Spiderman: Finding Home

Chapter 6

MJ's POV

Michelle and Peter quickly fell into a routine. When her mother had night shifts at the ER, which was usually twice a week, she would text Peter,

"11?"

His reply was always quick.

"11."

They always said they would keep the nights short to get sleep, but they never did. Michelle always arrived home with only ten minutes to spare. She couldn't deny it though. Even with the late-night, she still slept better than the nights when she didn't meet up with Parker. She could convince herself that it was because she was exhausted from her day but she had started to doubt that was the case.

She'd never admit it, but she couldn't deny it to herself. Peter made her feel better. Sometimes they barely spoke, preferring to sit in silence while she sketched the city, random characters from her latest book or, at his request, Spiderman. He had perched himself on the tin shelter on the roof in a crouch and they laughed while she drew. She thought he would tire quickly. Maintaining a squat for a minute was hard for MJ, but she supposed with his superpowers and strength, it shouldn't be a surprise. He didn't even break a sweat as he filled the no longer awkward silences with random questions or thoughts. When she finished the sketch, she had to look away as he looked at it with an awe -filled expression.

"Wow, MJ," Peter breathed. "You're so good at this."

"It's nothing," she shrugged. "You can keep it if you want."

"Really?" he gaped like she was offering him something amazing.

"Of course," she ripped the page from her notebook and gave it to him, looking away as he folded it gently. "Not like I had a purpose for it."

Her jab did not put a dent in his goofy smile as he laughed.

"What? Are you sure you don't want another addition to your secret Spiderman collection?"

"Wrong superhero," she joked back and elbowed him. "I'm more of a Hulk person and my collection of him is way more... detailed."

As she had grown to expect, his face turned a bright shade of red as he looked away, embarrassed. She had discovered that while most boys his age loved a good sex joke, Peter was immobilised by them, turning more awkward than his already awkward state.

She thought, with amusement, how funny it would be if anyone found out that the secret to defeating Spiderman was to mention sex in any capacity.

Parker quickly changed the subject, discussing the latest school drama that she frankly couldn't care any less about, but she let him this one time. She watched as his face gradually returned to a normal shade, smirking on the inside.

She felt safe around Parker, but she didn't like the other ways he made her feel. He had always been just a dorky guy. A nice dorky guy. She'd always seen him as a walking dictionary that was on the skinnier side, but over the past few weeks, she realised it had changed. He was all those things still, but even more. He helped people and didn't want recognition for it. He had some interesting thoughts about the world and she was surprised to find out that during his days with Mr Spark, they worked on building policies and ideas to bring more equality within the Avengers and Stark Industries, along with their muscles.

"Oh god," she thought one night after she fell into her bed with a goofy smile on her face. "Oh god, do I have a crush on Peter Parker?"

Peter's POV

It had been four weeks since MJ had discovered his secret and Peter was loving the new addition. It had taken a week before he cracked the news to Ned. He didn't mention their meetups but did tell him that Michelle had discovered the truth of his alter ego.