poisoned 🕷️ peter parker [1]

epilogue

The words kept playing in Jessica's head over and over again. 

"Jessica Lewis, the newest member of the Avengers, has finally answered our questions regarding the incident with Adrian Toomes, also known as the Vulture. After weeks of silence, the superheroine gave us some detail of her battle against the currently imprisoned villain."

She remembered that day. The cameras and the reporters had been following her, desperately trying to get any kind of further information out of her. Ever since it had been announced to the world that she'd be part of the Avengers, everyone would stop her to ask her about her powers, other superheroes or the incident with the Vulture. A few days ago, she gave in and talked to the insistent reporters. She remembered exactly what she replied. 

"I did take part in the fight, but it wasn't just me. In fact, I joined later on. It was Spider-Man who took down the Vulture. Without him, he'd still be out there."

She didn't like talking about Spider-Man in public. Peter wanted his identity hidden and she didn't want to spoil that. They were still going out and their friends and classmates knew it, but they would be careful to not lead anybody to discover Peter's alter ego. 

"We've heard it, it looks like Cadmia and the Spider-Man make a great team. But we still don't know why isn't Spider-Man a member of the Avengers. She would not answer that question. We hope to get some more information on the welcoming party Tony Stark is throwing tonight for the young Avenger."

And now she found herself trying to make it out of the crowded room. Even though she had refused, Tony still decided to throw this "welcoming party" at the Avengers tower before completely moving out of it. People kept coming up to Jessica, introducing themselves and telling her how grateful they were for meeting her. Behind her, Pepper kept telling her to just smile and shake their hands. After a few minutes, Jessica started feeling overwhelmed, worried she wouldn't be able to control her powers and end up poisoning someone. 

She made her way out to the balcony, inhaling the fresh air and finally feeling less anxious. She spotted someone leaning on the edge with a drink in their hand. She recognised it was Tony and walked up to him. She hadn't seen him in a week, more or less, since he publicly announced the party. 

"Cadmia." He said before sipping on his drink. He then looked at her. "The name it's starting to grow on me."

The truth was that Tony didn't like her alias at first. She let out a chuckle. "Thanks."

"How's school?" She couldn't believe Tony Stark was attempting to small talk with her. She wasn't surprised, though, because it wasn't the first time that he had asked her about insignificant things. Still, she didn't get used to it.

"It's been good. I kinda want to graduate already. I still don't get used to the fame."

"You will, just like I did." He said, sincerely. "And now I can't live without it."

Jessica playfully rolled her eyes at him. "You're so humble, Tony."

"Hey, don't bite the hand that feeds you." He said and, although she knew he was joking,  Jessica felt a bit guilty. He was right: she still lived in the headquarters and he even had got her the dress she was wearing. "Anyways, you're graduating in less than a month."

Jessica sighed. "I know... And then I'll be a full-time Avenger."

"You'll be a great one." He assured her. "You know anything from Peter? I invited him but he said he had homework."

"He had homework." They said the last words at the same time. "He's doing great, he just wants to keep it on the low."

"That's good, that's great." She could tell Tony was proud of Peter for his decision, but still was disappointed. "So, I wanted to talk to you about something. How would you feel if I asked you to be a part of the family?"

"What? I thought I already was part of the family..."

"I don't mean the Avengers. I mean the Stark family."

"Wow, Tony, you just got engaged. Can't you wait a bit longer until thinking about children?" She thought that maybe Tony was rushing into things. Or maybe having one too many drinks. "Anyways, doesn't Pepper have a saying on this?"

"She loves you!"

"You don't have to do this just because you feel guilty for what happened to my father, Tony..." Jessica reassured him. "It wasn't your fault."

"Just think about it." He nodded and took another sip to his drink. "Are you coming inside?"

"Yes, I'll go in a minute." 

A voice behind her made her turn around. "Am I too late for the party?" Spider-Man was hanging upside down, holding onto a web, like a proper spider. 

"Yes. And you're breaking the dress code."

She could hear him chuckle under the mask. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to miss this, though."

She smiled, truly happy to see he had come. "It's okay. How did May even let you out?"

"I think she's actually getting used to it. I just have to carefully not let her know when I'm leaving the house." 

They both laughed again. 

"I was actually getting anxious back in there." Jessica stepped closer to the hero. "Are you going to get down or...?"

"Nah, I'm good." He simply said. 

The girl rolled up his mask up to his nose, still leaving half of his face covered. "How am I suppose to thank you for coming, then?" She leaned in to kiss him when they were interrupted by a loud explosion sound. They could see from the tower a cloud of smoke and fire coming from a building in the distance. 

Jessica pulled out her gloves from a secret pocket under her dress. Once she put them on, they transformed into her new suit. 

They spotted a figure hovering around the burning building. As they heard a mad laugh coming from it, they prepared to take off and battle the new enemy. 

"Let's continue this conversation later."