"Oh, the Daily Bugle's HR gets up pretty early." As he reached the school gates and the asphalt road cut through by the morning sunlight, Peter Parker pulled out his phone and checked the internship résumé he had sent earlier, along with a rather unexpected rejection notice. "Uh... they said they didn't need me for the position. Maybe I applied too late and they'd already found someone. I was going to use the salary to buy a costume for the themed day before Homecoming."
"Even if you got the position, you wouldn't get paid this month, would you?"
"I was planning to ask for an advance on a month's salary."
Gwen couldn't help rolling her eyes at Peter. Her blonde hair swept out a golden arc in the sunlight. "Asking for an advance on your first day just to buy a superhero cosplay costume? Good thing your résumé didn't pass. Otherwise, when the interviewer asked, 'How does your passion for journalism manifest itself—' you'd have to answer, 'Discounts on Spider-Man merch!'"
"Why Spider-Man?"
"Everyone knows Jameson likes Spider-Man. He rants about him on TV every day."
Peter didn't care about Jameson or Spider-Man. He merely said helplessly, "Then I won't be able to take part in this year's themed day activities."
"You can still join the activities on Homecoming itself. I'm guessing you don't have a dance partner either..."
"Hey! Gwen!" The red-haired girl crashed into Gwen's back like a ball of flame and cheerfully greeted her. Only then did Mary Jane notice Peter. "Hi, Peter. Feels like it's the first time I've seen you and Gwen come to school together?"
"I usually get up early, so... how's the part-time job at the Daily Bugle going? Any news?"
"Pretty well." Mary Jane let go of Gwen. "They gave me an interview opportunity. Maybe I really can become an intern reporter at the Daily Bugle?"
"I'm sure you'll pass the interview. Good luck, Mary Jane."
After Peter smiled and said goodbye, Gwen immediately gave Mary Jane a light elbow jab, leaving her utterly confused. Then, after Gwen whispered something in her ear, Mary Jane finally understood what had happened.
"I didn't mean to. Should I apologize?"
"No need. He was the one who brought it up. Just... be mindful of it."
Peter didn't pay attention to any of that. He headed toward his locker, while the large screen beside him continued to air Midtown High School's own news program as usual.
"Wakanda has recently fallen into political turmoil. Following the death of former King T'Chaka, the Wakandan minority armed faction known as the White Apes launched multiple armed attacks, plunging Wakanda into chaos. Wakanda's new king, T'Challa, stated that the White Apes' attacks had received outside interference and support, and that they had been conducting large-scale illegal Vibranium mining in Wakanda..."
As he listened to the international news, Peter put his backpack into his locker. He only had two suits in total. One had been severely damaged during his earlier battle with Scarecrow and while carrying the bridge, and he hadn't had time to repair it yet. The other was the one he had brought with him.
He had just shut the locker door when he heard Harry's goofy cry.
"Exterminate—"
"I'm not the Doctor, Harry."
Peter turned and saw Harry holding a robot figurine that looked like a pepper shaker with an eggbeater and a toilet plunger stuck on it. Harry began, "What do you think? On the first day of themed week, I'll dress as a Dalek and go around the school shouting 'Exterminate!'"
"Does Doctor Who count as a superhero?"
"What could be more superhero than Doctor Who? He doesn't even use superpowers. He saves the universe with his scientific knowledge and his respect for life, again, again, and again!"
Watching his best friend turn into Doctor Again, Peter hugged his books and asked, "Then why don't you dress as the Doctor?"
"I think you or Amadeus would suit it better. You're both smarter than me."
"You could dress as a wizard."
"If I dressed as a wizard, we'd just be two guys in suits instead of Doctor Who and his alien enemy." As he spoke, Harry took out an old-style Doctor Who sonic screwdriver collectible. "No cosplay cost needed. Just find an old suit someone at home doesn't wear anymore, and you can always put together something fitting. What do you say, Doctor Peter?"
Seeing his friend quietly solve the problem that had kept him from participating in themed week because of his costume, Peter smiled sheepishly.
"Harry, I... thank you."
"Don't thank me. I'm looking forward to seeing you interact with the Dalek while holding the sonic screwdriver. Hey, Amadeus, are you planning to join themed week? You and Peter could dress as different incarnations of the Doctor!"
"I have my own plan."
The moment Amadeus started talking about superhero costumes, he became excited. "I'll wear an oversized lab coat, put on glasses, change my hairstyle, and I'm done!"
Harry felt an indescribable confusion.
"What's that? Rick Grandpa?"
"Bruce Banner, man! The Hulk!"
Neither Peter nor Harry had ever seen Amadeus this excited before. Peter did know that, in the Earth-616 comic universe, Amadeus had been the Hulk for a while. But he hadn't expected him to be so obsessed with the Hulk at this age.
"...So, what about Doctor Who?"
"You guys can do it. That show's too obscure. People will easily think you're nerdy geeks."
Amadeus happily left after saying that. Harry stared at his retreating back for quite a while before complaining, "Does he know he's the biggest nerd out of the three of us?"
"Yeah, just like Bruce Banner before he transforms."
After collecting themselves, Peter and Harry went off to class together. But it seemed like every bit of bad luck had piled up today. They hadn't gone more than a few steps before hearing that familiar, irritating laugh, accompanied by a girl's scream.
Peter looked over and saw a frightened girl crouched there crying. The culprit was none other than Carl King, someone Peter knew well. He laughed loudly as he pocketed the scary prop. When he turned around and saw Peter, he frowned.
"This has nothing to do with you, Parker. Get lost."
"You've sunk so low that you're bullying girls now? I thought you were waiting to test yourself against the big guys at the Homecoming football game."
Carl King smiled at that. He leaned close to Peter and asked provocatively, "What about you, skinny Parker? Dare to play football at Homecoming and have a proper collision with me?"
Clearly, although Carl King had been beaten up by Peter, he didn't think there was anything wrong with Peter. He simply believed he himself wasn't good at fighting. But when it came to football, he was extremely confident.
"No. I don't even know the rules. Goodbye, Carl. Don't let me catch you bullying classmates again."
Though he said goodbye, Peter didn't move at all. It was obvious he was telling Carl to leave. Carl King clicked his tongue in irritation and walked away. As he left, he didn't forget to throw out a threat. "Remember this, Parker. You're the guy who doesn't dare face me on the field!"
Harry looked at Peter's calm expression in surprise. "I thought you wouldn't be able to resist accepting."
"I wanted to, but I really don't know football. How am I supposed to play when I don't even know the rules? Not just football—soccer, basketball, badminton, I don't even know the rules of table tennis. I'm going to check on that girl."
And so Peter left Harry standing there, completely baffled.
"Why 'I don't even know table tennis'? Is everyone supposed to know how to play table tennis?"
While Harry was still wondering what table tennis had to do with anything, Peter had already comforted the girl and left. Only then did Harry react. "Not bad. Hero saves damsel. Aside from the possibility that she might not be interested in you."
"I'm not thinking about that. I just thought I should show some concern. It doesn't hurt, just in case..."
What was there to guard against?
Peter himself didn't know.
Elsewhere, after Carl King had left, he took the thing he had used to scare the girl out of his pocket. It was a spider—more precisely, a preserved spider. Six months ago, at the Osborn Tech Expo shortly before middle school graduation, when the radioactive spider escaped from its display case, Carl King had found it and placed it on the back of Peter Parker's neck.
He had watched with his own eyes as Peter Parker was bitten by the spider and howled in agony. He had even planned to take the spider home and raise it, so he could release it to bite anyone he disliked someday. But after Peter Parker slapped the spider away, someone had inexplicably stepped on it and killed it. He had no choice but to preserve it and bring it out to scare people.
If Carl had known what this spider was, he definitely would not have tossed it so casually onto someone else.
Likewise, if Peter had known more about Spider-Man's enemies in his previous life instead of always focusing on the classic villains who might appear, and had paid more attention to obscure villains, he would have known just how much trouble Carl King could bring him.
Before you continue