the spider whisperer

Eavesdroppers [chapter 30]

After having explained the reason as to why they were instructed to be in same-sex pairings, the science teacher dismissed them to complete their lab. One student per pairing had a spread sheet to collect their data, and the other was using a computer to sign on to the site they were supposed to be using.

While all the other partners were quietly talking amongst themselves, Liz and y/n hadn't spoken a word to each other.

The silence was making y/n squirm in her chair. She kept her eyes on her hands that held the data sheet, not daring to look up. Her biggest worry was making eye contact with Liz. Now wasn't ideal. It was never really preferred, but now certainly was not good.

This was the first time she was alone with Liz. Every other time they were within five feet of each other, one of them or even both of them had another person with them. It sort of made things just a little less awkward. Even if only in the slightest bit.

When Liz finally finished pulling up the website, they were forced to actually begin talking. All of their sentences barely even had ten words in them. They were just quick and short. It made sure the two got to the point and asked questions quickly so they could spend less time talking to one another. The less interaction, the better for y/n.

"So... um," Liz tried to get an actual conversation going. She needed to find out what Peter was to the girl sooner or later. It was better to just get it over with now than prolonging the inevitable.

The girl stopped scribbling down some information. She looked up at Liz with a raised brow, "Are you having trouble navigating the website again?"

"Oh, no! I have it figured out now," Liz waved her hand, giving a sheepish chuckle to go along with it. Y/n continued when she realized Liz wasn't having an issue that could possibly drop her grade. Liz's eyes trailed down to her hands, "I was just sort of wondering about you... and Peter."

The girl's brows scrunched up at the question, but her hand kept steady as she continued on with her writing. "Me and Parker?" she echoed.

Liz nodded her head, "Yeah. I was just sort of wondering what the two of you were."

The girl finally ceased her scribbling. Her mind raced to find an answer to the question. On surface level, it really wasn't that hard to answer. And just a week ago, she would've been able to give a quick and easy answer. But things weren't that simple anymore. She had let her— er...emotions get in the way of her thinking. Which did result in her kissing the fool. Which she might've, sort of, kind of, just a little bit, maybe have wanted to do for a while now.

Even though he reciprocated the feelings like she knew he would, she found herself freezing up. Should she finally just take that leap? The one she'd been stopping herself from taking since she was about thirteen.

"We're—" she hesitated. There wasn't a single word that truly suited them. "...Friends..." So she'd just go with the most generic answer she could think of.

Liz, however, perked up at this. Granted, she did hear the slight hesitance in the girl's voice before she spoke, but maybe that meant she still stood a small chance with Peter. Only if all the stars aligned just perfectly of course. And for her to do that, she'd need to distract the girl with someone else...

"What about you and Flash?" Liz asked. "You two seem pretty close."

Even if this was meant to see where she and Flash stood compared to her and Peter, Liz couldn't help but be genuinely curious. About all of it and how their trio worked when both guys very obviously had romantic interest in y/n. Both of them.

Which was something Liz didn't quite understand fully.

The girl squinted her eyes at the paper on the table below her, "We're friends too. The thing is, Parker's my best friend." She finally looked up, gazing out the window that was directly next to her lab station. "I've sort of been stuck with the weirdo since forever; some years before we even knew Thompson. He's sort of always just been there. And, as weird as it may sound, he's like my lifeline."