The Spider, The Night's Wave, The Tempest, The Archer

05

Peter and Nathan ran toward a deli and nodded at a man sitting at the corner. "Hey, what's up?"

"Hey, guys," the man replied.

Peter and Nathan entered Delmar's Deli-Grocery and headed to the counter. Grace walked in a short while later and grabbed a bag of chips.

"What's up, Mr. Delmar?" Peter asked, seeing his friend. "Hey, Grace."

"Hey, Mr. Parker, Mr. Parker," Mr. Delmar replied. "Number five, right?"

Peter picked up jelly in a plastic bag and put it on the counter. It said 'Best By 03.16.18.'

"Yeah, um, and, uh, with pickles, and can you smush it down real flat?" Peter said. "Thanks."

"You got it, boss," the deli clerk replied.

Nathan's nose scrunched in disgust. "No pickles for me."

Grace frowned. "Why? They're good."

"No they're not."

"How's your aunt/mom and parents?" Mr. Delmar asked.

Grace smiled. "They're good."

"Yeah, she's all right," Peter replied.

Mr. Delmar turned to speak to his staff in Spanish. "La tía, Nathan's Madre, de é les una italiana muy bellissima.

(His aunt, Nathan's mother, is a very hot Italian woman.)

"¿Ah, sí?" the deli clerk said.

(Oh, yeah?)

"¿Cómo está tu hija, eh?" Peter shot back, earning a kick in the shin from Nathan. "Hey!"

(How is your daughter, huh?)

The deli staff hooted behind the counter. Mr. Delmar's grin faded and he stated, "Ten dollars."

"It's five dollars."

"For that comment, ten dollars."

"Hey, come on, I'm joking. I'm joking." Peter pulled out some cash from his wallet and handed it over to Delmar. Delmar took the money with a grumpy look on his face. "Here's five dollars." Peter moved toward a fat cat lying on the counter and petted him. "What's up, Murph? How you doing, buddy?"

When he returned to collect his food, Mr. Delmar struck up a conversation. "So, how's school?"

"Ah, you know, it's boring," Nathan replied. "Got better things to do."

"Stay in school, kids. Stay in school. Otherwise, you're each gonna end up like me."

"This is great."

"Best sandwiches in Queens." He handed Peter and Nathan their sandwiches.

Peter, Nathan and Grace left the store and ran across the street with the bagged sandwiches. They passed under an elevated train track, Peter and Nathan up their palms at a cab that honked at them, and ran into an alley. He took off his shoes and threw them aside. He seemed to be in a hurry. Nathan and Grace moved to another area, where they couldn't see each other.

From his backpack, Peter pulled out a blue and red Spider-Man suit. He knocked over a garbage can as he awkwardly took off his pants, making sure Grace wasn't looking. Peter yanked off his shirt and sweater, then stepped into his suit, wearing only his boxers. Jumping, he pulled the full-body suit up over his legs. Peter fit his arms in the sleeves, then put on the mask, which covered his entire head. The baggy suit hung loosely over his slender frame.

Grace, from a distance away, asked, "Are you boys decent?"

"Yeah," the cousins replied.

Peter webbed his backpack against a dumpster, then hit the spider emblem on his chest. The material shrunk, fitting him snugly.