poison | parker | book one

CHAPTER THREE

[PURELY PLATONIC]

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Mari pulled her phone from her bra and unlocked it, going to contacts.

She selected the contact labeled 'Mama.'

Her thumb hovered over the call button, and she pressed it. The phone rang numbly when she put it to her ear. It went to voicemail.

Good, she thought. She wouldn't have to argue with her mom about something she couldn't change.

After the beep, she said, "I'm sorry for leaving, Mama. I didn't want to wake you. My friend's alone tonight, and she had a panic attack. It was really bad. I had to rush over, I didn't even grab my charger... My phone's dying, but I'll be home tomorrow night. I'm going to school, so don't worry about that. I have a group project in anatomy, so I'm meeting with Peter Parker to finish that up after school. Like I said, I'll be home tomorrow night. My phone's dying so goodbye, I love you, Mama. Tell Nina I love her."

She hung up.

Her stomach writhed, and she felt terrible about lying to her mom, and lying so well.

Mari set her phone down and visited the bathroom, where she found the one and only window of her little suite.

She sat on the edge of the empty bathtub, watching the night sky. The moon rested on the skyline and few lights were on.

She didn't know how much time passed, but she couldn't see the moon when she left her room. Mari's feet took her down the halls and corridors and found an open living room area.

She wandered farther and into a kitchen. She poured Cheerios into a ceramic bowl and milk onto them.

She ate silently and alone at the breakfast bar. Mari's thoughts wandered from her nails to the daffodils she brought home for her sister to her lab partner being a superhero. It seemed like a lifetime passed in a matter of hours.

Footsteps.

Her head rose to see Peter walking in. He was dressed in flannel pajama pants and a plain tee.

Tube socks were bunched up on his feet, and his brown hair was tousled in a mess of bed head.

She raised a brow.

"Evening, or morning, depending on how you see it."

"Morning," he grumbled. He vaguely wanted Cheerios, but instead he asked her if she'd like to see the training room. His brain didn't quite comprehend exactly why he asked that, but he remembered when he felt the padded floor beneath his socks.

She looked around at the cavernous room.

By now, Peter was a bit more awake. He decided to show her his abilities a bit. Peter walked on the walls and shot some webs. After a handful of jokes, he asked if she'd show him her abilities.

Her abilities, right.

"No," she said at first. "They're dishonorable and they're draining."