The Amazing Spider-Man of Young Justice (Season 1)

Back To School

Queens, New York; November 19, 07:15 EDT

Today started off with a nightmare.

I was back in that fight—punching, kicking, webbing my own teammates like they were common thugs. Superboy, Kid Flash, Artemis... none of them stood a chance. I could feel the black suit clinging to me, pushing me to hit harder, move faster, act more ruthless. It wasn't me. It was that thing. That thing that made me someone else. No, something else. The nightmare shifted, and now I was back in that church, tearing the symbiote off me, feeling like I was ripping off my own skin. The screams—mine—echoed, bouncing around in my head like a broken record.

Then I shot up in bed, gasping for air, drenched in sweat. My heart was pounding like I'd just run a marathon. For a few seconds, I didn't know where I was. Was I still dreaming? No. My room. I was back in my room. Safe... or as safe as I could feel after everything that's happened.

"Peter?"

I almost jumped out of my skin. I turned and saw Aunt May sitting beside me, her worried eyes locked on mine. She must've heard me yelling. She always does.

"I heard you calling out, dear," she said softly. "Are you okay?"

I rubbed my face with my hands, trying to shake off the nightmare. "Yeah, I... I'm okay," I mumbled, even though I didn't really believe it. I could still feel the weight of that suit, the memories of what I'd done under its influence creeping in at the edges of my mind.

Aunt May didn't say anything for a moment, just sat there, watching me with that look—the one that makes me feel like a kid who just got caught sneaking cookies from the jar. But it wasn't cookies. It was so much worse.

"How have I been acting these past few weeks?" I asked, not really sure why I was even bringing it up, but needing to hear it from her.

Aunt May tilted her head, frowning slightly. "What do you mean, Peter?"

"I mean... I haven't been myself, right?" I asked, trying to explain without actually explaining—because, you know, alien symbiotes aren't really part of our normal breakfast conversation. "I've just felt... off."

She took a deep breath before answering, her voice gentle but firm. "You've seemed distant. Like something's been weighing on you, but you haven't wanted to talk about it."

I swallowed hard, guilt bubbling up inside me. Distant? Yeah. Try possessed. But of course, I couldn't tell her that. I couldn't tell her about how that black suit twisted everything, about the way it made me hurt people—good people. People I cared about.

"You've been through a lot, Peter," Aunt May said after a pause. "But whatever it is, you'll get through it. You always do."

I nodded, forcing a smile that didn't quite reach my eyes. I wanted to believe her, but that heavy feeling in my chest wasn't going away. After a few more moments of awkward silence, Aunt May gave me a quick squeeze on the shoulder and stood up.

"You should get ready for school," she said gently. "Breakfast will be ready soon."

I nodded again, even though my brain was still miles away from thinking about cereal and toast. When she left the room, I sighed, dragging myself out of bed. My body felt sluggish, like the nightmare had physically drained me. Great start to the day.

I got dressed, went through the motions, but I was on autopilot. My mind kept drifting back to the nightmare, to everything I did while wearing that black suit. How could I ever make up for that?

By the time I made it downstairs, the smell of breakfast hit me. Normally, it would've woken me up a little, made me feel more human. But today? Not so much.