CHAPTER 3: Independent Variable

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Spectacular Characters or Marvel Characters. Just keep that in mind.

STRESS

30 years earlier, when his parents first set their eyes on MacDonald Gargan, they saw disappointment. In school, he always needed guidance through the simplest of math problems, because he was overwhelmed. That led to poor grades on tests, and ultimately led to disappointed parents. His parents believed top grades could lead to a successful career, although his parents never made it past sophomore year, so how would they know? By the end of his 4 years of high school, he had a below-average 1.7 GPA, which led to the same disappointed parents. So they believed it was inevitable for Mac to be employed as a cashier at the nearest department store for an eternity. He believed he would be a failure as well and never found his own life so fascinating. In fact, he found more interest in other people's lives.

Which, fortunately, led to him developing an unusual skill: stalking people. He learned more about people when he sneakily followed them to the grocery store, or their apartments.

His eyes constantly peered into the windows of other apartments.

His ears listened to his next-door neighbors' affairs & arguments and secrets.

His mind studied those people's lives, as if he were in class.

His hand took notes of others while he watched. Sometimes Mac would know more about those he observed than his own parents.

Months later, his 'talents' led him to the eyes of the CEO and founder of OsCorp, Norman Osborn. Since his company was an up-and-coming chemical & robotics manufacturing company, and there were many larger competitors who could swallow OsCorp up, Norman needed dirt on the larger companies. So his associates knew an odd man who specialized at 'investigating' others, which was Mac Gargan. They found him and offered to pay for his private detective school. Once Mac finished with his school, Norman Osborn hired him as his personal Private Investigator. He actually found success in the job Osborn gifted him. Since Gargan found dirt on some of OsCorp's competition, Norman found his job important and funded Gargan's firm. And those funds helped pay for plenty of this, from the rent of the apartment to the hospital bills for his wife and daughter. Their constant stay at the hospital's made bills piles up. Occasionally the money problems overwhelmed him. Not a day goes by, where he'd want to take his wife and child home, and care for them there. But he knew that his loved ones would get better… in a hospital. That's what kept him going every day, his family. In his mind, without those two, there was nothing worth living for.

Unfortunately, his wife had stage 4 ovarian cancer. The news tore Mac apart, being his foundation. She believed in Mac's abilities when others didn't, in his choices and most importantly, she believed in him.

Unfortunately, they had a few months left to spend together. She passed a couple of months later. That tore him apart. Occasionally, he wouldn't get out of the house to visit his daughter at the hospital. Other days, he arrived at the hospital miserable. Immediately, his daughter began to see the fall of her father. From his dark under-eye bags to his slouched posture, life tore Gargan down. Although he masked his true feelings with a smile every time he entered his daughter's hospital room. There was only one thing Mac lived for: his daughter. Months passed as a whole desk filled up with bills piled up in his office. It extremely overwhelmed him and sometimes he had to sacrifice. HELL, some days in the blistering summer, he wouldn't use AC in the office to save a few bucks.

Then, the best possible news Gargan has heard for a while. Norman Osborn had a job for him: to investigate Donald Menken's whereabouts. And immediately he got the job done. Norman told him that a large check would be there for him. It encouraged him that his PI firm wasn't wasted. He knew Norman would need him to find dirt on the competition, that's how the madman worked.

However, that same night, Mac tuned into the news, and a shocking headline covered his entire tv. 'NORMAN OSBORN HAS BEEN KILLED.'

He believed Osborn was his main source of income and that was gone. Spider-man was never someone he believed as a hero, but his daughter believed he was. Although there was one silver lining for Gargan. The whole city was hunting for the wall crawler, especially the Daily Bugle's J. Jonah Jameson. He knew his very own employee, Peter Parker, took the pictures of the wanted Spider-Man and he was curious how he took those dynamic pics. Like seriously, those camera angles were out of this world. Jameson wanted to find this Menace that dwelled in his city and bring him to jail. And one way to that was through Mac Gargan. So he approached him and quickly hired him to investigate Peter. However, he would regret that because it turns out, stalking the likes of Peter Parker was extremely difficult.

Peter definitely knew something was off when a mysterious man was at every stop he's at. Either that or at every turn he made through the busy street of Manhattan. In turn, started to mess with the mysterious man, giving him misleading clues about his life. Which left Gargan stumped. It was like the kid toyed with him.

So he'd have to go to an anxious Mr. Jameson, with nothing on Peter Parker. And once he told Jameson his failure, the loudmouth editor wasn't too happy.

"GET OUTTA MY OFFICE! YOU'RE FIRED!"

"C'mon Jameson, give me another chance, please!" Mac pleaded.

"YOU ARE FIRED!"

Mac deeply sighed and bursted out those Merry-Go-Round doors, with so much weighing on his mind. He didn't have any cash and wasted time on a stupid case. So much of that time could've been spent with his daughter, so his feet dragged through the crowds of New Yorkers and all the way to his run-down office. But once he entered the hallway, he noticed a mysterious clean-cut man in a black suit, who sat by the door.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Gargan?" The man stood up and asked.

He approached him to shake his hand.

"Yeah… can I help you?"

"Actually, I'm here to help you."

"Uh-how?"

"Well, my employer would love to offer you a job."

"Your employer?"

"Yes, he believes in your skills and offers you the job? However, it's up to you?"

"Um- of course… who wouldn't?"

"Then it's settled, you're hired. We'll meet again to discuss the details"

"Okay, thank you… I never got your name?"

"How rude of me, it's James Wesley…"

PRESENT DAY AT FISK TOWER

"Wesley, I really need to see him…" Mac constantly pleaded.

Then the impatient Gargan urgently barged through the large double doors.

"Not now Mr. Gargan. Change, get some rest and come back later," James Wesley insisted.

"What is it you need to tell me, Mr. Gargan?" The voice roared through the shadows of the room.

"Spider-Man's still alive…" he confessed.

"Excuse me, he's what?" Wesley asked.

"ALIVE, OKAY… I couldn't finish the job. HELL, I don't even know how the New York Police Department hasn't chased me down." Gargan panicked.

"Relax, Mr. Gargan… everything is being taken care of," Kingpin assured.

"HOW! I didn't even want to even touch spider-man… they could've busted my place RIGHT-"

"Mr. Gargan, the police have been taken care of… they'll discredit the incident… they'll discredit everything Spider-Man has said. And yes, this is very disappointing news, Mr. Gargan. However, you can still be useful. And make it up to me," the mob boss acknowledged.

"You mean it?! Are you going to give me another shot?"

"Yes but this time, bring him to me alive. Promise me you won't disappoint"

"Alive? I thought-"

"I know what I wanted before, just BRING SPIDER-MAN, HERE TO ME ALIVE!" Kingpin screamed.

"How are you going to do that, sir?"

Fisk instantly shift his attention to his trust assistant, "Wesley, Contact Mr. Brice, Mr. Mason, and Mr. Brown, I've got a job for them…"

Then Fisk turned to Mac, "And Mr. Gargan, is your suit fireproof?"

"I believe so…" Gargan uttered.

"Perfect."


M3 HIGHSCHOOL

High school passing period was a stressful time, especially for Peter Parker. He rushed through the double doors of the hallway, making sure he wasn't late for his class.

And as the sweaty Peter entered his 2nd-period class, he bumped into Liz… literally. He fumbled with his large books and other belongings before her feet.

"Uh, Liz... hey…" Peter anxiously greeted her. "I'm really sorry I ditched you with the lawyer thing yesterday," he mentioned as he picked up his stuff.

He barely glanced at her soft brown eyes, after all, he's done to her.

"It's whatever. Sometimes I forget what I've gotten into when we got partnered up…" Liz sighed, with her arms crossed.

"Yeah- well, once we're done with this project… you don't have to talk to me again, so that's a plus..." he sadly acknowledged.

Liz tried her hardest to maintain her anger at Peter, but she couldn't. The pissed off look to her face, sunk into a more empathetic gaze. The varsity cheerleader couldn't stand the sight of Peter's depressed expression on his face.

"Well, yeah… but I guess there's good news. Mr. Murdock agreed to help us with the interview," she softly mentioned once they sat in their seats.

"That's great… Good job! We should definitely prepare questions for the interview."

"Yeah, but Mrs. Nelson didn't give us sample questions."

"She did, didn't she? I thought she gave it to me, but I can't find it. Oh, wait… Hobie has it!"

"By the way, where's Hobie?"

They scanned around the class, but their group mate, Hobie Brown, wasn't there.

"Um… where do you want to meet up?" Peter abruptly brought up.

"You wanna try… my place?" His eyes glowed up once she mentioned it.

"Y- your house? Is that good with you?" He nervously asked.

He fiddled with his hair, once she brought that up.

"Yeah…. Um, is that… good with you, Petey?"

"Yeah, yeah… that-that works! Um… What time works for you?" he mumbled.

'what have you gotten yourself into, Pete?!'

Hours passed as lunchtime rolled around. Harry sat his bottom on the lunch benches and called for Peter.

"Hey Pete, you wanna hang at the silver spoon after school?" Harry asked.

"Can I get a raincheck on that?" Peter sighed.

"What're you busy with today, Pete?"

"I- um… I'm going to… Liz's house to work on our history project…"

"Wait, you're doing a project with YOUR EX?!"

Suddenly, some students stopped and awkwardly glared at Peter and Harry, then went back to their conversations.

"Shhh… Harry, not so loud"

"My bad. But does this mean, you know…"

"You know, what?"

"Pete, you know… you two are… getting back together," Harry jokingly jabbed at him.

Peter immediately choked on his sandwich.

"WHAT NO! I'm trying to be her friend. Just a friend, cause dating her didn't work"

"Maybe… because you didn't make it work"

"What do you mean by that?"

"It's like… you didn't even try… like you're distracted the whole time"

"WHAT?!"

"I'm serious Pete, I get why Liz dumped you… you barely tried to be there for her."

Peter thought roared in his head, 'Well, I had more Spider related problems at the time!'

"I see where you're coming from, Har"

"You should seriously try getting back with her. She's good for you… like how Gwen is for me!"

Peter's eyebrows rose when he heard Harry utter those words. Ever since he confessed his genuine feelings to her, she was stuck in his mind… and it made him CRAZY!

"Hey Pete, hey Harry, what're you two talking about?" Gwen asked, once she approached the table.

"Uh- you know, the bro talk… " Harry answered as he playfully elbowed Peter.

'Y-yeah, the bro talk, man, I've heard that before,' Peter thought as he rolled his eyes.

ALLAN RESIDENCE

"Oh- uh, Petey, you're here early!" Liz surprisingly observed.

Who wouldn't be, Peter Parker was early for something… at all. Was the world ending at the seams?

"Yeah, weird right?" Peter smiled.

"Very… um, come on in!"

"Thanks… is Hobie coming?"

"Well, I texted him earlier, but he hasn't responded… He actually hasn't responded to any of my text," she confessed.

"He's probably busy"

He sat himself at living room couch, and set his stuff down.

"Alright, we should work on the questions ahead, then he'll help us with the recording session."

"That seems fair, let's work, but first… do you want a sprite?" she offered.

An hour passed as Peter and Liz worked on their project. They actually made some progress on it. With Peter constantly sipping on his sprite, he constantly kept brainstorming questions. Some were solid questions… some were… controversial. And Liz created the script, of how the interview should go. Everything was set in place for a great project.

However, Peter yawned louder than Mufasa roared. It really filled up the room, luckily there was nobody else in the house except for the two high school seniors.

"Um, Petey, are you always this tired?" Liz curiously asked.

She observed his tired behavior, sometimes getting distracted by the constant yawning.

"I-uh… had a long night," Peter gulped.

"With?"

"Uh- studying… and homework. You know, my normal type of night."

"There's more to you than that. I know that. But if you're too sleepy, you can nap on the couch… if you'd like," Liz kindly offered.

"Uh- no need… hopefully the Sprite's enough. But thanks for the offer Liz, plus you've been great to me…" he gratefully appreciated. "Even if I haven't been great to you, lately," he admitted.

"Oh-um… that-that's okay," she downplayed.

"No, it's not okay. I've treated you terribly, ever since last year…"

Their conversation became abruptly silent.

"And I didn't mean to. But things got in the way," Peter clarified.

"Um, things like… G-Gwen?" she stuttered.

"What?"

"The way you looked at her last year, especially on Valentine's Day…"

"You knew?"

Without warning, Peter would quickly soon learn, that was an idiotic question.

All her boiled up frustration blasted at the top of her lungs, "HELL, EVERYONE AT YOUR TABLE KNEW PETEY!"

"Every single day we dated, Sally's constantly in my ear, telling me to dump you… for another guy on the football team! And every day I refused… I wanted to be with you! Everyday! Even when Valentine's Day rolled around, I hoped it would pay off… all those missed dates, all the waiting, for one SUPER romantic date. But… the way you gazed into her eyes… the way you treated her, it floored me. Then you LEFT for the Bugle, like you usually do… but, the thing is, I-I felt more alone on that date than any other… it wasn't because you left, no… I've gotten used to it… it's the fact that I was in LOVE with someone who wasn't in love with me… " she tearfully expressed.

Peter's left absolutely speechless, heart to the floor… he tried to rebuttal those claims, but he had nothing.

"I-" the only letter that could utter out of his mouth.

Her heart dropped.

Her mouth went dry.

Her feet as well as the rest of her body, stomped into her room.

And her palmy hands slammed the door.

The oblivious ol'Peter, froze in his seat, was left pondering.

'What can I do right? I try being somewhat honest and it blows up in my face.'

He headed towards her bedroom door and heard nothing but her soft sobbing and sniffling. It made his heart sink to the deepest depths of the ocean.

'What am I supposed to tell her to make things right? Am I supposed to tell her that I'm Spider-Man… No C'mon Pete. Don't bring her into this. I messed up enough already'

Suddenly, his eyes shifted focus, as he gazed out the large window. Then he observed how people ran in the other direction. Then, he heard police sirens speed through the streets. Soon after, firetrucks and emergency vehicles sped by the buildings. His eyes followed.

"What the heck is happening?" he murmured to himself.

His mind already knew what's going on.

'Ugh… I've gotta go… wait- I should tell Liz, but there's no time to talk, I gotta go… plus what else is there to ruin.'

Peter checked around to make sure Liz didn't watch him as he quickly suited up in his red and blue pajamas. Then he threw his clothes into his backpack, and tossed it to the side of the coach.

HELL'S KITCHEN

"What the hell…" Spider-man uttered.

Hell's kitchen lived up to its name. Many of Hell's Kitchen apartment buildings were going through, literal hell. And those who lived inside those buildings. Brick burned into brimstone. Curtains Dissolved into ash. Windows shattered into pieces of shards.

'Oh Cat, please don't tell me you did this'

Some people in the lower level apartments narrowly escaped, while those above would have to get lucky. Firefighters and cops tried their best to evacuate the people who lived in higher-level apartments, especially the elderly. Medics wheeled down those injured residents on wheelchairs, away from the embers.

Spidey swung by the police officers, which the officers took notice of.

One officer pointed his gun at him, "Spider-Man, you're under arrest for the murder of Norman Osborn."

"C'mon, you really believe that… Officer… Davis?" Spidey read his name tag.

"Just doing my job, Spider-Man… what you've done in this city, officers have lost their lives because of these supervillains you've created…"

"But I never created those guys-"

"But ever since you've appeared, bigger and badder individuals emerged"

Suddenly thunderous screams pierced their ears.

"There's still someone in there!" the Webhead shouted.

Spider-man immediately headed toward the building, until Officer Davis stopped him again.

"C'mon, I gotta go in there!"

"And I'll be waiting for you."

Spider-Man immediately rolled his eyes as he turned away from the officer and darted to the burning building.

'Uh no he won't'

He quickly plunged through the shattered windows and glanced around the burning rooms and tried to locate those trapped and screaming residents.

"Hello? HELLO! ANYONE! I'M HERE TO HELP!" he called out to them.

Spidey continued to search throughout the buildings to find those trapped. Finally, he heard movement in the upper level, so he frantically burst through the level.

"I'M HERE TO HELP!" he repeated.

Immediately, his spider-sense alarmed. 'What the-'

BAMMM!

BAMMMMM!

BAMMMMMMM! With multiple blasts, they sent him into the thick wall. He's stunned for a sec and slowly looked up to see the individual who attacked him. Wasn't a friendly face, but certainly was a familiar face.

"BUG, it's been a while!" his foe mentioned.

"SHOCKER!"

"I'm sorry we couldn't catch up sooner because you fell into our little trap…"

"What-our?"

Suddenly, his spidey sense alarmed again. Too late of an reaction however, especially when Peter's eyes bulged out of his sockets as a scorpion tail immensely gripped Spider-Man's abdomen.

"I'm sorry, kid… I really am," Scorpion quietly uttered.

It slithered around his body like a snake. And once it traveled and gripped his neck, where breathing was difficult. Soon, his vision would only dissolve into darkness.

"C'mon let's go bring the Bug to him already. Not a big fan of this smoke in here," Shocker admitted.

FISK TOWER

The Scorpion arrived at the tower with Spider-Man's mangled body. His body's trapped in the immense grip of the scorpion tail.

"Sir, he's here."

Mac Gargan dropped the beaten body before Wilson's feet. The wall crawler was gasping for air on the floor.

"Thank you, Scorpion. You may leave us… Wesley, make sure Mr. Brice gets his payment."

Wesley answered with a subtle nod, before leaving the room.

"But sir, for your protection, I think I should stay-" Scorpion pointed out.

"GO NOW!" Fisk snapped.

Immediately, Scorpion followed Wesley, and fled through the door.

Once the mob boss saw the door close shut, he turned to the battered her on the floor.

"So… I've heard a little cat speak about me," Wilson mentioned as he took off his matte black suit jacket.

"How'd you know that?" Spidey interrogated.

"I have my own contacts, Spider-Man."

Spider-man drowsily scanned the room, and immediately recognized who he was.

"Well, secret identity advice, MR. Kingpin. You can't bring me into your building and expect not to know who you are, Wilson Fisk."

"Although I appreciate the advice, Spider-Man, I don't need to hide behind a mask…"

"Tell that to the thugs you hired, and the hit-men you hid behind..."

"Those 'thugs' weren't intended to hide me. They were meant to spread my vision through this city and expand New York City's potential."

Fisk continued to roll his long-sleeved shirt unto the top of his forearm.

"You… of all people believe you're the good guy, trying to save the city… while you're burning it to the ground"

Wilson Fisk huffed before he explained, "There are no such things as good or bad guys. There are just people with diverse agendas… and those agendas change, like we all do. Now tell me Spider-Man, do you truly believe you're a hero… because you're a crimefighter?"

"I-I'm just trying to do all I can to keep this city afloat, from men like you."

"So you do believe… because you save 'innocent' lives? Is that how you naively view a hero?"

"I try my best… to help the little guy."

"Isn't that what all you and the man in black want? Stand for those who can't stand for themselves… because that's an intention I respect that. I really do."

"Your respect… makes me want to take a shower."

"A shower would be fitting… if you survive, which given the circumstances, isn't likely. But your reckless behavior caused unnecessary casualties in your fights with these 'supervillains,' that Tombstone created for you."

"So you keep in touch with the Big Tombster, huh? I guess crime bosses are cut from the same cloth."

"NO! WE ARE NOT CUT FROM THE SAME CLOTH!" Wilson instantly snapped.

"Ahem. Lincoln created his criminal empire for his… selfish desires. I'm trying to help make New York City a better place, just like you," he calmly added.

"You sure about that?"

"Yes, well… I'm torn because of the damage you cause for those who are in your crossfire, especially for this specific black cat."

"If you lay even a finger on her…"

He instantly snatched him by his torn costume and brought him close. So close in fact that he could smell his awful breath.

"You'll do what? You're a child playing the pathetic hero. It's tragic really. Like… do you not realize the amount of pain you've caused for some families. BECAUSE I had to experience that, first hand… to be in your crossfire… and DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE?" Fisk exclaimed as he shook the webhead's body.

Spidey tried lunging his fist at him until Fisk instantly moved his thick hand onto his neck and choke slammed him to the floor.

"To watch those you love take their final breath… in front of you. When you couldn't do a single thing to stop their pain. Because that's what I'd experience. I had the privilege to watch her… and my unborn son, bleed out in my arms. I REPEATEDLY CALLED FOR YOU, Spider-Man, to HELP MY WIFE! I wasn't calling for me, I was calling for her- them, I mean. But you… swung past us and all those burning cars," he furiously continued.

His overwhelming strength began to tear Spider-Man into two. His two heavy fists pounded on the web head's chest. Those fists viciously pounded the hero into the ground like a young child, throwing a tantrum. Then the monstrous Kingpin beat the boy like he was a pound of meat. He thrashed him around like a gorilla toying with a doll.

"I ran as fast I could to a hospital, yet once we arrived at the hospital, it's too late. They're gone, before my eyes. She's gone… and all I'm left with was their blood on my hands. And there's blood on your hands too! You're no hero, you're just a child, playing the hero. Because you don't understand what your reckless actions can lead to. And YOU'VE PROVED THAT and revealed your true colors after you KILLED MR. OSBORN!" Fisk furiously exclaimed.

"You mean the GREEN GOBLIN?! He was a lunatic like you!" Spidey blurted before taking another blow to the stomach.

"Norman Osborn was a man with substance abuse issues. A man who needed help, similar to my situation. But you didn't help… at all."

Kingpin easily lifted him up with his two bare hands.

"And look where that led us," he exasperated before he threw him to the hard floor.

"I bet his son will come hunting for you. Like I have! Although I should've come after you sooner, but you helped take out all of those empires for me, without me lifting a finger. So I'm glad you contributed so much to this cause"

A furious Fisk unleashed more of his anger on his head. Peter's like a helpless boy, cornered in the boxing ring. The monstrous shadow of Wilson Fisk swallowed the teenager up.

"YOU REALLY THINK… YOU CAN SAVE THIS CITY, BY WEARING A STUPID COSTUME?! NO, YOU'RE A CHILD, ATTEMPTING TO PLAY THE HERO!" He unleashed another lethal blow on the body.

Suddenly he stopped. Kingpin huffed and puffed as he stared at the teenager's beaten body. He stepped back from the body and knew what he needed to do.

"Wesley, hand me your gun." Wesley glared at him before he handed him his weapon. Fisk loaded the matte black firearm.

"Boy, there is one thing you cannot see… this city doesn't need you anymore. They've turned on you. It's unfortunate, but don't worry, you won't have to experience that… anymore."

Wilson aimed the weapon at the beaten body, his finger ready to pull that infamous trigger.

BANG! He missed. The bullet missed the body. Suddenly, Spider-Man's body jolted out of the bullet's trajectory. Unfortunately for the Kingpin, the webhead's spidey sense was too alert to ignore. He wobbly rose back up from the floor.

BANG! Luckily, the bullet missed again as it barely grazed the suit. Peter knew he had to flee out of the building. And the only way was through the window.

The third time's a charm, right?

BANG! The final bang roared in the room. Unfortunately, this bullet sped itself in the webhead's calf. It was lodged in his leg. That stunned Peter for a sec, but he knew what the end goal was. So, the battered Spidey desperately limped his way to a possible exit point and launched himself out the window. He disappeared before their very eyes.

"Do you want to send Scorpion and Prowler-" Wesley proposed, as he bursted through those doors.

"NO!" the large crime boss shouted. "He won't get far. Place police officers around the ground. If they ever see him, execute him," Kingpin calmly ordered.

"Yes sir."

ALLAN RESIDENCE

Back at the Allan home, Liz was alone, and lazily lounged on the sofa, binge watching her favorite tv show, Danny Phantom. Although she multitasked, with one hand, she held the tv remote, the other hand held her best friend, Sally Avril, babbling on the phone.

"Are you sure you don't like the quarterback from Brooklyn High, he's cute… in a way and a PERFECT MATCH for you!"

"You know me and quarterbacks Sal… it's not the best fit"

"But the homecoming dance is coming up LIZ?! It's the dance of the semester. And I don't want you to be dateless, or even worse… be with geeks like Parker! BY THE WAY, I still can't believe that geek Parker ditched you again?! Isn't this the 7th time?"

"I know, I know Sally… you know, Petey's just busy with the Bugle."

"AS USUAL! Seriously, Liz, you gotta stop falling for him and his excuses. He doesn't deserve you!"

Liz fell into silence. She stared at Peter's worn-out backpack and blanked out on Sally. 'Why'd he leave his bag here?'

"Uh Lizzy, is everything alright over there?"

Suddenly, there was a profound 'THUD,' that came from her room, alerting her. It brought chills down her spine and arms.

"Sally, I might've to call you back..."

"WAIT WHA-" Sally exclaimed… before getting hung up on.

Liz rose from the living room couch and her hand defensively gripped into a fist.

"Hello… anyone there," she nervously gulped.

She kept her fists upright and readied to strike. Her head sharply peeked into her room to see… nothing but the night's breeze flowing through the wide-open windows…

That relieved her for a moment… until she realized that her windows were WIDE OPEN! She moved further into the room to investigate what or who entered the room.

Her nose could faintly smell dirt and blood in the room.

Her heart exploded in her chest, faster than the speed of sound.

Her eyes darted to a body, face flat on the ground. She could tell that the dirtied and torn red and blue suit belonged to a familiar wall crawler.

She instantly hurried over to his side and turned over to see his damaged body.

Her mind immediately told her to call 911… like it's instinct. But it was also curious about the web-slinger's identity. She wanted to know who this crime fighter was before he's sent to the hospital, having many people she envisioned as Spider-Man. So her curiosity got the best of her and peeled the mask off the face. Her fingers could feel how worn out the spandex of the mask was. It felt like it held on with a single, fragile thread.

Finally, the spidey mask was peeled off the face, leaving her with a revelation that made her eyes bulge out of the socket. She wished she left it on.

The discovery of a battered and familiar face left her dreadfully speechless. The mask dropped to the floor, like her heart.

'This can't be… no-no, please God!'

Her hand trembled.

Her heart shattered.

Before she could quietly utter the words, "P-Petey?!"

TO BE CONTINUED…