Buzzzz Buzzz
A slim, fair hand reached out groggily, searching for the vibrating mobile phone. It belonged to a scrawny female figure lying face down on a sofa. Her fingers fumbled near her head until they reached the corner depression of the couch, finally finding the phone lodged there.
With some effort, she brought it to her face and turned her head sideways, cracking open a hazel eye.
"Ugh," she groaned, sleepily swiping away the alarm. The buzzing stopped. She closed her eye again and tossed the phone aside, ready to slip right back into slumber.
Knock Knock
"Penny, are you up yet?"
A loud female voice shattered her moment of peace.
Knock Knock
"Penny?" the voice persisted.
"I am up… Aunt May," Penny mumbled, still lying down, eyes closed as she half-yelled back.
"Then come upstairs, breakfast is ready," Aunt May replied, her voice fading as she walked away.
Yawn
Penny sat up lazily, rubbing her eyes and feeling around the side table for her glasses. The sofa was a disaster zone—clothes, papers, magazines, and some suspiciously crumpled tissue papers lay scattered all over.
Her hand knocked over a toolkit on the table before finally finding her black-rimmed spectacles. She slid them on with another yawn, still not fully awake, then spent another few moments patting around for her phone again.
"Shit, why did I put my phone on vibrate?" she grumbled looking at the screen. "I don't have time to shower now…"
She stood up, knocking a pile of clothes off the sofa as she did. This wasn't Penny's bedroom—this was the basement. Dirty laundry, books, notebooks, and various machine parts littered the floor. If Aunt May came down and saw the mess, she would be in for one of her infamous lectures for sure.
Still trudging and half-asleep, Penny made her way to the attached bathroom. She took off her glasses, turned on the tap, and splashed cold water on her face to force herself awake. After drying off with a towel, she put her glasses back on and stared into the mirror.
Short, messy black hair. Thick-rimmed glasses. Noticeable dark circles under her eyes.
"Ugh… I should seriously stop gaming so late," she muttered with a sigh.
She picked up her toothbrush and toothpaste and began brushing her teeth. Mid-brush, a new memory surfaced—one that made her fair cheeks blush pink.
"That's another reason I was up late…" she murmured through the foam, narrowing her eyes at her reflection. She pointed the toothbrush at herself. "Penny, you have no self-control, do you?"
Then, with a sly smile, she added, "But it was Luke in a swimsuit… how could I resist?"
She remembered the photos vividly. Sure, she felt a little guilty for copying those pics off MJ's phone without her knowing… but it was totally worth it. Still, she couldn't help but wonder why MJ had such risqué pictures of Luke in the first place. Surely MJ wouldn't be into her own—
"Ahhhh!" Penny screamed in panic, spotting a spider on her face just after gargling. She swiped wildly at her cheeks, stumbling out of the bathroom—only to realize it had just been in the mirror's reflection, not on her.
"Penny, what happened?" Aunt May's concerned voice called out from upstairs.
Penny quickly closed the bathroom door, exhaling in relief. "Nothing, Aunt May!" she replied, trying to sound casual.
"Okay, but you better hurry or you will miss your bus," Aunt May warned before her footsteps trailed off.
"Coming," Penny called back with a sigh, then turned towards the large workbench at the side of the basement.
The bench was a mess—splotches of sticky white fluid, dozens of small canisters, and a lingering chemical smell that was growing more unbearable by the day.
"Ugh, I seriously need to do something about that smell," she muttered, wrinkling her nose. "Also, I need to figure out how to make sure there is no residue after the web-fluid dissolves… this is going to take forever to clean."
She quickly stuffed several finger-sized filled canisters into her bag, along with a worn notebook labeled 'Web-Fluid 1.2' in thick marker.
Web-fluid wasn't a new project. She had been working on it since middle school. It was tedious, frustrating, and full of constant experimental failures—but she never gave up. Partly because she enjoyed inventing weird and fun tech… but mostly because Luke had asked her to.
Penny smiled softly, remembering the way he had said it—"No one but you can finish this." That small moment of faith had stuck with her all these years. She still didn't entirely understand what kind of practical use a short-life, web-based adhesive had, but if Luke believed in it, she was going to see it through.
And she had. Penny had finally succeeded in developing a chemical web-fluid that checked off most of the boxes Luke had given her.
"Well, if I had Karen from the start, I would probably have finished it years ago," she said with a smirk.
Karen was the name she had randomly given the subroutine A.I. Luke had loaned her. It wasn't as advanced or sassy as D.A.I.S.Y., but it had been a huge help—especially in the microbot and web-fluid projects.
Slinging the bag over her shoulder, Penny gave her shirt a sniff, winced, then grabbed a can of deodorant from the shelf and sprayed herself amply. "Eh. Good enough," she said with a shrug.
Climbing the stairs, she reached the top and pressed her thumb to the fingerprint lock installed on the door. It beeped and clicked open.
She had told Aunt May the lock was to protect her 'delicate experiments.' In truth, it was because Luke had once walked in unexpectedly some months ago and scared her half to death. She would have died from embarrassment if he had caught her doing—or looking at—anything remotely inappropriate.
Also, the lock kept Aunt May from barging in and giving daily lectures about the state of the basement. So really… win-win.
Opening the door, Penny walked up to the dining table. Aunt May was seated there, looking quite professional in a business suit, brown glasses perched on her nose, and her brown hair neatly tied up.
"Good morning, Aunt May," Penny said, sitting down beside her.
Aunt May, who had been focused on her laptop, smiled and wrapped an arm around Penny, kissing her on the cheek. "Good morning, sweetie… but why are you wearing so much perfume?" she asked, wrinkling her nose.
"It's not perfume, Aunt May. It's deodorant," Penny replied, helping herself to the stack of pancakes.
"Isn't that something boys use?" Aunt May asked, puzzled.
"It's Unisex," Penny said with a wry smile. Then she suddenly remembered, "Oh! And before I forget—there is a giant spider in my bathroom!"
"So that's why you were yelling earlier?" Aunt May said with a chuckle. "You are just like your mother—scared of even the tiniest spiders."
"I am not lying, Aunt May! This time it was really huge, and it went straight for my face!" Penny protested. "And I am not scared of spiders—I just don't like them."
"Alright, sweetie, I will check your bathroom. But spiders are harmless. You can squash them with something as light as a newspaper," Aunt May said, giving the Daily Bugle a dramatic swish through the air.
"There is no need to trouble yourself, Aunt May—I will take care of it," Penny said quickly, suddenly remembering the state of her workshop. "And yeah, I know most spiders aren't venomous, but… they still creep me out."
"Well, if that's the case, why don't you just sleep in your room upstairs? I told you before—bugs are always going to find their way into the basement."
"It is my workshop, not the basement," Penny mumbled through a mouthful of food.
"Don't speak while eating," Aunt May scolded, giving her hand a light slap.
Penny pouted in silence and grabbed the TV remote, switching it on.
"This is Christine Everhart reporting live from the Baxter Building for the Daily Bugle," said a poised blonde reporter standing in front of the construction site.
"Such a tragic accident," Aunt May sighed, watching the screen. "So many shops destroyed on that street… At least no one was seriously hurt."
"Mm-hmm," Penny nodded while chewing.
She remembered the chaos from last week—how those ugly green Mole creatures had suddenly attacked the streets of New York. Luckily, she and Aunt May had been at the Watson Tower at the time, safe from the danger.
Footage of the Fantastic Four, Iron Woman, and Aeon battling the green creatures and rescuing civilians was still dominating the news and trending across social media.
"Oh look, sweetie! They are showing your robot toys on TV!" Aunt May exclaims excitedly.
"They are construction Microbots, not toys, Aunt May," Penny replies with a wry smile.
"Yeah, yeah—the tiny robots," Aunt May says, beaming as she stands up and smothers Penny's face in her bosom. "Oh, I am so proud of you! Richard and Mary would be too, watching from heaven, seeing how their daughter's invention is helping so many people." Her voice cracks as she begins tearing up.
"Thank you, Aunt May," Penny mutters softly, smiling.
Aunt May kisses her forehead, then turns up the volume on the television.
"Not just me—your Aid Network is being mentioned too, Aunt May. So many people are being helped through your organization. I am proud of you," Penny adds, patting her back playfully, trying to ease the awkwardness of seeing her aunt cry.
"You cheeky girl," Aunt May chuckles, wiping her eyes and pulling gently on Penny's cheek.
"Ow, not the cheek again," Penny mutters, rubbing her face in mock offense.
"So, are you heading to the site today too?" she asks, knowing her aunt had been personally overseeing the relief work all week.
"Yeah, I just need to meet with a few store owners to confirm they received their relief payments," Aunt May says with a smile.
"Luke's really kind, giving all that money to help those people without expecting anything in return," Penny says, her face lighting up with pride.
"He definitely is," Aunt May nods. "But don't forget, the money donated through the Watson Aid Network also benefits the Watson Group in taxes, improves public relations, and helps local authorities. So it's not entirely selfless. That boy's not exactly a goody-two-shoes," she adds, recalling memories of the game night and his little 'flings' during the overseas trip.
"Still, he helps people more than anyone else. There is no one as good as him," Penny insists stubbornly.
Aunt May smiles wryly. "Yes, that's true, sweetie."
Penny glances at her, noticing how her aunt seemed lost in thought again. It had been happening a lot lately—especially since her return from abroad. She had also started dressing up more for work and even wearing makeup.
"Aunt May… are you seeing someone at work?" Penny asks curiously.
Aunt May looks at her, stunned. "Penny Benjamin Parker, aren't you getting late for your bus?" she asks, narrowing her eyes.
"Uhm—yes, I am leaving! No need to get mad," Penny says quickly, getting up and putting her dishes in the dishwasher.
Aunt May sighs. "I am not seeing anyone, so you don't have to worry, sweetie," she murmurs, absently rubbing her ring finger, where the faint mark of a long-gone ring still lingers.
"Why would I worry, Aunt May? You still look beautiful. You deserve a chance to be happy. Even Uncle Ben would understand. And you definitely don't have to hold yourself back because of me," Penny says, leaning in to hug her aunt's face.
Aunt May smiles and caresses Penny's arm. "You should be worrying about your dating life, not mine. Do you like any boys in your sch—?"
"Gotta go! I will be late. Love you!" Penny blurts, kissing her aunt's hair and dashing away with her bag slung over her shoulder.
"Love you, sweetie! Stay safe at school," Aunt May calls after her, chuckling as she watches her race out the door.
Her smile slowly fades as her eyes drift to the portrait of Ben on the wall. She sighs.
"Would you really understand, Ben? Should I even let myself feel this way?"