Take My Hand | Peter Parker

Chapter 16

Aunt Rebecca arrived home with Ellie shortly after Nora. She was rushed between trying to feed the dog and start on dinner for us.

I offered to help with meal preparations. As I was cutting onions for the rice, my phone buzzed on the counter. It read "One New Message". 

I shook it off and would look at it later. A screech came from Nora's open door. 

"Close! The! Door!" I practically screamed, and received a door slam in return.

She was practicing her clarinet, and forgot to close the door. Again. 

Even for being awfully calm, I could tell she was stressed about something. Schoolwork never kept her spirit down. 

I dumped the chopped onions into a pot I pulled from the cabinet underneath.

After I turned up the heat, Aunt Rebecca came by to check in on my cooking. I was a decent chef. She poured in some oil and turned down the heat.

"We can't let the onions burn." She smiles, nudging me playfully.

I put my hands up in defense and let her take over. Okay, maybe my cooking skills needed improvement. 

My phone buzzed again. I snatched it from the table, then plopped down on the sofa.

Peter: I can help with that. When do you want to meet up?

I smiled. Peter responded back to my text for science help.

Peter: By the way, tonight doesn't work. I'm busy.

I frowned. Tonight would've been the perfect time. Ever since I discovered this weird... ability, my emotions were flying out of control and I didn't know if I wanted to talk to Spider-Man again. He could see me as a freak, then never want to even look in my direction again.

Ashley: Tomorrow?

Peter: Yeah. That would work. 

Ashley: Come over here. Would be easier, + Nora's here.

Peter: K. That's good. Are you feeling good to come back to school yet?

I was physically ready, but not mentally ready.

Ashley: Yeah. See u tomorrow, gtg.

Peter: Bye. See you at school

The time approached six thirty as I finished the last of my homework.

Aunt Rebecca took Ellie to one of her dance classes or something, and Nora, well- I wasn't actually sure of her plans for tonight.

There was a tap on my shoulder. "Time for dinner."

I stretched and proceeded over to the table. All I could think about was the fact that my freakish ability would scare people if I couldn't control it.

What would Spider-Man think anyway?

I gobble down dinner quickly, barely taking much food beforehand. Getting back to my wandering thoughts was a priority.

Then I remembered about my journal. How much I longed to write and organize my feelings for once. Ever since the first one was finished, I still wanted to continue documenting my life in New York through a journal.

But when could I buy a new one? If Spider-Man would swing by to talk tonight, and with Peter coming over tomorrow, then I'd have to wait longer.

I walked over to my room and stood there, leaning in the doorway.

Now that I had some sort of ability, why not document my findings about it? So, this journal would need a lock, for starters.

That's when it hit me. What if... the snap gave me these abilities?

Or worse, what if there was more than just this one thing I could do? I gripped the wooden frame harder, my knuckles going pale while trying to hold me up.

This wasn't something I'd thought of before. I could get worse, or even sick from this. I didn't know if there was some side effect to it, but I really had no intention of finding out. 

I duck into my room while slamming the door shut. My balance seems to be off. 

I become dizzy and the room sways in all different directions. To prevent myself from slamming into something, I sit down quickly, ultimately helping my nausea.

My vision blurs rapidly. I close my eyes, thinking that this will suppress whatever was happening. 

It takes a moment, but the dizziness fades slowly, but a headache begins to present itself.

I stumble while trying to stand up.

Almost as soon as it happens, it's gone. Like nothing ever happened.

I didn't feel sick afterward. Instead, I felt relief but also panic and worry. I would never want that to happen again. It made me disoriented, confused and overall, sad. Why was all this happening to me? I didn't even want this.

I continued finishing my homework until completion. 

It was already seven o'clock by the time I closed my binders. Spider-Man would be here soon, and with everyone still around, I didn't know what to do.

He suggested meeting outside, so I was thinking the backyard. Luckily, there's a spot underneath one of the trees that's out of sight and earshot. 

I gathered my binders and loose papers together while trying to stuff them in my backpack. Tomorrow I'd be back at school like nothing had ever happened to me. Life would go back to the way it was. With some minor changes.

"I'm off to take Ellie to dance lessons-" Aunt Rebecca peeks through the crack in my door.

I flinched. "You scared me real bad."

"Sorry. I didn't mean to. Just text if you need anything."

A knock came from my door. I opened it to reveal nothing. Then I turned around and realized it actually originated from the window.

Crap. Nora was still here, but in the kitchen.

I focused my attention on the window. Spider-Man was standing outside with a calm expression. I pushed it open completely but didn't let him inside at first.

"My... sister is still here, so I'll come out back. Give me a minute."

He nods as I shut the window.

I sneak out of my bedroom to grab my jacket. Nora eyes me suspiciously.

"Where are you going?"

I pause awkwardly. "Outside. Just to write in my journal."

She doesn't shift her gaze away from me. Thankfully I never told her that I needed a new journal.

A/N

School is starting very soon for me, and updates will be a little slow until I adjust. I know this book is moving slowly, but I plan to make some bigger changes in the next few chapters.