Spider-Man: Marvel Knight

Chapter 5-Another Memorable Night

Spidey swung back to Oscorp and changed back into his civilian clothes. Peter snuck into the top floor and put on his lab coat. All of his and Harry's employees greeted him as he walked in. He walked into Harry's office. Harry was looking at the new projects that his secretary had brought him. He looked at his friend.
"Hey, Pete," Harry said while looking at his clipboard. "What's up?"
"You got a minute?" Peter asked while scratching his head.
Harry nodded. "Yeah, sure." He handed the clipboard back to his secretary. "All of these look fine, Melinda."
"Thank you, sir," Melinda replied. "Excuse me, Mr. Parker," she said while walking past Peter.
"Morning, Melinda," Peter responded with a smile.
Harry sat on the edge of his desk. "So, what's up?"
Peter raised his eyebrows. "Oh, with me? Nothing much. Just got back from the Daily Bugle."
"Ah," Harry said. "Jameson give you some extra dinero?"
"Yep."
Harry looked at him with an eyebrow raised. "You go to the Bugle every week. Surely, you didn't come in here to tell me that you got paid a little more than you should."
Peter nodded and looked at him. "They did it," he said.
Harry looked at him, confused. "Who did what, Peter?" Peter grinned. Harry chuckled. "You look like you just got the gold medal in a science competition. Who did what, Peter?"
"Kurt and Otto... They did it."
Harry stood up with an excited and surprised look. "They finished the formula?"
Peter nodded. "Yep."
"You mean...they actually did it?"
"Hm-hm..."
Harry laughed and smiled. "I need to see it." Peter took Harry down to the pharmaceutical lab where Kurt and Otto were working. They were filling a syringe with the bright yellow liquid that was the miracle of project x.
Kurt and Otto were surprised to see Harry in the lab. "Harry, good to see you," Otto said. "We were just getting ready for standard animal trials."
Harry looked at the syringe filled with project x. "Holy Moses..." He chuckled and looked at Kurt, who was preparing the three legged guinea pig. "Kurt, your new arm isn't that far away now."
Kurt smiled and nodded. "Yes, Harry I hope so," he replied. "Otto, can you inject it for me?"
"Certainly, doctor," Otto said. He took the syringe from Harry and injected project x into the guinea pig's shoulder.
Harry looked at the guinea pig to see if anything was happening. "When will we see results?"
"Hopefully," Kurt said while putting the guinea pig in its cage, "within a few hours."
"Good," Harry said while patting Kurt's back. "Very good. Congratulations, gentlemen. If this works, not only will you get your arm back, Kurt, but this'll be the next era of health serum for Oscorp. Dad's mistake will be out the window."
"I certainly hope so, Harry," Kurt replied.
Harry walked out with a grin on his face. Peter walked with him, turned around, and gave Kurt and Otto a thumb up. They gave him one back. As he and Harry walked out, Harry said, "Hey, Pete, why don't you take the rest of the day off?"
Peter looked at him, confused. "Excuse me? Why?"
Harry patted his back. "I don't know. This is just a big moment for your division, and I thought you might like to celebrate."
Peter shook his head. "Harry, how am I going to celebrate something. I've never celebrated before in my life. It's 3:00 in the afternoon."
"Well," Harry said moving his head side to side, "you could take MJ out for a bite to eat."
Peter looked at Harry with an eyebrow raised. "Harry, are you serious?"
"Pete, you said that you would humor me, so do it."
Peter smirked. "Do what?"
"Humor me! Take her out."
"Fine!" Peter said, jumping at the playful outburst. "I'll do it. Jesus..."
Peter walked to the elevator. "And don't come back until you've gone on a date with her!" Harry added. Peter, without turning around, gave a thumbs up, which made Harry chuckle.
After Pete got out of the elevator, he walked out of the buidling and hailed a cab. "Where to?" the driver asked.
"Osborn manor," Peter said. As the driver began to leave the front of the building, Peter took out his phone. He opened MJ's contact. He wanted to press the call button, but he just couldn't bring himself to do it. His anxiety was slowly slipping him back into old Peter.
Finally, the driver reached Peter's destination. "Thirty ninety five," the cab driver said.
Pete handed him a fifty. "Here you go. Keep the change."
"Much obliged."
The cab driver drove off and Peter walked to the front door of the mansion. He was about to open the doors, but MJ's contact kept bothering him. He took a deep breath. "Twenty seconds of courage," he whispered to himself. He took out his phone and finally called her.
MJ sat on her aunt's couch watching TV. She felt her phone buzz and answered it without looking at who was calling her. "Hello?"
Peter was silent for a couple seconds, and then spoke. "MJ..."
She could recognize that quiet voice anywhere. MJ smiled and pushed her hair behind her ear. "Hey, tiger. What's up?"
Peter tried to figure out how he was going to do this. How was he going to ask the question. "Hey, um...I have a question."
MJ giggled. "Okay," she said with an eyebrow raised.
He sighed. "Are you um...I was just wondering, you know... Are you doing anything tonight?"
She bit her lip. "No, why?"
"Oh, I don't know... I just wanted to ask, um, if maybe you would like to get a bite to eat tonight...you know...together."
She chuckled. "You mean like a date?" This boy has no game, she thought to herself with a giggle.
"I mean..." Peter said slowly, "...I guess, yeah, it could be a date."
MJ nodded and bit her lip. "Okay."
Peter's heart fluttered. "...Okay?"
She giggle. "Yeah, okay. It's a date. Where do you want to go?"
Peter thought for a second. There was one place that they liked more than any other. "Do you remember LeAngelo's?"
"Italian steakhouse? Of course. Best eatery in Queens."
"Great!" Peter exclaimed. "Um, see you there at five?"
She smiled. "Sounds good to me, tiger."
"Okay, great. See you then."
"See you then." She hung up.
Peter felt light on his feet. He and MJ were going on a date. He rushed inside and looked for something nice to wear. He put on a gray t-shirt, blue jeans, and a blue blazer. All he had to do was wait.
MJ went to her closet and looked for something to wear. She had so many different looks that she could pull off, that it wasn't funny. There was only one person who could give her advice. She got her phone and called the first contact she saw.
Gwen felt her phone buzz. She saw who was calling her and she couldn't believe it. She pressed the answer button. "What's up, girl?"
"Nothing much," MJ said, taking a t-shirt out and putting it back. "I'm looking for something to wear for a date."
Gwen smacked her lips playfully. "Oh, really. Who's the lucky guy?"
MJ raised her eyebrows. "Um, Peter actually."
Gwen's heart dropped. Peter was going out with MJ? "Really?" She asked. "You're going out with Pete?"
"Yeah," MJ said. "He called me up, awkwardly as he always does, and asked me out."
"Wow," Gwen said, trying to sound happy. "I'm happy for you."
"Thank you," MJ said. "What do you think Peter would like me to wear?"
Gwen had to be honest. She really didn't have a right to be jealous. She broke up with him, and she still hadn't told him the reason. All she could do was be happy for him for moving on. "From experience, MJ," Gwen started, "just be yourself."
MJ nodded and bit her lip. She took out a yellow t-shirt with a brown leather jacket. "Gotcha. Thank you, girlfriend."
Gwen smiled at MJ's happiness, even though it made her fell empty inside. "You're welcome, girlfriend. Love you."
"Love you, too," MJ said while making a kissing noise. She hung up and took off her tights to put on some blue jeans.
Gwen took the phone down from her ear and pushed her hair behind her ear. She couldn't help but allow a tear fall from her eye and roll down her cheek. She threw her phone against the wall, and the whole phone almost completely obliterated from her super strength, which only reminded her about Peter more. She tucked her knees into her arms and cried. "Why didn't I tell him..."

It was 5:00. Peter had already made it to LeAngelo's. It reminded him of when he first fell for Gwen.
He looked down the sidewalk and saw...MJ. She was wearing a brown leather jacket and blue jeans. He had to admit: she looked like a supermodel walking down a runway.
MJ saw Pete waving her down. She had to admit that he looked good, too. His blazer and jeans made him look like he was confident in himself, which he wasn't, but it solidified him for the date.
She walked up to him and gave him a hug. "Hey, tiger."
"MJ," he said embracing the hug. After they released each other, he looked at her. "You look nice."
"Thanks," she said, pushing her hair behind her shoulder. "You do, too."
He smiled and opened the door for her. "After you."
MJ giggled as she walked through into the restaurant. "I guess chivalry's not dead." They sat down and enjoyed their food. After they finished, she asked him a question. "You know, I've been meaning to ask you," she started, "how do you do it? Spider-Man, being a CEO, the Daily Bugle... How do you make time for doing all of it?"
Pete smiled at the question. "That's a good one." He thought about it for a second. "I guess, some of it comes naturally to me."
She giggled. "Can you explain?"
"Well, all of it is a responsibility. Peter Parker has the responsibility to do all the regular guy stuff and Spider-Man has to do all the superhero stuff," he said shrugging.
MJ shook her head and smiled. "That still doesn't answer my question."
Peter chuckled. "I didn't expect it to." He thought about it some more. "I like to think of Spiderman as more of an idea than someone. More and more people stand up for a cause and start helping police more when Spiderman does things. Me, Peter Parker, can do the normal guy stuff easily. Every day, being Spiderman becomes easier and easier, because at the end of the day, it doesn't matter who's behind the mask, it's how you use it."
MJ smiled and nodded. "I gotta admit it."
"Admit what?"
"That was a pretty damn good explanation." Peter chuckled.
Peter paid for their meal and they walked outside. He looked at his watch and saw the time. 7:00.
MJ spoke up. "I had a really fun time tonight," she said with a sweet smile.
Peter smiled back. "Me, too."
"Well, um. I guess I'll see you tomorrow maybe?" she said, beginning to walk off.
"Actually, um, MJ," Peter said, "do you want to come over and hang a bit? Harry won't be back home for a few more hours, and... I don't know, maybe we could talk a bit more."
MJ smiled. "Yeah, sure, that would be nice." Peter hailed a cab to take them to Harry's mansion. After he paid him off, they entered the gigantic house. MJ looked around. "Hard to believe that we used to all run up and down those stairs playing all the time, huh?" she asked.
"Yeah," Peter said with a chuckle. "It is." He looked at her with a smile. "Hey, um, about the dancing last night," he started, "do you think that you could show me some more pointers?"
MJ bit her lip and pulled out her phone. "Okay, tiger." She went into her playlist and started playing Ed Sheeran's Perfect. "I'll show you how to slow dance."
"Oh God..." He said sarcastically.
"Wiseass..." She said while playfully slapping his arm. "Okay, so you put your hands on my waist," she said while moving his hands to the sides of her hips. "And I put my arms around your neck, like this."
Peter raised his eyebrow. "And that's it?"
"Yeah," she said, "and we just kind of sway to the music."
"Oh," he said with a chuckle, "seems easy enough." She giggled and bit her lip. They looked into each other's crystal blue eyes again, each feeling something for the other.
"MJ..." His sentence was cut off by MJ's lips caressing his. He welcomed their softness and her cherry flavored lip gloss. It was beautiful. They moved over to the couch and she crawled on top of him as he laid down. She began to take her jacket off, and Pete took his lips off of hers.
"What's wrong?" she whispered, moving her lips closer to his.
"Nothing," he said quietly. "It's just...been a while since I've done this."
She bit her lip and smiled. "Well, we can take things slow, then." She kissed him again, this time slower, letting him savor every little moment.
"Okay," Peter said through the kiss. After a little bit, they decided to move to his bedroom, so they could have more privacy if Harry came home. Pete shut the doors behind them as he picked her up. It was going to be a long night.

~elsewhere~

Kurt began to grow increasingly impatient. The guinea pig had shown no improvement; no new limb had grown out of its nub... Nothing happened.
Otto patted Kurt's back. "Maybe it needed a few more tests," he said. "We can try again tomorrow."
Kurt slammed his arm on the table. "No..." He said. "No, that won't work, Otto." Kurt picked up a syringe and filled it with project x.
"What are you doing, Kurt?" Otto asked. He finally realized what was going on. "No. No, don't you dare do it, Kurt. You remember what happened last time...the side effects!"
"Maybe we've tested the wrong subject, Otto. Maybe it doesn't work on certain mammals." He looked at the needle and put it close to where his arm was amputated. "Maybe it only works on people, Otto... I have to see."
Dr. Octavius grabbed his arm. "Think about what you're doing, Kurt. Play this safe...wait!"
Kurt snatched his arm away. "I've waited too damn long, Otto. Too damn long. Do you know how it's been to live a cripple? A freak?! Everyone asks you if you need help when you're perfectly capable of doing whatever you damn well please!" He drove the needle into his muscle where his arm was amputated. "I have to know!" Kurt injected project x into him and threw the syringe down. He was ready for the change to begin, but he felt nothing. A tear rolled down his eye. He stomped the syringe in anger. "Dammit!"
Otto went to comfort his friend. "Kurt, let's get you home." Kurt nodded and sniffled his tear away.
Suddenly, Kurt began to feel strange. A aching pain crawled all over him. He shouted in pain. Otto went over to his friend convulsing on the ground. "Kurt? Kurt!" There was somethinf growing all over him. We're those...scales? "Oh no, not again!"

Harry was checking off the last bit of paper work, then he was ready to go home. He was anxious to ask Peter about his date with MJ, even if he didn't have it. Suddenly, he felt the entire top floor vibrate. "What the hell..." The alarm suddenly went off, letting him know that somethinf happened in the pharmaceutical lab. He ran there as fast as he could. As he walked in, he saw Otto on the ground, bruised and unconscious. Everything in the room was destroyed, and there was a huge hole in the wall, leading to the outside. And there was something else...there were claw marks.
Otto began to come to, and Harry helped him off of the ground. "Otto, what the hell happened?" Otto looked around and remembered what happened.
"Oh god..." He said. "Kurt's in danger..."
Harry paused for a moment. "What do you mean?"