The Tangled Web | Peter Parker

Chapter 22

Eddie and I walked back to our desk with our heads hung low. There were more questions than answers swimming through my head as I slumped into my chair and swung from side to side while staring at the ceiling. Eddie was leaning over the desk, with his head buried under his crossed arms, mumbling to himself.

"I just don't get it," I exhaled, shaking my head as I stared at a water spot forming on the ceiling. "Why would the city lie about what happened last night? It just doesn't make sense."

"They're probably trying to keep it all under wraps," Eddie grumbled, lifting his head to look at me. "Something along the lines of not wanting to cause widespread fear. Could you imagine the panic something like this would cause?" Did he already forget what we just witnessed?

"Yeah, I can," I sneered, squinting my eyes, "because I was there, panicking when it was happening."

"You were panicking?" Eddie chuckled, raising his eyebrows. "You could have fooled me. You seemed like you had your shit together," he said, shaking his head.

"Well, I didn't," I mumbled, reaching for my phone. "Maybe I'm just better at masking my feelings than you are." Uh-oh. Three missed calls from Peter?

"I don't know, Em," Eddie exhaled as he leaned back in his seat. "You seemed pretty calm and collected yesterday. You were so focused on the story. It's like you didn't even care about how dangerous it was, you just kept pushing through," he explained, staring at me with wide eyes.

"Maybe it looked that way," I sighed, staring at the floor. "I was really freaking out though. I was so relieved when we left the bridge."

"Now I definitely don't believe that," Eddie laughed, shaking his head. "I practically had to drag you onto the back of my bike just to get you home and away from the scene. You're either a really analytical person or really fucked up."

I closed my eyes as I considered his words. I guess I was able to push my feelings to the side and focus on the story last night. I was more concerned about capturing the details rather than recognizing my own response to the crisis. It wasn't until after I was home and alone that I broke down.

Thinking about the giant lizard on the bridge and all of the panic from last night was causing my heartbeat to increase. My thoughts were racing and I could feel my breathing hitch. The wave of despair and hysteria was tugging at my legs, threatening to pull me under again. Just breathe, Emerson. You can't do this now. Not here.

The vibrations of my phone ringing shook me from my internal spiral. My eyes instinctually snapped to the screen, growing wider when they saw Peter's name flash across the top. I quickly hit answer and brought the phone to my ear.

"Peter," I sighed, lifting my hand to my face. "Hey."

"Thank god you answered," he breathed, sounding winded. "Where are you?"

"I'm at The Bugle," I said, sitting up straight in the chair. "Where are you? Is everything okay?"

"Um, yeah," he exhaled, sounding distracted. I could faintly hear the sounds of horns honking in the background. "I mean, no. Not really. Not at all, no."

"What's wrong?" I questioned, pulling my eyebrows together as I held out a finger to Eddie, trying to quiet his concerned whispers so I could hear Peter. "Where are you? What happened?"

"I just left Oscorp. Em- I, I think Connors is," he stated, lowering his voice. "He- I, I think he was that thing on the bridge last night."

"What?" I exclaimed, shaking my head. "Peter, who are you talking about?"

"Dr. Connors, he's a biochemist at Oscorp. He's Gwen's mentor," Peter explained, sounding frantic. "And he, he just told me that- oh my god. He is. Em, Connors is the lizard."