Peter's House.

He sat at his desk, looking through the CT images in his hand, his expression serious. After a while, he put down the CT scan and turned his gaze to the desk in front of him. A transparent glass bottle rested there, with a creature squirming inside.

Peter brought the glass bottle closer, examining the creature within. It was a small insect with a malachite green carapace, crawling slowly. The insect in front of him was a "jewel wasp," which he had found in his backyard. The harmless-looking gem wasp, with its metallic sheen, is often said to be the prototype of the alien parasite.

Though it seemed harmless, Peter knew better. The creature in front of him had a vicious nature, much like the alien parasite it resembled.

Peter opened the glass bottle and dropped a cockroach inside.

"Whoosh!"

The jewel wasp immediately raised its stinger and pierced the cockroach's body. The cockroach, paralyzed, became still. The wasp then stabbed its stinger again, this time directly into the cockroach's brain—a move eerily similar to how an alien might pierce its prey with terrifying mouthparts.

It is said that once the female wasp controls a cockroach, she uses her antennae to guide it back to her nest. The cockroach obediently follows, awaiting its fate. The female wasp will then lay an egg inside the cockroach, and it will patiently wait in the nest for the larvae to hatch and devour it.

Placing the bottle down, Peter looked out into the night sky. *Am I the cockroach, trapped inside a bottle, or the wasp?*

His phone suddenly rang, interrupting his thoughts. The caller ID showed it was Gwen Stacy.

After hesitating, Peter answered. "Hello, Gwen."

"Hey, Peter! Good evening!" Gwen's voice held a hint of concern. "You didn't come to school today. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I wasn't feeling great, so I took the day off," Peter responded with a quick excuse.

"Okay. I wanted to check on you, but I got held up at school. Next time, let me know, and I can ask Miss Fish to write you a leave note. That way, you won't get in trouble tomorrow."

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

"Thanks, Gwen. I'll keep that in mind."

"No, thank *you*! Without you, I might've fallen off that roof. Maybe in some alternate universe, I actually did," Gwen said, her imagination running wild. "After all, I do a lot of crazy things. Not the best habit, I know."

"Anyway, I'm glad you're okay. Get some rest and have a good night."

"You too, Gwen. Good night."

"Bang!"

After hanging up, Gwen tossed her phone onto the bed and collapsed onto it herself. Ever since that night on the rooftop, she couldn't stop thinking about Peter. She remembered him as the shy guy who people joked about—like asking him for a "left-handed wrench," an impossible task.

But the Peter she met on the rooftop that night was different. She couldn't say if it was a good or bad change, but she definitely liked this new Peter better.

"Maybe my dad's right. Deep down, I just want to rebel a little," Gwen muttered to herself, as she turned on her favorite rock music. She was part of the school band, *The Mary Janes*, and rock was her passion.

The lyrics played:

*"Your life is like a phantom, like a forgotten soul...

You and I are here, but you've been gone for so long...

The walking dead, like the walking dead..."*

Listening to the song, Gwen's thoughts drifted. "Lately, I feel like a phantom, wandering aimlessly."

---

The next morning, Peter arrived at school and immediately ran into Gwen.

"Hey, Peter! Good morning!" Gwen greeted him cheerfully.

With her blonde hair and striking features, she was hard to miss. She wore a baseball shirt, open at the front, which gave her a carefree, youthful look.

Before Peter could reply, a bald white man, standing nearby, pointed at Gwen's attire. "Miss Gwen, next time, pay attention to the dress code."

"Thanks for the reminder, Mr. Morton," Gwen replied with a smile. Mr. Morton was the assistant principal, responsible for maintaining discipline.

As he walked away, Gwen leaned in and whispered to Peter, "He always tries to act like John Wayne when enforcing the rules, but it never really works."

"John Wayne?" Peter asked, not following her reference.

"You've never heard of John Wayne, Peter? The classic American cowboy, an icon of Hollywood culture?" Gwen teased, looking at him with surprise.

"I know of a brand of toilet paper called John Wayne. Its slogan is, 'It's rough, it's tough, but it won't take crap from anyone,'" Peter responded with a straight face.

Gwen was momentarily stunned, then burst into uncontrollable laughter. "You're hilarious, Peter!"

Hearing Gwen call him funny was a first for Peter. He wasn't sure if the word "cute" had ever been used to describe him either.

"Thanks for the compliment," Peter said, unsure how to feel. "But I doubt many people would agree with you."

Ignoring the curious stares from other students, Peter turned serious. "By the way, what happened to those thugs who tried to kidnap you?"

Gwen's smile faded. "I'm not sure. My dad said they're members of the Hand, but they've been having some issues recently. Since my dad has been cracking down on them, they want to get back at me."

Her eyes grew determined as she added, "If I ever become a superhero, those guys are going to be my first targets!"