Two Types of Chemistry
As much as Peter appreciated the hours of uninterrupted sleep last night, courtesy of his bout of unconsciousness, he did not appreciate how it affected his schoolwork. Peter managed to complete one assignment yesterday, a stupid math worksheet that he literally might have done in his sleep. He skates by in English and History with minimal issue, citing a headache when his sweet English teacher asks. His history teacher doesn’t even give him a second glance.
The rest of his classes, however, are far less laid back. Harrison gives him shit for not doing his chemistry worksheet and Flash turns his entire fucking body around in his desk to watch. Gloating bastard. His Spanish teacher might have literally cursed him out in another language, but he’d have to understand more than the basics to actually confirm it. Of course, Flash watches that, too.
As bitchy as Flash was acting while the teachers were looking, he actually held a conversation with Peter in chemistry.
“What the fuck happened, Parker?” Flash asks him out of the blue as the two are sat in dead silence at their lab table. While the lab is technically over, the two boys both prefer to spread out over a table rather than at a small desk. Peter is too tired to move, though he wishes he didn’t have to see Flash after their interactions earlier.
“What?” Peter asks, genuinely confused.
“The homework, dumbass,” Flash retorts. Peter almost thinks he can see the other boy blushing.
“Just didn’t feel like it, I guess,” Peter lies. His left hand refuses to stop shaking no matter how hard he clenches it.
“Bullshit,” Flash states. Peter balks. “You know I’m right, Parker. What’s your fucking deal?”
Peter ponders for a second. I don’t know, lifetime bully, maybe it’s because I haven’t eaten a meal in four days and I have a frisbee-sized scar healing on my stomach and I broke my leg last week. Oh, and I have a knife wound crusting over on my arm.
“Tired, I guess,” he decides.
Flash looks like he wants to say something but holds back, nodding as something just shy of annoyance covers his features. They spend the rest of the class in silence, only interrupted by the occasional stomach growl on Peter’s behalf. He’s too tired to be embarrassed.
---
Flash: Do your homework.
Peter nearly throws his phone when the message comes through at 10 pm.
Peter: seriously dude
Peter slips out of his suit and ducks into the shower, rinsing off and scrubbing the grime of patrol from his skin. When he gets out, he has three missed notifications.
Flash: Yes, seriously.
Flash: I can’t have my lab partner failing chemistry, it’s embarrassing.
Flash: Don’t ignore me, Parker.
Peter giggles. Flash is kind of needy. It’s cute. He shakes his head, none of that tonight.
Peter: i was showering asshole
Peter: better get to it then id hate to embarrass my genius partner
At this point, Peter is done questioning why Flash texts him. Maybe he’s bored, maybe he’s nosey, Peter doesn’t really care. All Peter knows is that the notifications make his heart skip a beat and he feels just a little bit less lonely basking in the glow of his phone’s screen.
Three dots dance across Peter’s screen for nearly an entire minute as Flash types. Peter’s chest aches as he watches them, wondering what he said wrong. Should he not have mentioned showering? Did the compliment feel too genuine? Does he… know? Peter doesn’t even know what he thinks Flash knows, whether it’s Spidey or his big fat crush he doesn’t care. He doesn’t even know which one he’d prefer.
Flash: If you’re having trouble with any of the problems you can ask me.
What?
Seriously, what?
Peter is floored. That’s… nice. It’s helpful, it’s caring, it’s not something a bully would say. Peter is so fucking confused.
Peter: ...thanks?
Flash: Don’t make this weird.
Peter: noted
Peter: i honestly havent even started
Peter: but i guess ill let you know?
Flash: Holy shit you really are such a dumbass. Start your fucking homework it’s like 11 at night.
Peter: ok ok im going
Peter takes out his chemistry textbook. He was ready to give up just 20 minutes ago, yet now he’s sitting down at his desk for the first time in days to actually do homework. This is the Twilight Zone.
Ok, so Peter might be a little behind in chemistry.
Peter: hey uh were you serious about asking for help
Peter: cause what the literal fuck is chapter 7
Peter waits for six minutes with sweaty hands and a racing heart as he waits for Flash to respond. Was this a joke? Now he looks like an idiot.
Flash: Yes. Hang on.
Oh. Okay.
Flash: [image.jpg]
Flash: These are my notes from today.
Peter: thanks !!!!!!
Flash: You’d think I just donated an organ, Jesus, Parker. It’s chill.
Peter smiles. Maybe he’ll be okay.
---
Flash spends the next two and a half weeks helping Peter with chemistry. The two text nearly every night, Flash sending his chemistry notes with little jerky annotations that Peter learns are aimed directly at him. Flash has basically started writing him notes in class. He tries not to let his heart skip a beat, though he fails each time.
With every passing day, Peter’s crush grows stronger. Flash gets more comfortable with him over text, sending him shitty little voice memos to tease Peter about his complete and utter confusion. His dark skin flushes beautifully when Peter compliments his chemistry knowledge, the other boy ducking his head to try to hide it.
Flash has also started eating in chemistry. The class lies in the middle of the day, right after their unsatisfyingly meager school-provided lunch. Flash is probably just hungry because of the absolute shit that they feed the students, or maybe he's just bored as shit; but, for some reason, he starts bringing snacks to chemistry class.
At first, Peter just stares. He tries not to, he swears, but the food is just right there and Peter is so, so hungry. Flash must notice, a few days into it, and he starts to offer chips or pieces of his granola bars to Peter like it’s nothing. As if he isn’t offering Peter a lifeline, as if Peter deserves anyone else’s sustenance. Peter declines, for two days, before he gives in. By the end of the first week, Peter is taking chips from Flash’s outstretched hand without a second glance. By the middle of the second week, Flash has started to bring a duplicate of his snacks and dropping them in front of Peter without a word.
On the first day, Peter tries to decline the duplicate snack. Guilt from eating even a part of Flash's food had been eating away at him for the past few days, churning with the endless hunger in his gut as he tries not to cry at the sound of Flash’s granola bar wrapper tearing. Flash just glares at him, saying something about “not letting it go to waste,” and suddenly Peter feels even more guilty for trying to decline the extra food. He doesn’t try to reject it again, and Flash grants him a small smile each time Peter accepts one of his strange offerings with shaky hands.
They sit closer together at the lab table, now, knees nearly touching when Flash man-spreads to impress the girls in the class. Peter tries not to flinch away. Sometimes, he doesn't fail.