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MJ had always been observant.
Not obsessed. Just really, really observant.
It's almost like a talent, to be able to sit and just take in everything that's happening without even broadcasting her presence. She had always thought that watching people from afar as they live their lives isn't as boring or as lonely (well, it kind of is, but that only makes it more appealing) as what every guidance counselor she has ever talked to made it out to be. Human beings are inherently stupid. Teenagers, in particular, are stupid. They are always bound to make some kind of mistake, and their crash-and-descent towards that pile of mess is absolutely hilarious. She had overheard way too many conversations done in supposedly-empty classrooms, had known secrets that she DEFINITELY shouldn't have known. It's an art that she has mastered and is quite proud of, and oftentimes she had used it to her advantage.
Which is why she is now dating her long-time crush, a.k.a. one of the most overlooked kids at school. Sometimes she thinks that's a shame, because boy oh boy is there a lot to unpack if you just watch a little closer. It's a sticky, webbed pile of baggage, that.
So it didn't really faze her when, five minutes before the first bell, she overhears her classmates chattering excidedly among themselves as they got inside the room ( first rule of observing: establish position. She had already gotten to her desk 10 minutes earlier, reading Le Guin). She continues reading Omelas' sad woes as she listens vaguely to them. It's a pretty standard conversation that she had heard over a thousand times: a cute boy in a black shirt... his hair is so soft and messy, how did he do that... had he always had those biceps before, they didn't realize he had that built... how did no one notice that, MJ is so lucky...
MJ blinks. She looks up and sees that most of the class are staring at her.
She narrows her eyes in confusion. "Huh?"
Betty Brant shoots her a sly grin. "We were just saying if you... You know... If you've like..." Her cheeks suddenly turn red, and she mumbles, "if you like... known all along."
Jason Ionello sniggers loudly. MJ frowns at Betty, who looks incredibly abashed. "Known what?"
"Well, we were just wondering if you've ever seen your boyf--"
"Alright class, settle down!" Their Calculus teacher, Miss Rivera, is already up front, putting down the stack of papers that she held in her arms. "Little early today but we've got a lot of work to do. Now take your seats, and we'll start in a minute."
The bell starts ringing just as a knock sounds on the door.
Miss Rivera glances up. "Ah, Mr. Leeds and Mr. Parker. Nice of you to join us."
MJ looks up at Peter's name, about to shoot him an annoyed glance for almost being late (because he is almost ALWAYS doing Spider-man work whenever he is, and he might be an Avenger but even HE isn't immune to detention) but then she freezes.
She thinks she might not be the only one.
Peter is wearing an outfit that she had seen him wear only once: when he was changing into his Night Monkey costume in that hotel room in Prague. He thought she had only seen the full suit, with its goggles and vest and web shooters, but she had a chance to glance at him while he suited up (not as weird as it sounds), and had seen the tight, black spandex shirt and pants that served as the undergarment to the Night Monkey armor. But that one moment was quick and swift, and she had looked away almost immediately when she did see him, so she never was really able to appreciate how good he looked in it. In contrast to the old hoodies and baggy graphic science t-shirts that he always wore, this one had fitted perfectly on his athletic body, showcasing lean muscle and sinewy arms.
She thinks that maybe the wardrobe changes weren't that drastic --she supposed that the get-up itself is a decent casual look without all the Night Monkey armor. No, what caught her extremely offguard was his hair. It is naturally unruly, and although MJ had told him that she liked running her hands through his locks, Peter often gets very frustrated with it. He had always tried to tame it with gel, says it always gets in the way. But now his curls are a glorious, tangled mess, and they are somehow damp, like he just got out of the shower. He tries slicking it back, but they only tumble back down defiantly.
And... Holy fuck... they were right.
He is hot.
"--better get to your seats," Miss Rivera is saying. Peter and Ned made a beeline to their desks, their heads bowed. The class is still talking amongst themselves, and a few surreptitious looks are thrown her way.
She couldn't really blame them.
"And by the way, Mr. Parker?"
Peter's head shoots up. "Yes?"
Miss Rivera is smirking. "It's nice to see you upgrade your wardrobe."
Someone wolf-whistles, and there is an outbreak of giggling. Peter sits down, blushing furiously. Miss Rivera calls for order again, and it takes a while for them to subside.
Betty Brant leans over and whispers dramatically. "Guess you didn't."
The day is insufferable.
"I just really wanted to know how Parker got that... jacked... I mean... with everything I remember about him... Hasn't he always been scrawny?"
"I have no idea... He must be five years older than us... Well, he got Snapped, so--"
"Okay, but I'm kinda glad, because I would totally date him--"
Wow, okay, this is really interesting, because this must be the fourth conversation that she had overheard about Peter Parker, and they weren't even in Calculus when the whole Miss-Rivera-thing went down. MJ knows them of course-- Dahlia Hayes and Nina Valdez from her Photography elective -- but other than their names, she knows little to nothing about them. They were probably in the same year as Brad when the Snap happened, so it would make sense that Dahlia and Nina wouldn't know anything about Peter at all.
Or his relationship with MJ for that matter, but MJ is getting way too ahead of herself.
And well, isn't that crazy, because before, approximately anyone who talks about Peter is just everyone in the decathlon team. That was his line of sight, she had that one figured out pretty quickly. She doesn't know if he does that on purpose (because keeping a low profile would work great as a cover), or if he is just genuinely an awkward, smart-but-sometimes-dumb-of-fuck dork. MJ thinks it's the latter.
But she CANNOT pretend that she did not see the glances on Peter's way when he walks to their classes. Nor can she unhear the conversation Dahlia and Nina had, exactly the same conversation that she has heard four times with different people. Peter is in everyone's radar now, and despite being clearly embarassed during Calculus period, it seems like he has taken it to stride. Either that or he is just completely oblivious to the attention he has been getting (again, probably the latter.) And a part of her thinks: about fucking time. But another part of her just didn't know how to react to the situation. It feels so weird; she was the one who notices what hasn't been noticed. So to bring that one up in the spotlight, under the scrutiny of everybody...
It's like an intimate secret had been discovered, and that intrusion is clearly bugging her.
Guess you didn't.
She has to smile at that one. Oh, Betty. She had, in fact, known. She had seen what he looks like, during that night in Prague. Maybe that's one little secret that she can keep to herself.
There's also the secret of him being Spider-man, but whatever.
"...do you think he's dating someone?"
The bell rings. MJ gathers her books, and without any second thoughts, approaches the duo.
"Yeah, he is," she says abruptly, and after a short pause, "me. He's dating me."
She sees Dahlia turn bright red. Nina begins sputtering out what sounded like apologies, but MJ had already turned and walked away, out of the room and into the bustling corridor.
She can't wipe the dumb grin off her face.
She so needed that.
She finds Peter and Ned huddled together in their usual table during lunch. When they spot her going towards them Peter pushes Ned's head away, and they are already talking about the food by the time she arrives.
"What was that about?"
"Hi MJ!" Peter says, way too brightly. He crosses his arms and leans forward, and MJ tries to steer her gaze away from them because oh fuck they were right his biceps do look strong--
"You were almost late today," she says bluntly, sitting down on the opposite side of the table. "I was worried."
Peter and Ned exchange looks. Peter starts, "it's nothing, r-really, the sink--"
"Peter saved the city from a collapsed water tower this morning."
"What?"
"Ned," Peter hisses, but his best friend shrugs. "Dude, come on. It's all over the news anyway. She's bound to know." Ned leans over and begins whispering excitedly. "It's so cool. There's already a video of it on Youtube! There was this bad guy, right, and I don't know what his deal was, I think he was monologuing and he was like 'AHAHA now your city is mine' but then Spider-man shows up and they fight and were all ARGH, and AAAH, and the water tower started to collapse, but Spider-man stops most of it AND takes out the bad guy, too. Maybe he's in jail, now? Anyway, a pretty cool start to a morning, I think. Oh, and Peter got drenched."
"Really?" MJ says, turning to Peter. She hears the worry in her voice, but there's something else in there too. Not relief; she determines that emotion pretty quickly, because she can't help but feel it whenever Peter answers a call, or just texts back to her in the middle of the night, a little reminder that he is alive and breathing (one of the perks of dating a self-sabotaging superhero.) No, this was the same thing she had felt while they stood on that bridge in London, with Peter standing before her, injured and bloody but safe, and she realizes that it is pride, swelling on her chest to the size of a balloon. "That was you?"
"Heh, yeah," Peter says, unconsciously running his hands through his curls, and MJ had to pinch her lips at that, to seize whatever control is left in her. "I'm okay, really. Except my backpack got soaked too, and my clothes were in it, so I had to run back for a quick change, and this is the first thing that I grabbed, I think May had already washed it or something and it was on my bed so I--"
She does not even think twice. She leans in and kisses him.
She can tell that Peter is surprised, but he melts into the kiss pretty quickly, his hand cupping her cheek.
"Yeah, okay guys," she hears Ned say in a faintly amused and exasperated voice. "You're in love. We get it."
When they broke apart, Peter's smile is soft, almost giddy.
"Not that it wasn't welcome," he says, slightly breathless, "but what was that for?"
MJ shrugs, feeling the heat creep to her neck. "You know how everyone's staring at you today? Had to remind them who noticed you first."
"Oh, I don't think anyone is staring..." Peter falters as he looks around the cafeteria. MJ does the same, and there are people who immediately looked the other way. Some are still gazing at them very pointedly, though, and a few have started to cheer. MJ sees Dahlia at the far side of the cafeteria, muttering something to Nina.
She turns back, satisfied, only to see Peter's eyes on her. His head is slightly inclined, brows furrowed, as if he is considering something.
"What?"
"I'm just... Well it might be a possibility but..." He hesitates for a second, then says, "are you... jealous?"
"No?!" she says defensively, way louder than she has intended. She clears her throat. "I mean... Do you know how many times Ady Davison has talked about your shoulders during Bio? And how Ethan Mitchell thinks you should always wear that shirt from now on? Even Susan Yang definitely thinks you're a male escort now." She purses her lips. "Your outfit's too eye-catching, if I do say so myself."
"Huh," he says, eyes wide. "So you are. This is new."
Okay, so maybe he is taking the new attention in stride, especially if he wanted to know how she is feeling than ask if what she said is true. "How's that?"
There is a timid smile on his lips. "Yeah, uh... in Europe, I kinda... always thought you would choose Brad... Over me. So... Yeah."
MJ stares at him, and she feels her whole face burning. Shit.
"You're hopeless, Parker," she mutters, but she is smiling as she hoists her bag to her shoulders. "Parking lot at 3:45. Don't be late."
As she leaves she hears Ned say, "You guys are so cute together. I don't think I like being the third wheel here."
"I was your third wheel in Venice, Ned," is Peter's reply.
"Oh. Right."
"You ready?"
MJ clutches tightly unto Spider-man's shoulders, trying not to look down from the rooftop of a high rise building and see the streets of Queens, New York below. "U-Uh yeah, sure. J-just takes some getting used t-to."
"I still can't believe you actually wanted to do this. The last time we went--"
"PETER JUST SHUT UP AND START SWINGING BEFORE I LOSE IT OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD--!"
Peter lets go. They were airborne for just a second.
They fell.
MJ screams, burying her face on Spider-man's neck, and she hears Peter whoop with joy as he releases the web and she feels getting yanked up, up in the air, before falling down again, and she is swearing into Peter's shoulders and he is laughing while telling her he won't let go, so she allows herself to see as Peter pulls them up, soaring through the city square, and she is screaming again, except it is in exhilaration, clinging tightly to his neck...
"OKAY THAT'S ENOUGH, OKAY, OKAY P-PUT ME DOWN!"
Peter lands them gracefully onto another rooftop, but she doesn't let go immediately. Her limbs are still wrapped around his body as she tries to catch her breath.
"Hey, you good?"
Her voice is still shaky as she says,"I r-really liked you in that b-black shirt."
He gives a surprised laugh. "Anything else, Miss Jones?"
"I-I'd really like to kiss you, too."
Peter is silent for a moment, and MJ could not discern what his expression is through the mask.
"I'd like that, too," he finally says.
MJ lifts the lower part of his mask and kisses him, and he responds with fervor, his firm arms pulling her closer, his hands in her back, on her hair. And yup, this is pretty great. Spider-man's a pretty great kisser, she thinks.
So yeah... Like she said. And maybe a big middle finger to Miss Higgins, the guidance counselor who said otherwise. Being observant has its perks.
Except... Well, maybe she can say with utmost certainty that she's obsessed with him too.