Step, step, step.
Relying on a combination of Makoto Kyogoku's combat experience and the heightened auditory perception granted by the Lizard Serum, Peter instantly identified the person approaching—Gwen.
Peter wasn't surprised by her sudden arrival. In fact, it was exactly what he had anticipated. For Gwen, after suffering such a crushing setback, he was the only childhood friend she could turn to for comfort and to pour out her heart.
With this in mind, Peter stepped out of his bedroom and headed downstairs, making it look like he was just looking for a late-night snack. Right on cue, the doorbell rang. Peter turned and pulled open the door.
"Gwen?!"
He wore an expression of perfectly measured surprise, his voice just loud enough for the two elders in the living room to hear.
Almost the instant he called out her name, Peter noticed the television volume in the living room drop by several decibels.
He rolled his eyes internally. Uncle Ben, Aunt May... at your age, how are you still this gossipy?
Outside the door, Gwen let out a long sigh of relief. She leaned in close to Peter's ear and whispered, "Take me to your room. Don't let Uncle Ben or Aunt May follow us."
Peter nodded knowingly. His sharp gaze flickered briefly over the wound on her abdomen before he turned and shouted toward the living room:
"Aunt May, Uncle Ben! It's Gwen. She's stuck on a few assignments and wanted to ask for some help. I'm taking her upstairs!"
"Oh, and she said she's on a diet lately, so definitely don't prepare any snacks for her, or she'll get grumpy!"
In the living room, Uncle Ben and Aunt May shared a knowing smile, their eyes filled with a mutual "we get it" look.
"Right, right. You young people focus on your studies; we won't disturb you!" Uncle Ben gave Peter a mischievous wink and pointedly turned the TV volume back up.
Click.
Only after the bedroom door was locked did Gwen finally allow herself to relax. She nearly collapsed into Peter's arms.
After traveling all the way from the Manhattan Bridge, heaven only knows how much blood she had lost. An ordinary person would have been in shock by now.
Seeing her pale face, Peter wasted no time on words. He dragged a pre-prepared first-aid kit from under his bed. Signaling for her to sit on the edge of the mattress, he carefully lifted the hem of her shirt.
On her smooth, fair abdomen, three terrifying claw marks were etched into her skin.
This was the first time the two had crossed such a boundary of physical proximity—so close that Gwen could clearly feel Peter's warm breath against her skin.
A strange, tingling sensation radiated from the area around the wound, causing her face to flush involuntarily.
"How did this happen?" Peter asked casually as he cleaned the wound with an alcohol-soaked cotton ball.
The sting of the alcohol forced a soft hiss from Gwen, dispelling the fleeting romantic tension. She gathered her thoughts and launched into the cover story she had prepared:
"Did you see the news about the Manhattan Bridge?"
"I... I happened to be there when that lizard monster showed up..."
"I saw it with my own eyes. He was trying to kill Ms. Felicia, the secretary from Oscorp we met before. I tried to jump in and help, but I got caught in the crossfire..."
Her voice grew quieter, laden with self-reproach and distress. "Later... Ghost-Spider saved me. She was incredible and fought off the monster, but Ms. Felicia still died."
"Peter, do you think I'm useless? If I had been just a little braver, maybe I could have saved her..."
Listening to her, Peter couldn't help but chuckle internally. This silly girl really never forgets to maintain her 'Ghost-Spider' image, does she? Aren't you afraid I'll tell you one day that I've fallen in love with that mysterious Spider-Woman?
Despite his internal monologue, Peter spoke with genuine sincerity after finishing the dressing. "Gwen, this isn't your fault."
"You did everything you could, and you even got hurt in the process. There's no need to be so hard on yourself."
As he wrapped the bandage, Peter adopted a guiding tone, analyzing the situation as if piecing together a puzzle. "Think about it. In such a chaotic scene, the lizard monster was singular in its goal to kill Ms. Felicia. What does that tell you? It suggests it was a targeted assassination."
"Since the goal from the start was her death, even if you or Ghost-Spider had saved her temporarily, the monster would likely have just hurt more people on the bridge to distract you before coming back to finish the job."
"So, don't blame yourself. As long as you know your heart was in the right place, that's enough."
Under Peter's comfort, Gwen truly did feel the weight on her heart lighten. Simultaneously, Peter's analysis sparked a realization of details she had previously overlooked. A name suddenly surfaced in her mind—Dr. Connors!
If things were as she suspected, didn't that mean Oscorp was still in danger?
"I understand now. Thank you, Peter!"
Seeing that her wounds were bandaged, Gwen didn't dare stay longer. She gave Peter a grateful look and hurried back to her own house, using the excuse that she didn't want her dad to find out she had snuck out.
Watching her figure vanish into the night, Peter knew exactly where she was going: Oscorp. He hesitated for a moment but decided to follow her silently.
Even though he knew Dr. Connors had likely already left with the serum, Gwen was still injured.
Furthermore, a re-stabilized Lizard would be in a state of primal fury—he couldn't risk anything happening to her.
Just as Peter predicted, Gwen's trip to Oscorp was a bust, leaving her to swing away in dejection.
However, what neither Gwen nor Peter realized was that as she swung away, two pairs of eyes were watching her from the darkness of the CEO's penthouse office.
"Ho? So there really are more of our kind."
Behind the Green Goblin's mask, Norman's mouth twisted into a grin. He watched Gwen's retreating back with eyes full of greed. He was certain this "Ghost-Spider" girl was a perfect specimen.
"You should have let me keep her here," Connors' dissatisfied voice rasped beside him.
"No. Acting now would only alert the prey!"
The Goblin's eyes gleamed with calculation as a plan to kill two birds with one stone formed in his mind.
"Instead of making a mess here, why don't we visit Peter Parker's school tomorrow? Midtown High seems like the perfect place for a little... ambush!"
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