Chapter Text
This is why she avoided human interaction.
Besides their tendency to be annoying, bunny slutted twats, the smartest could still qualify to be the most irresponsible freaks she came to the unenjoyable fate to meet.
Seriously, how much thoughtless space can a brain on the Decathalon team have room for to forget a laptop?
Enough, it seems, as it’s laid in front of her on her mattress, nothing more than just extra, pain in the ass weight she had to carry home. Of course, it was the only day out of, well, ever, that her phone was dead and her dad had taken her charger to work; therefore, she would not be able to deal with this the easy way and simply ask which idiot decided to leave it.
MJ sighed, letting air escape from her lips to blow some of her mask of hair out of her face, adjusted her criss-cross position and opened the screen. Luckily but stupidly enough, the home screen greeted her instead of a login screen. She smirked nevertheless her low hope of hacking skills coming into use.
After mindlessly searching everywhere for a name, MJ must give her loser one thing; he or she does know how to hide identity. There was no name anywhere, and although the search history was deleted, the only thing she managed to get from the ‘Recently Deleted’ tab was links to videos of that spider dude going around the streets. Rules out Flash. The videos are just too much attention on another individual he would be able to muster. When MJ just decided the person would just have to wait for their precious no-name laptop back, her aimless clicking brought up something that caught her attention. Pictures and Videos.
Well, no shit. She bit her lip in punishment for not thinking of it sooner and leaned forward so her head would rest on her hand.
MJ clicked on the folder. The tab was empty all but for one thing, which was yet another folder, this one labeled ‘Untitled’. She clicked on that one, which led her to the following replica, and repeated the process enough times to make sure the thing wasn't glitching. Sure enough, she was answered when she was met with row and rows of loading pictures or videos. Impatient, MJ clicked on a random one, hoping it would carry some sort of indication of the owner.
And then Peter Parker’s face filled the screen.
Well, that was easier than she expected. Although MJ never thought of him as much of a nerd to be watching endless videos of the spider freak, she turned over her shoulder to see the home phone on her dresser. Too far. Besides, Peter’s probably too ‘crazy busy’ at his internship to realize his laptop is gone, much less answer an unknown number. Why not entertain herself?
She barely turned back in time before Peter's voice boomed from the video, enough for MJ to be startled and turn down the volume. She only got out a whole mix of “It was amazing !” and something about the infamous Mr. Stark and running or jumping and holy shit did he just do a backflip to get the door?
And then a man, one she had never pictured to be his father, basically told him to keep it down. Even with the slight confusion in her mind of where the fuck he was, she found a hint of amusement in his excitable state.
But confusion took over and her curiosity brought her to another, this time, with him in a car. With Mr. Stark. Well, she guessed, at least the possibility of his Stark internship has been increased, and she sort of understood the first video she watched, which likely was the night after his first day. But then, ‘retreat’? In sarcastic quotes? Okay, now she was going to bust the druggie.
MJ clicked on another random one, earlier than the second so she may get a simple look into his ‘retreat’.
“Okay, Peter. You got this, you got this.” The video opened with Peter in some sort of, what kind of retreat was this where he had to dress like an arctic swimmer?
Before MJ could ask herself, his father asked for her. “ What the Hell are you wearing?”
The camera panned up and down Arctic-Swimmer-Wannabe’s outfit. “It’s my suit.”
“Where's the case.”
“What case?” the clip cut to Arctic-Swimmer-Wannabe following his dad. "Hey C'mon man- What? I thought that was a closet. This is still my room?” She didn't think he could get anymore dorkier than how he was with Liz. it was always courteous. Nevertheless, this proved her wrong; but it wasn't as painful. “Woah, ok my room is way bigger than I thought.” His father in the background was just telling him please and something she couldn't pick up. “Alright, alright look I found the case.” and he did actually, which was silver and big and overall something one would pick off a movie set regarding a money exchange. Peter picked up a note and read the text, A minor upgrade.
He unlatched the locks and it opened and oh.
She didn't even need to wait for the part where his dad told him to put it on - Happy? He calls his dad happy? Oh, that's bait. That's…
Everything just clicked . And it was so obvious that she was surprised she hasn't even called him out on it yet - even on accident. But that's where her surprise ended. She smirked, shook her head and continued to the next video. And the next. And the next. And then it was over, nothing else but random pictures of everyone on their Decathlon team, some notes, lego things... nothing surprising. Her eyes started to droop and she closed Peter’s laptop.it found its way to her dresser as MJ figured it would be considerable to not panic peter too much, assuming he was home, even after his nightly stroll as a spider dude.
She picked up the house phone and looked at the dials. Which one was he again? Going with the one that was two numbers off from her mother, she put the phone to her ear.
One ring.
Two.
Three.
“Hey, this is Ned. who are you?” MJ rolled her eyes.
“Dick-wad, its MJ. Give me Peter’s number.” after a rambling of protests and that she should be nicer when asking for things, she was given his digits.
Five rings.
“H-Hello?” Rustling was in the background, but the voice was the same one she spent listening to for endless videos.
“Hey, loser. You forgot your laptop at the meeting. I got it.” Everything silenced in his end but a small noise that she would think he made as he sat down somewhere.
“MJ. Hi.”
“Did you hear me? Or do you need ears along with a new credibility lever.”
“Yeah, yeah. I heard you. Um, did you get a new phone? This number isn't in my contacts -”
“Nope. Night.” and with that, she hung up.
----
The ceiling looked like a book that night.
Sometimes it was a number line, sometimes the world. Sometimes a poisonous tree frog’s brain. But tonight, it was a simple book.
Of every single thing only she had witnessed this spider mutant do. Just what she'd seen herself because fuck rumors and the news. Any kind. Especially the school morning news.
She was across the street when he stole a bike from a reckless biker, the one that knocked into her and her books as she had made way outside the library for maybe twenty times by then.
And when he saved her team from that slave-built-tower - despite almost being shot.
She just happened to look out her window to see a ferry cut in half, but still breaking the laws of gravity no doubt due to the same freak.
And although she never really thought of anyone else, picturing Peter was really, really hard.
She's always been suspicious of him, leaving early, coming late, maybe not coming at all. But she was sure he was in a drug dealing mafia or something. Not this .
Although, the more she thought, the more she stared, the more she was able to conjure his face under the mask, he ears making prominent dents at the sides. And his heart in the spandex shit. High tech spandex shit, but spandex shit.
And thinking every reason why it no doubt was him and every stupid thing he's done because of it just made her smirk and shake her head. Because the more she imagined, the more she knew that she knew.