Kollage — Carly Rae Jepsen

It was an unspoken decision on behalf of the teachers that everyone would spend the evening in the hotel. Parents and guardians were called by everyone, citing their safety and wanting to continue with the trip. About half of the group had canal water dripping on their clothing and scrapes from falling debris but otherwise, no one was harmed.

Lila was the most drenched out of all of them, and the most injured. The scrape on her arm was the worst of it by far, but it wouldn't require stitches of any kind. Michelle saw to her cut immediately, but suggested she shower before bandaging. One sniff of her clothes and Lila agreed: a shower was the first thing she needed. She called her dad (somehow her phone had entirely escaped a watery doom) as she trudged up the stairs and assured him that she was completely fine. And aside from the enormous water monster that tore its way through Venice, Lila was actually having a good trip.

She sent a similar text assuring her good health and spirits to Harry, who simply liked the message and sent a gif of the rat from Flushed Away falling into a toilet. She laughed and opened her chat to Sophie, asking about if the strange figure who helped today was one Stark Industries was aware of.

Lila debated if it was worth keeping the clothes she wore today, as she would have to carry them around the entire trip unwashed and definitely smelling like canal water. Seeing the tear in her blouse stained with blood sealed the decision, and her phone buzzed right as she threw the clothing in the trash.

You know the company I work for does not have a superhero division, right?

But no, we have zero clue who this guy could be. Glad you're safe, Phish Food, this does not exempt you from getting my souvenirs. Xo.

Lila sighed and hopped into the shower, scrubbing every inch of herself down with the small soap bar the hotel provided. It was entirely used up by the time she'd finished, and she quickly got dressed in her pajamas before throwing her shoes on and heading back downstairs to the rest of the group. They were scattered around the lobby still, and those not getting checked over by the teachers were either glued to the news broadcast playing in the corner or their own personal devices.

Peter was behind the staircase, talking on his phone in a hushed voice likely to his aunt, filling her in on what really happened. Ned and Betty were seated next to each other, staring at their respective screens. MJ was seated on the stairs, and Lila sat down next to her. The former had been waiting for her, she pulled out a small plate of food the hotel had provided: some bread, cheese and fruit neatly piled on and she handed it over to Lila.

Lila gratefully accepted, and dug into the cheese and fruit ravenously. She didn't even realize the taste of canal water was still in her mouth until it was quelled by the deliciously fresh food she ate. She also saw Michelle pull out a couple medical supplies, and smiled gratefully at her friend. Lifting the sleeve of her left arm, she let Michelle tend to her cut, hardly wincing as she sterilized it.

"You sure you're okay?" MJ asked quietly.

Lila set her plate to the side, the food already gone. "Yeah, it's okay. I've definitely had worse."

Michelle raised an eyebrow, her expression turning suspicious. "Have you?"

"It's aliens," Ned's voice interrupted them, giving Lila a brief respite. "It has to be."

Flash, who stood at the base of the stairs, moved closer to him, staring down at his phone screen. "BuzzFeed says there's a sailor named Morris Bench, who was exposed to an experimental underwater generator and got hydro powers."

"Yeah," Michelle said flatly, "You should definitely believe everything you read on the internet." She finished securing Lila's bandage, and Lila rested her head on her friend's shoulder. MJ let her, not caring that her friend's hair was still wet.

"Spider-Man could take him," Flash said confidently while staring at the TV screen.

The news anchor spoke for a few more moments before Mr. Harrington wondered aloud, "What do you think it is?"

"You know, being a man of science?" Mr. Dell quietly replied, "Witches."

Everyone was still watching the news broadcast when the footage flashes to the strange hero of the day. Someone managed to capture excellent footage of him and send it in, but no one could properly identify him. "Who is that guy?" Betty wondered aloud.

"He's like Iron Man and Thor rolled into one," Brad noted next. His arms were crossed, and he kept his eyes glued to the screen.

Flash scoffed, looking at Brad skeptically. "He's alright. He's no Spider-Man."

Michelle, with Lila's head still on her shoulder, asked Flash, "What is it with you and Spider-Man?"

Flash looked genuinely confused at the question. His appreciation for Spider-Man was no secret, but maybe he was so self-important that Flash thought everyone was on the same page. "What?" He looked incredulously over to MJ. "He's just awesome, okay?"

Peter had moved from behind the staircase to stand next to it. He stood next to Lila, and snuck a quick glance down at her as she rested her head on Michelle's shoulder. He wasn't quick enough to look away when she looked up at him. The both of them shared a knowing look while they listened to Flash, Lila even throwing a wink Peter's way.

"... protects the neighborhood. And, you know, he's inspiring. He inspires me to be a better man." Peter's return to the group caught Flash's attention, and he nodded in acknowledgement. "'Sup, Dickwad. Thought you drowned."

"It sounds like his name's Mysterio," Brad said.

Michelle, who had also been listening to the reporter on the screen, shook her head. "L'uomo del misterio is Italian for 'man of mystery'. They don't actually know who he is."

"Mysterio," Ned repeated, as if trying it out. He didn't even plan for Betty to say at the same time, "Cool name." The two shared a look of surprise and smiled at each other before saying in tandem, "Babe."

"So," Peter asked, looking over at MJ, "How much of that did you actually see?"

"Not much, I was... running." She answered.

Peter nodded, "Right, right, me too. I was also running... away..."

MJ didn't respond, and Peter thought the silence between the three of them (Lila was still sat between the two, watching them interact like a tennis match) was still awkward. Which was why he said next, "So, Paris tomorrow. Going to the Eiffel Tower, it — it should be great."

"I read it was secretly built as a mind-control antenna to create an army of the insane." Peter really had no way of knowing her next response until she said, "Which is why it's my favorite destination on the whole trip." She offered him a polite smile, which he returned before looking over at Lila.

He wanted to ask her if he could go with her up the tower, but he also didn't want to ask in front of MJ. His plan was sort of riding on tomorrow, but he also realized given the current circumstances, maybe he could play it cool until they were actually headed for France. "And you, Lila?"

"W-Well, I don't know about the whole mind-control antenna, but I am excited for Paris. What a-about you?"

"Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah."

"Yeah," MJ parroted, and Peter blushed.

Lila, whether she was feeling sympathetic or just didn't realize how awkward Peter was feeling, said, "I've never actually been to the Eiffel Tower before."

"Really?" Peter asked, heart beating faster.

She shook her head. "No, we just stayed with family the last time I was there. I guess we'll b-both be seeing it for the first time."

Peter smiled, and Lila smiled right back.

                                 *****

"What are you gonna do about the water monster?" Ned asked. He and Peter finally had some time alone now that everyone had begun to retire to bed. Peter retold the story of what happened down in the canals, and now they were at a crossroads.

Peter merely shrugged off Ned's question, "Nothing. It's dead. And besides, that Mysterio guy is all over it." They both were walking back from the hallway and into their shared bedroom as Peter continued.

"Look, I just wanna spend some time with Lila. We were talking about Paris, and I think she really likes me." He smiled bashfully and Ned grinned in reply.

"That's nice. It reminds me of when Betty and I first fell in love," Peter had reached the sink at the far end of the room as Ned trailed behind him. "I had just finished my fruit cobbler, and—" Ned's sentence went unfinished, but a loud thud made Peter turn around.

Ned was slumped over on the bed, limbs sprawled and a large dart sticking out of his neck. Peter immediately turned to the room, looking for the culprit when he made himself present. "You're a very difficult person to contact, Spider-Man."

In complete juxtaposition to the pajamas and gobsmacked expression Peter wore, Nick Fury wore head-to-toe black. He sat cross-legged in a chair and fixed his one good eye on the teenager across from him. He held a gun to his chest, no doubt the same gun used to dispose of Peter's best friend.

Peter took the toothbrush out of his open mouth and stated the obvious. "You're Nick Fury. And you just shot Ned!"

"Just a mild tranquilizer, he'll be alright. It is so good to finally meet you," he antagonized. "I saw you at the funeral, but I didn't think that was a good time to exchange numbers."

"No," Peter agreed with a polite smile, "That would've been really inappropriate."

"That's what I just said."

"Right."

"The important thing is: you're here. I tried to bring you here. You avoided me, and now you're here. What a coincidence."

It wasn't like Fury's tone gave anything away from that statement, but Peter had to wonder if he was playing mind games. "Wait. Was this a coincidence?"

Apparently, that struck a nerve. "I used to know everything. Then I come back five years later, and now I know nothing. No intel, no team, and a high school kid is dodging. My. Calls."

Peter winced apologetically, but it went unnoticed. Fury leaned forward to place a device on the table in front of him. Said device powered on, and a projection of the glove appeared, coupled with a few red dots in specific areas. "Here's what I do know: A week ago, a village in Mexico was wiped out by a cyclone. Witnesses say that cyclone had a face."

A deep snore emitted from Ned, interrupting Fury's debrief. The man in question looked over at Ned, eye wide in disbelief and impatience. "Three days later, a similar event in Morocco. A village was—"

A loud knock sounded on the open door to Peter's room. Staring at Mr. Harrington in the doorway, Peter was stunned into remembering that he was still very much on his school trip. There was no way he'd be able to hide Nick Fury should his teacher walk inside the room.

Luckily, he was in the presence of a master spy, and though the murderous expression remained on his face, Fury kept quiet. "Just making the rounds," Mr. Harrington said, "See if anyone needs any emotional counseling after today's traumatic events."

Peter was very aware of the tranquilizer gun pointed directly at his teacher. "No, we'll be okay. We're — We're fine, thank you." Please, he thought, Please leave.

"Great," Mr. Harrington continued, not leaving. "Because I'm not qualified to actually — oh, he's passed out." His voice dropped to a whisper at a remarkably well-timed snore from Ned. Mr. Harrington grabbed the door handle and whispered, "I'm not really qualified to do it anyways, so, good night."

"That was my teacher," Peter explained to Fury as the door shut. "I'm sorry about that. You were saying?"

"A village was destroyed by what may well be another world-threatening—"

"Babe?" Came Betty's voice from the other side of the door. "You still awake? You're not answering any of my texts."

"Uhm — h-he's asleep, Betty!" Peter's mortification took a backseat to the gun still trained on the door. Once again, Fury was silent, but the look on his face shouted everything it needed to.

"Oh, already?"

"Mm-hmm, yeah!"

"Okay."

Fury continued after a beat, "That's why it's imperative—"

At the next knock on the door, Fury rolled his head to stare at the door in disbelief. He looked like he was willing the door to catch fire as Mr. Dell's voice filtered through, reminding Peter and Ned to be aware of the microbes that potentially were in the canal water.

Fury looked back to an embarrassed Peter, and without missing a beat said, "Another person touches that door, you and I are going to attend another funeral." He grabbed the device off the table and stood. "Suit up," he ordered, and gave Peter no choice but to comply.

                                   *****

Lila blamed the time difference and jet lag for keeping her awake. Despite the day's events, she didn't feel extremely tired. In fact, excitement kept her company as she watched Michelle fall asleep in the adjacent bed.

She was going to see her family in a matter of hours. It was never the same, only seeing them on a computer screen. Being with her extended family, her mother's extended family, well, it was like the best parts of her mother all surrounded her. Her uncle Jacques, Angelina's older brother, had the same laugh, and the same piercing blue stare. Her grandmother, Edith, had the same knowing smile, the same button nose and the same inflections in her voice. Being able to be with them, though she hadn't physically been in their presence many times in her life, was growing more and more important to Lila's well-being.

And, well, if Lila were being honest, she hoped it would be a bit healing. She didn't want to admit to it, but she was starting to think this trip might be more difficult than she'd anticipated. Sure, Midtown was visiting scientific destinations, but Europe had such an old, rich history. And a lot of that history was rooted in medieval times.

She didn't anticipate the court jesters out in the square today. Lila supposed that was the nature of post-traumatic stress: it crept up on a person at the most innocuous of times. And her internal explanation was equally difficult to rationalize. She just saw the orange colors coupled with chainmail, and suddenly the Hobgoblin was alive and well. His laughter was still ringing in her ears when Peter brought her back down to earth.

Peter was her savior in more ways than one, Lila realized. It was like the words he spoke to her were pulled from her head and her heart, and kept her grounded. He's in Calvary Cemetery... I won't let anything happen to you, not again. She gained new appreciation for Peter at that moment. How many times had he wished someone could say the same thing to him?

Regardless, it worked. It brought Lila back down to reality, but it left her dazed, and her heart beating so loud she was sure he could hear it. And she stayed in that daze as she walked around with Michelle, who was too energized by her espresso (Lila loved that she tried to keep it hidden for her sake) to even be suspicious of Peter when Lila mentioned him.

So, taking in the fact that her brain wasn't done processing everything that happened only a month prior, family time sounded perfect. Time with Peter also sounded perfect, and she was so excited that he mentioned the Eiffel Tower. It felt like the perfect happenstance, as that was where she wanted to give him Tony's sketch. And tell him how she felt, and maybe not even in that order.

It was funny, she wasn't at all nervous anymore. Maybe the colossal water monster pushed her over the figurative edge, but she did realize that life was simply too short and too dangerous to not be truthful with how she felt about him. In fact, it only motivated her more. She didn't know where it came from, but her bravery was acting like a propeller. And Lila was determined to soar.

Lila needed to sleep, she needed as much energy for Paris as possible, and jet lag simply wouldn't do. She dug into her toiletry bag and found the small case of melatonin. She took two with water, and walked over to the window. It felt like it was rusted shut, but with a harsh tug, it squealed open. Lila winced, turning back to MJ, but she needn't have worried. Another water monster could attack the hotel directly, and Michelle would be none the wiser.

Lila stuck her head out the window and sighed. It was so quiet at night, no random sirens or cars stalling or any of the white noise Lila grew up with. She could even look up and see stars in the sky. Not many, but more than she could ever see back home. It was incredible, the water reflecting the night sky, Peter Parker wall-crawling just over to her left, the boats gently rocking in the current—

Lila whipped her head back to her left and hissed, "Peter?!"

Peter, dressed in his Spider-Man suit, nearly jumped off the wall. Whipping his head around to find the culprit, his eyes landed on her confused expression, and they refocused on her as he put a hand to his chest. "Lila, oh my God, don't scare me like that."

"What do you mean? What's going — going o-on? Why a-are you—" He changed direction and held his hands out in defense.

"Lila, I swear, I can explain."

She paused, turning back to her friend, still sound asleep in her bed. Lila shook her head and said, "N-Not here. I don't want to bother MJ. Does N-Ned know?"

Peter winced, and Lila raised an inquisitive brow. "Ned's... also asleep." He sighed, then looked around. "Rooftop?"

He offered his hand, and Lila smiled softly. She really had no choice but to take it, she could tell Peter was itching to explain what he was up to. And she would always indulge him. "Rooftop," She agreed, taking his hand. He helped her out the window, grabbing onto her waist as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

For a brief second, they were face-to-face, before Peter looked up. He secured his arm around her waist and shot a web up to the top of the hotel. Within seconds, the pair of them were on the roof, slow to break apart, but breaking apart nonetheless.

Peter tore his mask off, and Lila was relieved that he also wore a blush on his cheeks too. While he fiddled with his hair (which looked adorably tussled, Lila thought), Lila looked over at the view of Venice, now even broader since she was higher up. She leaned against the rooftop wall, which was fortunately tall enough that she didn't have to worry about toppling over the edge. When she turned back to Peter, he was joining her at the edge, admiring the view.

"I thought you weren't bringing the suit," She commented, not in a judgmental way, just as a way to start her line of questioning.

Peter smiled, "Yeah, I wasn't going to. I actually didn't know I had it until customs, apparently May thought I forgot it. I had to convince the security agent that they were pajamas." Lila laughed and Peter joined her. "She was way more upset about the banana May put in there, though."

Lila let out another peal of laughter, only imagining what that conversation must've looked like. "So then, w-were you doing a little recon on the water monster or what? Why go out and wear it tonight?"

"Well," Peter sighed, "It all kind of started when Ned got shot—"

"Ned got shot?!" Lila asked, eyes widening. She stood up straighter, but Peter was quick to reassure her.

"With a tranquilizer! Nick Fury shot him with a tranquilizer when he broke into my room."

A beat, then Lila said, "O-Okay, I'm gonna save my questions for the end."

And so the tale began. Peter explained what happened back in his room not an hour previously, how Nick Fury himself hid in the hotel room and gave a detailed account of how the water monster was not the first to appear recently. He then told Peter to put on his suit and to follow him.

Which led Peter to sit on a boat with Fury, where the latter gave Peter a pair of glasses, left to him by none other than Tony.

"They must have some sort of technology in them," Lila interrupted, too excited by the information she was processing. "I mean — I mean why else would they be with Nick F-Fury? They would've passed through S-Sophie's office—"

"Lila?"

"Right, s-sorry. Please continue."

An underground lair of sorts was where Peter found himself next. There was a small staff of agents working with technology Peter had never seen before. He was introduced to a Maria Hill and a Dimitri before he told Lila he was then introduced to Mysterio.

Lila's eyebrows shot up in surprise, not expecting Peter to be taken to Mysterio, who Peter informed her of his real name, Quentin Beck. Him partnering with Fury wasn't even the biggest shock of the introduction. What really shocked Peter, and in turn shocked Lila when Peter told her, was that Quentin Beck was from a different Earth.

The pair of them jumped on a tangent, reveling in the fact that the muli-verse actually existed. That revelation alone was dizzying, and both were nerdy enough to revel in the fact that they were some of the few people to know about it.  The mood was brought back down when Peter talked about the monsters.

Elementals, Beck had called them, had destroyed the Earth from which he came. The how and why was a little blurry in Peter's memory (he was understandably overwhelmed), but the takeaway remained: they were intent on destroying this Earth the same way they destroyed Mysterio's.

"The only Elemental left is fire," Peter summarized. "Fury said that it's expected to hit Prague in forty-eight hours."

Lila's eyes widened for what felt like the hundredth time. "Woah. And — And what did you have to do with all of this?"

Peter rubbed the back of his neck and stared out into the night. She hadn't realized until then, but the pair had inched subtly closer, and were now nearly shoulder to shoulder. She let him find his answer for a minute, opting to join him in looking at the view.

"He was basically looking to recruit me. To help fight the Elementals." When Lila looked back over at Peter, his head was bowed. Almost like he was ashamed of what he would say next. "I said 'no'."

Lila had merely opened her mouth and inhaled when Peter continued, "He wanted me to leave the school trip and go to Prague, but I-I have no idea how I could even do that without revealing my identity to the class." He stumbled over his words like he couldn't get them out fast enough. "Plus, I really needed this vacation, and I just feel so — so — so small, you know? I'm just the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Space, the Avengers, it was all an accident."

And in those last sentences, Lila understood. Peter was trying to justify his reasoning, his decision to say no in the first place. She knew he didn't actually think it, but it hurt Lila a little bit to even imagine the possibility that Peter would think she would judge him. Because really, in the time she'd known him, known his secret, when had he ever refused the call?

"I understand," She replied quietly. The sound of the canals was distant from up on the rooftop, but the gentle breeze filled the space and sound between them as Lila stared at Peter. "Y-You don't need to explain s-saying 'no', not — not to me."

His features, which were still focused on the ground by his feet, twisted. "Part of me thinks I shouldn't have."

"So, wh-what then? Spider-Man is the only permanent o-on-call superhero in existence? The s-sixteen-, almost seventeen-year-old is the only person who has to p-put his life on the line all the time?"

His gaze moved from the ground over to her. He didn't expect her to be looking at him so softly, so understanding. "Lila—"

"Don't be absurd and try to argue with me right now, Peter Parker. Not when you're entirely correct." That finally drew a small smile from him, and Lila nudged his shoulder softly with hers. "There's grown-ups already taking — taking care of this. Mysterio seems to have a th-thorough understanding of these Elementals.

"Besides, you're totally right. You're the friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man. Don't you g-get a say in how you define the kind of hero you want to be?"

All Peter said in reply was a soft, "Thanks, Lila." That was the understatement of the century. But it was all he could say to convey how much it meant to him that she understood him. And moreover, that she understood Spider-Man and what he meant to Peter.

"A-Anytime."

The two made eye contact and lingered a moment too long. They looked away quickly, each of them blushing profusely. Peter messed with his hair a little more, clearing his throat while Lila smoothed out nonexistent wrinkles in her pajamas. "So," the former said, "What else are you excited to see in Paris?"

"Besides my f-family, I've — I've been really excited to visit the art museums—" Lila cut herself off with a gigantic yawn. Peter's stomach lurched, he completely forgot how late at night it was, and guilt returned tenfold. "That'll be the melatonin," She said, eyes finally drooping slightly as her tiredness caught up to her.

"Oh, crap, Lila, I'm sorry for keeping you awake."

She simply waved a hand, "Don't be. Please—" Another large yawn, "— Please interrupt me whenever. I — I always love getting to talk to you." Lila was too tired to even be bashful at such a bold statement. But not Peter.

As he pulled her closer, murmuring something about checking in on Ned, he tried not to let his heartbeat burst through his suit. And it definitely didn't help when Lila comfortably rested her head in the crook of his neck, her breath softly tickling just under his ear. Peter swallowed forcefully, and climbed over the wall of the rooftop. With a web attached securely to the side of the building, Peter rappelled the two slowly down the hotel until finally stopping at Lila's window.

He was careful to stay out of frame from Lila's shared room in case MJ had awoken (not that he could do much in the way of explaining his Spider-Man suit or Lila climbing in through the open window should she happen to be up). He held on tight to her hand as she slowly made her way back into the room. And when he crawled his way down to his shared room with Ned, all Peter could think about was how Lila held onto his hand much longer than she needed to, lingering in his hold with a soft (dare he say fond?) smile on her face.