Gwen POV:
I had co by unexpectedly, hoping to cheer Peter up after a long week and to ask him why he forbade from bringing food that might trigger allergic reactions. When I found him in his room he looked distracted, whispering to himself in front of his laptop. Sothing about the way he flinched when I walked in front of him felt wrong.
"Peter… what are you doing?" I asked softly.
He froze. His gaze flicked to . "Nothing. Just… working."
I didn't buy it. Not after everything. His hands used to tremble slightly when he typed due to his spinal injury but now that slight trembling was gone. He was wearing the oversized heavy tal t shirt he caught a few years ago in a concert I dragged him to because I had two tickets. There was a cold precision in his posture, unnatural. Sothing told I wasn't supposed to see this.
"Peter…" I pressed, stepping closer. "Talk to . You've been… different."
His face fell. For a mont, I saw a flicker of guilt. And then he looked away, muttering sothing I couldn't catch. In order to console him my arm sling over his shoulder but that's when I felt it. An unnatural growth along the length of his spine and his uncomfortable wincing.
I pulled up the t shirt and he didn't resist. What I saw horrified . It was a grey and tallic thing with glowing neon orange accents running across the full length of his spine. It had clamps digging into his flesh that was still raw with the wounds from surgery.
That was it. I snapped.
" Peter are you insane?! You disappear into so… basent lab with machines and you don't even tell ?! Now I co to you after a single night and there is already sothing surgically fused to your spine which if I'm correct you did yourself without telling anyone. Do you realize how terrifying that is?!"
His jaw tightened. "I—"
"I trusted you, Peter! I almost lost you once and now you're hiding… this?!" I yelled while gesturing towards his glowing spine which would've been cool if it wasn't actually fused with my best friend's spine.
And then the tears ca. Ugly, uncontrolled. My sobs shook my shoulders. "I can't do this… I can't watch you do everything alone anymore!"
Peter POV — Confrontation
I froze, stunned. My heart hamred in my chest. "Gwen… I didn't want to scare you. I didn't—"
"You didn't want to scare ?" She sobbed, pointing a shaking finger. "Peter, this isn't normal! You're cutting open your own body without telling anyone! What the hell is wrong with you?!"
I swallowed hard. She had every right to hate right now. To fear . To… cry.
"Gwen, listen. I fixed my upper body." I said, voice low, almost pleading. "The Sandevistan compensated for the damaged spine. I can move my arms, my hands… everything that was broken is working again."
Her breaths were ragged. "And your legs?"
"They're… mangled," I admitted. "But I have a plan. Regeneration serum and sothing unexpected. I'm going to fix them — slowly, carefully. And no one else needs to know about this. Because my spinal implant isn't just a run of the mill prosthetic. It's sothing far more."
She didn't respond. Just hugged her knees and sobbed.
Uncle Ben and Aunt May POV:
The pounding on the door startled both of us. Aunt May and Uncle Ben entered cautiously.
"What's going on?" Aunt May asked, eyes wide as she spotted Gwen sitting on the floor, crying.
Peter's voice shook. "I… I'm… trying to fix myself. But I tried to hide it."
Uncle Ben knelt beside Gwen, gently resting a hand on her shoulder. "Gwen… honey, slow down. Peter's… he's trying to heal. But he should've told you."
I nodded, ashad. "I didn't an to hide it. I just… didn't want to scare anyone. It's complicated — surgical, technological. I thought I could handle it myself."
Aunt May's voice softened. "Peter, we know you're brilliant. But you're still human. You don't have to do everything alone."
Gwen sniffled, her voice small. "But you didn't even tell , Peter. I could've helped. I wanted to help."
I looked at her, the tears glinting in her eyes. "I know, Gwen. I'm sorry. You… you've always been there for . I just… I didn't want to make you uncomfortable."
Uncle Ben finally spoke, calm and firm: "Peter, we all care about you. And part of being strong isn't doing dangerous things alone. It's letting people in. Even when it's scary."
I nodded. Slowly. "I understand. And… I'll be careful. I'll take it one step at a ti. My upper body is fine now thanks to the Sandevistan. My arms, hands, reflexes — all working. Legs… they'll follow. And I promise, I'll let soone help when the ti cos."
Gwen looked at , her sobs quieting. "Promise you won't… keep doing these insane things without telling ."
I reached for her hand. "I promise."
She squeezed it tight. "Good. Because I can't handle losing you again… not like this."
I swallowed. "You won't. I'll be… careful."
The basent was quiet except for the soft hum of the integrated 3D computer of the fabricator in the corner. Gwen didn't know about it yet. She didn't need to. For now, it was enough that she could trust that I wasn't hiding everything from her anymore.
And for the first ti since the surgery, I felt like maybe I could actually do this. One piece at a ti, without losing the people I cared about most.
Read ahead on P.A.T.R.E.O.N
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