Mr Banks had given everyone the day off. That was great, because I’d woken up at 12 and shat myself only to find out that I’d been saved from unemployment by Divine Intervention. Now I was watching the one clock news, in my Pyjamas, with aloe vera cream on my forearms and a bandage over my scratched bicep, whilst eating dry cornflakes and an apple. Wow, that just sounded depressing. I looked around. At least my apartment was somewhat clean. I probably should’ve been using the extra time to sleep or be out as Spider-Man, but I just felt too tired.
Suddenly my focus shifted to the TV. They were reporting on last night. Footage of the aftermath of last night played whilst a voiceover described the scene.
“Last night there was Anarchy. Hoodlums wrought havoc in the streets of Brooklyn. Eyewitness reports say gunmen chased the Prowler through the streets of Brooklyn, before Spider-Man intervened. During which several cars were damaged by debris and the side of a building blew up. Thankfully no one was killed in the attack, however twelve people did sustain minor injuries, including the two residents of the Brooklyn apartment that experienced the damages”
I tuned out. Typical over dramatization. Well… I guess any cars that got damaged by the bike may have slightly, kind of, been my fault. But if I hadn’t stopped Prowler someone on the streets might’ve gotten hurt. Still I had to be more careful. People were already starting to spread the sentiment that I wasn’t needed anymore because of the MDA and any negative press would just make that worse. The only reason I was even hanging on was because George and the rest of the police department worked with me and weren’t exactly friendly with the MDA. The Bugle wouldn’t risk alienating the entire police force. But they’d still come for me. I sighed. I guess I’d never cared all that much when Jameson had been gunning for Athena, so maybe this was kind of deserved.
I yawned. I was thinking too much about image. That didn’t matter I needed to focus on the prowler. He’d taken something from someone important, that much was for sure. But what? And would he be back in Brooklyn again? Was this related to those robot things? If it was tech it might be. But if it wasn’t… Dammit. There was so much to do. I needed to finish those sensors and mini spy cams. They were a bit of a moral grey zone, but right now I needed all the help I could get.
I turned my attention back to the TV. The feed had switched from to the Bugle’s hosts back in the studio.
“Thank you Clyde. Now we come to you with our next segment, Spider-Man. Friend or Foe? Man or Menace? Hero or Harbinger? Join us in the studio where after a short ad break, we’ll discuss the effect Spider-Man is having on this city. We’ll be joined by the well known professor, Dr Joesph Haliburton and prolific writer, Caroline Waters, both experts on the study of Metahumans and the socioeconomic effects of crimefighting, who seem to have some not so nice things to say about Spider-Man.”
I muted the TV, scowling. Damn Bugle. They had the energy and effort to make me look like the villain, but not the guys responsible for the actual crimes. I looked down at my costume and then glanced out the window. Ironic. I got angry at them for telling me not to do this, when I spent my first bit of free time in a while not doing it. I sighed again, setting down my cereal. I should be out there, saving people. Just because I wasn’t usually out at this time didn’t mean I got to use this as a rest.
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I webbed the kitchen roll over to me and started wiping the aloe vera off my arms. The burns would heal eventually. I reached for the window, and suddenly felt tired. I paused taking a step back. Maybe, just maybe I could take a quick nap. That way if something really bad happened, I’d be more focused. I mean cops didn’t work on four hours sleep.
I stepped back from the window but paused and let out a sigh. I was just trying to find an out. Why though? I wanted to do this, to be Spider-Man, didn’t I? Suddenly my phone buzzed, making me jump. I webbed it from the counter and looked at the Caller ID. It was Grady. I answered the phone.
“Hey Grady, what’s up?”
“Hey Pete! Since everyone’s got the day off, I was just calling to ask if you wanted to try the escape room today?” he said. I paused staring at the floor, before looking back out the window.
“Pete?”
“Grady I…” I said trailing off.
“It’s fine if you’re busy. Really. We can do something on the weekend like you said, no worries man” he said, sounding slightly deflated.
“I… thanks for understanding man” I said. I let out a defeated sigh. Why did doing the right thing feel so bad? I caught a glimpse of a photo I’d taken, pinned to a board I’d propped up on my window. It was a picture of Gwen, Ned, Grady, Bella, Harry, Sajani and me, all smiles on the green at ESU. I frowned. When had been the last time I’d had fun with my friends?
“Grady, wait a sec” I mumbled.
“Huh?” Grady
“Sorry man, I don’t know what that was about. I’m coming. Doing the escape room today is a great idea” I said.
“That’s great Pete. I’ll let the others know. See you there at two” he said. He hung up and I slowly pulled my phone away from my ear. I glanced at the time.
I had an hour. That was fine. I could just make up this time on the weekend. Yeah, that sounded good. I webbed my bag to me, stuffing it with random clothes, my wallet, and my phone. Then I turned to the window and leapt out firing a web off into the distance.
-
The escape room had been amazing. It was mine and Bella’s first time, but we’d loved it almost as much as the other two had. Sajani and Grady had always been really good at puzzles like this and it had showed in the escape room. I’m pretty sure them saying they’d only done an escape room once before had been a lie.
After we’d gone bowling. That had been tons of fun, even if I’d had to hold back to not blow everyone out the water. I’d forgotten what it felt like to hang out with my friends again. It was amazing enough to almost get rid of the guilt I felt taking time for myself. It’s how I felt whenever I spent time with Liz, rather than saving people. But at least the fun felt more present, plus I hadn’t hung out with these guys for ages.
“Pete?” Bella said, shaking me out of my thoughts.
“Huh?”
“You not gonna drink?” she said, pointing at my empty glass.
“Nah”
“Come on, we’ve got the day off, and it’s the weekend tomorrow” Grady said, his jubilance enhanced as he took another sip of liquid courage.
“Nah it’s too early” I said coming up with an excuse.
“Grady, you are way too drunk for five pm on a Friday”
“Pete’s right Grady, I think you need to calm down” Sajani said. Grady’s face fell and he set his drink down, before resting his head on the table.
"Help me Bell. Their ganging up on me. They don't want me to have any fun" Grady said, with an exaggerated pout.
“It's ok Grady” Bella said rolling her eyes, whilst stifling a chuckle.
I chuckled slightly as Bella soothed him. I’d forgotten Grady was an emotional drunk. I remember during college, when we’d gone out and Ned and I had had to basically carry Harry and Grady back to dorms. Grady had gotten to the point of tears whilst trying to tell us how much he’d cared about us and valued our friendship. He’d completely forgotten the whole thing by morning.
“This is nice” I said smiling.
“Hmm?” Bella said, glancing at me.
“This. Hanging out with you guys. I forgot how fun it was” I said. The others just stared back at me silent. smiled back softly at me.
“Sorry. That was a bit weird wasn’t it?” I said, nervously chuckling.
“No, it’s fine. I’m sure everyone’s just glad you’re enjoying yourself” Sajani said.
“It’s good. You’re having fun” Bella said.
“I knew you didn’t hate us” Grady said, suddenly cheerful again. My smile faltered slightly.
“Sorry if I made you feel that way. I… we should do this again. Maybe invite Harry and Ned during holidays or something”
“Yeah. We could even do something with the interns. That would stop Grady from getting so drunk” Bella said.
“I’m not that drunk” Grady said straightening up, before knocking his glass onto the table. We all shared a look and burst out laughing.
Damn, I really had missed this.