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Every second counts, Peter can feel the clock ticking as he sprints down the street weaving through the hoards of people. Of all the times for Peter to forget to plug his phone in before bed why did it have to be when he's supposed to wake up early so he can do a presentation on his research? If he doesn't absolutely nail it he won't get the grant he needs to continue. It would mean an end to all his research. To having access to a lab with the most gorgeous equipment he's ever scene.
And he's going to lose it all over his phone. Normally he can remember to plug it in but he got in late from patrolling and just barely managed to wiggle out of his suit before crashing in bed.
The really hard pill to swallow though, is even though he was probably going to make it, all his rushing has been for naught. Deadpool of all people is fighting a ninja on campus. A ninja. For one brief moment Peter thinks he can just run past the incident only a stray shuriken catches a students thigh, making them scream and clutch at their leg. Deadpool isn’t really the greatest at keeping collateral damage to a minimum. If Peter doesn’t step in now who knows how the situation will escalate?
Peter's just about to duck into an alcove to get into his spider suit when it dawns on him that in his haste he left his suit is balled up under his bed. Great. Perfect. Typical.
Peter doesn’t have time to second guess himself so he turns back to the fight instead of joining he hollers out, “hey, move this fight off campus!”
“Sure thing, Spidey!” Deadpool hollers back, dodging back with a flip from the short blade the ninja is wielding.
There is literally a ninja fight going on and yet people are staring at Peter. Boring old grad student Peter who most definitely is not wearing his Spider-Man suit. Did Deadpool even look at him or did he just recognize his voice? Which, if he did wow, he didn’t think Deadpool was ever really listening to anything he said.
Whatever the reason for Deadpool’s outburst, he listens and quickly ends the fight (non-lethal, he really must be listening). Peter stays just long enough to see Deadpool procure some zip ties from one of his many pouches to secure the ninja’s wrists before Peter runs off to see if he can still make his presentation.
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The faculty had never been so embarrassed as to have their top student half an hour late to his own presentation. Apparently they had really talked Peter up beforehand and it doesn’t reflect well on them to have Peter be so disrespectful of their time. Blah, blah. Honestly, if they hadn’t then the representatives from the grant comity probably would have left and Peter would never had the chance to argue in favor of continuing his research. Which, with how impressed they seemed seems like a sure thing. Not that he wants to jinx it. But it’s definitely a sure thing.
The feeling has him giddy, he wants to have his suit on and be swinging through the city now . The plan is immediately scrapped when he exits the building to find Deadpool is walking around campus. He’s stopping people, people that have a similar build to Peter, and scrutinizing them and getting them to say something to him.
Which, oh no.
This means Deadpool saw him.
That Deadpool is looking for him.
Sweating, Peter does the most awkward turn around of his life. He drops his book and has to scramble to pick them up before racing back inside. His heart threatens to break free from his chest at the speed it’s beating. There is a back entrance to the building, if he can slip out that way he can manage to get off campus a different way.
Before he can manage to make a move, Deadpool is strutting through the doors of the building. He immediately locks onto where Peter is slumped against a wall and makes his way over.
Shit.
Peter could make a run for it but the chances of Deadpool not giving chase are non-existent. Even if Peter did give him the slip, it would be too suspicious. Deadpool would just track him down again, he’s got to convince the man that he is definitely in no way Spider-man. But with the way Deadpool stalks towards him it becomes a battle to fight the response to flee.
Stopping just before Peter, Deadpool slams his palm against the spot beside Peter’s head on the wall, making Peter flinch. He leans in close enough for Peter to smell the gunpowder and leather of his suit.
“You’ve got that whole cute nerdy vibe going on, it looks good on you.” Wade says.
Peter makes a high pitched squeak and does his best to inch his way along the wall away from Deadpool.
Wade just shuffles along with Peter, dropping his other arm on the opposite side of Peter and caging him in. “Nuh uh uh, you didn’t say the magic word.”
Which just draws another squeak from Peter. Which just seems to make Deadpool pleased. Peter feels very much like a mouse caught in a trap.
“Think you could say the line; ‘Get lost Deadpool’ for me, cutie?”
Knowing he can’t very well use his real voice, Peter does his best to speak in a higher pitch as he says, “get lost Deadpool.”
Which has Wade breaking out into laughter, his fists trembling against the wall. “What the hell was that?”
“My voice,” Peter says in the same high pitched tone, a little ticked off that Wade is making fun of it.
“No, no no no,” Wade wheezes. “That was the worst.”
“What? It was perfect!” he retorts quickly forgetting himself and using his usual octave.
“Ah,” Wade leers, pushing in closer so their faces are only an inch apart. “That’s more like it.”
Peter’s face heats and he pushes Wade away from himself with a groan. “You’re the worst, seriously, why?”
Respectfully, Wade takes a step back to give Peter space. He’s bouncing on the balls of his feet, he says sorry but it doesn’t sound genuine.
Peter runs his free hand through his hair, pushing it back out of his eyes (a futile gesture.) “You couldn’t just leave it alone, huh?”
Wade scoffs, “I caught a glimpse of cute nerdy Spidey in the distance of course I had to get a closer look. Curiosity killed the cat and all that.”
Peter sighs, feeling defeated. He pulls at the straps at Deadpool’s shoulders, urging the man to follow him somewhere not quite so visible. The last thing Peter needs is for people to spot him chatting up Deadpool and link them together.
“Ohhhh, are we going to go make out in some secluded alcove? Because that’s the one class I aced.” Wade coos.
“What?” Peter’s steps falter, he looks back over his shoulder to give Deadpool a disgusted look. The effect is sort of ruined by the way he’s blushing though. “No way. I just don’t want people to see us together.”
“Oh,” Wade seems to deflate a little.
Peter rolls his eyes. “I’m a boring college student and they typically don’t hang out with Mercenaries.”
“So, where are we going then?” Wade asks, tilting his head to the side.
“I don’t know, I just started walking.”
“I could change the outfit, so we wouldn’t have to hide.” Wade sounds so hopeful when he asks, it has Peter stopping in his tracks.
“You would do that?” Peter knows how much Wade hates showing off his skin, what it means to offer that. It took Peter months to get the man to pull his mask up halfway so they could eat together.
“For you, yeah.” Wade says earnestly, fidgeting with one of the pouches on his belt.
It’s a tempting proposition to get to hang out with Wade when no suits are involved. Just the two of them. It’s something he’s wanted for a while now, that hardest part being that he never thought he would trust Wade with his secret identity. Which has sort of been taken out of his hands at this point. Wade knows. He knows and he wants to hang out. Peter darts his tongue out to wet his lips.
“I think I would like that, maybe meet up in an hour to grab some food?”
Peter can tell Wade is smiling behind the mask.
“That sounds like a date sort of thing.”
“Uh,” Peter has to look away from Wade, his face heating. “It's a getting food sort of thing. I gotta eat sometime today and you can tell me all about the ninja fight. Maybe if it’s not awful and you play your cards right the next one might be.”
Wade lets out an ear splitting squeal that has Peter slapping his hands over Wade’s mouth.
“Shush, wow, seriously, why?”
“This is the best day of my life!” Wade laments. “Seriously, I kinda thought you were going to kill me once I tracked you down!”
“I’m going to reconsider that option if you don’t quiet down,” Peter growls out.
Wade mimes zipping his lips shut.
“Okay,” Peter steps back acutely aware that in his haste to silence Deadpool he sidled up close to the man. “So, I’m going to go. And we’ll meet in an hour. For the not date.”
“Yeah, the usual spot?” Wade asks.
Peter smiles, “definitely.”