Ultimate Spider-Woman: Change With the Light

Chapter 95: Hail Caesar

"You're sure you don't want to join us, Gwen?" Liz Allan asked Gwen Stacy as they walked along the Empire State University quad.

"I'd love to, I really would," Gwen said, "but I need to rehearse my monologue for Drama class tomorrow."

"That's too bad," Liz said, frowning. "We haven't gotten to do much recently."

"I know," Gwen said, "but I really, really need to keep my GPA up this semester. I wish I knew what to say."

"Well, we'll figure something out," Liz said. "Maybe we could just hang out one evening and watch Hulu or something. Catch you later, sweetie!" Liz continued, turning towards the Donald Blake Medical Library.

Gwen just sighed as she continued walking by herself. She hadn't been lying when she told Liz that she needed to focus on her studies, but that wasn't the only reason she couldn't go out with Liz and some of their other university friends that night. She was also flat broke, having stopped looking for work several months ago to help cope with her stress.

Gwen couldn't ask her friends to pick up her tab when they went out-not only was it embarrassing for her, it was grossly unfair to them. It was bad enough when Gwen's boyfriend Randy Robertson picked up her share of the bill when they went out-and even then Randy had to insist on it before she finally agreed.

Many other college students juggled their schoolwork and their jobs. Gwen did too, but she also had to deal with the complication of fighting crime as the spectacular Spider-Woman. She'd had to miss more than one day of classes this year recovering from injuries she'd suffered fighting costumed supervillains. The pressure of trying to balance her schoolwork, her social life, her career, her income and her efforts as a superhero had caused Gwen no end of grief. At one point, she'd suffered a nervous breakdown when everything seemed to go wrong for her at once.

As a result, Gwen had stopped trying to find acting and modeling work, and she'd also cut back on the amount of time she spent patrolling as Spider-Woman. Unfortunately, that meant she worried about missing out on potential star-making roles. Worse, even when she tried to reduce her time as Spider-Woman, she was constantly forced to suit up to fight supervillain enemies both old and new.

Gwen rubbed her eyes as she approached the building housing her next class.

She knew how much easier things would be if she didn't have to constantly fight crime as Spider-Woman…

…but she also knew that if she didn't, she'd never be able to live with herself.

ULTIMATE SPIDER-WOMAN #95

HAIL CAESAR

Jonathan Caesar smiled to himself as he put his smartphone back in his pocket. Rubbing his thick brown beard, he stood up and looked out the window of his brownstone, quite satisfied with the way things were going.

Known as an entrepreneur, patron of the arts and man about town, Caesar more than lived up to his reputation. He was involved with everything from nightclub ownership to fashion design to bankrolling independent films, and he was equally comfortable chatting with young hipsters as he was talking to business executives. Caesar was well-liked by all of these groups as well, and he took great pride in his relationships with them.

Yes, everything was going quite well for Caesar.

Nodding contentedly, Caesar turned from the window and headed downstairs, determined to be on time for his next meeting.

Some of his business associates were not as patient as he was, and it wasn't a good idea to disappoint them.

Cornelius Van Lunt was tall and stocky, with an elaborately waxed moustache, a bald crown on his head and a thick bushel of hair on his head's sides and back. His suits were impeccably tailored, and his dark eyes constantly darted from side to side, continually assessing and judging everything around him.