chapter twenty-four:
❛ cats out of the bag ❜

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Gwen stared at MJ, her stomach dropping as the words left her friend's mouth: "I know you're Spiderwoman and Spiderman." The accusation hung in the air, sharp and bold. She glanced at Peter, who stood a few feet away, his body tense. He had been keeping a watchful eye on the two, ready to intervene if needed, but now he froze, clearly caught off guard.

MJ's confident smirk and casual posture added salt to the wound. "You guys can drop the act. It's obvious."

Peter took a deep breath, forcing himself to act casual as he walked over, joining Gwen. "Us? Spider people? Pfft!" he said, waving his hand dismissively. His forced laugh was painfully unconvincing.

"Yeah, pfft!" Gwen added, nodding a little too enthusiastically. "Totally not us. Why would you even think that?"

MJ crossed her arms, her tone calm but sharp as a knife. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe because I've been paying attention? You're not exactly subtle." She let out a small laugh.

Peter's face flushed. "What? No. I'm not Spiderman."

"And I'm not Spiderwoman," Gwen chimed in, shifting awkwardly.

"Oh, come on!" MJ exclaimed. She pointed at Peter, her tone now laced with incredulity. "Peter, let's start with Washington. You saved Gwen when she was falling, and Spiderman-aka you-called her Gweny. No one else calls her that but you."

Peter opened his mouth, struggling to find a response. "Uh... Yeah, so? Maybe Spiderman was... nervous?"

"Right!" Gwen said quickly, snapping her fingers. "Spiders get nervous, don't they?"

MJ rolled her eyes, unimpressed. "Cut the crap, Gwen. After that incident, you were crying into Spiderman's arms, telling him you forgave him, and then suddenly you and Peter were besties again when we got back. Coincidence? I don't think so."

Gwen pressed her lips into a thin line, unable to come up with a retort. Peter stammered, "W-Well, you can't just assume-"

MJ wasn't done. She spun on Peter. "And you, Peter, always disappearing at the worst times. And now Gwen does it too, ever since she got bitten by a spider. Kind of suspicious, don't you think?"

Peter's face twisted in exasperation. "I was sick, okay? I had... the stomach thing!" He gestured vaguely at his abdomen.

MJ didn't even blink. "Right. Because Susan Yang thinks you two are male and female escorts."

Gwen doubled over in laughter at the absurdity of the statement, while Peter looked utterly mortified. "WHAT?!" he exclaimed. "That's not even remotely true!"

"Then what's the explanation?" MJ said, her smirk returning. "Oh, wait. You're Spiderman and Spiderwoman."

"We're not!" Peter said, his voice rising.

MJ shook her head in disbelief. "Tonight, you both snuck off. Peter, I saw you fighting that thing, and Gwen? Who knows where you were."

"You can't have seen me because I'm not Spiderman!" Peter shot back, his voice cracking slightly.

"Yeah!" Gwen said, recovering from her laughter. "It wasn't Spiderman-it was... uh, the Night Monkey."

Both MJ and Gwen turned to Peter, eyebrows raised. "Night Monkey?" they said in unison.

"Yeah! That's what the news said!" Peter insisted, doubling down. "And the news never lies."

MJ's expression was deadpan. "Night Monkey. Sure." She reached into her backpack and pulled out a small drone tangled with webs. "Then explain this."

Peter's eyes widened. "What... what are you doing?"

MJ held up the drone like a prize. "Do the Night Monkey and Spiderman use the same webs?"

Peter stammered, scrambling for an explanation. "Uh... I mean, maybe? Maybe he's a Spider Monkey. Who knows?"

Gwen had to bite her lip to keep from laughing again. She was thoroughly enjoying watching Peter squirm.

"I've been watching you two because I thought you were Spiderman and Spiderwoman," MJ admitted, her tone frank.

"Well, that's... weird," Gwen said, folding her arms. "Ever think about minding your business?"

MJ was about to retort when the drone suddenly powered on, its projector casting a flickering blue light. MJ yelped and dropped it as a storm cloud appeared out of thin air, dark and ominous.

"THE FUCK?!" Gwen yelled, stumbling back.

"What the hell was that?!" Peter shouted, his voice going higher than usual.

MJ spun around, her heart racing. "I don't know!"

Peter crouched to pick up the drone, inspecting it. "It's some kind of projector," he muttered. "But it's way too advanced for normal tech."

"It looked so real," Gwen whispered, her voice shaky.

"Yeah. Really real," Peter agreed, his brows furrowing in thought.

MJ's voice trembled slightly. "Wait... doesn't that mean..."

"The Elementals were fake," Gwen finished, her eyes widening.

Peter stared at the drone, his mind reeling. "That doesn't make any sense. We were there. There was fire, destruction-"

Gwen cut him off. "Mysterio. I knew it. My gut was right. I've had a bad feeling about him from the start."

"No-" Peter started, but the drone powered on again. This time, it projected a hologram of Mysterio himself. The image flickered and faded, leaving the three of them in stunned silence.

Peter let out a long breath and turned to MJ, his shoulders slumping. "We are Spiderman and Spiderwoman. And I've really messed up."

MJ blinked, her jaw dropping. "Wait. You're serious?"

Gwen gave her a lopsided grin. "Guess the web's out of the bag."

MJ's eyes darted between the two. "I mean, I was only, like, 67 percent sure!"

"MJ-" Gwen started, but MJ interrupted, her questions tumbling out. "Why are you here? Why are you on this school trip? What's going on?"

Gwen grabbed MJ by the shoulders. "MJ, I know you have a ton of questions, but right now, we need to get out of here. Okay?"

MJ nodded quickly, her excitement bubbling to the surface. "Okay. Okay! I can't believe I figured it out!"

The three of them bolted back toward the hotel, their minds spinning with the revelation and the new danger looming on the horizon.

The dimly lit hotel room felt like a pressure cooker as Peter paced back and forth, his mind racing with a thousand thoughts at once. Every few steps, he would stop and yank another curtain shut, peeking outside before hastily closing it. His hands were restless, moving between rubbing his temples and fiddling with his phone, the device clutched tightly as if he expected it to explode at any moment. The air was thick with his frustration, and his voice wavered as he spoke, more to himself than anyone else.

"I can't believe I gave Beck those glasses," he muttered, shaking his head. "How could I be that stupid?" He glanced toward the window, half-expecting a drone to come flying in at any moment. "He's probably spying on me right now or-who knows-sending a drone to come and kill me." His words came out in a rush, almost tripping over each other as he vented.

Gwen, who was seated on the edge of one of the room's twin beds, raised an eyebrow but kept her tone casual. "Glad he's never seen my face," she said, leaning back slightly and crossing her arms.

MJ, perched on the desk with her legs swinging lazily, tilted her head at Peter, her expression skeptical. "Wait, wait, wait," she interrupted, her eyes narrowing. "You had access to killer drones?"

Peter turned to her briefly, still pacing, and gestured vaguely as if it were no big deal. "Yeah, I didn't really want them," he said, his voice tinged with regret. "Especially after Gwen and I almost killed Brad."

At this, Gwen sat up straight, her mouth falling open. "Whoa, hold up. You and I?" she repeated, pointing a finger at Peter. "No, no, Peter. Let's get the story straight: I saved your ass! You woke me up from a nap to help you stop that thing!"

MJ's jaw dropped, her eyes darting between the two of them as she processed this new information. "Wait a second-you two almost killed Brad?"

"Not me!" Gwen blurted, throwing her hands up defensively. "Peter!"

Peter finally stopped pacing and turned to face them, his exasperation evident. "Okay, fine, yeah. Maybe I panicked and made a bad call. But look, that's not important right now!" He waved his hands as if trying to physically dismiss the topic. "I have to call Mr. Fury and tell him Beck's a fraud, but..." His voice trailed off as he held up his phone, staring at it as though it were cursed. "I think he tapped my phone."

Gwen leaned forward slightly, her brows furrowed. "So what are you gonna do?" she asked, her tone more serious now.

Peter set the phone down on the desk and grabbed his backpack, unzipping it with swift, purposeful movements. "I need my suit," he said, pulling out the dark Night Monkey costume, "and I have to go to Berlin to talk to Mr. Fury in person." Without any further explanation, he pulled off his shirt, tossing it carelessly onto the bed as he began to change.

Gwen immediately turned bright red, whipping her head around to face the wall. "Oh, come on," she mumbled under her breath, her voice barely audible.

MJ, however, noticed Gwen's reaction and smirked, nudging her playfully. "Don't even try to deny it," she teased, keeping her voice low.

"Shut up," Gwen hissed, not daring to glance back, though her curiosity tugged at her resolve.

MJ, ever the instigator, leaned closer and whispered, "What, you're not even gonna sneak a peek? Come on, it's research."

Gwen glared at her out of the corner of her eye. "You're the worst," she muttered.

Still, the temptation was too strong. Gwen stole a quick glance over her shoulder, just as Peter bent down to adjust the suit. Her eyes widened for a split second before she snapped her head back around, her face practically glowing with embarrassment. MJ, biting her lip to keep from laughing, gave Gwen a knowing look.

The sound of the door creaking open made them all freeze. Gwen turned her head sharply, and there stood Ned, frozen in the doorway, his eyes wide with shock.

"Oh my God!" Gwen squeaked, jumping to her feet and shielding her face with her hands.

Peter, now halfway into his suit, looked up casually, unfazed by the interruption. "Oh, Ned," he said, straightening up as he zipped the suit. "Perfect timing."

Ned blinked a few times, struggling to find words. "Uh... the costume looks great... for the costume party at the prince's castle," he stammered, his voice barely above a whisper.

MJ furrowed her brow, her confusion evident. "Costume party? Seriously?"

Gwen, who had managed to calm herself, laughed lightly at the absurdity of it all.

Peter pointed toward MJ as he began to gather his things. "She knows. Gwen and I told her."

MJ raised a hand, shaking her head. "Correction: I figured it out. Gwen was just a witness."

Gwen smirked at MJ's comment, giving her a small nod of approval.

"Oh," Ned said, still clearly overwhelmed. "That's... cool, I guess."

MJ shrugged nonchalantly. "Figured it out a long time ago."

Peter, clearly eager to move things along, turned back to Ned. "Look, Mysterio is a fraud," he said bluntly, grabbing his phone. "He's been using illusion tech to fake the Elementals. It's all a setup."

Ned frowned, crossing his arms. "But he saved me and Betty's lives."

"Yeah, with drones," Gwen chimed in, her tone sharp. "He's been faking the whole thing with hologram projectors."

MJ nodded, gesturing toward the projector sitting on the desk. "This thing proves it."

Ned's eyes widened as he took it all in. "Whoa. That's... crazy."

Peter zipped up the last part of his suit, grabbing his mask. "Okay, I gotta go." He turned to Gwen, holding her gaze for a moment. "You coming?"

Gwen shook her head, grabbing the projector and tossing it to him. "No, but you're gonna need this," she said with a small smile.

Peter caught it easily, returning her smile with one of his own. "Thanks."

Turning to MJ, he grew serious. "MJ, don't tell anyone about this, okay? Anyone who knows is in danger."

MJ nodded firmly. "I wasn't planning on it."

Peter gave them all a final glance before slipping on his mask and leaping out the window. Gwen watched him disappear into the night, a faint smile tugging at her lips.

MJ, noticing the look on Gwen's face, smirked and leaned closer. "You've got it bad," she teased.

Gwen rolled her eyes, trying to hide the blush spreading across her cheeks. "Shut up," she muttered, though the smile lingered.

The room was silent after Peter's departure, the distant sound of his web-shooters faintly echoing as he swung away. Gwen stood near the edge of the bed, her arms wrapped tightly around herself, staring at the floor. MJ leaned against the desk, arms crossed, her sharp eyes watching Gwen. The atmosphere wasn't exactly tense, but there was something unspoken lingering in the air, like a thread waiting to be pulled.

"Well," MJ finally said, her voice cutting through the quiet like a knife, "that was... intense."

Gwen let out a dry laugh, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. "Yeah. Just another day of Peter Parker dragging us into his superhero chaos." Her voice had a faint edge of humor, but her posture remained closed off.

MJ tilted her head slightly, studying Gwen's face. "You sure you're okay?" she asked, her tone softer than usual.

Gwen hesitated, her hands falling to her sides as she looked up at MJ. "Yeah, I'm fine. It's just... weird being here, you know? With you and Peter. It feels..." She trailed off, searching for the right words. "Familiar, but not. Does that make sense?"

MJ pushed off the desk and sat down on the bed, her movements casual yet deliberate. "Yeah," she said after a pause. "I get that. Things have been... different."

For a moment, neither girl said anything. Gwen glanced at the window Peter had leapt through, her expression unreadable. Finally, she turned back to MJ, her voice quieter this time. "I missed this," she admitted. "I missed... being friends with you."

MJ blinked, momentarily caught off guard. She hadn't expected Gwen to say that-or to say it so sincerely. But after a beat, a small smile tugged at her lips. "Me too," she said simply, her tone honest.

Gwen took a deep breath, and her voice grew steadier. "And... I'm sorry," she said, the words tumbling out. "I'm sorry for being such a jerk before. For being so cold to you. I just..." She paused, her cheeks flushing slightly. "I think I was jealous. Or stupid. Or both." She shook her head, her shoulders sagging. "You didn't deserve that."

MJ studied her for a moment, then stood, closing the distance between them in a few quick steps. "Thanks," she said softly. "And for the record? I wasn't mad. I mean, okay, I was annoyed, but... I guess I kinda figured something else was going on."

Gwen smiled faintly, though she avoided MJ's gaze. "You didn't deserve it," she repeated, her voice barely above a whisper.

MJ rolled her eyes, but there was no malice in it. "Okay, enough of the guilt trip," she said, throwing an arm around Gwen's shoulders and pulling her into a quick, firm hug. "I forgive you."

Gwen stiffened for a moment, surprised by the gesture, but then she relaxed, hugging MJ back tightly.

When they pulled apart, MJ gave her a playful nudge. "Now that we've had our big emotional moment..." Her voice took on a teasing lilt, and Gwen's brow furrowed in confusion.

"What?"

MJ smirked, crossing her arms again. "I gotta know-are you and Peter a thing yet?"

Gwen's jaw dropped, and she immediately began shaking her head, her cheeks turning bright red. "What? No! Pfft, no way," she stammered, waving her hands in front of her as if to physically dispel the idea.

MJ raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. "Come on, Gwen. I'm not blind. I've seen the way you two look at each other."

Gwen's face somehow turned even redder. "We're not a thing," she insisted. "We're just... friends. That's it."

MJ's smirk widened as she leaned back against the bedframe. "Sure," she said, dragging the word out. "Friends who've kissed a few times, maybe?"

Gwen froze, her eyes widening in alarm. "What? I-no, we-how did you-" She groaned, covering her face with her hands. "Okay, fine. We've kissed. A few times. But it doesn't mean anything!"

MJ let out a triumphant laugh, pointing at her. "I knew it!"

"It's not like that!" Gwen exclaimed, glaring at her. "Every time it happens, we just... pretend it never happened. It's complicated."

MJ shook her head, clearly amused. "Classic Parker," she said, flopping back onto the bed. "Bet he overthinks it to death, doesn't he?"

Gwen couldn't help but laugh, the tension in her shoulders finally easing. "You have no idea."

MJ grinned, sitting up and giving her a knowing look. "For the record? I totally ship it."

Gwen groaned again, throwing a pillow at MJ. "Oh my God, stop."

"Never," MJ declared dramatically, catching the pillow and tossing it back.

For the first time in what felt like forever, Gwen laughed-a real, genuine laugh-and as MJ joined in, she realized that, for the first time in a long time, things felt right again.

ASH SPEAKS!

mj knows!!! and gwen and mj are friends again :)

PLEASE DONT BE A GHOST READER!!!!
COMMENT AND VOTE! IT HELPS US WRITERS STAY MOTIVATED:)