The Secrets We Keep | Peter Parker (1)

Prologue

Welcome to my first chapter!!

This'll probably be a bit shorter than the rest of my chapters, but hey, it is the prologue after all.

Anyways, I hope you lovelies enjoy🥰😁

I can remember that day vividly, and have since labelled it the worst day of my life.

It was summer, but it wasn't particularly warm; it was the end of the school year, but I didn't feel happy - or at least, I didn't when I finally reached my house.

At first, I was ecstatic that the school day had finally come to an end, and was thrilled by the idea of all the possible adventures my friends and I could go on during the summer. I remember waving goodbye to the two girls I had once called friends, whom of which I have long since lost contact with, and skipping down the street with as much enthusiasm as I could muster. I remember being so happy I could have sung.

But that was my mistake.

I had been too busy humming away to myself as I created and moulded out the perfect scenarios of my adventures in my head, to notice them lurking around the corner. They were always lurking.

Some called them Jessica and Scarlett and Danielle, but to me, they all just fell under one name.
Bullies.

Scarlett had stuck out her foot so blatantly, that in hindsight, I felt stupid for not noticing it sooner. And when I did, I had already tripped and was tumbling to the ground.

I remember how my bag was torn from my back, and the zip was ripped open to reveal the schoolwork I was so proudly bringing home to show my mother. I remember how Danielle snatched the work and waved it in my face as she cackled, commenting on how rubbish my drawings were. I remember how Jessica's foot harshly stamped down on my back to prevent me from climbing back to my feet. I remember how Danielle ripped the picture in half, then quarters, then eighths, until it was nothing but tatters.

Then I remember how the power inside me swelled and hissed and begged to be used, prickling my fingertips and buzzing in my head. I could feel my eyes darken into pools of ink. I remember my sudden panic at my secret being exposed, and how I struggled against Jessica's foot. Eventually shoving her off me, I scrambled to my feet and didn't even bother to snatch my things back before I turned tail and ran. All I wanted at that moment was to get home as soon as possible, where I could reign the darkness back in safely, without the risk of hurting anyone.

But, of course, they caught up. I was only young, and certainly wasn't the fittest, despite my mother's best wishes.

At first, they yanked at my hair, then tugged on my shoulders, and when I stumbled to a stop, they shoved me against the wall of the alleyway. The three girls sneered and snarled and laughed viciously as I struggled.

"Where's your daddy now, Wilde?" Scarlett had taunted.

That was when all hell broke loose.

A flare of anger, and the power in my body that I had fought so hard to regain even the slightest control over, surged like a tsunami through my veins, and there was nothing I could do but stand and watch as thick, black darkness erupted from my body. It threw the three girls back into the opposite wall so easily, it was like they were mere ragdolls. The shadows crawled and smothered the entirety of the alleyway, shattering the glass of the streetlights and choking the bullies before me.

And yet, to me, that outburst of power felt more like a gentle release, and I think that was what scared me the most. How could such a dangerous form of power cause so much damage, and yet feel so comforting at the same time?

I remember whimpering as the darkness slithered through my body, eager to perform my every bid - but that was the problem. I wasn't willing it do anything but stop.
It hissed and snarled in my ears, and overpowered my weak control until there was nothing I could do but watch as it pervaded my surroundings with pitch black shadows.

I knew why it was happening; I had attempted to keep my power bottled up for the past few days, wanting nothing more than to bury the darkness deep inside me and never see it again. But as a result, the pressure had only built, and now, it had broken free like water from a dam.

Somewhere behind me, a high-pitched squeal reverberated down the alleyway, and it was only when I heard a slam that I realised that it had been the sound of car tires screeching to a halt. Footsteps thundered towards me, and a new wave of terror flooded through me.

What if I hurt them? What if they were here to hurt me, to take me away?

"Freya!" A woman called out breathlessly, and I would've sagged with relief had the darkness released me.

Mum, I tried to speak, but all that escaped my lips were grunts and whimpers, I can't stop it.

Her arms had enveloped my body, clinging to me like I was the only thing left in the world. The power erupting from my hands faltered when I felt warm tears soak through my school uniform as my mum buried her head into my shoulder, whispering words of comfort and stroking my hair.

She was my anchor. In all this darkness, she was my lighthouse. In this torrential storm, she was my harbour.

Gritting my teeth, I had gathered any remaining strength I could find and focused all my energy on my mother; still holding me, still with me. In that moment, I remember her arms squeezed a fraction tighter and I had found myself breathing more slowly, my body melting into my mum's as every muscle lost its tension to the fresh summer breeze. The pervasive shadows that had smothered the surrounding alley shuddered and thinned, slinking back towards me with a sense of resignation, until finally, the sunlight once again illuminated the pavement with its honey-golden glow.

"Shh, shh, it's ok." My mum hushed, cradling my exhausted body in her arms, "You're alright, you're safe."

But she was wrong.
I was not - and never would be - safe. 

Dun, dun, duuuuuuun 😱
(Sorry, thought I was cool there)

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this shit prologue😅😂

See you in the first chapter!!❤️