Leaves were starting to turn different shades of red, orange, and yellow. The air had turned crisp and cool, and the warm smell of pumpkin spice and cinnamon followed Peter everywhere he went. It isn’t his fault May loved the candle section of every store they went to. He’d just stopped to grab a few ingredients from the store for his time spent at the Jones’ apartment. He knew Michelle’s dad wasn’t home very often, leaving her to take care of her little siblings mostly by herself - sometimes her older brother would be there.
In all, she had four siblings with her smack dab in the middle. Mason, Malcolm, Michelle, Marley, and Maverick. Mason had moved out as soon as he could, which left Malcolm to take care of a twelve year old Michelle and four year old Marley. He wasn’t able to do much, but it was enough to keep the family going. Mason would send gifts and cards from wherever he was, their mom worked abroad, and their dad was working extra hours at his 9-5.
Then, Maverick was born. That’s when Peter finally met MJ. She’d told him a little bit about her siblings, but then closed back up. Over the course of two years, Peter and MJ had become close friends. And maybe Peter got a tiny crush, but that’s not important. What’s important is getting the brownie mix and cookie ingredients over to their apartment without the bag ripping. He’d spent what little extra cash he had left making sure he’d be able to make her and her family smile for at least an hour or two. Well, that’s actually the goal he just hopes he can actually do it.
He did his knock, two fast then three slow, and Malcolm opened it just a few moments later. Peter smiled, the older teen moved to the side, and he stepped in. “Don’t mind the mess,” was his passive greeting - it was the same he always gave. Clothes were thrown aside on the living room floor, laundry that was long forgotten. Marley and Maverick were laughing from down their short hall, and MJ was in the kitchen. She sat in her chair at their small table and read her third favorite book.
Her room was no longer a safe haven. Marley made sure to spread all of her short lived obsessions throughout the room, leaving Michelle with no option but to find someplace else to read in peace. Malcolm sat back down in the living room and started to fold the clothes from the dark blue laundry basket, one Peter had never seen before. His guess was that Marley broke the old basket trying to push Maverick around in it. The two year old had loved it, no doubt, but after cutting a corner too close and crashing had cut their fun short with a sour end.
Walking over to MJ, he set the bags down on the counter. Peter smiled, “I have a great idea for today.” Michelle looked up from her book, took a look at the target bags, and sighed. “I promise it won’t be as bad as last time,” Peter reassured, “we just have to make sure to watch the timer.” MJ stood up and looked in the bags. She knew this was either going to end great or horribly, there’s little to no in between with Peter Parker. She was borderline praying to a god she didn’t believe in to keep her kitchen from exploding.
The ingredients, now spread out on the counter, were ready to be put together. She was glad her friend had brought a carton of eggs and some milk, but wasn’t completely prepared to clean up whatever mess this made.
Peter started with the cookies, making them from scratch. He’d promised her some of his great-great grandmother’s chocolate chip cookies almost a year ago. She guessed late is better than never. He mixed the batter as she read her book and everything was nice for a moment. The window slightly ajar, the apartment wasn’t too cold but it wasn’t hot either, Malcolm’s cop show was playing in the background, and a small humming coming from the kitchen.
It was times like these that MJ enjoyed the most. Peter had helped her with actually shooting for her goals. She doesn’t want to be like her oldest brother, but she doesn’t want to stay here forever. Filmmaking sounded interesting, and she had the perfect idea for some diversity in the movie industry. All she needed was the chance to prove her worth and a few thousand bucks. She takes that back, she’ll need more than that but for now it’s still a dream.
The cookies were finally mixed with the chocolate and put into the oven. Now, they had to wait. Only a minute or two into the baking process is when the youngest two inhabitants of the Jones household come barreling into the kitchen.
Marley’s eyes were wide, “Are you making cookies?” Peter laughed and nodded. He’d always been good with them, something Michelle knows she shouldn’t be surprised about, and is pleased with how well he fits into their family. “Yup,” he answered as Maverick and Marley came closer. “We just have to wait nine more minutes before we can take them out.”
Marley groaned. She was by far the most impatient out of the five siblings. Peter turned to Maverick and picked him up, setting him on his left hip to start the brownies. Marley ran off into the living room to watch the TV with Malcolm, and Michelle returned to reading. A faint click in the background started their beat up radio that could only play a single station. Peter finally started on the brownie mix with Maverick helping in his own way.
The toddler was set down on the counter after the eggs were cracked and the milk was poured. Then, Peter started to mix and fold the brownie batter, occasionally swatting away tiny hands. Their electric mixer had broken a few days ago after a minor mishap. He doesn’t care what MJ might try and tell anyone it was minor and he did not blow anything up. The mixing was done, the batter was in a brownie tray, and Maverick was back on his hip.
The song changed and Peter turned his attention to the radio. The teen smiled and reached to turn it up a little, loud enough for MJ to hear the song clearly. Maverick was bouncing on his hip as he danced, and MJ let out a low breath. It was between a laugh and a sigh. The spatula he used to mix became a microphone, and with one last spin, started mouthing along to the lyrics as he looked at Maverick.
“The night we met I knew I needed you so,
And if I had the chance I'd never let you go.”
Maverick giggled and Marley started to turn her attention away from the show. MJ knew that whatever was to come was going to turn the kitchen into a mess as soon as her sister got involved.
“So won't you say you love me,
I'll make you so proud of me,
We'll make 'em turn their heads every place we go.”
MJ could feel the mood starting to rise, and Marley was making her way over as Maverick and Peter danced.
“So won't you, please,
(Be my, be my baby) Be my little baby,
(My one and only baby) Say you'll be my darlin',”
Peter jumped up and down, shifting his weight from one leg to another. The spatula microphone was handed off to Marley as she came over to sing. MJ set down her book, something Peter noticed, and watched.
His timer went off, he flashed a look to the oven then looked back to her and smiled. He started to dance his way over to her chair.
“(Be my, be my baby) Be my baby now.
Wha-oh-oh-oh”
Peter pulled her up out of her chair and brought her close. He started to sway instead of jump, placing her hand on his shoulder.
“I'll make you happy, baby, just wait and see,
For every kiss you give me, I'll give you three.”
He backed her away from the table and spun her, going into a dip. He handed Maverick off to her, the boy giggling the entire way, and started to make his way back to the oven. Malcolm had looked over and gave her a flat look as he air quoted “friends”.
“Oh, since the day I saw you,
I have been waiting for you,
You know I will adore you 'til eternity.”
The cookies were out of the oven and set out onto the counter. Marley made a grab for them but Peter caught her wrist. He knew the feeling of burning both his hand and tongue on fresh cookies and planned to keep her from suffering the same fate as him. (Aka, refusing to spit it out and doing that weird mix of breathing and trying to fan his mouth with his hands.) Instead, he pulled the girl into a spin.
They started to dance towards the other two as the chorus repeated. MJ rolled her eyes but smiled. This is why she likes him so much. His dorky boldness that made him confident enough to spin and dip her but kept him from being able to ask the waiter for extra ketchup. Maverick was swaying back and forth with her, a smile growing on her lips.
Marley and Peter swung their arms and jumped. Peter pulled Marley in for a hug and she screamed and laughed before returning it. “Okay, I think the cookies should be ready now,” He said. Marley pulled out of their hug and ran over, swiping two. She ran back into the living room, “Thanks, Peter!”
He put the brownies in as the song was coming to an end. MJ was still swaying with Maverick. Her smile had turned warm, and Peter took a moment to burn it into his memory. Dishes were slowly making their way to the sink as Peter moved around the kitchen. The song ended, and the kitchen was silent for a beat. Then, strings and piano started to play. MJ knew exactly what song this was.
She looked up to see him looking at her with a smile. But he had this little smile, the corner of his lip tugging up hopefully, coupled with a sincere, imploring look in his big brown eyes - and it got her every. single. time. Since the very beginning of their friendship, too. She was annoyed that this random kid from Queens could make her chest tighten up, but in a good way. She didn’t even know that chests could tighten up in a good way until she saw The Smile.
He swaggered over in her direction and the need to roll her eyes came back to her, but was distracted by a hand being placed on the arm holding up Maverick. Her free hand was placed on his right shoulder, and the space between them lessened. She broke away, set down her little brother, and moved back in. Two could play this game. Taking the same position as before but with his left hand in hers, they started to move.
He recovered quicker than expected. They danced around the kitchen. Somewhere caught between swaying and a poorly done waltz. Peter wasn’t the most graceful, which was ironic all things considered, but MJ had studied dance when she was younger. She watched videos and tried to copy all the spins and leaps the women would do on-screen. Young her was mesmerized by how fluently they moved. She guessed she did learn something from all those videos, take that Malcolm.
“At last,
The skies above are blue,
My heart was wrapped up in clover,
The night I looked at you.”
The smell of brownies were starting to take over from the cookies and it made the apartment warmer. The bustle from the outside could still be heard, Peter still smelled like pumpkin spice candles that his aunt had definitely bought from the clearance section at target, and Marley’s distant-but-not-too-distant jabber was still going on in the background. MJ looked up to finally meet his eyes. She almost had to look away, the pure amount of emotion in his eyes almost made her want to run away and lock herself in her room for the rest of the day. She doesn’t know how to deal with her best friend feeling the way she isn’t even sure she feels. MJ knows it’s something but doesn’t want to address it yet because that would make it real.
They both look away, and the song is starting to wrap up. She takes a step forward, meaning to steer them in a new direction, but he had the same idea. He stepped on her foot and they pulled away from each other. She jumped back with a quiet “ouch!” as Peter stood there frozen. Finally , she thought, the awkward dorkiness is back. I can deal with that.
They made eye contact then started to laugh. Michelle’s laugh was melodious and loud, while Peter’s was soft but ebullient. Their composure came back and all they could do was grin. At each other, at the cookies, at the dancing, and at the brownies that are almost done.
Everything had cooled off, and Peter had finished cutting. Their apartment smelled and felt cozy. Malcolm and the kids came over to take their pick of the treats. The two teens stood off to the side and waited, content with each other’s presence.
Hours passed, the cookies and brownies mostly gone, and enough cop shows to drive MJ crazy. Peter checked the time and sprang up out of his seat on the couch. The sun was starting to dip lower in the sky and left streaks of color in the clouds. The street lamps were minutes away from turning on, which left a slightly panicked teen to collect his things and go.
Obvious disdain could be heard from the younger half of the siblings. Peter did his best to quickly reassure them he’ll be back before they know it and grabbed his house key. MJ looked back, right before he made it out the door, and gave him her best version of The Smile. It almost landed its mark, hitting just slightly to the left. Peter gave her a smile back and waved. Thoughts of giving him a hug or saying an actual goodbye flashed in her mind but were sent away with a wave of nervousness. She can’t mess up what they have now.
Peter left. MJ was still on their old, creaky couch thinking of all the things she could’ve, should’ve done to speed this up. She knows. She knows he has this thing for her, and that she has this thing for him, but it’s too complicated to put into words. She wouldn’t turn him down but the fear of making things bad between them left them both coming just short. All they needed was an extra push. Maybe an outside force like the video Malcolm had taken of the two dancing being sent to May Parker. Who, later that night, would tease her nephew about his crush, making him truly realize what that funny feeling was.
But for now, she likes what they have. MJ wants it to stay the way it is until...an undetermined date. Yeah, their future could wait on them if she had to wait for one of them to get the guts to ask the other out. It’s only fair. Still, neither one would complain if time sped up and got them to the climax of their story.