Very Important: Readers might have confused a few things in the first chapter. There was only one scene showing Spider-Noir, and that was the second scene of the chapter. Then later there was another scene where a man stood on top of a car and sucked out the life force of the Spider-Man before the people of that world. That Spider-Man wasn't Noir, and that man wasn't the one who had caught Noir in the second scene of the chapter. There's a difference. It had been mentioned that in Noir's world, people were not out on the streets. Also, I went back and edited the chapter a bit, in the sense that Noir's attacker was a huge man. I had previously forgotten to mention that. While the other Spider-Man's attacker was a thin man. I'm very sorry for the inconvenience.

I'm so glad that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has won the Golden Globe this year. It deserves it. The entire crew and all the people behind it did a pretty amazing job.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited and followed this story. You just make my day. This chapter is especially for you all...

Chapter 3: Pairing Up

Earth-8311

The tip of his fingers felt like thick iron rods trying to drill into the sides of Peter Porker's skull. A screaming rage of pain seared through the entirety of his head as it tended to crush inward. The evil red of Morlun's eyes bore into his with such intensity that he was almost paralyzed upon seeing the inexplicable hunger in them. With the last of his struggling consciousness, Peter's fingertips, almost numb, poked into the edges of his trouser pocket and reached for the one hopeful solid thing that lurked inside. It was cold, but the touch felt heavenly.

With one swift movement of his hand, shutting his eyes in pain, in a way that had to be undetectable by Morlun's demonic eyes, Peter struck out as hard as he could with the iron hammer his hand had grasped. There was a jerk and Peter's head was free and he landed on the floor. His hammer had hit the man between the legs, and if that wasn't pain showing in his face, it had to be surprise.

Catching his breath, his head feeling like having been hit by a truck, Peter tried to rush out of the dining hall, but he tripped and collapsed on the floor. His head was spinning. Then he heard the squish and tap of footsteps on Aunt May's polished floor.

The man quietly approached him, and for a moment, Peter was amazed at how calm he was. He reached down, and before Peter could budge, he picked him up and flung him across the room. Peter felt the wind knocked out of him as his back hit the wall. He tried standing up, and somehow, it asked for too much effort. Morlun lifted him again, dodging Peter's kicks with his other hand, and when Peter lashed out with his fists, Morlun threw him up, knocking him against the ceiling, and before he reached ground, the man jabbed him square in the jaw with the back of his hand and sent him flying out of the room.

He was playing with him.

In no time, Morlun picked him up again, and bringing his face close to Peter's head, he opened his mouth as if to bite. The fang-like teeth were all that Peter needed to pass out.

But then something strange happened.

In broad daylight, the room illuminated in a bright streak of light and as the streak got blindingly wider, what appeared to be dark blue boots walked out of it and into the room. Peter traced his sight all the way up to look at a fully suited, another human shaped figure, with dark blue all over and red at certain places. The figure wore a mask which seemed to have no eye-holes, but instead, had red highlights which were shaped as if to indicate the presence of eyes. A large red spider that looked eerily like a skull was painted on his chest. Red spikes projected from each arm.

Morlun stood there, looking foolish for a moment, and then, smiled. The figure looked at Peter and then back at Morlun, and the next thing Peter knew, the entire room went misty and he felt something grab him by the back, although this time more gently. There was a jolt and then he was outside his house, in his backyard. He landed on the patch of grass near the fence, and when he looked up, the blue figure was looking down at him.

Peter was having this feeling since he had seen him, but right now, it was as if his Spider Sense was alarmed all over again, kicking wilder this time, now that he was closer. It was a familiar feeling.

"You… you're like me!" he said to the figure.

The figure bent down to give him a helping hand, and Peter took it and helped himself up. "Yeah," the former said, "I know. You okay?"

"Define 'okay'," Peter replied.

"Lots of definitions," the figure said and turned back to look at Morlun walking out of the house towards them.

"He's not good news," Peter said.

"Yeah, I think I know that." He turned back and did an act of throwing something. A mini explosion sounded behind Peter and the fence broke apart.

"What do you think you're doing?" Peter cried.

"Clearing a way for us," the figure said as he grabbed Peter Porker again by the back and fled out to the street. Ahead of them a bright cloud appeared and he jumped right into it.

In the next moment, their surrounding had changed into something bizarre and the cloud disappeared. And so did Peter's entire neighbourhood along with Morlun.

The figure left Peter sick on the ground. "Wait," Peter called, "Who are you?"

"I'm not your enemy," the blue figure said, looming in over him.

"Yeah," Peter Porker gasped, "I figured that out."

The blue figure took off his mask, revealing a rugged-looking human face. "I'm Miguel," he said. "Spider-Man from the year 2099."

Earth-616

Peter Parker let the cold water run down his face. He splashed again. He looked at himself in the mirror. Alright. Maybe he could do it. He would try.

He dabbed at his face with his handkerchief and walked out of the men's room. He wondered why was it that every time he felt nervous, he had this urge to empty his bladder. It totally ruined moments.

When he walked out, he found that MJ wasn't at the table. He looked around, and found her at the balcony, looking over the city's skyline. Her back was turned to him, and he took a moment to appreciate her back, her red hair, the same old red hair he used to daydream of the entire day when he was a kid.

She didn't look at him when he walked up to her. But she was well aware of his presence.

Peter leaned forward on the balustrade. There was a light wind blowing, and the smell of rain was all over the air. He looked up and saw the dark clouds hovering around the moon. "Like the view?" he asked her, looking straight ahead.

He waited for her to reply, but she didn't. He wanted to say something more, but waited. Maybe she would speak up. She must have been working something out in her head.

"I know what you wanted to say," she said slowly after a pause.

Peter exhaled. He clutched his hands together until his nails dug into his skin and he almost bled out. "Yeah." He cleared his throat. "I made it pretty clear, didn't I?"

No answer. No, no, no! Please don't do that... Peter closed his eyes. "Look, Mary-"

"Do you even know when you showed up at my doorstep that day, it was after how long?"

Peter turned to look at her and almost cried out: She had been staring at him with that intense gaze maybe the entire time, scanning him from head to toe, inside-out, like an ex-ray machine scanned luggage at the airport. He took in a deep breath. He could do this. But he avoided looking at her eyes. "A year," he said.

She shook her head as if he had said two plus two equals twenty-two. "Fourteen months, sixteen days," she said. "Eleven hours." Her voice quavered. "And you come up after all this time, you don't call, you don't text, and-"

"I did call you-"

"But you ended it before I picked it up."

Peter sighed. "I just didn't…"

"What?"

He shrugged. "I thought you wouldn't pick up."

He looked her in the eye and at once saw the pain that persisted in them. For a second he was back at Kingpin's penthouse, in Miles' dimension, two months ago, when he had stumbled upon MJ. The MJ of that world. She had reminded him of his own wife, a much younger version. But there was something else that he had felt when he saw her. And that lingered on in his mind ever since. Even now. It was the same pain in her eyes. The same pain his own wife (ex-wife) suffered: His absence.

It was like a hammer striking a bell that it came crashing on him that MJ would always love him, and that the MJ of that universe did love him to the end, and after he was gone, it must have been terrible for her.

The guilt that had played in his mind was unendurable. That Peter was gone, he could never come back, but he was still alive, and his MJ deserved better.

"I wasn't there for you when you needed me," he began, replaying the script he had written nights ago. It was simple. Pretend he was back at that night with the other MJ. Speak out his mind, just the way he had done then, forgetting she wasn't his MJ. Pretty simple, right? He had even prepared similar lines as that night. So it was just a replay. All over. It had to be. "I didn't even try."

MJ scowled. "You realize that now?" she said, unlike the other one, who had said: That's fine. But that was the thing. The other MJ had approached him asking for bread. His MJ had asked for children. And he had provided neither to neither.

"I know I can do better!" Peter said and sighed again. "Mary, if I just had another chance to give you a bread."

"Excuse me?"

Peter wanted to slap himself. "A baby," he corrected. He shook his head in his mind. Gosh, he sounded so lame! "If I just had another chance to give you what you deserve... I'm so sorry."

MJ nodded. She sniffed. Tears welled up in her eyes. "Peter, do you know how many 'another chances' I gave you? How many last chances you played with? Took me for granted?" ?

"One last chance, MJ, please!" Peter begged.

"Now I think I know why you had been telling me those stories of parallel dimensions and kids and-"

"That wasn't a story, it was real."

"Real or not, I figured out your motive."

Peter blinked. "My motive?"

MJ dismissed it with her hand. "Now I know why you told me about them."

"Why did I tell you about them?"

MJ shrugged. She wiped tears with the back of her hand. "All leading to this night."

Peter shut his eyes. "I told you about them because I wanted to share with you. We didn't have anything else to talk about… You wouldn't." Well, this wasn't going as he had planned. Not a single bit.

"Where had you been all this time?" MJ asked.

"What?"

"Tell me, where were you when I needed you? You were away. You never made it home in time. Some or the other excuse. Always. And then? You never trusted me!"

Peter flinched. "I did trust you, MJ."

She sighed. "No. You never trusted me. 'MJ, don't do this', 'MJ, don't do that.' And what were you doing on your own, huh? You ever thought how I felt when you kissed another woman before the entire city? Before me? Your wife, among the crowd, looking at her husband, her best friend, her soulmate, you, the one who promised to be with her no matter what, no matter where, no matter how? I watched, among the crowd, like an onlooker. I could do nothing except close my eyes. And yet, I didn't say anything. Because I knew people loved you. The city loved you, and you did that because they asked. But then there you were, doing whatever you liked, and at home, 'MJ, who was that man you were talking to?'"

Peter shut his eyes. He could not bear to look at her like that. That, and the fact that these were all terrible memories she was bringing back.

MJ smirked. "You remember you came up to me one day, and asked me if I was falling for that man who lived next door, just because he helped fix the TV when you were away?" She raised her eyebrows in question. "Where were you then?"

Peter swallowed. "I… I…"

"Busy Spider-Man-ing, right? That same reason. You know why the cops hated you? It's because you wouldn't even let them catch burglars. Goblins and Sandmen were fine. But…" She broke into mad laughter. "It was a mania."

"Mary-"

"No, today I speak," she cut in, sticking out her finger. "What happened to you, Peter? What came over you? Don't give me that shit about-" she wiped her eyes again with the back of her hand, "-People change with time. You called yourself selfless, but you know what? You were the biggest selfish person I'd met. Always, always, everything your way." She was crying now.

"MJ..."

"I spent countless nights, all awake, without you. Fearing that you might never show up. While you were having pizzas with the Avengers. And still how foolish of me to have still loved you. After everything!" She stared him in the eye. "I asked for children. I wanted to extend our family. I was so afraid of losing you. I wanted what every married girl wants, and what do you say? We can't manage children. Well, of course you can't! How can you? How could you?" She shook her head violently. "But I'm not like you. I was never like you. I might not have been as humble or straightforward or gentle as you, but I had been wrong. You were nothing but a selfish person, only caring about yourself."

She sobbed. God, he hated making her cry. He reached out with his hand to wipe her tears away. "Honey-"

She stopped his hand. "Don't honey me, okay?" She sniffed and turned around. "I'm sorry Peter. Sorry for ruining your night."

"Mary, I need to clear things out. Please!"

She shook her head. "I need some space. Good night Peter. Don't come after me."

And with that, she was gone.

Peter turned to look at the people in the restaurant, all heads turned to him, their eyes sympathetic.

He rested against the balustrade. The clouds overhead had cleared. The smell of rain was gone.

Peter B. Parker stood out there all alone, under the night sky, his face as sad as the moon hung overhead.

Earth-65

Despite all, Miles Morales couldn't believe himself. It had only been five days since he was last here, and the fact that he would be seeing Gwen again so soon felt unreal. Just a few minutes back, he was at his dorm with Ganke, awake the entire night searching for a Gwen Stacy in his world. The night had slipped by their hands quickly, and he had found himself in his bed, trying not to doze off since there was only an hour left for the first class of the day.

And now here he was, sitting on Gwen's bed, his back resting on the wall, while she paced the room from one corner to the other. There was some kind of tension buzzing about her, about to explode, but she kept to herself. And so Miles waited patiently for her to speak up, his patience running out uneasily in the silence.

His eyes trailed along with her, moving from one side of the room to the other. Right now she was dressed in tight jeans, a black shirt underneath a fluffy white parka. She was barefoot. For once, his eyes turned to her feet. She had long, elegant toes, her nails polished with a dark shade of gray. They looked delicate, but Miles knew they were trained to take on her entire body weight. Smooth and soft heels padded gently on the cold floor as she walked around silently, and Miles was tempted to give out his hand so she could walk on those, and not feel the coldness of the marble beneath.

His eyes traveled all the way up to her face. She bit her lips as she paced the room. Her hair was almost back to normal now. Blond hair that reached just up to her jaw. Her eyes were closed most of the time, and it looked like she had exactly memorized how many strides she needed to cover the room, and exactly how wide each stride should be.

It was only when she walked past her study did his gaze remain on the spot and saw the flower vase. It shone and looked new. The price tag was still attached. Inside it were sunflowers which could have been the ones he had presented her.

It was time to break the awkward silence. "You've kept the flowers," he tried. And it worked. Gwen stopped walking, opened her eyes and stopped biting her lips. "That's a vase, right?"

"Yeah, I've kept them," she said absentmindedly. "They're nice. Yeah, it's a vase."

Miles smiled. "Thanks."

Gwen jerked. It was as if she had just woken up from hypnosis. "Listen," she said, "You promised me you would pay me back for the flowers, right?"

Miles' hands immediately went for his back pocket. "Yeah. But right now I don't have my wallet."

Gwen waved her hand in dismissal. "I don't want money, Miles. I need your help. Please?"

Miles blinked. Anything for her. "Okay."

Her face lit up. "Great."

"But, what is it?"

She shuffled her feet. She resumed her pacing. "My school's celebrating twenty-five years tonight. There's this weird agenda and they've turned it into something like a prom night and there is this dance where you need a partner." She looked up at him timidly. "Can you… be that for me?"

Meanwhile in Nueva York…

"Great," Ham remarked, looking away from the screens. "So now there's a vampire after us. And he can travel dimensions."

Miguel looked sideways at him. "They're not exactly vampires. They're worse."

Ham nodded. "In the sense that he sucks the life force out of you, and spiders are his favorites. Maybe this Morlun was the one behind the missing spiders back in my world. He must have eaten them up." He shuddered. Miguel figured that this was somehow too personal for him, considering the fact that Ham had once been a spider himself.

"We don't know for sure," he said, "All the time I've seen them, I haven't found them take anything but coffee and… the spider people. Totems, they call us."

Ham turned to Miguel. "Them. You've been saying them and they. There's more than one?"

Miguel took in a deep breath. He wasn't usually a vendor of bad news, but sometimes they just came up, and it was important that he let the concerned people know. "Yes," he said after a pause. He typed into the keyboard. "There's another, but I hardly believe it's the end. There might be even more, and my gut says just that." He motioned at Ham towards the screen with his chin. "See. See for yourself."

The screen went dark for a second, and then it showed a street in black and white, as if the camera that had taken the footage didn't support colors. Beside him, he heard Ham hold his breath and grip the edges of his seat. The screen showed a car pass by. A few seconds later, a figure in a trench coat crashed to the ground. Ham gasped. The sight that showed what happened next was terrifying. Or rather, the sight that showed who appeared next was terrifying. A monster of a man, nearly ten feet tall, picked up the Spider-Man, and for a second, the man resembled Morlun. The similarities were eerie, something which could only represent siblings. The screen showed the man strangle Spider-Man and then walk away into thin air, the latter still in his hand.

The screen went dark again.

Miguel quietly turned in his chair to look at Ham, who was at the brink of tears. "Porker," he said slowly, "We still don't know if he's dead or not." Miguel hated to instill false hopes, but right now, Ham needed it. Without it, he could collapse on the seat that engulfed him.

"Do you really think so?" Ham asked, wiping away tears. His voice was shaky. "When do they ever leave people like us? They always want us dead, Miguel. Always."

Miguel was struck by the fact that right now, there was nothing he could say. "I…I… Let's not… lose hope."

"Can you show me what happened to him?" Ham asked. "Where the man took him?"

Miguel shook his head. "Believe me, that's the one thing I've been trying to do for the last few days. I… I simply can't. There are infinite universes out there, and who knows where he has taken him. But believe me, that's what I've been trying to do." He knew what he had said wouldn't be of any help.

Somewhere behind them, muffled, came the sound of something hitting the ground. And then, as if some glass shattered. Broken into tiny pieces. The sound echoed, and for Miguel's enhanced hearing, it was as if it had happened right next to him. Peter Porker jumped in his chair. And then they heard the loud complains of a grown man behind them.

Miguel sighed. "For Lyla's sake!"

"Did you actually take my name?" Lyla's voice interrupted.

"Who is she?" Ham asked, totally puzzled.

"She's Lyla, Ham. My holographic-"

"His holographic assistant," Lyla finished for Miguel and her form appeared before Ham. "It's very good to see you in person, Spider-Ham. I'd been really looking forward to it, but you do seem a little too small for your size."

Ham blinked. "Uh… thanks?"

"Ignore her," Miguel said, standing up. "She really has some weird sense of humor installed into her which I at times really wish hadn't been done so."

"He's broken the tap, Miguel," Lyla said. "And the mirror."

Right then, the door at the far corner swung open and light spilled into the dark hall. A figure stood there for a second, and then stomped in. He had something shiny clutched in his left hand. He walked up to Miguel and held the piece of shiny metal before him.

"Congratulations buddy," Miguel muttered, "You've broken it."

The man looked from Miguel to the thing in his hand and then at Ham. He pointed his finger at Ham, and asked him, "Who the heck are you?"

"Ham," Miguel said, "This is the Spider-Man of 1967, and don't mind his finger, he likes to point."

"This is an astonishing peculiarity," Spider-Man wondered aloud, "A pig dressed as Spider-Man. Weird."

"You're a peculiarity too," Miguel said. "You broke my tap."

Spider-Man turned to him. "I didn't break it. It broke on its own! The thing doesn't even draw water, and you call it a tap?"

"It's a smart tap, you dumb ass! It's automatic. You don't have smart taps and toilets in your world? Smart bathrooms? Smart showers?"

Spider-Man chuckled. "Only a fool like you can call a toilet smart."

"Alright, whatever!" Ham said as he hopped down his chair and walked up to Spider-Man, extending his hand. "My name is Peter Porker."

Spider-Man stared down at the pig before him. He didn't take his hand. "A pig which can speak. You've got my name, and you have four fingers."

Ham scowled. "We pigs have four fingers. What do you think? At least take my hand. It's dry this-" Ham couldn't finish his last statement. All of a sudden, he performed a weird dance on the spot where he was standing, and his body flashed a multiple of colors. He fell to his knees.

Spider-Man bent down to help him up. "What's wrong, talking pig?"

"That's it!" Miguel jumped. "I was having a feeling I was forgetting something. Now I remember!" He turned to Spider-Man, "He just glitched. That's what happens when you take that device off your wrist when you're not in your own dimension." He tapped at the dial of the gizmo strapped to Spider-Man's left wrist. "Because you don't belong here. And I do hope now that you've seen it, you stop biting around in my head to remove it. If you're so desperate, take it out, and I'll be happy to see you disappear into thin air."

Spider-Man dropped the broken tap on the floor. He poked Miguel in the ribs. "You're the one who brought me here in the first place."

Miguel turned around. "Yeah, and your damn welcome." He turned to Ham. "You follow me."

He led the way out, followed by Ham and behind him, Spider-Man 67. They walked along a dimly-lit corridor, and into a huge, circular lab full of machines and computers from floor to ceiling. Spider-Man 67 shivered. The room was air-conditioned.

Lyla appeared before them. "Miguel," she said. "The gizmos are far better working now. Efficiency increased to seventy-three percent."

"I told you she's smart, didn't I?" Miguel said.

"Excuse me," Lyla said, "It was my idea."

"No it wasn't."

"Yes it was."

Ham cleared his throat. "But, who's she?"

"Me." A young female voice spoke from behind them, and everyone turned around.

Ham's eyes went wide with disbelief. On who's right mind would anybody think that somebody like her would end up here? "Peni!"

Elsewhere...

He waited for his brother under the bridge. He had promised a time, and it was already a quarter of an hour past. He still hadn't shown up. Normally, he would have started to think that maybe their hatred towards each other had grown so much over the years that his brother could do anything to make him look like a fool. But today was different. Today his brother had failed, and it was a first time in many years. Yes. Their father would be disappointed. Maybe he would consider to reconsider...

"It surprises me how much patient you have grown," a voice startled him from behind. His brother's.

He turned around. He wanted to smile. In fact, he was smiling from within, but all he put in display was a cold expression. Emotions were something he had learned never to try with. For a moment they looked at each other without a single sound. Then he spoke. "Did you bring your share of meat home?"

His brother shook his head. "He escaped," he said. It was amazing there was not a single hint of defeat in his voice. It was just a fact out of his tongue. "It appears they too can move around now."

He didn't nod. Usually he would have. He decided to keep his story unspoken.

"I know you've got something to say as well Daemos," his brother said.

Daemos shook his head. "I don't," he lied.

His brother smirked. "I heard you were headed for the black-and-white one. Tell me. Was he any good?"

Daemos shrugged. "So so."

"So did you turn the toilet black and white the next day?"

Daemos looked at his brother contemptuously. "No," he lied. "You know I don't joke around like that, Morlun."

Morlun chortled. He didn't say anything again. He simply walked away.

"Where are you going?" Daemos asked.

"Ever been hungry, Daemos?"

Earth-65

The silence as of yet, although uncomfortable, still had kept his nerves calm and steady. But right now, Miles' insides were jumping. It was as if every organ in him had been displaced.

"But… I don't know how to dance!" he said.

"That doesn't matter," Gwen said, "It's not a ballet or a break dance or of any sort. No choreography. It's just simple steps, and I can teach you in two minutes."

Miles hesitated. Uncertainty spilled into his mind. He couldn't just say no and he couldn't say yes too. "What if… what if I step on you? What if I embarrass you? Before everyone? Because… because dancing is really not my thing. I don't know anything beside moving my head and swaying my hands from side to side."

Gwen laughed. "It'll be easier than moving your head and swaying your hands. Trust me." She gave out her hand. "And you'll not be stepping on me, and you won't be embarrassing me. Don't worry. You'll do great." Miles looked up nervously at her. "Trust me Miles," Gwen reassured. "I really need you right now, because if it's not you, I don't know who I'm gonna end up with. Because I'm sure it'll be somebody. And I don't want anybody else."

This was huge. Dancing with her in his dreams was easy, like climbing a two-step ladder, but now that this was real, it actually seemed like a whole mountain before him. It wasn't going to be easy, no matter how simple she promised it would be.

He took her hand. It was a totally different feel altogether. It was soft, yet it felt firm. If he pressed a little, he could feel her bones. Her fingers were long and beautifully shaped, her nails polished the same shade of gray as her toes.

He stood up, his grip firm on hers. His legs felt a little wobbly, and his heart was hammering fast. He felt light-headed and as if the floor had disappeared underneath him.

She was looking down, and he took the opportunity to steal a glance at her face. Beautiful. Why was she so achingly beautiful? Her hair was the perfect shade of blond he had ever seen. He caught her scent. He couldn't place it, but it was amazing, something more than what "beautiful" could describe. His insides crawled.

"It'll be over in a jiffy," she promised. Then she looked up at him and smiled. Somehow that made it worse. Strands of hair hid some of her face and boy did she look stunning! Her blue eyes were an ocean of fine cozy water calling out to him, luring him to take a dive, and he knew somewhere in his mind he couldn't do that. It would be too soon. Heck, he didn't even know if the moment would ever come. For all he knew, he hadn't done something great to win over her as more than a friend. Right now he wanted to flee, go away from civilians and scream his lungs out until he was left exhausted. He wanted to punch something really hard, hard enough to break a wall or a pillar. He wanted to flail his hands and legs until they ached and make a butterfly in the snow and be buried inside. Because he knew that he wasn't getting past holding her hand, and all his thoughts were like a rock tied down to his chest, pulling him down. Looking at her was equally difficult, because he was having this feeling of pulling her to a hug or kissing her. His hands were itching. They felt like the pincers of a crab. Trying to grasp at things, but catching only thin air. He was afraid he would lose control. With sheer willpower he kept himself in place.

He started when something soft and firm crawled around the fingers of his other hand, and when he looked down, Gwen was squeezing it. The rest of his body was already dead. He felt like he was dropping down from a thousand feet, just like a plane on descent.

"We do like this," she was saying. She brought their hands up before them. Miles felt the warmth in hers. They were neither cold, nor too hot, but a little warm. The base of her palms felt like hard cushions against his. They were the most perfect feeling he had ever felt.

"Okay," she said, and made a right-angle with his left hand, holding it with her right. "When I do this, you step left, and I step to my right. Do it." Miles obliged. "Perfect. Take another step to your left. Good. Now step back to your right, and I'll step back to my left. Not a very wide step. Good. Once again, back to position one. Again, back to your left. Yes, one more and then back again. Easy right?" Her voice was so gentle...

"Yeah." The reply from Miles was very feeble.

They continued in the same rhythm for the next half minute. "Two steps to the left, and then two back to the right. Two steps to the left, and then back to the right. Back two steps. Very good. You're doing great." She turned her head up to look at him. "You've grown taller."

"Yeah I guess," Miles said, uneasily, "It's a puberty thing, you know?"

Gwen shook her head. She chuckled. "Nice."

Miles looked down at her feet. He wanted to take off his shoes and socks and ask her to step on him.

He wondered if he could let go of Gwen's other hand and slip his hand right under her arm and around her back. He wanted to feel her. Feel the side of her body. Feel her back. Latch himself onto her. Crazy.

"Alright," Gwen said, bringing him back to reality. "Your other hand, the right one, it's actually not the way we do it." She let go of his hand, and raised hers. "Slip your hand under my armpit and round the side, and…" She paused. Miles couldn't believe this was happening. "Wait." Gwen said, "Wait, just a second. Let me take my jacket off. It's coming in the way." She shook out of her parka and threw it on her bed. "Well, what are you waiting for?" she asked. "Your right arm, as I told you." Miles followed slowly, his hands shaking. He slipped his hand under her arm so that it was wrapped around her side. She rested hers on his.

No. This wasn't even real. This was a hoax. This was just a dream. He would soon wake up in his bed and be rushing for his early morning class. He would skip breakfast for the day. He wouldn't have the appetite. He would be left depressed after such an amazing dream and that it wasn't real. This was only a dream. Only dreams could be so sweet. Only dreams gave you exactly what you wanted.

Her lithe framework brushing against his jolted him awake and yet he was still dreaming. Miles wanted to squirm. He wanted to pull his knees closer to him and wrap his hands around them. Bury his head in between. Controlling the adrenaline flow was hard, and with Gwen Stacy, it was next to impossible.

Miles gulped. Any moment now, his hand would drop off. His skin felt like it had lost sensation. He had never held a girl like this before. Heck, he had never touched a girl before her. The feeling was… undefined. He wanted to bring up his other hand and pull her tight next to him. She was so thin. Hold her waist. That was a brilliant waist.

His hands felt like tweezers…

Nueva York

The girl's hands were tightly wrapped around him when he embraced her. He didn't stand taller than her, but she had grown in the last two months. But the things she must have witnessed that brought her here must have left her terrified. The gravity in her eyes was unusual and the way she carried herself around was far, far beyond how anybody her age was meant to. Maybe she was a little girl from the outside, but fate had long before stolen away her childhood.

"Peni, everything's going to be alright," Ham said, pulling back. The girl was rigid, but she was shaken from within. For a moment, strangely, he felt protective towards her, like a father does for his child, and the potential fact that Noir was gone left an empty vessel in him.

She must have been thinking the same. "He's gone, Ham. He's gone."

He wiped the tears from her eyes. "No Penny, he's not. He's not like that. He'll fight. He'll fight to the end, with what he's got." He hated instilling false hopes. It was more like a lie, anyway. But she needed it. Without it, Ham didn't want to ponder what she would be going through. "And what he's got is more than enough. We both know that." She wiped her eyes fiercely with the back of her hand. He stopped her. "Don't do it like that, girl, you'll hurt yourself." He looked at her gently. "They were after you too?"

"That big man was." Her voice cracked. "The one who took him away."

Ham shook his head. "You're safe now."

"Not for long," Miguel interrupted. "They can show up any time. Here. Alone, or together. We need to keep moving."

"But we can't just keep running," Ham said, "Hiding."

Miguel shook his head. "Who said we're gonna hide?"

"So you plan to fight them now?" Spider-Man 67 asked. "You won't even stand a chance."

Miguel shook his head. "No. I will. I will survive all of them, and I'll stop all of them."

"You sure you can do that without us?" It was Peni who spoke, which surprised everyone. "You're not going out there alone."

"There's strength in numbers," Lyla added.

"You sure about what you just said?" Ham whispered in Peni's ears. She nodded. Ham turned to Miguel. "Then maybe we should all accompany you. I have another hammer in my bag."

Miguel shook his head again. "You all can get killed."

"And what, you won't?" Ham countered.

"Even if I do," Miguel answered back, "It'll only be me. So I'm going alone."

"Listen, future man," Spider-Man 67 pointed at him, "You don't get to decide who stays and who dies. We're as much strong as you. Even if they're not going," he said, turning his finger at Ham and Penny, "I am. Not because I don't want you to die, but because it's the right thing to do. After all, we're all Spider-Man."

Miguel sighed. "Really?" Everybody nodded. "Lyla, why are you nodding?"

Lyla shrugged. "I wanna help too."

Miguel took in a deep breath. He looked at his wrist. "I hope you have your suits with you. We need to get going, in fact, right now."

"Where?" Peni asked.

"Earth-1048," Lyla answered.

Earth-65

Over the next few minutes Gwen helped Miles perfect his steps. "You're moving your legs too stiff," she said, "Ease down a bit. Get free."

His heart beating like a machine gun, Miles felt light-headed. Each time he stepped sideways, he gained an inch on her. Her perfume was intoxicating. Maybe it wasn't perfume at all. Maybe it was her natural scent. Whatever it was, he was tempted to sniff at the side of her neck and rest his head on her shoulder. Tickle her, maybe. Make her laugh. He would do anything to make her laugh. Her shirt was broad-necked, and he couldn't help but stare at her collar bones.

"Your hands are sweaty," she said. "Why are you so tensed?"

Because of you. I'm dancing with you. This is so unreal. You are so pretty.

"Take it easy, Miles. You're doing this with me. With a professional,"

"I never danced with a girl before," Miles managed to say.

"Then hurray! I'm your first!" She smiled at him.

"I… I want you to be the last too," Miles said almost immediately, losing command over his speech. Heat built up in his ears and cheeks, and he was certain he was looking very dumb before her. Looking weird. He felt self-conscious. His hair was combed the wrong way. He hadn't brushed his teeth.

Gwen chuckled and looked down, and for a moment, Miles detected the slightest trace of timidity in her features. Had he done that?

But then there it was. She too was red all over her face, although she was much better at hiding it. In his mind he leaped high into the air, fist bumping nobody in particular. Score! Goal! Whatever.

"Thanks Miles," she said, staring down.

"For what?"

"For everything. You've missed an entire day of school for me. Just, what can I do about it?"

And for a moment he was tempted to tell her. He wanted to tell her how good she looked. How important she was to him. How vital a role she played in his life. He wanted to let it out. Let it all out. Express how much he loved her, and what he could do to win over her.

So that was it. He got it now. He let it sink in. He had been trying to suppress the feeling, but he always knew he loved her. As bright and clear as daylight. It grew over the days, and in the last two months, it was brimming over the edge, threatening to flow out. His insides used to hurt. He thought of her so much that he saw her everywhere. He heard her everywhere. He wanted to tell her. In fact, it was a matter of debate.

I'll tell her.

No. I won't.

No, I'll tell her. I wanna tell her.

No! You can't!

"Tell me when you need me, and I'll be there for you," Gwen said. She pulled his hand towards her.

Please. Please. I need to tell her. I'm dying. Please. I'll tell her…

No. I won't tell her.

I'll tell her.

No, I won't… are you kidding me? Who are you going to tell? What are you going to tell? She might not even feel the same as you.

But I made her blush!

Stop imagining man! You made her blush, so what? Anyone can make anybody blush.

But I wanted to tell her.

If you tell her, she'll probably hate you. She might even "un-friend" you. You won't tell her.

"You're a quick learner, Miles."

I'll tell her.

No you won't.

I will. In fact I'm about to tell her right now.

Don't!

Yes!

Don't!

I'm telling her!

No don't te-

"Gwen?"

She must have been in some kind of blissful thought. Her eyes were closed. But now they snapped open. "Yeah?"

"I…I…" Miles gulped. Sweat trickled down the side of his face. "You look nice."

Gwen's face was surprised. But she managed a grin. "Thanks Miles!" The way she said it made his heart double over. Inside he was fighting himself to not collapse. "But do you know what we are lacking?" Gwen asked.

Miles thought for a second. A huge hall with a crowd and disco lights running around flashed in his mind. "An audience?" he guessed. And then he was already on the dais with her, dancing to some kind of a music. There were people surrounding them. On one side, people were praising and applauding at them, and on the other side, they were sniggering and laughing and pointing at him. Mocking at him.

"No," Gwen said. "Music. We are lacking some music."

"Oh." Miles exhaled. He breathed in again, and exhaled again. He had to calm his nerves. He heard Peter's voice in his head. What do you do to relax? He cleared his head. He cleared his throat.

"Needless to say I keep it in check," he began singing.

"What?"

Miles shrugged, still stepping along with her. "She was all bad-bad, nevertheless…" He had the lyrics memorized now.

Gwen raised her eyebrows. "Okay."

"Callin' it quits now baby I'm a wreck… Crash at my place baby you're a wreck!"

"Am I?"

Miles held up his hands. "Come on! It's just a song. You said we were lacking music."

Gwen smiled and shook her head. "Oh boy. Okay."

Miles took her hand gently and they resumed their ballroom dancing once again.

"Needless to say I'm uh-uh check…"

"Uh-huh," Gwen said, raising her finger. Miles blushed.

"She was all bad-bad, nevertheless…"

And then there he was, back in his world, back in the hall. It didn't matter if people were laughing at him or praising him. He only looked at Gwen now. She was the one that mattered the most. On the stage his new favorite singer was singing his new favorite song and he sang along. Gwen was looking so good, dancing. They danced along to the music and then she performed a dip. A classic move. She felt so delicate in his hands. It was amazing to think that she must have fought hundreds of her foes with this very body. When she would perform another dip he would bring his face closer to her.

He could collapse on her.

"Looking at you sideways, party on tilt…" Another dip. He leaned forward towards her face.

"Miles!"

And now he snapped back into reality, with Gwen tilted, leaning backward on his arm, his face inches from hers. They stared at each other. He must have been looking so stupid. Foolish.

"Miles, we'll fall down like this."

"Ooh-ooh…" he decided to continue, straightening up. Continuing was the best way to save himself from the embarrassment… "Some things you just can't refuse… She wanna ride me like a cruise…"

"Hmm… I can swing around though…"

"And I'm not tryna lose…"

Gwen laughed. She poked him in the tip of his nose. "What do you think you'll lose?"

You. "I don't know."

"Is this your favorite song?"

"Then you're left in the dust," Miles continued, nodding, "Unless I stuck by you…"

"I'll stick by you!"

"You're the sunflower…"

"Ohh! I get it now! Sunflowers are your favorite."

"You're a pretty good commentator, you know, Gwen?"

She chuckled.

Miles imagined a sunflower, the stem stuck in between his lips, like the way they showed in the old movies. Huh. He wondered if the Black-and-White Spider-Man did that to his Mary Jane, provided he had one.

Miles would lean down and Gwen would take it, biting the lower part of the stem with her lips.

"I think your…" No. He stopped. He couldn't sing the rest. She could get a hint why he liked this song so much now.

He wouldn't sing the rest.

"Yeah I'm what?"

Miles shook his head. "Nothing." The heat in his face was toasting him.

"Come on! Sing!"

"I… I forgot the line."

Gwen scowled. "No you didn't. Sing it."

Miles blushed even more. He could not. "Forget it. Another song."

"No," Gwen slapped him on the shoulder. "Sing it! Finish it!"

"No."

"Please."

"So sorry!"

"Please? Please?"

Miles wished she hadn't done that. "Alright."

"Here we go!" Gwen squeezed his hands. He wished she didn't do that, but again he was glad she did.

"Then you're left in the dust… unless I stuck by ya… you're a sunflower… and… and…" Gwen raised her eyebrows. "I think your love would be too much!" Miles closed his eyes and let it out.

"Okay," Gwen made a mischievous face and teased. "So that's what you wanted to say!"

Miles turned white in the face. There you go. She hates you now. "It's just a song," he whispered.

"I know," Gwen said. "Don't be so shy-shy."

"I thought you'd-" Something in him felt funny, and then, it was as if a thousand volt of electricity had just zapped through him. He shook where he stood, and then he lost control and stepped on Gwen accidentally and the next thing he knew, they both tripped. He felt the earth close in on him and then the sound of them hitting the floor. He put his hands around Gwen's head to prevent it from hitting the marble. He landed on top of her.

"Miles," she said, "Are you okay?"

Miles shook his head. "I think I just venom-striked myself."

"No," Gwen blinked, "You glitched. How stupid of me! I forgot about that."

"Ow. My body feels like I've just been car-washed."

She giggled. "You've gained a few pounds."

"Yeah, maybe."

"Is it a perk of puberty?"

Miles grinned. "I… guess?" Wow. Did she just wink at me?

"Hah." She closed her eyes.

She felt so nimble underneath. His face was perhaps just an inch from hers. Her lips were parted a little. It was just so tempting. Inside, he fought for control. No. He couldn't do anything stupid. He sighed. He was so close, and yet so far. It sucked.

"You okay?" he asked her.

"Yeah. You've gained a few pounds."

Miles shrugged on top of her. "Maybe. I eat a lot these days."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Last Sunday we went out for a family dinner. Ganke was there."

"Wow nice."

"I ate till I was full."

"Good."

"But Ganke ate more than I did."

Gwen raised an eyebrow. "Yeah?"

"Are you okay? Why does it seem you're having a lot of effort talking? Is my mouth smelling bad?"

"You've grown heavier than before…"

"Yeah, maybe. Dad says the car tire had burst out." Then Miles realized. "Oh!" He rolled off her and next to her on the floor. Then he stood and helped her up. "I'm so sorry! Was I too heavy?"

"More than last time, maybe." She fished out her cellphone and looked at the screen. "It's time I got you home. You can't stay here."

Miles blinked, confused. "But why?"

"You'll glitch again."

She was heading towards her study when Miles caught her by the wrist behind her and stopped her. "No," he said. "I'll stay."

She shook her head. "You'll glitch again. You can't stay here longer."

"No. I can. If you could in my world, for days, then why can't I for just a few hours?"

"Because… because…"

Miles leaned in towards her. "Because why?"

Gwen sighed. There was an awkward silence for what seemed to be eternity.

"You sure about this?" she asked after a pause.

Miles nodded. "I'm staying."

"Okay," she said and hurried over to her wardrobe and took out a suit. "I managed to get these then. They should fit you. Put them on." She threw it at him. He caught it.

As he was removing the coat hanger, his eyes fell on a bouquet of red roses on Gwen's couch. He picked it up. The roses were fresh. They were wrapped carefully with aluminium foil. A pink ribbon was tied around it, and next to it, a piece of paper had been attached. There was something scrawled on it in red:

For Gwen…

-Harry

Miles turned back to Gwen, who was putting on her shoes. "Gwen?"

She looked up at him, and when she did, Miles noticed an immediate change of expression in her face: from neutral to caution. "Yeah?"

Miles looked from the roses to her, and back to the roses. "Who's Harry?"

She looked away from him. "Doesn't matter," she said. She stood up and checked herself on the full-length mirror attached to her wardrobe door. "Let's get going," she said firmly.

"Yeah, sure," Miles said, a thousand questions buzzing in his head.

Thank you MarvelousManiac, Martial Arts Master, Wlyman2009, BigbyWolf, Throwing the Shade, K2-Black-Panther, Who Am I, DSMALLONE666, Cunk Toad, Kekepikapika, KillerQueen312, Indigene Syke, ArtOfBreaking429, Jeb Stacy for your reviews.

I've replied to all of you, but have not been able to, to the readers who are not holding an account.

To K2-Black-Panther: Thanks a lot. Well, the Spider Gang will surely be happy to be reunited. Let's see where and how their party and celebration goes.

To Who Am I: I'm glad you are liking it. Thanks.

I know I've been unable to stick to the time limit I had earlier said. It appears life simply won't allow like that. On top of that, I was sick for some time. Really. Also, this chapter seemed to have been never ending. It's twice the length of the previous chapters. But anyway, here it was, and I hope you liked it. Thank you all for being so patient!

Don't forget to leave back your honest reviews. Just, make my day again, please? Next chapter (I'm telling it now) might take some time. It's gonna be long too. But it will come. That's a guarantee.

Thank you all for being so patient. Be ready for exciting events next chapter. Be ready for Gwen and Miles' dance. And I hope you all know who is the Spider-Man of Earth-1048.