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Michelle had to admit, cuddling with her boyfriend, Peter, was infinitely better than doing homework. It was hard to study with him because he got distracted so easily and he was always exhausted that any chance he got he would call for a ‘quick nap.’ And he would practically beg for Michelle to join him, to lay in his arms on his tiny bed. Any other night she would join him with very little convincing because, honestly, how could she pass that up? Tonight, however, she had to study for a quiz in AP Calc (her worst subject) tomorrow. She barely glanced at Peter as he climbed onto his mattress, instead hyperfocusing her attention on the set of flashcards in front of her. She was determined to avoid his longing gazes and puppy dog eyes, they wouldn’t crack her facade this time, not tonight.
“ Please, Em,” Peter all but whined. “You’re not gonna come up here? Even for a second?”
“Nope,” Michelle responded, popping the ‘p.’ “Not even for a second, Parker.”
Peter huffed, flopping his back down onto his sheets. He pouted like that for approximately 15 seconds, until he turned on his side to face Michelle, who was still sitting on the ground. He sighed again dramatically, drawing an eye roll out of his girlfriend that was noticeable from across the room, but her determination remained. Michelle stayed focused for another few minutes, but she reluctantly brought her gaze to meet Peter’s when he began giggling quietly to himself.
“What’s so funny, nerd?”
“Oh, nothing,” Peter waved nonchalantly. “Save for the fact you’ve been looking at the same flashcard for nearing two minutes now.”
Michelle huffed in annoyance, which drew another (albeit adorable) giggle from the teenage boy.
“Yeah, well, it’s not so easy studying when you’ve got a set of beady little eyes staring at you,” She retorted, narrowing her eyes at Peter, who still wore a mischevous smile on his stupid face.
“Maybe you need a break? I got a set of comfortable arms right here. They’re just waiting to wrap someone up for the best cuddling session of their life!” Michelle couldn’t help the amused snort that escaped her.
“Do not talk about your arms like that, weirdo. Besides I can’t take a break, I don’t even know half of these formulas yet!” Peter’s smile faded a little when he heard the frustration coat her words. He sat up and made his way towards her, then sat against the wall next to her and grabbed the stack of flashcards from the carpet.
“Well that’s because you’re not utilizing the flashcards right, silly. The inventor of flashcards specifically mentioned a quiz partner in their patent design.”
“Flashcards aren’t patented, dummy.”
“What is the differential of sin(x)?” Peter questioned, ignoring her comment. Michelle scrunched her eyes closed and clasped her hands together under her chin as she tried to recall the answer, which Peter thought was definitely one of the cutest things she does. Other than smiling, laughing, and kissing him on the cheek before she leaves for class, of course.
“Um, is it cos(x) dx?”
“Yes, correct! See, we’re gonna fly through these!” Michelle smiled at Peter’s confidence. She watched him as he flipped to the next notecard, and she couldn’t help but smile a little wider as Peter made eye contact with her to ensure she was ready for the next one. It didn’t help that he was right. With Peter quizzing her she made it through the stack of formulas fairly quickly, and she only got two wrong.
“A genius,” Peter mumbled. “I’m dating an actual genius.”
“Shut up,” Michelle laughed and moved to lightly push Peter’s shoulder. Instead, he caught her wrist and placed her open palm on his chest, right over his heart.
“I mean it, MJ, cross my heart. You’re a bonafide Einstein.” She couldn’t tell if it was his earnest smile, or the sincerity in his voice, but she swore her heart skipped a beat. And it seemed right after the moment had passed, when he let go of her wrist to lean over to grab the next stack of flashcards, it suddenly dawned on her. How completely and irrevocably in love with Peter Parker she was. The realization slapped her in the face. Michelle knew that the way she felt about Peter she had never felt about anyone else before, but knowing this was love was something else entirely. Now that she had this epiphany, it seemed selfish to keep it to herself, despite the consequences.
“I love you,” Michelle blurted out, turning to face Peter.
“Woah, MJ I--”
“You don’t have to love me back yet. I know it’s only been a little over half a year since we’ve started dating, but really it’s felt like 5 years because we missed so much time because of the Blip, and I don’t want to waste any--”
“MJ, it’s okay,” Peter interrupted, scooching back to his previous spot in order to kiss her forehead. “I love you too. I’ve loved you for months, honestly, but I wanted you to be the first one to say it, to do it on your own terms.”
Michelle couldn’t stop the smile from adorning her face in relief and pure elation. She leaned forward to place a soft kiss on her boyfriend’s lips. They both smiled into the kiss, and Peter reached a hand up to brush some of Michelle’s curls that were tickling his cheek behind her ear. After a few moments of gentle kisses, Peter pulled away, still smiling faintly, and rested his forehead against Michelle’s.
“God, MJ. I love you so much. I really do.”
“I really love you too, dork. And now I really will take you up on that cuddling offer.” Peter laughed breathily. He stood up and offered his hand to Michelle. She took it and he dragged her the few feet to his mattress.
Peter sat next to his pillow and patted the space next to him. Michelle climbed onto the bed and placed herself against the wall. She scooted her body down until her head laid comfortably on Peter’s extra pillow. Michelle watched Peter as he squirmed and jostled his body around until he got comfortable, his head laying on the pillow and facing Michelle’s smiling face. Michelle could feel Peter’s body heat radiating in the few inches between them, and she eagerly closed the distance as Peter’s arm reached out to pull her closer. He swiped more loose curls behind her ear again and placed a delicate kiss on her nose in the process. God was he cheesy.
“You’re a giant walking cliche, Parker.”
“I know,” He whispered. “But you still love me, right?”
“Yeah,” Michelle laughed, fondness heavy in her response. “I still love you, Peter Parker. No matter how many cliches you manage to complete every goddamn day.“ They continued looking at each other fondly, content to enjoy the others warmth and comfort. After a bit, Michelle’s eyes began to flutter shut, She was on the verge of falling asleep when Peter spoke up softly, an impending nap twinging his words.
“Do you think there’s a world record for that?”
“For what?”
“Most cliches in one day. Do you think being a superhero would disqualify me?” Michelle laughed at his half asleep ramblings.
“Probably. But if it didn’t, we’d win, hands down.” She closed her eyes again as Peter hummed softly in agreement. They let the silence of the early evening lull them closer to sleep.
“I love you,” Michelle whispered, assuming Peter was already asleep due to his steady breathing. Despite her assumption, she felt Peter cup her cheek and run his thumb across her jawline gingerly in an act of pure love. His hand stayed there while they slept, and would have stayed there all night had there not been school tomorrow and curfews to meet.