E P I L O G U E

"The End Is Just Another Beginning."

There's a reason why people before falling asleep start telling themselves stories or creating fake scenarios. Dreams are paradise, a gateway from reality, and being blessed with a moment totally yours and full of bliss. Peter Parker stood at the peak of the Empire State, the wind could be felt, blowing his hair into all sorts of direction as his chocolate eyes were dead set on the sunset before him. And just when he thought the dream couldn't get more peaceful, he suddenly became aware that he was covering someone's eyes. Dumbfounded, he uncovered the person's eyes, for some reason he was holding his breath as he watched her turn her head towards him.

And there she was. His girl.

The sunset's golden hour reflected beautifully on Ramsey's tanned skin, her long brunette hair was disheveled due to the wind, but Peter stared at her with wonder and love. She could be wearing a sack of potatoes and look like Shrek, to him, she would always be the most beautiful thing that lived and breathed on this earth. His arms found their home around her waist, terrified of letting her go. She turned to him, and he felt his heart falter at the mere sight of her, a sight his eyes hadn't been blessed with for a long, long time. He could even feel his eyes begin to water and his chest tightening from the bottled-up emotions, but he didn't want to lose sight of her for his tears, so he quickly blinked them away and just pressed himself closer to her and breathed in her scent. The strange thing was that he didn't recognize her scent anymore, and that's when a dreadful thought took root in his mind: does it mean that he's forgetting her?

"God, you have no idea how much I've missed you." He closed his eyes and buried his face into the back of her neck, holding her so very close to him.

She wrapped her arms around his and breathed out contently as they watched the sunset. "And I you. But don't be mistaken, I'm always with you... just not in the flesh. Obviously."

"I'm afraid to forget you." Peter voiced his deepest fear.

Ramsey smiled, a single tear rolling down her cheek as the sun finally set. "Moving on doesn't mean forgetting, skater boy." She closed her eyes and another tear fell. "It just means that our story has come to an end. You're ready to begin a new chapter."

She gripped his arms and unwrapped them from her body, she had to put some effort into prying them off because Peter wasn't– couldn't let go. "Trust me, letting go is easier than holding on. It's okay, Pete. It's okay to let me go."

And like a whisper, she was gone with the wind, disappearing from his arms.

TWO YEARS LATER

BOOM!

Peter woke up with a start, his spider senses were on high alert trying to determine where the sound came from. The brown-haired boy quickly felt his body relaxed when his spider-sense revealed to him there was no danger, he ran a hand over his tired face and noticed it was still dark. Turning toward his nightstand where his phone was left charging, his tired eyes glanced at the phone screen and suddenly a wave of irritation washed over his body.

5:40 am?! Peter ran a hand down his face, cursing out at his roommate, before angrily throwing the covers off his body, and stepping on the cold floor. "I swear, if he's doing this on purpose–" He reached for a random shirt discarded on the floor and hastily putting it on. "For his own good, he better not be."

"Troops coming in over the hill!" An unfamiliar voice with a Korean accent came from outside his door. "Get cover!"

Peter exited his room and came across his roommates, each one of them doing their own thing. Sometimes Peter wishes he'd never left Aunt May, at least she was quiet, and he was able to get enough sleep when he could. The only downside of living with Aunt May is that she worries too much, she always knew when he would sneak out and Peter just couldn't keep lying to her, so he decided that getting a place for himself would come with its perks. But there was just one important detail Peter was hilariously neglecting, he was broke.

"Watch your six, Jin-Soo!" His lousy roommate, the one responsible for waking him at five in the freaking morning, said. "Watch your siiiiiix!"

I officially hate having roommates, he thought as he stared at the blond roommate.

The lights of the kitchen turned on and in walked a sleepy Randy Robertson, his glare turned into a tired glance as his eyes averted to his dark orbs. "Morning, Pete."

Well, not all roommates were that bad, he admitted. Randy checked the cupboards and pulled out a cereal bowl before snatching the cereal from on top of the fridge. "Want some– um, cereal crumbs?"

Randy and Peter watched as the cereal crumbs fell on the bowl, they both exchange a look of astonishment, seeing as they bought the cereal yesterday. "Aw, that's my bad, fellas." Peter felt his eye twitch as he and Randy faced their common arch-enemy in disbelief. "Needed some rations ahead of the big Doomstadt Offensive. I still got some Cheetos if you– no, wait, hold on," he felt for the 'bag' underneath him but only pulled out one miserable Cheeto, "one Cheeto. But it's all yours... to share."

And who exactly is this guy? Fred Myers, he's quite the character you see, because, yeah, in addition to being loud and messy, this roommate– is also a supervillain.

He gave them a smug look, knowing full well he was pushing Peter's buttons. "That's it–"

Randy sigh and tried to dissuade Peter from getting into a pointless fight with him. "Pete, come on, it's not worth it..."

Peter half-turned to his roommate, angrily gesturing just how upset he was with him. "It's 5 A.M., Randy– Five. A.M." He jabbed a finger in Fred's direction. "And he's playing Call Of Duty: Latveria!"

More specifically, Boomerang. Washed-up ex-baseball player turned mercenary, thief, and the guy who can never refill the Brita cooler even though his roommates made sure to leave a post-it note on it that clearly states 'please refill it when it gets to this line'. And guess what? The note somehow always ended up crumbled on the ground. Weird, huh?

"It's when the Korean players log on!" Fred shared as if that had anything to do with them being awakened at such an ungodly hour. "And those guys don't mess around. Nah, bruh. You gotta beat the best to be the best."

Randy narrowed his eyes at him, braiding his arms over his chest, looking like a disappointed parent. "And you needed all these speakers on? Couldn't you just listen on the headset?"

"Pfft, are you kidding?" Fred turned to him, looking incredulous, and gestured around him. "The immersive sound is half the experience! Why do you think I stole– I mean, purchased– all this home theater stuff in the first place?"

Spider-Man first ran into Boomerang on the job. He'd just robbed a museum, and whatever he got from it, The Kingpin was mighty interested. So interested, that Peter had to let him go– which is pretty off-brand for the Friendly Neighbor Spider-Man. Then Boomerang– or more likely, Fred Myers– showed up to sublet the third bedroom of their apartment. Which gave him the head-start to find out what's really going on with his villainous scheme– that and, in all honesty, they could use some help with the rent.

Peter was fuming, Randy being the more passive one, grabbed his arm and pulled him aside, exchanging a few whispers with him. "Listen, man, I get it– Fred's rough around the edges, but he's not so bad." Peter gave him a look that clearly told him he didn't share that same thought. "We went out the other night, and we actually had a good time. He's got some really crazy stories–"

They were at a bar in Queens, it was just Randy and Fred, Peter had a few errands to run, so he asked for a raincheck, but Fred was in total disagreement. "And then spider-man just completely face-plants, and I said, 'does this mean I gotta split my cut with you?' Truth is, I think after that he really respected me– admired me, even..."

"That's not how Spider-Man tells that story," Peter grumbled, throwing Fred a disdainful look.

Randy sighs, putting a hand on his tense shoulder, Peter turns to him. "You just gotta give him a chance, man." They both turned to Fred simultaneously. "Maybe he'll surprise you."

Or maybe, life would end up surprising Peter Parker.

THE world is definitely a tough place, everybody minds their own business and just go about their day normally. The advantage of being normal and leading a perfectly normal life? You have the luxury of being unassuming. In other words, ignorance is bliss. Perfect excuse or simple truth? Peter Parker, as you might guess, does not fall into the category of normal regardless of suffering from pretty much average problems like any other human being, such as paying taxes, student loans, trying to get a good job, etc. In spite of that, his life comes with a cherry on top, and that is, Spider-Man.

After going through some rough time in his life, Peter Parker managed to pull himself together, and continued to be New York's best defender. It took time, he needed time, after all, loss can break even the strongest, and that includes heroes. But that was just the natural order of things, nobody can tip the scales and create a painless life, unless, of course, somebody decides to cancel order from the equation of life. Two years from now, Peter would've thought that to be the stupidest sentence ever, but after unexpectedly having a front-row seat and witnessed his girlfriend sacrifice herself by giving up the power of life... Well, let's just say, Peter isn't as gullible as he used to be.

"Unff!" A painful grunt escaped Spider-Man's lips as the Mountain Marko punches him square on the jaw, sending the spandex hero flying across the book fair on the park. He crashed into a market stand and hit a bookshelf, hardcover books rain down on him, landing blow after blow on his head and shoulders. "Ow– and now the books are attacking me, great."

The big hunk, Mountain Marko, along with his partner in crime, Ringer— well, to sum them up, they were a few fries short of a happy meal.

"Whaddayou mean 'depreciated'?" Mountain Marko curled his huge fist tighter around the mid-forties looking man. "I wanna put these up on eBay."

The man grimace as he felt a bit of spit landing on his face. "Then stop... stepping on them?"

Ringer was gathering— more like, stealing— the books and shoving them inside a bag. "Don't lecture us, fatso! We're not the ones getting price-out by Amazon!"

Spider-Man let out a sigh and got up, deciding he had already let them have their fun. If he didn't intervene now, he was sure they were going to rob the tote bags too. Yep, pretty low. Not letting this run long enough, Spider-Man quickly launch himself at them, landing a roundhouse kick at Ringer, and headbutting Mountain Marko. A sickening crack came from Marko's nose, both D-listers Supervillians were completely disoriented for a minute, but that was enough for Spidey to web them up and call it a day.

The people from the book fair gave him a standing ovation, Spidey smiled through the mask and turned to them. "Thank you. Thank you, Ladies and Gents." He waved at them and then cleared his throat, speaking in an expository voice. "And now, I'll be reading a narrative titled— No, I don't lay eggs or have eight arms (except that one time– ha, ha, no I'm kidding): Confessions of New York's favorite hero– Oh, shoot, hold on."

A particular book caught his attention. "A two-for-one deal? Oh, man, I'm a sucker for those!" He pulled out two books from the middle shelf. "Neuromancer by William Gibson. Did you know that the Wachowski's 'The Matrix' trilogy was inspired by this book? Crazy right? And– ooh, wait, there's more. I think I've heard of this one– Altered Carbon. I think it's a Netflix series, I mean, I wouldn't know— it's not like I can afford it. But books? That I can. I'll take these, right up."

He reached for his wallet, having given his suit some minor upgrades such as pockets. Can't live without them. The kind man reached out and stopped the hero from taking out his money. "S'on the house, Spidey."

"Hey man, I appreciate that." Spider took the books, but glanced at the bad guys sitting on the floor, wrapped in his web, looking extremely dejected. "Uh, Mr. Independent Bookseller Guy, you don't happen to have any self-help books around here?"

The man raised his index finger as if to say 'one sec' before turning around and searching through the stacks of books laying on the ground. "How long are you going to humiliate us by keeping us here like some trophies?"

"First off," Peter turned to a grumpy Ringer, "you did that all by yourselves when you tried to rob a book fair. Like, who does that, man? That's pretty low."

"Told you coming here wasn't a good idea." Marko grumbled, Spider-Man found himself nodding. "We shoulda robbed the public library. Everything there is free!"

Peter breathed out in resignation, shaking his head as he gripped his the bridge of his nose. "Jesus..." he raised his voice a bit, "That's still pretty low, you know that, right?"

"Then it wouldn't be stealing if it's free, bonehead."

"Here ya go, Spidey." Spider-Man turned to the kind bookseller and gave the books a look. "This one is from Gary John Bishop, Unf*ck Yourself. Its runner-up would be, You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero."

Spider-Man nodded, he tucked his book underneath his armpits, and grabbed the books from the bookseller. "Does the offer apply to these too?"

"Sure."

He paid for them and tuck the books between the bad guy's back. "There you go, fellas."

"What are you doing?" Mountain Marko looked at the masked hero with suspicion.

"Obviously, looking after your mental health. Gotta stay healthy, man."

Ringer blinked in surprise. "Wow."

Spider-Man started to walk backwards while still talking to them. "Don't mention it! Maybe we can book club it or something. Dips on the brownies– I'll bring them, obviously. But only under the condition that you promise me no more robberies or homicidal shenanigans, deal?"

The masked hero didn't wait for an answer, he just loved to chit-chat. He shot a web and got out of there, he could feel people's eyes looking at him with wonder and appreciation, he loved the sensation. Sometimes a bit too much.

"He seems to be in a really good place for someone who lost their girlfriend." Mountain Marko shared with his fellow partner in crime.

Ringer crane his neck to the side, seeing what he was seeing. "Where did you hear that from?"

"Around." Marko grumbled as they watched the spider fly away.

Ringer sighs, already hearing the police sirens. "Yeah, well... good for him."

The twenty-one-year-old navigated himself through the Empire State campus, Peter gripped the strap of his bag pack, brown strands of hair fell against his forehead as he walked with his head down. He made it inside the building and went to the basement level where the labs are, Peter quickly descended the stairs, eyes fixated on the steps beneath him while his head was in the clouds.

"Chin up, Parker."

Peter immediately raised his head, he came across a pair of green eyes and blonde hair, he lost his footing but managed to catch himself right on time. "What— oh, hey, Cindy. Didn't— Hey, I didn't see you there."

Cindy Lawton chuckled, shaking her head. "Oh, please, you being clueless? Oof, that's like so strange." She teased, Peter chuckled and scratched his neck awkwardly. "Come on, boy, straighten those shoulders." She patted his broad shoulders and Peter immediately as told. "You gotta have better posture. Stop walking with your head down– it's not like you're hiding from somebody."

On that note, Cindy fixes his military green jacket, before sighing contently and bidding him farewells. Peter was no stranger to Cindy strange antics, some students dubbed her 'The Monica Geller' for being such a clean freak. Peter didn't really see the issue there, all he cared about was the type of person she was and so far, Cindy had proven to be a humanitarian who loves to organize events. And she was also one of her very few female friends, nothing more and nothing less. And besides, Peter has a feeling that his roommate, Randy, fancies her. So, according to the well established 'Bro Code' it's against the rules to fancy the same person as your bro, and Peter liked to go by the book... that, or he was purposely avoiding the subject of dating.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Peter watched her climb the stairs, Cindy didn't turn to look at him. "Thanks for the– thanks for the advice, uh, Cindy. Good seeing you."

And the conversation died there. Phew.

Peter let out a sigh, patting the metal railing before finally making it to the bottom of the stairs, he quickly spotted the room 9F. Ruffling his hair a bit, the twenty-one-year-old student wrapped his hand around the knob, he twisted the rounded lump, and finally pulled the door open. His eyes immediately fell on the students before his spider-sense went haywire, the brunet tensed and wiped his head to the right. "What the..."

The Lizard AKA Dr. Curt Connors stood in front of the class wearing a lab coat, on the board the title 'Introduction to Organic Molecules: Functional Groups' was written in shaky black letters. Peter's immobility caught the attention of the rest of the students and The Lizard's, his brown eyes darted between the students and the Lizard and for a moment he believed he had gone psychotic. Finally, being Spidey for so long had done a number of him and what he was seeing was just a psychotic break, but then the Lizard turned towards him, his yellowish reptile eyes pierce through him.

"Hello, Peter... Parker."

Peter's heartbeat was spiking, his mouth ran dry, and he found himself being cornered. For once, he gave himself to panic. "Okay, everyone, don't panic!" His voice came out squeaky, the nerves seemed to tighten around his throat, and he longed to become Spider-Man. "Experienced super-villian attack person here! Find your nearest exit! Make yourself big one the way out—"

Snickers erupted inside the small lab, some student stared at him in amusement, and other's seemed to be experiencing second-hand embarrassment. "Hey, do you people hear me! Stop, drop, and roll! That's the Lizard right there— but don't be frightened, there's a high chance he's more scared of you than you are of him!"

The room went completely silent after Peter's uproar.

"Apologiess, class." The Lizard addressed his students, Peter took in deep breaths, looking extremely confused. "This is my former apprentice, back in OssCorp, Peter Parker."

"I'm so out of it, right now." Peter confessed, running a stressful hand down his slightly sweaty face. "What the hell are you doing here? I thought you were locked up somewhere in—" He cut himself off, realizing he was speaking too much. "Whatever. Why are you introducing me? And how come you haven't eaten anyone?"

The Lizard did a guttural sound resembling a chuckle. "Whossse to sssay I haven't?" Everyone turned to him looking alarmed, Connors realized he took it too far. "Apologiess, bad joke on my part. Mr. Parker and I have sssome... passt hissstory."

Peter felt a pang in his heart, he clenched his jaw and slightly shook his head, getting rid of the memories of that night. "History. Is that what the kids are calling it these days?"

Dr. Connor felt his chest compress with guilt, he immediately reverted to his normal self. Peter watched him shrink to his average size, the green skin and scales were substituted by peach skin, the twenty-one-year-old was left astonished. "Maybe— Maybe this will make things easier."

"Please don't tell me you were able to do that all along."

Curt shook his head, he cautiously made his way close to Peter, close enough for him to check out the chip installed on his neck. "Thanks to this surgically embedded adamantium," Peter saw the chip with a tinge of interest, "encased inhibitor chip, I'm unable to cause harm. If I as the Lizard so much as try to harm any living creature, or hiss in the wrong direction, the chip paralyzes me completely until I eventually revert to my human form. It's very reliable and also... a second chance to atone for my mistakes."

Things were going pretty swell for Peter Parker, despite having one of his villains as his Organic Chemistry professor.

Ramsey's death hurt less and less every day and now all he has are the cherished moments they shared, she continues to be his source of strength and motivation whenever he has to be the other guy. J. Jonah Jameson finally gave Peter Parker that job he's been working hard to get for months now, he went from freelance to Science editor of The Daily Bugle. Life finally seems to be on his side for once, Aunt May and Richard Parker put the past behind them for Peter's sake, she was still bitter for the things he did to him, but soon realized he had a valid reason. So everything was water under the bridge now.

"Dude, I'm, like, so tempted to write an article about that." Mary Jane Watson gushed, Peter gave her a look that clearly told her no. "Like the Lizard is out of jail after murdering a police officer and almost turning this entire city into Lizards!"

Peter gripped her hands, trying to get her to lower her voice. "Hey, hey, lower your voice. Lower your voice. MJ, shh!"

"Shh, you!" MJ narrowed her eyes at him, Peter tried not to chuckle at her defensiveness. She looked really adorable when she got mad. "This is serious, Peter. That doctor is a menace to this city."

Peter chortle, leaning back into the booth upon hearing J. Jonah. Jameson's favorite word. "Whoa, menace? Okay, Jameson, okay."

"Quit making jokes about it. This is serious." MJ scolded Peter, the brunet raised his hands in surrender. "He's a murderer and the Empire State University completely disregarded that very important detail and just welcomed him with open arms? Just like that? How is that fair? Bad guys need to be punished and this has to be addressed. Next thing we know, Harry Osborn is out of jail and back as OsCorp's CEO. What purpose is justice serving, then, tiger?"

Peter cracked his neck, feeling a bit tense. "That's not going to happen. Connors has this chip that keeps the beast under control, I saw it with my own eyes. And can we— How about we change subjects? I didn't come here to get you all railed up and throw dirt on Dr. Connors, even though he deserves it. I came here for Mick's french fries."

Peter has known Mary Jane Watson for a good two and half years now, they met at the Daily Bugle. Originally, he met her as Spider-Man when he saved her from getting crushed by a cab, then they met through a mutual friend and were partnered up to cover a local crime story. MJ Watson had always been very headstrong, and most of the photographers were too intimidated by her beauty and outspokenness. Peter wasn't the exception, but he was respectful enough and didn't give her special treatment for being beautiful.

"I'm writing the article."

Peter sighs, lowering the fry and giving her an exhausted look. "MJ, I don't want any trouble."

"Then stop looking for it."

From then and forth, they became excellent friends, and a little mutual crush was developed between the two, but the Parker boy wasn't quite ready for another relationship. After losing Ramsey, he was too scared of loving someone else and forgetting her– or worse, having them suffer her same fate. He still wore the promise ring around his neck. He wore them for luck, protection, and for the constant reminder of her.

"Trust me, it's the other way around, trouble finds me." He munches on his french fries and took a sip at his soft drink. "If you write that article, they'll know it was because of me. Besides, I don't know why you're burdening yourself more. Didn't you land a gig for Cage McKnight's upcoming superhero movie? Given that awesome news, I thought you had quit the Bugle already."

MJ couldn't help, but smile at the blissful reminder. "Yeah. My first big role on the big screen." She had this dreamy look on her face, Peter felt extremely happy for her. "I still can't believe it."

"I can." Peter smiled at her, eyes sparkling.

The redhead stared at him for a moment before glancing down bashfully, brushing a strand of red hair behind her ear. "I've come a long way from musicals to local plays to Hollywood... Sounds like a dream."

"I thought you would be more excited than this." Peter pointed out. "I feel like there's a 'but' coming."

MJ sighs, runs a hand down her wavy hair. "I guess I'm still processing this. Analyzing my pros and cons. Sure, Cage is a well known director, but what if he can't make me a star? I've heard so many promises from directors telling me my talent and beauty will take me far... that all I have to do is trust them, which I have."

"Okay, look, directors are visionaries." Peter stated, he perched over the desk. "And their vision can be pretty faulty at times, but no director can turn you into a star. That effort has to come from you, and do you have what it takes? Hell yeah, i've seen it with my own eyes. You're very talented, MJ. And if this is your dream, then why bother yourself with articles and the Bugle?"

MJ smirks, eyes twinkling with realization. "You really don't want me writing that article, do you?"

"I mean," he chuckles, falling back against the seating booth, "that's part of the reason, yeah. But mostly, I'm just keeping a friend from doubting her potential."

The redhead breathes in deeply and releases a shaky breath, Peter smiles at her and goes back to eating his french fries. "Is that what we are?" Brown orbs meet green eyes, MJ stares at him vulnerably. "Friends?"

"I mean... yeah."

Peter knew what she was asking, and he also knew he still wasn't ready to commit himself to another person. Mary Jane Watson was beautiful, but she painfully reminded him of the person he lost, if he ever dated MJ he feared using her by making her out to be someone she's not. She also doesn't deserve that.

"We're good friends, MJ. I value you a lot." Peter continued, MJ listened. "I really don't want to mess this up, besides I told you about Ram–" He cut himself off, exhaling shakily. "I told you about her. A relationship isn't something I want right now. Besides, if you decide to take Cage's offer, you'll be moving to Hollywood."

MJ shrugs, "Are you saying it's impossible to be in a long distance relationship?"

"No, I'm not saying it's impossible." He corrected. "What I am saying it's that you and I will be in different paths. Our lives would be in different paths. Please, don't take this the wrong way. I appreciate what we have too much to have it ruined by getting into a relationship."

The silence dragged between them, Peter's words hanged tensely above them, but MJ was stronger than that. "Whoa, you're a really heart-killer, tiger." She joked, Peter let out a sight of relief. "It's okay, I get it, and besides you're right. I'll be in Hollywood, and you'll be here. But hey, that doesn't mean we're not keeping in touch, right?"

"Oh, I don't know." Peter feign indifference. "I might have to check in with my assistant, see if I can spare a minute or two in my ever-so tight working schedule."

MJ laughs, leaning over and trying to punch him, only for Peter to gently catch her wrist. "Dork."

"Why can't a man go TV shopping without having to battle some bugs?"

Spider-Man laid on top of a bundle of broken smart TV's, the red and blue hero coughed a few times, trying to get oxygen back into his aching lungs. Another D-lister villain approached him, he wore a cream bodysuit with thick crimson stripes on the side of his body, his masked covered his identity entirely, but that wasn't the most intimidating thing of his suit, no. The most intimidating thing were the silver gauntlets that release electric shocks, and boy, do they sting.

"Well, Shocker, what can I tell you?" Using the element of surprise, Spider-Man quickly shot two webs on the ceiling and pulled himself toward the Shocker, using his knee to strike him square on the jaw. The villain was sent flying, crashing onto a shelf with Music discs, Spider-Man winced at the damage. "Oh, shoot, well, at least I have a good reason to blame for the destruction."

He leaped and squatted down in front of a dizzy shocker. "Man, I never knew shopping could be so aggressive, or maybe that's just your shopping-language?" Spider-Man continued to talk. "I mean, I'm not getting judgy. But I really think you should dial it down, next thing you know, you might end up in jail. I mean, it's a good thing I intervene, right? You didn't actually steal anything... just some property destruction. Equals less jail time. Maybe a little peace disturbing—?"

The Shocker landed a hit on Spider-Man's chest, releasing an electric shock that sent him across the store, knocking even more TVs in the process. "Maybe I will kill you, spider!"

"Oh," Peter wheezed, coughing a few times as he slowly turned on his back. The Shocker approached him, peering down on him. "That would be... considered first-degree... murder. Equals more... jail time."

"Murder sounds less like a bad idea every time you open your mouth." The Shocker raised his gauntlet, ready to finish him. "Since you're always talking, talking, talking"

A flirtatious giggled caught both of the men attention. "I know, right?"

"Huh?"

"Oh, boy..." Spider-Man mumbled under his breath as he stared at the enchanting Black Cat.

The Black Cat innocently swayed her hips as she made her way closer to the Shocker and Spider-Man, her eyes mischievously looking around the shop until she spotted her weapon. "Mega nervous nerd-boy chatter. It's kind of his thing."

"I give a flying jack what his thing is." The Shocker spatted, returning his gaze to Spider-Man. "I only care to see my fist shoved—."

The Shocker was hit by an unexpected force, Black Cat had grabbed a flat TV and knocked him out cold with it, breaking the device in half. She sighs, dropping half of the TV, she dusted her hands off and turned to Spider-Man. "What? I dislike judgy people. And how desperate must this specimen be to rob retail electronics? Ew."

Spider-Man groaned as he got in all fours and checked the Shocker's pulse. "Out cold. Nice. Though, I wish you had hit him with something less expensive."

"How could I possibly?" Black Cat sassed, brushing her silver hair over her shoulder as she made her way out of the store, purposely swaying her hips. "Isn't'less expensive' the name of this store?"

Spider-Man awkwardly waved at the salespeople that came out of the storage room, their eyes were completely hopeless as they took in the damage. New York's hero followed the cat's trail, still estranged that Felicia Hardy bothered to saved him, he always thought she viewed him as just a one-night stand buddy. Guess he was wrong. He made it to an alley, his eyes caught a glimpse of her silver hair as she emerged from the shadows of the alley. The moonlight cast a glow on her hair, her icy blue eyes glistened under the raven sky.

"Felicia—"

She tsk, shaking her head as she made her way toward him slowly. "Shh, I talk, you listen." She halted right in front of him, her fingers trailed the curves of his arms slowly as she began to talk. "The chemistry between us... feels great. You're the most interesting thing that has happened to me in a long while. I don't want that to be over yet. And I don't still just to get stuff. I steal because it's exciting."

Peter gulped, feeling his heart thudding as her claws cupped his masked face. "You're exciting too." She purrs, Peter unconsciously licked his dry lips. "And if my thieving is causing you trouble, taking away your sleep at night, then... then I guess I won't... steal anymore. Let's do it your way. Teach me how to be a hero."

Felicia Hardy awaited his answer, but Peter was speechless, an effect only the platinum blonde had on him. "Okay, now you're supposed to say something. This is getting embarrassing. And I can never tell what your face is doing underneath that mask."

Peter brought his hand up, he lifted the end of his mask, showing his soft smile. "It's smiling."

After that conversation, Black Cat vanished into the night, and Spider-Man watched her. They had agreed to meet at her place tomorrow night, so they could begin their villain-turned-hero lessons. Just as Spider-Man was about to call it a night, his spidey-sense skyrocket. He looked around, but he was alone, there was no danger on sight.

And then:

"Peter? Hey, Peter?" A guys voice called for him, Peter frowned, no knowing there it was coming from. "Hey, over here!"

"Peter? Peter?" A girl was calling him now.

Slowly, Peter turned and froze, there was a magical portal throwing sparks right in the middle of the dark alleyway. On the other side of the portal were two teenagers, a tall cinnamon skin girl, and a short beefy guy with straight raven hair, they were beckoning him. Peter pointed a finger at him and both kids nodded eagerly, not knowing what else to do, Peter found himself walking towards them and stepping through the portal.

His first thoughts were: this is friggin' awesome, how the hell did this happen, is this real or did Black Cat drugged him, oh my god is he in another dimension?

"Uh..." The beefy guy gestured at Peter's body. "Is it me or is Peter different?"

The curly girl tilted her head to the side, her eyes were fearful and skeptic. "Peter, is that you?"

They kept calling his name, but he had never met this people in his life, the portal closed behind him, leaving his trapped in an unknown location. "Oi, kiddos, did you find your amigo?"

"I don't think he's our Peter." The guy replied. "I... I think he's mute." He turned his head toward the living room, frowning. "Uh, have you guys seen Teagan? She's supposed to be..."

Peter had tuned out the chattering friend, his feet carried him to the next roomed which happened to be the kitchen, his heart faltered, and he released a shaky breath. His hand curled around his mask and he took it off as he stared at the familiar figure in the kitchen, her hair was black and shoulder-length, her back was turned to him as she prepared herself a sandwich.

"Mute? Oh man, that's a first." She answered, her back still turned to them.

The curly haired girl furrowed her eyebrows as she took in his flush face and teary eyes. "Uh, Ramsey?"

"Mmm?" She turned around, biting her sandwich, only to freeze and drop it. "Pe–Peter?"

A tear escaped his eyes, he felt an overwhelming feeling of happiness and relief wash over him, his eyes subconsciously went to her index finger and his body deflated when he noticed the same ring he had given his Ramsey.

"Oh my god... It's you." He whispered, taking slow and cautious steps toward her until they were only at arms length. Peter reached out for his chain and showed her his ring. "It's really you."

This Ramsey was different, she wore bangs, her bags were prominent, and her physique wasn't build like a runner's. But the ring she wore, that ring was the same, meaning something. She raised her hand and compared both rings, her chin wobbled, tears filled her eyes as she looked up at him, both expressing love and longing through their eyes.

"Hey," She sniffles as tears ran down her round face, "Skater boy."

THE END.