I don't own anything except any original character and/or any original plot

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Chapter Four: Midtown High

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Gripping your X-Men necklaces tightly, you resisted the urge to run the charms up and down the chain to soothe your anxiety. You were going to be just fine, you could do this.

You stepped into the first public school you'd be going to in almost eight years. Recalling the map of the school you'd been sent with along with everything else, you also kept track of the locker numbers to find your way to your locker before going to class.

"Rise and shine, Midtown Science and Technology." Midtown had a news show and the female host - Betty, it said under her - greeted everyone with a clearly fake smile.

"Students, don't forget about your homecoming tickets. Do you have a date for homecoming?"

"Thanks, Jason, but I already have a date."

"Okay."

You couldn't help but chuckle at the news report. Homecoming. It didn't feel like something you would go to, despite the "normal high school experience" it would give you. Maybe if you could make a few friends you could go with a group, but socializing was never really your thing. Even surrounded by mutants you didn't make close friends outside of the X-Men.

After tracking down your locker you put in your combination and dropped off the books you wouldn't need until later to relieve some of the weight in your backpack.

"Are you (Y/n)?" A cheery voice asked. You turned to greet a beautiful girl with darker skin and naturally styled dark brown hair, "I'm Liz. I'm a part of the welcoming committee, so, welcome!"

"Thanks," you smiled. There was something inherently kind about her that calmed your nerves.

"So where are you coming from?"

"A private school upstate, but it's not as exciting as it sounds," you lied through your teeth. Every day was an adventure at Xavier's.

"Well, I'm sure you'll feel differently after braving public school for a while," Liz beamed, "I'm Captain of the Decathlon team as well, so I'll see you at practice later. If you need anything or have any questions, track me down and let me know."

"I will. See you later," you waved as Liz left. That was a very different introduction than the one you got at Xavier's. There, they gave you a room and tested your mutation to see where you feel on the power scale assigned to mutations. You began as a Beta but were bumped up to Alpha when you trained further and it became clear that the blue in your hair was not an obvious signifier of your mutation.

Shaking your head to clear your thoughts, you left your locker to track down your first class. Calculus with Mrs. Warren - the advanced math course. Luckily most of your classes were in the same general area. The last thing you wanted to do was get lost on your first day.

When you stepped into class, you looked around for an empty seat. All eyes were on you as soon as you passed through the door. Flushing red as you realized this, you spotted an open seat next to a girl with tight curls pulled back from her face.

"Can I sit here?" You asked her, motioning to the seat.

"Is the book better than the movie?"

You let out a small sigh of relief and set your bag down next to the seat, "Yes."

"I'm Michelle," the girl introduced herself, "I can tell you're cool, Newbie. You actually read."

"Doesn't everyone?"

"You don't know much about public schooling if you think that's true, Newbie"

"(Y/n)."

"Alright (Y/n), just so we can get the introductions out of the way, where are you from?"

"Upstate, from a private school near Westchester."

"Huh, you don't seem very snobby."

"I got in on a scholarship," you smoothly found a loophole in the truth. Xavier's didn't require tuition, but your mutation was your scholarship.

Michelle mumbled to herself, "A private school up in Westchester, huh? It's mainly just mansions. The only private school I can think of is Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters and conspiracy blogs theorize mutants go there. Are you a mutant?"

Laughing nervously, you tried to think of a way to dodge the question. You were taken aback by how smart Michelle was, but you shouldn't have been surprised.

"I'm just kidding," Michelle assured, leaning in and lowering her voice, "If you were though, I think we could take over the city together."

You chuckled, quickly calming down when it became apparent that Michelle wouldn't press the issue. It didn't seem like Michelle was anti-mutant, which was a relief. You needed accepting friends like her.

"Alright class," Mrs. Warren entered when the bell rang, "Settle down, settle down. We have a new student today. (Y/n), can you please raise your hand?"

Slowly, you raised your hand into the air, looking idly around the room as all eyes once again fell on you. You met a pair of eyes. Chocolate brown eyes.

Just my luck, you thought to yourself sarcastically, I go to school with Spider-Man

Giving Peter a small smile before averting your gaze, you pulled out your textbook to prepare for class and as a distraction.

As Mrs. Warren began the lesson, you listened and took notes intently. Many of the concepts were ones you'd already learned at Xavier's, however, there were a few that were new and intriguing.

"Okay, so how do we calculate linear acceleration between points A and B? Flash."

"It's the product of the sine of the angle and gravity divided by the mass."

"Nope," you raised your hand and Mrs. Warren called on your next, "(Y/n)."

"Mass cancels out, so it's just gravity times sine," you stated confidently. It was an equation Hank commonly used when repairing some of the X-Men's more advanced equipment.

"Correct. See Flash, being the fastest isn't always the best if you are wrong."

The class snickered and you slouched down in your seat. Crossing Flash didn't seem like a good idea. Based on his expensive clothes and arrogant attitude, he was wealthy and had the ego to prove it.

"Good job, Newbie," Michelle complemented, improving your mood, "You're pretty smart."

~*~

While the science teacher was droning on, you rapidly filled out the questions on your lab sheet. Four hours into the school day and you were ready to go home. You wanted to use your mutation whenever you wanted. You wanted to train with the others and learn from the X-Men. Instead, you were learning about some Danish scientist.

Glancing over, you spotted Peter mixing something discreetly in one of the drawers in his desk. Something was stuck to the pencil he was using to stir. Your brows furrowed in confusion. That was what he was using to make his webs? Chemicals from the labs at school?

"What did you get for number six?" Michelle asked.

"Positive ion," you answered, jumping when Peter slammed his table drawer shut as the teacher neared.

Returning to your lab sheet, you found your mind wandering elsewhere. You wanted to go home, put your uniform on, and go find Peter so you could get your talk over with.

~*~

Sitting down across from Michelle at a mostly empty table. She glanced up at you and gave you a small smile before returning to reading her book. Pulling out the lunch your mom packed you, you looked through to decide what you wanted to read first.

Deciding to begin with the apple slices, you let out a sigh. Public high school sucked, you decided.

"Did Liz get a new top?" Peter asked from further down the table where he was sitting with his friend.

"No. We've seen that before, but never with that skirt."

"We should probably stop staring before it gets creepy, though.

"Too late," Michelle called out, "You guys are losers."

"Then why do you sit with us?"

"Because I don't have any friends," Michelle looked up from her book again at you, "Because I have one friend."

Peter held his hands up in confusion. You slid down the bench until you were sitting next to Peter's friend and across from Peter.

"I'm (Y/n)."

"I'm Ned, and this is Peter."

"Yeah we met at a sub shop yesterday," you stated, "I've been going to this school for a day and it's already horrible. Is it always like this?"

"Yep. Welcome to high school."

Eyes flitting over to Peter, you realized his gaze was on the dog tag around your neck. It was swinging in the air because you were leaning over the table, which probably just drew more attention to it.

"Did you know someone who was in the army?" Peter asked, motioning to the tag.

"Oh no," you grabbed the tag and your locket to steady them and hide the Xs over the front of both of them, "We had this um, this club at my old school and all of us got necklaces like this when we joined."

"That's so cool! Was it a choir?" Ned asked excitedly.

"No, it was more of a civil rights group," you replied vaguely. It was good enough for the two of them and they changed the conversation topic without much fanfare.

~*~

Sitting on the side of the stage, you watched the two competing tables closely. It was a lineup to prepare for the national competition in D.C., one you luckily qualified for despite your late start time.

"Let's move on to the next question," Liz flipped to the next card, "What is the heaviest naturally occurring element?"

Charles rang the bell, "Hydrogen's the lightest. That's not the question, okay."

You chuckled at the fumble. Your amusement ended soon, however, when the muscles in your hands spasmed painfully. Eyes widening, you clenched your hands into fists. You couldn't leave, you were next up on the podium.

"Uranium."

"That is correct. Thank you, Abraham."

The tingles began. Like thousands of tiny needles poking your skin all at once. You jumped off the stage, drawing some attention but nothing concerning yet. Quickly walking over to Mr. Harrington, you interrupted his conversation with Peter.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," you held back a wince when the pain intensified. Your hands were twitching faster now. Peter looked at them then at you in confusion. You had to get somewhere to be alone, and fast, "but may I use the restroom? I'll be fast, I swear."

"Sure, just be quick. You're up next."

You nodded and hurried from the room, breaking into a jog when you were out of sight. Once out in the hallway, you let out a hissed breath through your teeth, shaking out your hands. You ran to the nearest bathroom, quickly checking the stalls to make sure you were alone. When you were sure that no one else was there, you turned one of the sinks on at full power.

You let it run for only a second before you acted. Holding out your hand, the water froze in place. You moved it away from the faucet and around the bathroom in a few circles, like a runner taking laps around the track.

You dropped the water back into the sink when you felt better, flexing your fingers. The pain was gone, down the drain with the water you'd just used. You turned off the sink and took a moment to catch your breath before leaving the bathroom.

"Are you alright?" You jumped when a voice came from beside you. It was Peter, with his hands tucked into his pockets, "You looked a bit sick, and I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine," you forced a smile onto your face, "Nothing to worry about, just first-day nerves finally catching up to me."

Together the two of you walked back to class. Peter knew you were lying, and you knew Peter was lying. It was a waiting game. As soon as school was out you would answer Peter's questions and hopefully get a few of your own answered in the process.

~*~

You shoved the homework and textbooks you would need at home into your bag, shutting your locker with a loud slam. When you turned around, Michelle was waiting for you.

"Here, Newbie," Michelle held out a ripped-off piece of notebook paper, "I thought you could add me to your contacts to prove you have friends."

"Thanks," you laughed, slipping the paper into your pocket, "I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"If I decide to show," Michelle joked, "Don't forget to finish the lab, even if it is the most boring thing we've ever done in class."

"Don't worry, I finished it in class," you adjusted your backpack straps on your shoulders, waving to Michelle one last time before following the flow of students leaving school.

High school didn't seem that bad now that the day was over and you were leaving. It was the waiting and staring at the clock waiting to get out that was the main issue.

As you walked you put Michelle's number into your phone. You took the subway to get to school but the afternoon trains were always busier so it was faster to walk home.

As you were passing Delmar's sub shop you spotted Peter inside. Filled with motivation, you walked faster, wanting to get home and into uniform.

When you made it to your building you waved to the secretary and jumped into the elevator, tapping your floor button twice. The doors took too long to close and the elevator was too slow. You should have just run up the stairs. When the doors finally began to open you lunged forward, miscalculating how fast they'd open and hitting your head.

"Ow," you groaned, rubbing your forehead tenderly and stepping out once the doors were wide enough. Retrieving your key, you unlocked and opened your apartment door.

There was a note on the kitchen counter that read: (Y/n), your mom should be home by 6 and I'll be home by 7. If you're going out as Riptide then beat up some people for me. At least one of us can have an exciting day. Love, Dad

Setting the note back on the counter, you retrieved a pen and tacked on: Going out, be home for dinner.

It would have been easy for all of you to text each other these things, but ever since you were a kid all of you left notes for each other unless it was a late update or important.

You grabbed a snack from the cupboard and ate it as you walked to your room. You moved all the hangars in your closet to one side and retrieved your uniform from the very back.

You tugged it off the hangar and laid it on your bed. Pulling off your school clothes and throwing them in the hamper, you tugged on your uniform and pressed the button on your belt that would tighten the fabric.

Your uniform had a blue base with black shoulder and wrist guards, a black belt with your flasks on each hip, and black boots that ran over your knees to provide extra padding. You absolutely adored it.

Giving your room a once-over to make sure you had everything you needed, you opened your window and stepped out onto the fire escape. Climbing up the metal stairs to the roof, you took a moment to admire New York in all of its large, strange glory. It was both beautiful and terrifying. Calm and bustling. You weren't sure if you liked it or hated it, but either way, this was your city to protect.

A train passed the backside of your building. You boredly observed it but perked up when you spotted exactly who you were planning on looking for. Running to the edge of the roof, you activated your dispensers.

Confidently leaping off the building, water gathered around your body and caught you before you could fall. You traveled until you were just above the train and slightly behind Peter. Retracting the water, you landed on top of the train with a small thud.

"Join me in the Dark Side," you attempted a poor imitation of Darth Vader.

Peter jumped, his hand held out and ready to web you. You held your hands up in surrender, smiling teasingly. Peter's eye slits narrowed, and you couldn't discern exactly what that meant.

"Come on now, Bug-Boy. I thought we were friends."

"I'm an arachnid- what are you doing here? Are you here to fight? Did you track me down to kill me?"

"No, relax Bug-Boy," you sat down next to him on the edge of the train, "I'm new to the city. I heard about you and was wondering if you'd want to be partners in crime. Or, heroes in crime-stopping."

"Partners? I don't know..."

Groaning, you rolled your eyes, "Oh come on! Think of how well we could work together! I've got the experience and you've got the... the boyish charm!"

"Fine, you get a trial run. As long as you don't try to kill me or anything I don't see why we can't figure something out," Peter stood and held out his hand, "It might be easier for you to just-"

"Yeah, yeah," you wrapped your arms around his neck, "Don't drop me."

Peter shot off a web at a nearby building, bringing you along with him. You enjoyed the wind running through your hair without the vain fright of it getting wet and having to go through the hassle of bending the water out of it.

After a while of swinging, Peter decided to stop on a building within a busier neighborhood in Queens, setting you down gently.

"Hey! You're that Spider-guy from YouTube, right?" A street vendor asked, yelling from below.

"Call me Spider-Man!"

"Alright Spider-Man, do a flip!"

Peter easily did a flip and waved to the guy.

"Who are you?"

"Riptide!" You called back, raising your hands and creating a circle of water around the stand

"Awesome!"

Together the two of you moved on to the next building, and the next, and the next. Each one was a stop in an obviously established route on Peter's part.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

You and Peter stood alert, swinging toward the noise. A young man was trying to break into a car using a thin crowbar. Peter swooped down and slammed the man's head into the hood of the car with a web.

"Wait, Spider-Man-"

"Hey buddy, you shouldn't steal cars. It's bad," Peter reprimanded.

"It's my car, dumbass!" The guy growled in frustration.

You pointed through the car window, "That's what I was going to say. The keys are inside the car."

"Hey! Shut that off!" A woman stuck her head out her window.

"Can you tell him it's my car? I was just trying to-"

"Yo, I work at night! Come on, dude!"

"That's not your car. That's his car," a shop owner came out of his building.

"How was I supposed to know? He put the thingy in the window," Peter tried to defend himself.

"Every day with these alarms."

"Don't make me come down there, you punks," an elderly man stuck his head out his window.

"Hey, Gary. How are you doing?"

"Marjorie, how are you? How's your mother?"

"We're very sorry about this," you placed your hand against the front window of the car, and a water bottle inside burst open, unlocking the car from the inside, "There. Spider-Man, let's leave before we get yelled at even more."

Peter picked you up and swung off, wandering the city in search of more crime. You explained bits and pieces of your backstory while you were traveling- from discovering your mutation to joining the X-Men. It would build trust, allowing Peter to know these things. After a while of swinging aimlessly, Peter landed on your apartment building. It seemed like you had just gone in a large circle.

"Oh, I call this you," you spotted an elderly woman looking confused in the street, "I may be new but I know these streets just fine."

You jumped off your building, raising your hands and activating your water dispensers so you could catch yourself before you hit the ground.

"Hi," you greeted kindly, "Do you need help with something?"

"Supermarket?" The woman asked after struggling to find the right word.

"You'll want to take one left - un izquierda - and keep going until you see a large pink - rosa - sign. Turn right - derecha - and there's the supermarket."

The woman grinned and grabbed your hand to lead you over to a food stand set up by the street.

"Churro," she pulled the money out of her purse, handing it to the worker. When she received the churro she held it out, "Gracias."

"De nada," you gratefully took the churro and waved to the woman as she headed down the street in the direction you pointed.

You lifted your hand up and guided yourself to the roof again. Facing Peter, you waved the churro around as if it were a wand.

"I have been thanked," you announced, "What a great honor."

"You gotta split that with me," Peter pleaded, and you could hear his stomach rumbling. Did his abilities come with an increased metabolism?

"Alright, Bug-Boy, just because you haven't tried to take me down yet. Come on," you led Peter down the fire escape until you were sitting in front of your window.

Peter hesitated before following your lead and taking a seat, "Aren't you worried someone will see us?"

"No, because we're sitting in front of the window to my room," you split the churro in half and handed the slightly larger one to him. Setting your own piece in your lap, you carefully pulled off your mask. Setting it next to the churro, you turned to Peter and held out your hand, "I never properly introduced myself to you as Spider-Man. I'm (Y/n) (L/n)."

Peter was silent, the eye slits on his suit going wide.

"You're supposed to shake my hand Peter," you held out your hand a bit more, "It's polite."

"Peter? Who's Peter?" Peter asked awkwardly, trying to deepen his voice a bit, "I don't know a Peter."

"Oh come on, Bug-Boy. It doesn't take a genius to figure it out, just some good deduction and recognition skills. You know who I am and where I live now. We're even."

Peter sighed, pulling off his mask. You grinned victoriously. You knew Peter was Spider-Man, but there was still that tiny sliver of doubt in the back of your mind. This ripped that sliver of doubt to shreds.

"Cheers," you tapped your churro with Peter's before taking a bite out of it.

Peter smiled nervously and took out his phone. He tapped a few times and held it up to his ear.

"Hey Happy, it's Peter. Just giving my daily report. I stopped a grand theft bicycle. Riptide helped this lost, old Dominican lady and she bought them a churro- oh! Riptide's here! They moved to New York and are helping me out now, which is cool- and they're cool too. I just... I feel like I could be doing more." Peter ended the call with a sad sigh.

"Being a friendly neighborhood Spider-Man isn't that bad," you finished your half of the churro, swiping Peter's phone from his hands and putting in your number, "There. Now you have eight numbers on your phone. See you tomorrow, Bug-Boy."

You opened the window behind you and slipped inside. From inside you watched as Peter pulled his mask on and swung off.

"Where have you been?" Your mom screeched, slamming open your bedroom door, "Vague note, bed empty, suit gone. You could have died! You could have been seen!"

"Really, Mom?" You threw your mask on the bed, "Mrs. Weasley?"

Your mom laughed, "I couldn't help it. Thanks for leaving a note, though. Dinner will be ready when you are."

You rolled your eyes with a smile as your mom left the room. You changed into a pair of more comfortable clothes, shuffling out of your room to the dinner table where your parents were waiting with plates in front of them.

"I'm tired," you sighed, plopping down in your seat and taking a bite of your food.

"How was school?" Your dad asked.

"Boring. I miss Xavier's. At least there I could use my mutation openly."

"But you get to go on patrol more often," your mom pointed out.

"That's true," you didn't have the energy to come up with an argument against that, "It's just really different, I guess. I'll get used to it eventually. I made some new friends, though. A girl named Michelle and two boys; Ned and Peter. Peter is Spider-Man."

Your dad looked up from his plate and asked excitedly, "Did you reveal your identity?"

"Yeah, we did the whole identity exchange thing after we shared a churro. I gave him my number too. That's one good thing that came out of moving here- friends my age."

"Well, I'm glad you made new friends," your mom took a sip of her water, "And I'm glad you have someone to work with. It makes me feel better about you going off and fighting crime."

"Are you two dating yet?" Your dad cut in.

"Dad!" You finished your food and stood up, "It isn't like that, we just met and we're barely friends. Honestly, dating someone I just met- like this is a Disney movie or something, ha! Besides, I think he likes someone else. Anyway, I'm going to do my homework and shower. Night, love you."

"Love you too, my little hero," your dad cooed.

You placed your plate in the dishwasher and used your socks to slide across the wooden floor until you reached the carpet. After that you walked to the bathroom to shower, pulling out a towel and closing the door behind you.

After your shower, you settled down in your room, ready to tackle your homework. You had finished most of it throughout your various classes and all you were left with was some simple math.

"I should text MJ about the chemistry lab," you remembered that you were supposed to do that and grabbed your phone.

Hey, this is (Y/n)!

You set your phone down next to you and got to work on your math homework. Some of it you had already learned at Xavier's, and other questions required some help from Google since you hadn't been present for the entire unit. Your phone finally buzzed when you were finishing up the last question.

Hey Newbie, what's up?

I just wanted to see if you finished the lab since it's partner work

Yeah I can text you a pic so we can compare answers

Retrieving your lab from your bag, you checked it over with the pictures Michelle had sent you. After comparing both sides twice you were satisfied with the answers both of you had given.

Looks like we got the same answers. Thanks!

No problem, see you in class tomorrow

Even though school was boring, you were sort of looking forward to going tomorrow. Michelle, Ned, and Peter reminded you a bit of the X-Men, as strange as it sounded. They were all different and outcasts in their own ways.

They were a little slice of home that you desperately needed.