New York — Terrace of a Small Restaurant — Day
Eddie stared at Gwen for a few moments, his eyes filled with emotion. Everything she had just told him had genuinely surprised him.
— "Wow... Alright... I have to admit, I wasn't expecting that."
She had just told him her entire story with Peter. Their friendship that had turned into love, the many hardships they had gone through together, the death of George Stacy... then the fact that she was now living with the Parkers, alongside Peter and Aunt May.
— "Yeah... I guess it's not really the kind of thing you think about first."
She gently brought her glass to her lips before taking a sip.
— "I'm sorry to hear all that. About your situation... and your father."
His face showed genuine compassion. At that moment, his reaction made Gwen smile slightly. But that smile only lasted for an instant.
It faded almost immediately, giving way to a soft sigh filled with resignation, pain, and regret.
— "Thank you... that's kind of you. But well... that's life, I guess."
A brief silence settled between them. The conversation had taken a much more personal turn, and the atmosphere had naturally grown heavier.
Gwen absentmindedly played with her glass, thinking about everything she had just revealed. Then, since she had opened up to him, she decided it was her turn to get the answers she had been looking for over the past few days.
— "And you... would you mind telling me about your history? I'd like to understand why Peter is so angry with you. I asked him, but like I explained to you... he shut me down in a way I never could have imagined from him…"
As she finished her sentence, she lowered her head slightly. Just thinking back to that argument made her heart ache.
Sitting across from her, Eddie struggled to hide the satisfaction he felt deep down. This was exactly the moment he had been waiting for. He was finally going to be able to tell his version of the story and steer Gwen in the direction he wanted.
After taking a deep breath, he put on a sincere expression and began telling her everything about his history with Peter: their past, their relationship, and the reasons why, according to him, Peter now harbored such hatred toward him.
The minutes passed, and Eddie talked for a long time, confidently, without ever hesitating. When he finally finished, a deep silence settled between them.
Gwen kept her head lowered, lost in thought. Eddie, meanwhile, continued to watch her discreetly. Despite all the confidence he displayed, he had no way of knowing whether she truly believed his story or whether something was still bothering her.
After several long seconds of reflection, Gwen finally raised her head. She looked Eddie straight in the eyes before speaking again in a calm voice:
— "Excuse me... I need to go to the restroom. I'll be right back."
— "O-Of course. Go ahead!"
He answered with slight awkwardness as Gwen stood up and went back inside the restaurant.
Watching her walk away, Eddie felt a deep sense of relief wash over him. Her expression, her silence, her troubled look... everything made him feel as though his story had worked. He was convinced that he had almost completely won her over.
But he was very far from imagining what was really happening.
Once inside the restroom, Gwen stopped in front of the mirror. She stared at her reflection for a few seconds before, in a gesture of frustration, forcefully smacking her forehead with the palm of her hand.
As she thought back to every single one of Eddie's words... every single one of his explanations... she had just understood.
And this time, she was certain.
— "...He's lying."
New York — Daily Bugle — End of the Day
Peter walked through the doors of the Daily Bugle without saying a word to anyone. His face was expressionless as he strode through the newsroom, ignoring the looks directed his way, before heading straight for J. Jonah Jameson's office.
Without even bothering to knock, he opened the door and, with a sharp motion, tossed a large cardboard envelope onto his boss's desk. Inside were all the photos from the fight against the Terrifying Six.
Intrigued, Jameson opened the envelope and began examining the pictures one by one with unusual attention.
— "These aren't fake?"
— "No."
— "You sure?"
— "Yes."
— "...You're really sure?"
As he went through the photos, Jameson struggled to hide his astonishment. The shots were of exceptional quality and captured every key moment of the battle. One question kept running through his mind: how could this kid get so many pictures of Spider-Man when even experienced adult photographers couldn't?
Trying to throw Peter off balance, he finally looked up at him. A heavy silence settled over the office as the two men stared directly at each other. But, against all expectations, Peter didn't budge. He remained perfectly still, his eyes locked on his boss's, as though he had already prepared himself for every trick Jameson could possibly pull.
— "...Pay me for these photos."
After a few seconds of thought, Jameson let out an annoyed sigh. Whether he liked it or not, these pictures were worth a fortune.
— "Fine, alright. You're lucky they're good!"
Reluctantly, he grabbed his checkbook, quickly filled out a check, and handed it to Peter. The moment Peter glanced down at it, he immediately saw the problem.
— "It was two thousand dollars. Not one."
— "Do you really need two thousand dollars? What are you gonna do with it, huh? Go waste it on stupid stuff like comic books or video games?!"
With a gesture as dismissive as it was disrespectful, he motioned for him to leave his office.
— "Come on... get out of my office."
Last time, Peter had let himself be fooled.
But not this time.
Without losing his composure, he slowly pulled his phone out of his pocket and tapped the screen a few times. Across from him, Jameson frowned, caught between irritation and confusion.
— "What don't you understand?! Get out of my office, OR YOU'RE FI—"
He suddenly stopped.
A voice had just echoed throughout the office : His own voice.
For several seconds, Jameson remained completely frozen. In disbelief, he listened to every single word coming from Peter's phone. It was, word for word, the conversation they had recently had, when he had promised Peter a two-thousand-dollar bonus if he brought him photos of Spider-Man fighting super-criminals.
As the recording played, his expression gradually changed. His confusion slowly gave way to deep disbelief as he finally realized what Peter had done.
— "What the hell is this?!"
When the recording reached the end, Peter stopped it before it could start looping again. He then calmly slipped his phone back into his pocket as a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
— "Here's what we're going to do... You're going to give me my money. Otherwise, I'll report you for fraud and abuse of authority against a simple high school student. What kind of publicity do you think that would be for your business? Not a very good one, if you ask me."
— "You recorded me without my knowledge?! You know I can sue you for that?!"
Once again, he tried to intimidate him, hoping to regain the upper hand he had always had over him. But Peter remained perfectly unfazed. After everything he had been through over the past few days, Jameson's threats meant very little to him now.
Faced with the young man's icy silence, the publisher quickly realized that his usual act wasn't going to work this time. Annoyed, he finally gave in.
— "Alright, alright! FINE!"
He hastily grabbed his checkbook, filled out a new check, then handed it to Peter with obvious reluctance.
— "Here, there's your money!"
To Jameson's surprise, Peter didn't move an inch. He simply let his boss hold the check out into thin air for a few seconds before calmly speaking.
— "And the five hundred from last time?"
— "Kid... I'd advise you not to try to outsmart me."
Silence immediately fell over the office.
Jameson kept the two-thousand-dollar check extended in front of him, while Peter held his gaze without the slightest hesitation. Neither of them seemed willing to back down. It had become a true psychological standoff, where the first one to look away would appear to have lost.
The seconds passed... then, with a deep sigh, Jameson finally realized he had gone too far. Reluctantly, he filled out a second check for five hundred dollars before handing it to Peter.
This time, the young man took it immediately, snatching both checks from his hands with a hint of disrespect that made his boss grit his teeth.
Peter then turned around to leave the office. But just before walking through the door, he cast one last glance over his shoulder. A faint, satisfied smile appeared on his face. He briefly stuck out his tongue at Jameson... before giving him a glorious middle finger.
— "Y-You really just gave me the finger?! You?!"
Up until now, Jameson had managed to keep himself under control despite the blackmail. But this time... he had had enough!
— "Fine then... YOU'RE FIRED!"
Despite his boss's explosive tone, Peter remained perfectly calm. Better yet... he looked genuinely amused. With a slight smile on his lips, he turned back toward him with a confidence he had never shown before.
— "We'll see if I'm still fired when I bring you more Spider-Man photos."
Jameson opened his mouth... then immediately closed it again. Completely caught off guard, he couldn't think of a single reply.
Peter left the office feeling like he had won this battle. In a single day, he had just earned two thousand five hundred dollars. Few people his age could say the same.
After leaving his boss's office, he calmly headed toward Betty's desk to cash his checks. The young woman, who had overheard the entire exchange from her workstation, looked up at him with an amused smile.
— "Everything alright?"
— "Yeah. Much better."
He returned her smile before handing her the two checks. Betty took them, quickly signed them, then handed them back. Peter carefully slipped them into his pocket.
— "I'm glad to see you got your money. All of it, I mean."
— "Definitely... it's always better than getting paid only half."
A light laugh escaped both of them. For a few moments, they exchanged a knowing look, happy to see that, for once, Jameson hadn't managed to get away with one of his dirty tricks.
— "Thanks again."
— "My pleasure, Peter. Have a good evening."
Peter gave her a simple friendly nod before turning on his heel and quietly leaving the Daily Bugle.
For the first time in a long while, he felt a weight lift from his shoulders. At least, for now, money problems weighed a little less heavily on his mind.
TO BE CONTINUED.