Chapter 1 : the bite

************
Monday, April 6, 1995, Queens.

"Peter Benjamin Parker, stop playing video games and come downstairs, breakfast is ready!" Peter was completely enthralled by his new video game "Chrono Trigger" when he heard his aunt May yelling. "Coming right now! He answered, quickly saving his position in the game; he woke up from his bed and changed into some blue jeans and his favorite hoodie before rushing the stairs to fill his empty stomach.

Peter Benjamin Parker was a 16 years old, brown haired, slim looking (some would say scrawny) typical teenager living with his aunt May and his uncle Ben in Queens, Manhattan. Since his parents had died early while he was still young, his two last living relatives had decided to adopt him.

As he walked downstairs, he could already smell the fresh toast and coffee prepared by his aunt. Peter sat down and began to eat quickly his breakfast." Do not eat so quickly Peter or you won't fill up "said his uncle, smiling.
"By the way, Peter, be careful while going to school, the Police has found the body of an unidentified man two days ago nearby, it was all in the local news, so please do take care dear." said his aunt, worried.
"Leave him be, May, I trust him to be cautious and smart enough to avoid troubles, now young man, I think it is high time for you to leave or you will miss your bus. " replied Uncle Ben, smiling.

Peter quickly took his schoolbag, closed the door to his house and walked to the bus stop. Although he loved studying and sciences in particular, he wasn't fully enjoying school since he had been the prey of bullies for years. Only his two best friends: Mary-Jane Watson and Harry Osborn made it worth the days and time spending there.

As the bus stopped in front of Peter, he quickly rushed inside only to find a ginger haired girl waving at him to sit. "Hey, Peter how's the doing'" said MJ, smiling at him. "Same as usual" he answered grinning. "The best part of the day" thought Peter, enjoying the relationship he had with Mary-Jane. They've known each other since kindergarten and she had always the knack for lightening his mood.
"So, ready for tomorrow?" asked MJ
"Of course" said Peter enthusiastically." "I've been waiting for this visit for months, and Harry promised me we might be able to talk to his father!"

Mary-Jane smiled inwardly, although looking like a nerd with his thin frame and his glasses too big for his face, she would always see a beaming smile on his face every time the talk was about sciences. If only everything could be that fine in school…
As soon as the bus stopped and he as well as the other students was going inside the school's main building, Peter knew troubles were coming ahead as he saw a group of teenagers coming towards him laughing.
"Hey, look at that, guys, here comes puny Peter Parker!" said a large, broad shouldered boy with a blond Mohawk haircut. Flash. has been Peter's bane since elementary school, Midtown high school number one bully and a real pain for everybody. His father the P.E teacher was also renowned for his particular brutality during trainings at school -and also at home- thought Peter bitterly.

"What do you want Flash?" asked Peter grimly, expecting the worst.
"Same thing as usual" he said with a smirk as he picked Peter up and put him inside his locker.
"Ok, done for today, guys, let's go before the teacher arrives".

Peter really hated this guy who was planning to make his life miserable for another year, as he was trying to find a way out, the locker opened up to reveal a familiar face: Harry Osborn Jr.
"Thomson, again?" Harry asked, knowing already the answer. "As usual…"Peter answered dejectedly.
"Peter, listen to me" said Harry "Don't mind these jerks you're better and brighter than Flash and his goons. At least you have a future unlike them."
"Yes, maybe, I don't know… replied Peter. Anyway I have to go in class, see you later Harry."

The day went as usual in class with Peter gaining two A's in physics and math with the congratulations of the teacher. As he was walking back home, at the end of the day, Peter expected great things for tomorrow.

Tuesday, April 7, 1995. Oscorp.
Peter woke up quite early that morning and quickly rushed to take his breakfast as he wanted to be the first to arrive to Oscorp. He stood there until he saw MJ and his roommates arriving.
"You couldn't wait, could you Peter?" MJ said smirking.
"Nope" he answered, "I've been waiting for this experiment for months" replied Peter with a goofy smile.
The class entered the building and was welcomed by Norman Osborn himself. As they headed towards the laboratory, Norman moved closer to Peter and talked to him much to his surprise.
"You must be Peter Parker" asked Norman Osborn. "
"Yes Sir, how do you …" mumbled Peter with a hesitating voice.
"Harry often talks about you, young man and told me you are keenly interested by sciences, is it true?"
"I love it, sir, I wish I would work in that field someday , if it could be possible..."answered Peter.
"I'm sure you will" Norman Osborn answered absently while turning his head towards the others. "Now let me show what you are coming for, Doctor Connors is waiting for us " he said, opening the large glass like doors of the lab.

Peter was exulting, he had followed this man's work for years and read several of his works (though some parts were still too hard to understand...)and he would now assist to one of his experiment.

The room was a full of scientists, some of them in hazmat suits pacing back and forth between computer screens. Among them was the chief scientist Doctor Connors who was coming towards them.

Doctor Connors was a brown haired, middle aged man. As he was starting to explain, Peter noticed that he had an arm missing but it didn't seem to prevent at all his work.

"Welcome to Oscorp kids, today's experiment, as you have been briefed, is about spiders" he said, inviting them to get closer from the petri dish.
"These red and blue spiders are from the Acanthoctenus species, they come from the amazon rain forest and are known for their agility and fierceness. "
"What we are working on today is to analyze how we can mutate, change in layman's terms these spiders thanks to a specific type of radiations." Doctor Connors concluded.

"Sir, what kind of radiation do you use" asked Peter, interested.
"I wish I could tell you young man, but the nature of the isotope used is confidential. All I can assure you is that it is " he answered.

"Well, enough chitchatting, let's begin the experiment" said Norman Osborn with an impatient voice.

A bright blue light flooded the part of the lab where the spiders were contained when one of the scientist who had been discretely watching Peter since his arrival input something on his computer.

Suddenly a warning signal activated through the room.
"Sir! " said one of the scientist , the radiation level is increasing too fast and we can't make it drop , we must stop the experiment ! "
"Then do it and get rid of the spiders, they are not worth risking these kids lives .
"We're terminating the experiment, kids, leave the premise as soon as you can." said the voice of Norman Osborn coming from a loudspeaker.

As Peter, MJ and their classmates were beginning to quickly clear the lab, the scientist responsible for the failure of the experiment picked up one of the irradiated spider far off from the others , his gloved hand morphing into black ooze which went right inside the spider.
"Off you go" he said with a smirk as he watched the spider approaching the last kid leaving the lab in this case Peter.

"Such a shame" though Peter as he was leaving the lab." I would have loved to see the results of...". Peter didn't have time to finish his thought as he felt a bite coming from his leg.
"What the.." said Peter as he watched a black spider getting slowly away from him.

As Peter felt dizzy and rushed to the door, he didn't watch the black spider slowly reverting to his natural blue and red color before dying.

"Soon, Parker, soon" slowly whispered the scientist as he entered one of the room adjacent to the lab and collapsed on the ground, the black oozing form of the symbiote creeping through a ventilation shaft and leaving the lab.

As Peter returned home, walking alongside Mary-Jane, he felt the dizziness returning transforming quickly into nausea.
"Peter, are you all right" asked Mary-Jane worried.
"Don't worry , it must be something I ate, I will be fine" answered Peter trying to smile.

Peter hardly had the time to knock on the front door of its house before collapsing to the ground, pale and shaking with fever.
Peter barely remembered what happened thereafter, only that he was brought to bed by his Uncle Ben and a nightmarish night full of black human like spiders with fanged mouths and long tongues.