*long chapter so grab ya snacks
words: 4.1k

⌜     ━ ꒰🕷꒱ ꒷꒦ ༘°⁣ ᝰ   ⌝
𝚝𝚑𝚎              𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚜𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜
𝑎 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦 𝑔𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑤𝑟𝑜𝑛𝑔
𝗯𝘆          :           -𝘀𝗲𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻
⌞     ━ ꒰🕷꒱ ꒷꒦ ༘°⁣ ᝰ   ⌟

𝓜AY rushed in the apartment door the following week, two envelopes tightly clasped in her fingers. "Guys! They're here! First ones!"

The couple's heads perked up, scrambling to jump up from the couch they lounged on.

Their film Cherry, and the homework they were doing were long forgotten.

Peter snatched his with his web-slinger, scaring May accidentally. Lucy walked up, thanking her kindly and plucking the envelope away.

Both ripping them open, the room became quiet.

May watched with bated breath, holding onto the silent air with a hopeful smile. Her eyes wrinkled beneath the round glasses she wore.

Peter was the first to look up and away, his face blank.

When Lucy pulled the letter away, she frowned, pursing her lips and shaking her head. Her voice was soft with slight pain, "No."

Standing up from the kitchen chair, he ambled over to give Lucy a gentle hug. "It's okay. It's only a back up school. Remember they're coming in backwards. This is the first one, one more before MIT comes in. Chin up, yeah?"

May smiled warmly at the two, approaching them. "You guys are lucky to have one another during this time and lean on each other. Remember, it's their loss anyway. MIT's the big one!"

The two watched her stride away, going to the dryer to pull out a jacket she washed. "Since it's Saturday, I'm gonna go run some errands. We're running low on food and some other things. You guys need anything?"

Lucy and Peter shook no, settling back down on the couch, envelopes discarded on the glass kitchen table.

May left minutes later, leaving them alone again, "Remember to call if you need anything! I'll be home around dinner so I'll bring home a pizza for us and Happy when he comes home from work."

Peter turned down the movie, turning to her, "Were you hoping to get into this school? Or you just upset cause you didn't get in."

She shrugged, suddenly feeling malaise towards this interaction, fidgeting with her sweater cuffs, "I don't know. Just hoping, I guess." He watched her sigh through the nose, leaning back to slump on the couch. "I feel lazy."

"Two more are coming," Peter grabbed her knee, pressing his fingers over it securely, "Gotta think positive. Remember first is the worst, second is the...?"

Lucy squinted, sticking out her bottom lip with a shake, "I don't know if that saying exactly applied here though. And also, don't you remember how it ended?"

He frowned, turning his eyes away. "Oh, right." Peter shook his head, clapping to change the subject, "Well...still can't get too upset over it. IT is the goal."

She stared at him, sensing he was more so telling himself that. Which, was fine in her opinion. Peter was more enthusiastic to enrol and go to post-secondary education more than any of them. She wasn't surprised.

Laying her hand on his, the two turned to the movie. Her body shifted horizontally, tucking her legs onto his lap.

"Do you want to go for rounds later?" Peter asked a few minutes later, not turning from the screen.

"Sure, I could use some fresh air." Lucy nodded, adjusting her legs on his lap.

Right now, going on rounds had a different meaning than before. It was mostly just the two swinging around New York to either waste time, or get away from the public's jaws. For Lucy, it made the imaginary rope around her neck just a little bit looser; a little easier to breathe and manage. You could call it therapeutic.

𝓐 few hours later, Peter walked up to Lucy, staring down at his phone. "Ned wants to hang out for a bit. That okay?"

Lucy turned from the counter, preparing to make herself a frozen burrito to eat. "Yeah, hon. You know you don't have to ask." She chuckled lightly, reaching out to graze his chin with her fingertips.

Peter's head turned up, smiling warmly at her. "Okay, just wondering."

Lucy noticed he was already dressed to go, only missing his jacket. "Going by air or by street?"

"Air, of course." He huffed lightly, leaning into her space to wrap his arms around her torso. "Just hope I don't run into any helicopters. They mess with the webs. You gonna go to the gym again for more strength training?"

"Yeah, they kinda cancelled my membership. Had something to do with the fact that apparently we're criminals."

He laughed as she held up her fingers, air-quoting the last word.

"So...Now I get to be a hermit and sulk around the apartment even more." She said sarcastically-happy. Her arms snaked up and around his neck, holding him close.

Peter's eyes hooded as he stared down at her. Tilting his head away, he smirked slyly, "Good cause you're starting to catch up to my strength level."

Lucy threw a mocking snark at him, pointing a finger in his face, "Okay, first off; no fucking way cause you are enhanced, bug boy. It's obvious you're just saying that to make me feel better."

"Bug boy—?" Peter squinted with a playful scoff.

"Secondly, playing along...you're just getting jealous that I can take down just as much now."

"I'm actually glad. Cause, that means you can do all the work now... Since I always pick up after you anyway..." Peter quipped at Lucy, diving away from her.

Lucy gasped loudly with a laugh, rushing after him to smack his arm. "You bitch!"

"You would let me get injured or die for your personal benefit?" She called out after him, passing her phone on the countertop before chasing after him.

Peter paused his running, twisting around to stare her in the eye. Lucy paused where she was as well, giggling.

"Oh, one hundred percent. If someone came through that door right now, I would throw you at them to save myself."

She shrieked with a laugh, running faster towards him. Peter jumped up the stairs, running up every other step deftly. Lucy was close behind him, just as swift.

When she reached the upper floor, she spotted Peter sicking to the wall, up and away from her in one of the corners.

She pouted, throwing a hand towards him, "No fair, you're just a bug on the wall."

Turning, she descended back down.

Peter jumped down, chasing after her now. He exaggerated his words, trying to abate her stubborn mood. "Come back, baby."

"Go hang out with Ned and your Legos. I'll be here waiting for the next bad guy to come through and take me on first since I'm obviously more stronger than your enhanced muscles."

Her sarcasm was heavy, angling her head down to stare at Peter throw her lashes.

"You're the best." He grinned, leaning in to kiss Lucy's cheek. His lips were warm. She remained still, trying to appear impassive towards his blithe behaviour. "Text me if you need anything, okay? And make sure to keep the balcony unlocked. Love you, baby."

Lucy relaxed, watching him grab his jacket from the chair before heading out to the glass doors.

Peter turned, blowing her a kiss as he jumped away.

Happy's home was quiet once more. She preferred it this way. Looking around, she ambled towards her room. Gravitating towards her Spider-Girl suit, eyeing it hesitantly.

No one was around. Perfect time. Now or never..?

With a wave of anxiety that made her stomach flutter, she bent for the fabric, holding it by the spider emblem. Reaching down, she slowly undid the web shooters, wearing them separate like Peter sometimes did.

Slipping them on, she changed into a large forest green sweater and black sweatpants. After tying her hair in a low ponytail, she shoved her earbuds in for the lengthy trip. She fed the wire down her sweater, connecting it to her phone.

Sliding the phone into her pocket, she zipped it almost shut.

Grabbing her mask only, Lucy slid it over her head. Lucy pulled the large hood over, adding extra warmth and less identification. Tying on her sneakers, she climbed out to the fire escape.

When she was halfway out, Lucy suddenly stopped and turned, webbing her empty backpack before pulling it towards herself.

The railing was cold against her palms as she stretched over it to watch around the city. It was finally nice to be outside, and not pointed at for once. A smile stretched under the polyester.

Slipping the bag on, Lucy threw a foot on the metal bar to jump off. The November air felt pleasant as a little passed through and brushed over her face.

Lucy tipped. Her baggy clothing flapped against the wind, tickling her chilled skin. As she plummeted faster towards the pavement, her wrist stuck out, firing a web that stuck to the nearest building.

With her weight, she glided down and up for a long swing, moving towards her actual apartment building.

          𝓐BOUT an hour and a half later, she landed on the fire escape outside her room. After pulling the window open by the glass, Lucy dived in and collapsed onto the carpet.

It was pleasantly quiet again. No angry protestors outside. No honking horns. No bricks being thrown. Just...herself.

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Fishing it from her pocket, Lucy disconnected her earbuds and unlocked her phone. It was Peter checking in.

After lying that she was watching another movie, Lucy pulled off her mask, revealing her frizzed hair. She should wear her suit under her clothes more often. She liked the combo.

Lucy groaned, standing and wandering to the kitchen. Opening one of the cabinets, her hand found the forgotten Fritos that were half eaten.

She threw two chips in her mouth, chewing and cringing to find out they had gone stale. Lucy silently noted to herself that when her and her mother came back, they had to go shopping for everything again.

As Lucy gazed around her home, she gnawed at her lip in thought. Man I can't wait till this is all over...

Peter texted her again, informing Lucy that he would be coming back soon-ish. For Peter's time, that meant between one to three hours.

It sent another flutter of anxiety through her stomach, causing her to flee to her room.

With bated breath, Lucy bent down, pulling back her blanket. Underneath her bed was that plastic container. A sigh of relief escaped, causing her body to deflate.

She slid it out with more force than she meant, taking off the lid and digging her hand in. Opening her bag, Lucy tossed everything in. With long strides, she moved for her mother's room, finding the box of medicine and ingredients her mother kept.

Since her mom was away, and no one could stop her, she opened the box that was stored in Allison's closet. Her fingers searched the various bottles and valves. Snake oil, snake venom. Spider venom, spider DNA extracted from webbing, essential oils...

Biting her lip, she backed away and returned to her room. Retying her laces tight, Lucy played another song on her phone for the way back.

Lucy would've liked to stay longer, starting to already feel homesick from the short stay. The travel back was going to take another hour and a half, and she couldn't risk Peter walking into an empty place.

          𝓛UCY'S knees buckled when she landed, softening her fall and saving her joints from the extra pain. As soon as she recovered, her back was to the wall and away from the door. Although she didn't get a text from Peter for anything, she didn't risk wanting to be potentially seen.

Couldn't be too careful these days, judging by the televisions.

Craning her head to peek, Lucy cupped a hand over her eye to see inside.

Nobody was in sight luckily. She quickly entered the house, running for room with a racing heart.

Lucy unintentionally slammed her door shut, placing her bag down before and flopping on the bed. She was panting, from the shot of adrenaline. Taking a few deep breaths to regulate, Lucy returned her mask back with her suit and changed back into what she was wearing before.

Pulling out her serum container, Lucy skimmed the notes for the last time. She was determined it complete it here and now.

All the various ingredients were listed with their respective compounds. It just felt right to add one more thing. She just had to find the one that would fit in the equation like that one missing piece they needed to find.

Perhaps something that was from Peter's web fluid solution? That could be part of what makes a Spider-Man Spider-Man. Pulling out her phone, she went to her Google Docs to recall past chemistry notes from previous grades and past classmates.

After scrolling through a few pages, she switched to the internet. For fun, she typed in super serum recipe.

It was technically a watered down version of Steve's special juice.

Lucy stilled on her bed, letting the thought settle with herself. Was she seriously trying to recreate a cheaper version of Erskine's serum? She didn't know if she felt like she was flattering the scientist or ripping him off.

Cringing at herself, Lucy pushed on with the formula. There were Reddit pages and Twitter feeds of people trying to put together their own batch of ingredients, but Lucy didn't feel any of them would match in with her own.

What would be the find thing missing from hers? Trace it.

Lucy's eyes turned down, pulling her head with. The pen she held dragged over the compounds.

She covered one for strength amplification, agility, enhanced health and healing, perfect equilibrium, muscle enhancement, slight bone flexibility, perfect stamina, sharper reflexes...

Rubbing her chin, she asked herself what Peter had, that she wanted. Lucy didn't believe she could create her own spider sense recipe though, even if she tried. So that was off the list.

The only areas she didn't mention was healing and...wall adhesion? Could she be able to pull that off? Lucy's face blanked, deciding to include both and see what would happen.

Her pen scribbled quickly, writing down two more potential ingredients. Twisting the pen around between her fingers, she slid it behind her ear.

Essential oils helped with wound healing, and the compounds in her developing serum would probably enhance those properties. And, by adding the spider DNA, it would adsorb into her own. Would that be enough?

With a shrug and a soft fuck it, Lucy wandered to Happy's bathroom, bringing her last ingredients for the serum along with individual syringes.

The teen didn't waste anymore time, combining the remaining item to her serum. In reaction, it fizzed for two seconds, neutralizing right after.

The balcony door slid open and close in the next room, causing Lucy to scrabble. Trying to be as quiet as she could, she slipped from the washroom to her room. Clicking the door shut, she sputtered on where to put the bottles and needles she held.

"Lucy? You changing in there?" Peter's voice called out curiously. Lucy tripped over an article of clothing that was discarded on the door, causing her to nearly hit the door.

Dumping everything onto her bedside table, Lucy held onto her serum and her last serial syringe. Her hands shoved them into her sweater pocket.

Lucy glanced at the door's gap at the bottom, watching as his foot shadows appeared. His voice was right outside, "May I come in?"

Without answering him, her arm shot forward to turn the handle and open the door. She leaned on the frame, over-characteristically, "What's...going on, Peter? How was hanging with Ned?"

Peter frowned for a moment before it shifted into a hesitant smirk. He tried to look inside her room. "It was good. Luckily no one recognized me; Ned gave me a hat to wear. Whatcha doing?"

She sucked in her bottom lip, staring at him for a moment. Lying wasn't her strong suit. Especially when staring into his innocent eyes. Tightly smiling, she touched a hand to his chest, picking off a stray hair that was on his sweater.

When defeat overcame her, she sighed and moved away from her door. Pulling out the, she presented it to him. "I've been working on this. For a while now. And, I haven't told you about it until now. I think it's time."

Peter remained silent, examining the ampoule and its liquid contents. He turned towards the living room's windows, lifting the bottle to stare at it with light behind. "What is this? There's no label. And, time for what?"

Lucy forced down her sudden adrenaline, grabbing the bottle back when Peter offered. "It's...a serum. They're not that easy to create, actually. So big kudos to Abraham. Lots of research."

Although she tried to joke the situation off, Peter didn't react, which only made her nervousness worse as the moment continued on. With subtle movements, she unwrapped the syringe.

Peter watched her, still trying to not overreact, "A serum for...what?"

Turning the bottle over to extract the liquid, he suddenly grabbed Lucy's wrist, stopping her from even removing the needle's cap, "Lucy, stop. I'm serious. A serum for what?"

She turned her hand sharply, releasing from his grasp. "A serum of an enhancement."

Avoiding, her best way to cope currently it seemed. Moving past Peter, she slipped towards the kitchen, passing through the living room.

Peter frowned, suddenly jutting his head back as if ashamed, "Wait, don't tell me you tried to make a Spider-Man Serum?"

Lucy froze in her spot, back turned towards him. She delicately turned around, lifting her gaze to him, "Kinda."

He followed her into the kitchen, watching her get a glass of water. He didn't know how to react. Now Peter's thoughts were spiralling in the moment. This foremost came as a shock to him.

Was this a good thing? Didn't exactly feel like that way to him. But...his spider sense wasn't reacting to this, so maybe this wasn't a bad thing after all. He trusted Lucy with his life, so he knew she wasn't intentionally doing this to hurt him physically or emotionally.

Lucy drank half of the iced water she filled, lowering the glass to the marble countertop. "It's just, the whole Europe trip kinda gave me a big scare. Obviously Thanos did before Quentin, but still. It was a bit of a wake up call that you can only go so far in this hero business without having some sort of advantage. Whether it's fancy tech like Tony and T'Challa, or powers like almost everyone else..."

"Yeah, but you being you, and still being able to accomplish what you have is fucking impressive, Lucy." Peter sternly replied, the thought of her injecting it into herself making him ill.

She took a deep breath, gradually calming her nerves. "Yes, I get that. But now that everything's out, and our futures are going to get a lot more difficult, this is a good thing so I'm on par with you! And the future bad guys we'll take on together!"

Lucy shouldered past him, moving around the apartment, just to at least gain some room to breathe.

"Lucy, this is crazy. I'm not gonna let you do this!" Peter cried, stepping around with her. She continued to ignore him, gazing around to avoid eye contact, guiltily.

"I know I got everything right, Peter, I do. You have to trust me on this. I've been thinking this up ever since you came back from Germany," She suddenly exclaimed, halting her pacing.

He nearly bumped into her but shot her a glare.

When Lucy shifted to walk away again, he tightly grabbed her arm. "NO!"

"Peter, you're hurting me." She whimpered, trying to wiggle her wrist.

A flash of worry passed through his eyes and he slowly loosened his grip until she slipped away from him.

She stepped back.

"Please. Just let me do this. Now that our names and faces are plastered on every billboard and news site, every single second of the day, I deserve a new chance at this; a better chance!" Lucy tried to reason with her boyfriend. When Peter opened his mouth to retaliate, she shot up a finger, silencing him.

"You remember what happened in Europe, right? Which was basically one month ago. One! I was barely walking on one leg by the end of the trip! My ribs still hurt. So, now that I've figured out how your DNA changed from that spider bite, I can truly become Spider-Girl and stop worrying if I won't be able to save someone!"

Peter's shoulders sank with her words. He rubbed his tired eyes. May was going to be home soon.

"Lucy, I get what you're trying to say. But, it's okay to not have powers. It's okay to be normal—"

"I get that too Peter, I do! I really, really do." There was desperation in her voice as Lucy held out a hand to keep her distance. The outline of the bottle and needle bounced in her sweater pocket.

"But, I'm tired of being normal. Think of it this way; Tony was normal, yet he had a suit of armour. Natasha was normal, but she had martial arts under her belt. Sam is normal and he was a suit with wings. Hell, even Steve was normal until he had the serum injected into him. I'm just being like Steve!"

"But, you're not Steve!" Peter yelled finally, making her flinch back. "You're not Tony, not Natasha, not Sam...you're not any other superhero that's normal. You're Lucy, and I love you for you. I don't know why you don't see that. You're gonna get yourself killed if you inject that shit into yourself. Where did you get that stuff anyway?"

"I've been sneaking some stuff from chem every so often, and plus my mom used to volunteer at the science exhibit," Lucy swallowed when her throat suddenly went dry and closed up. "Where...where you..."

Peter could see the struggle in her words, not being able to finish the sentence herself. So, he did for her. "Where I got bit."

She could only nod. "I asked my mom to snag some stuff. It was risky, but I told her it would help with the web fluid...I'm not proud of lying to her."

"Look, May's gonna be home soon and I'm still not gonna let you do this to yourself—" Peter sighed to himself, outstretching his wrist. Lucy's eyes snapped down, catching his web-shooters.

Sucking in a breath, she waved her arm around, avoiding the web he fired at her.

The couple froze in unison, shocked at one another.

Peter shot another, missing again from her quick reaction. "Lucy," he huffed in annoyance, making a move for her.

"Holy shit," She gasped audibly before ducking under Peter's arm. She turned on her heel, sharply shoving him further into her own room before shutting the door behind her. With only a few seconds to spare, she dove into the bathroom that was adjacent.

Just as Lucy slammed the door shut and locked it, she heard Peter open her bedroom door. "Lucy! Get out of there now!"

Ignoring his demands, Lucy slowly slid down the wooden door. Peter's fists banged against the door, causing her to wince before crawling away. She sat in front of the tub, leaning against it.

"Luce, please." Peter's voice suddenly broke. "I can't risk losing you."

"You won't, Peter." Lucy replied with the most even tone she could muster.

Reaching into her sweater pocket, Lucy pulled out the needle, popping off the cap. Turning the ampoule over, she stuck it through the rubber valve, filling half of the barrel.

Shoving up one sleeve to her sweater, her other hand hovered the syringe's tip over a prominent vein in the crook of her elbow. "But if we're gonna continue doing this, it has to be...right."

"Lucy—don't!" Peter suddenly cried behind the locked door. His body slammed against the wood, making it rattle loudly.

Of course he could break the door down if he absolutely needed to, but he didn't want to destroy Happy's home.

Lucy winced as the needle broke her skin, and she watched the serum flow down into her veins. Her face cringe, pushing the plunger all the way in.

Tossing away the empty syringe, Lucy's head leaned back as her eyes slowly shut.

• ₊°✧︡ ˗ ˏ ˋ ♡ ˎˊ ˗  𝒂𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓'𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒆 ⸻

this was a long boi
also i'm not good with scientific
terms/writing so let's just all say lucy
is a smart person and did all this "off
camera" research and experimenting
to recreate her serum?

k? k ◡̈