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It was sometime past the halfway point of the holiday. The weather today was just perfect—not too hot, not too cold—just that kind of pleasant temperature that makes you want to get outside. Even Jasper, who had been cooped up at home for a few days, finally felt like going out for a walk thanks to the beautiful weather.
There were a lot of people out and about. Jasper saw quite a few.
He even saw a young couple full-on making out on the street.Jeez… that was kind of outrageous.
Jasper quickly looked away. This reminded him of something he'd seen not too long ago, also right out in public like this.
Come on, can't they at least care a little about how it looks?
Jasper hurried away. As he passed a few girls chatting nearby, he overheard them gossiping about the couple—apparently, they did something even wilder than just kissing.
But none of that had anything to do with him.
Jasper walked into a nearby smoothie shop, ordered a drink, and sat down quietly in the corner to enjoy it.
Because of his good looks, he drew quite a few stares.
That's when a bold girl walked up to him.
"Hey~! Mind if I sit here?" she asked with big fluttering eyes, practically spilling out of her top in an obvious attempt to seduce him.
"Sure." Jasper looked at her but didn't say much. Still, her actions made it clear—this girl was a player. Definitely not the first time she'd tried to flirt like this. She was way too practiced at it.
Jasper didn't exactly dislike girls like her—but he didn't like them either.
Anyway, it wasn't really his place to judge. He just needed to handle himself properly.
"Wanna grab a meal together sometime?" the girl asked bluntly.
She was pretty confident. Usually, a little teasing from her and guys would fall over themselves for her.
The guy in front of her might be good-looking, but she wasn't exactly unattractive either. She figured she had this in the bag.
"Sorry, I've got plans later," Jasper replied casually. He could tell what she was thinking, but honestly, he just wasn't interested.
Besides, what if this girl had tried the same thing on someone else five minutes ago? That thought alone made him a little grossed out.
Of course, Jasper didn't show any of that on his face.
"Oh, I see..." The girl was about to say something more.
But Jasper didn't let her finish. He stood up and said, "Nice chatting with you, but I gotta go."
Outside the smoothie shop, a stunning woman in a black dress was standing there silently—Spider-Shadow. No one had even noticed when she showed up.
The girl watched as Jasper met up with the mysterious woman, and the two of them walked off hand in hand.
So he had a girlfriend, huh? No wonder he didn't fall for it. And dang, she was gorgeous too.
"Ahhh~ It feels so nice being close to you," Jasper sighed. Spider-Shadow's cool skin was like natural air conditioning.
It felt like standing next to a block of ice, and Jasper loved that feeling.
"I'm going to the library," Spider-Shadow said flatly.
Jasper nodded and replied, "Go ahead. I'll just wander around a bit."
With that, she walked away.
Seeing her head off to the library, Jasper continued his aimless stroll.
A few minutes later, he saw Peter Parker get smacked out of the sky.
Jasper: "…"
Honestly, not even surprised anymore. This wasn't the first time he'd seen Peter get knocked around.
Suddenly, a powerful shockwave blasted toward Peter—strong enough to punch through a car. It was aimed straight at Spider-Man and looked like it could rip him apart.
But Spidey dodged it with his usual nimble agility. Then, from the shadows, Jasper spotted a masked man step out, carrying a big sack slung over one shoulder and wielding a bazooka-looking device.
A few bills fell out of the sack. Clearly, the guy had just robbed someone, and then Spider-Man showed up, leading to the fight.
"Come on, then!!" the guy shouted as he fired his weapon wildly at Spidey, the barrage making it hard for him to get close.
Man, what a mess. Jasper shot a web into the shadow beneath the man's feet.
A second later, a strand of web sprang up from under the guy, wrapping tightly around his arm.
The man looked confused, but before he could tear it off, Spider-Man wasn't about to let him off the hook.
Swinging over, Spidey landed a solid kick to the guy's face and knocked him out cold.
Spider-Man looked over at Jasper not far away—clearly grateful for the assist.
A few moments later, Spidey left.
Jasper walked off too, heading to a quieter spot before climbing up to a rooftop.
In no time, he reached the top. Spider-Man was already there, chomping on a burger. When he saw Jasper, he waved and said, "Wanna bite?"
Jasper shook his head. "Nah, I'm good. That hit you took earlier—are you okay?"
Peter lifted his shirt, revealing a massive bruise across his chest.
"Hurts a bit, but I'll be fine by tomorrow," he said with a grin.
"Oh." Jasper didn't say anything else. Peter Parker was genuinely a good guy—the kind of person who made you believe in heroes. Spider-Man had already saved a ton of people in the city. He'd become their hero.
Peter pointed to a woman down below and said, "She used to be really mean. Always yelling at homeless people. But after I saved her not long ago, she's changed. She even gives away her old stuff to the homeless now. Makes me really happy. It's stuff like this that keeps me going as Spider-Man."
Jasper looked down at the woman handing out bread to homeless folks. Even from a distance, he could make her out clearly.
He remembered her—he'd seen her on his way home from school once, yelling at a homeless guy. That's why she'd stuck in his memory.
"Keep it up, hero," Jasper said, giving Spider-Man a pat on the shoulder.
Spider-Man smiled.
The two of them hung out for a while, chatting. Peter mentioned he'd just finished all his holiday homework.
Of course, Jasper's homework had been taken care of too—thanks to Peter. That made Jasper pretty happy.
He gave Peter a pat and said, "Next time, I'm treating you to a fancy meal."
Peter grinned.
Just then, a police siren blared from below.
Peter stood up and said, "Duty calls!"
"Later, Officer Spider-Man!" Jasper teased.
Peter leapt off and disappeared into the city.
Jasper was about to leave too when someone appeared—Black Widow.
She looked at him and said, "What a coincidence~"
Jasper glanced at her and replied, "What do you want?"
Black Widow got straight to the point—they needed Jasper's help. Hulk had gotten loose again, and they needed someone who could handle him. Since Jasper had beaten the Hulk before (along with Spider-Man), they came looking for him.
"What's that got to do with me?" Jasper said as he jumped off the rooftop.
The Hulk just wanted a peaceful life. As long as no one messed with him, there wouldn't be any problems. So why should Jasper go looking for a fight?
It's not like he was crazy.
"....."