After Stan's speech at Excelsior, we wandered down to the park to keep the vibe alive.
"Hey Jake, isn't your birthday tomorrow?" Peter asked, jogging alongside me.
"Yeah," I said. "Eighteen. Weird to think about."
Danny, ever the sage, clapped my shoulder. "Age is but a number that marks wisdom."
I smirked. "It's not that. I just… haven't seen my dad since we left town. I miss our old traditions."
The mood dipped. Faces got heavy.
"Okay, enough of that," I said, forcing a grin. "Last one to the bridge is an uncultured swine!"
We bolted through the park, laughter echoing. For the rest of the day, we played like kids again—chasing each other at the beach, juggling KFC bags inside a McDonald's just to tick off the Karen glaring at us. Pure chaos. Pure us.
But as night fell, things shifted.
"Tiger, are you okay?" MJ asked.
"You're burning up," Lyn added.
"So's Cindy," Elle said, her usual cool cracking.
Jessica's eyes narrowed. "Jake… your face looks red."
I blinked, sweat dripping. My vision blurred. I dragged a hand through my hair, drawing a gasp from Luke.
"Wait—you've got silver streaks?"
"That's not blond," Sam said. "That's platinum-blue. Like… otherworldly."
My body shook. Heat scorched through me. Across the sand, Peter collapsed. Cindy staggered. Harry swayed, pale and trembling.
I fumbled my phone, fingers slippery with sweat. Tried to speed-dial Mom.
Didn't make it. My knees gave out.
Through the blur, I saw Harry grab my phone. His face was drawn, but his grip steady as he hit "Mom." Relief flickered through me.
Even with all the chaos, I've got good friends, I thought, right before darkness swallowed me.
From my backpack, I thought I heard a faint scrape—the sound of the spider shifting in its jar. Watching. Waiting.
Freeze frame. Cue me with a birthday cake shaped like a spider.
Classic Marvel birthday present:
Instead of cake, you get migraines. Instead of candles, you start glowing. Instead of presents, you collapse in front of your friends like a telenovela extra.
And those silver streaks in Jake's hair? Oh yeah. That's either:
Stylish Spider puberty, or A giant flashing neon sign saying PLOT TWIST INCOMING.But don't worry, kids—we'll keep pretending it's spiders for a while