ETHEREAL [spider-man//peter parker] ✔️

Chapter 10

"Ma'am! Ma'am!"

I continued to walk aimlessly through the turnstile, but found myself not moving.

"Ma'am!"

"Yes sir?" I asked, just noticing the subway worker.

"You have to swipe your card."

I looked around and saw the man, on the verge of guffawing. I realized that I had not swiped my subway card.

"Sorry! I'm just really tired and distracted."

Actually, I was perfectly well rested but felt like I had been hit by a truck. I was probably coming down with the flu or something. I mounted the subway, and started on my way to school.
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As I walked through the doors, my first thought was that I looked horrendous and Peter might mistake me for a rat or something. It is already December and we have not addressed the almost-kiss. He was always rushing off somewhere. But today, after five seconds of stressing, I was just too exhausted to care.

My first class was chem. Then math. The school day just continued on and on. But I was feeling worse and worse. In lunch, I could hardly eat.

"Mia, do you want your brownie?" Ned looked at my food.

"You can have it." I slid it over to him.

"Mia, do you feel okay? You always finish your lunch."

Michelle and Ned stared at me with a concerned expression on their faces. It was just the three of us today, since Peter was absent. Ned said something about a one day trip, which I did not buy.

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine. Just tired."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Mom, I'm not feeling that great."

My mother immediately put her hand to my forehead and started asking me for symptoms.

"I think I just have a cold or something."

My mom looked at me hesitantly.

"Are you sure? I don't want you to mess up your interview tomorrow. You can reschedule."

I leaped out of my chair, and squirmed away from my mother's grasp.

"I'm fine! I can do it. I just want a Tylenol."

"If you say so."

I took all my medications and started my walk to the library, wondering if Peter would show up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After an hour of waiting, I decided to go back home. The walk felt longer than it should've and I decided to cut through the backstreets to get home faster.

I was so exhausted, that I did not notice my captor until his raspy voice spoke.

"Come. You will be perfect for the boss."

I tried to turn around and wriggle out of his grasp, but every movement made spots dance in my vision. Soon, my hands were securely fastened behind my back.

"Help! I'm being kidnapped! Hel...."

The man put his hand on my mouth. I chopped down on his fingers, and bitterness flooded my taste buds. He took a rag out of his pocket and gagged me. My mind raced, trying to come up with a plan, but my thoughts felt blurry, like smeared writing.

We started walking who knows where, when...

Splat!

The criminal was stuck to the wall, covered with a transparent sticky thread.

Spider-Man was here.

He walked up to the man, and punched him. Left, right, left, right. The man slumped forward, unconscious.

Spider-Man turned to me. He freed my hands and started talking to me. But I could not hear him. Was I underwater? Was this a dream?

Spider-Man's suit was damp. There were little droplets of water shining all over him. I started counting them in my mind, until blackness swallowed me whole.

The last thing I remember feeling was steady hands catching me before I could hit the floor.