Eventually I went back home and talked to Aunt May and Uncle Ben about Richard — how to act around him, what to say. It was a pain in the ass, but I managed alright, I think. The next day came quickly, and I found myself waiting by the door with Ben and May, waiting for Richard to arrive.
The door opened and slowly Richard stepped in. He wore a plain white shirt with the SHIELD logo printed on it and a pair of jeans a few sizes too big for him. He carried a handbag, and the moment he looked at me I felt something...something tug at my heartstrings.
"Peter," he smiled.
I gave a tight smile back. "Hey...Dad." The man dropped his bag and walked over, pulling me into a tight hug. I hugged him back, though I felt a little awkward doing so. I could hear Aunt May sobbing beside me while Uncle Ben comforted her — not sad tears, but tears of joy.
We eventually moved to the kitchen, where Aunt May practically shoved food down our throats. Richard ate in silence, and every so often he would just look at me, which was really rather awkward.
"He's tall," Richard smiled as he ate his waffles.
"That he is. I think he gets that from Mary's side of the family," Ben replied with a smile.
"You both did an amazing job raising him," Richard turned to Aunt May. "Thank you."
"Oh, hush you," she flashed him a smile. "He's his father's son after all — he was no trouble."
"No — he was Mary's son," Richard said with a pained tone. "He may look a little like me, but he has his mother's heart, and her smile."
"What was she like?" I found myself suddenly asking. "I-if you don't mind talking about her, that is."
"She's your mother, Peter. It doesn't matter what I want," Richard chuckled. "Mary...Mary was amazing. Brilliant yet humble. The kind of person you meet once in a hundred years, if you're lucky. She could light up a room just by walking into it."
"She also had quite a temper," Aunt May giggled. "I remember this one time, you and her had this little spat about where to send Peter to school, and she didn't talk to you for a week!"
Richard laughed. "Yes, she insisted on sending him to a private school, but I thought public to be better."
"Why is that?" I asked.
"Well, you're our son — you were bound to be smart, so sending you somewhere to become even smarter is somewhat redundant. The one thing your mother and I lacked, though, was people skills. We weren't...well, you know how nerds are," Richard chuckled. "I wanted you to have friends, to find out how the world really was. Mary...well, she thought you couldn't cut it."
"Well, she was right," I said smugly. "Because I'm in a private school and I'm awesome."
Richard and Ben laughed as Aunt May ruffled my hair playfully. The meal was finished quickly. Richard nursed a cup of coffee and sipped it slowly, watching me carefully.
"You really have to stop staring," I told him. "It's kind of creepy."
"Hey — I haven't seen you for over a decade. Deal with it," the man smiled. He still looked a little gaunt, his cheeks hollowed out, but that smile made him seem just a little more alive.
"So do you know what you're going to do now?" Ben asked.
"I...I'm not really sure," Richard replied. "It's been so long...I don't even have a place to live."
"Well, you can stay here for as long as you want," Aunt May told him. "Peter, dear — is the basement ready?"
I nodded. "Finished it last night, Aunt May. Though I left my lab intact, just in case...Dad wants to use it." Again — never going to get used to saying that word.
"Why don't you get some rest, Rich? I'm sure you need it," Ben smiled. "We can deal with the future together, as a family."
Richard smiled. "Thanks, Ben." He finished his coffee and got up.
"Come on — I'll show you to your room," I walked ahead, leading him down to the basement. I switched on the light to reveal a much cleaner space than before, with fresh sheets on the bed and a scrubbed-clean floor.
"This is fine, Peter. Thank you," Richard smiled as he set his single handbag on the bed. He looked around and immediately spotted my lab. "Is that yours?"
I nodded. "Yeah. I have another workstation at the Baxter Building, so I don't use this one much. You're welcome to it if you want."
Richard nodded. "Thank you." He sat down on the bed and looked at me. "Why didn't you tell them?"
I sighed — I knew this was coming. I pulled up a chair and sat next to him. "Because they would freak out. Aunt May has a heart condition; she wouldn't be able to handle it. And Ben...he wouldn't like it, but he'd know it was the right thing to do, and I'm pretty sure that would make him hate it even more."
Richard sighed. "This isn't what your mother and I wanted for you, son. This life — it's not safe."
"With great power..."
"...comes great responsibility," Richard snorted. "Yeah, I know. Your grandfather used to say that to me all the time. Ben always took it to heart, but me...well, I know the consequences of power."
I nodded. "Yeah. I know you do."
"Did you really destroy it? All of it?" Richard asked.
"Yeah."
"And you didn't memorise it?"
"Yeah." I didn't even hesitate. The formula was my biggest secret. No way I would ever tell anyone about it — not even my...Dad. Damn, this was weird.
"Good. Let it stay buried," Richard nodded, rubbing his hands nervously. He looked at me, and for a while neither of us spoke. He finally broke the silence. "So, the Baxter Building, huh?"
I grinned. "Yeah...hey, Dad — you need a job, right?" The man looked surprised, but nodded slowly.
The Next Day:
"Hello there, I'm Susan," Sue smiled as she shook Richard's hand. "Welcome to the Baxter Building."
"Woah," Richard said, staring in open awe at the living room of the Fantastic Four.
"Yeah," I patted him on the shoulder. "You'll get used to it."
"Yo, Peter!" Johnny called out as he came flying inside, killing his flames and landing before me. "Hey, man. Oh, hey, Dr. Parker — fancy seeing you here."
"Hello," Richard replied slowly. "Johnny, right?"
"Yup," Johnny grinned. "Not to be rude or anything, but ah — what exactly are you doing here?"
"Well, he needs a job, and I figured this might be the best place for him," I shrugged. "It's either that or go work for someone like Osborn or Stark — the former being a maniac and the latter...well, a charming maniac."
"And considering what he's been able to accomplish even under Wyndham's thumb, I'm sure he's more than qualified," Susan smiled. "It's about time we got someone specialising in genetics around here. The only other person is me, and I'm honestly too buried in paperwork and managing the foundation."
"I'll help where I can," Richard nodded.
"Great — come on, I'll show you where you can work," Sue guided him into the corridor where our labs were. His was a few doors down from mine. Plenty of space to keep my work private.
"So, your dad's going to be working here, huh?" Johnny said, watching Sue and Richard talk in hushed tones. "How are you dealing?"
"I'm freaking out, man," I admitted. "I honestly have no idea how I'm supposed to act. I've never met this man before in my life — hell, I thought he was dead!"
"Well, all I know is — if that was my dad? I'd spend every second I could with him," Johnny sighed.
I smiled at him and patted his shoulder. "So...do you want to beat up criminals?"
"Hell yeah!"
"I'll get my suit," I chuckled, heading into my lab to do just that.
I had a month of free time after that. Richard was quickly settling into his lab at the Baxter Building and ended up teaching even Sue a thing or two about genetics. He wanted to continue his own research, but I quickly warned him off it — it was too dangerous, and he agreed. Poor guy; his world had just been broken in half. He didn't deserve this.
I kept myself busy. I helped the local police take down a drug ring over the course of a month, breaking them down piece by piece until they were so desperate, it was laughable how easy the final takedown was.
People really seemed to appreciate seeing Spider-Man swinging around the city. Said it gave them hope that things would get better. The number of copycats was growing every day. I did my best to discourage them, even ranting on social media about how they were putting themselves in danger. But of course they didn't listen.
Nat had continued training me on a regular basis. My fighting skills weren't quite at her level yet, but I was getting there. Whenever she wasn't available, David was my instructor — insufferable, but effective. Either way, my SHIELD training was progressing steadily. I had a feeling Fury was going to call me up for a mission any day now.
I spent some time with Richard — a few evenings at the Baxter Building sharing dinner, just the two of us. Dinner being pizza I'd swung in with. I was pretty sure Sue cleared out the entire common area whenever Richard and I sat together. I once caught Ben Storm trying to sneak takeout into Johnny's lab. I asked Reed about it, but the guy just smiled and said, "He's your dad — spend some time with him, why don't you?" Stupid, lovable goofs.
I called Jean a few times. Apparently Logan had doubled their training regime in response to not dominating the fight at Treadstone — he'd been very frustrated about that. Jean kept complaining about it. Felicia and I visited her a couple of times, though we could never stay long.
And speaking of the hottest girl in the world — who happens to be my girlfriend — she was currently trying to crack open a very nice-looking safe.
"So ah, this really isn't what I had in mind when you asked if we should go out tonight," I told Cat as I hung from the ceiling on a web line.
"Well, if you want, we can go get dinner after this," she smiled as she pressed a precision laser against the metal casing, slowly cutting it open. Something I invented — a very handy tool, if I do say so myself.
"So what did this guy do to earn the wrath of the Black Cat?" I asked.
"Smuggles blood diamonds," Cat replied. "Uses people's bodies as mules. And after he's done with them, he kills them and dumps them in the river."
I whistled. "Damn. Bad guy. You have proof?"
"Yup. Pictures and everything."
"So why didn't you call the cops?"
"He has a very good lawyer," she grumbled. The case opened and Cat smiled, reaching in to pull out a large bag. She opened it, revealing a glittering collection of diamonds. "Nice."
"And what exactly do you plan on doing with said diamonds?" I asked as we crawled through the air vents. Cat was leading, so I got a very clear view of her as she shimmied in front of me.
"Fence them, put the cash into several charities across the globe. You know, the usual," she came out of the vent and onto the building's roof.
I climbed out and immediately swept her up, carrying her bridal-style and slowly spinning her around. "Alright — now that business is done, care for a romantic night out on the town?"
"Hm. I like the sound of that," she looked over my shoulder and smiled. "Though I don't think they feel the same way."
"Stop right there!" A couple of men came flying out onto the roof, guns blazing.
"See you later, alligator!" I cried out as I leaped off the ledge with Cat in my arms.
"WOHOOO!" she cried with joy as one of my robo-arms popped out and shot a web line, swinging us clear of the rooftop and away from the bullets.
"You really do overreact a lot," I smiled, holding her tight as we swung through the city's skyline.
"Oh, please — I just appreciate the incredible feeling you get when you swing through the city," Felicia smiled.
I chuckled. "Yeah, I guess." I took us to Central Park, landing near the edge and away from prying eyes. We then walked to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and climbed up to the roof.
Felicia gasped as she saw a picnic basket and a blanket waiting for her. "Peter, you really shouldn't have."
I shrugged. "Hey — school starts tomorrow. The summer flew by so fast. I figured you and I needed one night together," I sat down and patted the spot beside me.
Felicia smiled as she joined me. The night was calm, the sky clear, the moon shining down on us. I opened the picnic basket and took out several Tupperware containers filled with Aunt May's homemade lasagna.
Felicia licked her lips. "Is that May's lasagna?"
I chuckled. "Yup."
"Give me!" Cat grabbed the container and practically inhaled it. "So good!"
I laughed as I slid my mouth-piece up. "You know, if you keep eating like that, I'm going to have to adjust the size of your costume."
"Watch it, Mister," she pointed her fork at me threateningly. "I'm armed and dangerous. And did you just call me fat?"
"Nope. I'm not that stupid," I smiled as I took out another container and a fork.
"You brought more?"
"I know how much you like Aunt May's cooking," I shrugged as I ate mine, far more slowly than Felicia — actually chewing my food.
"Thanks, Spider," she smiled. "So, looking forward to the new school year?"
I shrugged. "You tell me. I basically have a free pass already — I'm working, so May and Ben are more understanding."
"Mum's a pain. The one thing she does actually care about is my education," Felicia grumbled. "Stupid woman."
"Well, just think — two more years and you're scot-free!" I smiled. "Actually, now that I think about it, it's really just one year, isn't it?"
Felicia blinked. "What?"
I smiled as I reached behind me and produced a small black box. I handed it to her. Cat carefully opened it, then gasped at the sight of two silver bracelets.
"Happy birthday, Kitten," I whispered as I leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.
"H-how did you know?!" Felicia looked shocked. "I never told anyone!"
"Yeah, I know. But I had Reed hack into the government's database and check your birth certificate," I shrugged.
Felicia rolled her eyes. "Or, I don't know, you could have just asked me."
"Would you have told me the truth?" I smiled.
"Yes...no...maybe," Felicia blushed.
"I love you too," I leaned toward her. "Well? Try them on."
Felicia nodded as she slipped the silver bracelets onto her wrists, one on each. They immediately began to hum to life, constricting slightly to fit comfortably.
"What are they?" Felicia asked.
"Well, I know how much you like swinging through the city, so," I pressed the bracelet. A small mechanical lever extended and reached down to the palm of her hand. "I figured you should have your own web-shooters."
"Peter," she said in awe. "You shouldn't have."
I shrugged. "Yeah, but I did. So? Give it a wave."
Felicia smiled. She aimed and fired a web line from her shooter; it shot out like a bullet and stuck to a tree branch below. "I had the settings on quick-shot webbing. I figured you wouldn't really need anything else. It has enough webbing to last you a month — maybe. If you're running low, it'll—OMPH!"
She jumped on me, kissing me on the lips. I smiled as I leaned back, wrapping my arms around her. She drew back, and in the moonlight her silver hair caught the light, giving her a halo of pure white glow.
"We are totally moving in together," Felicia said with a smile.
I was stunned. "W-what?!"
"I-I, sorry, I just — it just came out—"
"—Y-you want to live together?!" I squeaked in a small, pathetic voice.
"Well, I was thinking about it. You mentioned getting free of my mum in a year's time. I figure with your job and my...hobby, we could get our own place. It wouldn't be that hard, and — oh my God, I'm rambling, and—"
I pressed my finger to her lips. "Breathe, Kitten." She took a deep breath and let it out. "Now — I think we're a little young to be moving in together. I'm still 16, and you're 17. If you want to move in with me, you're going to have to wait two years."
Felicia nodded. "Yeah, I know. Forget I said anything."
"Oh, hell no!" I smiled. "You absolutely cannot take that back! You said it yourself — in two years' time, you're moving in with me. Got it?"
"Wait, what?"
I shrugged. "I think it's a great idea. We're just too young, that's all."
Felicia's face shifted from shock to joy as she kissed me once again. I spent the rest of the night teaching her how to use the web-shooters, after which we headed out into the city for her first web-swing. And I swear — for a complete beginner, she was a natural.