Spider-Man: At breaking point

Chapter One: The Weight of Loss

Peter Parker stood on the rooftop of a skyscraper, his mask pulled halfway up, the cold New York wind biting at his exposed face. The city below buzzed with life, a cacophony of car horns, distant sirens, and the hum of countless conversations. But up here, away from it all, Peter was alone—just the way he needed it to be.

He was twenty-eight now. Twenty-eight years of life that had seen more than most people ever would. Twenty-eight years of laughter, pain, love, and loss. Especially loss.

Peter’s thoughts drifted back to the beginning, to the moment that had set him on this path. Uncle Ben’s face came into focus, the warmth of his smile still vivid in Peter’s mind. He had been just a kid then, barely fifteen, full of potential and dreams. And then, in one night, it all changed.

That night, Peter had made a choice—a selfish, petty choice that he would never forgive himself for. He could have stopped the man who later killed his uncle, but he didn’t. The weight of that decision had been with him ever since, pressing down on his chest, reminding him daily of the price of his inaction. Ben’s death was his fault, and no matter how many criminals he put away, no matter how many lives he saved, it would never bring his uncle back.

Peter had become Spider-Man to atone for that mistake, to make sure that no one else would have to suffer because of his failure. But the burden of responsibility had grown heavier with each passing year.

And then there was Gwen Stacy. She had been the light in his life, the one person who had made him feel like Peter Parker mattered just as much as Spider-Man. They had shared dreams of a future together, a life beyond the web-slinging and crime-fighting. But that dream had been shattered one fateful night, when the Green Goblin had used Gwen to strike at him, knowing how much she meant to Peter.

Peter had done everything he could to save her, but it hadn’t been enough. He could still feel the sickening jolt in his gut when he realized that the snap he heard wasn’t the webline catching her, but the sound of her neck breaking. He had held her lifeless body in his arms, and in that moment, a part of him had died with her. The guilt, the agony of knowing that his life had brought hers to an end, was something that haunted him every day.

Gwen’s death had nearly broken him, but he had pushed on, telling himself that it was what she would have wanted. That he had to keep fighting, keep being Spider-Man, because the city needed him. But even that resolve had its limits.

Aunt May had been his rock, the only family he had left after Uncle Ben. She had always been there for him, offering wisdom and comfort whenever the weight of the world became too much. But even she couldn’t live forever. Cancer had taken her slowly, painfully. Peter had watched helplessly as the disease ate away at her, powerless to save the one person who had always believed in him, who had always been his anchor.

Her death had been the final straw. Without her, Peter had felt truly alone in the world. The last tie to his old life, the life before Spider-Man, had been severed. Now, it was just him and the mask.

Twenty-eight years old, and Peter Parker was a man defined by his losses. Each one had left a scar, a wound that never fully healed. And yet, he had kept going. Because that’s what Spider-Man did—he kept going, kept fighting, no matter how much it hurt.

But as Peter stood on that rooftop, looking out over the city he had sworn to protect, he wondered how much longer he could keep it up. How much more he could lose before there was nothing left of Peter Parker, only the Spider-Man. And if that happened—if he lost himself completely—what kind of hero would he be then?

The city continued to hum beneath him, oblivious to the turmoil in his heart. For now, it still needed Spider-Man. And as long as it did, Peter would put the mask back on, swallow the pain, and swing into action. But he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was coming—something that would push him past his breaking point.

And when that time came, would Spider-Man still be the hero the city needed? Or would he finally fall, crushed under the weight of everything he had lost?

Peter pulled the mask back down over his face, steeling himself against the cold and the memories. There was no time to dwell on the past, not when there were still people who needed saving.

But as he leaped off the building, swinging into the night, the ghosts of Uncle Ben, Gwen, and Aunt May followed close behind, a constant reminder of the price he had paid to be Spider-Man.