It was an impulse purchase. A small little succulent that was on sale. He saw it at the grocery store and without thinking snatched it up and carefully tucked it into his basket of groceries.
When he gotten back to his apartment he put it on the window he didn't frequently jump out and read the little information card.
He never had a plant before so he wanted to make sure he did everything right so he Googled starter tips. He read about the soil they needed. About the sunlight they desired for growth. He put reminders on his phone for the days he needed to water it.
He named it Shelly.
Every morning he would turn Shelly just a little to the left to make sure all sides of her were getting sun. He would talk to the plant in the morning and remark on he color. He collected small little rocks to put on top of her soil to prevent splashing from her waterings.
On a whim he decided to place her in a new pot. It was bigger and he was afraid of her roots would become bound by keeping her in such a small pot. He even looked through process of propagation so that he could make use of the little petal he knocked off.
The second one was a cactus that he had found in the dumpster after a patrol. There didn't appear to be anything wrong with it besides a cracked pot. He saw no mealy bugs or unwanted pests, so he took it back and placed it next to Shelly and her slow growing offspring. It was a start to his small little family.
They helped him. Mentally, that is. On days where he thought about not dodging the punches or not shooting out a web to catch him, he thought of his plants. Who would water them if he wasn't here? Peter Parker may be nothing to the world but to his plants he was their caretaker.
He joined small communities online and asked questions. He sang praises to people who had jade plants for over a decade. He found out how to make his own soil mixture. He joked about how proud he was of his first plant's off spring.
He was buying his fifth one when he bumped into the beautiful blond with chin length blonde hair and a bright smile. They had chatted about the plants they had. They talked about grow lights, fertilizer, and when he made a science pun she laughed. Peter felt bold and asked if she would like to grab some coffee.
She tossed her hair to the side and agreed on the condition that she gets a propagation from his jade plant. He agreed only if she gave him one of her echeveria.
When he learned her name he nearly choked on his coffee. He recovered after a couple if coughs and replied, "Nice to meet you, Gwen. I'm Peter."
Peter and Gwen hit it off. He had helped her with her homework and she told him all the best places to take photos. Peter found earning money from stock photography and videos was the best way to make money and be able to be Spiderman. He freelanced for several companies around the city which helped him build a small cushion in case of emergencies.
He had ten plants by the time Gwen pieced together everything and figured out that He was Spiderman. She had barged into his apartment while he was watering a basil started kit he got from the dollar section at Target. Before he could ask what was wrong she asked, "Is the reason you haven't asked me out is because you're Spider-Man?"
He looked like a deer in the headlight before she stomped up to him grabbed his face and kissed him. "You're so stupid some times," she huffed out. Then looked at his dresser of plants. "Wait, you have a hedgehog aloe?"
Peter had to sneak into her room at her parents place to get it back. After the second time she stole it, he had to hide it every time she visited.
He had twenty plants when he got a scholarship to Empire State University. Gwen was so proud of him she bought him a bunny-eared cactus and an abundant amount of chicken fried rice. While they sat on his bed eating from the cartons, he complained about running out of window room for his plants. He had webbed up makeshift shelves but now he got no sun in the morning from all the plants taking it.
"We could find a place where there is more natural light. Maybe further out of the city?"
When they moved in together there were sixty-two plants. Gwen's Dad said they had a problem. Gwen argued that it could be worse and she be addicted to trash reality shows which earned a mumbled "Rude," from her youngest brother.
They hit seventy plants when Peter proposed.
They lost five to mealy bugs when Peter graduated.
They bought two bringing their total to seventy-two when they got married. After convincing, and training Danny Rand, Peter and Gwen took a honeymoon. Danny would send him multiple texts a day complaining about how he felt his nose was going to become disfigured from the Spiderman mask. Peter called him a noob and bought him a spider plant as a thanks. Gwen made him scotcharoos and promised to watch over his plants when he need a vacation. "I wouldn't need someone to watch over my plants, if you didn't corrupt everyone around you into becoming plant owners."
"I can take them off your hands," she laughed.
"Don't you dare touch my babies."
When Gwen found out she was pregnant, Peter was so ecstatic that he built a vegetable garden for her. It was small but it had her favorites like green beans, bell peppers, and tomatoes. She would spend hours outside reading through research while sitting among the plants. Because that is what made her happy.
At times Peter would wonder about MJ and Ned or all of his other high school friends. While that time in his life still hurt to think about, he would look at the life he had now. It was full of love and laughter, game nights with Danny and Matt, double dates with Jessica and Luke, and soon it will have baby cries and memories.
Yes, a part of hime died when the spell was cast. But like a pup, he was given time and he was able to create a new life.