Title: Changes

Author: Jenn

Summary: Movieverse. A few months after graduation, Mary Jane helps Peter pack for his move into the city. While doing that, they talk.

Rating: PG

Spoilers: SM1, maybe minor ones for the book.

Timeline: After graduation, and before the 'appearance' of Spider-Man.

Category: General, maybe minor romance; missing scene.

Feedback: Always happy to hear what readers have say.

Archive: Anywhere, but please ask first.

Disclaimers: They're not mine. Marvel owns them. Not making one penny for this story. This fic is just for enjoyment.

Thoughts and quotes from the movie are italics.

Stepping out of her front door, Mary Jane Watson sighed wearily. Just a few more weeks…then she would be out of this place.

She wished she could block out the sound of her parents yelling at each other. The screen door muffled part of the sound, but the door was open. It was August, no one in their right mind would keep their door closed in this heat.

Looking around at the neighborhood that she had grown up in, Mary Jane knew she was not going to miss it. Her green eyes stopped wandering when she saw her next-door neighbor come out. One time classmate, and now fellow graduate, Peter Parker was a man of few words. At least around her, he was.

Mary Jane watched as he carried a large box toward his late uncle's Oldsmobile. As he set it down on the ground to open the trunk, she glanced at Peter's arms. He was wearing a T-shirt, which was not what caught her attention.

Had his arms looked so muscular before? Mary Jane pondered the question silently to herself. It brought another incident to mind, that time in the school cafeteria when she had slipped and had almost fallen. Peter had caught her, and kept her from humiliating herself. But M.J. did not remember whether he had seemed that strong or not.

Maybe Peter has been working out over the summer?

Knowing that it was a silly question to ask or wonder about, Mary Jane noticed that Peter had not gone back into his house. He must have noticed her staring at him. Now he was standing, waiting for her speak.

Mary Jane nodded toward the Oldsmobile and asked, "What are you doing, Peter?"

Peter simply said, "Moving." Not that that could explain everything, he thought. He had been surprised see Mary Jane outside. Peter hadn't seen her come out, he had not noticed her until he saw her there, watching him.

"Now? I didn't think ESU started yet."

"The term doesn't start for another week. I'm just going to get settled in." He did not add that Dr. Curt Connors wanted to meet Peter so he could tell him about the internship.

Smiling, Mary Jane said, "That's wonderful, Peter. I'll be heading into the city soon myself." Not soon enough…

"To start your acting career?"

M.J. gazed at him for a moment before speaking. He remembered their conversation before graduation? Pushing that wondering thought aside, she just nodded. "I'll just need some luck," Mary Jane said, only partly joking.

Shaking his head, Peter said with conviction, "You don't need luck, M.J. I know you can get any acting job you want."

Mary Jane was touched that he had so much confidence in her. What had he said that night? You're gonna light up Broadway. She hoped he was right about that.

"Do you need any help moving your stuff?" M.J. asked him. Peter was being nice, not just that, a friend. But she was not doing it because she owed it to him, she just wanted to help. That, and she did not think Peter's Aunt May could do a lot of bending and lifting.

"No, you don't have to. I was going to take my stuff now, just bring the car back, and take a bus back out."

"I don't mind helping you out."

Peter was caught between wanting her to stay and help, and not being sure it was what she really wanted to do. Mary Jane seemed sincere, so he nodded. He turned and headed back to the house, M.J. at his heels.

"Here's a drink for you, dear," May Parker said as she brought out some iced tea. Seeing Mary Jane she said, "Hello, Mary Jane. How are you?"

"Fine, and you?" M.J. asked, smiling at the older woman. It had only been about three months since Peter's Uncle Ben had been murdered.

"Good, dear. Would you like some ice tea?"

Smiling, Mary Jane nodded. "I offered to help Peter pack." She figured she should tell Aunt May why she was here. It was not that Peter's aunt minded, M.J. was welcome over anytime. But Mary Jane could count the number of times she'd had been here on one hand.

Coming back with M.J.'s drink, May asked, "What are your plans, Mary Jane?"

"I'm going to be moving to Manhattan, to find work." She did not continue. It had been awkward telling Peter about her dream of acting. Her parents thought she was just dreaming, that her head was in the clouds.

"That's lovely. Do you plan to go to school, dear?"

As innocent as the question was, Mary Jane inwardly squirmed. She had no plans to go to school, unless if she felt she needed to gain some acting ability. She was not so unrealistic that she thought she would land a part on-stage her first time around.

M.J. knew she would have to get a job somewhere, if she did not find work on Broadway. But she was not going to let that stop her. She would have to try to see if any of directors needed fresh faces to act in an upcoming play.

Peter could tell that Mary Jane was not feeling comfortable talking to Aunt May about what she wanted to do when she moved into the city. His aunt was just trying to make small talk, but now wasn't the best of times. "Aunt May, I, uh, I still have a lot of packing as well as bringing stuff out, so maybe M.J. and I should get busy."

"Of course." May was startled when Peter spoke up and not Mary Jane. "If there is anything I can help with, just let me know."

Nodding, Peter knew his aunt had been more than helpful. Along with the things from his bedroom he was taking, Aunt May was going to make sure he had food for this week. No doubt there's enough food for Harry when he comes, Peter thought.

As they headed up the steps, M.J was relieved that Peter had interrupted his aunt. "Thanks," she said quietly.

"No problem. I know you didn't want to talk about your dream."

"It's not that, it's just…" Mary Jane trailed off. She was not sure how to explain it.

"That most people won't understand?"

Nodding, Mary Jane knew there was more to it. Flash had not understood, he just thought her life was one big party and being with him. Nor did her father understand, and M.J. had to wonder if he ever would.

Reaching Peter's bedroom, Mary Jane looked around. "Looks like most of this is going with you, but what about furniture for your place?" She glanced at all the boxes and the somewhat bare room. There still was stuff up on the walls, as though he was going to stay in the room.

"Harry is going to be bringing most of the stuff for the apartment."

"You and Harry found a place in Manhattan?"

"Oh…I didn't mention that before, did I?"

Mary Jane shook her head. "But you found something that was affordable?"

"Actually, Mr. Osborn is renting it to us." Peter did not add that Harry practically told Peter he could live there rent free. Not because of their friendship, though that would be part of it, but because Peter helped Harry out through the time he was at Midtown High. Peter was sure that he would be helping Harry through the college work too.

"Is Harry moving in now too?"

"No, not till the end of the week." Harry would not be moving into the apartment with his stuff, including whatever else the place needed, until a day or two before the term began.

They both took large boxes to the car. They want back up to Peter's room in silence. M.J. was about to pick up another box when she noticed a postcard, with a picture of somewhere in England, or something like that.

"That's a neat picture on the postcard, where is it from?"

Peter stopped folding the flips of a box closed to see what Mary Jane was asking about. "That's a place in Wales. Harry and his dad are there."

"Wow. That's cool," Mary Jane's voice was awed, but wistful.

"Yeah." Peter did not want to rub it in by telling her that Mr. Osborn had asked him if he had wanted to go. Giving Harry's dad a 'thanks, but no thanks' type of an answer, Peter did not regret not going. He knew that Harry's relationship with his father a rocky one. Peter did not want to intrude on it, and he knew that h would be a third wheel.

Heading back down the stairs with boxes, M.J. said over her shoulder, "It's great that Harry's dad did that for him."

"It is," he replied, but his mind was thinking of something else.

Peter knew that Mary Jane was not dating Flash any longer. Harry had told him about it after graduation. That had not surprised Peter one bit.

Sighing inwardly, Peter was not going to bring that up. As much as he wanted to ask Mary Jane out, he did not want to be the guy on the rebound. Along with everything going on…it would not work out.

"Hey," Mary Jane's voice broke into his thoughts.

Blinking, Peter saw that he was standing in front of the trunk, but still holding his box. "Sorry, daydreaming."

"That's okay. We all do it sometimes," she replied with a smile.

Oh boy if she only knew what her smile did to his heart rate…

Still smiling, Mary Jane watched Peter give her a small one of his own. She saw something in his gaze that she could not identify. His blue eyes seemed to have matured over the course of the past few months, most likely because of his uncle.

But now, smiling like he was, it was the old Peter. Well, no, it was the Peter she remembered talking to in her backyard that night. And now, M.J. had to admit that he had a cute smile.

Faltering, Peter said, "We, should uh, get the-" Cleared his throat, he continued, "Get the rest of the stuff."

"Sure," Mary Jane responded. She was slightly bemused. What just happened?

Cutting off things with Flash, she did not want to go on the dating scene for awhile. She did not want to start dating just anyone. Perhaps to some, M.J. was being infantile, but she wanted fall in love. It was not because it was like a little girl's fantasy, more since it was something her parents never had when she was growing up.

Mentally shaking her head, Mary Jane didn't want to think on that. Back in Peter's room, she saw there were some more boxes to take down. Before she could do that, something caught her eye.

There was a scrap of blue material on the floor. Walking over, M.J. picked the piece of deep azure cloth up. It was the type of fabric that stretched, like spandex.

"Mary Jane?"

Walking back over to Peter, she said, "I found this on the floor. Is it from something old?"

Peter's mouth went dry. He knew what the blue piece of cloth was. It was a scrap of the costume he was still making. He had to finish it before the week ended.

"Yeah, it was from something old."

Throwing the piece of cloth away, M.J. come back and picked up a box. Peter let her go ahead of him. That had been close, even though Mary Jane hadn't asked more about it.

Even if she had asked, Peter could not tell her the truth. That was another reason he was going into the city early. He wanted to finish the costume as well as get familiarized with the different areas. No one knew what he was going to do.

How am I going to keep this from Harry, along with getting in and out of the loft without being heard?

It was not the first time Peter had to wonder about that. He had the bedroom with a balcony. But it was the fact that he couldn't let anyone know about the spider bite and it's effects on him. Along with what really happened to Uncle Ben.

"Still daydreaming?"

Turning a bit red, Peter nodded. "Did you say something?"

"No. I just thought I caught you miles away again," she teased.

"Yeah…I hope Aunt May will be fine on her own." Peter said, putting his box in the car next to the one M.J. put hers. That was another thing that worried him. With Uncle Ben gone and he was moving into the city, who was going look after her?

Mary Jane's expression sobered. Peter had a lot on his mind. She knew that he felt it was his responsibly to look after his aunt. That touched her in a way, because she wondered how many people really looked out for loved ones these days?

"I know Aunt May can take care of herself. I also know that you'll do what you can for her. She's proud of you, Peter."

"I know, but she won't be alone now if…" I hadn't let the thief get away. It was my fault.

Putting a hand on Peter's arm, Mary Jane said quietly, "You're uncle knows you'll do what is right. And Aunt May too."

I failed once, but I won't do that again. Peter thought with convection. With great power, comes great responsibly. "I know," he said more to himself than M.J.

Nodding, Mary Jane said with a smile, "We better get everything else, or you'll never get unpacked today."

Laughing, Peter returned her smile. His mind was still on Uncle Ben, it usually was day to day. Somehow, Peter knew he would never forget, he did not think he wanted to.

There was something else he was going to do daily now too. He was going to be Spider-Man. Not for himself, but for Uncle Ben and Manhattan.

The End

Thanks for reading, please review. Jenn