Soon, the time for the science exhibition arrived.
Peter Parker and his classmates went to attend the visit, as they had a report to write. Silas also followed along.
"You really came?" Peter Parker asked, surprised.
Silas put his arm over Peter Parker's shoulder. "I was just worried you'd be bored by yourself, so I came to keep you company."
"Not at all, they're all my classmates," Peter Parker said, gesturing to the group behind them, even though their relationship wasn't very close.
"Oh~ Silas, you actually came too!" Ned Leeds held out his hand and high-fived Silas.
Silas laughed. "Just tagging along with Peter for a tour."
"Don't worry, Peter has me," Ned Leeds said, patting his chest.
"Alright, students, follow me now. We will begin our tour of the exhibition," the instructor said, guiding the group from the front.
Each student had their personal information—school, class, and name—displayed on a badge on their chest.
The students followed the instructor in an orderly fashion and began the exhibition tour.
Half an Hour Later
"Alright, students, you now have free time here," the instructor said, checking his watch. "We will gather back here in half an hour."
"Um... everyone, do you want to go check out the Public Nuclear Experiment Exhibit?" Peter Parker asked tentatively.
Instantly, all eyes turned to him.
"Oh, come on, Peter the bookworm. Be careful you don't get nuclear radiation and turn into a monster, haha~" Flash Thompson was the first to mock him.
Then, one by one, the other students jeered at Peter. Clearly, no one wanted to visit the nuclear radiation area with him.
"Sorry, buddy, I think I'll follow..." Ned Leeds looked towards the female student with the attractive figure.
"Fine~" Peter Parker nodded dejectedly.
Silas nudged Peter Parker. "See? I told you, Peter. Come on! I'll go with you."
"Thank goodness for you," Peter Parker finally cheered up a little when he heard Silas.
It was a relief that Silas came along; otherwise, he really would have been touring alone.
"Then let's go," Peter Parker said, pulling the camera out of his backpack.
"Mhm," Silas and Peter Parker walked toward the nuclear radiation exhibit together.
Nuclear Radiation Exhibit
"Silas, look at those," Peter Parker said, starting to take pictures with his camera.
Silas gave a casual response, but his attention was focused on Peter Parker's surroundings. Where is the radioactive spider?
"There!" Silas thought to himself.
A spider had quietly approached Peter Parker, who was busy taking pictures, completely unaware.
"Ow~" Peter Parker suddenly felt a pain in his neck. He reached up to rub it but felt nothing.
Silas, however, was quick. He rapidly walked up to Peter Parker and pretended to tie his shoelace, but his right hand quickly snatched the spider that was trying to escape.
As soon as Silas grabbed it, the spider bit down hard on his palm.
"Hiss~" Silas endured the pain. It was surprisingly sharp.
Afraid of raising suspicion, Silas stood up and asked Peter Parker, "What's wrong, Peter?"
"Ow~ I feel like something just stung me," Peter Parker said, rubbing his neck.
Silas looked around. "There's nothing here?"
"I don't know." Peter Parker twisted his neck, and realized the feeling had mostly subsided.
"Never mind that. Are you done taking pictures?" Silas quickly changed the subject.
Hearing that, Peter Parker happily held up his camera. "All done. Let's head back."
"Sounds good, but I'll run to the restroom first," Silas said with a smile, then walked toward the restroom.
In the restroom, he locked the door, tossed the spider into the Shadowkhan Kingdom, washed his hands, and walked back out.
"That was fast?" Peter Parker asked, surprised.
Silas rolled his eyes at Peter Parker. "I just needed to wash my hands. I got some dirt on them when I tied my shoelace."
"I see. Let's go then." Peter Parker led Silas back to the gathering place.
As time passed, the students gradually returned to the meeting spot.
"Hey~ Silas, Peter, how was your tour?" Ned Leeds asked with a smile.
"It was pretty good. How about you?" Peter Parker was quite pleased with the photos he had taken.
Ned Leeds immediately leaned close to Peter Parker, winking slyly. "I asked Kate out, and we're going to hang out tomorrow."
Kate was the female student Ned Leeds had followed earlier.
Peter Parker looked at Ned Leeds, astonished, and stammered, "You... how did you... manage that?"
"I just asked, you know? And Peter, you really should pluck up the courage and tell Liz Allan how you feel," Ned Leeds suggested to Peter Parker.
Ned Leeds knew Peter Parker liked Liz, but Peter just never had the courage to say so.
"Next time," Peter Parker said dismissively, subconsciously looking toward the blonde, blue-eyed Liz Allan.
Liz Allan was chatting with her friends. Feeling a gaze, she turned her head and saw Peter Parker.
Peter Parker, seeing Liz Allan spot him, immediately lowered his head and adjusted his glasses.
"What's wrong, Liz?" Her friend followed Liz Allan's line of sight.
"Peter the bookworm? Are you interested in him? Not bad, he's a genius student." Her friend sounded like she was complimenting Peter Parker, but it was really a form of mockery.
Liz Allan shook her head. "Why would I like a bookworm like that?" She then returned to chatting with her friend about other topics.
After a while, Peter Parker asked Silas next to him, "Is Liz still looking at me?"
"No..." Silas said, a little speechless.
Peter Parker heard him and finally raised his head. Sure enough, Liz wasn't looking at him anymore.
"Phew~" Peter Parker sighed in relief.
Ned Leeds encouraged him. "Peter, you really shouldn't be like that. You should look her straight in the eye."
"Next time, next time," Peter Parker said perfunctorily.
Ned Leeds sighed. As Peter Parker's best friend, he was very familiar with Peter Parker's personality.
Half an Hour Has Passed
The instructor returned.
"Alright, students, that concludes today's exhibition. I hope you all submit excellent reports when you get back," the instructor said.
"Ugh~" All the students felt a headache coming on. Peter Parker, however, was unfazed. Silas, on the other hand, groaned—since he wasn't in Peter's class, he thought he was safe.
"And Silas, I have already informed your teacher. Your assignment will be this report. Hand it to me on Monday," the instructor said, turning his attention to Silas.
"No..." Silas also started to get a headache.
After the students were dismissed, Ned Leeds still wanted to invite Peter Parker to hang out further.
"Next time, Ned, I feel a little dizzy," Peter Parker said, feeling a slight sense of light-headedness.
"That's too bad. Do you want me to walk you home?" Ned Leeds asked, concerned.
"Thanks, Ned, but Silas is here," Peter Parker replied gratefully.
Silas was also feeling a dizzy sensation, but because his physical abilities were stronger, it wasn't as pronounced.
"Don't worry, Peter's with me," Silas said, picking up Peter Parker's backpack.
"Bye then," Ned Leeds waved and turned to leave.
"Bye," Silas waved back.
Silas then led Peter Parker back home.
"Aunt May, I'm going upstairs to rest," Peter Parker said, slowly climbing the stairs with Silas's help.
"Alright," Aunt May asked from the sofa, sounding puzzled. "Silas, was your outing very tiring today?"
"Yes, we walked around quite a bit," Silas explained briefly, then took Peter Parker upstairs.
As soon as they got back to the room, Peter Parker collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep. Silas also felt overwhelming sleepiness hit him.
He closed the door for Peter Parker, then went back to his own room to sleep.
As the two of them slept, the genes in their bodies were slowly beginning to mutate.
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