Gwen was frozen, staring at the scene in disbelief.
*Am I seeing things? Since when is Flash scared of Peter?*
Maguire, for his part, couldn't care less about the little drama in front of him. Without a word, he turned and walked toward the school building.
Flash let out a quiet sigh of relief as soon as Maguire's back disappeared from sight.
Gwen, however, kept her eyes on that departing figure, a spark of curiosity flickering in her mind.
Garfield, noticing her gaze lingering on Maguire, felt an unexpected pang of jealousy.
…
Maguire didn't spare a thought for Gwen or the others. He went straight back to the classroom.
Inside, Mary Jane glanced up as he entered. She gave a cold snort and thought to herself:
*The nerve… talking to me like that. You're just a broke loser. Even if I liked someone, it wouldn't be you.*
…
High school in the U.S. was nothing if not easygoing.
Before long, the afternoon classes were over.
Maguire stepped out of the school, looking bored, unaware that a few students were whispering behind his back.
"Did you see? Peter beat the crap out of Flash today."
"I never realized he could fight like that—so brutal."
"And now he wants people to call him 'Maguire'? Is he losing his mind?"
"Whatever. Let's just stay away from him—he's a straight-up bully now."
…
Soon, Maguire was back in the 13th District where he lived.
In Queens, this area was infamous—called the "sewer" for a reason.
Like the gutters, it was crawling with vermin—literal and human.
Extortion, muggings, assaults, even rape… these things happened here often enough to be considered routine.
…
Just as Maguire reached his front door, the door next to his opened.
Mary Jane's father, Carl, stepped out, still clutching an empty bottle.
The moment his eyes landed on Maguire, it was like he'd sobered up instantly. He dropped the bottle, bolted back inside, and locked the door tight.
Maguire just shook his head.
*Am I really that scary?*
He unlocked his own door and stepped inside.
At the table, Uncle Ben sat with his warm, familiar smile.
"Welcome home, Peter. How was school? Everything alright?"
Maguire smiled back.
"All good, Uncle Ben."
From the kitchen, Aunt May's voice drifted over.
"Dinner's almost ready, Peter. We'll eat soon."
Maguire nodded and headed upstairs to his room.
Lying back on the small bed, he mulled things over.
*Uncle Ben and Aunt May… they're genuinely good people. Since I'm here now, taking Peter's place, I can ignore a lot of things—but not my responsibility to them.*
*I might be a bully… but I'm not an animal.*
*The real question is—am I in Spider-Man's world, or the whole Marvel universe?*
…
10 PM.
Unable to sleep, Maguire jumped out the window.
The 13th District was eerily quiet at night.
The streets were empty, but from the dark alleys came the occasional sound—unseen events unfolding in the shadows.
By morning, the river might have a few more unclaimed bodies.
Maguire strolled into one of the side alleys.
A typical protagonist might be out to fight crime—but Bully Maguire? He was looking for "small fry" who could boost his Bully Points.
…
In one particularly dark alley, a blonde woman dressed provocatively and heavily made-up staggered along, her worn-out figure swaying.
Shadows moved behind her—several figures silently closing in.
Suddenly, a large hand clamped over her mouth.
Her instincts kicked in—she bit down hard.
"WTF?! This b\*\*\*h bit me!" the huge man roared, tossing her aside in anger.
His buddies laughed loudly.
"Wes, can't even handle a woman?"
At the mention of his name, the woman's eyes went wide with fear.
"Wes… it's you… I-I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!"
The man named Wes sneered.
"That depends on how well you can 'serve' me."
That's when a mocking voice cut in from the shadows.
"Hey, hey, there are other people here. Watch yourself."
The men froze for a second, then instinctively reached for their waists.
From the darkness, a lone figure stepped forward.
Seeing it was just one guy, their wary expressions melted into smirks.
"What's this? You looking to join in?"
…
//Check out my Patreon for 20 extra chapters on all my fanfics
//[[email protected]/Razeil0810](http://[email protected]/Razeil0810)