Author's Note: It seems had a glitch yesterday that wouldn't show the latest chapter. The only feasible way to access it was either through email alerts or manually entering the 9th chapter's link into the searchbar. It looks like this glitch has passed, though. At least, I can now see the ninth chapter when viewing the story normally. For that reason, I'm updating this chapter for anybody that might have missed it in the confusion.

The following day came without much fanfare. Just another average, uneventful day. Considering recent events? That was perfectly fine. Great, even! Tomoko and Peter went to their respective classes for the day. Peter was the first to be done. He waited on campus for Tomoko to finish her classes for the fifteen minutes. No use in heading home alone, after all.

As he walked down the halls of Empire State, it allowed him some much needed time to reflect on the last few days. The hallways of ESU felt like the perfect place to do so, seeing as it was an environment Peter felt truly comfortable in. It was safe and familiar. Outside of the rare Lizard appearance, it was a place he could just be himself rather than Spider-Man.

Despite that some time had passed, he still couldn't stop thinking about Venom. If only Peter apprehended Brock before he escaped. Eddie did say he wanted to turn over a new leaf. Yet, Peter couldn't shake the idea that he was lying. He definitely wouldn't put it past Venom to do so.

Besides, even if Eddie was telling the truth, Peter didn't think he'd make for a great hero. Another Punisher-esque vigilante prowling the streets and killing people for perceived injustices? Not something he wanted. It was even worse since Peter felt partially responsible for Venom's creation. If only he weren't the one that the Symbiote latched onto, if only he didn't drag it to the same church Eddie Brock just so happened to be in, and if only he handled the suit with more care. This entire thing could have been avoided. Unfortunately, he couldn't change the past. He just had to live with the present.

And that present was uncertain. All he could do was wait until the next time he encountered Venom. Still, he sure hoped that their next meeting wouldn't be for a long time.

He tried to shake these thoughts by moving on to thinking about Tomoko. The very same girl he was waiting for. She was definitely warming up to him as of late. He noticed that she was stuttering less and conversing with him more. He was definitely taking a liking to her as well. She was surprisingly quite funny. Both intentionally and unintentionally so. She was also...different, you could say.

Between Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane, Peter had no shortage of highly attractive women interested in him. Deep down, he always felt a little out of his league with them. Even if he was now quite the handsome young man himself, he sometimes still felt like that scrawny little high schooler that was always picked on by the popular kids.

That's not to say Tomoko wasn't attractive, she just had a different kind of appeal. She was cute. Still, when she cleaned herself up, she undeniably looked quite nice. She definitely looked really good at yesterday's banquet.

Finally, there was the fact that it just felt nice to actually be the attractive and popular person who was hanging out with a social outcast. Well, "outcast" in quotation marks since she seemed to have plenty of friends back home. Either way, now he was giving someone else the very same feeling he had when Gwen first started paying attention to him.

These thoughts drifted around in his head as he stepped down the empty halls, his footsteps echoing throughout them. By this point, it was clear he had lost track of the time when he actually nearly bumped into Tomoko, who had just walked out of class.

Peter sidestepped her just before he stumbled into her. He twirled behind her dramatically just for added flare.

"Wah!" Tomoko exclaimed in shock. She turned back to him, confused by what just happened. Peter beamed at her. Trademark cheesy Parker grin. It was something she saw a lot of at this point.

"Wh-what are you s-so happy about?"

Peter's grin faded to an exaggeratedly fake frown as shook his head, "How soon we forget. I hope you weren't thinking I was lying about taking you to the Coffee Bean."

Her eyes looked down and then shifted to the left as she struggled to remember him saying that. She actually couldn't really recall.

"Wait...did you actually forget?"

Tomoko meekly nodded as her head sunk into her shoulders in embarrassment.

Peter lowered his head, "Oh. Well, uhhhh, I said I'm taking you there. I promised, even. So, I hope you're ready for the best danged coffee you've ever had in your life."

Tomoko perked back up and softly smiled, "Sure."

The two walked out of ESU. The weather outside was fairly dreary. It wasn't raining, but you could just feel the moisture in the air. Felt like it could have started at any moment. Light gray clouds covered the skyline with nary a crack of the sun visible. Puddles coated the slick, wet concrete. Despite the gloomy weather, they both remained quite chipper. Though, only Peter outwardly appeared that way.

Tomoko quietly walked down the street with her hands pocketed in her light rain jacket. Her face remained fairly neutral, yet on the inside she was quite happy. Still, she was also quite worried.

"Could this be considered a date?" She hectically thought to herself. "I suppose it is a date, but like, is this a ROMANTIC date? No, no, we're just friends. Friends going to get a coffee together. It's like when Yuu-chan and I got coffee back in high school on my birthday. It doesn't mean any actual attraction. Right? Just two friends hanging out."

Her outwardly stoic face crumbled as anxiety overtook her mind. Her eyes were darting to him and then away multiple times. She began to blush as she considered the alternative.

"But what if...?"

"So, how were your classes today?" Peter casually asked, not even looking at her to see what a stressed out mess she had quickly become.

Tomoko shot up and responded, "O-oh? Uhhh, fine. J-just fine. I just h-h-have to st-start writing an assignment t-tonight." Her voice quivered as she responded.

Peter picked up on her shift in mood. He looked down at her, only to see that she was sweating and her face was a bright red. He quizically tilted his head, "Hey. What's the matter?"

Tomoko gulped and froze in her tracks. "N-nothing," she attempted to assure, "a-absolutely nothing. I-I'm fine." She put on a false smile in a further attempt to try and mask her feelings. It just looked...creepy.

Peter was about to continue the conversation, but then he felt a small tingle in the back of his head. It wasn't exactly Spider-Sense, much too weak for that. It was only a slight sensation. He looked around, just to be certain nothing was going on. He didn't see a single thing that looked out of the ordinary. Couldn't hear anything either.

Then, the tingling simply disappeared. It seemed to correspond to traffic on the road just beside him continuing on after the red light turned green. Yet, again, he didn't see anything that suspicious on the road. He wasn't in any immediate danger, but it's almost as if he could still tell SOMETHING was either happening or was going to happen. Still, it could have easily been some kind of error. Wouldn't be the first time. He chalked it up to just that. After all, there was no use in trying to chase after something so vague.

With that little oddity out of the way, Peter resumed their conversation as normal.

"Come on, do you really think I'd believe that? You can talk to me."

Tomoko struggled to find a way to word her troubles. After some odd seconds of repeatedly stumbling around with her words, she bluntly asked, "Is this a date?"

Peter wasn't expecting her to ask that. His eyes shot wide open, his eyebrows went up, his mouth stretched across his face, and he deeply inhaled.

"Well...uhhhh, y'know, it's uhhh, y'know?" He struggled to explain.

Tomoko sighed, turning away from him. "He isn't interested at all!" She pessimistically thought.

Peter took a deep breath, recomposed himself, and asked, "Do you want it to be a date?"

"Y-yeah."

"Then, it's a date."

Tomoko was so taken aback by that answer, she actually nearly tripped over herself. She managed to reorient herself before she did. She looked up at him, hunched over with her hair covering her face and her hands on her knees. While huffing, she managed to get out, "F-for real?"

Peter helped her stand back up as he confirmed it, "Absolutely. If I had known you were interested, I would have made just made this a full-on date to begin with."

Tomoko squinted at him in disbelief as she asked, "How m-much more obvious could I-I have b-been? Are you stupid?"

"Not stupid! Oblivious!" Peter jokingly clarified.

However, that wasn't true. While Peter admittedly still wasn't 100% sure that she did feel any actual attraction to him, he hesitated more due the fact that he still didn't want to drag her further into his life. Especially since he still didn't tell her about what happened with Gwen. If their relationship was to progress much further, he WOULD have to say something soon. Just so she at least fully understood the risks.

As those two made their way to the Coffee Bean, a van drove across the city. The very same van that slightly set off Peter's Spider-Sense as it stopped in traffic. It arrived at it's destination soon after that. An abandoned Osborn Industries research facility tucked away in the inner city.

The red van pulled into an alleyway, away from the prying eyes of New York's civilians. Two men stepped out of the van. One of which was the very same thug that found the secret this facility witheld. The other man was someone dressed in a trenchcoat and fedora, as if to hide his identity from any potential onlookers.

"This had better be worth it, Georgie." The mysterious man said with a slight rasp to his voice.

"Oh, you won't believe what I found! I'm tellin' you, it'll be worth your while."

The two of them stepped inside, finding little more than the derelict, poorly lit, emptied out remains of what once was. The entire facility was practically empty, and coated in fine layer of dust.

"I'm not seeing anything of value."

"Hold on a minute, man!"

George ran his hand across the panel lined wall. When he reached a certain tile, he pushed his hand in. Suddenly, a section of the wall sank in and slid to the side, revealing a hidden passageway. Georgie waved his hand over to the entrance with a smug smirk on his face.

The other man walked down the stairwell. It wasn't a long walk. He finally made his way down and found himself in a brightly lit chamber. He looked around the room in astonishment of all the gadgets and gear he saw laying around.

What caught his eye in particular was a lone book sitting on a nearby metal table. He picked it up. It was humble looking book, entirely unlabeled. He fingered through it and saw hand written notes. What he held in his hands was the personal journal of the Green Goblin! Who knows what secrets it might contain. It'd certainly reveal to him the secret identity of the Green Goblin, if nothing else. Could it even contain Spider-Man's identity? It was certainly possible. If not this journal, then there seemed to be plenty of others just lying around the lab.

"Whaddya think?" Georgie asked as he tapped the man's shoulder. "Pretty sweet, right?"

The man shut the book as he responded, "Yes, yes, this is simply incredible! Load everything that can be moved into the van. You'll get your payment for this soon enough."

Elsewhere in New York, Peter and Tomoko finally arrived at the Coffee Bean. It wasn't too far from ESU, which made it a favorite amongst the students there. It was the perfect hangout too. The inside of the little coffee shop was quaint. Nothing fancy, but it wasn't aiming to be. Just a bar near the front, with some booths stationed near the window and some tables in the back.

They ordered their respective drinks and desserts at the front desk. Peter got a double shot espresso with extra cream served alongside a slice of apple pie, whereas Tomoko just got a regular iced coffee with a slice of chocolate cheesecake.

They chose to sit at one of the booths. Peter took a bite of his apple pie and a sip of his coffee. He exhaled in a relaxed manner and sank into his seat as he did.

"Boy, nothing warms you up on a chilly day like this quite like a warm cup of joe. Am I right?"

He then remembered that she wasn't drinking a hot coffee.

"Oh...right. You're drinking iced coffee."

He tapped the side of his cup with his fingers in a nervous fashion as he continued on, "Well, this got awkward since I said it was a date."

Tomoko was still processing that this was an official, bonafide date. This was her first time going on a date with a boy. Not just that, but an actual superhero. An incredibly handsome superhero at that. She entertained the possibility, but never really believed such a thing was possible. But, apparently it was.

"I...uhhh, I never really th-thought I'd get this far." Tomoko admitted.

Peter chuckled as he responded, "I don't see why you'd think that. You're cute and incredibly funny. And with all those friends? I'll bet you have a lot of interesting stories to tell."

"Well, there was this time I tried giving myself hickies with a vacuum. My mom walked in when I accidentally got it stuck on my mouth."

Tomoko didn't know why she said that. It was such an embarrassing thing to admit, especially on a first date. It just something she blurted out. First thing that came to mind on the topic of 'interesting stories.' She wanted to dive out the window and run after saying that.

Peter laughed after she said that. After wiping his eyes, he said, "Oh, that's great. You wanna talk about embarrassing? There was this one time I was at a Mets game. They're a baseball team, in case you don't know. Anyway, I was trying to catch a foul ball. It just hit me on the head and knocked me out! When I next woke up, the team's mascot was doing first-aid on me. I screamed so loud!"

Tomoko burst out laughing, banging her fist on the table.

"So, why did you need vacuum hickies, anyway?" Peter asked, taking another bite of his apple pie. "Can't believe that's a sentence I've said in my life now."

"I-I wanted to impress my cousin. Make her th-think I had a l-loving boyfriend."

Peter set down his drink and sighed, "Wow, heh. You must've been real lonely."

"I was. But th-that was years ago, in my first year of h-high school. I've gotten much better since."

"That so? That's nice, at least."

Tomoko took a sip of her drink and a bite of her cheesecake. It was REALLY good. Much better than she expected from a place that looked so unassuming. The flavor was rich and the crust was the right amount of moist.

"Okay, so get this." Peter began with his mouth still full. "I once swung into this building. I just so happened to swing in when a Janitor was approaching. I change into my civilian clothes and run into the nearest door so it looks like I'm walking out. Trying to not look suspicious. It's a broom closet. When I hear him approach, I step out. He says to me something like, 'Hey! What were you doing in that broom closet?' I say to him, 'Broom closet? I thought this was the waiting room.' I then walk away. Guy must've thought I was a bonafide nutso!"

Tomoko chuckled, "You think that's bad? One time, I was playing with ants during P.E. class. They started crawling up my leg and into my pants."

"You know, if those were radioactive ants and they bit you, you could have become Ant-Woman. Or Antlady! The Six-Legged Avenger? Insectica!"

Tomoko shook her head in disdain, "Eugh, I'd hate to be themed off of ants. Would almost be bad as being a spider-themed superhero."

"Hey! Remember who you're talking to here."

After a brief pause, they both laughed. Peter took a deep breath, his tone shifting from humorous to serious in an instant, "Alright. Before this goes any further, I have to tell you something."

Tomoko looked up from her drink, tilted her head, and cocked her eyebrow.

"I dated this girl once, Gwen Stacy. We were pretty close."

Tomoko squinted as she thought, "Why's he going on about his ex on our first date? Even someone like me knows that's something you shouldn't do!"

"One night, this deranged maniac named the Green Goblin kidnapped her in an attempt to get at me. One thing led to another and she..."

Peter struggled to continue as the tears welled up in his eyes. Afterwards, his hands clammed up as he nervously rolled them around each other. He gulped, he continued on.

"She fell. I caught her with one of my weblines. She didn't survive, though. The intertia caused by the instant stop? It...it killed her. I couldn't believe what had happened."

Tomoko's mouth went slack as her pupils shrank. Her mind went blank, she wasn't sure how to handle this at all. It was a complete tonal whiplash from what they were talking about just mere seconds before.

Peter lurched over the table and held his head in his hands, "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. This is an incredibly bad time, I just..."

He trailed off, taking another deep breath.

"I knew I had to tell you before our relationship got too serious. You have to know the risks that comes with me."

"Wh...what happened to the Green Goblin?"

That was the only question Tomoko could think to ask right now. The only question she knew that would have a definitive answer. That and, if he were still around, that would be very worrisome.

"He died. I didn't do it, even though I really wanted to. I came so close to doing it, but I knew I couldn't. He died by his own circumstances. I didn't feel better when he did. It just felt so hollow."

Tomoko too started to weep. Though she was not there, nor could she ever truly understand it, she could still imagine the pain. The unenviable suffering he went through. It was now that she truly understood the risks of being with him. The knowledge that someone had died under his watch. Could she take comfort in him with that in her mind?

Tomoko thought back to that horrid night when Venom kidnapped her. She saw Peter risk everything to save her. It seemed like that with his last breath, he went to save her rather than himself. It was one of the most selfless things anyone had ever done for her. In a way, she felt like she owed him. With that in-mind, Tomoko attempted to wrap her hand around his. Since both his hands were still cupping his face, she instead settled for placing her hand on his arm.

"Hehehe...I'll uhhh, I'll stay with you."

She couldn't think of anything else to give in this moment but her assurance. Just as he stayed for her, she would stay for him.

Peter slowly lifted his head, his eyes pink. A small smile formed on his face.

"I'm so sorry." He said, weakly.

After that, pulled his arm out from under her hand. Only to then wrap his hand around her's. Tomoko looked down at that in nervous joy, even if his hand was incredibly sweaty. Or it was soaked in tears. Or her hand was incredibly sweaty. Probably a mix of all three.

Peter then suggested, "Let's go home."

Tomoko wordlessly agreed. Still holding hands, the two left the Coffee Bean. Neither of them was entirely sure if this first date could exactly be called a success. Still, at least they were together and that's all that really mattered in the moment.

Back with Georgie and his mysterious benefactor, they had finished unloading the last of the Green Goblin's gear at a rundown, abandoned apartment complex. The man demanded that Georgie drive him a good distance away from the complex, to draw attention away from it. Georgie obliged.

Now that they were far enough away, the man stepped out of the van.

"Dispose of this truck." He ordered. "Leave no evidence. Once you do that, come back and I'll pay you."

"No probs!" Georgie replied as he started driving away. "You know me, man! Your secret's safe with me! I ain't ever plannin' on gettin' caught, but if I do, I ain't a snitch!"

After Georgie drove far enough away, the van exploded in a massive, all consuming fireball.

"Quite right, Georgie. My secret IS safe." The man smugly noted to himself as the fiery debris rained back down.

After an hour or so of walking, he finally approached the abandoned complex he stashed the Goblin's gear.

It wasn't a great hiding place, but it was only temporary. Once he could find somewhere better, he'd move. The place was incredibly shoddy, with the plaster walls all torn up to reveal their inner workings. It was coated in a brown, sticky, and thin layer of dirt. Cobwebs lined the ceiling and planks of wood were hanging on just by an edge.

He stepped up the rickety stairs, each one feeling like it could fall beneath his weight. He stashed it all away on the second floor. When he stepped inside, he saw it all. The pumpkin bombs, the glider, the journals, and even the costume of the Green Goblin. He examined outfit in particular, shaking his head.

"Green and purple has never been a great combination. So gaudy, stereotypical too." He grabbed the mask to study it up close.

"I suppose I could galavant around as the Green Goblin, but it's such an old hat. Been played out. Still, I could easily make my own mask. Dye his costume in some more appealing colors too. Oooh! Maybe I'll even add a cape. Yes, how delightful. It'd fly in the wind so dramatically as I fly on the glider!"

He played around with the floppy purple hat on the Green Goblin's mask with an unsure expression on his face.

"That's definitely gotta go. Perhaps a hood in it's place? Yes, yes, it's all coming together."

The ideas were stirring in his head now. While the Green Goblin would remain dormant, his legacy of evil would be carried on!

End of chapter 9. Sometimes, while writing this story, I forget how ridiculous the very premise of this fanfiction is. I get so invested in it, it just slips my mind. Then, when I'm writing something for it, I'm suddenly reminded that, yeah. This is a crazy premise. Despite that, I'm writing it as seriously as I can. That's what makes it so fun, after all. This is why I love writing this story.

This chapter was all over the place. I had to follow-up on the lingering Goblin plot thread from the last chapter, while also following up on Peter's promise to take Tomoko to the Coffee Bean. I also knew I had to address Peter's past with Gwen in this chapter. Not only so that Peter and Tomoko could officially start dating, but also because it just fits into the narrative. Peter talks about the legacy of the Green Goblin as the Hobgoblin is just starting to take form.

Also, they're officially dating now! I feel like now was the right time to have them actually hook up. I could have dragged it out longer, but I didn't want to. I'm not planning on having this fanfic last SUPER long or anything, after all.

So, uhhh, if this chapter felt like it had too much packed into it, I'm sorry. There was just so much to get into here.

Anyway, let's address the reviews.

Cool Doggo - While he didn't give her a hug, there was hand holding. Also, The Thing is one of my favorites too, I absolutely had to include him. Thanks a ton, man. While more would be nice, I'm honestly surprised that a story as niche as this one has got the faves and follows it has currently. Also, I could go either way on holiday specials. I'm not super familiar with Japanese culture or traditions when it comes to the holidays, but I'm sure I could do some research to change that. It's a bit late for a Halloween one, though. At the same time, it's my favorite holiday, so I might end up writing a belated special at some point. It depends on if I can fit them into my plans, essentially.

Guest - I don't plan on stopping!

NinjaMiyuki - I think it's guaranteed you'll see the F4 in a later chapter. No doubt about that. And thank you so much. I'm always striving to nail the characterization above all else. It's very important for a fanfiction like this. I don't know if I could fit Big Wheel in, but man. Tempting to find a way.

Mr. NoName - Mary Jane already made her jealous. If Tomoko saw Black Cat. she'd go CRAZY.

Looks like that's about it, then. As always, thanks for reading! Hope to see you in the next chapter.