You're my escape- A Peter Parker Love Story

The Unknowns

Eliza had her legs bent in front of her as she sat stiffly on top of the hotel bed. Her shoulders pulled back taut, her back straight, and her eyes forward as she zoned out. The third horror movie played on the screen, but just like the last two, she hadn't the slightest clue what was happening. If MJ asked her to recap the movie, she would be lost.

But MJ wouldn't do that, because she knew that something was wrong.

Eliza couldn't hide it. She didn't think she could hide it even if Natasha stood in front of her with the lie detector hooked up to her.

It had been hours and yet, she could still see the look of astonishment in Peter's eyes as he talked to Liz. He had nearly completely forgotten her presence. All because of Liz.

"How much longer until we talk about what's bothering you?"

She pulled in a rough breath. "Give me another six hours."

"We'll be asleep by then."

"Exactly."

MJ grunted, then went silent again.

The movie played on, but she didn't watch it. She thought back to that day, when she and Peter sat on the bus and she traced shapes in his hand. It had been just the two of them. It was so much simpler when it was just the two of them. But then other people got involved and it got messy. How could they be just Peter and Eliza with other people?

Another movie passed. MJ didn't miss a beat as she clicked on the next movie and began to play it. They watched some man in a mask walk down the street on Halloween killing people. The music was enticing. Yet, she couldn't concentrate on it.

"Fine, topic change. What's that scar?"

Eliza stiffened and looked at MJ to see her eyes drawn to something on Eliza's leg. She looked down to her bare thighs to see the thick jagged scar where she and Natasha dug her tracker out.

"It..." she stalled. Had she come up with a lie for it? No. She never thought she would have someone see it. "I accidentally stabbed myself when I was young."

"It looks fresher than that."

"By young, I meant a few months ago." She looked over at MJ. "I was cutting something, the knife slipped and went straight into my thigh."

MJ's eyes widened. "Ouch."

"Yeah," she tried for an awkward laugh and succeeded easier than she imagined. "It was a bloody mess, literally. Tony has not let me use knives in the house since." She unintentionally massaged the scar. She could still remember Natasha digging in with a pair of plyers while she screamed her head off. The bumpy ride on the jet didn't help smooth things over either.

"Sometimes," MJ's voice was quiet. "I don't know if you're telling me the truth."

Eliza blinked and focused back on her. "Why would I lie to you?"

She shrugged. "I want to believe you. I want to think that my great new friend who shares my sense of humor and hatred for strong toxic political figures would never lie to me, but sometimes you say things with your mouth and your eyes tell a different story."

Her head tilted off-kilter. "What do my eyes say now?"

MJ looked closely at her with a narrowed gaze. Eliza could see the gears turning in her head as she analyzed her. "Your eyes say you are hurt. I think you've been hurt for a long time. Maybe the entire time I've known you."

She laughed, then stopped and dropped her head.

"I don't like when my friends are hurt, Eliza."

She lifted her shoulders in a weak attempt to end the conversation. "Maybe I don't know how to be anything other than hurt."