Peter jogged up to his old home, trotting up the stairs and opening the door without so much as knocking. M.J. and May emerged from the living room as he did, concerned looks on both of their faces.

"Where did you go?" M.J. questioned. "We saw about the fight on the news, and we've been calling you ever sin..."

Ignoring his fiancé's concerns, Peter walked straight up to her. He took his cheeks in her hands and drew her in, planting a deep kiss on her lips. He held the position for several seconds, seemingly trying to express every ounce of love that he had for her through the gesture. Finally, Peter set her free, Mary Jane having an almost spell bound, transfixed look in her eyes as they opened. Somehow, they made her look as beautiful as ever to him.

"Okay," M.J. stammered out, seemingly still recovering from the surprise gesture of affection delivered to her, "not that I'm complaining or anything, but what was that for?"

Peter let out a light sigh, his eyeline remaining trained on Mary Jane's.

"To remind myself of what I almost lost."

Peter then shifted his attention to May, despite the now even more concerned look of his fiancé. He walked over to his aunt, slowly wrapping her in a hug, a gesture she reciprocated. As he did with M.J, Peter took in the moment, shutting his eyes and allowing himself to soak in the warm embrace of the only mother he'd ever known, the hug of the one who'd been there for him more than anyone else. He then slowly peeled himself off from her.

"Peter, sweetheart, tell us what's going on," May softly begged him.

He looked back and forth at both his aunt and his fiancé. How was he supposed to put into words what he'd just been through?

"I guess I did have a parasite after all," he explained. "It reminded me of everything that I had lost, how hard it was, and tried to use that against me."

A stunned silence momentarily filled the room.

"But you beat it, right?" M.J. questioned.

Peter turned to her, nodding.

"Yeah. It's gone now."

"How?" May asked.

"By remembering everything that I still had," he replied. "I might have had a little help too."

"Help?" M.J. questioned.

Before Peter could respond, a picture on top of a nearby shelf caught his eye. He walked up to it, observing the picture of him, May and Ben more closely. Taking it in his hand, he reminisced about the day; it was from when he had "graduated" elementary school, having won a few academic awards during the recognition ceremony. Despite his uncle having expressed issues with the school's need to put on such a thing for the students simply moving on as they were all supposed to, the man seemed to have the biggest and most proud smile on his face in the picture. More importantly though, it was from the same day as what he'd been reminded of less than an hour ago.

Setting it down, he turned back to the ladies.

"I think that M.J. and I should head back," he said. Peter reassured his aunt that he would talk to her more tomorrow and gave her one last reassurance that he was okay before he and Mary Jane said their goodbyes for the evening and headed out the door. As they walked down the steps and set out for the nearest bus stop, Peter took M.J.'s hand in his, the two of them walking in silence for a while. It wasn't long, however, before his fiancé broke the silence.

"Is it okay for me to ask what's going on in that head of yours right now?"

Peter let out a light huff.

"I remember when me and my multiversal selves were talking about all the bad guys that we'd fought over the years," he began. "The other two mentioned fighting aliens, and I thought 'that would be so cool!' What I just went through tonight was a big reminder of why it's good for me to keep my big mouth shut sometimes."

M.J. nodded and they continued walking for a little while before she spoke up again.

"Peter... what did you mean back at May's about reminding yourself of what you almost lost?"

Peter stopped walking, looking down at his feet. The words to explain came to his mouth to answer her, but fear kept it sealed for several moments before he finally summed up the courage to speak.

"The symbiote, the creature that was bonded to me," he began, looking into his fiancé's eyes, "it took me on a little trip down memory lane. It reminded me of so many things: my fight with Eddie, losing my uncle and Gwen, how Harry had betrayed me, everyone important to me that I had ever lost or been hurt by somehow. It knew how to play on my pain and my fear in order to make itself more... appealing. It told me that it was the only thing that would last and that I would lose everyone else in some way."

Peter then turned more fully to her.

"I'm sorry, M.J, for almost giving up on us," he said. "Watching Uncle Ben and Gwen die again, it felt as if all of it had just happened. Just for a moment, I was so afraid of going through that again, of ending up alone that I almost gave myself up to a monster instead of choosing you. I understand if hearing that makes you concerned, or even gives you second thoughts about us."

M.J. simply put her left hand to his cheek, offering him a light, tender smile.

"But you didn't," she said, conviction filling her voice and gaze. "You still fought for us when it mattered."

"You... you're not upset?" Peter questioned.

M.J. shook her head.

"I can't imagine going through what you just described," she explained, "but you're here now, and that's what matters. Besides, if I was reminded of all the stuff I've dealt with, if something knew how to play on my insecurities like that, I don't know how I would react. I would hope that I would make the same choice, and I believe I would, but being in that position would make anybody question things."

Peter could only let out a huff, shaking his head. His fiancé really was something else.

"You really do want to be stuck with me for the rest of your life, don't you?"

"Well, when you put it like that..." M.J. teased, flashing him a teasing smile. Peter then wrapped her in his left arm, his fiancé returning the gesture as they resumed walking to the bus stop.

"There's a lot of other people I still need to make proper amends with," he explained. "Jonah, Robbie, and especially Eddie. I really hope he'll talk to me again, but after our big blow out earlier today..."

"You two will work it out," Mary Jane reassured him.

"And what about you and your sister?" Peter questioned her. His fiancé looked down at the ground for a moment before meeting his gaze again, offering a lighter smile.

"I guess we'll find out."

As soon as Peter got to work the next day, he made a b-line straight for Robbie's office, not even bothering to stop at his own desk first. When he arrived, however, he noticed that Glory was already in the office, apparently discussing something with him. The man's eyeline soon made its way towards Peter though, causing him to avert his eyes momentarily in embarrassment at having interrupted his boss while the man had likely been discussing a business matter.

A few seconds later, Glory stepped out of the office, leaving the doors open behind her.

"You can go ahead in now, Peter," she said gracefully.

"Thank you," he replied, nodding lightly before moving to take her place, closing the doors behind him.

"Feeling more like yourself today?" Robbie asked, a genuine, earnest curiosity evident in his tone.

"Yeah," Peter answered. "I mean, yes sir, thank you." Rubbing his hands together, he then approached his boss. "Listen, Mr. Robertson, I just want to apologize again for yesterday. I had some things going on, but I still let my anger get the better of me, and I'm sorry. It won't happen again."

Robbie breathed in a deep breath through his nostrils before letting it out again, his body language more relaxed as a light smile came across his lips.

"I'm glad to hear that, Peter," the man replied. "I don't suppose you've spoken to Eddie yet about the incident?"

"Not yet," Peter acknowledged, "but I plan to later today, if he'll let me."

Robbie offered a light nod.

"By the way," he said, reaching down and grabbing a paper off his desk, "I don't suppose you know anything about this, do you?"

The man then tossed a folded newspaper at Peter, who caught it, bringing it up to see what his boss was referring to. It didn't take him long to find out, the front page boasting a large picture of him during the brawl from last night. Specifically, it was when he had the brute pinned down and beat him remorselessly.

Trying to keep up the act he'd done for years, Peter tried to appear appropriately surprised.

"When did this happen?"

"Last night," Robbie explained. "Our sources say that he got into it last night with some particularly dangerous individuals. It seems this guy especially did something to really tick Spider-Man off."

"Yeah, looks like it," Peter said. "What else is being said about what happened?"

"Not much outside of the normal," Robbie answered. "Well, other than that some people were saying that it looked like he got some kind of upgrades on his suit."

Yeah, upgrades.

"None of that is what worries me though."

Peter's eyes narrowed in the direction of his boss in confusion.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

Robbie didn't respond verbally, instead gesturing to the paper. Peter turned his attention back to it, opening it and examining what had been written about the events of last night. Within seconds, a quote from an eyewitness of the scene stood out to him.

"I haven't seen Spidey like that in a long time. He was just giving it to that guy, even long after he was down. I mean, it seems like the poor guy might have had it coming, but if Spidey can lose his temper like that, what happens if he turns his attention to one of us instead?"

Oh no.

Peter scoured the paper, finding another quote:

"My nine-year-old looks up to Spider-Man, always has, really. I didn't mind; I always thought he was someone that any one of us could look up to. I'm glad he wasn't here to see him tonight though; he looked like he was ready to kill that guy!"

"People all over the city seem to have some opinion on this," Robbie said, drawing Peter's attention back to the man. "Some say he almost went too far, but others say that he didn't go far enough."

"What do you think?" Peter asked.

Robbie looked straight at Peter, almost as if he was peering into his soul.

"I think that this city needs heroes," the man answered, "but it also needs to realize that no man is perfect. Everyone can have a bad day, Peter. It's what a man does the next day that matters."

Peter nodded, contemplating Robbie's words. He then thanked his boss, setting the paper back down before taking his leave from the office. His mind continued to dwell on the subject even as he left the room. This wasn't the first time that something had happened that threatened to tarnish his reputation as Spider-Man, either due to his own mistakes or some outside interference. In this case, it had been both; the symbiote had certainly influenced his actions, but he was still responsible to a degree for not reigning himself in. He'd worked through this kind of thing in the past, but that didn't make this situation any less discouraging.

Plus, it almost certainly would make another visit he had planned for later today more interesting.

Reaching his fist towards the door, Peter paused, hesitating briefly before following through, knocking on the door a few times. Surprisingly, it didn't take long for an answer to come, the door opening enough to reveal none other than J. Jonah Jameson behind it. When their eyes met, the man looked surprised, almost taken aback by his presence.

"Parker?" he questioned. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to clear the air between us," Peter explained. His former boss just stared at him for a moment, seemingly contemplating his next steps. Eventually, he opened the door more widely to let Peter in, who did so. Jonah then closed the door behind them, and an awkward silence filled the air.

"How's John doing?" Peter asked, hoping to break the tension. Again, Jonah said nothing, only turning and walking down the hallway. Peter followed behind, keeping just enough distance between the two of them. History had proven that, when it came to JJ, sometimes it was better to treat him almost like a wild animal that could lose it at any time. Jonah soon turned into a room and Peter peered inside behind him, observing John Jameson himself sitting on the couch, watching what appeared to be a rerun of some old western show. The man apparently sensed their presence in the room, turning to face them.

"John, you remember Peter Parker?" Jonah spoke up.

"Of course," John spoke up. "The photographer, right?"

"Yeah, that's me," Peter acknowledged somewhat sheepishly. "How are you doing, John?"

"Okay," the man replied earnestly. "Just, you know, glad to be home."

Peter nodded in reply.

"Son, Peter and I are just going to be in the kitchen if you need anything," Jonah spoke up. Once John acknowledged this, he turned and led Peter into the room. It had been a while since Peter had been in his former boss's house; everything around him, especially the kitchen screamed quality. It wasn't over the top either, despite the man likely having been able to afford it in the Bugle's heyday. Rather, everything just looked well crafted, the paint on the walls looked as freshly coated as ever, and the tile floor appeared as if it had just been freshly installed.

"Would you like anything to drink?"

Peter looked up to see his boss standing near the kitchen, holding a glass in each hand.

"Uhm, just some water, please."

Jonah then retrieved some per request, coming over and handing the glass to Peter, who took a sip.

"Look, Mr. Jameson," Peter began. The man raised his right hand up, causing him to pause.

"If there's an apology to be spoken here, I should be the one to issue it," the man said. Peter looked at him curiously; he was pretty sure he could count on one hand the number of times how gentle Jonah was being right now, how small he almost seemed.

"We both know that I can be a passionate man, and I stand by my stance on Spider-Man, especially after last night," Jonah continued. "But I still let John's situation get the better of me."

Peter's gaze drifted down to his two thirds full glass of water.

"We both said things we shouldn't have," he said, "and not even just that day, either."

Jonah nodded lightly in reply. Peter then took another couple of gulps of water.

"I never told you this, Parker," Jonah spoke up again. "But you were always a good employee. I know that we've had our disagreements over the years, but you've always gotten the job done."

Wow, coming from Jonah, that was practically a hug!

"Thanks," Peter replied. "You always took care of us when we really needed it too."

Jonah gave another light nod in response as another thought entered Peter's mind. He hadn't necessarily had in mind to do this before, but somehow, it just felt like the right thing to do.

"I'm getting married in the fall," he spoke up, drawing a somewhat surprised look from Jonah's eyes. "We haven't set out the official invitations just yet, but it would mean a lot to me if you were able to be there."

For what felt like an eternity, Jonah just stared at Peter, his expression indecipherable. It was almost as if he was so surprised by the gesture that his brain had just shut down. Eventually, he mustered the world's faintest smile.

"I would be honored."

He then extended his hand for Peter to shake, a gesture he accepted. He then finished his drink before Jonah escorted him out, the two of them exchanging no more words through the remainder of the visit. There was no need, as there seemed to be, at least for now, a silent understanding between the two men, and frankly, Peter didn't want to risk saying something dumb and getting his ex-boss riled up.

As he exited the house, he got out his phone, pulling up Eddie's contact. Making his way to the nearest bus stop, Peter took a breath before dialing it, putting the device to his ear. After several rings, Eddie's voicemail came up. He opted not to bother with leaving a message; it was likely that we would need to find and talk with his friend in person to get any real word in anyway.

He just hoped that it wouldn't prove pointless.

Approaching the house, the man strolled up to the front door. He knocked in as polite a manner as he could, not wanting to raise any suspicions. With any luck, the reporter inside was too distracted by the results of his previous visit. There could be no fooling around this time though; Hammerhead had made it clear that that had been what got him into this mess the first time. This time, he would get in, finish the job, and move on.

As he raised his fist to knock again, the man suddenly felt the barrel of a handgun press against the back of his skull.

"It's open," came the voice of the reporter behind him. "Why don't you let us in?"

Thanks again for all the support! Hope you're still enjoying it!

Continuing to pray for you all; stay safe and healthy!

"But I trust in Your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in Your salvation." Psalm 13:5