RED - Peter Parker x F!OC

Chapter 15: For Me and You

"Jaime!" I shouted at the door, waiting for her to unlock it from the other side.

I heard scuffling before she swung it open, holding a used paintbrush in one hand. She had her wavy hair up in a bun, letting her curtain bangs fall loosely on her face. Splotches of white and orange paint were on her cheeks and forehead. I chuckled, picking off some dry paint from her nose.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, I got caught up in my mural that I didn't even bother to ask if you needed a ride." She apologized, gesturing for me to come inside.

On the bare wall behind our couch, a large canvas stood in front of it. Towels and bowls were scattered on the wooden floors, some stains here and there. Jaime's client must be paying good money for this kind of effort.

"How much?" I asked, throwing my crutches down beside me as I rested my body on the kitchen island.

"What do you mean?" She cocked her head to the side, dipping her brush in a glass jar of water.

"Is this not for one of your art gigs?"

"What? No! This is for me." She defended with outstretched arms, nearly spilling paint everywhere.

I hopped on the counter, letting my legs swing off the edge. The weight of the bandage on my foot felt uncomfortable. I couldn't wait to take it off tomorrow.

For the next half hour, I just sat in the kitchen, watching Jaime paint away. It always fascinated me how she never sketched her plan out. When she freestyles, she does freestyle. I watched as her brush elegantly stroked the canvas that was too big for either one of us. The painting became more alive with every detail she added. Occasionally, Jaime would take a step back and admire her progress, slowly making a frustrated sound as she attempted to fix a 'mistake' she pointed out. Every few minutes she would look at me and ask:

"What's missing? Something's off."

And every time I respond with:

"Nothing's wrong. I think it's perfect just how it is right now."

Eventually, I got bored of sitting around and went off to my bedroom. A slight breeze escaped as I opened the door, seeing as I had left the window open this morning. I shut it, feeling the last gust of wind slip through.

My eyes lingered over my zipped-up backpack. I knew I had homework to do, but I just wasn't in the right mood to do it. I felt myself constantly tracing back to Dr. Connors. I know it isn't and shouldn't be my business, but isn't a large mutant lizard anyone's business?

Instead of picking up my backpack, I dropped down onto my computer chair, opening up my laptop. A large picture popped up right in the center of my screen, catching me off guard. It was of Peter in a decent-looking suit standing in front of a backdrop with his cousins. He sent me a folder of pictures to show me some photoshopping tips. I remember staying on this picture for longer than I should've after he left.

The way his shirt collar was lopsided and the two top buttons were unbuttoned made something spark inside me. He wore that stupid goofy grin of his as he wrapped his arms over his cousins' shoulders. How did I not realize how beautiful he was until now?

Instead of researching Dr. Connors' background, I found myself scrolling through photos of him, occasionally seeing some of Gwen or myself. There wasn't a single one where he looked half-bad.

After resting my cheek on the palm of my hand for a few minutes, my face became numb. I blinked a few times before exiting out of the tab, feeling embarrassed. 

I shook my head and flipped my phone out. It would help if Peter were here since he's met Dr. Connors.

The phone rang a few times before he picked up. I raised it up to my ear, hearing his voice.