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You hadn’t had long together but it was long enough to give you both a glimpse into the future, one filled with laughter and adventure, one overflowing with more love than either of you had ever experienced. The four months spent constantly at each other's side, your lives becoming so entwined, were enough for the two of you to fall hard and fast, ready for the future together that seemed to be destined for you.
It was completely by chance the two of you met. Peter had been focused on the world through his camera lens whereas your attention was on the text message you were sending. Neither of you saw each other until you crashed into each other, the drink that had been balanced in your hand as you typed was now on the floor, just how you would have been had the person you’d crashed into not caught you.
You looked up at him, your breathing catching in your throat as you looked into concerned and apologetic brown eyes, the most beautiful pair of eyes you may have ever seen.
“I am so sorry,” he said, eyes still looking directly into yours. “I wasn’t looking where I was going and-”
“Oh don’t be silly.” You told him, finally snapping out of whatever spell had you completely captivated by him. “It was my fault. I was in a world of my own.”
The man's laugh was as beautiful as his eyes, washing over you and as quickly as that it had become your favourite sound.
“We’re both to blame then.” He told you, his voice carrying his amusement. “Will you at least let me buy you a new drink?”
You wouldn’t usually accept the offer, much too aware of the dangers of strangers but there was something about him that made him seem like wasn’t a stranger, like he was somebody you had known before, somebody you had to know. You had no other choice but to go with him, you couldn’t deny yourself the man's company.
“I think I can manage that.” You told him and if you thought he was beautiful before then it was nothing compared to how breath taking he was when he smiled at you like this.
His whole face seemed to light up, his brown eyes shining with happiness and relief that you had said yes. Dimples appeared in his cheeks and his eyes wrinkled with how wide the smile was.
That was only the first day of your time together, the first five minutes of what both of you wished would be a lifetime together.
Once you arrived at the cafe, a walk that lasted only a few minutes but felt like much longer as you both filled the silence with questions and answers, like you were both dying of thirst and learning everything you could about the other was the cure. Neither of you were ready to leave so when Peter asked if you had anywhere to be you told him no, shooting an apology text to your friend, saying you couldn’t make it as Peter got your drinks.
Three drinks and several hours passed by, not noticed by you or Peter as the two of you were so absorbed in one another, stories were told whilst smiles and laughs were memorised. Both of you made sure to remember the little details in each other's words and were more than content where you were.
At some point your chairs, which had started out on the opposite sides of the table, ended up side by side so that your knees pressed together and your arms brushed against each other.
Peter’s phone ringing was the only thing to pull you out of the little world you’d created together.
“Sorry,” Peter apologised softly, giving you a sheepish smile, “It’s my Aunt.”
You smiled as he answered the phone, feeling like you already knew Aunt May through the stories Peter had shared with you.
“Hey, hey, relax, I’m on my way ho-” Peter said, pausing mid-sentence as his Aunt interrupted him and you felt your smile widen as he gave you an exasperated look. “Yes May, I bought it before.”
The conversation didn’t last much longer and as Peter hung up his expression shifted into a frown.
“I’m really sorry, I completely forgot we were having company and my Aunt asked me to pick some things up which I haven’t done yet and-”
“Peter,” you interrupted him with a laugh, watching as a smile replaced his frown at the sound, “It’s fine, you should probably head to the store.”
“Yeah,” he chuckled, picking up his bag and setting it on his shoulder before looking back at you.
It was clear he wanted to say something from the way his mouth opened and closed several times before he shook his head and sat up straighter.
“Can I see you again?” He finally asked and you felt your smile widen which Peter took as a good sign from the way he related into his seat and smiled back at you.
“I’d like that.” You told him softly, not even surprised at how much you mean it. In the span of a few hours Peter Parker had carved a space for himself in your heart.
“Good,” Peter nodded, sighing in relief. “Good, well then, I’ll just-” Peter trailed off as he pulled his phone back out and handed it to you.
Watching Peter leave left you with a strange feeling running through you. It wasn’t often you put yourself out there and made yourself available. You couldn’t remember the last date you’d been on, couldn’t remember the last time you cared to even bother but meeting Peter seemed to have changed that.
Now you were sitting here feeling hopeful for the future, a future that you couldn’t envision without Peter Parker despite only having known him for all of four hours.
It wasn’t long after your chance meeting that you and Peter saw each other again. Only a few days had gone by, days in which you were both attached to your phones messaging each other all day and well into the night. In just a few days you had gone from strangers to something more than friends, something far more intimate, something filled with promises.
Meeting every few days eventually turned into meeting every single day whether it be a quick get together before school at the cafe you had gone to when you’d first met or exploring the city with each other. Some days you’d simply go to the other's house and lay with each other as a movie played in the background, sometimes you focused on it but more often than not it got spoken over, the two of you desperate to know everything about the other.
You were practically dating without making it official, it didn’t need a title, not really. Both of you had fallen hard and fast but never defined things. So when Peter took you to the cafe that was quickly becoming yours you didn’t think anything of it. Not until Peter arrived looking worried and flustered, stumbling over his words.
“What’s going on?” You asked him.
You hadn’t seen him this nervous since you first met and he asked if he could see you again, from that day there had been no awkwardness, no nervousness or hesitancy between you. So the fact that Peter was acting so unsure now you couldn’t help the worry that slipped into your tone.
Peter looked at you for a second, looked at the concern clear on your face and smiled, relaxing into his seat as he reached over to take your hand in his.
“I’ve had the best few weeks with you.” He told you softly, watching as a smile pulled at your lips. “I’ve never known anyone like you, I feel like we’ve known each other our whole lives, I can't see myself without you anymore. And I was wondering, well, if you would be my girlfriend?”
His short speech had you beaming in happiness, his question had you smiling impossibly wider. You felt exactly the same, it had only been a few weeks and yet you could hardly remember a time your days and thoughts hadn’t been consumed by Peter.
“Yes.” You told him, the pair of you sat in your cafe grinning at each other like idiots.
Nothing much changed once things became official between you and Peter. You still hung out every day, except now you could call your time together what it always had been: dates. You still spoke to each other through your phones when you weren’t together.
Nothing had changed.
And then it did.
Two months of absolute bliss turned into something else in the blink of an eye. Exam season had come and gone, as had the time of sending college applications off, something you had Peter had done well before meeting each other.
The schools you had applied for were realistic, they were schools you knew you had the grades for. But there was one school you applied for after encouragement from your advisor, a dream school of yours for years. You had applied knowing full well you wouldn’t be accepted.
So how had you ended up here? Sat on your sofa staring down at the acceptance letter from Oxford University offering you a full scholarship for four years. It was a dream come true and yet you could feel your heart breaking.
Four years was a long time.
Yours and Peter’s relationship wasn’t even four months long, hell it was barely two months since you’d met him. It hardly mattered that you hadn’t known each other long. You had fallen for him hard and fast.
You knew it was love, knew that it was love that consumed you when you were with Peter, when you spoke about him, when you thought about him.
You and Peter weren’t just friends, you were so much more than lovers. It seemed every part, every inch of your being was connecting in some sort of way. The way the two of you moved, the way you seemed so alike and yet somehow so opposite, the perfect mix of one another, balancing each other out like you were two halves of a whole.
You were soulmates. There wasn’t another way to describe the two of you. It was like the word had been perfectly created and defined with you two in mind.
Four years was a long time though and long distance hardly ever worked. You knew accepting Oxford meant losing Peter.
So what did you pick; a lifelong dream or the boy you wanted to spend the rest of your life with?
Peter came over that night. His usual bright smile turned into a concerned frown as he took in your eyes, red from crying over an impossible choice.
“What’s wrong?” He asked as the door shut behind him, the worry in his voice caused you to tear up again as you shook your head and led him to your bedroom.
“What’s wrong?” He asked again, cupping your cheek in his palm, and using his thumb to brush away a tear that fell from your eye.
“I got accepted into Oxford.” You told him and watched as a smile spread across his face.
“That’s amazing!” He told you before his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. “Why are you so upset?” He asked as he wiped another tear away.
“Peter, it’s a four year scholarship.” He was silent for a moment and you saw the exact moment realisation hit him, his smile fading as he swallowed hard. “I don’t have to go, I haven't decided anything yet.”
“Y/N,” Peter breathed out, staring at you in amazement even as he wore a sad smile. “You’re not rejecting Oxford, not for me.”
“I only applied on a fluke, I didn’t think they’d accept me, I forgot I even applied most of the time because I didn’t want to get my hopes up thinking I was good enough for Oxford.” You said, the words falling from your lips quickly and you forced back more tears.
Peter let out a wet chuckle.
“Of course you’re good enough, baby.” He told you, tone so soft and sincere that you couldn’t stop the choked sob that escaped you. “You’re amazing, they would have been stupid to not want you.”
“I don’t want to leave you.” You whispered and watched as his eyes widened in sympathy.
“Y/N,” Peter began but you cut him off with a shake of your head.
“I really don’t have to go.” You said, hating that the universe handed you the man of your dreams only to throw this at you.
“The first day I met you, you told me at our cafe your biggest dream was to study at Oxford. I saw the way your eyes lit up when you spoke about it. You have to go, baby.” Peter’s words had tears falling uncontrollably down your cheeks.
“Peter,” You pleaded, voice breaking.
“I know,” he told you, tears falling down his own cheeks, “trust me, I know but I’m not going to be the reason you don’t go, Y/N/N. This has been your dream for so much longer than you’ve known me and I am so proud of you.” Peter told you, a shaky smile on his face as he rested your foreheads together.
You couldn’t say just how long the two of you stood there for, pressed against each other as you cried, mourning all the time that should have been between the two of you.
Every moment spent with each other from that day on seemed to be filled with an air of sadness, no matter how much both of you tried to ignore it. Sadness at knowing your time together would soon come to an end.
When the day finally came Peter insisted on seeing you off. You said your goodbyes to your family at home before climbing into a cab with Peter, your hands clenched together desperately like it could keep you here.
The ride was over much too quickly and you felt sick to your stomach as the airport came into view.
Peter lifted your bags out of the trunk and wheeled them into the building, whilst still holding your hand tightly in his. Once you got to the point Peter couldn’t go past you took a shaky breath, turning to face him to see he was already looking at you.
Those beautiful brown eyes were darker now than they had been the day you had first met, gone was the warmth and the light. Now they were filled with sadness and pain. You were certain yours reflected the same.
“I really am so proud of you.” He told you, his voice sounding choked and you could see him struggling to hold back tears. “Oxford better know how lucky they are to have you.”
You let out a tearful laugh that sounded more like a sob.
It seemed cruel, it seemed like the most messed up thing you had ever experienced. The universe, in all its greatness, had given you the most amazing gift in the form of Peter Parker. It had given you the most perfect four months together, the most hopeful glimpse into what your futures could be, only to let it end like this.
You wished you had met him at a different point in your life. Years earlier so you didn’t apply to Oxford or four years later when you were back in the States. It seemed so cruel to have met the love of your life only to be ripped away from him for four long years.
You knew it was love and you didn’t care that it was probably too soon. You couldn’t say those three words now though, it would only add to the pain of leaving.
“I’m really going to miss you.” You told him as tears fell from your eyes.
“I’m calling you every day, texting too. Honestly you’ll be sick of me.” He told you, smiling even as his eyes shone with tears. “You’re not getting rid of me.”
You hoped he was right but four years was a long time, it was almost a lifetime given how much both of you would change. Still you hoped the universe would be kind to the two of you.
An announcement playing over the loud speaker had Peter’s smile fading slightly.
“That’s you.” He said quietly and you nodded, neither of you able to say anything else.
You stepped close to him, wrapping your arms around his torso and buried your face into his chest, soaking the fabric of his shirt with your tears. Peter’s own tears fell into your hair, unable to fight them back any longer as he held onto you tightly for as long as he could, committing the feeling of you against him to memory.
Letting go of you was one of the hardest things he had ever had to do.
He leaned down, not ready to let you walk away yet, and kissed you. It was a messy kiss, filled with tears and sadness but also with so much love. The words didn’t need saying, both of you knew.
“I’ll see you again. I’ll be waiting right here the second you get back.” Peter promised, your sad sob of a laugh told him you didn’t believe him and he swore to himself he would keep that promise, no matter what.
He was yours, forever, no amount of distance or time could change that.
Watching you walk away had Peter’s heart physically aching. He stood there with tears falling down his cheeks until you disappeared from view, and a little longer because he couldn’t see through his tears.
You had to fight the urge to sob, walking away from Peter felt wrong, it felt like the worst decision you could have made. You cursed the universe for letting you fall in love with him only to separate you after much too little time together.
You hoped Peter was right, hoped he would be waiting for you when you got back. In your heart you knew you and Peter were meant to be, that much was true but now just wasn’t the right time no matter how much both of you wished differently.
Days were spent thinking about what could have been after you left, missing touches that would never be, moments that could have created a lifetime of memories, of stories that people grew tired of hearing but neither of you bored of telling. There were four years of your lives that should have been spent together but because the timing hadn’t been right that time had instead been filled with pining, with sadness but also with hope that you would find your way back to each other one day.