Vindicated || TASM! Peter Parker x Reader

↬ chapter 1 ↫

"Hope, dangles on a string, like slow spinning redemption, winding in and winding out, the shine of it has caught my eye."

✯

The day was quiet.

Unusual for New York, of course.

In fact, it was probably loud.

Overpowering-ly such, too.

But it was loud enough to feel quiet.

That was a good thing, I thought, breathing in the not-so-fresh fresh air, corners of my lips turning up in slight.

A can of cherry coke lay in my palm, I sloshed it around unknowingly, the same way one would with a coffee that they were trying to spread the flavor across.

I took the can to my mouth, savoring the sweet flavor quickly, before setting the thing down to my right.

The ledge in which I sat was one of those half walls that lay within my school's courtyard, icy wind made the soft green locks of grass flutter, pushing it westbound, though gently.

Lunch had just started, students poured out of the cafeteria doors, hungry and desperate for liberation from the school, just as had I just minutes before.

Most of my peers ate outside too, the school was stuffy, I'd be the first to admit it.

I picked up the can of sweet flavored pop yet again, the aluminum now chilled from the crisp, new york wind.

"Hey."

Yanked violently out from my thoughts, I looked to my left.

I swallowed thickly, startled nearly out of my skin, my eyes trained on one of my classmates.

He was in my first and third period, two desks away in first and two rows behind me in third.

What was his name again..?

I blinked, deer in the headlights style, to my dismay.

"Hi."

I choked out, eyes never leaving the boy in front of me.

He was tall, much taller than me, and lanky too, hands stuffed in navy-blue hoodie pockets.

Air grew heavy with my own embarrassment, my charisma abandoned and leaving me behind with an awkward jumble of deer in the headlights.

"I noticed you weren't in first hour yesterday so—"

He slung his backpack from his shoulder swiftly, unzipping the thing and rummaging in it.

I sat there, dumbfounded and watched, confusion encompassing me.

He located something, the crunch of paper alerting me of an assignment or two coming my way.

"I grabbed this for you, sorry if it's creepy or whatever, but Mrs. Hanning is literally relentless and I figured you wouldn't wanna hear that"

In his hand, he presented me with a paper, slightly worn and a little crumpled up on the lower left edge.

"Oh"

I looked up at him, the corner of my mouth turning upwards.

"Thanks. I appreciate it.. Uhh"

I fished my mind for his name, coming up with nothing other than a litter of thoughts about his face.

He moved onto the ledge across from me, legs on either side of the slim protrusion of cold concrete.