black treacle - matt sturniolo

Chapter Fourteen, Cupid screwed up

It was naive of Robyn to think fate would be on her side for once.

She wished for the Valentine's Day date with Matt she planned to be successful. She also wished to see Spider-Man again despite the consequences. Robyn didn't expect both her wishes to come true and certainly not on the same day.

There was no doubt Matt had slipped out to change into his suit because what were the cops going to do against cards? That is if they believed this frantic teenage boy that there were a couple straight out of a card deck attacking them. She wouldn't.

Her suspicions were confirmed after seeing a blurry red smudge swing towards the King and Queen. Robyn couldn't hear them from where she was but she bet her entire college fund that they were spitting stupid card-themed insults at each other.

Her crush on Matt was confirmed as well because the thought of anyone else attempting this banter repulsed Robyn.

There were moments she reevaluated her internal conflict because she would be reminded that under the mask was Matt. This meant it was Matt who told her to stay away for her own safety. The same man who didn't know what a royal flush was while fighting against card-themed villains. The same man who tripped on air when she waved at him.

Yeah yeah her life was at risk but without Robyn, Matt would still be staring at the pack of cards with a pile of scrambled letters. Trying to protect her was sweet but Matt needed Robyn's help more than she needed protection (perhaps the black belt in taekwondo her parent made her get would finally get used).

To kiss him or to punch him in the face. It was the hardest decision a woman could make.

Matt told her to stay low while he looked for help but when has Robyn ever listened to any advice he had given her? Although, logically, the safest option was to hide, but this was a story waiting to be written.

She was almost certain that none of the Daily Bugle's reporters was aware this attack was happening and just staying safe at the expense of the greatest article about Spider-Man - or even the greatest article in Midtown Tech - was not something Robyn was allowing to happen.

And seeing the fight from a different angle might help Matt with his strategies... but this endeavour was mostly for the sake of news...

Robyn crawled from under the table and exited the same route Matt took after hiding their bags behind the corner. If her boots were pierced with cards, the King and Queen should become less concerned with ending Spider-Man and more concerned with the rage of Robyn Reagan.

It was almost humiliating what she put herself through for journalism and Spider-Man because Robyn was once again hiding behind the dumpsters in the alleyway.

No matter how many times she finds herself with trash rats and rotting food, it doesn't get better.

Robyn gripped the edge of the dumpster to balance herself, trying her best to ignore the flies that swarmed bins, and carefully watched the movements of the villains.

Unlike their usual battles with cards and webs, it was a fistfight with Matt trying to desperately dodge double punches and jabs from around him.

Their movements were theatrical and exaggerated like it wasn't a fight but a contemporary dance movement. Robyn cringed at the fight. Violence was never the answer but she could tolerate it a lot more than interpretative dance.

Robyn pulled out Matt's camera (it was amazing how she managed to remember to bring it for once) and captured photos of their battle, capturing frames of dodges and strikes. Her eyes never left their outfits because of how the camera had captured the movement of the monochromatic fabrics flowing as they fought.

Robyn zoomed into the Queen and noticed how the integrity of their costumes was less sound than she expected. The mismatched fabrics and how the hems were fringing the more they fought. It felt more hand-made, reminiscent of her elective in textiles.

Robyn shuddered at the countless hours she spent cutting, sewing and ironing just to make one skirt.

The three vanished from Robyn's sight as she looked up from the screen of his camera. She whipped her head back, afraid they had spotted her but her surroundings were barren (well, if you ignore the trash).

Robyn deduced that their vanishing was why Matt hadn't caught the King and Queen, not to forget the double threats of fists and cards. Slowly making her way to the front of the restaurant, trying to digest everything she had just watched, Robyn was met with a panting Matt.

"Did Spider-Man show up?" He asked barely between breaths.

"Yeah, he did but Matt, where did you go?" To be completely honest, Robyn found joy in Matt's excuses, never sure of what he was going to say to explain why he and the masked hero had never been in the same room.

"Went to go look for a cop in case he didn't show up." Matt's eyes trailed to the camera in her hand and asked to see the photos she had taken. A bit of her was surprised he knew she had managed to capture photos. Was her dedication to reporting that obvious?

While they clicked through the photos together back at the restaurant to their table- and to where their bags were safely waiting for them, Robyn couldn't shake away her observations on the construction of their costumes.

She stored it in the back of her mind and diverted her attention to the boy in front of her, trying to salvage the rest of their day together.