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"I GOTTA USE THE BATHROOM."

Alissa curled around in the uncomfortable seat she was sitting in on the bus, gaping at Abraham who was holding his hand up in the air, a sheepish expression on his face at his loud announcement than was heard by more people than he intended for. The students on the bus dramatically groaned, all glowering at the dark skinned boy. Alissa simply giggled, shaking her head in amusement before turning back around in her seat.

Abraham let a small smile come to his face, lightly shrugging. "When you gotta go, you gotta go!" He defensively
exclaimed, eyes flickering around at the faces that gazed back at him.

"We just left the school," Mr. Harrington pointedly stated, leaning on his seat to face behind him. Ms Warren was in the seat across from him, shaking her head from side to side as she graded their essays on their way to New York Hall of Science for the field trip. "Can't you hold it until we get there?"

Abraham glumly sighed. "I can try," he replied, his smile widening.

Mr. Harrington nodded at the boy's response and sank back down in the seat, hands carefully folded in his lap. He opened his mouth as he turned to his fellow co-worker to speak with her, but Ms. Warren gave him a sharp look with her dark eyes that told him to leave her the hell alone. So, he opted to talk to the female bus driver, the adorablely pudgy woman softly sighing as the middle aged man began to tell her how he fell in love with his estranged wife.

Alissa raised a brow as she glanced back at Abraham one last time, the boy grinning back. Peter was a few seats behind her with Ned Leeds beside him, Carter in very back of the yellow bus with Flash and a few other Decathlon Team Members, one being Liz Allan who was at the center of attention amongst their current topic of their conversation.

"I think your brother might like Liz." Alissa turned to the voice, realizing that it was Cindy Moon, a dark haired girl with pretty brown eyes and tanned skin. Alissa stole a glance back at her brother, his eyes completely locked on Liz as she gushed about the school play she was going to be in. Mary Jane was sat with the girl as well, having assigned Liz to help her with the okay to relieve Ned of his duties as he absolutely hated it. Alissa didn't really blame him either; Mary Jane could become a little angry when things didn't go according to plan.

Alissa smiled, eyes flickering back to the dark haired girl across from her.

"Oh, please," Gwen piped in from beside Alissa, her long, blonde hair pulled back into a tight ballerina bun. Her makeup was a little darker than usual, but she still looked as beautiful as ever.

The three girls continued to gaze at Carter, giggling together when he caught them staring and waved them off.

"He's an idiot," Gwen chuckled. "He likes football too much to pay any attention to girls, anyways."

"He is," Alissa agreed. "But you never know, Cindy might be right."

The dark haired girl grinned, a kind one that made Alissa feel as if everything was going to turn out alright in the end. And maybe it would, but, maybe it wouldn't.

"How's hockey season going?" Alissa asked Cindy, well aware of the fact that the girl was a hockey player. Thanks to Brian, she was more knowledgeable on the sport; an all time favorite of hers. She didn't really like any other sport, but hockey was enough for her as she'd grown up loving it. It only increased when her little brother joined a team. "I heard you won your game last night."

Cindy brightly beamed. "Yeah, we did. 12 to zero. It was really amazing, and I scored the winning shot," Cindy proudly gushed, images of that night reappearing in her mind. "Is your little brother still playing?"

"Oh, yeah," Alissa answered. "I don't think anything could stop him. He's really good at it too," she said, smiling sweetly and proudly for Brian.

Cindy grinned, turning to face forward. That was the end of their conversation, but both held a greater appreciation for one another. They might not have been close to each other before or even after that, but they sure felt like it in that joyful moment. Gwen brightly smiled with her white teeth and pulled out her phone, showing Alissa a picture.

"Look," she pointed to her father, a grin under his graying mustache as he stood next to a tanned man, his looks a little too familiar for Alissa's own liking. "He gave Flash's dad a Medal of Honor earlier this morning. He saved two little kids that almost got hit in a drive by when he wasn't even on duty."

Alissa forced a small smile onto her face, remaining silent, nodding along when Gwen said Harrison was a good man. No matter what that man could or would ever accomplish, she could never even begin to like him for anything. He couldn't keep his hands away from his own family, and yet, he would risk his own life to save two kids he barely knew. She thought is was mighty brave of him and a wonderful thing to do that she would always appreciate, but to know he also hurt his own family when he saved others, nothing could make up for that kind of thing.

Alissa turned in her seat, looking to Flash who was frowning down at his phone. The girl sighed, shaking her head.

° ° °

"Why isn't there any food in this pla—Oh, look, a cafeteria, finally!" Alissa rolled her eyes in sync with Mary Jane and Gwen, eyes swiveling to Carter who was eyeing the food line hungrily. Liz Allan laughed, playfully nudging him as he smirked even wider than before. Peter watched from the sidelines with Ned and Harry, a little too interested in Liz for Alissa's liking.

Harry nudged Peter, having seen Alissa frowning when she saw him staring at Liz in the same way she gazed at him. Peter blinked, readjusting his glasses and the camera that was secured around his neck. Ned raised his eyebrows, but didn't say anything, smiling when he saw there was ice cream right by the pizzas section.

"What?" Peter frowned, gingerly rubbing the spot Harry hit lightly him. Harry simply rolled his eyes and headed towards an empty table, Peter following suit while Ned went to get some food. "Why'd you hit me?"

"I barely hit you. It was more a tap if anything, and because you were staring at Liz," Harry sharply replied.

Peter gaped at him, shaking his head. "I wasn't—" Harry wasn't fooled, giving Peter a look that told him he knew he was.  Peter sighed and Harry smugly nodded. "I was only staring because I think Alissa has the same top."

Out of all the excuses Harry thought Peter would come up with to try and hide it, that wasn't one of the things he'd thought of—he wasn't so sure it was really an excuse. Peter sounded serious, and even a little embarrassed about it. His cheeks were tinted pink and was fiddling with the camera, not wanting to meet his best friends intense gaze.

At the realization, Harry cracked a genuine smile, wondering if there was something Peter wasn't telling him.

"Seriously? That's why you were staring?" Harry suspiciously wondered, leaning forward as a familiar group of girls began heading towards their table. 

Peter nodded. "Why else would I?" Harry just shook his head, not wanting to make his friend realize he might find the older girl more interesting than he already did.

He needed to focus on someone else.

Of course, Peter already knew Liz was attractive, but he was trying to keep his focus on school rather than girls. There were really only five or six girls that he talked to, and only one of them had the ability to distract him; it was just a matter of time before Peter realized it.

"Hello boys," Mary Jane greeted the two, sitting across from Harry, purposely causing Alissa to sit in front of Peter as Gwen was on the other side of Alissa. Gwen and Mary Jane shared a knowing look, silently nodding to each other some kind of secret meaning. Alissa didn't see it, but Harry did, carefully eyeing the girls. Gwen just winked, surprising the blond as he was usually the one to do that.

"Hi Peter," Alissa greeted the boy. He smiled, lifting the camera.

"Hey," Peter kindly greeted them. "Can I take your guys' picture?" He hesitantly asked, glancing at the girls. "It's for the Yearbook."

Alissa made a face, but Mary Jane responded before Alissa or Gwen got the chance to deny it. "Of course." Mary Jane was already slinging her arm around Alissa's shoulders and squishing their bodies together. With a sigh, Alissa did the same to Mary Jane and Gwen with their waists and then looked back to Peter. Harry grinned at his friends, playfully winking at Alissa as Peter lifted the camera.

Alissa tried so hard not to laugh, but with Harry making faces at her from behind Peter, it was hard, especially when Mary Jane and Gwen saw, causing all three girls to laugh just as Peter took their picture.

Alissa gasped. "Wait! I think my eyes were closed!" She complained, leaning over the table as Peter turned the camera around to show them. She peered at the image, lips parting in surprise.

Her eyes may of been closed, but the pure joy and happiness evident on their faces overshadowed it. Alissa softly smiled, glancing to Gwen and Mary Jane, both grinning brightly.

"You like it?" Peter nervously asked. He actually liked it, but not all girls liked the pictures they were in. However, from the excited looks on all of their faces, he had a  feeling that they might've liked it too.

"Like it? We love it!" Gwen cheerfully exclaimed.

Alissa nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it's really good," she said. "You should think of doing something with photography when you're older. You're amazing at it."

Gwen and Mary Jane raised their brows at Alissa. She simply ignored it, grinning as she discreetly kicked them under the table. Harry snickered, his blue eyes flickering over the faces of the people he called his friends. Alissa caught his gaze, kindly smiling. He gladly returned it, making Alissa just a little happier.

"What'd I miss?" Ned asked when he returned, a bowl of half eaten ice cream in his hands. He had been planning on eating with Peter and Harry. Though, but he felt bad when seeing Michelle Jones all by herself and decided to sit with her as he ate his slices of pizza. She didn't seem too thrilled about it, but on the inside, it had made her happy that she wasn't entirely ignored or forgotten about.

"We were just about to pick our partners that we're gonna walk with," Gwen replied without a hitch.

Alissa lifted her head. "We were?"

"Yeah, we were," Mary Jane sharply answered. Alissa pursed her lips, not going to question it. She learned not to question whatever her two friends were planning, knowing it would just cause more trouble for her in the end.

"I thought we were going to get some food because—"

"Five minutes before we continue with the rest of the tour!" Ms. Warren called out, glancing over the students faces to make sure she knew that all of them were still in the cafeteria. Peter sighed, upset about not getting lunch. He was looking forward to digging into some nachos while Alissa had her heart set on the cheesy looking pizza.

"MJ's my partner," Gwen quickly called out, standing and sitting by the girl.

Alissa gaped at her friend, holding her hands out in front of her body, clearly offended. "What about me, Gwen?" She demanded. "Can't we be a group of three? So—"

"Ned's my partner," Harry hurriedly said, clapping Ned on the back. The boy seemed confused, but with a quick and quiet whisper in his ear from Harry, he was nodding along with a big, goofy grin plastered on his chunky face.

Peter and Alissa stared at their friends, one being confused and a little offended, and the other annoyed yet happy. Slowly, Peter and Alissa turned to each other, nervously smiling.

"D-Do you wanna be—"

"Yes," Alissa answered, blushing with how quickly she answered. Peter grinned, but Alissa looked down as she nodded. "I-I mean, sure, yeah."

"See?" Harry proudly beamed. "All settled."

The group smiled at each other, Alissa—still bitter but happy—grinned at Peter, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear as she stood from her seat. She moved around the table, the others doing the same so they were with the rest of the group that was lingering by their chaperones near the cafeteria exit. Silently, Peter and Alissa began walking side by side.

Alissa had so much she wanted to say to him, but each time she thought about it, she decided against it.

It could wait.

Their friends shared a look with each other, noticing the silence surrounding Alissa and Peter. Mary Jane jogged forward to be at Alissa's side while Ned did the same to Peter.

"Now's your chance," Mary Jane suddenly told Alissa, wiggling her eyebrows when Alissa turned her head. Alissa scoffed, hair falling forward when she tilted her head. "I'm serious! We didn't plan our partners just so you and Peter wouldn't talk."

"Come on, man," Ned pleaded, Peter already trying to blow him off; he knew what was coming. "Forget about school stuff, okay? Put the camera away and just talk to her! Im like 72 perfect sure she likes you."

Peter paused. "72 percent?" He repeated. Ned shrugged with a faint nod.

"Well, if I said 50/50 then you would've thought I was lying," Ned replied. Peter simply rolled his eyes. "I'm just—"

"Hurry up!" Ms. Warren urged the rest of the students.

"But I'm not finished!" Carter shouted, earning a few glares from his fellow students and some of the staff at the Science Hall. Ms. Warren stepped to the side so he could clearly see her, hands placed on her hips and lips tightly pursed together. Flash stood up without another word and yanked Carter along, ignoring their teachers gaze. "We're coming!"

Ms. Warren grinned, triumphantly nodding.

"You know," Alissa said, "She kind of scares me."

"But in a good way, right?" Peter wondered. Alissa sighed, turning to look at him.

"I honestly don't know."

° ° °

"What the hell is that thing?" Carter cried, eyes wide as they entered a room full of bugs. Alissa halted in her steps next to Peter and spun around, narrowing her eyes at her brother as he got closer to her.

"Shut up," she angrily snapped. "I promised mom we'd keep quiet and not attract attention to ourselves." Carter simply rolled his eyes. Alissa roughly hit his arm, gaining his attention as he rubbed his arm with a prominent frown. "I'm serious, Carter. You want dad to know we're here?"

Carter froze. "Dad's here?" Alissa slowly nodded. "How the hell do you know?"

"Mom told me they're going to be here, and look." Alissa pointed to the far off corner of the room. Carter followed her gaze, heart nearly stopping when seeing both of their parents. He gulped, finally meeting her burning eyes. "Yeah, so knock it off unless you want dad to see both of us."

Without a word, Carter nodded and moved passed her in a jogging pace. Flash sidedly glanced at her when he followed Carter, wondering what just happened between the siblings. Peter awkwardly moved back to her side, startling her when she saw sight of his jacket.

"God!" Alissa breathed out, momentarily closing her eyes. "You scared me, Pete."

"Sorry," he apologized, looking at her through his glasses. "Is. . .is everything okay?"

Alissa sighed. She didn't think he would have heard their conversation, but that was a perk of being one of the quiet kids. They heard more, especially the things that the other students didn't realize were being heard by ears other than their friends.

"Yeah," she breathed out, running a hand through her long hair. Peter frowned at her actions. He didn't want to pry, but he also didn't want of his closest friends to be in pain or hurting if there was something he could do to help. "We just got a lot going on at home. It's nothing to worry about though, Pete."

Peter smiled at the nickname.

Not a whole lot of people called him by it, and he used to not like the name, but hearing Alissa say it somehow made him learn to like it. She didn't know that, but he did.

"Well, i-if you need someone, I-I'm here for you," he sweetly said. Alissa could feel her heart fluttering, making her fall for him even harder, and faster. Ignoring the all too familiar feeling, she grinned, one that made his cheeks reddened and lips curl upwards.

"Thank you, Peter," she said. "You're really sweet."

"Well—"

"Alissa?" Alissa turned at the sound of her own name, gasping when seeing her father staring at her.

Scott took a step forward, Kelli's eyes widening with a frown on her lips. Scott, somehow already knowing, turned his head and caught sight of his eldest son, laughing at something Liz had said. Kelli stepping forward to gently touch his arm in hopes to bring him back to their work.

Alissa bit her lip, going to respond, but their conversation was abruptly interrupted.

"Ah!" Peter cried, clutching his hand in agony. Alissa gasped, going to his side. Kelli rushed passed her husband, snatching a first aid kit as she hurried over.

"Oh my god, what happened?" Alissa demanded, trying to see his hand he was covering. Peter winced, clenching his eyes shut out of pain. "Peter—"

"Ow!" Another voice cried out from beside Alissa, capturing her attention. Her eyes landed upon Moon, the girl cradling her ankle. She bit her lip, eyes clenched shut. Alissa sighed, turning back to Peter.

"Pete, I—"

He shrugged her off, hurrying towards the closest bathroom without muttering a word. Alissa's hands dropped at her sides, watching him run away, almost like he was running from her. Kelli didn't take a pause as she noticed the boy leaving in a hurry, and another was hurt and on the ground. Kelli felt awful for not going to comfort her own daughter, but she had a job to do, and her daughter had a boy to run after.

Not a moment later, Alissa ran after Peter, ignoring the questions and demands coming from her friends, and the thoughts of doubt and misery when he left her all alone without saying so much as a goodbye. Kelli ordered the other students back and to leave Alissa alone, knowing that she could trust whatever her daughter was about to do. Not to mention she was close enough to tell her son to go as well and that she would let his teachers know. However, he didn't leave, telling her he wanted to stay.

Kelli only huffed, glancing to the door where her daughter had ran through before checking on Cindy.

° ° °

I'm actually kind of proud of this chapter. I worked really hard to make this as long as it is (even though I wanted it to be longer but) and add as much detail, and I hope you all enjoyed it. I still don't like all of it, but overall, I do.

Anyways, please don't forget to leave your feedback in the comments and I hope y'all enjoyed!