CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN;
the boy behind the mask!

"I CAN'T BELIEVE I GAVE BECK THOSE GLASSES. I MEAN HOW CAN I BE THAT STUPID?" Peter wails as he runs around his hotel room, aggressively closing the curtains.

Amala just stands between the window and the door, eyes wide and contemplating her whole life.

After Peter finally, finally admitted that he was Spider-man, it didn't take long for him to spill his entire life story since being bit by that spider.

Due to how reserved he previously was, Amala assumed that he would feed her small spoonfuls of information. Perhaps starting with how he got bit, then how he became an Avenger, how his suits were made and then finally, his current issue.

To her surprise, the second they arrived back to his room, Peter said everything.

Mysterio, also known as Quentin Beck, first appeared on their earth in Mexico. Supposedly, he was spotted by Nick Fury as he was fighting an earth manipulating Elemental — which would be the first Elemental sighting, following a cyclone that "had a face". Things slowed down for a little while. Mysterio, who hadn't been identified yet, went off the grid. That was until the second official Elemental appeared. That was in Venice. Spider-man — or Peter — assisted Mysterio on defeating the water monster and was then ambushed by Nick Fury and recruited into the team that would stop the Elementals. That was the night Amala came to his hotel room and was rudely turned away. Beyond that, Peter — or Spider-man — and Mysterio were supposed to get to the assigned locations and stop the havoc. That's why the entire class took a detour to Prague. That's why Peter recognized the driver; he worked for Nick Fury. They were never offered an "upgrade" as Mr. Harrington said. They were never even supposed to attend the carnival. The entire reason it was cancelled was due to the fact they needed everyone safe and inside — which, looking back, Amala realizes she directly defied an order from Nick Fury by running after Peter. Moving on, their entire trip was a lie, including the second new hero, the Night Monkey (who was just Spider-man in a black getup). It was all just a ruse to get Peter to Prague in the most unsuspecting way possible... and it worked. Peter was at right place when the attack struck and with the help of Mysterio, it was contained. All in all, the mission was a success. Until... well, until right now.

Also, the multiverse theory is real.

"I can't believe the multiverse theory is real..." Amala whispers to herself as Peter panic packs a bag.

Peter scrambles around the hotel room, lost in his own world. "He's probably spying on me right now or sending a drone to come and kill me!"

The raven is still in shock. Processing the information is proving to be a difficult task — considering that her best friend and crush is a hero who just accidentally trusted a power hunger terrorist. Still, one thing keeps circling back into the forefront of her mind.

She's in awe. "How is there more than one universe? I mean, how many timelines are there? Is there - like - me and then a bunch of other me's who live on a different earth? With a different routine? Fuck - how many me's are there?"

"Amala!" Peter whines from behind her. "Can you please focus?"

"Right, sorry!" Amala snaps out of her wonder before realizing what Peter said. "Wait- you had access to killer drones?"

Here's more information, in case what Peter already said wasn't enough. Peter was gifted a multi-billion dollar set of glasses built with their own personal A.I system called EDITH, which stands for Even Dead I'm Still the Hero. The glasses were given to him by Tony Stark after he passed away and they are powerful beyond human understanding. Those glasses could track down anyone in the world with nothing but a picture trace. They could hack through the most secure databases with only spoken approval by their owner. More importantly, they were fully linked to a set of multi-billion — also intelligent — drones that could kill people with a single shot.

"Yeah, I didn't really want them. Especially after I almost killed Sam Martin."

"You almost killed who?" She mumbles, absolutely mortified.

This just keeps getting more baffling.

Amala needs to pause. "Hold up, hold up, hold up. Let me just understand the full picture here," she beckons.

Peter stops what he's doing and looks at her, nodding for her to start.

She takes a deep breath and starts speaking slowly. "You are Spider-man. You, as Spider-man, helped Mysterio defeat two — about to be three — element controlling monsters. Water, fire and air soon, correct?"

Peter nods.

"Okay," Amala says. "And you trusted Mysterio, yes?"

He nods again.

"So much so that you gave him EDITH because you thought he could step up and potentially take Iron Man's place."

Peter bristles at the mention of Iron Man but sheepishly bobs his head in agreement.

Amala returns the nod. "Right, and this would've been okay, had Mysterio not been a crazy lunatic in a cape and a fishbowl as a helmet."

"Correct." Peter mumbles.

She hums and allows herself a moment to think. "But wait, the Elementals are fake — they're nothing but a projection. Which means all the chaos that happened, all the destruction... it was manipulated. It was hand-made."

Peter swallows harshly. "Mhm and I've just made it worse."

Amala brushes him off. "So, now, we have to stop Mysterio from using EDITH to command the drones into an even better illusion of an Elemental, so he won't brainwash the whole world into thinking he's an actual hero fighting actual threats." She says in one go. "I think that's everything right?"

"Yeah, I think so." Peter says dismissively as he jogs to his bed. He searches through his bag and pulls out his phone before saying, "look, I need to call Mr. Fury and tell him that Beck is a fraud but... I think he tapped my phone."

Amala studies the situation intently. "Okay, so what are we gonna do?"

Peter looks up at her with doe-eyes and the faintest trace of pink blushes his face. "We?"

There is so much she wants to say, so much she wishes to tell him. She wants to tell him that she's here for him. She wants to tell him that she's willing to help, that no matter what he needs, she's there. She also wants to tell him that nothing changes between them; she's still Amala and he's still Peter. Nothing is different except for the fact that he can now confide in her. He can fully trust her. So much to say yet such little time.

Instead, Amala resorts to simpler language.

Under his gaze, the raven feels herself get warm and a soft smile forms on her face. "Yeah, we."

His eyes never leave hers and for a fraction of a moment, they fall to her lips. His face turns impossibly pinker and his Adam's apple bobs in his throat.

He breaks his gaze and swallows harshly.

"Okay, I'm going to need my suit," he says briskly, turning around and rummaging through his bag. "And I have to go to Berlin to talk to Mr. Fury in person." He continues as he takes off his shirt.

Amala tenses immediately and her eyes widen. "Uh-"

In seconds, his shirt is off and discarded somewhere on the floor.

Peter turns to face her fully before the realization sets in.

Once it does, his face flushes into a deep shade of cherry that mirrors Amala's own pigment.

The whole room drains of noise and the world's thickest tension blankets both teens.

She knows she shouldn't look. She knows it's improper and rude... but the fact is, she's already seen this part of him before. And she misses it. Deeply.

Her eyes itch to go lower, to look at every inch of him. She may be stubborn and strong-headed, but under the presence of Peter, it shatters.

She starts off slow, her eyes on his jaw, then his neck. She catches the swell of his Adam's apple, the deep definition of his collarbones. His skin is a light cream that lacks a single blemish. His chest is firm. Her eyes round down to his stomach, to his abs. They're pronounced, they're visible. His stomach fades into the waist band of his jeans and there's a faint trace of a V-shape.

Amala wonders what it would feel like to run her hand across his stomach, to poke and to press into his skin. Would it be different from all those nights ago? Would it differ from when he had his mask on?

Her heart stutters and the ground beneath her feels as though it'll cave at any moment.

Still, her eyes stay fixed on Peter. She can't look away and it's awful. How can someone be this beautiful? How is it possible? His face is angelic and his body has been sculpted by the Gods themselves. He's ethereal, to put it shortly.

And when he finally speaks, when he finally breaks the silence first... Amala knows she's a goner. "Amala..." he whispers.

"Peter..." she swallows and shuts her eyes.

She allows herself a moment to breath as she steadies her heart. Her thoughts bounce across her mind and after several seconds, she has them under control.

She swiftly turns around before she has a chance to look at him again. "Okay, sorry," she stutters sheepishly. "Uhm - go ahead."

"It's - it's fine." Peter mumbles.

She hears the sound of belt buckles clinging together, then pants falling to the floor.

Meanwhile, Amala chastises herself for allowing such liberty with her gazes. How stupid of her? What could've happened if she didn't stopped herself? Where would they be if she looked at him for a second more?

Her thoughts run wild and this time, she lets them.

Behind her, Peter seems to be putting the Night Monkey's suit. Amala can tell simply because of the buckles she hears clicking in the place — something that Spider-man doesn't have on his own suit.

She takes a couple of breaths as she stretches her neck, trying her best to mentally occupy herself. If she doesn't... well, she thinks she won't be able to control herself.

Yet, as she does so, something catches her eye.

Turning left, Amala sees a figure at the door.

It takes a moment for her to realize who it is: Ned.

Her mouth drops just as Ned's does, too.

Peter, oblivious to the situation, says, "Oh, Ned! Perfect,"

Ned tenses up and his eyes dart between Amala and Peter. "Uh - the costume looks... cool - great! Um... for the costume party... at the - prince's castle?"

"She knows. I told her," Peter supplies simply, his voice muffled by his mask.

Amala laughs quietly. "He didn't tell me. I figured it out." She says, proud smile on her face.

Ned visibly deflates and looks to Peter. "Oh. That's cool..."

"Look, Mysterio is a fraud." Peter explains.

"But, he saved me and Akira's lives..."

Amala shakes her head. "No, he's been faking it. The whole thing has been some sort of illusion-tech."

Peter nods. "Yeah, he's been using these holograms projectors."

"Wow, that's crazy..." Ned says, processing what he's been told.

All Amala and Peter can do is nod. After all, there's nothing more to say.

Following a short silence, Ned asks," So you guys were like working the case together or... what?"

"It's been mostly me," Amala replies, trying her best not to brag.

Ned just looks at her skeptically.

"Look, Ned, I need you to call May and get her to call Mr. Harrington and say that she wanted me to stay with family in Berlin until this all blows over, okay?" Peter inquires firmly.

Ned nods. "Okay, got it. Easy."

Amala stares at them in amazement. "Wow, you guys lie with such ease."

Peter and Ned share a quiet laugh but it's quickly masked by the severity of their situation.

"Right," Peter clears his throat. "I have to go."

"Okay," Ned says. "See you, man."

Peter nods in acknowledgment before turning towards the window.

He needs to go. Now. Still, Amala feels like she can't let him. Not until she does this.

"Hey, Peter?" She asks shyly.

Peter, half-way out the window, pops his head back in. "Yeah?"

"I just..." she hesitates.

Oh fuck it, she thinks to herself.

Walking towards the window, Amala slides both of her hands to rest at Peter's face. Despite it being covered by the leather of his suit, she can still feel the warmth radiating off of it. For some reason, that puts her at ease.

The raven takes a deep breath. "I don't really know what happens after this... or like, what you do and stuff. Um... I won't tell anyone — of course. But, stay safe, okay?"

Her hands are shaking and rightfully so because, truth be told, what the fuck happens now? Peter hops our the window and goes to see Nick Fury... then what? The fact that he's a hero — and a good one at that — should be enough to make Amala feel alright. However, she's still scared. This is Peter; he means a lot to her.

It seems like Peter senses her tension because he unsticks one hand that was plastered on the window and tangles it in her hair. "Hey, I'll be fine, okay? I trust you. I got this."

Amala smiles softly. "I know. I'm just new to this."

"It's okay," he responds with affection, voice slightly muffled by his mask. "You have all the time in the world to learn."

For some reason, that feels like a promise.

"Yeah. All the time in the world." She mirrors.

She presses a chaste kiss to his cloaked cheek and slips her hands from his face. "You got this."

Peter's eyes widen and for a moment, they swim with adoration. "Yeah, I got this."

They share one final burning glance before Peter hops out the window.

The night disguises his departure and nothing remains of him except for the ajar window.

It's only now that she becomes aware of the irregular pattern of her heartbeat.

All that just happened. Peter told her that he was Spider-man, they found out that the world's new favorite hero was a fear mongering terrorist and now she's a part of a scheme to stop the world from impeding doom. Even though she plays a part that stands to barely nothing, she's still burdened with the knowledge of knowing. That, alone, makes her dangerous.

Perhaps she should be scared. This is a tough hurdle to carry. But for some reason, she isn't. Not even slightly. Is that a weird mentality? Maybe. Should she be scared out of her mind? She supposes so.

Perhaps Amala is just a little backwards, a little different. After all, she was drowned with a tsunami of information and the only thing she can think of is the way Peter's chiseled chest caught against lamplight.

It always comes back to the same thing, the same person: Peter.

Now, she really knows him and with that, comes consequences.

— END OF CHAPTER 27 —

[ note ]
1 week schedule!! lets go!!
final 3 / 5 chapters will be
uploaded pretty soon :)

we're close to the end you
guys!! 3 more chapters and
then 2 bonuses / epilogue :')

also, thank you for 3K reads <3
crazy grateful!!! 🤍🤍🤍

see you all soon :)

lots of love,

pearl <3