How to Save a Life

by LucasA

Healing takes time, it also takes courage, not only for Peter Parker. It's been five years since the death of the love of his life and future, Gwen Stacy. Peter tries to learn what it means to get a look at new beginnings while helping others recover from their tragedies. A story about how individuals relate to one another in difficult times. Rated M for sexual themes.

3. Allowed to be Happy

September 20th - 2019

"No, no… this isn't how it was supposed to go."

Spider-Man moved the fingers of his left hand slightly under the levels of the pile of rubble currently found above his body. He could barely see anything ahead of him. Pieces of wood and bricks covered his view, and whatever else had his body ache in absolute pain. Sometimes he couldn't even understand why it hurt so much in the last couple of years; the pain could usually be disproportionate to the type of aggression inflicted upon him.

It had been a rough night.

He grunted slightly as he tried to lift his torso off the ground. His strength failed him for the time being. Some metal creaked above him when he tried to move around. Everything had happened so fast, and he hadn't had time to think straight before things went entirely south.

He inhaled deeply.

… it's getting increasingly harder to… get up from the ground lately.

The distant voice continued, "you just had… to ruin everything, didn't you!?"

Spider-Man released a brief gasp of pain as he tried to move around under the debris.

… the question is, do I want to get up, though?

He closed his eyes for a brief moment and gritted his teeth.

"... I-I need to leave; I need… to find her."

Spider-Man took another deep inhale and tried lifting himself off the ground as he raised the rubbles on his back. Grunts and pants escaped his clenched teeth. He cried out lightly as he lifted the pile of rubble above him despite feeling the strength barely fill his muscles as it did before.

His suit caught on pieces of rock and scrap as he finally managed to stand on his knee.

"No! Stay down, Spider-Man!" The figure watched the rubbles move to the sides as Spider-Man emerged from the pile of destruction.

Spider-Man eventually stood on his feet once again. He began weakly, "... we need to get you back to that hospital. I've… chased you for long enough."

He settled his eyes on the aggressor; the latter took advantage of what seemed to be a golden alloy skinsuit all over his toned body; the 'skin' rendered Spider-Man's strikes mostly obsolete as it observed tremendous impact.

The aggressor protested, "No…! I-I'm not going back!"

Spider-Man could swear the face of the man was quite familiar to him. The former held his left arm in his right hand as he analyzed the facial structures of the person on the other side of the apartment they were both on.

The man insisted, "I didn't ask for any of this! I swear! N-Not… like this."

"Gordon…?" Spider-Man had been talking to the man who had attended the same school as him. He recalled getting Flash to back down from bullying Gordon at the expense of taking himself a left cross from Flash.

Gordon immediately shot his eyes up at Spider-Man. "How… how do you know my name?"

"I-I… I read your medical file."

"My file…?! I never told them my name!"

Spider-Man took a single step further. "... who did this to you, Gordon?"

Gordon put his hands on both sides of his head. He looked at the ground and flinched. "It must be a physical power of yours…"

"Gordon…! Focus." He questioned again, "What happened to you?"

"They… they told me I would become… something better."

"Who…?! Who told you that?"

Gordon moved his hands to his face, covering it. "Stop it! Shut up…!" He added, "I'm tired of everyone… just yelling at me! Tired of being a failure… I'm so tired!"

"We can still work this out. It's not too late." Spider-Man raised his left hand towards Gordon, gesturing for some calmness.

Gordon quickly rushed towards Spider-Man and rammed his shoulder into him. The latter was thrown against the wall, smashing the concrete behind his back. He tried to grab and hold onto Spider-Man's neck, but the vigilante locked his hands against him, starting a battle of strength between the two.

Spider-Man gasped in the effort. His recently shot shoulder didn't help with the force applied to his left arm. "Gordon…. stop!"

Gordon slowly gained an advantage in the contest, pushing Spider-Man's hands back to him. He could then hear the police sirens outside the building. "I'm going to make things right… and not even you… will stop me this time."

Spider-Man quickly let go of Gordon's left hand and landed a punch in his face, before pushing him slightly away, but Gordon barely flinched. As for his fist, Spider-Man was confident that something broke in there.

Gordon took advantage of the opening and finally pressed his left hand against Spider-Man's neck. He began, "Just because you're… special, do you think that gives you the right to define what's right and wrong? Where were you when I needed you? Where were you to stop my father from… and to stop all those kids…"

Spider-Man struggled to pump fresh air into his lungs. "I'm not… s-special, Gordon!" He let go of Gordon's right hand and allowed him to hold his neck with both hands, shutting any air to arrive in his lungs.

Spider-Man quickly shot a biocable past behind Gordon. The latter looked over his shoulder, and towards the web-line that had been shot to the ground behind them; it was merely a distraction. Spider-Man punched Gordon in the gut and quickly spun him against the wall as they both crashed through the concrete and towards the rainy night outside the apartment.

Gordon held onto Spider-Man from below, trying to land punches on the vigilante's face as they descended in the air. Spider-Man dove toward Gordon and hugged his torso while powerful punches landed on his back. They eventually crashed against the rooftop of a shorter building.

Gordon rolled to the side of the rooftop and gasped in pain. He faced the destroyed ground under him while supporting his weight with both hands. Their figures were overwhelmed by the now red palette of light coming from the billboard on the other side of the street.

He looked over his shoulder and saw Spider-Man swing a large piece of rock across his face; the painful sound of metal being smashed echoed in their ears.

Spider-Man began, "Stay…" He moved on top of Gordon and repeatedly struck him in the face with the rock until barely anything was left of it in his hand. "... down!" He looked down at Gordon's stunned expression back on the ground.

The former midtown student was barely moving his body. He then turned his head slightly to the side and whispered, "I… just wanted… to make her understand me."

"You… you scared her, Gordon. That's what you did." He added, "She called the cops."

Gordon remained in silence, staring at nowhere in particular to his left side. Spider-Man webbed him to the ground, almost emptying his cartridges to ensure he couldn't break free. The police would find Gordon soon.

Spider-Man began limping away from his former classmate and reached for the edge of the rooftop they were on. He stood still and looked at the billboard in the building in front of him, before raising his chin slightly towards the sky, allowing the water to drip down the edges of his masked face.

Where were you when I needed you?

He took a deep inhale and later sighed heavily. He then looked down to the palm of his open left hand and watched the drops of water land on the surface of the spandex. He then leaped into the air and began swinging towards Midtown, grunting while changing the web-line between hands, his arm still hurt from his previous injuries.

Spider-Man eventually arrived in the area of a very familiar building where he had his first proper kiss take place. He carefully landed beside one of the windows and took a peek inside what was the living room of the large apartment. He spotted Helen Stacy sitting alone on one of the couches while keeping her phone close against her left ear.

He paid attention to what was being said.

"Yeah, pretty much… and they are fine, I guess, as fine as one can be. Philip spends more time… partying with his friends from college lately; he doesn't tell me much; my two youngest ones… well, they are still in high school, but they are okay too."

Spider-Man sighed heavily from outside the apartment.

Helen continued, "Me…?" She inhaled deeply. "Somedays are better, and others are a bit worse. It can be tough. I miss them, you know? It all happened… so fast, it's like I'm missing something in myself, and I probably am."

He cleared his throat and looked away.

"In a way, we've become… detached from each other, distant… there's just this feeling that I can't explain exactly." She sighed. "I want to be there for him, for them, it's what… I need to do it, even if it's… so hard. They are still so young."

Under the rain, Spider-Man shook his head, jumped off the building, and swung into the city as he headed towards another matter.

I can't… do it. I'm so sorry, Helen.

---

Two hours later in the night…

Harry Osborn sat on the edge of his bed within his cell and sighed heavily. He brushed his eyes with his fingers and eventually moved his back against one of the four cold walls that kept him locked in the room where he would spend the rest of his life. A steel door with an opening for a quick check-up inside the cell stood between him and the rest of the world.

He later noticed some movement on the other side of the gate.

"Who's there now?" He questioned.

There wasn't an immediate answer.

He insisted, "I know you are there. Just cut to the chase already."

"Who else would ever come down here to see you?"

Harry's eyes shot up. He looked at the door. "... well, I didn't expect you to be here anytime soon, Peter." He eyed the slightly damaged suit. "You do look like crap."

Spider-Man's face appeared through the opening in the gate of the cell. "Have you been sneaking out recently?"

"That's an odd question."

"Answer me."

"Maybe, maybe not."

Harry noticed how serious Spider-Man's stance had become. He began, "Didn't they reinforce this place after… well, what happened?"

Spider-Man answered right away, "You would have done worse things."

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "If I had left, why would I even come back?" He inhaled deeply and said carefully, "Look, if you wanted to see me again… you just had to let them know, right?"

"You wouldn't want me to step inside your cell."

"It would have been easier than sneaking in."

"You will stay here forever; this is where you belong."

"Well… I can't argue against that."

Spider-Man insisted, "You still haven't answered my question."

"I don't think I ever got out, no. I don't know why you came up with this out of nowhere." He continued, "But maybe I should be allowed a nice break, after all… I did help you before."

"There's nothing you can do that will change what you've done, Harry. You should have known this at this point."

"You can't blame me for thinking that after tipping you off about the…" He rubbed his chin,"... what did the press eventually call them… Sinister Six? Maybe I could have received something nice in return."

"You ruined many people's lives… and you're too far gone."

"I know what I have done, and yes… I will pay for it." Harry stood up and moved towards the door. "You keep talking about me, but what about you? Where's your part in this?"

"What are you even saying?"

"You know I'm not responsible for everything bad that has happened to you. I didn't have a single thing against her, but then the serum just…"

"You're joking, right? You killed the love of my life, you did that… and you just don't get to come back."

Harry stopped in front of the door. He sighed in frustration. "I was there, yes. So was your webbing in her waist."

"Shut up."

"But have you ever told her family that you were also there… that night?"

Spider-Man silenced.

Harry continued, "I guess you haven't. So, to this day, they still don't know the whole truth. They don't know why she was there, what she was doing… and they don't know that you failed to keep her safe… that she was right below you."

Spider-Man closed his fists, stretching the spandex in his hands.

Harry noticed that. "I know you're eager to come in here and beat the living hell out of me again, but there won't be any need for that." He backed away from the door and again sat on the edge of his bed.

Spider-Man finally spoke, "You don't know a thing about me… not anymore."

Harry shrugged his shoulders. "Who else even knows about your secret these days? Peter Parker… the chosen one."

"Far from it." He added, "You can do whatever you want with that. It won't change a thing for you."

"Yes, it won't. You're right." Harry rubbed his chin again and looked at the door. "What's really going on outside that made you feel the need to come here?"

Spider-Man answered, "Someone is using the same type of glider you did before, and a similar type of equipment. Do you know anything about this?"

Harry was surprised at first. He eventually shook his head. "This is the first time I'm hearing about this. Didn't you take a look at the guy's face?"

"He or she… is wearing a mask. It resembles an actual goblin."

"Really? Would you look at that…"

"A fan of yours?"

"I don't think so. I used the serum, I don't think there's any of it left."

"You did blow up Oscorp to pieces."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, you would be surprised at the cursed things I found there. Our parents were up to some crazy things."

Spider-Man ignored his last remark, "I believe this person seems to be working with the Maggia. I've found Oscorp craters mixed with Fisk's in one of their bases."

"I heard that Fisk is trying to buy the entirety of Oscorp, so I guess he's probably involved in some capacity. You should go ask him nicely."

"I might have to do that, but I need better evidence. The Maggia could have stolen it."

Harry shook his head. He stood up from the bed. "Come on, Peter. What else do you need for a guy like Fisk? It's clear something is going on here."

"What are you suggesting?"

"I mean, Fisk has been smuggling Oscorp tech, the same tech used by this new Goblin of yours… who you think might be working for the Maggia. They all seem to be related, no?"

"Maybe, maybe not." Spider-Man quoted Harry. "I'll take care of the rest." He turned on his shoulder to leave.

"Wait…" Harry rose from the bed and approached the door. Spider-Man stopped in his tracks. He could see Spider-Man turn his head slightly to the side to hear what he still had to say. "I… I hope you succeed at whatever comes next."

Spider-Man thoroughly looked over his shoulder and stared back at Harry. The latter eventually watched him walk away.

Harry placed his hands on the door and rested his forehead against it, before moving away and lying down in his bed again. He stared at the ceiling for about half an hour until he heard his door being unlocked.

---

September 21th - 2019

Peter sat down next to the table in the coffee shop Aunt May had mentioned to him earlier. The shop's interior was decorated with comfortable seats and large tables that allowed for study dates and co-working sessions. At the moment, he was the only customer present in the shop. It was pretty early still. His insomnia came and went.

A small dark stain could be seen on his left eye. There was also a horizontal bandage set on his bridge nose.

He sighed heavily and opened the laptop on the table in front of him. He truly needed to get a new one. It somehow managed to look worse every time he opened it. He had to continue developing his college essay further, or else he would spend some extra time trying to get closer to his degree.

Yet, it was hard to focus on his college duties with everything that took place recently in the world around him. The Maggia was making a return. Flash came back from the war gravely injured, May needed all the help she could get at F.E.A.S.T, Felicia going head deep in a vendetta of her own. Miles looked up to him. Then there was the arrival of an exuberant, carefree, and joyful person to be around, Mary Jane Watson.

He suspected there was more to her than met the eye.

She is an actress after all…

And the cherry on top, there was a new 'Goblin' in town, someone with enough destructive power that had to be stopped, lives were almost lost in the attack. People should be warned about what was going on.

Peter wondered who it could be behind the mask.

I guess that my essay can be finished later…

Peter closed the tab for his essay and opened a tab to the Bugle's internal site. He began writing a piece for their newsfeed that, once finished, would have to go through Jameson's approval, which would most likely turn out to be a pretty tiresome process. Jameson felt like changing parts of a piece to fit his beliefs, but Peter knew he could be persuasive.

After all, he was the one that fed the Bugle with the best photos of Spider-Man and that remained incredibly lucrative to the newspaper that was changing to better fit within the now incredibly digital-driven world.

Back in the street outside the shop, a woman currently found under the rain could be seen quickly crossing the road and heading towards the shop. Peter ignored what was happening outside his world as the woman walked past the doors and moved around the counter, greeting her lady co-workers.

"Took you long enough, red… my shift is pretty much over, you know?"

Peter's eyes remained locked on the screen of his laptop.

"Sorry, honey. I'll make it up for you, I promise." The woman that had just arrived quickly pulled her work attire up on her torso from behind the counter.

"You always say that."

"I'm trying to do better. Raincheck?" Her co-worker chuckled. She then spotted the only customer around in the back of the shop. "Have you taken his order yet?"

"Oh… I didn't even see him."

"See? We all have flaws." She teased. "Let me take it from here, babe."

Peter eventually noticed someone heading towards his table, but he kept focused on his piece.

The waitress stopped next to the table, and she didn't even notice who she was about to talk to for a brief moment. She stopped beside the table. "Hey there, sir. I'm sorry for the delay. Can I take your order now?"

He looked up to meet her. He suddenly couldn't look even more surprised, and neither did she. "Mary Jane…?"

She beamed once she realized who she was talking to. "Pete? Why are you…" She stopped once she realized how bruised his face looked. "Oh, god… what happened to you?"

"I was run over by a bike." He shook his head and frowned, "Why are… you here?"

"I work here." She added, "... but that doesn't seem like a bike's work."

"I… I really didn't know that you worked here."

She leaned her head down and towards his. She narrowed her eyes at him. "What happened to your eye?"

He watched her eyes move around in the direction of his face. "I'm fine, probably a rash or something. I thought you were an actress?"

She backed away from his face and smiled. "Actress, model, waitress… you name it." She chuckled and continued, "Just acting alone won't pay every one of my bills, for now, especially my acting classes."

He shook his head. "I… sorry, I shouldn't let it out like that."

"What? It's fine. I know it's not the most glamorous of jobs. But it pays, and I receive some good tips here and there."

He inhaled deeply and later let out a tiny smile. "You're talking to someone that doesn't even have a proper job. I feel ashamed."

"You're a photographer, a good one."

"Eh, I guess something or someone sometimes needs to be photographed once in a while."

She smiled suggestively. "I'm sure someone does."

Peter eyed her work outfit. "You… you look nice in that too, I guess." He frowned, regretting what he had just said.

Why did I say this?

She teased, "You guess?"

"I–I… I'm sure."

"Well…" She shrugged her shoulders. "I'm glad you think so. I still find it funny that we've met here."

"Oh, yeah. Um… May told me to try this place since the one I went to… closed."

"Are you talking about the one that got attacked? It was near your apartment, right?"

He nodded reluctantly.

"I'm just glad you weren't there."

He let out another tiny smile. "It's fine; this place is… good."

"You think it's a coincidence that she sent you here… where I work?"

"With May? Coincidences?" He shook his head. "Never. She knows what she's doing."

MJ chuckled shortly.

He questioned, "Did you ever tell her about this place?"

"No, I don't think so." She added, "But she's friends with my Aunt; they talk a lot."

"Right, of course."

She smiled. "Well, I think I really should take your order now. What would you have?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "One cappuccino will be enough."

She took the notepad and pen from her shirt and began writing down the order for his table. "Anything else, tiger?"

"That's it for now… thank you."

She nodded and turned on her shoulder to head back to the counter.

He cleared his throat and spoke, "Maybe two capucines then."

She stopped in her tracks and turned to face him once again. "Two?"

"Well, I guess one is for me… and the other could be for you."

She tilted her head slightly to the side and eventually let out a surprised smile. "... but I have to work, Peter."

"... um, that is fair."

MJ chuckled, "... thank you, though." She walked away and headed towards the kitchen behind the counter.

Peter later moved his sight off MJ and back to the laptop. He rested his fist against his chin and eventually started writing on his piece once again.

May Parker… you are indeed something else.

A couple of new customers began to arrive at the shop as MJ helped them find a table to settle down while his cappuccino wasn't ready. She eventually brought him his order but had to leave as more clients arrived quickly.

After sending his piece to Jameson, Peter packed his things and moved his bag to his shoulder. He approached the cashier and stopped in front of MJ, who stood behind the counter.

He handed her his credit card and took one fresh mint from the stand. "Thanks for the cappuccino; it was perfect."

She smiled as she inserted his card into the payment terminal. "You are paying for it."

He nodded and focused on the device above the counter between them. "Even so…" He smiled as he typed down his password.

MJ watched his expression. "Listen… I can't hang out with you right now, but maybe we could… do that later tonight?"

He looked up at her, surprised. "You mean like a…"

"Just… two people having fun together."

Peter cleared his throat, looking at MJ's darkish green eyes. His payment was approved.

She noticed how hesitant he looked. "It's okay if you don't want to, though."

He shook his head. "... n-no, I mean… yeah, we could do that."

She smiled. "Really?"

Peter nodded. He picked up his card from the terminal and moved it back to his wallet. "Sure, it will… be fun, right?"

She nodded back. "It will."

MJ looked behind him and noticed three people were in line to pay for their orders. She focused on him once again. "Where do you want to go?"

"I don't know; it's your pick."

"We can go… eat something, have some drinks too."

He nodded. "That's alright by me."

She asked, "Seven o'clock?"

"Text me your address; I'll be there."

"... I'll be waiting for you, Mr. Parker."

He chuckled before looking over his shoulder and noticing the line of people behind him. "I believe that's my cue to leave now."

She chuckled. "I think so, yeah. See you later."

Peter smiled and left the counter, walking next to the line and eventually stepping outside. The rain landed right in front of his foot where the shop's entrance ceiling didn't reach. He moved his left hand to the rain and watched the tiny drops of water land on the palm of his hand.

He let out a tiny smile.

---

Flash hung between the walking bars in the rehab room of the clinic he had been staying in, the sinews of his muscles standing out in his arms. His eyes were fixed on the patch of air in front of him, jaw set in determination.

Peter focused every ounce of his will and concentration on moving forward, gathering balance and strength. He could throw down his crutches and walk normally once again if he willed it enough.

"Easy now, Flash." Sally, the physiotherapist who assisted him with the daily activity of learning to walk on one leg with the help of crutches, tried to calm him down.

Peter watched the scene from a seat on the other end of the room.

"I hate this…" Flash ground out, the words uneven with his strained breathing. His arm muscles were burning from holding his weight for so long, and he could tell that if he gave in now, he would not have the will to get up and try again.

She said, "It will get better. You already practiced enough for the day."

Flash sighed. "It doesn't seem to get better."

Peter interjected from his seat, "'You don't have to do this now; you can take a break."

"What else is even there to do at this point?"

Peter ignored his remark, "You've already pushed it beyond what Sally said you should do today, man."

Flash tried moving in his center with the help of the crutches. "I'm a… marine, I've gotten through worse."

Anger and uselessness seething through his thoughts, he surged forwards, putting more weight on his right thigh than he lately had come to learn it could safely take, in the hope that this time, over all of the other times, he would be borne forwards. Not down.

He felt a tearing in the muscles beneath his arms and all up his ribcage as he caught his weight with a sudden jerk of his arms. Sally was already there; before he could even push her away, she had supported some of his weight.

"I can do it; let me try it again."

Sally reluctantly took a few steps back.

Flash attempted to move forward but quickly lost his balance and started falling forward and against the mat above the ground. He fell on his shoulder after failing to hold himself onto the crutches.

He groaned in pain and snapped, "I hate this…! That freaking… truck!"

Sally immediately approached him and helped him sit down. She checked on him. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine! I'm just… fine."

"Let me help you stand up."

Flash moved his back against the wall. "It's alright…" He sighed heavily. "I… I want to stay here for a little bit."

Sally looked at Peter. The latter said, "I'll take care of him."

"... okay then." She focused on her patient. "Just let me know if you need my help. Also, don't go wandering around and alone like you did these last nights, alright?"

Flash nodded in response. He watched her stand on her feet and leave them alone in the room.

Peter eventually broke the silence, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Flash sighed heavily. "What's even there to talk about a useless cripple like me?"

He cleared his throat. "It's not like that."

"It feels like it." Flash leaned the back of his head against the mat in the wall. "I shouldn't have made it out of that truck."

Peter eventually moved off his chair and sat beside Flash against the wall. He sighed heavily. "I won't pretend to know what you're going through… I won't."

Flash rubbed his eyes with his fingers. "... and I don't want you to. You've gone through worse. I'm tired of this mess…. of everything."

Peter shook his head. "This is about you. You've just gone through horrible stuff, you have the right to be frustrated about it, but we need to try to make things… better."

"How much… better, Peter? I'm completely useless. The one thing in my life I felt like I had control of is now gone; I can't be who I was… or who I was trying to be for so long. It's gone… everything, and for what?"

"I don't have the answer to everything; I wish I did at this point, you know?" He added, "But man, I… I need you to get through this; I really do."

Flash focused on his friend. "Peter…"

"I think I'm also exhausted as well, exhausted from losing so many people, people I care about… people dear to me, you know?" He continued, "Sometimes I feel like I am lost in this… world, and that after all that has happened, there's no good left for me here, so every day is mostly about the next day; it's always the same routine, and not about the future anymore… but despite that, lately I think I've begun to feel somewhat better, I don't truly know why, but I am."

Flash looked away and replaced his sight with a thousand-yard stare.

Peter continued, "So, there might be a way out of… this, and what I am trying to say is that I can't lose you to what you're going through; I really can't… man, not you too."

Flash cleared his throat. "It's so hard… Peter."

Peter nodded. "I've been trying for so long to make sense of everything bad that has happened in my life, and maybe I shouldn't have gotten stuck on that… Gwen wanted us to move on, to endure…" He inhaled deeply. "... but I don't think I can really live up to her wishes; I've tried, I'm still trying… while I can, for her. So, please… try it for me too."

Flash looked over his shoulder and towards Peter's sorrowful expression. "I'm so sorry for what happened to her. She really did care so much for you."

Peter smiled and later nodded again. "I know… I do. I just wish I could have… spent more time with her; it feels like what we had together went by in a blink of an eye." His voice now choked a little, "... and I can never have that… peaceful feeling of being around her ever again, to hear her voice, her touch… she was my future, all of that is gone now."

She's a piece of me that I can't let go of… even a tiny bit.

Flash rubbed the incoming tear on his left eye with his left fist.

Peter sighed heavily. "I don't talk much about her… to anyone. It reminds me of so much that is no more, and most times, I just rather spare myself of that pain. I'm probably making it worse by doing this… I guess I can't fully do what is expected of me, but I'm here for you now… and I will be for as long as you want me to, that I can do. I promise you that."

"I… I will try, Peter. I swear that I will."

Peter moved off the wall to stand up back on his feet. "We should go back to your room." He offered his hand.

Flash took Peter's hand on his. "Now, that sounds weird."

Peter chuckled as he lifted Flash off the ground and moved the latter's arm around his shoulder. "Let me reach for your wheelchair."

"Thanks."

Peter leaned his free arm towards the wheelchair and pulled it closer to them. He helped Flash settle down in it. The latter rested his back against the chair and sighed in exhaustion. He spotted the tiny purple stains on Peter's face as he moved behind him. "What happened to your face again?"

"Oh, yeah… well, a bike ran over me."

Peter began moving Flash to the hallway outside the room they were in.

"For real?"

"Yeah."

"Wow, man. You have some bad luck."

Peter chuckled. "I tell that to myself every week." He questioned, "What's tonight's plan?"

"Probably a couple of movies. Are you going out tonight?"

"Why? Are you going to ask me out?"

"Nah, but you wish." Flash added, "It's just that there's not much for me to do here, so gossiping is one thing that I certainly can do."

"You've become an old lady." They shared a laugh. Peter said, "Well, I am actually going out tonight. I'm not even sure how that came to be."

"Going out? By yourself, you mean?"

Peter shook his head in response. "Not exactly. I'll have… company?"

"Is this a date or something? You're talking in riddles."

Peter inhaled deeply. They were near Flash's room. "I think so, yes. Something like that."

"Who's the girl?"

"You don't know her."

"Who says I don't? I know a lot of them."

"Ah, shut up." Peter smiled. "Her name is Mary Jane Watson."

"Watson? I think I've heard that name somewhere."

"She's an actress, model… a lot of things."

"I think she did a commercial once, a redhead, right?"

"... yes. That's a possibility." He added, "She's also been helping May at the shelter. I'm pretty sure May has been trying to get us together for some reason."

"Has she been succeeding at it?"

Peter chuckled. He stopped at the door to Flash's bedroom and walked around the chair to open it. "She's just a friend… she's a good person."

Flash brought his hands to the wheels and began to move inside. "Right. Where will you two go?"

Peter closed the door behind Flash. "No idea. She's… calling the shots."

"Do you have a ride, though?"

Peter sat down in the seat next to the bed. "I don't… I will have to call a cab or something."

Flash shook his head in disapproval. "No, man. That's not how these things go."

"What else can I even do? It's 2019; technology is here."

"You won't do that. Do you have a driver's license?"

Peter nodded in response. "Yeah, I drove May to the hospital sometimes." He looked away and frowned, "I never got to drive a bike, though."

"Then today is your day."

"What?"

"Before I went to the war, I kept most of my stuff in this depot here in the city. My bike is there, it's not the most up-to-date bike, but there's a classic charm to it." He continued, "You can have it for the night… or for how long you need it; it's not like I will need it myself anytime soon."

"Are you for real, Flash? You don't have to…"

Flash cut him off. "It's what I want. You asked something of me earlier, so I'm now asking you to take it… please."

"Okay… I will. Thank you, Flash."

"Just take care of it, don't go around doing tricks and stuff."

Peter rubbed the back of his neck and smiled. "Well… you really should have thought this through a bit more then."

---

"Some people might not be too thrilled to see you here." Captain Davis told Spider-Man as they left his office and strolled through an endless room with desks and officers moving around the place within the police department. "But they will come around, eventually."

Spider-Man shrugged his shoulders, "I could apologize for my wrongdoings if you allow me."

Captain Davis chuckled briefly. "That would be something to see, yes." He added, "But I won't give them that taste. I know what you've done for all of us."

Spider-Man noticed a couple of stares from a few officers. "I haven't done anything by myself, though."

Davis nodded. "I was there that night when a bunch of my colleagues began turning into lizards. How we all came together that night despite everything that was going on to stop Connors… is something I'm trying to replicate in this precint."

"How's that going on?"

"It's not easy, a few elements still prefer the… old good ways that a man like me is threatening, but I am trying my best."

They both turned their heads in the direction of a woman who seemed to have shouted in surprise once she spotted Spider-Man walking at the other end of the room. She seemed extremely happy.

Spider-Man waved at her. "Well, you seem to be doing alright."

Captain Davis grinned shortly. "Who knows? You might end up working here with us one day."

"I don't think the government would have me."

"I heard you managed to talk Captain Stacy down. You would be surprised at what you can do."

Spider-Man dropped his chin and turned slightly towards Davis' side, reflecting on what he had just said.

"Dad!" Miles Morales rushed towards the duo. He smiled wide once he saw Spider-Man walking next to his father.

"Hey, Miles. Have you been helping Janna with the files?"

Miles briefly looked at his father and answered, "Of course I did."

Captain Davis smiled. "This is my son, Miles. He felt like volunteering for some office tasks today."

Spider-Man offered his hand to Miles. "Hey, kid. How are you doing?"

Miles took Spider-Man's hand on his own and shook it rather aggressively. He beamed in excitement. "It's so nice to meet you, Mr. Spider-Man. How are you doing?"

"I'm… doing alright."

"Good, I have so many questions!"

Captain Davis interjected, "But the truth is, I'm pretty sure he's only here for the office party later tonight."

Spider-Man let out a chuckle. "Smart kid."

Miles pointed to Spider-Man's wrists, "Are those your web thingy?"

"Something like that, yes."

"Did you make it yourself? How hard it was?"

"I did; it backfired a few times while testing it… but eventually, it finally worked."

"Cool, I always thought that the webs came from some… hole in your wrist."

"Well, I'm glad that it doesn't… that would have been nasty?" They both shared a brief laugh.

"Man, I wish I could be a hero like you."

"I don't consider myself that, but who's to say you're not one?"

"Well, you know that I'm not. I can't do what you can."

"Hey, at least to me, heroism means doing what's right… even if the consequences sometimes can be a bit too much." He looked to his side and at Captain Davis. "But hey, before anything, do what your old man tells you to do."

Miles grinned.

Captain Davis agreed, "That's right, Spider-Man." He focused on his son and spoke, "Miles, the both of us have to go now, don't forget to ask around about which pizzeria we'll order tonight's dinner, alright?

Miles nodded. "Right, dad. Of course."

"Let's keep going, Spider-Man."

Spider-Man nodded and later playfully messed up Mile's hair as he walked past him.

Miles watched the pair distance themselves from him and eventually enter one of the elevators. He whispered to himself, "Dude… you're so cool."

Captain Davis pressed a button in the elevator's panel and watched the doors close. He said, "Hey, thank you for that."

Spider-Man looked over his shoulder. "For what?"

"For being nice to him. He's a big fan of yours."

"... no problem. That's why I'm here."

"Right." Captain Davis continued, "When I became a father, I wanted my son to look up to me eventually, but I'm glad he looks up to you the most."

"I'm certain you're above me in his list. I just wear… flashier clothes."

Captain Davis laughed. "You may have a point." He added, "It's just that… well, I have some history with my brother; we were troublesome teenagers once. We went our separate ways eventually, but we can't erase the past."

"Sometimes I wish I could, Captain." Spider-Man cleared his throat. "But hey, if anyone deserves to be in your position, it's certainly you."

"Thanks, Spider-Man."

Spider-Man nodded. "How's our guy doing down there?"

"He told us a couple of things." He added, "I'm surprised Maggia still is recruiting nutcases like him after what happened in the past."

"Remind me."

"Captain Stacy was the one to end their operations many years ago, with the help of a desperate whistleblower."

"Really?"

"Yeah, the man was head deep in that case. He was the one to go when dealing with mobs like the Maggia." He sighed, "Yet… they managed to make a comeback."

"We'll stop them," Spider-Man said as the elevator stopped and the doors were open. They entered the hallway, where many temporary cells were occupied. They entered one of the rooms and found the man Spider-Man had arrested when breaking inside one of the Maggia's bases alongside Felicia.

The man jumped slightly in his seat once he saw Spider-Man join him in the room. "What's he doing here?"

Captain Davis sat down and faced the mobster. "Insurance."

"Is that even legal?"

Spider-Man shrugged his shoulders as he walked around the table. "Too late for you to start caring about that."

Captain Davis began, "Mr. Lincoln, I'd like to resume our previous talks. We were about to go into details about your operations."

"Like I said, not really my operations."

Spider-Man crossed his arms and watched them talk.

"Then whose it is?"

"There are many people involved. I don't know all of them."

"Name the ones you know then."

"It's not easy. I can't go around exposing them."

"It's good that you are not going anywhere now, then."

The man sighed heavily. He rubbed his chin. "Look… the name that kept being brought up is 'Joseph'."

"Is he the leader?"

"Maybe, I'm not sure. I never got to meet him; only the most 'important' personnel do that… and I'm not one of them."

"Do you know where he stays?"

"I don't; they move around constantly to difficult things to anyone trying to crash the party."

"What's the point of those weapons' cache then? We haven't seen any gang wars or anything of the sort. There must be a reason."

"Who truly knows? I don't even think that's their main business."

"What do you mean?"

The mobster now scratched the back of his neck in hesitancy.

Spider-Man eventually moved behind his chair and set his right hand on the man's shoulder. He said, "Come on now, you wouldn't want me to call the cat lady here, right?"

"Having your girlfriend here would at least be a better sight to my sore eyes."

Spider-Man tightened his grip on the man's shoulder. "Other things could get sore too."

Captain Davis immediately looked at the vigilante.

The mobster flinched, "Hey, hey… alright, there's no need for that now, okay?" Spider-Man took his hand off his shoulder. "Geez… I never thought you were like this."

Captain Davis interjected, "Spit it out, Lincoln. We don't have all day here."

"Fine, fine… look, I might have heard something about… genetics?"

Spider-Man tilted his head slightly to the side. "Genetics?"

He nodded. "Yeah… something like that. I'm pretty sure I also saw craters with these funny vials instead of, you know, guns."

Spider-Man questioned, "You mean the Oscorp crates?"

Lincoln nodded. "Aside from that, I really don't know anything else."

Spider-Man and Captain Davis exchanged a look.

Lincoln continued, "Actually, I did notice that some of our guys keep disappearing. I don't know if they were moved to another location, but I've never heard of them again. I'm not sure it's related, though."

Spider-Man approached Davis, "May I have a word with you outside?"

He nodded, "Sure." He rose from the chair and stepped outside.

Lincoln watched them leave before the door fully closed. "Can I get a coffee now?" The door was shut once again.

They were now back in the hallway. Spider-Man started, "Do you… remember that guy I stopped last night?"

"The Gordon guy, right?"

Spider-Man nodded.

Captain Davis continued, "The guys are calling him Molten Man or something; what about him?"

"We don't know how he suddenly… grew that alloy skin, right? He just came out of nowhere with that." Spider-Man added, "He said something along these lines… they told me I would become something better."

"Who's they?"

"I don't know. But his body was changed, somehow, and now we were told that the Maggia might be working with genetics too." He sighed. "It might be a coincidence, but I don't doubt these things are related."

"You think they are doing… what, supersoldiers?"

Spider-Man shrugged his shoulders. "All cards are on the table right now. They somehow have access to Oscorp crates, and Oscorp is being bought because of all the messes they did with their genetic projects."

"And some of that stuff is now landing in Maggi's hands. Any guesses how?"

"Yes, Fisk. He might be involved in this, along with this new Goblin."

"Fisk? You don't know how hard it is to get slightly close to the man's neck, now more than ever, with the future elections in his sight."

"Maybe not for long. Just… keep an eye open, alright? I'll try to do something myself too."

"I hope you keep in touch with me if we're doing this together."

"... I will, Captain."

---

Later in the day, Peter stepped into the steamy shower and allowed his bare and toned figure to move under the warm stream of water. His hair quickly turned damp as the water slid down his chest and arms, easing the natural tension in his muscles.

He closed his eyes and raised his chin, feeling the intense waterfall land against his face and washing his tiredness away. He moved his hands to his forehead and brushed his hair backward.

After being done with his shower, Peter leaned one arm on the sink and began patting shaving foam onto his cheeks. He began sliding the razor up and against his neck, forming a trail amidst the foam spread over his skin. He could still remember watching Uncle Ben show him how it was done.

There was nothing like a trim with a straight edge to produce a well-done shave and leave his skin exceptionally soft. He figured most guys would snicker at hearing that, but he's never gotten any complaints from the women in his life whenever his skin got the butter-smooth feeling.

Peter eventually felt the razor nick his cheek. He hissed in slight pain and checked on the tiny cut on his skin.

Oh, well… another one for the collection.

He frowned as he brushed the blood away with the back of his slightly wet finger while looking at his reflection in the mirror.

I've certainly looked much worse before, for sure.

He eventually gathered fresh water in his hands and splashed it against his face before taking a last look at himself.

After leaving the bathroom for his bedroom while only wearing a pair of boxer shorts, Peter opened his wardrobe and looked at his clothes, brushing his neck and face with the hand-towel he carried. He sighed as he settled his eyes on the Spider-Man suit hanging inside the wardrobe.

"Not tonight, buddy. Time for another mask tonight."

He grabbed a black button-up shirt and jeans in his free hand before letting them go over his bed. It wasn't like he had many options for the occasion. He still didn't know how to quite think of the night ahead of him, but regardless, he would just go along with it.

"... well, at least I hope I can have a proper night off without the end of the world knocking on my door throughout it."

Peter pulled his pants up to his waist and later his shirt down his torso and arms. He looked at himself through the mirror inside the second door of his wardrobe as he adjusted the buttons from the bottom of his shirt and above. He then took a small perfume bottle in his hand and sprayed it near his neck.

The one thing he had forgotten about it was that he had just shaved there as his sensitive skin immediately reacted in pain. He cringed a bit. He grunted as he set the bottle back inside the wardrobe. "Right, of course…" He frowned in annoyance as he turned on his shoulder and headed to the space outside his bedroom.

Peter approached the rack beside the living room window and took his left keys and wallet in his left hand before moving the latter to the back pocket of his jeans. He also put on Ben's watch and later settled his eyes on the portrait of Gwen in the rack.

He let out a tiny smile. "I'm still trying… I really am, for all of us." He set his free hand on the edge of the portrait for a brief moment. "I love you."

Peter moved his sight to the night outside his window and stared at the edge of the taller building in front of him. He was reminded of a particular night thief.

I hope you are alright, Felicia… wherever you are.

He inhaled deeply and walked away as he headed to the entrance to his apartment. He opened the door and flipped the switch on the wall, turning off the apartment's lights behind him.

---

Peter knocked gently on the door to Mary Jane's apartment. He took a single step back and rubbed the back of his neck as he waited for her to answer him.

He later heard someone else's door in the hallway open as some older woman walked out of her apartment with her small dog on a leash.

"I'm on my way…!" Mary Jane shouted from somewhere inside her apartment.

Peter nodded to himself and looked back at the woman in the hallway.

She struggled to lock the door with the keys in her hands but eventually figured out how. She turned on her shoulder and made eye contact with the man one door away from her.

He smiled awkwardly. Her stare was a bit scary. "Hi…?"

The lady frowned. "Are you one of Mary's friends?"

"Um… I think so."

"You think?" She asked incredulously.

"I mean, yes."

She grunted in disapproval and began to walk towards the elevator that was found behind Peter. "... then maybe you can finally make that damned woman settle down."

He raised an eyebrow as she finally approached his space. "I… what?"

"You heard me alright, mister." She pressed the elevator button and turned on her shoulder to look at the man. "That woman always opens that damned squeaky door of hers late at night."

Peter heard the sound of quick footsteps from the other side of the door.

The door to Mary Jane's apartment was finally opened by her. She had been wearing and holding a damp towel wrapped around her body with her right hand. Her hair was slightly wet as well.

"Peter, come in. I'm sorry for taking so long… please don't mind me in my current state."

Peter turned his attention towards her and was slightly shocked at the sight.

The old lady behind Peter spotted Mary Jane from over his shoulder. She said, "Put some proper clothes on, girl. You're embarrassing him."

MJ hadn't noticed her earlier. She raised her chin to look past Peter. "What are you even doing here, Nancy?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "I'm just going out; why do you even care?"

MJ took Peter by the hand and carefully pulled him inside her apartment. She had a clear view of her neighbor.

She argued, "I don't, so you should also stay in your lane for change and not act like a prude. Have you run out of your meds?"

Peter stood beside Mary Jane as she leaned slightly into her half-closed door to face the neighbor. He tried to intervene, "... um, ladies, can we just…-"

Nancy snarled back, "You should just find a fool to get your loud arse out of here for once."

MJ widened her eyes in anger and was about to jump on the woman in front of her had Peter not held her by the stomach and gently moved her back inside the apartment before closing the door for good.

"Alright now," Peter smiled awkwardly and looked at MJ.

She inhaled deeply and crossed her arms, "I hate that woman."

He chuckled. "I can see that…you two were almost at each other's necks."

She rolled her eyes. "She's always bad-mouthing me when she's not spying on me."

"Well, that will continue to happen when your career blows up. She will let out all of your secrets."

She smiled happily. "You have too much faith in me."

He let out a smile at the corner of his mouth and leaned the side of his shoulder against the door. "Well, faith… that's something I guess I've personally been working on lately." She smiled back at him. The towel wrapped around her body eventually caught his attention once again; her chest was one inch from getting exposed. He began, "... you are…"

She dropped her chin and looked at her current attire. "Oh, I forgot about that. I'm sorry, I didn't expect you to arrive right on time. I'm usually bad at punctuality."

"It's fine." He joked, "I got to know Nancy of all people in the meantime."

"Right…" MJ gestured for him to tag along as she turned around and headed further into the living room. "Please be comfortable; I just have to dry my hair, do my make-up, and… well, that can take a bit of time, but I'll do my best. Then we can call a cab or something."

"There's no need for that."

"Really? I didn't know you had a… car."

He approached the couch between the coffee table and the TV on the opposite wall. "I don't, but I have a motorbike for the night."

"Really?"

He nodded.

MJ smiled. "That will be fun then." She nodded towards the couch. "Don't mind the mess, please."

Peter sat down on the couch and smiled back. He noticed a couple of shirts at the other end of the sofa. "I've done worse to my apartment, trust me." He heard MJ chuckle as she headed towards the door to her bedroom.

She opened the door and looked over her shoulder at him, "What was she even saying about me?"

Peter inhaled deeply and shrugged his shoulders. "That someone needs to fix your door."

MJ rolled her eyes and smiled. "Right… of course," She scanned his figure with her eyes. "By the way, you look… great, tiger."

Peter cleared his throat and recomposed himself. "Um… I… y-you too."

She chuckled as she closed the door. She spoke from inside the bedroom, "I bet I really must be looking fabulous in my current state…"

Peter smiled to himself as he sighed in contentment. He checked on his surroundings. It was clear that Mary Jane had a flare for things such as decorating and clothes. A couple of stylized pictures of herself were hanging against the walls. He assumed they were from the photoshoots she could sometimes be busy with.

His eyes later landed at her apartment's door; he narrowed them at it and later raised himself from the couch.

---

"I haven't ridden a bike in so long," MJ spoke while fumbling with the helmet her date had given to her. She attempted to fit the straps around her head clumsily. The straps kept slipping.

She wore a dark zip-up placket, a long-sleeved crop top, and her bluish and belted high-waisted flared jeans. Her chosen attire accentuated her red hair for the night.

"It's not a big motorcycle… but a groovy little motorbike." He smiled cheekily and set his helmet over the motorbike before turning to face MJ to help her with the helmet.

She looked stunning.

"I understood that reference."

He chuckled. "Can I?"

MJ nodded. He began to adjust the straps under her chin. His hands, surprisingly strong to her, clicked the straps in place for her. She looked straight into his currently determined eyes as he finished working on her helmet.

He let go of the helmet and spoke, "There you go, miss."

"Thank you."

He smiled and adjusted the helmet on his head. "Shall we go now?"

"Yes." She watched him swing his leg up over the bike and sat down.

He said, "Careful, watch the pipe."

MJ sat behind him as close as she possibly could. She wrapped her arms around his middle, holding on tight. Peter spun the bike's key and brought life to the vehicle. He began to move forward and out of her building's parking lot.

As they moved towards the traffic, Peter questioned, "Is everything alright back there?"

"Of course," She rested her chin on his shoulder as the chilling wind brushed against their bodies. "This is nice. Are you never afraid while riding a bike?"

"I usually don't; this one belongs to a friend of mine." He added, "... but I don't feel afraid at all, I guess I've done… I don't know, more dangerous things before."

"Like what?" She questioned, genuinely interested.

He tilted his head slightly to the side as he thought of a proper answer. "Well, you wouldn't guess the places I had to go to take some pictures of Spider-Man."

"Anything for that perfect shot, right?"

He took a turn to the right. "Yeah, that's pretty much it."

"You should be careful, though. Your job does sound dangerous."

He chuckled. "You are right."

"There must be easier things to take pictures of."

"Definitely, but Spider-Man pays a bit better, you know?"

"Do you… actually know him?"

He looked slightly over his shoulder for a brief moment. "Why would you think that?"

She cocked her head to the side. "May seems to think so."

"Oh, yes… she does." Peter focused back on the street ahead. "Um, I don't really… I think we may have exchanged a few couple of words in the past, but it was more luck on my part than anything else."

"Really? What is he like?"

Peter chuckled briefly. "Wait, are you a fan of his?"

"Um… no, not like that. He's just… well, Spider-Man, you know? A lot of people look up to him."

Peter remained in silence.

She added, "... I also know that some of my friends of no specific gender look up to his butt instead, so there's that too."

Peter laughed. "That's something else. But not you, though?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "It's not what I think of when he's brought up." She added, "I think I'm more… intrigued about the type of person underneath the mask, like… what makes someone do what he does every day? Why? For how long? It's just… well, it can be a lot for one person, whoever he might be."

"That's… one way to think of him… or her; we don't know… for sure."

"... and I guess he enjoys life or tried to at least. That's important."

"You think… he has changed?"

"Maybe, I'm not sure." MJ tightened her grip on his middle and smiled. "Regardless, I don't think I'm out with Spider-Man right now, right? So, where are you bringing us to, Peter Parker?"

"Right," Peter let out an awkward laugh. He cleared his throat. "Would you rather… a fancier or more of the people type of restaurant?"

She chuckled. "No need for anything fancy; a hamburger would be quite nice right now."

He smiled. "Well then, that's good by me… otherwise, I would have to ask Google."

---

"This is such a…. good hamburger, Peter!" MJ spoke as she finished eating the chunk she had gathered on her fork.

Peter smiled at her while chewing on his own hamburger. "I'm glad my choice is up to your taste."

"It's delicious." She wiped her lips with the napkin and took a sip of her cranberry juice through the straw. "You have some great taste yourself."

"You should have met my uncle… he grilled the best hamburger I have ever eaten in my life."

MJ frowned slightly. "I don't think I ever got to see him whenever I was around; I usually didn't stay for long with my aunt."

"Short guy, white hair… glasses?"

She smiled. "That might… ring a bell or two. Yeah."

He chuckled. "You've lived elsewhere then?"

MJ nodded. "I stayed mostly with my parents, then just with my father after mom passed away and my older sister got married, even if she still lived nearby."

"Oh, I'm… so sorry about that, MJ."

She shrugged her shoulders reassuringly. "Don't worry; it's been a couple of years. I've kinda moved on."

Peter crossed his arms over the table and kept his sight upon her. "I… I think you already know most of my story, right?"

"... but I never heard it from you." She beamed.

"Well… I'm just your typical Forest Hills kid, sometimes a photographer, occasionally a science nerd… so I guess I'm not that interesting."

She took another sip of her juice and later said provocatively, "You would be surprised."

He smiled shortly. "About my parents, they died in a… plane crash, so I moved in with Ben and May. I've lived there for a long time under their wings, and then it was just May and I."

"She's really like a mother to you, isn't she?"

"She is, yeah. It's no different with Uncle Ben. I owe… absolutely everything to them." He added, "They were living their daily lives, they had their plans, dreams, normal stuff… and they took me in when I had nothing else. I know I changed many things for them. I changed their lives, sometimes not in the best way."

"You've become their child, their son."

"I'd like to think so, yeah… May's my everything right now, and here I am, trying to graduate from college, to enjoy myself if I can… and sort out the rest of life ahead of me."

"Tell me if you ever succeeded at that cause I need to do that as well."

"You've got it figured out."

MJ was surprised. "You keep saying that… are you maybe my biggest fan?"

Peter deflected, "I mean, you're a… model, right? You're also an actress. I'm sure you have the talent, the looks, and just about…" He cut himself short when he realized what he had just said.

MJ laughed shortly. "So, you find me pretty?"

"I mean... " He paused and eventually recomposed himself as he looked at her. She was amused. "Well, you are pretty, and yes, you can call me a fan of yours."

She tilted her head slightly to the side and pushed him further, "And why is that? It's certainly not because of my… extremely successful career."

"You're trying your best to pull my leg here, right?"

"Maybe…"

He chuckled. "Look, it's clear that you know what you want, you don't have any doubts about it; you have what, three jobs at some point? Everything to make your dream come true." He added, "... I once knew this person, and there was something important to her that she did get in the end, so yeah, I have every reason to believe that you'll manage this too."

MJ smiled and held her chin in her hands as she stopped to stare at his eyes, reflecting on what he had just said.

"... and what do you want, tiger?"

"... what do I want?"

She nodded.

He looked back at her and leaned slightly against the table, resting his arms over it. "... well, a couple of things."

"Like what?"

He inhaled deeply. "I'm not falling for this one, Ms. Watson. Maybe a bit later."

She grinned. "You're slowly figuring me out."

"Life's a grind; I'm getting better at it… hopefully."

"It really is, isn't it?" She took another sip. "But… thank you for saying those things; they were nice. I hope you are right."

He shrugged his shoulders. "Of course I am."

"You're probably the person that has the most faith in me since my mom."

"Really? That can't be true."

"It is, yeah." MJ added, "Like, even in her last moments, she told me never to let go of… my dream, even with all that pain, she still… well, it's our dream now."

He questioned delicately, "Could I… ask what happened to her?"

MJ smiled. "Of course, you can, Pete." She began, "She got very sick one day, and later we found out it was leukemia out of all things. It was tough, but she kept fighting every day."

Peter nodded slowly. "I'm sure that she did." He received a kind smile back from MJ.

She continued, "... and I've lived for some time with my father. He had his own vision of what my life should be like, though. Things weren't well before mom passed, but everything fell apart completely when she did. I just wanted to make her happy in any way, so I couldn't stay there longer."

He didn't feel like prying further. "I see. Cancer is… well, it's not great at all."

"Have you gotten through something like that?" She questioned sincerely.

Peter shook his head, "Not exactly, no." He continued, "... but some years ago, I got to talk to this very nice kid undergoing cancer treatment, and she was a real fan of Spider-Man…"

MJ completed his sentence, "... the kid that collected Spider-Man."

"You've heard about her?"

"I read the piece about her on the Daily Bugle." She questioned, "You met her, right?"

"Yeah, I… I mean for the Bugle, right?" He cleared his throat and eventually gathered himself. "She was like… really determined to fight her own body to meet Spider-Man finally; this never actually came out… but she did meet him."

"Really?" MJ's eyes widened. "How do you know? I… I didn't hear anything about it back then."

"I know because… well, I…"

MJ teased, "Is it because you're Spider-Man?"

Peter panicked internally right away. He looked at her straight in the eye, shocked. "Um… what?"

She chuckled. "I'm joking; it's just because… you gotta be his friend; there's no way you aren't."

Peter inhaled deeply and let out a brief awkward laugh. "Right, yeah - I… I tried to fool you for a bit. I-I know him a little, yes."

MJ smiled proudly. "You can't fool an aspiring actress, tiger. I can see through all the masks." She tilted her head to the side, "So, she did meet him."

Peter nodded. "She did, and I heard it was like… truly the best day in her life to her, the effect he had on her… was something out of this world." He sighed heavily and continued, "... she passed away two weeks later."

Mary Jane knew about her passing, it was all over the news, but she didn't realize that the girl had fulfilled her desire in the end. That was new information to her, a heartbreaking one. "That's… you're going to make me tear up."

He smiled and allowed his focus to wander to his internal memories. "Sometimes, when it gets rough, I try to remind myself that even in the end… she still managed to be happy; she was probably the happiest she had ever been. She was great." He added, "I'm also sure that your mother was already… happy with you too."

"Thank you." MJ leaned slightly forward on the table and placed her hand over his. She smiled reassuringly, "You do have some nice stories to tell. You are far from boring."

He smiled back and sincerely. "I hope I can still have more… good stories to tell."

She took her hand off his and let out a brief giggle, before starting, "Hey… um, how do you feel about dancing next?"

"I can certainly try."

"Some friends from acting school are throwing this little party, and they want us to go there. They are pushing me hard. It could be fun, it usually is…. but it could be more fun if you were around."

He teased, "Us?"

"I… I told them I was out with this guy for a bit. Maybe they want to know you."

Peter smiled. "Well, Ms. Watson… then I guess I should go get my best shoes."

---

About two hours later…

"Hey, Aunt May," Peter spoke on his phone as he stood outside the house where the party was taking place. He was close to a couple of cars parked in front of the residence. He had taken a quick break from dancing. "How are you doing?"

He turned slightly on his shoulder and looked at the people hanging out near the entrance. There were a considerable number of attendees present for the party. They were found outside and inside the house. Some were gathered near the cars, others in the courtyard and entrance to the house.

"Hi, honey. I'm at the shelter right now."

"Isn't it a bit late for that?"

"It's never too late to help someone with something." She added, "You of all people know that."

"Yeah… I think I do." He overheard a group of friends laughing back at the porch. They seemed happy.

"Miles just left with his father, and I think they were going to grab some dinner for this little party they are having at the department. I'm surprised how fast he can move around in this place to do his chores."

Peter chuckled. "Mile's great. I'm glad he's putting in some good work."

"What about you? What are you up to right now?"

He inhaled deeply, pushing away a bit of the tiredness off his muscles. "I've been pulling some quite nice moves lately."

"Oh, so it's party night right now. You kids aren't wasting any time lately."

"You could say that."

"Who are you with?"

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Um… there's a couple of people in here. But… Mary Jane's here too."

"... with you?" She asked suspiciously.

"In the sense that she brought us here, yeah."

"So, you have a date."

He smiled. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves now."

"I'm just glad for that."

"Why?" He asked sincerely.

"Because I want you to be happy, and Mary is a great person."

"You're trying hard to pair us together, aren't you?"

"I'm just… planting some seeds; the rest is not up to me."

"I'm starting to fear you, woman. You're becoming some master strategist or something." He could hear the sound of her laugh. He smiled. "Yeah, well… we're just friends."

"Right."

Peter chuckled before taking on a more serious facial expression. "May, listen… I… I just want you to know that… you are important to me. If there's one thing that can make me happy… is your wellbeing." He added, "And I know I haven't been around much for some time, but it's not because of you… far from it. I'm trying to do better; I'm still trying."

"I know… I know, Peter." She continued, "Ever since you left, it's been hard to catch up with you… but I don't want you to forget that I'm here for anything."

"... thank you, May. I guess I… I'm also still getting used to living alone."

The truth is, I couldn't risk bringing Spider-Man to her window every night anymore. And I… I had to be on my own.

May said, "I would just rather if we could have these… talks in person, you know?"

He nodded to himself. "We could have a barbecue; I'll be on the grill. What do you think?"

"I'll check my schedule. I'm quite a busy woman now.".

Peter grinned. "You do that."

"You should bring Mary along as well."

"Right, so… I guess that's my cue to go back to the party now."

May laughed. "I'll let you go then. I love you."

"... I love you too, May. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, honey."

Peter hung up the call and moved his phone back to the pocket in his jeans. He smiled and turned on his shoulder, before moving to the porch and heading back inside the house. The rooms were crowded with people constantly walking around while being blasted by the sound speakers.

Road shimmer…

Wiggling the vision…

Heat heat waves…

I'm swimming in a…

Peter found MJ standing inside the busy kitchen and leaning against the aisle. She looked down at her phone as she typed on it. He managed to walk past the people on his way and eventually stop next to her.

Sometimes, all I think about is you…

Late nights in the middle of June…

Heat waves been faking me out…

Can't make you happier now…

"Hey," He greeted, trying to make himself heard through the music.

MJ looked to her side and at him, before letting out a tiny smile. Her cheeks were still slightly flushed from their dance earlier when the music was more energetic.

"Hey you, Pete." She leaned the side of her head against his right shoulder and kept her phone in her hands. "I thought you had left for a moment."

He rested his right hand on the counter behind her back. "My aunt and I… we can get chatty from time to time."

MJ chuckled. "That's nice." She typed on her phone. "I've been talking to Alice while you were gone."

"How is she?"

"... as well as one can be while they can't get back home."

"Something with her father, right?"

MJ nodded. "More about the people around him, and he hasn't returned either. I don't know much; she doesn't tell me a lot."

"It's clear that she trusts you, though."

MJ smiled. "I guess she does. I've just… been trying to help her have a proper childhood, you know?"

He nodded back. "It's good that she has you around, MJ. For sure."

"... you keep saying the nicest things." She turned her head towards him and raised her chin, looking straight at his eyes once again. They stood pretty closely next to each at this point.

He smiled and stood still. "I think I need to do at least one thing right."

She moved her phone back to her jeans without ever taking her eyes off his. "Don't sell yourself short." She added, "For starters, you're one proper dancer, tiger. You kept up with my rhythm."

They smiled fondly at each other, but the pair was eventually interrupted by a third person near them.

"MJ, is this the guy I've heard so much about?" A dark-haired woman smiled at them. A second woman accompanied her.

MJ moved to check on her two friends that had just arrived. "Holly, I was wondering where you two gals were." She greeted the duo by pulling them both into a single hug.

Peter crossed his arms and watched them.

"It wasn't that hard to find the prom's queen." Holly teased as she placed her hands on MJ's shoulders

MJ grinned and looked at Peter. "Pete, this Holly… and Jenny. I've known them from acting school."

Peter approached them. "Hey there," The three of them exchanged a brief peck on the cheek. "Nice to meet you, ladies."

Jenny spoke, "You too, mister." She continued, "So, you're the lucky guy of the night?"

MJ let out a quick grin as she rolled her eyes.

Peter shrugged his shoulders. He exchanged a brief and playful stare with MJ. "It's been a good night so far, yeah."

MJ interjected, "Thank you for inviting me over."

Holly teased, "You act like you don't join us often… but it has been some days, though."

"I'm just being modest." She looked around, "It's quite crowded here, isn't it?"

"Madelyn decided to invite people from every other class. I don't even want to imagine the cleaning that will have to be done tomorrow." They shared a brief chuckle. She continued, "I'm more worried about getting myself a drink."

Peter spoke, "Let me help you girls with that," He looked at MJ, "Do you want one too?"

She smiled. "Can you even manage three glasses on your own?"

"Have faith in me, Ms. Watson." He walked away and began heading towards the busy living room on the other side of the house. He found a mini wooden bar in the back of the room with different rounded bowls next to each other.

Peter took a couple of red plastic cups from the stand and placed them beside each other and in front of the bowls. He later heard some loud cheering coming from outside the window behind the minibar. He narrowed his eyes towards the scene and found a couple of men standing near a large keg set in the grass.

The crowd outside was shouting someone's name and counting how many seconds the man lasted while making a keg stand. They called for one 'Philip'. Two men were holding Philip's legs up in the air before letting him down to congratulate him. The now keg champion wore a black leather jacket over his bare torso and blue jeans.

Philip…?

Peter finally took a clear look at the man's face as he cheered fiercely. Peter's eyes widened at sight. It was someone from his past, Philip Stacy, Gwen's oldest sibling before her.

Philip was absorbed by the crowd outside in the courtyard. He greeted some of the people there and was eventually handed a cigarette by one of his friends. He gladly moved it between his lips.

Peter cleared his throat as he watched Philip move between the group of people outside. The latter eventually looked around and later towards the direction of the window Peter had been watching him through, unintentionally catching his former girlfriend's brother in his current sight.

Peter quickly evaded his gaze and focused back on the bowls. He cleared his throat and didn't move a muscle in his muscle for a short couple of seconds before inhaling deeply and taking the spun from the bowls to fill each of the three cups he had gathered above the counter. He held two mugs in the palm of his left hand and the other in his right hand and walked away to find Mary Jane and her friends again.

He quickly spotted them at the back of the busy living room, chatting and laughing amongst themselves. A fourth girl seemed to have joined them while he was away. He approached the group, "Here you go," He began handing them the cups.

Jenny smiled as she took hers in her hand. "Thank you, Petey."

MJ held her cup and noticed that something was off about his expression. He seemed to be slightly nervous.

Holly also thanked him before asking, "Won't you have one?"

Peter shook his head. "I'm driving tonight; better be safe."

Jenny chuckled, "Oh, Peter… you are such a catch."

MJ interjected, "Are you alright?"

He nodded. "... yeah, just… I had to push this wheelchair guy out of my way to get in here. It's quite busy here."

Everyone, minus MJ shared a brief chuckle. She had locked her eyes with his, trying to read what was happening. He could be a tough one to read.

"Well, well… if it isn't the good-ol' Peter Parker himself." A stranger spoke from behind them. "You've looked better before…"

Peter turned on his shoulder and met Philip Stacy and some of his friends. "Philip… hey there." He noticed how the Stacy in front of him seemed to have gained some muscles since they last met.

"What are you doing here, man? I didn't know you were a party guy." Philip moved the back of the cigar between his lips. He scanned Peter's entire figure.

Mary Jane tilted her head slightly to the side as she watched them interact. She later exchanged a quick stare with her friends.

Peter sighed lightly. "I guess it's never too late to try new things, right? How are you?"

Philip smiled. "Right… though, I bet you couldn't have shown up around a bit more often before, uh?"

MJ moved next to Peter and held on to his arm. She looked at Philip. "Hey, are you a friend of Peter?"

Philip let out a quick grin. "Something like that, yeah. Aren't you… the Mary Jane Watson I've heard so much about?"

She nodded. "The one and only. You?"

Philip looked at Peter. "Won't you introduce me?"

Peter nodded. The tension in the air was so thick one could cut it with a knife. "Yeah… um, this is Philip…" The latter kept his smile out and an eyebrow raised at him, expecting him to finish the sentence. "... Philip Stacy."

MJ eventually turned to focus on Philip once again. She had connected the dots. "Oh…"

Philip eyed the stain on Peter's cheek. "What happened to you? Did you fall while trying to take another picture of Spider-Man? How is he doing?"

"No, that's not what it was… just a traffic accident."

Philip grinned as he exhaled smoke toward Peter. He licked his lips. "Oh, Peter…"

MJ took Peter by his hand and made him look at her. "Hey, could we get some air? It's crowded here."

Peter eventually nodded. "Okay, sure." He turned towards Philip and asked, "Can we… talk later?"

Philip shrugged his shoulders. "What makes you think that I'd even like that?"

"Come on, Philip…"

MJ led Peter away by the hand. "Let's go, Peter."

Philip turned on his shoulder as he watched them disappear among the people within the house. He shook his head before waving goodbye to the girls left behind and walking away with his friends.

---

Mary Jane moved her bottom against the bike's seat and held her weight by setting her hands on each end of the vehicle as she looked at Peter, who stood in front of her. "That was… quite something."

"I'm sorry about all of that."

"Don't worry; it's not the first time a man has been somewhat hostile near me. I just had to bail you out."

Peter shrugged his shoulders. "I can't blame him, certainly not him of all people." He continued, "I'm sorry you had to be around that; I didn't want to mess with your night."

She corrected him, "... our night, and you didn't do anything of the sort." She said, "I didn't know he was related to… Gwen."

He dropped his chin slightly and nodded to himself. "He's her oldest brother, yes."

"I see. What was that about… Spider-Man?"

"Well, when people think of me… most of the time, they usually think about the guy that takes the most pictures of Spider-Man. And naturally, he doesn't think too well about that."

"It's not your fault, though," MJ replied. Peter didn't say anything back. She continued, "It must be tough… for everyone involved."

He sat down next to her on the bike. They looked at the busy house on the other side of the street. "It had been a long time since we had seen each other; a lot has changed."

MJ raised her chin and glanced at the stars above them. "... as do we all."

He looked over his shoulder and towards her serene expression. Her stunning beauty mesmerized him. "I bet there was just a bit of everything tonight. How bad did I do?"

She smiled playfully. "I'm quite enjoying myself. I don't know why you are thinking so low of yourself."

He smiled. "Well, what's the worst that can happen when you expect nothing else?"

She looked back at him and tilted her head slightly backward. "Is that how you think about me?"

"What? No… of course not." He added, "You are… great, you are."

"Why?"

"You just are. I mean… tonight, despite what just happened, it's probably the most fun I've had in a very long time, and that's because of you… so there's that."

MJ smiled, sincerely before looking away without ever letting go of the grin that was spread across her lips. She said, "... well, you're one decent dancing partner too."

Peter kept his sight locked at the side of her face. He smiled to himself and joined her in her current gaze, before taking the fresh mint he had bought earlier from the pocket in his jeans. He threw the rounded sweet in the air above his face and later caught it in his mouth.

MJ had her eyes widened at him, surprised at his skillset.

He questioned, "Do you want some too?"

She nodded. "I can do that as well."

"Are you sure? There's only one left."

"I'm pretty sure."

"Alright then," He took the last piece in his hand. "Are you ready?"

He threw the mint into the air above MJ's face. She raised her chin and opened her mouth to catch the sweet on her tongue. She succeeded.

"You did it!" Peter grinned happily.

MJ winked at him as her tongue played around with the mint in her mouth. "What else can we do now?"

"Tired of dancing?"

"Perhaps…"

Peter rubbed the back of his neck and smiled. "Well, there's this place… not far, but we'll have to work together to get inside."

"How difficult could it be?"

---

Twenty minutes later…

"I didn't know you were such an expert at breaking inside places." MJ teased while clutching his arm as she wobbled on the thin blades of her skates above the ice rink they were both on. The place was empty.

"I have some tricks up my sleeve, yeah."

"Then show them to me."

"MJ, if I let go of you long enough to show you, you will end up flat on the ground." He placed his hand on hers and gently eased his arm away so that he could move behind her again.

His hands rested on her waist, guiding her expertly around the curve.

"I swear I won't." She tried to look back at him, but lost her balance again, causing him to grip her more tightly.

He shook his head. "I'm not taking any chances. I don't want Anna to come hunting for me because you got yourself hurt."

MJ rolled her eyes. She taunted him, "What happened to that confident man that convinced me to come here to see his skills illegally?".

"It wasn't like that."

She shrugged her shoulders. "You can speak the talk, but you cannot run the walk."

"Talk the talk and walk the walk."

She frowned, glancing over her shoulder at him again. "Copycat."

Peter kept his hands at her waist as he moved back around to face her as he skated backward. He now held both of her hands instead. "It's too late at night to start questioning your life decisions, MJ."

"I'm not a quitter."

Peter raised his eyebrows at her, tugging at her hands.

She shrugged, a smile playing on her lips. "I'm just underwhelmed."

He decided to draw her in so he could guide her over towards the wall of the rink. "Alright then, Ms. Watson."

He placed her hands on the wall and made sure she was steady.

"Oh, tiger… you're such a gentleman," She mocked him playfully.

He smiled. "Just watch me."

"You have my attention."

Sliding away from her, Peter began building speed as he circled the rink, moving past her once, then twice as she clapped for him. Turning around, he skated backward as he passed her once more. And then he was off, faster than she had seen him go yet, building up momentum before sinking into a crouched position as he glided across the ice.

"Be careful!" She called as he lifted himself back into a standing position.

He shot forward again, crossing the rink quickly and coming to an ice-splintering stop that sent a frosty cloud of frozen particles dusting up around his legs. Turning, he skated in slow circles towards her and then around her, laughing as he dodged her hands.

"Hey!" MJ protested, making a relatively futile attempt to follow after him as he skated backward away from her. "You're making fun of me."

A smile tugged at her lips even as her hands settled on her hips in a decidedly huffy fashion.

Peter skated another wide circle, moving further away. "I wouldn't dare, ma'am."

"How did you even learn to do all of this?"

"Whenever we had a few extra bucks to spare, May and Ben brought me here when I was a child."

"So, that's why you know this place's ins and outs?"

"That… and because I'm quite resourceful."

She teased further, "Don't tell me you're some sort of burglar in your free time."

Peter smiled. "You never know."

He ramped his speed slightly and made his way across the rink with a series of quick, fast stops that scraped across the ice. Just before he reached the wall, he calmly spun around and began working his way back to the other side of the rink in a steady, zig-zag pattern.

He set his eyes on his goal in front of him, and the sudden thud he felt against his shoulder took him entirely by surprise, sending him sprawling slowly on the ice, a heavy but soft weight on top of him. He wrapped his arms around MJ, keeping her from toppling off him and onto the ice.

"MJ, what were you doing? His breath whooshed out of him, and he laid his head gently back on the ice. He stared at the ceiling. "You just attacked me."

She didn't move in his grip.

"MJ?" He raised his chest slightly and looked down at her. She had her eyes closed. He moved her carefully to the ground and cupped her cheeks. "Mary? Are you okay? Hey!"

MJ's eyes remained dramatically closed. "Hmm… my hero." She let out a tiny smile.

Peter backed off her. "Oh… no… you did not do that."

She began cackling.

"No, no… that's not funny." Peter let go of her and sat down on the ground next to her. He looked around and sighed heavily. For a brief moment, he focused on the stands outside the ice rink they were in, waiting to spot the image of a certain someone in his view once again.

Nothing happened.

Her laugh intensified slightly. She sat on her bottom and next to him. "I loved how you even called me Mary."

"You were almost the end of me. I was on the edge of a heart attack." He laid down and rested his head on the cold ground once again.

"Ow…" She smiled and moved the side of her head against his chest. "Let me listen… it sounds good to me."

He sighed heavily. "Right…"

"I just wanted to keep up, to catch you."

"Mission accomplished." He said before relaxing a little and chuckling at her.

"You were too convinced of yourself." She propped herself up, her chin in her hands as she rested against his chest.

"Trust me, that doesn't often happen… at all."

MJ chuckled, before spotting the tiny bits of ice on his face. "Gosh, you have ice everywhere." She gently brushed her hand against his cheeks, wiping the ice off them.

He flinched lightly as her hand worked on his cheeks. She eventually stopped. He smiled lightly as they both locked eyes with each other. "Well, this was interesting… to say the least."

MJ smiled back and nodded in agreement. "Yeah… it really was." They stood silent for a brief moment, taking in each other's presence. She later teased, "... why are we still lying on the ice?" She tapped his sternum with a long forefinger.

"I'm rather tired; we're down here anyway… and you're rather warm."

She moved her hand to the back of his neck in the spot right below his right ear. "... yeah?"

Peter cupped her right cheek and stroked it gently with his thumb. His free hand settled at her waist. He nodded in response. They both looked at each other's lips as gravity began to pull their faces towards one another as their eyes slowly closed.

"Hey, you two! What are you doing here?!"

Peter and MJ both looked to the right side and spotted who seemed to be the place's security guard standing on the other end of the area and outside the ice rink.

Peter focused on MJ's expression. "Time to leave."

She met his eyes once again and grinned. "Let's go!" She moved off him and stood on her feet with his assistance.

He took her by the hand and began skating them further from the guard's direction until they reached one of the exit points of the ice rink. They laughed as the guard tried his best to run around the ice rink to get them, but they eventually disappeared after entering a two-way door.

---

"You just keep getting me in trouble, Pete!" MJ giggled while keeping her arms wrapped tightly around his abdomen on the bike.

Peter pulled in front of MJ's building, the bike parked sideways. He took his helmet off. "You did willingly agree to be my partner in crime."

It was her turn to take her helmet off before shaking her hair out. "Well, it's fun to be around you. How could I let go of such an opportunity?" She got off the motorcycle and stood back on her feet.

He placed his helmet over the seat and next to MJs. They began walking towards the steps that led to the entrance of the building. He said, "And I got to see your acting skills finally, so tonight was a win-win for both of us."

'You haven't seen all of them, though."

He looked over his shoulder and at her. He smiled. "I bet."

She chuckled. "You should come to see me in my next play…"

He smiled, surprised at the invitation.

She continued, "... i-if you want to, of course."

He nodded. "Sure, I'll be there. Definitely." They approached the start of the steps that led to the main entrance of the short building.

They stopped and turned towards each other.

She let out one wide smile of herself. "Really?"

"Of course," He added, "I won't miss it, Ms. Watson."

"Right… it will be cool, I think." MJ shrugged her shoulders. "Well, it might not be the most interesting setup… but hey, I gotta collect those pennies wherever I can."

"Don't we all? You'll do great."

She beamed, holding her hands against her belly.

Peter looked for a brief moment at the door. "Safe and sound, you have been successfully escorted to your palace."

MJ laughed, shortly. "You're my hero after all…" They exchanged a smile. "... tonight was… awesome, thank you."

"I'm the one that should be thanking you." He added, "I wouldn't change a thing."

"Not even what… happened at the party?"

He stopped to think for a brief moment and later shook his head. "No, I wouldn't. It led to the rest of the night. And… it's great as it is."

MJ nodded slightly with a smile and a tiny self-bite on her colorful red lip.

They looked at each other and remained in silence for a short while, trying to anticipate in their heads what the other would say or do next.

Peter smiled and later leaned in towards her to plant a soft kiss on her cheek. MJ turned her head slightly towards his lips and followed his eyes with hers as he backed off after planting a gentle kiss on her cheek. If one paid close attention to her expression, it was pretty clear what she sought for a brief moment.

Peter spoke, "See you around?"

She sighed heavily in contentment and grinned. "I'll have to check my fictional agent."

He chuckled. MJ smiled back and turned towards the steps as she began to climb them until she stood in front of the door. She unlocked it with her keys and opened it halfway before looking over her shoulder and back at her date.

She began, "Goodnight… Peter Parker."

"Goodnight, MJ."

"You take care of yourself, okay?"

"I'll try my best."

MJ smiled one last time before carefully closing the door until they were both out of each other's sight. Peter sighed in contentment and turned around as he walked back towards the motorbike, recapping everything that had taken place in the last couple of hours.

He moved MJ's helmet inside the storage and sat down on the bike while holding his helmet in his right hand. He raised his chin and looked up to the dark and surprisingly clear sky above him. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, taking in the calmness of his surroundings, before looking down at the palm of his free hand.

No rain tonight… maybe… maybe something has happened after all.

Peter inhaled deeply and let out a tiny smile. He closed his fist and moved the helmet down his face, before turning the engine on and kicking the supporting pad off the ground. He moved away from the building and deeper into the city that never sleeps.

---

Peter opened the door to his wardrobe and looked at the photos of his former girlfriend set behind the door and above the mirror's frame. He placed the tip of his finger against one of them, before leaning gently his forehead against the frame and over a couple of photos.

As much as it pains me to remind myself of what we could have had in a lifetime… you still give me strength, Gwen. You still do.

He cleared his throat and eventually backed away before opening his eyes. He turned towards the racks inside the wardrobe and picked his Spider-Man suit from the hanger. He later stepped out of his bedroom as Spider-Man minus the mask he held in his right hand.

Peter sat on the edge of his open window in the living room and took a peek outside. The city sounded quiet for a change. He checked the hour and later opened his radio app on his phone and kept waiting for any police occurrence where he could intervene, but nothing was coming by.

02:59 AM

He didn't feel like sleeping, but it wasn't because of his insomnia for the first time in a long time. He just had a lot going on in his head, and a large of his thoughts were about the night he had shared with Mary Jane, and how he felt about it. He felt better as if lowering his guard for a brief night helped him be himself. His date somehow managed to bring some tranquility into him without even realizing it.

I was once disconnected from the world before, and then I was just lost in it… but I think that I'm indeed feeling better now, maybe.

He brushed his eyes and later his nose, before placing his mask away in the window to hold his phone with both hands. He opened a chat window and began typing against the screen of his phone.

PP: Felicia, it's Peter. You didn't have my number, but I always had yours. I had to keep track of you somehow, right? I just… I just wanted to apologize for my reaction before. I had some time to think, clear my head a little, and realized I was a bit harsh on you, even if I still feel like you need to be straight with me. It's clear that this whole thing with the Maggia is very personal to you; I understand that… and I want to help you; please allow me to do that. We can help each other. You're not… alone, you're not. Just get in touch, okay? I'll be here.

Peter put his phone inside the hidden pocket close to his waist and later wore the mask down his face, before crouching in the window's frame. There wasn't an occurrence taking place at the moment, but he felt like going out for a little while.

Spider-Man jumped down towards the street with his head first, he shot a web-line and swung close to the ground and between a bunch of cars present in the road. He shot a new web-line and swung higher up in the air again. He had been swinging around for a few minutes when he spotted another elderly lady walking slowly and alone on the sidewalk.

She carried a plastic sack in her right hand and her walking stick in the other.

Deciding to check up on her, Spider-Man swung past her location on the ground and eventually did a u-turn in the air to land some meters in front of her, that way, he reduced the chances of scaring her off at the sudden landing.

She generally seemed unaffected at his arrival.

He walked towards the woman. "Hey, there. Is everything alright, ma'am?" He tagged along and joined her in her night stroll.

"Oh, Spider-Man… is that really you?" She stopped to look at the details in his mask.

"Of course, ma'am. I was doing some patrolling when I spotted you from up there." He questioned, "Is there anything I could do for you? It could be dangerous to walk alone at this hour of the night."

They resumed walking forward and next to each other. She replied, "I forgot to buy Penny's food, and he decided to remind me of that a couple of minutes ago… such a fierce dog."

"May I?" He offered to take the sack from her hand and into his hand.

"Of course," She let go of the slightly heavy sack for a woman of her age and resumed her explanation, "I can't let him starve, can I?"

He nodded. "I understand. Isn't there… anyone else that could have helped you with this?"

"It is just me and Penny for most of the time." She added, "It's not far from here too."

"I see. Then I guess you wouldn't mind if I accompanied you back home, right?"

"For sure, I would love the company." She teased, "I don't think you could carry me around up there like you do with those younger women, right?"

He rubbed the back of his masked head. "Um… I…"

She let out a proud cackle. "I'm just joking, and I'm not even sure my back would allow that anyways."

Spider-Man nodded to himself. "To be fair, some people put themselves in a situation just to have a photo with me for their social media and whatnot."

"Really?"

"Yeah, people can get desperate for anything… and that's when many dangerous things can happen, to themselves and others." He sighed. "No one's safe from that… but hey, let's get you back home so that Penny can have the one happy meal of the night, right?"

About fifteen minutes later, Spider-Man closed the small gate that led inside the woman's property, a small and somewhat antiquated house between two small and recent retail buildings.

"Here you go," Spider-Man handed her the sack from over the gate.

She took it in her hand. "Are you sure you don't want to have a coffee?"

He shook his head. "Thank you, ma'am… but I'm going to do one last patrol before calling it a night. I just wanted to be sure that you would be okay."

"Well then, thank you for the company, Mr. Spider-Man." She added, "Try not to let those funny people take advantage of you."

He nodded. "It's harder than it looks, but I'll try." He waved her goodbye and watched the older woman calmly reach for the steps that led to her porch before finally disappearing inside.

Spider-Man sighed in contentment and jumped to the nearest light pole set in front of the electronic retail store next to the woman's house; a couple of working TVs were being shown at the store's facade. He then slid upside down in the webbing he had attached to the pole and took his phone in his hand.

He opened the chat box with MJ and sighed heavily. He was about to write a text to her but stopped once a text from the charismatic redhead appeared on his phone screen. He almost jumped in the webline once the chat box was updated at the same time he was about to start typing.

He rubbed the back of his masked neck with his free hand.

MJ: Hey, a lil' late… I know, not sorry tho. I just wanted to say again that tonight was amazing. Usually, it is not like this. Maybe we could do something like this again, just maybe… have a goodnight, tiger. xxx.

Spider-Man smiled from under the mask. He began typing against the screen but eventually, something else caught his attention. He focused on the televisions at the store's front; breaking news had just appeared. A reporter stood in front of a hospital along with other reporting crews.

He read the headline at the bottom of the screen.

The authorities say that four police staff are in critical condition after a mob ambush and explosive shootout at Morris Ave.

He let go of the webbing and landed back on the ground, before approaching the window at the store's front and having his face inches from touching the glass.

Captain Jefferson Davis and his son, Miles Morales, are reportedly among the casualties.

He placed the palm of his left hand against the glass. "... no, please… no." The glass cracked slightly at his touch.

---

It's finally out. This chapter was one of the most difficult I ever had to write myself, there were a couple of nuances and details that had to be correctly brought into it, and until I had everything I thought of written down, I couldn't wrap things up. This chapter was constantly evolving. I'm also writing the story mainly from Peter's point of view, and that can provide a challenge when trying to get across things related to the story and characters, but for the sake of consistency, I'll stick to that; I think that it has been working alright.

If the first chapter was more of a 'pilot' chapter, the second was the real introduction to this world, and the third helped flesh out many threads, turning out to be the largest one so far. The story I want to tell is now fully set into motion, so I don't expect the next chapter to take the same amount of time this one did; it will probably be shorter. But I can never be too sure regarding this, my daily life can help slow things down at moments, and I don't feel like rushing this out.

Anyways, thank you for reading. I really hope you've found some enjoyment in the story.

Special thanks to DemonKnight939, your words of encouragement, clearly with no bits of pressure in them, helped me get going at times. And to anyone that has been letting me know their thoughts about the story through PMs and comments.

Until the next chapter.

14/08: I removed/changed the brother-in-law description for Philip. I now understand that's strictly associated with a married couple. Peter and Gwen were never married.