"Ugh…"
Sekinin opened his eyes, feeling… Better, strangely better.
As if the spider bite never happened, the burning, the soreness, the pain he felt, as if it was all just a bad dream. Yet, Sekinin couldn't help but think that something was off. He rubs his eyes before reaching for his glasses, which fell off when he collapsed.
He put them on as he opened his eyes completely, only to find that his vision through the glasses was blurry. He slowly took them off, and as he saw his vision was perfectly clear, he blinked before putting his glasses on again. Again he saw the blur through them.
"(Did my eyes get clearer? If so, then I can see more clearly now!)"
He put his glasses on the desk next to his bed, not before noticing his arm. It was a bit longer than it looked yesterday. It even has muscles, which greatly shocks him. He then looks at his own body and notices he now has abs.
"Oh my god… My voice!"
He noticed that his own voice was different, it sounded a bit deep. He quickly looked at the mirror as he saw himself through the reflection, he was surprised, even amazed. He now looks like an actual either a 14 or 15-year-old teenager!
"Did… Did puberty happen that fast!?"
That was the only explanation Sekinin could think about, but before he could think about it more. He stopped moving, feeling something in his head…
"Am I getting a headache again? No it… Different from last night… Wait… Is something..."
It was like it was warning him, to inform him that—
*BEEP*
*BEEP*
*BEEP*
"Ack!"
The alarm clock rang as it made Sekinin jump, and he covered himself with his blanket as a means to shield what he thought was something that was about to reach him. He realized what it was and blushed in embarrassment as he quickly hit the snooze button.
"Geeze, I got scared of my own alarm clock. Why did it… Oh yeah, I forgot to turn off the alarm for weekdays. I hope it didn't wake up Aunt May or Uncle Ben. Hopefully it… Huh?"
Sekinin whispers to himself, only to notice his alarm clock was now broken, the snooze was cracked beyond repair as it no longer showed the time.
"Did I break my alarm clock!?"
He checked the damage and saw which parts would be fixed or need replacements. After a few seconds of observing he sighs as he puts the clock down.
"I could fix the damaged circuits, could replace the broken screen with a new one, but the snooze button is broken beyond repair, along with the hole I made with my finger, so…"
He knew he would have to get a new alarm clock. But at the same time, Sekinin was shocked that he was able to break his own clock with just a finger hit. He looked at his hand and his arm again, wondering how he got such clear vision and strength.
He turned to the door a few feet away and just when he was about to leave his room, he noticed that his broken clock was still in his hand. He thought he had just let go of the clock as he placed it back on the desk. But he realized that it was sticking to him, as if glue had been put on his hand and was quickly drying.
Sekinin used his other hand to remove the clock, but within a second, he broke the clock in half, rendering it even more beyond repair. And that there are now halves of a clock stuck on his hands. He tried to shake them off, but it was no use, it was stuck completely.
Sekinin just sighs as he lies on his bed. Wondering how he could get the clock off, only to feel that the halves were no longer stuck and were lying on his bed.
"...How… Maybe because I calmed down."
He recalled that he was feeling stressed when he was thinking of the damage his clock had suffered, and then, when he calmed down, after lying down and possibly acknowledging that his clock was going to be stuck, the remains of his clock were no longer stuck on his hands.
"This is so strange, first the strange feeling in my head, new strength that I barely had yesterday, and having a clock stuck on my hands. What's next… Web…"
Sekinin was looking closely at his two hands to see why they were sticking. Only to find small hair-like scopulae that are coming out from his hand and on his skin. It was so small that you could easily miss it, but it can be seen if your eyes are so perfect that you can see even the smallest of things.
There was also a web nest on his wrists. Sekinin looked on as he put a finger on the web, and he did not feel his skin but stickiness. He pulled back his finger, only to find webbing on it as it stretched.
"This is not normal! How did I gain these… Things? …The spider!"
Sekinin had a horror expression on his face as he remembered the spider from yesterday. That wasn't an ordinary spider that bit him!
"The spider from Ozukōpu Industries! Wasn't it recaptured after its glass case was shattered yesterday!? Unless…!"
Unless it made another version of itself and latched on to him and was the real one while its other version was back at the spider section a fake. And last night he just killed the spider, so the fake spider must have vanished last night too.
The scientists at Ozukōpu Industries might already be panicking about the spider being missing again and are possibly still searching for it but did not know it was already dead. But Sekinin was questioning where the spider was, whether it was in his uniform or in his bag.
He figured that if it was on his uniform then he would already have been bitten before it did last night, but if it was in his bag, then it was that it didn't do anything until he got it back. And it could have bitten Seika too!
He searched for his bag as he found it and searched inside, sure enough there was a web nest inside.
"Okay… Okay! Just calm down Parker! You were just bitten by an enhanced spider, got spider-related abilities, and you need to stop talking to yourself!"
He looked out the window as he noticed the sun was already rising, and thankfully he managed to see what time it was before he accidentally destroyed his clock. It was 7 AM in the morning.
"I got like an hour or two to figure out how to handle my newfound powers before Nijika and her family come by for breakfast. And surprisingly, neither my aunt nor uncle woke up yet. But that doesn't mean they will soon… And I have to stop talking to myself."
Sekinin grabbed a navy blue shirt from his closet, which took a bit after he accidentally broke the doorknob to the closet as he mentally noted to himself to control his strength first to ensure not to accidentally break anything else in his room.
Once he put the shirt on, as well as grabbed his notebook and pencil, he began to write his discovery and research.
First, the weird sensation on his head, he quickly guessed it was his spider-sense, which he was thankful that it alerted him of danger, or else he, his Uncle Ben, Nijika, and her mother would have joined his parents in heaven. As to why it reacted to his alarm clock, he assumes that after dodging what should have been an incident, he felt scared of what else could happen, even sound.
He also noted that it can also detect objects when it is about to fall down, the slightest vibration when the wind or noises, such as those of spiders, are sensitive to certain things. It happened again when he accidentally knocked over a photo of him with his aunt and uncle and managed to catch it on time.
Next, his vision was perfectly clear, and he could even see very small things that would need a close-up. He concluded that because spiders have eight eyes, it makes sense that their sight can be matched into one eye in a big vision.
Then there is his strength, with no effort, he was able to break the snooze button and break his clock in half with ease. Spiders do have incredible strength to make up for their size, depending on whether it is a small spider.
He wonders if there is a limit to how much he can do with that kind of strength. He could try lifting things up that would have needed more effort and help. So he tried to move whatever he could in his room as it was easy to either move a bed from where it was to the other side of the room.
He thought of using Uncle Ben's set of dumbbells in the basement that he hadn't used in quite some time. He could at least figure out how much weight he could carry or lift.
Then there were the webs on his wrists. Sekinin wonders if he can actually make webs on his own and wonders if he can produce them from his wrists. From his understanding, spiders shoot web silk out of their abdomen, which is on the underside of their rear. Sekinin hoped he wouldn't shoot webs out of his butt.
He looked at his wrist as he was stretching the webs that were on his fingers, he noted the durability and length it could achieve. It must take incredible force to remove the webs. But he was curious if he could actually make webs, as it seems he could, but only by touching the web nests.
He tried to do actions with his hands to create webs, but so far all he was doing was making a fool of himself, even though it was only him in his room. He even tried to say words like "Shazam!" or "Up, up and away web!" But nothing worked.
Just as Sekinin was about to give up, a thread of spider webs was suddenly shot out from his right wrist as it stuck on the wall. He looked at his right hand and noticed his middle and ring fingers were touching his palm. He tried to do that again with both hands as more webs were shot out from his wrists.
"This is something! Could I…"
An idea was formed in his head, Sekinin attempted to make a spider nest that every spider makes, only to make a clumsy nest that didn't look perfect. It wasn't perfect but hey, it was something of a nest.
He attempted to climb the web nest as he was surprised he was moving around instead of being stuck on a few threads. Maybe the scapulae were helping him to climb around on anything including his web. Climbing… Sekinin looked at the ceiling of his room, wondering if he could stick to ceilings.
So with the help of his web nest, he was able to touch the ceiling as he carefully moved his whole body upside down, with his hands and feet sticking to the ceiling. He could feel the weight of his body going where gravity was moving.
"Okay… Sticking on the top of my room, and if I were to fall at any point… Yeah better not risk it."
He carefully moved around the ceiling as he noted his movement, then he did the same on the wall as it was different from sticking on a side than being upside down. After a few more minutes of experimenting, he wrote down his final results.
"Okay, as long as I keep my powers in check then it won't be a problem during breakfast with Nijika and her family. But I still need to work on my strength… What time is it?"
He checked his flip phone, as he carefully made sure he wouldn't break it with his super strength, and the time showed it was 8:30 AM.
"Aunt May and Uncle Ben should already be awake and cooking breakfast. So maybe I can still try the dumbbells."
With a nod, he carefully took down his web nest, which he managed to do, but not flawlessly; there were now a few cracks on the left and right walls and the ceiling. Sekinin put a hand on his head and sighed as he mentally noted not to shoot webs in his room or anywhere in his home.
He also looked back on his shirt as it only covered his chest and a bit of his arm, so he went to his closet again and took out a white long-sleeve shirt, and he took off the blue shirt and put it back on top of the white long-sleeve shirt. He also put on brown pants, as it was Saturday, so he didn't need to wear his school pants.
"Okay… Let's hope nobody will mind my sudden change."
He walked out of his room and made his way downstairs, and to the living room, where he could hear his aunt making breakfast. He looked around for his uncle but he didn't see him. Sekinin figured he must still be upstairs or outside enjoying the morning breeze.
So he carefully made his way to the basement and checked his strength with the dumbbells. It was 30 minutes later when Sekinin heard his aunt calling for his name telling him that the Ijichis were here. He let his aunt know that he'll be up as she now knows that he was in the basement.
He put back all the dumbbells he picked up as he looked at each of them then towards his hands. Yeah, he definitely needs to keep his strength in check. And after making sure it was all put back he slowly walked up the stairs as he mentally prepared himself for everyone's shock towards him.
He exits the basement and walks towards the table where his Aunt May was setting up the food, with Senatsu helping, and his uncle was speaking with Nijika's father. The two of them were speaking about… Idols? Nijika and Seika were speaking with each other but Seika was looking at her phone.
"Morning everyone!"
Sekinin greeted everyone as everyone greeted him, but nobody noticed the change in him, except for…
"Sekinin-kun! I can't wait to taste your aunt's— Huh?"
Nijika stopped halfway through her sentence as she looked at Sekinin with a surprised expression, with a mix of shock. She got up and walked towards him as her sudden movement got everyone to look at her, then at Sekinin.
Then, to everyone's complete shock, they notice that Sekinin didn't look like the pre-teen they saw, but a teenager who had just entered high school. They then realized the tone he just spoke wasn't his usual tone. Aunt May slowly approaches Sekinin as she looks at him from top to bottom.
"Sekinin, did you get a growth spurt?"
Sekinin wasn't sure how to respond to his aunt about how a spider that was enhanced and how the bite affected his body. So all he could say was…
"I just woke up feeling a bit taller, and sure enough I did get a growth spurt when I checked myself in the mirror."
He smiled sheepishly as his right hand rubbed the back of his head.
"So uh… What's for breakfast?"
He can already tell that it was a typical breakfast of white rice, grilled fish, miso soup, and side dishes for everyone. Sekinin simply sat down while trying to act calm as everyone was still looking at the sudden growth of his height.
Nijika also sat back down as she looked at Sekinin, feeling a bit conflicted about how he was now taller than her. And blushes when she notices that she was staring at her best friend for a bit too long, as she looks away, and looks at Aunt May.
"S-So, Aunt May! I can't wait to eat your wheatcakes again!"
"Isn't it more like pancakes but flatter?"
Seika tried to change the atmosphere while still stunned at Sekinin's sudden growth as Nijika looked at her sister with a shocked expression.
"There is a difference between pancakes and wheatcakes! And it's Aunt May's special wheatcakes! It's better than any ordinary pancakes!"
Seika looked at her little sister with an annoyed expression, just as the two sisters were about to start arguing again Aunt May set down a plate of wheatcakes as she put a few down on Nijika and Seika's plates.
"Why, thank you, Nijika-chan, don't forget to put syrup on them. Here are some for you too, Seika-chan."
"Thank you May-san."
Seika thanked Aunt May as she took a piece and ate it she secretly enjoyed her wheatcakes. Aunt May gave Sekinin his wheatcakes as he thanked her, and he began eating.
"I must say, Sekinin, you are looking more like your father."
Uncle Ben spoke as Sekinin stopped as he was about to put another piece of wheatcake in his mouth. He looked at his uncle with a look of uncertainty.
"Do I really?"
"Of course! I can remember the young man he was when we were your age. It's like I'm seeing him at the table again, along with your mother's eyes."
Uncle Ben gives him a sad smile, but still has the smile he always gives to Sekinin when he is proud, which was enough to make him smile too. Just as the atmosphere was getting calm.
["After reports of screaming and yelling from last night at 9:39 PM, authorities arrested a young man named Otoko Kofuku for first-degree murder of the idol Sakura Saku, as she was found dead in her home. This is notably the 17th idol that has died this year. Idol industries, such as Strawberry Productions raising their security to protect the idols to prevent more idols from being killed."]
A TV report spoke about the recent death of an idol which got everyone at the table to feel unsettled. Uncle Ben frowns on the report of another death of a girl, the 17th one at that.
"Another one? What is going on with idols getting killed?"
"I'm not sure Ben, it honestly makes me wonder if being an idol is even a good choice for those young girls."
Aunt May spoke as the reports stated that the young man was known to be the idol's friend and had said he suddenly went crazy, believing that he was her number one fan. Conflict and arguments were heard, but nobody knew what it was, which soon led to the idol being stabbed. The young man was taken away, screaming nonsense about how he was framed, but all the evidence showed that he was the only person with her.
"It makes me glad that bands and idols are different performances or else Seika-chan would have trouble with crazy fans."
Senatsu spoke as she was relieved that her first daughter didn't have to deal with fans who were that insane. Seika just didn't say anything but everyone knew that she was glad that she didn't have to deal with what idols have dealt with.
So breakfast went by with surprise and a grim atmosphere but it slowly changed to what should have been just an ordinary morning of two families enjoying breakfast together.
While the adults were chatting, Sekinin and Nijika were getting ready to head out and meet up with Usagi in the city. To explore and possibly buy a few things with their allowance. Once they were ready and told their respective family that they were going out, they were stopped by Seika.
"Hold on, I'm going with you both. May-san and Mom are worried after seeing the news so they ask me to accompany you both. As much as it doesn't really relate to you two, it would be better if they know that I'm with you both."
Neither Sekinin nor Nijika objected as they caught the worried expressions Aunt May and Senatsu made. So after waiting for Seika to put on her shoes, the three of them went out, but after a few steps from the Parker residence, Seika had to speak about what was on her mind.
"So… How does it feel to have grown a few more inches?"
That was all she could ask as Sekinin just had to think of an answer.
"Honestly… Maybe I can be taller than you in a few years!"
Sekinin spoke as Seika simply nodded, perhaps a bit relieved that he didn't seem to be bothered by the growth spurt. Still, Sekinin elbows Seika as she looks at him in confusion.
"Even if I'm growing, it doesn't change the fact that I'm still the little brother you know."
Seika smiled, not before delivering Sekinin a knuckle shake to the head as he chuckled. Nijika just watches as she witnesses the scene in front of her, smiling as nothing seems to change in Sekinin, just only the height. But she did wonder how Usagi would react once she saw him.