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After the Spider Bite

Chapter 1: Second Bitten Part 1

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Original Universes: Marvel Cinematic Universe,

Sony's Marvel Cinematic Universe,

Fox's Marvel Cinematic Universe

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Original Concept by: Stan Lee

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Written By: K.I Hernandez

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Cindy Moon

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"Tomorrow is the school field trip!"

I froze mid-bite and looked up from my sandwich, turning to the source of the over-excited squeal with a decidedly blank stare.

My childhood friend, Peter Parker, looked positively ecstatic with wide excited eyes and an ear-to-ear grin on his face. Judging by how he was looking right at me when he said that, he was trying to rub off some of that excitement on me.

So, I turned back to my sandwich and took another bite, as if he hadn't said anything.

Out of my peripherals, I could see Peter deflate visibly and I winced.

Part of me did feel really bad for raining on his parade so effortlessly and thoroughly.

But the rest of me was still pissed at the fact that he had just broached the subject of tomorrow's field trip; a subject that I was trying to avoid at all costs for two reasons.

One, I had to go on that stupid trip, despite having absolutely no interest in it.

And two, the subject, whenever mentioned, reminds me of this mornings' latest family drama.

And with my advanced eidetic memory, that means I have to relive the entire memory as if I was still in it.

Just one of the many reasons why my picture perfect memory is more trouble than its worth.

"Why are you like this, Cin? Aren't you even a little excited?" Peter asked curiously, albeit put off, obviously trying not to let my disinterest get to him.

I just shrugged at him, still eating.

"Come on, you've got to be at least a little excited." Peter's enthusiasm was overwhelming.

I looked up at my sandwich and gave him a blank stare and raised an eyebrow. I really hope he would take the hint.

He didn't.

Instead, he held up a finger and gestured in a way that asked me to stay with him and hear him out.

"I know you're not as into this stuff as I am." Very true. "And that you prefer gymnastics, ice skating and soccer." Also true.

"If you know that much why are we still having this conversation" I muttered under my breath.

"But just think about all the exhibits we'd get to see!" Peter practically squealed. "Maybe they have one on-"

Aaaaand, that's my cue to start tuning out the conversation because I knew from personal experience that the next words that would come out of his mouth would involve a lot sciencey techno-lingo that would completely go over my head.

Normally this would be a good thing, for obvious reasons, but with the field trip still in the forefront of my mind, I couldn't help but think about this morning's family drama, something I've been trying to avoid doing, since I left the apartment.

"I hate you!"

I winced as those three words echoed in my mind and the subsequent image of my mother's face that followed it.

The thing about having the ability to retain everything you see is that you remember everything.

And forget nothing.

Even the most painful memories; the ones that we all try so hard to erase from our minds. I can't do that. Not even if I wanted to.

No matter how much time passed, I can recall any memory I have as if it had just happened to me a second ago. A memory could be decades old and it wouldn't matter at all; it would still be crystal clear. I won't forget about anything that's happened to me.

So, those three harsh words, the fact that I said it to my own mother, and the shocked and hurt look on her face is seared into my mind, until the day I died and I will relive the entire experience every time I think about it.

Damn my advanced eidetic memory.

I really should think about something else, anything else. But that was easier said than done, since each flashback of this morning's fight triggered even more flashbacks until every scintilla of my mind was preoccupied with reliving the latest drama in the moon family.

As if I needed that right now.

Still, I shouldn't feel too bad about, right? I mean, girls my age get into fights with their parents all the time and wasn't teenage angst about your parents actually normal for teenagers? Wasn't it like one of the most defining traits of that phase in one's life? Isn't it practically a requirement?

Also, I was hardly the first teenager to have said those three hurtful words to their mother, some even say it to both their parents on a regular basis, and compared to them I was a freaking saint.

Plus, I was hardly in the wrong.

Okay, sure maybe I shouldn't have lost my temper and snapped at my mother like that, but she was the one who kept pushing me to do things I had no interest in doing.

But all things considered, I've been rather generous and patient about the whole thing wasn't I? I humoured them and their suggestions, didn't I?

I didn't even want to go to Midtown High but I'm a student here and am attending classes aren't I?

I didn't want to join the academic decathlon team, but I won the nationals for them last year, didn't I?

I did all that for them and humoured all the requests and suggestions they made since they found out about my eidetic memory, practically bending over backwards for them, but when it's my turn to want to do something, they couldn't even bring themselves to return the favour!

How was that fair?!

"Cindy?"

"What?!"

The sight of Peter's hurt face made me wince. I didn't mean to sound so harsh. This morning's memory just got me riled up.

I took a deep breath and sighed, running a hand down my face. "I'm sorry, Pete. I didn't mean to snap at you."

Hurt gave way to concern and worry as he stared at me. "Are you okay, Cin? Did something happen?"

I shook my head at him and focused back on my sandwich.

I could practically feel his stare boring into the side of my head and I tried my best to ignore it.

I couldn't.

I let out another sigh as I turned to look at him. Sure enough, he was giving a very sceptical look.

No point in lying, then.

"Look, Pete, I really don't want to talk about it, okay?" I said tiredly as I rubbed my forehead.

His brows promptly furrowed in confusion for a few seconds, before they suddenly shot up in what I assume is realisation. I just hope he won't blurt it out loud because the last thing I ne-

"You have a co-ed game tomorrow!"

Damn it.

I sighed again and looked at him tiredly. "Yes, Pete. I do have a co-ed game tomorrow; one that I won't be able to go to because mother dearest all but forced me to go on the field trip. Thank you for reminding me." I said sarcastically.

"Sorry."

"It's fine, Pete. Can we just not talk about it anymore?"

"Yeah, sure, I can do that." Peter nodded with a sympathetic smile on his face, one that I returned tiredly.

"Thanks, Pete."

I knew how much this field trip meant to him and I knew that it's all he wants to talk about right now. It meant a lot to me that he would keep a lid on his excitement for my sake.

Besides, maybe I was blowing this out f proportion. Maybe, the field trip won't be as bad as I think it is.

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I was right.

This field trip isn't as bad as I thought it was.

It's so much worse.

"Now, everyone, let's move on to our next exhibit, the proper handling of nuclear waste through the use of-"

I stifled a yawn with my hand as the tour guide kept drawling on and on about the robot show behind him, gesturing grandly and a wide smile on his face.

I inwardly rolled my eyes at the spectacle. He was really laying it on thick for the rest of the class, who were looking at the generic-looking, lab coat-wearing brunette, like a bunch of fish out of water, with mouths gaping.

I spared the robotics show a glance and admitted that it did look pretty cool.

To anyone who wasn't me, that is.

Honestly, I have been trying to fight off the sheer boredom that was threatening to knock me unconscious since the tour began and the darn thing has barely started.

I let out a frustrated sigh and shook my head in an attempt to get rid of the drowsiness.

"Why did I agree to this again?" I asked to no one in particular.

The answer was obvious, I didn't.

More specifically, I had no desire to go on the school field trip to General Techtronics and the only reason I was even here is because mother dearest had all but forced me to go.

"Stupid eidetic memory" I muttered under my breath before scanning my gaze across the laboratory in an attempt to pass the time or find something, anything that could cure my incessant boredom.

No dice. Glass panels, lab coats, and metal as far as the eye could see. It's like I stepped into one of those germicidal soap commercials.

Resigned to my fate, I turned back to the tour guide, who still wasn't finished with his over-the-top presentation, and the rest of my class, who were still gaping like fish out of water.

If I had to suffer through boredom, then the least I could do is suffer beside my childhood friend, Peter.

My brows suddenly furrowed in confusion as I scanned the group of students in search of my best friend. Where was he?

I frowned as I looked at the class again. Did I just miss him.

Nothing. Peter wasn't there.

"Did he get bored and leave for the bathroom?" I muttered before shaking my head at the thought.

This was Peter Parker, he had been excited about this trip, since it was first announced and nothing short of an alien attack over New York would be enough to make him miss this exhibition, much less a full bladder. He would let it burst like a dam first, before choosing to miss a second of this trip.

I spotted Peter's other friend, Ned Leeds, in the crowd and made my way over to him.

I grabbed him by the shoulder and half-turned him to face me.

"Ned." I hissed.

He looked surprised. I couldn't really blame him, we barely say two words to each other, despite having the same best friend. "Cindy?"

"Have you seen Peter?" At that, he looked around the class with worried eyes. "I swear he was here a second ago."

"Did he tell you that he was going somewhere or something?" I prompted.

He shook his head.

I chewed my lip at that, did he get lost? That's unlikely, Peter was smart enough not to wander around in a place like this, despite how eager he could be about anything science-related. Also, if he did, he would've his way back to the class by now.

Ned was still looking around for our wayward best friend when I saw it from my peripheral vision.

Flash Thompson was smirking and staring right at us.

I turned to him sharply and he quickly looked back at the tour guide, though he couldn't quite get the smug smile off his face.

What I wouldn't give to punch that smug little smile right off his face with a handful of teeth to go along with it.

I felt kind of stupid for taking this long to figure out why Peter went AWOL because of course that little shit would pull a stunt like this during the field trip Peter had been so excited about.

Of freaking course, he would, because why wouldn't he? After all, Peter has been looking forward to this trip for over two months now, what better way to mess with him than to make him miss out most of it.

I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists as I kept staring at that smug little grin that was barely hidden by his lips.

I should punch that grin right off his face. Just walk right over there and slug him across the face for pulling this kind of stunt. Maybe that'll get the guy to leave my best friend alone.

Or maybe he'll just make his bullying even worse, complain about the incident to the principal, and get me suspended or worse. Leaving Peter all alone to deal with his incessant bullying.

With a drawn out sigh, I let the tension slowly leave my body, uncurling my fists at my side and letting my jaw go lax. Punching Flash Thompson across the face isn't the best action right now; no matter how good it would feel.

First things first, I needed to find Peter and something tells me that Flash isn't just going to tell me where he is, which means that I have to go look for him the old fashioned way.

Fantastic.

I let out a resigned sigh, before turning to Ned, who looked very worried for our friend. "Hey, Ned" He turned to me, still looking worried about our friend. "I'm gonna go look for Peter, okay? Try to cover for us."

Ned nodded at me. "Yeah, sure I can do that. No problem."

For some reason, I doubted that, but I nodded nonetheless and slipped away from the class discretely. Not all that hard, since they were still gawking and gaping.

I slipped out of the exhibition room completely unnoticed and ended up in the long hallway we went through about a minute ago.

I couldn't help but frown at the sheer number of doors on both sides of it. It would take me hours to search through them all and I didn't have hours. It's only a matter of time before the tour guide notices we're missing.

"Then again, maybe not. After all, he had no clue that Peter was missing." I muttered under my breath as I scanned the doors on either side of the hallway. They all looked exactly alike, same color, same metallic finish; the only way to tell them apart was the nameplates on them.

Chances are Flash tossed Peter into one of these rooms, but it can't be just any room if his goal was to hide Peter until the end of the tour, there were a lot of workers here after all. So, a room that was rarely opened like a janitor's closet or something like that.

I moved further down the hall and scanned the various nameplates, before I stopped in front of the room I was looking for near the end of the hall.

"Utilities" the nameplate read.

Well, that was as close to a janitor's closet as I can get in this place.

I raised my hand and knocked on the metal door three times, before calling out. "Pete? Are you in there?"

CLANG. CLANG. CLANG. BRIIIINNNG. THUD. "OW!" CLANG. BANG. THUMP. WHOMP. "OWWW!"

I rolled my eyes and shook my head in exasperation. "Yup, he's definitely in there." I muttered as I grabbed the doorknob and, without preamble, pulled the door open.

My childhood friend unceremoniously fell out of the closet and out on the floor with a startled yelp, before he was promptly buried by several metal buckets, mops, brooms, and bottles that came falling out with him.

Ah, this must be the infamous Parker luck he kept muttering about. How every time something good happened to him, something even worse will immediately follow. Now, I get why he hated it so much. Then again, it could just be his two left feet working against him.

I raised an eyebrow at my dishevelled friend as he sat up and started tossing the various supplies back into the room he fell out of.

"Flash?" I asked needlessly.

He nodded in agreement. "Flash."

I swear, one day that pathetic excuse for a decathlete will get what's coming to him. Maybe I can accidentally kick a soccer ball right in his face during gym.

Seeing the resigned and dejected expression on his face as he tossed supplies into the room, I knew that he was mostly sad about missing the field trip. I couldn't help but speak up.

"You don't have to worry, Pete. You didn't really miss all that much; just an overenthusiastic and overly-exaggerated presentation on the -wonders and importance of the fabulous disposal of nuclear wastage here at General Techtronics!" I tried my best to mimic the tour guide's voice and gestures as I quoted him, hoping it'll make Peter a little less down.

He snorted before chuckling under his breath and I beamed. It worked!

"You're just exaggerating, there's no way he would say it like that." Peter said disbelievingly while still chuckling.

I giggled a little before gesturing to the door to the exhibit. "Then by all means, Mr. Parker. See for yourself."

Peter smiled at me. "Don't mind if I do, Miss Moon."

I rolled my eyes amusedly, before offering a hand to pull him up. He reached out to take it, but he suddenly jerked his hand away and cradled it to his chest. "OW!"

His face was contorted in pain. I was instantly worried. I reached out a hand to try and help. "Peter's what's wrong? What hap-"

A sharp pain lanced through my ankle sharply. "OW! What the heck?!"

My hands flew to my right ankle, trying to find what's wrong with it. All I found was a large red bump on the skin, like a bug bite.

I frowned as my eyes caught sight of something small next to my foot.

It was a spider and judging by the fact that it was curled up, it was also very much dead. Clearly, it was also the culprit for my mystery bug bite.

My eyes turned to Peter, who was still cradling his hand and reached out a hand. "Here, let me see."

After a bit of coaxing, he finally let me see his injured hand, albeit reluctantly. Sure enough, there was the same spider bite on the skin between his thumb and index finger.

"Stupid arachnids." I muttered as I let go of his hand.

He looked confused. "What?"

I gestured to the dead spider at my feet. His eyes lit up in curiosity as he leaned in to get a better look. I watched his brows furrow in confusion as he kept staring at the spider.

"Is it venomous?" I asked sounding worried. I knew I should've worn long pants instead of the short-sleeved cream shirt, black skirt, and doll shoes I had on.

He shook his head. "I don't know."

I turned to him sharply at that, my brows shooting up to my hairline. "You don't know?" I asked, sounding a little shrill.

His eyes looked sheepish behind his black framed glasses. "It's not really a species I've seen before, Cin. I haven't even heard of a bright blue and red species of spider before"

I took a deep breath, before letting it out slowly as I ran my fingers through my long, straight raven black hair. "So, we've apparently been bitten by an unknown species of spider that may or may not be venomous? That's what you're telling me?"

Looking sheepish, Peter nodded at me. Just when I thought this day couldn't get any worse. Well, at least it wasn't boring anymore.

"I'm sorry." Peter said despondently and I turned to him with a raised eyebrow. "if you hadn't come looking for me, then-"

"Then you probably wouldn't have been found until the end of the day and if the spider was venomous then you wouldn't have gotten help in time." I continued pointedly with a hard stare.

He closed his mouth shut, but still looked guilty.

He was blaming himself because, of course, he would. This is Peter Parker we're talking about here. He does this kind of thing all the time, even when it couldn't have been possibly his fault. Well, I wasn't having any of it.

"Pete, stop. This isn't your fault, okay. Besides, it's already done, so there really isn't a point to pointing fingers." I said as calmly as I could and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Let's just get back to the exhibit, I know you've been looking forward to this trip for well over a month and I don't want you to miss out more of it."

Peter was taken aback. "But-"

"No buts, now get yours off the floor and stand up" I said with finality as I rose to my feet and offered him a hand.

He still looked guilty, unsure, and reluctant.

My patience was wearing thin, so I gave him a pointedly droll look and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm waiting."

He flinched a bit and took my hand before I pulled him up to his feet.

As we walked back to the exhibit room, half of my mind kept worrying about the spider bite and whether or not it was venomous, but the other half was too busy being relieved that I finally found my childhood friend.

Maybe this whole field trip wouldn't be so bad now that I had my best friend to rant to.

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I was wrong.

The rest of the trip had taken a turn for the worst.

It's been roughly a few hours since I freed Peter from the utilities closet and ever since then I've been getting sporadic dizzy spells, each one lasting longer and getting more severe than the last. At first, it was just a momentary loss of balance for a second or two, but now it was like the whole room was a gyroscope and would toss and turn every which way.

There was also the persistent cold sweat, the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that made me want to empty my insides out on the flooring, and the painful throbbing in my forearms and the base of my skull.

It had gotten to the point that by the time the field trip was over and we were finally at school. I was practically dead on my feet and judging by the way Peter looked, I wasn't the only one.

"You feeling okay? You don't look so good." I asked concernedly, eying Peter's pale and pasty face.

"Yeah yeah yeah, I'm okay, Cin." Peter said distractedly as he adjusted his black glasses.

I rolled my eyes. "That's not suspicious at all, Pete. I'm sure May won't know something's wrong." I said sarcastically.

He turned to me with an annoyed glare but his eyes suddenly widened and his jaw dropped in disbelief.

I knew I looked just as bad, if not worse than he did, but I didn't like having my best friend look at me like I was an extra from the walking dead.

Hoping to lighten the mood, I chuckled at him. "Geez, I know I look good, Pete, but you don't have to stare." I said playfully and batted my eyelashes at him. "But if you must, feel free to do so."

His mouth clamped shut with a snap and blood rushed to his pale face, coloring it red.

I just giggled at him and shook my head exasperatedly.

Bad move.

The world suddenly gave a violent lurch and my laugh hitched in my throat as the world suddenly started spinning every which way. My ears were ringing in my ear and my vision kept splitting into doubles.

I was losing balance. I felt myself careen to the right.

My whole body ached and throbbed painfully. I couldn't catch myself. I was gonna fall.

This was going to hurt.

I felt something wrap around my waist, catching my fall. What was that? What stopped me? They felt like arms, who's arms were they?

The world gave another violent lurch. I felt like throwing up. I could practically taste the bile at the back of my throat.

Something blocks my vision. Couldn't tell what it was. Too blurry, like a camera out of focus. And the room was still spinning like a gyroscope.

Whatever it was though, it looked really familiar. Really familiar.

It was moving, too.

And there's two of them.

I wonder what these blurry, fuzzy, moving things were.

Whatever they were I wish they would stop shaking me. I was dizzy enough as it is.

"Cin?!"

They sounded familiar, too, but it sounded really far away. Maybe. Couldn't tell. Ears were still ringing.

"CIN?!"

Oh, that was Peter's voice. I was talking to him before I got another dizzy spell, I remember now. He sounds worried and more than a little panicked. I should do something to reassure him.

"Pete?" Christ, I sounded as bad as I felt. How was I supposed to reassure him when I sounded like I'm talking through gravel?

I think he sighed in relief, not entirely sure, ears were still ringing, my head feels like someone's tap dancing on it, and now black spots are starting to appear in my already out of focus and double-seeing vision.

That's not good.

"I knew I should've stayed at home." I managed to mutter.

The world went black.

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