Chapter Text
STRANGE BEHAVIOR AND MEMORY LOSS CONCERN QUEENS RESIDENTS
Over the past few hours, several Queens residents have reported unusual behavior followed by episodes of memory loss. Witnesses claim to have seen people suddenly stop in the middle of the street, stare blankly at one spot for several seconds, or act as though they were confused about where they were.
What is most unusual is that some of these people claim they do not remember what happened during certain periods of the day. Authorities have yet to find an explanation and have not confirmed whether the cases are related.
For now, residents remain bewildered as new accounts continue to emerge.
WORKER HIT BY TAXI AFTER STRANGE ENCOUNTER WITH SPIDER-MAN
A 50-year-old worker, identified as Richard Callahan, was struck by a taxi this Wednesday while he was near a construction site belonging to the company he works for.
According to multiple witnesses, Callahan had been speaking with Spider-Man just minutes before the accident. The conversation appeared normal until, according to those who witnessed the scene, the worker suddenly walked into the street just as a taxi was approaching.
The driver attempted to brake but was unable to avoid the collision. Callahan was taken to a hospital and remains under observation.
The strangest part came afterward. The worker claims he does not remember speaking with Spider-Man or walking into the street. “The last thing I remember is working at the construction site,” he stated.
However, several witnesses maintain that the conversation did happen and that Spider-Man was present immediately before the accident. Authorities are still investigating what happened during the minutes Callahan claims to have forgotten.
SPIDER-MAN CRASHES A WEDDING: WHAT WAS HE LOOKING FOR?
A wedding in Manhattan descended into complete chaos after Spider-Man unexpectedly appeared in the middle of the celebration. According to guests, the hero burst through part of the ceiling and a wall of the venue, landing directly on the area where the food was being served and destroying the wedding cake along with several plates.
The scene left the guests completely bewildered. However, what happened afterward was even stranger.
According to multiple witnesses, the bride allegedly spoke directly to Spider-Man before he left the venue. “A round of applause for Spider-Man, who’s going to save the love of his life, and it doesn’t look good,” she reportedly said in front of several guests.
A waiter also allegedly had a brief exchange with the hero. “Come on, Spidey, hurry up,” he reportedly shouted before running out of the venue, with Spider-Man following him.
What is truly baffling is that both the bride and the waiter are now experiencing symptoms of memory loss. Both claim they do not remember speaking with Spider-Man or why they did so.
The guests, however, describe the conversations clearly and insist they witnessed them firsthand.
For now, no one has been able to explain what Spider-Man was looking for at the wedding, why he broke in the way he did, or what connection exists between the hero, the couple, and the waiter. And, of course, no one knows who’s going to pay for the cake.
So I reached the last part of the article and…
—Ned!
—AAAH!
I jumped out of my seat on the train and spun around, clutching a hand to my chest as Betty looked at me from beside me with an utterly amused expression.
—What the hell are you doing? —I asked, still trying to catch my breath.
Betty let out a small laugh.
—I’ve been talking to you for like five minutes, and you didn’t answer me.
I stared at her for a few seconds, my heart still racing.
—Don’t ever do that again.
—Why? Were you reading something interesting?
I looked back at the screen.
The article was still open.
—Yeah... way too interesting.
Betty leaned against me, crossing her arms as she looked at my phone screen. For a few seconds, she said nothing, just staring at the open tabs, headlines, and interviews I had accumulated while researching.
—You’re still doing this —she finally said.
—Doing what?
—Obsessing over something until you forget about everything else.
I lowered my gaze to the keyboard.
—I’m not obsessed.
Betty raised an eyebrow slightly.
—Ned.
—Okay… maybe a little.
She smiled faintly, though her expression changed when she looked back at the screens.
—Is this about Spider-Man?
I didn’t answer immediately.
It had been a long time since we’d last talked about that in that way. Betty and I had dated during our trip to Europe, back when we were still in high school. It had been unexpected, simple at first. We started spending more time together, talking late into the night, walking around different places without worrying too much about what would happen afterward.
For a while, I thought it could last.
But then we came home.
We graduated high school, and everything started to change.
Betty moved on with her life, and I started college. The distance made it harder and harder to see each other, but it wasn’t just that. Little by little, I stopped telling her things. First, it was small stuff. Then I stopped talking to her about what I did during the day.
I stopped replying to some of her messages. I started spending more time locked inside my own thoughts, studying, researching, and, above all, trying to find out everything I could about Spider-Man.
I think, without realizing it, I started shutting myself away more and more inside that obsession. His appearances, his movements, the theories, anything that could help me understand who he really was. Maybe because, deep down, I was trying to fill the empty space that had been left in my memory.
And Spider-Man became the only thing that seemed to bring me closer to that answer.
Until eventually, we simply stopped being part of each other’s lives.
There was no big fight, no final argument, no dramatic goodbye.
We just drifted apart.
Sometimes I wondered what everything would have been like if things had been different. If Spider-Man had gone to my school, I was almost certain we would’ve been friends, maybe even best friends.
Now I was sitting on a train headed to Boston, traveling with Betty and a few friends to spend a couple of days together. MJ had stayed at the apartment, so, for once, I didn’t have anyone behind me telling me to stop investigating and enjoy the trip.
Although I probably would’ve done it anyway.
—Yeah —I finally answered—It’s about Spider-Man.
Betty sighed and pulled a nearby chair over to sit down.
—I thought you’d left that behind.
I let out a small laugh.
—Me? Leave Spider-Man behind?
—You’re right. That was a pretty stupid question.
I moved closer to her and showed her my phone screen.
—Look at this. There are several similar cases in different parts of the city.
Betty took the phone curiously. As a reporter, she had a habit of reading a story down to the very last detail. Her eyes quickly scanned the article while I waited for her reaction.
—This is pretty weird —she said after a few seconds. —People losing fragments of their memories, witnesses remembering things the people involved don’t... —she looked up at me—Are you already thinking about Spider-Man?
—I’m not thinking about him. I’m thinking about a possible connection.
From the seat across from us, Marcus let out a small laugh.
—That’s exactly what someone who’s been investigating Spider-Man for three hours would say.
—I’ve been at it for less than three hours.
—Two hours and forty-seven minutes —Daniel chimed in without looking up from his phone. —I timed you because I wanted to see how long it would take you to mention him.
—Seriously?
—No —he replied with a grin. —But I know you well enough to know it wouldn’t take long.
Everyone laughed.
It was hard to defend myself when they had spent years listening to me talk about Spider-Man. From high school to college, they’d had to put up with theories, blurry photographs, news reports, maps, possible patterns, and probably more information about the hero than any normal person should ever know. The funny thing was, none of them seemed genuinely tired of the subject.
If anything, they were interested.
—Alright, show me the other cases —Marcus said, leaning toward me. —If this has anything to do with Spider-Man, I want to know.
—Me too —Daniel added. —After all this time, I’m not about to miss the moment Ned Leeds finally discovers something important.
Betty smiled as she handed my phone back.
—So, what exactly are you trying to figure out?
—I don’t know.
—That’s not very reassuring.
—There are too many things that don’t make sense. Like the people losing their memories... and now this.
Betty looked at the screen again, this time with a more serious expression, though she still had that curiosity that always appeared whenever she came across a story she could investigate.
—And what does Spider-Man have to do with all of this?
—That’s what I’m trying to figure out.
Marcus leaned slightly toward us.
—Although, honestly, it would be pretty strange if all these cases started happening at the same time and Spider-Man had absolutely nothing to do with them.
—Exactly —I said.
Betty gently shook her head.
—Or it could be a coincidence.
I looked at her.
—You too?
—I’m not saying you’re right or wrong. I’m just saying that if you’re going to investigate this, you have to consider every possibility. That’s the first thing I learned working as a reporter.
Daniel raised a hand.
—I vote for Ned’s theory.
—You always vote for Ned’s theory —Betty said.
—Because it’s usually more interesting.
—Not necessarily more accurate.
—That too.
I smiled faintly, but Betty’s expression changed when she looked at me again.
—Ned...
—What?
—What if it has nothing to do with him?
The question made me stop.
I had thought about that possibility. More than once.
But there was something inside me that refused to accept it. Maybe because I had spent too long searching for answers surrounding Spider-Man. Maybe because, after all these years, I had started associating anything strange with him.
—Then it would have to be one hell of a coincidence.
—Are you okay?
MJ took a deep breath and looked around.
—I’m fine...
I watched her for a few seconds, still worried. There was something about her expression that didn’t quite convince me, but I didn’t want to push her, so I simply nodded and started walking away, heading toward the other end of the rooftop.
—Good. I think we’ll be safe here.
—Safe from what?
I stopped. The question was simple, and the problem was that I didn’t have an answer.
—Mmh... I’m not completely sure.
MJ looked at me with a mixture of confusion and exhaustion.
—Okay... but what do I have to do with any of this?
I lowered my gaze.
—Uh... I don’t know.
I kept walking until I reached a set of stairs leading to a higher part of the rooftop. I climbed a couple of steps and stayed there with my back to her. I didn’t know what I was doing. Well, I did. I was running away. Again. It was much easier to hide behind a mask than to face her.
Every time MJ was near me, something inside me twisted, even though I no longer knew exactly what it meant. I had spent four years trying to convince myself that I was okay, four years telling myself that it had been necessary, that it was the right thing to do, that she had a better life without me. But seeing her now made all those certainties begin to crumble. I missed her, although I didn’t know whether I missed the person she had been to me or simply the familiarity of having her around. There were nights when I wondered what it would be like to talk to her again without feeling like I had to hide something, to tell her some stupid thing that had happened to me, hear her laugh, or simply share a moment without having to pretend we were two strangers. And maybe that was what hurt the most: not knowing whether there was still something left of that connection between us or if I was just trying to hold on to a memory that no longer belonged to her.
And the worst part was that she was there. Just a few feet away from me, I could hear her breathing. I could hear her footsteps. I could talk to her and tell her the truth.
I’m Peter.
I’m the boy you knew.
The boy you were with.
The boy who loves you.
The words got stuck before they could leave my mouth. I had imagined that moment hundreds of times, but in none of those versions had I ever had the courage to do it, because if I told her, I could lose her again, and this time I didn’t know if I would have the strength to endure it. I had spent four years watching the people I love move on without me. Ned and MJ. Everything that had been my life had disappeared in a single moment, and now MJ was standing right in front of me.
It was almost cruel.
—I don’t know... —I murmured.
—You don’t know?
I remained still. MJ stepped a little closer.
—It just doesn’t make much sense to me. Why me?
I closed my eyes for a moment. Because I knew you before you forgot who I was, because you’re my favorite person after Ned. Because I’ve spent four years wanting to tell you the truth, but none of those things made it out of my mouth.
—Ah... I wish I could tell you, but... umm...
—We already knew each other, didn’t we?
I turned around so quickly that I nearly tripped over the step. I looked at her, and my heart started pounding.
Does she remember me?
For a second, everything else disappeared. I couldn’t hear the cars. I couldn’t hear the wind. I could only hear her.
Does MJ remember me?
It couldn’t be. There was a possibility. A small possibility, and after four years of believing that everything we had lived through had disappeared forever, that tiny bit of hope was enough to make me feel something I had almost forgotten.
Hope.
—What did you say?
MJ frowned slightly.
—I said it’s the only explanation.
She took another step closer.
—It’s been driving me crazy for years.
My breath caught.
—Every time Spider-Man saved Ned and me... —she continued. —At the Washington Monument, then London, Prague, the black suit...
I couldn’t take my eyes off her. I felt them beginning to burn because I remembered every one of those times. I remembered her voice, her face. The way she looked at me. I remembered thinking that as long as I could keep them safe, everything would be okay.
—Twice could be a coincidence —she said. —Even three times.
She paused for a moment.
—But it happened again and again and again.
I felt something inside me break.
—We know each other —she finally said. —Don’t we?
—Or tell me I’m wrong.
—Well, you’re wrong...
MJ narrowed her eyes, as if she were trying to figure me out.
—Were we classmates, friends, or what?
As she said it, she began to move closer. I slowly shook my head, even though my hands were trembling inside the suit. Classmates. Friends. Something more. I thought about everything we had been, one thing after another, as if my memory were racing through our entire history much faster than I could handle. I thought about high school, Ned, the afternoons we spent together, the conversations that only the two of us understood, every moment that had slowly turned into something more until we no longer knew where friendship ended and everything else began. I swallowed and looked away.
—I don’t know what you’re talking about.
—Were we something more? I just... I can’t...
MJ stepped onto the stair and stood beside me. For a few seconds, she remained silent, looking out over the city before turning back to me.
—I can’t remember because it feels like someone scrambled my brain, and you’re the only one who knows why.
I felt something tighten inside my chest.
—This is crazy. I can’t...
I can’t.
I couldn’t tell her the truth. I couldn’t explain that the man standing in front of her was the same boy she had known years ago. I couldn’t tell her that we had been friends, that we had fallen in love, that we had built something together, and that afterward I had been forced to disappear from her life to save her. Because it wasn’t just our story that was at stake. Doctor Strange’s spell had erased my identity from everyone’s memories to stop a threat that could destroy the world. If I tried to break it now, if I opened that door again, maybe it could all start over. The multiverse could be put in danger again. And I couldn’t let millions of people pay the price for recovering something that belonged only to me, even if it meant seeing her every day and remaining a stranger.
—I know you can’t tell me the truth —MJ finally said. —But I need to know it.
We stood in silence. I looked at her, and she held my gaze. For a few seconds, neither of us moved. There were too many things between us that couldn’t be said, too many memories that existed only in my head, and a truth that seemed to be just inches away from leaving my mouth.
—Maybe part of me still remembers.
MJ slowly raised her hands to my neck. I felt her fingers touch the edge of my mask, and for a moment, I didn’t know what to do. I could have pulled away. I could have stopped it before it happened. But I didn’t. Her fingers began gently pulling the mask upward, slowly revealing my face until, finally, my lips were uncovered.
I looked at her, completely still, feeling all those years of distance shrink down to just a few inches.
And then MJ leaned in and kissed me. It was a soft kiss at first, almost uncertain, as if she were trying to confirm something she couldn’t even explain. But to me, it felt as though four years of silence had just shattered all at once. I closed my eyes and felt everything I had tried to bury come rushing back at the same time: the afternoons we spent together, our conversations, her smiles, the feeling of having her close.
I didn’t know whether she was remembering or simply following a feeling she couldn’t put into words, but I remembered. I remembered every second, and that was exactly what made it hurt so much. Why I had wished more times than I could count that one day she would remember me. But she couldn’t. So I stayed there, kissing her while a part of me felt happy.
When we finally pulled apart, our foreheads rested against each other. I breathed shakily, trying to hold back everything I was about to say.
—I can’t believe you figured it out... —I said through tears, still unable to pull away from her completely.
MJ smiled softly.
—I did...
We remained silent for a few seconds, simply looking at each other, as if we were both trying to process what had just happened. My chest still felt tight, and the tears continued falling without me being able to stop them. After four years, I was finally standing in front of her without a mask between us. MJ tilted her head slightly and looked at me with an oddly calm expression.
—Come on, Peter. Touch her, hold her... you’ve wanted to do it for so long.
I frowned, confused.
—What...?
She didn’t answer. She just held my gaze. Slowly, I let go of the hug. My arms pulled away from her body with some resistance, as if I still didn’t want to let her go. I stood there in front of her, still stunned, while MJ remained completely serious. I took a small step toward her and slowly raised a hand, carefully bringing it toward her face. For a second, I thought maybe all of this could be real. That perhaps, after all these years, after everything I had lost, I could finally have her back.
MJ stared at me.
—A kiss of true love breaks the spell and reunites separated lovers.
My expression immediately changed.
—What?
MJ made a disgusted face.
—God, that’s so cheesy, MJ would totally puke.
I froze completely. MJ stepped away from me and shook her head slightly.
—You’re a pretty simple spider, aren’t you?
I stared at her, completely unable to understand what was happening.
—What...?
MJ kept moving away from me until she was near the edge of the rooftop. She leaned lightly against the metal structure and crossed her arms, watching me with a small smile I couldn’t quite decipher.
—Now I see why you like her.
I felt my heart stop.
—What are you talking about?
—Her.
The word hit me. MJ smiled a little wider.
—She’s really smart, funny, and has a dark sense of humor...
I stared at her, completely stunned.
I didn’t understand what was happening. MJ lowered her gaze for a moment and let out a small smile, but this time there was something sad behind it.
—But it’s sad.
Her smile slowly disappeared, and she looked up at me.
—There isn’t a single thought of yours in here. Not even the slightest one.
I stood completely still, feeling those words begin to fall into place with everything that had happened since I went to her apartment: her attitude, the way she spoke, her questions.
And then I understood.
That’s not MJ.