Peter Parker hasn't ever invited a girl over to hang out. He's not really sure why he asked MJ to come over. Okay, that's a huge lie. He wants to sleep and for some strange reason, he only sleeps if she's around and he can't crawl through her window tonight since she won't have the place to herself. Logically, the only thing to do was invite her to his place. The fact that Aunt May is leaving soon is just icing on the cake and an awkward encounter avoided.

     He tries to clean his room but he gets frustrated after twenty minutes. The rest of it ends up kicked under the bed. Michelle's gonna walk in and immediately start making fun of all the nerdy things he has lying around and plastered on the walls but he doesn't mind the teasing so much. He's still somewhat in shock that she agreed to come over.

     Peter tosses the last shirt from his collection taking up floor space into the hamper and gives his room a quick once over. It's as clean as it'll get. He briefly wonders if she feels this nauseated and jittery before he slips into her room for a night. His stomach is twisting, heart pounding and he has enough energy to climb the walls at least thirty times, maybe forty. It feels different now that she's the one who'll be investigating his bedroom.

"Wow, you cleaned." Peter turns to face his aunt and tries to ignore that she's dressed for a night out or who it could be with. "Special occasion?"

"I have a friend coming over, is that okay? We're just going to watch a movie and eat everything in the kitchen."

"Sure, I'll be back late. Just keep the noise down and don't set the place on fire." May grins at him and he feels his stomach sink just a little. He doesn't mention that his friend is female or that he can't seem to sleep without her next to him. Some things are better left unsaid.

"Pretty sure I'm not the one who almost starts fires."

"Hush." They share a smile before she leaves and he's finally alone. He told Michelle to come any time but now he's grabbing his phone and checking texts just in case.

He's taking the night off for this, unless something happens that requires his attention. It better not. This is something he's looking forward to. They haven't spent much time together other than sleeping or talking for a brief period of time and then sleeping. School doesn't really count. At least, he doesn't think it does.

Part of him fears that she won't come until it's really late and they'll crash in minutes while the other half of him is afraid she'll be here early and they'll have nothing but awkward silences. He gives his room one last glance and heads for the kitchen to bust out the movie snacks.

He's elbow deep in the cabinet, grabbing at the popcorn, when there's a soft knock on the door. His phone goes off next and he pulls it from his pocket to see the message from MJ. He didn't need the confirmation. He knew from the knock who's waiting on the other side. The knots in his stomach intensify as he opens the front door.

"Hey," Peter says, standing to the side in an open invitation for her to come in.

"Hey."

"My aunt just left so we have the place to ourselves." MJ nods and steps inside, her eyes bouncing around as she takes it all in. Her hand grips the strap of her backpack when Peter comes to a halt beside her.

Her hair is down. He's seen it down. He's woke up to it tickling his face and her curls tangled around his fingers but for some reason seeing her standing in his living room with her hair down is making him breathe a little faster than necessary. It's getting harder to deny that he maybe really likes her.

It's as awkward as he imagined. MJ looks around, everywhere but at him and he tries to follow her gaze and figure out what she's thinking but the silence stretches as they stand next to each other. She finally gives him a little glance and nods to the bag she has slung over her shoulder.

"I brought stuff."

"Oh, you can put your bag in my room. It's this way." He gestures to the hallway, hand waving around until he overthinks it and lets it drop. She follows him without hesitation and Peter decides it's only awkward if he lets it be. This is the girl he's friends with. The girl who lets him sleep under the same blanket and tangle limbs till morning.

"I'm cleared for the night. I said I was staying over at a friend's after a study session. Didn't even get questioned."

"It's a little messy, I haven't been home much." It's still daylight out when he leads her into his room with a sly smile at his joke.

"Yeah, I heard you've been bugging this girl almost every night and hogging the blankets."

"Hey! I do not. I didn't even get any of the blanket the other night." He didn't. She'd wrapped herself tight in a blanket burrito and refused to budge.

"Maybe you should bring your own." MJ drops the bag on the bed and takes a seat next to it. "Your aunt is cool with me being here or are we pretending I'm not?"

"I told her I asked a friend over for a movie night, she said it's okay." He has a girl in his room. His brain isn't quite functioning. Is it hot in here?

"So you actually want to watch a movie?"

"Well...yeah? What else would we do?" On the list of questions he should not ask, that's got to be right near the top. He's not unaffected by her, he's quite affected. His imagination offers up a long list of things and none of them involve watching a movie but all of them make him feel like his face is on fire.

"Just thought we're exhausted so you'd want to sleep and you just said that to get me here earlier." She's back to looking around but she's smiling softly. Peter has to clench his fist when she reaches up to tuck her hair behind her ear. He tries and fails to look away from her, to look somewhere else and extinguish the ache to reach for her.

"N-no."

"Okay, so you get the popcorn. I just want to put my pjs on since you beat me to it and then meet you in the living room?"

"Sounds great." He leaves the room in a rush, scrambling to get out, needing air. He hears the door shut, his door.

For some reason it didn't register that she's changing in his room until he heard the click and he's just going to assume there's no air in the living room anymore because it's hard to breathe. Things are changing between them, it's obvious in the thump in his chest and the way he drops the bag of popcorn two times before he gets it in the microwave.

It was just a plan, just supposed to help them sleep. He's not sure how or when it became more but as he's listening to the hum of the microwave and the popping coming from within, Peter is fully aware that this night is a big step.
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Michelle takes her time exploring Peter's room. There's something about running her finger over the knickknacks on his desk that puts a smile on her face. This silly nerdy boy is turning her insides to goo and she's not as mad about it as she used to be. His room is everything she thought it would be. Not that she's thought about being in his bedroom. Okay, she has but not a lot.

Being alone in someone's bedroom feels intimate, like a secret shared between two lovers or something only the closest of friends experience. She hasn't really had a lot of friends...or boys who are a little more than friends. Her cheeks heat and her heart beats wildly against her ribs. This is his personal space, the place he goes to that's all him. It's his likes, hobbies, personality all rolled up into one perfectly Peter Parker room.

      MJ isn't sure why she ends up standing in front of his closet, it's just a spot where her feet decided to land. She didn't purposefully wander over. However, when she reaches to open it, it's one hundred percent intentional. She's just snooping, and it's rude maybe but if this is what he feels every time he's in her room then he has more willpower than she does. Or possibly just better manners.

She knows she's taking too long but there's no way Peter Parker will step foot back into this room knowing she's possibly getting undressed. He's too much of a gentleman. So, she takes just a little longer to get her bag and search for the leggings she brought. If she thought it was intimate to be in his room by herself, it's a whole new level when it hits her that she's about to strip out of her clothes.

The bathroom would've been a neutral territory, but she's already here. She changes quickly and tries not to look around at all the things that scream 'this is Peter's bedroom' while slipping on the leggings. However, she pauses when she reaches for the shirt she brought, it's thin and his room feels cool. At least that's what she tells herself when she zips her bag and fishes one of his shirts off the hanger.

It's softer than she thought it would be, a white cotton nerdy shirt that has seen better days but she slides it over her head without hesitation. Michelle leaves her backpack by the closet and gives his room one last glance before she opens the door.

By the time she makes it to the couch, Peter is coming out of the kitchen with his arms full of snacks. A bowl of popcorn in one hand and three bags of chips in the other.

"I don't know what chips you like so I just grabbed random kinds and-" Whatever he planned to say is silenced the second he glances up from the snacks in his arms and sees her. It would be a lie if she said she isn't enjoying the jaw dropped, wide eyed look on his face.

"I'm not picky. What movie are we watching?"

"That's my...you're wearing um-"

"I brought a tank top and it's a little cold so I just grabbed this. Seemed fair since you've worn mine." The longer he stares, the more it eats away at her confidence and suddenly the floor is more interesting than anything else in the room. "I should've asked."

"No, it's okay. You look great." His eyes shut as his face twists and she almost reaches for him but then, he's opening them so she clenches the fabric at the hem of the shirt instead. "Sorry, that's weird. I didn't mean that."

"So I don't look great?" He drops a bag of chips when she meets his eyes and raises an eyebrow.

"What? No. No, you do."

"I'm messing with you, dork." The least she can do is lean down and grab the bag that hit the floor. "Doritos, always a good choice."

Peter places the snacks down on the coffee table and rubs his hands down the thighs of the plaid pants he's wearing and MJ tries to figure out why that's suddenly an attractive trait. Is it just something she likes to see as a guy shuffles closer or is it only a thing she likes because of who did it? The answer might be one she's not entirely sure she wants to know.

     This is Peter Parker turning her insides to goo. This is the boy she's harbored a stupid crush on for years now and the same loser she swore she wouldn't let slip past her defenses. Somehow, he ended up inside the carefully constructed wall she's built around herself before she even noticed. One day he was simply just...there.

They end up seated on the couch with only inches between them, lights low, and snacks scattered. The awkwardness dissipates when choosing a movie proves to be an impossibility Michelle never considered. Neither of them know what they want to watch and movie taste varies wildly between them. After ten minutes of arguing over action or comedy, MJ grabs the remote from his hand and picks a documentary on serial killers.

"A documentary is your idea of fun?"

"This is quality content." Except it isn't and she's just too tired to invest in an argument stating why a documentary about twisted minds is actually great date material. Not that this is a date.

The side of the couch he's occupying looks really comfortable and Michelle waits all of five minutes before she slides her legs over his lap and curls into him. The popcorn hasn't been touched, all three bags of chips are opened and waiting. There's orange dust on her leggings from the handful of Doritos she's managed to scarf down. She wipes it off absently, wondering if maybe she crossed some line they'd drawn in the sand.

This is fine. This is what they do. Usually only when asleep but he doesn't move or say anything so she presses her cheek to his shoulder and reaches for another Dorito. She's mid crunch when he finally adjusts and his arm settles around her. The tug in her abdomen intensifies at being pulled closer and the fingers he presses against her ribs are shaky.

It makes her feel better knowing he's a little off balance when she's a lot off balance and completely without a map for the new terrain they've stumbled across. Sleeping in the same bed and sometimes cuddling a little, or waking up cuddling a lot is a bit different than just snuggling down on a couch to watch television.

"Is this okay?" She hears the words fall from her lips but she never takes her eyes off the screen.

"Yeah, yeah. This is...good." He hesitated but his thumb strokes against her side, over the shirt she pilfered from his closet and her muscles relax. Michelle wouldn't say she melts, she doesn't do that. She's a person not a piece of candy left in a warm space but maybe she gets a little soft. "If I have nightmares about being murdered in a park, I'm blaming you."

"I'm sure Spidey can handle himself but I'll be here for moral support if you do."

"Seriously, MJ, this is what you want to watch?" Peeling her gaze from the TV, she looks up at him and smirks. He might be giving her a hard time about it but there's a smile on his face. "To relax?"

"Already relaxed." She points at their pjs, at their position on the couch and feels him let out a deep breath. "Watch this with me so we can discuss the incredibly disturbed minds."

"As you wish."

They both get quiet, comfortable and at ease as their eyes droop and yawns take over. The exhaustion has been creeping into Michelle's bones all day and she might be in his lap and pressed to his side but she's completely aware that he's the first to doze off. Approximately nine minutes after he stopped talking, Peter is passed out with his head back against the cushion and lips slightly parted.

It isn't even eight but she leaves him be. The documentary loses her interest around thirteen minutes later and MJ drags her tired eyes up to watch his mouth twitch and his eyebrows furrow. She doesn't want to move but they can't sleep in this position. She could but his feet are still on the floor and his neck will ache which means she'll have to hear the complaints. Really, she's just saving herself.

The popcorn is still untouched, the chips barely eaten and Peter's even breathing drowns out the sound of the TV. He wanted to watch movies, he asked specifically to watch something instead of just lay down and go straight to sleep. It's not lost on her that he's the first to knock out or that he didn't touch any of the food.

It was all for her. This stupid boy is making her feel things, a lot of things. He makes her awkward, unsure, and a little scared. She needs to stop staring at his face like a creep but instead, she pushes up just enough to press her nose against his neck. He mumbles something that isn't even real words and she smiles. This isn't the closest they've been.

That moment goes to the morning she woke to find him tangled around her, hand in her hair and on her hip and his mouth against her ear. Thankfully the awkward mornings aren't really a thing. She's usually up and scooting away before he ever moves or she wakes to an empty bed and a text.

"Peter," she hums against him, mouth soft and tone light. "Hey, wake up sleepy pants."

His fingers squeeze against her side and he cracks one eye open. Barely. As if any more effort just can't be mustered and he's on the verge of drifting back to the land of dreams.

"Didn't fall 'sleep."

"You did. You can't sleep sitting up." He doesn't say anything. Just closes his eye and suddenly both arms are around her and she's being lifted as he stands. "Hey!"

"Shh, MJ. People are sleeping." Whatever she expected, this isn't it. She didn't think Peter would be lifting her as if she weighs nothing, eyes closed and then sitting right back down in the middle of the couch with a smile on his face, looking like a complete soft dork. Or that he'd just flop over and pull her down with him.

It isn't graceful when one of his arms is still beneath her knees. Her elbow catches his ribs, making him grunt and she has to twist to free her legs and straighten them out while wiggling to fit between him and the back cushion. It isn't romantic, it isn't cute. It's just them. When she settles she's half on top of him, her face pressed into his shoulder and his hand is in her hair. She can't deny that she lets her eyes droop a little more as he twirls a curl around his finger.

"This isn't what I had in mind when I said you can't sleep sitting up."

"Oh. Sorry, do you want to go to bed?"

"No." What she wants is for him to keep playing with her hair and when she feels his other arm slide over and fingers grip at the shirt she borrowed, she doesn't ever want to move from his couch. It would be easier to stay in his hold, to let high school, the missing years, the fact she doesn't fit anywhere else all slip away. "Stay awake with me for a little bit."

"Okay." He sinks deeper into the couch and coaxes her to rest her ear against his chest. Everything is changing. "Just tired."

"Me too." Without it being spoken, both know they're not talking about being sleepy this time. "I don't...I'm having a hard time."

He grips her tighter, grounding her, the hand playing with her curls stops to press gently against the back of her head. Her heart almost beats it way out of her chest. He's holding her in place, maybe afraid she's going to retreat but she doesn't want to. Not anymore.

"Talk to me." It's the same words she said to him the first night he appeared outside her window, the same soft tone.

"It's hard to adjust. Nobody says it is, nobody talks about it but the music isn't the same, books aren't the same, movies, everything kept going when we didn't." She lifts her chin, glances up and his eyes find hers in the glow of the TV. "It's just difficult to find where to fit when nothing is the same, no one is the same, and it feels like I'm just left behind."

"I don't think we're supposed to have all the answers."

"Be easier if we did." She can feel his soft laugh and it sparks one of her own. "I used to think I had a plan for my life, I guess I just feel a little lost."

"I know that feeling, good friends with that one."

"Don't feel as lost with you." She didn't mean to say it loud, it slipped but it's out and she can't take it back. She doesn't really want to anyway.

"I know that feeling too." They both yawn, breaking the moment. Her eyes close and she doesn't have the energy to will them back open when he tightens his hold on her. "Let's just rest for a minute."

"Gummy bears." It's mumbled into his shirt.

"Hmm?"

"Next movie date. I like gummy bears and M&Ms." It's barely a whisper as her body gives in to the pull of sleep but he hears her loud and clear.

     They're just gonna rest for a minute and then they'll wake, move to his bedroom for privacy. At least, that's what they both tell themselves. That's the thought Michelle recites over and over as she drifts off. Just a few minutes and they'll get up. The last waking moment is spent pressing her face into his shoulder. Shit, she called it a date out loud.