𝐝𝐞𝐣𝐚 𝐯𝐮, peter parker

lx. three wishes (or like ... six)

chapter sixty
three wishes (or like ... six)

SEPTEMBER PASSES on by and Nina supposed she was slowly getting used to New York's (and the world's) reaction to the Spider-Man/Mysterio controversy▬she was getting used to the cameras, the questions, the crowds and the tabloids. As the next month passed by, things settled down enough for Nina to feel like she wouldn't be heckled the moment she stepped out into the streets or tried to go to school. But they still existed. As the days went on, the split between supporters of Spider-Man and supporters of Mysterio grew. They started to attack each other, rather than attack Peter, Nina and their friends over the Internet. And even though she didn't like any of it, Nina started to feel a little bit better as she noticed that there were people in this city and this world that were on their side▬that defended her and hyped her up. Nina never expected to ever have a fan base in her life, and even though it was because she was Spider-Man's girlfriend, they didn't waste a moment before coming to her defence (or gushing over some photo of her and Peter some person took). Nina was starting to be stopped in the streets to be asked if she wanted to take a picture with somebody instead of being stopped to be shouted at.

She couldn't change what has happened, and so Nina was trying her best to live with it. Her dream and her life had been switched▬the rug had been thrown out from under her feet, but she was starting to regain her balance again. And Peter was a big help. After he came to her room and they both applied to N.Y.U that night, and Nina applied to M.I.T. and every other backup school he put his name down for, she realised that there was one thing that hasn't changed▬him. They haven't changed. And deep down, following him wherever he went had always been Nina's dream, too.

Nina and her friends were getting accustomed to a new normal. They made a pact to refuse to let what has happened to get to them. They went out as a group▬they had fun and explored the city. Nina, Peter, Cia and Michelle went on double dates (with Ned tagging along). MJ became Ian's favourite person in the world. Peter broke Ned's second lightsaber all over again. Nina got lost at Home Depot and Cia and MJ had to go to the front counter▬her name was called out over the announcements like she was their lost child. After that day Felicia and MJ officially decided that Nina was their child.

("But I thought we were married. I became your second wife." wondered Nina, frowning at Felicia.

"Well, I guess I'll be your Mommy, then," she had replied mischievously.)

Mid-September, Nina got asked by a clothing company if they could send her clothes in exchange for her modelling and reviewing them on her Instagram account. She hadn't been too sure about it, but Felicia encouraged her to do it▬and surprisingly, Nina actually liked it. She liked getting nice clothes and learning how to style them with Cia, then she went to crazy cool sights in New York (with the help of her Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-Man, of course) and took pictures. She got money from it when her posts blew up and instead of getting rude remarks about her looks, Nina was reading comments from fans that had nothing but compliments. She couldn't escape horrible things being said about her. But Nina had started to find things that she didn't mind about this scenario▬she started to learn to live in this new life that had been forced onto her. And she added her own little flair▬that with every post she made, Nina commented a random scientific fact in the caption, trying to inspire girls in STEM in her own little way.

Nina only had something small, too, for her eighteenth birthday on the twenty-fourth of September. She invited her friends for a small party at her parents' apartment with a sleepover (Ned and Peter, of course, had to sleep out in the sitting room with Nina's dad watching them like a hawk). She got a few things from her parents that were mostly to help her once she moved out for college. But they also got her a nice ring that they must have spent a fair amount of money on. MJ bought her a new book▬one that they were prepared to read together. Ned raided the nearest 7-Eleven and bought her a bunch of sweets like it was Halloween. Felicia got her a new mug for her collection▬Nina had a few of them for her many hot chocolates. This one was a Black Cat one, and she laughed, showing it to Peter with a smug grin.