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Peter was gone. Peter was gone, and it was all MJ’s fault. She wanted to cry. To break down right there in the street in front of the Enhancement Processing Facility she just watched take Peter in her place. She didn’t have that privilege, though. It was the middle of the night, and she was freezing, standing in the middle of the road in nothing but thin scrubs with no phone and no ride, and it was starting to rain. So, instead of crying, she started walking.
MJ didn’t know where she was going. She had only been within an hour of this place once, and that was on her field trip to D.C. She did know that if she could follow the road to a city, or even just a small convenience store or rest stop, she could call her dad and tell him where she was so he could come and pick her up. She walked for what felt like hours, and could feel her tennis shoes slowly wearing down with each step, but she had to make it home. That was the whole reason Peter had sacrificed himself. She couldn’t let him stay at the facility for no reason. She couldn’t…
“Don’t worry about it. Seriously, MJ. They clearly don’t know who I am if they’re looking this hard. I just have to make it a few more months, and then-”
“And then what!?”
She couldn’t do this.
MJ tripped on a rock and fell to her knees, her tears falling into the dirt below. Peter was supposed to be safe. He was supposed to be at home, probably up way too late and looking into the mirror practicing cheesy lines for their date later. Instead he was GONE. All because MJ messed up. She could have ignored the internship on OSCORP’s website instead of applying. She could have gone to Meeting Room C instead of breaking into the lab. She could have lied and said she went to a different school. She could have opened up the black envelope and read that damn note that sentenced her to this place before delivering it to the enemy without a second thought! There were so many things she could have done differently. So many mistakes she could have avoided. So many wrong turns that slowly led to Peter’s downfall. In her head, all she could see was that misleading smile on Norman’s face.
“Changing the world, right?”
MJ certainly changed the world, and she did it by ridding it of the boy she was in love with, dooming it in the process.
Just then, the scene before MJ slowly lit up as a car came to a stop next to her. She quickly stood as she heard the brakes squeal and the door open, and looked up to see a familiar face framed by long, strawberry blonde hair.
“MJ?”
“Ms. Potts,” MJ said as she dragged the back of her hand across her face, though it did nothing to help in the rain.
Ms. Potts closed the car door and walked up to give MJ a hug. “It’s gonna be okay. I promise.”
“What- what are you doing here?” MJ asked as Ms. Potts pulled away.
“Tony and I are in D.C. for the trial. I saw the news and I wanted to make sure you were…” Ms. Potts trailed off. “Why don’t you come back to our hotel room and stay the night? We can call your family and let them know you’ll be staying with us until someone can come and pick you up. How does that sound?”
MJ nodded. “Yeah, that’d be great. Thanks.”
When they got to the hotel, MJ was astonished at how huge the room was. It was probably about three times the size of Peter’s apartment. Sometimes she forgot just how much money Stark had lying around.
MJ stood by the door, a warm towel draped around her shoulders, and dialed her dad’s number on the room’s landline as Ms. Potts went to explain the situation to Tony. The phone rang a few times before MJ heard the tired voice of her dad on the other line.
“Hello?”
“Dad,” MJ breathed. “It’s me, I’m-”
“Michelle! Oh my gosh, are you okay!? Where are you!? What’s-”
“Dad, I’m fine,” she interrupted. “Peter… helped me. Just- I’m in D.C. right now, I need a ride home.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line as MJ’s dad checked the time. “Are you with anyone?”
“Yeah. I’m actually at Ms. Potts and Tony Stark’s hotel.”
“Can I speak with one of them?”
“Yeah, give me a second.” MJ let the phone hang from the curly cord and walked into the main bedroom where the adults were talking in hushed voices. She cleared her throat and they looked at her. “My dad wants to talk to you.”
Ms. Potts nodded and headed towards the phone, telling MJ, “Why don’t you go ahead and get some sleep? I’ll take care of everything.”
As much as MJ wanted to protest, she was exhausted. It had been a long day, and between getting accused of being Spider-Man and losing Peter to an evil government lab, she didn’t exactly get a chance to sleep. “Alright.” She went into the smaller bedroom, probably intended for kids if the Avengers themed bunk bed was anything to go off of. “Thanks again,” she said before closing the door.
As soon as MJ’s head hit the pillow, she drifted off to sleep, the sound of Ms. Potts' voice and Tony Stark’s occasional snores traveling through the walls in the background, her dreams filled with brown doe eyes and needles she never wanted to see again.
MJ didn’t wake up for almost 12 hours. It was 5:03 pm when MJ went out into the main area to see Tony and Ms. Potts watching the news.
“Last night, Queens’ hero Spider-Man turned himself in at the Enhancement Processing Facility after a misunderstanding that caused someone else to be taken in his place.”
“Looks like Spider-Man’s awake,” Tony said, standing up from the couch and turning the tv off.
MJ rolled her eyes. “Hi.”
“It’s nice to finally meet the girl Peter sacrificed himself for.” Tony’s voice had a strange lightness to it despite how true the statement was.
“Hey, MJ,” Ms. Potts said as she walked over. “Your dad said he wouldn’t be able to pick you up, so we’re just going to take you back with us once the trial is over, is that okay?”
“Yeah, that’s fine.”
“Are you hungry? We were thinking about ordering some pizza.”
“Pizza?” Tony asked. “Really? In D.C?”
“What?” Ms. Potts asked. “Is there a problem with that?”
Tony looked incredibly offended as he turned to MJ and asked, “Are you hearing this woman?”
“He’s got a point,” MJ agreed.
“Thank you.”
Ms. Potts opened her mouth to respond when Tony’s phone rang from its spot on the coffee table.
“How about you get that while Spider-Girl and I figure out something better to eat?” Tony suggested.
Ms. Potts walked back over to the couch and picked up the phone, her eyes widening when she saw who was calling. “May?”
MJ made eye contact with Tony when they heard the name, her mind running at a million miles a minute. Why was May calling Ms. Potts? Had she seen the news yet? Did she blame MJ for what happened?
“Oh, May…” Ms. Potts said sympathetically. “I know.”
MJ and Tony both walked into the living room to try and pick up on more of the conversation, but it was hard to hear what May was saying despite the quiet of the hotel room.
“It’s going to be okay,” Pepper said calmly. “I’m going to come pick you up, okay? Why don’t you come stay here for a bit?” When Ms. Potts hung up, she quickly gathered her purse and jacket and told the two, “I’m going to Queens to pick up Peter’s aunt.”
“That’s a five hour drive,” MJ told her.
“I know. Play nice, you two!” Ms. Potts joked as she rushed out the door.
After a moment of stunned silence, Tony looked over at MJ. “So. Burgers?”