spider-Man side coming out.

"Of course, good sir," you agree and loop your pinkies together.

A second later the first warning bell for the upcoming period rings. You break the contact and he awkwardly shoves his hands into his jean pockets, looking stiff and unsure of himself.

"We should probably talk about this more," you tell him as the hallway fills up with students.

"What are you doing after school?" He asks.

You shake your head, "nothing."

"Meet me at the field, we can go to my place.... it's um, safe there," he offers.

"Okay. I'll let my parents know," you say and start backing into the classroom.

Peter waves at you and starts to walk down the hall. Before he can get to far you call out his name again, which makes him swing around and look at you with a concerned look.

"We're stopping at a corner store, I owe you a muffin," you grin.

Butterflies explode within you when he responds with a giant smile in return. With that you both head to class, time suddenly moving too slow.