Ben Reilly (theotherparker) wrote in thedoorway, @ 2013-12-02 16:22:00 |
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Current mood: | hopeful |
Who: Peter Parker and Ben Reilly
When: Sunday, December 1, daytime sometime-ish
Where: Downtown somewhere
What: Peter needs his bro's second opinion on a special gift.
Rating: PG at most?
“-- thinking it would make sense to dig in now,” Peter was saying. He shrugged his shoulders and lifted his coffee cup up for a sip. The weather was getting bitter and raw as winter approached, but give a Parker a caffeine boost, and he was good to go. “Y’know, get everyone their gifts before it’s two days away from Christmas -- especially since it’s not just Aunt May and MJ now.” A short pause. “At least Kaine is easy. More black t-shirts, right?” Peter asked with a sideways grin, just over the top of a striped scarf. “One for every day of the week, and he’s golden.” They were walking south at this point, and Peter couldn’t help but watch Ben’s expression as the blocks were taken one-by-one at a walking pace. No clues, no hints; it was just a ‘hey, let’s go out’ suggestion, although Peter did have a plan in mind. Poor Ben, having to rely solely on brotherly trust. Ben snorted in amusement before taking a sip of his own coffee. Caffeine and warmth, always a good combination the deeper into winter they got. He still wasn’t fully sure what Pete was actually aiming for with this outing, but he wasn’t going to turn down some one on one time when his brother suggested it. Especially with how crazy their lives could be. Or maybe it was just his. He wasn’t so sure anymore. “Add in some beers and desserts, you’ll be all set,” he said with a shake of his head. He returned the grin before glancing at the storefronts, one hand jammed deep in his jacket pocket, the other still cradling the disposable cup. He puffed out a long sigh. “Geez, how many are we now? There’s going to have to be a tree, isn’t there? As if the temporary ball pit wasn’t confusing enough for poor Verne.” “Three of us, MJ, May, Aracely, and JD if she’s around. You do the math. All I got is that we do not have enough mantle over the fireplace for that many stockings.” Which was, in itself, staggering to think. This was such a far cry from the little apartment that Peter had gotten used to before shifting worlds. “Definitely means we’re getting a tree, I think. It’s what normal people do, right? And we’re… actively trying to be normal,” Peter added, swishing his cup around as he spoke. Good thing for travel lids. “So, listen.” He nudged Ben around the corner coming up on their right. “I didn’t drag you out just because I like seeing people do double-takes. There’s a favor I need to ask.” “And that’s just in house,” Ben breathed out. The multitude of friends and family was nice and he’d never stop being grateful for that, but boy there were times he felt like he was a headbob away from drowning. The holidays just heightened all of it, the good and bad. Probably didn’t help there was the added pressure of making sure all these firsts didn’t go completely wrong. “Stockings, trees, decorations, lights, visions of sugar plums. That’s the normal thing right? Definitely not webslinging around and stopping mall rage shoppers.” He elbowed Peter back goodnaturedly, making him work a bit for the change in direction. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. “And here I thought it was the good company. Plus, y’know, making everyone stare and whip their heads around in shock.” He bumped his shoulder gently against Peter’s. “So, what’s this favor? It’s not too gruesome, is it?” His brow furrowed even as his voice stayed light. “You’re not dying again, are you? Because vetoed right here and now. There’s no way that’s going to fit into my schedule.” “Weellll,” Peter started, squinting one eye skyward, “normal is pretty relative at this point. I figure as long as no one’s unwrapping gifts in their work pjs, we’re doing pretty good. No patrolling until after dinner. It’s the little things that count on holidays, Ben.” Ben, whom Peter just about leaned into as he made them both bank the corner. Peter lassoed an arm around the other man mid-turn, resisting ruffling his hair (as was usually the case). “And, no. Not dying. Geez, Ben. Stick with me on this,” was the exasperated reply, as Peter yanked Ben by the collar to freeze his step, reached for the door they’d stopped in front of, and shuffled Ben straight inside. Straight inside a jewelry store, that is. “Come on, I want to show you something in the back. Over here.” “Well, without Johnny here, I think unwrapping gifts in work pjs can be avoided easy enough. And should we even bother to take bets on how quickly that no patrolling time restraint is actually going to last?” Ben teased as he ducked his head forward out of habit, even if the inevitable hair ruffle didn’t come. He raised an eyebrow as he followed Peter to the back of the store. “I saw a movie that started like this. It ended badly. Pretty sure someone tried to teach me once to not go in the back of anything with strange people and no one comes stranger than you.” He gave the case full of jewelry a quick glance before groaning and plunking his head against Peter’s shoulder. “Oh no, not the repeat of Ben and Pete try and pick out jewelry. Wasn’t the first time enough torture for you?” Ben might have evaded the first opportunity to get noogied, but Peter was quick to whip around at the further quips, and in a lightning motion, Ben’s hair was left jutting out at all angles. “Relax, Benjy. This time I’m doing the picking, and you give me the feedback,” Peter added before slurping a satisfied slurp of his coffee and casually walking over to the clearance display. MJ would have to forgive him for that. Money still didn’t grow on trees and there was the house to pay for, the groceries, and just about every bill imaginable to top it all off. “Been stuck on the idea of getting MJ something like she had before all the… you know. The u-turn thing history did.” Peter stooped over, peering down at a selection of bracelets and rings. “Or just going ahead with something new. I mean, it’s years later and all,” he half mumbled, transfixed on the jewelry below. “Mousse. One day, you won’t know when, loading my hair full of mousse and you’ll forever regret the hair mussing,” Ben muttered as he combed his fingers through the blond mess to try and straighten it a bit. He tilted his head to the side as he studied Peter, mulling the words over in his head as he took a sip of his coffee. Pete had years of practice buying jewelry on his own for MJ. OK, maybe not always jewelry considering how funds with them usually ran, but, anyways, years of buying pretty shinies for MJ. Only one piece of jewelry came to mind if you factored in important enough for a second opinion and that big ol’ u-turn. “Sooooo…” he started before taking another sip and leaning his hip against the counter next to Peter. “I’m giving you feedback. On something for MJ. A piece of jewelry she had before you guys went all Faust on the universe.” His eyebrow was back to its previous raised position. “We talking onion rings here?” “So I’ll just avoid the ruffling when your hair looks like manicured topiary,” Peter shot back over his shoulder, only to realize Ben had moseyed around to his side. He adjusted his focus, and narrowed his eyes at his ‘twin.’ “All that time alone on the road really did you in, huh? All right, I’ll codespeak with you. Yep, getting her the shiniest onion ring a guy like me can afford. And you… you’re sworn to secrecy about this. No talk about onion rings.” He pointed a finger at Ben’s chest. “Nada. Zip.” Ben tilted his head back and his brow furrowing as if he was in deep thought. “Noooo, pretty sure the work pjs and all that involves started the codespeak. Yup. Definite start of the codespeak. Only got worse with time and trying -- and failing -- at that subtlety thing.” He held his hands up in surrender. “Alright, no talk of onion rings, even if that’s going to make ordering meals such a pain.” His look softened, turning that bit more serious that they were capable of every now and then, as he tapped his finger over the rings. “You really talking about the whole big deal? Romantic gesture, take a knee, then being thankful of not having to go through months of wondering what flowers and cake you’re going to get?” Peter sent back a wry grin. “You’ll live if you don’t get to say onion rings for a few weeks, months…” He loosely waved a hand. “Not sure yet, but I just knew I needed to get the ring. I’m really talking about the whole shebang. It’s not all the crazy, right?” The rings were momentarily neglected as Peter started to sift through the reasoning he’d gone through internally. “The first night she turned up, I think my heart about burst through my chest. Didn’t think I was gonna see her again, and then she’s standing by the pool when I wandered back into the Tower, just like she was waiting for me. And then after I broke up with Jaina, it wasn’t even a question with MJ. Two minutes into it and we’re confessing everything -- now we’re living together, and there’s May. It’s working. I mean, by rights this whole marriage thing’s just the formality. That one extra step that says, yeah, I want this and I’m not going anywhere.” Ben poked Peter in the side before offering him a wide, warm smile. “Not crazy at all, but I might be just a bit biased there. Just a bit. But only a bit.” He shifted to turn completely to the counter. He knew that feeling well. More so now than before with recent events, but even before Janine came through, he could easily understand it. “Yeah, I get it, bro. I hear there are these weird benefits too that come along with that marriage thing. So, we going to the ball and chain store next so I can pick something out for you?” Scanning the rings, he puffed out a sigh. Clearance, but again, something he understood well. There were the house payments, bills, just the food bills alone and then taking care of three teenagers… It added up. Then there was the actual wedding. He knew that MJ likely wouldn’t care, like Pete said, it was just a formality, but Ben’d do pretty much anything to make MJ and Pete’s life a bit nicer. He pointed at one of the rings. “What do you think ‘bout that one?” “I think the ball and chain thing is the Wrecking Crew’s deal. I am not gonna be a copycat, Ben. ‘Sides, if you think the jokes about the work uniform are bad now, just wait for the inevitable ‘Oh, so you like being tied up?’ material.” Peter shuddered, but he followed Ben’s pointer to the ring in question. All right, so he’d called it a formality, but it just wasn’t. It wasn’t just filling in the last puzzle piece of a nearly complete set -- and it wasn’t like all those times he’d asked MJ to marry him again, even though they’d already done the whole official ceremony. She laughed at him for that, but as hokey as it seemed, he could have remarried her over and over; that flame never went out. It still hadn’t. “Something more streamlined. Like this one,” Peter replied, tapping over the glass at another ring. “Classic, makes the statement it’s gotta.” Probably costs more than he could fork up right now, even on discount. Still, he’d make ends meet. It was a regular Parker exercise, after all. "Pete, hate to break it to you, but those jokes? Already happen. And then the peanut gallery starts complaining about how you should be working, not flirting," Ben said with a dramatic sigh. He craned his head over to take a looksie at Pete's choice. "Why not just get that one then?" “Oh, how little they realize that any flirting was mostly by accident. But it does explain why Hawkeye was giving me a weird look when I complimented his booties,” Peter breathed out, head tilting slightly at the memory before he shrugged it off. “Anyway! You ask why I’m not just getting it?” One of the employees had started a slow saunter over. Peter sighed. “I was waiting for the counter-argument. The ‘what are you doing, Peter? It’s been all of weeks since you got back with MJ. What’s the rush?’” Ben snorted in amusement before mumbling ‘booties’ under his breath. He turned a bit more towards Peter as he studied the brunette. “Y’said like that one. Was wondering what feeling you had that wasn’t making it just ‘that one’. Because, y’know, someone seems to think I’m good at this jewelry thing.” He shrugged. “Pete… You and MJ, that’s status quo for me. Yeah, you two had your rough spots, understandable rough spots, but you were good for each other.” He tilted his head to the side curiously. “If it hadn’t been Aunt May, if there’d been some other way around it, you wouldn’t have gotten rid of it in the first place, would you?” At the employee’s lifted head, which was in itself already asking if he could help (and get a commission probably), Peter waved a hand. Just a few more minutes to stare and talk to Ben. Besides, this conversation would sound halfway insane to anyone else. It was halfway insane to Peter himself most days. “Well… no. Losing MJ -- having this whole new life crammed into my head where we were apart? She was my foundation. She is. There was a time when we took a break, actually. After you…” Peter paused, the downward tip of his mouth being an unspoken apology. “You know. She went to Hollywood, and I was back in New York. I swear, I was losing it. It was one of the best days of my life when she came back to me. Some idiot I am, throwing that away, huh?” Ben made a face. Just a brief flinch that he couldn’t help even if it was a fact that none of them could change. Made sense though. After such a big loss the two of them had, well, sometimes everyone needed a break. “Yeah, you’re a huge idiot for that one, but desperate times, yeah? We can do some pretty stupid things that seemed like good ideas at the time with that desperate times thing.” He nodded before offering Peter a grin of understanding. “So, we got the ‘what are you doing’ part out of the way and, well, we both know the ‘what’s the rush’. Glowy, blue, temperamental. Has terrible timing sometimes and good timing others. Mostly terrible timing. That covers the rush perfectly, I’m thinking. Right?” Right. The Tesseract. It had been enough of a cause to pick up the pace. Never knowing when either of them would get pulled back meant there wasn’t the time to slowly wade out, even if it just wasn’t in the cards to start with. There was the thought that maybe something would happen and he’d end up not remembering his time here -- that had happened to a few people. Erasure of months was a completely possible fate, and that… that was scary. But there was that resolve that even if that did happen, he’d end up right back at MJ’s side. What was the difference in the end? “Pretty much,” Peter puffed out. He sent a short glance over at the door, then pulled his focus back to the ring. “It’s not like I haven’t been here four days in a row, looking at this thing and shuffling my feet. Worst that can happen is MJ says no, but, hey, at least I’ve dealt with that before.” Ben let out a low whistle. “Four days? No wonder you dragged me along. Someone needs to give you a kick in the pants. Especially since I’m not going to talk you out of it.” He reached over and mussed up Peter’s hair. It was only fair, even if Pete had a little less of it. “Just make sure to start with the method that worked this time ‘round. Even if I’ll still be hanging around to take you out for ego healing pancakes if worst comes to worst.” His hand shifted to pat Pete on the shoulder as he nodded his head towards the store clerk. “So, how ‘bout you shuffle a bit more and wrangle that indecision in and I’ll grab our buddy there to get a closer look. Y’know, before he worries himself sick over there.” A hand was slapped atop Peter’s head, distractedly flattening out the shocks of brown hair that Ben had set at varying angles. “Iiiiii…” Peter bit his lip for a second. “All right. Deal on the pancakes. Let’s do this. Or, uh, you watch me do this. Fair warning, I might need another prod when I find out the price on this thing. I’m already sure that I’m gonna be giving up that fifth cup of coffee a day to save pennies, but MJ is worth that.” He bounced on his heels, rolled his shoulders and straightened up. “Good to go. Yep.” “You got it all in there, Pete.” Ben tapped his own chest, a wide grin skewing his lips. “Don’t let that brain of yours get in the way. Just remember: she’s worth it, she’s your foundation, and you’re an idiot for giving it up. Repeat when necessary.” And that saving pennies problem? That he could help with. He’d have to go at it sideways because otherwise it’d be a long, difficult battle if he flat out offered Pete the help. It was just how they were. Give, give, give, but taking, that was a completely different matter entirely. Even when he’d been starving on the road, accepting any help that was offered without some sort of payment involved had been like pulling teeth. But with some help of the salesman… The prospect of selling an more expensive ring should be enough temptation to get him in on the scheme… “You better be here when I get back. I know where you live and I got friends in high places that wouldn’t mind webbing and dragging your butt back here.” “So, turn off my brain, but not my mouth? Hoo boy, Ben. Hope that isn’t the advice you give everyone.” But Peter flung him a crooked grin before turning his eyes right back down on the ring in question. He’d picked it out the first time in here, and it still being here after all the Black Friday sales? Had to be a sign. “I’ll be here. Just go, before my credit card zips out of my pocket and we’re back to square one,” Peter added. He gave a short salute with one hand drawn out from his brow, then stuffed both hands in his pockets. “Yeah,” he murmured to himself, eyes pinned back on the ring below again. “That’s definitely the one.” |