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[For Peter's efforts, he'll hear a noise from Scott that may be a mixture of a scream and laugh. It cracks through the air as they sail around the building, the feeling of falling but still being fully secured pushing out another similar sound right after. This really is great-- he's almost jealous of Peter's ability, but he's glad to just experience this with him.

As they land onto the rooftop, Scott lets out an energetic 'whoop' as he stares over the edge of the building, just taking in the sights before smiling brightly at Peter.]

That was as cool as ever man. [Thanks Peter, for letting him have fun again, after the tower. After dealing with Mikey and knowing that Sentinels exist in this world. It's a nice reminder to just have fun and... okay, maybe not feel normal, but feel like everything is okay for just a second.]

Thanks.

[Maybe a little more sincerely.]

(it will never not be funny that scott makes those sounds as soon as they start cutting through air, but he can't really blame him? the amount of nearly-death counts on peter side while swinging is high, and he too has yelled through it.

... besides, it's really fun to 'woohoo' through it. his hair is now a mess of curls, but it's okay! he's in a great mood, dorkier, goofier than ever, and he sits by the edge with the bag that he brought them.)

Don't mention it! It's really fun, right? It's one of the best parts... That and the sticking, being upside-down is actually the best part, if we don't count the tech. Here, I got Philly cheesestakes and lemonade. I made them, don't know how you like them, but I did what I like, so maybe-- I'll just give you the thing.

(there!! handed!! a glass and the sandwich.)

[His own hair is a complete mess as well, but Scott doesn't care one bit as he plops down next to Peter on the edge. Really good thing he's not afraid of heights, huh? But guess he can expect his friend to save his sorry ass if he slipped and fell... although, if something like that happened in the first place, he might just ask Peter to let him perish because he'd already be dead from embarrassment.]

Yeah, your power's really cool. [He easily compliments, cheeks still flushed with delight as he takes the offered sandwich and drink. This is really gonna hit the spot, he can tell already. A sip of lemonade after taking a good chunk out of his sandwich, yeah, it really feels like everything's okay and nothing can go wrong.]

It's good, Peter. [He playfully ribs his friend in the side, feet swinging over the edge.] Don't worry so hard.

I'm not worried!

(he's so quick to say it, but hey, it's whatever - scott seems happy, and god knows what could have happened in that tower. for him, it wasn't so bad, but gwen was-- well, he never wants to see her like that again, and it made him worry about everyone else. hence why he's here with sandwiches and a view.

also, 😊)

Can you cook?

Mm, yeah. Sort of? Nothing fancy, but some basic stuff.

[Definitely a step up from just making sandwiches-- no offense to Peter or anything. He was like that for a longass time and hey, he still really likes sandwiches. He hasn't given up his crown on that. There's just something comforting about them and they're easy.]

You know, I want to make breakfast in bed for the girlfriend sometimes.

The girlfriend? Who's the girlfriend?

(NO ONE TELLS HIM ANYTHING EVER... HE'S SO OUT OF THE ALDRIP GOSSIP... SCIENCE ONLY)

Oh? Have I never mentioned her before?

[It's pretty rare when he has to tell this to someone! But it's cool. Peter will now get to witness Scott's Dopey Ass Face when he thinks about one Kotone Shiomi. Yep, the look of a boy that's in Deep, someone that really loves his girlfriend even though they're just teenagers, even though he's only been with her for a relatively short time. He just... really loves her.

He hums slightly after a bite, legs swinging a little more as he thinks about the things they've shared together-- faced together.]

Kotone Shiomi. Have you met her? You'd like her, she's really nice.

[And mischievous. And a bunch of other things, but Scott will just start with this.]

(oh, that face is the one he's wearing too, mirrored straight at him, is that how he looks? that's fine, because man, it's so good to see scott smile like that! he's such a good person, peter can't think a single bad thing about his friend, so he's nudging shoulders.

... oh. kotone!!)

Uh, yeah! I met her! You two are together for how long?

[Peter's sporting a look very similar to his own... okay, Scott has to know now. There's no way he's going to let him off easy, especially after he tells him about Kotone. And how does Scott recognize that expression so well? Well, he sees it half the time when he wakes up in the mirror and his girlfriend is nearby.

They're so stupid.

He still nudges Peter back, shoulders bumping as he nods. Not surprising that Peter's at least met Kotone, since she tends to meet like everyone here. Geez, she's such a social butterfly sometimes.]

About seven months now. Really long time, huh?

[He's totally keep tracking! And that's like seven years in teenager time, right? Doubly so because they're in this weird place where people can disappear at any moment. Oh right, not thinking about that, because he's just barreling straight ahead with that same grin.]

Okay dude, dude, now you have to tell me about your girl.

[COME ON PARKER...

Or boy, Scott isn't judging.]

(it's like looking into a mirror. peter's not only sporting that stupid ass face for himself, but also, out of happiness for his friend. listen, seven months is definitely 7 years in teenager time. that's huge!)

Dude, for sure! And she's nice, and cute, though she-- man, gotta tell you, I think she thinks I'm totally lame.

(probably because she met him in spider-gear, freaked the fuck out, she was Not Impressed, but he says it with a laugh. he can't take it personally after all the quill slander.)

I mean, you know her, right? ... Gwen and I decided stuff this morning. So, I guess... She's my girl! From this morning on, at least.

What did you do??

[He asks with a raised eyebrow, genuinely curious to hear what may have happened between the two. He doesn't think Kotone considers Peter to be lame, mostly because he has a hard time picturing his girlfriend describing anyone like that, but also because Peter's a good dude. Just a little bit of a dork ~~but look who she's dating~~.

But okay, Gwen. That... is the most obvious thing in the world. Wow. No one is surprised by this turn of events, not even Scott. Er, especially not him. The only thing that is a little surprising about this is the fact that Peter has a girlfriend back home?? But focusing on the good bit now...

He slaps Peter on the back, a small laugh breaking free.]

You mean the girl that you're always hanging out with? [He's so amused. The two Spider people together... yep.] But that's awesome man. Gwen's really cute and nice. But gotta be honest, everyone saw this coming.

I mean, nothing, I swear - I just think she isn't used to superheroes and secret identities and stuff, so she just kinda raises a brow at Spiderman stuff and everything, which is fine! That's why I think she might super think I'm lame, dude.

(because like, she was just. 'you're cleaning that right' over his webs, it's an overall feeling!! but also, he likes her, it doesn't quite matter - and to be fair, even in a nerd school, he was also lame there, he's kind of used to it, it's not personal.

AND LISTEN, HE HAD A GIRLFRIEND.... PAST.... FOR TWO DAYS.... please, scott...........)

I mean, yeah, she's-- wait, really? Is it because she's like me, because if that's it, that's really lazy shipping, man.

(some of us are gen z.)

She's from Japan. [Scott laughs lightly at the explanation. Yeah, it's nothing as he thought. Okay, sure, he can imagine Kotone just looking at Peter with a 'that's no big deal' expression and just moving on like she isn't talking to someone in a spider costume. She... really is just like that. Sometimes exasperating, but he loves her for it too.

Maybe that's partially why she accepted his whole mutant thing so fast.]

I don't think they really have superhero stuff there like us. But honestly dude? She really isn't surprised by much, so don't take it personally man.

[...But Gwen's like Peter, huh? WELL THEN. Not that Scott hasn't figured it out himself, but. That's basically confirmation. He pokes Peter in the side, ignoring the whole shipping thing because what??? He has no idea what that means.]

Dude, you know you just outed Gwen as Spider-Woman, right?

No, I don't at all, I think she's great. You probably look great together, maybe we should do something sometime.

(like a double date, that would be fun, wouldn't it? he does want to slowly introduce gwen to more people, tear down her walls just a little bit - make things better.

but, hey, time to be a little rascal...)

Wait, I meant she's a nerd. She's Spider-Woman??

Talking about a double date? I think we can arrange that. Go to the arcade and then enjoy something at the diner? It's classic.

[Besides, it'll be fun to have more Americans for once. LOOK, HE REALLY LIKES HIS FRIENDS FROM JAPAN BUT...]

No, too late man. You can't take it back. [Scott's smiling behind his mostly eaten sandwich now, having way too much fun teasing Peter about this. Maybe if he didn't meet Spider-Woman and haven't seen Gwen hanging around with Peter around so much, he would let it go. But. There's like no chance she isn't the other spider person here.]

You suck at this.

Right?! I also fished this old DVD and TV, so we can watch movies in our place, except there's not a lot of space, but if you guys are okay with it, we can totally do a vacation day, right? I'm sure you guys deserve it.

(IT'S OKAY, SCOTT... IT'S A TASTE OF HOME...)

Yep, but hey, come on, we decided to drop the secret identity here, it makes no sense with this situation, right? You guys would figure it out, there's only like, 40 of us, and then the moment we both show up, the Spider-people show? You guys are like, smart, that'd be-- well, that wouldn't be effective at all, right?

[What's a DVD-- okay, something to watch movies with. Obviously. So, like a VHS. He's getting it!]

Yeah, that sounds good. Home movies can be pretty fun, even if we miss out on the big screen and the loud sound system. It's got its own atmosphere that can't be copied. And what are you talking about? Our resident superheroes should have a vacation day too.

[But as Peter explains how secret identities don't really matter here in the first place, Scott just pats him on the shoulder, like he's understanding his friend's brand of copium.] It's fine, dude. Gwen probably won't kick your ass.

[Again.]

We haven't stopped much, though, to be honest? We both spend most of the day in STEM, and we do our rounds to keep those gangs out, but it's-- there's no police station to pick them up, so honestly, the rounds go around every two hours, because that's how long the web has before it dissolves, so we take turns and stuff.

(oh, this is why they deserve a vacation, he sees it now... he'd love a vacation, but he couldn't do much at home. maybe he can do something here.)

Probably, yeah-- hehe. No, but, it's crazy, because she has the same story as me, except a bunch of stuff in her universe is different than mine? Like, she knows my aunt and uncle, but in her universe, my best friend sucks - and he doesn't suck in mine at all. These multiverse things are gonna drive me insane. Like, how many freaking radioactive spiders are out there? Mr. Stark has a coffee brand in her world, but he isn't... An Avenger, or anything? My brain can't take all this, man.

[See that, Peter? You're getting a look now.

At least he's caught on why he needs a vacation; he should have a day or two to be a normal teenager and everything. It's important. Well, it was important to the mutants back at Xavier's and to him as well. Just needed to feel less like a group of freaks or in Peter and Gwen's case, don't worry about swinging around and being superheroes.

And geez, parallel universe stuff again. Scott's been getting more and more complicated feelings about it, ever since Quentin left and Kurt arrived, and it's just... he wonders if Peter ever felt like he wasn't good enough or something. Is there a Peter in Gwen's universe, for instance? But guess not Spider-Man, since Gwen mentioned that the spider was sort of a one time bite.]

Just... don't think about it too hard. [Scott finishes the rest of his sandwich, tossing the leftover paper behind him as he stares at the lemonade he's holding between his legs.] Keep being yourself and crap.

[What do you mean he's trying to convince himself.]

... You okay there, dude?

(this definitely didn't match the way he put everything. to him, these multiverses and their differences are interesting to learn about. the two murdocks, the differences in new york, the fact things are switched up - even the fucked up things are interesting to hear, like death and thanos in quill's universe. that alone would be incredible, but with the repercussions to science and physics? that drives his nerd spirit crazy!

but he can tell that scott doesn't find it as intriguing as he does.)

[Shit he was projecting wasn't he?? Because Peter really doesn't look bothered.]

...Yeah? Yeah. [Scott repeats again, as if trying to convince himself. He's not sure if he should tell Peter how he fully feels about everything, but as the sandwich settles comfortably in his stomach, as he looks down at the lemonade still hanging between his legs, something in him opens just a little more. Peter... he's a really good friend already. Maybe it's okay to talk about this a little.

Americans stick together or something like that--]

Okay, I guess I've just been feeling... nervous? I don't know. [It's dumb in a way, because Kurt has been really cool and even Quentin didn't seem to mind him. But he can't help but think they'd rather have their version of Scott around-- maybe Scott isn't fully immune to feeling that way either. Isn't that shitty of him? He sighs.]

There's a multiverse thing going on in my world too. I already know that a couple of different versions of me exist elsewhere.

(of course, to each their own thoughts about the multiverse. he supposes he could see it how scott sees it - there are so many bad things in gwen's world for him to be totally fine with it wholly. but to him, in his position, these multiverses mean something completely different. rather of a proof of what can go wrong, they are a proof something can go right.

one chance in fourteen million.)

I mean, man, it's a whole thing, scientifically and otherwise, right? But I get it, because you don't know where the similarities start and stop, so you gotta wonder what is happening around and what does that mean to you, is that what you've been thinking?

[...Maybe Peter hopes for things to be different in another universe, considering that things have gone horribly in his. He mentioned aliens and Thanos killing a whole bunch of people-- including him. So, maybe he wants to be optimistic about Gwen's world and stuff in comparison. For a moment, Scott feels kind of bad for whining about this in the first place, but guess it's too late to take it back now.

There's that grief though, knowing his friend is dead back home. Why can't things be better for his friends?? It really fucking sucks.]

Yeah, something like that. Especially if... like there's something you learn about the future in another world that you really don't like. [His frown increases despite himself. He... he doesn't want to kill Charles Xavier.]

(unfortunately for all involved, peter was raised to believe in the best of things, in the best of people, regardless of their circumstances, that they can be better if they want to - all they need is help. optimistic by nature, no beating will put him down for too long.

so, if there's something about another world that he doesn't like...)

I mean, man. No story is finished telling, right? There's always hope for things to be better. Maybe you don't like it, and that's totally fine, right, but you don't know what will happen in the future of that future, so like, maybe it will all turn out okay, right?

-- That future of that future part didn't help my case, but you know what I mean. The super future--

You get it.

[Yeah, he gets what Peter is trying to say. Maybe not the most eloquent way to put it, but Scott doesn't need that in the first place. He never has. And so the mutant stays quiet for a moment, turning his words around in his mind, trying to pull that same optimism and hope from them that his friend truly seems to believe in. ...This is really coming from a guy that's dead back home, where the universe seems to be half destroyed, but he still really believes, huh?

If he can, maybe Scott can. ...He should.

Even if he kills Professor Xavier, maybe... it will somehow still be okay. It feels grim, but guess the Scott in Quentin's timeline is trying his best. Finally, he breathes out, focusing on Peter with genuine curiosity.]

...Do you have hope for your future, Peter?

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