Human Nature »« Peter Parker

ten

⋆ ten ⋆ 

It's about a week later that Madison starts heading back to work again. By this point New Year's Day has come and gone, and even though Peter hasn't started heading back to work yet, it's about time that Maddy does. After all, it's been more than a month, and she never thought she'd say it but she's getting bored of constantly rereading her comics.

But it's all too difficult, and not even the music coming through her earphones seems to help as she sits on the train, the noise building and building till it makes her want to scream.

But she can't. She grits her teeth, knowing she needs to just clamp it down, just contain it. She needs to get through just one day knowing she's under control.

She's been practicing for over a month now. A few weeks by herself, and one week with Peter. It didn't get rid of her fear – if anything, it only elevated it, the woman terrified she'd hurt him – but maybe it was the push she needed to work even harder on controlling it. She'd never have thought before that maybe she could go to work without being frightened that she'd hurt someone.

Come on, Maddy. You can do it. You can get through this.

The ride up the elevator is tense, too, and she can barely get the floor number out to K.A.R.I., feeling her throat go dry. The surprised looks she gets from the people she passes just ends up confirming her suspicions: they all know about the explosion and how she was caught up in it.

It's better than the alternative, of them knowing she's the fire being on the streets of New York on Christmas Eve, but it doesn't make the current situation any better.

Walking through the lab to her desk at the back, near the window, is nerve-racking enough because Maddy ends up passing most of the other people, all of which stare at her in surprise. She just keeps her head down, heading to her computer, pulling up the specs for the chemical mixture she'd made that started this whole mess.

She got powers because of an extraneous variable, and it's not going to be easy, but she'd be damned if she doesn't figure out a way to reverse it and get herself back to normal.

Peter, of course, tried to make light of it all. During their training sessions, he'd mentioned how maybe the powers aren't a bad thing, how she could use it, but she was quick to refute it. All she wanted was to help Spider-Man. She didn't want to become him.

Although, becoming Peter wouldn't be such a bad idea, she realises as she shifts uncomfortably while typing. Peter doesn't have a problem talking to people and making amends – or as much of one as she does, at least. How does she come to this realisation? Maybe it's the constant glances she shoots Danielle nearby, knowing that they didn't exactly part on good terms last time they saw each other, and it was completely Maddy's fault.

Madison's not good at apologising. She never has been. She greatly prefers pretending the problem never happened and trying to move on while mentally repeating the mistake over and over in her head and hating herself for doing it. You know, the usual thing. But she knows that right now, that's not going to work.