Spider-Man and the Red Dahlia

Chapter 4

Tonight was... kind of awesome. For the first time, I sang a song I wrote all by myself and I sang it in front of the boy it's about. It's a relieve that Sadie finally knows I'm The Red Dahlia. Now I don't have to hide it around her anymore and I can actually talk about it with someone. I hope Luke and Ryan don't suspect anything. I want to tell them, but the more people know, the more risk there is.

     In the distance I see a red figure sit on top of the old Avengers Tower. Spider-Man. I think we can be good friends, as superheroes. His voice is quite high, which means he can't be much older than me. But it's not that high that he's not a guy, if that even makes sense.

     I fly up to the tower and hang still in front of him. I imagine a smile coming across his face as he looks up at me. 'Hey, what are you doing out this late?' There's a sad undertone in his voice.

     'Felt like a... flight.' I sit down next to him. 'Everything okay?'

     'Remember that green light we saw last time?' He asks. 'Well, I spot a van that had this green light coming from the back and went after it.'

     'I sense a "but" coming.'

     'I lost it.'

     'But that's not what you're upset about.' I may not be able to see his face, but I can still hear how he's feeling in his voice.

     'I made a promise to a friend. I let him down by going after the van.'

     I know how that feels. I was supposed to go with Sadie to visit a dance school she really wanted to go to after high school some time ago, but superhero business got in the way and I let her down.

     'Does he know that you're-'

     'Yeah. Yeah, he does.' He answers. 'He understood, but I still feel horrible.'

     'That friend doesn't happen to be Peter Parker, does it?' I ask.

     His head shoots up. 'Wha-what? Why would you think that?'

     'Well, there are these two guys who said they knew you and that you would come to a party tonight, but then when you didn't come I decided to go as The Red Dahlia and tell everyone that you were friends with them.' I explain. I can still see Flash's baffled face. Priceless.

     'Why'd you save 'em?' Spider-Man asks.

     I shrug. 'I didn't want them to be tormented over it. At least Flash will leave them alone now.'

     'I hope so.' He mumbles softly. 'Hey, we're friends right?'

     'Of course we are.'

     'Do you ever just have the urge to tell someone who you really are?' He asks. 'To just... grab them and tell them: "I'm Spider-Man".'

     'I think they would tell me I'm crazy if I said I was Spider-Man.'

     He chuckles. 'You know what I mean.'

     'I mean, yeah. My best friend found out tonight, so at least I've got that out of the way. Apparently it was "obvious".'

     'There's this girl.' I turn my head, immediately interested. 'I want to tell her, but I can't.'

     'Why not?'

     'I don't really know her. Every time I see her I just want to go up to her, kiss her and tell her the truth.'

     I can't help but smile. 'I have someone like that too.' I wish I could tell Peter, but it's just not smart. I want to be honest with him, I want him to know me. All he knows is Mush Mal. 'Ask her out.'