P2B - Chapter #11: Grief

(Two days later...)

It was morning in Queens. The sun shone at the world. Birds were chirping. Everyone was minding their own business. The day seemed beautiful and normal... But not for the Parker family. At a graveyard, May, Mary, and Richard were standing in front of Ben's tombstone, mourning for their loss. Peter and Annabelle were there too. And for Kaine... He was standing a few meters apart from the group, looking down at the grass blankly... Not even giving eye contact to anyone.

"...my fault... my fault... my fault... all my fault...." he kept saying those words to himself, like he was in a trance.

His friends heard him, turned around, and approached him. "K..." Anna looked at him with a concerned expression, "Stop blaming yourself. Please." The older Parker shook his head and looked up to her, "It's my fault, Ann... I can't rectify it. Look at what I have done, I hurt my own family. And they're probably thinking that I am a despicable child, which is true. Perhaps they finally got fed up after all these years... There won't be a second chance..."

"Despite something bad that has happened, there's still a chance to change," Peter told his cousin, "Don't be afraid to ask for forgiveness, no matter how scary it is. And learn from it too, Coz."

"We're here for you, bud," Anna smiled as she stepped forward, her hands wide open. When she was about to embrace him, he stepped back and shook his head, causing her to give him a puzzled look. "No... Please don't. You guys don't deserve someone bad like me..." Nonetheless, she walked closer and hugged him, patting his back. Then Peter joined the hug too.

"Pete, Anna... I don't deserve you two."

Peter chuckled, "Kaine, friends do not abandon one who makes mistakes. Friends stick out for each other. And give them a chance for redemption." The redhead agreed, "And no way I'm abandoning the one who understands me so well... I'm staying. We are staying, K."

No words came out of Kaine's mouth. Not that he was speechless, but because he still felt undeserving of their love. He sighed and looked at his mother, who was now glancing at him. The expression on his face turned into one of shame. He closed his eyes, unable to bear to see the pain and sorrow reflected on her eyes.

//"I'm sorry, Mom..."//

---

(Hours later...; Evening...)

Kaine was filling his mug with drinking water. While he was doing so, his mother was preparing to cook. Both were not saying anything to each other. And they just simply minded their own business. The teenager then headed toward his room, dragging himself like a walking dead. He opened the door and walked in, before glancing at May for a few seconds and closing it.

//"Life is finally better this way, isn't it? Your father is no more. So, you should be happy, Kaine. The man of all those painful reminders is truly gone,"// his darker self said to him. Kaine didn't respond anything. //"Well, alright. If you want me to be silent, I'll just shut up."//

He sighed heavily and sipped the water from his mug. It was cool and refreshing, but it could not fill the void in his heart. The day he lost his father still lingered somewhere in his mind... He should've listened to the words of his mother and his cousin. But it was already too late...

Afterwards, Kaine put down his now empty mug on his desk and headed to his bed. The teenager rested his head on a pillow, facing the ceiling. For a few moments, he just laughed at himself. There wouldn't be freedom for him, because he was trapped in his own past. And perhaps would never be free forever... Others tried to help but he refused it. He truly was an idiot.

Kaine grabbed a hug pillow and held it tightly for comfort. Closing his eyes gently, he just hoped that he would rest easy. Moments later, he drifted into the darkness...

---

In a void somewhere... Kaine was wandering around in confusion. He didn't understand why he was there. He looked around and it seemed like there was no way out.

"Kid... Why didn't you give me a chance...?" a voice spoke to him with a sorrowful tone.

The teenager froze, recognizing his father's voice. He turned around and saw Flint who was behind Ben. They were meters apart from the young Parker. The man pulled out a gun and aimed at him. His expression was nothing more than a cold, empty one. Kaine's eyes widened in terror, prompting him to rush to Ben.

"No, no! Wait! Please don't do it! DON'T!" the teenager screamed pleadingly, but it fell to deaf ears.

"Why wouldn't you give me a chance..?" were Ben's last words before Flint shot him in the stomach. The green-striped shirt man faded as Ben collapsed, his blood dripping and eventually forming a pool of blood.

He stopped and stood helplessly, looking at his dead father. //"Why is this happening to me again..?"//

"Your fault. Your fault. All your fault." Kaine recognized the voices and he turned around to see fingers pointed at him. It was his family: Peter, Mary, Richard; accusing him for what he had done.

"You should've listened to us," Peter and May said to him, "You should've patched things up. But you didn't. Now, it's time to pay the price."

"Wait... No. I'm sorry," Kaine said as the group closed in to him, "I'm sorry, please!"

"Too late. There won't be another chance. You won't be a part of our family anymore. And you will simply die for your sins." Peter walked closer and choked his cousin. The grip was so tight that it made the older twin coughing and gasping for breath. He tightened his grip, intending to kill him.

"Let... me... GO!"

*SNIKT!*

A stinger protruded from Kaine's wrist and he pushed it toward Peter's chest, piercing through his heart. The younger twin gasped and looked down at his chest as Kaine pulled it away, its edge soaked in blood. The grip loosened, with Peter's vision going blurry as he collapsed to the ground.

Having gotten free, Kaine took time to recover. He stared down at Peter's lifeless body and grinned maniacally. The older twin's skin started to change into grey, with his eyes becoming red blood. He then cackled at the terrified group after killing one of their own.

"Soon... You'll be mine."

---

He jolted awake on his bed, breathing heavily after what he had seen. The teen quickly turned to a clock on his wall, showing 12 AM. Kaine then inspected his hand and much to his horror, a stinger came out of his wrist–a claw of some sort, made of his bone. Not wanting to see it, he retracted the stinger. He cringed in pain and disgust as it came back inside his wrist and his skin recovering.

Kaine looked down and covered his face with both of his hands. Even in his sleep, Ben's death haunted him. Not just that but his fears too...

"When will I be free from all of this..? Can I even get out from this prison of my own making?" he asked himself aloud. All the response he got was a laugh by the voice that echoed within his mind. A laugh that sent chills to his whole body.

Only time would tell if he would ever get free and change for the better.

---

A/N: And so, this concludes Part 2B. Part 3, the last part, will go back to the present day. (Because most of Part 1 and Part 2 are flashbacks.) We'll see if Kaine chooses to become better or fall under his darker self's influence. You'll get to see a bit of action between Scarlet Spider (Kaine) and Spider-Man (Peter). And perhaps more... ;) Since Part 3 consists of six chapters, I might publish it at the end of August. Anyway, I hope you have a great time reading this! If you have any questions or feedbacks, feel free to comment! Have a good day, y'all. Peace!