Flash spotted Peter Parker walking over and immediately waved with excitement.
"Parker, come take a picture of me."
Peter shook his head."No, I'm not taking that picture. Put him down, Gordon, don't eat that."
"Come on, Parker, just take it!"
"Put him down, Flash."
Flash ignored him completely. To him, Peter was just a poor, powerless kid without parents his favorite target for bullying.
But this time, Peter's anger flared. He had tried to blend in, to live like a normal teenager, but all he ever received was rejection. Fine then. No more hiding. I'm Spider-Man.
Peter raised his voice."Put him down, Eugene!"
The name struck like a whip. Everyone knew Flash hated being called by his real name, Eugene. No one dared use it least of all Peter Parker. The surrounding students gave Peter a look that screamed, you're finished.
Enraged, Flash hurled Gordon to the ground.
Thud!
The poor pet hit the floor like a discarded piece of trash.
Flash stormed toward Peter and swung a heavy punch at his face.
The watching students flinched, instinctively turning their heads as if the blow had landed on them. They were sure Peter's face was about to be smashed to pieces.
Even Gwen quickly raised her book to shield her eyes, unwilling to see the awkward, gentle boy humiliated again.
But the expected cry of pain never came. Curious, Gwen peeked out from behind her book—only to freeze in shock.
Peter had caught Flash's fist with one hand. No matter how much Flash struggled, he couldn't move it an inch.
Flash was taller, stronger, a regular at the gym and basketball court, built like a tank. Peter, by contrast, looked skinny and frail, a nerd who seemed like he couldn't lift a chicken. Yet now, it was Peter who held the upper hand.
The sight was incomprehensible.
Humiliated, Flash tried to knee Peter in the groin. If it landed, the fight would be over.
But Peter was faster. He lifted his leg in defense.
Crack!
The sharp sound echoed as Flash collapsed, clutching his leg in agony.
Peter didn't press the attack. He had no interest in bullying Flash. After all, Flash was just an ordinary guy, barehanded, while Peter had powers that could easily cause real harm. One wrong move, and it could have ended very differently.
Shaking his head, Peter picked up his backpack and walked out toward the main doors.
Seeing him leave, Gwen hurried after him. Peter kept his head low, weighed down by the day's frustrations.
"Peter, Peter Parker!"
He turned quickly at the sound of a girl's voice. Gwen.
"Hi sorry, I was lost in thought and didn't hear you. Did you need something?" he said, tugging out his earphones apologetically.
"It's nothing. I just wanted to say… what you did back there was amazing. Really cool." Gwen smiled, her eyes sparkling.
"Uh, I was thinking"
"Were you thinking"
They spoke at the same time, then laughed awkwardly.
Peter shoved his hands into his pockets, fists tight, his mind blank. Aside from Mary Jane, his childhood crush, he'd never spoken so openly with a girl as stunning as Gwen.
Strangely, Gwen was flustered too. As one of the school's top debaters, words usually came easily to her. Yet standing in front of Peter Parker, her rehearsed lines slipped away.
She said nothing, instead kicking at small pebbles with the heels of her riding boots, her long legs wrapped in stockings shifting restlessly.
Peter scratched his head."Maybe we could… hang out sometime? Or, if you don't want to"
"Okay!" Gwen blurted, her eyes reflecting his.
"Really?"
Peter froze, stunned by her answer.
"Yes. Anything's fine."
"Really?" he asked again, still unsure.
"Yes," Gwen repeated.
"Alright then… I'm just not ready right now. I've got a lot going on."
"That's fine," Gwen replied softly. "I'm busy too."
Realizing how forward she sounded, her cheeks flushed red. She gripped her book so tightly her knuckles turned pale.
"But maybe, another time, we could" Peter stumbled, his eyes darting nervously toward her legs.
"Okay, goodbye!" Gwen cut in quickly. Unable to take the tension anymore, she lowered her head, muttered, then turned and hurried away.
Peter stood there, watching her graceful figure disappear, his heart racing. Only when she was completely gone did he turn toward the bus stop, glancing back again and again at the path she had taken.
While Peter wrestled with the stirrings of young love, Ethan found himself immersed in something far more cosmic.
The Space Stone.
Among the Infinity Stones, it was the first to appear, the longest present, and one of the most influential in shaping the Marvel universe.
Before creation itself, six singularities existed: Power, Space, Soul, Reality, Time, and Mind.
After the Big Bang, cosmic deities forged these singularities into six Infinity Stones. None was inherently stronger than the others, and none could completely counteract another.
For instance, the Mind Stone's scepter could pierce the Space Stone's barriers, while the Time Stone could restore a shattered Mind Stone.
Even so, the Space Stone held a special, central place in Marvel's universe.
In Captain America: The First Avenger, it became the prize everyone sought. Red Skull led Hydra into Norway, where they uncovered the Tesseract hidden away by Odin himself. At the time, no one knew it was the Space Stone.
Red Skull had Hydra's chief scientist, Zola, craft a weapon powered by the Tesseract, one that could instantly banish enemies to unknown corners of the cosmos.
But in the end, Red Skull met his downfall. The Tesseract consumed him, sending him to Vormir where he would become the eternal guardian of the Soul Stone.
(End of Chapter)
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