A/N #1: Hi readers! Sorry for not updating the fic for three months :') Life and university got in the way but I kept on trying to write. And I finally got to write the remaining four chapters of Part 2B. (I couldn't have done this without my writer friends so credits is where it's due.) So, all four chapters are uploaded to conclude this very part. Think of it as a present for this new year XD After that, I will focus on writing Part 3. Without further ado, I hope you enjoy reading the four chapters! :D
WARNING: Chapter includes slight content of sexual assault and trauma. Please proceed at your own discretion.
(At the Hardy mansion...)
On the next afternoon, Felicia sat on her bed with her legs crossed. Her face looked empty as Spider-Man's words from yesterday kept on playing in her mind. "Hey, you okay..?" Those three words which made her recall the time when Ryan saved her from being taken advantage of and befriended her, only for him to end up to be no different than her former "friends". She looked down, wondering if she could still put her trust on Scarlet Spider and Spider-Man. "Felicia... Stop thinking about it, okay? They're not the same as your past friends. Of course, they're different... Right..?" She let out a deep sigh and rested her head on a pillow, staring at the ceiling of her bedroom.
Felicia groaned and shook her head. "This is not helping. Better focus on something else," she said to herself. Reaching for the phone beside her, she picked it up, opened the group chat, and began typing.
Hey, you all free atm? (Felicia)
Soon, two messages popped up on her screen.
Yeah, I'm free (Kaine)
Me too. We're about to go for a patrol though. But we can spare some time. What's on your mind, Cat? (Peter)
I wanna discuss about our next mission... Wanna do a group call? (F)
Sure. We really should figure out something after our previous mission... (P)
Felicia pressed the call button on the group chat and her friends joined her.
"Okay so, yesterday's mission was a failure. And we now know that Tombstone has joined to help Shocker. The security has tightened too," Felicia recalled. Her normal tone then switched to a desperate one. "We have to come up with a plan, guys... And we only have one location left. If we screw this, all of us will lose the chance of stopping those two. How are we gonna approach this?"
Peter took sometime to think of something before answering the question. "Well, like usual, we do things quietly. But the jammer for your sonar pulses is something that needs to be taken care of first."
"Yeah, I agree. I can't pinpoint the enemies location with that thing still on," she said. "So one of us interrogates a bad guy about the jammer's whereabouts. Then we disable it."
"But the next problem lies with Shocker and Tombstone, especially the pale guy," Kaine stressed. "He's a big obstacle to us and we can be goners because of him, if we're not careful."
"Tombstone is much stronger and more durable than the two of us," Peter added.
"And we can't summon Scarlet's other side for more power because he might make things worse for us and who knows what..." Felicia noted, remembering what Scarlet Spider and Spider-Man told her yesterday. "So that's out of the question."
However, Kaine remembered something that would help the team against Tombstone at least. "...I mean, we can punch him real hard, like we did in the last mission. So that compensation solves it somewhat."
"Now those are taken care of, what about searching the bill of lading that will lead to Shocker and Tombstone's HQ?" she asked.
"What do you mean?" Kaine asked back.
"I mean, the last time we entered a warehouse to find a bill of lading, we got ambushed since we weren't careful. So... We should do it differently this time. I'm open to suggestions and ideas from you two."
"If we are to avoid confrontation, we can go to the small building near to the warehouse. Since that office may have the piece of info we need," Kaine shared his idea.
"Or if the circumstances aren't in our favor somehow," Peter presented an alternative, "We can cause some wreckage to lure out our enemies and fight them as a diversion while Cat goes inside the warehouse, gets the necessary info, and corrupts the system."
Hearing that, Felicia nodded. "Well, I suppose that sorts everything out."
"Hmm..." Peter uttered. He couldn't help but feel something was missing. "Even if we've sorted it all out, the thing is... Our enemies are becoming aggressive and they're willing to kill us. If one of you faces either Shocker or Tombstone alone, they'll kill you easily. And I can't let that happen. Not after what..." He paused for a moment, trying to rephrase what he was about to say. "Not after what happened to Scarlet."
"I'm sorry, Spidey..." Felicia comforted her friend from her end, "What do you suggest?"
"I suggest I take turns helping each of you. The mission is definitely gonna be tough. But I'll watch both of you."
Kaine smiled warmly at his cousin's suggestion. "We definitely need someone to watch our back," he said.
"Definitely."
"I'll take that as a yes then," Peter replied enthusiastically, earning an amused chuckle from both Felicia and Kaine.
"Okay, that's all, I suppose," she said and sent the bill of lading for the warehouse they were going to go to the group chat. "I just sent the document. You can check the location. So, we do this tomorrow evening if you're free?"
"Yeah, we're both free," Kaine replied.
"Good. As usual, I'll wait on a rooftop not far from the location." She sighed, "Let's...hope nothing goes wrong again. Anyways, I'll leave you two be for your patrol. Take care, alright?"
"Thanks. You too, Cat. See you tomorrow," the Spider-Men replied.
"See ya," Felicia then ended the call. However, she realized talking about tomorrow's mission plan did distract her but it didn't help with what she was feeling at the moment. Annoyed, Felicia put away her phone and covered her face, letting out a muffled groan. "Fuck... Fuck!" She cursed under her breath, shaking her head as if trying to shake off those thoughts. "Why won't it go away?" She mumbled, grabbing her forehead and massaging it.
As she let her feelings out, her smartphone vibrated, which prompted Felicia to move her hands away from the face and turned to the phone. She picked it up and saw a text message from Spider-Man.
Heya. I hope you don't mind me checking up on you. How are you doing, Cat? (Peter)
A slight smile formed on her face as she texted a reply.
Not good, kind of. But I'll be fine. I appreciate you for asking but...why? (Felicia)
It's just that I know something's bothering your mind since yesterday. I wanted to know if you were doing better now (P)
That's sweet of you, Webhead. Thank you (F)
You're welcome, Cat. If you need to rant or vent to someone about something, I'll be here, okay? Even though I may not understand it, I wanna help at least (P)
Thanks again. I'll keep that in mind, Spidey (F)
Anytime. Well, cya tomorrow? (P)
Cya (F)
For one moment, Felicia was grateful to have friends like Spider-Man and Scarlet Spider. But that feeling soon disappeared when she remembered the doubt clouding her mind. She sighed and got up to put her phone on the desk nearby, before returning to her bed. Thinking a nap would ease her mind, Felicia grabbed a bolster and wrapped her arms around it. She closed her eyes gently and sighed, eventually drifting to sleep.
"Please go away..."
(A couple of hours later...)
"Man, what a day..." Spider-Man panted and drank a bottle of water in his hand. Both he and Scarlet Spider sat down on a rooftop, resting after finishing their patrol.
Scarlet drank the water from his bottle and turned to his cousin. "Yeah, it's gonna be one hell of a day when we get home and do the physics homework together," he groaned. "That one is gonna make my brain turn into mush."
"Pfft. Not for me!"
It made Scarlet Spider roll his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. I get it. You're smart and all that, Brainy Pete."
Spider-Man feigned a gasp upon hearing that. "Brainy Pete? Oh, you take that back, Mister!" he spoke in a dramatic tone.
"Nope, I won't," Scarlet let out a chuckle.
"Alright, that's it. I'm not gonna help you and Anna with homeworks! Hmph!"
"Pfft, you wouldn't dare!" Spidey remained silent at that reply, causing Scarlet Spider to stutter in fear. "W-Whoa, whoa, whoa. Leave Anna outta this- Shit. Sorry, I take my words back-"
The younger spider chortled, earning a look of disbelief from the older one. "Geez, chill out, Coz! I wasn't serious on that one. Why would I do that to my friends?"
"You troll. You almost had me there!"
The two spiders shared a laugh and continued to drink as they watched the busy traffic from afar.
A few moments later, Scarlet lowered his head and sighed. "Pete... Do you think we'll make it after tomorrow's mission..?" he asked.
"I'm... I don't know, Coz," Spider-Man replied with a hint of uncertainty in his voice. "But hey, we're all in this together. I won't let what happened yesterday happen again." He placed his hand on Scarlet's shoulder and patted him gently. "That's my promise," he assured.
With Spidey's assurance, Scarlet Spider gave an appreciative nod. "Thanks, I needed that."
"By the way... How are things between you and Anna? Has she talked with you again?"
"No, not yet..." Scarlet let out an exasperated sigh. "She's probably still thinking about what she should do after we told her about our identities. I just hope that this isn't the end for us and her."
"Yeah, me too, Coz... She hasn't talked with me again also."
But then, the Spider-Men's phones vibrated in their jeans' pockets, interrupting the conversation. They both pulled it out and found a notification showing a text message from Annabelle in their group chat. Peter and Kaine looked at each other. Not wasting time, they checked the message.
Are you free at the moment? There's something I need to talk about, guys... I'm okay with texting but I would prefer if we have a direct convo (Anna)
The cousins texted back a reply.
We're free. We're about to go there. Otw to your apartment in a bit (Kaine)
Me too. I'm with Kaine atm. Wait for us (Peter)
Okay, no need to rush, y'all. I can wait (A)
Peter turned to Kaine. "Looks like we're gonna get our answer."
"Question is... What will it be..?" Kaine wondered with concern in his voice. This would be the very moment that dictated the future of his relationship with Anna. And he must face it, whether he liked it or not.
A/N #2: You probably wonder how the thing with Anna will be resolved... Well, the next chapter is the answer ;) No rush though. You can take a little break and go back when you feel ready to read again. I hope you enjoyed reading this by the way. If you like this fic, favorite and follow it! If you wanna see more of my fanfics in the future, favorite and follow me :3 You won't regret it but I'm not forcing you to do those though. Feel free to share this and leave a comment about your thoughts on this chapter. Anyways, happy (belated) new year! And have a good day/night :D
