I'm working on Marvel's Spider-Man in American comics.

Chapter 11: First Night

Aunt Mei's worries were not unfounded. She should have been worried that Peter wouldn't be able to make friends. At this dinner party that should have been joyful, Peter was like a silent quail, concentrating on the pancakes on his plate and completely unable to join in the conversation between the two girls - although in his opinion, being excluded from the girls' conversation was normal in itself.

Until the topic turned to part-time jobs on campus.

"I found out there's a partnership between Midtown High School and The Daily Bugle," Mary Jane excitedly described the internship she saw. "They recruit intern reporters from our school every year. It's really cool. Maybe I can become a famous reporter in the future."

"This kid's enthusiasm is always fleeting," Aunt Anna said with a smile. "Before, he wanted to be a star and even auditioned for TV dramas and played a few minor roles. Now he wants to be a reporter."

"The Daily Bugle is indeed a good media outlet," Sheriff George agreed as he cut into a waffle. "Jameson is a rare independent journalist who doesn't favor either party. He reports news based on his own moral standards." He hesitated. "It's just that his attitude towards masked vigilantes is too extreme. Just like Spider-Man, who clearly helps us police a lot, but Jameson never hears our thanks to these vigilantes."

Especially Spider-Man, Peter thought as he ate his pancake. The Jonah Jamesons of different universes hated Spider-Man for different reasons, and since he hadn't yet met this universe's Jonah Jameson, he wasn't sure why. But if it wasn't out of pure malice, maybe they could become friends.

A Spider-Man who's friends with Jonah Jameson? Haha, that would definitely be fun.

"But isn't the surge in superpowered crime caused by these vigilantes?" Mary Jane offered a popular opinion. "Two years ago, before Iron Man and Ant-Man showed up, the world was so peaceful."

Mary Jane echoed the sentiment of many who now oppose superpowered vigilantes: two years ago, before Tony Stark and Hank Pym, two top talents, became superheroes, everyone lived ordinary lives. Sure, there were superpowered individuals like the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, but the X-Men were primarily responsible for countering mutant extremists' retaliation against humanity, while the Fantastic Four were essentially explorers and researchers. Aside from Johnny the Human Torch, no one would actively seek to steal the police's work.

As for the others, Thor was still a mythical figure, Captain America was still frozen in the Arctic Circle, and the Hulk was simply an urban legend and an internationally wanted criminal. Back then, people with super powers were synonymous with danger, not the universally admired figures they are today.

"Ever since Iron Man came out, things have gotten increasingly chaotic. New York was even invaded by aliens."

"But there aren't many real superpowers among the Avengers," Peter couldn't help but retort, "Iron Man and Ant-Man rely on technology, Captain America is a super soldier, and Hulk's superpowers are caused by gamma radiation. And Thor, Thor's race is gods—"

"Peter," interrupted Aunt May, "remember the only God is the merciful Lord."

"…I'm so sorry, Mei."

As a materialist, Peter didn't want to conflict with Aunt May, so he apologized and ignored this point. Mary Jane then answered the question: "But aren't the super-powered criminals they're dealing with? Aren't many super-powered criminals given their powers just to deal with them?"

"Not entirely," Peter explained seriously, "like Spider-Man and the Devil of Hell's Kitchen, they mainly deal with common criminals..."

"Devil? My God, what good person would name himself Devil?" Aunt May made a cross on her chest and prayed, then looked at Sheriff George: "Don't you think so, George?"

"That's not my jurisdiction." Sheriff George said vaguely. But in the NYPD, everyone knows that in addition to the "devil", Hell's Kitchen also has a serial killer wearing a skull T-shirt who is responsible for eliminating those criminals.

"How do you know about Hell's Kitchen, Peter?"

"I heard about it at school! You know, May, Hell's Kitchen is in New York." Peter quickly tried to pass on the topic, but Aunt May wouldn't let him go. She pointed her fork at Peter and emphasized, "Listen, you are absolutely not allowed to go to that place!"

“I’m fifteen years old…”

“Peter Benjamin Parker!”

"I see, I see..." Peter quickly changed the subject. "I also saw in the school's internship notice that The Daily Bugle is looking for a website maintainer. I'm quite good at this and can do it remotely from home."

"Wow!" Mary Jane's eyes lit up. "Maybe we can work together?"

"Well, I'm not sure. Generally speaking, this kind of work can be done at home."

"Peter," Aunt May sighed helplessly again, "You need to go out more often. You should stay in the office during work."

"Okay, Aunt May," Peter sighed and continued to finish his muffins, secretly praying that this ordeal would end soon. Gwen looked around at the two of them, wondering if she should also find a part-time job at the Daily Bugle.
-
Hermann lay on the moldy mattress. This pigeon coop had been occupied by his father and two brothers. Perhaps in a few years, if he no longer lived here, his younger brother would move in.

The musty smell of an old mattress mixed with the stench of sweat entered my nostrils, and the scenes of the day flashed back in my mind: the carefully planned robbery, the sudden failure, witnessing Spider-Man's invincible figure, and the terrifying transmitter that accidentally cut through the entire building.
Even more glaring was the red and blue figure on the front page of the Daily Bugle—all of New York was talking about him, whether positive or negative. "Just a freak," Herman muttered to himself, gradually falling into a dream.

In his dreams, he was wearing a white coat, his clinic filled with patients eager to see him; he was wearing gold-rimmed glasses, walking the streets of Manhattan as an elite lawyer; he was wearing Stark Industries work clothes, personally helping Iron Man adjust his armor...

He dreamed that the day he moved out of Harlem, a TV station came to interview him. He said goodbye to everything that came with his skin color and became a superior person.

Until the thunder sounded.

“That damn Spider-Man!”

A roar shattered the dream. The photographers suddenly turned their cameras around, and the host threw himself away and rushed to the giant screen in Times Square - there were close-ups of Spider-Man and Jameson's angry curses at Spider-Man.

Under the big screen, countless people were wearing Spider-Man masks and shouting slogans in support of Spider-Man.

"Come back! I'm here!" Hermann shouted in vain.

"Of course you're here!"

Herman returned to the day after graduating from junior high school. The gang leader handed him a machete and said, "Hold on tight, new guy. We're going to teach Kalufa and his gang a lesson tonight."

"I shouldn't be here..." Herman looked at the eldest brother in a daze, "I should go to school..."

"And then, with student loans that are tens of thousands more than white people and may take a lifetime to pay off, you were rejected by the university and can only go to community college to mess around?" The eldest brother sneered, "Wake up, kid, look at your skin, look at where we live. We belong here! Do you want to be a black-skinned white dog and stand with them? You, like your father and your brothers, can only stay here!"

"I won't stand with them. I can give up engineering and study law! I'm a good student, I can be a lawyer for the gang!" Herman suddenly knelt down. "When I return from school, I can help my brothers win all the lawsuits! Please, boss, let me continue to go to school. I can do anything."

He seemed to have convinced his boss, who planned to sponsor him to go to high school and let him be responsible for managing the gang's accounts first. He shouted excitedly and watched the boss walk out of the alley into the street.

He saw a flying bullet, the boss's head exploded, and the "messengers of justice" who arrived later - they could be police, or Avengers, or even the red and blue figure. They eradicated evil, arrested criminals, and left Hermann alone in the alley.

“No! No no no!!!”

Hermann roared back to the morning, holding the Terror Launcher and pulling the trigger frantically. The shockwaves tore through the night sky. But the nimble figure always managed to dodge easily. His speed was too fast for the shockwaves to keep up, and his strength was so great that he could tear down the telephone pole and send him flying.

"You think you can become famous by fighting me, Herman?"

Spider-Man walked over so nonchalantly, the spider web binding him and his most proud weapon together, unable to break free.

Spider-Man grew bigger and bigger, and the red and blue colors on his body began to melt, render, spread, and cover everything around him. His voice also echoed in every corner, piling up layer by layer.

"Even if you fought me, you'd be a nobody. No one would remember a nobody Spider-Man just knocked down!"

Herman himself began to melt, his hands becoming one with his weapon, and Spider-Man seemed to have become some kind of pure paint, enveloping Herman and enveloping him.

"Shut up!"

Herman swung his fist, and the melted shock emitter released a shocking energy, shattering the colorful colors. Sunlight pierced through the uncurtained window, waking Herman. He stared at his shaking hands and slowly clenched them into fists.

"Just wait and see, New York," he swore into the morning light. "I'll make sure everyone remembers my name."

The signing is completed, hooray!
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(End of this chapter)