Miles strode alongside Gwen down the streets of Queens.
The band had played amazing in Miles's opinion and he'd never seen Gwen the same way as when she played the drums. She was so focused- so in her element. By watching her, he could tell just how much she loved playing.
Miles wished he had something he was that passionate about.
This may not have been the kind of music that he'd usually listen to, be he was glad to have been there.
Sure, there had also been other bands that played at the theater, but Miles didn't pay them any attention. He was only focused on one band or one girl in it, particularly.
The boy looked up at the sky. It was beautiful. Instead of blue, like most dimensions, the sky was a pretty pink- the soft color reminding the boy of the cotton candy he would get from carnivals as a kid.
The sun had begun to set, painting the canvas of the the sky with a off, purple hue. It was so strange and foreign to the boy, yet gorgeous.
"You know it surprised me too," Gwen spoke from his left as the made their was along the crosswalk. The boy swerved out of the way of an oncoming passerby, then turned to look at the girl beside him. "How different the sky is," she continued, "It honestly kinda freaked me out the first time I saw a blue one, but now I think I might prefer yours."
"Yeah?" Miles questioned, urging her to continue.
"Everything in your universe is so unique and different," she craned her neck to look at him with a shrug, "I really like it."
Miles felt his face warm. She knew she was talking about his universe and not him, but he still liked to imagine she meant the later.
Miles shook his head, shooing those thoughts away. Ever since he had admitted his feeling for the girl to Peter, it seemed harder to keep them at bay. Usually it was so easy to just ignore them but now... every time she smiled- every time laughed displaying the cute, almost unnoticeable, gap in her teeth, those feelings rose to the surface.
Miles sighed heavily.
"This might be a problem."
"Miles?"
The boy's head snapped over to Gwen.
"You alright, man?" she asked, a pinch of skepticism in her voice.
"Yeah," he trailed off, "Just thinking about, Lincoln."
Miles doesn't think Gwen couldn't have rolled her eyes any harder if she tried. "You're thinking about Em Jay's car?" She questioned in a tone of disbelief. She rose a brow as she awaited his answer.
"Yeah, and I think I figured out what I'm naming my first car," the boy said, a giggly grin placed on his face in preparation for his joke, in hopes of getting a laugh out of his blond friend.
"Oh yeah, this'll be good," Gwen mumbled sarcastically under her breath.
Miles brings both hands up to his face, then spreads them apart like he's displaying a title. He makes his voice lower as he announces the name, "The Miles-Mobile."
He heard Gwen snicker, "You're joking."
"It'll be a black Corvette and when I drive by people will call me, 'Mile-a-Minute-Miles'." He craned his neck down to look at her with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
Gwen shakes her head, but a small smile tugged at her lips, "You're so stupid."
Miles took this moment to stop walking and bow dramatically, "And that is just one of my many amazing qualities."
Gwen placed both hands on his back and shoved him forward, not wanting to gain any unwanted attention since Miles had stopped walking in the middle of a crosswalk. "Alright, let's go, Spider-boy," Gwen muttered under her breath.
"It's Spider-man," the boy whined, but he followed her nonetheless. Gwen only chuckled in response.
The boy looked up toward the now almost completely purple sky, and basked in it's radiance. This universe looked so different- in a good way though. It almost looked like a work of art, carefully slathered with glowing, pastel colors. Maybe he should draw it when he gets home.
The boy turned to the girl beside him. Watching how the the lights from the street lights and the cars beside her lit up her face. The light bounced off her crystal blue eyes, making them sparkle light diamonds. She lifted up her head toward the sky with a soft smile on her face.
Miles had never seen her look so relaxed. He was glad she was comfortable enough around him to let down her guard. When they had first met, two years ago, he could sense her distrust for everyone and everything. She was still hurting from the death of her friend, but Miles was so glad he could help her to let go a bit, even it was just with web-swinging and corny jokes. He was glad to just be there for her.
Her flaxen hair shone under the moonlight. It was longer than it was the first time they met, though Miles thought it looked pretty either way. The freckles on the bridge of her nose reminded him of the stars in the sky, making up many different constellations.
Miles turned his gaze from his blond friend, down to the floor.
He had to stop. Gwen didn't deserve this. She didn't need him always staring at her like a depressed puppy.
"We're here," Gwen announced, softy.
Miles looked up, to see her house. He hadn't even noticed that they had been close to it. "Oh," he started, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."
Gwen stared at him for a moment, her eyes darting all over his face as if searching for something. Miles just watched, curiously.
Finally her eyes locked on his as she spoke, "Are you sure, you're okay?"
Miles froze. He gulped, his Adam's apple bopping. Had she noticed his staring? Was she going to tell him to stop? Did she think he was weird?- Well, more weird than she already did?
"I know that with everything that's happened with Doc Oc and the collider..." her voice trailed off and Miles released a sigh.
To be completely honest, Miles had just tried to block it from his mind, but he guessed that wasn't the right call. It was still happening whether he wanted it to or not and he wasn't sure why. There were so many questions that he didn't have answers for. Why did Doc Oc want him? Maybe for his powers? Maybe she wanted to experiment on him?
Miles rubbed his temples. Thinking about it was giving him a migraine. He sat down of the front step of her house as he let out a heavy breath. Gwen sat down beside him.
"I'm fine," he told Gwen in a gentle voice as he stared down at his hands, "I guess just shaken up, because I don't know what she wants with me... or maybe my powers? I just... I don't know." Miles looked up to her sapphire, blue eyes that were laced with concern.
"I guess I'm just... I'm scared," he admitted bashfully. "What if she catches me off guard or I'm not strong enough to beat her?" he spoke to the sky, not really expecting an answer from her. In fact, it wasn't really her problem. He didn't really know why he was laying this all on her.
"Then I'll be there to stop her."
He turned his head to see the blond, surprised by her words. Her face was solemn as she gazed out in front of her.
"I meant we both know I'm a better fighter than you anyway," she added the last part in a classic Gwen manner with a smirk tugging at her lips. Miles couldn't help, but laugh.
He pulled the girl into a hug and felt her tense instantly. He began to wonder if he had made the wrong call, until she slowly, stiffly wrapped her arms around him in turn.
He had never heard anything so... meaningful from her, directed at him nonetheless. He was so glad she couldn't see the big, dopey smile he had stretched across his face. She'd make fun of him for sure.
He'd thought about it before and kinda danced around the idea, but now he knew that he had to admit to himself that Peter was right. He does have a crush on Gwen Stacy. It was loud and clear.
He peeked down at the girl in his arms to see if her expression changed. He knew it was stupid to worry about her hearing his thoughts, but he still had to check, just to be safe.
He felt her place her hands on his shoulders and push him back slightly. Miles got the hint and released his hold on her. She looked up him with a looked he couldn't quite read, before she took a few steps back. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before crossing her arms over her chest and gazing down at a crack in the sidewalk. Miles tilted his head to the side, like a perplexed puppy.
A deafening silence filled the air. Miles took that as his cue to leave.
"I'll text you tomorrow?"
Gwen nodded her head in agreement, looking up at him through her eyelashes, "Tomorrow."
Miles looked around to make sure the was no one around to see, before punching the numbers '1610' into his dimension hopper. The two watched as a marvelous spiral of light appeared before them. Miles took a couple steps toward it before looking over his shoulder and flashing Gwen a grin, "See you soon, Gwanda."
As expected, the girl rolled her eyes, as she stifled a smile, "That's name's gonna get old fast."
"We'll see about that."
She only shook her head in amusement as she stuffed her hands into her hoodie pocket, "Bye, Miles."
Miles cast her a lazy wave before stepping through the portal. The light shrouded him before it closed. He felt the familiar feeling of his body being dragged through a rift between dimensions as the fabric of them was torn apart a stitched back together within seconds.
It only lasted for a about thirty seconds before he found himself standing outside his house. Miles sucked in a breath.
His parents would be so mad.
Miles bit his lip. His mom must be worried sick. The boy always came home from his school on Friday evenings in time for dinner and now the street lights were coming on.
He reached for the doorknob, the cool metal chilling his skin and paused for a moment.
"Here goes nothing."
The boy slowly pushed open the door and peeked inside. The lights had all been switched off. Maybe his parents were asleep? If he could make it to his room without them seeing him maybe he wouldn't get in trouble.
He crept through the house that had been dimly lit by the light of the moon. The boy managed to make his way through the family room and up the stairs that served as a barrier between that room and the kitchen.
He made his way along the wooden floorboards, stepping precisely in the spots he knew wouldn't creek under his weight.
Once he finally made it to his room, he looked over his shoulder to the entrance to his parents bedroom. The door was left open slightly, but he could see the lights were off as well as here his dad's heavy snoring. His super-senses maximized the sound tenfold, so the boy had to listen to that fright train all night. He had no idea how his mother could ever sleep with all that noise.
He made a mental note to get her earplugs for her birthday.
He slowly turned the pushed open his bedroom door, wincing at the loud sound it made. He slipped inside and shut the door behind him, happy to have made it back to his mess of a room in one piece.
Without so much as another thought the boy collapsed on his bed at in wasn't long before sleep whisked him away.
*******
"Miles! Come down for breakfast!"
The order pulled the boy from his slumber. He pushed himself up from his bed with a groan. He brought a hand up to rub the sleep from his eyes and stood to his feet and lifted his hands above his head to stretch, wincing at the cracking sounds his back made.
With a yawn the boy exited his room and groggily fumbled down the steps, leading to the kitchen.
He was greeting by the sight of his mother cooking and the delicious scent of bacon and eggs. He could almost taste the food on the tip of his tongue. He followed his nose over to the tantalizing smell and planted a quick kiss on his mother's cheek.
"Hola, Mami," he greeted, taking in whiff of the food on the stove.
"Buenos días, mi hijo," she hummed, contently, before nodding in the direction of the kitchen table, "Your food is on the table."
The boy quickly turned on his heels, ready to devour his breakfast. "Gracias," he called out as he bolted to the table sitting across from his father. Miles frowned as the man didn't acknowledge him, only kept his face nose deep in his newspaper.
"Who still reads newspapers?"
Miles was used to his dad acting this way though. It was just who he was. He took a glance down at his plate and grinned, before shoveling the food into his mouth at record speed, bits and pieces missing his mouth and falling back onto the plate.
"Miles, mi amor," his mom laughed and shook her head, her curls bouncing on her head, "Desacelerar. Slow down. It's not going anywhere."
Miles gulped down the food in his mouth before casting the woman a grin. He then returned to eating his food at a slower pace as she pulled out a chair and sat next to her husband on the other side on the table, with two more plates in hand. She kept one for herself and slid the other over to Miles's dad. He nodded to her as a thank you before letting his eyes wander back over to the paper in front of him.
After a few moments of them both eating silently Rio asked her son, "Miles, how was school this week?" Her thick accent was prevalent in her voice and Miles couldn't help but always think there was something beautiful about it.
The boy placed down his fork. "It was alright, I guess," he answered. "I got a 89 on my Spanish test." he continued with a shrug.
Miles couldn't help, but smile at the way his mom's eyes lit up. "That's fantastic, Mijo!" she congratulated him, clasping her hands together in excitement.
"Jeff did you hear?" she asked her husband and Miles instantly felt a feeling of dread wash over him.
Jeff let out a grunt in acknowledgment before letting his eyes peer over the paper at her. "Miles, got and 89 on his Spanish test," she announced happily, though Miles still hung his head low, knowing what was to come. His lifted his head slightly to meet his dad eyes, his heart dropping at the cold look on his face.
Miles is winced as Jeff dropped the paper down on the table with a frustrated groan, nearly knocking over his plate of food in the process. "Are you kidding me, Miles?!" Jeff suddenly exploded, just as Miles had expected, "We sent you to this school so you could do better and you just through it away. You won't even put any effort into it."
"Don't remind me."
Miles was well aware of the fact he had been shipped off to boarding school, like an Amazon package, as soon as the opportunity has arisen.
"I am trying dad," Miles insisted, "I got the fourth highest grade in the class. Plus, an 89 is a descent grade. It's a solid 'B'."
"You speak Spanish fluently!" Jeff boomed, his voice deep and gruff as he shot up from his seat, "You have no excuse."
"I'm sorry," the boy spoke defeatedly, "There was a lot of conjugates a-and-"
"I don't want to hear it," Jeff interrupted, massaging the bridge of his nose, "Just go to your room."
"Jeff, cálmate," Rio soothed, placing a hand on the man's tense bicep, causing him to sit back down in his seat. "He tried his best and that's what matters," she continued, "And that Spanish really is not the same."
"It's okay, Mami," Miles forced a smile in her direction, "I'll just go." The boy stood from his spot, carefully pushing his chair back into place and began the walk to his room, leaving his unfinished plate of food behind.
Rio gently came to his side and placed a hand on his shoulder, "I'm sorry, Mijo. He just had a ruff day yesterday. That's all."
Miles forced a tight lipped smile, but said nothing more.
The truth was this was how his dad acted like on a daily basis. Though he hadn't always been like that. There was a time when he was happy, cheerful, and loving, but that all changed two years ago- when Miles's uncle died. Jeff believe with all of his being that Spider-man killed his brother and nobody could convince him otherwise.
Ever since that day Miles's noticed his dad was... angrier. He was always mad at everything and everyone, except for his wife. It was like his old dad disappeared and there was nothing Miles could do about it. That was the worst part.
Miles was there when his uncle Aaron died. If he had only paid more attention- if he had only reacted sooner- he would still be alive. Although it wasn't in the way his dad meant it, deep down Miles knew. It was his fault that his uncle died. It would forever and always be his fault and that's just the way it was
As he made his way up the steps, Miles caught a bit of his parents conversation.
"He is not trying," Miles's dad growled, "How stupid can he to fail a class on the language he speaks?"
"He is not failing, Jeff and his grade wasn't at all bad." Rio retorted.
Miles close the door to his room in a attempt to stifle the sound, but with his advanced hearing he could still hear the muffled conversation.
The boy felt tears prick his eyes at his father's words, but he didn't dare let them fall. If his dad caught him crying- let's just say it wouldn't be a pretty outcome. Plus, Miles didn't want to let himself cry and he had his reasons.
"Superheroes don't cry."
The boy groaned as he face planted onto his bed. Maybe he could have studied more. Maybe he should try harder in school, but his life was so busy with his busy school schedule and with Spider-man duties. On top of that there was no one he could talk to about it- no one who understood.
"No one except, Gwen."
He pushed the thought from his mind as soon as he had it. He wouldn't push all of his problems on her. She had her own to deal with and that would just be selfish of him.
His head shot up when his phone rang, playing his favorite song, 'Sunflower'. He brought the device up to his face and shuffled around on his bed so he was laying on his back, then accepted the call.
"Yo Ganke, what's good?" Miles spoke into his phone his voice lacking it's usual cheer.
"Umm let's see... Nothing! Nothing is good!" was the answer Miles got. The curly haired boy rolled his eyes at his friend's dramatics.
"What's the problem?" Miles asked, with a brow raised.
"Dude, Rhino broke out of prison... again!" came Ganke's panicked response.
Miles grit his teeth and chucked his pillow across the room, watching as it collided with the wall, inducing a soft thud. The boy ran a hand down his face with a groan. "Where is he?" he mumbled.
"Two blocks from School. He's raiding F.E.A.S.T."
This gained Miles's attention, "He's destroying a homeless shelter? Does this guy have no empathy?"
"What do you think?" Ganke spoke before sighing into the phone, "How many times is this?"
"Eight," Miles huffed out in the same defeated manner as his friend, "He broke out eight times." He shook his head as he stood up to grab his suit and mask, switching Ganke to speaker so he can leave his phone on his bed, "They really need tighter security."
"They do," A pause, then, "Miles, you need to get down there, now. Things are getting ugly."
Miles froze as a thought came to him, "You're not there, right? You're somewhere safe?"
"Yeah, I'm still at Visions. I'm watching this on the news."
Miles released a relieved breath as he slipped his foot into the onesie, "All right, I'll be there in two."
"And Miles?" Ganke spoke.
"Yeah?"
"Be careful, man."
Miles slipped his hands through the sleeves and pulled his mask over his face, feeling the familiar coolness of the fabric against his skin. He smirked in response to his friend, "I'm always careful."
With that he ended the call, lifted up his window, and placed a foot on the sill. He took a quick moment to stop and think.
Should he call Peter and let him deal with this?
He couldn't just sit there and watch. Those people needed him. And he knew Rhino better than anyone. After all he had put him in prison nearly a dozen times. Plus, Miles really wanted to prove that he could do something good- that Miguel was wrong. He wanted to prove that he really was a hero.
Heroes don't sit on the sideline while innocent people are hurt. They don't make someone else fight there battles. They're someone that people can count on to always be there and that's what Miles was going to do.
The young hero thrusted himself out the window with a gallant leap and fired a web-line toward his destination.
His eyes were focused and his nerves were steeled. Miles had to protect these people, because he was Spider-man. He doesn't know why he got these amazing powers, but he was going to put them to some use other than rapidly charging his phone and sneaking out of his room with invisibility. He didn't deserve these powers, but he was going to prove he earned them. He may not be as experienced as Peter, but protecting these people was his job.
If there was anything that the boy had learned from Peter, it was that with great power comes great responsibility.
*******
Yes, my take on Jeff is a little different. In the movie he ended up being okay with Spider-man, but I thought it would be interesting if he kept that anger bottled up or how the death of Aaron would affect Miles's home life if Jeff still believed that Spider-man murdered his brother.
Will Jeff ever learn the truth and forgive Spider-man?
You'll have to find out.
—Ghost