Yes, I'm trying again. I saw Spider-Man 2 again last night, since it just came out in DVD, and it gave me new ideas. For those who read the other story I started; yes, it's the same OC. Yes, the story is going in the same direction, I just can't decide on how it does! Thanks for bearing with my mental instability and incapacity of making a decision. I'll try to stick to this one. Enjoy it! (while you can…) I'm a demon without even meaning it… Ok, 'nuff said. Go on, read!

Disclaimer: I don't own Spider-Man, nor anything related to the Marvel Universe. And I never will. *moans in agony* I only own my OC Philomène.

Introductions

Philomène Paradis had arrived shortly after Spider-Man's disappearance. New York's not safe, were the media saying. Don't go in New York, it's dangerous; Spider-Man is not there to help you.

What, were the police so helpless they couldn't handle a few weeks without the masked vigilante? she had thought mockingly. They had been alright for centuries before Spider-Man had arrived, so why now more than any other time?

That is why she had gone to New York City anyways. She didn't mind the thrill, in fact she craved it. Traveling was the best way of meeting new challenges, she believed.

"Where are you going to stay at night?" had asked her best friend Frederique Forest, while petting Ben, her big black dog lounging on the sofa. "You said it yourself, you're broke!"

Philomène Paradis had smiled at her worries: Fred didn't know any other way of traveling than staying in expensive hotels or resorts.

"It's called couchsurfing, big. You just ask some random person who lives in the city you'd like to visit to host you for a few days. It's free and you get to meet real nice people."

Fred's pretty face had scrunched into a grimace.

"Is it not… I don't know… you could stumble across some… really weird people."

Philo had barked a short laugh at that. She knew what her friend meant.

"That's the thrill, girl." She sat from her upside down position on the sofa. "It's a way to learn life, y'know."

No, Fred didn't know. She came from a quite wealthy family, thus didn't see the point in living in relative simplicity when you could have it all.

The blonde-haired girl had stared a bit at the short-haired brunette, and rolled her eyes.

"You're weird."

"I know. You tell me all the time." The other had answered with a cheeky smile.

But Fred wasn't listening anymore.

"Hey, look! I got a new match on Tinder!"

Ben let out a sleepy whine as it was Philo's turn to roll her eyes skywards.

Some people will never change, she had thought with a smirk.

She had spent days sending messages, asking for a place to stay in New York. It seemed everyone was busy on the week she had chosen to visit the City That Never Slept.

After many refusals, she had received a message from a young man about her age, who lived in Queens. Not exactly downtown, she had thought, but it'd have to do.

Philo had answered hurriedly, making sure he could really host her for a whole four days.

Yeah, provided that you help me a bit with the laundry and the cooking, had been his written answer.

From what Philo had understood, he was living with his aunt, who was working a lot to make ends meet and didn't have much time to do her usual household chores.

Philo could live with that.

Sure, she had written back, and that was settled. She was to leave in a week, and her excitement was growing with each day that passed.

"What's his name?"

"Peter."

"Is he cute?"

Of course she had to ask.

"You know, I think he is. But that wouldn't change anything, now, would it? He's just my host," Philo had replied teasingly.

"No, no no, of course not."

Fred often found herself caught in her own shallowness.

The two girls had walked slowly in the greening park. Soon enough, it would turn all shades of red, orange and yellow. That was what autumn looked like in Montreal. But for now, it was still August, and the weather was warm and sunny.

"I might just meet Spider-Man!" Philo had exclaimed out of the blue.

"Yeah, right. I don't think you two would get along very well, you know, a clumsy girl like you and an acrobat? Not sure," Fred had laughed.

Philo had pouted, but only for the act. Her chuckles had quickly joined her best friend's.

"I think I might miss you. Maybe," she had muttered.

Fred had granted her a very toothy and very fake smile.

The girls had burst out laughing once again.

Shortly after that, Philo had hugged her parents, fist bumped her brother and quickly clasped her younger sister.

"Amuse-toi bien," had said her father in his usual worriless way as they had gathered in front of the house for a last goodbye.

"Fais attention," had advised her mother in her usual deadly serious way.

Philo had nodded to both of them, grinning from ear to ear, jumped into her old wreck of a car, checked if she had everything, and taken off.

It was a six hours drive. She had turned on the radio, listening for traffic indications or routes to avoid. That's when she had heard about Spider-Man's unfortunate disappearance.

"What the hell," she had muttered darkly. "They think they're going to keep tourists away with that?"

But then she had re-thought her own statement, and smiled devilishly.

"If so, city's all mine. Cheap food and no queues. Roadtrip!" She had called happily.

She had put on one of the many cd's she had brought and started singing along loudly. The weather was beautiful, she was alone, she was free, and she was going to visit every last bit of the United States.

Peter's life was a haze. It had been a week since Gwen… had left, and he couldn't get himself to feel anything. It was only emptiness. Everything inside felt like oblivion. When he had seen her broken body and had realized what it meant, something cold had started growing inside of him, at first searing his insides, but eventually numbing him completely, to the point where he couldn't feel anything at all. The winter inside was not raging, it was just… eternally, desperately still and quiet. Sometimes, deep in the night, the ice that was puncturing his heart and lungs would wake him up harshly, becoming so cold it would burn, sending him to the ground, gasping for fresh air as the tears would bite his skin like too many reminders of his failure.

He went to see her every single day. Every morning, his footsteps would carry him to the cemetery without him even realizing it, and he would just stand there, staring at her grave. Grave. Another word he couldn't comprehend. Another concept that left him falling in his own emptiness. He was not staring at her beautiful and delicate face, her soft blond hair, her deep sea-green eyes. No, he was staring at her grave.

And Peter couldn't find anything to say. He wanted to speak, he wanted to say he was sorry, he wanted to tell her that he would do anything to go back and make things different. But there was nothing, no word in any language on this planet that would, that could excuse what he had done.

So he would just stand and stare through the haze that had become his life.

Translations: "Have fun" says the father, and "be careful" says the mother.

Ok, so here we go, first chapter! I just wanted to give an idea of the state of mind our two protagonists were in. Tell me what you think! Is the Philo believable? And what about Peter's grief? Talk to me. I want to know everything!