Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Vol. 2

Chapter 1

A familiar noise suddenly entering his ears, Peter pulled his gaze away from the microscope and glanced down at his phone, picking it up from the table. It was simply his alarm reminder that it had hit five o' clock, which meant that it was time to pack up for the day. Most people didn't set alarms for the end of a work shift, but then again, most people didn't love their jobs as much as Peter did. He'd often caught himself working over an hour past when he'd initially planned to leave, though often this was due to something stealing his attention during the day as Spider-Man and forcing him to make it up later.

Even so, tonight was a particularly busy evening for him anyway, as he'd planned to meet Matt at the site of a rumored drug deal his ally had gotten wind of before heading to May's house afterward. The former was especially important as, according to Peter's horned-headed ally at least, busting this deal especially would likely sour a relationship Fisk had hoped to cultivate with another major gang leader outside of the city. If they could shut this down before it really even had time to blossom, they would be one step closer to putting an end to the Kingpin's reign once and for all.

Shutting down his equipment and making sure everything was in order, Peter finally got up and left, shutting off the light to his workstation before heading out the door. As he did, he was joined by a couple of his colleagues on their way to the elevator.

"Still going through with that presentation that on Monday?" the one to his right asked.

"Planning on it, yeah," Peter assured him. "I have to say, I'm really excited about it."

"I honestly don't know why you're pursuing this avenue," the one on his left spoke up as they paused in front of the elevator. "Solar energy isn't the future like they made it seem ten to fifteen years ago."

"I would beg to differ," Peter insisted. "All of my research suggests that..."

"Really, I'd get out of this whole energy thing if I were you," the guy on his right commented. "Everyone is racing to create the next big thing in efficient, clean energy; there are other much more lucrative fields to explore that are unmined and ripe for the picking."

"You're probably right, but it's not about the money with me," Peter insisted. "I'm trying to..."

"Yeah yeah, you're trying to make a difference," his coworker on the left replied. "We all are, but at the same time, if we're going to do that, we have to be smart about how we use our time here. Seriously, just think it over."

The elevator doors then opened, with the two men heading in before turning to face him.

"You coming?"

"Thanks, but I think I'll take the stairs," Peter replied. "I could use the exercise."

Turning and leaving before his comrades could even get another word in, Peter then headed towards the stairwell, beginning the long descent to the ground floor. As he made his way down the first flight, he heard what sounded like the rapid footsteps of someone trying to catch up with him. He was on the verge of rolling his eyes, thinking the other two were back to give him more unsolicited advice until he saw who it really was.

"Oh, hey Deb."

"Hey," the woman replied, hurrying up and coming alongside him, straightening her glasses as she did. "Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear as I was leaving too..."

"Oh, that?" Peter questioned, motioning upstairs with his head. "I'm not worried too much about it. They were just giving their opinions based on what they know and believe, like any scientist would."

"Still, I think your project is fascinating," Debra explained. "You really think you can build something that can successfully harness solar energy efficiently enough to become a true mainstream power source?"