Yeah. You're right. [ The good things he does, that's gotta count for something. He can only hope that in this awful, terrifying time of Peter Parker's life, that it'll somehow work out in the end.
Even though he's feeling more exposed than he ever had before.
All those times back in school, before The Blip, when he made up dumb excuses to save the world. The Stark Internship. Falling 'ill'. Everyone will know.
He squeezes Gwen's hand, so, so grateful for her right now. He might still be high-key panicking, but her being here helps so much. ] Thanks, Gwen.
I don't even know where the other Avengers are right now - [ He could really use some of that snappy, sassy Tony Stark advice right about now, and the empty hole left from his mentor suddenly stirs up again, a dull pain in his chest. ] - but I bet they'll see this too. [ He stops suddenly. ] And Nick Fury.
He's definitely going to call, and you definitely need to answer it this time. And it's not going to be a fun conversation at all, but this mess isn't your fault. Like, he's probably going to be a jerk about all of it, but he'll help you. That man is the king of damage control.
[ she takes another breath, mouth twisting up. she's nervous because- of course she's nervous. of course she is! this is not the way anything like this should go. god, she wishes jess were here. she'd be way better at this than she is. she'd know exactly what to say, what to do next. all gwen can think to say is- ]
We should sit. C'mon. [ there's a little ledge closer to the middle of the roof, which is where she's pulling him to now. there've been a few times when they'e ended up in this exact same spot, out of breath, adrenaline pumping. needing a breather after a particularly ridiculous run-in with some armed robbers or whatever. it's just big enough for the both of them to sit side by side, and she pulls his hand onto her lap, unwilling to let go just yet ] --Have you talked to May yet?
[ Peter shakes his head. ] No, all I had time to do was ... panic and websling here, until you texted me. It just - it all happened so fast. She's gonna be worried though. She's gonna wonder where I am.
[ He rubs his face with his free hand, the one not still in Gwen's grasp where it's perfectly content to stay, an automatic feeling of safety and feeling anchored to something. His mind is reeling, but at least he isn't alone with his own thoughts.
He leans into Gwen so their arms are pressed side-by-side. ] I should probably call her. And Happy. He probably knows too. But after that? What happens? What happens to Spider-Man?
[ This is kind of a nightmare. At the beginning, when Ned learned who he was, he'd wanted to tell everyone like it was some kind of key, opening the door to celebrity status and being revered by all. A superhero, like the Avengers.
But so much has changed since then, so much had happened ... it feels right, somehow, to have this other side of him kept secret, something he can escape to and escape from whenever he wants.
It kinda sucks to have that taken away from him. ]
Text her, at least. Just say- "I'm okay, will explain, talk soon", so she doesn't think you're MIA. Then call her when you're ready to. Happy can wait.
[ she's not usually this friend, the kind of bossy-advice-giver-friend, but she knows what it's like to have the rug ripped out from under you in a situation like this, how hard it is to get your thoughts in order, so she's trying to give him objectives. something.
peter leans against her and gwen leans back, turning her face to rest on his shoulder as her fingers fuss to lace up properly with his. normally she'd be overthinking this kind of closeness, but there's no room for that now, too much worry about bigger things than seeming too clingy ]
Spider-Man is going to be okay. Do you think- Are you going to lean into it? Y'know, unmask? Or- Or you could try and protect your secret identity. Maybe you could find a way to get your side out there, as Spider-Man. Let the world know Beck was deranged and throwing out names he heard- Maybe around Stark Industries. He knows Peter Parker as Tony Stark's last intern. You could use that?
Maybe. [ He isn't exactly sure what he's answering here, whether he'll lean into the unmasking, or whether he'll make something up, the way he's always made something up. It seems more dangerous, somehow, to lie - especially when all eyes, especially The Bugle's, will be on him - but ... unmasking and coming clean about it just seems so ... scary.
He looks down at their joined hands but it doesn't occur to him to be weird about the gesture either. Time and a place, it seems. Also, it's just nice to be like this. ]
Hey, Gwen ... when you did it, when you unmasked, how - how did it go? How'd you figure it out? How'd you move forward after that?
[ remember how I said I studied abroad for a full school year while you were blipped? I was actually locked up in the RAFT.
no, maybe not that. we're not going to tell peter about her time in juvenile max security prison, not just yet. not now. because- this is different! gwen confessed to her crimes, because there were actual crimes to confess. venom- really did a number on, uh, her whole life. but she had a lot she had to come to peace with, and make amends for, so
anyway, we're going to focus on the time after that. ]
I kind of knew it was going to be a mess. Just- the timing of it could have been better. But I got sick of hiding, I guess. But, um. There's people who support me, and people who don't. Weirdly enough, school is the toughest part. People either know somebody I helped put in jail, which is- not a great time, or they're trying to take selfies of me over their shoulder which is just weird. But life hasn't really changed otherwise. It's kind of nice, though, not being at the mercy of how fast I can pull my suit on when I need to do Spider-Woman stuff. And I don't have to make excuses for running out anymore. It has its perks.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Even though he's feeling more exposed than he ever had before.
All those times back in school, before The Blip, when he made up dumb excuses to save the world. The Stark Internship. Falling 'ill'. Everyone will know.
He squeezes Gwen's hand, so, so grateful for her right now. He might still be high-key panicking, but her being here helps so much. ] Thanks, Gwen.
I don't even know where the other Avengers are right now - [ He could really use some of that snappy, sassy Tony Stark advice right about now, and the empty hole left from his mentor suddenly stirs up again, a dull pain in his chest. ] - but I bet they'll see this too. [ He stops suddenly. ] And Nick Fury.
[ He groans. ]
He's gonna call me soon, isn't he?
no subject
[ she takes another breath, mouth twisting up. she's nervous because- of course she's nervous. of course she is! this is not the way anything like this should go. god, she wishes jess were here. she'd be way better at this than she is. she'd know exactly what to say, what to do next. all gwen can think to say is- ]
We should sit. C'mon. [ there's a little ledge closer to the middle of the roof, which is where she's pulling him to now. there've been a few times when they'e ended up in this exact same spot, out of breath, adrenaline pumping. needing a breather after a particularly ridiculous run-in with some armed robbers or whatever. it's just big enough for the both of them to sit side by side, and she pulls his hand onto her lap, unwilling to let go just yet ] --Have you talked to May yet?
no subject
[ He rubs his face with his free hand, the one not still in Gwen's grasp where it's perfectly content to stay, an automatic feeling of safety and feeling anchored to something. His mind is reeling, but at least he isn't alone with his own thoughts.
He leans into Gwen so their arms are pressed side-by-side. ] I should probably call her. And Happy. He probably knows too. But after that? What happens? What happens to Spider-Man?
[ This is kind of a nightmare. At the beginning, when Ned learned who he was, he'd wanted to tell everyone like it was some kind of key, opening the door to celebrity status and being revered by all. A superhero, like the Avengers.
But so much has changed since then, so much had happened ... it feels right, somehow, to have this other side of him kept secret, something he can escape to and escape from whenever he wants.
It kinda sucks to have that taken away from him. ]
no subject
[ she's not usually this friend, the kind of bossy-advice-giver-friend, but she knows what it's like to have the rug ripped out from under you in a situation like this, how hard it is to get your thoughts in order, so she's trying to give him objectives. something.
peter leans against her and gwen leans back, turning her face to rest on his shoulder as her fingers fuss to lace up properly with his. normally she'd be overthinking this kind of closeness, but there's no room for that now, too much worry about bigger things than seeming too clingy ]
Spider-Man is going to be okay. Do you think- Are you going to lean into it? Y'know, unmask? Or- Or you could try and protect your secret identity. Maybe you could find a way to get your side out there, as Spider-Man. Let the world know Beck was deranged and throwing out names he heard- Maybe around Stark Industries. He knows Peter Parker as Tony Stark's last intern. You could use that?
no subject
He looks down at their joined hands but it doesn't occur to him to be weird about the gesture either. Time and a place, it seems. Also, it's just nice to be like this. ]
Hey, Gwen ... when you did it, when you unmasked, how - how did it go? How'd you figure it out? How'd you move forward after that?
no subject
[ remember how I said I studied abroad for a full school year while you were blipped? I was actually locked up in the RAFT.
no, maybe not that. we're not going to tell peter about her time in juvenile max security prison, not just yet. not now. because- this is different! gwen confessed to her crimes, because there were actual crimes to confess. venom- really did a number on, uh, her whole life. but she had a lot she had to come to peace with, and make amends for, so
anyway, we're going to focus on the time after that. ]
I kind of knew it was going to be a mess. Just- the timing of it could have been better. But I got sick of hiding, I guess. But, um. There's people who support me, and people who don't. Weirdly enough, school is the toughest part. People either know somebody I helped put in jail, which is- not a great time, or they're trying to take selfies of me over their shoulder which is just weird. But life hasn't really changed otherwise. It's kind of nice, though, not being at the mercy of how fast I can pull my suit on when I need to do Spider-Woman stuff. And I don't have to make excuses for running out anymore. It has its perks.