Sunflower

The deafening sound of three different alarm clocks going off in the shared dorm room was surely a familiar yet unmotivating way to start the day. Groans came out from the trio as P.J and Bobby reached over to lazily turn off their alarm clocks. They laid back down, yet Max’s clock (which was unfortunately on top of the drawer in front of the window) was still on. 

P.J groaned, covering his ears with his pillow. “Max.” His voice was muffled under the soft, feather-filled sack.

“Duuuude, turn your shit off.” Bobby lazily kicked up, hitting the top bunk.

Max groggily stirred from his sleeping position, the bunk bed slightly creaking. With a flick of his hand in a rockstar sign, the alarm clock was quickly shot with strings of web, turning it off.

With a sigh, he sat up and stretched, feet dangling off the bed. He rubbed his eyes before jumping off and landing right on his feet. It was a thing that he had gotten used to ever since the SBI or “Spider Bite Incident” as his two friends say. They’ve gotten a bit jealous of his abilities, just like not needing the ladder to get up and get down from the top bunk, or any high place in general. 

But it’s not like he does this freely in public, no. He still has to blend in with the crowd. To which Max even admits himself, is hard. I mean, wouldn’t anyone want to show-off to everyone if they randomly got powers one night? Though he has established that it would be too dangerous if anyone other than his friends knew. The government, scientists, and other bad people will surely be out to get him. Or worse, out to get the people he cared about– especially his dad.

So, he had to build himself a new identity a week after the incident. At that point, he was sure that he had mastered his abilities or power, a cooler way to put it. With some brainstorming and some help from his superhero-nerd friend P.J, they managed to fix him up a superhero suit. It was trial and error, by that it meant getting pricked by a whole lot of needles, but his final look was done after many failed prototypes.

Now originally, it was only supposed to be a black bodysuit with gray web-like patterns, plus bones to keep it cool and flashy because it’s in the area where he could shoot webs– which they only found out after Prototype 1.

But Max being the stylish 2000’s teenager he was, wanted to spice things up. He went out and bought a short-sleeved red hoodie that was a size bigger, as well as dark blue baggy pants, used an old blue baseball cap, and the new shoes his dad got him as a farewell gift before he left with his girlfriend Sylvia. He even cut a part of the suit on the top of his head for his head to stick out the cap’s hole (P.J was devastated when he found out). It was basically just like his favorite outfit in high school, but “better”.

Max convinced his friends that doing all of that was fine, and an extra layer wouldn’t slow him down. And it didn’t. His first public appearances involved him in helping people or trying to. He spent an hour trying to get a cat down from a tree and back to its owner, an old lady. The cat was pretty aggressive, and Max was full of scratches when the job was finally done.

But from simple things like saving cats from trees, chasing down loose animals, and helping old people cross the road, it quickly changed to chasing and fighting down thieves, stopping drug deals, and saving people from holdups. It wasn’t long before civilians and police officers in the neighborhood and the city were becoming more and more familiar with him.

He has even started to gain some muscle from all the hero work, starting with his abs. Though there aren’t any big notable changes, they’re still considered as progress.

Of course, there are still times he gets injured. Thankfully, it’s usually nothing more than a few bruises and a black eye. And lately, he has to be more careful than usual because school had started a week ago. It’s not like he has professors who actually care for his well-being, but it’s better to be safe than to have people wonder why he always has bruises. Not only that, but his hero duties have been shortened to only being able to do them at night, such as patrolling certain areas from above and getting into action when needed.

His schedule has been getting pretty tight lately, and he’d be lying if he said doing everything all at once is easy. But hey, he loves what he does.

“Are you listening, Mr. Goof?” The old math professor raised a busy brow at Max as he stood in front of him. 

Max snapped out of his artistic trance, looking up from his notes and covering his paper. “Uh, yeah. I am.” It really was hard sitting in front of the whole lecture hall, especially during Math.

This professor was different, much older than the others and he still pushed on the belief that everyone should pay attention, unlike other professors who just continued on with the lecture with whoever was listening. It wasn’t their loss, after all.

“Really now? Then I suppose you wouldn’t mind if I took a quick look at your notes.” The professor hummed, pulling on the notebook under Max’s gloved hand.

“Hey—” On the page, there were a few math equations. 2 and a half, the third one was abandoned as the boy had started to sketch a drawing of the local superhero doing tricks on a skateboard.

“I believe now is not the time to draw such childish things, Mr. Goof. Nor is it related to your course, please refrain from getting sidetracked.” The professor told him off before handing him back his notebook, earning a few whispers and small giggles from the class. 

“Okay.” Max didn’t want any more unwanted attention to be drawn towards him, and he didn’t want any bad blood with this professor in particular.

“I didn’t know you were a fanboy of that so-called superhero, Goof. Middle school is on the other side of the city.” An infuriating voice that Max knew all too well spoke up from the second row behind him. His petty comment received a few chuckles from the room.

Max rolled his eyes. He wasn’t in the mood for another back-and-forth argument with Bradley, it was definitely not the right place to do so, too. “Really, Brad? That’s the best you’ve..– got..?” He started talking calmly before turning his head around, tone hinting a bit of confusion because of the sight he saw.

There, Bradley was seated between two Gamma members, both smiling down at Max while Bradley grinned mischievously. Behind the three, sat Tank. He cleared his throat and the two Gamma members next to Bradley sat up properly, not wanting to anger Tank.

Bradley on the other hand, only leaned forward on the desk with the back of his hand under his chin as he mockingly grinned at Max, with Max slightly glaring back at him before glancing at Tank. He needed an explanation, what was going on?

“Alright, that’s enough from the two of you. Listen up if you want to be able to answer your assignment later.” The old professor walked back to the front to continue with the lecture.

Tank gave Max a look that said “I’ll explain everything later”. And so, Max decided to look in front of him again and listen to the lesson this time.

It was harder to get through lectures in classes that he had without Bobby or P.J, but he had to push through.

After forty-five minutes, the lecture came to an end and most students could go eat lunch before their next class starts. They packed up their things and headed for the exit door, including Max.

With him carrying his bag by one strap, he called out to the large figure a few feet away from him. 

“Yo Tank, you got a second?” He called out as he walked up the stairs and through the door, about to catch up to Tank before his shoulder was bumped from behind. “Watch it, kid.” The same annoying voice spoke as he walked past him. Seriously? He couldn’t get a second of peace without Bradley appearing out of nowhere.

The Gammas followed behind him, laughing as they did. Was he actually back with them that  fast? How could Tank let that happen?

Max was about to reply but then Tank turned around, hearing the commotion happening behind him. He looked down at Max, and then at Bradley. He glared at him, brows furrowed. “Bradley. What did we just talk about?” He asked, voice deep with a growl to it. It was different from how he talked to others, and definitely different from how he used to talk to Bradley before the last X-Games.

Bradley only scowled in reply, looking back at Tank before looking away. “Whatever, we’re going to get ribs for lunch. Eat with us if you want.” Bradley told Tank as he walked past him, though not sparing him another glance. Tank watched them leave, giving his two Gamma brothers a nod goodbye before turning back to Max

“Max, baby, I’m sorry about all of that.” Tank gave Max a genuine smile, though Max only furrowed his brows in confusion.

“Yeah, what exactly is that all about, man? Is he really back with you guys?” He asked, wanting answers. 

Tank rubbed the back of his neck, sighing. “It’s a long story but, yeah, basically.” He got straight to the point. Max looked at him with wide eyes as if Tank just dropped a bomb on him.

“Dude, are you serious? He almost killed you!” Max ran a hand through his hair in disbelief. Tank furrowed his brows at the memory of the betrayal.

“I know, I still don’t forgive him for it.” He clenched his fists at his sides before calming down.

Max scoffed, shoving a gloved hand in his pocket. “Then why is he with you guys again?” There was a tinge of disappointment in Max’s voice and expression, and Tank fully understood why. He understood better than anyone Max was the one who saved him, after all.

“It’s just the Gammas– we really need the funds that his dad provided us. When Mr. Uppercrust withdrew his sponsorship at the end of the year, all of our other sponsors did too. I’m serious, baby. None were left. It got to the point where we thought we were going to have to disband and get dorms instead.” Tank explained.

Max listened in surprise, this was the first he’d heard of it. “Why didn’t you tell me anything about it if it was so long ago?”

“I tried to, sweetheart. But you were too busy the whole summer– which I totally understand and respect.” Tank admitted honestly.

It all came crashing down on Max. Tank ]had[ messaged him a few times in the summer, asking if he was free to meet up. But every time, Max said he was busy (it wasn’t a lie, but still). He thought that maybe Tank just wanted to hang out, not thinking it was anything important like that.

Max hissed through his teeth, his grip on the strap of his bag tightening. Tank immediately noted Max’s tense figure and saw that he was deep in thought. He gently placed a big hand on Max’s shoulder, snapping Max out of his trance.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. I guess I could have just told you directly in text, too.” Tank reassured him with a pat and the shorter male sighed.

“Yeah, but.. Shit, I still feel real bad not being able to do anything to help you at that time, y’know?” Max shrugged, ashamed to think that he let a friend down.

Tank playfully scoffed. “It’s all in the past, sweetheart. It’s already been solved, we made a deal to at least take Bradley back and he’d return with the sponsors.” Max felt a sense of comfort at the first half of what Tank said, and then slightly frowning at the last part.

“Pfft, rich people really are assholes.” He commented, and Tank let out a hearty laugh.

“I can’t deny that. And you don’t have to worry about Bradley, we already talked about what he can and can’t do, that involves trying anything funny with you and your friends.” Tank explained, Max gave him a small smile.

“Thanks, man. But you didn’t have to, I can handle him just like I did then.” He replied and Tank chuckled. “Yeah, but I still owe ya from the X-Games. And I can’t really say that we’re even yet, Bradley still needs some taming.” They both laughed at that, and continued catching up with each other for a good ten minutes before parting ways to have lunch with their own friends.

Max was walking down the street, near the city park. He was currently texting with his friend Bobby, as P.J was too occupied with his girlfriend.

Bobby

Br0 wher r u? we alm0st d0ne w da 1st pizza b0x

12:18 PM

Max read the message before typing his reply, he had gotten used to his friend’s lazy and almost indecipherable text messages at this point.

Max

Omw

I’m near the park now

12:18 PM

Bobby

K

12:19 PM

Max folded his flip phone shut and shoved it into his pockets, continuing with his walk. But before he could fully make it past the park, he suddenly heard a buzzing vibration in his ears and felt the hair on his neck stand up. He immediately looked over his shoulder, looking at the road. And soon enough, a red car appeared around the corner and drove by the street at great speed. Max already had a bad feeling about it, his senses were never wrong.

Seconds later, a police car came around the corner as well. “We’ve got a hijacked vehicle heading West and going at a hundred miles per hour. Everyone, make way. Nearby units, cut them off.” An officer inside the same car announced, holding a megaphone as his whole upper body was practically sticking out of the window.

Max knew he had to get into action fast. Luckily, he always had his suit and clothes in his bag. He just needed a place to get changed. He looked around until he spotted a dark alley. He crossed the street in such a hurry, he didn’t bother using the crosswalk. He earned a few honks from cars, but he got into the alley.

He had gotten so used to changing from normal clothes to his superhero suit, he did it in 10 seconds and he was off. He also made sure to web his bag to the wall before he swung away.

–

The city streets weren’t that busy today, and the weather was fair. It was a nice time to go for a walk, especially after sitting down for more than an hour. “Yeah, and then she asked for my number.” The one leading the trio, Bradley, spoke as their conversation about his travels continued.

“Well, did you give it to her?” The male at his left asked. He chuckled, shaking his head.

“Obviously not. We met in a third-world country, why would I bother?” He confidently replied, brushing the shoulder blade of his magenta sweater. “And the difference between us was that I was there to check on one of my dad’s companies, while she was there on vacation.” He continued, and the two boys with him laughed loudly.

 It didn’t take long for them to arrive at the Steakhouse, a pretty expensive restaurant that served the best steaks in town. Their ribeye steak was to die for.

The doorman opened the door for them, and when Bradley was about to enter, his phone rang. He looked down and took his phone out of his khaki pants, reading the caller ID before looking back at his Gamma brothers. 

“It’s my old man. You guys go on ahead and tell the receptionist you’re with me, you know what to order for me.” He ordered them, and they did just that as they entered the fancy restaurant. Bradley sighed, answering his phone as he took a few steps away from the restaurant.

He covered the phone, inhaling and exhaling before uncovering it and putting it up to his ear. “Hey, Dad.” He spoke first. “Bradley.” He heard his father’s cold voice reply from the other line.

Bradley cleared his throat, putting on a confident act. “What’s up? Why’d you call?” He asked, fidgeting as he walked back and forth.

“I just called to know how you’re doing.” He blandly answered. “Starting today, you’ve been back at school for a week now, no?” He was the one to ask questions this time.

Shit. Bradley thought to himself. “Yeah, yeah. It’s been a week.” He immediately answered, his act not faltering. He was a professional at this point, especially when it came to getting away with things.

His father hummed from the other line. “And how is it?” Bradley didn’t like where this was going. It surely wasn’t going to end well, his father usually wasn’t this interested in Bradley’s life. Did he perhaps know? Surely not.

“It’s been good, so far. Everyone’s already forgotten about last year.” Bradley scoffed. A lie.  “Why do you ask?” He was picking at the skin around his thumb’s nail. 

“That’s funny. Tank told me that you only started attending your classes today.” Bradley’s stomach dropped as he heard those words. He was thankful this was just a phone call.

Fucking snitch! Bradley grit his teeth, stopping in his tracks. “Care to explain?” His father asked after a second of silence. 

Bradley quickly collected himself. “Pfft, that’s nonsense. He’s just messing with you, with me. He’s still mad about what happened last year.” He played it off coolly.

“Bradley.” His father warned.

“Come on, you can’t blame him. I mean, I almost killed the guy.” Bradley continued.

“Bradley..” His father warned again, a bit more threateningly this time. He didn’t like that.

“It’s not like I meant  for that to happen, we know that. But he just can’t let that go and—”

“BRADLEY!” He winced at the sudden loud noise from the phone, flinching as he almost dropped the phone. His heart was beating so fast, he just realized that. His ear still hurt, his chest felt tight.

His hand was slightly trembling as he held the phone. He placed it on his other hand this time so he could use his other ear.

He took in a shaky breath, grip on the phone tightening. “Yes?” His voice was quiet this time, contrasting the way it was earlier.

He could audibly hear a sigh from the other line. “You waste my money and my time.” His father spat.

“But–”

“But what? We are not going to talk about this again.” His father growled.

“It’s not my fault you forced me back here! The whole summer, my whole plan was to attend college somewhere else and start anew.” He was starting to argue.

“And the whole summer, I said no.” His father reminded him. “Uppercrusts don’t run away from their problems. Especially if we caused them. We fix them and prove everyone wrong.”

Great. He was now receiving a whole lecture.

Bradley thought that his father was such a hypocrite. “Right.” He replied, a bit too sarcastically, that his father caught up.

“Excuse me?” He sounded offended. “I meant that you’re right. I’m.. sorry.” Those words rolled off Bradley’s tongue so bitterly. He wanted the conversation to end, any more of this will surely end up with him saying something he’d regret.

There was silence from his father’s side for a while. He was thinking, Bradley knew that. But what was he thinking about? He didn’t want to know that much.

“You will stay there, fix your mess, and you will NOT embarrass our name.” His father made it very clear that he didn’t want to hear anything else out of Bradley. Still, he asked. “Are we clear?”

Bradley didn’t realize that his thumb was now bleeding from the picking he did on his skin. He cursed under his breath as the blood dripped onto the sidewalk.

“Are. We. Clear?” His father asked again and Bradley grit his teeth in anger. “Yes, Dad .” It always felt off for Bradley to address that man as his father. He never acted like one. The closest thing to a father figure that Bradley ever had in his life was their old butler back at their manor. With his actual father, it always meant business.

“Good.” His father hung up with not even a goodbye. Bradley was used to it, but was it really that hard to say?

His grip on his phone was so hard that he was certain it would break if he applied any more pressure to it.

He aggressively turned his phone off, shoving it back in his pocket.

Breathe, Bradley. He told himself, and that he did. He took in manual deep inhales, followed by long exhales. He still had anger built up in him, but he didn’t want or need any of that right now.

As he calmed himself, he couldn’t ignore the painful yet familiar bleeding of the skin next to the nail of his thumb. 

He patted down his pockets to look for something he always carried around in case something like this happened again. And he found nothing.

“Shit.” He muttered. He had forgotten to bring his bandaids. He let out an annoyed groan before looking up, and scanning the place.

There were different buildings, coffee shops, and restaurants around. But he saw just what he needed. “Bingo!” There, on the other side of the street, was a pharmacy. It seemed to be new, as Bradley didn’t recall it being a pharmacy before the summer. 

He walked towards the pedestrian lane, looking both sides before crossing the city street. There were no incoming cars, so he walked calmly.

Just as he made his way to the middle of the road, a red car quickly turned around the corner and came running down the street, right up to the young man crossing the road. He heard the sound of tires screeching, which was strange since he didn’t recall seeing any cars seconds earlier.

“WATCH OUT!” A high-pitched scream came from the sidewalk. Now, Bradley knew this wasn’t good. He immediately looked over to his right, and sure enough, a red car was swerving at him at great speed.

He froze in place. It wasn’t the smartest thing he could’ve done, but doing anything else would have been just as ineffective. He was going to die . This was it, this was how Bradley Uppercrust III was going to meet his demise. Brutally killed on the filthy streets of the city by some jackass who was definitely going over the speed limit. That would be a dramatic way to go, almost embarrassing, even. He couldn’t believe these were going to be his final thoughts.

Everything was actually happening real fast. But what was faster, was how Bradley was suddenly picked up from the ground just when the car was right in front of him. “Wha–?” He was confused. Was this some post-death hallucination?

At this point, he was in the air, still held by the waist, in front of his stomach as they swiftly traveled above the street. How was this happening? And when Bradley finally snapped back into reality, he looked to his side to see who exactly had picked him up and saved him.

The person had a mask on, and seemed to be wearing a black and gray skin tight bodysuit under civilian clothing and a backwards cap. Bradley was familiar with this person. It was–

“Webhound?” He asked in disbelief as he faced the guy, who was still looking ahead to see where they were going. Upon hearing him, Webhound finally looked at him. “Hey.” His voice sounded deep, also a bit unnatural. But Bradley couldn’t even hear well because of the wind pressure from swinging in the air.

Webhound then looked away, only to immediately look back at Bradley with wide eyes. “Wait, Bradley?!” His voice sounded a bit higher than earlier this time. It was almost familiar, if only Bradley had heard it more clearly.

“You know who I am?” Bradley asked. He didn’t even realize how that sounded a bit more enthusiastic than it had to. 

“Uh, now’s really not a good time to talk.” Webhound cleared his throat and his voice got deeper again.

Bradley quickly nodded in understanding. This felt unreal, being with a so-called superhero. At least now he knew that it was real, upon having experienced it first hand. He looked down, seeing how high they were and how fast they swung from one building to another. Bradley thought that it was impressive for Webhound to do all this while carrying Bradley around one arm.

“Now, where can I drop you off..” Webhound muttered before his eyes landed on an empty sidewalk. “Aha!” He’d just drop him there. After all, his job to stop the stolen car had gotten a bit sidetracked because of him saving this civilian, who happened to be Bradley. Just his luck.

He swung with his webs one more time before he safely let go of Bradley when they finally got close enough to the sidewalk’s ground. “You’re welcome, bye!” Webhound gave him a quick two-fingered salute as he swung away.

Bradley watched in awe as Webhound left, unable to believe and process what just happened. One moment, he was crossing the street and was about to die. And in the next, he was suddenly saved by the city’s hero, who he doubted at first.

After a few seconds, Bradley realized the rush of excitement that had been bubbling in his chest from earlier. He then shook his head and looked around to see where he was. “Are you kidding me?” Webhound had managed to bring him to the other side of the city in mere seconds. It was going to be a pain  going back.

Now with Bradley out of the way, Webhound could focus on finally stopping that car. He continued swinging around, until he caught up to the car. He made a jump for it, safely landing on top.

The car thief inside gasped, feeling something fall on the roof of the car. But he kept driving because the cops would surely catch up to him if he didn’t.

He then heard some light knocking from the window next to him. He glanced at it and saw the masked superhero that has been on the news lately, bad news for criminals like him.

Webhound gave a small wave when the man looked over. I hope the owner of this car has insurance. He thought to himself before punching the car window. It broke it clean, and the man inside yelled as he didn’t slow the car down one bit.

In a swift motion, Webhound unlocked the door and opened it. The driver looked at him, wide-eyed. “Fun’s over.” He declared, grabbing the man with ease and tossing him aside. He tried to toss him in the most gentle way possible. 

The man groaned as he rolled over on the sidewalk, hitting his head on the ground but he was okay.

Seeing this, Webhound immediately went inside the car and sat in the driver’s seat, replacing the man. He was glad that his father, Goofy, had taught him the basics of driving. So, he hit the brakes and the car stopped. Because of the speed it was going at earlier, Webhound leaned forward a bit because of the sudden stop of the car.

He let out a relieved sigh, leaning against the seat as he panted. He only took seconds to recollect himself, taking out the car keys, getting out of the car, and locking it. He whistled as he twirled the car keys around on his index finger.

A cop car soon pulled up behind the stolen car, and Webhound tossed the car keys to them. “Thanks, Webhound!” A cop thanked him and he nodded. “No problem. And uh, tell the owner I said sorry for the window!” Webhound said as he ruffled the hair on his forehead that was sticking out of the cap’s hole.

Down the street, more officers pulled over next to the man, who still tried to escape when he saw them. Webhound aimed for the man before shooting out strings of web, latching onto the man’s leg. He gave it a pull, and then tripped over and fell. The officers got out of the car and handcuffed him immediately.

Webhound dusted his hands off, the job was officially done. The chief officer walked up to him. “Thank you, Webhound. We really appreciate all your help.” He tipped his hat to the hero and the said hero nodded. 

“Don’t mention it, Chief.” Max chuckled. Him and the chief had gotten a bit close since the start of all of this. At first, the other police officers were doubtful of him. But the chief had always believed in him, never doubting him especially after Webhound proved himself.

“How could we not? You make our job easier.” The chief half-joked, both of them laughing. The car thief was now being shoved into the police car as they spoke.

“You got a point. Well, I gotta get going now– I’m starving.” Webhound started to bid him farewell, and the chief nodded. “See you around, Webhound.” 

“See ya!” He waved before swinging away.

“WAIT, WEBHOUND!” A voice from the other side of the street yelled, catching the hero’s attention. 

“Huh?” Webhound looked over before shooting another string of webs, making him completely miss the next building. “Oh, shit!” He cursed as he felt himself miss the shot, and now he was falling. 

His reaction time was fast enough and he landed safely on the ground– three-point landing in the middle of the street. Luckily, he dodged the incoming car fast enough by webbing a street lamp and pulling himself towards it, off the street.

He stood on the street lamp’s footing, a hand on the pole as he let out a relieved sigh. Whoever called out for him almost caused a real problem. 

He looked over down the sidewalk, and there they were. Bradley Uppercrust the III, running up to him.

Oh, God. He was thankful that he was wearing his mask, or else his annoyed expression would have been so obvious. “Yes?” He tried to not sound sarcastic as the male stopped in front of him. 

Bradley had his hands on his knees before looking up at Webhound. “2 things.” He panted out.

Webhound raised a brow, tilting his head to the side. “Go on,” he told Bradley.

The brown-haired boy now stood up straight. “Uh, thanks.. For saving me back there, I guess. Mister.. Webhound?” His thanks sounded more like a question than it sounded grateful. It was obvious that he wasn’t used to thanking someone, even Webhound– Max , was surprised under the mask.

This is priceless ! He thought. “No problem, it’s what I do.” This encounter with Bradley was fueling his ego. To have your sworn enemy be grateful for you without them knowing? It felt too good.

“And do I know you? You seem to know who I am.” Bradley brought up Webhound saying his name earlier, and how he even sounded surprised. Webhound’s eyes widened, his grip on the lamp faltering as he stumbled off but caught himself.

“Oh, right.” He cleared his throat, now standing in front of the curious male. “I’m familiar with you because of your family’s company. You cut that ribbon in your newly built building, right?” He explained, saving himself. “It’s hard to forget someone like you.” He chuckled, before realizing how bad that came across.

Bradley seemed to take it in a good way, eyes widening a bit. And was it the mask playing with Webhound’s vision, or were his cheeks slightly pink?

“Ah, I see. That explains it.” Bradley stood, almost nervously. He then tried to pick on the skin around his thumb’s nail, only to be painfully reminded that it was hurt. “Ow!” He hissed, looking at his thumb. Some of the blood was dry, but it started bleeding again.

Webhound looked at him in surprise, taking a step forward. “Woah, you okay?” He asked, looking over at the boy’s bloody thumb. It didn’t look too good.

“No, yeah, well–” Bradley stumbled on his words. Why was he acting this way? He needed to snap out of it. “It’s not a big deal.”

Webhound looked at his hand, then at Bradley. “If you say so.” He shrugged. His throat felt slightly strained from how he was forcing his voice to be slightly deeper to hide his identity.

“And one last thing, you wouldn’t mind bringing me back to where I was earlier, right? I mean, I’m blocks away from where I need to be right now, the pharmacist and a reservation.” He explained.

Webhound crossed his arms at him. “I already saved you, isn’t that enough? And you could just get a taxi.” He got a bit annoyed at how Bradley asked him to bring him back there, as if ] he[ was the one who owed him.

“Yeah, but come on! I’d wager that you could get me there faster than how you got me here.” He encouraged him, and Webhound was hit with some minor deja vu from Bradley’s words.

He silently thought about it for a while, before sighing and giving Bradley a defeated nod.

“Fine. And trust me, I will.” He gave in, stretching his arms a bit as Bradley looked like a kid who just won a teddy bear in a carnival. 

“Perfect! I knew you’d— Woah!” He was cut off by Webhound grabbing him by the waist, (his arm around his back this time) shooting his web at a building, and bringing both of them up into the air.

From there, they started swinging from building to building. The hand placement felt less secure for Bradley, so he couldn’t help but place a hand on Webhound’s shoulder, making the hero look at him for a second before focusing on getting this princess  back to where he was.

Bradley couldn’t get over how this felt cool, even better than it did before. Well, to be fair, he almost died earlier. But the rush was so exciting, feeling the wind on his face push some of his hair back, and seeing the people on the ground look smaller as they looked up at them.

But as fast as it started, it came to an end when they got to the same street where Webhound picked him up from earlier. The superhero let go of the web and both of them landed safely in front of the pharmacy.

“There. See? I got you here faster than earlier.” He said as he let go of Bradley, low-key boasting.

“Sorry, but I didn’t keep count.” Bradley joked, walking towards the entrance.. 

Webhound scoffed, shaking his head. “Ha-ha. I actually gotta get going now.” He said, getting ready to take his leave.

“I guess I’ll be seeing you around?” Bradley grinned, placing a hand on the door handle. 

Max was not used to this kind of conversation with Bradley, but it seemed like one of the pros, or cons, of being Webhound. “Maybe. Don’t count on it.” And with that, he finally took his leave.

Bradley watched him before entering the pharmacy. 

And let’s just say, the cashier asked him what he was smiling about while he was paying for the bandaids he bought.

.

.

.

BONUS!

Bobby

Dud3 wh3r3 tf r u

12:25 PM

0h nvm w3 just saw u swing by

12:30 PM

WAS THAT BRADLEY WITH U?????

12:36 PM

Max

Shit sorry man

There was a stolen car

Bradley almost got hit by it haha

12:40 PM

Bobby

Aw man u sh0uld have l3t him g3t hit

I at3 ur pizza slic3s btw

Max

Dude

Fuck u

Bobby

x0x0 <3

12:41 PM