Archive of Our Own

It was a rush decision that just slipped. Michelle didn’t usually do things like that – she was a lot more careful, especially when it came to other people. She was a loner for a reason – never wanting people to approach her or talk to her. She just didn’t like the spotlight, and she was good at keeping hidden in the shadows of other people, always staying quiet and unpredictable.

But apparently her brain decided it was time to finally mis it up a little and Michelle was sent into this weird, unknown area she didn’t know how to navigate. She was clueless about which way was right and which was left. She didn’t want to step forward for fear of stepping over the ledge and somehow ending up even worse. She felt blind and exposed and out of her depth in a way that didn’t suit her at all. A way she despised and wanted gone!

And it was all her fault.

She was just running away from Brad, alright? He has been trying to ask her on a date for months now and Michelle didn’t know why, but she really didn’t want to do it, yet she didn’t have it in her to tell him to leave her alone. There was just something so desperate about him, like he truly believed she was the only person he could end up with, which was ridiculous and insane, but oh well. C’est la vie.

It couldn’t last forever, though, so Michelle found herself lying to him, telling him that she already had a boyfriend who went to a different school. Someone he didn’t know. Someone who didn’t want anyone to know they were together, so he didn’t even get close to their school. Which… yeah, it didn’t sound real to her, either. But she stuck to it and tried to make Brad understand she was telling the truth while also cringing at her own terrible lie. Seriously, boyfriend from a different school? Could she think of a more cliché thing to say??

So now she was running from the school, her legs carrying her away while her ears strained to try and spot Brad’s voice above the noise of the city. It was hard, but the fact that he kept calling her name was a pretty big clue as to where he was. Which was right behind her, apparently. So she sped up even more, her side aching and her legs protesting every further step forward.

She tried to think of something to do because she couldn’t run forever. Plus, running from Brad made him look like a stalker, which he wasn’t. He was actually nice and was interested in a lot of the same thigs as her, which only made it weirder to think about how much she didn’t like the idea of dating him. Because seriously, she wasn’t sure there would ever be someone more fitting than this guy. She was only running from him because she knew she wouldn’t be able to keep up this lie much longer and she didn’t have a way of proving Brad wrong.

Until she turned around a corner and ran straight into someone. They both got knocked off their feet and Michelle braced herself for the painful meeting with the sidewalk. Only it never came. The air in her lungs was punched out of her, but instead of hitting the hard cement, a set of arms pulled her close and she ended up landing on top of the guy she hit with him taking the full brunt of the fall.

Blinking and pushing her head off his chest, Michelle looked down at the confused and slightly stunned face of the person who just protected her from getting harmed as if it was his first instinct. He was staring at her owlishly, big brown eyes blinking up at her in a state of daze, almost. Then Michelle heard Brad’s voice calling for her again and she knew he was almost around the corner, so she just did the first thing she could think of doing.

“Please roll with this.” She whispered frantically to the guy underneath her and he didn’t respond before Michelle pulled herself off of him and onto her legs. She held her hand out for him to take and he hesitated for a moment before taking it. He barely got the chance to right himself again before Brad halted in front of them, his eyes jumping from the stranger – who was slightly shorter than Michelle and definitely around their age – to Michelle. “Oh, hey Brad.”

Brad furrowed his brows a little. “Hey.” He looked at the person next to Michelle again, eyes seemingly calculating. There was almost recognition in his gaze, though Michelle didn’t understand how that could happen. This stranger didn’t look too special or anything. Just a teenager their age who happened to catch Michelle when she knocked right into him on the street. Talk about awkward. Another awkward thing Michelle noted – she had to hold this person’s hand to make sure he didn’t just leave her here because even though the chances of him rolling with her were slim, she wanted to give it a try. “You’re really fast.”

Not taking notice of the compliment – though it sounded more like an annoyed observation – Michelle pulled the person next to her closer until their shoulders brushed against each other. The guy didn’t protest, but he was a little rigid next to her. “Brad, this is actually great timing!” She said, acting like she never ran away from him. Well, she was still breathing heavily and her side still stabbed her painfully, but she ignored those signs. “I wanted you to meet my boyfriend.”

She nudged the guy’s side slightly and he shut his mouth after a long moment of just staring at Brad like he was trying to catch up with the two of them. Then he put on a bright, blinding smile and held out his free hand to Brad. “Nice to meet you!” He said lightly and Michelle closed her eyes in relief for just a moment. Whoever this person was – he was willing to go with it. She didn’t really count on that, if she was being honest with herself. She felt a little awestruck. “I’m Peter.”

“Peter.” Michelle echoed, trying to look like she didn’t just learn his name just now. “Yeah, and Peter, this is Brad.” She said. “Remember I told you about him? My lab partner in chemistry?” She asked and Peter nodded dutifully, like a perfect minion. She shoved the urge to sigh in relief. Later. She could feel relief later.

Brad looked a little like someone just shoved a lemon down his throat and made him swallow it. “Peter.” He said. There was a hint of irritation in his voice and Peter seemed to notice it because he shifted a little next to her, his hand twitching in hers. “What are you doing here? I mean, that’s a pretty good coincidence right there, huh? You two running into each other like that.”

Her heart skipped a beat when she realized Brad was still not buying this and she was trying to fish for a good enough excuse before Peter spoke up. “Oh, no coincidences here.” He squeezed Michelle’s hand. “We planned on meeting here. You know,” He gestured towards the coffee house across the street from them. “After school date.” He gave Michelle an amused look. “Did you forget?”

There was a moment when she just stared at this amazing human being that was willingly coming up with lies to save her. Then she shook her head to clear her thoughts. “N-no!” She protested. Peter raised an eyebrow at her and she pressed her lips. “Maybe?” She turned to Brad. “Sorry. We should probably go. See you tomorrow!” And she pulled Peter towards the crosswalk. Peter actually waved at Brad from over his shoulder. “I am so sorry.” She whispered in mortification once they were far enough so that Brad couldn’t hear them even if he was hanging around.

“No problem.” Peter shrugged and Michelle let go of his hand. He swung it back and forth by his side restlessly and they both waited for the light to turn green so they could cross to the other side. “He seemed nice enough. I don’t know him, obviously, but…” He tilted his head to the side. “Is he creepy or stalker-y or something? Because then I totally get why you’re throwing him off like that.”

“I just don’t want to date him, and he won’t take no for an answer.”

Peter was quiet for a moment. “Not soulmates, then.” She shook her head and pressed her lips. “Cool.” He went quiet after that. The light turned green and they crossed the road along with three more people. Michelle didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t sure she even needed to still walk next to Peter but her skin still tingled, like Brad was looking at the two of them from the same place, trying to catch them in their lie. So Michelle just kept on going. “Here,” Peter opened the door of the café for her, as if it was the most natural thing in the world – for them to get in together. “I think he’s still watching.”

She let him lead her towards a corner table – a place that looked pretty secluded, which was great – and then looked through the menu while also keeping an eye on the lone figure of Brad, staring at them from across the street. She frowned and tugged at her hair.

“I’m sorry I just interrupted your plans, by the way.” She apologized eventually.

Peter put down his menu and looked at her with a soft smile, like he didn’t mind at all. “It’s okay. I was mostly just taking a break from being home since my parents were both going crazy over this big thing we need to do tonight and I got sick of it.” He shrugged and seemed to take in her reaction. There wasn’t really much of a reaction to take in, though, Michelle thought. Peter’s smile widened a little, like she did something he actually appreciated. “You do have a soulmate, right?”

Her fingers drummed quickly against the table. “Nope.” She said nonchalantly. Because it wasn’t a big deal. So what if she never had a soulmark or anything to indicate that she had a soulmate. Not everyone had one. A lot of people had to search for their love on their own, without the help of the universe. Michelle could deal with that. She wasn’t helpless, after all. She rolled her eyes at Peter’s awkward expression. “It’s no big deal, really. I mean, I don’t need the universe to hold my hand while I live my life. I can choose on my own. I’m not a baby, stumbling around blindly.”

He nodded quickly, as if worried she might bite his head off if he didn’t agree with her. “No, yeah. I totally get that.” He said. There was a hint of confusion and disbelief in his voice. “I just… I guess I never saw it that way.” He rubbed the wrist of his hand and his sleeve crinkled a little. Michelle lifted an eyebrow at that and he smiled bashfully. “I have the initials of their name on my wrist.” He said but he didn’t show her. It made sense – people didn’t just share their soulmarks. They were private and intimate. Michelle was a stranger to him. “My dad has the same thing, so he’s searched for a really long time for a person that goes by PP. It took him a long time.”

“PP?” Michelle’s lips quirked up and she leaned back in her seat, hands crossed over her chest. “Not having a soulmate already sounds better than having this written on my skin permanently.” She stated and Peter laughed. Her eyes flitted over his shoulder to the window. Brad was no longer there, but she didn’t know whether she should really just get up and leave Peter after he helped her without asking any questions (beforehand) or not. “He’s gone.”

Turning around in his seat, Peter seemed to scan the street, too, before he turned back around to face Michelle. “Yup. Definitely bought it.” He brushed his hand through his curls. “That’s definitely my contribution. I’m a great actor.” He said.

For the first time Michelle took him in. He had curly, brown hair that kept on getting messier and messier the more he played with it. His skin was pale, though there was a little more color to his cheeks – girls would have killed to get such a good trait. His eyes were brown, but lighter than hers and almost shining with intelligence she didn’t have the time to test. And there were a few freckles dotting his face, creating constellations on his skin.

He was just an average teenage boy in New York. He didn’t look strong or muscular or intimidating. In fact, everything about him screamed that he was a nerd or a geek. He had a science pun T-shirt on top of a long-sleeved plain shirt. His bright expression reminded her of the D&D club members in her school who spoke about nothing other than the game. She could definitely see him playing video games to the late hours of the night.

Michelle blinked her eyes when he waved his hand in front of her face, amusement written all over his features. She frowned. “You still with me?” He asked and then backed off sheepishly, as if her glare was aimed at him and he didn’t know what to do with an annoyed girl. “Sorry. You just spaced out.”

“It’s fine. I should go.” She got up and started walking away when Peter caught her arm, making her halt. “What?”

He smiled. “What’s your name?” He asked and his eyes bore right into hers, as if he was looking for something. And maybe he found it, because his eyes seemed to sparkle. As in, actually sparkle. She almost considered pinching herself to see if she was dreaming right now. Maybe she made Peter up in her mind. Maybe none of this was real. “I mean, you know mine. It’s only fair.”

She stared blankly at him. “I don’t know you.” When he stuck out his bottom lip in an imitation of a puppy, Michelle sighed and shook her head like she thought he was being ridiculous. Which he was. Peter seemed to sense her walls crumbling because he smiled again. “Michelle Jones.” She said. His smile nearly blinded her. “Anything else?”

“Yes, actually.” He looked right into her eyes. “I think you do have a soulmate. You just haven’t noticed your soulmark, yet.” And he let her hand go. Michelle sighed at this weird note he chose to end all of this with and left without another word.

She didn’t expect to see Peter again. In the big city of New York, running into someone more than once by accident wasn’t very likely. She didn’t even know if he was from around her area. And she didn’t really run into him. She just turned on the TV in the living room, her hands holding her cereal bowl so she could comfortably eat in front of the TV.

She was going to watch some kind of silly cartoon to pass her evening since her mom was out, but apparently her mother watched the news earlier because when the TV’s screen came to life, Michelle groaned at the news instead of her favorite shows and movies. She got ready to switch to a different channel when the news broadcaster suddenly disappeared and was replaced with the Starks.

Her cereal bowl nearly slipped out of her hands. She gaped at the sight of the person sheepishly standing behind Tony Stark and Pepper Potts. It was a press conference at Avengers Tower, apparently. Tony Stark, after years of only mentioning his son and never letting him stand in front of a camera, was inviting reporters and camera men to speak and talk to his son for the first time now that he was sixteen. Well, there have been a few shots of him out there, already, of paparazzi who were determined to capture the Stark son in action, but not enough to make his face famous.

The nervous expression on the boy’s face made Michelle’s heart to clench a little. She wanted nothing more than to go out there and pull him away from all of those people. He looked so uncomfortable standing like that with the whole world looking at him, intruding on his life. The suit he was wearing fit him perfectly and his hair was tamed, but the spark in his eyes was the same – still awkward and bashful and intimidated by being in the spotlight, just like Michelle. He would have looked so much more natural in his science pun T-shirt and jeans.

Eyes drifting down, Michelle noticed his hand kept on rubbing his wrist, even though his tux’s sleeve hid his soulmark. It looked like a nervous tick – something he would do when under pressure or uncomfortable. As if touching the initials on his wrist might send him some kind of calmness from his soulmate, whoever they may be.

Michelle adjusted her cereal bowl and let her hand fall down a little, the remote control slipping onto the couch’s cushions. “Peter…” She said his name and then frowned. “Peter Stark.” She groaned. “Of course you had to be someone famous. With my luck, I could have ended up bumping into the president and not realize it.” She mumbled furiously.

“Mr. Stark, how does it feel to have a great man such as Tony Stark as your father?” One reporter asked.

Peter twitched but then put on a smile on his face when Pepper Potts – his freaking mother – put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Michelle also noted the way Tony Stark whispered something in Peter’s ear only for Mrs. Potts to slap him lightly. “Greasy.” Peter said and Mr. Stark eyed him warily. The reporters chuckled awkwardly, not sure about what that was supposed to mean. “Did you know that even if we don’t use anything that has to do with motor oil, we’ll still end up with it soaking our clothes after five minutes in his workshop?” He shook his head solemnly. “If you ever get invited to that room, consider coming in the least formal clothes there are. Maybe add a garbage bag on top, too.”

They laughed. Michelle’s lips tugged up a little and she took a spoonful of cereal. Maybe this wasn’t a cartoon, but at least Peter Stark wasn’t boring, as shy as he seemed to be.

Another reporter spoke up. “How are you feeling right now? Nervous?” It was a woman and she actually sounded kinder than the previous reporter.

“I will admit that I didn’t wear my lucky socks this morning.” Peter shrugged and smiled. “So maybe a little. But you’ll stop me if I say anything stupid, right?” He sent his parents a wide-eyed look. “I mean, it would be a shame if I just started blurting out Stark Industries secrets. Like how last month – “

“And that’s all you’re getting out of him on this subject.” Mr. Stark put his hand on top of Peter’s mouth to block his next words. Peter’s eyes were crinkled, like he was counting on this. Honestly, Michelle felt like he was doing pretty well for his first time. Obviously, there wasn’t anything out yet except for this live stream, but she was pretty sure the news would just LOVE him. He wasn’t the kind of person people could hate easily and he was being awkward and nice and he was joking around – probably to relieve that tension. “Next question, please!”

And so it went on and on for about fifteen minutes. Michelle finished her dinner already, the bowl resting on top of the living room table. Her legs were pulled against her chest and she hugged them impossibly closer, her eyes sparkling at the boy on the screen. She knew they would never meet again – that was so unlikely, she was pretty sure she might cry before that happened. And she never cried. But it was still nice to know that she actually met him already, before he showed up on TV and became insanely famous. Well, he already was famous with his parents being who they are, but now his face would be recognizable, too.

A reporter with a slimy, grating-on-the-nerves kind of voice was chosen to speak. “I just got a new tip from an anonymous source.” Said the reporter and Peter’s parents looked at each other, expression a little worried now. Peter just quirked an eyebrow at the off-screen reporter. “This is… a picture taken on the street, today.” He seemed to walk towards the platform to show his phone to Peter. The boy looked even more nervous than he did at the beginning as he bent down to look at the picture. His face paled. “Would you care to tell us who that might be?”

Michelle froze in her place when the screen changed from the press conference to a picture. It was blurry and out of focus, but Peter was recognizable in it. And his hand was holding… hers. Both of their faces were exposed in this and Michelle’s heart raced faster and fasted in her chest at the sight of the picture. She stared at the back of Brad – who was miraculously not blocking them from view – and watched the easy smile on Peter’s face and the way her own face seemed to smile in a way she usually didn’t let it. Her eyes were sparkling in it. As in, actually full-on sparkling. It was insane. It was like all the colors of the sun were trapped in her eyes and waiting to come out. She guessed it was the result of the sun in her eyes.

The press conference was back. Peter opened and closed his mouth a few times, looking at the people out there in distress before he glanced worriedly at his parents who looked a lot more guarded now. Mr. Stark picked the reporter’s phone from his hand and seemed to observe the picture while Mrs. Potts tried to get everyone to be quiet. Peter looked like a fish out of water.

Michelle’s phone dinged. She didn’t even bother picking it up. She knew that people who knew her would recognize her. And the last thing she needed right now was to answer them, because what could she possibly say? That she had no idea who Peter was when she asked for him to act like they were a couple for one afternoon? Oh God, if Brad watched this, he would know they were lying.

“Not that I think this is any of your business,” Peter’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she waited for him to tell everyone about the crazy girl who made him pretend with her for a few minutes. She braced herself for the inevitable conversation with Brad who’d pout at her for lying to him. “But that’s my girlfriend.”

The world tilted… and then it just snapped right back into place. Michelle blinked at the screen and at Peter’s determined expression. Did she just imagine that, or did he really lie to everyone and tell them they were a couple? To the world? It wasn’t even true! She felt jittery. She felt so, so jittery. She felt RELIEVED! Because Peter didn’t out her as a liar to anyone. He actually kept on rolling with this lie. She felt panicked, because now people would think she was dating one of the most famous people in the world.

God, this was insane.

Her phone rang as someone called her and she glanced at the screen to see her mom’s ID blinking at her. She licked her lips and tried to calm down enough to not sound insane as she accepted the call and spoke up. “Hey, Mom. What’s up?” Her voice broke in the middle of the sentence but it was okay. She was so convincing. She was so innocent and clueless and convincing. She could do this.

She couldn’t do this. Everyone was staring at her!

Her conversation with her mother was… awkward, to say the least. Because her mom always told her to get out there a little more and explore what the world had to offer. She didn’t want Michelle to go too far, but considering what she always did was stay in her room every day, reading book after book, Michelle knew her mother just wanted her to live the same way she did.

And now, out of the blue and after Michelle told her time and time again that she wasn’t interested in going out, there was someone her mother didn’t know about that claimed to be her daughter’s boyfriend. Someone who announced to everyone that they were together, even though Michelle never even mentioned him. Which was solely because she DIDN’T know him. She knew his name, she knew he had this blindingly sweet smile and she knew that he was kind enough to help her get rid of Brad, but that was it.

Now, though, they were a famous couple. She didn’t even have his number, for crying out loud! She couldn’t text him and ask him what he was thinking. She couldn’t call him in the middle of the night to hiss at him – aware of her mom sleeping in the next room – that this was stupid and ridiculous and her life is forever ruined because he took their little lying game and used it during a press conference – something real and serious and public. This was more than she was ready to deal with.

The one plus side was that Brad finally believed her and he gave her disappointed looks every once in a while but didn’t actually hit on her again. Unfortunately, his surrender wasn’t good enough to drown out the rest of the people in school who kept on questioning her about her fake relationship with Peter Stark.

They wanted details. They wanted to know how the two of them met in the first place. They wanted something juicy and Michelle just kept her mouth shut. Because if there was one thing she knew would end badly, it was to blabber about something fictional without consulting with the other party – Peter, in this case. What if she said something and Peter said something and those stories didn’t match? The press would end them on the spot.

For three weeks she went on, refusing to talk about Peter’s bomb. She knew that people started speculating about how it was all fake, after all. Because how could Peter and Michelle be a couple when they weren’t even together in public. Peter stayed out of the public’s eyes once again – off the grid just like before the conference – and Michelle kept her head low while walking outside of her house because people kept on taking pictures of her and posting them online.

And then, on the fourth week, something’s changed.

Michelle got out of the building of the school, her hair falling into her eyes to keep her as protected as possible from everyone else. She practically bolted out of her last class to beat everyone else to the school gate so that other students wouldn’t be able to catch up with her and bombard her with questions or ask for selfies with her. She just cut through the halls and walked briskly towards the street, her legs digging into the ground to make her move faster.

And then someone joined her out of nowhere and Michelle groaned. “Go away.” She said without lifting her gaze from her own legs.

“I need to talk to you.”

Her head snapped up and she gaped. It was Peter. He had a blue hoodie and a pair of slightly torn-up jeans. His hands were in his pockets and he looked at her with so much anxiety, it was rubbing off on her. She frowned. “Oh, my God.” She narrowed her eyes at him and then looked around. Nobody seemed to recognize him. Yet. “Go away. Shoo. You can’t be here unless you want even more pictures of us out there.” She whispered.

Peter bit his lip. “I-I know. I know and I’m so sorry about all of this. I didn’t…” He shook his head and his hand came out – probably to go through his hair, but it was still covered by the hoodie and he stopped himself, instead opting to rubbing his wrist. “Look, I’m really sorry about how everything turned out – I didn’t expect people would be out there that day who’d know who I was. And then they asked me about that photo and I figured if I said the truth, I’d throw you under the bus and, I mean, we worked really hard to get that friend of yours – Brad, was it? – off your back, so that would have been stupid and rendered our effort useless, so I just lied again and…” He sighed. “My parents already chewed me out for it.”

The thing was, Michelle didn’t want to be sympathetic towards him after he kind of sent her life into this mess, but she couldn’t help but understand him. Even if he was famous and the son of a genius billionaire, he was just a teenager who got caught up in a lie he couldn’t decide whether he should explain or tend to. He picked the latter in the end, but it was still a tough choice. Well, it would have been a tough choice to someone who actually knew and cared about Michelle. Peter… he barely knew her and he still chose to help her when he didn’t have to.

If bringing her to the public eye was really considered helping, that is.

“Mine, too.” She said eventually and then gave him an intense look. “Did you tell them the truth?”

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Umm.. no?” He chuckled awkwardly and then looked away from her. “See, if my mom knew the truth, she’d do anything to make it known to everyone because it would mean less things to worry about for her. So… they’re wary about it, but they believe it’s true. For now.” He shook his head. “I’m sorry it’s gotten so out of hand.”

“Stop apologizing.” She said sharply. Peter’s jaw snapped and closed with a click. She wet her lips for a moment, thoughtful and aware of the people who tried to understand who she was talking to. She caught Peter’s hand. “Let’s go someplace less…” She didn’t need to finish the sentence and the two of them just picked up their pace and started heading towards the nearest alleyway. Even though those places were dangerous, Michelle figured the entire city was dangerous to her now, too. She heaved a little and let her lungs take in more fresh air, a little surprised at how unfazed Peter seemed to be. “You’re in an awfully good shape.” She noted dryly.

Peter offered her a tense smile and shrugged, pulling his hand out of her grasp in a fluid motion. His hand tugged the hoodie off his face and he messed up with his hair for a moment before frowning. “We should make sure we have out story straight. I had to tell my parents something because I was pressured into giving them every single detail about how we got together without them even hearing about you, so they already have a version of everything that we need to stick to.” He cringed. “I was really worried you’d somehow contradict that sometimes, but you didn’t say anything to anyone, did you?”

She looked at her ragged shoes. “I’m kind of a loner.”

His smile was back on his face. “Cool. I think my parents grounded me after that press conference just so that I wouldn’t be able to talk to you and let you know what happened, to make sure our stories match. But they finally let me go now, so I guess they decided I wasn’t lying.” He tilted his head at her and then began telling her how they ‘met’.

As it turns out, Peter always liked to go out and scour the city to get out of the tower he called home – and no, school didn’t count as getting away – and one time he ended up at the bookshop that Michelle actually liked to visit (he was ecstatic to hear that) and they ran into each other. They got to talk a little and then switched phone numbers to maybe talk a little more.

And then things turned complicated. Michelle could tell that Peter’s parents thought it was strange that he’d date someone who wasn’t his soulmate since he told her he always told them he’d wait until he found them – however long it’d take – but now they needed to believe he just let go of that dream at once to be with someone who couldn’t be his soulmate ‘cause she didn’t even have one herself. But that part was still something Peter could play off as hormones or changing his mind as he got older.

The thing that really messed things up was that apparently Peter had some sort of secret that his parents knew he would have to tell whoever it was he was dating because it was too big to keep from someone he wanted to get close to. He gave her this sheepish look after he explained that, like he wasn’t sure what to do or what to say after explaining this.

“You really don’t need to tell me anything you’re not comfortable with sharing.” Michelle said eventually. “I’m the one who got us into this mess – we’ll just come up with an excuse for why you wouldn’t tell me about this thing. It can’t be that big a deal, right?”

He grimaced. Okay, it was a big deal. “No, they’ll never believe that. I’m just… I’m going to trust you not to tell anyone else,” He bit his lip worriedly. “Although… I guess you could use it to make everyone leave you alone, ‘cause I’m pretty sure this would attract more attention than the two of us.” He cringed and turned around to face the wall, bringing his hands up to tug at his hair. “This is getting out of hand!”

Michelle leaned on the wall of the alley, her arms crossed and her eyes trained on Peter’s back. “I won’t tell anyone.” She said, almost offended. Then again, this boy didn’t even know her. “I’m not THAT shitty. I wouldn’t spill someone else’s secret for my own gain. Even if it will be tempting.” She teased.

Peter looked at her over his shoulder, hesitant, and then turned around to face her. Before she could even comprehend what was happening, he pulled up the sleeve of his hoodie. She thought he was going to show her his soulmark – which wasn’t anything she would have expected from him – but instead of seeing exposed skin, all she saw was a red spandex sleeve that had the pattern of black webs all over it. Her breath caught in her chest and she stared at the familiar red fabric before her eyes – wide and frantic – moved up to gawk at Peter.

He looked shy and awkward again, letting his sleeve back down and smiling in this kind of way that was almost ridiculously adorable. Seriously, he had no right to posses such a smile. It wasn’t fair that his parents were both with such good genes. She took a step back and then stepped forward only to stumble backwards again. Peter held his hands out like he was ready to catch her before she fell, just in case, but she only swayed a little, keeping her balance in the end.

Anyone from Queens would recognize this spandex. Well, anyone from New York would recognize it, but Queens in particular because it belonged to Spider-man and Spider-man stayed mostly in Queens. He was like their mascot or guardian angel. This vigilante that swung around the borough on his webs, helping everyone without a second thought. He even saved her mother from a burning building three months ago. But because of his mask no one knew who he was. All they knew was that he was young and not an Avengers despite working with Iron-man more than once.

And now Michelle knew who he was. “You’re Spider-man.” She said and then shook her head and frowned at him, squinting her eyes to take him in. He didn’t look particularly strong or fit. He almost looked weaker than the average nerd. “How can you be Spider-man?? Prove it.”

There was no hesitation before he shot a web at the nearest plastic container that was thrown on the dirty floor. With a flick of his wrist, the web pulled the container from the floor and into the dumpster that hid them from view. It cluttered inside and Michelle stared at the dumpster and the at Peter. She crossed her arms.

“That doesn’t prove anything.”

“You’re very skeptic.” He noted, the hint of a smile on his face. Then he put his hand on the brick wall. “Try and pull it away.” He said and after a slight hesitation, Michelle grabbed his arm and tugged. His had wouldn’t budge. She tried again, a little harder, but it remained in place, seemingly stuck to the wall. Peter stared at her, his smile dimming a little. She let go of him and he blinked and put on a smile again. With this cocky expression on his face, he pulled his hand away from the wall as if it was the easiest thing in the world and folded his arms. “What’d you say now, Miss Skeptic?”

She pursed her lips. “Fine.” She gave him a long assessing look and then tilted her head a little in curiosity. “So how come you keep your identity a secret? I mean, you are aware of the fact that your father couldn’t keep his secret for longer than five minutes, right?”

Peter laughed, though there was something deep and sorrowful in his gaze this time around. “Yeah, I remember.” He said. She knew that Peter was sixteen – common knowledge – which meant he was her age, which also meant that when Tony Stark got abducted all those years ago, he was seven. His father was gone for months and he stayed home with his mother, terrified for his father. She couldn’t even imagine living through this. “But I never did like the attention on me.” Peter shrugged and seemed to try and push those memories away. Michelle felt bad for even bringing it up. “So I don’t tell anyone.”

“Why are you operating in Queens if you live in Manhattan?”

“Because my school is there. And most of my friends.” He smiled. “I like Queens. And there are already enough people in Manhattan – I figured I could pick this borough and stick to it.” He shuddered. “At least my chances of running into Daredevil are slim. This guy isn’t the friendliest out there.” He scrunched up his nose. “Though he did help me this one time.”

Michelle didn’t even want to ask. “I need to digest this.” She muttered.

“Oh, yeah. Of course. Sorry.” He put his hands in his pockets again. “I guess it’s a lot to take in, huh?” He chuckled a little and then pointed at the street again. “Maybe I should go. We could probably plan ahead some other time.” He suggested kindly. Seriously, this boy was like the embodiment of sunshine. It wasn’t just that he was a vigilante that fought to protect her borough and her city – he was also just kind in general and so sweet and thoughtful. And they were pretty much strangers!

Her head bobbed up and down and she watched as he pulled his hood back over his head and started walking towards the exit of the alleyway… and then she called after him. “Wait!” She took the few steps to stop next to him and pulled out her phone. It looked so old and dingy and cracked and she was extremely embarrassed because the guy she was talking to was the son of the billionaire who invented advanced phones she couldn’t even afford. “We should… switch numbers.”

His eyes lit up and he nodded before taking her phone from her, not in the least bothered by how old it was and how slowly it reacted. She was glad he didn’t make a big deal out of this. “Here.” He hit the screen one last time and his own phone chimed with a notification. “I’ll save it later.” He grinned and passed her the phone back. Michelle stared at the screen that showed the beginning of a chat with Peter Stark. Apparently, she sent him a text that said, ‘I’ll get back to you later’. Ha ha. “See ya!” And he waved and quickly walked out of there.

Michelle stared blankly at her phone for a few minutes, her legs unresponsive. She had Peter Stark’s phone number. She was his fake girlfriend. He had a soulmate and he still pretended to be dating someone else. Tony Stark and Pepper Potts weakly believed she was their son’s girlfriend and she didn’t even know what their son liked except for how he said he liked the bookstore she liked. Which was a nice start, but it wasn’t nearly good enough when she needed to pretend to like Peter and be good enough for him to like her even though she wasn’t his soulmate.

This was going to drive her nuts.

Peter: favorite meal?

Me: Dinner as long as my mom doesn’t decide to try and make something weird.

Peter: I meant food.

Peter: as in, what would you like to eat for the rest of your life?

Me: Oh. Probably pesto pasta.

Peter: sometimes I wonder whether my dad’s soulmate should have been pesto pasta

Peter: I mean, the pp is there

Me: Your favorite food?

Peter: oh

Peter: fries. if you put fries in front of me and leave me for five minutes, you won’t have any left

Peter: be warned

Me: All of this fat and you’re still in shape to be Spider-man? I’m impressed.

Peter: it’s my metabolism. I need to eat more than others because I burn through everything really fast. So it doesn’t really hurt me I guess

Me: …Every teenage girl would kill to be you. I think you should know that.

Peter: why?

Peter: oh! haha that’s crazy

Peter: you should always remember that having to eat more than usual means you spend more time eating than other people and as much as I love food it still sucks

Me: Next question.

Peter: alright

Peter: favorite color

Me: Stupid question. Next up.

Peter: no no wait now I gotta know

Peter: come on what is it?????????

Me: I don’t have a favorite color

Peter: everyone does

Peter: dig deep into yourself and tell me what you find

Me: Organs.

Peter: alright so you don’t have a favorite color

Me: You’re catching up. That’s good. And do you always send another message instead of just cutting your sentences with, you know, punctuation?

Peter: all of a sudden my ability to send a text is being attacked

Peter: I would never

Peter: by the way just a head’s up

Peter: my parents want you to come and have dinner with us

Peter: I think they wanna get to know you

Me: Which is another word for quizzing me about you to see how much I really know and find out that we’re lying to them. Oh, I’d love to!

Peter: …

Peter: I think 21 questions isn’t enough

Me: We’re currently at question number thirty-six, so I’d say you’re pretty spot on, loser.

Peter: you have these moments when you remind me of my mom and it’s pretty creepy to think about

Michelle kept her mouth shut and her eyes fixed on the elevator on the other side of the lobby the entire time. She couldn’t focus on the looks of the people who walked around and decided to gawk at her. She couldn’t focus on how unusual she felt, wearing an actual dress and not her usual boring outfits. She couldn’t focus on how her palms were getting sweaty from the pressure of meeting her fake boyfriend’s parents.

It seemed like every step they took in this imaginable relationship was known to the entire world. Michelle couldn’t get out of the house without at least one person pointing at her and recognizing her as New York’s new sweetheart – Peter Stark. Some people smiled at her, thinking she looked like a good fit with their new favorite. Others frowned or shook their heads in disproval, clearly not seeing what Peter saw in her. Which… wasn’t there anyway because this wasn’t real.

She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. She always saw how terrifying meeting the family is in movies. She figured she wouldn’t actually have to go through any of this as long as she didn’t have a partner and that seemed like something Future Michelle would have to worry about – not Present Michelle. And yet it looked like she was stuck in a reality where Future Michelle IS Present Michelle. Which basically meant that meeting the family was a danger she was going toward right now instead of in years to come.

The moment she stopped in front of the elevator, Happy – the very unhappy guy that drove to her house to get her here – pushed the button and then they both awkwardly waited for the doors to open. Once she was safely inside, Michelle sent Happy a panicked look. He remained as grumpy as ever. And then the doors closed and Michelle was left alone in the elevator that Peter said would take her up without the need of pushing a single button. And it did – she watched as the elevator climbed up quickly and swiftly. It made her stomach churn unpleasantly and she found herself wrapping her arms around it right in time for the doors to open and for Peter’s parents to see her for the first time face to face.

She hoped she wasn’t as green as she felt and put on a polite smile. Time to get this show on the road. Looking around briefly she noted the fact that Peter wasn’t around, which was a terrible idea and she wanted to strangle him. Instead, she just reluctantly stepped off the elevator and towards Mr. Stark and Mrs. Potts. Mr. Stark looked at her like he was trying to find the loose end – the thing that would make the entire plot fall apart. Mrs. Potts looked more pleasant, but Michelle didn’t fall for that.

“My parents can be pretty deceiving.” Peter told her when they spoke over the phone the previous day, trying to get ready for this dinner and make sure nothing went wrong. “My dad will probably be all sarcastic, to the point where it borders just being plain rude. And my mom…” He hesitated, thinking about it for a moment. “Do you remember how J.K Rowling described Umbridge on the back of the book? She said she had a personality like poisoned honey. My mom’s like that. She can be super nice and welcoming, but she’s just trying to fool you into this sense of security. Don’t fall for that.”

“Oh, Michelle,” Mrs. Potts stepped forward, all smiles and softness, and shook Michelle’s hand. “It’s so nice to finally meet you.” She said. Mr. Stark hummed behind the woman’s back a little grumpily. “We were so surprised to hear about you – it took us both by surprise.”

Mr. Stark narrowed his eyes a little. “Yeah. Definitely didn’t see this coming. I wonder if anyone else was just as surprised as us that day.”

Opening her mouth, Michelle tried to think of something to say, but eventually she just made a show of looking around. “Umm… where’s Peter?” She asked. She wondered if it was rude, but then decided she didn’t care. Even if this was important, she wasn’t going to just pretend she was someone she wasn’t. Except for the girlfriend part, she could just be herself.

Peter’s mom waved vaguely over her shoulder. “He just came back from his friend’s place. Ned. You know Ned, right?”

“Yeah.”

Michelle thought about that one video call Peter made when he was at Ned’s house. He didn’t tell Ned the truth, but he did pretend to introduce him for the first time to his girlfriend. Michelle tried not to look like they were both too energetic for her taste together and smiled and nodded, learning about Ned as much as possible. Later that night, after Peter left his friend’s place, he told Michelle that Ned completely believed it and asked to meet her in person so they could officially meet. It was like the world was getting back at her for always avoiding it. Suddenly Michelle was out there so much, it made her feel spent.

Smiling, Michelle nodded. “I talked to him once. Peter said they’ve been best friends since they were kids.” She played with the simple necklace her mom forced her to wear and sent a look to the hallway Mrs. Potts waved at earlier. She needed Peter and she needed him NOW. “I’m sorry we never met before. I just didn’t want this to get to the news – which it obviously did now – and I figured… coming here would look too suspicious.”

That was what Peter told his parents and now Michelle just used the same excuse to get it to sound more true. Mrs. Potts’ lips tightened a little and her smile strained. Mr. Stark just kept on staring her down like he was waiting for the moment she slipped up. She really hoped she won’t.

“Of course. We understand.” Mrs. Potts said sweetly. Poisoned honey, indeed. “Come here, we can sit and wait for Peter to come.” She led her husband and Michelle to the couch in the living room and Michelle hesitantly sat down. It was white. Why would anyone want a white couch when it might get dirty really easily? “So tell me – because Peter never really tell us this story – how did you two start dating?”

“We know how you met.” Mr. Stark nodded, speaking fast as if he wanted Michelle to miss his words. That wouldn’t prove anything, but oh well. “But how did you leave the friendzone? What happened?”

Footsteps approached them and Michelle turned around to see Peter running towards the couch like the floor was on fire. “Don’t interrogate her!” He protested and Michelle shouldn’t have felt this relieved when he hopped over the back of the couch to sit right next to her, their shoulders brushing. But she did. In fact, the tension in her body seemed to ease a little and she sagged in her place, her limbs no longer ready to bounce. “I told you to be nice. Especially you, Dad.”

Mr. Stark huffed. “When am I not nice?” He scoffed and received matching unimpressed looks from both his wife and son. Michelle’s lips quirked up. The man slouched down. “Point taken.”

From that moment on, the evening wasn’t that bad. Michelle stayed by Peter the entire time, chatting as casually as possible with both his parents, even when it was clear they were just trying to catch her at the lie. She didn’t let them, and neither did Peter. They worked together to make sure everything they said made sense, even if there were mistakes. It was almost amazing, how seamlessly they could join forces.

There was a moment when Michelle was left in the dinner table with only Mr. Stark for a moment because Peter and Mrs. Potts got the table cleared and they wouldn’t allow her to help. The silence between Mr. Stark and her stretched for what felt like forever before Peter finally came back. He looked a little like he had a bad conversation with his mother, but then instead of sitting in his seat he walked up to Michelle and bent down to whisper in her ear about how she impressed his mom.

It wouldn’t have been weird had Mr. Stark not gasped at them from the other end of the table. Peter pulled away then and gave his dad this look Michelle couldn’t decipher. And from that moment on, Mr. Stark stopped interrogating her. He even whispered something to Mrs. Potts that made the woman eye Michelle for a second before she smiled and this time it looked a lot more inviting and sincere. Peter didn’t tell her what happened and pretended not to know, but Michelle knew that something must have happened that made Peter’s parents believe this lie all of a sudden.

Whatever it was, it meant they actually let Michelle take a break from their quizzes and she enjoyed her meal – pesto pasta, of course – and then let Peter walk her downstairs. Once they were in the elevator, all alone and without his parents around, Michelle sighed and leaned against the wall, her eyes closing. Peter chuckled.

“Glad it’s over?”

“You have no idea.” She opened her eyes and looked at him with urgency. “I was mortified half the time.” She said. “I’m never doing that again. You could pay me and I’d never do it.”

He hummed thoughtfully. “Are you sure? ‘Cause I’m sure I can get enough money to convince you to try again. Maybe next time it won’t be as nerve wrecking.” He smirked and Michelle scrunched up her nose, which caused him to laugh. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here when you arrived. Ned called me and said there was someone suspicious outside his house so I went to check it out. Turns out it was some drunk guy who lost his way back home. Go figure.”

Michelle let herself smile. “Your parents are nice when they’re not looking to make you seem like a fool.” She said and Peter shook his head fondly. “Whoever your soulmate is – they’re gonna be really lucky to have all of this. And me being sincere is a really rare thing, so cherish this moment.”

For a moment Peter just looked at her, and then he nodded and smiled, his hand flying to his chest. “Done.”

“We should probably think about when and how we should break up. Publicly so everyone knows that it’s over.” She said bluntly and ignored the way her stomach swooped in displeasure at the thought. She made herself look into Peter’s eyes. He had an unreadable expression on his face. “We don’t have to think about it today. It’s pretty late.”

He nodded. “Yeah.” He blinked and looked away from her. The doors opened and Happy was revealed, standing right next to the elevator, his grumpy expression still present, though he did crack a smile at Peter. “Hey, I can join you on your ride back home. So you don’t get lonely, you know.”

The urge to say yes was strong, but Michelle pushed against it. “No, it’s okay. You should stay here. I’ve got a ride straight home anyway so it’s not like anything might hurt me.” She said and Peter’s smile dimmed a little. “See you later.”

She took one step away before Peter pulled her by the hand back towards him and Michelle blinked when she suddenly found herself right between his arms. “Just in case my parents aren’t convinced – Happy could tell them about it later.” He whispered into her ear. His breath tickled her and she shuddered before she felt Peter’s lips on her cheek. And then he let her got and she stumbled dreamily back, the doors of the elevator shutting before her very eyes and taking Peter away.

Her hand flew up to the cheek and she touched the place Peter kissed her, unsure about how to feel. She always imagined the first kiss she would get – whether it was on the lips or her cheeks – would be from someone she liked. Someone she REALLY liked. And here Peter was, taking that away from her. She should be angry or upset about this choice and first being taken from her. But she wasn’t.

She was too busy fighting the butterflies in her stomach to be mad.

Michelle didn’t like Peter, okay? She didn’t. She just liked spending time with him and joking around and hanging out with Ned and him because even though they made her feel exhausted just by sitting there, watching their antics, they made her smile a whole lot more than she was used to. Being with Peter was different from what she was used to, and even though she could do without the press and the media and the people who stuck their nose where it didn’t belong. And she liked it.

But she did not – SHE DIDN’T – like Peter. That wasn’t even an option, no matter how lovestruck she pretended to be. No matter how every single picture people snapped of the two of them together, walking around the city on their ‘dates’, came out with the two of them genuinely beaming happily. No matter how many times Michelle’s stomach seemed to soar at the mere thought of Peter.

And just to convince herself that she wasn’t, in any way, falling in love with the guy – who would end up with his soulmate, no doubt there. She couldn’t fall in love with a taken person. Duh! – Michelle worked restlessly on her plan as to how they would break up. She wanted it to be public so that they wouldn’t be able to claim it never happened. She wanted it to be nasty and make it impossible for them to be seen next to the each other in the future, unless they had lasers shooting out of their eyes to try and kill each other.

Sometimes she worked on it with Peter in her room, sitting on her bed and shamelessly going through her stuff. She wanted to tell him to stop, but figured it was better than him getting too bored to keep quiet, because if Peter talked, Michelle listened. And if Michelle listened, she couldn’t think of a way for them to fake a breakup. Not to mention think ABOUT thinking about a way to breakup. So she needed him distracted.

“Did I tell you Ned found his soulmate?” He asked all of a sudden. Michelle closed her eyes and breathed in and out. So much for working on figuring things out. Peter was staring at one of her books but he wasn’t reading it, instead just talking to her. “Do you remember Betty? Well, Ned’s soulmark is this timer that counts down to the moment you talk to your soulmate for the first time and he asked her about the trip we have this summer to Europe to see if she was going to bring a swimsuit and he said he could feel it when his clock stopped.”

Michelle opened her eyes again and looked at Peter. He put her book next to him on the bed and turned on his side to look at her, a crooked smile on his face. “What’s Betty’s soulmark?”

“A tattoo on her skin. I’ve never seen it, obviously. But she confirmed that Ned was her soulmate so I guess it matches him.” He blinked slowly, like he was on the verge of falling asleep. “Can you imagine what it would be like to just openly talk to someone with both of you knowing you’re soulmates?” There was a tad of bitterness to his words but Michelle decided not to bring it up.

“You do realize you don’t need to keep from your soulmate the fact that they’re your soulmate once you find them, right?” She asked flatly. This conversation made her feel sick. Instead of butterflies swirling in her stomach, it felt more like they were all falling dead, lifeless. “I mean, what’s the point in having a soulmate if you don’t even tell them.”

He was quiet for a few minutes and Michelle decided it was good enough for her so she went back to trying to come up with a plan. Only for Peter to hum and draw her attention back to him. He was staring at Michelle like he was sizing her up, trying to gauge her reaction to something he hasn’t even done. Michelle squinted her eyes at him and tried to let him know wordlessly that she was trying to concentrate and he needed to let her do just that.

Apparently, he didn’t get the memo. Instead, he sat up before dropping to the floor next to Michelle, his knee touching her ankle lightly. He looked nervous, all of a sudden. Like he didn’t know what to expect and he wasn’t sure about what he was doing, but he also had to try. Michelle’s sarcastic and impatient remark died in her throat. She’s seen Peter looking this serious before, but it was mostly when something bad was going to happen. But it was just the two of them – why would anything go wrong?

Biting his lip for a moment, Peter’s fingers played with the hem of his sleeve, like he was going to tug it up. Michelle thought it was ridiculous, though, because he shouldn’t show her his soulmark. That was, like, a taboo. You don’t show soulmarks unless the person is your soulmate or incredibly close to you – practically family. She didn’t think they were there yet.

Peter set his jaw in determination. “I need to show you something.” And before Michelle could protest or joke about how serious he was, Peter actually did pull up his sleeve. Michelle closed her eyes on instinct and her heart raced in her chest. She couldn’t look. She shouldn’t look. “Hey… it’s okay.” His vice sounded tender and so, so vulnerable, she found herself opening her eyes just to take in his unsure expression. Then her gaze trailed down to his wrist and her breath caught in her chest.

MJ.

That was the mark on his wrist. He said his soulmark was the initials of his soulmate and when she told him her name for the first time… he looked stunned, but mostly happy. His smile nearly turned her blind that first time they met. She stared at the letters and tried to make it make sense to her because she knew without a doubt that she didn’t have a soulmark. There was nothing different about her so she couldn’t have a soulmate. Her entire life she told herself it was okay and that she shouldn’t feel any less validated just because she didn’t have one.

And the thing was, people without soulmarks couldn’t have someone who was meant to be their soulmate because you can’t have a soulmark and get nothing in return. So whatever Peter thought, it was wrong. Her hand hovered over his wrist, not quite shaking, but definitely out of commission. And then she frowned and tugged his sleeve back down before turning her head to the wall, stubbornly avoiding his confused gaze.

“That’s not me.” She said, voice harsher than she had intended. Even without looking she could tell Peter flinched back t her tone. “It can’t be me. You’re just clinging to the only person you know who matches your soulmark.”

He huffed. “That’s not true.”

“Is too.”

“Is not.”

“Is too!” She snapped and looked at him again. Peter looked just as annoyed as she felt. “Peter, you can’t have a soulmark that directs you towards someone who doesn’t have a soulmark, too! It’s not possible. It’s not something that’s ever happened before!” She threw her head back and then covered her face with both hands. “Oh, my God. This is not happening.”

Instead of answering, she heard it when Peter shuffled and moved. She felt the absence of his body next to hers and wondered if he just decided it was too awkward to stay here with her. But he never opened the door of her bedroom, instead opting to just move around her room and go through her stuff. Again. Before she was able to convince herself to tell him to not touch her things, he came back. Michelle opened her eyes and found Peter sitting opposite her, holding a compact mirror in his hand.

At his encouraging expression, Michelle took the mirror from his hand and opened it. She stared at her reflection. There was nothing special about it. “Peter, what’s that supposed to – “ She cut herself short when Peter put his hand gently on hers, their bare skin touching. Usually, Peter was careful not to touch her too much because she really liked her personal space, but every now and then he’d grab her hand and then stare into her eyes like they were the most beautiful and wonderful thing in the world. “Holy shit.”

And now she knew why he did it. It was like his touch made her eyes spark in a way that was unnatural. Instead of seeing her dark, brown eyes staring back at her, Michelle saw a rainbow in her eyes. The colors seemed to blend together and yet remain intact. They didn’t look all brown and muddy or black and boring. They were bright pink or vibrant blue. They ranging from purple to orange to yellow to green. They were mesmerizing.

The moment Michelle pulled her hand away from Peter’s, they faded away. Michelle’s fingers turned numb and the mirror slipped out of her grasp. She felt like the world was turning around her to adjust to this new revelation and she didn’t have anything to hold onto while everything was righting itself. Until Peter tilted his head so it was in her line of vision and she focused on that. She focused on him.

“I don’t… I mean, what…? How…?” She shook her head and instead of flinching away from Peter when he put his arm comfortingly on her shoulder, she leaned into it. Peter scooted until he was right next to her and she let her head fall onto his shoulder. “You knew from the moment we met, didn’t you?”

He was quiet for a second. “It was pretty hard to miss. I mean, you did collide right into me.” His voice was light and she could hear the smile in it. “I’m sorry I never told you.” And when she asked him why he didn’t, he hesitated. “Because you always talked about how much you were actually lucky since you didn’t have a soulmark. You made it seem like you wouldn’t want one, so I just… didn’t tell you. I’m sorry. I thought I was doing the right thing, but in hindsight… I guess you were just trying to comfort yourself, huh?”

She blinked and for the first time her brain didn’t ignore the light that seemed to come from her. Apparently she wasn’t imagining it and when Peter held her hand and looked at her, his eyes only reflected the light from her eyes – not the other way around.

“Most people have soulmates. And the ones who don’t… they usually pretend not to care because it makes it easier.” She shifted a little so she’d be more comfortable and Peter remained silent, waiting for her to explain further. “Peter, when you think you don’t have a soulmark, it feels like the universe doesn’t want you. Like it looked at you and decided you weren’t worth the work it’d be to give you some kind of hint as to where you’re headed. So you lie to yourself and try and make it as light as possible.”

He rubbed his wrist absentmindedly and Michelle’s hand twitched, as if she wanted to touch it, but then she forced herself to calm down. She couldn’t touch someone’s soulmark. That was super inappropriate – worse than seeing one’s soulmark. Well, there were the obvious ones you couldn’t hide from people – like her glowing eyes, apparently. Or people who had stardust on their face or the ones whose body glowed when they got closer to their soulmates. But people who had soulmarks that could be hidden – they were usually protective of them, like they WERE the soul itself. And maybe they were – Michelle never did get down to the concept of soulmarks and soulmates.

Maybe now she would actually start researching that with a little more excitement. After all, it’s a lot more interesting to learn about something you have rather than something you wish you had and that most of the people around you have in common.

“Are you mad at me for not telling you?” Peter asked timidly.

Michelle shook her head. “No. I’m not.” She could understand why he did it. Had she been in Peter’s shoes – the soulmate of someone who claimed to not want a soulmate – she wouldn’t have told herself, either. She would have been terrified of getting shot down and ignored because what if Michelle was being genuine? What if she really didn’t want a soulmate and she pulled away just to get the point across? “I’m really not.”

He sagged a little in relief.

“That’s why your parents stopped interrogation us, isn’t it?” She asked all of a sudden, thinking back to that awkward, anxiety-inducing dinner with the Starks. “They saw it and were convinced we were telling the truth.”

“I tried telling them that you matched my soulmark before.” Peter said, his voice quiet, as if he didn’t like talking about it, but he was willing to try and explain. “But I think they didn’t believe me because I could just lie about that, too, and they never saw my soulmark before.” He shifted and Michelle was forced to adjust herself again. “I mean, when I was a baby or a toddler the letters were too tiny, they couldn’t read it. And then I grew up and it was like this moment when you stop letting your parents see you naked – I just felt like I had to cover it, so I did. And I can’t show them. I just can’t.”

Michelle pushed her head off his shoulder so she’d be able to look him in the eye. He looked a little panicked, like she was asking him to share his soulmark with his parents. “What does it feel like?” She asked, almost afraid to voice her thoughts out loud. Peter cocked his head to the side, reminding her of a curious cat. “What does it feel like when you think about showing it to someone?”

Understanding dawned on his face and then he looked a little uncomfortable. Michelle was ready to just take it back when Peter answered. “It’s like… it’s like considering going naked in public. It’s weird and awkward and uncomfortable and it makes me feel like I should close my eyes and curl into a ball in the corner of the room and hide forever. It’s this personal thing that no one should know about.” He grimaced and rubbed his wrist again. “It makes me anxious. As in, full on anxiety attack.”

She furrowed her brows. “But you showed it to me.”

“It’s different with you.” He looked straight into her eyes and from the way his eyes sparkled, she knew hers were glowing in all the colors of the rainbow – maybe even more. “When I was little my dad said that the only one who should be allowed to see or touch your soulmark, is your soulmate.” His gaze darkened for a moment. “And he was right.

“There was this guy once – Mom let him babysit me when Dad was abducted and she couldn’t stay and there was no one else around. He sort of…” He shifted and looked away from her eyes. “He wasn’t a good person.” He settled on and Michelle pursed her lips. “And this one time he purposefully touched my soulmark and it BURNED. Not physically. Just… it felt like I was on fire but I was also freezing and it felt so WRONG, I just kept on screaming until my mom came back and heard what happened.”

Michelle tried to keep her hands from clenching into fists. “Do you remember who it was?”

According to Peter’s amused smile, she didn’t do a very good job at hiding her anger. “Yeah.” He said lightly and when Michelle quirked an eyebrow at him, Peter shook his head. “I’m not telling you his name. When my dad came back he already laid into him with everything he had. He’s still in jail now, probably not even feeling sorry about it.” He scrunched up his nose and then shrugged and stretched. “Anyway!” He exclaimed, voice even lighter. “Where are we on those breakup plans? Got any favorites? Personally, I like the one where you cheat on me with Spider-man and I feel betrayed for years to come. Really makes me sound like a victim.”

“That’s not even one of the options.” She said dryly.

“Well, it should be. It’s a great plan.” She bit the inside of her cheek and Peter grinned slyly. “Unless… you suddenly don’t feel like breaking up anymore. Which would be very sudden and definitely a little disorienting, but I could live with that.”

She rolled her eyes. “Are you asking me out?”

Peter avoided her gaze. “I mean, it depends. Are you going to stop complaining about the way I text?”

“Not a chance.”

“Are you going to finally see Star Wars when I go to Ned’s house tomorrow for our movie night?”

She squinted her eyes a little and looked off into space. “I might consider subjecting myself to this new form of torture.” She relented and Peter grinned like it was Christmas morning and he actually got what he wanted. She figured he must get what he wants all the time. Though he didn’t strike her as someone spoiled who threw money around, so perhaps she was wrong with that assumption.

Eyes lighting up, Peter grabbed her hand tenderly and before she could protest, he put it on his soulmark. She could faintly feel his pulse under her fingers. There was a dreadful moment when she waited for him to pull away with a hiss of pain, but he didn’t. He actually looked like it felt good. Natural, maybe. The teeth showing in his smile reflected the light from her eyes, too, so she smiled back.

“Are we going to tell people it hasn’t been real before?” He asked.

Michelle hummed thoughtfully. “probably, but not right away. I need you to get me some kind of shield to protect myself from your dad trying to attack me, just in case.”

He laughed and then nodded. “I will.” He promised and locked his eyes with hers. “Are you going to say yes?”

“Are you going to kiss me?”

The answer to both questions was ‘yes’.