Right Place, Wrong Time

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1 - Tessa

Gwen reached out and touched the side of Tessa's face, lifting her head up and peering into the brunette's eyes. She sighed, dropped her hands, and rummaged through her bag before pulling out a tissue. Tessa took it eagerly, blowing her nose and dropping it into the trashcan they passed by. "Peter gave that to you, didn't he?"

Tessa nodded unhappily. "I had no clue he was sick. Isn't it common courtesy to tell someone? I just wanted one bite of his ice cream and suddenly I'm sicker than he was." Tessa sneezed, quickly covering her mouth with her elbow. She whimpered, her eyes red and watery.

"Are you sure you still want to come today?" Gwen asked, worried, eyeing Tessa. "I'm sure I could reschedule it for another day-"

"No, no, don't, I'm fine." Tessa sniffed and dug her hands into her pockets. "I want to go. If there's any chance I could get a job here, I'll go. And besides, Peter would never let me live it down if I didn't go through with it."

Gwen raised an eyebrow. "And why's that?"

"I have a... habit of not going through with things," Tessa replied mindlessly, shrugging her shoulders. "I'm trying to work on it."

Nodding, Gwen dropped the subject. "So, has Peter said anything to you? About our breakup?"

Tessa rolled her shoulders. "Why would he tell me anything?"

"You guys have known each other forever, so I expected he'd tell you something." Gwen shrugged. "You guys are basically siblings."

"True, but I don't think he'd tell me about something like that." Tessa adjusted the bag over her shoulder. "I don't think you have anything to worry about, to be honest. He really loves you."

Gwen gave Tessa a small smile. "And how come you haven't found anyone yet?" she asked, bumping into the girl's shoulder. "What happened to Jake?"

"We just... weren't compatible," Tessa said after a moment.

"But he was perfect for you, Tess," Gwen shot back. "Nice, polite, really into art-"

"But he could never hold a conversation with me." Tessa crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "And he wasn't that smart, to be honest. Not like I want a guy who has a PHd or something, but it'd be nice to have a guy with a little intelligence."

Gwen smiled. "I can understand that."

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Tessa had been to Oscorp before. Once before with Peter, and she'd walked to the doors with Gwen a few days because one of her art classes had been on the way. But it still managed to throw her off guard whenever she walked in.

"So, what do I do?" Tessa asked instantly. "Be your faithful servant?"

"Pretty much." Gwen made a gesture with her hand. "Now go get me some coffee."

Ever faithful, Tessa took a look around. Just a few feet from where they were standing, a few cups of coffee rested on a cart. Making sure no one was watching, she grabbed one and handed it over to Gwen, who scoffed. "You got lucky, Collins."

"I'm just doing my job, Stacy," Tessa replied easily.

"Oh, come on," she said, thrusting the cup back into Tessa's hands, who sipped it anyways. Gwen's face contorted into one of disgust. "That's gross, Tessa. You don't know whose coffee that was."

Tessa pointed towards the cart. "I bet you that cart is there just so employees can take a cup!"

"You're not an employee."

"Not yet. I'm thinking ahead."

"Oh, yes, sorry, my bad."

The elevator was empty besides the two of them, and Tessa finished her coffee. "Okay. So tell me, is it actually possible for me to get a job here? You're not just bringing me because Peter asked you to, right?"

Gwen frowned and shook her head. "No, of course not. Besides, Peter didn't ask me. He brought it up and I mentioned that you could come with me for a day to see how you liked it. I could try and get you an interview, too-"

"You're doing way too much for me already," Tessa interjected, cheeks red. "I can do the rest myself."

Gwen paused. "...If you're sure."

"I'm sure." Tessa nodded, completely unsure. Eager to change the subject, Tessa cleared her throat. "So, have you told Peter about that Oxford thing yet?"

Gwen shook her head. "No. Besides, it's a lot of other kids going for it. It's not like they've narrowed it down yet, and even when they do, I probably won't be picked-"

"Right. The day you're not picked is the day that I become ruler of the world."

"I shouldn't get my hopes up too high, right? And I wouldn't want to worry him over something that might not even happen."

"I understand that."

The doors opened and Gwen led Tessa towards her desk. They managed to find another chair and Tessa spun around as Gwen logged into her computer. When Gwen gave her a look, Tessa stopped and popped her feet up onto the desk, crossing her ankles. "So, what do I do now?"

"Give me a second," Gwen murmured as she typed something.

"Fine, ignore me," Tessa said in mock-sadness, pulling out her phone. She surfed through the internet for a moment, before going rigid in her seat. She sat up, her legs falling from the table. "Gwen, Gwen, Gwen?"

The blonde turned. "Yes?"

"Is it true that Harry Osborn is the head of Oscorp now?"

Gwen paused. "Yes. How did you not know?"

Memories of spending two whole nights awake helping Peter with fix and clean his suit entered Tessa's mind, and she shook them out instantly. She shrugged. "I've been busy. But that means he's probably here, right?"

"Probably, yeah." Gwen watched as Tessa moved down in the seat. "And why's that a bad thing?"

"Mostly because of the incident," Tessa told her after a moment. "I haven't told you about that, have I?"

"Nope." Gwen turned around fully in her seat, clasping her hands between her knees. "And now you're telling me the entire thing."

"There's honestly not much to tell," Tessa replied, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear. "Peter and I were friends with him when we were younger, and I... I pushed him into a pool. The worst thing about it was that it was super cold and we weren't even dressed to go swimming."

"What caused you to do that?"

"I was seven and I had a crush on him," Tessa retorted. "It seemed like the most logical thing to do."

Gwen laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. "That's kind of cute, Tess."

"Not when he got mad about it! I mean, I don't blame him, and Peter told me after that he wasn't really all that mad, but I still wasn't able to look him in the eye," Tessa blurted, shaking her head. "And then he left when we were eleven so I never got the chance to properly apologize."

"Well, maybe now's your chance," Gwen offered.

"Right." Tessa sighed, shaking her head. "I don't think so."

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"But I don't really want to go downstairs without you," Tessa argued. "What if someone asks to see my ID? Or I get in trouble?"

"Tell them you're with me," Gwen said simply. "They'll call and I can confirm."

"And you're sure I won't be arrested?"

"I'm sure."

"...Alright."

"Have fun, Tess."

Turning on her heel with a promise to make sure she made the coffee extra bad as payback, Tessa strolled towards the elevator. Once she was inside, she glanced around, still awed by everything. Her phone rang in her hand, and she answered it on the second ring. "Hello?"

"Tessa! How's it going?" Peter's voice was loud in her ear.

"You're calling me while you're in the air, aren't you?" Tessa replied, laughing. "I can hear the wind."

"You got me. How's work coming along?"

"Well, it's not my work yet." She leaned up against the wall, eyes wandering around the building, watching people move around on the other floors. "But Gwen was talking about possibly getting me an interview."

"Really? Awesome!"

"Yeah, completely awesome. But I don't know if it's really for me."

"What? Come on, Tessa, you love that kind of stuff. You'd be perfect."

"I don't know, maybe." She twirled a lock of hair around her finger. "To quote Gwen Stacy, 'I shouldn't get my hopes up too high.'"

Peter paused on the other end. "When did she say that?"

Catching her mistake, Tessa coughed. "Oh, man, I think we're breaking up. What? I can't hear you-"

"Tessa, I swear to-"

"Hmm? The line is all static, I swear-" When the elevator doors opened and Harry Osborn entered, Tessa coughed loudly and turned away quickly. "I really gotta go, Peter. Bye." She hung up and stuffed the phone in her pocket, turning her head ever so slightly to wearily stare at him.

He gave her nothing but a small smile and a nod.

She frowned; didn't he know who she was? She didn't want to sound rude or anything, but she recognized him in a heartbeat. Did she change that much? She turned to face forward again, still trying to see him out of the corner of her eye. She swallowed, paused, and then gave a big smile. "Hi!"

"Hi," he replied slowly. Tessa scowled inwardly when there was absolutely no recognition in his eyes.

Not like she needed him to recognize her. After a moment she rocked back on her heels. "I'm Tessa Collins."

He looked at her again. "Harry Osborn."

"I... I know." Flexing her fingers in her pockets, she sneezed, and then squared her shoulders. "I don't mean to sound weird, or anything, but don't you remember me? I pushed you into a pool when we were seven. I screamed and ran afterwards?"

He laughed, and Tessa, wondering if she had just made herself look like the biggest fool, took a step back.

"I was wondering how long it would take you to get upset," he said after a moment, and Tessa let out a sigh, realizing he had known all along it'd been her. "You always seemed to get mad when someone didn't remember you."

She rubbed her arm. "Bad quality of mine, I guess. It's been forever, though, hasn't it?"

"Yeah. Peter visited me yesterday. He didn't tell you?"

"No. I'll ask him why after the fact." She cleared her throat, her cheeks growing red. "I figure now is as good as any time to apologize for that whole incident, right? The throwing you in the pool one?"

He smirked. "Are you actually apologizing?"

Tessa crossed her arms. "I've gotten mature during the past few years. I'm rather sophisticated."

The elevators doors opened and they both left. Tessa had no clue where the cafeteria was, so she opted to just blindly follow Harry and hope for the best. "I had no clue you worked here," he said after a moment, as they turned a corner.

"I don't," she stated simply. "I came to visit for a day."

"With who?"

"Gwen Stacy," she replied.

He nodded, and Tessa wondered if Peter had told him about her. How must he have worded it? It was complicated, Tessa thought. That's what it was. "But," she continued, "I need a job here. And Gwen was talking about she could probably arrange me an interview, but now I don't need one, right?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"Come on. We're friends, right? And besides, you, like, own everything. You could get me in." Tessa playfully elbowed him. "I'm smart. You wouldn't be hiring an idiot."

"Are you positive?"

"Of course! You can check out my test scores!"

They had stopped at a door, and Tessa rested her elbow on the outside as he opened it. "Where are we?" she asked, peering inside.

"My office."

She wrinkled her nose. "Could you tell me where the cafeteria is?"

He paused for a moment. "Maybe if you wander around enough, you'll find it." He shut the door, and she frowned, wondering if anything had really changed.

"You suck," she said hotly, turning on her heel.

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A/N: This is super short, but I really wanted to post it! The chapters will get longer, I promise. Thanks for reading!