As he spoke, Aetheris began removing his armor.
"Yeah, no problem. This is all just part of my job," Ethan replied, then suddenly seemed to realize something, his eyes widening instantly.
"What? Spider-Man? Don't tell me, Peter, you—"
He stared in disbelief, pointing at Peter Parker. The young Spider-Man glanced at Aetheris, who gave him a reassuring nod. Then he nodded back.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Ethan. I didn't mean to hide it from you. It's just... this whole thing is so unbelievable, and I was afraid that if the bad guys found out about my identity, it might put Stark Industries—and you—in danger."
Peter tried hard to explain, apologizing repeatedly.
He felt like he had apologized more today than he had in his entire life.
"You're a good kid. I understand," Dr. Ethan said, patting him on the shoulder.
"You must've been through a lot lately. I saw in yesterday's paper that you took down some bank robbers. They had guns, and you only had your body. Sure, you're stronger than most people, but I doubt you're bulletproof."
"Ethan, I told you he's Spider-Man not so you could pity him."
Aetheris walked over, grabbed Peter, and looked him up and down.
"Look at him. What a mess. Showing up late for work, looking totally exhausted."
Peter mumbled,
"I really tried to get here on time..."
"Then you should have arrived on time!" Aetheris snapped, eyes sharp and tone serious.
"Just look at yourself—always worn out. Peter, I pay you to work for Stark Industries, not to take a vacation. Don't think I haven't noticed just because Ethan's been covering for you. Last week you were late four times! The week before that, three times! Peter Parker, this is a company, not a charity. If you truly can't handle the job, I'll have no choice but to let you go."
"I'm sorry, Mr. Stark! I had my reasons for being late!"
Peter panicked. He had worked hard to land this job—it paid well, had great benefits, and was perfectly suited to his field of study. It was rare to find a job you genuinely liked, and he didn't want to lose it.
"Come on, Tony, Peter has his reasons for being late. It's not like he did it on purpose. I promise I'll keep an eye on him from now on. If he's ever late again, I'll do the righteous thing myself and write his resignation letter!" Ethan hurried over to smooth things over when he saw Aetheris getting upset.
"Ethan, don't make excuses for him, and don't give me any promises either. He's twenty years old—an adult. He needs to take responsibility for his own actions." Aetheris remained completely unmoved.
"His salary is halved this month! And he has to write a written reflection. No less than ten thousand words."
"Yes, Mr. Starky-Pants..." Peter muttered, head hung low in defeat.
"Peter, I'm not trying to punish you financially. I want you to understand something: when you take on a job or a responsibility, you must give it your all and be accountable. You can't be half-hearted or let other matters interfere with what you're doing."
Aetheris walked up to him, speaking earnestly.
"If you believe something else is more important, then resign and focus on that full-time. Your position here will always be open for you."
"I understand, Mr. Starky-Pants."
Hearing Peter Parker's response, Aetheris knew he hadn't truly taken the words to heart. His emotions were already in turmoil. On one side was justice, helping those in need. On the other—his job, his life, and even love.
It was clear that the fledgling Spider-Man didn't yet know how to balance it all. But growth often comes through these experiences. Without going through them personally, a person will never mature.
And growing up means learning to make choices. You can't have everything. You can't do it all. Because in the end, trying to do everything means you'll accomplish nothing—and everything will end in failure.
This is experience, but more importantly, it is lived experience. True experience can only be gained personally—what others tell you may serve as a reference, but it will never truly stay in your heart.
Ethan looked helplessly at Aetheris and Peter Parker. His concern had made him lose perspective.
On one side was his closest friend, and on the other, his prized protégé. He genuinely didn't know what to do.
"Ethan, how about I stop by your place after work today for a drink?"
Without paying attention to the dejected Spider-Man, Aetheris planned to cheer up his old friend.
"That sounds great. I'll have my wife whip up a couple of dishes. Let's have a drink, just the two of us."
Ethan burst into hearty laughter at the suggestion.
"It's settled, then. We're not going home until we're drunk!"
Aetheris clapped him on the shoulder as he spoke.
The joy of having money is indescribable—it can't even be put into words, not even one-thousandth of it.
Take today, for example. Aetheris decided to go to Ethan's house for a drink, so he left work early and even gave Ethan the rest of the day off. But poor Spider-Man had to work overtime.
Because Peter didn't have money. Being a righteous hero was expensive—especially for someone like him, a working-class hero who never pocketed lost money and helped old ladies cross the street on a daily basis.
Take this morning for instance—Peter saved two young Black kids who were playing in the street and nearly hit by a large truck.
He took the children to their mother, who was cleaning the street. That's when he learned that the woman had a severely ill husband who still gambled constantly, forcing her and her sons to earn money by sweeping the streets.
Peter gave her every cent he had.
Tragic stories like that were everywhere. People in need never stopped appearing.
Even with a monthly salary of ten thousand dollars, Peter's kindness burned through his paycheck in under half a month.
Now that he had moved out of Uncle Ben's house, he had to pay rent, buy food, clothes, and fund his small inventions. He was, in essence, living paycheck to paycheck.
That's why Peter desperately needed this job—so he could help more people.
Aetheris didn't drive himself today. He was riding in Ethan's Jeep Wrangler.
Ethan, originally from a Central country, had always loved this vehicle. He couldn't afford it before, but now that he made \$20,000 a month and didn't have to worry about housing, he bit the bullet and bought it in installments. It wasn't expensive—just \$51,695.
His wife, whom he met through Aetheris's introduction, now worked as a foreign language teacher at a private high school in the U.S., teaching Arabic. She made \$4,000 a month.
Ethan was very satisfied with his life. He had a car, a house, a wife, and a warm family. He was deeply grateful to Aetheris.
"Ethan," Aetheris said as he sat in the passenger seat, listening to country music, "you've been working at Stark for a while now. Are you still in touch with any of those top-tier geniuses from the past?"
"Of course. My college classmate Otto Octavius has been in touch with me a lot lately. He wants me to help him find a corporate investor to back his projects."
(End of Chapter)
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