I Was Joking

Yes. Definitely. Absolutely. (Not)

The next day, he hugged May tightly before slipping on his suit and doing some daytime patrol before heading to Flash's.

The teen's reaction to seeing Peter scale up the window was hilarious, to both him and Ned. The kid nearly dropped the popcorn bowl in shock.

"Hey.", Peter greeted casually when Thompson opened up the window next to him. Parker slipped through the window, landing on his feet. "Uh, I'm gonna change, so...", the brunette asked, gesturing to the backpack. "Second door to the right.", Flash directed, before continuing to set up.

"Eugene? Is that another friend?", a delicate, feminine voice asked after Peter left. "Yes ma'am.", the teen answered casually. "And I've got one more coming. She'll be here soon."

"She?", the owner of the voice asked teasingly. "I'll look forward to meeting this young lady."

Peter, who set his bag by the setup, snickered with the other two boys before turning to the woman, who was apparently Flash's mom. She was dressed casually, as if she had just woken up from a nap she wanted to get back to, judging by the tired look in her eyes. But still, she seemed like a nice lady.

"I'm Peter Parker. Pleasure to meet you." The woman had heard the name before, it seems, by the light in her eyes. Mrs. Thompson smiled, taking Peter's hand. "You're the infamous Peter? Well dear, pleasure's all mine. Please, make yourself at home." The teen smiled and walked to the couch, doing his secret handshake with Ned.

They played a stock match before MJ rang the doorbell and made herself known. The look of surprise on Mrs. Thompson's face when she learned MJ was not, in fact, a lady, was amusing. Nonetheless, after making small talk, the woman went back to wherever she was before.

"WHAT?! But- but-", Flash stammered after Peter won another match about an hour in. "I told you, he plays dirty.", Ned reminded, giving Peter a dirty look. "Oh you think I'm bad? Maybe I should let you play Mario Kart with Cap. Or chess with Natasha. Now THOSE are cheaters.", Peter excused, filling up his plate with snacks for the third time.

"Oi! Save some for us!", Ned yelled. "I'm a hungry boi!", Parker retorted, stuffing his mouth with Cheetos. Leeds rolled his eyes, stretching before getting back into his gamer stance. "And pretty thirsty.", MJ remarked as Peter chugged a Sprite. The comment made Flash blush slightly. "Turning a little red there?", she turned to the teen and teased. "No! Idiot."

The rest of the afternoon went like that. Playfully trash talking each other both during and in between matches, and constant snack breaks. Peter, still thinking about May's words, tried initiating some conversations with Flash, but they always fell short, becoming awkward after a few moments before they turned back to the game.

He tried, at least. But by the time the sky was starting to turn orange, it was blatantly obvious.

The clock chimed again. Ned looked up at it and immediately got up. "Oh shoot. My mom's here. Bye!", Leeds waved on his way out. The teens returned the gesture absentmindedly. Not long after, MJ had to leave as well, leaving the two by themselves.

The air seemed to become thick with awkwardness the moment she shut the door behind her. Peter turned to Flash slowly, lips tightening into a forced smile. "I can help clean up.", he offered, following Flash's gaze to the mess they made. The teen nodded curtly.

In a last attempt, Peter tried keeping a conversation with Flash as they cleaned up. It was just as fruitless as before.

When they neared the end, Peter bit his lip before speaking up. "Hey, Flash?" "Y-yeah?", he stuttered, turning towards Peter. "I, uh, thought about what you said, a-about me. That night." Flash turned as red as a tomato. "I, uh, don't know what you're talking about.", he denied, like the tsundere he is.

"Yes you do. Let's cut the dance.", Peter stated, making Flash shut up. "I'm really happy you're trying to be friends with us, and we're happy to have you, but..." "But...", Flash echoed, eyes showing every emotion in his head. Confusion, hope, denial, worry.

Peter took a deep breath. "Flash, I...I'm sorry. I really tried to feel the same, but...", he admitted. He could hear Flash's breath hitch. "And don't take it the wrong way, I love hanging out with you as a friend, but...not much more than that. I'm sorry.", Peter tried to cushion, nearly physically wincing at the damage he did.

Flash looked down, taking deep breaths. When he looked back at Peter, the boy covered his mouth and looked away again. "I—I'll go if you want me to-", Peter tried to offer, shutting the cabinet, which had finished them cleaning up. "Wait.", Flash said aloud, looking like he instantly regretted it afterwards.

Peter paused in his step, watching Thompson carefully. As he slowly made his way to Peter. As his cheeks flushed the closer he got. As his hands physically shook. As his eyes, while still mourning his rejection, held a final wish.

"Can I just...do one thing? Before you go?", Flash, now stripped of his tough guy act, asked quietly. "Yeah.", Peter answered, though unsure of what to expect.

Flash got a little closer; he took a deep breath before closing his eyes, grabbing Peter,

and pulling him into a kiss.

It only lasted for a moment, but it was obvious how badly the teen had been wanting that moment. The teen pulled away and stared at the floor as he muttered, "You can change in the bathroom."

Peter, still shaken by the whole event, simply nodded, grabbed his bag, and walked back into the second room to the right, just as he did before. The two didn't look at each other the entire time.

No one was in the room when Peter left.

He brought his bag back to the apartment, getting a light dinner before starting patrol. It did good in keeping his mind clear. It wasn't until the early hours of morning when he got a single text.

Baka-kun: Hey. Sorry I did that. I just... wanted to see what I'd miss. God, that makes me sound gross. I feel gross. Sorry if I made you feel gross. I get it if you hate me. I hate me too. Sorry for whatever I did. To make you feel that way.

Baka-kun: No, wait, I know what I did. Sorry for literally everything from the time we met to a couple of weeks ago.

Spider-Senpai: Woah, woah, hey. I don't hate you. And I'm not mad. Surprised, slightly shooketh, but not mad.

Spider-Senpai: I would be lying I said those years didn't influence anything, but it was so much more than that. It was honestly more me than you.

Spider-Senpai: See you at school, k?

Baka-kun: yeah. K.