Chapter 33: On The Way To The Museum

Weekend, early morning.

The school bus from Midtown High School was heading towards the Museum of Natural History in New York.

Peter sat by the window of the bus, his chin resting on his hand, gazing at the scenery flashing by outside the window.

If his memory served him right, today was the day Peter Parker became Spider-Man.

During a visit to the radiation science exhibit, he was bitten by a radioactive animal, transforming from a school bookworm into Spider-Man.

That was Peter Parker's journey to becoming Spider-Man.

"Tap!"

As he pondered, the glass window of the bus was tapped crisply.

A brightly colored butterfly landed on the bus window.

The butterfly's vibrant wings pressed tightly against the glass, revealing an eerie yet beautiful posture.

Peter placed his hand on his chest, watching the butterfly on the glass with a slight frown.

Butterfly wings?

It didn't seem like a good omen.

He hoped nothing unexpected would happen today.

And he hoped that his crossing into this world wouldn't cause major changes in the timeline.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Gwen, sitting to Peter's left, also noticed the butterfly on the window and leaned over to stare at it, saying to Peter.

Her injuries had healed almost completely, so she could leave the hospital to attend school activities.

"It's a Monarch butterfly."

As Gwen spoke, she placed her hand on the glass.

Her fingers aligned perfectly with the orange wings of the butterfly, and the white spots dotted on the wings sparkled in the sunlight.

"Have you heard of the butterfly effect, Peter?"

Gwen gazed at the Monarch butterfly outside and turned to ask Peter.

Peter hesitated for a moment, then nodded, "Yeah, I know."

Gwen, perhaps due to being cooped up in the hospital for too long, had more words than usual today.

"A butterfly flapping its wings in Brazil can cause a tornado in Texas."

Gwen moved her finger away from the glass and said, "I used to wonder if butterflies would continue to fly if they knew the destruction they could cause."

"I think they would."

Peter paused for a moment. "Unless you want to tie their wings, you can't stop them from flying."

Gwen was somewhat surprised to hear Peter say that.

She thought Peter would discuss the butterfly effect principle with her using scientific equations.

"Well, Peter, that sounds reasonable. My thoughts might be similar to yours. I even often fantasize about being a butterfly, only able to fly when the wind blows. But who knows, maybe we're all butterflies."

"Whoosh!"

As Gwen finished speaking, the Monarch butterfly on the bus window fluttered away.

Peter watched the butterfly fly away, shaking his head gently. "Or maybe, we're just specks of dust on its wings, insignificant."

Gwen: "..."

She reassessed Peter and came to a conclusion, "You seem different today, Peter."

"Do I?"

"I can vouch for that!"

Harry, sitting in the back, chimed in, raising his hand. "Today, Peter seems like a poet, whereas before he was a scientist."

Gwen looked at Harry with dissatisfaction, saying, "Harry, were you eavesdropping on our conversation?"

"No, that doesn't count as eavesdropping. Unless I cover my ears, sitting here I'll definitely hear your conversation."

Harry defended himself confidently, "Besides, we're friends, I thought we were open enough with each other."

"So."

Gwen gave Harry a displeased look, "Is that why you invited Peter to your house as a guest and didn't invite me?"

She had protested to Harry about inviting Peter's family to their house while she was stuck in the hospital.

Harry chuckled awkwardly and immediately withdrew.

"It's hard to imagine how many people from Midtown High School were involved, but all the media have collectively chosen to forget about this incident. It's been less than two weeks, and it seems like everyone has forgotten about it."

A voice rang out in the school bus compartment.

Peter turned around to see a blonde girl talking into her phone.

She seemed to be recording a video.

"She's Liz Allen, the president of the student council."

Gwen explained when she saw Peter looking at the girl.

"Hey, Gwen, can I interview you?"

As Gwen finished speaking, Liz approached with her phone, "Gwen Stacy was the last person to appear at the scene of the Nut Ship Massacre, she once fought against that spider monster. Hey, Gwen, say hi to everyone."

"Uh."

Gwen, feeling a bit bewildered, raised her hand instinctively.

But she quickly put it down and said to Liz, "What are you doing, Liz?"

"Just like you see, I'm making a video to expose the truth. I've been planning this episode for a long time, and it's bound to get a lot of likes."

Liz spoke with a sense of urgency, pressing her phone against Gwen's face.

"So, Gwen, can you tell me what happened that night? What did you do? "

She bombarded Gwen with many questions, leaving her feeling dizzy.

"I... I."

Gwen, feeling conflicted, had a headache, and she looked to Peter for help.

But to her surprise, Peter raised a book to cover his face, pretending to be reading.

Seeing Peter's behavior, Gwen felt puzzled.

So Peter was also a cunning guy!

"Sorry, I don't remember."

Unable to cope, Gwen could only use the excuse of not remembering.

"But someone saw you fighting the spider monster, you smashed the Nut Ship on his head. How did you do it?"

Liz persisted.

"I forgot."

"Such a thing is not easy to forget, maybe you can share with us your thoughts and feelings at the time."

"Are you a reporter, Liz?"

Gwen finally couldn't stand Liz's persistence and asked impatiently.

"No, I'm a video blogger. I make a themed video every week, but maybe being a reporter is a good idea, that'll have to wait until college."

Liz shrugged and turned to Peter beside her.

"Hey, Peter, you're Peter Parker, right?"

As she spoke, she thrust her phone in front of Peter's face.

"Peter, you were wrongly accused of killing Josh. What are your thoughts?"

Peter: "..."

He now felt that perhaps the most difficult superhero to deal with was not someone like Iron Man, but the reporter in front of him.

...