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'Ok, this was a bad idea,' thought Peter, as he stood dressed in his Spider-Man suit in a crowded mass of civilians. The only thing was, he wasn't there as Spider-Man, as he was surrounded by at least a hundred other Spider-Men, (or girls), who in this case, all happened to be people trying to win the prize for the best Spider-Man Halloween costume, just the same as him. It was really quite an event.
It had seemed like such a good idea at first, genius in fact, when he saw the advertisement for the event displaying the costume competition placed around the city. He thought it would be a fun way to earn some much-needed cash from the prize money. But now, he felt nothing but awkward humiliation, because he was surrounded by other Spider-Men, who all had better costumes than his own.
'This is ridiculous. I am Spider-Man, the real deal, and yet their costumes, all trying to look like me, are better than me! So not fair,' he mentally grumbled to himself, as he stood with his shoulders slumped and arms curled around his middle, feeling very much second rate. 'I mean, what about that guy? His costume's way cooler than mine! And I bet he has lots of money to pay for it too, and yet, he's still talking with his friends highly of me, still feeling he's not living up to me or my costume! If only he knew,' he rambled on in his head, staring miserably at a much taller, more muscley guy -praising and fanboying over Spidey to his friends. He was wearing a costume that in both richness of colour, and quality, far outmatched his own, and Peter always thought his own was awesome. Now, he didn't think so as much.
"Hey man, you alright?" Peter practically jumped out of his skin, but contained himself as he cautiously looked around, to see a friendly looking, dark-skinned teen standing behind him, also in a Spidey costume, minus the mask. "You look a bit down in the dumps," he continued.
"Oh, no, I'm fine," Peter replied, rubbing his arms slightly, feeling oddly skinny and awkward amongst all these people.
"Aha, you cold? I don't know how the guy keeps warm in these things, especially swinging around up so high; must be freezing," the boy smiled.
"Umm, no-no I'm not cold," Peter mumbled.
The guy looked at him for a minute before extending his gloved hand, "Well, I'm Matt."
Peter looked at it for a second, before responding. "Nice to meet you, Matt," he said, shaking his hand.
"Would you like a nibble?" Matt then asked him, holding out a small silver tray Peter hadn't noticed he had in his other hand. It was covered in small pieces of food shaped like flies. "I made them myself, for the occasion," he added, smiling.
Peter didn't hesitate, as he reached over and grabbed one. "Yeah sure," he said, and rolled up his mask, leaning his head back and shoving one in his mouth. Matt's eyes widened in surprise, before his face softened into a smile as he watched Peter eat his creation.
"Wow, you're the first person who's been willing to eat one of those without even second guessing," he said, grinning. Peter was too busy enjoying his tit-bit, though, and found himself quickly eying the tray again.
"Can I have another one of those?" he asked, hesitantly beginning to reach out.
"Umm, yeah sure, I guess. Help yourself," Matt said, slightly baffled, and Peter quickly shoved another one in his mouth.
"It's so nice isn't it?" Matt asked after a minute with a slight sigh as he looked around the chatting crowd, making conversation. "So many people together, all celebrating a hero: truly honouring his work. I love it! It's such a wonderful thing to do, don't you think?" he continued talking, looking far off in his thoughts.
Peter just briefly looked up at him from licking his gloved fingers. "Mmm," he answered, not properly listening, before hesitantly nipping yet another treat from the tray.
"I'd like to think it would make him feel proud, seeing people dressing up as him, wishing they could be heroes and make a difference to this world. He makes such a good example, and that's always helped me through tough times in my life, you know? One day, I'd really like to meet him, and...what are you doing?"
Peter paused in his place with his hand halfway towards the tray, looking up at him as if he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
"How many of those have you had? Jeeze dude, you don't wanna know what's in those, I don't even know if I wanna know, and I made them. I don't have a clue why you like those things," he rambled.
Peter pulled back and suddenly looked incredibly awkward, clearing his throat. "Sorry," he mumbled, pulling his mask back down.
"Nah, no sweat dude, no one else was gonna eat them anyway, I just don't get how you can stand the taste," he said, appearing heavily disappointed with his own creations. "I bet even Spidey himself wouldn't eat these," he moaned, giving them a sad look. Peter suddenly looked at him, attention finally fully gained as he said this, and he trailed his gaze over the boy for the first time, seeing his sad and troubled face . It was as if he'd been through a lot, and his eyes, which held true loss, somewhat reminded him of his own. He then looked down at the boy's costume.
"Hey! How did you do that?" he suddenly yelped, moving forward and grabbing his arm, examining the suit.
"That? Oh, it's just a little idea I had. Thought Spidey would like it if he ever were to see it," he said, with humbled embarrassment, as Peter excitedly looked at his costume. "But, unfortunately, that's never gonna happen," he then added, sounding suddenly down and depressed, "as in, who's lucky enough to ever meet Spider-Man? I think the people who are rescued are so blessed to meet him in person, but, it's just such an impossible thing."
"This is so cool! Why didn't I think of that? Arrggg," Peter babbled excitedly, before throwing his head back in a frustrated moan. "That is awesome man," he praised. The suit had webbed gliders stretched under the arms and down his sides, while the spider on the front of the suit glowed green in the dark along with them, and the blue parts of the costume had a shimmery, deep purple tinge.
Matt laughed nervously at the over enthusiastic attention, "Well, thanks. And, the eyes glow too, and the colour can change from green to a light blue," he said, and pressed something on the side of one lens, causing them both to glow green. "I had the idea that they could be cool night vision, but of course, these don't actually have that in them, but anyway," he explained. "They're not the right shape, though, whereas yours are perfect!" he then quickly said, before he moved forward to look into Peter's eyes. "You got that big, wide friendly look Spidey gets, and that glossy reflectiveness that leaves you fascinated and wondering what's underneath. It's spot on! And I love the bug shape, almost teardrop like." He brushed the black outline of them where they met the suit. "How did you make them man? I think you're the only person here who got those spot on!"
Peter felt slightly awkward over the fanboying he just witnessed over his eye lenses, and shifted slightly on his feet while looking down, "Oh well, I made them myself," he mumbled.
Matt pulled a gasping face, "What, you did? Whoa that's cool," he yelled.
"Well, you made your suit too, and it's more awesome than mine," Peter pulled up the courage to say, head shifting slightly in sharp little movements of embarrassment.
"Nah man, you've got the classic, and nothing beats the good old original look," Matt encouraged, with a quick hand on his shoulder, smiling at him.
"Hmm, thanks," Peter replied, only just managing to accept the compliment through his own self- doubt, before looking up at him, a long awaited question burning at his mind. "Ah umm, could I ha-have the designs for your suit, please? I-I think it's-it's really cool you see," he managed to get out.
Matt stared at him. "You want the designs for my suit?" he said, appearing to be thinking. "Ah...well, I guess so, but it's only a little something I made, nothing special. You got something to write it down on?" he asked.
Peter looked down at himself, "Ah, no man, sorry-"
"No pockets, yeah? Haha, shoulda known - the little guy's always having trouble with that. Here, don't worry, I have a pen and paper in my bag," Matt cut him off, before moving over to a nearby bench where a black bag was sat, from which he quickly produced a small notepad and biro. Then, (without being asked), he began to freely scribble down his designs.
After about five minutes, he was done, and handed the finished work out to Peter, who'd been watching, slightly shyly but attentively, the whole time. "Here you go man, all the designs are on there. It's not too hard to make, and I put a few directions on there to make it easier, so you should be able to create your own quite fine," he said, with more kindness than one would expect, treating Peter like he was his good friend.
"T-thanks," Peter said, as he looked over the designs, both shock and excitement running through him, causing his hands to tremor slightly at the thought that this boy had just freely given him his designs. Him! If he ever should wear them, he would do so with honour. "I'm sure I'll have no trouble making it," he said with confidence, looking up at him with a sudden surety.
Matt smiled, "I'm sure you won't," he said, before moving to sit down on the bench. He let out a big sigh, before patting the spot next to him - inviting him to join. "You want a seat?" he asked, and Peter smiled beneath the mask, before planting himself down beside the teen.
The duo sat there for quite some time as the event went on, chatting about inane subjects as they waited for the winners to be announced. They joked and laughed, Peter finding himself slipping out a bit of Spidey humour at times, which was usually kept for people he was most comfortable with when he wasn't out and about fighting crime and rescuing all forms of damsels in distress, (male and female alike), when he was on patrol. His company didn't seem to notice, though, as he just thought Peter was a big Spidey fan like himself, and was amused and entertained at how much he could imitate the voice and personality of the real thing, finding it quite enjoyable. He really had no idea.
Matt actually seemed to like Peter a lot. The longer they talked, the less his eyes looked full of pain and sorrow and the more they began to sparkle and glow with happiness, like a huge burden had been lifted off his shoulders. He laughed belly deep along with the vigilante in disguise, practically rolling around on the bench as his eyes watered.
All too soon the fun was over though, as it was time to announce the winners. Almost sadly they both straightened themselves up, before paying attention to the announcer who'd just walked onto a small stage with golden yellow lights shining over it and a black microphone stand at the front. Behind him, a large banner spanned across the stage backdrop with various pictures of Spider-man in different mid-air poses that had been taken during some of the many times Peter was swinging around the city. They were some special photos he'd snapped with a remote control camera he'd had hovering around in the air as he swung. It was the best idea he'd had yet when it came to shooting pictures of himself as his spider-like alter ego.
"Ugh, I wonder who's going to win? There's a lot of prize money there," Matt whispered to him excitedly. Peter just licked his lips, which felt odd against the mask, nodding his head slightly and becoming suddenly tense. He really did need that money...
"Ladies and gentleman," the announcer addressed, "it is really nice to have you all out here tonight, with so many spectacular costumes about, but, unfortunately, we must announce a winner." He said boldly, "Now, the judges have counted their votes, and made a decision. Drum roll please!" The sound of drums played through the speaker as he checked his notes. "And the winner is!" he extended his hand out to an area of the audience, "the wonderful young man down the side here." And with that, everyone cheered and the crowd parted to reveal a costumed man the announcer was pointing to. Without wasting a second, he casually strolled up to the stage to take his place at the centre.
Peter couldn't help but clap half-heartedly, while Matt was practically jumping up and down with enthusiasm.
"Wow, look at his costume! It's damn amazing!" he yelled.
The said "Spider-Man" bowed on stage and waved at everyone, giggling slightly. "Hello everyone, just your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man here, thank-you so very much," he said, voice oozing with proud over-confidence, and Peter couldn't help but growl under his breath.
"Congratulations! Are you sure you're not Spider-Man?" the announcer laughed playfully.
Peter's imposter seemed to think for a minute, before casually standing with his weight held back on one leg, "Well, even if I was, I couldn't tell you that, could I?"
Peter fumed inside, he was trying to imitate him in a manner so cocky it made his ears practically steam and eyebrows scrunch up in fury.
The announcer bellowed a laugh, along with everyone else, before a man ran onto the stage with a sealed envelope full of the prize money, a good three thousand. "On that note, it is my honour to award you with this," he said. And with that, he handed the masked man his reward.
"Wow, this'll buy me a nice car to impress all the ladies," he joked in a chipper voice, showing off his money, and Peter couldn't take it anymore. He threw his head back and let out a massive, frustrated groan, drawing the attention of the entire crowd and startling Matt.
"A car, really? A car? You win all that money and that's the best you can come up with. How very humble, and noble of you, heh," he said sarcastically, fuming, before he suddenly shot a web from his wrist, (causing everyone to suddenly gasp and stumble back), and swung away, leaving behind one very shocked crowd, an even more shocked "Spider-Man", and an utterly disbelieving, overwhelmed Matt.
2 weeks later.
Matt walked down the sidewalk of lower Manhatten. He'd had a busy day, attending several job interviews around the city, hoping that if luck went his way, he might just land one.
Ever since that night those few weeks ago, something had changed in Matt. He felt happier, lighter, like something had been shone into his very soul and awakened it from a deep, deep slumber. It was good; it inspired him. For once in many years he'd really picked up his life from the dirty ground and was getting things done and shifting back on track, dusting away the cobwebs. It felt great. He was getting somewhere; he was achieving stuff, and it was all thanks to a certain little cheeky red and blue hero.
Spider-Man had saved Matt's life in more ways than he'd ever know, and all he'd done was talk to him. It had done more good than one would think a simple conversation, or kind gesture, would do, and Matt would be lying if he didn't consider the web-slinger now his friend, even if he never saw him again.
Looking down into his hand he opened up a plastic container filled with little dark coloured balls of homemade food. They may not have looked like much, but they held a very special place in Matt's heart as a quick snack. They may no longer be shaped like flies, but they were the same recipe he'd made for those Halloween nibbles, the same ones Spidey had practically gobbled up that night, and Matt had learned to enjoy them, as they reminded him of that priceless encounter.
Matt's internal wanderings were cut short as he heard a startled gasp next to him. Without wasting a moment, he looked up in concern - wondering what was wrong, and if someone was in trouble. He was faced with a man looking almost fearfully up above himself, towards the sky, and out of curiosity, he followed his gaze. Immediately, his face slackened and lips parted slightly, as a shiver of heavy emotion and almost disbelief washed through his form.
There was Spider-Man, perched on the very edge of a building roof - right at the top, crouched on the tips of his toes with his small hands resting between his feet. The setting sun was shining right behind him, illuminating his form and casting a shadow over his being. He was looking right at him. He knew this because, the eyes, they "glowed". Realisation hit him like a ton of bricks, and he gasped, bringing a hand up to his mouth.
Spidey cocked his head to the side, before he seemed to coil up. He leaped off the ledge, extending his arms on either side of him, revealing a shimmery green glow as web gliders spread out from his sides. He dived straight towards the ground, and for a second, Matt thought he was coming down to him, before the gliders seemed to take an effect and his direction shifted as he caught the breeze. He zoomed right over Matt's head, grabbing something on his way, and landed on the wall behind him.
In the darker area, he could clearly see the glow shining off Spidey's chest, as he was wearing none other than the night costume he himself had designed. Matt couldn't help it when a tear trickled from one eye.
Spidey raised something up to his face and smelt it, before lifting up his mask, preparing to pop something in his mouth. It was then that Matt realised he'd snagged one of his Halloween snacks from the container still open in his hand as he went over, and couldn't help but stare in slight awe as it quickly disappeared as the web slinger ate it.
"Mmm," Spidey suddenly voiced, "Still just as good, if a little tastier. I like the improvements," he said. "Oh," he then added, as he did a little twirl of sorts on the wall, showing off his costume, "thanks for those tips you gave me, by the way, made it nice and easy. You like?" he asked.
Matt broke out into a ginormous grin, as it was about all he could do. But it was response enough, and Spidey's lips curled up into a friendly smile that Matt could see because of his raised mask.
"Good," Spidey said, before he then shot a web, and swung down the street. "See ya round," Matt could hear him yell back in the distance, and couldn't help but stare, transfixed as his form disappeared.
He stood on the sidewalk, completely oblivious to the people as they walked by, before shaking his head with a smile, and making his way down the road, eventually merging in with the regular hustle and bustle of New York City.