A/N: I know it's been a bit of a 5 month difference since the first chapter, but I just want to say thank you to those that already followed and favorited the story! I hope we all will enjoy the road to come!
Cindy embraced the much-needed rest as her eyes finally shut as she collapsed on her bed.
It felt good. Like, it was very much needed for Cindy.
Well, she would have slept way longer if she didn't feel the sense of something ready to pounce on her bed at the last minute...
Cindy stiffened up at her, sensing a sharp presence in the room and fixing her head towards the source.
It was only just a minor fly buzzing its way sporadically in the opposite room corner.
"Huh.." Cindy furrowed her brows as she concentratedly stared at the insect's specific movements, being able to track its buzzing trajectory.
Her body stiffened and jumped to the opposite side of the bed as a loud crack startled her, coming from the door. Was it someone trying to break in? Of all times, why must it be now of all places where something already so heartrending is happening.
"Nuna? Nuna, are you still in your room?" The child's voice Cindy knew as her little brother, Albert called out from behind the door just as the pounding cracks stopped, "Mom told me to come up and ask if you're feeling any better for dinner downstairs."
"I'm okay…" Cindy groaned a bit as she tried to get off her bed to answer the door, "Just give me a minut-" She clutched her head as she tried walking upright on the floor before whimpering at the sudden ache.
"Um, are you okay in there, is the door unlocked?" Albert questioned.
'SWIP!'
As if anything could get worse for Cindy, traces of web flooded out of her fingers as her floor carpet began to rip out and stick to her feet while she scampered around in her room out of panic.
"I-uh, I'm ok Albert!" She raised her voice at the door out of sheer panic but stumbled over on the floor as she tried ripping off the webs from her fingertips and the carpet off her feet.
Half of her room looked like a cocooned mess of webs that any normal human shouldn't have shot out their fingertips.
"Are you sure..?" Regardless of his older sibling's pleas, he began to turn the doorknob and slowly open the door.
The same sharp reflex that triggered Cindy before snapped her towards the opening door, where she pounced and slammed the door on her peeping brother. She had done it so fast and harsh that the wooden frame cracked as the door slammed. Oops.
"Ow! Nuna, what was that for? And what was that - a school project?" Albert yelled from across the door.
Cindy wide-eyed at the cracks that were spawned on the frame. She leaned and slowly slouched backside on the door, "I told you don't open it! I'll come down in a few minutes."
She heard her brother march angrily down the hallway and downstairs as the volume of his footsteps wavered off. Cindy looked down at her fingers as the webs stopped whizzing and the ends seeping back into the fingertips.
Everything, the whole ambiance, all of it, it's as if everything decided to jump up and snatch at her at once.
Slowly it started everything she felt started toning down as she took a sigh of relief crouched by the door.
Cindy blinked a short rapid burst to figure out what just happened, "What in the hell?" She looked down at her hands before hearing another shout of her name from the door, this time from her father.
Whatever this is or whatever it was, she couldn't possibly tell her parents about what this was. For all she knew, especially her mother, they would freak out over her and Cindy didn't want to deal with another problem.
Cindy slowly stood back up, this time much more successfully without having to collapse again, and carefully tried to rotate the doorknob and cautiously stepped down to the dining room a floor below.
"Cindy, you're awake! Your friend Gwen called us about you feeling a bit nauseous earlier." Her father at the table said to her as she came slowly down the steps.
Oh, how could she explain her way out of this one?
Man, who knew beating Randy Hogan, or Crusher Savage, or whatever his name was, was so easy and finally exciting for him for once! On top of that, he earned some dough for it too! Boy, was this easier than he thought! For Peter Parker, he was feeling a flush of adrenaline that made him excited on his toes.
To be fair, it wasn't really easy. Peter had only just gain whatever these powers were today from the science exhibit. He still felt a bit sore considering it did take him a while in the ring with the wrestler before he could figure out what worked and what didn't. Considering he just saw this wrestling opportunity on the way home during the bus stop. Regardless, Peter finally felt the enjoyment in the fact of beating up some random ring wrestler, something he wasn't used to experiencing.
In an empty, worn-down, dusty corridor wing outside the ring room, Peter had his wrestling attire of some old red and blue sweatpants and a holed-out hoodie he fished out from the depths of his drawer and an improvised face covering on. He still felt a bit disoriented though, maybe he needed some sleep soon. His eyes were happily glued to the bundle of cash in his palm before he snapped his head to the right at attention to a man in business attire confronting the young wrestler from around the corner. This quick opportunity for some cash was really something.
"Pal, that was some amazing performance you've done out there, and the crowd was loving it, Spider-Guy." The man said as he tipped his hat towards the young man.
"Yeah, Spider-Man." Peter corrected, though he couldn't feel the least bit annoyed. Peter even told the guy and repeated his name to him to sign him up before he got up to the ring in the first place.
"Spider-Man, right, Spider-Man." The agent patted Peter's back, "Anyways, I have a proposition for 'ya. You come back more to wrestle and perform for the crowd and you can make more money than that stack of cash can get 'ya!" He took out a hand out of his pocket with a palm-free facing Peter.
Did he hear that right? Does he mean that Peter can be making some more cash? Man, if he finds a way to control these powers even more, this dough flow is only going to flood into his pockets easier and easier!
"Yeah! Sure, I'll definitely be back for some easy peasy body slamming if that's what you need. Thanks." Peter said as he shook the hand of the agent enthusiastically.
"I like your attitude, Spider-Man. Do you have a phone or address I can contact you with?" The agent asked as he lowered his hand and pulled a notepad and pen from his jacket pocket.
"Uh, no, just Spider-Man. No address, no real name, no nothing. Just Spider-Man" Peter repeated proudly.
The agent's brows furrowed as his eyes went from the empty notepad paper to looking up at Peter in confusion, "What? How will I contact you then?"
"Look, just tell me when I have to be here for the week, that's it, nothing else, or I'm not coming back." Peter boomed as he made waving hand motions at the agent as he started to make a slow pace towards the exit at the end of the dusty hallway.
The agent sighed, conceding, "Woah, Woah, alright, so this is where the matches Crusher Hogan and some of our other rogues' gallery is scheduled to be this week..." The agent said, pulling out another small piece of paper that was formatted like a mini schedule clipboard.
Oh, so his name was Crusher Hogan? Cool, not that Peter cared anyways. All he cared about now is to find a way to control these new powers, put a sock in whatever wrestler's he scheduled against, and win the 'heart of the crowd' on routine, according to the wrestling agent. For how fun tonight's worth, Peter couldn't help wanting to sleep some more. He's been feeling pretty dizzy and light-headed, sure, but the wrestling's really dialed it up this time. Hopefully, Aunt May and Uncle Ben won't bat too much of an eye to Peter coming home later now.
Regardless, he couldn't wait to finally use these powers to get some easy money and do what he wants to do for once.
Peter's going to love this new life now that he's the one with power.
She couldn't do anything much to at least help stop the shaking in her hands as she tried to pick at the food down at the plate.
"The food tastes good, Nari!" Her father said to break the stress of silence at the table. "So, did you get to see anything cool at the science fair, Cindy?" Her father turned his head at the table.
Thanks to whatever she's having, Cindy had her eyes snapped to her dad the moment he opened his mouth for the first syllable, "Um, nothing, I guess."
"Well, you did pay attention while you were there, correct?" Her mom responded, sitting next to her father, with a brow raised.
"I mean, it's not like I had a choice to not go." Cindy snapped as her grip on the utensils started to harden in annoyance.
"Cindy, do you think I've sent you there for no reason?"
Cindy could only do so much to hold in her anger at another one of her mom's rambling education lectures and still be able to hold herself upright without collapsing from the table.
Albert and her father would remain silent at the table as they shifted their eyes from her mother to Cindy, and back and forth.
"How many times do I have to remind you how important your education is in this world? I've had you go on this trip and you ended up not doing anything!" Her mother continued.
Cindy lost it.
Her chair slid back as she sprang up violently from the table, surprising all of them, "Did you honestly forget how you're still yelling at me over your same old crap about school? How many times are you going to realize that I'm not you!" She screamed across the table.
Cindy realized this vent of frustration had bent the metal utensils in her hand. She dropped them on the table as her hands started to shake more intensely.
Oh no, she sensed the same sensation she did in her fingertips before…
The webs are coming.
Seeing no other solution, Cindy spun around as a small trace of webbing flew out of her index finger and onto the floor, "Oh, no, no…" She whispered to herself.
She really wanted to use this web to shut her mom up for once, maybe that'd solve everything.
No. She couldn't show her parents this. How would her parents react? Would she be sent to some lab, some cave far away from here? She didn't want to know.
In a last-second act, Cindy broke into essentially a sprint for her room upstairs as her family watched her self-commotion in confusion.
The short-haired woman stood up from the table, "Excuse me! Where are you going, Cindy? Get back here!" She yelled in return.
As her mother took a step forward to pursue her upstairs, Cindy's father held her by the shoulder, "Not now, honey." He said as he shook his head. Two arguments between the ladies of the house were already enough for him.
Her mother sighed in frustration and turned over to Albert, still sitting at the table, "Make sure to place them properly this time in the dishwasher, Albert."
Albert, not wanting in on any of the trouble as well, obediently listened to his mom as he started to collect the tableware and clean the food before his eyes goggled at the bent spoon and fork at Cindy's plate.
Cindy just wanted to go back to sleep. Why did her mother have to be so persistent about school? She didn't want to be some lab scientist like her mother, Cindy enjoyed the things she did, like hockey.
It frustrated her, even more, trying to comprehend how her mother thinks.
Cindy opened and remembered to carefully close the door before locking it, unless she wanted to make the cracks on the wooden door frame visible from the hallway.
She seemed to be relieved a bit in the fact that the ginormous web catastrophe in her room dissolved a bit. Though, it could use a bit more time before she can make her room at least presentable again.
She looked down at her hands again and felt a more mild sensation in her fingers.
Okay, so it seems to be based on emotion, maybe self-control?
If she were to keep it a secret from everyone, she needed to learn how to keep this in control somehow.
For some reason, it was as if her mind was telling her she needed to sleep again as her eyes started to weigh more and more down on her.
She dragged herself forwards through the carpet and sloppily collapsed as soon as she made touchdown onto the bed mattress.
Before Cindy would fully shut herself off again, her senses flared up, startling her and jumping her up from the bed.
It seemed to be her cellphone ring that set her off, and she hastily went over to the drawer top to see what it was.
Many of the notification texts were from Gwen:
'Cindy! Are you okay?'
'Text me when you see this, okay?'
'I called your parents to let you know you don't feel good.'
'REPLY BACK WHEN YOU CAN.'
Cindy had her finger positioned to slide the screen and reply to her, but her internal desire to sleep overruled that and she put the phone down.
Gwen would understand, wouldn't she?
It only took Cindy a moment of snapping her eyes shut in darkness before she drifted off to sleep again.
It'd be later the same night when the young man would enter the quiet homestep of his front porch in Forest Hills, carefully rotating the key in the metal lock in the door before opening it. He didn't realize until halfway on the way home how nauseous and tired he still felt. It's been a couple of hours, shouldn't have it lessened a bit down by now?
"Ah, Peter, never realized the library was open so late." The voice of a late-middle-aged man called out sitting on the table with a magazine as Peter entered in through the front door. He had tilted his head forward a bit to lower his reading glasses on his nose bridge to take a clear look at Peter.
"The library closes at 7. Where did you go? You could've at least sent us a message on the phone, Peter!" A voice of a woman called out as a similarly-aged woman came out from the kitchen and into the dining room to look at Peter at the door.
"Sorry, Uncle Ben, Aunt May, there was this...wrestling event I went to go watch." Peter replied as he kept the backpack holding his improvised wrestling attire still in it.
Uncle Ben and Aunt May looked at one another in hesitation at first before looking back at Peter.
"Well, I didn't know you were ever interested in wrestling, Peter." Uncle Ben spoke before turning back to Aunt May, "At least he made it home, right May?" He started chuckling a bit as Aunt May blew air out of her mouth and rolled her eyes as she went back into the kitchen. "So, why don't you redeem yourself here and tell us about what happened at your Empire State field trip, hm?"
The smell of bread and bakery permeated the house as Peter walked forward and settled himself into the seat in front of Uncle Ben. "Is that what I think it is?" Peter asked cheeringly at Uncle Ben as he sat his bookbag off at the foot of the table next to him. Peter still felt the tired and dizzying sensation as he sat down to look at Uncle Ben. But, he didn't want to wrong them even more now, at least.
"Spot on, kid. Your Aunt May's taken upon herself to make us one of her world-famous cakes again. She should've joined that world-class bakery near Port Authority!" Ben said out loud as he started chuckling some more.
"Oh, stop it, Ben! You both know this is all just a hobby I like practicing!" May's voice playfully yelled from the kitchen in the next room.
"So...Oscorp, y'know, the big company? Yeah, and they were the sponsors of the mechanical devices that were there. Something's like er...radiation and electromagnetism." Peter rambled out messily. It seemed the sensation was taking a toll on his speech as well.
"Oh, alright." Ben nodded his head a bit before picking up the noticeable bags on his nephew's face, "Peter, even I would know when a young man's about to knock out at any second. Anyways, it's almost bedtime for us too. You go up and straighten yourself to bed now. I'll help your Aunt May in the kitchen." Ben said, patting Peter's shoulder as he stood up from his chair and went over to help her in the kitchen.
As if on instinct, Peter got up as well, slinging around his bag and paced his way to his room.
"What also happened to your glasses, Peter?" Uncle Ben asked as he popped his head through the kitchen entryway, but it seemed Peter was gone too soon for him to hear his question.
Inside his science-filled room of kits and collection, Peter noticed on his wooden drawers that his glasses were still propped there, which froze him in confusion.
He forgot his glasses there but still had clear vision. Is this part of what's going on too?
Peter quickly took a step forward to grab the glasses and tried them on out of curiosity. His vision had indeed gotten worse when he wore it than without it! He dropped the glasses out of the shock at what he fears might be coming next: Will he develop some sort of disease next? Some sort of super-spider cancer next? Will he shoot webs out of himself?
No, for now, Peter laid in his bed, the dizzying need for him to sleep forced him to prioritize to lay on his bed as he closed his eyes. For all he knew, this could be some dream.
Hopefully, everything will work out in the morning.
A/N: Hi again everyone! Sorry this took almost half a year to resume, but here we are, going at it again. I'm just excited for what I have to offer in store for the plot of this story for you all!
I also do want to clarify again that this may be majorly the POVs of Cindy and Peter. I may have it mostly Cindy for now, because well this is where things turn from her 616 timeline.
Given that this is my first fanfiction, your thoughts, criticisms, and suggestions for anything relating to improvement and story would REALLY mean a lot to me! :)