With Gwen in his sights, Peter raised his camera and took the opportunity to snap a photo. As usual, she hadn't noticed him in the vicinity, making it easier for him to take it sneakily. He knew that all he had to do was ask, but he couldn't help himself. The best photos were the ones he took when she didn't know, and right now, she was sitting cross legged under a tree, with a book laid out on the grass in front of her and a pen in her hand, circling parts of whatever she was reading. Watching as she lowered the pen, he lowered his camera quickly and pondered whether or not to approach her.

As he thought about it, she glanced up from her textbook and unintentionally caught his eyes. Peter flushed with embarrassment, silently thanking his lucky stars that he'd lowered the camera beforehand, and averted his eyes to the sky, squinting when he looked directly into the sun. This didn't go unnoticed by Gwen as she laughed at his obvious flustered state, and she closed her book to observe him further.

"Do you need help?" She called out to him at last.

"Huh?" Peter hadn't realized that he had been edging towards her until she spoke, and he stopped only a few feet from where she was sitting. "Oh, I don't know. Can you?"

"That's what I'm asking you." She said, amused by how lost he appeared to be.

"I don't uh- can I uh- are you uh-"

"You can sit here if you like." She answered without being asked to save him from further embarrassment.

"Tanks… uh, I mean thanks."

Gwen bit down on her lip to suppress the laugh that wanted to escape. She didn't want to fluster him more or scare him away, and she couldn't help but find it cute when he stumbled this way. She adjusted her position slightly as he knelt down on the grass beside her, making it easier to see him.

"Do you have plans after classes finish?" She inquired.

"Plans?" He repeated. "Me? Plans?... Nope." He added. "You?"

"Actually I do, but there's a reason why I asked you."

Peter's face lit up with a boyish smile and he didn't attempt to try and speak, he knew it would just come out as noise rather than words. He didn't want to make an even bigger fool of himself.

"There's this thing… it's kinda nerdy, but I don't know, I would like it if you were there." She shrugged.

"What exactly is this nerdy thing?"

"I have to give a presentation at Oscorp, to a bunch of Freshmen from Midtown Science, but a lot of the company's biggest people are gonna be present, and I just kinda want a friendly, familiar face there."

"Ohhhh, right." He nodded. "Yeah, I can go."

"Thanks, that takes a lot of the pressure off." She said, exhaling a breath. "And I almost forgot, it starts at five sharp."

"I'll be there." He promised.

"And you don't have to worry about grabbing something to eat, I'll take you to dinner right after."

"Sounds perfect. It's a date!" He beamed.

Four-Thirty PM…

"Gwen! Gwen!"

Hearing her name being called, Gwen turned around to see Peter thundering across the pavement towards her, unaware that only seconds ago, he had taken another sneaky photo, and she smiled. He had kept his promise. As he came skidding to a halt in front of her, she threw her arms around him, pulling him into a hug that he returned.

"Gonna be honest, I didn't think you would show."

"Awe, come on… I promised, didn't I?"

"Yeah, just sometimes when you say- never mind, you're here. That's what matters." She shrugged.

"We both know that you need me here, I'm your lucky charm." He joked.

"Ha, ha, very funny." She rolled her eyes. "We should get inside, I need to retrieve the cards with the presentation on."

Peter grinned and offered his arm, which she took as they entered the building together. Neither of them spoke from the first step inside, until the elevator had stopped, bringing them to the third floor of Oscorp. Upon reaching the door to the room of the presentation, they were flagged down by another student. Gwen recognised them from her time assisting Doctor Connors, they had been his assistant before he had taken her on.

"Gwen…"

"I'm really sorry, I can't stop. I've got an important presentation to get to and-"

"No, I know." The student cut in. "I ran into Doctor Connors, he asked me to give you this. There's been a slight change in the presentation."

Gwen's eyes widened as they held out a new flash drive to her. She already had one in her pocket that had been given to her exactly a week ago, and Doctor Connors hadn't mentioned anything to her, though he had been off for the week for personal reasons. Taking the flash drive from them, she examined the label on it. There was nothing unusual about it, and it was written in his handwriting. With a nod, she closed her hand around it and continued through the door.

"Uhh, I don't mean to throw shade here, but don't you think that's kind of suspicious?" Peter questioned.

"What?"

"It's just that Oscorp are usually top secret, I don't understand why Doctor Connors would give something he intended for you to a random student."

"They're not random, Peter. He knows them as well as he knows me."

"Right, but still… top secret?"

"He's not been here all week, I'm sure it's nothing. Besides, if he needs to give something to me, he's going to choose someone he has trusted in the past."

"Hmm, I guess that's something." He shrugged.

"You should go on ahead and sit down with the class, I'll be there in a moment."

Peter nodded as she let go of his arm and he walked down the small corridor before disappearing through the final set of doors. Gwen waited a few seconds before starting down the corridor herself and slipped through the same doors. As expected, the Freshmen class were already seated around a table in the center of the room with several board members of the company aligned against the walls at the back. Peter was sitting among the students, blending in as best he could, and as she passed by on her way to the front of the room, he winked. She didn't react as she took her place up front and handed the tech manager the flash drive that had been given to her.

"Good evening, Freshmen." She began. "Before I get started on the presentation, I will introduce myself for those of you that are new to these things; my name is Gwen Stacy, I am a senior at Midtown Science, and assistant to Doctor Curt Connors, one of the best scientists here at Oscorp." Taking a pause, she glanced over at Peter, who was being surprisingly calm and collected as opposed to his usual demeanor in these places. "In today's presentation, you will get a glimpse into the kind of work that is done here, and some of the things that Doctor Connors has been putting all his research towar-"

Gwen stopped mid-sentence as the screen behind her came to life and with it, a chorus of laughter from the Freshmen. Her eyes drifted up the board members, muttering among themselves with expressions that could make even the devil look friendly, and then to Peter, who nodded towards the screen. With a sinking feeling, she forced herself to turn around, and her eyes widened when she realized that what was on screen was far from the presentation that she had spent weeks going over. Playing in the place of the videos she had put together, were fabricated clips that had been made to look like there was something more than professional going on behind the doors of Doctor Connors lab.

In complete and utter shock, she didn't notice when the head of the board approached her until he cleared his throat, and when she turned to face him, she could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She didn't need them to say a word for her to know what was coming.

"Is there truth to what we are seeing, Miss Stacy?"

"What?" She responded, not thinking straight. "Of course not, can you not see that what is on screen has been fabricated? I've never been in the lab past eight, that should be your first clue."

"Still, such a scandal cannot be put upon the company-"

"It's all lies, you can literally check the building's security footage to figure that one out." She cut in.

"It doesn't matter whether it's true or not, it has been leaked and if we continue to keep you on then it will throw dirt on the Oscorp name."

"Wait, you're letting me go?"

"I'm afraid that we don't have a choice. You can come and collect your belongings tomorrow after your classes finish, and all the research papers with your name printed will be destroyed."

"This is ridiculous, I didn't do anything and neither did Doctor Connors. Whoever made this clearly has some sort of grudge."

"We can only offer you our sincerest apologies, and a good word for a college of your choice-"

"Screw that, I don't want a good word for college or your fake apologies." She huffed.

"As a company, we take very dim view of situations like this, but unfortunately our hands are tied-"

"I don't want to hear it." She cut in. "You're not even bothering to look into it or to open your eyes and see the truth, so save your breath."

With that being said, she brushed past them and stalked out of the room, not willing to stick around and see any more. As the door closed behind her with a dull, echoing thud, Peter jumped up from where he was sitting and, after hesitating briefly, approached the head of the board, knowing that he wouldn't make much of a difference, but wanting to try anyway.

"Uhh, excuse me…"

"What do you want, kid? We don't have time for questions."

"No, this isn't about any of the research. I just uhh- you know, you really should think about what you're doing. Look, I know that you're trying to protect the company's image, but I know Gwen and none of what was shown on that screen is real, and letting her go is a mistake. She… she's intelligent, she's dedicated, ambitious and she's a great asset to the team here."

"You got a thing for her or something?"

"That's not- ugh, that's not important. You're punishing her for something that someone else did. You should really look into it before you reach a verdict."

"We have way more pressing matters to attend to, and whether or not this information of Miss Stacy and Doctor Connors is true or not, several people saw what was on that screen, we can't keep her on or else people will talk."

"So, you let her go in a room full of the same people? That hardly sounds fair."

"Oscorp's image is everything."

"Well, I tried. I guess it's your loss, because you will never find someone more devoted to their work than her."

"On the contrary, students are easy to replace."

Peter shook his head, having had enough of the big-headed businessmen, and made a swift exit from the room before he could be asked any more questions. He stopped as the door closed behind him, finding the corridor empty with no sign of Gwen, and sighed, hoping that she was still somewhere inside the building or outside. Eager to find her, he made his way down to the first floor and then exited the building. At last he located her, with her back against the glass window of the building and her head tilted up, staring at the sky.

"G- Gwen…"

"Oh, I almost forgot." She began, her voice lacking the energy she'd had previously. "It's getting late, I should take you to get something to eat."

"You're not gonna eat?"

"Maybe later, but I'm not hungry right now." She shrugged.

"I don't wanna eat if I'm gonna be eating alone."

"Peter, please…"

"No, Gwen, listen. They're idiots. All of them."

"I don't need this pep talk right now. Just let me feel what I'm feeling, I already know that they're a bunch of idiots, that's a fact. It doesn't change the fact that I've not only lost my extra curricular that would have helped me get somewhere, but on top of that I was humiliated in a room full of High School Freshmen and middle-aged, overweight, balding men that care more about the company's image than they do their own disgusting faces in the mirror, so yeah, I'm upset but I need feel it because then I can get over it sooner."

"Sorry." He muttered. "I wasn't trying to… I have an idea, not to cheer you up, because I know you don't want that, but maybe just to turn the day around."

"What did you have in mind?"

"It might not be an ideal thing for dinner time, but I thought we could go get ice cream… maybe go down to Coney Island… have some fun and forget about the Oscorp idiots."

"Huh, that does sound nice." She pondered. "Okay, I guess it could be fun."

Coney Island…

Bright, colourful lights danced before their eyes as they entered the fair and unable to stop himself, Peter allowed Gwen to walk on ahead a few steps and then took the opportunity to sneak another photo before jogging to catch her up before she could notice. Before their night progressed, he wanted to break the ice, but it wouldn't be easy.

"Hungry yet?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No." She answered. "But don't let that stop you from eating, I really don't want you to-"

"It's cool, we can grab some food later." He shrugged. "This might be cheesy, but why don't we go for a spin on the Ferris wheel, maybe try out the mini ice rink, and then hopefully that will work up an appetite?" He suggested.

“You? On ice skates?" She questioned, feeling a spark of humour for the first time since the Oscorp disaster. "Seems like a recipe for disaster, but if it means watching you fluster yourself further, then I'm there for it."

A wide, cheeky grin spread across his face as he grabbed her hand and made a break for the Ferris wheel before the line could get ridiculously long. It had been easier to convince her than he had initially thought, and now he had plenty of opportunity. Within minutes they were seated in a small orange cart on the Ferris wheel and strapped in before it began moving anticlockwise at a snail's pace. As they were about a quarter of the way up, Peter yawned and subtly stretched his arm out around her, shifting closer until his side brushed hers.

“Oh, Peter?” She questioned.

“It's uh… kinda chilly tonight.” He said through a shiver. “But if I'm too close then I can-”

“No, you're fine.” She insisted. “It is a little chilly.”

“I don't want you to get too cold.”

“It's okay, Peter.” She laughed. “Breathe and relax. I'm fine, honest.”

“Oh.” He mouthed, and lifted the camera, removing it from around his neck and placing it on the small ledge of the carriage.

Gwen shot him a questioning look, but he just smirked as he set a timer on the camera and then sat back and stretched his arm around her once again. When the timer reached five seconds, his smirk turned into a grin.

“Say Cheese!”

Her eyes widened in surprise and as she turned to question Peter, she was met with his lips colliding with hers just as the flash of the camera illuminated them, then died out in the same second. Gwen pulled away, glancing back and forth between him and the camera, utterly speechless.

“S- sorry.”

“Don't be…” She said, letting out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. “But do you… bring the camera everywhere you go?”

“Ehhh, I guess I do.” He shrugged. “But I can leave it behind next time if you don't-”

“Oh, no, no, I'm not saying that. I only asked out of curiosity.” She assured him, then glanced back at the camera and her eyes lit up with glee as she reached over and took it from the ledge of the carriage. “What have you got on here anyway?”

Peter felt his heart leap into his throat and he reached across in an unsuccessful attempt to snatch the camera back. Gwen held it behind her back, the glee growing brighter upon her face.

“Why don't you want me to see?” She questioned. “Is it something dirty?” She added with a giggle.

“No, it's not dirty.” He muttered, subtly adjusting his fingers ready to trigger his web shooter. His finger hovered above the button, shaking from the awkward position, and he silently counted to three.

“Don't even think about webbing it from my hands.” She warned teasingly, as though she'd read his mind. “Now, put your hands back down in your lap.”

Peter felt a mix of nerves and excitement as he sheepishly dropped both hands in his lap where she could see them clearly, and watched her with observation as her eyes fell upon the camera screen. He bit his lip and held his breath as she pressed a button that changed the photo that was displayed. His nerves increased as her mouth fell open as the last photo he'd snapped, when they'd first got to Coney Island, lit up the screen. Gwen's eyebrows pulled into a small frown, and she skimmed quickly to the next photo. He cringed, feeling the heat go to his cheeks as another photo of her was displayed on screen. Though he had expected her to comment by now, she moved on quietly to the next photo. Another of her. Then the next. Another, and then another. Eventually she stopped as she came to a photo he had taken of her sitting on a bench outside at Midtown Science with her nose in a book.

Gwen lowered the camera and turned to him. Peter chuckled nervously.

“What is all of this?”

“A hobby?” He said as though he was only guessing. “I don't know, you're just… so photogenic.”

“Hmm.” She hummed.

“All these moments, they're so simple but they show how incredible you really are and every time I look back, it makes me smile because in those moments, you're not posing for the camera, but you're in your natural element. I'm sorry, I know you probably think I'm a huge creep now, especially since those photos were taken without your knowledge, but I see an opportunity and I can't help but take it.” He explained, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand.

Gwen's expression softened and a small smile crept on her face. “I don't think you're a creep. Did it catch me off guard? Yeah, a little… but you're too cute for me to be mad at.”

Peter's heart thudded harder in his chest, and a boyish smile lit up his face. “Oh really?”

“Yes. Really.” She said, and her grin returned. “And you've managed to turn one of my worst days into one of my best nights, I can't possibly get mad at you.”

“Good.” He chuckled. “Can I have my camera back now?”

“Nuh-uh. I'm not finished with it yet.”

“Come on… this is embarrassing.” He joked.

“Alright, you can have it back.” She said, and held the camera out. Though as he reached for it, she drew it back again. “If you kiss me again before we're back on the ground.” She added.

“Deal.” He smirked, and leaned in closer until their noses were almost touching. “And for the record, it's been one of my best nights too.”

With that, he closed his eyes and kissed her, and extended one arm around her waist, taking the camera back with the other. He laughed against her lips, and pulled away, hanging the camera around his neck once again.

“Ready to eat yet?”

“Yeah, I think I am.” She answered, much to his delight as the carriage came to a stop at the bottom of the Ferris wheel. “Come on, shutterbug, I'll buy you a burger.”