Peni's shoes squeaked against the hallway linoleum as she balanced a plastic bag of groceries against her hip and kicked the apartment door shut behind her.
"Hello?" she called, bright and sing-song. "It's me. May said I could come over for dinner!"
No answer.
She waited a beat, listening for the usual sounds that meant life: the old pipes complaining, the fridge humming like it had a personal grudge, the distant city noise leaking through the window cracks.
Nothing.
Peni frowned and leaned in a little, raising her voice just enough to feel polite, not nosy.
"Y/N? You here?"
Still nothing.
"Okay," she muttered to herself, "either you're out... or you've been swallowed by a laundry pile. Fifty-fifty."
She set her bag down by the couch, slipped her own backpack off her shoulders with a relieved sigh, and wandered toward the kitchen.
Water first. Brain second. She poured herself a glass, took a long sip, then flopped onto the couch like she'd earned it.
The TV remote was right there. She clicked it on, channel hopping without absorbing a single frame. A cooking show. A hero interview. A rerun of some old drama where everyone cried and nobody communicated. Peni's eyes drifted, unfocused, her thoughts spiraling into the usual mess of homework, designs, and the half-finished mech waiting for her like a disappointed parent.
She glanced at the clock. How long does it take to—
A thud came from down the hall.
Not loud enough to be a break-in. Not soft enough to be "cat knocked over a cup" either.
Peni sat up.
"...Y/N?" she called again, slower this time.
No response.
Her stomach tightened. Not fear exactly. More like the feeling you get when a math problem suddenly stops making sense halfway through.
She muted the TV and stood, glass of water still in her hand. The apartment felt different now. Not dangerous, just... too quiet.
Another small sound. A scrape. Like fabric against furniture.
Peni walked toward Y/N's room, every step careful in a way she didn't want to admit she was being.
She stopped at the door, knocked once with her knuckles, and tried one last time to be normal.
"Hey. If you're changing, I'm not coming in. Just say something."
Silence.
Peni swallowed, then pushed the door open.
"Okay, I'm coming in, don't—"
She froze so hard her whole body locked up.
Y/N was there.
And he was halfway out of something that should not exist in her cousin's bedroom.
A suit. Homemade, stitched and patched and reinforced in all the places a person would reinforce if they were planning to get hit, thrown, and probably launched off buildings. The fabric wasn't the glossy hero kind you saw on billboards. It was real. Practical. A little rough around the edges.
And there were web shooters on the bed.
Real web shooters.
Peni's glass slipped from her fingers.
YOU ARE READING
Ultra Responsibility (My Hero Academia X Spider-Man Reader)
FanfictionYou all know the origin story of radioactive bug bites; with great power comes great responsibility. But what if this time it was different? What if you were born with the powers of Spider-Man? After the tragic fate of your loved ones, take the mant...
