Chapter 81: Making a Move

Bonus Chapter at 2.5k stones.

...

’I get why I ended up here.’ Gwen wiped her face with his towel and looked at the oversized pink hoodie that reached her thighs.

That scent she had previously chased on the crime scene was so damned comforting right now.

"Get yourself together." After composing herself with deep breaths and making sure the redness in her eyes was gone, Gwen stepped out as John had placed the last plate on the table.

It was the variant of the previous tornado omelette, tomato tornado omelette. The smell of the bacon really got her stomach rumbling, and the bagels looked quite good too.

But her eyes were on John. His entire attention was on the TV, still running the Daily Bugle.

It was J. Jonah Jamerson going on with his usual enthusiasm while showing some pictures that caught a blurry figure in white and black.

"These are the photos from the scene last night; the collapse of that steel factory was without a doubt the doing of the infamous Spider-Meance!!"

At least one part of her morning routine had stayed the same. Honestly, if everything changed, she might not believe this was all real. It was a bit too good to not be a dream.

"Did you not ask SHIELD to take care of him?" John asked as soon as she sat down on the chair near him.

"You make them sound like some mafia." Gwen chuckled, spreading some cream cheese on the sliced bagel. "And it’s not like anything comes for free."

When she had her talk with Fury, her main focus was on making sure Gwen Stacy was never linked with Spiderwoman. Anything beyond that wasn’t urgent for her.

And the Daily Bugle was quite low on the list of problems. It would be a lie if she said it didn’t bother her when she heard all this nonsense after a hard night, but there was no such thought in her mind right now.

Still, as she saw him look at the TV again, she poked at his cheek to get his attention. When he looked over, she handed him the finished bagel with a radiant smile.

"I am fine, really."

"The dark circles say otherwise." He shook his head.

"That does it, give the bagel back!" Gwen tried to snatch it back, but it was a bit out of reach because of his long arms. What was with that wingspan?

But with a little push, she got her hands on it and took a bite of it, all triumphant.

That feeling of winning was the reason it took her a moment to realise her current position. Looking to her left, she could see his slight smirk up close.

’I am basically sitting in his lap.’ It was awkward, but it would be more awkward if she stood up now. It was time to assert dominance.

"Now, look at these eyewitness—!"

She picked up the remote from the table and turned the TV off first.

"The prettiest girl you have seen is in your lap, and you are more interested in some bald new reporter? Unreal." Her scrutinizing eyes bore into him.

"My bad, it’s just hard to focus right now." John’s hand now rested on her waist as he pulled her closer. "All my attention is yours now."

Gwen blinked as his breath landed on her ear. She shied away from his sly eyes and reached for her mug on the table and took a sip.

"This is bitter." She didn’t mind black coffee, but this was taking it a step too far.

"Cause it’s mine." John’s words went straight into her ear as he took the cup from her and took a sip as well. "I do like my coffee a bit strong, but it is a lot sweeter now."

"Just shut it." She elbowed him lightly.

But John only smiled as they continued breakfast.

Gwen understood the mood well enough. And she also knew that if they started now, it wouldn’t just end with a kiss.

’What do I do? Should I start? No, that might be a bit...’ Her brain was split in this moment as John’s hand rested on her hip.

They were still at the dinner table as she looked up at him. John was still deep in thought, but he looked at her immediately and leaned in.

Gwen closed her eyes, but his lips landed on her forehead as his other hand pulled her closer.

"You should rest a bit more." He kissed her hair as her face was pressed against his chest.

"Yes... Yes, I should." Her hands snaked around his back as he stood up and took her to bed.

John watched Gwen drift into sleep soon while holding her hand. But his mind was elsewhere at the moment.

He turned the TV on, muting the volume. JJJ was still at his slanderous campaign as John fiddled with his phone. Opening and closing it over and over while looking at the name.

Nicolas Fury.

Even if Gwen had said she didn’t mind JJJ, it was closer to her getting used to it.

He could feel that it affected her even now. Because of course it did. Hate from the vocal minority was always more visible than silent, passive support of the masses.

And the Daily Bugle, like the loudmouth it was, was making that minority appear bigger than it was. And in many ways, feeding that negativity further.

But Gwen was a bit too considerate, even when she had every right to shut it down.

’If she doesn’t, then I can handle it.’ It was irking him to a degree he didn’t think was possible.

He had the connections, so why not use them?

But as Gwen had said, nothing came for free. He wasn’t fully aware of the meeting Gwen had with Fury, but she clearly didn’t ask for much. And because of him, she seemed to be on the low-priority list for now.

However, if he sent this message, Fury would keep more eyes on Gwen’s activities. Since her importance to John would become clear. And John was the only link Fury had to John Doe.

’I am trying to rationalize a bit too much.’ He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. It was moments like these that he had asked Natasha for a direct link with Fury.

’There’s no need to think that much about something this obvious.’

In the next moment, John sent his message.

***

In the grand, historic 20th-century stone mansion, also known as Xavier’s school for gifted youngsters, a new trend had taken root.

The trend wasn’t anything absurd like over-the-top fashion or funky language; the kids had grown out of that already. The new trend had something to do with reading.

And the trend starter, at least in this school, was none other than Kitty Pryde. She was the first one to discover John Doe’s website while messing with the computers.

Even now, most of the students remembered her grinning like a fool as she read the online novels over and over, eating and sleeping at the desk for days.

Then came the days when she kept sniffling at night after reading Look Back when she got her hands on the physical copy. It had reached a point where Professor Xavier himself had to come in to check on her.

And today, she was laughing while reading a new comic by the same John Doe.

Only this time, other students had also gotten into it. Because of her aggressive recommendations, many had started to read these works, and although they didn’t like how she tricked them with the starter combo, they had also understood the charm of these works and found their favourites over time.

However, the same Kitty Pryde was currently running through the hallways with her copy of Disastrous Life of Saiki K. As the wall came closer, she didn’t stop and increased her speed.

’I shouldn’t have read it in the middle of a class!’ The book had arrived in the morning, and she had read two Chapters while having her bagel.

Honestly, she was a bit too invested in it and ended up getting caught while trying to sneakily read in the back. So, before she got caught and the book was confiscated, she had to go and hide it.

But just as she phased through the wall, her feet didn’t touch the ground.

"Whoa!" Kitty tried to run but could swing her legs wildly midair as her body was lifted up like it was some old cartoon.

In the end, she gave up as the woman with flashing silver light pouring out of her eyes hovered before her.

"If you are going to run, you should at least do a better job." Ororo looked at her with a slight smirk.

"Would you let me go if I do that?" Kitty smiled sheepishly.

"Hand it over." Ororo had no thoughts of entertaining her any further.

"Tch..." Kitty acted like she had no way out.

’But they don’t know about my secret stash, heh.’ She grinned in her mind.

"Also, Professor has already confiscated the copies you hid under Jean’s mattress." Ororo grinned in front of her before sending her back to the class.

"NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!" Kitty could only shout as she went through the hallways, ending up in front of her class fully devastated.

On the other hand, Ororo went back to her office. The other copies that had been confiscated from Kitty were already on her desk. She placed the one in her hand on that small pile as well.

’A lot of kids are into reading these.’ Even now, the students who didn’t have any classes were in the garden reading or talking about these comics.

She had in particular heard good things about this story called Look Back. It was a real hit with almost everyone in the institute. And almost everyone had cried because of it.

Her blue eyes naturally drifted to the stack over and over, until she finally looked through them and found the book in question. She looked at the back of the young child hunched over the desk in the cover.

"It can’t be that good."

As they said, famous last words.