Flicker

Young Peter looked confused, his face full of doubt and lacking confidence.

Strange raised an eyebrow, "Kid, you just watched the video, and you're still not confident? Pick A for this question. Me, Tony, Steve, Thor... we will all grow old eventually. The future belongs to you."

Pietro nearly burst out laughing when he heard that. "Come on, Stephen, maybe Tony and Steve will age, but you? You're the Sorcerer Supreme with the Time Stone. And Thor? He's a god of thunder who's lived for thousands of years. Are you guys even capable of getting old?"

Doctor Strange shrugged. "Living too long gets exhausting, trust me. Even the Ancient One is retiring soon. Honestly, if the pressure weren't so high, I'd probably consider retirement too."

Peter couldn't help but twitch at this. Although this encouragement and recognition made him happy, Peter scratched his head and said, "Honestly... I feel like I might mess up. I'm afraid of disappointing everyone."

"Don't say that, buddy. What you're saying right now is more disappointing," Strange crossed his arms and glanced at Pietro. "Honestly, while Tony's way of teaching is questionable, I still hope the kid can learn that unshakable pride of his—like he's the only one who can save the day."

Pietro shrugged. Thinking about it carefully, Strange wasn't wrong.

Peter was currently lacking not only experience but also confidence. He didn't have the same youthful arrogance others his age might have. Despite being considered Tony Stark's protégé, he was still far from matching Iron Man's spirit.

After some discussion, they decided to place their bet on option A.

On the other hand, Erik was firm in his opinion. "The answer should be B! Charles, I don't want to argue too much, but I can read people well. This kid might become a street-level hero, but he doesn't have the charisma or presence of a leader. I can see it plain as day."

Charles frowned deeply, clearly not agreeing with Erik's view. However, after a lengthy argument and seeing how determined Erik was, he sighed and relented. "Fine, do as you wish."

Soon, the countdown began. This was a buzzer round. Both teams pressed the button, but Team B secured the right to answer first.

Stephen stepped forward confidently. "We choose A!"

Naturally, Erik's team stuck with B.

As the countdown ended, the correct answer was revealed.

[Team B answered incorrectly. Player Stephen Strange, player Peter Parker, and player Pietro Maximoff each lose 4 points]

[Congratulations to Team A for answering correctly. Player Erik lenhenserr, player Logan Howlett, and player Charles Xavier each earn 1 point!]

After the results were announced, Strange and his team exchanged awkward glances, their expressions varied.

Young Peter, of course, looked dejected but seemed somewhat relieved.

The weight of responsibility was starting to crush him. Whether it was the high expectations people had for him after his identity was revealed, or his poor performance in the future video, Peter felt increasingly uneasy.

When faced with the question, he even felt a strong urge to run away. Before this, he had never considered the possibility of leading the Avengers. He lacked confidence—and, in fairness, he was still just a kid.

After a moment of silence, Strange broke it. Frowning, he said, "Peter, don't overthink this. The future is just a reference for us to learn from and improve. What matters most is that you never lose confidence in yourself. Got it?"

Peter forced a smile and replied stiffly, "I'll try my best."

Pietro, noticing this, frowned and said, "Honestly, there's nothing wrong with being ordinary. Peter, you don't have to force yourself to become someone you're not. Just follow your heart."

"Thank you!" This time, Peter's smile was more genuine.

After the question ended, the usual post-question video began to play on the light screen.

The video opened by establishing the timeline: it was five years after the battle against Thanos.

Five years ago, Thanos had descended upon Earth with world-ending force. Singlehandedly, he defeated the Avengers, collected all the Infinity Stones, and snapped his fingers—a fair yet cruel gesture that erased half of all life in the universe.

Five years later, the remaining Avengers, led by Steve and Tony, managed to travel through time to collect the Infinity Stones again. With them, they reversed the Snap, resurrecting all those who had vanished.

However, this victory came at a steep cost. Black Widow and Tony Stark sacrificed their lives, and Steve Rogers chose to retire. But in the end, they had saved the world once again.

Yet, something unexpected happened. Those who had been erased by Thanos's snap five years ago returned exactly as they were. From their perspective, no time had passed—it felt like only a moment had gone by. But in reality, five years had passed in the outside world.

This phenomenon created a massive rift between those who had been snapped away and those who had remained, a gap some described as the Flicker.

The Flicker had far-reaching social impacts. Five years was more than enough time for lives to change. For instance, a man might return to find that his wife had remarried and started a new family.

For the man, it might feel like just moments ago he was enjoying a happy family dinner. But in the blink of an eye, he was now an outsider—a man who didn't even have the right to complain.

Such tragic stories became a daily occurrence. Both the returnees and those who survived were plunged into pain and confusion.

But life goes on, and the strong found ways to move forward.

Peter was also a Flicker returnee. He continued attending school but was now troubled by how to pursue his crush—not Liz from the previous video, but Michelle Jones, known as MJ.

Stephen couldn't help but chuckle, "Ah, I see you've fully embraced Tony's playboy ways."

Pietro chimed in, laughing, "Isn't that what being a teenager is all about? Who doesn't like a pretty, talented girl? Go for it, Peter. I'm rooting for you."

Peter's face turned red as he waved his hands in embarrassment, stammering something incoherent.

Meanwhile, his thoughts drifted to MJ. She really was beautiful, no wonder his future self liked her. But then he realized his romantic escapades were being broadcast to the entire world. He felt utterly mortified but powerless to stop it.