Dancing Around // peter parker

54

Stepping out into my hall, I saw Ms. May standing out her door, her arms crossed. My eyes widen, my hand still latched onto the handle of my door. "Um, hi," I said to her. My school bag heavy on my shoulders.

She gave me a knowing look. "Where are you going?" she asked.

"School."

"So early in the morning?"

"I have practice."

"I thought soccer was done for the season?"

My next set of words stumbled out. "Yeah, I'm just used to it. Waking up at this time, I mean."

"Are you sure it not you trying to avoid Peter?" She asked.

I looked away.

Ms. May sighed. She scratched her hair a bit, before nodding her head. She gestured with her arm to follow her as her flats lead towards the elevator. "Come."

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Just come."

She bought me a small coffee and we ended up sitting at a bench at a park a few blocks away from our building. I placed my bag in between us as I grabbed the hot cup with both my hands, trying to warm them up in this cold. The small heat made me feel less anxious.

Ms. May had one of her arms resting on the top of the bench, her legs crossed and pointed towards me. I kept my eyes at the slide in front of me, seeing only one little girl playing by herself, going down the same slide over and over again. A few feet away, at a different park bench, sat a grown-up with a cap, scrolling through their phones. They must be together. He had a bag similar to mine, but I could see sticking out of the lower pocket a set of diapers for toddlers.

I kept waiting for Ms. May to say something, but she didn't. She just kept drinking her coffee and looking over at me, waiting for me to open my glossed mouth. I finally did. "Did he tell you?" I asked.

She nodded her head. "Yeah."

"I talked to my mom about it. It's true. She and my dad took hush money."

"I'm sorry."

"I wish she were sorry. She didn't seem to be. She told me that she would have divorced my dad even if Rosie had died and that she knew exactly what she was doing when she took the hush money. I don't know if I can believe that. Because if Rosie isn't the reason why my family fell apart, then...then what is the reason?" I asked.

"You know, sometimes people just aren't meant to be. It just doesn't work out," she said.

I pulled my legs up on the bench, placing my face against my knees. "I guess it doesn't matter, since it doesn't change anything."

"What do you mean?"

"Superheroes still killed Rosie. She's not here because of them. I can never forgive them. I don't care if their heroes, I don't care if Peter is a hero, I can never, ever, see them like everyone else."

Ms. May sighed. She looks over to the park. "You know, my husband died," she said.

"Yeah, I know. Peter told me. Ben, right?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah. Did Peter tell you how he died?"

I shook my head. "No."

"Well, I guess that's good because if you ask Peter, he'll tell you that he killed him. That he's the reason why Ben isn't with us."

I think back to when Peter and I laid under that white sheet in the nurse's bed, untouched by time. He mentioned something like that, I remembered. "Why would he say that?"