"Oh hun, you look awful!"

"Wow, thanks Betty, that sure makes me feel better."

"I'm sorry, but Jesus Christ what happened to you, Emily?"

"Rejection."

"Damn."

It was the afternoon after the almost kiss with Spider-Man and I was in a foul mood. I was embarrassed, frustrated, confused, pretty much a healthy mixture of every emotion possible. I was on my lunch break with Betty, filling her in on my day off.

"What happened?" She asked. I took a bite of my apple before speaking.

"Well, I had Peter over almost all day, we watched the Princess Bride which he had never seen before-" she held up a hand to interrupt me.

"Wait, you had Peter at your apartment and you just watched a movie?!" She demanded. "What the hell Em?"

"Hey I'm not done!" I responded quickly. "Don't interrupt!" She rolled her eyes. "Thank you. Ok, so we finished the movie and just chatted for a while but then he fell asleep during the second movie and his head was on my shoulder the whole time. But I had barely gotten any sleep the night before so I was tired too and I fell asleep. Then he had to leave to have dinner at his aunt's so he woke me up and said bye and I fell back asleep-"

"You said you were rejected, I'm confused," Betty interjected once again.

"You wouldn't be confused if you just stopped and listened," I chastised. "When I woke up, I wanted a sandwich so I left and started walking to a shop when Spider-Man showed up. And we talked for a few minutes and I realized that I have feelings for both Peter and Spider-Man so I got flustered and decided the best way to resolve those feelings was to pretty much pin Spider-Man against the wall and try to kiss him." Betty gasped loudly.

"YOU HORNY MOTHERFUCKER!" She shouted in the blessedly empty lunch room. I face palmed. "So wait, he stopped you from kissing him?" I nodded.

"Then he started saying all this shit like 'it's not you, it's me' and 'I want to but I can't' and my personal favorite 'this is all messed up.'" Betty winced.

"Fuck that's harsh," she said. "But he said he wanted to kiss you?"

"Yeah, right before he swung away without finishing the conversation," I grumbled bitterly.

"Ouch."

"No kidding." Betty threw her hands up.

"Well then screw him, hun!" She proclaimed. "If he doesn't want you then it's his loss!" I chuckled halfheartedly.

"That's such a cliche thing to say," I told her.

"Okay first, rude, second who cares if it's cliche when it's true? Besides, now you know how he feels and you can just focus on Peter." I shrugged.

"I suppose so," I said.

"That's the spirit!" She said grinning at me. "Did anything promising happen when you were with Peter besides watching movies and sleeping?" I briefly recalled the possible kiss he gave me on my forehead.

"Well. . .maybe?"

"Tell me."

"Ok well when he woke me up to say bye, I was super tired, right? So I wasn't really fully there. But I could have sworn that right before I fell back asleep, he kissed my forehead." Betty sighed.

"That's so romantic," she said, flopping her upper body on the table.

"But I don't know if I just imagined it or not!" I rushed out.

"Let's just imagine that it did happen, what are you going to do about it?"

I paused.

"Well," I began. "I'm going to try and hang out with him again, I suppose."

"That's a start!" Betty glanced down at her watch. "Oh shit, we better get back!"

I was on my way back to my desk when the man we were just talking about walked by quickly.

"Pete!" I called after him excitedly. I saw him freeze and turn slowly.

"Emily!" He said awkwardly. "What's up?" I shrugged.

"Nothing much," I said. "I just had a lot of fun yesterday, maybe we can get together again this weekend to hang out?" He shuffled his feet, looking anywhere but my eyes.

"I can't this weekend," he said. I frowned.

"You okay Pete?" I asked worriedly. "You aren't going to disappear on me again are you?"

"No, Emily, I'm just busy," He said shortly.

"O-okay."

"I gotta go, see you later," Peter said before rushing down the hall and then out of sight. I stood there for a few moments, utterly confused. Betty appeared suddenly at my right shoulder.

"What the hell is up his ass today?" She asked. I shrugged, not wanting to talk and walked to my desk.

When I sat down, I stared motionless at my computer for a few minutes. Had I done something wrong? He seemed fine yesterday, but now he's really awkward around me. What had happened between him leaving to now?

While I was considering this, I realized that even though I knew basics about Peter, like his favorite food and color, I didn't really know him. I opened up Google and searched his name.

A few articles came up. The first result was about his father, Richard, who was a scientist at OSCORP before dying years back. This information didn't surprise me, as Peter had said his parents passed away. I didn't know that his dad was a scientist though. And not just any scientist, he worked with Dr. Curtis Connors on cross species genetics. The name Connors sounded annoyingly familiar. I opened a new tab and searched his name as well.

Oh he was the Lizard! He tried to destroy New York a few years ago before Spider-Man stopped him. So Peter's Dad worked with him. This just got much more complex.

I went back to the search results on Peter and clicked on another article. This one was about Gwen Stacey. There was a picture of her with her family. She was beautiful. And apparently very intelligent too, she was top of her class and had a job at OSCORP before she died. Her father had been chief of police before he passed away helping Spider-Man defeat the Lizard. Spider-Man was involved in his death too?

The last article I looked at was written a few months before Captain Stacey's death. It was an obituary for Ben Parker, who was murdered while trying to stop a robber. He left behind his wife and nephew, Peter.

I covered my mouth slightly, processing this information.

Peter Parker certainly had been unlucky in his short life so far. First his parents, then his uncle, his girlfriend's father, then his girlfriend. Half of the deaths also had Spider-Man involved as well.

I froze suddenly, a thought clicking in my head.

If Peter's Dad is the one who worked with Dr. Connors on cross species genetics, is it possible that they actually succeeded in making animals that were capable of passing their genes on? Or more specifically, is it possible that they created a spider who could? And if they did that, is it possible that that spider actually did bite someone? And they gained spider like qualities or powers? And maybe they started wearing a mask and saving New York citizens. And if that was possible, could that person be closely related to the scientists who worked on the project?

Maybe even his son.

I stood up quickly, turning off my computer and running toward the elevator. I heard Betty calling after me, but I ignored her. I needed to find Spider-Man.

I exited the Daily Bugle and began speed-walking through the city, looking for a blur of blue and red. I passed many people, many buildings, and I could still find no sign of him.

"God dammit!" I cursed loudly. A mother who walked by me with her young daughter glared at me. "Sorry," I apologized, very embarrassed.

Getting no where on my search for Spider-Man, I went to a nearby cafe and ordered a coffee. Since I already skipped out of work, I may as well enjoy myself until I find him. I was outside sipping my drink when I heard people down the street start cheering. I glanced up and saw the man himself swinging through the buildings. I immediately stood, running into an empty alleyway so no one could see me. I waited patiently for him to pass by the entrance of the alley. Then I started yelling.

"SPIDER-MAN! HEY!" I screamed. I heard the thwip of his web stop and a thump on the building next to me. I looked up and saw Spider-Man peek his head around the corner, sticking to the wall.

"Emily?" He crawled further into the alley then jumped the high distance to the ground. "Are you alright? What's wrong?" He coughed and immediately continued in his fake voice. "Do you need help?" He looked me up and down as if he was searching for injuries.

"No, I'm fine," I said quickly. "But I need to talk to you. Can you take us to the roof?" Spider-Man paused.

"The last time I took you up high, you got really freaked out," He said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Are you sure?" I nodded resolutely. "Alright then." He turned toward the brick wall. "Jump on." I faltered.

"On your back?" I squeaked. He turned his head back to look at me.

"Well, yeah I need my hands and legs free to crawl," He said matter of factly.

"Right," I muttered. Beginning to regret my decision, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, making sure not to choke him, then hooking my legs around his waist.

"Ready?" He asked me.

"As I'll ever be," I murmured back.

Spider-Man bent his legs, then leapt on to the wall. I closed my eyes the whole time we scaled the brick, focusing on holding onto his shoulders. At some point, I leaned my head into the crook of his neck, inhaling deeply. His familiar scent calmed my nerves.

When we reached the top, he climbed over the railing of the roof and I gingerly detached myself from him. Spider-Man turned to look at me.

"How you feeling?" He asked, still speaking in his ridiculous voice. I rolled my eyes slightly.

"Well I'm not going to barf if that's what you're asking," I said lightly. He chuckled.

"That's good!" He leaned up against the railing awkwardly. "So listen, about last night-"

"That's not what I want to talk to you about," I interrupted. His body language showed his surprise and relief.

"Oh! Well, um, then what did you want to talk about?" He asked cautiously.

"How are you?" I asked, preferring to start out easy. His large, white, unmoving eyes stared at me.

"You asked me to carry you to the roof so you could ask how I was?" Spider-Man asked in disbelief.

"Not exactly, but I thought it would be polite to ask," I said, crossing my arms. He nodded.

"Alright then," He said. "I'm doing ok I suppose. What about you?" I shrugged.

"Can't complain I guess. How's Aunt May?" I asked nonchalantly.

"She's doing okay, she misses Uncle Ben but it's getting easier with tim-" Spider-Man froze suddenly. I grinned. "I mean! Uhh-" I raised my eyebrows, waiting patiently while he floundered for a good excuse, but knowing I had caught him. He covered his masked face in his hands. "Oh fuck," He moaned.

"Pete," I whispered, moving closer. "It's okay." He ripped off his mask, giving me the last vindication I needed. He didn't have his glasses on and his hair was severely messed up, but the face was unmistakably Peter Parker's. He avoided my eyes.

"How did you find out?" He muttered.

"I'm a reporter, it's kinda my job to find out things," I responded. "And it doesn't help that you sound the same, act the same, and you have the same body type. Really, this explained everything from the bruises down to you being late all the time. Honestly, I'm surprised I didn't figure it out sooner." Peter chuckled humorlessly.

"You're too smart," he said.

"I would argue I'm pretty stupid about a lot of things," I countered, trying to get a genuine smile or laugh from him. I was graced with a half smile.

"Maybe some things," he allowed. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

"I'm not going to tell anyone," I said suddenly. Peter turned and looked me in the eyes finally. I could tell he was trying to gage my truthfulness and how much he could really trust me.

"I know," he said finally. "But I wish you hadn't found out. It's too dangerous." I groaned dramatically.

"Peter I'm sick of you saying that shit," I grumbled. "I know it's dangerous. But you can't protect everyone." His head whipped toward me, making me jump back slightly.

"Don't you think I know that?" He exclaimed. "I spend everyday wishing I was strong enough to protect everyone I care about but I'm not! I couldn't protect Uncle Ben, my parents, Captain Stacey, I couldn't even protect-" Peter looked away, breaking off his sentence.

"Gwen," I finished for him. His eyes met mine again. They were wet. "I read about her. She was really amazing." He nodded. "Would she want you to shut yourself out like this? To become an empty husk? You need friends, Pete. You need people who care about you. Sometimes the hero needs to be saved, too." Peter's eyes squished closed and I saw a few tears roll down his cheeks.

"I'm so lonely," he whispered. "I don't want to be alone anymore. I thought I could do it, but I can't."

"You don't have to," I said softly. I walked up to him slowly, giving him time to push me away, and carefully put my arms around him.

I stood there for a few moments, just hugging him, before I noticed his head lean on my shoulder and his arms wrap around me. I felt his shoulders shudder and I patted him reassuringly.

"It's ok, Pete," I murmured. "It will be ok."

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