Smack!
A bill two full pages long landed on Peter's lap.
Peter glanced down at it.
Hospital bed fee, Hemostat sterilization fee, emergency portal transport fee, cleaning consultation fee for a burned Costume, first aid kit depreciation fee...
The last item had even been circled in red.
[First aid kit: $300.]
Peter looked up.
Yang Ming sat in the swivel chair opposite the bed, his gaze behind his Gold-Rimmed Glasses as calm as if he were reading a routine checkup report.
"Doctor Yang, I didn't break that first aid kit on purpose when I sat on it."
"I know."
"Then why am I being charged for it?"
"Because you broke it by sitting on it." Yang Ming handed him a pen. "Sign. If you're broke, don't go dying out there. I don't offer free corpse retrieval."
Peter held the pen, his expression a little stiff.
Gwen Stacy leaned against the bed, her shoulder still bandaged. She held it in for two seconds, then failed, turning her head with a laugh.
Felicia stood by the door with her arms folded. "Parker, if you can't afford it, I can lend you the money."
Peter immediately shook his head. "No need, I can-"
"Interest accrues daily."
"...I think there's still hope for me."
Yang Ming took a pale blue injection from his Storage Ring, tore open the packaging, and held Peter's uninjured right arm steady.
Peter blinked. "What's that? A sedative?"
The needle went in.
Cold liquid entered his bloodstream.
A second later, the excruciating pain along Peter's ribs, which had made every breath feel like a hacksaw dragging through him, suddenly eased.
He instinctively drew a breath.
It didn't hurt anymore.
At least, not as much.
"Short-Acting Tissue Repair Agent." Yang Ming withdrew the needle and casually tossed the empty