Talk Me Down // Spider-Man (BOOK 2)

Chapter 4 - You Left Me

"Good morning New Yorkers. We're looking forward to another beautiful day here in the city...Increases in sightings of Spider-Man have sparked a national debate on the role of vigilantes in American crime fighting. Just last night on Manhattan Bridge he saved at least a dozen lives. We want to hear your calls. Some folks think there might be more than one man. What do you think? One guy or many?"

"Aunt Penny, can you switch the radio off? It's giving me a blinding headache." Enough of that, thank you. He's literally everywhere.

"Sure sweetie. Is everything ok?"

"Yeah, fine. We just need to get this packing finished. Maybe we did do this too fast. I don't know how we've managed to sell the house, find me an apartment and get everything boxed in only 3 weeks. It's crazy."

"I know it is pretty fast. If we hadn't have gone ahead with everything like we did though, I fear I would have lost my nerve and changed my mind about this trip. Oh Lauren honey, if you hadn't brought it up I doubt I would have ever taken the jump. I'm going to live out one of my dreams because of you. I can't thank you enough."

"It's me that should be thanking you. I don't know how I would have gotten through the last year without you. Maybe it's time now that I try and get some independence. I rely too much on other people. I need to try and make it on my own for a while."

"I can't say that I won't worry about you, but as long as you keep me updated on what you're up to and you don't get yourself into any trouble then I'm sure everything will be ok."

"It will be Aunt Pen."

"Maybe it's time I bite the bullet and tell May. She won't be happy about it. I have to pick up the moving van in a few hours and I want to let her know before then. I hope she'll be ok."

"She will be. I'll keep in contact with her and make sure everything's ok. Plus, she's got Peter. She'll be fine." Why did I have to bring him into it?

"Honey, I don't like to ask, but what is going on with you and Peter? You were so close, and at graduation you seemed to be building bridges." She genuinely looked concerned. I'm not surprised. To an outsider we were two people who had gone from being inseparable to strangers more or less over night. She didn't know the reasons why, the ins and outs. She wouldn't ever know.

"Nothing's going on with me and Pete. We both decided that it was getting too heavy and we needed some space. We're both really young and I want to concentrate on getting a new job, my application to NYU. I can't do that if I've got a full time boyfriend."

"As long as you're happy sweetie, that's all that matters to me."

"I am happy. I will be anyway."

A few hours later Aunt Penny and I started loading the moving van we'd rented for the next two days. It was decided that furniture, appliances and other various items that I could use in my apartment would be coming with me. They were being picked up along with all the other heavy items by removal guys the next day. I'd also be taking boxes of personal stuff as well. Things I could just store away. They'd be moved in the van by me and Aunt Pen. Everything else would be going into storage near to where I was staying. Once Aunt Penny was back from her year round trip then she'd come stay with me for a while and we'd work out what to do from there.

I'm not gonna lie, my new apartment wasn't exactly an executive suite at the The St. Regis but it would do. It was in Midtown, slap bang in the middle of Hell's Kitchen. It was actually a good size. That was reflected in the price for sure, with rent and utilities it worked out around two grand a month. I thought it was a crazy amount, and my savings from Oscorp were no way gonna cover it. I was happy to look for something else, but Aunt Pen was having none of it. She wanted me in a nice area, where she wouldn't have to worry. I'd be halfway between Gwen on the Upper West Side and my prospective college NYU. I'd also be close to job opportunities and near to the subway if I wanted to visit a certain Parker residence. She paid the landlord a full years rent up front without me knowing. I was so angry at her. She said it didn't even make a dent in how much she'd made for the house, plus she would be staying once she got back and she wanted to be safe in the knowledge that she would be returning somewhere nice. All I had to pay were the monthly bills. I could cover that. I have to admit, I was pretty excited to go out into the big wide world on my own. I couldn't have done it without her. I'm going to miss her so much.