To be fair, while it wasn't technically his first time inside the building, this was truly Peter's first time visiting the Daily Bugle headquarters in an official, professional capacity.
He headed toward the skyscraper after school, checking the photos Felicia had sent him along the way. He had half-expected Felicia to send pictures of herself trying on the gown, but instead, she had sent simple shots of the dress alone.
Then he checked in on Gwen's end. Judging by Cindy's reaction, there was no doubt Felicia had messaged Gwen as well. Or perhaps not necessarily; both Felicia and Cindy were at the detective agency, so it was natural for them to have each other's contact information, but Felicia and Gwen didn't seem particularly well-acquainted.
Peter tucked his phone away and let out a long sigh. Sometimes, he felt that matters of the heart were far more taxing than being Spider-Man; fighting crime felt much more straightforward.
He looked up, eyeing the Daily Bugle's high-rise and J. Jonah Jameson's personal billboard.
"Alright, the Daily Bugle. To be honest, I'm not short on money these days, but I am lacking in other things—like intelligence resources. Though I doubt I'll get much timely consultation out of the Bugle. After all, I don't plan on being a mere photographer here."
Peter recalled that he still held a part-time position doing network maintenance for the Daily Bugle, a job he had been consistently performing. He had also visited with MJ before and met Jonah, but this time was fundamentally different.
This time, he was here to earn some pocket money.
Musing on this, Peter walked up to the reception desk and asked the receptionist directly, "Hello, if I have photos of Spider-Man, who should I give them to?"
The receptionist gave Peter a rather curious look. "Why not just send them via email, sir?"
"Oh, these photos were just taken. I happened to be passing by, so I thought I'd come in and ask first."
So you haven't even developed them yet? The receptionist looked at Peter oddly, then picked up the phone to make a call. After a moment, she looked back at him. "Sir, may I ask for your name?"
"Peter Benjamin Parker."
Undoubtedly, the person on the other end of the line remembered that name immediately. Peter watched as the receptionist said "Yes" several times before turning to him. "Mr. Parker, Mr. Jameson would like you to come up to his office."
"Oh, okay. Thank you."
Before the receptionist could tell him where Jonah's office was, Peter had already headed straight for the elevator. Realizing he must have been here before, she simply sat back down and returned to her work.
As for Peter, he had already used his enhanced hearing to recognize Jonah's voice on the other end of the line, so he made his way to the office with clinical precision. Surprisingly, there was no one at the door. Peter knocked and heard Jonah's voice from within.
"Come in, Mr. Parker."
Peter opened the door and found Jonah immersed in his work. Before him sat an old-fashioned electronic typewriter-fax hybrid—a device Peter had never even seen before. Jonah continued to type as he exchanged pleasantries.
"I remember you, Mr. Parker. You brought a very fine photograph to the Daily Bugle last time. It seems you have more good news for us?"
"Yes, Mr. Jameson. The photos are all in here."
Peter handed the camera directly to Jonah, who looked at him with a hint of confusion. Jonah frowned as he scrolled through the photos, beginning his interrogation.
"So, one of the brightest students I know isn't in class or tucked away in a lab, but is instead out there following a dangerous, violent, masked freak in a unitard, taking pictures of him to trade for cash at the Daily Bugle. Tell me, son, are you in some kind of trouble?"
Actually, I'm here to fish for information. Peter, of course, had no intention of telling Jonah the truth, so he improvised an excuse. "Some things can certainly be resolved in the lab or at school, but some creative sparks don't fit into lab projects..."
"Ah, I see. So you need money for lab equipment or the like. Hmm... a shame. While these photos are well-taken, they just... lack impact."
"It's hard to find many supervillains in New York these days, Mr. Jameson."
Jonah let out a hearty laugh at that. "I suppose that's true," he said, handing the camera back to Peter. "I'll take five of these. Fifty dollars each, alright? After all... they do lack impact."
"That's perfectly fine. Thank you, Mr. Jameson."
Peter smiled as he took the camera back. He hadn't come for the money anyway; he had already used the camera as a cover to deploy nanobots into Jonah's office. His objective was achieved.
However, following the principle of 'since I'm already here,' Peter asked casually, "Do you know anything about the immortal ninjas, Mr. Jameson?"
"Immortal ninjas?" Jonah laughed dismissively. "Don't listen to those messy urban legends and forum stories. Where did you hear such a ridiculous tale?"
"Er, Spider-Man told me. He said—"
"Spider-Man!"
Jonah's voice instantly drowned out Peter's. Peter saw the man's gaze turn sharp. "What else did Spider-Man say?"
"Spider-Man said that many immortal ninjas have appeared in New York recently. He said they're fighting gangs for territory and that it's getting dangerous around here..."
"Haha! I wondered why Spider-Man had been so quiet lately, with only those untrained, clumsy copycats making a mess of things while swinging around. So he's been investigating immortal ninjas..."
Jonah frowned as a thought occurred to him, and he grabbed the phone. "Get Urich in here. I have something to discuss with him."
"Are you planning to investigate the immortal ninjas? That could be dangerous, Mr. Jameson."
"Don't think journalists are that stupid, Parker. Unless absolutely necessary, we wouldn't dream of sending our precious investigative reporters to the front lines of a murder scene. We lost enough good reporters and photographers during the Green Goblin crisis."
Jameson chuckled as he spoke. "But in other respects, journalists have their own ways. Alright, thank you for coming, son. Thank you."
After shaking hands and saying goodbye, Peter left the office. Regardless of the journalists' methods or whether they would encounter danger, everything was now under his surveillance.
Come to think of it, MJ worked at the Daily Bugle too, though he hadn't bumped into her today.
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