The Weight of The World ｡ Peter Parker [1]

10 - Friday Night Lights

I was seated in the bleachers Friday night, the cool air making my cheeks red. There were loud cheers filling the night air as the football game went on. Gwen had managed to drag us all to the game too, which meant I had been bored out of my mind for nearly a solid hour, my fingers a little numb from the chill in the air. I had dismissed the idea that tonight would be cold, so I didn't bring a coat. I also hadn't planned on spending most of the night seated in the bleaches at school, trying to drown my sorrows in pink lemonade and hotdogs.

"Look, there he goes!" Gwen was saying beside me, rising to her feet as she watched Flash sprint across the football field. With her constant shouts in my ear each time Flash made an appearance on the field, and her never ending chatter about trying to teach me the rules of football, I had just about had enough. I had downed nearly two solo cups of pink lemonade and was on my third hotdog, just behind Parker who had a surprising appetite tonight with five hotdogs and a tray of nachos. Apart from feeling rather sick from too much food, my backside felt nearly frozen from the cold metal we had been perched on for the lengthy game.

"How long do these games go for?" I complained, taking another long sip of my drink. Harry was snickering at something Peter had said and Gwen was too busy actually watching the game. It was Mary Jane who was seated right beside me who replied sweetly.

She checked her phone for the time. "It must be nearly finished. We've past the half way mark, at least." Even though Harry was keeping her in the loop of conversation, I could see she wasn't particularly thrilled about the game either.

A horn went off a few seats down, the crowd going wild as the football went flying through the air. Gwen was waving her arms around, almost jumping up and down with the rest of the crowd in the bleachers. I gave Mary Jane a side glance and she only shrugged her shoulders, a little baffled by it all too. "I hope it's nearly done," I commented once the roar had died down, Gwen dropped back into her seat. "I'm freezing to death sitting here." Gwen moved in closer, trying to share body heat but it wasn't much use.

Harry dipped his head, leaning over Mary Jane to grin at me. "Hey Pete, why not give Flo your jacket? She's looking a little blue."

My eyes snapped across to Peter who was seated the furthest away from me, thankfully. His eyes danced back and forth between myself and Harry, his mouth opening but no words actually forming. "I'd give her mine but this jacket costs a fortune and I don't want her spilling pink lemonade on it. It would cost all her babysitting money just to get the stain out of it, trust me." Harry went on, smirking over at me. I shot him a glare, rubbing my hands together to generate some warmth in my fingertips. "Plus, Mary Jane's got first dibs on my jacket."

I watched as Mary Jane's cheeks turned a bright shade of pink and I had to stop myself from rolling my eyes. "You couldn't have led with that?" I snipped over at him and he just shrugged.

"I'm not cold, you can have it." Peter's voice sounded, a little weary. He was already shrugging off his jacket and I quickly shook my head at him. I might have been cold but I wasn't about to let the three of them enjoy that little display, not tonight.

I gulped down another sip of my drink. "I'm actually not that cold." Peter paused, his eyes focused on me. "Uh, but thanks anyway."

Mary Jane poked me in the ribs, her eyes widening across at me. I didn't say a word but gave her a quick glare before turning my attention back to the game, letting the whole conversation drop.

***

It was past eight o'clock once we had found our way out of the school grounds, the crowd a little hyped up since Midtown had won. We had suffered through the long train ride uptown to Flash's parent's house which was located midtown Manhattan, not all that far from my place in Tribeca. We had piled out of the busy subway and onto the streets. It was about a ten minute walk to Flash's house, thankfully Gwen knew where she was going. The five of us were joking about something Harry was saying, a crude joke about football players when I spotted a break in the traffic. I bounced ahead, a little thankful not to be stuck at school still. The others were a few meters back, their laughter like howls on the wind. I stepped off the curb, my eyes focused to my right seeing no cars coming. I didn't hear Mary Jane's shouts, just turned in time to see the blinding lights of a car racing towards me, coming from the opposite direction.

I heard the breaks slam, the screech of tires on the asphalt and saw nothing but white light. The world was silent, my body frozen. Suddenly there was a figure standing before me, a blur of darkness. A firm hand was wrapped around my waist, spinning me away from the car. The scream of metal bending filled the air and for a short moment I thought everything was over. When my eyes blinked open, I was staring across at Peter, his arm wrapped around my middle, holding me against his side. My mouth was dry, breaths coming out of my mouth in jagged gasps. My hands were pressed against his chest, almost clenched into fists with his shirt. For a second I didn't look away from him, couldn't look away.

"Florence, hey, you okay?" His voice was shaking, his hand tightening around my waist. I nodded my head, unable to speak. My gaze shifted downwards, seeing his other hand on the car's hood, the yellow metal curled slightly around his fist. He snatched his hand away, revealing a dint in the taxi car. I couldn't take my eyes away from the broken metal.

Suddenly I was pulled from Peter's embrace, Gwen circling her tiny arms around my shoulders. "Holy crap, Flo. You could have been killed." She was saying loudly, or what seemed to be loud in my ears. I saw Mary Jane standing beside her, a worried look passing in her eyes as her hand fluttered to her chest.

"That was a close one," Harry was saying, checking on Peter who was still staring across at me. I clung to Gwen's body, my hands still shaking but my eyes on him. "Good save, Pete." Harry added.

The taxi driver yanked his door open, a little speechless too. "Are you kids alright?" He called out. It was Mary Jane who left my side, going to speak with him. I didn't hear what the conversation consisted of because I didn't care all that much in that moment. Because all I could see was Peter, standing next to that busted up car hood without a scratch on him. 

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

ohmygod, he saved her and not as Spider-Man but as Peter. Who liked it? I hope you are all enjoying the updates, I'm just a little excited and obsessed right now. I actually love seeing you guys commenting each update too, it's really encouraging actually and pushes me to write more about Peter and Florence. We need a ship name guuys?!

Thank you everyone, really. The increase of reads each day is blowing my mind and you guys are the very reason for it. Please, do your thing and leave your wonderful thoughts and comments below.

ps. I know it's like Twilight but I didn't realise that or even make the connection until posting the chapter and getting a flood of comments. Y'all can stop bugging me about it, thanks. 

-tinkertaydust