It was another day of work for Spider-Man. He realized that he had spent a long time attending a very specific area within his purview as a vigilante. Whenever he left the top of the Empire, he ended up, eventually, on top of the Oscorp building. Not because he wanted to work overtime investigating them, but because of one person he had been watching. Old ways never die easy, he was watching Debra Whitman's daily life, when crime wasn't striking, he was just thinking about how to approach the woman, he had a promise to keep but he didn't want to give any idea of much interest on his part. Something happened in that hero's curious vigil, as Debra approached a cafe she frequented every day, two masked assailants approached, and of course the arachnid hero couldn't ignore that.
Leaping to intercept them, he realized that they were both going to crash into Whitman, and tragedy could ensue, as Peter could well remember. No, he couldn't let that happen again, he swung into a big web and grabbed Debra before anything happened. She, out of breath and startled by the hero's sudden abduction, didn't have time to react as all the papers she was holding went flying. They landed on top of a nearby building, and she finally took a breath. "Sorry, girl" the hero's clearly thickened voice said, as he leapt around to catch the papers that had flown away. Debra stared at the situation without reaction.
- Here are your sheets, citizen — The thick voice said again.
- Ah… Thank you, Spider-Man. But what's all that for?
- Burglars, coming your way downstairs. If you'll excuse me, they entered the cafeteria.
- All right... — Debra looked the hero up and down — Hero. Before you go, don't you want a reward?
- What…? — She started to approach him with a smile — No, no. No need to thank me, now stay there until I resolve the situation.
He jumped towards the cafeteria, where he entered with everything, breaking down the door, and without giving the criminals time to react, he removed the pistols from their hands with two quick webs. The two tried to lunge at him with punches, of course, but they were quickly incapacitated by the arachnid, who stuck to the ceiling of the place and managed a blow each to their blind spots. All the rest of the customers began to act normal as he dragged the burglars' unconscious and bound bodies outside, until a waitress caught his attention.
- Hey, Spider! — He turned to her — It's no use for you to save us and we have to pay for a new door.
- Oh, sorry — He approached the door on the floor, which was still in one piece, fitted it to the trusses and dropped webs to secure them — It should work normally now.
- Thanks, huh — The waitress said ironically.
The young intern watched as Spider-Man lunged away once more, and with a smile, turned and started down the building. The man under the mask had a full day, he made his way to the Oscorp building, this time as a civilian, and worked on the nanorobots with the girl he saved. During the day she, of course, couldn't stop talking about what had happened, and even mentioned the claims of the missing Harry Osborn about the hero having been generated within that company. Peter remained quiet, thinking about Morris, the lunch friend was really missed in that routine, and he hadn't heard from the man since he left the day before.
Debra had noticed that Peter was unresponsive to the heated conversational advances and was distracted. She didn't know whether to leave him alone or try to get the co-worker's attention, she thought that, in these situations, she would like to have someone by her side to fill the loneliness she would feel. Since the two were having lunch at the same table, facing each other, she lifted the chair and dragged it beside her friend. Peter noticed only when she finished sitting next to him. The woman's bright eyes met his, tired and distant.
- I know you miss Morris — She whispered quietly — You two are so much alike
- Is it so obvious? — Peter smiled awkwardly.
- Yeah, hahaha. I just wanted to say that I'm here, see. You don't have to close yourself off from everyone.
- Debra, I… — She smiled at him — It's okay. I will remember this.
- I was thinking too, and… Look Peter, I'm not going to lie, you're a really handsome guy. Wouldn't you be available one of these days?
Parker's face lit up like a traffic light. She asked him out first. Does that count as part of the promise he'd made, he wondered, still not knowing how to react. The silence made Debra uncomfortable, and she continued to watch her suitor's face with a smile. Rubbing a hand behind his neck, he responded as politely as he could manage.
- Debra, look, I don't know if I'm ready for something like this right now. Sorry.
- All good — She replied soon after, without smiling, but without a look of defeat either, a restrained expression.
They didn't speak much for the rest of the day, and Peter couldn't shake the feeling that he didn't say the right thing. Anyway, he continued with the research until the end of the day, when he went to the lobby of the building, saying goodbye to Whitman, and asked about Morris. The news had just arrived, when he learned of the accident and the apparent loss of Bench, he thanked him for the information and took slow, heavy steps out of the building. His expression was even more tired and depressed after that, which May noticed, but she didn't discuss it with his nephew, leaving him to his own thoughts this time. Peter couldn't cry anymore, it was as if the tears couldn't come out anymore, as if they had all dried up since the last time he was lying in his bed, quiet.
Voices echoed in her mind, faces. Faces he saw on his wall, all of them smiling back at him… Which he didn't think he deserved, but they were all there. It seems like whatever difference he made as Spider-Man didn't matter in these moments. People kept dying no matter what he kept doing. Maybe that responsibility didn't fall to him, but then what would Uncle Ben say? He looked out his bedroom window as the sun went down, and he didn't feel like going out through it. Maybe today wasn't the day, he thought. "Maybe I need a little more time before the spider really comes back... Or comes back at all." He made a point of attending his friend's ceremonial burial later, Aunt May made a point of accompanying him, and didn't say a word about it the whole time. Apart from Peter, only a few colleagues came to visit, with none of his family. Parker felt very sorry for that, and in his mind, he was there to fill that gap. Maybe one day he can make a friend without losing them.
At the Ravencroft Institute, scientists run hurriedly through the corridors, followed right behind by Fiers, who walked calmly, accompanying the transport of some kind of large metal tube. Osborn watched from the corner of his cell, but he didn't seem satisfied with his ignorance of what was going on. Several cables were connected between and around the silver cylinder, some seemed not to lead back into it, others to the platform where it was being transported, but this was of great interest to everyone there. Gustav saw Harry's expression and approached him.
- Mister Osborn — He saluted.
- What's that, Fiers?
- Your last orders.
- Which one?
- About the hydro project.
- Did you put all the chemicals in there?
- Something like that…
- Like what?
- You'll understand — He gestured for the scientists to bring the cylinder closer — It turns out that our operation was a success.
- What…? — Harry was confused as Fiers pressed a button on the platform, sliding the metal sides to reveal a large tube filled with, apparently, water — What does that mean, it's just water.
- That's where you're wrong.
Fiers signaled, and one of the scientists looked at each other with the others and administered a chemical compound into one of the tubes. Moments later, the water began to grow turbulent, and Morris Bench's agonized face formed amidst the small, violent waves, screaming in agony in a watery tone, as if he were being drowned against his will. Soon, the compound was completely dissolved in the supernatural figure, and the face dissolved into a large container of water again. Osborn watched all this in wonder and looked at Fiers with satisfaction.
- We kept a submarine close by and caught it just before the transformation was complete.
- Morris Bench — Harry slid his right hand across the cell window — Our own Hydro-Man.
- We can't stabilize a way that he can have conscious control of his body, it's like he's sleeping forever, and if we don't wake him up soon...
- You need something to manipulate the molecules.
- Yes.
- Parker's nanorobotic research.
- Are you sure? It's two experimental projects at once.
- All right, it's just a random little man, and if we lose control of him, it's one more problem to divert attention from our... Little operation.
- Yes sir.
The scientists continued to walk with the tube to the laboratory, but a mind buried in the confusion and terror of that cylinder was fighting for its life, trying to stammer words that no one heard, as it was carried to a laboratory, being watched by so many intelligent eyes that it could not even be heard. Hear what he said, repeating one of the last things he had just finished hearing.
- Random… Little Man…
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