[Perspective: Aryan Spencer]
The doors clicked shut, isolating us entirely from the hum of the main dining room.
I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the table, and looked directly at Peter.
"Listen to me, kid," I whispered. "You can order whatever you want to impress your girlfriend. I will pay for all of it."
Peter leaned forward, whispering back in the same hushed tone. "Dr. Spencer, isn't that... isn't that too much? This place looks like they charge for the napkins."
"Don't worry, Peter," I whispered back, offering a perfect Bruce Wayne-esque smirk. "I'm rich."
Peter blinked, absorbing the sheer bluntness of the statement. "Oh. Okay then."
A polite knock echoed from the heavy doors.
"Come in," I shouted, leaning back in my chair.
A waiter dressed in a pristine white jacket entered the room, holding a leather bound notepad. He stood at attention by the head of the table.
"What may I bring for the table this afternoon?" the waiter asked.
"We will start with the garlic butter tiger shrimp, the seared scallops, and a large platter of the wild boar ragu with handmade pappardelle," I said, glancing at Wanda, who offered a compliant nod. "Oh, and bring us a bottle of your finest Barbaresco."
I turned my gaze to Peter and MJ. "And for you two?"
"I'll have the truffle risotto," MJ said.
"I'll... I'll take the same," Peter echoed quickly.
"Would you like to add anything else?" I asked Wanda, placing my hand over hers on the table.
"No," Wanda smiled. "That already sounds like a feast."
"That is all for today," I told the waiter.
The waiter bowed slightly, retreating from the room and pulling the heavy doors shut behind him with a click.
As soon as the door closed, Wanda leaned slightly toward me, her voice dropping into a whisper.
"Aryan," Wanda whispered, her eyes flicking toward Peter. "He is Spider Man."
Peter visibly jumped in his chair, a look of soul crushing panic washing over his face. He looked wildly at the doors, then back at Wanda.
"Ma'am!" Peter hissed, holding his hands up frantically. "You can't just say that to everyone! It's a secret identity! Secret identity!"
"Do not worry, Peter," Wanda said calmly, waving a dismissive hand. "Aryan is our own. He is completely trustworthy."
Peter slowly lowered his hands, looking at me with a newfound intensity.
"Wait," Peter asked, leaning forward over the table. "Do you also have some kind of power, Dr. Spencer? Are you an enhanced individual?"
"Yes," I answered without a moment of hesitation, maintaining a completely stoic expression.
Peter's eyes lit up with excitement.
He practically vibrated in his chair. "Really? What is your superpower? Can you fly? Do you have energy blasts? Are you super strong?"
I looked him dead in the eye, letting a beat of silence build the tension.
"My superpower," I said gravely, "is 'I'm rich.'"
The excitement drained out of Peter's face like water out of a leaky bucket.
He slumped back into his velvet chair, looking disappointed.
"Oh," Peter mumbled. "Like... like Batman."
Wanda burst into laughter, covering her mouth with her hand as she leaned her head against my shoulder.
Peter looked incredibly embarrassed, rubbing the back of his neck and avoiding MJ's gaze.
"Does your girlfriend know that you are Spider Man?" I asked, steering the conversation to save the kid from his misery.
"Yes," Peter nodded, shooting a nervous glance at MJ. "I told her last night. After the opera."
"Oh, that is actually quite good," I offered. "In that way, she can understand your problems. Your sudden absences, your inability to give her all your time... you know, communication is very important for a long term relationship. Transparency prevents resentment."
Wanda gently slapped my bicep, her laughter subsiding into a fond smile. "Stop giving your advice, Aryan. You sound like a daytime talk show host."
"I am the love expert here," I defended, adjusting my cuffs. "I orchestrated his entire romantic triumph on the bridge that day. I demand respect."
MJ rested her chin on her hand, looking at us with her characteristic deadpan stare.
"What were you guys whispering about?" MJ asked.
"Oh, no, nothing," I said casually, waving a hand. "We were just talking about if you knew about his secret identity as Spider Man."
"Of course I know about that," MJ said, rolling her eyes. "It was very obvious from his incredibly suspicious behavior all the time. He literally disappears every time a monster shows up."
"Wow," I said, looking at Peter with a faux impressed expression. "You are quite observant regarding him, Miss MJ. He didn't stand a chance."
MJ didn't smile, but a faint pink hue touched her cheeks. "Nothing."
"Tell us about your experience as a Spider Man," I prompted, leaning back in my chair and crossing my arms.
Wanda also looked curious.
Peter rubbed his neck again, clearly unaccustomed to having an audience that included the Scarlet Witch.
"Well," Peter started hesitantly. "I fought an alien on an alien planet once."
"Wow," I said, infusing my voice with genuine awe. "That is quite an extraordinary experience for a high school field trip."
"Do not disturb him, Aryan," Wanda scolded softly, placing a hand on my thigh under the table.
"Okay, my lips are sealed," I promised, making a zipping motion over my mouth.
"It was... it was crazy," Peter continued, his hands moving animatedly as he got into the story. "We fought Thanos on Titan. Me, Mr. Stark, Doctor Strange, and those guys from space... We almost had the glove off his hand, but then things went really, really bad."
We all sat in silence, listening as Peter recounted the chaotic battle on the dead planet.
He described the purple sky, the crushing gravity, and the sheer terror of fighting a being that wielded the Infinity Stones.
Suddenly, a knock echoed on the mahogany door.
"Come in," I called.
The waiter entered, followed by a second staff member, both pushing silver trolleys laden with steaming dishes.
"Your meal, signore," the waiter announced softly.
They began arranging the food on the crisp white tablecloth one by one.
The garlic scented aroma of the tiger shrimp mixed with the rich scent of the wild boar ragu.
After placing the food, the waiter retrieved the bottle of Barbaresco, uncorking it with a swift motion.
He poured a generous measure into the crystal glass in front of me and then poured another measure into Wanda's glass.
"Buon appetito," the waiter murmured, bowing slightly before exiting the room and pulling the heavy doors completely shut.
"You can continue," I said to Peter, reaching for the serving tongs. "Don't let the arrival of the food stop your superhero monologuing."
I picked up the platter of garlic butter tiger shrimp, transferring a large portion onto my own plate.
I carefully picked up a steaming shrimp with my fork. Using my knife, I meticulously peeled the shell away from the tender meat, dragging the pink flesh through the pool of garlic butter resting on the plate.
I turned toward Wanda, hovering the fork in front of her lips.
Wanda smiled, her eyes crinkling with affection as she opened her mouth, accepting the bite. She chewed slowly, a soft hum of approval vibrating in her throat.
Peter, who had been mid sentence detailing a maneuver he had pulled on Titan, stopped talking.
He stared at me, then looked down at the unpeeled shrimp resting on the communal platter.
An embarrassed flush crept up Peter's neck. He hastily grabbed the serving tongs, dropping two large shrimp onto his own plate.
He fumbled with his knife and fork, awkwardly attempting to peel the shell off the shrimp, his movements jerky and uncoordinated compared to my smooth execution.
After wrestling the shell free, Peter hesitantly held his fork out toward MJ.
MJ looked at the shrimp, then looked at Peter's heavily blushing face.
She leaned forward and took the bite, chewing with her usual stoic expression.
"Thanks," MJ mumbled.
Peter beamed, a goofy smile taking over his face.
He cleared his throat, desperately trying to regain his train of thought. "So, yeah. And then... when I first came back from the Snap, I was still on that dead planet. I didn't know where we should go, or what was happening. But suddenly, there was this sparking yellow circle in front of me. And I stepped through, and I was back on Earth."
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