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Bake's Electronics is something of a fixture in Queens. And not just because they sell a lot of fixtures. B & H may have the market share, but Bake's has a lot of the stuff the hobbyists and enthusiasts want.
Right now, one of the better customers is walking along the aisle in the back, checking over diodes, capacitors, and blank circuit boards. He needs to upgrade the tech on the new drone, but he needs to code some collision-avoidance into the expert system software. He needs a few chips, some solder, and if they happens to have any fiber-optic cable at a good price, well…
At the same time, exactly twelve feet away, a sunny blonde in a white blouse, pleated plaid skirt, knee socks and Converse sneakers is standing on tiptoe trying to reach into a bin on the top shelf. She is teetering precariously, uncertain of what exactly is even in the bin.
"Nnngh!" She streeetches. "What's…in there…."
"…hey, hang on! Lemme get that for you." Peter's only a few inches taller, but that gets him enough. He walks over to the voice, turns the corner, and…legs. Very nice legs. If Flash was here, he would expound about how those legs go up and cheerfully make an ass of themselves.
Thinking about Flash dispels the pleasant observation and he looks up to see the bin. "Uhm, excuse me? Miss? I can tell you what is in there. Those are #3 Pitney flanges." Of course he knows. He could probably tell you where ANYTHING is in this store.
"Is that what you're looking for, Miss…?"
"Gwen…it's just Gwen, no need for the Miss. And nooo, that's not what I needed. Honestly I'm looking for laser diodes, but I can't find /anything/ in this store." She lowers her heels to the floor and turns to face Peter Parker. None other. Matches the photograph perfectly, he can't possibly deny that resemblance. "Thanks for comin' to my rescue. I dunno what I'd have done with a box of flanges if I managed to get them down."
A face like WHOA. That is the first thing that comes to mind. Blonde hair, blue eyes, cheekbones…
The kid (18, at most) is momentarily flummoxed. Then he blinks, and his brain re-engages.
"Okay! Gwen. Hi! I'm Peter Porker. PARKER. Sorry. Uhm…those are over here, two aisles over." His face flushed, and he begins walking away, trying to collect himself together. MJ was…was something, but she was also Just a Friend, and he had been surprised by how pretty Gwen was. "I can show you what I have…THEY have…"
"Oh, you don't work here?" Gwen asks innocently enough. ""Yet you took time out to help a poor girl in over her head." She giggles and follows his gesture, looking toward the aisle in question. "Ohhh, I feel so silly…I can be so…so scatterbrained at times. I'm sorry, you just caught me off-guard is all." Peter's cute, if a little nerdy. But who is she to point the nerd finger, honestly? By now, Gwen's cheeks are flushed a deep baby pink. "You're Peter? I've…I think I've heard of you."
Peter blinked and looked back as he reached the aisle where the diodes were (left shelves, mid-aisle). "Me? Uhm…where from? I've only had a couple of articles published in small-scale technical journals…"
He's humble-bragging. Stop it. "Well, what kind of diode did you need? Particular wavelength, infrared, UV…?"
"Generally, I figured on buying an assortment. I don't know yet what all I'll need," Gwen replies, picking up first one package and then another, eyes flitting over the descriptions and stats of each.
"Mmm, I /thought/ maybe that's where I'd heard your name. I'm not used to meeting…celebrities." Small-tine, admittedly. Gwen went into this with the intention of grabbing Peter's attention. But somehow the grabbing is becoming more mutual. Gwen grabs a handful of various diodes, and cradles them against her, pulling two folded bills from the pocket of her skirt. "So….what were you here to find?"
Wow. She's a brain. That's a stereotype, surely. He wonders if too many pretty girls asking for his notes for class has turned him into a cynic. Or if it's the few who stole his notes and passed them off as their own. High school was BRUTAL.
Okay…no jumping to conclusions, no falling back on stereotypes. Just treat her like a person.
A very attractive person…NO Libido I DON'T NEED YOU RIGHT NOW.
"Well, I'm working on a very small drone for my science fair project. I was working on a drone the size and shape of a dragonfly. It wasn't reacting fast enough and kept running into things, so I'm trying to write up some collision-avoidance software to lower the repairs…"
Was he boring her? He glanced at her face to try and see how she was reacting. If the eyes were glazed over, that was a bad sign.
Gwen's eyes brighten at the concept as he describes it. "Ohhhh, a dragonfly drone?? That is the /most/ fantastic idea. Now I wanna see it. You think you could ever show somebody like me? I mean I'm not actually involved with the science fair, but it sounds SOOO neat…" She's here for recon…and she reminds herself of that. But…..but a cute boy with a dragonfly drone…
Peter looked puzzled. Somebody LIKE her? That was an odd thing to say, unless she had some kind of self-esteem issue. And he knew THAT book, chapter and verse.
"Uhm…I don't see why not." He looked over to Mr. Hale, the proprietor. "Hey, can we use the workbench in the back?"
Mr. Hale, a thin ginger bloke with a telltale Scottish accent, nodded and waved a hand towards the door that said EMPLOYEES ONLY. Peter was a good customer, really knew his stuff, and wasn't the kind to go all Entitled Customer on him.
Peter nodded, then smiled to Gwen. "We can take a look at it back there. They have a worktable we can use."
"Oooh, awesooome…" Gwen moves quickly to the register, paying for her diode selections and tying up the bag tightly with the receipt inside. "Sorry, don't wanna risk forgetting or losing one of these guys, or forgetting to pay…." She rattles through the laundry list of things she might do to screw it up, and she's still rattling it off as they make their way back to the work bench alone. She shuts the door behind them and follows Peter like a lost puppy, wide blue eyes scanning the room from top to bottom. "You come back here often, Peter?"
Peter smiles wryly. "Actually, I have my own lab at my house. But they have a lot of stuff her in case I want to test something."
The tables is one of those with a backlight that illuminates anything placed on it. He puts his backpack down, then takes out a tin box with a picture of Captain America on it and the slogan BUY U.S. WAR BONDS. He places the box on the table, then opens it to reveal the iridescent insect. He places it on the table, revealing it looks exactly like a dragonfly. The exact same size of one, too.
Gwen gasps, leaning over the table carefully and tilting sideways to examine the details. "Oh gosh, it's perfect…/you/ made this??" She's breathless…both in awe, and terrified she'll do something to break it if she gets too close. "Well, I guess this is what happens when a boy has a lab in his own house…I have to do anything I need in labs at work. After hours." She looks up at Peter, clearly impressed and enamored. "I never expected this…" she confides softly, not quite defining 'this.'
Peter chuckled, but is was a pleasant sound. "I had eight years to build up my basement lab. Started when I was ten. And as for the dragonfly, it's actually fairly durable. Since it's light and barely weighs anything. I used a thin plastic polymer for the frame. So if you want, just pick it up by the long thin thorax, and you shouldn't have to worry about it. All the telemetry hardware is in the front of the drone."
"Really?" Gwen replies, reaching out to poke the drone gently. Her fingertip merely scoots the drone half a centimeter, and Gwen brightens. "Ooh, it /is/ light." She picks up the drone ever-so carefully, examining the details. "This….this is incredible, Peter. I never would've thought about somethin' like this." There's a solid pause, and Gwen asks nonchalantly, "So you're just eighteen?"
Peter smiled, a wry look that was amused, but pleasant instead of scornful. "Yep. Just celebrated a couple of months ago. My Aunt May made this red velvet birthday cake that was as light as thistledown." He reached into the backpack and pulled out what looked like one of the smartphone VR rigs, and a pair of gloves with wires running along the backs of the gloves. "This is the primary control system. It's very responsive, but like I said…I run into stuff a lot. I've replaced those eye covers seven times. Hence, the need for the collision-avoidance program."
"Ohh nice rig!" Gwen gushes as Peter introduces the controls. "So it's VR controlled, does that mean you have POV viewability?" Is viewability a word? Did she must make herself sound stupid to this guy?
"Yeah we gotta keep this lil guy from crunchin' into stuff, huh?" she seems to ask the drone more than Peter. Her plan was simple in coming here. But it has clearly gone off the skids.
Peter nods. "I have a duplicate rig slaved to this one, but it's at home. Some sort of signal issue. You have 270-degree POV in all directions instead of directly behind you. I can't get it any higher than 1.5 miles. Air gets too thin. But I got the range up to 5.4, and I'm working out an idea of using cell towers to increase the signal."
Boggling over the stats, Gwen sets down the dragonfly on the table again, turning to lean against the edge, facing Peter. "Just wow…I have no idea you could even DO something like this. Do you know the implications of this? Beyond the cutest and awesomest drone on the planet….It's got endless possibilities. I think you've a lovely mind, Peter Parker. Such unbelievable ideas…." So young. But she doesn't say that one aloud. She's fidgeting a little bit, walking around the table now, trailing her fingertip along the table's edge. "Just think of how much further you can go. I mean, if you want to."
Peter sighed. "I dunno. When I first pitched it to my science teacher, he wanted to see what it could do. Then a classmate asked me if I could make a very tiny gun for it." He rubbed his face. "I just want to do science. Mr. Osborn once said that I could do great things if I applied myself, but he told Harry I lack 'ambition.' So I don't have that drive to succeed."
He'd had it once. And boy had it ever cost him dearly.
"I guess I want to get my doctorate before I make any commitments. I'm actually leaning towards neuroscience."
Nodding, Gwen rests her elbows on the table, leaning toward him. "That's never a bad thing, Peter. Look before ya leap, and all that. No need to get wrapped up in something over your head, right? Befor ya know it you've committed to something that's already a regret. I mean…if you don't weaponize this lil guy, someone else will…" She sighs. "It's a shame, really. Right now, maybe you just need time to figure out what YOU really want." She gives him a squirky little smile, wiggle-fidgeting back and forth.
Peter smiled. "Yes, that's it, that's EXACTLY right!" He points to Gwen, the You've Got It Right There gesture. "Wow. I'm glad I got to meet you. I mean, you REALLY get it. I have to say, sometimes I wonder if I'm being foolish, but it's nice to hear someone else say it out loud."
"Excellent!" Gwen hops up, giving a little pirouette and bowing with a flourish. "Glad I could be of service. I can put all /kinds/ of things in words!" she adds, buffing her turquoise pointed nails on her white shirt and crossing one pink Converse over the other as she leans back against the table. "Why, in some places, they call me the wordmaster…" She lifts her eyes back up to Peter, lashes veiling her gaze, and she shakes her head. "Nobody calls me that…"
Peter grins. "They call me the King of Geeks art Midtown High. It's…not meant to be flattering or congratulatory."
*She's flirting with you.* And of course, the voice in his mind sounds like Harry.
What? No…no she's not. C'mon, Harry don't poke fun.
"But I do like to help people if they need help."
"Hey, you should be proud of that. Geeks are the best. I mean, where would thus world be without all the geeks that invented cool stuff over t he years?" Her tone seems genuine, and her expression in earnest. There's not a hint of teasing, this time. "Truth be known, though, I'm kind of a geek, too. So you're in good company, y'know?"
Peter couldn't help thinking, *Predator skills…chemical wars…plastic islands at sea…watch what the humans ruin…with MACHINES…* Well, The Faint was right about that.
"Well, I got a gut feeling you were. I mean, you asked all the right questions, didn't mangle the terminology, and you knew what you were talking about. I kinda want to see an example of what you are working on. See what project rings your bell."
There is a moment of sheer panic, when Gwen realizes that the project she is working on is a laser sighting mechanism for long range webs, which Peter Parker must NOT know about. "I'd be glad to share it. But I have to test you for Top Secret clearance," Gwen replies with a conspiratorial shift of her narrowed eyes. It might be intended as a playful comment. But it couldn't be closer to the truth. "The tests will be many, and they will be thorough, but I'll try and make it worth your while."
Peter's eyebrows rise. "Well…I suppose I'm just going to have to prove it. But I'm not afraid of tests." He grins in a hangdog, lopsided way. "And I promise not to Bogart any of your work. That's for losers who can't do their own science."
"Ohh, it isn't at all that I think you'll take it. I think you're capable of more than I am. It's just I'm….It's…" She sighs. "It's complicated," she laments with a resigned expression. "I'm not trying to be all mysterious or anything…" But before the situation can get her down, Gwen is back up and moving. Resilient as ever, as she reaches for the Captain America tin and smiles. "I played Laser Tag with this guy last week. He's really cool. Bit of a pottymouth, though…."
Peter is about to say that it's okay, her privacy is her own, and she has every right to protect her work, and then she says WHAT THE WHAT?
"You played LASER TAG with CAPTAIN AMERICA?" The words are out of his mouth, loud and awed and shocked.
"Yeah," she says, pulling out her phone and flipping to a selfie from the pizza place afterward. Thor, Steve, and Bucky surround her, and the biggest pizza in the known world takes up the entire table in the foreground. "See? It was super fun. You any good at Laser Tag?"
Peter flushes again, this time out of embarrassment. "Uhm…I wouldn't know. I've never played Laser Tag."
Swinging around as Spidey doesn't count. Real bullets don't count.
"Wow…that has to be something. I hope you were on Cap's side, because otherwise you lost bigtime."
"Omygosh, you TOTALLY have to play Laser Tag with me sometime. I'm the best there is…" She pauses. Wrong tagline. "I mean…after I get un-banned," she grumps.
Peter tilted his head, "Banned? How the heck were you banned? You weren't covering any of the sensors, were you?"
"Ohh no, nothin' like that. They have this silly rule about not climbing the walls. I have NO idea why that's even a thing…" She shrugs, reluctantly adding with a vague gesture, "And I sorta….tackled a guy. BUT HE HAD IT COMIN'."
Okay. Yeah, sure, that could be a…
Peter stops.
"Uhm…climbing the walls? How were you climbing the walls, unless you were using climbing gear?"
Gwen cuts her eyes to one side, and gives an offhanded wave of her hand. "I dunno, how does anybody climb the walls? Adrenaline, maybe? And a running start?" She hadn't realized it was that difficult, maybe. And maybe she shouldn't have mentioned it. "The important thing is, that guy /totally/ had it coming. He shot me. NOBODY hits me. I hadn't been shot in…I dunno, ever? For the wages of shootin' are death, by flashy chest light," she adds in an authoritative and prophetic tone.
Peter hmmed, looking at her with a quick once-over. Okay…yeah, he could see that. With a physique like that, she was probably into gymnastics, free-climbing, parkour…hey, she could even be doing aerial yoga, for all he knew.
"Sounds a little hostile for a game. I might have to pass on Laser Tag. I don't like the idea off someone shooting at me."
Gwen goes quiet for a little longer pause than usual, perhaps considering Peter's assertion of aggression. "Well, I mean it's just lights, is all. Maybe…..maybe I was the one who got a little too aggressive." For the first time, she considers the possibility that her ban /might/ be justifiable. "Maybe I should cool it a little. Then I wouldn't get banned all the time…"
Peter blinked, his eyebrows rising. "Uhm, all the time? This isn't the first time you've been banned from there?"
Peter feels like he should be doing something, so he takes the dragonfly and puts it back in its bed of cotton in the tin before closing it, putting it and the VR rig back in his backpack.
"Nah, they're real sticklers about that wall climbing thing," Gwen replies, watching Peter put away the delicate drone. "Y'know, I'd like to see that little guy in action sometime. Like…somewhere he can't blap into things like…shelves, and light fixtures. Regardless of all the other stuff, he's a little miracle."
Peter smiled wryly. "Well, there's this place called The Store. That person Dead Girl runs it, and she gave me a key, so I can use it even if the place is closed up. It's like a kind of commune building, but the third floor has a place to settle in and run the drone in safety. I demo'd it for…" Hmm. It felt like name-dropping… "…a guy named Adam from there. I guess…maybe if you'd like to go there sometime, meet me there…I could show you the dragonfly in action."
Gwen smiles, a genuine and sincere smile without pretense. "I'd love that, Peter." It is not often that Gwen connects with another as a person. The idea makes her, dare she even think it? Happy. "Then before I forget, let me give you my number." She pulls out a small notepad from her pocket and writes her cell number on it. "If I don't answer, leave a message? Or text me. Cause sometimes I just…can't answer."
Peter grins. "Yeah. I have those moments too. Working on stuff, in class…"
…fighting bad guys…
He takes out his own phone, a Samsung Galaxy S3, waiting for the phone app to load, then taps the number into his phone. "Gwen…uhm, if I may ask your last name?
"Stacy," she replies without hesitation. After all, he told her his. "Gwen Stacy." So the recon mission turned into something else entirely. But, she reasons with herself, she still has time to learn about him. Not that she doesn't already know that he could help her with whatever problems she might have with her web spinners. That much is clear. If he helps Spider-Man, surely she can trust him to help Spider-Woman. But for now, those thoughts are filed away.
Peter grins, taps in the name…then pauses. "Gwen, would I be out of line if I asked for a picture? To put in the Contact entry. If you don't feel comfortable, I can understand that…" *And maybe I shouldn't have asked in the first place, and I am a TOTAL GOOBER…* he thinks.
"Nah, not at all out of line. It's totally cool. What do you want? Glamour? Drama? Something dumb?" She grins, compliant with whatever he asks for.
Peter flushed slightly. "Just…a head shot, just a clear look at your face. I have a good friend who is not going to believe that I met a pretty woman who is smart AND gifted and athletic and…"
*Shut up. Shut UP. SHUT UP.*
"…I'm going to take your picture, now, okay?" He held up the phone, a phone considered new in 2012, and aimed it at Gwen.
Not at all unfamiliar with the camera, Gwen gives a toss of her hair, a tilt of her chin and a dazzling smile. Just like she'd give on the runway. Just like she'd give in the studio. Only…noticeably a shade more pink. "You're adorable," she says. And she means it.
Peter didn't think about the response. If he did, he was going to be too nervous to hold the phone.
He snaps the picture, then nods and sets up the image in his phone. "Well, that's great. It really is. Did you want to take a picture as well for your phone?"
"I'd LOVE that." Gwen fishes her phone out of her pocket, because there is no limit to what those pockets can hold. Because pockets.
Her phone is newer. But she pays no attention. She just wants a picture. "C'mere…" She puts out an arm to wrap around his shoulders, if he'll let her, so she can snap a picture of them together.
The picture isn't bad. It is a clear picture of Gwen, and Peter looks slightly baffled. He does have a blush to his cheeks, though, and it is probably best to go with the first pic because the subsequent ones have his face getting redder and redder.
*This is a gag. A joke. She's actually Charlize Theron in a wig and makeup and WOW she IS pretty fit…* His thoughts run and he can't stop them.
Peter has pretty firm shoulders, though.
"Wow…you work out?" Gwen shouldn't even be thinking half the things she is thinking. Bottom line, most geeks don't work out. "You're kinda badass," she says, giving his abdomen a poke. "Hottest geek ever, right?" She laughs and saves the picture. "I'm impressed!"
Peter tries to draw back a little, but the poke is kinda telling. Those baggy clothes are hiding his body fairly easily.
"Well…I wouldn't call myself 'hot'…" he says, a little uncomfortably. It would be a little hard to explain how he went from skinny to ripped in such a short time.
"I just…kinda have a high metabolism," he explains, a little uneasily.
"Hey…It's cool," Gwen tries to reassure him. "I meant it as a compliment. Not that it'd matter how ripped you are, or aren't. You're Peter. And that's the important thing. I kinda like Peter."
"Really? Well…it's not a very big club, and we don't charge dues."
Always fall back into absurdity when you have nothing else.
"Maybe I should introduce you to my friend, Harry. Y'know…just to make sure I'm not imagining you, I mean."
"Sure! Any friend of yours…" She grins. Gwen is actually curious to see what kind of friends Peter Parker has. Besides Spider-Man, of course. Secretly, Gwen wonders if Harry is Spider-Man.
Peter grins. "You'd like him. He has an excess of personality at times, but he's a good guy. It's tough for him, living in his father's shadow. But I shouldn't be telling people about them before introducing them first." He smirks. "And then there's Mary Jane. We just call her MJ, all her friends do. And then there's Kori. She's also a good friend."
"That's awesome, I'm so glad you've got so many good friends. Sometimes we can be a reclusive sort, at least I can. Studying when I'm not working. Working when I'm not….working somewhere else." She laughs. "It's Har to out yourself out there sometimes."
Peter chuckles. "I'm like some kind of eclectic planet. A few just wander into my orbit and don't leave." He looks around. "Some don't leave and I wish they would. But the ones I named. Those are my friends. And I think I would have been content to just…dodge life. But I can't really do that."
"Sometimes you just can't dodge life, no matter how good your reflexes are. "But they should all count themselves lucky to orbit you. You're…pretty amazing." Gwen grins, glad to be able just to open up a little.
Peter looked to Gwen. "I'm just trying to be a decent person, Gwen." He looked around. "Uhm…is there anything else you want to know about me before we get out of here? I think Mr. Hale is going to wonder what we're doing back here."
"Oh. Right. Yeah no it's cool. I should be goin' anyway." Gwen flushes pink. She crossed the line. "I didn't realize how late it was gettin'. I should…I'll talk to ya later, yeah? Cool, right…Well!" She pockets her phone, shoulders her backpack, and heads for the door. "Have a good afternoon. Thanks for showing me your drone, ok?"
Peter smiles and nods. "No problem. Looking forward to seeing you again and putting the drone through its pace. I swear you're going to love it!"
Peter starts packing as Gwen heads towards the door, and watches her leave. She…
She's…REALLY pretty.
The store owner shoots a curious look at Gwen as she leaves the room. She gives him a little wave on her way out, still pink. At least she remembered to grab her diodes.
Peter steps out a couple of minutes later. He felt a little weird. Something about the whole thing was…
…wait. Did he, Peter Parker, King of Geeks and LEAST of the Red-Hot Lovers…actually ask a girl out on a date?
…Holy Crow, he just…might…have.