[Perspective: Peter Parker]
Peter sat near the back, staring down at the glasses resting in his palm.
He had spent the last twenty minutes covertly examining them. He had checked the hinges, tapped the frames, even breathed on the lenses to see if a hidden holographic interface would appear.
Nothing.
He slipped them onto his face, looking around the bus.
Still nothing.
The world looked exactly the same, just slightly dimmer through the tinted glass.
There was no A.I. voice greeting him, no tactical overlay detailing the structural weaknesses of the bus seats. They were just... sunglasses.
'There must be some mystery,' Peter thought, taking them off and folding them carefully. 'Mr. Stark wouldn't just leave me a pair of regular Ray Bans. There has to be a hidden switch or a biometric lock I haven't figured out yet.'
He slipped the glasses into the inner pocket of his jacket, deciding to run a full diagnostic on them when he got back to the States.
Mr. Harrington stood up at the front, clutching the microphone. "Alright, everyone! Listen up! The good news is, we've all got our own rooms at the next hotel."
A collective gasp went up from the students.
"Serious?" someone shouted from the middle.
Peter leaned his head against the cool window.
"Parker?"
The voice came from the tiny earpiece tucked deep inside Peter's right ear.
"Parker!" the voice barked again.
Peter raised a hand to his ear and ducking his head.
"Yes, sir," he mumbled in a low voice, trying not to draw attention from the surrounding seats.
"That thing is going to be here in a few hours," Nick Fury's voice grated over the comms. "Are we boring you?"
"He's not bored," another voice chimed in over the shared frequency. Quentin Beck. "He's just thinking about how you kidnapped him."
"He had obstacles," Fury retorted defensively. "I removed them."
"And they still won't evacuate the city," Maria Hill's voice broke in, sounding thoroughly frustrated.
"Idiots," Fury muttered. "So, what's the plan, Parker?"
Peter sat up straighter, shifting into mission mode. "I will be in the cathedral tower, keeping watch for the fire monster. When that shows up, I will radio you guys, and then Mr. Beck and I will..."
"My name is Mysterio," Beck corrected gently.
"Right, sorry. That's when Mysterio and I will move in."
"Peter, listen to me," Beck's voice turned serious. "The best hope you have, the only hope, is to stop it there. No matter what the cost. Maneuver it away from civilians if you can, but most importantly, keep it away from metal. If it gets too big, it'll draw power from the Earth's core. After that, there's no way to stop it."
There was a beat of silence on the comms.
Peter frowned slightly as the static disappeared from his ears. But only moment later, the communicator suddenly buzzed again.
"Incoming connection request from Quentin Beck."
Peter pressed the accept button.
"Fury asked me check how you were doing," Beck said, his voice dropping to a more private register. "He just... he felt bad about snapping at ya..."
"Really?" Peter asked, genuinely surprised.
"You guys do have sarcasm on this Earth, right?" Beck chuckled.
Peter let out a small chuckle of his own.
"How you feeling?" Beck asked.
"Uh, I didn't think I was gonna have to save the world this summer," Peter admitted, his voice quiet. "I know that makes me sound like such a jerk. I just... I had this plan with this girl that I really like, and... now it's all ruined."
"You're not a jerk for wanting a normal life, kid," Beck said. "It's a hard path. You see things. You do things. You make choices. People look up to you, and even if you win a battle, sometimes they die."
Beck paused.
"I like you, Peter," Beck continued. "You're a good kid. There's a part of me that wants me to tell you, just turn around. Run away from all this. And then there's another part of me that knows what we're about to fight, what's at stake, and I'm glad you're here."
"Me too," Peter whispered.
"But you're worried about your friends."
"Yeah," Peter sighed. "Just always feel like I'm putting them in danger."
"Look, just get them inside and keep them in a safe place for just a few hours," Beck advised. "They'll be all right."
"It's really nice to have somebody to talk to about superhero stuff, you know?" Peter admitted, feeling a genuine connection to the man from another Earth.
"Anytime," Beck said warmly. "And, hey, we survive this, you'll have all summer to kill Brad."
Peter smiled. "See you out there."
"All right."
The bus lurched to a halt.
"Alright, everyone!" Mr. Harrington clapped his hands, standing at the front. "Grab your bags and gather in the waiting area."
Peter grabbed his backpack, filing off the bus with the rest of the class. They clustered together in an ornate plaza.
Mr. Harrington stood on a small stone bench, looking thrilled.
"Good news," Mr. Harrington beamed. "We're going to the opera!"
A collective groan echoed through the plaza.
"You're kidding me," someone muttered.
"The opera?" Betty Brant asked, looking horrified.
Mr. Dell held his hands up defensively. "Don't look at me."
"What happened to the carnival?" MJ asked, her brow furrowing.
"Well, this is upgraded living, guys," Mr. Harrington insisted, waving a handful of tickets. "Come on. The tour company just gave us these tickets. For free! Do you have any idea how much opera tickets cost?"
"No," Flash Thompson yelled from the back, "because none of us have ever wanted to go to the opera, ever."
"I think this is gonna be culturally enriching for us," Ned offered helpfully.
"Thank you, Ned," Mr. Harrington sighed in relief. "Everyone, this is gonna be, maybe, the best four hours of our whole trip."
"Four hours?!" the entire class shrieked in unison.
"Guys, I think this is gonna be really fun," Ned tried again. "Seriously."
"I bet now you're all happy I had you pack a nice outfit," Mr. Harrington said proudly.
"Yeah, because we'd much rather go to a four hour opera instead of the biggest party in the world," Flash shot back.
"Again, don't look at me," Mr. Dell repeated, backing away slowly.
"Okay, here we are," Mr. Harrington said, gesturing to the grand entrance of the opera house. "Beat the rush."
"Yeah, the rush out," Mr. Dell muttered under his breath.
"Lucky for us, we got the best seats in the house," Mr. Harrington declared, leading the miserable procession inside.
"Let's go," Mr. Dell sighed.
As the crowd shuffled toward the entrance, Peter found himself walking next to MJ. She was wearing a simple dress, her curly hair pulled back.
"You look really pretty," Peter blurted out before his brain could filter the thought.
MJ stopped, turning to look at him with a deadpan expression. "And therefore, I have value?"
Peter's eyes widened in panic. "No, no, that's not what I meant at all! I was just... I was just saying..."
MJ's lips twitched into a small smile. "I'm messing with you. Thank you."
Peter exhaled a breath of relief. "You're welcome."
"You look pretty too," MJ offered, turning back toward the stairs.
"Thank you," Peter beamed, his heart doing a chaotic flutter.
They walked into the grand lobby. It was dripping with velvet and gold leaf.
"Oh, my gosh!" Betty squealed, pointing at a small kiosk. "Opera glasses!"
"So cute," Ned agreed immediately.
"Can I?" Betty asked, batting her eyelashes at Ned.
"Yeah," Ned said, digging into his wallet.
MJ looked at Peter. "Want to go in on a pair?"
Peter's brain stalled. "You mean... sit next to each other?"
"Yeah," MJ shrugged, looking everywhere but at him.
Before Peter could answer, a sharp burst of static erupted in his ear.
"Parker, do you copy? Comm check, one, two," Maria Hill's voice demanded.
"Are you in position?" Fury barked.
"No," Peter mumbled, trying to sound as if he were just clearing his throat.
MJ frowned. "Okay. No..."
"Why the hell not? Parker?" Fury demanded.
"...you don't want to sit next to me, or, no, you just don't want the glasses?" MJ asked, her expression closing off slightly.
"I didn't mean that!" Peter said frantically, realizing how his mumble sounded. "If you go ahead, I'll go grab us a pair."
MJ's expression softened. "I'll save you a seat next to me. Because, a lot of seats, so I'll be up there."
"Awesome," Peter said.
"Okay." She turned and headed up the grand staircase.