Peter and Gwen

Even after Peter left the Oscorp Tower, he couldn't shake the image of what he had just seen.

His hands and feet were cold, his mind blank.

"Dr. Connors is the Lizard... How could I have had such a dream?"

But he knew it wasn't a dream.

Although Connors had looked the same as before, his behavior was completely different.

More importantly, Peter had seen a mouse they had used for research just a week ago, now it had mutated, grown larger than a dog, and was savagely devouring the other small animals in the lab.

At that moment, Peter understood where the Lizard that appeared at the Williamsburg Bridge last night had come from.

"It's my fault!" He sank into intense self-blame.

"If I hadn't told Dr. Connors my father's formula, he wouldn't have experimented on himself and turned into that monster!"

It felt like he had messed up again.

He always messed things up.

He felt defeated and lost all motivation.

Originally, he thought that with his newfound powers, he could change the course of his past failures. But now, it seemed, he was still a failure.

Peter blamed himself for everything.

But he never considered why Dr. Connors, someone who had been perfectly fine, suddenly decided to experiment on himself.

He only knew one thing: no matter what Connors' intentions were now, he had to save him.

"I... I should call the police..."

For a moment, Peter thought of calling the cops.

And he did.

But when he got to the police station, he realized just how naïve he was.

Who would believe a student's wild ramblings?

"I'm telling the truth, Sheriff!" Peter said anxiously, confused about why no one would believe him.

"Alright, Mr. Parker." George Stacy cut Peter off sternly.

"Curt Connors is a well-known scientist, a PhD, not the Godzilla you're talking about."

As he spoke, he took off his police uniform and changed into a suit.

He had more important things to do than listen to the nonsensical ramblings of a delusional boy.

Namely, picking up his daughter and enjoying the lemon bass they had missed the previous night.

"I'm telling the truth!" Peter protested, blocking George's way.

"Dr. Connors has been researching cross-species genetics, but his experiment failed and he turned into the Lizard! Spider-Man stopped him last night—"

Hearing Peter mention Spider-Man, George stopped in his tracks.

"Spider-Man stopped him?" George looked at Peter. "Or I have another explanation."

"That masked spider guy and the Lizard are in cahoots!"

Mentioning Spider-Man made George furious.

The police station had been filled with gang members last night, and that was all thanks to Spider-Man's actions.

Wasn't that a direct challenge to the NYPD?

Who did he think he was?

"What? How can you say that?" Peter asked, incredulous, just as a pleasant voice came from behind him.

"Peter Parker?"

Peter turned around to see a blonde girl standing behind him.

"You're... Gwen Stacy?"

Peter was a little surprised.

Of course, he knew Gwen. But Gwen Stacy was even more dazzling than Liz, the girl Peter had always liked. He didn't expect to see her here, let alone have her know his name and greet him.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" he stammered.

Gwen tilted her head, glancing at Peter and George. George suddenly realized something. He had initially thought Peter was just a typical delusional student, but now he saw the truth: this kid was a troublemaker!

What was he thinking, bringing trouble right to the police station?

George Stacy shot Peter a stern look.

He roughly pushed Peter aside and said, "She's here to see her father. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Dad!" Gwen shouted, irritated. George immediately backed off.

But he still didn't give Peter a warm look. "Alright, Mr. Parker, I have to go now."

George dragged Gwen away, but as they walked, Gwen waved goodbye to Peter.

If it were any other time, Peter would have been floating on air after being treated so kindly by a pretty girl. But now, it is different. His mind was heavy with thoughts of Connors, weighing on him like a load of stones.

Leaving the police station, Peter couldn't shake the sense of gloom that hung over him.

"If the cops don't believe me, I'll have to find Dr. Connors myself," he thought.

Connors was dangerous now. Peter didn't know what kind of changes the Lizard serum had caused him, but it was clear that the mutated mouse in the lab had become highly aggressive.

"Damn, where should I look for him?"

"I wish Bren could join me... otherwise, I might mess this up too."

To Peter, Bren was the epitome of someone who could handle anything.

No matter what he tried, Peter always messed things up. But Bren always managed to pull through. When Peter had been bullied by Flash Thompson, Bren had always had his back.

Peter sighed, ultimately deciding to ask Bren for help.

Meanwhile, George and his daughter got into the police car.

"Talk to me," George said, clearly not in the best mood as a father.

"Talk about what?" Gwen asked.

"About that boy. Are you two dating?" George asked seriously. "Don't try to fool me, I can tell something's not right between you two."

"What?" Gwen squealed, defensive. "What are you talking about, Dad? I hardly even know him! We're not in the same class!"

Gwen nervously tried to explain.

The truth was, while Peter and Gwen weren't in the same class, she had noticed him long ago.

He was smart, a bit of a nerd, looked weak, but had a strong sense of justice.

Gwen had seen Peter stand up for other students who were bullied by Flash Thompson.

Flash could tolerate it once or twice because of Bren, but after that, he started picking on Peter. But Peter never backed down, even if it meant looking foolish.

"Dad, why did Peter want to talk to you?"

"Peter?" George repeated in an odd tone, realizing his daughter was growing up.

Calling him by his first name so familiarly, yet claiming they weren't close?

What could he do about it?

He gripped the steering wheel and started the car, replying in a resigned tone, "He said your teacher, Dr. Connors, is the Lizard who appeared on the Williamsburg Bridge last night."

"Crazy!" George fumed, still angry.

Gwen, who had interned at Oscorp under Connors, was surprised by Peter's claim.

But she still said, "Dad, Peter doesn't lie. He might have discovered something. And—"

"Oscorp seems to be having some issues. This morning, Dr. Connors sent a message saying everyone's getting the day off."

Gwen's face grew worried.

George froze, the car engine sputtering to a stop.

He grabbed the radio.

"All units, immediately investigate everything on Curt Connors."

This Gwen, in this universe, will stay with Peter. Because the Gwen from the Garfield universe really left an unfulfilled feeling for many. Other versions of Gwen, well, we'll see. The main character will remain, but the relationship won't be the central focus.

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