(Nearly half an hour later, in a taxi...)
On the way to the music competition location, it was rather silent. Peter sat on the front passenger seat, ruminating while Kaine and Anna sat on the back seats. As they were focused on their own thoughts, hardly a word was said.
Peter looked out the window at the buildings and vehicles he passed by with no warmth reflected in his eyes. Accompanying that was the neutral expression painted on his face. Even if he turned to the vibrant blue color of the afternoon sky to distract himself, his mind wouldn't move on from the recent encounter with Black Cat.
He let out a deep sigh as he thought to himself. "Meeting her... A mistake. It was an awful mistake. Everything would've been...alright. Now, I'm stuck in hell. Just how long it would be like this...?"
While Peter reeled over that, Anna and Kaine glanced at their friend with sympathy. The cousins had told the girl what had happened and she hated Black Cat for ruining Peter's mood. Then, Anna and her close friend looked at each other. Both knew what they were thinking at that moment. They could only hope that their plan for Peter having a new friend would work. If not, being there for Peter was already enough. The two shared a slight smile before Anna turned to her phone she was holding.
Her eyes stared at the music sheet on her phone screen. Anna began mouthing the lyrics written below the musical notes inaudibly, memorizing them as she recalled the times she practiced the song with a guitar. She would repeat the process again and again till she was sure she got it all memorized.
"Hey, Ann. Relax for a bit," Kaine chuckled, "You and Gwen will ace it, don't worry."
She rolled her eyes amusedly and looked at him. "And I need to memorize this sheet so I can ace it, K."
He shook his head and booped Anna's nose, surprising her. "And I don't want you to get stressed, Red. You already prepared enough... Chill down for a bit," Kaine smiled and looked at her eyes with such warmth and love.
The way he looked at Anna made her blush. "U-Um... Well, i-if you say so-" Such reaction made Kaine giggle, prompting Anna to playfully punch him in the shoulder. "Shush, K! Stop it," she tried to hold back from laughing.
"Nope. I don't think I will," he replied. And it earned a nose boop from Anna. "H-Hey!"
"Blehhh," Anna stuck out her tongue. Eventually, the two friends laughed together because of their goofy antics.
Peter looked at the rear view mirror and noticed Kaine and Anna sharing an adorable laugh. Seeing them like that made the corners of his lips turn upward slightly. "Man, these two should just date or something," he thought before letting out a chuckle. This, along with supporting Anna at the competition, would be a better distraction from thinking about that distasteful encounter. Besides, he'd love cheering for his friend.
"You seem to have good friends," the taxi driver said with a warm smile.
He nodded, "Yup. I do. They're my...amazing friends."
After a few minutes, the cab arrived at the location: a hotel. It stopped outside the hotel entrance. Having arrived at the destination, Anna took out some of her money from her wallet and paid the driver, along with a few more for his tip. The three friends thanked the man with a warm smile—a gesture he returned—before exiting the cab and walking to the hotel. They could see colorful, vibrant banners displayed for the music competition event. So many teenagers entered the hotel, with their parents and friends coming to watch their performances.
"Where is Gwen waiting?" Kaine asked as he and his friends entered the hotel lobby.
"Well, she told me she would wait here...?" Anna replied in a confused tone as she couldn't find her friend yet. "Where is-" Her eyes lightened up when she spotted a familiar blonde girl sitting on a couch, looking at her phone and mouthing something inaudibly, as if memorizing something. "Ah there she is..." The redhead had a mischievous smirk painted on her face, walking slowly to Gwen. "Hey," she tapped her friend's shoulder, startling the blonde.
"Ah, geez! What-" Gwen let out a sigh of relief when she realized it was Annabelle. She looked at her in a mix of amusement and annoyance. "Girl, don't do that!" she said as she rose from the couch. "What took you so long?" she said in a joking manner.
"Sorry. Kept you waiting, huh?" Anna laughed and the two hugged each other. Both girls shared a smile for a moment before letting go.
When Gwen noticed Annabelle's friends, she smiled warmly and waved at them. The Parkers nodded and waved back with a smile. Anna had told Gwen she was going to bring them. Gwen'd met the cousins before, even though it was a short moment.
"We meet again!" she said.
"Yup. And we're here to support you two," Kaine replied, "You gonna ace it!"
"Aww, thanks. We appreciate it."
As she was about to turn her attention to Anna, something caught Gwen's attention. She saw the expression on Peter's face—one of sorrow and pain. There was only nothing in his eyes, as if he was "dead." The look on Gwen's eyes became that of curiosity and compassion. Deep down, something compelled her to reach out to him and help him, not caring if she knew nothing much about Peter.
"Gwen?" Anna called to her, bringing back Gwen to her senses. "Hello???"
"Oh shoot- Sorry, I kinda zoned out for a bit," she chuckled.
Annabelle raised an eyebrow amusedly and shook her head. "Anyways, come on. It's gonna start anytime soon. Better get to the auditorium before we're late."
The others agreed. So the group quickly entered an empty elevator and went to an upper floor where the auditorium was.
--
Around 25 minutes had passed and many participants of the competition had their turns in performing either solo or as a group. They played a music instrument they excelled at while singing an original song or a cover song. Pictures and videos of the performances were taken by either families, friends, or the organizers. Applause would follow suit, before the emcee commented on how amazing each performance was and announcing the next participants along with their choice of song.
During this time, Anna and Gwen waited for their turn. The girls would review once or twice the lyrics of the song they would sing later. Once they were sure they memorized everything, the two returned their attention to the participants singing on the stage.
However, Gwen couldn't help but sneak curious glances at Peter, who sat on her right. Questions popped up in her mind as she looked at the sorrow on Peter's eyes. She wondered what had happened that turned him into this. "Poor guy... I wish I could hug and comfort him right now... Or lend an ear too," she thought, sighing softly.
"Hm...?" Peter noticed that she looked at him multiple times. His hazel eyes met her blue ones, both filled with curiosity. He pondered if something from him got her attention. "What, is there something on my face?" he joked.
At that joke, Gwen chuckled. "Maybe yes, maybe not," she winked, which earned a snort from him. Both then focused on watching the singers' performance, although Gwen couldn't stop thinking about what was really going on in Peter's mind. Since she and Anna planned to go to a diner with the cousins after the competition, she decided that would be the best time to talk with Peter to know more about him.
Meanwhile for Anna, Kaine sat on her left. Like their friends, they both watched the singers. On one hand, she nodded her head, enjoying a K-pop cover song from the participants as an audience member. But on the other, she dreaded for her and Gwen's turn. Even if Kaine had assured her earlier, Anna still feared of ruining the performance.
Alas, the singers soon finished performing, which scared Anna further.
"Bravo! What an amazing performance from them!" the emcee gave the singers praises as they rose from their seats and smiled at his words, before exiting the stage and returning to their audience seats. All that with claps from the audience accompanying them.
For a moment there, Annabelle zoned out. She didn't hear the following words from the emcee. She looked down, trembling in fear. The girl could hear her own heartbeats. The inevitable was coming soon for her.
"...And now. Annabelle Adams and Gwen Stacy, representing Midtown High School, will come to the stage. Their choice of song is a rather popular one from a 2014 superhero flick. It's none other than "It's on Again" by Alicia Keys and Kendrick Lamar!"
"Ah fuck. I'm screwed," Anna thought upon the mention of her name and Gwen's.
But a gentle pat on her back interrupted her thought process. She turned to her left side and saw Kaine's gaze on her. He smiled assuringly at Anna. "You've prepared for this a long time. Don't let fear overcome you. You got this," he said comfortingly.
Looking at her close friend, Anna smiled back. His words rang true. She must do her best, to make all the preparation worth it in the end.
Annabelle took a deep breath and exhaled, composing herself. Now that she was ready, she and Gwen rose from their seats and headed to the stage. Gwen sat down on a drum stool and picked a pair of drumsticks, with the acoustic drum set in front of her. On her left side was Anna, sitting on a stool and holding an acoustic guitar. Both had microphones attached on their respective mic stands.
Before the two girls started, Anna glanced at the Parker cousins, who gave her an assuring nod. While Gwen looked at her family, sitting two rows behind Anna's friends. Her mother, three brothers, and father—who was the NYPD captain—were all present there. Her parents gave a thumbs up, confident in their daughter. Gwen's mom then proceeded to start recording with her smartphone, wanting to save this very moment.
Focusing on the guitar, Anna played with its strings to begin the performance as Gwen started rapping the first verse of the song. All eyes were on her and her friend, but she stayed calm and kept doing her part.
From his seat, Peter's eyes widened in both surprise and amazement when he heard Gwen rapping. He blinked his eyes in disbelief multiple times, never expecting she could do something like that. He leaned forward a bit, watching her with intrigue—something Kaine noticed but he decided not to tease his cousin for now.
As soon Gwen finished the rap part, she started to drum, accompanying the guitar while Anna took over and sung the following verses and the pre-chorus. She and Gwen would sing the chorus together. Such a harmonious combination of their voices, the sounds of guitar strings, and the drum beats that enriched their singing.
Some of the audience nodded their heads, while the others tapped their feet to the song.
Seeing their reaction, the corners of Anna's lips turned upward as she sang. She turned her attention to Kaine, who winked and mouthed the words "I told you you got this." His support filled her heart with warmthness. She looked at the cousins and decided to sing for them. For Peter, who perhaps could see the song as a form of support, a reminder to keep going. For Kaine, who understood her—as if he was her mirror, not much different—and who was like her other half. And for them as the Spider-Men, to keep persevering through any obstacles.
Both Parkers knew why their friend sung for them the moment she looked at them. They smiled in response, touched by her gesture.
The girls kept on playing their musical instruments as Anna sang the remaining parts. Both of them beamed with happiness and enthusiasm. Gwen would sing with Anna again when it came to the chorus and repeated it during the end of the song, before ending their performance with a few drumbeats and a few musical notes from the guitar strings.
Soon, applause erupted in the auditorium. Gwen's family and the Parkers clapped happily at the two girls. The competiting participants also clapped out of respect, although some couldn't help but look at Gwen and Anna with jealousy.
Having finally done something she had prepared, Anna let out a sigh of relief. She and Gwen rose from the stools and headed down the stage, going back to their audience chairs while the emcee gave them praises and announced the next participants. Now, she could simply enjoy the rest of the competition.
"It's over... But at least we aced it," she said as she and her friend sat down.
"Heck yeah, girl. That we did," Gwen chuckled, prompting Anna to laugh for a bit.
Peter turned to the girls and complimented them. "You two did great back there! It was spectacular."
"Or sensational, among other choice of words," Kaine winked.
"Aw thank you," they smiled, "We appreciate it."
Then, Anna looked at Kaine with gratitude for believing in her. *"Merci de tout coeur, mon incroyable ami," she said. (*Translation: Thank you with all my heart, my amazing friend.)
"*De rien, Red," he replied, "That's what friends are for, right?" (*Translation: You're welcome.)
Touched by his words, she nodded and gently rested her head on his shoulder. "Yup."
Kaine blinked his eyes in surprise a couple of times, before smiling lovingly at Anna and letting her rest her head.
Seeing how close the two were, Gwen shook her head amusedly. She wondered if Peter saw it too, so she turned her attention to him. And she found him smirking at his friends.
"Lovebirds, am I right?" said Peter.
"So what Annie said about you is true after all, huh? You damn shipper," Gwen teased him.
"O-Oh shoot, you knew-" He averted his eyes from Gwen, his cheeks flushed in embarrassment. "She told you about me, huh- Oh man..."
She laughed at him. "Many, many times. But it's not exactly annoying, don't worry," Gwen assured him. She leaned closer to him and whispered, "I can see why you shipped them a lot. They're basically couple material!"
He looked at her in disbelief. "You agree with me?"
"Oh I do."
Both Gwen and Peter couldn't help but smirk mischievously. She felt bizarre and intrigued at the same time, seeing this livelier side of him. Something really bad must've happened to him that made him look lifeless. A thought that broke her heart. Now, she became more determined to find out more about Peter.
--
(Later...)
Right after the competition ended, Gwen's family returned to their apartment. Before that however, they'd reminded her to have fun and stay safe as she was about to hang out with her friends.
When Anna saw how loving and supportive the Stacy family was to their daughter, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy as her own father—no matter if he wasn't related to her by blood—didn't attend the competition to support her. However, she could take solace in the fact that she had great friends who were there for her.
The group wasted no time and went to a nearby diner. It may not be as fancy as a restaurant. Yet, it was casual and vibrant, filled by many patrons inside as music played through a speaker attached on the wall. Some ate together and talked about everyday topics, others ate alone and did a crossword puzzle. A place the friends found fitting. For all they wanted was a fun time together. They sat down on two opposite diner booths and immediately ordered some food, snacks, and drinks, with Anna willing to decide to pay for them.
As they waited, the four conversed about ordinary stuff. The girls would joke and tease each other about how nerve-wracking the preparation had been, earning laughs from the boys. And Kaine and Anna would poke fun at Peter for shipping them many times as if there was nothing better to do, embarrassing him. But all was done in a friendly manner, no ill will.
Several minutes had passed and a waiter delivered what the group had ordered, setting the food, drinks, and snacks down on their table. They all thanked her, a gesture the waiter appreciated before walking away. And the four finally enjoyed eating and drinking. Sometimes, they would pause for a bit and talk.
"...Wait, you guys don't like horror movies?" Gwen asked the Parkers.
Peter shook his head as a response. "I'm not sure I can handle that kind of movie-"
"Yeah, we just stick to Marvel and DC movies," Kaine chuckled.
"Pfft. That's okay. Nothing wrong with that," Gwen said, "Maybe we can watch that upcoming Batman vs Superman in like four months? And then the third Cap movie two months later?"
"Hahah. Sure! That'll be fun," Peter replied.
In the middle of the conversation though, a news report played on a TV attached to a top corner of the ceiling. So, it prompted everyone, including the four, to stop what they were doing and turned to the TV at that instant.
"Just earlier today, an intense car chase between the police and armed criminals caused chaos across a few city blocks, threatening many lives," a reporter named Ben Urich narrated the news as footage of the chase was displayed on screen. "However thanks to the intervention of the Spider-Men, the police managed to arrest the criminals, who have been identified to be a part of a criminal organization led by Hammerhead. This marks one of the many times the masked vigilantes have helped the NYPD..."
While the report went on, the majority of the diner patrons and staff smiled as they felt safe with two superheroes protecting the city.
Seeing how everyone reacted to that, Kaine and Peter turned to Annabelle, who gave them a slight smile. One of gratitude for them being protectors of New York City and for them trusting her with their secret. The two nodded at her in return.
However, a neutral expression painted Gwen's face. As if she was unsure whether to trust two random masked figures with abilities beyond ordinary men, who could turn up as enemies any time and wreak havoc. Instead, she preferred to trust something more established like the police force. Although deep down, she knew how rotten it could be.
Yet, her expression was also that of a curious one.
She turned her attention back to her friend group with a look of disbelief as she recalled the past. "Things really have changed since two months ago..." She said, "We were in this ordinary world. Then, poof! They showed up out of nowhere. Now, we're basically living in the panels of a long-running superhero comic series... What a crazy world."
"I know right?" Anna agreed. "As if we're living in that 'Unbreakable' movie from 15 years ago."
"Yup. Things can be unexpected sometimes..." Kaine replied, glancing at Peter who nodded in agreement as they remembered when they received powers beyond imagination, something they never thought would happen in real life.
Gwen reached to one of her jeans' pockets and pulled out her phone. "This reminds me of something that happened 6 years ago," she said as she typed something on the search engine.
Anna, Kaine, and Peter shared a knowing look. They remembered that particular event back during their childhood.
"Ah, here it is!" Gwen tapped on a video and quickly adjusted the phone speaker's volume to something audible but not too loud as to not bother the diner. She then showed the screen to the trio as the video started playing. And their eyes went wide, as if it was yesterday they'd witnessed the event that went viral on news and internet.
"My goodness! What the hell is that?!" a man in the video exclaimed in confusion as he accidently caught a phenomenon in Times Square from a streetcorner while recording a vlog.
From a portal with cracks of space-time around it opening, a sleek, streamlined, futuristic fighter flew out of it. It caused chaos and fear among pedestrians as they moved away to the side in a frantic manner. The unstable plane flew straight in the middle, between multiple buildings left and right. Though the pilot tried to steer it away from buildings to avoid any collisions and casualties.
What was bizarre was that the aircraft glitched in and out of existence, along with the pilot.
The man managed to catch a few details. The first detail was a circular emblem with a golden section on the top and a grey section on the bottom, with the emblem's central part resembling two hands folded in prayer. The second was an all-uppercase italic word "SLIPSTREAM" next to the emblem. And the last one being a small glimpse of the pilot: a female almost in her early 20s dressed in a blue and yellow flight outfit with a long white scarf wrapped around her neck.
Soon, the aircraft disappeared into another portal, leaving everyone befuddled.
After the video ended, Anna and the cousins recalled how the phenomenon turned the world nuts for a few years. Conspiracy theorists and scientists would write articles, debating whether the aircraft was a work of the government went wrong or that it came from a parallel universe. Netizens would comment on said articles with this very question. Were they the only one in this vast universe or was the multiverse real? Years may have passed and its impact had lessened, but the world hadn't forgotten.
"Geez... You really brought back memories of that year," Peter chuckled.
"I couldn't help it," Gwen smiled sheepishly, before her expression turned into that of a thoughtful one. "It's just that... That phenomenon and then superheroes suddenly appearing? What's next? The multiverse confirmed? Superheroes and supervillains on the other side? And maybe giant aliens and monsters?"
Annabelle, Kaine, and Peter shrugged together to that question.
"Only time will tell, Gwen," Peter replied.
After that conversation, the group continued what they had been doing earlier. They went back to talking about everyday stuff. But as they finished eating and drinking, Gwen remembered about wanting to find out what was bothering Peter's mind. She then turned her attention to the younger Parker, decided to finally ask him.
"Hey, Peter?"
"Yup?" he replied as he held his glass and took one last sip from his drink.
"I kind of noticed...something about you," Gwen said.
Her words made Peter froze for a bit. He slowly set his glass down on the table, before looking at the girl with discomfort reflected in his eyes. "...Uh, what is it?"
"It's just...I noticed you looked pretty down before the competition started," she answered. "I know I'm simply a stranger to you and it's probably not my place to ask. But if it's okay, what happened? It's...been bothering my mind." She said with a concerned tone.
Peter averted his eyes for a bit. A part of him was touched by Gwen's concern and kindness. But the other went defensive when he realized she knew something wasn't right with him. He returned his attention to Gwen and tried to put up a smile, shaking it off. "N-Nah, it was nothing. Just been occupied is all."
Gwen saw through the facade and knew he wasn't ready to tell her. But she nodded understandingly. "Hey... Just saying. You don't have carry it alone, you know?"
"I know. I know..." he let out a deep sigh.
Seeing how it unfolded, Kaine and Anna looked at each other. Panic was written all over his face, as if him saying that their plan wouldn't work. But she nodded in acknowledgement and smiled assuringly, telling her close friend to have faith and trust the process, even if it was slow. That it would work in the end.
Gone was his panicked expression, replaced by a smile full of love and warmth on Kaine's face. This became another reason out of many for him to fall in love with her more and more.
"You know what...? I think I'll confess my feelings to her. But not now," he thought.
But at that moment, a particular inhuman laugh echoed in his mind. One full of sarcasm and malevolence. Kaine's smile slowly disappeared, replaced with an expression of concern, fear on his face. Not wanting to ruin the mood, he put up a neutral face. While also trying to ignore the laugh.
Finally done, Annabelle paid for the food, drinks, and snacks. And she didn't forget to tip the waiter. Her friends were about to repay Anna with their own money, but she refused as she simply wanted to pay for all of them.
The friend group would then exit the diner and called for their respective taxis. But before going their separate ways, Gwen shared her number with the Parkers and Anna added her to the group chat.
Now that it was only the two of them, the cousins went to a nearby empty alley and put on their masks, before crawling up to a rooftop and swung off from there to their respective home. Kaine felt somewhat positive for his and Anna's plan, and his intention to reveal his feelings to his close friend—though doubt filled his heart thanks to the Other. But as for Peter? Uncertainty filled his heart as he wasn't sure at the prospect of having someone new in his life.
A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed reading this chapter! It was fun to write, so I hope it comes across that way when you read it. Really loved writing the interactions and the references hahah. (Though one reference is gonna be really important in the future, especially if you're an Overwatch fan.) And yes, I'm not just a sucker for the Raimi trilogy but also the TASM duology. If this world feels meta, I intended it to be like that cuz I was inspired by that "Unbreakable" movie. Anyways, as usual, lemme know your thoughts thru the comments. Feel free to follow and favorite me and this fic too to stay updated!