[Peter was still doing sit-ups when he overheard Liz and Betty chatting behind him. Betty, with a dreamy look on her face, declared, "As for me, I'd sleep with Thor, marry Iron Man, and kill the Hulk!"]
[A male student nearby overheard and smirked. "Well! What about Spider-Man?"]
[Upon hearing his name, Peter instantly sat up, turning his head toward them.]
["Have you seen the bank surveillance footage on YouTube? He fought off four guys all by himself!"]
[Liz spoke passionately about her admiration for Spider-Man.]
[Betty, however, gasped and pointed at Liz dramatically. "Oh my god! You have a crush on Spider-Man!"]
["That's impossible!" A male classmate looked at Betty in disbelief.]
[Liz, unbothered, admitted without hesitation, "A little bit."]
[Betty made a disgusted face. "Ugh! That's so gross! He could be, like, thirty years old!"]
["You don't even know what he looks like! What if he's horribly burned?" The male student beside her added, trying to stir things up.]
["I don't care! I love his heart!" Liz responded seriously.]
[At that moment, Ned suddenly blurted out, "Peter knows Spider-Man!"]
[Peter's jaw dropped. His entire world shattered in an instant.]
[The whole gym went silent. Every pair of eyes turned toward Peter. Panicking, he scrambled to explain, "NO! I don't! What I mean is—"]
[But it was too late. Ned had already committed. Doubling down, he added, "They're friends!"]
[Flash, who had been hanging from the gym ropes, jumped down with a smug grin. "Yeah! Just like how Coach Wilson and Captain America are 'friends'!"]
[His words sent the whole gym into laughter. Faced with Flash's taunting, Peter had no choice but to play along. "I've... seen him before. Yeah! A few times!"]
["But, uh… we met through the Stark Industries internship program! Uh-huh, uh… I probably shouldn't have mentioned that!"]
[Peter turned to Ned, gritting his teeth, his glare sharp enough to cut through steel. Ned instantly realized he had messed up and clamped his mouth shut.]
[Fresh, always eager to stir the pot, chimed in. "Well! That's great! Hey, I mean, maybe you could invite him to Liz's party! Right?"]
["Yeah! Uh, I invited some people tonight. You're welcome to come too!" Liz said, glancing at Peter shyly.]
["You're having a party?" Peter asked, surprised he hadn't heard about it before.]
["Yeah! It'll be awesome. And you should totally bring your personal friend Spider-Man!" Flash smirked, pointing at Peter mockingly.]
[Peter opened his mouth to protest, but Liz stepped in. "It's okay! I know Peter is super busy, so he probably won't have time to come to the party! So—"]
[But Flash interrupted, challenging Peter. "Come on! You'll come! Right, Parker?"]
[The bell rang, signaling the end of gym class. As everyone filed out, Peter clenched his fists in frustration and turned to Ned. "What are you doing?!"]
["Helping you! Did you hear what she said? Liz has a crush on you!" Ned beamed triumphantly.]
[Peter's eyes widened slightly as realization dawned on him.]
["Bro, you're an Avenger! If anyone can score a date with a senior girl, it's gotta be you!" Ned grinned. Peter left the gym deep in thought.]
"Hahaha! I don't know whether to call Ned a terrible wingman or an MVP!" The Second Generation Gwen covered her mouth, laughing.
"Peter clearly doesn't want to risk exposing his identity," Second Gen Peter rationalized, "but what Ned did undeniably makes him stand out. It puts him right in Liz's orbit."
If Peter played it right and made it seem like he actually could call Spider-Man, his status at school would change dramatically. But knowing Peter's personality, he would never take the initiative.
Ned had simply pushed him toward the opportunity.
"Is this really okay, though? Little Peter Parker, using your superhero identity for personal gain…" The First Uncle Ben muttered to himself, uneasy.
He feared that Peter might become addicted to the thrill of impressing people with his powers.
[That night, Aunt May drove Peter and Ned to Liz's house.]
[Aunt May glanced at the vibrant party scene, nostalgia flashing in her eyes. "A party in the suburbs. Oh, I remember those days. I'm a little jealous!"]
["Tonight's gonna be legendary!" Ned beamed.]
[Aunt May turned her head to look at him and smirked. "Ned, some people look good in hats, but your hat looks good on you!"]
["Exactly! That's why I wear it with confidence!"] Ned grinned.
[Peter, meanwhile, eyed the party nervously. "This is a mistake. Let's just go home!"]
[Aunt May shot him a disapproving look. "Oh, Peter! I know, I know, it's hard to adjust to all this! Your body is going through a lot of changes, you're blossoming now!"]
[Then she turned to Ned and said, "He's been under a lot of stress lately!"]
[Ned nodded in agreement. "And what better way to de-stress than going to a party?! We should totally go in!"]
["Yeah! Go ahead! I'm getting out of the car!" Peter sighed in resignation, finally making up his mind.]
[Aunt May called after him, "Peter! Have fun, okay?"]
["I will!" Peter nodded.]
[Ned waved goodbye. "Goodbye, May!"]
[The two entered the party together. Ned excitedly patted Peter on the back and asked, "Bro, did you bring the suit?"]
[Peter pulled up his sleeve slightly, revealing the Spider-suit underneath.]
["Tonight is gonna change everything!" Ned said, barely containing his excitement.]
"I just know they're gonna mess this up. Every time Peter makes a plan, something always goes sideways!" Rhodey frowned slightly. He had a bad feeling about this.
Tony leaned back in his chair, watching intently. "History repeats itself. Even the Second Generation Peter Parker got the nickname 'The Late Man' because of how many times he missed things."
"And now we have the Third Generation Spider-Man walking into a setup?" Rhodey shook his head. "If it happened twice before, it's bound to happen again."
"I hope things go smoothly for them. But I guess all we can do is watch, right?" Banner sighed.
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