Hawk looked genuinely surprised.
Gwen, however, stared silently at his expression.
Fake.
Way too fake.
She couldn't help but offer a blunt critique.
"Your acting is terrible."
"Sorry," Hawk shrugged, "I'm not a professional actor."
The truth was, Gwen had been outside the whole time.
To be precise, she had arrived just as Peter was about to come clean to Hawk. But after hearing the commotion inside the gym, she paused outside to listen.
She thought Hawk and Peter wouldn't notice her.
But…
Ever since awakening his Microcosm, Hawk had full control over his five senses. Not to mention Gwen's footsteps, he could hear a leaf falling behind the gym if he wanted to.
Peter, with his Spider-Sense, was no different. And this version of Peter had already undergone genetic mutation. A full-on, next-gen Spider.
That said, Peter hadn't been mutated for long and was still adjusting. Plus, Hawk's sudden punch had left him stunned.
Still, when Hawk gave him a subtle glance, Peter quickly caught on. He tuned in and heard Gwen's breathing outside the gym.
The two exchanged a look and fell into a mutual silence.
That right there was another reason Hawk preferred this version of Peter the original Spider.
He had no opinion on The Amazing Spider-Man version.
As for Tech-Suit Spider-Man?
Ha.
Hawk had no doubt that if it had been Holland's tech-enhanced Peter, the guy wouldn't have caught on at all. He'd probably keep babbling endlessly, not understanding the situation in the slightest.
No.
Not probably.
Definitely.
Hawk thought to himself.
Just then, Peter stepped out from behind and looked toward Gwen with an awkwardly surprised expression.
"Gwen? You haven't left yet?"
Gwen stared at his stiff expression and couldn't help but laugh.
"Peter, your acting is even worse than Hawk's."
"Ah haha… ha…"
Peter froze, scratched his head in embarrassment, and waved goodbye to Hawk before heading off toward the school gate.
Seeing this, Hawk also prepared to leave.
He had to start his summer job at Oscorp Biotech early tomorrow morning and planned to get to bed early tonight.
But Gwen stepped in front of him, blocking his path.
"You're acting weird, Hawk."
"Huh?"
Hawk blinked in surprise.
Gwen narrowed her brows and looked at him with curiosity.
"When did you and Peter get so close? I've never seen you talk to him before."
To be fair, she had never seen Hawk chatting with anyone.
Even when classmates approached him, Hawk would always respond with a few words before returning to his own world.
And back during the school dance, some girls had tried to ask him to be their date.
The result?
As the girls themselves put it:
"Hawk?"
"That guy's an iceberg. A thousand-year-old frozen iceberg."
And Gwen wasn't an exception.
She remembered how, on more than one occasion, Hawk had seemed resistant to even talking to her though he never outright showed it, she could sense it.
But today?
Her instincts were telling her something had changed. That usual invisible wall between them seemed to be... gone.
And Gwen was curious.
Hawk, hearing her teasing tone, responded calmly.
"Peter and I aren't close. He came to thank me for helping him out when Flash cornered him in the restroom last time. I happened to be there."
Gwen listened, then fell silent again.
After a while, she looked into Hawk's eyes and smiled slightly.
"If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to. No need to lie."
Hawk considered her words, looked into her bright eyes, and nodded.
"Alright. I don't want to talk about it."
"I'll figure it out myself."
"Be my guest."
Hawk nodded and turned to leave. But just before going down the stairs, he looked back and said,
"Just don't get too deep into it. I've heard that when a woman becomes curious about a man, it's the beginning of her downfall."
Gwen could tell for sure now that cold resistance she'd always felt from Hawk was gone.
Still, she scoffed on the surface.
"I seriously doubt I'd fall for a guy who can't even admit we're friends."
She recalled how, just a few days ago, after she had walked Hawk home and said "we're friends," his reaction had been stiff and awkward.
Actually…
Even then, Hawk's resistance to her had started to weaken.
Gwen replayed the memory in her mind. Something clicked.
Hawk didn't reply. He simply shrugged and headed down the stairs.
"See you, Gwen."
Gwen watched his back as he left and called out,
"I'm going to find out your secret."
"Good luck."
Hawk waved over his shoulder without turning back.
He didn't take her words too seriously.
That line he'd said earlier about curiosity leading to a woman's downfall was just something he blurted out.
Still…
He probably wouldn't have said something like that before awakening his Microcosm.
Sitting at the very back of the school bus heading to his new apartment, Hawk stared out the window, lost in thought.
After all, to the old Hawk before awakening romance was a luxury.
A completely out-of-reach luxury.
But now?
There's a saying…
Money gives men courage.
Hawk might still be broke, but he had fists.
And fists meant power.
Power meant influence.
And influence meant wealth.
Therefore…
If he had fists, he had money.
So…
The past is the past.
This is now.
The Hawk who had awakened the Microcosm finally had the qualifications based on strength alone to say he deserved love.
That's what Hawk was thinking.
Then suddenly…
The image of Gwen's eyes flashed through his mind. He remembered how they had locked eyes earlier.
His heart skipped a beat.
"Tch…"
Hawk snapped out of it, drew in a sharp breath, and quickly shook his head, trying to discard the thought.
Nope.
Dangerous territory.
The three great male delusions were back in full force.
He wasn't Peter.
Peter could catch one smile from Mary Jane and immediately assume she liked him.
Hawk wasn't that naive.
So… forget it.
Focus on the important things.
Tomorrow, he'd begin his job at Oscorp Biotech. He'd finally get to see whether the mysterious material in Dr. Connors's lab was really what he hoped: Gammanium.
If it was, that would be perfect.
He already had a plan.
Once he confirmed that Gammanium was the key to forging his Sacred Armor, his next target would be Wakanda, the land of Vibranium.
Like he always said…
If Wakanda was willing to hand over what he needed, great. Everyone would be happy.
But if they refused or worse, tried to fight back?
Well then.
Sorry, but…
He wasn't good with words.
But...
He knew a thing or two about throwing hands.