Osborn flew up to me, stunned, and hugged me.
"Yes, it's me, Harry."
"I can't even believe it. Did I just end up in some alternate New York during a flight? In what reality would you even see Flash Thompson listening to Peter Parker instead of trying to give him a good beating for company?"
"Apparently the one where Peter Parker got tired of being a victim and resolved his issues with Thompson before the prodigal friend returned. Did I even call him a friend?"
"Wow. You never cease to amaze me, Pete. From what I understand, a lot has changed while I was gone?"
"You have no idea. Okay, classes are almost over, let's go."
It turned out that Harry and I didn't have many classes together. Biology, physics, and that's it. The conversation continued during lunch.
"Harry, allow me to introduce my friends, Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy. Miles, Gwen, my childhood friend Harry Osborn."
"Nice to meet you, people."
"Me too, Harry."
"How is it in Europe?"
"Actually, quite boring. I rarely even went beyond my private schools."
"And the hotties? They say the girls in Europe are just…"
"Miles!"
"Sorry, Gwen. Healthy interest. I was just laughing at my friends' conversation."
"By the way, maybe you could explain how Peter Parker, a good-natured, science-loving guy, turned into a confident machine capable of pacifying Flash Thompson?"
"You won't believe it, Harry, but just five months ago, Mr. Parker wasn't much different from the image you described."
"I'm new here myself, although I admit, Peter also didn't make the first impression of someone who stands up to powerless musclemen like Thompson."
"And here he is sitting with you and hearing everything. For those who don't understand, I'll repeat it again. At our age, hormones do all sorts of things. Multiply that by the rutting Flash did to him, and boom, there you have it."
"Oh, so our boy has grown up?"
"Very funny, Morales. But you can consider it so."
"Then we'll accept it as the official version."
"Finally. How are things with your personal life, Harry? Did you really have plans for Liz Allen?" I decisively change the subject, opening a delicious pudding.
"Honestly, I didn't expect her to be such a beauty, and even less expected her to be taken by Flash," Osborn said sadly.
"Well, if I were you, I wouldn't let my gloves down. Even a fool can see that things aren't going smoothly between her and Thompson, so who knows how things will turn out."
"Wow, Mr. Parker, how long have you been an expert on matters of the heart?"
"Not really," I grinned.
"I'll keep an eye out."
The rest of the day passed quite dynamically. It seemed Harry was eager to make up for lost time and began to integrate into our group quite radically.
Well, I don't mind. I was expecting a lot, but Harry turned out to be an incredibly warm guy, a bit like Osborn after "One More Day" (damn him). So let's give him a chance. With these thoughts in mind, I got home and suddenly realized something. I don't have headphones. This simple thought took a long time to sink in. In my "past life," I couldn't even imagine leaving the house without some music to accompany me.
The habit was starting to creep in. So I needed to address the issue. Deciding not to go home, I went straight down to my lab. Opening my laptop, I waited for the machine to boot up, checking a couple of my developments and experiments along the way. After waiting, I went to the Bugle website.
Yeah, they really don't need a web designer. But what I was looking for was still there. An announcement of a reward for photos of Spider-Man. Lucky.
Whistling a cheerful tune, I opened my secret suitcase. Pushing aside my suit, throwers, and other gear, I pull out a stack of photos wrapped in a rubber band. Everything is in place.
After checking the photos and gathering a few things, I decide to head to the Bugle. I need money anyway. Asking my aunt and uncle doesn't seem right, but earning money is an option. You never know what whim, except for headphones, might come to mind. I get to the editorial office quite quickly.
The presence of the subway solves the traffic problems. Taking the elevator to the right floor, I'm naturally transfixed by the scene before me. Life on this floor is in full swing.
Everyone is running, shouting, fussing. Someone is answering phones, someone is demanding to contact the printing house, and so on. And, like an island of calm, in the center of the room is a large and incredibly luxurious office with glass walls and a door. It's as if all these people don't want to approach this office, but rather circle around it.
I simply confidently walked towards the desk where the gorgeous brunette was sitting.
"Excuse me, miss, but this is the J. Jonah Jameson's office, right?"
"You are?"
"Peter Parker."
"I'm sorry, but Mr. Jameson is very busy, I doubt you'll be able to meet."
"Believe me, he'll want to see me. Tell him I have photos of Spider-Man." Betty looked at me in surprise, but typed the comm.
"WHERE IS THE GUY?!?!?!?!?!" Jameson flew out of the office, screaming incredibly loudly.
"Um, you're probably talking about me?"
"MISS BRANT, IS IT HIM?!?!?!??!?!?!"
"Yes, Mr. Jameson," apparently accustomed to her boss's tone, the girl didn't even wince.
"Call Robbie," Jonah ordered more calmly. "AND YOU, FOLLOW ME!"
Once in the office, he immediately snatched the photos from me. A couple of minutes later, a black skinned man approached and nodded at me—presumably Robbie Robertson.
"Trash. Crap. Crap. Utter crap. Two hundred bucks for everything," Jonah said, handing the photos to Robbie, who immediately began looking through them.
"Um, then I guess I'll take them to a more appreciative editorial office," his face reflected a slight hint of irritation after hearing my answer.
No, no, I didn't find myself in a garbage dump. You want to save money, Jonah? You'll be sitting without photos.
Jameson was about to launch into an angry tirade, but was interrupted by Robertson's voice."If I may say so, the pictures are quite good. Get yourself a more professional camera, practice your hand and you'll be done. The kid's clearly got talent, Jonah."
"Hmm..." Jameson took the pictures again. "I still think you're as lousy a photographer as a poop-pomegranat…alright! I'll listen to my friend. Eight hundred bucks for the whole lot and buy a better camera. Stop by Miss Brant's for the check. The door's over there."
Surprised by the sudden windfall, I leave, not even noticing Robbie's astonished look.
"Miss Brant."
"Come on, just Betty will do."
"Just Peter then."
"Mr. Jameson told me to come get the check."
"Yes. You're lucky, though. I've never seen such generosity from him... never, actually."
"Perhaps it's my signature 'Parker's Luck'. The name is patented, by the way."
"Hahhahahaha. Funny. Have a nice day, Pete," Betty said, smiling and handing me the check.
.....
[Jonah's Office]
"Were we just flirting?".
"Are you serious, eight hundred dollars? The photos aren't bad, but still," Robbie said hesitantly.
"You saw it all yourself. If the guy had more professional equipment, the quality would be really good. I bet you can't name three other photographers with such quality."
"Yeah, but..."
"And besides, I never pass up a chance, you know that. And the kid's eyes? Confidence. After I offered a clearly low price, he could've accepted them or showed anger but —no, he showed character! The kid's a fighter, that's immediately obvious, but it's good to take his generation down a peg sometimes."
"So what are you planning?"
"He'll work for us, unofficially. And then, to cut off unnecessary revenue from other publishers, I'll offer him a contract to officially supply this Spider's photos exclusively to the Daily Bugle. There's something about that kid, Robbie. We need to keep an eye on him." Robertson had no choice but to agree with his friend.
******************************
Eight hundred bucks, holy shit! That cheapskate Jameson gave me that amount, I still can't believe it. Without thinking twice, I decided to pop into the nearest electronics store. And there I had a choice of two chairs, or rather, two salespeople. The first was a rather pretty brunette, a real flirt, but I doubt I'd be able to successfully buy everything I needed. The second was a typical pimply, nerdy-looking guy. I could have been the same.
***************
[12 minutes later,]
Derek actually turned out to be a nice guy. We got so chatty discussing the latest tech. He even confided that he'd been wanting to ask Nicole (the brunette) out for a while, but alas, he was afraid of rejection. I, quite honestly and openly, said that it was better to try than to miss out on a chance and then find out that the girl you like is already with someone else.
He gratefully said he'd listen. In any case, it's done. First, I bought the latest digital camera. It cost me less than five hundred bucks, but it's a quality device, nothing special.
Second, I bought headphones. They were cheaper, but I also decided not to skimp and got a quality product for one hundred and fifty dollars. In the end, I have $150 left over from my earnings.
So, it's going into savings until better times. Besides, I'll take a few more photos today. When I got home and took the headphones out of my ears (God, what a thrill), I ran into Uncle Ben.
"Hey, champ, how are you?"
"Great, Uncle Ben, look," I said, holding up the crumpled bills.
"Wow, where did you get the money?"
"I earned it," I said, proudly puffing out my chest.
"Wow, well done, Peter," Uncle Ben suddenly hugged me.
"I'm so glad you're growing up to be an honest man, earning your living through your own labor."
Hey, let's try to keep a straight face, so as not to let it slip that we didn't actually earn this money through honest labor.
"May's at the store, but I'm sure we'll wait for her and have a celebratory dinner, what do you say?"
"Sure."
.
.
.
Thank you all for your support.
Please vote with power stones and write a review.
Do check out the other book as well.
A New World (Dc X Marvel)