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Gwen had kiiiind of lied and said that Fandom High had a break week this week, which meant she got to spend the day with Aunt May... and Johnny still sleeping on the couch and ruining all her daytime TV-watching. And because she was still glad to just be here, she'd offered to go run Aunt May's errands, which was why she saw Johnny outside the house talking to some blonde woman when she got back. Ohh, that had to be Sue.
When she got inside, Aunt May was blatantly watching at the window, so Gwen joined her. "Is that his sister? I thought she was older."
"Nope. She's just a baby, too," Aunt May said.
"What are they talking about?" If they were going to be nosy, might as well go all out.
Outside, it looked like things had calmed down outside, and Johnny and Sue were walking back up to the house. "We'll find out," Aunt May replied.
There was a long talk, which Gwen got to sit in for because it wasn't like she wasn't going to eavesdrop anyway. Besides, Aunt May ordered pizza. And by the time Sue left, Peter was just coming up the walkway after work. There was a short conversation, and a few Sue-initiated hugs, and then Peter came inside looking confused....
Which only got more confused when Johnny announced, "Hey new baby brother. Guess who live here now? Come on, guess... One hint: he's awesome and he lights on fire. Okay that was two... Fine, I'll tell you, it's me!"
Aunt May gave him a little smile and said, "There's pizza in the kitchen. You don't even need to warm it up."
"Pizza helps," Peter said, making his way over there. "Johnny, you live here now?"
"How about that?" Johnny said happily. This was much better than the Johnny that had showed up yesterday.
"Johnny Storm. Here?"
"Yes."
"Here?"
"Yes."
"Really?"
"If it's okay with you," Johnny said, taking a seat after everyone else.
"How did this happen?" Peter wondered.
"Well, I don't want to live in New York City anymore-"
"Who would?" Gwen interrupted. New York having been a wasteland for the last few months...
"But your Aunt May says I'm too young to live on my own."
"You are," Aunt May nodded.
"And she and my sister said I could live here," Johnny finished.
"So... we're going to tell people the Human Torch from the world-famous Fantastic Four lives in our house and no one's going to think that's at all suspicious why?" Peter aked.
"Because I'm going to do the whole 'you' thing," Johnny said, picking up a slice.
"You're going to wallow in self-loathing?"
"I'm going to get a secret identity," Johnny said. "Maybe I'll dye my hair."
"Oh, this needs to happen," Gwen said immediately.
"See, she's with me," he said. "I'm going to make up a name, dye my hair, get some glasses or something and I'm going to go to high school!"
"You're going to go to my high school?" Peter said.
"I'm sorry. Yours? You own it?" Johnny said teasingly, but turned more serious. "I need a life, Pete. A normal life. Or as close as I can get to it."
"You do need that," Aunt May agreed.
"This is not a normal life," Gwen pointed out. "There are people with reality shows that would laugh at us."
"I'm sick of wasting my life," Johnny said. "My dad... He wouldn't want me to do this anymore. I need to go to school."
"You need structure," Aunt May said, seemingly pleased to hear all this.
"Do you not want me to live here?" Johnny asked Peter. "I thought you'd be thrilled."
"No, no, I'm just surprised," Peter said quickly. "I have questions. I'm not allowed to have questions?"
"With Gwen here... our house has been full of life," Aunt May said, and Gwen felt her cheeks turn pink. "For the first time since we lost Ben."
"Aww," Gwen said. "Stop."
"And it's not the same without her here all the time. We have the room," Aunt May said. "He would do it for you. You can bunk together."
"What?" both boys asked in unison.
"You just said, Gwen's not even here all the time," Peter reminded her.
Gwen was just going to eat her pizza because then it was easier not to laugh.
"But when she is, a girl needs her own space," Aunt May said, "and she's not sharing a room with a boy- no matter how well-behaved they might be- under my roof. You can give him your little laboratory space. He can have the attic."
"No, no, he can have my room," Peter decided. "I'll take the attic."
"See, now I feel like I'm ruining your life," Johnny told him.
"I fall asleep up there all the time anyhow," he said, waving it off.
"You're not mad?"
"Mad? No. I'm shocked. Come on, if all of a sudden I was living at your house, you'd be shocked."
"But thrilled," Johnny said.
"Exactly," Peter grinned.
"I'll make a new chore chart in the morning," Aunt May said.
Johnny frowned. "What's a chore chart?"
"The chart with our chores on them," Gwen said helpfully. It was taped to the fridge, and had 'TORTURE' written in place of 'chores', in her handwriting.
"There are chores?"
"Oh, there be chores," Peter said.
"But," Gwen added, "now there's a third less for us, so... score."
Johnny looked a little panicked. "I've uh. I've never done chores."
"You wanted a normal life," she said sweetly.
[NFB, NFI, OOC okay. Taken from Ultimate Spider-Man #3 & 4!]
When she got inside, Aunt May was blatantly watching at the window, so Gwen joined her. "Is that his sister? I thought she was older."
"Nope. She's just a baby, too," Aunt May said.
"What are they talking about?" If they were going to be nosy, might as well go all out.
Outside, it looked like things had calmed down outside, and Johnny and Sue were walking back up to the house. "We'll find out," Aunt May replied.
There was a long talk, which Gwen got to sit in for because it wasn't like she wasn't going to eavesdrop anyway. Besides, Aunt May ordered pizza. And by the time Sue left, Peter was just coming up the walkway after work. There was a short conversation, and a few Sue-initiated hugs, and then Peter came inside looking confused....
Which only got more confused when Johnny announced, "Hey new baby brother. Guess who live here now? Come on, guess... One hint: he's awesome and he lights on fire. Okay that was two... Fine, I'll tell you, it's me!"
Aunt May gave him a little smile and said, "There's pizza in the kitchen. You don't even need to warm it up."
"Pizza helps," Peter said, making his way over there. "Johnny, you live here now?"
"How about that?" Johnny said happily. This was much better than the Johnny that had showed up yesterday.
"Johnny Storm. Here?"
"Yes."
"Here?"
"Yes."
"Really?"
"If it's okay with you," Johnny said, taking a seat after everyone else.
"How did this happen?" Peter wondered.
"Well, I don't want to live in New York City anymore-"
"Who would?" Gwen interrupted. New York having been a wasteland for the last few months...
"But your Aunt May says I'm too young to live on my own."
"You are," Aunt May nodded.
"And she and my sister said I could live here," Johnny finished.
"So... we're going to tell people the Human Torch from the world-famous Fantastic Four lives in our house and no one's going to think that's at all suspicious why?" Peter aked.
"Because I'm going to do the whole 'you' thing," Johnny said, picking up a slice.
"You're going to wallow in self-loathing?"
"I'm going to get a secret identity," Johnny said. "Maybe I'll dye my hair."
"Oh, this needs to happen," Gwen said immediately.
"See, she's with me," he said. "I'm going to make up a name, dye my hair, get some glasses or something and I'm going to go to high school!"
"You're going to go to my high school?" Peter said.
"I'm sorry. Yours? You own it?" Johnny said teasingly, but turned more serious. "I need a life, Pete. A normal life. Or as close as I can get to it."
"You do need that," Aunt May agreed.
"This is not a normal life," Gwen pointed out. "There are people with reality shows that would laugh at us."
"I'm sick of wasting my life," Johnny said. "My dad... He wouldn't want me to do this anymore. I need to go to school."
"You need structure," Aunt May said, seemingly pleased to hear all this.
"Do you not want me to live here?" Johnny asked Peter. "I thought you'd be thrilled."
"No, no, I'm just surprised," Peter said quickly. "I have questions. I'm not allowed to have questions?"
"With Gwen here... our house has been full of life," Aunt May said, and Gwen felt her cheeks turn pink. "For the first time since we lost Ben."
"Aww," Gwen said. "Stop."
"And it's not the same without her here all the time. We have the room," Aunt May said. "He would do it for you. You can bunk together."
"What?" both boys asked in unison.
"You just said, Gwen's not even here all the time," Peter reminded her.
Gwen was just going to eat her pizza because then it was easier not to laugh.
"But when she is, a girl needs her own space," Aunt May said, "and she's not sharing a room with a boy- no matter how well-behaved they might be- under my roof. You can give him your little laboratory space. He can have the attic."
"No, no, he can have my room," Peter decided. "I'll take the attic."
"See, now I feel like I'm ruining your life," Johnny told him.
"I fall asleep up there all the time anyhow," he said, waving it off.
"You're not mad?"
"Mad? No. I'm shocked. Come on, if all of a sudden I was living at your house, you'd be shocked."
"But thrilled," Johnny said.
"Exactly," Peter grinned.
"I'll make a new chore chart in the morning," Aunt May said.
Johnny frowned. "What's a chore chart?"
"The chart with our chores on them," Gwen said helpfully. It was taped to the fridge, and had 'TORTURE' written in place of 'chores', in her handwriting.
"There are chores?"
"Oh, there be chores," Peter said.
"But," Gwen added, "now there's a third less for us, so... score."
Johnny looked a little panicked. "I've uh. I've never done chores."
"You wanted a normal life," she said sweetly.
[NFB, NFI, OOC okay. Taken from Ultimate Spider-Man #3 & 4!]