The meeting ended quickly.
After saying goodbye to Mrs. Snow, the three students stood up from the couch and left her office together.
In the hallway, Gwen turned to Lucas.
"Do you want me to show you where the Bio-Electric Department is when the internship starts?"
"No," Lucas replied. "I can find it myself."
He slung his backpack over one shoulder and headed straight toward the exit of the academic building.
He didn't have much time.
Afternoon classes were about to start, and he still needed to shower in the gym.
Behind him, Peter Parker watched Lucas walk away.
He watched for longer than necessary.
Gwen noticed.
"Peter!"
"…Huh?"
Peter blinked and looked at her, his pupils refocusing quickly.
"Oh. Gwen?"
She smiled.
"Nothing. By the way, are you going to the grade dance this year?"
Peter scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Sorry… probably not."
Lucas avoided the dance because he had no money and no date.
Peter avoided it for a different reason.
He simply couldn't find a date.
More accurately—
Peter only wanted one person.
Mary Jane Watson.
His neighbor.
Also an eleventh-grade student.
Peter probably believed his crush was a secret.
It wasn't.
Most people had noticed.
And under those circumstances, very few girls wanted to attend a dance as someone's second choice.
Meanwhile, Mary Jane had no intention of accepting Peter's invitation.
She had already registered for the dance with someone else.
Gwen knew that.
Because Mary Jane had told her.
Her partner?
Harry Osborn.
Which fit Mary Jane's usual preferences perfectly.
Gwen didn't mention any of that.
She simply nodded.
"Alright."
Then she turned and walked away.
But after a few steps, she paused and glanced back.
Peter was still standing there.
Still staring in the direction Lucas had gone.
A few days later.
Midtown High School erupted in cheers.
Summer vacation had finally arrived.
"Vacation!"
"Finally!"
Students poured out of the school building in small groups, discussing their plans.
"Got any summer plans?"
"Yeah—Hawaii."
"I'm going to Slovakia with Tom."
"Slovakia? Didn't you see the news?"
"What news?"
"Tourists went missing there last week."
"Fake news. Besides, Tom and I are big guys. What could happen to us?"
Cars started one after another in the parking lot.
Within minutes, the school grounds became quiet.
The constant noise of students vanished.
Only one place still echoed with sound.
The old gymnasium.
Inside, rhythmic impacts continued to ring through the building.
Ten minutes later, the noise stopped.
Lucas stood in place, steadying his breathing.
He looked down and began unwrapping the bandages from his hands.
Even though he could punch steel plates without injuring himself now, the habit remained.
More than a thousand days of training had built a routine he no longer questioned.
As Lucas finished removing the bandages, his eyebrows lifted slightly.
Footsteps approached from behind.
A voice spoke.
"I heard this gym is getting turned into a swimming pool next semester."
Lucas turned around.
"Peter," he said calmly. "That's not a rumor. It's confirmed."
Peter smiled faintly but didn't reply.
That was another reason Lucas preferred this version of Spider-Man.
Compared to the talkative personalities of other versions, this Peter was quieter.
Reserved.
Similar to Lucas himself.
Lucas slipped the bandages into his pocket and looked at him.
"So you came here just to tell me the gym's closing?"
Peter shook his head quickly.
"No."
"Then what?"
"Well…"
Peter opened his mouth.
Then hesitated.
Lucas watched him struggle to find words and chuckled softly.
Instead of pressing him, Lucas walked over to the bench, grabbed his backpack, and slung it over his shoulder.
Then he headed toward the door.
"Happy summer vacation, Peter."
Just as Lucas reached the entrance—
Thwip.
The faint sound of webbing firing through the air reached his ears.
Lucas spun around instantly.
His right fist shot forward.
Peter's spider-sense triggered immediately.
He jumped sideways.
A split second later—
CRACK.
A nearby bench exploded apart down the middle.
Peter stared at the broken wood in shock.
Lucas calmly peeled the sticky web off his backpack.
The webbing clung tightly.
He shook his hand several times before finally flicking it away.
Peter looked back at him.
"Lucas… you're also—"
"I'm not."
Lucas cut him off immediately.
His strength came from relentless effort.
Over a thousand days of discipline.
And maybe—
Just maybe—
A tiny bit of help from a mysterious system.
But mostly effort.
Yes.
Definitely effort.
Lucas firmly believed that even without the system, he would eventually awaken his Cosmo.
Of course, that wasn't the real reason he interrupted Peter.
Lucas glanced toward the gym entrance.
Peter instantly understood.
His spider-sense had already noticed someone nearby.
Lucas smiled faintly.
"Enjoy your summer vacation, Peter. See you next semester."
"…Yeah," Peter replied quietly. "See you next semester."
Lucas turned and walked out of the gym.
Then he stopped.
Standing outside the entrance—
was Gwen.
Lucas looked surprised.
"Gwen?"
Gwen stared back at him silently.