"Mr. Parker!" the English teacher bellowed. All around her, the whole class was snickering at Peter Parker's predicament. "Mr. Parker, wake up, now!"

"Five more minutes," Peter moaned. The class laughed even harder, especially Flash Thompson.

Flash Thompson could be called the school's resident bully, and his favorite target used to be Peter. He had loosened up on him after Peter's uncle Ben's death. Hey, Flash might be a jerk, but he knew how it felt to lose someone.

So, they were sort of friends now, Flash supposed. Peter didn't really talk to him that much; he mostly spent time around Gwen Stacy, Flash's tutor. Gwen was a good tutor, she wasn't impatient and she explained things like formulas and symbols well. Peter was pretty much the nerdy guy, except for one thing: he didn't look like nerd, as much as the jocks hated to admit. Even the head cheerleader, Olivia Bennett, thought he was cute. So the question was: why didn't he talk to other girls?

Peter was shy and bookish, but that just got people more interested in him. But he was strong. Flash figured that out the day he tried to comfort Peter about his uncle's death and Puny Peter Parker had 'pushed' him against the lockers and 'held' him up. Then Peter had completely annihilated the backboard of the basketball hoop in the gym when he pushed Flash aside to shove the ball (which he refused to give to Flash) through the hoop.

All things put aside, Peter Parker was an enigma. He had stopped wearing long-sleeved jackets, mostly because it was winter (didn't the guy ever get cold?) and Gwen stole them from him. Occasionally, he wore hoodies, but he took those off in the classroom. At first, teachers had tried to persuade him to wear warmer clothing, but he repeatedly assured them that he was fine and he didn't feel too cold. Eventually, the teachers just left him alone. What surprised everyone was that Parker actually had muscles, and they were more defined than any of the jocks' muscles on the football team, including Flash's. Why had he hidden them before? 

And now this: falling asleep during class. Actually, Flash thought, this was the first time Peter had ever not been paying attention to the words that were coming out of Ms. Kelly's mouth. Parker was smart, there was no doubt about that, and the main thing that had made Flash pick on him was that everything came so effortlessly to him, and he didn't even need to pay attention, but he did anyway. Also, he might have heard the girl he had a crush on talking about how cute Parker was.

So, now, Flash was sitting in 6th period, English class, silently musing on the changes that had occurred in Peter Parker. The guy even had a girlfriend now!

Flash was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard Gwen's soft voice saying, "Peter, get up now. You're in school, and we do not want anyone to know what happened..." Flash only heard this much since he was so close to them. What had happened to Parker? Was he getting beat up? Was he into drugs? Flash immediately dismissed the last theory; Parker was a smart guy, he wouldn't take drugs. So what was up with him?

"Peter, Peter," Gwen kept saying, and she nudged him gently with her hand, pale fingers brushing through the messy brown disarray that was Peter's hair. Finally, one of Flash's friends, Chase, who wasn't too fond of Parker (he had wanted to, ah, do Gwen, but she had rejected him), walked over to the sleeping boy and the fretting blond, and whacked Peter with his English Grammar textbook. "Mr. Masters, that wasn't necessary," Ms. Kelly scolded him.

Chase ignored her and took another swing. Flash winced; Chase was strong and he could crack another boy's skull, it was a wonder that he hadn't managed to break Peter's yet. Suddenly, a long-fingered hand, thick with callous, grabbed the textbook and the arm of the wielder along with it, and flipped Chase into the blackboard.

There was a moment of silence. Chase weighed 160 pounds and most seventeen year old boys should only be able to bench press till about 150 pounds. Some of the boys on the football team hadn't even managed that. But Peter Parker just did, in front of his English class, and he was asleep and with one arm. Slowly, every head in the classroom turned to Peter who just shifted in his sleep and returned to snoring softly, nestling his head against Gwen's hand, which had stopped combing through his hair a little while ago.

"How did he do that?" Chase groaned.

"I don't know," Karen Smith answered, "I honestly don't know." Karen was a nerdy girl, sort of like Gwen, except Karen's field was math, not science. And Gwen was prettier. "But that was <em>seriously </em>impressive." (Karen was known for having a crush on Peter, and for detesting Gwen because she was better at math than her.)

Ms. Kelly broke the silence. "Miss Stacy," she said, addressing Gwen, "did you know that Mr. Parker was able to do that?"

Gwen's face paled and her blue eyes widened. Flash pitied her; she was a horrible liar. She would have no choice but to tell the truth. "Yes, ma'am," she answered softly.

"Why didn't you tell anyone about that?" Flash blurted out before he could stop himself. "I mean, he could be an excellent football player if he put his mind to it..."

"Yeah," a fellow teammate, Joe, agreed. "If he's able to lift Chase..." The rest of the statement didn't need to be spoken.

"Hmm," Ms. Kelly muttered. "Well, Miss Stacy, I'll be informing Coach Warren about this. Peter could have serious potential in athletics as well as academics. That's pretty rare."

It is rare Flash thought. So why hasn't he told anyone? "Ms. Kelly, with all due respect, could we take a small break from revision, please? We've been doing it for weeks now," Flash said. 

A frown marred Ms. Kelly's otherwise quite pretty face. "I suppose we could skip revision for today, Mr. Thompson." When the rest of the junior class cheered, she added: "But I won't let this happen again. Anyway," she continued, "we should still wake Mr. Parker up. As we've tried everything else," she glared at Chase, who flinched, "maybe we should pour a little water over his head. He can dry himself off with a towel later."

Mikey, a mousy-haired, scrawny boy got up from his seat, and walked over to Peter. He looked at Gwen hesitantly, but his body relaxed when she gave him a short nod. Mikey unscrewed the cap of his red plastic water bottle and gently tipped it over Peter's head. It was a little hard for him, given that Peter was 6 feet tall and had a broad back while Mikey was around 5'2" and was tiny.

When the first drop of water touched Peter's hair, his dark brown eyes flashed open, alarmed. Flash was surprised that the guy would have such a strong reaction to some water. But surprise was an understatement to what Flash would be feeling next.

Peter flipped his long body into the air. His white shoes fell off from his feet and landed on the freaking ceiling, which was 12 feet high.

"Mr. Parker!" Ms. Kelly shouted. "Get down from there now!"

"HOW DID HE DO THAT?!" Chase roared. The class was panicking and Flash wasn't far behind them; how the hell did Parker do that, and why didn't any of them know he could? Peter, meanwhile, was just blinking in confusion from his upside-down perch from the ceiling.

Everyone was still shouting: How did he do that? Why didn't we know? That was freaky! What the hell, Parker?!

Suddenly, Gwen Stacy got up and stood on her chair. She put her fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly. The students and the English teacher were silenced by the shrill sound and some people even covered their ears. "Be quiet!" she shouted. "Can't you see that he's confused?" Then, in a much gentler tone: "Peter, please come down."

Peter immediately complied. "Gwen?" he asked softly, his already quiet voice hoarse. One girl made an "aww"-ing sound. When everybody looked at her, she demanded, "What? He's adorable!"

"True," Karen muttered. "So true." She glared at Gwen, who ignored her. The blonde's eyes were fixed on her boyfriend who was stumbling around tiredly.

"Peter, how much sleep did you get last night?" Gwen asked, her voice deceptively calm. Flash knew that tone. That was the tone she used on her brothers when she was mad, and boy, did she get revenge. It was honestly surprising to know how a girl could be so sweet most of the time, but when someone got on her bad side, she would turn into an absolute demon, Flash mused.

"Um, about thirty minutes, I think," Peter slurred, his eyes closing.

"Thirty minutes?" Gwen's voice got even quieter. "Thirty minutes?!"

"Yeah... why?"</p><p>"Mr. Parker," Ms. Kelly scolded, "you need nine hours of sleep every night, and you're telling us you only slept for half an hour last night?"

"... Yes." At this, Flash had to chuckle quietly. It was funny to know that Peter could also sound dumb.

"Peter, look out!" Gwen suddenly shrieked. "There's water, you'll sli—"

But Peter's foot had already skidded across the water that had fallen from Mikey's bottle. Before he could fall, he caught onto the edge of his desk, and the desk crumpled in his fist.

Again, there was an awed silence. It seemed that Ms. Kelly and her students were learning an awful lot about a certain Peter Parker that day.>"Parker, did you just crush a desk in your hand?" Flash asked. There was an undertone of fear. If Peter could do that when Flash had been picking on him... Flash was glad that Peter was such a nice guy, honestly.

"Um, I think so..." Peter managed to get out, before falling asleep again. Gwen groaned. "Way to go, Bug Boy," she muttered, "now they <em>know </em>something's up."

"We also know that you're in on it, Miss Stacy," Ms. Kelly snapped. "Now, would you please explain what that was?"

"No," Gwen said, surprising Flash. Since when did <em>Gwen Stacy</em> disobey a teacher? "It's Peter's secret, and he's the one that should tell you if he wants to." Ms. Kelly was stunned speechless.

"Um, Gwen?" Flash asked.

"Yes, Flash?"

"Parker just did some stunts that no human should be able to do. Can you, like, give us some, uh, feedback, please? Like, about his abilities?"

"Yeah," Karen said snobbishly. "We deserve that much, Stacy."

Gwen scoffed. "You deserve that much? Since when did any of you deserve anything from Peter? You all picked on him, and talked about him behind his back, and now you think that he <em>owes you something?!" 

Wow. Flash had never seen Gwen look that pissed, even when Simon, her younger brother, ate all of her chocolate. (Gwen had a serious obsession with chocolate. Honestly, Flash didn't think she could live without it.)

"Even the teachers!" Gwen continued. "You always expect so much from the good students! We always have to be perfect, and when Peter lost his temper one time, his 'amazing' record was tarnished, and he wasn't such a great student anymore!"

Every human in the classroom looked ashamed of themselves, including Chase and Ms. Kelly. "You all sicken me!" Gwen spat out. "You're all pathetic excuses for people!"

Flash felt her words hit him. He had never imagined that sweet, encouraging Gwen could be so... harsh. But her words were the truth, every one of them. He had picked on Parker and made his life miserable. He had made up rumors about him, and then nobody wanted to be seen with him. And that wasn't all. He had harassed Peter, physically and verbally, and Parker hadn't even made a move to hurt him (because honestly, seeing what happened in class just convinced Flash that Peter could kill him in a second). Gwen was right. He was pathetic excuse for a human being and he didn't deserve the kindness and empathy Peter gave him.

Peter was nice to everyone in the school, when they all didn't want to be seen with him. And Flash was certain, that Peter knew about the rumors, but he didn't retaliate. The only times when Peter had fought back were when he told some people that Flash's real name was Eugene. But those people were easily intimidated and Flash had put a stop to others finding out. The other time was with the backboard in the gym. Both times Parker shocked Flash, and he became even more estranged.All in all, Gwen Stacy was the only person in the school who actually <em>knew </em>Peter Parker, and for the first time, Flash felt jealous of her. He was clearly a nice guy, and was actually pretty funny (Flash had overheard him telling Gwen a joke). Flash wanted to know Parker, but Peter just kept pushing him away, and Flash kept wondering why. Now he knew. That was what he truly deserved: torture from Parker. But Parker wouldn't hurt a hair on Flash's head, but why? Why, dammit, why?

"Gwen?" a voice broke the silence. "What's going on?" It was Peter.

"Nothing, Peter," Gwen said. She had calmed down a bit. "Go back to sleep. You need it."

"No, I don't. What's wrong?" Peter asked, concern evident in his voice. Again, Flash felt jealous; Parker had true friendship with an awesome girl (NO, Flash didn't like Gwen THAT way) while he just had people worshiping him because of his brute strength. No one really cared about what Flash thought, they just cared about his muscles. In fact, now Flash was willing to bet that if a new, stronger guy came in senior year, the last year of high school, all his 'friends' and 'admirers' would ditch him. Only Peter and Gwen had true happiness.

"Peter," Gwen sighed out in exasperation.

No, I want to know," Peter said stubbornly. "If anyone hurt you, I'm kicking their ass." His fist clenched around the crushed desk in his palm, compressing it even more.

Peter," Gwen chided, "look at that lump of metal in your hand. If you 'kicked someone's ass' they might as well be dead."

Flash shuddered. He was so glad that Peter wasn't too big on revenge. He couldn't imagine what would happen if Peter actually displayed his strength to the student population. They'd all be dead within a week.

"If they die, then they wouldn't bother you anymore!" Peter protested. "And what lump of metal are you talking about?" 

"This lump of metal, Peter," Gwen said, taking it from him. "The one you just crushed."</p><p>"Oh." Peter blinked. After a beat, he asked, "Can I have it back?" 

"Why?" Gwen asked, smirking. Her moodiness had evaporated entirely and there was an adoring look in her eyes. Peter and Gwen seemed to be in their own personal universe, completely unaware that their English class and teacher were watching them.</p><p>"I'm bored." 

"No," Gwen teased, "I don't think so, Bug Boy."

"Well," Peter sighed. "I guess I'll have to do this, then." As sudden as a snake sinking its fangs into its prey, a coil of white string flew out from Peter's hand and attached itself to the chunk of black steel and pale wood in Gwen's palm.

"Is that... webbing?" Mikey asked in a hushed voice. Flash jumped in his seat. No way. Webbing? Peter Parker used webbing to grab the lump from Gwen? But... only Spider-Man used webbing!

Spider-Man was New York City's greatest hero. He had defeated the Lizard, who was actually Dr. Connors from OsCorp, a couple of weeks ago. The wall-crawler had quickly become a favorite of kids and adults alike, because he was a <em>real </em>superhero for Christ's sake, and because he was awesome. Flash was a loyal fan of the man in the mask.

But... could the man in the mask be Peter Parker? It was impossible! But there was proof, too. Peter had attached himself to the ceiling with no effort, thrown Chase Masters into the blackboard and he had jumped fifteen feet in the air when he had broken that backboard. And from the footage shown on the Internet, the one when Spider-Man was mask-less in front of the cops, Spider-Man was tall, had dark hair, and he was a white guy.

Peter fit all of the criterions required to be Spider-Man. Oh my Gods... Flash had wailed on his hero? And the whole school had picked on him? And Peter still saved them all?

Why? None of them were required to be saved except Gwen, the only person who had shown Parker kindness. Shit. Flash was in trouble if Peter Parker was Spider-Man.

Wait a minute... Wasn't Parker the guy who took all those pictures of Spider-Man? Flash felt himself relax. Peter <em>couldn't </em>be Spider-Man then... unless he took pictures of himself. Fuck. No wonder he got such good shots!What troubled Flash was that Peter didn't go looking for attention. As much he hated to admit, Flash would reveal his secret identity (that is, if he was Spider-Man) immediately if someone asked him to, just for the publicity. Parker didn't show off; he just did what he had to. And, Peter didn't just show up one day with the Spider-Man photos, the photography club asked him to get them since he was one of the best photographers in the school. Double shit.

"Peter," Flash whispered, so low that no one could hear him. One of Parker's ears twitched up in his direction. Superhuman hearing. Triple shit.

Peter turned towards him. "Yes, Flash?"

The school's resident bully forced himself out of his seat. He opened his mouth. "Are you Spider-Man?"Everyone's suspicions were confirmed when Gwen and Peter exchanged a panicked look. "Oh, man," Parker moaned.Quadruple (yes, Flash knew the word, thanks to Gwen) shit.