monday 4th of july 2016

J.D hated fireworks. If there was one 'normal' thing she was frightened of, it was either fireworks or spiders (how ironic). She didn't mind snakes or the dark, but fireworks were a definite no.

This brings us to a celebration of the fourth of July, also known as the one time Americans are proud to be Americans. It had become a tradition for the Purnells and the Parkers to light fireworks together in the park, and as the years drew on, the teens invited their friends to the get-together.

It had been around a week since she left the Avengers Compound. She hid her crutches around Herb and held onto Mason's arm a lot of the time, but on the bright side, she was getting better. 

Krüger had removed all of the bullets while he was attempted to operate on her, so there wasn't much else to operate on that wouldn't heal. The bags under her eyes were still dark as night and her hair was limp and dry, but she was going to be okay. 

It was also the first time she had seen her friends since the incident. Gwen and Harry assumed she had gone to Surbiton to visit her Grandfather, courtesy of Mason and Peter, but Michelle knew differently. 

As soon as they saw each other, Michelle embraced her for what seemed like years. J.D held her back, but she couldn't help but feel a little betrayed. Michelle, one of her best friends, had promised not to reveal her biggest secret to anyone, under any circumstances. She still did it. J.D had put her trust in her only to get it thrown away. As much as she wanted to be angry, she was past that stage. She was almost grateful. It was much easier with Mason knowing, how else would she have lied about being shot several times? He was her closest friend, there was no way she could've hidden it any longer. 

But Peter knowing, that was different. It was almost refreshing. Him, a boy she had known since she was eight or nine had become a hero to New York and almost a household name. Spider-Man. She couldn't help but feel gushy at the thought that Peter, an awkward, pathetic but at the same time adorable, kind and caring dweeb was a superhero. She was glad, and it was relieving that she knew Spider-Man's alter ego wasn't an asshole. 

As her friends mingled around her, J.D crossed her arms tightly, a frown on her face. A pair of red earmuffs covered her ears, silencing the world around her. Sure, the bright lights were pretty, but the endless banging, popping and cheering made it sound like a bloody battlefield. 

Everyone was wearing shorts and t-shirts, but as per usual, she was pretty much covered from head-to-toe. She wore a long-sleeved navy top and grey sweatpants so all of her bandages were concealed, as well as her scars, new and old. She wished her hair was longer to distract herself from her insecurities, but it hadn't grown much since the fire incident the previous year in Sokovia. She had trimmed the singed ends and tried everything to make it grow quicker, but it still just passed her shoulders. 

Knowing she couldn't hear, Mason and Harry grabbed Peter by the arm and dragged him a couple of metres away from the group. Peter furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as the two teenagers stared at him. Even with his growth spurts, he was still the shortest of the three. "Um, what's going on-"

"You need to kiss J.D." Harry said, and Mason hit his side, a glare on his face. Harry shrugged at the shorter boy. "What?"

"We were going to tell it to him slowly, let it sink in properly." Mason snapped and Harry scoffed, rolling his eyes. Mason huffed and looked at Peter, who resembled a lost puppy. "It's time to admit your feelings for her."

"No way." Peter instantly denied. "I can't...I won't....I'll mess it up and she'll hate me forever."

"Bullshit." Harry said, and Mason nodded in agreement.

"Jeez, I don't know! We've been so close to kissing so many times, but when it actually happens I don't know what she'll do." Peter nattered and shoved his clammy hands in his hoodie pockets.

"She's one of your best friends, she'll just laugh it off, act awkwardly around you for a few days and then everything will be fine." Mason assured him, though it didn't really work.

"That's comforting." Peter retorted sarcastically, glaring at him momentarily.

"Wait, when did you two almost kiss?" Harry queried, glancing at Mason, who shrugged. Peter grinned sheepishly. 

"That's not the point." Mason interrupted, snapping his fingers at Peter. "You have to make a move."

 Peter groaned and ran a hand down his face in exasperation.

"I'm not kissing her." He said firmly, and turned on his heel, stalking away from his friends. 

His feet crunched the grass underneath him as he weaved through his friends and their parents, all of them staring up at the fireworks in awe, not taking any notice of him. The popping of the explosives was tuned out, he just wanted to find her. 

He brought himself to a halt and saw her sitting by herself in a camping chair, earmuffs over her head and her hand clutching a red solo cup filled with lemonade. He stood still and watched her for a moment, realising how much he truly loved her. Sure, he was only a teenager, but he knew what he felt when he looked at her. 

The teenage boy glanced down at J.D, before sticking his chin out and inching closer. He saw that the seat Mason had brought was free, so he, trying to act natural, wandered over and sat in it, leaning back slightly.

What if he did make a move? Would he regret it as much as he thought he would?

J.D, feeling his presence and seeing him from the corner of eye, looked over at him and smiled softly. She didn't speak, she didn't really want to. She just reached over and took his hand in hers, before turning and looking back up at the colourful sky. 

"You're beautiful." Peter mumbled, fully aware that she couldn't hear him. "You're so gorgeous, with your pretty hair and your pretty eyes and your pretty smile. Your laugh is contagious. I could listen to it all day, I sometimes make jokes just so I can hear it. You're so kind it's unbelievable. You put everyone before yourself, regardless if you like them or not. You've risked your life for your friends, your family, my family. You have so much love in your heart and I wish you could see that, but I don't think you do. I know you may not think so, but you're absolutely perfect to me and so many other people. With all your cuts and bruises, you're still the brightest star in the sky. I love you, so, so, much. I wish you could hear me because this is probably the most confident I've ever been around you, but since I know you can't, I'm happy to say that you're the best thing that's ever happened to me. We've both had shit that's happened in our lives, but we've both pulled through, you more so than me. I love you, Jessica-Diana Purnell. My beautiful Bladerunner." 

As soon as the last firework burst in the sky, Peter shut his mouth, smiling gently. J.D reached for her earmuff and pulled half off, revealing one of her ears. She turned to Peter with a raised eyebrow. "Sorry, did you say something?"

Peter chewed on the inside of his lip, staring at her. He knitted his eyebrows together, before exhaling loudly and leaning over. Using his free hand, he placed it on the back of her neck and  pressed his lips onto hers. J.D gasped in shock, her eyes widening, before they fluttered shut. She reached up and rested her hand on his cheek. Butterflies erupted in her stomach and she felt her head become fuzzy. 

Neither wanted to stop, but like all humans, they had to breathe every once in a while. 

Peter pulled away and slowly opened his eyes, seeing J.D staring straight at him. They were both in shock at what had just happened, but they were both filled with euphoria. 

They continued to gape at each other until a firework went off, causing J.D to jump five feet in the air. Peter burst out laughing and pulled her into him, pressing a kiss on her forehead. He moved his head down to her ear and smiled before he spoke. "I love you."

"I love you too." J.D grinned, her cheeks bright red. 

Peter moved her earmuff back over her ear and rested his head on hers, both of them staring at the sky. 

He did it. He kissed J.D Purnell. He kissed her as Peter Parker, not as Spider-Man. He was on top of the world, he felt like he could do anything.

From now on, nothing was gonna bring him down. 

tuesday 5th of july 2016

"Happy birthday!" 

J.D shot up in bed, her hair closely resembling a bird's nest and her eyes crusty and bloodshot. She groaned at the dizziness she felt and ran a hand down her face. She slowly opened her eyes and they widened when she saw her friends in her room. She yelped as Mason leapt onto her bed and wrapped his arms around her. Belle barked and ran around in circles at the wild atmosphere, panting and yapping at everything that moved. "Happy birthday sis!"

"Happy birthday to you too." She muttered, her voice raspy and confused. "What's going on?"

"They thought it'd be a good idea to wake you up so we can open presents and watch movies all day." Mason laughed, wide awake and full of energy. He then reached to J.D's bedside table and grabbed a tissue, handing it to her. "There's drool on the side of your mouth, by the way."

"Thanks." J.D grumbled, before squinting up at her friends. "I appreciate the love, but I'm sure Mason can handle it better than I can right now. I'll be up in a few."

"Yes! Love me!" Mason exclaimed, jumping off J.D's bed and leading the group out of the room, Belle running at their feet. J.D shook her head in both amusement and fatigue, pushing her covers off of her body and swinging her legs out of bed. 

As promised, J.D emerged from her pit a few minutes later, her hair in a loose bun and a Star Wars sweater now adorning her body. She yawned as she sat down on the couch next to her excited brother and his dog, her uncle sitting at the other end of the couch, his video camera ready and two presents at his side. 

Bacon, eggs and orange juice sat on the coffee table, along with colourful gifts from all their friends. 

"Go on," Herb urged, watching the twins. "You can unwrap, eat, do whatever. It's your day!" 

Mason immediately reached forward and grabbed two bags, handing one to J.D and quickly digging into his. He pulled out a Marianas Trench CD and he grinned looking at the note on the side of the bag. "Thanks Gwen!"

"No problem." Gwen smiled widely. "You said how much you wanted one."

J.D pulled out the note and chuckled, before pulling out the gift inside. She smiled as she pulled out a Napoleon Dynamite popvinyl. "Aw, thank you Gwen."

Michelle got J.D Wham!, Prince and Billy Joel cassette tapes and Mason a Rescuer's Down Under t-shirt. 

Harry got them both hundred dollar gift certificates (because he's a rich lil hoe), J.D to Vinny's and Mason to M&M's World in Manhattan.  

Herb got them a record player to share, which took the twins' breath away. He had never done anything that big before. They were both so grateful and touched he'd done that for them. All he said when they thanked him was 'it's your sixteenth, nothin' wrong with splashing out a bit'.

Peter stepped forward with two bags, a large one for Mason and a little one for J.D. Before he handed them to the twins, he paused. "You two aren't allowed to get mad. You're not allowed to give them back either."

The twins shared a confused look before receiving the bags. Mason opened his and gasped at four new vinyls. He pulled them out and stared at them in awe. He held them in his hands, grinning from ear to ear. "Thanks Pete, this must've cost you a hell of a lot."

"Aunt May and I saved up to get both your stuff. I even got a job at the ice cream store to get you the good stuff." He said proudly, and J.D raised an eyebrow. She didn't want him spending all that money. He could have put it towards May or himself!

J.D opened her gift and her eyes widened. "Holy shit."

"Language." Herb muttered. 

"Holy shit!" She exclaimed, pulling out the blue Tiffany box. "Pete, you didn't."

"I did." He grinned, watching her and feeling excited. "I know you're not much of a jewellery girl, but I think you'll like this." 

J.D slowly opened the box and she couldn't help the beam rising on her face. Sitting delicately in the box was a silver chain and a Tiffany tag pendant. It was gorgeous. Peter was right, she wasn't much of a jewellery obsessor, but this was lovely. "Thank you so much. I-I don't know what to say."

"I do." Michelle scoffed, folding her arms. "Your seventeenth present from me is gonna be so much cooler than that."

"Oh yeah?" Harry piped up. "I bet mine's gonna be better."

"Fight me." Michelle retorted, but Peter, Mason and J.D couldn't stop grinning. 

Peter picked up the necklace from the box and unhooked it, before stepping behind J.D and clipping it around her neck. J.D was so touched that all her friends had put in the effort to get her and Mason such nice things, she was so grateful and speechless at the same time. 

She looked down at the covered legs, thinking of the bandages underneath, and she felt the aching pain in her back, but she didn't let that take over. 

She was happy for once, and that was the way she wanted to stay. 

awww happy j.d yay

awwwwwwwwww THEY FINALLY KISSED AS J.D AND PETER CAN I GET A HELL YEAH

i love my children so much holy moly 

okay well i don't have much else to say so thx for reading and ill see ya later. 

*unedited*