It was always weird going to Harry’s. Whenever we met outside it was always in a regular coffee shop, diner or pizza place. Sure he always covered the bill, but he didn’t flaunt his wealth. Hell, he even dressed as badly as me; not that he’d agree with that. Maybe it was because he hadn’t gone to private school like his siblings, or maybe it was because he was just a nice guy. It was just most of the time he didn’t feel like a billionaire. He always said that he wasn’t, that it was his parents money, but we both knew that wasn’t true.
That’s why whenever we showed up to his house, whenever I met people that worked for him, it was so weird. I could feel the wealth, literally see the extravagance. And it made me feel out of place. It was like when he was talking to his bodyguards, or Dr Gonzales, at the BRC. It had felt so weird, so… off. It didn't feel like the Harry I knew. The one that couldn't eat pizza without making a funny face, the one who was too shy to talk to girls, the one who made it his mission to be the funniest guy in the room. I tried not to think about it, the cognitive dissonance between Harry, and my perception of him. But at times like this, that just wasn’t possible.
“Would you like me to take your jacket Mr Parker?” Harry’s maid, Helena said.
“N-no, I’m okay” I said.
“You sure? It’s boiling in here. You’re already sweating” MJ said, side eyeing me.
“I’m fine. We probably won’t be here that long” I said.
“That’s ok Mr Parker” Helena said.
“Peter’s fine” I responded. She nodded with a polite smile and walked off.
“Don’t say that”
“What?”
“That we won’t be here that long. Harry’s going to talk to us whether he likes it or not” MJ said.
“I know but he's probably busy. Just don’t be too… you know” I said. MJ raised an eyebrow at me. “What?” I asked.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” MJ said, crossing her arms.
“You know, you get… pushy, when you're upset”
“Pushy?!”
“Forget I said anything” I said not wanting to make things worse.
“No. Elaborate. Please” she said her tone dripping with annoyance.
“Sorry. I just- I know you’re upset that he didn’t show at the funeral and I-“
“And you aren’t?”
“I am”
“It doesn’t sound like it”
I went silent.
“Sorry” MJ said.
“It’s fine” I said. Should I be angrier than I already was? Probably. I didn’t know.
“Pete I-”
“It’s fine MJ. I’m just trying to tell you not to get angry at him. He lost Gwen too” I said.
“I know… I’m just here to talk to him. I’m… worried. He’s always been a bit sensitive and-“
I didn’t have a chance to hear the rest of what MJ was saying. My spider sense buzzed, and I spun around, coming face to face with a grinning Harry as he closed the door behind him. He wore a shirt and suit trousers, his top button undone and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His eyes looked tired, completely juxtaposed to his excited expression.
“Who’s always been a bit sensitive?” he said, stepping forward, arms wide.
“Harry” MJ said with a smile stepping forward and pulling him into a tight hug. He smiled at me as he hugged MJ
“Are you… free to talk?”
“Come on it’s you guys. I should’ve come to see you earlier. Now make yourself at home and let me get you something to drink” he said walking towards his open kitchen.
-
“That reminds me of high school” I said, chuckling before taking a sip from the way to fancy wine glass.
“Oh, don’t bring up school. I spend enough time there” MJ said laughing. “Remember when I tutored you guys?” MJ said.
“Oh my god. Remember when my dad found out you were tutoring Pete?” Harry said laughing.
“He offered $200 for every session, and when I turned it down he said he’d pay for my college as well” MJ said chuckling.
“Your mum didn’t let you turn that down did she?” I asked.
“No way. I thought it
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“The lessons were worth it. You got me through sophomore year, before ditching us. Then Pete had to pick up the slack” Harry said with a grin.
“Don’t say it like that” MJ said chuckling.
“What did you do with the money again?” I asked.
“Almost all of it went to school stuff and I saved the rest. Mum put it in an account for me, just to make sure Dad didn’t touch the rest.”
“Good for you. You took my dad for everything he was worth. He’s never had any sense for money that man” Harry said, his smile fading slightly.
“I feel kind of bad, then I remember he’s a billionaire” MJ laughed. Harry chuckled at the comment, and then snatched the wine glass off the table. He poured MJ more and offered me, but I shook my head. I probably shouldn’t get drunk, even if it was wine drunk, with super strength.
Suddenly MJ’s phone started ringing. She frowned and pulled it out her pocket, and the color drained from her face.
“Sorry, I have to take this” she said getting up. Harry and I glanced at each other before turning back to MJ. She spoke over the phone for a few seconds, mumbling something to someone.
“I’ll be over in a sec” she said, before hanging up.
“What was that?” I asked, concerned.
“Work. Sorry I need to go”
“You sure?” Harry said. MJ nodded.
“I can have someone drive you if you-“
“It’s fine. I can walk it from here. It was great to see you Harry. Sorry about this”
“No worries”
She walked off, Helena handing MJ her jacket and opening the door for her.
“You know what that was about?” Harry asked me.
“I… one of her students lost a family member in the big fight last week. She’s not... she's worried” I said, images of a depressed Lucas flashing through my mind.
“Mmmh” Harry said, downing his wine glass. I frowned but didn’t say anything.
“So, how have you been Pete? You healing alright?” he asked.
“Yeah. Thanks for that by the way. The hospital stuff I mean”
“Come on Pete, we’re best buds. I wouldn’t just let you die” he said. We both went silent, the air awkward now that MJ was gone. When was the last time we’d been alone together? High school? Probably. Ever since college, we’d always hung out with Bella, Grady, Sajani, Ned and Gwen. Come to think of it we were never really alone together in high school either. Gwen and Ned were almost always with us. That was weird to think about.
“How’s Ned?” he asked.
“Oh, Ned’s good. He says it’s rainy in London. I’ll tell him to give you a call.”
“He did a few months back, but I was just thinking he’s been radio silent for a while. He must not have my new number.”
More silence. I needed to stop being so awkward. It was Harry. My best friend.
“How are things with the BRC? I mean, it’s what’s kept you busy, right?” I asked. His expression shifted slightly and he leant back in his chair, sighing.
“Let’s just say, I’m fucked” he said.
Oh.
Harry leant back his head and let out a shrill one-note laugh before, looking back at me.
“I’ve got a few ways to minimise the damage, but I don’t like any of them. And either way, any shot I had at being CEO in the future got blown to smithereens along with the damn building” he said, taking a swig from his glass.
He stood up, and made his way over to my couch, sitting down next to me.
“What about you? How’s your mental health or whatever?” he asked. I paused staring at him uncertainly.
“I’m fine. Harry are you ok? I mean y-”
“We’re on you now Pete"
“Harry don't “
"I shouldn't have said anything. I don't really want to talk about it" he sighed.
"Ok. That's... fine" I said, still concerned.
“Now answer my question. Properly”
“I’m… okay, I guess."
"You don't look okay"
"I don't?"
"You look like you've been crying" he said. I didn't reply, and looked away, feeling embarrassed.
"It’s fine if you aren’t ok man. You were the closest to Gwen after all” he said. I nodded.
“I just… I don’t know. It’s like after the explosion, everything just stopped. I mean, I haven’t done anything. I haven’t tried to do anything. Well…” I trailed off.
“Well what?”
“I made a stupid promise. It’s nothing”
“You sure?”
“Yeah”
“Come on Pete, tell me”
“I just… I promised someone I’d do something”
“You don’t want to?”
“I do. I do. It’s just that I’m trying but I-, it’s not… I’m not sure it’ll work”
“Why?”
“It’s a lot of responsibility. I don’t think I can handle it”
“Pete you’re the most responsible person I know. If you think it’s too much then it probably is. Ask for help”
“I can’t”
“I am literally right here”
“I… I can’t ask you to help with this” I said. Harry sighed and we both went silent again. I couldn’t just tell him about Lucas. I was saying too much already.
“Let’s do something” Harry said. I looked up at him frowning.
“Like what?” I asked.
“Something big. Something that distracts us from all the outside noise. I know I need to do something that isn’t about the BRC, and this'll probably help you. You won’t feel so stuck anymore”
“Define something big. That could be anything”
“Something big that’s good”
“That does not narrow it down”
“Well then we make a list. You’re the smart one, what comes to mind when we think of something big that’s good?”
“I don’t know. UBI? Free healthcare? Charities?” I said.
“Charities? What kind?” Harry said perking up.
“I don’t know. All of them I guess”
“Pick a specific one”
“Uh… one that provides relief for disasters?”
Harry pondered for a second.
“I think we could do that”
“You can?”
“Well, it’d have to just be for part of the city, but yeah. We could have a fund that helps people out during disasters or whatever” he said casually.
“You’d do that?”
“Yeah man, we could even name it after Gwen or something” he said. I stared at him in disbelief for a few seconds, then pulled him into a tight hug, quickly toning down my strength so I didn’t crush him.
“It’s alright man. I’m just trying to make this situation better” he said. I pulled away, wiping at my eyes. He put a hand on my shoulder.
“Don’t cry man. It’s alright” he said.
“No I just… thanks. This means a lot” I said. He smiled.
“I’m not some saint Pete. I just want to feel good about myself for once, before my life gets ruined”
I frowned.
“Is it about the research centre?"
"I-"
"Harry, come on. Just tell me what's bothering you”
“Well… let’s just say I’m not exactly going to be popular in New York, even if I start a charity”
“What why?”
“I was in charge of the BRC Pete. It’s not that difficult to… extrapolate” he said throwing his hands upwards.
“They pinning the blame on you?”
“They’re trying to”
“You’ll be okay man. I mean everyone knows it was an accident”
“Scientists like you maybe. But to everyone else…” he trailed off, shaking his head.
“But it’s not your fault” I said, the memories of Dr Gonzales flashing through my mind.
“In business it’s always someone’s fault Peter. Always” he said, staring at the floor. His look was distant but for the first time that night his eyes seemed focused.
I felt an uneasy feeling in my stomach at his dark expression. MJ was right, he’d always been a bit sensitive. But he wouldn’t do anything drastic, right? With the way he was talking, I wasn’t so sure.
I leant forward and put a hand on his shoulder.
“You know you can talk to me about anything man” I said. He let out a small chuckle as he eyed his wine glass.
“Harry, talk to me” I said. My spider sense buzzed and he threw a pillow at me. I ducked and looked up at him to see him, shaking his head smiling.
“I’m not going to hurt myself Pete. I’m dumb, not stupid” he said.
“Just make sure to call me if you ever feel down, okay?” I said. He looked up at me and held eye contact for a few seconds, his expression softening.
“Sure thing man” he said, looking away. He took a another deep swig from his glass.
“If you’re mental health or whatever was fucked up, or something was going on with you, you’d tell me right?” Harry asked.
“Yeah. But I'm not always the most talkative” I said, chuckling uncertainly.
“I’m serious Pete. I know you don’t want to talk about your promise or whatever, but if something was really troubling you, you’d tell me, eventually, right?”
“Of course, we’re best buds” I said. Harry smiled slightly and raised his glass to me. I clinked it with my own and we both downed our drinks. I let out a refreshed sigh.
“To best buds” I said, with a smile.
“To best buds” a grinning Harry replied.