Chapter 283: Flash Thompson's Apology
Flash Thompson's towering frame stood in front of Peter, staring Harry down without a hint of fear.
"Meaning, you're not one of the weak?" Harry raised an eyebrow.
"Obviously." Flash was quite confident in his athletic build.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Harry suddenly lashed out with his right foot, aiming a sharp kick at Flash's stomach. Peter, standing nearby, reacted with lightning speed; he grabbed Flash's arm and yanked him aside.
Harry's kick missed its mark, causing him to lose his balance. He nearly took a tumble, but his followers caught him just in time to save him from a humiliating fall.
"Thanks, Peter," Flash said, snapping back to reality. He hadn't expected Harry to attack him so suddenly; he would have taken a direct hit if Peter hadn't intervened.
"No, I should thank you for stepping up," Peter replied. His impression of Flash had improved significantly; the bully had actually learned how to help people.
"Enough!" Harry broke free from his lackeys' grasp and steadied himself. "Move out of my way!"
"You—!" Flash was fuming. He didn't believe for a second that he couldn't take Harry in a fight, given the sheer difference in their sizes.
Peter tugged on Flash's sleeve. "Forget it, Flash. It's the first day of the semester; let's not start with trouble."
"This..." Flash hesitated. Getting into a brawl on day one would definitely result in severe consequences.
While Flash was weighing his options, Harry shoved his shoulder into Flash's arm and brushed past them, walking away at a brisk pace.
"Sss—!" Flash winced, rubbing his arm. He couldn't believe that a slight bump from Harry could hurt that much.
Peter's gaze narrowed. He noticed something was off about Harry. No normal person could bump into a guy as big as Flash and leave him grimacing in pain like that.
"That actually stung," Flash said, shaking out his hand. He turned to Silas. "Silas, you want to join the baseball club with me?"
"I'll see," Silas replied. Honestly, he wasn't very interested; he wanted to find a low-effort, relaxing club.
"Alright then. Come on! Let's head to the cafeteria for lunch." Flash led the group toward the dining hall.
At the classroom door, Gwen and Felicia breathed a sigh of relief. They had thought a fight was inevitable, but it seemed the tension had remained verbal—mostly.
"Let's go, let's get some food," Felicia said, pulling Gwen along toward the cafeteria.
On the Way to the Cafeteria
Ned whispered into Peter's ear, "Unbelievable. Is that actually Flash Thompson?"
"What do you mean?" Peter smiled.
"What do I mean?!" Ned pointed dramatically at Flash's back as he walked ahead. "This is so wrong! He's supposed to be..."
Ned took a deep breath, puffed out his chest, and adopted a snobbish attitude: "Beat it! This is Peter, the nerd I'm bullying! You, get lost!"
"..." Peter looked at him blankly. "Please, Ned, why do you still remember that 'nerd' title?"
"Sorry, sorry! My bad, I got carried away," Ned said, instantly reverting to his normal self with an embarrassed grin.
"Seriously, Ned, isn't this version of Flash better?" Peter was more than happy to see Flash acting like this. He didn't realize that Flash had been inspired by Spider-Man's heroics to make this change.
The group arrived at the cafeteria, got their meals, and sat down at a table together. Since they were all former classmates, they naturally formed a tight-knit circle.
"First, I have something to say." As soon as Flash sat down, he looked directly at Peter.
Ned's heart tightened. Was Flash about to call Peter a nerd again? Their rivalry had been common knowledge back in high school.
"Go ahead," Peter said, knowing Flash had something on his mind.
Flash took a deep breath, seemingly psyching himself up. "Peter, about the stuff in high school... I want to say I'm sorry."
"What?!" Ned stared at Flash in total shock. Was Flash Thompson actually apologizing to Peter?
"This..." Peter was also caught off guard. He had run through several scenarios of what Flash might say, but an apology wasn't one of them.
"I was immature in high school and caused you a lot of trouble. I'm truly sorry," Flash said with genuine sincerity. After being inspired by his idol, Spider-Man, he had decided to say goodbye to his old self and hello to a better future.
"It's okay." Peter smiled. He forgave him. In truth, after gaining his powers and becoming Spider-Man, he had stopped taking those petty high school grievances to heart.
"Really?" Flash had expected a rejection, but Peter had forgiven him instantly. "Thanks, Peter. We're still friends."
Flash extended his hand. Peter shook it, and with that single gesture, the bitterness of the past evaporated.
"Man, I feel so much lighter now," Flash said, his mental burden finally lifted.
"If you guys don't start eating, your lunch is going to get cold," Silas noted from the side, a helpful reminder as he quietly worked on his own meal.
"Oh, right!" The group quickly began to eat.
Another Table
Harry had no appetite for lunch. His eyes were filled with resentment as he stared at Peter's table.
For some reason, Harry felt his temper becoming increasingly volatile. Whenever things didn't go his way, he felt like he was going to explode. Today's incident had been an accident—he was the one who fell—but a voice in his head had immediately screamed at him to kill the person responsible.
Harry was trying his best to control himself and not be swayed by these dark thoughts, but the conflict had left him feeling even more agitated.
"Boss Harry, you want us to handle them?" one of his lackeys asked.
Given Harry's status as the Chairman of Oscorp, everyone wanted to suck up to him. They were practically willing to kneel and lick his shoes.
"No." Harry's voice was low and strained. He was restraining himself, fearing that if he spoke more, he'd lose control and go back to harass Peter's group.
"What is wrong with me?" Harry shook his head. The feeling was terrifyingly alien.
"Is it a headache, boss?" the lackey asked, trying to be helpful.
"Get lost! Do you have any idea how annoying you are?!" Harry snapped, his eyes flashing with hostility. The guy had been chirping in his ear since they sat down.
"Yes! I'm going! I'm going!" The lackey didn't stick around to be insulted further and scrambled away.
Seeing the lackey leave, Harry finally felt a small sense of relief.
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