My symbiote-created clothes cling to my body like a second skin as Ellie guides me through the doorway of my dorm room. The trek across campus was mercifully quick and silent, both of us processing what just happened on that rooftop. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I nearly died teleporting too far, and that Venom, of all people, saved my life through the most unexpected method possible.
Ellie closes the door behind us, her shoulders visibly relaxing as she leans against it. Gone is the tense, predatory woman from dinner, replaced by someone almost... comfortable. The transformation is startling.
"How are you feeling?" she asks, her piercing blue eyes scanning me from head to toe. "Are you alright? Is your breathing okay?"
I take a deep breath, testing my lungs. The pain that had crushed my chest is completely gone, like it never happened. "Yeah, I think I'm good. No more blood, heart feels normal." I pause, then add with a nervous laugh, "Your, uh, medical intervention was very effective."
Ellie tilts her head suddenly, her gaze going distant. "Huh?" she mutters, clearly not talking to me. Her lips press into a thin line as she listens to someone I can't hear.
After a moment, she refocuses on me. "Oh, alright." She nods slightly, then gestures toward my chest. "My other says you're doing good. The damage to your heart tissue is completely repaired."
"Thanks," I say, not knowing what else to add. How exactly does one properly thank the alien symbiote that just saved your life while its host was fucking the life back into you.
The silence stretches between us, thick with unasked questions. I shuffle awkwardly, painfully aware that my clothes are literally alive and borrowed from her body.
"So, uhh..." I rub the back of my neck, searching for the right words. "You're Venom, huh?"
Ellie laughs, a genuine sound that transforms her face. The hardened journalist melts away for a moment, revealing someone almost playful.
"Yeah," she says, pushing herself off the door. "And you teleport."
"Yeah," I confirm lamely.
We stare at each other, neither adding anything more to this profound exchange. The symbiote ripples slightly beneath her skin, visible even through her clothing, like dark water beneath ice.
"I'm not going to tell anyone," I blurt out suddenly. "About you being Venom, I mean."
"You better not," she warns, but there's a smile playing at the corners of her mouth. Her eyes sparkle with something that might be amusement.
"So..." I gesture vaguely between us. "That was quite a strange first date."
She laughs again, louder this time, her head tilting back slightly. "I guess so."
Ellie moves across the small dorm room and sits down on my bed, the cheap mattress dipping under her weight. The symbiote-clothes she created for me shift slightly against my skin, responding to her proximity like they want to return home.
"So what's the deal with your powers?" she asks, leaning forward with genuine curiosity. "The more you teleport, the more you pour out some kind of... horny energy?"
My face heats up immediately. "I guess? I'm still learning myself." I pace the small space between my desk and bed, hyper-aware of her watching me. "It's all pretty new."
"That's a dangerous power," she observes, her eyes tracking my movements. Then she tilts her head slightly, listening to the symbiote's silent communication. "And my other half says your skin and bones seem to be stronger than a regular human's. Not a lot stronger, but you seem to be able to take a punch."
"Wait, really?" I stop pacing and stare at her.
"Yeah," she confirms with a nod. "It also thinks if you worked on your cardio, you'd be able to push yourself farther without literally dying when you teleport."
I laugh, surprising myself with how easily it comes after everything that's happened. "That's really good advice. Thank you."
"Consider it professional courtesy between powered individuals," she says, leaning back on her elbows. The casual posture looks strange on someone who radiates such intensity. "Though most of us don't nearly kill ourselves trying basic maneuvers."
"Hey, two hundred feet isn't basic," I protest, gesturing wildly. "That's like... Olympic-level teleporting."
Ellie grins at my protest, then a thoughtful expression crosses her face. "Isn't there an X-Woman who can teleport? Like, really miles at a time?"
"Nightcrawler," I nod, impressed she knows about her. "And yeah, she's not limited by sight like I am."
Ellie studies me for a moment, her blue eyes searching my face. "And you really want to be a hero, huh?"
"Yeah."
She sighs, running a hand through her short blonde hair. "That's going to be an uphill battle, you know."
I move to sit beside her on the bed. Our shoulders nearly touch, and I can feel the warmth radiating from her body.
"I want to at least try," I tell her, my voice quiet but determined.
Ellie stares at me for a long moment, something unreadable flickering in her eyes.
"Why not join me and help me instead?" she finally says, her voice casual but her eyes intense.
My heart skips a beat at the offer. Part of me, a bigger part than I'd like to admit, is tempted. Working with Venom would be incredible. But it's not what I want for myself.
"I don't want you to hurt Spider-Woman," I say carefully.
Her face darkens instantly, jaw tightening as her eyes flash with something dangerous. The symbiote ripples more visibly now.
"Look," I continue, pushing through despite the warning signs, "I can see it in your eyes. You hate her. I know she screwed you over with the whole journalism thing." I glance meaningfully at her body where the symbiote pulses beneath her clothes. "And I know you hate her because she separated from you. But it's not worth it, Ellie. Who cares? It's just a waste of time."
The temperature in the room seems to drop several degrees. Ellie's expression hardens, her eyes narrowing to icy slits. For a terrifying second, I think I've pushed too far.
"You don't understand," she says, her voice dangerously quiet. "She ruined my career. My life. She took everything from me."
"That's not true," I reply, shaking my head firmly. "You're still in college, Ellie. Your career isn't over. It's barely started! Look at the journalism landscape right now. People way worse than you are pumping out fake news every single day and still have careers. So you made one mistake. Who cares?"
Her eyes widen, flashing with fury. She stands abruptly from the bed, her movements sharp and dangerous. The symbiote ripples across her body in agitated waves, responding to her anger.
"Don't," she snarls.
I watch in fascination as the symbiote-clothes I'm wearing begin to liquefy, black tendrils slithering off my skin and flowing back toward Ellie like water drawn to a magnet. The material peels away from me in ribbons, leaving me sitting naked on the bed as every last drop returns to her.
"Don't you dare compare me to those shit peddlers," she hisses, towering over me. "And don't you fucking think you can tell me what to do just because we fucked once."
I sigh heavily, suddenly exhausted by all of it, the near-death experience, the rooftop sex, this argument with someone who clearly isn't ready to hear what I'm saying. "Ellie…"
But she's already turning away, stalking toward the door with predatory grace. The symbiote swirls around her like an angry storm cloud, reflecting her mood.
"Stay away from Spider-Woman," she warns. "She's mine to deal with."
For the briefest moment, I catch a flicker of regret in her eyes. Then she's gone, the door slamming behind her with enough force to rattle the cheap frame.
I exhale slowly, suddenly aware I'm sitting completely naked on my dorm room bed.
"Well, that went well," I mutter to the empty room, running a hand through my hair. "Made out with Venom and pissed her off in the same night. But I am alive. A win is a win."
My phone buzzes on the desk where Ellie must have placed it. I grab the first piece of clothing I can find, a pair of boxers from my dresser, and pull them on before checking the notification.
It's Piper.
The text message preview makes my stomach drop: "Hey im so sorry i blew you off. had an emergency i had to deal with. im so so so so so sorry."
I can't help but laugh, the sound hollow in my empty room. Four "so's" worth of apology for standing me up. If she only knew what happened instead.
I glance at the time stamp: 10:11 PM.
"Damn, Parker," I whisper, calculating the hours in my head. "That's four hours after our planned date."
I stare at the message, thinking about what that "emergency" actually was. Probably swinging around the city saving lives while I was getting intimate with her archnemesis on a rooftop. The cosmic irony is almost too much.
My thumbs hover over the keyboard for a moment before I type: "No problem. Hope everything is alright."
I hit send, then flop backward onto my bed, staring at the ceiling. It's hard to be mad at Spider-Woman. Her life must be a constant juggling act of responsibilities, classes, photography, and superheroics.
My phone buzzes again with her reply: "Thanks for understanding. Can we reschedule? Coffee tomorrow, maybe 2 pm?"
I stare at Piper's text.
My mind drifts back to that rooftop, to Ellie's intensity, the way she saved my life through the most bizarre method possible. There's something magnetic about her that pulls at me in ways I can't fully explain. But that final conversation revealed how much anger still burns inside her, she's nowhere near ready for anything real. The woman is a walking hurricane of rage and vengeance, wrapped in a symbiote suit and stunning good looks.
And yet...part of me still wants to pursue her. I can't deny the connection we shared was unlike anything I've experienced before.
I sigh, running a hand through my hair again. It's not like I hooked up with Venom to spite Piper. I didn't even know if Piper would ever reschedule our date. And technically, Piper stood me up first, so I shouldn't feel guilty about what happened after.
But I do feel a twinge of... something. Not quite guilt, but a sense that I'm already getting tangled in a web of complications I barely understand.
"Keep it simple, Shane," I mutter to myself, staring at my phone.
I type back: "Coffee sounds great. See you at 2."
As I set my phone down, I make a decision. For now, I'll just try to be friends with Piper. See where things go naturally. No pressure, no expectations. Besides, I still need to wrap my head around the fact that she's Spider-Woman. Plus theres still MJ.
"One day at a time," I whisper, pulling my blanket over my naked body.