The Man Behind the Mask

"What do you look like without your mask?"

Scarlet gave me a weird look through his red eyeholes when I asked this one morning. My mamma looked up from her morning paper, no doubt the Daily Bugle, and sipped her coffee lightly. I guess she was curious as well. Scarlet made no attempt at replying as he flipped his pancakes on the griddle. It sizzled as the wet liquid became a firm solid.

"Hello? Earth to Ragno?!" I tapped him on the head, before he turned around and growled at me. I gave him a look and crossed my arms in a condescending manner. "Don't you growl at me mister!"

"Why are you so darn persistent to know my secret identity? What if I don't want to tell you?" He snarled, placing his perfectly made pancake on a plate. I rolled my eyes and stabbed my messily made one. Did he have to be such a showoff?

"I'm curious okay? You can't blame me for wanting to know more about the person who lives under this roof by choice."

"That curiosity is going to get you killed on day. And I'm not going to be there to save you."

"Who said I'll need you to save my life? Maybe I'll be fine by myself."

He crossed his arms now and looked like he was giving me a raised eyebrow. "You against the likes of, I don't know, Doc Ock will be a slim chance to none."

"Well maybe I can have some help from a certain spider with a big softie heart." I placed my hand on his and smirked. "C'mon Scarlet, you can't deny that I've grown on you."

"You are such an annoying girl. It's no wonder no boy will ever ask you out."

SLAM!

Scarlet's eyes widen when I slammed my plate on his head. I knew it would hurt him badly, but I could see that it caused his forehead to bleed a bit. My eyes started to mist up and I felt tears running down my face. Gathering my things, I left out the house with a huff and went down the stairs. I've had enough with this stupid Ragno for one morning!

Third Person Point-of-View

Eleanora gave Scarlet a glare as she watched her daughter walk out the door upset. How dare he say something like that to her Figalia! She put down the paper and placed her empty mug in the sink.

"Scarlet, you know that was rude to say to Valencia." Scarlet gave her a look as she continued. "My daughter is very sensitive, but she doesn't like it when men make fun of her. I'm surprised she didn't punch you out of anger."

"What made her smash a plate on her head anyways?" He asked her, as she got out her emergency kit to treat his wound.

"Bambino, she lost her padre at a young age." She placed a cotton swab in the medicine. "Her trust in men dwindled throughout the years and she hasn't trusted another one since. But she trust you." Taking the swab out, she looked at Scarlet expectantly. "Your going to have to take off your mask."

Scarlet shook his head. "No thank you, I want to keep my identity safe. What of my enemies use you or Valencia to get to me?"

"I highly doubt anyone would use us to get you to comply."

"But..."

"What is really the problem Scarlet? You are beating around the bush."

Scarlet knew that he couldn't shake her off so he sighed and shook his head. "You probably won't like what you see underneath."

"So that's what this is all about?" The woman let out a happy chuckle as she started to peel off the mask slowly. "No matter what bambino, we will always accept you for who you are. But if you keep shutting us out, we can never know how to help you."

The mask was off completely, Eleanora smiling at what she saw underneath. He had a nice chiseled face with pale skin. His eyes were brown to match his hair. From what she could gather, he had a nice kind look to him. Smiling, she placed the cotton swab on his face and started to tend his cut.

"There we go bambino, you have such a handsome face." She placed a hand on his cheek. "Why would you want to hide this?"

Scarlet blushed red at the compliment. He'd never heard someone say something nice about what he truly looked liked. It felt good to be...cared for.

"You'll have to make amends with my figalia when she comes home though." She got up from the table and walked to the coat rack. "I think she would appreciate some flowers too bambino. I have to head to work now so stay out of trouble today." Putting on her coat, she placed a kiss on his cut. "Take some time to think about what you've done."

She left him in a daze, making him smile for the first time in years.

I was going to give Scarlet the silent treatment as soon as I got home. I wasn't going to take crap from him anymore and it was time to show him the boot! I walked up the stairs to the door of the house and placed the key in.

Scarlet Spider...it's time for you to leave forever!

I walked in the door, my mouth open to give him a piece of my mind. The scent of...lilacs filled my nose. I blinked, noticing the living room was full of the purple flowers I grown up loving. My face turned from one of anger to one of happiness as I picked up the bunch of flowers from the couch and placed them against my nose. They smelled so divine! They took me back to the days when my papa was alive.

"So I take you like them?" I turned around to see Scarlet, but there was something different about him. He had his mask off! He wore a black and red shirt with a black spider on the chest, black jeans, and red sneakers. He could pass for a normal teenager in my opinion and he looked super cute! I found myself at a loss for words for once.

"Their...their...WONDERFUL!" I tackled him to the ground, hearing him grunt in surprise. He smiled as I gave him a deep hug and rubbed my face on his chest. "How did you know?"

"I saw pictures of you as a child and took them to heart to find what kind of flowers you liked."

"Scarlet...this is the most beautiful thing someone had ever done for me!"

I felt his hands graced my face as he gave me a sincere look. "You can call me Ben now."

"Ben? Since when did you get a real name?"

"Since I met a kind lady today who gave it to me. I saved her life and she gave me a real name."

"I like it, it suits your personality." I smiled, rolling my eyes.

"Val, I want to apologize for what happened earlier this morning. Your mother told me what had happened between you and your dad. I feel like a total..." I put a finger on his lips as more tears ran down my face.

"Apology accepted Ben. I can't stay mad at you forever."

For that one moment in time, I felt loved by a man who loved me for who I was. Ben, a.k.a Scarlet Spider was my first love and I full accepted him into my heart.

But little did I know that a few days later...I would lose him forever.

BOOM! Another chapter in it's full glory! Updating every week was a good plan for this story. So now they're relationship has reached it's peak and Val and Ben are a couple! But what happens next in the future?

Please leave a review, favorite, or follow for more! Check out my other romance story Venomous Love if you like symbiotes!