Mixed POV
MJ's POV
They sat on the buildings ledge, legs swinging as they gazed at the city below them. Michelle wasn't taking any of it in though. Her mind was reeling.
She was not lying when she told Peter she already knew. She had thought he was Spiderman for a while now but she didn't care. As she peered at him out of the corner of her eye, she realised none of it changed her opinion of him. He was still awkward, clumsy as hell and of course kind.
But importantly, he was still a dork.
She asked all the questions she could think to ask and Peter almost seemed relieved to have someone talk to about it. He was rambling 100 miles an hour about his latest version of the web fluid that he was all too eager to show her. She had to admit she was impressed. She knew Peter was smart. In fact, he was probably the smartest in their grade second only to MJ herself. She just didn't realise he was that smart.
"I think it's crazy that Tony Stark made you this suit but you feel the need to modify it," she stated. She couldn't imagine being gifted something by a Billionaire and then trying to make it better.
"He didn't mind," Peter said, a sad smile pulling at his lips. "He encouraged my creativity and said I needed to make the suit my own for it to be truly mine. I adjust the web fluid based on what I experience. There's always some way to improve it."
"Impressive," she said blandly. She was impressed but she found she did not have the strength to put much emotion behind the word. She was exhausted. Her lack of sleep from the last few nights was catching up on her and she couldn't stop taking quick glances at her watch, stomach-dropping each time as it crept closer to 2am. She didn't want to go home, but she needed to. She needed the sleep and it looked like with how tired she was that she would be guaranteed at least a couple of hours before nightmares would wake her up.
Michelle welcomed the distraction of having Peter here with her. She was interested in him and his story. She listened keenly to the stories about how he came to have his powers, his experience with the Avengers and what happened when everyone blipped.
But her mind crept wandering. Dread and anxiety creeping into her chest.
"So what about you?" she just managed to hear Peter ask. "Why are you out here so late?"
"Oh, um," her eyes dropped to her hands. She thought about what she could say but none of it felt right. They sat in silence for a moment and she tried to ignore the intensely focused look Peter had on his face as he watched her. She was sure she looked like shit. She felt like shit.
Eventually, Peter reached over to touch her hand.
"Hey," he said gently. "I know somethings going on. You were off today,"
"I didn't know you watched me so much like a freak," she snapped before she could stop herself. She instantly regretted it as Peter removed his hand and looked away. She saw his ears had turned red at the tips.
"Sorry," he mumbled. "I wasn't watching you like that. I was just-"
"No, no," she said regretfully, placing a hand on his arm. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped like that. You're right. I am off but I don't think I want to talk about it."
She knew she needed to at some point but now wasn't the time. She stared out at the city before her.
"I think I'd rather just sit and be if that makes sense."
Peter nodded at her.
"I know exactly what you mean. We don't have to talk."
So that's what they did. They surveyed the city and the silence would only be broken for moments at a time when Michelle would think of a new question that Peter appeared to be more than happy to answer. If Peter noticed her quick glances at her watch, he never said anything. He seemed happy enough to sit with her and talk. Michelle couldn't lie. It was nice to just be in the company of someone.
At 1:45 am, MJ stood with a groan. Peter jumped to his feet with her, putting a hand on her arm to steady her when she teetered on her feet. She was exhausted. So exhausted.
"I'm sorry," she mumbled. "I've got to go."
"Me too," he nodded. "I'll probably be napping in class tomorrow."
"I'll wake you if you wake me," she offered with a smile and glanced away when he grinned at her.
"Deal."
She slowly made her way down the stairs while trying not to get distracted by Peter crawling down with her, hands and feet sticking perfectly to the brick wall.
When they hit the ground, he put a hand on her arm.
"It probably doesn't need to be said but-"
"I know," she cut him off. "I'm not going to tell on you. I understand why you want it to be a secret. The media loves to tear apart the Avengers so I can only imagine what they'd do to a teenage dork."
"Thanks," he snorted. "I appreciate it."
"You're welcome." She zipped up her jacket and stepped past him, heading out onto the street.
She'd only taken a few steps before he was suddenly beside her.
"I'll walk you home."
"That's not necessary," she shook her head. She didn't want Peter to see where she lived.
"It's late. It's not safe."
MJ raised an eyebrow at him.
"You're saying I can't take care of myself?"
"No, no of course not," he stammered and raked his fingers through his hair. "It's just... I had to deal with something earlier and I would just feel better about myself if I walked you home."
She wanted to argue, but there was a sadness and heaviness to his gaze and before she could stop herself, she found herself nodding.
"Okay, but only to my street."
That was a good enough answer for him. He grinned at her tiredly and they made the short trek to her street.
"Bye, MJ," he waved at her awkwardly when she declared she had it from there.
She mimicked his awkward wave and smile.
"See you tomorrow, Parker."
She looked back after a few steps to find he was gone. She smiled as she walked, feeling a sense of lightness in her chest. The problems of the day were gone, even if it was just for a few moments. ****
Peter's POV
Peter didn't walk her the full way home, but he did watch her. He couldn't bare the thought of letting her go without protection. MJ could take care of herself, but he couldn't shake the still all-consuming tiredness from the incident with Georgia earlier tonight. He followed along the buildings, watching her walk slowly. He frowned when she opened the gate to a building that looked from the outside to be abandoned.
MJ lived there. He knew she wasn't well off. She got into the school on the scholarship like he did, but he hadn't realised it was this bad. The building reeked of abandonment and MJ didn't deserve that.
When she walked through the building, he waited a few minutes before launching from the roof from the building across from hers.
He was tired. He needed to sleep, and he needed to forget about the day.
He thought to himself, as he began the process of swinging home though that despite the physical exhaustion, he also felt better. The problems of the day were gone, even if it was just for a few moments.