-Authors note: This will mix different versions of Eddie and Venom from the comics and movie/shows as one character-
A heavy sigh broke the silence of a box filled apartment. Deanna leaned against her windowsill that overlooked a busy street, seeing the clutter that made up the city reminded her of fond childhood memories that made a grin tug at her lips. The warm haze of the late evening sun setting created a blissful atmosphere for her. Though the work of moving was taxing, and the knowledge that she had to wake up at five in the morning for her internship was enough to make her want to pass out. The flight delay didn't help her grogginess either, her schedule had become overly cramped from it and it just reassured her distaste of airlines. Her eyes traveled around the stuffy apartment, over the shabby couch and hastily bought air mattress, to a scuffed up fridge.
She realized she ought to eat something, but she knew that the only things in her fridge were a few sandwiches, milk, and multiple peach products. This included a large number of jars of her father's fair winning peach jam. Not to mention her peach memorabilia that was scattered everywhere, a peach cookie jar sat on her stove, looking just peachy as her peach shaped clock overlooked it. Ever since she planted a peach tree back in Georgia, her parents decided they must get her everything peach related. Which was nice at the time of being fourteen, but now that she was in her twenties, it just seemed silly. She couldn't stand the idea of getting rid of them though, her parents were only trying to help make her move to the city less stressful, it was their way of staying with her and she was more than willing to amuse them.
Her body swayed as she decided instead to saunter over to the couch to lie down, not yet wanting to waste the rest of the day by sleeping, just a little rest to help get her mind together. New York reminded her so much of San Francisco, or maybe she just thought it did. She hadn't been in San Francisco since she was a child and the cities were still vastly different. She knew nothing about the area that she now lived in, other than that it was close to her job and also very close to, as the movers called it "a shitty hole to be in." Her fingers ran through her short dark hair, she didn't mind the risk, the joy that came with the opportunity of making a new life here far outweighed any fears she had. There was also a firm belief in her that she could take care of any problem that arose; she wasn't raised to be stepped on. A yawn escaped her and she could feel her body relaxing into the old couch, with a jolt she sat up, shaking off her feeling of weariness and groaning. She mumbled something about unpacking and got back to work at making her kingdom of boxes look more like an apartment.
The next morning was a daze; she wasn't used to being on such a tight schedule and not knowing the area meant she had to get up extra earlier to avoid wasting time if she became lost. Hours passed of mostly talking and getting to know her employers. Excitement ran through her at the opportunity to become an actual engineer, no longer having to tinker and fix farm equipment for money, but she was having a hard time paying full attention in her state of mind. She realized that within the next month she would need to acquire another job in order to maintain her rent. Not knowing anyone in the area didn't help at all, there was no grapevine to work from, and all knowledge had to be dug for.
Clouds crowded the skies as she made her way out of the large building and towards her home, threatening to pour rain down. It wasn't very late in the day, but the sky was quickly darkened and a chill hit her from the upcoming rain. She adjusted the collar to her turtleneck sweater, pulling it up to her chin for warmth. The thought to check the weather earlier didn't cross her mind in the slightest; she was in too much of a hurry. She judged that it was over a thirty minute walk to her work if she didn't stop somewhere. A groan echoed in her throat as the first droplets of water hit her dark skin. She paused and started to judge the area she was in, trying to think of shortcuts back to her apartment. Her eyes strained as she looked around, some people hurried by to cabs or across the street, others just passed her by as wind clawed at her. Deanna looked down the alley next to her, judging that it probably led to the road she needed to go. The area seemed oddly sketchy, but as the rain started to pour down and drench her clothes, her mind made a quick decision and she started to make her way quickly into the alley. It winded around multiple buildings, creating an intricate path, but she was sure she knew where she was going.
Thunder started to boom in the distance and she kept her head down to avoid getting water in her eyes. Shudders ran down her spine from the cold and one wrong step on a piece of trash forced her to slip to the ground, landing on her rear. She paused with a frown before getting up and brushing off the dirt. Suddenly the sound of running could be heard, or maybe she was just now noticing it. The sound of a skirmish happening was loud in her ears. She cautiously approached an intersection of the alley, where the corners of four buildings met. Another boom of thunder and a man suddenly pushed her, grabbing her arm and shoving her passed him as he fled. She stumbled forward, the shock put her in a tizzy, her eyes went to follow the man that was far behind her now, but she ended up falling into a wall.
Deanna winced, clenching her teeth and then realizing that there was no way there could have been a wall there. Her eyes grew wide and darted to the front to see what she had fallen towards. A dark gigantic figure grabbed her arms and pulled her up to greet its gnarled toothy face in a sharp movement. She lost her breath for a moment as she met the thing's white 'eyes.' Its head was large and along with its teeth, it held a sharp grotesque tongue. It gurgled out a growl that started to turn into a frightening roar, and then it stopped. Its strange eyes stared into hers. The monstrous thing looked into her frightened eyes. Something about her eyes and face seemed to click in the shadowy beast's mind. The meaty creature had its large clawed hands tightly wrapped around her arms, causing her to gasp in discomfort. She was too shocked to make proper words, still trying to understand what was happening. The creature's face twitched and the sickening smile it had a minute ago curled down into a confused frown. She yelled and her voice cracked "LET GO" Soon its grip loosened and Deanna instinctively started to wiggle out of its hands, about to kick it before the monster just simply stopped holding onto her, letting her hop back to the ground. It made a gurgling noise, it seemed almost pained, the word "sorry" whispered out between its teeth with a harsh tone. For something so large and menacing, it seemed to shrink slightly, as if it were embarrassed. She stumbled back and gripped for the nearest wall, her legs twitched and adrenaline started to pump, telling her to run. The creature started to back away, and Deanna paused to stare at it, "what's it doing?" She thought to herself as it made an eerie and deep whining noise at her. Now she didn't know if running was a good idea, would it set the thing off and have it spring towards her? She didn't understand the situation and she slowly took a step back.
Gun shots rung in her ear with sudden sharpness, causing her to trip and barely regain her balance. She kneeled down and held her ears, the ringing in her head stopped when she looked up and realized the gigantic monster of a man was now over her. Its position was shocking at first as it crouched over her kneeling body. Then she realized it was being protective, it growled as pieces of flying lead hit its back, seeming to do no damage to the beast. It roared loud enough to vibrate her insides and then it turned around and leapt at the shooter with ease. This was enough for Deanna, without another minute, she sprinted up and ran. She was done dealing with this horror show. Her questions were put on hold as she flew down the alley and out of it, trying to get to her apartment as quickly as possible.
The sounds of what was happening behind her slowly faded away and in what seemed like a split second, she reached her apartment complex's door. She paused to open it, breathing heavily as she slinked inside the door and made her way upstairs at a much slower pace. The whole run home seemed to have almost never happened; her mind was in overdrive, giving her little to no time to properly digest anything going on around her.
Her hands shook when she searched for her keys to open the door, she felt clumsy and angry with how she handled the situation. Running could have ended badly, but there was no way she could have taken on that thing without a weapon, and looking back, she almost felt thankful for it. It seemed to have been protecting her, but she wasn't sure, the mind can play tricks on people. Her whole body shook and she lazily walked over to her bed and flopped down on it. Her breathing calmed and she started to thank the heavens that she made her way home without getting shot. She truly realized how little she knew about the area, the only thing she heard of was of a person named 'Spiderman' that seemed to be a superhero of sorts in New York, but that was no hero she saw. Deanna clutched at a pillow and gurgled out the word "fuck" into it. The whole event was getting to her, but she refused to have it cause a meltdown. She made muffled yell into the pillow and let it go, she just had to deal with it and move on.
The thought of calling the cops finally crossed her mind, but before she even looked at her phone, she heard sirens nearing the area. Someone else must have already called in the gunshots. Her mind started to waver as her pillow seemed to feel softer. She sighed and nuzzled her face into it as sleep started to fill her head. Images of the monstrous being with wicked teeth and a lashing tongue pervaded her dreams the rest of the night.