Two Years Ago

A crowd of eager students from Midtown High School surrounded the large Alchemax Industries building. Today, the freshman class was taking a visit to Alchemax for a science exhibit regarding insects. Seemed like quite an interesting opportunity for learning.

Y/N, however, would rather be doing anything else.

Rolling up to the front of the building, Jacob L/N bid farewell to his son and Peter before heading off to work.

"You boys better enjoy this exclusive experience. It's not every day you get to witness the wonders of Alchemax up close. Consider it one of the special privileges of having a dad who works here."

"Yeah yeah, Dad, we're really lucky." Y/N rolled his eyes playfully. He was happy that his Dad took great pride in the opportunities his work provided for him, but he would much rather be engrossed in his sketchbook.

Jacob chuckled, knowing that his son wasn't as into the field of science as he was. But, being a practical man, Jacob wanted his son to prioritize his studies and focus on more "serious" pursuits.

A/N: Art is totally a serious pursuit.

"Well, Y/N, I hear they have a section on spider-inspired technologies. Maybe you can find some inspiration for your drawings there."

Y/N shrugged. "Huh, that is actually a good idea."

Eventually, they arrived at Alchemax Industries, a towering building that represented innovation and scientific advancements. Among the company's achievements included showcasing cutting-edge technologies and groundbreaking research.

"Well, boys, the VIP treatment ends here." Jacob joked as the boys left the car, "I need to go to work."

"Thanks for the ride, Dad." Y/N waved. "I'll see you at home."

"Keep an eye on Y/N, Peter. I don't want him getting too lost in his drawings and missing out on the exhibits," Jacob remarked.

"I'll try my best, sir." Peter replied.

"Dad, you know I can still hear you." Y/N sighed, rolling his eyes in annoyance.

"Oh, I know." Jacob smirked, "just try to enjoy yourself. Stay focused, you might learn something."

With that, the two boys exited the car, wandering to join their classmates at the entrance hall. The boys marveled at the impressive building, its sleek design towering over them. Inside, the exhibit was a buzz of excitement, with curious attendees exploring various scientific displays and numerous demonstrations.

But unfortunately, their experience was short-lived.

Flash Thompson and his friends made their presence known. Flash's taunting voice filled the room as he sneered at the exhibits, his voice dripping with mockery. "Look at all this nerd shit. What a waste of time. Who cares about any of this?"

"Hey Flash," Y/N exclaimed. "Maybe if you paid attention, you could actually pass physics this semester."

Laughter erupted from some kids nearby, but Flash's face twisted in anger, storming with his cronies up to Peter and Y/N.

"Oh God, we're in for it now." Peter groaned, wishing that his friend wouldn't have mocked Flash.

"What's up, Penis Parker!" Flash mocked, "How about you, L/N? Caught up in those lame drawings of yours?"

"Gee, I don't know, Eugene," Y/N shrugged, eyes never leaving his notebook. "You figure out how to not get caught up in your own ego?"

Flash fumed with anger, knocking the boy to the ground before grabbing his notebook and ripping out all of Y/N's sketches.

"What the hell?" Y/N yelled, causing the attention of nearby bystanders. "I worked hard on those!"

"Well, I guess now it all went to waste." Flash shrugged smugly, kicking the notebook away from Y/N.

"Pick them up, Flash." Y/N said angrily, inching towards the bully with malice.

"Y/N, don't do this." Peter warned, not wanting to escalate the situation.

"Pete, stay out of it." Y/N replied, "pick up my sketches, Flash."

"What are you gonna do about it?" Flash replied smugly. "Daddy gonna use his special privileges to not let you get your ass beaten in his workplace?"

"That's enough!" A voice called out to the students, revealing itself to be none other than a fuming Jacob L/N.

"Oh no." Y/N fidgeted in embarrassment.

Flash turned around, looking embarrassed as he tried to feign innocence, blaming the whole thing on Y/N.

"He started it!" Flash pretended. "You should have a talk with your son about provoking people randomly."

"Wow, you really are as dumb as my son says you are." Jacob smirked, "I'm not buying that for one second."

The surrounding students laughed at the older L/N's remark, causing Y/N to see his Dad in a new light, far away from the nerdy scientist he is usually perceived as.

Jacob demanded that Flash pick up every single page of Y/N's art and return it to him. Neatly, and in order.

"Now apologize to him." Jacob demanded.

"What! That's not-"

"Trust me, Flash, I can have you thrown out of Alchemax in a matter of seconds, and that's not something the star football player can afford to have on his record. Apologize... now."

Y/N looked in disbelief at the sight of his father standing up to Flash. This was certainly not what he was used to at home.

Already humiliated and wanting nothing more than to get away, Flash apologized to Y/N.

"I'm sorry." Flash said begrudgingly, glaring at Y/N.

"Sure, Flash." Y/N replied. "I guess it's fine."

Flash left with his friends, and the surrounding crowd quickly dispersed, leaving the father-son duo by themselves.

"Dad, that was awesome!" Y/N exclaimed.

"I got your back, son," Jacob smiled, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "Sorry about your drawings, though."

"It's fine, I can just make new ones." Y/N shrugged, "You gonna head back to work?"

"Yeah, I wish I didn't need to." Jacob said sadly. "Ever since Mr. Fisk joined Alchemax, he's had us on a tight leash."

Y/N was intrigued. If Wilson Fisk gets involved with a company as big as Alchemax, he has to be planning something massive. He was one of the richest businessmen in New York.

"Well, I'll see you at home." Jacob said, "Remember what I asked you, Peter."

"I don't think that's going to be much of a problem, sir." Peter smirked, looking at Y/N's ruined notebook.

"Dude, shut up." Y/N chuckled, punching his friend in the arm before bidding his father farewell.

The rest of the tour went by in a breeze, stunning exhibits and demonstrations in many modern fields of science were presented to the wandering eyes of students. Y/N even found himself actually enjoying himself with the demonstrations to an extent.

Y/N's attention was captured by a peculiar object displayed in the arachnids section.

Curiosity tugged at him, and he peeled off from the rest of his classmates, Peter shooting him a knowing grin before joining the others. Y/N pulled out his headphones, finding a quiet corner nearby and pulled out his sketchbook and a pencil, trying to capture the essence of a fascinating object that had caught his eye on a page that Flash hadn't destroyed.

Unbeknownst to Y/N, a tiny spider had been exploring the floors of the building, scurrying across the floor in search of shelter, bearing the mark of Alchemax. The spider stealthily crawled up his arm and settled on his hand, where his pencil rested.

Just as Y/N was engrossed in his sketch, focused on capturing some important details, he felt a sudden, sharp pain on his hand.

"Ouch!" Y/N seethed, clutching his hand tightly.

Startled, he looked down to find the spider, its fangs buried in his skin. Instinctively, Y/N swatted at it, knocking it away. The spider, now wounded, crawled a short distance away, finding shelter underneath a nearby bench.

Y/N observed his swollen hand, shrugging off the pain as a minor inconvenience before joining the rest of his classmates.

Meanwhile, the spider curled up and lay lifeless on the floor. Unbeknownst to anyone else, an eerie glitch ran through its body, revealing an inscription:

Alchemax

65

Present Day

The hallways of Midtown High School were filled with overlapping conversations as Y/N L/N maneuvered through the flock of students with a skateboard in hand, headphones blaring in his ears as he walked towards his locker.

Finally making it, Y/N fiddled with the combination. As he swiped through the numbers, Y/N felt a slight presence over his shoulder, his spider senses tingling as he kept on guard.

Looking over hastily, he was met face to face with his best friend, Peter Parker.

"Dude, you scared the hell out of me." Y/N sighed, placing his headphones down, "I really could have swung."

"Good thing you didn't," Peter joked, holding a newspaper in front of his face. "Did you see the Bugle this morning?"

Y/N grabbed the newspaper from Peter's hands, shuffling through the pages as he skimmed through the headlines.

Web-Slinger Strikes Again: Spider-Man Captures Infamous Shocker in Daring Arrest

Spider-Man: Hero or Menace?

Spider-Man: Maniac of Destruction

"Huh, seems like Jameson is a bit more tame than usual," Y/N shrugged. "I say it's a win."

"Yeah, he seems a bit obsessed," Peter replied. "So how was it last night?"

"Crazy," Y/N replied simply, "Herman got some new tech, I don't even know how I managed myself."

"Yeah, no kidding," Peter replied, continuing to walk to their next class. "You owe me for covering for you last night; your Mom was worried."

"What else is new?" Y/N said, rolling his eyes. "Just wait till she finds out how many classes I skipped this week."

But in the midst of their conversation, something caught Peter's attention. His gaze wandered off, and a grin tugged at his lips.

"You end up finishing the calc homework?" Y/N asked, noticing his friend's focused gaze. "Peter?"

Y/N turned his gaze toward whatever, or whoever, the Parker boy was focused on. His gaze landed on the charismatic and beautiful Mary Jane Watson, with her flaming red hair, who was chatting animatedly with a group of friends nearby. Peter's face flushed, momentarily forgetting their conversation at hand.

"When you've stopped ogling over MJ, we should probably get to Connors' class before we end up late," Y/N replied teasingly, causing his friend to stutter.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Peter replied, trying to act innocent. "What about Mary Jane?"

"Dude, admit it," Y/N teased. "You are whipped for Mary Jane Watson, I can't say I blame you either."

"Oh, you think so?"

"Yeah, but she's not my type," Y/N shrugged. "I always thought it would be cool to date a girl in a band. Someone with a rebellious streak."

"That would be a sight to see," Peter replied. "A tortured artist and the rock star. Let me know when you find this fictional woman."

"Dick," Y/N laughed.

"We should probably get to class; you know how strict Dr. Connors can get with tardiness," Peter suggested.

"What's he going to do? Chase us around with his other arm in hand?" Y/N joked, "but you're probably right."

🕷️

Later in the day, Y/N clutched his skateboard tightly, his red and white Vans slapping on the floor as he rushed to his chemistry class. The bell had already rung just as he made it through the door, his classmates turning to look at him as he rushed in.

"Wheels up, Mr. L/N," Ms. Riley, the chemistry teacher, scolded. "Late again?"

Y/N flashed a sheepish grin and replied, "Hey, at least I'm consistent, right?"

"Just find your seat, Y/N," Ms. Riley smirked, and Y/N made his way to an empty desk near the back.

As Y/N settled into his seat, he pulled out his notebook and began doodling, his mind wandering. Ms. Riley continued her lecture, delving into the complexities of chemical reactions. The class seemed engaged but struggled to answer a question she posed.

"Can anyone tell me what happens when you combine hydrogen peroxide and potassium iodide?"

Silence hung in the air as the students exchanged glances, unsure of the answer. Ms. Riley scanned the room, hoping for a response.

Her eyes landed on the L/N boy, who was engrossed in his sketch, unaware of the question being asked. Ms. Riley decided to give him a chance, knowing that Y/N always had a knack for surprises.

The boy was tardy, and he had his head in the clouds sometimes, but she did admit he was intelligent.

"Well, it seems like you all didn't do the reading last night. Y/N, since you seem to be so focused on your art over there, why don't you give it a shot?"

Y/N glanced up from his sketchbook, looking slightly surprised at being called upon.

"Uh, sure, hydrogen peroxide and potassium iodide? That would create an exothermic reaction, right? Producing water and oxygen gas as byproducts."

The class fell into whispers and surprised expressions. Y/N's nonchalant answer had caught them off guard.

"Well, it seems our resident latecomer knows his chemistry. Nicely done, Y/N!"

Y/N blushed, going back to his sketch, a detailed sketch of some graffiti lettering he was going to paint around the Brooklyn Bridge.

🕷️

With a swift movement, Y/N landed gracefully on the ground. He unhooked a backpack from his suit, which contained an array of vibrant spray paint cans. Taking a moment to survey the area, he imagined the design he wanted to create.

Using his artistic skills, Y/N plugged in some Arctic Monkeys and began to work, carefully layering colors and lines to form an intricate piece of graffiti.

Each stroke of the can was deliberate, revealing his passion and talent. He lost track of time, completely engrossed in his creation.

Finally, after hours of meticulous work, Y/N stepped back to admire his finished masterpiece.

The graffiti portrayed a vibrant cityscape, capturing the essence of New York, with splashes of color and intricate details that seemed to breathe life into the concrete walls.

As Spider-Man marveled at his artwork, he heard a faint crackling sound coming from the police radio on his phone. The voice of an officer echoed through the device, reporting a bank break-in nearby.

Without hesitation, Spider-Man swung into action, abandoning the artist's persona and donning his crime-fighting mindset. Y/N leaped onto the nearest building, swiftly web-slinging towards the scene of the crime.

🕷️

Rikers Island Maximum Penitentiary

A few days later...

In the dimly lit confines of Rikers Island Prison, Aleksei Sytsevich sat brooding in his cell. As a gruff and dim-witted Russian mobster, he had earned a reputation for his brutal nature and tough exterior. For years, he had been confined to this place, serving multiple life sentences for his violent crimes.

One seemingly ordinary day, as Aleksei idly sat on his cot, idly tracing his fingers along the faded tattoos on his massive arms, a gruff prison guard approached. "Visitor," he barked, his voice lacking any hint of warmth. Perplexed, Aleksei rose to his feet, curiosity mingling with caution.

Confused, Aleksei rose from his bunk and followed the guard. His mind raced with thoughts of who could be visiting him in this forsaken place. As they reached the visitor area, Aleksei's eyes fell upon a slick-looking man in an impeccably tailored suit. The stranger introduced himself as Phil Bradshaw, a member of the Maggia, a notorious criminal organization.

"What's this all about?" Aleksei grumbled, eyeing Phil suspiciously.

Phil flashed a charming smile. "Aleksei, my friend, I've heard of your... unique talents. The Maggia has an offer for you."

"Mag-gia?" Aleksei grunted, his thick accent cutting through the air like a knife. "What do you want with me?"

Phil leaned in, speaking in a hushed tone. "We've been keeping an eye on you, Aleksei. We need someone with your... unique skills for a job. You see, we're conducting an experiment, and we require someone with your brute strength and resilience."

The large man's interest was piqued.

"Speak."