A/N: Hey there, guys! My apologies for the long period of inactivity. To redeem myself, here is this next chapter. You'll probably find some errors in my writing, so I apologize for that, as well. Hope you enjoy it!

Spoiler: contains slight fluff and bromancing.

I've always been a big fan of cherry pie. Always have, always will. Especially Aunt May's - let me tell you, the woman is cherry wizard. A pie genius.

So when the smells of molten cherries blended with the aroma of steaming graham cracker crust came wafting right into my super-enhanced nostrils, I was awake in a flash.

...And ended up banging my head on the bottom of the bed above me. Oh, and don't forget the pain that seared its way all over my body; my muscles were sore and I had multiple scrapes and bruises. Yet another heist had happened last night, and let's just say that the amazing Spider-Man had been there to save the day in an epic showdown.

And epic showdowns usually result with the bad guys in jail and the hero with some minor injuries.

Luckily, this time I hadn't contracted a black eye or anything on my face; unless you counted the giant bump on the back of my head, of course. And the new one that was forming from my sudden consciousness a few seconds ago.

So as I rolled out of bed, I quickly shoved a hoodie over my head and yanked on some sweatpants to cover as much as my body as possible. Fortunately, it was mid-November, so I wouldn't have to explain the extra-warm clothes.

I was in the kitchen in a flash. My dark brown eyes scanned the counter for the beloved dessert, and there it was.

As I started towards it, Aunt May reached out and grabbed my wrist.

"Uh uh uh. You're not eating pies for breakfast, young man. These are for tonight," she told me.

"'Tonight?'" I echoed. "What's going on tonight?" Aunt May never made her famous dessert without a good reason. "You didn't invite MJ's parents over did, you?" I asked with dread. Aunt May was always doing stuff like that to me - inviting girls and their parents over. Luckily, I knew that she couldn't have invited Liz and her family over, since Liz and her mom had moved to Oregon and her dad was, of course, in prison. Thanks to me.

Or was he?

Oh, why hadn't I asked Mr. Stark exactly who had escaped? Did the Vulture end up getting out? How many of his little minions escaped?

Cursing to myself at my stupidity, I listened to May's response.

"Oh, no. Although, now that you brought it up…" She grinned at me slyly, and I rolled my eyes, my face heating up. MJ and I weren't a thing, I promise. But if I have a female friend (if I can even call MJ a friend, that is), you can count on my aunt to embarrass the living crap out of me.

"No, we're having someone else over. I met him in the park today."

"The park? May, are you serious…" I whined, plopping down onto a stool.

"Now, listen. He's a really nice man. And I told him about you, too, you know. I told him how smart you are, and he said that he's actually been looking for someone to help him with his work. Guess what he does, Peter."

Aunt May seemed pretty excited. And happy, too. But…this wasn't going to be a date, was it? How could she move on from Uncle Ben so quickly? It'd been what, a year? If that?

"Um, I don't know."

"He's a mechanical engineer. He also said that he's even worked with the scraps from the alien invasion back in 2012. Remember that, Peter?"

I perked up at this. "Wait, really?! Does he work for S.H.I.E.L.D?" I asked eagerly.

"Well, I don't know, but I'd imagine so, if he had access to all those materials." She sat down next to me, looking at me in the eyes, her face serious. "Peter, I know what you're thinking. I'm not doing this for me - I'm doing it for you. So I can totally call him and tell him not to come if you don't want him to."

A warm feeling grew inside my chest. I wasn't really ecstatic at the thought of Aunt May dating some random stranger. But at the same time, I did want her to be happy. And I was glad that she wasn't afraid to put things like this out into the open. She preferred to talk things through, express thoughts and feelings through words.

Maybe that's why I talk so much when battling people, I mused.

I expressed my feelings out loud to her. "Thanks, Aunt May. But I want you to know that you can go do whatever you want. As long as you're happy, I'm happy."

She smiled at me and embraced me in a tight hug. I smiled and wrapped my arms around her in return.

I know what you're thinking. "Ew, gross, I thought that this story was going to be an action story?! Isn't this Spider-Man? Why's he so lovey-dovey?"

Well, sorry to disappoint, but me and my aunt are pretty close. We like to talk things out, and don't really keep secrets from each other. We're pretty open, as I've mentioned before.

Well…except for the whole crime-fighting thing. I still feel a little guilty for keeping that from her. But, of course, she just had to walk in on me that one day.

Luckily, I covered it up. Pretty genius, if I do say so myself.

I had quickly tugged my mask right back over my face and had Karen - that's my A.I. - turn on my enhanced interrogation mode. I turned around to see my shocked aunt standing at the door.

"Uh, hey there, ma'am. Um, watch your language, yeah?" My voice had been altered to deeper than it actually was, so hopefully May wouldn't catch on.

"What are you doing in my house?" She had demanded, ignoring my last comment.

"Oh, uh, I was, uh…I got lost, and I heard that this was where Peter Parker lived. I, um, met him once or twice during his Stark internship trips. I was thinking, erm,…maybe he could give me directions? I'm really sorry for intruding, madam, I just -"

"You," she had started, pointing at me, "got lost…in Queens? Isn't this supposed to be your hometown?"

"Well, um, erm, more like home city, ya know? And, uh, the suburban parts are kinda like mazes, and…"

May had nodded, her eyes slightly narrowed. "Yeah, okay. No, Peter's not here right now. I'm afraid you'll have to find your way around on your own, sir. Good day."

Then, I had nodded, waved a farewell, and crawled right back out the window.

I came back about half an hour later, and Aunt May told me the story of what had happened; well, her version of it, anyways. I had acted surprised and bewildered, trying to sell the act that I wasn't indeed Spider-Man. Luckily, May hadn't pieced together the hair color, height, stance, and the fact that I was in her apartment. And all of my stuttering and stumbling over words. I guess the universe justs wants me to keep on living my double life in secret.

...Unless she figured it out and is in denial, or is waiting for me to fess up. That thought kind of scares me.

Now, back to where we left off.

We sat there, embracing each other, for I don't know how long. Eternities. Hours. Heck, for all I know, it could been a single minute. But I loved every second of it.

Afterwards, I told Aunt May that I would be heading over to Ned's house to hang out. She made me eat breakfast before I left, though, but I was soon out the door.

I stood outside the apartment and texted Ned.

"Need a lift. Your mom mind driving?"

About two minutes late I got a response. "On our way, bro."

"Sweet, thanks man :)." I wrote. However, after rereading it, I deleted the smiley face. I liked to reserve those just for Happy.

I leaned against the brick wall and waited, playing various games on my phone and talking with Karen. I was wearing my Spider-Man suit underneath my street clothes, for reasons which I'll explain later.

At last, I saw a car pull up next to me. Checking to make sure that it was Ned and not someone else, I put my phone away, slipping it into my back pocket, before strolling over and hopping in.

"Hey, Mrs. Leeds," I started. "Thanks for picking me up."

"Oh, it's nothing, Peter," said the Filipino lady up in the driver's seat. "Anything for a friend of Edward's."

"Mom, what have said about calling me that?" Ned whispered furiously. "It's not Edward, it's Ned."

I smiled. Then I sat in awkward silence as music that I didn't understand started playing on the radio. I mean, sure, Ned and Mrs. Leed could understand it. But I don't speak Filipino, so things weren't exactly comfortable.

Ned's mom was humming along, but my best friend was tapping his foot anxiously, also feeling the same awkwardness that I was.

"So, Peter, how's that Stark internship going? Ned has told me all about it." She shot a glance at her son that clearly stated, Happy now? as she said his name the way he preferred.

"Oh, um, great. I actually had a meeting with Mr. Stark yesterday. I, uh, got an assignment from him recently. Thanks for asking." I responded.

"Oooh, that sounds exciting."

After that, small talk was what filled the Honda - and the cultural music, of course.

At last, we pulled up in front of the Leeds' apartment. We parked, exited the car, and headed up towards the apartment. Ned and I talked amongst ourselves, with Ned's mother leading the way with a pleasant smile.

Once at our destination, we made a beeline to Ned's room. Once inside, I shut the door quietly before walking over to Ned.

He looked up at me, puzzled. "Uh, Peter?"

But I had already started stripping off my clothes. First to go was my jacket, then my shirt.

"Okay, dude, you're really starting to creep me out," he said warily, a concerned and frightened look on his face. That is, until he noticed what I had on under my clothes.

"What a minute, you're not…"

"Yeah, I am. Sorry to ditch you, I just…I have something I need to do," I explained as I stepped out of my khaki pants.

Ned sighed. "Come on, man. You, like, never have time for me anymore. No more Neder time, you know?"

"WOAH. Woah, woah woah. Never say that again, got it?" I ran my hand down my face, exasperated, embarrassed, and a mixture of other feelings. "Moving on. You know when I said that I got an assignment from Mr. Stark?"

"Dude, when are you ever going to call him Tony? Or Iron Man?" Ned interjected.

"Just hush. So, yesterday after school, he told me that there was a prison break."

"Wait, for reals?" Ned sat up straighter, the bed creaking under his heavy weight. "That is sooooo cool!"

"I know, right?! That's what I said. But guess who got out?"

A look of understanding crept onto his face, and he gasped. "Oh, my gosh. Toomes, Davis, Schultz, Gargon. All those guys, gone."

"Well…we don't really know who got out. Mr. Stark never actually told me. But we have to find them. Who knows what trouble they'll get into."

"You're going out in broad daylight to search for wanted criminals? Won't they all, you know, be in hiding and on lookout for the giant spider guy?"

"Ned, I have to try. And I can't go tonight, because Aunt May invited this guy over for dinner that she met at the park, and if I miss that then -"

"Wait, some dude at Central Park? For reals? Isn't that, you know, dangerous?" Ned asked, raising a dark eyebrow.

I shrugged. "I dunno. But Aunt May said that he said that he worked with the leftovers from the alien invasion back in 2012. So I'm guessing that he works with S.H.I.E.L.D., if he had all that access to all that stuff."

Ned nodded, smiling. "Nice. Boy's got connections."

"Yeah. But I really gotta go if I want to get back in time," I pulled my mask over my face and started backing up towards the window.

"Wait, what if my mom asks about you? What do I tell her?"

"I don't know…tell her I'm in the bathroom." I slid open the window and jumped onto the sill.

"For hours on end?!"

"Just, make something up. See later, bro!"

I left Ned stuttering back in his room as I leapt into the air. I soared through sky, opening up my arms and allowing my thin "squirrel wings" - as I call them in my head sometimes - to glide into action. I landed on the building just across street from Ned's home, and clung to the old brick wall with my fingers and feet.

Quickly, I crawled up to the rooftop and began swinging across the city. It's one of my favorite parts of the job: being able to fly and soar through the city.

After about five minutes, I shot a web out that fizzled towards the ground. I cursed as my web fluid ran out and I plummeted towards the trafficked streets. Panic filled my chest, and I tried to think of what to do. People in cars that had spotted me started honking, and I began to hyperventilate. My fear was constricting, the wind ringing in my ears. All I could hear over the rush of air was my own labored and panicked breathing. Everything was upside down, then sideways, then right-side up, then sideways, then upside down -

I landed heavily on the top of a taxi, feeling the aluminum crunch beneath my weight. Loud profanities issued from below as the driver leaned out and yelled angrily at me. Groaning, I closed my eyes, the pain coursing all over my already bruised and battered body.

This was probably my least favorite part of job.