Ned kindly showed me where all my classes were and told me, "If you need anything Mia, don't hesitate to ask. If you want to, you can sit with me and Peter at lunch..."

"Totally, sounds like fun. Nice meeting you Ned," I said as we walked in opposite directions.

I headed to my first class, Chemistry. I needed a lab partner, so I paired up with the only girl who was alone. She was pretty, with dark skin and curly brown hair that was tied back in a messy ponytail. She wore a vintage band t shirt and a black jacket with jeans; all of which were too big on her. I walked up to her and waved.

"Hi, my name is Mia. I'm new. Do you want to be lab partners?"

"Sure," she shrugged and went back to sketching in her journal. I could see why she was alone.

Chemistry was not that bad, as I managed to get a few words out of the girl, who I found out was named Michelle. I really struck a gold mine when I asked her what she was drawing.

"Oh," she said laughing to herself, "I like to draw people in crisis."

I asked to see and we giggled over her drawings.

"These are so funny!"

I smiled and was happy to see that she smiled back. That seemed to break her out of her shell. We spent the rest of the period talking about things we liked. We had plenty in common.

Michelle and all had the same pre-lunch classes, so we walked together. It was nice talking to another girl about normal girl things, like what songs we liked and what movies we hated. Back home, I was always shut in the hospital with barely any friends my age. I did have some awesome gossip sessions with the nurses though.

We walked to the cafeteria . It was very crowded and it reeked of spoiled milk. Michelle and I pushed and shoved our way to where Ned was sitting. Michelle glanced at Ned and nodded, and I could tell that she usually sat here. Ned smiled at me and told me that he was excited for me to meet Peter. I grinned and gave him a thumbs up.
Ned waved at someone behind me and I heard a voice say, "Hey Ned. Who's sitting at our table.....".

He stopped talking once he saw me. I turned to the voice and my breath hitched. The boy was very cute; he had brown hair and chiseled features. He was lean and muscular, not even his dark blue sweater, which he wore with dark gray jeans and sneakers, could hide it. The corners of his mouth were turned up in a shy smile and his cheeks were tinged with pink.

But his eyes, well damn.

They were the color of milk chocolate, and they glinted brightly. But they seemed so.... I don't know the word to describe it. They made him look intelligent, yet weary; as if he was carrying the safety of New York on his shoulders. I sensed that he had gone through a lot and seen so much. Staring into them made butterflies swarm around in my stomach.

Ned's head moved back and forth, watching us stare at each other. "Mia, this is..."

"Peter. Peter Parker," the boy interrupted as he thrust out his hand.

I shook it. My voice returned and I finally said, "Mia Jackson, pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise," Peter said, his eyes still locked on mine.

"Peter, Mia is new here at Midtown," Ned started, "She likes building things, she made this really cool alarm clock and....,"

"Ned, can I talk to you for a minute?" Peter interrupted.

I immediately felt self conscious; what had I done wrong?

Sensing my worry Michelle said, "Don't sweat it Mia, he is just gets nervous in front of pretty girls. Peter is a nice boy, but he is hiding something, I just know it."

I nodded, still unsure. Michelle and I began walking out of the cafeteria as I said, "Wait, I'm pretty?"

"Yeah, you are. Don't start getting a big head now," Michelle smirked. I laughed and walked to my locker.