Spider-Man | Doesn't Need Help

CHAPTER 31

I sighed as I opened the large doors to enter the chilly school.
It was already very warm outside, and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky. A perfectly clear sky.

There were already a lot of people milling around the corridors because classes were supposed to start in ten minutes.

I headed for my locker, feeling increasingly stressed, though I couldn't see a trace of it. The sleepless night made me feel even worse. I hoped no one would notice, but May, as soon as she saw me, asked what was wrong.

After everything she'd done for me, I simply couldn't help but like her. And that terrified me. I don't want to get attached; I'm constantly afraid that Mr. Adams will come back... And now, on top of that, if he were to kill her on top of that... The very thought of it was unbearable. The thought of losing her already terrified me, even though she always promised me she'd never leave me.

If I had been smarter and stuck to what I should have, I wouldn't have suffered so much in the future.

I swallowed as I rounded the final corner to get to the row of lockers shared by other students and mine.

And to think that just three months ago I was only afraid of Mr. Adams.

“Hi, Peter,” Ned greeted me as soon as I reached my locker, number two hundred and fifty-one.

“Hello, Ned.” I greeted him as well, completely unsure of what to do or how to behave.

Smiling slightly, I opened my locker, where I put the notebooks I didn't need and took the ones I needed.

We walked in silence to our classroom, where there were already many people.

“Are you going to say something?” We asked at the same time, after we had been standing in utter silence for a good three minutes.

I looked up at him and he did the same, smiling slightly.

"I don't know... I have so many questions for you..." He groaned, and I laughed shortly.

"I will try to answer everything."

And that's how I promised Ned that we could go to my place to talk, and all day long he kept asking about my powers, which made me realize that I still didn't know much about them myself.

May, of course, agreed to let my friend come over, and she even said it was for the best, as she wouldn't be coming home tonight and would be going straight to her other extra job, so I wouldn't see her until tomorrow evening.

If it weren't for one person, I might have considered the whole school day a really good one. But of course, Eugenie Flash Thomson had to insult me, and Ned, for coming to my defense, got himself called all sorts of names on various topics.

“Are you laying eggs?” I burst out laughing as we were leaving the facility and Ned asked the question.

“No,” I replied.

"And how far does your network reach? I still can't believe it just comes out of you!" he said excitedly.

Honestly, I wasn't surprised, I think that despite everything, I would be curious about many things myself if I met a person who had such "powers".

We went outside, where it was still very warm and the sun was shining brightly.

Many, if not most, people were already dressed short for summer.

“Aren’t you hot in this?” Ned asked suddenly, pointing to my sweatshirt.

I was about to answer, because I'd promised myself I'd try... to trust him. Unfortunately, it didn't cross my lips to say I wouldn't take off my long sweatshirt because of the numerous wounds on my arms, but I hoped Ned would somehow understand what I wanted to tell him.