Spider-Man: Fear Itself

Chapter 1

Peter sat in the back corner of the cozy café, nursing a cup of coffee that had long since gone cold. His brow furrowed, eyes distant, lost in thought. Across from him, Harry Osborn leaned back, arms folded, watching him with concern. On Peter's right, Carlie Cooper was fidgeting with her mug, occasionally glancing at Anna Maria, who sat to Peter's left, her sharp gaze fixed on him.

"You're distracted," Harry finally said, breaking the heavy silence that had settled between them.

Peter blinked and rubbed the back of his neck, forcing a thin smile. "Yeah, sorry. Just... a lot going on. You know how it is."

Anna Maria raised an eyebrow, not buying it for a second. "It's more than that. You've got that look. The 'I'm carrying the weight of the world' look."

Peter let out a short, humorless laugh. "Guess that's not far from the truth."

Carlie sighed and set her cup down. "Peter, we're your friends. You don't have to keep pretending with us. What's going on?"

Peter hesitated, then leaned forward, lowering his voice. "I'm at a crossroads. I've been feeling this... tension between what I owe to the city and what I owe to the heroes I work with. There's this constant pull, like I have to choose. The city needs me, but the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four-they need me too, in their own way. And... honestly, I feel like I don't belong in either world."

Harry, Carlie, and Anna Maria exchanged glances before Harry shook his head, his voice steady but firm. "Pete, if you have to pick a side, it's going to be an easy one."

Peter frowned, confused. "What do you mean?"

"You've been trying to balance these two worlds for so long," Carlie said, leaning in. "But, honestly, the heroes? They've never treated you like one of them."

Anna Maria nodded in agreement. "It's like they respect you for what you can do, but they don't see you as an equal. Remember the Hellfire Gala? They didn't even invite you. You saved the world more times than anyone can count, but when it comes to the 'elite' events, you're suddenly not worth their time."

Peter winced. "That was... a misunderstanding. Emma said-"

"Emma can say whatever she wants," Harry interrupted, his voice harder than usual. "But this goes deeper than some fancy party. You've been busting your ass for these people for years, Pete. And yet, how do they treat you? The Avengers always saw you as a 'street-level' hero. Like you were never good enough to be in their top tier, even when you saved their asses. They never saw what you sacrificed."

Peter opened his mouth to protest, but Harry cut him off. "And don't even get me started on the X-Men. You've done more for mutants than half of them know, but you think they ever stop seeing you as the outsider? You're not one of them, so they brush you off."

Carlie leaned forward, her voice softer but no less resolute. "And the Fantastic Four... for all their talk of family, you're never going to be more than a substitute to them."

Peter blinked, clearly taken aback. "A substitute?"

"Yeah," Anna Maria said, matter-of-factly. "You were a substitute for Johnny when you joined the Future Foundation. You stepped in for Reed when he was too caught up in his work to spend time with his kids. And... there's something else."

Harry and Carlie exchanged another glance before Harry continued. "Susan. She... she cares about you, Pete. More than you realize. But she's never going to say anything because she's staying with Reed. She wants you close, but you're just... the substitute. You've always been. She won't act on how she feels."