There was something off in the world, as if nature was holding its breath. As I swung towards the Brooklyn Bridge I tried to suppress the odd feeling growing up inside of me. Gwen and I had had a date, but when I had called her cell she hadn't answered. It made me feel a bit less guilty about ditching her to go investigate a Green Goblin sighting. I dropped silently onto the bridge, the shadows masking me. The Green Goblin stood on his board in the sky, the moonlight framing his form. A body lay directly in front of me wrapped in a black blanket. I stepped forward slowly.
"Goblin!" I yelled. The Goblin let out a heckling laugh and dropped to the ground in front of me. "Hello there Spiderman, or should I say Peter Parker?" He called. I tried to stop the crawling feeling in my blood. "Goblin, who is under the blanket?" I asked through gritted teeth. I couldn't call him Norman; I knew Norman and Norman was not the monster in front of me. "Oh Spider-man, do you know how much pain you've caused me? My son, my one son…." His voice broke. "You took what mattered most from me, so I figured I would repay the favor." My face paled under the mask. "Who is under the blanket Goblin?" I yelled.
The Goblin grinned, green skin crinkling like plastic. "Why don't you take a peek?" He taunted. I stayed where I was, opting to shot a piece of webbing at the blanket, pulling it off. Rage boiled inside of me. "You've crossed the line!" I screamed. The Goblin threw his head back and gave a gut wrenching laugh. I ignored all of my instincts and ran to the form, hovering above it. "What have you done to her?" The Green Goblin seemed unfazed. "Who, Gwen? Beautiful, charming Gwen?" He teased before his face took on a darker tone. "Only what I wanted to do to you."
With a scream I leapt at the Goblin, viciously fighting him. We clashed like animals, taking every blow against each other that we could. Adrenaline fueled me on; I wouldn't rest until he was dead. The Goblin shot into the air, me trailing behind him. Exhaust from his Goblin Glider clogged my nose and brought tears to my eyes. Gwen laid below me, blond hair tangled and skin pale in the moonlight. She was beautiful though even if her eyes were closed and she was laying unnaturally still. With new found rage I shot after the Goblin, only for him to shoot down next to Gwen. "Don't touch her!" I roared. The Goblin didn't hesitate to kick her over the edge of the bridge before laughing. "Too late!" He laughed. I dropped at the edge of the bridge, panic rising in me.
"Gwen! No!" I yelled. Her olive trench coat fluttered around her, revealing her black tank top and purple skirt. I swear it had been the outfit I had met her in." I've got to catch her." I muttered to myself. "Stop her fall before she hits the water." I've got to. I've got to. I chanted to myself as I latched out some webbing. It wrapped around Gwen's foot and stopped her fall. I thought I heard a faint crack but it must have been my imagination. The Goblin hovered above, silent for once. I couldn't help but feel an intense rush of joy over my powers.
I pulled her up onto the ground and felt her pulse. It was still. A million emotions roared around me, threatening to smother me. I faintly heard the Goblin call out, "The fall might not even be what killed her." I could have sat and tried in vain to see if Gwen was okay but I knew it was futile. She was dead. The one person who meant the most to me gone.
I raised a fist to the sky, tears raining from my eyes. "I'm going to get you Goblin! I'm going to destroy you slowly and when your begging for me to end it I is going to remind you of one thing! You killed the woman I love and for that you're going to die!" As the Goblin flew off my voice died and gave way to sobs. I held Gwen tight, ignoring the cold feel of her skin. She couldn't be gone, not Gwen, not now. "God, why?" I screamed.
Tears slipped from underneath my mask, landing on her pale skin like bubbles. I pulled her tighter, kissing her from under the mask mercilessly. Time changed slowly but nothing would ease the pain. I gently unclasped the necklace from her neck and held it in my fist. Gwen's body was hard now, the life in it now gone.
Her eyes were closed, a face so serene she could be sleeping. She was like the Sleeping Beauty, only she would never wake up. I would never marry her; see our children run down the street. I stroked her hair, whispering things only she would be able to hear. "I love you Gwen, more than I have ever loved anyone." The police came as the sun rose. I was still crouched down holding Gwen tightly. Police ran over, yelling order but I couldn't hear them. All I could hear was the beating of my own heart. The silence of Gwen's heart.
As the police began to try to take Gwen away one thing came back to me. I remembered the look in her eyes as she asked me to never let her go. "As I gently released her body I allowed myself to land one last kiss to her cold lips.
"I'm sorry Gwen, I'm sorry I failed you."
She didn't answer.
