Silk & Cologne (43)
A Miguel O'hara x OC Series - Link to AO3 (X)
Chapter 43 - Leap - previous chapter (X)
Pairing: Miguel O'hara x Female OC
Words: 4.7K+ words
Warning: PG - jumping off buildings, free falling, parkouring, brief sad backstory
Summary: Miguel takes Lisa on a tour of Nueva York
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When I arrived in Earth 928 at the Spider-Society headquarters, I was greeted by the charming smiles of both of the O’Hara brothers. Gabriel’s smile was playful and cherry as he tossed me a flirty wink and quip. Miguel rolled his eyes at his brother, elbowing him in the shoulder, and after recovering from his protective tantrum, his smile returned as he handed me a container of food.
I respected Miguel’s wishes in keeping our relationship professional while at HQ. But that wouldn’t stop me from showing him my appreciation after realizing how hungry I was after rehearsal was extended for over an hour. I looked around to make sure the three of us were the only ones in the area before standing up on my toes to peck Miguel’s cheek with a quick kiss.
“Thank you, Migs,” I smiled sweetly at him before I dug into my meal.
His cheeks had flushed, the kiss surprisingly catching him by surprise as the three of us walked down the hall. Miguel gave me a look as he raised a hand to his cheek, his fingertips brushing along the spot where I had left my token of affection.
I felt his stare as I swallowed my bite of food before looking up at him. “What? I made sure no one was looking,” I offered him a teasing smirk.
Miguel huffed, his chest puffing as he tried and failed to hold back a chuckle. “That you did,” He shook his head. “Already looking for a way to bend the rules are you?”
“What can I say?” I shrugged as I snuck in another bite. “You have that effect on me,”
“You two are just adorable,” Gabriel cooed.
Miguel immediately shot Gabriel a look, his gaze piercing his very soul. “Gabri–!”
“I know, I know, I didn’t see nothing,” Gabriel rose his hands in surrender, “But Lyla see’s all,”
“That she does!” The AI herself momentarily appeared at Gabriel’s side, patting his head lovingly before vanishing.
I made small talk with Gabriel as we walked, partially because I felt bad about Miguel scolding him. Sure they were brothers and they could get on each other's nerves almost 24/7, but wouldn’t it hurt to have a conversation without at least one joke or nitpick towards one another? Again, I am an only child, and if this is some form of showing sibling love and affection, I wouldn’t know.
As we walked through the hall and passed the occasional patrol unit, I felt almost naked walking around the Society in my normal clothes. It was like waking up here all over again. I couldn’t believe everything had happened in just over a month. It certainly didn’t feel like that, in fact, I wouldn’t have been surprised if it was actually longer.
I finished my dinner by the time we arrived at Gabriel’s workshop. Hovering on the same platform where I had stood before to get my old suit upgraded, was my new and improved suit. It looked the same as before, but with better stitching it seemed and fresh fabric and spandex. My eyes sparked, my lips curling into a smile as I approached the platform, the food container long forgotten.
“This looks amazing!” I beamed before turning back to the brothers. “It’s like it never left,”
“And there’s hoping it stays that way,” Miguel gently teased me, hands behind his back as he approached me, “But that’s not your suit,”
“Eh?” I raise a brow at Miguel. “What are you talking about? That’s my suit,”
“It’s one of your suits. This suit you can use for your show, yes,” Gabriel clarified as he walked over to his console, pressing a few buttons as a compartment opened up and he pulled out a chip. He held it up with a proud smile, “Now this on the other hand is your actual suit, should you want it”
“Huh?” Now I was majorly confused as I exchanged a look between the two brothers.
“Big brother, do the honors,” Gabriel smirked as he tossed the chip over to Miguel.
Miguel caught it in his large hand, controlling his strength to not crush the little device with his fingers. He stepped closer to me, gently taking my wrist as he installed it into my gizmo. I watched his fingers closely, entranced by their movements.
Miguel’s eyes glanced over my face, a soft smile on his face, “It was my idea,” He spoke before taking a step back. “Give it a try,”
I glanced down at my Gizmo, seeing a new feature light up on the screen. I pressed the button and the gizmo lit up briefly in recognition before some form of hard light washed over my body. I gasped, startled as I stood back and shut my eyes. I didn’t feel any pain, or felt any different for that matter.
“Lisa, it’s alright,” Miguel reassured me gently as I felt his hands engulf mine, lowering my hands from my face. “Take a look,”
I glanced down at myself and nearly stopped breathing. It was my suit. It was on my body.
I was at a loss for words as I examined myself, taking in every inch of me as I turned and moved around. “I don’t– How?!”
“Holographic Nano-Technology,” Miguel answered me with a knowing smile. I watched as he flicked his wrist and his left sleeve of his suit suddenly dematerialized, snaking up his arm to show off his muscled tone forearm and bicep. “Look familiar now?”
I tried not to blush as I noticed the slight tufts of body hair along his arm. I tried not to make it obvious that I was staring at his flexing muscle, but it was hard when he was clearly doing it on purpose to make me look.
My eyes widened at the realization as I pointed at him. “It works just like yours!”
“Exactly, however the difference between ours, I have sensors implanted in my body allowing me to telepathically trigger the suit on command, should the need arise,” He explained before casting me a reassuring look. “Don’t worry, I opted for yours to be the less painful method,”
“Now you don’t have to worry about running back to your apartment to grab your suit before coming here, or worrying about your friends or family accidentally finding it,” Gabriel crossed his arms, giving me an almost teasing glance. “Or villains and their cronies stealing it,”
My eyes flared as I glared over at Miguel. “You told him?”
“I had to give him a valid reason to go through with the idea,” Miguel rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment.
“His original idea of you two matching was enough, but I toyed with him and said that it wasn’t enough to convince me,” Gabriel grinned.
“Hey!” Miguel’s nostrils flared as he gave Gabriel a pointed look.
I could see the look in Miguel’s eyes, knowing he could be seconds away for murdering his brother for outing him like that. I quickly stepped between them, placing a steady hand on Miguel’s chest. “I think it’s a really cool idea, Miguel, I appreciate you thinking about me,”
Miguel’s face softened as he looked down at me, his muscles relaxing as he lowered his arms. There was a sound from behind me as Gabriel had coughed in his hand before motioning for me to continue, obviously waiting for his turn of praise. I offered him a knowing smirk, though my eyes spoke genuine appreciation.
“You too, Gabriel, thank you for fixing up my suit, again,” I chuckled softly.
Gabriel smirked, offering me a gracious bow. “If my work is done, I’ll leave you to it,”
Miguel rolled his eyes at his brother before offering him a nod of gratitude as he left. “So, how does it feel?” He glanced down at me.
I quickly realized my hand was still on his chest, and while I normally would have blushed like a tomato at the gesture, I managed to keep myself calm enough to the point I wouldn’t faint as I pulled away and took a moment to look at myself in the suit again. “I think I’ll need to go on that test drive before I make a decision,”
“Is that so?” Miguel purred gently as a grin curled on his lips, arms crossing over his chest.
“Well, I was promised a tour of Nueva York, wasn’t I?” I reminded him casually, hands behind my back.
“That you were,” Miguel nodded before offering me his arm. “I always keep my promises, smart girl,”
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Before we left, I changed out of my clothes, keeping my underclothes on, before equipping my new spider suit in order to get the full experience of its potential. It was Miguel’s suggestion, based on his own experience fighting crime in a holographic suit.
“What do you usually wear under your suit, Miguel?” I asked him with a genuine expression. “Like anything with a specific material or fabric that helps make. . . things more comfortable?”
“Wait, you’re asking me?” Miguel looked at me, eyes widened in surprise.
“Well, I mean, you’re one of the first Spider-People I met and first started teaching me the ropes,” My cheeks flushed at his reaction as I caressed my arm nervously. “I was just wondering if you could give me pointers is all,”
Miguel placed his hands on his hips as he glanced over to the side, the gears in his head turning. “Other than protective padding for well, you know,” He inclined his head down, and I didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to know what he was referring to. “I. . . I don’t wear anything,”
I could see the flush on his cheeks darken as his voice went quiet and in the split second it took me to realize what he had meant, his face turned completely red, matching with my own. “You mean you go commando?” I found myself saying aloud.
“Lisa–!” His face was almost as red as a tomato, taken back at my forward question. He brushed a hand through his hair before snaking back to rub the back of his neck. “I– well, yeah. . .”
“Oh. . .” my cheeks flushed a shade darker as I shuffled my feet, glancing at the floor for a moment before slowly getting the courage to look back at him. “Are you. . .?”
Miguel sighed, bringing his hand around to cover his mouth in an attempt to hide his blush. He shakes his head as a soft, low chuckle escapes his lips as he lowered his hand. “Am I commando right now?”
He said it for me. I nodded, almost afraid to say the words aloud.
Miguel takes a deep breath before meeting my gaze. “I am,” he answered honestly before taking a careful step closer towards me. “Does that make you feel uncomfortable, Mona?”
I gawk at his question, fumbling nervously, “Oh! No, no, I’m okay. I mean, you do whatever makes you more comfortable. You guys wear the suits all the time, right? Do what you gotta do,”
“So you’re fine with it?” He asked me, raising a brow in my direction.
Now that I got a good look at him, and seeing the outlines of his muscles, his chest, the abs, his back, and the. . . competition to ‘America’s Ass’. His suit left nothing to the imagination. Miguel really wasn’t wearing anything underneath.
My heart started pounding in my chest, palms sweating, and butterflies fluttered in my stomach.
He’s been commando this whole time that I’ve known him in the suit?!
Am I fine with this?
“Yeah! Totally fine,” I nodded almost too eagerly, brushing off his worry. “I’ll take a note on the padding,”
We stood on the private balcony coming out from Miguel’s private elevator that overlooked the city. The sun had already set and the bright neon city lights were taking form like stars across the skyscrapers and street lamps. They looked like small specs from where we were.
Miguel glanced over, caressing a steady hand on my shoulder. “You ready?”
“Wait, you want to leave from up here?” I asked him, whipping my head to look at him.
“I think it’s the most scenic route into the city,” Miguel offered me a kind smile as he began walking towards the edge, turning to face me. “I promised you a tour after all,”
“I’ve never done a leap this high before,” I cautiously followed after him, the hairs on my neck and arms tingling as I glanced down to the city below, “Not even during training here at HQ,”
“That’s all it is, Lisa,” Miguel reassured me with a gentle look. “A leap of faith,”
Something about those words struck a chord in me as I watched Miguel standing up on the railing of the balcony. Miguel offered me his hand and with an anxious tremble, I took it and he helped me up to stand beside him. The wind was beginning to pick up as Miguel’s mask materialized over his face, his eyelets widening as he looked over at me. “I’ll be here to catch you if you need me,”
The next thing I knew, he jumped, taking a swan dive off the balcony towards the city surface. I couldn’t help but stare as I watched him fall. In another life, maybe he could have been an olympic diver or swimmer. Then again, this is the multiverse, so perhaps there was a dimension somewhere where that was in fact a reality.
Okay, now I’m just rambling to stall myself from jumping, come on, Lisa!
After scolding myself to toughen up, I took a deep breath, flexing and wiggling my fingers to ease my nerves and to somehow manifest my hands to stop sweating. I repeated Miguel’s words in my head, over and over again. I took one more look at the city below me before closing my eyes.
I jumped.
The felt the wind first, blowing through my hair and against my body as I began free falling towards the city. My body front flipped and swayed as I basked in the thrill, my heart pounding so hard in my chest I thought it would burst and soar away. The bright lights drew closer and bigger.
I was beginning to understand skydivers a bit better now. This was exhilarating!
Okay, wait for it. . . Now!
I fired a web sling at the building closest to my location. I watch as the web connects and my fingers grip around the sling and I find myself swinging over a highway, just high enough to avoid the traffic of hover cars. I let go and fired another web sling, swinging again.
I was doing it! I was web slinging through the city!
As I swung, I took a moment to glance around. Nueva York’s skyscrapers and buildings were sleek and definitely screamed future. Literally every building I saw was made with white metal plating and glass, and their lights were as bright as christmas lights. Holographic projects of brand advertisements, TV promos could be seen on every other block, and their parks and areas where there were green were kept clean and surprisingly organized and well kept.
I couldn’t help myself as a joyful laugh escaped my lips as I swung around a corner, attempting a mid air barrel roll before firing another web sling. When there’s no villains or anomalies to worry about, this was so much fun!
“Look at you!” Miguel’s voice rang through the air as he swung to my side, appearing from a different corner. He must have hung back and watched me to allow me to get my bearings first. “I knew you could do it, I’m so proud of you,”
“Really?” My voice cracked through the wind as the eyelets of my mask widened from his praise.
“I mean it, Mona Lisa,” I could hear Miguel’s smile through his mask. “Now, let’s start that tour. Follow me,”
Miguel led the way as he showed me around the city. From what I could gather during my time in my dimension’s New York, it looked like a lot of the streets and locations were roughly the same in both dimensions. Though there were subtle differences between the two, giving Nueva York its own charm.
Miguel showed me Central Park, which I thought was prettier than the one back home. They had a giant holographic chess board where you could control the pieces with digital remotes. We snuck in a quick game before heading over to the Rockefeller Center where their ice rink was kept frozen year round, and after taking a quick break to grab a snack from a place called ‘Tony’s’, I could just barely make out the statue of liberty.
The two of us swung up and touched down on the roof of a build, taking a moment to catch our breath. I shook my arms, loosening the joints as my muscles started to ache from the swinging. I glanced over towards Miguel, “Okay, I can admit it, Nueva York looks so much cooler than my New York,”
“Now, now, this isn’t a competition,” Miguel shook his head, chuckling quietly as he neared me.
“But if it was, you’d win?” I asked him with a knowing look.
“Oh absolutely,” I could practically hear the grin on his face as he placed his hands on his hips.
I laughed at his comment as I looked at his suit, my gaze shifting down and up. Felt nothing to the imagination indeed. I could feel the chill from the wind as it flew through my hair, glancing around. “What’s here?”
“See that building over there?” Miguel pointed, “The one with the ivory plating?”
I followed his direction to see that exact building. It was one of the few buildings I saw that didn’t have the go to white futuristic aesthetic. “Yeah?”
“That is Babylon Towers,” Miguel explained, his voice suddenly turning soft, “It was my home. . . with Xina,”
The eyelets of my mask widened as I glanced over at him. I noticed his shoulders had relaxed, but kept up a straight, hardened stance that showed off his powerful back as I stepped closer to him.
“It was my first apartment after moving away from Gabriel and our folks. It was there where I woke up that one morning and realized me getting my powers wasn’t some crazy dream,” He went on, reminiscing, “Xina gave birth to Gabriela right on the living room floor,”
“You’re kidding?!” I gawked at the man.
Miguel chuckled at the memory, shaking his head. “By the time I called the hospital and got her bag ready to go, she was so far dilated, she insisted on having her right there and then. The door man came up and helped me deliver our baby girl right before the paramedics arrived,”
“Wow. . .” I could help but smile. “Xina. . . she sounds awesome,”
“She really was,” Miguel nodded his head in agreement.
“You don’t live there anymore?” I asked him gently, reaching for his hand, silently offering.
He caught my movement by the corner of his eye. He sighed, his large fingers reaching over and grasping my own. “Shortly after she passed away, and then Gabri–” he paused, as if struggling to finish the sentence, “The memories were too much. Some villains had also gotten too close noticing my comings and goings. I sold the apartment to a co-worker of mine, and moved in to my current private residence shortly after to be closer to Alchemax,”
I listened to him attentively, allowing him to finish his explanation before speaking up.
So the Spider-Society Headquarters is in this dimension’s Alchemax building?
“I’m sure that must have been hard,” I spoke gently, my thumb gently rubbing against his hand. “I’m sorry,”
“It took me a while to come to terms with it,” Miguel took a deep breath before glancing over at me, “But I learned to move on,”
We both stood there for a little while, hand in hand as we stared and admired Babylon Towers. It was a beautiful building. Perhaps if I was lucky and had quite a bit more paychecks under my belt, I could upgrade my living space and find something similar back home?
I gently gripped Miguel’s hand together, giving him a soft squeeze before pulling my hand away. “So, any other places you wanted to show me?”
“Unfortunately, Nueva York is so vast, it is physically impossible to show you everything in one night,” Miguel chuckled softly, slowly shaking off the earlier tension. “I’ve pretty much shown you everything I thought you’d like, so we can call it there for the tour. It’s getting late too, I wouldn’t want to keep you up, especially with this new rehearsal schedule you’ve told me about,”
“Ahh, you’re right,” I hissed at the reminder, “I probably should be getting back,”
Tomorrow was a holiday so the studio would only be open for half the day, but Kasey still wanted to use the space to practice after our session was done for the morning.
“The Private Eye is always so nosey,” Miguel grumbled, hindering some personal frustration of his own. “Best to portal home back at HQ,”
Private Eye? Ah, that’s right, they’re this dimension’s version of the New York City Police. Miguel had mentioned them briefly during our visit to the Rockefeller Centre after witnessing them catch some teenagers trying to spray paint the back of the skate rental vendor.
“Sure thing,” I began walking towards the edge of the building, Miguel following close behind me. A small smile curled on my lips as I suddenly reached back, smacking Miguel’s chest before breaking off into a sprint. “Race you there!”
“What– Hey!!” Miguel yelped, staggering back briefly. “Mona, that’s cheating!”
I could hear his heavy footsteps tailing after me as I leapt off the roof and fired a web sling, swinging away from the neighborhood of Babylon Towers. I fired one web sling right after another, swinging across the city as I attempted to retrace my steps back towards Spider-Society HQ. Seeing the brief flare of red light shine against the glass windows of the buildings around me told me that Miguel was close behind me.
“Do you even remember the way back, smart girl?” He called out to me.
“That won’t stop me from trying to beat you there first!” I yelled back.
“Oh, ho, ho, I’d love to see you try!” Miguel boasted with a hearty grin.
Miguel swung ahead of me, jumping on to the side of the building. Using his claws, he climbed up the side before jumping off, propelling himself to take a nosedive. I yelped and was about to reach for him when he suddenly latched his arms out, and red webbing sprang from his armpits, expanding into a glider as he suddenly started flying down the street.
“Now who’s the one that’s cheating!” I yelled after him.
“Don’t hate the player, hate the game!” Miguel barked a laugh. “This race is as good as mine,”
Miguel soares ahead and I was gaining more and more distance from him fast. I needed some sort of edge to catch up to him. I glanced up to see traffic of flying cars driving above us, with a wide enough gap for me to mix into them.
This was an incredibly stupid idea, but I’m doing it anyway.
I web slinged up closer to the traffic before firing a web sling towards the vehicle at the front of the gap. My webbing stuck on to the back bumper, and I hitched a ride, the wind blowing in my face even harder as I practically flew through the air. I climbed up the webbing and then began parkouring across the row of cars.
I jumped and skipped my way across, peering down between the small gaps that revealed the city below us to just barely make out Miguel’s body and his glider. I could see his head whipping around, wondering where I was. Now to catch him by surprise.
I jumped down from the side, firing another web sling to swing me forward to his side. “Hey Miguel!”
I didn’t quite catch what my web sling had latched on to, but as Miguel was turning his body to face me, my own body almost violently whipped around a corner and sent me flying down another street. My vision spiraled as my arms flailed in a panic. “AHH!”
“MONA!”
Miguel’s voice was almost able to snap me out of my trance as the street drew closer and closer to my head. That was until I felt a powerful arm grip around my form as Miguel caught me just in the nick of time and swung us both out of harm's way. My voice was lost to me as I breathed deeply, panting heavily as I clung to Miguel for dear life.
“I got you,” despite how hoarse his voice sounded from his scream, Miguel attempted to soothe me as he swung down the street. “You’re gonna be okay. Try to swing for me okay?”
I glanced over at him, confusing riddling my face before I glanced over and briefly watched the motions of his arms as he fired his own websling from the top of his wrist, swung, and let go. Rinse and repeat. Just like from Peter B.’s lessons.
With a shaking hand, I reached out my right hand and fired my own websling. Miguel and I swung together, going through the motions. Sling, swing, release. Sling swing, release.
Gradually our speed slowed down as Miguel guided us to a small park. Secluded from the hustle and bustle of the city, but a wide enough space to still swing around. Miguel fired one more web sling, his red glowing webs latching on to a large overhanging metal light post while with his other hand, gripped onto my websling.
Under the spotlight, the full moon hovering above in the night sky, our bodies slowly turned around as if we were on a carousel. Our bodies were inches from one another as we met each others gaze through the mask. My cheeks flushed as Miguel seemed to tilt his head down, looking at me closely.
I looked away out of embarrassment. “Thank you for saving me back there,”
“Are you alright?” He asked me gently.
I nodded softly, a gentle hum coursing through my throat.
“Lisa?” Miguel’s voice was a whisper as his hand let go of my websling, and carefully brought it down to cup the side of my face and angle my gaze back to meet his.
Something triggered in the HUD display of my mask. An infrared line ripped across the screen and suddenly I could see Miguel’s face through the mask. My pupils dilated at the sight as I caught the concerned look on his face.
“I’m sorry for scaring you,” I apologized.
“I supposed we were both a little eager in our competition,” He smiled softly, his thumb brushing against my cheek through the mask. “But this gives me an idea,”
I raised a brow at him and I slowly began to realize that maybe his suit had that same feature as mine and he was able to see my face as well. His soft smile morphed into a playful grin as his fingers slowly began to pull up my mask, just enough to reveal my lips to the cool night air.
“What kind of idea?” My voice was breathless as I spoke.
Even as Miguel’s thumb gently brushed against my bottom lip and made my knees buckle.
“Our own Spider-Man kiss,” He grinned.
Part of his mask vanished, revealing his chiseled chin, cheekbones and puffed lips.
Oh God-!
Wait, we’re in Nueva York of 2099. In this instance, I should be saying oh Thor.
I gasped softly, my lips forming a smile of my own as Miguel’s hand retracted, cupping my chin as he lowered himself closer. “Miguel~”
I remembered my heart pounding, and perhaps also hearing Miguel’s heart pounding in his own chest thanks to my spider-sense.
Wait, my spider-sense?
Our lips had just barely grazed one another when something large but swift flew overhead us. One moment we were hovering in the air, the next, we were plummeting to the ground below as our weblings were suddenly snapped by what looked like a metal wing.
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