As Luck Would Have It

30) Fireworks

"Oh Shit"

The two teens came over the bridge that crossed the freeway, their jaws dropping at the sight in front of them. In the growing twilight, hundreds, maybe thousands, of people were swarming around the main plaza of the lakefront. Street vendors all parked along the sides, hoping to sell their products as families, groups of friends, others found spots on the grass further down the bank.

"Uh... where are we supposed to meet your dad?"

"Over by the café" Michelle answered, pointing out a small shack near the edge of the water.

"How are we going to find them in this?" Peter complained.

"I don't know..." Michelle said sarcastically, "think spidey could give us an assist."

"Ha," Peter huffed, "I hope your joking, cause' there is no way I'm risking myself in front of all these people."

"Why not?" she argued, "at the rate you're going, you'll be forced to reveal your secret because of how many times you've let it slip."

"Michelle!"

"Relax loser, alright," she conceived, "I was just kidding. I know you want it under wraps."

They nodded to each other, bringing the topic to a close as they strolled along the edges of the large crowd. Making their way to the shack, people cut in front of them, walked in between them, forcing the two to flip between walking side-by-side and behind the other.

Finally, they reached the shack, and not long after, Frank came walking up. He informed them that he had to arrange a spot for the picnic group and that he would be there for the duration of the show. Michelle asked Peter what he wanted to do, and he asked the same, resulting in Frank making a deal with them.

"You two can hang around here for a while and when you're ready, come over by us. Just let me know where you are if I need to call" were his words, and he left the two teens to enjoy the night.

Peter and Michelle came around to a ledge that over looked the patio bordering the water. "Do you wanna find a place to watch?" Michelle asked.

"Actually," he confided, "right here is fine. We have a great view of the lake, I can look out over the crowd for any trouble."

Michelle snickered, "Peter, you are too much."

"Anything could happen," he snorted, "I just like to be prepared if something does."

"I'm just sayin' it's okay to take a little break every once in a while" she added. She had never seen Peter behave this way and it was kind of fun to watch. Not just because she could make fun of him doing it, but it was like watching a cuter version of Austin Powers snooping around a crime scene. And to make it foolishly cooler, she thought of herself as his Foxxy Cleopatra. It made her feel a bit more confident that she was hanging out with a superhero. Even better because it was her dorky, loser, classmate, Peter.

"Is that what you do?" Peter asked, wondering if she ever put life on pause to have some fun. Michelle pondered the thought for a while, not sure how to describe her situation.

"I don't know. I mean, do I seem like someone that would go out looking for fun?"

"Fun is a relative term MJ," Peter replied, "your idea of fun may be different from mine."

"Well... I do enjoy a new book once in a while" she continued, earning a nod from Peter, knowing that she would say something about reading. "But even that can get boring sometimes. And I don't think my social life will be going anywhere as long as people continue to see me as a dry and unapproachable person."