Four days have passed…
It's currently Saturday, and if you're an Asian student, they'd probably still be studying (or maybe not, since my school already gave us a break, though other schools didn't—oh, this is the author speaking, not Peter).
Me, Harry, and Gwen were notified about our exam results, so we gathered at Harry's mansion to check our scores.
Well, no surprise there… My scores were, as expected, near perfect in almost every subject.
English, Math, Science, Social Studies, and Physical Education were all above A.
More precisely, Math, Science, and Physical Education were A+.
English was an A-.
Then there's the elective, Technical Science—obviously an A+. When you're making games, you've got to ace this subject (probably?).
I'm pretty satisfied with it.
And Harry? Eh… decent?
Math and Science were both B-, English was a C, but Social Studies and Physical Education were A+.
His elective was also Technical Science, and he got a B+.
Alright, the fact that his Social Studies score was higher than mine was a bit surprising.
Physical Education? Well, that's normal—he's always playing basketball, isn't he?
"Good job! No failing grades!"
"Yayyy!!" Harry screamed like a gorilla, thrilled that his efforts weren't in vain.
And Gwen?
"What the heck??"
All her subjects were straight A's! No A- or A+ at all!
"Is that good or bad?" Gwen scratched her head, looking at me.
"You can tell just by looking, can't you??"
"Then why did you act like you saw something shocking earlier?"
"Uh… I was just surprised that all your grades were so even?"
[Great at lying, huh?]
'Shut up.'
Anyway, I still held the top spot in school! I'm pretty proud of that, even though Flash always bullies me!
Well, he's been dead for a while, but… I don't really need to mention that, do I? No one's bullying me anymore.
Gwen ranked 7th, and Harry ranked 93rd.
"Peter? You dropped to 2nd," Harry said, looking at the rankings.
"…Huh?! What do you mean??"
I rushed over and looked at the leaderboard.
I was in 2nd place, and the person in 1st was…
…
"…WTF?? Emma??"
Wait?? So she's as nerdy as I am??
When I clicked on her profile to check her scores, I was shocked—every single subject was an A+??
"Is she Reed Richards or something??"
"Peter, Reed Richards isn't that smart, even if they call him the smartest man on Earth," Gwen said.
"Then is she She-Hulk?? Or Riri Williams??"
"Peter, those two are only smart in the comics, though Riri's character development is way cringier than She-Hulk's."
"Alright, Gwen, you don't need to explain the obvious."
"No, seriously, I've never seen her in the top rankings before, and now she's number one? Is she some kind of Mary Sue or the author's self-insert?" Harry scratched his head, unable to believe someone outdid Peter academically.
"…Ugh, I think she deserves it. I mean, if you look at her…"
Bruised, battered, scars all over from physical abuse and bullying? She's like a punching bag for novel writers.
But that's the kind of material you use to create a protagonist! It means she suddenly rises up and proves to the world she's a winner!
But she's not the protagonist… at least not here.
"Poor thing, she's our age and has gone through all that. Why is the world so cruel?!" Gwen cried, though I didn't see any tears.
[Eh… is it that sad?]
'Don't you feel bad for her?'
[Not even half as bad as I feel for Guts.]
'He's not real.'
[Real in another universe.]
"Alright, enough of that! When are we going swimming?" Harry asked.
"Get ready."
"Huh?"
Ring ring ring
I pulled out my phone and saw the caller was Bruce Banner.
Is he keeping track of our exam schedule too? Is he that eager to hit the beach?
***
"Are you really at my house? And how did you even know where I live?" Emma, leaning against the door, was staring at me.
"I just asked around, no big deal."
"…Alright, if you're waiting for my answer, then… I'm refusing."
"Because of your dad?"
"…"
Seriously, even if I say something, is she still scared her dad will do something to me?
"Then let me talk to your dad."
"Anything but that!"
"Why not?"
"Because—"
"So you're the little punk who's been hanging around my daughter lately, huh?"
A deep, loud, rough voice boomed from behind me.
I turned around and… ugh, the smell!
He was fat, wearing a stained white tank top with blood and sweat, his hair a mess, looking like he hadn't bathed in forever.
Honestly, how does this guy have a wife and manage to have a daughter as great as Emma?
"And you are?"
"I'm her father, and I'm telling you to stay the hell away from my daughter."
"…Can I ask why not?"
"Why? Let me be real with you, kid."
He leaned close to my ear and whispered,
"Lately, my daughter's been refusing to sell her body to others, no matter how many times I beat her. She just won't do it. I was wondering who's been sweet-talking her."
"?!"
I looked at him, my face twisting in disgust.
"…You're seriously trying to turn Emma into a prostitute?"
"What's the big deal? She's a girl. Her body's the only thing she's good for. I need money, and she should be grateful her body's worth something to help this family, right?"
"…"
"But if you want my daughter so bad… how about you pay me? Then you can have her, and you'll be the first to take her virginity. Sounds like a good deal, right? Of course, you only get one go—my daughter's got other clients to serve."
…No doubt about it, I need to get Emma away from this monster. The longer she lives with this guy, the less safe she'll be.
"So? You in or not?"
"Yeah, I'm in."
"Oh, great! It's $10,000, deal?"
"Sure, though that's probably the amount you'll need for the hospital."
"Huh?"
I delivered a hard kick to his leg, and the sound of his bones cracking was loud enough for Emma to hear.
"AGHHHHHH!!!!" He clutched his leg, writhing in pain.
Yeah, that's why Spider-Man never takes things too seriously or uses full strength. After all, we want people to have a chance to turn their lives around.
But this guy? My gut tells me he'll keep committing crimes. There's no reason to go easy on him.
"Emma! Call the police and report this guy now! You've suffered enough!"
"But—"
"No buts, do it!"
"But the police always arrest innocent people, not the guilty ones!"
Oh right, this is American police.
"…Ugh."
I pulled out my phone and called someone.
"What's up, Peter boi? Want me to try out some game?"
It was Tony Stark.
No doubt about it, the police wouldn't dare touch him. After all, he's a billionaire and America's hero right now.
Plus, he's got a ton of fans—myself included.
"okay, There are some problem…"
"Hmm, got it."
"Huh? I didn't even say anything yet!"
"Because I'm right above you."
…I hung up the phone and looked up.
Yup, Iron Man was descending from the sky.
"How are you here?"
"Was testing a new suit when you called. So, you want to lock this guy up?" He walked over and looked at the man.
"I-Iron Man! Help me! This punk's trying to kidnap my daughter!"
Wow, this guy's seriously trying to pin a crime on me? Didn't he see me talking to Tony?
"Heh, to be honest, if this were a work day, I'd help you out. Too bad it's my day off," Iron Man said as his mask opened, revealing Tony's face.
"Besides, I'm not really into the hero thing. I think I'd make a better villain."
"Wha—AGHHHH!!!"
Tony stomped on the guy's hand, the sound of breaking bones even louder than when I broke his leg.
"Alright, you're lucky today, kid. I'll take him off your hands. See ya."
Tony flew off.
"Phew, all sorted out for today, right, Emma?" I grinned, looking at her.
Her face was a mix of shock and amazement.
"Y-You… You know the billionaire Tony Stark?!"
Oh, you're more surprised about that than the fact I broke your dad's leg? Lucky me.
*****
Do you know why Gwen is ranked 7th and Harry is ranked 93rd?
Because the number 7 comes from 1973, and 93 comes from 1993.
If you're curious about what that means, go search it on Google, my dear reader.