After eating his fill and coming clean, Peter headed upstairs to rest.
Downstairs, Uncle Ben watched Aunt May clearing the table and couldn't help but sigh.
Why was raising a child so difficult?
His brother had entrusted Peter to him. He and May couldn't have children of their own, so they had raised Peter as their own flesh and blood from the very beginning.
All they wanted… was for him to grow up safely.
Healthily.
Happily.
So why did even that feel so hard?
Thinking of mutants… government agencies… secret organizations…
Thinking that one day, they might suddenly appear and take Peter away—
Ben felt like his heart was being carved apart.
Silently, he made a vow.
Even if it cost him his life…
He would protect Peter.
"Parents, huh…"
Upstairs, Peter sat on his bed, retracting the invisible tendrils of his telekinesis. Then he leaned back, staring at the ceiling.
Spider-Man existed because of Uncle Ben.
In countless parallel universes, Peter becoming Spider-Man always involved that moment—just like how Batman always had to watch his parents die in Crime Alley.
As flagship heroes of their respective worlds, Spider-Man's popularity had even surpassed Batman's—at least until a certain armored genius began dominating the big screen.
But one thing remained undeniable:
The soul of Spider-Man…
Came from Ben and May.
His greatness wasn't born out of nowhere.
It was inherited.
Passed down.
"I said I wanted to change my fate… that I didn't want to be that poor, struggling Spider-Man anymore."
Peter's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Then maybe… I should start with Uncle Ben and Aunt May."
A direction had formed.
Ben and May weren't old.
Neither of them had even reached fifty. Aunt May only had a few faint wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.
That meant—
There was room to act.
"Aunt May can wait. But Uncle Ben… he's an electrical engineer."
Peter began thinking rapidly.
"If he wants to protect me… then I'll give him the ability to do so."
A plan took shape.
"I can plant a subtle psychological suggestion—make him want to study again. Then I'll exchange for a rejuvenation serum through the system… mix it into their drinking water so it works gradually."
The Parker family had strong genes.
Richard Parker had been a top-tier genetic scientist—even in the Marvel Universe, he was considered an expert. His most famous achievement?
The genetically altered spider that gave Peter his powers.
And Peter himself?
Accepted by MIT and Stanford.
Clearly, talent ran in the family.
"So once Uncle Ben regains his youth, his learning ability should skyrocket."
"And then…"
Peter's lips curled into a faint smile.
"I can make a couple more sacrifices to the system, exchange for advanced technology, and guide him through psychological cues."
"A simple electrical engineer… starting his own tech company."
"Perfectly reasonable."
Thinking it through took seconds.
Acting on it took even less.
Peter immediately sat cross-legged, closing his eyes as invisible mental tendrils spread downward.
A moment later—
Downstairs, Uncle Ben suddenly stood up.
"What are you doing?" Aunt May asked, startled, rag still in hand.
"I've decided," Ben said firmly.
"Decided what?"
Ben wasn't particularly tall—just around 5'9"—but years of disciplined living had given him a solid, dependable build.
And now—
His eyes were shining.
"I'm going to start studying again."
"Starting today, I'm going to work hard—to create a better environment for Peter. To support him more."
"I won't become a burden to him someday."
His voice rang with determination.
Aunt May blinked, momentarily stunned.
She didn't quite understand what had gotten into him.
But…
The more she thought about it, the more it made sense.
Peter was smart.
Kind.
Considerate.
He had never caused trouble for them—not once.
As parents, if they couldn't even support him properly—
Wasn't that their failure?
"…Then I'll start working harder too," she said softly. "I'll learn new recipes. Make better food for both of you."
The couple smiled at each other, sharing a quiet, intimate moment.
Then Ben turned and headed into the bedroom, pulling out a dusty box from under the bed.
Inside—
Textbooks from his college days.
Untouched for years.
If he didn't want to remain just an ordinary electrician…
It was time to pick them up again.
Upstairs, sensing everything, Peter smiled in satisfaction.
"Done."
With that, exhaustion finally caught up to him.
Closing his eyes, he collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep almost instantly.
-----
Meanwhile—
At the Xavier estate in Westchester, the Blackbird jet descended slowly onto the landing platform.
Cyclops and Storm, both now awake, walked down side by side, paying no attention to the figure behind them.
Jean Grey followed quietly.
But she wasn't alone.
At her side was a striking woman in red—Wanda Maximoff. And of course, Quicksilver had come along with his sister.
Inside the hangar, Professor Charles Xavier waited, suppressing his fatigue.
His eyes were fixed on the arriving group.
Hope.
Anticipation.
But as he scanned their faces—
That hope slowly faded.
The person he had been waiting for…
Never appeared.
--------------
T/N:
Support the Story and Read 30+ Chapters early on P@treon:👉[email protected]/MPHFics