fearless || peter parker

fourteen || slander, and the princess of wales

Gym that day was the second worst activity ever brought in to the curriculum: circuits. First being the beep test. The only thing worse than going in circles around the gymnasium doing push-ups, sit-ups and planks on intervals was running across the room back and forth nonstop.

"So, you're going to Washington with us," Nitara commented as we did our planks side-by-side. "How'd you convince Madison to do that?"

My arms wobbled beneath me. "I couldn't tell you. I said that it was you and a bunch of smart people going. I don't know why, but she thinks you're a good influence on me or whatever."

Nitara snorted and switched sides for her plank. "That's because she knows my dad, not me."

"He really sugar coats you," I said with what was meant to be a laugh, but turned into a huff as I kept my plank going.

The teacher blew his whistle. "Change your station!" he hollered, voice echoing through the massive gymnasium. I collapsed in a heap, and then ran with Nitara to the paper on the wall across from us with a stick-drawing of two people doing sit-ups.

"You first," I said, motioning to the slick blue mat on the floor. "Watch your hair on the Velcro."

Nitara sighed and moved down the mat a bit, effectively moving me to the floor as I kept her feet in place. Before even doing one sit-up, she flopped back onto the floor as Harry and Flash walked over to our station.

I narrowed my eyes at the two of them and quieted my voice. "Since when are they friends?"

"They're not," Nitara answered. "I told Harry that Flash was a dick, but he still follows him around incessantly with questions about Harry's dad's work. Kid's a future businessman."

I shook my head as Nitara did a sit-up with a strained groan. "More like con artist."

Nitara fell back on the mat laughing, just as Peter and Ned took the mat next to us. I couldn't help but notice that neither of them looked remotely tired from their last station. Meanwhile, my shoulders felt like they were still going to pop out of their sockets.

"Four minutes!" the teacher yelled.

"Peter!" Harry said, flashing a grin to the side as he positioned himself on the mat. "I'll race you here. Most sit ups in a minute?"

Peter's face flushed. "We all know who would win that, Harry."

Ned chuckled as Flash laughed obnoxiously. "Parker is a noodle. I could do more combined than either of those two."

"Shut up, Flash," I said in synchroneity with Nitara.

Flash let out a low whistle before making a point of flexing his arms behind his head before his first sit up. I turned back to Nitara in disgust.

Peter and Ned were talking amongst themselves, and Harry and Flash were a bit farther away, so I lowered my voice at Nitara. "Did you see the paper today?"

Nitara checked over my shoulder to presumably check that we were unsupervised, then stopped her sit ups and reached into her shorts pocket. "Are you kidding? I saw it this morning and meant to show you." Out of her pocket she pulled a crinkled newspaper clipping, the same Daily Bugle page that I had read over Madison's watch this morning. "You think it's him, don't you?" Then, Nitara lowered her voice to barely a whisper. "Vulture?"

I snapped my head back and forth to triple check no one was overhearing us. The gym teacher was across the room, there were some girls blabbing on the bleachers, and Peter and Ned were too enthralled in their own conversation to notice our suspicious tones.