Gracefully, Peter followed the momentum of his swing and backflipped into his signature spider stance. The feeling of the ground beneath his finger tips helped hone his senses. He focused on what was happening right now. 5 men. All five have guns and a knife. 3 are robbing the store, one is guarding the entrance, and one is manning the get away truck. I have to be careful about this approach. One wrong move and these idiots get away.
Peter perched on a lamppost. He leaped off the lamp and shot two strings of web at the get away man. Upon his descent, Peter pulled the man behind the truck and away from the man watching the entrance. Instantly, he webbed the gun and his hand to the perps chest.
"Goodnight." Peter said menacingly before slamming his fist into the man's face. After webbing the man's body to the side of the truck, Peter webbed to the wall above the entrance of the store. Directly after landing, the criminals all ran out of the store with duffel bags overflowing with merchandise.
"Spider-Man!?" "Shit!" "He's back!" The men yelled in surprise at the sight of him.
He flipped off the wall and landed in the middle of all of them. Two men backed off and two ran at him wielding knifes. Peter couldn't help the smile taking over his face. Adrenaline pumped through his body. Spider-Man was truly taking over.
Webs caught the mens shirts and pulled them forward. In front of them, they watched as Spider-Man leaped towards them and kicked them away. Duck! Bullets wizzed past his head. Jump to the right! Peter followed his spider-sense and leapt out of the way. Dash forward! Again he complied. The men hurried to reload their guns as Spider-Man quickly rid the distance between them. One man reloaded his gun and aimed at him. Upon pulling the trigger, Spider-Man grabbed the barrel and aimed it down. Pain shot up Peters leg, but he kept fighting. He punched the man in the face, then backflipped away. When he landed, he grabbed the man with webs and threw him into the truck. Again, he swung the man into the truck. This time the man's body bent the metal wall of the truck. The other man readied his gun, but Peter pulled it from his hands. Suddenly the man charged him with his knife in hand. Dodging, Peter bent over backwards, parallel to the ground. Then he fell back onto his hands and pushed off. The man flew back from the kick. Against the truck, the man tried to catch his breath. Peter approached him with long steady strides. Sirens wailed in the background, but Peter couldn't hear them. People gathered around, but Peter couldn't see them. The two criminals from before stood back up. Peter sensed them.
Swiftly, Peter kicked the downed man in the ribs and then kicked him in the head. Causing his body to slump down. Click. Air moved and warmth spread around him. His senses were heightening again. Something was happening. Jump! He did. An array of bullets missed him and shot past him. Peter launched towards them. He descended from above and slammed a man's head into the brick ground. Again, he slammed his head down. One more for safety measures. Watch out! Webs grabbed the gun barrel and wretched it from his hands. Brutishly, Peter ripped the gun apart and threw its pieces to the floor.
"I've had enough of you trying to ruin lives." Peter stated. "Sirens sounded from blocks away, and he heard them.
"Time for me to leave." Peter added. Quickly, Peter webbed the man's shoulders and pulled him down and kneed him in the face. Then he gracefully jumped up and slung away from the crime.
He remembered the relief of being above the bustling city. Below, people carried on there day like any other. No different than yesterday, or 2 years ago. How do they keep living like this? It can't be normal to feel this much pain and keep living like any other day. He wished he could go back to the days of the wind taking away his trivial worries. The days of childish wonder and happy times. Laughter and joy. Where did those happy days go? What happened to me? Reflecting his own image, the skyscraper window acted as a rest. He slid his mask off and took in his image. Suit red as roses. Face pale as death. He looked like a mess. A true mess. Reality began to set in.
"This isn't possible!" He yelled at himself. "She can't be gone. She said she'd be with me forever. She promised." Anger built up inside him. So much anger. I hate it. I hate how much this hurts. Why me? Why do I always get beaten down? I hate it. I hate this stupid world! I hate these feelings! I hate loving people only to lose them!
Glass shattered into his face as he threw his fist threw the window. On his hands and knees, he remained with his eyes closed. The volume was rising. Every small sound was being amplified. Shut up! Peter slammed his fist into the tile flooring. It shattered under is attack. Shut up! He threw a large chunk of tile through the shattered glass and into the distance. I need to get out farther. Again, Peter leapt into the sky. He pulled himself away and into the distance. Kids are in danger! Below us! Falling, he free fell to streets below. Before hitting the ground, he shot a web to lessen the impact of the landing. Upon his landing, he began to scan his surroundings. Kids playing basketball on the courts. Couple eating ice cream. Mother and her child walking. Business men walking. Wait! Go back! Danger! He looked around again. Scanning the details. The boys were shooting the basketball. The two girls were holding hands and sharing ice cream. The child was looking around in a strange manner. They caught stares. Save him! To the sky's, Peter went. He kept a respectable distance from the child and adult but kept a lookout. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary except the way the child was looking around. Finally, a man pulled up in a car. The woman opened the door and pulled the little boys hand. He didn't budge. It's time to make a move!
Too late. They all hopped in the car and started to drive off. Shit. Pursuing them, Peter webbed along behind them. Cars flew by them as they sped down the streets. Eventually, Peter caught up and landed on their roof. Sticking to it, he held on for dear life. Abruptly, the car swerved to the left and down a smaller street. The swerve almost threw him off the roof, but he held strong. Cops started to show up in the distance behind them. Just when he started to make a move, the car swerved to the right and flung him off. Ground grated against his suit and cut up his back. Webbing attached to the lampposts and he flipped back onto his feet. Stop the car! The car was suddenly in front of him. Metal bent and moved out of the way of his hands. Ground cracked and flung up and he was pushed back. Power filled his body and he tried harder. His hands gripped the metal frame of the car interior and his feet dug into the asphalt.
"AHHHHHH!" Peter yelled as he hefted the car up into the air. Gently, he set it back down. However, he quickly webbed the front windshield and pulled it out. Instinct took over, Peter moved his head to side and dodged a barrage of bullets. Never before had Peter felt this much rage. It was all consuming. Peter grabbed the man's head with webbing and slammed it into the wheel. Then again. Then again. Then again. Then again. Then the woman tried to leave the vehicle through the passenger door. Nuh uh. He pulled the door shut again and slammed the two adults heads together.
Children have always been his strong suit, he believed. Being one himself helped him understand them better. Also, they're just simpler than adults and generally aren't as evil. So, Peter handled the situation with utmost care. He ripped the car door off the hinges.
"Hi, I'm Spider-Man." Peter said softly. "I'm kind of a superhero. You need any help."
The boys jaw dropped and he very slightly nodded.
Peter couldn't help but enjoy the small levity to his dark personal situation "Come one, let's go back to that corner alright?"
The boy took his hand and they left the scene. I hope the police are thankful for my note. Eventually, they landed back at that street corner. Upon touchdown, the two woman came rushing over.
"Mommy!" the little boy called out.
"My baby!" "I'm so sorry, Tom" the women exchanged words with the boy.
"Are you the boys parents?" Peter asked.
"Yes we are, thank you so much" one women spoke
"It's no problem, but please keep a better watch on him. He's a little too curious for the streets of New York." Peter said while ruffling the boys hair. Peter squatted down and looked the boy in the eyes "Stay safe, and look out for your Moms for me." The big nodded in return. The newly reunited family walked away, down the street. Job well done. One family kept together.
"Hey, Spidey!" A group of older boys called. Peter jumped over to them.
"Hi, how can I help you?" He responded
"Can you play a game with us? There is five of us and we need one more player to make a 3v3 match." The boys asked.
"I don't know." Peter stated unsurely. "I don't really do sports. I'm also technically a criminal. You shouldn't be hanging around me."
"Please, Spider-Man. You're a hero and we need one more player." The boys pleaded. You can't just leave them hanging. They need you.
"Ok,just this once though." Peter relented. Its gonna be ok. He dribbled the ball sloppily. The boys jumped into the game without any warning. It felt nice for how stressful it was. Maybe this is what he needed at the moment, a distraction. Maybe he needed New York more than they needed him. After a while of him fumbling through the game, Peter had a moment of genius. Wait, this is just physics. I aced physics. I've got this. A smile slowly spread across his face. Just for a moment, he felt...happy. Playing basketball with a bunch of kids made him feel just a little normal. Even if he was in a bright spandex suit and saved people for a living.
Peter dribbled the ball twice then tossed it back to the boys. "Thank you guys."
"No way, thank you. We appreciate it." The boys excitedly thanked him.
"It meant a lot to me, for what it's worth." Peter added.
The boys looked at each other in amazement. Peter gave his signature two finger salute.
"I'll see you guys. Stay out of trouble and work on your jump shot. It could use a little work." He joked.
"Hey!" The boys yelled in fake indignation. As Peter swung away, they yelled at him. "Thanks and cool suit dude."
It's time to face the music. I have to go back to FEAST and face reality. Emotions began to change. The happiness drained away and the melancholy returned, full force. For a while, it was like nothing was wrong. However, you can't run away from the truth forever.