Black Webs

The Adventures of Daphne & Scrappy-Doo

Which one of us will look away?
Say the words that we don't say?

xxxxx

s e v e n:

L y d i a

His words had held hypnotic properties.

It wasn't her fault. He'd utterly astonished her, caught her off guard, torn down her unbreakable facade with his bare hands. Stiles had always been vocal about how he felt about her, but she couldn't recall him ever being this... bold about it.

Lydia hadn't been sure what to do when their faces had suddenly gotten so close to each other. She'd felt like she was standing on shore, watching a tidal wave approaching and her feet were sinking into the sand; her brain wasn't functional and all she could do was gawk helplessly.

There were all these emotions suddenly bubbling up to the surface, emotions she'd never fathomed before, emotions she didn't even know existed. Stiles had gotten too close. His breath smelt like clove and mints.

There were shooting stars in his eyes; they were golden masterpieces in the moonlight. There were beauty spots adorning his lower cheek and the side of his face. Lydia was close enough to count every discernible vein on his neck. She was close enough to watch his tendons flex and when those cupid's lips had almost brushed against hers, she'd gained some semblance back.

Lydia Martin was many things, but she didn't like leading people on. Of course, that was just the excuse she was going to use.

The truth was rather bittersweet. Lydia wasn't afraid of what he felt for her, she was afraid of what she felt for him in return.

She refused to kiss him, not until she was absolutely sure.

Before silence blanketed them again, Lydia scooted closer to him and dropped her head on his shoulder. He stiffened for a few seconds, but eased into it, even wrapping an arm around her waist. "You know what?" she intoned.

"What?" he murmured hoarsely, without straining to look at her.

"I still can't believe that you're Spiderman."

"Neither can I."

They spent the next twenty minutes in comfortable silence, watching the glimmer of traffic and headlights and listening to the city sounds and eyeing the towering skyscrapers that itched to touch sunshine and starlight.

In that moment, with her head nuzzled against him, and her eyes scanning the world, she thought about all of the things that had been, all the things that hadn't been.

And all the things that were yet to be.

xxxxx

As Lydia walked to her car on that rainy Tuesday morning, she felt like she was seeing the world in new colors, colors that nobody had even defined yet.

Everything felt raw, different. Lydia felt more aware of the world around her. The wake-up routine had been normal, she was dressed in a blue long-sleeved t-shirt and a black miniskirt complimented by wedges. She made a braided headband in her strawberry-blonde hair and wore her regular amount of make-up.

She grabbed some breakfast and began to drive to school. Lydia began wondering about everything. She wondered if the birds perched on the trees were secretly dragons. She wondered if that guy in the trench coat crossing the road in a frantic hurry was secretly a crime-solving detective. She wondered if every spec of red or blue was Spiderman sailing the winds like water. She wondered if there were wolves sauntering about the shrubbery.